RTHK: 2,300 flights axed as Omicron hits holiday travel More than 2,300 flights were cancelled around the world on Friday and thousands more were delayed as the highly infectious Omicron variant disrupted holiday travel. One route, however, was thankfully not affected: Santa was on track delivering presents to children across the globe, air defense officials assured US President Joe Biden. According to tracking website Flightaware.com a total of 2,325 flights had been cancelled worldwide on Friday, including 616 flights originating from or headed to US airports, and more than 8,000 delayed. Over 1,400 cancellations were announced for Saturday, Christmas Day, the site reported. Pilots, flight attendants and other staff have been calling in sick or having to quarantine after exposure to Covid, forcing Lufthansa, Delta, United Airlines and many other carriers to cancel flights during one of the year's peak travel periods. According to Flightaware, United cancelled more than 185 flights on Friday, or 10 percent of those that were scheduled. "The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation," United said in a statement. Similarly, Delta cancelled at least 166 flights, saying it has "exhausted all options and resources including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying". The cancellations added to the pandemic frustration for many Americans eager to reunite with their families over the holidays, after last year's Christmas was severely curtailed. According to estimates from the American Automobile Association, more than 109 million Americans were scheduled to travel by plane, train or automobile between December 23 and January 2, a 34 percent increase since last year. But most of those plans were made before the outbreak of the Omicron variant, which has become the dominant strain in the United States, overwhelming some hospitals and healthcare workers. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2021-12-24. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Hong Kong: Alfred Sit visits health code posts Secretary for Innovation & Technology Alfred Sit today visited mobile support stations set up at Mass Transit Railway stations to ascertain how government outreach teams are assisting citizens to apply for the Hong Kong Health Code. The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) has arranged such teams at various MTR stations daily from 9am to 6pm to help those in need of registering for a Hong Kong Health Code account as well as downloading or updating the LeaveHomeSafe mobile app. Mr Sit toured the mobile support stations at the MTR stations in Tai Po Market, Ngau Tau Kok and North Point where he sought people's views on the outreach service. "We understand some members of the public are not very familiar with digital technologies and may need support from others and learn the skills, Mr Sit said. Various bureaus and departments are working on it and have solicited community support to foster the Hong Kong spirit of mutual care and assistance in fighting the virus together," he added. The Home Affairs Bureau had earlier invited the OGCIO to hold briefings for district and clansman associations in addition to six charity groups on the operation of the Hong Kong Health Code system. The Home Affairs Department also distributed publicity leaflets to encourage citizens to register for a Hong Kong Health Code account. The other MTR stations in which mobile support stations have been established are Siu Hong, Tung Chung, Tsing Yi, Kwai Fong, Kai Tak, Tiu Keng Leng and Wong Chuk Hang. The number of mobile support stations will be increased to cover 25 MTR stations in the next phase, with 15 starting services in early January. They will be set up at the MTR stations in Long Ping, Sheung Shui, Wu Kai Sha, Tai Wai, Tsuen Wan West, Nam Cheong, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Prince Edward, Kowloon Tong, Wong Tai Sin, Ho Man Tin, Sai Ying Pun, Wan Chai and Shau Kei Wan. This story has been published on: 2021-12-25. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Hong Kong: CSD organises Christmas activities The Correctional Services Department announced that it made arrangements today for people in custody to attend Christmas activities during the festive period. Catholic Bishop of Hong Kong Stephen Chow presided at a Christmas mass in Stanley Prison to share his faith and Christmas blessings with inmates. He also toured the prison hospital to convey his concern and support for patients. On December 23, Archbishop of Hong Kong Andrew Chan presided at a Christmas service at Pak Sha Wan Correctional Institution. He also visited patients in the prison hospital to show them his love and care. Through the correctional services chaplain, voluntary chaplains and visitors from religious organisations, a wide range of spiritual and social services are offered to those in custody who wish to participate regardless of their religious affiliation, the department said. The services include visits, teaching, counselling, religious worship and recreational activities, it added. This story has been published on: 2021-12-25. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. RTHK: Queen pays tribute to Philip in Christmas message Queen Elizabeth II paid a touching tribute to her late husband Prince Philip in her Christmas Day message as she marked the holiday with a family gathering. In the unusually personal message, the 95-year-old monarch said that she and her family were missing the Duke of Edinburgh, who died at 99 in April. Wearing a red dress and pearls, the Queen spoke while sitting at a table with a single photograph of her with Philip, taken in 2007 for their 60th wedding anniversary. "Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones. This year especially I understand why," said the Queen, who was married for 73 years. Symbolically, her outfit includes a sapphire brooch she wore on her honeymoon and at their diamond wedding anniversary. Buckingham Palace this week announced a memorial service would be held for Philip at Westminster Abbey in the spring, after only 30 people could attend his funeral due to social distancing rules and the Queen sat alone in a pew. The Queen reminisced fondly about the prince, saying his "sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation were all irrepressible". The royal family will be celebrating Christmas with "one familiar laugh missing this year," she said. But "as much as I and my family miss him, I know he would want us to enjoy Christmas". She also acknowledged the impact of the virus, saying that this year "Covid again means we can't celebrate quite as we would have wished". The Queen cancelled her usual trip to her Sandringham estate in eastern England as a precautionary measure, instead staying at Windsor Castle west of London. She also decided against attending the traditional Christmas Morning service at the castle's St George's Chapel, though the rest of the family were present. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2021-12-25. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Thousands of tonnes of jackfruits sold off at border gate Thousands of tonnes of Vietnamese jackfruits have been sold off at a border gate in the northern province of Lang Son due to the slow customs clearance to China. These days thousands of container trucks carrying Vietnamese farm produce, including jack fruits, for being exported to China have been stranded at Huu Nghi Border Gate. As a result, a large amount of jack fruit is nearing the expiry date. So, many truck drivers have decided to sell the fruits right near the border gate. Nguyen Van Than, who transported 20 tonnes of jackfruits from Tien Giang Province, said that he had waited for the customs clearance for nearly two weeks, but had not yet been served. Meanwhile, the jackfruits were nearing expiry. "Im not sure when my customs clearance procedures can be finished, Than worried. Van Phu Quynh, an assistant driver on a truck carrying jackfruits to Huu Nghi Border Gate, said that many tonnes of dragon fruits had spoiled because of the sluggish customs clearance. Nearly 5,000 container trucks of fruits are stuck at Huu Nghi Border Gate. If the drivers have to wait for one more week, more fruits would be affected. Piles of jackfruits are being offered for sale at just VND7,000 per kilo at Cao Loc Market which is 10 kilometres from Huu Nghi Border Gate. According to Nguyen Van Hung, a local resident, jackfruit prices are now equal to just a third of previous levels. He bought some to support sellers. Nguyen Thi Huyen, a trader in Cao Loc, has halted her business for around one week to help drivers sell their jackfruits. FDI forecast to recover in 2022 A recovery in the global investment flow will open up a bright future for Vietnams investment attraction, according to experts. FDI registered in Vietnam reached US$26.46 billion as of November 20 Nguyen Anh Duong, director of the general research department under the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), said that the fact that Vietnam was among countries with a positive economic outlook in 2022 and recovery momentum in the Asian production network would make an important contribution to accelerating foreign investment. Thargbodee Serng Adichaiwit, deputy chair of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that Vietnams economic growth could double in 2022 compared to this year, thus making Thai investors pour more capital into the country going forward. Many Thai businesses want to invest in Vietnam when the pandemic is under better control. They have faith in Vietnam due to its large consumer market and commitments to improve its business climate, according to the Thai businessman. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam reached US$26.46 billion as of November 20, up 0.1 per cent year on year, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Total additional registered capital stood at over US$8 billion, an annual rise of 26.7 per cent. During the period, US$14.1 billion was poured into 1,577 newly-licensed projects, up 3.76 per cent in value but down 31.8 per cent in volume over the same period last year. The remaining investment capital was used for capital contribution and share purchases in a total 3,466 transactions. Foreign investors landed investments in 18 sectors, with processing and manufacturing absorbing the largest amount of capital (over US$14 billion or 53 per cent), followed by power generation and distribution (over US$5.7 billion), real estate (US$2.41 billion), and wholesale and retail sales (US$1.27 billion). It is estimated that in the last month of the year, several billion US dollars in FDI will be added to Vietnams total investment attraction this year. The move in recent days has shown a more positive trend in FDI attraction. For example, LEGO Group recently signed an agreement to invest in a US$1 billion project in Binh Duong Province. In addition, within the framework of the visits to India and the Republic of Korea by National Assembly Chairman Vuong inh Hue, multi-billion-USD co-operation agreements were also signed, in which, ai An Group in Hai Duong Province signed a memorandum of understanding on the construction of a US$500 million Pharmacy Park with Indias Sri Avantika Contractors Ltd. Saigon Telecommunications Technology Joint Stock Company and Ecologic Engineering Private Ltd. of India signed a cooperation agreement in the fields of infrastructure development, industry and innovation with an investment value of up to US$4 billion. China lowers tariffs to boost high-quality growth, high-level opening-up Xinhua) 09:27, December 25, 2021 Aerial photo taken on Dec. 18, 2021 shows a container ship by the Pacific international container terminal at the Tianjin Port of north China's Tianjin Municipality. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo) BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- A sweeping number of import items will enjoy lower tariffs next year as China has made new tariff adjustments for trade pacts, soon to take effect, amid efforts to improve the quality of life and boost opening up. The Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council announced earlier this month to implement provisional tariffs that are lower than the most-favored-nation rates on 954 imported commodities starting Jan. 1, 2022. The figure saw an increase from 883 last year and 859 in 2019. "Many of the imports on the list are heavily featured in people's daily lives so that foreign firms can benefit from China's development," said Mei Xinyu, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce. The country will also grant zero-tariff treatment on 98 percent of taxable items originating in the least-developed countries, according to the commission. AIMING FOR HIGH QUALITY According to experts and industry insiders, imports included in the adjustments tell tales of improving livelihood and industrial upgrade aimed at low-carbon outcomes, both traits of high-quality growth. Tariffs on medical products such as a new cancer drug and artificial joints have been lowered -- a continuation of similar moves in recent years to reduce medical costs and bolster public health. Since 2018, China has either exempted or lowered tariffs on two batches of cancer drugs, artificial cardiac valves and hearing aids. Tariffs on some aquatic products, baby clothing, artworks, ski gear are slashed to accommodate consumer demand for quality lifestyles and winter sports, said the commission. The 954 products also include auto parts that help cut greenhouse gas emissions, as well as high-voltage cables for high-speed trains and fuel-cell components that are expected to bolster high-tech manufacturing. Meanwhile, the average tariff rate on 62 products of information technology will be slashed from 3.4 percent to 1.7 percent starting July 1, 2022. These moves will help keep domestic industrial and supply chains stable, spur innovations and industrial upgrade, as well as advance low-carbon development, analysts and industry insiders say. HIGH-LEVEL OPENING UP The new adjustments follow China's overriding trend of tariff reduction in the past two decades. The country has cut its overall tariff rate from 15.3 percent in 2001 to 9.8 percent in 2010 to fulfill its accession commitment to the World Trade Organization (WTO), before bringing it further down to 7.4 percent currently. In latest efforts toward high-level opening up, China will impose conventional tariff rates on some products from 29 countries and regions in accordance with relevant trade agreements and preferential arrangements, resulting in lower tariffs on products from countries including New Zealand, Peru, Switzerland, Pakistan, Mauritius, and Costa Rica. The country also introduced lower or zero tariffs in accordance with trade agreements under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the new free trade agreement between China and Cambodia, both to come into effect beginning 2022. While China had already made tariff cuts with certain members of the RCEP, the 2022 adjustments covered more products, showcasing China's commitment to tariff arrangements under the world's largest free trade agreement, said Cui Fan, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics. "China's compliance to trade rules under the RCEP will help advance China's high-level opening up, and in turn boost the integration of industrial, supply and value chains between the RCEP members, injecting impetus into world economic recovery," said Cui. Under the RCEP, China and Japan will see the first bilateral tariff cuts in the form of zero-tariff treatment on 24.9 percent of imported items from Japan and 55.5 percent of imported items from China in 2022. Companies from both sides are expected to benefit from the agreement. Experts say that China's current overall tariff level, which is nearing that of many developed countries and still decreasing, will help facilitate global trade with lower costs. In the first three quarters of the year, China's merchandise imports accounted for around 12 percent of the world's total, up from 11.54 percent in 2020, according to WTO data. Its foreign trade value expanded 22 percent year on year to 35.39 trillion yuan (about 5.56 trillion U.S. dollars) in the January-November period. China has vowed to expand high-quality and institutional opening-up, grant foreign-funded enterprises national treatment, attract more investment from multinational companies, and facilitate the early implementation of major foreign-invested projects in 2022, according to the tone-setting annual Central Economic Work Conference early this month. To that end, China is working on a slew of measures on top of tariff reductions like shortening the negative list for foreign investment and introducing a negative list for cross-border services trade in the country's free trade zones. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Bianji) Yearender: China's vaccine donations, co-productions light up hope of winning fight against COVID-19 in Mideast 10:18, December 25, 2021 By Tian Ye ( Xinhua CAIRO, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- As the COVID-19 pandemic continued to rage in the Middle East in 2021, China was the only big power that provided generous vaccine donations and even helped localize vaccine production, lighting up the hope of defeating the pandemic in the region. China donated and exported a large quantity of COVID-19 vaccines to Middle East countries in dire need of them, at a time when Western countries largely stockpiled vaccines for their own good. In Egypt, Algeria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), China created joint ventures to produce the COVID-19 vaccines in order to meet the local demand. The vaccine cooperation between China and Middle East countries, which helped stabilize the epidemic situation in the region, has sublimated their friendship, deepened mutual trust, and opened up new areas of cooperation. FRIENDS IN NEED Following a year of mutual help and cooperation in fighting the COVID-19 in 2020, the vaccine cooperation between China and Middle East countries in 2021 further demonstrated that they are true friends in need. Many countries in the region rushed to help China by sending medical aid or messages of solidarity in early 2020 at the pandemic's outbreak. China returned favor by offering medical aid and dispatching medical experts to help these countries in their fight against the contagious disease. The anti-pandemic cooperation continued in 2021, mainly in the form of China's donating the much-needed COVID-19 vaccines for the Middle East countries. On Jan. 14, Turkey became the first country in the region to start a mass vaccination drive, thanks to the arrival of 3 million doses of China's Sinovac vaccine. To date, more than 127 million doses have been administered in Turkey, playing an important role in the control of the pandemic in the country. Morocco started its nationwide vaccination campaign on Jan. 28 following the arrival of China's Sinopharm vaccines. Many other countries in the Middle East, including Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, Algeria, Jordan, Tunisia, Lebanon, Palestine, Sudan, Iran and Syria, and the pan-Arab group Arab League also received vaccines donated from China. By the end of July, China had exported more than 72 million doses of vaccine to 17 Arab countries and the Arab League, official statistics show. To a large extent, China helped bridge the immunity gap with its generosity, which stood in stark contrast to the U.S.-led Western countries. "China has improved its image in the MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) region, especially relative to Western countries. Not only has it been perceived as more supportive but also more effective in dealing with the pandemic," Naser al-Tamimi, a Britain-based Middle East analyst, told the press in July. VOTE OF CONFIDENCE In addition to the vaccine donations and exports, China helped localize the production of the COVID-19 vaccines in the Middle East, with an aim to achieve the goal of vaccine self-sufficiency in the region. On March 28, the UAE became the first country in the Middle East to start manufacturing a COVID-19 vaccine named Hayat-Vax at a joint venture between China's biopharmaceutical giant Sinopharm and the Abu Dhabi-based technology company Group 42 (G42), with a production capacity of 200 million doses a year. In April, Egyptian Holding Company for Biological Products and Vaccines (VACSERA) inked a deal with the Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech on creating a joint venture with a capacity of producing 2 million doses of vaccine per week. On July 18, the venture celebrated the production of the first 1 million doses of Sinovac vaccine. On Sept. 29, Algeria inaugurated a joint venture in the eastern province of Constantine, which was created by Algeria's pharmaceutical group Saidal with Sinovac to produce the COVID-19 vaccines. It aims to manufacture 6 million doses of Sinovac vaccine by the end of this year, and 96 million doses each year thereafter. Countries in the Middle East embraced China's vaccines, giving a vote of confidence in their safety and efficacy. In January, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the Sinovac vaccine shot, giving a strong push to Turkey's national vaccination campaign. In terms of immunization efficacy, the UAE revealed in late 2020 that interim analysis of phase III studies showed the Sinopharm vaccine to be 86 percent effective, while Turkey announced on March 5 that the Sinovac vaccine had an efficacy of 83.5 percent against COVID-19. "Vaccines are the only hope to curb and control the spread of the virus," said Magdy Badran, a professor of virology and member of the Egyptian Association of Immunology, adding the most important thing is that the Chinese vaccines are safe, effective, cheap and available. "I am deeply impressed by China's proposal of building a global community of health for all, as the virus does not differentiate between the poor and rich, or developed and developing countries," said Badran. "China has already made tremendous contributions to the global effort through the rapid development of a number of vaccines, and through sharing those vaccines globally," said Richard Hatchett, CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, a global vaccine partnership. POSITIVE IMPACT In addition to the previous business areas, those countries that partner with China in the production of vaccines have expanded bilateral cooperation to other domains including medical and pharmaceutical science. The UAE, Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey participated in the Chinese vaccine's phase III clinical trials, and gained not only health benefits but also economic ones via vaccine cooperation with China. High vaccination rates have drawn many foreigners to return to work or vacation in these countries. Cooperation with China in vaccine research and production also allows Middle East countries like the UAE to diversify their economies beyond the oil business. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Bianji) China's commerce ministry rejects U.S. economic bullying through so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" Xinhua) 10:49, December 25, 2021 BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) deplores and firmly rejects the U.S. economic bullying as the U.S. side signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, the MOC said in a statement Friday. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Bianji) Chinese space rookie Tang Hongbo shares his experience in Tiangong space station 13:59, December 25, 2021 By Yu Jianbin, Zhan Kang ( People's Daily Chinese taikonauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo went back from a three-month stay in the core module of Chinas space station Tiangong in September this year. For Tang, it was his first-ever mission to space. How was the trip and what impressions has it left on him? Lets check out what the space rookie said in a recent interview with Peoples Daily. I remember I had a dream the other night before we returned home. In that dream I went back to Earth and reunited with my family. I wanted to show them some space stunts but only found that I had already lost my superpowers as my feet immediately touched the ground after I did a somersault. I suddenly felt a little sad, Tang said, two months after he returned. Chinese astronauts Nie Haisheng (C), Liu Boming (R) and Tang Hongbo for the Shenzhou-12 mission meet the press at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, June 16, 2021. (Photo by Weng Qiyu/Peoples Daily Online) Back to 9:22 a.m. June 17, Tang was sitting tight in the Shenzhou-12 spaceship at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, waiting for his trip to start as the countdown began. The rocket lifted off, with brilliant red-orange flames coming out of its boosters. Nie and Liu specifically left the seat near the porthole to Tang. After the rocket entered space, Tang eagerly opened the porthole and was immediately shocked by the splendid scenery outside. In the vast and tranquil space, the planet Earth is glowing with a blueish light, presenting serenity and magnificence. This deeply fascinated Tang, who went to space for the first time in his life. About 6.5 hours later, the spaceship was docked with the core module Tianhe. Nie opened the hatch and the three crew members floated into their new home as the first dwellers of it. They had to immediately start setting up the space station even though they had been working for 16 hours. However, as a newcomer to space, Tang didnt adapt to the environment in space as fast as the other two astronauts did. At first, he was enjoying his swimming in the space station, but later his excitement turned into dizziness that made him sick. He had to stop working and rest in his bedroom. A photo of the Atlantic Ocean taken by Tang Hongbo from space. (Photo from the official public account of China Manned Space on WeChat) The space station had a rich bill of fare. Scientific staff had prepared over 120 kinds of staple food, subsidiary food, instant food, drinks, functional food and seasoning, and the menu was shifted on a weekly basis. The high efficiency sterilization technology has significantly improved the quality and taste of subsidiary dishes, and both the variety and taste of the food were enriched. Yogurt was the only food in the space station that needed to be made fresh. It was made of a mixture of prefabricated yogurt and water after being heated for five hours. The recipes were designed to make astronauts healthy and help them better complete their missions, with consideration to the astronauts personal preferences. Tang is from Hunan, a province known for its spicy food. He likes to cover his rice with chili sauce. Nie likes braised pork steak and rice cake, and Liu is a fan of rice cake with brown sugar. The three of them all love zongzi, a traditional Chinese rice dish made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves. Tang said the first extravehicular activity has left him an unforgettable memory. He told Peoples Daily that he thought he would be scared by the deep universe. However, he didnt feel nervous at all after stepping out of the cabin. Photo of a bedroom in Chinas space station taken by Tang Hongbo. (Photo from the official public account of China Manned Space on WeChat) The man had gone through hundreds of hours of training in extravehicular activities, so he was pretty adept at the operations wearing the new-generation extravehicular suit. It took him only 10 minutes to get into the cabin from outside during an extravehicular emergency drill, which was even faster than his record achieved on the ground. When Tang looked around in space, he felt the universe was as shocking as what he had seen in sci-fi movies, with shining stars sparkling in the dark. He said he missed his life on Earth when he was in space, too. He missed how his feet would touch the ground, as well as his family and friends. As long as he had spare time, he would sit beside the window staring at the Earth. Big white clouds were floating above the blue ocean in the daytime, and he also saw golden deserts, white snow mountains, green grasslands and brown mountains. The Earth was just like a bright crystal ball when viewed from space. In the night, the parts lighted up on the planet would make the Earth into a shiny pearl, Tang said. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Bianji) Chinas first greenhouse gas observation network basically established 14:07, December 25, 2021 By Li Hongmei ( People's Daily China Meteorological Administration (CMA) recently released its first national greenhouse gas observation network directory, which means that after nearly 40 years of construction Chinas first greenhouse gas observation network has been basically established. The network is expected to improve Chinas capacity for observation and assessment of climate change and continuously provide data support for the countrys efforts to peak carbon dioxide emissions and achieve carbon neutrality. The national greenhouse gas observation network directory includes 60 stations focusing on high-precision observation and covering major critical climate areas in the country. Photo shows the outdoor observation field of China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan in northwest Chinas Qinghai province. (Photo/China Meteorological Administration) The network is comprised of organizations including the countrys national atmospheric baseline observatory, national climate observatory, as well as national and provincial applied meteorological (greenhouse gas) observation stations. Seven types of greenhouse gases specified in the Kyoto Protocol, including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbon, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride, are observed under the network. China is one of the first countries in the world to carry out background observation of greenhouse gases. In 1982, the countrys first regional atmospheric background monitoring station was put into operation in Beijing. In 1994, China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory on Mount Waliguan, Hainan Tibetan autonomous prefecture, northwest Chinas Qinghai province, was established at an altitude of 3,816 meters on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Its monitoring data have enjoyed a great reputation in the world, making China rank high among countries in the world in terms of greenhouse gas observation. The China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory is one of the 31 global atmospheric baseline stations in the international atmosphere watch network coordinated by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as well as the only continental global atmospheric baseline observatory in the hinterland of Eurasia. Photo shows a magnificent view of snow-covered Mount Waliguan in northwest Chinas Qinghai province. (Photo/China Meteorological Administration) The observatory can measure the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere after adequate mixing. Its data are quite regionally representative. The observational results of the observatory can represent the concentrations and changes of atmospheric greenhouse gases in the inland regions in the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. The greenhouse gas data from China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan are supporting data of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said Zhai Panmao, Co-Chair of the Working Group I that participated in the production of the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of the United Nations and chief scientist of the Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (CAMS). When China started practical exploration of background atmospheric observation and established its first regional atmospheric background monitoring station in Beijing in 1981, the trend of rising carbon dioxide concentrations across the globe became increasingly prominent and global atmospheric baseline observatories were set up in many regions including the North Pole and the South Pole. The hinterland of the Eurasian continent was an exception, which meant that the data provided by existing observation stations then couldnt represent the changes of Earth. Huang Jianqing (right) and Ren Lei, observers with China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan in northwest Chinas Qinghai province, carefully repair equipment. (Photo/China Meteorological Administration) In 1994, China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan was put into service, and the WMO officially awarded the station identification number WLG236N10. Over the past few decades, the atmospheric monitoring stations in the country have evolved into a three-dimensional integrated greenhouse gas monitoring system integrating ground, air, and space observations, further improving Chinas capacity for observing and responding to climate change. The country now has a national greenhouse gas observation network that consists of a total of seven national atmospheric background monitoring stations including the China Global Atmosphere Watch Baseline Observatory at Mount Waliguan and six regional atmospheric background monitoring stations in Beijing, northeast Chinas Heilongjiang province, east Chinas Zhejiang province, central Chinas Hubei province, southwest Chinas Yunnan province, and northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. After nearly 40 years of exploration, our country has formed a complete system covering atmospheric composition observation, correction, product, application, and service, and finally basically established todays greenhouse gas observation network, said Cao Xiaozhong, head of the comprehensive observation division of the CMA. The greenhouse gas observation network will have a profound influence, said Zhang Xiaoye, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a researcher with the CAMS. Since the beginning of this year, the CMA has, relying on sequence data and professional team, established a national greenhouse gas and carbon neutrality monitoring and assessment center with branches in multiple provinces, and a system for evaluating the effectiveness of Chinas carbon neutrality actions, enabling the country to accurately distinguish natural and man-made carbon fluxes at the global, regional and urban scales and make progress in peaking carbon dioxide emissions and achieving carbon neutrality, Zhang noted. (Web editor: Zhao Tong, Bianji) [Photo/Xinhua] China's Shenzhou XIII mission crew is scheduled to carry out their second extravehicular activity, or spacewalk, on Sunday, according to the China Manned Space Agency. Major General Zhai Zhigang, the mission commander, and Senior Colonel Ye Guangfu will conduct the spacewalk while Senior Colonel Wang Yaping will stay inside the Tiangong space station to support the extravehicular operations, the agency said in a brief statement on Saturday afternoon. The Shenzhou XIII mission was launched on Oct 16 by a Long March 2F carrier rocket that blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China's Gobi Desert, with the crew soon entering the Tiangong space station. They are scheduled to spend six months working in the station, making it China's longest space mission. By now, the astronauts have traveled in the space for 71 days. They are in good condition and are ready to perform the spacewalk, the agency said. The mission crew completed its first spacewalk on Nov 8, with Wang, 41, becoming China's first female spacewalker. During the 6.5-hour operation, Zhai and Wang mounted new components on the station's robotic arm and used the arm to practice extravehicular maneuvers. They verified the arm's capabilities and its compatibility with the needs of astronauts, examined the safety and performance of support devices and also tested the functions of a new type of extravehicular suit. Shenzhou XIII is the fourth spacecraft to visit the Tiangong station, and also the second crewed ship to transport astronauts to the orbiting outpost. One of China's most challenging and sophisticated space endeavors, Tiangong, or Heavenly Palace, will eventually consist of three main components-the Tianhe core module attached to two large space labs-with a combined weight of nearly 70 metric tons. The entire station is set to work for about 15 years in a low-Earth orbit about 400 kilometers above the planet. The first astronauts inside Tiangong-Major General Nie Haisheng, Major General Liu Boming and Senior Colonel Tang Hongbo-finished their 92-day mission in mid-September. They performed two spacewalks. The US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Wednesday, at a time when the ongoing international efforts to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal have reached what he said was at a "critical juncture". "It's important that we sit together and develop a common strategy, a common outlook, and find a way forward" that fundamentally secures US and Israeli interests, Sullivan said, according to an Israeli government statement. The latest talks in Vienna, Austria, which began on Nov 29, concluded on Friday with positive comments from the European Union, Iran, China and Russia while the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, the other parties to the talks, expressed pessimism. Wang Qun, Chinese envoy to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna, said three weeks of intense negotiations have produced important consensus and new documents, laying a solid foundation for advancing the follow-up negotiations as well as for bringing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the formal name of the Iran deal, back on track. While the UK, France and Germany admitted there has been some technical progress in the talks, the US insisted that it sees no "pathway back" to the nuclear deal with Iran with Sullivan saying that restoring mutual compliance with the deal "has proven more difficult over the course of this year than we would have liked to see". During his visit to Israel this week, Sullivan even said there may be only "weeks'' left before nuclear talks with Iran may no longer be "viable". Some recent developments on the geopolitical front in the Middle East have also indicated that tension and acrimony between the contestant parties to the Iran deal, instead of showing signs of abating, remain acute. Since the Israeli government is firmly opposed to the talks, it is to be hoped that the common strategy and outlook of the US and Israel does not become another obstacle to reviving the deal. In response to an anti-Iran joint statement issued by foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council members and the UK on Monday, Iran's foreign ministry accused Western countries of constantly stoking tensions in the region. There is a pressing need to resume the talks at an early date so that the latest round of diplomatic efforts can bear fruit. Both Iran and Russia have said the nuclear talks will resume soon. At this critical moment, all the parties involved need to exercise the utmost restraint and strive to make sure the right atmosphere prevails for the talks to achieve a breakthrough. Given its importance to international nuclear nonproliferation and regional peace and stability, an early revival of the 2015 Iran deal, no matter how difficult, needs to be realized. President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday told his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that he hopes Xi will visit Korea as soon as the coronavirus pandemic allows. In a 40-minute phone conversation, Moon reminded Xi of his promise to visit, which was passed on by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last November. Xi thanked Moon for the invitation and said he was looking forward to meeting him as soon as circumstances allow. It was their first phone conversation since last May. Moon also asked China to play a constructive role in finding a solution to the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok. Xi expressed support for inter-Korean dialogue and talks between North Korea and the U.S., saying China thinks highly of Seoul's role in finding a political solution to the North Korean issue. Xi claimed the recent Workers Party congress in Pyongyang has not closed the door to dialogue with Seoul and Washington. He added that the overall situation on the Korean Peninsula is "stable." The airline says it couldn't speculate on whether COVID-19 infections or quarantines were responsible because it was not informed about the sort of illness. Passengers were booked on other flights. Lufthansa said in a statement that "we planned a very large buffer for the vacation period. But this was not sufficient due to the high rate of people calling in sick." Germany-based Lufthansa said Friday that it was canceling a dozen long-haul transatlantic flights over the Christmas holiday period because of a "massive rise" in sick leave among pilots. The cancellations on flights to Houston, Boston and Washington come despite a "large buffer" of additional staff for the period. At least three major airlines said they have canceled dozens of flights because illnesses largely tied to the omicron variant of COVID-19 have taken a toll on flight crew numbers during the busy holiday travel season. U.S.-based Delta Air Lines and United Airlines said they had to cancel dozens of Christmas Eve flights because of staff shortages tied to omicron. United canceled 169 flights, and Delta called off 127, according to FlightAware. "The nationwide spike in omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation," United said in a statement to several news outlets. "As a result, we've unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport." The airline said it was working to rebook as many people as possible. Delta said it canceled flights Friday because of the impact of omicron and possibility of bad weather after it had "exhausted all options and resources -- including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying." It said in a statement to several outlets that it was trying to get passengers to their destinations quickly. The cancellations come as coronavirus infections fueled by the new variant further squeeze staffing at hospitals, police departments, supermarkets and other critical operations struggling to maintain a full contingent of front-line workers. To ease staffing shortages, countries including Spain and the U.K. have reduced the length of COVID-19 quarantines by letting people return to work sooner after testing positive or being exposed to the virus. Delta CEO Ed Bastian was among those who have called on the Biden administration to take similar steps or risk further disruptions in air travel. On Thursday, the U.S. shortened COVID-19 isolation rules for health care workers only. ANKARA, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Turkey has frozen the assets of 770 individuals and a U.S.-based foundation over their alleged links to terrorist groups, according to a decision published in the country's official gazette on Friday. The list included 454 members of the Gulen Movement, whom the Turkish government accused of being behind the failed coup on July 15, 2016. The assets of the U.S.-based Niagara Foundation were also frozen. Meanwhile, the decision targeted 108 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), 119 members of terrorist organizations such as the Islamic State (IS), Al Nusra, Hezbollah and Al Qaeda, and 89 members of left-wing groups. Enditem Your browser does not support the video tag. People are seen on a bus at a bus station in Gaborone, Botswana, on Dec. 23, 2021. Many people in Gaborone chose to travel to their hometowns to spend holidays on Thursday, despite the fact that the country has seen an increase in the number of people infected with COVID-19. (Photo by Tshekiso Tebalo/Xinhua) People are seen at a bus station in Gaborone, Botswana, on Dec. 23, 2021. Many people in Gaborone chose to travel to their hometowns to spend holidays on Thursday, despite the fact that the country has seen an increase in the number of people infected with COVID-19. (Photo by Tshekiso Tebalo/Xinhua) People line up to get on a bus at a bus station in Gaborone, Botswana, on Dec. 23, 2021. Many people in Gaborone chose to travel to their hometowns to spend holidays on Thursday, despite the fact that the country has seen an increase in the number of people infected with COVID-19. (Photo by Tshekiso Tebalo/Xinhua) A man wearing a face mask is seen on a bus on Christmas Eve in London, Britain, Dec. 24, 2021. Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. (Xinhua/Li Ying) LONDON, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. It brought the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 11,891,292. The country also reported a further 137 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 147,857, with 8,240 COVID-19 patients still in hospital. Another 23,719 Omicron cases have been confirmed in Britain, the biggest daily increase since the COVID-19 variant was detected in the country, taking the total Omicron cases found in the country to 114,625, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said Friday. However, experts said there are likely to be hundreds of thousands of infections per day, with many being missed by the system. The latest figures came as data showed that around one in 20 people in London had COVID in the week to Dec. 19, the highest proportion for any English region. The Office for National Statistics said its headline results of a national survey showed the British capital had the country's highest rate of the virus. The result was based on data gathered between Dec. 13 and 19. In England, ONS said an estimated 1,544,600 have had COVID-19 in the past week, with 2.83 percent of the population testing positive. It equates to 1 in 35 people across England having the virus, added ONS. More than 89 percent of people aged 12 and over in Britain have had their first dose of vaccine and around 82 percent have received both doses, according to the latest figures. More than 56 percent have received booster jabs, or the third dose of a coronavirus vaccine. To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines. Enditem A masked man is seen in a bus on Christmas Eve in London, Britain, Dec. 24, 2021. Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. (Xinhua/Li Ying) People wearing face masks visit Hyde Park Winter Wonderland on Christmas Eve in London, Britain, Dec. 24, 2021. Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. (Xinhua/Li Ying) A masked woman walks in Hyde Park Winter Wonderland on Christmas Eve in London, Britain, Dec. 24, 2021. Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. (Xinhua/Li Ying) People wearing face masks visit Hyde Park Winter Wonderland on Christmas Eve in London, Britain, Dec. 24, 2021. Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday. (Xinhua/Li Ying) WASHINGTON, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United States should stop repressing scientists and damaging normal China-U.S. scientific and technological exchange in the name of combating economic espionage, spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the United States said Friday. The spokesperson made the remarks in reply to a question concerning American Professor Charles Lieber of Harvard University who was convicted for lying about his ties with China's "Thousand Talent Program." The purpose of China's "Thousand Talents Plan" is to promote talent mobility between China and other countries and to advance international cooperation in scientific and technological innovation, said the spokesperson. "This is no different from other countries' practices in this area." The spokesperson noted "Thousand Talent Plan" respects scientists, technology and protects intellectual property rights. The Chinese side opposes all words and practices that stigmatize the "Thousand Talents Plan," supports and champions the global mobility of scientific knowledge and talent. "Some media describes Lieber's ruling as a victory for the U.S. government's China Initiative. It's totally wrong and seriously misleading to the public," said the spokesperson. "The U.S. government claims that China Initiative aimed at the so-called economic espionage. However, based on the Department of Justice's press release, Lieber was convicted of False Statements and Tax related issues, with nothing to do with economic espionage," the spokesperson said. "We have noted that U.S. justice departments' repression of scientists and damage to normal China-U.S. scientific and technological exchange in the name of combating economic espionage have already evoked doubts among visionary people in the United States," said the spokesperson. "We urge the United States to listen to the call for justice from within, stop this wrong practice, and meet with China halfway to jointly maintain and promote normal scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation between the two countries," the spokesperson said. Enditem Sorry for inconvenience! You have been redirected to this page due to the following reasons:-- Your session has expired. You have closed the browser, without logging out. If the problem persists, kindly remove all the temporary files and cookies from your browser. For IE - 1. Click on tools from the task bar of browser. 2. Click on Internet Options. 3. Click on "Delete temporary files." For Mozilla Firefox - 1. Click on tools from the task bar of browser. 2. Click on "Clear recent history." After Suraj Pal Amu made derogatory and hate speech, he was made the spokesman for BJP state unit. After the murder of Akhlaq in the beef-cow issue, one of the murder accused died, one central minister (Mahesh Sharma) arrived to put tricolor on the body of the deceased. When 8 lynching accused got bail, Jayant Sinha another Central Minister garlanded them. Not too long ago, when a central minster made the audience give the slogan Goli maro he was promoted to the Cabinet rank. In this background if one sees the present disturbing events of spreading hate and inciting violence, the lack of action on the part of authorities can be easily understood. We do recall that our PM, prompt at speaking when not needed generally either kept quite or spoke after a painfully long delay in the aftermath of murders of Juanid or Rohith Vemula. Today (24th December, 2021), 5 days after the two disturbing events took place; our PMs silence on these issues is very loud and clear. In the first incident on 19th December Suresh Chavhanke, the Editor-in-Chief of Sudarshan TV administered an oath to young boys and girls. The event was organized by Hindu Yuva Vahini (Founded by UP Chief Minster and Mahant of Gorakhnath Peeth, Adityanath Yogi), it was . We take an oath and make a resolution that till our last breath, we shall fight, die for and if need be, kill, to make this country a Hindu rashtra, In another event organized in Hardwar hundreds of saffron clad Sadhus and Sadhvis had assembled for a meeting on the theme Islamic Terrorism and our Responsibilities. It was Dharma Sansad organized by Yati Narsinghanand, Head Priest of Ghaziabad temple. He himself set the tone by stating Economic boycott (against the Muslims) will not work... No community can survive without picking up weapons...And swords wont work, they look good only on stages. You need to update your weapons...more and more offspring and better weapons can protect you. He gave a clarion call, Shastra Mev Jayate for inciting armed violence against Muslims. In another video, Narsinghanand is seen to be offering Rs 1 crore to Hindu youth for becoming like LTTE leader Prabhakaran as he called upon Hindu youth to become Prabhakaran and Bhindranwale Annapurna Maa, (earlier, Poonam Shakun Pandey) general secretary of Hindu Mahasabha said, we need 100 soldiers who can kill 20 lakh of them (Muslims). She added Matr shakti ke sher se panje hain. Phaad kar rakh denge. (mother power has claws like lion, will tear apart). She is the one who couple of years ago reenacted Gandhi murder in Meerut and distributed sweets after that. Dharam Das Maharaj from Bihar said If I was present in Parliament when PM Manmohan Singh said that minorities have right over national resources, I would have followed Nathuram Godse and shot him six times with a revolver These are few samples from what happened in Dharma Sansad. Such meetings have been set into action by VHP, which began these meetings in the wake of Babri demolition. The surprise is that most of the videos are circulating and police have access to them. No arrest so far. Those making such statements which are criminal as per our law are very much reassured that no action will be taken against them. They know those in power quietly appreciate their speeches or such speeches or incitement may be a part of planning in the wake of elections. What is surprising is that all this is taking place at a time when Munwar Faruqui was arrested for a joke which he had not cracked. His shows have been cancelled times and over again. What will be the impact of these utterings on our minorities, who are equal citizens of the country. The fear and intimidation will reach the peak. Economic boycott, threat to life and intimidations will further intensify the ghettoization, already existing as serious problem. Disturbed by all these Jamiat-E-Ulema a Hindu, Mahmood Madnai has written to Home minster. Can Minorities commission take cognizance of this and take action? Can the police take proper action apart from just filing FIR against the recent convert to Hinduism, Jitendra Tyagi (earlier Wasim Rizvi)? And why is Supreme not waking up to take suo moto action? The World is aghast at this level of hate and open incitement of violence. Martina Navratilova tweeted that she is aghast. The trends were caught by global media right some time ago when The Daily Guardian in a 2020 article states that since achieving every single public interest is cumbersome; pointing towards the flaws of ruling party which may or may not have a religious back up and flaming the emotions of the public at large through continuous hate speech was a trend in early 90s and the immediate years of second millennium. Hate speech was therefore procuring a wide scope with respect to democracy in India. There is a turmoil world over on these incidents in India. The Hate against minorities is reaching dangerous proportions. What began as a project of communal politics, Hindu and Muslim in undivided India is now focusing on Muslim minorities. Every occasion is being used to demonize them and the global trends set by American media in coining the phrase Islamic Terrorism has put salt on the wounds of the targeted community. During last seven years with the patronage of BJP government at the center; the process has taken ghastly proportions. What is needed is that the civil society wakes up to the dastardly phenomenon. The Hate and violence which is directed against the others takes a turn to consume the same community in whose name all this takes place, rather all this is orchestrated by the communal stream. All non BJP parties need to come together to raise their voice and call for action against the Hate mongers. It is welcome that Rahul Gandhi and many other leaders have tweeted and condemned these utterences. Nothing short of a social movement directed against hate and promoting of love will help the matters. It is time that we to work on the lines of Bhakti-Sufi traditions; and the path of Mahatma Gandhi-Maulana Azad to keep the society and country in peace and harmony. From: Prashant Paikray Date: Sat, 25 Dec 2021, 14:10 Dear Friends, Greetings from Anti-Jindal & Anti-POSCO Movement, Odisha, India! The state government run by Mr. Nabin Pattnaik is making brutal police action against our people in order to hand over the 2900 acres of fertile agricultural land to the ruthless Indian steel major Jindal Steel led by industrialist Sajjan Jindal. After POSCO India fiasco which ended by 2015-2016, JSW Utkal Steel Ltd came with its proposal to build 13.2 MTPA crude steel, 900MW captive power and 10 MTPA cement along with 52 MTPA Captive Jetty at the same place. All these are happening without free prior informed consent of our people and Gram Sabhas, and without following statutory legal procedures. The corporate forces have their clout over government of India as well the state government, so permission for any project is not a problem for them. Around 2 pm on 20th Dec, 2021, the villagers of Dhinkia made a massive demonstration against the state and police repression at Mahala village border. Suddenly the police came in seven Bolero vans entered into Dhinkia village from back side and started thrashing and beating people. The police came to arrest our leader Mr. Debendra Swain. They picked up his paternal uncle, Ayodhya Swain aged 71, who is a paralysis patient and his daughter Mili Swain 22-year-old daughter. The police slapped false charge against them under Indian Penal Code Sections: 147 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 294 (use of obscene language), 427 (mischief causing damage), 506 (criminal intimidation). They did not even spare the passerby who asked them the reason for dragging the father-daughter duo out of their house. The police assaulted women and children after entering the village in the name of searching some accused persons. Our villagers are facing hardships due to the police action. The situation has come to such a pass that the villagers are being asked to show their Aadhaar cards to go out and enter their village. The police have been raiding the village, break into houses, attacking the villagers causing injuries, implicating people in false cases and restricting them to their houses. We have been witnessing tensions since December 1, 2021 when the local administration officials who had gone to Mahala village for forceful demarcation of a revenue village. Our villagers vehemently protested against the illegal move. Our villagers have been opposing the bifurcation of the village. The State government is playing a divide and rule policy to pave way for JSWL In addition to the existing police deployment, four additional platoons have been stationed in our area to terrorize our people. The atmosphere in the area still remains tense. Meanwhile the new Superintendent of Police (SP) Shri Akhilesvar Singh, IPS who is already in controversy for custodial death in his regime in Puri district have taken the obligation to establish the proposed project of JSW with his supremacy. He has converted the village Dhinkia into Kashmir like situation where everybody entering or exiting should explain the reason & show their identity to evade the tantrum of heavy police forces deployed surrounding Dhinkia. Even the police have cut off supplies of emergency goods to create pressure among the people who protest the proposed JSW project. Our Villagers erected bamboo barricades December 6, 2021 to restrict entry to Dhinkia village, and intensified their resistance braving incessant rains and severe cold including women are guarding the gates preventing police, government officials and any outsiders entry to the village. The villagers are on a 24 hours duty guarding the gates against the entry of police and government officials including JSW project sympathizers from the locality. No Environmental Clearance: JSW Utkal Steel Ltd applied for Environment Clearance in 2018 in Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Government of India. As per the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification 2006, the public hearing / public consultation was scheduled to be conducted in Dec 2019 at Gadakujanga of Erasama Tahasil by Jagatsinghpur district administration in the request of Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) which was supposed to be a neutral event where people should be present from affected Grampanchayat, villages & nearby affected areas. However the Public hearing was hijacked by the district administration led by then Collector Sangram Mohapatra, who was the Land Acquisition Officer of IDCO during POSCO project in 2005 and was involved in beating children & elderly people of Dhinkia during land acquisition. There were deployment of more than 15-20 platoons of police personnel days before the public hearing to terrorize local people and create a tensed like situation in that area. People were brought by hired buses from other localities that are not affected by the project by ruling party, labor union leaders and administration. The entry of local people was selective, regulated by the police, administration, local goons as well as the ruling party members to fill the place with people in support of the project. Thousands of people attended the public hearing out of which more than 80% were from the outside of the project affected area even including outside the district. Large tent, projectors were used, luxurious meals were arranged by the project proponent (JSW) for 5000 of people spending around more than Rs. 80 Lakhs in arranging the public hearing, which was a violation of EIA 2006 Notification and raised the question of neutrality & biasness. One Right to Information (RTI) application to the district administration revealed that there was only 15,000 INR spent by the administration in the public hearing. Local people were prevented to attend the public hearing, villagers of Dhinkia where the majority of objection against the project boycotted the event because the venue has been selected knowingly far away from the proposed project site. Fear of police & administration among the Dhinkia people was another reason of boycotting the public hearing citing their previous sufferings during POSCO. A simultaneous palli sabha (Village meeting) was organized on the same day of public hearing in Dhinkia where resolution was passed unanimously against the proposed project of JSW Utkal Steel Ltd by thousands of people. Various representations were sent to the Expert Appraisal Committee, MoEF&CC, GoI against such illegal, unconstitutional public hearing by villagers & civic bodies. One RTI information revealed that there were approx. 1000 written representation signed by affected villages were sent in favor of the proposed project, however almost 90% of them were false, forged & never signed by the villagers with the same name. Surprisingly mostly people dont exist, another who have signed are illiterate (cant sign) & few who are children below 13 years. All the written representations are of same format which were actually done by the JSW officials before the public hearing by help of district administration & local ruling party members. Regarding the above many representations have been sent to the Expert Appraisal Committee, MoEF&CC, GoI upon which EAC has raised questions & clarifications but in vain. The Environment Clearance to JSW couldnt be granted since 2019 to till now due to lots of shortcomings and false information in its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Management Plan (EMP) report. Various shortcomings, misled information has been identified & informed by various civic bodies, individuals, villagers to the EAC, MoEF&CC, GoI and have requested to cancel the EC as per the ground of providing false & misled information as per the rules & regulation, despite all of these there is no action against the project proponent rather ample of chances has been provided to modify the Forms, EIA/EMP report which is against the law. Violation of LARR 2013 and Forest Rights Act 2006. As per the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act (LARR) of 2013 Land acquired and possession taken over but not utilized within a period of five years from the date of possession shall in all cases revert back to the original land owner. But the government of Odisha made it exactly opposite. As per Odisha governments revised policy for land acquisition notified on February 7, 2015, Land acquired and possession taken over but not utilized within a period of five years from the date of possession shall in all cases revert back to the state and be deposited in the Land Bank automatically. With respect to forest land the Forest Rights Act recognizes and vests legal rights of local communities over forest land and community forest resources. As you know that the residents of Nuagaon, Dhinkia and Gobindpur villages have submitted applications to the local authorities to claim their land and forest rights, but these claims have not been processed since 2011. It is to be noted that three different official committees i.e., the Saxena Committee, the POSCO Enquiry Committee and the FAC - found that the Forest Rights Act, 2006 had been violated in the proposed POSCO area. Besides, on several occasions in the past, the Gram Sabhas of the area have passed majority resolutions against any handover of their lands and community forest resources. The government must respect the unanimous resolution passed by over 2,000 people at a Gram Sabha held in October 2012 that the land used for betel cultivation was under the rights provided to the Gram Sabha under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006. The state government is obligated to fulfill the statutory legal requirement of ensuring recognition and vesting of forest rights and consent over these lands after exit of POSCO, otherwise the government will be committing further a criminal offence under the FRA, the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the SC/ST prevention of atrocities Act 1989 and the amendments done in 2016. Thus under the Forest Rights Act of 2006, transfer of peoples land to Jindal is illegal. In July 2017, our villagers have filed a petition with the Kolkata bench of the National Green Tribunal. Its has been asserted that the Odisha government cannot put this forest land into the land bank. According to the Forest Conservation Act of 1980, the government is required to get forest clearance or approval from the central environment ministry to use forest land for a non-forest purpose. However, there is no provision to obtain forest clearance for a land bank under the Act. The petition adds that under the Forest Rights Act of 2006, the government cannot change the use of forest land without recognizing the land and forest rights of people living or dependent on it for generations. The Government of Odisha through its Panchayati Raj Department removed Debendra Swain who is the Panchayat Samiti member (an elected representative) in an unlawful manner just to give a visual to the public that any raise of voice against the Government will be dealt with punishment serious punishment. This speaks volumes about the state of grass root democracy in India , more particularly the status of constitutional safeguards and empowering acts. Our Demands * The administration should take steps for immediate withdrawal of police force from Dhinkia and ensure that normalcy is restored soon. * The government should stop all types of repression on our people and withdraw all false and fabricated cases against our people. * The government of Odisha must follow the Supreme Courts ruling on the Singur issue in which the land of farmers bought for the Tata Nano plant was returned to them, * The process of fresh land acquisition and fencing etc. should be suspended immediately as there is no environment clearance for the proposed project of JSW. * Urgently process individual and community forest rights claims on land it had taken over for a POSCO project instead of transferring the land to a land bank. * Declare that there is no provision under law or under any act which provides for land acquisition for any land bank for any purpose. Thus the land must return to the original inhabitants as per the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act (LARR) of 2013. * Ensure implementation of the judgment of NGT, Principal Bench, New Delhi dated 12- 07-2018 and remove any construction already made on the forest land. * The government needs to replant the trees in our sensitive coastal areas where more than two lakh trees were indiscriminately cut down by the Government for POSCO. * A committee consisting of sensitive jurists, human rights advocates, activists, ecologists and ecological economists should be formed to keep a watch on what the government is doing in our area just to promote corporate interests at a huge cost to our native people and their permanent sources of livelihoods which are part of an ecologically sensitive coastal zone. Hoping for your continues support and solidarity. Kindly circulate this mail widely In Solidarity, Prashant Paikray Spokesperson, Anti- Jindal & Anti-POSCO Movement, Odisha , India The Christmas Eve (Friday, Dec. 24) program at Harrah's Philadelphia was not only the fourth instance of over $1 million in all-sources handle on a single card this season at the riverside harness racing venue, but it also gave the track its highest single-season handle figure in its 16-year history with four race days to spare. All-sources handle of $1,194,167 on the 14-race card lifted total 2021 turnover at Harrah's Philadelphia over the previous high water mark of $80,596,031, which was achieved in 2010. "What a great accomplishment for the racing team at Harrah's Philadelphia," said Barry Brown, director of racing operations. "We had a spectacular year from start to finish, and we all look forward to 2022." Driver Victor Kirby got the job done in the two pacing features among the three $14,400 headliners. The contest for the pacing males was a fierce one, with Jackie Moon making the lead past a :27.3 quarter, then pushing Moonlight Shadow most of the way to the :55 half before surrendering the advantage. Kirby kept Jackie Moon in the pocket to the 1:23.2 three-quarters and to headstretch, where he pulled the Racing Hill sophomore gelding, and the pair just reeled in a game Moonlight Shadow by a neck in 1:52.3, completing the double moon Exacta. Rob Harmon saw his new acquisition score in only his second start for the barn; his ownership is Anthony and Michael Hill. In the pacing distaff contest, Kirby teamed with trainer Ron Burke, who swept all four features at Harrahs yesterday, to win with the Bettors Delight sophomore filly Divine Deo in a new mark of 1:54.2. Kirby sent the winner right to the top near the quarter and kept control to wire with a :56.3 last half, recording her seventh score of the year and second since being acquired by Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC. In the trotting feature, the Yankee Glide mare Brigitte Bi took early control from the pole for driver George Napolitano Jr., sprinting home in :57.3 to maintain a 1 1/4-length advantage over Storm Bringer in 1:56.3. On her best behavior, the Juan Cano-trained distaff has shown solid ability for owners Timothy Betts and Deerwood Trail Racing LLC. 18-year-old Brett Beckwith made his Philly winner's circle debut in style, bringing home Lanas Desire for new owner/trainer Walter Birney Jr. while paying $128.80 as only the third horse to win from fourth-over all year at Philly. Young Beckwith is close to a million dollars in earnings in this, his first full year of driving, and he certainly has a million-dollar pedigree: father Mark (5,869 driving wins) and mother Melissa (2054 training wins and having her best season with $1.38M in earnings in 2021), and grandfathers Jerry Silverman, Hall of Famer, and Bert Beckwith, one of New Englands best for many years from the 1960s on. Four cards of racing remain this year at Harrah's Philadelphia: After a 14-race card on Sunday (Dec. 26) at 12:40 p.m., and 12-race programs on Wednesday (Dec. 29) and Thursday (Dec. 30) at 12:25 p.m., Harrah's Philadelphia will bring down the curtain on their 2021 stand on New Year's Eve (Friday, Dec. 31) with a twilight card beginning at 2:30 p.m. (PHHA / Harrah's Philadelphia) By Trend The work launched over the past year in the Azerbaijani lands liberated from the Armenian occupation will continue in 2022 according to schedule, Emin Huseynov, special representative of the President of Azerbaijan in the liberated territories (except for Shusha district), included in the Karabakh economic region, told reporters, Trend reports on Dec. 24. Huseynov said that this work will be carried out on the basis of a strategic action plan, which outlines all the activities being carried out in the working groups, as well as the adopted special state program. The document entitled "National Priorities of Social and Economic Development: Azerbaijan 2030" outlines the return of former IDPs to the liberated territories, special representative said. The general plans have already been approved in some districts, this work is underway in other districts. We expect this work to complete next year. Huseynov stressed that construction of the railway lines in the Zangazur corridor will be continued next year according to the schedule. The implementation of the project of creating the necessary infrastructure and jobs for the return of citizens will be continued next year, special representative added. The representatives of small and medium-sized businesses are planned to be involved in the project. By Trend Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation sent a congratulatory letter to President Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports. "Dear Ilham Heydar oglu, Please accept my sincerest congratulations on the occasion of your 60th anniversary. You rightly enjoy a high reputation among your fellow-compatriots and abroad as a wise and experienced statesman capable of making balanced, farsighted decisions even in the most difficult situations. Everyone is aware of the fact that Azerbaijan has made great strides in economic, social and other spheres under your leadership. I highly appreciate our friendly relations. I would be pleased to continue the constructive, meaningful dialogue with you and to work closely together to further develop the Russian-Azerbaijani strategic partnership, as well as to strengthen regional stability and security. I sincerely wish you the best of health, well-being and success. I avail myself of this opportunity to ask you to convey my heartfelt regards to your family," the letter said. Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc sent a congratulatory letter to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of his birthday. His Excellency Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Your Excellency, I would like to extend to you my sincere congratulations on the occasion of your 60th birthday. Expressing you my best regards, I wish you good health, happiness and success in your high state position. Taking this opportunity, I wish further development and prosperity to Azerbaijan, as well as strengthening its positions in the international arena. I am confident that the traditionally friendly relations between Vietnam and Azerbaijan will continue to develop. Sincerely, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam By Trend The Azerbaijani and Armenian public representatives held the first meeting in Moscow after the second Karabakh war, where they discussed the measures to mitigate tension in relations between the peoples of the two countries, Trend reports citing TASS. "Moscow hosted the first meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian public representatives on December 23-24 after the second Karabakh war, the message said. Special Representative of the President of Russia on International Cultural Cooperation Mikhail Shvydkoy participated in the meeting. The participants of the meeting discussed the measures to mitigate tension in relations between the two peoples and agreed to continue to hold such meetings in early 2022, the message said. Chairman of the US Foundation for Ethnic Understanding Rabbi Marc Schneier sent a congratulatory letter to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of his birthday. His Excellency Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Dear President Aliyev, I write to congratulate you and the beloved peoples of the Republic of Azerbaijan as you celebrate Republic Day on 28 May. Under your wise, visionary, and compassionate leadership, the Republic of Azerbaijan has distinguished itself as a global champion of ethnic and religious tolerance. Your tireless efforts to create and foster political and social conditions to strengthen the countrys traditions of multiculturalism and inclusivity have earned the respect and lasting admiration of citizens worldwide. Your Republic Day offers an occasion to congratulate you, Dear President Aliyev, and the peoples of Azerbaijan. It is my fervent hope that the Republic of Azerbaijans extraordinary spirit of respect and tolerance for national minorities will serve as an inspirational force for interreligious unity, popularizing a peace that can be championed and defended around the world. Time and again, Azerbaijan has demonstrated that harmony is possible, and issues can be resolved. I look forward to collaborating with you to support the interfaith/interethnic harmony legacy of peace that you have so successfully advanced. Your Excellency, with the assurances of my highest consideration and esteem for you and the beloved peoples of the Republic of Azerbaijan, I remain Very truly yours, Rabbi Marc Schneier President of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding First Deputy General Director of the Russian TASS news agency Mikhail Gusman sent a congratulatory letter to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of his birthday. will be updated Classmates of President Ilham Aliyev congratulate him 25 December 2021 [15:22] - Classmates of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev sent a congratulatory letter on the occasion of his birthday. Views: 601 First Vice-President of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva has shared a post from her visit to Shusha with President Ilham Aliyev on her official Instagram page, Azertag reported on December 25. The post says: The youngest lieutenant general of Shusha, 4-year-old Asif. The footage highlights President Ilham Aliyev's sincere conversation with 4-year-old Asif. By Trend Under the instructions of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ilham Aliyev, activities on comprehensive provision and improvement of the social and living conditions of Azerbaijan Army Units that are on combat duty in the liberated territories are being continued, Trend reports citing Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. All necessary measures were taken to further improve the combat capability of military personnel serving 24 hours a day in severe climatic conditions and in areas with difficult terrain, as well as to maintain a high level of combat readiness. The servicemen are provided with food and warm clothes in accordance with the norm. For the exemplary service of military personnel in units that are on combat duty, office premises in modular complexes are equipped with furniture, modern sanitary facilities, drying rooms, medical points, food warehouses for storing reserve food, bedding, kitchen equipment, and generators that provide an uninterrupted power supply. The measures to constantly supply our servicemen with fresh and high-calorie food, as well as to organize social and living conditions and the troops' service at a high level continue in a planned manner. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), has approved its organisational structure as part of itst enhancing free zone integration in the emirate and providing comprehensive solutions to investors and free zones companies. DIEZs organisational structure conforms to Law No. 16 which aims to strengthen Dubai's economy by integrating three different free zones, which will enable the emirate to provide an exceptional investment and business experience and high-quality solutions and services to businesses. The structure will create new growth opportunities that will increase DIEZ's contribution to Dubai's gross domestic product (GDP) from the current 5 percent, said its statement. The Authority caters to the needs of more than 5,000 companies, including leading corporations involved in over 20 vital economic sectors, and hosts over 30,000 employees from all over the world. Sheikh Ahmed said: "Dubai continues to achieve new milestones in its sustainable economic development journey. The approval of DIEZ's organisational structure is a testament to our commitment to enhancing our leading role in advancing Dubai's sustainable economic development and realising its ambitious vision across sectors through innovation, technology and knowledge driven by DIEZs free zones." He highlighted the positive economic impact of integrating three premium free zones in Dubai under DIEZ. "The new structure is driven by our core values of being integrated, disruptive, customer-centric and expanding DIEZs global networks of opportunities to the free zones investors," observed Sheikh Ahmed. This move will promote economic growth and diversification, as we prepare to unlock substantial economic and business opportunities over the next 50 years that will raise the competitiveness of the national economy and enhance sustainable development at local and regional levels," he added. Executive Chairman Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni said: "We are keen to offer a distinctive business model and experience to current and new investors to empower and support them in fulfilling their goals and aspirations." "In addition, we will promote integration under the new organisational structure and build on our experiences and expertise to achieve DIEZ's strategic goals and raise its economic contribution. Each unique free zone offers exceptional investment opportunities, as well as integrated, value-added and inclusive services," he added. Schneider Electric, a leader in digital transformation of energy management and automation, and Worley, one of the world's largest engineering companies, have signed a partnership agreement to develop and deploy digital solutions and new technologies for the energy market and smart city projects across Saudi Arabia. Together, they will support energy firms and government bodies in the country to achieve their digital transformation ambitions. Worley is one of the world's largest engineering companies, providing project delivery and consulting services to the resources and energy sectors, and complex process industries. It covers the full lifecycle, from creating new assets to sustaining and enhancing operating assets, in the hydrocarbons, mineral, metals, chemicals and infrastructure sectors. By combining Schneider Electrics expertise in the digital domain and with operational technology with Worleys digital experience gained from project work around the work, including data visualization platforms to award-winning robotics, the two will seek to provide the kingdoms energy firms and government bodies with the support they need to succeed in their own digital transformations in areas that include Artificial Intelligence, the Internet-of-Things and cybersecurity. Worley Senior VP (Saudi Arabia & Bahrain) Eissa Aqeeli said: "By leveraging our strong respective track records and expertise, we expect to make a meaningful impact for our customers in the industries we serve. Bringing more efficient ways of working and enabling better, safer, and more sustainable outcomes through digital." Schneider Electric Cluster President (Saudi Arabia) Mohamed Shaheen said: "Partnerships are key to ensuring the success of any digital transformation project, and our technological know-how combined with Worleys project experience and digital capability will mean our customers in the energy sector will have the best of both worlds." "Were also excited about the possibilities of working together in the smart city space, so we can develop more sustainable and livable conurbations for customers in Saudi Arabia," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Help India! Hindu nationalists at an event in India mimic Nazi Germany with a vow to fight, die, and kill. Pieter Friedrich | TwoCircles.net Support TwoCircles In 1933, as Nazi Germany first emerged with Adolf Hitler as head of government, the armys traditional swearing of loyalty to Germanys constitution was replaced with an oath of loyalty to the Fatherland and, not long after, an oath simply to Hitler himself. I swear to God this holy oath that I shall render unconditional obedience to the Leader of the German Reich and people, Adolf Hitler, supreme commander of the armed forces, and that as a brave soldier I shall at all times be prepared to give my life for this oath, vowed German troops. Civil servants, though not required to swear willingness to give their lives, were compelled to take similar oaths of faithful obedience to Hitler. After the ceremony, oath-takers traditionally sang the supremacist lyrics: Deutschland, Deutschland uber alles, Uber alles in der Welt [Germany, Germany above all, Above all in the world]. On 19 December 2021, in Indias capital city of Delhi, a crowded hall of hundreds of Hindu supremacists raised their arms in a salute eerily reminiscent of the infamous Nazi salute which is banned in post-war Germany as they pledged to fight, and die, and, if required, we will kill as well to turn the country into a Hindu nation. The pledge was led by prominent right-wing Indian journalist Suresh Chavhanke. It was no surprise that Chavhankes pledge echoed that of the Nazis in both words and actions. He claims to have been a member of the Nazi-inspired Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) paramilitary since the age of three. The RSS, which has risen to power in India through the premiership of Narendra Modi (an RSS member, reportedly, since the age of eight), was founded in 1925, the same year that Hitler published his manifesto, Mein Kampf, and formed the Schutzstaffel (SS). That paramilitary served, first, as Hitlers personal protection squadron and, eventually, as the primary perpetrator of the Holocaust. The RSSs first Supreme Commander, Hedgewar, set forward a doctrine that mirrored the Aryanism of Nazi Germany. India, insisted Hedgewar, should properly be called Hindustan [land of the Hindus] and protected as a nation of Hindu people which he compared directly and contemporarily with the rise of Nazism to a Germany of Germans. In 1931, RSS co-founder Moonje visited Italy to tour dictator Benito Mussolinis fascist institutions. Applauding them for showing how the idea of fascism supposedly produced unity amongst people, he declared that India needed similar fascist organizations and subsequently praised the RSS as an already existing example of one such institution. In 1939, as Nazi Germany initiated the Second World War with the annexation of Austria, occupation of Czechoslovakia, and invasion of Poland, the RSSs second Supreme Commander published a book which identified both Mussolinis Italy and Hitlers Germany as examples of the India that the RSS hoped to fashion. Golwalkar praised the Race consciousness of the Italian Fascists and the Race spirit of the German Nazis which prompted their territorial expansionism. Even so with us: our Race spirit has once again roused itself, he wrote. According to the RSS chief, these European fascist nations proved his belief that every Race [possesses] the indisputable right of excommunicating from its Nationality all those who, having been of the Nation, for ends of their own, turned traitors and entertained aspirations contravening or differing from those of the National Race as a whole. For Golwalkar, the National Race of India is what he termed the Hindu Race. Describing non-Hindus as internal threats, foreign races, and traitors, the RSS chief insisted that, if they stayed in India, such minorities should be stripped of citizens rights. Claiming that only Hindus are of the soil and that, in the land of the Hindus, lives and should live the Hindu nation, he declared that every non-Hindu faced only two choices: Either to merge themselves in the national race and adopt its culture, or to live at its mercy so long as the national race may allow them to do so and to quit the country at the sweet will of the national race. In other words, for the RSS, all non-Hindu Indians must either submit to being Hindu or face loss of citizenship and even expulsion from the country. Yet Golwalkar didnt stop there. Pointing to Hitlers Germany as his model, he suggested that the choice was actually between expulsion or extermination. Nazi Germany, said Golwalkar, had kept up the purity of the race and its culture. by her purging the country of the Semitic races the Jews, thus demonstrating (in his mind) the impossibility of a pluralistic and multicultural society and serving, he argued, as a good lesson for us in Hindustan to learn and profit by. Notably, Golwalkars rhetoric, aside from his direct praise for the European fascists, mirrored that of Hitler in a wide variety of other ways. The December 2021 pledge in Delhi, led by life-long RSS member Chavhanke, once more invoked the supremacist ideals of Nazism with the words: We all take an oath, give our word, and make a resolution that, until our last breath, we will make India a Hindu nation and keep it a Hindu only nation. We will fight, and die, and, if required, we will kill as well. We will not hesitate a bit to make any sacrifice at any cost. To complete this resolution, our Gurudev, our teacher, our goddess Mother India, our ancestors, give us power, give us victory. A preceding event held from 17-19 December in Haridwar, Uttarakhand raised an identical spectre of xenophobic fascism. If any monster poses a danger to Hindutva [ie, Hindu nationalism], then I wont think twice before picking up weapons to fight, declared Pooja Shakun Pandey (aka, Sadhvi Annapurna Maa), General Secretary of the Hindu Mahasabha (a political party that predates the founding of the RSS by ten years; one of its most influential leaders, Savarkar, penned the Hindu nationalist ideologys quintessential manifesto, Hindutva, while his brother served as one of the co-founders of the RSS itself). We will tear them apart, continued Pandey. Dont think that Muslims are growing in numbers. If we wake up today, and make a resolution, and understand their plans, then what we want will be achieved. India will be declared a Hindu nation, not an Islamic nation. Make yourself so capable, and increase your population. If we want to decrease the population of Muslims, then we are ready to kill. If we become soldiers and kill two million Muslims, then well be victorious. Pandeys fanatical rant was mimicked in a chorus of hate raised by multiple other Hindu supremacist leaders from the same stage in Haridwar. Without picking up weapons, no society will ever survive, foamed Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati (who, notably, was earlier this year invited to headline an event organized by a leading US affiliate of the RSS). Referring, apparently, to the entire population of non-Hindu Indians, he continued: They are an economy of 400 million people. You [Hindus] are an economy of one billion. When will you take action? Forget about the swords. They are just for display on stages. In a battle, the one with superior weapons wins. The best of weapons: these will save you. Narsinghanand further vowed to give ten million rupees ($133,000) to anyone prepared to become the Hindu Prabhakaran a reference to infamous Sri Lankan terrorist Velupillai Prabhakaran, the founder and leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Upping the ante, he pledged 1 billion rupees ($13.3 million) to anyone willing to continue in that role for a full year. Yati Narasinghanand promises to give 1 crore to any Hindu Sanyasi is ready to become Prabhakaran. Says they need people like Prabhakaran, Bhindranwale & Shabeg Singh. 'Jab tak ek Prabhakaran ek Bhindranwale aur ek Shabeg Singh tab tak Hindu Bach nahi sakta' #HaridwarHateAssembly pic.twitter.com/vHLFcGG4cC Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) December 22, 2021 Hindutva activist Swami Premanand Maharaj reiterated the call for Hindu nationalists to take up arms, stating: You had asked how we should protect our religion? I say that protection is not possible without weapons. Encouraging them to own a weapon of a minimum of 100,000 rupees [$1300, ie, a firearm], he urged his audience to buy cheap phones and shoes so that they could splurge on expensive weapons. Another extremist priest, Swami Prabodhanand Giri of the Hindu Raksha Sena [Hindu Protection Army], declared, Either be ready to die or be ready to kill. There is no other option. Referencing the Rohingya Genocide, he added, We have to repeat Myanmar. In India. Police, politicians, soldiers, and every Hindu need to pick up weapons and start this cleaning operation [ie, ethnic cleansing]. As RSSs second, longest-serving, and most influential Supreme Commander, Golwalkar, had pointed to the territorial expansionism of the European fascists as a supposed justification for his own Hindu supremacist beliefs. Ever since the Partition of India in 1947, the RSS has made one of its primary goals the re-establishment of a mythical Akhand Bharat [United India], which ostensibly stretched (at least) from Afghanistan to Myanmar, if not further. Invoking the concept of Akhand Bharat at the Haridwar conclave, yet another Hindutva activist warned that India despite its nearly 80 per cent population of Hindus is becoming Islamic. He argued, Let us go back a little. Half of the nation is already Islamic, where green flags [of Islam] are already being hoisted in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. It was a crystal clear suggestion that these neighbouring nations of India actually belong to India herself. Officials of Indias ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including former Delhi BJP spokesperson Ashwini Upadhyay and Uttar Pradesh State Minister Rajeshwar Singh, were present in both Haridwar and Delhi. The two synchronized genocidal conferences occurred in the wake of a rising wave of Hindutva hatred and violence that first started escalating to an extent unprecedented in the past several years, with the exception of the 2020 Delhi Pogrom around October 2021. The present onslaught only began after the then acting ambassador of the US to India, Atul Keshap, met with the current RSS chief in what was perceived as a legitimization, normalization, and whitewashing of the paramilitarys fascism. Hindu nationalist attacks targeting Christians, Muslims, and Sikhs have skyrocketed ever since. The son of the Deputy Minister for Home Affairs (the Central Government agency in charge of internal law and order) allegedly ran over and killed several peacefully protesting Sikh farmers in Uttar Pradesh. In Chhattisgarh, a BJP official led a mob, chanting slogans about cutting Muslims to pieces while, in Madhya Pradesh, another mob raised calls to shoot the traitors, a slogan first raised by a BJP Cabinet Minister against peaceful Muslim protestors in 2020. Again in Chhattisgarh, a Hindutva priest, flanked by BJP leaders, urged a rally to behead anyone encouraging conversion. Meanwhile, The New York Times recently reported: Anti-Christian vigilantes are sweeping through villages, storming churches, burning Christian literature, attacking schools and assaulting worshipers. In many cases, the police and members of Indias governing party are helping them, government documents and dozens of interviews revealed. In church after church, the very act of worship has become dangerous. Yet, as the NYT also reported after the two genocidal conferences in Delhi and Haridwar, even by the standards of the rising anti-Muslim [and anti-Christian] fury in India these events produced the most blatant and alarming call for violence in recent years. In the 1990s, renowned India psychologist Ashis Nandy interviewed Modi years before the RSS activist became Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2002 and was, immediately, implicated in an anti-Muslim pogrom that left thousands dead. Here was a classic, clinical case of a fascist, wrote Nandy about (now Indian Prime Minister) Modi. I never use the term fascist as a term of abuse; to me, it is a diagnostic category comprising not only ones ideological posture but also the personality traits and motivational patterns contextualizing the ideology. Nandy explained that he came out of the interview shaken, concluding: For the first time, I had met a textbook case of a fascist and a prospective killer, perhaps even a future mass murderer. As the NYT reported regarding the two recent Hindutva conferences: The government is allowing hate speech of this kind by remaining silent in the face of calls for violence. Silence is violence, many have opined, but the silence appears calculated. As a member of the RSS, Modi remains intrinsically committed to the paramilitarys call for establishing India as a Hindu nation where all others are expelled or exterminated, per the doctrines of the groups founders. Thus, his silence is complicity. He, it seems, agrees with the xenophobic and genocidal ideology being espoused with impunity. As Indian journalist and human rights investigator Rejimon Kuttapan observed about the oath-taking ceremony in Delhi, this represents 1933 Germany. As Indian Member of Parliament, Shashi Tharoor pointed out, They have learned nothing from history, but those who have must stop them. And, as Indian MP Karti P. Chidambaram noted, India is Germany 1933. Chidambaram asked: Are Kristallnacht and [the] Final Solution next? I have sometimes called Modi the Hitler of the East. To my mind, the only question remaining is if and when the Hindutva pledge to kill will also include a vow of loyalty to Modi as the Fuhrer of India. Note: translations of linked videos provided by Hindutva Watch. Pieter Friedrich is a freelance journalist specializing in the analysis of South Asian affairs. He is the author of Saffron Fascists: Indias Hindu Nationalist Rulers and co-author of Captivating the Simple-Hearted: A Struggle for Human Dignity in the Indian Subcontinent. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. The federal order had been delayed by a judges injunction, but an appellate court largely reinstated the mandate this month. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Wednesday it would hear arguments in the case Jan. 7, along with arguments over Bidens mandate for workplaces with more than 100 employees. Republican-led state attorneys general and others have challenged the orders, arguing they exceed federal authority, and that people have the right to make their own medical decisions. The Plant Clinic can help you choose an evergreen or other plant that is suited to the conditions and size of your yard. Identify what you want the plant to do, such as create privacy or display holiday lights. A tree will live a long time, so its worth it to invest some time and effort in finding a plant that is likely to succeed, Yiesla said. [This Joint Article was published on The National Interest. Qin Gang is the Chinese Ambassador to the United States. Anatoly Antonov is the Russian Ambassador to the United States.] The upcoming American-led online Summit for Democracy will stoke ideological confrontation. Faced with an array of global challenges, countries urgently need to strengthen coordination and cooperation for common progress. The United States will be hosting the online Summit for Democracy on December 9-10, 2021, empowering itself to define who is to attend the event and who is not, who is a democratic country and who is not eligible for such status. An evident product of its Cold-War mentality, this will stoke up ideological confrontation and a rift in the world, creating new dividing lines. This trend contradicts the development of the modern world. It is impossible to prevent the shaping of a global polycentric architecture but could strain the objective process. China and Russia firmly reject this move. Peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom are common values of humanity. Democracy is not a prerogative of a certain country or a group of countries, but a universal right of all peoples. It can be realized in multiple ways, and no model can fit all countries. Whether a countrys path works depends on whether it meets the countrys realities, follows the trend of the times, and brings about economic development, social stability and progress, and better lives for the people. Ultimately, it relies on the support of the people and will be proven by its contribution to human progress. Therefore, a basic criterion of democracy should be about the people, i.e. whether the people have the right to govern their country, whether their needs are met, and whether they have a sense of fulfillment and happiness. If the people are only awakened when casting their votes and sent back to hibernation when the voting is over, if they are served with sweet-sounding slogans in campaigns but have no say after the election, if they are wooed during canvassing but left out in the cold after that, this is not a genuine democracy. What China has is an extensive, whole-process socialist democracy. It reflects the peoples will, suits the countrys realities, and enjoys strong support from the people. In China, the people have the right to elections, and they can get deeply involved in national governance, exercising their power through the People's Congresses at the national and other levels. China has eight non-Communist parties participating in governance, as well as a unique system and corresponding institutions of political consultation. On matters concerning people's keen interests, there are broad-based and sufficient consultations and discussions before any decision is made. Policies and measures can only be introduced when there is a consensus that they are what the people want and will serve the peoples needs. It has been proved that the whole-process democracy works in China, and works very well. China calls for building a community with a shared future for mankind. As residents of the same global village, we should handle international affairs through consultation. Russia is a democratic federative law-governed state with a republican form of government. Democracy is the fundamental principle of its political system. The democratic institutions were further strengthened by the amendments to the Constitution adopted through a referendum in 2020. In Russia, the development of democracy is closely connected to culture and traditions. Traditions of its parliamentarianism go back over a hundred years. Russias political system is evolving steadily and needs a stable and calm environment that guarantees the rights and interests of its people. Democracy is not just about domestic governance; it should also be reflected in international relations. A truly democratic government will support democracy in international relations. It will not foster hegemony and division abroad while building democracy and unity at home. The path to prosperity of nations goes through respectful cooperation with each other, despite some differences in views on particular issues. The sovereignty, security, and development interests of a country should not be violated. Interfering in other countries internal affairsunder the pretext of fighting corruption, promoting democratic values, or protecting human rightshindering their development, wielding the big stick of sanctions, and even infringing on their sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity go against the UN Charter and other basic norms of international law and are obviously anti-democratic. No country has the right to judge the worlds vast and varied political landscape by a single yardstick, and having other countries copy ones political system through color revolution, regime change and even use of force go against international law, and are obviously anti-democratic. International affairs should be handled in accordance with the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and decided in the spirit of true multilateralism. There should be a more inclusive global governance, not something like might makes right. Seeking supremacy and putting oneself always first are acts of hegemonism and unilateralism, and are obviously anti-democratic. Common security and development are a prevailing aspiration of the international community. Using ideology to bring down other countries, and promote a geo-strategy for absolute security will lead to division and confrontation, and are obviously anti-democratic. There is only one international system in the world, i.e. the international system with the United Nations at its core. There is only one international order, i.e. the one underpinned by international law. And there is only one set of rules, i.e. the basic norms governing international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. Flaunting the rules-based international order without referencing the UN and international law and attempting to replace international rules with the dictums of certain blocs falls into the category of revisionism and is obviously anti-democratic. There has seen no shortage of wars and turmoil worldwide to prove that spreading democracy, its political system, and values against other countries will severely undermine regional and international peace, security, and stability. Bombings of Yugoslavia, military intervention in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya, and democratic transformation do nothing but harm. Countries should focus on running their own affairs well, not condescendingly criticizing others. There is no need to worry about democracy in Russia and China. Certain foreign governments better think about themselves and what is going on in their homes. Is it freedom when various rallies in their countries are dispersed with rubber bullets and tear gas? It does not look very much like freedom. Faced with an array of global challenges, countries urgently need to strengthen coordination and cooperation for common progress. Especially today when the international community needs to improve cooperation between all countries to counter the pandemic of COVID-19, foster economic development, and neutralize cross-border threats. China and Russia call on countries: to stop using "value-based diplomacy" to provoke division and confrontation; to practice mutual respect and win-win cooperation in international relations, and to work for harmonious coexistence between countries with different social systems, ideologies, histories, cultures, and development levels. A sweeping number of import items will enjoy lower tariffs next year as China has made new tariff adjustments for trade pacts, soon to take effect, amid efforts to improve the quality of life and boost opening up. The Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council announced earlier this month to implement provisional tariffs that are lower than the most-favored-nation rates on 954 imported commodities starting Jan. 1, 2022. The figure saw an increase from 883 last year and 859 in 2019. "Many of the imports on the list are heavily featured in people's daily lives so that foreign firms can benefit from China's development," said Mei Xinyu, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce. The country will also grant zero-tariff treatment on 98 percent of taxable items originating in the least-developed countries, according to the commission. Aiming for high quality According to experts and industry insiders, imports included in the adjustments tell tales of improving livelihood and industrial upgrade aimed at low-carbon outcomes, both traits of high-quality growth. Tariffs on medical products such as a new cancer drug and artificial joints have been lowered -- a continuation of similar moves in recent years to reduce medical costs and bolster public health. Since 2018, China has either exempted or lowered tariffs on two batches of cancer drugs, artificial cardiac valves and hearing aids. Tariffs on some aquatic products, baby clothing, artworks, ski gear are slashed to accommodate consumer demand for quality lifestyles and winter sports, said the commission. The 954 products also include auto parts that help cut greenhouse gas emissions, as well as high-voltage cables for high-speed trains and fuel-cell components that are expected to bolster high-tech manufacturing. Meanwhile, the average tariff rate on 62 products of information technology will be slashed from 3.4 percent to 1.7 percent starting July 1, 2022. These moves will help keep domestic industrial and supply chains stable, spur innovations and industrial upgrade, as well as advance low-carbon development, analysts and industry insiders say. High-level opening up The new adjustments follow China's overriding trend of tariff reduction in the past two decades. The country has cut its overall tariff rate from 15.3 percent in 2001 to 9.8 percent in 2010 to fulfill its accession commitment to the World Trade Organization (WTO), before bringing it further down to 7.4 percent currently. In latest efforts toward high-level opening up, China will impose conventional tariff rates on some products from 29 countries and regions in accordance with relevant trade agreements and preferential arrangements, resulting in lower tariffs on products from countries including New Zealand, Peru, Switzerland, Pakistan, Mauritius, and Costa Rica. The country also introduced lower or zero tariffs in accordance with trade agreements under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the new free trade agreement between China and Cambodia, both to come into effect beginning 2022. While China had already made tariff cuts with certain members of the RCEP, the 2022 adjustments covered more products, showcasing China's commitment to tariff arrangements under the world's largest free trade agreement, said Cui Fan, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics. "China's compliance to trade rules under the RCEP will help advance China's high-level opening up, and in turn boost the integration of industrial, supply and value chains between the RCEP members, injecting impetus into world economic recovery," said Cui. Under the RCEP, China and Japan will see the first bilateral tariff cuts in the form of zero-tariff treatment on 24.9 percent of imported items from Japan and 55.5 percent of imported items from China in 2022. Companies from both sides are expected to benefit from the agreement. Experts say that China's current overall tariff level, which is nearing that of many developed countries and still decreasing, will help facilitate global trade with lower costs. In the first three quarters of the year, China's merchandise imports accounted for around 12 percent of the world's total, up from 11.54 percent in 2020, according to WTO data. Its foreign trade value expanded 22 percent year on year to 35.39 trillion yuan (about 5.56 trillion U.S. dollars) in the January-November period. China has vowed to expand high-quality and institutional opening-up, grant foreign-funded enterprises national treatment, attract more investment from multinational companies, and facilitate the early implementation of major foreign-invested projects in 2022, according to the tone-setting annual Central Economic Work Conference early this month. To that end, China is working on a slew of measures on top of tariff reductions like shortening the negative list for foreign investment and introducing a negative list for cross-border services trade in the country's free trade zones. The Standing Committee of the People's Congress of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Friday strongly condemned and firmly opposed the United States' signing the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law. The standing committee said, in a statement, that the so-called act is based on false information and political motives. It deliberately slanders the human rights situation in Xinjiang and maliciously attacks the region's labor and employment policies. The U.S. signing of the so-called act is also a flagrant violation of international law and fundamental principles of international relations, and is gross interference in China's internal affairs. It has an actual intention to disrupt the stable development of Xinjiang by suppressing enterprises in the region, said the statement. Xinjiang strictly implements the Labor Law of the People's Republic of China and other related laws and regulations. The employment of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang is protected by law, and people enjoy complete freedom in employment choices, said the statement. The statement pointed out that the United States itself has, in fact, an indelible record of forced labor. Over the recent years, the United States has faced a series of domestic labor issues such as human trafficking, forced labor in agriculture, and child labor abuse. In the face of the truth and facts, no matter how the United States lies and deceives, it will neither disrupt the social stability in Xinjiang nor stop people of all ethnic groups in the region from striving for a better life together, according to the statement. The people's government of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Friday strongly condemned and firmly opposed the United States' signing into law of the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act." In recent years, Xinjiang has taken employment creation as its top priority for improving livelihood, and basically achieved full employment for those who are able to work, the regional government said in a statement. The total number of employed people in Xinjiang has increased from about 11.35 million in 2014 to 13.56 million in 2020, up 19.4 percent, it added. While striving to promote employment, Xinjiang strictly protects people's legitimate rights and interests pertaining to labor in accordance with law. No so-called "forced labor" ever took place in the region, said the statement. The United States, however, has erred and misbehaved in dealing with labor issues, and has not yet signed most international labor conventions so far, it said. Xinjiang affairs are purely part of China's domestic affairs, and no foreign governments or external forces have the right to interfere, it said. The so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" is nothing but a piece of waste paper, and will not affect Xinjiang's development and progress at all, it said. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has called for consolidating and expanding the achievement of a campaign on studying the Party's history. Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in a recent instruction. A meeting was held in Beijing on Friday to summarize the campaign, carried out among all Party members in 2021, the year of the CPC's centenary. As a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee, the campaign has put Party members and officials through a thorough and profound political, thought and spiritual education, Xi said. Through the campaign, the whole Party has notably enhanced its historical consciousness and confidence, and has significantly strengthened its capacity to innovate, unite and fight, he added. Demanding a long-term and regular education system and mechanism to consolidate the achievement of the campaign, Xi urged the whole Party to focus on studying and implementing the guiding principles of the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee and deepen understanding of the Party's innovative theories. Efforts should be made to rally and lead Chinese people of all ethnic groups on the new journey with new achievements, and to prepare for the 20th CPC National Congress with concrete actions, Xi said. Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Wang demanded the earnest implementation of Xi's important instruction, which has set out clear requirements regarding the study and implementation of the guiding principles of the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee and promoting the campaign on a long-term and regular basis. Efforts should be made to lead Party members and cadres to think and act in line with the requirements of the CPC Central Committee, Wang said, urging them to strive for new achievements with a stronger sense of initiative. Chinese top legislature on Friday expressed resolute opposition to the U.S. signing of the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law. The U.S. act fabricates the so-called "forced labor" issue in China's Xinjiang and grossly interferes in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights, said a statement issued by the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's National People's Congress. "Should the United States choose to go down the wrong path, China will take resolute and forceful countermeasures," said the statement. Noting that the policies and practices concerning employment and job security in Xinjiang comply with China's Constitution and relevant laws and conform to international labor and human rights standards, the statement said that there is no such thing as "forced labor" in Xinjiang. In total disregard of the truth, some U.S. politicians suppressed Xinjiang enterprises under the pretext of the so-called "forced labor" issue, which fully exposed their ill intentions of "containing China with Xinjiang" and curbing China's development, said the statement, adding that their plot will certainly find no support and never succeed. The 13th National People's Congress (NPC) will kick off its fifth annual session in Beijing on March 5, 2022, according to a decision made by the NPC Standing Committee on Friday. The decision was adopted at the end of an NPC Standing Committee session held from Monday to Friday. The suggested agenda of the annual session includes reviewing the government work report and examining the report on the implementation of the annual plan on national economic and social development for 2021 and the draft plan on national economic and social development for 2022. The session is expected to examine the report on the implementation of the central and local budgets for 2021 and the draft central and local budgets for 2022. According to the decision, lawmakers are expected to deliberate a draft amendment to the Organic Law of the Local People's Congresses and Local People's Governments, a draft decision of the fifth session of the 13th NPC on the number of deputies to the 14th NPC and their election, two draft methods for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) and the Macao SAR to elect their deputies to the 14th NPC. They will also review the work reports of the NPC Standing Committee, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate. Some hotels near test centers for the ongoing national entrance examination for postgraduate studies came under fire for charging extortionate room rates during the exam period. Some students in provinces including Shandong, Liaoning and Sichuan complained on social media that they had to pay up to 10 times the usual price for hotel rooms during the exam period from Saturday to Monday. Some hotels even asked those that had booked rooms in advance at a lower price to pay the difference or cancel their reservations. Hotels in Changqing district of Jinan, Shandong province, were among those that attracted the most complaints. On Dec. 15, the district's market supervision authority met with the operators of 65 hotels in the district to remind them to keep prices within a reasonable range as permitted by laws, regulations and policies, and to strengthen self-discipline. The Shandong Development and Reform Commission issued a document on the same day, stipulating that hotels in Changqing district that more than double their normal average room rates during the exam period will be looked into as a case of price gouging. Every year, many test takers who live far away from their exam venues choose to book nearby hotel rooms in order to have a good rest between tests and avoid getting held up in traffic. A Liaoning University student surnamed Jia is one of the test takers this year. He told The Beijing News that it takes him an hour to get to the test center by subway, so he booked a hotel room nearby for Friday and Saturday on Oct. 20, at a total cost of 266 yuan ($42). His reservation was confirmed on the day he made the booking but the hotel asked him to cancel on Dec. 11 because an escaped prisoner was caught in the hotel and the police had asked for a temporary closure, Jia told the newspaper. However, after the cancellation, Jia said that on an e-commerce platform he found that the hotel was open on Friday and Saturday and that the two-day rental for the room type he booked in October had risen to 926 yuan. In a telephone interview, a staff member of the hotel told The Beijing News they raised the rates because the exam days happen to fall on Christmas this year and they didn't have enough rooms to meet the combined demand. Regarding the temporary closure, the staff member explained that the hotel had indeed closed due to a case involving the police and was later told it could reopen. However, such behavior is price gouging and profiteering, claimed Han Jianlong, a lawyer of Qilu Law Firm, in an interview with Legal Daily. "It hurts the interests of consumers and may also cause market disorder." That hotels jack up room rates by huge amounts during major exams shows there is indeed a surge in demand and that some hotel operators lack good faith, Fu Jian, a lawyer with Henan Yulong Law Firm, told The Beijing News, adding that forced cancellation or rebooking is a breach of contract and refusal of transaction. Wang Yisong, an associate professor of law at Shandong University of Political Science and Law, told Legal Daily that as per the Price Law, market-regulated pricing does not mean that pricing is entirely left to the discretion of businesses. They must abide by the Price Law and accept regulatory supervision in setting their prices, Wang said. Flash China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) deplores and firmly rejects the U.S. economic bullying as the U.S. side signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, the MOC said in a statement Friday. The U.S. act classifies all products produced in Xinjiang as "forced labor" products and bans imports of products related to Xinjiang, the statement said. Ignoring facts and under the pretext of "human rights," the U.S. side has been resorting to unilateralism, protectionism and bullying, seriously undermining market principles, violating the rules of the World Trade Organization, seriously harming the vital interests of businesses and consumers in China and the United States, and undermining the stability of global industrial and supply chains and global economic recovery, the statement said. The U.S. side's allegation of "forced labor" in Xinjiang is fabricated and has no factual basis, the statement said. China's criminal law clearly forbids forced labor. Under the guise of the human rights issue, the U.S. has made groundless accusations and hyped the myth of "forced labor" and other issues concerning Xinjiang in order to smear China's image, interfere in China's internal affairs, curb China's development, and undermine the prosperity and stability of Xinjiang, the statement said. China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its national sovereignty, security and development, as well as the legitimate rights and interests of people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, it said. You are here: World Flash Nicaragua received a new batch of COVID-19 vaccines donated by China on Friday, the second in a month. The cargo arrived at the Augusto C. Sandino International Airport in Managua, capital of Nicaragua in the morning, and was received by Presidential Advisor Laureano Ortega Murillo and Health Minister Martha Reyes. Nicaragua appreciates and acknowledges the solidarity of the Chinese government and people, the presidential advisor told Xinhua, calling the shipment "a great Christmas gift from the Chinese people." "Since the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between our countries, under the one-China principle, we have received different expressions of appreciation, affection, and love for our people," he said. Both countries are working together to identify opportunities for bilateral cooperation, focusing on projects of high humanitarian value for the benefit of their people, he added. The new batch of vaccines developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm will bolster Nicaragua's voluntary vaccination campaign, Health Minister Reyes said. Yu Bo, representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said China will continue to support Nicaragua's anti-pandemic efforts and promote the construction of a community of health for all. Nicaragua, which resumed diplomatic relations with China on Dec. 10, received the first batch of China-donated COVID-19 vaccines on Dec. 12. Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 TEHRAN, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) completed on Friday the final stage of the five-day "Great Prophet 17" military drills, sending through the words of its commanders a warning message to Israeli threats. With the talks underway in Austria's capital Vienna to restore the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, tensions between Iran and Israel have escalated during the past weeks, raising concerns that they might adversely impact the advancement of Vienna talks. ISRAELI THREATS Tomer Bar, incoming commander of the Israeli Air Force, said on Wednesday that if there is a need, his country is ready to carry out a successful strike on Iran's nuclear facilities as early as "tomorrow," western media reported. Bar said striking against Iran's nuclear program might happen under his command after he takes the helm in April 2022, if the ongoing talks in Vienna between Iran and major powers fail. Earlier this month, the Israeli media outlets claimed that Israel's strike on Syria is "a direct message" to Iran, quoting the leaders of the Israeli army as announcing an increase in the number of troops in the air force and the intelligence branch of the Israeli army to prepare for a possible attack on Iran. On Wednesday, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met in Tel Aviv to discuss the state of affairs in the Vienna talks and coordinate a joint strategy. The Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported that one of the main demands from Israel on the United States is a complete cessation of Iran's ballistic missile development and production program, which has made it viable for the country to launch missiles into Israel in a short time. Israel has long threatened to carry out military operations against Iran if the latter's nuclear program gets close to weapon-grade. Reportedly, Israel has allocated 1.5 billion U.S. dollars for such action against Iran. IRAN'S RESPONSE Defying the threats, the IRGC launched the large-scale war game on the southern coasts of the country on Monday with its senior commander sending a warning message against any Israeli hostile move. "If Israel carries out attacks against Iran, our armed forces will immediately attack all centers, bases, routes, and spaces used to carry out the aggression," Gholam Ali Rashid, commander of the IRGC's Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, said Monday, according to the IRGC website. During the final phase of Great Prophet 17 on Friday, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Bagheri told reporters that the exercise was a response to "empty" threats of Israel, state TV reported. "It was one of the most successful missile exercises of Iran so far. In this exercise, a variety of missiles from different directions hit and destroyed simultaneously, and with complete accuracy, the designated target at long distance," said Bagheri. "Iran does not accept these threats ... and will not tolerate such threats," he added. On the same day, Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC Hossein Salami also referred to the aim of the exercise, particularly in the missile section, with very clear messages to Israeli threats. The message of this exercise is "a serious, real and field warning" to the threats of Israeli officials, he was quoted as saying by the IRGC website. "If they make the wrong move, we will cut off their hands," he added. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC Air Force, said on Friday that his force has been able to direct ballistic missiles to move and maneuver in different directions, and this phenomenon makes the work of the enemy very difficult. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian also described the objectives of the maneuver as a manifestation of Iran's "unwavering determination" to defend the country amid the threats of the enemies as well as a message of brotherhood and security to the neighboring countries. CONCERNS OVER NUKE TALKS In the article titled "Just One Wrong Move" on Dec. 14, Iran's Tehran Times daily published a map of dozens of potential military targets across Israel, warning against any action to be taken against Iran. The daily said all the "disruptive" threats by Israel, which "are not a mystery to the negotiators," come at a time when Iran and other parties are engaged in Vienna talks to examine ways to remove "illegal" sanctions on Iran. Hassan Hanizadeh, an international affairs analyst, wrote in the Iranian Arman Melli Daily recently that the Israelis have intervened in these negotiations in a number of ways and tried to influence the behavior of European countries from the beginning of the talks. Hanizadeh, however, expressed optimism about the current state of negotiations, saying the recent visit by Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid to European countries "to influence the Vienna negotiations was a failure." After his meeting with Sullivan, Lapid said on Wednesday that "we have no problem with a deal," appearing to give rare backing to nuclear negotiations. "A good deal," which would permanently limit Iran's ability to assemble a nuclear weapon, is "a good thing," he said, although the New York Times said he made the remarks "perhaps because he thinks the prospects of an agreement are remote." Following seven rounds of talks held since April, Iran and Western parties to the 2015 nuclear deal have yet to find a way to break the impasse on salvaging the pact, which Washington unilaterally quit in 2018. The Vienna talks are set to be continued on Monday after a 10-day break, EU coordinator Enrique Mora, who is chairing the negotiations, announced on Thursday, expressing the hope for speedy progress. Enditem Shixia, located in Zixi County, Fuzhou City, east China's Jiangxi Province, is a mountainous area of sparse population. The first kindergarten of Shixia Township was built up in 2016 funded by the local government for children's easier access to preschool education. The number of students decreases as many young people going out for jobs take their children together. Starting with fourteen students, the kindergarten now has only six, four of them left living with their grandparents because their parents are working in cities. Due to inconvenience caused by geographical location, the former two teachers left. Fu Jianqin, now 41, and Zhao Guoqin, now 56, took over the responsibility and have kept to it till today. They teach subjects including music, painting, P.E. and dancing while in the meantime, they give childcare and do the cleanup. They get along well with the children. Currently, the kindergarten is equipped with computers, TVs and other facilities for better teaching effects. "Situation has been remarkably improved here," said Zhao, who is going to retire after this semester and expecting more young teachers to come to support local preschool education and children's development. "We will surely do our very best to teach every kid, helping them learn about the outside world. We truly hope that with a good education, they can enjoy more options for the future and contribute to social progress," said Fu. (Photo by Xinhuanet/Wang Kaifeng) by Emad Drimly, Saud Abu Ramadan RAMALLAH/JERUSALEM, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The leadership changes in both Israel and the United States in 2021 had little impact on moving the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process forward. Furthermore, a bloody conflict in May also failed to lead to renewed diplomatic push to break the protracted stalemate. These events revealed a harsh reality that the Palestine cause, once at the core of achieving Middle East peace, is increasingly marginalized by the fast unfolding of geo-political changes in the region, featured by the accelerated normalization of Israel's ties with Arab states since last year. The U.S. lack of resolve and attention as well as the easing of pressure from the Arab world have further weakened Israel's willingness to yield to the Palestinians' demands, not to mention return to the negotiation table. LEADERSHIP CHANGES' LITTLE IMPACT The change in leadership in both the United States and Israel failed to bring about what the Palestinians had hoped for: a breakthrough to the impasse over the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. On Jan. 20, Democrat Joe Biden was inaugurated as the new U.S. president, rekindling the Palestinians' hope for the United States to revise the anti-Palestinian policies by Biden's predecessor Donald Trump, who recognized the disputed holy city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. However, despite the resumption of the U.S.-Palestinian contacts and Biden's positive remarks, no concrete steps have been taken by Washington so far to pressure Israel into resuming the peace process stalled since 2014. The Biden administration has yet even delivered its promises to reopen the office of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Washington D.C. and the American consulate in East Jerusalem, said Hani al-Masri, director of the Ramallah-based Masarat Center for Researches and Studies. "The U.S. ended up saying it believed in the two-state solution, but... any bet on the U.S. during the era of President Joe Biden is a wrong bet, because he is known for his pro-Israel positions," al-Masri said. Chen Kertcher, a lecturer in the Department of Middle Eastern Studies/Political Science at the Ariel University in Israel, said the United States is not interested in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict because Washington's main focus now is on East Asia. The leadership change in Israel also failed to break the political impasse on the Palestine issue. In June, a group of Israeli parties formed a coalition to oust Israel's longest serving prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But Naftali Bennett, Netanyahu's successor, has not sent out signals about reviving negotiations with the Palestinians or changing his previous opposition to an independent Palestinian state. Israeli analysts said the rise of right-wing parties in Israel, as well as their positions against a Palestinian state, represents a stumbling block in the way of achieving a breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Yoel Guzansky, a senior researcher at the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies, said it would be difficult for Bennett to accomplish anything meaningful with the parties because he is from a right-wing party. PALESTINE ISSUE SIDELINED Despite the Palestinian opposition, four more Arab countries, namely Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sudan and Morocco, have started normalizing ties with their old foe Israel since 2020. Before then, Israel had signed peace deals with only two of its Arab neighbors, Egypt and Jordan. Now, more Arab countries have opened arms to Israel as they aim to form a united front against their common rival Iran. In 2021, Israel continued to improve its relations with Arab countries, though failing to secure more peace deals. In December, Bennett paid a historic visit to the UAE, the first by an Israeli prime minister. The rapprochement between Israel and Arab countries has been a major setback for the Palestinians who have always relied on Arab support in confronting the Israelis, analysts said. "The restoration of relations between Arab countries and Israel is a trend that appears to continue and puts the Palestinians in a very difficult position," said Nimrod Goren, head of the Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies. Even during the May 10-21 conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, which killed over 260 people and wounded more than 2,000 others, the Arab world largely kept a low profile, in stark contrast to its past one strong voice in condemning Israel's violence and brutality. Not surprisingly, neither the United States nor the European Union, two major mediators, was motivated to take major steps to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process to prevent repetition of such bloodshed. ABSENCE OF PALESTINIAN UNITY Since 2007, the Palestinians have been suffering from internal division, with the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) taking control of the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority ruling the West Bank. Israel usually uses the absence of a unified Palestinian partner as the pretext to refuse to proceed with the negotiation process. Kertcher said the deep Palestinian division remains one of the major problems hindering the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "We are talking about a Palestinian society that is geographically, demographically and politically divided. You have Hamas controlling the Gaza Strip and you have the Palestinian Authority controlling parts of the West Bank," he explained. Though Israel and the Palestinian Authority resumed meetings in 2021 after years of severed ties, they only discussed security and economic issues rather than the issue of reviving the peace process, noted Khalil Shahin, a political analyst at the Ramallah-based Masarat Center for Researches and Studies. "This is because of the lack of any possibility to launch a negotiating process, aside from Israel's expansion of settlements and its refusal to resume the peace talks," he said. Egypt, a traditional mediator, made efforts in the year to reconcile Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party with Hamas through hosting unity talks in Cairo, but failed once again to bridge the gaps. Hamas, angered by Abbas' decision in April to postpone indefinitely the parliamentary elections scheduled for May 22, denounced it as "a coup against the path of national partnership and consensus." STATUS QUO LIKELY TO CONTINUE Looking forward into the new year, analysts are generally pessimistic about a breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian stalemate, as Arab countries are expected to continue to improve ties with Israel at the risk of marginalizing the Palestine cause. Ghassan al-Khatib, a lecturer at the Beirzeit University in the West Bank, believed that the Palestinian division will continue to ensure the survival of the Palestinian Autority and the status quo will persist. With regard to the alternative Palestinian options, al-Khatib ruled out radical policy changes by the Palestinian leadership, "since the room for manoeuvre is very small because the regional and international situations don't easily allow for breakthroughs." "The current Israeli government believes that it doesn't need to engage in a peace process with the Palestinians as long as it gets what it wants by seizing more West Bank lands and expanding settlements," said Ahmed Rafig Awad, a lecturer at the Al-Quds University in the West Bank. "2022 will bring another year of stalemate," Awad lamented. Enditem (Xinhua reporter Nick Kolyohin also contributed to the story.) BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The China National Textile and Apparel Council and 12 industry associations issued a statement on Saturday to firmly oppose the U.S. act of preventing products made in Xinjiang from entering the international supply chain. The U.S. side has recently signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, which classifies all products produced in Xinjiang as "forced labor" products and bans imports of products related to Xinjiang. Xinjiang cotton is globally recognized as a high-quality natural raw material for fiber, and is vital to the sound and sustainable development of the Chinese and global textile industry, the statement said. The U.S. suppression of Xinjiang cotton and related products is bound to severely endanger the security of the global textile supply chain, the statement added. It urged the U.S. side to face the solemn position of the Chinese government, textile industry and consumers, and rectify the mistakes as soon as possible. All international brands should respect the legitimate rights and interests of Xinjiang and the Chinese textile industry, and respect global consumers' freedom to make choices, said the statement, calling for joint efforts to resist trade bullying and avoid politicizing commercial issues. China's textile and apparel industry and retail market are the largest and most comprehensive globally, the statement said, adding that the industry has forged mutually beneficial partnerships with numerous international brands and buyers. The industry is confident and capable of safeguarding the security and interests of China's textile industrial chain, and the Chinese textile associations will continue to offer full support to Xinjiang's cotton plantation and production, as well as the trade and consumption of Xinjiang cotton at home and abroad, the statement noted. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Red tourism, which refers to visiting historical sites with a modern revolutionary legacy, has become an increasingly popular choice for travelers in 2021, data from a recent report showed. The number of searches for "red tourism" on Mafengwo, a Chinese travel service and social-networking platform, increased by 176 percent this year from a year earlier, according to the report jointly published by Mafengwo and China Tourism Academy. Red tourist destinations in north China's Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region have grown in popularity at the quickest rate nationwide, with the number of searches surging 240 percent year on year, the report said. Some 41.7 percent of respondents to a survey in the report said they visited red tourist sites more than three times this year, and over 40 percent of them went to such places "frequently" and "voluntarily" for sightseeing and knowledge. Red-themed homestay and live show are the favorite activities of tourists in 2021, with each of them accounting for nearly 20 percent of all activities in red tourism, according to the report. Enditem KABUL, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- A total of 200 newly trained soldiers have been deployed in the Afghan capital to beef up security in Kabul and the surrounding areas, Defense Ministry of the Taliban's caretaker government said Saturday. The troops who recently graduated from military training were "deployed in army's 313 Markazi Corps," the ministry said in a statement. "Afghanistan will soon have a disciplined and strong army," it added. After the Taliban's takeover in August of the country and formation of a caretaker government in September, all the 350,000-strong security and defense forces under the former administration have been disbanded. The Taliban administration has promised to hire professional personnel from the former government in establishing new security forces. Enditem SANAA, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi militia on Saturday claimed responsibility for a ballistic missile attack on the Saudi Arabian city of Samtah that killed two civilians and injured seven others. "Our forces hit and destroyed sensitive sites in (Saudi Arabia's southwestern region of) Jizan with three ballistic missiles," Houthi military spokesman Yehya Sarea said in a statement aired by the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV. "The attack came in response to the escalation by the Saudi-led coalition toward our country," he added. The Houthi missile attack on Friday night hit a car maintenance workshop in Samtah, killing a Saudi citizen and a Yemeni migrant worker, and injuring seven others also including a Yemeni migrant worker, according to the Saudi state media. The Saudi-led coalition intervened in the Yemeni conflict in 2015 to support the Yemeni internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after the Iran-backed Houthi militia forced him out of the capital Sanaa. The Houthi militia has recently intensified cross-border drone and missile attacks against Saudi cities. In February, the Houthi militia launched a major offensive against the Yemeni government army to capture the oil-rich province of Marib in central Yemen. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- China ranked second globally with a total of 301 unicorn companies, or startups valued at more than 1 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, according to a new report released by a Shanghai-based research institute. Compared with a year ago, 74 new Chinese unicorn companies were added to the list, said the Global Unicorn Index 2021 compiled by the Hurun Research Institute. Globally, a total of 1,058 unicorn companies were on the list, up 80 percent year on year, the data showed. The United States topped the list with 487 unicorn companies in total, while India has surpassed Britain to grab the third spot with 54 startups. Chinese tech giant Bytedance, the parent company of video platform TikTok and its Chinese sister app Douyin, came in as the most valuable unicorn worldwide, with its valuation surging to 2.3 trillion yuan (about 350 billion U.S. dollars) this year. Beijing hosted 91 unicorn companies in 2021, second largest in terms of the number of unicorns globally, while Shanghai ranked fourth with 71. Shenzhen maintained its fifth place with 32 unicorn companies. Enditem SHANGHAI, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- State Councilor Wang Yong has called on state-funded companies and state-owned enterprises to deepen reform and innovation, while striving to contribute more to stabilizing economic fundamentals. Wang made the remarks during an inspection tour to Jiangxi Province and Shanghai on the reform and development of the centrally-administered and local state-owned enterprises. From Wednesday to Friday, Wang went to companies in industrial sectors to visit their research and development centers and smart workshops as well as to learn about their reform and innovation progresses. Wang stressed the importance of ensuring stable development while pursuing progress as well as guaranteeing safe production and defusing risks. Efforts should be made to advance the breakthroughs of core technologies, promote the digital and green transformation, and foster new growth drivers, Wang said. Enditem TEHRAN, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- At least 10 people died in a car accident on Saturday morning in Iran's southwestern province of Khuzestan, the semi-official Fars news agency reported. According to the Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences, the chain accident of five vehicles, one carrying workers of a company, in Ahvaz-Khorramshahr road left 10 dead and 13 injured, said the report. "This accident occurred because of the collision of a cattle truck with a minibus carrying workers followed by a further collision of three other cars," the head of Khuzestan Road Police said. Enditem A medical worker is on duty amid snow in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) XI'AN, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has sent tens of thousands of government workers to join the frontline staff working in residential quarters across the city to stamp out coronavirus. The megacity, with a population of 13 million, imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday, in an effort to contain the latest COVID-19 resurgence. Residents have also been asked not to leave the city unless absolutely necessary. Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan has urged swift virus containment measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Xi'an during a recent inspection in the city. On Friday, the province reported 78 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 75 cases in Xi'an. In the resurgence since Dec. 9, the province had reported 342 local cases, with 330 cases in Xi'an, according to the provincial health commission. All the cases in Shaanxi, with four severe cases, 134 moderate cases and 204 mild cases, are undergoing treatment in the Xi'an Chest Hospital, Liu Na, an official with the provincial health commission told a press briefing Saturday. The patients, aged between one year old and 90 years old, are all in stable condition. To aid the fight against COVID-19, the Xi'an municipal committee of the Communist Party of China has sent more than 33,000 government workers to the frontline to help address staffing shortages. They have joined in the closed-off management of communities, nucleic acid testing and environmental disinfection. Niu Jingqi, a judge with the Xi'an Intermediate People's Court, was woken up by an urgent phone call at 5 a.m. on Thursday, asking him to get to a residential quarter more than 20 km away before 7 a.m. After a brief training upon arrival, Niu put on protective clothing and began helping community officials maintain order at a nucleic acid testing site until 10 p.m. "More than half of the 18,000 residents in this community are over 60 years old and do not know how to use the health code," Niu said. "Therefore we have set up a queue for people to register for the test with ID cards and arranged early testing for the elderly who are physically weak." "My wife is a police officer and is also on the frontline these days. We are doing ordinary work, but we want to contribute to the fight against the virus." Niu's 192 colleagues from the Xi'an Intermediate People's Court also work on the frontline. Fan Pengsheng, an official with the densely-populated Beilin District, has joined community officials to check nucleic acid testing and help tackle difficulties for eight residential communities since Dec. 18. "Many old residential communities do not offer property management services and we need to go door-to-door to tell residents to join the mass nucleic acid testing," Fan said. "As grassroots Party members and cadres, we should race against the time while the city suddenly came to a standstill," Fan said, adding that they often work till very late at night. Authorities in Xi'an also made all-out efforts to ensure the national postgraduate entrance examination for about 135,000 examinees in the city starting Saturday go smoothly amid grave epidemic situations. Authorities dispatched staff workers to send exam papers to examinees who are in quarantine in designated places. Chang'an University offered masks and hand sanitizers for all examinees and ensured that examinees can take nucleic acid testing every day. Those hit with sudden fever can take the exam in isolated rooms. The municipal transport department has organized 5,000 taxies and cars on ride-hailing platforms to provide one-on-one rides for examinees. Enditem Railway crew go to work amid snow in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A vegetable market is set up at the entrance of a residential area under quarantine in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) Staff members disinfect packed vegetables at a residential area under quarantine in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) Photo shows an empty square near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) Aerial photo shows a commercial street in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A sanitation worker cleans the road in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) Deliveryman Zhang Xin (1st L) delivers vegetables at a residential area under quarantine in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) Aerial photo shows a closed toll station in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A staff member helps a citizen to scan a QR code at a COVID-19 testing site in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A staff member checks the nucleic acid test result of an examinee (1st L) for postgraduate entrance exams in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A child receives a nucleic acid test at a testing site in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Dec. 25, 2021. Xi'an imposed closed-off management for communities and villages on Thursday in an effort to curb the spread of the latest COVID-19 resurgence. More than 3,000 nucleic acid testing sites in Xi'an are working simultaneously to provide services for residents in communities and on roadsides. Tens of thousands of frontline workers and volunteers are working against the clock to contain the virus. To swiftly contain the spread of the virus, local authorities have rolled out urgent measures while ensuring the city's residents have access to daily necessities. (Xinhua/Tao Ming) A China-Europe freight train bound for Duisburg of Germany prepares for departure at Tuanjiecun Station in southwest China's Chongqing, Jan. 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Tang Yi) BRUSSELS, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- It may not be unusual for people in Europe to come across the idea of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on news media, but it is highly likely that few have a clear idea about how the grand initiative is changing their lives. LONGTIME PAIN IN THE NECK An epic itinerary for holiday goers in Croatia is a drive along the coastline. Along the picturesque hillside road beside the Adriatic Sea, the drive can take one to most of the hotspot towns such as Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik, a must-go especially for Game of Thrones fans. The journey can be satisfying except for one nuisance -- expect to wait in the car for hours under the scorching sun because of a border check. The coastline of Croatia is cut off between the towns of Ploce and Dubrovnik by a narrow land of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where border check points are set up. Travelers to Dubrovnik by land have to pass two check points, one at each end of the 20-km-long road. For ages, this severed part of land has been a pain in the neck for people in Croatia, which has long desired erecting a bridge over the sea to close the gap. A DAUNTING PROJECT In 2007, Croatia started to build the bridge but had to leave it unfinished due to a shortfall of funds in 2012. After nearly four years of construction, several piers were left in the water and the bridge was still nowhere in sight. Croatia never gave up the project. After it became a member of the European Union in 2013, Croatia tapped EU fund for the bridge. With an investment of over 400 million euros (453 million U.S. dollars), Croatia revived the project. Coincidentally, China launched in the same year an initiative to bridge infrastructure gaps in countries across the Asia-Pacific region, Africa and Central and Eastern Europe aimed at boosting economic growth and promoting shared prosperity through cooperation. The initiative is now widely known as the BRI. Afterwards, a wide range of countries benefited from the initiative with new roads, ports and bridges built. In 2018, the China Road and Bridge Corporation along with other Chinese companies won the bid for the 2.44-km-long sea-crossing bridge. On July 28, the Croatian lands which used to be divided were connected together for the first time after the last missing part of the bridge was put into place. It took the Chinese companies three years to piece the bridge together. It now takes minutes to drive from one end of the bridge to the other. SILENT CONTRIBUTOR While the bridge will vastly improve travel in Croatia, other BRI projects are saving lives in Europe. It wasn't long ago when Europeans were scrambling for masks, surgical gowns and other protective gear at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. When sea freight was disrupted due to backlogs at ports and air freight was severely cut at the peak of the pandemic, the China-Europe freight rail provided a much-needed lifeline. Covering over 170 cities in more than 20 European countries, the China-Europe freight trains have brought in hundreds of thousands tons of medical supplies including masks, surgical gowns and other necessities to Europe. MAKING EUROPE GREENER Chinese companies involved in the BRI have never hesitated to bring their state-of-the-art technology to countries that need it most. In some European countries, Chinese companies are playing a proactive role in helping local economies become greener. Shanghai Electric Power Company has taken on the ambitious task of turning the Gozo Island of Malta into a carbon neutral territory in the country. Through years of cooperation with local partners since 2014, the company brought its expertise to Malta, overhauling and upgrading the power grid in the country and making frequent blackouts a thing of the past. Given the EU's pledge for carbon neutrality by 2050, member countries including Malta have begun to take action to reduce emissions. By installing an energy storage system on Gozo, Shanghai Electric plans to transfer the electricity yielded by solar power and wind power stations to the system and make it carbon neutral. It is the first "carbon neutral" energy storage system in the country. Meanwhile, Chinese electric vehicle company Nio is witnessing a growing popularity with its products in Norway, launching its first model ES8 in the Nordic country on Sept. 30. Gunnar Birkenfelter, founder of a car-sharing company in Norway, wasted no time adding the ES8 to his fleet. He said roughly 10 percent of his company's cars are of Chinese brands. Birkenfelter said Chinese automotive brands were of high quality and he wouldn't hesitate to recommend them. Nio has committed itself to Norwegian market with a plan to install four battery swap stations in 2021 and more in the future. The scale of the BRI's involvement in Europe continues to deepen, with Chinese investors and their local partners closely collaborating across a variety of sectors. The BRI will ignite enormous change on the continent over time and impact the lives of Europeans for years to come. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- China Enterprise Confederation issued a statement on Saturday to firmly oppose the U.S. trade hegemony of unilaterally impeding products made in Xinjiang from entering the international supply chain. The U.S. side has recently signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, which bans imports of textile-related products from China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The move has severely damaged the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises, the statement said, adding that it also severely damages the rights to subsistence and development of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The move will also disrupt the stability of global supply and industrial chains and undermine interests of related enterprises, which is not conducive to global economic recovery amid the pandemic, the statement added. The confederation said it completely approves of Chinese government's related stance and supports any necessary countermeasures. Chinese enterprises, including those in Xinjiang, can certainly cope with the disturbance and the malicious provocation, and achieve sustainable sound development, according to the statement. Enditem CHANGSHA, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- A handover ceremony of Chang'e-5 lunar samples, used for backup storage, was held Saturday in Shaoshan, central China's Hunan Province, which is also the home city of the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The samples, brought back by the Chang'e-5 probe, were handed over to Hunan University by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and will be stored in the newly constructed base, the country's sole one dedicated to lunar sample backup storage. The lunar samples collected by China for the first time is a significant accomplishment jointly achieved by tens of thousands of sci-tech workers, said Zhang Kejian, head of the CNSA. Storing the lunar samples in Chairman Mao's hometown is a profound tribute to his contributions to the Chinese nation and the people of the world, and it honors his long-cherished dream of reaching the moon, Zhang said. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Mercedes-Benz (China) Automotive Sales Co. has begun recalling certain imported vehicles from the Chinese market over safety concerns, according to the country's top quality watchdog. The recall, starting from Dec. 22, involves 7 imported GLE SUV and GLS SUV vehicles manufactured between Feb. 9, 2020 and June 2, 2020 and 149 imported CLS, E-Class, GLC SUV and S-Class cars made between Aug. 4, 2020 and Aug. 27, 2020, according to a statement released by the State Administration for Market Regulation. The affected cars manufactured between Feb. 9, 2020 and June 2, 2020 are potentially equipped with defective seats, which may increase risks of passenger injuries in the event of an accident, said the administration. For those made between Aug. 4, 2020 and Aug. 27, 2020, the faulty side-impact sensors may lead to delayed activation of the restraint systems in the event of a side impact, reducing their restraining effect and increasing the risk of injury to the vehicle occupants, according to the statement. The luxury carmaker promised to inspect and fix the defective parts free of charge. Enditem DAR ES SALAAM, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- For 31-year-old Dorcas Leskanga, the sky is the limit when it comes to learning computer engineering and information technology -- thanks to Huawei, the leading global Chinese provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. The soft-spoken Leskanga is a fourth-year student pursuing a Bachelor's Science Degree in computer engineering and information technology at the College of Information and Communication Technologies (CoICT) of the state-run University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) in Tanzania. Leskanga is among 500 Tanzanian students who have benefited under a special program called the talent cultivation and development program. Starting 2018, the program has been run by Huawei Tanzania in collaboration with the UDSM through CoICT to promote innovative minds and improve the ICT sector in the country. "My interest in learning about ICT was reinforced when I realized that Huawei Tanzania was giving students more chance to train in ICT. I grabbed that golden opportunity provided by Huawei," she told Xinhua in an interview at her college in Dar es Salaam, the commercial capital of Tanzania. Like Leskanga, Albert Misilimbo, 22 and a third-year student pursuing a Bachelor's of Science Degree in telecommunications engineering at the CoICT, said his ICT future looks bright with the training he is getting through the Huawei program. "In short Huawei is shaping young Tanzanians to become good innovators and drivers of the digital transformation in our country," said Misilimbo. Mussa Kissaka, CoICT principal and senior lecturer teaching electronics and telecommunications engineering, told Xinhua that the UDSM and Huawei Tanzania signed an agreement to run a Huawei academy program at the CoICT involving students and the teaching staff. Kissaka appreciated the cooperation between China and Tanzania in terms of vocational education, saying it has positive impacts on the young people, especially through programs such as those being undertaken by Huawei. "As the world is craving for digital technology, we cannot afford to miss because we are going for smart businesses that call for smart cities which need current technology and we need to train these young people to be able to manage the smart technologies," he said. Tom Tao, Huawei Tanzania's deputy managing director, said his company was determined to invest in the young generation by imparting them with necessary skills that can help the country to get development through digital technology. "Our priority is nurturing in the youth talent especially in the ICT industry which is very important to the country's economy and the young generation has proved to be an influential resource for the country," said Tao. Zainab Chaula, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, said in October this year that the ICT training provided by Huawei is vital for the country's digital transformation, saying that the digital economy in Tanzania has contributed to better service delivery, efficiency in revenue collection, improved management of human capital and creation of employment. Enditem ATHENS, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The death toll of the sinking of a refugee and migrant sailing boat on Thursday off the island of Antikythera on the edge of the Aegean Sea has reached 11, the Hellenic Coast Guard announced on Friday. Ninety passengers were rescued and transferred to Piraeus port, according to an e-mailed press statement. A rescue operation was still underway. The vessel had set sail from Turkey heading to Italy, according to preliminary information. It has been the second such tragedy in Greek waters this week. The Greek authorities announced on Wednesday that a similar boat sank near Folegandros island. Three people lost their lives, 13 were rescued and an unknown number of people were missing. Greece has been at the forefront of the refugee and migrant influx since 2015. Hundreds have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past six years. Enditem ATHENS, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- At least a dozen of people have lost their lives before Christmas Eve while their vessels, carrying refugees and migrants heading for Europe, sank in Greek waters. Two bodies have been retrieved as a rescue operation was underway Friday night near the Aegean Sea island of Paros, after the sinking of a vessel carrying refugees and migrants, according to Greek media reports. So far, 57 passengers have been rescued, with survivors stating that about 80 people were on board, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. Earlier, the Hellenic Coast Guard announced that the death toll of the sinking of a refugee and migrant sailing boat on Thursday off the island of Antikythera on the edge of the Aegean Sea has reached 11. Ninety passengers were rescued and transferred to Piraeus port, according to an e-mailed press statement. The Greek authorities also announced on Wednesday that a similar boat sank near Folegandros island. Three people lost their lives, 13 were rescued and an unknown number of people were missing. Greece has been at the forefront of the refugee and migrant influx since 2015. Hundreds have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past six years. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- A research report titled "U.S. Responsible for Global Spread of COVID-19" was jointly released by the Intelligence & Alliance Think Tank and the Taihe Institute on Friday. According to the report, data from multiple sources have shown that the United States is most likely the country where COVID-19 originated, and the country most responsible for the fast global spread of the virus. Its political manipulation of the disease has made the global anti-pandemic efforts particularly difficult and challenging. The following is the full text of the English version of the report, which was published on Saturday: Research Report: U.S. Responsible for Global Spread of COVID-19 by Intelligence & Alliance Think Tank (IATT), the Taihe Institute Introduction Against the backdrop of a still dire global pandemic situation, some U.S. politicians have kept scapegoating China on COVID-19 origins tracing in an attempt to muddle the truth, cover up their responsibility for the pandemic fiasco, and undermine global anti-pandemic cooperation. Their moves and remarks have been widely questioned and criticized by the international community. Data from multiple sources have shown that the United States is most likely the country where COVID-19 originated, and the country most responsible for the fast global spread of the virus. Its political manipulation of the disease has made the global anti-pandemic efforts particularly difficult and challenging. The United States is to blame for the current messy pandemic situation. If it does not correct its mistakes, and start to work with others in the world's pandemic fight immediately, humanity is going to face even greater disasters. I: Evidence indicating COVID-19 originated from the United States keeps showing up The United States has attempted to cover up its misdeeds by shifting the blame to others even to this day. It has been busy politicizing origins tracing and smearing China, and has turned a deaf ear to questions from around the world. The country has become even more dubious as it has refused to release information on America's early cases and to undertake domestic investigation on COVID-19 origins. The probe and analysis into the COVID-19 origins by authoritative agencies around the world, including those from the United States, have become increasingly clear along with the development of the pandemic. Evidence is also piling up, indicating that the United States, a country with the longest history of coronavirus research and the most advanced research capacity, could be the origin of the pandemic. 1. The timeline of the outbreak in the United States has been continuously backdated. According to media reports, the first COVID-19 case in the United States was confirmed on Jan. 19, 2020 in a man who returned home in the U.S. state of Washington from travel. But through deeper investigations, local governments in the United States have identified earlier infections and deaths from the disease. Starting from March 2020, the Department of Health website of the U.S. state of Florida published records showing 171 patients had coronavirus symptoms or positive test results in January and February that year. The entire dataset disappeared from the website on May 4, 2020, only to return later in the evening without the column showing the date when those patients developed symptoms. In an antibody testing study published on June 15, 2020, researchers with the U.S. National Institutes of Health analyzed more than 24,000 stored blood samples that were collected between Jan. 2 and March 18 that year. According to the serology test theory, antibodies can be found about two weeks after a person being infected. In this study, the first positive sample came as early as Jan. 7, 2020 from a volunteer in the U.S. state of Illinois, suggesting the virus was present in the United States before mid-December in 2019, a month earlier than the first case officially reported in the country. Besides, research published on March 30, 2020 on the New England Journal of Medicine probed into 24 critically-ill patients in the U.S. city of Seattle. Those infected were identified by nine hospital intensive care units in the city between Feb. 24 and March 9 that year. "None of the patients had recently traveled to a country with known transmission, such as China, South Korea, Iran, or Italy," said the case series. "Genomic and epidemiologic analyses of sequenced virus RNA recovered in the western Washington region have shown that the spread of SARS-CoV-2 has been the result of local community transmission -- meaning that the source of infection cannot be traced back to a known exposure," it added. The above findings coincide with a diachronic study of the private think tank, IATT, on the "patient zero" of COVID-19. IATT's report, titled Who is "Patient Zero," cited an article with the title of "Deadly Germ Research is Shut Down at Army Lab Over Safety Concerns," which was published in the New York Times on Aug. 5, 2019, and a study on COVID-19 origins based on big data modeling, which was published on Sept. 22 this year on ChinaXiv, an online pre-print platform operated by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The studies indicated that for 12 northeastern U.S. states, the possible dates of the first infection, with a probability of 50 percent, fall mostly between August and October 2019, while the earliest is April 26, 2019 on Rhode Island, and the latest is Nov. 30, 2019 in Delaware. All of the dates indicated by the data are earlier than Jan. 20, 2020, the officially announced date of the first confirmed case in the United States. Researches have revealed that the spread of a virus is a complicated issue in a globalized world, and therefore, the global tracing of COVID-19 origins requires persistent efforts. Liu Lili, IATT's secretary-general, said that the first place that reported a large-scale outbreak is not necessarily the origin of the epidemic, adding that Washington's plot of politicizing an academic issue is falling apart. 2. The role of U.S. military is implicated in the origin and spread of COVID-19. The United States was the first to start research in recombinant virus and possesses unrivalled strength in this area. It has also funded and conducted more research in coronaviruses than any other country. Before 2015 the team of Dr. Ralph Baric with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill had developed the most advanced technology on recombinant coronaviruses, and acquired genetic sequences of coronaviruses from their studies in collaboration with a military biolab at Fort Detrick. The lab was abruptly shut down by the U.S. military over suspected leakages in July 2019. The closure of the lab was followed by reports of outbreaks of pneumonia of unknown cause with similar symptoms as COVID-19 in the surroundings of Fort Detrick. The possibility that Fort Detrick is the origin of the pandemic cannot be ruled out. On March 10, 2020, a petition was launched on the White House's website, demanding that Washington unveil information about Fort Detrick, the country's prominent lab on biological weapons, as well as the real reason for its closure, and clarify whether there was a virus leak. However, Washington has so far refused to tell the public the truth on the pretext of "national security concerns." On July 12, 2019, the ABC News reported a deadly "respiratory outbreak," in which 54 people had developed fever, cough and general weakness and two died, at a retirement community in northern Virginia, just an hour's drive from Fort Detrick. 3. Early cases in many countries are linked to the United States. COVID-19 outbreaks in many countries have been traced to the United States. Official information from 12 countries, including Costa Rica, Bhutan, Guyana and Kenya, indicated that "patient zero" in those countries were from the United States. According to a report released by Japan's Keio University School of Medicine in February 2021, a research team performed SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequencing of specimens from 198 patients with COVID-19 at 13 collaborating hospitals located in the Kanto region. The viral lineages were differentiated and classified. The team found that one sample from a COVID-19 patient admitted to a hospital in the Kanto region in November 2020 belonged to the B.1.346 lineage of Clade 20C, which has been prevalent in the western United States since November 2020. According to research of Tel Aviv University, most of the infections in Israel were caused by a SARS-CoV-2 strain imported from the United States. The researchers compared the genomic sequences of over 200 patients at hospitals across Israel to some 4,700 genomic sequences taken from patients around the world. They found that about 70 percent of the patients had been infected by a coronavirus strain that originated in the United States. Canada said on April 30, 2020 that the country's early COVID-19 cases mainly came from the United States. Data from Canada's four major provinces (Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia), also the four hardest-hit ones, have shown that it was American travelers who brought the virus to the country. II. The United States is the main force of global COVID-19 spread As the country with the highest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, the United States has yet walked out of the abyss of the pandemic. The Delta variant is spreading in a faster speed, leading to sharp daily increases of confirmed cases in the United States. So far, the country's confirmed cases has exceeded 48 million, and the death toll has surpassed 790,000. In an editorial published by the U.S.-based New England Journal of Medicine, it said the United States has "failed at almost every step" in handling the pandemic. Following the outbreak of the pandemic, Washington's various error-ridden internal and foreign policies have not only caused the collapse of its own pandemic control, but also accelerated the spread of the global pandemic. The United States has repatriated illegal migrants, opened for travel, rotated its troops in foreign countries, and conducted military exercises. These unconventional moves have introduced U.S. domestic COVID-19 infections into other countries and regions, and made the country became the major force that prompted the large scale spread of the global pandemic. 1. Missing the best time to control the pandemic at early stage The United States once misjudged the COVID-19 as flu, making it more difficult to detect the pandemic in early times. From June 28 to October 3, 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) received over 1,000 cases of vaping-related pneumonia, with 18 deaths and a mortality rate of nearly 2 percent. The CDC officials admitted that they have some "early cases of COVID-19 that were misdiagnosed as flu or other illness," but so far it has not released details of those cases. According to the New York Times, the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services has warned the potential severity of the pandemic as early as January 18, 2020, but the White House ignored it. From late January to the end of March, the White House turned a deaf ear to warnings from the WHO, American experts and data models and still acted slowly, resulting in the rapid spread of the pandemic across the country. With the most developed medical system in the world, the United States failed to prevent and control the coronavirus in its early stage, and paid less attention to it, damaging the health of the American people. Meanwhile, the world has been not able to share the country's advanced experience in prevention, control and medical treatment, and the global capacity of pandemic prevention and control has been greatly undermined. 2. Open-door policy exacerbated global spread Affected by many factors such as the strong concept of so-called "human rights and freedom," the weak quality of natural science knowledge of the people at the bottom, federalism and the presidential election, the United States has not implemented science-based pandemic prevention measures, with frequent flow of people in the country and lax policies on outbound travel. The irresponsible and lax outbound travel measures taken by the United States, which is at the epicenter of the pandemic, have directly caused the global outbreak of the pandemic. While most countries are imposing strict prevention and control measures during the pandemic, the United States adopted a laissez-faire policy. Some basic measures, including wearing masks, social distancing and practicing stay-at-home order, have not yet become a consensus in the U.S. society. The lack of timely lockdown measures has accelerated the spread of pandemic across the United States. Mutated viruses are circulating wantonly, and the infection and death rates are remaining high, even setting a global record of over 400,000 newly confirmed cases in a single day. Untimely "reopening" cumbered not only the epidemic prevention and control of the United States itself, but also added a burden to the world. In early August of 2020, the total confirmed cases worldwide were close to 20 million, of which nearly 5 million came from the United States. The U.S. State Department, however, announced at that time a lift of a Level 4 travel advisory that had instructed citizens to avoid all international travels, claiming that the pandemic had been under control and that there is a need to reopen for economic recovery. This reckless move took a heavy toll on the world. According to data released by the National Tourism Office of the United States, from April 2020 to March 2021, a total of 23.195 million U.S. citizens traveled abroad via air and land. From November 2020 to January 2021, the United States witnessed a peak in the pandemic, with an average of daily confirmed cases reaching 186,000, while the number of citizens traveling abroad also reaching a high point of 87,000 per day. The overlapping peaks resulted in a rapid global spread of the pandemic from the United States. According to reports, 30 percent of the 7,000 imported cases in South Korea and 14 percent of the 6,000 confirmed cases in Australia were from the United States. 3. Irresponsibly repatriated immigrants, exporting cases worldwide The United States has continued to deport undocumented immigrants during the pandemic and pushed up imported caseloads worldwide, which is an extreme disrespect for life. On May 13, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) called for a halt to repatriation of immigrants so as to curb the outbreak of the pandemic globally. However, the United States, with the world's most COVID-19 cases, failed to suspend deportations in a timely manner. Instead, the country continued to send thousands of immigrants to vulnerable countries lacking equipment and capabilities to address the pandemic. Data from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) showed that from March to mid-June 2020 alone, the number of deportations of similar immigrants from U.S. customs detention centers was nearly 40,000. In 2020, the ICE expelled about 186,000 people, up by 160 percent compared to 2019. In addition, the repatriation covered 61 destinations, including Guatemala, Honduras, Salvador, Brazil, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Columbia, Mexico, and Jamaica. The Guatemalan government said in late April 2020 that nearly one-fifth of the country's COVID-19 cases were related to those deported by the United States. 4. U.S. troops overseas repeatedly violated epidemic prevention protocols, speeding up transmission U.S. military personnel broke protocols when visiting Vietnam, leading to a large-scale outbreak in the Southeast Asian country. In March 2020, U.S. Navy aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt docked at the Vietnamese coastal city of Da Nang. Many Vietnamese paid a visit to the vessel where there were no precautionary measures at all, while around 5,000 U.S. officers and sailors disembarked to tour the city. A massive outbreak of COVID-19 cases began in Vietnam after the aircraft carrier left. U.S. troops in Japan and South Korea gathered for Independence Day celebrations, leading to local outbreaks. In July 2020, U.S. soldiers quarantined at a Hilton Hotel in Okinawa, Japan went downtown for a U.S. Independence Day celebration party, violating local quarantine protocols. They did not wear masks, nor maintain social distancing. The prefecture, which had previously reported no cases, saw a surge of infections after the event. In July 2020, U.S. soldiers in South Korea's Osan and Daegu went to Busan and gathered for Independence Day celebrations, setting off firecrackers while maskless, leading to a spike of daily cases locally. 5. U.S. failure to control COVID-19 in int'l events leads to "superspreading" A biotech conference in Boston in February 2020, which was flagged as a COVID-19 superspreading event, led to at least 245,000 other cases across the U.S. and Europe, according to a CNN report on Dec. 11, 2020, citing a genetic fingerprinting study led by the team at the Broad Institute in Massachusetts. Their study, published in Science, found two particular genetic fingerprints of viruses associated with the conference and then tracks those lineages across the United States. One was spread from Boston to 29 U.S. states as well as to other countries, including Australia, Sweden, and Slovakia. The study also found that a subset of the viral strain with a mutation ended up infecting 88,000 people. This means this conference, attended by about 200 people from across the world and without any protective measures, seeded thousands of infections. 6. Unilateral sanctions lead to humanitarian crisis Whether the global pandemic could be controlled depends not on the countries who've handled the virus the best, but the weakest ones. As the pandemic continues to rage across the world, the United States refused to lift sanctions on some countries out of its geo-political considerations. This made it hard for those countries to get access to medical supplies and humanitarian assistance, crippling their abilities in containing the virus. Take Iran as an example. The U.S. not only turn a deaf ear to the request from the international community to ease sanctions on Iran, but introduced more in the COVID-19 era. This resulted in a burst of infections during the early stages of the pandemic. Iran once ranked No. 9 in global confirmed cases. Due to U.S.-imposed sanctions, Middle East, Latin-American and African countries with weak public health systems, suffered a huge loss and severe humanitarian crisis. III. Political manipulation makes global fight against epidemic more difficult U.S. political manoeuvring has taken the world further and further away from overcoming the epidemic. From the very beginning of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. politicians have placed geopolitics above science. The United States has given the pandemic a "Cold War" narrative, "Cold War" language and political overtones of "Cold War" attacks, smearing and vilifying China and seriously disrupting international origins-tracing and global anti-pandemic cooperation. The United States is politically polarised and mired in partisanship, unable to heal social rifts. It is difficult for the government to focus its efforts on effectively combating the pandemic. This has not only aggravated the pandemic in the country, but also affected the global anti-pandemic fight. 1. Shirking responsibility for pandemic prevention and undermining international anti-pandemic efforts In order to get rid of the dilemma of ineffective anti-pandemic efforts, U.S. politicians have taken the initiative to direct the "dirty water" to the international arena, shifting the responsibility to China, making unreasonable accusations against China's anti-pandemic policy, discrediting China's transparency in combating the pandemic, trying to make the Chinese government responsible for the U.S. anti-pandemic failure, and even demanding the Chinese government to "pay for it." Trump himself once used the term "Chinese virus" to refer to the coronavirus, undermining China-U.S. cooperation in the fight against the pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also been the subject of blame shifting by the United States. The Trump administration claimed that the WHO failed to play its due role and was also responsible for the U.S. fight against the pandemic. Not only did the U.S. government announce the suspension of funding to the WHO at a critical moment in the global fight against the pandemic, but also investigated whether WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has properly responded to the pandemic. To tackle the pandemic in the shortest possible time, all countries need to work together and join forces in prevention and control. U.S. politicians' blame-shifting subterfuge has increased the cost of global anti-pandemic fight, created differences between countries, and severely hindered the global fight against the pandemic, which in turn has worsened the situation in the United States and prolonged its own fight against the COVID-19. 2. Obsession with political self-interest and refusal to take up responsibility Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. has exposed to the fullest its obsession with political self-interest featuring unilateralism, "America First", "American supremacy" and its mentality of hegemony. Tracing the origins of COVID-19 within the U.S. arguably helps detect problems at an early date and prevents future outbreaks. But the U.S. has employed double standards on the issue of origins-tracing. On one hand, it has hyped the "lab leak theory" and actively promoted the WHO's investigation in China. On the other, it has disregarded questions and calls from the international community, refusing to investigate Fort Detrick and a biological laboratory at the University of North Carolina, both of which are suspicious. It is therefore evident that the U.S. has incessantly hyped COVID-19 origins tracing not to be responsible for the people of the world, but to fabricate lies, distort truth, attrite China's diplomatic resources and gain bargaining chips against China. The United States, as the world's number one superpower, has absolutely insufficient responsibility and accountability to match. While it always boasts humanitarianism and human rights, the country practices "America First" and adheres to "vaccine nationalism" on the matter of COVID-19 vaccine distribution. The U.S. hasn't cooperated in the global planning of vaccine distribution and has made accusations against China's vaccine aid; it has implemented export controls over raw materials for vaccine production and has hoarded a large number of COVID-19 vaccines far beyond the needs of its people; it has been reluctant and slow to provide aid to the developing countries afflicted by the pandemic. It in doing so has worsened the global vaccine inequality and left the vaccine gap to be continuously widened. The U.S. politicians who champion unilateralism appear to have defended U.S. interests, but their behavior is backfiring. It is becoming increasingly clear that the U.S. government is the biggest troublemaker. 3. Political polarization causes harm to America itself and world at large The United State's COVID-19 response has fallen victim to the country's partisan battles since the very beginning. The Democrats and the Republicans fight not for effectively controlling the epidemic and saving lives, but for using the pandemic as an opportunity to gain support from the voters. When the pandemic was at its worst in the U.S., which coincided with the 2020 presidential election, many politicians were more concerned about their own prospect in the government transition than how to handle the pandemic. This has cost the U.S. precious time for controlling the disease. At that time, the epidemic data of many U.S. states were delayed for several weeks before being reported to the federal government, which seriously affected the country's epidemic decision-making. The situation has remained unchanged after the Biden administration came to power. Despite recurrences of COVID-19 cases, Biden has not taken tough measures against some Republican governors' resistance to wearing masks and maintaining social distancing, nor has he acted strictly on swing voters due to the outbreaks. The uncontrollable pandemic, the constantly mutating virus, and the ingrained ideological differences have made Americans confused and furious. The U.S. political system can hardly manage and control an extremely divided society, nor can it protect the country from a new round of man-made disasters, to which the American people and the people of the world are all victims. As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, especially with the emergence of mutant strains, which has increased uncertainties over future global pandemic response, the U.S. should abandon its obsession with political self-interest, reflect on its major mistakes in epidemic prevention and control, stop politicizing the coronavirus, stop undermining international anti-epidemic cooperation, actively share its vaccines with the world, carry out origins tracing research in a scientific manner and facilitate global economic recovery, so as to finally defeat the COVID-19 pandemic. Enditem Bharat Book Bureau Provides the Trending Market Research Report on Global Nonwoven Fabrics Market Overview, 2020-2026under Chemical & Materials Market Research Reports Category. The report offers a collection of superior market research, market analysis, competitive intelligence and Market reports. Non-woven fabrics are innovative fabrics like engineered material produced directly from fiber, bonded together by chemical, mechanical, heat, or solvent treatment. Such produced fabrics have an extensive variety of applications across various industries. The research report titled Global Non-Woven Fabric Market Overview, 2020-26 by Our Research categorizes the market to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following segments: based on polymer type (Polypropylene, Polyethylene, PET, Wood Pulp, Rayon & Others), by layer type (Single Layer & Multi-Layer), by technology (Spun-Bond, Wet Laid, Dry Laid & Others), by application (Hygiene, Medical, Filtration, Automotive, Building & Construction & others), based on region, countries & major companies. The growth of the nonwoven fabrics market is attributed to the increase in demand for nonwoven products & solutions for hygiene, medical, construction, and filtration applications. The key growth drivers of the nonwoven fabrics market are the growth of the modern healthcare sector in the emerging markets, rise in birth rate, and increase in the geriatric population in the western countries. The global nonwoven fabric market was valued at USD 32.76 Billion in the year 2015. The nonwoven manufacturers around the globe are expanding their production capacity and investing in machinery to manufacture healthcare essentials in response to the pandemic. Covid-19 pandemic increased the demand for single layer nonwoven fabrics. The leading segment was valued at USD 34.63 Billion in the year 2020. The use of nonwoven fabrics in medical applications is increasing due to the introduction of products with reduced costs for use in cost-sensitive hospitals. Products, such as disposable & reusable surgical gowns, drapes, gloves, and instrument wraps, are widely used in hospitals. Several government initiatives to control Hospital Acquired Infections promote the use of nonwoven medical products, such as disposable patient gowns, drapes, and linens that help reduce the spread of infections. Through the forecasted period, the market is expected to show a value difference of USD 17.72 Billion, while a volume difference of 8.34 Million Tonnes. Spun bond is one of the most preferred technologies through which nonwoven fabrics can be produced in higher quantities. The market is led by the spun bond technology, which with dry-laid technology accounts for a little less than 3/4th of the market. The dominant market position of the segment can be attributed to the increase in the demand for these spun-bond nonwovens across various applications in hygiene products, construction, coating substrates, agriculture, battery separators, wipes, and filtration. Other than these two major technologies, the wet-laid technology is to have a highly anticipated CAGR in the coming period. The automotive segment is to witness a high usage growth of the product in the coming period, which is to record a CAGR of 8.50%. Although the fertility rate in most regions across the world is declining at a slow pace, the child population in the Asia Pacific is projected to increase in the near future. This will essentially be due to relaxation in the one-child policy in China and increasing birth rates in South East Asian countries. The Asia-Pacific region dominates the market both in terms of value & volume, declining in value and inclining in volume. Although the consumption in China is high, per capita consumption in the country is much lesser as compared to developed regions. Growing demand for baby diapers is driving spun-bond propylene nonwoven fabric demand in the region. Latin America, along with Middle East & Africa contributed the lowest to the global market, not even to a share of 15%. The nonwoven fabric market is fragmented, comprising several large and small players, of which the top 3 players- Berry Global Inc., Freudenberg Group, Ahlstrom- Munksjo, accounted to an approx. of15% in 2019. The market is extremely competitive, with various leading manufacturers engaging in strategic partnerships to expand their market share. Other major players in the market include Kimberly-Clark, DuPont de Nemours, Fitesa, Glatfelter Corporation, Lydall, Toray Industries, Johns Manville, Suominen Corporation, TWE Group, Low & Bonar, Zhejiang Kingsafe, Avgol, etc. This report forecasts revenue growth at regional and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2015 to 2026. For this study, Our Research has segmented the Global Non-Woven Fabrics Market report based on product, technology, end users, and region: CONSIDERED IN THE REPORT Geography: Global Base year: 2020 Historical year: 2015 Forecasted year: 2026 REGIONS COVERED: North America Europe Asia-Pacific Latin America Middle East & Africa ASPECTS COVERED IN THE REPORT Market Size by Value for the period (2015-2026F) Market Share by Polymer Type (Polypropylene, Polyethylene, PET, Wood Pulp, Rayon & Others) Market Share by Layer Type (Single Layer & Multi-Layer) Market Share by Technology Type (Spun-Bond, Wet Laid, Dry Laid & Others) Market Share by Application (Hygiene, Medical, Filtration, Automotive, Building & Construction & others) Market Share by Region Market Share by Country Market Share by Company Browse our full report with Table of Content : https://www.bharatbook.com/report/871075/global-nonwoven-fabrics-market-overview About Bharat Book Bureau: Bharat Book is Your One-Stop-Shop with an exhaustive coverage of 4,80,000 reports and insights that includes latest Market Study, Market Trends & Analysis, Forecasts Customized Intelligence, Newsletters and Online Databases. Overall a comprehensive coverage of major industries with a further segmentation of 100+ subsectors. Contact us at: Bharat Book Bureau Tel: +91 22 27810772 / 27810773 Email: poonam@bharatbook.com Website: www.bharatbook.com ADILABAD: Though the proposal for setting up a tribal university in the erstwhile Adilabad district was made by the Central government some 10 years ago, it remains a long-pending dream for students till date. Tribal population is considerably high in the erstwhile Adilabad district and the place is easily accessible for students from the neighbouring states of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and also Andhra Pradesh. The then UPA government led by the Congress sanctioned Tribal University in 2008 but it has not materialised till now. Officials of the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Utnoor, conducted a survey and identified a 300-acre land in Utnoor for the establishment of Tribal University. It is believed that setting up a tribal university will help tribals in the state to preserve their culture and traditions and research can be done on their health, education, land-related issues, women and their socio-economic conditions. Research can also be done on biodiversity and forest and coal mines, and environmental pollution if tribal university is established in the erstwhile Adilabad. But, the local people, especially students, are disappointed a lot for not materialising their dream despite agitating for the same for the last four years. Even Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao promised to establish a tribal university in Adilabad while addressing people on the occasion of Komaram Bheem death anniversary in 2014 just after the formation of Telangana state. Student unions have formed a joint action committee (JAC) and have been agitating demanding the state and the Central governments to establish tribal university in the district. The student union's JAC leaders led by its convenor B. Rahul submitted memoranda to local Telangana Rashtra Samiti MLA Jogu Ramanna and Adilabad BJP MP Soyam Bapurao and appealed to them to take steps for the establishment of a tribal university in the erstwhile Adilabad district. Rahul said it was unfortunate that the state and the Central government neglected the earlier promise of establishing a tribal university in Adilabad and added that the tribal university would go a long way in empowering Adivasis on various fronts. Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured the citizens that all possible preparations are in order to tackle increasing infections. He listed the number of hospital beds, oxygen beds available, and vaccination progress. (PTI) New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced that India would start vaccinating children between the ages of 15 to 18 from January 3 next year. Healthcare and frontline workers will be provided with precautionary doses from January 10, he added. People above 60 years of age, who have comorbidities, will also have the option to take the booster dose on a recommendation from doctors. This will also start from January 10. The Prime Minister said that as people prepare to welcome the New Year with hope and celebration, its also a time to be careful as the highly contagious Omicron variant is rapidly pushing up Covid infections. He appealed to the people not to panic but be careful and alert. Use masks and wash hands regularly, he said, adding that India will soon have a nasal vaccine and worlds 1st DNA vaccine. Mr Modi assured the citizens that all possible preparations are in order to tackle increasing infections. He listed the number of hospital beds, oxygen beds available, and vaccination progress. Covid isnt past us yet. Being careful is very important, he said. Today, the nation has 18 lakh isolation beds, 5 lakh oxygen-supported beds, 1.4 lakh ICU beds, and 90,000 special beds for children. Today, we have over 3,000 functional PSA Oxygen plants and 4 lakh Oxygen cylinders have been provided to all states, he said Apart from research on the vaccine, we were also working on approval processes, supply chains, distribution, training, IT support system, and certification. With these efforts, India started vaccinating its citizens on January 16 this year, he said. Today, more than 61 percent of Indias adult population has received both doses of the vaccine. Similarly, about 90 percent of the adult population has been given a single dose of the vaccine, he said. Meanwhile, Covaxin manufacturer Bharat Biotech has received approval from DCGI for emergency use of its vaccine for children. Bharat Biotech recently submitted the phase 3 clinical trial applications to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to get approval for the booster dose of its intranasal Covid vaccine named BBV154. We have submitted phase 3 clinical trial applications to DCGI. An intranasal vaccine as a booster dose will be easier to administer in mass vaccination campaigns. Intranasal vaccines have the potential to prevent transmission, said Bharat Biotech in its application. Multi-disciplinary central teams have been deployed in 10 states which are reporting either an increasing number of Omicron and Covid-19 cases or a slow vaccination pace, according to a Union health ministry office memorandum. Meanwhile, a total of 415 cases of Omicron variant of coronavirus have been detected in India so far, out of which 115 have recovered or migrated. Maharashtra has recorded a maximum of 110 Omicron cases, followed by Delhi at 79, Gujarat 43, Telangana 41, Kerala 38, Tamil Nadu 34 and Karnataka 31. Rajasthan reported 21 new Omicron cases taking tally to 43. As per the document, these 10 states where teams have been deployed are Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Punjab. In view of the rapid surge in cases and deaths because of Covid-19, as reported by various news channels, the state governments, and noted in internal reviews, it has been seen that the number of Omicron cases has emerged in some states. It has also been observed that the pace of Covid-19 vaccination in these states is less than the national average. In wake of this situation, a decision has been taken to deploy multi-disciplinary central teams to 10 identified states some of which are either reporting increasing number of Omicron and Covid-19 cases or slow vaccination pace (list enclosed), to aid the efforts of the state and district administration for management of Covid-19, the memorandum stated. These teams will be stationed in the states for three to five days, and they will work along with the state health authorities, it said. The teams will specifically look into areas of contact-tracing, including surveillance and containment operations, and Covid-19 testing, including sending of adequate samples from clusters to the INSACOG network for genome sequencing, the memo stated. They will also look into enforcement of Covid-appropriate behaviour, availability of hospital beds, sufficient logistics, including ambulances, ventilators, and medical oxygen, and the Covid-19 vaccination progress. The state-level central teams will assess the situation, suggest remedial actions and submit a report every evening by 7 pm on public health activities being undertaken, besides submitting the same to the state governments, the memo stated. Further nearly 50 per cent or 87 out of 183 persons detected with the highly transmissible Omicron variant of Coronavirus were fully vaccinated, an analysis of data available with the government reveals. The findings, government health authorities said, only went to emphasise that vaccine alone is not sufficient to contain this pandemic and that use of masks and surveillance is key to breaking the chain of transmission. Fresh lockdown will be imposed in Maharashtra only if demand for medical oxygen touches 800 metric tons per day, said health minister Rajesh Tope, while Telangana prohibits rallies and public meetings till January 2. Other events, including congregations and New Year parties, will be permitted with Covid-19 appropriate behaviour. Assam to impose night curfew from 11.30pm to 6am starting December 26. Former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawats recent lament that he was not getting sufficient support from the Congress organisation has sparked off furious speculation that the unhappy leader may be going the Amarinder Singh way. Theories about Rawats mysterious future plans have become a subject of animated discussion in the poll-bound hill state. This chatter picked up speed after Mr Rawat called on former Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat of the Bharatiya Janata Party to wish him on his birthday. The fact that this meeting took place barely a few days before Mr Rawats public outburst against the Congress leadership added a new twist to this saga. To make matters even more interesting, Mr Rawat also met leaders of the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal, a regional party established three decades ago to fight for separate statehood. Even as efforts are on to placate Mr Rawat, the former chief minister has sent out multiple messages to the party that he has other options and will not hesitate to exercise them if the Congress does not declare him as the chief ministerial face and gives a substantial number of tickets to his supporters. Meanwhile, the BJP is keeping close tabs on Mr Rawat as he has been on its radar for some time now. * Former minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was a visible and vocal figure in Parliament whenever a session was in progress. He was happy to chat informally with presspersons and was fielded regularly to brief the media on government policies or the Bharatiya Janata Partys position on specific issues. He was a party favourite for demolishing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. However, the high-profile minister has virtually gone underground ever since he was divested of his ministerial responsibilities in the July Cabinet reshuffle. Mr Prasad was neither heard or seen during the Winter Session of Parliament. And if he did attend the Lok Sabha proceedings, he did so quietly without drawing any attention to himself. He did, however, put in a brief public appearance at former chief justice Ranjan Gogois book launch earlier this month. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank who also lost his ministry in the last reshuffle, was not seen in Parliament either. However, Prakash Javadekar, another loser in the Cabinet rejig, was spotted in Parliament. Clearly, some leaders have yet to get over the shock of losing their coveted jobs. * That the recent inauguration of the first phase of the Kashi-Vishwanath temple corridor at Varanasi was a Modi affair is stating the obvious. Local BJP leaders learnt this the hard way. With Assembly elections due in a few months, these leaders hoped to get personal publicity from the event and had ordered posters and banners displaying their own photographs welcoming Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Varanasi. However, their plans went awry for they were told that only Mr Modis posters, banners and cutouts would be exhibited in the city precincts. A concession was made to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath whose picture was also included in the publicity material that adorned Varanasi during Mr Modis visit. The others had to be happy putting up their posters on the citys outskirts. * Vishwambhar Nath Mishra, mahant or head priest of the Sankat Mochan Temple in Varanasi, appears to have fallen out with the Bharatiya Janata Party. He has been speaking out against the manner in which the lockdown was imposed and implemented by the Modi and Yogi governments. The head priest is also known to have cold-shouldered several BJP leaders. Normally, the mahant personally welcomes a VIP and shows him around and also conducts the aarti for him. A senior minister in the Yogi government was, therefore, taken aback when Mr Mishra told him bluntly that he would not be present when he comes to offer prayers. And yet Mr Mishra readily agreed to attend a meeting of Eastern UP Brahmins being organised by the Samajwadi Party. It is not clear if Mr Mishras anger with the BJP is only a personal grouse or a reflection of the overall mood of Brahmins in Varanasi. Whatever the reason, there is no denying that Mr Mishra is an influential figure in the city. * Currently a member of the legislative council, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath apparently wishes to contest next years Assembly elections to test his personal popularity. Having won the Gorakhpur Lok Sabha constituency for five consecutive terms, it is logical for him to contest from his home turf. Two Assembly seats Gorakhpur Urban and Campiyarganj have been identified for the incumbent chief minister. However, there is a minor hitch. The first seat is held by four-term MLA Radha Mohan Aggarwal, former Hindu Mahasabha member and follower of Yogis predecessor at the Gorakhpur Matt, Yogi Avaidyanath. Similarly, the second seat is held by six-term legislator Fateh Bahadur Singh. Both Mr Singh and Mr Aggarwal are on good terms with Yogi but are reluctant to give up their seats. There is also talk that Yogi may choose to contest from an Assembly seat in Varanasi. Since Brexit, social care workers from European Union (EU) countries are no longer automatically eligible to work in the UK and instead have to apply for a visa like other countries. (DC file photo) London: Foreign social care workers, care assistants and home care workers, including from India, will soon be eligible for a UK Health and Care Visa for a 12-month period as part of temporary measures to meet shortages in the sector. The UK government said on Friday that thousands of additional care workers could be recruited to boost the adult social care workforce following temporary changes to the scheme, which will make it quicker, cheaper and easier for social care employers to recruit eligible workers to fill vital gaps. These workers cover work in government-backed care homes and also care assistance for the elderly and disabled in their own homes. The care sector is experiencing unprecedented challenges prompted by the pandemic and the changes we've made to the health and care visa will bolster the workforce and helping alleviate some of the pressures currently being experienced, Home Secretary Priti Patel said. This is our New Plan for Immigration in action, delivering our commitment to support the NHS and the wider health and care sector by making it easier for health professionals to live and work in the UK, she said. The change follows recommendation from the UK's Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to make care workers and home carers eligible for the Health and Care Visa and add the occupation to the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). Inclusion on the SOL stipulates an annual salary minimum of GBP 20,480 for carers to qualify for the Health and Care Visa. The British government said the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted a range of staff shortages within the social care sector, placing pressures on the existing workforce. The temporary measures announced this week are expected to come into effect early next year and will be in place for a minimum of 12 months, providing a staffing boost while the sector deals with the additional pressures of the pandemic and will be reviewed after the minimum period. It is vital we continue to do all we can to protect the social care sector during the pandemic and beyond, Health Secretary Sajid Javid said. These measures, together with the series of support packages announced since September, will help us ensure short term sustainability and success for our long-term vision to build social care back better, he said. Since Brexit, social care workers from European Union (EU) countries are no longer automatically eligible to work in the UK and instead have to apply for a visa like other countries. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said care providers who do not already hold a sponsor licence in the Skilled Worker route can register for a sponsorship license ahead of implementation early next year. Providers who are new to visa sponsorship will be supported through the process through a series of engagement activities in January and February, to introduce them to the system and find out how to act as a visa sponsor. Care workers and carers recruited to the UK will be able to bring their dependents, including partner and children, with the Health and Care Visa offering a pathway to settlement should they remain employed and wish to remain in the UK. We recognise the challenges the workforce has faced, with ever growing demand for services combined with the pandemic and existing staff shortages. This change will support getting more people into care as we implement our long-term strategy for a fair and sustainable care sector that meets the needs of everyone, Care Minister Gillian Keegan said. Under current rules, it is a requirement for anyone working in the DHSC's Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulated care homes to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to comply with regulations. Those working in wider social care settings must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by April 1, 2022. Improving the AIM-120, considered the most potent Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM), is the priority to combat the presence of top-line Chinese fight and armament developed to match the US. Seriously, US Air Force does something about the quality of missile technology that should be cutting edge. The capability of the J-20 should not be underestimated, and it is armed with the PL-15 air-to-air missile. China to outclass the US with advanced missile With the United States' support for Taiwan and China's military assertiveness against that and increasing by the day, the United States' involvement in an offensive war between Taiwan and China in the future cannot be discounted, reported by the EurAsian Times. According to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, if China is not in danger, why is it so. He added that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is why America is improving its weapon systems, which is the missile is improving. Observers suggest that the US will speed up the modification of its AMRAAMs in anticipation of the possibility of becoming outclassed by China's newest long-range air-to-air missile, the PL-15, noted Flight Global. Gen. Herbert Carlisle said in an interview in 2015 spoke about the Chinese missile. He remarked that overcoming the weapon is important for US assets to be better, citing how the enemy missile may have more range than the AMRAAM AIM-120. Read Also: Is the Chinese Chengdu Mighty Dragon J-20 Stealth Fighter Really That Invisible to Radar? It's the first deployed radar-guided line-of-sight air-to-air missile in the United States. With only a range of 110 kilometers and a top speed of Mach 4, it's a serious contender. Many experts think the AIM misses the mark of China's PL-15 in terms of capability. Russian military expert Vasily Kashin remarked to the PL-12 with a range of approximately 100 kilometers. But, the P-15 is supposed to destroy targets from a distance of 300km or even 400km. PL-15 is a better and updated version of the PL-12 air missile, structures like cropped mane and tail control fins with smaller wings. These modifications allow the armament to be fitted in the J-20 or FC-31 fighter jets. China develops copies of US weapon system The AMRAAM missile is either the long-range or medium variant capable of a swift Mach+ 4. A data link lets the weapon talk and get inputs and sensors while the dual pulse rocket maneuvers. An AESA aperture is an active sensor on the projectile. Although reported earlier by EurAsian Times, China jets such as the J-10C, J-16, and a few J-20s are outfitted with PL-15 missiles. It suggests that this weapon could be used in the case of a huge confrontation in the Indo-Pacific. That validates American suspicions and underlines a need to modernize its best missile available. According to Miguel Miranda, an analyst, the Chinese state-owned business could produce weapons affordably. However, many are copies of the US weapon system. What intelligence knows about these Chinese missiles is not definite. The PL-15 might be better than the AMRAAM AIM-120, but no one knows if they are better. The AIM-120 is under the F3R program to make it better, but the uncertainty of a more suitable PL-15 is not quieting thought. Related Article: China Deploys Unknown Number of Missiles Concealed in Civilian Ships; PLA Strategy Experts Claim @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Chinese officials led by President Xi Jinping vowed to punish residents who would be found guilty of disrespecting historical and political figures in the country. According to reports, China first announced the law in 2018. However, criminal charges were also included as part of the law in March of this year. As of press writing, 15 people have already been punished for criticizing or mocking historical figures in the country. Chinese nationals urged to reports those that violate the law With the help of the Cyberspace Administration of China, citizens are encouraged to report individuals that they believe violated the law online. Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) want to be an end to all the rumors surrounding their historical figures. Some topics that are not allowed to be discussed online have to do with Mao Zedong's long march, as well as the death of his son, Mao Anying. However, the move to further censure Chinese individuals has been criticized. Read Also: Russian President Vladimir Putin Weighs In On Tensions Between China, Taiwan, Says President Xi Jinping Doesn't Need To Use Force China follows in North Korea's footsteps Gordon Chang, said that this shows that China is no longer authoritarian. Instead, they can be considered semi-totalitarian because of what they're doing. "I don't think [Xi] has been able to successfully move China all the way back to totalitarianism. It's kind of a semi-totalitarian state, and this move to criminalize criticism of communist party icons is part of that," Chang told Fox News. In the past, Chinese nationals were granted freedom of speech online. But with the new law, they will no longer be allowed to talk about controversial matters. One downside to China's demands for censorship and control has been dubbed as self-wounding. After all, it shows some similarities with how North Korea wounded itself with their strict control and limitations, according to Newsmax. Chinese nationals should practice self-censorship Dean Cheng, a senior research fellow at the Asian Studies Center, said that China's new law isn't surprising. The biggest issue is that the officials are trying to control everything down to the smallest tweets of residents. Cheng said that what Chinese nationals should consider doing is self-censorship because this will make the job much easier. 15 individuals arrested since March One of the women being punished by Chinese authorities wrote a post where she complained about mobs gathering online. According to New York Times, the woman's post seemed harmless at first. But she added another angle to her rant. She mocked the toxic masculinity of users that are likening themselves to Dong Cunrui, a war hero. Cunrui reportedly died valiantly during the civil war that brought the CCP into power in 1949. The 27-year-old woman was sentenced to seven months in prison because of her social media post. In April, a 19-year-old man from Nanjing was charged after he made sly comments about the victims of the Japanese massacre in 1937. A 63-year-old man was also charged for mocking Navy fighter pilot, Lt. Cmdr. Wang Wei. Several others were arrested and charged in May of this year following their comments about other historical figures. Chinese officials insisted that the law is necessary to fight historical nihilism. But several others do not agree. Related Article: Chinese President Xi Jinping Urges US To Cooperate, Practice Mutual Respect @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Spanish Flu epidemic happened more than 100 years ago, but a recent photograph going viral claims that people who did not wear masks at the time were arrested by authorities and sent to jail. The claim comes as many travelers on public airlines, trains, metros, and buses would be required to pay fines that range from $500 to $3,000 if they refused to properly wear face masks. The situation comes as the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread and raises similar fears as the 1918 flu. Spanish Flu Mask Mandates Recent mandates have received widespread criticism from the public and some lawmakers, with some people being aggressive in their opposition. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States has received thousands of reports of unruly passengers who refused to wear face masks on planes, fueling disputes over federal mask requirements. But the recent claim suggests that there were even stricter mandates during the Spanish influenza that threatened people of the world in 1918 and 1919. The black-and-white image features a sign that reads, "Wear a Mask or Go To Jail" that is pinned to a young woman's coat, MSN reported. The woman can be seen standing next to two young men who were wearing white cloth masks and brimmed felt hats that covered everything but their eyes. The photo was captioned, "1918, Spanish Flu" and was posted on Dec.14. More than 1,300 social media users shared the Facebook image. However, many of the people who commented on the post were skeptical of its legitimacy. They wrote that the masks, the sign, or both, could have been photoshopped into the image to portray a greater sense of responsibility for wearing face masks. Read Also: Joe Biden, Anthony Fauci Claim COVID-19 Vaccine Will Let Americans Celebrate Holidays; President Urges Boosters Amid Omicron Surge However, the masks and the sign were not digitally added to the image, they have always been there, which make the photo authentic. It was later found that the sign's warning was also accurate and not altered, USA Today reported. Violating Safety Protocols Historical records showed that people dubbed as "mask slackers" were placed in jail for several weeks at a time and were given hefty fines in some cities under mask mandates. The viral photo gave people worldwide a look into the regulations surrounding face masks in the time of the Spanish influenza. But despite killing up to 50 million worldwide and around 675,000 in the United States, there were still people that refused to follow mask-wearing ordinances imposed by local governments. Authorities attempted to stop the spread of the virus, with some closing schools and places of public amusement, enforcing "no-spitting" ordinances, encouraging people to use handkerchiefs or disposable tissues, and imposing mask mandates in public areas. When mask-wearing ordinances were enforced, mainly in the western states, many people complied. And as the nation was still fighting in World War I, officials implemented the safety protocols as a way to protect their military's soldiers from the Spanish influenza. The first case of the Spanish influenza was recorded as a U.S. Army private who was stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas, on Mar. 4, 1918. While it was an American that first caught the virus, it was dubbed the Spanish flu because it was Spain, who was neutral, that freely reported the incident, with the United States and other nations at war suppressing news of the infection, History reported. Related Article: Alabama Doctors Respond to Joe Biden's Initiatives To Combat Omicron After POTUS Announces He'll Send Free At-Home Tests to Americans @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Christmas gatherings across the world are all about family and food. Every country has unique holiday traditions, and they also serve eccentric dishes for their loved ones to enjoy. Here's a look at some of the most unique Christmas foods being served in countries like China, Japan, Greenland, Norway, Russia, and South Africa. South Africans eat worms on Christmas The thought of eating worms on Christmas might seem too exotic for some people's tastes, but this is a normal practice in South Africa. However, locals do not just eat any type of worm. Instead, they devour Mopane worms, which are the caterpillar of the Gonimbrasia Belina moth. The harvesting of Mopane worms starts in November and then they are preserved for the rest of the year. Some South African homes cook their Mopane worms with onions and tomatoes but others just enjoy it like any other delicacy. Read Also: How to Host the Perfect Christmas Dinner Japanese go gaga for KFC during the holidays KFC is one of the most common fast foods across the world. In fact, it's too common that no many people dine there on special occasions. In Japan, KFC releases a Christmas bucket meal that's unlike the usual fried chicken sold in the store. It's reportedly so famous to the point that locals have to book a seat or reserve a slot months before to be able to bring home a bucket to their families on Christmas Day. Chinese nationals exchange apples with special markings Just like KFC, apples don't seem like a big deal. But the same cannot be said about the apples that are given to families on Christmas Day. These special apples are not only sweet and juicy, they are also adorned with Hanzi or Chinese characters that boast of well-wishes for peace and prosperity not only on Christmas Day but the rest of the year. Norwegians eat sheep's head during the holidays Norwegians are known for eating a sheep dish called Smalahove, which is typically served with potatoes and rutabaga, according to CDA. Locals usually eat this dish on the Sunday before Christmas but there are also a lot of families in Norway that serve this on Christmas Day. What makes this dish unique has to do with how it's served. Norwegians first eat the eyes and the ears of the sheep because this is considered a delicacy. After which, they typically eat the meat from the skull starting from the front and all the way to the back. Tourists that visit Norway during the festive season also get to taste this delicacy because it's available everywhere. Whale dishes are famous in Greeland Mattak and kiviak are two dishes that are served to locals and tourists that flock to Greenland during the holidays. Mattak is a strip of skin taken from the white whale. After it is cooked, it is served into bite-size chunks for everyone to enjoy. Kiviak, on the other hand, is the flesh of a small arctic bird that is stuffed inside a sealskin. The latter is buried for months so that it can undergo the process of fermentation, according to Delighted Cooking. All these dishes and delicacies are unique to the countries mentioned above. One can only hope to get to try them all one day! Related Article: 8 Unique and Engaging Activities To Try This Christmas @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. According to statistics from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Omicron is now the most common coronavirus variant in the US, accounting for about three-quarters of COVID-19 cases in the week ending Saturday. This happened more quickly than the US had anticipated, but experts have warned it was unavoidable given Omicron's extraordinary contagiousness and ability to bypass people's protection - from vaccinations and previous COVID-19 illness. As the number of people infected with COVID-19 rises in the United States, here's what we know about how the Omicron variant differs from the Delta. Is Omicron milder than Delta? Omicron seems to produce less severe illness in adults, according to a major research study from South Africa (but not in children). Another early study of Hong Kong discovered that Omicron multiplies less effectively in the lungs, perhaps resulting in less severe illness. However, considering how infectious and immune-evading Omicron is, the total threat is "likely to be extremely considerable," scientists said as per CNET via MSN. Dr. Anthony Fauci stated at a news conference on Wednesday that data from South Africa shows that Omicron has a lower severity than the Delta variant, including criteria like hospital stay and the requirement for supplementary oxygen treatment. "We must wait to see what occurs in our own populations, which has its own demographic implications," he added, saying that this isn't the complete story because Omicron is rapidly spread. Read Also: New York Offers $100 To Every Citizen Who Will Get Booster Shots at City-Run Sites Before New Year as COVID-19 Cases Surge Which one is lower in hospitalization rate? When compared to the Delta variant, researchers led by Professor Neil Ferguson at Imperial College London predicted a "moderate reduction" in risk from Omicron. Patients infected with Omicron were found to be 15% to 20% less likely than Delta patients to be admitted to A&E and 40 to 45 percent less likely to be admitted to the hospital for one night or longer. After controlling for age, sex, underlying health problems, vaccination status, and past infection, scientists discovered that Omicron was 11% less likely to cause serious illness in any particular individual. Per iNews, from December 1 to 14, the Imperial study looked at 56,000 cases of Omicron and 269,000 cases of Delta in England. It was discovered that having had a previous COVID-19 infection cut the likelihood of Omicron hospitalization in half compared to the first infection. Omicron patients stayed in the hospital for 0.22 days on average, compared to 0.32 days for Delta patients. Experts concede that additional research is needed, particularly in older age groups where Omicron is currently less prominent. Professor Ferguson, whose modeling was used to inform the Prime Minister's decision to impose England's first national lockdown in March last year, said that while the findings were "excellent news," they did not modify Sage's forecast of 3,000 daily hospitalizations in England next month. According to preliminary findings from research done in the United Kingdom, COVID-19 infections with the Omicron variant of coronavirus are less likely to result in hospitalization than infections with the Delta strain. In comparison to Delta, Omicron patients are 15-20% less likely to go to the hospital and 40-45% less likely to be hospitalized for a night or longer, according to research that has yet to be peer-reviewed. These anticipated reductions in severity must be evaluated against the increased likelihood of infection with Omicron due to the loss in the protection afforded by both vaccine and spontaneous infection, according to Imperial College London researchers. They pointed out that, at a population level, a larger number of infections might still result in a substantial number of hospitalizations, as per Zee News. Related Article: FDA Authorizes New COVID-19 Treatment, Pfizer Pill for At-Home Use in Major Advance @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger / AP-Yonhap Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger donated 25 tiny homes to homeless veterans in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve. "It was fantastic to spend some time with our heroes and welcome them into their new homes," Schwarzenegger wrote on Twitter. "To me, this is the greatest Christmas gift." The former actor donated $250,000 to build the homes, which were turned over a few days before Christmas, Fox 11 Los Angeles reported. Videos posted on social media show the inside of the tiny homes, which are equipped with electricity, cooling and heating, and can accommodate veterans and their animals. The city of Los Angeles remains an epicenter of homeless veterans struggling to find services. In July, Governor Gavin Newsome signed a $12 billion investment to tackle homelessness, with $5.8 billion going into creating new housing units. According to Hope of the Valley Rescue mission, there are more than 60,000 unhoused people in Los Angeles County with 14,000 living on the streets around downtown Los Angeles. The first Tiny Home Village by the rescue mission was launched in February. To date, the mission has six tiny home villages with 908 beds. (UPI) By Kwak Yeon-soo Actors Hwang Jung-min and Jung Woo-sung will reunite with director Kim Sung-soo for the political thriller film, "Spring of Seoul" (working title), six years after the three collaborated on the 2016 film, "Asura: The City of Madness." Based on a real-life story, "Spring of Seoul" follows an event that occurred during a short period of political freedom set at the end of the 1970s. Kim is known for his darkly cynical crime thrillers, such as "Beat" (1997), "City of The Rising Sun" (1999) and "The Flu" (2013). His next film will be produced by Hive Media Corp., the production company behind "Inside Men" (2015), "The Man Standing Next" (2019) and "Deliver Us From Evil" (2020). "Spring of Seoul" refers to the period that began on Oct. 26, 1979, when former President Park Chung-hee was assassinated by his close aide, and lasted until May 17, 1980, when coup leader Chun Doo-hwan extended martial law to the whole nation and violently suppressed mass pro-democracy protests. "Hwang and Jung decided to join the project based on their trust in director Kim and the script, which they both found enthralling," the production team said. Veteran actor Ahn Sung-ki and Park Hae-joon, who shot to fame with JTBC drama, "The World of the Married" (2020), will also star in the film. "Spring of Seoul" will begin filming in February 2022. The release date has not yet been announced. A session of the meetings held by North Korean Army's educators, Dec. 4 and 5, is presided over by the country's leader Kim Jong-un at the April 25 House of Culture in Pyongyang, in this photo released by the Korean Central News Agency, Dec. 7. Yonhap North Korea is expected to convene a key party meeting within the coming week amid expectations it could unveil the country's policy directions for next year in the face of a prolonged stalemate in its denuclearization negotiations with the United States. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said earlier this month that the ruling Workers' Party will hold a plenary meeting of its central committee "in the last third of December" to "discuss and decide on work plans for the New Year." Experts say the upcoming party event could replace North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's annual New Year's Day address, which is closely watched by the outside world for clues on the country's stance on the nuclear talks and inter-Korean relations. Kim skipped such speeches in the past two years, opting instead to unveil key messages via major party sessions around the turn of the year. At the end of 2019, Kim presided over a four-day party plenary session and accused Washington of "hostile acts" against Pyongyang. This year, he convened a rare party congress in January and called the U.S. the North's "principal enemy." The upcoming session is drawing attention, as it may offer a clue to the unpredictable regime's next step regarding the nuclear talks with the U.S., which have been stalled since the collapse of a 2019 summit in Hanoi. At the North's last party plenary session held in June, Kim ordered officials to stay ready for both dialogue and confrontation. The U.S. has urged North Korea to return to negotiations, but Pyongyang is demanding Washington first retract what it calls "double standards" and a "hostile policy" against its regime. Earlier this month, President Joe Biden's administration imposed fresh sanctions on North Korea's Defense Minister Ri Yong-gil and other entities for their alleged ties to human rights abuses in a move feared to dampen South Korean President Moon Jae-in's hope for the resumption of dialogue. The North's economy is also expected to be high on the agenda at the upcoming meeting as the country is struggling from crippling sanctions and a protracted border closure due to COVID-19. At the January party congress, Kim called for achieving economic development under a new five-year plan after admitting the failure of his previous strategy. The party session also comes as the North is set to mark the 10th anniversary of Kim's rise to power. Kim officially took the helm of the North on Dec. 30, 2011, with the "supreme commandership of the Korean People's Army," 13 days after his father and the country's former leader, Kim Jong-il, died. North Korea has been creating a commemorative mood ahead of the anniversary, highlighting Kim's achievements in a series of state media reports. "The North has been frequently holding politburo meetings and plenary sessions to decide key policy issues after Kim rose to power in an indication the party has become a core decision-making platform," an official at Seoul's unification ministry said. "We will closely monitor the event as the North's stance on South Korea and the U.S. could be discussed." (Yonhap) A Chinese fishing boat has been seized by the South Korean Coast Guard for allegedly filling its ship's log with false information, officials said Saturday. The Coast Guard, based in Mokpo on the southwestern coast, said it seized the 99-ton vessel at around 3:50 p.m. Friday in waters about 180 kilometers south of an island located off Shinan, South Jeolla Province, about 350 km south of Seoul. The unidentified ship is suspected of 48 cases of breaching operation rules, such as omitting dates and signatures in the ship's log, according to the officials. (Yonhap) President Moon Jae-in, center, encourages medical staff during a visit to Ewha Womans University Medical Center in Seoul, Dec. 24. Yonhap President Moon Jae-in expressed the hope Saturday that Christmas will serve as a day to care and give hope to each other as he also delivered a message of encouragement to people suffering from COVID-19. "Helping hands that look around to see whether our neighbor is sick, eating meals, living in a warm room would be the heart of Jesus," Moon wrote in his message posted on Twitter on Christmas morning. "We are heading to a light. We will do our best to make the world a warmer place." Moon's Christmas message, which was also posted on Facebook, came a day after the government announced its decision to grant clemency to 3,094 convicts, including a pardon for former President Park Geun-hye, in the name of national unity and "humble inclusiveness." Moon also consoled people suffering from COVID-19 amid the country's fight against the virus. "I want to give my heart of consolation to people suffering from the novel coronavirus, especially to those who have lost their family members, and patients in hospital beds," he said. (Yonhap) Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), said Saturday that South Korean stocks were undervalued and he believed the KOSPI could go up to the 5,000-point range. "The KOSPI reaching 5,000 points is not difficult," Lee said on 3Pro TV, a YouTube channel devoted to the economy. The KOSPI closed at 3,012.43, Friday. Asked why he thinks local stocks are undervalued, Lee pointed to a lack of transparency in the market. "Since the country's stock manipulation crackdown is very low and punishment is too weak ... people do not trust the market," Lee said. The former Gyeonggi Province governor suggested the National Pension Service (NPS), South Korea's top institutional investor, increase its portion of local investments. He also called for "rationalizing" the short-selling system rather than scrapping it. When it comes to investing in virtual assets, Lee proposed making "authorized" virtual assets that offer real or underlying value as collateral. Lee said the country's housing market is at its peak and soaring home prices were caused by policy mistakes. "For example, if the market feels that home supply is insufficient, we need to take action to increase supply, but there seems to be an aspect of denying the market's request," he said. "Suppressing prices actually can bring about adverse effects." (Yonhap) Passengers line up at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York City, after airlines announced the cancelation of numerous flights on Christmas Eve due to the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Reuters-Yonhap Global airline carriers canceled more than 3,000 flights over the Christmas weekend, according to the FlightAware website, as a spike in COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant piled on the misery for travelers. The website showed that 2,175 flights around the world had been scrapped Christmas Eve, which fell on Friday, a typically heavy day for travel. Around a quarter of those flights were in the United States. Another 1,259 Christmas Day flights were called off globally, the website said amid a surge in COVID-19 infections driven by Omicron. In Britain, many industries and transport networks were struggling with staff shortages as sick workers self-isolated, while hospitals warned of the risk of an impact on patient safety. One in 20 Londoners had COVID-19 last week and that could have risen to 1 in 10 by the start of this week, according to data released Thursday by the Office for National Statistics. Britain recorded a record number of new coronavirus cases Thursday as the Omicron variant swept across the country. In the United States, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines both canceled dozens of Christmas Eve flights because of staff shortages amid the surge in infections. Despite the grim news around the world, millions of Americans carried on with travel plans through a second pandemic-clouded holiday season and most U.S. flights went ahead. Moses Jimenez, an accountant from Long Beach, Mississippi, flew to New York with his wife and three children, even though the latest torrent of coronavirus cases dashed their hopes to catch a performance of "Hamilton" or visit some museums. "Hamilton" was one of a dozen Broadway productions that were forced to cancel shows this week as cast and crew members tested positive for COVID-19. Museums were scratched from the family's itinerary because many now require proof of vaccination and the two younger children are ineligible for the shot. Instead, Jimenez, 33, said his brood will make the best of roaming the city's streets and parks, while also seeing relatives and friends. "We just wanted to get out of the house, really, get the kids out to the city for Christmas," Jimenez told Reuters at New York's LaGuardia Airport, Thursday. New York will sharply limit the number of people it allows in Times Square for its New Year's Eve celebration, in response to the surge of new coronavirus cases. For a second year in a row, the virus that causes COVID-19 is casting a shadow over the festivities, which typically draws huge crowds to the famed intersection in Midtown Manhattan. COVID-19 infections have surged in the United States in recent days due to Omicron, which was first detected in November and now accounts for nearly three-quarters of all U.S. cases and as many as 90 percent in some areas, such as the Eastern seaboard. President Joe Biden's administration will lift travel restrictions next week on eight southern African countries imposed last month over concerns about the Omicron variant, the White House said. (Reuters) Doors are shut at a college building in Seoul amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Yonhap As a long-time fan of K-pop who had been teaching herself Korean since her early teens, Sichuan native Liu Yue took what appeared to be a logical step and applied to a university in South Korea in 2018. Fast forward to December, the 22-year-old is still in South Korea and is in her final year studying business administration. But her life looks nothing like that she had dreamed about. "I always had high expectations about attending university in South Korea, thinking that it would be so fun. I was excited to do things like joining different club activities at school, making a lot of Korean friends, and travelling the country," said Liu, who enrolled in the prestigious Korea University in September 2018. The spread of the coronavirus in South Korea that began early last year turned out to be the biggest blow to the expectations she had for her university life. "Since the beginning of the pandemic, the amount of time I spend at home has increased a lot. Also, I don't have that many friends nowadays because most of my Chinese friends have gone back to China during the pandemic," added Liu, who has been living by herself in Seoul since early 2019. Liu is not alone in being one of the least expected victims of the global pandemic those who are unable to fully immerse themselves in their studying abroad experience. As the pandemic switched most university classes online and greatly limited social activities during the past two years, many Chinese students studying at Korean universities have been left living in their own bubbles more than ever. Even those who have been able to integrate into South Korean society have found that it has become even more challenging during the pandemic. "A lot of those who found it difficult to adjust to life in South Korea have decided to return home," Liu added. Since the first case of COVID-19 was detected in January 2020, South Korea has been going through severe ups and downs while dealing with the coronavirus. Universities have not been safe from the fast spreading virus, and according to the Ministry of Education last week, 469 students at Korean universities were newly confirmed as having the coronavirus between Dec. 9 and 15. A foreign student gets COVID-19 vaccine at Chung-Ang University in Seoul, Oct. 18. Yonhap Worries about international students studying at Korean universities catching the virus intensified recently when three attending universities in Seoul were some of the earliest patients confirmed with the Omicron variant. The prevalence of online classes and worries about skyrocketing daily infection rates, though, had already led many Chinese students to return to China. "Nearly half of the Chinese students who study the same major as I have gone back to China," said Gao Duomei, a 21-year-old English literature student at Korea University, who is originally from Shenyang in Liaoning Province. According to the Ministry of Justice, there were 180,131 international students studying in South Korea in 2019, which dropped 14.9 percent to 153,361 by the end of 2020. The number of Chinese students who entered South Korea decreased by 30 percent between 2019 and 2020, according to the Korean Statistical Information Service the country's national statistical database. Chinese students at four major universities in Seoul said that nearly half of their Chinese classmates have returned home, although school administrators did not respond to the SCMP's queries regarding the official number of Chinese students who had left. "This has been especially true if what you're studying doesn't require you to attend for physical experiments at school," said He Zhiheng, a 22-year-old electrical and computer engineering student at Seoul National University. "Almost all Chinese students who study liberal arts at my university have returned to China to take online classes from there, whereas my schoolmates who are in the college of engineering are all still in Korea." Chinese students who have chosen to stay in South Korea while attending online classes are living largely isolated from society, constrained in their rooms and forced to order food or cook for themselves. "I feel very lonely because I can't see my friends often. I used to usually eat out by myself last year, but have not even been doing that as often as before because I am worried about the virus," said Wei Jinjin, a 23-year-old student from Hangzhou who studies Korean at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. "Nowadays, I am even afraid about the virus when I go to pick up my takeaway order. That's why now I just cook for myself, which leaves me with fewer food choices. I usually cook ready-made meals I buy from supermarkets, or simple Chinese dishes." A student council member delivers food for Chuseok to foreign and Korean students who couldn't go home during the holidays at a university in Daegu, Sept. 15. Yonhap Firefighters and coast guards shift body bags of victims after a passenger ferry caught fire near the southern rural town of Jhalakathi, south of Dhaka in Bangladesh, Dec. 24. EPA-Yonhap A massive fire swept through a crowded river ferry in Bangladesh early Friday, leaving at least 39 people dead and 70 injured, officials said. Many passengers leapt from the vessel into cold waters to escape the blaze. It took 15 fire engines two hours to control the fire and another eight to cool down the vessel, according to fire officer Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan, who led the rescue operation. Afterward, the blackened hull of the ferry sat anchored at the river's edge. Many anxious relatives gathered on the banks, while divers continued to search the waters. The blaze broke out around 3 a.m. on the MV Avijan-10, which was carrying 800 passengers, many of whom were traveling to visit family and friends for the weekend, officials said. ''I was sleeping on the deck and woke up hearing screams and a loud noise,'' survivor Anisur Rahman told reporters, adding that he saw smoke coming from the back of the ferry. ''I jumped into the freezing water of the river in the thick fog, like many other passengers, and swam to the riverbank.'' Police officer Moinul Haque said rescuers recovered 37 bodies from the river, while two people died from burn injures on the way to the hospital. All of the 70 injured were hospitalized, including some with severe burns. Ferries are a leading means of transportation in Bangladesh, which is crisscrossed by about 130 rivers, and accidents involving the vessels are common, often blamed on overcrowding or lax safety rules. The ferry was traveling from Dhaka, the capital, to Barguna, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) to the south. It caught fire off the coast of Jhalokati District on the Sugandha River, toward the end of the journey. Bhuiyan said the fire may have started in the engine room. The government set up two committees to investigate the blaze and ordered them to report their findings within three days. In April, 25 people died after a ferry collided with another vessel and capsized outside Dhaka. (AP) : daimin (daimin), : astrology : the ghost of the new chicken tastes private equity reappears : BBS (Sat Dec 25 06:07:26 2021, ) The blade licks blood, the ghost of the new chicken tastes private equity reappears The prospect is dangerous, investors urgently need to report Guo Laojie On November 23, Guo Wengui was broadcast live in the basement of Kangzhou. He clearly stated that the new GTV no longer accepts investment from his comrades, nor does he accept refunds from the SEC. However, he pretended to regret the comrades who had not licked GTVs ass and said yes. "I regret more than a million times for not keeping up with the GTV bus," and complained that the old squad leader, Changdao brother and other iron- blooded masters made their comrades miss the opportunity to eat meat. It seems like a posture of caring for investors, but it is actually a bad deal. Under the prestige of the SEC administrative order, the new GTV publicly violated the judicial order, closed its hand in the dark, but kept smashing it in secret. This operation is doomed to death. Investors trapped in the siege of GTV, as well as comrades who are eager to invest in the new GTV, hurry up and report to the SEC and FBI. Stop the loss in time. As everyone knows, as early as early June last year, Guo Wengui announced the end of GTV private placement. This was Guo Wengui's compelling decision based on the strict inspection and control of regulatory agencies in Canada, the United States, Australia and other places. After fighting, Guo Wengui played a new trick, openly announced the transfer of GTV private equity activities to the BVI (Virgin Islands), restarted, and declared that the shares of the original GTV investors would be replaced with the shares of the new version of GTV. Guo Wengui imagined that through this operation, he would evade judicial supervision, and be able to carry out the fraud to the end, continue to attract investment, and smash the bones and suck the silly comrades-in-arms. Ideal is full, the reality is very skinny. On September 13 , the SEC in the United States finally smashed Guo Wengui with a big judicial stick after a year of detailed investigation. The punishment of 529 million not only caused Guo Lao to be bullied, but also gave the chicken series building more time. Worry of collapse. At that time, the SEC made it clearer that it would follow up and control financial frauds that violated regulations. As a result, the hicoin, which has been clamoring for listing since April, has obviously fallen into the scope of judicial monitoring from the beginning. If one step beyond the thunder pool, the fate of GTV will be replicated again and fall on Xibi. Now, since Xibi is very arrogant, its future can naturally be imagined. My comrades-in-arms, investing in the new GTV and HiCoin is a must. However, it is Guo Wengui's nature to walk the tightrope at high altitude, which can better reflect Guo Wengui's stubbornness. As everyone knows, the current paper value of Xibi is around 4 trillion yuan. As Kalixi predicts, it is not a dream that Xibi will rise to 1,000 US dollars. It stands to reason that all HiCoin investors should like to go all the way. However, Guo Wengui has already issued a ban on Xibi cash withdrawal. At present, the Farm Union Committee is preparing to sign the so-called three-year blockade agreement with investors. Guo Wengui issued a ruthless statement that the biggest task now is to oppose the communism and destroy the communists. In this way, Xibi investors must also actively develop offline. And investing in the new GTV private equity through the happy dollar is an excellent way to lose faith and show loyalty. Therefore, even though Guo Lao Qimingli announced on November 23 that he would stop the new GTV private placement, the undercurrent surging, his secret actions have not stopped. It is reported that the Aussie Special Forces Brigade and Aussie Farm have privately announced that they will invest in the new GTV private placement through the Xicoin, and the deadline is scheduled to be December 30. Guo Wengui's move is to completely enclose Xibi Investment and GTV Private Equity in the Guo's scam. Eating bones and not spitting scum is extremely evil. All comrades in arms, please be vigilant. Of course, Guo Wengui secretly instigated a new GTV private placement, and kneaded GTV private placement with Xibi Investment, which is even more compelling. Old Guo lied to his friends all over the world, and he could borrow tens of billions of dollars in minutes, the kind that he didn't have to pay back. On November 24, the person even boasted that the investment in two Japanese companies now has a market value of several hundred million, and he threatened that "the future chicken series is beyond your imagination ." All of these are Guo Wengui's obscenities. Guo Wengui is a negative man, not a rich man. He is already a louse on his head. If it is not, why can't it be delayed because it still owes US$85 million? ! It is reported that the SEC has approached Wang Yanping to call for payment a few days ago. Moreover, the US$186 million in the PAX case, and LadyMays long-term detention, the Southern District Court of New York imposed a daily fine of US$500,000 (from March 17th), and nearly US$2.7 billion in borrowing from the Al-China Fund, and maintenance The operation of New Gate, Happy Coins, and New GTV is difficult to support the expenses of foreign comrades. Therefore, despite the SEC's repeated warnings that the high-hanging sword will land at any time, Guo Wengui had to take risks. He was not seeking wealth and wealth, but riding a tiger and had to do it. But in this way, Brother Bullying is not far from extinction. GTV was stopped by the SEC, not because of the failure of private equity, but because of financial fraud. This is an essential distinction. Xibi, four no products, no financial license so far, neither runs on the blockchain, nor does it have a third-party platform for notarization. It is the same as GTV and will sooner or later become the target of judicial strikes. Although Guo Wengui promised that Xibi would not lose a penny to his comrades, but at the same time he said that he would not bear any responsibility. Obviously, this side confirmed the dirty nature of Xibi. The kneading of GTV private equity and Xibi investment is even more of Guo Wengui's evil intention to devour the investment funds for Xibi. Your comrades-in-arms do not want to be deceived, so don't hesitate to report it. -- :WWW mitbbs.com [FROM: 103.] BAGHDAD, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Ministry of Health on Friday urged citizens to adhere to the health precautionary measures during New Year celebrations amid the rapid spread of the Omicron variant. The ministry called on citizens in a statement to follow the health precautionary measures, especially wearing masks, maintaining physical distance as well as getting vaccinated. A separate statement by the ministry said that it reported 322 new COVID-19 cases, raising the nationwide caseload to 2,092,156. It also reported seven new deaths, bringing the death toll from the virus to 24,115. Iraq has been pushing forward its vaccination drive since January after the approval for the emergency use of the Sinopharm vaccine and other COVID-19 vaccines. Enditem BRUSSELS, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- For Jiang Tong, it is just another busy day in his 30-year career as a train driver while he sat in the cab, started the engine, and drove the cargo train through the mist in the southwest Chinese city of Chongqing. After a more than 10,000-km journey across Eurasia in about two weeks, the "steel camels" along the modern Silk Road carry goods made in China, adding to Europeans' joys of purchasing or receiving gifts for Christmas and the New Year. MAJOR HUB IN EUROPE Visiting local Christmas markets with a glass of mulled wine in hand and purchasing gifts for the beloved ... From Berlin to London, people across Europe are eager to embrace a happy Christmas this year despite the raging COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike last year, there are no flat-out bans on Christmas gatherings in most European countries, and despite the coronavirus-induced logistics and supply-chain bottlenecks, stores are replete with products, many of which are Chinese-made. "We have Christmas decorations, gift packs and a wide variety of gift choices for children," a storekeeper in a shopping mall in Warsaw, capital of Poland, said on Sunday. Poland, the largest country in Central Eastern Europe, is a gateway for Chinese-made products entering the European Union (EU) market. "All these products are made in China and sales are much better than last year," said the storekeeper, without giving her name. "We have customers from Poland as well as our neighboring countries, including Belarus, Ukraine, Latvia and Estonia." GD Poland, a 4,000-hectare Chinese shopping center where the store is located, is one of the largest distribution hubs of Chinese-made products in Central Eastern Europe. GD stands for the southern Chinese province of Guangdong. "We are proud of our wide variety of products imported directly from manufacturers in China and Vietnam. We offer affordable prices to our customers, who do not need to travel to different places searching for things on their shopping list," said Dominik Zawadzki, a staff of the GD Poland. Despite the COVID-19-induced disruptions of air and sea routes, which caused widespread concern over supply shortages this year, most of the China-Europe Railway Express trains have arrived in Poland on schedule. Jiang, 52, was the first locomotive driver on the China-Europe freight train route from the southwestern Chinese municipality of Chongqing to Duisburg in Germany when the line was opened to traffic in 2011. The train runs from Chongqing to Dazhou, a city located in the neighboring Sichuan Province, and then runs further north into Xinjiang and heads for Europe. "We are busier than usual these days, as the freight volume keeps rising before Christmas and more trains are scheduled," said Jiang. YIWU MEANS "SANTA'S WORKSHOP" China is a global factory that produces a large portion of Christmas-themed products sold in the world. About 80 percent of these products are exported from Yiwu, a small town dubbed as "Santa's workshop" in east China's Zhejiang Province. This year, Christmas decoration manufacturers there saw rising orders. "Sales are better than last year, up about 20-30 percent," said Cai Qinliang, secretary general of the Yiwu Christmas Products Industry Association that has more than 200 members. Christmas-themed products from Yiwu are mainly sold in South America, Russia, the EU and Southeast Asia. "The preferences and demands in different regions often vary," said Cai. Stephen Perry, chairman of Britain's 48 Group Club, has witnessed China's growth into a global factory of Christmas goods. "Our company was the first to start importing consumer goods and artifacts from China," said Perry, whose father started the business of importing traditional Chinese goods since the 1950s. During the pre-holiday season, British customers flooded London's bustling Oxford Street for shopping, many of them found their best picks, from clothes, shoes, toys to smartphones and laptops. "Chinese consumer goods for the Christmas season are very popular in the western markets today," Perry said, adding that he was delighted to witness how friendly the relations have become between China and Europe and between China and Britain. HOPE FOR ECONOMIC RECOVERY The booming Christmas sales of Chinese-made products and the momentum in foreign trade growth bring hope for a global economic recovery, according to John Pearson, global chief executive officer of DHL Express. "China remains one of the vital engines to the world economic recovery and continues to post a steady recovery and growth itself," Pearson said in an interview with Xinhua, adding that the country's economic stability and sustainable growth are contributing to the recovery of the world economy. Meanwhile, "China's foreign trade maintains the momentum of growth this year thanks to the recovering global economy and trade that spur more demand for commodities from China, as well as the stable industrial chains in China," Pearson added, stressing the interdependence of the Chinese and global economies in a globalized world. According to figures published in October by China's General Administration of Customs, China stood as one of the EU's largest trading partners. In the first three quarters of this year, China's exports to the EU totaled 3.88 trillion yuan (roughly 608.5 billion U.S. dollars), up 20.5 percent over the same period of last year. "Like the Chinese Spring Festival, the Christmas holidays are a rare opportunity for family reunification. I wish foreign friends a very Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season," Jiang said, walking away for his engine. Enditem (James Alexander also contributed to the story) TEHRAN, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- A top Iranian commander said on Friday that the five-day drill in the southern parts of the country was a response to recent threats by Israel, Tasnim news agency reported. Chief of the Iranian armed forces Mohammad Baqeri said recent threats from some Israeli officials prompted the Iranian side to hold the war game, dubbed "Great Prophet 17," at this time. He noted that the war game was among Iran's most successful missile exercises so far. The drill was held in the Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the coastal areas of the southern Iranian provinces of Hormuzgan, Bushehr, and Khuzestan. On Friday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) launched 16 ballistic missiles of different classes during the drill. The footage of the drill showed all the missiles hit the same target simultaneously, Baqeri said. They struck and destroyed the very distant target, he added, noting that this is only part of Iran's missile power. Also on Friday, IRGC's Chief Commander Hossein Salami said the exercise, particularly its last stage, had conveyed a very clear message and a serious and real warning to Israeli officials. "They must be careful of their mistakes," he said. Enditem DUBLIN, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Irish Department of Health on Friday reported 11,182 COVID-19 cases, the highest daily count since the pandemic broke out in the country. About 83 percent of the reported cases in Ireland are now related to the Omicron variant, reported the Irish national radio and television broadcaster RTE, citing an estimate from the department. Ireland detected its first Omicron case on Dec. 1, meaning in less than one month the vast majority of the country's newly identified COVID-19 cases are infected with the new variant. To fight this highly transmissible variant, Ireland has accelerated its booster vaccination program. All age groups in Ireland will be eligible to receive a booster vaccine by Jan. 10, in parallel with all children aged 5-11 being offered a primary vaccination dose, said the Irish government in a statement issued Thursday. Currently only people in their 40s are eligible for a booster vaccine in Ireland. As of Thursday, over 1.96 million doses of booster vaccines had been administered in Ireland, accounting for nearly 40 percent of the country's total population, according to the latest available official statistics. To date, a total of 691,557 people in Ireland have been infected with COVID-19, with at least 5,890 deaths, according to the health department. Enditem DAMASCUS, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Electricity shortage has done what mortar shells or bombs couldn't: depriving the Damascus residents of Christmas, a day which they used to enjoy and is emblematic of the inspiring peace between the country's Muslims and Christians. In the Bab Touma district, a part of the Old City of Damascus with deep historical roots in Christianity, people used to put up Christmas trees, warm lights, and lovely decorations in the streets and alleyways despite all the difficulties and fears. But after peace and stability finally returned to the war-torn country, those who had expected a more festive and elaborate Christmas season were disappointed by the other face of the war. The country is undergoing economic hardship caused by years of havoc and Western-imposed sanctions. One of the most visible aspects of the hardship is the lack of electricity. Xinhua reporter visited the Bab Touma, Qassa, and Bab Sharqi areas and discovered that Christmas this year appears to be much less cheerful, with only a few windows decorated. A passerby walking down the streets couldn't tell if it was Christmas at all. The usual beam of the holiday didn't reflect on people's faces. Everyone was busy making ends meet and securing basic needs amid skyrocketing prices. Tarek Abu Heddo, a city photographer, waits excitedly every year for the holiday season to tour the city and snap photos of the decorations. "When I dressed up, grabbed my camera, and started my tour in the city, I was surprised that last year's decorations were much brighter and more beautiful than this year, " he told Xinhua. He and others blamed the lack of decorations and the absence of holiday spirit on the scarcity of electricity and the hard economic situation. Amal Sameer, a housewife, told Xinhua that frequent and long power outages make it hard for them to operate their electric appliances, such as the washing machine and the refrigerator, while turning on the bright festival lights seems like an out-of-reach luxury. "We lack electricity, and everything is so expensive," she lamented. Last month, Syria's Internal Trade and Consumer Protection Minister Amr Salem blamed Western sanctions for the suffering of the Syrian people as the country is going through an unprecedented economic crisis. He said sanctions are hindering the import of petroleum products, and hurting the lives of Syrians. In August, the electricity ministry reported that the total direct and indirect losses of the electricity sector as a result of the war amounted to about 6.1 trillion Syrian pounds (24.4 billion U.S. dollars). To address the power shortage, the Syrian government agreed to a deal with Jordan and Egypt to facilitate the flow of Egyptian natural gas through Jordan and the Syrian territories to Lebanon in exchange for getting a certain amount of gas for Syrian electricity plants. The Syrian government has been accusing the United States of causing Syria's energy crisis, as the superpower controls major oil and gas fields in eastern Syria. The government has repeatedly called on the United Nations to exert pressure for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from eastern Syria. Enditem Swans are seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) Swans are seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) Swans are seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) Swans are seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) A swan is seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) A swan is seen in the Yellow River wetland in Guide County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, Dec. 24, 2021. Hundreds of swans have flied to Guide to spend the winter recently. (Xinhua/Zhang Long) TRIPOLI, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Friday said it has resettled 107 refugees from Libya to Canada, the last resettlement departure of refugees from Libya this year. "107 refugees have been flown out of Libya to safety, with the logistical support of sister agency, IOM Libya, to the Emergency Transit Centre in Romania. Here, they will have their cases processed for resettlement to Canada," UNHCR said in a statement. Libya has been suffering insecurity and chaos since the fall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, making the North African country a preferred point of departure for illegal migrants who want to cross the Mediterranean Sea to European shores. So far in 2021, a total of 31,456 illegal migrants have been rescued and returned to Libya, while hundreds of others died and went missing off the Libyan coast on the Central Mediterranean route, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Enditem MOGADISHU, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations' top relief envoy in Somalia on Friday called for a ceasefire in Bossaso, a commercial port city in northeast Somalia, following three days of intense fighting between rival security forces. Adam Abdelmoula, the humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, expressed concern about the impact of ongoing hostilities in Bossaso of Puntland State on civilians. "I urge all parties to the conflict to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law and to ensure unfettered access for humanitarian workers to all people in need of assistance," Abdelmoula said in a statement issued in the Somali capital of Mogadishu. He said more than half of Bossaso city's population have reportedly been displaced from their homes because of fighting between the United States-trained anti-terror unit, Puntland Security Forces (PSF) and the region's regular security forces loyal to Puntland President Saed Abdullahi Deni. According to humanitarian partners and local authorities, some 40 percent of 70,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) hosted in Bossaso town are also reported to have experienced secondary displacement. The UN official said the closure of shops has limited the possibility of vulnerable people, including IDPs and drought-affected communities, to redeem their vouchers for basic supplies. "I am further concerned that fighting has negatively affected the ability of humanitarian partners to reach the displaced people who are in urgent need of humanitarian and protection assistance," said Abdelmoula. The clashes which began Tuesday have been roundly condemned by Somali leaders including President Mohamed Farmajo. Enditem MANILA, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- "With or without food on the table, we will celebrate Christmas," said a survivor from Typhoon Rai that battered the central and southern Philippines last week. The typhoon left a trail of destruction and killed at least 375 people with many still missing. Gloria Fulido, resident from Bohol province that is one of the hard-hit provinces of Typhoon Rai, believed the festival spirit lives on despite the massive damage. The most powerful typhoon to slam the Philippines this year knocked out power, telecommunications, and water supplies in regions in its path in the Southeast Asian country. The national disaster agency said the estimated damage to agriculture and infrastructure has reached over 4 billion pesos (about 80 million U.S. dollars), adding that it damaged nearly 350,000 houses, including Fulido's house. Two days before Christmas, Fulido decorated a small Christmas tree and hung the pink star-shaped lantern in front of her roofless house. "The devastation brought about by the typhoon will not dampen our Christmas spirit," she added. Christmas is usually marked by big celebrations in the Philippines. Traditional religious activities, family gatherings and endless parties are held during the holiday season. For the past few days, people thronged to Metro Manila bus stations and airports to head to their hometowns to celebrate the holidays season with relatives amid the threat of COVID-19 infections. But in Fulido's neighborhood, many houses are "sky-roofed" after the typhoon. Plastic sheets are used as temporary roofs. Marlon Yunson, a resident of Pitogo island town in Bohol province, teared up while recalling the damage his family experienced. "We lost everything that we built for 18 years in a snap," he lamented. Famous for the sprawling "chocolate hills" and the cute bug-eyed tarsiers that are listed as endangered species and are kept in the protected and fenced-off sanctuary to repopulate, Bohol is also among the best diving places in the Philippines. But the typhoon damaged four of the more than 1,200 conical mounds known as "chocolate hills" and scared off the cute bug-eyed tarsier primates in the province. Bohol Governor Arthur Yap said 107 people perished in the province and 12 more are still missing. Yap dissuaded the people of Bohol from using firecrackers on Christmas eve and New Year to avoid fire as the province is running low with water due to the typhoon. Filipinos believe in welcoming the new year with a bang by literally lighting firecrackers to usher in a prosperous new year. The tradition is usually destructive, causing fire, injuries and even death. However, despite the tragedy that befell the province, it is not a bleak Christmas. A dozen of young people gathered to help repack and distribute donated clothes and foodstuff to the victims in Loon town. "We are also victims, but there are people who need more help such as clothes and rice," Anthonette Mae Gupit said. Enditem KABUL, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan's caretaker government began to distribute the China-aided humanitarian supplies on Friday to the country's 34 provinces. Acting Minister for Refugees and Repatriation Mawlawi Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani said at a ceremony held for the distribution that his country had received several batches of humanitarian supplies donated by China, and that his ministry was sending the material aid to needy people in the country's 34 provinces. "We are thankful to China for the assistance," Haqqani told Xinhua after the ceremony. "China is our good neighbor and the assistance for us is very important." China has announced it will provide humanitarian aid as well as COVID-19 vaccines to Afghanistan, and more supplies are being delivered to the Central Asian country. Enditem Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) Anglican Archbishop Thabo Makgoba has warned that there is growing distrust in the government because of the misuse of public funds and corruption If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Home Regional News East A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. By clicking Agree, you consent to Slates Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and the use of technologies such as cookies by Slate and our partners to deliver relevant advertising on our iOS app to personalize content and perform site analytics. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information about our use of data, your rights, and how to withdraw consent. Agree Radio Caroline 648 kHz now on higher power Radio World reports Radio Caroline is now transmitting 4 kw of power following approval from Ofcom to increase its 1 kw output on 648 kHz The stronger signal now covers East Anglia, East Midlands, Kent, Sussex and beyond, as well as once again covering The Netherlands and Belgium, and into France and Germany. Ofcom agreed to the increase earlier this year and the power was boosted last week. A powerful Harris transmitter, capable of providing 25kw of power, was imported from Holland and installed at the Orfordness Transmitting Site in Suffolk, England where Radio Caroline sends its 648 AM signal from a redundant but complete BBC World Service facility now owned by Cobra Mist Ltd, who offered Radio Caroline use of the facility. It may seem crazy to turn the clock back when other radio stations and the BBC are winding down AM and only Radio Caroline would do this but there is method in our madness, in that AM radio works as well as it ever did with durability and long range. said Radio Caroline station manager Peter Moore. Read the full story at https://radiotoday.co.uk/2021/12/radio-caroline-confirms-power-increase-on-648-am-medium-wave/ Following exceprts from the author's latest book The New Border Wars: The Conflicts That Will Define Our Future published by Diversion Books by Klaus Dodds Quan Dinh, a volunteer at the Project Vietnam Foundation, wears a protective mask depicting Vietnam and the South China Sea at the Miyoco Medical Center in Fountain Valley. This face mask is an example of popular geopolitics. Using a now common item, a cloth face mask, the red cross on the map of the South China Sea rejects Chinese sovereign claims over highly disputed islands and surrounding waters. In April 2020, the two countries clashed over fishing rights, and Vietnam accused China of sinking a Vietnamese fishing vessel near the contested Paracel Islands. Borders and the architecture that enables them have been with us for thousands of years. The oldest walls built for defensive purposes date from twelve thousand years ago in the Middle East, and the earliest recorded city wall was Jerichos in the Jordan Valley. Built either for defense or flood protection, these walls serve as a reminder that the instinct to fortify has a lineage stretching back thousands of years. Defensive walls found favor in ancient Athens but not in Sparta where the cultivation of warriors was judged to be a far more powerful deterrent than brick and stone. In nearby Constantinople, the famous Theodosian city walls lasted for nearly a thousand years. Built in the fifth century, they were only breached by Ottoman forces in May 1453, aided and abetted by gunpowder and siege cannons. Walls and fortified borders eventually fail due to human ingenuity and determination, while natural disasters such as sandstorms, volcanic eruptions, floods, and earthquakes continue to reveal the limits of city walls and security fences. Attitudes to bordering, however, ebb and flow over time. In the 1990s, there were far fewer border walls and barriers as governments around the world consumed globalization Kool-Aidcalling for reduced barriers, increased trade, and the spread of democracy. Two decades later, it is commonplace to read of new investment in border security, including barriers, fences, and walls. With funding and logistics in place, contemporary construction crews in the southern borderlands of the United States are reporting that they can build around a quarter of a mile of fencing a day. The land border with Mexico is over 2,000 miles long. President Donald Trumps ambitions for a beautiful wall will take plenty of time and money. Fences and walls, however, are just one element of border matters. Countries can register their state of border readiness in different ways. Governments might choose to spend millions of dollars and related currencies in introducing drone squadrons and reengineering landscapes for the purpose of improving situational awareness and border surveillance. Alternatively, they might choose to alter prevailing visa arrangements and restrict the entry of citizens from countries judged to be dangerous, insecure, threatening, or hazardous to health. We should not forget that there are other bordering options too. Countries can choose to open their borders for strategic reasons. They might decide not to prevent the flow of people and goods. For much of the migrant crisis affecting Southeast Europe and the near Middle East from 2015 onwards, the relationship between Turkey and the European Union has pivoted around the question of the land and sea border between Greece and Turkey. Hosting millions of Syrian refugees and others from countries such as Afghanistan, Ankara, and Brussels have been locked in acrimonious disputes about how those refugees and migrants are accommodated. Angry with apparent European indifference to its strategic interests on the Turkey-Syria borderlands, the Turkish government in February 2020 simply encouraged thousands of migrants to make their way towards the Greek border. In contemporary Turkey, the southern border is highly militarized and securitized while the integrity of the western border depends on the strategic calculations of the political leadership. Fearful of yet more migrants to accommodate and redistribute within the European Union bloc, Turkey has used the state of its borders to leverage financial aid and political support. We always come back to bordering as an activity rather than simply the static border wall or the inert line on the map. Why might this be? In reality, there are many drivers that underpin investment in border security, and, on the other hand, there are reasons simply not to bother ensuring their inviolability. Those drivers might be cultural, economic, and political such as fears and worries about migrants overwhelming indigenous cultures, hostile third parties enabling conflict and terrorism, and third parties carrying disease. There are also financial imperatives as well, which are often less discussed. The European and North American experiences of border infrastructure and security illustrate a sprawling industrial-legal-political-military complex, involving a cast of characters such as defense personnel, border guards, lawyers, policymakers, smugglers, private contractors, civil society groups, and political leaders. Here, border security and control is highly lucrative. In a report released in March 2019, the business analytical group Frost and Sullivan estimated that the border security market will be worth at least $168 billion by 2025. New investment will target real-time data analysis, as border security agencies attempt to improve their capacities to detect and prevent the irregular movement of people and goods. Countries with mature border security industries are seeking to export their security technologies and digital surveillance capabilities. For example, the global military drone market is projected to grow in the 2020s and be worth upwards of $500 million per year. It is proving highly profitable in migratory hotspots such as Europe and North America, as well as other locations where border disputes are live. In South America, fixed-wing drones have been deployed in an ever-greater number in disputed areas between Venezuela and Guyana. Fixed-wing drones have greater endurance and can cover larger areas that may be disputed or in need of border surveillance. The drone industry is in rude health and countries such as Switzerland are actively marketing themselves as a drone nation. The European Border Surveillance system (EUROSUR) creates its own business opportunities for member states. In 2019, it awarded Greece a grant of around $60 million to develop a new surveillance system for the Aegean Sea, in effect the EUs eastern border with Turkey. The money will be used to provide a 24/7 monitoring system for the Greek coastguard and navy, and thus help improve situational awareness, the aim being to intercept illegal smuggling operations. Information will be shared between the Greek authorities and the European border security agency FRONTEX, based in Warsaw. Border building and investment, however, bring with them coststo taxpayers, to migrants, to border guards, and to wildlife. The Sierra Club in the United States has highlighted the damage done to southern border ecosystems. The Santa Ana national wildlife refuge in Texas is a ground zero for ecological impact. Around the proposed border fencing route, vegetation will be removed, landscape is due to be reengineered so that it is flat and even surfaced, and bright lighting will be installed throughout the night. Any border building project is going to require property to be bought, exclusion zones to be established, and new laws introduced to allow the federal government to overturn any national wildlife refuge status. Environmental impact assessment and review could be simply dispensed with or downgraded. Appeals to national security often end up trumping all other considerations. Border security projects generate political frustration the world over. In March 2019, the Kenyan government committed itself to building a new border fence at a cost of $35 million for a six-mile stretch of fencing. The original plan in 2014 called for a new 435-mile wall to be established in the light of the dire security situation to the east of the country. Kenya has in recent years been rocked by terrorist incidents, including the 2013 Westgate mall shooting in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi and the Garissa University College attack of 2015. More than two hundred people perished in those two attacks alone. The attackers were identified as being members of the Al-Shabaab terror group based in southern Somalia. In his 2019 State of the Union address, President Uhuru Kenyatta stated that the government was strengthening border security and management. But Kenyan parliamentarians, despite the threat posed by terrorism and cross-border militancy, demanded a cessation due to spiraling costs. The building of the wall has now stopped with the 6.2 mile stretch left incomplete. The Kenyan experience is not unique. Persistent financial overspend is endemic to the implementation of border hardware. The millions of dollars and other currencies spent on motion detectors, drone patrols, fencing, and surveillance technologies rarely produce positive cost-benefit assessments. By the time the Obama administration assumed office in January 2009, spending on border security and immigration policing was running into billions of dollars. In 2012, it was announced that $18 billion was being spent on immigration policing alone, some $10 billion more than on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). As more money was being spent on the southern border in particular, migrant detention facilities were privatized, and the number of migrants rose steadily. The immigration detention sector became a huge industry with more people being detained and deported than ever before. It is now worth billions of dollars annually. In combination with detention centers, the cost of further state and federal investment in technological infrastructure, including drone patrols, radar facilities, and ground-level surveillance is not insubstantial. Border hardware is big business. As well as being big business, borders are political dynamite. They are integral to political campaigning across the world, with national leaders promising their citizens that they will be tough on the causes of border insecurity. Nowadays, their pledges often capture the news cycle because border stories are rarely out of the media. At least the sort of news stories that address walls, fences, and the experiences of those who attempt to cross them or defend them. It is often the shocking pictures of dead migrants that garner the most public attention. Few readers will forget the terrible pictures of a dead Syrian-Kurdish boy, Aylan Shenu (Alan Kurdi). He was found on a beach in September 2015 after drowning somewhere in the Mediterranean. The image of the stricken child quickly went viral and provoked a backlash against the immigration policies of the EU. Social media and the twenty-four-hour news cycle have combined to ensure that the cross-border stories of refugees, migrants, humanitarian organizations, and reception communities receive far more attention than in the past. Borders, and border stories, retain considerable allure for many ordinary peopleoften leading to demands for them to stop being violated. Autocrats and populist leaders around the world have leaped upon the border bandwagon and have used and abused that allure to promote their claims on expanded territory or to demand pernicious controls on some people and things trying to enter those same territories. COMPETITIVE ALLURES IN HIGHLY DISPUTED AREAS In China and Japanthough not only in these nationsmaps of national territories cultivate not just allure but also anxiety about them being breached. Designed to show Japanese citizens the true extent of their national territories, in 2016 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo produced a map showing the shape of Japan, in which the country is seen to incorporate the contested Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. The map aims to reassure the Japanese public that these islands are considered Japanese but also it serves to remind citizens that the countrys territorial integrity depends on having investment in naval and military forces capable of deterring three nuclear-armed statesChina, Russia, and North Korea. This is clearly a tall order given the conventional military capabilities of all three neighboring states. The task matters all the more now that US support is a great deal less assured than it was during the Cold War. The maritime boundaries are depicted in bold, and no distinction is made, visually at least, between land and sea. Japan is shown as a seamless continuum of land and sea territories, where everything is considered vital to national security, including the remotest and most thinly populated islands. The dots on the map matter. An accompanying video informs viewers in English about the islands to the south of Japan and how they were returned to Japan after the postwar occupier, the United States, signed the 1971 Okinawa Reversion Agreement. The video notes, optimistically, that Chinese maps and newspapers depict and acknowledge the islands to be Japanese territory rather than Chinese. The reality is a great deal more worrisome for JapanChina does not acknowledge Japanese sovereignty over these disputed islands. South Korea and Japan clash over their mutual maritime borders, they dispute ownership of Takeshima (and the fishing grounds around the small islands), and even the term to describe the waters that separate them is a source of disagreement. Japan insists the waters are part of the Sea of Japan while South Korea prefers the East Sea. Japan has lobbied the International Hydrographic Organization, which produces official maps of oceans and seas, to persuade the South Koreans to accept the name the Sea of Japan. What makes the issue of the islandsand the naming of the seatoxic is that relations between the countries have been punctuated by conflict, and South Korea insists that the term Sea of Japan was popularized during the hated era of Japanese colonial occupation (191045). Both countries accuse one another of inflaming the situation. Provocative maps of their respective national territories are often seized upon as evidence of malfeasance. Maps are used aggressively to support Chinas geopolitical interests. Its use of what is called the Nine Dash Line (sometimes referred to as the Ten Dash Line) on its official maps of the South China Sea to depict a large area of sea, island, and seabed under its effective control has become widespread in recent times. The Nine Dash Line has upset all of Chinas regional neighbors. In Vietnam, social media was abuzz in October 2019 about a joint American-Chinese cartoon animation film called Abominable, a heart-warming tale about a young Chinese girl called Yi and her friends who encounter the legendary snowman in the mountains of Tibet. What caught the eye of Vietnamese viewers was a scene in the film involving a map on the wall in Yis house. In between postcards and photographs, there is a brief glimpse of the controversial dash line. As soon as it was remarked upon, the government of Vietnam ordered the movie to be withdrawn, and movie posters were taken down across the country. The South China Sea is a prime example of how Chinese technological investment in border expansion has been matched by visual campaigning, which uses new maps of Chinese maritime sovereignty in individual passports and public information videos to inform citizens about how the country is protecting its national territories. This is of increasing concern to the Philippines, Taiwan, and Malaysia, as well as to Vietnam, as they all have their own maritime claims, resource interests, and strategic visions. The expansion of Chinese territorial control and border protection is driven by resource potential and strategic access. In 2018, the United States Energy Information Administration released its estimates of potential energy resources in the region, which included over 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 11 billion barrels of oil. As a vital sea lane for its near neighbors, and a rich fishing ground with accompanying hydrocarbon potential, the maritime borders of the South China Sea will be mired in controversy and possibly conflict. Chinese media is good at reminding citizens why all of this is integral to the countrys future. Artificial island building, security patrolling, and surveillance of others is all considered to be vital given that 80 percent of its oil imports travel through the South China Sea. As well as maps and promotional videos, drilling rigs and fishing vessels contribute to a portfolio of activities that make up border culture. Legal judgments against China dont seem to make much difference. China uses military and commercial levers to persuade countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines to work on joint exploratory projects or bully them into not doing things even within their own waters. The Philippines has been caught between a desire to move away from long-standing subservience to former colonial power the United States and unease at its exposure to Chinese land and resource grabbing. Recognizing the power imbalance in their relationship, the Philippines chose to work with China and announced that it was allowing it to fish in the West Philippine Sea. The consequence is that President Rodrigo Duterte has had to spend considerable time and effort reminding his domestic audiences that the Philippines has not given up on border protection, as the Chinese vessels fishing in Filipino national waters are doing so with his personal permission. He has to resort to near constant linguistic gymnastics as he repeatedly downplays incidents involving Chinese vessels harassing Filipino fishermen. Meanwhile, Duterte has been told by opposition politicians that he cannot give away the countrys fishing rights, with arguments raging about whether the Filipino constitution forbids the government to allow others to exploit the countrys marine wealth. Click here to order your copy Copyright 2021 by Klaus Dodds Klaus Dodds is Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Holloway, University of London, and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. He is a leading authority on geopolitics. Since 2006, he has written a monthly geopolitics column for Geographical Magazine; he gives frequent talks on border issues, is an expert in the geopolitics of international terrorism, and is often invited to join panels at events and in the media (including on BBC TV and radio) on the subject of border issues. Dodds is also a recipient of the Philip Leverhulme Prize, awarded to outstanding researchers whose work has already attracted international recognition and whose future career is exceptionally promising. New Delhi, Dec 25 (UNI) J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday said that Atal Bihari Vajpayee has deeply enriched the Indian political space and big shift in economic reform was his brainchild. He was addressing a special event to commemorate the birth anniversary of of the former PM here at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi, a government statement said. While speaking on the occasion, the Lt Governor Sinha termed Vajpayee a true statesman, poet, writer, who was indeed the greatest orator country has heard after Independence. Throwing light on Vajpayee's political life, the Lt Governor said that Vajpayee has deeply enriched the Indian political space. The big shift in economic reform was the brainchild of Atal Ji. Despite large and difficult coalition partners, he fast-tracked several futuristic policies including Golden Quadrilateral, PMGSY, disinvestment, Telecom revolution & Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan," the Lt Governor observed. Through his sharp political understanding and cross-party appeal, Atal Ji significantly shaped the political discourse of his era. He even encouraged regional aspirations by accommodating smaller parties for larger national cause, added the Lt Governor. As the nation is celebrating 75 years of Independence, we must remember the contribution of all the great personalities who worked tirelessly for strengthening the Indian democracy, nationalism, and upliftment of the marginalized sections. Among all the leaders, Atal Ji was a true statesman, who rose above the party lines in the larger interest, Sinha said. Walking on the path shown by the great visionary leader, the government is continuously working to make development, peace, progress, and social harmony the most integral part of the narrative of Jammu and Kashmir, the Lt Governor said. Over the decades, many governments under pressure refrained from conducting the Pokhran test. It was because of the vision and courage of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ji the world saw that India will not allow its national interests to be undermined, whether it is to develop nuclear weapons capability or missile system. By linking internal security with the economy, he sent out a stern message that if the nation is strong, it will not bow down to anyone, the Lt Governor said. Today, India is keeping its head high in the global arena and proving its mettle in defence due to toughest decisions taken by Atal Ji which clearly shaped the future of the country, added the Lt Governor. Recalling the formidable efforts of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the Lt Governor said that it was the firm belief of the former PM that a progressive society could not be established in the country until people of the country are empowered. He embodied his ideas in the spirit of collective responsibility, to provide economic, social, educational, and political rights to the marginalized people and worked tirelessly for public welfare and securing social, economic, and political justice for underprivileged and backward classes, the Lt Governor observed. Following the ideals of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee and Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, Atal Ji established a system of fear-free, corruption-free, hunger-free public centric good governance system in the country, the Lt Governor observed. "Atal Ji has greatly influenced the politics of post-independence India. From connecting villages with roads and building houses for the poor in the villages to bringing revolutions in various sectors, Atal Ji has his deep imprints on system-reforms taking place even today," added the Lt Governor. UNI MJR GK World Insights: China's COVID-19 vaccines bolster global confidence to end pandemic: yearend review 00:00:00 If China's COVID-19 vaccine has its own passport, every inch of its pages would be covered, having traveled to more than 120 countries and international organizations throughout the year, bringing hope to a possible end to this pandemic. From elderly people to school-age children, people from various countries have received China's COVID-19 vaccines over the past year. In April, Filipino student Molvin Chua, who received the first dose of the vaccine in Beijing, thanked the school for arranging vaccination for international students. But he was also deeply worried about the situation back home in Manila. "I know that vaccines are very scarce now, and I hope my family can get vaccinated as soon as possible," he said. To his delight, Chua's family members have been vaccinated thanks to the arrivals of vaccines provided by China to the Philippines, with their lives slowly returning to normal. In a letter of thanks, he wrote "I want to thank China for providing COVID-19 vaccines to the Philippine, protecting Filipinos and their families." The city of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, famous for its beautiful scenery, had to "close" because of the pandemic, and the city's mayor councillor Somveli Dhlamini said he was distraught until the arrival of Chinese COVID-19 vaccines. "The Chinese government's aid to Zimbabwe's vaccine arrived at this time. We are very fortunate," Dlamini told Xinhua. The city then achieved herd immunity, becoming one of the first cities in the world to do so. Dlamini sent a postcard to China depicting Victoria Falls. He wrote on the back: "The Chinese vaccines, Sinopharm and Sinovac, have contributed immensely to the recovery of tourism in Victoria Falls. Thanks to the Government of China for the support." According to statistics, China has provided a total of nearly 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the world, mostly to developing countries, accounting for one-third of the global vaccine use outside of China, becoming the biggest foreign provider of COVID-19 vaccines. Cresencio Arias, an 82-year-old folk musician who lives in the rural Tabasco state in southern Mexico, didn't expect a vaccine would come from far away China more than half a year ago. At that time, Arias waited for the vaccine as the virus spread around him. "Too many people have died in the epidemic. We need the COVID-19 vaccine." When the vaccines provided by China had arrived, he immediately went to get jabbed with his family. "I want to thank China and thank you for providing vaccines to people all over the world. We are very grateful. Vaccines have protected our family." In countries that have authorized the use of Chinese COVID-19 vaccine, almost all age groups are covered. Chinese vaccines have won trust and recognition for their safety and effectiveness. Mostafa Sayed, a young Egyptian man, once studied Chinese for four years at Cairo University. After the outbreak of the pandemic, he was almost unemployed due to a sudden depression in tourism. By chance, he became the translator for the expert group that Sinovac sent to Egypt to build a factory. "Participating in the construction of a factory for the production of COVID-19 vaccines is the most meaningful translation I have done," he said. In the Agouza district of Giza province of Egypt, Sinovac and Egyptian Holding Company for Biological Products and Vaccines have been co-producing vaccines since September this year, with an annual production capacity of 200 million doses -- enough to meet the country's vaccine needs. With vaccination rates rising, the tourism industry has gradually recovered, and Sayed has returned to his field. The holding company is preparing another vaccine factory. With an annual production capacity of around one billion doses, it could be the largest COVID-19 vaccine factory in the Middle East and North Africa. Up to now, Chinese companies have built or are building vaccine production bodies in 19 countries, providing corresponding technical support to countries in need. Sayed believed that with the joint efforts of all countries, the vaccination rate will continue to increase, stemming the impact of the virus. People wearing masks walk on Syntagma square in Athens, Greece, on Dec. 24, 2021. Greece's government announced on Thursday a new set of measures to contain the further spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming holiday season. In the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant, the government has decided the cancellation of all public festive events, the mandatory use of a mask indoors and outdoors, and additional protection protocols for travelers, Health Minister Thanos Plevris told a press briefing. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) ATHENS, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Greece's government announced on Thursday a new set of measures to contain the further spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming holiday season. In the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant, the government has decided the cancellation of all public festive events, the mandatory use of a mask indoors and outdoors, and additional protection protocols for travelers, Health Minister Thanos Plevris told a press briefing. He recommended all travelers entering Greece to repeat tests for COVID-19 on the second and fourth day upon their arrival. "These measures, which will be effective until Jan. 3, are sufficient to celebrate Christmas and New Year, without posing risks to public health," Greek national broadcaster ERT quoted him as saying. A special body advising the government on the pandemic will make new recommendations next week for additional measures from early next year, depending on the course of the pandemic, the official added. Greek authorities reported 5,641 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday and 69 deaths within 24 hours. Enditem A couple wearing masks walk past a shop in Athens, Greece, on Dec. 24, 2021. Greece's government announced on Thursday a new set of measures to contain the further spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming holiday season. In the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant, the government has decided the cancellation of all public festive events, the mandatory use of a mask indoors and outdoors, and additional protection protocols for travelers, Health Minister Thanos Plevris told a press briefing. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) A woman wearing a mask shows her vaccination certificate to a staff member of a store in Athens, Greece, on Dec. 24, 2021. Greece's government announced on Thursday a new set of measures to contain the further spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming holiday season. In the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant, the government has decided the cancellation of all public festive events, the mandatory use of a mask indoors and outdoors, and additional protection protocols for travelers, Health Minister Thanos Plevris told a press briefing. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) People wearing masks walk on Syntagma square in Athens, Greece, on Dec. 24, 2021. Greece's government announced on Thursday a new set of measures to contain the further spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming holiday season. In the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant, the government has decided the cancellation of all public festive events, the mandatory use of a mask indoors and outdoors, and additional protection protocols for travelers, Health Minister Thanos Plevris told a press briefing. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) XI'AN, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Shaanxi Province had reported a total of 342 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases in the latest resurgence from Dec. 9 to Friday. Of the total, 330 cases were reported in Xi'an, the provincial capital, seven in the city of Yan'an and five in the city of Xianyang, Liu Na, an official with the provincial health commission told a press briefing Saturday. All the cases in Shaanxi, with four severe cases, 134 moderate cases and 204 mild cases, are undergoing treatment in the Xi'an Chest Hospital, Liu said. The patients, aged between one year old and 90 years old, are all in stable condition. Enditem WASHINGTON, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- NASA's James Webb Space Telescope was launched from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, on Saturday, to probe structures and origins of the universe. Launched onboard Arianespace's Ariane 5 rocket at 07:20 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (1220 GMT), Webb will travel to an orbit about 1.6 million km away from Earth and undergo six months of commissioning in space -- unfolding its mirrors, sunshield, and other smaller systems; cooling down; aligning; and calibrating, according to NASA. Webb is NASA's largest and most powerful space science telescope ever constructed. With a 6.5-meter primary mirror, the large infrared telescope will study every phase of cosmic history -- from within the solar system to the most distant observable galaxies in the early universe, said NASA. Webb will directly observe a part of space and time never seen before. It will gaze into the epoch when the very first stars and galaxies formed over 13.5 billion years ago, according to NASA. The space telescope will also be a powerful tool for studying the nearby universe, said NASA. Scientists will use Webb to study planets and other bodies in the solar system to determine their origin and evolution and compare them with exoplanets, planets that orbit other stars. Webb is an international program led by NASA with the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles on Saturday urged the United States to revoke all its sanctions and suppressions on Xinjiang-made textiles. The U.S. side has recently signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, which bans imports of textile-related products from China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The move completely violated market principles and the rules of the World Trade Organization, disrupted international trade order, and severely damaged the interests of textile and apparel manufacturers and consumers in China and the United States, the chamber said in a statement. The U.S. accusation of so-called "forced labor" issue is purely fabricated out of thin air and has no factual basis, the statement said. It stressed that China's textile and apparel industry has been committed to safeguarding workers' rights and interests, and has provided stable and efficient supply chain services for the global market. For the common interests of both sides, the chamber is willing to strengthen communication with related organizations and sectors from the United States, and strive to maintain the stability of bilateral economic and trade relations in the textile and apparel industry, according to the statement. Meanwhile, the chamber said it hoped that global textile and apparel firms and consumers, including those in the United States, can see through the U.S. long-lasting attempts at smearing China's image and curbing China's development in the name of "human rights," and make their own judgement based on facts and truth. Enditem KUNMING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Yunnan Province reported six confirmed COVID-19 cases on Friday, local health authorities said Saturday. Of the total, two are imported cases who arrived from Myanmar and Laos and four are locally transmitted cases in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province, the provincial health commission said. On Friday, the province also reported four asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers who all arrived from Laos. As of Friday, the province had 96 confirmed COVID-19 cases undergoing treatment, including 68 imported cases, the commission said. Enditem Staff members convey Chinese COVID-19 vaccines at an airport in Managua, Nicaragua, Dec. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Xin Yuewei) MANAGUA, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Nicaragua received a new batch of COVID-19 vaccines donated by China on Friday, the second in a month. The cargo arrived at the Augusto C. Sandino International Airport in Managua, capital of Nicaragua in the morning, and was received by Presidential Advisor Laureano Ortega Murillo and Health Minister Martha Reyes. Nicaragua appreciates and acknowledges the solidarity of the Chinese government and people, the presidential advisor told Xinhua, calling the shipment "a great Christmas gift from the Chinese people." "Since the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between our countries, under the one-China principle, we have received different expressions of appreciation, affection, and love for our people," he said. Both countries are working together to identify opportunities for bilateral cooperation, focusing on projects of high humanitarian value for the benefit of their people, he added. The new batch of vaccines developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm will bolster Nicaragua's voluntary vaccination campaign, Health Minister Reyes said. Yu Bo, representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said China will continue to support Nicaragua's anti-pandemic efforts and promote the construction of a community of health for all. Nicaragua, which resumed diplomatic relations with China on Dec. 10, received the first batch of China-donated COVID-19 vaccines on Dec. 12. Enditem Staff members convey Chinese COVID-19 vaccines at an airport in Managua, Nicaragua, Dec. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Xin Yuewei) by Sanaa Kamal RAMALLAH, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Nai Jarar, a six-year-old Palestinian girl from the West Bank city of Jenin, presented herself in a group of children's outfits in front of cameras. With long blond hair and green eyes, the 3.6-foot girl exuded confidence and wasn't afraid of the cameras. "I am happy to be the youngest fashion model in the West Bank," said Nai, as she completed displaying her outfits. Nai was quite confident when she was very little. According to her mother Mai Jarar, Nai has never been timid nor reluctant in front of the cameras. Two years ago, when Nai started wearing children's clothes from her aunt's new clothing shop, she was photographed as a model for children's clothes and the photos were posted on social media. Many Palestinian fans on social networking websites applauded her confidence and spontaneity, praising her lovely facial features and sense of color matching. After Nai became more widely known, dozens of local clothing shops hired her to work as a part-time model to promote their products on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. The need for models for their garments has increased in the last two years as more merchants in Ramallah city have turned to social media to advertise their clothes, catering to the changing habits of consumers who now spend more time on cellphones. For each photo session, Nai receives 50 U.S. dollars. When it comes to taking photos, Mai assists Nai in selecting outfits, and Nai selects the colors that best suit her. Nai is also nurturing and acquiring her fashion sense through social media platforms such as YouTube channels. "I am able to mix and match, and I want to be a world-famous fashion designer in the future," said Nai. Despite the positive prospect, Nai's mother, 33, is under fire, with some accusing her and her husband of violating Nai's childhood rights by encouraging her to work at such a young age. Mai responded by saying she had encouraged Nai to "make education a priority for her in the future" while supporting her goal to be a fashion designer. Moreover, the world has changed, and the technological advancement of the modern era, such as social media, would replace the old media and help more people accept her daughter's talent, according to Mai. Nai said she was as passionate about studying as she was about fashion. "Despite the fact that I am in the first grade, I enjoy study just as much as I enjoy clothes and fashion," Nai told Xinhua. Enditem A cotton picker works in the fields of Erken Reyimu in Yuli County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Oct. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge) BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The United States' signing of the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law is a manifestation of its bullying mindset, an extention of gangster logic, and a revival of the Cold War mentality, said a spokesperson with the people's government of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Saturday. Such a move blatantly interferes in China's internal affairs, and is totally wrong, unpopular and dangerous, said Xu Guixiang at a press conference in Beijing held by the Xinjiang regional government. The so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" seriously distorts the actual labor situation in Xinjiang, violates international law and basic norms governing international relations, and tramples on the common values of human society, said Xu. Legitimate rights and interests of people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are fully protected, and the region's employment policies and practices are in line with international labor and human rights standards, Xu noted. "The so-called 'Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act' will in no way affect Xinjiang's development and progress," said Xu. "On the contrary, it has exposed the United States' fake human rights, real hegemony, and the intention to sabotage in the name of concern." The United States itself has, in fact, faced a series of domestic labor issues such as forced labor in private prisons, child labor abuse, and gender discrimination in employment, said Xu. "It is the United States that should actually look into its own forced labor issues and sign into law a 'Native Americans Forced Labor Prevention Act'," the spokesperson added. Enditem Related: Chinese textile associations oppose U.S. ban on Xinjiang products U.S. must revoke all sanctions on Xinjiang textiles: commerce chamber China Enterprise Confederation opposes U.S. trade hegemony over Xinjiang products China association opposes U.S. suppression on Chinese cotton industry Medical workers carry a patient into a hospital in New York, the United States, Dec. 13, 2021. (Xinhua/Wang Ying) "Our goal is to keep healthcare personnel and patients safe, and to address and prevent undue burden on our healthcare facilities," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said. WASHINGTON, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shortened the isolation periods for healthcare workers infected with COVID-19, due to hospital staffing shortages driven by the surge in new cases and hospitalizations. The CDC revised its guidelines on Thursday, recommending that healthcare workers who are asymptomatic return to work after seven days with a negative test, adding that "isolation time can be cut further if there are staffing shortages." The agency also said that those workers who have received all recommended vaccine doses, including boosters, do not need to quarantine at home following high-risk exposures. The new guidelines apply to all healthcare facilities that are directly involved in patient care, which include hospitals, nursing homes, dental offices and other medical sites. "As the healthcare community prepares for an anticipated surge in patients due to Omicron, CDC is updating our recommendations to reflect what we know about infection and exposure in the context of vaccination and booster doses," said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. "Our goal is to keep healthcare personnel and patients safe, and to address and prevent undue burden on our healthcare facilities," she said. Walensky urged all healthcare personnel to get vaccinated and boosted. The CDC stressed that the new guidelines do not extend to the general public and only apply to the healthcare workforce. Others who are infected COVID-19 should isolate for 10 full days, according to CDC guidance. A healthcare worker watches a patient in the "COVID Area" of the Beverly Hospital in Montebello City, California, the United States, Jan. 22, 2021. (Xinhua) Some health experts and business leaders are hoping that the CDC will consider loosening the period for all vaccinated Americans. The CDC said it continues to evaluate isolation and quarantine recommendations for the broader population as it learns about the Omicron variant and will update the public as appropriate. The new Omicron variant is driving a winter surge in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the United States. Many hospitals are already overburdened, especially with patients who remain unvaccinated and those who have delayed necessary care during the pandemic. Doctors, nurses and other workers have suffered extensive burnout. U.S. President Joe Biden said this week that 1,000 military medical professionals would be deployed to help hospitals, and the U.S. National Guard is already working in some nursing homes and hospitals to address understaffing in several states. A staff member (R) uses the facial recognition system to check the information of an examinee for postgraduate entrance exams in Beijing Institute of Technology in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 25, 2021. China's 2022 national entrance exams for postgraduate studies kicked off on Saturday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao) Photo taken on Dec. 25, 2021 shows the exam site for postgraduate entrance exams in Beijing Institute of Technology in Beijing, capital of China. China's 2022 national entrance exams for postgraduate studies kicked off on Saturday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao) Photo taken on Dec. 25, 2021 shows the exam site for postgraduate entrance exams in Beijing Institute of Technology in Beijing, capital of China. China's 2022 national entrance exams for postgraduate studies kicked off on Saturday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao) Travelers wait at the check-in counters of Southwest Airlines at Dallas Love Field Airport in Dallas, Texas, the United States, Dec. 17, 2021. Gary Kelly, CEO of Southwest Airlines, has tested positive for COVID-19, the company headquartered in Dallas of the U.S. state of Texas said Friday, two days after he attended a hearing in U.S. Senate along with some other U.S. airline chiefs and lawmakers. (Photo by Guangming Li/Xinhua) The Omicron variant is becoming an increasingly disruptive force as it tears around the world. Its accelerating spread hampered operations and slowed sales at some businesses over the course of just a few days. NEW YORK, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Airlines continued to scrub flights on Friday as COVID-19 infections hit pilots and flight attendants, leaving carriers short-staffed to operate busy schedules over the Christmas holiday weekend. Airlines have canceled more than 600 U.S. flights so far on Friday, calling off hundreds more scheduled for Saturday, in the latest sign of how the rapidly spreading Omicron variant is upending business even in industries with heavily vaccinated workforces, said The Wall Street Journal on Friday. Cancellations in the United States climbed at carriers including United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, which have rushed to reassign and reroute pilots and planes to cover the flying, even offering additional pay to encourage healthy employees to pick up shifts over the Christmas holiday. Passengers wearing face masks walk into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, Dec. 4, 2021. U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday announced an array of new measures in fighting COVID-19 as two confirmed cases of Omicron have been reported in the country. (Photo by Aaron Schwartz/Xinhua) United canceled over 185 mainline flights, 10 percent of what was scheduled on Friday, and another 120 on Saturday, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking site. Delta canceled about 160 of some 3,100 flights planned for Friday and expects upward of 150 cancellations on Saturday and Sunday. "Delta people are working together around the clock to reroute and substitute aircraft and crews to get customers where they need to be as quickly and as safely as possible," the airline said in a statement. "The Omicron variant is becoming an increasingly disruptive force as it tears around the world. Its accelerating spread hampered operations and slowed sales at some businesses over the course of just a few days," said the report. ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Waving Chinese and Ethiopian flags with laughter and resounded feeling, young Ethiopian school children at the Dimond Academy in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa sing Chinese songs manifesting the blossoming Ethiopia-China friendship. One of the joyful students who were passionately attending their first-ever Chinese language session at the Dimond Academy was Yonatan Henok, a nine-year-old third-grade student at the Dimond Academy, a private school in Addis Ababa. "Today, we learned two Chinese language songs; one about the friendship between China and Ethiopia and another song about a famous place in the Chinese capital Beijing called Tiananmen Square," Yonatan said. Yonatan and his classmates received the rare opportunity organized by the school administration in partnership with the 22nd batch of the Chinese Medical Team in Ethiopia. The rare opportunity was provided to the school children on Wednesday by He Yang, a professor of English language from China's Henan University of Chinese Medicine, presently serving as an interpreter to the Chinese Medical Team in Ethiopia. During the interactive lecture, He taught students about simple Mandarin words, the long-standing Ethiopia-China friendship and famous Chinese places. The lecture turned out to be captivating to the young Ethiopian students who are keen to learn Chinese culture and knowledge in the future. Darik Yonas, is another third-grader student at Dimond Academy who spoke highly of her first-ever experience in learning Chinese. "I am very happy today. It was a very good experience and I was lucky to be able to learn Chinese songs. I wish I'll one day meet fellow Chinese children and make friends," Darik said. Yilfashewa Mengistu, a teacher at the Dimond Academy, spoke highly of the rare opportunity in terms of introducing the Chinese language to students. "Learning the Chinese language at a young age is vital as it facilitates students' capabilities to learn the language easily," Mengistu said. "Teaching these young children the language will certainly play a crucial role in boosting the already excellent relations between the two countries," she added. Mengistu, however, argued the need to provide Chinese language education on a regular basis if school children are able to master the language at the desired level. "It is very good to introduce the language to these children at a young age. However, they need to get continued education. Apart from the positive impression they will develop to the Chinese language, they will not be able to grasp better Chinese language skills through limited engagements," Mengistu argued. Tesfaye Tetemke, Dimond Academy School Director, emphasized the need to boost language education to further strengthen the people-to-people ties among the two countries. "These children were lucky as they were able to get a rare Chinese language education, which is not easily accessible at their age in our country," Tetemke told Xinhua. "Given the fact that China is a global power and a very good partner of Ethiopia, it is beneficial for our children and country to be able to learn Chinese as a priority language," he added. Courtesy of the ever-expanding Sino-Ethiopian ties, the interest in studying Chinese language is growing fast with newly opening institutes being operational across public universities in different parts of the East African country. In addition to the federal Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institute, Chinese language studies are now provided in many other public universities across Ethiopia, such as Addis Ababa University (AAU) in the capital, Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia's northwestern Amhara regional state, Mekelle University in northern Ethiopia, as well as Arsi University in Ethiopia's largest Oromia regional state. Tetemke argued that the Ethiopian government, with technical support and collaboration with China, should take the initiative and introduce the Mandarin language at lower primary school level. "Learning Chinese language is very advantageous for our country. It will enable us to master Chinese technologies and developments as well as forge strong relations with China," Tetemke added. Despite calls to introduce Chinese language education at lower school level, the Chinese language is now available across various higher education institutions in Ethiopia. The interest in studying the Chinese language is also growing fast with newly opening institutes being operational across public universities in different parts of the East African country. In October this year, Ethiopia's Addis Ababa University (AAU) in partnership with the Confucius Institute at the AAU had announced that it has finalized preparations to launch the first-ever Master of Arts (MA) program in the Chinese language in Ethiopia. Enditem BENI, DR Congo, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The joint armed forces between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda destroyed late Thursday two strongholds of the rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) in northeastern DRC, a military source told Xinhua Friday. According to Athony Mualushayi, spokesman for DRC's army forces (FARDC) in the Beni area, the two main strongholds of the ADF rebels, located in Virunga National Park, located in DRC's north-eastern North Kivu province, are now under the control of the two armies. Since November 30, the Uganda People's Defense Forces (UPDF), in collaboration with the FARDC, has officially launched air and artillery operations against several ADF rebel positions in northeastern DRC. Two soldiers were wounded during the operations, one Congolese and one Ugandan, according to a statement reached to Xinhua by Athony Mualushayi. "Our troops were in physical contact with the enemies, and despite the resistance of the latter, we managed to dislodge them and completely take control of (the locality of) Kambi YA Juwa," he said. During an exchange on Friday between Major General Camille Bombele, newly-appointed Coordinator of the FARDC-UPDF joint military operations, and Major General Kayanja Muhanga of UPDF, the two forces reiterated their determination to eradicate the ADF and bring back definitive peace to the Beni region, according to the FARDC spokesman. At least 1,700 Ugandan soldiers have already arrived on the Congolese soil since the beginning of the operations, accompanied by equipment including about 100 vehicles of the troop transport and battle tanks, according to the Congolese and Ugandan authorities. The DRC northeastern provinces of North Kivu and Ituri, long plagued by violence incurred by armed groups, had been under a state of siege since May 6 due to violence by armed groups, especially the ADF rebels. Enditem NEW DELHI, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- An Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot was killed in a MiG-21 fighter aircraft crash in the western state of Rajasthan, officials said Saturday. The aircraft, according to IAF, crashed during a training sortie in the western sector on late Friday evening. "With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident Friday evening and stands firmly with the family of the brave heart," read a statement issued by IAF. Local media reports said the aircraft crashed in the Desert National Park area under the Sam police station in Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. IAF has ordered an inquiry into the crash. Local media reports said five MiG-21 have crashed this year, in which three pilots were killed. One pilot was killed in March at Gwalior and another pilot was killed in Rajasthan in May. On Dec. 8, a military helicopter crashed at Coonoor area of Nilgiris district, about 538 km southwest of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu, killing India's Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat. Enditem URUMQI, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Standing Committee of the People's Congress of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Friday strongly condemned and firmly opposed the United States' signing the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law. The standing committee said, in a statement, that the so-called act is based on false information and political motives. It deliberately slanders the human rights situation in Xinjiang and maliciously attacks the region's labor and employment policies. The U.S. signing of the so-called act is also a flagrant violation of international law and fundamental principles of international relations, and is gross interference in China's internal affairs. It has an actual intention to disrupt the stable development of Xinjiang by suppressing enterprises in the region, said the statement. Xinjiang strictly implements the Labor Law of the People's Republic of China and other related laws and regulations. The employment of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang is protected by law, and people enjoy complete freedom in employment choices, said the statement. The statement pointed out that the United States itself has, in fact, an indelible record of forced labor. Over the recent years, the United States has faced a series of domestic labor issues such as human trafficking, forced labor in agriculture, and child labor abuse. In the face of the truth and facts, no matter how the United States lies and deceives, it will neither disrupt the social stability in Xinjiang nor stop people of all ethnic groups in the region from striving for a better life together, according to the statement. Enditem Desde la Presidencia de la Republica les deseamos una Feliz Navidad a todas las familias del Peru. ??? Que la salud, la union y el amor abunde en sus hogares. pic.twitter.com/sh0p1CegJo Esta manana, en el Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal, nacio Ayla Shamtal, la primera bebe de esta #Navidad, quien goza de buena salud y un peso de 3 kilos 640 gramos. pic.twitter.com/t16EQYZVvf "People must avoid very large gatherings on Christmas. Meeting with parents and children is totally normal and natural, but you have to take the necessary care and prevent this dinner from becoming a large meeting, to which neighbors or friends are invited, and then such meeting ends up becoming a party," he recommended. The Cabinet member was emphatic in stating that the Christmas celebration is a tradition which is not prohibited. "I want to tell people that we can get together as a family, give one another a hug, and sit down to have dinner relying on the necessary care and face masks () maintaining social distancing and avoiding crowds. Of course, we can beat the pandemic if we act responsibly," Cevallos noted. "Now more than ever, this celebration is not synonymous with gifts; it is more than anything an intimate meeting with the family, a reflection, a hug that the Peruvian people have earned a long time ago for the enormous effort made during the pandemic, but always taking care of ourselves, thinking about the future," he told Canal N. Police intervention The Health Ministry (Minsa) head also said he has spoken with the National Police directorate to develop a work in the streets so as to prevent citizens from holding parties or meetings with high concentrations of people. Christmas curfew Curfew on Christmas will start tonight at 11:00 p.m. in Peru, not at 1:00 a.m. on December 25 as had been initially established. The new five-hour-long curfew will be in force nationwide on December 24 and end at 4:00 a.m. on December 25. A similar measure will be in force on New Year's Eve (December 31) starting at 11:00 p.m. thru January 1 at 4:00 a.m. The objective is to avoid social gatherings and crowds due to the presence of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in the country. (END) RRC/MVB YEREVAN, DECEMBER 25, ARMENPRESS. Hrachya Sargsyan was sworn in as the 56th Mayor of Yerevan in the morning of December 25. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan and other government officials attended the inauguration ceremony at City Hall. Taking the oath of office, Sargsyan swore to ..serve for the prosperity of Yerevan and the welfare of its residents. He was then presented with the mayoral chain of office. Mayor Sargsyan vowed to employ effective management, innovative approaches and everyday dedicated work in governing the city and developing its infrastructures. The inauguration comes days after Mayor Hayk Marutyan was ousted by the City Councils ruling bloc with a no-confidence vote. YEREVAN, DECEMBER 25, ARMENPRESS. The Government of Armenia will continue supporting the Mayor of Yerevan and the City Council in implementing all programs which were outlined in 2017-2018, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in his speech at the inauguration of Hrachya Sargsyan as Mayor of Yerevan. PM Pashinyan congratulated the new Mayor and wished him good luck and success in his work. Id also like to congratulate the Yerevan City Council, because I believe that the establishment of the state institutions is one of our most important objectives on the agenda. With the events of the recent days the Yerevan City Council displayed a clear political will on the path of the establishment of a new model of local-self government in Armenia, the PM said. He noted that over the past few years the government provided significant and effective support to the Yerevan City Hall, allocating over 50 billion drams through various financial levers. YEREVAN, DECEMBER 25, ARMENPRESS. The Artsakh prosecution debunked the Azerbaijani authorities reports which claimed that an Armenian farmer was shot dead on December 3 because he had attacked an Azerbaijani position. The General Prosecution of Artsakh said in a statement that their investigation gathered evidence concluding that the 65-year-old Armenian farmer from the village of Tchartar in Martuni region was actually gunned down by an intentional long-range shooting of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, who then attempted to cover up the murder. On the occasion of the incident the Azerbaijani side had presented a false version claiming that the citizen of Artsakh Seyran Sargsyan had attacked an Azerbaijani position and was neutralized a few meters away from the position. The results of the investigative and other procedural measures as part of the criminal case concluded that Seyran Sargsyan was killed by a long-range shot, after which the Azerbaijani military servicemen moved his body from the neutral zone to their position, the prosecution said, adding that they have surveillance camera footage showing the actions of the Azeri military. The Artsakh prosecution again stressed that the Azerbaijani military positions deployed in the vicinity of the peaceful settlements of Artsakh pose a clear and present danger for the peaceful populations right to life and other rights of vital importance. In 1926, the then 800-member Westminster Presbyterian Church in Auburn purchased an E.M. Skinner Pipe Organ (known as Opus 579), a magnificent instrument with 2,069 pipes and a new, innovative electro-pneumatic power system. Built and installed by Americas pre-eminent organ builder, Ernest Martin Skinner (1866-1960), the organ was designed to produce rich, massive orchestral tones in Westminster Churchs moderately-sized, 500-seat sanctuary. Ninety-four years later, after several years of study by a special committee and extensive evaluation by pipe organ builders and consultants, the Westminster congregation and its leaders committed to a full historical restoration of our aging pipe organ to its original condition, at an estimated cost of $400,000. In order to fund this ambitious and costly project, the Ode to Joy capital campaign was launched in September 2020. In little more than 15 months, over 100 families or individuals have donated nearly $175,000 in three-year pledge commitments, one-time donations, or outright gifts of stock. In addition, the organ fund has received $110,000 in grants from two foundations and over $13,000 in undesignated memorial gifts to the church. The Joseph G. Bradley Charitable Foundation in Philadelphia, PA, awarded Westminster church $85,000 toward the restoration of our pipe organ. This foundation was funded by a bequest from its eponym, who played both piano and organ and considered Skinner organs to be the best in their field. Bradley created a fund whose sole field of interest is the restoration and preservation of Skinner organs in order to ensure that future generations would enjoy these valuable and rare instruments. Westminster is proud to have been chosen for funding by the Bradley Foundation, and is also grateful for the $25,000 gift received in 2020 from the Emerson Foundation. The organ was disassembled in January 2021 and most of its myriad parts, including console, pipes and wind chests, were packed in crates, lowered by forklift from the choir loft, and transported to the Kerner & Merchant Factory in East Syracuse for repairs, restoration and rebuilding. Kerner & Merchant Pipe Organ Builders was co-founded in 1978 by Benjamin Merchant (company president), a musician educated in music history, voice, and keyboard theory and design, who apprenticed with harpsichord builder Walter Burr and organ builder Leonard Carlson, and by Robert Kerner, keyboard instrument curator at the Eastman School of Music. The company has maintained Westminsters Skinner organ since 1983 and currently services 150 organs in churches and academic institutions. During the organs one-year absence, Westminster contracted with Anthony Elice of Auburn to remodel the organ chamber for improved lighting, ventilation and acoustics. Now, nearly one year after its removal, all the parts of Skinners Opus 579 have been returned from the factory and are being painstakingly reassembled, pipe by pipe and rank by rank. The congregation will be treated to a sample of the organs enhanced and majestic sound during its Christmas services, to the delight of eager listeners. Once the newly restored organ has settled, the church will host a rededication recital (open to the public) on April 30, featuring our own music director Lori Rhodes-Pettit, as well as guest organists and vocalists. Nearly 96 years after our Skinner organs original dedication on December 6, 1926, the new program will reprise certain musical selections from the earlier recital and these words, which we still affirm today: The organ which has just been dedicated to the Glory of God, the service of Worship and Praise and the inspiration and uplift of those who worship here, was built by the Skinner Organ Company of Boston, Massachusetts." As our Skinner pipe organ's restoration nears completion and it is returned to us, we are grateful for the generosity of our members and friends in the funding of this special project. In the spirit of giving, a tithe amount of 10% of donations (approximately $17,500) will be allocated to local mission projects, recipients to be determined by Westminsters Mission Committee. It is never too late to join our growing list of benefactors, whose names will be heralded in our organ rededication concert program in April. If you would like to make a one-time (or perhaps, an additional) donation, you may do so by going to the churchs Give page at www.westminsterauburn.org. Each and every gift is greatly appreciated. Audrey McNally is an elder, choir member and chairperson of the Ode to Joy campaign at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 17 William St., Auburn. For more information, visit westminsterauburn.org. Love 3 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 NEW YORK (AP) New York is shortening the amount of time essential workers must stay home after testing positive for COVID-19, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Friday, seeking to strike a balance between staunching the virus' rapid spread and keeping critical jobs as fully staffed as possible. Hochul announced the change during an address in Albany where she also went on a Christmas Eve offensive against her coronavirus critics, insisting that the state acted early and has done everything it could against the rapid spread of the omicron variant. Were going to continue to spread holiday cheer, not COVID, Hochul said in remarks at the Capitol. We are going to keep things open. Were going to do the right things, but we will not get complacent. We are going to get through this battle my friends. Were smart. We know how to do this. Were not shutting down business. Were not shutting down schools. Hochul's speech, including a timeline of measures she's put in place since October, new plans to increase access to testing and vaccines and a Christmas-themed slideshow, appeared not only aimed at rebutting critics and reassuring New Yorkers, but also at positioning her as a pragmatic COVID fighter as she gears up for a party primary fight in next year's election. One potential rival, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, has stressed in his public appearances in recent days that the time for shutdowns is over. The governor, who didn't take questions Friday, has also faced blowback from her recently imposed mask mandate which she said was a way to prevent shutdowns with some Republican officials calling the measure an overreach and an unnecessary burden on businesses. More than a dozen counties have said they wont enforce it. U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Republican vying to unseat Hochul, labeled her Andrew Cuomo 2.0 in an interview with Fox News this week. Hochul on Friday marked four months since she was sworn in to replace Cuomo, who was in charge of the state during the worst of the pandemic before resigning in disgrace in the face of sexual harassment allegations. Under the state's new essential worker guidelines, fully vaccinated people working in health care and other frontline fields can return to work after five days, instead of 10 days, if they aren't showing symptoms or their symptoms are resolving, Hochul said. They must not have had a fever for 72 hours, cant be taking medication and must wear a mask while on the job, Hochul said. New York's revised guidance is similar to that of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which said Thursday that health care workers will be able to return to work after seven days if they test negative and dont have symptoms and after five days, or even fewer, if there are severe staffing shortages. The New York State Nurses Association warned that the new guidance would only worsen staffing shortages. This guidance is inconsistent with proven science, vague and doesnt provide definitions or explain standards at a time when decision-making for healthcare systems is critical, the union said in a statement. Hochuls remarks Friday underscored a shift in public policy on keeping people safe as the omicron variant sweeps the state. Many people who are vaccinated and have gotten booster shots report relatively minor symptoms, but uncertainty about the variant has led people to adjust holiday plans and cancel travel. Some Broadway performances, concerts and sporting events have been called off and, on Thursday, de Blasio announced limits on how many spectators will be allowed to crowd into Times Square on New Year's Eve. The state set a one-day record with 44,431 new cases on Thursday, but there have been far fewer hospitalizations and deaths than at the peak of the pandemic in March 2020 or even during a winter surge a year ago. As of Thursday, 4,744 were hospitalized in New York with COVID-19, compared with more than 7,000 a year ago. Getting access to testing has been a problem, particularly in the New York City area, with some lines snaking around city blocks. In response, Hochul said the state will open 13 new COVID-19 testing sites on Dec. 29, including one in each of the five boroughs. Hochul said the state has sent more than 600,000 tests to the city in the last two days and will be providing at least two million at-home tests for schools to give to students returning in January after the holiday break. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. POMPANO BEACH, Fla.M.D. Science Lab's Swiss Navy brand was featured on CBS's The Late Late Show With James Corden last week when a celebrity guest spoke about Swiss Navy Premium Anal Lubricant. The Late Late Show, which celebrated its 1,000th episode earlier this month, is known for its notable guests and comedic banter between its British host and celebrities appearing on the show. But on Dec. 14, viewers got a surprise when guest Zach Woods, best known for his three seasons on the sitcom The Office, explained that he had been having interesting experiences with personal lubricantnamely, Swiss Navys Premium Anal Lubricant. To watch the segment, visit vimeo.com/swissnavy. Woods, alongside Cordens other guest, Katie Couric, shared his very "slippery" AirBnB story. He explained that his empty, practically barren AirBnB lacked basic accoutrements, such as salt. But Woods and his girlfriend discovered the accommodations did have plenty of lubeSwiss Navys Premium Anal Lubricant, to be exact. Woods had snapped an image of the lubricant bottle, which he shared with Corden and Couric. Of course, we were delighted when Zach shared his photo! said Briana Watkins, M.D. Sciences vice president of sales and marketing. Its wonderful to know that our products are being shared and appreciated. While Couric admitted that she had never heard of the Swiss Navy brand, Swiss Navy is a top selling personal lubricant brand in its marketplace and expanded its core collections in 2021 to include Desire by Swiss Navy and 4-in-1 Playful Flavors. Whenever our brand receives recognition, even in a playful, humorous manner, we are thankful that people are becoming more comfortable with their personal intimacy, Watkins said. One of our goals at Swiss Navy is to help people love their love lifeand we appreciate James and Zach for sharing Swiss Navys Premium Anal Lubricant on their recent episode. And, of course, we have other products that we will be sending to Zach and his girlfriend just in case his future travels dont come with lube. For more information or to view the latest Swiss Navy products, visit swissnavy.com. Nielsen has long been the brand associated with TV ratings. But a changing TV landscape notably, viewers increasingly watching programs later on DVR or streaming has changed the reliability of those metrics. Those changes and the belief that Nielsen cant properly count viewership anymore have led TV executives to call for a different system, a different research firm to measure ratings in the age of delayed viewing, cord-cutting, and on-the-go viewership. A recent announcement by Nielsen will probably make those calls for change even louder. As reported by Varietys Brian Steinberg, the company admitted that its been undercounting out-of-home audiences for national TV programming since monitoring such viewership in September 2020. In other words, Nielsen hasnt been properly counting viewers watching in bars, hotels, offices, and other places outside the home, providing incorrect data and affecting ratings for a variety of national programming. As part of routine testing and quality controls, we recently identified an error that caused an understatement of reported out-of-home audiences for our National TV service, Nielsen said in a statement (via Variety). While there is no impact to most telecasts, and no impact to local television, we did find some variances for events that tend to yield larger out-of-home audiences, such as live sporting events. The company went on to say that the error, attributable to a software issue, has been corrected and new, presumably correct data collected since January 2021 will be provided. Yet the problem is being exacerabated by Nielsens admission that supposedly corrected information wont be available February. Viewership numbers for the Fall 2021 season will be provided at a date to be determined. Nielsen said in a statement. The error has been corrected and Nielsen will be reissuing data from January 2021 to present in order to provide the industry with the most complete data. TV network executives were already upset with Nielsen for delaying the rollout of out-of-home viewership. At the time, Nielsen cited the COVID-19 pandemic for the delay. But this news makes it appear as if there were better reasons for wanting to hold back out-of-home numbers. As you might expect, executives and media companies arent happy about this latest development. From Steinbergs report: Todays announcement by Nielsen of more systemic errors that have further undercounted TV ratings for the last fifteen months is more of the worst possible news at the worst possible time, both for Nielsen and the buyers and sellers that use Nielsen data as trading currency, said Sean Cunningham, CEO of the [Video Advertising Bureau] an industry organization that represents TV networks to advertisers. He called Nielsens mistake a stunning omission that adds to the unprecedented scale of Nielsens 2021 undercounting and the depths of discovered defects in their core competency on TV measurement.' Nielsen agreeing to measure (or try to measure) out-of-home audiences was already a concession to TV networks, which felt that the companys previous ratings werent adequately reflecting the evolving tendencies of TV viewers. But this stunning omission is sure to further erode trust from TV networks in Nielsens ability to properly measure ratings. This past August, David Zaslav, president and CEO of Discovery soon to become Warner Bros. Discovery in a merger with WarnerMedia voiced his displeasure with Nielsen in a call with investors. I dont have a lot of hope for Nielsen, Zaslav said, according to the New York Times. I think somehow, as an industry, were just going to have to work our way out of it from a technology perspective and leave them in the dust. That sentiment will likely only increase with Nielsens latest gaffe. [Variety] Holidays bring a break from schoolwork for students, but for more than a half-million Arizona children they can also mean a break from their only reliable source of a nutritious meal the subsidized school meal. More than 534,000 public school students in the state were eligible for free or reduced-price meals in the 2018-19 school year, the most recent year for which numbers are available from the National Center for Education Statistics. That was 53.7% of the school population. Nationally, there were more than 26 million children eligible that year for the food program that advocates say is a lifeline for many. Every winter break can be a tough time for families that are struggling to put food on the table, said Crystal FitzSimons, director of school and out-of-school-time programs at the Food Research & Action Center. When schools close for winter break, or for summer or spring break, we have millions of kids who lose access to free or reduced-priced school meals, she said. FitzSimons says that breakfasts and lunches provided at school are really important nutrition, health and educational supports for kids. Ashley St. Thomas, public policy manager at the Arizona Food Bank Network, said that for the students who need them, the school meal is essentially the most nutritious meal theyll have all day. Theres this challenge for kids to make sure they are getting enough nutrition for the day, St. Thomas said. Without sufficient nutrition, they cant learn, they cant grow, they cant play, they cant thrive. Children are not the only ones affected. FitzSimons said that when children lose access to school meals, the whole family feels the impact. It increases the household food budget, which really can have a pretty big impact. Generally when families are food-insecure, the parents try to protect the kids as much as possible by reducing the amount of food that they (the parents) eat or the amount of meals they eat, she said. It also means that families are going to have to stretch very limited budgets in order to put food on the table, FitzSimons said. St. Thomas said some parents just do not have the funds to provide their children meals like those they would get at school. People who are living paycheck-to-paycheck and are just squeaking by dont often have extra money stored up for meals over the holidays, said St. Thomas, who said food banks in the state generally see an increase in families during school holidays. But advocates have found potential solutions in an unlikely place the COVID-19 pandemic. When the pandemic led to widespread school closings, the government decided to make all students eligible for free school meals, regardless of income. That benefit was extended through the 2021-22 school year. That did not ease the problem of feeding kids during winter break. St. Thomas said, A lot of kids missed out on free breakfast and lunch that they receive in school, especially now because the USDA stated that all meals are free to all kids throughout the country. But it did force schools to think differently about their lunch programs. One of those different approaches was the to-go meal, delivered to socially distanced families. Child nutrition programs are operating a little bit differently, and theres some more flexibility there because of COVID-19, FitzSimons said. Schools have been able to do grab-and-go meals so they might be able to have some more flexibility during winter break and provide meals that way. Schools should definitely be considering whether providing things like grab-and-go meals would be an option for them over winter break, she said. And some advocates have begun to push for a winter break program modeled after the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program, which lets parents buy meals for their children with an EBT card over the summer. Theres a movement and a push to make that summer EBT more of an out-of-school EBT, it could be a small amount of money for kids on winter or spring break, St. Thomas said. FitzSimons identified winter and spring breaks as important times when families can really be helped with an EBT program. You could see a program that kicked in during winter and spring break where, if schools were closing for five days or more, families can receive those benefits, she said. Whatever the solution, both agreed that something needs to be done for students on break, a time when FitzSimons says that food insecurity generally goes up. It can be a long winter break if families dont have access to those meals, she said. Love 0 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 As a former member of the St Vincent de Paul Society, a Vincentian, I watched this years iteration of Turkey Tuesday with great interest. Turkey Tuesday is a statewide event and is a small part of Eddie Bashas amazing legacy. He and the St. Vincent de Paul Society started the program as a means of providing Christmas dinner, for those who without help may not have had a real Christmas dinner. The turkeys were collected at the local Bashas' and then matched with a box of other holiday food and distributed by other Vincentians to needy families across all of Arizona. Over the years, with the help of Channel 12, it grew into the largest one day turkey collection in the United States. When you dropped off your turkey, a Vincentian was there to greet and thank you. There was a connection. I know -- I was one of the collectors. The donors felt they were part of the solution. In a small way, they were volunteers. Over the last few years the emphasis has gone from collecting turkeys to feed people to raising money through donations. And although the event raised slightly over half a million dollars over the monthlong promotion, that connection to the community seems to have faded. Texting a donation on your cell phone doesnt give you the same feeling of being part of the solution as actually buying the food. And although I am sure the Society will tell you they are thrilled with the money they raised over the promotion, when you consider the amount of airtime that was donated and the fact that a good portion of that money was large and corporate gifts -- that probably were already scheduled year-end donations -- it seems a bit disappointing. Why is that? Has Middle America quit caring about those in need? Or has nonprofit leadership lost track of the two most critical elements of their leadership? They are telling their story, and recruiting and utilizing volunteers. Telling their story has to be the No. 1 priority of any nonprofit. The story of what you are doing, why it needs to be done and, given enough help, how youre going to solve the problem. And that telling needs to make your audience what to be a part of what you are doing. If youre not doing that, you may find a way to keep the doors open but you will never complete your mission. The weakness with the new Turkey Tuesday is it hopes people already know the story and asks almost exclusively for donations. Having been a Vincentian I know that the story is worthwhile and amazing things are accomplished, but the vast majority of Arizonans have no idea. A couple of on-air minutes at the Dining Hall really didnt do their work justice. Too many nonprofits skip or fumble through this all-important step. Making people believe you have a plan to solve the problem you are addressing makes them want to be part of the process and thats what builds a loyal and dedicated donor and volunteer base. That feeling of being part of the solution is what creates the desire to be a valuable volunteer. And volunteers can do more than serve food, pack food boxes or clean up. Many of them have training and experience you cannot find in the pool of potential employees a nonprofit has to draw from. And with the work force seeming in search of better pay and benefits, they provide a real solution to todays labor shortage. They dont show up for the pay or benefits, they show up because they believe in the nonprofits mission. But even more importantly these volunteers can be the best ambassador of a nonprofits story, and forge a connection with your community. The story of not only what you do, but why, and how effective your nonprofit is. And when they tell that story, because they are volunteers, people listen. Because volunteers seem to have fallen out of favor with many nonprofit leaders, those volunteers seem to be utilized for either menial tasks or are photo ops for corporate team building. The volunteer coordinator's job is usually an entry level position that reflects managements disregard for volunteers. They are often new to the nonprofit and often new to nonprofits in general. TV weatherperson perkiness seems to be the main requirement. This is a tragic mistake. Nonprofit leadership is constantly bombarded by challenges that distract them from their mission, and raising money is at or near the top of that list. But when raising money becomes more important than your mission or the communities you serve, you have veered off course. We must remember that the only way to achieve our goals is to have the communitys backing. It time to refocus on that goal. Bill Packard and his wife, Barbara, have spent the last two decades as volunteers revitalizing or starting nonprofits, including thrift stores, food pantries and a free medical clinic, and are authors of the Going Full Circle books. They can be reached at fullcircletrade@gmail.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Christmas in the hospital would put a damper on any childs holiday spirit, but St. Vincent Healthcare strives every year to bring Christmas cheer to the pediatric unit, especially during the pandemic. Currently, respiratory viruses make up the majority of admissions in the pediatric unit with an uptick in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) with 99 cases recorded so far, according to state data. RSV usually crops up in infants and premature babies, but this year the virus is being detected in the older, healthier kids, said St. Vs pediatric nurse Amy Goltz. The unit usually runs with about eight admissions, and this Christmas is right on average. The newly updated visitation policy at St. Vs now allows for two visitors as opposed to the one that was implemented during the height of the COVID surge. It is hard because every kid is different and their support system might not just be mom and dad, Goltz said. In 2020, hospitals began incorporating FaceTime sessions for patients families who couldnt visit. Though its one more thing on the plate of busy nurses, Goltz said its worth it. Additional snow and colder temperatures are on deck for the Christmas weekend in much of North Dakota, according to the National Weather Service in Bismarck. Another 2 to 4 inches of snow is expected across the southern tier of the state with the heaviest accumulations in the southeast. The front thats dropping the snow will move east throughout the day and taper from west to east, the service said. The service also cautioned about dangerous wind chills for much of the state. Cold temperatures and dangerous wind chills will present a threat mainly along and north of Highway 2. Wind chills will be in the 20s below zero in Minot, Bottineau and Crosby areas. Farther south, wind chills will be in the teens to single digits below zero. Portions of central and eastern North Dakota could see as much as 6 inches of snow Sunday into Monday, the service said. Blowing and drifting snow could combine for dangerous travel conditions. Travelers are urged to check the latest forecast before they start a trip. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 "It's been a full month," Poloncarz said this week. "It's had an impact." 'Businesses are still responsible' On the ground, it's staff at grocery stores, restaurants, churches and other places who must ask forgetful or recalcitrant guests to follow the state mask policy. "The businesses are still responsible," Wendel said. Bob Syracuse, co-owner of the Pizza Plant chain, said his customers for the most part have gone along with the rule, even when they have to be reminded to put one on while walking around. "I haven't had a problem. People are generally abiding by it," Syracuse said, attributing this to his smaller customer count, compared to a big-box store, and the fact people can unmask while dining. The two largest grocery chains in the area, Tops Markets and Wegmans, have taken different approaches. "If someone happens to not be wearing a mask, a manager will approach them with a disposable mask and a copy of the mandate and kindly remind them of the policy," Tops spokesman Kathy Sautter said. Wegmans, though, does not ask its employees to confront unmasked customers. It will be the biggest and most powerful astronomical observatory ever to leave the planet, elaborate in its design and ambitious in its scope. At a budget-busting $10 billion, it is the most expensive and also the trickiest, by far, to pull off. The Webb will seek out the faint, twinkling light from the first stars and galaxies, providing a glimpse into cosmic creation. Its infrared eyes will also stare down black holes and hunt for alien worlds, scouring the atmospheres of planets for water and other possible hints of life. Don't ask astronomers to choose between the Hubble Space Telescope and the new kid on the cosmic block, the James Webb Space Telescope. "Comparing Hubble and Webb is like asking if you will love your second child as much as your first," said Susan Mullally, Webb's deputy project scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. "Hubble will always be loved for its awe-inspiring images of our universe and will continue to collect important data for astronomers. Webb gives us new and unique eyes of places that we have never been able to reach." It worked; screenings increased. One hundred days later, Roswell specialists used one of those machines I had rushed to the hospital to check me for Covid-19 as I arrived for metastatic cancer treatments. Thirty-five radiation sessions and several chemotherapy infusions later, I am cancer-free. The irony was clear: I had helped organize a national campaign to encourage people to get their cancer check-ups, but I neglected to follow our own advice. Long days in Washington battling the pandemic made me think I was too busy. That arrogance nearly killed me. Last year, on Thanksgiving Day, I was alone in a Roswell Park hospital bed. I didnt feel thankful, but I was just days away from an end to treatments and would soon get the great news that Roswell experts had cured me. Every step of the way, they were carefully mindful of coronavirus countermeasures. Importantly, they made sure I was vaccinated. I have never been among such a professional class of people in my life. I am profoundly grateful for everyone at Roswell Park. They saved my life. As you plan to protect your family and deal with the virus in this New Year, please resolve to get your cancer screenings. And if cancer is discovered, you can count on Roswell Park, a world class cancer hospital just around the corner. Michael Caputo, of East Aurora, is a former aide to the U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services. TIMER SAYING TIME FOR ACTION Written by Adam Othman at The Motley Fool Canada One of the side effects of sector-wide falls is that many companies from the same sector/industry become cheap at once. And even if you buy them for their value, too many cheap TSX stocks from the same sector can disturb the diversification of your portfolio. So, if you are looking for stocks that are attractively valued now and a diversified selection, there are three that should be on your radar. An electronics company Celestica (TSX:CLS)(NYSE:CLS) is a Toronto-based tech company that focuses on supply chain solutions. It caters to a variety of markets, including tech segments like robotics and healthcare technologies. The company has two major business segments: CCS (Connectivity and Cloud Solutions) and ATS (Advanced Technology Solutions), and the net income dynamics of the two segments have been shifting lately, though CCS still brings most of the income. CLS is not undervalued or even discounted per se. The stock is still trading at a 13% premium to its pre-pandemic peak. However, the price-to-earnings multiple of 14.5 times in the tech sector can almost be considered undervalued. The company that is now trading at around $13.5 per share once had a three-digit price tag (2002), and though the glory days might never come again, it can easily triple your money if it can just grow halfway to that peak. A financial company The Winnipeg-based IGM Financial (TSX:IGM) is the daughter company of Power Corporation and is responsible for $270 billion worth of assets under management. The company has three major business segments: wealth management, asset management, and strategic investments; each has its own brands. Most of the net earnings in the last quarter came from wealth management (about 58%), and the rest was divided almost equally for the other two. IGM Financial is currently trading at a price-to-earnings multiple of 11.7, making it quite fairly valued. Its also available at a 9.8% discount from its 2021 peak. Thanks to this decline, the current yield is an attractive 4.8%. However, the capital-appreciation potential of the company is not as attractive as its current valuation or the yield. Story continues A base metal mining company Ero Copper (TSX:ERO)(NYSE:ERO), as the name suggests, is a copper mining company with stakes in three different mining operations, all in Brazil. Two are copper mining operations, while the other is a gold project. However, the bulk of the companys revenue comes from its copper mining operations, so its value doesnt sway with other gold stocks. Ero Copper stock has been a decent growth stock, and since its inception in late 2017, the stock has grown about 287%. And thats after the 33% decline from the 2021 peak. And in addition to this massive discount tag, the stock is also undervalued. Its currently trading at a price-to-earnings multiple of 7.1. The company has twice as much cash and investments as it has debt. Foolish takeaway The three modestly undervalued stocks (or fairly valued stocks) are powerful buys at the moment. Buying them now and holding on to them for long enough can help you turn in a neat profit. And in the case of IGM Financial, you can also enjoy dividend-based returns from the company. The post 3 Cheap TSX Stocks to Buy This Instant appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. Should you invest $1,000 in Lightspeed POS right now? Before you consider Lightspeed POS, you may want to hear this. Motley Fool Canadian Chief Investment Advisor, Iain Butler, and his Stock Advisor Canada team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Lightspeed POS wasn't one of them. The online investing service they've run since 2013, Motley Fool Stock Advisor Canada, has beaten the stock market by over 3X. And right now, they think there are 10 stocks that are better buys. Learn More Today! More reading Fool contributor Adam Othman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 2021 Read the full article on Motorious Youll never guess where this Mopar hero lives. Finland might be the last place youd expect to find a crazy 1973 Dodge Charger, at least if youre not familiar with the muscle car culture in the region (more on that later). While it wasnt exactly the best year for the Charger, this owner took some applaudable liberties, including dropping a 605ci Hemi V8 in for unbelievable power. Boy, do the Finns know how to have fun or what! Image credit: YouTube This car looks as mean as it sounds, thanks to the blacked-out appearance which includes black split five-spoke wheels, smoked taillights with LEDs. The matte black hood has a scoop big enough for a honey badger to climb through, which might explain the mesh on it. On both sides is 605 Hemi in yellow, just in case the rumbling Hemi wasnt enough of a hint. According to the owner of the car, this Charger SE is pushing 805-horsepower and 740 lb.-ft. of torque. Thats believable, considering the massive size of the engine. Unfortunately, we dont get to see the car do a massive burnout or anything like that in the video, but its still pretty awesome to behold. The beginning of this video shows dozens of American muscle cars and other classics rolling through Helsinki, the capital city of Finland. Just about every kind of muscle car is represented in the lineup, from F-Bodies to Mopars. Seeing those skinny European plates on a Chevelle SS or a Mustang GT sure is a great reminder that the love of muscle cars isnt confined just to North America. In case you werent aware, a surprising number of Scandinavians are really into American muscle cars. Most wouldnt guess that, considering Volvo is basically the poster child for Scandinavian automotive sensibilities and puts safety above pretty much everything else, which is ideologically very different. And maybe thats why some people in the region are so into muscle, because theyre tired of the other movement getting shoved down their throats. Whatever the reason, its always great to see these muscle car meetups in Finland, Sweden, Norway, etc. Sign up for the Motorious Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. . (Photo: Klaus Vedfelt via Getty Images) When it comes to Christmas, food is the main event. Regardless of how you feel about or celebrate the festive season, we can all agree that we look forward to what were going to eat on December 25. For most British families, Christmas dinner tends to be centred around turkey, Yorkshire pudding, gravy and some crispy roasted potatoes. Add or remove sprouts, according to preference! For many Black Brits though, Christmas dinner looks a little different. Christmas is a chance for us to mix our cultural identities together. Think traditional British Christmas dinner with a Caribbean or African twist. My Christmas dinner is usually very Congolese. Salt fish (Makiyabu), pondu (Casava leaves) and rice. But British elements on the day include a traditional British breakfast and apple crumble or carrot cake for dessert. When I asked Black Brits what they eat at Christmas dinner, the responses came pouring in with huge variety! Though fair to say that Jollof rice was a common theme. Has to be a Carib-british mix, like the Yorkshires and roasties gotta sit with the mac&cheese and rice&peas with all the meats seasoned to a tee https://t.co/Cdh0F0fzNd Perfectly Imperfect (@shaniceexo) December 14, 2021 Fufu for breakfast. Jollof rice and roast dinner for Christmas dinner, followed by something sweet for dessert. Elite day. https://t.co/40wuNjO6xR D33Wain (@D33Wain) December 14, 2021 A mix of both! A traditional roast with jollof, fried rice, ayamase, gizdodo etc https://t.co/qHP6yTgagl T (@peaceoftemi) December 14, 2021 Like me, Simone Ziel, a 25-year old masters student from London, is Congolese and says her Christmas meal is a remixed version of a traditional British dinner. Story continues We always have two or three types of meats chicken, leg of lamb, beef steak and/or turkey, she tells me. Its typically accompanied by roasted potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, Brussel sprouts, pigs in blankets, plantain, Kwanga (Casava flour) and fried or Jollof rice. Ziel describes food as a love language in her culture. As a Congolese woman born and bred in the UK, I recognise the importance of food at any form of gathering. Ive seen this growing up in a Congolese church, at a Matanga [a gathering hosted by someone who has lost a family member] and at parties. Food (and drinks) play a key role in Congolese hospitality, she tells me. During Christmas, in my household, it is important to cook an abundance of food so visitors can take food away, and we can have leftovers to feast upon for the next few days. Food is a love language, and within my culture, it is a crime to let anyone come and leave a home hungry. Food is a love language, and within my culture, it is a crime to let anyone come and leave a home hungry. For Tayo Jaiyesimi, 36, a pharmacist and travel blogger at The Five to Nine Traveller, her familys Christmas meal is also a fusion of her two identities British and Nigerian and both dictate what goes on her plate. The turkey is the main event, she says. Other British items I have are gravy, stuffing rolled into balls, cranberry sauce, pigs in blanket and roasted parsnips. We always have two Nigerian rice dishes Jollof and fried rice and an additional meat to the turkey as a supplement. Her Christmas meal is elevated by that mix, she says. How can I not have Jollof rice at Christmas? she says. Food is not a bedrock of my cultural identify, but it certainly influences my choices. I will always favour flavoursome food and spices when making choices at restaurants or in my own cooking. With Nigerian food, her faves are party Jollof rice with meat, plantain and moi moi (steamed bean pudding). But she also loves a traditional Sunday roast. I like to rotate the meat of choice lamb, beef and pork belly, she says. Jason Okundaye's Christmas Dinner (Photo: Jason Okundaye) For Tanya Akrofi, a 41-year old writer and oral storyteller from Brixton, Ghanaian food has always been her comfort. Growing up, Akrofi and her family had a traditional British Christmas dinner with a side of Jollof or Ghanaian version of fried rice with turkey, roast potatoes, vegetables. After her father was labelled Westernised by a friend, he insisted on her mum cooking him fufu (fermented cassava) and groundnut soup for Christmas, too. Growing up in the 80s meant it wasnt easy sourcing Ghanaian food, says Akrofi. But she is so happy to have learned from her mother how to cook. If Ive learned to cook something as well as she does, I cry with pride, she says. My husband is white and I love that certain Ghanaian dishes are part of our regular meal cycles. Its more than just memories for me, its a part of who I am. Esso, a 25-year old musician from London, says his Christmas meal is also a mix. We do the traditional British Christmas staples so roast potatoes, stuffing, roast veg, pigs in blanket, whatever bird were feeling that year, then throw in Jollof rice, fried rice, plantain. Having the choice of mixing it up is the key. Originally from Nigeria, food is more than just physical sustenance. Being born and raised over here, food is one of the easiest ways to connect with your roots and can open up different conversations about culture and identity, he says. When it comes to British food, he has a clear favourite. English breakfast is top tier, he says. Minus the eggs, mushrooms, black pudding. I also love fish and chips drowned in salt and vinegar. But hes a sucker for Nigerian food. If I could only eat three traditional dishes for the rest of my life it would be Jollof rice, Gizdodo (Gizard and Plaintain) and eba with ogbono soup. As a Jamaican, Terrel Douglas, a 26-year old paralegal from London, says its vital to have Jamaican delicacies on his familys Christmas menu such as curry goat and/or oxtail, rice and peas, peppe prawns, and Jamaican style coleslaw. We also have British food alongside this roast potatoes, vegetables and Turkey but all cooked with a Caribbean herbs and spices. I love that we use mostly fresh ingredients and that our seasonings add to the vibrant flavours. And to round it all off? Well have Jamaican Christmas rum cake made by my granny and Christmas drinks such as Guinness punch and Sorrel, he adds. I think we can all cheers to that and a very merry Christmas to you all! This article originally appeared on HuffPost UK and has been updated. Related... Kelly Latimore's "Mama," painted following the death of George Floyd. (Kelly Latimore via The New York Times) In the summer of 2020, shortly after the murder of George Floyd, Kelly Latimore, a white artist who grew up surrounded by images of a white Jesus, decided to make a course correction. Hed paint the Virgin Mary and Jesus with gold halos encircling their heads and both would be Black. Also, his image of Jesus would resemble Floyd, a Black man who had been killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis. The painting, titled Mama, attracted little notice in February after a copy was installed at the law school of the Catholic University of America in Washington. But in November, The Daily Signal, a conservative website, published an article about the work and about the universitys recently published report on diversity and inclusion, and students created a petition calling for its removal. That month, the painting was stolen. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times The university replaced it in November with a smaller copy the schools policy was not to cancel speakers or prevent speech by members of the community, the universitys president, John H. Garvey, said in a statement after the theft but now that copy, too, has been stolen. And the student government has passed a resolution calling for further displays of the work on campus to be banned, citing religious objections. The debate over whether a private institution has the right to display or remove work that some students find offensive is one that has rippled across the country in recent years. In 2019, students at Mary Baldwin University, a private liberal arts college in Staunton, Virginia, objected to an art exhibition in a university gallery that included Confederate imagery. The show was closed within 48 hours of its premiere. And earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that Vermont Law School could cover two murals that some students considered racist. While Garvey had initially defended the decision to display the work, he apologized in a statement Monday for the confusion the painting had created and pledged to think carefully about how to replace it. (An investigation into both thefts is ongoing, the university said.) Story continues Many saw the figure in the arms of Our Lady as a divinized George Floyd, the statement said. This interpretation led to accusations that the work was blasphemous, something that is contrary to the respect due God and his holy name. Regardless of your interpretation, it created needless controversy and confusion, for which I am sorry. The law school has taken the stance that the painting depicts Jesus, not Floyd, pointing to religious symbols such as the Greek letters in the halo that signify the divinity of Jesus. But Latimore has said it was created to mourn Floyds death. Blayne Clegg, a student at the university, told Inside Higher Ed earlier this month that the painting was offensive because Christ has been equated to another specifically identifiable human being. Latimore, 35, said he always responds yes when asked whether the painting depicts Jesus or Floyd. Its not an either-or scenario, he said in a phone conversation this week. Is it George Floyd? Yes. Is it Jesus? Yes. Theres sacredness in every person. The artist said someone from the university requested to print the piece for the chapel earlier this year and that he granted permission free of charge. When asked whether the university has a formal review process for artwork and, if so, whether Mama went through it, a university spokesperson, Karna Lozoya, said that the university does not currently have an art policy. The campus ministry office, which gave the painting to the law school in February, did not respond to a request for comment. After the second copy of the painting was stolen earlier this month, the student government passed a resolution calling for the removal of any images of Mama from university buildings, calling the work blasphemous, offensive and at the very least confusing. It asked the university to replace the paintings with work that would bring forth representation of the African American community in a nonpolitical and uncontroversial way. Garvey said in the statement on Monday that the wall outside the law school chapel would remain blank while the university considered a replacement. Nicholas Perez, a program manager at PEN America, a free-speech organization, praised the universitys decision to quickly replace the artwork after the initial theft. But the student resolution to ban the painting and the universitys decision not to defend the artwork were concerning, he said. The university should be trying to put the painting back up with haste, he said. To have it stolen without replacement looks like an act to chill freedom of expression on campus. Latimore, who has painted inspirational Black figures such as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., abolitionist Frederick Douglass and civil rights activist and congressman John Lewis, said in an interview in April with The Christian Century magazine that in Mama, he made a decision to change the traditional Pieta style to call attention to prayer and action. Rather than looking at the body of Jesus, the Virgin Mary is looking at the viewer. Shes asking, What are you going to do so this doesnt keep happening? Latimore said. 2021 The New York Times Company A medic from Israel's Magen David Adom emergency service prepares a booster shot of the coronavirus vaccine in Tel Aviv in August. The recommendation by an Israeli panel to administer a fourth vaccine to those who are over 60 is being met with a tepid response by some of the country's medical experts, who believe more data is needed. (Tsafrir Abayov/The Associated Press - image credit) The recommendation by an Israeli panel to administer a fourth vaccine to those who are over 60 is being met with a tepid response by some of the country's medical experts, who believe more data is needed. "I supported the booster recommendation in July. But that time we had better evidence. Today, we don't have any good evidence," said Dr. Dror Mevorach, head of the coronavirus department at Hadassah University Hospital Ein Kare in Jerusalem. "I think there is a great question about the impact of this fourth booster. I'm not sure it will help." Mevorach told CBC News that unlike the decision to implement the third dose, which was met with wide approval, this recommendation is being questioned by some in the medical community. "I would say that I got dozens of calls from both medical doctors and scientists saying to me that we think the same, that there's no evidence to give [a fourth dose] for the moment," he said. Israel's PM welcomes recommendation The recommendation for a fourth dose to people over 60, those with compromised immune systems and health-care workers was made based on concerns of waning immunity of the three vaccines already administered, combined with the potential threat of an Omicron outbreak seen in other countries. "The price will be higher if we don't vaccinate," Boaz Lev, who heads the advisory committee, told reporters following the panel's decision. The recommendation was also welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who called it "great news that will help us overcome the Omicron wave that is spreading around the world." Abir Sultan/Pool Photo/The Associated Press It is currently being reviewed by Israel's director general of the Health Ministry, Nachman Ash. If approved, Israel would become the first country to roll out a fourth dose to some of its citizens. However there have been some reports that Ash might be stalling while he reviewed information from Britain that shows that Omicron leads to less severe illness than the Delta variant. Story continues Dr. Ron Dagan, a professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and a member of the expert panel, acknowledged that the recommendation was not based on data of fourth dose results "because there is no data." "There's no data that we could base on our recommendation," he told CBC News in a phone interview. "But on the other hand, there are data that altogether made us worried about what's going on as a potential scenario in the upcoming weeks." There is evidence of waning immunity against infection about three to four months after the third vaccine was rolled out, he said. 'Scientific evidence is not there' Dagan said the panel didn't believe a fourth shot would cause any harm, and it made an "educated guess" about Omicron's potential impact and the benefits and risks of offering a fourth dose. "To the best of our judgment, the potential benefits, we believe, are bigger than the potential risks." Mevorach said he respects the fact that some people believe that Israel is facing a potential catastrophe when it comes to Omicron and that they want to do everything they can. Ammar Awad/Reuters "But I must say that medical or scientific evidence is not there," he said. It may be better to wait for an Omicron specific booster, which both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have indicated could be ready by March, he said. Prof. Hagai Levine, an epidemiologist and chair of the Israel Association of Public Health Physicians, told the New York Times that while he respects the "better safe than sorry" opinion of the panel, "before giving a fourth shot, it is preferable to wait for the science." Nadav Davidovitch, director of the Ben-Gurion University School of Public Health, said he would have offered a "weaker recommendation" than what was put forward by the expert panel. Instead of a "forceful campaign" for another booster, he said he would rather allow people that are high risk to choose to have the fourth dose, "because we don't have enough data." Cyrille Cohen, head of the lab of immunotherapy at Bar-Ilan University, said he understands how the panel reached its conclusion and that it was all about "risk managing." "We see how [Omicron] is developing in other countries, and we are afraid that at some point, cases will explode in Israel," he said. "And then we might be in a situation where especially vulnerable people are not protected enough." The problem, Cohen said, "is that we don't have a lot of data, and that's where I think it is a good thing that we gather right now a little bit more data." Cohen said he wanted to make it clear that he wouldn't think of telling someone not to get the fourth shot. "I would rather say, 'OK, we need more data.'" VANCOUVER The British Columbia government has convinced many illegal cannabis growers to begin selling legally in an effort to squeeze out illicit marijuana from the marketplace, but the efforts have faced criticism from the craft growing industry. It has been three years since recreational marijuana waslegalized in Canada, with the provinces managing retail sales while Health Canada is responsible for production licences. In B.C., the effort to turn black or grey market growers on to the legal retail market has focused on the Central Kootenay region through a pilot project and business supports, which includes helping aspiring producers navigate the federal licensing process as well as assisting growers with marketing development and security licensing, the province says. Solicitor General Mike Farnworth said in an interview that regulations could be less restrictive to encourage growth in the sector. "It's still very much a work in progress three years in," he said. "There's still some challenges for the craft side and producers." Farnworth said he's heard from industry members who have expressed frustration over the regulations surrounding getting cannabis to market as well as from retailers who dislike the security measures, such as frosted glass for their storefronts. Farnworth said he sees "a lot of potential" in the sector and the loosening of regulations would help marijuana farmers in the future. Monthly retail sales have risen substantially every year, from $1.2 million in December 2018 to about $18 million in December 2019 and to $48 million in December 2020, he said. He said the province's farm-gate program, which would allow cannabis growers to operate a retail outlet on their property or deliver directly to a retail store, would help craft growers as well as encourage those operating illegally to make the switch. Farnworth said he expects the program to come into effect in the spring. Story continues "We're trying to work with the industry (and) identify some of the challenges we can deal with." Abra Brynne of the Kootenay Cannabis Economic Development Council was part of the team that helped black market growers transition to the legal model. Brynne said the council was created to help a region with a long history of marijuana production take advantage of legalization. There were an estimated 2,500 small-scale cannabis producers in the region at the time of marijuana legalization, the province said in a news release. The project in the Central Kootenay area helped 53 businesses receive help navigating the federal licensing process, with 13 organizations receiving licences. The provincial government said 62 jobs were created or moved from the illegal market to the legal one by the time the program ended in July. Brynne said the program saw some successes but there's "a heck of a long way for things to go." She said high insurance costs are prohibitive for small growers starting out and more work needs to be done to convince people not to buy illegal marijuana. The province was supportive of the pilot project but persuading illegal operators to make the switch proved to be a challenge, Brynne said. "We still have this weird culture of prohibition," she said. The government's decision to launch a pilot project aimed at black market producers has been criticized by one group of legal growers. Todd Veri, president of the Kootenay Outdoor Producer Co-Op, said despite the government's claims of success, he knows of many legal, small-scale growers who have struggled to cut through the bureaucracy to launch their businesses. Veri said he has struggled to get approval forhis business projectin part due to its status as an outdoor marijuana producer, which needs more paperwork than indoor greenhouse farms, as well as its status as a co-operative. Part of the issue, Veri said, is the amount of time it takes to grow marijuana outdoors combined with more stringent regulations from Health Canada about storage and cultivation. "The time it took, the costs were to be expected, but the cost of delays has killed us," he said in an interview. Health Canada said in a statement it is committed to encouraging a diverse market of cannabis cultivators and processors, including through micro- and nursery-class licences. It added that craft growers make up roughly 40 per cent of all active marijuana licences. Veri said it has taken five years to get licensed and he sold his first batch of marijuana in early December. The provincial government has paid too much attention to black market operators instead of working more closely with legal ones, he said. He said he and his group did not partner with illegal growers, wanting to work closely with the government. Instead, he said his group and others like it have been neglected in favour of producers who operated illegally and now want to switch to the legal side. "There was no help for people actually looking to employ people in this province ... because B.C. decided to get behind the black market producers and I think they backed the wrong horse," he said. Veri said the government could improve life for craft growers by allowing them to sell directly to retailers, which would encourage more people to operate legally, and create a classification similar to B.C.'s Vintner's Quality Assurance used in the wine industry. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 25, 2021. Nick Wells, The Canadian Press Fossil of baby dinosaur preserved in egg astounds science community The connection between birds and dinosaurs isn't groundbreaking, but the recent discovery of a fossil with a perfectly intact embryo has the scientific community reeling with excitement as it sheds even more light on the link. The finding of a fossil, believed to be up to 72 million years old, maintains the embryonic skeleton of an oviraptorid dinosaur -- given the moniker of Baby Yingliang after the Chinese museum that stores it. SEE ALSO: Dinosaur bone bigger than a human being unearthed in France According to Darla Zelenitsky, an associate professor in the geoscience department at the University of Calgary, baby dinosaur bones are tiny and fragile, and very rarely kept intact as fossils, making it a fortunate discovery. "It is an amazing specimen...I have been working on dinosaur eggs for 25 years and have yet to see anything like it," Zelenitsky told CNN through email. "Up until now, little has been known of what was going on inside a dinosaur's egg prior to hatching, as there are so few embryonic skeletons, particularly those that are complete and preserved in a life pose." The egg measures about 17 centimetres length-wise, while the embryo was gauged to be about 27 centimetres from head to tail. It is suspected, according to researchers, that if it were to have lived as an adult, it would have grown to a three-metre span. Baby dinosaur fossil/Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum/Storyful (Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum/Storyful) DINOSAURS FOUND TO SHIFT AND CHANGE POSITIONS BEFORE HATCHING Similar to infant birds, it was noted by scientists from China, the United Kingdom in Canada that inside the eggs the dinosaurs shifted and switched poses before they hatched. The team determined the link after studying the positions of Baby Yingliang and other discovered oviraptorid embryos. Movements in present-day birds are affiliated with a behaviour known as tucking, managed by the central nervous system and is key for the success of hatching. "Dinosaur embryos are some of the rarest fossils. Most of them are incomplete with the bones dislocated. We are very excited about the discovery of Baby Yingliang. It is preserved in a great condition that we could answer a lot of questions about dinosaur growth and reproduction with it," Fion Waisum Ma, lead author of the study and a researcher at the University of Birmingham, U.K., said in a statement. Story continues BIRDS EVOLVED FROM TWO-LEGGED DINOSAURS Birds directly developed from a batch of two-legged dinosaurs, theropods, whose species include the Tyrannosaurus rex and smaller velociraptors. Baby dinosaur fossil/Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum/Storyful (Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum/Storyful) The behaviour that has been observed prior to hatching isn't the only trait modern birds derived from the dinosaur predecessors. The same breed of dinosaurs were also perched atop of their eggs to fertilize them in a similar fashion as birds, Zelenitsky, a co-author of the research that was published in the journal iScience on Tuesday, said. Because oviraptorids belong to a larger group of dinosaurs that ultimately gave rise to birds, this behaviour of taking on various positions prior to hatching is no longer unique to living birds, said Zelenitsky, in a news release. The fossil was located in China's Jiangxi province and bought in 2000 by Liang Liu, director of Yingliang Group. It found its way to storage, mostly ignored until about 10 years later, when museum staff sifted through the boxes and uncovered it during the building of the Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum. The uncovering of other well-maintained embryos is expected by scientists in the future so their suggestions can be examined more for these and other dinosaurs. Thumbnail courtesy of Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum/Storyful. Follow Nathan Howes on Twitter. LOS ANGELES When Matthew Specktor decided to start writing in earnest as a college sophomore, Joan Didion was on his mind. Specktor, who grew up a few blocks from Didions Santa Monica home in the early 1980s, wanted to write about Los Angeles too, and he understood that Didion not only offered historical context she was historical context. She set me back 10 years, because I had to write about this place in ways that she hadnt, he said. Its a bit like what some writers have with William Faulkner, where when a writer comes along and describes a place so forcefully, you have to figure out what on earth you have to add to this conversation that hasnt already been said. Didion died on Thursday due to complications from Parkinsons disease at age 87 in her New York home. But she still belonged to California. Writers in Los Angeles were crushed by the news but gratefully indebted to a woman whose keen observations and crystalline sentences inspired them to put pen to paper. To many who were then new to either California or the craft of writing or both, Didion was the first writer pressed into their hands, the perfect primer and inspiration for capturing a bewildering state physical, mental and cultural. Even those who didnt immediately warm to her defined themselves in relation to her and later acknowledged her greatness. Didion wrote 19 books, including the novels Play It As It Lays and A Book of Common Prayer. Her two essay collections on the 1960s, Slouching Towards Bethlehem and The White Album, are considered canonical studies of Americas cultural revolution, while her memoirs, The Year of Magical Thinking and Blue Nights, redefined the contours of grief. Shelley Wagner, Didions editor at Knopf, called her a brilliant observer and listener, a wise and subtle teller of truths about our present and future. She was fierce and fearless in her reporting. Her writing is timeless and powerful, and her prose has influenced millions. Perhaps nowhere is that truer than in the Golden State, where writers have sought to capture the depths and nuances of its sprawling cities like Los Angeles. I think she became a reference in writing about California, said essayist and novelist Laila Lalami. Regardless of how people felt about her or her writing, you couldnt write about California without somebody telling you, Have you read Joan Didion? Lalami discovered Didions work as a foreign student in L.A. in the early 1990s. As a new arrival struggling to understand California, she was recommended Didions revelatory 1968 essay collection, Slouching Towards Bethlehem; she quickly followed that with the rest of Didions writing on the state. For somebody like me, whos an immigrant, it really helped me make sense of the political history of the place, Lalami said. For Carribean Fragoza, Didions 60s essays were the first she read that were really trying to capture or to feel intimately the vibe of what it meant to be here. She would move on to other writers but Didion was one of the first that I happened to be introduced to, said Fragoza, whose acclaimed short-story collection Eat the Mouth That Feeds You was released earlier this year. Novelist and critic Scott Bradfield credited Didion for breaking free of the tendency to box California into detective fiction or derisive satire. She was somebody who wrote about California for Californians and for people outside of California, all at the same time, he said. She helped make the state a place that was considered a serious place to be a writer in. Tom Lutz, founder of the Los Angeles Review of Books, said Didion made journalism glamorous and dangerous and personal, and she made the West Coast central to the countrys sense of where we were headed (Bethlehem or otherwise). David L. Ulin, who edited the Library of Americas three-volume Didion anthology, sees her signature melding of personal and collective stories as a key part of her legacy. Shes writing about these larger sort of cultural events or cultural shifts or cultural movements always through her own point of view but always kind of looking outward from her individual sensibility to the broader collective sensibility, he said. Didion captured the complexities and identity crises of the 20th century, all while never flinching in the face of the painful, the difficult, the absurd, the macabre, said Ayad Akhtar, author and president of PEN America, in a statement. All of us who practice the craft owe her an enormous debt. Inspired by her elegant, restrained and electric style, many tried to emulate her sharp descriptions of time and place but, as Mary Rasenberger, CEO of the Authors Guild, said in a statement: She was often imitated but rarely matched. Writers like David Kipen have certainly tried. I still write too many of her patented hiccupping, chicken-bone sentences, said the L.A.-based writer and founder of Boyle Heights Libros Schmibros. I cant help it. Its that sentence with a chicken bone stuck in its throat, the one that interrupts itself between dashes, commas, whatever and then comes back around to shiv you in the ribs. Like Kipen, Steph Cha has worked to learn from Didions careful grammatical constructions, even for work in the genre of crime fiction (most recently Your House Will Pay, which won a Los Angeles Times Book Award). Thats a method that you can use to your hearts content without feeling like youre going to steal something because its just a technique, said Cha. She also noted that translating experience into its most communicable essence will always be specific and unique to the writer. She wrote beautiful, really structured paragraphs, said Bradfield, citing Didions 1970s novel Play It As it Lays as especially powerful. I thought it was a brilliant way to write about L.A., because L.A. is so hard to piece stories in, he said. Everything is so disjointed and disconnected, but she would write about it in these powerful little scenes, these short, hard, compact scenes. I remember that book really hitting me. As a young writer, Lalami studied Didions syntax, marking up books and copying lines into notebooks to try to understand how Didion deployed information just as the young Didion once typed out entire stories by Ernest Hemingway to learn his style. With Joan Didion, youre underlining something on every page because shes so good, Lalami said with a laugh. Lynell George couldnt remember a time when Didions writing wasnt in her life. Its funny. Its almost like shes always been in the backspace for me as a reader, the Los Angeles-bred writer said. She vividly remembered poring over a Xeroxed copy of the 1966 essay Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream as a new staff writer at L.A. Weekly in her mid-20s, sitting with another Weekly writer who had taught the essay in a college course. We ended up having this conversation about it as journalists starting out, taking it apart and looking at the layers of history, personal history and history of the region, and how she was reporting, George recalled. Working on long-form narrative pieces at the alt-weekly, George would sometimes reach for her copies of Slouching Towards Bethlehem or The White Album. Revisiting Didions work helped remind her to think big and small to search for the crystalline details while also holding the larger story. Her writing is so electrifying, so powerful, that for writers, every new work of hers was like a national event, said novelist and biographer Roxana Robinson. Just as people remember exactly where they were when men landed on the moon, writers remember the first time they read The White Album ... or entered the bare, beautiful landscape of her novel Play it As It Lays, she said. Passages in Didions work have become burned into our consciousness. For others, Didions work was a tough sell at first. Her aloofness, her cold and unsentimental prose, was a challenge to writer and editor Sophia Stewart as a college student at UC Berkeley, when after learning Didion was a Berkeley alum she checked out an armful of her books from the campus library. I still wrestle with it, as these are not characteristics of my own writing style, or even what I tend to read, she said. But its become one of the aspects of her work that I admire most. How she kept us at such a distance and was still able to hold us by the throat. No one does that like her. Lili Anoliks relationship with Didion was a bit more complicated or, as she described it, adversarial by proxy, because she wrote Hollywoods Eve: Eve Babitz and the Secret History of L.A. about a city chronicler who defined herself in opposition to Didion. Anolik was sure to clarify that Babitz and Didion were friends; it was Didion who got Babitz published in Rolling Stone in 1972. But the way Joan wrote about L.A. in Play It As It Lays made Eve see red. Joans L.A. was a 20th century Sodom and Gomorrah, whereas Eves L.A. was pure pleasure principle. If Eve had a problem with Joan, I had a problem with Joan. Still, Anolik conceded that her imagined rival was the greatest American stylist since Hemingway. And has anyone ever looked better in sunglasses? she added. Didions influence also lay in the persona she had staked out in the world as a woman with an unshakably strong personal perspective in what Fragoza called a very masculine writers world. I really took that to heart that sort of position and that attitude which I know has been criticized by others as being a very specifically white, sort of gringa attitude, Fragoza said. But I dont think she ever hid that. Her writing is [from] a very white and very privileged positionality, Fragoza added. But I think that when that is understood and when you take what is valuable to you ... its also very empowering. Stewart was careful not to call her an outspoken feminist but commended Didion for blazing the trail of New Journalism. I think she created a new blueprint for what a woman writer could be and do, and for a lot of young women writers, shes a lodestar. Thats certainly what Didion was to Specktors mother, Katherine, a screenwriter who grew up in the 1950s and was frustrated in her real ambition to be a novelist. Didion rendered my mother enough permission to write at all. He recalled the time as a teenager when his mother handed him a clip of Why I Write, his first foray into Didions writing. What I didnt understand until much later was that she was trying to explain something of herself to me, he said. These were radical and necessary sentiments that as a teenage boy I couldnt begin to understand. Thinking back to his mother, Specktor believes that might be Didions greatest legacy. I think so much of what her writing did was on behalf of women. Lutz echoed that sentiment. As a woman who commanded the attention of the intelligentsia as well as the mass-market magazines based on pure talent, skill, perceptiveness, and smarts, she was our Simone de Beauvoir an icon of tenacity, self-determination and achievement, he said. But for Kipen, Didions words were an expression of perpetual grief. Everything Didion wrote was an elegy, he said. For the multiple versions of California she came to know through the years, for New York and the 1960s, and later for a dignified American politics, for a sane foreign policy and, finally, for her family. She borrowed the title Goodbye to All That from Robert Graves, but she was never not saying goodbye, he added. Now were all saying it. That, and thanks. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 South Middleton School District might establish a test site for COVID-19 on its main campus in Boiling Springs. School board members plan to discuss the logistics and use parameters of the proposed site when the safety and security committee meets in January. Alex Smith, director of student services, briefed the board Monday on a proposal to install a modular office unit next to the district maintenance building, which is across the parking lot from the high school. The plan is to use electricity from the maintenance building to provide power and heat to the modular unit so that it could be used as the test site from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursday starting in January-February and running at least through May. Smith suggested the hours to avoid traffic congestion from the middle school and high school during student arrivals and departures. District administrators have drawn up an agreement with a local ambulance service to provide the personnel to conduct the tests, Smith said. One goal of this initiative is to enable the district to implement a test-to-stay mitigation strategy, he said. Test-to-stay enables students and staff to continue in-person learning while minimizing quarantine disruptions on students, families and schools, according to information posted on the Pennsylvania Department of Health website. Knowing the scarcity of resources and the current testing limitations, it would be beneficial to have a site on campus available to test students who may have come into close contact with a COVID-positive person, Smith said. The district is minimizing the potential for disease spread by locating the test site in a unit separate from a school building, he said. The original plan was to place the order before the holiday break so that the modular unit could be ready for use as early as January after the safety and security committee meets to hash out recommended changes to the district health and safety plan. But board members Monday voted 5-4 against the motion to acquire the unit. They questioned the wisdom of entering into a rental agreement before all the details are worked out. Though approved earlier in the meeting, the agreement with the ambulance service is on hold pending the outcome of the January committee meeting. Though the next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 19, committee chairman Rodney Wagner said an earlier meeting could be scheduled for the first week in January. There was discussion among board members prior to the vote on renting the unit. I think its a great idea, but there are too many questions at this point, Terry Draper said. Who is going to use it? I have concerns about people coming to the campus during the school day. There was talk among school administrators Monday of allowing district taxpayers and even the general public to use the test site. It was mentioned that the monthly rental fee could be offset using COVID relief grant money. Bethanne Sellers said the initial rental of $500 was a small price to pay to make sure that a modular unit was available to use as soon as possible. She said she was confident that the questions could be answered in January. Draper voted against the motion along with board members Tony Lucido, Robin Scherer, Eric Berry and Shannon Snyder. Voting in favor of the motion was Sellers, Wagner, board president Brad Group and member Bill Hartman. Following the vote, Sellers repeated her concerns about putting the test site proposal on hold. I dont agree with regrouping, she said. My feeling was to move forward. Its crucial. Were going to come back from [winter] break with many more cases and we need to be prepared. Lucido said that, from the way it sounded, most of the board members who voted no only did so because they had questions and wanted just a few more details. Email Joseph Cress at jcress@cumberlink.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 1 Angry 1 Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. WASHINGTON The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Jan. 7 on whether the Biden administration can order workers at private companies and health care employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19. Until the court rules, millions of workers face a patchwork of requirements depending on where they live. HOW DID WE GET TO THIS POINT? Under a rule published by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Nov. 5, businesses with 100 or more workers must require employees to be vaccinated or, if they are not, to be tested weekly and wear masks while working. There are exceptions for those who work alone or mostly outdoors. The same day, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published a rule requiring a wide range of health care providers who receive federal Medicare or Medicaid funding to get the first vaccine dose this month and to be fully vaccinated by Jan. 4. That rule was projected to affect more than 17 million workers in about 76,000 health care facilities as well as home health care providers. WHY IS THE SUPREME COURT STEPPING IN? The court is intervening because the rules spawned multiple court challenges from more than two dozen Republican-led states, some conservative and business groups, and some individual businesses that opposed the vaccination mandates. Those challenges produced rulings among several federal district and circuit courts that contradicted one another. A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled 2-1 this month that the vaccine-or-test requirement for workers at companies with 100 or more employees could take effect. Multiple legal challenges to the OSHA rule originally were filed in various U.S. appeals courts. The cases subsequently were consolidated with the 6th Circuit in a random drawing using ping-pong balls, a process employed when challenges to certain federal agency actions are filed in multiple courts. The requirement could affect some 84 million U.S. workers. In the health care employee case, a decision by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals kept a preliminary injunction in place for 14 states, altering an earlier ruling by a federal district judge, who applied the order nationwide. A separate preliminary injunction on appeal before the St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals applied to 10 additional states. That means the vaccine requirement for Medicare and Medicaid providers is blocked by courts in about half states but not in the other half. DOES THE SUPREME COURT HEARING PUT THE MANDATES ON HOLD? No, the court hearing is unlikely to put the mandates on hold, unless the court moves extremely fast and reverses the 6th Circuit ruling while expanding the preliminary injunctions of the 5th and 8th circuits to include all the states. WHAT'S NEXT? OSHA has said the vaccination mandate will go into effect Jan. 10. The testing requirement deadline is Feb. 9. The agency said in a statement that it would not issue citations before the listed dates so long as an employer is exercising reasonable, good faith efforts to come into compliance with the standard. Employers who fail to comply with the emergency, temporary standard may be subject to penalties, up to $13,653 per violation for serious violations. As for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, its guidance says non-compliance among hospitals and certain other acute and continuing care providers can lead to termination from the Medicare and Medicaid programs as a final measure. That, however, would occur only after providing a facility an opportunity to make corrections and come into compliance. We were really surprised to find something lead, said Julie Langan, the director of the states Department of Historic Resources. The team at the state Department of Historical Resources will catalog the artifacts and expects to have more details on their makeup and their possible origins in a few days. The books will be put in a freezer to avoid mold and the silver coin, which started to tarnish when the box was open, will be kept in a dry place to limit deterioration. Before the work began to open the capsule on Wednesday, Gov. Northam said Virginia doesnt need monuments that glorify the Confederacy. We are a Commonwealth that embraces diversity, he said. We are inclusive. The Lee statue was erected in 1890 and was long seen as a symbol of racial injustice in the former capital of the Confederacy. Its removal in September came more than a year after Northam ordered it in the wake of protests that erupted after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. People should be able to have the choice to move to a different area, where they think or where they know that their children are happy and prospering and can get a better education, Wood said. And Wood is always quick to organize to support members of the community who are in great need or crisis. Last year in the fall, there were two house fires in the neighborhood. One was an older woman living alone and the other was a young family. Carmelita got us organized and we gathered clothes, toys and gift cards for them both for Christmas, Gale said. Wood loves her neighborhood, and says its a wonderful place to live. At the same time, though, Wood is constantly looking at ways to improve the community for residents. So she got to work with the citys Planning Commission on the Cherry Avenue Small Area Plan, which included improved walkable trails and plans that would allow small businesses to the area that residents without cars could walk to. Gale said Wood has always been innovative in partnering with experts and city officials to solve problems and help residents. If the proposed changes were approved, Redinger said, he would still not build a building like this without a tenant and a signed lease, as it would be too expensive. We dont need to build a building this big if a tenant doesnt want it, he said. We just didnt want to go and market to these pharmaceutical companies with a size that was maybe too small for their needs. A community meeting was held last week during the 5th and Avon Community Advisory Committee meeting, and area residents questioned the need for the changes to the proposal. CAC member Shawn Brydge said he thought this proposal slid significantly away from what was originally the intention. I understand there had to be a pivot because of COVID office space but I think were sliding dangerously close to something we dont want on this site, given the location and given the countys guidance for redevelopment of this spot, he said. Roger Johson, the countys economic development director, said Redinger was working with local and state economic development officials. His name is Commander! Jill Biden told the kids. And this morning he was eating my slippers! The president and first lady then sat before the hospital's Christmas tree, where Jill Biden read Olaf's Night Before Christmas to the kids, which was broadcast to hundreds of children in their rooms at the hospital. The Walt Disney Co. provided copies of the book for each patient so they can follow along with the first lady, the White House said. Each book includes a White House bookmark designed by her office. The annual tradition of a hospital visit by the first lady dates to Bess Truman, who served in the role from 1945-1953. Before returning to the White House, the two stopped briefly at a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree set up on the street in D.C.'s Dupont Circle neighborhood by a local business owner. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament on one of the branches, nestled between large cutouts of Jill's face dotting the tree. News featured Wrapped and ready for Christmas, tamales are a must in Denton's Latino households Jeff Woo/DRC Tamales del Alma, or Tamales from the Soul, is a family operation run by mother-and-daughter duo Alma Fuentes, center, and Laura Fuentes, right, along with Lauras husband, Martin De Leon. Jeff Woo/DRC Tamales del Alma is a family operation run by mother-and-daughter duo Alma and Laura Fuentes. Local tamale makers say their busiest time of the year starts in mid-November. Courtesy | Stephanie Astrada An order of Stephanie Astrada's tamales ready for delivery. Astrada is a 30-year-old Denton resident who has been making and selling tamales for two years now. Latin American cuisine can be found all over Denton, and its not uncommon for people to make dozens of tamales at home and then sell them year round. Local tamale makers say their busiest time of the year starts in mid-November just before Thanksgiving. Tamales are a staple during celebrations throughout the year such as birthdays and baptisms, but theyre highly sought-after around the holidays especially Christmas. What started as a request from school staff at Denton ISD became a side business for the Fuentes family. The teachers asked me, given that Im Hispanic, if I made any, Alma Fuentes said in Spanish. I started making them, and because I live with my daughter, she advertised it on Facebook, and people started buying. Im thankful to God that every time we make some, the same people come back and buy more. Her daughter, Laura Fuentes, said they have an unofficial name for the tamale business. Tamales del Alma is named after her mother, but it also means Tamales From the Soul when translated from Spanish. The necessity to make money during the pandemic led to a year-round tamale business for Stephanie Astrada of Denton. Astrada, 30, is a one-woman show running The Golden Wrap in Denton. The name comes from the corn husk tamales are wrapped in. She said she has been selling tamales through Facebook for two years now. I love the whole business aspect, and I love meeting everybody, Astrada said. It gave me the motivation to continue with it. It used to be a seasonal thing because when people think of tamales, its just a Thanksgiving and Christmas thing, but I do them a couple of times a month now. They take a lot of time to make, which is why Astrada thinks theyre more common to have around the holidays the time and effort to make them would feel more special around the holidays. Im delivering on Friday, she said. I just went to the store [Monday] and bought just about everything I need so I can start figuring out these next couple of days and what Im going to do. I get about a few hours of sleep a night, but its worth it. Her customers will enjoy the fruits of her labor on Christmas Eve la Nochebuena, or the Good Night, in Latin American culture. Its marked by feasts in households. Alma Fuentes, 61, remembers being young and gathering with multiple family members in Mexico to make tamales. At my house, we always made some for Christmas, for New Years, for Candlemas, she said in Spanish. And when I make them for people, I make them as if I were making some for myself. At any other time of the year, Astrada said she can make tamales and fulfill her orders in one day. At Christmastime, she said she gives herself two days because there are more orders and because she offers four flavors chicken, pork, bean and peppers. Alma Fuentes said she also makes extra salsa to sell to customers in case they want something a bit spicier than whats already in the tamale. The Fuentes family sells tamales for $12 per dozen, and Astrada sells them for $15 per dozen. We hit more than 60 dozen, and that was this past weekend, said Laura Fuentes, 34. And theyre all gone. I didnt even get to taste one. Astrada and the Fuenteses all started making tamales when they were very young, although for the kids, making tamales usually means helping the adults place the stuffing onto the masa, or corn dough. I had to have been maybe 5 or 6 helping my grandma with the easy stuff like making the masa for it, Laura Fuentes said. My mom is definitely the one that does all the measuring as far as salt and whatever we got to add to it. She said measuring is done loosely because her mother learned from her mother by watching and listening, just as shes doing now. There are no exact measurements only eyeballing. There are different types of tamales in Latin America, and both Astrada and the Fuenteses make them using corn husks and corn masa dough. Banana and plantain leaves are used in some countries, and some tamales are sweet rather than savory. Astrada said she starts with making the green and red salsas that will top the chicken and pork tamales. She boils the produce that will go into the salsas, blends them and strains them for any chunky bits. Astrada cooks the chicken, pork and beans, and roasts the peppers for the raja tamales. The protein has to cool before she can shred it, and she also has to mash the beans and slice the peppers. She mixes the shredded protein with their respective salsas. The corn husks need to be washed, so that they become not only clean but also soft enough for masa to be spread on them. The masa itself is another ingredient Astrada takes time to make. Once I get that done, then I create an assembly line, she said. I get the masa and lay it on the husk, get the protein and fold it. And I do that four different times because I have four flavors. Alma Fuentes said she makes the masa from scratch rather than buying the pre-made dry masa mix from the store that just needs water. After selling tamales for years now, Laura Fuentes and Astrada both said they have loyal customers who have stuck around since the beginning. We have our clients that know when it starts hitting this time of year; theyre like, Hey, when are you going to make some? Laura Fuentes said. Astrada said one of her customers has been there from the start. Right now, I have a dozen loyal people that contact me all the time, sometimes not even when Im ready to sell them but because they want me to cater, she said. And Ill do it. Laura Fuentes said she doesnt know why its common in Latin American culture to have tamales around the holidays. Its just all Ive known since I was little, she said. Instead of having a turkey, we have tamales and bunuelos. Its our version of a turkey. Alma Fuentes doesnt know how the tradition came to be either. It comes from, I imagine, before I was born, she said. I think its just a custom. I just remember always making them this time of year. I dont know when the tradition started or why we make them on these dates, but I do know that theyre very delicious. Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The president of Ukraine held a video call with 20 U.S. senators and members of Congress on Friday amid tensions with Russia, which recently stoked fears of a possible invasion by massing troops near Ukraine's border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with the senators and congressional representatives about the Russian troop buildup and the situation in his country's war-torn east, according to Zelenskyy's office. Russia-backed rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine since 2014. A statement from the president's office described the importance of getting the United States involved in the process of a peaceful settlement to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, an area known as Donbas. Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive actions, the statement quoted Zelenskyy as saying. My goal is to stop the bloodshed in the east of Ukraine. It's impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas." Zelenskyy and the lawmakers also talked about applying further sanctions pressure on Russia, Washington's support of Kyiv's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and Ukraine's prospects for NATO membership. Land clearance in Ha Tinh where Vung Ang 2 coal-fired power plant is set to be built. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Hung Japan's Shikoku Electric Power Co Inc said on Friday it had invested more than 10 billion yen ($87 million) to buy a 15 percent stake in the Vung Ang 2 coal-fired power plant project in Vietnam. The Japanese utility has paid between 10 billion and 20 billion yen to Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp to buy the stake, a company spokesperson said. "We understand there are various opinions about the project, but we have decided to join it as the 1.2 gigawatts (GW) project is expected to contribute to the stable supply of electricity and economic development in Vietnam," the Shikoku Electric spokesperson said. The move is part of Shikoku Electric's efforts to expand overseas operations to boost growth. It aims to support the operation of the plant with the know-how derived from its domestic power business, the company said. After the deal, Mitsubishi holds a 25 percent stake in the project while another Japanese utility, Chugoku Electric Power Co Inc, owns a 20 percent stake. Worlds best rice from Vietnam gets trademark in EU, UK A person looks at a pack of ST25 rice in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran The E.U. and the U.K. have approved the trademark for ST25, the Vietnamese rice variety that was adjudged the worlds best in 2019, within five months of submission. "I was surprised [the] submission was approved so quickly," Ho Quang Cua, referring to the Gao Ong Cua trademark for the variety he developed. He is also in the process of registering it in Australia, mainland China and Hong Kong. Registration certificates of Gao Ong Cua in the U.K. and the E.U. Photo courtesy of Ho Quang Cua In Vietnam, authorities have not responded to his trademark application submitted seven months ago, he said. He has not even received word on the registration of the letters ST for the rice 18 months after submission. "I know the Covid-19 pandemic has caused difficulties for authorities. But I hope they speed up the process to prevent piracy". ST25 was the result of 25 years of work by Cua and his colleagues. It won the World's Best Rice title in the Philippines, marking the first time a Vietnamese variety had claimed top spot in the contests then 11-year history. In the second quarter of this year alone, at least six companies have applied for a trademark for the ST25 brand, five in the U.S. and one in Australia, prompting Cua to trademark it abroad. Shedko Dmitri is detained for growing cannabis inside a house in Binh Thuan, December 24, 2021. Photo courtesy of the police A Russian tourist was detained Saturday for growing cannabis in a house in the central Binh Thuan Province. Dmitri Shedko, 33, was detained by police of Phan Thiet after planting dozens of cannabis plants inside a bedroom of a rented house in the city. On Friday, police searched the house and found 27 cannabis plants under cultivation. Three kilograms of dried cannabis was also found, along with equipment used to plant and grow cannabis. Shedko said he purchased seeds and other planting equipment two months prior. After harvesting and processing, he distributed the cannabis to his Russian friends in Mui Ne and Phan Thiet. Cannabis is on the list of narcotics forbidden in Vietnam. Those growing cannabis in small scale could be fined VND2-5 million ($86.16-215.40). Farmers found cultivating 500 to 3,000 plants could face jail terms of six months to three years, while those working on bigger scale could spend up to seven years in jail. Online sellers have been reporting good sales of rapid saliva test kits to detect coronavirus infection, though Vietnam has yet to approve the product. Thuy Trang, 29, in Bien Hoa Town of Dong Nai Province, has just bought a saliva test kit "made in Germany" as introduced by an online seller at VND600,000 ($26) per box of five kits. "I'm very scared when taking nasal swabs - every time I must have my swab samples taken for Covid-19 screening, it is very stressful." "A member of my family has just been infected and I must be tested repeatedly. Therefore I have decided to switch to the saliva test kits." As instructed by the seller, all Trang needs to do is collect her saliva right after she wakes up in the morning before washing her mouth or drinking water. Nguyen Thi Hien, 37, in Ho Chi Minh City's Thu Duc City, has also bought saliva test kits for her family to use at home. The kits were sold to her at VND90,000 apiece when she bought a set of five. Hien said there are children and elderly people in her family who are afraid of having their nasal swabs taken for testing. She said buying saliva test kits is very easy. All she had to do is message the seller to place the order and that in about 15 minutes, receive the delivery. As for instructions, there is a tutorial video on how to use the kit. "All sellers claim their saliva kits are quality products that are genuinely imported, but they can't provide licenses or proof to show the products' origins from either Germany or the U.S. as stated," Hien said. A set of Covid-19 saliva test kit sold online. Photo by VnExpress These days, saliva test kits are sold on many sites in Vietnam with prices ranging from VND60,000 to several hundred thousand dong apiece. For example, a test kit originating from China is sold at VND60,000-105,000 each, with those buying a whole box of 20 kits can pay VND62,0000-75,000 per kit, which is cheaper than test kits using nasal swabs currently sold at VND100,000-200,000 per kit on the market. Saliva test kits that are said to come from the U.S. and Germany cost more, at VND120,000-150,000 per kit on average. A seller told VnExpress the product has been "selling out" but refused to share revenue and profit figures. Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization to Yale School of Public Health for its saliva Covid-19 diagnostic test but it was not until June this year that the FDA granted pharmaceutical firm Diabetomics emergency use authorization for its saliva kit. Singapore and Japan have also used the saliva test kit. In Vietnam, the Ministry of Health has just approved 16 types of rapid test kits using nasal swab samples and one type of saliva kit, called Antigen Rapid W-AgS04-B20 produced by a Chinese company in Wuhan. However, currently, most hospitals, medical centers, and testing points prefer using nasal test kits as doctors said "the accuracy of saliva test depends way too much on the behavior of the person being tested and could easily produce the wrong results." "For saliva test kits, it is strictly requested that the person being tested does not eat or drink at least one hour before samples are taken," said Dang Van Thanh, general director of Saigon Hospital. Truong Huu Khanh, a consultant with the infectious and neurological diseases department at the city's Children's Hospital No. 1, said "the saliva test is as effective as the nasal test but it is necessary to choose a reputable test kit that has clear origins and strictly follows the instructions when in use." Nguyen Tu Hieu, deputy director of the Department of Medical Equipment and Medical Works under the Health Ministry, recommended people "should choose test kits included in the list approved by the Ministry of Health to ensure quality." Le Quoc Hung, head of the Department of Tropical Diseases at HCMCs Cho Ray Hospital, said only the PCR test is 100 percent accurate and could be used to diagnose Covid-19 and that rapid test kits are only for the purpose of screening. Doctor Hung said from his own experience working in the infectious disease department, nasal test kits produce results with an accuracy of 85 percent while saliva tests hit 65-70 percent. Tang Chi Thuong, director of the HCMCs Department of Health, said "test kits using saliva and nasal samples produce similar results." People who are sensitive and have nosebleeds, allergic reactions, or children can use a saliva test kit for screening purposes before attending medical facilities for further tests. Heavy traffic in Da Lat as tourists have flocked in from mid December. Photo by VnExpress/Minh Tan With just a week to go for the three-day New Year holiday break, several four and five-star hotels and resorts in popular tourist hotspots are reporting high bookings. The holiday, which starts next Saturday, has become a perfect opportunity to travel, with most localities easing travel restrictions as per the new strategy of living safely with the pandemic. According to the Sa Pa Tourism Association, occupancy at 4-star accommodation facilities in Lao Cai Province's chilly resort town has reached 90 percent for the December 31 to January 2 holiday. Pham Cao Vy, chairman of the association, said since the beginning of November, the number of visitors to Sa Pa has increased sharply during weekends with people choosing to stay at luxury resorts that are offering big discounts. A Topas Ecolodge representative said the five-star resort was fully booked for Christmas and New Year's Eve half a month ago. However, there were still a few rooms available because some customers who have either contracted Covid or have to be quarantined after coming into contact with infected people have canceled their bookings or rescheduled their trips. In addition to Sa Pa, Hoa Binh and Quang Ninh in northern Vietnam are also favored destinations for the upcoming New Year holiday by Hanoians. A representative of Avana Retreat Resort in Hoa Binh's Mai Chau District, set amidst terraced rice fields, said all of its rooms were fully booked for January 1 and 2. Nguyen Duc Viet, CEO of tour operator WE Travel, said high-end resorts in Quang Ninh like Yoko Onsen Quang Hanh and Legacy Yen Tu are fully booked for the New Year holiday. Several cruise ships on Ha Long Bay have been already full. A cruise ship departs carrying passengers to Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh Province, October 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Minh Cuong In the southern and Central Highlands regions, Da Lat and Phu Quoc Island, where the pandemic situation has showed signs of improvement, have also seen a surge in room bookings. Le Anh Kiet, head of Da Lats Department of Culture and Information, said booking rates at high-end hotels near the Tuyen Lam Lake have reached nearly 70 percent for the Christmas and New Year's Eve holidays. Several resorts in the downtown area have been nearly full, he added. Le Tan Triet, sales and marketing director of the Terracotta Hotel & Resort Da Lat, said that the number of visitors to Da Lat in December has increased sharply over the previous two-three months. His resort currently only serves a maximum of 50 percent of total capacity with over 160 rooms to ensure pandemic prevention measures; and prices will remain the same as weekdays for the upcoming holiday. "Currently, the resort has 100 rooms already booked and we will receive 20-30 more bookings for New Year's Eve. When guests come to check in, we will support them with free Covid-19 testing service," he added. Terracotta Hotel & Resort Da Lat next to Tuyen Lam Lake near Da Lat Town. Photo courtesy of the resort Nguyen Vu Khac Huy, vice chairman of Kien Giang Provincial Tourism Association, said high-end resorts such as Nam Nghi, JW Marriott, Movenpick, Radisson Blu and Premier Village on Phu Quoc Island have been fully booked for the New Year holiday. Phu Quoc will organize a series of activities to ring in the New Year, including countdown parties and low-altitude fireworks shows, he said. A VnExpress survey of 10,000 readers early December showed 30 percent were ready to travel during the New Year holiday despite the worsening Covid situation. Vietnam reopened domestic tourism early October as the government changed its strategy from ensuring zero Covid cases to living safely with the virus. Domestic carriers have increased flight frequency between Hanoi, HCMC and tourist destinations to meet growing travel demand during the year-end peak travel season. Most tourist destinations across the country now only require tourists to be fully vaccinated against Covid or have recovered from the disease. They can self-monitor their health at their holiday destinations. Foreign tourists visit Hoi An ancient town in Quang Nam Province on November 20, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Duy Hau Vietnamese tourism expects to welcome five million international visitors under the ongoing vaccine passport program in 2022 an industry official says. The industry also hopes to earn revenues of VND400 trillion ($17.5 billion) next year, Nguyen Trung Khanh, head of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said at a seminar on tourism recovery held Friday. In more than a month after partial reopening of international tourism following nearly two years of closure over the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam has welcomed 3,500 foreign visitors on special tour packages. "This was a great encouragement for the tourism industry after more than 19 months," Khanh is quoted as saying in a report on the tourism ministry portal. Quang Nam, Quang Ninh, Kien Giang, Khanh Hoa and Da Nang, home to several UNESCO heritage sites, got the green light to allow in foreign visitors under the vaccine passport trial program starting mid-November. All foreign guests need to furnish certificates showing they are fully vaccinated or have recovered from Covid and to have tested negative for the novel coronavirus within 72 hours before departure. They are also required to install the IGOVN and PC-Covid health declaration applications on their smartphones while in Vietnam. 2021 continued to be a rough year for Vietnams tourism industry, Khanh said. According to initial estimates, the industry has served 40 million domestic tourists this year, down 20 percent year-on-year, with revenues reaching VND180 trillion. Vietnam reopened domestic tourism early October as the government changed its strategy from ensuring zero Covid cases to living safely with the virus. In 2019, the year before the onset of the pandemic, Vietnam welcomed a record 18 million foreign tourists. Last year, it recorded a 79 percent decline year-on-year in the number of foreign visitors due to travel restrictions. ELKO Nevada Outdoor School has promoted an appreciation of nature and natural resources in four Northern Nevada counties for nearly two decades. The school was founded by Stephanie Lefevre in 2002. Lafevre wanted to begin a program in outdoor education that would create a responsibility in land stewardship for every age group. Since then, the school has grown and offers both children and adults many opportunities to experience and enjoy nature. Being in this field the natural resources industry it can be a really competitive field, said AmeriCorps Naturalist Macy Rohr, who works with the Nevada Outdoor School. AmeriCorps is really nice because it gives recent graduates the opportunity to get experience. You need experience to then get a competitive job. Rohr, who is from Greensburg, Indiana, hopes to work for a national park one day. She enjoys educating people in areas of natural resources. Her bachelors degree is in energy geology and natural resources. She minored in biology. Being a naturalist here is great because I get to teach different things about different areas and parks. At summer camp we get to go to different parks so I will look up facts about the park and on the way I can be telling the kids about it. Rohr was able to pick the place she wanted to serve when she signed up for the program. She arrived in Elko last January. She came when we were still doing virtual lessons and maneuvering all that and moved across country in a pandemic in the winter, said NOS Associate Director Brandolyn Thran. I will be staying here a total of two years, she said. Rohr is paid a stipend through AmeriCorps and also receives an education award. Once you do the end of our term, you get money you can use on previous debt or for going back to school, she said. Over the full two years it is about $12,000. The candidate has about seven years to use the money. I do want to go back to school eventually, Rohr said. I really like being a naturalist and enjoy working with youth. Working here I have been able to network with a lot of people from BLM, the Forest Service and the Northeastern Nevada Stewardship Group. Hopefully, knowing what I have done here and that I have helped them with their projects, it will help me get a foot in the door a little more than some stranger. Through her job with NOS, Rohr has also had training in CPR, first aid, Leave No Trace, Tread Lightly and ATV training. She will soon do archery training. [She] is a Water Safety Watcher, Thran said. They learn things that keep kids safe. This summer I took a group to Great Basin [National Park,] Rohr said. We made tons of memories. Naturalists typically work with youth ages 4 to 17. Nevada is really unique, Rohr said. I love how on the Travel Nevada website it calls it Weird Nevada. You have two different deserts in one state. I love the mountains. There are no mountains in Indiana. I like all the public land. That is not something we have in Indiana. I dont like wildfires and smoke, she added. Meagan Rich, an Elko native, recently joined the NOS team as program coordinator. I was looking for something in the teaching field that wasnt necessarily in a standard classroom and put my degree to use, said Rich. Its right up my alley. Rich received her bachelors degree in education from Great Basin College. I love going in the classrooms and working with the children, I love that aspect of it. Every day I organize and plan, talking with teachers to see when we can come in the classroom and deliver lessons and field experience. She works directly with the AmeriCorps naturalists. We are looking for some naturalists in January, Rich said. We have a couple open positions for Elko and Winnemucca. Rich said there are a number of programs the school runs, including Nature After School. In the summer months they run summer camps and Nature at Noon. All of our teachers are AmeriCorps people, Thran said. I started with AmeriCorps in 2017, Thran said. Then I went away and did my own things and came back in 2019 as staff. I do all of the office stuff. The executive director is Melanie, she is in Winnemucca. I am responsible for Elko and all of our programs. I do all of the operational stuff. We currently serve Elko, Humboldt, Lander and Pershing counties, Thran said. We want to get into White Pine and Eureka by the end of the year. We have dreams of doing one-week camps in Eureka. Our camps can be mobilized into any community. We are very self-contained. We lease vans from the Charter School to transport kids. In the past, we had rented vans. We pay for their maintenance costs. Six rarest animal sightings in Elko County: Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 DENVER (AP) The man known as the Unabomber has been transferred to a federal prison medical facility in North Carolina after spending the past two decades in a federal Supermax prison in Colorado for a series of bombings targeting scientists. Theodore Ted Kaczynski, 79, was moved to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons FMC Butner medical center in eastern North Carolina on Dec. 14, according to bureau spokesperson Donald Murphy. Murphy declined to disclose any details of Kaczynskis medical condition or the reason for his transfer. Kaczynski is serving life without the possibility of parole following his 1996 arrest at the primitive cabin where he was living in western Montana. He pleaded guilty to setting 16 explosions that killed three people and injured 23 others in various parts of the country between 1978 and 1995. The Federal Medical Center Butner, in North Carolinas Granville County just northeast of Durham, offers medical services for prisoners including oncology, surgery, neurodiagnostics and dialysis, according to the Bureau of Prisons. It opened an advanced care unit and a hospice unit in 2010. Butner has 771 inmates, according to the prison bureau, and has been home to notable offenders including John Hinckley Jr., who was evaluated there after shooting President Ronald Reagan and Bernard Madoff, the infamous architect of a massive Ponzi scheme who died at the North Carolina facility earlier this year. In November, the former Oklahoma zookeeper known as Tiger King Joe Exotic was transferred to the facility after a cancer diagnosis, his attorney said. Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, had been convicted for trying to hire someone to kill an animal rights activist and for violating federal wildlife laws. The deadly homemade bombs that the vengeful Kaczynski sent by mail including an altitude-triggered explosion that went off as planned on an American Airlines flight changed the way Americans sent packages and boarded airplanes. A 1995 threat to blow up a plane out of Los Angeles before the end of the July 4 weekend threw air travel and mail delivery into chaos. The Unabomber later claimed it was a prank. The Harvard-trained mathematician had railed against the effects of advanced technology and led authorities on the nations longest and costliest manhunt. The FBI dubbed him the Unabomber because his early targets seemed to be universities and airlines. In September 1995, The Washington Post in conjunction with The New York Times published his anti-technology manifesto, Industrial Society and Its Future. The manifesto was printed at the urging of federal authorities, after the bomber said he would desist from terrorism if a national publication published his treatise. The treatise led his brother David and Davids wife, Linda Patrik, to recognize his writing and turn him in to the FBI. Authorities in April 1996 found Kaczynski outside Lincoln, Montana, in a 10-by-14-foot plywood and tarpaper cabin where hed been living since the 1970s. It was filled with journals, a coded diary, explosive ingredients and two completed bombs. Kaczynski hated the idea of being viewed as mentally ill and during his trial tried to fire his attorneys when they wanted to mount an insanity defense. He eventually pleaded guilty rather than let his attorneys proceed. In his personal journals released at trial by the government at the request of the victims families, Kaczynski described his motive as simply personal revenge. I often had fantasies of killing the kind of people I hatedi.e., government officials, police, computer scientists, the rowdy type of college students who left their beer cans in the arboretum, etc., etc., etc., he wrote. Kaczynski killed computer rental store owner Hugh Scrutton, advertising executive Thomas Mosser and timber industry lobbyist Gilbert Murray. California geneticist Charles Epstein and Yale University computer expert David Gelernter were maimed by bombs two days apart in June 1993. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Headlines - Some parents will receive $8,000 stimulus checks this spring. - Biden extends the student debt moratorium to May. - As Omicron causes business closures, will a fourth stimulus check be passed to combat the economic losses? - West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin says he can't support Build Back Better bill -"There will be more negotiations," says White House Press Secretary Psaki Useful information & links Child Tax Credit - What next for the Child Tax Credit after Build Back Better bill talks stall? -Why does Manchin oppose the Build Back Better bill? - Final monthly CTC payment of 2021 sent out on Wednesday 15 December Stimulus checks -New parents could see another stimulus check reflected in their tax refund in 2022 -What's the deadline to get your stimulus check plus-up payment in 2021? Social Security - How many Social Security payments are there to go in 2021? - When does COLA 2022 take effect for Social Security benefits? -5.9% COLA increase - how much difference will it make to Social Security benefits? Latest articles: Pope Francis in his Christmas message on Saturday decried increasing polarisation in personal and international relationships, saying only dialogue can resolve conflicts ranging from family feuds to threats of war. In his "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message, he called on individuals and world leaders to talk to each other rather than dig in their heels, a distancing he said has been worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. "Our capacity for social relationships is sorely tried; there is a growing tendency to withdraw, to do it all by ourselves, to stop making an effort to encounter others and do things together," he said from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica on a wet and windy Christmas in Rome. "On the international level too, there is the risk of avoiding dialogue, the risk that this complex crisis will lead to taking shortcuts rather than setting out on the longer paths of dialogue. Yet only those paths can lead to the resolution of conflicts and to lasting benefits for all," he said. Francis, who turned 85 last week, listed conflicts, tensions or crises in Syria, Yemen, Israel, The Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Ukraine, Sudan, South Sudan and elsewhere. "We continue to witness a great number of conflicts, crises and disagreements," he said, speaking from the same balcony where he first appeared to the world as pope after his election on March 13, 2013. "These never seem to end; by now we hardly even notice them. We have become so used to them that immense tragedies are now being passed over in silence; we risk not hearing the cry of pain and distress of so many of our brothers and sisters," he said, speaking to an unusually small crowd reduced by covid-19 restrictions and the weather to only several hundred. He asked God to "give serenity and unity to families", praising those who strive to keep them and communities together in such divisive times. "Let us ask him for the strength to be open to dialogue. On this festive day, let us implore him to stir up in the hearts of everyone a yearning for reconciliation and fraternity," he said. He used the word "dialogue" 11 times in a speech of little more than two pages as he spoke to people huddled under rain parkas and umbrellas. Francis asked God to "prevent fresh outbreaks of a long-festering conflict" in Ukraine, which has accused Russia of massing tens of thousands of troops in preparation for a possible large-scale military offensive. Russia denies planning any attack and accuses Ukraine and the United States of destabilising behaviour, saying it needs security guarantees for its own protection. He asked people not to be indifferent to the plight of migrants, refugees, the displaced, political prisoners and women victims of violence and urged leaders to protect the environment for future generations. In his Christmas Eve Mass on Friday night in St. Peter's Basilica, Francis said that people who are indifferent to the poor offend God, and urged all to "look beyond all the lights and decorations" and remember the neediest. Headlines: - Omicron variant casts shadow over Christmas celebrations globally - Pfizer and Merck receive Emergency Use Authorization for their anti-viral pills to fight covid-19 - Omicron starting to be dominant strain in South American nations - Small businesses close during their busiest season as Omicron sickens their staff and customers - Bill Gates urges people to get vaccinated and take the booster - The covid-19 timeline... from Alpha to Omicron Travel News - Delta and United Airlines cancel hundreds of flights as Omicron leads to staffing shortages - Risk of infection on airplanes increases with Omicron Useful information & links: - Can a PCR test tell me which variant of covid-19 I have? - What are the Omicron symptoms in children? - What countries have the highest and lowest covid-19 vaccination rates? For domestic and international public health information: - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - The World Health Organization - The Lancet Browse our latest stories on covid-19: The opening of the China-Laos Railway, Thanaleng Dry Port and Vientiane Logistics Park will create a solid foundation for economic recovery in 2022, the Lao prime minister has said. Lao Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh told an open government meeting on Thursday that the government was working hard to address financial difficulties to prevent Laos from being dragged into an economic crisis, local daily Vientiane Times reported on Friday. The open meeting, held from Thursday to Friday in both online and offline platforms, was attended by cabinet members, the mayor of Lao capital Vientiane, provincial governors and representatives of state agencies. Despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 outbreak, the government is opening up the country to tourists from 17 countries starting on January 1. The move should enable the country to revitalize tourism and service sectors, which have been hit hard by the pandemic, said the report. Despite efforts to flatten the COVID-19 infection curve, the number of new cases in Laos remains high. The government is struggling to contain the spread of locally-transmitted cases. The government has pledged to expedite vaccination program in order to boost the population's immunity to COVID-19 and to create a foundation for the opening up of Laos to vaccinated foreign visitors next month, said the report. The government holds an open meeting every year to allow cabinet members and provincial governors to discuss ways to further boost socio-economic development and alleviate poverty nationwide. It may not be unusual for people in Europe to come across the idea of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on news media, but it is highly likely that few have a clear idea about how the grand initiative is changing their lives. LONGTIME PAIN IN THE NECK An epic itinerary for holiday goers in Croatia is a drive along the coastline. Along the picturesque hillside road beside the Adriatic Sea, the drive can take one to most of the hotspot towns such as Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik, a must-go especially for Game of Thrones fans. The journey can be satisfying except for one nuisance -- expect to wait in the car for hours under the scorching sun because of a border check. The coastline of Croatia is cut off between the towns of Ploce and Dubrovnik by a narrow land of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where border check points are set up. Travelers to Dubrovnik by land have to pass two check points, one at each end of the 20-km-long road. For ages, this severed part of land has been a pain in the neck for people in Croatia, which has long desired erecting a bridge over the sea to close the gap. A DAUNTING PROJECT In 2007, Croatia started to build the bridge but had to leave it unfinished due to a shortfall of funds in 2012. After nearly four years of construction, several piers were left in the water and the bridge was still nowhere in sight. Croatia never gave up the project. After it became a member of the European Union in 2013, Croatia tapped EU fund for the bridge. With an investment of over 400 million euros (453 million U.S. dollars), Croatia revived the project. Coincidentally, China launched in the same year an initiative to bridge infrastructure gaps in countries across the Asia-Pacific region, Africa and Central and Eastern Europe aimed at boosting economic growth and promoting shared prosperity through cooperation. The initiative is now widely known as the BRI. Afterwards, a wide range of countries benefited from the initiative with new roads, ports and bridges built. In 2018, the China Road and Bridge Corporation along with other Chinese companies won the bid for the 2.44-km-long sea-crossing bridge. On July 28, the Croatian lands which used to be divided were connected together for the first time after the last missing part of the bridge was put into place. It took the Chinese companies three years to piece the bridge together. It now takes minutes to drive from one end of the bridge to the other. SILENT CONTRIBUTOR While the bridge will vastly improve travel in Croatia, other BRI projects are saving lives in Europe. It wasn't long ago when Europeans were scrambling for masks, surgical gowns and other protective gear at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. When sea freight was disrupted due to backlogs at ports and air freight was severely cut at the peak of the pandemic, the China-Europe freight rail provided a much-needed lifeline. Covering over 170 cities in more than 20 European countries, the China-Europe freight trains have brought in hundreds of thousands tons of medical supplies including masks, surgical gowns and other necessities to Europe. MAKING EUROPE GREENER Chinese companies involved in the BRI have never hesitated to bring their state-of-the-art technology to countries that need it most. In some European countries, Chinese companies are playing a proactive role in helping local economies become greener. Shanghai Electric Power Company has taken on the ambitious task of turning the Gozo Island of Malta into a carbon neutral territory in the country. Through years of cooperation with local partners since 2014, the company brought its expertise to Malta, overhauling and upgrading the power grid in the country and making frequent blackouts a thing of the past. Given the EU's pledge for carbon neutrality by 2050, member countries including Malta have begun to take action to reduce emissions. By installing an energy storage system on Gozo, Shanghai Electric plans to transfer the electricity yielded by solar power and wind power stations to the system and make it carbon neutral. It is the first "carbon neutral" energy storage system in the country. Meanwhile, Chinese electric vehicle company Nio is witnessing a growing popularity with its products in Norway, launching its first model ES8 in the Nordic country on Sept. 30. Gunnar Birkenfelter, founder of a car-sharing company in Norway, wasted no time adding the ES8 to his fleet. He said roughly 10 percent of his company's cars are of Chinese brands. Birkenfelter said Chinese automotive brands were of high quality and he wouldn't hesitate to recommend them. Nio has committed itself to Norwegian market with a plan to install four battery swap stations in 2021 and more in the future. The scale of the BRI's involvement in Europe continues to deepen, with Chinese investors and their local partners closely collaborating across a variety of sectors. The BRI will ignite enormous change on the continent over time and impact the lives of Europeans for years to come. In a recent promotion event in Ho Chi Minh City where various agricultural products made in the RoK were introduced, Uiseong province has showcased to Vietnamese consumers its signature products, including kimchi, black garlic, red ginseng, ginseng, grapes, apples, and fermented fruit drinks. Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) The event formed part of a project to support Korean agricultural exporters to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and gain broader access to the Vietnamese market. Hairim Yoo, Director of Seoho, a Korean company, said the province has organised many trade promotion events to introduce a variety of high-quality farm products to Vietnamese consumers between 2019 and 2021. A representative from Uiseongs administration said following the RoK governments New Southern Policy, the province has been accelerating promotion of agricultural products to boost exports to Vietnam. Additionally, the number of Koreans living permanently in Vietnam is on a rise, providing a larger market for the RoKs agricultural exporters. Similarly, the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) in HCM City has launched an exhibition of Japanese food products called TASTY in all of JAPAN at Sofitel Saigon Plaza Hotel in the southern citys District 1. The ongoing exhibition features about 300 agricultural products from across Japan. Due to the impacts of COVID-19, agricultural exporters from Vietnam and Japan had few chances to meet and exchange information over the last two years, said a JETRO representative. Through such events, JETRO wants to directly introduce Japanese food products to local customers and enterprises, so Japan will be able to expand trade cooperation and foster exports to Vietnam in the coming time, the representative said./. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The regional center has become the second city in Belarus where the local plan for the implementation of the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was signed. The beginning of a long work The campaign "Agenda 50" designed to facilitate the implementation of the Convention principles on the ground, is coming to an end in Stolin. Its outcome has become the creation of a document that takes into account all the peculiarities of the region and thus helps the local community to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities. Though, as noted by the representative of the Danish non-profit organization "European House" Leni Peterson, this is only the beginning of a long work. The way of creation of the local agenda, what has been achieved and what remains to be done - all these issues were discussed by the campaign participants in the course of the round table in Stolin. Leni Peterson recalled that the campaign "Agenda 50" had started in Belarus three years ago (back then, the Centre for European Transformation conducted a study that reflected the willingness of Belarusian cities to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and five pilot cities were chosen for the local agendas implementation). "In Denmark, all local municipalities have their own agendas developed which considerably differ from each other. Changes are constantly being introduced into them. And I hope that you will do it, too, when youll feel the necessity. This is just the beginning of a long work", said Leni Peterson. She congratulated the participants of the campaign with the local agenda creation and noted their success in mini-projects that they were implementing in parallel: they wrote a guide to Stolin and to the area for people with disabilities. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities At least one completely accessible place Initially, the local agenda developers had identified three main problems in the Stolin area: inaccessibility of the environment, lack of the possibilities for independent living and insufficient qualification of social workers. According to Mikhail Skrebeyko, local coordinator of the campaign "Agenda 50" in Stolin, the designed document provides a number of changes that will make the city more accessible. First of all, the changes will affect the central intersection, and a local bar "Olympus" will also become accessible. "We will try to do at least one completely accessible place in the city", promised Mikhail Skrebeyko. The work on the staff development will also continue for the personnel working with people with disabilities, and the issue of independent living will be addressed. "Our goal is to create working places in the village of Luka, and then to invite people here so that they know they could live and work there. We also have workshops in the city where vocational adaptation is conducted", said the coordinator. It is planned that people with neuropsychiatric diagnoses will work there, and this will contribute to preventing the deprivation of legal capacity. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The chief of the Administration of Labour, Employment and Social Protection of the Stolin District Executive Committee Galina Voropaeva has long been engaged in a barrier-free environment program in Stolin area. "I like that there are public organizations in Stolin which do not only realize the problem, but also want to deal with it, and they have become our partners. The state is ready to meet the wishes and demands, but also the public organizations need to understand that it is them who have something to do in the first place. And people with disabilities do need to understand that they have to do something by themselves, not only waiting to have everything done for them", summarized Galina Voropaeva. In the development of the local agenda organizations such as the "Support center for young people with disabilities", Belarusian Society of Visually Impaired Persons (BelTIZ), Belarusian association of assistance to children and young people with disabilities (BelAPDIiMI), Republican Association of Wheelchair Users (RAIK) and Stolin Territorial Center of Social Service and Administration on Labour, Employment and Social Protection of the Stolin District Executive Committee are involved. Trainers from the partner organization of the project the Polish TUS Foundation Peter Todys and Malgozata Peretyatkovich were inspiring and motivating others. They conducted strategic planning sessions with participants teaching to formulate goals and objectives by focusing on local issues and resources. In addition to strategic planning sessions, the city residents, along with other cities representatives participating in the program "Agenda 50", had a chance to have a look at the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Poland and in Denmark. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Gentlemen agreement "In Belarus, its a tradition to draw big generic plans first, not trying to take into account the unique experience of each region. We started preparation of local plans in the hope that by the end of this work the signing of the Convention would be just in time. But the reality surpassed our expectations: in 2016 the Convention was ratified", said director of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Siarhei Drazdouski. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Siarhei Drazdouski emphasized that every region has its own specific local agenda. General is only the structure, but the peculiarities and the understanding of the problems is unique. According to him, it is exactly in Stolin that there was a prototype of the local committee on disability issues at the start of the campaign. Therefore, one of the agendas objectives was the creation of conditions for the work of the committee and establishing a dialogue between the state and the local community. Deputy director of the Office and the general coordinator of the campaign "Agenda 50" in Belarus Mikhail Matskevich believes that in case such committees are established, the action plan is already designed for them. "Thanks to the European Union. We will disseminate the experience throughout Belarus, on the preparation of agendas with the participation of authorities and public organizations", he promised. Along with Scucyn, Babruysk, Valozyn and Stoubcy (which, though being the last one to join the campaign, signed the action plan the first), Stolin walked through the difficult path of creating a local agenda, the total of which has become a "living" document that can be changed and supplemented depending on the situation. "The signing of the local agenda is a kind of a gentlemen agreement, thus we promise each other that we will fulfill it", concluded Mikhail Matskevich. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities *** The material was prepared in the framework of the international project "Rights of People with Disabilities: agenda for Belarus (Agenda 50)". The campaign "Agenda 50" is being implemented with the support of the European Union in partnership with the Fundacja TUS (Poland)and the PA "European House" (Denmark). Office for the Rights of People with Disabilities, International Consortium "EuroBelarus" and Center for European Transformation participate in the campaign implementation in Belarus. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The campaign "Agenda 50" was summed up in Scucyn, and a local action plan for the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was signed there. The preparation of the local agenda for improving the quality of life of people with disabilities under the campaign "Agenda 50" in Scucyn has been completed. In the course of the roundtable, the campaign participants shared experience and discussed the results, which they managed to achieve in two years of work. - I am very pleased that this issue (challenge of people with disabilities - EuroBelarus) is no more suppressed, it has begun to harmoniously interweave with all the processes that occur in the country and in our region. We are gradually realizing that it's not just people who need our attention, but the people who are entitled to have the same benefits as everybody else enjoys, said Deputy Chairman of the Scucyn Executive Committee Elena Pasyuta. She noted that the local agenda of Scucyn has the truly significant local issues reflected, and representatives of various organizations and residents of the area contributed to their defining. Photo of "EuroBelarus" Information Service Head of the Department of Tourism and Investment Activities of the Administration of Economics of Scucyn Executive Committee Alexandr Amshey stressed that as a result of the work on the agenda the most comprehensive cross-section of relevant issues for people with disabilities in the region was obtained. - Agenda is a strategy of our actions, the roadmap. The path will not be easy, but we have got now the development direction. It is the most valuable. Photo of "EuroBelarus" Information Service According to Director of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Siarhei Drazdouski, Scucyn has a good potential for successful implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. - We have been working in different cities. Youd think, how large Belarus is? But in all the cities, all the five agendas are different. This confirms once again that it is impossible to solve the same problem in different areas in a similar way, noticed Siarhei Drazdouski. Photo of "EuroBelarus" Information Service Deputy Director of the Office on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Mikhail Matskewich reminded about the main stages of the campaign "Agenda 50". He said that with the signing of the local agenda, cooperation with the campaign participants in Scucyn will not finish: the Office has prepared several educational activities which the local community can participate in later. According to the director of Territorial Center for Social Service of Scucyn Angelina Shpakovskaya, the local participants were shocked at the beginning of the campaign because they did not know where to start from. But the "22 steps" technique, designed by the campaign Polish partners from the TUS foundation helped to structure the work - and the things went on. At the work start, the participants formulated 12 problems, but many of the issues were addressed in the work course. The final document defines 4 problems to deal with: - It is the scarce illumination of distant streets, lack of social taxi, insufficient accessibility of buildings and structures and low socialization and employment possibilities of people with disabilities. All these problems will be addressed. We have 5 people who have been certified under the "Inclusive barista" project, people are getting jobs through the center of employment, as well. A lot depends on the willingness of the people themselves - this is very important, summed up Angelina Shpakovskaya. Photo of "EuroBelarus" Information Service The outcome of the round table in Scucyn was the signing of the local action plan for the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Prior to that, such documents were signed by the campaigners in Stoubcy and Stolin for their regions. Photo of "EuroBelarus" Information Service *** The material was prepared in the framework of the international project "Rights of People with Disabilities: agenda for Belarus (Agenda 50)". The campaign "Agenda 50" is being implemented with the support of the European Union in partnership with the Fundacja TUS (Poland)and the PA "European House" (Denmark). Office for the Rights of People with Disabilities, International Consortium "EuroBelarus" and Center for European Transformation participate in the campaign implementation in Belarus. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities "Specificity is different, but the priority is general." In Valozyn, a local strategy for the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was signed. Although the document is not an official regulatory act, both local authorities and public social associations as well as people with disabilities took part in its development. The local agenda is a special action plan outlining measures to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities in the region for the years 2019-2020. Valozyn became the fourth city in Belarus (after Stoubcy, Stolin and Scucyn) where a similar document was created and signed. The work on it was carried out within the framework of the Agenda 50 campaign aiming to implement 50 articles of the UN Convention at the local level, taking into account local peculiarities. Indeed, contrary to stereotypes, the specifics of disabilities challenges are different in different parts of our small country. Just the priority topic of the general problem is currently common for all regions - it is addressing issues of the barrier-free environment. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Besides accessibility, the Valozyn agenda also reflects other issues related to disability. Among them are discrimination against children with disabilities at school, problems with employers, lack of awareness of people with disabilities on their rights and the lack of rehabilitation facilities maintenance. To solve these problems, local activists will hold information campaigns, inclusive events, create accessible environment, organize trainings for personal growth and much more. The signing of the document in Valozyn took a year and a half. In addition to achieving the main goal - creating a local agenda, during this time the local campaigners implemented a mini-project to inform the public about the problems and rights of people with disabilities, learned how to discuss important issues in a horizontal format (rather than to implement decisions lowered from above by inertia. They have also gained valuable experience of working in a team of interested people. - The working group gathered, we sat down together and literally spelt out the problems in the field of disability in Valozyn district. Thanks to the Polish colleagues from the TUS Foundation, we managed to formulate the goals and objectives correctly and to discuss the problems. We did not invent anything new, nothing that would require some incredible costs, this is how the process was described by one of the authors of the agenda, psychologist of the Valozyn Territorial Center of Social Service, Elena Zhdanyuk. In the center - Elena Zhdanyuk. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities According to her, thanks to the work on the agenda it turned out that the solution of many issues that are acute for people with disabilities does not require any special events and funding, a simple dialogue, but real, taking into account the views of all parties. One of the main principles of working on the local agenda was the inclusion of the local community, and first of all the main stakeholders - people with disabilities. This is a new approach for our country, said Siarhei Drazdouski, Director of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. - Usually, all documents are written in the offices of ministries, and then communicated to people. Here, the approach is reverse, a European one: first, all sentences are designed on local level, and then established in high offices. This gives the most realistic picture for the problem solving. Siarhei Drazdouski (left) and Deputy Chairman of the Valozyn District Executive Committee Igor Shakun. Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Siarhei Drazdouski stressed that such a method makes it possible to develop an action plan based on local needs and resources most effectively. In general, one of the main criteria when writing a local agenda has been the feasibility. After all, real changes need real goals, rather than even a beautifully presented, but impracticable concept. Another important point: the local agenda is not a closed document. It can and should be revised and modified based on the situation. As the Deputy Director of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Mikhail Matskevich noted, the document is written in simple language so that everyone interested could read and understand it. Failure to meet the local agenda does not provide for any penalties and sanctions. But the people who signed it take on a symbolic duty to implement this plan. For its part, the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities promised campaigners the support in meeting the agenda. However, the Valozyn residents themselves are determined to implement their plans. - I do not agree that the signing of the agenda does not commit to anything. This strategy is our two-year action plan, and I believe that we must implement it, because these are the needs of all our people, says Larysa Scarbacevic, chairman of the Valozyn branch of Belarusian association of assistance to children and young people with disabilities (BelAPDIiMI). Larysa Scarbacevic (left). Photo of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The local action plan in Valozyn was signed by the representatives of the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Valozyn Territorial Center of Social Service, a regional branch of the Belarusian Association of Visually Impaired Persons, the BelAPDIMI offices, the district executive committee, the regional organization of trade union branches, the Valozyn housing and communal department, local Administration for labour, employment and social protection. *** The material was prepared in the framework of the international project "Rights of People with Disabilities: agenda for Belarus (Agenda 50)". The campaign "Agenda 50" is being implemented with the support of the European Union in partnership with the Fundacja TUS (Poland)and the PA "European House" (Denmark). Office for the Rights of People with Disabilities, International Consortium "EuroBelarus" and Center for European Transformation participate in the campaign implementation in Belarus. The selection commission for the election of the head of the SAPO after discussions and a series of unsuccessful votes for the draft decisions on the approval of the results of the competition and the winners finished the meeting on Friday evening. At the Friday meeting, the commission once again did not approve the results of the competition, according to which NABU detective Oleksandr Klymenko received 246 points for the position of the SAPO head, and prosecutor of the PGO Andriy Syniuk received 229 points for the position of the SAPO deputy head. The draft decision, proposed by head of the commission Kateryna Koval, which was asked to approve the results of the competition, the overall rating, the candidacy of NABU detective Klymenko for the post of the SAPO head and send for approval to the PGO, did not receive support either. Koval said she had sent documents to the PGO to confirm the passage of the candidate screening, but no response had yet been received. This proposal caused a discussion, in particular, regarding the need to confirm the form of admission of the winners, which lasted for a long time. Representatives of the international community in the commission asked for a vote to approve the winner of the competition without sending it to the PGO for approval. Thus, there are winners of the competition, but technically, by voting, the results of the competition have not been approved. The Friday meeting ended, the date of the next meeting has not been set. The Pentagon is working on a plan to provide Ukraine with battlefield intelligence that could help the country more quickly respond to a possible Russian invasion, The New York Times reported, citing U.S. officials. "The number one thing we can do is real time actionable intelligence that says, 'The Russians are coming over the berm'. We tell them, and they use that to target the Russians," Evelyn Farkas, who served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia in the Obama administration, stated. "One potential problem with providing actionable intelligence, American officials acknowledge, is that it could lead Ukraine to strike first," the article reads. "The United States has been supplying Ukraine with anti-tank guided missiles called Javelins since 2018, and Mr. Biden authorized an additional Javelin delivery," according to the document. "The list of ideas being drawn up at the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House include redirecting helicopters and other military equipment once allocated for the Afghan military to Ukraine," the report says. "The administration is also considering sending additional cyberwarfare experts to Ukraine. The United States and Britain have sent some experts to shore up defenses," it says. "American and NATO officials privately dismissed the main demands of the Russian proposal, which came in the form of a draft treaty suggesting that NATO should offer written guarantees that it would not expand farther east toward Russia and halt all military activities in the former Soviet republics," the newspaper says. Pope Francis during his Christmas speech urged not to allow a conflict in Ukraine and expressed hope that in order to fulfill this goal, the parties will be able to establish a dialogue. The pontiff, speaking about Christ, explained that believers expect him to help resolve conflicts around the world. He expressed hope that there will be no new conflict in Ukraine. "Become a light and support for believers and those, also going against the current, in favor of a meeting and dialogue, and do not allow metastases of a malignant conflict to spread in Ukraine," he said, speaking with the Urbi et orbi speech ("To the city and to the world ") in the Vatican. Catholics around the world celebrate Christmas on December 25. The Pope on this day delivers a traditional message to the faithful. On Saturday, December 25 (according to the Gregorian calendar), Christmas is also celebrated by other Christian denominations, including a significant part of the Orthodox around the world. Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi attended on Thursday the Christmas mass ceremony held by the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church at the Nativity of the Christ Cathedral at the New Administrative Capital. A Lebanese mountain town home to 70,000 Syrian refugees declared a "fuel emergency" Thursday, warning that soaring heating fuel prices would spell tragedy as winter starts to bite. The last two months of the year witnessed the government revisiting its privatisation programme with the initial public offerings (IPOs) of two state-owned companies: E-finance for Digital and Financial Investments and Abu Qir Fertilisers, one of the largest local producers. The two IPOs are to be followed by others that have been promised since 2018 but have been delayed by the emerging markets slowdown and the Covid-19 pandemic. Hisham Tawfik, minister of public enterprises, said the offerings of stakes in four other state-owned companies would be completed during the first half of 2022. The IPOs pipeline, according to official statements, includes the Banque du Caire, the Ghazl Al-Mahala Sporting Club, and some military-owned and operated companies. The offerings are among many steps taken throughout the year to give more room to the private sector in the economy. After decades of the Eastern Company monopolising the market for cigarette production in Egypt, the Industrial Development Authority (IDA) is launching a call for tenders for licences to manufacture cigarettes. The government earlier this year annulled a previous decision to put a 20 per cent ceiling on foreign investments in local schools, opening the door for more private inflows into the sector. Also, The government earlier this year annulled a previous decision to put a 20 per cent ceiling on foreign investments in local schools, opening the door for more private inflows into the sector. Despite the large size of the Egyptian private sector it contributes about 72 per cent of GDP and absorbs about 78.4 per cent of employment it is a sector that faces structural challenges that limit its ability to advance development. The local private sector landscape lacks dynamism, with only three limited liability companies created annually on average for every 10,000 working-age persons, compared to an average of 20 in developing countries, according to a report by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The EBRDs study also noted that the sector is characterised by a comparatively low probability of growing and generating new jobs over time. Small and micro companies form the vast majority of private sector firms, reaching 97 per cent of the total number and providing nearly two-thirds of total paid jobs. Furthermore, private sector firms are uncompetitive, with only five per cent of Egyptian firms engaged in export activities. Poor export performance is partially sustained by the tendency of firms to focus their activities locally given the large size of the domestic market, it said. In addition, the economy is characterised by a high level of protection through tariff and non-tariff barriers, and a lack of supporting structures to facilitate firms expansion to global markets especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), that are resource-constrained. it added. On 16 November, the cabinet issued a statement noting that based on a study conducted by its Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC), the government is considering withdrawing gradually from certain sectors. The study said that in order to empower the private sector, there was a need to identify the strategic sectors that the state should continue to have a foothold in, the industries it could withdraw from gradually giving a greater role to the private sector, and the ones it could totally exit. Our goal is to provide more room for the private sector to make a larger contribution to the implementation of many of the development and service projects that are being established at this stage, the statement quoted Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli as saying. The cabinet said it would regularly review which state-owned enterprises it needs to keep in the government portfolio based on annual discussions with private businesses. There is also a plan to set up a body to supervise and manage companies that will remain in the states hands. The government still owns large parts of the economy, a fact that has been much criticised by international financial institutions calling for more private investment both local and foreign. International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief for Egypt Celine Allard told Reuters in June that the state retained a relatively significant role in the economy and sometimes state-owned enterprises had benefited from advantages. Our recommendation is to gradually reduce the role of the state in the economy in order to allow the private sector to unleash Egypts growth potential, Allard said. A World Bank study launched in early 2021 said state-owned enterprises often receive special tax exemptions and enjoy a regulatory environment that favours incumbents, causing private investors to shy away. Foreign direct investment in Egypt for the fiscal year ending in June 2021 declined by 30 per cent year on year to $5.2 billion due to the pandemic. The level of foreign investments in the stock market is also worrying, with foreigners being net sellers since September 2020. The return of foreign investors needs a strong pipeline of IPOs, investor-focused programmes, and a strong regulatory framework, noted a report by Al-Ahly Pharos, a local investment bank. Egypt has not attracted the strong private investment that would help reduce poverty and absorb an estimated 800,000 workers entering the labour force every year, according to the World Bank report. Financial institutions and local observers believe that the states withdrawal from some aspects of the economy would end the perception that the state and military companies are crowding out private investment. More importantly, a wider role for the private sector especially in infrastructure projects would help bridge the infrastructure gap in Egypt that the World Bank put at $230 billion over the coming 20 years. Some $180 billion of the projected gap is in transport, while water infrastructure needs $45 billion in investment above current baseline projections. Egyptian lawmakers in mid-November approved amendments to public-private partnership (PPP) regulations in Egypt that could open the door for the private sector to partner with the government in transport, energy, communications, and healthcare projects in a smoother way as compared to the previously used competitive bidding process. The partnerships are to cover all phases of projects starting with designing, financing, and maintenance. While the original PPP law was passed in 2010, there were some successful PPP projects in Egypt before that. Mobinil Egypt, for example, the countrys first mobile operator, now totally in private hands and known as Orange, was a PPP project. National projects launched in 1996 like the Tahrir Garage, the Marsa Alam Airport, the Al-Alamain International Airport, the Sidi Krir power plant, the Fayoum-Aswan Highway, and the Khargah-Sharik Al-Ouynat Highway were all projects accomplished through partnerships between the state and private companies. One of the most successful PPP projects in Egypt so far has been the $4.3 billion Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), which started operations last year and is capable of producing 4.7 million tons of refined oil products and derivatives per year. But there are hurdles limiting private-sector growth, the World Bank said. The presence of state-owned enterprises in almost every sector of the economy feeds a perception of widespread activity and even overstretch, and the multitude of laws under which they operate makes it difficult for investors to assess their weight in the economy, their market share, and whether they operate under the same conditions as private-sector firms, it said. The widespread presence of state-owned enterprises across the economy affects competition and distorts market outcomes, the World Bank said. It also underscores the poor performance of the commercial justice system, which increases investment risks and disproportionately affects smaller enterprises. The weak enforcement of contracts further compounds Egypts lack of a transparent, streamlined, and predictable regulatory environment, the World Bank said. Another important shortcoming, according to the report, is the lack of a clear separation between the states regulatory, policy, and operational bodies in certain markets, a fact which creates an inherent conflict of interest. The report gave the example of the ICT sector, where the incumbent operator Telecom Egypt (TE), which holds a dominant market position, and the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), the regulator, operate under the oversight of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, which is charged with setting policy for the whole sector. The state has to be a regulator, not an owner of economic activity. Naguib Sawiris, a business mogul whose family owns businesses in telecom, tourism, and construction sectors, told AFP in an inerview in November. Theres still competition from the government, so foreign investors are a bit scared off. I myself dont even bid when I see government firms (in the race) because its not a level-playing field. *A version of this article appears in print in the 23 December, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly. Search Keywords: Short link: The biblical town of Bethlehem marked its second straight Christmas Eve under the shadow of the coronavirus, with small crowds and gray, gloomy weather dampening celebrations Friday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus. A ban on nearly all incoming air traffic by Israel, the main entry point for foreign visitors heading to the occupied West Bank, kept international tourists away for a second consecutive year. The ban is meant to slow the spread of the highly contagious omicron variant, which has shaken Christmas celebrations around the world. Instead, local authorities were counting on the Holy Land's small Christian community to lift spirits. It was a theme seen around the world as revelers, weary from nearly two years of lockdowns and safety restrictions, searched for ways to revive customs and celebrate safely with loved ones. In Germany, a Cologne cathedral held a special Christmas vaccination campaign. In the Philippines, people wore masks as they did their last-minute shopping, and in France, hospital workers decorated a Christmas tree in an intensive-care unit. Mask mandates and lockdowns kept celebrations subdued in many countries, and hospitals were filled with patients. Bethlehem's mayor, Anton Salman, said the town was optimistic that 2021 would be better than last year's Christmas, when even local residents stayed home due to lockdown restrictions. Bethlehem planned a return of its traditional marching band parades and street celebrations. ``Last year, our festival was virtual, but this year it will be face to face with popular participation,'' Salman said. Police erected barricades early Friday as scout bands marched through Manger Square banging drums and holding flags ahead of the expected arrival from Jerusalem of Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the top Roman Catholic clergyman in the Holy Land. ``I hope that this COVID will finish,'' Pizzaballa said as he left Jerusalem, saying there needs to be a balance between public health and community life. ``We need pilgrims to bring us the life in our communities,'' he said. ``We need to find this balance and we are all working for this because it's very sad to see the Old City (of Jerusalem) almost empty.'' Pizzaballa was scheduled to celebrate Midnight Mass at the nearby Church of the Nativity _ which houses the grotto where Christians believe Jesus was born. By midday, several hundred people, nearly all of them Palestinians, milled about behind the barricades to celebrate the occasion. Before the pandemic, Bethlehem would host thousands of Christian pilgrims from around the world, bringing a strong dose of holiday spirit to the town and a huge jolt to the local economy. In early November, Israel lifted a year and a half ban that had kept most foreign tourists out of the area. But weeks later, it was forced to re-impose the restrictions as the omicron variant began to spread worldwide, dashing the hopes of the local tourism sector. Tourism is the lifeblood of Bethlehem's economy, and the lack of visitors has hit hotels, restaurants and gift shops especially hard. ``Under normal conditions for this time of year, I usually have a 20-meter queue outside,'' said Adil Abu Nayaf, owner of an empty food stall in Manger Square. Those who attended tried to make the best of a difficult situation. The Holy Land is home to over 200,000 Christians, a small but tight-knit community that makes up an estimated 1% to 2% of the population in Israel and the occupied West Bank. There are also thousands of foreign laborers and African migrants, as well as diplomats and journalists. Billy Stuart, an employee at the British Consulate in Jerusalem, said his experience in Bethlehem was uplifting, despite the smaller-than-hoped-for crowds. ``The parade is amazing and I did not realize there were so many Palestinian bag pipers,'' he said. In the French Mediterranean city of Marseille, the intensive care unit at La Timone Hospital has been taking in more and more COVID-19 patients as the holidays approached. Amelie Khayat has been paying daily visits to her husband Ludo, 41, who is recovering from spending 24 days in a coma and on a breathing machine. They touched their heads together as she sat on his bed, and now that he's strong enough to stand, he stood to give her a farewell hug. In a nearby room, another patient lay unconscious, her son's winter hat placed on her belly. In another, a Christian icon lay propped on the virus patient's tray, left by his family. Down the hall, Katy Zalinian waited anxiously to visit her cousin; later, suited up, she entered his room and touched her hand lovingly to his leg. Outside, a medical worker put final decorations on the ICU Christmas tree. Search Keywords: Short link: Several Libyan parliamentary candidates called for nationwide protests over the cancellation of a long-awaited presidential election, a blow to hopes to end a decade of chaos in the oil-rich North African country. While it was unclear to what extent Libyans would demonstrate publicly, the call underlines risks to a fragile stability in oil-rich Libya, still riven by an east-west divide and a haven for foreign and domestic militias. Libya's election commission has proposed Jan. 24 as a new date for the presidential poll, which was originally to be followed by parliamentary elections on Feb. 15. But no dates have been officially set or agreed upon by the country's rival factions. ``Do not be passive. Take to the streets and express your opinion. Force them to respect your will,'' wrote AlSalhen AlNihoom, a parliamentary candidate from the eastern city of Benghazi, on his Facebook page. Many parliamentary hopefuls have circulated a poster calling for rallies on what they dubbed ``Salvation Friday.'' The poster listed the demands of protesters, namely to set Jan. 24 as a final deadline for the poll. Earlier this week, some fifty parliamentary hopefuls denounced the cancellation of the vote, insisting in a joint statement that the commission should fix another final date for holding it. The statement called on Libyans to take to the streets to defend their ``right to a safe, stable and sovereign'' country. For nearly a year, the planned election was the lynchpin of international efforts to bring peace to Libya. But with several well-known figures, including the son of ousted dictator Moammar Gadhafi, declaring candidacy despite officials bans, the election commission never published a list of accepted candidates. Many observers had warned that either scenario, holding the vote on time or postponing it, would be a destabilizing setback. On Thursday, UN Secretary General Antoni Guterres said that elections should be held ``in the appropriate conditions,'' according to a statement issued by his spokesperson. The UN top diplomat vowed that his organization will continue to support Libyan efforts to overcome challenges and hold both presidential and parliamentary elections as soon as possible. Libya plunged into turmoil after the 2011 uprising that culminated into the overthrow and killing of longtime strongman Gadhafi. Eventually, the country split between rival governments, one in the east, backed by military commander Khalifa Hifter, and another U.N.-supported administration in the capital of Tripoli, in the west. Each side is supported by a variety of militias and foreign powers. In April 2019, Hifter and his forces launched an offensive to try and capture Tripoli. His campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support of the Tripoli government with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries. Mediated by the United Nations, an October 2020 cease-fire led to the formation of a transitional government with elections scheduled for Dec. 24. The fate of that government is now unclear; the parliamentary committee said the government's mandate ends on Friday. *This story was edited by Ahram Online. Search Keywords: Short link: A Moscow court on Friday slapped Google with an unprecedented fine of nearly $100 million, while Meta (formerly Facebook) received a fine of $27 million. In recent years Russia has been piling pressure on Western social media giants, with President Vladimir Putin saying those companies were becoming as influential as elected governments. Moscow has repeatedly taken legal action against them for allegedly not moderating their content properly and interfering in the country's affairs. But so far fines on Facebook parent company Meta and Google have stretched into the tens of millions of rubles, not billions. However on Friday a Moscow court fined Google a record 7.2 billion rubles ($98 million), while Meta (formerly Facebook) received a fine of 1.9 billion rubles ($27 million) for repeatedly failing to delete illegal content. "For the first time, a Russian court has imposed fines that make up a share of the annual revenue of these companies in Russia," Russia's state communications regulator Roskomnadzor said in a statement. The regulator said that Google and Meta had "ignored multiple demands" to remove materials that incite religious hatred and promote views of "extremist and terrorist organisations", among other violations. Over the past few years, the Russian government has used the pretext of protecting minors and fighting extremism to crack down on dissent and control the Russian segment of the web. It has also begun developing a so-called sovereign internet that can operate independently. Kremlin critics have accused authorities of muzzling independent media, saying now the government is zeroing in on the internet, considered the last bastion of free speech in Russia. The Western media giants have denied any violations in the past. "We'll study the court documents and then decide on next steps," Google's press service told AFP on Friday. There was no immediate comment from Meta. On Thursday, Twitter was handed its latest fine of three million rubles ($40,000) after authorities started throttling its services in the spring. Fines and threats Ahead of parliamentary elections in September, Russia's media watchdog blocked dozes of websites linked to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, whose organisations have been outlawed in Russia as "extremist". The regulator also ordered Google and Apple to remove an app dedicated to Navalny's "Smart Voting" campaign which advised supporters who to vote for to unseat Kremlin-aligned politicians. The Silicon Valley giants complied, with sources telling AFP the decisions came after authorities threatened to arrest local staff. Russia's media regulator has also blocked dozens of websites linked to Navalny. During protests in support of Navalny last winter, Russian authorities accused platforms including Google's YouTube and Twitter of meddling in Russia's domestic affairs by not deleting posts calling for people to join the rallies. Putin at the time complained that large technology companies were competing with states. Russia has already blocked a number of websites that have refused to cooperate with authorities, such as the video platform Dailymotion and LinkedIn. As part of broad efforts to bend foreign social media under its control, Russia in September banned six major VPN providers including Nord VPN and Express VPN. Russia also introduced a new law demanding that smartphones, computers and other gadgets sold in the country come with pre-installed domestic software and apps. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt reported 811 new coronavirus cases on Friday bringing the total infection tally officially to 379,654 since the outbreak began in February 2020. Egypts Health Ministry said in its daily coronavirus statement that 36 new deaths related to COVID-19 complications were recorded in the past 24 hours nationwide, bringing the total number of deaths from the virus to 21,546. The statement added that 902 patients have been discharged after recovering from the virus, bringing the total number of recoveries to 379,654. On Thursday, Egypt witnessed a significant drop in coronavirus-related deaths. According to the health ministry counts, 10 deaths were reported on the day, the lowest in the country in more than three months. This comes as the fourth coronavirus wave has not reached its peak in Egypt yet, according to presidential adviser for Health Affairs Mohamed Awad Tag El-Din. Since the beginning of its vaccination campaign in January, Egypt has administered 53.8 million coronavirus jabs with 20 million citizens being fully immunised, the health ministry said on Thursday. An average of 350,000 doses is administered daily, the ministry noted. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt condemned on Saturday the despicable terrorist attack by Yemens Houthi militia on the southern Saudi Jazan region, expressing solidarity with the kingdom. A Saudi citizen and a Yemeni resident were killed as a military projectile landed in Samtah governorate in Jazan region on Friday, Lt. Col. Mohammed Al-Hammad, the official spokesperson for the Saudi General Directorate of Civil Defense said. Flying shrapnel from the projectile, which fell on a commercial store in the governorate, also injured six Saudi citizens and a Bangladeshi resident and damaged two shops and 12 vehicles. Egypt reaffirms its support and solidarity with the kingdom in facing such despicable terrorist attacks that represent a flagrant violation of the international law and a blatant threat to security and stability in the region, the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a statement. The ministry also reiterated Egypts support to the measures taken by the kingdom to protect the Saudi security and stability, highlighting the firm link between the national security of both countries. The Egyptian government and people also extend condolences and sympathy to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the relatives of the innocent victims, wishing the injured a speedy recovery, the ministry added. The Iran-backed Houthi militias have launched a total of 702 attacks against Saudi Arabia during the first nine months of 2021, more than double their pace last year, said a report by the Washington-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies on Tuesday. Yemen's civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis took Sanaa and much of the northern part of the country, forcing an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia to intervene. The war in Yemen has deteriorated into a stalemate, killing more than 130,000 people, civilians and fighters, and spawning the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Search Keywords: Short link: Sudanese security forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters in Khartoum on Saturday as demonstrators once again took to the streets in the country's capital and elsewhere to denounce the October military power grab. Thousands rallied since earlier in the day, even as authorities tightened security across Khartoum, deploying troops and closing all bridges over the Nile River linking the capital with its twin city of Omdurman and the district of Bahri, the state-run SUNA news agency reported. Authorities had warned protesters against approaching sovereign and strategic sites in central Khartoum _ a reference to main government buildings and key institutions. The city's Security Committee said Sudanese forces would deal with chaos and violations, SUNA had reported. The marches started in different locations, from where the protesters meant to converge on the presidential palace. Security forces used tear gas to disperse those attempting to approach the palace, said activist Nazim Sirag. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Rallies were also underway in other cities, including Wad Madani and Atbara. Last weekend, security forces violently dispersed demonstrators when they attempted to stage a sit-in near the presidential palace. At least three protesters were killed, and more than 300 were wounded on Sunday. There were also allegations of sexual violence, including rape and gang rape by security forces against female protesters, according to the United Nations. Volker Perthes, the U.N. special envoy for Sudan, urged security forces to ``protect'' the planned protests, and refrain from arresting people for simply wanting to take part in the demonstrations. Freedom of expression is a human right. This includes full access to the internet. No one should be arrested for his or her intention to protest peacefully, he said in a Twitter post. Ahead of the demonstrations Saturday, activists reported disruption of internet access on phones in Khartoum, a tactic that had been used by the generals when they seized power on Oct. 25. Advocacy group NetBlocks said Sudan was experiencing mobile internet disruptions early Saturday. The mechanism appears similar or identical to that used during the October post-power grab blackout, Alp Toker, the group's director, told The Associated Press. The government did not comment on the disruptions. The October military takeover upended a fragile planned transition to democratic rule and led to relentless street demonstrations across Sudan. At least 47 people were killed and hundreds wounded in protests triggered by the power grab, according to a tally by a Sudanese medical group. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, a former U.N. official seen as the civilian face of Sudan's transitional government, was reinstated last month amid international pressure in a deal that calls for an independent technocratic Cabinet under military oversight led by him. That deal, however, was rejected by the pro-democracy movement, which insists that power be handed over to a fully civilian government tasked with leading the transition. The prime minister is continuing discussions on finding a way out of the political deadlock. He met Friday with leaders of the country's largest Umma Party, his office said. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt's House of Representatives will get down to business this week, devoting sessions on Sunday and Monday to discuss amendments to five laws regulating the performance of art-centric syndicates, private funds, renewable energy, and public universities. The House's schedule of debate will also include two foreign agreements on oil exploration in the Gulf of Suez and the Western Desert. On Sunday, the House will discuss amendments to the law regulating the performance of the Union of Syndicates of Acting, Cinema, and Musical Professions (Law 35/1978). A report prepared by the House's Culture and Media Committee said the amendments are meant to double the revenues of the three art-centric syndicates to be able to take care of the social and health needs of its members. "The amendments also seek to help the three syndicates raise the cultural and artistic level of those involved in acting, cinema, and musical activities," said the report, indicating that "to achieve this end, the syndicates will have judicial powers to crack down on substandard artists who exercise low standard and indecent artistic activities without prior licence, and stipulate that those who wish to work in the field of acting, cinema, and music get a licence from the concerned syndicate." The House will also discuss a draft law allowing the state treasury to obtain a part of the proceeds of private funds and surplus money gained by public institutions on 30 June 2021. A parliamentary report said the new legislative move aims to support the state budget in order to be able to meet the country's economic and social needs. On Monday, the House will discuss two laws: Law 102/1986 regulates the performance of the Renewable Energy Authority; Law 203/2014 provides incentives to encourage the generation of electricity from renewable energy sources. Monday's schedule will also include amending Law 49/1972 regulating universities, with the objective of doubling the financial award granted to professors when they reach the retirement age and become emeritus professors. Minister of Education Tarek Shawki is scheduled to arrive in parliament on Tuesday to answer questions on the problems of the 2021/22 school year. The session was slated for 14 December, but Shawki put it off because he was attending an education conference in the UAE. Shawki will have to answer 69 "discussion requests" and seven questions on the poor financial conditions of school teachers, the crumbling state of many school buildings, overcrowded classrooms, and the chronic shortage in the number of qualified teachers. MPs complained that Shawki's policies have made school curricula difficult for students to understand. They referred in particular to the fourth grade curriculum in elementary schools, insisting it is very difficult for students to study and for teachers to teach. MPs also complained that Shawki's decision this month to cancel the division of high school's third year into science and mathematics departments took them by surprise and resulted in confusion for Thanaweya Amma (high school) students and their families. Shawki will also have to answer three "discussion requests" and 12 questions from MPs on the dramatic rise in the fees of government and private schools. A number of MPs, such as Deputy Chairman of the Human Rights Committee Mohamed Abdel-Aziz, criticised Shawki for instructing the ministry not to give books to students unless they pay school fees first. Abdel-Aziz said Shawki's orders violate Article 19 of the constitution, which states that education is free for all citizens. Other MPs, such as Mostaqbal Watan Party member Hanaa Farouk, complained that the education ministry has increased school fees beyond the financial capacity of low and average-income families. "This also comes at a time Minister Shawki gave private language and international schools a free hand to increase school fees," said Farouk. Shawki will answer 10 questions on the poor quality of meals offered to students in government schools. Several students in a number of governorates were taken to hospitals this month after having substandard school meals. Questions on the crumbling state of many school buildings and the lack of funding to hire teachers will also be directed to Shawki. Search Keywords: Short link: Iran has no plans to enrich uranium beyond 60 percent if nuclear talks in Vienna fail, the head of the country's atomic agency said on Saturday. Atomic Energy Organization of Iran director Mohammad Eslami said the enrichment levels were related to the needs of the country, in remarks published by the Russian news agency RIA Novosti. "Our targets related to enriching uranium are meeting our industrial and production needs... and those of our people," he was quoted as saying. Asked whether Iran plans to enrich beyond 60 percent purity if the talks fail, he said "No". Eslami was speaking ahead of the resumption on Monday of talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Iran's arch-rival Israel, which staunchly opposes the nuclear deal, had reportedly warned in November that the Islamic republic had taken the technical steps to prepare to enrich uranium to military-grade levels of around 90 percent. Tehran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes. The 2015 deal offered Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme, but was derailed in 2018 when the US unilaterally withdrew under then president Donald Trump. Other parties to the deal have taken part in the talks, but the United States has only engaged indirectly. While the US and its Western allies have repeatedly called on Iran to offer assurances on its nuclear programme, Tehran has insisted sanctions must be lifted first. US negotiator Rob Malley on Tuesday warned of a "period of escalating crisis" if diplomacy failed to restore the agreement. In his interview with RIA Novosti, Eslami said Iran's nuclear activities comply with the regulations of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency. The IAEA recently expressed concerns over Iran's stockpile of highly-enriched uranium, however. Search Keywords: Short link: Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreed on Saturday on the importance of intensifying efforts and mutual coordination to settle the Libyan crisis and help the Libyan people achieve a better future. Speaking over the phone, the two leaders stressed the necessity of "combating and undermining armed militias and terrorist organisations, and put an end to illegal foreign interference in Libyan affairs," a statement by Egyptian Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said. El-Sisi stressed to Putin that Egypt will continue its efforts to bring the views of the Libyan parties closer so Libya can "overcome the current transitional phase and activate the free will of the brotherly Libyan people to choose their leaders and representatives." Saturday's call comes as Libyas long-awaited presidential elections, originally set for Friday, were postponed. Organisers have suggested a new date of 24 January, but no official decision has been made. Earlier this year, Libya elected an executive authority to rule the country until elections, originally secluded this month, are held. The poll, the culmination of a United Nations-led process agreed upon to end 10 years of turmoil that have wracked Libya following the ouster and killing of president Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, was delayed due to disagreements over the legal basis for the vote given procedural delays. Egypt, which shares a 1,200 km border with Libya, has been diligently working to help restore security and stability in the neighbouring country. El-Sisi expressed Cairo's aspiration to deepen Egyptian-Russian ties at all levels, highlighting key projects between both countries, most notably Egypts Dabaa nuclear power plant and the Russian Industrial Zone in the Suez Canal. The Egyptian president said such projects firm up the comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and Russia and promote friendship ties and bilateral cooperation in the interest of the two peoples. President Putin said his country is keen to develop relations with Egypt under the framework of partnership and strategic cooperation, according to the statement. Russian nuclear energy corporation Rosatom is implementing the Dabaa plant in Matrouh governorate, in the north of Egypt, under an agreement signed between Egypt and Russia in 2015. The plant is expected to begin producing power in 2026. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi urged the legalisation of unlicensed factories nationwide on Saturday, pledging support for the owners of these factories to enlarge their industries within a legal framework. Do not think that the country seeks to strive for taxes or nitpick the goal of our move is construction not accountability, El-Sisi said, affirming that the interior ministry announces detecting and taking measures against these factories every day. The president made the remarks during an inauguration ceremony of a series of national projects in various sectors in the Upper Egyptian governorate of Qena. He also urged moving these factories to the nearest industrial areas to continue their business within a legal framework. Those people [working in the factories] have tried to work and even if they did it in a wrong way, we would make it right, El-Sisi said. The president urged the ministries of interior and industry to collect data about the number of unlicensed factories to assess the possibility of legalising their status. El-Sisi also inaugurated via video conference two industrial complexes in Upper Egypts Luxor and Beni Suef as part of 13 industrial complexes the state is implementing nationwide, including 10 in Upper Egypt. The Luxor complex consists of 206 units worth EGP 817 million and is set to secure 20 investment opportunities, Minister of Industry Nevine Gamea said during the ceremony. The Beni Suef complex comprises 266 units at a cost of EGP 901 million and will secure 25 investment opportunities, she added. The president also inaugurated a number of roads and axes, including axes that link industrial and agricultural areas in Upper Egypt across the river. The inaugurated axes are Adly Mansour axis in Beni Suef, Qus axis in Qena, Samalut axis in Minya, Kalabsha axis in Aswan, and Dayrout axis in Assiut. Egypt has implemented national projects worth EGP 6.2 trillion in all sectors over the past seven years, said El-Sisi. Since 2014, Egypt has planned to construct 22 new axes over the Nile at a cost of EGP 38 billion, Minister of Transportation Kamel El-Wazir said during the ceremony, adding that the construction of 13 axes has been completed. By 2024, the state plans to add 60 axes and bridges, including 38 in Upper Egypt, he said. The inauguration of the national projects comes within the framework of the "Week of Upper Egypt" activities announced last week as part of the states efforts to achieve an integrated developmental and service progress for the people of Upper Egypt, Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said. The projects also seek to create direct and indirect job opportunities, Rady added. On Wednesday, El-Sisi inaugurated a gasoline production complex in Assiut as well as a number of development projects in Upper Egypt. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and a large number of ministers have attended the inauguration ceremony. A total of 3,589 local development projects were completed over the past seven years in the Upper Egyptian governorates of Qena and Sohag, said Minister of Local Development Mahmoud Shaarawy during the ceremony. Since 2014, the state has pumped investments worth around EGP 54 billion in local development programs in Upper Egypt, the minister added. The ministry has also secured 269,000 job opportunities in Upper Egypt with a total investment of up to EGP 9.4 billion. Search Keywords: Short link: Two people were killed in Saudi Arabia in a projectile attack blamed on Yemen's Huthi rebels, while three died in Yemen in a Riyadh-led coalition air strike, officials said Saturday. Yemen has been wracked by civil war since 2014, pitting Iran-backed Huthi rebels against the internationally-recognised government, supported by the Saudi-led military coalition. Saudi's civil defence said that two people, one Saudi and the other Yemeni, were killed and seven others wounded in a projectile attack on Jazan, a southern region of Saudi Arabia bordering Yemen. "A military projectile fell on a commercial store on the main street, resulting in two deaths," it said in a statement. Seven others were wounded, six Saudis and a Bangladeshi national, it added. In Yemen, medics said three people were killed and six others were injured in Saudi-led coalition air strikes in Ajama, a town northwest of the rebel-held capital Sanaa. "Three civilians including a child and a woman were killed, and six others were wounded," medics told AFP. Yemen's Huthis regularly launch missiles and drones into neighbouring Saudi Arabia targeting its airports and oil infrastructure. But the latest incident marks the first time in months that Huthi attacks on Saudi have resulted in fatalities. The UN estimates Yemen's war will have claimed 377,000 lives by the end of the year through both direct and indirect impacts. More than 80 percent of Yemen's population of about 30 million requires humanitarian assistance. Search Keywords: Short link: Sudan restricted internet ahead of planned mass protests Saturday against a military power grab, as security forces deployed across Khartoum blocking key bridges connecting the capital to the suburbs. Khartoum's state governor has warned that security forces "will deal with those who break the law and create chaos". Activists, who use the internet for organising recent mass demonstrations, had planned the latest in a series of street protests for Saturday -- two months on since generals launched their October 25 takeover. Military chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan held civilian leader Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok under effective house arrest for weeks, but reinstated him on November 21. The move alienated many of Hamdok's pro-democracy supporters, who dismissed it as providing a cloak of legitimacy for Burhan's power grab. Protesters online have called for fresh rallies, encouraging supporters with the slogans "no negotiations" with the army, and demanding "the soldiers back to barracks". But bridges connecting Khartoum across the Nile river to the cities of Omdurman and North Khartoum were blocked since Friday evening. Security forces also blocked the main streets in central Khartoum where the protest organisers were planning to hold the demonstrations. Recent protests have seen thousands gather at key government buildings, including outside parliament, the presidential palace and the army headquarters. Khartoum's governor warned that "approaching or attacking buildings of strategic sovereignty is punishable by law". At least 48 people have died in crackdowns on protesters since the military takeover, according to the independent Doctors' Committee, with security forces firing live bullets and tear gas canisters. Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries, has a long history of military coups, enjoying only rare interludes of democratic rule since independence in 1956. Over 14 million people, a third of Sudan's population, will need humanitarian aid next year, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the highest level for a decade. Search Keywords: Short link: The biblical town of Bethlehem marked its second straight Christmas Eve under the shadow of the coronavirus -- with small crowds and gray, gloomy weather dampening celebrations Friday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus. A ban on nearly all incoming air traffic by Israel -- the main entry point for foreign visitors heading to the occupied West Bank -- kept international tourists away for a second consecutive year. The ban is meant to slow the spread of the highly contagious omicron variant, which has shaken Christmas celebrations around the world. Instead, local authorities were counting on the Holy Land's small Christian community to lift spirits. Bethlehem's mayor, Anton Salman, said the town was optimistic that 2021 would be better than last year's Christmas, when even local residents stayed home due to lockdown restrictions. Bethlehem planned a return of its traditional marching band parades and street celebrations. ``Last year, our festival was virtual, but this year it will be face to face with popular participation,'' Salman said. Police erected barricades early Friday as scout bands marched through Manger Square banging drums and holding flags ahead of the expected arrival from Jerusalem of Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the top Roman Catholic clergyman in the Holy Land. ``I hope that this COVID will finish,'' Pizzaballa said as he left Jerusalem, saying there needs to be a balance between public health and community life. ``We need pilgrims to bring us the life in our communities,'' he said. ``We need to find this balance and we are all working for this because it's very sad to see the Old City (of Jerusalem) almost empty.'' Pizzaballa was scheduled to celebrate Midnight Mass at the nearby Church of the Nativity _ which houses the grotto where Christians believe Jesus was born. By midday, several hundred people, nearly all of them Palestinians, milled about behind the barricades to celebrate the occasion. Before the pandemic, Bethlehem would host thousands of Christian pilgrims from around the world, bringing a strong dose of holiday spirit to the town and a huge jolt to the local economy. In early November, Israel lifted a year and a half ban that had kept most foreign tourists out of the area. But weeks later, it was forced to re-impose the restrictions as the omicron variant began to spread worldwide, dashing the hopes of the local tourism sector. Tourism is the lifeblood of Bethlehem's economy, and the lack of visitors has hit hotels, restaurants and gift shops especially hard. ``Under normal conditions for this time of year, I usually have a 20-meter queue outside,'' said Adil Abu Nayaf, owner of an empty food stall in Manger Square. Those who attended tried to make the best of a difficult situation. The Holy Land is home to over 200,000 Christians, a small but tight-knit community that makes up an estimated 1% to 2% of the population in Israel and the occupied West Bank. There are also thousands of foreign laborers and African migrants, as well as diplomats and journalists. Billy Stuart, an employee at the British Consulate in Jerusalem, said his experience in Bethlehem was uplifting, despite the smaller-than-hoped-for crowds. ``The parade is amazing and I did not realize there were so many Palestinian bag pipers,'' he said. In the French Mediterranean city of Marseille, the intensive care unit at La Timone Hospital has been taking in more and more COVID-19 patients as the holidays approached. Amelie Khayat has been paying daily visits to her husband Ludo, 41, who is recovering from spending 24 days in a coma and on a breathing machine. They touched their heads together as she sat on his bed, and now that he's strong enough to stand, he stood to give her a farewell hug. In a nearby room, another patient lay unconscious, her son's winter hat placed on her belly. In another, a Christian icon lay propped on the virus patient's tray, left by his family. Down the hall, Katy Zalinian waited anxiously to visit her cousin; later, suited up, she entered his room and touched her hand lovingly to his leg. Outside, a medical worker put final decorations on the ICU Christmas tree. Search Keywords: Short link: Tunisian coastguards have rescued 48 illegal migrants trying to reach Europe from neighbouring Libya in a makeshift boat, the North African country's Red Crescent said on Saturday. Red Crescent official Mongi Slim said the migrants were intercepted and rescued off Zarzis when their boat broke down. Libya, which plunged into civil war following the 2011 toppling and killing of leader Moamer Gaddafi, has become a major route for migrants seeking to reach Europe to escape poverty and conflict. The rescued migrants were taken to El Ketef port before being transferred to International Organization for Migration (IOM) premises, Slim said. A separate Tunisian defence ministry statement said the navy had rescued 28 migrants aged between 14 and 33 off Zarzis on Thursday. They had also departed from Libya. The IOM says that 23,000 people have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean since 2014 while trying to reach Europe -- including nearly 1,700 this year. On Tuesday the IOM said at least 160 migrants drowned off Libya's coast after their boats sank over the previous week. The Italian island of Lampedusa is located just 140 kilometres (less than 90 miles) from Tunisian shores. Search Keywords: Short link: Over 4,500 flights were cancelled around the world by Saturday and thousands more were delayed as the highly infectious Omicron variant disrupted holiday travel, according to tracking website Flightaware. One route, however, was thankfully not affected: Santa was on track delivering presents to children across the globe, air defense officials assured US President Joe Biden. According to Flightaware.com, at least 2,000 flights were cancelled worldwide on Christmas Day, including roughly 700 originating from or headed to US airports, with more than 1,500 delays as of 0720 GMT. On Friday, there were around 2,400 cancellations and almost 11,000 delays. The site also reported over 600 cancellations for Sunday. Pilots, flight attendants and other staff have been calling in sick or having to quarantine after exposure to Covid, forcing Lufthansa, Delta, United Airlines and many other carriers to cancel flights during one of the year's peak travel periods. Flightaware data showed United cancelled around 200 flights on both Friday and Saturday, or 10 percent of those that were scheduled. "The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation," United said in a statement on Friday. "As a result, we've unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport," the airline said, adding that it was working to rebook passengers. Similarly, Delta cancelled at least 260 flights Saturday and around 170 on Friday, saying it has "exhausted all options and resources -- including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying." "We apologize to our customers for the delay in their holiday travel plans," the company said. Eleven Alaska Airlines flights were axed, after employees said they were potentially exposed to Covid-19 and had to self-isolate in quarantine. The cancellations added to the pandemic frustration for many Americans eager to reunite with their families over the holidays, after last year's Christmas was severely curtailed. Chinese airlines accounted for the highest number of cancellations with China Eastern scrapping around 480 flights or over 20 percent of it's flight plan, and Air China grounding 15 percent of its total scheduled departures at around 0720 GMT Saturday. Huge travel bump According to estimates from the American Automobile Association, more than 109 million Americans were scheduled to travel by plane, train or automobile between December 23 and January 2, a 34 percent increase since last year. But most of those plans were made before the outbreak of the Omicron variant, which has become the dominant strain in the United States, overwhelming some hospitals and healthcare workers. Luckily, Omicron did not affect Santa's travel plans, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which has tracked St. Nick's Christmas journey for over 60 years. Major General Eric Kenny, commander of the Canadian NORAD region, told AFP that Santa had distributed over two billion gifts and was above Pakistan around 1800 GMT. "Santa is doing very well so far," Kenny said. "He's been at it for many hours already and will go throughout the evening as well." Biden and First Lady Jill Biden also spoke to NORAD officials via video conference Friday to ensure Father Christmas' trip was going smoothly. Biden then spoke, also via video call, to several American families, asking children what presents they wanted and telling them that they had to be in bed before midnight, otherwise Santa would not come. But in a sign of deep political divisions plaguing American society, the event then took a sour turn, when a father, to whom Biden had just wished happy holidays, launched an insult at him. According to journalists present at the event, the father said "Merry Christmas" followed by "Let's go Brandon!" The phrase has been used by supporters of Donald Trump as a euphemism for a derogatory remark against the current president. Search Keywords: Short link: KYODO NEWS - Dec 26, 2021 - 20:07 | All, Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is considering addressing by video a U.N. nuclear nonproliferation meeting in January, giving up on an earlier plan to attend the event in person, government sources said Sunday. In the video address to the conference starting Jan. 4 to review the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Kishida is expected to express his determination to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons, the sources said. The sources attributed the Japanese leader's decision not to travel to New York for an NPT Review Conference to surging cases of the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus in the United States. It is rare for a national leader to address an NPT review meeting, even by video, because leaders usually do not take part in the event. Usually, a foreign minister or a senior vice foreign minister represents Japan at the U.N. conference, held every five years to assess the progress on nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation. Kishida, a House of Representatives member elected from the atomic-bombed city of Hiroshima, attended the last session as foreign minister in 2015. This time, Kishida plans to send Minoru Terada, his special adviser on nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation, to the NPT meeting, tasking him to take a leadership role in adopting a final document that the last session failed to do due to disagreements among participating countries. The gathering was initially due to take place in 2020 but was postponed in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Related coverage: U.S. urges Japan not to join nuclear ban treaty meeting: sources U.N. adopts Japan's anti-nuke resolution for 28th straight year Germany to observe nuke ban talks in policy shift under new gov't KYODO NEWS - Dec 25, 2021 - 21:24 | All, Japan, Coronavirus The number of consultations from people facing financial difficulties in Japan more than doubled in the first half of fiscal 2021 from the prepandemic level in 2019, according to preliminary data compiled by the welfare ministry. The sharp increase in the April-September period apparently reflects rising numbers of consultations from those who lost their jobs or suffered pay cuts in a fifth wave of coronavirus infections this past summer. People in need are given free food bags by a non-profit organization at a park in Tokyo's Ikebukuro area on Oct. 23, 2021. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo Welfare offices designated by about 900 municipalities across the country received a total of 307,072 consultations in the given period, up from 124,439 in the corresponding period in 2019, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. During the fifth wave, Japan logged a record number of COVID-19 cases, prompting the government to issue a fresh state of emergency in several prefectures. About 43,000 people had been laid off or had their employment terminated this year due to the pandemic, according to government data. With the number of infections of the Omicron variant rising, the ministry has called for local authorities to offer support to people in need, such as helping them find accommodation, even during the year-end and New Year holiday when many public facilities close. While the latest figure was down from the first half of fiscal 2020 and the employment situation has been showing signs of improvement, lodging and restaurant businesses that hire many female and nonregular workers are still being hit heavily by the virus. Municipalities handle requests for advice from people in need via welfare offices as safety net measures before they require livelihood protection by authorities. "We have seen an apparent increase in the number of consultations from women," said Koichi Kurosawa, a senior official at the National Confederation of Trade Unions that represents about 1.2 million workers in Japan. National Police Agency data showed that while the number of suicides among men decreased in 2021 from a year earlier, the number of women taking their lives has stayed at the same level. A Tokyo-based nonprofit organization that caters to people in poverty said it has seen more people seeking food compared with last year as the pandemic forced them to use up their savings or hit them mentally. "There are people who do not understand they are eligible to receive support because they have never experienced falling into poverty before," said Ren Onishi, head of the NPO Moyai. Related coverage: Japan enacts record extra budget to fund package for COVID-hit economy Japan PM Kishida vows to "prepare for worst" amid Omicron variant fears Bank of Japan cuts economic growth, price forecasts, keeps easing policy Beijing, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- Fang Meifang started to work as a power line technician in the electricity supply sector in Jiangsu, China in 1988, at the age of 17. In a male-dominated profession, Fang dedicated herself to the job of power line technician for over 30 year, in spite of many challenges and risks. Starting as a green hand, Fang has grown to be a widely-known expert in the industry. She has participated in the laying of over 1,000 km of electric cables, and the installation of dozens of transformer substations and distributing substations of more than 1,000 clients. Fang has also been honored many national titles for her industrious work and achievements. Produced by Xinhua Global Service A cotton picker works in one of farmer Erkin Rehim's fields in Yuli County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Oct. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge) BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The China Cotton Association on Saturday voiced its resolute opposition to the United States' suppression of China's cotton textile industry in the name of human rights. The U.S. side has recently signed the so-called "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law, which classifies all products produced in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as "forced labor" products and bans imports of products related to Xinjiang. This move will continue to have an adverse impact on the Chinese cotton textile industry, and severely disrupt the cotton textile production and trade order in China and the whole world, the association said in a statement. The U.S. side is completely ignorant that its abrupt interference will affect the legitimate rights and interests of related companies, as well as their employees, from all over the world, according to the statement. As the second-largest cotton producer and the largest cotton importer and textile producer in the world, China has seen great progress in its cotton textile industry and has become a crucial part of the global textile industry chain, the statement said. China's cotton and textile industry has been committed to protecting the rights and interests of its labors, improving labors' living conditions and offering stable, reliable supply-chain services to global clothing brands and retailers, the statement said, stressing that the industry should be treated fairly. The industry will open up wider to the world and continue cooperation with its overseas counterparts, said the statement. External suppression and discredits cannot, and will not, hinder the industry's high-quality and sustainable development, it added. Enditem Chinese textile associations oppose U.S. ban on Xinjiang products Li Zhanshu, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, presides over the closing meeting of the 32nd session of the 13th NPC Standing Committee, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei) BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) concluded its 32nd session Friday in Beijing. At the closing meeting, lawmakers voted to adopt an anti-organized crime law, a wetlands protection law, a revised Law on Scientific and Technological Progress, and a law on the prevention and control of noise pollution. They also adopted three decisions on amending the Seed Law, the Civil Procedure Law, and the Trade Union Law. President Xi Jinping signed presidential orders to promulgate the laws and decisions. Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presided over the closing meeting. Lawmakers also decided to submit four bills to the fifth session of the 13th NPC for review. They were a draft amendment to the Organic Law of the Local People's Congresses and Local People's Governments, a draft decision of the fifth session of the 13th NPC on the number of deputies to the 14th NPC and their election, and two draft methods for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) and the Macao SAR to elect their deputies to the 14th NPC. Wang Chen, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, was entrusted to explain the drafts to the NPC session. Lawmakers approved a revised decision of the NPC Standing Committee on strengthening the oversight over economic work. A decision on convening the fifth session of the 13th NPC was adopted. According to the decision, the NPC full session will kick off on March 5, 2022 in Beijing. The meeting also adopted reports on deliberations of bills proposed by NPC deputies and on deputy qualifications, as well as personnel-related bills. Addressing the closing meeting, Li Zhanshu said the NPC Standing Committee achieved new progress in various areas of its work in 2021, a "milestone" year in the history of the Party and the country. Stressing upholding Party leadership in all aspects and through the whole process of the work of the people's congresses, Li called on lawmakers to actively perform duties with a focus on the major decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee. Mentioning the "hugely and profoundly significant" 20th CPC National Congress to be held in 2022, Li called for high-quality work in the next year and meticulous preparations for the NPC full session, so that excellent results are achieved by the time the Party congress is convened. Li chaired a meeting of the Council of Chairpersons of the NPC Standing Committee before the closing meeting and presided over a lecture for lawmakers after the meeting. Enditem The second batch of China's Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccines arrives this Friday at the International Airport in the Nicaraguan capital city of Managua and will soon be applied to protect the health of the local people. Produced by Xinhua Global Service Demonstrators continue a 'Justice for Palestine' protest, part of the 'Resist G7 Day of Action for International Justice', outside the Israeli Embassy in London, Britain, on June 12, 2021. (Photo by David Cliff/Xinhua) RAMALLAH/JERUSALEM, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The leadership changes in both Israel and the United States in 2021 had little impact on moving the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process forward. Furthermore, a bloody conflict in May also failed to lead to renewed diplomatic push to break the protracted stalemate. These events revealed a harsh reality that the Palestine cause, once at the core of achieving Middle East peace, is increasingly marginalized by the fast unfolding of geo-political changes in the region, featured by the accelerated normalization of Israel's ties with Arab states since last year. The U.S. lack of resolve and attention as well as the easing of pressure from the Arab world have further weakened Israel's willingness to yield to the Palestinians' demands, not to mention return to the negotiation table. LEADERSHIP CHANGES' LITTLE IMPACT The change in leadership in both the United States and Israel failed to bring about what the Palestinians had hoped for: a breakthrough to the impasse over the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. On Jan. 20, Democrat Joe Biden was inaugurated as the new U.S. president, rekindling the Palestinians' hope for the United States to revise the anti-Palestinian policies by Biden's predecessor Donald Trump, who recognized the disputed holy city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. However, despite the resumption of the U.S.-Palestinian contacts and Biden's positive remarks, no concrete steps have been taken by Washington so far to pressure Israel into resuming the peace process stalled since 2014. The Biden administration has yet even delivered its promises to reopen the office of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Washington D.C. and the American consulate in East Jerusalem, said Hani al-Masri, director of the Ramallah-based Masarat Center for Researches and Studies. "The U.S. ended up saying it believed in the two-state solution, but... any bet on the U.S. during the era of President Joe Biden is a wrong bet, because he is known for his pro-Israel positions," al-Masri said. Chen Kertcher, a lecturer in the Department of Middle Eastern Studies/Political Science at the Ariel University in Israel, said the United States is not interested in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict because Washington's main focus now is on East Asia. The leadership change in Israel also failed to break the political impasse on the Palestine issue. In June, a group of Israeli parties formed a coalition to oust Israel's longest serving prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But Naftali Bennett, Netanyahu's successor, has not sent out signals about reviving negotiations with the Palestinians or changing his previous opposition to an independent Palestinian state. Israeli analysts said the rise of right-wing parties in Israel, as well as their positions against a Palestinian state, represents a stumbling block in the way of achieving a breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Yoel Guzansky, a senior researcher at the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies, said it would be difficult for Bennett to accomplish anything meaningful with the parties because he is from a right-wing party. PALESTINE ISSUE SIDELINED Despite the Palestinian opposition, four more Arab countries, namely Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sudan and Morocco, have started normalizing ties with their old foe Israel since 2020. Before then, Israel had signed peace deals with only two of its Arab neighbors, Egypt and Jordan. Now, more Arab countries have opened arms to Israel as they aim to form a united front against their common rival Iran. In 2021, Israel continued to improve its relations with Arab countries, though failing to secure more peace deals. In December, Bennett paid a historic visit to the UAE, the first by an Israeli prime minister. The rapprochement between Israel and Arab countries has been a major setback for the Palestinians who have always relied on Arab support in confronting the Israelis, analysts said. "The restoration of relations between Arab countries and Israel is a trend that appears to continue and puts the Palestinians in a very difficult position," said Nimrod Goren, head of the Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies. Even during the May 10-21 conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, which killed over 260 people and wounded more than 2,000 others, the Arab world largely kept a low profile, in stark contrast to its past one strong voice in condemning Israel's violence and brutality. Not surprisingly, neither the United States nor the European Union, two major mediators, was motivated to take major steps to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process to prevent repetition of such bloodshed. ABSENCE OF PALESTINIAN UNITY Since 2007, the Palestinians have been suffering from internal division, with the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) taking control of the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority ruling the West Bank. Israel usually uses the absence of a unified Palestinian partner as the pretext to refuse to proceed with the negotiation process. Kertcher said the deep Palestinian division remains one of the major problems hindering the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "We are talking about a Palestinian society that is geographically, demographically and politically divided. You have Hamas controlling the Gaza Strip and you have the Palestinian Authority controlling parts of the West Bank," he explained. Though Israel and the Palestinian Authority resumed meetings in 2021 after years of severed ties, they only discussed security and economic issues rather than the issue of reviving the peace process, noted Khalil Shahin, a political analyst at the Ramallah-based Masarat Center for Researches and Studies. "This is because of the lack of any possibility to launch a negotiating process, aside from Israel's expansion of settlements and its refusal to resume the peace talks," he said. Egypt, a traditional mediator, made efforts in the year to reconcile Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party with Hamas through hosting unity talks in Cairo, but failed once again to bridge the gaps. Hamas, angered by Abbas' decision in April to postpone indefinitely the parliamentary elections scheduled for May 22, denounced it as "a coup against the path of national partnership and consensus." STATUS QUO LIKELY TO CONTINUE Looking forward into the new year, analysts are generally pessimistic about a breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian stalemate, as Arab countries are expected to continue to improve ties with Israel at the risk of marginalizing the Palestine cause. Ghassan al-Khatib, a lecturer at the Beirzeit University in the West Bank, believed that the Palestinian division will continue to ensure the survival of the Palestinian Autority and the status quo will persist. With regard to the alternative Palestinian options, al-Khatib ruled out radical policy changes by the Palestinian leadership, "since the room for manoeuvre is very small because the regional and international situations don't easily allow for breakthroughs." "The current Israeli government believes that it doesn't need to engage in a peace process with the Palestinians as long as it gets what it wants by seizing more West Bank lands and expanding settlements," said Ahmed Rafig Awad, a lecturer at the Al-Quds University in the West Bank. "2022 will bring another year of stalemate," Awad lamented. RABAT, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Moroccan navy on Friday have foiled an attempt to smuggle about 2 tonnes of cannabis off the coast of the Mediterranean city of Nador, Moroccan official news agency reported. A navy unit on patrol in the Mediterranean chased a suspected speedboat, it said, adding that the suspects managed to flee after throwing the drug shipment into the sea. This operation led to the seizure of about two tonnes of cannabis which was recovered from the sea, and handed over to the Royal Gendarmerie in the port of Nador, it added. Despite efforts to crack down on cannabis cultivation during the past decade, Morocco remains one of the world's largest producers of the narcotic plant, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Enditem TOKYO, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks snapped a three-day rally with a slight decline on Friday, as market participants locked in gains amid subdued trading ahead of the Christmas holidays. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average finished 15.78 points, or 0.05 percent, lower from Thursday at 28,782.59. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange closed 2.65 points, or 0.13 percent, lower at 1,986.78. Trading volume on the main section decreased to 746.72 million shares from Thursday's 813.50 million shares, remaining at a relatively low level. Tokyo stocks opened high from the outset, following multiple reports said that the Omicron variant might be less likely to cause hospitalizations compared with other strains of the COVID-19, but later trimmed gains and moved into negative territory in the afternoon. Over the last three trading days, the Nikkei benchmark has increased more than 800 points toward the 29,000 line. "Although sentiment has been lifted by studies on Omicron as well as the recent approval of some COVID-19 drugs in the United States, the rise in coronavirus cases in Europe and the United States has put a damper on the festive mood ahead of the Christmas holidays," said Masahiro Yamaguchi, the head of investment research at SMBC Trust Bank. He also said that reports of community transmission of Omicron variant in Japan had a limited effect on the stock market since investors awaited clarity regarding government measures to curb a potential resurgence of the COVID-19 infections. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Thursday that the government would not tighten COVID-19 restrictions immediately despite the community transmission of the Omicron variant, as the government has taken full-fledged measures against it. By the close of play, insurance, land transportation, and electric power and gas shares were major decliners. Losing issues outnumbered gaining ones 1,173 to 884 on the First Section, while 127 finished unchanged. Technology firms tracked overnight gains in their U.S. counterparts, with Tokyo Electron rising 1.2 percent, Fanuc up 0.5 percent, and Screen Holdings jumping 2.8 percent. Trading company Mitsui ended down 0.6 percent after being sued by Nippon Steel Corp. for patent infringement. Enditem KUALA LUMPUR, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The number of people who died in the massive floods in Malaysia has risen to 41 as of Friday, authorities said. Besides those confirmed dead, at least another eight individuals have been reported missing, Inspector-General of Police Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani told a media briefing. He said of the 41 cases reported, 25 deaths were reported in Selangor, 15 deaths in Pahang and one fatality in Kelantan, with the victims comprising 26 men, 13 women and two children in the three states. The number of displaced people due to flooding in Malaysia had dropped to some 46,524 in six states plus the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur as of 10:00 p.m. local time Friday, according to the data from the Malaysian Social Welfare Department. The worst-hit state remains Pahang along the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia, with over 26,000 people being evacuated to flood relief centers, followed by Selangor state with over 18,000 people evacuated. The country's meteorological department has warned of more rains in the southern part of Peninsula Malaysia and the northern Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak, with rains and storms expected on Saturday. Enditem MOSCOW, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Friday Russia conducted a successful salvo launch of Tsirkon hypersonic missiles early Friday morning. "A salvo launch of the Tsirkon hypersonic system was carried out last night, more precisely this morning," RIA Novosti news agency reported citing the president at a joint meeting of the State Council and the Council on Science and Education. "This is our latest missile, which can hit both naval and ground targets," he added. "The tests were carried out successfully, flawlessly. This is a great event for the country and a significant step aimed at enhancing Russia's security, improving its defense capabilities," Putin said. The Russian leader congratulated and thanked the developers, engineers and designers that worked on the hypersonic missile system. Putin said earlier in November that the test of the missile was nearing its completion and would arm the navy next year. Enditem BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) on Friday expressed strong indignation at and opposition to the United States signing the "Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act" into law. The Foreign Affairs Committee of the CPPCC National Committee said in a statement that the act grossly interferes in China's internal affairs and seriously violates basic norms governing international relations. Enditem New Delhi: Pakistan on Sunday urged all sides to follow restraint, saying there is no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan. This came after US President Donald Trump cancelling a secret summit with Taliban leaders and his Afghan counterpart. Trump last week tweeted that secret meetings that were to be held at Camp David with Taliban leaders and the Afghan president on Sunday had been cancelled following a bombing in Kabul last week. They were coming to the United States tonight. Unfortunately, in order to build false leverage, they admitted to an attack in Kabul that killed one of our great soldiers, and 11 other people, Trump tweeted about the Taliban. I immediately cancelled the meeting and called off peace negotiations, the US president had said. While reacting Pakistan Foreign Office said: "Pakistan has always condemned violence and called on all sides for restraint and commitment to pursue the process. Pakistan said that there is no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan and urges that both sides must re-engage to find negotiated peace from the ongoing political settlement process." It said Pakistan has been facilitating the peace and reconciliation process in good faith and as a shared responsibility, and has encouraged all sides to remain engaged with sincerity and patience At least 16 people were killed in a massive blast claimed by the Taliban in Kabul. "Sixteen killed, 119 wounded in last nights attack. The explosion was caused by a tractor filled with explosives, interior ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi on September 3 had said. Some 20,000 US and NATO forces remain in Afghanistan after formally ending their combat role in 2014. Fearing a return to power of the hardline Taliban, many worry the deal and subsequent negotiations will lead to a reduction in personal freedoms and limited womens rights that modern Afghans have grown accustomed to. US troops were first sent to Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks carried out by Al-Qaeda, which was sheltered by the former Taliban regime. Washington now wants to end its military involvementthe longest in its historyand has been talking to the Taliban since at least 2018. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Kolkata: West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh on Saturday criticised Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for attacking the saffron party over Chandrayaan-2 programme, saying she is fond of finding fault with everything the country is proud of. At the Assembly on Friday, Banerjee had hit out at the BJP-led government at the Centre for allegedly trying to take credit for the moon mission. On Saturday, the Trinamool Congress supremo posted a tweet congratulating ISRO scientists for the feat. Talking to reporters, Ghosh said it appears that the TMC chief is fond of finding fault with everything the country is proud of - the scrapping of Article 370, the Balakot air strike or Chandrayaan-2. "Chandrayaan-2 made the chest of every patriotic Indian swell with pride. But the only exception seems to be people like Mamata Banerjee," Ghosh said. Reacting to his comment, senior Trinamool Congress leader and minister Rajib Banerjee said, "We are proud of our scientists, we are proud of the achievement of ISRO." "But we object to the way the BJP is attempting to project Chandrayaan-2 as the achievement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This is what the CM tried to convey in the assembly yesterday," Rajib Banerjee said. In the early hours of Saturday, ISROs plan to soft land Chandrayaan-2s Vikram module on the lunar south pole did not go as per the script. The lander lost communication with ground stations during its final descent, ISRO officials said in Bengaluru, adding that the orbiter of Chandrayaan-2 -- second lunar missionremains healthy and safe. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. highlights Ram Jethmalani passed away on Sunday at the age of 95. Jethmalani breathed his last at 7.45 am at his official residence in New Delhi. Ram Jethmalani born on September 14, 1923 obtained his LL.B. degree at the age of 17. New Delhi: When Ram Jethmalani ended his seven-decade-long career, he announced his retirement at a function organised by the Bar Council of India to felicitate the then Chief Justice of India, Justice Dipak Misra. "I am here just to tell you I am retiring from the profession but I am taking on a new role as long as I am alive. I wish to combat the corrupt politicians that have been brought into the position of power and I hope the condition of India will take good shape, he said during his retirement speech. This announcement was typical of Ram Jethmalani's personality. He was someone who never backed away from a fight and love taking up the biggest, the mightiest and the most controversial ones. Ram Jethmalani passed away on Sunday at the age of 95, his family members said. Jethmalani breathed his last at 7.45 am at his official residence in New Delhi, his son Mahesh Jethmalani said. He was not keeping well for a few months and passed away just six days before his 96th birthday on September 14. Mahesh said his fathers last rites will be performed in the evening at the Lodhi road crematorium. Ram Jethmalani, born on September 14, 1923, obtained his LL.B. degree at the age of 17 and started practising law in Karachi until the partition of India. Following the partition in 1947, Jethmalani moved to Mumbai as a refugee. Jethmalani was elected a member of parliament in the 6th and 7th Lok Sabha on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket from Mumbai. He has served as Law Minister of India and also as Minister of Urban Development during the prime ministership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He later went on to contest the general elections of 2004 against Atal Bihari Vajpayee from the Lucknow constituency. In 1959, Ram Jethmalani appeared in the famous K.M. Nanavati vs. State of Bombay case. This was among the last cases to be heard as a jury trial in India, as the government abolished jury trials soon after. Some famous cases Ram Jethmalani fought during his career: Defence of Rajiv Gandhi's killers in Madras High Court in 2011. Defence of Indira Gandhi's killers Amit Shah's (Gujarat's former Minister of State for Home) defence in Sohrabuddin fake encounter case. Amit Jogi's defence (son of Ajit Jogi) in the case of Ramavatar Jaggi murder case. Kanimozhi's defence in Spectrum 2G case Harshad Mehta and Ketan Parekh's defence in stock market scam Underworld don Haji Mastan Defended death sentence of Afzal Guru L K Advani's defence in Hawala Scam Manu Sharma's defence in Jessica Lall murder case Arvind Kejriwal vs Arun Jaitley defamation case Lalu Prasad Fodder scam Kanimozhi - 2G scam BS Yeddyurapppa - Illegal mining case For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. highlights Pakistan is set to raise the issue of Kashmir at UNHRC Shah Mahmood Qureshi is expected to lead for Pakistan MEA S Jaishankar has contacted or visited each member of UNHRC New Delhi: The United Nation's Human Rights Council is expected to be the new battlefield of the diplomatic war between India and Pakistan over the issue of Kashmir. The 42nd session of the Human Rights Council will take place from September 9 to 27. While Pakistan is set to raise the issue of Kashmir at the forum, India is ready to thwart their efforts. Pakistan may call for urgent debate on Kashmir or move a resolution citing alleged human rights violations in Kashmir. Either of these will need to be put to a simple majority vote with absentees or abstentions not being counted. ALSO READ: Pakistan Releases Masood Azhar To Plan Terror Ops Against India, Says Report Team India Ready To Twart Pakistan Team India at UNHRC is making full efforts to reduce abstentions during procedural vote on any such Pakistan sponsored debate. India wants to avoid a situation where member-countries abstain en masse during the vote on Kashmir. India has broader support than Pakistan but that needs to be translated into votes, an official said. While foreign minister S Jaishankar has personally contacted or visited each and every member of the 47-member UNHRC, national security adviser Ajit Doval has managed the internal situation in Kashmir. India will stress the fact that not a single life has been lost in Jammu and Kashmir at the hands of Indian security forces. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is expected to lead the charge against India. He is scheduled to speak at 3.30 pm (IST) on Tuesday. The Indian counter at UNHRC, Geneva, will be led by secretary (east) Vijay Thakur Singh along with India's High Commissioner to Pakistan Ajay Bisaria apart from other officials. ALSO READ: India Always One Step Ahead Of Pakistan, admits Ex-Pak General India May Raise Issue Of Pakistan's Minorities India may hits back at Pakistan by raising the issue of ill-treatment of minorities in Pakistan. Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal had urged Jaishankar to take up the issue of targeting of minorities in Pakistan. India had earlier thwarted a joint China-Pakistan initiative to rake up Kashmir at the United Nation Security Council. Ever since India's decision to remove the special status for Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan has been trying to raise Kashmir issue at international forums. However, it has not got any success so far. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. highlights The gel when applied to damaged tooth helps create a new layer of enamel about 3 micrometers thick, just over the course of 48 hours The gel is created by mixing calcium and phosphate ions into an alcoholic solution with the organic compound trimethylamine The study was led by researchers from Zhejiang University School of Medicine New Delhi: Your quarterly or even yearly visit to the dentist may just be a thing of the past because a team of Chinese researchers may have come up with a gel that repairs damaged tooth enamel. To repair the reoccurring dental problem which is damaged tooth enamel caused either by cavity, poor oral hygiene or unhealthy snacking, researchers from Zhejiang University School of Medicine have come up with a gel that lets the damaged tooth enamel to repair itself in 48 hours. Created by mixing calcium and phosphate ions into an alcoholic solution with the organic compound trimethylamine, the gel when applied to damaged tooth helps create a new layer of enamel about 3 micrometers thick, just over the course of 48 hours. Our newly regenerated enamel has the same structure and similar mechanical properties as native enamel, said Dr Zhaoming Liu, a co-author of the study which was published in the journal Science Advances. We hope to realize tooth enamel regrowth without using fillings which contain totally different materials and we hope, if all goes smoothly, to start trials in people within one to two years. What is even better is that the gels repair of tooth enamel would be permanent, according to the researchers, led by Professor Tang Ruikang at the universitys chemistry department. Speaking on this new-found solution, Dr Sherif Elsharkawy, an expert in prosthodontics at Kings College London, told The Guardian UK, The method is simple, but it needs to be validated clinically, he said. highlights The death toll from Hurricane Dorian's devastating rampage across the Bahamas rose to 43. More than 260 residents of brutally damaged Abaco Island arrived in the capital city of Nassau. Thousands of people were left homeless on the islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco. Marsh Harbour : The death toll from Hurricane Dorian's devastating rampage across the Bahamas rose to 43 Friday, a number authorities said is likely to climb "significantly," even as rescuers plucked desperate survivors from the debris. More than 260 residents of brutally damaged Abaco Island arrived in the capital city of Nassau after spending more than seven hours on a government-chartered ferry, a second of which was expected to arrive overnight. Those who made it to safety awaited news of loved ones such as Diane Forbes, who had not heard from her two sons since Tuesday and was searching for them among some 200 evacuees sheltering at a gymnasium Friday night in Nassau, which was spared the wrath of the hurricane. "They said they were hungry and the scent of the bodies, the dead, was really getting to them... I don't know if my son is alive or not," she said of one of her children, who had been in Marsh Harbour on Abaco with his girlfriend and her mother. Health Minister Duane Sands confirmed the new death toll of 43, up from 30, according to US network CNN and Bahamas newspaper The Tribune. "Forty-three is the official count, many missing and this number is expected to grow significantly," Erica Wells Cox, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Hubert Minnis, told NBC News. The Bahamian government did not immediately respond when contacted by AFP. Of the eventual death toll, Sands had declared previously that "the number will be staggering." "Literally hundreds, up to thousands, of people are still missing," Joy Jibrilu, the director general of the Bahamian tourism and aviation ministry, told CNN. Thousands of people were left homeless on the islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco and many were becoming frustrated with the speed of relief and evacuation efforts. "There's no gas station, no food stores, my job is gone" said Melanie Lowe of Marsh Harbour, whose house was partially destroyed and had packed into a two-bedroom apartment with 16 people before arriving in Nassau. According to UN relief officials, more than 70,000 people -- virtually the entire population of Grand Bahama and Abaco -- are in need of assistance after the storm reduced homes to matchsticks and destroyed people's livelihoods. The US Coast Guard and private organizations have been evacuating residents of Abaco and other islands to Nassau. The multinational relief effort, which also includes Britain's Royal Navy and several non-governmental organizations, has been hampered by flood damage to airport runways, destroyed piers and docks and downed communications. Tents and awnings installed at Nassau Airport, not far from rescue planes taking off and landing, provided temporary housing for storm-battered Bahamians. As survivors began the first steps in rebuilding their lives, arrangements were being made to take care of the dead and the Bahamian authorities were seeking to account for the missing. Sands said extra morticians and refrigerated coolers to store bodies were being sent to the affected islands. Mortuary workers in white hazmat suits, blue gloves and masks could be seen in Marsh Harbour carrying corpses in green body bags and loading them onto flatbed trucks. "As you know, in the United States, we weren't hit nearly as hard as was thought but the Bahamas, you got hit very, very hard," US President Donald Trump said in a video statement on Twitter. "On behalf of the United States and the people of the United States, we're working hard, we're with you and God bless you," he said. "Any cruise ship companies willing to act as stationary housing, etc., I am sure would be appreciated!," he also tweeted. Dorian made landfall meanwhile in the United States as a Category 1 hurricane packing winds of nearly 90 miles per hour (150 kilometers per hour). The Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the storm made landfall at Cape Hatteras on North Carolina's Outer Banks, the finger-like barrier islands off the coast. Flooding was reported in the town of Ocracoke to the southwest of Cape Hatteras. Thousands of coastal residents of US states from Florida to Virginia had been fearing the worst but the East Coast largely escaped unscathed. Some flooding occurred in the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina, and tens of thousands of residents lost electricity but no major damage was reported. At 11:00 pm (0300 GMT Saturday), the NHC said Dorian was moving in a northeast direction up the Atlantic coast at 25 mph (41 kph) and was "heading for Nova Scotia in a hurry." Hurricane-force winds were expected in portions of the Canadian province late Saturday after Dorian's center passes to the southeast of New England Saturday morning. The Canadian Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning for central and eastern Nova Scotia. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Namira Salim, the first Pakistani astronaut to go to space aboard Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, congratulated India and the ISRO on its historic attempt to make a lunar landing. "I congratulate India and Isro on its historic attempt to make a soft landing of the Vikram lander at the South Pole of the Moon," Namira Salim said. ISRO's plan to soft land Chandrayaan-2's Vikram module on the Lunar surface did not go as per script in the early hours of Saturday, with the lander losing communication with ground stations during its final descent. The "terrifying 15 minute" complex landing process, which commenced with a lot of expectation, tinged with a sense of jubiliation was going on well till the successful rough braking phase which was marked by rounds of applause. When the top ISRO scientists including its chief Sivan looked glum soon after the subsequent fine braking phase commenced, it was the first indication that all was not well. "The Chandaryaan-2 lunar mission is indeed a giant leap for South Asia which not only makes the region, but the entire global space industry proud," Salim added. "Regional developments in the space sector in South Asia are remarkable and no matter which nation leads - in space, all political boundaries dissolve and in space - what unites us overrides what divides us on Earth," Namira Salim said. Who is Namira Salim? She is the first Pakistani astronaut launched in 2006, the first Asian to skydive over Mount Everest and has set world records of traveling to the Earths poles. In 2013, she was awarded the Power of 100 Trailblazer Award in London for her efforts to promote international peace and harmony. In 2015, she founded her non-profit Space Trust to promote Space as the New Frontier for Peace, particularly to support the work of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs. In September 2018, she, along with her UN partners, established the first space conference during the UN General Assembly High-Level Week, when all world leaders gather in New York. For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Ram Jethmalani, Eminent Lawyer And Former Union Law Minister, Dies Veteran lawyer and former Union minister Ram Jethmalani has died. He was 95. Jethmalani passed away at his residence in Delhi on Sunday. Jethmalani also served as chairman of the Bar Council of India. One of the most well-known personalities in the Indian legal system, Jethmalani represented many high-profile cases. At one time, he was said to be the highest paid lawyer in the Supreme Court of India. READ MORE... ISRO's Chandrayaan-2 Will Still Teach Us A Lot About Moon Chandrayaan-2's Orbiter, already in the intended orbit around the Moon, will continue to send vital information related to moon's evolution. ISRO said that the precise launch and mission management has ensured a long life of almost 7 years instead of the planned one year for the orbiter. The 2 orbiter is healthy and safe in the Lunar orbit. It will send high-resolution images and enrich understanding of Moon's evolution, mapping of minerals and water in its polar region. READ MORE... PM Modi To Kick Off BJP's Haryana Poll Campaign Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a rally in Haryana's Rohtak on Sunday ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in the state. He will also lay the foundation stone for several development projects, including the Shri Sheetla Mata Devi Medical College in Gurugram, a mega food park, the industrial model township in Rohtak and the Integrated Command and Control Center in Karnal, officials said. READ MORE... Donald Trump Backs Out Of Talks With Taliban Over Kabul Attack After months of talks and several rounds of negotiations with the Taliban, US President Donald Trump called off peace negotiations with the insurgent group. As the US prepares to pull out troops from Afghanistan, Trump cited the bombings in Kabul as the reason behind the development. READ MORE... Bianca Andreescu Beats Serena Williams To Win US Open Bianca Andreescu beat Serena Williams 6-3, 7-5 in the US Open womens singles final on Saturday night. The first set was taken by Andreescu 6-3. The second set saw Andreescu run away to a 5-1 lead, then Serena fighting back, but eventually running out of steam. Andreescu, 19, was playing in her first Grand Slam final. READ MORE... For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Putting speculation to rest, Maharashtra Congress president Balasaheb Thorat said his party will not have any kind of alliance with either the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi or the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena for the assembly elections to be held on October. Speaking to The Times Of India, Thorat said that there was absolutely no possibility of an alliance with either the VBA or MNS. The Congress screening committee led by Jyotiraditya Scindia met in New Delhi on Friday. There was no discussion on an alliance with VBA and MNS, so the Congress and NCP will contest the ensuing elections jointly, and we will adjust the smaller parties, the newspaper quoted Thorat as saying. Thorat added that out of the total 288 seats, the Congress will contest on 110, the NCP 105, and a decision on the remaining 73 seats will be taken soon. The Congress and the NCP will ensure that adequate representation is given to smaller parties, including the Peasants and Workers Party, RPI (Gavai and Kawade), Bahujan Vikas Aghadi, Raju Shetti-led Shetkari Sanghatana and Left parties, he said. All the 215 seats have been identified. The Congress may come out with the final list of nominees for its 110 seats by September 10. A final decision will be taken by the Central Election Committee led by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Thorat said. In the 2014 elections, the BJP came to power by winning 122 seats in the 288-member Assembly. The BJP's ally Shiv Sena won 62 seats. The Congress and the NCP bagged 42 and 41 seats, respectively. highlights The incident was reported to a woman police post on Friday. The man sexually assaulted his own daughter, who is 9-year-old, on several occasions. A police team immediately arrested the accused and he confessed to committing the crime. New Delhi: A man was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting his two minor daughters in Sohna area, police said on Saturday. The incident was reported to a woman police post on Friday by the mother of the victims who is from Nepal. The woman in her complaint said that her husband, who worked as a labourer here, raped her 17-year-old daughter from her first marriage in her absence. He also sexually assaulted his own daughter, who is 9-year-old, on several occasions, the woman alleged. The woman told the police that she married the man in 2003. The couple have a daughter and a son, Gurgaon police PRO Subhash Bokan said. Both the victims on Friday informed their mother about the crime, following which she approached the Gurgaon police, he added. During counselling, the victims said they were being sexually assaulted by their father on many occasions, Bokan said, adding that the accused also threatened them if they disclosed his crime. A police team immediately arrested the accused on Saturday and he confessed to committing the crime, he said. The man has been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he added. For all the Latest Crime News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: State-owned oil marketing companies Saturday resumed fuel supplies to the loss-making Air India at six airports, weeks after it was suspended for mounting dues. The fuel supply was restored following government-mediated talks earlier this week between the parties under which the airline has committed to pay Rs 100 crore per month to clear the outstanding dues of Rs 4,300 crore, official sources said. "Supplies to Air India resumed from Saturday evening," an OMC spokesperson said without divulging details. The spokesperson, however, said Air India has agreed to payment terms for future supplies. READ | Blow To Common Man! Non-Subsidised LPG Price Up By Rs 15.5 Per Cylinder Last month, IndianOil along with Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum had stopped supplies to the state-run carrier in Pune, Vizag, Cochin, Patna, Ranchi and Mohali citing mounting dues. Meanwhile, an Air India official said the fuel supplies were restored after it agreed to pay the oil firms Rs 100 crore per month to clear the dues. Though Air India has been on a cash-and-carry mode since April, and has been paying Rs 18 crore daily towards fuel bills, OMCs sought clearance of all dues at the earliest. READ | Maruti Suzuki recalls over 40,000 units of WagonR to rectify issues with fuel mechanism IOC provides 90-day credit to Air India without collaterals, but the dues have been mounting, and it must be over 240 days now. "Oil marketing companies wanted Air India to clear all dues at the earliest. But the airline has agreed to pay them Rs 100 crore per month. This will be in addition to the amount it is paying to OMCs against the daily billing," said an airline official. For all the Latest Business News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: A man died in Noida's sector 62 after suffering a heart attack while arguing with police over a traffic challan. According to News State, Gaurav Sharma (34) was employed in a software company in Gurugram. He was coming back from Noida sector 62 with his parents when some policemen asked him to stop his car for checking. According to the report, they banged a stick on the body of the car make him stop the vehicle. This led to some scuffle with police. Gaurav suffered a cardiac arrest during the argument. According to Gaurav's relatives, the policemen stopped the vehicle by banging their stick on the body. Gaurav and his father Moolchand Sharma protested against such behaviour. He alleged that the cops misbehaved with Gaurav and his family. During this argument, Gaurav suddenly fell down and could not breathe. However, instead of helping him, the cops left from there. Some people helped Gaurav to Fortis and later Kailash Hospital. However, he could not be saved. The 65-year-old father of the deceased alleged misbehaviour by the traffic police in the name of checking under the stricter new Motor Vehicles Act. There has to be a way for anything. It is fine that traffic rules have been changed. One (police) should be polite and ask somebody to pull their vehicle over for inspection. It wasnt a case of rash driving or anything. There were two elderly people sitting inside the car, yet they hit the car with batons... This is no way of checking. I dont think theres any rule that allows it, the father said. Gautam Buddh Nagar SSP Vaibhav Krishna earlier denied reports of any such incident during checking by sector 58 police. The Noida police later said the incident took place on Sunday evening in Ghaziabad and the traffic police personnel involved were from that district. "After inquiry it came to light that the deceased was prima facie diabetic in nature and he died due to heart attack. The place of incident was near CISF Cut in district Ghaziabad. It happened at around 6pm," Krishna said. "The information has been conveyed to the Ghaziabad police." (With PTI Inputs) New Delhi: The success ratio of lunar missions undertaken in the last six decades is 60 per cent, according to US space agency NASAs Moon Fact Sheet. Of the 109 lunar missions during the period, 61 were successful and 48 had failed, it stated. In the early hours of Saturday, Indian space agency ISROs plan to soft land Chandrayaan-2s Vikram module on the lunar surface did not go as per script. The lander lost communication with ground stations during its final descent. ISRO officials said, adding that the orbiter of Chandrayaan-2 -- second lunar missionremains heathy and safe. This year, Israel, too, launched its lunar mission Beresheet in February 2018 but it crash landed in April. From 1958 to 2019, India as well as the US, the USSR (now Russia), Japan, the European Union, China and Israel launched different lunar missionsfrom orbiters, landers and flyby (orbiting the Moon, landing on the Moon and flying by the Moon). The first mission to the Moon was planned by the US in August 17, 1958, but the launch of Pioneer 0 was unsuccessful. The first successful mission to the Moon was Luna 1 by the USSR on January 4, 1959. It was also the first Moon flyby mission. The success had come only in the sixth mission. In a span of a little more than a year, from August 1958 to November 1959, the US and the USSR launched 14 missions. Of these, only threeLuna 1, Luna 2 and Luna 3 -- were successful. All were launched by the USSR. The Ranger 7 mission launched in July 1964 by the US was the first to take close-up pictures of the Moon. The first lunar soft landing and first pictures from the lunar surface came from Luna 9, launched by the USSR in January 1966. Five months later, in May 1966, the US successfully launched a similar mission Surveyor-1. The Apollo 11 mission was the landmark mission through which humans first stepped on to the lunar surface. The three-crewed mission was headed by Neil Armstrong. From 1958 to 1979, only the US and the USSR launched Moon missions. In these 21 years, the two countries launched 90 missions. There was a lull in the decade that followed with no lunar missions from 1980-89. Japan, the European Union, China, India and Israel were late entrants. Japan launched Hiten, an orbiter mission in January 1990. This was also Japans first Moon mission. After that, in September 2007, Japan launched Selene, another orbiter mission. There were six lunar missions from 2000-2009 -- Europe (Smart-1), Japan (Selene), China (Change 1), India (Chandrayaan-1) and the US (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and LCCROSS). From 2009-2019, ten missions have been launched of which five have been sent by India, three by the US, and one each by India and Israel. Since 1990, the US, Japan, India, the European Union, China and Israel launched 19 lunar missions. For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Uzbekistan has sent 3,700 tonnes of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan's war-torn nation in an effort to assist millions of people in need during the cold winter months. The batch, which was transported by 63 rail waggons to Afghanistan's northern city of Mazar-I-Sharif and received by Afghan officials, includes foodstuffs, fuel, and winter clothing that will be distributed to destitute Afghans during the country's economic crisis, according to the Xinhua news agency. Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy Foreign Minister of Afghanistan's Taliban-led government, expressed appreciation to Uzbekistan and asked for improved relations between Kabul and Tashkent. Stanikzai urged Uzbekistan to assist Afghanistan in the reconstruction of airports, the construction of railroads, and the provision of scholarships for Afghan students. Afghanistan has been in economic crisis since the Taliban took control of the country in August, resulting in the departure of US-led forces and the imposition of sanctions on the new administration. More than 22 million people out of the country's 36 million people are reportedly facing acute food insecurity. The Afghan government has requested humanitarian aid from the international community to help them overcome the issue. Many nations have donated humanitarian help to the country so far, including China, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Qatar, among others. Celebrate New Year in these beautiful places of world If you are looking for peace, go to these places for a walk US to lift travel bans on 8 African nations on This day New Delhi: A Chinese submarine armed with weapons has reached Myanmar via the Andamans via the Malacca Strait. The aim of which is said to be to assist the rebels of the North-East. According to a video that went viral on social media, the same submarine was seen entering the Malacca Strait near Indonesia on December 20. It also has a red Chinese flag on it. The Myanmar warship is said to have been deployed to protect the Chinese submarine. Submarine affairs expert HI Saton tweeted that 'this is a Type-35 submarine of ming class. Perhaps sent to the Navy of Myanmar, but they have recently found India's kilo-class submarine.' A video from Myanmar said that the Myanmar Navy sent its warship from behind to assist the Chinese submarine. Since then, it has been reported that China is either giving submarines to Myanmar like India or wants to sell its submarine to Myanmar's Navy through it. Meanwhile, a social media user named Mehmalwinso posted a Tiktok video in Myanmar, stating that a Chinese submarine was seen entering the Yangon River. The closeness of Myanmar and the Chinese army can increase India's concern. Recently, the Foreign Secretary of India has returned from the Myanmar tour. He has asked the military government there to crack down on the extremists of the Northeast. However, Myanmar's army, which is suppressing democracy on the basis of gunpoint and violence, has also betrayed India in a way. CM Nitish's big announcement on night curfew amid 'Omicron' crisis Lucknow: KGMU will no longer lack cheap medicines, open new stores Few days are left for 10th pass youth to get job in BSF, apply soon ISLAMABAD: Due to the ongoing dispute with the terrorist organization Taliban over the fencing on the border, the political upheaval in Pakistan has intensified. The opposition is fiercely criticizing Pakistan PM Imran Khan. The opposition says that when the Taliban is not accepting the fencing of the border, then why did PM Imran help him so much in a hurry? Meanwhile, the Imran government of Pakistan claims that the problem has been resolved. Reports said that Pakistan and Taliban officials in Afghanistan have recently resolved the dispute over border fencing. Officials have said that now the further work on this project will be done with consensus, due to which the situation remains tense. A senior official, who spoke to a group of presspersons in the backdrop of the matter on Friday, said that it has been decided at the highest level that in future, the issues related to the fence will be settled with mutual consent. According to the news of Pakistani newspaper Dawn, the official did not make it clear at what level and on what issues the talks between Pakistan and the Afghan government have taken place after Wednesday's incident. If you are looking for peace, go to these places for a walk US to lift travel bans on 8 African nations on This day Turkish President urges sectoral price cuts as the Lira rebounds The UN Security Council has extended the travel restriction exception for prominent members of Afghanistan's Taliban-led government, including First Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, for another 90 days. The UNSC said on Friday that the ban, which took effect on Wednesday, will extend until March 21, 2022. Apart from Baradar, 14 other Taliban members have been placed on the no-fly list, including Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. "Travels essential for participation in peace and stability dialogues in a variety of nations are exempt from the travel prohibition." "Individual trips will be determined by the location of peace talks. In addition, the Committee has decided to offer a limited asset freeze exemption that will only be used to fund exempted travel." The Taliban-led government applauded the UNSC's decision, but demanded that its leaders' names be removed from UN and US blacklists. "Based on the Doha Agreement, it is important to remove the names of Islamic Emirate officials from the US and UN blacklists," said Inamullah Samangani, the Islamic Emirate's deputy spokesman. The suspension of funding has halted several Afghan electricity projects, Know Afghan's Plight Omicron up to 70% less likely to require hospital care: Report Omicron Threat: No foreign tourists or pilgrims at Bethlehem's Christmas celebrations The US will lift travel restrictions relating to Covid in eight African countries on December 31, the White House announced. "On December 31, (President Joe Biden) will relax the temporary travel restrictions on Southern African countries," White House Assistant Press Secretary Kevin Munoz announced on Twitter on Friday, citing a recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Non-American citizens were forbidden from entering the US if they had visited South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, or Malawi within 14 days of their scheduled arrival, according to the travel ban, which was announced on November 29. According to CDC data, the limits "gave us time to comprehend" the highly transmissible Omicron strain of Covid-19, which first appeared in southern Africa and quickly spread over the world, today accounting for over 70% of new cases in the US. He believes that getting fully vaccinated and boosted is still an effective strategy to combat Omicron. Turkish President urges sectoral price cuts as the Lira rebounds The United Nations extends its exemption to travel bans on Afghan Taliban leaders The suspension of funding has halted several Afghan electricity projects, Know Afghan's Plight Christmas is being celebrated in the world this year. You must be aware that the Christian community celebrates Jesus' birthday on the night of December 25. On this day, people decorate their homes, churches, and cities in a variety of ways. This list specifically includes a Christmas tree. Yes, and generally, Christmas trees (Christmas Tree Decoration) are decorated with lights, ribbons, gifts, toffees, etc. But the Christmas trees we will tell you about today are very special. Because these are the world's most expensive Christmas trees (the world's most expensive Christmas tree). * Swarovski Crystal Christmas Tree, Hong Kong - A 50 feet high Crystal Christmas tree was built here in 2013 with the help of gold and silver crystals. Yes, and gold and silver were bought from Austria to make it. Swarovski Company decorated it outside Hong Kong to wish the people leaving the airport a Merry Christmas. The cost of making it was about Rs.13 crores. * Mini Christmas Tree, Tokyo - Here the Japanese department store chain decorated a 40-centimeter Christmas tree. It was clustered with a small tower of protected roses. Each rose petal is said to have been fitted with Australian and African diamonds. The Christmas tree may have been small, but it also cost around Rs 13 crore to build. * German Gold Dealer Pro Oram's Christmas Tree is made of 2,018 gold coins. There is also a star with gold coins on top of the tree. In fact, this three-meter-high Christmas tree, displayed at Prof. Oram's Munich Goldhaus, was built in collaboration with the Austrian Mint and is worth about Rs 20 crore. If your eye flutters, again and again, it can be a deadly disease! Idols of Hindu deities found in dam, chaos in locality Do you want a loan? A phone call and you can also be a victim of big fraud 12 weather stories of Christmas past This Day In Weather History is a daily podcast by Chris Mei from The Weather Network, featuring stories about people, communities and events and how weather impacted them. -- Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, there's still something special about Dec. 25. Commerce takes a break, the streets are quiet and the world takes a breath. Though the goal for some is to have a "white Christmas," snow doesn't always behave. Sometimes, instead of snow, there's a cyclone. Or sometimes there is far too much snow. But sometimes, unexpected weather conditions bring a moment of peace in the thick of war. Instead of diving into one story for Dec. 25, we're going to look at 12 major weather events that have occurred on Christmas over the last few hundred years. Click here to subscribe to This Day in Weather History 1776 George Washington needed to cross the Delaware River to attack the Hessian (they were German auxiliaries in the service of the British) forces during the American Revolutionary War. Gen. Washington needed to get a large number of troops, horses, and artillery over the Delaware River to New Jersey before dusk to launch a surprise attack. The weather conditions did not make this a simple nor safe task. A major snowstorm took over the East Coast from North Carolina to New York. The River was filled with ice and there was relentless snow, sleet, and freezing rain. Washington made it to New Jersey, but some people were lost due to that now-famous storm. George Caleb Bingham, 18561871 Washington Crossing the Delaware, by George Caleb Bingham, 18561871. (Wikipedia) 1836 It was another snowstormy Christmas for the East Coast. A severe snowstorm swept from the mid-Atlantic to New England. Cities were faced with an average of 20 inches of snow across eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware. On Christmas Day, 8.5 inches of snow fell, the most ever to fall on that day. There were also heavy winds, with gusts reaching 72 m.p.h. A total of 20 people died in New York City and Massachusetts. Story continues First published image of a Christmas tree, frontispiece to Hermann Bokum's 1836 First published image of a Christmas tree, frontispiece to Hermann Bokum's 1836 "The Stranger's Gift". (Wikipedia) 1914 Dec. 25, 1914, is known as the Christmas Truce. The First World War started just four months earlier. The winter was snowy and wet and the trenches were in terrible condition. Though there was no official truce called, soldiers from both sides put down their weapons, emerged from their trenches and some even headed to no man's land. World War 1 Soldiers Courtesy Imperial War Museum First World War Soldiers. (Imperial War Museum) Some of those soldiers who congregated in no man's land exchanged gifts, shared stories and laughed together. The ceasefire was also used as an opportunity to seek out the bodies of their dead comrades and give them a decent burial. Illustrated London News - Christmas Truce 1914 "Soldiers from both sides (the British and the Germans) exchange cheerful conversation (An artist's impression from The Illustrated London News of 9 January 1915: "British and German Soldiers Arm-in-Arm Exchanging Headgear: A Christmas Truce between Opposing Trenches")." "Originally published in The Illustrated London News, January 9, 1915." Courtesy of Wikipedia 1947 The Great Blizzard of 1947 started on Dec. 25. The storm consisted of incessant quiet snowfall, due to the lack of wind. By December 26, 26.4 inches of snow had accumulated in Central Park in Manhattan. Upper Atlantic Street and Park Row, behind Central Park Upper Atlantic Street and Park Row, behind Central Park. (Stamford Historical Society) Subway service stopped, vehicles were abandoned in the middle of the street, and cars parked on the side of the street were buried snow plows. The storm led to 77 deaths. Impacts were likely higher than they should have been as weather forecasts did not predict the storm. 1974 On Christmas in 1974, Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. This storm came with wind gusts that reached 217 km/h before instruments failed. Because it was Christmas, news outlets didn't have as many crew on duty. And residents of Darwin were celebrating the holiday and not necessarily treating the storm with the state of urgency it required. Tracy killed 71 people, left 25,000 of the 47,000 inhabitants of Darwin homeless, and caused US$4.79 billion (2018) in damage. House-after-tracy House in Nakara, Northern suburbs, after Tracy. (Bill Bradley)/Wikipedia/CC BY 2.5 1983 Christmas in 1983 can be summarized by one word, cold. Most of the central and eastern U.S. experienced its coldest Christmas in modern history. More than 125 cities reported record low temperatures for the date. The combination of the artic cold and the open area of the Great Lakes created a lake-effect blizzard. There was heavy snow, strong winds, and almost zero visibility. There were snowdrifts caused by the cold air, creating lighter snow. Many areas experienced below zero temperatures for more than 60 hours. Below zero in Fahrenheit, so at most -17.78C. MichaelRogge/youtube New York Christmas 1983. (MichaelRogge/YouTube) 1988 Dec. 25, 1988, was Las Vegas' first white Christmas on record. There was a massive snowstorm that took over western states in the US. The storm lasted for five days, bringing several additional feet of snow at ski areas in Colorado, with 68 inches reported at Wolf Creek Pass. Courtesy NWS Las Vegas (NWS Las Vegas) 1998 A major ice storm took over central and southeast Virginia from Dec. 23-25, creating "The Christmas Ice Storm." The icy conditions made it dangerous for pedestrians and motorists. The ice also collapsed trees and power lines. On Christmas Eve 400,000 customers lost power, which for some, lasted up to ten days. A columnist from The Virginia Gazette wrote a poem about the experience, here's the first stanza: The Williamsburg Christmas Eve, 1998 (By Ron Corson | The Virginia Gazette) twas the night before Christmas and all was not right! Not an ampere was flowing, no heat and no light. We huddled and cuddled by the fireplace with care In hopes that Virginia Power soon would be there. weather.gov (weather.gov) 2004 Another white Christmas for an unexpecting community. Dec. 25, 2004, brought a blanket of snow over Victoria, Texas. Some areas received 13 inches of snow, making it the first white Christmas in 86 years. An unusual sight: palm trees covered in snow in Portland, Texas An unusual sight: palm trees covered in snow in Portland, Texas. (Quietpeoplerock/Wikipedia/CC BY-SA 3.0) 2013 In 2013, things got started early. An ice storm swept Toronto and other areas of Southern Ontario starting Dec. 19 (Check out the Dec. 19, 2003 article: To have lived through the 2013 ice storm is to remember it visceral photos). The ice enveloped the city, which left many people without power on Christmas Day. Ice storm (George Kourounis) 2014 In 2014, Atlantic Canada had a very rainy Christmas. Though it's not completely rare for Atlantic provinces to have warmer temperatures around Christmas, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island experienced record-breaking warmth. In Greenwood, N.S., the temperature soared to 17 degrees. With great temperatures, brings wet precipitation. Halifax received 70.6 mm of rain. Riverview, NB - Courtesy: Patrice Benoit A New Brunswick man taking advantage of the warm Christmas weather. Riverview, NB - (Patrice Benoit) 2019 Typhoon Phanfone, known as Typhoon Ursula in the Philippines, was a deadly tropical cyclone that battered the Philippines on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Winds reached up to 195 km/h. The Typhoon caused 50 deaths and 55 people to go missing. The total cost of damages was US$67.2 million (2019). Due to the extensive damages, the name "Ursula" was retired by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA). Typhoon Phanfone (Ursula) damage (Courtesy World Vision) Typhoon Phanfone (Ursula) damage: (World Vision) Those are some of the most significant weather events that have occurred on Dec. 25 throughout the last few centuries. To hear more about the weather of past Christmases, listen to today's episode of "This Day In Weather History." Subscribe to 'This Day in Weather History': Apple Podcasts | Amazon Alexa | Google Assistant | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeartRadio | Overcast' Thumbnail credit: Pixabay NEW YORK, Dec. 24, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Attractive Opportunities in Dry Shampoo Market by Product, Distribution Channel, and Geography - Forecast and Analysis 2021-2025 Dry Shampoo Market Facts at a Glance- Total Pages: 120 Companies: 10+ Including Henkel AG and Co. KGaA, Kao Corp., Kose Corp., LOreal SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, Natura and Co., Shiseido Co. Ltd., The Estee Lauder Co. Inc., The Procter and Gamble Co., and Unilever Group among others. Coverage: Key drivers, trends, and challenges; Product insights & news; Value chain analysis; Parent market analysis; Vendor landscape; COVID impact & recovery analysis Segments: Product (regular dry shampoo and natural and organic dry shampoo) & Distribution channel (offline and online) Geography: North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA Didn't Find What You Were Looking For? Customize Report- Don't miss out on the opportunity to speak to our analyst and know more insights about this market report. Our analysts can also help you customize this report according to your needs. Our analysts and industry experts will work directly with you to understand your requirements and provide you with customized data in a short amount of time. We offer USD 1,000 worth of FREE customization at the time of purchase - Speak to our Analyst now! According to the recent market study by Technavio, the Dry Shampoo Market is expected to increase by USD 1.21 billion from 2020 to 2025. However, the growth momentum is likely to decelerate at a CAGR of 11.48%. The report provides a detailed analysis of drivers & opportunities, top winning strategies, competitive scenario, future market trends, market size & estimations, and major investment pockets. 33% of the market's growth will originate from North America during the forecast period. US and Canada are the key markets for dry shampoo in North America. Download FREE Sample: for more additional information about the key countries in North America Vendor Insights- The Dry Shampoo Market is fragmented, and the vendors are deploying growth strategies such as focusing on product delivery through multiple distribution channels to compete in the market. Story continues For Instance, Kao Corp - one of the leading companies offers dry shampoo through its brand Essential. Find additional highlights on the vendors and their product offerings - Download Free Sample Report Regional Market Outlook The Dry Shampoo Market share growth in North America will be significant during the forecast period. US and Canada are the key markets for dry shampoo in North America. Market growth in this region will be faster than the growth of the market in the South American and MEA regions. Dry shampoo products have gained the attention of consumers due to their instant results and other benefits. This will facilitate the dry shampoo market growth in North America over the forecast period. Download our FREE sample report for more key highlights on the regional market share of most of the above-mentioned countries. Latest Drivers & Trends Driving the Market- Dry Shampoo Market Driver: The key factor driving growth in the dry shampoo market is product innovation leading to product premiumization. Dry shampoos are an emerging product innovation that eliminates the use of water and are available for all hair types in the market. The use of regular shampoo to wash hair daily can cause damage as the natural oils are stripped from the hair cuticles. Vendors are focusing on launching dry shampoos with multifunctional benefits as value additions to meet consumer needs. The addition of extra benefits to the product leads to product premiumization. Dry Shampoo Market Trend: The growing adoption of personalized home salon services is another factor supporting the dry shampoo market share growth. Personalized home salon service is an emerging trend in developed regions such as North America and Europe. Over the last decade, the number of players that offer mobile app-based home salon services has proliferated in the market. Using these mobile apps, customers can avail salon services at home. Such service providers prefer to offer hair treatment solutions with minimal usage of water and use products such as dry shampoos. Find additional information about various other market Drivers & Trends mentioned in our FREE sample report. Related Report- Hair Care Market -The haircare market has the potential to grow by USD 26.56 billion during 2021-2025, and the market's growth momentum will accelerate at a CAGR of 5.47%. Download a free sample now! Geranium Oil Market in India -The geranium oil market share in India is expected to increase by USD 1.03 billion from 2021 to 2026, and the market's growth momentum will accelerate at a CAGR of 2.61%. Download a free sample now! Dry Shampoo Market Scope Report Coverage Details Page number 120 Base year 2020 Forecast period 2021-2025 Growth momentum & CAGR Decelerate at a CAGR of 11.48% Market growth 2021-2025 USD 1.21 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth (%) 13.97 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA Performing market contribution North America at 33% Key consumer countries US, Canada, UK, Germany, and China Competitive landscape Leading companies, competitive strategies, consumer engagement scope Companies profiled Henkel AG and Co. KGaA, Kao Corp., Kose Corp., LOreal SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, Natura and Co., Shiseido Co. Ltd., The Estee Lauder Co. Inc., The Procter and Gamble Co., and Unilever Group Market Dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and future consumer dynamics, market condition analysis for the forecast period. Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ Technavio (PRNewsfoto/Technavio) Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dry-shampoo-market-to-record-13-97-of-y-o-y-growth-rate-in-2021-kao-corp---one-of-the-leading-companies-offers-dry-shampoo-through-its-brand-essential-technavio-301450456.html SOURCE Technavio U.S. West Texas Intermediate and international-benchmark Brent crude oil futures closed higher on Thursday after changing the main trend to up for the first time since November 17. The markets have also recovered 61.8% of their breaks from October 26 to December 2. Additionally, both U.S. West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude oil are trading well above their November 30 closes at $65.49 and $68.88, respectively. This is important because the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) first designated Omicron as a Variant of Concern on December 1. On Thursday, March WTI crude oil futures settled at $73.42, up $1.09 or +1.51% and March Brent crude oil finished at $76.64, up $1.36 or +1.77%. Additionally, the United States Oil Fund ETF settled at $53.13, up $0.65 or 1.24%. Both U.S. West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude oil have been trading above their November 30 closes since posting dramatic closing price reversals on December 2. This tells me that traders havent been too concerned about the impact of Omicron on crude oil demand for over three weeks, despite what the headline writers have been saying. Well, maybe just enough to keep a lid on prices, but not enough to trigger the start of a bear market. Both WTI and Brent havent been lower since December 2. OPEC+ Decision Shifted Momentum to Upside, Not Easing of Omicron Fears So what happened on December 2 to turn crude oil prices higher? OPEC+ agreed to go ahead with oil output increase. It didnt cave into U.S. pressure to accelerate daily production, it stuck with its plans for a 400,000 barrel per day rise. Fearing another supply glut, sources said the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and allies, known as OPEC+, considered a range of options in talks on December 2, including pausing their January hike of 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) or increasing output by less than the monthly plan, according to Reuters. But any such move would have put OPEC+, which includes Saudi Arabia and other U.S. allies in the Gulf, on a collision course with Washington. Instead, the group rolled over its existing deal to increase output in January by 400,000 bpd. Story continues Short-Term Outlook Look at the headlines then match them up to the daily chart and youll see that crude oil bottomed on December 2 following the OPEC+ decision to raise production. Omicron may have been an issue throughout the month, but only to the extent that it would cap prices until traders could figure out its impact on demand. The virus is spreading globally, but traders have concluded it is transitory and will have a limited impact on demand. This appears to be the catalyst putting the markets in a position to breakout to the upside over the short-run. For a look at all of todays economic events, check out our economic calendar. This article was originally posted on FX Empire More From FXEMPIRE: MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's communication watchdog has blocked the website of the OVD-Info protest-monitoring group, which has for years documented anti-Kremlin protests, following a court ruling, the group said on Saturday. It said the ruling on restricting access to the ovdinfo.org cite was issued by a court in the Moscow region on Dec. 20. The website currently shows a message saying access to it is restricted on the basis of a federal law on information, information technologies and data protection. A spokeswoman for the group, Maria Kuznetsova, told Reuters that neither the court not the watchdog had notified it about the move. "It was unexpected for us," she said. Russia declared the OVD-Info group a "foreign agent" in September, in a move that critics say is designed to stifle dissent. Moscow has recently labelled several outlets "foreign agents", a legal designation used for what authorities say are foreign-funded organisations engaged in political activity. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Hugh Lawson) Announcement of Periodic Review: Moody's announces completion of a periodic review of ratings of SSE plcGlobal Credit Research - 13 Dec 2021London, 13 December 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has completed a periodic review of the ratings of SSE plc and other ratings that are associated with the same analytical unit. The review was conducted through a portfolio review discussion held on 10 December 2021 in which Moody's reassessed the appropriateness of the ratings in the context of the relevant principal methodology(ies), recent developments, and a comparison of the financial and operating profile to similarly rated peers. The review did not involve a rating committee. Since 1 January 2019, Moody's practice has been to issue a press release following each periodic review to announce its completion.This publication does not announce a credit rating action and is not an indication of whether or not a credit rating action is likely in the near future. Credit ratings and outlook/review status cannot be changed in a portfolio review and hence are not impacted by this announcement. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history.Key rating considerations are summarized below.SSE plc (SSE)'s Baa1 rating is supported by (1) the company's diversified business mix; (2) the high share of earnings from regulated transmission and distribution networks under a well-established and transparent regulatory framework in Great Britain; (3) a growing portfolio of renewables assets under long-term contracts and capacity revenue that give good visibility on a significant portion of the group's earnings; and (4) the group's track record of rotating assets to alleviate financing needs. These factors are balanced against (1) a degree of exposure to commodity markets and weather patterns; (2) the group's substantial capital investment programme and the associated execution risks; (3) an ongoing use of joint ventures, which result in a material share of cash flows over which SSE does not have full control and may be structurally subordinated to project finance debt; and (4) its relatively high financial leverage.This document summarizes Moody's view as of the publication date and will not be updated until the next periodic review announcement, which will incorporate material changes in credit circumstances (if any) during the intervening period.The principal methodologies used for this review were Unregulated Utilities and Unregulated Power Companies published in May 2017 and Regulated Electric and Gas Networks published in March 2017. Please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of these methodologies.This announcement applies only to EU rated, UK rated, EU endorsed and UK endorsed ratings. Non EU rated, non UK rated, non EU endorsed and non UK endorsed ratings may be referenced above to the extent necessary, if they are part of the same analytical unit.This publication does not announce a credit rating action. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history. Joanna Fic Senior Vice President Project & Infrastructure Finance Moody's Investors Service Ltd. One Canada Square Canary Wharf London E14 5FA United Kingdom JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 Client Service: 44 20 7772 5454 Paul Marty Senior Vice President/Manager Project & Infrastructure Finance JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 Client Service: 44 20 7772 5454 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service Ltd. One Canada Square Canary Wharf London E14 5FA United Kingdom JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 Client Service: 44 20 7772 5454 2021 Moodys Corporation, Moodys Investors Service, Inc., Moodys Analytics, Inc. and/or their licensors and affiliates (collectively, MOODYS). All rights reserved.CREDIT RATINGS ISSUED BY MOODY'S CREDIT RATINGS AFFILIATES ARE THEIR CURRENT OPINIONS OF THE RELATIVE FUTURE CREDIT RISK OF ENTITIES, CREDIT COMMITMENTS, OR DEBT OR DEBT-LIKE SECURITIES, AND MATERIALS, PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND INFORMATION PUBLISHED BY MOODYS (COLLECTIVELY, PUBLICATIONS) MAY INCLUDE SUCH CURRENT OPINIONS. MOODYS DEFINES CREDIT RISK AS THE RISK THAT AN ENTITY MAY NOT MEET ITS CONTRACTUAL FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS AS THEY COME DUE AND ANY ESTIMATED FINANCIAL LOSS IN THE EVENT OF DEFAULT OR IMPAIRMENT. SEE APPLICABLE MOODYS RATING SYMBOLS AND DEFINITIONS PUBLICATION FOR INFORMATION ON THE TYPES OF CONTRACTUAL FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS ADDRESSED BY MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS. CREDIT RATINGS DO NOT ADDRESS ANY OTHER RISK, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: LIQUIDITY RISK, MARKET VALUE RISK, OR PRICE VOLATILITY. CREDIT RATINGS, NON-CREDIT ASSESSMENTS (ASSESSMENTS), AND OTHER OPINIONS INCLUDED IN MOODYS PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT STATEMENTS OF CURRENT OR HISTORICAL FACT. MOODYS PUBLICATIONS MAY ALSO INCLUDE QUANTITATIVE MODEL-BASED ESTIMATES OF CREDIT RISK AND RELATED OPINIONS OR COMMENTARY PUBLISHED BY MOODYS ANALYTICS, INC. AND/OR ITS AFFILIATES. MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS DO NOT CONSTITUTE OR PROVIDE INVESTMENT OR FINANCIAL ADVICE, AND MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT AND DO NOT PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS TO PURCHASE, SELL, OR HOLD PARTICULAR SECURITIES. MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS DO NOT COMMENT ON THE SUITABILITY OF AN INVESTMENT FOR ANY PARTICULAR INVESTOR. MOODYS ISSUES ITS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS AND OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLISHES ITS PUBLICATIONS WITH THE EXPECTATION AND UNDERSTANDING THAT EACH INVESTOR WILL, WITH DUE CARE, MAKE ITS OWN STUDY AND EVALUATION OF EACH SECURITY THAT IS UNDER CONSIDERATION FOR PURCHASE, HOLDING, OR SALE.MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS, AND PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY RETAIL INVESTORS AND IT WOULD BE RECKLESS AND INAPPROPRIATE FOR RETAIL INVESTORS TO USE MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS OR PUBLICATIONS WHEN MAKING AN INVESTMENT DECISION. IF IN DOUBT YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR FINANCIAL OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL ADVISER.ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS PROTECTED BY LAW, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, COPYRIGHT LAW, AND NONE OF SUCH INFORMATION MAY BE COPIED OR OTHERWISE REPRODUCED, REPACKAGED, FURTHER TRANSMITTED, TRANSFERRED, DISSEMINATED, REDISTRIBUTED OR RESOLD, OR STORED FOR SUBSEQUENT USE FOR ANY SUCH PURPOSE, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN ANY FORM OR MANNER OR BY ANY MEANS WHATSOEVER, BY ANY PERSON WITHOUT MOODYS PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT.MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY ANY PERSON AS A BENCHMARK AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED FOR REGULATORY PURPOSES AND MUST NOT BE USED IN ANY WAY THAT COULD RESULT IN THEM BEING CONSIDERED A BENCHMARK.All information contained herein is obtained by MOODYS from sources believed by it to be accurate and reliable. Because of the possibility of human or mechanical error as well as other factors, however, all information contained herein is provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. MOODY'S adopts all necessary measures so that the information it uses in assigning a credit rating is of sufficient quality and from sources MOODY'S considers to be reliable including, when appropriate, independent third-party sources. However, MOODYS is not an auditor and cannot in every instance independently verify or validate information received in the rating process or in preparing its Publications.To the extent permitted by law, MOODYS and its directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, licensors and suppliers disclaim liability to any person or entity for any indirect, special, consequential, or incidental losses or damages whatsoever arising from or in connection with the information contained herein or the use of or inability to use any such information, even if MOODYS or any of its directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, licensors or suppliers is advised in advance of the possibility of such losses or damages, including but not limited to: (a) any loss of present or prospective profits or (b) any loss or damage arising where the relevant financial instrument is not the subject of a particular credit rating assigned by MOODYS.To the extent permitted by law, MOODYS and its directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, licensors and suppliers disclaim liability for any direct or compensatory losses or damages caused to any person or entity, including but not limited to by any negligence (but excluding fraud, willful misconduct or any other type of liability that, for the avoidance of doubt, by law cannot be excluded) on the part of, or any contingency within or beyond the control of, MOODYS or any of its directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, licensors or suppliers, arising from or in connection with the information contained herein or the use of or inability to use any such information.NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, COMPLETENESS, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE OF ANY CREDIT RATING, ASSESSMENT, OTHER OPINION OR INFORMATION IS GIVEN OR MADE BY MOODYS IN ANY FORM OR MANNER WHATSOEVER.Moodys Investors Service, Inc., a wholly-owned credit rating agency subsidiary of Moodys Corporation (MCO), hereby discloses that most issuers of debt securities (including corporate and municipal bonds, debentures, notes and commercial paper) and preferred stock rated by Moodys Investors Service, Inc. have, prior to assignment of any credit rating, agreed to pay to Moodys Investors Service, Inc. for credit ratings opinions and services rendered by it fees ranging from $1,000 to approximately $5,000,000. MCO and Moodys Investors Service also maintain policies and procedures to address the independence of Moodys Investors Service credit ratings and credit rating processes. Information regarding certain affiliations that may exist between directors of MCO and rated entities, and between entities who hold credit ratings from Moodys Investors Service and have also publicly reported to the SEC an ownership interest in MCO of more than 5%, is posted annually at www.moodys.com under the heading Investor Relations Corporate Governance Director and Shareholder Affiliation Policy.Additional terms for Australia only: Any publication into Australia of this document is pursuant to the Australian Financial Services License of MOODYS affiliate, Moodys Investors Service Pty Limited ABN 61 003 399 657AFSL 336969 and/or Moodys Analytics Australia Pty Ltd ABN 94 105 136 972 AFSL 383569 (as applicable). This document is intended to be provided only to wholesale clients within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001. By continuing to access this document from within Australia, you represent to MOODYS that you are, or are accessing the document as a representative of, a wholesale client and that neither you nor the entity you represent will directly or indirectly disseminate this document or its contents to retail clients within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001. MOODYS credit rating is an opinion as to the creditworthiness of a debt obligation of the issuer, not on the equity securities of the issuer or any form of security that is available to retail investors.Additional terms for Japan only: Moody's Japan K.K. (MJKK) is a wholly-owned credit rating agency subsidiary of Moody's Group Japan G.K., which is wholly-owned by Moodys Overseas Holdings Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of MCO. Moodys SF Japan K.K. (MSFJ) is a wholly-owned credit rating agency subsidiary of MJKK. MSFJ is not a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (NRSRO). Therefore, credit ratings assigned by MSFJ are Non-NRSRO Credit Ratings. Non-NRSRO Credit Ratings are assigned by an entity that is not a NRSRO and, consequently, the rated obligation will not qualify for certain types of treatment under U.S. laws. MJKK and MSFJ are credit rating agencies registered with the Japan Financial Services Agency and their registration numbers are FSA Commissioner (Ratings) No. 2 and 3 respectively.MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) hereby disclose that most issuers of debt securities (including corporate and municipal bonds, debentures, notes and commercial paper) and preferred stock rated by MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) have, prior to assignment of any credit rating, agreed to pay to MJKK or MSFJ (as applicable) for credit ratings opinions and services rendered by it fees ranging from JPY125,000 to approximately JPY550,000,000.MJKK and MSFJ also maintain policies and procedures to address Japanese regulatory requirements. Even though many young adults are just starting to enter the workforce, its never too early to start planning for retirement, according to one expert. Kristi Rodriguez, a senior vice president at Nationwide Retirement Institute, offered three tips to Gen Z and millennials to prepare for their eventual retirement. First, find your why, said Rodriguez, advising young adults to examine their motivations to save for retirement. How do you envision your life not only today, but how do you envision it in the future? Next, start saving for retirement as soon as possible. Rodriguez noted that the average age that Nationwide participants started saving for retirement was 31, which she characterized as really late. The most precious thing you have is time and availability to save, Rodriguez said. The earlier you can start, even if its smaller increments, is so very important to make sure youre accumulating and taking advantage of that match. (Photo: Getty Creative) This is even more important for those younger investors who want to retire early before 55. Rodriguez. Said that investing early and making maximum contributions to retirement plans is the most profound way to approach the goal of early retirement. Those dreaming of early retirement should also consider what their retirement will look like and save and invest according to their specific retirement goals, like traveling or continuing to work part-time as a gig worker. What is your larger plan? Rodriguez said, and plan for that. Last, she noted that many young adults find information for retirement and other personal finance planning through social media, but she cautioned them to use credible sources and to lean on more traditional resources. The best opportunity you have to save is utilizing a financial professional, said Rodriguez. (Photo: Getty Creative) This is especially true when young adults are balancing other financial obligations like paying off student debt and remain worried about whether Social Security will be around when they retire. Everyones plan will look different, she said. Story continues For parents, Rodriguez shared a tip: Its never too soon to teach their children about money. She recommended that parents bring their children along when they consult with their financial planners, and when they talk about New Years resolutions with their children, they should include their financial goals. Have those conversations, Rodriguez said. Very much like we're getting ready at the beginning of the year to think about fitness goals, those financial goals should be right there. YF Plus Ella is the personal finance reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @bookgirlchicago. Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Flipboard, and LinkedIn We had to fly him back to the base hospital to remove the large, tightly wedged beetle. Then there is the language barrier. Despite the Australians thinking they speak English (as do the Americans), when a shearer in a grimy vest and Stubbies (a type of short shorts) flopped down on the chair in front of me and told me, Geeze, Im crook, Doc, I was somewhat nonplussed. But I learned he was just telling me he was sick. And, gradually, I got to know a Sheila was a woman, a bloke was a man, a bludger was a lay about, a chook was a chicken, a larrikin a joker, tucker something to eatand a whole lot more, many of them ghastly abbreviations, like Chrissie, prezzie footy smoko mozzies uni and gday. Salad in the Sand I was befriended by Greg, one of the Cessnock Hospital lab techs, and invited to go with him and his family to spend Christmas at the beach. This was a scene like the famous Bondi Beach where my host, Billy, had taken me when I was in Sydney, where blonde goddesses were sprayed down with sun-tan oil, then lay roasting in the sun. Billys comment was, Its enough to make you go blind. Thousands of people gathered in Afghanistans southern province of Kandahar on December 25 to pray for rain as the drought in the region continues, causing mounting desperation. Kandahar's information and culture department chief, Hafiz Saidullah, told the dpa news agency that tens of thousands of people from towns and villages had joined the ceremony. The participants prayed for rain and an end to the drought that has hit many of the countrys provinces. Images shared on social media showed a large crowd at the event organized by the Taliban. Currently, Afghanistan is experiencing one of its worst droughts and food shortages in decades, with a humanitarian crisis looming. The United Nations has warned that more than half of the countrys population could face acute hunger this winter due to the impact of drought, conflict, the coronavirus pandemic, and the ongoing economic crisis. Based on reporting by dpa After the last almost two years, you deserve to rouge up your cheeks, put on something sparkly and have a glass of something bubbly. New Years Eve is upon us once again, with plenty of festive options, from the fancy to the casual. And heres hoping the evening will usher in a better-feeling, less anxious 2022. Cheers to that. Colorado Springs Philharmonic was dark last year due to contract disputes, but the symphony is back together and ready to play in the new year with classic tunes from Gershwin, Broadway hits from Andrew Lloyd Webber, vocalists Josh Franklin, Gina Milne and Leo Nova-Wolfe, and local Americana and folk performer Joe Johnson, 7:30 p.m., Pikes Peak Center, 190 S. Cascade Ave., $28-$70; pikespeakcenter.com, axs.com. How about dancing into the new year to the sounds of a nine-piece funk and soul horn band? Collective Groove will provide the tunes at the New Years Eve Dance Party at Stargazers Theatre and Event Center. The night includes an hors doeuvres buffet, party favors and a champagne toast, 9 p.m., 10 S. Parkside Drive, $65; 476-2200, stargazerstheatre.com. The Broadmoor will offer two events, one for those who are feeling posh, the other for those who prefer to keep it more low-key. The New Years Eve Bash is the latter. Its at 8:30 p.m. in the International Center, The Broadmoor, 1 Lake Avenue, $75. The New Years Eve Gala is black tie, and will feature a gourmet five-course dinner, along with music from The Broadmoor Pops Orchestra and Champagne and a balloon drop. Its at 7:30 p.m. in Broadmoor Hall, The Broadmoor, 1 Lake Avenue, $295; broadmoor.com. If youd like to end the year with belly laughs, head to Loonees Comedy Corner where Houstons Funniest Person Sam Demaris is the featured comedian. Slade Ham will open the show, 7:30 and 10 p.m., 1305 N. Academy Blvd., $15-$40, includes bottle of Champagne per every two people; 591-0707, looneescc.com. Francisco Ramos, an actor, voice-over artist and Top 10 finalist on Last Comic Standing in 2015, will headline two shows at 3Es Comedy Club, 7 and 9:30 p.m., 1 S. Nevada Ave., $25-$75; 694-9911, 3escomedy.com. The Emo Night Tour at The Black Sheep will feature DJs spinning tunes from rock bands such as Taking Back Sunday, Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco and My Chemical Romance, 9 p.m., 2106 E. Platte Ave., $20; 227-7625, blacksheeprocks.com Celebrate the end of 2021 in a castle. The New Years Eve Gala at Glen Eyrie Castle will feature the George Sisneros Band playing a little bit of everything: jazz, swing, country, Spanish, Irish, pop and more, 5-10 p.m., 3820 N. 30th St., $125; 265-7050, gleneyrie.org. Randys New Years Eve Dance Party will offer multiple dance floors to shake off the old year. Dance to tunes by Frank Sinatra, as well as hits from the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Latin, country, Top 40 and more, 8 p.m., The Antlers, A Wyndham Hotel, 4 S. Cascade Ave., $110; eventbrite.com, randysinatra.com. A hankering for 70s-themed disco music will lead you straight to Lulus Downstairs, where Boogie Nights Presents: NYE Disco Party will happen at 9 p.m. DJ Gabe from the Future will throw down the beats, while you dance in your era-perfect costumes. A Champagne toast is part of the deal, 107 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, $15; 424-7637, eventbrite.com, lulusdownstairs.com. Lose the Champagne toast, dinner and dancing, and add WhirlyBall, LaserTag, bowling, pop-up games and buffet for a different sort of New Years Bash at WhirlyBall. Play around from noon-4 p.m., 3971 Palmer Park Blvd., $20 for kids, $30 for adults; 637-9999, whirlyball.com/colorado-springs. Bonus - the New Year's Eve fireworks show at midnight from atop Pikes Peak, courtesy of the AdAmAn Club. Contact the writer: 636-0270 The Colorado Department of Transportation is partnering with Uber to give $15 ride credits to residents across the state in an effort to prevent impaired driving over the holidays. In total, $10,000 in ride credits will be distributed to Coloradans from Wednesday through Jan. 3. Colorado was one of only five states chosen for the campaign by the Governors Highway Safety Administration. Holidays are meant for celebrating. We want Coloradans to enjoy these special moments without worrying about how theyre going to get home safely, said Darrell Lingk, director of Colorados Highway Safety Office. Be the ultimate party host and tell your friends about the Uber discount. This campaign comes after 11 people were killed on Colorado roads over the Thanksgiving holiday period the holidays most traffic fatalities since 2008, according to state data. Most of those fatal crashes involved drugs or alcohol. In Colorado, 2021 is on course to become the deadliest year for traffic fatalities since 2004, according to the Department of Transportation. Colorado has had 617 traffic fatalities this year up 6% from this time last year and fatalities involving an impaired driver are up 15%. There have been 220 impaired-driving fatalities in Colorado so far, accounting for 36% of all traffic deaths this year. There are already too many families that will have empty chairs at the dinner table this holiday season because of the pandemic, said Jonathan Adkins with the Governors Highway Safety Administration. Its tragic and frustrating to see even more lives lost on our roads from completely preventable drunk and drug-impaired driving crashes. Coloradans can redeem the $15 ride credit using the code HOLIDAYSAFE in the promotions section of the Uber app. The ride credits are available statewide, limited to one use per person and valid only while supplies last. The credits must be redeemed between 5 p.m. and 5 a.m. Though anyone can use the discount, the state is specifically marketing the campaign to people who are hosting holiday parties, calling it the Ultimate Party Host campaign. The state is also launching a heightened DUI enforcement campaign over the winter holidays from Dec. 15 through Jan. 2. Parents of suspected Michigan high school shooter ignored signs he was a threat, prosecutors say You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Wondering when Santa Claus will arrive at your home today? Want to track his whereabouts this Christmas Eve? You can track Santa's magical jou Police said they arrested an armed intruder on Saturday on the grounds of Windsor Castle in England, where Queen Elizabeth II is spending Christmas with her family after canceling her annual retreat at Sandringham Estate. FILE PHOTO: People march to the presidential palace, protesting against military rule following last month's coup in Khartoum, Sudan December 19, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Passengers wait to board international flights, amidst the spread of the new SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron, at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa, November 28, 2021. REUTERS/ Sumaya Hisham/File Photo WATCH: Alec Baldwin thanks fans for supporting him in wake of Rust shooting RELATED: 10 best Christmas movies and TV specials of all-time A heated debate takes place every year around Christmas time. Its not about which relatives house you should visit for the holidays, its a topic with greater importance. Its a question everyone wants to know the answer to but cant seem to agree on. Is the 1988 film Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis, a Christmas movie? Yes, it is. Thats the simple answer, at least according to a poll I posted on Twitter recently. The results of the poll, in which nearly 100 people voted, revealed that 79% of people believe Die Hard is indeed a Christmas movie. I can understand why some people might think that is a ridiculous statement. Most movie goers recognize Die Hard as an action film. It has an action star as the lead, gunplay galore, and the movie came out in July, which is prime action film season. So how in the world can this film be a Christmas movie? Because the evidence for it being exactly that is overwhelming. Here are seven examples. Tis the season: Top 10 best Christmas movies and TV specials of all time In many families, Christmas flicks and TV specials are another tradition that helps set the mood and context for the holidays, but a movie doesn't have to be a beloved standard - or even very good, for that matter - to stoke one's yuletide mirth.Here is a collection of cinematic faves from The Gazette's features team.For more Gazette lists, check out our lists page. 1. It takes place during a holiday office party - A lot of crazy shenanigans happen at holiday Christmas parties, at least according to Hollywood. Hans Gruber crashing your shindig is evidently one of the things to be worried about in December. But think of it this way - would any of the events that took place at the Nakatomi Plaza occur if it werent during Christmas? Hans, Fritz, Marco, Theo, and friends needed executives to be around and security to be loose in order for their plan to work. Offices dont hold parties like this any other time of the year. 2. It has Christmas music - The Die Hard soundtrack is loaded with Christmas songs. Winter Wonderland, Let it Snow!, Christmas in Hollis, and Ode to Joy are all on the soundtrack and make appearances in one form or another in the film. 3. Johns wife has a Christmas-y name - She may not use the last name McClane, but Mrs. Gennaros first name doesnt get much more festive than Holly. 4. There are presents involved - Johns LA cop buddy Al buys snack cakes for his pregnant wife at a convenience store, Harry Ellis gives Holly a Rolex watch as company present, and the FBI gifts Hans Gruber with access to the Nakatomi vault after shutting off a local power grid. Even Johns gun is (kind of) gift wrapped in his final showdown with Hans. 5. Santa Claus (sort of) makes an appearance - You might remember that the first person John takes out is Tony, as they stumble down a flight of stairs during a fight early in the film. John sends Tonys body down to Hans in an elevator, wearing a Santa hat and the message of Now I have machine gun. Ho, ho, ho on his shirt. John McClane has holiday spirit no matter the situation. 6. It snows at the end - The last time it snowed in Los Angeles was 1962! But what better way to end a Christmas movie than with a little bit of snowfall. 7. The stats don't lie - According to a press release last year from DISH Network, 1.3 million Americans watched Die Hard on Christmas Eve in 2016. That beat out traditional holiday favorites Home Alone, Miracle on 34th Street, and The Santa Clause. Yippee-ki-yay! Its official, Die Hard is a Christmas movie. Feel free to use these talking points should anyone say otherwise. Merry Christmas! Gazette media columnist Terry Terrones is a member of the Television Critics Association and the Broadcast Television Journalists Association. You can follow him on Twitter at @terryterrones. As Virginias average daily cases of COVID-19 jumped 86% in just one week catapulting higher than the recent delta wave local health officials are bracing for more illnesses in the Dan River Region after the holidays. On Friday, Virginia added 8,756 new reports of the illness caused by the novel coronavirus, marking the second highest daily figure in the pandemic. The record as of now stands at 9,914 cases reported Jan. 17 amid last winters surge. The next update from the Virginia Department of Health will not come until Monday. Virginia is poised to easily eclipse the high levels endured earlier this year, according to the University of Virginias most recent forecast. The numbers are driven by the extremely transmissible omicron variant, yet another altered version of the coronavirus. Its safe to conclude the omicron variant is already circulating in the Dan River Region, Linda Scarborough, a spokesperson for the health department, confirmed to the Register & Bee this week. On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that omicron represented about 73% of COVID-19 cases in the United States. In the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Region 3, which includes Virginia, CDC data indicates Omicron represents 75.8% of cases, Logan Anderson, a health department spokesperson for the Richmond office, told the Register & Bee. Locally, while infections have increased, the gains arent as dramatic as the commonwealth overall. The Pittsylvania-Danville Health District is adding about 35 new cases per day. On Christmas Eve, there were 61 new infections recorded. Local health district leaders have briefed their investigation staff on the likelihood of a post-holiday surge in a similar manner as they have done since the COVID-19 virus was first detected, epidemiologist Chris Andrews told the Register & Bee via email this week. We are maintaining our current investigation team and continue to endorse vaccination, social distancing, wearing a mask, and washing hands, he said when asked whats being done at the local level to prepare for a possible onslaught of infections. Health districts throughout the commonwealth havent decreased levels of surveillance and investigation even as cases waned after the most recent delta wave. When someone tests positive for COVID-19, the local health department begins contact tracing to alert others they may have been exposed to COVID-19. Over the course of the pandemic, the health department added more people to help with those tasks. UVa reports omicron may not cause severe illnesses as other variants, but the sheer number of people who could become infected easily counters the average impacts. The virus in general has a wide range of effects on the population. Some people show no signs or symptoms while others become so sick they have to seek emergency medical care. Simply put, with more people exposed to omicron, hospitals already under strains because of staffing struggles could become overwhelmed. Like many hospitals across the country, staffing continues to be a challenge for us, Dr. Sheranda Gunn-Nolan, market chief medical officer for Sovah Health, acknowledged to the Register & Bee this week. We are so thankful for our staff that show up to work every single day giving their all to care for our community. Sovah Health leaders are worried about another local COVID-19 surge in the coming months, especially with low local vaccination rates in the area. In Danville, only half of residents are considered fully vaccinated and just 17% have received a booster dose to provide an added layer of protection many experts report is needed to ward off impacts from the omicron variant. Pittsyvalnia County only has 15% of its residents with a booster shot and 47% fully vaccinated. We continue to monitor our local situation and follow stringent infection prevention protocols to ensure the safety of our patients and staff, Gunn-Nolan said. Vaccines and boosters are still viewed as the best line of defense against COVID-19. Even though breakthrough infections situations where someone who is vaccinated comes down with COVID-19 occur, people who have had the proper shots are far less likely to be admitted to the hopsital, need life support or die from the disease, Gunn-Nolan said. As we head into the holiday season, its important to remember that the pandemic is not over, and large gatherings still maintain a high risk for spread, she said. Get vaccinated, wear a mask and practice good hand hygiene and social distancing to lower those risks. Danville and Pittsylvania County are still in the highest risk category for COVID-19 spread, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In these areas, the CDC and state health leaders strongly urge residents to wear face coverings for indoor public settings. Concerned about COVID-19? Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Amy Abbotts power at her home goes out about every month. The Mount Hermon area resident said the frequency of outages has become worse the last year or so and she has had to purchase a generator. What really bothers me is how often these are happening, Abbott said Tuesday. It almost never happened in the past unless there was a big storm or something. Now, its happening on pleasant days with nothing that might be causing it due to weather. When she was contacted Tuesday morning by the Danville Register & Bee, Abbotts power had just come back on after being out for 45 minutes. I was at my mailbox, and heard a crackle in the line over my head... she said of the moment when her power went out. This was the third time in about a month. Abbotts outage that morning came just three days after another that occurred while American Electric Power was performing maintenance on its system. Danville Utilities stopped receiving power from one of its delivery points from AEP and several substations went offline for nearly 30 minutes, as a result. It certainly did affect a lot of people, said Danville Utilities Director Jason Grey. The citys West Fork delivery point project will help prevent situations like the one that arose Dec. 18, Grey said. Danville Utilities fourth Appalachian Power delivery point will be constructed in Brosville and should be complete in 2023. That delivery point has been in conceptual design, Grey said. Were looking at buying property for it. If we had that project up and running, we would have had another delivery point that would have prevented what happened [Dec. 18]. Danville City Council voted in July to buy 42.85 acres next to the West Fork electric substation for $180,000 to expand the substations footprint in Brosville and add a fourth Appalachian Power delivery point. The purchase would allow a new Appalachian Power transmission line and substation at the property. The West Fork substation sits on about five acres on Long Circle, off U.S. 58. Danville Utilities existing delivery points for Appalachian Power are off Kentuck Road, at Riverside Drive and Arnett Boulevard, and at the Danville Utilities location at Monument Street. Danville Utilities distributes electricity to about 42,000 customer locations in a 500-square-mile service territory covering Danville, the southern third of Pittsylvania County and small portions of Henry and Halifax counties. It also provides natural gas, water, wastewater and telecommunications services in Danville. Appalachian Powers transmission line would be a 138-kilovolt line, and the substation would include a control building, several breakers and metering equipment. Danville Utilities operates 17 substations. The recent delivery point issue occurred at the Riverside substation at Riverside Drive and Arnett Boulevard. Riverside substation is a vital part of Danville Utilities that serves about a quarter of the citys customers. One of the current three delivery points for the citys system, it provides power to almost 10,000 customers on both sides of the Dan River. The Riverside substation sends power to customers in neighborhoods bounded by Guilford Street to the north, the Old West End neighborhood to the south, Piney Forest Road to the west and the King Memorial Bridge to the east. It also feeds substations areas of the county, including those in Brosville, Whitmell and Mount Hermon. The substation was upgraded in the summer of 2020. The project cost about $6 million and involved the replacement of all of the substations three transformers, switches, circuit breakers and other aging equipment. Before the improvements, a lot of the equipment dated back to substations construction in the 1960s. The outages As for power outages, Westover Drive area resident Cindi Fisher has experienced power outages at her Fox Hollow home five times recently. Power outages seem to have increased over the time I have lived in this part of the city, Fisher said, adding that she has resided in Fox Hollow for more than 10 years. Some of her neighbors have bought standby generators, she said. In addition to the loss of electricity that occurred Dec. 18, three short outages happened at Fishers home on the morning of Dec. 12, she said. In total, it was not out that long, but it caused a power surge in my house that killed my modem, Fisher said. She called her internet provider and had her modem replaced at the citys expense, she said. Fisher also lost electricity the first week of this month while she was at work. Power outages are not new to the Westover area, but there are no weather-related events that caused any of the outages at my house this month, she said. Before the outages became more common for Fishers neighborhood, she felt like she and her neighbors were lucky to be spared when most of the Westover area was without power. But that has changed. Now, I find it more of a nuisance, she said. Isolated problems Grey said the city has had more isolated outages because of fallen trees or animals such as squirrels or birds making contact with power lines. Not all outages are caused by us, Grey said. Theyre caused by Mother Nature. Were here to react to that and do what we can to prevent them going forward. The city has performed a lot of right-of-way maintenance such as tree-trimming over the past several years to reduce incidents, but birds and squirrels can still climb and fly onto poles and lines, Grey said. Car wrecks also have caused outages when poles are struck, including one that occurred Wednesday morning and shut down power in part of Danville Utilities service area, Grey said. That seems to happen a lot more than I think it should, he said. A lot of customers dont realize how many vehicle accidents we have. Substations As for new substations, projects were completed at Kentuck in October and at Whitmell last week, Grey said. Crews have now moved on to building new substations at Westover off Woodlawn Drive and at Southside near Danville Community College, Grey said. Westover and Southside serve about 5,600 and 3,400 customers, respectively. The Westover substation serves a vast area including Dry Fork, the Berry Hill Road area and parts of Danville. Southside covers the area from West Main Street and at Averett University in Danville, heading south in the Grove Park area, Southwyck, Druid Hills and Stratford Place to the North Carolina line. The Westover substation was built in 1975 and Southsides substation was built in 1972. Those projects are expected to be complete by next summer, Grey said. Newer equipment and increasing redundancy, having dual transformers at a substation, improves reliability, he said. Dual transformers will be at Westover and Southside substations as part of their projects, enabling the electrical load to be evenly split among the transformers and moved from one transformer to another whenever there is an issue. Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. CHICAGO More than a year after the vaccine was rolled out, new cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. have soared to their highest level on record at over 265,000 per day on average, a surge driven largely by the highly contagious omicron variant. How to Clip Click and hold your mouse button on the page to select the area you wish to save or print. You can click and drag the clipping box to move it or click and drag in the bottom right corner to resize it. When you're happy with your selection, click the checkmark icon next to the clipping area to continue. THE FACTS: The claim is misrepresenting a bill, first introduced in the New York state legislature in 2015, that would allow for the temporary detention of individuals infected, or suspected of being infected, with a contagious disease during a public health emergency. The state Assemblys health committee has no plans to take action on the bill, and its sponsor, Assemblyman N. Nick Perry, now says he will withdraw it. While the proposal failed to find support among lawmakers, it is still causing a stir online. In recent days, social media users have pushed a claim that lawmakers are planning to vote on the bill as soon as Jan. 5 and that it would allow for the indefinite detention of people who arent vaccinated against COVID-19. But no such vote on the bill in question was slated for that day, which is actually just the start of the legislative session. Citing concocted stories online about the bill, Perry, its sponsor, tweeted Monday that he would take legislative action to strike the bill, remove it from the calendar, thus ending all consideration, and actions that could lead to passage into law. The bill proposed allowing the state to temporarily detain someone carrying or suspected to be carrying a contagious disease or someone they came into contact with in a medical facility or other appropriate facility. The bill also said such a person shall not continue to be detained after they are determined to be no longer contagious. It also included a provision to require the state to seek a court order if a person was to be held for more than three days. Frank Shea, a spokesman for Perry, told The Associated Press that the bill was first proposed in 2015 after a nurse defied quarantine after treating Ebola patients in Sierra Leone. Shea said that while Perry reintroduced the bill year after year, he had not actively pushed for the legislation and said it would be withdrawn because it had become a distraction. The most recent introduction came in January 2021, when it was referred to the Assemblys Committee on Health. There was no other action on it. Before Perry announced Monday that he would withdraw the bill, the office of Assemblyman Richard Gottfried the chair of the Committee on Health also said in a statement to the AP that there were no plans to vote on it. This bill has been introduced every year since 2015, has never been taken up by the Committee, has not been cosponsored by other legislators, and has not had a companion bill in the Senate, the statement said. The Committee does not plan to put the bill on an agenda. This is just what was going on in my mind. Im an African American woman, I just speak from my culture, when I say that a lot of our community dont really believe in having mental health and going, seeing the therapist and stuff like that, though our generation now is breaking that barrier, which is great. It was not until Vincent moved to Charlotte and began attending Queens University of Charlotte that she got connected to the resources and services that had an impact. A faculty member at Queens told her about Veterans Bridge Home. They do more than just provide services for therapy, Vincent said. They help you with finances or grant assistance, or places to live, jobs. Ive used their services a few times. She strongly encourages other veterans struggling with such issues to check out the services. Along with seeking help from Veterans Bridge Home, Vincent also does free on-campus therapy at Queens University of Charlotte. Though North Carolina is bolstering up services for the military community, Vincent questions whether the military is providing enough mental health services for veterans of war. A violation of rules regarding washing fruits and vegetables can result in a deduction of up to one point. Not properly following rules on acceptable hot and cold holding temperatures for food can result in deductions of up to three points. Not properly cleaning and sanitizing food contact surfaces can result in a deduction of up to three points. The inspector may deduct none, half or all of the possible points for each core item violation, depending on the severity of the violation or whether it is a repeat or recurring violation. A core item relates to the general sanitation, operational controls, facilities or structures, equipment design or general maintenance of the establishment. Some violations can be corrected during the inspection and result in no more than half of the possible points being deducted for that violation. For that to be possible, the violation cannot have been documented in the previous inspection. It must also be noted on the inspection form that the violation was present but was corrected during the inspection. When heavy rains fall in Cicero, it floods, and those who live near the BNSF Railway tracks are hit the worst, town officials say. Some residents say their basements and streets have flooded since they moved into their homes decades ago one told the Tribune as long as 40 years. The towns officials and local state legislators have blamed the railway company, which owns 7% of the land in Cicero, for causing excessive runoff by paving over soil, raising the elevation of its property by several feet and not creating detention ponds to catch the water, town spokesman Ray Hanania said. Earlier this month, state Rep. Mike Zalewski spoke at a news conference at Ciceros Town Hall about a house bill that he introduced this fall that, if made law, would require the railway company to conform to the regulations of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District. Its a very simple piece of legislation, said Zalewski, a Riverside Democrat. It says that parcel property owned by the railway has to conform with the state, and the county, and the water reclamation districts drainage law. ... We just simply want the town of Cicero and the residents affected by this flooding to be protected by this ordinance. In an email, a BNSF representative said the company has two ongoing legal matters with Cicero and that a judge recently ruled in the companys favor, issuing a temporary restraining order to prevent Cicero from enforcing a discriminatory sewer charge against BNSF. Normally we would not comment on pending legal matters, but BNSF felt compelled to provide this statement in order to respond to the false allegations made by Cicero, the company said. In February, the company received a sewer bill 1,250% greater than its previous bills, with its rates going up from $6,643 to $90,300 per month without any notice, the company said. BNSF tried numerous times to discuss this large rate increase with Cicero to no avail, the company said. Ciceros response was to send BNSF a 60-day notice threatening to shut down our water service and tear up our railyards pipes if we did not pay. Faced with these threats, in June, BNSF was forced to file a suit against the unlawful rate increase. A month later, the town then filed its own lawsuit with concerns about flooding, the company said. To date, Cicero has not provided BNSF with any proof of its allegations; no pictures, dates/times, or evidence of any kind. Cicero only recently filed an amended complaint where it identified several locations of concern, the company said. BNSF has filed a motion to dismiss Ciceros complaint and believes its allegations are without merit. Hanania said it was true that the town increased BNSFs sewer bill because the town believed the company should be financially responsible to the Cicero residents for the amount of water its added to the town as a result of the resurfacing it has done over the years. Hanania added that the town has tried to communicate with BNSF but the company has been unresponsive. I think the railroad has an attitude that they dont care about anybody, Hanania said. But they have to be good neighbors, and we dont believe they have been. Some of the residents who have been affected the most live on the east side of the 2700 block of South 58th Court, where they can see the railroad tracks from their backyards, Hanania said. Jean Laisa Guardado, 36, said her father has owned a home in the block since 1993, and the family has experienced flooding during heavy rains since living there. The worst one in recent memory was in June of last year, she said. Guardado walked outside to rainwater hitting her ankles on the sidewalk and hitting the bumper of her vehicle, parked on the street, she said. She brought out a cooler with Modelos for her and her next-door neighbor to share because she knew they would have to wait a while for the water to drain. Her family is looking to move to Texas because theyre tired of the towns floods and traffic, she said. Its getting too expensive, she said. Theyve lost a washer, dryer, water heaters, clothes, bedroom furniture and countless things that were stored in their basement and damaged from the rainwater, she said. During heavy rains, theyve used up to seven pumps to get water out of the basement and they are now on their second wet vacuum. Whenever it rains, the family has anxiety, Guardado said. Even in the middle of the night, someone has to get up to check the basement or grab a bucket to start taking out the water. Afterward, they have to thoroughly clean with bleach in hopes of preventing mold. Its an ongoing problem, she said. It is a pain to be getting the water out. ... We cant even sleep because someone has to be checking. Guardado said she has tried to complain to the town but shes defeated. The family has only received help once from the Federal Emergency Management Agency years ago, which was around $3,000 to $4,000. They dont do anything about it, so whats the point? ... The town never says, You know what, we apologize, she said. You lost what you lost and youre screwed. Hanania said some Cicero residents received payments from FEMA about a decade ago after the town and other nearby communities were declared a disaster area due to flooding. Charlie Lloyd, 77, who has lived in his home on the same block as Guardado for 41 years, said that every time the street floods, he knows that his basement will flood. If that street dont flood, were good, he said. It has flooded at least once or twice a year every year hes lived there. He has lost two water heaters, two furnaces, Christmas decorations, rugs and other items stored in the basement. His new furnace was installed on top of cinder blocks to elevate it, and he has shelves to keep everything off the floor. Lloyd said he bought sewer insurance, but it hasnt seemed to help. Lloyds next-door neighbor, 63-year-old Irma Valentin, said she has lived in her home for about 20 years and has lost three furnaces and three water heaters during that time. When I first bought the house, I told the lady, Do you get flooding? and she told me, No. Thats why I bought it. If she told me yes, I wouldnt have bought it, she said. She learned that her basement does flood a month after she moved in one day after her final chance to terminate the contract. While Lloyd and Valentin said they werent sure who was at fault for the flooding, Guardado said she doesnt believe the railway is to blame, because she knows of other Cicero residents and even relatives in Berwyn who dont live by the railway who also experience flooding. She believed it is due to nearby floodgates being closed. Hanania said the town closing the floodgates is a myth. The town does not have control over nearby floodgates, he said. In addition to the issues caused by the railway, flooding is caused by people raking their leaves onto the streets, covering maintenance holes, Hanania said. So the town sends out water crews to uncover the maintenance holes during rain. The town can also only do so much to help residents who have lost property in floods, Hanania said. The town does offer to help vacuum water out of residents property and has a program that splits costs 50/50 with a homeowner to install a backup valve in their sewer pipe to alleviate flooding. Its things like that we try to do, he said. We cant cover the damage, unfortunately, to a home thats been damaged by fire, thats been damaged by floodwater. Guardado said the city did put in a row of rocks along part of their alley next to the railway, to try to catch some of the water. That has helped some, but she said she sees neighborhood kids picking up the rocks and throwing them. When we complained, thats what we got, she said. This is their solution: rocks. Tribune reporter Sylvia Goodman contributed. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 New Braunfels, TX (78130) Today Clear skies. Low around 30F. Winds NNE at 15 to 25 mph.. Tonight Clear skies. Low around 30F. Winds NNE at 15 to 25 mph. In defiance of law settled in the Pentagon Papers case, this judge has barred The Times from publishing information about a prominent and influential organization that was obtained legally in the ordinary course of reporting, Sulzberger said in a statement reported by the Times that also asserted there was no precedent for Wood's decision. Project Veritas bills itself as a watchdog, often of media. It's known for using hidden cameras and hiding identities to try to ensnare journalists in embarrassing conversations and to reveal supposed liberal bias. In a statement Friday, Project Veritas lawyer Elizabeth Locke hailed the ruling as a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship. The New York Times has long forgotten the meaning of the journalism it claims to espouse, and has instead become a vehicle for the prosecution of a partisan political agenda, Locke said. Todays ruling affirms that the New York Times behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law. Grief is associated with a loss of someone and adjusting to the difficult aspects, she says. However, it can be (that) the person is still here with us, but we no longer share the same relationship. A lot of people are going through that. Parks main advice for someone dealing with loss this holiday season is recognizing the feelings that come along with grief anger, anxiety, helplessness, etc. are normal and valid things to feel. Having personal check-ins amongst the holiday hustle will help you digest those feelings. Its even more reason to remember to be kind to yourself and to look after your own needs, whether thats physical self care, or emotional self care, or even spiritual self care, she says. There is a lot during the holidays that you wont be able to change. I cant change the absence of my grandma, and I cant change that I miss her. It is possible, however, to change your holiday traditions to better suit your needs. Instead of the traditional holiday meal at home, you could choose to go out to eat. If being at home is difficult, you could plan a trip, even if its just to the next town over. You could start a new tradition, like lighting a candle to symbolize your grief. RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) Eighteen North Carolina state workers been fired over their refusal to comply with an executive order Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper issued this summer compelling employees to get a COVID-19 vaccine or be tested weekly, as of Dec. 17. The North Carolina Office of State Human Resources provided the dismissal figure to The Associated Press on Wednesday. The 18 fired state employees include six workers from the Department of Health and Human Services, five from the Department of Public Safety, three from the Department of Transportation and one each from four other cabinet-level agencies. They represent just 0.03% of the workforce Cooper's order covers. Under a separate directive, the state health department in October announced it dismissed 16 workers at state-operated healthcare facilities but did not immediately share with the AP whether more employees have since been fired. Inskeep joins SC3F Wealth Management CHARLESTON Mitchell Inskeep has joined the SC3F Wealth Management Group as a senior partner. Prior to joining SC3F Wealth Management Group, Inskeep was a managing director-investments at Wells Fargo Advisors for 10 years and a graduated from University of Illinois with a degree in agricultural business. Inskeep has 31 years of experience in the financial services industry. Gary Swearingen, managing partner, states, SC3F Wealth Management is very excited to have Mitchell join us. We have known Mitchell for over 10 years and knew he would be a great fit with his experience, enthusiasm and skillful personality. SC3F Wealth Management Group has been serving investors for 23 years. Read named chief risk officer at First Mid MATTOON First Mid Bancshares, Inc., the holding company of First Mid Bank & Trust, has announced Jordan Read as its new chief risk officer. Read will be responsible for coordinating the companys risk management processes designed to identify, measure, monitor, and manage the critical risks present within the business environment that First Mid operates. Read assumes the role previously held by Chris Slabach, who will be retiring from day-to-day duties at the end of the year. Read, who joined First Mid in September, was most recently the director of internal audit for Enterprise Bank & Trust. Read also served on Enterprise Banks internal committee to assess and implement the additional regulatory and financial requirements of crossing the $10 billion asset threshold and served on a team that implemented the enterprise risk management process. Read attended the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he obtained a bachelor's and masters degree in accountancy, graduating Magna Cum Laude. He is a licensed CPA in Missouri. Following graduation, Read worked at Ernst and Young LLP in the advisory-risk services group. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The business news you need Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. 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. MATTOON The Lake Land College nursing program put together an assortment of items to donate to the Crisis Nursery of Effingham County and One Stop Community Christmas. Some of the items included diapers, wipes, snacks, clothes and art supplies. Our students and faculty are thrilled to help provide items that can assist these programs and the individuals who benefit from them, said Erin Swingler, division chair of allied health/nursing instructor. Programs like these are a great value to the community, and we are very proud to offer our support to them. HSHS St. Anthonys Memorial Hospital also partnered with Lake Land College to donate the items. It is a joy to share in this holiday donation, said Autumn McCormick, nursing manager at St. Anthony's. Thank you to the nursing students for making an impact on our much needed community organizations. We enjoy partnering with Lake Land in learning opportunities each semester as well as giving opportunities. Representatives from Sarah Bush Lincoln, St. Anthonys and the Crisis Nursery of Effingham County joined the nursing students on campus to receive the donations and expressed gratitude for the donation. We are incredibly grateful for the Lake Land College nursing program for putting together this generous donation that will support two local programs, said Meghan Rewers, executive drector of Crisis Nursery of Effingham County. Because of wonderful acts of kindness such as this, our nursery is able to provide children in crisis with all the necessities they may need while in our care. It is the Crisis Nursery of Effingham County's mission to prevent and protect children from trauma, abuse and neglect by providing a free, 24-hour emergency shelter care program for children birth through 6 years of age in partnership with St. Anthony's. We are very grateful to Lake Land College and its students for the donations to One Stop Community Christmas, Sarah Bush Lincoln Community Service Representative Mandy Snowden said. Its partnerships like this that help support not just our two organizations, but the community as well. One Stop Community Christmas is a local organization created to help families in need during the holiday season in Coles, Clark, Cumberland, Edgar, Shelby, Moultrie and Douglas counties. For more information on these programs or how to donate, visit crisisnurseryofeffingham.com/wish-list or onestopcommunitychristmas.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Meyer Lansky Meyer Lansky (born Meier Suchowlanski, July 4, 1902-Jan. 15, 1983) was organized crimes Accountant and was associated with gangster Charles Lucky Luciano. Meyer, along with Luciano, was instrumental in the development of the National Crime Syndicate in the United States. Lansky developed a gambling empire for the Jewish mob that stretched across the world. He was said to own a percentage of all the crime skimming in casinos in Las Vegas, Cuba, The Bahamas and London. Being a member of the Jewish mob, Lansky undoubtedly had strong influence with the Italian-American Mafia and played a large role in the consolidation of the criminal underworld. The full extent of this role has been the subject of some debate, as Lansky himself denied many of the accusations against him. Due to some good lawyers, Lansky had nearly 50 years participating in organized crime without a conviction. Lansky was never found guilty of anything more serious than illegal gambling. Probably the most financially successful gangster in American history, it was reported that he had a net worth of an estimated $20 million. Today, this amount would be worth $193 million. Lansky met Benjamin Bugsy Siegel in New York City when they were children. They became partners in the bootlegging trade and together managed the Bugs and Meyer Mob. This group had the reputation as one of the most violent Prohibition gangs. Lansky met Luciano when both were teenagers. Luciano had a vision to form a national crime syndicate in which the Italian, Jewish, and Irish gangs could pool their resources and turn organized crime into a lucrative business for all an organization Luciano founded after a conference in Atlantic City hosted by himself, Lansky, Johnny Torrio and Frank Costello in May 1929. By 1936, Lansky had established gambling operations in Florida, New Orleans and Cuba. These gambling operations were successful as they were founded upon a single innovation. Lansky and his connections had the technical expertise to manage gambling effectively based upon Lanskys knowledge of the true mathematical odds of the most popular games. Being a very smart criminal, Lansky convinced the Mafia to place Siegel in charge of Las Vegas and the Flamingo Hotel. This move was to protect himself from the type of prosecution which sent Al Capone to prison for tax evasion and prostitution. Lansky transferred the illegal earnings to a Swiss bank account, where anonymity was assured by the 1934 Swiss Banking Act. The vast earnings Lansky made in Cuba ended when Fidel Castro changed the climate for mob investment. Lansky, along with other gambling criminals made a hasty exit from Cuba. Lanskys last years were spent quietly at his home in Miami Beach, Florida. He died of lung cancer on Jan. 15, 1983 at the age of 80. At the time of his death, he was worth almost nothing. However, the FBI believed he left behind over $300 million in hidden bank accounts, but they never found any money. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Faith and Family Baptist Church, 105 Nathan Ave., Winston-Salem, invites you to join them as they celebrate 70 years of preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. The church was started as Meadowview Baptist Church on June 19, 1951. Sunday worship services are at 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sunday school is at 9:45 a.m. and the midweek service is at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday. In addition to services in the sanctuary, the services can be heard in their parking lot on 87.7 FM for those who prefer to remain in their vehicle. The church also livestreams all services at www.facebook.com/faithandfamilybaptist. A Facebook account is not required to access the video, scroll down for the live stream. Archive services are available there if you are unable to watch live. For more information, contact Pastor Robert Hutchens at 336-782-3747. At Fort Bliss, Texas, they completed medical screenings and numerous administrative requirements before their return to their home state. While overseas, the unit provided internal law and order operations and other support functions to the Joint Training Center in Jordan. Everyone involved in the process worked very hard to bring them home ahead of schedule and in time for the holidays, the news release stated. Police: Security guard sexual assault suspect BELLEVUE A 23-year-old security guard has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault of a child following an incident Dec. 10. Bellevue Police say the guard and the student entered a portable classroom at Pawnee Elementary School at 3:45 p.m. that day, where the alleged assault took place. The guard was taken to the Sarpy County Jail and booked on first- and third- degree sexual assault of a child. The age of the student was not released. Her past professional experience includes serving as vice president of finance at the Nebraska Hospital Association, where she was a federal and state advocate for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements while being responsible for internal accounting, special projects and member relations. After I finished my term for the Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools, I was looking to serve somewhere else and was asked by someone at Mosaic, said Peppmuller. I then spoke with (Mosaic President and CEO) Linda Timmons. I was so impressed with her dedication to the organization not only for the people served but for the people who work there. As I learned more, including the nature of its services, how much its grown in other states and Mosaics values of Belonging, Connection, Faithfulness and Grit, I thought, God has made this plan for me. Nebraska nonprofit organizations and University of Nebraska programs may now submit funding ideas to Women Investing in Nebraska (WIN) for grant awards in 2022. Grant seekers must submit an online letter of inquiry form by Feb. 16 at womeninvestinginnebraska.org. Based on submissions, WIN will invite 12 to 16 grant seekers to provide formal grant proposals. Grant seekers must be a part of the University of Nebraska system or be a Nebraska nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity. WIN seeks out groups with innovative and bold solutions to the important issues Nebraskans face, said Vanessa Denney, chair of the WIN grants committee. We just completed our 10th year of partnering with creative and committed organizations and people in Nebraska working to improve their communities. The grant amounts will be based on the total amount of gifts received this year from WIN members. WIN will announce its grant awards this fall. WIN Chair Susan Fritz said the grants enable the nonprofits and university to address new ideas and programs. Assuming no significant changes in global wind patterns, increases in evaporation and moisture will mean more moisture is transported from dry areas to wet areas and into the storm tracks at higher latitudes. Global warming could also potentially change the global circulation pattern, causing a shift in the worlds wet and dry regions. Mountains, moisture and the east-west divide These dynamics are also affected by local conditions, such as the shape of the land, the types of plants on it and the presence of major water bodies. The western U.S., with the exception of the West Coast, is dry in part because it lies in the rain shadow of mountains. The westerly wind from the Pacific Ocean is forced upward by the mountain ranges in the West. As it moves up, the air cools and precipitation forms on the windward side of the mountains. By the time the wind reaches the leeward side of the mountains, the moisture has already rained out. As the wind descends the mountains, the air warms up, further reducing the relative humidity. CALEDONIA The village has decided how to spend its American Rescue Plan Act grant dollars: all of its $2.645 million for a new water tower on a portion of the DeBack Farms Business Park property. At its meeting Monday, the Village Board unanimously approved its Resolution no. 2021-132, authorizing Tax Increment District No. 4 water improvements project to be partially funded with ARPA grant dollars. Village staff is now set to begin the process of studying, designing, permitting, publicly bidding and constructing the project. Caledonia received the third-biggest amount of money to a Racine County municipality, after Racine and Mount Pleasant. It received $1.322 million in 2021 and is to receive another $1.322 million in 2022 for a total of $2.645 million of ARPA funding through the federal government for purposes outlined in the federal guidance; one of the authorized uses is water infrastructure. The estimated total cost of the project is $3.75 million. This is something, that my recollection is, we were talking about putting in any way or the need to put it in, Trustee Fran Martin said. The Village of Caledonia previously identified the need to construct an elevated storage tank/water tower in the TID No. 4 area along Adams Road. The municipality in May secured a site for the water tower along Adams Road where it will benefit the TID no. 4 area. The water tower is to provide and maintain adequate water supply and water pressure for fire suppression systems of the water utility users in the vicinity. ARPA funds must be spent before 2024. This would help speed it up; it does take quite some time to put up a water tower, said Village Engineer Anthony Bunkelman, referring to approving Resolution no. 2021-132. They just cant build it and permit it overnight. It just takes us time to get through EPA, DNR and whatnot to go through that permitting process. Were requesting that we start now on that so that we dont miss the window to spend these funds. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. BURLINGTON Almost immediately after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol made worldwide headlines, residents in the Burlington Area School District discovered that a local teacher was close to the melee. Jeff Taff, a history teacher at Burlington High School, had left students with a note that he was traveling to Washington, D.C., to participate in what he described as standing up for election integrity. Protesters questioning the legitimacy of the victory of President-elect Joe Biden rallied that day in support of defeated incumbent Donald Trump. Some them of then traveled to, then forced their way inside, the Capitol in a violent clash that led to deaths of five people, caused extensive property damage and disrupted the certification of Bidens victory. Taff is not among those who have been criminally charged, and he has stated that he stayed away from the riot inside the Capitol building. He was suspended Jan. 7 from his teaching position in Burlington then reinstated over the summer as BASD officials investigated whether he had violated district policy by distributing to students material outside the approved curriculum. The investigation would continue for several months, while the incident sparked emotional debate between supporters of Biden and of Trump. Critics accused Taff of improperly injecting his own political views into the classroom, while others complained that he was being unfairly persecuted for his pro-Trump beliefs. School district records later revealed new concerns surrounding Taff, including that he had brought COVID-19 conspiracy theories into the classroom; that he had encouraged students not to wear face masks to combat the contagious virus; and that he had shared anti-government and partisan messages with students. Throughout the investigation, Taff remained on paid administrative leave, continuing to collect his $50,000-a-year salary. The school district in June announced that investigators determined that Taff had demonstrated poor judgment and a lack of professionalism, and that he would need additional training and closer observation. He was returned to the classroom in the fall, but he was reassigned from Modern American History in favor of classes on Social Studies Foundations and Modern World History. The investigation also found that BASD policies do not prohibit teachers from discussing their own political beliefs in the classroom. Several of the students indicated that Mr. Taff would often give his own personal opinion on politics, the investigation concluded. Most students did not feel like they were being persuaded one way or another. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. 1. Crime. Too much violence, too many shootings. Police have to get a handle on it. 2. Coronavirus. The omicron variant and others to follow threaten the community. 3. Roads. Killeen-area roads are still a mess after last years storm a serious problem. 4.Government. Elections are on the horizon, and voters will have hard choices to make. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say which single issue will stand out at this point. Vote View Results One member of the church is a donor here. We had a nice supply of prayer shawls, so we reached out to different charities that help people who are in the midst of a crisis or enduring hard times, and need a hand up. They were really well received. KACF staff members made calls, scheduled drop offs and assisted in the donation process. Among grateful non-profits was the Central Nebraska L.O.S.S. team, which supports those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Several prayer shawls have been distributed to grieving families, L.O.S.S. co-founder Renae Zimmer said. The families were very appreciative. We are confident the shawls will bring warmth, love and comfort to those who are going through a very dark time. Daniel Buller, executive director at Crossroads Mission Avenue at 1304 E. 39th St., said a box of prayer shawls was set out at Crossroads, and guests, as residents are called, were invited to select one. It was really special for them to know that others were thinking of them. Guests at the mission felt cared for and thought of, he said. Jake Ondrak, program director at Crossroads, concurred: It brought hope and happiness to each person. Every year when I sit down to write the Beers of the Year column, I think hard about how to summarize the year in beer. This year, I just copped out and asked the one guy who oughta know: Mark Garthwaite, executive director of the Wisconsin Brewers Guild, which represents nearly 80 Wisconsin brewers large and small. Its not great, but its better in general. The fact that we didnt really lose that many breweries, at least in Wisconsin, is a relief, Garthwaite said on the December episode of Badger Beer Hour, a monthly livestream I co-host. But its still just clinging to hope that we can put the back end of this pandemic behind us as quickly as possible. It appears, he said, that the survival mode brewers were in last year has abated, mostly. But the crisis left scars on the business that will take more than a year to heal. There are a lot of (brewery) employees who were lost who probably havent been replaced, Garthwaite said. A number of (brewery owners) that Ive talked to who years ago were relieved to be able to finally hire more people so they could actually live a life instead of living 24 hours a day at their brewery are back to living 24 hours a day at their brewery to keep things going. The work is as hard as its ever been. And let us not forget that COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin have been at an all-time high this month, and hospitals across the state are straining under the load. Were not even close to done with this yet. So Ill repeat what I said last year at this time: Stand by your favorite breweries. They still need the help, and our rallying around them during the past 20 months (what a depressing statement) has absolutely made a difference. The customers have been really good, Garthwaite said. We have loyal, loyal fans of every one of our members, and hats off to them for prioritizing their local craft breweries. OK, on to the beers! Beers that were bigger than beer Some 1,200 breweries took a stand on racial justice last year (and into 2021) by brewing a Black Is Beautiful beer, and in 2021 a number of breweries borrowed the concept to highlight their own favorite social causes. One of the most prominent was birthed right here in Wisconsin: Things We Dont Say, which called attention to mental health. The idea was launched by Nicole Henzel, a sales manager for Malteurop in Milwaukee, and the core IPA recipe was developed by Eagle Park Brewing of Muskego though breweries were encouraged to riff off it to make their own, and more than 200 across the world participated. The underlying message: Its OK to not be OK, and the can label included resources for seeking help. I also loved the Operation SOS collaboration series, launched in January by 3 Sheeps Brewing of Sheboygan as a lifeline to bars and restaurants in the industrys, perhaps, darkest hours. The three different IPAs made with brewing partners around the state were available primarily at establishments, allowing them to add an exclusive four-pack to a takeout order they might not have had otherwise. And finally, Lakefront Brewerys My Turn series took a poignant and charitable turn in March. The series allows employees from all corners of the brewery to take the reins to brewhouse, designing a beer pretty much top to bottom, with turns coming up based on seniority. The guy whose turn came up in March, sadly, wasnt here to enjoy his beer. Alexander Kluth II, an employee in the packaging department, died of pancreatic cancer the previous September at the age of 61, so Lakefront designed a beer he would have loved, a straightforward American stout, and donated $1 from the sale of every six-pack of My Turn: Al to the American Cancer Society. And it was a hell of a stout: a little sweet caramel-chocolate character, a touch of roast, and a clean, slightly bitter finish. It was a beer Al and Lakefront can be proud of. New Glarus Gyrator Doppel The more I think back on this beer, the more wild it seems. A big, burly doppelbock with a nearly proprietary malt and hop, each rescued from the historical brewing ingredient scrap heap by New Glarus master brewer Dan Carey, lagered and bottle-aged for 10 months, then released in a six-pack for the same price as Spotted Cow. As a treat. Its exhibit A for those of us who lionize New Glarus. After just one new beer this year, the Careys crew released a raft of debuts this year, and they were a boon for fruit lovers. Lots O Peach, Blueberry Cocoa Stout and Berry Mocha Bock were all too fruity and too sweet for my palate, though I did enjoy late summers Pear 21. The new Belgian tripel, Triple 8, and the return of Scream IIPA were both delightful executions of their styles. Leinenkugels Chocolate Dunkel I mentioned this just last week, but 2021 was a banner year in Wisconsin for a relatively narrow style family: dark lagers. Leinies Chocolate Dunkel was the milky, creamy side of this, with a cocoa nib dry-hop technique giving this dessert beer a voluminous chocolate aroma while remaining uncloying on the palate. Door County Dark Skies On the flip side was Door County Brewings Dark Skies, a luscious assemblage of dark chocolate/mocha with a moderate bitter edge to the finish. With all that flavor and a full, exceptionally soft body, it wasnt exactly an easy drinker for the modest ABV, but it was extremely pleasing to drink. This new seasonal is due back late next summer. Karben4 Priest Prophet & King For some reason, the tremendous barrel-aged barleywine Karben4 released for its eighth anniversary last January just sat there in the brewerys cooler well into spring. For 15 months, the massive Priest Prophet & King developed even more complexity during its rest in a bonkers assortment of barrels: bourbon, rye, rum, wine and spirit casks that had more recently held maple syrup and coffee, then blended all together. Stay tuned for a more detailed review ahead of this years release. Third Space Five In a similar vein was Five, an anniversary barleywine brewed by Third Space Brewing in Milwaukee. This feller was aged for nearly three years in a succession of barrels: first bourbon, then brandy, then a sherry, with a portion of liquid from each barrel left behind as a kind of solera technique. The barrels will be rotated each year, so the stronger spirit character will change each year. The debut edition was immense (16% ABV) and deeply complex, with vanilla and spirit character accenting the caramel-chocolate base and bright, vinous notes from the sherry cask. Working Draft A Pils Is a Pils Is a Pils This pilsner if you can believe that was a collaboration between the Madison brewery and Minneapolis Fair State Brewing Cooperative for the Great Taste of the Midwest. Everyone in attendance was delighted to be back on the grounds at Olin Park, but ... I mean, in this case, a beer festival is just about the worst way to experience this beer. It was made in the pilsners smoother Czech style and designed to be dispensed in the traditional slower, side-pour technique thats gaining steam in lager-oriented breweries across the country. Wisconsin lagerheads had a lot to love this year, with dynamite packaged lagers including Central Waters Tomorrow River Helles, Third Space El Maestro Italian pilsner and The Juicy Life, a dry-hopped lager made by Lakefront in collaboration with Miller High Life. Oso Narcissist We are living in a golden age of barrel-aging in Wisconsin, with several state breweries now putting out multiple high-quality and relatively plentiful spirit-aged big beers every year. Lakefront and 3 Sheeps in particular have joined Central Waters in the upper echelon, while that OG continues to find new ways to put tasty things into its various barrels. With last winters release of Narcissist, Plovers Oso Brewing made a case to join that group as well. Narcissist began with a great base beer, a bittersweet chocolate-molasses palette that can absorb its dynamite barrel character without getting too sweet. It came in twin bourbon and rye versions both worthy cellar additions, but I preferred the spicy, almost cinnamon-like finish of the rye variant. Got a beer youd like the Beer Baron to pop the cap on? Contact Chris Drosner at chrisdrosner@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @WIbeerbaron. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Christmas arrived around the world Saturday amid a surge in COVID-19 infections that kept many families apart, overwhelmed hospitals and curbed religious observances as the pandemic was poised to stretch into a third year. Yet, there were homilies of hope, as vaccines and other treatments become more available. Pope Francis used his Christmas address to pray for more vaccines to reach the poorest countries. While wealthy countries have inoculated as much as 90% of their adult populations, 8.9% of Africas people are fully jabbed, making it the worlds least-vaccinated continent. Only a few thousand well-wishers turned out for his noontime address and blessing, but even that was better than last year, when Italys Christmas lockdown forced Francis indoors for the annual Urbi et Orbi ("To the city and the world") speech. Grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of goodwill to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects, Francis said from the loggia of St. Peters Basilica. Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care and vaccines in particular are provided to those peoples who need them most. In the United States, many churches canceled in-person services, but for those that did have in-person worship, clerics reported smaller but significant attendance. Our hopes for a normal Christmas have been tempered by omicron this year still filled with uncertainties and threats that overshadow us, the Rev. Ken Boller told his parishioners during midnight Mass at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in New York City. Breakthrough used to be a happy word for us, until it was associated with COVID. And in the midst of it all, we celebrate Christmas. The Rev. Alex Karloutsos, of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church of the Hamptons in Southampton, New York, said attendance at the Christmas Eve liturgy was a third less than last year's, with the reality of the omicron virus diminishing the crowd, but not the fervor of the faithful present. St. Patricks Church in Hubbard, Ohio, held Mass on Christmas Eve in a nearby high school because of a church fire this year. The Mass drew about 550 people, said Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar, who presided. In Britain, Queen Elizabeth II noted another year of pain particularly personal after losing her husband, Prince Philip, in April and urged people to celebrate with friends and family. Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones, the queen said in the prerecorded message broadcast when many British families were enjoying their traditional Christmas dinner. This year, especially, I understand why. Thousands of people across Britain got a vaccine booster shot for Christmas as new cases hit another daily record of 122,186. The Good Health Pharmacy in north London was one of dozens of sites that stayed open Saturday to administer jingle jabs amid a government push to offer booster shots to all adults by the end of the year. The head of intensive care at a hospital in Marseille, France, said most COVID-19 patients over Christmas were unvaccinated, while his staff are exhausted or cant work because they are infected. Were sick of this, said Dr. Julien Carvelli, the ICU chief at La Timone Hospital, as his team spent another Christmas Eve tending to COVID-19 patients on breathing machines. Were afraid we wont have enough space. On the other side of the globe, hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines, Asias largest Roman Catholic nation, spent Christmas without homes, electricity, or adequate food and water after a powerful typhoon left at least 375 people dead last week and devastated mostly central island provinces. Gov. Arthur Yap of hard-hit Bohol province, where more than 100 people died in the typhoon and about 150,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, appealed for help. He was happy many Filipinos could celebrate Christmas more safely after COVID-19 cases dropped, but he pleaded: Please dont forget us. At least one American Christmas tradition was revived after the pandemic drove it online last year: the annual reenactment of George Washingtons daring crossing of the Delaware River in 1776. Reenactors in three boats completed the crossing in about an hour Saturday. Crowds were in the hundreds, down from the usual thousands. COVID-19 testing continued unimpeded in some places, while other sites closed for the day. Lines that in previous days wrapped around the block at a small testing center in Chicagos Lincoln Square neighborhood shrank considerably Saturday, when the only customers inside were Shayna Prihoda and Michael Boundy, whose negative tests freed them to visit Boundys parents in Michigan. We would have stayed home and quarantined, Boundy said. Swelling numbers of cases in Florida made tests almost as popular as Christmas ham. Florida hit a new case record for the second day in a row. Hours before a testing site opened at Tropical Park in Miami, dozens of cars lined up. To alleviate demand, county workers had distributed 12,500 at-home test kits Friday at libraries. Most of New York Citys 120 testing sites were closed Saturday, a day after police were summoned to a Brooklyn neighborhood to quell an angry crowd that had been expecting to receive free at-home testing kits, only to have the supply run out. Chairs went empty at some dinner tables after airlines around the world canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and reduced staffing. Airlines scrapped nearly 6,000 flights globally that had been scheduled to take off Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with nearly a third involving U.S. flights, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website. At a reception center for asylum-seekers in Cyprus, Patricia Etoh, a Catholic from Cameroon, said she did not have any special plans because it just did not feel like Christmas without her 6-year-old child, whom she had to leave behind. But she added: Were grateful, were alive, and when were alive, theres hope. Winfield reported from Rome, Tarm from Chicago and Smith from Pittsburgh. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Bobby Caina Calvan and Larry Neumeister in New York, Michael Schneider in Miami, Ron Todt in Philadelphia, Danica Kirka in London, Jim Gomez in Manila and Daniel Cole in Marseille, France. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Houthi rebels in Sanaa, Yemen, 2015. Yemeni Houthi rebels fired rockets into Saudi Arabia on Friday, killing two people. The rebels threatened more cross-border attacks if Riyadh continues to drop bombs on the civil war-torn country. Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Al-Hammad, the spokesperson for the Saudi General Directorate of Civil Defense, said that a projectile launched from Yemeni territory hit a shop in the southern Jizan Province, killing two people and wounding seven others with shrapnel. A spokesperson for the Yemeni Houthi rebels, Brigadier General Yehia Sarie, said on Saturday that three missiles were fired at vital and sensitive sites in Jizan, as quoted by Associated Press. Houthi officials previously promised to retaliate against a Saudi airstrike in Yemens Al-Mahwit Province on Thursday. The Saudi-led coalition, which intervened in the Yemeni civil war in 2015 on behalf of ousted President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, said that it destroyed several drone and missile depots inside a rebel camp. Houthis and allied media claimed that the airstrike occurred in a highly populated neighborhood, damaging homes, a childrens hospital, and a prison housing coalition fighters. Al Masirah TV reported that 10 civilians, including women and children, were killed or injured in the airstrike. The Saudi regime will be hit with painful operations as long as it persists and continues in its aggression and crimes, Sarie said, as quoted by Al Masirah. Source: RT Please register or log in to keep reading. No credit card required! Stay logged in to skip the surveys. I had covered China earlier in post-Mao times, and I know how much China was influenced by the Russian revolution of 1917 and how after World War II the whole of Europe and America soon fell into the Cold War, said Liu, who left the AP in 1995 and became the founder and director of the Shanghai Center of Photography. So I said to myself: You know, this is a big deal in terms of history. When he took his position under a TV camera tripod, a KGB guard sternly warned him not to take any pictures during Gorbachevs speech so that the click of his cameras shutter wouldnt ruin the live broadcast. Liu pondered how to best capture the watershed moment and quickly decided that an image of Gorbachev putting down his speech in the end would best convey the mood. He decided not to use flash that would make the picture look like a routine press conference-style shot, and opted for a slow shutter speed to capture sheets of paper moving and reflect the fleeting moment. The most important consideration was I want to make sure that you still see the paper moving, Liu said, adding that he thought it would best reflect the passing of the moment of history. Supporters of Marsys Law say it makes the rights of alleged victims just as strong as those of the accused, while opponents have argued the rights of defendants could be undermined. So far, Plotkin said his office has mostly seen delays for defendants rather than the erosion of their rights, but fears victims rights could be at odds with defendants in some situations. The law added 16 additional constitutional protections for victims, including the right to privacy, to speak at proceedings, and to timely notification of court dates and any release or escape of the accused. It also removed a provision allowing victims to be kept out of a courtroom if necessary to assure a fair trial for an accused person. Since it was approved by referendum, Marsys Law went into effect as soon as voters passed it, which didnt give us any time to get ready, Brown said. The law also didnt include any funding for the DAs office to ensure victims needs were met. We had to take the same amount of resources and stretch them out so that we could reach every single victim, Brown said. Thrown for a tailspin ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) Russia has doubled the purchases of natural gas from Turkmenistan this year amid rising global demand, the Russian ambassador in Ashgabat said Friday. Ambassador Alexander Blokhin said Russia this year stands to import about 10 billion cubic meters (353 billion cubic feet) of gas from Turkmenistan, nearly twice the amount imported in 2020. This year's volumes were on par with the period before 2016, when Russia halted gas imports from the ex-Soviet Central Asian nation amid pricing disputes and a slump in global prices. Moscow resumed the purchases of Turkmen gas in 2019 when it signed a five-year contract envisaging annual deliveries of 5.5 billion cubic meters (194 billion cubic feet). Turkmenistan is overwhelmingly dependent on exports of its vast natural gas reserves, and Russia's 2016 move to halt supplies dealt a heavy blow to the Turkmen economy. China has replaced Russia as the top export destination for the Turkmen gas. Turkmenistans President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said the country annually supplies 40 billion cubic meters (1.4 trillion cubic feet) of gas to China. Earlier this year, Chinas state-owned CNPC started work to set up new wells at Turkmenistans giant natural gas fields in exchange for future gas supplies. Under the deal with CNPC, Turkmenistan will pay for its services by supplying 17 billion cubic meters (600 billion cubic feet) of gas a year for the period of three years to a total of 51 billion cubic meters (1.8 trillion cubic feet) of gas. Turkmenistan also has been working to build a pipeline that would pump gas to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 LOS ANGELES When Matthew Specktor decided to start writing in earnest as a college sophomore, Joan Didion was on his mind. Specktor, who grew up a few blocks from Didions Santa Monica home in the early 1980s, wanted to write about Los Angeles too, and he understood that Didion not only offered historical context she was historical context. She set me back 10 years, because I had to write about this place in ways that she hadnt, he said. Its a bit like what some writers have with William Faulkner, where when a writer comes along and describes a place so forcefully, you have to figure out what on earth you have to add to this conversation that hasnt already been said. Didion died on Thursday due to complications from Parkinsons disease at age 87 in her New York home. But she still belonged to California. The poem first appeared anonymously in a New York newspaper, the Troy Sentinel, on Dec, 23, 1823, and was reprinted many times. The New York Book of Poetry cited Moore, the 19th-century biblical scholar, as the author in 1837, and in 1844 he included it in his book of poems. Several years after the poems publication in the Sentinel, editor Orville Holley wrote that the author was by birth and residence [belonging] to the city of New York, and that he is a gentleman of more merit as a scholar and writer than many of more noisy pretensions. Thats an apt description of Moore, according to Niels Sonne, a librarian at General Theological Seminary in the 20th century who published an article about the authorship controversy. Moore was officially cited as the author in The New York Book of Poetry in 1837. The New Years Eve celebration in downtown Marion will be back to ring out 2021 and ring in 2022. Last year, the celebration didnt take place because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But for this year, the Rotary Club of Marions New Years Eve party will take place in the middle of the central business district. At midnight on the night of Friday, Dec. 31, it will be something more than just a ball drop. You can count down the seconds to the New Year while watching an oversized gold nugget descend from the sky into a pot of gold. This scenario may sound strange, but its how visitors to downtown Marion will celebrate the coming of 2022 during Marion Rotary Clubs New Years Eve Celebration, which is considered one of the most unique New Years Eve events in the Southeast, according to a news release. The city of Marion began its New Years Eve Gold Nugget Drop in 2009 as a nod to McDowell Countys gold heritage. Many people do not realize it, but the gold rush in the United States actually started in western North Carolina. McDowell County, where Marion and the North Carolina Gold Foundation is located, played an integral part in that history. The richest gold mines in the United States were located in McDowell before the discovery of gold in California. On Thursday, witnesses in North Hollywood told KCBS-TV that the man began acting erratically, threatening to throw items from the upper floor, and he attacked a woman with a bicycle lock shortly before noon as the store was crowded with holiday shoppers. Officers answered a report of an assault and others of shots being fired, police said. Investigators have not found a gun at the scene. The suspect was shot and died at the store but one of the bullets went through drywall behind the man and killed the girl, who was in a changing room with her mother, police said. Officers found the teenager dead after seeing a hole in a solid wall that you can't see behind, LAPD Assistant Chief Dominic Choi said. Investigators didn't immediately know whether she was in the dressing room before the violence began or ran in there to hide, he said. Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain China Saturday reported its highest number of new coronavirus cases in four months as officials rushed to contain outbreaks in several regions, including Xi'an city where millions are still under lockdown. China, where the coronavirus was first detected in late 2019, is on high alert for new infections as it prepares to hold the Winter Olympics in February in the capital Beijing. Of the 140 new infections, 87 were locally transmitted, according to a statement by the National Health Commission, compared to 55 a day earlier. Most were in Xi'an, in the northwestern province of Shaanxi, where 13 million residents have been under lockdown since Thursday. On Christmas Eve the city reported its highest daily count in a year with 75 domestic cases, according to the local health bureau Saturday. While China has reduced cases to a minimumthanks to a zero-COVID strategy of tight border restrictions, lengthy quarantines and targeted lockdownscases have been bubbling up in recent weeks. Footage from state broadcaster CCTV Saturday showed long queues outside Xi'an testing centres as officials rushed to stamp out the latest flareup. Under strict lockdown rules, since Thursday all households in Xi'an have only been permitted to send one member outside every two days to purchase necessities. Residents need special permission from their employer or local authorities to leave the city. Xi'an has recorded 330 locally transmitted symptomatic cases since the first case was reported on December 9 2021, few compared to outbreaks elsewhere in the world. But some 26 Xi'an government officials have been punished for lapses in virus prevention, China's disciplinary body said Friday. Local authorities who are deemed to have failed at controlling the virus in their region are regularly sacked or reprimanded under Beijing's strict zero-COVID approach. Cases from Xi'an have so far spread to five other cities including Beijing, according to state media, fuelling fears about how quickly the virus can spread geographically across the vast country. China has reported 100,871 symptomatic cases and fewer than 5,000 deaths since the virus first emerged in the city of Wuhan in late 2019. Explore further Third Chinese city placed under COVID lockdown 2021 AFP A Polson High School senior will be headed to Evanston, Illinois next fall to further her education after recently receiving a full-ride scholarship to attend Northwestern University. Brookelyn Slonaker received the scholarship through QuestBridge National College Match, a national nonprofit that connects low-income and prospective first-generation college students with its 45 prestigious partner universities including Brown, Stanford and Yale. Sometimes you hear about full-ride scholarships, or you see people go to college debt-free, but youre like, thats never going to happen to me, how can I put myself in that position, Slonaker said. But this is real, this happens, and is happening all around the country. Slonaker was one of 16,500 high school students to apply for the Match Scholarship, which was whittled down to 6,312 finalists. In the end, just over 1,650 were recognized as Match Scholarship recipients, the highest number to date for QuestBridge. There were winners from 49 states, as well as the territories of American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico. Slonaker is in contention for valedictorian of her class and has a 4.0 GPA. I saw QuestBridge and I looked through it and I knew that I wanted to do it," she said. "I knew that I could do good things and I could do big things and that I could leave Montana if I wanted to and I thought maybe this way I wouldnt be in crippling debt. So to me that mixture of just knowing that learning is what I wanted to do, the support from my parents and just all of my previous experience with hard work I felt like I could do it and it was manageable. She toured several campuses with her mother, including the University of Chicago and the University of Virginia, after making it through the first few rounds of the application process. But when she stepped foot onto Northwesterns campus with her mother, it was love at first sight for both of them. We both just looked at each other when we got back in the car after the guided tour that we went on and were like, This is the one, this is the one, Ive got to go here, Slonaker said. So we got back and I started on my application (to the school) and I did not look back. Slonaker considers Northwestern University her dream school and intends to pursue a degree in speech pathology. One of seven children, Slonaker always knew she wanted to work with younger children. At first she considered being a teacher, but as she grew older that vision changed. In high school she developed a love for sciences, including biology and anatomy. One day, her mother suggested speech pathology because it can be applied in a variety of professional settings like schools, laboratories, hospitals or nursing homes. Eventually, she began shadowing speech pathologists at a local elementary school for a semester and later connected with speech pathologists at a local hospital to pick their brains. Every step that I took to look into it, I just fell more in love with the idea of it, Slonaker said. Slonaker will be among the first in her family to attend college, but her parents preached the importance of education and instilled a strong work ethic in her from a young age. Theyve always told my siblings and I, Go to college, get your education, make things easy on yourselves, Slonaker said. So ever since I was in second grade, which is when I started public school, I just knew that academics meant a lot that having your own knowledge base was really important. Thats stuck with me all the way through high school and Ive been able to take opportunities that I knew would be the best for me, even if they seemed to be a lot of work, she continued. Her parents and siblings were among her biggest cheerleaders throughout the tedious application process with QuestBridge. On Dec. 1, when I found out, it was at the start of my lunch period and I went outside and I opened the letter and I found out that I was accepted and I basically spent the next hour running around the school bawling my eyes out telling people. Slonaker's family stopped in their tracks and drove to the high school to surprise her with flowers and balloons. Up until that point the idea of going to Northwestern seemed like a dream. All of a sudden it was like, its go time, Slonaker said. The Match Scholarship recipients, including Slonaker, have an average GPA of 3.93, and 92% of them are in the top 10% of their graduating class, according to QuestBridge. Financially, 95% of the recipients come from a household with an annual income of under $65,000. These achievements of our Match Scholarship Recipients are a culmination of their hard work and perseverance, said Ana McCullough, co-founder and CEO of QuestBridge. Thanks to the commitment of our college partners, these deserving students can tap into their full potential without worrying about the cost of a great education. Students interested in applying for the program can first start with its prep scholars program before moving into the QuestBridge Match. From there, students apply to the partner schools of their choice. If they are selected as finalists, they will be paired with a school and a full-ride scholarship. In all, the process takes nearly a year, with numerous essays, transcript submissions and letters of recommendation. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 17 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. In the no-news-is-good-news department, more than 10,000 trout did not die in Lolo Creek irrigation ditches this year. For the past several falls, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks biologists and volunteers have sloshed through the stranded puddles of the Lolo Ditch after its headgate closed, scooping up stranded fish and hauling them by the bucketful back to the creek. This year, a revolutionary fish screen at the headgate preempted all that hassle. In December, Clark Fork Coalition project manager Jed Whiteley reported the screen worked as intended. After 15 years of planning, fundraising and coalition building, Lolo Creek has been piscatorially reconnected to the Bitterroot River. Lolo Creek drains about 245 square miles of forest between the town of Lolo and the Montana-Idaho border. It and its mountain tributaries provide spawning grounds for native cutthroat, bull trout and mountain whitefish, along with introduced populations of rainbow and brown trout. For the past century, a diversion ditch has shunted most sometimes all of Lolo Creeks flow into a four-mile-long canal serving several ranches and subdivisions in the Bitterroot Valley. A water right dating back to 1886 gives the users priority access to three-quarters of Lolos fall water. And the ditch is so efficient, it has usually stranded thousands of fish in the artificial streams. When the gate gets closed after the crops are harvested, those fish cant get back to the real creek. A construction crew finished work in November on a $280,000 custom fish screen that looks like a water slide with a corrugated tin roof. The roof has holes like a colander, so the water flows through but the fish slide off to a side channel that returns them to Lolo Creek. Now with that screen in place, literally not one fish will suffer that fate, Whiteley said. There will be zero mortalities. Maclay Ranch manager Nels Larson called the addition of the screen a win-win for both the environment and the water users. At least three ranches and hundreds of homes depend on the canal water, while the Bitterroot Rivers blue ribbon fishing status depends on recruitment from Lolo Creek. This irrigation ditch is the lifeblood of these ranches, Larson said. Without the water, the ranches wont work. Making that water flow is literally make-or-break for these operations running livestock. FWP fisheries biologist Ladd Knotek said the fish screen design has potential to fix similar fish diversion problems throughout the Bitterroot River watershed. One of its best features is it cleans itself, reducing maintenance costs for water users. Funding for the project came from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Clark Fork Coalition, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Montana Watershed Coordination council and several chapters of Montana Trout Unlimited. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 4 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 1 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Although I've only been with the Missoulian since May, it was still challenging to narrow down my top five favorite stories from this year. In Dec. 22Nursing students have another option for study in Jamestown. Dakota College at Bottineau announced Tuesday it will offer an additional Dakota Nursing Program site at the North Dakota State Hospital in the fall of 2022. Students of the program would receive a Practical Nursing degree upon completion of an 11-month program. They may also continue their nursing education working toward an associate degree also available through Dakota College. Dakota Nursing Program sites through Dakota College at Bottineau now have extended to four distant sites that include Minot (Trinity Health) location, Rugby (Heart of America location), Valley City (Mercy Hospital location) and Jamestown (North Dakota State Hospital location). "We are excited to bring a practical nursing program to the Jamestown area to assist in combating the nursing shortage seen within the state," said Paige Baade, MSN, RN director of nursing at DCB. "The partnerships with DCB from the North Dakota State Hospital and the University of Jamestown is what helps make this program possible." Beth Satrom, director of nursing at the State Hospital, said the program could be beneficial to the hospital. "We are excited about this partnership and the opportunity to train high-quality nurses that will be available in the community and in the state," she said. The group has done five hikes alongside family and friends since its launch in October. I am very happy that there is a hiking group. Having a Latino one is important because we can share our culture and different dialects of Spanish. It has been a great experience to do what I like (hiking) with people who share the same interest, said Peruvian native and Charlotte resident Claudia Ramos, 44. Like many members of the group, Ramos heard of the group through Ortiz, then spread the word to friends interested in the same activity. Thanks to the group, Ramos experienced hiking for the first time and was able to create many memories alongside other members. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} It has been a beautiful experience. It is amazing to be able to have a connection with different people from all parts of the world, Ramos said. Participants of the hikes are from around North Carolina. Some drive more than 50 miles to head out to the next adventure. These hikers also bring their children to take part in the hike, exposing them to sunlight and nature. Its not personal, its just business or so Facebook assures me. On this matter, Im inclined to believe the company (now called Meta by its CEO and nearly a dozen other human beings). That doesnt make my latest encounter with the social-media giant any less frustrating, however. I just spent many days jumping through its authorization hoops so I could run political ads on a Facebook page I manage. And even after finishing the process, I still had my ad rejected and had to appeal the decision multiple times. Before you accuse me of burying the lede, let me clarify. I am not abandoning my longtime role as political commentator in order to run for office. I am, of course, unelectable. Thousands of highly opinionated newspaper columns and TV appearances over more than three decades will do that to the best of men, and also to me. No, what set off Facebooks alarm was something else entirely. It flagged me as attempting to use boosted posts on a non-political page in order to promote a political cause. Thats a no-no, according to the policies Facebook adopted amidst criticism of the role its ads played in the 2016 election and subsequent controversies. Anyone who's completed the climb out of their early 20s hopefully has the wits to remember when life was as vivid as Kodachrome and the experience to recognize that perhaps all those new colors were duller than they seemed. Perspective, after all, is one of the great pleasures of getting older. But at the date of her death Thursday at the age of 87, Joan Didion's 1967 essay "Goodbye to All That" remains the permanent sunspot obscuring the center-vision of many maturing writers even contemplating leaving a place like New York and telling other people about it. Only a great artist creates and ruins a genre at the same time. For millennial writers who grew into the body of essays, novels and literary journalism Didion already had waiting for them, it was like sitting down to grainy footage of a party that ended long before they would ever arrive. Rereading "Goodbye to All That" today in the era of online, shortform oversharing it's striking to a contemporary reader how those 1967 sentences trail on and curl over themselves, like smoke lifting off a cigarette in a breezeless room. "When I first saw New York I was twenty, and it was summertime, and I got off a DC-7 at the old Idlewild temporary terminal in a new dress which had seemed very smart in Sacramento but seemed less smart already, even in the old Idlewild temporary terminal, and the warm air smelled of mildew and some instinct, programmed by all the movies I had ever seen and all the songs I had ever sung and all the stories I had ever read about New York, informed me that it would never quite be the same again," Didion writes in an opening sentence of the piece. "In fact it never was." That first sentence has six commas and six ands. It then lands with the kind of five-word Didionism that marked her career's dehumidified approach to writing and evaluating her own experiences. Law enforcement leadership and election politics became scrambled in Napa County during 2021 when one longtime lawman became the new sheriff and the old sheriffs second-in-command pledged to unseat the new officeholder next year at the ballot box. On June 23, American Canyon Police Chief Oscar Ortiz was sworn in as the new sheriff at the head of the Napa County Sheriffs Office, replacing the retiring John Robertson for the last year and a half of his term. Ortiz also declared his candidacy to keep his new post in the 2022 elections in which he will be opposed by Jon Crawford, the countys former undersheriff who was let go by the sheriffs office less than two weeks after Ortizs appointment. The upcoming sheriffs election will thus pit against each other two men with deep experience in public safety, including more than two decades each in the Napa sheriffs office. Ortiz, the new incumbent, is a Yountville native and Vintage High School alumnus who joined the department in 1996 and rose through the ranks, becoming the head of American Canyon Police in 2017. (The city contracts with Napa County for law enforcement services.) Crawford, a Napa County native who graduated from Justin-Siena High, had spent 22 years in the Sheriffs Office, overseeing the departments Community Services Bureau, Investigations Bureau and Yountville branch, by the time he announced his candidacy in a May 14 statement. The past several years have been trying times for all of us, said Crawford, who had led the sheriffs offices daily operations since 2018. Fires, the pandemic, drought, rising crime, and a national reckoning on race have all made clear the need for steady, competent leadership in law enforcement. Just four days after Crawfords announcement, however, the Napa County Board of Supervisors chose another veteran of the force to become sheriff ahead of the election. At the same meeting in which Robertson announced his retirement after nine years as sheriff, supervisors followed his recommendation to replace him with Ortiz after Robertsons departure in June. Although Supervisor Ryan Gregory said he considered having the board interview both Ortiz and Crawford for the sheriffs position, he ultimately joined fellow supervisors in accepting Robertsons recommendation that Ortiz succeed him. Napa County fundraising races underway for election 2022 Napa County candidates for the June 2022 election are already fundraising, some of them in a big way. Here's who raised what. By May 30, Crawford was no longer the Napa County undersheriff, nor was he working for the department in any role. While a county spokesperson declined to comment on the departure, Crawford described the exit as a termination. Its purely political; theres no other way of putting it, he told the Napa Valley Register just over a week later. I have an untarnished career. Ive spent 22 years doing the best I can do to bring honor to the profession and the county. Nothing has changed. Crawford declined to say how his departure was politically motivated or what reasons the sheriffs office gave him for letting him go, but made clear he would not be steered away from his bid to lead the department. It doubles my resolve to work harder and be successful in my bid to become the next elected sheriff, said Crawford, whose campaign website stated that revenge was not his reason for running for the office, only the belief that he is the most qualified to serve. For his part, Ortiz steered clear from discussions about his election opponents exist from the sheriffs office. Its a personnel matter, and I and my campaign have no comment on the matter, he said in June as he formally launched his campaign for a full four-year term. John Robertson, retiring as Napa County sheriff, looks back on 40 years in law enforcement A career that began four decades ago in San Mateo and brought Robertson to Napa County in 1991 came to an end Saturday. Ortiz will hold the advantage of actually serving as sheriff by the time voters mail in their ballots in 2022, as well as the support of the Napa County Deputy Sheriffs Association. Meanwhile, Crawfords campaign won some key early endorsements, including support from Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley and former Napa city Mayor Jill Techel, who served for nearly 16 years before retiring in late 2020. While the leadership of Napa County public safety changed hands, so too did leadership of the countys largest city police force. Following the retirement of Robert Plummer as Napa Police chief on New Years Day, the city selected an interim replacement in Sylvia Moir. The former police chief of Tempe, Arizona became the first woman and the first openly gay person to hold the Napa position, although Moirs hiring drew a tepid response from the director of a Napa LGBTQ advocacy group. I am choosing to reserve some hope that she will prioritize steps to serious police reform, Anne Sutkowi-Hemstreet of the Rainbow Action Network told the Napa City Council before it approved Moirs temporary hiring in February. Moirs leadership of the Tempe police force outside Phoenix, which ran from 2016 to 2020, included controversies over a deadly shooting in 2019 of a 14-year-boy who was holding an airsoft gun, as well as a 2020 incident in which an officer pointed a gun at a Black hotel employee and three other people during a search for an armed white suspect, according to media reports. The permanent choice to lead Napa Police would be another woman, drawn from the departments ranks. In July, the city announced the appointment as police chief of Capt. Jennifer Gonzales, who spent 20 years with Chico Police before joining the Napa force in 2015. On her appointment, Gonzales described her goal of re-engaging Napa Police with the community it serves, continuing the work driven by year-long talks with community members and advocates about reforming and re-imagining local policing. We have to be inclusive and we love being part of those conversations, said Gonzales, who took the helm at Napa Police 14 months after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 sparked a wave of protests and debates about racially equitable policing. Theyre not always easy to have. And yet theyre vital for us to continue to serve the people in the way they need to be served. You can reach Howard Yune at 530-763-2266 or hyune@napanews.com Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. A microchip technology introduced in recent years by the Stockholm-based startup, Epicenter, is being presented as a means to store one's COVID-19 vaccine passport under the skin, according to a video from the South China Post that went viral Friday, Fox Business reported. The firm has showcased an implant capable of storing a COVID passport that can then be read by any device using the near-field communication (NFC) protocol, according to the video. The video featured Hannes Sjoblad, founder of the Swedish Association of Biohackers, advisor, and speaker on Human Augmentation, and ambassador for Sweden at the Singularity Universe. Sjoblad demonstrated how Epicenter's rice-sized microchip, has been adapted as a COVID-19 passport, which is implanted under the skin either in the arm on between the thumb and forefinger. The technology the company uses is called RFID or (Radio-Frequency Identification), which uses electromagnetic fields to identify electronically-stored information. The chips also use near-field communications (NFC), the same type of technology that is used in most contactless credit cards and mobile payments. We say that there needs to be demarcation and delimitation of the borders, and we know that there is a discussion on which maps need to be used since there are maps of 1975, 1969 and 1929. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan stated during his online press conference today. Armenia is currently examining them in detail, and we see that, according to various maps, our roads are somewhat beyond the territory of the Republic of Armenia. Now we are considering scenarios and trying to see what problems there will be and how we will solve them. Based on the maps of 1975, 90% of the arable lands of Berkaber village are currently under Azerbaijani control, and parts of the arable lands of other villages are under Azerbaijani control. Basically, were looking at different scenarios that if demarcation is going to be carried out this way. We are looking at all the legal grounds that have existed throughout history. We will need this for negotiations, he said. The Prime Minister also touched upon the issue of enclaves and noted the following: There are a lot of talks about the enclaves. We looked hard, but didnt find a legal ground for the existence of enclaves. We believe we have explored all the possible documents in the course of one year. At this moment, we havent found such ground. A special sitting of the Yerevan Council of Elders is being held at the Yerevan city hall, during which the inauguration of the new mayor will take place. The ceremony is attended by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, National Assembly speaker Alen Simonyan, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan, and several other high-ranking officials. At Wednesdays special session of the Yerevan city council, the ruling majority "My Step" Faction had expressed no confidence in then Mayor Hayk Marutyan and elected then Deputy Mayor Hrachya Sargsyan as the new mayor. Earlier, the "My Step" Faction had collected signatures to express no confidence in Marutyan. This initiative was supported also by the members of the opposition Prosperous Armenia Faction and Ani Khachatryan from the opposition Luys Faction. But several members of the "My Step" Faction had opposed this initiative and resigned from the Yerevan city council. IOC confirms dates of Beijing Winter Olympics WHO head gives forecast for global vaccination Sony reveals its first 4K quantum OLED TV Kazakhstan ministry of internal affairs says they will destroy those who refuse to lay down their arms Russian Defense Minister holds talks with Pentagon head Blinken discuss with Kazakhstan FM situation in republic Kazakhstan President thanks CSTO for sending peacekeeping forces Aeroflot cancels all flights to and from Kazakhstan on January 6 and 7 Armenian Embassy in Kazakhstan recommends not to leave place of stay Kazakhstan MFA denies information on suspension of foreign citizens entry into country EU takes note of Kazakhstan's appeal for help to CSTO Shooting in Kazakhstan's Alma-Ata CSTO Secretary General discuss Kazakhstan situation with Armenian PM Yerevan-Aktau flight scheduled for today is canceled Kazakhstan suspended entry of foreign nationals into the country Lavrov supports efforts to normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia President of Artsakh attends Christmas Holy Liturgy Yerevan-Aktau flight scheduled for today is canceled Saakashvili welcomed protests in Kazakhstan Gibka-S missile systems to be delivered to Russian forces in 2022 Lavrov and Cavusoglu discuss the situation in the Caucasus First plane with Russian CSTO contingent arrives in Almaty Georgia PM: I congratulate our Armenian compatriots, brotherly Armenian people on Christmas Russian peacekeepers secure entry to Karabakh for 5,000 vehicles carrying pilgrims Armenia sends about 70 servicemen to Kazakhstan Politico: US Senate unlikely to approve sanctions against Nord Stream 2 1 more person dies of coronavirus in Artsakh 134 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia 12 law enforcement officers killed in Almaty Razm.info: At least 78 casualties in Azerbaijan armed forces become known in 2021 Armenia MFA on Kazakhstan events: We are convinced it is not way for solving political issues CSTO sends peacekeepers to Kazakhstan Armenia President: May your hearts and homes be filled with peace, goodness More than 1,000 people injured in Kazakhstan unrest Catholicos of All Armenians serving Christmas Divine Liturgy MFA: No Armenia citizens at the moment among those affected by Kazakhstan events Blinken, Israel FM discuss Russia, Ukraine, Iran Christmas and Revelation: Armenian Apostolic Church celebrates Nativity and Baptism of Christ Dozens neutralized during attempts to attack administrative buildings of Kazakhstans Almaty Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan leaders discuss situation in Kazakhstan Kremlin website posts Armenia PM statement on CSTO decision to send peacekeepers to Kazakhstan Armenia PM: CSTO will send peacekeeping forces to Kazakhstan Airport of Kazakhstans Almaty freed during special operations 8 police and military killed in Kazakhstan: 317 more wounded Protesters in Kazakhstan tear down Nazarbayev's monument Special representatives of Armenia and Turkey meeting to take place on January 14 in Moscow Azerbaijani defense ministry denies news of servicemen deaths State of emergency introduced throughout Kazakhstan EU calls on all sides in Kazakhstan to avoid escalation and violence Azerbaijan starts receiving Turkmen gas through Iran Prime Minister Pashinyan congratulates Armenians on Christmas Protesters seize Almaty airport in Kazakhstan Andranik Grigoryan is the CEO of Converse Bank, Chairman of Executive Management France intends to help Azerbaijan in search of missing persons during 1st Karabakh war Aeroflot cancels flight to Almaty: Aktau airport not working Arnak Avetisyan appointed Armenian State Property Management Committees chair Armenia appoints new ambassador to Russia Christmas Eve liturgy takes place in Armenia's Etchmiadzin Attempts to demolish a monument of Nazarbayev in Kazakhstan Armenia deputy PM Mher Grigoryan to co-chair intergovernmental joint commission with Iran Media: Internet cut off in Nursultan and Almaty Armenia Prosecutor General to head for Moscow Armenia premier to send 10-member delegation to Russia Dollar gains value in Armenia Kazakh president delivers new speech to nation Kazakhstan protesters disarm police: Mir TV channel's office vandalized Kazakhstan presidential residence set on fire Almaty commandant: More than 500 civilians are beaten OSCE calls for de-escalation of Kazakhstan situation Protesters try to break into residence of Kazakhstan's president Kazakh security forces take the side of protesters Kazakh protesters seize Kazakh president's residence and destroy TV channels premises Baghdad military base hit by missile attack Armenian traces destroyed in occupied Shushi Prosecutor's office building is on fire: State of emergency in Almaty Azerbaijan declares 2022 year of occupied Armenian city of Shushi Justice minister not commenting on arresting Armenian captives returned from Azerbaijan Yerevan homeless shelter residents picketing in front of Armenia labor, social affairs ministry Hong Kong imposes ban on flights from 8 countries due to COVID-19 Protesters in Almaty riot hospitals and clinics PM: I have hard time imagining how Omicron variant cannot enter Armenia New council of Armenias Parakar does not convene first session, new village mayor not elected 7 new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh Armenia cargo transportation via railway drops but passengers increase in 2021 Government hands over Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine certified rights with 15% Armenia-owned shares Borrell says EU cannot be a neutral spectator in talks with Russia Armenian PM urges to throw plastic bags out of life Oil prices stabilize after jump Premier recalls that anti-tobacco law has entered into force in Armenia as of January 1 129 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Kazakhstan President accepts governments resignation Armenia State Property Management Committee dismissed Armenia PM: We are entering 2022 with quite serious start to reforms New council of Armenias Parakar convenes first session, village mayor election on agenda New York prosecutor drops sex crime case against ex-governor Cuomo England, Wales to make taking pictures of breastfeeding mothers in public illegal Paraguay presidential guard dies after being impaled by deer while on duty Flights delayed at Kazakhstan's Aktau airport as rallies continue NATO foreign ministers to hold videoconference ahead of meeting with Russia Ford to double production capacity for electric version of F-150 pickup STEPANAKERT. Seyran Sargsyan, a resident of Chartar village of the Martuni region of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), was killed on December 3 by the Azerbaijani armed forces in the administrative area of the aforesaid village, the Artsakh Prosecutor's Office reports. In connection with the incident, the Azerbaijani side had presented an untrue version that Artsakh citizen Seyran Sargsyan had allegedly attacked the Azerbaijani military position, during which he was purportedly neutralized a few meters away from the Azerbaijani military position. The results of the actions taken in the criminal case on the incident, however, prove that Sargsyan was killed by a long-range shot, after which the Azerbaijani military had moved his body from the neutral zone to their combat position. This is evidenced also by the results of the examination of videos recorded by video surveillance devices located near the scene. The circumstances revealed in the recent criminal cases reaffirm the fact that the Azerbaijani military bases located in the vicinity of the peaceful settlements of Artsakh pose an immediate and real threat to the life and other vital rights of the community civilian population. French President Emmanuel Macron said that the launch of the orbiting James Webb telescope into space will forever remain one of the key events in the history of space exploration, TASS reports. On Saturday, the Ariane 5 launch vehicle, launched from the Kourou Cosmodrome in French Guiana, put the telescope into orbit. After that, James Webb for four weeks will move to the destination in the second point of Lagrange, the European Space Agency (ESA) informed earlier. This point is four times farther from the Earth than the Moon, at a distance of 1.5 million km on the side opposite to the Sun. James Webb is a joint project of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), ESA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). According to the American Internet portal SpaceNews, NASA invested $ 8.8 billion in the project, ESA - 815 million, including the cost of the rocket and launch, CSA - 165 million. The telescope, named after James Webb, the head of the Apollo program that brought man to the moon, is set to replace the Hubble Observatory in orbit. Iranian authorities are closing the land border with neighboring countries for 15 days due to the threat of the spread of the omicron strain of the coronavirus, said official representative of the Iranian customs, TASS reported. In accordance with the order of the national headquarters for combating the spread of coronavirus and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in order to prevent the spread of the omicron strain, the land border with neighboring countries will be closed for passengers for 15 days from today, the official representative said. The official said that the matter concerns restrictions on Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Pakistan and Armenia. As for Turkmenistan, there has been no passenger traffic on the land border since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, he added. On November 26, the World Health Organization designated the B.1.1.529 coronavirus strain found in southern Africa with the Greek letter omicron. The WHO said in a statement that the species has a large number of mutations, some of which are of concern. In Iran, the first case of infection with the omicron strain of coronavirus was recorded on December 19. President Armen Sarkissian sent a congratulatory message to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the occasion of his birthday. "Armenia attaches importance to partnership relations with Canada, which have always been distinguished by mutual trust and sincere desire to deepen them," he said. "I fondly recall our informative conversation at the 26th UN Conference on Climate Change (COP 26), which provided an opportunity to exchange views on the prospects for expanding and strengthening bilateral cooperation, as well as on regional and international issues. "I am full of hope that our meeting in Glasgow will give a new impetus to relations between the two countries, and that by joint efforts we will contribute to expanding the current agenda between Armenia and Canada and implementing future-oriented initiatives," the president said in a statement. Russia completes 10,000-troop drills near Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin says he had seen a "positive" reaction from the United States to his security proposals. Photo: AP Russia announced on Saturday that more than 10,000 troops had finished month-long drills near Ukraine, amid Western accusations that Moscow was plotting an invasion of its ex-Soviet neighbour. The defence ministry said in a statement that the drills for Southern Military District forces had taken place in a host of southern regions including Rostov, Krasnodar and Crimea, which Moscow seized from Ukraine in 2014. But the drills also took place further afield, including in Stavropol, Astrakhan, North Caucasus republics and even in Russia's Caucasus ally Armenia. The defence ministry said the troops were returning to their permanent bases and that stand-by units would be readied for the New Year's holidays. Western countries have accused Russia of massing upwards of 100,000 troops near Ukraine ahead of a possible winter invasion. According to Kiev's estimates, the number of Russian troops along Ukraine's borders has increased from around 93,000 troops in October to 104,000 now. Russia says it is free to move its forces on its territory how it sees fit and denies that it is planning a large-scale attack. It has presented the West with sweeping security demands, saying Nato must not admit new members and seeking to bar the United States from establishing new bases in former Soviet republics. Tensions reached a boiling point on Wednesday when President Vladimir Putin said Russia would take "appropriate retaliatory" military steps in response to what he called the West's "aggressive stance". But he lowered the volume the next day, saying he had seen a "positive" reaction from the United States to Russia's security proposals and said talks would take place next month. A senior US official has said Washington was "ready to engage in diplomacy as soon as early January", both bilaterally and through "multiple channels". On Saturday, a German government official said Moscow and Berlin had agreed to a meeting in "early January". (AFP) Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 25 (ANI/BusinessWire India): HDFC Bank's efforts in furthering financial inclusion through partnership with the Government of India's Common Service Centres (CSC) have been adjudged 'Most Innovative Best Practice' for financial inclusion at the coveted CII Digital Transformation Award 2021. HDFC Bank focuses on financial inclusion by offering entire bouquet of its world-class products through CSC's network of VLE centres: *1.1 lakh VLE (Village Level Executive) centres run by CSC e-Governance *Of these, over 1 lakh VLE centres are in Rural & Semi-Urban locations *These locations cover close to 50,000 villages across India *These villages are spread across 685 districts and 5,176 sub-districts *Additionally, the bank has 5,686 branches across 2929 cities/ towns - 50 per cent of these are located at Rural & Semi-Urban locations. Partnering with CSC entailed 'creating a parallel bank' for over 1 lakh village-level entrepreneurs, manning the VLE centre, who would offer all products and services of the bank, in remotest areas of the country. Building the digital platform *Since VLEs are not employees of the bank, allowing them access to the existing bank system was not possible *To ensure that end-to-end services were provided to the customer at the remotely located VLE centre itself, without the need to visit the branch, a new digital platform that interacts with the Bank's network was built in 2018 Building digital journeys for all bank Products and Services *Digital journeys adhering to all mandated norms were built *It was also necessary that unlike internet banking wherein customers have access to non-assisted journeys, the journeys created for VLEs are assisted Training and education of 1.1 lakh VLEs based at remote locations *On-boarding and training the VLEs and doing so remotely with the constraints of level of education, technical know-how and language barriers across the country *Standardisation of customer experience across the VLE centres Some of the remotest locations where banking services were made possible through this innovation are - *Inaccessible areas of North-eastern states *Deep interiors of Chhattisgarh, impacted by extremism *Underserved districts of Andhra - Telangana The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) instituted the digital transformation award to recognize excellence in Digital Transformation in India. CII received 450 entries for the category. Of these, the jury invited 76 for the presentation and based its decision on four parameters viz. Optimal utilization of technology; Uniqueness of the solution; Cost benefits to the organization (financial and non-financial); and Scope of replicability. To read more about methodology, please click here. "We are thrilled to receive this award," said Smita Bhagat, Group Head - Government and Institutional Business, BC Banking (CSC partnership), and Start-ups, HDFC Bank. "I feel Roti, Kapda, Makaan and Access to banking and finance are basic necessities today. This initiative is changing lives for real and we are grateful we could bring about transformation at such a large scale. This would not have been possible without CSC e-Governance and its CEO Mr Dinesh Tyagi. This is just a beginning and we have many more miles to walk." This story is provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/BusinessWire India) As per E! News, the group's record label Big Hit Music shared the news in a message posted to the fan community platform Weverse on Friday. The company shared that the 28-year-old artist took the COVID-19 test upon returning to South Korea from the United States on Thursday and received the results while he was quarantining. Big Hit Music noted Suga had no contact with his bandmates Jin, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook. According to the statement, Suga had several personal engagements in the US amid BTS' period of rest, which was announced on December 6 as an opportunity for the artists "to get re-inspired and recharge with creative energy" and to "spend the holiday season with their families." The message also said that Suga took a PCR test before leaving the US, which came back negative. Big Hit Music said Suga had completed his second shot of the COVID-19 vaccine in late August, making his coronavirus case a breakthrough one. The organisation said that Suga is practising self-care at home in accordance with the guidelines of healthcare authorities. "The company places the artists' health as our top priority, and we will do everything we can to aid Suga in his speedy recovery," the statement read. "We will also diligently cooperate with the requests and guidelines of the healthcare authorities," the statement added. After learning about Suga's diagnosis, several fans took to social media to send the artist their well-wishes. "Get well soon," one social media user tweeted. Added another, "Wishing for a quick and speedy recovery." (ANI) The 46-year-old shared a few pictures and videos from her holiday getaway on her Instagram handle. In one of the videos, Shilpa could be seen enjoying with her children while sitting near the Kempty waterfall and playing with the water. In the clip, her personal chefs are also seen preparing a special dinner table for the family. Sharing the clip, she wrote, "Ho ho ho. Merrrryyyyy Christmas to all my Instafam.. An unusual Christmas.. we trekked all the way down to Kempty Fall stream to have lunch here .. It's trips like these that make me realise how Incredible India really is!" She also shared a slew of pictures on her Instagram stories, one of which sees her posing in front of a Christmas tree with her family--husband Raj Kundra, son Viaan and friends. Earlier in November, Shilpa and Raj made their first public appearance for a temple visit in Himachal Pradesh, post the latter's bail in a pornography case. Raj was arrested by police on July 19 along with 11 other people on charges related to the alleged creation of pornographic films. (ANI) Taking to his Instagram handle, Vicky Kaushal treated fans to an adorable picture of himself with Katrina Kaif. The candid snap captures the duo sharing a warm hug as they pose in front of a X-Mas tree for their dreamy Christmas picture. "Meri Christmas!" (My Christmas), Vicky captioned the post with a X-Mas tree and red-heart emoticon. The video garnered more than eight lakh likes within a few minutes of it being posted on the photo-sharing application. Scores of VicKat fans chimed into the comments section and left a string of emoticons in the awe of the adorable picture. The couple who had married in a private ceremony at the luxurious Six Senses Fort Barwara in Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan, returned to Mumbai last week after enjoying a romantic honeymoon, which reports suggest was in the Maldives. They recently shifted to their new house and had their housewarming rituals earlier this week. On the work front, Vicky has kick-started prep of Meghna Gulzar's 'Sam Bahadur', a biopic on Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw that also stars 'Dangal' girls, Sanya Malhotra and Fatima Sana Shaikh. Katrina has also returned to the shoot sets for her upcoming film 'Merry Christmas' directed by Vijay Sethupathi. The film that marks her first project with Vijay is being extensively shot in Mumbai currently. 'Merry Christmas', being produced by Ramesh Taurani and Sanjay Routray, will hit theatres on December 23, 2022. Katrina was last seen alongside Akshay Kumar in 'Sooryavanshi'. The film was released in theatres and crossed Rs 100 crore mark in almost a week. Apart from 'Merry Christmas', the actor has two films in her kitty - Salman Khan's 'Tiger 3' and Farhan Akhtar's 'Jee Le Zara', co-starring Priyanka Chopra and Alia Bhatt. (ANI) After causing a backlash by admitting to sleeping with his students, Hollywood actor James Franco has been served in the long-running legal battle between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. According to Page Six, Franco will be quizzed over whether he had an affair with Heard while she was still married to Depp. Lawyers for Depp also want to ask the actor if he saw the alleged bruises on Heard's face. Franco will sit early next year for the deposition in the USD 50 million defamation lawsuit that Depp filed against Heard. Depp has sued Heard in Virginia over a 2018 op-ed she wrote in which she described being a victim of domestic violence. She didn't mention her ex by name, but he says it's clear she was referring to him as her abuser. Depp has denied any abuse. The 'Transcendence' actor has sent the subpoena to Franco after May 2016 surveillance video showed him getting into an elevator with Heard 24 hours after they had a blowout fight, during which Heard alleged Depp gave her a black eye. Franco and Heard were seen leaving the elevator together on the penthouse floor, where Depp and Heard had shared an apartment. Depp's legal team wants to question Franco as a "witness" to see if he and Heard discussed the fight or if Franco saw any injuries to Heard's face. In the suit, Depp said, "I have denied Ms Heard's allegations vehemently since she first made them in May 2016 ... when she walked into court to obtain a temporary restraining order with painted-on bruises that witnesses and surveillance footage showed she did not possess each day of the preceding week. I will continue to deny them for the rest of my life. I never abused Ms Heard or any other woman." Depp said he filed the lawsuit "not only to clear my name and restore my reputation but to attempt to bring clarity to the women and men whose lives have been harmed by abuse and who have been repeatedly lied to by Ms Heard purporting to be their spokesperson." Heard's legal team had claimed Franco lived in the building around the time of the incident, and simply took the elevator together. Depp's attorneys said this is "a lie". A trial date has been set for April 11, 2022, in Fairfax County, Virginia and is expected to last for 12 days. According to Page Six, meanwhile, Franco has just admitted in a wide-ranging interview that he was "addicted to sex" and "could never be faithful to anybody," until he met his current girlfriend Isabel Pakzad. (ANI) A recent study led by a team of international researchers has found that skin infections are likely to be a significant cause of rheumatic fever. The study has been published in the 'BMJ Global Health Journal'. Acute rheumatic fever is an important cause of serious heart disease, particularly for Maori and Pacific children and young people in Aotearoa, New Zealand and for many children and young people in low and middle-income countries. Professor Michael Baker from the Department of Public Health at the University of Otago, Wellington, explained that it has long been recognized that rheumatic fever is a complication of group A streptococcus (GAS) pharyngitis, commonly known as "strep throat". However, new research indicated that streptococcus skin infections can also trigger the disease. "This study is a major breakthrough in understanding the causes of acute rheumatic fever," Professor Baker said. "It is the world's first study to confirm that the risk of rheumatic fever rises after a GAS skin infection in a similar way to how it does after a GAS sore throat. Because acute rheumatic fever is an uncommon disease and few countries have comprehensive linked health data, no previous study has been able to quantify the rheumatic fever risk following a laboratory-confirmed infection," he added. New Zealand has one of the highest rates of rheumatic fever seen in a high-income country, with more than half of all rheumatic fever cases in the Auckland region. This study used data on almost 1.9 million (1,866,981) throat and skin swabs processed in the Auckland region over an eight-year period, which was linked to hospitalization data to identify rheumatic fever cases, as well as prescribing data to identify if cases were dispensed antibiotics. The risk of rheumatic fever increased five-fold in the eight to 90 day period following collection of both a GAS positive strep throat swab and a GAS positive skin swab (compared with negative swabs). Maori and Pacific children had the highest risk of developing rheumatic fever following the collection of a GAS positive swab. The focus of rheumatic fever prevention in New Zealand has been largely on diagnosing and treating GAS throat infections. This established thinking is behind the school-based sore throat management programme that has operated in several North Island DHBs for more than a decade. Professor Baker said that the study's findings have huge implications for the prevention of acute rheumatic fever. "While treating GAS sore throats should remain a key strategy in the prevention of rheumatic fever, a new focus should also be placed on addressing GAS skin infections to help reduce the risk of rheumatic fever in New Zealand and internationally," he said. New Zealand has a high and increasing incidence of skin infections, with markedly higher rates in Maori and Pacific children compared with children of European and other ethnicities. "Health professionals caring for children at risk of rheumatic fever need to treat skin infections with the same level of intensity as throat infections. While a key message for the public is that skin infections matter and need to be treated promptly," he said. The study team is now planning research to build on these findings, said Dr Julie Bennett, who also worked on the research. "We are planning a trial of more intensive skin infection treatment to see if this can reduce the risk of developing rheumatic fever," she said.The study also revealed that dispensing a course of oral antibiotics, which is the routine treatment for children following a strep throat diagnosis, was not associated with a reduced risk of developing rheumatic fever. "This is a worrying finding. It suggests that we need to find more effective ways of treating these infections than the course of oral antibiotics that is currently prescribed," Dr Bennett said. (ANI) "With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident this evening and stands firmly with the family of the braveheart," tweeted Indian Air Force. Earlier on Friday evening, a MiG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed near Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. Minutes after this, the IAF in a tweet, confirmed the crash of its aircraft. "This evening, around 8:30 pm, a MiG-21 aircraft of IAF met with a flying accident in the western sector during a training sortie. Further details are awaited. An inquiry is being ordered," IAF tweeted. (ANI) According to sources in Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader has had several meetings with Congress MLA Pritam Singh in the recent past. Notably, Rawat was a candidate of Congress from Garhwal in the 2014 general election. This development comes after Rawat walked out of the state Cabinet meeting of the ruling BJP at the secretariat on Friday as he was reportedly upset over alleged "government inaction" over a proposed medical college in his constituency, Kotdwar. Rawat had joined the BJP in 2017. (ANI) Tripura government is contemplating imposing fresh curbs on New Year in view of the threat of Omicron transmission in the region. The decision has been taken in the wake of the Centre's directives to the States to ramp up surveillance. Although not a single case of Omicron has been detected in Tripura, the state government has decided to install a machine for genome sequencing in the state to fast track its efforts in containing the spread of the new variant of COVID-19, which was first detected in South Africa. Addressing a press conference Tripura Cabinet Spokesperson Sushanta Chowdhury on Friday said that Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb chaired a crucial review meeting to understand the situation. "After receiving the fresh directives from the Centre, we held a review meeting. There is reason to panic as we don't have a single case of Omicron here in the state", he said. He informed the reporters that around 69 persons came from foreign countries and among them swab samples had been collected from 33 persons. Fortunately, 31 samples showed negative results and reports of two cases were still pending. "We had conducted the RT-PCR test during COVID-19. And for Omicron we need to do the genome sequencing test. At present we have no set-up for this and hence we are dependent on Biological and Molecular Studies in West Bengal for the test. By February we will install the machine at the GB Pant Hospital for the genome sequencing test," he said. "We want to make an appeal to each and every citizen of the state to maintain the guidelines. We are capable of fighting Omicron as the infrastructure is enough. Strict measures will be in force and any sort of unnecessary crowding would be avoided", the minister informed the media persons. Meanwhile, the Director of National Health Mission of Tripura, Siddharth Singh Jaiswal said that 4.20 lakh people were yet to receive vaccines while a total of 3.91 lakh people did not receive the second dose even after the prescribed time span is over. (ANI) Odisha Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday approved a proposal relating to School and Mass Education Department to regularize 3,328 Multi-Lingual Education (MLE) Sikshya Sahayaks, they will be regularised after completion of six years of service. "The eligible MLE Sikshya Sahayaks became Junior Teacher after completion of 3 years of continuous service and will be Assistant teacher after completion of 3 years of continuous and satisfactory service as Junior Teacher." said a statement from the State government. "After their regularization, they will be guided by the Odisha Elementary Education (method of recruitment and conditions of Service of Teachers and Officers) Rules, 1997 and as amended from time to time," the statement added. "In view of providing equitable quality education to the Scheduled Tribe children, recognizing the importance of language, influencing education and to give the opportunity to the tribal children to learn in their mother tongue, 3,328 number of MLE Sikshya Sahayaks were recruited from the tribal candidates of 17 districts having requisite qualification during the year 2013 under Samagra Shikshya." Further statement said State Cabinet also undertook some other major decisions relating to the departments of energy, industries, water resources, fisheries and animal resource development, housing and urban development, law, works and parliamentary affairs. State Cabinet has also approved projects for mitigation of low voltage problem in different areas of the state under which five low voltage mitigation system projects worth Rs 259.43 crore of which 30 percent i.e Rs 77.83 Crore will be provided as equity support by Odisha government, along with that State government has also approved a proposal for construction of 99 numbers of 33/11 KV sub-stations and 64 numbers of independent 33 KV lines, with a total estimated cost of Rs 1796.73 Crore. These projects will be implemented over a period of 3 years." "A proposal for construction of Sandul Barrage project in Kalahandi District have also approved by the Cabinet." "The construction of underground pipeline irrigation system from Rangali right irrigation system for irrigation in Dhenkanal and Cuttack districts; and, construction of an underground pipeline from Anandapur barrage for irrigation in Balasore district" was also the part of proposals approved by State Cabinet. (ANI) The Delhi High Court on Friday expressed shock and unhappiness to the concerned authorities over the viral videos of overcrowding at Delhi's Sarojini Market. "People are flowing like a river, it is a serious situation. We can't close our eyes," the court said. The Division Bench of Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Jasmeet Singh on Friday directed that if any goods are seized from hawkers and vendors for illegally hawking and vending they may not be released since the vendors are flouting the court directions and market rules. Their goods are released after paying a paltry fine. In this way, they are able to perpetuate illegal encroachments. "State of affairs is frightening" observed the bench while taking cognizance of reports of overcrowding in Sarojini Nagar market. Court also directed Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) to visit the Sarojini Nagar market forthwith to look into the situation prevailing there in light of the prevailing pandemic. The bench also directed the authorities concerned to ensure there is no overcrowding in the market and COVID protocols are maintained. Court also directed Delhi Police to work out a movement plan including entry and exit points. The court while posting the matter for January for further hearing also said that the concerned authorities should take action on illegal construction and illegal encroachment. The Delhi High Court today said, "it is not just an issue of the pandemic, there could be a stampede, a bomb blast has happened in the past in that market". "It is worth noting that people had also expressed their displeasure on social media regarding this crowd gathered in Sarojini Nagar. The pictures of the huge crowd that gathered at Sarojini Nagar Market in Delhi had stunned everyone," the court said. (ANI) Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday said that the Belagavi session of the state legislature proved fruitful as many projects for the development of northern Karnataka were approved during it. Speaking to media persons at Suvarna Soudha he said, "Belagavi session came up with solutions for many complex problems of the region. The state government has proved that it is committed to the development of irrigation in the region. Approvals were given for a slew of railway projects for northern Karnataka, financial rejuvenation of HESCOM, clearance for Sasalatti and Manturu irrigation projects, Lift irrigation project in Sedam were among the projects which got a push during the session". "Recruitment of teachers for Kalyana Karnataka region, grant of Rs500cr in the supplementary estimates for the region, taking up new infrastructure projects in Belagavi and holding joint session of the state legislature in January are among the prominent decisions the state cabinet took during the session," Bommai said. "The session witnessed elaborate discussion on recent floods and crop losses. The state government has made history by rushing to farmers' aid as the crop loss compensation was paid within 48 hours after the details were uploaded in the app. About Rs700cr was distributed within a month benefiting over 14 lakh farmers," the Chief Minister said. "We have proved ourselves as a farmer-friendly government by almost doubting the crop loss compensation despite financial constraints amid the COVID-19 crisis. The compensation for crop loss in dryland farming has been raised from Rs 6800 per hectare to Rs13,600, as for irrigated lands it has been increased from Rs 13,500 to Rs 25,000 and for horticulture crops, it has been raised to Rs28,000 from Rs18,000. It is a historic decision," Bommai said. Referring to the anti-conversion Bill which was passed by the legislative assembly, he said, "it exposed the dual policy of the opposition Congress, which opposed the bill". On being asked about the bill not getting passed in the Legislative Council yet, he said, "we would not like to force the bill through. The bill would be taken up in the next session after taking all the members into confidence." Reacting to Congress' comments that the session was convened only to push through a few bills, the Chief Minister said, "the opposition parties had enough time to take up pro-people issues. But their objective was confined to holding dharna in the house. The opposition did not bother to participate in the debates. They did not conduct themselves responsibly". The 10-day winter session of the Karnataka Assembly session was held at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, Belagavi from December 13 to 24. (ANI) Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh on Friday flagged off a truck containing wearable clothes and similar materials. According to a statement by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, the material will be distributed to the needy in AIIMS, ISTM areas and the rest will be handed over to an NGO, Goonj, working for the underprivileged in Delhi and NCR areas. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jitendra Singh said, "The Department of Personnel and Training launched the initiative "Sanchay" in association with Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture to commemorate "Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav" to collect the material from government employees working in various ministries and departments located at North Block and nearby buildings." The Minister informed that the initiative held from November 29 to December 10, 2021, received tremendous response and 1500 Kgs of clothes and similar material collected. Dr Jitendra Singh said that the "Sewa" mission of DoPT should continue and asked the officials to undertake the next Sanchay programme of unused mobile handsets and after reprocessing distribute the same to the poor households to enable their children to access online learning, according to the statement. The Minister said, "Taking a cue from DoPT, other ministries will also join in the social service work." Dr Jitendra Singh distributed souvenirs to 22 volunteers, who helped in the collection of wearable garments and other materials on the occasion. (ANI) The Union Health Ministry, in a press release, said, "More than 17.74 crore (17,74,97,506) balance and unutilised COVID Vaccine doses are still available with the States/UTs to be administered." Further, the ministry said over 148.37 crore (1,48,37,98,635) vaccine doses have been provided to States/UTs so far through the Centre's free of cost channel and through the direct state procurement category. Under the Nationwide Vaccination Drive, as many as 141.01 crore Covid vaccine doses have been administered so far, the ministry informed. (ANI) The Ministry, in its release, said that this has been achieved through 1,49,64,300 sessions. India has reported 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the case tally of the Omicron variant has reached 415. As per the Health Ministry, the country's active caseload stands at 77,032, presently the lowest in 579 days. "Active cases constitute 0.22 per cent of the country's total positive cases, which is lowest since March 2020," said the Ministry. With 387 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, the cumulative death toll due to the virus has climbed 4,79,520. The Ministry further informed that as many as 7,286 patients recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative tally of recovered patients since the beginning of the pandemic to 3,42,23,263. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.40 per cent, the highest since March 2020. 11,12,195 COVID tests have also been conducted across the country in the last 24 hours. "India has so far conducted over 67.10 crore (67,10,51,627) cumulative tests," said the Ministry. As per the release, the weekly positivity rate at 0.60 per cent remains less than 1 per cent for the last 41 days now. While the daily positivity rate has been reported to be 0.65 per cent. "The daily positivity rate has remained below 2 per cent for last 82 days and below 3 per cent for 117 consecutive days now," stated the Ministry. (ANI) On the occasion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a special micro-donation campaign to "empower the party that always puts India first", party's national President JP Nadda informed on Saturday. Taking to Twitter, Nadda said, "From the birth anniversary of Atal ji today, 25th December, till 11th February 2022, the Punya Tithi of Deen Dayal ji, the BJP is launching a special micro-donation campaign. Your support will empower the party that always puts India First." Sharing a receipt of his contribution towards the party's micro-donation campaign, Nadda said, "I have made my own humble contribution towards strengthening the BJP using the 'Donation' module of the NaMo App. Using the referral code, you can also connect friends and family in this mass movement and empower the BJP to selflessly continue to serve the people." "I seek the blessings of people to strengthen the world's largest nationalist movement," he further added. As he launched the campaign for the party, Nadda, in an official statement, said, "Our party is now launching an important movement that is situated at the intersection of three factors: Our vision of nation first, our cadre who symbolise selfless service and commitment to the nation, and the kind of leaders that our party has produced, who have helped take our country to new heights of development." "Our Karyakartas may connect with the people for micro-donations from the range of Rs 5 to Rs 1,000. The 'Donations' module available in the `NaMo Exclusive' section of the NaMo App will be the medium through which we will collect these donations," the statement further read. The party president then urged all to come together and build a strong, prosperous and inclusive nation. "Let every BJP Karyakarta reach out to the people in this spirit and further cement the bond of affection that the party shares with every Indian," he added. (ANI) Joshi, who was also his cabinet colleague, said, "Atal Ji kept 22-23 parties together and established India as a nuclear power. Taking 22 parties together, people of different faiths together, removing all differences he gave a new direction to India's politics." He also said that Vajpayee believed in democratic values. On the occasion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary, President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid floral tribute at 'Sadaiv Atal' Samadhi in the national capital. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nirmala Sitharaman, Piyush Goyal and others also paid floral tribute at 'Sadaiv Atal' on the occasion. Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birthday is celebrated as the 'Good Governance Day'. Vajpayee, who led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government from 1998-2004, was the first-ever leader from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to have become the nation's Prime Minister. He served as Prime Minister thrice -- briefly in 1996, and then for two terms between 1998 and 2004. One of the prominent leaders of the country and founder members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vajpayee died on August 16, 2018, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after a prolonged illness. He was 93. The late leader was conferred Bharat Ratna in 2015. He had also been awarded Pt Govind Ballabh Pant Award for Best Parliamentarian in 1994. (ANI) Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, farmer leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said that there is a need to change the system and we want to appeal to people to support this morcha. "A new 'Samyukta Samaj Morcha' is formed for contesting Punjab Assembly elections. 22 unions have taken this decision. We need to change the system and want to appeal to people to support this morcha," said Rajewal. Earlier, farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni had also announced the launch of his new party, 'Sanyukt Sangharsh Party'. He had alleged that the policymakers are promoting capitalism, hence, he is forming a new party to help the common people and the poor. On November 2, former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh resigned from the Congress party and announced a new party Punjab Lok Congress ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections. Punjab assembly polls will be held in 2022. In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won an absolute majority in the state by winning 77 seats and ousted the SAD-BJP government after 10 years. Aam Aadmi Party emerged as the second-largest party winning 20 seats in 117-member Punjab Legislative Assembly. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) could only manage to win 15 seats while the BJP secured 3 seats. (ANI) So far, a total of 10 accused have been arrested in the SDPI leader's murder case. Meanwhile, in the murder case of BJP's OBC morcha state secretary Renjith Sreenivasan, five people have been arrested so far. A police team is carrying out investigations in other states. Two murders of senior political functionaries from SDPI and BJP in Alappuzha forced the local administration to impose Section 144 in the district. The alleged murder of the SDPI leader was followed by a separate incident in which BJP's OBC morcha state secretary was killed at his house by unidentified people in Alappuzha. According to the police, Shaan was on a two-wheeler when a gang in a car attacked him on Saturday night. SDPI has alleged that RSS workers are behind this attack. Earlier, an RSS worker S Sanjith was hacked to death allegedly by the workers of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political wing of the PFI, on November 15. (ANI) With this, the active cases in the state stand at 24,501. As many as 3,377 people have recovered in the last 24 hours in the state. With 11 COVID-related deaths recorded in the last 24 hours, the death toll in the state currently stands at 46,318. Meanwhile, the count of cases of the new COVID variant, Omicron, has gone upto 37 in the state. India has logged 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry informed on Saturday. The tally of cases of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus in the country has risen to 415. With 387 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, the cumulative death toll due to the virus has climbed 4,79,520. The Ministry further informed that as many as 7,286 patients recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative tally of recovered patients since the beginning of the pandemic to 3,42,23,263. (ANI) "Kerala government is utilizing Alappuzha twin murder issue to denigrate RSS. They will (state police chief) prepare a list of RSS and SDPI members with a criminal background. The 2 cannot be equated. SDPI is a terrorist organization," Muraleedharan told ANI. Kerala DGP Anil Kant has issued fresh guidelines in the wake of the Alappuzha murder case. As per the guidelines, officials have been told to prepare a district-wise list of those previously involved in criminal cases, including members of the RSS and the SDPI. MoS added, "Criminal list should be impartial without considering the party a person belongs to. In Kerala, the largest number of criminals will be from CPIM anyway. Cases of thousands of CPIM workers were withdrawn when this govt came to power." Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) state secretary KS Shaan was allegedly attacked and murdered in Kerala's Alappuzha on Saturday night. This was followed by a separate incident in which BJP OBC morcha state secretary Renjith Sreenivasan was killed at his house by unidentified people early on Sunday morning in Alappuzha, as per police. According to the police, Shaan was on a two-wheeler when a gang in a car attacked him on Saturday night. SDPI has alleged that RSS workers are behind this attack. (ANI) He sought to expand AAP's membership among the lawyer community and urged 80,000-85,000 lawyers in Punjab to join the party. "We will build lawyers' chambers, will give medical and life insurance, will give stipend and will also build High Court benches. I want to request 80,000-85,000 lawyers of Punjab to join the Aam Aadmi Party," he said. AAP's national convener, who is on a two-day visit to Punjab, also met ASHA and Anganwadi workers in Gurdaspur town hall. Speaking to women workers he said the government has more than doubled the honorarium being paid to Anganwadi and ASHA workers in Delhi. "Earlier, they used to get a fixed amount of Rs 3,000 and now they are getting Rs 8,000 to Rs 12,000. If our government is formed, we will do it in Punjab too." Kejriwal had said on Friday that if AAP gets a majority, it will give a strong and stable government to Punjab. Punjab will be due for assembly polls early next year. (ANI) Marking Good governance day, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday said that the state government is moving ahead with the vision of good governance. Dhami participated in a "Raibar ek naye Uttarakhand ka" program organized at Ganga Resort Rishikesh on Saturday. Speaking at the event, the Chief Minister said, "Today is celebrated as Good Governance Day and we are moving ahead with this vision of good governance." Along with this, he also bowed down to Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali and Madan Mohan Malviya, the great heroes of the Peshwar incident. Describing the program "Raibar of a new Uttarakhand" as the message of Devbhoomi, the Chief Minister described the brainstorming held in this event as giving direction to the possibilities of development of the state. The Chief Minister said that such events also work for uniformity, continuity in development and making the circumstances favourable. It also helps in preparing the condition and direction of the development of the state. He said that this holy Ganga of development of the state continues to move forward as the welfare of the people, for this we have to be a partner. In the development of the state, it is not the journey of anyone alone, but the collective journey of all of us. The Chief Minister said that people's opinions and dialogue play a very important role in the development of the state. On this occasion, the Chief Minister paid tribute to CDS General Bipin Rawat on behalf of the entire state. He said that he will definitely fulfill the vision of the braveheart General Bipin Rawat ji for Uttarakhand, and will follow the path shown by him and will continue to work for the sustainable development of Uttarakhand as per his vision. He said that every possible help was provided by him in the military Dham to be built by the Uttarakhand government. The Chief Minister said that under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and with the cooperation of the Central Government, many such works have been done in the state, which could not have been imagined earlier. "PM Modi ji has made the dream of creating a railway network near the mountains come true. Today, the work on Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project and strategically and geographically important Tanakpur-Bageshwar rail project is progressing rapidly. Similarly, work is also being done on Char Dham All Weather Road, Bharat Mala Project at a fast pace," he said. "Char Dham Yatra is the lifeline for Uttarakhand and these projects will facilitate Char Dham Yatra, promote tourism and bring revolutionary changes in our economy. Delhi Dehradun Expressway is going to further reduce the distance from Dehradun to Delhi. Kedarnath reconstruction work is in the final stage. The foundation stone of 400 crore schemes has been inaugurated by the Prime Minister here. A plan of 250 crores has been made for the beautification of Badrinath Dham," he added. "The focus has been on tourism, AYUSH, wellness, IT, solar energy and service sectors for investment in hilly areas. Working on the mantra of 'Gramodaya se Rajya Uday', we are developing Growth Centres in all Nyaya Panchayats on a cluster basis approach," the Chief Minister said. He said that whatever time he has got as the chief servant of the state, he has devoted every moment for the development of the state. "It is our resolve that when the 25 years of the establishment of the state are completed, then we will make Uttarakhand the best state of the country. We are working on it," he said. In the program, 50 famous personalities of Hill Mail - 2021, "Shikhar Par Uttarakhandi" were released by the Chief Minister. (ANI) This came after Telangana High Court has given directions to the state government to impose certain restrictions across the state in the wake of Omicron variant cases. As per an official order, "Rallies and public meetings shall be prohibited throughout the state till 2nd January 2022. Other events involving congregation of people will be permitted subject to the following directions: Physical distancing shall be ensured within the venue." The circular read, "No person without mask shall be allowed in the venue. IR thermometers, thermal scanners should be arranged at the entry point to scan persons entering the venue." The circular also orders for the imposition of a fine for not wearing the mask by people in public spaces. Meanwhile, as per the Union Health Ministry, India has reported 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the nationwide case tally of the Omicron variant of coronavirus has reached 415. (ANI) Chandel informed that a video has gone viral where Sidhu, while addressing a public rally in Chandigarh, made fun of the police and told his party workers to make "cops wet their pants". The DSP condemned the Congress leader's defamatory comment stating that the politicians must not forget the sacrifices made by the security forces. "Without police protection, even a rickshaw puller will not listen to his speech", Chandel said slamming Sidhu. "Politicians should not make fun of policemen on duty like this. They are just doing their duty and politicians should not demoralize them by making such statements," he said. "The security forces has its own dignity. Sidhu has defamed the entire Punjab Police by making such shameful comments," he added. (ANI) Midnight mass on Christmas eve was held at Red Church in Indore before 10 pm on Friday, complying with the night curfew imposed by the state government. The church was decorated with colourful lighting, craftwork and balloons. Red Church's media spokesperson, BA Alvaris said, "Complying to the orders of the Centre and state governments, we are celebrating Christmas as directed. We have also directed the people coming to the church to not crowd here. Therefore, some people will come now and some people will come tomorrow." "Masks have been made mandatory for all as a precaution. Today, prayers are being offered for the country to protect all from Omicron and to avert the third wave," he added. Christina James, a devotee at the Red Church said, "This is the second Christmas after COVID-19 pandemic and the biggest change is that there is no midnight mass." "Before Coronavirus, the mass began at 11.30 pm, but now in Indore, there is a curfew from 11 pm. Due to the curfew, the program today began at 8 o'clock," she added. Rahul Paul, who reached the church with his family, told ANI that family celebrations of Christmas are not happening as before. "Nowadays, greetings are going all digital." In Mother Mary's Grotto too, the Christmas celebrations were toned down and were celebrated with simplicity. The birth of Jesus Christ was celebrated at 8.30 pm yesterday after prayers. Jyotsna, who reached Mother Mary Grotto, said, "We used to celebrate Christmas with pomp and show every year; there would be a big function in the church. But due to Covid, all this has not happened for two years now. Hope everything gets better soon." Anshu Masih, a devotee said, due to Covid, it is not as fun to celebrate Christmas as before, but we pray that God removes the disease and we can celebrate the coming Christmas well. (ANI) Bommai was in Hubballi today to participate in the centennial celebrations of Hubballi taluk 'huttuvali marata sahakari sangha' in APMC. Addressing the event, the Chief Minister said, "The Sangha has rendered commendable service to the farmers for the last 100 years and it should be strengthened to reach out to more farmers in the coming years." "We all need to work unitedly for the welfare of farmers. Strengthening the Sangha would help the farmers. The State government would provide all necessary help to strengthen this institution," he said. Bommai has assured necessary support through a special programme to strengthen this Sangha. (ANI) As per the state government's circular, "Night curfew to be in force from 11.30 PM to 6 AM, Sunday onwards across Assam. This curfew, however, will not be applicable on December 31, 2021." The order further reads that for Omicron-specific regulations, all district magistrates, Superintendent of Police and all other authorities concerned should be responsible for ensuring the COVID-19 appropriate behaviour in all public places. The notice reads, "Any person violating these measures and not wearing a mask or spitting in public places shall be fined to the tune of Ra 1,000." Meanwhile, India logged 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry informed on Saturday. (ANI) "Covaxin has established a proven record for safety and efficacy in adults for the original variant and subsequent variants," says the official release. "Covaxin has established a proven record for safety and efficacy in adults for the original variant and subsequent variants. We have documented excellent safety and immunogenicity data readouts in Children," it added. Bharat Biotech expressed gratitude to the Union Health Ministry, Drugs Controller General of India and National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation "for their diligent review of all data and for their fastidious approval process." Bharat Biotech also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "for his visionary leadership during this pandemic." (ANI) "The government has decided that Precaution Dose of vaccine will be started for healthcare and frontline workers starting January 10, 2022," the Prime Minister said in his address to the nation. He also said that senior citizens facing co-morbidities will have the option to go for precaution dose of COVID-19 on the advice of their doctors. "Citizens above 60 years facing co-morbidities, they will have the option of taking precaution dose on the advice of a doctor," he said. The Prime Minister said that 61 per cent of adult population had been given both doses of COVID-19 vaccine while 90 per cent of adult population has go the first dose. India started the COVID vaccination drive on January 16 this year. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Tripura on January 4 to inaugurate the new terminal building of Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala, official sources said. Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Saturday participated in a meeting with Special Secretary regarding the Prime Minister's visit to the state, sources informed. Sources in the Bharatiya Janata Party also said that the Prime Minister will address a public gathering at Swami Vivekananda Stadium in Agartala. Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia shall also remain present in the grand inauguration programme. With the inauguration of the new terminal building, the Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport is about to introduce itself to the list of international airports. Agartala Airport is recognized as the second busiest airport in the northeast region after Guwahati. A sizable number of Bangladeshi passengers board flights from here to easily reach other parts of India. The New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) has been built in a span of 0.03 square kilometre area at a cost of Rs 434 crore. A range of high tech facilities have been installed here including full-body scanners and modern aprons that are able to handle Airbus-321 category airbus. The new building will be able to handle a crowd of 1,200 passengers at one time with 20 check-in counters. In early December, highly placed sources in the Civil Secretariat said that the Government of Tripura will soon approach the Ministry of Civil Aviation seeking direct international flight linkages between the Agartala-Chittagong and Agartala-Singapore route.Mrinal Kanti Banik According to sources, the Chief Minister has sought direct flight service between the Agartala-Dhaka route during a virtual meeting with the Union Civil Aviation Minister. "Tripura government is eager to ensure connectivity with all the South East Asian countries, especially the commercial capitals. If Agartala gets direct flights to all the commercial capitals of the South East Asian countries, Agartala will become a strategic point in the global map," sources had said. "Even the government has decided to grant subsidies to make sure that the international flights show interest in Tripura. Only recently, the government has reduced the state's share of taxes on Aviation Turbine Fuel. Similarly, some other steps shall surely be taken to attract the airlines operating international flights", the source added. The Chief Minister, while inaugurating the Destination Tripura investment summit, had said that the Tripura government is wholeheartedly trying to bring international flights to MBB Airport in Agartala. (ANI) He laid the foundation stone of metro works including 16 metro stations in Madhya Pradesh. "Clean city Indore and smart city Indore, will soon become a metro city also. Metro will be established in a ring shape starting and ending at the Indore Airport with 16 stations in between, as a part of a Rs 7,500 crore scheme," he said. "The construction of the metro will also provide employment to a large number of people," he added. Chief Minister accused the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh led by Kamal Nath of delaying the work of metro train. "We started the work of metro train in Indore long ago but for a while we were not in government and Dada (Kamal Nath) was the Chief Minister. He stopped the development work. Now we have come back, so the work of metro will also be move fast," he said. Chouhan said the government has decided to take the metro train or light metro from Indore to Sanwer and via Sanwer to Ujjain. "I am giving instructions to start the survey for the project. Gradually, we will work to connect cities around Indore with metro," he said. (ANI) "That there was a discussion in the state cabinet recently regarding giving booster dose and that was our demand," said a statement by Chief Minister's Secretariat. Environment Minister Aditya Thackeray had also written a letter on December 7 requesting the Union Health Minister to vaccinate children and giving booster doses, as per the statement. "Vaccinating children between the ages of 15 and 18 will definitely help in preventing the further spread of the virus and also senior citizens with symptomatic ailments will benefit from the booster dose," said Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, according to the statement. Earlier on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced three major decisions in the fight against the disease including the start of vaccination for children in the 15-18 age group from coming January 3. He also announced that the healthcare and frontline workers will be given a 'precaution dose' from January 10 next year. He also said that senior citizens facing co-morbidities will have the option to go for a "precaution dose" of COVID-19 on the advice of their doctors. Referring to the Omicron infections in India, the Prime Minister urged people not to panic and to follow precautions such as masks and washing hands repeatedly. He assured that nasal vaccine and the world's first DNA vaccine will be available for vaccination soon in the country. (ANI) Of these seven, two had travelled from Delhi, one had arrived from the United States of America, one each from Zambia, the United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, and another is a primary contact of the UK traveller. "Seven new cases of Omicron variant have been confirmed in Karnataka on December 25," Sudhakar wrote in a tweet. The Health Minister informed that those who tested positive for Omicron include a 76-year-old man from Bengaluru, who had travelled from Delhi, a 30-year-old woman from Bengaluru, who came from UAE, a 63-year-old man from Bengaluru who arrived from Zambia and a 54-year-old man from Bengaluru, who was a primary contact of a United Kingdom traveller. He said that a 21-year-old man from Bengaluru who arrived from the UK, a 62-year-old man from Bengaluru, who came from Delhi, and a 15-year-old boy from Bengaluru who travelled from the USA have also been found infected with the new variant. "All primary and secondary contacts have been tracked, traced and tested," the minister said. The total Omicron case tally has reached 38 in the state. Karnataka on Saturday reported 270 fresh COVID-19 cases and four deaths. With the addition of new cases, the cumulative case tally in the state mounted to 30,04,239, of which 7,271 are active cases. (ANI) Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Saturday reiterated the demand for restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood following which elections should be held. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event in Udhampur, the Congress leader said, "From day one, when all-party meeting was held, we have demanded statehood and elections. The government had agreed to both. We had kept a condition that first elections be held and then delimitation be done. That did not happen. We still want that first statehood to be given and then elections be held." Union Home Minister Amit Shah on several occasions has said that the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir will be restored after the delimitation of constituencies and assembly elections. Meanwhile, the Delimitation Commission, tasked with redrawing assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir, has proposed increasing assembly seats in Jammu region by six to 43 and in Kashmir region from 46 to 47. It also proposed six additional assembly seats for the Jammu region and one for the Kashmir Valley as also nine seats for Scheduled Tribes and seven seats for Scheduled Castes in the Union Territory. Reacting to the recommendation made by the commission, Azad had earlier said that seats reserved for Scheduled Caste should be distributed equally between Jammu and Kashmir regions. The Commission shared Paper I describing the proposed seat allocation at the level of districts with all the members. They have been requested their views or suggestions by December 31, 2021. (ANI) Welcoming Centre's decision to vaccinate children against COVID-19 in the age group of 15-18 years from coming January 3 amid Omicron threat, the Indian health experts said that there is a need for vaccinating children above 5-years-old and the next plan of the government should be to vaccinate them. "It is a welcome decision. The next plan should be to vaccinate children above 5 years old. Paediatricians should be allowed to vaccinate these children in their clinics," Dr. Dhiren Gupta, Paediatric Pulmonologist at Delhi's Sir Ganga Ram Hospital told ANI. "Not only we should target 13 years plus children, but also we should target 5 years old also. That should be our next plan. All pediatricians should be allowed to vaccinate these children in their clinics if we want to expedite the vaccination process," he added. "Most of these pediatric patients are tuned to go into the pediatric clinics and we can expedite the process of vaccination rather than limiting it to a few vaccination centers," he stated. On being asked about the Centre's announcement to give a "precaution dose" of COVID-19 vaccine to the healthcare and frontline workers from January 10, 2022, he said, "But why to wait till January 10. Every day is important in a pandemic. We know that Omicron is increasing at a fast pace. We will get variations of this virus. A booster dose takes approximately three weeks to make sufficient antibodies. The booster vaccination should start within two or three days. Looking at the entire population, we should start it as soon as possible". Earlier on Saturday, emphasizing precaution in view of the rise in cases of Omicron variant of COVID-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the start of vaccination for children in the 15-18 age group from coming January 3. He added that the healthcare and frontline workers have made a big contribution in keeping the country safe against COVID-19 and they will be given a 'precaution dose' from January 10 next year. He also said that senior citizens facing co-morbidities will have the option to go for a precautionary dose of COVID-19 on the advice of their doctors. The Prime Minister said that 61 per cent of the adult population in the country had been given both doses of COVID-19 vaccine while 90 per cent of the adult population has received the first dose. India started the COVID vaccination drive on January 16 this year. The Prime Minister said that the move to provide vaccination to children in the 15-18 age group is likely to aid in education normalization in schools and will reduce the worry of the parents with school-going children. The decision regarding precaution dose for frontline and health workers has been done in light of the amount of time that they spend in the service of COVID-19 patients."The decision of precaution dose will strengthen the confidence of healthcare and frontline workers," he said. Referring to the Omicron infections in India, the Prime Minister urged people not to panic and to follow precautions such as masks and washing hands repeatedly. He assured that nasal vaccine and the world's first DNA vaccine will be available for vaccination soon in the country. (ANI) During the virtual talks attended by members of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party, the Taiwanese side showed strong interest in a planned bill to promote economic security which Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government aims to submit to parliament next year, Kyodo News reported. According to the Japanese publication, the meeting was held as the LDP has stepped up exchanges with the Taiwanese ruling party, the self-ruled island facing military pressure from an increasingly assertive China. "We must make it effective legislation," Kyodo News quoted Akimasa Ishikawa, head of the LDP's Economy, Trade and Industry Division. In the meeting, the LDP welcomed Taipei's bid to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement between 11 Pacific Rim countries, which China has also applied to join, said Masahisa Sato, chief of the LDP Foreign Affairs Division. Earlier, Japan, a member of the TPP, said it welcomes Taiwan's application to take part in the trade deal and it sees no technical problem with it, while Beijing has expressed strong opposition to Taipei's move and has lodged a protest to it, Kyodo News reported. Beijing claims full sovereignty over Taiwan, a democracy of almost 24 million people located off the southeastern coast of mainland China, despite the fact that the two sides have been governed separately for more than seven decades. (ANI) The parties held "productive and effective" negotiations during which they agreed to create technical groups to work on details of the operations in the coming days, the Anadolu news agency reported on Friday, citing its sources. "Doha and Ankara have agreed to jointly operate Kabul International Airport," said the sources. The Turkish-Qatari Delegation will visit Kabul to continue the joint work, Sputnik reported. Earlier, the Qatari technical team had repaired Kabul International Airport after the US withdrawal was completed on August 31. International and local flights were suspended at Kabul's international airport and across Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in mid-August. (ANI) "It has been decided at a senior level that fencing-related issues would in the future be dealt with through mutual agreement," Dawn quoted the official as saying. This comes after tensions erupted on Durand Line -- a 2,670-kilometre international land border between the countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan--after Taliban authorities disrupted border fencing by Pakistan and took away spools of barbed wire. The Taliban fighters then also warned Pakistani soldiers against resuming fencing. Pakistan has been fencing the 2600 kilometre long border with Afghanistan since 2017 to end terrorist infiltration and smuggling. Afghanistan has strongly opposed the move. Fencing has been a contentious issue in Pakistan-Afghanistan ties because the Afghans dispute the border demarcation done during the colonial period. Pakistan, however, insists that the line separating the two countries, also called Durand Line, is the valid international border. The official said 90 per cent of the fencing had been completed. A large part of the fence has been constructed in inhospitable terrain and in some places at very high altitudes. The fencing is expected to be completed at a cost of about USD 500 million. The issue in the past had also resulted in fatal clashes between the troops of the two countries. (ANI) Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is likely to visit India in early January, sources familiar with the development confirmed to ANI. As per the sources at Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi already has extended an invitation for the visit to his Nepali counterpart inviting him for visit to India. "Formal invitation has been extended to Nepali PM Deuba for the visit. It would be his second foreign visit. He is likely to embark on a visit to India in the early weeks of January next year," a senior official with the MoFA informed ANI. A source inside the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu aware of the matter also confirmed that Deuba has been invited over by the Indian counterpart. "This comes months after the Glasgow climate summit side-lines where both the Prime Ministers have extended invitation for visit. Nepali Prime Minister is likely to visit India in the first week of January," the source aware of the matter confirmed. It would be a first visit to India by Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba after being appointed over the post of Premier by the Supreme Court issuing a mandamus where it had annulled the decision of the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to dissolve the Parliament. (ANI) The aids were loaded in tens of trucks and are supposed to be distributed to people who have not yet received aids, reported Khaama Press. The aid will be distributed to 34 provinces of Afghanistan and will be distributed to people in need after a transparent survey in the provinces. Speaking to journalists in Kabul, the Acting Minister of Refugees and Repatriates Khalilurahman Haqqani said that the aids will be distributed to people in need after a transparent survey in the provinces, reported Khaama Press. Khalilurahman Haqqani expressed gratitude to countries that have delivered humanitarian aids to Afghanistan and called on other countries to continue delivering aids to the Afghan people. "Afghanistan is going through the toughest economic situation and the world must implement its pledges in delivering humanitarian aids to Afghan people," said Haqqani. Earlier, China had provided the Afghan people with several batches of foodstuff, non-food items, and COVID-19 vaccines. International humanitarian organizations including the UN have been repeatedly warning of a severe humanitarian crisis in the country after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in mid-August. (ANI) On the eve of the 30th anniversary of USSR disintegration, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev on Friday stressed the importance of continued dialogue amid tensions between Russia and the US. Russia's Interfax news agency carried a written interview with the 90-year-old Gorbachev, one day before the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Soviet Union, reported NHK World. Many people in Russia blame Gorbachev for the collapse of the USSR. In a survey released by an independent polling firm on Friday, 63 per cent of respondents expressed regret over the dissolution, reported NHK World. Gorbachev said the Soviet Union's demise should not be blamed on his policy of perestroika, or restructuring, stressing that it allowed people to enjoy many rights and freedoms, such as those of speech and assembly. The world's first socialist country maintained one-party rule by the Communist Party from its foundation in 1922. Gorbachev resigned as president of the USSR on December 25, 1991, ending its 69-year history. In the interview, Gorbachev said that without his relations with Western leaders, including personal ties, the Cold War, the arms race and regional conflicts around the world could not have ended, reported NHK World. Gorbachev also referred to the current international situation. He said serious talks on nuclear weapons and European security have finally begun, adding that it is necessary to expand the agenda and continue the dialogue even in difficult times. Russia stands accused of allegedly deploying troops near the Ukrainian border in preparation for an invasion. Moscow has repeatedly denied those accusations, pointing to NATO's military activity near Russia's borders, which it deems to be a threat to its national security. Russia has also said it has the right to move forces within its own sovereign territory as it sees fit. (ANI) Officials of the purification commission of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) said that they have dissociated 1,895 Taliban affiliates due to their misbehaviour, reported Khaama Press. A spokesperson of IEA Inamullah Samangani in a Twitter post said that provincial heads of some directorates are also among those whose memberships have been dissolved. "Cases of most of these people have been referred to courts and a large number of ill-bred people left IEA after the commission was created," read his Twitter post. Samangani added that the officials and rank and file were dissociated after the investigations of the purification commission, reported Khaama Press. Purification commission, a newly created administration of IEA, observes the Taliban affiliates who misbehave with common people and do not abide by the rules. Earlier, the Taliban's supreme leader Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada had asked Taliban officials to identify influential people and dissociate them from their rankings. In the meantime, the head of the purification commission, Lutfullah Hakimi, has been asking people to cooperate with them in identifying those who misuse the name of the Taliban and misbehave with people, reported Khaama Press. (ANI) A spokesperson of IEA Inamullah Samangani, meanwhile, asked the removal of names of Taliban's officials from the black lists of the UN and the US on the Doha agreement, Khamma Press reported. Inamullah Samangani said that the removal should have been done earlier. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has exempted Taliban leaders from the travel ban for a period beginning on December 22, 2021, and ending on March 21, 2022. The list includes prominent leaders of the Islamic Emirate like First Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai. The Taliban, which took control of Afghanistan early this year, have not been recognised as Afghanistan's new government by the international community. On Wednesday, UNSC unanimously adopted a resolution clearing the way for aid to reach Afghans in desperate need of basic support, while preventing funds from falling into the hands of the Taliban. In passing the text, the Council carved out an exemption for humanitarian assistance and other activities that support basic human needs from sanctions imposed under resolutions 2255 (2015) and 1988 (2011), concerning individuals and entities associated with the Taliban in constituting a threat to peace, stability and security. Key provisions allow for the processing and payment of funds, other financial assets or economic resources, and the provision of goods and services necessary to ensure the timely delivery of assistance. (ANI) Forty-two Afghans released from different Pakistani jails extradited through Torkham to Afghanistan, the statement said, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. However, the statement did not say on what charges these Afghans were detained and for how long they were kept in Pakistani jails. Freed Afghans were sent to their homes after an administrative procedure and they were provided with some cash assistance too, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. (ANI) The accident occurred due to a collision between a passenger bus and a truck full of stones, Xinhua reported. All the victims were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Uthal, rescue workers told local media. The ill-fated bus was heading from Balochistan's provincial capital of Quetta to the country's southern port city of Karachi, according to the reports. Recently, a large part of Pakistan, especially the open areas, are having dense fog, causing an increase in road accidents. (ANI) This surprising retreat by Tencent comes at a time when the country's internet giants are under intense pressure from Beijing, reported CNN. Beijing has been cracking down on tech giants to rein in their growing power and influence. Tencent (TCEHY) plans to distribute more than USD 16 billion worth of its stake in JD.com (JD) to its shareholders as a one-time dividend, the Chinese gaming and social media giant said in a stock exchange filing. The 457 million shares that Tencent plans to give out represent 86.4 per cent of its stake at JD.com, or 14.7 per cent of JD.com's total issued shares, reported CNN. Currently, Tencent controls 17 per cent of JD.com. After the distribution, its stake will drop to 2.3 per cent, which means it will no longer be JD.com's largest shareholder. The move may reduce Tencent's "dominance" in the market and "is potentially an attempt to shift towards fairer competition, as well as to be more in line with the agenda for China authorities," said Yeap Jun Rong, market strategist for IG, in a research note. As part of the deal, Tencent President Martin Lau will step down as a director of JD.com, according to the filing, reported CNN. For the past year, China has increased scrutiny of the tech industry, published detailed rules aimed at tackling unfair competition, slapped companies with massive fines, and demanded that some firms completely overhaul their businesses. (ANI) Inamullah Samangani, the Deputy Spokesman for the caretaker government, tweeted the decision had been taken to prevent overcrowding and avoid people facing problems, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. After the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan led by Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban taking control of the country in mid-August, most Afghans want to leave the war-torn nation as they fear repercussions from the group as well as dread the previous regime of the Taliban. The Passport Department website remained active, Samangani said, adding letters and paper applications would not be accepted. Last week, a Pajhwok report quoted Passport Director Alam Gul Haqqani as saying a new online form had been designed, invalidating the previous one. Earlier in December, the passport-issuing process in Afghanistan commenced in 14 more provinces, taking the total to 32 at present. Haqqani told reporters that all the 32 Afghan provinces will be competent to issue passports for applicants, reported TOLOnews. Afghans in Kabul desperately need passports and are eagerly waiting for the passport office to reopen. As revealed by the passport department, over 125,000 passports have been issued so far since the reopening of offices in Afghanistan, reported TOLOnews. (ANI) About 80 people were on board when the boat carrying refugees and migrants overturned, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. A total of 63 passengers were rescued and transferred to safety on the island, Greek newspaper Ethnos (Nation) reported. This was the third tragedy in Greek waters within four days. Earlier, Greece's Hellenic Coast Guard announced that the death toll from a refugee and migrant boat sinking on Thursday off the Aegean Sea island of Antikythera has reached 11, with 90 passengers rescued. On Wednesday, the Greek authorities announced that a similar boat sank near Folegandros island, killing three people, and leaving 13 others rescued and an unknown number of people missing.Greece has been at the forefront of the refugee and migrant influx since 2015. Hundreds have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past six years. So far this year, Greece has launched more than 1,450 search and rescue operations and saved more than 29,000 people, Greek Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy Minister Ioannis Plakiotakis said in an e-mailed press release on Saturday. Traffickers usually stacked dozens of distressed people without life jackets on boats that did not meet the basic safety standards, the minister said. (ANI/Xinhua) The report on "expenditures incurred on COVID-19 by the federal government" has shown irregularities in government interventions to ensure the availability of five essential items -- sugar, wheat flour, oil and ghee, pulses and rice -- in Utility Stores at subsidized rates. A report published in Al Arabiya Post said this scandal, exposed by the government's own auditor general, is a clear case of stealing public money meant for helping the needy and medical staff struggling to deal with the aftereffects of a pandemic. The stolen amount, worth billions of Pakistani rupees, could be several times bigger as the Imran Khan government has refused relevant papers to the government audit body. The report added that this was perhaps Pakistan PM's biggest scandal. What makes the report even more damning is that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) pressured Imran Khan government to disclose expenditures on the COVID-19 relief package for audit. This was released after six months of pressure from the International Monetary Fund. The report exposed misprocurement, payments to ineligible beneficiaries, cash withdrawal through fake biometrics and procurements of substandard goods for consumption. This COVID scandal is another blow to Pakistan Prime Minister's anti-corruption image, according to the Al Arabiya Post. According to the Post, Imran Khan has been slowly but inevitably getting drawn into the corruption net as the Panama Papers leakage showed early this year. (ANI) Afghanistan's Ministry of Transportation and Civil Aviation is still busy discussing the issue with the countries' technical team, reported Khaama Press. It comes amid reports that the Taliban had reached an agreement with Qatar and Turkey for the management of the country's airports. No agreement has been agreed, negotiations are still underway, said the Taliban's spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid during his interview with Radio Free Afghanistan said. Currently, technical teams of both countries are in Kabul. They are negotiating the management of Kabul International Airport, Kandahar International Airport, Mazar-e-Sharif International Airport, Khost airport and Herat airport. (ANI) After facing defeat in the local body elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has formed a new organisational structure for the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), a day after dissolving all previous bodies within his party. According to Dawn newspaper, the announcement was made by the country's Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry through his official Twitter account today. He said that Planning Minister Asad Umar had been chosen as the secretary-general. Apart from it, several others had been named as the presidents for various provincial divisions. These include -- Defence Minister Pervez Khattak for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Minister for Maritime Affairs Ali Zaidi for Sindh, National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri for Balochistan, Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood for Punjab and Minister for Industries and Production Khusro Bakhtiar for South Punjab. On Friday, Chaudhry said that the ruling party has decided to dissolve its organisational structure. "Since party tickets were distributed on the basis of nepotism as against the principles of fairness and merit, Prime minister Imran Khan is very upset," Geo tv quoting Fawad reported as saying, adding that in the light of the situation, the party has decided to dissolve its organisational structure across Pakistan. The Minister for Information and Broadcasting was addressing a press conference in Islamabad in which he said that the party has decided to form a new constitutional committee to devise a strategy for the second phase of the local bodies election in the province, the media outlet said. Speaking about the outcome of the polls, the minister said that he has received complaints that the tickets for the recently held LG polls in the province were distributed among families of party members. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) has won elections in 10 tehsil councils, PTI in 9, ANP in 5, PML-N, and Jamaat-e-Islami have bagged one seat each, The News International reported citing the unofficial and unconfirmed results of 31 out of 64 tehsil councils in 17 districts. Meanwhile, Imran Khan will give the chief minister guidelines to devise an effective strategy for the next phase of the local body elections in the province scheduled next month. Earlier, the Pakistan premier, who is not happy with the PTI's performance in KP, had summoned KP's Mahmood Khan to Islamabad. (ANI) The incident, which took place in broad daylight, left one dead and another injured, The News International reported. The shooting took place reportedly over disputed land near the Murghi Khana stop in the Quaidabad area. According to media reports, the suspects managed to escape after the shooting. The victims were later transferred to the nearby hospital. PTI leader had a dispute with land grabbers over a piece of land and he was targeted when he was returning home from a hearing at local courts, The News reported. PTI leadership has condemned the incident and demanded immediate arrest of the culprits. Further probe is underway and more information is awaited in this regard. (ANI) Lithuanian Parliamentarian Matas Maldeikis has said that the Chinese party is threatening his country to sweep into the garbage bin of history, stressing that this is ironic because "that's where Beijing's communism already is." Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is threatening to "sweep Lithuania into the trashcan of history", Maldeikis said in a tweet on Wednesday. He also asserted that this is ironic because "that is where communism already is. It comes after Beijing's state-media Global Times on Monday published China's Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Zhao Lijian's remarks against Lithuania. Zhao had condemned the Baltic nation over allowing Taiwan to open its representative office in the country. "Lithuania stands on the opposite side of universal principles and justice which will never end well," said the spokesperson, adding, " those who insist on acting in collusion with Taiwan secessionist forces will eventually be swept into the garbage bin of history." With regard to the parliamentarian's remarks, Global Times managing editor Hu Xijin retweeted the post. Maldeikis has a "silver tongue, but a poor memory," wrote Hu, adding the Baltic country had "just crept off that trashcan 30 years ago by fluke". Maldeikis responded to Hu and pointed out that Hu is no longer the editor of the Global Times. He questioned whether Hu had been fired because his "attempts to attack Lithuania backfired embarrassingly?" Further, Maldeikis suggested that Hu be sent to a reeducation camp for his poor performance. Tensions between China and the Baltic country have soared as various officials from Lithuania have visited Taiwan in recent days and joined their call against China. Beijing is also irked with Lithuania as it allowed Taipei to open a representative office in the Baltic nation, the office acts as an embassy. (ANI) The accident took place on Friday, according to the report. "Fifteen people were brought to the morgue, and those injured are [undergoing treatment] in intensive care," the doctor was quoted as saying. The doctor said that the victims were members of a local charity and travelled from the town of Lubumbashi to Kasenga to make donations. The majority of those diseased were younger than 30, the doctor added. Road accidents in Haut-Katanga are becoming recurrent, the report said, citing a major crash that killed 50 last month and another one killing three and injuring 28 in late October. (ANI/Sputnik) London [UK], December 25 (ANI/Sputnik): The United Kingdom can significantly reduce COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations if tougher restrictions are introduced and kept until the end of March, a group of Warwick University pandemic experts said in a consensus statement for the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE). On December 8, UK Prime Minister announced so-called Plan B restrictions in England, including mandatory face masks and health certificates. British media said tougher restrictions can be considered as Omicron cases soared. The Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling, Operational sub-group (SPI-M-O) has carried out modelling to assess effects of the potential return to so-called Step 2 restrictions, which were part of last year's four-step anti-coronavirus roadmap, if introduced for a period of two weeks, four weeks or three months. "Step 2 has a much larger effect, reducing the number of deaths up to 31st May by 39 per cent (24-54 per cent) if kept in place from 28th December until 28th March, and 18 per cent (12-27%) if kept in place until 15th January," the SPI-M-O said in a report released on December 22. The introduction of Step 2 restrictions will reduce peak pressure on hospitals by about 50 per cent than if only Plan B were to be kept, the experts said. The UK cabinet has yet to respond to the report. (ANI/Sputnik) The Indian Consulate in a release said the Open House was chaired by Consul General Nitesh Kumar. The purpose of the event was to redress the non-routine grievances of the aggrieved Indian nationals living in Nepal. The Consulate release said grievances of around thirty Indians working in the factories of Parsa and Bara were redressed during the program. Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav is a series of events to be organised by the Government of India to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of India's Independence. The Mahotsav will be celebrated as a Jan-Utsav in the spirit of Jan-Bhagidari throughout the length and breadth of the country. (ANI) Vienna [Austria], December 25 (ANI/Sputnik): Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has signed a contract with an investment firm in Silicon Valley and will move his family to the United States early next year, Austrian media reported on Saturday. The Kronen Zeitung newspaper said that Kurz would take up a managerial job with an unnamed internationally operating company in early February. The Oesterreich daily put his annual pay at 5,00,000 euros (USD 5,66,000). The 35-year-old said earlier in December that he was quitting politics to spend more time with his newborn son. The announcement came weeks after Austrian prosecutors raided his office as part of a corruption probe. (ANI/Sputnik) Al Jazeera citing the Karenni Human Rights Group reported that it found the burned bodies of internally displaced people - including elderly people, women and children - near Mo So village of Hpruso town on Saturday. "We strongly denounce the inhumane and brutal killing which violates human rights," the group said in a Facebook post. Myanmar is in turmoil since the coup on February 1, when the Myanmar military led by Senior General Ming Aung Hlaing overthrew the civilian government and declared a year-long state of emergency. The coup triggered mass protests and was met by deadly violence throughout the country. Earlier this month, a court in Myanmar found Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of charges widely dismissed as politically motivated and sentenced her to detention at an undisclosed location. Suu Kyi, 76, faces almost a dozen charges including incitement, violation of Covid-19 protocols and violation of the Official Secrets Act, which add up to a combined maximum sentence of more than 100 years. She has rejected all allegations, according to CNN. Aung San Suu Kyi was detained as Myanmar's military took control of the country on February 1 this year. (ANI) Tens of millions of Christians in China have been warned by the officials to not gather to celebrate Christmas citing the COVID-19 pandemic, a media report said. Police and religious affairs officials across China have asked people and organisations not to hold any Christmas gatherings, reported Radio Free Asia on Friday. "In our town, we are not allowed to hold Christmas gatherings, not even parties," RFA quoted the pastor of an unofficial Protestant "house church" in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong who gave only the surname Chen as saying. "This is also happening in Henan [province] and other places, using the pandemic as a pretext," Chen said, adding local police had contacted him on Wednesday to make sure his church does not organise anything. They are only allowed to hold gathering virtually now. Officials in the eastern province of Shandong have imposed similar restrictions. The pastor of a church in the eastern province of Shandong, who gave only the name John, said similar restrictions are in the place where he lives. "They warned us in the run-up to Christmas that there are to be no activities [related to Christmas]. It's the same for some of the churches outside [town]," said the pastor of a church in the eastern province of Shandong, who gave only the name John. Meanwhile, government censors appeared to have scrubbed references to the festival from social media platforms, as local officials in the southwestern region of Guangxi warned primary and secondary schools, students and parents, not to stage any Christmas activities, according to RFA. (ANI) UAE Ambassador to India, Ahmed Albanna, called on Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla, at the latter's residence in New Delhi today, Lok Sabha Secretariat informed on Saturday. Speaking on this occasion, Lok Sabha Speaker said that India and UAE share a historical relationship that has been further strengthened under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Crown Prince of UAE, Mohammed bin Zayed. The 2015 visit of Prime Minister Modi gave new momentum to the relationship between the two countries and his next visit to UAE in January 2022 will further cement the ties, added Birla. As India is celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsava on the 75th year of its Independence, UAE is also celebrating 50 years of its Foundation Day, recalled Birla. Highlighting that the bilateral relations in the fields of trade, investment, defence, energy and culture have been deepened between India and UAE during recent times, Birla called for strengthening parliamentary cooperation between the two countries. Speaker Birla further informed that India - UAE parliamentary friendship is being formed which will further strengthen cooperation between the two parliaments. Expressing satisfaction that talks for wider economic cooperation between India and UAE have been completed in a record time, Birla hoped that this would give a boost to both the economies, especially in the fields of trade and growth, in the post-COVID period. He also expressed optimism that the bilateral relations in the fields of investment, energy and start-ups will be further strengthened. India's large scale participation in Dubai Expo speaks of its commitment to economic engagement with the UAE, Birla added. Lok Sabha Speaker thanked UAE for their generous support to the Indian population in UAE during the COVID period. (ANI) The Taliban have warned of a similar response to Islamabad after the Pakistani military shelled mortars on Afghanistan in the Chogam area of Shiltan district in Kunar, which injured one civilian and inflicted financial damage on the Afghan side, reported local media. A top military commander of the Taliban on Saturday warned Pakistan to stop firing artillery on Afghan soil, saying that the Afghan side is ready to give the same response if attacks by the Pakistani military do not cease, reported TOLOnews. The Taliban seeks good ties with its neighbours and its forces have the military equipment to defend the country, said Abu Dojana, commander of 201 Khalid Bin Walid Corps. "This is precious soil. We have paid a large sacrifice for it. We want to be good neighbours but if they keep attacking our soil, we will certainly give them a response," TOLOnews quoted Dojana as saying. The mortar shelling by the Pakistani side has injured a civilian in Afghanistan's Chogam area of Shiltan district in Kunar. "I was wounded by the mortar, a fragment hit my head," said the wounded person Anwar Shah, adding, "I was taken to Asadabad City during the night and remained in the hospital for two days." Notably, the Chogam area lies alongside the Durand Line. Residents of the western province of Kunar had earlier said that Pakistan has been targetting several parts of the province for the past two weeks. There have been claims by the residents that Pakistani drones also operate over the province. Salman, a resident in Shiltan district, said: "We are being attacked by Pakistan. Everyone is in trouble, including children and women." It comes after a video went viral on social media reportedly showing a Taliban commander warning the Pakistani military to refrain from attacking Afghanistan's soil, according to TOLOnews. (ANI) Speaking at a state-owned broadcaster, Federal Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar said domestic consumers' gas needs in winter are met by curtailing supply to non-export general industries and captive power plants. However this year the Sindh High Court (SHC) issued a stay order on the curtailment, the minister added. Azhar said there were some complaints of low gas pressure at the tail end of the transmission network, but there were certain reasons for the shortage of the commodity supply to domestic consumers in Karachi, Dawn newspaper reported. The minister told the media that gas companies had been making all-out efforts to ensure good management of gas supply to domestic consumers despite serious constraints such as depletion of existing natural gas reserves and high demand in the peak winter season. According to the minister, the gas demand of domestic consumers had increased by 3 to 5 per cent in the winter season, which was met by curtailing the supply to other sectors as per the priority list set by the government. Experts say that people in Pakistan don't have enough to cook their daily meals because successive governments handed out gas connections like sweet cakes. Gas has typically been cheap and readily available however, Pakistanis are now struggling to cope with hours-long gas outages, according to Turkish Radio and Television (TRT). Notably, household consumers in the country have also seen a sharp increase in their monthly bills. (ANI) China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine (CoronaVac) doesn't provide sufficient antibodies to fend off Omicron, a study by two Hong Kong universities has found. The study examined the efficacy of a third dose of the CoronaVac and Pfzier-BioNTech vaccines against the new Omicron variant. This study was jointly conducted by the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Taiwan News reported. The study showed that a third dose is given to participants who had received two previous doses of CoronaVac, "does not provide adequate levels of protective antibody," while the third dose of Pfzier-BioNTech did. Out of the 25 people who received two doses of Pfzier-BioNTeh, only five developed a neutralizing ability against the two Omicron variants. Meanwhile, 25 people inoculated with two doses of CoronaVac, none produced a detectable antibody against Omicron. This study runs contrary to the claim that Sinovac made earlier that found that a third dose was "effective in improving the serum neutralizing against the omicron strain." The study done by the company said that 94 per cent of those who had received three Sinovac doses generated enough neutralizing antibodies. The company did not elaborate on what kind of antibody levels three shots produced. The study was conducted by the company on 20 people who received two shots and another 48 who received three shots. Seven in the first group and 45 in the second tested positive in neutralizing antibodies against the Omicron variant, the company said in a statement, as quoted by the Global Times. The Omicron variant, first discovered in early November, has been reported in 77 countries and regions, according to the World Health Organization. (ANI) The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has dismissed a number of the World Bank's employees as it cannot afford to pay their salaries anymore, a media report said. The Afghan Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) has sacked several employees, however, it is not clear yet how many employees will be let go, Sputnik reported on Saturday citing a letter from the ministry. "Yes, I saw this letter. The number of World Bank contract employees is up to 15,000. The fate is not yet known. The Taliban (under UN sanctions for terrorism) have replied that they will not be able to pay salaries in the new fiscal year. Waiting for the World Bank to say what it wants," an employee of the World Bank working for MRRD said. Since the Taliban's takeover in mid-August, Afghanistan has been facing a number of humanitarian issues. Several Afghans, including state workers, the UN and the World Bank's staff, education and healthcare personnel, have not received their salaries for several months, according to multiple reports. Salary delays have impacted nearly half a million state workers, the reports added. Earlier this month, the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, which is managed by the World Bank, said it planned to transfer USD 100 million to UNICEF and USD 180 million to the World Food Programme to help Afghans. Martin Griffiths, who is also Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, said humanitarian operations in Afghanistan are set to be the largest anywhere in the world in 2022, reaching some 22 million people. Some 160 national and international organizations are providing critical food and health assistance, as well as education, water and sanitation, and support to agriculture. "We urgently need to ramp up this work," he stressed. He said the impact of lifesaving UN aid depends on cooperation by the de facto authorities and on the flexibility of the funding received. "We must all do everything we can to preserve the life, dignity and future of all Afghans." (ANI) Myanmar's military has sought Beijing's assistance and probably received also to build an internet firewall to curb the spread of information against the junta. But Tatmadaw is currently unaware that Chinese agencies by helping them have potential access to the junta's sensitive information, a media report said. Myanmar's junta is currently superior in terms of firepower and arms when compared to the rising groups against it in the country following the February coup. But Tatmadaw is still behind in technological and digital advancement, therefore its atrocities against civilians are spread in minutes worldwide through the internet and social media platforms. But now Tatmadaw has planned to widen its curbs on the digital platforms and therefore it has turned towards China, seeking Beijing's help to build an internet firewall to prevent such damning text, images and videos from reaching both global and local online audiences. China's role is being watched closely in helping Myanmar's military regime develop its online blocking and snooping capabilities since the February 1 coup, according to Asian security officials who communicated with Asia Times. The cooperative effort, they say, aims to implement effective control over what can and cannot be accessed online in Myanmar, similar to the "Great Firewall of China" that Beijing has used for years to repressive effect to police the online activities of dissidents and ferret out anonymous and pseudonymous critics, said Asia Times. However the concerning facts are emerging, which Tatmadaw is unable to figure out, is that Chinese agencies which are helping the junta are simultaneously able to tap into the Tatmadaw's military computers and potentially access and collect sensitive information in the construction process, experts monitoring the situation say. China, they say, has plenty of incentive to tap into the Tatmadaw information streams after vacillating hot and cold relations and years of mutual suspicion on a range of sensitive security issues, according to Asia Times. (ANI) "Acting FM Amir Khan Muttaqi met with Kazakh Trade and Integration Minister Bakhyt Sultanov in Kabul on Saturday and discussed trade, transit and economic issues, the foreign ministry said," Tolo News tweeted. Sultanov brought a half-ton of medical products for humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. According to Sultanov, the next aid packages will arrive in Afghanistan by ground. "If we refer to the trade relations, the export and import of goods between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan dropped by 27 per cent," Tolo News quoted Sultanov as saying. The Taliban took over control of Kabul on August 15 and following this the country has been battered by deepening economic, humanitarian and security crises. Afghanistan's economy has crashed since the Taliban seized power as foreign aid has been suspended and the freezing of Afghan government assets, and international sanctions on the Taliban, has further plunged the country into a deep crisis. The international community, from governments to non-governmental organizations, has been providing various assistance to the Afghan people. (ANI) The United States has announced shipping an additional five million doses of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine to Pakistan through the COVAX facility. "The United States asked Santa to bring an additional 5 million doses of the life-saving Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility to Pakistan, just in time for the holidays," The Express Tribune quoted the US Embassy statement. The embassy said that the donation "should arrive on December 25 on Christmas Day or shortly thereafter, bringing the total number of the vaccines donated by the US government to the Pakistani people to more than 37 million." "Getting vaccinated is the best gift you can give your loved ones this holiday season. Celebrate the coming new year by getting your jab," said US Embassy Islamabad's Charge d'affaires Angela P Aggeler. The statement said that the Pfizer vaccines are part of the 500 million Pfizer doses the United States purchased this summer to deliver to 92 countries worldwide, including Pakistan, to fulfil President Joe Biden's commitment to provide safe and effective vaccines around the world and supercharge the global fight against the pandemic, The Express Tribune reported. "The United States has already delivered more than 300 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine worldwide," said the statement. It also said that the US has also provided USD 69.4 million in Covid-19 assistance through a partnership with the government of Pakistan. "Since the start of the pandemic, the United States and Pakistan have worked together to improve infection prevention and control, enhance patient care, expand laboratory testing, disease monitoring, and case tracking in all districts, and support frontline healthcare workers," it said. (ANI) The police arrested the expatriates in Medina for collecting and smuggling unspecified amounts outside the kingdom. The authorities also confiscated cash from the suspects which, according to the police, was being arranged for being transferred out of the country through illegal means, the Pakistani newspaper reported. "Police also found in their possession cash amounts of unknown origin," an official said. According to the Saudi police, there was a contradiction in the statements given by the suspects. The expatriates have now been referred to public prosecution for interrogation, The Express Tribune reported. It further reported that the arrests come as Saudi authorities double down on their crackdown on financial frauds and have reported several arrests in the kingdom over suspected malpractices and money fraud. The Pakistani newspaper further stated in April this year, 24 Pakistani men were arrested for allegedly defrauding innocent people of SR35 million in several scams. (ANI) Britain's Queen Elizabeth on Saturday (local time) paid tribute to the late Prince Philip during her first Christmas message since the death of her husband. According to CNN, the 95-year-old monarch said that although Christmas was "a time of great happiness and good cheer for many," it "can be hard for those who have lost loved ones." "This year, especially, I understand why," the Queen added. A video message broadcast on Saturday opened with an excerpt of the Queen's speech in 1997 for the Golden Wedding Anniversary with the Duke of Edinburgh. A photograph of the couple marking their 2007 Diamond Wedding Anniversary was displayed on a table in front of the Queen. In a further nod to her husband, the monarch wore the same sapphire chrysanthemum brooch she was photographed with during her honeymoon with Philip in 1947, CNN reported. Queen Elizabeth said that since the death of Prince Philip she has drawn great comfort from the warmth and affection of the many tributes to his life and work from around the world. "His sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation -- were all irrepressible. That mischievous, enquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when I first set eyes on him," the Queen said. The Queen has cancelled some of her Christmas plans this year because of Covid. She did not travel to Sandringham for Christmas, as is the tradition, and was instead celebrating at Windsor Castle with her son Charles, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, CNN reported. It further reported that the palace also cancelled a pre-Christmas lunch the monarch typically hosts for extended family. On April 9 this year, Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, died at the age of 99. (ANI) The gun violence that plagues Memphis did not abate in the wee hours of Christmas morning and late Christmas Eve. A 12-year-old boy was killed in a shooting in Orange Mound, the Memphis Police Department said. The boy was shot on the 1000 Block of Haynes Street. Police arrived at the scene at 2:26 a.m. The boy was transported to Methodist LeBonheur where he was pronounced dead, police said. More: With one week to go in 2021, Memphis pushes past 2020 homicide record More: It's sad that so many kids are killed in Memphis, we must mix mourning with schooling | Weathersbee The boy was among four killed in three separate shootings over a six-hour stretch Friday and Saturday, according to police. A man was shot in the 3300 Block of Steve Road Friday night, north of Interstate 240 and in the Cherokee neighborhood. He was pronounced dead at Regional One, police said. More: What was said about gun control and gun violence in Memphis at Young Dolph's celebration of life More: After two teens were killed in Whitehaven, a community asks what else can be done Two men were killed near the junction of Interstate 40 and Chelsea Avenue early Saturday morning, according to police. A woman was also wounded and taken to Methodist University, police said. MPD did not release any suspect information for any of the incidents. The homicides over the past 24 hours added to the city's record in 2021. The city is now approaching 340 homicides this year. It was not immediately clear how many. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Four killed in Memphis homicides Christmas, Christmas Eve At the entrance to the Lowe's in a central Ohio strip mall, a bright blue-and-white sign tells customers that, under local ordinances, they must wear a face covering inside. Next door, at Hale's Ales & Kitchen, a sign asks customers to please be patient with a staff shortage - with no mention of masks. The city line between Columbus and suburban Hilliard crosses right through the strip mall, Mill Run Square. In Columbus, where the Lowe's Home Improvement Store lies, the city council early in the coronavirus pandemic created a mask requirement that remains in place. In Hilliard, where Hales is located, the city council has not imposed a mask rule, despite entreaties from the top county health official as coronavirus cases spiked. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. Under a new law in Ohio - one of at least 19 states this year that have restricted state or local authorities from safeguarding public health amid the coronavirus pandemic - Franklin County's health commissioner Joe Mazzola can no longer intervene. The county health department was stripped of its power to compel people to wear masks even as the omicron variant fuels a fifth coronavirus surge in the United States. "We've not been able to put in place the policy that would protect our community," Mazzola said. The number of states that have passed laws similar to Ohio's is proliferating fast, from eight identified in one study in May to more than double that many as of last month, according to an analysis by Temple University's Center for Public Health Law Research. And around the country, many more measures are being debated or being prepared for legislative sessions to start early in the new year. These laws - the work of Republican legislators - inhibit health officers' ability to require masks, promote vaccinations or take other steps, such as closing or limiting the number of patrons in restaurants, bars and other indoor public settings. Often, the measures shift those decisions from health experts to elected officials at a time when such coronavirus-fighting strategies have become politically radioactive. Story continues A new Indiana law gives city councils and county commissions power to overrule local health officials if their efforts to tame the pandemic are more stringent than rules in effect statewide. Tennessee lawmakers have taken away health officials' ability to decide whether public schools should be closed in an emergency, giving that authority to school boards while also allowing the governor to order all schools to teach students in person. And in Arkansas, a statute forbids any state or local official from compelling masks. As the delta variant was racing around in August, the state's Republican governor, Asa Hutchinson, said he regretted the measure and summoned legislators into a special session to rethink it. The law stayed in place. Conservatives frame this wave of legislating as a matter of individual liberties. Ohio Republican state Sen. Terry Johnson, one of the main sponsors of that state's new law, said last spring that its purpose is "restoring reasonable checks and balances" and "giving the people of Ohio a voice in matters of public health." Over the decades, critics have sought to persuade lawmakers to soften or remove safety measures, such as tobacco regulations, or requirements to wear seat belts or motorcycle helmets. "But for them to go after the basis of public health authority is pretty new," said Georges C. Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. Health officials say the new laws, targeted at coronavirus-fighting strategies, often carry unintended consequences stretching far beyond the pandemic to thwart health departments'' longtime roles, such as maintaining food safety. The Ohio law, Senate Bill 22, slows health department's ability to shut down a restaurant to protect customers from a foodborne disease outbreak, several health commissioners there said. Officials now can issue an order only after a person who ate there gets a documented diagnosis of such an illness - not simply after health inspectors discover unsanitary conditions. Researchers and health officials also predict such laws will get in the way of dealing with future health crises of unforeseen origin. But as the coronavirus pandemic persists, with omicron having arrived as the most transmissible variant so far, the laws' impact already is clear. In May, Montana, which has several new statutes narrowing health officials' powers, became the first state to prohibit discrimination based on vaccination status. It applies to any vaccine, not just shots to protect against the coronavirus. It means that employers may ask staff members whether they have been immunized against the virus, but they cannot punish or lay off employees who refuse to disclose their vaccination status or to get the shots. It makes an exception for nursing homes - but not for hospitals or clinics. When the law took effect May 7, most Montana hospitals were watching the pace of the vaccine rollout and debating whether they needed to make shots essential for their workers. But just east of the Rocky Mountains, Benefis Health System, with two hospitals in Great Falls, had sent a companywide email in April announcing that, unless they had a medical or religious reason, all employees had to receive at least one shot by May 1. Community members staged protests. With the law imminent, Benefis backed off its mandate, according to health-care experts in the state. Benefis declined to comment on its decision. For all 62 hospitals in the state, the law creates a bind, according to Rich Rasmussen, president of the Montana Hospital Association. The state's restrictions collide with what the federal government is ordering hospitals to do. The Department of Health and Human Services created a rule that hospitals and other health facilities with patients insured through Medicare or Medicaid must require their employees to have had at least a first coronavirus shot by Dec. 5. "Hospitals were moving forward with their compliance" with the federal rule, Rasmussen said, because they feared jeopardizing $2.1 billion that flows into the state in Medicare and Medicaid payments, and most hospitals "felt a federal requirement trumped state law." A standoff has been averted for now, because two federal courts in November temporarily blocked the HHS requirement as part of lawsuits objecting to the federal rule. Meanwhile, a health system, a few doctors' practices, several patients and the Montana Medical Association have filed their own lawsuit trying to restore the ability of hospitals and other health providers to compel workers to be vaccinated. Montana's hospitals argue they must be able to provide safe environments for their workers and patients. "If you are providing care to neonates, you want to ensure everyone . . . is vaccinated," Rasmussen said. Many Montana employers hold a different view. Nick Checota, a restaurant owner and music promoter who runs KettleHouse Amphitheater, a 4,500-seat outdoor venue on a river bank near Missoula, said his concert policy is to encourage patrons to wear masks and to get vaccinated or tested before attending an event. It is not required. A few bands have canceled because of the lack of vaccine verification, Checota said. But he said, "If I'd asked my staff [to be vaccinated], half my employees would have quit. . . . Individual rights in Montana are very important to people." The political moves against vaccine requirements are spreading. Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee in November signed a law that forbids employers from requiring workers, job applicants or customers to prove they have been vaccinated. Six days later, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed four bills that prohibit employers and educational institutions from requiring workers or students to be vaccinated against the coronavirus and removes the state health officer's ability to order vaccinations in a public health emergency. In Ohio, House Republicans last month passed a bill that would block employers, schools and colleges from requiring workers and students to get vaccinated if they object for "reasons of personal conscience." Some Republicans in the state Senate are reticent, contending that businesses should be allowed to decide on vaccine policies for themselves. Senate Bill 22, the Buckeye State's law in effect since June, splintered the party, pitting lawmakers against Ohio's GOP governor, Mike DeWine. A year ago, DeWine vetoed another bill that would have limited the state's coronavirus-fighting powers by handing lawmakers power to stop a governor's public health order and tightly limiting the state health department's ability to impose quarantines. The bill contains those features and added restrictions on local health departments. In March, DeWine vetoed that bill, too, saying it "strikes at the heart of local health departments' ability to move quickly to protect the public from the most serious emergencies Ohio could face." This time, the legislature overrode the governor's veto on S.B. 22 the following day. Since the law took effect, health commissioners around the state said they often have felt thwarted. In Franklin County, which includes Hilliard, the local board of health dates to 1919, the time of a global flu pandemic that killed millions. In July 2020, as the coronavirus spread, the board ordered people to wear masks indoors, except at home. It lifted the rule the following May, weeks before the state law took effect and shortly after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had said people who were fully vaccinated no longer needed to wear a mask. By late summer, cases were surging again. "We wanted to be able to put a masking requirement in place for our jurisdictions," said Mazzola, the Franklin County health commissioner, who works for the board. Under the new law, only local governments can make that decision. The Franklin health district covers 14 cities, 17 townships and 10 villages. "We called on our city managers, city councils, mayors," Mazzola said. Two of the cities, Bexley and Whitehall, reinstated mask rules. The others did not. The villages and most of the townships do not have authority to create such rules. Four townships do; they did not require masks. "That's really an unfortunate outcome here," Mazzola said. "It creates mixed messaging." The new law also means the Franklin County health department no longer can create uniform rules for all school systems within its area. When the school year opened, after a year of classes mostly online, 5 of the 17 districts required masks for students and teachers in every grade, according to Ayaz Hyder, a researcher in Ohio State University's College of Public Health who has been tracking the pandemic in nearby public schools. The first weeks of the year, the districts with universal masking had on average significantly fewer cases of the coronavirus than the rest, Hyder found. At Hale's Ales & Kitchen, just over the Hilliard line where there is no mask requirement, patrons are asked to wear a face covering voluntarily if they haven't been vaccinated, workers there said. Chris Hale, the owner, did not return phone calls seeking comment. Even when Ohio's elected municipal officials have stepped in to adopt public health strategies of their own, controversies sometimes have swirled. In August, the village of Gambier, home to Kenyon College, approved a temporary mask requirement for public buildings, including schools, with a $25 fine for violators. The county sheriff posted on his Facebook page that he had spoken with the mayor "and informed him that deputies will not be citing anyone for violations." Sheriff David Shaffer's Facebook announcement drew more than 700 replies, mirroring the fevered views that divide the nation over public health during the pandemic. "So . . . you are elected to decide which law to enforce?" one woman wrote. Many praised the sheriff. "The more you protect our God-given freedoms," one man wrote, "the greater my respect for you. . . . Please continue to defy tyrants who are trying to destroy our freedom." Such sentiment - and the Ohio law it yielded - leave the state's health officials feeling impotent as each pandemic wave arrives. In September, Jack Pepper, administrator of the Athens City-County Health Department, worried as his southeastern Ohio jurisdiction, which contains both historical Ohio University and rural poverty, suffered the largest surge in coronavirus hospitalizations and deaths of the pandemic so far. "It would have been nice," Pepper said, if the department could have limited the number of patrons in restaurants, as it had when establishments reopened after a pandemic shutdown early on. "Those powers are all gone." "In a perfect world," Pepper said, "we would be able to do what we think is best, but that's not our reality. So we deal with the hand we've been dealt." Related Content A doctor struggled with a rare, incurable syndrome. Now she helps others overcome it. In their shared sea, Ukraine and Russia already risk direct conflict every day A teacher learned one of her students might go hungry over winter break. She now feeds thousands of kids each year. Rise and shine, Orlando! Let's get you started this Sunday with everything you need to know going on today in town. First, today's weather: Mostly sunny and pleasant. High: 79 Low: 61. Rent this space: Are you a local business owner or marketer in Orlando? We love showcasing trusted businesses who can solve problems for our amazing local readers. Learn more here. Here are the top five stories in Orlando today: 1. An Apopka grandmother battling cancer and raising six grandchildren was gifted $10,000 in cash from the community and "Orlando Gives." Katina Lundy drives four hours roundtrip to Gainesville for her treatments and says "you never know whos your angel." (Fox 35 Orlando) 2. A 6-year-old child and 2 adults were shot inside an Orange County home on Christmas Eve, police say. All the victims are expected to recover and are in the hospital. (WESH) 3. A Florida woman has been accused of defrauding the sheriff's office where she worked. 38-year-old Trent Kellee Freeman is charged with two counts of uttering a forged instrument and one count of scheme to defraud. Police say Freeman was not comatose, but actually working another full-time job while taking nearly $4,000 worth of sick time from concerned coworkers. (WESH) 4. Developers in Seminole County are looking to revamp the Jai Alai building in Fern Park into retail, residential and gambling space. The owner of the property said they plan to go before commissioners next month to pitch the proposal. (WFTV) 5. Walt Disney World has renamed its special passes given to charitable organizations to Disney Wishes Pass beginning Monday, January 10th. The pass had previously been known as the Genie Wish Pass" and was changed to avoid confusion with the new "Disney Genie." (Walt Disney World News Today) Today in Orlando: Puppy Paddle In Paradise at Lake Ivanhoe Boat Ramp. (9:00 AM) Orlando Farmers Market. (10:00 AM) Hangover Brunch at The Brass Tap - Waterford Lakes. (11:00 AM) Layla Brisbois Band at Boxi Park Lake Nona. (2:00 PM) Orlando Solar Bears Vs. Florida Everblades. (7:00 PM) Story continues From my notebook: Barnett Park in Orlando reopens today for free COVID-19 vaccines and testing . Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., or until capacity is reached. Plan to arrive early. (Twitter) All Orange County parks, facilities and campgrounds will re-open today. (Twitter) Parking filled up at Orlando International Airport on Christmas Day and flights continued to be canceled as the holiday interruptions continued. (Fox 35 Orlando) More from our sponsors thanks for supporting local news! Events: A Killer Beaz New Years Eve- 2 Dinner & Show seatings (December 31) Ring In the New Year With 15 Percent Off Beautiful Blooms From FTD! (December 31) Add your event Loving the Orlando Daily? Here are all the ways you can get more involved: Send a friend or neighbor this link so they can subscribe Get your local business showcased in front of readers Send me a news tip or suggestion at carlosreportsnews@gmail.com Thanks for following along and staying informed. I'll see you soon! Carlos Hernandez About me: Hello my name is Carlos Hernandez and I am a food writer with over 10 years of experience in the industry. I write the food blog Carlos Eats (http://www.carloseats.com) and also contribute to several newspapers and magazines with food-related blogs and articles. This article originally appeared on the Orlando Patch By Andreas Rinke BERLIN (Reuters) - Senior German and Russian government officials have agreed to a rare in-person meeting next month in an effort to ease political tensions over Ukraine, a German government source said on Saturday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's foreign policy adviser Jens Ploetner and Russia's Ukraine negotiator Dmitry Kozak agreed to meet after a lengthy phone conversation on Thursday, the source said on condition of anonymity. The German government has not made any official comment. A spokesman for Kozak declined to comment. There have been a flurry of phone calls between western leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months over Russia's military build-up on the Ukrainian border and resulting fears of an invasion. In-person meetings between senior Western and Russian government officials have been few and far between, though U.S. President Joe Biden held talks with President Putin in Geneva last June. Since taking office this month, Scholz has emphasised the need for dialogue with Russia over its military build-up on the Ukrainian border while joining western allies in backing sanctions should Moscow invade. Berlin doubts more than Washington whether Russia actually wants to attack Ukraine and is keen to de-escalate tensions, two government sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Critics accuse Germany of being beholden to Putin because of its need for Russian gas, attacking construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between the countries, bypassing Ukraine. Berlin says Nordstream 2 is not political and would be only one of several pipelines transporting Russian gas to Europe. "The German side's goal remains to achieve a swift reactivation of the Normandy format," the German government source said, referring to multilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany. SPD parliamentary leader Rolf Mutzenich told Reuters the party was not "naive" and knew who it was dealing with, adding that it still believes that engagement could help to de-escalate the Ukraine situation. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke in Berlin; Additional Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin in Moscow; Writing by Sarah Marsh; Editing by David Goodman) When it comes to showcasing innovative products that influence the future of tech, CES is the king of the hill. If you want to debut an exciting new gadget, theres no place to do it better than the Consumer Electronics Show, the annual conference in Las Vegas where technology companies show off their upcoming products. With CES 2022 nearing, everyones eager to see the latest and greatest that the consumer electronics space has to offer. Every year we get to discover exciting new products at CES, and 2021 was no exception. We ended up awarding 15 products across various categories in our annual Best of CES awards. While theres no denying that CES is the place where pnew roducts are introduced, not all of them reach the final stage of being commercially available to the masses. For better or worse, a decent amount of vaporware is released at CES, and you never quite know if that groundbreaking folding laptop or adorable robot will actually reach store shelves. Knowing that, were revisiting our list from last year to let you know how each of our award winners turned out. Some are pretty obvious, while others are a bit more surprising so keep on reading to find out where to find the best products of CES 2021. Sony Bravia XR A90J OLED TV Sonys OLED TV made huge waves during CES 2021, earning top spot honors in our awards. Not surprisingly, it lived up to expectations when it went on sale. Utilizing its new micro-LED technology, Sony delivered a smart TV with outstanding image quality paired nicely with excellent sound. The Sony Bravia XR A90J is a fine example of how a product executes its life cycle from making a splash at CES, all the way to winning broad appraise from critics and users in being a top-notch TV for the home. sony-bravia-xr-a90j-oled-tv, best gadgets of ces 2021 Buy: Sony XR55A90J $2,499.99 HD Medical HealthyU Remote Patient Monitor Healthcare and tech collided with the introduction of the HealthyU Remote Patient Monitor at CES 2021. With the ability to measure an assortment of metrics such as heart sounds, lung sounds, blood oxygen levels, temperature, respiratory rate, and blood pressure, a gadget that does all of them is sure to make an impression. However, there has been very little in the way of general availability it doesnt seem like its launched yet, which highlights the problem with many ambitious health tech products that debut at CES. Story continues healthy u, best of ces 2021 Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra Given Samsungs track record with its line of Galaxy smartphones, it wasnt long after CES before the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra went on sale to set the bar for the rest of the phones released in 2021. Remarkable in every way, the Galaxy S21 Ultra turned out to be a monster of a phone with its epic quad-camera system complete with a 100x space zoom camera that allows you to get close, without having to be close. While Samsungs folding smartphones have gotten more attention, the Galaxy S21 Ultra is one hell of a flagship phone. Samsung recently extended its Black Friday deals for the Discover Samsung event, and this flagship phone is discounted by more than 50% for a limited time. This is a great opportunity to buy an award-winning smartphone for an ultra-low price. samsung galaxy s21 ultra, best of ces 2021 Buy: Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra $1,099.99 Buy: Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G $449.99 (orig. $999.99) 55% OFF Origin Hex If someone were to perhaps tell you that theres technology that could detect movement with the help of Wi-Fi, you probably would be skeptical about the claim. However, it turns out that Hex proved that it was feasible. The Hex Home DIY security system eventually became available later in 2021, proving that it can preservice your privacy in the home by measuring Wi-Fi wave disruptions due to movement. Security cameras inside of the home are often perceived as invasive, which is why the Hex Home exists because itll notify you if it senses movement. origin hex home security, best ces gadgets 2021 Buy: Hex Home Security $199.99 (orig. $219.99) 9% OFF Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro Ankers continued push in the audio world came with the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro at CES 2021. Sure, even though expectations were high for it being an AirPods killer of sorts, it wasnt too bad of an option when it was released. Given its substantially lower price point than the AirPods Pro, the Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro makes for a wonderful gift with its sweet audio performance, multiple noise cancellation modes, and wireless charging case. anker soundcore liberty air2 pro, best of ces 2021 Buy: Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro $129.00 Samsung Jet Bot AI+ Who wouldve thought that out of all the robot vacuum brands out there, it would be Samsung that delivered one of the most innovative robot vacuums this year. At CES 2021, the Samsung Jet Bot AI+ stood out for being a chonky robot vacuum that looked like a mini tank on wheels, but in reality, it cleaned very well and even brought one of the most reliable obstacle avoidance systems around. Add to that, it doubles as a security camera too but on wheels! samsung-JetBot-90-AI-vacuum, best of ces 2021 Buy: Samsung Jet Bot AI+ $1,299.00 Samsung Bot Handy You sort of knew when this piece of vaporware was introduced that it was probably not something that would be commercially available. Were not surprised that the wine pouring Samsung Bot Handy is nowhere in sight, especially when home robots of this caliber tend to be specialty gadgets that are unlikely to be available. The only notable home robot with potential right now is Amazon Astro, which at the moment is the only one in the foreseeable future to actually make its presence in actual homes. samsung bot handy Razer Blade 15 Advanced Unless theres a crazy piece of new tech involved, laptops in general introduced at CES tend to come to fruition. The Razel Blade 15 Advanced made an impression for its sleek and thin design for a gaming laptop, a perfect option for someone who enjoys on-the-go gaming without lifting around a hulky gaming laptop. It was a worthwhile option, but many agree that its on the pricey side given its specs. razer blade 15 advanced gaming laptop, best of ces 2021 Buy: Razer Blade 15 Advanced $2,066.91 Satisfyer Love Triangle Well this one didnt take long before it was officially available for purchase. The Satisfyer Love Triangle certainly doesnt look like your average sex toy, but dont let it fool you either it doesnt mess around when it comes to pleasure. Were always on the lookout for new innovations in the sex toy industry, and we expect to see some new sexual health products at CES 2022 in January. Read More: The Best Places To Buy Sex Toys Online in 2022 satisfyer love triangle, best ces gadgets 2021 Buy: Satisfyer Love Triangle $39.87 Sony 360 Reality Audio Speakers Sonys no stranger in the speaker world, but its 360 Reality Audio Speakers teased at CES 2021 eventually entered the market in two variants the SRS-RA3000 and SRS-RA5000. The two received mixed reviews (including from our product reviewers), but it should be noted that they deliver a 360-degree audio experience that makes it feel like sounds are coming from all around you. Buy: Sony SRS-RA300 $198.00 (orig. $299.99) 34% OFF Buy: Sony SRS-RA5000 $698.00 Skagen Jorn HR Not everyone fancies the look and dizzying functionality of todays smartwatches, which is why the Skagen Jorn HR stood out at CES 2021. The hybrid smartwatch offered some smartwatch functionality on your wrist, but with the timeless design of a traditional timepiece. It wasnt a knockout hit per se, but at least it gave consumers an option. fossil skagen smartwatch, best of ces 2021 Buy: Skagen Jorn HR $195.00 Popsockets PopGrip for MagSafe There are people who simply love popsockets on their phones. At CES 2021, we were all introduced to the Popsockets PopGrip for MagSafe. Anyone with a MagSafe compatible iPhone will surely be pleased to know that you can still put on a Popsocket, but still have the ability to wireless charge. pop grip with magsafe, best of ces 2021 Buy: Popsockets PopGrip for MagSafe $29.99 TCL Wearable Display Nothing screams futuristic than Tom Cruise in Minority Report manipulating virtual screens, so when the TCL Wearable Display was teased at CES 2021, it gave us hope that well be there someday. Dubbed as the TCL NXTWEAR G, the wearable glasses arent still widely available for purchase here in the U.S., but if you can snag them abroad in markets like South Korea, Europe, and Australia. Is it the Minority Report experience we were hoping for? Not really, but its a start. tcl wearable display, best of ces 2021 Razer Project Hazel N95 Face Mask Face masks are still a thing, but no other got more attention at CES 2021 than Razers Project Hazel. Officially known now as the Razer Zephyr, the futuristic looking N95 face mask eventually made its way to beta testing for the lucky individuals who managed to be chosen, but theres still no official word around general availability. razer project hazel concept face mask, best of ces 2021 More from SPY Best of SPY Click here to read the full article. BENI, Congo (AP) A suicide bomber attacked a restaurant and bar Saturday as patrons gathered on Christmas Day, killing at least six others in an eastern Congolese town where Islamic extremists are known to be active. Heavy gunfire rang out shortly after the bomb went off, with panicked crowds fleeing the town's center. Saturday's attack marked the first known time that a suicide bomber has killed victims in eastern Congo, where an Islamic State group affiliate earlier this year took responsibility for a suicide bombing near another bar in Beni who had caused no other casualties. The latest violence only deepens fear that religious extremism has taken hold in a region already plagued for years by rebels. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for the governor of North Kivu, said that security guards had blocked the bomber from entering the crowded bar and so the person instead detonated the explosives at the entrance. We call on people to remain vigilant and to avoid crowded areas during the holiday season, he said in a statement. In the city and territory of Beni, it is difficult, in these times to know who is who." Rachel Magali had been at the restaurant-bar for about three hours with her sister-in-law and several others when she heard a loud noise outside. Suddenly we saw black smoke surrounding the bar and people started to cry, she told The Associated Press. We rushed to the exit where I saw people lying down. There were green plastic chairs scattered everywhere and I also saw heads and arms no longer attached. It was really horrible. Among the dead were two children, according to Mayor Narcisse Muteba, who is also a police colonel. At least 13 other people were wounded and taken to a local hospital. Investigations are underway to find the perpetrators of this terrorist attack, he told The Associated Press. The town has long been targeted by rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF, a group that traces its origins to neighboring Uganda. But in June the Islamic State groups Central Africa Province said it was behind the suicide bomber and another explosion that same day at a Catholic church that wounded two people. Story continues Residents of the town have repeatedly expressed anger over the ongoing insecurity despite an army offensive and the presence of U.N. peacekeepers in Beni. From 2018 to 2020, the town also suffered through an Ebola epidemic that became the second deadliest in history. More than 2,200 people died in eastern Congo as vaccination efforts were at times thwarted by insecurity in the area. ___ Associated Press writer Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report. The Daily Beast U.S. Department of JusticeA 22-year-old woman who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was drunk and driving in the wrong direction on Wednesday night when she killed a young mom and seriously injured another driver, authorities said.Emily Hernandez was driving west in the eastbound lanes in Franklin County, Missouri, just after 7 p.m. when she crashed into another car that spun into the median strip and struck cable barriers, police said. Both vehicles swerved to avoid each other, according to There's no doubt that money can be made by owning shares of unprofitable businesses. For example, although Amazon.com made losses for many years after listing, if you had bought and held the shares since 1999, you would have made a fortune. But the harsh reality is that very many loss making companies burn through all their cash and go bankrupt. So, the natural question for Aeterna Zentaris (TSE:AEZS) shareholders is whether they should be concerned by its rate of cash burn. In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. We'll start by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves in order to calculate its cash runway. Check out our latest analysis for Aeterna Zentaris When Might Aeterna Zentaris Run Out Of Money? A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. In September 2021, Aeterna Zentaris had US$68m in cash, and was debt-free. Importantly, its cash burn was US$4.2m over the trailing twelve months. So it had a very long cash runway of many years from September 2021. While this is only one measure of its cash burn situation, it certainly gives us the impression that holders have nothing to worry about. You can see how its cash balance has changed over time in the image below. How Well Is Aeterna Zentaris Growing? Happily, Aeterna Zentaris is travelling in the right direction when it comes to its cash burn, which is down 57% over the last year. Arguably, however, the revenue growth of 218% during the period was even more impressive. Considering these factors, we're fairly impressed by its growth trajectory. Clearly, however, the crucial factor is whether the company will grow its business going forward. For that reason, it makes a lot of sense to take a look at our analyst forecasts for the company. How Easily Can Aeterna Zentaris Raise Cash? We are certainly impressed with the progress Aeterna Zentaris has made over the last year, but it is also worth considering how costly it would be if it wanted to raise more cash to fund faster growth. Issuing new shares, or taking on debt, are the most common ways for a listed company to raise more money for its business. One of the main advantages held by publicly listed companies is that they can sell shares to investors to raise cash and fund growth. By looking at a company's cash burn relative to its market capitalisation, we gain insight on how much shareholders would be diluted if the company needed to raise enough cash to cover another year's cash burn. Story continues Aeterna Zentaris' cash burn of US$4.2m is about 7.2% of its US$58m market capitalisation. Given that is a rather small percentage, it would probably be really easy for the company to fund another year's growth by issuing some new shares to investors, or even by taking out a loan. Is Aeterna Zentaris' Cash Burn A Worry? It may already be apparent to you that we're relatively comfortable with the way Aeterna Zentaris is burning through its cash. In particular, we think its revenue growth stands out as evidence that the company is well on top of its spending. But it's fair to say that its cash burn relative to its market cap was also very reassuring. After considering a range of factors in this article, we're pretty relaxed about its cash burn, since the company seems to be in a good position to continue to fund its growth. Separately, we looked at different risks affecting the company and spotted 6 warning signs for Aeterna Zentaris (of which 2 are concerning!) you should know about. Of course Aeterna Zentaris may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Former Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., left with microphone, at a rally in Midlothian, Va. on Nov. 2, 2019. (Emma Howells/The New York Times) WASHINGTON Late on Nov. 8, 2016, the mood inside President Barack Obamas West Wing turned grim. Hillary Rodham Clinton was coming up short. The realization was growing that Donald Trump would be elected president. Suddenly, David Simas, Obamas political director, pumped his fist and called out, Yes! A cautious, cerebral lawyer, Simas was not known for attention-getting exultation. Asked why he was cheering, he deadpanned: We just won a North Carolina Supreme Court seat. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times Incongruous as it was, the moment of triumph in a relatively minor contest reflected a growing concern among Democratic leaders, all the way up to Obama, that their party needed a more assertive strategy for the end-of-decade redistricting fights to come. But as Democrats awakened to the depth of their plight, they found that learning to think small was easier said than done: Hopes of big gains at the state level in 2020, a crucial year for redistricting, did not materialize. Liberal voters showed they were less hungry to win those races than they were to oust Trump. Now, however, state-level contests such as those for governors offices, legislatures and courts are suddenly moving from the edge to the center of American politics. And the ongoing tussle over political maps is just one front in a larger conflict: As Trump pushes his false claims of a stolen 2020 election, what was once seen at most as a decennial scrum for partisan advantage in the provinces of government is transforming, in some Democrats minds, into a twilight struggle for the future of American democracy. Were at a moment of reckoning in America, former Attorney General Eric Holder said during a recent fundraising event for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, a group he formed that became the primary locus of Obamas political activity when he left the White House. Im not being hyperbolic or alarmist. I think our democracy is on the line. Story continues Fundraising appeals on behalf of Democratic legislative candidates note the fact that at least six Republican state lawmakers were in Washington on Jan. 6, and that Republican-led states from Arizona to Georgia have passed laws tightening the rules around voting. And revelations about Trumps ad hoc efforts to overturn the previous presidential election are fueling fears that in a rematch of 2020, Trump might conspire with GOP state lawmakers to alter the outcome illegitimately. We believe the right wing is signaling a strategy to steal the election through state legislatures in 2024, said Daniel Squadron, a former New York state senator whose group, The States Project, has announced plans to raise $30 million to support Democratic candidates in state legislative races in 2022. Yet it remains to be seen whether such dire warnings will move voters. Selling rank-and-file Democrats on the importance of offices such as state senator or state Supreme Court justice has proved daunting. In the 2020 campaign cycle, donors showered Amy McGrath, a doomed Democratic candidate for Senate from Kentucky, with $96 million, dwarfing the $51 million raised by the national Democratic Party committee responsible for aiding candidates for legislative seats in all 50 states. And Democrats tend to suffer disproportionately from roll-off, a phenomenon in which voters fail to complete their ballots, withholding their votes from candidates at the bottom of the ticket. It feels very much like climbing uphill, pushing a rock while your arms are melting, said Amanda Litman, a member of the liberal group Run for Something, which recruits young people to run for state and local office. Gaby Goldstein, co-founder of Sister District, a grassroots organization that supports progressive candidates in state legislative races, noted that conservatives have mobilized around state politics for decades. I always say that Democrats are tardy to the party, she said. The Democratic Partys belated interest in lower-tier races grew out of its bruising experience in 2010, when Republicans rode an anti-Obama backlash to oust hundreds of Democratic incumbents nationwide. Spending just $30 million, Republicans flipped 680 state legislative seats and 20 chambers, a stunning victory that put them in position to redraw election maps and entrench their hold over those states and their congressional delegations for a decade. Democrats were frankly unprepared during that cycle, said Kelly Ward Burton, who at the time was running House Democrats campaign committee. Now president of Holders redistricting committee, Burton has been working closely with several Democratic campaign groups in hopes of a different outcome from the current round of redistricting. Part hardball politics and part good-government activism, the groups strategy has been to break up GOP trifectas where possible reducing the number of states where Republicans enjoy full control of the redistricting process because they hold the governorship and majorities in both legislative chambers. They also ask candidates for state and federal offices to pledge support for fair redistricting that ends map manipulation and creates truly representative districts, an aspiration that is sometimes in tension with more partisan goals. Midway through the current redistricting brawl, the results of those Democratic efforts are mixed. The long-troubled Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee became a force under new leadership in 2016, setting up the party to take six chambers in the 2018 midterm elections. Since 2017, Democrats have flipped 10 governors offices, including in the battlegrounds of Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and picked up seven state Supreme Court seats. Five states have passed nonpartisan redistricting reforms, putting map-drawing in the hands of independent commissions. But the blue wave that Democrats were counting on in 2020 never washed ashore. Although Democratic groups spent record amounts trying to win back GOP-held statehouses, their party ended last year worse off, losing both chambers in New Hampshire. As a result, Republicans not only kept control of prizes such as the Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin legislatures, but they also have retained the power to draw maps for 187 congressional districts, while Democrats control the fate of just 75. As a result, Democrats hopes of keeping the House may rest on legal challenges to maps that Republican-led states have already approved. And a 2019 Supreme Court ruling, which put partisan gerrymandering claims beyond the purview of federal courts, ensures that state courts will be the main arena for such lawsuits. In 2019, Democrats lost a crucial state Supreme Court contest in Wisconsin by fewer than 6,000 votes, cementing the bodys conservative majority. But the election of liberal judges in North Carolina and Ohio has given Holders group, and other liberal outfits allied with it, at least a chance to win in court what Democrats lack the power to achieve in Republican-dominated legislatures. High-minded sentiments are yielding to the demands of brass-knuckle politics. Many Democrats cheered the aggressive gerrymandering in Illinois, where maps approved by Gov. J.B. Pritzker could net them at least one additional House seat, and they are urging a similar approach in New York, where a Democratic supermajority may seek to gerrymander its way to capturing as many four seats currently held by Republicans. None of which is lost on Republicans. Democrats pretend to be for fair maps, but they use every advantage they get, said Andrew Romeo, a spokesperson for the Republican State Leadership Committee. But Democratic gerrymandering could backfire, cautioned Adam Kincaid, head of the National Republican Redistricting Trust. In several states that Democrats control, he noted, they have drawn new districts with only a slight partisan tilt, which could make them vulnerable in the event of a Republican wave. It seems like Democrats are spreading their voters out to cover more territory, he said. And as Democrats gear up for what most acknowledge will be a difficult midterm election in 2022, the missed opportunities of 2020 and earlier election cycles loom large in the rearview mirror. It was a really bad day at the statehouses when Republicans won those races, said David Pepper, a former chair of the Ohio Democratic Party and author of a new book on state legislatures. Almost as if Trump had won. In 2022, Democrats are focused on flipping several of the state legislatures that remained tantalizingly out of reach after 2020 chiefly Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania. In North Carolina and Wisconsin, they are simply trying to stave off Republican supermajorities. They also must defend narrow majorities in Colorado, Maine, Minnesota and Nevada, and could be dogged by economic worries and President Joe Bidens dismal approval ratings. Jessica Post, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, acknowledged the rocky terrain ahead, but said new maps in Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania could present opportunities. Were very cleareyed about what may happen out in the electorate, she said, but she insisted that If we run good races, we can win in tough territory. The explosion of gerrymandering after the Republicans 2010 romp has meant that few seats are truly competitive. Charles Nuttycombe, an analyst of state legislative elections, has calculated that between 2018 and 2021, only 15% of statehouse contests were decided by 10 percentage points or less. The bigger story here is that the Democrats are kind of in a rut, and I dont know how theyre going to overcome the structural disadvantages they face, said Michael J. Behm, a lobbyist who tracks legislative elections. Obamas assistance alone may not provide much of a lift. He has participated in several fundraising events and virtual town halls held by Holders group, and he endorsed 21 candidates for Virginias House of Delegates. Five of them lost their seats as Republicans narrowly captured control of the chamber last month. Reviewing the results in Virginia, Goldstein, the progressive activist, urged her party to develop a message that would inspire voters to reach all the way down the ballot. We cannot just be against deplorable stuff, she said. We absolutely have to be sharing a vision of the world that is exciting to people. 2021 The New York Times Company The Oklahoma Commerce Department's building is at 900 N Stiles Ave. near downtown Oklahoma City. For a governor focused on running government more like a business, few state agencies have received as much of his attention as the one dedicated to bringing new business to the state. Gov. Kevin Stitts proposed budget for this fiscal year targeted the Commerce Department for the largest funding increase of any state agency, a request the state Legislature granted with more than $40 million in additional spending. The Legislature also approved dozens of bills pushed for by the agency that not only offered additional funding for would-be businesses but also funnel some of the states own investment funds to local businesses in need of capital. More: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt's brother challenges Tulsa municipal court, citing McGirt ruling The emphasis on commerce development has been welcomed by the business community, especially as the pandemic has wreaked havoc on the economy here and across the country. But despite its success, the department has kept some of its efforts largely private. Records reveal Commerce Department push for business incentives Through a records request seeking hundreds of Commerce Department emails and other documents, The Oklahoman got a glimpse of the departments focus and mission, which over the past two years has included a significant alteration in the types of business incentives the state offers. The Oklahoman also tracked legislation lobbied for by the Commerce Department in order to determine the agencys top priorities. What was found was a department that sees the state of Oklahoma as woefully behind others when it comes to incentivizing new business and lagging when it comes to offering access to capital. More: Gov. Kevin Stitt, tribal leaders not meeting as McGirt rhetoric hits boiling point Governor Stitt has said many times (and again on Monday during the State of the State address) that everything we do in state government needs to have a dotted line back to economic growth, Commerce Executive Director Brent Kisling wrote in an agency-wide email on Feb. 6, 2020, according to a copy received through an open records request. Story continues Even as the pandemic occupied much of his governments time over the past two years, Stitt found ways to increase business incentives and promote Oklahoma as open for business as parts of the nation handled shutdowns more aggressively. One of the more successful campaigns we have organized at Commerce over the last few years has been the California strategy, wrote Kisling in an agency-wide email on March 21, 2021. This effort included research, billboards, digital ads throughout targeted areas of the state to entice companies to look at Leaving the Coast to Find the Most. More: Oklahoma PAC says it will drop $500K on commercials, digital ads against Gov. Kevin Stitt The department also has targeted Illinois as a possible state to steal business from. This is another very anti-business state with companies looking for other places to operate, Kisling wrote. Agency seeks to push state investments into local venture capital Emails showed Commerce staff were pushing for at least 30 bills last legislative session that ranged from incentive modernization efforts to moving around various offices under the department. State agencies regularly lobby for bills, but it's hard to find an agency that was more successful than the Commerce Department, as nearly all its bills were successfully passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor. That included the Invest in Oklahoma Act, which encourages state government investments, such as the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust Fund and the teachers retirement investment fund, to push at least 5% of its investments to Oklahoma-based venture capital funds. The Commerce Department originally had sought to make it mandatory that 5% of funds be invested. My first blush thoughts would be that in order for the legislation to have any teeth it would have to be a mandate, Kisling wrote in a Feb. 9, 2021 email. But the mandate was changed to a recommendation after pushback from some lawmakers, which Kisling accepted, telling his staff they could fight for a mandate in future sessions. More: Oklahoma slow to spend latest round of federal pandemic money Kisling began last years session by telling his staff that he had analyzed all 44 business incentives the agency offers and came up with 20 bills that eliminated some and tweaked others. Last week the Council for Community and Economic Research came out with a report saying that Oklahoma has more business incentives than any other state, Kisling wrote on Feb. 22, 2021. Although that is a good headline to have, in truth, with that many incentives, our message gets polluted. New business accelerator program The agency also got legislative approval for a business accelerator program, although details have been kept mostly private. In response to questions last June about the new accelerator program, which the state Legislature had pledged $15 million for, Josh McGoldrick, chief of staff for the department, simply said, I do not have much information up to this point. However, in an email to McGoldrick, Kisling shared a presentation with information about the accelerator program but urged McGoldrick not to share it with the media. The 10-page presentation included details about possible accelerator programs, including a 90-day boot camp for entrepreneurs, $120,000 in start-up capital for every company that completes the program, and a goal to establish an accelerator in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Melissa Houston, a consultant hired by the Commerce Department to assist in business recruitment projects, also urged the presentation to remain private. Do NOT use the slide deck though, Houston wrote in an email, referring to the presentation. I would be more generic bc it is work in progress. This story is provided in part through a grant by the Kirkpatrick Foundation. To support work like this, please consider purchasing a digital subscription today at https://cm.oklahoman.com/specialoffer/. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Under Stitt, Oklahoma Commerce Department sees funding boost A former Boston College student admitted Thursday that she encouraged her boyfriend to commit suicide as part of a plea deal that spares her jail time, officials said. EX-BOSTON COLLEGE STUDENT ACCUSED OF URGING BOYFRIEND TO KILL HIMSELF CLAIMS SHE DID OPPOISTE, RELEASES TEXTS Inyoung You, 23, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston for the death of her then-boyfriend Alexander Urtula, who took his own life on the day of his college graduation in 2019, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. Judge Robert Ullmann sentenced You to 10 years of probation during which time she must complete community service and continue mental health treatment. If she does not comply with the terms of her probation, she will face 2 years in prison. She is also barred from profiting from the case. A photo of Urtula with his nephews was displayed in the courtroom and members of his family read a statement. The 22-year-old victim was from Cedar Grove, New Jersey. DA Rachel Rollins said in a press release that You and Urtula were "involved in a "tumultuous, dysfunctional, and unhealthy 18-month-long dating relationship, during which time Ms. You engaged in deeply disturbing and at times relentless verbally, physically and psychologically abusive behavior." You sent Urtula more than 47,000 text messages in the two months before he jumped from the roof of the Renaissance Parking Garage on May 20, 2019. She repeatedly told Urtula that he should kill himself or die. MICHELLE CARTER, OF TEXTING SUICIDE CASE, FREED FROM JAIL The DA said the agreement was reached in close consultation with Urtula's family. "It is consistent with their desire to seek accountability and closure and to protect the legacy of Alexander, a loving son, brother and uncle," said Rollins. "They believe this is something Alexander would have wanted." In a similar case, Michelle Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 15 months behind bars for encouraging her boyfriend, Conrad Roy, to kill himself in 2014. The case became the basis for an HBO documentary. Fayetteville police investigate a Christmas morning shooting that left one man dead outside Dec. 25, 2021, of the Hickory Ridge apartment complex in Fayetteville. Fayetteville police are investigating a Christmas morning shooting that left one man dead. Officers responded to the shooting at 6:39 a.m. Saturday near the 1200 block of Beebe Estate Circle, a news release from the Fayetteville Police Department stated. The preliminary investigation has revealed one adult male victim was found shot multiple times in front of an apartment building, the news release stated. He was pronounced deceased on scene. Detectives with the Fayetteville Police Departments Homicide Unit identified the victim as Clarence Arthur Branch II, 32, of Fayetteville. Police said in the news release that the shooting does not appear to be a random incident. Yellow crime scene tape fluttered in the wind at 11:15 a.m. Saturday outside of the first building of the Hickory Ridge apartment complex, as officers, crime scene technicians and a Fayetteville Fire Department remained on the scene. A couple of residents watched from their balcony across the street. Detectives with the Fayetteville Police Departments Homicide Unit continue to investigate, according to the news release. Anyone with information regarding the homicide investigation is asked to contact Detective M. Waters at 910-635-4978 or Crimestoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477). Crimestoppers' information can also be submitted anonymously online, or by downloading the FREE P3 Tips app available for Apple devices in the Apple App Store and available for Android devices in Google Play. Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528. Support local journalism with a subscription to The Fayetteville Observer. Click the "subscribe'' link at the top of this article. More: Fayetteville sees second homicide in less than 24 hours More: Fayetteville officials concerned about homicides, drug use in city as crime stats released This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Man dead in Fayetteville Christmas morning shooting If you email an employee of International Coalition of Sites of Conscience on a Friday, no matter who you get in touch with, you will receive the same out-of-office response: "Thank you for your message. To promote more equitable workplaces and support its staff, from December 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022, the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience is piloting a four-day workweek," the automated response says. "For this reason, our office will be closed on Fridays." Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. The human rights nonprofit's message also includes links to research on the benefits of short workweeks, before wishing the emailer "a restful end to your week." Elizabeth Silkes, executive director of ICSC, said the policy was created in response to the struggles her mostly female staff was facing after a year of working during the pandemic, when the boundaries between work life and personal life had crumbled. "Our staff members have care responsibilities that go far beyond their work life, and we were all exhausted," Silkes said. "We were doing more and more work and finding that we didn't have the downtime we needed to find restoration." "I was thinking about resilience," added Silkes, who is a single mom. "I'm a much better parent when my attention can be focused on my teenager. I'm a much better executive director when I can focus on work." ICSC is among a small but growing number of organizations that have pivoted to a four-day workweek in an attempt to address pandemic burnout and promote better work-life balance. Proponents of the shortened workweek say the change has also fostered a more open, compassionate culture in their workplaces. These changes could be particularly beneficial for women. For many, flexibility could mean the difference between staying in a job or leaving it, experts say. Story continues As the pandemic continues to reshape work values and priorities, employees, companies and - in some cases - countries are thinking more critically about how we work and how it affects our well-being. Researchers have also been interested in this question. A widely cited study from Iceland found that that reducing work hours while keeping pay steady increased productivity. It also lessened rates of burnout among employees, who reported higher levels of well-being. Shortened workweeks can also be applied to jobs that require manual, in-person labor. Workplace consultant Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, author of "Shorter: Work Better, Smarter, and Less," documented the case of a Virginia nursing home that transitioned from a 40-hour workweek to a 30-hour one to help improve retention (the pay remained the same). Although more nursing assistants had to be hired, the facility saved money on recruitment expenses and overtime pay, had better call-bell response times, and reported lower numbers of falls and skin tears for residents, according to the Atlantic magazine. But a 2021 Gallup poll comparing the well-being of people who worked four-, five- and six-day workweeks complicated that rosy picture. In March 2020, Gallup asked 10,364 full-time employees the number of days they typically worked. Just 5% said they work four days a week, while 84% said five days and 11% said six days, Gallup reported. Those who worked four-day workweeks were more likely to say they were "thriving" (63%) and reported the lowest levels of frequent burnout (23%). Employees working five days reported slightly higher levels of burnout (26%) and were less likely to say they were thriving, at 57%. Although rates of engagement across the week were similar for all three work schedules, those with four and six-day workweeks reported higher rates of active disengagement than those with five-day schedules: 17% compared with 12%. Gallup researchers concluded that shorter workweeks provided more opportunities for promoting social, physical and community well-being, and could offer employees more flexibility - a consistent desire from workers and one that usually creates higher employee engagement. But the quality of the work experience has a bigger impact on people, researchers noted: "If the goal is to build an engaging workplace culture, reducing the workweek may not be the place to start." they wrote. "The real problem is that most employees are poorly managed." Similarly, a recent Harvard Business Review article found that four-day workweeks were a "promising" way of improving worker well-being without affecting productivity, but only if implemented correctly. For Laura L. Carstensen, director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, the main problem with the five-day workweek is that it reflects a society we no longer live in. "We're continuing to work as we needed to 100 years ago. In doing so, we're failing to realize new opportunities," she said. "There's nothing magic about that number." Carstensen has argued that work needs to change to reflect the fact that people have longer, more complex lives. More people now seek education throughout their life, not just when they're young, she noted, and people leave and re-enter the workforce throughout their lives. Caretaking has also changed, with workers caring for children and elderly parents at various points in their careers. Shorter workweeks can help them manage those responsibilities, which disproportionately fall to women, Carstensen said. But they could also potentially narrow gender gaps, giving men more opportunity to parent and provide care. Parents aren't the only ones who can reap the benefit of a shortened workweek. Childless workers who recently transitioned to a four-day workweek told The Lily they were unlikely to revert to a longer schedule. Natalie Green, 29, says she was in perpetual burnout before her company moved to a four-day workweek this year. Green, who lives in Los Angeles, does political advocacy at a nonprofit. When she had a Monday to Friday work schedule, she never felt adequately rested, she said - at least half the weekend was spent just catching up on "personal work": running errands, prepping meals for the week, cleaning her home. "I felt like I was living from vacation to vacation, or from long weekends to a long weekend," Green. She has been working a shortened workweek since this summer, and said it has "probably been one of the best job benefits I've ever gotten." Green said she's seen a huge shift in her work-life balance, which has made her more motivated at work and more conscious about prioritizing her tasks. Some research has shown that the benefits of four-day workweeks may be mitigated if workers try to squeeze a 40-hour workweek into four days. This has not been the case for Green, who said she hasn't been working longer hours during the week. Occasionally, she might need to do some work on Fridays, but Green said she enjoys being able to do so without being interrupted by emails or meetings. When another company attempted to recruit her, she didn't think twice about turning down the job. She doesn't want to go back to a longer workweek unless the pay is substantially higher or the work is less stressful, she said. Kelsey Rhodes, a 29-year-old communications director living in Kansas City, Mo., gave a "hard no" when asked whether she would consider returning to a five-day week. Rhodes works for a national reproductive health organization that moved to a shorter workweek after the coronavirus hit the United States: "The goal was to honor that we were all holding a lot more," she said. Her workplace has permanently moved to a "flex" model, which, in practice, means most employees work a four-day week, Rhodes said. She still experiences high levels of anxiety because of the pandemic and the current political and social climate, she said. But, Rhodes said, the biggest difference is how workplace culture has shifted since the change. "It really required some pretty radical trust from our organizational leadership to all of our colleagues," Rhodes said. This has inspired her and others in her organization to be more transparent and honest about workplace issues, such as managing work loads or requiring additional help on a project. ICIS staffer and clients have also been happy with the shortened schedule, Silkes said, and she's seen "really positive levels of engagement" among employees. To preserve these new boundaries, Silke said it is important that she lead by example. "I set the tone. And if the team really sees that I don't respond to emails on Friday, and that I really would not expect anyone to do work on Friday, I think that's really important," she said. She also hopes other companies follow suit. "I really do believe that we succeed in our work as an organization because life comes first," Silkes said. "That's my message, and that's the message that all of our staff members have." Related Content A doctor struggled with a rare, incurable syndrome. Now she helps others overcome it. In their shared sea, Ukraine and Russia already risk direct conflict every day A teacher learned one of her students might go hungry over winter break. She now feeds thousands of kids each year. WASHINGTON (AP) Vice President Kamala Harris tested negative Friday for the coronavirus following her close contact earlier this week with an aide who later tested positive, her office said. Harris, who is spending the holidays in Los Angeles, had tested negative Wednesday after she was told that the aide who had accompanied her throughout the day Tuesday had tested positive. Her office said she would be tested again Friday. A pair of tests a rapid test and a more sensitive laboratory test found no trace of the coronavirus, her office said. Harris is fully vaccinated, has received a booster COVID-19 vaccine dose and is regularly tested under White House COVID-19 protocols. She is to be tested again on Monday. The aide also is fully vaccinated and boosted, and had tested negative earlier this week and every day during the prior week, Harris' office said. Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, on Friday delivered doughnuts and holiday greetings to the firefighters at Los Angeles Fire Department Station 94. "You are so special and we really do appreciate you and we thank you," she told them. Emhoff also tested negative on Friday, Harris' office said. Laurentian Bank of Canada (TSE:LB) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. In other words, investors can purchase Laurentian Bank of Canada's shares before the 30th of December in order to be eligible for the dividend, which will be paid on the 1st of February. The company's next dividend payment will be CA$0.44 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed CA$1.76 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Laurentian Bank of Canada has a trailing yield of approximately 4.3% on its current stock price of CA$41.05. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether Laurentian Bank of Canada can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow. See our latest analysis for Laurentian Bank of Canada Dividends are usually paid out of company profits, so if a company pays out more than it earned then its dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut. Laurentian Bank of Canada paid out 155% of profit in the past year, which we think is typically not sustainable unless there are mitigating characteristics such as unusually strong cash flow or a large cash balance. Generally, the higher a company's payout ratio, the more the dividend is at risk of being reduced. Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends. Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing? Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Laurentian Bank of Canada's 26% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. Ultimately, when earnings per share decline, the size of the pie from which dividends can be paid, shrinks. Story continues Laurentian Bank of Canada also issued more than 5% of its market cap in new stock during the past year, which we feel is likely to hurt its dividend prospects in the long run. Trying to grow the dividend while issuing large amounts of new shares reminds us of the ancient Greek tale of Sisyphus - perpetually pushing a boulder uphill. Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Laurentian Bank of Canada has delivered an average of 1.2% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. Final Takeaway Has Laurentian Bank of Canada got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Not only are earnings per share shrinking, but Laurentian Bank of Canada is paying out a disconcertingly high percentage of its profit as dividends. Generally we think dividend investors should avoid businesses in this situation, as high payout ratios and declining earnings can lead to the dividend being cut. These characteristics don't generally lead to outstanding dividend performance, and investors may not be happy with the results of owning this stock for its dividend. With that being said, if you're still considering Laurentian Bank of Canada as an investment, you'll find it beneficial to know what risks this stock is facing. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Laurentian Bank of Canada you should know about. A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel has ordered 100,000 units of Pfizer Inc's anti-viral COVID 19 pill Paxlovid for people aged 12 and older at risk of severe illness, an Israeli official said on Saturday, confirming a television report. Channel 12 TV said Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett agreed the deal in a phone conversation with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla. There was no immediate confirmation from the company. The first oral and at home treatment for COVID-19, Paxlovid was nearly 90% effective in preventing hospitalizations and deaths in patients at high risk of severe illness, according to data from Pfizer's clinical trial. Recent lab data suggests the drug retains effectiveness against the Omicron variant, it said. (Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Fukuoka prefecture has confirmed its first infection with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, its governor Seitaro Hattori said on Saturday. The case was a result of possible community transmission as the infection route was unclear, Hattori told a news conference. (Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Pravin Char) Ray Hillenbrand, 60, of Rochester Hills shows up dressed as Santa to the door of Mandy Gutierrez as she holds her daughter Abigail Gutierrez, 3, while Michael Kenny, 10, left, stands with Shaun-Patrick Kenny, 11, and Amilia Gutierezz, 4, stands at right. Hillenbrand hands out toys to unsuspecting families in Southwest Detroit. On Christmas Day, Santa delivered gifts to kids in southwest Detroit. Decked out in red, with a bag of presents in tow, he greeted families Saturday morning with a cheery "Merry Christmas." "We hope to put a smile on your faces and make you feel loved a little bit," he told Mandy Gutierrez and her family as they huddled around their door. Santa played byRay Hillenbrand, 60, of Rochester Hills was part of a caravan of about 100 volunteers who took toys basketballs, board games and stuffed animals to about 250 families across southwest Detroit. It's a 20-year tradition, said Jimmy Tuman, founder and executive director of Jimmy's Kids, the nonprofit behind the Christmas Day giving. "People who come here Christians, Jews and Muslims all come together, support each other, watch out for each other, take care of each other. It really is a little bit of world peace in southwest Detroit," said Tuman, 80 of Royal Oak. More: 5 places to order Christmas Day meals to-go in metro Detroit More: A gift from the 'Ugly Sweater Elf' will make a Detroit family's holiday In the parking lot of St. Stephen Lutheran Church in Detroit, bags of gifts were loaded into cars and on their way to families "who don't know we're coming," Tuman said. Ray Hillenbrand, 60, of Rochester Hills puts on his best Santa suit before handing out toys to unsuspecting families in Southwest Detroit as part of Jimmy's Kids toy giveaway, a Mitzvah Day event, where volunteers of various faiths come together to help Detroit area nonprofits on Christmas Day. I Howard Lazar has been volunteering with Jimmy's Kids for 11 years. It's a reminder of the Hebrew phrase "Tikun Olam," or repairing the world, he said. "I feel lucky to give back. I feel lucky to be able to do something that's outside of myself," said Lazar, 54, of Farmington Hills, who also brought his four kids to volunteer. It's a way for the Muslim community to give back, too, said Husain Haidri with the Michigan Muslim Community Council. "One of the other things that we recognize is lacking in the public discourse today is some empathy and that's the result of not being able to spend time with people that don't look like you, or pray like you, so this is really an exercise in some interfaith work and also an exercise in empathy," said Haidri, 21 of Canton. Story continues The gift deliveries were part of Mitzvah Day, where volunteers of various faiths come together to help metro Detroit nonprofits on Christmas Day. In its 25th year, Mitzvah Day this time around is really Mitzvah weekend, running from Dec. 24-26 to expand the outreach and offer alternatives to Jewish volunteers who observe the Sabbath. Historically, Mitzvah Day is the single largest day of volunteering by Detroit's Jewish community, according to the Jewish Community Relations Council/American Jewish Committee. The word "mitzvah" is Hebrew for "commandment," and refers to performing a good deed. The idea is to lend a hand to nonprofits during the holiday. Volunteer efforts span about 30 organizations across metro Detroit, from before the weekend to Christmas Day itself, said Asher Lopatin, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council/American Jewish Committee, on Thursday. Trinity Lutheran Church needed volunteers to serve breakfast and prepare lunch on Saturday. Western Oakland Meals on Wheels called for people to help deliver holiday meals to seniors in the parts of the county. On Sunday, Lopatin said he plans to head over to the social service agency Crossroads of Michigan with his children and father-in-law to give out food. "Even though Christmas is a Christian holiday, Mitzvah Day is a way of involving everybody in a celebration of humanity," said Lopatin, rabbi for the Kehillat Etz Chayim, a modern orthodox congregation in Huntington Woods and Oak Park. Ray Hillenbrand, 60, of Rochester Hills knocks on the door of Mandy Gutierrez as she gathers her children to be surprised by Santa. The family cat Loco stands by while Hillenbrand waits to hand out toys to the unsuspecting family in Southwest Detroit. Lopatin estimated anywhere from 300 to 600 volunteers to help out over the holiday weekend. "In Detroit, so many of us live in different neighborhoods, different communities. We don't get to mix as much as we want to. This really feels like almost a flagship for our desire to do things together," Lopatin said. Nushrat Rahman covers issues related to economic mobility for the Detroit Free Press and Bridge Detroit as a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project. Make a tax-deductible contribution to support her work at bit.ly/freepRFA. Contact Nushrat: nrahman@freepress.com; 313-348-7558. Follow her on Twitter: @NushratR. Sign up for Bridge Detroit's newsletter. Become a Free Press subscriber. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Jewish, Muslim volunteers deliver gifts to Detroit kids A New York state court ruled that the New York Times had to return legal memos written by an attorney for Project Veritas. Mike Coppola/Getty Images. A New York state judge ruled on Friday that The New York Times should return documents it obtained about the conservative group Project Veritas. The court ruled that the documents, written by a lawyer for the group, are privileged. The New York Times said it would appeal the decision, with publisher A.G. Sulzberger saying it should "raise alarms" for press freedom. "Justice Wood has taken it upon himself to decide what The Times can and cannot report on. That's not how the First Amendment is supposed to work," the paper's editorial board wrote. The New York Times must return memos it obtained that were written by an attorney for the conservative activist group Project Veritas, a judge in New York ruled Friday. The ruling by New York state court judge Charles Wood affirms his temporary order last month in favor of the conservative activist group. The developments prevent The New York Times from reporting on memos written years ago by Project Veritas' attorney Benjamin Barr, which the paper had published last month, along with a story about how the conservative group, notorious for sting operations often conducted under false names or with hidden cameras, obtains information. The New York Times story in question, "Project Veritas and the Line Between Journalism and Political Spying," had reported on Barr's advice to Project Veritas members about, among other things, the group's efforts to spy on government employees to gauge their sentiments toward then-President Donald Trump. Wood, a Republican who has held office since 2010, rejected The New York Times' argument that the memos involved issues of public concern. "It is not the public's business to be privy to the legal advice that this plaintiff or any other client receives from its counsel," he wrote in his ruling. The ruling also orders The New York Times to give back the documents obtained by its journalists over the course of reporting on Project Veritas' methods, a development The Times' publisher, A.G. Sulzberger, said has "no apparent precedent," and argued that it "could present obvious risks to exposing sources," according to his statement Friday. Story continues "This ruling should raise alarms not just for advocates of press freedoms but for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know," Sulzberger said. "In defiance of law settled in the Pentagon Papers case, this judge has barred The Times from publishing information about a prominent and influential organization that was obtained legally in the ordinary course of reporting." "Justice Wood has taken it upon himself to decide what The Times can and cannot report on. That's not how the First Amendment is supposed to work," the paper's editorial board wrote on Friday. The newspaper is appealing the ruling, according to Sulzberger's statement. Wood's order is the latest development in the ongoing defamation suit filed by Project Veritas in November 2020 over the New York Times' coverage of a Project Veritas video that purported to demonstrate alleged voter fraud efforts in Minnesota. A series of NYT stories at the time had reported that the video was part of an orchestrated "disinformation campaign" by Project Veritas. While the parties await a decision on how their dispute over those stories should proceed, Wood's latest ruling addresses more recent reporting by the New York Times on Project Veritas' methods of obtaining information. The Times' report last month followed an FBI raid of Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe's home in New York, apparently as part of an investigation into a diary missing from Ashley Biden, the daughter of President Joe Biden. "Today's ruling affirms that the New York Times' behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law," Elizabeth Locke, an attorney for Project Veritas, said in a statement. "The Court's thoughtful and well researched opinion is a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship." O'Keefe said in his own statement Friday, "the Times is so blinded by its hatred of Project Veritas that everything it does results in a self-inflicted wound." The New York Times' attorneys have argued in the case that the memos written by Barr were fair game and had public interest value. "A news organization is not prevented from reporting on newsworthy information (even attorney-client privileged information) that is independently obtained outside of the discovery process," attorneys for The New York Times argued in a November filing in the case. Read the original article on Business Insider Rohit Tejwani was in the air Friday on his way to a layover in Salt Lake City when he learned he wouldnt make it to his parents place by Christmas morning. The 34-year-old physician's connecting flight to Seattle was one of thousands of flights canceled by U.S. airlines over Christmas weekend. Tejwani had been looking forward to spending Christmas Day with his parents. It was the first time he had the day off in four years, and this holiday was particularly special because his mom just completed cancer treatment. Instead, he spent the night alone in Utah. I can't think of anyone who wants to spend Christmas alone in an airport hotel in some random city, he said. Its just super-frustrating. There's no real good way to get that time back with people's families, especially around a holiday like this. Rohit Tejwani on a Dec. 25 flight. Tejwani, 34, had planned to arrive in Seattle on Dec. 24 to visit family, but won't arrive until the afternoon of Christmas Day after his flight was canceled. Nearly 1,000 flights within, to or from the U.S. were canceled Christmas Day and more than 1,500 others were canceled Sunday, according to FlightAware, which tracks flight status in real time. 'Hold time is 2 hours and 43 minutes': Christmas flight cancellations send travelers scrambling Nervous about travel (again?): What to know about airline, hotel and cruise cancellation policies as omicron surges Delta, United, JetBlue and American all said omicron cases among staff were driving cancellations. A combination of issues, including but not limited to inclement weather in some areas of the country and the impact of the omicron variant, are driving cancellations and potential delays, reads a Delta statement shared with USA TODAY Saturday. JetBlue spokesperson Derek Dombrowski said the airline has seen an "increasing number" of sick calls due to the fast-spreading omicron variant, despite entering the holiday season with the highest staffing levels since the start of the pandemic. Holiday travelers line up at the security checkpoint at Pittsburgh International Airport in Imperial, Pa., Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. Flight canceled or delayed?: What airlines owe you Christmas flights canceled: United, Delta say omicron spike is causing some holiday flight cancellations Story continues (We) are using all resources available to us to cover our staffing needs, Dombrowski said. The health and safety of our crewmembers and customers remains our top priority as we work through this pandemic, and we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience that these schedule changes bring during the holidays. He warned that additional flight cancellations and other delays remain a possibility as omicron spreads. American Airlines spokesperson Derek Walls said the company was working hard to rebook customers quickly. United spokesperson Maddie King said the airline was also working to rebook as many people as possible and get them on their way for the holidays. 'I just want to hug my grandparents' But for some travelers, rebooking efforts have done little to ease their anxieties over missing the holidays with their families. Tanika Smith-Brooks planned to fly from Florida to North Carolina with her dogs Friday afternoon to visit her grandmother, the first time the two would have been together since April. But her flight was canceled, and Smith-Brooks was unable to find another that would allow her to bring her dogs in the cabin despite spending hours trying to get through the customer support phone line. Tanika Smith-Brooks with her grandmother, Mary Smith, on April 7, 2021 in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, the last time the two saw each other. Smith-Brooks had planned to visit for Christmas but remained in Florida after her flight was canceled. Flight cancellations: What airlines owe you when flights are canceled, delayed Smith-Brooks said she has had to explain to her grandmother, who has dementia, multiple times that shes not able to come home this Christmas this year. Its not just another day. The most important part of Christmas is being with your family, she said. My grandmother raised me because my mom died when I was five, so we're extremely close. ... I just want to hug my grandparents. Contributing: AP and Eve Chen, USA TODAY. Follow USA TODAY reporter Bailey Schulz on Twitter: @bailey_schulz. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Flight cancellations ruin Christmas plans for US travelers If you want to know who really controls AFC Energy plc (LON:AFC), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. Companies that have been privatized tend to have low insider ownership. AFC Energy is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of UK355m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. In the chart below, we can see that institutional investors have bought into the company. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about AFC Energy. Check out our latest analysis for AFC Energy What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About AFC Energy? Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. As you can see, institutional investors have a fair amount of stake in AFC Energy. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see AFC Energy's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in AFC Energy. Our data shows that Hargreaves Lansdown Asset Management Limited is the largest shareholder with 13% of shares outstanding. DZ Bank AG, Asset Management Arm is the second largest shareholder owning 5.7% of common stock, and HSBC Global Asset Management (UK) Limited holds about 5.4% of the company stock. Story continues After doing some more digging, we found that the top 11 have the combined ownership of 50% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company. While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. There is some analyst coverage of the stock, but it could still become more well known, with time. Insider Ownership Of AFC Energy The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it. I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions. Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of AFC Energy plc. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. It seems the board members have no more than UK2.0m worth of shares in the UK355m company. Many tend to prefer to see a board with bigger shareholdings. A good next step might be to take a look at this free summary of insider buying and selling. General Public Ownership The general public-- including retail investors -- own 16% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies. Next Steps: I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Be aware that AFC Energy is showing 6 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 2 of those shouldn't be ignored... But ultimately it is the future, not the past, that will determine how well the owners of this business will do. Therefore we think it advisable to take a look at this free report showing whether analysts are predicting a brighter future. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attends a ceremony at the monument to Jewish victims of Nazi massacres in Ukraine's capital Kyiv, Wednesday, 29 September 2021. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office) A group of more than 20 US lawmakers on Friday met virtually with Ukrainian president Volodmyr Zelensky to pledge US support for his country as more than 100,000 Russian troops remain massed along the Ukraine-Russia border and tensions between the Kremlin and the west continue to rise. In a statement, Mr Zelensky said he briefed the bipartisan group on steps being taken to achieve peace with Russia by way of the Normandy, Trilateral Contact Group and Minsk processes and stressed the importance of US involvement. "Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive action. My goal is to stop the bloodshed in eastern Ukraine. It is impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas," Mr Zelensky said. Mr Zelensky also echoed comments made by a senior White House official on Thursday who said any negotiations on Ukraines future Nato membership between the US or its allies and Russia would take place under nothing about you without you principles. "No agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine. No third country cannot get a say on Ukraine's integration into Nato," he said. One participant on the call, Ohio Senator Rob Portman, said he and his colleagues expressed strong solidarity with the people and the democratically-elected government of Ukraine. Mr Portman added that Washington must stand with Kyiv as Russia continues to threaten its freedom and territorial integrity by increasing the amount of military hardware sent to shore up Ukraines defences and by placing sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. Specifically, he called for increasing the amount of lethal defensive weaponry furnished to Ukrainian forces and tailoring the aid to threats Ukraine will face so her forces may better defend themselves. The Republican senator, who co-chairs the Congressional Ukraine Caucus said Ukraines military has made great strides in its increased proficiency and professionalism and called it a battle-hardened force that has benefitted from four years of material and training support from the United States and if necessary is prepared to defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Story continues Mr Portman also called for the Biden administration to reject Russian president Vladimir Putins call to begin talks on the future of Europe security situation in Geneva next month. On Thursday, the White House said officials were prepared to meet but would not commit to a date or location for any talks. President Putins demands for a sweeping dialogue to reset the security situation in Eastern Europe should not be recognized when they are made at the barrel of a gun. I strongly urge the Biden administration to begin to increase military assistance, including lethal assistance, to our allies. Russia must know that any offensive military actions it takes against Europe will be at a high price, Mr Portman said. Seven years ago, in the Revolution of Dignity, Ukraine and its people stood up to their Russian-backed leaders and turned to the West. They have chosen to stand with us. Now, the United States must stand with them. The House of Representatives co-chairs of the Ukraine Caucus, Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick, Marcy Kaptur, Andy Harris and Mike Quigley, said in a statement that the entire Ukraine Caucus stands in solidarity with the US ally. The four House members said they told Mr Zelensky that Ukraines security and sovereignty were not concerns for her alone to bear, but were a cause for which all liberty-loving nations of the world provide their unrelenting support. With the Kremlin weighing another illegal assault on its neighbour, the United States should pursue all appropriate measures to avert such action. Russia already invaded Ukraine in 2014, causing the deaths of 14,000 innocents, they said. The United States must immediately provide increased defensive military assistance to Ukraine and sanction Nord Stream 2. The creeping threat of war necessitates swift U.S. action for the defence of transatlantic security. Last week, Senate Democrats agreed to allow floor vote on a GOP-backed bill levying sanctions on the controversial pipeline to take place next month in exchange for Texas senator Ted Cruz lifting holds on dozens of President Joe Bidens ambassadorial nominees. The Senate returns to Washington on 3 January. Beirut (Reuters) - Lebanon's top Christian cleric, Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, stressed the importance of the country holding legislative elections next year as he delivered his Christmas sermon on Saturday. Al-Rai also called for the government to convene, saying that failing to do so sets a precedent that may hinder the function of future governments. Lebanon's cabinet, which is focused on restarting talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to unlock much-needed foreign aid, has not met since Oct. 12, due to a dispute over a probe into last year's deadly Beirut port blast. "We support your commitment to holding the legislative elections," said Al-Rai, directing his speech to President Michel Aoun who was attending the sermon. "The elections are the guarantee that presidential elections will be held on time and it is an opportunity for change." Parliament had voted for the legislative election to take place on March 27 but Aoun has said he would only sign a decree for them to take place in May. Al-Rai also offered his condolences to the families of the victims of the port blast which killed more than 200 people in August last year. "Our thoughts today are with the families of the port blast victims who are in pain because the judiciary is hindered and the fate of investigation is uncertain," he said. The explosion was caused by a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored unsafely for years, but more than a year on, no one has been held accountable. Shiite group Hezbollah and its allies have pushed to remove the lead investigator of the explosion, accusing him of political bias. (Reporting by Lilian Wagdy; Editing by Pravin Char) MOESC Board honors retiring member Mary Dixon displays the clock presented to her by MOESC Vice President Doug Theaker (left) and President Richard Prater. The Mid-Ohio Educational Service Centers Board of Governors meeting Dec. 15 was a particularly poignant one as Mary Dixon, a member of the board for 12 years, served in her last meeting before retirement. The other board members offered well wishes and presented Dixon, a retired teacher, with an engraved clock. Board President Richard Prater will serve as president pro tempore and Doug Theaker as the backup for the board's Jan. 19 organizational meeting, which will be followed by its January regular meeting. St. Peters High School announces 2022 Homecoming Court St. Peters School has announced its 2022 Homecoming queen and court. Members of the class of 2022 select the queen and her court. Members of the 2022 Mansfield St. Peter's Homecoming Court are: (front row, L to R) Kellen Young, Kendall Nolen, Natalie Tanchevski and Zach Keffalas; (middle row, L to R) James Williams, Nakyra Williams, Madison Bays and Malaki Stanfield; (back row) John Harris and Alana Mitchell. Alana Mitchell was named queen, and her escort is homecoming King John Harris. Her attendants are Nakyra Williams, Natalie Tanchevski, Kendall Nolen and Madison Bays. Escorts include James Williams, Zach Keffalas, Kellen Young and Malaki Stanfield. Also announced were the class representatives to the 2022 Rose Arc Court members. Selected by faculty and staff, these underclassmen are picked based on the qualities of responsibility, kindness, respect, involvement in the school community and living Christian morals and values. The Rose Arc court acts as an honor guard during the Homecoming ceremonies. Members of the Mansfield St. Peter's 2022 Rose Court are: (front row, L to R) Freshman Zion McCraney, Josh Laux, Callina Francis and Magnolia Chamberlin; (middle row, L to R) Sophomores Jerry Thompson, Caelyn Brubaker, Nathaniel Hart and Katherine Bryant; (back row) Juniors Gavin Mawhorr, Mahala Boothe, Grace Dix and Dominic Wendt. Junior Class representatives are Mahala Boothe, Grace Dix, Gavin Mawhorr and Dominic Wendt. Sophomore representatives are Caelyn Brubaker, Katherine Bryant, Nathaniel Hart and Jerry Thompson. Magnolia Chamberlin, Callina Francis, Josh Laux and Zion McCraney represent the freshmen class. The 2022 Homecoming ceremonies occur at about 7:15 p.m. Feb. 4 during the JV and varsity boys basketball game against Mansfield Christian at the Franciscan Activity Center. Homecoming has been held annually since 1959, and the Rose Arc court was established in 1996. Mansfield student receives diversity scholarship GREENVILLE, Il. Thomas Hoagland of Mansfield is a recipient of the MOSAIC Diversity Scholarship from Greenville University in Greenville, Illinois. This $20,500 scholarship is offered for fall 2022 and is renewable annually. Story continues Officials say Hogland exhibits exemplary academic achievements and an eagerness to promote a diverse and inclusive culture on Greenville University's campus. Area Agency on Aging welcomes new 2022 corporate board members The Ohio District 5 Area Agency on Aging, Inc. has announced the appointment of three new members of its Board of Trustees board members. They are Margie Tasseff (at-large), Robert Gagnon (Wyandot County) and Leanne Smith (Seneca County). Tasseff is the market president for iHeart Media. She brings several years of experience in sales, brand management, media products and leadership. Tasseff sits on the board of the Little Buckeye Childrens Museum. In the past, she was part of the Mansfield Rising as an Advisory Committee member. Gagnon is the senior vice president of merchandising at Lands End. He has an extensive background in business strategy, development, training and team building. Gagnon volunteers with Hannahs House of Upper Sandusky and Angeline Industries. Smith is the director of residential services and public relations for St. Francis Senior Ministries in Tiffin. She brings a background of public relations, marketing, project management and customer service to the board. Smith currently sits on the Your Legacy Federal Credit Union board, is involved in the Leading Age Public Relations Committee and was appointed to the Alzheimers and Related Dementias Task Force for the State of Ohio. The Ohio District 5 Area Agency on Aging, Inc. serves nine counties in North Central Ohio. Patrol's Belcher promoted to lieutenant COLUMBUS Sgt. Todd J. Belcher was promoted Dec. 19 to the rank of lieutenant by Colonel Richard S. Fambro, Patrol superintendent. Belcher will remain at his current assignment at the Bucyrus and Cleveland District Commercial Enforcement Units He began his Patrol career in March 2001 as a member of the 137th Academy class. Belcher earned his commission in September of that year and was assigned to the Fremont Post. As a trooper, he also served at the Medina Post. In 2007, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant and transferred to the Georgetown Post to serve as an assistant post commander. As a sergeant, he also served at the Canton Post. This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Life briefs: MOESC, St. Peter's, Area Agency on Aging and more DGLimages / Getty Images/iStockphoto Stretching your nest egg as far as possible is something that's most likely front of mind for retirees who aren't very wealthy. With no new sources of income aside from Social Security or possibly a pension, it's important to find a place to retire that won't drain your savings. Related: Here's Exactly How Much Savings You Need To Retire In Your State Read: Ways Investing Will Change in the Next 25 Years However, getting a clear sense of exactly how long your retirement savings will last requires understanding how much it costs to live in the state you're calling home. As anyone trying to get by somewhere with a high cost of living can attest, even basic necessities can quickly start to winnow down your retirement account. And it only gets more complicated if you decide you don't want to spend your entire retirement in the same place, as your costs won't be consistent throughout your retirement. See: Mutual Funds: Everything You Need To Know That's why GOBankingRates performed a study to compare the cost of living in every state and determine how long you can survive off of $100,000. Granted, $100,000 won't buy you a lot of time in any state. But, these results will give you a sense of just how much you need to save. Last updated: Sept. 24, 2021 kieferpix / Getty Images/iStockphoto 50. Hawaii Annual Expenditure: $85,243 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 2 months, 3 days To say that Hawaii is the most expensive state to live in is something of an understatement: Hawaiians pay over $20,000 more per year than the second-most expensive state, California. You'll need over $2 million to survive retirement in this state -- the most in the country. See: 42 Easy Ways To Save For Retirement MundusImages / Getty Images 49. California Annual Expenditure: $64,516 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 6 months, 18 days California's not an easy place to stretch your retirement dollar, with the cost of housing coming in at more than double the average for the country. Check Out: How Long $1 Million in Savings Will Last in Every State Story continues xavierarnau / iStock.com 48. New York Annual Expenditure: $61,267 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 7 months, 17 days Some might gripe that the only thing imperial about the Empire State is how much it costs to live there, with the average New Yorker needing more than $60,000 a year to cover expenses. See: 10 Best Retirement Plan Options pkujiahe / Getty Images/iStockphoto 47. Alaska Annual Expenditure: $59,895 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 8 months Costs in Alaska are generally high -- particularly for healthcare and utilities -- but there's one area where the state won't eat so far into your nest egg: Alaska is the most tax-friendly state for retirees. Discover: How To Protect Your Retirement Savings During the Coronavirus Pandemic WilliamSherman / Getty Images 46. Maryland Annual Expenditure: $59,666 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 8 months, 2 days Maryland is one of the more expensive states for retirees to live in, but a lot of the older residents can afford it: It's one of the states with the richest retirees. RyanJLane / Getty Images 45. Oregon Annual Expenditure: $59,483 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 8 months Oregon has a cost of living that's 30% higher than the country as a whole. However, if you're dead set on enjoying the beautiful coastlines of the Pacific Northwest in your golden years, consider making your home in Brandon. It's the best city in the state to buy a home. FilippoBacci / Getty Images/iStockphoto 44. Massachusetts Annual Expenditure: $58,385 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 8 months, 16 days Massachusetts is not a state that's kind to your retirement savings, with sky-high housing costs playing the biggest part in making things difficult. It's also the state where a comfortable retirement costs the most at about $65,000 a year. JayLazarin / Getty Images 43. Connecticut Annual Expenditure: $58,156 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 8 months, 18 days Not only is Connecticut one of the pricier states in the country to live in, but for many retirees, the source of their income might not be as stable as they would hope. Connecticut is the worst state for pensions in the U.S. BDphoto / Getty Images 42. Rhode Island Annual Expenditure: $55,914 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 9 months, 13 days If you've compiled an impressive nest egg over the course of your career, Rhode Island isn't a great place to keep it protected. KenWiedemann / Getty Images 41. New Jersey Annual Expenditure: $54,175 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 10 months, 3 days Like many of the most expensive states in the country, the main culprit for New Jersey's high cost of living is housing, with New Jersey residents paying almost 50% more than the average American for a place to live. XKarDoc / Getty Images/iStockphoto 40. Vermont Annual Expenditure: $53,718 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 10 months, 9 days Not only is Vermont a tough place to maintain your nest egg, it's also a pretty rough spot for building it up as well. The Green Mountain State is the state where it's hardest to save $1 million for retirement, found another GOBankingRates study. Take Action: Do These 13 Things To Boost Your Retirement Savings Now edella / Getty Images 39. Maine Annual Expenditure: $53,214 $100,000 Will Last: 1 year, 10 months, 15 days It's possible that the high cost of living in Maine has some residents thinking big in terms of what it means to be wealthy. In a GOBankingRates survey, the most common answer for what it meant to be "rich" in Maine was an income of $10 million a year or more, the highest answer for any state. CHBD / Getty Images/iStockphoto 38. New Hampshire Annual Expenditure: $51,247 $100,000 Will Last: $1 year, 11 months, 12 days If you're dead set on living in New Hampshire in retirement but you're looking to avoid some of those high costs, steer well clear of the 03854 ZIP code -- home to New Castle Island. It's the most expensive ZIP code in the state. ImagineGolf / Getty Images 37. Nevada Annual Expenditure: $50,469 $100,000 Will Last: $1 year, 11 months, 23 days If you want to spend your golden years in the Silver State, prepare to spend a little more. Costs are at least 10% higher than the national average across every category except for utilities, where they're actually 20% under what the rest of America pays. Joel Carillet / Getty Images 36. Washington Annual Expenditure: $49,554 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 days If you're surprised to see Washington so far down this list, keep in mind that it's home to Seattle, one of the most expensive cities in the country. To live comfortably in Seattle you need nearly $90,000 a year, which outpaces everywhere but the usual suspects in the San Francisco Bay Area, New York and Washington, D.C. 1MoreCreative / Getty Images 35. Delaware Annual Expenditure: $48,227 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 25 days Although Delaware might be on the higher side for costs, it can also offer some great ways to protect your nest egg: It's one of the best states to retire rich in the country. Adventure_Photo / Getty Images 34. Colorado Annual Expenditure: $47,540 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 1 month, 5 days The cost to live comfortably in Denver is over $77,000 a year, making it one of the most expensive cities in the country. If you want to stay in the Rocky Mountain State but don't like the "mile high" costs in Denver, consider Colorado Springs where it's over $10,000 a year cheaper. urbancow / Getty Images 33. Montana Annual Expenditure: $47,540 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 1 month, 5 days If you were hoping to keep your nest egg healthy after retiring to Montana by investing well, you might find it harder there than elsewhere. Montana is one of the worst states to grow your money, according to a separate GOBankingRates study. Joel Carillet / Getty Images 32. Virginia Annual Expenditure: $46,717 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 1 month, 19 days You'll pay less for groceries, utilities and transportation than the average American if you opt to retire to Virginia, but there's clearly more to the story. That would be the cost of housing, which is over 10% higher than the national average. catnap72 / Getty Images 31. Pennsylvania Annual Expenditure: $46,305 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 1 month, 26 days Pennsylvania is the first state on this list where housing costs are actually below average when compared to the country as a whole. However, if you're looking to stretch your retirement savings as far as possible, you can still do better, especially when Pennsylvanians pay more than average for groceries, utilities and transportation. RiverNorthPhotography / Getty Images 30. South Dakota Annual Expenditure: $46,305 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 1 month, 26 days There's one thing you don't have to worry about in South Dakota: state income tax. That's because it's one of the seven states without any, which could make a significant difference in how long you can stretch that nest egg. sharply_done / Getty Images/iStockphoto 29. Minnesota Annual Expenditure: $45,848 $100,000 Will Last: $2 years, 2 months, 6 days No state is closer to the average cost of living than Minnesota, where costs are just 0.2% higher than the country as a whole. That's not true statewide, though, as Minneapolis is among the more expensive major cities in the country. The cost to live comfortably there is $77,512 a year. Shutterstock.com 28. North Dakota Annual Expenditure: $45,298 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 2 months, 15 days One place you probably won't overspend in North Dakota is on housing. Even if the state's most expensive ZIP code -- the 58503 ZIP north of Bismarck -- has a median home price of $339,600, that's still less than half of what it is for Hawaii. nycshooter / Getty Images 27. Florida Annual Expenditure: $45,253 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 2 months, 16 days Florida might only be middle-of-the-pack for stretching a six-figure retirement fund, but it's still a popular destination for many retirees. And you have plenty of options to choose from in terms of which Florida city stacks up the best for you. Take Action Now: How To Protect Your Retirement Savings During the Coronavirus Pandemic peeterv / Getty Images/iStockphoto 26. South Carolina Annual Expenditure: $44,978 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 2 months, 21 days The question of how long $100,000 lasts in retirement might be especially apt for South Carolina. A GOBankingRates survey determined that most residents of the Palmetto State have about $50,000-$100,000 saved for retirement. ablokhin / Getty Images 25. West Virginia Annual Expenditure: $44,292 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 3 days West Virginians are paying less for housing and utilities than most Americans, but that's counter-balanced by higher-than-average costs on groceries and "miscellaneous" expenses. Kirkikis / Getty Images 24. Illinois Annual Expenditure: $44,246 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 3 days Illinois is the first state on the better half of this survey, with the average retiree being able to squeeze a full three months out of the third year on that initial $100,000. And if you decide you want to make the Windy City your home, you'll have plenty of options in selecting from the many different suburbs around the city. amygdala_imagery / Getty Images 23. Utah Annual Expenditure: $44,200 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 4 days Regardless of how long it lasts, Utah is doing plenty to help you build that retirement account. It's the state where it's easiest to save $1 million for retirement. dlewis33 / Getty Images 22. Wisconsin Annual Expenditure: $44,063 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 7 days You can make $100,000 last over two years in retirement if you're living in the Badger State. However, if you're thinking you'll just need to earn $100,000 in that last year before you hang it up, you should know that you only take home $67,124 from a $100,000 salary after taxes in Wisconsin. wanderluster / Getty Images 21. Arizona Annual Expenditure: $43,285 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 22 days Arizona's costs are lower than the national average in every category except utilities, helping retirees stretch their savings. iofoto / Getty Images/iStockphoto 20. North Carolina Annual Expenditure: $42,965 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 3 months, 28 days If you're looking for a place to live in retirement where you're not in the hustle and bustle of the city but also still close enough to take advantage of city living on occasion, North Carolina might be the place to look. Three of the best suburbs for retirement are in the Tarheel State: Bermuda Run, Fairfield Harbour and Sunset Beach. Are High-Yield Savings Accounts Worth It? Here's Everything You Need To Know peeterv / Getty Images/iStockphoto 19. Louisiana Annual Expenditure: $42,736 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 3 days Not only is Louisiana among the better states for stretching your savings in retirement, it's also the best state to grow your money, found a separate GOBankingRates study. Shutterstock.com 18. Nebraska Annual Expenditure: $42,736 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 3 days Nebraska's cost-of-living scores are either at or below the national average in every category except for transportation. However, at least some of the money you can save on things like groceries and housing will end up with the state government: Nebraska is the least tax-friendly state for retirees. Shutterstock.com 17. New Mexico Annual Expenditure: $42,507 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 7 days If you enjoy life in the big city but can't handle the high cost of living that usually comes with it, New Mexico might offer you the best compromise. You only need to make $53,384 a year to live comfortably in Albuquerque, one of the lowest figures among the 50 largest U.S. cities. Davel5957 / Getty Images/iStockphoto 16. Ohio Annual Expenditure: $42,416 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 9 days Housing is especially affordable in Ohio, coming in at almost 25% less than what the average American is paying. Add that to costs that are either below average or less than 2% over it, and it's not hard to see why Ohio cracked the top 20 in this study. Shutterstock.com 15. Idaho Annual Expenditure: $42,416 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 9 days Idaho's scenic landscape could be considered incentive enough to retire there, but the state's low costs are an additional perk, allowing you to last into the fifth month of your third year on $100,000. Shutterstock.com 14. Kentucky Annual Expenditure: $42,370 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 10 days Kentucky's biggest cost advantage over other states is in its housing, where you'll pay almost 20% less than the national average. With a median home price of just $136,600, the cost of a home in this state is one many Americans can actually afford. Shutterstock.com 13. Iowa Annual Expenditure: $42,050 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 17 days Like many states in the Midwest, Iowa boasts low housing costs that help push the overall cost of living down significantly. However, while it's housing leading the charge, Iowa's costs are below what the average American pays across the board. Purdue9394 / Getty Images 12. Indiana Annual Expenditure: $41,867 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 20 days Indiana offers retirees the chance to stretch their savings much further than most of the country; this is important to the Hoosier State, as Indiana is the state with the poorest retirees in the country. Jeremy Hardin / Getty Images/iStockphoto 11. Wyoming Annual Expenditure: $41,821 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 21 days The cost of living in Wyoming is lower than it is for the country as a whole, but the high cost of healthcare for seniors could quickly erase much of that benefit. Employing either homemaker services or a home health aide will run you about $5,000 a year. Zview / iStock.com 10. Texas Annual Expenditure: $41,775 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 22 days Texas offers a range of advantages to its elderly residents when it comes to stretching retirement dollars. In fact, eight of the 30 best cities to retire on a budget of $1,000 a month or less are in the Lone Star State. krblokhin / Getty Images/iStockphoto 9. Georgia Annual Expenditure: $41,546 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 4 months, 27 days Low costs in Georgia mean a retiree can make $100,000 last them for almost two years and five months. Even if you're living well by saving on basic costs, though, not everyone is in the same situation: Atlanta is among the places in the U.S. with the most income inequality. Shutterstock.com 8. Kansas Annual Expenditure: $40,952 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 9 days Kansas is a great state to retire to if you want to stretch your nest egg as far as possible, and it's even better if you're living off of a pension funded by the state: Kansas is one of the best states for pensions. Joel Carillet / Getty Images 7. Tennessee Annual Expenditure: $40,906 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 10 days Whether it's the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville or Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee is a great state for American music. Of course, if you're retired and living there, it's the low costs that might be music to your ears. TriggerPhoto / Getty Images/iStockphoto 6. Missouri Annual Expenditure: $40,677 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 15 days Although most costs are lower in Missouri, the Show-Me State is especially affordable when it comes to housing. A year of a roof over your head costs an average of just $11,597, making it one of just five states where you can expect to pay under $12,000 per annum. Don't Miss: Best Online Savings Accounts for Earning High-Yield Profits Shutterstock.com 5. Alabama Annual Expenditure: $40,631 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 16 days You can expect to stretch your retirement savings by retiring almost anywhere in the Yellow Hammer State, but that's especially true if you decide to call the city of Birmingham home: It's one of the cheapest places to retire in the entire country. dlewis33 / Getty Images 4. Arkansas Annual Expenditure: $40,631 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 16 days The cost of a comfortable retirement in Arkansas is very low, coming in below any other state in the country save for Mississippi and its incredibly low cost of living. RiverNorthPhotography / Getty Images 3. Michigan Annual Expenditure: $40,586 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 17 days The Great Lake State is as welcoming as it is scenic, and the low costs mean you can enjoy more of it with your nest egg. Tiago_Fernandez / Getty Images 2. Oklahoma Annual Expenditure: $40,403 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 5 months, 21 days Oklahoma has low costs statewide that will help you stretch $100,000 to almost a full two and a half years. And unlike many states, that extends to the state's largest city as well: $1 million will last you 24 and a half years in retirement in Oklahoma City, making it one of the most affordable U.S. cities for retirees. Shutterstock.com 1. Mississippi Annual Expenditure: $38,435 $100,000 Will Last: 2 years, 7 months, 6 days No state has a lower cost for a comfortable retirement than Mississippi, where you can expect to pay almost a third less for housing than the country as a whole. All told, the cumulative cost of living in Mississippi is 16% lower than the national average. Andrew Zarivny / Shutterstock.com How Long $100K in Retirement Will Last in Every State States on either coast might offer a lot in terms of great weather and loads of culture, but they certainly ask a lot in terms of your pocketbook. The 15 states where $100,000 stretches the least in retirement include all five states on the Pacific Ocean (Hawaii, California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska). On the East Coast, the worst states for your retirement nest egg are New York, Maryland, New Jersey and all six of the states that make up New England. On the other end of the list, it's hard to miss that states from the South and the Midwest have the lowest costs by far. Of the 15 states where your $100,000 in retirement savings goes the furthest, all but two (Idaho and Wyoming) are in one of those two regions. More From GOBankingRates Methodology: In order to determine how long $100,000 will last the average retiree in each state, GOBankingRates found the average total expenditures for people 65 and older, which includes groceries, housing, utilities, transportation and healthcare. GOBankingRates then multiplied that by the cost of living index in each state to find the average annual expenditure cost for each state. Once the annual cost was found, it was divided by $100,000 and then converted into years, months and days to show how long the average annual expenditure for people 65 and older would last in every state. This research was conducted in August 2018. This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How Long $100K in Retirement Will Last in Every State The Los Angeles Dodgers Chris Taylor brightened up a young fans holiday recently when he made a virtual visit to Childrens Hospital LA. Taylor, a former star for Cox High in Virginia Beach and the University of Virginia, appeared on screen to chat with a young fan who told Taylor he was happy the utilityman re-signed with the Dodgers. He also congratulated Taylor on winning the World Series with the Dodgers in 2020. I had a lot of fun partying and everything, he said to Taylor. Taylor reportedly re-signed with the Dodgers earlier this month, agreeing to a four-year, $60 million contract. The deal includes a $12 million club option and a $4 million buyout, according to the LA Times. Taylor, 31, played six positions in 2021 for the Dodgers and was especially important in the postseason. After struggling late in the regular season, Taylor hit a walk-off home run in a wild-card playoff victory over St. Louis and, in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, hit three home runs and drove in six runs. He batted .351 in 43 postseason at-bats. Taylor will return to Hampton Roads after the New Year for an event to benefit Childrens Hospital of The Kings Daughters and the Roc Solid Foundation in support of the fight against pediatric cancer. Taylor will host Driving for Hope at Topgolf in Virginia Beach on Jan. 16. The event will include golf, food, entertainment and a celebrity auction. Taylors charitable foundation, CT3 his initials and jersey number is presenting the event and has more information on its website: ct3foundation.org. BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's government has denied the presence of Russian mercenaries in the West African country after 15 Western powers accused Russia of providing material support to a deployment of private military contractors. France, Canada and 13 European nations on Thursday condemned Moscow for facilitating an alleged deployment of private military contractors from the Russia-backed Wagner Group to Mali, where the government is battling an Islamist insurgency. Government spokesman Abdoulaye Maiga in a statement late on Friday denied that "elements of a private security company" had been deployed to Mali. He said "Russian trainers" were present as part of a bilateral agreement between Mali and Russia. "[Mali] formally denies these baseless allegations and demands that evidence be brought by independent sources," Maiga said. "Russian trainers are in Mali as part of the reinforcement of the operational capacities of the National Defence and Security Forces." It was not immediately clear who the Russian trainers were, nor their exact role. The Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation could not immediately be reached for clarification early on Saturday. Earlier this month the European Union suspended its training mission for soldiers in Central African Republic (CAR) because of fears it could get tied up in violations of international law by Russian mercenaries, including the Wagner Group. The United States, which sanctioned Wagner for its actions in CAR earlier this year, has repeatedly condemned any potential deployment of Russian mercenaries to Mali. The U.S. State Department has said that such a deployment would cost the Malian government upwards of $10 million per month and further destabilise the country as it struggles to ward of Islamist insurgents. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the Wagner Group do not represent the Russian state, but that private military contractors have the right to work anywhere in the world so long as they do not break Russian law. (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo and Paul Lorgerie; Writing by Cooper Inveen; Editing by Kirsten Donovan) A woman holds up her phone as she watches Derek Chauvin at trial in the first photo. In the second, people protest Kyle Rittenhouse's acquittal America's reckoning with racial justice moved from the streets to the courtroom in 2021, with complicated results. In April, former police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd on a Minneapolis street 11 months before, in what was widely seen as a landmark decision. Another landmark - of a starkly contrasting kind - came in November, when 18-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted on all counts after fatally shooting two people and wounding a third during race-related unrest in Kenosha, Wis. The killers of Ahmaud Arbery were found guilty of murder in Georgia in a November trial that proved a majority-white jury was willing to convict white civilians for the murder of a Black man even in disputed circumstances. In a less serious and more bizarre case, actor Jussie Smollett was found guilty in December of having set up a hoax attack on himself. Smollett, who is Black and gay, had claimed he had been set upon in Chicago in January 2019 by two assailants shouting about "MAGA country." In fact, he had paid two brothers to stage the attack. As usual with the tangled topics of race, policing and the justice system, there is no simple message to be drawn from the cases in total. Instead, they showed a nation at times edging toward a new consensus on the most egregious examples of racial injustice and at other times retreating into old trenches. The Chauvin case was arguably the most emotive of all, centered on the killing that had sparked global protests and given new vigor to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. Before the verdict came, there was widespread doubt in the Black community that a jury would convict a former police officer for murder. Comparisons were drawn to the case of Rodney King a generation before. Police officers in Los Angeles were captured on video savagely beating King and were acquitted on all charges. But the jury did convict in Minneapolis, finding Chauvin guilty of all three counts for which he was tried, the most serious being second-degree murder. The 45-year-old Chauvin was sentenced in June to more than 22 years in prison. Story continues In the immediate aftermath of the guilty verdict, President Biden called the Floyd family, saying he was "relieved" by the conviction. Publicly, Biden said that Chauvin had committed "murder in full light of day" and that the jury's decision amounted to "basic accountability." But was the Chauvin verdict a harbinger of a new era in terms of law enforcement facing the full measure of justice for its actions? It's simply unclear. Civil rights activists pointed out that the murder of Floyd, though emblematic of the broader ills of police brutality, was unusual in its specifics. In Floyd's case, a cellphone video shot by a bystander captured Chauvin kneeling on his victim for more than nine minutes as Floyd's distress grew and onlookers urged the officer to stop. The video was horrific and Chauvin's conduct blatantly inexcusable. Virtually no one, of any political persuasion, sought to justify what Chauvin had done. Then-President Trump, who regularly criticized the Black Lives Matter movement while defending police, called the circumstances of Floyd's death "terrible." Darnella Frazier, the teenage girl who shot the video, was later honored with a special citation from the Pulitzer Prize committee. The broader questions raised by Floyd's murder seemed to get murkier as the year wore on, however. On Capitol Hill, efforts to enact police reform failed. Rising rates of violent crime in many cities spurred debate as to whether criticism of the police had gone too far, disincentivizing officers from properly doing their jobs. Electorally, the slogan "defund the police" was widely held to have become a millstone for Democrats, even though only a small minority of the party backs the goal. In any event, the brief moment of national consensus around Floyd's murder had thoroughly broken down by the time Rittenhouse faced a jury in November. His case became a classic Rorschach test, with critics seeing him as a gun-toting vigilante and defenders viewing him as a young man of basically good intentions who became a victim of circumstance. At his trial, even some of the prosecution witnesses delivered exculpatory evidence. The one man who survived being shot by him, for example, noted that he was himself armed with a pistol and that it was only after he aimed his gun at Rittenhouse that the teen had fired. Those kinds of details, in turn, spurred criticism of earlier media reporting on Rittenhouse's actions. The verdict, predictably, was hailed by the right and lamented on the left. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said that "justice has been served." Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) saw instead a "miscarriage of justice." In December, controversy stirred again over Rittenhouse when he was accorded a hero's welcome at a conference staged by a conservative group, Turning Point USA. The Rittenhouse episode was so potent that it hung over the very different trial relating to Arbery's death, which concluded later the same month. In that instance, the conviction of a father and son, Travis and Gregory McMichael, along with a neighbor, William "Roddy" Bryan, was seen as a long-awaited vindication for campaigners. The Arbery killing had barely elicited national attention until cellphone video shot by Bryan emerged. The resultant outrage, in turn, led the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to take over the case from local law enforcement. The woman who was the local prosecutor at the time was indicted earlier this year for allegedly showing bias in favor of the McMichaels. When the guilty verdict came, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) pointedly stressed the "historic civil rights mobilization" that he said had been "necessary" to achieve justice. Biden again weighed in, calling the case a "devastating reminder of how far we have to go in the fight for racial justice in this country." That fight faces an uncertain immediate future, however. With a midterm election year looming, partisan fights over policing, crime and the broader topic of "wokeness" - all in some ways proxies for older fights over race - are sure to ramp up. How that process plays out in a nation already riven by tension and polarization is anyone's guess. The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Google, Facebook, and Intel have all canceled their plans to attend the CES tech conference in Las Vegas next month, citing a surge in COVID-19 cases. Microsoft said on Friday that it would also not attend the conference in-person, The Verge first reported. Many of these companies will maintain a digital presence at CES. Microsoft is the latest tech company to drop its attendance at the CES tech conference as COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the United States due to the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant. The Verge reported on Friday that Microsoft would pull out of the annual event, which was held virtually in 2021 and was planned to take place both in-person in Las Vegas and virtually from January 5-8, 2022. "After reviewing the latest data on the rapidly evolving COVID environment, Microsoft has decided not to participate in-person at CES 2022," a company spokesperson told Insider in an emailed statement. The statement continued to say the company would still be participating remotely in the event through digital exhibitions. More than 40 major companies, including Google, Intel, Facebook parent company Meta, General Motors, and Amazon, have announced that they would no longer attend January's conference in person. Each company cited rising COVID-19 cases as their reason for not attending the conference in person. Microsoft, General Motors, and Google said they would still attend the event in some capacity virtually. "Our focus remains on convening the tech industry and giving those who cannot attend in person the ability to experience the magic of CES digitally," a representative for the Consumer Technology Association, which puts on the conference, said in a statement that it also published as a series of tweets on Thursday. More than 2,200 companies were still scheduled to attend the conference in person, according to the CTA. "Given CES' comprehensive health measures vaccination requirement, masking, and availability of COVID-19 tests coupled with lower attendance and social distancing measures, we are confident that attendees and exhibitors can have a socially distanced but worthwhile and productive event in Las Vegas, or while experiencing it online." Story continues The CES conference, formerly known as the Consumer Electronics Show, is an industry showcase that has become a spectacle for new technology since it started more than a half-century ago. Certain innovations like the CD, DVD, Sony camcorder, and Microsoft Xbox have debuted at CES, but the event is also known for wacky or high-concept inventions, like a robot butler that serves wine and a pillow that can tell if you're snoring. Many of these new devices, especially from the consumer tech giants, will be displayed virtually this year. As COVID-19 cases spread rapidly across the US, many companies have canceled or postponed their January plans. Google, Apple, and other big tech companies have all pushed back their return-to-office dates, in some cases indefinitely, and the global travel industry has been disrupted. As of Friday evening, more than 4,000 flights on Christmas Eve and Christmas had been canceled due to the Omicron surge. Read the original article on Business Insider MOSCOW (Reuters) - More than 10,000 Russian troops have been returning to their permanent bases after month-long drills near Ukraine, Interfax news agency reported on Saturday, citing the Russian military. Interfax said the drills were held in several regions near Ukraine, including in Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, as well as in the southern Russian regions of Rostov and Kuban. Russia's deployment of tens of thousands of troops to the north, east and south of Ukraine had fuelled fears in Kyiv and Western capitals that Moscow was planning an attack. Russia denies any such plans, saying it needs pledges from the West - including a promise from NATO not to expand the alliance eastward towards Russian borders - because its own security is threatened by Ukraine's growing ties with the Western alliance. Moscow also says that it can deploy its troops on its territory as it sees fit. Estimates for the number of Russian troops recently moved closer to Ukraine vary from 60,000 to 90,000, with one U.S. intelligence document suggesting that number could be ramped up as high as 175,000. "A stage of combat coordination of divisions, combat crews, squads at motorized units... has been completed. More than 10,000 military servicemen... will march to their permanent deployment from the territory of the combined arms' area of drills," Interfax quoted the army as saying. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Hugh Lawson) MEDAN, France Its been more than a century since the Dreyfus affair first electrified France. But when a museum dedicated to the infamous saga flung open its doors recently on the banks of the River Seine, it seemed to carry an unwelcome resonance. The false accusation that a Jewish army captain was a German spy divided France at the time but has long stood as a symbol of the nationalist fervor that swept the country in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This new effort to memorialize the episode was launched amid fresh fears of far-right success and a renewed fight over French identity and history. Eric Zemmour, a firebrand TV pundit turned presidential candidate who is himself Jewish, shocked many in the country and beyond by questioning the innocence of the wrongly convicted Alfred Dreyfus, according to local media reports, and by claiming that Frances wartime Vichy regime had protected French Jews while handing over foreign ones. Zemmour has said he wants France to be proud of its history. Our glorious past speaks in favor of our future, he said in a video announcing his candidacy last month. But the pundits revisionism and rapid rise in popularity left mainstream French figures concerned that ideas once consigned to the fringes were increasingly becoming mainstream and that in seeking to relitigate these old battles, a more emboldened far right might once again legitimize the politics of hate and exclusion. FRANCE-POLITICS-LITERATURE-HISTORY (Ludovic Marin / Pool via Getty Images) It was amid rampant media speculation concerning Zemmours presidential ambitions that President Emmanuel Macron inaugurated the museum, housed on the grounds of the home of the army captains great defender, writer Emile Zola, to the west of Paris in October. Dreyfus and his family had suffered injustices and humiliations that could never be repaired, Macron said. Let us not aggravate them by forgetting, worsening or repeating them, he said. Macron called on Frances youth to forget nothing of these past battles, because they tell you that the world in which we live, our country, our republic are not acquired but are the fruit of indispensable struggles. Story continues The Dreyfus affair was a seminal example of European antisemitism and a harbinger for the wave of hatred that would spread across the continent in the next half-century. Questioning his innocence has long been a red line on both the mainstream French left and right. Except [for]the most extreme people history has been written, said Jean-Yves Camus, a political scientist who specializes in far-right politics in Europe. Dreyfus was not a traitor. He was sentenced, he appealed and he won. For his part, Macron has sought to position himself as the heir to Frances great leaders and has prompted the country to grapple with its thorny past. In a delicate dance that seems designed to appease both the right and left, Macron has refused to vilify French imperialists, most notably Napoleon, but has recognized their wrongdoing. FRANCE-POLITICS-LITERATURE-HISTORY (Ludovic Marin / Pool via Getty Images) Zemmour is seeking to defeat Macron next April and win the presidency by pledging to save the country from its supposed decline, speaking directly to nostalgic right-wing voters. A press officer for Zemmour did not respond to a request for comment. The parallels between the Dreyfus era and modern France are not lost on Philippe Oriol, the director of the museum in Medan, who spoke to NBC News after a small number of Covid-restricted ticket holders had taken in the museums multimedia exhibition during a recent visit. The question of racism, antisemitism, xenophobia, the question of secularism, what democracy is, the republic, the press and the way it acts, he said, ticking off the debates of that period that are still current today. Its absolutely fascinating to see. [Zemmour] is on a political line with Charles Maurras, Oriol said, referring to the French nationalist writer who was a leading voice in the anti-Dreyfusard camp at the beginning of the 20th century. Fabien Nury, the creator of TV drama Paris Police 1900, which aired earlier this year in France and the U.K., said he had also been struck by the parallels between that period and the spread of far-right sentiment in Western democracies today. I didnt plan for it to be contemporary, he said recently of his series, which is set against the backdrop of the Dreyfus affair. Id be much happier if it wasnt so relevant to our current times. A number of high-profile antisemitic incidents in recent years have served as a reminder that the old hatred is very much alive in modern France. Francis Kalifat, the president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France, said Zemmour risked taking France backward. He has called into question Jewish pain, Kalifat said. Zemmour has become the standard-bearer of revisionism in our country. Image: (Rafael Yaghobzadeh / AP) This may not only be a concern for French Jews but also for the countrys Muslims a frequent target of the contemporary far right among others. Earlier this month, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, the presidential candidate for the main left-wing Socialist Party, caused a stir after local media reported that shed compared the language used to talk about Muslims today to that employed against Jews in the 1930s. Frances relationship with Islam is complex. The country has one of the largest Muslim populations in Europe, a legacy of its colonial domination of large parts of Africa and the Middle East. And in recent years, it has been scarred by deadly terrorist attacks, many of which were carried out by homegrown radical Islamists. Anti-Muslim acts have been on the rise, according to officials and statistics from community groups. Zemmour has described Islam as incompatible with France and repeatedly espoused the great replacement conspiracy theory. But he said he makes a distinction between Islam and Muslims and that everyone has the right to practice their religion. He has called on immigrants to do more to assimilate. The idea that a minority community is undermining France from within resembles the rhetoric of Catholic nationalists toward Jews at the turn of the century, according to Jean Garrigues, a professor of contemporary history at the University of Orleans. Its exactly the same approach the nationalist right took at the time of the Dreyfus affair and at the start of the 20th century, he added. For Garrigues, putting French identity and prestige above all else risks sidelining the values that hold French society together those of the republic that first turned on Dreyfus but then exonerated him. It brings intolerance, Garrigues said. It brings the exclusion of those who arent considered French. An investigation is underway after the fatal shooting of a man at an Antioch apartment complex. 24-year-old Devin R. Compton was killed at 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve at the Arbor Hills apartment complex located at Arbor Knoll Boulevard and Bell Road, according to Nashville police. Police said an initial investigation shows Compton arrived at the complex and walked to a dark-colored SUV, where he was shot. Compton died at the scene with a head wound. Compton's death marks the 100th homicide in Nashville in 2021. Adam Friedman is The Tennesseans evening reporter covering breaking news, crime, cops and a little bit of everything else. If you have a news tip, he wants it. Email him at afriedman@tennessean.com or call him at 731-431-8517. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Police: 24-year-old shot and killed at Antioch apartment complex The USS Milwaukee is temporarily unable to sail after a COVID-19 outbreak among its "100% immunized" crew, the U.S. Navy said Friday, without specifying how many sailors tested positive. Driving the news: The Navy has not determined the variant of COVID and the sailors who tested positive are isolated from the rest of the crew. The ship is ported in Cuba's Guantanamo Bay, less than two weeks after its deployment. Stay on top of the latest market trends and economic insights with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free Be smart: "100% immunized" doesn't necessarily mean that USS Milwaukee sailors received booster shots, as third doses are not yet required for active-duty military. Boosters "are not yet mandatory but recommended," spokesperson Cmdr. Kate Meadows told the Washington Post. The ship also now has a strict mask mandate. More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free The Nashville Predators extended holiday break because of a COVID-19 outbreak will last a little bit longer. The NHL had planned to resume its schedule on Monday, but on Friday announced a delay by another day. The decision postpones a game also scheduled for Monday at Dallas. The NHL said it needed "an adequate opportunity to analyze League-wide testing results and to assess clubs readiness to play." Teams will return to practice Sunday, but wont be allowed to take the ice until players, coaches and traveling officials are cleared following a round of COVID-19 tests. The NHL said it will provide further updates on its return to play plans Sunday. 2022 OLYMPICS: As expected, NHL won't participate in 2022 Olympics after COVID outbreak MARK BOROWIECKI: Nashville Predators' Mark Borowiecki fighting the good fight, and that's refreshing | Skrbina Nashville placed 12 members of the organization on the COVID-19 protocol list a week ago, including six players and four coaches. The Predators (19-10-1) already had games postponed at Carolina and Florida and home against Winnipeg. Their next game would be Wednesday at Washington. Nashville's last game was Dec. 17. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: NHL delays return: Nashville Predators game at Dallas postponed ABUJA (Reuters) - The Nigerian president's top media aide Garba Shehu said on Saturday that he has tested positive for coronavirus and was in isolation. Shehu, who is in his late 50s, is in the immediate circle of 79-year-old President Muhammadu Buhari. "I can only confirm that (I am) infected by COVID-19 and on treatment in isolation," Shehu said. Several local newspapers reported that some of Buhari's aides and top officials have contracted the virus, including Information Minister Lai Mohammed. Mohammed did not respond to calls for comment while a presidency spokesman declined to comment on whether any other official or minister was infected and whether Buhari, who received a booster dose on Tuesday, has been tested. Buhari and some ministers recently attended summits in Dubai and Turkey after hosting South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last month just as the Omicron COVID-19 variant was detected in Southern Africa and Hong Kong. Nigeria, which has so far recorded 234,709 confirmed cases with 2,993 deaths, started to offer booster shots this month after confirming its first cases of the Omicron variant among travelers who arrived from South Africa. (Reporting by Felix Onuah; additional reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Aurora Ellis) An airplane passenger is accused of attacking a flight attendant and breaking bones in her face. Three New York City tourists assaulted a restaurant host who asked them for proof of vaccination against the coronavirus, prosecutors say. Eleven people were charged with misdemeanors after they allegedly chanted "No more masks!" and some moved to the front of the room during a Utah school board meeting. Across the United States, an alarming number of people are lashing out in aggressive and often cruel ways in response to policies or behavior they dislike. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. "I think people just feel this need to feel powerful, in charge and connected to someone again," said Jennifer Jenkins, a school board member in Brevard County, Fla., who said she has faced harassment. The Federal Aviation Administration has initiated over 1,000 unruly-passenger investigations this year, more than five times as many as in all of 2020. Health and elections officials have expressed fear for their safety amid public vitriol. As school board meetings have become cultural battlegrounds, Attorney General Merrick Garland has asked the Justice Department to investigate what he called a "disturbing spike" in threats against educators. Some American shoppers, long used to getting their way, have unleashed their worst behavior in recent months. In some of these circumstances, it's unclear whether aggressive behavior has actually increased this year or whether the public has simply trained more focus on it. But mental health experts said it's likely that the worldwide state of perpetual crisis has truly spurred more frequent instances of inappropriate and abusive behavior. Nearly two years into a pandemic coexistent with several national crises, many Americans are profoundly tense. They're snapping at each other more frequently, suffering from physical symptoms of stress and seeking methods of self-care. In the most extreme cases, they're acting out their anger in public - bringing their internal struggles to bear on interactions with strangers, mental health experts said. Story continues Some of those behaviors appear to be the result of living through a long-lasting public emergency with no clear endpoint, the experts said. As the omicron variant rages across the country, it is again unclear when the pandemic restrictions will end. For some people, this kind of catastrophe strains their coping resources and causes them to act in ways that they normally would not. Layer that onto other recent national crises - including race-driven social unrest, an economic recession, the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and myriad extreme-weather disasters - and people can hardly bear the stress. "We're just not meant to live under this level of tension for such a prolonged period," said Vaile Wright, senior director of health care innovation for the American Psychological Association. "So what that ends up doing is it really wears on our coping abilities to the point where we aren't able to regulate our emotions as well as we could before." That kind of emotional tension is most relevant to people who continue to take precautions and factor the virus into their decision-making. Much of the country has long moved on from tracking the pandemic's every turn, with many people instead living much like they were in 2019. But research supports the idea that Americans as a whole are struggling mentally and emotionally. A study of five Western countries, including the United States, published in January found that 13% of people reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder attributable to actual or potential contact with the coronavirus, stay-at-home orders, the inability to return to a country of residence or other coronavirus-related factors. The researchers also found that anticipating a negative pandemic-related event was even more emotionally painful than experiencing one. The coronavirus outbreak had barely begun when mental health experts started expressing concern that the crisis would cause collective trauma, which occurs when a deeply distressing event affects an entire community and creates a shared impact. Although psychologists disagree on the definition of trauma and whether the term applies broadly to the pandemic, they are generally in sync on the underlying issue: The pandemic's devastating consequences have spared almost no one. Of course, the coronavirus has hit some people and communities harder than others. The families of more than 800,000 people in the United States - disproportionately Black, Latino, American Indian and Alaska Native - have lost a loved one to the virus. Others have been hospitalized and survived. Almost everyone has sacrificed an important aspect of their lives: a job, the ability to safely gather to mourn a death or celebrate a marriage, or any degree of certainty in planning the future. It remains unclear when that suffering will end. Reported infections and hospitalizations in the United States are surging as the country finds itself facing a variant that appears to be more transmissible and better at evading protection from approved vaccines and as holiday gatherings provide new opportunities for viral transmission. That danger heightens the feeling of whiplash among people tired of the pandemic's twists and turns, said Roxane Cohen Silver, a professor of psychological science at the University of California at Irvine. "The news about the omicron variant came right at the time that many people in the U.S. were poised to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with loved ones for the first time in a long time," she said. "It seemed almost cruel that just when 'normalcy' seemed to be on the horizon, hopes were again dashed with the latest news." Worry about the pandemic, climate change and other crises has made Kia Penso, 61, so on edge that she can't watch suspenseful television shows, and interactions with her brother when she is worried about him have become "10 times more explosive." Her past year and a half has been marked by her uncle's death from covid-19 and persistent worry about the safety of her elderly mother overseas. Those stresses have been exacerbated by her feeling that the coronavirus's threat would be negligible by now if other people hadn't fallen victim to false claims that the federally approved or authorized vaccines are dangerous. The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have consistently said the immunizations are safe and effective. "We're still in danger, we're still cooped up in our houses to some extent, we're still not free to move about because of malevolent lies," said Penso, who lives in Washington, D.C. On a flight this year, Teddy Andrews's colleague walked over to him on the verge of tears. A passenger was refusing to wear a mask and giving her a hard time, his fellow flight attendant said. Andrews approached the man, who called him the n-word and said, "I don't have to listen to a damn thing you say, this is a free country," according to Andrews's testimony later before a congressional committee. A tense exchange followed, with Andrews asking the man to don a mask to protect his fellow passengers. Eventually, the man backed down and put on the face covering. Andrews, who has been an American Airlines flight attendant for a decade, said he believes years of heated rhetoric from political leaders has riled people up and encouraged them to defend themselves against the purported erosion of their rights. Then the pandemic erupted. The result, from Andrews's perspective, is an epidemic of people behaving as if rules and social norms don't apply to them. "What we see manifested in society, you'll see it happening in the air, you see it happening in restaurants, you see it happening in malls, you see it happening in school board meetings," he said. For a few weeks this summer, low infection numbers served as a light at the end of the tunnel for people eager to move on from the pandemic. That hopefulness made it harder for many people to handle the abrupt about-face when the delta variant fueled a new surge, said Wright, with the American Psychological Association. People are also faced with constant news about the virus, making coping even more difficult, said UC-Irvine's Silver. "Even if I personally have not lost a loved one to covid, I can be seeing pictures and reading stories about the sheer tragedies," said Silver, an expert in trauma. "So it's both direct exposure and indirect exposure to the media of all of these cascading traumas that have made it so difficult to cope with it." Stress from those cascading traumas is cumulative, Silver has found. Whether it's the death of a loved one or the cancellation of a vacation, the pandemic's losses are more likely to linger in people's minds than the positive experiences, said Stevan Hobfoll, a researcher and clinician with expertise in trauma. The human brain searches gains for hidden losses, he said, so people are more likely to think about how much they miss traveling than about improving infection numbers. Then there's the struggle to maintain hope, which is complicated by the pandemic's lack of a clear endpoint. Early in the crisis, many people identified what they could control and created routines, said Joshua Morganstein, chair of the American Psychiatric Association's Committee on the Psychiatric Dimensions of Disaster. But he said that intentionality has largely fallen by the wayside and people have become more distressed. In Florida, emotions over school district policies were boiling over for months before Jenkins spoke publicly about the harassment she said she faced. Angry about decisions around masks, transgender students and teaching about race, some parents had threatened her, coughed in her face and filed false reports with the Florida Department of Children and Families, she said. (The agency did not respond to a message seeking confirmation of those reports.) At a board meeting in October, Jenkins said she supported parents' right to protest but would not stand for credible threats of violence against her family. "I reject them following my car around, I reject them saying that they're coming for me and I need to beg for mercy," she said. "I reject that when they are using their First Amendment rights on public property, they're also going behind my home and brandishing weapons to my neighbors." In Jenkins's eyes, the outbursts are fueled by widespread pandemic-induced vulnerability and a desire for purpose that some people have learned to manipulate by building communities around angry, public resistance to policies and officials. She said she thinks that a general lack of societal trust also contributes and that the lack of connection makes arguments out of what could have been conversations. The last large-scale pandemic was similarly divisive. As influenza cut a destructive path around the world in 1918 and 1919, many businesses refused to enforce mask mandates and roughly 2,000 members of an "Anti-Mask League" rallied in San Francisco to oppose the ordinances. The coronavirus pandemic has the complicating factor of a hyperactive social media ecosystem that overloads people with often-conflicting information. "When people are presented with situations that seem overwhelming, they are more apt to give up in a sense and lock more tightly to a single perspective and approach, because the work that's necessary to hold on to all this different information is just too much," Morganstein said. Coronavirus pandemic-era anger also has coalesced around whether mask and vaccine requirements violate individual liberty - an issue that Morganstein said tends to animate people. Many public outbursts have been from people vehemently expressing that no one else can tell them what to do. The result is an environment where trust in other people is severely limited. That lack of social cohesion prolongs people's sense of crisis, Silver said. In a study of Israelis who survived years of bombing, she found that those who fared well did so in part because they had a strong sense of community. Without that sense of national community in the United States, people lean on their smaller tribes of people with similar worldviews, Silver said. By June, before the delta and omicron variants became widespread, levels of anxiety and depression in the United States had declined from their pandemic peak but remained higher than in 2019, according to a study published by the CDC. And more than 80% of psychologists told the American Psychological Association that they had experienced an increase in demand for anxiety treatment since the pandemic began, compared with 74% who said the same a year ago. Additionally, about 2 in 3 vaccinated Americans said they were "angry at those who are refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and are putting the rest of us at risk," according to a survey this fall by the Public Religion Research Institute and the Interfaith Youth Core. For Jennifer Le Zotte, a college professor in North Carolina, a challenge of the pandemic's ceaselessness has been feeling disconnected from her personal communities. She wonders when she'll feel comfortable fully reengaging in her pre-pandemic activities, and she said she's constantly recalculating her family's risk as the facts of the coronavirus outbreak change. Le Zotte said that after keeping her children and elderly parents safe for nearly two years, she would feel deeply troubled if she lowered her defenses now and one of them contracted the virus. But being constantly on guard feels emotionally draining. "Part of me feels like I have to finish this," she said. "But," she believes, "there is never going to be a concise finish." Related Content In their shared sea, Ukraine and Russia already risk direct conflict every day A teacher learned one of her students might go hungry over winter break. She now feeds thousands of kids each year. Tourist drug demand is bringing cartel violence to Mexico's most popular resorts Detectives have arrested three people on suspicion of gunning down a man outside a Hollywood restaurant last month in a robbery gone awry, Los Angeles police said Friday. Jose Ruiz Gutierrez, 23, was waiting in a car outside Bossa Nova restaurant on Sunset Boulevard around 2 a.m. on Nov. 23 when a woman he was with stepped out and was accosted by a group of people who tried to rob her, police said. Ruiz Gutierrez, who was carrying a gun, got out of the car to intervene and the assailants shot him to death and fled. Detectives made the arrests in the case earlier this week, the LAPD said. L.A. County prosecutors have charged Jayon Sanders, 21, Abraham Castillo, 20, and Tyree Singleton, 20, with the murder of Ruiz Gutierrez, police said. The district attorneys office didnt immediately respond to a request for the charging documents filed against the three men. Sanders, Castillo, Singleton and a fourth man, Joshua Saulsberry, 21, are also charged with robbery, the LAPD said. As part of the investigation that led to the arrest of the four men, authorities searched locations in Los Angeles and Fontana, seizing $30,000 in cash, a Rolex, a gun, handbags and two vehicles suspected of being used in the slaying and robberies, the LAPD said. Detectives have been investigating a spate of follow-home robberies, so called for the perpetrators method of spotting their victims at expensive restaurants or nightclubs and following them to their homes, where they rob them at gunpoint of watches, jewelry, cash and other valuables. The LAPD is investigating 150 follow-home robberies and similar crimes. A review of booking records shows that Sanders had been arrested and released from jail five times this year before being taken into custody this week. He was arrested most recently by LAPD officers in the Pacific Division and released on bond Nov. 11, less than two weeks before Ruiz Gutierrez was killed outside Bossa Nova. Sanders has been charged this year in seven cases filed at three courthouses across the county, records show. The charges included possession of a gun as a felon, carrying a concealed weapon, fleeing from police, driving with a suspended license, robbery, grand theft and assault of a police officer. Story continues Sanders pleaded not guilty to all of the charges. In the case filed this week, he is charged with robbery, attempted robbery and murder. He has yet to enter a plea, and his bail is set at $2.5 million. His co-defendant, Saulsberry, was arrested Nov. 4 by sheriffs deputies in Palmdale and released six days later. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of possessing a firearm and ammunition as a felon and carrying a loaded gun in public, records show. Castillo was arrested Dec. 8 by Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon and was released the next day, booking records show. He hasnt been charged in that incident. Singleton had not been previously arrested this year in Los Angeles County, according to booking records. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Stock cop lights A man in a suburban Boca Raton neighborhood shot and wounded another man over loud music on Christmas Eve, police said Saturday. Zachary Moncada, 31, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault and battery. After the shooting, the victims family was able to hold Moncada down and disarm him as he fought and fired an additional round into the ground, investigators said. More breaking news: Tri-Rail train hits, kills driver in Boca Raton; vehicle drove through lowered crossing gate Fatal shooting: Palm Springs-area man, 19, faces murder, weapons charges after shot kills friend handling gun in car Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies responded to a shooting in the 10600 block of Shady Pond Lane, in unincorporated Boca Raton west of U.S. 441, at about 2:30 p.m. Friday. The deputies saw two men holding Moncada down in the front yard, they said. Moncada had shot the victim in the back over loud music, investigators said. The victim was transported to West Boca Medical Center by his wife, where was in stable condition Saturday, deputies said. Moncada was turned over to deputies while they conducted their investigation. He was being held without bail Saturday in the Palm Beach County Jail. galbert@pbpost.com @Gerard_Albert3 This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Boca Raton Christmas Eve shooting over loud music SheKnows During these frigid winter temperatures, theres really nothing like hitting the ski slopes and embracing all the seasonal weather to the fullest. While some would rather take a trip to the beach and escape the cold, Paulina Gretzky opted to embrace her inner snow bunny with a trip to Aspen. The 33-year-old daughter of hockey [] The Saudi-led coalition on Saturday launched a "large-scale" assault on Yemen after missiles fired by Iran-backed Huthi rebels killed two people in the kingdom, the first such deaths in three years. The Huthis warned Yemen's oil-rich northern neighbour of a "painful" response if the coalition does not stop its "aggression" against the conflict-riven country. Yemen has been wracked by civil war since 2014 pitting the internationally recognised government supported by the Saudi-led military coalition against the Huthis who control much of the north. Tens of thousands of people have since been killed, in what the UN has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The latest violence came overnight when two people -- one Saudi and the other Yemeni -- were killed in the projectile attack on Jazan, said Saudi's civil defence. "A military projectile fell on a commercial store on the main street, resulting in two deaths," it said, adding six Saudis and a Bangladeshi national were wounded. Images from the official Saudi Press Agency purportedly of the aftermath of the attack showed a large crater in the ground and destroyed vehicles. - Huthis warn of 'painful' response - The Saudi-led coalition said shortly afterwards that it was "preparing for a large-scale military operation". It later launched an air strike in which "three civilians including a child and a woman were killed, and six others were wounded", Yemeni medics told AFP. The coalition will hold a news conference on Sunday to address the latest developments, the Saudi authorities said, clarifying an earlier advisory that it would be on Saturday. Huthi spokesman Yahya Saree warned Saudi Arabia of "painful operations as long as it continues its aggression and crimes". In a statement on the Huthis' Telegram channel, he said the rebels had launched three ballistic missiles on Jazan, a southern region of the kingdom bordering Yemen. Story continues The insurgents often launch missiles and drones into Saudi Arabia, targeting its airports and oil infrastructure. The latest was the first in more than three years that has resulted in fatalities in the kingdom, which recorded its first death from a Huthi missile attack when a missile struck Riyadh in 2018. It also comes as fighting between the two sides intensifies, with the coalition ramping air strikes on Sanaa. - 'Deaths every day' - Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and its ally the United States have long accused Iran of supplying the Huthis with sophisticated weapons, a charge the Shiite-dominated Islamic republic denies. The US Navy said this week that it seized 1,400 AK-47 rifles and ammunition from a fishing boat it claimed was smuggling weapons from Iran to the Huthis, who are from Yemen's Zaidi Shiite minority. "The stateless vessel was assessed to have originated in Iran and transited international waters along a route historically used to traffic weapons unlawfully to the Huthis in Yemen," it said. On Thursday -- a day after the coalition targeted a Huthi military camp in Sanaa -- the military alliance said it shot down a bomb-laden drone near Abha airport in the south of the kingdom, causing debris to fall nearby but leaving no casualties. And earlier this week, it targeted Sanaa airport, whose operations have largely ceased because of a Saudi-led blockade since August 2016, with exemptions for aid flights. In his Christmas Day message, Pope Francis deplored the fact that "immense tragedies" in conflict-riddled Arab countries, including Yemen, were "being passed over in silence". "Let us listen to the cry of children arising from Yemen, where an enormous tragedy, overlooked by everyone, has silently gone on for years, causing deaths every day," he said in the Vatican. The World Food Programme said it has been "forced" to cut aid to Yemen due to lack of funds, and warned of a surge in hunger in the country. The UN estimates Yemen's war will have claimed 377,000 lives by the end of the year through both direct and indirect impacts. More than 80 percent of Yemen's population of about 30 million requires humanitarian assistance in what the UN says is world's worst humanitarian crisis. str-jj/mah-dm/dv American lawyer and businessman Alexander Cochrane Cushing (in yellow) with others at the Squaw Valley resort, which he developed, in California, in 1961 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) In 1954, right around Christmastime, the photographer Slim Aarons travelled to Miami Beach on assignment for the magazine Holiday. From the boardwalk, he spotted an umbrella shaped like a Christmas tree, planted in the sand next to a chaise longue. The scene was gold, but it needed people to come alive. Aarons sprung into action. Back then, Miami did not have a model agency, but it did have Burdines, an upscale retailer where models would try on clothes for interested customers. Aaron asked the fashion coordinator for guidance. The fashion coordinator recommended Mary Ballou Stevenson, a model who worked at the stores tea room. Aarons asked Ballou if she could spare a few minutes, throw on a bathing suit, and meet him at the beach. The model agreed. By the time she came down, in a coral one-piece and a hat, Aarons had set up his camera and tripod. Quickly, he directed her, snapping a couple of images. During that time, a man happened to walk by on the boardwalk. Aarons recruited him too, asking him to go lie on another lounge chair in the background. The man complied. A few more snaps later, Aarons thanked his two models and let them go. He had the shot Ballou lying on the chaise, hat slightly tipped over her face, with the mystery man resting face-down on his own deck chair. Between the two, the incongruous Christmas tree umbrella, and an even more uncanny pile of presents on a small table. The whole thing, according to author Shawn Waldron, who spoke with Ballou, was over in 15 minutes. Thats all the time Aarons needed to compose the definition of an arresting photo one that still fascinates 67 years later. That was Slim, Waldron tells The Independent in a phone conversation. He just packed up and moved on. Hired models pose in the latest collection by Dimitris Kritsas, a young Greek couturier, among the columns of the temple to Poseidon at Sounion, in 1961. This is one of Aaronss last photoshoots with hired models (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Debutante CZ Guest with her Great Dane at her familys home in Palm Beach, Florida, in 1955 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) American fashion designer James Galanos with supermodel Dovima at his New York atelier in 1960 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Aarons, a US Army veteran who got his start as a combat photographer, is primarily remembered for his photos capturing the lives of celebrities, socialites, and luminaries. Aarons himself said he wanted to photograph attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places. His many subjects included household names such as Salvador Dali, Jackie Kennedy, and Louis Armstrong. But a conversation with Waldron, a curator for Getty Images, the manager of Aaronss archive, and the co-author of the newly released book Slim Aarons: Style, points to the depths of Aaronss work and the meaning of his search for beauty. Story continues Born on 19 October 1916 on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, Aarons claimed he had grown up an orphan. It wasnt until 2016 that a documentary revealed that wasnt exactly true: his mother was institutionalized when he was a child due to mental illness. His father, according to Waldron, essentially abandoned the family, and his brother died by suicide. There was a lot of strife, Waldron says. Aarons joined the military at a young age, serving as a war photographer during World War II. Those years shaped Aaronss craft for years to come. Photography, Waldron says, gave structure to his life. Working on assignments nurtured an eye for reportage that would define his style for the rest of his career. Aarons returned from the war mentally scarred, having witnessed terrible events. While other photographers chose to keep working in combat zones, Aarons needed something else. Once the Korean War started, he was asked if he wanted to go on assignment with some other photojournalists who were being sent over, Waldron says. And he jokingly said, The only beach Im landing on is going to have blondes and bikinis. It makes light of it, but it speaks to his mentality and where he was coming from. Dubbed Kings of Hollywood, this photo features Clark Gable, Van Heflin, Gary Cooper, and James Stewart during a New Years party at Romanoffs, then a legendary restaurant in Beverly Hills, in 1957 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Heiress Nonie Phipps with friends in Biarritz, France, in 1960 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Guests are pictured at the Kaufmann House, designed by architect Richard Neutra in Palm Springs, California, in 1970 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) A fashion show takes place poolside at the Colony Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida, in 1961 (Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Aarons turned his camera lens to the glitterati, but he never lost his journalistic instincts. By the end of his career, he would scope out a location for a couple of days, not even picking up his camera. He spent that time talking to people, getting a sense of the action. He would get a feel for whats happening. Where are people going to eat? Whats the good side of the mountain? When does it look good? Waldron says. It would just be him, on his own, going into shops, restaurants, talking to the maitre d, the waiters, the bartenders. He always did his groundwork. In scoping out his surroundings, Aarons placed himself in a position of being able to stage and snap memorable shots such as the one of Ballou, the unnamed man, and the Christmas tree umbrella in a matter of minutes. Many of his photos exist at a mystifying intersection between posed and candid; his subjects are aware of his presence, and they are often posing, but even in those moments, they dont seem entirely in control. They are subjects under Aaronss lens. He was an editorial photographer, Waldron says. He was a photojournalist first. For a man who had this booming voice and was 64, he was very good at being a fly on the wall. Slim Aarons: Style, by Shawn Aldron and Kate Betts, is a celebration of Aaronss work (Abrams Books) A view of an exhibition of Slim Aaronss work on 12 April 2018 in New York City (Mike Coppola/Getty Images) A view of photos featured at an exhibition of Slim Aaronss work on 12 April 2018 in New York City (Mike Coppola/Getty Images) Some of Aaronss photos are more formal than others, but the people in front of his camera are wearing their own clothes and posing in their own environments. Aarons, Waldron says, worked almost alone, perhaps with one assistant, but without a stylist or hair and makeup artists. There is something revealing in asking someone to style themselves for the camera. Its a way of unearthing not only how they view themselves, but also how they hope to be seen. Aarons died in 2006 in Montrose, New York. The New York Times praised him in an obituary for his charm that won the trust of jet-setters and movie stars and for his work, which captured fleeting, golden images as his favorites subjects played and preened in a privacy almost unimaginable today. It was Aaronss sense of humanity, to Waldron, that set him apart and allowed his work to stand the test of time. He was always looking for a human moment, Waldron says. And he had an eye for that timeless quality. Aarons, he adds, citing the fashion designer Michael Kors, whom he spoke with for the book, was about style, not fashion. Fashion is tied to time, he says, whereas style is eternal. Slim Aarons: Style by Slim Aarons, Shawn Waldron and Kate Betts (Abrams, 60/$85) is out now The author; her husband, Nick; and from left, their children Peyton, Aiden and Owen, at Children's Hospital Los Angeles before Aiden's first surgery. (Photo: Courtesy of Emily Henderson) Last Christmas, I sat on the floor surrounded by wrapping paper, new toys and happy kids, then 7 and 9. It was like being in a bubble bath with too much soap ribbons and bows flying as each new box was ripped open. It quickly became hard to tell what was a gift and what was trash. The previous year, our 20-month-old son, Aiden, died unexpectedly during surgery to remove a tumor from his brain. It was our second Christmas without him, and I was still getting used to shopping for two kids instead of three. I think its Moms turn to open her stocking, my husband, Nick, said. My daughter brought it over to me, exaggerating her movements as she walked on her knees. I pulled the first thing out of my stocking a plastic, round button, like the kind youd hit if you were on a game show. These are called Easy Buttons. Usually, theyre bright red with white letters that spell out Easy. They became popular in 2005 when Staples began promoting, then selling them. The idea was that you could solve your problem just by hitting this button. The one in my stocking looked like a knock-off it was just plain white with a black base. I looked up at my husband from the floor with one eyebrow raised in confusion and annoyance. Is this for me? I asked. Press it, he replied. I hadnt noticed before, but the kids were watching me closely, waiting for me to press the button too. I pressed it and the room filled with sound. The Easy Button sitting on the author's desk. (Photo: Courtesy of Emily Henderson) There were muffled voices, and I wasnt sure what I was supposed to hear. Then I heard a high-pitched squeal that turned into a laugh. The room blurred, and when I raised my head to look at Nick, gravity took the tears from my eyes and pulled them down my cheeks. It was Aiden playing with his siblings. In the recording, my daughter says Hello, and my older son says Oh no, oh no, and then theres one more loud belly laugh from Aiden. The sound stopped as abruptly as it began, and the room was quiet. Nick broke the silence. The recording is 15 seconds, so if you want to change it, you can. Story continues Its perfect, I said. Nick and the two kids looked proud, and I realized they must have picked out the recording together. I put the Easy Button on my desk and didnt think of it much until my best friend Ashley asked me to watch her toddler, Will. She was having another baby and needed someone she trusted to care for him while she recovered in the hospital. There was never a question as to whether we would take Will. Nick and I are baby people, and toddlers are our specialty. We knew it would be hard, but I thought having a toddler in the house again might be what we needed at this stage in our grief. I wasnt sure if this is something youd be ready for, Ashley said. We cant wait, I told her. Aidens crib was still in our bedroom. We moved it from his room after he got sick, and now its been in our room longer than Aiden was alive. The crib had become a shrine overflowing with blankets and stuffed animals and trinkets from his life. To make room for Will, I piled everything in the crib into a corner, careful not to break the plaster mold of Aidens hand or misplace the plastic bag with clippings of his hair. Then I cleared off my desk. I stacked my books, laptop and favorite pens in the living room. I put the Easy Button on top. Aiden, at 16 months, playing outside in June 2019. (Photo: Courtesy of Emily Henderson) Will is the same age as Aiden was when he was diagnosed with brain cancer. That first night, I listened to Will speak half-words and watched him take half-steps, and for a moment, I couldnt tell who was who. He was doing all the things Aiden was doing before cancer made his smile crooked and his blond curls fall out. My daughter was fully prepared to play mom, and almost started crying when I told her she wouldnt be the one to rock Will to sleep at night. My older son was more reserved. More than once I heard him say Thats just like Aiden, his voice trailing off maybe lost in the memory? Maybe not wanting to remember fully? The next day I asked my older son: How are you feeling about having Will being here? Is it hard for you? He paused, considering the question. No, I mean, its hard but in a good way. Im embarrassed by the part of me that wanted him to be upset, so we could cry together about how unfair it all is. Instead, my 10-year-old made me feel better about things being sad and feeling joy at the same time. The next night, Will was crawling around my pile of things in the living room, and he picked up the Easy Button. I wanted him to press it. This felt like a big moment in our family, and I wanted Aiden to be a part of it. He pressed it, but instead of letting it play all the way through, he kept pressing and pressing so what came out were stops and starts of Aiden laughing. Nick and I smiled at each other from across the room. Aiden (center), with his brother Owen and sister Peyton, visiting Santa for the first and only time. (Photo: Courtesy of Emily Henderson) Throughout the week, I prepared bottles and cut chicken nuggets and strawberries into tiny bites. We sang songs and read books, and I remembered what it was like to look forward to nap time. By the end of the week, we were worn out but satisfied. My friend came to pick up Will, and I witnessed him meeting his baby brother for the first time, and my heart was so full. We did it. We spent a week with a living, breathing, exhausting, adorable reminder of our grief, and we survived; Id say we even had fun. But grief is a sneaky fellow. I had gotten used to seeing bibs, bottles and hooded towels that look like dragons. I fell into the habit of scanning the floor for choking hazards and a crawling baby boy in matching pajamas. And now they were all gone again, and the house was quiet. It was a familiar feeling. After Aiden died, the older kids returned to school, and Nick returned to work; it was just me and the house. I wandered from room to room, looking for what I knew I wouldnt find. Decades before I was born, my mothers brother died in a tragic accident when he was 4 years old. I remember one sepia-toned picture of him on my grandmothers dresser. No one ever talked about him, and I got the impression I shouldnt ask. My grandparents came of age during the Depression. Theyre part of the Greatest Generation, but are also from a time when many people pushed grief into a dark corner and rarely spoke of it. I, on the other hand, had the instinct to keep my grief front and center. I placed bits and pieces of Aiden everywhere so I only had to turn my head a little to be reminded of him. There were pictures all over the house, a pair of socks in the trunk of my car, and the poster my friend made for his funeral leaning against a wall in the living room. It was mid-November when Aiden died. The start of the holiday season also marks the start of the mourning season, a time for gathering around a table that will always have one highchair empty, one fewer letter to Santa, one more turn of the New Year without our son. Aiden (center) with his brother and sister on Easter, 2019. (Photo: Courtesy of Emily Henderson) Our family will never stop grieving, but how that grief expresses itself will change. The things that bring me comfort will evolve. The crib I wasnt ready to take down before is now stacked in pieces in the rafters of our garage. I still catch my daughter playing with Aidens toys, but I know, eventually, the time will come to donate them. Next year we are remodeling our house, and I imagine I will have plenty of opportunities to decide what to display, what to pack away, and what to let go a sort of Marie Kondo process for grief. Never rushed, never forced, never because its something I think I should do. Before my family gave me that Easy Button, I would have called it a useless gift, but it turned out to be one of my most prized possessions. It brings me comfort. It keeps my grief close, keeps Aiden close as I move through these phases. I use it when I need a smile or a cry or when I want to wallow in anger. Its a beautiful reminder. It helps me not to forget not just Aiden, but the love we all shared. That love hasnt gone anywhere. I can still feel it. And by celebrating Aidens life and remembering the joy he brought us, we keep that love alive. I press that button to remind myself that what weve been through isnt easy but in a good way. Emily Henderson is a runner and writer living in Santa Barbara, California. Her essays have appeared in Scary Mommy, Writing Class Radio and the Santa Barbara Independent. She is currently writing a memoir about processing the loss of her son while running every street in her city. You can follow her on Instagram at @emilykathleenwrites or visit emilykathleenwrites.com. Do you have a compelling personal story youd like to see published on HuffPost? Find out what were looking for here and send us a pitch. This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated. More From HuffPost Personal... (Getty Images) Two Georgia election workers have sued former president Donald Trumps attorney Rudy Giuliani and right-wing news network One America News. Ruby Freeman and Wandrea Shaye Moss filed the lawsuit on Thursday in the US District Court for the District of Columbia and said that because of both defendants, the two, who are mother and daughter, have become the objects of vitriol, threats, and harassment. They found themselves in this unenviable position not based on anything they did, but instead because of a campaign of malicious lies designed to accuse them of interfering with a fair and impartial election, which is precisely what each of them swore an oath to protect, the lawsuit said. Ms Freeman and Ms Moss specifically cited OAN owners Robert and Charles Herring as well as reporter Chanel Rion alongside Mr Giulian,i and said they are responsible for assassinating their character. Specifically, the suit alleges that the network engaged in a concerted effort to accuse Ms Freeman and Ms Moss of committing ballot fraud to steal the 2020 presidential election despite knowing the claims were not true. With knowledge that the claims against Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss were not based in fact, OAN has spent the past year accusing them of engaging in the illegal act of election fraud, along with other false allegations. As part of that campaign, OAN repeatedly turned to Giuliani, a member of former President Trumps campaign team and one of the central orchestrators of the conspiracy theory that the 2020 election was rigged, the suit said. Ms Freeman worked as a temporary election worker with Fulton Countys Registration and Elections Department while Ms Moss supervised the countys ballot operation during the election. The lawsuit noted how the Trump campaign retweeted video footage from OAN that allegedly showed that election workers illegally instructed observers to leave and counted election ballots without proper observation. These claims were promptly refuted by state Voting Implementation Manager Gabriel Sterling and Georgias secretary of state Brad Raffensperger. But OAN continued to repeat the claims, as did Mr Giuliani on his podcast. Story continues In sum, Defendants were aware of the numerous statements by Georgia officials disproving the portrayal of misconduct that had been advanced by the Trump campaign, and they also knew that multiple fact-checking organizations had confirmed the facts as presented by the Georgia officials, the suit alleges. The lawsuit claims defamation against all the defendants in the suit, as well as infliction of emotional distress and civil conspiracy for alleged torts against all defendants. Lastly, the suit accuse OAN and Mr Giuliani of aiding and abetting all torts against all defendants. Mr Giuliani was previously suspended from practicing law in both New York and Washington after he spread demonstrably false and misleading statements that directly inflamed the riot on January 6. By Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) - Two more members of the K-pop group BTS on Saturday tested positive for COVID-19 following their return to South Korea from the band's first pandemic-era concerts in the United States, their management company Big Hit Music said. Rapper RM, 27, and vocalist Jin, 29, were diagnosed with COVID-19 a day after Suga, a songwriter and rapper for the seven-member group, tested positive. All three had completed second doses of a coronavirus vaccine in August, the company said. Since their 2013 debut, BTS have spearheaded a global K-Pop craze with catchy, upbeat music and dances, as well as lyrics and social campaigns aimed at empowering young people. The concerts in the United States were BTS' first in the country since 2019, when they toured across Asia, Europe and North America. RM, whose real name is Kim Nam-joon, and Jin, whose real name is Kim Seok-jin, initially tested negative on returning to South Korea earlier this month. RM, who tested positive as he prepared to leave mandatory quarantine, is showing no symptoms, Big Hit Music said. Jin tested negative a second time as he left quarantine, but was later diagnosed after experiencing symptoms, which the company said were mild. Neither Jin or RM had any contact with other group members after their return to South Korea, the company said. (Reporting by Josh Smith; editing by Barbara Lewis) LONDON (AP) British police arrested a man armed with a weapon on the grounds of Windsor Castle on Saturday. Thames Valley police said the security breach took place at 8:30 a.m. on Christmas Day. The 19-year-old from Southampton is in custody. The man has been arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody at this time, Thames Valley Police Superintendent Rebecca Mears said. We can confirm security processes were triggered within moments of the man entering the grounds and he did not enter any buildings." Members of the royal family have been informed. Queen Elizabeth II is spending the Christmas holidays at Windsor, having decided not to stay at Sandringham, the royal estate in eastern England where she traditionally spends the festive season with family. KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The president of Ukraine held a video call with 20 U.S. senators and members of Congress on Friday amid tensions with Russia, which recently stoked fears of a possible invasion by massing troops near Ukraine's border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with the senators and congressional representatives about the Russian troop buildup and the situation in his country's war-torn east, according to Zelenskyy's office. Russia-backed rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine since 2014. A statement from the president's office described the importance of getting the United States involved in the process of a peaceful settlement to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, an area known as Donbas. Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive actions, the statement quoted Zelenskyy as saying. My goal is to stop the bloodshed in the east of Ukraine. It's impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas." Zelenskyy and the lawmakers also talked about applying further sanctions pressure on Russia, Washington's support of Kyiv's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and Ukraine's prospects for NATO membership. Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter tug-of-war since Moscow annexed the Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and threw its support behind the separatist insurgency that has since left more than 14,000 people dead. A 2015 peace deal, brokered by France and Germany, ended large-scale hostilities in Donbas, but efforts to reach a political settlement of the conflict have failed so far. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine reignited over the troop deployment near Ukraine's border. Officials in Ukraine and the West feared it might indicate plans for an invasion, but the Kremlin has denied that intent. Instead, Moscow has accused Kyiv of its own troop buildup in the east, saying Ukrainian military could be planning to reclaim the rebel-held areas by force. Story continues Russian President Vladimir Putin also has pressed the United States for guarantees that would preclude NATO from expanding east to Ukraine. The Western alliance and Ukraine have bristled at the demand. During his call with the American lawmakers and senators, Zelenskyy said not a single third country can have a say in Ukraine's integration into NATO. No agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine, he said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with more than 20 lawmakers during a video call on Friday amid tensions between Kyiv and Moscow. In a statement following the meeting, Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), the co-chairman of the Senate Ukraine Caucus who was on the call with Zelensky, said the conversation touched on Russia's threat to its borders, Zelensky's appreciation for the U.S. military's help and his opposition to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, among other issues. "Today we had an opportunity to hear directly from President Zelenskyy about the ongoing Russian troop buildup along the Ukraine-Russia border and to express our strong solidarity with the people and the democratically-elected government of Ukraine," Portman said in the statement. Zelensky, in a statement after the meeting concluded, said he briefed the U.S. delegation - made up of both senators and representatives - on steps being pursued to attain peace within existing negotiation formats. They also reportedly discussed the importance of U.S. involvement in the peace process, expanding sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation, and cooperation between the U.S. and Ukraine in the security field. Tensions between Moscow and Washington ramped up as Russia amassed a large troop presence on the Ukrainian border. The buildup fueled fear among Western nations that Russia may be planning an attack. U.S. intelligence earlier this year found that Russia was planning a military offensive against Ukraine that could occur as early as next year. The intelligence document, which was obtained by The Washington Post, said the offensive would involve 175,000 troops being deployed near the border. Russia, however, has denied having any such plans. On Saturday, Reuters reported that more than 10,000 Russian troops were leaving regions near Ukraine and returning to permanent bases. The news service cited the Interfax news agency, which quoted the Russian military. Story continues Zelensky, in his statement on Friday, said, "Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive actions," according to The Associated Press. "My goal is to stop the bloodshed in the east of Ukraine. It's impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas," he added. Zelensky also said "not a single third country can have a say in Ukraine's integration into NATO," adding that there could be "no agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine," according to the AP. Russia has called on NATO to promise that it will not expand the group in the direction of Russia's borders, according to Reuters. Moscow is also reportedly concerned about Ukraine's increased association with the alliance. President Biden spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a video call earlier this month, during which the two leaders discussed Moscow's tensions with Kyiv. Biden warned Putin against invading Ukraine, telling the Russian leader that his country would be subject to economic consequences if Moscow mobilized an offensive. Biden also noted the option of de-escalating the situation by diplomatic means with the U.S. and other European countries. Portman, Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), John Cornyn (R-Texas), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.0), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) were all on the call, as were Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Andy Harris (D-Md.), Brian Fitzpatrick (D-Pa.), Michael Quigley (D-Ill.), Bill Keating (D-Mass.), Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), David Price (D-N.C.), Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) and Seth Moulton (D-Mass.). Portman and Durbin, the other co-chair of the Ukraine Caucus, organized the conversation. Enel Green Power North America has begun operating two new clean power plants, including its first renewables-plus-storage hybrid project this year. The new additions come as the company embarks on an accelerated growth plan involving the addition of 6.5 GW of new renewable capacity and 1.4 GW of energy storage over the next three years. One of those projects recently began operations of the 140 MW Rockhaven wind farm in Carter and Murray counties in southern Oklahoma. Rockhaven is Enel Green Powers 11th wind farm in the state, with 49 turbines that can produce enough clean electricity to power the equivalent of over 56,000 households each year. Its also expected to generate over $33 million in new local tax revenue over its lifetime. The Rockhaven wind farm includes 49 turbines that are expected to generate 616 GWh of energy each year, enough to avoid over 359,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually. Through a first-of-its-kind virtual PPA, Wellington Management will purchase the electricity delivered to the grid by an 11 MW portion of the project. The clean energy contracted for Wellington Management is expected to equal or exceed the electricity needs for all of their US corporate offices as well as residential electricity usage of more than 2,200 employees in the US. Jason Stutzman, site supervisor of the Origin and Rockhaven wind farms with Enel Green Power said he and his family live in Ardmore. Im thrilled that Rockhaven is now producing power for Oklahoma, Stutzman said. ...Knowing that the new wind farm is supporting jobs and new tax money for our part of the state means a lot to me. This is just the beginning were going to be around for a long time, and Im excited to keep strengthening our relationships with our neighbors and partners. Enel Green Power is North Americas fifth-largest operator of wind and solar plants and is executing on a growth strategy of adding 6.5 GW of new renewables and 1.4 GW of storage capacity by the end of 2024, in an $8 billion growth plan announced in November. Enel has over 2 GW of new wind and solar capacity currently under construction in the US and Canada, along with over 550 MW of battery storage capacity in Texas. Story continues This milestone signals a new era for our company as we start delivering on our major commitment to grid-scale battery storage in the United States. By pairing renewable energy with storage technology, we are supporting a cleaner and more flexible grid, said Paolo Romanacci, Head of Enel Green Power in the US and Canada. We are ready to answer the call of policymakers and business leaders to accelerate the energy transition in North America. As such, we are committing more investment than ever before to achieve accelerated growth targets. The company currently has a mature development pipeline of around 12 GW and is a key part of Enels global goal to achieve around 155 GW of installed renewable capacity by the end of the decade. Meanwhile, Enel continues to prioritize sustainability throughout the value chain in North America, supporting innovative programs like dual-use solar and investing in the resiliency of local communities through its Creating Shared Value model. Enel Green Power North America is a leading developer, long-term owner and operator of renewable energy plants in North America, with a presence in 14 US states and one Canadian province. The company operates 61 plants with a managed capacity of over 7.3 GW powered by renewable wind, geothermal and solar energy. This article originally appeared on The Daily Ardmoreite: Wind plants bring clean power, revenue sweeping down Oklahoma plains The Fates vocalist and violinist Bella Wells-Fried, vocalist and guitarist Natalie Karrh, and vocalist, pianist, and bassist Lexi McGraw (left to right) on the set of the video shoot in Flag Pond, Tennessee. The original Fates were a trio of goddesses from Greek mythology whose roles were to spin, measure, and cut the thread of human destiny. Today Asheville has its own modern-day Fates in a harmony-driven acoustic trio of friends who are weaving their environmental values and hopes for a sustainable future into their career choices. Bella Wells-Fried, Lexi McGraw and Natalie Karrh met at Ashevilles Odyssey School in a high school music class taught by world-renowned studio musician and composer River Guerguerian. Now attending various universities, they partnered with me this past summer to create a new music video about the need for wildlife crossings near Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Safe Passage: Animals Need a Hand was released on the YouTube channel of Great Smoky Mountains Association on December 10. Word from the Smokies: Road ecology comes to Southern Appalachia Word from the Smokies: New book teaches youths about need for wildlife crossings Each of The Fates is an accomplished vocalist and has played various musical instruments from a young age. Violinist Bella Wells-Fried grew up in Weaverville and is now studying the intersection of creative writing and music with social and environmental justice at Bennington College in Vermont. Ever since I was little, I have been a big empathizer of the natural world, she said. I started attending Odyssey School in third grade, and I decided to continue my education there because Odyssey has a true focus on cultivating each student as a whole person using the integral method, which I really benefited from. Bella Wells-Fried (the elk) began studying violin at age 7. In addition to being a vocalist, she plays many instruments now, including guitar, baritone ukulele, piano, and bass. Bella remembers when she first discovered the uncanny musical compatibility she has with Lexi and Natalie. The first time we put a line of harmony together correctly, we were so excited that we completely missed the next line, but we didnt even care, Bella said. The feeling of satisfaction and connection in that moment was unlike anything Id ever experienced before. When we finally finished the song and performed it at a school open mic, our mentor and English teacher Gabe Johnson told us that we must form a band. So, we did. Story continues Pianist and bassist Lexi McGraw grew up in Arden and is now attending Guilford College in Greensboro, studying guitar performance with a focus on education. Throughout high school she learned about music recording and production in an independent study with River Guerguerian and was a music assistant in his classes. Lexi McGraw (the bear) started taking piano lessons when she was 8 years old. She picked up ukulele at 14, branched out to baritone ukulele as well as guitar at 16, and has just begun studying classical guitar in college. She will be traveling with the U.S. Guitar Orchestra this summer to perform in New York City and Spain. Word from the Smokies: Travis Wilson helps provide safe passage for wildlife in NC Word from the Smokies: Keys to wildlife crossing success on I-40 in the Pigeon River Gorge Working with River has always been an extremely special and rewarding experience, she said. He has always been quick to provide all of us with any musical opportunities available as well as emotional support. It was Guerguerian who introduced The Fates to the idea of supporting Safe Passage: The I-40 Pigeon River Gorge Wildlife Crossing Project through recording a song and music video. Safe Passage is a collaborative effort that has been much in the news since November when the North Carolina Department of Transportation announced a wildlife underpass will figure into replacing the Harmon Den bridge on Interstate 40 between Asheville and Knoxville. River told me about the project and the amazing people behind it, so naturally we wanted to be a part of it, Lexi said. We started out at a piano. River printed out the sheet music for the piece, and we transposed it to a key that would fit our three voices. From there, we brought Natalie and Bella in to add other instruments. We added rhythm guitar, bass, drums, and Bella wrote out a two-part solo on the violin. We refined the melody provided, worked out higher and lower harmonies, and got to practicing. Aerial footage showing the wild, rugged landscape of the Pigeon River Gorge accompanies the final line of the song and music video Safe Passage: Animals Need a Hand, which asks everyone to share this beautiful land." Guerguerian produced and engineered the song recording, on which he plays hybrid percussion kit. Once the recording was in place, it was time to shoot the music video. In the role of director was Joe Lamirand of Indianapolis, who traveled to Flag Pond, TN, for the production. The visual concept of the video was partially inspired by the bands mythological namesakes, The Fates, from their stylized presentation to modern-day hikers symbolizing the animals that have been traveling on the same trails for millennia, said Lamirand. We see Lexi, Natalie, and Bella as subtle representations for bear, deer, and elk, following the ancient trails they have always known and struggling to navigate through these huge, loud, scary human-made obstacles, highways that have divided their land and threatened their survival. Natalie Karrh (the deer) discovered her love of singing as soon as she could talk and started taking guitar lessons at 8 years of age. From there she has gone on to explore piano, bass, and ukulele. Guitarist Natalie Karrh grew up in Boca Raton, Florida, and moved to Asheville at age 15. She is currently studying at Appalachian State University in Boone, majoring in social work and minoring in Spanish. Working on the video was a fun and exciting experience, she said. The first day was spent acting out the storyline of the animals journeys. The second day entailed the more musical aspect of the video. We were so lucky to have such talented and supportive people working with us the whole time. Joe was a very encouraging and patient director with a clear vision that he helped us all execute. Many other people came out to help, each bringing a sense of joy, community, and dedication. Each of the Fates said they felt extremely moved and rewarded when they first saw the completed video, which had nearly 3,000 views as this story was being completed. The Safe Passage project is a perfect project for our band, said Natalie. We want our music to be meaningful and create change. The Fates vocalist and guitarist Natalie Karrh, vocalist, pianist and bassist Lexi McGraw, and vocalist and violinist Bella Wells-Fried (left to right) captured inside the graffiti-riddled tunnel in Unicoi County, Tennessee, that provides their safe passage under the highway in the new music video Safe Passage: Animals Need a Hand. Word from the Smokies: Community scientists discover 70-plus new Smokies species Word from the Smokies: Supervisory Forester Kristine Johnson leaves legacy of preservation Bella said it is critical to weave holistic thinking into our environmental outlook during these unprecedented times in human history. Making sure that we understand the role that we play in the world as a whole, along with every other species, is intrinsic in our goal to reverse the damage that we have done to this planet, she said. Its been really fulfilling to be involved in this project that is producing concrete results toward that goal. Find Safe Passage: Animals Need a Hand on YouTube. Be sure to watch all four minutes as you wont want to miss the antics of the young black bears during the credits. Support the project at SmokiesSafePassage.org. Frances Figart Frances Figart is the editor of Smokies Life magazine and the Creative Services Director for the 29,000-member Great Smoky Mountains Association, an educational nonprofit partner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The sheet music for Safe Passage: Animals Need a Hand appears in her book A Search for Safe Passage. Look for it at SmokiesInformation.org and reach the author at frances@gsmassoc.org. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Word from the Smokies: Fates perform on video to support Safe Passage Dec. 24* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Dancers, ranging from toddlers to teens, took to the stage last weekend to show their talent and help bring holiday cheer. The Yvonne DeKay School of Dance hosted its annual show, "The Magic of Christmas," in the auditorium of Ironton High School on Dec. 18. The production drew a packed house and showcased a variety of dance styles. It was a return for the show, which had to be canceled last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic and limits on mass gatherings. In its place, the school hosted a shortened outdoor performance on Judd Plaza in Ashland. For its return to Ironton this year, the production was a program, written by school owner and operator Yvonne Sinnott. The first part of the show was the more festive, featuring Santa Claus and his elves, candy canes, little mice, toy soldiers and the Christmas and Sugar Plum fairies. For the final act following intermission, the family, who served as the framing device for the story, introduced the "true meaning of Christmas," leading into a Nativity scene, which featured Mary, three kings, shepherds, a drummer girl and angels and told the story of the birth of Christ. Sinnott has owned and operated the school, located at 612 S. 3rd St., for nearly decades and her students are fixtures in local events such as the city's Christmas and Memorial Day parades. She said she is on her fourth generation of students in some families and thanked all who helped put on the show. "We finished in under two hours this year," she said. "A record for us that's quick!" To close, she and the students and instructors onstage led the audience in a singing of "Silent Night," accompanied by the Ironton High School Varsity Singers. The school also hosts a spring dance showcase each year at the high school. Japanese officials are on high alert as the Omicron coronavirus variant has started spreading in communities. Untraceable Omicron infections have been detected in Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, and Fukuoka. The infected people have not been abroad recently. The first community transmission in Fukuoka was confirmed on Saturday. The infected man had been in Osaka and Kyoto until two days before he developed symptoms. Officials are investigating whether he contracted the variant there. The governments of Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo have started allowing residents to take a virus test for free, even if they don't have any symptoms. The weekly average of new daily coronavirus cases is rising. Risk of infection increases during the New Year holidays as many people travel and attend gatherings. Government officials are worried the Omicron variant could spread rapidly and put a strain on the medical system. They are working with local officials to secure hospital beds and boost testing capabilities. The end of the year is usually known as the giving season, but local nonprofit Lasagna Love makes sure the giving season is year-round. Lasagna Love started at the beginning of the pandemic when the founder of a blog, Good to Mama, was looking for a way to help the moms in her community, said Jessie Zahn, regional leader for most of the Council Bluffs and Nebraska area. She and her toddler started making and delivering meals to families in the neighborhood who were struggling, whether that struggle was financial, emotional or simply a feeling of overwhelm, she said. Lasagna Love has been able to deliver over 1,500 meals in the Council Bluffs and Nebraska area, and with those deliveries, as well as events, the nonprofit has fed over 6,600 people in the area. What we do is simple: feed families, spread kindness, and strengthen communities, she said. Our mission is not only to help address the incredible rise in food insecurity among families but also to provide a simple act of love and kindness during a time full of uncertainty and stress. Since it started, the nonprofit has now grown, covering all 50 states, while also growing internationally in Canada and Australia. Lasagna Love as a whole has made over 149,000 deliveries and fed over 600,000 individuals in less than two years, Zahn said. Volunteers, or Lasagna Chefs, are always needed for the program. In the area there are 125 active volunteers, and over 14,000 volunteers internationally. To volunteer visit lasagnalove.org/volunteer. There are no requirements or stipulations about the program, and anyone is able to sign up to receive a home cooked meal, Zahn said. It is a great program for those looking to volunteer because you can set it up completely around your schedule, she said. I am a working mother of three children, so finding a program that could work around my busy schedule was very important to me. You can volunteer as often as you like, even if it is just one time. If you like to cook and are interested in volunteering, it is a wonderful program to try. Visit lasagnalove.org for more information about the program. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The Council Bluffs Municipal Airport will receive a $295,000 grant from the bipartisan infrastructure bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov. 15. Just what the local airport can use the money for is unclear, Executive Director Andy Biller said. The terms of the grant are not defined yet, so we arent to a point where we can say how it will be allocated, he said. The grants are expected to be administered in a similar fashion to the FAAs Airport Improvement Plan grants, Biller said. He thinks it will be renewed annually for five years. The Airport (Authority) does annually approve an Airport Improvement Plan, he said. In all likelihood, we will go to that plan. The plan calls for completing a parallel taxiway started 10 years ago and doing site preparation for an area that would be opened up for private development, Biller said. The airport also has three grants from the Iowa Department of Transportation that havent been used. Those would be used for construction of a maintenance facility and installation of new signage, he said. However, Biller doesnt know how closely the FAA will follow the AIP grant model. AIP allows us to save funds for up to four years before we expend it, he said. If it all has to be used in one year, that might limit the projects it could be used for, Biller said. Staff will consult with airport users and work with the Council Bluffs Airport Authority, the FAA and IDOT before making specific plans. The FAA and IDOT have been significant funders for the airport for many years, he said. When specific terms are ironed out for the federal grant, the FAA will post it on its website so everyone can see it, Biller said. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. DAVENPORT (AP) Davenports 81-year-old Centennial Bridge across the Mississippi River creaks under the weight of tens of thousands of cars and trucks every day. Rust shows through its chipped silver paint, exposing the steel that needs replacing. This citys aging landmark is among more than 1,000 structurally deficient bridges in the area. The tally gives Iowas 2nd congressional district the dubious distinction of having the second-most troubled bridges in the country. So, it struck some Iowans as strange when the districts Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks voted against a bill that would pour more than $100 million in federal money to repair and replace bridges into southwest Iowa. Miller-Meeks objected to majority Democrats handling of the bill, never mentioning its contents, a common refrain from the minority that overwhelmingly opposed it. If anyone in Iowa was surprised that the Republican would oppose money for a glaring local priority, few in Washington were. Strategists and onetime party leaders note its become so common for lawmakers to prioritize their partys line over district needs that its hardly mentioned. The old all-politics-are-local axiom has been significantly eclipsed by one that says all politics are national, said Tom Kahn, a 33-year Capitol Hill staff veteran who teaches congressional strategy at American University. Democrats are banking on voter backlash to this trend. As they press to push through a $2 trillion spending package, following the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, theyre hoping voters punish lawmakers like Miller-Meeks for opposing major new investments in health care, climate change mitigation and child care. But even vulnerable lawmakers like Miller-Meeks who was elected in 2020 with a winning margin of just six votes dont appear worried about paying a price. In New Mexico, Rep. Yvette Herrell, a GOP freshman, voted against the infrastructure bill and its $100 million per state for improving broadband internet access. A quarter of the homes in Herrells rural district lacked internet as of 2019. In Californias Central Valley, Rep. David Valadao could have told families of 194,000 children he supported expanding a middle-to-lower-income child tax credit in the Biden administrations $2 trillion sweeping spending bill. Valadaos agricultural-heavy district has more children whose parents fit the requirements for the monthly $300 per child than that of any Republican targeted by Democrats. Valadao voted against the bill, which passed the House and is now stalled in the Senate after Sen. Joe Manchin stunned fellow Democrats by announcing last weekend that he would not support the bill as is. Miller-Meeks office did not respond to several requests to discuss her vote. In her written statement issued publicly after the vote, she said she would have supported an infrastructure bill that was not tied to the larger spending package, as Democrats for months worked to move them in tandem. I will not support a bill that is directly tied to a multi-trillion dollar reckless tax and spend package, she said in the statement. Miller-Meeks and others are offering the procedural explanation, when really they are following the national trend of party loyalty, demonstrating the shift from the time-honored politics of bringing home the bacon, GOP observers said. Thats a company line, as I would call it. Ive seen that by others, said former New York Rep. Tom Reynolds, a former chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. Things have changed. It used to be I brought back a number of things for my district. Now its, I held firm against the opposition. Thats due in part to former President Donald Trumps still-heavy sway over the Republican Party. Trump called for party primary challenges for the 13 GOP House members who backed the infrastructure bill. Defectors were blasted as traitors and socialists by some House GOP colleagues, such as right-wing Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Michigan Republican Rep. Fred Upton received a voicemail wishing death to him, his family and staff. Theres probably still room for people who are making their cases on local issues, said John Ashbrook, a former aide to Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader. But there is so much national pressure shaping your image if youre a House member. Your fate is in the hands of the national mood. Miller-Meek had previously asked for money to improve Mississippi River infrastructure. She was among 38 House members from Mississippi River states who wrote to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Dec. 9 asking it to prioritize $2.5 billion for modernizing locks and dams. The American Road and Transportation Builders Association diagnosed 1,064 of the bridges 20% in Iowas agricultural and industrial 2nd district as structurally deficient. That is, provisionally safe but with chronic repair needs. Two of them, including Davenports Centennial, cross the Mississippi in the Quad Cities, a mid-sized, industrial metro area of about 475,000 people. The bridges lace Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa, and Rock Island and Moline, Illinois, a national crossroads of river, rail and highway commerce struggling to maintain its status as a farm machinery hub. Behind Centennial as the most traveled structurally deficient bridge is the 50-year-old Mississippi crossing on Interstate 280, a Davenport bypass that links to Interstate 80, one of the nations busiest freight routes. Paul Rumler, president of the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce, lobbied Miller-Meeks to support the infrastructure bill. Commerce slows dramatically during the annual repairs on multiple bridges, he said. In June, the Interstate 280 bridge and the 55-year-old Interstate 80 bridge up river near Davenport were partially closed for repair, pushing westbound traffic back into Illinois for miles. Having a long-term predictable federal infusion of funding is helpful so that we can get out of this day-to-day maintenance and think about long-term needs, Rumler said. And the Quad Cities is certainly one of those places that has long-term needs. Planners are eyeing a new Mississippi River bridge at Interstate 80, a 3,000-mile femoral artery linking metro New York with San Francisco. Aaron Tennant owns trucking and shipping companies on both the Iowa and Illinois sides of the Mississippi. This month, after six years under construction, a new bridge opened connecting the town of Bettendorf, Iowa, and Moline, Illinois, on Interstate 74. But last summers delays cost Tennant productivity. It frustrated commuters and added extra stress to older bridges such as Centennial. The Republican, who describes himself as very conservative, says he voted for Trump twice, knows Miller-Meeks well and that shes done a good job. But he doesnt understand why she voted against the infrastructure bill. While the larger social spending package troubles him a bit, Infrastructure funding is unique because thats one piece I dont mind having money spent on because it directly creates jobs. Tennant said he would have to have a conversation with the congresswoman to understand her position better. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. NEW YORK (AP) Beneath a pale winter light and the glare of television cameras, it seemed hard not to see the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot for what it was. The violent storming of the Capitol by Donald Trump supporters bent on upending the election of Joe Biden was as clear as day: democracy un We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. The Arab League has asked all its offshoots to adopt a unified map of the Arab World including Moroccos full map from Tangier to Lagouira. The Arab League has sent a formal statement to all its affiliates with a map attached, Moroccos news agency reported. The new measure not only conforms to reality on the ground but represents for Morocco another diplomatic victory in the Arab World. The Arab League decision came after the Algerian delegation protested the display of Moroccos undivided map during an event held by the organization of Arab Women. Algeria has mobilized its diplomacy and resources to defend separatism in southern Morocco to no avail and has received a series of blows recently on the back of the growing support for Moroccos sovereignty over the Sahara. Since the US recognition of Moroccos territorial integrity, all US diplomatic missions and agencies now use the official Moroccan map including the Sahara where over 20 countries opened consulates. The city of Ogallala and Nebraska Public Power District are poised to make the Keith County seat NPPDs seventh retail town with a community solar farm. The Ogallala City Council Dec. 14 approved buying 13.53 acres south of Country View Campgrounds where solar panels will be installed, Interim City Manager Jane Skinner said last week. The project should allow the city to cut its NPPD power bills and allow Ogallala residents to do likewise by subscribing for shares, said Pat Hanrahan, the districts general manager for retail services. Its 1.5-megawatt capacity would be a very small percentage of NPPDs total power generation, but the impact it will have on the community of Ogallala will be greater, he said. Ogallala is one of 79 Nebraska cities and villages where NPPD both sells and delivers electricity. North Platte buys its power from NPPD but distributes it to residents and businesses through city-owned Municipal Light & Water. Hanrahan said GRNE Solar of Lincoln, which will lease the site and build the solar farm, should start construction this spring and likely will bring it online next summer. BEAVER CITY Five men were sentenced Wednesday in Furnas County District Court for their involvement in a sex trafficking case. The men were sentenced after William Billy Quinn was given 176.5 years in prison for 13 counts of sexual assault and sex trafficking of a 15-year-old. During the sentencings, Corey OBrien with the Nebraska Attorney Generals Office said that it has become more and more obvious to distinguish in sex trafficking cases the difference between someone who exploits and sells someone for sex and a person who buys someone for sex. OBrien noted the power and manipulation that Quinn had not only over the victim but also over the adult men to make poor decisions. In some ways, they were victims of Quinn, OBrien said during the sentencings. The prosecution noted that the mens cooperation in the investigation and testifying at Quinns trial was valuable. The prosecution stated that these men did make terrible decisions, but each of the men had minimal criminal history before this case and were at low risk to offend again. The prosecution did not actively advocate for jail time for each of the men. As another year draws to a close, we have a lot to be grateful for. The recent tornadoes and storms brought hurricane-force winds and left thousands without power. But as powerful and dangerous as these storms were, Nebraska avoided disaster. Other states havent been as fortunate. Earlier this month, Kentucky was devastated by a series of tornadoes that killed dozens of people and reduced entire towns to rubble. Nebraskans sprang into action, just as we always do. The Red Cross of Nebraska and Southwest Iowa sent volunteers to hand out food, blankets and other essential items. Members of Nebraska Task Force 1 also traveled to Kentucky to help with the recovery. And many more Nebraskans have rushed to donate blood. Stories like these are why I am so proud to serve as your U.S. senator. Working together, we can overcome any challenge and accomplish great things. That includes important victories we have won for our state during my time in public service. This year is no exception. From working to protect cattle markets to supporting our veterans and securing a well-deserved pay raise for our troops, Nebraskans can be proud of what we achieved. DALLAS (AP) The wife of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was arrested Christmas Eve on a domestic violence charge that the right-wing provocateur said stems from a "medication imbalance. Sheriff's deputies took Erika Wulff Jones into custody and booked her into an Austin jail around 8:45 p.m. Friday. Jail records show the 43-year-old faces misdemeanor charges of assault causing bodily injury to a family member and resisting arrest, search or transport. She had not received a bond Saturday afternoon. Alex Jones, an Austin resident and founder of the right-wing media group Infowars, declined Saturday to say whether he'd been injured or elaborate on what happened beyond that he believes it was related to his wife's recent change of medication. Its a private family matter that happened on Christmas Eve," Jones told The Associated Press in a brief interview. "I love my wife and care about her and it appears to be some kind of medication imbalance. The Travis County Sheriffs Office did not immediately respond to a request Christmas Day for the report on Wulff Jones arrest and a spokeswoman said she could not provide more information. An attorney for Wulff Jones did not immediately respond to a request for comment. I want it now Reply Thread Link Simone Ashley is so gorgeous. I'm going to miss Rege-Jean's handsome face, but I'm still looking forward to the new season. Reply Thread Link Of course the one English white male I find attractive is gay Reply Thread Link What about the guy who plays Benedict, Luke Thompson? I find him very cute. Reply Parent Thread Link Are there plenty of hot people added? Reply Thread Link yes Reply Parent Thread Link I feel like this will be the season of Simone Ashley and I'm so here for it. Reply Thread Link Ugh take Emily in Paris from us and give us this instead. We deserved it. They all look gorgeous. Im glad I had Dash and Lily to binge this Christmas atleast. Edited at 2021-12-25 05:53 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link That was a cute show. Reply Parent Thread Link It's my comfort Christmas binge now. I watched it like three times last Christmas. I've seen it once this time. Might just get a sneaky watch again. Reply Parent Thread Link didnt watch s1 but simone Reply Thread Link looking forward to simone ashley and kate's story! also i hope they at least lay the groundwork to unfuck marina's life Reply Thread Link I have a feeling theyre going to really change Eloises story since Julia gave them the go ahead. Reply Parent Thread Link I hope they change everything about Eloise's story because if they don't... Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I hope so because her love story is The. Worst. Reply Parent Thread Link God Simone Ashley is gorgeous. I wish it was a Christmas release like last year :( Edited at 2021-12-25 06:08 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link Im here for Graha Tias sexy VA to be back on my TV Reply Thread Link I hate this show. Wasn't even sexy. Like if I wanna watch tv sex I'll watch outlander or something Reply Thread Link mte. i watched it super stoned on edibles in one day and it was TERRIBLE. Reply Parent Thread Link I cringe-watched this horny hot mess and haaated the "childfree couples will never experience true happiness and fulfillment!" messaging. So...yes, I will be watching season two. Reply Thread Link Between Bridgerton and the Witcher it really felt like Netflix was shoving this "not having babies is traumatic" plot down our throats. And yet I watched season 2 of Witcher and will absolutely watch season 2 of this. It's just so frustrating that so many people still think women's whole purpose is to have kids to the point where not having them is such a common tragic plotline. Reply Parent Thread Link oof this put me right off watching the show. I probably never would have given it a go anyway, but this sealed the deal. lol. I can't be effed watching that kind of crap. D: Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Yesssss here for Simone!! Shes so beautiful and based on the clip they released a few months ago shes gonna kill it!! Reply Thread Link i'm so excited for this! i thought s1 was just ok but i read the book s2 is based on and it was quite fun Reply Thread Link The United States has responded in kind, stating that it will levy harsh sections if Russia makes any more aggressive moves towards Ukraine. Russia has ramped up rhetoric, warning that it was willing to take military measures if the West launched unfriendly actions with regard to Ukraine The U.S. and Russia are looking to hold talks to discuss the Kremlins security proposals next month. The United States and Russia will likely hold bilateral talks to discuss Moscow's security proposals next month as the Kremlin ramped up is rhetoric by again warning it was prepared to take military measures if the West launched "unfriendly" actions with regard to Ukraine. "We will decide on a date together with Russia, and we believe that that will take place in January," Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried said in a call with media on December 21. Donfried said that NATO will be holding a meeting on December 21 to discuss inviting Russia for talks on its proposals. Meanwhile, she said the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) was working out how it wants to engage Russia. "My sense is that we will be seeing movement in these channels in the month of January," she said. Russia on December 17 published sweeping new security demands it is seeking from the West that would essentially give Moscow a sphere of influence in neighboring countries while rolling back many of the advances NATO has made in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union since the 1990s. The demands were laid out in the form of two draft agreements with the United States and NATO. Donfried said that some of the demands were unacceptable and that Russia knows this, but added others merited discussion. She did not elaborate. The Russian security demands come as the Kremlin amasses about 100,000 combat-ready troops near the border with Ukraine in what the United States has said could be a prelude to an invasion as early as next month. Analysts have said the military buildup could be aimed at strengthening Russia's position at the bargaining table with the United States and NATO. Russia is seeking a commitment from the West that Ukraine will not join NATO, calling it a "red line." Most analysts say that Ukraine is at least a decade away from joining the security alliance. Donfried called on Russia to pull back its troops, saying talks can only succeed in an atmosphere of de-escalation. Earlier in the day, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg reiterated the alliance's support for Ukraine, saying it backed Kyiv's "right to choose its own path." Addressing concerns among the military alliance's eastern contingent, Donfried said that NATO will consult with all 30 members as it engages in talks with Russia. Related: U.S. Oil Rig Count Jumps Along With Crude Prices Speaking the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he hoped for constructive talks with Washington and Brussels on Moscow's security guarantees and that there were signs the West was ready to work on the issue. "Armed conflicts and bloodshed are absolutely not something we would choose, we do not want such a scenario," Putin said. He said Russia's proposals were no ultimatum, but it had nowhere to retreat over Ukraine and in a meeting with Defense Ministry officials, he took a much sharper tone, saying that if the West continued its "obviously aggressive stance," Russia would take "appropriate retaliatory military-technical measures". Russia "will react toughly to unfriendly steps," he said, adding that he wanted to underscore that "we have every right to do so." Donfried said that any Russian aggression against Ukraine would be met with powerful sanctions by the West. "We have been clear that we would respond with strong economic measures that we have not considered in the past, and that would inflict significant costs on the Russian economy and financial system," she said. By RFE/RL More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Education Cousins adjust to OPS middle school but miss their parents in Afghanistan ANNA REED, THE WORLD-HERALD Cousins Mohammad Idrees, 14, and Mohammad Wali, 12, walk home from the bus stop after their day at Davis Middle School near 132nd and State Streets. The cousins and their uncle fled Afghanistan and live in Omaha, but the boys parents are still in Afghanistan indefinitely. ANNA REED, THE WORLD-HERALD Mohammad Wali, 12, rests against the couch in his Omaha apartment on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021. He and his cousin are refugees from Afghanistan who settled in Omaha within the last few months. The cousins' faces are not being shown to protect relatives still in Afghanistan. ANNA REED, THE WORLD-HERALD Mohammad Sahil, facing, an education and training supervisor with Lutheran Family Services, speaks with Mohammad Sadiq, a recent Afghan refugee who settled in Omaha with his nephews. Just getting to school in Afghanistan posed lurking dangers for cousins 12-year-old Mohammad Wali and 14-year-old Mohammad Idrees. The Taliban used violence and threats to keep the cousins and their classmates away from school. Bombs were once planted around their school, and members of their family had been kidnapped and even killed for their efforts to transport students. The family moved from a rural area to a city in Logar province, near the capital of Kabul, to try to escape the violence. But when the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August, the family could no longer take the chance of staying. The cousins and their uncle, Mohammad Sadiq, fled from Afghanistan, eventually making their way to Omaha, where Wali and Idrees are among more than 40 Afghan students in the Omaha Public Schools. Here, they are adjusting to a new reality. While they are no longer in constant danger or exposed to harsh discipline at school, they are learning to navigate the state's largest district without knowing the English language. About 500 Afghan refugees have arrived in Nebraska; resettlement agencies swamped Finding housing is proving to be a challenge. While many people have been placed in apartments or rental houses, some are staying in such temporary lodging as Airbnbs and extended-stay hotels for now. A few Afghan students have enrolled in other districts, but the majority so far have been placed in OPS, said Mohammad Sahil, education and training supervisor for Lutheran Family Services, one of the two resettlement agencies that place people in Omaha. He expects the Omaha area to receive 300 to 400 more students as more evacuees reach Nebraska from U.S. military bases around the nation. Wali, 12, arrived in Omaha almost three months ago, and his cousin and uncle arrived in mid-November. All three live in an apartment in northwest Omaha with another person from their Afghan neighborhood. Families typically spend a month in an Airbnb before getting placed in a permanent residence in Omaha, Sahil said. The children arent allowed to enroll in school until they have a permanent address. The parents are actually calling in to enroll their children as soon as possible, Sahil said. They are getting bored at home. The kids are telling their moms and dads that they want to go to school. The students arrive with varied educational backgrounds, and usually speak little to no English. Sahil said one of his clients has a teenage son who had never gone to school in Afghanistan but needed to enroll in an OPS high school due to his age. His dad was telling me, Is there any way we could put him in an elementary? Sahil said. And I said no, thats not possible. Im not blaming him, but there is help for him in high school, so I am sure he is going to learn English very soon. Omaha area schools adjust mask protocols in preparation for 2022 Some Omaha metro school districts are choosing to enforce strict mask mandates while others are relaxing protocols in preparation for when students return in January after winter break. OPS offers services to help refugee students acclimate to an American education, said Jaimie Cogua, coordinator of English learner, dual language, migrant and refugee education. The district had 2,581 student refugees during the 2020-21 school year, but Cogua said she expects that number will continue to increase as more evacuees arrive. Each student who enrolls completes a survey to identify their needs. If necessary, the student will be enrolled in English learner classes and will receive support from those teachers while getting used to their new school. Oftentimes, the (English learner) teacher will do a general orientation to the school to show them where the bathrooms are, or provide them with some key survival phrases, Cogua said. Students are taught such things as how to ask to use the restroom, get a pencil or get something to drink. Those are the kind of things that "anyone might need to know if they're someplace new, Cogua said. The phrases also are part of the English learner curriculum at Bennington Public Schools, said Lisa Schonhoff, the districts English language learning teacher. Shes the only English learner teacher for the district but also works with two paraprofessionals. The district is looking to hire two more teachers because of an increased need for services. Millard South graduate delays med school to help trapped Afghans escape Safi Rauf, who immigrated to Omaha from a refugee camp in Pakistan in 2010, delayed medical school so he could spearhead efforts to help imperiled Afghans and Americans escape from Afghanistan. The number of English learner students in the Bennington district has grown from 12 in 2017 to 58 this year, she said. Only one of those students is a recent Afghan evacuee. Most English learner staffers dont know the language their students speak. There are more than 10 languages spoken at Bennington. At OPS, that number tops 100. Schonhoff said she mostly teaches phonemically, which means teaching words based on their sounds. She also teaches English through visuals, such as taking a picture of a classroom and having her students label everything in the room. Schonhoff said it takes about a year for an English learner student to be comfortable speaking openly in English with other people. A typical student will use the services for four years before exiting the program. I had a kindergartner who came from Afghanistan, and he has been with me through third grade, and he will be exiting my program this year, Schonhoff said. He is right where he needs to be. It's amazing to see the progress they make. In OPS, Afghan evacuees, along with other refugee students, typically are paired with another student who can speak their language to make school easier to navigate, Cogua said. The district also has a Teen Literacy Center, which is a program for high school students with previous interrupted or limited education. OPS extends mask requirement into second semester Superintendent Cheryl Logan said masks will still be required inside all Omaha Public Schools buildings when staff and students return after the winter break in 2022. OPS is still looking to hire a bilingual liaison who speaks Pashto or Dari, the two common languages spoken in Afghanistan. For now, the district contracts with Sahil, who helps the students enroll in school, get acclimated to the classroom, and go to English learner classes. He even helps them do homework at night. Before any evacuees arrived in the Omaha metro area, Sahil created a guide for school administrators and teachers about Afghan culture, he said. Basically, if youre a teacher working with an Afghan student, this is what you should know, he said. Sahil said, for example, that Afghan women do not make eye contact or shake hands with a male. A younger person also wont make eye contact with an older person. We were just telling (the teachers), if someone isnt making eye contact with you, this doesnt mean youre being ignored, but this is just part of the culture, he said. School in Afghanistan is also offered in three short shifts instead of lasting all day like it does in the U.S. Race is on to provide housing for Afghans and other refugees coming to Omaha Nebraska resettlement agencies have committed to settling at least 775 Afghan evacuees, including more than 500 in Omaha. Meanwhile, they had been expecting up to 700 refugees from other nations. Idrees and Wali said that they are grateful for many of the differences between their Afghan and American educations. The cousins spoke with a reporter through Sahil, who served as an interpreter. Idrees, who is in eighth grade at Davis Middle School near 132nd and State Streets, said he and his cousin like that they can spend all day at school rather than just a few hours. He also likes reading books and writing small stories. Wali, a sixth grader at Davis Middle School, likes to make art with materials like crayons and Play-Doh. Both Wali and Idrees said they also are thankful they no longer are exposed to physical punishment at school. In Afghanistan, if a student was late, disobeyed or couldnt understand a lesson, they could be hit with a stick, Sahil said. For Wali, one of the worst aspects of living and going to school in Omaha is the absence of his parents, he said. He often cries at night after talking with them on the phone. Omaha apartment complex shows how refugee housing can be done right Most of the tenants at Omaha's Fairview Apartments were once refugees, mainly from Southeast Asia. Landlord Juan Batista has invested in buildings as well as relationships. Both Wali and Idrees parents are still in Afghanistan, and Sahil said hes unsure if they will ever be able to come to the U.S. It's kind of making me emotional now because I cannot imagine it, Sahil said. Sadiq, who is now the sole caretaker of Idrees and Wali, said that while hes happy to be safe in Nebraska, he constantly worries about the safety of the rest of his family back in Afghanistan. Sahils own family members also are still in Afghanistan, and he hasnt seen them in several years, he said. All of our families are over there. We are still waiting to see what happens, Sahil said. Just waiting and trying. But theres nothing we can do. Airlines canceled hundreds more flights Sunday, citing staffing problems tied to COVID-19, as the nation's travel woes extended beyond Christmas, with no clear indication when normal schedules would resume. More than 700 flights entering, leaving or flying within the U.S. were called off, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware. That figure was down from nearly 1,000 on Saturday. More than 50 flights were already canceled for Monday. Delta, United and JetBlue have blamed the omicron variant of the coronavirus for staffing shortages that forced cancellations. "This was unexpected," United spokesperson Maddie King said of omicron's impact on staffing. Globally, airlines scrapped about 2,200 flights as of Sunday morning, down from more than 2,800 from the day before, FlightAware's data showed. The site does not say why flights are canceled. JetBlue scrapped 10% of its flights Sunday. Delta canceled 5% and United canceled 4%, according to FlightAware. The three airlines canceled more than 10% of their scheduled flights on Saturday. American Airlines spokesperson Derek Walls said the Christmas cancellations stemmed from virus-related sick calls. Airlines cancel flights due to COVID staffing shortages NEW YORK (AP) Airlines canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels at some carriers during the busy holiday travel season. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines together canceled more than 600 flights on Friday and Saturday. As of early evening Friday, Delta canceled had 149 flights on Friday and 188 for Christmas Day, according to FlightAware. (Other factors, such as weather, are also causing cancellations.) United called off 189 flights on Friday, about 10% of its schedule, and 140 on Saturday. Planned cancellations continued into Sunday. Not all airlines said COVID was disrupting their travel schedules. American Airlines said it had nothing to report, while Southwest Airlines said things are running smoothly. JetBlue, which FlightAware said had canceled nearly 150 flights over Friday and Saturday, did not respond to a request for comment. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year. Airlines encouraged workers to quit in 2020, when air travel collapsed, and were caught short-staffed this year as travel recovered. LOS ANGELES (AP) T. Mark Taylor, artist and toy designer for the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe franchise as well as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, died Thursday at his Southern California home. He was 80. The cause was congestive heart failure, Taylor's family said in an email to The Associated Press on Saturday. He-man was the muscled frontman for toy manufacturer Mattels Masters of the Universe franchise, which would later spawn an animated series that became a staple for children. Kids squeezed in homework between scenes featuring the strapping cartoon hero as he battled sorcerers and other villains. He-Man was the epitome of hulking superhero warrior but also became an icon within the LGBTQ community, who saw parallels in the secret life of Prince Adam, He-Mans alter ego. As in the case of many creative endeavors, many hands shaped the franchise. Taylor has said the prototypes date back to his own childhood as he fantasized about being the next hero. He said he based the concept of He-Man on his vision of Cro-Magnon men, as well as Vikings. Earlier this month, more than 100 physicians and other health care providers across Nebraska signed a statement supporting increased vaccination among children and teens. While Penners account has been suspended and his tweets are hidden, tweets from other users that Penner has retweeted are still visible. Penner retweeted a tweet that says, police are patrolling the streets to check peoples health papers to see if they are allowed to be there, in an apparent reference to Europes response to the coronavirus pandemic. We used to think this was only something that happened in Nazi Germany in the past. In an apparent reply to a tweet from U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Penner wrote, according to a screenshot, a medical doctor with pronouns in his bio has zero credibility. ZERO. (Many people have begun to list their preferred pronouns with their professional biographies in an effort to foster an inclusive culture.) Religious war Do those powers and factions that have for decades worked to move the United States away from its higher purpose of freedom for all, realize that history may be repeating itself and that they may instead be waking a sleeping giant? While our two major political parties, who should be working to strengthen America, engage instead in pitched battles against each other, they are not defending the United States from inside and outside enemies. Also, the movement to remove a belief in God or a higher power may have the opposite effect for those who do believe. The hate groups formed to cause unrest and dissension, are instead sending people of faith to their churches and mosques and temples and to their knees to pray to restore the balance and ask for peace among all people here and around the world, and I believe we will win this war. Each week The Pantagraph profiles a different community member. Know someone we should talk to? Email kheather@pantagraph.com. Name: Carrie Vogel Position: Newly appointed agriculture literacy coordinator for the Newly appointed agriculture literacy coordinator for the McLean County Agriculture in the Classroom program 1. What is Ag in the Classroom and what types of hands-on learning do you plan to bring to McLean County classrooms? Mclean County Agriculture in the Classroom provides free resources to local schools and teachers to help students learn about food and farming, from the science and technology used to grow crops and raise livestock, to the wide variety of careers available in agriculture. I look forward to bringing a variety of opportunities for hands-on learning about food and farming to McLean County classrooms. We offer lessons on things like apples and pumpkins, learning about dairy products by making butter or ice cream, and exploring energy and natural resources using STEM-based activities. Other subjects include corn, soybeans, beef, pork, pollinators, soil, ag innovations and many more. 2. What new agriculture technology are you excited for students to learn about? I'm excited to show students the kinds of technology today's farmers use as they continue to embrace precision agriculture tools on their farms. Farmers are using inputs and crop protection products more efficiently because they can gather very specific data for each field. Technology continues to improve the machines farmers use to grow crops, as they now use global positioning systems and even auto steer in their equipment. On the livestock side, technology continues to enhance the way farmers care for animals and the way they approach animal nutrition. There is so much science and technology that goes into modern farming practices, and that can be very eye opening and exciting for students. Agriculture continues to change at a fast pace as technology impacts the way our food, fiber and fuel is produced. It's important that agriculture literacy efforts keep up with these changes, especially as fewer and fewer people have any sort of direct connection to farmers and production agriculture. McLean County students are surrounded by agriculture in so many ways, and we aim to help them recognize how it affects them every day. 3. What experience are you bringing to this position? I grew up on a dairy farm and was very involved in 4-H and FFA while growing up. I have a degree in agricultural communications from the University of Illinois and spent the first 15 years of my professional career as a farm broadcaster for local radio stations, including WJBC. More recently, I have been on staff at a local preschool and also have done a fair amount of substitute teaching for both the Unit 5 and District 87 school districts. This position will allow me to bring skills and experiences from both ag communications and education together to continue to share the importance of agriculture in local classrooms. 4. How can McLean County advance itself as a leader in the state for agriculture and agriculture literacy? McLean County has the advantage of having one of the larger population centers in downstate Illinois while still maintaining a large production agriculture base. Residents of McLean County are always just moments away from farms and fields and the families who raise crops and livestock. In addition, agriculture businesses are economic drivers in our area and provide many jobs in local communities. Strong and growing agriculture programs at both Illinois State University and Heartland Community College offer great opportunities for students to find a career in production agriculture or agribusiness. Helping area students and their families to understand the importance of agriculture from a young age will help McLean County to continue to lead when it comes to agriculture and agriculture literacy. 5. What are you learning from your predecessor, Bridget Caldwell, about the job? Bridget has spent more than eight years building relationships with teachers and connecting them with local farmers and agriculture contacts. I'm learning that McLean County teachers are excited to include agriculture lessons and use free resources we can offer to enhance student learning. I'm also learning that while McLean County Agriculture in the Classroom has many lessons and activities already prepared to teach students about a variety of areas, the sky is the limit when it comes to what we can provide. If teachers have an idea about something agriculture-related they'd like to share with their students, they just need to ask. If we don't have something already available, we'll work to develop something that will meet their needs. We have great partnerships with many local entities, including the University of Illinois Extension and the McLean County Farm Bureau, who offer support for the program in a variety of ways. Contact Kade Heather at 309-820-3256. Follow him on Twitter: @kadeheather Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. BLOOMINGTON A Bloomington woman remains jailed on an aggravated battery charge. Sarah R. Mellor, 35, is charged with one count of aggravated battery of a peace officer, a Class 2 felony. Authorities said she was in an argument with a friend Thursday and police arrived after a caller reported a male and female yelling at each other. Mellor attempted to return to her residence, but a police officer told her she could not because authorities were still investigating. She shoved the police officer, knocking his lapel microphone off his uniform, court documents said. Mellor was jailed in lieu of posting $5,035. An arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 14. A booking photo was not immediately available. Contact Kade Heather at 309-820-3256. Follow him on Twitter: @kadeheather Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. ST. LOUIS Running one of the best-known sandwich shops and bakeries in St. Louis was hard work, Marge Amighetti admitted. I worked hard, but I didnt feel like I worked hard. It was a challenge every day, she said. Amighetti, a McLean County native, is the widow of Louis Junior Amighetti, the second-generation owner of Amighettis Bakery on The Hill in St. Louis. Together, Marge and Junior Amighetti expanded the bakery into a popular sandwich shop. Much of the shops popularity can be traced to the Amighetti Special, invented by Marge Amighetti and first served in 1969. The restaurants current menu says it took her eight months to develop. Amighetti would often find herself meeting her husband down at the bakery at 4 a.m., she said. She would have some new idea for the sandwich. Eventually, she landed on a mix of roast beef, ham and salami with some toppings, including pepperoncini and a special sauce. It was the best time of my life and my husband was the best baker ever, she said. Customers can still buy the real deal at Amighettis location in Rock Hill, Missouri, a St. Louis suburb. The flagship location in The Hill has closed after legal problems with a franchisee, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, but current brand owner Anthony Favazza has plans to open a new location in the neighborhood. Route 9 roots For Marge Amighetti, it all started a little ways east of Bloomington along Illinois Route 9. She was born Marge Sanders in 1927 to a farming family. Her father rented around 300 acres from George J. Mecherle, Amighetti said. She remembers sitting on his knee as a child and backing Mecherle up when he tried, and failed, to get her father to invest in State Farm. She also knew the Belt family, including Steak 'n Shake founder Gus Belt and his daughter Wanda Belt. Growing up around these enterprising families was something that stuck with her through her later life, even after she moved away from McLean County, she said. Maybe thats what instilled in me to take Amighettis and make it grow, she said. She also came into contact with other Bloomington-Normal movers and shakers while working in The Pantagraph's classifieds department in the early 1950s. I was with The Pantagraph, at least, probably four or five years. I really enjoyed that position, Amighetti said. Sometimes the mix of city and rural coverage in her job would lead to humorous situations, she said. One time she was working at the front desk when a man came in irate about a classified ad that he had placed but had not run. 'My ad is not in the paper, I paid for two weeks,' Amighetti remembered him saying. The ad had been for Poland China pigs, something Amighetti was familiar with from growing up out in the country. She called over the woman who had taken the ad, who had grown up in town. She said, Oh, I thought that was dishes, Amighetti said. Another famous Bloomington resident worked at The Pantagraph at the same time as Amighetti. She remembered Jerry Sohl as a sort of outsider in the newsroom, but overall a great guy. He was going to write a science fiction book; everybody thought he was all kinds of crazy, she said. One day Amighetti took her coffee break to line up with his and followed him up the road to a cafe to talk with him about his book and encourage him in his dream, she said. Sohl went on to write more than 20 science fiction novels along with film and TV scripts, including for "The Twilight Zone" and "Star Trek: The Original Series." He was fascinated by the Earths future, Amighetti said, and she thinks he would be amazed by the advancements and changes in todays world. She remembers her time at The Pantagraph fondly and a friend, Lincoln Heritage Museum Director Olivia Partlow, often brings Amighetti copies of the paper. Living on The Hill A husband took Amighetti to St. Louis. While the marriage did not last, the move did. The Hill is a great place to live, St. Louis is a great place to live, she said. In 1960, she was working as an apartment building on-site manager when she heard that Amighettis needed a new bookkeeper. The bakery was just a couple blocks away, so she went over and applied. She got the job, but an unsolved break-in and battery put Junior Amighetti, and the bakery, out of commission for a while, with uncertain futures. Eventually, he was ready to reopen the shop. He took her out to dinner and asked her to come back to be his right arm, Amighetti said. And I said, Do I accept this as a proposal? she said. He agreed, and in the 1970s she eventually became Mrs. Amighetti. Working at the shop gave her a chance to meet thousands of people, many from around the world. She kept a guest book to have people sign, and still looks through them at times. Their partnership lasted for decades, until Junior Amighetti died in 2001. They had expanded the business together, taking it from just the one restaurant in The Hill to a chain of franchises. They reached a licensing deal with Anheuser-Busch for a time, Partlow said. However, a boycott of the brewery by other area restaurants that sold Anheuser-Busch beers led the brewery to sell the rights soon after. As the Amighetti's brand grew, locations could be found as far as Springfield, Illinois, Partlow said. In 2016, Favazza purchased Amighettis, and he has since become good friends with Marge Amighetti. He plans to open a new location in The Hill sometime next year, Partlow said. Amighetti remains a supporter of the restaurant in Rock Hill and is looking forward to the new location and the return to The Hill. At 94, Amighetti hopes for at least another 11 years, she said. She will take what she can get, however, and says she is enjoying her life as each day comes. She still lives in the St. Louis area. It was just wonderful to have the privilege to be Mrs. Amighetti, she said. Contact Connor Wood at (309)820-3240. Follow Connor on Twitter: @connorkwood Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. A 27-year-old man was fatally wounded Friday afternoon, and eight other people were shot, including a person who was injured in a police- involved shooting on the Near West Side, Chicago police said. No police officers were injured in the shooting that happened shortly after 1 a.m. Christmas morning in the University Village/ Little Italy neighborhood in the 1300 block of West Hastings Avenue. According to a preliminary statement by police, tactical officers on patrol on West Hastings saw two males brandishing handguns. As the officers approached the subjects, one of them opened fire toward the officers. The officers returned fire, and one of males was struck, police said. The other male suspect fled on foot, but was caught by responding officers and taken into police custody. The wounded suspect was taken to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries, police said. Two weapons were found at the scene. The Civilian Office of Police Accountability was investigating, and the officers involved in the shooting will be placed on administrative duty, police said. The fatal shooting happened about 3 p.m. Christmas Eve on the Far South Side in 12000 block of South Wallace Street in the West Pullman neighborhood. A 27-year-old man was in an alley when someone shot him multiple times to the body. He was pronounced dead at the scene. He has yet to be identified. In other shootings since Friday afternoon: Shortly after 5 a.m. Christmas Day, a 37-year-old man was shot in the 7000 block of South Stony Island Avenue in the Grand Crossing neighborhood. The victim was inside of a business when a vehicle pulled up to the drive-thru and someone fired shoots through the window striking the victim. He was taken in good condition to the University of Chicago Medical Center, police said. Shortly after 2:30 a.m, two women, ages 39 and 21, were both shot in the West Woodlawn neighborhood in the 6400 block of South Rhodes Avenue. Police said the victims were standing on the sidewalk when shots rang out, striking the older victim to the left leg, and the younger woman to the face. Both women were taken in good condition to U of C Medical Center, police said. About 11:35 p.m. Friday, a 25-year-old man and an 11-year-old boy were both shot in the right leg by a known suspect while they were inside an apartment in the 5400 block of North Austin Avenue in the Jefferson Park neighborhood. The man and the boy were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in good condition, and the shooter was in custody, police said. About 5 p.m. , a 31-year-old man was shot while he was in a parking lot of a gas station in the 1900 block of West 47th Street in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. Police said a dark-colored SUV pulled up and someone inside opened fire, striking the victim to the right leg. He was taken to Stroger Hospital and listed in good condition. Shortly before 4:30 p.m., a 38-year-old woman was shot in the back while she was traveling east in the 3900 block of West Harrison Street in the Lawndale neighborhood. She was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital and listed in good condition, police said. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Hatty, the Cook County states attorneys first-ever courthouse comfort dog for young abuse victims, only got through one case before the pandemic closed courtrooms and left her on the sidelines. But as court operations have resumed in recent months, Hattys human handlers a veteran prosecutor and victim witness specialist said the highly trained 4-year-old black Labrador is ready to get back to helping young abuse victims find their voice. Hatty is one of a growing number of courthouse comfort dogs used throughout the country since such programs began in the late 1980s. As of December, 273 courthouse dogs work across 41 states, according to the Courthouse Dogs Foundation, a nonprofit that champions the use of such dogs. Lake, Will and Kane counties are among those in Illinois that use the program, according to the organization. The courthouse dog program is proving to be so popular that it is expanding outside the United States in places such as Canada, Europe, the United Kingdom and South America. For some young victims, the Labradors calm, friendly demeanor quickly brightens what would ordinarily be a melancholy affair dealing with painful memories. Both of her handlers have witnessed firsthand the power of Hattys gentle presence. Victim witness specialist Stephanie Coelho recalled a recent instance of a young girl who had been nearly silent when questioned about past instances of abuse until she met Hatty. The kid would not say anything, Coelho said recently while sitting with Hatty and her partner Jillian Anselmo inside a soft room at the states attorneys offices at West 26th Street and South California Avenue. She was just terrified. She definitely didnt want to talk about the abuse, Coehlo said. Fast-forward to a few weeks ago and I introduce her to Hatty, and the moment Hatty gets on the couch with her she hugs Hatty and you could just see that anxiety shed away and fall off. She did a full prep, talked about all of the abuse and what she needed to do for her testimony down the road. She did a very good job. There were struggles, but she talked about it in ways that she never talked about it before in previous meetings. Its amazing its like flipping a switch, said Anselmo, an assistant states attorney who shares dog care duties with Coehlo. Thats kind of her magic that shes kind of a lump. Shes very calm and comfortable. Hattys assignment during trial is a choreographed affair. Both Hatty and the child are put into the witness box outside of the presence of the jury, and Hatty sits at the childs feet during the testimony. Most of the time, the jury never sees her. The use of dogs like Hatty helps combat an age-old dilemma involving young abuse victims who struggle to speak about their experiences in court. Getting abused children to open up can be a delicate process. Prosecutors are trying to create a bond with the victim to make them feel safe enough to retell their trauma in open court, all while trying to avoid any emotional triggers. One of the bigger problems is that the kids shut down and you get nothing, said Anselmo, who works with sex abuse and domestic violence victims. Theyre on the (witness) stand, theyre sworn in and ready to go, but theyre not responsive at all. All were trying to do is give them the ability to speak and give us the facts and tell us the truth about what happened to them. After young victims are interviewed by police investigators, Anselmo and Coelho say they first gauge their comfort level with speaking before they conduct their first interview. If the child is comfortable around dogs, they may introduce Hatty at an early stage. We dont want to talk about the facts at the first meeting, Anselmo said. We need these kids to get comfortable with us, and the biggest part of building the rapport with the children is having (Hatty) there. If this child doesnt trust the three of us, its going to be a long, hard road. Courthouse dogs are different from other types of service animals because of the extensive training they receive. Dogs like Hatty are screened for temperament before they begin their training at just 3 weeks old and work with an assorted number of trainers. Duo Dog, the St. Louis nonprofit that trained Hatty, said its dogs undergo two years of training at its 20,000-square-foot facility before they are placed. After placement at a courthouse, the dogs are cared for by professionals such as prosecutors, law enforcement officers and even judges in different jurisdictions. Hatty has different commands where she can sit at their feet, lay at their feet, put her head in their lap while sitting on the floor next to them. Most kids prefer to have them just like this on the couch, said Coelho as Hatty laid across her lap. She is perfect for this type of job because shell sit with kids and be dead silent. She went on to advanced training to become a facility dog. Thats kind of like the upper echelon of service dogs, Coehlo said. Prosecutors are required to file a court motion seeking a judges approval before a courthouse dog is used during proceedings. Nationally, the use of the courthouse dogs has been marginally controversial as some defense attorneys have shown concern, fearful that the presence of the dog would put their clients at a disadvantage, but Hatty has not been rejected at any trials for which the state has sought to use her. Most of the judges are really cool with this, Anselmo said. They are really comfortable with this, because we definitely balance the rights of the defendant for what were trying to do here. After hours, Hatty is like any other dog. She loves her toys and treats and cuddling. Sharing dog duties requires close coordination between Coehlo, who takes the dog home most nights, and Anselmo to make sure all of Hattys basic needs are met. We work the Hatty stuff out as we go ... getting her in a routine of feeding her, getting her out to go potty. That can be crazy sometimes because Im in court, (Coehlo) is in a meeting with victims, Anselmo said. We have to coordinate getting her a bathroom break. When in my history as a states attorney have I ever had to contemplate that? I barely can get to the bathroom sometimes. Hattys charms dont only work on children. Her handlers say theyve seen her have the exact same effect on stressed colleagues. A lot of partners will come in when theyve had a hard day and they will sit with her. A lot of people on the staff will come in just to see her and visit her, Anselmo said. We work with this subject matter for so long, you try to stay focused and compartmentalized, and then you sit down and watch her, how she quite literally in front of your eyes can change a kids life, she said. I really mean that. You cant buy or manufacture that. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Despite mandates, COVID-19 vaccination rates among workers at many nursing homes in Illinois remain at low levels, health officials say, prompting concerns that the rise in cases statewide could again endanger the elderly. In Illinois, 89% of residents at long-term care facilities and 83% of workers were vaccinated as of Dec. 19 but some facilities remained far below those marks, according to federal data. While 62% of residents who got vaccinated also had received booster shots, just 25% of vaccinated workers had gotten a booster. Mark Cooper, 72, who lives in a south suburban nursing home he preferred not to name publicly, said his roommate died from COVID, and the experience was crushing. Even so, he said, some workers refuse to get the vaccination, some residents wont wear masks, and theyre still waiting for boosters. Its a nightmare, Cooper said. Its been a big concern of mine for a year. Id like to see the mandate take effect. Get it or youre out. The numbers are unacceptable, and much more needs to be done, especially with the new omicron variant spreading, according to Lori Hendren, associate state director for AARP Illinois, part of the national advocacy group for people over 50. As the variant continues to draw our attention and concern, Hendren said, we have to continue to prioritize our most vulnerable residents in nursing homes in getting access to vaccines and boosters. Late this summer, Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered all health care workers in Illinois to get fully vaccinated or be tested for COVID. President Joe Biden also issued a mandate for vaccines or testing for health care workers at federally funded facilities, which includes the many nursing homes that take Medicaid or Medicare. The federal order had been delayed by a judges injunction, but an appellate court largely reinstated the mandate this month. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Wednesday it would hear arguments in the case Jan. 7, along with arguments over Bidens mandate for workplaces with more than 100 employees. Republican-led state attorneys general and others have challenged the orders, arguing they exceed federal authority, and that people have the right to make their own medical decisions. In line with the mandates, the Illinois Department of Public Health has made it a goal to get all long-term care residents and staff members vaccinated, citing its help to reduce infections, hospitalizations and deaths. While the program to get nursing home residents vaccinated at the beginning of 2021 was initially delayed in Illinois, it was largely successful, prompting a dramatic decrease in cases and deaths. Worker vaccination rates started low but have slowly but steadily climbed. But lagging participation at some sites is particularly concerning, health advocates say, because when visitors were banned, workers were believed to be the primary source for spreading the infection. The pandemic ripped through nursing homes, at one point accounting for about half of all COVID deaths statewide. The rates of new infections and deaths for both residents and workers, after falling near zero this summer, have crept up again this fall, though still far below their peaks last winter. Some facilities lagged substantially behind the state average, according to federal statistics reported by the state. For instance, just 60% of workers had been vaccinated at the Austin Oasis on Chicagos West Side, and 64% were vaccinated at ProMedica Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation in Oak Lawn. Neither home returned requests for comment. One out of three facilities didnt report results, and at some downstate facilities, only about half the workers were vaccinated. Still, others have vaccinated all or almost all their residents and employees. Elmhurst Extended Care Center mandated the vaccines for employees, and had vaccinated all of its workers and all but one of its residents, co-owner and administrator Love Dave said. We obviously want to keep everybody safe, Dave said. It takes effective communication and trust. We explained the importance, and eventually they bought in. A few older employees chose to retire rather than get the shot, he said. The home is also scheduling upcoming booster shots. As a stand-alone, family-owned facility, the home stands in contrast to the trend in the industry of large corporate-owned chains. The site can hold 108 beds, but one unit is closed to serve as a COVID isolation area, and about 20 beds were removed from three- and four-bed rooms to make more space among residents, he said. With temporary staffing agencies raising the cost of wages, Dave said, its challenging to attract employees to do the work, emphasizing the need for greater funding from Medicaid. The Health Care Council of Illinois, which represents more than 300 skilled nursing facilities in the state, supports vaccine mandates for all health care personnel, including for home and community-based services. Our members have spent countless hours formulating plans to educate, encourage and collaborate with residents and staff members to get vaccinated, said the councils executive director, Matt Pickering. Unfortunately, long-standing staffing shortages have only been made worse by the pandemic and widespread resignations, Pickering said, citing federal statistics that skilled nursing and residential care lost 14% of its work force. Many homes have been forced to hire agency staffers at double the cost to reach minimum staffing levels. Pickering called for more federal funding to increase long-term staff wages, training and hiring. In the spring, state lawmakers plan to consider a proposal to tie increased funding to increased staff levels and quality of care. For now, the slow uptake of vaccines by workers comes despite state and federal mandates. Employers are responsible for enforcing the state mandate for vaccines or testing, Illinois Department of Public Health spokeswoman Melaney Arnold said. State officials said they checked with every long-term care facility to make sure they have a booster clinic scheduled on site. All but 25 of about 1,600 long-term care facilities had a plan for distributing the shots or declined the states offer for help. Cooper blames owners, not administrators, saying theyre doing the best they can, but the wait for boosters is frustrating. Like everything else, its like pulling teeth, he said. Were supposed to get boosters in the new year but it may be too late. Tribune reporter Joe Mahr contributed. OAK BROOK Authorities on Friday were investigating what led to a shooting at a crowded Chicago-area mall that left four wounded. The shootout at the Oakbrook Center in Oak Brook was between two men who apparently knew each other, Oak Brook police Chief James Kruger said. It happened at around 5:45 p.m. Thursday in a outdoor corridor of the mall near an Ann Taylor and Nordstrom store. The suspected gunman who was in custody underwent surgery for gunshot wounds to his legs and back and was expected to survive, police said. Three women who were bystanders suffered non-life-threatening wounds to their legs or feet and a fourth woman broke her ankle while fleeing, said police. This is just a very unfortunate incident that is completely out of character for our area, Kruger said. About 100 police officers responded to the mall about 15 minutes west of Chicago. Shoppers and employees took shelter in backrooms of stores as the search for suspects continued. Watch now: Calls mount for changes at Amazon after tornado More elected officials on have called for a review of safety policies at Amazon's warehouses following a deadly tornado earlier this month, but none have yet committed to leading an investigation into possible building code revisions. Police said they recovered two pistols. They hadnt made a final determination as to how many shots were fired, but witnesses told them they heard as many as 15. Alex Gay, 23, said she was walking in the mall when she suddenly saw people running. She didnt hear any gunshots. Im shook up, Gay said. It was scary. Everyone was sprinting out of the mall as sirens went over intercom saying, Emergency. Evacuate. Seek shelter. I almost got trampled. Kruger said police already had increased their presence at the shopping center after a well-publicized looting incident in recent weeks, and that an officer on duty, who heard multiple shots, was able to respond immediately. The police department has been taking this very seriously to make sure the mall and our community are being kept safe, he said. Tonights isolated incident is extremely upsetting for our shopping center community, Lindsay Kahn, a spokeswoman for mall owner Brookfield Properties, said in a statement. We are grateful to our partners at the Oak Brook Police Department for their diligence in leading this developing investigation. The mall was open for business on Friday. The Associated Press and Chicago Tribune contributed to this report. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 EFFINGHAM The Effingham County Board has established a child care research committee to address difficulties related to the service. A delegation from the Community-Based Planning Project led by Meghan Rewers, director of Crisis Nursery of Effingham County, recently addressed the Tax and Finance Committee, highlighting the need for child care in Effingham County. The group in previous meetings tried to get $375,000 of the $6.6 million of the county's American Rescue Plan Act funds to create incentives for select day care workers in Effingham County. The group approached the Tax and Finance Committee to create a special county board committee dedicated to the local child care problem. Rewers and Community-Based Planning Project members informed the committee about the problems parents and child care centers are having in Effingham County. They include cost of child care, lack of students on the collegiate level entering the low-paying child care profession and lack of staff available due to low wages. Also speaking to the committee was Emily Debenham, co-owner of Joe Sippers in downtown Effingham. She explained to the committee members experiences she and her husband, Brennan, were having trying to find child care during their work hours. Brennan Debenham is co-owner of Joe Sippers and a registered nurse at HSHS St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital. The Debenhams have four children: a 6-year-old son and three daughters ages 4, 2 and 6 months. "We've been in this child care 'cat and mouse' game for a long time," Emily Debenham said. Carla Holtz, operator and owner of Little Lambs of Effingham, said she was dealing with a worker shortage. She said problems with child care started in 2015 when centers started to close and the COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on the survival of day care. "The whole child care system fell apart. I've been in early child care in Effingham since 1997," Holtz said. "Everyone is trying to find workers. Why can't anyone get workers? The price they are willing to pay at fast food restaurants ... (is) a minimum wage we are not suppose to get (in Illinois) until 2023. The pay has always been low. Last year the average pay for a child care worker was $11.19 an hour and we've never been able to provide benefits." She said the educational requirements and experience needed before a child care worker can be eligible to be employed is more than some want to do for a low-paying job. "There is a major teacher shortage," she said. "We feel like a committee would be a great thing to consider and a great next step to help us sort out this problem," Rewers said. "This is an important issue. This is a serious problem that is affecting our county," said County Board member Norbert Soltwedel. "I like this idea of a steady committee. I propose we name a committee to address the needs and report back to this board solutions to this problem." The Tax and Finance Committee then voted unanimously to establish a special child care research committee, which was approved Monday afternoon by the full county board. Members of the committee will be appointed by the board at a later date. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 EFFINGHAM The city of Effingham has a new fire chief after six months of waiting. Brant Yochum, a battalion chief with the Vincennes (Indiana) Fire Department, was appointed the new head of the department at a city council meeting this week. Yochum replaces Bob Tutko, who retired July 2 after three years as the Effingham chief and 41 years overall as a firefighter. Assistant Chief Matt Kulesza served as the interim chief while the city searched for a replacement. Yochum will officially be sworn in Jan. 10. Yochum has spent 18 years as a firefighter and 11 years in that role in a professional capacity. He began volunteering with the Vincennes Township fire department at age 15 as a junior firefighter, rising up the ranks before taking his first professional job with the Washington (Indiana) fire department in 2011. Yochum, a native of Vincennes, returned to his home in 2013, where he has spent the last eight years. He was attracted to Effingham by the city's vitality and the strength of its fire department. He found the strong staff at the department, not to mention the leadership of the city, was a selling point for him to come to Illinois. "Effingham's got a great, strong fire department," Yochum said. "They're an ISO (Class) 2, which is a huge accomplishment for any fire department. The staff is great. Everyone I've met so far has been nothing but nice and easy to work with and I know they always make safety a top priority. That's the top priority for me." For Yochum, it helps the Effingham department is similar to that of Vincennes, as the crews are smaller than those normally seen in places like the Chicago area, where Tutko and his predecessor, Joe Holomy, hailed from. "It's going to be an easier transition," Yochum said. "I'm used to running with smaller crews. It's going to be a different adjustment for them (the staff) in a good way." Yochum is looking forward to bringing the lessons he has learned through the years of being a firefighter and learning about leadership and management through a series of courses. As a battalion chief in Vincennes, he did have some hands-on experience leading a department during his shift, so he's not coming into Effingham without a little bit of experience running a staff. "When I'm on duty, I will be in charge of the city (firefighters)," Yochum said. "That's going to bring some different leadership and management experiences. As a chief, you're going to be able to do the whole spectrum (of leadership). It's definitely going to be a step up for me." He's excited to get to work and raise a family in Effingham, with two kids and a baby on the way in March. His goal at the beginning is to make the transition to a new chief smooth for everyone in the department, in addition to getting his feet wet within the community and getting involved. "The department's a great department already," Yochum said. "I really want to make sure we transition (and) make sure it's as smooth as possible. I'm hoping to meet with different members of the community, all the members of the fire department, all the different political leaders the mayor, the City Council and other county political leaders. Safety is always my top priority and I want to make sure that we continue to do everything safely." In other matters, the council: Approved a series of resolutions to facilitate the expansion and realignment of Ford Avenue eastbound past Charlotte Street and Avenue of Mid-America. The city approved the dedication of the right of way from D&A Farms, owners of the land currently past the end of the street, in addition to purchasing the land itself to be developed. The council also approved an agreement with The Farnsworth Group, a national engineering and architecture firm, to facilitate the expansion. Construction is slated to begin in the summer. The new alignment could lead to further economic development, as it sits parallel to Interstates 57 and 70. Council member Larry Micenheimer said the proximity to the major highways would be a boon for Effingham. "It's a great core with unlimited potential," Micenheimer said. "Other communities would give their left leg for something with interstate access." Approved a replat of the property formerly belonging to John Boos & Co. at the corner of Fayette Avenue and Willow Street. The property will include five lots with space for business development and will be designed to allow for IDOT's eventual expansion of Fayette. Discussed a potential upgrade to the city's water meter system. The city is proposing to replace the current Neptune R450 with a R900 system from the same manufacturer. The replacement comes in response to the continuing failure of transmitters across the city, leading to a need to try and upgrade the system as the technology becomes out of date. The process of updating each transmitter and each meter in the city to the new system will take anywhere from seven to 10 years. Reviewed the city's annual building report. Building official Michelle Lilley said the investment of construction in the city sat at $36,136,748.56, up 63% from the average of the previous three years. The city collected $56,908.57 in fees, with 1,500-plus inspections being conducted. More accurate reporting in future years will likely rely on the addition of new software that could update the city's ability to provide permits and inspect facilities. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 100 years ago Dec. 25, 1921: The Salvation Army distributed 170 food baskets for the poor on Christmas Eve, and the Elks provided another 200. At the post office, the rush is supposed to end today, but the overnight trains brought a lot of mail and late packages that all need to be sorted and delivered. 75 years ago Dec. 25, 1946: Billy Shelper will serve Christmas dinner this afternoon at the Home Sweet Home Mission on Main Street. He has food for 150 and dinner is free to everyone. Shelper cooked the turkey yesterday. Its just one of the various types of fowl and meats on the menu. 50 years ago Dec. 25, 1971: Christmas unwraps these gifts, which will keep on giving in the future: Don Stone Ford will build a new facility; CBS announces The Mary Tyler Moore Show; and Al Pizzamiglio, the well-known local band leader, married Sherry Benet on Wednesday night. 25 years ago Dec. 25, 1996: Last nights Christmas Eve service at Redbird Arena drew 4,000 people. The service was put on by Eastview Christian Church. The program was filled with stories of Jesus and his mission, and featured group singing of many of the old favorite Christmas carols. Compiled by Jack Keefe; jkeefe@coldwellhomes.com. The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has called on the public to check for expiry dates of products as they shop for Christmas. The state agency responsible for the inspection, certification and proper distribution of foods and food products as well as drugs in the country said, the consuming public needs to be wary of unwholesome products on the market. Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and staff awards organised by the FDA in Tema on Thursday, December 2021, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Authority, Mrs. Delese Mimi Darko, assured the public that the FDA would on a daily basis, continue with its market surveillance and look out for expired, unregistered and unwholesome products to get them off the market. Integrity In her speech at the event, the FDA boss said, the public health and safety of the citizens of this country rests squarely on the integrity of each individual in our organisation. She, therefore, urged all staff members, to be honest, remain disciplined, and carry out their functions with honour and pride. One person can make a difference and it is our collective effort that makes our organisation credible and trustworthy, she said. Achievement of goals Mrs. Darko stated that in spite of the numerous challenges that confronted the FDA during the year, the Authority succeeded in achieving each of the goals it set for itself, adding that working together, the staff had made significant strides in their performance in the year. She said at the beginning of the year, the whole nation relied on the FDAs technical assessment of the COVID-19 vaccines and expert advice for the successful on-boarding and deployment of the five vaccines which had been approved for use in the country. Professionalism Mrs. Darko said the professionalism and commitment to duty exhibited by the staff won the FDA the admiration of many, including President Akufo-Addo, who, in a number of addresses to the nation commended the FDA for its efforts. She disclosed that the FDA, in the short to medium term, is looking forward to establishing a strong support system that would enable the food and drugs industries to produce quality made in Ghana products as the Authority is working to support the local enterprises to take advantage of the tariff-free intra-Africa trade opportunities that the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) offers. She said the country, through the FDA, continues to make significant strides in tobacco control in line with the countrys obligations under the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). Mrs. Darko added that this year, the country successfully ratified the Protocol on Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products which would take effect on January 20, 2022. She, therefore, urged the staff to intensify public education and sensitisation activities in the coming year. Our market surveillance activities have also resulted in several product recalls and public alert notices which have won us public confidence and admiration, she stated. Awards Awards were presented to staff who distinguished themselves in their various departments, including the Colleague of the Year, and the Overall Best Staff of the Year, which went to Mr. Andrew Buabeng. Source: graphic.com.gh Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Ghana Journalists Association, GJA, is counselling media practitioners in the country to provide avenues for consensus building as the nation enters Year 2022, rather than stoke any conflict or tensions. GJA President Affail Monney in a Christmas Message said 2022 promises to be more challenging with the expected return of the controversial debate on E-levy and the jostling for positions by political actors in readiness for the next elections. All this underlines the need for the media not to stoke the embers of conflict nor fan the flames of tension. Rather, they should create a consensual framework to help resolve burning national issues and scale other formidable hurdles so to put the nation on a path of political toleration, democratic ascendancy, peaceful co-existence, and meaningful development! The GJA said in the course of the passing year, the media front witnessed the display of distinctively distilled journalism, while on the flip side, there were ethically bankrupt practices which spell a negative image for the profession. The GJA said in all, the media have been diligent to their mandate and dutiful to the public by holding duty bearers to account, exposing acts of corruption, oiling the wheels of democracy and feeding the citizens with vital news and information, including the dishonourable spectacle in Parliament over the chaotic E- levy debate. The Message expressed the hope and prayer of the GJA that journalists will resume work from their well-deserved Christmas break re-energized and re-focused to navigate the New Year with a high sense of professionalism and absolute fidelity to the values we hold dear as responsible media practitioners. The GJA expressed profound gratitude to God for lavishing his grace on all media practitioners, media owners, and media consumers in the year. It is also customary to wish our senior journalists, editors, online editors, film editors, sub-editors, film reporters, bloggers, presenters, producers, cameramen, camerawomen, proofreaders, and social media activists a Merry Christmas and Productive New Year. Source: graphic.com.gh Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video 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. Corporate Communication Specialist and Head of Corporate Communications for Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC), Mr. Ernest Owusu-Bempah, believes Hard Work pays if one endeavor to deliver or does something extra ordinary when necessary. Mr. Ernest Owusu-Bempah who is also the Convener for a pressure group affiliated to the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) for #Fixing the Country Movement, is known of his articulations and vocal on Political, Social and National issues that needs public discourse. Due to his Communication outputs and footprints, he has been awarded Best Corporate Communication Man of the year 2021, by Corporate Ghana Awards organizers, in Accra. The Ghana Corporate Awards is a prestigious awards programme that recognizes and rewards individuals and companies that play a significant role in the growth and development of their sector while recognizing the key functions within the sector that promote growth and sustainability. Mr. Ernest Owusu-Bempah speaking with the media after receiving the Award, says, achievements and the successes of corporate entities and individuals depend on efforts, innovation and excellence stalwarts for their contribution based on their dedications. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video " " The Puritans were the ultimate Christmas killjoys when they got to the New World. GraphicaArtis/Archive Photos/Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Once upon a time in America, Christmas was not a big deal. It might be difficult to fathom now, when ads for chocolates and jewelry pop up before Thanksgiving, and decked-out trees appear in living rooms shortly after. In fact, Christmas used to be flat-out illegal. When the Mayflower landed at what is now Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in 1620, the Pilgrims brought some serious baggage. They were aiming to establish a colony and a new way of life in the New World. One thing the Puritans wanted to leave behind: Christmas. Advertisement In England, as in much of Europe, Christmas was rife with unbridled partying. The harvests were done. The cattle were slaughtered so they wouldn't have to be fed in winter. That made fresh meat and fresh wine as well as time to eat, drink and carry on plentiful. Puritans didn't buy into the idea of Christmas. The Bible notes no date for Jesus' birth. In the Puritan mind, then, there was nothing to celebrate. "Christmastime had really gotten out of hand. What was going on in England, with the feasting and the gambling and the general debauchery, they took as a sign of the decline of civilization and a decline of all the things that they valued," says Penne Restad, a history professor at the University of Texas and author of the book "Christmas in America: A History." "So they were really positing this idea of not celebrating Christmas as an opposition to all the decay of English society." They were so serious about treating Dec. 25 as just another day that everyone on the Mayflower some, mind you, were not even Puritans worked on the first Christmas Day in America. They didn't get time-and-a-half, either. Letting Loose ... Kind Of The non-Puritans in the bunch were not as keen on a Christmas ban. Restad says it wasn't long before they acted out. "Some of these newcomers refused to work ... one of those first Christmases," she says. "William Bradford [the English Separatist and early governor of Plymouth Colony] said, 'OK, that's fine, until you're better informed, that's OK.'" "Apparently, they went out on the street the word at the time was 'frolicking' playing street games. He basically told them to take it indoors. [He said] 'I don't mind if you're doing this, but I don't want to see any of it. It sets a bad tone.' Those were not his exact words, incidentally." Not all of America was so against the idea of celebrating Christmas. Settlements in the southern part of America, like the one in Jamestown, Virginia, let loose. But the Puritans kept a stranglehold on fun in New England. The ban never was completely successful, though. From "The Battle for Christmas: A Social and Cultural History of Our Most Cherished Holiday," by Stephen Nissenbaum: It was fisherman and mariners who had the reputation of being the most incorrigible sinners in New England, the region's least "reformed" inhabitants. Maritime communities such as Nantucket, the Isles of Shoals, and (especially) the town of Marblehead, were notorious for irreligion, heavy drinking, and loose sexual activity; they were also repositories of enduring English folk practices places that ignored or resisted orthodox New England culture. It's no coincidence that Marblehead was also a site of ongoing Christmas-keeping. A changing society, though, would not be denied. From "Christmas in America: A History": In the end, whether slowly in New England or more rapidly in the middle colonies and the South, the forces of pluralism and the need for social harmony shaped and encouraged Christmas celebration. Yet its status as a holiday remained haphazard and varied widely. It would take the project of nation-building in the wake of the Revolution to begin to define an American conception of Christmas. Even after the Colonies united and became a nation, years passed before Christmas became the holiday we know it as today. Congress was in session on Christmas Day 1789, the year after the Constitution was ratified. The Senate worked on Christmas Day 1797. The House met on Christmas Day in 1802. " " Christmas in New Orleans, 1886. Apparently by this time, Christmas merriment was a bit too much for some people. bildagentur-online/uig via getty images Finally, Christmas Christmas began to take its present form later in the 19th century. Different religions and denominations Protestants and Catholics among them emerged in America, and they held Christmas as both a holy day and a day of celebration. The Puritans noticed. "[The Puritans] are sort of being introduced to varieties of religious experiences that can't help but start to kind of wear away one's commitment to a single way of thinking," Restad says. Different religions formed local governments, and trade between various networks helped calm the antipathies between the factions. As the New World prospered and a middle class was born, the idea of giving and receiving Christmas gifts took hold. An emphasis on home and family followed, away from the "frolicking" in the street and the male-centered celebrations involving drinking, feasting and sex. Finally, in 1870 250 years after the Puritans landed at Plymouth and put the squeeze on the idea of Christmas as a celebration the U.S. declared Christmas a national holiday. Ever since, celebrations big and small, secular and nonsecular, have marked the day. Now That's Interesting Scholars disagree about why Christmas is celebrated on Dec. 25, considering there's no mention of the date in the Bible. One often-spouted theory: That date was picked to overlap Saturnalia, a celebration honoring Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. In effect, the date co-opted a pagan holiday to encourage the acceptance of Christianity throughout the world. Advertisement Originally Published: Dec 2, 2016 However, that meeting was just the beginning. Since Harrell just had a baby boy too, Kitchel wanted to thank him for his compassion. "I asked him if he had a baby registry he could share with us and him and his fiance had not had a baby shower," she said. She posted his registry links online and nearly everything Harrell and his fiance needed was gifted to them by people they didn't even know. "Complete strangers. I wouldn't know them from a can of paint. Just God's vessels," said Harrell to us Thursday afternoon. He says he also received a promotion at work. "My life kind of turned around and changed overnight." But the biggest gift, they both say, is a friendship they've formed, that all started with less than twenty seconds of kindness. "I don't want it to be a one-time deal. Not a season, for sure, a lifetime," said Harrell. Kitchel says there's also a bigger lesson we can all take away from this. "It's so easy right now to focus on what isn't going right and the fact that we all got to see somebody just take a second in their day and show an easy act of kindness, that really meant a lot." Local featured No federal beach work for North Wildwood until at least 2023 Bill Barlow, Staff Writer North Wildwood officials hope a federal project will return badly eroded beaches to the north end. In the meantime, the city has spent millions each year to truck sand in from other communities. Bill Barlow, Staff Writer Signs attempt to keep visitors off the jetty rocks on the North Wildwood beach. Maintaining the beach without federal aid is expensive, Mayor Pat Rosenello says. NORTH WILDWOOD On a weekday afternoon, a dog and its owner work their way through a steady December wind sweeping across the beach in the troublesome northeast corner of Five Mile Beach. The tide is out, so there is a wide, flat beach at Second Street and a narrow patch of sand at the end of a stone seawall, but it is clear that high tide will reach the rocks. A federal project is in the works, but it will be 2023 at the earliest before federal money adds a grain of sand to the beach. In the meantime, the city has tried to stem the tide itself. For the past six years, the city has trucked sand in to the area in the offseason, both so there will be some beach there for the summer and to protect against damage from winter storms. The process is expensive, and according to Mayor Pat Rosenello, most years the added sand erodes quickly. Longtime Upper Township mayor Palombo leads final meeting, looks back on tenure UPPER TOWNSHIP In more than two decades as mayor, Rich Palombo has seen hurricanes, blizzards and tornadoes, as well as a pandemic. The community has faced tragedies in devastating fires and heartbreaking accidents. There were also dramatic rescues and local victories to celebrate and changes in technology to navigate. Last winter, the city trucked thousands of cubic yards of sand to the site. Starting in late January, plans are to do it again, at an estimated cost of more than $3 million. The sand will be pulled from the beaches of Wildwood in a process called backpassing, with the expectation that the incoming tides will replace the sand gathered from the wider beaches. According to Rosenello, there is no way for North Wildwood to keep up with erosion on its north end using trucked-in sand. Hes hoping for a longer-term solution in the form of a federal beach replenishment project. Even while acknowledging the analogy is somewhat off-putting, he compares the situation to trying to flush a five-pound bucket of sand down a toilet. If a few spoonsful are added at a time, he said, the sand can be flushed away. But you put that whole bucket in, then that sand isnt going anywhere, Rosenello said. In this case, the whole bucket would be a federal beach replenishment project. Once unusual, federal beach replenishment projects have become standard in New Jersey. Federal projects have added to the beaches of almost every barrier-island community in the state. But not in the Wildwoods. Wildwood and Wildwood Crest, other communities that share Five Mile Island with North Wildwood, have the opposite problem. Accumulating sand has built the beaches to the point where summer visitors complain about the long walk to the water. The sand clogs outfall pipes and leads to standing water on the beach. In North Wildwood, the beaches have been disappearing near the inlet for decades. A seawall stretches the length of Hereford Inlet, and protective barriers are in place along the ocean beach in the north end of the city as well. A federal project, in the design phase, will include rebuilding the north end beach and adding a tall dune from North Wildwood to the Diamond Beach section of Lower Township in the south end of the island. The schedule is mainly dependent on the state acquiring the necessary real estate easements to enable construction to move forward, said Steve Rochette, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. At this point, its not likely construction would proceed before fall 2023. The project would help with storm protection, according to the Army Corps, which looked at the feasibility of the proposal in 2013. Dierks Bentley added to headline acts for this summer's Atlantic City country music festival Dierks Bentley will join country singers Luke Bryan and Morgan Wallen as headliners for next summers TidalWave Music Festival on the Atlantic City beach. The state Department of Environmental Protection is working on the project as well. According to Rochette, that includes working on acquiring the beachfront easements needed for the work to proceed. Larry Hajna, a DEP spokesperson, said the department is committed to working with the towns on the project in 2022. The DEP is currently working with Wildwood, North Wildwood, Wildwood Crest and Lower Township on agreements for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers storm damage reduction project, consisting of beach replenishment and dune construction, Hajna said in an emailed response to a request for comment. The agreements will result in greater resilience and protection for these communities from coastal storms and sea-level rise while not requiring the municipalities to provide any cost-share for initial construction. As envisioned, the project would still use backpassing as the source of the sand for the new dune and for the beach construction in North Wildwood, but on a larger scale. The plans call for using hydraulic equipment to pump sand from one beach to another, rather than trucking it in or pumping it from the shoals of the nearby Hereford Inlet. This option will cost less than the offshore dredging used in other beach projects, Rochette said. North Wildwood VFW holds 30th ceremony marking Pearl Harbor's 80th NORTH WILDWOOD About 60 people endured a cold and steady breeze on the edge of Hereford Inlet for a solemn observance of the anniversary of the Japanese attack on the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor. According to the Army Corps, North Wildwood has lost about 1,000 feet of beach in recent years, despite the city efforts to replenish the sand. The city of North Wildwood is experiencing significant erosion of its berm and dune, reads a posted fact sheet on the planned project. What was the largest beach in the state now suffers from tidal flooding and wave run-up over a formerly protective beach. U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-2nd, has helped secure approximately $15.5 million for Army Corps beach work in Stone Harbor, Avalon and North Wildwood, according to staff in his office. The energy and water appropriation is being negotiated, with a vote expected in February. The office helped get North Wildwood close to $1.5 million for the 2021 beach work, according to staff members, in reimbursement from storm damage. In addition to moving excess sand from Wildwood and Wildwood Crest north, the project proposal calls for 25,000 feet of dunes along the islands beachfront, from more than 6 feet to up to 16 feet tall. The project area consists of the municipalities of North Wildwood, Wildwood, Wildwood Crest and Lower Township, the fact sheet reads. These municipalities are vulnerable to storm damage all year round from a combination of hurricanes and noreasters. Related With the participation of multiple churches throughout Cape May County and support from multiple other organizations, Family Promise shelters and feeds families at faith-based organizations. It began operation in 2009. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} The quilts will be given to family members, McCloy said, and become the property of the children, to potentially provide some comfort and cheer at a difficult and unsettled time. The students had watched a video about a child who used his allowance and the money that would have purchased toys to instead feed people who did not have homes. Atlantic City issues Code Blue from Sunday through Tuesday Atlantic City has issued a Code Blue an initiative that mobilizes city resources for peopl In the classroom Tuesday, the children seemed engrossed with what McCloy has dubbed the Kindness Quilts project. Last year, kindergarten students at the school made toys for the dogs and cats at Beacon Animal Shelter. Next years kindness project idea has yet to unfold, McCloy said. McCloy floated among the tables where kids worked in groups of three or four, offering guidance on design and color, and encouragement to the artists. STATE COLLEGE, Pa. Penn State can buy a former fraternity house where a student from New Jersey was fatally injured during a night of drinking and hazing, a judge has ruled. Centre County Judge Brian Marshall gave the university and the Beta Theta Pi fraternitys national chapter six months to negotiate a deal, the Centre Daily Times reported Thursday. The purchase price could be determined by arbitrators if the two cant reach an agreement. Marshall issued the ruling Tuesday, about two months after a three-day trial was held. A Penn State spokesperson said the university was very pleased with the decision, The university had cited a 1928 deed that it claimed gave the school the right to force the sale of the house because its no longer used as a fraternity. Lawyers for the national fraternity did not immediately respond Thursday to a request for comment from the newspaper. Penn State had banned the fraternitys campus chapter in March 2017, after the death of 19-year-old Tim Piazza of Lebanon, New Jersey. Piazza died after getting drunk and falling several times on a night in February 2017 while seeking to join the fraternity. Senate candidate Mehmet Oz says he's a Pennsylvania resident now. So why's he still hanging out in his New Jersey mansion? Now hes running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania. 18:55 +5 9 indicted in Fairfield Township party shooting Nine suspects have been indicted on charges relating to a May 22 mass shooting in Fairfield Surveillance video obtained from the scene also showed a vehicle Schor recognized from his attempted homicide investigation, State Police said. The video revealed footage of the driver of the vehicle that ultimately led to a positive identification of the suspect. Schor was able to find the vehicle and link it and the driver to the scene of the attempted homicide, State Police said. This led to a suspect being arrested and charged with attempted homicide, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and aggravated assault. Zedekiah Holmes, 21, of Millville, was charged with the above in the April shooting and with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, four counts of attempted murder, six counts of possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose and one count of unlawful possession of a handgun in the house party shooting. Among the victims that night was his sister, Brailyn Holmes, 19, of Millville. He was indicted in the house party shooting in October, along with eight other people. I think the railroad has an attitude that they dont care about anybody, Hanania said. But they have to be good neighbors, and we dont believe they have been. Some of the residents who have been affected the most live on the east side of the 2700 block of South 58th Court, where they can see the railroad tracks from their backyards, Hanania said. Jean Laisa Guardado, 36, said her father has owned a home in the block since 1993, and the family has experienced flooding during heavy rains since living there. The worst one in recent memory was in June of last year, she said. Guardado walked outside to rainwater hitting her ankles on the sidewalk and hitting the bumper of her vehicle, parked on the street, she said. She brought out a cooler with Modelos for her and her next-door neighbor to share because she knew they would have to wait a while for the water to drain. Her family is looking to move to Texas because theyre tired of the towns floods and traffic, she said. Its getting too expensive, she said. JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) Communities across Alaska will have thousands of free at-home COVID-19 test kits to distribute during the holidays, officials say. Sarah Hargrave, Southeast regional public health nurse manager for the state of Alaska, told KTUU that close to 100,000 kits have been sent across Alaska. Sixteen public health centers in the state will have the kits. School districts have ordered them, as have fire departments and universities. Corey Allen Young, a spokesperson for Mayor Dave Bronsons office, said Anchorage had secured 25,000 kits from the state that will be available at testing sites and places like libraries. Earlier in the year, the municipality bought 25,000 rapid at-home test kits that it gave to adult living facilities for staff and residents. The City and Borough of Juneau is distributing the at-home kits at its three libraries and at City Hall, among other locations. Around 1,100 are being sent from the state to Juneau each week. But health officials estimate Juneau will need double the amount each week in coming months, particularly with an expected omicron variant case surge. At-home kits are also due to be distributed across the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and in communities like Petersburg and Nome. The state's seven-day average of new cases dropped by almost one-third over the past two weeks to 78 on Tuesday, according to data from the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services. On Dec. 7, the seven-day average was 218.7. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, KTUU-TV. RCOP has aired its grievances on two billboards in Richmond, which Gerald Smith dismissed by saying, RCOP is not part of RPD. To which Holsworth said, Well, it talks for half of it. But not without risk. Thats a dramatic step because it puts you in an adversarial position with your boss, Holsworth said. Elsewhere, the RCOP vote was greeted with skepticism. Goad Gatsby, an activist who documented the 2020 protests on social media, characterized the no-confidence vote as the union being resistant to any attempts of accountability and trying to give Stoney a headache until he folds to them. He questioned how representative the group is. RCOP is less than half of active RPD officers and, from my understanding, overwhelming white. Allan-Charles Chipman, an activist who ran for City Council in 2020, echoed that concern, citing the optics of Scott, who is Black, speaking as white officers stood behind him. He wants to hear more from RPDs Black officers. Much remains unknown, including whether the illness omicron causes is less severe than the delta variants, and what the long-term effects of even a mild case may be. The first death in the U.S. related to omicron was announced Monday. The victim was an unvaccinated man in his 50s with an underlying health condition in Houston, authorities said. So, while we all feel coronavirus fatigue, we find ourselves on the verge of another new year having to rally again to fight an insidious, unpredictable virus. Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who died this year, once said you go to war with the army you have, not the army you might wish you had. Its wrong that Americans have had to stand in line for hours for coronavirus tests, as they have in some parts of the country. Other nations long have been able to supply their residents with free, at-home test kits. The Biden administration now is rushing to make available, starting next month, 500 million free, rapid in-home coronavirus test kits. The government is opening more testing and vaccination sites, deploying military medical teams to overwhelmed hospitals and plans to expand hospital capacity. Christiansburg Institute Inc. is getting a $100,000 grant that will go toward the nonprofits efforts to preserve its collections of historical material. The funding comes from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, as part of that organizations community-based archives grant program. The title of CIs grant proposal was The School Has Gone to the People: Increasing Community Interaction with Christiansburg Institute Museum & Archives. An announcement on the grant award states that CIMAsChristiansburg Institute Museum & Archivescollections will provide the public with unique insight into the social, economic and political atmosphere of Southwest Virginia during the late 19th and 20th centuries for the African Americans who attended the Christiansburg Industrial Institute. The intergenerational social movement happening today is clear; the equitable preservation and reinvestment in Black histories and stories is a civic responsibility and moral obligation inseparable from any honest pursuit of justice, said Chis Sanchez, CIs executive director. We are tremendously honored to receive a successful grant award from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, significantly empowering Christiansburg Institute to keep strong at our pursuit of justice today. The Christiansburg Institute was launched by Union Capt. Charles S. Schaeffer during the early part of the Reconstruction era to educate freed slaves. The school eventually evolved into a regional campus for African Americans during segregation, and historic figure Booker T. Washington was once an adviser to the school. The Christiansburg Institute, however, closed in 1966 when local schools were integrated. The campus sole original remnant is the historic Edgar A. Long building on Scattergood Drive, which has for years been the focus of restoration efforts. More specifically, the recent grant award will fund artifact maintenance and preservation materials, a series of educational community programs curated to increase public engagement with [the Christiansburg Institutes] history, and supports a part-time archivist tasked with cataloging the organizations archival collections, the announcement reads. CIMA itself, located at 125 Arrowhead Trail, is open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday and Thursday, according to CIs website. The recent award also builds on some other CI-related historical projects. Several months ago, the Christiansburg Town Council approved a measure for a $12,000-$14,000 exhibit and walkway project. It called for a reconfiguration of the Christiansburg town squares northeast quadrant for pedestrians and an outdoor exhibit highlighting African American history in the county, including slavery. The project is partnership between CI, the town and the Montgomery Museum of Art & History, which itself is planning a move into the old Wells Fargo building downtown in 2022. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. RICHMOND The visceral pain many Black Virginians felt after the unearthing of a racist photo in Ralph Northams medical school yearbook, and the personal and political crisis into which the scandal plunged the governor, might have easily marked the end of Northams political career. Instead, for a number of reasons, including his own sheer will to remain governor, he says he will leave public office next month a better person, and Virginia a much more open and inclusive state. So goes the latest turn in the winding path of Virginias 73rd governor: a guy from the Eastern Shore who grew up on a farm; the descendant of slave owners who came to fully reject the glorification of the Confederacy; a state senator who once toyed with the idea of joining the Republican Party and who a decade later could be described as one of Virginias most progressive governors. Northam is leaving office on Jan. 15 to return to pediatrics after four years as the nations only doctor-governor, leading the state through a once-in-a-century pandemic. He is closing out his administration with high approval ratings and handing the keys to Republican Glenn Youngkin, who ran on promises to take Virginia in a new direction. In an exit interview with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Northam seemed pleased with the sum of the parts that made up his unpredictable and at times chaotic four years in office. I know who I am and I know what I believe in. In February of 2019, I knew I could resign or I could try to learn from everything that was going on, do better and help people, Northam said. It was certainly difficult for Virginia, and for me at the time, but thats what I chose. I always think that things work out for the best. *** Whatever Northam knew about himself or the origins of the photo on his page in the 1984 Eastern Virginia Medical School yearbook, the night that it surfaced on social media, Feb. 1, 2019, the image of a person in a KKK robe next to one in blackface raised doubts even among those closest to him. It never occurred to me that that would be something that would be in his past, said state Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, one of the Black legislators who agreed to meet with Northam in the days after the photo surfaced. Is this man a racist? And if he was, how did I miss that? After we met, I remember thinking, Youre not a racist, youre just race ignorant. I think I can work with that. I explained to him the history of blackface, and the look on his face, as I was explaining minstrel shows, how blackface was used to demonize Black people ... the look on his face was one of shock. That began the awakening of Ralph Northam. Northam initially apologized for appearing in the photo. The next day, during a news conference at the Executive Mansion, Northam said he is not in the photo, but he admitted to having worn blackface while dressing as Michael Jackson in a 1984 dance contest in San Antonio. A host of Democrats called for his resignation, including Virginias senior Democratic leaders, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine and Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Newport News. Northam says now that three things led to his decision to stay in office and resist calls for his resignation from across his party, including from longtime political allies. One was self-confidence; two, conversations with people of color who chose to help me out when they didnt need to; and three, the loyalty of his Cabinet and staff. A rush of departures would have left Northam unable to run the government. As he remained in hiding, grappling with the political fallout, a lot of responsibility shifted to his top officials. (Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and Attorney General Mark Herring were embroiled in different scandals during the Democrats February firestorm. Two women had accused Fairfax of sexual assault. After urging Northam to resign, Herring admitted he had worn blackface as a teenager while dressing as a rapper for a party at the University of Virginia.) Weve got to have a way forward, Northams finance secretary, Aubrey Layne, told The Times-Dispatch in an unpublished interview on Feb. 5, 2019. Nothings getting done around here. Layne said at the time that he was considering resigning. Instead, he urged Northam to try to get back to running the government even as the governor weighed how to move forward. So began Northams reliance on the restricted-access tunnels that connect the Executive Mansion to other parts of Capitol Square. It was a precarious time, recalled former House Appropriations Chairman Chris Jones, R-Suffolk. He said he worked with Layne and other assembly budget leaders to reassure national bond rating agencies that the ship was going to be steadied. I viewed Aubrey Layne as the anchor of that ship, Jones said. Meanwhile, Northams promised listening tour was hitting false starts. Ultimately, it became a series of mostly private meetings carefully planned by the administration around the state, not a public mea culpa tour. Northam credits these meetings with reframing his agenda into one focused on racial equity, including successful proposals like ending the death penalty in Virginia, which has been disproportionately levied on Black men. In March, Northam signed legislation ending four centuries of capital punishment and making Virginia the first Southern state to abolish the death penalty. The eyes cant see what the brain doesnt know. And so there was a lot regarding racism that Ralph Northam didnt recognize, the governor said. Since this happened, my eyes have been opened much more widely and so Im a better person because of that. Northams trajectory will be chronicled in a book by author and longtime journalist Margaret Edds, whose most recent book, We Face the Dawn, told the story of Virginia civil rights icons Oliver Hill Sr. and Spottswood Robinson, key members of the NAACPs legal team that challenged racial segregation. Northam is cooperating with the book, two people close to him said. The origins of the photo remain inconclusive, but Northam now emphatically denies he is in it. McClellan recalled thinking that regardless of who is in the photo, the fact that it surfaced and became plastered across the state caused significant damage. When he owned that picture, he owned 400 years of trauma that Black people have been suffering across the country and here in Virginia, she said. My thinking at the time was, I cant make you leave. But if youre going to stay, Im going to expect you to help undo the inequity in Virginia. I would say he owed it to us. Del. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, chairman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, said he was one of the voices advocating for a reshaped agenda, even as other Black leaders, including local NAACP chapters, derided Northam for hiding from the public for months. He could do this tour and talk to Black folks, but I didnt think thats how his time would be best spent, Bagby said. Lets put some things in place and take action to reverse these 400-plus years of practices that have impacted Black Virginians. Hes the governor for Gods sake. *** Almost exactly nine months after the scandal erupted, Virginia voters handed Democrats near-unilateral control of the state. Whatever goals Northam came into office with, he now owed his political future to Black Virginians who supported him or gave him a chance to make his power work for them. In the former capital of the Confederacy, Virginia became the first state in the South to abolish the death penalty, legalize recreational marijuana and enact major voting reforms that expanded Virginians ability to vote and added protections against discrimination. Virginia also moved to address the disparate rate at which women of color die during childbirth, among other things, making it easier for low-income women of color to access doula services, which studies have shown improve outcomes. Administratively, Northam pushed for a review of the states laws to extract racist laws from the Virginia code, even if they were no longer in effect. That work expanded into a study of current laws that result in racial inequity. Northam expanded his Cabinet to include a chief diversity officer, a job that is now codified in Virginia law and that oversees an office with a small staff. Any future governor will be forced to fill the job and its office, or send a message by creating a vacancy. Northam also led a push to reform his alma mater, the Virginia Military Institute, backing an investigation that eventually found VMI had tolerated a racist and sexist culture. Retired Army Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III resigned as VMIs superintendent in October 2020, writing in his resignation letter that Northams chief of staff had conveyed that the Governor and certain legislative leaders had lost confidence in my leadership. In April, VMI chose Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins as its first Black superintendent. That was hard for him, McClellan said. There are a lot of people that hate him for it. But he didnt hesitate. After a white police officer murdered George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020, leading to months of protests in Richmond and around the country against racial injustice, Northam responded by calling a special session on police reform. The state made it easier for police to be removed from the job for misconduct. But Northam faced criticism from some Democrats for not going further to reimagine the role of police in Virginia. Northam and Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney also ordered the removal of Confederate statues along Monument Avenue. Following a protracted court fight, workers on Sept. 8 removed the 12-ton, state-owned bronze equestrian statue of Robert E. Lee from the pedestal where it had stood since 1890. Workers also are removing the pedestal, and the city of Richmond will take ownership of the state land on which the statue stood. Northam is also leaving vulnerable key work on marijuana legalization. The legislature has addressed resentencing for people incarcerated for offenses that are now civil penalties. Northams proposal for making sure that people who were impacted by the War on Drugs benefit from the new legal market will be left in the hands of Republicans. Retail sales are currently expected to start in 2024. Bagby said that part of undoing the states inequity was addressing the needs of working-class Virginians. On Jan. 1, Virginias minimum wage will increase to $11 an hour far from the $15 workers advocates here have called for, but higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25, which hasnt moved since 2009, years before Northam took office. Bagby said Northams outgoing proposed two-year budget, which would reframe tax cuts to benefit working-class people, is a reflection of that ongoing effort. Northam said this month that white-collar workers either benefited or were not hurt financially by the pandemic, while hourly workers bore the brunt of the economic crisis. Not only he has, but weve all grown and doubled down on helping individuals that need help the most, Bagby said. Other pieces of legislation backed by groups advocating for workers remain on the table as Northam and House Democrats cede power. Paid family leave and paid sick leave, for example, remain elusive for working-class Virginians after failed attempts in the legislature. *** March 12, 2020, the last day of Democrats first legislative session in control of both chambers, would have been a celebratory occasion for liberals in Virginia if it hadnt also been the day Northam declared a state of emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the nations only doctor-governor, Northam is leaving behind a state that has fared better than most in rates of infection and death, and that ranks 10th among states in people who are fully vaccinated. Virginia has not deployed its plans for overflow hospital sites, and the state became a model for eviction and renter relief. But as The Times-Dispatch previously reported, the states response wasnt without significant shortcomings, and a look back shows a lack of preparation and swift action left Virginians vulnerable at critical junctures. In the beginning, a lack of coordination with private testing vendors stunted the states ability to test enough Virginians for the virus, which left the state in the dark about its spread and about deadly consequences in nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the state. Throughout 2020, the state faced criticism from the business community over restrictions that it thought changed too suddenly, and without much clarity. Virginians left jobless by businesses that shut down or downsized were left to deal with an unemployment insurance agency that struggled to staff up and that to this day does not offer equitable access to workers whose primary language is not English. The state later stumbled as it began to distribute vaccines at a slower rate than any of its neighbors and almost every other state despite months of planning. That came at the detriment and to the frustration of vulnerable Virginians particularly the elderly. Consistently, people of color had a harder time accessing resources and information to fend off illness or economic struggle. Dr. Norman Oliver, the states health commissioner, says that despite bumps in the road, Virginia fared much better than states to its south, thanks to a governor who understood and was inclined to follow guidance from health experts. I think Governor Northam was much more inclined to understand and follow the public health recommendations than some other governors who did not have that physician and science background, Oliver said. He understood the science. Northam said having the background of a physician and an Army doctor made him more empathetic to the perils of the virus. I have sat at the bedside, more than one would want to, when patients died, he said. Every death, thats someones loved one a mother, father, an uncle, a child, Northam said. (More than 15,000 people have died of COVID-19 in Virginia.) As governor, youre taking care of 8.5 million people. Especially during COVID-19, this job has been like being on call 24/7. Northams personal insight on COVID includes his own case. He announced in September 2020 that he and first lady Pam Northam had tested positive. Northam has said his case cost him his sense of smell. The pandemic highlighted a key early victory of the Northam administration, one delivered through bipartisan outreach when Republicans held power in the legislature: the expansion of the states Medicaid program. Since Virginia expanded eligibility on Jan. 1, 2019, more than 615,000 Virginians have enrolled in the program. Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Augusta, had tried with Democrats to expand eligibility for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act for six years, but Republicans in the House of Delegates had been a political firewall to block it until they almost lost their majority in the same 2017 elections that brought Northam to power. Hanger worked closely with Del. Jones, then House Appropriations chairman, to expand Medicaid through the budget in a hard-fought special session in 2018. Northams mild personality helped smooth the way, but part of the deal was a work requirement that the new governor later abandoned after Democrats took power, which dismayed his Republican allies. I was certainly disappointed when they walked away from the work requirement, but not surprised, Jones said. To me, that was a breach of faith. Hanger thinks Northams greatest accomplishments were bipartisan, including his management of the pandemic and the states finances, but he was critical of the governor for allowing the assembly to take the state on a sharp leftward turn after Democrats took power in early 2020. When the Democrats got full control, he didnt do a whole lot to restrain them, he said. Northam worked closely with Republican legislators in his first year to win the coveted bid for Amazons East Coast headquarters, a $2.5 billion investment in Arlington County that promises to create at least 25,000 jobs. The winning bid was clinched by an incentive package that committed to investing $1.1 billion in higher education to train talent for Amazon and other high-tech companies. The governor also played a key role in Virginia becoming the only state to be ranked best state for business by CNBC in consecutive rankings the first in 2019, when he had to overcome concerns about the blackface scandal, and the second in 2021, when non-discrimination laws to make the state more inclusive to minorities were the difference in beating neighboring North Carolina for first place. (CNBC did not release rankings in 2020 because of the pandemic.) Without that, we almost certainly would not have repeated in the top spot, said Stephen Moret, president and CEO of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership during Northams term. Moret, who is leaving the job at the end of this month, said he will most remember Northams kindness, shown when the governor was one of the first to call him after his wife, Heather, was diagnosed with cancer last year. It just made the whole thing more bearable, he said. Northams biggest break with Republicans came over gun violence after 12 people died in a mass shooting at Virginia Beachs municipal government center on May 31, 2019, and 9-year-old Markiya Dickson was shot and killed in crossfire during a Memorial Day weekend cookout in a public park in South Richmond. That July, he delivered a fiery speech in a rally at a Black church in Richmonds East End two days before the Republican-controlled General Assembly met in a special session for less than two hours and adjourned without acting on dozens of bills proposed to reduce gun violence. These things do affect you, Northam said in an interview the day of the session, which he contends cost Republicans their legislative majority. I do get emotional. After Democrats took control of the legislature, Northams package of gun control proposals drew an estimated 22,000 protesters to the state Capitol and vicinity in January 2020. The legislature passed and Northam signed a series of gun violence measures. They included bills to require background checks on all gun sales, to restore Virginias restriction on handgun purchases to one a month, and to bar possession of firearms by people subject to protective orders. Northam also sought a ban on assault-style weapons, but the measure failed in the state Senate. *** Bipartisan cooperation was far from Democrats minds heading into the Nov. 2 elections. Democrats appeared poised to remain in power in a state that Joe Biden had won by 10 points in 2020. On Nov. 5, 2019, the night that Democrats took control of the legislature, a jubilant Northam had declared: Virginia is officially blue! Two years later, his party was trounced, losing close races for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general as well as control of the House of Delegates. Virginia voters essentially asked Northam to hand over the Executive Mansion to a successor from the opposite party. The governor asserted that the outcome of the election was not a rejection of the Democratic agenda or how his administration handled the pandemic. Instead, he thinks Democrats didnt emphasize their recent accomplishments enough in favor of a messaging strategy heavy on former President Donald Trump that didnt work. Beyond talk of progressive victories, Northam said, Democrats kitchen-table achievements on such things as transportation and education got almost no play. In Hampton Roads, the state funded an expansion of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel and a big investment at the Port of Virginia to jump-start a new offshore wind industry with great economic promise for the region. Northam used his budget amendments in the 2019 veto session to secure $2 billion in improvements to Interstate 81, a vital lifeline for western Virginia. There was also the $3.7 billion deal with CSX Corp. and Amtrak to expand passenger rail service throughout Virginia, but especially between Richmond and Washington. Environmentalists werent happy with Northams refusal to block construction of two proposed natural gas pipelines, but Sarah Francisco, the Southern Environmental Law Centers Virginia director, called him a leader on many environmental issues, such as promoting offshore wind and reducing pollution from power plants. Virginia also expanded funding for government-backed preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds, and rolled out a free community college program for low- and middle-income students pursuing degrees in high-demand fields. I think what weve accomplished over the last four years could have been talked about more. Its like, lets get out and promote these things, Northam said. But the election seemed like it got more nationalized, talking a lot about Trump. As the election neared, Northam said, the momentum just wasnt on the Democrats side the last few weeks. Northam declined to directly weigh in on his successor, Glenn Youngkin, or the Republicans proposals, saying its not what governors should do. But he was emphatic on two points. He said that when Youngkin talks about Virginias economy being in the ditch, I dont know what kind of ditch youre talking about. Northam staffers proudly made T-shirts highlighting the states two Top State for Business rankings from CNBC, and the administration recently announced that Virginias November unemployment rate was 3.4%, lower than the national average of 4.2%. Second, Northam noted that the pandemic is still raging, and Youngkin will take office as the omicron variant surges across the country. I dont know what his policies are gonna be. Hes gonna have to make decisions on how to best keep Virginians healthy, Northam said. I dont know how anybody can sit back and not take that seriously. *** Northam describes his ascent to the Executive Mansion as an unexpected series of events for a guy who was generally shy and satisfied with practicing medicine. When asked if Jan. 15 will mark the end of his life in politics, Northam starts by saying that becoming lieutenant governor in 2014, much less becoming governor, almost seemed antithetical to who he was. The day he decided to run for lieutenant governor, Northam had spent most of the day in the lab, reading electroencephalograms scans looking at babies brain waves. He said hed gotten a few calls from party leaders asking him to run, mostly because they wanted someone who was from rural Virginia and also had experience in health care. Growing up on a farm, being a bit shy and always kind of staying to myself ... did I ever think Id be a governor of Virginia? No, Northam said. Our lives take interesting twists and turns. And for me to be sitting here, Im not sure how exactly this happened, he added. So will I ever be on another ballot? I dont think so. But I wont ever say never. When he sat down with The Times-Dispatch on Monday, his office was far from packed: memorabilia still loaded the shelves, the bed for his Labrador retriever, Pearl, still flanked his desk. His immediate plans are to return to practicing medicine, to go back to studying childrens brains. Hes especially keen on epilepsy and disorders affecting the connections between the brain and the rest of the body. The ripples of the blackface scandal will carry on with him into this next stage, too. I like to teach, and I can really bring a lot of what Ive experienced, and what Ive learned, into my teaching moving forward, Northam said. Northam said that might be talking one-on-one with patients and their families, talking to students at a college or university, or going into a boardroom to talk about the importance of embracing diversity. I think I can help in that regard because discussions on race have often fallen on people of color, and I think it probably is a good idea that maybe people that look like me be part of the discussion as well. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. " " From physics, mathematics and science, to mysticism, occultism, the Kabbalah and the Torah, the number 137 may just be the most magical and important number in the universe. Flickr (CC BY-2.0) What's the key to unlocking the mysteries of the universe? If you're expecting an incantation in some ancient language, uttered by a holy man sitting cross-legged on a mountaintop, this answer may disappoint you. It might just be the number 137. Those three digits, as it turns out, have long been the rare object of fascination that bridges the gulf between science and mysticism. "137 continues to fire the imagination of everyone from scientists and mystics to occultists and people from the far-flung edges of society," Arthur I. Miller, an emeritus professor of history and philosophy of science at University College London and author of the 2009 book "137: Jung, Pauli and the Pursuit of a Scientific Obsession," says via email. Advertisement The Fine-structure Constant To physicists, 137 is the approximate denominator of the fine-structure constant (1/137.03599913), the measure of the strength of the electromagnetic force that controls how charged elementary particles such as the electron and muon interact with photons of light, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The fine-structure constant is one of the key physical constants of the universe. "This immutable number determines how stars burn, how chemistry happens and even whether atoms exist at all," as Michael Brooks explained in a recent New Scientist article. And, in a paper published Dec. 20, 2020 in the journal Nature, a team of four physicists led by Saida Guellati-Khelifa at the Kastler Brossel Laboratory in Paris reported the most precise measurement yet of the fine-structure constant. The team measured the constants value to the 11th decimal place, reporting that = 1/137.035999206. The new measurement is nearly three times more precise than the previous best measurement in 2018 by a group led by Holger Muller at Berkeley, with a margin of error of just 81 parts per trillion. The fine-structure constant "characterizes the strength with which matter couples to light, e.g. the probability that an excited atom will decay in a certain time," Paul Davies, Regents Professor of Physics at Arizona State University and a best-selling author of 30 books on science, explains in an email. If the constant was bigger, "atoms would decay faster. It is significant too because it is a pure number a ratio of quantities with equal units. Unlike, say, the speed of light, which is either 186,000 miles per second or 300,000 kilometers per second, depending on which units you prefer." (Davies wrote this 2016 article on the fine-structure constant for Cosmos.) In this video, British physicist Laurence Eaves explains that if the fine structure constant was a different value, "physics, chemistry, biochemistry would be totally different and we might not be around to talk about it." But practically from the time of its discovery in 1915 by German physicist Arnold Sommerfeld, who originally rendered it as 0.00729, the fine-structure constant seemed to signify some larger metaphysical truth as well. The fine-structure constant "determines the distance between an atom's spectral lines, which are the atom's DNA," Miller explains. "And so it is one of those numbers that is at the root of the universe. If it were any other value then the structure of matter would be very different, and so us too. People began referring to it as a mystical number." Miller continues: "The language of the spectra the spectral lines where Sommerfeld found it is a true music of the spheres within the atom," he wrote. "People asked why it has this particular value. Physicists could only conclude that it cannot have this value by accident. It is 'out there,' independent of the structure of our minds." But in 1929, English astrophysicist Arthur Eddington who played a key role in establishing the validity of Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and was an early advocate of the Big Bang theory, among other things began expressing it as 1/137. He also saw it as having larger, spiritual implications. "Arthur Eddington sought a new mysticism which would emerge from the natural sciences," Miller says. "Perhaps, he thought, the clue lay in numbers, particularly the number 137. Eddington's reputation as one of the great astrophysicists of his day put a great deal of weight on this approach." Advertisement Relativity and Quantum Theory As Miler's book details, Austrian-born quantum physics pioneer Wolfgang Pauli became fascinated with the number as well, since it figured in the mysterious intersection of relativity and quantum theory that he explored with the help of his friend, psychoanalyst Carl Jung. The scientific fixation on the fine-structure constant was such that in 1936, Nature published an article titled "The Mysterious Number 137." But as Pauli learned in the 1950s from a religious scholar, 137 had another significance. It was the number associated with the Kabbalah, an esoteric form of Jewish mysticism what Miller calls "an extraordinary link between mysticism and physics." As this article by Billy Phillips from Kabbalahstudent.com details, the number 137 also appears frequently in the Torah. It's the lifespan in years of figures such as Ishmael and Levi, for example, as well the age of Abraham when he bound his son Isaac to an altar in preparation to sacrifice him. And as Phillips explains, if the number of letters in the Torah 304,805 is split into the numerical pairs and reversed, the result is the numbers 50, 84 and 03. Add those together, and you get 137. Beyond that, the relationship of the fine-structure constant to light in physics parallels the Kabbalists' concept of connecting with light, or becoming enlightened by shedding the ego. "The missing puzzle piece for physics is consciousness," Phillips writes. Now That's Interesting Physicist Richard Feynman predicted that the periodic table would end at 137, based on the rules of relativity. Advertisement Originally Published: Nov 27, 2018 " " The funeral cortege of former South African president Nelson Mandela makes its way along Madiba Street on Dec. 11, 2013, in Pretoria, South Africa. Many people mistakenly believe Mandela died in the 1980s, giving rise to a phenomenon called "the Mandela effect," or clearly remembering something that did not happen. Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Countless people have watched the "Star Wars" movies, and most of them will tell you that the bumbling droid named C-3PO is gold all over. But did you know that C-3PO actually has one silver leg? And what's that immortal line Darth Vader uttered in the movie "The Empire Strikes Back": "Luke, I am your father"? Nope, he actually said, "No, I am your father." Both are widespread examples of what's called the Mandela effect, false memories that are shared among a large population of people a collective misremembering of sorts. The phrase was coined around 2009 by self-described paranormal consultant Fiona Broome, who used it to explain the phenomenon where many people around the world believed that the South African leader died in prison in the 1980s. In fact he was released in 1990, later served as president of the country and died in 2013 at the age of 95. Advertisement Broome's theory is that at all times there are multiple realities of each universe (the multiverse), and that within each universe there are variations of objects, events and people. So, memories of those "incorrect" shared moments are not really false they are just instances where parallel universes crossed paths for an instant. (The multiverse theory is usually advanced for physics concepts.) Science has other explanations for how the Mandela effect happens. Much of it boils down to the fact that human memory is notoriously unreliable. In this age of digital technologies, we often equate our brains with computer hard drives, organic storage bins for our experiences. However, our prefrontal cortices, where many memories are stored, don't work with the same precision as a hard drive. UCLA Ph.D. candidate in neuroscience Caitlin Aamodt says that based on what we know about the brain, we can make inferences about what contributes to the Mandela effect. "Memories are organized in the brain so that similar memories are stored in nearby neurons. When a memory is recalled, those cells are able to change their connections, which allows for the addition of new information," she says via email. "But because 'neurons that fire together wire together,' sometimes false memories can emerge from erroneous connections." While we might think of recalling memories as solidifying them in our brains, science seems to suggest otherwise. Recalling a memory often triggers other memories in the process, often intertwining various scenarios and people in new ways, a sort of "reconsolidating" of the information in our brains. Human beings are also vulnerable to the concept of confabulation, an error or misinterpretation regarding a memory without a conscious attempt to mislead. Confabulation occurs when the brain is attempting to fill in the blanks for incomplete memories. The speaker may mix and match similar experiences and information in order to complete the story in his or her mind, complete with details and emotional responses, certain that the tale is true. This kind of behavior happens in people suffering from neurological issues, such as brain damage or Alzheimer's, but healthy individuals confabulate, too. The Mandela Effect Individually vs. Collectively OK, so that might explain why one person misremembers something. But why would lots of people misremember the same "facts"? Aamodt points to a 2016 psychology study showing that 88 percent of people in an online survey incorrectly picked Alexander Hamilton as a U.S. president from a list of possible candidates. Hamilton's recognition rate was much higher than that of some actual presidents like Franklin Pierce and Chester Arthur. "Because of the shared contextual association, many different people formed the same false memory that Hamilton himself was a president," she says. Hamilton was actually the first secretary of treasury, but since he is associated with many early U.S. presidents and has a hit Broadway show with his name as the title, one could be forgiven for mistaking him for a former commander-in-chief. Aamodt also notes the power of suggestion. "Suggestibility is the tendency to believe what others suggest to be true," she says. "This is why lawyers are prohibited from asking witnesses leading questions that suggest a specific answer." These days, there's also the viral power of the internet and its ability to magnify human error, suggestibility and gullibility. If one person vociferously claims that the actor Sinbad starred in a '90s movie about a genie titled "Shazaam," and can proffer plot details that strike a chord with other readers, this might generate a false narrative that many people believe must be true or claim to remember themselves. In actuality, the actor in the '90s movie about a genie was Shaquille O'Neal, and the film was called "Kazaam." Examples of the Mandela effect are more common than you might think. Are the popular cartoon bears called, "The Berenstein Bears" or "The Berenstain Bears"? It's actually the latter, something that shocks many people who remember reading this books as children. And do you remember a famous portrait of England's King Henry VIII grasping a turkey leg? So do a lot of other people ... but it never existed. NOW THAT'S INTERESTING Experiments continually demonstrate just how flawed human memory can be. In one test, about 30 percent of subjects confirmed that they had viewed video footage of United Flight 93, which crashed as part of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. No such footage exists. Even 20 percent of people with highly superior autobiographical memory (incredibly accurate memories) reported viewing the nonexistent video. CINCINNATI (AP) Nancy Keating, a charitable volunteer and matriarch of a large family with deep and philanthropic ties to the Cincinnati area, has died. She was 94. She died peacefully at her home Friday, son Mike Keating said in an email. Keating was the wife of the late William J. Keating, who after leaving Congress in the 1970s spent three decades as an Ohio newspaper executive and served on the board of The Associated Press. Her brother-in-law Charles Keating was a finance executive who was a key figure in the 1980s national savings and loan crisis. Mom was very kind, very wise and had a wonderful sense of humor," Mike Keating wrote. "She was always patient and calm with us. As they say, you cant pick your parents, but we were so blessed and so fortunate to have mom and dad as our parents. Nancy Keating was president of her senior class and valedictorian at St. Ursula Academy in Cincinnati. She attended the University of Cincinnati, where she was active in student politics. She christened the submarine USS Cincinnati in 1977 and served on the commission that marked Cincinnatis 200th birthday. She was a longtime soup kitchen and Meals on Wheels volunteer, her son wrote. Editor's note: Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the Journal is revealing its top stories of 2021. Sunday, we'll have the full list in print and online. The Journal's annual Newsmaker of the Year will be named on Jan. 2. No. 5: What happened: Siouxland farmers experience turbulent weather, ups and downs of market prices Why it mattered: The tri-state region boasts one of the nation's ag economies. This past year presented multiple challenges for many farmers, who faced drought-like conditions during parts of the growing season, falling prices for livestock in a highly consolidated market, global trade uncertainties and pandemic-related impacts. Northwest Iowa grain farmers saw a wide range of yields during harvest, all dependent on how much rain fell on an area of the state that experienced varying degrees of drought. But what little rain did fall in some areas came at opportune times in late July and August, giving crops a boost as prices for a bushel of corn topped $5 and soybeans approached $13 per bushel. What's next: With the spring planting season just months away, many farms worry about higher input costs from skyrocketing fertilizer prices. Livestock producers are looking from relief from depressed prices. The beef industry remains under increased government scrutiny, with the Biden administration and members of Congress taking aim at the four large packers that control more than 80 percent of the cattle market. No. 4 What happened: An acute labor shortage continued to vex scores of employers in multiple industries across Siouxland. Why it mattered: The unemployment rate in metro Sioux City stood at a historically low 2.5 percent in October, contributing to local employers' challenge of recruiting enough workers to fill key positions. Even after raising pay rates, businesses say too few applicants are applying for open jobs. The labor pains have rippled through the local economy, from restaurants cutting hours of operation to industries postponing or cancelling expansions. What's next: The Siouxland Initiative, the economic development division of the Siouxland Chamber, is revamping its mission due to the ongoing labor shortages. Formed in 1988, TSI had long focused on job creation, wage growth and increased capital investment. In an effort to not create more competition for an already scarce labor pool, the economic development leaders said they are now prioritizing projects with large capital investments but few, if any, additional workers. No. 3: What happened: Sioux City voters elect three council members, four school board members Why it mattered: The municipal election suggested satisfaction with the direction of the five-member council, with both incumbents on the ballot -- Dan Moore and Alex Watters -- easily topped the voting in a low-turnout Nov. 2 election. Political newcomer Matthew O'Kane grabbed the third open seat, narrowly beating another first-time candidate, Ike Rayford, first-time candidate, by just 66 votes. Two retired teachers, Bob Michaelson and Jan George, were the top two-vote getters in a crowded nine-candidate school board election. Perla Alarcon-Flory, the only incumbent to seek re-election, finished a distant third to claim the final open seat. What's next: The election has already upended the leadership of the school board, with Michaelson and George, at their first meeting, joining with holdover members Dan Greenwell and Taylor Godvin to elect Greenwell and Godvin as the new president and vice president, respectively, replacing Alarcon-Flory and Monique Scarlett. Under the leadership of Greenwell, a longtime critic of the district's administration, is expected to continue to challenge the policies of Superintendent Paul Gausman. No. 2: What happened: Construction begins on Woodbury County jail amid opposition to using federal COVID relief dollars to fund the project Why it mattered: Due to a series of supply problems related to the pandemic, costs for construction materials skyrocketed, causing the price tag of the jail project to balloon to around $65 million, exceeding the $50.3 million bond issue voters approved in March 2020. To close that gap, and with no other good options, county supervisors voted to tap up to $15.6 of the county's $20 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding. A coalition of union officials and community activists objected, arguing the ARPA funds would be better spent on a myriad of social programs that would benefit the community, and encouraged the supervisors to start over and rebid the project. What's next: Federal officials could still rule new jail runs afoul of federal guidelines for the billions of dollars the federal government distributed to local governments. Meanwhile, the jail project remains on schedule, with completion anticipated for March 2023. Check back Sunday morning, at 5 a.m., for #1 and the entire list. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 COVID puts a damper on Christmas Eve again around the world From Bethlehem and Frankfurt to London and Boston, the surging coronavirus put a damper on Christmas Eve for a second year, forcing churches to cancel or scale back services and disrupting travel plans and family gatherings. Drummers and bagpipers marched through Bethlehem to smaller than usual crowds after new Israeli travel restrictions meant to slow the highly contagious omicron variant kept international tourists away from the town where Jesus is said to have been born. In Germany, a line wound halfway around Colognes massive cathedral, not for midnight Mass but for vaccinations. The offer of shots was an expression of care for ones neighbor that was consistent with the message of Christmas, cathedral provost Guido Assmann told the DPA news agency. Around the world, people weary from nearly two years of lockdowns and other restrictions searched for ways to safely enjoy holiday rituals. We can't let the virus take our lives from us when we're healthy, said Rosalia Lopes, a retired Portuguese government worker who was doing some last-minute shopping in the coastal town of Cascais. Airlines cancel flights due to COVID staffing shortages NEW YORK (AP) Airlines canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels at some carriers during the busy holiday travel season. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines together canceled more than 600 flights on Friday and Saturday. As of early evening Friday, Delta canceled had 149 flights on Friday and 188 for Christmas Day, according to FlightAware. (Other factors, such as weather, are also causing cancellations.) United called off 189 flights on Friday, about 10% of its schedule, and 140 on Saturday. Planned cancellations continued into Sunday. Not all airlines said COVID was disrupting their travel schedules. American Airlines said it had nothing to report, while Southwest Airlines said things are running smoothly. JetBlue, which FlightAware said had canceled nearly 150 flights over Friday and Saturday, did not respond to a request for comment. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year. Airlines encouraged workers to quit in 2020, when air travel collapsed, and were caught short-staffed this year as travel recovered. The nationwide spike in omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation, United said in a statement. As a result, weve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport. Many US churches canceling in-person Christmas services NEW YORK (AP) Amid the surge of coronavirus cases across the U.S., numerous churches have canceled in-person Christmas services, disappointing pastors and churchgoers who consider them an annual highlight. Other churches planned outdoor services or proposed a hybrid of online and in-person worship, often imposing tight restrictions for those in attendance. These included requirements to wear masks and show proof of COVID-19 vaccinations. Among the prominent churches canceling some or all of their in-person Christmas services were Washington National Cathedral in the nations capital; St. John the Divine, the cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of New York; and the historic Old South Church in Boston. The Rev. Nancy Taylor, senior minister of Old South, said the church affiliated with the United Church of Christ still hoped to hold in-person Christmas Day services on Saturday, but was shifting its popular Christmas Eve service to online-only. The Christmas Eve congregation tends to be larger with a lot of visitors, some of whom have come from parties, and many of whom are not used to Bostons mask mandate, she explained in her announcement. COVID-19 makes Biden's 1st White House Christmas less merry WASHINGTON (AP) So long eggnog, shrimp cocktail and pet-shaped sugar cookies. It's been a less merry holiday scene at the White House this year under COVID-19's shadow. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden have replaced the packed parties and overflowing buffet tables of the past with food-free open houses, face masks and testing for the unvaccinated. Beyond the impact on Biden's first Christmas in office, the virus and its variants largely put the kibosh on the entire White House social scene for 2021, starting with an inauguration that positioned flags in place of people on the National Mall. I think its been really tough on them," said Philip Dufour, who was Vice President Al Gore's social secretary. He noted that many events were not held while the president and first lady did others over Zoom. Major social events scrubbed from the calendar included the White House ball for the nation's governors and the Easter Egg Roll, the second straight year that springtime ritual has been canceled. Omicron is latest blow to pandemic-weary front-line workers BOSTON (AP) Staff absences for COVID-19 tripled this month in Londons hospitals, and nearly 10% of the citys firefighters called out sick. In New York, about 2,700 police officers were absent earlier this week twice the number who are ill on an average day. And on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, grocery worker Judy Snarsky says shes stretched to her limit, working 50 hours a week and doing extra tasks because her supermarket has around 100 workers when it should have closer to 150. We dont have enough hands. Everybody is working as much as they physically and mentally can, the 59-year-old in Mashpee said. Some of us have been going like a freight train. The worldwide surge in coronavirus cases driven by the new omicron variant is the latest blow to hospitals, police departments, supermarkets and other critical operations struggling to maintain a full contingent of front-line workers as the pandemic enters its third year. Governments have taken steps to stem the bleeding across a range of jobs considered essential for society, from truckers and janitors to child care providers and train conductors. But nurses and other workers worry that continued staffing woes will put the public at greater risk and increase burnout and fatigue among their ranks. Judge upholds ruling against NYT over Project Veritas memos NEW YORK (AP) A New York judge has upheld an order preventing The New York Times from publishing documents between conservative group Project Veritas and its lawyer and ruled that the newspaper must immediately relinquish confidential legal memos it obtained. The decision Thursday by State Supreme Court Justice Charles D. Wood in Westchester County, released Friday, comes in a defamation lawsuit Project Veritas filed against the Times in 2020. Months after the lawsuit was filed, the newspaper reported that the U.S. Justice Department was investigating Project Veritas in connection with the theft of a diary belonging to Ashley Biden, the president's daughter. In that story, the Times quoted the memos, leading Project Veritas to accuse the newspaper of violating attorney-client privilege. Wood upheld his earlier order preventing the Times from further publishing the memos, and also ruled that the newspaper must turn over physical copies of the documents and destroy electronic versions. The newspaper reported it would appeal the ruling and seek a stay in the meantime. Publisher A.G. Sulzberger decried the ruling as an attack of press freedoms and alarming for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know. He also said it risked exposing sources. EXPLAINER: Are more defendants testifying at trial? CHICAGO (AP) Defendants spoke directly to jurors in a series of recent high-profile trials, defying conventional wisdom that the risks of taking the stand usually outweigh the benefits. Among those who chose to testify was Kim Potter, convicted Thursday of manslaughter for killing Daunte Wright during a traffic stop when the Minnesota police officer mistook her gun for a Taser. Another was Kyle Rittenhouse, who was acquitted of murder last month for shooting three protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, killing two and wounding a third. The run of testifying defendants raises the question of whether a shift in thinking is occurring among lawyers, many of whom have long regarded putting clients on the stand as a desperate, last-resort option. ARE MORE DEFENDANTS TESTIFYING? EXPLAINER: How will Biden's COVID-19 test giveaway work? WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden says the federal government will buy half a billion COVID-19 rapid test kits and distribute them free of charge to people to use at home. But despite the high public demand for tests, it will still be several more weeks before these kits are available to be shipped. The administration is still working on details for how the program will work. DOES THE GOVERNMENT HAVE THE TESTS? Not yet. As of this week, the departments of Defense and Health and Human Services were executing on what's called an accelerated emergency contract,'" the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, said. The contract is expected to be signed soon. WHEN WILL THE TEST KITS BE DELIVERED? The first delivery is expected in early January. All 500 million kits will not arrive at the same time but instead will be delivered in batches. Sweet repeat: Brothers regift same hard candy for decades MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) Two New Hampshire brothers have gotten their holiday regifting skills down to an art they've been passing the same hard candy back and forth for over 30 years. It started in 1987, when Ryan Wasson gave a 10-roll Frankford Santa's Candy Book" with assorted fruit flavors to his brother, Eric Wasson, as a joke for Christmas, knowing that Eric wouldn't like it. I didn't eat them," Eric Wasson told WMUR-TV. And so the next year I thought, Hey, I think I'm going to give it back to him. He'll never remember.'" But Ryan immediately recognized it. They've been taking turns ever since, keeping a log of their exchanges. They've gotten creative about it. Ryan Wasson told the station the candy has been frozen in a block of ice and put in Jell-O, adding, He one time sewed it into a teddy bear." Yes, there is a Santa Claus. And no, COVID-19 won't stop him PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) Rest assured, kids of all ages: Santas coming this Christmas Eve, and a second holiday with COVID-19 wont stop him. Thats the word from the joint U.S.-Canadian military operation that for 66 years has been tracking Jolly Old St. Nicholas on his global mission and has assured us all first by land line and more recently by iPhone, Android, OnStar, Facebook, YouTube and more that hes on his way with a sleigh stuffed with toys and a welcome dose of joy. In whats become its own wildly popular tradition, the Colorado-based North American Aerospace Defense Command provides real-time updates on Santas progress Dec. 24, from 4 a.m. to midnight MST. NORADs Santa Tracker lets families watch Father Christmas in 3D as he transits the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. From deep inside NORAD headquarters, dozens of volunteers field an unrelenting wave of phone calls to 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723). They and other volunteers working off-site because of coronavirus distancing protocols will answer such questions as When will he come to my house? What kind of cookies does he like? said program manager and NORAD spokesman Preston Schlachter. Want to watch? Visit https://www.noradsanta.org, check out #NORADTracksSanta and @NoradSanta on Twitter, or use the associated apps. You can also email noradtrackssanta@outlook.com for the latest. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. (AP) Sheriff's deputies shot and wounded a 44-year-old man during a Christmas Eve shootout in Northern California after he allegedly carjacked an SUV at gunpoint, authorities said. The man was struck at least once by gunfire and was taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office. His name was not immediately made public. He will be booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on felony charges after he is released from the hospital. The Sacramento County sheriff's deputies who were involved in the shooting have been put on paid administrative leave. No deputies or civilians were injured. The incident began on Christmas Eve at 6 p.m. when the initial carjacking victim called for help. The driver told authorities that he'd been leaving work when an armed suspect had pointed a gun at him in a parking lot in the city of Rancho Cordova and demanded his Ford Explorer's keys, the sheriff's office said in a news release. Rancho Cordova police were able to track the SUV through GPS to an apartment complex in an unincorporated area of Sacramento County and found the vehicle in a parking lot. The man appeared to run out of the apartment complex as deputies were setting up a perimeter and he fired multiple rounds at them, the sheriff's office said. Deputies fired back as the man kept running. He shot back at them and was struck by at least one bullet shot by the deputies as he allegedly tried to carjack another vehicle, the sheriff's office said. The city of Rancho Cordova is about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 BOISE, Idaho (AP) Idahos population keeps growing at a faster clip than other states. The state has led the country in population growth for the fifth year in a row. From 2020 to 2021, Idahos population grew 2.9%, according to U.S. Census Bureau population estimates. Idaho welcomed 53,000 new residents, bringing its population up to about 1.9 million, the Spokesman-Review reported. The main reason was people moving from other states. Neighboring states Utah and Montana ranked just behind Idaho, growing 1.7% each. Washington ranked 23rd, gaining about 0.3% in population. The growth in Idaho, Utah and Montana follows trends in the West. Nationally, the U.S. population grew about 0.1%, the slowest growth since the country was founded. The U.S. Census Bureau attributes that to decreased international migration, decreased fertility and increased mortality due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Population growth has been slowing for years because of lower birth rates and decreasing net international migration, all while mortality rates are rising due to the aging of the nations population, Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Population Division at the Census Bureau, said in a statement. Now, with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this combination has resulted in a historically slow pace of growth. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 LOS ANGELES (AP) Parts of California are getting a White Christmas after all, with snowfall pounding mountains across the state. Other areas of California, however, saw a wet and rainy Christmas as storms continue to drench the state, causing flash flooding and evacuations in some areas over the holiday period. A 70-mile (113-kilometer) stretch of interstate over the top of the Sierra Nevada was closed Saturday when a storm that dropped nearly 2 feet (60 centimeters) of snow on some ski resorts around Lake Tahoe overnight got a second wind. Interstate 80 connecting Reno, Nevada, to Sacramento, California, over the Sierra was closed in both directions due to poor visibility from the Nevada-California state line to Colfax, California. The worst part of the storm is here so expect long delays, the California Highway Patrol in Truckee tweeted Saturday afternoon. Friday night into Saturday, 20 inches (50 centimeters) of snow fell at Homewood on Tahoes west shore. About a foot (30 centimeters) was reported at Northstar near Truckee, California and 10 inches (25 centimeters) at the Mount Rose ski resort on the southwest edge of Reno. At Donner Pass in the Sierra, which is along the closed interstate, officials with the University of California, Berkeley's Central Sierra Snow Laboratory wondered on Twitter if the recent snowfall could break the snowiest December record of 179 inches (4.6 meters) set in 1970. There's been at least 119 inches (3 meters) recorded so far this month , according to The Mercury News, with more expected over the next 72 hours. The snowpack in the Sierra was at dangerously low levels after recent weeks of dry weather but the state Department of Water Resources reported on Christmas Eve that the snowpack was between 114% and 137% of normal across the range with more snow expected. In the San Bernardino National Forest, crews are working on a $4.2 million emergency project to repair a section of State Route 18 that washed down a hillside late Thursday after heavy rain, according to The San Bernardino Sun. The roadway is a major route to Big Bear Lake and the closure near Panorama Point could be several days if not weeks, the newspaper reported. The Los Angeles area is likely to see rain and mountain snow for the next week, according to the National Weather Service, with temperatures significantly below normal through the middle of the week. The San Diego region should see scattered showers, with heavy snow in the San Bernardino and Riverside County mountains, with precipitation possibly going into Thursday. Meanwhile, the San Francisco Bay Area is predicted to have rain showers through Monday before cold and drier conditions arrive through the middle of next week, the weather service said. The storms across the West, which could drop rain and snow over much of the region into next week and plunge the Pacific Northwest into a lengthy cold snap, follow a now-departed atmospheric river that delivered copious amounts of precipitation earlier this week. The National Weather Service says the Seattle-Tacoma area is likely to see up to 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of snow over the weekend. By early next week, the Seattle area will dip as low as 18 degrees Fahrenheit (-7.7 degrees Celsius), the lowest in several years. Coeur dAlene, Idaho, will drop to -5 F (-20 C) by Wednesday and Portland will drop to the low 20s and high teens. Rain and snow records broke in Nevada and state officials in Oregon declared an emergency ahead of the freezing temperatures, snow and ice. Recent forecasts show at least an inch of snow is likely to fall Sunday in the Seattle and Portland regions, which dont typically see snow. But forecasters and state officials say the main concern is cold temperatures in the region, with daytime highs next week struggling to reach above freezing, that are likely to impact people experiencing homelessness and those without adequate access to heating. In Arizona, a winter weather advisory remained in effect Saturday through the weekend in the upper elevations of the mountains north of the Grand Canyon near the Colorado line. But the wet weather that dumped record-breaking rain on Phoenix and Flagstaff on Friday was moving out of the area. The 1.67 inches (4.2 centimeters) of rain that fell at the airport in Flagstaff on Friday shattered the old record of 0.87 inches (2.2 centimeters) set in 2019. The inch (2.5 centimeters) that was recorded in Phoenix Friday broke the old record of 0.93 of an inch (2.4 centimeters) in 1944. It also was the wettest day for the city since Feb. 22, 2020, when just over an inch fell. AP writer Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 OMAHA Gov. Pete Ricketts on Thursday announced his appointment of Republican Kirk Penner, a businessman from Aurora, to a vacant seat on the Nebraska State Board of Education. Penner will complete the remainder of the term of Patricia Timm of Beatrice, who resigned from the District 5 seat in October, citing personal health reasons. District 5 includes much of the south side of Lincoln, and rural areas of Southeast Nebraska largely south of the Platte River from Phillips to Ashland. The term runs through Jan. 4, 2023. Penner has 16 years experience on the Aurora Public Schools board, the Governor's Office said in a news release. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Nebraska Wesleyan University, the release said. Penner is president of Penner Patient Care, which distributes bathing systems to long-term care facilities. He's also president of Penner Manufacturing, which makes and assembles bathing systems in its Aurora facility for use in the health care industry and residential settings. He is president of the Aurora Development Corp., which recruits businesses to Aurora and encourages investment in Hamilton County. In 2018, Penner ran for Congress in Nebraska's sprawling and largely rural 3rd District. He lost in the Republican primary to incumbent Rep. Adrian Smith. Ricketts was highly critical this year of the Nebraska Department of Education's proposed health education standards. He urged the board to scrap the sex education topics, which called for teaching elementary school children about sexual orientation and gender identity. Opponents of the standards packed board meetings. Board members indefinitely postponed development of the standards, which would have been recommended but not required for adoption by local school districts. Ricketts has also called for removing the 1619 Project and another curriculum resource, the Zinn Education Project, from a list of educational resources posted on the Education Departments website. Meanwhile, a petition drive is underway that aims to replace the State Board of Education, the education commissioner and the Department of Education with a new Office of Education accountable to the governor. Circulators have until July 7 to collect enough signatures to put the question on the November 2022 ballot. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The Christmas Spirit took hold of one lucky boy earlier this month, and he was eager to spread his cheer. Jacob Boller, a sixth-grader from Clear Lake, was getting home from school on a chilly December day, when he spotted money from the corner of his eye. Melinda, Jacob's mother, heard her daughter yelling "it's not fair!" from inside their home. Jacob had found a $100 bill on the ground. At first, Melinda was surprised, she didn't believe it was real. Father Josh Boller joked about the cash, "first thing I did was look in my wallet to make sure I hadn't lost any of mine." Naturally, they took it to the bank. Not to deposit, but to make sure they weren't being tricked. But Halloween tricks are over, and the Christmas bill was real. "We went to the police to see if it was anyone's (money,)" Jacob recounted their next step. The police told him nobody had called about a missing bill, and after asking around, Jacob pinned it on the fridge and waited for somebody to call. For eight days, that bill was stuck on the fridge. Nobody ever claimed it. After waiting the appropriate time, Jacob's parents told him it was his money, and he could spend it however he wanted. "His first reaction wasn't to spend the money on himself, it didn't even cross his mind," Jacob's father smiled. It was a proud moment for Jacob's parents when he made his choice. Jacob knew right away he wanted to go toy shopping, so he could help other kids have a Christmas as great as his own. With the giving spirit of Christmas in their hearts, the Boller family headed to Target. One hundred dollars in hand, Jacob bought games and toys for kids who needed more Christmas cheer. It was little sister Madilyn's suggestion to donate the gifts to the Giving Tree. When they arrived, they saw the Giving Spirit had emptied the tree and had already filled the skirt with gifts, so they went elsewhere, searching for another group to donate to. The Bollers decided to give their toys to Chad Harrison at CPA, where each Toys for Tots donation is matched with another toy, doubling the amount that Jacob had given. "Chad has always (matched donations)," said Tina Swart, office administrator at Chad Harrison CPA, "it's something he feels strongly and is passionate about that he donates and gives gifts to kids for Christmas." With the matched donations at CPA, what began as a lucky find for Jacob Boller turned into 14 Christmas presents for the community. "I felt like I already had a pretty good Christmas so far, so I hope that others could feel the same way I do," Jacob said. Gretchen Burnette is a Weeklies Editor and Daily Reporter at the Globe Gazette. You can reach her by phone at 641.421.0523 or at Gretchen.Burnette@GlobeGazette.com Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) Concealed behind curtains and a stage set constructed from a cardboard box with hand-painted scenery, puppet master Hovey Brom manipulated the nine strings of a marionette, propelling it onto the small stage. Jingles, dressed in a colorful costume and wearing a fake Santas beard, danced, shimmied and kicked Lastup his feet before exiting the set. Jingles looked nearly as fresh and vibrant as he did the day Brom constructed him 88 years ago. When I was in second grade, I was sick and out of school for a semester. A neighbor came over with a book that showed how to make marionettes. So that fall, together we made my first marionette, recalled the 96-year-old retired architect, sculptor and painter. It wasnt his last. Brom got tied up in the hobby. It really gets in your blood. I had fun learning how to make them and then learning to make them move, so I wanted to make another one, and another, he told the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, laughing. His collection numbers nearly 20. Making marionettes satisfied his artistic side, and throughout his youth he constructed the puppets from stuffing, balsa wood and doll heads. His mother and aunts often made clothing for the characters he created. Several were originally toys which he transformed into marionettes, some were constructed by his children when they were young, and a few were given to him as gifts. Jingles remains his favorite. I made them and enjoyed it, and my kids wanted to make them. It became a family thing, he said. He and his late wife, Marge, reared three children, sons Dirk and Timm and daughter Kristi. Marionettes are full-length puppets controlled from above by a series of strings. Broms puppets require nine strings to operate. The strings run from individual limbs, shoulders, head and spine and connect to a control made from short, crisscrossed lengths of wood, which he uses to manipulate the puppets movements. It had been nearly 13 years since Brom had examined the marionettes. Recently, he took the collection out of its suitcase storage to make repairs and give them some TLC, as well as figure out what he eventually wants to do with them. Last week, Brom presented three Christmas-themed marionette shows for residents at Prairie Wind, the Western Home facility where he lives. In the tale he wrote, Santa is kidnapped by the sword-wielding Black Knight, who wants Santas toys for himself. A host of other marionettes Jingles, Johnny, Shorty, Grandma and Two Gun attempt to rescue the Big Red One. Eventually Santa is freed to deliver his toys. Also appearing on stage were a policeman, a town crier, a dragon with chomping teeth, a Chinese dragon, a pony and even famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who was hired by Santa to design and build a 10-story building to store Santas toys, Brom said, laughing. A Charlie Brown marionette created by his children also was part of the show. It was a simple story, but the marionettes are fun to look at and watch. Marionettes are complicated, and it takes skill to get them to move right. You have to be careful because the strings can easily get tangled up and thats a pain, to say the least. Im not as dexterous as I used to be. It really takes more than one person to put on a show, Brom explained. The retiree was assisted by his neighbors, John Kragt, Phyllis Steele and Mike and Jane Ingraham. Brom, a watercolorist, painted the backdrop himself. Brom, who was recognized as a Courier Eight Over 80 Award winner in 2011, retired as a partner at InVision in his early 80s, but continued working until recently. During his career, he designed buildings throughout the Cedar Valley, Iowa and beyond, including structures at Wartburg College in Waverly, the University of Northern Iowa and the original layout at the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum. He provided designs for more than 250 Iowa church and synagogue projects, such as Nazareth Lutheran, Westminster Presbyterian and Sons of Jacob Synagogue. He began his architectural career at Thorson and Thorson following his 1952 graduation from Iowa State University in Ames. His recent shows recalled many childhood experiences, Brom said. For many years, the family aunts and uncles and cousins would gather on the family farm for Christmas, and Id put on a marionette show. My mother would help me. It became a family tradition until I was in college. Its been fun to meet them all again, to say Hello. Theyve each got their own character and it feels like Im seeing old friends again, Brom added. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa (AP) Preparing to leave his North Liberty home on a winters day, Bob Randolph fills his pockets with miniature hand-knitted stockings. Hes become accustomed to giving them to untold amounts of people he runs into: kids playing down the street, residents and caretakers at his mothers assisted living home, churches in town and patients at the childrens hospital. Hes careful to not leave out the the guy behind the meat counter, whose daughter might like one, the gal behind the desk at physical therapy, or the folks at the dentists office, either. If you see the little kids when they get one, its pretty special, Randolph told the Press-Citizen. Especially in the last year with the pandemic going on, if you can put a smile on someones face, I think thats a good thing to do. Randolphs mother, Margaret, taught him to knit and sew when he was growing up in Anamosa. Now 63, he picked up the skill again after spending nearly 30 years working at a factory job. He came away from the decades of manual labor with injuries to his neck and shoulders, 13 surgeries, and plenty of time on his hands. I think its a wonderful thing to have something to occupy your time. It keeps me busy and it keeps me happy. In todays world, thats major, Randolph said. Now he gets to work sitting in a cozy brown living room chair with a row counter hanging around his neck. Surrounding him are reminders of his family of eight siblings, like blankets and slippers knitted by his mother and sisters, and about 50 skeins of yarn. To his left and right are embroidery needles, scissors and crochet hooks, plus bells and buttons to adorn each stocking. Theres also special tape waiting to be wrapped around his calloused fingers, which get sore from gilding the needles some the width of a toothpick, size 000 through so many loops of yarn. I have to remind myself, go slow, Randolph said of the tiniest stockings, which look small in palm of his hand. If you drop a stitch there, its terrible to try and pick up or re-do. Each stocking takes four to five hours depending on the size of the needle. Hes memorized the pattern after creating an estimated 600 of them over the past three to four years, some to gift and some to sell. A current batch is being sold at the Knitting Shoppe in Iowa City. Randolph has also created hats and scarves for plastic bottle snowmen made by children at a local library, and full-sized stockings to send overseas with a local church. To say thank you for what she taught him, he sewed new curtains for his mothers kitchen; hes also made purses for his sisters and bag bags, to hold plastic bags in the kitchen, for every member of the family. This Christmas, he looks forward to playing Shanghai rummy and making jigsaw puzzles with his family. And knitting. Ill keep doing these until I get tired of it, Randolph said. Right now it seems to bring too much joy. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Iowa City Press-Citizen. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. (AP) The Legacy of the Plains Museum has a treasure trove of painting and art work by area artists. Perhaps, no artist is more important to the Scottsbluff/Gering area than Charles Simmons one of Scottsbluffs first residents. I think he was definitely influential being an early artist (in the Scottsbluff/Gering area), by capturing the landscape. The landscape even in the last 70 years has changed, Dave Wolf, director of Legacy of the Plains Museum, said. Simmons name is well-known in this area. Wolf told the Scottsbluff Star-Herald that the quality of the art is what really makes it stand out. The paintings are this is coming from somebody who struggles with stick figures just amazing. It could be a window with the realism, he said. Barb Netherland, with Legacy of the Plains, said his fondness of the area comes through in the artwork. It was almost like he was driven to do it, she said. He would draw on everything like napkins, a piece of paper. I think by capturing the landscapes in all seasons from all different directions, he just really seemed to love the area. That seems to come through in his art. Simmons was a prolific artist. He was locally known, maybe not so much outside the area, Netherland said. Some of the artwork, though, has been donated from people from other states. The paintings we have, various people kind of donated them. Were a historical museum, not an art gallery, but weve got some amazing pieces that were trying to showcase, Wolf said. One painting came to the museum after an antique dealer came across it. (There was a) gal from Texas or Washington who was just interested in the frame, Wolf said. She saw (the name of) the artist ... and Googled it. She found out who the artist was and (asked us), Do you want this? We said, Absolutely. Netherland said the painting likely came from an estate sale. What happens is, you get a generation or two removed from somebody who lived here. They had kids, then they had kids and theres no connection to the area or the name. You get a few generations away and (the history of the area) doesnt count for anything, but we live it every day, she said. Without that connection to the Scottsbluff-Gering area, the paintings are usually sold off. Netherland, though, said his artwork is deeply woven into the fabric of the twin cities. His family goes so far back with roots in Gering and Scottsbluff, Netherland said. Charles Simmons was born on May 20, 1887, just six weeks after his family settled in the area. He was the second baby born in Scotts Bluff County, according to a 1968 article written by Con Marshall. His family was the first residents of Scottsbluff. As such, he was likely the first artist in the area having started his artistic career at the age of 13, according to the article. A boxcar load of coal was being unloaded in Scottsbluff and a guy was trying to sell it. So he took me down to the tracks and I lettered COAL on a board for him. Well, the sign made a hit, and when the Fourth of July came around, I painted quite a few signs for people. Things like Genuine lemonade for 5 cents, and so on. I mixed lamp black and beer to make the black paint, he said in the article. This work opened the door for oils and pictures and all kinds of other paint work. As I look back a lot it was very crude, but I got to the point where I could turn out a good days work. Simmons was protective of his artwork, he said. I never let one go out if it didnt suit me, and if they didnt want it, they sure didnt have to take it, Simmons said in the 1968 article. His artwork captures the early days of the founding of Scottsbluff and Gering. Much of it he captured and put in sketches and paintings, Netherland said. When I think about history, I thing about what we owe (Simmons and his brother Otis), a couple of goofs that were on their front porch (in a family photo dressed in fine clothes for the time period). They were a couple of dandies. Wolf said it is great they were able to capture the history of the area in art and sketches, but he is worried about preserving history in the present. Our industry is starting to worry about it because everybodys pictures are now on their phones, or their computers. We dont print anything. There could be two or three generations in the next 20 years if all of a sudden servers went down and information would be lost. We wouldnt have photographs to show life and landscapes and how things were in our time, Wolf said. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Star-Herald. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 My mom was born on Christmas Eve, so her parents named her Carol. While I was growing up, she was, appropriately, synonymous with Christmas. I always loved baking Christmas cookies with herespecially the cut-out cookies, shaped like Santas, reindeer, and candy canes. I remember the way the dough felt pressed against the grain of our old wooden pastry board. How many cinnamon imperials were appropriate to put on one snowman cookie? My brother and I may have pushed the limits. Christmas music floated through the house from the kitchen radio. I would stand on a chair next to her to carefully observe what was happening on the stovetop, or clamor to pitch in stirring a bowl of dough, only to complain when my arm started to get tired a minute later. Licking the batter from the wire beaters was a highly anticipated peak of the baking day, and soon after, covered in flour, Id be lost to whatever holiday specials were on TV in the living room. Wed enjoy a bounty of these homemade cookies well into the New Year, while just as many were delivered, along with her walnut fudge, in festive tins, to neighbors, colleagues, relatives, and friends. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement My mom died when I was 12. Ringing in her birthday, Christmas, and a new year without her felt furiously impossible that first year. There was a cold spike of grief running through me, an icicle rooted deep in the ground; I was desperate to keep my footing in the past, to not let time pass. But it did, and Christmas after her death looked startlingly similar to Christmases before she died, only she wasnt there. My father valiantly committed to keeping things consistent for us. We carried a hollowness while acting out scenes from a previous life: presents under the tree, yule log on Channel 11, and a big syrupy breakfast. Only a new tradition was addedstopping at the cemetery, where we would tend to the small fake tree, wreath, or blanket of evergreen boughs placed on her grave. Wed get back into the car and drive to my grandparents house for dinner, Christmas songs playing dully on the radio. Advertisement Advertisement For the next few years after she died, one other thing was different about the holiday season. Women in our neighborhood and in my extended family started inviting me over to their houses to bake Christmas cookies with them. I was embarrassed to feel like a pity case, anxious, and shy, but I craved connection. Despite my reticence, I loved entering into these other womens worlds, with their unique recipes and kitchen smells, so different from my own. I was a guest but felt more like a nervous, spying squatter: passing from the front door through the living room and into the kitchen, taking in every detail around me, collecting and sorting information on women, mother, holiday, home. Talking about my mom was not an option, even though these women loved her, and thats why I was there. Im certain that these women felt uncomfortable and awkward entertaining a sad, quiet kid whom they didnt know very well. I know that I didnt seem to be enjoying myself. Talking to a preteen is hard enough on its own, but nobody knows what to say to a grieving child. I didnt have much to say myself, so I listened. I rolled dough. I followed directions, heard anecdotes about their holiday plans, their kids, their daily lives, to which I was just a brief visitor. I thought about who they might be talking to when the landline phone occasionally rang. I wondered if the interruption provided them a relief from the tension (it did for me, too). I glanced at the pictures on the fridge, notes and numbers in unfamiliar handwriting. I watched the clock for when my dad was supposed to come get me. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Talking about my mom was not an option, even though these women loved her, and thats why I was there. But some things are too hard to talk about. I didnt understand until later that there are other ways of communicating. We made cookies and brittle, peppermint and chocolate bark. I studied what these women did differently from my mom. Mom always pressed chocolate kisses into the center of peanut butter cookies; this method that neighbor Sue showed me, gently pressing the tines of a fork into the cookie to make a cross-hatched pattern, was new and fascinating. I didnt know that a fork could be used like that. Advertisement Advertisement The hours passed quietly. Batches went into the oven and to kill the time in between, these women offered TV and movies as respite. I remember Barbara, my dads cousin, who eagerly put on a DVD of Black Beauty, and I didnt have the courage to tell her I didnt like horses. Was I doing them a favor by being there? Were they loving their friend, my mom, through me? They put themselves out there, and that grace has always stuck with me. Advertisement Advertisement Trauma can have an erasure effect on memory. What I remember from my childhood is, more often than not, a memory of a memory. The picture in my mind can often be found in an actual photo album on the shelf. The real thing is lost in a cloud of flour. Im baking Christmas cookies of my own this week, using my moms recipes, some enhanced by what I learned over the years from other women, like my stepmom. Time slips briefly into certain smells and textures. The emblem of a small Old World woman pressed into the bars of Bakers German chocolate: I stare at her and I have the sensation of remembering. Is she trying to tell me something? Is my mom speaking through her? I try to stay there, in desperation, and everything becomes a metaphor. I assign meaning and messages to it all. You have to keep stirring, constantly stirring, or the batter will harden. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The cookies that break or burn a little arent ideal. Theyre not what the recipe promised. But they get to go out in the world early and be shared. While I always think about my mom this time of year, this year while baking Im remembering those women who invited me over. Who did a thing they didnt have to do, a thing that was uncomfortable and that they couldnt have known would matter. A devastating number of people are going to be alone this holiday season, many of them grieving, too. So many people are hurting and disconnected, and so many traditions have crumbled. What loving acts of tenderness can we offer when we cant be together? Packages left on doorsteps, a call, a text, a letter. Comfort from a comfortable distance may not be optimal; small talk when the big stuff hurts too much may not feel sufficient. But a gesture of love doesnt follow a recipe. The measurements dont have to be exact. In January of 2001, a startup news website broke a huge technology story: A charismatic millionaire was secretly developing an incredible invention, one that would change the world, in his lab in New Hampshire. The news came via a leaked, secret book proposal, which had just sold to the academic publisher Harvard Business School Press for $250,000. Within hours, the story was everywhere. The proposal quoted Steve Jobs saying the invention would be as significant as the personal computer. Jeff Bezos said it was revolutionary. But what was surprising about the book deal wasnt merely the praise the invention and its inventor, Dean Kamen, garnered from tech world luminaries. It wasnt merely the substantial investment the inventor had received from famed venture capitalist John Doerr, the largest in the firm Kleiner Perkins history. What stood out most of all was the detail that Harvard was paying a quarter-million dollars for the bookand it didnt even know what the invention was. The inventor was paranoid about leaks, and the books author withheld that information from the proposal. No onenot even the literary agent who had submitted the proposal to editors, swearing them to secrecyknew what the invention was. All they knew was the single word of the books title: IT. Advertisement The tech bubble was bursting, and all across Silicon Valley, paper fortunes were vanishing. Now here was something different, something that felt new because it was old: a real invention, not just lines of HTML. Soon IT was on Lycos, on NPR, in the New York Times, on late-night talk shows. An IT message board thrown onto the internet by two entrepreneurial brothers received 100,000 hits in its first 24 hours. The explosion of the IT story in the winter and spring of 2001 represented an entirely new kind of media frenzy, the birth of virality as we now know it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement And then IT, too, popped. In December 2001, a year after the initial leak, the world finally learned what IT was, as Dean Kamen presented his invention on Good Morning America. With great fanfare, an actual curtain raised to reveal a bulky two-wheeled scooter. Advertisement Advertisement The Segway, Kamen announced proudly. Thats it? Diane Sawyer asked. That cant be it. The Segway did not change the world. It was not bigger than the PC. It ended up a joke, the province of mall cops and G.O.B. Bluth on Arrested Development. The Segway flopped so badly that one of its first boosters still keeps his in the garage, to remind me, he said, of my own fallibility. The Segway also reminds me of my fallibility. To this day, thinking about it fills me with dread. Thats because in 2001, I was a young literary agentand Dean Kamens book was my first-ever big deal. The cascading series of miscues that tanked the Segway began with that book proposal, its leak, and the ensuing hype. And Ive always had a sick sense that the leak was somehow my fault. So I set out to report the story, to wade back into the mess I made when I got in way over my head, and to figure out once and for all the answer to a question thats eaten at me for 20 years: Did I kill the Segway? Advertisement Listen to another version of this story on Slates Decoder Ring: I still remember the phone call. My boss, Rafe Sagalyn, was sitting behind his desk in the little office in Bethesda, Maryland, where I went to work every day. Rafe was, and still is, a big-deal literary agent, representing scores of Washington journalists and business consultants. Behind him was the wall of books hed sold over the decades, books whose authors I talked to on the phone all the time: David Maraniss, Jane Mayer, Chris Matthews. One shelf held a rainbow of international editions of Megatrends, the megaselling 1980s business tome by John Naisbitt that was Rafes first big hit, the one that, he said, paid for my house. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I sat in a chair on the opposite side of Rafes desk, the speakerphone between us. Id organized this call, a big deal for me. Id been working my way through grad school as Rafes assistant for a few years by then, and he was encouraging me to take the next step, to find authors of my own to represent. It was 1999, and I was 24 years old, freshly married, ambitious as hell. I read every magazine that came into the office, listened to NPR, and combed through the slush pile in search of a book idea I could sell. Steve Jobs said that the invention would be as significant as the personal computer. Jeff Bezos said it was revolutionary. Thats why Steve Kemper was on the phone. Steve was a freelance journalist whod built a modest career writing for newspapers and magazines. Hed long wanted to write a book and had bounced around ideas with a few other agents but not yet sold a proposal. I read a feature he wrote for Smithsonian magazine about the global importance of salt, and thought: Thats a book. Microhistoriesbooks that used some small, important innovation, like longitude or the pencil, to explain the worldwere the big new thing in book publishing. An author named Mark Kurlansky had just had a hit with a book about cod, of all things, making the case that this humble fish unlocked a new understanding about the way the oceans and the world economy worked. Advertisement I spent a month working with Steve on a proposal for a book about salt, a substance that had encouraged the growth of civilization and contributed to the rise and fall of empires. Then we learned that a publisher had just made a big deal for a history of salt to be written by Mark Kurlansky. Never mind that, Steve said. He had another great story, one no one could scoop him on. It was about an inventor named Dean Kamen, who had made his name by inventing the drug infusion pump and the first portable dialysis machine. He was a millionaire many times over, lived in a mansion in New Hampshire, and had his own private island. Now he had come up with his greatest invention yet. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Steve had once written a profile of Kamen, and recently Kamen had invited Steve up to the Manchester headquarters of his R&D company, DEKAfor DEan KAmentelling him, This is the most exciting thing Ive ever worked on. Now, as Rafe and I listened, Steve told us that the new technology was absolutely revolutionary. This invention is going to change the world, he said, his voice crackling over the speaker from his house in Connecticut. He was a mild-mannered guy, generally, but he was fervent about this. I have complete access to the whole thing. The engineers, the designers, Dean. OK, well, what is the invention? Rafe asked. I cant tell you, Steve said. Rafe looked up at me, eyebrows raised. Well, how do you expect us to get you a book deal? he said. Advertisement Dean Kamen hated high school math. The problems were so easy he could do them in his head, so teachers were forever accusing him of cheating. His classmates would brag about getting As on tests and hed say, Any chump can get an A on that test. Watch meIll get exactly a 57. And then he did. What he loved was building things. While he was still in high school on Long Island, he built audiovisual and lighting systems for rock shows and corporate conferences. A few years out of high school, he made the worlds first drug infusion pump in his parents basement, out of parts he bought at RadioShack. That invention changed health care forever, and soon Kamen did what any rich inventor with an anti-authoritarian streak would do: He moved to New Hampshire, where taxes were low and regulation was scant. He bought a mansion and a helicopter and, when he didnt love the helicopter, the helicopter company. By the 1990s he was rich enough, and well-connected enough, that North Dumpling Islandhis island off the coast of New York, which Kamen had declared its own sovereign kingdomhad signed a mutual nonaggression pact with the first George Bush. It even had its own national anthem, sung to the tune of America the Beautiful: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement North Dumpling, North Dumpling, Keep lawyers far from thee! And MBAs, and bureaucrats, That we may all be free! Dean was a great character, Steve Kemper said when I reconnected with him this spring. Deans quotable, hes independent, hes a little bit crazy. Kamen wore jeans and work boots everywhere, accessorized with an army jacket whose pockets Kamen filled with tools and screws that always set off metal detectors at, for instance, the White House. He knew everything about science and nothing about anything else; after that dinner at the White House, he asked friends if they knew anything about the people hed been seated with, who turned out to be Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine. Advertisement With DEKA, Kamen built a wonderland for ambitious engineers in a set of riverside warehouses that Kamen bought for a song. Dean is the best possible boss you can have, Steve remembered one engineer telling him, because he says, do whatever you want, fail, fail, fail over and over, but learn something and then try something else. To Kamen, experiments that dont workfrog-kissing, he called itare as important to the work of engineering as the solutions that do work. If youre not failing, Steve said, youre not doing the work that Dean wants you to do. Hes expecting spectacular failures, because that means youre thinking big. What made Kamen inspiring to work for, Benge Ambrogi recalled, was his ambition and his brilliance. Ambrogi was an engineer at DEKA for 13 years. I wouldnt call Dean an engineer, he said. Id call him an explorer of the natural world. Hes amazing in his ability to pull things back to first principlesthose physical relationships between matter and energy, the Newtonian formulas that represent centuries of understanding of the way the world works. Dean understands that stuff, just, like, in his fiber, Ambrogi said. And so he can take that fundamental understanding of how the world works and then take it five levels up. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kamens bone-deep understanding of first principles meant he was always looking for a more elegant solution. Engineers at the company shared stories of presenting a prototype and having Kamen suddenly blurt out some totally surprising idea that a) was absolutely brilliant and b) would absolutely send the whole team down a yearlong rabbit hole and delay the project. One engineer told me that Kamen liked to say, Anything worth doing takes at least a decade. Like that other lover of first principles, Archimedes, Kamen had his eureka moment in the bathtubor in his case, getting out of the shower. He slipped and windmilled his arms to regain his balance, which made him think about how humans balance ourselves. We instinctively understand how to shift our weight and change our stance; we even, in walking, propel ourself into small, controlled falls forward, each interrupted by the next step. If he could build a machine that could balance like a person does, it could have incredible applications; imagine a wheelchair that can stand up straight on two wheels or even climb stairs. How many lives would that change? In the early 1990s, engineers at DEKA, including Ambrogi, started the long, slow work of turning Kamens eureka moment into an actual product. The seemingly simple idea was fiendishly complicated in practice: Replicating the gyroscopes of our inner ears and the processing power of our brains requires a machine to make ten thousand measurements and calculations every second. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After a few years of work, the group had a couple of prototypes: a stair-climbing machine that could, with great effort, make its way up a set of wooden stairs the team had built in the lab. And a load-balancing machine, a sort of coffee table on two wheels. You could set something on it, and the machine would sense the uneven weight and rotate the wheels enough to balance it. And then, one day, one of the engineers jumped on the coffee table, and away he zoomed. It was just so primitive, but beautiful, Ambrogi remembered. Your body is the joystick. You lean forward, it goes forward. The more lean you have, the faster it goes. And you lean back and it slows down. Engineers took turns zipping around the lab on their new toy. It was a complete revelation, Ambrogi said, how it felt like a natural extension of your body. The stair-climbing wheelchair remained the teams primary goal, the product they imagined would one day make money. But the engineers loved their toy, and refining that coffee table on wheels became their nights-and-weekends project. Soon Kamen decided the time had come to take the wheelchair project behind closed doors. He had an inventors paranoia that as soon as someone else found out about his best ideas, they would steal them. The project needed a code name, which came from the odd, elegant, dancing motion the wheelchair made when it spun in a circle. Like Fred Astaire, someone said, and someone else said, Fred Upstairs, and so it became Fred. And that name, in turn, inspired the name of the spinoff doohickey that engineers loved to ride down the halls of DEKA. Who dances with Fred? Ginger, of course. In 1995, Kamen sold Fred, the wheelchair, to Johnson & Johnson, and turned his attention to Ginger. Ginger became its own secret department at DEKA, its engineers given resources and attention that made them the envy of other employees. This time, though, Kamen didnt want to sell the idea to some big company and move on. No, Ginger was too important. Ginger could solve the problem of city travel. It could reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and free our cities from the scourge of the automobile. It could change the world. Dean Kamen planned to manufacture and sell the product himself. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement DEKA filed patent after patent for Gingers technology. Kamen hired procurement experts, software developers, manufacturing engineers, even a small marketing team. Eventually Kamen would lease a 77,000-square-foot factory in Manchester that would, he planned, be able to push out 6,000 Gingers a week. Meanwhile, Gingers team worked to transform the janky prototypes, made of plastic wagon wheels and store-bought circuit boards, into a product someone would buy. An industrial designer preached the gospel of elegance and simplicity, pushing the engineers to make things smaller, more efficient, more sleek. The code was written, rewritten, refined. Safety was paramount: Kamen worried that one high-profile breakdown would sink the project, and the engineers at the company used what theyd learned about making FDA-regulated medical devices like the dialysis machine to build something that could survive anything a rider could throw at it. Kamen even hired a lobbyist to begin the process of convincing local and national governments that Ginger was safe enough to ride on the sidewalkthat on a policy level it would be viewed like a better version of walking, not like a bike. After all, said Kamen when he invited Steve Kemper, the journalist, to Manchester in 1999: Once people tried a Ginger, Whos gonna want to walk? Kamen made Steve sign a nondisclosure agreement, then keycarded him into the Ginger offices on the top floor of the warehouse. It was not impressive, Steve remembered. It was held together with duct tape and there were little jagged edges and little toy wheels on it, like from a wagon. But when he stepped onto Ginger and rode it, it was like a magic carpet. Everyone I talked to about the Ginger remembered their wondrous first ride. Kamen counted on it. He knew that everyone got this dopey grin once they started zooming around. That was when Kamen knew he had his hooks in you. He used the same technique on Steve that he was already using on potential manufacturing partners, employees he was trying to lure to Manchester, and, most importantly, investors. And then hes trotting alongside you, still pitching, Steve recalled. This is Ginger, people are going to be Gingering to the store, Gingering to work, Gingering to the subway. Its going to be a verb. Its going to be a new concept, a new verb, a new world. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Basically, I drank the Kool-Aid, Steve said, chuckling. He is the most incredible salesperson youll ever see in your life. I saw him sell everybody, and he sold me for sure. Kamen told Steve that he thought the creation of Ginger was so momentous that someone ought to write a book about it, and offered to pay Steve to do it. Steve said nobut that, as a journalist, hed write the book if Kamen gave him total access and total creative control. Hed write it on spec, until he could find a publisher. Thats when he emailed me. At the end of our phone call with Steve, Rafe and I walked out to pick up lunch at a Cajun sandwich shop we both liked. Steves book seemed so exciting, and so impossible. But Rafe thought it was worth pursuing, and he told me he thought I should be the books lead agent. I emailed Steve and told him: Keep reporting, and well figure out how to sell this thing. Somehow. You just had a real passion for this, Rafe said when I talked to him this spring. My old boss is still an agent, his one-man shop acquired by ICM. We were doing it together, but you were taking the lead. Rafe had high hopes for me at the agency, he told me, and saw me not just as an assistant but as a full-fledged agent in waiting. The question was, does this person have the sensibilityintellectual and businessto, you know, elevate to being an agent? And I thought you had all those qualities. He paused. And, I dont know, for some reason you took a different path. Through 2000, Steve Kemper visited DEKA two days a week, observing the engineers hard at work and attending every major investor meeting with Kamen. Meanwhile, out on the West Coast, everything was falling apart. The dot-com bubble was popping. The Nasdaq reached its highest level in March, and from then on dozens of web companies saw their fortunes plummet. Take Pets.com, which in January aired an expensive Super Bowl ad, in February launched a disappointing IPO, and by November was declaring bankruptcy. In the same magazines and websites that had breathlessly touted these companies as the businesses of the future, commentators suddenly scoffed at the fact that anyone had ever believed in them, said Margaret OMara, a historian of Silicon Valley and the author of The Code. Of course, theres a lot of rather gleeful, you know, Oh, you guys got too far out over your skis, she said. It turns out its really hard to sell dog food on the internet. The employees whod moved to the Bay on the promise of stock options contributed rumors and gripes to a website called Fucked Company and watched their Potemkin fortunes disappear. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kamen had always taken a dim view of the dot-com boom. He thought it was a ridiculous waste of talent and money, compared to engineering, Steve said. You couldnt see what the invention was, you couldnt touch it. But as the titans of Silicon Valley started looking for new projects to invest in, Kamen, despite his disdain, started turning to them. Why? He needed money. By 2000, DEKA had been working on Ginger for five years, and Kamen was burning through a half-million dollars of his own money each month. R&D is expensive, especially when you make your engineers chase every brilliant idea you have in search of the most elegant solution. With the help of a Harvard Business School professor named William Sahlman and the investment firm Credit Suisse, Kamen had scraped together $30 million or so, but he needed more. It started with John Doerr, the legendary head of the venture capital fund Kleiner Perkins. Doerr had been an early investor in Amazon, and after Kamen pitched him at a TED conference, he flew his private jet out to Manchester. As soon as he rode Ginger, he got that same dopey grin. The next day he was sending Kamen mash notes over emailThanks for the scope of your ambition, which is breathtaking, and inspirationaland pressing to let him invest more and more in Ginger. In the end, Kleiner Perkins pledged $38 million for about 7.5 percent of the company, and Doerr started calling his rich and famous friends. And thats how, in the fall of 2000, Stevewhod thought he was chronicling a simple engineering storysuddenly found himself in the ballroom of the Hyatt Regency near the San Francisco airport, watching a laughing Jeff Bezos ride around on a Ginger and Steve Jobs yell about how if theyd hired real designers, Ginger would look so cool it would make people shit their pants. Then, Steve recalled, they turned on the team of Ginger employees in the room, clearly conveying the feeling that they were rubes whose inexperience and idiocy would sink this world-changing product. It was an ambush, Steve thought, a way for Doerr to persuade Kamen that what his product needed was the Silicon Valley expertise and money that only he could deliver. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a very short period of time, Kamen went from mortgaging his house to pay for Ginger to not only having enoughthanks to the Kleiner Perkins investmentbut having extremely famous people begging to give him even more millions of dollars. Jobs alone wanted to invest $60 million and couldnt believe it when Kamen turned him down; Kamen didnt want to give up that much control. Jobs agreed to take a spot on the board in hopes of convincing Kamen to let him invest in a second round. Doerr predicted that five years after it launched, Ginger would be valued at $5 billion. But Kamens obsession with secrecy was slowing everything down. DEKA couldnt hire enough engineers because Kamen only wanted people who would come to Manchester on faith. The marketing guys couldnt conduct market research because they couldnt tell anyone what the product was. (Kamen belittled his marketing team, calling them the Three Marketeers, and then never gave them the resources to do their job.) At this point, nearly everyone wished Kamen would stop being so secretive about Ginger so they could begin to get the project out the door. Twice, one of Kamens investors said to Steve Kemper, I think what we really need is a sexy leak. But Kamen wasnt having it. That inventors paranoia againhe was convinced that if Honda or Ford got wind of Ginger, theyd build their own and release it before he could. He was holding on tight. But Ginger was about to be an impossible secret to keep. When Steve Kemper told Rafe Sagalyn and me about that West Coast ambush, we all agreed it was time to sell the book. Steve had been reporting at DEKA for a year and a half, and he needed to know that he was going to see a return on his time. Suddenly this was no longer a mysterious invention that some reporter insisted was going to be bigit was a product that the biggest names in the business were fighting to throw money at. It was news. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Steve wrote up the hotel meeting by SFO as a sample chapter, carefully excising details of what the invention was. When the doors were locked, the chapter read, Kamen opened the duffels and the boxes, removed some components, and used a screwdriver and hex wrenches to assemble two Gingers. He finished in ten minutes, turned one on, and [sorry, blacked out]. The chapter was funny, dishy, and canny. Now it was up to me to persuade publishers to take the risk of buying a book about a secret technology, even though Steve couldnt tell them what it waseven though he hadnt even told me what it was. So Steve and I came up with a book proposal. I still have a copy. Its really good. It includes that juicy sample chapter, but its set up by a series of ginned-up emails between me and Steve: me playing the doubting Thomas, and him convincing me, over time, that this invention was real and would indeed change the world. To: Steve Kemper From: Dan Kois December 20, 1999 Sorry for the delay. Ive been swamped, and besides, Im not sure what to say to you. This is very frustrating. All this dramatic vagueness. Kamen is just too secretive. You act like he invented the wheel. Does he have investors? What do they say? Or is that off-limits too? Give me something concrete to tell publishers. ======= To: Dan Kois From: Steve Kemper Date: March 25, 2000 Dan My turn to apologize. I was gone in January and have been catching up. No, Kamen didnt invent the wheel, but people far smarter than I who have seen Ginger believe that people will talk about Kamen the way they once talked about Henry Ford. John Doerr thinks Kamen will do for the 21st century what Ford did for the 20th, and he calls Kamen a combination of Ford and Edison. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Smoke and mirrors, Steve said when we discussed it this spring. I just had to make it so enticing that instead of an editor saying, Well, this is crazy, I dont know what Im buying, theyd say, This is crazy, and how do I get in on it? I emailed the proposal to editors with a note reminding them how secret it was. Please dont share, I said. By New Years 2001, we had the entire package ready to go. Rafe made the list of editors wed submit the book to, but the submission was going to come from me. You taking the lead made it even more perfect, Rafe said, because you werent a known entity to these editors. It was perfectly in theme with what we were doing. Not only was I an unknown to all the editors I was sending the proposal to; by this point I didnt even live in the continental United States. My wife had graduated from law school and gotten a clerkship with a federal judge in Honolulu, so wed just moved to the ground floor of a little house on top of a mountain, with a view from [gestures left] Diamond Head to [gestures right] Pearl Harbor. For some reason, Rafe let me keep working for him, even though I was five time zones behind the East Coast. So here I was, an unknown agent, on an island in the middle of the Pacific, preparing to send this book proposal about a mystery invention out to editors Id never met. At the last minute, Rafe had come up with the title: IT. Like, just the pronoun it. It was so last-minute, we didnt even tell Steve about it. The day after New Years, at 8 a.m. Hawaii time, I sat down in that little office and prepared myself. I knew what to do. Id seen Rafe do it dozens of times. I scribbled out a little list of Things to Say to Editors, and I dialed a bunch of 212 numbers. When each editor said, Sure, Ill take a look, Id email the proposal with a note reminding them how secret it was. Please dont share, I said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At the end of the day, after Id emailed the last editor, I exhaled, drove downtown, and met my wife at a bar in Ala Moana for Taco Tuesday. All the clerks gossiped about their judges, but I just drank margaritas and smiled about this secret thing I was doing. That night, while I was asleep, I heard the office phone ringing, and when I got up the next morning I already had messages on my answering machine. Holy shit, I thought. Its happening. Most of the responses were from the big trade housesall those 212 numbersbut Id also sent the proposal to an editor named Hollis Heimbouch at Harvard Business School Press, an academic publisher of leadership books and business case studies. I just remember reading it and saying, Wow, this is incredible, Heimbouch, now the publisher of Harper Business, recalled. Im thinking, Wow, Id love to publish this, and then thinking, Wow, could we ever publish that here? The big publishers were interested, but with a caveat. Editors wanted to be able to get out of the deal if, when they learned what IT was, they didnt think it was cool enough. But Heimbouch wasnt worried about that, she said. I didnt really care that much about what it was, truthfully, she said. I just thought, what an amazing opportunity to see that story unfold, the process of innovation. And so just a few days after sending out the proposal, we sold IT to Hollis Heimbouch and Harvard Business School Press for $250,000. Two hundred! And fifty! Thousand dollars! I couldnt believe it. Rafe, of course, was focused on how much we couldve made if only we could have told people what the invention actually was. But I was over the moon. Just like Rafe always did when he made a big deal, I emailed a bunch of co-agents and foreign rights scouts, the people who help agents make translation deals. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Steve, too, was thrilled. His hard work was paying off, and he was going to get to tell an incredible story. That night, I went up to a big banquet at Deans house, he said. I was very excited, and I told Dean about it, and he was very excited. And then like three days later, it all blew up. It was this funny hinge moment, between the old and the new, said Kurt Andersen, a founder of Inside.com, the website that broke the IT story. It was suddenly the future. The mission of Inside.com, which Andersen founded with Michael Hirschorn, was to report on the media, entertainment, and technology industries with a gimlet eye. We had this idea of a kind of knowing, smart, fun, journalistic thing, Andersen told me, that would cover all these worlds in a way that, it seemed to us, neither the trade magazines or the New York magazines of the world covered with sufficient rigor, closeness, knowledge, knowingness, whatever. Andersen and Hirschorn hired away reporters and columnists from big outletsthe Wall Street Journal, New Yorkbecause it was the dot-com era, and we could convince people to leave good jobs for a startup that seemed internet-adjacent, on the promise of stock options. For the first months of its existence, Inside.com struggled to capture the attention of general readers. And then in the first days of 2001, an Inside.com writer named PJ Mark heard about our book deal and got his hands on the proposal for IT. On Jan. 9, three days after the deal, the site ran with the story, and ran with it big, with a big headline: What Is IT? Book Proposal Heightens Intrigue About Secret Invention Touted as Bigger Than the Internet or PC. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The post broke down the business details of the deal but mostly focused on the proposals secrecy. Though there are no specifics in the proposal as to what the invention is, there are some tantalizing clues, Mark wrote. Is IT an energy source? Some sort of environmentally friendly personal transport device? One editor who saw the proposal went as far as to speculatejokingly (perhaps)that IT was a type of personal hovering craft. For Steve, the news came via a phone call from a reporter at his local paper, the Hartford Courant, asking him questions that could only have come from the book proposal. How do you know these things? Steve asked. Oh, the reporter replied, you dont know that your proposals been leaked? Compounding Steves confusion: The reporter kept referring to the invention as IT, until Steve, who still didnt know about our title change, asked, What is IT? It was a perfect scoop for Inside.com, and the perfect story for its moment. As the dot-com bubble was bursting, here was an actual invention, from an inventor, like Thomas Edison or something. It wasnt, you know, bits and bytes, said Andersen. It was this physical thing. The story got picked up everywhere: the New York Times, CNN, the Washington Post, the BBC. On Good Morning America, a tech bigmouth named Bob Metcalfe claimed hed seen IT, and IT was bigger than the internet. (Kamen, irritated, told Steve hed never shown Ginger to Bob Metcalfe.) On NPRs Talk of the Nation, Juan Williams asked a Wired editor, So you think it might be some kind of anti-gravity device? It was one of the first genuinely viral stories on the internet, so viral they were talking about it on the news. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement And on the internet, IT was inescapable. Witness this trapped-in-amber artifact of early21st century virality, the Lycos 50 blog post, a kind of prototrending topics index of what people were searching for on the Lycos search engine. IT was No. 4 for the week ending Jan. 13, behind only Dragonball, Britney Spears, and Napster. The blogger, Aaron Schatz, wrote: This week was a textbook example of how the Internet speeds information distribution faster than anyone can figure out what the information is. At the beginning of the week hardly anyone had heard of IT or Dean Kamen. By weeks end, IT became more popular than the NFL (#6) or Las Vegas (#8), and inventor Kamen outpaced Pamela Anderson (#16) and Eminem (#18). Inside.com, seeing the splash its scoop made, moved quickly to flood the zone. It was huge for us, Andersen said. Inside ran a post with Kamens offended response to the leak, then another post parsing Kamens response for clues. It ran a post about IT hype, then another post asking if IT was overhyped. And Andersen was ready to use the IT story to build his new startup even bigger. He and Hirschorn wanted to launch a print magazine to soak up the print advertising money that was flowing to anything that even resembled technology. They were friends with John Battelle, the founder of the wildly successful Industry Standard, a print magazine about internet culture. It was a weekly! Andersen marveled. A weekly, and it was bulging with advertising. They literally, I think, didnt have enough editorial content to put between the ads. He laughed. We figured, we know how to do magazines. And theyre barely online, yet they are making a gazillion dollars with a weekly print magazine. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Inside Magazines debut issue published in February. On the cover: WHAT IT IS. The author of the story, a freelancer named Adam Penenberg, had combed domain-name registrations and public patent records, and was positive hed figured out the answer: IT was a hydrogen-powered scooter. I was on, like, every show for a week, Penenberg told me. I was on the Today show with Katie Couric. I dont know how many hundreds of interviews I must have done that week. Dean Kamen hadnt been careful enough for the new world of the internet. All those patents he filed? His inventors paranoia backfired. In an earlier time, a journalist would have had to do a lot more legwork to dig up those patents, but now they were all right there on the patent offices website. Penenberg may have basically worked out that Ginger was a scooter, but plenty of people didnt believe it. Or maybe it was just more fun to speculate like crazy. Some of that speculation happened on sites like Slashdot, where one poster, for example, correctly pegged that the name Ginger was meaningfulbut then declared authoritatively that IT was a hoverboard, because the Ginger in question was the heroine of the animated movie Chicken Run, who is convinced she can teach chickens to fly. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But most of the speculation happened on one IT-specific site run by the brothers James and Greg Bottorff. The Bottorffs already ran websites like Bargainflix.com, a price comparison tool for online DVD sales, and PS2Bargains.com. The sites were successful enough that Greg had quit his job as a pharmaceutical rep to manage them full time, but nothing prepared them for the frenzy that met theitquestion.com. In its first 24 hours online, theitquestion.comjust a collection of links and a message board for speculation and argumentracked up 100,000 hits. About a week after it launched, a user found some drawings of a person riding a scooter in a DEKA patent application, and the Bottorffs uploaded the images to the site. When Time magazine linked to the images, Greg remembered, the servers crashed in the middle of the night. I had to race out to where our servers were physically housed, he said, and renegotiate our deal. Everyone was so hungry for speculation about IT that the Bottorffs started being quoted in the media as experts, Greg recalled. James and I would laugh about the fact that, you know, hes sitting in Cincinnati, Im sitting in my spare bedroom in Raleigh. We have no idea whats going on. All we did was put a board up and now were the world experts on this new invention. IT even made it onto South Park. In the Season 5 episode The Entity, Mr. Garrison invents a revolutionary new transportation device called IT, which gets over 300 miles to the gallon. Were going to have to rethink cities, marvels Steve Jobs, echoing our book proposal. In classic South Park style, the only wrinkle is that IT is controlled by the rider with four levers shaped like penises: one held in each hand, one in the mouth, and one in the anus, to keep the driver in place. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement All of this hubbub felt completely new, a wild confluence of the internet and old media birthing something wed never had before. A print magazine spun off from a website that had scoured online patent applications. Venerable Time magazine crashing a tiny little fan site because it didnt bother uploading its own images. TV shows making jokes about things they read online. In the wreckage of Web 1.0, the new internet was stirring. To Rafe Sagalyn, a seasoned agent whod been through plenty of deals, the publicitythough unprecedented and poorly timed for a book that wouldnt come out for yearswas a thrill. It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, without a doubt, he said. I just think we were smiling all the way. But the gulf between how Rafe remembers the IT feeding frenzy, and how I remember it, is a great clue as to why he has had an enormously successful career as a literary agent and I have not. Because I was miserable. Every morning I woke up out there on my island, stressed and anxious. I was supposed to be excited, but instead I felt completely in over my head. I didnt know how the story had leaked, but I was sure it was my fault. I would go to theitquestion.com and click around the message boards and read everyones debates about IT. I still didnt even know what IT was, but reading speculation was a way of avoiding all the emails piled up in my inbox. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A lot of those emails were from Steve Kemper, who was still trying to report the book, even though Dean Kamen was going crazy because his secret project was now front-page news. The company was in turmoil. One employee told me that there were news crews parked outside and journalists hanging out in diners hoping to overhear a DEKA employee let slip IT secrets. Within weeks, John Doerr, seizing on the mess, had convinced Kamen to get rid of his CEO and head of marketing. It didnt matter that the poor guy had never even had a chance to test-market Ginger, because Kamen wouldnt let him show it to anybody. He was gone. On the media side, so was Inside Magazine, which Andersen and Hirschorn sold in April. By October, the website was gone, too. Steve had tried to salvage his relationship with Kamen, and his access. The day after that first Inside.com post, Steve drove back up to DEKA to explain that he hadnt leaked anythingat least, not on purpose. He didnt know how it had happened. He had spent 18 months at DEKA and in some ways become part of the team. On the wall of the Ginger testing room, where all the engineers autographed their notable crashes, there was a big hole labeled, in Sharpie, Steve K. Those engineers told Steve they were, honestly, glad that Ginger was finally out there. But Kamen was beside himself. The inventor told Steve he still thought the book was important but the investors wanted to kill it. The reporter reminded Kamen that it was his call, not the investors call. When Steve walked out of the building, he realized hed forgotten something and tried to open the door, but his key card no longer worked. He was out. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The curtain finally came up on the Segway personal transporter in December 2001, just under a year after the proposal leakedwhen Kamen, in his jeans and work boots, went on Good Morning America. Its sort of like putting on a pair of magic sneakers, he told Diane Sawyer. You think forward, you go forward. Sawyer might have been dubious at first, but she got that same dopey Ginger smile as soon as she got a chance to take the Segway out for a spin. Steve Kemper watched on his TV in Connecticut. Segway was a name hed never heard before, the product of a high-priced naming consultant, the very idea of which hed heard Dean Kamen mock many times. The thing was bigger than he thought it would be, bulkiernot the trim, sporty version hed ridden, but the heavier edition made in hopes it would be adopted by institutions. I watched on TV at my mother-in-laws house in Maryland; my wifes clerkship was over, Id quit working for Rafe, and we were hunting for an apartment in New York. I had hoped and wished that IT would be something incredible, something bigger and better than the scooter Inside Magazine had predicted. It was not. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Time magazine put the Segway on the cover and gave seven pages to the invention. In that story, Kamen said the Segway would be to the car what the car was to the horse and buggy. Jay Leno rode out on a Segway to do his Tonight Show monologue and then let the nights guests, Russell Crowe and Sting, ride them too. The next week, the Segway even appeared on the cover of the New Yorker: Osama bin Laden, riding a Segway along a mountain pass in Afghanistan, fleeing coalition forces in style. Yet despite this launch to end all launches, the Segway was not a hit. It was, of course, a flop. There are plenty of reasons why. For instance, you couldnt even buy one until a year after this big reveal, and when you could, it cost $5,000, dooming the Segway to be a plaything for rich people. No one at DEKA had ever been told the price point was too high, because no market research had ever been conducted. Kamen had spent years believing that price didnt matterwasnt it Jeff Bezos who had told him, You have a product so revolutionary youll have no problem selling it? But now, even as Kamens regulatory team cleared the way with specially crafted legislation allowing Segways on sidewalks in dozens of states and cities, no one was purchasing the Segways to ride on those sidewalks. Remember when Kamen leased that factory to make 6,000 Segways every week? A year after launch, Wired reported that the Segway factory was manufacturing not 6,000, not 600, not 60, but 10 Segways a week. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The company had expected that any softness in consumer sales would be made up for by corporate and institutional partnerships, with organizations like Disney and the U.S. Postal Service. But that never panned out. Even the police department in Segways hometown, Manchester, ordered only four, and didnt use them much. They were fine for parking enforcement, the department told a reporter, but mountain bikes were cheaper and lighter, and they never ran out of juice. The Segways delays, cost, weight, and battery problems all derived primarily from one issue: how beautifully engineered, perhaps overengineered, the Segway was. The Segway was almost absurdly well-made, with custom components and redundancies built into every system to avoid breakdowns and accidents. Segways even had two identical motors, attached to two separate batteries, just in case something failed. William Sahlman, the Harvard professor who helped Dean Kamen find investors and invested himself, told a story that Im going to quote in full, because it so perfectly explains how the Segway was too well-made for the market to bear: The Segway had a kickstand. So you would get off, you deploy the kickstand, and it would stand there while you went away. That was all terrific, except that they were concerned the kickstand would deploy while you were riding, and that would be quite unfortunate. So they made the kickstand out of a relatively soft plastic so it would break off. So within the first week of anyone owning one of these devices, the kickstand broke. It justthey would lean on it, and the kickstand broke. So you say, well, thats not a big problem. Its a little plastic thing, you screw a new one on. Well, it took a torque-measuring wrench, and a degree in engineering from Caltech, and 45 minutes to replace the kickstand. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The effect of all this redundancy and extra weight, of course, was to cause the batteries to drain quicklyespecially considering how early in the development of rechargable batteries 2002 was. Ideally, youd be able to swap a drained battery for a fresh oneexcept, of course, that the Segways battery compartment was hermetically sealed to make it waterproof. (William Sahlman: You needed a torque-measuring wrench and a degree from Caltech and MIT to get the battery out.) There was also the dork problem. Riding a Segway felt cool, but it didnt look cool. Niles Crane looked like a dork, riding one on Frasier. G.O.B. Bluth looked like a dork, riding one on Arrested Development. But no one looked more like a dork riding a Segway than Paul Blart, the hero of Paul Blart: Mall Cop, a movie that made $146 million at the box office and cemented, more than any other pop culture product, the gooniness of the Segway. Nick Bakay, who co-wrote Paul Blart with its star, Kevin James, said that as soon as they saw a mall cop riding a Segway, they basically knew they had a movie. Bakay spoke eloquently about what it is that makes a Segway so uniquely uncool. Theres something about the motion, he said. It is more graceful than threatening. He laughed. You know, you put a big man on one of those things and youre halfway to comedy right there. This was never what Kamen was envisioning. Back in 2000, Kamen had met with Steven Spielberg and tried to convince him that what his upcoming sci-fi mystery Minority Report needed, to accurately depict the future, was to put its cops on Segways. Kamen wanted Tom Cruise on a Segway. Instead, he got Paul Blart. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But by 2009, when Paul Blart came out, Kamen was almost ready to leave the Segway behind. The company had gone through nine CEOs, and Kamen was ready to sell. The company was bought by a British millionaire named Jimi Heselden. Heselden, who made his fortune selling a brand-new kind of sandbag to the military, loved Segways and had big plans for the company. All that ended in 2010, when Heselden accidentally drove his Segway off a cliff. According to an inquest, Heselden backed up to make way for a dog walker on the trail, lost his balance, and spun out of control. When I asked Steve about this story, he sighed, remembering the long hours he spent watching DEKAs product safety team trying to envision every possible dangerous scenario a rider might put their invention in. The machine is not totally foolproof, he said finally, because fools are so ingenious, as the saying goes. The death of the one guy who still loved Segways enough to invest in Segway, killed by his Segway, basically seemed to put a cap on the dark comedy of Ginger. It was too expensive, it looked doofy, it was cursed. End of story. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But I still think there was one more factor in Segways failure. Every once in a while, a product comes to market, and the seas part, and everyone loves it immediately. Most of the time, though, new products are flawed, and the audience doesnt quite understand them immediately. They wobble, but they get the chance to regain their balance. The Segway, despite its ability to balance itself, never got that opportunity. The problem, I think, was the impossible dreams everyone had for IT. When IT was a mystery, it was the coolest invention in the world. Once you saw the Segway, it was just a scooter. It could never quite recover from that letdown. And thats why I cant stop thinking that the Segway might still have had a chance but for the hype. For what its worth, Sahlman agrees. There were no possible chances to live up to the hype, he said. Thats as much hype as you can get about something, period, full stop. And so everyone wanted a magic carpet. The Bottorff brothers, who were so excited about IT that they built a website so popular it sucked bandwidth from their actual moneymaking websites, agree. All these fantasies that ran through your head, and all these amazing breakthroughs that were going to revolutionize the world, are now in front of you, James Bottorff said. But it didnt eliminate combustion engines. It didnt do half the things that people were speculating on the board. And Kurt Andersen, who put IT on the cover of the first issue of Inside Magazine, agrees. This ITS GOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD nature, he said, thats pretty easy to fall short of. Which led Andersen to a question: What if we hadnt done what we did? he asked. What if it had just been a thing, and it came out, and Dean Kamen did it? Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If a 26-year-old dumbass hadnt accidentally leaked the proposal, who knows what would have happened? Because after all this time, I do think the leak had a lot to do with how little I truly understood about book publishing and how little we all understood about what the internet was about to become. Leave aside the obvious-in-retrospect foolishness of swearing editors to secrecy, and then sending them the book proposal by email, a medium that absolutely invites immediate dissemination. The real problem was what happened after the sale, when I did what I thought agents were supposed to do: I sent the proposal to book scouts who worked for foreign publishers. But I was playacting. I didnt really understand the way that ecosystem worksthat scouts trade material back and forth, they gossip, they share, and once something enters their world, its everywhere. You ask an editor to keep a proposal secret, theyll do it. You ask a scout? Youre basically telling them, Please dont do the thing that is the whole point of your job. Adam Penenberg, who wrote the Inside Magazine cover story, told me as much. He got the proposal from a scout, he said, and everyone he knew got it from scouts, too, including the Inside.com reporter PJ Mark, who had once been a scout himself. You know, listen, you blew it as soon as you tried to secure foreign rights, he told me. As soon as you sent that book proposal out, it wasnt secret anymore. Once upon a time, it wouldnt have mattered if a bunch of book scouts and their friends knew about this book proposal. But all of a sudden sharing leapt the bounds of the real world and went online. The internet was transforminginto the all-encompassing, media-eating, real-world-changing monster we know nowbut we were transforming too, collapsing the boundaries between the online and the real so that it would eventually become just about impossible to distinguish between the two. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When I talked to Steve Kemper this spring, I finally told him the answer to the question that had occupied so much of our attention 20 years ago: Who leaked the proposal? It turned out it was me, in Hawaii, I said. By accident, but I leaked it all the same. He let me off the hook. I believed that you guys knew what you were doing, he said. And it could have happened to anybody. But I see what youre saying, Dan. I mean, you were naive like I was naive. He took a deep breath. Thats what happens to naive people. They take one in the forehead, you know? I stopped trying to be a literary agent not too long after all the Segway stuff happenedfor a lot of reasons, but in the back of my mind, there was always my sneaking suspicion that it was my carelessness that ruined everything for Steve. I didnt want to do that to another author. I eventually moved into journalismin part, I think, because I so admired what I saw Steve do. Amid the swirl of speculation and hype and wild promises, there was always his sure reporting. Steve did write the book on the Segway. Its called Reinventing the Wheel. Its a very, very good portrait of innovation, and of how a promising project can go completely off the rails. Like everything having to do with Segway, it didnt work out the way everyone thought it would; DEKAs lawyers managed to hold up publication just long enough that by the time it came out, the bloom was off the rose, Rafe recalled. It got good reviews, but the frenzy was behind us, and I think it probably sold fewer than 25,000 copies. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Now, in 2021, Steve just turned in another book, his fourth. This ones about the last U.S. ambassador to Japan before Pearl Harbor. He told me he thinks its his final one. When I asked Steve what lesson he took from the ordeal of the Segway story, he surprised me. You dont get many chances at something like I got to do, he said. Embed yourself with this kind of group of people, this kind of main character, and tell that story from the insideit just doesnt happen. I wish Id had another opportunity to do something like it again. Dean Kamen and DEKA are still up in Manchester. I left about a dozen voicemails for Kamens longtime administrator, I sent word through friends, and he never responded. The companys still working on big projects, like a portable water purifier. Its still trying to make Fred, the stair-climbing wheelchair, workdubbed the iBot, it bombed for Johnson & Johnson because it was way too expensive. But the next time you go to the movies, you might see a different DEKA innovation: the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine, that miracle device that mixes flavors into your Diet Coke as precisely as Kamens first invention, the drug infusion pump, delivered medication at carefully calibrated levels. And Segways? Theyre pretty hard to find these days. A few weeks ago, I walked over to Capital Segway, one of those companies that runs tours of downtown D.C. The clerka Segway expert who had a very specific complaint about an inaccuracy in Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2gave me a short lesson, put a helmet on me, and sent me out to Ginger around the National Mall. I could feel my dopey grin growing as I zipped across the gravel. I understood, finally, why investor after investor lined up to give Dean Kamen money, why people believed they would sell 6,000 Segways a week, why Steve Jobs declared that cities would architect themselves around this device. It felt absolutely remarkable, riding on it: floating 6 inches above the ground, propelled forward by a technology I could never understand in a million yearsa technology sufficiently advanced as to be indistinguishable from magic. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When I returned the Segway, I told the guy at the rental place how Id learned about all the incredible inspiration and innovation and work and skill that had gone into the Segway, all to make something that cost 10 times as much as a scooter and required a lesson from an expert to ride. He said something I cannot stop thinking about. Yeah, he said, a bunch of really smart people got together, but you needed one dumb person in the room to keep things on the level. Capital Segway still receives product support from its parent company, but Segway, now owned by the Chinese company Ninebot, is no longer focused on the personal transporters. In fact, it doesnt make them anymore. Instead, Segwaywhich declined to comment for this storynow manufactures a significant number of the rental scooters, the Birds and the Limes, that you can see zipping around every American city. In fact, Segways children are everywhere: scooters, electric-boosted skateboards, all the new backbones of the short urban commute. Benge Ambrogi, the longtime DEKA engineer, noted that theres a picture of a single-wheeled hoverboard, the kind you actually see cool people riding around cities, in one of DEKAs old Ginger patents. The DEKA guys scoff at these cheaper, flimsier transportation devices. These hoverboards and stuff, I mean, I wouldnt get on one, said Mike Ambrogi, Benges brother, who also worked at DEKA for years. One hundred things could go wrong that could put your face right in the pavement. You see those batteries, they light on fire because they werent very well-designed. That would never happen with a Segway battery. But of course, astronomically more people own and ride cheap scooters and junky hoverboards than ever owned or used a Segway. Heading back to my office, just walking on my plain old feet, I thought about how the Segway was an elegant work of genius when what the world really needed was a good-enough piece of crap. Maybe, in the end, I didnt kill the Segway. It might have had a chance, if only I hadnt been the only dumb guy around. Its a rough few days for travelers around the world as airlines have canceled thousands of flights over the Christmas weekend. The wave of cancelations was driven at least in part by personnel shortages amid a surge of COVID-19 infections driven by the omicron variant. Around the world, airlines canceled more than 5,700 flights on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, according to FlightAware.com. And the number is likely to increase. Airlines canceled at least 2,380 flights globally on Friday, including 690 within, into or out of the United States, according to FlightAware. On Christmas, the number of cancelations totaled 2,557 as of early afternoon, including 899 in the United States. And on Sunday, the number of cancelations reached at least 829, including 204 in the United States, according to the flight-tracking website. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Within the United States, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines were among the first to report flight cancelations for the holiday weekends that they at least in part blamed on staffing shortages due to the increase in COVID-19 infections. The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation, according to a United memo from Thursday. Delta, meanwhile, said the increase in cases due to the omicron variant was one of multiple issues that led to the cancelations. Lufthansa, which is based in Germany, said it was canceling lots of transatlantic flights due to a massive increase in the number of pilots taking sick leave. Although the number of travelers over the holidays appears to have decreased amid the rise in COVID-19 cases, many are still flying. The Transportation Security Administration said it expects to screen almost 30 million people from Dec- 20 through Jan. 3, lower than the nearly 44 million during the last pre-pandemic holiday season. What has become a traditional White House holiday call with children tracking Santa Claus took an awkward turn this year when one father used the opportunity to insult the president using a slur that has become popular in right-wing circles. President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden were taking calls into the North American Aerospace Defense Command Santa Tracker. Santas really moving, man, Biden said at the beginning of the event. Thats a heavy sleigh, man. Advertisement When Biden and the first lady began talking with four children whose father was identified as Jared, here was no hint that anything strange would happen. The childrenGriffin, Hunter, Piper, and Penelopehad a broad range of requests for Santa, with one asking for a piano and another for a Nintendo Switch, among other gifts. Finally Jared came on the line and the president wished him well. Well, I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, Biden told the man. Yeah, I hope you guys have a wonderful Christmas as well. Merry Christmas and lets go Brandon, he replied. Biden seemed unfazed by the slur: Lets go Brandon, I agree. The call then cut off and the Bidens continued chatting with other families. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement CALLER: "Merry Christmas and Lets Go Brandon:" BIDEN: "Lets Go Brandon, I agree" pic.twitter.com/K8PpzceB3K Greg Price (@greg_price11) December 24, 2021 The slogan has become popular in conservative circles, particularly among supporters of former President Donald Trump as a euphemism for fuck Joe Biden. It all began when a reporter was interviewing a NASCAR driver named Brandon Brown earlier this year. The crowd was chanting fuck Joe Biden but the reporter said they were cheering the NASCAR driver on by saying, Lets go Brandon. Ever since then, the words have become a popular way to insult Biden and some Republican lawmakers have even uttered the phrase in Congress. Advertisement Advertisement Three years ago, then-President Donald Trump was taking calls from children as part of the same program when he asked a seven-year-old whether she still believed in Santa. Are you still a believer in Santa? Trump asked Coleman Lloyd from South Carolina. Because at seven its marginal, right? https://sputniknews.com/20211225/as-europe-faces-soaring-energy-prices-british-press-claims-russia-is-to-blame-1091798501.html As Europe Faces Soaring Energy Prices, British Press Claims Russia is to Blame As Europe Faces Soaring Energy Prices, British Press Claims Russia is to Blame European gas futures set a record of over $2,150 per thousand cubic meters earlier this week as nations scrambled to top up supplies after a perfect storm of... 25.12.2021, Sputnik International 2021-12-25T13:40+0000 2021-12-25T13:40+0000 2021-12-25T14:58+0000 europe russia gas crisis gas prices uk /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/107718/16/1077181627_0:96:1024:672_1920x0_80_0_0_6945017642ab00f525b9aa8b65d7c14f.jpg Russia is to blame for the energy crunch facing the UK and the rest of Europe, The Telegraph newspaper has suggested. The outlet noted that while the UK does not import much gas from Russia directly, it does purchase it from Europe, which depends on Russian supplies for about 40 percent of its total gas consumption.The Telegraph cited a recent Oxford Energy Institute analysis, which calculated that Russian gas deliveries to Europe fell by 21 percent from January to November to 2021 compared to the same period in 2019, while supplies in December dropped by 33 percent compared with December 2019.Its not clear why the institute chose 2019 as the point of comparison, given the very different economic situation, and consequent supply demands, during the pre-Covid pandemic period. Gazprom recently said that it has delivered 15 percent more natural gas to European customers in the first nine months of 2021 than it had during the same period in 2020.Gas Isnt Watches, Underwear or NecktiesPutin has dismissed claims by the US and its allies, including the UK, that Moscow is deliberately withholding gas supplies. The Russian president and other officials have pointed to European policymakers shift to short-term gas contracts, the unusually cold winter of 2020-2021, excessive dependence on green energy sources which failed to live up to expectations on energy returns, and competition between Europe and Asia, in explaining the current crunch. Moscow has also noted that many countries inexplicably failed to top up their underground gas storage reserves with fresh supplies from Russia in the summer and autumn months.Generally speaking, the trade in gas on the stock exchangeis not very effective, because it carries with it a lot of risks, since gas isnt watches, underwear or neckties, not cars, and not even oil, which can be created and then stored anywhere, including in tankers in anticipation of a certain situation on the market. Gas is not traded this way, it cannot be stored in this way, Putin said in a meeting with government officials in early October.At the same meeting, Putin emphasized that Russia has always been and continues to be a reliable supplier of gas to consumers all over the world, both in Asia and Europe, and would always fulfill all of its obligations in fullThe Telegraph mentioned Nord Stream 2 the joint Russian-Western European gas pipeline which promises to transport up to 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year from Russia to a hub in northeast Germany via the bottom of the Baltic Sea, and Moscows desire to see the pipeline be put online as soon as possible. Nord Stream 2 was completed and made partially ready for operations this fall, but is now being held up by German and European energy regulators ostensibly due to its operators failure to provide necessary paperwork, until next spring or even later.The newspaper implies that Russia may be deliberately holding back supplies to get the EU to approve the pipeline. Moscow has dismissed these claims, while suggesting that efforts by some European countries and politicians to put spokes in the projects wheels were ridiculous.At a meeting with Russian officials on Friday, Putin suggested that those who were holding back Nord Stream 2 from coming online were acting in a foolish manner, since the delivery of additional gas supplies to the European market would undoubtedly lower spot prices on the market, not just for the European Union, but Ukraine as well. vot tak It is a shortage artificially created by the western oligarchies themselves. The torygraph is garbage propaganda, like murdoch. 14 Soooo why hasn't the EU given the go - in order to get more gaz - going thru Nordie II , if there is a shortage ? How come all the personal tank farms in Ukraine are full ? The middle class and lower class do not destroy country after county - the Upper Class and the unelected ego maniacs do ! 12 18 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Ilya Tsukanov Ilya Tsukanov News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ilya Tsukanov europe, russia, gas, crisis, gas prices, uk https://sputniknews.com/20211225/chief-of-polands-ruling-party-claims-germany-wants-to-build-fourth-reich-out-of-eu-1091791564.html Chief of Polands Ruling Party Claims Germany Wants to Build Fourth Reich Out of EU Chief of Polands Ruling Party Claims Germany Wants to Build Fourth Reich Out of EU The idea of a Fourth Reich, or a successor to Adolf Hitlers Third Reich, has often been used as a pejorative by politicians and pundits to express fears of... 25.12.2021, Sputnik International 2021-12-25T10:16+0000 2021-12-25T10:16+0000 2021-12-25T10:28+0000 jaroslaw kaczynski poland germany european union /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/102453/24/1024532466_0:254:4928:3026_1920x0_80_0_0_8e73a8688b9285cbe1fe0b36c2e95328.jpg Poland is not interested in the construction of a German Fourth Reich using the EU as a jumping off point, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Polish deputy prime minister, leader and cofounder of the ruling Law and Justice Party, has said.Kaczynski insisted that the term Fourth Reich is in itself not reprehensible, it is not about the Third Reich, but a reference to the first, that is, the Holy Roman Empire of 962-1806. I think it reflects the directions of these changes quite well, he said.He warned however that Warsaw cannot submit to the idea, arguing that if we Poles agreed with this kind of modern-day submission we would be degraded in various ways.Kaczynskis comments were a response to the creation of a new coalition agreement in Germany in November, which lists the desire to expand the EU into a federal European state as a key foreign policy objective.Commenting on the escalating conflict between Poland and the European Union over the Polish constitutional tribunals rulings challenging the primacy of EU law over national law, Kaczynski suggested that we did not cause it, and we did not want it.Kaczynski, the co-founder of the Law and Justice Party, has been a key figure in Polish and European politics for nearly two decades. Under the partys leadership, Poland has taken a eurosceptical stance on the EU (while continuing to accept multi-billion euro grants from Brussels) and rejected most efforts to more closely integrate with the bloc.Kaczynski is no stranger to making controversial claims. After the death of his twin brother President Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia in April 2010, Jaroslaw and his Law and Justice allies have spent years alleging that his Lech was assassinated by Russia. Official Polish and Russian investigations into the incident found no evidence to back up these claims. vot tak The polish joke maintains his reputation as a polish joke. Everybody knows the 4th reich was the usa from the 1950s. :-D 7 mike stivic Katschka is a big fan of throwing stones from across the border, pretty much in every direction. Great neighbor. I think he dreams about building an XXL Poland that includes Ukraine and the Baltics and a replay of 1612. 4 15 poland germany european union Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Ilya Tsukanov Ilya Tsukanov News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ilya Tsukanov jaroslaw kaczynski, poland, germany, european union https://sputniknews.com/20211225/ex-austrian-chancellor-kurz-to-take-up-job-in-silicon-valley-reports-say-1091798889.html Ex-Austrian Chancellor Kurz to Take Up Job in Silicon Valley, Reports Say Ex-Austrian Chancellor Kurz to Take Up Job in Silicon Valley, Reports Say Sebastian Kurz has signed a contract with an investment firm in Silicon Valley and will move his family to the United States early next year 2021-12-25T13:52+0000 2021-12-25T13:52+0000 2021-12-25T13:52+0000 world sebastian kurz /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/0c/02/1091197493_0:0:2930:1648_1920x0_80_0_0_fe702af757badc2010dd292c151b7bfa.jpg The Kronen Zeitung newspaper said that Kurz would take up a managerial job with an unnamed internationally operating company in early February. The Oesterreich daily put his annual pay at 500,000 euros ($566,000).The 35-year-old said earlier in December that he was quitting politics to spend more time with his newborn son. The announcement came weeks after Austrian prosecutors raided his office as part of a corruption probe. Matthew_21 Sebastian Kurz is one of the "Young Leaders" hand-picked by Klaus Schwab for his elite club, the World Economic Forum, so apparently he's still considered potentially useful. 1 1 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 world, sebastian kurz https://sputniknews.com/20211225/german-arms-exports-hit-10bln-high-during-merkels-final-days-in-office-reports-say-1091800283.html German Arms Exports Hit $10Bln High During Merkel's Final Days in Office, Reports Say German Arms Exports Hit $10Bln High During Merkel's Final Days in Office, Reports Say Angela Merkel's caretaker cabinet waved through arms export deals worth almost 5 billion euros ($5.6 billion) in the last nine days in office, bumping this year's total to a record 9.04 billion euros, German media found 2021-12-25T16:24+0000 2021-12-25T16:24+0000 2021-12-25T16:24+0000 europe angela merkel arms exports /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/06/17/1083224631_0:0:3073:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_6b6eecc90decf81da0383cb94ee98a9f.jpg A lion's share of those exports worth some 4.3 billion euros went to Egypt, the dpa news agency reported, citing the Economy Ministry's response to a query by the Linke party. Cairo had reportedly secured only 180 million euros worth of German military supplies as of late November.The news agency said that outgoing Economy Minister Peter Altmaier briefed the parliament on the sale of three warships and 16 air defense systems to Egypt a day before Merkel's deputy in the interim government, Olaf Scholz, was sworn in as chancellor on December 8, although he did not name the price tag.Germany approved arms deals to the tune of 8 billion euros in 2019. The largest share of military exports went to Hungary, followed by Egypt and the United States. FeEisi Why is Egypt giving money to Germany when Germany is arming Turkey an enemy of Egypt? It's better to buy military equipment from France who is against Turkey. Egypt can vote with their money. 4 1 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 europe, angela merkel, arms exports https://sputniknews.com/20211225/launch-of-james-webb-telescope-hailed-as-game-changer-in-search-for-alien-life-1091792438.html Launch of James Webb Telescope Hailed as Game-Changer in Search For Alien Life Launch of James Webb Telescope Hailed as Game-Changer in Search For Alien Life The James Webb telescope hailed as about to transform our understanding of the universe, a game-changer in the search for life beyond Earth. 2021-12-25T11:24+0000 2021-12-25T11:24+0000 2021-12-25T11:25+0000 james webb space telescope (jwst) nasa dark matter alien life hubble space telescope science us /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/106417/60/1064176013_0:152:3301:2008_1920x0_80_0_0_7a76f9c3fe46096a87abd4ffeef32a2d.jpg The world's most powerful new telescope is about to usher in a new era of astronomy, according to experts.The $10 billion infrared James Webb telescope (JWST), produced by NASA in collaboration with the European and Canadian space agencies, has been hailed as about to transform our understanding of the universe by offering a glimpse of its dawn existence, when the first galaxies are believed to have formed just 100 million years after the Big Bang.Compared to the Hubble Space Telescope, in orbit since 1990, the space observatory will provide an entirely new perspective on the universe that will be just as awe-inspiring, said Nikole Lewis, deputy director of Cornell Universitys Carl Sagan Institute.Hubble can only see back to about 400 million years after the universe-forming Big Bang, while its successor will hopefully be able to look back 13.7 billion years.Webb will offer astronomers a chance to study super-massive black holes believed to occupy the centers of distant galaxies, shedding light on the mysteries of dark matter and hunt for alien worlds by picking up on possible hints of life, such as water as its cameras study the atmospheres of planets.Professor Martin Barstow, one of the scientists involved in developing the telescope, acknowledged that the telescope, which is about 100 times more sensitive than Hubble, could help seek out extra-terrestrial life forms.While Hubble operated predominantly at optical and ultraviolet wavelengths, Webb will be able to peer in the infrared spectrum, observing objects at greater distances.After its launch from French Guiana aboard a European Ariane rocket, the Webb telescope will spend a month reaching its destination in solar orbit while its orbital path keeps it aligned with the Earth and its trajectory around the sun. After about six months of calibration of its instruments, the telescope's operation will be managed from the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.Ori Fox, a scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, agreed, adding, Personally, I think that even with all of the hype, the Webb will still exceed expectations.In the course of its first year of operation, JWST is scheduled to observe the TRAPPIST-1 system, located 39 light-years away. The area has been singled out by scientists as hosting seven Earth-size, rocky planets, at least three of which lie in the so-called habitable zone of the star. As this system of worlds has the potential for water on their surface, this field excitement that future studies of the unique planetary system could reveal conditions suitable for life.The launch of the James Webb telescope was hailed as a game-changer in the search for life beyond Earth as it studies in unprecedented detail the atmospheres of thousands of extra-solar planets, Claudia Maraston, a professor of astrophysics with the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation at the University of Portsmouth in the UK, was cited by Newsweek as saying. https://sputniknews.com/20211110/scientists-roll-out-theory-about-contagious-dark-matter-1090635104.html Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Svetlana Ekimenko Svetlana Ekimenko News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Svetlana Ekimenko james webb space telescope (jwst), nasa, dark matter, alien life, hubble space telescope, science, us https://sputniknews.com/20211225/more-than-30-people-dead-in-myanmars-kayah-state-as-blame-falls-to-military-junta-1091804232.html More Than 30 People Dead in Myanmar's Kayah State as Blame Falls to Military Junta More Than 30 People Dead in Myanmar's Kayah State as Blame Falls to Military Junta More than 30 people are said to have been killed and burned in Myanmars Kayah state. It is believed women, children, and the elderly are among the victims, according to reports. 2021-12-25T23:11+0000 2021-12-25T23:11+0000 2021-12-25T23:12+0000 myanmar killing coup /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/09/07/1083812227_0:161:3071:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_1ec8173053bfae0399f3afd435f99311.jpg The Karenni Human Rights Group, local media reporting and at least one resident have together asserted that the violence was carried out by members of Myanmars ruling military junta.State media reported that on Saturday seven vehicles had not stopped for a military checkpoint. Myanmar's military later released a statement saying it had shot and killed individuals it deemed terrorists with weapons.The military added that those killed were armed forces from the nearby Mo So village of Hpruso town, and did not specify the number of those killed.NGO Save the Children has revealed that two of its staffers in Myanmar had been "caught up" in the incident and were presently considered missing. It was also detailed that the organization had in its possession confirmation that the vehicle used by staffers had been "attacked and burned out.""We are horrified at the violence carried out against innocent civilians and our staff, who are dedicated humanitarians, supporting millions of children in need across Myanmar," chief executive Inger Ashing said in a statement.Kayah state has been conflict-torn since the Myanmar military led a coup detat nearly 11 months ago. Amid global condemnation, the junta has led to local protests and some have taken up arms.The Karenni Nationalities Defence Force, a civilian-military force in opposition to the military junta, said the dead were civilians seeking refuge, and were not members of their ranks.A commander in the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force said they were shocked by the indiscriminate killing.The military has labeled its opponents traitors and terrorists. myanmar Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Nevin Brown Nevin Brown News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Nevin Brown myanmar, killing, coup https://sputniknews.com/20211225/new-study-ranks-meghan-markle-as-most-intelligent-british-royal-kate-middleton-as-runner-up-1091798989.html New Study Ranks Meghan Markle as 'Most Intelligent' British Royal, Kate Middleton as Runner-Up New Study Ranks Meghan Markle as 'Most Intelligent' British Royal, Kate Middleton as Runner-Up While Prince William was reportedly rated as the third most intelligent royal, Prince Harry didnt even make it into the top ten. 25.12.2021, Sputnik International 2021-12-25T14:38+0000 2021-12-25T14:38+0000 2021-12-25T14:38+0000 prince william prince harry kate middleton intelligence uk royal family meghan markle uk /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/06/17/1083222874_0:112:3243:1936_1920x0_80_0_0_4e5ce74122b928618c9e80fbfe223dae.jpg Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex and wife of Prince Harry, has been proclaimed the "most intelligent member of the British royal family" in a new study by Oxford Royale, New York Post reports.According to the newspaper, Oxford Royale has arrived at this conclusion by analyzing the royal familys academic credentials, using in their analysis the QS World University Rankings, which "rates colleges based on their academic reputation and faculty-to-student ratio."Markles top spot in said list apparently comes as the result of her double degree in theater and international relations she received after graduating from the Northwestern University in Evanston (rated 30th in this years QS World Rankings).Second spot in the study was taken by Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge and wife of Prince William, who attended high school at the private Marlborough College in Wiltshire, England, and lated studied at the University of St. Andrews (91st in the QS World Rankings).Prince William himself was ranked third in the study - while he also attended the University of St. Andrews like his wife, she apparently "outperformed him in the A-level exams" while Prince Harry didnt even make it in the top 10.The royal family "has not publicly responded to the new study", the newspaper notes. Cedric Dankworth Deceit and cunning do not equal intelligence. Kate, on her worst day, stands head and shoulders over Meagan. Furthermore, Kate is not hated by her sister, nor is she criticised by her father. These two women are from two totally different classes, though both had commoner beginnings. 6 vot tak Slow news day, is it? 3 4 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Andrei Dergalin Andrei Dergalin News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Andrei Dergalin prince william, prince harry, kate middleton, intelligence, uk royal family, meghan markle, uk https://sputniknews.com/20211225/russia-to-prioritise-natos-non-expansion-at-security-talks-with-us-moscow-says-1091801871.html Russia to Prioritise NATO's Non-Expansion at Security Talks With US, Moscow Says Russia to Prioritise NATO's Non-Expansion at Security Talks With US, Moscow Says NATO's non-expansion will be the the key issue for Moscow at upcoming talks on security guarantees with US, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. 2021-12-25T18:14+0000 2021-12-25T18:14+0000 2021-12-25T18:16+0000 russia security nato /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/06/0a/1083113340_0:160:3073:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_8155e23d204e29ed1efe9cbf854b1817.jpg Zakharova said her comment was in response to statements emerging in the US and other alliance countries that NATO's non-expansion will be off the table during the security talks."The non-expansion of NATO and nonappearance of weapon systems threatening our security close to our borders will be the key issues at the upcoming talks with the US and NATO. Those who have not yet grasped the idea of Russia's stance must be very clear about it," Zakharova said.On 17 December, Russia released draft security proposals that it wants to sign with the US and other NATO countries. The proposals include mutual security guarantees in Europe, non-deployment of short- and intermediate-range missiles within reach to each other's territory and NATO's non-expansion eastward onto former Soviet republics surrounding Russia. The negotiation has not been scheduled yet. https://sputniknews.com/20211223/us-ready-for-security-talks-with-russia-in-early-january-senior-administration-official-says-1091756858.html Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 russia, security, nato https://sputniknews.com/20211225/russian-patriarchs-office-denies-being-in-secret-unification-talks-with-pope-francis-1091799335.html Russian Patriarch's Office Denies Being in Secret Unification Talks With Pope Francis Russian Patriarch's Office Denies Being in Secret Unification Talks With Pope Francis External affairs chief at the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Hilarion rejects rumours Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and Pope Francis are in secret talks on uniting the two Churches. 2021-12-25T15:14+0000 2021-12-25T15:14+0000 2021-12-25T15:18+0000 patriarch kirill russia pope francis /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/0c/19/1091799276_0:283:2764:1838_1920x0_80_0_0_dc91ce97f390f4c8e60adf59300a799d.jpg Hilarion met with Pope Francis in Vatican City this past Wednesday. He told reporters after the meeting that the pope and Patriarch Kirill could meet in 2022, with the exact date and venue currently being discussed. According to him, this has prompted speculations that the two clerics are mulling to unify the Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox.In 2016, Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill had a landmark meeting in Havana, issuing a joint declaration urging for global action to stop the persecution of Christians in the Middle East and elsewhere. This was the first meeting between a Roman Catholic pope and a Russian Orthodox patriarch in 1,000 years since the Great Schism between Catholicism and Orthodoxy. Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 patriarch kirill, russia, pope francis https://sputniknews.com/20211225/serbian-president-says-will-ask-putin-for-more-gas-deliveries-on-saturday-1091787549.html Serbian President Says He'll Ask Putin for More Gas Deliveries on Saturday Serbian President Says He'll Ask Putin for More Gas Deliveries on Saturday Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that on Saturday, he will ask Russian President Vladimir Putin to increase the volumes of gas sold to his country. 2021-12-25T05:09+0000 2021-12-25T05:09+0000 2021-12-25T05:19+0000 serbia world russia gas /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/03/07/1082275073_0:161:3071:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_92b79ed342af48fb4aaf7bb752c8a272.jpg "Tomorrow, I will talk to Putin again. We will ask for additional gas volumes", Vucic told the TV broadcaster Prva on Friday.On Monday, the head of the energy company Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, started negotiations with Gazprom's leadership in St. Petersburg on the deliveries of an additional 4 million cubic metres of natural gas per day as the country needs 10 million cubic metres per day.On 8 December, Vucic said that he had already discussed additional gas supplies with Gazprom. A day earlier, the Russian energy giant said that within the first 11 months of this year, it had exported 57 percent more gas to Serbia than during all of 2020. vot tak More gas for Serbia, less for the israeloamerican colony of germany - who like getting reamed with higher gas prices in service to the zio-massa. 2 1 serbia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 serbia, world, russia, gas https://sputniknews.com/20211225/sex-addicted-james-franco-reportedly-to-be-deposed-over-depps-defamation-suit-against-amber-heard-1091789845.html 'Sex-Addicted' James Franco Reportedly to Be Deposed Over Depp's Defamation Suit Against Amber Heard 'Sex-Addicted' James Franco Reportedly to Be Deposed Over Depp's Defamation Suit Against Amber Heard James Franco has reportedly now been served in Johnny Depp's $50 million defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard. 2021-12-25T08:54+0000 2021-12-25T08:54+0000 2021-12-25T08:55+0000 us johnny depp amber heard /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/104040/05/1040400558_0:156:3500:2125_1920x0_80_0_0_68a24b3251edec19c5eb03502aa8b4d6.jpg James Franco, who has been feeling the heat since admitting that he slept with his students, has now been served in Johnny Depp's $50 million defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard, Page Six has reported. Lawyers for the Hollywood superstar want Franco to be questioned about whether he had an affair with Heard while she was still married to Depp. Furthermore, he is reportedly to be asked if he saw the alleged bruises to Heard's face attributed to her then-husband. Depp is suing Heard in Virginia over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed she penned where she described herself as a victim of domestic violence at the hands of an abuser whose name she did not mention. The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star, who denies any abuse, claimed it was clear that his ex-wife was referring to him in the article. The actor, according to previous reports, insisted the "sociopathic" actress was, quite the opposite, violent towards him and used their relationship to boost her career.Depp also sued the publishers of The Sun in a related libel suit in England, over a 2018 article that called him a "wife beater". He lost the suit after the UK High Court of Justice ruled in 2020 that the majority of Heard's allegations had been proven to a civil standard. 'Creep and Rapist' Johnny Depp reportedly sent the subpoena to James Franco after a surveillance video dated May 2016 showed him entering an elevator with Heard 24 hours after the now-infamous alleged fight during which Depp purportedly gave her a black eye. On the penthouse floor of the apartment where Depp and Heard used to reside, both Franco and the "Aquaman" actress are seen leaving the elevator together. According to Depp's legal team, Franco is to be questioned as a "witness" regarding any possible details of the "fight". They also hope to find out whether Franco saw any injuries to Heard's face. Johnny Depp has long maintained that his ex-wife had doctored photos of herself with two black eyes.In response, Amber Heard's legal team is said to have claimed that James Franco simply lived in the same building around the time of the incident. Depp's attorneys reportedly dismissed the argument as "a lie". James Franco had faced fresh allegations of being sexually inappropriate with Amber Heard, when her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, testified in his libel suit against The Sun in July 2020. At the time, Depp said that Heard had called Franco "rapey", and said she was forced to run away from his sexual advances when they worked together on the 2008 comedy "The Pineapple Express". Franco has denied being romantically involved with Heard while she was with Depp, according to the outlet. James Franco will ostensibly sit for the deposition early next year, as a trial date has been set for 11 April 2022 in Fairfax County, Virginia. The court proceedings are anticipated to last 12 days. The lawsuit filed by Depp was his attempt to not only clear his name and mend the damage done to his reputation, but to "bring clarity to the women and men whose lives have been harmed by abuse and who have been repeatedly lied to by Ms Heard purporting to be their spokesperson".Johnny Depp and Amber Heard married in February 2015 after meeting on the set of the 2011 film "The Rum Diary". However, Heard filed for divorce in May 2016. The breakup was finalised in 2017. This comes as actor James Franco recently spoke out in connection with the sexual misconduct allegations made against him several years ago. Appearing on the Jess Cagle podcast, the Oscar nominee admitted that he slept with some of the students at his now-defunct acting school, which he said was "wrong". In 2018, five women accused Franco of sexually inappropriate behaviour, and a year later, two students from Franco's school accused him of exploiting his female students by subjecting them to sexually exploitative auditions. The actor has dismissed all the accusations. https://sputniknews.com/20211223/embattled-actor-james-franco-admits-he-slept-with-students-as-he-opens-up-about-sex-addiction-1091752205.html Cedric Dankworth WTF does being a Jew have to do with anything? Is Cosby a Jew? Is Warren Beatty a Jew? Beatty claims to have spent "quality time" with more than 1000 women. Is George Hamilton a Jew? He is rumored to have been chasing Beatty's record. 1 Rot Hchild James Franco is a jew, and not unlike Hollwyood Jews Weinstein, Woody Allen, and so on all sex addicts. 0 3 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 us, johnny depp, amber heard https://sputniknews.com/20211225/taliban-lays-off-world-bank-employees-due-to-lack-of-money-for-salaries-source-says-1091799819.html Taliban Lays Off World Bank Employees due to Lack of Money for Salaries, Source Says Taliban Lays Off World Bank Employees due to Lack of Money for Salaries, Source Says The Afghan Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) has dismissed a number of the World Banks employees working for it as it cannot afford to pay their salaries 2021-12-25T15:37+0000 2021-12-25T15:37+0000 2021-12-27T15:06+0000 kabul afghanistan taliban bank /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/07e5/0b/18/1090980485_0:0:3073:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_10df77260fc6047d248e3ea584edffa9.jpg It is not clear yet how many employees will be let go, but a joint commission, which will include, among other parties, the Bank of Afghanistan and the MRRD, is expected to discuss the payments to the World Bank staff.Many Afghans, including state workers, the UN and the World Banks staff, education and healthcare personnel, have not received their salaries for several months. Hundreds of doctors and national energy supplier employees protested against these payment delays in Kabul. Salary delays have impacted nearly half a million state workers, according to Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi.The World Bank is actively engaged in supplying Afghanistan with humanitarian aid. Earlier this month, the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, which is managed by the World Bank, said it planned to transfer $100 million to UNICEF and $180 million to the World Food Programme to help Afghans.Since the Taliban took over Kabul in August, international organizations have repeatedly warned of the worsening humanitarian situation in the country. The Taliban established an interim government headed by Mohammad Hassan Akhund in early September, but this government has not been internationally recognized. However, some organizations and countries expressed readiness to continue providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.*The Taliban is an organisation under the UN sanctions over terrorist activities https://sputniknews.com/20211223/taliban-reportedly-halted-evacuation-flights-from-afghanistan-for-past-two-weeks-1091754742.html kabul afghanistan Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 kabul, afghanistan, taliban, bank https://sputniknews.com/20211225/us-reportedly-mulls-giving-ukraine-battlefield-intel-which-kiev-could-use-for-first-strike-on-1091793385.html US Reportedly Mulls Giving Ukraine Battlefield Intel Which Kiev Could Use for First Strike on Russia US Reportedly Mulls Giving Ukraine Battlefield Intel Which Kiev Could Use for First Strike on Russia Western officials and media have spent months claiming that Russia is building up troops on Ukraines border in possible preparation for an invasion. At his... 25.12.2021, Sputnik International 2021-12-25T11:38+0000 2021-12-25T11:38+0000 2022-01-01T17:52+0000 russia ukraine united states nato biden administration /html/head/meta[@name='og:title']/@content /html/head/meta[@name='og:description']/@content https://cdnn1.img.sputniknews.com/img/101607/64/1016076428_120:0:3409:1850_1920x0_80_0_0_f755011d940788e96848e6fd6edd1076.jpg The Pentagon is considering giving Ukraine real-time actionable battlefield intelligence which would allow the Ukrainian military to quickly respond to a potential Russian invasion, but which also carries the risk of a preemptive first strike by Kiev, the New York Times reports, citing Biden administration officials.One person said US intelligence agencies are already giving Ukraine more data than before the suspected Russian buildup, which Western officials and media began reporting on earlier this year.The number one thing we can do is real time actionable intelligence that says, The Russians are coming over the berm, former Obama-era deputy assistant secretary of defence Evelyn Farkas told the newspaper. We tell them, and they use that to target the Russians, she said.Along with intelligence support, sources say Washington has proposed redirecting helicopters and other equipment salvaged from Afghanistan to the Ukrainians, and the deployment of additional cyberwarfare experts to the Eastern European country.Moscow has dismissed claims that it has any intentions to invade anyone, Ukraine included, and has accused the US and its allies of deliberately seeking to push its client government in Kiev into a crusade to fight Russia to the last Ukrainian.At his year-end press conference Thursday, Vladimir Putin slammed the US and its allies for hyping up Russian aggression while pushing closer and closer to the countrys frontiers.The Russian Foreign Ministry submitted a pair of draft security agreements to the US and NATO last week outlining how Moscow, Washington and the Western bloc could resolve the current tensions. Among the proposals is the provision that NATO halt any further eastward expansion, and nix the incorporation of Kiev into the alliance.US officials have signalled their readiness to hold talks with Russia about the security proposals in January, but have made no firm commitments. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg appeared to reject the idea, claiming that the alliance never made any promises to Moscow not to expand, and saying the alliance and its partners, including Ukraine, must be included in any security talks with Russia. https://sputniknews.com/20211224/nato-warship-reportedly-enters-ukraines-port-of-odessa-1091778659.html Schnell Pathetic shameless incompetent terrorist SHITMERICA is pushing Ukraine for suicide, nothing else 17 mandrake The yankeetwats sure as a clucking bell need that war going andwill apparently do anything to get it going. Guess that if they cant compel the ukienazis to start it they will have to do so themselves, land of the free and land of the brave. Its truly pathetic and equally shameful. 13 27 ukraine Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2021 Ilya Tsukanov Ilya Tsukanov News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ilya Tsukanov russia, ukraine, united states, nato, biden administration Today's Rewind topic has become somewhat of an annual tradition. Robert Smith sends out his Christmas Message to the readers of Rewind and again reaches back into his memory bank for a tale from days gone by related to the holiday time of year. It has been my pleasure and privilege for a number of years to author the weekly Rewind stories. As one who enjoys Christmas and the entire holiday season I always look forward to this annual column. It is frequently a bit different than the others, mainly because it is not all about horses but rather about the beautiful season we are now celebrating. This year thanks to the calendar, Christmas day has landed on a Saturday which of course is the usual Rewind day each week. I suspect that no one needs to be reminded that our traditional celebration of Christmas has been a bit altered the last couple of years thanks to COVID. I think that makes one more reason to treasure our memories of days gone by and think back of all the times we have celebrated. From my experience, I feel as though each Christmas is much like all others, but also very special in its own way. Each year I try to think of some old, perhaps almost silly little story that I recall from Christmases past; and every year I have to test my memory a little more. Here is this year's. I think I was in about grade three or four and our teacher announced a few weeks before Christmas that we would be picking names and exchanging gifts on the last day before the holidays. The idea sounded pretty good because what kid doesn't like to receive a gift? The rules were pretty simple. Each student wrote their name on a slip of paper and put it in a container. If anyone got their own name of course you immediately turned it back. A spending limit which I am sure was no more than 50 cents was to be strictly adhered to. There was to be no telling of who's name you picked and above all, NO disclosure of the gift you purchased. Needless to say at that age no boy wanted to get a girl's name and probably vice versa although the girls tended to be much more polite even back then. When the name picking took place you hoped for the best; maybe some one among your closest chums would be the one and you would know what they wanted. Well my worst fear was realized when I unfolded my little slip I had drawn the name "Eva". She was a new girl in our class who had just moved to the area and I had probably never spoken to her and certainly wouldn't know what to buy for her as a gift. When I arrived at home that day I held the news until we sat down at the supper table. Guess who I got? and I disclosed the "good" news. My mother immediately said something like "That's nice, girls are a lot easier to buy for." She also disclosed that she would take me shopping one day very soon. Living in a small Town we didn't have a lot of options but everybody knew that the best place to buy anything was at the local Five & Dime as they were called back then. They had everything! Once in the store and with me somewhat less than enthusiastic, the search began. I recall the store was staffed by some of the nicest ladies you could ever meet. They knew where everything was and provided expert advice no matter what the request. They also knew almost everyone that visited the store. I let my mother do the talking and soon we were at the area where their "exquisite" line of jewelry was located. In a fairly short time we were headed home with a small box that contained a locket and chain. I was relieved that this part was over. When we returned home my older sister saw the locket and immediately was taken with it. All of a sudden her Christmas wish list had a new addition. She also quickly added "If the person at school doesn't like it, bring it home because I like it!" Well, gift giving day soon arrived. The teacher appointed a few "elves" and the packages were handed out. In short order everyone was busy unwrapping and probably marveling at what they had received. One last order of business was announced and that involved thanking the person that gave you your gift. I have no idea what I received nor who gave it to me but I do remember the "thanks" that I received. Once the girl named Eva thanked me and said she liked it, I was again relieved. The urge to put my proverbial "foot in my mouth" thankfully went away and gave this little story a much happier ending. In closing I would like to wish everyone in the Rewind audience the merriest of Christmases and the best of the coming New Year. My thanks to those of you who enjoy reading my tales of bygone days and for the many who send in comments or contact me personally. You folks make this all worthwhile. As I have done in previous years, I would also like to thank Standardbred Canada for making Rewind a regular feature of their website. Remembering our past is so important. Quote For The Week: "Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." - Mark Twain Who Is It? Who in the reading audience can identify this once well known individual? He is no longer with us but is undoubtedly still remembered by many who knew him throughout his long and storied career. One clue; although he was a talented race driver in his early days he made his mark in other ways. Who Else Is It? Can you figure out the two fellows shown in this old photo? A Blast From The Past Since it's Christmas I decided to show this old ad from 1917. What young child of that era wouldn't love to own one of these great wagons? As kids my older brother and I had what we called "a rack wagon" (I guess because it had removable racks) and we hauled so much stuff with it that it eventually fell apart. Maybe it didn't last because it wasn't a Dan Patch model. Be sure to stay tuned during the upcoming week to see the correct answers to this week's picture identities. From Bygone Days A young family perhaps heading out on Christmas day to visit family and friends A young family perhaps heading out on Christmas day to visit family and friends Just imagine what the streets of Montreal may have looked like a hundred years ago. Maybe this was taken on Christmas Day? (McCord Museum collection) Just imagine what the streets of Montreal may have looked like a hundred years ago. Maybe this was taken on Christmas Day? (McCord Museum collection) At one time Christmas cards were sent and received in abundance. Yes, even racetracks sent out cards to their customers and to the horse people who helped put on the show. The above card was sent out by the good folks at Connaught Park almost 60 years ago. At one time Christmas cards were sent and received in abundance. Yes, even racetracks sent out cards to their customers and to the horse people who helped put on the show. The above card was sent out by the good folks at Connaught Park almost 60 years ago. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE! All of the 5,000 refugees from Afghanistan who were being housed at Marine Corps Base Quantico have been resettled into new homes, the base announced this week. In a press release issued by the Marine Corps base, officials said the Department of Defense, working in support of the Department of Homeland Security, had completed temporary support efforts for Operation Allies Welcome, which spanned almost four months at Quanticofrom Aug. 29 to Dec. 22. Task Force Quantico provided temporary housing and support services for approximately 5,000 relocated Afghans aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, the base said. Task Force Quanticos mission has concluded as of Dec. 22, with the departure of its last relocated Afghans. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Quantico was among at least six military installations in the country to provide temporary housing for the nearly 45,000 Afghans who successfully fled their county before U.S. forces completely withdrew Aug. 30. Other installations in Virginia involved in the resettlement included the Army National Guard installation at Fort Pickett in Blackstone, about 60 miles southwest of Richmond, and Fort Lee, an 8-square-mile Army post about 25 miles south of Richmond. Over the years, Santa has arrived in different ways: a horse-drawn wagon, a convertible, and even a hot air balloon one time. Im gonna have him in my snow tractor if I ever get the chance, Sandberg said. Santa is not the only famous guest of the village, as the National Christmas Tree passed by on its way to Washington D.C. in 2018. The village predates the citys Christmas parade, but the parade did spawn a unique event. On that Friday night, plus the Friday night before Christmas, the buildings are lit up and decked out. Friday night at the parade is the only night where people can come in and see all the lights ... so then this one, the Friday before Christmas, you just feel like its so much more Christmas-y, Mitchell said. ...That first time that we had it on a Friday night, those lines were as long as they were for the parade. Attendance usually varies depending on the weather, but when its warm and sunny, hundreds of people can stop by the village in a day. People even visit it when Santas not around. On a shirt-sleeve Sunday in December, worshippers climb the steps of the tall church in the lowlands of Lincoln. Friedens Evangelical Lutheran gleams in the sun. The onion dome of its steeple matches the sky, blue as a robins egg; above it; a wooden cross stretches to the heavens, beckoning the faithful. The churchs annual German worship service is about to begin, calling back the early 20th century days of corner grocers and summer kitchens and newcomers in modest clapboard houses, folding their children into the messy melting pot of America. Today, Silent Night becomes Stille Nacht and O, Christmas Tree turns into O Tannenbaum and the Lords Prayer begins with our Vater unser im Himmel. And the people from near and far happily fill the pews. Many will come for the nostalgia. To honor parents and grandparents and great-grandparents who grew up in this enclave of Germans from Russia a few blocks south of downtown Lincoln. Some will come because their German teacher told them to. Or because they love the language. Or feel drawn by tradition. Its the ancestral connection, Kathy Tichota explains. I just feel that presence of my family from the past. On this day, Tichota and her family put on their masks and pick up their bulletins, pages filled with the words to Christmas carols printed in two languages. The tall guest preacher with the Bavarian name recites the opening litany. Im Namen Gottes, des Vaters und des Sohnes und des Heiligen Geistes, says the Right Rev. Michael Melchizedek. Bud Christenson, the churchs white-haired pastor with the Norwegian surname, repeats the words: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. For the next hour, under the painted tin ceiling, the day disappears, and the past is resurrected in a cadence carried from the Volga River to Ellis Island to the Heartland. The hard vowels and the hint of the familiar. Bitten and danke. Und and geboren. In the early years, the burgeoning Friedens congregation worshipped in German. The men on one side in their suspenders and Sunday suits, the women on the other in their stockings and scarves. Friedens held fast to the customs of its founders the laboring men who carried the churchs pillars from the railyard down the road in 1907; the women who baked and sang while working hard to fit into a new land. An English service at 10 each Sunday, followed by a German service at 11. In 1965, the last Sunday service in German disappeared from the church at Sixth and D, but the congregation wasnt ready to let go. So year after year, on the cusp of Christmas, they gather. Church members and former church members, language lovers and language learners. College students, like Paul Masin from Ponca, who sits in the back row with a trio of friends, listening to the readings, singing the carols. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln freshman was sent by his German language professor, Frau Jensen. It was interesting, he said. I didnt really understand a lot of it. Neither did Donna Chapin, who came to the service for the first time with her husband, Jack. But its a joy to know this is happening because I dont want to forget my German heritage, for better or worse. * * * It takes a village to ready the church. Friedens is a small village now; 50 to 60 worshippers on a good Sunday. In its first decades, as emigrants flooded Lincoln, great crowds came to praise God here each Sunday, walking from their nearby homes, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder in the sanctuary and balcony. At the turn of the 20th century, there were at least six Lincoln churches filled with Germans from Russia, said Pam Wurst, retired reference librarian at the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia. Four in the South Russian Bottoms, where Friedens sits, two in the North Bottoms, near the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The Germans who landed in America from Russia in the late 1800s and early 1900s spread across the Midwest, the Great Plains and spilled into the West Coast. They had spent generations in Russia courtesy of Catherine the Great, a princess with German blood. There they had their own villages and land and churches. They kept their language. In the late 1800s, Catherines grandson took back her promises. They would have to pay taxes. The men would have to serve in the Russian Army. The children would have to go to Russian school, learn the language. Their churches were threatened. Most German men dont like to be told what to do, Wurst said. So they started settling their families over here. The railroad paid the way for many, depositing them in towns across Nebraska, from Sutton to Scottsbluff. In Lincoln, an early immigrant and grocer named H.J. Amen sponsored villagers to settle here. And the population grew. By 1914, every third baby born in Lincoln had German-Russian parents. And those Germans in the bottom lands went to church. Friedens could claim 450 members by its 20th anniversary in 1927. There were hundreds of kids for Sunday school down in that basement, said lifelong member Karen Scribner. Scribner is busy in her kitchen the day before the special Sunday service. The retired teacher has already filled a Tupperware with delicate spritz cookies. Now she tops her cherry kuchen with rival flour, butter and sugar the spiral-bound German cookbook that belonged to her parents open on the table. Her parents and their parents before them hardworking people who swept their sidewalks were devoted to the church and the community that it sheltered. I carry that with me, she said. I like to keep Friedens going. She gets the word out each December, emailing German teachers and newspapers, radio stations and past visitors to remind them to save the date. Her brother will livestream the German service for shut-ins. A team of church ladies will fill the big coffee pot and line a table with foil-wrapped chocolates, cookies and tins of pfeffernusse. Irene Newhouse and her daughter Abby will bake German pastries, too. Honig cookies topped with sprinkles. And powder-sugared Kipferl that melt like snow on your tongue. The mother came to Lincoln as a babe-in-arms with her parents and grandparents in 1952; Germans living in Hungary until the government threw them out. The three generations lived together. Grandma stayed home with me while my parents worked, she said. She learned English by watching soap operas. But they spoke German at home, too, and the church was their bedrock. This yearly German worship service is a link to what she still holds dear. Its just very moving. When people sing those German hymns, you can see tears come to their eyes. This year, mother and daughter, dressed in red, wait at the entrance to greet their guests. Frohliche Weihnachten! Merry Christmas! * * * The tall minister tells the story of the virgin birth and the prince of peace. The white-haired pastor echoes back. The congregation sings. A verse in German. Freue dich, Welt, dein Konig naht A verse in English. Joy to the world, the Lord is come Back and forth, back and forth, a refrain from the early years. In those first decades, Friedens pastors were all required to speak German and to minister in two languages, preaching from a pulpit perched high on the wall. The first World War had hastened the assimilation of all Germans in Nebraska. Germantown became Garland, Berlin became Otoe. The Nebraska Legislature passed a law forbidding the teaching of any subject in a language other than English. And then came Hitler and World War II. Most churches went strictly to English, Wurst said. They didnt want to be known as German. But the Friedens Germans were a stubborn lot. Most of them. My parents went to the English service and went home, said Kathie Svoboda, whose grandfather supervised the building of the church. They considered themselves thoroughly American. The daughter, now 92, stayed behind and sang in the German choir. Studied German in college. Felt the sentimental pull. For decades, the children sang Stille Nacht on Christmas Eve and trundled out into the cold December air, clutching brown paper sacks weighed down by an apple and orange, peanuts and colorful Christmas candy. The paper sacks have been replaced by holiday gift bags passed out on the Sunday before Christmas. An orange or an apple. A Milky Way. Airheads and Tootsie Rolls. Sometimes there are peanuts in the shell, a throwback. Thats tricky these days with peanut allergies, Scribner said. Friedens is the last of the German Russian churches in the South Bottoms. Its a church that survived a fire. That mourned members who died during the 1918 influenza pandemic. A church that sent dozens of young men with German blood off to fight for the United States in World War II and held funerals for those who never came home, ringing the steeple bell once for each year they stood on this earth. Of the peace. Thats what Friedens means in German. They try to live that promise. As its numbers dwindled and the Volga Germans fanned out across the city and disappeared into its fabric, Friedens opened its doors to smaller congregations in need of a home. For nearly four years now, the members of Cristo Jesus la resurreccion y la vida have met in the church basement on Sunday nights for Spanish-language services. And a Karen congregation gathers on Saturdays. They will be there as usual on the last Saturday of December Christmas Day. Sharing a meal and traditions from their homeland of Burma, where they were persecuted as ethnic minorities and fled to find freedom. A congregation balancing two worlds. Two languages. The Karen people are new to this country, as were the people who started Friedens, Scribner said. It means a lot to us to be welcoming them to this country, as we were welcomed. The Flatwater Free Press is Nebraskas first independent, nonprofit newsroom focused on investigations and feature stories that matter. The Flatwater Free Press is Nebraskas first independent, nonprofit newsroom focused on investigations and feature stories that matter. Learn more at flatwaterfreepress.org. I knew we needed to find the owner of this hat, Morris said. Thats what cowboys do we help each other out. Jacobson said, Im glad the guy gave it to us. He could have thrown it away. Rodeo is a family. Everyone tries to help everyone, so we were glad to hold that hat and be able to get it back to that little girl. Katy, unable to believe someone in Nevada had Kaycees cowboy hat, asked Matt to make the call to Morris. Matt recalls Morris answering the phone and explaining that he was set to entertain at the NFR in two minutes but he would find a way to get the hat back to Nebraska. He was getting ready to perform and was kind enough to answer my phone call, Matt said. It was that one quick phone conversation that young cowgirl Kaycee would overhear and learn that her hat was at the NFR. Nervous about the hat making a second long journey without its owner, Katy said she felt fortunate to learn that a family friend was attending the NFR and would be happy to safely return the hat to Kaycee. After nearly a month, the Fleming family was relieved to learn the hat was in a cowboys hands and began looking forward to its return. When I was growing up, you didnt play with porcelain dolls. This style you can play with. The older (porcelain dolls) that you see here (at Legacy of the Plains), a lot of times are wearing their original clothes because you werent allowed to play with them. These you could play with, not that it was easy. Part of the problem was trying get their clothes on, but it was a lot of fun, she said. She said she was fortunate to have a father who was skilled at building because he made a lot of accessories for her Terri Lee doll. When I got my doll, my dad made a wardrobe for her. She had a little wardrobe to put her clothes in, Strey said. She said she and her friends played with the dolls in a lot of different ways. Her and her friends would put the dolls in wagons and pull them around an alfalfa field. Strey belongs to a doll club that has good streamstresses who still make clothes for the doll because of the cost of the originals, she said. Theyre expensive. Theyre actually sometimes more expensive than the doll, Strey said. Around the year 2000, Al Wilson had a goal. He wanted to reinvigorate the religious community around East Overland, but first he needed a congregation. I got off at 5:30 from my job, and Id just go out into the community, knock on doors and talk to people about accepting Christ and quite a few of them would do it, Wilson said. So that was great, but they wouldnt go to church anywhere. The problem for many people he approached was that they had preconceived notions about what a church atmosphere would be like. I went to one door and the people said, What do we have to wear? And they had on a jogging suit, and I said, Thatd look good right there. The last church many of those people had visited had turned them away because they werent wearing the proper clothing, Wilson said. His church, Chuck Wagon Church at 522 East Overland Dr., does things a little bit differently. The building had been pre-existing, and there were pews already available. The name, too, was already established. Isaiah tells us four things about the name of this child. First, he tells us that he will be called Wonderful Counselor. Jesus told his disciples just before his crucifixion that he would not leave us orphaned, but that he would send us a helper to live inside us and recall to us the things of Jesus. That helper (thats what a counselor does) is the Holy Spirit whom the Father sends to us through Jesus. Through the Holy Spirit, that little child is our advocate and counselor, who keeps us in the fold and protects us in both life and in death. Second, he is called Mighty God. The great story of Christmas is that God entered our personal space and became one of us when the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. Because of this child, we can know God, and be saved by the God who lived, died and was raised for us, in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. For many families here in Northwest North Carolina, two years of uncertainty around jobs, day care and protecting the health of loved ones have taken a toll. But now families face another unexpected challenge rising costs that only exacerbate existing struggles. Havoc in the food supply chain, induced and worsened by the pandemic, is making everything from pork chops to peanut butter more expensive. At Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC, we and our on-the ground partner food assistance agencies see the consequences to the many local families we serve. Having food should be the last thing on any childs mind, and parents should not have to worry about how they will put food on the table. Yet, even as many of us are planning for holiday feasts, millions of families continue to suffer from hunger in the U.S., and the problem remains especially dire in our rural communities, which make up the majority of the 18 counties served by Second Harvest. That is why it is critical for our lawmakers to invest in The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), which supports Second Harvest and the 430-plus food-assistance organizations we partner with to serve your community. In late 2021 the United States halted its efforts to get Israel two KC-46A aerial tankers as soon as possible. The reason given was the growing backlog of late deliveries to the U.S. Air Force. Israel suspects the Americans are also trying to make it more difficult for the Israelis to carry out a massive air attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. This all began in late 2019 when the Israeli Air Force (IAF) asked the United States to supply them with two new KC-46A tankers as soon as possible. While the KC-46A has had some manufacturing problems, once checked over carefully it is good to go as a modern aerial tanker and transport. Israel is getting somewhat desperate in this area. Although a small country with no imminent threat from a neighboring military, Israel has long maintained a large force of aerial tankers. Nine of those are Boeing 707 airliners purchased second-hand decades ago and converted to tankers like the American KC-135. There are also four KC-130H turboprop tankers like those used by the United States and are better suited to refueling helicopters. Most Israeli combat and transport helicopters are equipped for aerial refueling. In most instances, the refueling enables aircraft to stay in the air longer when that is needed to deal with an uncertain situation that requires prompt attention from aircraft already in the air. The big problem is the age and heavy maintenance requirements for these elderly Israeli B-707 tankers. Making a long-range airstrike against Iran is a lot riskier because tanker availability and reliability is less certain. Boeing, the manufacturer of the 707, KC-135s and the new KC46A was amenable to giving Israel two 46As right away but the U.S. Air Force had to cooperate and allow two of theirs to be diverted to Israel. This would be good for Boeing because Israel would put the KC-46As to work right away and thereby foster more Boeing export sales. The pitch to the U.S. Air Force is that the Israeli experience would be valuable in ongoing efforts to improve the quality of production and implementation of needed or suggested improvements. Israel wants to buy up to eight KC-46As, for about a billion dollars. Growing problems with the elderly Israeli 707 tankers and production problems with the KC-46As, plus the Israeli resistance to buying expensive new support aircraft, further complicated matters. That need for KC-46As became more urgent as the 707 situation got worse faster than expected while the KC-46A finally entered service in 2019 and long-distance strikes against Iran became more likely. Israel is trying to work through all this and solve its escalating aerial refueling crises. By 2021 the KC-46A looked less attractive because additional manufacturing and design problems continued to show up. Earlier in 2019, the U.S. air force resumed, after a two-month delay, accepting new KC-46As. That two-month delay was because of FOD (Foreign Object Debris), including tools and other metal objects, still showing up in various parts of the aircraft. This indicated a serious lapse in the management of assembly and quality control while producing these aircraft. By March 2019, after nearly a month of effort to check out aircraft nearly ready for delivery as well as factory inspection procedures, the air force agreed to begin accepting KC-46s once more. Deliveries continued despite a recently discovered cargo lock (unreliable cargo tie-down latches) problem. The Americans are now concerned about Boeing, the manufacturer, while also needing the KC-46As as soon as possible. This is the same firm that is having worse problems with its new 737 Max commercial airliner. In mid-2019 Boeing planned to deliver 36 KC-46As by the end of 2019 and later expected to meet that goal even though only 19 had been delivered by early September. At the end of the year, the goal of 36 was missed but Boeing did fix the cargo lock problem and this allowed cargo to again be carried. There was one problem left with the accuracy of the remote viewing system used by the 46A boom operator. That does not prevent the operation of the aircraft, it just slows down refueling in some cases. The latest (early 2021) problem is leaky toilets. Most tankers are based on commercial freight transports, with the addition of more onboard fuel and aerial refueling equipment. There is a lot of space left for passengers and cargo. The KC-46 can carry over a hundred passengers and when it does the crew toilet is not sufficient. There was already a cargo pallet based ATGL (Air Transportable Galley-Lavatory) in use with the C-17 and C-130 transports. These aircraft alternate between carrying all cargo, mixed (cargo/passenger) and all-passenger modes. Boeing, the developer of the KC-46 was told to make sure the KC-46 could easily handle the ATGL. It was a simple request for a simple task; just note the ATGL specs and their use on the other transports and the job is done. Like so many other simple design and construction tasks on the KC-46, Boeing got it wrong. They moved the orientation of the ATGL 90 degrees to fit into the KC-46 and did not note that the ATGL anti-spill valve did not work reliably in the new orientation. Boeing did not discover that until the ATGL underwent testing on the KC-46 and the leak problem became obvious. Now a new valve must be developed and tested, and there is no certainty when that will get done. Based on the many past problems with the KC-46, these avoidable problems take longer than anticipated to fix. Some problems discovered several years ago are still unresolved. Boeing was in a hurry to deliver nearly 200 KC-46As to the air force and was telling Israel that once an order is approved it can take two or three years to deliver the KC-46As. Israel apparently no longer has that much time, especially with the Iranian crisis getting worse. On the plus side, the elderly U.S. KC-135 tanker fleet is in much better shape than Israeli B-707 tankers. The main problem Israel has is that the 707 based aircraft are very old. The oldest 707 was built in 1958 and the youngest ones are from the 1970s. Most commercial 707s retired decades ago. Obtaining spare parts has become increasingly difficult. In 2018 the IAF paid Brazil $400,000 for a 707 retired in 2008, plus a stock of 707 spare parts. The Brazilian 707 was then taken apart for spares. All IAF tankers were grounded for more than a month in 2019 because inexperienced civilian maintainers caused an accident that had to be investigated to ensure that there was not a more fundamental problem with the aircraft. Production of civilian 707s ended in 1978 but the production of military versions, which mainly went to the U.S. Air Force, continued into the early 1990s. The United States used to be a primary source of spare parts but now those spares are needed to keep dozens of American military 707s operational. Israel had closely followed the American search for a new tanker to replace the elderly KC-135 because they realized that Israeli tankers were older than the American ones. The Boeing 707 became obsolete at the end of the 20th century, as most countries adopted new jet engine noise regulations that barred the use of 707s at major airports and many minor ones. You could upgrade the 707, with new engines, to comply, but it was cheaper to buy a new aircraft that was cheaper and safer to operate than the elderly 707. Only 1,010 707s were built from 1958 to 1979 and it was a sturdy and reliable carrier of freight, as well as passengers, and continued in use for decades before rising fuel prices and maintenance costs made it too expensive for commercial use. The Boeing 707 commercial transport is a civilian version of the original KC-135 of which 732 were built between 1956 and 1965. The KC-135 evolved from the World War II B-29 heavy bomber. The U.S. Air Force used to be a major player in the second-hand 707 market as the military was, until a decade ago, converting them to military uses (AWACS and J-STARS), but even that has shifted to more modern aircraft designs. By the early 2000s, you would buy an old 707 for less than a million bucks, then spend $25 million turning it into an aerial tanker or several times that to produce an AWACs. These days, the Boeing 737 is preferred for this sort of thing. That led to the new U.S. Air Force KC-46A tanker aircraft. There were a lot of problems converting 767s to the KC-46, but most were caused by sloppiness at Boeing manufacturing plants. Like the 707 tankers, the KC-46 can also carry cargo, a lot of it. The KC-46A can carry 29.5 tons of cargo in up to 18 pallets. The KC-46A can also carry up to 114 passengers or 58 patients (plus medical personnel). The total value of the project, to replace the aging fleet of KC-135 and KC-10 tankers, could be as high as $44 billion. The initial order was for 18 aircraft at about $150 million each. That initial order also came with about a billion dollars for development work plus $4 billion in additional development costs that the manufacturer absorbed. The air force might order over a hundred KC-46As, but the exact number depends on what kind of future aircraft the air force will be using. If there are a lot of unmanned aircraft (UAVs), fewer tankers will be needed because UAVs are smaller, and need less fuel. The competition between the American (Boeing) and European (AirBus) candidates was quite close. The KC-330 carries 20 percent more fuel than the KC-767, plus 37 percent more cargo pallets and passengers. But this apparently worked against the KC-330, as the KC-767 is closer in size to the KC-135, and thus will not require as many new maintenance facilities. The KC-767 is also considered easier and cheaper to maintain. The KC-330/45A was to have cost about $175 million each, 17 percent more than the KC-46A. The KC-46A is based on the Boeing 767-200 airliner, which sells for about $120 million. The 767 has been in service since 1982, and over 1,100 have been manufactured so far. Boeing developed the KC-46A on its own, at a cost of nearly a billion dollars. Boeing also developed the original KC-135 tanker in the 1950s and has since built over 2,000 of these. The two engine KC-330 (KC-45A) was based on the AirBus 330, which costs about $160 million each. Over 1,400 330s have been produced since the aircraft entered service in 1994. Both candidates were selected for their ability to replace the four-engine KC-135. This older aircraft carries 90 tons of fuel and can transfer up to 68 tons. Typically, aerial tankers service B-52s (which carry over 140 tons of jet fuel) and fighters like the F-15 (over five tons). The KC-135 has long made itself useful carrying cargo and passengers, as well as fuel, and both the KC-767 and KC-30 have more capacity for this. The KC-46A can pump 1,200 gallons (4,900 liters) a minute total while each of the underwing pods can deliver a third of that per minute. With the continued KC-46A delays most export sales went to the KC-330s, now called the A330 MRTT or KC-30A. So far, 50 of these have been ordered by or delivered to Australia, France, NATO, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, South Korea, and Britain. The KC-46A has two export customers so far; Israel (8 KC-46As) and Japan (2). Several other nations are considering the KC-46A, but all these problems dont help with turning consideration into orders. A bill introduced by Sen. Jeff Wilson for the upcoming legislative session would bring back a popular incentive program for homeowners to install solar panels. Senate Bill 5493 reinstates the renewable energy system incentive program that began in 2017 and provided $110 million to residential and commercial solar energy installations. The new version of the program proposed by Wilson keeps the funding total, but focuses more heavily on encouraging homeowners to install their own solar systems. Wilson said that encourages energy independence and stability as Washington keeps moving toward renewable energy. He uses solar power at his Longview home to supplement his electricity bill for his home and for charging his electric vehicle. If youd like to have more control and partake in a program that benefits the climate, the environment and your own pocketbook, you should incentivize this, Wilson said. Washington State Universitys Energy Program ran the original incentives program and would remain in charge of Wilsons renewed version. While the program could cover any renewable energy work, nearly all the approved energy systems focused on solar power. Energy Program director Todd Currier said that unlike many other incentive programs, the renewable energy program does not provide its payments up front. Homeowners will need to buy their own solar panels and then apply to the WSU Energy Program for approval of their setup. Once the panels are up and running, the incentive will be paid each year based on the amount of power generated. We care a little about how much your system costs, but for the most part what we care about is how much your system produced. If you dont take care of it, it wont produce as much, Currier said. Basing the incentives on energy production means the incentive pay will vary depending on where in the state theyre used, as well as the exact angles and placement of the panels. Currier estimated in Southwest Washington, a three-panel set could drop the average homes annual power bill by at least $70. The state reimbursement would provide money on top of that power bill savings, and installing solar panels could make homes eligible for federal tax credits or local incentives for renewable power. Curriers team produced a report to the Legislature in late 2018, once the full $110 million in incentives had been provided, to recap the benefits of the program. The report said the program certified 7,461 residential energy systems, 376 commercial energy systems, and created more than 100 megawatts of solar power capacity. In Cowlitz County PUDs coverage area, there were 87 residential projects and two large commercial projects. Im not saying solar and wind are going to solve all our energy needs, but this bill is pro-energy choice, Wilson said. The original solar incentives program was introduced by Senators Doug Ericksen and Guy Palumbo in 2017. Wilson said he had been in the early stages of working with Ericksen on the new bill before Ericksens death earlier this month. One of the last posts on Ericksens official Senate website said the incentives programs had been a smashing success and that he had no concerns about the program phasing out. Its not often we can say a government program worked exactly as intended, Ericksen wrote. The push for solar power is an uncommon instance of agreement between Wilson, a Republican, and Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat. One of the governors largest requests in the climate and energy budget proposal released this month is $100 million for solar installation and energy storage grants. Inslees proposal focused more on local governments and agencies than individual homeowners It was one of those ideas that was supported by people from different parts of the political spectrum, Currier said. If Wilsons bill is taken up by the Legislature and passed as written, new applications would be accepted beginning July 1. People who enrolled in the first version of the program will keep their current incentives, but cannot apply for new projects. Love 6 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 3 Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Travelers trek through Terminal E at Logan Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021, in Boston. At least three major airlines say they have canceled dozens of flights, Friday, Dec. 24, because illnesses largely tied to the omicron variant of COVID-19 have taken a toll on flight crew numbers during the busy holiday travel season. Credit: AP Photo/Charles Krupa Airlines continued to cancel hundreds of flights Saturday as staffing issues tied to COVID-19disrupted holiday celebrations during one of the busiest travel times of the year. FlightAware, a flight-tracking website, noted 875 flights entering, leaving or inside the U.S. canceled Saturday, up from 689 Friday. About 200 more flights were already canceled for Sunday. FlightAware does not say why flights are canceled. Delta, United and JetBlue on Friday had all said the omicron variant was causing staffing problems leading to flight cancellations. United spokesperson Maddie King said staffing shortages were still causing cancellations and it was unclear when normal operations would return. "This was unexpected," she said of omicron's impact on staffing. Delta and JetBlue did not immediately respond to questions Saturday. According to FlightAware, the three airlines canceled more than 10% of their Saturday scheduled flights. European and Australian airlines have also canceled holiday-season flights due to staffing problems tied to COVID. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year. Airlines encouraged workers to quit in 2020, when air travel collapsed, and were caught short-staffed this year as travel recovered. Travelers wait in line to be tested for COVID-19 at Logan Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021, in Boston. At least three major airlines say they have canceled dozens of flights, Friday, Dec. 24, because illnesses largely tied to the omicron variant of COVID-19 have taken a toll on flight crew numbers during the busy holiday travel season. Credit: AP Photo/Charles Krupa A traveler pulls a ski bag on the way to the check-in counter for United Airlines in a terminal of Denver International Airport Friday, Dec. 24, 2021, in Denver. Major airlines canceled hundreds of flights Friday amid staffing shortages largely tied to the omicron variant of the coronavirus. Credit: AP Photo/David Zalubowski Holiday travelers line up at the security checkpoint check point at Pittsburgh International Airport in Imperial, Pa., Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. At least three major airlines say they have canceled dozens of flights, Friday, Dec. 24, because illnesses largely tied to the omicron variant of COVID-19 have taken a toll on flight crew numbers during the busy holiday travel season. Credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar To ease staffing shortages, countries including Spain and the U.K. have reduced the length of COVID-19 quarantines by letting people return to work sooner after testing positive or being exposed to the virus. Delta CEO Ed Bastian was among those who have called on the Biden administration to take similar steps or risk further disruptions in air travel. On Thursday, the U.S. shortened COVID-19 isolation rules for health care workers only. Explore further Airlines cancel flights due to COVID staffing shortages 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. In October, the board had unanimously recommended that Floyd become just the second person in Texas since 2010 to receive a posthumous pardon from the governor. As a result of the Boards withdrawal of the recommendation concerning George Floyd, Governor Abbott did not have the opportunity to consider it, Abbott spokeswoman Renae Eze said in a statement. Mathis called the last-minute reversal a ridiculous farce." She said the board which is stocked with Abbott appointees did not make her aware of any issues prior to the announcement from the governor's office. It really strains credibility for them to say now that it's out of compliance, after the board has already voted on it, she said. Floyd grew up and was laid to rest in Houston. In June, former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison for Floyd's murder, which led to a national reckoning in the U.S. over race and policing. OMAHA Gov. Pete Ricketts on Thursday announced his appointment of Republican Kirk Penner, a businessman from Aurora, to a vacant seat on the Nebraska State Board of Education. Penner will complete the remainder of the term of Patricia Timm of Beatrice, who resigned from the District 5 seat in October, citing personal health reasons. District 5 includes much of the south side of Lincoln, and rural areas of Southeast Nebraska largely south of the Platte River from Phillips to Ashland. The term runs through Jan. 4, 2023. Penner has 16 years experience on the Aurora Public Schools board, the Governor's Office said in a news release. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Nebraska Wesleyan University, the release said. Penner is president of Penner Patient Care, which distributes bathing systems to long-term care facilities. He's also president of Penner Manufacturing, which makes and assembles bathing systems in its Aurora facility for use in the health care industry and residential settings. He is president of the Aurora Development Corp., which recruits businesses to Aurora and encourages investment in Hamilton County. Sometimes when youre new to town youre not comfortable. You dont know everything in a town, so I tried to focus more on local traditions. That includes Wood Rivers community staple the Wood River Express and different Christmas programs. Wood River High School student Brenda Rodriguez helped with the event. She said its important for residents in the community to get to know one another. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Were just getting people together that arent usually together. A lot of people dont show up to the same events and this is just kind of an event for everyone. The community celebration was truly community-led, said Wood River Rural School Superintendent Terry Zessin. We had Latino advisory meetings here at school to address concerns by Latino families and students. It talked about racism, culture, and how can we get everyone to feel welcome and together. We started a number of things. One was Breaking Barriers where we had everyone come together and the Mexican community taught us how to make pozole soup. We made it and we ate it together. It was a really great time. That was two years ago. This year, following a year off from COVID, the event came back better than ever. BROKEN BOW Adams Land & Cattle recently sponsored its 13th annual Giving Tree Program, where employees fulfill holiday wish lists by donating Christmas gifts to children and families enrolled in the local Sixpence program. The employees efforts resulted in 320 gifts for 28 local families in need, including 72 children. Adams also gave beef roast bundles to all 28 families. To help support the Giving Tree program, Adams also sold shirts for a cause. All proceeds from the Give Thanks, Eat Beef shirts went directly to purchasing additional gifts for the local families. Liz Babcock, director of communications for Adams, said, It was incredible to see the support from people all over the country who purchased the shirts and wanted to help bring joy to Custer County children this Christmas. Babcock added, It has been a tremendous honor for Adams Land & Cattle to have the opportunity to help families in our community and bring a smile to a childs face during this special time of year. KEARNEY Never underestimate Santa Claus or the Kearney Family YMCA. Y leaders expected to collect about 50 gifts from members and staff for needy families as part of its new Making Christmas Bright program. Instead, they collected 400. It was such a success that it will become an annual Christmas tradition. We want to do this every year, Dillon Nelson, membership services manager, said. It was really cool to see so much generosity. Not bad for a project that began with a simple giving tree. One Saturday in November, Nelson and Ray Longoria, the Ys CEO, kicked around ideas for a promotion for new members. They decided to hang gift tags on a tree and waive a months membership fee for new members who took a tag and purchased a gift for the person whose name was on it. Longoria then went a step beyond that. Working with Kearney Public Schools counselors, he collected names of families who are enduring tough times and would appreciate a bonus from Santa this year. President Biden has often drawn strength, comfort and joy from the state of South Carolina. He went to that well again on Friday, traveling to my hometown of Orangeburg for reasons both personal and political, and I believe he was not disappointed. In February 2020, after Biden had finished poorly in both the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, all hope of his ever becoming president seemed lost. But then South Carolina's most powerful Democrat, House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn, gave Biden a rousing last-minute endorsement. Biden ended up demolishing his rivals in the state's primary and rode that momentum -- fueled by massive support from African American voters -- to win the nomination and defeat President Donald Trump. In his first visit to South Carolina since that primary, he arrived not on a commercial airliner or a campaign charter but as the principal passenger on Air Force One. Biden came to return Clyburn's favor by headlining the fall graduation ceremony at South Carolina State University, the historically Black college from which Clyburn graduated six decades ago, and presenting the congressman with the diploma he originally had to receive by mail. Speaking to an overwhelmingly Black audience, Biden found his voice -- and his passion -- when he turned to Republican attempts to curtail the voting rights of African Americans, Hispanics and other people of color. "I've never seen anything like the unrelenting assault on the right to vote," Biden thundered. "Never. I don't think any of you have, on this stage, ever seen it." He was wrong on that point. Some of us in the building had indeed seen it before. When I was growing up in Orangeburg and going to elementary school on the SCSU campus, African Americans across the South were marching, petitioning, clamoring -- and, tragically, dying -- to dismantle Jim Crow oppression and secure the right to vote, which was systematically and brutally denied to us. The auditorium where Biden spoke is named after three students -- Henry Smith, Samuel Hammond Jr. and Delano Middleton -- who were shot dead by white state troopers during a 1968 demonstration, in what came to be known as the Orangeburg Massacre. The protest began as a demand to integrate the town's one bowling alley, which admitted only whites, but grew into a much larger and louder complaint about South Carolina's continued defiance of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Legally, Jim Crow had already been abolished; as a practical matter, though, it was still very much alive. Smith and Hammond were SCSU students. Middleton, a bit younger, was a student at Wilkinson High School, which had been the separate-but-unequal Black high school in Orangeburg. Biden's motorcade passed the building that once housed Wilkinson High on the way into town. "It's not just about who gets to vote or making it easier, as we used to try to do, to make people eligible to be able to vote," Biden told the assembled graduates and their proud family members. "It's about who gets to count the vote or whether your vote counts at all." "This new sinister combination of voter suppression and election subversion -- it's un-American, it's undemocratic," he added. Historically speaking, sadly, the denial of voting rights to those who are not White is all too American. But Biden tells audiences that it was the civil rights struggle that drew him into politics in the first place. And after months of talking mostly about covid-19, the economy and the Build Back Better package that he is still trying to get through Congress, Biden appears to have found new energy and purpose in calling for federal legislation to protect voting rights nationwide. He was even more insistent about the need to confront hatred and racism. "I thought when we had some of those major victories, we'd finally crossed a threshold," Biden said. "But what I didn't realize is you can defeat hate, but you can't eliminate it. It just slides back under a rock. And when given oxygen by political leaders, it comes out [as] ugly and mean as it was before. We can't give it any oxygen. We have to step on it. We have to respond to it." That is easier said than done, given a galling confluence of circumstances: the 50-50 makeup of the Senate; the refusal of today's Republicans to debate voting-rights protections that even segregationist Strom Thurmond eventually came to support; and the tyranny of the filibuster rule. The House keeps passing measures to counteract the anti-democratic laws being passed by GOP-controlled state legislatures, and the Senate refuses to let them come up for a vote. It is not clear there is anything Biden can do to change these dynamics. But he has been giving much more emphasis to the issue of voting rights -- and the shift does not sound, to me, like just a way to avoid talking about vaccine mandates or his latest frustrating conversations with Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va. "This battle is not over," Biden said. "We must pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. We must. We're going to keep up the fight until we get it done." In Orangeburg, I had to wonder whether visiting the site of old civil rights battles was giving Biden new resolve to fight the civil rights battle of today -- new appreciation that the right to vote and the right to have our votes counted fairly are far more important than any anachronistic Senate rule. I thought so. I certainly hope so. Orangeburg native and Pulitzer Prize winner Eugene Robinson's email address is eugenerobinson@washpost.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 BAMBERG - The Bamberg County Council received an update on the progress a Walterboro-based telecommunications cooperative is making to expand broadband service in the county with the help of a grant from the states Broadband Infrastructure Program. County Administrator Joey Preston reported during a Dec. 6 council meeting that Phase 1 of the work Palmetto Rural Telephone Co-Op is doing consists of Hadwin Road, Orange Grove Road and the Clear Pond area. Preston said work in the Hadwin Road area was slated to complete in February 2022, with work in the Clear Pond area to be complete March 1, 2022. Work on Orange Grove Road is due to be complete in April 1, 2022. "Hadwin has 103 homes, Clear Pond has 187 homes and Orange Grove has 151 homes," Preston said. Phase 2 consists of the Lodge community, where work is to be complete June 1, 2022, and Pocketville Road, where work is scheduled to be complete July 1, 2022. Work on Ashton Road and Rivers Bridge Road is due to be complete by July 1, 2022 and October 2022, respectively. Work in Ehrhardt was slated to be complete in mid-October 2022. Lodge has 80 homes and Pocketville Road has 106 homes in the service area, while Ashton Road has 106 homes and Rivers Bridge Road has 66 dwellings. Ehrhardt has 379 homes. "They're moving pretty fast out there, and they're getting the job done in that part of the county. We continue to move forward with working with the state to try to get ... broadband throughout the rest of the county. You'll be hearing more about that hopefully the first quarter of next year," Preston said. Individuals can contact the PRTC website at prtc.us to learn more about services and pricing, or call directly at 843-538-2020. In other business, SouthernCarolina Alliance Project Manager Garrett Dragano gave a reported, stating that there are currently 17 active projects in the county. The economic development group serves Bamberg, Allendale, Barnwell, Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties. Dragano said the Bamberg County's two announcements this year have included South Carolina Oak to Barrel LLC with a $6.8 million capital investment and create 122 new jobs, and Arnett Engineered Solutions LLC, with a $2.5 million capital investment and 19 jobs. "I'm continuing to work with the barrel company. I'm working on getting them their training and working with ReadySC to work on recruiting and hiring. They did have a minor setback. Some of the equipment that was there that was left over from the previous owner is not supposed to sit. So some of it had to have some major repairs and replacements ... but they're still moving along," Dragano said. He said the barrel company should be operational early next year in January. As far SCA regional accomplishments, he said, "We have 124 active projects. We've had 18 announcements in 2021 so far, with $121 million in capital investment, creating 615 jobs." One of three promising industrial projects is located in Bamberg County, with the others in Allendale and Barnwell counties, he said. Dragano continued, "We're continuing to work on improving infrastructure at the Wolf industrial site that's located over in Denmark. SCA was awarded a grant to fund a Palmetto Pride litter coordinator. You can find more information for that on our website and the posting for that." Administrator's report Preston gave a COVID-19 report, stating that 58.3 percent of residents have had at least one vaccine, with 52 percent have had their second dose. The percentages reflect all citizens age 5 and over, who are all now eligible for the vaccine. "Children ages 5 to 11 are now eligible to receive the Pfizer vaccine. Booster shots are also permitted and recommended for those 18 and older who were vaccinated over six months ago with Pfizer or Moderna, or over two months with the J&J vaccine," he said. Preston also read an emailed comment from county resident Kenneth Ahlin, stating his displeasure with individuals not being able to render public comment in person rather than having to email their comments which are reviewed by county council. The requirement of having to email before noon on the day of the meeting is an inconvenience for those that work. It also suppresses communication from those who do not have access to email, or those who are not inclined to use it, Ahlin wrote. Why do comments have to be reviewed? Theres no logical reason to support this. Please consider getting rid of any barrier that restricts our verbal communication with our elected officials, he continued. County resident Miriam Beard, who was present at the meeting, said she had wanted to be able to sign in to comment at the meeting. Chairman Larry Haynes said, We dont sign-in sheets for comments since COVID. We passed an ordinance. You got to mail it in. Councilwoman Sharon Hammond said, Were in here now. Councilman Phil Myers said, I think we need to do away with that, with Hammond agreeing and saying it didn't make sense. Beard was allowed to speak, stating that she was still concerned about animal control. We need a new pound area. It needs to be updated. You need an animal control officer full time so that they can go around and give whatever tickets or things for people who are breaking the law and not controlling their animals, Beard said. Councilman Myers said, I think we do need to look into that. Ive had complaints about that, too, in various areas. Some areas are worse than others." Preston later said, The sheriff has always been responsible for animal control in the county. The cities are responsible for their own. The sheriff wants to turn it over to county. I am going to hire a full-time officer dedicated to this. County Sheriff Kenneth Bamberg said the new officer would not be attached to the sheriffs office. We have been doing the animal control duties for the county as far as going to pick up the strays. Because of the fact that animal control duties should not be under the sheriffs office, we talked about that, and the administration of the county is in the process of trying to find an animal control officer to take care of the animal control problem here in the county, Bamberg said. Finance County Treasurer Alice Johnson gave the October financial report, stating the county had $1,036,066.77 in income and expenditures of $1,067,016.72, leaving a negative balance of $30,949.95. When the negative bank balance at the end of September ($146,702.82) was added, the countys regular account stood at a negative $177,652.77. Councilman Clint Carter asked Johnson about what individuals can do who are disputing the amount of their property tax bills, as was the case with one taxpayer he knew of. Johnson said individuals are urged to call the county auditor, assessor or treasurer's office if they notice any changes in their tax bills they may have a question about. "It just pays everybody to check their bills because if there's a big difference, call any of those three offices. If we don't know, the person answering the phone knows who to send them to to try to get the answer," Johnson said. County Controller Gina Smith later explained that Johnsons finance report was just the cash balance for one of the countys many bank accounts. "This is not an unusual situation to have negative balances in that regular account for the first six months of the year. In fact, every year since year 2015, we have had negative balances reported as the book balance," she said. Smith has said the county is not short on cash because the other bank accounts have money in them, including the $67,070 in its property tax rollback account as of the end of October. "There are checks written against that regular account and all of the accounts that are outstanding, meaning they haven't cleared the bank. We talked a little bit last month about the fact that we hold these checks and don't mail them all out when they're cut. Based on cash flow and the availability of funds, we mail the ones that we need to, and then we hold back," she said. Smith continued, "Alice is giving you a list of all those outstanding checks in her report. So if you have some time, you might want to check that out.... Naturally, if you've got $1.4 million in the bank, you're not going to mail out $1.6 million worth of checks. If you do, they'll bounce, and we definitely will not allow that to happen." "I just want you to just sort of understand the dynamics of that. Even though on the books it's showing a negative balance, it is not a negative balance at South State Bank or any other bank" she said. County Finance Director T.M. Thomas reported that the countys general fund had year-to-date revenues as of the end of October of $1,297,260, with expenses coming in at $2,532,385, for a negative general fund balance of $1,235,125. Smith has said that despite a negative balance in the general fund, the county will have a fund balance on hand because the bulk of the county's revenue is taxes, which largely come in during December and January. Contact the writer: dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or 803-533-5534. Follow "Good News with Gleaton" on Twitter at @DionneTandD Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. South Carolina State University alumna Chandler Frink recently was named a 2022 BEYA Modern-Day Technology Leader for her outstanding performance in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) as an employee at Boeing South Carolina (BSC). This peer-nominated honor from the Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) is awarded to minority individuals working to move the needle. Frinks contributions within the engineering community at BSC, despite not being a degreed engineer, brought about her recognition. Frink is a December 2018 graduate of SC State. As a four-year Presidential Scholar, she graduated with her B.S. in business management with honors. The support I received in my four years at State really made me the person I am today. I dont think I would have grown to be the person the woman I am today without the honors college or the School of Business, Frinks said. I think about that every day and how I can go about making the Bulldog name stand out. Shortly after graduation, she began a full-time role as a methods process analyst with BSC on the flight line, supporting delivery operations and other special projects on the 787-program level. This August, Frink became one of 12 members selected for the inaugural class of the Quality Career Foundation Program, a premier two-year rotation program dedicated to developing leaders for the organization. In her first rotation, she is supporting the Boeing Global Services (BGS) Quality Strategy and Integration team in St. Louis, Missouri, to where she relocated in December. She is an active Boeing volunteer with the companys DreamLearners Program and with the BSC SC State Alumni group, functioning as a member of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities campus team and helping to coordinate on-campus visits/programs and recruitment efforts. In her time at SC State, Frink was also active. Along with being a member of the Honors College, she was a member of the School of Businesss Ambassador program, travelling to schools to engage with students about SC State and its opportunities. She was a member of the Marching 101 Band. She is a spring 2016 initiate of Tau Beta Sigma National Honorary Band Sorority Inc. and a spring 2018 initiate of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. She received various internship opportunities across the state and spent a semester abroad at the University of Amsterdam in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Upon returning, she volunteered in SC States career center, assisting with the day-to-day functions, helping the center with events and classroom visits, and assisting the students with other career needs. Frink is in graduate school at the University of Texas at Dallas pursuing her masters in business analytics (data science) and a project management certificate. She is hoping to pivot into a career in data analytics or data engineering upon completion. Love 2 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 In God We Trust, the national motto, appears on every American coin and dollar bill. But what does it mean for the character of the country if that no longer holds true? Most Americans have long believed that divine providence has been central to the establishment and flourishing of the nation. The history we were taught begins with the Pilgrims, who sought refuge in the New World to escape persecution in the Old. Roger Williams founded the colony of Rhode Island as a refuge for those facing religious persecution in Massachusetts. Abraham Lincoln ended slavery in the Emancipation Proclamation by the gracious favor of Almighty God. Religious conviction has inspired social change throughout American history, most importantly the civil rights movement, which was largely led by clergy and relied on religious teaching for much of its power. Religious freedom is a cornerstone of a democratic society. In America, politicians and the general public have long held that the nation was ordained by a higher power. But the trend in the United States is mirroring a process thats been underway for decades in Western Europe: the rise in numbers of people with no religious affiliation the nones. In a 2019 study, Pew found the portion of the population describing themselves as Christian had declined by 12 points in the space of a decade. While other religions, especially Islam, have grown as a share of the population, the biggest growth occurred among those with no religious affiliation. According to Pew, the nones grew from 17 percent in 2009 to 29 percent in 2019. In Europe, secularization is several years ahead of the United States. While the percentage of European nones is roughly the same as in America, European Christians are far less likely to attend religious services or pray regularly than their counterparts on the other side of the Atlantic. How will America change as more Americans are religiously unaffiliated, even if they see themselves as spiritual and believe in God? Religious belief touches on many of the great conflicts in our society, most notably abortion, but also issues ranging from education to racial reconciliation to issues of equity and fairness in the economy. Rev. Richie Butler, who leads a prominent Black church in Dallas, adds a further category of the religiously unaffiliatedthe donesthose who have opted out of organized religion. Pastor Butler points to the need for the church to engage in some introspection. Some want something more authentic and feel like they can find that on their own versus going to a house of worship, he explains in his Democracy Talks interview. Religious leaders have to ask where we have dropped the ball. Religious institutions have long served as a sort of societal glue. Eboo Patel, founder and president of the Interfaith Youth Core, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting interfaith dialogue, notes the importance of religious institutions in nourishing community institutions such as universities, hospitals, and other non-profits. . Patel contends that we expect all these institutions to welcome all comers and, indeed, they do. These institutions shouldnt wither away, even if more Americans shun religious services. The effect on our politics over the long term may be more important. One need look only at the rapid evolution of attitudes on LGBT issues. While overall societal attitudes have shifted toward tolerance, attitudes have changed more swiftly among the young and the nones. Will those shifts lead to greater support for abortion rights or civil rights measures, for example? Americas historical allegiance toward religious freedom is no longer just a sometimes grudging tolerance of the other in a largely Protestant nation and culture. Just as the concept of religious freedom expanded to include the Catholic and the Jew as fully American, that concept can expand to embrace the Muslim or Buddhist. So, too, it can embrace those with no religious membership or beliefs, because the freedom to worship as one chooses also means the freedom not to worship at all. Our concept of religious freedom has never been static. As Americas concept of who is an American has expanded, our notion of religious freedom has expanded as well. While not all of us may trust in God, we can be confident that the idea of religious freedom protects the believer and nonbeliever alike. As Rev. Butler puts it, We all should be evolving, and those who are done and those who are none, theyre helping religion evolve. That is healthy. Lindsay Lloyd is the Bradford M. Freeman director of human freedom at the George W. Bush Institute. This essay originally appeared as part of the Bush Institutes Democracy Talks series. This is distributed by InsideSources.com. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 GILLETTE The Campbell County Public Library board meeting on Monday came to an unscheduled end after the board members abruptly voted to adjourn. The vote came about as a result of what some board members perceived to be disrespect from a resident who was appealing the librarys decision to keep a book in the teen section. For more than five months, residents have criticized the library for including books that deal with sex and LGBTQ+ issues in the teen and childrens sections. At the beginning of Mondays meeting, the board adopted a protocol for public comments, including limiting them to three minutes and prohibiting people from giving their time to others. Additionally, all comments are to be directed to the board as a whole and not toward an individual board member. Inappropriate behavior will not be tolerated, including trying to engage individual members in conversation, insults and profanities. If the speaker refuses to immediately conform their behavior, the speaker will be asked to leave, said Charlie Anderson, who crafted the protocol. If the behavior continues, the board may vote on a motion to end public comment and adjourn the meeting. The board voted unanimously to adopt the protocol, and less than 90 minutes after it was adopted, it was applied. Kevin Bennett was challenging the librarys decision to keep a book that hed challenged, Babysitters Coven by Kate Williams, in the teen section. The book is about a coven of witchy babysitters who realize their calling to protect the innocent and save the world from an onslaught of evil, according to the publishers website. Bennett said the book encourages occult activity, as well as underage drinking. He started out by pointing out the cover of the book, which shows a jacket that has a five-pointed star, an eight ball, a lollipop and a pink teddy bear head, all of which are symbols for more sinister things, Bennett said. He quoted a review of the book from a left-leaning website that had a list of concerns on the book, including the cover being a little queer-baity even though there are no queer characters in the book. Anderson asked Bennett if he was going to talk about the book, and he questioned the relevance of what Bennett was saying. Its a complicated argument that needs to be made so Im making every point of it, Bennett said. A short time later, Anderson asked, Are you going to talk about the book? Absolutely, Bennett said. Are you going to quit interrupting me so I can do that? Mr. Bennett, please go on, Anderson replied. Anderson said the book is suggesting young girls use babysitting as a way to get involved with the occult. He pointed out examples in the book of magic and underage drinking. Anderson asked if the same line of thought applies to The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Bennett said the hobbits in those books are in their 40s and 50s, well over the legal drinking age. Additionally, while magic is a big part of The Lord of the Rings, those books are not deliberately encouraging young children to join the occult, Bennett said. He said these are two completely different things, then pointed out that Anderson had interrupted him. I did, Anderson said. Im hoping youd talk about the book that were here to discuss. Thats what Im doing, Bennett said. What Im doing is using data and sources to back up what Im saying so its not just bubbling effervescent out of my brain face Im trying to actually use some facts here. Weve reached the point where disrespect has been displayed, I wish to adjourn the meeting, said board member Miranda Finn. You might have to, because Im going to finish what Ive got to say, unless the cops drag me out of here, Bennett said. The board voted to adjourn the meeting. I guess were done, Anderson said. Bennett had been scheduled to challenge two other books, Music from Another World, by Robin Talley, and A Quick Easy Guide to Queer & Trans Identities, by Mandy G. and Jules Zuckerberg. The meeting ended before he got to these books. Earlier, the board rejected an appeal to ban Trans-Mission: My Quest To a Beard, from the library. This book is a firsthand account of a transgender teen. The book was challenged by Susan Sisti and Helen Hayden. Sisti asked that the book be removed from the library entirely. Sisti said it has nothing to do with the LGBTQ community, and that its that the book is available to minors and promoting a dangerous lifestyle. We dont want to put things like this in front of them because their brains are still developing, she said. Sisti said adults can live as they want. If someones 18 and they want to be a dog, its a free country, she said. Anderson asked Sisti if she was aware that the national organization MassResistance had a list of books that it finds inappropriate. Sisti said she did not know about the list. I do my own research, she said. Sisti said shes spent hours in the teen section, where she found many books on display that were inappropriate. Arthur Schaper, organization director of MassResistance, said the group does have a list of books, but that its compiled from complaints that people have brought to the group. Sisti said parents everywhere are not happy with these books. All across our nation, people are challenging books and the public is waking up, and its just a matter of time before these books will be removed, she said. Wed like to see our library be on the forefront. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 2 The Supreme Courts assertion in Marbury v. Madison (1803) of the power of judicial review, the authority to declare federal governmental acts unconstitutional, did not consider the question of whether federal courts could review state legislation and state judicial decisions. But that question would emerge in the hurly-burly of the young republic as citizens wrestled with the significant legal and political changes in the American landscape wrought by adoption of the new Constitution. A century later, secure in his knowledge and approval of how the Supreme Court had addressed, and resolved that issue, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes captured its profound importance for the nation: I do not think, he observed, the United States would come to an end if we lost our power to declare an act of Congress void. I do think the Union would be imperiled if we could not make that declaration as to the laws of the several states. Justice Holmess insight reminds us that the authority of the federal courts to review and judge state acts and laws, is, indeed, indispensable if the Constitution is to stand as the supreme law of the land. Three memorable Supreme Court opinions pulled that principle from various constitutional provisions, thus laying, after Marbury, the second cornerstone of Americas constitutional architecture. The three landmark opinions Fletcher v. Peck (1810), Martin v. Hunters Lessee (1816) and Cohens v. Virginia (1821) are cases taught in every undergraduate and law school constitutional law course across the country. Fletcher v. Peck enjoys immortality as the first case in which the Court exercised the authority to declare a state law unconstitutional. Fletcher is a case worthy of a John Grisham novel. It involved one of the most corrupt land deals in American history. The Georgia legislature had sold some 35 million acres in the Yazoo territory, which today encompasses most of Mississippi and Alabama, to various New England land investors at very low rates in return for massive bribes. A subsequent legislature attacked the corrupt land sale and rescinded the deal. The Fletcher case was a lightning rod for the heated disputes and debates that engulfed the Federalists and the Jeffersonian-Madisonian Republicans. The Federalists hoped the courts would protect commercial interests and private property, including the interests of the original investors, despite the fraud and corruption that surrounded the sale. Republicans, on the other hand, embraced the right of a subsequent legislature to remedy the corruption and act in the interest of recent settlers and farmers, a vision that rejected the authority of an older generation to rob the state of its future. Chief Justice John Marshall, who authored the great majority of the Courts opinions during his tenure as Chief, wrote for the Court in Fletcher and declared that the new Georgia law the rescinding statute violated the Contract Clause of the Constitution (Article I, section 10), which states: No state shall ... pass any ... Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts. Marshalls opinion held that the Court might not inquire into the motives of the legislature that passed the initial legislation providing for the land grant. A land grant was a contract, Marshall reasoned, and it was ironclad and irrevocable. The decision was significant for the economic growth of the young nation. It protected private property and contracts and sent a strong message to investors and others who, without that security, would not have agreed to buy and develop property. Who, after all, would purchase land from the government if they knew that their contract might be rescinded by the legislature? So thought Marshall and his colleagues on the bench. Throughout Marshalls 35-year career on the high tribunal, his rigid interpretation of the Contract Clause proved to be the principal mechanism for the protection of property rights. His view, however, would be overtaken in mid-century by a more pragmatic interpretation that balanced private property rights with community needs and permitted state regulation of land in the name of public use. Chief among this trio of great cases was Martin v. Hunters Lessee, in which the Court held that the Supreme Courts appellate jurisdiction, articulated in Article Three of the Constitution, along with federal law Section 25 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 empowered the High Court to review state courts civil decisions. The case involved some of Chief Justice Marshalls own land, and so he rightly recused himself. His close ally on the Court, the legendary Justice Joseph Story, wrote the opinion for the Court, setting forth landmark rulings on fundamental issues involving the Constitution. Essentially, Virginias high court had upheld the states confiscation of land owned by British loyalists, despite provisions in the Jay Treaty (1796) that prohibited such acts. The Supreme Court, through the exercise of its appellate jurisdiction, reversed the Virginia decision in Farifaxs Devisee v. Hunters Lessee, but the state of Virginia refused to obey the Supreme Courts mandate. Virginia judges rejected the authority of the Supreme Court to review its civil decisions, based on a sound construction of the Constitution, and declared that Section 25 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 the first act passed by the First Congress was itself unconstitutional for attributing appellate jurisdiction over state courts civil decisions to the Supreme Court. Justice Storys powerful opinion rejected the Virginia courts arguments. He invoked the Preamble, emphasizing its textual language that we the people, not the states, have ordained and established the Constitution. The sovereign people, Story wrote, have the right to place in the Constitution any powers they deem proper and necessary in the departments of the federal government, including the Article Three grant of appellate jurisdiction to the Supreme Court. State judges, Story explained, drawing upon the language of Article VI the Supremacy Clause provides that the Constitution, laws of the United States and treaties are the law of the land, and that state judges are duty bound to obey and enforce this provision. That is not all, Story continued, an exercise in as thorough an opinion exploring fundamental provisions of the Constitution as any crafted before or after his opinion in Martin v. Hunters Lessee. Considerations of uniformity alone would call for his interpretation of Article Three and federal law. Unless the Supreme Court possessed the authority to review the civil decisions of state courts across the nation, the laws of the United States, treaties and the Constitution itself might be different in different states, which would result in jarring and discordant judgments that would undermine, indeed, destroy, the meaning of the Constitution and the very existence of the Union. The need for uniformity in the interpretation of the Constitution had been obvious to the founders. Various framers Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, among others had addressed it in the Constitutional Convention. Hamilton in New York, and again in the Federalist Papers, and James Iredell in North Carolina, among others in the state ratifying conventions, had warned of the problem of as many adjudications on the same subject as there are States. Storys opinion and reasoning could not have been more clear or compelling. But advocates of states rights, those whom a prominent scholar characterized as the minions of disunion, continued their cause, particularly in Virginia. Five years later, in Cohens v. Virginia, Chief Justice Marshall, himself a Virginian, reiterated Storys arguments, applied them to criminal law, and firmly rejected the anarchic contentions of his home state. The Cohens Courts affirmation of the reasoning and principles set forth in Fletcher v. Peck and Martin v. Hunters Lessee seemingly ended the aspirations of the minions of disunion. After all, had not Hamilton in Federalist No. 80 sufficiently warned the citizenry: Thirteen independent courts of final jurisdiction over the same causes, arising under the same laws, is a hydra in government, from which nothing but contradiction and confusion can proceed. Undaunted by the framers blueprint for constitutional government, the clear architecture of Article Three, the subordination of state judges and other state actors to the Supremacy Clause and, of course, the superior reasoning of Story and Marshall, the minions trudged on. They were on a path to the claims of nullification and secession, claims that we engaged next week. David Adler, PHD, is a noted author who lectures nationally and internationally on the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and Presidential power. His scholarly writings have been cited by the US Supreme Court and lower courts by both Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress. Adlers column is supported in part through a grant from Wyoming Humanities funded by the Why it Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Adler can be reached at david.adler@alturasinstitute.com Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Dave Lockman penned a recent letter to the Star-Tribune implying that wild horses are impacting sage grouse brood-rearing habitat near Eden and referencing a Wyoming Wildlife magazine article framing wild horses as a major cause of ecological impacts. Concerns about impacted sage grouse habitats deserve real attention. But the Wyoming Wildlife article promotes scientifically bankrupt myths about wild horses, and is unworthy of your readers consideration. Lockmans letter cites ecological shifts in streamside areas, the key habitat for sage grouse once they leave the nest. The characterization of horse-dominated water holes is misleading, however, because it completely ignores the far greater impact of cattle. Wild horses come to water once or twice a day, for perhaps half an hour at a time, while water-loving cattle crowd water sources full-time, never venturing more than a mile or two away. Thus, where both large herbivores occur together, cattle do more damage per animal. Furthermore, the Eden area Mr. Lockhart describes is part of the Little Colorado Wild Horse Herd Management Area where, prior to the scheduled roundup, the Bureau of Land Managements estimated wild horse population stands at 592 animals. In this same area, the agency authorizes cattle equivalent to 4,953 wild horses grazing year-round, on these same lands. Thus, blaming wild horses for riparian degradation near Eden indicts the wrong suspect. In the Wyoming Wildlife article Lockman extols, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department author claims wild horses are not native and went extinct in North America 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. New research documents DNA evidence, gathered from the Yukon permafrost, placing the same species of horse in boreal forests as recently as 5,700 years ago. At least one of this studys authors argues that this makes the horse native, because it was present in todays suite of ecosystems living together with todays North American fauna. But the question of native versus non-native is complicated. If horses indeed went extinct here (as paleontologists contend, but some Indigenous peoples dispute), then does their North American origin make them native, or does their extirpation make them non-native? Its an interesting question, but difficult to resolve, because science offers no definition of native wildlife sufficiently rigorous to determine on which side of the line wild horses should fall. Wyoming Wildlifes article spouts the standard talking points of wild horse opponents, none of them valid. It describes wild horses as not currently managed, ignoring the heavy-handed roundups and birth control employed today by the Bureau to manage horse numbers. The article makes much of several studies showing wild horses displace other wild species from water holes, but conveniently neglects to point out that no scientific study, ever, has documented that temporary displacement at water sources has a negative impact on any species of wildlife, or that water is limiting for any of the affected species. It repeats the oft-asserted contention that wild horses are overpopulated, ignoring the reality that the Appropriate Management Level (AML) assigned for horses by the Bureau the yardstick used to determine overpopulation is a completely arbitrary figure having no basis in science, as determined by the National Academies of Sciences. These narratives are nothing but horsefeathers, cynically cooked up by the livestock industry to distract attention away from land-health problems caused by domestic cattle and sheep operations. Returning to sage grouse and wild horses, there is a shortage of valid science. Wild horses are seldom considered wildlife, and thus dont get research attention from wildlife management institutes. Because they are not livestock, they are neglected by range management programs. The best scientific resource on the topic is a 2011 literature review. Scientific articles have published since, but are often tainted by bias. An article on the impacts of horses and cattle on riparian habitats in Idaho commits the cardinal scientific sin of failing to sample at random locations, instead identifying study sites based on recommendations from the Bureau and ranchers, a sure way to introduce anti-horse and pro-livestock bias. This studys data is therefore statistically invalid. A study by Coates and others asserting that horse populations above AML were correlates with sage grouse declines has been widely derided for ignoring the conflated impacts of livestock on the same habitats, and for basing the data on AMLs, known to be unscientific. Another Coates study purporting to show wild horse displacement of breeding sage grouse at leks suffers from a ridiculously small sample size (only 9 of 255 lek observations had any wild horses at all) and overlapping confidence intervals, indicating that wild horses make no significant difference to breeding grouse, at least at these small sample sizes. We need rigorous, independent science free from the bias and spin that seems to pervade much of todays wild horse research. Like cattle, elk, and all large herbivores, wild horses have the potential to cause ecological damage. Whether todays populations are sufficiently numerous to cause such impacts is questionable. The impacts of wild horses are difficult to detect, swamped as they are by the impacts of far more numerous cattle and sheep on the same lands. Mr. Lockmans anecdotal observation of degraded habitats in the Eden area deserves an investigation so we can identify the culprit. Ill offer the equally anecdotal observation that wild horses are present on only 11% of Bureau-managed lands, yet there does not seem to be a measurable difference in sage grouse declines on lands where wild horses graze, and where they are absent. This suggests a different culprit: the ubiquitous beef cow, widely documented to have major impacts on sage grouse habitats in scientific studies in Wyoming and elsewhere. Furthermore, some of Wyomings biggest sage grouse population concentrations occur in the Red Desert, where wild horses are most numerous. At a time when the Bureaus wild horse program is drawing well-deserved scrutiny and controversy, we need valid science not rumors and speculation to drive sound land management, and ensure were not scapegoating wild horses for ecological damage caused by Bureau-authorized cattle. Erik Molvar is a wildlife biologist with published research on large herbivore effects on native ecosystems, evolution of social behavior in ungulates, and ecological and population impacts of large herbivore overpopulation. Based in Laramie, Wyoming, he is Executive Director of Western Watersheds Project, a nonprofit conservation group dedicated to protecting and restoring wildlife and watersheds across the West, and has spent much of his career focused on sage grouse recovery. Love 14 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 If you know someone is a Republican or Democrat, then you might assume you know exactly where they stand on whether local jails need to be expanded. But if recent experience in the rural, southwest Oregon county where I live is any guide, its not that simple. The economy in Jackson County is dominated by mostly low-wage jobs in tourism, health care, agriculture and forestry, yielding a median income 24 percent lower than the national average. Yet the median home price is 9 percent higher than the national average, and one out of three households pays more than half of what they earn just for housing. Republicans win every county commissioner election, and last year, those commissioners asked voters to authorize a new jail with three times the capacity of the old one. The local newspaper came out in favor, publishing a three-part series and a positive editorial as well. But voters in this red county said no by nearly 3 to 1. How did this happen? It happened because a broad-based community group of volunteers convinced voters that lockups werent the only answer. The group did intensive public outreach, pointing out that a large percentage of what was considered local crime involved mental illness, addiction, homelessness, and poverty all underlying issues that a larger jail couldnt help. A study they cited by the independent Vera Institute of Justice examined the experience of 77 counties and found that larger jails often become overcrowded again because expansion fails to address the root causes of an increased (jail) population. The coalition even brought in police to make their case. They hosted forums, inviting law enforcement leaders from other counties to talk about how they reduced jail bookings instead of expanding jails. In many cases, they said, mental health professionals or social service workers were more effective and less costly than sending in police. Tad Larson, the jail commander from Marion County, Oregon, said his county operates mobile crisis intervention teams that connect individuals with counseling services, alcohol and drug treatment, and peer mentor support. Less than 3% of calls the crisis teams respond to result in arrests, Larson said, and the county has reduced annual jail bookings by 20 to 25 percent. A similar program in Lane County, Oregon responds to 24,000 calls per year involving dispute resolution, medical crises, mental illness, substance abuse, or homelessness. The program saves $15.5 million a year by handling calls that would otherwise go to the police. This reduces arrests and diverts patients from emergency rooms, according to program coordinator Tim Black. The Real Solutions coalition also pointed out that crisis intervention alternatives are supported by a national group called Right on Crime, which was founded by well-known conservatives such as Newt Gingrich, Grover Norquist, and Mike Huckabee. Research shows that, especially in regards to low-risk defendants, even brief jail stays can increase the chance of committing another crime in the future, Right on Crime reports. When someone who has mental health issues is locked up pretrial it can compound their situation, Right on Crime adds. The same can be said for people who display signs of substance abuse. While crisis response programs save money once operating, many communities need seed money and technical assistance to get started. Federal grants totaling $15 million have been awarded to 20 states, including California, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah, to help local jurisdictions to plan such programs. Meanwhile, the Oregon legislature this year set an example by appropriating $10 million to expand local mobile-crisis programs throughout the state. In the county where I live, the county commissioners have been silent on this subject since their proposal was soundly defeated. But the voters decision has prompted discussions among public agencies, nonprofits, and community advocates about establishing a crisis intervention system. With continued population growth and with new fiscal challenges as a result of Covid-19, it will be particularly important to find cost-effective alternatives to continually building bigger jails, wrote four city councilors from local communities in Jackson County after voters turned down jail expansion. We hope Jackson County officials have learned those lessons too, and we look forward to working with them on constructive and practical alternatives. That would be an example, increasingly rare these days, of a community finding a solution that everyone no matter their political leanings can support. Matt Witt is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, a nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation in the West. He is a writer and photographer in Talent, Oregon. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Korea Village is celebrating one of its sons for his academic achievements. Dr Kiran Nandlal, who is no stranger to academic success, has a bachelors degree in petroleum geosciences at The University of the West Indies (The UWI), St Augustine, but the Presentation College alumnus didnt stop there. After he was awarded a second scholarship which led him to Edinburgh, Scotland, to pursue his masters degree at the Heriot-Watt University in reservoir engineering, the scholar returned home to put his knowledge to use at the Ministry of Energy as a stipulation of his service to the country for being awarded the national scholarship. Above all else, it is your understanding of the science of the mind that determines your des Olson said the federal vaccine mandate is 100% unconstitutional and the commission has clear authority to regulate the utilities workplaces. We have that obligation, to make sure the policies (the utilities) put in place, are not harmful to employees, that they are not creating a situation where an employee has to make a choice between receiving a vaccine against his or her will, and losing his or her job, he said. Kennedy said it was irresponsible for the commission to adopt the proposed policy without consulting health-care experts and while hospitals are being overwhelmed with resurgent COVID-19 cases and deaths. This pandemic isnt partisan, but its been made a partisan issue, said Kennedy, noting that she has lost seven family members to COVID-19. It is my perspective that personal choice is absolutely to be respected, up until those choices hurt other people. Tovar, a former mayor, said she has always respected employees personal choices but the proposed policy was premature given the pending and expected legal challenges to the mandate. Lunas background is in primary education. She spent 15 years as an elementary school teacher and, in addition to the bookstore, is also currently a co-director at a local preschool. For Luna, who is 39, indulging in childrens books, the art, storylines and lessons they convey, became a passion. I used them in my teaching and have my own little collection, she said. Adcock, also 39, spent his working years leading up to the bookshop in retail, both in Tucson and Southern California, where the couple lived before moving back to Southern Arizona with their daughter, Inez Luna, a few years ago. His dream was to one day open his own business. It was at a childrens bookshop on a trip back to California in 2019, The Frugal Frigate in Redlands, where the idea for their own bookshop first took shape. It is very sweet, very darling, Luna said of The Frugal Frigate. Being in there, being in that space. I was like, This is where I want to be all the time. Affordable housing Scammers charge a fee for a list of landlords that accept Section 8 housing vouchers, but the list is bogus. Immigration help Phony websites charge up to $300 in filing fees for immigration paperwork. Auto buying Research indicates that consumers of color experience discrimination in the sale and financing of cars, and often pay higher prices as a result, the report said. It lists cases in which car dealers falsified contracts and paperwork for members of the Navajo Nation and targeted Latinos with deceptive ads in Spanish. For-profit colleges Latinos and Black communities are often targeted with misleading ads about job opportunities after graduation and with false promises of student loan forgiveness, the report said. In some cases, students were asked to pay illegal, upfront fees for loan forgiveness. Black and Latino consumers who complained to the FTC reported more often than whites that they were contacted by scammers through social media, the report said. This trend raises concerns about how bad actors may use social media to target certain communities, it said. We currently have seen about a 20% loss in flow. We all expect it to get somewhat worse before stabilizing. All of the states will all have to reduce their current usage by varying amounts, except for perhaps Wyoming. That said, some of the conclusions are overstated to make a case for dramatic use reductions and for freezing future diversions, Kightlinger said. He faulted the report for not providing much evidence to back up its case that many new diversions are planned besides the Lake Powell pipeline. They assert the states are not working collaboratively and are resorting to tribalism, again citing the Lake Powell pipeline as an example, he said. But actually, Utah backed away from pushing for a speedy timetable for a federal review of the pipeline when faced with the prospect of a united Upper and Lower Basin letter challenging the project and the environmental analysis and agreed to work with the other six states on the projects analysis, he said. Kightlinger also took issue with what he said is the reports view that the Upper Basin can only get water leftovers after the Lower Basin takes in its annual 7.5 million acre-foot water allocation. Green, for his part, said most church members are good people trying to do right, but he also worries about the faiths transparency around its history and finances. Green, 44, now lives in Southern California. He is the CEO and chairman of The Trade Desk, an advertising technology firm he founded in 2009. He also mentioned concerns about a $100 billion investment portfolio held by the faith. It was the subject of an Internal Revenue Service whistleblower complaint in 2019, from a former employee who charged the church had improperly built it up using member donations that are supposed to go to charitable causes. Leaders have defended how the church uses and invests member donations, saying most is used for operational and humanitarian needs, but a portion is safeguarded to build a reserve for the future. The faith annually spends about $1 billion on humanitarian and welfare aid, leaders have said. The church has also come under criticism for conservative social positions. Women do not hold the priesthood in the faith, and Black men could not until the 1970s. That was in a matter of a week or two, he said. So it just demonstrates the need and the desire of people to help and make (the consulate) happen. Linda Allegro heads the New Sanctuary Empowerment Center, known as El Centro, a nonprofit in Tulsa that helps immigrants navigate their rights and communities. They are going to help with a whole host of things, Allegro said of the planned consulate. I was really encouraged to learn about the work they want to do in the area of wage claims, for example, or labor disputes. Theyre also going to go up to bat for issues related to human rights abuses. She said the consulate will also function as a cultural ambassador and offer cultural exchanges with the state in the form of scholarships for Oklahomans to study in Mexico. Before the pandemic, there was an alternative to driving to a regional consulate. The mobile consulate deployed once or twice a month from a regional office to Oklahoma City or Tulsa in an effort to service Mexican Oklahomans where they are. Rosa has waited hours in line at one of the remote consulates. She has mixed feelings about her experiences with them. Christina Cabbiness lives in the Tulsa area and recruits foster care and adoption homes. She has been with the agency for 10 years. There was a video that came out that had a bunch of our leadership on it, she said. On this video, they talked about what they were thankful for, and then the director came on and expressed his gratitude for his employees and that just as a token and sentiment of his appreciation, he was able to present us with a bonus. She said everyone she spoke with about it was surprised and felt recognized and valued. After buying presents for her family and getting ready for a surgery, she said the bonus was perfect timing. The bonus was such a blessing, she said. It is one of the ways our leadership is supporting staff and advocating for retention of staff. According to a DHS spokeswoman, it is not the first time the agency has given out additional dollars to recognize employees. In 2005, about 7,400 DHS employees got a one-time, $1,000 federal achievement stipend. The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) proposed the Ministry of Transport on Friday increase the number of weekly international flights from four to seven for some destinations with high demand. Japan will be the first to apply the increase among the nine markets that Vietnam has announced its plan to resume air links with, at an estimated frequency of four flights a week per destination, from January 1, 2022. The nine destinations include San Francisco or Los Angeles in the U.S., Singapore, Bangkok in Thailand, Phnom Penh in Cambodia, Vientiane in Laos, Beijing in mainland China, Tokyo in Japan, Seoul in South Korea, and Taipei in Taiwan. After the CAAV put forward the plan to authorities in those markets on December 17, only Japan has officially approved the resumption. The Japanese side has appointed Japan Airlines and All Nippons Airways as the designated operators on the newly-resumed routes, while Vietnams national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines and low-cost airline Vietjet Air have put air tickets of those routes up for sale. The first flight to Japan is expected to take off on January 6, 2022 after the New Year holiday. The CAAV came up with the proposal following a report sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Thursday, which mentioned more than 140,000 overseas Vietnamese's longing to return home for the 2022 Lunar New Year holiday. Considering that Vietnamese airlines will not fully make use of the number of flights allocated to Laos, Cambodia, and the U.S., the CAAV proposed sparing the unused allocations in these three markets for others with high demand, such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. As Japan had given a nod, the Vietnamese aviation watchdog suggested raising the number of weekly international flights between Vietnam and Japan from four to seven. Vietnam closed its doors to foreign tourists and grounded international flights in March last year, allowing entry only to Vietnamese repatriates, foreign experts, investors, and highly-skilled workers, among others. The Southeast Asian country has documented 1,620,869 patients since the COVID-19 pandemic first struck early last year, with 1,215,261 recoveries and 30,833 deaths. More than 76.6 million of the countrys 98 million people have received at least one dose while upwards of 64.8 million have been injected twice. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! ZURICH -- Austria should offer some healthcare staff and other key workers a fourth COVID-19 jab, the National Vaccination Board said in updated guidance published late on Thursday, citing risks from the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus. But it said there was not enough scientific data for it to recommend fourth shots be given more widely. "In view of an imminent Omicron wave, (a fourth vaccination) can be offered in high-risk areas (e.g., exposed health care personnel) and in systemically critical areas from six months after the third vaccination," the board said. Austria said on Wednesday it will tighten restrictions again from Dec. 27 to slow the spread of the Omicron variant. In November, the government announced a fourth national lockdown and said it would make vaccinations compulsory for all Austrians, the first European Union country to do so. While that three-week lockdown slashed daily COVID-19 infections from record levels, the country is bracing for another surge. Several hundred Omicron cases have been confirmed already. In its updated guidelines, the National Vaccination Board said fourth COVID-19 shots could be given "off label" to groups in healthcare and other critical areas following medical consultation. "There is still no evidence that this additional vaccination can prevent infections. However, it can be it can be assumed that serious illnesses can be prevented," it said. Vietnamese snipers are among the most highly skilled in the world, and their marksmanship is honed through years of strenuous training. Able to hit targets hundreds of meters away, snipers are considered an integral, elite force in militaries across the world. In Vietnams armed forces, these trained marksmen are a formidable presence on the battlefield. Over the past several decades of peacetime, snipers in the Vietnam Peoples Army have earned a reputation with training partners across the globe thanks to their adeptness and discipline. Snipers train at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Video: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre In September, marksmen from Vietnam won the gold medal in the Sniper Frontier competition at the 2021 Army Games in Hanoi. The National Military Training Center 4, located in Hanois rural My Duc District, is one of Vietnams sniper training grounds where recruits are pushed to the limit in physical endurance, mental strength, and weapons handling. To qualify for a competitive team and represent Vietnam at international army games, a marksman must pass five phases of intense training. Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Vu Phuong races through an obstacle course at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre A camouflaged Private Nguyen Van Dong takes aim during sniper training at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre The first phase is perhaps the most important. During this phase, recruits learn basic techniques, such as handling different types of rifles, spotting targets, camouflaging, and adjusting their aim. These skills all serve as a foundation for future training. According to Vu Dinh Viet, deputy commander of the National Military Training Center 4, the sniper team is one of eight teams currently training to prepare for upcoming military shooting competitions around the world. Vietnam is expected to send the teams to compete at the Army Games, the Australian Army Skill at Arms Meet, and the ASEAN Armies Rifle Meet in 2022. Soldiers practice work through an obstacle course at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Trainer Hoang Duc Chung (left) trains recruits at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Soldiers take aim at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre A soldier takes aim at a target during sniper training at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre A soldier training at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Vietnams sniper team lift a trophy after winning the gold medal in the Sniper Frontier competition at the 2021 Army Games in Hanoi, Vietnam in September 2021. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre A camouflaged soldier takes aim at a target during training at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Soldiers relax after a day of training at the National Military Training Center 4 in My Duc District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Here are todays leading news stories: Society -- The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) proposed the Ministry of Transport on Friday increase the number of weekly international flights from four to seven. -- Starting Friday, international tourists who visit Vietnam for less than 14 days will not be put into quarantine upon arrival, according to the latest decision by the Ministry of Health. -- Phu Quoc Island off the coast of Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam will welcome about 200 Uzbek visitors on Saturday morning, according to local authorities. -- Police in central Da Nang City on Friday night arrested a married couple over allegations of manufacturing and selling counterfeit wall plaster powder carrying famous brands. -- A 36-year-old man from Lam Dong Province in Vietnam's Central Highlands has been arrested for impersonating a police officer on a fake Zalo account in order to scam a woman into sending him VND30 million (US$1,312). -- Residents of Hanoi were shocked when high-rise buildings in the capital city felt tremors caused by a 5.5 magnitude earthquake that struck Laos on Friday night. -- Many people flocked to celebrate Christmas Eve on Friday night in Ho Chi Minh City, causing serious traffic congestion along many routes. -- Thousands of tourists descended on Hoi An City in Quang Nam Province on Friday night to celebrate Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve at the Hoi Den Long Pho Co (Ancient Town Lantern Festival) event, which was launched by local authorities. World News -- Commercial airlines around the world canceled more than 4,300 flights over the Christmas weekend, as a mounting wave of COVID-19 infections driven by the Omicron variant created greater uncertainty and misery for holiday travelers, Reuters reported on Friday. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck Phongsaly Province in northern Laos on Friday evening, sending aftershocks to Vietnams capital Hanoi and its northwestern Dien Bien Province while everybody was welcoming Christmas Eve, Vietnams Institute of Geophysics reported. The earthquake, which followed two earlier less powerful tremors, hit a depth of around ten kilometers in Phongsaly, some 50 kilometers from Dien Biens Muong Nhe District at 8:43 pm, Nguyen Xuan Anh, director of the Institute of Geophysics, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper. Many people living in high-rise buildings in many districts of Hanoi, as well as in Dien Bien, felt the shaking due to the impact of the earthquake. I felt the shaking for about 10 seconds. The ceiling lights swayed vigorously even though no one touched them, Ta Thanh Dung, a resident in the Bac Linh Dam urban area in Hanois Hoang Mai District, told Tuoi Tre. An earthquake shakes a chandelier inside a unit of a high-rise condo building in Hanoi's Gia Lam District on December 24, 2021. Another family on the 33rd floor of Times City urban area of the same district said they clearly felt the aftershocks, with the water in their fish tank in the living room making strong waves, Zing News reported. Nguyen Thi Thuy, residing in Dien Biens Nam Po District, said that the corrugated iron roof of her house was shaking for about 10 seconds. I have never seen such strong tremor. I have yet to come to my senses now, Thuy said. The same situation was seen in Dien Biens Dien Bien Phu City as a local named Nga said the door on the second floor of her house vibrated for seconds. The institutes Earthquake Information and Tsunami Warning Center said it was continuing to monitor this earthquake. Earlier at 6:24 pm and 7:37 pm on the same evening, two quakes of corresponding magnitude 3.6 and 3.9 also erupted in Phongsaly, about 40km from Muong Nhe, the institute reported. More than two years ago, another earthquake, at magnitude 6.1, was pinpointed in Sayaboury Province in northwestern Laos, at around 6:50 am local time on November 21, 2019, according to the institute. The quake, around 219 kilometers from the Laotian capital city of Vientiane, also sent shockwaves to as far as Hanoi and the north-central Vietnamese province of Nghe An. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! COVID-19 immunization should be sped up so the entire adult population is given the third vaccine shots within the first quarter of next year, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh directed in a notice issued on Thursday. As the pandemic has developed complicatedly in some localities, with new infections on the rise and numbers of serious patients and deaths remaining high, fast inoculation is imperative, the PM said. Specifically, all people aged 18 and older must be given the second shots by December 31 and the third doses within the first quarter of 2022, except for those with contraindications, according to the notice. Meanwhile, the second dose vaccination for children aged 12 to 18 must be completed in January 2022. It is important not to miss immunization for qualified people, especially those aged 50 and older or with underlying health conditions. The Ministry of Health on December 17 decided to shorten the waiting time between the second and the third vaccine doses, which generally refer to both booster shots and additional primary jabs, from six to three months. In addition to accelerating COVID-19 inoculation, concerned agencies and authorities of all levels must keep a close watch on the new variant of concern Omicron that has spread from southern Africa to around 90 countries and territories, the PM said. Administration leaders of centrally-run cities and provinces and heads of steering committees for COVID-19 prevention and control of those localities must be responsible for their local vaccination progress. The health ministry, meanwhile, must secure adequate supply of vaccines, timely vaccine distribution, provision of vaccination guidance, and must control the safeness and efficiency of the vaccination drive. In order to prevent penetration of the Omicron variant into Vietnam, the ministries of Health, Transport, Public Security, National Defense, and Foreign Affairs must coordinate to detect any people who enter Vietnam by air, sea and land from countries or territories affected by the strain. Rapid COVID-19 tests must be given to air passengers before and after flights, all suspected infection cases must be put in quarantine and related gene sequences must be performed to identify Omicron infections, the notice said. As of Thursday, health workers had administered 76.52 million first COVID-19 vaccine shots, 64.1 million second jabs and 1.7 million third doses to people nationwide, according to the health ministry. Among the population aged 18 years and older, the coverage of the first vaccine shots has reached around 97 percent and that of two full doses has hit 84.3 percent. Meanwhile, more than 76 percent of children aged 12 to 17 have received their first doses. The country has received 171.6 million COVID-19 vaccine doses out of the 200 million jabs that have been contracted, the ministry reported. Since the pandemic erupted in Vietnam in early 2020, the Southeast Asian nation has documented 1,604,712 infection cases, including 1,184,428 recoveries and 30,531 deaths, the ministrys data shows. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Police in Ho Chi Minh City announced on Saturday the arrest of a 26-year-old woman in Binh Thanh District for assaulting her fiances eight-year-old daughter to death. V.N.Q.Tr., who hailed from the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai and was living in an apartment in Binh Thanh District, was arrested on Thursday following a hospital report on the unusual death of N.T.V.A. at around 7:45 pm on Wednesday. A. was taken to the hospital in a coma, accompanied by a cardiac arrest and apnea, and was determined dead before her hospitalization, according to doctors. The results of A.s body examination, which showed that the girl had suffered large bruises and wounds on her body, in addition to an old, sutured wound on her face, prompted functional forces to suspect that the victim had been beaten to death. By professional measures, police officers determined that Tr. had hit A. to death and urgently arrested the woman for further investigation. According to a source, A. and her 36-year-old father, Th., both of whom were residents of District 1, were staying with Tr. at the apartment in Binh Thanh District before the incident. Tr. is said to have been engaged to Th. Some of their neighbors said that they had heard A.s scream together with sounds of her being beaten on Wednesday afternoon like many times before. At the place where the girl stayed, which is believed to be the scene of her tragic death, functional forces collected many heartbreaking proofs such as a broken mop, on which the girls hair was stuck, the source told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper. There was also a long list of daily chores the eight-year-old child was made to do. A.s relatives took her body to Phuoc Lac Vien Crematorium in the neighboring province of Binh Duong for her funeral on Saturday morning. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Last year, Rosneft launched Vostok Oil - the largest hydrocarbon production project in the global oil and gas industry. The resource base of the project is located on the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. The reserves amount to over 6 bln tons of premium sweet oil. The design solutions provide for the complete utilization of associated petroleum gas. Thus, the carbon footprint will be 75% lower than that of other major new oil projects in the world. Wind power generation will be used to supply power to the Vostok Oil facilities. The project's competitive advantage is its proximity to the Northern Sea Route. Its use opens up the possibility of supplying raw materials from the Vostok Oil fields in two directions at once: to the European and Asian markets. The implementation of the project will ensure the fulfilment of the task of increasing the cargo traffic along the Northern Sea Route to 80 mln tons by 2024. In June, during the 24th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Rosneft signed over 50 contracts for the implementation of the project totalling 558.8 bln rubles. The prospect of Vostok Oil is confirmed by the interest of international investors: a large international trader Trafigura acquired a 10% stake in the project. Rosneft also agreed on the terms of selling a 5% stake in the project to the Vitol and Mercantile & Maritime companies consortium. According to Reuters, Russia has placed its bets on its biggest oil project since the fall of the Soviet Union to push aside rival Middle Eastern, West African and U.S. grades in core European markets and provide much-needed revenues. Demand for oil, however, is uncertain as the world seeks to wean itself off fossil fuels to limit global warming and many European refiners are expected to decrease runs. Russia is aiming to meet the demand it expects to remain with its new light, low sulphur, easy-to-refine grade - distinct from its flagship heavy Urals grade. The quality of the new Vostok crude grade, which has yet to be named, will be similar to that of North Sea grades Brent and Troll. It will have sulphur component of less than 0.05% and a density of about 40 American Petroleum Institute (API) degrees, according to Rosneft, making it suitable for most refineries in Europe. As North Sea oil production from mature fields has declined, European refiners have purchased light sweet barrels from outside the region. Traders said they could well favour the new Vostok crude, provided it is of the expected quality, over the Middle Eastern, African and U.S. grades they have been buying because transport costs would be lower. *** According to Rosneft, geological exploration is currently underway to prepare the Vostok Oil resource base, building of oil collecting facilities, the main pipeline (770 km long), and an oil loading terminal at the Bukhta Sever port. The first stage of the port construction provides for the possibility of shipping up to 30 ml tons of oil per year. By 2030, after the implementation of the second and third stages of construction, the volume of oil transhipment will increase to 100 mln tons. To organize the transportation of products at the Zvezda shipyard, an order has been placed for a series of 10 high-ice class tankers Arc7. In general, for the implementation of the Vostok Oil project, it is planned to build 50 vessels of various classes, including tankers, gas carriers, supply vessels. A long-term contract was signed for the supply of up to 100 Russian-made drilling rigs. As part of the project, it is planned to build power generation facilities with a capacity of 3.5 GW, three airfields, two sea terminals, 15 fishing towns, and a large-scale renovation of the Yenisei river infrastructure. The implementation of the Vostok Oil project will give an impetus to the development of related sectors of the economy, such as mechanical engineering, metallurgy, power engineering, road construction, shipbuilding, and will have a significant ripple effect, ensure high profitability and meet the growing needs of the world economy in environmentally friendly energy resources, the company hopes. US intelligence agencies have assessed that Saudi Arabia is now actively manufacturing its own ballistic missiles with the help of China, CNN has learned, a development that could have significant ripple effects across the Middle East and complicate the Biden administration's efforts to restrain the nuclear ambitions of Iran, the Saudis' top regional rival, CNN writes. Saudi Arabia is known to have purchased ballistic missiles from China in the past but has never been able to build its own -- until now, according to three sources familiar with the latest intelligence. Satellite images obtained by CNN also suggest the Kingdom is currently manufacturing the weapons in at least one location. US officials at numerous agencies, including the National Security Council at the White House, have been briefed in recent months on classified intelligence revealing multiple large-scale transfers of sensitive ballistic missile technology between China and Saudi Arabia, according to two sources familiar with the latest assessments. The Biden administration is now confronted with increasingly urgent questions about whether Saudi's ballistic missile advancements could dramatically change regional power dynamics and complicate efforts to expand the terms of a nuclear deal with Iran to include restraints on its own missile technology -- a goal shared by the US, Europe, Israel and Gulf countries. Iran and Saudi Arabia are bitter enemies and it is unlikely Tehran will agree to stop making ballistic missiles if Saudi Arabia has begun manufacturing its own. "While significant attention has been focused on Iran's large ballistic missile program, Saudi Arabia's development and now production of ballistic missiles has not received the same level of scrutiny," Jeffrey Lewis, a weapons expert and professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, told CNN. "The domestic production of ballistic missiles by Saudi Arabia suggests that any diplomatic effort to control missile proliferation would need to involve other regional actors, like Saudi Arabia and Israel, that produce their own ballistic missiles," Lewis added. Any US response could also be complicated by diplomatic considerations with China, as the Biden administration seeks to reengage Beijing on several other high-priority policy issues, including climate, trade and the pandemic. "It's all a matter of calibration," a senior administration official told CNN. The National Security Council and CIA declined to comment. Asked if there have been any recent transfers of sensitive ballistic missile technology between China and Saudi Arabia, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told CNN in a statement that the two countries are "comprehensive strategic partners" and "have maintained friendly cooperation in all fields, including in the field of military trade." "Such cooperation does not violate any international law and does not involve the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," the statement said. The Saudi Government and embassy in Washington did not respond to CNN's request for comment. New challenges for Biden CNN first reported in 2019 that US intelligence agencies were aware that Saudi Arabia was collaborating with China to advance its ballistic missile program. The Trump administration did not initially disclose its knowledge of that classified intelligence to key members of Congress, infuriating Democrats who discovered it outside of regular US government channels and concluded it had been deliberately left out of a series of briefings where they say it should have been presented. That fueled Democratic criticism that the Trump administration was too soft on Saudi. Nuclear proliferation experts also say Trump's lack of response emboldened the Saudis to continue expanding their ballistic missile program. "Normally, the U.S. would have pressured Saudi Arabia not to pursue these capabilities, but the first indicators that the Saudis were pursuing these capabilities indigenously emerged during the Trump era. The Trump administration, to put it lightly, was not interested in bearing down on Riyadh over these issues," according to Ankit Panda, a nuclear policy and weapons expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Some lawmakers have been briefed over the past few months on new intelligence about transfers of ballistic missile tech between Saudi Arabia and China, multiple sources told CNN. The Biden administration is preparing to sanction some organizations involved in the transfers, sources told CNN, though some on Capitol Hill are concerned the White House is not willing to impose significant consequences on the Saudi government for its actions. Given the current state of negotiations with Iran, the Saudi missile program could make an already thorny problem even more difficult. "A robust Saudi missile program would introduce new challenges to constraining other missile programs in the region. To take just one example, Iran's missiles, which are a major concern to the U.S., would be more difficult to constrain in the future without parallel constraints on a growing Saudi program," Panda told CNN. 'First unambiguous evidence' New satellite images obtained by CNN indicate the Saudis are already manufacturing ballistic missiles at a site previously constructed with Chinese assistance, according to experts who analyzed the photos and sources who confirmed they reflect advancements that are consistent with the latest US intelligence assessments. Satellite photos taken by Planet, a commercial imaging company, between October 26 and November 9 show a burn operation occurred at a facility near Dawadmi, Saudi Arabia, according to researchers at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, who told CNN this is "the first unambiguous evidence that the facility is operating to produce missiles." "The key piece of evidence is that the facility is operating a 'burn pit' to dispose of solid-propellant leftover from the production of ballistic missiles," said Lewis, a weapons expert and professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies who reviewed the images. "Casting rocket motors results in leftover propellant, which is an explosive hazard. Solid-propellant missile production facilities often have burn pits where leftover propellant can be disposed of by burning. Burn operations are, therefore, a strong signature that the facility is actively casting solid rocket motors," he added. Still, little is known about the ballistic missiles that Saudi Arabia is building at this site, including important details like range and payload. Considering the facility in question was built with Chinese assistance and new intelligence assessments showing Saudi Arabia has recently purchased sensitive ballistic missile technology from China, it is possible that the missiles being produced there are of Chinese design, according to Lewis. But there is also evidence Saudi Arabia has looked to other countries for help with developing a ballistic missile program in recent years, making it difficult to identify exactly which weapons system the Kingdom is now building at this facility, Lewis noted. An agreement on swap gas supplies between Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan entered into force. The contract provides for the sale and transportation of 1.2-2 bcm of gas from Turkmenistan to Azerbaijan through Iran. The heads of Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan signed a trilateral agreement on swap gas supplies within the framework of the 15th summit of the heads of state of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) member states on November 28. The Georgian Interior Ministry confiscated and destroyed more than $ 12 mln (37 mln lari) worth of drugs in a high-temperature oven in the presence of members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs special commission. According to the departments statement, the law enforcement officials disposed the drugs seized from illicit trafficking as material evidence in compliance with modern environmental protection standards in a high-temperature oven. The disposal process was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Health, the Prosecutor General's Office and employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. During the trip to Shusha on the eve of his 60th birthday, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev thanked the people of Azerbaijan from the famous Jydyr Duzyu. "In recent days, I have received many congratulatory letters both from foreign colleagues, heads of state and governments of various countries, Azerbaijanis living abroad, and, naturally, from the citizens of the country. I want to express my gratitude to everyone who addressed me. I especially want to express my gratitude to the Azerbaijani people, both for their congratulations and their support. I have been feeling it since 2003, when I was first elected, to the present day. This makes me stronger. It strengthens my will. Thanks to this support, all of us, the entire Azerbaijani people, have achieved great historical successes, the head of state said. A spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry condemned the intervention statements of the Foreign Offices publication on Iran's defence power, IRNA writes. "The Islamic Republic does not ask anyone for permission for its defence program, and this issue is non-negotiable," he said. The spokesman also noted that Great Britain "knows better than others that Iran's missile program has nothing to do with UNSCR 2231" and added that, according to Resolution 2231, London is actually violating it. On Saturday, the President of Serbia held telephone talks with Vladimir Putin. The leader discussed the supply of additional volumes of gas to Serbia, the press service of the head of Serbia reports. In addition, Vucic thanked Putin for the supply of the Kornet ATGM. "President Vucic thanked President Putin for the delivery of the Kornet anti-tank missile systems (ATGM), noting that these missiles are the best in the world and will become a serious boost for the Serbian army. President Vucic and President Putin also discussed the energy situation in Europe and the world. President Putin assured President Vucic that Russia will adhere to the agreements and that Serbia will have sufficient gas volumes this winter, " the press service informs. On Saturday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held a telephone conversation with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ceyhun Bayramov, Anadolu Agency reports citing the press service of the Turkish Foreign Ministry. It is noted that the ministers discussed bilateral relations and the situation in the South Caucasus. Turkish companies are interested in participating in the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects in Karabakh, Trend News Agency reports with a reference to the Azerbaijan Railways company. The Turkish intentions were announced by the head of the department of international trade of the Turkish Ministry of Trade, Emre Oztellin, at a meeting with the deputy chairman of the Azerbaijani company, Hijran Valekhov, the news agency informs. Oztellin noted that the railway connection between Azerbaijan and Turkey will play an important role in expanding existing opportunities. Valekhov, in turn, emphasized the promising sectors for cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey and Turkey's active participation in projects for the restoration and construction of infrastructure in the territories of Azerbaijan, liberated from the Armenian occupation. 30 years ago, on December 25, 1991, USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev announced his resignation. The next day, the Soviet Union collapsed. The Soviet authorities underestimated the scale of the interethnic problems in the Soviet Union and the need for its renewal, the first USSR president said in an interview with the TASS news agency. He noted that the state could be preserved even after the August 1991 coup with the help of the formation of the Union of Sovereign States. According to Gorbachev, the goal of the Soviet authorities was "to create a real federation of sovereign republics, which delegate some of the powers to the centre." He stressed that this was a viable option, which would have been supported by most of the republics, but the GKChP putsch thwarted this opportunity. The European Commission (EC) has published an official gazette on regulations about adding imported instant noodles to the inspection list for pesticide residues in the EU. The Vietnam Trade Office in Belgium and the EU stated that the EC issued regulations on December 17 relating to the temporary application of official control and emergency measures for certain foods imported into the EU. With regard to products imported from the Vietnamese market, the frequency of official controls over pesticide for coriander, basil, mint, parsley, okra, and pepper will be 50%, while dragon fruit and instant noodles will be subject to an inspection frequency of 20%. These regulations will duly take effect on the 20th day from the date of publishing the official gazette. In line with this, Vietnamese instant noodles will be subject to the testing frequency of 20% for residues of ethylene oxide as of January 6, 2022. This comes as some Vietnamese instant noodle products, including Hao Hao noodles and instant vermicelli with pork ribs flavor by Acecook Vietnam Joint Stock Company, were recalled in the EU market due to the products containing ethylene oxide. In early December, Acecook Vietnam unveiled that the company had proactively informed sales agents in France to recall their products from this market. Source: VOV As many as 56 businesses in Vietnam are licensed to provide prize-winning games at 63 hotels and nine casino businesses. Before the pandemic, business results of casinos were very modest, even when Vietnamese were allowed to enter casinos under a pilot project. Under this project, two casinos in Van Don (Quang Ninh) and Phu Quoc (Kien Giang) were approved by the Politburo to service Vietnamese players. The casino in Phu Quoc opened for Vietnamese in January 2019. By the end of 2019, Phu Quoc casino had more than 105,000 players, including over 47,400 Vietnamese, accounting for 45%. Total accumulated revenue of Phu Quoc casino reached VND 1,433 billion, including VND 1,381 billion revenue from taxable casino business. The results of the casino business in 2019 reached more than VND 284 billion. However, according to the 2019 audited financial report of Phu Quoc Tourism Development and Investment Joint Stock Company, it incurred a loss of VND 2,529 billion, including the casino business and other business activities. For the Ho Tram casino (Ba Ria - Vung Tau province), it reported a loss of VND 827 billion in 2017, a loss of VND 642 billion in 2018 and a loss of nearly VND 600 billion in 2019. From the time of its establishment to the end of 2019, the company had accumulated losses of VND8,780 billion. Thus, the Ho Tram casino project lost nearly VND 9,000 billion after seven years of operation. The situation became even worse when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, and when tourism and resort facilities were operating at a standstill. According to updated statistics of the Ministry of Finance, the revenue and tax payments of this business have decreased significantly since the outbreak of the pandemic. In 2019, the revenue from the business of prize-winning games and casinos reached VND 11,500 billion, including VND 7,819 billion from prize-winning games and VND 3,687 billion from casinos, an increase of 23.8% and 40.8%, respectively compared to 2018. Also in 2019, tax payment reached VND 4,095 billion, including VND 2,628 billion for prize-winning games and VND 1,467 billion form casinos, an increase of 41.8% and 63.3% compared to 2018. Since 2020, under the impact of the pandemic, casino and prize-winning game business have been heavily affected because most of them are located in big cities and provinces such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Can Tho, Kien Giang, Ba Ria - Vung Tau... where social distancing was imposed on a large scale. Up to 58 out of 63 had to close. Accordingly, revenue from prize-winning games and casino services dropped sharply. In the first nine months of 2021, revenue reached VND 3,111 billion, including VND 2,455 billion from prize-winning games and VND 656 billion from casinos; tax payments reached VND 1,038 billion, including VND 699 billion from prize-winning games and VND 339 billion from casinos, a decrease of 30.57% over the same period in 2020 and more than 60% compared to the same period of 2019. However, the potential is still huge for the prize-winning game and casino business in Vietnam. Many domestic and foreign investors plan to invest billions of US dollars to revive this "smokeless industry", as the policy of allowing Vietnamese to enter casinos has brought a new look to local casinos. Van Don casino can bring excitement to the casino business in Vietnam. In order to "pave the way" for casino investment and business in Van Don (Quang Ninh), the Ministry of Finance has proposed amending and supplementing Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP of the Government on casino business with looser regulations. Many investors have asked the Government to direct ministries, agencies and localities to consider licensing more casinos at major tourist attractions in Vietnam such as Quang Nam, Ba Ria - Vung Tau to serve Vietnamese players. Allowing Vietnamese people to enter local casinos is said to be a prerequisite for the success or failure. Nguyen Ngoc My, Vice Chairman of the Association of Foreign-invested Enterprises, said: I think it's okay to allow Vietnamese people to play at casinos. But we should ask whether they feel comfortable or not. If they are uncomfortable, instead of booking tickets to Phu Quoc, they can fly to Singapore, where they are warmly welcomed. If they enter a casino in Vietnam, they will have to sign many kinds of papers so only small players come while the big players go abroad," said My. Luong Bang With a passion for floriculture and dream of getting rich from agriculture, Le Quang Khanh has developed a giant lotus pond which yields 1 million flowers each season. One afternoon in June, under the scorching sun, some men were seen rowing boats in the middle of a large lotus pond in Me Linh suburban district to pick flowers. Just after a short while, all the boats were full of white and pink lotus flowers and they went ashore. The flowers were then quickly bundled before being delivered to merchants at the night market. Khanh, the owner of the 60 hectare lotus pond, said: Its not easy to develop a large lotus pond. Growing lotus is a hard job. We have to get up very early at 3-4 am and only finish at 9-10 pm." The place in the past was just an uncultivated field, often flooded and capable of only one low-yield rice crop. Khanh said his home village was famous for floriculture. In the past, he cultivated 7 sao (1 sao = 360 square meters) of roses. However, lotus cultivation requires more thorough care and higher techniques. Moreover, a large land area is needed. At the time, people were no longer interested in farming because crops could not grow well, so he came up with the idea of leasing land from some people to grow lotus. With land rent of 25 kilograms of unhusked rice per sao per annum, only half of the households leased their land to him, with a total area of 20 hectares. Other households rejected his proposal as they feared they may not get financial compensation from the Government if the land was used for future investment projects. It took him one year to clear the overgrown water hyacinth and grass, and improve the land. He started to grow lotus on part of the cleared land. At first, he grew the lotus variety for seed, but the yield was low because of insects and mice, which caused a loss of VND100 million. The land plots were fragmented, which was difficult to cultivate. But he did not give up. In 2018, he once again persuaded local people to lease their fields with more attractive commitments. He has been expanding his lotus pond step by step, several hectares a year, and now has 60 hectares. Instead of growing lotus for seed, he now grows sen bach diep (Lotos Momo Botan) for flowers. This lotus is also used for tea. And he also grows sen bach lien, or white lotus. Lotus has strong vitality and there are almost no pests so it is not too difficult to grow. He searched for documents on lotus cultivation on the internet and learned from his friends. This, plus his experience, helped his lotus pond develop well. Khanh said the months from May to July are the busiest time. Pink lotus used for tea needs to be plucked at 4-5 a.m. when lotus buds bloom so as to preserve the fragrance. White lotus can be plucked in the afternoon for sale at the night market. I collect 10,000 lotus flowers a day on average, he said, adding that all of the flowers are delivered immediately to merchants who wait ashore. Because of the pandemic, lotus prices are lower, just VND2,000-2,500 per flower. However, the lotus for tea is still expensive, VND20,000 per flower. Khanh estimates that he can harvest 1 million lotus flowers each crop, worth VND2.5 billion. So, he can make a profit of VND300-500 million after deducting cultivation costs. He hires 20 workers to handle the work in high season. A person specializing in tea brewing is paid VND300,000 a day, while a worker rowing a boat to pluck lotus can get VND500 for every flower. Nhat Thanh Lotus flower season arrives on Hanoi streets Vendors selling lotus flowers travel the streets in Hanoi as the flower season comes in late May. Having loved Vietnam since the day they set foot on the land, the Swedish couple Kawa Wandi and Nishte have been living in Hoi An City for two years. Wandi (left) helps Hoi An people Wandi, whose own parents and family wete not that well-off, understands the feelings of people who lead unlucky lives and wanted to do something to help them even when he was young. When he was 20, he used his savings to buy small gifts such as tomatoes and potatoes for needy people stating in hospitals. After Wandi married, he and his wife opened three restaurants in Sweden, while making plans to help poor people. In 2017, they decided to sell all the restaurants in Sweden to begin a journey around the world to help the needy. We have been to many countries in the world, including the UK, the US, France, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, and to Africa, and finally Vietnam, Wandi said. They have fond memories of every country. In South Africa, they 'adopted' five kids. Each of them receives $200 a month that supports their daily lives. After traveling to many countries and learning about different cultures, in early 2020, they decided that Vietnam would be the last destination on their journey. When I arrived in Hoi An, I was fascinated by the houses there. It is peaceful there and people are friendly. My wife and I decided to stay there to fulfill our dream of helping needy people, he recalled. Though we have been living there only for two years, we really consider this our second homeland, he added. Support to the poor As he was preparing products to be shipped to the needy in Hoi An City, Wandi told reporters that he would feel guilty if he did not help those in need. I think I need to wholeheartedly support our second homeland, he said. Hoi An has been experiencing social distancing for the last two weeks. Wandi and a group of friends have organized campaigns, donating necessities to people affected by the pandemic in the area. The gifts include rice, canned meat, instant noodles and vegetable oil, worth VND400,000 each. Three days ago, I went to Tan An Ward to give gifts. I could not hold back my emotions when seeing a man, 60, feeding his mother, 80, and his son, mentally ill, who was lying on a concrete bed. I burst into tears, he recalled. This is the most haunting scene in my memory. There are so many unhappy lives. I gave gifts to them and I hope I can come back, he said. Wandi and his wife, together with his Vietnamese friend, Trang Quoc Tri, have prepared 3,500 servings of meals for four quarantine zones and needy people in the city. Tri said the Swedish couple last year rented a house next to his home. They shared the same idea of helping needy people. In 2020, their group of friends went to Quang Tri province to give support to people in the flood stricken areas. In early 2021, they built and repaired two clean water treatment systems for people in Dang commune in Quang Nam province, worth VND200 million. Wandi said he wants to thank his wife, who has always supported him and stood by him on every path, and Tri, who has helped him learn about charity in Vietnam. In the coming days, I still want to accompany my friends to help people. Sweden is my birthplace, but Vietnam is my second home, so I will try my best to contribute to beautifying this land," Wandi said. Vice Chair of Hoi An City Nguyen Van Lanh said: Your family has chosen Hoi An as a home. But the reality is still not as good as you want and we want it to be. The pandemic has rushed down and you have quickly integrated into the life of the city and accompanied the citys people. The things you have done are quiet, but they have rekindled the flame for the community, which makes us feel warmer and stronger in the fight against the pandemic." I thank you and your friends who have wholeheartedly helped Vietnam, Hoi An and needy people. Human love will give us strength to overcome all challenges together, Lanh said. Cong Sang - Nguyen Hien Two men buy ambulances to take patients to hospital for free Understanding the difficulties of the poor, a car mechanic in Kien Giang and a young man in Can Tho have bought ambulances to take patients to the hospital for free. President Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed Vietnams consistent policy of prioritising and developing special solidarity with Laos while receiving President of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane in Hanoi on Monday. President Nguyen Xuan Phuc affirmed Vietnams consistent policy of prioritising and developing special solidarity with Laos while receiving President of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane in Hanoi on Monday. President Nguyen Xuan Phuc receives visiting President of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane in Hanoi on Monday. Phuc highly appreciated and thanked Saysomphone for choosing Vietnam as the first country to visit in his capacity as President of the Lao NA, showing that the Lao Party, NA and Saysomphone have attached importance to the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries. He also congratulated the Lao Party, State and people on the occasion of the 46th National Day of Laos (December 2). The Vietnamese leader suggested the Parties, States and people of the two nations foster bilateral ties, maintain high-level visits and bilateral cooperation mechanisms, expand and improve the efficiency of cooperation in the fields of national defence-security, economy, trade, investment, energy and education-training. He proposed jointly holding activities during Vietnam Laos, Laos Vietnam Friendship and Solidarity Year 2022 to mark the 60th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 45th anniversary of the signing of the Vietnam Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation. Phuc also suggested the two nations work closely together and support each other at international forums, especially at the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Vietnam will do its best to nurture the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation with Laos, especially in economic development, to bring practical benefits to the people of both countries, he stated. Phomvihane, for his part, conveyed the regards from senior Lao Party and State leaders to Phuc. He also informed the Vietnamese President about the outcomes of his earlier talks with National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue and his meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, including Vietnams assistance to Laos in the fight against COVID-19. Vietnamese, Lao top legislators want parliamentary ties to become 'exemplary model' in region, world Chairman of Vietnam National Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue and Lao counterpart Saysomphone Phomvihane on Monday in Hanoi discussed various aspects of bilateral cooperation, as the latter is on a three-day official visit to Vietnam. Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue and spouse (left) welcome his Lao counterpart Saysomphone Phomvihane and spouse to Hanoi, Vietnam, on Monday. VNA/VNS Photo Doan Tan This is the first high-level international delegation to visit Vietnams NA in nearly two years due to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. On behalf of the leadership of the parliament, NA Chair Hue warmly welcomed Lao NA Chair Saysomphone's visit to Vietnam, expressing appreciation for the fact that the Lao legislator chose Vietnam as the first country to visit in his new capacity. The visit is an important milestone, contributing to the consolidation and promotion of great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, States and peoples in general, and between the National Assembly of the two countries. NA Chair Hue reaffirmed the Party and States consistent policy to attach great importance to and give the highest priority to preserving and promoting the close, unique and special relationship between Vietnam and Laos, and that Vietnam always wholeheartedly, strongly and comprehensively supported Laos reforms, nation-building and defence. For his part, the top Lao legislator thanked Vietnam for its COVID-19 support, with donations of medical supplies worth US$6.3 million since the beginning of the pandemic. He acknowledged the socio-economic development aid, totalling VND930 billion ($40.26 million), that Vietnam provided for Laos in 2020, when Vietnam itself was facing numerous challenges. The Lao NA Chair also expressed gratitude for the Lao NA building that Vietnam financed and constructed as a gift for the Lao Party, State, and people, stressing that Laos will make full use of the building to make it truly stand out as a vivid demonstration of the special friendship and solidarity between the two countries. During the talks, the two parliament chairs concurred in the assessment that political-diplomatic relations in all channels between Vietnam and Laos have been increasingly tightened. In particular, the two sides have coordinated to successfully organise two official friendship visits by General Secretary and President of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith to Vietnam in June this year, and later, a visit from Vietnamese State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc to Laos in August, which both have yielded many important and substantive results, creating more impetus for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries. Cooperation in the fields of security-defence, trade and investment, energy, transport connection, education and training, COVID-19 fight cooperation, and cooperation between localities and people-to-people exchanges have been given proper attention, the two leaders agreed. The Lao NA Chair noted with appreciation how even with COVID-19, the two-way trade this year hit $948 million so far, up 28 per cent compared to the same period last year, while Vietnam is currently the third biggest investor in Laos out of 54 countries and territories, with 409 projects and capital totalling $1.9 billion. The two NA leaders said bilateral parliamentary cooperation is flourishing, with the two NAs effectively carrying out the 2017 agreement with many diverse cooperation activities including high-level delegation visits, thematic discussions and experience sharing conferences, support for each other in capacity building for legislators and NA staff, as well as infrastructure and IT capacity. The two chairs have discussed in detail the cooperation results of the two National Assemblies and covered orientations of cooperation for the future. On that basis, the two Presidents agreed to consider amending and supplementing the cooperation agreement between the two countries NAs, focusing on a number of important items such as close coordination in supervision and facilitating the effective implementation of high-level agreements between the two countries, especially the key tasks in the Vietnam-Laos cooperation strategy for the 2021-30 period, Viet Nam-Laos cooperation agreement for the 2021-25 period, and other agreements. The two want to make Vietnam-Laos parliamentary ties an exemplary model in the region and in the world. NA Chairs Hue and Saysomphone agreed to strengthen exchanges between the two women parliamentarians and young parliamentarians, in tandem with seminars on implementing the role of the legislative body and conferences on the rich tradition of special relations between the two countries to help the younger generations understand the history and inherit this great asset. Further exchanges, especially between people's councils of provinces and centrally-run cities, including neighbouring localities, should be encouraged, the two top legislators noted. The two chairs agreed that Vietnam and Laos should continue to promote the trilateral parliamentary cooperation mechanism of Vietnam - Laos - Cambodia. The two also agreed that they would propose to the Cambodian National Assembly and Senate to consider, when necessary, holding meetings involving the three countries parliament leaders in order to promote and improve the effectiveness of the Vietnam - Laos tripartite cooperation mechanism. NA Chair Hue also wants the two parliaments to hold events commemorating the 60th anniversary of Vietnam-Laos bilateral diplomatic relations (September 5, 1962) and 45th anniversary of Vietnam-Laos Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation (signed in July 1977) in 2022. On this occasion, the two NA Chairmen witnessed the handover ceremony of medical supplies worth $1 million by the Vietnamese NA to support Laos in COVID-19 prevention and control, including 2.1 million medical-grade masks, 100,000 COVID-19 test kits, along with protective gear, sanitisers, body temperature scanners and $100,000 in cash. Vietnam ready to assist Laos in fight against COVID-19: PM Vietnam always stands side by side and stays ready to help Laos, within its ability, to push back the COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told President of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane during their meeting in Hanoi on Monday. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (right) welcomes Lao NA Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane. VNA/VNS Photo Duong Giang Both leaders said they were delighted to see that the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries have been increasingly strengthened in all areas, from politics, diplomacy, national defence-security, to economy, trade, investment, socio-culture, and education-training. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, two-way trade still surpassed US$1 billion in the first ten months of 2021, up over 30.1 per cent from the same period last year. Vietnam was the third biggest foreign investor in Laos, with 209 projects worth $5.18 billion. Saysomphone expressed his profound thanks to the Vietnamese Party, State and people for providing timely and invaluable support to Laos in the fight against the pandemic. Both leaders agreed to effectively carry out high-level agreements and prepare for the upcoming 44th meeting of the Vietnam Laos Inter-Governmental Committee, continue working closely together to fight COVID-19, strengthen national defence-security collaboration, step up economic, trade and investment ties as well as accelerating infrastructure projects such as Hanoi Vientiane expressway and Vung Ang 1,2,3 seaports. They pledged to continue effectively implementing signed education projects; jointly hold activities to celebrate the 60th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 45th anniversary of the signing of the Vietnam Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in 2022; support each other at multilateral forums, especially in issues regarding each countrys security and development, as well as peace, stability and cooperation in the region, including the sustainable use and management of water sources in Mekong River, and the East Sea issue. Top Lao legislators Vietnam visit grabs Lao headlines Major Lao newspapers on December 7 gave wide coverage on the Laos National Assembly Chairman Xaysomphone Phomvihanes current visit to Vietnam, saying the visit will not only help consolidate the close-knit relationship but also bolster all-round cooperation between the two countries. National daily Pasaxon (People) highlighted Xaysomphones activities on December 6, including his high-level talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Vuong Dinh Hue during which they both agreed to tighten the special relationship and cooperation between the two countries and legislative bodies. Xaysomphone and Hue also co-chaired a seminar sharing the two sides experience in organizing Q&A sessions and deciding on key projects. Meanwhile, the Vientiane Times ran an article praising cooperation between the two National Assemblies of Laos and Vietnam, emphasizing that this is Xaysomphones first foreign trip since he was elected Chairman of the Laos National Assembly earlier this year. The newspaper quoted the two chief legislators during their talks saying the cooperative relationship between the two countries legislative bodies have flourished, from delegation exchanges to experience sharing in legislation. Another Lao newspaper, PathetLao Daily, published on the front page a news story titled Laos and Vietnam continue to deepen cooperation ties between the two National Assemblies. According to the article, the fact that Xaysomphone chose Vietnam as the first country to visit after being elected as the Speaker of the National Assembly of Lao PDR once again demonstrates the special nature of the relationship between the two countries. Despite the impact of the prolonged COVID-19 outbreak, the article said the two National Assemblies of Laos and Vietnam have maintained close cooperation. Most notably, the Vietnam National Assembly of Vietnam has assisted the Laos National Assembly in building its headquarters in Vientiane - a gift from the Party, State and people of Vietnam to the Party, State and people of Laos. PathetLao Daily affirmed the official visit to Vietnam by Laos National Assembly Chairman Xaysomphone Phomvihane is expected to further strengthen the special and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries. Source: Vietnam News/VOV The peak of the epidemic has passed, but Ho Chi Minh City is still recording dozens of Covid-19 related deaths each day. The cemetery in Cu Chi district, HCM City is quiet in the last days of 2021. Located at a corner of the cemetery are the crematoriums and refrigerated storage containers that were set up in late August for those who died from Covid-19. That was when the pandemic was at its peak in the countrys largest city. Major Dong Anh Tuan, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Gia Dinh Regiment of the Ho Chi Minh City Command, who is head of the special task force at the cemetery in Cu Chi, told VietNamNet that during the epidemic peak, the 12 crematoriums always ran at full capacity. About 60 officers and soldiers worked day and night but could not promptly handle all the cases. They had to put corpses into refrigerated containers. At present, only several dozen bodies are incinerated here. The number of soldiers has been slashed to 19, said Major Tuan. browser not support iframe. : Soldiers wear protective gear to handle a body that has just been brought from the hospital. The body is carefully disinfected, then put in a coffin for cremation. The coffin is brought to a crematorium. The body of an elderly woman who died of Covid-19 is put in a coffin for cremation. Soldiers carry the coffin to the cremation. The bodies that have not been cremated will be put into a refrigerated container. A body is taken from the refrigerated container to the crematorium. Soldiers say that their job is now less difficult than a few months ago. "They are young soldiers who have just joined the army but are very enthusiastic and dedicated," Major Dong Anh Tuan said about the soldiers on duty. Each incinerator can treat each body for an average of 2 hours. A sheet of paper with the deceased's name is placed in front of the crematorium. The ashes are put in an urn. The urns will be handed over to the family of the deceased. Soldiers carefully write down the names of the deceased and box urns. After everything is done, soldiers burn incense for the unfortunate victims who died of Covid-19. During their spare time, soldiers rest or play chess for fun. Soldier Nguyen Thai Tai says that he has been working here for several months since the pandemic broke out. "I was a little scared at first, but the responsibility of a soldier has helped me overcome difficulties," Tai says. Tung Tin - Nguyen Son - Thu Anh He said he knew he wanted to become the person leading surgeries instead of following instructions, but the path there seems unclear. Coping with the uncertainty came more easily to Vivian than it did to him, the couple said. It was scary, not knowing how I was going to provide for my family and not really knowing what my next step would be, Jesus said. That was actually one of the craziest times in my life because I was fresh out of the Navy and didnt have a job, but I knew I wanted to go to school and further my education. Vivan said family members and friends who had also left the Navy often advised the couple to lower their expectations, and for Jesus to leave school and start working right away. I felt like since I met him, before he went to the Navy, hes always had this very clear idea of what he wanted to do with his life, Vivian said. He wanted to be a doctor, and hes definitely cut out for that. He worked at Ascension Providence, but his grades began to slide and he ended up quitting. They said now that Margaux goes to the Piper Center, they have had more time to focus on the business they launched about six months ago, Bare Demolition, which works with larger companies to prepare sites for demolition. For the first few years it was just her (Margaux) and I, we were always together, Vivian said. So I wanted to make sure we were doing something that was worth our time away from her. Were all growing together at the same pace. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The human story where we come from and how we evolved got a new chapter in 2021. Thanks to new fossil finds and analysis of ancient DNA preserved in teeth, bones and cave dirt, scientists have unearthed startling revelations about our Homo sapien forebears, and other humans that existed before and in some cases, alongside us. Here are six of this year's most ground-breaking discoveries in human prehistory that are shaping the family tree in fascinating and unexpected ways. The first Americans Footprints made in muddy earth at the edge of a wetland, in what's now New Mexico, look like they could have been made yesterday. But they weren't. The discovery that the prints were pressed into the ground between 21,000 to 23,000 years ago has dramatically pushed back the history of humans in the Americas, the last continent to be settled by humans. Until recently, the commonly held view was that people ventured into North America from Asia via Beringia, a land bridge that once connected the two continents, at the end of the ice age around 13,000 years ago. The tracks, thought to have been made by children, were made at a time when many scientists think that massive ice sheets sealed off human passage into North America, indicating that humans were there even earlier. Dragon man Described as the most important fossil discovery in 50 years, a cranium, which was hidden at the bottom of a well in northeastern China for more than 80 years, could represent a completely new type of human. The well-preserved skullcap, found in the Chinese city of Harbin, is between 138,000 and 309,000 years old, according to geochemical analysis. It combines primitive features, such as a broad nose and low brow and braincase, with those that are more similar to Homo sapiens, including flat and delicate cheekbones. Researchers named the new hominin Homo longi, which is derived from Heilongjiang, or Black Dragon River, the province where the cranium was found. Colloquially, he's become known as Dragon Man since the discovery was made public in June. The hope is to extract DNA or other genetic material from the fossil to find out more about Dragon Man, particularly whether he may be a representative of the Denisovans, a little-known and enigmatic human population. Watch this space in 2022. Cave dirt For centuries, archaeologists have searched caves for teeth, bones and tools in the hope of piecing together how our ancestors lived and what they looked like. Now, new techniques to capture DNA preserved in cave sediment are allowing scientists to learn about our early relatives without ever having to find fossils just the dirt from the caves where they hung out. "Screening sediment for DNA is a game changer for us. It will direct us to the right places, save us time and a lot of money," said Katerina Douka, an assistant professor of archaeological science at the department of evolutionary anthropology at the University of Vienna and a research associate at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany. Earliest fashion In "The Flintstones," Fred and Betty are clothed in furs but archaeological evidence of what our Stone Age ancestors actually wore and how they made clothes is thin. Fur, leather and other organic materials generally aren't preserved, especially beyond 100,000 years ago. However, researchers say 62 bone tools used to process and smooth animal skins found in a cave in Morocco may be some of the earliest proxy evidence for clothing in the archaeological record. The tools are between 90,000 and 120,000 years old and were used to work leather specifically to remove connective tissue. Similar bone tools are still used by some leather workers today. Neanderthal brains Brain matter doesn't preserve well in the fossil record, making it impossible to know how modern human brains differ from our long-extinct ancestors, the Neanderthals. From fossilized skulls we know that their brains were big slightly bigger than ours, in fact but they tell us little about their neurology and development. Scientists from the University of California San Diego came up with an exciting way to begin to answer this question. They have created blobs of brain tissue genetically modified to carry a gene that belonged to Neanderthals and other archaic hominins, but not Homo sapiens. While the research is at a very early stage, the researchers found that the Neanderthalized brain organoids produced significant changes in how the brain is organized and wired. The oldest story ever told? Finally, take a minute to marvel at the oldest known figurative rock art created by humans, which was revealed to the world in January. Painted in red ocher in limestone caves on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, it features an endearing warty pig engaged in a fight or some other interaction with two others. It's at least 45,000 years old and makes these prehistoric Picassos the first known storytellers. It feels fitting that we still tell a tale about three little pigs today. ___ Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Albuquerque police have opened an homicide investigation after a person was found dead in a vehicle Friday morning. According to an Albuquerque Police Department news release, officers were dispatched around 11 a.m. to the 530 block of Ortiz SE, near Zuni and San Mateo, in response to a call about a possible shooting. There they found a person dead inside a vehicle. No other information was available. Copyright 2021 Albuquerque Journal SANTA FE In late October, a Taos area man shot a bear in a tree with a bow and arrow and then shot it once more after a bystander told him to shoot it again so it wouldnt suffer, court documents state. The man then left the area where the bear was killed and made no attempt to retrieve the bear, authorities allege. Faustin Gonzales has been charged in Taos Magistrate Court with unlawful killing of big game shooting from the road and failure to tag the bear, both misdemeanors. Bears are a protected species in New Mexico, but bear hunting was allowed in that area at the time of killing, officials said previously. According to a report, state Department of Game and Fish officer Keith Haws was on patrol on Oct. 29 when he got a text message from a concerned citizen that someone was shooting at a bear in a tree with a bow and arrow on El Salto Road in Arroyo Seco. Haws was familiar with the bears location because he received several calls during the day about the bear and advised callers to leave it alone and it would likely come down from the tree when it was dark. When Haws arrived about 15 minutes later, he saw the bear not moving in a tree about 50 feet above the ground with an arrow protruding from its right side. An arrow and crossbow bolt on the ground below the bear were collected as evidence. Gonzales illegally shot and killed a bear from across a maintained public road and it became lodged in the branches of a tree, the court documents state. Gonzales failed to tag the bear and did not make any effort to remove the bear from the tree after it became lodged. The next day the Taos Volunteer Fire Department removed the bear with a ladder truck. Haws subsequently located Gonzales at his El Prado home and Gonzales told him he had seen the bear earlier in the day while driving a school bus and returned that evening to shoot the bear twice while standing near the Taos Pueblo fence line, court documents state. Copyright 2021 Albuquerque Journal New Mexico State Police have arrested the parents and sister of a man who allegedly shot and killed his one-time girlfriend on Sunday outside the fathers home in Peralta. Brandon Mendoza, 22, is charged with an open count of murder and tampering with evidence in the death of 29-year-old Rodlyn Pierce. His sister Vanessa Mendoza, 19, and the mother, Maria Carter, 45, are each charged with tampering with evidence and conspiracy. All three have since been rounded up by State Police and booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center. Vanessa Mendoza and Carter were arrested Monday and Brandon and his father, James Mendoza, 45 who was also wanted on unrelated warrants were arrested Tuesday at a home in Tijeras. Authorities say Brandon Mendoza fatally shot Pierce and fled with Vanessa Mendoza. The car they used was later found guarded by extremely aggressive dogs in the garage of the Albuquerque home Vanessa and Brandon Mendoza shared with Carter. The arrest warrant affidavit filed in Valencia County Magistrate Court says Bosque Farms police responded around 12 p.m. to reports of gunfire and a crash at the home of James Mendoza, just west of Bosque Farms Boulevard. Officers found a truck crashed into a tree and Pierces body lying beside the truck. She had been shot in the chest and died at the scene. Detectives learned Brandon Mendoza had a severe hatred for Pierce, who is identified as his girlfriend in a July incident where she allegedly broke windows at the home, according to the court documents. A relative told police James Mendoza and the alleged shooter, Brandon Mendoza, were at the home prior to the shooting. State Police took over the case and went looking for Brandon Mendoza at the West Side home where he lived with Carter. At first, Carter denied seeing her son or knowing where he was. Later, police found the car used during the homicide in Carters garage, and she had placed extremely aggressive dogs in the garage as a ruse to prevent agents from entering, according to the affidavit. Vanessa Mendoza was at the home and told police she and her brother had gone to their fathers house in Peralta earlier. She said Pierce was parked in the driveway and Brandon Mendoza got out of the car with a gun in his hand and fired into the truck. Vanessa Mendoza told police her brother got back in the car and they drove to her mothers house as he apologized repeatedly. Updated 5:10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021 - Tune in to our 6 p.m. live broadcast Saturday for a live report from reporter Ryan Ketcham --- Updated 5:08 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021 - Action News Now reporter Ryan Ketcham was able to confirm that the 76 Station on Park Avenue was one of the two gas stations robbed on Saturday morning near downtown Chico. Ryan was also able to confirm that the Sinclair gas station on W. 6th St. was the other station that was robbed at gunpoint on Christmas morning. The man who robbed the 76 station on Saturday was described by the assistant manager as being just under six feet tall with a black jacket and a blue or green backpack. The assistant manager said after taking the cash the man walked out of the store casually and walked east on E. 11th Street. Ryan spoke to customers filling up at the two gas stations on Saturday. Customers told him that they were not nervous, but were surprised that someone would do something like that on Christmas Day. Chico resident Perry Pearson said, "It's deplorable that somebody would go and do this kind of thing." "They also hit the 76," he continued. "It's just kind of weird because I know people who work here and I know the guy that was here when it happened." Police said the first call on Saturday morning concerning the robberies came in close to 9:00 a.m. They said approximately 20 minutes later the second robbery was reported at another gas station in the downtown area. Our reporter was not able to secure security camera footage from either gas station. He did confirm that last week the same Sinclair gas station was robbed, as well as the ARCO on 8th St. between Main St. and Broadway. --- CHICO, Calif. Two gas stations near downtown Chico were robbed on Christmas morning, December 25th. Shortly before 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning dispatchers received a call about an armed robbery at one of the gas stations. Chico police said they were able to determine that an unknown white male brandished a firearm at the clerk and demanded cash. Police are not saying how much money was stolen from the register. Close to 20 minutes later another downtown area gas station robbery was reported. Police described a similar scenario, where an unknown white male brandished a firearm at the clerk and demanded cash. This suspect left on foot, police said, with an unknown amount of cash taken from the register. The suspect has not been identified, but the Chico Police Department is asking anyone with information to call them at (530) 895-4911. The cases are being investigated by the Chico Police Departments Violence Suppression Unit, Detective Bureau, and Patrol staff. Officer Anthony Ferreira told Action News Now that the locations of the gas stations, described as being near the downtown, are being withheld due to the pending investigation. Click here for updates on this story ANNAPOLIS, Maryland (WJZ) -- Days before Christmas, 20 families in Annapolis were facing eviction. Theyre among the many Marylanders who are at risk of homelessness due to economic hardship during this pandemic. Within the past week, tenants at the Robinwood Townhomes in Annapolis all received the notice nobody wants to receive. I had a pin paper taped to my door, said tenant, Akia Gray. She said her son screamed, Mommy, we got an eviction notice. Its the same notice 19 other tenants received at the townhomes, including Gwendolyn Pindell. All of them were ordered to be out of their home in days. Come on now, were out here struggling, we dont have no place to go, said Pindell. Gray, who lives with her two sons at Robinwood Townhomes, said she felt helpless. Its very scary not to know whats going on, she said. Pindell has lived in her home for seven years with her family. She said she didnt know who to reach out to for help so she prayed to God for help, so someone would reach out and help us. Attorney Kat Hyland and the Civil Justice Network answered her prayer. I volunteered that I was available, said Hyland, who couldnt stand the idea of people getting kicked out of their homes on Christmas. Alexa Bertinelli and Carolyn Wetzel from the Civil Justice Network also worked with the tenants. The network has arranged over $150,000 in rental assistance throughout Annapolis. We contacted every single family and made sure they all got their application for CAREs Act funding, said Hyland. During the pandemic, millions of dollars from the CARES Act, which passed in 2020, went toward rent relief in Maryland. So when Hyland came before a judge this morning in district court, the judge dismissed all 20 cases. We have a home for Christmas, Pindell said, calling the case dismissal a miracle. This is my Christmas present, Gray said. If you are a renter who has questions about eviction or needs more information about rental assistance, head to this webside to larn more about the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in Maryland. Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform. We've had a break from the active winter weather in northern California much of Christmas Eve Friday, but another storm will deliver rain, snow and wind tonight and Christmas Day. Please be safe this weekend! As expected, we've had sun break through over parts of northern California today, but it will be short-lived as another storm will arrive tonight. We'll have overnight and morning rain and mountain snow along with gusty wind, and snow levels will continue to lower through the weekend. Lows will range from the 20s in the mountains to the lower 40s in the valley. Christmas Day will still be unsettled with valley rain showers, mountain snow and gusty wind. Highs will range from the lower 30s in the mountains to near 50 in the valley. Another round of rain, snow and gusty wind will arrive late Sunday and Monday. Snow levels will continue to lower, and it's possible areas as low as Redding could receive light snow with the rain. The foothills will certainly see snow instead of rain. Winter Storm Warnings will be in effect for all of our area mountains and foothills down to at least 1000 feet from Friday night through Tuesday morning. Mountain travel will not be advised, and it may not be possible at all. Much colder air arrives next week, and if enough moisture is available, light snow could reach the valley floor. We'll have cold mornings and cool afternoons with fewer clouds the latter half of next week. Please be safe all through the Christmas weekend and next week! REDDING, Calif. - United Way of Northern California announced they received an anonymous $65,000 donation last week. United Way said they wouldnt reveal who the donor is, but that their only message to the organization was to give the money back to the community before Christmas. After scrambling to come up with a plan, Astrid Withrow, the Chief Development Officer of United Way of Northern California, decided the best thing to do is to lean on local organizations to distribute the money through gift cards. The organization reached out to nonprofits across Northern California like The Good News Rescue Mission in Redding, Tehama Together, Community Housing Improvement Projects (CHIP) in Butte County, and more to give money to those who need it most. United Way gave each organization gift cards to give to people in the community ranging from $100 to $500. Gift cards allow people to make their own decision on how to spend the money. For some people that could be an extra meal on the table, or maybe some last-minute holiday shopping for their kids, Withrow said. For others, for example that are fire survivors, that means new bedding on their beds. Little things we dont think about. The Good News Rescue Mission gave members of their drug recovery program the gift cards to give them a holiday boost. Withrow said after a year where Northern California dealt with COVID-19 and wildfires, it felt good to give back. Whether that is COVID related job loss, sickness, health issues, fires, theres so much going on, and to your point theres a lot of need out there and to be able to give money into the hands of people it feels good and it feels right, Withrow said. Withrow said people who need assistance and didnt get these gift cards can check on the United Way of Northern California website and see if they are eligible for other programs. To reach the United Way of Northern California website, click here. As the parents of four teenagers (ages 19, 17, 15, and 13), my wife and I have had many years of joyous celebration at Christmastime. Interestingly, we've done this without ever "doing" Santa Claus. In other words, we have never pretended with our children that the gifts under the tree and the goodies in their stockings were the result of the magical efforts of a jolly fat man. Don't get me wrong; we don't shun Santa. We embrace most of the traditions surrounding Christmas. We have a Christmas tree with presents underneath. We decorate the house inside and out with wreaths, bows, Nativity scenes, and the like. We have our "stockings hung by the chimney with care." We send and receive Christmas cards (one of our best efforts from a few years ago is below), and so on. We've taught our children that some families, even Christian families, use the Santa Claus myth as a means of enhancing the joy and fun of the Christmas season. Have a Merry Christmas...or Else! We work hard at keeping Christ the center of Christmas. We've cautioned our children that "traditions" often can distract us from the profound Truth that Christmas presents. In addition, those who hate the real meaning and message of Christmas will go to great lengths to keep us from this Truth. Thus, as is almost always the case, at this time of year, we must endure again the "War on Christmas." Why wage a war on Christmas? Is the birth of Jesus really that scary? Yes, it is. In fact, whether we would admit it or not, each of us, whether privately or publicly, at one time or another, has waged a "war on Christmas." Sometimes it's as subtle as Clark Griswold at the end of the film Christmas Vacation. While staring at what he thinks is the Christmas star, with the typical Hollywood drivel, Clark declares, "That's all that matters tonight. It's not bonuses or gifts or turkeys or trees. You see, kids, it means something different to everybody; now I know what it means to me." The moment is supposed to warm our hearts but, instead, it's just another lie about Christmas. We lie about Christmas because the real meaning and message of Christmas make us confront a frightening truth. Christmas means one thing and one thing only. As C.S. Lewis put it, Christmas is the story of how the rightful king has landed. When Jesus stood before Pilate, just prior to going to his execution, the Roman governor asked Him, "Are you the king of the Jews?" After some discussion, Pilate concluded to Jesus, "You are a king, then!" Jesus answered him: "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason, I was born and, for this, I came into the world." He was not just any king. He was a king with a holy mission. He was a king who was born to die. "Amazing love, how can it be, that you, my King, would die for me?" Jesus was, and is, our Savior King. The "frightening truth" is that we are all in desperate need of salvation. As author Charles Sell put it: If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior. In Christian circles, it is often told that, early in the twentieth century, The Times (U.K.) either invited essays on, or ran a piece entitled, "What's wrong with the world?" Noted theologian, author, and apologist G.K. Chesterton replied: Dear Sir, I am. Yours, G.K. Chesterton. As Chesterton implies, none of us is "innocent." We have all gone our own way and done our own thing with disastrous results. In spite of the foolish notion often portrayed by some, no nation, no culture, no individual is "basically good." This world is filled with evil, and at one time or another, we've all had a hand in it. As the prophet Isaiah puts it, "[w]e all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah wasn't merely painting a picture of sinful humanity. The above Scripture passage was a prophecy of the coming Messiah. Ultimately, the world doesn't have a poverty problem, or a crime problem, or a sexual problem, or a terrorism problem, or even (and of course) a climate problem. The world has a sin problem, and Jesus is the answer. The most quoted portion of the Bible, John 3:16, declares, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life" (emphasis mine). Less well known is the verse immediately following. John 3:17 says, "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." Those wanting us to donate blood or organs do so by imploring us to "give the gift of life." With Christmas, God gave "the gift of life" as it has never before been given. How many dying individuals would say no to a life-saving medical procedure made possible through the efforts or generosity of another? Yet how many reject the amazing gift of everlasting life that God offers through Jesus? There's no escaping this all-important eternal truth: we are all in dire need of a savior. Your life can be filled with treasures and pleasures, but if you ignore Jesus and His message, you will regret it for eternity. Your life can be riddled with poverty, sickness, and strife, yet if you repent and believe in Christ, the magnificent riches of eternal life await you. And whether rich or poor, sick or well, imprisoned or free, in good times or bad, we all need the gift that was given on that first Christmas. Merry Christmas! Trevor Grant Thomas: At the Intersection of Politics, Science, Faith, and Reason. www.trevorgrantthomas.com Trevor is the author of the brand-new book The Miracle and Magnificence of America. tthomas@trevorgrantthomas.com To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. For Christians, Christmas is a unique time of joy associated with the birth of the savior Jesus Christ, whose life, death, and resurrection make possible a personal and intimate relationship with God. Jesus was born a Jew, and his teachings were built on the foundation of the Torah and the Old Testament. Thus, Christians and Jews have much in common and share a natural mutual affinity. But what came from Christ also benefited and deeply affected people of diverse beliefs in every part of the world. The fact is that Christ affected history with such impact that He split time in two, dividing all human activities and events into happening before His coming (called B.C.) or after His coming (called A.D.). No one else in all of human history did this. Christ had to have had a supernatural impact on the world for that to be accepted. History shows that Christianity and its Church have brought about more changes for the advancement and benefit of people than any other force or movement in history by an immeasurable factor. What is particularly surprising are the myriad achievements made by committed Christians, which nonbelieving secular-minded people also applaud. Before Christ, human life was cheap and expendable all over the world. In the Americas, the Near East, Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East child sacrifice was a common phenomenon. Babies, particularly females -- who were considered inferior -- were regularly abandoned. Author George Grant points out: Before the explosive and penetrating growth of medieval Christian influence, the primordial evils of abortion, infanticide, abandonment, and exposure were a normal part of everyday life. That changed in the West with the 6th century Christian Byzantine Roman Emperor Justinian whose Law Code declared child abandonment and abortion a crime. In ancient cultures, women were considered inferior and simply viewed as property of their husbands. More recently, in the last two and a half centuries with the advent of the Christian missionary movement, the lives of women have been greatly improved around the world. Countless female infants abandoned in China were saved from almost sure death by Christian missionaries who then protected, educated, and raised them in Christian orphanages. In India, prior to Christian influence, elderly widows were burned alive on their husbands funeral pyres, while infanticide -- particularly for girls -- was practiced by tossing little ones into the sea. In Africa, wives and concubines of tribal chieftains were routinely killed after the latters death. These practices were greatly ameliorated or entirely stopped as Christianity began to penetrate and influence the respective cultures. Slavery is still practiced in parts of the Middle East and Africa, but it has been abolished throughout the Western world primarily due to the leadership and influence of Christians. Two thousand years ago, Apostle Paul was way before his time, stating in his letter to Philemon, that he should take back his former slave, as a brother beloved. Critics may accuse America of being too slow to abolish slavery. But its also true that slavery existed everywhere in the world at the time Americas Founders -- who were 95% Christian -- wisely drafted the Constitution so as to provide for change. It was that Constitution that enabled the passage of new laws so as to fulfill the ideals in the Declaration of Independence, which affirmed that all people are equal in value and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. That Constitution assured that the promise of equal opportunity would reach greater fullness with time. In 50-plus years since Christian reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. led the non-violent Civil Rights Movement, blacks have achieved commensurate success with whites in almost every field, including reaching the presidency of the United States. Today, for the first time in American history, blacks are now represented in the House of Representatives in the same proportion as they are in the population at large. We all recognize today the important role that charity plays in countless ways to help people in need. But before Christ, there is no trace or record of any organized charitable effort. The early Christians gained fame and renown by being generous to their own and to nonbelievers as well. Emperor Julian the Apostate, the last Roman emperor to try to destroy Christianity, was dumbfounded by the love that Christians showed to pagans and even those who persecuted them. The early church grew in large part by providing a way out of Romes harshness, bringing in converts who turned from Caesar preaching war to Christ preaching peace, from incredible brutality to unprecedented charity. Today, widely recognized Christian-based organizations such as the Salvation Army, Samaritans Purse, and Goodwill Industries that started in the U.S. now have operations around the world. Their programs include shelters for the homeless, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid to developing countries, and also provide employment, training, and rehabilitation for people of limited employability. Of the first 120 colleges and universities founded in America before the Revolutionary War, almost every one of them had Christian origins. In early America -- Harvard, Yale, and Princeton universities were originally founded as seminaries, and seven of the eight Ivy League universities were originally founded for purpose of establishing Christian-based institutions of higher learning. Healthcare for the poor has its roots in Christianity. In both the early Orthodox Church of the East and the Catholic Church of the West, Christians took to heart the teachings of Christ, who said: I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me. The Syrian Church was the first institution to provide health care service in the East, while the Catholic Church was the first to do so in the West. In 325 A.D. the Council of Nicaea issued an edict requiring every cathedral to have an infirmary or hospital, to take care of people on pilgrimages. In the 9th century A.D., the Benedictine Monastery in Salerno, Italy, founded the first and most famous medical university in Western Europe. The establishment of hospitals and universities, which accelerated through the Middle Ages was exclusively undertaken by Christians. An unprecedented outpouring of the visual arts with cathedrals, sculpture, paintings, and frescos being commissioned came about as a result of Christianity flourishing in Europe during the Middle Ages -- the period from the fall of the Roman Empire (476 A.D.) to the beginning of the Renaissance (1350 A.D.). The Christian Renaissance inspired more of the worlds greatest and most valuable art, by masters the likes of whom have never been seen since -- such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello, and Botticelli. Almost all their created images were taken from or inspired by the Bible. While its impossible to measure, the Christian Renaissance produced more of the worlds greatest and most valuable works of art than any other period, school, epoch, or place in the world by a manyfold factor. Suffice it to say that life both at home and around the world would no doubt be qualitatively worse today if Christ had never been born and Christianity had not become the greatest spiritual force ever to inspire creative beauty and advance the care and development of people. Indeed, there is reason to sing Joy to the World. Scott S. Powell is senior fellow at Discovery Institute. This article is a vignette out of his acclaimed book, Rediscovering America, now available for order on Amazon. Reach him at scottp@discovery.org Image: Pixabay To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. Sadly, this Christmas, many Christian leaders must enter into a period of theological soul-searching. Christian diplomats from once proudly Christian nations failed to oppose the United Nations General Assembly resolution that designated the central holy sites of Jerusalem to be exclusively Islamic property, thereby excising both Jewish and Christian history and the biblical heritage of the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. And, following this recent fraud that Israel will never accept, Christian pastors and bishops are now preaching blasphemy against Israelis and the Jewish State. This Christmas, the Archbishop of Canterbury colluded with the Archbishop of Jerusalem in suggesting that the fate of Christians in the Holy Land is being challenged, not by those who have been threatening Christian existence in once Christian majority towns, but by Israel. This is nothing short of a barefaced lie. It more than hints of disgraceful replacement theology, a medieval blasphemy against Jews that, sadly, continues by misguided church leaders to this day. The Archbishops, in an inaccurate and biased article published in the anti-Israel Times newspaper under the dramatic title, Let us pray for the Christians being driven out of the Holy Land, more than hinted that Jews were the ones driving Christians out of the Holy Land. They even prophesied that Christianity will be absent from the Holy Land in fifteen years time. They may be religious leaders. They are certainly not statisticians. They admit that the Christian population in Israel has grown. Indeed, there are now more Christians in Israel than Druze. Christians have been free to follow their faith and various churches have taken root in Israel including Roman, Armenian, Syriac, Maronite, Chaldean, Greek Catholic, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, as well as Anglicans and other Protestants. Israel protects the only significant population of Samaritans in the world. It is where the Baha'i faith is centered (in Haifa) after being persecuted in Islamic countries, particularly Iran. And yet, the Archbishop of Canterbury and his colleague in Jerusalem have forged an alliance that picks on the Jews for the persecution of local Christians when, if they were to be truly honest, they would admit that the real danger to Christianity lies in the locations that Israel handed over to the Palestinians to administer, and Bethlehem is a prime example. When Israel was established in 1948, Christians composed 80% of the holy Christian town. This Christmas, Bethlehem Christians are a shrinking minority, less than ten thousand strong. They pretend its because of Israeli checkpoints. At least this is what the replacement theologians behind the Kairos campaign allege. Truth is, until Israel handed over control of Bethlehem to the Palestinian Authority the vast majority of local businesses were owned by middle-class Christian families who were driven out by the Muslim population who did to the Christians what Arabs had done to the Jews in Arab lands. In 2006, David Parsons of the International Christian Embassy wrote in a Jerusalem Post op-ed that Christians who remained in Bethlehem suffer from the same Islamic hostility that is battering Israel, and which views both Jews and Christians as followers of inferior faiths naturally destined to be subjugated by Muslims. He was referring to the edict of Sheikh Yussef Salameh, the Palestinian Authority's undersecretary for religious endowment, who promoted the idea, in 1999 after Israel had left Bethlehem, that Christians should become dhimmis, second-class citizens "protected" by a majority Muslim administration. Its an easy search to uncover multiple Christian tales of persecution by Muslims in Bethlehem. Bethlehem (Photo by David Case CC BY-SA 3.0 license Why should they treat Christians better than Jews? Bethlehem became a hotbed of Palestinian terror. Multiple deadly attacks were launched from Bethlehem against Jews in Jerusalem and Kiriat Araba. In 2002, when the IDF moved in to arrest the perpetrators of one particularly deadly attack, the terrorists took over the St. Marys Church, held priests and nuns at gunpoint, and used the sanctuary of the church to open fire on the soldiers. The Israeli soldiers did not return fire and negotiated the safe release of the Christians. By Christmas 2005, one Italian blogger wrote, The Mayor of Bethlehem is Christian, but it is Hamas thats in charge. Threats, physical attacks, and extortion drove Christians out of their holy town. Their businesses and homes are now occupied by incoming Palestinians. The Kairos lie alleges that Christians fled because of Israeli checkpoints, but these checkpoints didnt prevent thousands of Arab Muslims from entering the town to usurp the homes and businesses of departing Christians. This is one fact that the two Archbishops failed to address this Christmas. This Christian persecution has been repeated in the Gaza Strip ever since Hamas usurped power in Gaza during the Palestinian civil war between this Islamic terror group and Fatah. One result of the Hamas takeover has been that Arab Christians have fled the Gaza Strip, some finding shelter in Israel. In short. Where Israel handed control over to the Palestinians one direct result has been that Christians inevitably fled. Where Israel retained control, the Christian population increased, prospered, and was protected. This is the truth about Christianity in the Holy Land this Christmas. Barry Shaw, Senior Associate at the Israel Institute for Strategic Studies. To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. Currently, Chris Noth is being eaten alive in the public forum based upon allegations that he sexually assaulted women many years (even decades) ago. Without determining whether those claims are true or not, one can still be disturbed by the fact that celebrity attorney Gloria Allred is insisting that he take a political stand on the statute of limitations for rape claims in New York if he wishes to prove his innocence. Were all familiar with the horror show that was Brett Kavanaughs Supreme Court nomination. Brett was falsely accused of sexual assault by four women. The most famous was Christine Blasey Ford, a woman who could give Jussie Smollett lessons in deceitfulness. Debbie Ramirez said she had gaps in her memory and had to ponder for six days before being confident that she remembered Brett exposing himself at a party decades ago. Later she entirely recanted her story. Julie Swetnick claimed to have attended several parties where Brett was in charge of gang-raping girls, a story so absurd it didnt even begin to hold up. Judy Munro-Leighton outright admitted she made a false accusation to get attention. Brett was lucky in that President Trump strongly supported him. He vigorously defended himself, as well, with documents that proved Ford was lying. Brett Kavanaugh weathered his false accusation and came out stronger. Chris Noth may not be so lucky. To be clear, I am not saying that Chris Noth is innocent of the sexual assault claims leveled against him. He admits to encounters with the women who have come forward after many years to accuse him. He claims the encounters were consensual. Perceptions differ. It is entirely possible that Chris traumatized and assaulted these women. It is also entirely possible that the women are lying their heads off. It has become a given in our society that women can accuse men of misconduct, even misconduct that occurred decades ago. Women dont have to provide evidence for their allegations. They tell their story and men suffer punishments with no chance to defend themselves. To a certain segment of our population, this is extremely gratifying. In Chris Noths case, there may be no way to know what really happened. However, some disturbing new developments have emerged. A woman named Lisa Gentile has come forward to accuse Chris of sexual assault. Image: Chris Noth. YouTube screen grab. Gentile claims the assault occurred in her apartment, where her roommate was asleep in the bedroom. Gentile alleges some forceful petting that alarmed her, but she did not scream to wake up her roommate. Gentile does claim she told the roommate what happened after she woke up, but apparently what happened included Gentile telling Chris no, after which he left the apartment without further incident. What troubles me about Gentiles story is that her lawyer, Gloria Allred, has issued a statement that calls for the state of New York to alter the statute of limitations using the Adult Survivors Act (ASA). The change would allow looking at allegations that fall outside the statute of limitations. Whether or not this is a worthy cause, I dont see what bearing the ASA has on Gentiles specific accusation. What is especially chilling is Allreds saying that she urges Chris Noth to speak out in support of the New York Adult Survivors Act. He has asserted in a statement that everything he did with those who have accused him was consensual... If that is true, then he should support the ASA so that the accusers allegations can be resolved in a court of law rather than in a court of public opinion. It sounds like Allred is saying the only way for Chris to prove his innocence is to join forces with women who want to accuse men decades later of crimes that may or may not have happened, all without evidence. Whatever happened to due process? Whatever happened to the right of the accused to face his accuser in a court of law? There was a time when any black man accused of so much as looking at a white woman was lynched. Now the net seems to have widened. Any man is at risk of accusation and lynching. The mob no longer uses rope, but keyboards. Men are not beaten to death or left dangling from trees. Instead, their reputations are destroyed, their livelihoods are taken away, and they live under a cloud of public shame. I do not say the women are always lying, but I do think its about time we get past the punishment first and ask questions never mentality that is governing rape accusations today, particularly when it comes to prominent men who have fame, money, and political influence. Pandra Selivanov is the author of The Pardon, a story of forgiveness based on the thief on the cross in the Bible. To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. Recently, three US Army pensioners took to a fainting couch while even perhaps symbolically clutching their pearls to issue a dire warning about the 2024 election: In short: We are chilled to our bones at the thought of a coup succeeding next time. The insightful Victor David Hanson nailed such a thumb sucking article; The column seemed strangely timed to coincide with a storm of recent Democratic talking points that a re-elected Trump, or even a Republican sweep of the 2022 midterms, would spell a virtual end of democracy. In fact, one quip about such Democrat coup porn is it gives porn a bad name. The other more salient point was a statement made by my often co-author Robbin Laird when he correctly pointed out then when writing about any future events a bit of humility is called for, Not a single person in America in 2019 could have predicted the events of 2020 However, for the 2022 election, there is solid evolving hard data that America is soon facing a great Christmas present. A record number of veterans, from all services, is trying to enter our real revolutionary political process: the 2022 mid-term elections. To give credit to the Democrat party, in the 2018 mid-term, they very astutely focused some effort of recruiting military veterans to stand for a political office, mostly the US Congress. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee leaders have already met with 255 potential candidates across 64 districts, convinced that the shifting political environment has opened new opportunities that theyll chase in next years midterms. In the great ebb and flow of political parties capturing the good ideas of their opposition Politico comments on current Republican 2022 efforts: Republicans draft veteran candidates to reclaim House majority. The GOP is borrowing a page from Democrats' 2018 playbook. (snip) Jen Kiggans, a former Navy pilot who now serves as a Virginia state senator and nurse practitioner, is expected to formally launch a run next week against Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria in the Tidewater region. Harold Earls IV, a retired Army captain who summited Mt. Everest and led the elite unit that guards the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery, just announced a run in suburban Atlanta. And in the Orlando area, Cory Mills, an Army Bronze Star recipient who survived two bombings in the Middle East, is already running against Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.). Cory Mills (photo courtesy millsforflorida.com) I have found most often that, after active duty, a veteran is a veteran is a veteran. In fact, since 9/11 a touchstone of service has been forged and a generation bonded. Some will stay in uniform; others will leave, but all have imprinted memories for a lifetime. However, the biggest surprise I suggest is this generation is not monolithic in thought or deed. They will be Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. But once empowered in the US Congress and Senate they will all have deeply held well-earned insights on how to achieve successful congressional oversight of the executive branch with tough but fair applications of the sunlight of disinfectant. Such probing, not currently being done by Speaker Pelosi and Senator Schumer, can take place after 2022, fostered by the example of those who put their lives on the line it can take place on both sides of the aisle and both sides of Capitol Hill. There is a very intellectually brave combat Marine LtCol Stuart Scheller USMC who called for accountability. Hopefully, he soon will be released into civilian status with full First Amendment rights to continue his noble quest to hold senior officers responsible for the end game debacle of the Afghan War. Now imagine many men and women with the intellectual courage and combat experience of Lt. Col Scheller, combat vets all, soon to be elected to office. Enough with one-party rule. It's to be hoped that my fellow veterans will be a large part of a red wave Republican tsunami. Once given power by their fellow Americans they can then use the famous US Constitution Speech and Debate Clause, which empowers those in Congress or the Senate to fire away at lies, cant and general BS presented by the current leadership of the Department of Defense. And even better they can also drill down on significant mistakes often made by the Department of Veterans affairs. Now that can be a real revolution created within our constitutionally ordained ballot box, peaceful civil war. It will change everything in getting away from the current one-party rule of a Democrat-controlled White House, House of Representatives, and US Senate, along with the most partisan in-the-tank media in American history. However, whatever a veteran does, big or small, every American should know this Christmas that these men and women have a well-developed instinct for the truth. They are untouchable on that front. So unscrupulous politicians, scam artists, hustlers, and parasites, be on notice. If a man or a woman can face down the Taliban, come at them at your peril. To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. Thomas Hobbes is credited with originating the final straw aphorism during a theological debate in the late 1600s. Speaking of the additive effects of many small causes, the last feather may be said to break the Horses back. This became the straw that broke the camels back, referring to a final small action that caused an effect out of proportion to this one straw if prior straws are not considered. The omicron variant of COVID-19 is the final straw that has destroyed any vestige of public credibility in the Democrat party. While 73 percent of new COVID cases are omicron, only one American has died with this variant. That man had underlying pre-existing medical issues and was in the high-risk group. Furthermore, we only know he died with the viral antigen present. Autopsy results have not been released to explain whether he died with or because of the virus. The next fact comes from South Africa where omicron was first reported. Their experience, admittedly short-term, shows that omicron is behaving predictably. As COVID adapts, from alpha to omicron and thus presumably 13 mutations, the virus becomes more contagious but less dangerous medically. In other words, omicron is not a significant medical hazard. So, when President Biden warns of a winter of illness and death, dont believe him. The credibility of the Biden administration is completely gone, destroyed by its own hands, through deceit, underhanded tricks to shut down medical debate, overt power grabs, and worst by far, suppression of constitutional freedoms. A New York Post poll (12/15/21) concluded that nearly two-thirds of Americans doubt they can trust Biden. While progressives are temporarily in control of the Democrat party, the White House, and both houses of Congress, they are trying to remake the U.S. along socialist lines. The dictatorial handling of COVID is consistent with a totalitarian approach: ignore or remake the constitution, reject the rule of law, and restore tyranny. With parents around the nation loudly rejecting CRT; with workers asserting their right to choose even when risking their pensions; with local groups voting for constitutional leadership; by SEALS refusing orders to vaccinate; and 900,000 people publicly repudiating Washingtons false COVID narrative by signing the Great Barrington Declaration, Americans at the grassroots level Just Say no to progressive-Democrat-socialist-communist policies. Deane Waldman, M.D., MBA is Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics, Pathology, and Decision Science; former director of the Center for Healthcare Policy at Texas Public Policy Foundation; former Director, New Mexico Health Insurance Exchange; and author of the multi-award-winning book Curing the Cancer in U.S. Healthcare: StatesCare and Market-Based Medicine. Image: Pixabay To comment, you can find the MeWe post for this article here. An armed man has been arrested after breaking into the grounds of Windsor Castle on Christmas Day. Officers from Thames Valley Police (TVP) and the Metropolitan Police responded to a security breach at around 8.30am within the grounds of the castle in Berkshire where the Queen is in residence. TVP said a 19-year-old man from Southampton was arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall arrive to attend the Christmas Day morning church service at St Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle (Jonathan Brady/PA) The man, who is in custody, was not in any buildings on the estate and security processes were triggered within moments of the man entering the grounds, police said. The Queen is spending Christmas Day at Windsor Castle and was expected to have lunch with the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex. Charles, Camilla, Edward and Sophie, along with their children Lady Louise and James, Viscount Severn, attended a church service in St Georges Chapel, in the castle grounds, at 10.45am on Christmas morning. TVP Superintendent Rebecca Mears said: An investigation is ongoing following this incident and we are working with colleagues from the Metropolitan police. The man has been arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody at this time. We can confirm security processes were triggered within moments of the man entering the grounds and he did not enter any buildings. Members of the royal family have been informed about the incident. We do not believe there is a wider danger to the public. A British estate agent was shot dead in a vehicle in the US, two days before Christmas, allegedly by an evicted tenant. Sara Trost, 40, of Parkland, Florida, was found by officers in the drivers seat suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, Coral Springs Police Department said. Ms Trost was from Southend, Essex, and was the mother of a toddler, according to reports. Active scene involving a shooting with one victim in the area of Creekside Drive and 441. Detectives are conducting an investigation. No immediate threat to that area. pic.twitter.com/gmEEbZvdjv Coral Springs Police (@CoralSpringsPD) December 23, 2021 A statement from detectives said: Despite immediate medical treatment, the driver succumbed to her injuries on scene and was pronounced dead. Coral Springs Police Department detectives conducted an immediate investigation and detained an individual in connection with the shooting. At this time there are no additional suspects being sought, nor is there a threat to the community. Crimes against persons unit are actively investigating the incident. The victim was waiting to show a property when she was shot. A resident, Donna Smith, suggested to local TV station WPLG Local 10 that the shooter may have been a disgruntled tenant who was recently evicted from the home. An updated report from detectives said 51-year-old Raymond Wesley Reese was charged with first degree murder on Christmas Eve. The Times newspaper reported that she had shared opinions on social media about the Parkland high school shooting, in Florida in 2018. Parents in Scotland have another reason to celebrate this Christmas as they welcome some festive new additions. The countrys first Christmas baby was Sophia Helena Coull, who was born just one minute past midnight on December 25. Say hello to Scotland's first Christmas baby! Born today at 00:01 at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital, Sophia Helena Coull weighed in at 7lb 2oz. to Mum Lenka and dad Russell from Kingseat in Aberdeenshire. Happy Birthday, Sophia! pic.twitter.com/46s8SCfGUp NHS Grampian (@NHSGrampian) December 25, 2021 Baby Sophia, who entered the world weighing 7lb 2oz, was born at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital to proud parents Lenka and Russell, from Kingseat in Aberdeenshire. Oliver Fox was soon after. At 12.45am he was delivered at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley, to Emma Geary and partner Ben Fox, weighing 7lbs 2oz. Welcoming her son into the world, 20-year-old Ms Geary, from Alexandria, said: We are over the moon to have our wee Christmas present. He is perfect and the best present we could have asked for. We honestly cant wait to see who he becomes. Newborn Oliver Fox with parents Emma Geary and Ben Fox (NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde) Leo Anderson was not far behind, arriving just after 1am at Crosshouse Hospital in Kilmarnock. Leo, whose parents Alannah Anderson and Christopher Jardine live in Ayr, weighed 8lbs 13oz. Santa Claus made a special delivery to Ayrshire Maternity Unit. Ayrshire's first baby born was a son for Alannah Anderson and Christopher Jardine from Ayr. Leo Anderson arrived at 1.01am, and weighed in at 8lb 13 oz. Leo is their first child. Welcome to the world, Leo! pic.twitter.com/WT2TkdT8Sq NHS Ayrshire & Arran (@NHSaaa) December 25, 2021 At the same hospital, Natalie Cairns gave birth to her second child, who is yet to be named, at 3.06am, weighing 5lbs 3oz. Hayley Quinn, from Irvine, also welcomed her first child Cara Matilda Crawley arrived at 4.58am weighing 8lbs 13oz. Leo was quickly followed by Sophie Elizabeth Bird, who was born at St Johns Hospital in Livingston at 1.45am to Karen, 37, and Craig Bird, 39, who are from Linlithgow. Skye Rose Irving was born at St Johns Hospital in Livingston (NHS Lothian/PA) Within 45 minutes, Skye Rose Irving was born to parents Lisa Playfair, 35, and Adam Irving, 30, at St Johns, weighing 7lbs 2oz. NHS Lothians Birth Centre, at the Simpsons Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, also welcomed a new baby into the world in the early hours. Baby Otames parents are yet to decide on a name (NHS Lothian/PA) But Edinburgh-based parents Elohu Egwowa, 28, and Oghenekome Otame, 31, are still wrangling over their new sons name. At the Forth Valley Royal Hospital, in Larbet, so far they have delivered four Christmas babies. Cara Matilda Crawley arrived at 4.58am, and weighed 8lb 13oz (NHS Ayrshire and Arran/PA) Sonnie Findlater was welcomed into the world, weighing 9lbs 1oz, at 1.52am, to parents William and Jennifer and three-year-old sister April-Kay, of Stirling. And at 7.22am midwives at the hospital welcomed Kol Jenkins, weighing 8lbs and 3oz. Another woman has said she was sexually assaulted by Chris Noth, the Law & Order and Sex and the City star, becoming the fourth woman this month to make allegations against him. The woman, Lisa Gentile, a singer-songwriter who came forward Thursday to allege that Noth assaulted her in 2002, is the first of his accusers to name herself publicly. The Hollywood Reporter last week published the accounts of two anonymous women who accused of Noth of sexual assault in incidents alleged to have happened in 2004 and 2015. Noth denied the allegations from the Hollywood Reporter story last week. The encounters were consensual, he said. Its difficult not to question the timing of these stories coming out. I dont know for certain why they are surfacing now, but I do know this: I did not assault these women. Another unnamed woman who spoke to The Daily Beast the day after the Hollywood Reporter article said Noth assaulted her in 2010; Noth denied her account through a spokesperson, calling it a complete fabrication. NBC News has not independently spoken to any of the anonymous accusers and does not know their identities. Representatives for Noth did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Gentiles allegations Thursday. Gentile said she first met Noth at Don Marino, a New York restaurant, in 1998 and struck up a conversation-based friendship over the years. Gentile said at a news conference Thursday that one night in 2002, Noth offered her a ride home. Gentile alleges that when she and Noth were in her apartment, he groped her, tried to remove her clothing and tried to push her hands toward his groin. She said he became extremely angry and stormed out after she said, No, I dont want this! She said Noth called her the next day and warned me that if I ever told a soul about what happened the night before, that he would ruin my career, that I would never sing again, and he would blacklist me in the business. Lisa Gentile said she was sexually assaulted by the actor Chris Noth. (via Zoom) I was afraid to come forward because of Mr. Noths power and his threats to ruin my career, Gentile said. Gloria Allred, Gentiles attorney, said Thursday that the New York state statute of limitations prevents her client from taking legal action. The courthouse door is slammed shut in her face, denying her an opportunity to assert and vindicate her rights in a court of law because of the statute of limitations, Allred said. Gentile said, I feel that we should have our day in court to seek to hold Mr. Noth accountable for what he did. Allred, a veteran litigator, called upon Noths former Sex and the City co-stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis to speak out in support of a bill before the New York Legislature to change the statute of limitations. Lisa and I appreciate their words of support for the previous accusers of Chris Noth, and now, we urge Sarah, Cynthia and Kristin to take action to speak out in support of the Adult Survivors Act, as Lisa and I are doing today, Allred said. Their endorsement of this act will be important to its passage when the New York Legislature begins its session next month. Allred also issued something of a political challenge to the Legislature and the governor. We also call on the first woman governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, to include the passage of the ASA in her State of the State address in the Assembly chamber when she delivers her remarks in less than two weeks on January 5, 2022, Allred said. We also urge Chris Noth to speak out in support of the New York Adult Survivors Act, she said. He has asserted in his statement that everything he did with those who have accused him was consensual. If that is true, then he should support the ASA so that the accusers allegations can be resolved in a court of law, rather than in a court of public opinion. Allred said Gentile found it upsetting to see him in the news recently, echoing the sentiments of some of Noths other accusers. Definitely, it was triggering for Lisa, she said. Following the initial allegations last week, Peloton pulled an ad featuring Noth, he was dropped from the cast of the CBS series The Equalizer, and a multimillion-dollar deal involving his tequila company fell through. This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. Getting festive! Ashley Iaconetti and Jared Haibon gave Us Weekly an exclusive tour of the holiday decorations at their new coffee shop, Audreys, and revealed how they honored Bachelor Nation at the eatery. Read article You might recognize this guy. We use our friend Ben Higgins coffee, Haibon, 33, told Us while showing off a sign with the former Bachelors face on it near the shops front door. Its called Generous Coffee, its a nonprofit. Its incredible coffee. Its great tasting coffee and its a great cause. The couple, who are expecting their first child together, have a Bachelor-themed custom sign above the stores fireplace as well. Monday nights we drink wine and watch The Bachelor, it reads. Tuesday mornings we drink coffee and recap. Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock The duo, who met on season 2 of Bachelor in Paradise and tied the knot four years later, explained that their Rhode Island coffee shop and lounge is named after Iaconettis mom. It also features a giant mural done by one of their friends that pulls together all of the things they love: Haibons home state of Rhode Island, The Bachelor, coffee and their family. When it comes to Christmas, the pair amped up the holiday decorations to make their place of work feel more welcoming. We love this place for Christmas time because it came with this stone fireplace, which we put a little wreath on, Iaconetti, 33, told Us. I went a little crazy at Home Goods. The space, which features another fireplace by the reading nook, was decked out with candle center pieces, a mini Christmas tree and lots of poinsettias. Read article Were a little concerned that were starting off the place so strong, because the Christmas decor makes it so warm, the Almost Famous podcast cohost joked. Haibon also had a say in how they would deck the coffee shop halls this year, with the Virginia native saying that her husband was put in charge of the Christmas village. I really wanted Snoopy, but Ashley wouldnt allow me, the Help I Suck at Dating podcast cohost told Us. The reason we decorated like this, I really envisioned people coming in first thing in the morning, reading the newspaper. It feels like a living room. That was the goal. Read article The entrepreneurs previously put their new business venture on display in their Christmas card. The Bachelor in Paradise alums posed in front of the shops stone fireplace with their dog, Lois, to celebrate their last holiday season without a baby in the family. (The pair announced the Bachelor Winter Games alums pregnancy in July.) We tell Lois when she goes down to our new coffee shop/bar that shes going to work and, man, did she understand the assignment, Iaconetti wrote via Instagram in November, debuting the Minted card. We wanted to include all our babies in our holiday card: Lois, Audreys, and the one in my belly. To see Iaconetti and Haibons fully-decorated cafe in Rhode Island and a sneak peek at the festive holiday-themed drinks they serve watch the exclusive video above! People wait for COVID-19 shots outside the Glendale Galleria at a clinic run with the Armenian American Medical Society. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) In Armenia, it is estimated that less than a quarter of residents had gotten vaccinated against COVID-19 as of mid-December, even as the country has drawn vaccine tourists. The numbers are not nearly as stark in Glendale and Los Angeles neighborhoods such as Little Armenia, Thai Town and Sunland-Tujunga areas that are hubs for one of the biggest populations of Armenians outside Armenia. But they have lagged behind the Los Angeles County average, troubling some community leaders and physicians who fear that enduring distrust of government stemming from genocide, upheaval and a precarious history in other countries has made it harder to sway some Armenian Americans to get the shots. For immigrants from the former Soviet Union, "there wasn't any trust or credibility toward government," said Assemblyman Adrin Nazarian (D-North Hollywood). Other Armenians who came from countries including Iran, Lebanon and Syria, he said, had faced "civil wars, internal strife, fear of retribution." All of that has fostered "a lot of concern towards just blanketly accepting what government is telling them," Nazarian said. It is unclear whether vaccine hesitancy or refusal is more pronounced among Armenian Americans than any other group in L.A. County, since public health officials do not track them as a group. But Nazarian called attention to the numbers in areas like Little Armenia, where only56.6% of eligible residents were fully vaccinated as of mid-December, compared with 70% countywide. In Glendale, where more than a third of residents are estimated to be of Armenian descent, the vaccination rate was 62.1% Vic Keossian said that in Glendale parks, she has heard elderly men playing chess repeat the same doubts that have dogged public health outreach all over the county. "They have all this distrust in the vaccine," Keossian said. And false claims about the shots causing infertility have had a particular resonance in her community, she said, because of the trauma reverberating through its history. "Armenians just have a different connection, I think, to fertility after going through genocide," said Keossian, who works for the Armenian Relief Society of Western USA as program supervisor for a county COVID-19 community equity fund. "It's something that's really ingrained in us." Vaccination rates have been extremely low in Armenia itself. In early November, only 12% of adults there were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a presentation by the country's health ministry. The numbers have ticked up significantly since then, reaching an estimated 32% of Armenian adults as of mid-December, but have remained lower than in neighboring countries, according to statistics tracked by Our World in Data. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, Armenians had lower levels of confidence in vaccines than most of the European region, according to a study published in the Lancet. Armenian American Medical Society board member Dr. Vicken Sepilian said that in Armenia, such attitudes had been exacerbated by problems with the AstraZeneca vaccine rollout. For people who rely heavily on news and social media from Armenia, "all of this has trickled down to our Armenian communities here," Sepilian said. In the U.S., "you're seeing this among the people who have the most direct links to Armenia," said Armine Lulejian, a clinical assistant professor of population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.Among Armenian Americans who have emigrated from Armenia, "they have this backlash against anything 'Big Brother'-ly since the collapse of the Soviet Union. If the government is saying it, they're against it." Eric Hacopian, a political consultant for L.A. candidates who is currently residing in Armenia, also faulted "a feeder loop of misinformation" that can be especially potent among immigrants coming from the former Soviet Union or much of the Middle East who see little credibility in state authorities or the media. "Social media keeps everyone in touch with their home countries," Hacopian said. "They'll keep in touch with the good, and they'll keep in touch with the bad." Some believe that the devastation from the war last year between Armenia and Azerbaijan is also at play. For many Armenian Americans, "I feel like COVID took a back seat because of what the people went through," said Talar Aintablian, director of operations for the social services division of the Armenian Relief Society of Western USA. In Glendale, the vaccination numbers have notably lagged among seniors, with75.4% being fully vaccinated as of mid-December, compared with 88%of seniors across L.A. County. Glendale city officials said they have worked with the county to set up vaccination clinics at trusted sites including St. Mary's Armenian Apostolic Church and have recorded videos on the COVID-19 vaccines with physicians known to the Armenian community. Among them is Dr. Haig Aintablian, a UCLA emergency medicine doctor who has gotten vaccinated publicly and spoken on Armenian-language television about it. The physician said he is blunt about the suffering and death he has seen from the virus. "More needs to come from Armenians that have seen COVID," he said. But Armenian American residents who have suffered from the virus sometimes fear talking about the issue, he said, "because it'll come off as vaccine pressure." The Glendale Public Library has also hosted online trainings for people to become "vaccine influencers," but only one person attended the Armenian-language training and disappeared at the end without asking any questions, said Evelyn Aghekian, a library assistant who ran the presentation. Aghekian said that when she sat with Armenian-language fliers for the event outside the Glendale Galleria, some people welcomed the outreach, but for others, "they come, they pick up the paper, they look at me, shake their head and walk away." "But they took the paper," she added. In November, Nazarian, the assemblyman, helped host an event on YouTube featuring Armenian American physicians talking about the COVID-19 vaccines. The trio of doctors countered common misinformation about the shots and discussed why vaccines are still recommended for people who have previously been infected with COVID-19. During the live event, some viewers accused Nazarian and the doctors of being traitors. One person commented in the online chat that they were "hiding the truth from your own community," adding an Armenian term that roughly translates to "backstabbers." At one point, Nazarian asked the panelists to respond to a statement by one commenter about the vaccines causing cancer. Dr. Jack Der-Sarkissian, a family medicine doctor with Kaiser Permanente, replied, "I'm not sure where the basis of that concern would be." He explained that cancer is a form of damage to DNA and reiterated that the COVID-19 vaccines do not alter recipients' DNA. Still, Der-Sarkissian said, "I would never dismiss a concern. I think that's what science is." Der-Sarkissian said the worries he has heard from Armenian American patients aren't radically different than others, but he has been surprised that vaccine hesitancy "seems to have united the community in ways that I had not anticipated." The doctor said the reaction seemed to be shaped by the recent war, which he described as a once-in-a-generation loss and experience ofperceivedabandonment that "deeply impacted not just people in Armenia but the people here in Los Angeles." Nazarian also pointed to grief and trauma from the war. "You had the world stay completely silent as this small little country was fending for itself," he said. For a community that waited decades for a sitting U.S. president to acknowledge the Armenian genocide, that sense of international indifference "just leant itself to further distrust." George Lousparian, a construction contractor who lives in Sunland-Tujunga, said that many people in his culture distrust government from the experiences that they or their families have had in Turkey, Iran or under Soviet regimes. But he said his own concerns about the vaccines stem from shifting messages from U.S. government officials. He cited changing guidance early in the pandemic about masks, as well as emerging information about waning protection from the vaccine and the need for booster shots. "With so many inconsistencies, how do I trust it?" he asked. "My skepticism is not because of being Armenian or not. I make decisions based on what data is out there." L.A. County public health officials said that since May, more than a dozen agencies partnering with the county had done outreach to more than 8,300 Armenian American residents about the vaccines. The Armenian American Medical Society teamed up with Glendale and the county to provide health information at vaccination clinics outside the Glendale Galleria. The Armenian Relief Society of Western USA has also hosted vaccination clinics at its Glendale headquarters, sent Armenian-speaking volunteers to vaccination clinics, translated public health information into Armenian, and canvassed parks and other gathering places in Glendale ZIP Codes with especially low vaccination rates. "Sometimes people are willing to hear what we have to say," said Suzy Petrossian, project coordinator with ARS Western USA. "And other times we get a lot of, 'No, we don't want it, this is all made up.'" Some simply say "Kuh mtatzem" or "I'll think about it." Case manager Ani Tangyan lets them know she'll be there if they ever want help getting the shots. "After one month, two months, they are coming" back, Tangyan said, and they ask, "Where is that girl?" Times staff writer Hamlet Nalbandyan contributed to this report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Estimad@ Companer@, en mi escrito anterior, Parte 84, recomende, entre otras cosas, el uso en el campo de las tecnologias THAI(Toe to Heel Air Injection) y THAI-CAPRI(Toe to Heel Air Injection - CAtalytic upgrading PRocess In-situ). Por eso, voy a presentarle lo que se ha hecho experimentalmente con estas tecnologias. En primer lugar, lo novedoso de las mismas hara levantar las cejas a mas de uno, sobre todo a los escepticos y que quieren que las cosas sigan haciendose como hasta ahora; en segundo lugar, mi reflexion sobre el hecho indiscutible de que la mayoria de los adelantos cientificos e industriales primero funcionan en el computador y no es distinto con estas tecnologias; en tercer lugar los beneficios tanto operacionales como economicos en comparacion con otras tecnologias termicas de recuperacion de Bitumen, de petroleo pesado y petroleo extrapesado; en cuarto lugar recomendaciones sobre los beneficios de las tecnologias; en quinto lugar espero que, a traves de Ustedes, llegue este mensaje a SUPERBIGOTE que, creo, es el unico que puede innovar en la Industria de los Hidrocarburos haciendo que estas tecnologias se apliquen en Venezuela. Si Superbigote no interviene va a ser muy dificil explotar las grandes reservas de petroleo de La Faja Petrolifera del Orinoco Hugo Chavez Frias y, en sexto lugar, un anexo de un articulo, en ingles, que no solo detalla los avances de THAI y THAI-CAPRI sino que, en su bibliografia, abundan articulos hechos por diferentes autores de diferentes partes del mundo que para el interesado lo lleva desde los primeros ensayos desde hace mas de 15 anos. No faltaran quienes digan que como son tecnologias nuevas y no probadas ni tecnicamente ni financieramente, no es bueno arriesgarse porque se corre mucho riesgo. Quiero hacerle unas cuantas preguntas sobre los experimentos que se hacen no solo en la Industria de los Hidrocarburos, sino en otras disciplinas: Donde vuelan, por primera vez, los aviones? Si, vuelan en los modelos de diseno y funcionamiento en programas computarizados. Hace mucho tiempo que ya no se hacen diseno en papel de los nuevos aviones, todo se hace en computadoras. Donde se disenan y prueban, por primera vez, las moleculas de nuevos productos farmaceuticos como las vacunas para el coronavirus? Si, en modelos computarizados. Pero no solo eso, sino que todos estos procesos se basan en NANOTECNOLOGIAS, es decir, se trabaja en el mundo atomico y sub atomico. Puedo, seguir enumerando mas productos que se elaboran, primero, en modelos computarizados. El uso de los modelos computarizados tampoco empiezan con THAI Y THAI-CAPRI, desde hace anos, en el mundo petrolero, tambien, se han estado usando los modelos computarizados. Es bastante comun que un Balance de Materiales y modelos de comportamiento de yacimientos de hidrocarburos se hace con modelos computarizados. Seria imposible hacerlo a mano o con una calculadora. De la misma manera los modelos de caracterizacion de yacimientos, tambien, desde hace mucho tiempo, se hacen con modelos computarizados. Por que hago las referencias anteriores? Porque tanto los aviones, como las moleculas de nuevos farmacos y los modelos de yacimientos de hidrocarburos primero funcionan en el computador y despues, con toda seguridad, funcionan en el mundo real. De la misma manera, pasa con todos los modelos computarizados y experimentales en el laboratorio que se han desarrollado para probar las tecnologias THAI Y THAI-CAPRI. Ojala, algunos de Ustedes tengan la oportunidad de adentrarse, un poco mas, en los beneficios de estas tecnologias, que mas adelante enumerare y las mas de 40 referencias bibliograficas que encontraran en el articulo que anexare a este articulo, y puedan llegar a presentarlos a SUPERBIGOTE. Sin duda, si se quiere se puede. Puesto de otra manera, espero que algunos de Ustedes se "enamoren" de estas tecnologias. De mi parte, seguire usando el mismo canal que he estado usando para la publicacion de mis mas de 100 articulos relacionados con la Industria de Hidrocarburos de Venezuela esperando, tambien, que le llegue a SUPERBIGOTE. ALGUNAS RECOMENDACIONES Y BENEFICIOS DE LAS TECNOLOGIAS THAI Y THAI-CAPRI En el laboratorio se ha logrado el mejoramiento del BITUMEN de las Oil Sands de Canada de 7 grados API a un petroleos mejorado entre 17,9 y 24 grados API dependiendo de las presiones con las que se realice la inyeccion de aire. Esto mismo pasaria con el petroleo extrapesado de La Faja. Estos resultados harian innecesarios dos cosas: una, la construccion de mejoradores adicionales y dos, la dilucion de los petroleos producidos para su transporte y comercializacion de las mezclas resultantes. Eliminacion de azufre, nitrogeno, metales pesados, etc, lo que hace mas comercializable el petroleo mejorado obtenido. Disminucion, en gran medida, el uso de agua dulce. Esto permite el mantenimiento casi en condiciones inalterables los acuiferos presentes en los estratos superiores, en el caso de Venezuela, donde se almacena el petroleo extrapesado de La Faja. Sabemos que otros metodos de produccion de Bitumenes y petroleos extrapesados como la inyeccion de vapor requiere del uso de grandes cantidades de agua dulce, poniendo, por eso, en peligro el mantenimiento de los acuiferos tan necesarios para consumo humano y para la produccion de alimentos con la agricultura. Eliminacion de subproductos como el coque y el azufre, productos de dificil colocacion en el mercado; ademas de generar problemas ambientales por las grandes acumulaciones como se pueden ver en Jose, estado Anzoategui. Poca o ninguna necesidad de usar gas natural, ya que no se requiere en el proceso de combustion. No asi los otros metodos que se usan para producir petroleos extrapesados. Factores de recobro del petroleo, originalmente en sitio, en el orden del 85 por ciento a diferencia con el metodo, actualmente, usado en Venezuela que esta en el orden del 10 por ciento. Disminucion de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero ya que elimina estos en la produccion de petroleos extrapesado asi como los que se generan, tambien, en los procesos de mejoramiento. El gasto de energia en el uso de THAI Y THAI-CAPRI es infinitamente menor a lo que se gasta con los otros metodos termicos que consumen casi la mitad de la energia que se obtiene del barril final en la produccion del mismo. A diferencia de otros metodos termicos que requieren altos espesores de lo estaros petroliferos, esta tecnologia no tiene limitacion en espesores. Recalco que entre 20 y 30 por ciento de las reservas de La Faja estan contenidos en arenas con espesores de menos de 30 pies. Es probable que el uso de estas tecnologias esten protegidas por patentes de sus creadores. Sin embargo, eso no debe ser obstaculo para que el estado venezolano negocie con sus propietarios y lograr acuerdos en los que ambas partes ganen. La infraestructura para la aplicacion de la tecnologia tanto en la superficie como en los pozos esta disponible, ya sean los compresores, tuberias de los pozos y el aire, el cual es gratis y ciertas combinaciones de catalizadores con algun tipo de patente propietaria. Pero me atrevo a asegurar que los componentes de los catalizadores bien podrian estar disponibles en Venezuela. Sin duda los costos de produccion por barril del petroleo mejorado en el yacimiento bajaran significativamente comparado con otros metodos. Se eliminan los costos asociados al Diluyente ya que no solo NO se comprara ni se pagara por su transporte desde el exterior sino que no se incurrira en los costos asociados a su manejo dentro del pais y su transporte e infraestructura en los pozos. No habra costos asociados a la generacion de vapor de alta calidad en caso que se decidiera usar algun otro metodo termico de recuperacion. No se usara gas en el proceso que, por el contrario, se requiere en otros metodos termicos. Se eliminan no solo la inversion en nuevos mejoradores cuya exigencia de capital es enorme (entre 20 y 30 mil millones de dolares por mejorador) asi como los costos de su mantenimiento. Al mismo tiempo se eliminarian los costos de mejoramiento por barril. No habra costos de manejo de subproductos como coque, metales pesados, nitrogeno, azufre, etc. ya que estos se quedaran en el subsuelo. Para asociarnos, ademas de los creadores de las tecnologias, debemos hacerlo para la aplicacion de las mismas con nuestros, digo Yo, dos socios estrategicos mas importantes, como son Rusia y China, cuyos acuerdos, recomiendo, que se haga y de gobierno a gobierno. Aqui Superbigote tiene que hablar nada mas y nada menos que con Xi Jinping y Vladimir Putin. Apreciado Lector, espero que "se le haya hecho agua la boca" para apoyar e impulsar el uso de las tecnologias THAI y su variante THAI-CAPRI. Si ese fuera el caso, contribuiran a que Superbigote autorice el uso, en Venezuela, de esas tecnologias. Debemos olvidarnos de esas companiitas de maletin que salen por ahi y que por recomendacion de alguien se le han otorgado algunos contratos, cuyos resultados dejan mucho que desear. Para nadie es un secreto que tenemos algunas puertas cerradas para la explotacion de las grandes reservas de petroleo de La Faja que ya las he senalado en otros de mis escritos. Asi que con THAI y THAI-CAPRI se abre una Gran Puerta de oportunidad no solo para producir nuestro petroleo extrapesado, sino que le dariamos un "portazo" a todas las trabas que se estan oponiendo a que Venezuela siga siendo un pais petrolero por muchos anos mas. No me extranaria que el Presidente haya basado sus comentarios de no depender mas del petroleo y que estamos en vias de una economia posrentistica influenciado por gente de PDVSA que no le encuentra salida eficiente y moderna a la explotacion de La Faja. Soy de la idea de que se le debe dar la importancia que tiene cada sector de nuestra economia, pero eso no debe significar que se deje a un lado o se le rebaje la importancia que tiene y debe seguir teniendo la Industria de los Hidrocarburos de Venezuela. Como SUPERBIGOTE tiene mas poderes que el Presidente, tengo mis esperanzas puestas en El. Si vemos los ejemplos de Canada, Rusia, China. Iran, Arabia Saudita, etc. Tienen una industria petrolera poderosa que provee recursos importantes a sus respectivas economias y, al mismo tiempo, no han dejado de desarrollar otras areas de su economia. Asi que, amigo lector, que no se apodere de Usted el sentimiento de derrota de nuestra Industria de Hidrocarburos. Sigamos echando palante. El contenido del articulo anexo, es solo una muestra de los avances logrados con las tecnologias THAI y THAI-CAPRI y solo es uno de las decenas de articulos y tesis de grado a nivel de master y PhD que demuestran con claridad los origenes y estado actual de esas tecnologias y que estan disponibles en la Internet con solo "buscar en google" "THAI y THAI-CAPRI HEAVY OIL UPGRADING". Espero que, algunos de Ustedes, asi como se han enamorado de otras tecnologias, se enamoren del THAI y THAI-CAPRI y pasen a la historia como los venezolanos que implementaron la tecnologia que ayudo a la explotacion mas eficiente de los 250 mil millones de barriles de reservas probadas de petroleo de La Faja Petrolifera del Orinoco Hugo Chavez. Finalmente, he enviado este articulo a 30 petroleros, incluido Usted, que son los que tengo en mi lista de distribucion. Si Usted tiene su propia lista de petroleros, le agradezco que le haga llegar esta informacion, para asi aumentar la cadena e incrementar la probabilidad que THAI y THAI-CAPRI, encuentren mas "Apostoles" que le puedan llegar a SUPERBIGOTE. Le deseo una Feliz Navidad Edmundo.Salazar@Yandex.com Effect of operating pressure on the performance of THAI-CAPRI in situ combustion and in situ catalytic process for simultaneous thermal and catalytic upgrading of heavy oils and bitumen Muhammad Rabiu Ado a, b, *, Malcolm Greaves c, Sean P. Rigby b a Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, King Faisal University, P.O. Box: 380, Al-Ahsa, 31982, Saudi Arabia b Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK c Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 1 August 2021 Received in revised form 24 September 2021 Accepted 25 September 2021 Available online xxx Keywords: Toe-to-heel air injection (THAI) Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) Reservoir simulation In situ combustion (ISC) Heavy oil/Bitumen/Tar sand In situ catalytic upgrading a b s t r a c t According to the analysis of the 2020 estimates of the International Energy Agency (2020), the world will require up to 770 billion barrels of oil from now to 2040. However, based on the British Petroleum (BP) statistical review of world energy 2020, the world-wide total reserve of the conventional light oil is only 520.2 billion barrels as at the end of 2019. That implies that the remaining 249.8 billion barrels of oil urgently needed to ensure a smooth transition to a decarbonised global energy and economic systems is provided must come from unconventional oils (i.e. heavy oils and bitumen) reserves. But heavy oils and bitumen are very difficult to produce and the current commercial production technologies have poor efficiency and release large quantities of greenhouse gases. Therefore, these resources should ideally be upgraded and produced using technologies that have greener credentials. This is where the energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and self-sustaining THAI-CAPRI coupled in situ combustion and in situ catalytic upgrading process comes in. However, the novel THAI-CAPRI process is trialled only once at field and it has not gained wide recognition due to poor understanding of the optimal design parameters and procedures. Hence, this work reports the first ever results of investigations of the effect of operating pressure on the performance of the THAI-CAPRI process. Two experimental scale numerical models of the process based on Athabasca tar sand properties were run at pressures of 8000 kPa and 500 kPa respectively using CMG STARS. This study has shown that the higher the operating pressure, the larger the API gravity and the higher the cumulative volume of high-quality oil is produced (i.e. a 2300 cm3 of z24 oAPI oil produced at 8000 kPa versus the 2050 cm3 of z17.5 oAPI oil produced at 500 kPa). The study has further shown that despite presence of annular catalyst layer, the THAI-CAPRI process operates stably. However, it is found that a more stable and safer operation of the process can only be achieved at optimal pressure that should lie between 500 kPa and 8000 kPa, especially since at the lower pressure, should the process time be extended, it will not take long before oxygen breakthrough takes place. The simulations have shown in details that at higher pressures, the catalyst bed is easily and rapidly coked and thus the catalyst life will be very short especially during actual field reservoir operations. Since the oil drainage flux into the HP well at field-scale is different from that at laboratory-scale, and at field-scale, the combustion front does not propagate inside the HP well, it will be practically very challenging to regenerate or replace the coke-deactivated annular catalyst layer in actual reservoir operations. Therefore, it is concluded that during field operation designs, an optimum pressure must be selected such that a balance is obtained between the combustion front stability and the degree of catalytic upgrading, and between the catalyst life and its effectiveness. 2021 Chinese Petroleum Society. Publishing services provided by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communication Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/by/4.0/). 1. Introduction * Corresponding author. Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, King Faisal University, P.O. Box: 380, Al-Ahsa, 31982, Saudi Arabia. Based on the latest projections by the International Energy E-mail address: mado@kfu.edu.sa (M.R. Ado). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptlrs.2021.09.010 2096-2495/ 2021 Chinese Petroleum Society. Publishing services provided by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communication Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Please cite this article as: M.R. Ado, M. Greaves and S.P. Rigby, Effect of operating pressure on the performance of THAI-CAPRI in situ combustion and in situ catalytic process for simultaneous thermal and catalytic upgrading of heavy oils and bitumen, Petroleum Research, https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.ptlrs.2021.09.010 Fig. 1. Three-dimensional (3D) diagram of THAI-CAPRI laboratory-scale numerical model control volume with its wells configuration. The annular catalyst layer is shown by the thick yellow lines. Agency (IEA) (2020), the current world-wide energy policies are not in the neighbourhood of those required to achieve full decarbonisation of the global energy and economic systems by the year 2050. In fact, the estimates show that it is highly unlikely that that can be realised even by 2070. Furthermore, based on estimates from the IEA's predictions, if the 2020 corona virus pandemic crisis is brought under control by 2021, the world would need around 770 billion barrels of oil to cater for demand from now to the next two decades (i.e. to year 2040). This is also in order to satisfy the rising demand from the petrochemicals and transportation sectors which do not have any feasible alternatives. However, according to the BP statistical review of world energy 2020 (British Petroleum (BP), 2020), the current global proven reserves of both conventional and unconventional oils as of 2019 total to 1734 billion barrels. However, out of that, the conventional light oil contributes 30% (i.e. 520.2 billion barrels) only (Elahi et al., 2019; Guo et al., 2016; Liu et al., 2019). Putting these into perspective, the remaining 249.8 billion barrels of oil needed to satisfy the surging demand from now to 2040 must come from the unconventional oils (i.e. the heavy oils and bitumen). However, these large quantities of the virtually unexploited unconventional resources are very difficult to produce due to their inherently large content of asphaltic molecules and hence high viscosities which are more than 104 cP (Hein, 2017; Li et al., 2020; Zhang et al., 2019). As a result, upgrading and producing from heavy oils and bitumen reservoirs is highly energy intensive that is largely associated with release of high quantity of greenhouse gases, and is water-intensive which leads to wastewater treatment and disposal problems. However, the current climate change mitigation strategies require that these absolutely needed petroleum resources for smoother transition to a decarbonised global energy and economy must be exploited using technologies that are energy-efficient and environmentally friendly. Thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR) processes, such as steam-based and in-situ-combustion-type processes, have the preceding qualities since the viscosity of heavy oils and bitumen decreases exponentially with increase in temperature. However, relatively speaking, the steam-based processes, such as Steam Flooding (SF), Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) and Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) etc., are shown to have limited applications as they work in only select few reservoirs. They can only be applied to relatively thick reservoirs, they suffer from considerable wellbore heat losses thereby consuming more steam to compensate for the thermal energy lost, they are water-intensive and thus generate large amount of wastewater, they are negatively affected by reservoir heterogeneities such as shale lenses and barriers, they only alter the physical properties of the hydrocarbon which are reversed when the initial condition is returned to, they do not provide substantial heavy-to-light-petroleum chemical-alterations upgrading within the reservoir, and they have very low recovery factors when compared with their in-situ-combustion-types counterparts (Gates, 2010; Gates and Larter, 2014; Shi et al., 2017; Wang et al., 2019; Zhao et al, 2013, 2014). Additionally, in some of the commercial operations, SAGD, which is the major steam-based process being currently applied, has been found to not be a net energy producer as it consumes more thermal energy than the chemical energy it produces (Gates and Larter, 2014). However, the in-situ-combustion-type processes, namely conventional In Situ Combustion (ISC) and Toe-to-Heel Air Injection (THAI), are shown to have none of the disadvantages of the steam-based processes. Furthermore, they provide appreciable heavy-to-light oil underground upgrading. But the ISC suffers from gravity segregation and hence excessive gas override, and delayed oil production as the mobilised partially upgraded oil has to travel over hundreds of meters before it reaches the vertical production well and get produced (Sharma et al., 2021; Turta et al., 2020; Wei et al., 2020). The THAI process on the other hand has none of the disadvantages of the ISC as it is a short-distance oil displacement process and according to laboratory studies, it has very high oil recovery factors of up to 85% of oil originally in place (OOIP) (Greaves et al,1999, 2008; Xia et al., 2005; Xia and Greaves, 2002, 2006). Furthermore, the THAI process has been studied through numerical simulations with aims of providing design and operation procedures as can be found in multiple articles (Ado, 2020a, 2020b, 2020c, 2020d, 2020e, 2021a, 2021b, 2021c; Rabiu Ado, 2017; Rabiu Ado et al., 2017). The THAI process uses horizontal well technology to produce partially upgraded oil as combustion is propagated from toe-to-heel of the well. Another advantage of the THAI process is the ease with which an annular layer of hydro-processing catalyst can be emplaced around the horizontal producer (HP) well to form a coupled process called THAI-CAPRI. The THAI-CAPRI involves in situ heat generation from combustion of the immobile, unproducible carbonaceous fraction of the oil in place (which is around 5e10% OOIP (Kovscek et al., 2013)) which is then utilised to mobilise and partially upgrade the remaining 90e95% producible oil via thermal cracking. The catalytic upgrading in the THAI-CAPRI process is realised when an annular layer of industrial hydro-processing catalyst, such as alumina-supported cobalt-oxide-molybdenum-oxide (CoMo/gAl2O3), alumina-supported zinc-oxide-copper-oxide (ZnCu/gAl2O3), etc., surrounding the HP well is contacted by hydrogen and thermally partially upgraded THAI-oil only. The removal of impurities such as sulphur, nitrogen, heavy metals, etc., during the operation of the THAI-CAPRI process leads to production of higher volume of higher-quality oil relative to that that can be obtained in the THAI process alone. Furthermore, the THAI-CAPRI process has the added advantages of being energy self-sufficient if waste heat is recovered to run utilities, locking the heavy oils and bitumen impurities permanently underground, providing higher-quality and easily transportable feed oil to refineries and thus minimising the need for surface upgrading facilities, being carbon-capture-ready for sequestration, and providing an environmentally friendly alternative means of achieving higher-value petroleum products. These have been demonstrated successfully at laboratory-scale by either using combustion tube or using 3D combustion cell (Abu et al., 2015; Cavallaro et al., 2008; Weissman et al., 1996; Xia and Greaves, 2001; Xia et al., 2002). However, no numerical simulation model either at laboratory-scale or field-scale was developed to investigate the upgrading mechanism given that numerical simulations of the THAI process alone has shown that the mobile oil zone (MOZ) where the catalytic upgrading is envisaged to be taking place has temperatures of less than 300 C (Greaves et al., 2012; Rabiu Ado et al., 2018; 2017). This is below what is required for the industrial hydro-treating catalysts, such as CoMo/g-Al2O3, ZnCu/gAl2O3, etc., to be effective and thus for catalytic upgrading to take place. Furthermore, one of the key parameters that will determine the degree of catalytic upgrading is operating pressure, and to the best of our knowledge, there is no study in the literature that has investigated it. Therefore, given the necessity for establishing process design procedures and optimal operating conditions, it is one of the aims of this work to shade light on the influencing parameters requiring full evaluations prior to field deployment of the THAI-CAPRI process. To achieve these, the Computer Modelling Group's (CMG's) commercial reservoir simulator, STARS, is used. 2. Models development In this work, the Canadian Athabasca bitumen reservoir conditions and fluids properties are used. These are in accordance with previous validated laboratory-scale numerical models (Ado, 2020b; Rabiu Ado et al., 2017). The THAI-CAPRI model, which can be seen in Fig. 1, is of the same dimensions as that of the THAI experimental-scale numerical models reported in Greaves et al. (2012) and Rabiu Ado et al. (2018, 2017). It contains horizontal injector (HI) and horizontal producer (HP) wells arranged in a staggered line drive (SLD). In addition, the THAI-CAPRI model has an annular catalyst layer emplaced around the HP well as indicated by the thick yellow lines in Fig. 1. In the CMG STARS, the model is discretised into 30 in i direction 19 in j direction 9 in k direction grid blocks with the variable thickness in the latter two directions. Since the thickness of the combustion front is around 1 inch, to better capture it is full dynamics, each grid block is further refined into 3 sub-grid points in i direction. These make the total number of grid blocks, including those of the discretised wellbore which is invoked to account for the transient nature of the transport processes inside the HP well, to be 19,900. 2.1. Petro-physical parameters The reservoir initial fluids saturations are made up of 85% oil, 15% water, and 0% gas. The reservoir initial temperature and porosity are 20 C and 34% respectively. These figures are similar to those used in the validated laboratory-scale numerical simulation models which can be found in Rabiu Ado et al. (2017) and Ado (2020b). The relative permeability curves are the same as those reported in previous work of Rabiu Ado et al. (2017) and consequently, are not repeated here. 2.2. Pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) data In order to include the catalytic reactions in the numerical simulation model, a simulated distillation data for the THAI oil upgraded using CAPRI under nitrogen atmosphere and at process conditions of 425 C and 20 bar were used. Peng-Robinson Equation of State (PR-EOS) in Aspen HYSYS software was used to fit a calculated distillation curve so that the PVT data of two oil pseudocomponents (i.e. light upgraded oil (LUO) pseudo-component and heavy upgraded oil (HUO) pseudo-component) was obtained. 2.3. Kinetics scheme In the CAPRI coupled to the THAI process (i.e. THAI-CAPRI process), catalytic reactions, in addition to the thermal cracking and combustion reactions, which are described in Abu et al. (2015) also take place. These catalytic reactions that take place in the presence of hydro-treating catalyst under sufficient temperature and pressure (e.g. 425 C & 20 bar), are mainly hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) reactions. They only, however, take place in the presence of the main co-reactant, i.e. the hydrogen (H2) which experimental studies showed to be generated during the operation of air injection in situ combustion enhanced heavy oil recovery process (Abu et al., 2015; Greaves et al., 2004; Hajdo et al., 1985). The generation of water vapour (H2O(g)) and carbon monoxide (CO(g)) from the combustion zone, the presence of hydrotreating catalyst and importantly that of gaseous hydrocarbons were observed to result in hydrogen generation via water-gas shift (WGS) and steam gasification (SG) reactions (Abu et al., 2015; Cavallaro et al., 2008; Moore et al., 1999; Weissman, 1997; Weissman et al., 1996). The generalised forms of the WGS and SG reactions are: WGS: CO H2O )/ CO2 H2 SG: CXHb 2xH2O / xCO2 (2x b/2)H2 However, the above reactions are not included in the numerical simulation model because of the unavailability of kinetics data which is derived from the THAI-CAPRI process. Instead, the hydrogen is injected together with the air. By varying the hydrogen-air ratio (HAR) from model to model, the effect of the concentration of the in situ generated hydrogen can be investigated. Therefore, this is parallel to the study carried out by Shah et al. (2011) in which hydrogen and flue gas mixture, and pure hydrogen were injected into a micro-reactor to respectively simulate the effect of combustion gases on the THAI-CAPRI process. Fig. 2. 3D shape of combustion front based on oxygen mole fraction for (a) model CP1 and (b) model CP2 respectively, both at the end of 320 min of process operation time. The thermal cracking and combustion reactions used in this study are based on the modified Greaves et al. (2012) kinetics scheme which is shown in Ado (2020b). Therefore, the HDS and HDN reactions are based on the Heavy and Light oil pseudocomponents making up the native Athabasca reservoir oil. For the catalytic reactions, the carbon-sulphur and carbon-nitrogen bonds are respectively cleaved, thereby resulting in the formation of new carbon-hydrogen bonds in either case. The substituted heteroatoms, namely sulphur and nitrogen, combine with the hydrogen to form hydrogen sulphide and ammonia respectively. The reaction orders of the HDN and HDS, for the Athabasca bitumen-derived heavy gas oil and with the respect to each oil pseudo-component are first and three-half respectively (Ferdous et al., 2006; Yui and Sanford, 1989). Since there are two oil pseudo-components, the catalytic reactions are represented by two balanced chemical reactions viz: Catalytic hydrodesulphurisation and hydrodenitrogenation reactions: Heavy oil 5.7470 H2 / 3.4770 HUO 0.2925 H2S 0.0945 NH3 Light oil 1.6905 H2 / 1.3280 LUO 0.0968 H2S 0.0055 NH3 Fig. 3. Produced oxygen mole fraction for models CP1 and CP2 at operating pressures of 8000 kPa and 500 kPa respectively. The activation energy and frequency factor of the overall HDS and HDN reactions are taken from Ferdous et al. (2006). In each case, the same kinetics parameters are assigned to both the Heavy oil and Light oil pseudo-components. The justification being only overall kinetics parameters are available, and therefore, the stoichiometry of each reaction will determine the extent of heteroatom removal. However, it should be noted that the respective HDS and HDN reactions for the Heavy and Light oil pseudo-components were specified independently in the simulator. In this study, the concept of activation temperature, first introduced by Coats (1983) to correct for the effect of field-scale grid blocks sizes, is used to account for the inadequacy of temperature around the mobile oil zone (MOZ). A minimum activation temperature, Ta, of 400 C was set into the model. That is, if the catalyst temperature in the MOZ is less than Ta, then the temperature dependent HDS and HDN reaction rates in that zone are respectively calculated using Ta. When the catalyst temperature is more than Ta, then the actual temperature is used to calculate the rates of the HDS and HDN reactions. That means, under this situation, the emplaced annular catalyst layer around the HP well is simulated as a sort of already heated porous cylindrical wall via which when mobilised oil flows, it becomes further upgraded through carbonnitrogen and carbon-sulphur bonds breakage and carbonhydrogen bonds formation. This is in accordance with the experimental studies by Shah et al. (2011). However, this method of activating the catalyst has the downside of considering the catalytic reactions to take place along the entire length of the HP well surrounded by the catalyst layer. As a result, the predicted degree of upgrading could be much more than that would have been achieved if the heating is localised to the region of the MOZ only. This might not necessarily be the case since neither of the two THAICAPRI experiments (Xia and Greaves, 2001; Xia et al., 2002) used an external heater to activate the catalyst despite the upgrading achieved by up to 6 oAPI points. 3. Results and discussions To study how operating pressure affects the different parameters, such as catalyst coking, degree of upgrading, cumulative oil production, produced oxygen concentration, etc., critical to the successful operation of the THAI-CAPRI process, two numerical models CP1 and CP2 at operating pressures of 8000 kPa and 500 kPa respectively and having similar input parameters were simulated using the CMG STARS. 3.1. Shape of combustion front The shape of the combustion front corresponds to that of oxygen mole fraction. The combustion reactions, therefore, take place at the leading edge where the concentration of oxygen drops to zero. Fig. 2a shows that throughout the combustion time, the oxygen did not reach the toe of the horizontal producer (HP) well, which was shown in Rabiu Ado et al. (2017) to be one of the causes of early start of oxygen production. This could be attributed to the high producer back pressure (i.e. 8000 kPa) compared to that used (i.e. 170 kPa) to simulate the THAI process in Rabiu Ado (2017). This is further supported when Fig. 2a and b are compared. In the latter, the combustion front has reached the toe of, and propagated along, the HP well, and as a result, oxygen production began 100 min after the start of gas (i.e. air & hydrogen) injection (Fig. 3). Initially, the concentration of the produced oxygen rose sharply, reaching a maximum value of 1.05 mol% at 165 min before dropping to 0.6 mol % at 195 min. Thereafter, it steadied out at 0.6 mol% for the rest of the combustion period. At the top of the cell (Fig. 2a), the combustion front has a wedge-like protrusion, with tendency to be parabolic if the process time is extended. The same observation can be made in model CP2 (Fig. 2b), which also has a wedge-like protrusion at the bottom of the cell and along the HP well. The bottom protrusion is longer than the top one, causing the combustion front to be backward leaning, which is a sign of instability. This can be attributed to the use of low operating pressure thereby causing intense drawdown into the HP well. This observation is similar to that reported experimentally by Liang et al. (2012) and also shown through numerical simulation by Rabiu Ado et al. (2017). Fig. 4. Fuel availability along the vertical mid-plane and at the end of 320 min of process operation time for (a) model CP1 and (b) model CP2 respectively. In model CP1, along the longitudinal axis of the HP well (i.e. laterally in the vertical middle plane of the reservoir), where the process experiences the most intense gravity drainage, the combustion front has a higher advance rate, especially at the top, compared to the other parts of the sandpack (Fig. 2a). The low residence time of the mobilised upgraded oil along the longitudinal axial direction of the HP well resulted in the deposition of low concentration of fuel at the top of the reservoir (Fig. 4a), which is then rapidly consumed and thus allowed the combustion front to advance at faster rate in that region. This was also partly due to the use of very large producer back pressure. In model CP1, the overall effect of the faster advancement of the combustion front along the longitudinal axial direction of the HP well and at the top of the combustion cell is the production of oxygen from the heel of the HP well (Figs. 2a and 3). Unlike in model CP2, the maximum concentration of the produced oxygen is, however, less than 0.3 mol%, indicating that the THAI-CAPRI process, when operated at high pressures which is the case in model CP1, operates stably as was shown experimentally (Xia and Greaves, 2001; Xia et al., 2002). It also shows that the process will continue to be run for a while before oxygen breakthrough takes place at which point it will no longer be economical and safe to continue the operation. 3.2. Fuel availability Fig. 5. Porosity along the vertical mid-plane and at the end of 320 min of process operation time for (a) model CP1 and (b) model CP2 respectively. The concentration of the fuel is not constant but varies with the location in the sandpack, which is similar to the observation made from studies of the experimental shape of coke profiles by Greaves et al. (2012). The reservoir operating pressure has considerable influence on the concentration of deposited fuel (Fig. 4). When the process was run at the pressure of 8000 kPa (i.e. model CP1, Fig. 4a), more than three quarters of the longitudinal length of the sandpack is covered by coke, with concentrations of 69e110 kg m3 surrounding the annular catalyst layer. This is also what stopped the combustion front from reaching the toe of the HP well as the large concentration of fuel slowed it is rate of advance vertically downward. Therefore, the coke deposited on the catalyst layer is not burned. On the contrary, the decrease in the operating pressure by a factor of 16 (i.e. model CP2, Fig. 4b) caused a considerable decrease in the fuel concentration ahead of the combustion front. In this case, the fuel availability ranges from 41 to 69 kg m3 and as a consequence, the combustion front propagated along the HP well, which was earlier described as one of the causes of early oxygen production. It can also be observed in model CP2 that the coke deposited on the pores of the catalyst is burned by the advancing combustion front propagating along the HP well. This implies that the catalyst can be regenerated through combustion as was reported experimentally. However, no further upgrading can be achieved with the regenerated catalyst as there is no oil behind the combustion front. This is in the case of these experimental-scale numerical models which is unlike for field-scale reservoirs where most of the mobilised partially upgraded oil enters the HP well via its toe (Ado, 2020e, 2021c). Ahead of the combustion front, and within the HP well and on the annular catalyst layer, the deposited coke concentration ranges from 14 kg m3 to 69 kg m3 (Fig. 4b). Similarly, for model CP1, the coke deposited on the catalyst packing pores and within the HP well has concentrations ranging from 14 kg m3 to 97 kg m3. As a result, in all the two models, the catalyst packing porosity is decreased due to the deposition of coke onto the catalyst layer (Fig. 5). 3.3. Porosity and catalyst coking Fig. 6. Temperature profile along the vertical mid-plane and at the end of 320 min of process operation time for (a) model CP1 and (b) model CP2 respectively. The combustion cell was assigned uniform porosity of 34% whilst the catalyst packing porosity in either model is 45%. Fig. 5 shows that wherever coke is deposited in high concentration, the porosity has decreased. From the side view of Fig. 5a, model CP1, the packing porosity of the catalyst layer just above the HP well barely changed as it mostly ranged from 41 to 45%. This is because the coke deposited there has quite low concentrations (14e28 kg m3) that no pronounced observable change occurred. Additionally, just above the catalyst layer that is in turn above the HP well, the reservoir porosity has decreased substantially from the initial value of 34% to mostly 26%. This shows that the pathways via which the mobilised THAI-upgraded oil can reach the inner catalyst are partly blocked by the deposited coke on the surface thereby resulting in achieving lower catalytic upgrading compared to that achievable when the annular catalyst surface is cokeuncoated. These are very useful findings since in field-scale reservoir, highest oil drainage rates enter the HP well at its toe region which is different from the drainage pattern in the laboratory-scale control volume. The catalyst layer just below the HP well, however, has coke concentrations of 41e69 kg m3, and as a result, the catalyst packing porosity dropped to within a range of 19e26%. In model CP2, the coke in the thermal cracking zone, which is just behind the mobile oil zone (MOZ) as can be identified by the oil flux vectors superimposed on Fig. 5b, has porosity ranging from 24 to 33%. In the same zone, which is not swept by the combustion front, the catalyst packing porosity dropped from 45% to within a range of 37e41%. These, therefore, show that the catalytic reactions in the THAI-CAPRI process take place in the mobile oil zone (MOZ), which was previously envisaged to be the case by Greaves et al. (2012). However, future work should look at the catalytic reactions zone in field-scale reservoir since the mechanism of oil drainage into the HP well is scale-dependent (Ado, 2021c). Fig. 7. API gravity (top) and Produced H2S mole fraction (bottom) as function of time for models CP1 and CP2. Since the process will be operating at the reservoir pressure, which is around 2800 kPa in the Athabasca deposits, it means the severity of catalyst coking might not heavily affect the performance of the THAI-CAPRI process, most especially that the coke is deposited behind the MOZ as revealed by this laboratory-scale simulations studies. It should, however, be noted that this study did not add an external source of heat around the MOZ, which, if so, would have resulted in thermal cracking, and thus catalyst coking within the MOZ. Future simulation studies should look at how heating the catalyst layer around the MOZ would affect the effectiveness of the catalyst. This is critical considering the observations made by Shah et al. (2011) that operating the THAI-CAPRI process at 420 C and 2000 kPa is a compromise but it still resulted in substantial coke deposition onto the catalyst to the extent that the catalyst lifetime was quite short, only z 3.2 days. Research is being carried out to investigate the feasibility of using nano-catalysts to achieve in situ catalytic upgrading. 3.4. Temperature distribution Fig. 8. Cumulative oil production (top) and oil production rate (bottom) as function of time for models CP1 and CP2. The temperature distribution gives an indication of the extent of combustion reactions, heat transfer, and whether the process is operating in a low temperature oxidation (LTO) or high temperature oxidation (HTO) mode. Fig. 6 shows the temperature distribution along the vertical mid-plane where the HP well is located. In model CP1 (Fig. 6a), it is observed that the temperature in the mobile oil zone (MOZ), where the catalytic reactions take place, is 255 C. The same observation can be made in model CP2 (Fig. 6b), except that the temperature in the MOZ is 234 C. These observations are in accordance with the earlier results reported by Greaves et al. (2012) and Rabiu Ado et al. (2017). They showed that the use of activation temperature to represent the temperature of the catalytic reactions zone is necessary as long as there is no external source of heat used. Future studies should look at the use of external source of heat in order to better capture the full Physics of the whole process. 3.5. Degree of upgrading and cumulative oil production As seen previously, the use of high pressure, as is the case in model CP1, resulted in not only substantial thermal cracking, resulting in significant coke deposition, but also resulted in higher catalytic upgrading. This is because, the higher the pressure, the lower the concentration of the oil components going into vapour phase and hence the larger the liquid oil available to be thermal cracked and catalytically upgraded. Fig. 7 (top) shows that the API gravity in model CP1 (pressure of 8000 kPa) is on average 7 API points above that in model CP1 (pressure of 500 kPa). To further support the fact that higher catalytic upgrading is achieved in model CP1 compared to CP2, a plot of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) versus time is shown in Fig. 7 (bottom). In it, it can be seen that substantially more H2S is produced in model CP1 (which is approximately 15 times that of model CP2 during most of the combustion time), which is the product of the catalytic reactions. Therefore, it follows that optimum pressure must be determined commensurate with catalyst life and catalytic upgrading. Since higher overall upgrading is realised with the model CP1, it follows that higher volume of oil should be cumulatively produced in model CP1 compared to CP2. This is shown by Fig. 8 (top). However, that was only the case prior to the increase in the gas flux. This counterintuitive behaviour can be explained by observing the shape of the oil production rate curves (Fig. 8 (bottom)). It can be seen that oil production in model CP1 began only after the start of gas injection (i.e. at the end of the pre-ignition heating cycle (PIHC)) whilst it began 12 min earlier in model CP2. This is what causes the cumulative oil production curve of CP2 to lie above that of CP1 prior to the increase in the flux. However, as the oil production rate in model CP1 is higher during most of the combustion period, the cumulative oil production curve of CP1 eventually became equal to that of CP2 between 165 and 190 min. Thereafter, curve CP1 lies above CP2 (Fig. 8 (top)) for the rest of the combustion time and at the end, more oil is produced in model CP1 (2300 cm3) compared to that in CP2 (2050 cm3). Similar conclusion as that with regard to the overall degree of upgrading can be drawn, which is that: an optimum pressure must be determined for economically justifiable incremental oil production compared to the gas injection pressure. 4. Conclusion The first ever numerical simulations of effect of operating pressure on in situ catalytic upgrading of heavy oils and bitumen in conjunction with the in situ combustion are presented in this work. This work provides the starting point for future studies required for actual design of field operations. It will also serve as a guide for thoroughly interpreting experimental results. Two experimental scale numerical models of the THAI-CAPRI process based on Athabasca tar sand and reservoir properties were run at pressures of 8000 kPa and 500 kPa respectively using CMG STARS. The study has shown that the higher the operating pressure, the larger the API gravity and the higher the cumulative volume of higher-quality oil is produced (i.e. a 2300 cm3 of z24 oAPI oil produced at 8000 kPa versus the 2050 cm3 of z17.5 oAPI oil produced at 500 kPa). The study has further shown that despite presence of annular catalyst layer, the THAI-CAPRI process operates stably. However, it is found that a more stable and safer operation of the process can only be achieved at optimal pressure that should lie between 500 kPa and 8000 kPa especially since at the lower pressure, should the process time be extended, it will not take long before oxygen breakthrough takes place. The simulations have shown in details that at higher pressures, the catalyst bed is easily and rapidly coked and thus the catalyst life will be very short especially during actual field reservoir operations. Since the oil drainage flux into the HP well at fieldscale is different from that at laboratory-scale, and at the field-scale the combustion front does not propagate inside the HP well, it will be practically very challenging to regenerate or replace the cokedeactivated annular catalyst layer in actual reservoir operations. Therefore, it is concluded that during field operation designs, an optimum pressure must be selected such that a balance is obtained between the combustion front stability and the degree of catalytic upgrading and the catalyst life. As part of suggestions for future studies, it is concluded that a new study should investigate the feasibility of in situ catalyst regeneration at experimental-scale. Additionally, future work should investigate the zone at which the catalytic reactions take place in field-scale reservoir. Finally, this study has also shown that an external source of heating the catalyst bed must be provided in order to activate the bed to the required temperature for achieving catalytic upgrading. Therefore, a new study should conduct investigations of the feasibility of implementation of microwave, conductive, or resistive heating or all of them around the catalyst bed. Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to the Computer Modelling Group (CMG) for supplying comprehensive reservoir simulator, STARS. References Abu, I.I., Moore, R.G., Mehta, S.A., Ursenbach, M.G., Mallory, D.G., Pereira Almao, P., Carbognani Ortega, L., 2015. Upgrading of Athabasca bitumen using supported catalyst in conjunction with in-situ combustion. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 54, 220e232. https://doi.org/10.2118/176029-PA. Ado, M.R., 2021a. Improving oil recovery rates in Thai in situ combustion process using pure oxygen. Upstream Oil Gas Technol, 100032. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.upstre.2021.100032. Ado, M.R., 2021b. Improving heavy oil production rates in Thai process using wells configured in a staggered line drive (SLD) instead of in a direct line drive (DLD) configuration: detailed simulation investigations. J. Pet. Explor. Prod. Technol. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-021-01269-0. Ado, M.R., 2021c. Understanding the mobilised oil drainage dynamics inside laboratory-scale and field-scale reservoirs for more accurate Thai process design and operation procedures. J. Pet. Explor. Prod. Technol. https://doi.org/ 10.1007/s13202-021-01285-0. Ado, M.R., 2020a. A detailed approach to up-scaling of the Toe-to-Heel Air Injection (Thai) In-Situ Combustion enhanced heavy oil recovery process. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2019.106740. Ado, M.R., 2020b. Impacts of kinetics scheme used to simulate toe-to-heel air injection (Thai) in situ combustion method for heavy oil upgrading and production. ACS Omega 5. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.9b03661. Ado, M.R., 2020c. Simulation study on the effect of reservoir bottom water on the performance of the Thai in-situ combustion technology for heavy oil/tar sand upgrading and recovery. SN Appl. Sci. 2. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-0191833-1. Ado, M.R., 2020d. Effect of reservoir pay thickness on the performance of the Thai heavy oil and bitumen upgrading and production process. J. Pet. Explor. Prod. Technol. 10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-020-00840-5. Ado, M.R., 2020e. Predictive capability of field scale kinetics for simulating toe-toheel air injection heavy oil and bitumen upgrading and production technology. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2019.106843. British Petroleum (BP), 2020. Statistical review of world energy [WWW Document]. URL. https://www.bp.com/content/dam/bp/business-sites/en/global/corporate/ pdfs/energy-economics/statistical-review/bp-stats-review-2020-full-report. pdf. accessed 11.16.20. Cavallaro, A.N., Galliano, G.R., Moore, R.G., Mehta, S.A., Ursenbach, M.G., Zalewski, E., Pereira, P., 2008. In situ upgrading of Llancanelo heavy oil using in situ combustion and a downhole catalyst bed. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 47, 23e31. Coats, K.H., 1983. Some observations on field-scale simulation of the in-situ combustion process. In: SPE Reservoir Simulation Symposium. Society of Petroleum Engineers. Elahi, S.M., Scott, C.E., Chen, Z., Pereira-Almao, P., 2019. In-situ upgrading and enhanced recovery of heavy oil from carbonate reservoirs using nano-catalysts: upgrading reactions analysis. Fuel 252, 262e271. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.fuel.2019.04.094. Ferdous, D., Dalai, A.K., Adjaye, J., 2006. Hydrodenitrogenation and Hydrodesulfurization of heavy gas oil using NiMo/Al2O3 catalyst containing Boron: experimental and kinetic studies. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 45, 544e552. https:// doi.org/10.1021/ie050094r. Gates, I.D., 2010. Solvent-aided Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage in thin oil sand reservoirs. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 74, 138e146. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.petrol.2010.09.003. Gates, I.D., Larter, S.R., 2014. Energy efficiency and emissions intensity of SAGD. Fuel 115, 706e713. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2013.07.073. Greaves, M., Dong, L.L., Rigby, S.P., 2012. Simulation study of the toe-to-heel air injection three-dimensional combustion cell experiment and effects in the mobile oil zone. Energy & Fuels 26, 1656e1669. Greaves, M., El-Sakr, A., Xia, T.X., Ayasse, C., Turta, A., 1999. Thai - new air injection technology for heavy oil recovery and in situ upgrading. Annu. Tech. Meet. https://doi.org/10.2118/99-15. Greaves, M., Xia, T.X., Imbus, S., Nero, V., 2004. Thai-CAPRI process: Tracing downhole upgrading of heavy oil. In: Canadian International Petroleum Conference. Petroleum Society of Canada. Greaves, M., Xia, T.X., Turta, A.T., 2008. Stability of Thai (TM) process - Theoretical and experimental observations. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 47, 65e73. Guo, K., Li, H., Yu, Z., 2016. In-situ heavy and extra-heavy oil recovery: a review. Fuel 185, 886e902. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2016.08.047. Hajdo, L.E., Hallam, R.J., Vorndran, L.D.L., 1985. Hydrogen generation during in-situ combustion. SPE Calif. Reg. Meet. https://doi.org/10.2118/13661-MS. Hein, F.J., 2017. Geology of bitumen and heavy oil: an overview. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 154, 551e563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2016.11.025. International Energy Agency, 2020. World energy Outlook [WWW Document]. URL. https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2020. accessed 10.29.20. Kovscek, A., Castanier, L., Gerritsen, M., 2013. Improved Predictability of in-situcombustion enhanced oil recovery. SPE Reservoir Eval. Eng. 16, 172e182. Li, Yibo, Wang, Z., Hu, Z., Xu, B., Li, Yalong, Pu, W., Zhao, J., 2020. A review of in situ upgrading technology for heavy crude oil. Petroleum. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.petlm.2020.09.004. Liang, J., Guan, W., Jiang, Y., Xi, C., Wang, B., Li, X., 2012. Propagation and control of fire front in the combustion assisted gravity drainage using horizontal wells. Petrol. Explor. Dev. 39, 764e772. Liu, Z., Wang, H., Blackbourn, G., Ma, F., He, Z., Wen, Z., Wang, Z., Yang, Z., Luan, T., Wu, Z., 2019. Heavy oils and oil sands: global distribution and resource Assessment. Acta Geol. Sin. - English Ed. 93, 199e212. https://doi.org/10.1111/ 1755-6724.13778. Moore, R.G., Laureshen, C.J., Mehta, S.A., Ursenbach, M.G., Belgrave, J.D.M., Weissman, J.G., Kessler, R.V., 1999. A downhole catalytic upgrading process for heavy oil using in situ combustion. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 38, 8. https://doi.org/ 10.2118/99-13-44. Rabiu Ado, M., 2017. Numerical Simulation of Heavy Oil and Bitumen Recovery and Upgrading Techniques. University of Nottingham, UK. Rabiu Ado, M., Greaves, M., Rigby, S.P., 2018. Effect of pre-ignition heating cycle method, air injection flux, and reservoir viscosity on the Thai heavy oil recovery process. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2018.03.033. Rabiu Ado, M., Greaves, M., Rigby, S.P., 2017. Dynamic simulation of the toe-to-heel air injection heavy oil recovery process. Energy and Fuels 31. https://doi.org/ 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.6b02559. Shah, A., Fishwick, R., Leeke, G., Wood, J., Rigby, S., Greaves, M., 2011. Experimental optimization of catalytic process in situ for heavy-oil and bitumen upgrading. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 50, 33e47. Sharma, J., Dean, J., Aljaberi, F., Altememee, N., 2021. In-situ combustion in Bellevue field in Louisiana e History, current state and future strategies. Fuel 284, 118992. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2020.118992. Shi, L., Xi, C., Liu, P., Li, X., Yuan, Z., 2017. Infill wells assisted in-situ combustion following SAGD process in extra-heavy oil reservoirs. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 157, 958e970. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2017.08.015. Turta, A., Kapadia, P., Gadelle, C., 2020. Thai process: Determination of the quality of burning from gas composition taking into account the coke gasification and water-gas shift reactions. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 187, 106638. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.petrol.2019.106638. Wang, Y., Ren, S., Zhang, L., 2019. Mechanistic simulation study of air injection assisted cyclic steam stimulation through horizontal wells for ultra heavy oil reservoirs. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 172, 209e216. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.petrol.2018.09.060. Wei, W., Wang, J., Afshordi, S., Gates, I.D., 2020. Detailed analysis of Toe-to-Heel Air Injection for heavy oil production. J. Petrol. Sci. Eng. 186, 106704. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2019.106704. Weissman, J.G., 1997. Review of processes for downhole catalytic upgrading of heavy crude oil. Fuel Process. Technol. 50, 199e213. https://doi.org/10.1016/ S0378-3820(96)01067-3. Weissman, J.G., Kessler, R.V., Sawicki, R.A., Belgrave, J.D.M., Laureshen, C.J., Mehta, S.A., Moore, R.G., Ursenbach, M.G., 1996. Down-hole catalytic upgrading of heavy crude oil. Energy & Fuels 10, 883e889. https://doi.org/10.1021/ ef9501814. Xia, T., Greaves, M., 2006. In situ upgrading of Athabasca tar sand bitumen using Thai. Chem. Eng. Res. Des. - Chem. Eng. Res. Des. 84, 856e864. https://doi.org/ 10.1205/cherd.04192. Xia, T., Greaves, M., 2001. 3-D physical model studies of downhole catalytic upgrading of Wolf Lake heavy oil using Thai. In: Canadian International Petroleum Conference. Xia, T., Greaves, M., Turta, A., 2005. Main mechanism for stability of Thai-Toe-toHeel air injection. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 44. Xia, T.X., Greaves, M., 2002. Upgrading Athabasca tar sand using toe-to-heel air injection. J. Can. Pet. Technol. 41, 7. https://doi.org/10.2118/02-08-02. Xia, T.X., Greaves, M., Werfilli, W.S., Rathbone, R.R., 2002. Downhole conversion of Lloydminster heavy oil using Thai-CAPRI process. In: SPE International Thermal Operations and Heavy Oil Symposium and International Horizontal Well Technology Conference. Yui, S.M., Sanford, E.C., 1989. Mild hydrocracking of bitumen-derived coker and hydrocracker heavy gas oils: kinetics, product yields, and product properties. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 28, 1278e1284. https://doi.org/10.1021/ie00093a002. Zhang, X., Liu, Q., Fan, Z., Liu, Y., 2019. Enhanced heavy oil recovery and performance by application of catalytic in-situ combustion. Petrol. Sci. Technol. 37, 493e499. https://doi.org/10.1080/10916466.2018.1482333. Zhao, D.W., Wang, J., Gates, I.D., 2014. Thermal recovery strategies for thin heavy oil reservoirs. Fuel 117, 431e441. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2013.09.023. Zhao, D.W., Wang, J., Gates, I.D., 2013. Optimized solvent-aided steam-flooding strategy for recovery of thin heavy oil reservoirs. Fuel 112, 50e59. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2013.05.025. Express your opinion! Fill out this form to submit a Letter to the Editor. Submit the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa led midnight Mass in the place where Jesus was born. Speaking about pilgrimages, he called to find safe ways to resume this activity, despite the pandemic. He praised the resilience of Gazas Christian community. I learned, in fact, that even in the most difficult situations, truly problematic ones, one can make room for love, solidarity and joy. Bethlehem (AsiaNews) On Christmas Eve, when the whole world looks to Bethlehem, the place where Jesus was born, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, cries out the pain of a Palestine without peace. What is needed are not concessions, he says, but rights, and an end to years of occupation and violence, [. . .] creating new relationships in which not distrust but mutual trust reigns. The prelate speaks these words in his homily during the midnight Mass, which, as every year was celebrated in the Church of St Catherine, before he went down into the crypt of the Basilica of the Nativity where a star on the floor indicates the place where Jesus was born. His words focus attention on the path for new relationships", starting with the "resilience" of those who even in the face of a peace "that never seems to arrive" make room for love and solidarity, "without cultivating feelings of hatred and rancor. This is another year of Christmas in the Holy Land without pilgrims from around the world, after the border was closed in early December due to the Omicron variant. Yet, the atmosphere was more joyful than last year, when Bethlehem was under curfew. Local Christians attended the midnight Mass, as did some Christians from Gaza who faced smaller hurdles by Israeli authorities. This is a small, but important, positive sign for which I am grateful, notes the patriarch. But the lack of pilgrims really hurts. We pray for them and at the same time ask for their prayers, so that all this may end soon and that the city of Bethlehem may once again be full of pilgrims, as is its characteristic. We also pray that joy may return to the many families who support themselves through pilgrimages and who, because of this pandemic, have been out of work for more than two years now and live in an increasingly difficult situation. We hope that with a joint action of politics, Church and tour operators, local and international, we can find safe ways to resume this activity, despite the pandemic. This is really necessary! But the heart of this night in Bethlehem is the message of Jesus' birth. To this end, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem invites us to focus on this. In fact, To experience Christmas, it is necessary to hear the voice of God, and allow ourselves to be guided by the voice of his witnesses, of his messengers. In fact, there are many voices in the Gospel that speak of Jesus, but not all of them lead to Him. This is like many situations today. In this time of health emergency and prolonged political emergency, many different voices are heard in families: some undermine confidence, take away hope, extinguish love; others, however, are more encouraging, capable of vision and future. What witnesses are we listening to today? In this last year, in the context of the old and new crises that have challenged us, which voice have we followed? In the Babylon of announcements, declarations and modern prophecies, arriving through the many media, we need to seek and find the voice that leads us to Jesus and to salvation, that opens hearts to hope. In our own lives we need trustworthy witnesses who help us find the path that leads to Bethlehem, who encourage us to see the future with confidence, who know how to see and allow us to see the good that is growing, and not only the evil and the pain, which are also present, but which cannot be our only criterion for evaluating the current situation. Then the prelate asks the key question of this Christmas 2021. Which witnesses have we given our trust to? Because, after all, this is what we need [to do, i.e.,] rebuild trust among us, trust in the future, ours and our children's, trust in the possibility of a change for the better, both in civil life and in the Church. This question applies first of all to the Church. From Bethlehem on Christmas Eve, Archbishop Pizzaballa talks about what he heard this year in the countries that fall within the jurisdiction of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The first voice heard is that of Pope Francis in Cyprus, a country also divided by walls, marked by power struggles, and huge interests for its energy resources, an island where thousands of people have sought refuge but with little prospects for their future. Here Francis reminded us of the meaning of patience, which does not mean remaining inert, but being available to the unpredictable action of the Holy Spirit, using our time to appreciate listening, and welcoming those who are not like us. The patriarch then mentions Jordan, which this year celebrated the centennial of the founding of the Hashemite Kingdom, a State, though marked by so many difficulties, [that] still teaches first world countries what solidarity and welcome are. In these times of political and religious sectarianism, moreover, Jordan is not afraid to engage in religious and political dialogue. For Israel, it has been the year of increasingly troubling voices preaching division in society, as evinced by the latest war in Gaza last May. I say this especially in reference to the crisis of trust especially between Arabs and Jews, both citizens, both inhabitants of the same cities. This reminds us that a passive approach to coexistence is not enough, coexistence must be promoted. In this area, the Church has a precise task. There is no lack in the country of voices of people, movements, associations committed to the promotion of coexistence, respect and mutual welcome. Christmas is also about recognizing and appreciating those who know how to see the other as a gift from God. Next the Church of the Holy Land heard the sound of deafening cry of pain from the people of Palestine, always waiting for a future of peace that seems never to arrive, a people that needs to experience justice, that wants to know freedom, that is tired of waiting to be allowed to live freely and with dignity in its own land and in its own house, that does not want to live only by the permits that are now necessary to enter, leave, work or other. What is needed are not concessions, but rights, and an end to years of occupation and violence, with all their dramatic consequences on the life of each individual and the community at large, creating new relationships in which not distrust but mutual trust reigns. Despite this cry of pain, some voices of hope can be heard. For the patriarch, heard right here what the word resilience concretely consists of. Visiting our community in Gaza a few days ago, I learned, in fact, that even in the most difficult situations, truly problematic ones, one can make room for love, solidarity and joy. I met people who know how to be active and constructive and who, although aware of the enormous difficulties in which they live, never cease to believe that something beautiful can be done for themselves and for others, without cultivating feelings of hatred and rancor, people who are building the Kingdom of God in our midst and that every day, not only today, they live the true spirit of Christmas. This is exactly what is announced on this night in Bethlehem. It is true, evil never ceases to rage on the lives of the weakest and most defenseless, but the road to peace is marked, and it is still our road today. In that Child is the Love that enters the world, that remains in every moment of history, that is an endless adventure and can truly change everything. Such an announcement always awaits a personal response. As then, so today, God not only works directly in the world, but He also does so through our participation so that we can find in Him the meaning of our action. For we are witnesses that when Jesus is at the center of our lives, the earth receives Peace in Bethlehem and in every corner of the world. Francis centred his Urbi et orbi message on the lack of dialogue, not only between States, but also between people, as evinced by violence against women and the tendency to look the other way at the sufferings of those forced to leave their homeland. Choosing the Word and the grace of littleness means to believe that God desires to come into the little things of our life; he wants to inhabit our daily lives, the things we do each day at home, in our families, at school and in the workplace. Vatican City (AsiaNews) Pope Francis delivered his traditional Christmas message followed by the Urbi et Orbi blessing (to the city and the world) to thousands of pilgrims gathered in a rain-soaked St Peters Square. Representatives of Italys Armed Forces were present once again to salute the Pope after last years no-show due to the pandemic. In his address, the pontiff focused on Syria, Iraq, Myanmar, Ukraine, whose wars and tensions show how humanity chooses violence over dialogue, unlike the Word made flesh to show the way of encounter and dialogue. The lack of dialogue is not only an issue that separates countries, but also affects interpersonal relations, as evinced by violence against women and our tendency to look the other way when it comes to the sufferings of those forced to leave their homeland. Francis first noted that, God himself, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is dialogue, an eternal and infinite communion of love and life. The pandemic has shown what the world would be without the capacity and willingness to dialogue. Our capacity for social relationships is sorely tried; there is a growing tendency to withdraw, to do it all by ourselves, to stop making an effort to encounter others and do things together. On the international level too, there is the risk of avoiding dialogue, the risk that this complex crisis will lead to taking shortcuts rather than setting out on the longer paths of dialogue. Yet only those paths can lead to the resolution of conflicts and to lasting benefits for all. Francis spoke about the worlds many crises, like the one in Syria, whose people have experienced a war, and this for more than a decade resulting in many victims and an untold number of displaced persons. Then there is Iraq, which still struggles to recover from a lengthy conflict and the cry of children arising from Yemen, where an enormous tragedy, overlooked by everyone, has silently gone on for years. The Pope went on to mention the continuing tensions between Israelis and Palestinians that drag on without a resolution, and Lebanon, which is undergoing an unprecedented crisis, accompanied by very troubling economic and social conditions. From the Middle East, the pontiff turned his attention to Myanmar, where intolerance and violence not infrequently target the Christian community and its places of worship, clouding the peaceful countenance of that people, as well as Afghanistan, a country sorely tested by conflicts that have lasted for more than forty years from where many have driven, forced to leave. Other places the pontiff mentioned are Sudan, Ethiopia, North Africa and the Sahel, as well as Ukraine and its long-festering conflict. In the Americas, may God Grant that, through dialogue, mutual respect and recognition of the rights and cultural values of every human being, the values of solidarity, reconciliation and peaceful coexistence may prevail. Moving from the wider world to the reality of ordinary people, Francis said: Son of God, comfort the victims of violence against women, which has increased in this time of pandemic. Offer hope to young children and adolescents suffering from bullying and abuse. Show consolation and warmth to the elderly, especially those who feel most alone. Give serenity and unity to families, the first educators of their children and the basis of the fabric of society. God-with-us, grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of good will to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects. Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care and vaccines in particular are provided to those peoples who need them most. Repay those who generously devote themselves to caring for family members, the sick and the most vulnerable in our midst. Child of Bethlehem, grant that the many military and civilian prisoners of war and recent conflicts, and all those imprisoned for political reasons, may soon return home. Do not leave us indifferent before the tragic situation of migrants, displaced persons and refugees. Their eyes beg us not to look the other way, ignoring our common humanity, but instead to make their stories our own and to be mindful of their plight. Eternal Word become flesh, make us attentive to our common home, which is suffering from the carelessness with which we so often treat it. Inspire political leaders to reach effective agreements, so that future generations can live in an environment respectful of life. Dear brothers and sisters, amid all the many problems of our time, hope prevails, For a child is born to us (Is 9:5). He is the word of God, who became an infant, capable only of crying, and in need of help for everything. He wished to learn how to speak, like every other child, so that we might learn to listen to God, our Father, to listen to one another and to dialogue as brothers and sisters. Francis spoke about human relations last night as well, during the Christmas Eve Mass when he said: God tonight comes to fill with dignity the austerity of labour. He reminds us of the importance of granting dignity to men and women through labour, but also of granting dignity to human labour itself, since man is its master and not its slave. On the day of Life, let us repeat: no more deaths in the workplace! And let us commit ourselves to ensuring this. Talking about the grace of littleness in his homily, Francis asked: What does it mean, concretely, to accept littleness? It means, In the first place, [. . .] to believe that God desires to come into the little things of our life; he wants to inhabit our daily lives, the things we do each day at home, in our families, at school and in the workplace. ICE NHTSA As Hyundai explains, the twelve affected units received an Integrated Central Control Unit that was programmed with what was described as incompatible software. Due to the error, the issue might have resulted in potentially inoperative headlights or taillights. Hyundai representatives explained that thein question was produced without the required software reflash being completed.In other words, a step of the production process was not completed, which led to this issue. Hyundai learned of the problem and investigated its causes after an increase in warranty claim activity on exterior light functionality. When the recall was issued, the vehicle manufacturer had no knowledge of any accident caused by or related to this potential issue.The process then involved a review of supplier records, which was opened back in June 2021. It took them a couple of months to find the cause of the issue that could lead to a potential fault. Now, the interesting part is that Hyundai has already repaired all 12 affected units before issuing the recall with theHyundai's factory in Alabama started manufacturing the 2022 Tucso n in the last week of February 2021, which means that the issue that led to the recall was a mishap that occurred in the first days of production. Mind you, since production started February 23rd, and the issue occurred February 26th, so you might say that it adds up.Just like any other automaker, Hyundai has several procedures in its production process that prevent workers from fitting vehicles with components that are not meant for them, as well as other means of ensuring manufacturing quality and consistency.The Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama factory also builds the Elantra and the Sonata. Those models were not affected by the recall that focused on the 2022 Tucson Not at all, and the large userbase behind apps like Waze are just the living proof in this regard. Also owned by Google, Waze is an application that has millions of users all over the world, all thanks to the crowdsourcing engine that makes it incredibly accurate.Google, however, isnt alone in this business, and several other companies are also investing big in navigation apps that are supposed to compete directly against Google Maps.Apple is one of the largest tech giants with such a goal in mind, as its very own Apple Maps is first and foremost meant to serve as a native alternative to Googles offering.In theory, Apple Maps has always been a worthy navigation app, but in practice, such a thing was mostly valid for those living in the United States. The non-U.S. coverage of Apple Maps still leaves a lot to be desired, and the overhaul the company announced last year is still yet to reach the majority of international markets.But this doesnt necessarily mean Apple has given up on its dream of competing against and, eventually, defeating Google Maps. The Cupertino-based iPhone maker keeps investing more time and resources into converting Apple Maps into the next-generation mapping software, and one of the features it launched recently certainly gets its much closer to this objective.Its the 3D navigation support, a feature that debuted with the release of iOS 15 in the fall and which is now available on CarPlay too.At first glance, theres no doubt that 3D maps dont seem to be such a big deal. But once you try it, returning to the classic 2D navigation mode feels like youre downgrading the experience behind the wheel quite substantially.The screenshots that Ive included in this article show just how much effort Apple has put into getting the 3D models right. And it doesnt all come down to just buildings, as the company has tried to reproduce nearly everything in Apple Maps, with almost every little detail included in the app for certain locations in the United States.What this means is that its incredibly easy for every driver out there not only to figure out where they are by just looking outside the window but also to know exactly which way to go based on the directions provided by Apple Maps. In other words, the 3D world surrounding you is also the 3D world you see on the screen in your car, and this makes the navigation experience brilliantly straightforward.Unfortunately, theres also the disappointing side of the story. Such capabilities continue to be exclusive to Apple Maps users in the United States and to be honest, its hard to imagine the Cupertino-based iPhone maker would manage to bring it to everybody out there in the next decade.Building advanced 3D models with such accurate details takes a lot of effort, and rendering the entire world in 3D isnt easy by any means. Not even for a company the size of Apple, so if youre hoping to get similar features in a country other than the United States, youd better not hold your breath for this to happen anytime soon.The good news for Apple is that the 3D navigation support is the living proof the company has what it takes to build a truly powerful alternative to Google Maps. The only thing thats left is for the iPhone maker to figure out how to use these resources more effectively, as fighting against Google Maps doesnt just come down to a single region. BEV SUV Two years after the Tesla Roadster, Nissan introduced the Leaf and Mitsubishi the i-Miev. Nowadays, both brands are connected to French carmaker Renault, who benefited from their expertise. Apart from Chinese brands, the Koreans from Hyundai-Kia are already stepping up their game with the introduction of several BEVs on the market. The rest of the world is advancing on this segment with original or less so ideas. So, after writing about the American carmakers' plans , let's take a look at the other carmakers from Asia.Honda acts kind of weird. Since it is an independent carmaker, it should have more decision power than other carmakers. Yet, it waited a lot before launching the Honda-e city car . Despite its small range and high price, there's still a waiting list for it, not because of chip shortage but because it is adorable. It's like having the latest iPhone on the table, which you are using exactly like the older smartphones: calls, texts, and social media.It also tried the Hydrogen Fuel-Cell solution with the Clarity, but it seems like the carmaker has lost its interest in continuing the program and switched todevelopment. Moreover, like BMW, it created a separate brand for its electric cars, Honda e:N , which has already developed a production model in China, the e:N, which will be followed by a sedan and a coupe. Together with its local partner Dongfeng, Honda China has developed two platforms; thus, it has paved the way for future products. So will we see an electric Acura soon? Most definitely yes.Even though the new Sportage is just a mild hybrid, there are other electric-powered vehicles in the Korean carmaker's lineup. The Kia EV6 and the Hyundai Ioniq are just a few examples. Now, the carmaker works on other cars to share the same platform with these two. So, will we see an electric Sportage in the future? Maybe it will not be named Sportage, but Kia doesn't want to lose that nameplate. It is already famous worldwide, and this crossover will get more traction (pun intended) when it gets an electric powertrain. Meanwhile, the Ioniq 5 targets a range of 300 miles (483 km) on a single charge for the single-motor version.Toyota is the brand responsible for the hybrid-powered revolution thanks to its ugly-duckling, the Prius. Now, it has evolved and offers the NX with plug-in technology. The carmaker thought that hydrogen was a more feasible solution, and it introduced the Toyota Mirai, which is already on its second generation . It is a hydrogen-powered vehicle, which might be successful thanks to its short recharging time, but lacks filling stations and logistics for that.Lately, it revealed its new plans on launching not one but an entire range of BEVs by 2030 . In addition, it announced that it will sell 3.5 million electric cars and, surely, it can't do that with only one model. As for Lexus, it will become fully electric by 2035 for the entire world, but on these shores will be electric-only in less than 8 years.We also saw a shy presence of Chinese BEV carmakers on American soil. For now, they are not that important. Yet, maybe we should consider their will to conquer this electric-only segment with their pricing policies. Sure, for now, their vehicles are not suitable for American roads. But that may change the same way the cell phone makers did in the past and are already on top of other famous brands.Not long ago, Xiaomi announced that it will develop an electric car, and that's just the beginning. Just don't be surprised if you'll see more Chinese cars plugged in at your nearby charging station in the next couple of years. Lets start with the HMI. Unreal Engine now supports all the latest graphics chips, which means in-car displays capable of high-quality 3D visuals. The first-ever car to use an HMI built with the help of Unreal Engine will be an all-new premium EV This platform also eliminates several iterative stages from the development process, which in turn enables designers and engineers to focus more on their own specializations. For example, an HMI designer can create a new user interface (UI) in the same software that runs on the vehicle.One German carmaker (which shall not be named, apparently), described one of their Unreal Engine applications as a computer game for engineers. We assume they were referring to the new Collaborative View Template, which facilitates in-house development of virtual reality environments, having users gather around a CAD model or rendering to discuss further challenges and solutions. This would have counted as borderline sci-fi stuff 15-20 years ago.Heres another really cool thing. Thanks to Epics new MetaHuman Creator tool, no longer do human avatars have to look poorly. Instead, they now look and move like real people, with realistic facial expressions.From the adults and children populating the simulations used for active safety system development through to in-car assistants and the virtual sales specialists that will be a key component of moving automotive retail online, faithful representations add quality, credibility and correlation with the real world, stated Epic automotive lead, Doug Wolff, who was surprised to see how quickly carmakers became deeply committed to Unreal Engine Last but not least, we have the Unreal Engines ability to create photorealistic renders (Hollywood quality visuals), using best-in-class ray tracing in real time (for lighting and shadows), plus a wide range of customizable materials. The G700 offers one of the most spacious and flexible cabins in the industry. Filled with all-new chairs that transform into comfortable ergonomic beds, there's plenty of room left inside to enjoy the views from the large windows. In addition, it can be configured according to the customer's needs, being able to seat up to 19 passengers and sleep a total of 13.With a maximum range of 8,631 miles (13,890 km), people won't even feel that they're traveling on such incredible distances. Powered by high-thrust Rolls-Royce engines, the G700 has no problem of almost reaching the speed of sound (690 mph/1,110 kph). This allows everyone to get to their destination much faster, and it also increases the aircraft's efficiency.Moreover, the jet is packed with the latest tech. For example, the cockpit is equipped with the Symmetry Flight Deck, which provides active control sidesticks and intuitive touch-screen avionics. When combined with Phase-of-Flight intelligence, both pilot workload and aircraft start-up time are reduced.Given its list of impressive features, it comes as no surprise that the G700 has set some city-pair records on all its major international trips. In September, the production-test jet performed some record-breaking flights from Savannah-based Flight Test Center to Doha, Qatar, then from Doha to Paris, and finally, from Paris back to Savannah.The G700 also set some notable records on October 23rd. The aircraft took off from Houston, Texas, and flew 8,253 miles (13,283 kilometers) to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, completing the longest-distance traveled to date. It reached a Mach 0.87 speed, and it ran on SAF.The industry's goal is to achieve the goal of having zero-emission flights by 2050. And even if electric and hybrid propulsion systems are also put on the table as great options to get there, for now, SAF remains the most viable choice.Currently, the regulations allow aircraft to use only 50 percent SAF that is mixed with kerosene. Therefore, one of the objectives is to obtain non-blended SAF certification in order to perform sustainable long-distance travel. In addition, Gulfstream supports the industry's efforts to reach carbon neutrality, planning to offer the fuel to its customers as well."We are also further demonstrating our commitment to SAF by using the fuel blend as much as possible on G700 test flights five out of six test aircraft have used the fuel blend on every flight. We look forward to building on these successes in 2022 and accomplishing even more program milestones as we move closer to customer deliveries," said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream.Gulfstream states that it is the first business aviation manufacturer to sign the World Economic Forum's Clean Skies for Tomorrow 2030 Ambition Statement, a declaration of intent to accelerate the use of SAF. To date, Gulfstream has purchased about 1.6 million gallons of the SAF blend set to be used by both the company and its customers. Every driver gets carried away once in a while and before they know it, they find themselves over the speed limit. Even though sometimes they get away with this without a punishment, other times a speed camera or a policemans speed gun will temper their enthusiasm. In such cases, a speed ticket is issued. It is never pleasant, but sometimes it can get nasty, depending on the country or region, and rightfully so.This is because speeding is one of the most aggravating factors for car accidents. It should be noted that more than 1,000 people die every day around the world in speeding-related crashes, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) study . Every government therefore must fight speeding, and this is why we have speeding fines and license suspensions.Depending on the country, speeding fines are either fixed or based on the drivers income. This is a clever way to ensure that wealthy drivers dont get to view speeding tickets as mere inconveniences. This is also why the heaviest fines are issued in the countries with such a wealth-based system, most of them being in Europe. If you were curious, the world record is held by a Swiss driver who was fined 709,000 SFR ($767,000) in Switzerland after passing by a speed camera at 290 kph (180 mph).Australian insurance company Budget Direct just happened to analyze the speeding tickets' costs around the world and this is how we found out that Sudan has the lowest maximum fine for speeding, at a fixed rating of $0,07. We assume nobody cares for speeding in that part of the world, but a fine is still a fine.Going region by region its not unexpected to find out the U.S. has the most expensive fines in North America, going as high as $2,000 in Oregon. In Nebraska, on the other hand, going more than 21 mph over the speed limit will get you a bill for $200, according to the table at FindLaw . The lowest top fine on the continent is in Cuba, at 60 pesos ($2.50).In South America, Argentina holds the title for the highest speeding fines, at $3,700. The neighboring country Paraguay, on the other hand, is a lot more gentle on drivers wallets. Here, the biggest fines can get as high as $0,13. Thats right, 13 cents.Going from highs to lows and back, we found ourselves in Europe, the continent with the highest speeding fines in the world . Thats because several top-earning countries here calculate their fines based on the drivers income. It means Switzerland and Finland are the most expensive places to be caught speeding, even when you consider the average national income. No wonder the Top 20 highest fines in the world for speeding is populated with Finish and Swiss drivers mostly (14 and 4 positions respectively).Going further to the East, the highest top speeding fine in the Middle East and Central Asia is in Lebanon ($1,985), while the lowest is in Syria, at $0,08. Australia, of course, is the most expensive country in the rest of Asia and the Oceania region, with speeding tickets costing as much as $1,700 in New South Wales. On the other hand, Thailand, Pakistan, and Nepal are the cheapest, at $15, $15, and $13 respectively.Last on the list is Africa, although speeding fines are not that cheap here. Uganda, for instance, punishes speeding drivers with a $1,700 fine, according to Budget Direct . Of course, at the other end of the scale, we have Sudan, you know already.No matter how small a speeding fine is or seems, you should always remember that the maximum penalty anywhere in the world is death. Thats right, remember the 1,000 a day figure from the beginning of this article. Car manufacturers have become quite creative when it comes to colors, although, we have to admit, black, white, red, blue, and yellow will always be a hallmark in the industry.As Porsche is getting ready for an electric future, the powertrain isnt the only thing it wants to switch up. The brands famous Paint to Sample program has recently announced 160 new colors for 2022. Models like Panamera, Macan, and Cayenne will feature 50 new shades, while the Taycan has 65 options to choose from. Talk about the paradox of choice.We, regular folks, might not think much when we hear about the 160 new colors. They include several shades that most people cant name, of course, but thats about it.But this is not how famous car manufacturer Porsche operates. When it comes to approving a new color, the German automobile giant takes three to four years to decide.Daniela Milosevic, a designer in the Color and Trim Design department at Porsches Weissach Development Center, reveals to CarScoops that their process-making has a lot to do with trends and thinking ahead to make sure your color will always be appropriate to the one thats popular.Naturally, every new shade must pass several tests to prove its a color worthy of the company and that it withstands all weather conditions, hail, saltwater, and more. Moreover, it has to be fire-resistant. Anything that passes the color stability test in Florida is most certainly light-fast, says Milosevic. When it comes to inspiration, she continues: We use interior design and architecture as a source of ideas for our work. Fashion moves too fast. In contrast, customers buy a sofa and keep it for several years like a car. That distinction belongs to a bespoke one-off that was created fifteen years ago. Dubbed P4/5, this prancing horse-badged masterpiece didnt come from Maranello but from Turin, where it was drawn up and put together by Pininfarina.The collaboration between Ferrari and the legendary design company started in 1951 with a meeting at a small-town restaurant. Unlike today, when CEOs send entire delegations for such meetings, that afternoon, Enzo Ferrari, Battista "Pinin" Farina, and his 25-yer-old son, Sergio, were the only people who sat at the table. History has shown us that the meeting was extremely productive because, for the next 65 years, the vast majority of Ferraris road-going models were designed and engineered by Pininfarina.One of those was the 612 Scaglietti, the all-aluminum grand tourer introduced in 2004. It seems that during its two-year development, the relationship between the two companies was put to the test since both had fundamentally different views about how the car should look like. Thats probably why the result was one of the most uninspiring Ferraris built in the last 20 years. This isnt just my opinion. Many fans of the iconic carmaker felt the same, and some of them put the entire blame on the Pininfarina team, arguing that the designers had lost their touch.In 2005, after thousands of negative reviews of the 612, styling director Ken Okuyama and his colleagues started toying with the idea of creating a unique Ferrari that would prove the doubters wrong. They drew up some sketches and eventually settled on one created by Jason Castriota. But, since they didnt want to involve Ferrari in this secret project and the company was piling up huge losses, they needed someone to finance it. Several renown Ferrari collectors were discretely approached by Andrea Pininfarina, and with one exception, all of them politely refused.This is where former film director James Glickenhaus came into play. The current owner of Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus (SCG), a member of a wealthy Wall Street family, and a collector of historic racecars such as the oldest surviving Ferrari, he agreed to meet with Castriota and listen to his pitch.The sketch he was shown seemed to borrow cues from the 1960s endurance racers, mainly the P3/4 , one of which he happened to own and absolutely adore. Initially hesitant about what he viewed as a drastically futuristic approach, Glickenhaus thought about it for several months and ultimately agreed to finance the project.At the base of the P3/4s spiritual successor was another Pininfarina creation, the Enzo Ferrari , the last unsold example in the world. It was sourced from a Beverly Hills dealership and sent to Turin, where its original body was stripped down.By September, the final design was fully developed, a clay model began to take shape, and wind tunnel testing commenced. A few months later, new carbon fiber panels were being fitted to its monocoque.In January 2006, Ferrari got wind of Pininfarinas secret venture, and chairman Luca di Montezemolo paid them a visit. Everyone expected this project to spark a grudge match between the companies, but the boss was blown away by the car, agreeing that it deserved Ferrari badges.Eight months and $4 million later, the P4/5 was revealed at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. With more than 200 bespoke components, it made everyones jaws drop. Sitting on bigger, 20-inch custom aluminum-alloy, center-lock wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport tires, it was deemed exquisite from every angle and fundamentally different from the Enzo in every way.Inside, it used several elements from the car it was based on, like the dashboard and steering wheel , yet Glickenhaus himself designed the rest. These unique features include the seats, a tablet PC incorporated into the center stack, a new stereo system, improved air conditioning, as well as a custom-made, high-strength alloy roll bar.Powered by the 660-hp F140 B V12 (the last version of which is used by the SP3), the P4/5 can reach a top speed of 233 mph (375 kph). Over 600 pounds (272 kg) lighter than the Enzo, it was capable of accelerating to 62 mph (100 kph) from a standstill in 3.0 seconds, 0.14 seconds quicker than its limited-edition sibling.The pushrod suspension and Brembo brakes remained unchanged, but thanks to an improved drag coefficient of 0.34 and the lighter body, Glickenhaus stated that it handled better than the original car.Officially named Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina, this amazing one-off is what the Enzo should have looked like in the first place. Its a masterpiece of Italian design and a gutsy throwback to one of the most beautiful race cars of all time. While I will let you decide whether its better-looking than the new Daytona SP3 or not, I think we can all agree that its story is far more interesting.In the YouTube video below posted by BeTerrific, you can see more of this incredible car as its proud owner shows it off. These past couple of years have been rough, and even thats putting it mildly. The world has changed in unexpected and definite ways, and it will probably not go back to what it was ever again. On the bright side, one of the few good things to come out of the ongoing international health crisis is a re-discovered love of nature and for traveling.People who never before even dreamed of hitting the road are doing so now regularly. Some of them have even moved full-time to mobile homes , praise the benefits of remote working!, while many others are still to make that leap. As more people are following their wanderlust and getting to explore the wonders of nature (*a cliche, we know, but its true), they might feel at times that theyre leaving some good things behind for good.What were saying is that we could all use some winding down and relaxation, wherever our travels might take us, but especially if they take us off the beaten track. And one or several days spent in the great outdoor should not mean having to give up the benefits of a hot sauna A hot sauna is not normally associated with the idea of movability, but this one is. Its called Iam Sauna and its a concept introduced by a Japanese startup of the same name earlier this year. Iam Sauna, the company, specializes in sauna products, and is now looking into bringing this new concept of a portable one to market. Iam Sauna wants to be your reliable, detoxing and rejuvenating travel companion, for you and five other of your friends.Iam Sauna is actually a tent thats been designed specifically to hold in heat and, you know,catch fire. It comes with the necessary wood-burning metal stove, and the entire package is portable. You need to work on your strength for the stove, as it tips the scales at 18 kg (40 pounds), so its only as portable as long as you can carry that weight to the next clearing. The weight of the stove and the size of the folded tent do hinder somewhat, so it would be best if you went camping with a larger vehicle The sauna tent is as ingenious as its simple and, according to the promo video at the bottom of the page, easy to set up. It takes just one person less than a minute to put up, from the moment they fold it out to the final string they pull to make the sides pop up. The roof does that from within.For safety reasons, there is no type of floor covering inside the tent . The roof is made of fire-resistant material, to prevent sparks going up the chimney from catching fire. The tent itself is made of triple-layer 420 denier oxford woven tent fabric, with cotton for insulation. The interior surface is of 200 x 200 cm (78.7 x 78.7 inches), which is apparently more than enough to fit six adults. As long as you dont mind rubbing naked shoulders with them, it goes without saying.The wood-burning stove features collapsible legs, removable guard plate on top to stack the sauna stones on it, and heat-resistant glass window. The chimney of the stove evacuates through a hole in the ceiling of the roof.Unlike most saunas, where the walls are clad in wood and you cant see anything of the outside world , Iam Sauna allows you to have an actual view. Assuming you could still see out of them because of the vapor, the tent features five decently-sized windows. They also allow in plenty of natural light.A hot sauna has countless benefits, from easing pain to relieving stress and helping the body detoxify. What could be better than getting all of them at the end of a long, hard day on the trails, when youre feeling so stiff you can barely stand upright?Just imagine, this could be you, but out in the woods. SUV AMG It's never a bad time to do some marketing. During Christmas time, many brands opted to give something to their community and released incredibly well-thought commercials.From the most traditional-looking Christmas settings to a modern Santa who doesnt need reindeer to pull his sleigh, these brands showed their creativity breaking their usual domain.In a surprising move, Lamborghini just released a commercial about the importance of bravery, spontaneity, and authenticity. In one of the most holiday-themed commercials among all of them so far, it has a child at its center, he is surrounded by family in a big country house, as theyre unwrapping gifts on Christmas Day. However, the most exciting turns out to be a controller that can make a Huracan Evo drift on their front yard, with a surprise twist at the end.Italian brand Ferrari didn't join in with a holiday ad, but it did introduce its official Watchlist . It includes all the best movies that feature their models, like Ford vs Ferrari, Rush, and a lot of classics.German brand BMW also splashed on its Christmas ad. It has several famous names in the commercial that stars Christoph Waltz and features a cameo from Supercar Blondie . Waltz plays a modern-day Grinch who arrives at an office for a meeting in what seems to be a 3.0 CS (E9) coupe, only to find out theres a Christmas party going on. He then tries his best to escape it and even hides behind a gorgeous 507 Roadster. In the end, Christoph Waltz manages to escape the office party in a BMW iX electricfinished in Aventurine Red. The ad is funny, creative, and I'm sure a lot of corporate people can relate to that.Santa's reindeers are a fleet of Mercedes-Benz SUVs in the German brand's Christmas commercial. This one puts Mrs. Claus at the center of it all when Santa forgets to pack a girl's present - a puppy. The ad, called "Mrs. C," shows Santa's wife driving a Mercedes-G63 through the snow and arriving safely at the destination to save Christmas. Mercedes-AMG also wished its community Happy Holidays with two iconic red cars: the SL and Mercedes-AMG GT 63, which you can check out in our gallery.The other luxury German brand, Audi, couldnt miss the opportunity to give us a glimpse into the future. This one has Santa, a modern-looking older male in a pressed suit who doesnt need reindeer anymore. His assistant introduces him to his new sleigh, which is a full-electric Audi RS e-tron GT. When Santa asks about runners, his assistant smartly replies, Welcome to the future.Lincoln's commercial for this Christmas is for the people who live in hot climates. The perfect holiday includes lots of snow, but due to climate change, few of us actually enjoy a white Christmas anymore. Featuring the Lincoln Aviator Grand Touring, a family is driving home on a sunny day and notices through the SUV's panoramic glass roof that it's snowing. It's actually a snow-making machine, and the family has some outdoor fun as the mom plugs in the vehicle to charge. A smart and fitting ad.Last but not least, its what the internet has been buzzing about most and my personal favorite this season. Chevrolets emotional, tear-jerking commercial about loss, love, and remembering and honoring our loved ones. With a touching story based on a real story, their commercial is the longest (around four minutes), and it has a 1966 Chevy Impala Super Sport convertible at its center. But its also one of the commercials that feature more models from the brands lineup in a town where they have a monopole, including a Silverado SUV, an Equinox, a Bel Air, and an El Camino.What is your favorite this year? This is whats happening right now with YouTube audio, as users are struggling with a problem that makes it impossible to listen to anything due to a mysterious error showing up out of nowhere.More specifically, users who turned to Googles forums to report the glitch explain in this thread that the YouTube audio just goes away completely after playing one video. In other words, you open one link, the audio is working fine, but when it comes to an end, the sound is completely lost.The only way to make it work, some users say, is to just play some audio in a different application, after which the sound in YouTube returns once again until the next soundtrack comes to an end.Needless to say, watching YouTube while driving is strongly forbidden, and this is the reason the app doesnt come with support for Android Auto in the first place.However, users can just load a video on their mobile devices and have the audio playing on Android Auto, therefore enjoying the soundtrack on their cars speakers. Users who have a YouTube Premium subscription are provided with even more advanced functionality, as they are allowed to lock their mobile devices without the playback being interrupted.Google has already confirmed its investigating all these reports, but for the time being, nobody knows for sure if this is a glitch in the YouTube app or in Android Auto. As a result, an estimate as to when a fix could be released isnt yet available, so youd better not hold your breath for it.The only workaround right now seems to be a full reconnect of the mobile device to the head unit to continue the playback or to just play audio in a different app to restore the sound in YouTube as well. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. The Biden administration approved Wednesday plans for a major offshore wind farm to supply power to New York. Why it matters: The approval for the installation of a dozen turbines near Rhode Island marks a major step in the administration's goal of reaching 30 gigawatts of offshore wind-generating capacity in U.S. waters by 2030, powering more than 10 million homes. Officials see offshore wind as a key tool to help meet the White House its target of 100% carbon-free power by 2035, as part of a wider commitment to combating climate change. Details: The 130-megawatt South Fork Wind project will be the first wind farm to supply power to New York, transmitting power to Long Island, the Washington Post notes. The project will "create about 340 jobs and provide enough power for about 70,000 homes," per an Interior Department statement. The big picture: The green light for the South Fork Wind project marks the second commercial-scale offshore wind farm approved by the Biden administration after the Vineyard Wind, which is under construction off the Massachusetts coast. The Biden administration plans to identify and lease federal waters along seven coastal areas to offshore wind power developers by 2025. Yes, but: Officials have to overcome conservationists' worries about the wind farms' effect on endangered whales, people in the fishing industry's concerns about their catch and coastal homeowner trepidations about their sea views, per WashPost. Meanwhile, a $1.75 trillion social spending and climate bill passed by House Democrats earlier this month, which includes over $300 billion in clean energy tax incentives for projects such as the erection of wind turbines, faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Changes to the bill are likely, with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) among those expressing concern at some aspects of the measure, Axios' Ben Geman writes. What they're saying: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement there's "no time to waste in cultivating and investing in a clean energy economy that can sustain us for generations." "Just one year ago, there were no large-scale offshore wind projects approved in the federal waters of the United States. Today there are two, with several more on the horizon," she added. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said in a statement that the state is "facing the challenges of climate change head-on" with such action. "Our nation-leading climate and offshore wind goals demand bold action and moving South Fork Wind forward brings us closer to a cleaner and greener future," she said. Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from Hochul. The White House will lift the travel restrictions it imposed on eight African countries last month after the Omicron variant was first reported in South Africa, White House assistant press secretary Kevin Munoz said on Friday. Driving the news: The restrictions will end on Dec. 31, according to Munoz. He said the decision to lift travel restrictions was recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "The restrictions gave us time to understand Omicron and we know our existing vaccines work against Omicron, esp boosted," Munoz said in a tweet. People traveling from the countries will now be subject to the same protocols the U.S. has imposed elsewhere requiring foreigners be vaccinated and that all travelers get a negative COVID-19 test within a day of their departure. Flashback: President Biden in late November restricted entry from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi at the recommendation of medical experts and the COVID-19 response team. The restrictions apply to people who were in the countries during the 14-day period before they tried to enter the U.S. It does not apply to American citizens and permanent residents. Reuters first reported on the decision to lift the restrictions. Between the lines: Officials in South Africa had criticized countries that imposed travel bans on the nation, saying it was being punished, rather than praised, "for its advanced genomic sequencing and the ability to detect new variants quicker." The following story is adapted from "Trumps Peace: The Abraham Accords and the Reshaping of the Middle East." The unveiling of Trump's Middle East peace plan and former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's efforts to parlay the plan into unilateral annexations in the occupied West Bank sparked weeks of tensions between the U.S. and Israeli governments. Flashback: They culminated in a heated meeting that February in which Jared Kushner ejected Israel's ambassador to Washington from his office, according to two former senior White House officials. We tell the whole story of Trump's failed peace plan and the chaotic origins of the Abraham Accords in a new season of the "How it Happened" podcast. Listen and subscribe. The backstory: Donald Trump presented his plan in a White House ceremony on Jan. 28, 2020. The White House hoped to start mobilizing international support in order to push the plan ahead in a possible second Trump term. The plan was widely viewed as highly favorable to Israel, but it was politically sensitive for Netanyahu with elections looming in March. Still, he couldn't outright say no to Trump. Instead, Netanyahu promised during the ceremony to immediately annex the parts of the West Bank that the plan envisioned as part of Israel an explosive proposal that would violate international law, but potentially provide Netanyahu an electoral landslide. Kushner and the White House ultimately forced Netanyahu to back down and walk back his promise just hours later, in a major embarrassment for the prime minister. Behind the scenes: The following weeks were the lowest point in relations between Trump and Netanyahu up to that point. Their advisers were hardly speaking, two former White House officials say. In late February, Israeli ambassador Ron Dermer went to see Kushner at the White House and the frustrations from Jan. 28 were aired for the first time, the former White House officials say. Dermer claimed the embarrassment Netanyahu had suffered would harm him in the elections. Dermer said Netanyahu had made difficult promises in front of the whole world during an election campaign and had done so with the understanding that the U.S. would support him on annexation. Kushner pushed back, saying the Trump administration had done more for Israel than any previous administration. Dont get confused thinking that what happened in the last three years was because of you. We did all that because we wanted to," Kushner said. The Israeli ambassador fired back, saying Netanyahu didn't know if he could ever trust the Trump administration again. "Get out," Kushner shouted, calling Dermer's remark "disgusting." Worth noting: A former White House official told me Kushner liked Dermer and saw him as someone who kept Netanyahu's emotions in check, but on that day, Dermer said things he shouldnt have and Jared wasnt in the mood to take it." Go deeper: 'It doesn't look like home anymore.' Tornado wiped out much of Mayfield's history Clayton Korte Fredericksburg is set for a new destination hotel that will bring a full-service spa, pool, cabana and the works. New Waterloo, a hospitality developer out of Austin, unveiled its plans and look for the Albert Hotel, a modern take on a boutique hotel that will be built front and center on historic Main Street, according to a news release. The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has awarded 41 grants totaling $10,379,293 to multiple public community colleges, public technical institutes, public state colleges and independent school districts through the Jobs and Education for Texans (JET) grant program, including Lamar State College Orange. Lamar State College Orange received $208,741 to help purchase and install equipment that will initially serve 250 students, providing training in the occupation of health care practitioners and technical occupations. Qualifying educational institutions were each awarded a grant for the development of programs or courses leading to a license, certificate or post-secondary degree. The JET grant program focuses on projects that develop training programs to prepare Texans for jobs in new, emerging industries and high-demand occupations. Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) announced that Spindletop Center has received certification as a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) for a period of three years, effective Dec. 1 of this year. To successfully achieve this certification, Spindletop Center established that its policies, procedures and staff supported the implementation and adoption of the Texas CCBHC criteria, as well as directly provide a set of 9 core services and meet criteria in the six distinct categories of: Availability and Accessibility of Services Care Coordination Scope of Services Quality and Other Reporting Staffing Organizational Authority Spindletop Center began the process of becoming a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic in November 2020, and now joins other certified clinics across the state of Texas. This allows Spindletop Center to continue the consistency of quality care and potentially take advantage of future funding opportunities with the state. Popular food delivery service Waitr wrapped up its month-long holiday delivery of donated items from partnering restaurants to the Southeast Texas Food Bank. The food app collected non-perishable food donations at area restaurants who partnered with Waitr to help feed local families in need this holiday season. Donations were picked up from New York Pizza & Pasta; Floyds Cajun Seafood & Texas Steakhouse; Happy Donuts; The Schooner Restaurant; and Crazy Joses, located across Southeast Texas. Participating restaurants reported their customers were particularly generous this year, allowing Waitr to perform two drop-offs during the drive. The most-needed items were proteins (canned tuna, dried or canned beans, soup, peanut butter), grains (high-fiber cereal, oatmeal, pasta, rice), canned fruits and vegetables and bottled water. Waitr customers have also donated money to the Holiday Food Drive when they ordered from the favorite restaurants on the app or the Waitrapp.com website - with Waitr matching a portion of all the customers donations. Waitr operates an online ordering technology platform, providing delivery, carryout and dine-in options. Waitr connects local restaurants and grocery stores to diners in underserved U.S. markets. As of Sept. 30, Waitr and its other delivery services operate in over 1,000 cities in the U.S. jacob.dick@beaumontenterprise.com twitter.com/jd_journalism The T.L.L. Temple Foundation has awarded $50,000 to nonprofit Young Invincibles (YI) to support its goal of enrolling East Texas and Southeast Texas young adults in health insurance. With this grant, YI will hire and train four young adults to organize and coordinate Affordable Care Act outreach and enrollment for the 2022 open enrollment period. They will collaborate with colleges and universities, food banks and pantries, Federally Qualified Health Centers, libraries and others in rural communities to reach the uninsured. YI will conduct this work in Angelina, Cherokee, Jefferson, Nacogdoches and Tyler counties, and hope to make an immediate impact on the uninsured. YI expects to directly reach 200 individuals and digitally reach more than 5,000. In addition to the grant to YI, the foundation awarded five grants totaling $2,692,500 during its July board meeting. These grants will support the foundations mission to build a thriving rural East Texas while positively impacting human services, health, economic opportunity, and education. Entergy Texas, Inc. is donating $152,000, funded by Entergy shareholders, to go toward supporting organizations helping those in need this holiday season. Grants will go toward helping battle food insecurity, funding student scholarships and providing bill payment assistance and emergency assistance, to name a few. We know that the holidays can be a difficult time of year for some of our most vulnerable customers, Stuart Barrett, vice president of customer service for Entergy Texas, said in a statement. Entergy Texas is thankful for the opportunity to give back to the communities that we serve and for our partner agencies who do such vital work for southeast Texas. Local organizations receiving funding include: Brazos Valley Food Bank Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas Community Assistance Center Hardin County Strong Lamar University Foundation Lone Star College Foundation Montgomery County Food Bank Southeast Texas Food Bank Texas Association of Community Action Agencies U.S. News & World Report has ranked Lamar University on its Top 10 list of best public colleges and universities in Texas. The publications ranking of best global universities assesses 1,750 institutions from more than 90 countries based on 13 metrics including academic research and reputation. According to the 2022 evaluation, Lamar University is the No.9 best public university in the state of Texas. Other Texas schools following LU include Texas State University at No.15, and University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley at No.20. Home to more than 17,000 students, Lamar University also ranks as the fifth highest on the diversity index among public universities in Texas, and in the top 14% among other ranked national institutions, as noted by U.S. News & World Report rankings released in early September. The top 10 best public colleges and universities in Texas, as ranked by U.S. News and World Report: University of Texas at Austin Texas A&M University, College Station University of Texas at Dallas University of Houston Texas Tech University, Lubbock Sam Houston State University, Huntsville University of North Texas, Denton University of Texas at Arlington Lamar University, Beaumont Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches jacob.dick@beaumontenterprise.com twitter.com/jd_journalism Health care can be complicated, and when youre talking about something called the 1115 Medicaid waiver for Texas hospitals, the words dont exactly roll off the tongue. But while the terminology can seem complex, the need for this program is basic, and clear. It helps more low-income Texans get health care, something thats vitally important in a state that unfortunately has the highest percentage of uninsured residents in the nation. The 1115 waiver reimburses hospitals for the uncompensated care they provide to patients without health insurance. It also pays for health care projects that serve low-income Texans. An extension of the waiver that was approved under the Trump Administration would have lasted until 2030. But the Biden administration determined that rescinding the agreement would push Texas toward expanding Medicaid, something that Democrats have long supported. But the Republicans who control the levers of power in Texas have steadfastly refused to expand Medicaid, something that would have started under Obamacare, which they strongly oppose. Many other Republicans states also opposed the expansion of Medicaid initially, but over the years they have come around as they see the medical and financial benefits of it. Today, Texas is one of only 12 states that will wont take this important step. It has a big and negative impact on our state. More than 1.7 million Texans would be covered by Medicaid if Texas accepted its expansion. More than 770,000 of those people have no realistic access to health insurance without Medicaid expansion. This year alone, Texas is walking away from $15 billion from the federal government for Medicaid expansion. Theres no telling how long this could drag on, probably for several more years at least. In the meantime, the 1115 waivers should continue so that Texas hospitals get some compensation (not enough, actually) for the care they provide to uninsured patients. In fact, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services still has the authority to approve these payments to Texas hospitals regardless of the status of any litigation. These federal payments have been frozen since Sept. 1, and the dispute could jeopardize more than $10 billion in annual Medicaid funding for the state. Many hospitals in Texas have closed in recent years, particularly those serving rural areas. Southeast Texas itself has lost several of these facilities, and each one left a void in their communities. Some of those who are still hanging on could be pushed over the edge by the loss of these payments. That shouldnt happen to a single one, and the Biden administration should remove this threat to their survival. In the weeks before the 2020 election, as Fox News executives and luminaries came to terms with its possible outcome, some began to see in it a long-awaited opportunity - a chance to break up with Donald Trump. Even the president sensed a growing distance from the network that was once so closely aligned with him. "What's the biggest difference between this and four years ago?" he asked rhetorically during an Election Day appearance on "Fox & Friends," skipping over obvious choices such as U.S. foreign relations, immigration policy or the makeup of the federal courts. "I say Fox," he answered. "It's much different now." The sentiment was held most fervently on Fox's news side and in its Washington bureau, according to current and former Fox News personalities familiar with the dynamic who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal conversations. Many felt the network's identity had become too tightly bound up with its opinion hosts - some of whom had become not just on-air cheerleaders but behind-the-scenes advisers for a president adored by their viewers - at the expense of its old self-forged image as a "fair and balanced" news operation. Yet the post-Trump era opened for Fox with a ratings drop that quickly prompted a recalibration of those 2021 visions. Now, one year later, the dream some harbored of distancing from Trump is long over. The biggest threat Fox now faces is a pair of looming lawsuits from two voting technology companies that claim the network, far from turning away from him, allowed Trump-allied personalities - including on-air hosts as well as guests - to falsely malign them with bogus conspiracy theories about widespread election fraud. Over the course of the year, Fox managed to reassert itself as the No. 1-ranked cable programmer - and full-heartedly realigned itself with the former president and his supporters. It's a hard-fought triumph that has allowed Fox executives to shrug off two other recent developments that, at least to outsiders, further undermined its credentials as a news broker - the departure of veteran anchor Chris Wallace and the revelation of panicked texts three of its hosts sent to Trump's chief of staff, urging him to calm the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. And it highlights a dynamic affecting the entire cable-news industry at a time when the era's polarized politics increasingly steer viewers' decisions about what to watch. "The universe of cable news viewers is declining, so you need to get more out of the existing viewers," said Chris Stirewalt, a former politics editor for Fox News, who compares cable news to "the tobacco industry circa 1988, where you have addiction as your path to profit" - and a strong motivation for channels to give their most loyal audiences the worldviews they desire. "A lot of Fox's decisions (suggest) that they are following that route." Irena Briganti, a Fox News spokesperson, attributed the network's ratings dominance to its staff - "not just our news and opinion talent, but the many enterprising members of the team who work behind the scenes to put a top-notch product on the air," she said. "It's because of our great people that we consistently have more Americans watching Fox News each day than our competitors combined." Stirewalt's own career at Fox reflects some of the network's pivots in its fight to stay on top. He was once part of a team that had won respect throughout the media business - Fox's nonpartisan "decision desk," known for its sharp and clearheaded analysis of election returns. But the decision desk's performance on election night 2020 set in motion some of the drama Fox would confront in early 2021. The network was the first media outlet to project that Joe Biden would win the traditional red state of Arizona, an announcement that enraged the Trump camp and prompted an angry phone call from the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner to Rupert Murdoch, whose family controls Fox News's parent company. Murdoch declined to overrule the decision desk, whose projection proved to be accurate. But when Trump lost, he declared war on Fox, railing against the network for its Arizona call and avidly promoting two far smaller news channels, Newsmax and One America News, that were beginning to carve out a niche among the Trump faithful. Weeks later, Stirewalt says, he was fired, while another executive involved with the Arizona call abruptly retired. Fox says that Stirewalt's job was simply eliminated in a larger staff restructuring and notes that the network recently renewed the contract of Arnon Mishkin, the consultant who has run its decision desk for years. The next test for Fox - and those on-air personalities who had publicly championed Trump for so long - came on Jan. 6. Some of the network's opinion hosts spent the subsequent weeks and months downplaying the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol by hoards of Trump supporters or implying it had been started by left-wing agitators. In the moment, though, texts would later show Fox hosts Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity and Brian Kilmeade beseeching the president to calm the mobs and enforce the peace. "This is hurting all of us," Ingraham wrote to Trump's chief of staff Mark Meadows, in a text message revealed last week by the House select committee investigating the attack, echoing some concerns she shared on air that night. "He is destroying his legacy." In January 2021, for the first time in 20 years, Fox reported monthly ratings that fell behind both of its main cable news competitors, CNN and MSNBC. Now Fox is back on top, announcing that it was on track to complete its sixth year as the highest-ranking channel in all of cable, not just cable news. But it comes after a year of high-profile defections, criticism and lawsuits challenging the claims it allowed on the air. And Fox's resurgence tracks with the growing influence within the company of Tucker Carlson, prime-time host of the network's most-watched show. In November, Carlson produced a documentary series - released on the network's streaming service, Fox Nation, but promoted on Fox News - that floated unfounded theories that the Jan. 6 attack was an inside job by the government to target Trump supporters. ("They've begun to fight a new enemy in a new war on terror," Carlson intoned in the first episode. " ... an actual war, soldiers and paramilitary agencies hunting down American citizens.") The Carlson series drew howls of condemnation not just from critics outside Fox but some whispers of dissent within the network as well, including from anchors Bret Baier and Chris Wallace. In November, two longtime Fox News contributors, Jonah Goldberg and Stephen Hayes, cited Carlson's special - "a collection of incoherent conspiracy-mongering, riddled with factual inaccuracies, half-truths, deceptive imagery, and damning omissions" - as their primary rationale for resigning from the network. Even Lachlan Murdoch, the CEO of the network's parent company Fox Corp., was troubled by the incendiary trailer for the series, according to people who spoke with him. Yet the series continued to air on Fox Nation, which further lent Carlson an air of untouchability inside Fox. (Asked for comment, Brian Nick, a spokesperson for Lachlan Murdoch, said, "When Lachlan has a concern, he addresses it internally with the team, not through the media.") A larger concern for Fox executives appears to be a pair of billion-dollar lawsuits filed by Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic Corp. alleging defamation by the network for allowing Trump allies such as Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell to air false claims of election fraud, including on shows hosted by Carlson, Hannity and Jeanine Pirro. Last week, a judge rejected Fox's motion to dismiss the Dominion case, allowing it to move forward. Fox has called the suit "baseless" and an "all-out assault on the First Amendment," arguing that the network "vigorously covered the breaking news surrounding the unprecedented 2020 election, providing full context of every story with in-depth reporting and clear-cut analysis." The departure of Wallace drew far more attention, as the veteran anchor announced last week he is leaving Fox to host a show for rival CNN's forthcoming streaming service. Over his 18 years at the network, executives had repeatedly hailed Wallace's nonpartisan credentials as a tough, skeptical questioner as proof of Fox's commitment to news. But Fox insiders were quick to downplay his move, arguing that it will mean little to a core Fox audience that gravitates to its highly-charged opinion hours. And they crowed over the coup achieved one week later by Baier, who scored the must-see interview of the day while temporarily holding down Wallace's old "Fox News Sunday" seat, when Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., announced on the show that he would vote against President Joe Biden's domestic spending plan. It was proof, in Fox's view, that the show's powers lay not in who sat in the interviewer's chair - but the substantial number of loyal viewers guaranteed to tune into Fox at any hour. "Fox's programming decisions are a reflection of their audience," said Rob Horowitz, a communications consultant who teaches a course on politics and media at the University of Rhode Island. "That's where the audience is, but the audience is there in part because that's where Fox leads them." CLAIM: New York lawmakers will vote Jan. 5 on a bill that would allow for the indefinite detention of the unvaccinated. Not Real News: Posts misrepresent Washington University study on COVID-19 immunity CLAIM: Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis released data showing that if you have had COVID-19, even a mild THE FACTS: The claim is misrepresenting a bill, first introduced in the New York state legislature in 2015, that would allow for the temporary detention of individuals infected, or suspected of being infected, with a contagious disease during a public health emergency. The state Assemblys health committee has no plans to take action on the bill, and its sponsor, Assemblyman N. Nick Perry, now says he will withdraw it. While the proposal failed to find support among lawmakers, it is still causing a stir online. In recent days, social media users have pushed a claim that lawmakers are planning to vote on the bill as soon as Jan. 5 and that it would allow for the indefinite detention of people who arent vaccinated against COVID-19. But no such vote on the bill in question was slated for that day, which is actually just the start of the legislative session. Citing concocted stories online about the bill, Perry, its sponsor, tweeted Monday that he would take legislative action to strike the bill, remove it from the calendar, thus ending all consideration, and actions that could lead to passage into law. The bill proposed allowing the state to temporarily detain someone carrying or suspected to be carrying a contagious disease or someone they came into contact with in a medical facility or other appropriate facility. The bill also said such a person shall not continue to be detained after they are determined to be no longer contagious. It also included a provision to require the state to seek a court order if a person was to be held for more than three days. Frank Shea, a spokesman for Perry, told The Associated Press that the bill was first proposed in 2015 after a nurse defied quarantine after treating Ebola patients in Sierra Leone. Shea said that while Perry reintroduced the bill year after year, he had not actively pushed for the legislation and said it would be withdrawn because it had become a distraction. The most recent introduction came in January 2021, when it was referred to the Assemblys Committee on Health. There was no other action on it. Before Perry announced Monday that he would withdraw the bill, the office of Assemblyman Richard Gottfried the chair of the Committee on Health also said in a statement to the AP that there were no plans to vote on it. This bill has been introduced every year since 2015, has never been taken up by the Committee, has not been cosponsored by other legislators, and has not had a companion bill in the Senate, the statement said. The Committee does not plan to put the bill on an agenda. Associated Press writer Angelo Fichera in Philadelphia contributed this report. Medical workers transport a COVID-19 patient into the COVID-19 intensive care unit at the la Timone hospital in Marseille, southern France, Friday. On Friday, The Associated Press reported on social media posts that misrepresent a Washington University study on COVID-19 immunity. 'THE MERRY MONSTERS' Dragons and sorcerers take center stage in annual school vacation week marionette show at Ventfort Hall Film and stage set designer Carl Sprague makes art with marionettes used by his great-grandfather In the HBO series "Succession," Logan Roy (Brian Cox, center) has no plans on exiting his company any time soon. Without a detailed succession plan, Logan leaves his children to fight each other for control, ultimately hurting the company. Hospitals have a new tool to fight COVID-19: Pfizer's COVID-19 Paxlovid pills. U.S. health regulators Wednesday authorized the first pill against COVID-19, a drug that Americans will be able to take at home to head off the worst effects of the virus. That will help fill in the gaps left by monoclonal antibody therapies that have become far less effective against omicron. Investigations editor Larry Parnass joined The Eagle in 2016 from the Daily Hampshire Gazette, where he was editor in chief. His freelance work has appeared in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Hartford Courant, CommonWealth Magazine and with the Reuters news service. ADAMS Parishioners were informed at 4 p.m. Masses Friday that the Rev. Barrent Pease is no longer the administrator of the St. John Paul II and St. Mary parishes in Adams and Cheshire. In a letter read aloud during the Masses, Bishop William D. Byrne said he met Wednesday with Pease to discuss what the bishop termed a trying week for parishioners. Quote Kindly include Father Pease in your prayers as he reflects on and learns from this experience. Bishop William D. Byrne, speaking of the Rev. Barrent Pease, who was removed from service to two Berkshire parishes this week The letter did not specify conduct by Pease that the bishop found trying, referring only to the circumstances of the last week. Last weekend, Pease suggested to parishioners at two Masses that he viewed the eventual closing of St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Adams as inevitable because it faces expensive longterm repairs, as well as a current problem with mold. The comments sent shockwaves through the small but tight-knit community. Parishioners had mounted a three-year vigil to successfully oppose a diocesan plan, in 2008, to close the church. The Vatican eventually upheld their appeal. Pease also declared, in a printed church bulletin distributed last weekend, that the intention of the Midnight Mass on Friday, Christmas Eve, would be to support the religious conversion of Jewish people to Christianity. That missionary goal runs counter to Vatican policy and the printing of the intention was assailed this week by the diocese, without naming Pease. When Byrne was informed of the "Mass Intention" by a distressed St. Stans parishioner, he ordered the intention be changed to remove a specific reference to Jews. It was later changed to call only for support for the local parishes, the traditional intention at this time of year. I want to share with you that Father Pease feels badly for any misunderstanding or unintended offense he may have caused, Byrne said in his letter to the parishes. He honestly was trying to respond openly and act faithfully as your administrator. Nonetheless, Byrne announced that at his meeting Wednesday with Pease, he concluded that the young priest who is in his mid-30s and joined the parishes in February needed to leave his post in Adams and Cheshire. In the end, Father Pease and I arrived at the painful but necessary decision for him to step aside as your administrator effective immediately, the bishop said in the letter. Separately, the diocese said Byrne has contacted Rabbi Rachel Barenblat of Williamstown, one of several area Jewish leaders who met Tuesday to discuss how they wished to respond to the published Mass Intention regarding religious conversion. The group opted to seek a meeting with the diocese. Barenblat told The Eagle on Tuesday that she and others would "seek to open a conversation about this after Christmas when their holy season has concluded. ... We're going to work on building bridges with this community." A spokesman for Byrne said Friday that the bishop advised Barenblat of his willingness to engage in dialogue. In his letter to parishioners, Byrne expressed regret for the uncertainty that arose this week, following Peases announcement about a possible consolidation of St. Stans into the Notre Dame Church, also in Adams. You have been foremost in my thoughts and prayers during these final days of Advent, he told parishioners. As The Eagle reported Thursday, a retired priest in Adams will step in as a short-term leader. Byrne has named the Rev. William Cyr to serve as administrator protem of both the St. John Paul II and the St. Mary parishes. I ask that you extend to him a gracious welcome and thanks for answering this call, Byrne told parishioners, speaking of Cyr. Cyr will be aided locally by the Rev. Gary Dailey. In the meantime, the diocese will search for a new permanent administrator. No decision has been made on Peases next assignment, the diocese said Friday. Byrne asked parishioners to pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us in identifying your new parish leader. He also asked parishioners to support their former administrator. Kindly include Father Pease in your prayers as he reflects on and learns from this experience. Hindi News Db original 21 Year Age For Drinking Alcohol In Haryana, Know What Is The Age Required In Your State? : 21 , ? Startups have the potential to catalyse Indias integration in Global Value Chains and to increase our footprint in global markets: Piyush Goyal The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Piyush Goyal has called for greater focus on nurturing entrepreneurship in the Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities of India. He was delivering the Keynote Address at the 3rd Meeting of National Startup Advisory Council virtually. It may be noted that 45% startups in India are from Tier 2 and 3 cities and 623 districts have at least 1 recognized startup. From 2018-21, almost 5.9 lakh jobs have been created by startups. In 2021 alone, almost 1.9 lakh jobs have been created. Six national programmes were presented to the Minister as part of the third National Startup Advisory Council meeting to strengthen the startup ecosystem in the country. The key interventions discussed were National Capacity Building Programme for Incubators, providing thrust to the startups engaged in manufacturing sector, empowering the larger pool of Family Offices and High Networth Individuals (HNIs) to invest in startups, accelerating Deep-tech Startups which would act as a catalyst in empowering pioneers, establishing an international platform and a gateway for Indian startups to go global, propelling participation of women in the startups and a holistic programme which aims at enabling global mentorship, market access, international opportunities and B2B connects. Eight AYUSH Integrated Hospitals with 50 beds inaugurated in eight cities of the state The Ministry of AYUSH has announced a slew of major initiatives to push healthcare facilities in the state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). A total amount of Rs 553.36 crore has been released by the Government of India to Uttar Pradesh for various activities under the National AYUSH Mission. These major announcements were made by Union Minister of AYUSH and Ports, Shipping & Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal in the presence of Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath. In an effort towards building a sustainable, effective and affordable healthcare in the country, eight new 50 bedded integrated AYUSH hospitals were inaugurated. These are located in Deoria, Koushambi, Sonbhadra, Lucknow, Kanpur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Kanpur Dehat, and Lalitpur. These were built with a total capital outlay of Rs 72 crores. A total of 500 new AYUSH Health & Wellness Centres (HWCs) were also inaugurated in different parts of the state. Building upon this strong foundation of healthcare for people, the Union Minister laid foundation stone for a new AYUSH Educational Institute for Ayurveda with a capital outlay Rs 49.83 crores. This new institute of Ayurveda will come up in Ayodhya. Further, foundation stones were also laid for six new 50 bedded hospitals which will come up in Unnao, Shrawasti, Hardoi, Gorakhpur, Sambhal and Mirzapur. The total outlay for this project is planned at Rs 78 crores. A total of 250 new AYUSH dispensaries will also be constructed in different districts of the state. Two weeks ago, the Winnipeg Free Press revealed that Christian worshippers are secretly holding church services in farm sheds and machine shops in southern Manitoba communities as a way to evade COVID-19 public health orders. Two weeks ago, the Winnipeg Free Press revealed that "Christian worshippers are secretly holding church services in farm sheds and machine shops in southern Manitoba communities as a way to evade COVID-19 public health orders. "Held on private properties, the Sunday services, attended by dozens, and up to hundreds, have been organized to circumvent current public health rules, which require mask use and limit the size of religious gatherings if attendees are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19," the article said. When asked about his governments apparent unwillingness to enforce public health orders prohibiting such gatherings, Justice Minister Cameron Friesen, who is also the MLA for the Morden-Winkler constituency where the secret services are apparently happening, said this: "Its very sensitive Were also trying to send the message that we know how important it is for people to gather to meet their spiritual needs." There has been a strong response to Camerons comments. An editorial published in this newspaper last week ended with this sentence: "If Friesen is unwilling to properly enforce restrictions due to political considerations in his home jurisdiction, he needs to step down as justice minister and hand the job over to someone who is." Dr. Doug Eyolfson responded that "theyre flouting public health orders, endangering others lives, and the justice minister is basically saying Oh well, thats difficult. I find that frankly terrifying." In response to the editorial and doctors comments, Friesen claimed on social media that "Religious expression is important, and so is following the rules during COVID-19. There is no province in Canada that has done more to enforce the public health rules." I know Cam Friesen. Ive worked with him, I like him and I regard him as a friend. But I think he is in an impossible situation. The ongoing refusal of Friesens constituents to follow public health orders throughout the pandemic, and his governments refusal to do much in response, is a significant cause of the health crisis we are experiencing. The proof is in the numbers. Southern Health residents make up just 15 per cent of Manitobas population, yet they occupy a far higher percentage of ICU beds throughout the province. A higher percentage of Southern Health residents are testing positive for COVID-19 than from any other region. Theyre being reckless, and cancer and cardiac patients, as well as those with other serious illnesses, are paying the price. Surgeries, treatments and tests are being delayed because an endless flow of patients from Southern Health are showing up at ERs with fully developed COVID cases. Throughout the pandemic, the government has been criticized for failing to take proactive steps to prevent the spread of the COVID virus; for taking half-measures when the public was demanding a stronger response. The reality is the government has all the power it needs to implement a strong "circuit breaker" that could limit the spread of COVID in Manitoba and take the stress off our health-care system. Under the Public Health Act, the minister of health "has the authority to protect and promote the health and well-being of Manitobans." That includes the sweeping power to "do anything else that he or she reasonably considers necessary to promote or ensure the provision of public health services in the province." Under the same law, a medical officer has the power to order "a person to do or refrain from doing anything specified in the order, if the medical officer reasonably believes that a) a communicable disease exists or may exist; and b) an order is necessary to prevent, reduce or eliminate a threat presented by the disease." That includes the power to order the person to be immunized and/or isolate or quarantine himself/herself. Under the Criminal Property Forfeiture Act, the government has the power to seize and seek a forfeiture order for any property used as "an instrument of unlawful activity." That would appear to include properties used in violation of public health orders. The government has those immense powers, and the majority of the population would enthusiastically support their use in order to impede the spread of COVID. Why wont the government act? With ERs and ICUs full, and thousands of Manitobans waiting for surgery and tests, thats a question were all asking. deverynrossletters@gmail.com Twitter: @deverynross By all accounts, we are not where we want to be in our pandemic fight. By all accounts, we are not where we want to be in our pandemic fight. Manitobas COVID-19 case counts continued to rise on Thursday. The province reported 556 new cases and one death yesterday the most new cases in a single day since May. Schools across the province have been seeing rising numbers within their student bodies for several months, and the swift-moving omicron virus has already entered the Brandon School Division. Even as children finished their final school day on Wednesday and looked forward to opening up the presents wrapped under the Christmas tree, their parents were having to scramble to find daycare or babysitting help for the new year as the province decided this week to extend the winter break for K-12 students in a bid to buy some time to figure out what to do about the omicron variant. As well, Manitoba public health officials on Wednesday told us that more restrictions are being considered as our schools and care homes get walloped by COVID outbreaks. "Its a rapidly evolving situation, so things have changed quite dramatically, really quick," deputy chief provincial public health officer Dr. Jazz Atwal told reporters during a noon-hour briefing. "Were gathering that information to determine those next steps on what public health does recommend in relation to the orders, and what we recommend to government. More recommendations are on the horizon." Just what we all wanted to hear going into the holiday season. For the second year in a row, COVID-19 is stealing our Christmas and new year merriment. More restrictions, less holly, jolly holiday. And to top it all off, the homemade and/or purchased cloth masks that the majority of Manitobans and Canadians have been using to thwart the spread of the coronavirus to other people are suddenly not good enough, according to the countrys chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam. "You cannot have a single-layered cloth mask," she told media. "The medical masks are better at filtering viruses." Even then, the three-ply surgical variety may not be enough, with Dr. Tam saying the N95-type respirators are a better fit. Just great. At least the province is giving masks away at the provincial liquor marts. Some kind of Jungian foreshadowing there, methinks. And with the added stress of omicron, which may well turn out to be a milder form of the virus (or not), the anti-vaxx crowd and those who still somehow believe that the pandemic is a massive hoax propagated by the worlds billionaires, scientists, health officials and governments are more shrill than ever. Its easy to both hear and feel the hardening of hearts amid all the chaos we are experiencing, and thus to lose sight of what is important. For some, its a growing hostility toward those who have refused to listen to provincial restrictions and are instead openly flouting them by refusing to wear masks at the community stores or who are holding large church services away from the prying eyes of police and provincial officials. On the other side of that equation, those who distrust such authority are more likely to shrink away from scientific reason and vaccine mandates, decrying such tactics as "communist" and a form of persecution and oppression. Then theres the rest of us, who are just trying to keep our heads down, keep our families safe, or trying like mad not to lose our livelihoods to more lockdowns and pandemic restrictions. And the worst of the situation goes far beyond the boundaries of our nation. According to figures updated Thursday by Oxford University, though 8.85 billion doses have been administered globally, and 34.51 million are now administered each day, its a startling fact that after a full year of vaccination efforts, only 57 per cent of the worlds population has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Only 8.1 per cent of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose. For example, in South Africa, where scientists first flagged the omicron variant, only 26.4 per cent of the population has been fully vaccinated. While that does not necessarily mean COVID-19 mutated in South Africa as a result of low vaccination numbers, it could be a factor. According to a report by the BBC earlier this month, a population with some immunity, but not enough to stamp out the virus, and where the virus is widely present, is a good environment for new mutations to develop. And there are many other developing nations that are in a similar situation, as they attempt to procure enough vaccines for their populations. Meanwhile, Canada and other industrialized nations are now going forward with third and fourth doses. It would be more than a little conceited to compare ourselves to other nations and then say that "It could always be worse we could be living in one of those countries." And thus, of course, we should count our blessings. Id rather suggest that things could always be better, if we treated developing and poorer countries as we treat ourselves. If we treated our neighbours as our friends, and those who spite us with kindness. Thats no easy task. And yet, that now cliche line about how were "all in this together" is absolutely true. We just have to watch how quickly omicron has spread to see how interconnected we are on this planet. Each country, each community, each life. Even when we disagree with each other, or when all seems dark and difficult. And on the eve of Christmas, its worth taking the time to understand what the namesake of this holiday was trying to teach us: that we must work toward achieving peace on earth, with goodwill to every soul. Or perhaps, in this case, good health. Matt Goerzen, editor She first made her name writing for Vogue in New York. Her pieces there often what we would now call hot takes, dashed off to fill empty pages when another writer failed to submit remain stunning to this day. Self-respect: Its source, its power is a prime example. Didion, who passed away on December 23, 2021, was and will remain a literary idol and cultural icon. She was a frank and fearless writer with a penchant for brutal insights, revered for her skills of observation. Her writing influenced both 20th and 21st century literature. She gave me the words to understand myself, although I admit and you wont find this in the other tributes I find myself angry at her for what she didnt write. Writers are so often the best of us, and as an essayist, memoirist and literary celebrity, Joan Didion shone the brightest. Even after she left Vogue, glamour came easy to Didion, with her oversized sunglasses and diminutive frame. She formed a writing partnership with John Dunne (they married and adopted a daughter, although the writing always seemed her focus), and they returned to her beloved California to write plays and novels. Moving in the same circles as Sylvia Plath, Janis Joplin and Nora Ephron, their house parties were legendary. The photos of her smoking a cigarette while staring into the camera (while Dunne and daughter Quintana recede into the background) or leaning against her Corvette are printed on tote bags to this day. But it was in the 1968 anthology, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, (the title comes from The Second Coming, the poem by Yeats) where Didions literary prowess was first truly on display. The titular essay describes the drug-addled hippie scene of Haight Ashbury, the birthplace of Californian hippy counterculture. Didion writes: I did not even know what I wanted to find out, and so I just stayed around a while, and made a few friends. She came across a five-year-old girl, Susan, high on LSD that the girls mother had given her. In two paragraphs that will make you question your own morals and those of Didion she interviews the girl. It was a moment of journalistic infamy that reverberates to this day. This was New Journalism, a rebellious wave of writing that brought the subjective observations of the writer into the story. Tom Wolfe, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer and Hunter S. Thompson all did the same, but Didion notably the only female did it her own way. Blending the personal and the political, she forced us, her readers, into the present to confront our own lives and flaws. Jason Falinski, the Liberal MP for Mackellar on Sydneys northern beaches, said border controls were politically very popular but had led to excruciating situations for individuals who were directly affected. While there was a good argument to say that Omicron was already here and therefore border restrictions served little useful purpose, he believed it was important not to rush. If we start saying to people, we just want to open the borders and we dont care and you dont bring people with you, then theres a backlash and the backlash is often worse than the problem youre trying to cure, Mr Falinski said. Dave Sharma, the Liberal MP for Wentworth in Sydneys east, who has previously argued for an easing of border rules, said it was sensible to be cautious at this stage. I dont want to introduce new border restrictions, I wouldnt be arguing that case right now, he said. But I dont think we should necessarily be moving to the next stage of relaxation until we know a bit more. Labors spokeswoman on immigration, Senator Kristina Keneally, said: Australian families and businesses cant plan for a better future because Mr Morrison still does not have a safe plan to reopen our borders two years after they were closed. A spokesperson for the Department of Health said Australias border measures are consistent with the latest public health advice, and will remain in place for as long as there is a sufficient public health justification. Mother separated from child Monika, who has no last name, is an international student who lives in Tarneit in Melbourne. She has been separated from her four-year-old son for two years, while he has been staying with her parents in India. Monika has been separated from her son for two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic and Australias border closure. Credit:Scott McNaughton Monikas son was a dependent on her student visa. His grandparents took him to India for a family wedding in late 2019 and they were caught when the Australian border closed in March 2020. Meanwhile, Monikas student visa expired and due to what her lawyer believes was an error, her renewal was denied. Shes now on a Bridging Visa A, which doesnt allow people to leave Australia, until her case can be heard by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Monikas parents are now allowed to come to Australia because her brother is an Australian citizen and they have an exemption as his parents. However, Monikas son is not on her bridging visa because he was out of the country at the time and he remains barred from entry. My son is crying all the time and Im on medication because Im so anxious about him, she said. I cant go back to India without a qualification because my [estranged] husband will not support me and I have to look after my child and find some job in India. Monika cannot afford the time away from her studies to go to India, even if her visa status allowed it. She has applied numerous times for her son to be allowed to join her in Melbourne. Greens immigration spokesman Nick McKim has written to Immigration Minister Alex Hawke asking that people on bridging visas be allowed to leave Australia and come back again. While the government has dropped the requirement for holders of skilled work visas and student visas to gain an inbound travel exemption, this was not extended to holders of a Bridging Visa B. Senator McKim said holders of this visa have often lived in Australia for many years and have their homes, jobs and immediate family in Australia and were often waiting for permanent residency, a skilled visa or to transition from a student to a graduate visa. The fact they could not leave Australia to visit family overseas or have family visit them here was causing immeasurable pain, he said. Visa processing times have blown out because of the pandemic, so there are more people in this situation than usual. Department of Home Affairs figures show there are now 335,000 people who hold bridging visas (both A and B), compared with 192,000 in December 2019. Skilled migrants dying to see family Kim Gallagher, her husband Ryan Welley and their three-year-old son are citizens of the United States who came to Australia five years ago on skilled work visas. If the couple had simply renewed their skilled visas when they expired in September 2020, they would now be free to leave Australia and return again, and would be spending this Christmas in Colorado with family. If Kim Gallagher and Ryan Welley, and their son Cole, went to visit family in the US, they would need a travel exemption to return to Australia. Credit:James Brickwood Instead, the family who live near Manly have applied to become permanent residents and are now on a Bridging Visa B, which means if they left Australia they would be unable to return unless granted a rare inbound travel exemption. Ms Gallagher said they felt punished for having decided to make Australia their permanent home. It was the blue sky Christmas Day that Sydney needed. Across the city those that could gathered with friends and family in near perfect weather, capping off another pandemic year beset by lockdowns, restrictions and separations. Surfers and revellers from Bondi to Manly donned Santa hats for picnics on the beach, heeding health warnings to celebrate outdoors as the Omicron variant sweeps across Sydney hitting a record 6288 cases on Saturday. Blue skies and sunshine: Christmas Day in Bondi. Credit:Getty For almost 35,000 others across the state, a COVID-positive test result meant gatherings outside the home were off the table. Instead, it was another day of isolation for the positive cohort of the past nine days, plus tens of thousands more among their household contacts. Another 30,000 in Victoria spent Christmas in isolation too. A Queensland couple have been blessed with the birth of their first child on Christmas Day. Logan Reserve residents Rosemary and Hyryce welcomed their baby Leighton at Redland Hospital at 3.16am on December 25, weighing 3800 grams. Baby Leighton and parents Rosemary and Hyryce on Christmas Day. The new parents said everyone was happy to welcome Leighton to the family after festivities were quickly put on hold. I just knew when contractions started on the 23rd December that we would be having a Christmas baby, Rosemary said. Recently, the Bishop of Noto in Sicily had to apologise to outraged parents and perplexed children for letting slip that Santa per se, did not exist, but that the celebration of St Nicholas was legit. Its always a difficult area for parents to navigate: everyone wants their children to grow up to be honest. There comes a point where they must break the news that the fictitious characters Santa Claus, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny et al, who annually and surreptitiously enter the house, are not real. Unlike Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, an early Christian bishop and a fixture of Christmas in the Netherlands, did exist. Credit:AP This would have come as a great relief to a certain nephew, who shall remain nameless, who trembled on such occasions and had to sleep in his parents bed on these particular nights because of what he perceived as stranger danger. Little did he realise he was slumbering in the arms of both Santa and the Easter Bunny. C. S Lewis, writer of the beloved Narnia Chronicles and theologian, had no problem in the Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe introducing the character of Father Christmas. Likewise, the Catholic JRR Tolkien of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, fame produced the beautifully illustrated and comically written in spidery text, The Father Christmas Letters. A French backpacker at the source of a COVID-19 cluster in Perth has been confirmed to have the Delta variant and not Omicron which is thought to be more transmissible. The number of cases linked to the backpacker, known as Case 1133, has gone up to seven with two more people who were at the Perth Mess Hall on Sunday testing positive overnight. The West Australian Department of Health presumes all seven cases are also the Delta variant. The new cases come as WA issued a new direction on Friday under emergency laws which means workers already covered by vaccine mandates will need to get a booster jab by February 5 unless they only become eligible for a third dose at a later date. COVID-19 testing has been in overdrive with the arrival of the virus into the Perth community in the Christmas holidays. Credit:Holly Thompson There are 18 active COVID-19 cases in WA with 15 people in quarantine hotels and three in self-isolation. Two new positive cases from overseas travellers were also recorded overnight with the pair in quarantine. In responding, the federal government initially handled the matter very poorly, not seeming to hear Higgins concerns and those of Australians who believe Parliament should set the standard, not lag 20 years behind. It was an awful and much-needed reckoning for the countrys political elites. The issue is far from neutralised, as one commentator suggested, and should not be thought of in those terms, either. But there is hope that Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins review and subsequent recommendations, properly implemented, could lead to significant change in Parliament House. Day-to-day issues that damaged the governments standing included the handling of the AUKUS submarine deal, which may be a net positive in Australias security interests but led to Morrison being branded a liar by the President of France over the way in which the deal came about. To this, we can add Morrisons failure to create a federal corruption watchdog (and undermining confidence in the NSW anti-corruption body in his attempt to woo Gladys Berejiklian to federal politics); being branded the Prime Minister for Sydney by Labor state premiers; and a growing perception among voters that he isnt always honest, reflected in a falling personal performance ratings. But 2021 wasnt all disaster for Morrison and his team: the budget, which included an economic security package for women and more money for aged care, was well received. And as messy as it was, the government finally adopted a net zero emissions target by 2050 though the plan to get there relies in part on technology that doesnt exist. The deal with Moderna to build an mRNA manufacturing facility is hugely important and forward-looking and, as mentioned, the vaccine rollout has overcome its initial problems, with more than 150,000 booster shots administered on some days last week. Thumbs up: Scott Morrison received his booster shot with Jane Malysiak in November. Credit:Kate Geraghty The national road map for states to reopen their borders and live with COVID-19 was questioned at the time but, although there have been some delays and changes Western Australia has gone its own way at this point, it looks like it will hold. And while Australias relationship with China is in a poor state, costing our economy billions, the government was right to push back against a growing superpower that seeks to reshape the global order in a way detrimental to our national interests. Looking ahead to 2022, the Prime Minister has summarised his message in a neat, three-word slogan: he is focused on jabs and jobs. Morrison is an excellent campaigner, and he can read polls. As one of his MPs said earlier this year, at the heart of the Morrison government is a focus group. Morrisons recent rhetorical emphasis on an end to lockdowns and people wanting government out of their lives no doubt reflects what those groups are telling his pollsters. But its three years on from 2019, when Morrison effectively campaigned as an opposition leader. There is now lead in the saddlebags, whereas Anthony Albanese has little baggage (and far fewer policies) than Bill Shorten. In early 2022, remaining Liberal preselections in NSW must be sorted out quickly so candidates can start campaigning in key seats in the state that may decide whether the Coalition government is returned. The booster rollout has to run seamlessly as Omicron takes hold. A total of $16 billion in decisions taken but not announced was tucked away in the mid-year budget update, so expect a slew of announcements closer to polling day. The government might even want to start thinking about what Tony Abbott would have dubbed a debt and deficit disaster, given net debt is forecast to peak at more than $900 billion. But dont expect much concrete action on this until after the election. The Prime Minister would also be wise to reshuffle his frontbench. Josh Frydenberg, Peter Dutton, Greg Hunt, Dan Tehan, Simon Birmingham and Stuart Robert are the governments strongest and/or most frequent media performers. Notice something they all have in common? Defence Minister Peter Dutton with Prime Minister Scott Morrison in the cabinet room in December. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Jane Hume, Anne Ruston and Sussan Ley, for example, are all talented and should be given bigger roles. But deadwood ministers who are unwilling to make the case publicly for the governments policies, or who think the road to victory is paved by culture war fights on baroque issues, should quietly retire. Morrison has plenty of time until election day, which will fall somewhere between March and May, but fixing the trust deficit that has built up and which dates back to his Hawaiian holiday amid the bushfires of late 2019 will be perhaps his biggest challenge. Labor leader Anthony Albanese is the lowest-profile opposition leader since Brendan Nelson went up against a rampantly popular Kevin Rudd. Its not that Albanese doesnt work hard he does but the combined effect of the pandemic, which has elevated state premiers standing (and the Prime Ministers), and a deliberately small-target strategy means that he is still, after 25 years in Parliament, not well known to the public. That has to change in 2022, and it will, because if Albanese doesnt define himself then Morrison will do it for him. Labors work has been under way for some time, with a $10 billion social housing policy in Albaneses most-recent budget reply speech a measure that allowed him to tell his own origin story. But more needs to be done. This is an opposition that misses chances or deliberately chooses not to take them, depending on whom you talk to to stay one step ahead of the government by identifying issues quickly and calling for change. Albanese loyalists in the caucus agree Shorten was a master at doing this for six years and staying a step ahead of Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull but, in the end, it didnt help him. Labors message that the Morrison government had two jobs: vaccines and quarantine was right for much of this year. But the line had a use-by date as the vaccines were belatedly delivered, and as the government eventually signed up to help fund quarantine facilities. The shift towards targeting Morrison personally on trust and character was particularly pronounced in the final parliamentary weeks of the year, and it landed. Expect this line to continue and for the opposition to pounce if the booster rollout starts to wobble. Labors climate targets were very cautiously constructed and landed. They wont necessarily win over wavering Greens voters, but theyre not supposed to the pitch is firmly to the political centre, where elections are won and lost. The oppositions recently announced policy of free TAFE across a big range of sectors that have workers shortages was a good one, too. Labor leader Anthony Albanese at a major policy announcement with MP Michelle Rowland in December. Credit:Edwina Pickles More policy is coming and the jury is out on whether Labors deliberate small-target strategy has been the right call. A small target gives the government little to attack or run a scare campaign on, but it also means Labor has little to talk about at times. Late announcements also mean Labor has less time to explain and sell the (fewer) big ideas it has this time around. Albanese also needs a praetorian guard. Too few of his frontbench are willing to get the knuckle duster out and fight the government; some have their eye on a future shot at the leadership, and are keeping their hands clean. That needs to change in 2022. At present, it very much feels like this is Morrisons election to lose, rather than Albaneses to win. The Nationals have had a dramatic year, axing former leader Michael McCormack as the party split over whether to support a target of net zero emissions by 2050. After taking back the leadership, Barnaby Joyce subsequently signed up to the target he personally opposed. Mostly. At least a few members of his party room are even more unconvinced and trouble lurks around that corner. The price Morrison paid for that deal has not been revealed in full, though we know it included an extra cabinet post and $150 million for dirt-road upgrades. Joyce will help the Nationals hang on to the seats they hold, particularly in Queensland, where the retirement of Ken ODowd and George Christensen could put seats in play. The product differentiation Joyce offers in an election year will be useful, even if it creates a headache for Morrison. The trade-off is that while Joyce helps the Nationals in Queensland, he isnt particularly popular in parts of Sydney and Melbourne where a growing number of small-l Liberals are facing challenges from climate-minded independents who delight in pointing out their Liberal opponents vote with Barnaby Joyce. What do the Nationals need to do in 2022? First, hold all of their 21 seats to ensure the Coalition is returned. The government announced this month that another $250 million had been added to the Building Better Regions Fund. Its a fair bet that a big chunk of that money will end up being spent in favoured seats the party wants to hang onto, given this governments propensity for, ah, carefully targeted spending. Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and Minister for Defence Peter Dutton during a division in parliament. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer The Greens, like Labor, faced a challenge to stay relevant as Australians looked to state and federal governments in 2021. The party had little impact on the governments legislative program aside from delaying changes to the renewable energy agency in May, which later passed. Victorian senator Lidia Thorpes awful comment to Liberal senator Hollie Hughes was a definite lowlight, and leader Adam Bandt should have been swifter and sharper in his condemnation. But the party deliberately took a different tack in which its representatives spoke to their enemies and not just their friends heck, Bandt even sat down for an interview with The Australian, which was smart (as crazy as that sounds). Its hard to see the Greens winning a second lower house seat, with the party stuck in neutral for a decade, going neither backwards nor forwards. The emergence of teal climate and integrity independents underscores this point. The Greens have three senators up for election in Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia, who should all be returned. They have a genuine chance of winning additional Senate seats in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia. If successful, that would take them to a record 12 Senate seats and make them more consequential in legislative negotiations, regardless of whether Labor or the Coalition win power. But the environmental party will be far more consequential if Labor wins, and Bandts hopes of a Labor minority government are not misplaced its a very real possibility. Bundaberg mayor Jack Dempsey, a former state minister in the Campbell Newman government, says the Commonwealths controversial cashless welfare card has been a failure in Queensland and ought to be tossed out in its current form. In his first outright condemnation of the trial since it rolled out across the federal electorate of Hinkler in January 2019, Cr Dempsey said it had proven unfair, un-Australian and a tool of humiliation rather than help. Bundaberg mayor and former Queensland LNP minister Jack Dempsey has formed an unlikely alliance with Greens candidate for Hinkler, Nicole Cornish, to abolish the Commonwealths controversial cashless debit card trial. Ive looked at it over the years, and it just doesnt stack up, he said. I gave it a chance to maybe see... but I still see the same homelessness and unemployment and all the other bits and pieces. Copenhagen: Early benchmarks from Denmark on infections and hospitalisations are providing grounds for guarded optimism that highly vaccinated countries might be able to weather the omicron wave. The developments, coupled with Denmarks speedy rollout of booster shots, have raised hopes the country can avoid the dire surge for which it has been bracing. Its too early to relax, but its encouraging that we are not following the worst-case scenario, said Tyra Grove Krause, the chief epidemiologist at Denmarks State Serum Institute. Denmark has bumped up closing time for restaurants and bars. But groups still congregate, indoors and outdoors, in many of Copenhagens canal-lined neighbourhoods. Credit:The Washington Post/ Chico Harlan Denmarks detailed nationwide program for coronavirus testing and analysis gives its scientists a trove of real-time data about the pandemic. Because of that and because it was one of the first countries outside of Africa to witness Omicrons explosive potential it has turned into a European bellwether for what to expect with the omicron variant. Houston: The largest, most expensive and most sophisticated space telescope ever made is scheduled to lift off on Christmas Day from the north coast of South America. At its eventual orbital station 1,499,900 kilometres from Earth, the James Webb Space Telescope might just see to the beginning of time. The farther one looks in space, the further back in time one goes. When Webb begins its work in mid-2022, it will help scientists study some of the earliest light in the universe and to peer more closely at planets in other galaxies. More than 30 years after NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope, its much bigger successor is designed to see through the most ancient mists of deep space. On the left, the Hubble Space Telescope orbiting the Earth and on the right, an illustration of the James Webb Space Telescope. Credit:NASA The almost $U11 billion telescope, more than two decades in the making, is a National Aeronautics and Space Administration collaboration with the European and Canadian space agencies. Its currently scheduled to launch early on December 25 (December 26 AEDT) from the European Space Agencys South American spaceport in French Guyana aboard an Ariane 5 rocket. For science, the Webb telescopes ultimate promise is a greater understanding around two fundamental questions for humanity: where did we come from and are we alone? Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor Deputy Chief Minister on Saturday warned officials against taking advantage of their posts like in case of the alleged malpractices in the Teachers' Eligibility Test (TET) and asked them to ensure proper functioning of educational institutions. Pawar was addressing a gathering at the inauguration of the State Faculty Development Academy (MSFDA) here. The deputy chief minister referred to the recent arrest of State Council of Examination (MSEC) commissioner Tukaram Supe in connection with the alleged irregularities in TET, and warned officials not to take advantage of their position. The state government will help provide infrastructure for institutes and organisations, but it is the responsibility of officials to improve and ensure smooth functioning of the same, he said. "There have been instances where people who have been given responsibility have taken advantage of it. I also mentioned in the state Assembly that people involved in irregularities will face action. Nobody has the right to play with the future of students/candidates," Pawar said, referring to the alleged TET malpractice. The MSFDA will improve the quality of education in the state, he said, while urging state Education Minister Uday Samant to visit the institute and upgrade it at regular intervals. Speaking at the event, Maharashtra Minister Aaditya Thackeray stressed on the importance of the spirit of inquiry and said that asking questions has become a crime in the country. "In other countries, research is carried out in schools and colleges, while in India, it happens at research institutes. There is a need to stress on the spirit of inquiry in the new education system, which will allow students to ask questions. In our country, asking questions has become a crime whether it is in a classroom or elsewhere," Thackeray 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.) In the wake of explosion in Ludhiana District Court Complex, Union Law Minister on Friday assured the residents of Punjab that the Centre will work together with the state government against those who are trying to spoil the atmosphere of Punjab and the country. "I have come here to give confidence to the people of Punjab. I want to assure you all that State and Central government will work together and will take strict actions against those who are trying to spoil the atmosphere of Punjab and country," said Rijiju in Ludhiana. "Spoke with Chief Minister of Punjab Charanjit Sing Channi and met the Judges, Lawyers, Officers of Central Agencies and Punjab Police at the venue of the bomb attack in Court complex at Ludhiana in Punjab," he informed in a tweet. with Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash, along with the Commission for Scheduled Castes Chairman Vijay Sampla, visited the hospital and inquired about the health of patients at Dayanand Medical College & Hospital (DMCH) in Ludhiana. He also visited the site of the explosion. The explosion at the Ludhiana District Court on Thursday claimed one life and left six people injured. (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 Christian community in the national capital celebrated on Saturday with caution as fewer people reached churches amid concern over the Omicron variant of On Wednesday, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) had directed district magistrates to ensure that no and New Year gatherings take place in the national capital. However, after receiving various communications seeking clarity, it said on Thursday that religious places will remain open on and New Year's Eve for celebrations and prayers subject to strict compliance of Covid-appropriate behaviour. Talking about the midnight mass across churches in the city, Anil Joseph Thomas Couto, Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Delhi, said not many people stepped out for Christmas this year. "Even though there is no such restriction on visitors, there was confusion regarding the DDMA order. So, not many people have come out this year. People seem a bit anxious due to the entire situation. We haven't seen much footfall," Couto told PTI. He said a lot of churches made extra efforts by holding early services last evening. "Even though churches were prepared to handle the situation keeping the Covid SOPs in mind, the overall environment is not very positive and vibrant," he said. Father James Peter Raj of St Luke's Church in Defence Colony also said that fewer people attended the celebrations this year. "People were wearing masks and maintaining social distancing but the celebrations were less crowded than usual this year," he said. Centenary Methodist Church in Lodhi Road also had a "subdued service with fewer people in attendance". On Friday, Delhi reported 180 fresh Covid cases, the highest since June 16, while the positivity rate increased to 0.29 per cent, according to health department data. (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.) At least 17 girls of Classes VIII and X of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Bhupdevpur in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district have tested positive for COVID-19, an official said on Saturday. Raigarh Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr. S. N. Keshari said the 17 girls have been shifted from the hostel to a guesthouse and the entire school has been declared as a 'containment zone'. "The reports of the 13 girls returned positive on Friday and the remaining four on Saturday. Samples of 176 girls studying in Classes VI to XII were tested on Friday and that of 300 boys on Saturday. These results are awaited," he said. "Last Sunday, parents of some of the children had come to meet them. One of the parents was infected. The health department has set up a camp to curb the spread and monitor the situation," he added. Incidentally, Raigarh district has led the daily addition tally in Chhattisgarh on December 18, 19, 21 and 22, local officials said. As on Friday, Chhattisgarh has a caseload of 10,07,540, including 13,597 deaths. (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.) Rajasthan has reported 21 new cases of 'Omicron', taking the number of people infected with the new variant of COVID-19 to 43, an official said. Of these, 11 are from Jaipur, six from Ajmer and three from Udaipur. One of the patients is from Maharashtra. Results from National Institute of Virology Pune showed all of them positive for Omicron, a spokesperson of the health department said on Saturday. Among these infected, five had returned from foreign countries while three others had come in contact with foreign travellers. Of the total 43 cases of Omicron in the state, 28 are from Jaipur, seven from Ajmer, four from Sikar, three from Udaipur, and the other being the patient from Maharashtra. The number of active COVID-19 cases in Rajasthan is 244, the official 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.) was celebrated across the country on Saturday, but the festivities were low-key for the second year in a row due to Covid, with churches and other events witnessing lower footfalls, people avoiding large get-togethers and the administration in some areas imposing certain curbs. The festive spirit started with special midnight masses held in churches with adherence to COVID-19 norms, pealing of church bells and singing of carols. In Nagaland, where 14 people were killed in the firing by security forces and violence in Mon district, devotees prayed for peace for their families. Christian organisations in Goa had asked people to strictly follow Covid-appropriate behaviour, like wearing of masks, sanitisation and maintaining safe distance during the masses and while visiting the churches. Social distancing was mandated during the masses and to accommodate all the parishioners, screens were installed outside the churches and chapels where the masses were aired in the state. Volunteers were enrolled to ensure that everyone follows the Standard Operating Procedures. Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted people on the occasion. " greetings to everyone! We recall the life and noble teachings of Jesus Christ, which placed topmost emphasis on service, kindness and humility. May everyone be healthy and prosperous. May there be harmony all around," Modi tweeted. In Kerala, devotees said unlike previous year's Christmas, there were no restrictions in place for this year's celebrations. However, people maintained vigil by wearing masks, using sanitiser and keeping distance in view of spread of Omicron variant of While Cardinal Mar Baselios Cleemis led the midnight mass at the St Mary's Cathedral of Syro Malankara Catholic Church in the state capital, Cardinal Mar George Alanchery of Syro Malabar Catholic Church conducted the service in Kochi. Traditional fervour and piety marked celebrations rejoicing the birth of Jesus Christ in Tamil Nadu with a special prayer on the lips of many devotees wishing an early end to the pandemic and good times ahead for the people. Chennai's landmark churches including the Santhome Church or Santhome Basilica raised on the mortal remains of one of the 12 Apostles of Christ, held special Holy Mass in English and Tamil, Annai Velankanni or Lady of Health Church and the St Thomas Mount National Shrine, which also held special mass on the occasion, received the devout with giant cribs. "I am happy that I was able to visit church this time due to the State government relaxing the lockdown restrictions. More than anything else, we prayed for the health of the people, quick recovery from and prayed that the pandemic would end soon," said Zakarias Joseph, who visited the Annai Velankanni Church. The Christian community in the national capital celebrated with caution as fewer people reached churches. "Even though there is no such restriction on visitors, there was confusion regarding the DDMA order. So, not many people have come out this year. People seem a bit anxious due to the entire situation. We haven't seen much footfall," said Anil Joseph Thomas Couto, Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Delhi. Christmas was celebrated with religious fervour in Kashmir as devotees held special prayers for the good health and prosperity of the people in the valley. The largest gathering in Kashmir was held at the Holy Family Catholic Church on Maulana Azad Road in the heart of Srinagar city, where the members of the Christian community, including women and children, assembled to celebrate the occasion and held special prayers. Meanwhile, a senior Kolkata police officer said over 80 people were arrested from different parts of the city on Christmas Eve for various unlawful activities. Another 191 revellers were taken into custody for not wearing mask in the midst of huge crowds, he said. India has seen a rise in Omicron cases over the past few days and the Central government has advised people to exercise caution. Multi-disciplinary central teams have been deployed in 10 states which are reporting either an increasing number of cases of Omicron and or other variant of coronavirus, according to a Union Health Ministry office memorandum. As per the document, these 10 states are Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Punjab. The pandemic had marred the Christmas celebrations last year as well. (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 Covid infection rate in the state has almost doubled from 1.8 per cent to 3.5 per cent, Chief Minister said on Friday, expressing concern about the increase. He also said the government is in the process of procuring genome sequencing machinery within one month for prompt assessment of suspect Omicron cases. "We are very concerned that the positivity rate from 1.8 per cent has gone up to 3.5 per cent. This is a serious thing and hence, people should take all precautions. Our advisory will be issued but people should not go to any crowded places without masks. As far as possible, all functions should be in open spaces and functions should not be organised in AC halls. "We have not introduced any restrictions for now being a tourist season and festive season and Christmas is celebrated in a big way in Goa, but the celebration should be with precautions," Sawant said after a meeting of the state government's task force on Covid management. "There was a meeting of the task force. We specially discussed about the Omicron virus. The first decision is that we have approved the establishment of a genome sequencing machine at the GMC. By Monday, Tuesday, we will source the machine and place an order and within a month, we will set it up. It is a machine needed to test for the Omicron virus," he said. Sawant also said that a total of 28 suspect Omicron samples had been sent to a Pune-based Central government laboratory for tests so far. "Eight were found positive with the Delta virus. So far none have tested for the Omicron variant. 19 reports are still pending. That's why we have taken the decision to get the genome sequencing machine here," he said. The Chief Minister also said that there were around 3,500 foreign tourists in and Health Department officials were trying to keep in touch with them during their stay in "We are trying to keep in touch with them (during their stay here) but some of them... their mobiles are not reachable. So we are issuing an advisory for the general public from the Health Department and Tourism Department. For foreign tourists taking an RT-PCR test after eight days, so we have asked the hotels they are staying in, to get them tested at the nearest health centre," Sawant said. "Those who have not done it yet, the hotels have to insist that they get it done. If it is positive, then they have to get genome sequencing done and have to visit the GMC for further investigation. We will send the samples to NIV (National Institute of Virology) in Pune for genome sequencing. The Health Department is alert to this and is doing its work." --IANS maya/vd (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday shared an incident of Maharashtra's Hingoli where a 108-year-old man received COVID-19 vaccine and urged all to get their dose too, to "help in securing country". Sharing the 108-year-old man's picture, Mandaviya (in Hindi) said, "In Hingoli district of Maharashtra, a 108-year-old man got the vaccine. If you have not got the vaccine, then get it done soon and help in securing the country." With the administration of 66,09,113 COVID vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's vaccination coverage has exceeded 141 crore, the Union Health Ministry informed on Saturday. (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 rising Covid-19 cases, Chief Minister on Saturday announced that no night curfew is needed in as the situation in the state is much better than the rest of the country. Addressing the media, he said: "The situation in is better than many states right now. There is no need to impose night curfew here." The Chief Minister had arrived to garland the statue of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birth anniversary, when he put an end to the possibilities of a night curfew. So far, has not reported any case of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. However, Health Minister Mangal Pandey said that all guidelines of the Centre are being fully followed in the state and the government is continuously urging people to follow Covid guidelines. Sources in the Health Department have confirmed that even though night curfew will not be imposed at the moment, the Bihar government is planning to prepare Covid guidelines for everyone. (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.) DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya on Saturday said the initial investigation into the Ludhiana district court blast case has revealed that the former state police head constable who was killed in the explosion had gone to the washroom to assemble the bomb and plant it somewhere. Addressing the media here, the director general of police said Gagandeep Singh, who was dismissed from service in 2019, was alone in the washroom when the bomb went off and had links with some Khalistani elements and narcotic smugglers. A resident of Khanna, Singh was dismissed in connection with a drugs-related case. Singh was killed and six others were injured in the blast that occurred in the court complex on Thursday. The government had declared a high alert in the state after the incident. Asked if RDX was used in the bomb, Chattopadhyaya said it has been sent for forensic examination and the type of explosive used will be known after the report comes. "I cannot say conclusively what the (explosive) material was," he said. Replying to another question, the DGP said Singh was "technically sound" when he was serving in the police. "He was very good with computers and technical material," he said. Ruling out the human bomb angle, Chattopadhyaya said, "It appears that he went there (washroom) to connect some wires and... to place it (the bomb) somewhere. It was not the concept of a human bomb." "The posture in which he was sitting (showed that) he did not go to the washroom to use it. He was using the washroom to assemble it (the bomb). He was alone there," the officer said. The DGP praised the police and other investigation agencies for identifying the man within 24 hours of the incident. According to police sources, Singh's mobile SIM is believed to have helped identify him. (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.) has logged 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry informed on Saturday. The tally of cases of the new variant of in the country has risen to 415. As per the Health Ministry, the country's active caseload stands at 77,032, presently the lowest in 579 days. "Active cases constitute 0.22 per cent of the country's total positive cases, which is lowest since March 2020," said the Ministry. With 387 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, the cumulative death toll due to the virus has climbed 4,79,520. The Ministry further informed that as many as 7,286 patients recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative tally of recovered patients since the beginning of the pandemic to 3,42,23,263. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.40 per cent, the highest since March 2020. 11,12,195 COVID tests have also been conducted across the country in the last 24 hours. " has so far conducted over 67.10 crore (67,10,51,627) cumulative tests," said the Ministry. As per the release, the weekly positivity rate at 0.60 per cent remains less than 1 per cent for the last 41 days now. While the daily positivity rate has been reported to be 0.65 per cent. "The daily positivity rate has remained below 2 per cent for last 82 days and below 3 per cent for 117 consecutive days now," stated the Ministry. (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.) Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraja Bommai on Saturday said that a meeting would be held with experts on Sunday on the rising Omicron cases. "Omicron cases are increasing in Karnataka's border states like Maharashtra, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu which is alarming", said CM Bommai. He also said he would hold a meeting with experts in Bengaluru tomorrow to discuss the next steps to be taken to curb the Omicron threat. (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.) In the wake of the Ludhiana District court complex explosion, Additional forces have been called in for better policing, said Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, Ludhiana Commissioner of Police. "I want to assure Ludhiana residents that the police force and all government officers are committed to their safety and security. There is no need to panic. Additional forces have been called in for better policing," said Bhullar Meanwhile, Security tightened outside the Ludhiana court complex in after the blast on December 23 that killed one and injured six others. Speaking to ANI, BS Randhawa, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) said, "Security has been tightened outside the court complex. The court is running as per the routine but the security is strengthened. Various teams have arrived for the investigation." Earlier today, police informed that the person who died in the Ludhiana court blast is believed to have had brought explosives to the District Court Complex. "The blast (in Ludhiana court) occurred at 12:22 pm on December 23... Preliminary investigation suggests that the person who died in the blast was the handler/criminal. Forensic experts, bomb experts looking into the matter," Bhullar told ANI. The blast in the court left six others injured, the state government said. An FIR was registered on Thursday in the case under the relevant section of the Indian Penal Code, Explosive Substance Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. (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 man killed in the Ludhiana district court blast is learnt to have been identified as Gagandeep Singh, a Police head constable who was dismissed from service. Singh was a resident of Khanna in Ludhiana and was dismissed from the post of head constable in connection with a drugs-related case in 2019, police sources said. Police had earlier said they suspect that the man killed in the blast on the second-floor toilet of the court complex was trying to assemble or plant the explosive device. Singh's family in Khanna is also learnt to have identified him, the sources said. The SIM card of the deceased is believed to have helped identify him. The explosion took place in the court complex on Thursday, killing Singh and injuring six others, prompting the government to declare a high alert in the state. Earlier in the day, Ludhiana Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said they have got important clues during investigation, which would prove to be useful in cracking the case. Police had earlier said a preliminary probe had revealed that the deceased was probably the carrier of the explosive or a human bomb himself. He had a "religious" tattoo on his arms. A mobile phone has also been recovered from the debris, police had said. Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju visited the Ludhiana district court on Friday and said the Centre and the state will work together to ensure strong action against the domestic and foreign elements trying to disturb the peace and harmony in as well as in the country. He said central and state agencies are already conducting an in-depth probe into the incident. Teams of multiple agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), have arrived at the blast site and are working jointly. Talking to reporters, Rijiju said he had spoken to Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and it was decided that central and state agencies will jointly probe the matter and strong action will be taken against those behind the dastardly act. He said the main purpose of his visit was to assure the people of Ludhiana and entire Punjab that by launching a coordinated effort with the state government, the incident will be thoroughly probed. The Union minister also conveyed the empathy and support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the victims of the explosion and the people of Punjab. "The Centre and the state will work together and take strong action against those elements within the country and outside who are trying to spoil the peace and harmony of Punjab and the country," he said. This is a serious incident, a sensitive issue and the Centre and the state government will work on it in a coordinated manner, Rijiju added. Asked if it was a terror crime, Bhullar said, "The investigation is on and it is too early to say anything." The body of the deceased was sent to the civil hospital late Thursday night for post-mortem. Rijiju said the Centre and the state should have one voice on such sensitive issues. Replying to a question on some political leaders in Punjab speaking in different voices on the incident, he said, "It is unfortunate. We are responsible persons, we should speak responsibly." Politics on the issue should be the last resort, he added. Rijiju said the safety and security of the judiciary and judicial complexes is the Centre's top priority. He said multiple review committees are already in place and he would also speak with the Chief Justice of India about it. Rijiju was accompanied by Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash and National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) Chairperson Vijay Sampla. They also visited the district hospital and met those injured in the blast. Rijiju also held an interaction with the district and sessions judge and lawyers. Senior advocate and former president of the district bar association K R Sikri expressed dissatisfaction with the existing security arrangements in the court complex. Complete security should be provided so that such a ghastly incident does not take place again, he said. Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said his government has sought the Centre's support to crack the case. He said he spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah hours after the explosion and that the Centre has sent teams to Punjab to investigate the case. Channi had expressed his apprehension on Thursday that the explosion might have been an attempt to create "anarchy" in the state, which goes to polls early 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.) A fact-finding team constituted by the claimed that intelligence failure was the reason behind the firings in which 14 civilians were killed by security forces earlier this month. The team comprising former Union minister Jitendra Singh, MPs Gaurav Gogoi and Anto Antony, and former MP Ajoy Kumar submitted their report to president on Thursday. Kumar, who is the party's in-charge of Nagaland, in a statement issued here on Friday said the team was formed on the direction of Gandhi to look into the causes of the incident. The report took on Union Home Minister Amit Shah, alleging that he "lied" on the floor of Parliament over the incident, and questioning why he has not visited the spot. Shah had told the House that a vehicle was signalled to stop but it tried to speed away and suspecting the presence of extremists in the vehicle, the security personnel opened fire. A team had left Delhi to visit the spot on December 9 but were stopped at the Jorhat airport. However, they were allowed to meet the injured undergoing treatment at Dibrugarh hospital following strong protest, the statement said. The injured persons had made "startling revelation" to the Congress delegation, clearly indicating that the home minister had "lied", it claimed. Security forces opened fire on civilians, killing 14 and injuring 11 in Nagaland's Mon district in consecutive episodes, the first of which was a case of "mistaken identity", according to police. One soldier also died in the rioting that followed. (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.) Speaker on Friday expressed concern over "continuous disruption" of proceedings and "lack of decorum" in Parliament and state legislatures, noting that dissidence should not lead to impasse. He also cautioned against the growing menace of fake news and urged media houses to discharge their duties impartially. Addressing the Assam Assembly in his first engagement of the day, Birla said, "Democracy is based on debates and dialogue. But continuous disruption of debates in the House and lack of decorum are matters of concern." Calling obstruction of proceedings ethically and constitutionally wrong, he said it was even more disturbing when such disruptions are pre-planned. While it is natural for treasury and opposition benches to disagree, "dissidence should not lead to impasse", he added. The speaker advised political parties to hold discussions on intractable issues and ensure the House functions in a manner that it can fulfil the hopes and aspirations of people. "To obstruct the proceedings of the House is not right, ethically and constitutionally. Many a time, disruptions are not organic but pre-planned. Such conduct is even more disturbing," Birla said. He said disruption and adjournment of proceedings are not part of India's democratic traditions, and asked the legislators to come true to the hopes of the people. Birla stated that a diverse country like India is bound together by parliamentary democracy, and as the nation celebrates 75 years of Independence, it has become necessary to revisit how the House, which is an integral part of the system, functions. The first speaker to address the Assam Assembly, Birla said that the state is a vibrant example of unity in diversity. "Assam is the bridge that connects the richly diverse North-East with the rest of India. This diversity makes our democracy even more resilient," he added. During the day, the speaker also launched the Assam Legislative Assembly Digital TV at a programme in the central hall of the legislature. He was felicitated by Assam Assembly Speaker Biswajit Daimary, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia, among others. Later in the afternoon, participating in an award function organised by a local media group, Birla spoke on the boon as well as the bane of social media. "When we discuss about social media, we have its positive sides on one hand and the menace of fake news on the other. Fake news articles have led to tension and violence many times," he said. The Lok Sabha speaker further underlined that for media to play a constructive role in the society, it must maintain neutrality and ensure correct presentation of facts. He dwelt on the role of media in the country during the freedom struggle and how leaders from that period, from Mahatma Gandhi to Balgangadhar Tilak, had used the pen to reach out to the masses. "The media had played a positive role then (during freedom struggle) and it has an important role even now, 75 years after Independence," Birla added. The Lok Sabha speaker also presented the Achiever Awards 2021', instituted by the Sadin Pratidin Group, on the occasion. Former Asom Sahitya Sabha president and litterateur Rongbong Terang was conferred Lifetime Achievement Award, while the editor of Assamese magazine 'Prantik', Pradip Baruah, was given the Sadin Journalism and Literature Award. The Lok Sabha speaker offered prayers at the Kamakhya temple during his day-long visit to the city before returning to New Delhi. (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.) has topped the composite ranking in the Good Governance Index (GGI), followed by Maharashtra and Goa while showed an incremental growth of 8.9 per cent in the indicators launched by Union Home Minister on the occasion of the Good Governance Day on Saturday. As many as 20 states have improved their composite GGI scores in 2021, according to the index. topped the composite ranking in the 58 indicator index followed by Maharashtra and Goa. has registered an 8.9 per cent improvement in the GGI indicators in the period 2019 to 2021 which Jammu and Kashmir registered an improvement of 3.7 per cent in the same period, it said. Delhi has topped the union territories category composite ranking. Shah released the GGI 2021 prepared by the Department of Administration Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) on Good Governance Day at Vigyan Bhawan here. On this occasion, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said that the GGI would help assess the status of governance in states and union territories. The objectives of GGI are to provide quantifiable data to compare the state of governance in all states and union territories, enable them to formulate and implement suitable strategies for improving governance and shift to result oriented approaches and administration. December 25 is observed as the good governance day to commemorate the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The GGI-2021 said that Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa topped the composite rank score covering 10 sectors. While registered a 12.3 per cent increase, Goa registered a 24.7 per cent increase over GGI 2019 indicators. Gujarat has performed strongly in economic governance, human resource development, public infrastructure and utilities, social welfare and development, judiciary and public safety while Maharashtra scored in agriculture and allied sector, human resource development, public infrastructure and utilities, social welfare and development. Goa's showed good performance was in agriculture and allied sector, commerce and industry, public infrastructure and utilities, economic governance, social welfare and development and environment. Among the sectors, secured top position in commerce and industry sector and has also shown an increase in social welfare and development and judiciary and public safety. It also performed in citizen centric governance including public grievance redressal. The GGI 2021 framework covered 10 sectors and 58 indicators. The sectors are agriculture and allied sectors, commerce and industries, human resource development, public health, public infrastructure and utilities, economic governance, social welfare and development, judicial and public security, environment and citizen-centric governance. The GGI 2020-21 categorises states and union territories into four categories, -- other states - Group A; other states - group B; North-East and hill states and union territories. The GGI 2021 said that Jharkhand showed incremental growth of 12.6 per cent over GGI 2019 performance. It has performed strongly in seven of the 10 sectors. Rajasthan's incremental growth of 1.7 per cent was over the GGI 2019 performance. It has topped the other states (Group B) category in judiciary and public safety, environment and citizen centric governance. In the Northeast and Hill States category, Mizoram, and Jammu and Kashmir have registered an overall increase of 10.4 per cent and 3.7 per cent respectively over GGI 2019. Mizoram has performed strongly in commerce and industry, human resource development, public health and economic governance. Jammu and Kashmir has performed strongly in commerce and industry sector and has improved its scores in agriculture and allied sector, public infrastructure and utilities and judiciary and public safety sectors. The GGI 2021 said that in the union territories category, Delhi tops the composite rank registering a 14 per cent increase over the GGI 2019 indicators. Delhi has performed strongly in agriculture and allied sectors, commerce and industry, public infrastructure and utilities and social welfare and development. The GGI 2021 said that 20 states have improved their composite GGI scores over the GGI 2019 index scores. The sector-wise scores attained by the states and union territories indicates that strong performance in one or the other sector. Analysis of scoring also suggests that there is a very marginal difference among the states in their composite governance scores. This indicates that overall governance in the states of India is moving in the positive direction. (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 Telangana government on Saturday prohibited rallies and public meetings till January 2 and imposed certain conditions as part of measures to check COVID-19 in the light of its variant Omicron emergence. State Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar issued a government order (GO) to the effect in the wake of the suggestions from Union Ministry of Health and the directions issued by the High Court recently over the matter. The order said rallies and public meetings shall be prohibited throughout the State till January 2, 2022. Other events involving congregation of people would be permitted subject to the directions, including ensuring physical distancing within the venue, disallowing any person without a mask and arranging thermal scanners at the entry point of the venue. The orders for imposition of fine for not wearing of mask by people in public spaces should be strictly enforced, the order said. The directions would be enforced strictly with immediate effect, it 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.) Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO), including Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan, has warned the Health Department against the possibility of a sudden spurt in Omicron cases. The experts have warned the possibility of a hike in Omicron cases following inadequate vaccines and lack of Covid-appropriate behaviour during the upcoming festival season. Swaminathan in a review meeting with the Chief Minister, Health Minister and Health Department officials virtually on Friday said that the Omicron variant may not give time to prepare for healthcare providers. The WHO Chief Scientist, according to the state Health Department officials, warned that the Omicron variant has a high transmission rate and it evades antibodies and immunity. The experts cautioned the government to be prepared with more beds, oxygen cylinders, drugs and testing kits. The state's Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan urged people to celebrate Christmas, New Year and Pongal in a subdued manner. He said that people must try to have online 'darshans' and virtual celebrations instead of physical visits to religious places. The department will release education materials and media briefs to prevent misinformation. However, the STATE government will not impose any fresh restrictions and the existing curbs would continue till December 31. Meanwhile, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in an official statement appealed to the people to make use of the vaccination facilities through camps across the state. --IANS aal/khz/ksk/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) has recorded a decline in its growth rate while its fiscal deficit, outstanding debt and public debt have increased significantly at the end of 2019-20, a Comptroller and Auditor (CAG) report on state finance for the period said on Friday. The report, laid in the state Assembly on the last day of the Winter Session, said the GSDP of the state grew from Rs 2,27,959 crore in 2015-16 to Rs 3,51,318 crore (quick estimates) in 2019-20 with Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 11.42 per cent against the national CAGR of 10.37 per cent. However, there was a decline in the growth rate from 16.47 per cent in 2015-16 to 11.22 per cent in 2019-20, it added. It further said the state could achieve revenue surplus only during two years in the five year period from 2015-16 to 2019-20, and in containing the fiscal deficit below 3 per cent of GSDP in three out of five years in the same period. During 2019-20, the fiscal deficit stood at 4.25 per cent of GSDP, which was significantly more than the limit of 3 per cent fixed under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (AFRBM) Act. The fiscal deficit which increased by 212.10 per cent from 4,779.06 crore in 2018-19 to Rs 14,915.80 crore in 2019-20, was the highest level of fiscal deficit since the enactment of the AFRBM Act in 2005, the report said. It further said outstanding debt of the state rapidly increased from Rs 39,054.59 crore in 2015-16 to Rs 72,256.52 crore in 2019-20, with the debt/GSDP ratio increasing from 17.13 per cent to 20.57 per cent over the same period. Public debt constituted 75 per cent of total state debt at the end of 2019-20 and it grew at the rate of 25.88 per cent during the year, the highest in the last five-year period, and also outpaced the growth rate of GSDP (11.22 per cent) during the year, the report said. It also pointed that the state government had taken recourse to market loans on several occasions during 2019-20 despite having large cash balances. It further said committed expenditure like salary and wages, pensions and interest payments steadily increased during the five year of 2015-20. The committed expenditure during 2019-20 was 64.32 per cent of the total revenue receipts and 62.23 per cent of total revenue expenditure. Among the recommendations made by the audit body, it said the state government can make concrete efforts to augment own resources of revenue to bridge the mismatch between revenue receipts and expenditure, and reduce its fiscal deficit. It also recommended the state government to take steps to rationalise its committed revenue expenditure, and use its cash balances for productive purposes and reduce market borrowings. (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.) Corporate houses, which are not allowed to own a bank, can now pick up 15 per cent stake in commercial banks through their non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). This is because the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed non-promoters to hold up to 15 per cent in private sector banks, following the recommendation of an internal working group (IWG) that was set up to review the existing guidelines on ownership and corporate structure for these entities. Voting rights, however, are likely to be capped at 10 per cent as is the case with other investors. The IWG had recommended that ... on Saturday said its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Vishwavir Ahuja has proceeded on leave with immediate effect a day after the (RBI) put one of its chief general managers in the bank as an additional director. The bank, in its notification to exchanges, did not give a reason for Ahujas leave, but said, "other terms and conditions of his appointment, such as remuneration, would remain unchanged." The bank has named Rajeev Ahuja, currently the executive director, as the interim MD & CEO of the bank, subject to regulatory and other approvals. Ahujas leave coincides with the (RBI) appointing one of its chief general managers Yogesh Dayal as an additional director in the bank for a period of two years effective December 24. The banks board welcomed Dayal to the board, and said it will benefit the bank "considering his rich experience with the highly respected regulator. Dayal is currently in charge of the department of communication at the central bank. In his 25 years of experience as a central banker, Dayal has held several positions in RBl's various offices, including the Monetary Policy Department and Department of Banking Supervision as well as Regional Offices at Bangalore, New Delhi, and Lucknow in the departments of Banking Supervision, Information Technology, Currency Management, and Payment and Settlement System etc. In his past, he was also a director on the board of J&K Bank, making the bank recognise bad debts, jack up its provisions, resulting in a loss in the bank. RBL Bank, however, assured the investors that it is well placed to execute its business plan and strategy, as communicated during our earnings, call dated October 28, 2021. The business and financial trajectory continues to be on improving trend, post absorbing the challenges due to Covid 2 pandemic," the bank said in a separate notification. The financials of the bank is robust with a healthy capital adequacy of 16.3 per cent, high levels of liquidity as reflected through Liquidity Coverage Ratio of 155 per cent, stable Net non-performing assets (NPA) of 2.14 per cent, credit deposit ratio of 74.1 per cent and a leverage ratio of 10 per cent, for the quarter ended September 30, 2021. In addition, the Bank has also improved the granularity of its deposits and advances, the bank said. A crowded three-storey ferry carrying around 800 passengers caught fire on the Sugandha River in southern early Friday, killing at least 41 people and injuring over 150 others, officials said, in the latest maritime tragedy to hit the country criss-crossed by rivers. The fire broke out around 3:00 am (local time) on Friday in the engine room of the Barguna-bound MV Abhijan-10 launch that started a journey from Dhaka, police and fire service officials said, adding that scores of other passengers were missing. At least 41 people have died from the devastating fire that swept through a crowded river ferry on the Sugandha River in Jhalakathi early Friday, the Dhaka Tribune reported. Officials familiar with the rescue efforts said 40 people were killed in the blaze, including nine being drowned, but some private television channels, quoting officials, reported 41 deaths from the accident in southern Jhalakathi district, 250 kilometres from the capital Dhaka. Officials said they were carrying out the autopsy of the 30 people at Jhalakathi's main government hospital ahead of handing them over to relatives. We have assigned an official team to find out the casualty figure, the deputy commissioner of Barishal district told the private Samoy TV. "The record suggests 310 listed passengers were travelling in the ferry, but we assume the actual number was much higher, junior minister for shipping Khaled Mahmud Chowdhury told reporters after he visited the accident site. He said three separate investigations have been launched to find out the background and other details of the predawn accident. Doctors at the Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in the neighbouring Barishal district said they were currently treating 70 people while fire service officials said some 50 more were being treated at other health facilities. Health officials in Dhaka said a six-member expert doctors' team were sent to Barishal to join their colleagues in treating patients with burn wounds. The Coastguard, fire service and police launched a search campaign covering rivers in three downstream districts as the accident took place at the confluence of three rivers as a huge number of people crowded on the river banks and hospitals to find their relatives. They wrapped up the rescue operation after sunset due to dense fog and darkness, saying they would restore the operation on Saturday morning. "Most of the people were burnt to death or died due to breathing problems due to hot smoke as they were trapped inside the vessel. Many passengers jumped into the river but some of them could not swim ashore or be rescued, a fire service official said. Another fire service official earlier said many passengers were asleep as the fire broke out, some died from inhaling smoke, some were burnt to death while some drowned. Survivors said the passenger ferry was carrying nearly 800 people as it left Dhaka for Barguna in southern coastlines on Thursday evening. Witnesses told reporters that the passenger ferry, called launch in Bangladesh, was carrying passengers beyond its capacity and most of them were visiting their homes to spend more time with their families on the extended weekend. Authorities ordered an investigation to determine the cause of the fire. A seven-member committee has been formed and tasked to submit a report in three days. Rescuers fear the death toll is likely to rise as more passengers have been injured in the pre-dawn fire. Many passengers jumped into the river in a desperate bid to save their lives as the fire raged for about three hours. Survivors say the launch was packed with passengers, bdnews24.com reported. Administrative chief of Barguna's Patharghata sub-district Muhammad Hossainn Mohammad Al Mozahid was one of the passengers of the launch who was travelling in a VIP cabin with his wife. "Suddenly thick smoke started causing us breathing problem... Everybody was screaming and rushed to the exit gate and some jumped into the river, he recounted. He said the master of the launch managed to manoeuvre the vessel to a nearby shoal where he along with many other passengers disembarked but many remained trapped inside to await the death. "The engine room of the launch suddenly caught fire around 3:00 am and spread rapidly when the vessel was near the Gabkhan Bridge, Saidur Rahman, another survivor, was quoted as saying by the Daily Star newspaper. "There were many passengers including children and elderly. Many of them jumped in the river and were able to swim ashore," he said. I caught a burning smell and came out of the VIP cabin to find out that there was a fire. Me, my wife and brother-in-law then jumped in the cold water and swam to the bank, he added. The fire service control room in a statement said 15 firefighting units led by Barishal Fire Service deputy director Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan rushed to the scene after receiving the information at 3.50 am and brought the blaze under control at 5:20 am. Bhuiyan, deputy director of the Barishal Fire Service who led the response, said they suspect the fire may have started in the engine room of the ferry. "After receiving the information, 15 firefighting units led by Kamal Uddin Bhuiyan, deputy director of Barishal Division Fire Service and Civil Defence went to the scene at 3:50 am and brought the fire under control at 5:20 am," the statement said. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is now in Maldives on an official visit, have mourned the deaths. The Prime Minister's office said she asked officials concerned to ensure appropriate treatment of the wounded and compensation for the victims. The accident was the latest in a number of similar incidents in Bangladesh, a small country criss-crossed by a network of some 230 rivers of different sizes and shapes. These watercourses cover nearly 7 per cent of the total area of the country. An overloaded speedboat allegedly driven by an inexperienced underage boy capsized in after a collision with a sand laden vessel in May this year, killing at least 26 people. In June last year, a ferry carrying over 100 passengers capsized in the Buriganga river in after it was hit from behind by another ferry, killing at least 32 people. In February 2015, at least 78 people died when an overcrowded ship collided with a cargo vessel. (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.) health officials say the variant is evident in 50 per cent to 70 per cent of new cases in parts of the most populous state heading into the holidays, with the state nearing a total of 5 million virus infections for the pandemic. The US recorded its first confirmed infection just three weeks ago in a San Francisco resident who had recently travelled to South Africa. On Friday, the state had 4,990,016 confirmed cases to date and more than 75,000 deaths from COVID-19, the disease that can be caused by the virus. Case reporting is expected to lag because of the holidays. (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.) US- worsening relations will deteriorate further if Beijing misses its obligations under a nearly expired trade agreement. The Economic and Trade Agreement signed by the two superpowers in January 2020 is set to end on December 31 this year. Trade observers say has not complied with a clause that obligates it to buy imports of manufactured goods, farm products, energy products, and certain services from the U.S. at a total of $200 billion more than the 2017 total. purchased $186 billion in goods and services in 2017 before the trade war, according to U.S. government figures. Matthew Goodman, senior vice president for economics with the Washington-based Center for Strategic & Studies said China has had trouble complying because of delays in Chinese aircraft orders from the US and pandemic-related setbacks. "I do think that the Biden administration is going to follow through on this agreement and hold China to account," Goodman said "I don't see any reason that they're going to change tack," he added. Further, the nearly four-year-old trade dispute launched by Trump over the Sino-Us trade imbalance has placed tariffs on USD 550 billion worth of goods, including USD 350 billion originating in China. The dispute also led to a chill in broader two-way relations that would run through Trump's term. Further, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a speech at the Center for Strategic & Studies in October that the U.S. government will discuss with China its "performance". "Under the agreement, China had made commitments that benefit certain American industries, including agriculture, that we must enforce," she said. The U.S. side will "work to enforce the terms of phase one," she added, referring to the terms of the deal. Further, China is the largest goods trading partner of the United States, with USD 559.2 billion passing both ways in 2020, according to the trade representative's office. (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 ruling Chinese (CPC), headed by President Xi Jinping, has abruptly replaced its chief in the volatile Xinjiang province, Chen Quanguo, who was sanctioned by the US over alleged human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims in the region. Chen no longer serves as Secretary of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Regional Committee of the CPC, state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday. Ma Xingrui, who was the governor of Guangdong province, has been appointed as new party chief for Xinjiang. The CPC Central Committee has decided to give Chen another appointment, the news agency said in a brief report. Chen has been accused by the US, the UK and the European Union of widespread human rights abuses against Uyghurs, but he is tipped for a promotion, Hong Kong-based South Morning Post reported on the development. Last year, the US government had slapped sanctions against Chen and several other Chinese officials in-charge of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, stating they were believed to be responsible for, or complicit in the unjust detention or abuse of Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs and members of other minority groups in Xinjiang. The three Chinese officials banned by the US were Chen Quanguo, CCP Party Secretary of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Zhu Hailun, the then Party Secretary of the Xinjiang Political and Legal Committee and Wang Mingshan, the Party Secretary of the Xinjiang Public Security Bureau. They were sanctioned by the former US government led by President Donald Trump - which pursued a tough policy on China; parts of which have been carried forward by his predecessor Joe Biden. In a tit-for-tat move, had imposed sanctions against US Congressional-Executive Commission on (CECC), the then US Ambassador at Large for Religious Freedom Samuel Brownback, US Senators Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Congressman Chris Smit. The US-China ties are going through a tense phase as the Biden administration has already announced a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics which is to be held in February next year. Escalating matters further, Biden on Thursday signed the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act which prohibits American businesses from importing goods from Xinjiang unless they can be proven not to have been made by forced labour. China has condemned the new US law, saying it violated laws and interfered in its internal affairs. China is battling allegations of human rights violations against Uyghur Muslims in the last few years from the West. The allegations include incarceration of thousands of Uyghurs in mass detention camps, forced labour in manufacturing units of the resource-rich Xinjiang, forced abortions, and mass indoctrination and other such crimes. Beijing says its security crackdown in Xinjiang was aimed at the separatist East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), which is affiliated to the Al-Qaida faction operating in Xinjiang. The labour camps have been called regular job training. "The so-called allegations of 'forced labour' and 'genocide' in Xinjiang are nothing but vicious lies concocted by anti-China forces," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told the media here on Friday, reacting to the new US move on Xinjiang. "The US side keeps using Xinjiang-related issues to create rumours and make trouble. Essentially it is engaging in political manipulation and economic coercion, and seeking to undermine Xinjiang's prosperity and stability and contain China's development under the pretext of human rights," he said. The allegations of forced labour have brought hesitancy to leading businesses sourcing raw material and labour from the region. Earlier in the week, American microchip maker Intel Corp. apologised over a letter urging suppliers to not source products or labour from China's Xinjiang region. The letter said Intel Corp. had been "required to ensure" its supply chain did not use labour or source goods from Xinjiang, following restrictions imposed by "multiple governments". The tech giant later regretted sending the letter to suppliers after facing tremendous backlash from Beijing and a call for total boycott. In a statement posted in Chinese on its official handles on media platforms WeChat and Weibo accounts, Intel clarified that its commitment to avoid supply chains from Xinjiang was an expression of compliance with US law, rather than a statement of its position on the issue. "We apologise for the trouble caused to our respected Chinese customers, partners and the public. Intel is committed to becoming a trusted technology partner and accelerating joint development with China," the BBC quoted the firm's letter as saying. The Global Times said Apple, Nike and Coca-Cola were among companies reportedly lobbying the US Congress to weaken the forced labour act. (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.) "Dark clouds of corruption" are looming large over Prime Minister Imran Khan's fourth year following the recent audit report on the country's COVID-19 expenditure that unveiled massive financial irregularities and distribution of food unfit for human consumption. The report on "expenditures incurred on COVID-19 by the federal government" has shown irregularities in government interventions to ensure the availability of five essential items -- sugar, wheat flour, oil and ghee, pulses and rice -- in Utility Stores at subsidized rates. A report published in Al Arabiya Post said this scandal, exposed by the government's own auditor general, is a clear case of stealing public money meant for helping the needy and medical staff struggling to deal with the aftereffects of a pandemic. The stolen amount, worth billions of Pakistani rupees, could be several times bigger as the government has refused relevant papers to the government audit body. The report added that this was perhaps PM's biggest scandal. What makes the report even more damning is that the Monetary Fund (IMF) pressured government to disclose expenditures on the COVID-19 relief package for audit. This was released after six months of pressure from the Monetary Fund. The report exposed misprocurement, payments to ineligible beneficiaries, cash withdrawal through fake biometrics and procurements of substandard goods for consumption. This COVID scandal is another blow to Prime Minister's anti-corruption image, according to the Al Arabiya Post. According to the Post, has been slowly but inevitably getting drawn into the corruption net as the Panama Papers leakage showed early this 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.) Exporters could lose USD 131 to 175 million as thousands of container trucks remain stuck at the and border. A truck typically carries goods worth Vietnamese dong (VND) 500-900 million, and the costs of renting the truck and hiring a driver could increase by VND100 million-plus other expenses, chairman of Fruit Association Dang Phuc Nguyen told VnExpress. This means losses could hit VND3-4 trillion if fruit including dragon fruit, jackfruit, watermelons and mangoes grow rotten due to delays, he said. As of December 21, there are 6,200 container trucks stuck at the border with China, among which 4,400 are in Lang Son Province, according to Customs. Exporters are stuck between a rock and a hard place: they cannot cross the border to sell in China, but returning to sell domestically would likely result in a major loss. "Dragon fruit prices in Hanoi are around VND4,000 per kilogram or a quarter of export prices. This will make us suffer heavy losses, not to mention other expenses," said Tran Ngoc Hiep, CEO of dragon fruit exporter Thanh Long Hoang Hau. The delay in clearance is due to Chinese authorities having tightened COVID-19 safety measures. They also reported technical difficulties in their network system, said Hoang Khanh Duy, deputy head of Dong Dang Economic Zone in Lang Son. Delays in clearance in other localities, including Quang Ninh and Cao Bang, and stoppage in Lao Cai, force most trucks to pour into Lang Son, he said. Driver Nguyen Van Toi, with ten years of experience driving long distances, said the clearance delay happens every year but that this year it is especially long. Many stranded drivers have been forced to cook their own meals on the spot. Taking advantage of the situation, the local food vendors have increased the price, some drivers had to order food from locals priced at VND 50,000 (USD 2.18) a portion, reported VNExpress.Moreover, the drivers have to go through many difficulties. Some of them had to rest on a hammock. Lang Son authorities on December 14 had a phone discussion with Chinese authorities to propose solutions to clear the goods, especially for agricultural produce. Meanwhile, the Chinese customs authorities earlier told officials of Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development that COVID-19 checks on goods are necessary procedures. (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.) At least 13 people died after a migrant capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 27 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favour a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greece's heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the country's migration crisis. The coast guard said 62 people were rescued after a sailboat capsized late Friday some 8 kilometers (5 miles) off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. Survivors told the coast guard that about 80 people had been on the vessel. Five coast guard patrol boats, nine private vessels, a helicopter and a military transport plane continued the night-time search for more survivors, authorities said, while coast guard divers also participated. Smugglers based in Turkey increasingly have packed yachts with and refugees and sent them toward Italy. Earlier, 11 people were confirmed dead after a sailboat Thursday struck a rocky islet some 235 kilometers (145 miles) south of Athens, near the island of Antikythera. The coast guard said Friday that 90 survivors -- 52 men, 11 women and 27 children -- were rescued after spending hours on the islet. "People need safe alternatives to these perilous crossings," the Greek office of the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, said in a tweet. In a separate incident Friday, Greek police arrested three people on smuggling charges and detained 92 after a yacht ran aground in the southern Peloponnese region. And a search operation also continued for a third day in the central Aegean, where a carrying sank near the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen were rescued, and the survivors reported that at least 17 people were missing. Authorities said the passengers originally were from Iraq. is a popular entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But arrivals dropped sharply in the last two years after extended a wall at the Turkish border and began intercepting inbound boats carrying migrants and refugees, a tactic criticised by human rights groups. More than 116,000 asylum-seekers crossed the Mediterranean to reach EU countries this year as of December 19, according to UNHCR. The agency said 55 per cent travelled illegally to Italy, 35 per cent to Spain, and 7 per cent to Greece, with the remainder heading to Malta and Cyprus. (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.) and on Friday agreed to bolster cooperation in the field of economic security with an emphasis on supply chain resiliency for semiconductors and other crucial goods, local media reported. During the virtual talks attended by members of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party, the Taiwanese side showed strong interest in a planned bill to promote economic security which Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government aims to submit to parliament next year, Kyodo News reported. According to the Japanese publication, the meeting was held as the LDP has stepped up exchanges with the Taiwanese ruling party, the self-ruled island facing military pressure from an increasingly assertive China. "We must make it effective legislation," Kyodo News quoted Akimasa Ishikawa, head of the LDP's Economy, Trade and Industry Division. In the meeting, the LDP welcomed Taipei's bid to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement between 11 Pacific Rim countries, which China has also applied to join, said Masahisa Sato, chief of the LDP Foreign Affairs Division. Earlier, Japan, a member of the TPP, said it welcomes Taiwan's application to take part in the trade deal and it sees no technical problem with it, while Beijing has expressed strong opposition to Taipei's move and has lodged a protest to it, Kyodo News reported. Beijing claims full sovereignty over Taiwan, a democracy of almost 24 million people located off the southeastern coast of mainland China, despite the fact that the two sides have been governed separately for more than seven decades. (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.) has announced not to attend the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 in Las Vegas early next month, as Omicron-induced Covid cases surge across the globe, especially in the US. The Satya Nadella-run tech company will have a digital presence for ' Partner Innovation Experience' at the event from January 5-8. "After reviewing the latest data on the rapidly evolving Covid environment, has decided not to participate in-person at 2022," a company spokesperson said in a statement. While the Consumer Association (CTA), the governing body on CES, plans to go ahead with the show, several tech companies like Lenovo, T-Mobile, AT&T, Meta, Twitter, Amazon, TikTok, Pinterest, Alphabet-owned Waymo, along with several media outlets, will not attend the consumer electronics show. Google and Intel have joined the growing list of tech companies who have decided not to attend the ' 2022' in-person in Las Vegas. For the last several years, Google's outdoor exhibits have been a mainstay in the Las Vegas Convention Centre. Meanwhile, Samsung said it still plans to participate in CES, even though major brands backed out. Samsung said there is no change in its on-site presence, especially as its new CEO Han Jong-hee is set to present the company's vision for and direction of technological development through his keynote speech. The world's biggest consumer electronics show will serve as a prominent stage for Han to make his global debut as the new chief of the tech giant since he took office earlier this month. --IANS na/sks/ksk/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister on Friday expressed hope that his country would host the Summit after the removal of artificial obstacle in its way. Khan made the remarks during his meeting with Secretary-General of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Esala Ruwan Weerakoon, who paid a courtesy call on the Prime Minister here, according to Foreign Office. The Prime Minister expressed hope to host the Summit in when artificial obstacle created in its way would be removed, said FO. The - a regional grouping comprising Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka - has not been very effective since 2016 as its biennial summits have not taken place since the last one in Kathmandu in 2014. The 2016 SAARC Summit was originally planned to be held in Islamabad on November 15-19, 2016. But after a terror attack on an Indian Army camp in Uri in Jammu and Kashmir on September 18 that year, India expressed its inability to participate in the summit due to "prevailing circumstances". The summit was called off after Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan also declined to participate in the Islamabad meet. During his meeting with Weerakoon, Khan reiterated Pakistan's commitment to the mutually beneficial goals and objectives embodied in the SAARC Charter. He also underlined that SAARC can provide a conducive and beneficial atmosphere to build economic synergies which can transform the quality of life of the people of South Asia. Prime Minister Khan emphasised on strengthening cooperation on issues of common interest including climate change, education, poverty alleviation, energy integration and health challenges, the FO said. The Prime Minister appreciated SAARC Secretary-General's efforts to further improve and promote SAARC processes and assured him of continued support of Pakistan in further strengthening regional cooperation under the SAARC ambit, it said. The Secretary-General thanked the Prime Minister for his guidance on SAARC related issues and assured him that during his tenure he will make determined efforts to strengthen collaboration among member states in different fields for the benefit of all the countries of South Asian region. Khan also strongly condemned the lynching of Sri Lankan national Priyantha Kumara in Sialkot earlier this month and said that there was no justification whatsoever for such acts. He said that all necessary steps have been taken in order to speedily bring the perpetrators to justice. Weerakoon, a Sri Lankan diplomat, assumed charge as the Secretary-General of the SAARC in March last year. Weerakoon, who is on his first visit to Pakistan since assuming office, earlier this week met with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi who reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to the principles and objectives of the SAARC Charter for the welfare of the people of the region, economic integration and regional prosperity. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Russian court has fined $98 million for its alleged failure to remove content that is considered illegal in the country. A Moscow court also slapped a $27 million fine on Meta (formerly Facebook) over its failure to delete content banned by the law of the land. Russian news service Interfax reported that the judge calculated the fine sum on the basis of information about Google's annual revenue provided by the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor). The offence to remove banner content is punishable with a fine of 5 per cent to 10 per cent of the overall revenue in a calendar year preceding the calendar year of the administrative offence, Interfax said late on Friday. The fines on and Meta came as exerts more control over big tech firms and the content people publish on their digital platforms. told The Verge in a statement it will "study the court documents when they are available and then decide on next steps". Earlier this week, Twitter was also fined 3 million rubles ($40,000) for its failure to purge banned content. According to Roskomnadzor, and Instagram have failed to remove 2,000 pieces of content and Google failed to purge nearly 2,600 such items. Russian officials have also asked Google and Apple to remove political opponents' voting apps from their app stores "by threatening to prosecute the companies' locally-based employees", the report said. --IANS na/svn/ksk/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) and have entered into an agreement with the Taliban on the management over the airport of Kabul and four other airports in Afghanistan, Sputnik reported. The parties held "productive and effective" negotiations during which they agreed to create technical groups to work on details of the operations in the coming days, the Anadolu news agency reported on Friday, citing its sources. "Doha and Ankara have agreed to jointly operate Kabul Airport," said the sources. The Turkish-Qatari Delegation will visit Kabul to continue the joint work, Sputnik reported. Earlier, the Qatari technical team had repaired Kabul Airport after the US withdrawal was completed on August 31. International and local flights were suspended at Kabul's international airport and across Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in mid-August. (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 on Friday recorded another daily COVID-19 infection high at 122,186, up from 119,789 cases the previous day, as experts pointed to a glimmer of Christmas hope after studies showed that the variant is much less severe than the previously dominant Delta variant. In additional data released by the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS), 1.74 million people in the had on December 19, up by more than 368,000 on the figure three days earlier. This equates to 2.7 per cent of the population or one in 35 people. In London, that figure is even higher at one in 20, driven by the rapidly transmissible variant. The Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which released a detailed analysis of real world data on Thursday, said its findings offer some hope but the additional burden on the National Health Service (NHS) due to staff COVID positive tests continues to be a strain. There is a glimmer of Christmas hope... but it definitely isn't yet at the point where we could downgrade that serious threat, Dr Jenny Harries, UKHSA Chief Executive, told the BBC. What we have got now is a really fine balance between something that looks like a lower risk of hospitalisation which is great news but equally a highly transmissible variant and one that we know evades some of our immune defences, so it is a very balanced position," she said. The UKHSA estimates that someone with Omicron is between 31 per cent and 45 per cent less likely to attend A&E and 50 per cent to 70 per cent less likely to be admitted to hospital than an individual with the Delta variant. However, Dr Harries warned there was much that is still unknown about Omicron. "We don't yet know what the average length of stay for an individual is in a hospital," she said. "We're not seeing very significant rises in intensive care utilisation or in the use of ventilation beds. Now that may be because a lot of the people who've been infected to date are actually younger people and we will see that coming through," she added. But if the severity of the disease is actually "significantly lower than Delta" then some of the impact on the NHS may be less severe, she admitted. The UKHSA analysis, along with the data gathered around Omicron on a daily basis, will influence the UK government's decision regarding whether or not further restrictions are needed in England. At present, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has stuck to his Plan B measures for England face masks, Covid passes and working from home guidance with any new measures now expected only after Christmas next week. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have all already announced tougher rules for nightclubs and other hospitality venues from Sunday to control gatherings and crowds. (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 announced that it has extended the exemption of the travel ban on senior members of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, including First Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, for a period of 90 days. In its announcement on Friday, the UNSC said that the ban, which came into force on Wednesday, will last until March 21, 2022, TOLO News reported. Besides Baradar, there are 14 other members on the ban list, including Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. "The travel ban exemption is solely for travels required for participation in peace and stability discussions in a range of countries," TOLO News quoted the UNSC as saying in its announcement. "Individual itineraries will depend on the location of peace discussions. The Committee has also decided to grant a limited asset freeze exemption only for financing exempted travels." The Taliban-led government welcomed the UNSC's decision, while calling for the removal of its leaders' names from the UN and US blacklists. "It is necessary to remove the names of the officials of the Islamic Emirate from the US and UN blacklists based on the Doha Agreement," said Inamullah Samangani, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate. --IANS ksk/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The US will lift Covid-related travel restrictions on eight African countries on December 31, the White House announced. "On December 31, (President Joe Biden) will lift the temporary travel restrictions on Southern countries," and the decision was based on the recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), White House Assistant Press Secretary Kevin Munoz said on Twitter on Friday. Announced on November 29, the travel ban barred non-American citizens from entering the US if they had travelled to South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique or Malawi within 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival. Munoz said the restrictions "gave us time to understand" the highly transmissible Omicron variant of Covid-19, which first emerged in southern and soon spread around the world, now making up over 70 per cent of new cases in the US, as per CDC data. Getting fully vaccinated and boosted is still an effective way to fight against Omicron, he said. --IANS ksk/ (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The price of 10 gram of gold remained unchanged on Saturday, with 24-carat gold trading at Rs 48,300 and 22-carat at Rs 47,300. The price of 1 kg of silver increased by Rs 100 and the precious metal is selling at Rs 62,400. In Delhi, the price of 24-carat gold stands at Rs 51,800, while in Mumbai it is at Rs 48,300, according to the Goodreturns website. The price of 10 gram of 22-carat gold in Delhi and Mumbai is at Rs 47,500 and Rs 47,300, respectively. In Chennai, 10 gram of 24-carat gold is selling at Rs 49,650 on Saturday, while 10 gram of 22-carat gold is selling at Rs 45,510. In Kolkata, 24-carat gold is selling at Rs 50,150, while 22-carat gold's price is at Rs 47,450, according to the Goodreturns website. The price of gold varies across the country due to excise duty, state taxes, and making charges. In Chennai, the price of 1 kg of silver is at Rs 66,100 on Saturday, while in Delhi and Mumbai, the metal is selling at Rs 62,400. Silver is selling at Rs 62,400 per kg in Kolkata and Bengaluru, while in Hyderabad, the metal is selling at Rs 66,100 a kg. Protean eGov Technologies (formerly known as NSDL E-Governance Infrastructure) has filed preliminary papers with capital regulator to raise funds through an initial public offering. The public issue is purely an offer of sale (OFS) of 1.2 crore equity shares, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP). Those offering shares in the OFS are IIFL Special Opportunities Funds, NSE Investments, Administrator of the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Deutsche Bank A.G., Punjab National Bank and Union Bank of India. Protean eGov Technologies is one of the key IT-enabled solution companies in India engaged in conceptualizing, developing and executing nationally critical and population scale greenfield technology solutions. The company collaborated with the government and have extensive experience in creating digital public infrastructure and developing innovative citizen-centric e-governance solutions. Originally setup as a depository in 1995, it created a systemically important national infrastructure for capital market development in India. ICICI Securities, Equirus Capital, IIFL Securities and Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) are the book running lead managers to the issue. The equity shares are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE. (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], December 25 (ANI/TPT): Dr Maqsood Ahmed, the founder of Nizamia Education Group, was recently honoured with the title of "Youngest CEO of the Year" from none other than the Honourable Ganesh Joshi, Minister of Soldier Welfare, Uttarakhand government. Previously, he has also been accorded by Kotler at Marketing Summit 2.0 with the Iconic Achiever- Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. At the Indian Ethnic Fashion Show, he was given the title of "Youngest EdupreneurEdupreneur of India" by N.C.S. His contributions to student welfare have also been honoured at the "Super 30 College of Competitions," where Anand Kumar, Director of the "Super 30 Program," has praised his acts and efforts on behalf of students from low-income families. The Nizamia Education Group(NEG), led by Maqsood, aims to reduce inequity in education for pupils from low-income families. The veteran shares his perspective in a conversation by saying, "While India has been able to maintain tremendous economic progress since its independence, its poverty rate is still a concern for its leaders. In 2016, 270 million Indians lived on $1.90 or less per day, with only 6 per cent of impoverished families' income going toward education and health care. Education deprivation contributes to the cycle of poverty and low living standards. As a result, it is clear that only education would be able to lift India out of its poverty. I simply want to make that feasible by advising and assisting needed kids in reaching the best potential educational accomplishments." With its ambitious initiatives, NEG has already altered the futures of over 10,000 students, and Maqsood Ahmed aspires to educate 1,00,000 pupils by 2025. Every year, NEG holds the Nizamia Scholarship Test (NST), a merit-based scholarship exam aimed at awarding scholarships to deserving individuals without discrimination. The organization is currently working on the militancy-infested J & K region in order to bring students from that politically difficult area back into the light of education. Nizamia Education Group, hopes to empower individuals in their academic journey through effective guidance. In the years after its founding, the group chose to expand the concept to the North-East of India and the state of Bihar, which are two of the few regions in India that lack access to high-quality education. This story is provided by TPT. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (ANI/TPT) DISCLAIMER (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Photo: The Canadian Press British Columbia's provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, Friday July 3, 2020. Police are thanking a Good Samaritan who found an envelope containing $9,000 in downtown Victoria on Tuesday and turned it in. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld Police are thanking a Good Samaritan who found an envelope containing $9,000 in downtown Victoria on Tuesday and turned it in. City police say in a news release that the money was immediately stored for safekeeping and officers began the search for its owner. The next day, police say a local business owner called the department to report a missing envelope that contained the same amount. They say a constable working on the case made the connection between the two files. Police say the business owner went to the station Friday with documents that proved it belonged to them and told the officer that the money was for Christmas bonuses for their staff. Police did not release the identity of the Good Samaritan or the business owner but say the money has been returned just in time for Christmas Eve. Pakistan on Friday released 42 Afghans from different jails and handed over them to Afghan officials in Torkham, a port city in eastern Nangarhar province. Forty-two Afghans released from different Pakistani jails extradited through Torkham to Afghanistan, the statement said, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. However, the statement did not say on what charges these Afghans were detained and for how long they were kept in Pakistani jails. Freed Afghans were sent to their homes after an administrative procedure and they were provided with some cash assistance too, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. (ANI) remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. As a veteran broadcast journalist I've covered a lot of stories around the holiday season. This one has to top the list, A Christmas story of HOPE . Robert K. Schrader is Chattanooga Funeral Home, East Brainerd Chapel location, manager. Hes helped many of our families during the most difficult days of their lives. Mr. Schrader has seen it all. Many friends know that his grandson, P.J. Greenwood, recently underwent a liver transplant in Houston, Texas. It wasn't without challenges. The family struggled and there were times when it seemed all hope was gone. The family asked that everyone pray and many prayers were said from all over. The operation finally took place. There were a couple of bumps but it was successful and P.J. began his road to recovery. The family arrived home this week with their miracle. Mr. Schraders friends LeRoy and Glenda Wilson (Wilson Funeral Home) sent their bus - motor home to Texas and brought the Greenwood family home just in time for Christmas. Mr. Schrader's response to it all was To God Be the Glory. The people of our community continue to amaze me." "Reagan's mom created a Facebook page (PJ's Praying Pals) and at last count, there were thousands of people from 39 states and eight countries that prayed for PJ. Our family strongly believes that the prayers of our "Kingdom Family" is why PJ is with us today. We ask that you remember our donor's family this Christmas season that they will find the peace that only Christ can bring." Reagan is P.J.'s mother. Im reminded of Andre Crouchs song, Through it all."Ive never known of a family with as much faith. Josh Duggars trial ended in December 2021 with a guilty verdict. In April 2021, federal agents arrested Josh on suspicion of downloading and possessing child sexual abuse content, and his trial began in November 2021. After the guilty verdict, Josh said goodbye to his wife, Anna Duggar, before heading to jail. Now, an insider has information on what hell eat for Christmas dinner while in solitary confinement. Josh Duggars trial: Josh received a guilty verdict at his trial A police photo of Josh Duggar | Washington County Sheriffs Office via Getty Images Josh Duggars guilty verdict came after substantial evidence suggested he downloaded and obtained child sexual abuse material in 2019. His defense tried to convince the jury that others couldve downloaded the material, but to no avail. After the trial, a number of Duggar family members took to their blogs and social media to share their thoughts on the verdict. This entire ordeal has been very grievous, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar wrote on their website. Today, Gods grace, through the love and prayers of so many, has sustained us. In the days ahead, we will do all we can to surround our daughter-in-law Anna and their children with love and support. Jill Duggar and her husband, Derick Dillard, also wrote a statement, as did Joy-Anna Duggar. Anna Duggar has yet to publicly acknowledge what occurred. After Joshs arrest, shes mostly stayed off of social media completely. An insider detailed what he will have leading up to Christmas dinner while in solitary confinement JUST IN: Josh Duggar found guilty of federal child pornography charges https://t.co/LiJluZLUSL CBS News (@CBSNews) December 9, 2021 Once the verdict was read at Josh Duggars trial, Josh was taken to the Washington County Detention Center in Arkansas. According to The Sun, Josh remains in solitary confinement. But he still gets a Christmas dinner even if hell eat it alone. An insider shared with The Sun that all of the inmates at the detention center will receive a little special something. It wont be big, but itll be a little something different. People in solitary do not get to eat with others, the source added. They get served alone in their cell, but they get the same food everyone else does. So, what will Josh have for Christmas? The insider noted the typical fare Josh may receive in the days leading up to the big holiday. This morning they had oatmeal with butter and sugar, a sausage patty, homemade fried potatoes, bread, and margarine, the insider said. The inmates also had the option of drinking an orange-flavored drink. For lunch, they had hamburgers. For dinner, Josh received turkey and rice casserole with a side of green beans, bread, and margarine. It seems this menu wont change much for Christmas day, either. Are Josh Duggar and Anna Duggar still married? Will she visit him on Christmas? Anna Duggar and Josh Duggar pose during the 42nd annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) | Kris Connor/Getty Images After Josh Duggars trial, Anna Duggar reportedly looked stoic as Josh left the courthouse. So, are Josh and Anna still married? It seems they are, though Anna hasnt made any public statements regarding her marriage or the guilty verdict, as stated prior. So, will Anna visit Josh in jail for the holidays? According to Radar Online, Josh isnt allowed to have conjugal visits with Anna. Handshakes, hugs, and kisses (in good taste) at the beginning and end of a visit are permitted between the couple, but they cant have private time together. With this in mind, its still likely shell visit her husband for the holidays, even if the visit remains brief. How to get help: If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 for free and confidential support. Check out Showbiz Cheat Sheet on Facebook! RELATED: Josh Duggars Wife, Anna Duggar, Allegedly Hurt by Duggar Family Members Speaking Out Against Josh: That Broke Her Heart After releasing the song Edge of Seventeen, Stevie Nicks has been associated with doves. The birds, often seen as symbols of peace and love, provided Nicks with a good omen in a difficult time. The moment came at a crossroads in her life between her final time using cocaine and her stint in rehab. Stevie Nicks | Ebet Roberts/Redferns Stevie Nicks sang about doves in her solo career In her debut solo album Bella Donna, Nicks opened the song Edge of Seventeen with the lyrics, Just like the white winged dove sings a song, sounds like shes singing. According to Nicks, the inspiration for this lyric came from a restaurant menu. In 1980 I was flying home from Phoenix, Arizona, and I was handed a menu that said, The white wing dove sings a song that sounds like shes singing ooh, ooh, ooh. She makes her home here in the great Saguaro cactus that provides shelter and protection for her she told Rolling Stone. As you well know, I was very taken with that whole picture and went on to write Edge of Seventeen. Nicks wrote the song about her uncles death, but the dove imagery has stuck with her throughout her career. She kept a pet dove after a Fleetwood Mac concert Nicks and the other members of Fleetwood Mac used cocaine heavily while touring, recording, and writing. For Nicks, the drug became life-threatening in the mid-1980s. At this point, she was nearly constantly high, and it was affecting her performances. After one Fleetwood Mac concert, The Chicago Tribune noted that years of hard living have reduced her voice to a wretched rasp she spent much of her 90-minute set spinning and whirling on and off the stage, often leaving her bewildered-looking band to pick up the pieces. This was the final straw for those close to her. They staged an intervention, though it wasnt until her father flew in to speak with her that she agreed to go to rehab after Fleetwood Mac toured. According to the book Stevie Nicks: Visions, Dreams, and Rumours by Zoe Howe, Nicks final time using cocaine was at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. The band released 25 white doves during this show, but one remained contentedly in Nicks hand. As the crowd cheered, Nicks gently placed the bird in Mick Fleetwoods hat. According to Howe, the moment was a near-perfect symbol of hope, and Nicks would go on to keep the bird as a pet. Stevie Nicks says she recently heard dove song for the first time Despite having one as a pet, Nicks said she first heard a dove sing in April 2020. Like a white winged dove, Stevie Nicks flew to #1 in the US today in 1981 with 'Bella Donna'. Ooh baby ooh! pic.twitter.com/cJMDviQ5Mn AbsoluteClassicRock (@AbsoluteClassic) September 5, 2015 Several days ago, outside my room, I started to hear the sound of a bird singing the same thing over and over, she said. One little Ahhh~ and then three OOHs ~ over and over again. I thought it was an owl, but a friend said, No, thats a dove! I started to cry. This dove had come here to watch over me. How to get help: In the U.S., contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration helpline at 1-800-662-4357. RELATED: Stevie Nicks Once Said Shed Consider Running Over Her Former Doctor With a Car The first exclusive trailer for Clayton Echards season of The Bachelor may have teased his final three ladies. The Bachelor lead admitted that hes in love with all three women, which results in utter turmoil. Clayton also revealed that he was intimate with two of them, making his final decision more difficult. Reality Steve recently revealed the identity of the last three contestants present in the trailer. Here are the three women who might be Claytons one true love. Clayton Echard from The Bachelor 2022 | Pamela Littky/ABC via Getty Images 1. Gabby will try to win Clayton Echards heart on The Bachelor Gabby | Ricky Middlesworth/ABC RELATED: The Bachelor: Hannah Brown and Matt James Reunite to Make a Fun TikTok Video Gabby W. is a 30-year-old ICU Nurse from Denver, Colorado. According to Bachelor Insider, Gabby is looking for a man who is quite confident. Although she doesnt have any physical type, personality is key. It is a hard pass for Gabby if a man lacks personality. Her ideal type of man is someone who challenges her, is a great communicator, and is willing to work hard to equally carry the weight of their relationship. What is a deal-breaker for Gabby? It can simply be someone who doesnt accept her Goldendoodle, Leonardo. Lastly, she hopes to find a man that honors her ability to be an independent woman. Some fun facts about Gabby are shes terrified of humpback whales, loves to write cards, and dreams of flying to Italy to stomp grapes. 2. Could Rachel steal Claytons heart? Rachel | Ricky Middlesworth/ABC RELATED: The Bachelor: Who Is Colton Underwoods New Boyfriend, Jordan C. Brown? Rachel R. is a 25-year-old Flight Instructor from Clemont, Florida. Since Rachel is a fearless frequent flyer thats always in the sky, she dreams of finding a man thatll travel the world with her. After earning her private pilot license, Rachel hopes to find a companion that can join her in the sky. Meanwhile, she is always looking for adventure and is a hopeless romantic. Rachel is looking for someone passionate, loves to joke around/be silly, and is spontaneous like herself. Ultimately, she wants to find a crazy, insane love that will make her feel whole. Some fun facts about Rachel are she loves Flaming Hot Cheetos, is a true Potter Head that wants to introduce the series to her future kids, and once organized a flash mob in high school. 3. Susie and Clayton form a strong connection in The Bachelor Season 26 Susie | Ricky Middlesworth/ABC Lastly, Susie is a 28-year-old Wedding Videographer from Virginia Beach, Virginia. She is a beauty queen thats always looking for a good adventure. Ultimately, Susie is a person who loves to defy expectation and is looking for a man who has a spontaneous way of thinking. Also, the Virginia native wants a thoughtful man that loves spending time together. For Susie, loyalty is critical to her, and she must be with someone she can trust. All in all, she wants someone who will encourage her to follow her dreams, whatever that might be. Some fun facts about Susie are she would love to make a documentary film, dislikes haunted houses, and is a Jiu-Jitsu champion. Watch all three contestants on The Bachelor Season 26. The popular reality dating show airs on ABC on Jan. 5, 2022. On December 13, 2021, Rena Sofer who plays Quinn on The Bold and the Beautiful had the opportunity to judge the Miss Universe competition. The pageant, itself, was controversial. However, Sofer recently talked about her experience as a judge. And she seemed to have nothing but nice things to say about the Miss Universe organization and the overall experience. The Bold and the Beautiful | Toni Anne Barson/FilmMagic Rena Sofer of The Bold and the Beautiful judged Miss Universe After the pandemic threw off many plans for Miss Universe, the beloved beauty pageant is back. Miss Universe aired in the United States on Sunday, December 12, 2021. The show will be held in Eliat, Israel. And Miss Mexico, Andrea Meza, will be relinquishing her crown at the end of the pageant. As it was in previous years, Steve Harvey hosted the event. But there were some familiar faces as celebrity judges, as well. But, according to Hola!, The Bold and the Beautiful fans tuned in to watch none other than Rena Sofer serve as one of the official judges. Lori Harvey, Steve Harveys daughter, was also a judge. And rounding out the judges panel are Adamari Lopez, Iris Mittenaere, Urvashi Rautela, Adriana Lima, Cheslie Kryst, and Marian Rivera. Harnaaz Sandhu of India took home the crown Ultimately, The Bold and the Beautiful star and all her fellow celebrity judges awarded the Miss Universe crown to Harnaaz Sandhu of India. According to CNN, the first runner-up and second runner-up were Nadia Ferreira of Paraguay and Lalela Mswane of South Africa, respectively. Crying!! Miss Universe 2020 @AndreaMeza takes a look back on her short but fulfilling reign. pic.twitter.com/cEPnoUWnwu Miss Universe (@MissUniverse) December 23, 2021 At a later Q&A session, when Sandhu had reached the top 5, she took the opportunity to spread a message on climate change. This is the time to take action and talk less, she said. Prevent and protect is better than repent and repair, reported the outlet. After her win was announced, she celebrated with other contestants on stage, shouting to a camera, Chak de Phatte India, a Punjabi exclamation similar in meaning to Lets do this, India! Everyone definitely seemed to have a good time at the event. But, The Bold and the Beautiful star also had nothing but good things to say about it, too. Sofer had nothing but good things to say According to SoapHub, Sofer had nothing but good things to say about the Miss Universe experience. The outlet reports that in addition to shouting out all the contestants, Sofer had nothing but love for the hosts, too. Carson Kressley is just so much fun!! Sofer said. [Adriana Lima] was so nice and really great to sit next to during the show. She kept me calm during voting! [Paula Shugart, president of Miss Universe] is so wonderful. She loves what she does and @missuniverse is so important to her. Im so grateful that she asked me to be a part of this amazing show! We hope the pageant invites The Bold and the Beautiful star to judge the competition again! RELATED: The Bold and the Beautiful Speculation: An Unexpected Alliance Makes Deacon Pause for the Cause Every year, former President Barack Obama reveals his favorite movies and television shows. He always shows a variety of films that span genres in a way that all audiences can find something to enjoy. 2021 is an odd year for cinema because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. But, the art of film is still alive and well. Heres where you can watch each of Obamas favorite movies of the year. Barack Obama announced his favorite movies of 2021 Barack Obama | ABC via Getty Images Obamas favorite movies of 2021 once again show a diverse palette from independent film to foreign motion pictures to Hollywood studio releases. Drive My Car is for more patient movie lovers, but movies such as West Side Story and Passing are much more accessible. 1. Drive My Car Drive My Car is one of two Ryusuke Hamaguchi movies released this year. It follows a widowed actor and director whose life takes a sudden turn after a 20-year-old chauffeur starts driving him to and from work. Drive My Car is currently playing in limited theaters. 2. Summer of Soul Summer of Soul is a music documentary that explores the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. The event celebrates African American music and culture, uplifting Black pride and integration. Summer of Soul is available to stream on Hulu. 3. West Side Story West Side Story is an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical. It explores another take on William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet. A forbidden love blossoms between Tony and Maria, but they come from opposite sides of teenage street gangs. West Side Story is playing in theaters everywhere. 4. The Power of the Dog The Power of the Dog follows a charismatic rancher who intimidates all those around him. His more proper brother marries a woman and brings her son along with them. The rancher initially dislikes them until he begins to develop an unexpected relationship. The Power of the Dog is available to stream on Netflix. 5. Pig Pig follows a truffle hunter who lives a life of solitude. His beloved foraging pig is stolen, so he must pursue the captors to retrieve his beloved companion. Pig is currently streaming Hulu. The movie is also available to rent or purchase through digital retailers, such as Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. 6. Passing Passing picks up when a couple of old high school friends happen to run into one another in public. Their reignited friendship unravels both of their realities as they grew into adulthood pursuing entirely different lives. Passing is available to stream on Netflix. 7. The Card Counter The Card Counter is Paul Schraders latest movie. Its a revenge thriller that follows an ex-military interrogator who now pursues the thrill of gambling. However, hell soon learn that it isnt enough to escape the horrors of his past. The Card Counter is available for rent or purchase through digital retailers, such as Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. 8. Judas and the Black Messiah Judas and the Black Messiah follows William ONeal, who works out a deal with the FBI to gain access into the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party. His mission is to collect knowledge on Chairman Fred Hampton. Judas and the Black Messiah is available to stream on HBO Max. 9. The Worst Person in the World The Worst Person in the World explores Julies life over the course of four years. Shes trying to seek her place in the world as she wrestles with family, love interests, and her career path. The Worst Person in the World will hit limited theaters on Feb. 4. 10. Old Henry Old Henry is a western that explores the life of a farmer who brings in an injured man who has a bag full of money. However, a group is coming for the money and he must figure out who he can trust in this situation. His entire reality unravels in the process. Old Henry is available for rent or purchase through movie digital retailers, such as Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. 11. The Last Duel The Last Duel takes place in medieval France when a knights wife accuses a squire of raping her. The knight challenges the squire to a duel that explores three different perspectives of the events. The Last Duel is available for rent or purchase through digital retailers, such as Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. 12. The Tragedy of Macbeth The Tragedy of Macbeth is a retelling of Shakespeares Macbeth. A Scottish lord encounters three witches who convince him that he will be the next King of Scotland. His wife pushes him to pursue his goal of assuming power. The Tragedy of Macbeth hits theaters on Dec. 25 and will stream on Apple TV+ starting on Jan. 14. 13. Cmon Cmon Cmon Cmon explores the life of a radio journalist who travels from New York to Los Angeles to care for his estranged nephew. They set out on a cross-country adventure together to show him another side of life. Cmon Cmon is currently playing in limited theaters. 14. Quo Vadis, Aida? Quo Vadis, Aida? follows a translator for the United Nations in a small town. The Serbian army takes over, which places thousands of people seeking shelter at the UN. Quo Vadis, Aida? is streaming on Hulu. Its also available for rent or purchase through digital retailers, such as Amazon, Vudu, and Apple TV. RELATED: Why Cmon Cmon Star Woody Norman Says He Carried Co-Star Joaquin Phoenix Through the Whole Film President Joe Biden speaks about the COVID-19 variant named omicron during a visit to the National Institutes of Health on Dec. 2, 2021, in Bethesda, Md. Biden plans to stress in a Dec. 21 speech the importance of getting vaccinated to protect from a wave of COVID-19 infections tied to the new omicron variant as Christmas approaches. Early Christian Good Shepherd ring discovered in 3rd century shipwreck off coast of Caesarea Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Archeologists discovered hundreds of artifacts scattered underwater off the coast of Caesarea in Israel from two separate shipwrecks some 1,000 years apart. One of the finds discovered by the Marine Archaeology Unit of the Israel Antiquities Authority was a gold ring featuring a green gemstone engraved with the figure of the Good Shepherd carrying a sheep or a ram on his shoulders, according to IAA. In a Facebook post, the IAA said the image of The Good Shepherd "is one of the earliest and oldest images used in Christianity for symbolizing Jesus; it represents Jesus as humanity's compassionate shepherd, extending his benevolence to his flock of believers and all mankind." The owner of the right was most likely an early Christian aboard a ship that sank it was heading into the port of Caesarea, the location of one of the earliest Christian communities. "The ships were probably anchored nearby and were wrecked by a storm," IAA added. "They may have been anchored off shore after getting into difficulty, or fearing stormy weather because sailors know well that mooring in shallow, open water outside of a port is dangerous and prone to disaster." Helena Sokolov, a curator at the IAA's coin department who researched the Good Shepherd ring, told Agence France-Press that the image of the Good Shepherd on a ring is a rare find. "This was a period when Christianity was just in its beginning, but definitely growing and developing, especially in mixed cities like Caesarea," she told AFP, noting the rings small size might indicate that it belonged to a woman. The other artifacts that were uncovered, which are believed to have been owned by people living in the Roman and Mamluk periods (1,700 to 600 years ago), consisted of hundreds of coins, silver and gold rings, rare gems, figurines, bells, the remains of the ships cargo and the remains of their wrecked hulls. Among the items was a red gemstone for setting in a "gemma" ring, IAA added, with a carving that shows a lyre, which is called Kinor David or David's harp in Jewish tradition. Other items discovered by the Marine Archaeology Unit of the IAA include: No, 'white evangelicals' are not silencing a revolutionary Mary Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Around this time of year we hear a lot about the Virgin Mary, which is appropriate. But one of the things we hear about her is that she was some sort of revolutionary socialist. The Washington Post suggests that her song of praise upon meeting her sister Elizabeth, The Magnificat, is avoided by "white evangelicals" because of its political message: "The economic and political worldview of many white evangelicals has led to a silencing of Mary and of Gods dream for the world. But now she is helping me trust that the eventual upending of the systems of the world will be good news for me, and for other evangelicals, as well." WashingtonPost There's a long line of people giving this politicized interpretation of Mary, which I first ran across in the 70s and 80s in radical evangelical circles enamored by the Marxist, Sandinista revolutionaries in Nicaragua and similar groups in El Salvador and Guatemala. This year there was a controversy over a modern icon with Mary holding, not Jesus, but George Floyd, whose tragic death inspired a wave of violent riots and arson across the country spearheaded by the left-wing group Antifa. But nowhere in Mary's song of praise to God does she call for a violent uprising; to the contrary, she specifies the action as being done by God: "And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. "For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. "For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. "And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who fear Him. "He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart. "He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. "He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent away the rich empty-handed. "He has given help to Israel His servant, In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his offspring forever." Luke 1:47-55 NAS "GodHe has regardHe has brought downexaltedfilled.sent away.given helpspoke." God is the actor in all of this. In fact, she treats her own pregnancy with the Messiah as having already accomplished this; the verbs are aorist, the tense-form which indicates that something has already occurred. Mary is not trying to stoke some future violent uprising (that would be Barabbas and his like who do that). Mary is saying there has already been a reversal of power and God has done it himself. How did Mary get to this conclusion? She gives the reasoning herself, God "had regard for the humble estate of his bondservant," meaning Mary. God chose someone from relatively humble circumstances to bear the Savior. Note that the Magnificat is recited in Judea when Mary visited her sister Elizabeth, and Elizabeth and her unborn son had already expressed deference to Mary and her unborn son, despite the fact that Elizabeth lived in a higher status region, Judea, and her husband had a higher status position, a priest. "Now at this time Mary arose and went with haste to the hill country, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it came about that when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud voice, and said, 'Blessed among women are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy.'" Luke 1:39-44 NAS Immediately after this reversal of status is acknowledged by Elizabeth, Mary breaks forth with the Magnificat. The Magnificat is Mary's reaction to Elizabeth's deference. She does not recite it at the time of the Annunciation, but rather at the time when her relative takes the second role. This anticipates what her son John will do later. "He is greater than IHe must increase; I must decrease." Of course, the fact that God would choose Galileans, ones who would eventually settle in the low-status town of Nazareth, to bear and raise the Messiah has social implications. The Magnificat is, in that sense, subversive. But it is not exactly revolutionary. It's more counter-revolutionary. The revolution had already taken place and the Herodians, who had no legal claim to the throne, had come to power. Those faithful to Torah were relatively powerless, even descendants of David, the line of the true king. As Mary says, God is acting in "remembrance," keeping his promise to Abraham, restoring the rule of David. This is not a people's revolution, nor is it an Antifa Mary. It has implications for politics as her words make clear. One can understand why (at least according to some reports) right wing dictatorships have feared and even banned the Magnificat. But anyone paying attention would see that budding or hopeful left-wing dictators, city burners, Barabbases of then or now, likewise cannot claim the Magnificat as their own. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment As I was driving on Highway 99 South in my home state of California one morning, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the prophecies of Jesus in the Old Testament, long before he was born. Of course, we know of and read of Jesus birth from the New Testament. But centuries before Matthew and Luke wrote about it, the prophet Isaiah told of Jesuss coming at a challenging time in history, when the kingdom of Judah was facing threats of violence from the kingdom of Assyria. Instead of giving into despair, Isaiah opened his mouth and prophesied: For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). As scholar John N. Oswalt writes: Isaiah spoke into a situation where Judah felt powerless, and they were afraid of the rulers to their north. As their enemies only seemed to grow in strength and tighten their grasp, they didnt know if God was for them or against them or if he had simply abandoned them. Israel was looking for an immediate remedy to their physical and political problems. Gods solution wouldnt come for centuries, but it would last forever. The blessing of reading both the Old and New Testament is it is easy to take for granted today in the United States, so we may not experience awe when we study the Gospel accounts of the nativity; we may not feel the weightiness of a perfectly fulfilled prophecy. Isaiah was moved by the Spirit of God, but he never lived to see his prophecy come to fruition. What Isaiah said was radical. He could have kept the revelation to himself out of fear or uncertainty, but he didnt. He declared it for his people and all future generations. He lived by faith and not sight (2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 11). So what does all of this mean for us? About 700 years after Isaiahs life, a baby boy was born in a cave or a stable in Bethlehem and laid in a feeding trough for animals. Angels heralded him, and his first visitors were shepherds. Apostle Matthew writes: ...behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him [Joseph] in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us). And Luke writes, For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11). The vulnerable infant wrapped in swaddling clothes was the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, God with us, in the flesh the Savior few were expecting to come like this, the one who was born to die and rise again. I dont know what you or your family may be going through this holiday season. But I pray youll allow Isaiahs words and the Christmas story to remind you that the God who became one of us is not a weak God. He is not a fearful God. He is not a God of confusion. He is a wonderful, wise, mighty, everlasting God of peace who took all of our sin, shame, and suffering on His shoulders on the cross. He laid down His life that He might take it up again. Because of this God, we can declare with Isaiah, The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone (Isaiah 9:2), and with Apostle John, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it (John 1:5). Because of this God, we have hope. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment For Christians, Christmas is a unique time of joy associated with the birth of the savior Jesus Christ, whose life, death, and resurrection make possible a personal and intimate relationship with God. Jesus was born a Jew, and his teachings were built on the foundation of the Torah and the Old Testament. Thus, Christians and Jews have much in common and share a natural mutual affinity. But what came from Christ also benefited and deeply affected people of diverse beliefs in every part of the world. The fact is that Christ affected history with such impact that He split time in two, dividing all human activities and events into happening before His coming (called B.C.) or after His coming (called A.D.). No one else in all of human history did this. Christ had to have had a supernatural impact on the world for that to be accepted. History shows that Christianity and its Church have brought about more changes for the advancement and benefit of people than any other force or movement in history by an immeasurable factor. What is particularly surprising are the myriad achievements made by committed Christians, which non-believing secular-minded people also applaud. Before Christ, human life was cheap and expendable all over the world. In the Americas, the Near East, Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East, child sacrifice was a common phenomenon. Babies, particularly females who were considered inferior were regularly abandoned. Author George Grant points out: Before the explosive and penetrating growth of medieval Christian influence, the primordial evils of abortion, infanticide, abandonment, and exposure were a normal part of everyday life That changed in the West with the 6th century Christian Byzantine Roman Emperor Justinian whose Law Code declared child abandonment and abortion a crime. In ancient cultures in India, China, Rome, and Greece women were considered inferior and simply viewed as property of their husbands. More recently, in the last two and a half centuries with the advent of the Christian missionary movement, the lives of women have been greatly improved around the world. Countless female infants abandoned in China were saved from almost sure death by Christian missionaries who then protected, educated, and raised them in Christian orphanages. In India, prior to Christian influence, elderly widows were burned alive on their husband's funeral pyres, while infanticide particularly for girls was practiced by tossing little ones into the sea. In Africa, wives and concubines of tribal chieftains were routinely killed after the latters death. These practices were greatly ameliorated or entirely stopped as Christianity began to penetrate and influence the respective cultures. Slavery is still practiced in parts of the Middle East and Africa, but it has been abolished throughout the Western world primarily due to leadership and influence of Christians. Two thousand years ago, Apostle Paul was way before his time, stating in his letter to Philemon, that he should take back his former slave, as a brother beloved. Critics may accuse America of being too slow to abolish slavery. But its also true that slavery existed everywhere in the world at the time Americas Founders who were 95% Christian wisely drafted the Constitution so as to provide for change. It was that Constitution that enabled the passage of new laws so as to fulfill the ideals in the Declaration of Independence, which affirmed that all people are equal in value and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. That Constitution assured that the promise of equal opportunity would reach greater fullness with time. In 50-plus years since Christian Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. led the non-violent Civil Rights Movement, blacks have achieved commensurate success with whites in almost every field, including reaching the presidency of the United States. Today, for the first time in American history, blacks are now represented in the House of Representatives in the same proportion as they are in the population at large. We all recognize today the important role that charity plays in countless ways to help people in need. But before Christ, there is no trace or record of any organized charitable effort. The early Christians gained fame and renown by being generous to their own and to nonbelievers as well. Emperor Julian the Apostate, the last Roman emperor to try to destroy Christianity, was dumbfounded by the love that Christians showed to pagans and even those who persecuted them. The early church grew in large part by providing a way out of Romes harshness, bringing in converts who turned from Caesar preaching war to Christ preaching peace, from incredible brutality to unprecedented charity. Today, widely recognized Christian-based organizations such as the Salvation Army, Samaritans Purse, and Goodwill Industries that started in the U.S. now have operations around the world. Their programs include shelters for the homeless, disaster relief, and humanitarian aid to developing countries, and also provide employment, training, and rehabilitation for people of limited employability. Of the first 120 colleges and universities founded in America before the Revolutionary War, almost every one of them had Christian origins. In early America Harvard, Yale, and Princeton Universities were originally founded as seminaries, and seven of the eight Ivy League universities were originally founded for purpose of establishing Christian-based institutions of higher learning. Healthcare for the poor has its roots in Christianity. In both the early Orthodox Church of the East and the Catholic Church of the West, Christians took to heart the teachings of Christ, who said: I was naked and youclothed me,I was sick and you looked after me. The Syrian Church was the first institution to provide health care service in the East, while the Catholic Church was the first to do so in the West. In 325 A.D. the Council of Nicaea issued an edict requiring every cathedral to have an infirmary or hospital, to take care of people on pilgrimages. In the 9th Century A.D. the Benedictine Monastery in Salerno, Italy, founded the first and most famous medical university in Western Europe. The establishment of hospitals and universities, which accelerated through the Middle Ages was exclusively undertaken by Christians. An unprecedented outpouring of the visual arts with cathedrals, sculpture, paintings, and frescos being commissioned came about as a result of Christianity flourishing in Europe during the Middle Ages the period from the fall of the Roman Empire (476 A.D.) to the beginning of the Renaissance (1350 A.D.). The Christian Renaissance-inspired more of the worlds greatest and most valuable art, by masters the likes of whom have never been seen since such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello, and Botticelli. Almost all their created images were taken from or inspired by the Bible. While its impossible to measure, the Christian Renaissance produced more of the worlds greatest and most valuable works of art than any other period, school, epoch, or place in the world by a many-fold factor. Suffice it to say that life both at home and around the world would no doubt be qualitatively worse today if Christ had never been born and Christianity had not become the greatest spiritual force ever to inspire creative beauty and advance the care and development of people. Indeed, there is reason to sing Joy to the World. Christian gift box sales raise $1.2M for Israeli businesses as thousands close during pandemic Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Although many cant travel abroad due to coronavirus-related travel restrictions, Christians can have a taste of the Holy Land delivered to them this Christmas season, and at the same time, support struggling Israeli businesses as thousands have closed due to declining tourism. The quarterly Artza subscription gift boxes provide customers with nine artisanal goods from the Holy Land and the stories behind them as well as provide a source of revenue for Israeli businesses and charities. The past 20 months have been brutal on Israeli small businesses, Itai Schimmel, the founder of Artza, told The Christian Post in a recent interview. Over 40,000 businesses have been forced to close permanently and an additional 20,000-plus have had to close temporarily. It has been totally heartbreaking to see more and more storefronts boarded up each morning, Schimmel described. Those [are] small businesses that rely so heavily on the tourist industry. Borders into Israel have been closed for almost two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The cities of Bethlehem and Nazareth, which usually host tourists all year round, particularly during the Christmas season, have struggled with zero source of income. Over 70% of both Bethlehem and Nazareth inhabitants businesses rely on tourism. To see the Bethlehem markets empty for a second year in a row is truly heartbreaking, the Israeli resident stressed. Artza gift boxes are meant to help local artisans stay afloat. The boxes contain food, crafts, and other items made by Israeli artisans. To date, Artza has helped over 42 small businesses and seven charities. Subscribers have raised over $1.2 million for small businesses. Helping small businesses and charities is one of our two core missions at Artza, Schimmel said. With every box, we source products from a different region or city in Israel and source the most beautiful hand-crafted gifts, ceramics, foods, spices art and more from the local small businesses and charities that bring that city to life. Schimmel told CP that theyve had business owners cry with gratitude on to phone ... as we placed our orders, claiming that the organization has helped provide them with enough revenue to remain open for a few more months. We feel truly grateful to be able to connect people from across the world to these businesses and charities in Israel, he said. Our other core mission is to bring the stories of the Bible to life, to connect our subscribers to their faith, to the places, stories, characters and Land of the Bible, he added. Every box brings another region to subscribers, allowing them to visualize, taste, feel, smell each region. Accompanied with photography and stories, each box teaches the history of each region and alludes to Scripture related to those regions. It is a box with meaning. So that next time you read the Bible, you can say, Hey, I know this place. I have experienced it myself. Schimmel stated. Schimmel established the idea for the faith-filled boxes in March 2020 during the early days of the pandemic. He noticed how small businesses were being affected and how tourists could no longer visit Israel. He wanted to help. He recalls thinking, How can we keep people connected? We decided we would create a quarterly subscription box that arrived once every three months to your doorstep, Schimmel maintained. And each box brings another area of Israel and the Bible to life in a meaningful, immersive and fun way, one which you can share with others, and at the same time, support small local businesses and charities in Israel. It is a journey, the gift that keeps on giving. Self-employment often seems like a dream for most, but with the onset of automation in traditional jobs and the evolving gig economy, we may be moving toward a new normal where self-employment is a traditional route. I dreamt of becoming an inventor, building things that would solve problems in the world, and entrepreneurship ended up serving as the conduit to being that builder. But for many people my age, self-employment is more than just a dream its a means of survival. Oddly enough, automation has made self-employment both possible and necessary for millions. Rather than relying on human labor, weve managed to make different processes faster, cheaper and less prone to errors via automation be it hamburger flipping and self-checkout, or AI copywriters and digital bots. However, all good things come at a cost. The reduced need for human labor combined with the rising global population decreased the pool of good jobs. That is to say, jobs that pay a decent wage and offer the kind of benefits that people want. In the United States, this issue has become divisive, with most people falling into one of two camps. On the one side, you have people who argue that the jobs are still there; they allege that people are just too lazy, picky or entitled to take them. Then, you have the people who argue that the jobs are gone, and the positions that remain do not pay enough for people to live decent lives. Related: How to Automate Technology to Help Run Your Businesses Theres some truth to both sides. The Washington Post recently noted that, as of September 2021, there were roughly 8.4 million unemployed Americans and 10 million unfilled job openings. At a time when supply chains are hanging on by a thread, the country is grappling with a pandemic, and both individuals and businesses are in need of cash, one has to wonder why this is happening. The numbers show that the jobs are still there and people are either choosing not to take them, or theyre underqualified. A simple cost-benefit analysis of these jobs, however, elucidates that they are just not worth the effort for most Americans. Why? Because the wages are low, the working conditions are subpar, and at a time when remote work and gig work is extremely popular, why settle for a low-paying job? Before Covid-19 was ever on our radar, automation was pushing people away from traditional 9-to-5 jobs. Not only has it decreased the need for human labor, but it has also changed the way that labor is performed. When you can accomplish a task by pushing a virtual button, it opens up the door for employees to work remotely. The commercial push for automation, combined with the effects of the pandemic, led businesses of all sizes to allow more and more workers to do their jobs from home. However, millions of Americans have not been so lucky. Industries like retail, hospitality and construction dont have as many viable paths forward. After all, we just havent found ways to automate every type of job. Therefore, businesses in these industries can either try to automate as best they can, thereby eliminating jobs entirely, or entice workers to continue coming in to work as theyve always done. The former leaves more people unemployed, while the latter leaves workers less satisfied and, at least in the context of a pandemic, more exposed. Consequently, automation has had the strange effect of pushing people toward self-employment in more ways than one. Automating processes reduce the number of jobs available across the board while simultaneously making it easier for the employed to work remotely. This has made non-remote jobs seem far less appealing to the modern job-seeker. Related: 5 Reasons Why Employees Prefer Self-Employment What does all this have to do with self-employment? At the end of the day, people have to find a way to pay their bills or risk losing their savings, homes and potentially more. If the jobs are not there or they are undesirable, whats the solution? Create your own job! Thats one factor that many people overlook when it comes to automation. The term itself often conjures up images of giant assembly lines, corporate initiatives and large-scale operations. However, automation is not just for big businesses; it also works for individuals by allowing them to do work on their own. When businesses cant offer what individuals want or need, self-employment becomes the only real alternative. This isnt just conjecture, either. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 15 million Americans were self-employed in 2015. This meant that just over 10% of all workers in the United States worked for themselves. Fast forward to 2019 (pre-pandemic), and self-employment rates increased to roughly 28%. Some have disputed the latter number, but 14% of those workers considered self-employment to be their primary means of income that year, implying that an additional 1% of the national workforce equivalent to about 1.5 million people are opting for self-employment with each passing year. While the reasons are numerous, many people are simply choosing self-employment because automation is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it makes jobs more scarce and non-remote jobs less attractive; on the other hand, it makes building your own work as a freelancer, entrepreneur or contractor easier than ever. Automation doesnt just mean that its easier to do work its also easier to make your own work. Talking heads and politicians will continue to debate over stagnant wages and job scarcity, but it is automation that is driving us toward ubiquitous self-employment. This is a change that has been years in the making. As technology continues to advance at an increasingly fast rate, so too do automated tools. This means that self-employment will likely continue to rise even more quickly going forward. In the age of pervasive digitization, people want to work from anywhere and rightly so. They also want to work for a living wage, with reasonable hours and have opportunities to grow and advance. Self-employment gives them the power to do so when many traditional jobs fall short of the mark. But the question remains: How long will it take businesses, supply chains and even governments to adjust to a society in which self-employment is the new normal? Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved What American fast-food connoisseur wouldnt love a massive tortilla pouch packed with meat, oozy cheese, and fistfuls of fries? Overseas, French tacos are all the rage. The category is now just behind pizza and burgers across all delivery platforms in France, where Paris-based OTacos is gobbling up more than its share of the QSR market. Introduced in 2011 by two brothers in Bordeaux who were soon joined by a drywaller from Grenoble, OTacos has grown to 280 units across France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Germany, with annual revenue surpassing $300 million. OTacos grand openings often celebratory events featuring French rap stars and Instagram influencers are occurring in France reportedly at a faster rate than McDonalds. Fans line up for hours to get their hands on the beefed-up poutine in a wrap. In the beginning, it was a product that was very popular in the suburbs, says Patrick Pelonero, the drywaller turned cofounder, though he means suburbs in the French sense, a more urban, working-class setting than the American definition. (We spoke through a translator.) Now everybody knows it and everybody eats it. Related: Just How Much Does It Cost to Own a Fast-Food Franchise? In 2017, OTacos opened 72 new locations in France. That March, it also decided to come to America. To do so, it set its sights where countless entrepreneurial dreamers had before: New York, that glittering melting pot of big ideas, fusion foods, outsize portions, and quick, tasty, eat-it-with-your-hands grub. OTacos seemed perfect for the market. But just 14 months later, as OTacos success continued to skyrocket overseas, its only U.S. location closed. Now that failed experiment could serve as a stark lesson for OTacos, and for any other aspiring franchises about just how complicated international expansion is...and how much work must be done to find success. Image Credit: Courtesy of O'Tacos The appeal of entering the American franchise market is obvious. The U.S. is, for instance, about 18 times bigger than France, which is about equal in size to Texas. And so, according to research from the advisory firm FranData, each year roughly 30 brands from outside the country try to stake a claim stateside. Its not a simple path, but its a clearly defined path, says Darrell Johnson, franchise economist and CEO of FranData. Because modern franchising began in America nearly 100 years ago, Johnson explains, information and expertise are more readily available here, and the legal regulatory structure is solidly in place. There are at least 3,500 franchise brands operating in the U.S. today, more than any other country by a long shot. (Australia, the next closest, has about 1,100.) Theres plenty of opportunity, Johnson says, pointing to success stories like Pollo Campero out of Guatemala, Bonchon out of South Korea, and Tim Hortons out of Canada. I think the daunting part of it for most franchise brands internationally looking at the U.S. market is How do I get started with this? There are clear best practices, says Ray Hays, managing partner of FranLaunch USA, which focuses on bringing franchise concepts to America. Its not as much a matter of getting it the way you think is right, Hays says. Its about avoiding doing things the wrong way when you enter the U.S. market. Related: What You Really Need to Look for When Considering a Franchise Hays says that when brands stumble in the U.S., its typically because they struggled with one of four key principles: demonstrating proof of concept, creating a realistic financial plan, enlisting boots on the ground, or seeking legal guidance early on for both federal regulations and the abundance of state-specific laws. Finding U.S. partners and franchise experts on the ground in the U.S., I cant stress that enough, Hays says. Its absolutely critical, even for a very seasoned and established franchise thats gone into 10 countries across Europe. No matter what, companies will also need to contend with the sheer scale of the United States which can seem like a blessing from afar but a curse up close. For a 2018 article in Global Franchise magazine, Hays polled a handful of franchise CEOs from the United Kingdom which is arguably closest to Americas franchise market in terms of culture and language about what they didnt realize before entering the U.S. They say, you know, This may sound really stupid, but I didnt realize how big the United States was. I didnt realize how diverse it was, Hays says. Miami is a completely different market from Boston or New York or Chicago. Instead of entering one country, it can feel like entering 10. The harsh reality is that very few Latin American and even European brands are actually ready or prepared to get into the U.S., says Fernando Lopez de Castilla, founder of Peru-based GNF Worldwide, which has guided nearly 3,000 franchises into more than 40 countries over the past decade. De Castilla says its about discipline: Stick to an expansion-and-development plan, hire a good franchise lawyer, enlist consultants, and above all, resist shortcuts. What happens in many cases, even for the big brands, is they receive an attractive lead from an exotic place, or maybe a great place like New York or L.A., and its amazing how easily they disregard their previous homework and their plan and just want to have, lets say, an overnight success. Just hitting the jackpot in that fabled place, he says. I dont think life is like that, and franchising is definitely not like that. Opening a restaurant in one of the most dynamic cities in the United States was the furthest thing from Patrick Peloneros mind in 2007. He was just looking to make money when summer drywalling jobs dried up in the winter off-season in Grenoble, in the French Alps region that is credited with creating French tacos. Pelonero began experimenting with his version of the recipe with a shop he called Tacos des Allies. Meanwhile, two brothers Silman and Samba Traore were essentially doing the same thing. The brothers opened the first OTacos location in Bordeaux, in 2011, before combining forces with Pelonero for OTacos in 2013. Related: Interested in Starting a Business Overseas? Keep These 5 Things in Mind They werent the only ones developing the market. Le Tacos de Lyons website says it created French tacos in Lyon in 1999 and now has four locations. Tacos Avenue is also eyeing international expansion, and there are other competitors, too. But the OTacos trio swiftly built a loyal following of young, working-class locals, who appreciated hearty food that didnt eat up their paychecks. (Today the starting medium size goes for around 5, or roughly $6, and typically includes a choice of seven meats, 12 sauces, french fries, and a dozen or so add-ons.) Early fans also liked that the meat was (and still is) certified halal, appealing to suburban Muslim youth. Perhaps most influential of all, Pelonero had also opened a marketing agency in 2010. OTacos became known for viral stunts like the five-pound, meat-laden Gigataco (free, if eaten by the two-hour deadline a feat rarely accomplished) and emphasized the experience of the brand, not unlike Americas own Taco Bell. Rap music became embedded in the brands culture, in part because of Peloneros personal connections in the music industry. Today, the OTacos France home page features an interactive keyboard highlighting 42 available ingredients, each miked with sound. Users can choose a backdrop beat and record a 15-second rap. In 2013, OTacos decided to franchise and opened a tiny location in Paris. Thats when all the ingredients really came together. It had people queuing up for hours, for more than 100 meters, to try the product. As of that moment, the whole brand was off for exponential growth, Pelonero says. OTacos social media accounts gained 30,000 fans in six months, and as the brand grew, it deliberately focused on its roots. Its important, that connection, that link with urban youth, with the suburbs, thats real, says Pelonero. Especially in this type of environment, people see whether its real or fake, and the moment you are not real, you lose a lot of credibility. So thats a big part of the brand. In 2015, franchising began in earnest with 21 openings that year. By 2017 to 2018, OTacos had 220 locations. Yet on the development side, it was still just Pelonero and two interns. It was a very lean structure, very entrepreneurial, he says. Its the beginning of a startup that I think nowadays you mostly see within the tech industry, where things go very quickly, exponential, very small teams and a dedicated founder. It was around that time that a message from America arrived. A French native whod been living in Brooklyn for 11 years wrote to the OTacos team, certain the brand would find a similar fan base there: urban, young, and driven; ethnically and culturally diverse. Pelonero flew to New York, and the two hit it off. It was not something that had been planned very much in advance or a deliberate choice, Pelonero says. It was a nice opportunity. There was a good feeling between [me] and the partner from New York. The Brooklyn location opened in the Crown Heights neighborhood in March 2017. Its storefront was slate-black with a clean OTacos logo more spare French cafe than neon American chain store. The welcome was warm enough; the press, positive. Related: 3 Steps to a Successful International Expansion Pelonero returned to France, where OTacos was becoming more mainstream. The urban youth base was still strong, and the popularity had spread to city central office workers and families with kids. In 2018, Kharis Capital, a master franchisee for Burger King, staked majority ownership in the company, ushering in its expansion to Belgium and the Netherlands. OTacos moved its headquarters to Paris. It has also added the dessert subsidiary brand OSucre, which includes OTaglace and OShakes. Meanwhile, back in Brooklyn, people seemed to like the product. Sales were moderately steady, at $1,000 to $1,500 per day. But Pelonero says there were constant operational issues. The manager struggled to manage the lunch rush, and there wasnt much the brand could do about a single location in a foreign country thousands of miles from headquarters. Its like raising a child on the other side of the Atlantic, Pelonero says of the shuttered American location. If none of the parents are there, its a bit more challenging. By May 2018, just more than a year after opening, OTacos closed its only U.S. location. It decided it was best to focus entirely on growing the business closer to home. Of those 30 or so foreign brands that enter the U.S. market each year, FranData doesnt track how many succeed. The factors are too nuanced and complex. One and done is not a good way of assessing the market, Johnson says. A single location isnt a case study, nor is New York representative of the U.S. market. But if you can make it there, its really a huge validation of your brand in just about any market, Johnson says. Related: How Food and Beverage Brands Handle Choice, Change and Amazon Hays, too, believes that international franchises can do more than make it in the U.S. market they can even dominate. He offers an example from outside the QSR realm: the 29-year-old Australian pool-cleaning concept, Poolwerx. Founder and CEO John OBrien studied the U.S. market for nearly two decades before entering in March 2015. He selected key markets and expanded regionally by acquiring small, independent competitors to test the model. Only then did Poolwerx start franchising, adding 59 U.S. locations and becoming, per the company, the only global franchisor in the pool-and-spa aftermarket sector, with hundreds of retail and mobile units in Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S. The catch is it required deep pockets, which is one reason global brands may benefit from a U.S. partner; Poolwerx chairman of the Australian and U.S. boards Troy Hazard, himself an Australia-born serial entrepreneur, connected with the company in 2012 and became a U.S. citizen last year. They made mistakes, and it took longer than they expected and cost them more money, but fundamentally they did the right thing, Hays says. In the end, I do believe were going to see more and more foreign concepts in the U.S. This creates huge opportunity not just for global brands, says de Castilla, but for potential U.S. partners. There are amazing brands out there, amazing concepts and value propositions that experienced franchisors in the U.S. or experienced franchisees, especially multi-unit franchisees, could help develop and enter the States, says de Castilla. Whether seeking U.S. partners or simply customers, he says, international brands would be wise to play up those cultural differences to stand out a concept he refers to as a country brand franchise in his 2019 book La Biblia de las Franquicias (The Franchise Bible). Thats what GNF Worldwide client Juan Valdez has done in bringing its 400-unit, cooperative-owned Colombian coffee into almost 20 units across Florida, New York, and Washington, D.C., as it attempts its U.S. expansion. The brands pitch is that when you enter the Juan Valdez coffee shop, you arent just buying a coffee, you are buying a little taste of Colombia, says de Castilla. Expertise is essential, but so is a specific, new vision. That magic, or uniqueness, there are tons of brands that could actually bring that and make the melting pot richer and more tasty. Related: Why Franchising Is the Future of the Healthy-Fast-Food Movement Though de Castilla, like Johnson and Hays, was unfamiliar with OTacos before we spoke, it seems that the companys urban, blue-collar identity could be a great asset, should it give America another go. I think that [OTacos] concept is so goodactually, I got very hungry looking at the Instagram pictures, says de Castilla. But at the end of the day, you can have the best product in the world, but if you dont do your homework, there is no luck in this industry. If he had it to do all over again, Pelonero says hed get right back on that airplane to New York. But next time, he plans to do a few things differently. We need the right partner to make it happen, and for real this time, he says. Pelonero also has three more years of international expansion under his belt since the Brooklyn location closed, and hes confident in the product and how to market it. The way of doing business is universal, he says. With more than 2,500 employees serving 40,000 customers a day across five countries, he believes that successful reentry into the U.S. would require a strong local team that treats the business as if it were their own, better awareness of the market, and a significant number of locations. From there, the French tacos will take care of the rest. Were actually more convinced than ever that it would be a great fit and a huge opportunity to go back to the U.S., Pelonero says. So thats definitely the plan, and one of the American dreams to still be realized. Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved In the latest trading session, Yeti (YETI) closed at $83.44, marking a +1.26% move from the previous day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.62%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.55%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.03%. Heading into today, shares of the maker of outdoor and recreational products had lost 13.74% over the past month, lagging the Consumer Discretionary sector's loss of 3.13% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.87% in that time. Yeti will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Yeti to post earnings of $0.84 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 13.51%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $443.36 million, up 17.99% from the prior-year quarter. For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $2.54 per share and revenue of $1.41 billion, which would represent changes of +35.83% and +29.34%, respectively, from the prior year. Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Yeti. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook. Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system. Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. Yeti is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Yeti has a Forward P/E ratio of 32.85 right now. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 10.73. We can also see that YETI currently has a PEG ratio of 1.85. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. YETI's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.85 as of yesterday's close. The Leisure and Recreation Products industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 57, putting it in the top 23% of all 250+ industries. The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1. You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com. Infrastructure Stock Boom to Sweep America A massive push to rebuild the crumbling U.S. infrastructure will soon be underway. Its bipartisan, urgent, and inevitable. Trillions will be spent. Fortunes will be made. The only question is Will you get into the right stocks early when their growth potential is greatest? Zacks has released a Special Report to help you do just that, and today its free. Discover 7 special companies that look to gain the most from construction and repair to roads, bridges, and buildings, plus cargo hauling and energy transformation on an almost unimaginable scale. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report YETI Holdings, Inc. (YETI): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved SEOUL, South Korea (AP) Three members of the K-pop superstar group BTS have been infected with the coronavirus after returning from abroad, their management agency said. RM and Jin were diagnosed with COVID-19 on Saturday evening, the Big Hit Music agency said in a statement. It earlier said another member, Suga, tested positive for the virus on Friday. All three took their second jabs in August, the agency said. BTS is a seven-member boyband. The four other members are J-Hope, Jungkook, V and Jimin. According to the agency, RM has exhibited no particular symptoms while Jin is showing mild symptoms including light fever and is undergoing self-treatment at home. The agency said Friday that Suga wasnt exhibiting symptoms and was administering self-care at home in accordance with the guidelines of the health authorities. RM had tested negative after returning from the United States earlier this month following his personal schedule there. But he was later diagnosed with the virus ahead of his scheduled release from self-quarantine, the agency said. After returning to South Korea this month, Jin underwent PCR tests twice upon arrival and later before his release from self-quarantine and tested negative both times. But he had flu-like symptoms on Saturday afternoon before he took another PCR test that came back positive, the agency said. Media reports said he also had traveled to the U.S. Suga, who has had a number of personal engagements in the United States during the band's official time off, was diagnosed with COVID-19 during quarantine after returning from the U.S., the agency said. The agency said itll continue to provide support for the three members for their speedy recovery. It said it will cooperate with the requests and guidelines of the South Korean health authorities. Since their debut in 2013, BTS has garnered global recognition for their self-produced music and activism, which includes giving a speech at the United Nations and publicly calling out anti-Asian racism. BTS was named artist of the year and favorite pop duo or group, and also won the favorite pop song award for Butter at the American Music Awards in November. In October, the group's collaboration with British rock band Coldplay, My Universe, hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was BTS sixth Hot 100 No. 1. NEW YORK (AP) Harvey Evans, an actor, singer and dancer who had a knack for landing roles in the original Broadway productions of such classics as West Side Story, Follies Hello, Dolly! and Gypsy, has died. He was 80. Evans died Christmas Eve at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey, said Lawrence Leritz, a friend and Broadway actor, dancer, singer, producer and director. He was dearly loved by the Broadway community. Very kind, embracing, funny and always had a smile on his face. I can't ever remember not being hugged by this loving man, Leritz said. We lost a great one, wrote Harvey Fierstein on Twitter in tribute. Hes why we love musicals, wrote playwright and author Paul Rudnick. Added Bernadette Peters, Harvey was the dearest most talented being one could ever have the privilege of knowing. Evans was rarely cast in leading Broadway roles but found a place in timeless shows. He starred opposite Angela Lansbury in Anyone Can Whistle and played Barnaby in Hello, Dolly! opposite Carol Channing, then Betty Grable and then Eve Arden. When I look back, Evans told Playbill in 2007, I think Ive had some kind of angel on my shoulder, leading me toward the best shows of Broadways golden years. I didnt pick and choose them they just came around that way. Evans, who was born Harvey Hohnecker, grew up in Cincinnati and fell in love with musical theater after seeing a touring production of Song of Norway." My entire childhood was spent waiting to graduate from high school so I could go to New York and be in a Broadway show, he told Playbill. Evans made it to New York in 1955 and would become friendly with choreographers Bob Fosse and Jerome Robbins. Evans first musical as a dancer on Broadway was New Girl in Town, which starred Gwen Verdon and was choreographed by Fosse. He changed his name while filming a small role in 1962s Experiment in Terror directed by Blake Edwards and starring Glenn Ford and Lee Remick. He and fellow actress Taffy Paul decided to remake themselves he became Evans and she became Stefanie Powers. Evans also was cast by Fosse for Redhead, with Verdon, and the movie of The Pajama Game. Other highlights were starring on Broadway with Henry Fonda and Margaret Hamilton in a revival of Our Town in 1969 and being a standby for Jim Dale in Barnum in the early 1980s. He was a chimney sweep when Julie Andrews immortalized Mary Poppins on film in 1964. Ive had my name above the title and Ive had it way down low, he told Playbill. It doesnt matter to me. Its just wonderful to be part of this community. His later Broadway credits include the mid-1990s revival of Sunset Boulevard, The Scarlet Pimpernel and as an understudy in Oklahoma! in 2002. He also snagged a cameo in the film Enchanted with Amy Adams in 2007. He was on Broadway in the original West Side Story and later in the 1961 film version. Really hard to put into words what Harvey Evans meant to me, said Tony Yazbeck on Twitter. He was kindness personified. So funny and supportive. He came to every show I ever did and inspired me to keep going! A true triple threat whos heart was as big as his incredible career." Bebe Neuwirth added: One of the kindest, most delightful, loveliest gentlemen Ive ever had the blessing to know. Betty Buckley also sent her regards: With so much love. ___ Mark Kennedy is at http://twitter.com/KennedyTwits On Dec. 27, 1859, Texans laid to rest Three-Legged Willie, one of the most colorful and unforgettable figures of the revolutionary period. Robert McAlpin Williamson enjoyed perfect health until the age of 15, when he contracted something people in those days called the white swelling. He spent the next two years in bed battling the potentially fatal ailment, which spared his life but robbed him of the use of his right leg. The muscles of the afflicted limb shriveled below the knee and drew back at an odd angle. Rather than amputate the withered calf, the youth strapped it to his thigh and walked on a wooden leg. Not long after his recovery, Williamson became involved in an impassioned love triangle. He killed his rival in a duel only to learn the fickle female had eloped with a third suitor. Deciding a change of scenery might heal his broken heart, he left his native Georgia and headed west. Williamson picked provincial Texas as the place to put down new roots. In 1826 he joined Stephen F. Austins settlement at San Felipe and took an active role in the pioneer community. In sharp contrast to the majority of Anglo-American immigrants, Williamson made no attempt to disguise his contempt for their hosts. He constantly challenged the right of the Mexican government to tell the colonists what to do in even the most trivial matters and gained a reputation as a troublemaker among his more conciliatory neighbors. As the years passed and dissatisfaction with the status quo intensified, Williamson emerged as a fearless advocate of independence. When push came to shove at Anahuac in June 1835, he was in the thick of the tense confrontation that climaxed in the eviction of the government garrison. Not surprisingly his name was right below Buck Travis on the list of dangerous hotheads the so-called peace party secretly supplied the Mexican military. With the agitators out of the way, the champions of compromise hoped to mend the fences damaged by their recent activities. Williamson managed to evade arrest until early October, when the Battle of Gonzales signaled the start of the Texas Revolution. In November he attended The Consultation, where 58 delegates debated the course the struggle should take. Along with John A. Wharton, Williamson lobbied long and hard for an immediate and unqualified declaration of independence. But their militant resolution fell far short of adoption attracting a mere 15 votes. A watered-down statement of principles, which did not close the door to negotiations with the Mexicans, passed with the support of 33 delegates. The irresistible force of events ultimately transformed the most reluctant colonists into revolutionaries. Although he could have excused himself from the final battle because of his bad leg, Williamson rode with the cavalry at San Jacinto. Eight months later, the Republic Congress elected him judge of the third district of liberated Texas. He traveled alone from town to village dispensing justice and resolving disputes. The reception was not always warm for the circuit-riding jurist. Sensing the hostility in a clannish community, he placed a handgun and a rifle on the table and announced, Hear ye! Hear ye! Court for the third district is now in session or somebody is going to get killed! Williamson once interrupted a tipsy lawyer to inquire, Where is the law to support your contention? Theres the law, answered the stewed smart aleck whipping out a knife. The unruffled judge pulled his pistol and calmly countered, And theres the Constitution. Williamson gave up the gavel in 1840 to campaign for the Washington County seat in the Lone Star congress. He served four terms in the house and one in the senate before the curtain came down on the Republic. According to the 1861 edition of the Texas Almanac, Williamson was an incomparable public speaker. When fully aroused, there was a fire and vigor in his speech that surpass all description. Annexation was the issue of the 1840s that fully aroused the gifted orator, whose persuasive appeals changed hundreds of skeptical minds. So committed was Williamson to the cause, he named a son Annexus. Sadly there was no place for Three-Legged Willie in the new state. A congressional bid ended in disappointing defeat in 1849 as did a race for lieutenant governor two years later. Mentally impaired by a serious illness, he lost the will to live after the death of his wife in 1858 and followed her to the grave the next year. Bartee welcomes your comments and questions at barteehaile@gmail.com or P.O. Box 130011, Spring, TX 77393 and invites you to visit his web site barteehaile.com. West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP) If Palm Beach County School Board members get their way, people who address them at their meetings soon will have to refrain from saying their names or personally criticizing them. A proposed change in the rules for public comment at board meetings says speakers may not address Board members by name and personal attacks against individual Board members, the Superintendent, or District staff are prohibited. The proposal marks a significant shift, made in reaction to an onslaught of verbal attacks this year from parents upset over mask mandates. The school board is just the latest in Florida considering new restrictions on public speakers in an effort to calm raucous displays in their meetings. At least three others have moved in recent months to make similar changes to what speakers can say or how long they can speak. Palm Beach Countys proposed changes were endorsed last week by a majority of board members but have not yet been voted on. Votes to adopt the new rules could come early next year. If the restrictions take effect, they could raise constitutional concerns if they are not enforced in a content-neutral way, an open-government expert said. Courts are not of one mind on these changes to public comments Courts have ruled in different ways regarding restrictions on public comment during government meetings, sometimes upholding the ability to restrict what residents say, and sometimes striking down the rules as going too far. This year, for example, a federal appeals court in Cincinnati ruled that an Ohio school district violated the publics free-speech rights by enforcing a prohibition on abusive and personally directed statements at its school board meetings. That policy was unconstitutional, the court ruled, because the rules prohibit speech purely because it disparages or offends. But similar rules have been upheld in other cases. Last month, a federal judge rejected an argument that Marco Islands city council violated free speech rights by barring a resident from personally attacking a council member during public comment. Subscriber Exclusive:Fiona Lashells missed two months of school for refusing to wear a mask. Now shes happy to be back. Is the rule applied equally to everyone and to both praise or criticism? Often, whether a speech restriction passes legal muster comes down to whether the rule is applied equally to all speakers, said Virginia Hamrick, staff attorney for the First Amendment Foundation in Tallahassee. Its not per se a violation to say Dont use a persons name, she said. But if they let the public say names only to praise but theyre cutting down discussion when its critical of the school board, then it can get into viewpoint discrimination. Members of the public, including civic leaders and other government officials, frequently praise or thank individual members at board meetings. If that is allowed to continue but the school board prohibits critics from using their names, that would open up the school district to legal challenges, Hamrick said. These policies cant be used to silence critics, so how are they being applied and how are they being used at meetings? Hamrick said. Its not yet clear how broadly board members would define personal attacks. School Board Chairman Frank Barbieri, who runs board meetings and enforces public-comment rules, did not respond to a request for comment. Palm Beach County is not the first school district this year to weigh changes to its public-comment policies. In the past two months, Brevard, Volusia and Indian River counties have all moved forward with similar changes. The idea of altering the rules came out of a meeting this year of the Florida School Board Association, an Indian River County School Board member told TCPalm.com. Hamrick said such changes are already facing legal challenges, raising the possibility of more shifts in what people can say in school board meetings if a court decides the rules go too far. There are lawsuits challenging them so I wonder if well see a decision coming out of the (federal appeals court), she said. Texas A&M International University's Texas Center for Border Economic and Enterprise Development director Dr. Daniel Covarrubias has recently been appointed to serve as a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade and Transportation of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine Transportation Research Board. Covarrubias was appointed as Committee member by Juan Carlos Villa, Committee Chair and Texas A&M Transportation Institute regional manager for Latin America. "This Committee works on research, management, and regional, national, or international policy issues associated with international trade and transportation," Covarrubias said, "It researches trends and market forces in trade and global transportation; technological, economic, financial, institutional, or managerial innovations, and barriers to international trade in transportation goods and sciences." As part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, the TRB provides research leadership in a wide array of improvements and innovations for all forms of transportation, Covarrubias said. "TRB is one of seven National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine research programs. It provides the academy with independent and objective public policy analysis and advice to inform better decision making," Covarrubias explained. The TAMIU TCBEED looks forward to networking with leading researchers and industry professionals by participating in this Standing Committee on International Trade and Transportation, he said. Located in TAMIU's Anthony J. and Georgia A. Pellegrino Hall, the TCBEED provides leadership and support to South Texas border communities in their economic development efforts, including activities in the areas of business development, education, healthcare, public administration, and the environment. For more information, please contact Covarrubias at 956-326-2620, email dcova@tamiu.edu or visit texascenter.tamiu.edu. TAMIUs Spring 2022 Registration is now underway. Classes begin Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. Late registration ends Monday, Jan. 24, 2022. To learn more about TAMIUs Registration processes, visit the dedicated Registration Hub at go.tamiu.edu/registration. University offices will close in a State-authorized holiday observance at noon on Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. University offices will reopen at 8 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022. In the event of an emergency, please contact University Police at 956-326-2100. MARSEILLE, France (AP) From the intensive care ward in France where he is spending the holidays, COVID-19 patient David Daniel Sebbagh said he has one overriding regret: that he didnt get vaccinated. The vaccine, its not a danger," the 52-year-old said as he lay in a Marseille hospital. Its choosing life. The ICU's chief doctor, Dr. Julien Carvelli, is trying to keep his team motivated as they spend another Christmas tending to patients on breathing machines, periodically flipping them back to front, front to back. The staff is tired, the omicron variant is bearing down, and the unit's beds are filling fast. Were afraid we wont have enough space, Carvelli said. Marseilles La Timone Hospital, one of Frances biggest hospitals, has weathered wave after wave of COVID-19. On Christmas Eve, medical personnel decorated a fir tree in the corridor and seized a moment for a communal meal in their scrubs, trying to maintain a semblance of holiday spirit in between rounds. The hospital allows families to visit gravely ill loved ones in the ICU, as long as theyre careful. Amelie Khayat has paid daily visits to her husband, Ludo, 41, who spent 24 days in a coma and on a breathing machine. The couple touched heads as she sat on his bed. Now strong enough to stand, he stood to give her a farewell hug. In a nearby room, a 40-year-old patient lay unconscious near death, with her young sons winter hat placed on her belly. In another, a relative had left a Christian icon propped on a patients tray. Down the hall, Katy Zalinian waited anxiously to visit her cousin. She later entered his room wearing full protective gear and touched her hand lovingly to his leg. While some 90% of French adults are vaccinated against the coronavirus and some 40% have received a booster shot, most of the COVID-19 patients in La Timones ICU are unvaccinated. I regret it, a lot, a lot, a lot, patient Sebbagh said. I let myself get caught up in things. I thought that the vaccine was not necessarily something good. He recalled that when his COVID-19 symptoms were at their worst, I didnt know where I was going. Nothing was clear in my head....I waited for hours and I was in pain. Sebbagh's wife, Esther, described her terror: Our life was shattered this week... I believed I would lose him. Hes still testing positive for the virus and says that all that matters now is trying to recover. If I had been vaccinated, I wouldnt have been in such a level of intensive care," he said. "The vaccine is not a danger but a possibility to escape, to avoid something more serious. France now is seeing its highest daily infection rates of the pandemic as the omicron variant races around the country. Carvelli, the ICU chief in Marseille, worries hospitals could soon be overwhelmed. Were already in a situation of tension, with very few available spaces, he said. Were sick of this. Were always focused on doing our jobs the best way possible...but the more this goes on, the more tired people get. Two things are making this Christmas especially challenging, Carvelli said. More and more staff members are testing positive in the current omicron surge and therefore unavailable to work. And some colleagues are leaving the profession altogether because of the strain. We still try to have little special moments during the workday, or night, to get together to celebrate, he said. Its strange for the patients, too, who are deprived of Christmas. ___ Angela Charlton in Paris contributed. ___ Follow AP's pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) President Nayib Bukele's government has freed three Salvadoran women who were sentenced to 30 years in prison under the nation's strict anti-abortion laws after suffering obstetric emergencies, according to abortion rights groups. Morena Herrera of the Citizen's Group for the Depenalization of Abortion said late Friday that the group was told one woman would be set free at presidential order, but when they went to the prison to greet her, three were released. We presented ourselves at the prison in Zacatecoluca and Karen, Kathy and Evelyn left. They are free and in their homes," Herrera said. She said she had no additional information about the decision, though she noted that petitions were pending before the Supreme Court to commute the women's sentences. The three are among at least 17 Salvadoran women activists consider unjustly convicted and imprisoned following obstetric emergencies and who have been at the center of a campaign against El Salvador's absolute law against abortions. Several celebrities including actors America Ferrera, Milla Jovovich and Kathryn Hahn last week asked Bukele and El Salvador in general to let the women return home for Christmas. We are grateful that our petitions are being heard and we trust that President Bukele is going to work to achieve freedom for the rest of the innocent women," said Paula Avila-Guillen, executive director of the Washington-based Women's Equality Center. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in November ruled that El Salvador's government had violated the rights of a woman identified as Manuela who was arrested in 2008 on charges of provoking an abortion and died in 2010 while in custody, leaving two children. El Salvador is among four countries in Latin America that ban abortion in all cases, even when the life of the mother is at risk and in cases of rape. The others are Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic. Charges of homicide are often brought. DULUTH, Minn. (AP) Last month, Bob Walker walked into a stretch of woods southeast of Rochester, Minnesota, with his son, hoping this year would be his final deer hunt. Hes 80, and he was ready to retire from hunting but not until he shot one last deer. I thought, Im going to stick with it until I get one and go out on a positive note, Walker said. Walkers healthy he walks several miles each day. But he said its getting harder for him to walk in the woods. He tripped and fell when he set up his hunting blind this year. The past two years he didnt see any deer he wanted to shoot. But this fall, one walked past his blind. He shot, and the deer fell. We kind of hooted and hollered a little bit and hugged each other, Walker recalled. And that was a really good day for me. Walker has hunted for more than 60 years, first with his dad and uncle, then his brother, then his son. He shot his first deer when he was 14 in the same patch of woods along the Root River where he killed his final deer. Now that hes ready to put away his hunting rifle, Walker said hed like to pass on his equipment to his four grandsons and teach them to hunt. But the two older ones, they have no interest in hunting anything at all, he said, adding that the two younger boys could still change their minds. Whats happening within the Walker family exemplifies an issue the Department of Natural Resources faces across Minnesota: As more and more anglers and hunters stop fishing and hunting, there are fewer people replacing them, Minnesota Public Radio News reported. Thats a big issue because for decades the state has relied on license and registration fees and taxes on equipment to fund a significant portion of its natural resource conservation and management. So the DNR is asking for help. It wants Minnesotans to weigh in on how best to fund outdoor recreation and conservation. The time is really right. We havent seen foundational investments in Minnesotas conservation and outdoor recreation systems in a generation or more, said DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen. Much of the states outdoors infrastructure, from state park facilities to fish hatcheries, was built in the 1950s and 60s, Strommen said. Some of it dates back to the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression. So its really time, I think, for us to think about how we revitalize that system, how we can invest in that system, said Strommen, so that it serves not only the users today, but users in the future. Strommen said that work is especially important now because people have turned to the outdoors in unprecedented numbers during the pandemic for outdoor recreation and mental health. One option, said Craig Engwall, executive director with the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association, is to generate revenue from some of the newer ways people are engaging in the outdoors, like mountain-biking, climbing or bird-watching. Theres an excise tax on your fishing rod. Theres an excise tax on a shotgun, on all those things that hunters and anglers do as part of their passion, said Engwall. Its funding the management of the resource. And there are a lot of activities that are growing, and are great, that dont have that same element of a tax on them. Texas voters elected to do something similar. They approved a measure two years ago that allocates proceeds from the state sales tax on sporting goods to fund state parks and wildlife. The challenge is to make sure that raising fees doesnt discourage people from using the outdoors. If you charge too much, or you charge in the wrong place, you may create a financial barrier to some folks, Strommen said. Another option, which would require legislative approval, is to increase the amount of funding the DNR receives from the states general fund. While the agencys overall budget has increased substantially in recent years, thats largely been driven by funds that dont cover the DNRs core budget. The DNRs current general fund budget allocation of about $104 million is significantly less than what the agency received in 2000, when general fund appropriations peaked at nearly $126 million. Meanwhile, the agency is facing several critical natural resource issues from invasive species to climate change to chronic wasting disease. Dave Zentner, former national president of the conservation group the Izaak Walton League, said he supports more funding for the DNR. Zentner said the process to determine that new funding model also needs to address critical questions. What are the outcomes going to be for the citizens and the resources of Minnesota? What are we going to get for investing more in the agency? he asked. Zentner is part of a small group advising the DNR on its effort. Lynnea Atlas-Ingebretson, who recently served on the states outdoor recreation task force, is also advising the agency. She said a new funding model needs to serve all Minnesotans. The population in our state, of growing communities, is coming from Black, Indigenous, other communities of color, she said. So if we think that were going to have a system that will be successful, we have to make sure that what were doing is inclusive of these populations and their needs, said Atlas-Ingebretson. To that end, the DNR wants the publics help in identifying a vision for outdoor recreation and conservation in Minnesota. In the second half of 2022, the agency said it will propose a way to fund that vision going forward. NEW YORK (AP) A New York judge has upheld an order preventing The New York Times from publishing documents between conservative group Project Veritas and its lawyer and ruled that the newspaper must immediately relinquish confidential legal memos it obtained. The decision Thursday by State Supreme Court Justice Charles D. Wood in Westchester County, released Friday, comes in a defamation lawsuit Project Veritas filed against the Times in 2020. Months after the lawsuit was filed, the newspaper reported that the U.S. Justice Department was investigating Project Veritas in connection with the theft of a diary belonging to Ashley Biden, the president's daughter. In that story, the Times quoted the memos, leading Project Veritas to accuse the newspaper of violating attorney-client privilege. Wood upheld his earlier order preventing the Times from further publishing the memos, and also ruled that the newspaper must turn over physical copies of the documents and destroy electronic versions. The newspaper reported it would appeal the ruling and seek a stay in the meantime. Publisher A.G. Sulzberger decried the ruling as an attack of press freedoms and alarming for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know. He also said it risked exposing sources. In defiance of law settled in the Pentagon Papers case, this judge has barred The Times from publishing information about a prominent and influential organization that was obtained legally in the ordinary course of reporting, Sulzberger said in a statement reported by the Times that also asserted there was no precedent for Wood's decision. Project Veritas bills itself as a watchdog, often of media. It's known for using hidden cameras and hiding identities to try to ensnare journalists in embarrassing conversations and to reveal supposed liberal bias. In a statement Friday, Project Veritas lawyer Elizabeth Locke hailed the ruling as a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship. The New York Times has long forgotten the meaning of the journalism it claims to espouse, and has instead become a vehicle for the prosecution of a partisan political agenda, Locke said. Todays ruling affirms that the New York Times behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law. Wood also pushed back against the idea that the order endangered press freedoms, writing in his ruling that steadfast fidelity to, and vigilance in protecting First Amendment freedoms can't infringe on the fundamental rights of attorney-client privilege or privacy. He wrote that while aspects of Project Veritas, including its journalistic methods, may be of public interest, its attorney-client communications are not. News organizations, including The Associated Press, supported the Times and asked the court not to impose what they called an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech in a friend of the court brief filed last month by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. MINOT, N.D. (AP) Dozens of mothers can expect to be blessed this Christmas through Something for Mom, a new branch of the blessings program at Dakota Chappy in Minot. Chappy Windsor, owner of the womens clothing store, said bags containing an item of clothing and the packaging materials to gift it are being given away to children and others who might not otherwise be able to ensure a present for Mom under their trees. Something for Mom is an extension of the Dakota Chappy blessing program in which customers can exchange lightly used clothing previously purchased at the store for purchase discounts. Dakota Chappy then will donate the clothing to others who can use a blessing. This is the first time that were giving away brand new merchandise. Everyone will get something brand new, but its very likely that some people will get a nice bag of a mix, Windsor said. There even may be an accessory, such as earrings, or possibly even a gift card in a bag. Windsor said it is difficult to know how many people the new program will serve, but she was prepared to give away dozens of the gift kits, the Minot Daily News reported. Windsor said she hopes to also have volunteers who can deliver to those who sign up but dont have transportation to pick up their bags. Pre-registering is useful because bags can be prepared with the correct clothing sizes, although Windsor said she will have pre-prepared bags of varied clothing sizes ready to hand out on Thursday to those who walk in. The inspiration for the program was Windsors late grandmother, who grew up in rural North Dakota and raised her children with little money to go around. They really didnt have much at all, Windsor said. So my grandmother went around the house and gathered up some things and then repurposed them and wrapped them as new gifts. Then, when all the gifts were opened nothing for her. The program targeting mothers actually is designed to ensure that no woman goes without a gift under the tree, Windsor said. People are welcome to take a gift for a grandmother or other woman in their lives who shouldnt go unremembered, or women can pick up gifts for themselves on behalf of children who arent able to perform that task. The blessing is not just for the moms but for the children. Its one thing to get a gift. But its another thing to be in the position to give one, and I think a lot of times disadvantaged kids dont get that. Theyre never in the position to give. They never have enough of their own, Windsor said. The importance of being able to give was impressed on Windsor some years ago after taking disadvantaged children shopping for Christmas presents. Handed an envelope of money with a Christmas list, one little girl ended up with change left over. Dropping the leftover dollars into a Salvation Army kettle, the girl commented that never in her life had she had enough to give to somebody else. The joy and the pride that she had in putting that money in there just stayed with me forever, Windsor said. Ive seen through her lens what that felt like, and I just want to give people and kids an opportunity to feel the abundance that comes from giving. So thats why were not doing the pre- packaged gift. By giving recipients the opportunity to package a gift and write on a note card, they can experience that feeling of giving, she explained. Although the project is sponsored by Dakota Chappy, Something for Mom, it is made possible by support from the stores customers throughout the year, making those customers a part of the blessing, Windsor said. Our mission here is to change lives and serve women, so we consider this to be a retail store that is also an organization of people who are like-minded, she said. What were doing is really on behalf of the customers, because I would not be in the position to do what Im doing if it werent for them. MADISON, Wis. (AP) For most schools, the past two years have brought a complicated weighing of the risks of being in a classroom: in-person versus virtual learning, masks, class sizes, ventilation. But a growing number of schools around the country have sidestepped many of those concerns by leaving the classroom behind. In La Farge, in the sprawling Kickapoo Valley Forest Reserve, 29 students show up at school each day and, aside from a daily nap, stay outside the whole day, no matter what the weather throws at them. The Kickapoo Valley Forest School is only in its first year of being a full-day, full-week charter school. Previously, the forest reserve hosted a weekly outdoor learning program for half a day on Fridays. The outdoor education advocacy group Natural Start Alliance tallied 563 outdoor preschools and kindergartens last year, more than double the number in 2017 including several day care, preschool and elementary-level programs in Wisconsin. Each student at Kickapoo Valley Forest School, or KVFS, gets a full rain kit boots, pants, jacket and their families are sent extensive guidance on how to layer kids up to keep them warm, even when the temperature falls well below freezing. One student, a 5-year-old named Mia Shird, counted four layers of clothing on a 30-degree day in November. I have this coat under, she said, unzipping the top of her purple snowsuit to reveal a jacket, also purple, Under this coat, I have this, and this is under this, she went on, pointing to a T-shirt and a sweater dress, and then Ive got these mittens! Kickapoo Valley Reserve director of education Jonel Kiesau said students didnt quite understand the schools philosophy at first, Wisconsin Public Radio reported. There were children saying, like, When are we going inside? she said. And we were able to say, Well, were not. And now they dont even ask anymore, they just love to be outside. KVFS is a public charter school in the La Farge School District, located in southwest Wisconsin, about an hour east of La Crosse. At present, KVFS has spots for 32 kids in pre-K and kindergarten, but it will add first grade next year, and second grade the year after, as the current enrollees age up. The flow of the school day can vary depending on what the environment is like. The week before Thanksgiving, the students had to forego their usual hike the kids typically log nearly 2 miles a day because it was gun deer season, and hunters were out in the surrounding forest. When kids asked questions about it, as kids do, Kiesau explained it matter-of-factly. In Wisconsin, you can hunt deer for nine days right now, she said. Because some people like to eat deer. Does your family eat deer? Some families do. A lot of the kids learning has this experiential focus they pick up fallen walnut hulls on a walk, for example, and teachers help them cook them down into dye to decorate plain white tees. Kids request to knock over an old stump turns into a lesson about how trees living and dead fit into the forest ecosystem. Ximena Puig, a teacher at KVFS whose background is in Waldorf schools, said shes seen the kids grow in their understanding of the environment in just a few months of school. Children who maybe picked every mushroom we saw at the beginning are now saying, Miss Ximena, please dont step backwards, theres a tiny mushroom behind you. Please dont step on it, she said. They also have more traditional lessons. During the morning, teachers will bring out blankets or rugs and boxes of numbers and letters to help kids master basic concepts. Jason Rood, a student teacher whos assigned to the site as part of his teaching certification, had one student pick a number, then sent her out to grab that number of sticks and count them back to him. With another, he ran through letters and sounds. Thats the letter Q, he told Jet Oium, after theyd sounded it out together. Quinoa! was Jets enthusiastic reply. Quinoa? Excellent, Rood said. Outdoor education has a particular appeal in a pandemic, since research shows that coronavirus transmission is much lower outdoors, and kids and adults can more safely go unmasked in the open air. Kiesau said that was likely part of the appeal for some families who signed up this year, the schools first year. But when teachers and administrators talk about the benefits of holding class outside, they keep circling back to the way it connects kids to their environment. The love that they start to develop for their environment, which is critical for our survival as human beings, that our children come to love and appreciate and care for the environment around them, that is happening because were out in it, Puig said. To the northwest of KVFS, teachers at the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe School in Hayward started taking students outside for class in spring 2021, when the school switched back to in-person instruction after nearly two semesters of remote learning. The school has an outdoor space for ceremonies and school traditions that serves as an outdoor classroom. And teachers take their students on walks during lessons. Mary Robinson, an Ojibwe language teacher for grades 9 through 12, said it was easy to shift her students to outdoor learning because Ojibwe started as a spoken, not written, language, so it was a natural fit to practice it while doing nature walks, in conversation with classmates. Especially for Native students, its really important for all of us to be connected still to the Earth and the environment and the outdoors, she said. Weve lost a lot of that by coming inside. She took her classes outside throughout last spring and this fall, though shes had to scale it back as the temperatures have dropped because, as she put it, high school students dont like to wear coats and boots very much. Still, she said, the students really love being outdoors. Unlike elementary and middle school students, who have recess, high schoolers dont often get to spend much time outside. I think its a shift thats going to continue, and not just because of COVID, said Jessica Hutchinson, superintendent of the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe School. Its a mental health thing, and not just for kids, but for staff. I think its therapeutic. The teachers at the Kickapoo Valley Forest School see a similar effect. They say behavioral issues are fairly minimal, which they credit, in part, to kids being able to work out a lot of energy and flow more freely throughout the forest site during the day. Having a space where they can be loud and move and not have to stand in line or sit in a desk feels like such a gift, Puig said. Theyre able to move their bodies in all the ways that are developmentally appropriate. Kiesau and Robin Hosemann, KVFSs assistant planning and leadership coordinator, have been doing site visits to other forest schools in the state to see what they can learn from more established outdoor programs. Theyre also passionate about bringing educators curious about outdoor education to their own site, in the hope that more schools will incorporate outdoor learning. Its something Robinson, at the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe School, thinks is possible even for schools that dont have a forest at their disposal though she has one piece of practical advice for schools that want to try. They would need handheld radios, she said. It seems ridiculous, but definitely being able to communicate with staff outside of the building is a safety thing, so having that in place, thats a big one. After that, though, she said it requires teachers to have pretty good control of their classes, and to have clear expectations for students. Lesson plans, all those things still need to be in place, she said. That mentality of: Were learning outside today, were still going to cover material, its still going to be academically focused, but were going to move outside and have a different environment for it. BANGKOK (AP) Two members of the international humanitarian group Save the Children were missing Saturday after Myanmar government troops rounded up villagers, some believed to be women and children, fatally shot more than 30 and burned the bodies, according to a witness and other reports. Purported photos of the aftermath of the Christmas Eve massacre in eastern Mo So village, just outside Hpruso township in Kayah state where refugees were sheltering from an army offensive, spread on social media in the country, fueling outrage against the military that took power in February. The accounts could not be independently verified. The photos showed the charred bodies of over 30 people in three burned-out vehicles. A villager who said he went to the scene told The Associated Press that the victims had fled the fighting between armed resistance groups and Myanmars army near Koi Ngan village, which is just beside Mo So, on Friday. He said they were killed after they were arrested by troops while heading to refugee camps in the western part of the township. Save the Children said that two of its staff who were traveling home for the holidays after conducting humanitarian response work in a nearby community were caught up in the incident and remain missing." We have confirmation that their private vehicle was attacked and burned out, the group added in a statement. The military reportedly forced people from their cars, arrested some, killed others and burned their bodies. The government has not commented on the allegations, but a report in the state-run Myanma Alinn daily newspaper on Saturday said that the fighting near Mo So broke out on Friday when members of ethnic guerrilla forces, known as the Karenni National Progressive Party, and those opposed to the military drove in suspicious vehicles and attacked security forces after refusing to stop. The newspaper report said they included new members who were going to attend training to fight the army, and that the seven vehicles they were traveling in were destroyed in a fire. It gave no further details about the killings. The witness who spoke to the AP said the remains were burned beyond recognition, and children's and women's clothes were found together with medical supplies and food. The bodies were tied with ropes before being set on fire, said the witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared for his safety. He did not see the moment they were killed, but said he believed some of them were Mo So villagers who reportedly got arrested by troops on Friday. He denied that those captured were members of locally organized militia groups. Myanmar's independent media reported on Friday that 10 Mo So villagers including children were arrested by the army and four members of the local paramilitary Border Guard Forces who went to negotiate for their release were reportedly tied up and shot in the head by the military. The witness said the villagers and anti-government militia groups left the bodies as military troops arrived near Mo So while the bodies were being prepared for cremation. The fighting was still intense near the village. Its a heinous crime and the worst incident during Christmas. We strongly condemn that massacre as a crime against humanity, said Banyar Khun Aung, director of the Karenni Human Rights Group. Earlier this month, government troops were also accused of rounding up villagers, some believed to be children, tying them up and slaughtering them. An opposition leader, Dr. Sasa, who uses only one name, said the civilians were burned alive. A video of the aftermath of the Dec. 7 assault apparently retaliation for an attack on a military convoy showed the charred bodies of 11 people lying in a circle amid what appeared to be the remains of a hut. Fighting meanwhile resumed Saturday in a neighboring state on the border with Thailand, where thousands of people have fled to seek shelter. Local officials said Myanmars military unleashed airstrikes and heavy artillery on Lay Kay Kaw, a small town controlled by ethnic Karen guerrillas, since Friday. The militarys action prompted multiple Western governments including the U.S. Embassy to issue a joint statement condemning serious human rights violations committed by the military regime across the country." We call on the regime to immediately cease its indiscriminate attacks in Karen state and throughout the country, and to ensure the safety of all civilians in line with international law, the joint statement said. PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) Rhode Island Hospital is getting $600,000 in federal funding to launch the state's first Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner program, according to the congressional delegation. The hospital was awarded the funding from the Department of Justices Office of Victims of Crime, the state's congressional delegation said. The federal funding will enable Rhode Island to provide equitable access to quality, trauma-informed medical and forensic care for survivors of sexual assault and support community resources that prioritize healing and justice, the delegation said. COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) A policeman opened fire on a group of fellow officers in Sri Lanka, killing four of them and wounding three others, a police spokesman said Saturday. The shooting occurred Friday night inside a police station in the small town of Thirukkovil in eastern Sri Lanka, a police statement said. The town is located in the islands former war zone, which has been largely peaceful since the civil war ended in 2009. The town is about 336 kilometers (208 miles) east of the capital Colombo. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) It is no secret the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the entire world, including workers at Boynton Health, the University of Minnesotas on-campus medical center. At the onset of the pandemic, Boynton workers pivoted to move some health services online and adapt clinical spaces for COVID-19 safety and testing. Almost two years later, workers said the most challenging aspects of the job are the increase in patients who did not receive treatment due to fear of contracting COVID-19 and the lack of predictability in the workplace. Even with these challenges, flexibility and preparation in situations such as a deadly pandemic is a key part of any healthcare job, especially in uncertain and dangerous times, workers told The Minnesota Daily. All of us in healthcare, we were always taught that there would be a pandemic. Its not if, it was when, said Boynton Eye Clinic Director Neelu Hira. I felt like I knew it was coming, but I also felt like we took an oath to help people. When Boynton sent many workers home in March 2020, Hira began creating a new work environment so workers could continue providing necessary eye care. Our work wasnt done, Hira said. The governor said that no routine eye exams or dental care could be provided for the first three months, but we saw urgencies and emergencies. Hira said four doctors returned to the clinic at the beginning of the pandemic to answer phones and questions from patients. They also received permission to treat patients with emergency cases while wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE). I consider that an emergency because heres a student who cant see, Hira said. We insisted that we at least be able to do that, and we were able to help a ton of people. Once staff and patients returned to the clinic, Hira devised a plan for social distancing in the clinic and installed plastic shields in between patients and providers since eye care providers are in close proximity to a patients face. She also had to find a solution to working with lenses and glasses that fogged up because of masks, eventually deciding to tape the top of the mask to her face and the patients faces to reduce fogging. Hira said the clinic also experienced an influx of patients with more severe conditions after the first few months of the pandemic because some patients delayed receiving treatment on new or ongoing issues. I do feel like people had delayed care or they had to seek care via telehealth and probably didnt see an eye doctor, so then it took a little longer to take care of people, Hira said. If someone comes in right away, its easier to take care (of them). Boynton physician Aimee Pearce said urgent care and primary care at the clinic are also experiencing increases in patients who delayed care. These patients are now more sick than they would have been if they had felt comfortable going to the clinic earlier in the pandemic, Pearce said. We are seeing sicker people and poorly managed conditions that normally would have been like asthma, diabetes people who had chronic conditions that were under pretty decent control didnt come in for checkups, Pearce said. Treating these patients is not as simple and requires additional time due to the delayed treatment, Pearce said. Pearce also said her work is more stressful because workers cannot treat patients as quickly as prior to the pandemic. COVID-19 safety precautions, like cleaning rooms and keeping certain patients separate from others if they are immunocompromised or have tested positive for COVID-19, add an extra layer of time to the job. So whereas maybe we could have seen individually four people in an hour, maybe even five, now we see two or three, but there are as many people there (as before the pandemic), Pearce said. Pearce said she no longer knows what to expect when walking into the clinic and it is the unpredictability that makes (working) more difficult. Pearce has worked in primary care and urgent care at Boynton for more than four years. While Boynton has always been busy and treated patients with a variety of illnesses, she said the pandemic has removed any amount of predictability from her work. Were looking at the dynamic on campus, were looking at the dynamic in our building and sometimes we dont even know where were going to sit on a given day because the needs of the clinic change so much that we might have to be pulled to go somewhere else, Pearce said. Early in the pandemic, Boynton closed primary care and quickly trained providers on treating patients through telehealth. Boynton also instituted curbside COVID-19 testing, said Jill Wooldridge, a physician assistant and interim primary care director. Boynton is currently seeing most patients in-person with specific safety protocols in place like masks, distancing and sanitizing rooms. When providers conduct COVID-19 tests and treat positive patients, they are also required to wear full PPE. Wooldridge said she and her staff conducted the initial curbside COVID-19 tests during the first few months of the pandemic, but this became challenging when demand for tests exceeded the number of tests her staff could reasonably conduct. It got to the point in the late summer of 2020 where it became clear that the testing was just overwhelming, that there was no way that we could continue to do all of the testing for the University and continue to function as a normal clinic, Wooldridge said. This spurred the University to develop the MTest program, the COVID-19 testing at the University Recreation and Wellness Center on the Twin Cities campus. Carisa Hrubetz, the clinical coordinator at RecWell, said determining how the testing site would operate was the most challenging part of this job. Now that workers at the RecWell site have a year of experience, planning for the current school year was easier, Hrubetz said. For example, the site experienced an unexpected influx in test demand leading up to major holidays during the fall 2020 semester. Hrubetz said she now knows how to plan for this demand, especially prior to students leaving campus for breaks in the semester. This year, we know in advance we need to plan ahead to make sure that we have available stations, we have available staff, and were ready to go for that, Hrubetz said. Another challenge for healthcare providers is navigating patients mental health along with their physical health. Isolation during the pandemic caused mental stress on patients that they continue to deal with in addition to physical illnesses, Wooldridge said. That isolation and that stress and the worry overlay everything, and we continue to see it in all the patients that we see, Wooldridge said. In addition to dealing with (something like) abdominal pain, theres also a level of stress that may or may not have anything to do with the reason why theyre being seen. Additionally, providers need to monitor their own mental health and potential burnout after nearly two years of providing healthcare during a pandemic. The constant protocol changes and the latest news on whats changed about COVID take a toll, Wooldridge said. Theres that balance between taking care of our patients who were there for, thats our mission, and trying to make sure that were doing okay also. WASHINGTON CROSSING, Pa. (AP) Hundreds gathered on both sides of the Delaware River to watch an annual Christmas Day reenactment of George Washingtons 1776 crossing, a year after pandemic restrictions forced viewers to watch it online. Reenactors in three boats completed the crossing in about an hour Saturday afternoon under overcast skies but in fairly mild temperatures, a spokesperson for Washington Crossing Historic Park said. Earlier in the month, about 5,000 people attended a dress rehearsal of the Revolutionary War reenactment amid good weather and good water conditions, volunteer Tom Maddock of the Friends of Washington Crossing Park said, calling it a great day." In 2020, after crowd-size restrictions barred holding the traditional in-person event, park officials posted a video of a reenactment filmed earlier in the month providing what they called a close-up view." This year, people entering the visitor center were asked to wear masks, and workers were also masked, officials said. In years past, thousands have often gathered every Christmas morning on the banks of the river in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania, and Titusville, New Jersey, to watch historical reenactors set out in boats to retrace the daring 1776 voyage of Washington and his troops. In 2019, the crossing was completed for the first time in three years with what the Friends of Washington Crossing Park said was probably a record crowd of 4,500 to 5,000 people looking on. The crossing had been scuttled during the previous two years, first by high winds and then by high water. Other activities at the annual event include reenactments of Washingtons address to his troops, historical speeches and processions, and staffers in period clothing providing public interpretation. In the original crossing, boats ferried 2,400 soldiers, 200 horses and 18 cannons across the river. Washingtons troops marched 8 miles (13 kilometers) downriver before battling Hessian mercenaries in the streets of Trenton. Thirty Hessians were killed, and two Continental soldiers froze to death on the march. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form Sorry, no valid subscriptions were found for this Publication. Please select from an option below to start a subscription. SUBSCRIBE TODAY! 24 Hour Access --- *Freelance journalist based in Mumbai No third world leader in the last century can be said to have shaped the history of a nation to the extent of Mao Zedong did in China. One who tried to elevate Marxism-Leninism to a higher stage, taking massline of Leninism to unexplored regions, even today his writings are a guiding force in many third world countries where globalisation is at the helm.Politically Mao's main contribution is considered to be formulation of a new military theory of protracted people's war. He also floated the theory of new democratic revolution and continuous revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat, something he experimented on the ground by ushering in the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s and the first half of 1970s.In his writings, in 1942, Mao came up with a new strategy for people of semi-colonial countries, calling upon the peasants in the countryside to encircle the cities. He said that the peasantry was the main force and the countryside was the main area in revolutions in the third world countries. With the skill of a surgeon he integrated the functioning of the Communist Party of China (CPC) with the Red Army.Maos leadership was instrumental in CPC leading the 1935 Long March from Kiangsi to Yenan, the greatest military achievement till then in history. In the 1940s in Yenan he encouraged criticism from below, which became the basis of his "let hundred flowers bloom" campaign of 1950s, when he invited even rightist intellectuals to assert their voice.One of Mao's contributions was undertaking thought transformation in order to reform landlords, even rightist intellectuals. However, he would strongly refute feudal ideas or customs, which he thought were very strong in the rural areas, including among the soldiers. Unlike Stalin, Mao did not execute enemies or opposition in purges, but galvanised masses to challenge those whom he identified as "capitalist roaders", especially during the Cultural Revolution.China under Mao from 1949 to 1976 is well documented in the writings of Edgar Snow, William Hinton, Joan Robinson, Felix Greene, Maria Antonietta Macciocchi, Rewi Alley and Charles Bettelheim who visited China to discover what lay behind the claims of its magical strides. These writings are critical of the manner in which the Western media interpreted China under Mao.During the Cultural Revolution, Mao not just experimented with building a socialist society by integrating manual and mental labour, but went so far as to send technician to work in factories, intellectuals to toil in fields, and students to "learn" from peasants. Commodities were made affordable, unemployment was eradicated, and price rise was controlled. People's Liberation Army personnel were made to aid workers and peasants in their labour. If workers "controlled" factories, peasants' revolutionary committees exercised rights over rural areas.Under Mao, between 1949 and 1976, China challenged the hegemony of the two superpowers, America and Russia, though it is blamed for the 1962 war with India and its role during the Vietnamese war against America. It refused to condemn the assassination of Salvador Allende in Chile, and placed more emphasis on confronting what it called Soviet social imperialism than US imperialism.Left sectarian tendencies were predominant during the Cultural Revolution and excessive power was awarded to the military. Excesses were committed on intellectuals, writers and artists. Those who were termed revisionists were meted out with very harsh treatment. Mass organisations were exclusively dependent the CPC, which under Mao exhibited Stalinist tendencies. This could be because the old thinking process of Confucian tradition was strongly embedded in the Chinese culture.After Mao's death China reverted his policies, and while the country's economy made phenomenal achievement, it also created billionaires. Today many CPC members are millionaires, and corruption has reached a scale on par with countries like India. Workers are subjugated to misery in sweat shops and denied adequate wages. Special economic zones were introduced, healthcare and education were privatised, and at an international level the CPC abandoned all support to national liberation struggles.Today China has turned into a major imperialist country which is a contender for world hegemony over markets and pursues expansionist military policies. It has exhibited considerable nation chauvinism. A free market economy is in place. CPC cadres are made to study the priority leaders like Liu Shao Chi, Lin Biao and later Deng Xiaoping placed on the development of productive forces. They all advocated It does not matter whether the cat is white or black as long as it catches the mice. Deng Xiapong raised the slogan, It is glorious to get rich.The CPC has left no stone unturned to suppress any Maoist resurgence in China. It has supressed or censored many a writing of the Cultural Revolution period. It has persecuted the supporters of Mao. Workers' strikes are brutally suppressed. Consumerism has reached a crescendo.China displayed territorial expansionist policy in Phillipines recently. The only plus point is it confronted the US hegemony and supported Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, and condemned Israeli aggression. Its planning and organisation in handling the Covid crisis too deserves praise. The original version of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" was recorded by 13-year-old Jimmy Boyd in 1952. The song was absolutely huge. It went to number one, was awarded a gold record when it sold a million copies, was awarded another gold record when it sold another million, and then for the third million was awarded a special silver saddle (because Jimmy Boyd liked horses). That's a lot of success for a song that was essentially just an advertising jingle. It was conceived not by any record company but by Saks Fifth Avenue, the department store. Saks had an annual Christmas card to promote the store, and they commissioned the song to promote the card. The card used a sketch by artist Perry Barlow, which had previously appeared on the cover of The New Yorker, of a mommy kissing Santa while he holds her confused child. Not everyone was so keen on the song. In Boston, the Catholic Archdiocese officially condemned it, and so great was their influence that some radio stations took the song out of rotation despite it being the most popular single in the country. The church objected to "implying even a tenuous link between sex and the religious holiday." If Santa kissed Mommy, well, we can hardly expect the couple to stop there, especially with all those sinful details about Mommy tickling him underneath his beard. Soon after he was appointed Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab issued a new edict to his civil servants. All other Foreign Office Ministers were henceforth to be referred to as JMs Junior Ministers in future internal departmental correspondence. Unsurprisingly, the JMs didnt take it too well. We were being treated like we were children, one disgruntled Minister complained. Their period on the naughty step didnt last long. Raab became embroiled in Sunlounger-gate, Boris demoted him in the subsequent reshuffle, and Liz Truss was appointed in his place. On her first day in the job, she issued a note to her officials ordering the JM designation be dropped. Liz gets it, a Minister said. She knows how to treat her colleagues properly. Its one of the reasons shes been so successful. Spectacularly successful. 2021 has been Liz Trusss year. When it began, the International Trade Secretary was viewed by many in Westminster as the Cabinets Judith Chalmers. Each week a photo would emerge of her in another sun-kissed location, as she spanned the globe hunting down those lucrative but elusive post-Brexit deals. It ends with her occupying one of the Great Offices of State. Shes now in charge of masterminding the final fraught stages of Britains EU exit. And were Boris to suddenly fall beneath a heavily laden wine-and-cheese platter favourite to replace him in No 10 Downing Street. The last 12 months have been brutal for the Government. The moment Boris faltered. The point the gloss came off Dishy Rishi. Brutal, in fact, for almost every member of the Cabinet save one. 2021. It was The Year Of The Truss The Truss Ascendancy wasnt supposed to happen like this. If at all. A couple of months ago, when a survey of Tory members by the influential ConHome website had bestowed a staggering 83 per cent approval rating upon her, I asked a Minister about the political implications. The problem for Liz is if we were looking at a leadership election in a few months then shed be in prime position, he said, but Boris is fireproof. Nothing sticks to him. So were not looking at a vacancy for another three or four years. And by then the picture will have changed. After recent events, Boris is about as fireproof as a pyromaniac showering in a Texas oil-gusher. And while reports of his imminent departure have been overplayed, frustrated Tory MPs are already beginning to mentally align themselves with a successor. Last week a second major obstacle was removed from her path. Her decision to back Remain had been seen by some as a deal-breaker for the Tory Spartan backbenchers who will hold significant sway over the choice of leader. But Lord Frosts resignation, followed by Trusss insertion as Brexit Minister, has changed that dynamic. She now has a golden opportunity to burnish her pro-Brexit credentials one she clearly intends to seize. No sooner had she been handed the role than she issued a statement affirming her willingness to trigger Article 16 suspending part of the Brexit deal if further EU concessions arent forthcoming over the Northern Ireland protocol. New chapter, same story, wailed The Guardian, criticising her pugnacious tone. But such criticism from the in-house magazine of the Remain camp will have been music to her ears, given defining herself against the enemies of Brexit is now a key part of her political strategy. A strategy she will indeed pursue pugnaciously, according to allies. Although shes now the longest-serving member of the Cabinet, her new status as Boriss heir apparent means shes set to face an entirely new level of scrutiny. One of the criticisms levelled by Trusss opponents is that shes a political lightweight. But its a caricature those who have served under her reject. I was with her when she was dealing with the 2016 prison riots, says one official who was at the Ministry of Justice. No 10 and everyone else were screaming, Youve got to send in the Army!!! But she was telling them, Its OK. Well wait till we send in the Tornado Teams. Theyll get things under control. And they did. She held her nerve. Shell have to keep holding it. Although shes now the longest-serving member of the Cabinet, her new status as Boriss heir apparent means shes set to face an entirely new level of scrutiny. Her first major foreign policy speech, delivered to Chatham House two weeks ago, was widely panned. I had to read it twice, to see if it really was as trite and lacking in an actual foreign policy as it came across on first reading. It was, moaned Alastair Campbell. But Tony Blairs former spin doctor was missing the point. It wasnt aimed at the chancelleries of Europe, but the living rooms of Berkshire and Wiltshire. If 2021 was kind to her, 2022 is destined to be tougher. The policy challenges she faces Brexit closure, Putins Ukrainian adventurism, Chinas increasingly unpassive aggression are of an order she has not faced before And again, condescension from the liberal intelligentsia will only serve to bind her more closely to the Conservative grassroots. Not least because her rise has not been based on developing a sophisticated political ideology, or creating a slick online media brand, as Rishi Sunak has. Instead, Truss has survived and flourished by doing the simple things well. Take the template for her time as Trade Secretary. Turn up in a capital. Sign a minor trade deal. Grab a selfie. Move on. As one friend said: People dont realise just how much influence shes already had over the Governments agenda. When she was Chief Secretary she kept banging on about freeports and everyone thought she was mad. 'Now its a major plank of policy. She came up with the idea of retention payments for maths and physics teachers. It was announced by Rishi earlier this year. She was the person who first started talking about Rust-Belt Britain. That was the precursor to the Red Wall. If 2021 was kind to her, 2022 is destined to be tougher. The policy challenges she faces Brexit closure, Putins Ukrainian adventurism, Chinas increasingly unpassive aggression are of an order she has not faced before. As are the upcoming political tests. From beneath its progressive camouflage the liberal Left is preparing to subject her to the same misogynistic barrage it launches against all high-profile female Tory Ministers. Attacks that will be prosecuted with special ferocity, given the extent the pro-Europeans among them see her as a traitor to their cause. She will also find her political back-catalogue scoured for undiscovered, or hitherto unnewsworthy, transgressions. Last week a clip of a 19-year-old Truss castigating the Monarchy during a youthful fling as a Liberal Democrat circulated on social media. Though her statement I agree with Paddy Ashdown will probably have done more damage than anything she said about the Crown. And then there is the new-found jealousy and sycophancy she will find emanating from her colleagues. The speed with which Truss has been catapulted on to the Westminster A-list means she has had little time to bring a cadre of senior allies with her. Despite a reputation for being socially awkward, she is popular with fellow MPs. But for the moment there are few hardcore Cabinet or backbench Trusstafarians. Despite a reputation for being socially awkward, she is popular with fellow MPs. But for the moment there are few hardcore Cabinet or backbench Trusstafarians But that isnt necessary a deal-breaker. Not least because those trying to divine how she navigates the treacherous path to replacing Boris need look no further than Boris himself. He had minimal organised parliamentary support. Theresa May handed him what was supposedly a Brexit-poisoned chalice you Brexit, you fix it was how her team laughingly framed it. And by placing him in the gilded cage of the Foreign Office, she believed shed dispatched Boris to a brief so far removed from the daily political cut and thrust his leadership ambitions would be neutered. Look how that played out. Boris also had another advantage Truss shares. Opponents kept underestimating him. Until it was too late. To be fair, there are signs some of them are waking up to the danger. Last week, a rumour was circulating of an unofficial pact between Sunak and Jeremy Hunt to keep her out of the final two in any future leadership contest. But as Boris also demonstrated, when you enjoy strong popularity among Tory activists, the MPs who rely on them have a habit of falling into line. The last 12 months have been brutal for the Government. The moment Boris faltered. The point the gloss came off Dishy Rishi. Brutal, in fact, for almost every member of the Cabinet save one. 2021. It was The Year Of The Truss. If I had told you at the start of 2020 that the Government would soon ban you from seeing your children or grandchildren, you would have replied with some very simple advice. Namely, go and lie down in a darkened room. But in the days that followed, we accepted this sinister decree on the grounds that it was an emergency a short, three-week emergency we were told. Later that year, when the formerly freedom-loving Boris Johnson discovered his inner Cromwell and in effect abolished Christmas, many people were so worn down by virus panic that they accepted it as the new normal. Today, we are the best part of two years into emergency measures which are wreaking untold damage on the fabric of our society. It is a dangerous state of affairs, the more so as many of us have been cowed into accepting them. Even with new concrete evidence that the Omicron variant will not cause the devastation first predicted, there are very real fears that, if this years Christmas has been reprieved, New Year could be cancelled instead. It must not happen. Enough is enough. Even with new concrete evidence that the Omicron variant will not cause the devastation first predicted, there are very real fears that, if this years Christmas has been reprieved, New Year could be cancelled instead. It must not happen. Enough is enough There must be no new unnecessary restrictions this week whether the PM sees fit to recall Parliament for an emergency session or whether he resorts simply to more guidance. We need to shake off the panic-driven groupthink gripping the nation and our political masters. As the great thinker Charles Mackay observed nearly two centuries ago, men go mad in herds. Sadly, as Mackay noted in his book Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, they only recover their senses slowly, one by one. That was in the age when the printing press and the penny post were the main engines of mass communication. Imagine what he would have made of broadcast media and Twitter beaming alarmist messages into our living rooms and on to the screens of our smart phones around the clock. How much quicker might the human herd be terrorised? And so it has proved. How much slower will be the return of sanity and calm reasoning amid the electronic fog of confusing data and daily Covid deaths? Context is all too rare. Weekly figures published just a fortnight ago show a total of 661 deaths from Covid in England and Wales, for example. The Chancellor had no choice last week but to add another billion pounds of aid to the 400 billion already spent on Covid measures. But a billion here and a billion there soon adds up to real money. Pictured: An empty House of Fraser on Bond Street, London That is a sad picture. But why is Covid the only cause of death reported when 11,269 people died of other things in the same week? Why do our national broadcasters not discuss this wider context? Why dont they contribute to a more rational discourse, including the balance of risks involved? Why is there so little discussion of the immense social damage caused if Covid is allowed to become the sole driver of policy? They should be ashamed of their blinkered, fear-mongering coverage. Of course, I do not blame the public for this groupthink or for being totally confused, as diktat is swapped for guidance at the drop of a hat, and guidance for diktat. Just a few days ago, the self-isolation period for positive cases was slashed from ten to seven days. It is not that long since Dr Susan Hopkins from the Health Security Agency was telling us that Omicron was the biggest threat from the pandemic to date. Yet just a few days ago she was talking about the first signs of cautious optimism as the data came in proving as predicted that the variant is in fact less virulent. In the past few weeks, we have seen mandatory isolation for people suspected of being in contact with an Omicron case introduced and then replaced with a much more benign regime of testing. How many millions of work or schooldays have been lost in the past two years to an isolation regime now acknowledged to have been longer than necessary? Constant and bewildering rule changes could have been designed to habituate people into waiting for instructions from our betters in Whitehall. Constant and bewildering rule changes could have been designed to habituate people into waiting for instructions from our betters in Whitehall. Pictured: London's once packed Soho has slipped into a Christmas slumber for 2021 Such has been the fate of families and businesses the length and breadth of the land in the run-up to Christmas. Did you take the plunge and buy a goose or a turkey, or did you think it sensible to wait and see if the celebration is for 12 or just for two? Did you book your train tickets or hang on for word from No 10? What if you run a restaurant that has suffered enforced closure for six of the past 12 months? What if you were depending on a bumper Christmas to balance the books? Youve taken on extra staff and ordered stock, only to find most of your bookings cancelled. It is a catastrophe. What sane bank manager would extend credit to a business that is turned on or off at the click of a Ministers fingers? Muddled messages and a revolving door of restrictions are killing a hospitality sector that employs three million. And cancelled parties hit the hairdresser and the dress shop almost as surely as they smash the pub or restaurant. The loss of demand ricochets back up the supply chain and adds to the fearsome economic woes to come. The Chancellor had no choice last week but to add another billion pounds of aid to the 400 billion already spent on Covid measures. But a billion here and a billion there soon adds up to real money. And yet more subsidy will be needed to prevent the collapse of airlines which had clawed their way back towards two-thirds of their normal business, only to see a wave of cancellations as passengers decide not to take the risk. There must be no new unnecessary restrictions this week whether the PM sees fit to recall Parliament for an emergency session or whether he resorts simply to more guidance The great 18th Century advocate of liberty, Thomas Paine, in an essay titled Common Sense, urged American colonists to consider whether they might be better off making their own decisions for their New World rather than waiting for a remote colonial government in London to hand down laws and regulations. A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defence of custom, he wrote. Well, after nearly two years of Covid, the damage has been done. It is now our custom to accept orders, to wait until we are told what we are allowed to do. We tolerate a government telling us whether and where we can work. They tell us whom we can see. Even snogging under the mistletoe has fallen under the ambit of Government guidance. This might have been acceptable in the early, emergency phase of a new virus. But now, it is not. So now we must take back control over our own lives. We need the Government to rediscover the British values of liberty and respect. The Socialist regime in Wales and the Nationalists in Scotland have helpfully reminded us that imposing even tighter restrictions than those in England has failed to make the slightest difference. We must learn the lesson. The Swedes, who never locked their people down and did right by their children by keeping schools open throughout, have had much the same outcomes as we have had here in terms of infection. And, in comparative terms at least, their economy has prospered. It is always worrying when we hear leaks of confidential Cabinet meetings, as we did last week, when it was reported that Ministers were queuing up to oppose fresh, pre-Christmas restrictions. But if those reports are true, it suggests that senior figures in the Government are now recovering their senses, slowly, one by one. And that would be the best Christmas present of all. When we finally emerge from Covid, we will count up the cost, in lives, and in livelihoods. But there may also be some gains. I hope that one might be a far greater understanding of loneliness. I see it from two perspectives in particular. Those of us who are involved with Childline, the helpline for children, and The Silver Line for older people, know only too well what isolation sounds like. We hear the pain in their voices. Recent months have brought us heartbreaking pictures of parents and grandparents effectively imprisoned in care homes, able to see their families only through a pane of glass. Today there will be many of the more vulnerable among us who feel similarly cut off from the rest of the world. Now that we have all experienced isolation in our own lives, however, perhaps that experience will change us for the better make us more empathetic and more prepared to reach out to friends and family who are on their own. And to do so even if they dont ask, or tell us how they are feeling. Lets hope so. When we finally emerge from Covid, we will count up the cost, in lives, and in livelihoods. Pictured: Esther Rantzen But there may also be some gains. I hope that one might be a far greater understanding of loneliness (stock image) Mother Teresa called loneliness the most terrible poverty of all, and I found for myself just what she meant. There is a stigma attached to admitting to loneliness. When in 2011 I wrote about my own feelings living alone for the first time at the age of 71, a close friend who also lived by himself rebuked me: How could you write like that, Esther? he said. Havent you got too much pride? It was humiliating for me to admit that my front door had become a brick wall, that I had become reluctant to venture out on my own and could now understand why loneliness is judged so damaging to mental and physical health. Why cook proper meals when you are eating alone? Who enjoys taking exercise on their own? Not me, certainly. We are sociable creatures and need the company of others. No wonder they say loneliness is as bad for you as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. We know that loneliness can lead to depression and anxiety. So it is no surprise that surveys show that the isolation created by lockdown has produced serious damage to the nations mental and physical health. So many lives have been lost, not only to the disease itself, but because the isolation has stripped vulnerable people the old and the young of crucial protection. I see it from two perspectives in particular. Those of us who are involved with Childline, the helpline for children, and The Silver Line for older people, know only too well what isolation sounds like (stock image) The tragedy of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, poisoned and beaten to death by his parents during lockdown, was a distressing reminder of how closing down society can cost precious lives. Arthur, however, is not alone. Official statistics show that during the first year of the pandemic there was a big rise in serious incidents involving children. Twenty per cent more children were harmed in England, according to local authority figures, and 20 per cent more babies were killed or seriously hurt. Shocking but not surprising, the figures also show that during lockdown there was a huge increase in domestic abuse. The charity Refuge reports that calls to its helpline went up by 61 per cent. For children in dangerous homes, their schools and the support of their friends and extended family can be a refuge, but these safe havens were out of reach during the lockdown. Recent months have brought us heartbreaking pictures of parents and grandparents effectively imprisoned in care homes, able to see their families only through a pane of glass. Pictured: Esther Rantzen When the pandemic started, hundreds of young people began contacting Childline to describe what it was like being imprisoned in unhappy, unsafe homes. They told us they wanted to run away, that their lives were not worth living. Beside the physical danger for many young people, the pandemic also brought with it an insidious emotional danger, especially over Christmas. This time last year during the Christmas holidays, there was a surge of calls and online contacts telling Childline counsellors how lonely they were. The most damaging effect of loneliness is to destroy self-esteem. I remember speaking to a child who had rung Childline. She told me shed been taken into care because of the abuse she had suffered from her father. Then her mother abandoned her and cut the girl off from her family. Nobody likes me, she said. You wouldnt like me if you knew me. I will never forget the echoing loneliness in her voice. I recently spoke to a Childline volunteer who told me of an email message she had received from a girl I will call Charlotte. On the surface it was a happy email: Ive passed my exams, Im so happy, it read. Im sorry for bothering you at Childline, but I had to tell someone. Why was it that the only person Charlotte could tell was a counsellor on a helpline? Young people need us to restore their links of love and friendship, ruptured by the pandemic. Loneliness has very much affected the old, too, of course. The Silver Line started receiving 30 per cent more calls when the lockdown began. One caller I spoke to, a lady in her 90s living alone, told me with grim satisfaction: Now everyone knows what my life has been like for years. Today there will be many of the more vulnerable among us who feel similarly cut off from the rest of the world (stock image) Isolation was nothing new to her. As the pandemic tightened its grip, callers were describing how still more impoverished their lives had become. Drop-in centres had been forced to close down, carers had become ill themselves. Care home residents were isolated. A friend told me how deeply she missed the company of her husband who was living in a residential home. I used to spend every evening there with him, she said. Wed watch television together and do the crossword. I miss him terribly and I know he misses me. And the lonely deaths that took place in hospitals and care homes dont bear thinking about. The pandemic has revealed how much we must change in our society. We must value our key workers and pay our carers more. We need them and if we claim we cannot afford to pay what they deserve, surely we now realise that we cannot afford to lose them. The callers to Childline and The Silver Line helpline have taught us another lesson. Loneliness can affect every age. There is no one cause and no silver bullet to cure it. But the easiest, cheapest, most accessible and effective way of alleviating loneliness is conversation. Whatever regulations and restrictions pull us apart, even if we are not allowed to clink glasses, hug, sing or dance with our nearest and dearest among our family, friends and neighbours, we can always ring them up. Now that we have all experienced isolation in our own lives, however, perhaps that experience will change us for the better. Pictured: Esther Rantzen Over the Christmas holidays I look forward to speaking to a dozen older people, Silver Line callers who have asked for a phone conversation because they want to reach out to someone to share memories with, to discuss their feelings with, even to grumble at or tell a joke to. Their courage astonishes me. In past years, I spoke to one gentleman whose Christmas dinner was a tin of spaghetti hed luckily found at the back of a cupboard when his carer failed to arrive with the promised turkey. I spoke to a lady who told me that Christmas Day was just another day for her to get through. Another lady was invited by her family to Christmas lunch, but told me that afterwards shed dropped straight back into the loneliness shed escaped for just an hour or two. And I found myself in tears, she explained. A gentleman called John told me on the evening of Christmas Day that to be 100 per cent honest, Esther, you are the only person Ive spoken to at all. Childline (0800 1111) and The Silver Line (0800 4 70 80 90) stay open 24/7 throughout Christmas and the New Year (stock image) But as we talked to each other I could hear their voices growing stronger, and the loneliness retreat. John told us when he put the phone down after a conversation: I feel like Ive joined the human race. A lady said she rings The Silver Line because its so good to speak to someone who seems to care what I think. Its not that the rest of us dont care, its just that in the Old Normal we were too busy. The pandemic has reminded us of our priorities, inspired new volunteers all over the country. Communities have been revived and strengthened. So lets not lose the empathy and energy weve discovered, because we will need it. Loneliness is not just for Christmas. For some people, old and young, it can blight their lives the whole year round. Childline (0800 1111) and The Silver Line (0800 4 70 80 90) stay open 24/7 throughout Christmas and the New Year. Is Britain recovering its senses? I am wary of optimism, and this may be like one of those brief thaws they had in Communist Russia, before clamping down again even harder. Or is it like the moment in The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe where the snow begins to melt and the wicked witch starts to lose her power? Look at all these amazing things. For the first time in 21 months the Cabinet considered the damage to society, the economy and human civilisation that would result from yet another effort to scare us all into cowering in our homes. People at a mobile PCR Covid test centre in London on Christmas Day as Britons tested for the virus before visiting family and loved ones And, for a few days at least, it restrained itself from smashing another few hundred tottering businesses, or bringing despair to the lonely and old, or fouling up the school and university educations of yet more young people. For once, these panic-driven ninnies sucked at their knuckles and wondered: 'Is burning down the house really a sane and rational response to finding a wasps' nest?' On Thursday, a prominent BBC presenter wondered out loud whether a 'Covid hospitalisation' actually meant that the person involved was in hospital for Covid rather than something else. I hope for the sake of his career that he does not carry on using his brain in such a dangerous fashion. Before he knows where he is he will be asking if so-called 'cases' are really just positive test results, often not involving any illness at all, and, mainly reflecting the State's costly efforts in testing everyone it can get its hands on. And if he ever wonders on air about what is counted as a 'Covid death', then he'll end up in exile at BBC Radio Skegness, interviewing seals. Then there was the Twitter exchange between Covid modeller Professor Graham Medley and The Spectator's editor Fraser Nelson. In this encounter, this respected expert more or less admitted that the Government expected him to model only the worst-case scenarios. As the expert put it: 'Decision-makers are generally only interested in situations where decisions have to be made.' Ah, you might think. Is that so? And on top of that came an article from the prominent Left-wing commentator Owen Jones. In this he recognised that those who doubt the need for shutting down society may not after all be mad saboteurs and cranks. Or, as he put it: 'We must acknowledge that the waning support of the wider public cannot simply be dismissed as Covid denialism. Or as conspiratorial delusion and heartless contempt for human life.' Well, as my late mother would have said, that is damned nice of him. I never did like being told that I did not care about human life, and still think that those who made this accusation against me and other doubters disgraced themselves. Mr Jones's audience are mainly youthful. He can see a trend when he wants to and now says of his young readers that 'the risk to their lives has been very low' a point that people such as me have made from the beginning, even though I am myself old. He adds: 'Yet the ability to socialise or establish relationships in their best years has been criminalised; their educations have been injured; their mental health more damaged than that of older generations.' All very true, and not just of the young. FINALLY, Mr Jones declared that 'the false dichotomy between harsh authoritarian measures or mass death must be abandoned for good'. Well, so it must. As we approach the second anniversary of the greatest episode of collective hysteria in our history, it is noticeable how little has been achieved by all the incredibly damaging, unprecedented measures taken. And how clever Sweden, which refused to go mad, has (I put this mildly) not done significantly worse than we did. Sweden showed the self-disciplined calm for which we as a people and a nation were once famous. Yet we still have many among us, in positions of great power, who want to carry on doing things which have not worked, in the hope that it will be different the next time. TV manages to put the wrong person on trial I remember the events leading to the impeachment of Bill Clinton in 1998 as exciting and often rather funny. Paula Jones, one of the many women who reckoned Mr Clinton had taken advantage of her, was, in my conversations with her, amusing and self-aware, and when I had stopped laughing, I believed her account. Yet the series Impeachment on the BBC, left, has managed to make this rip-roaring stuff slow-moving and dull. Clive Owen as Bill Clinton and Beanie Feldstein as Monica Lewinsky in the TV programme Impeachment: American Crime Story Anyone would think it was about the impeachment of a sad nobody called Linda Tripp, the person who inveigled poor Monica Lewinsky into confessing her embarrassing dalliance with the President. No doubt Ms Tripp (now dead) was no better than she ought to have been but I kept thinking she couldn't possibly have been as bad as she is made out to be in this series. Shouldn't Bill Clinton have been the villain, instead of a marginal character treated (I thought) with too much sympathy? After all, he hardly added to the dignity of his office. The mystery continues: why does the new third-wave feminist cultural elite give him a free pass? The Holy Land's Forgotten Few Archbishop Justin Welby worries about Christians in the Holy Land, but seems mainly concerned with those in Israel. No doubt they face problems, but these are tiny compared with what they would endure if they lived under the Palestinian Authority (PA). Some years ago I visited Christian Arabs living in and near Bethlehem. There, for public relations reasons, the PA gives the impression of tolerance towards Christianity, which was established in the region long before Islam. Justin Welby, The Archbishop of Canterbury on Good Morning Britain last month It is misleading. Christians are powerless and without protection. One young man, lamenting the refusal of Muslim-dominated courts to help in a property dispute, burst out: 'We are so alone! All of us Christians feel so lonely in this country.' I was told, in whispers, of the unprintable desecration of the Church of the Nativity by Palestinian gunmen in 2002. Now Christians are emigrating, and towns that have been Christian for more than 1,000 years are becoming Muslim. The Archbishop should both pray and act for this unhappy, forgotten and unfashionable minority. The author of Alice In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, was a don at Christ Church, Oxfords grandest college. It is thought that he based some of his characters, many of them crazy, on his fellow academics. But could he have written anything odder than the story of the relentless persecution of Christ Churchs Dean, Martyn Percy, by colleagues? For four years they have been trying to drive him out for reasons they have never been able to explain coherently. Now they seek to have him classified as mentally ill. Yet these obsessives have squandered 3 million in legal fees, and cost even more in donations cancelled by exasperated former students. They make the Mad Hatter look sane. Its time that grown-ups intervened to end this childish vendetta. Elsewhere in this paper I describe the Christmas celebration in Communist Moscow, 31 years ago, which my wife Eve managed to turn into a small island of peace and joy amid that giant, snarling, God-hating, despotic city. The Communists were pretty grim, but even they had their limits. I still recall it with great fondness, as one of the best we ever had. How scrappy and bleak, by comparison, is Christmas this year in a supposedly free and Christian country, held by permission of the State. If you want to comment on Peter Hitchens click here Most Brits will be familiar with honey as a tasty toast topper often mixed into yoghurt or used to sweeten tea. But an expert has revealed most honey sold in the UK is fake and designed to trick the customer into believing they're eating a natural healthy product when in reality it is a blend of extremely unhealthy and unnatural sugar syrups illegally made in Chinese factories and imported to the UK. Speaking exclusively to FEMAIL, London-based honey sommelier Sarah Wyndham- Lewis revealed that so called 'honey-laundering' is so widespread in Europe that ten million hives are at risk of dying out. She added the issue is particularly bad in the UK because 86 percent of the 50,000 tonnes of honey consumed by Brits in imported. Sarah, who runs sustainable beekeeping practice Bermondsey Street Bees with her beekeeper husband, added that honey is a luxury good and real honey can cost up to 8 a jar - and that it should be treated as a luxury good because it takes 12 bees their whole lifetime to make just one teaspoon of honey. Honey-laundering is now so widespread that budget supermarkets are selling it for as little as 80p - far lower than the cost of production However, honey-laundering is now so widespread that budget supermarkets are selling it for as little as 80p - far lower than the cost of production (about 3.50 per kilo). Sarah supplies top restaurants, five-star hotels, Michelin-starred chefs and big-name bartenders with honey. But she says most consumers have no idea about the 'horror' they're buying from supermarkets . She told FEMAIL: 'The entire industry is constructed to stop the consumer spotting it because obviously it wouldn't be a good fake if people could spot it. 'Honey fraud is one of the most pervasive food frauds there has been in history. It's up there with wine and olive oil as the three most frequently fraudulently produced and sold products of earth.'. 'Essentially, lots and lots of different levels of fraud. 'Unfortunately, it's not like the horsemeat scandal. People could just put that meat under a microscope and go "that's not beef, that's horsemeat" 'With honey. It's much much more sophisticated than that because you've got huge factories principally in China, who are making tailor made syrup and they are designed to mimic honey and to pass the tests. An analysis from the Honey Authenticity Project lab of 11 UK supermarket brands found that none complied with EU labelling standards and couldn't be called 'real honey' (stock image) The problem is global, in 2013 the US Justice Department charged two major honey importers in 'Operation Honeygate' - which became the biggest incident of food fraud in US history. Honey Solutions and Groeb Farms - the importers - avoided $180 million in shipping duties after they shipped honey through Asian and European countries before selling it in the US - hiding its true origin. Almost a decade later, not much has changed - and the UK could soon be looking at its biggest case of food fraud since the horsemeat scandal. The UK alone buys 47 per cent of Europe's honey imports from China meaning fake honey, which often contains a small amount of real honey blended with high-fructose corn syrups is rife on supermarket shelves. An analysis from the Honey Authenticity Project lab of 11 UK supermarket brands found that none complied with EU labelling standards and couldn't be called 'real honey'. Tests conducted on own-brand honeys from Co-op, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda in 2020 suggest they have been bulked out with cheap syrups made from rice and corn without the retailers' knowledge. If the analysis, using a new generation of 'nuclear magnetic resonance' tests, is proven, it would represent the UK's biggest food fraud since the horsemeat scandal in 2013. But honey importers and supermarkets insist the tests, which analyse types of sugar in honey and pick out those which came from a factory rather than bees, are inaccurate and cannot be trusted. The UK imports 50,000 tons of honey each year about a third of it from China but British and EU beekeepers question how China can produce it for as little at 1.10 a kilo when it typically costs at least 3.50 in Europe. Which supermarket honeys are fake? And how can you find real honey Honey Authenticity Project released a study in 2020 that revealed 13 brands of honey were subjected to more than 240 tests by FoodQS, an accredited laboratory in Germany. It found nine products, including Tesco Clear Honey 340g and Co-op Clear Honey 454g, contained psicose, a sugar that does not normally occur naturally in honey and is a marker for possible syrup adulteration. Ten of the 13, including Asda Set Pure Honey and Sainsbury's Clear Honey, tested positive for the presence of enzymes indicating that they may be 'adulterated with inverted syrup'. Bernd Kampf, managing director of FoodQS, said: 'We have detected in all samples more than one sign of an adulteration. Some show many positive results for adulteration.' Sarah said a good way to find real honeyi s to look online to the British Beekeepers Association to look up your local hives. 'These people have open days and they have sales and they have all sorts of things and lots of opportunity to connect with people in your area who are producing delicious local honey. ' Advertisement 'This difference in prices can only be explained by large-scale addition of sugar syrup,' Etienne Bruneau, from Copa-Cogeca, which represents European farmers, previously claimed to the Mail. The exact amount of 'fake honey' in the world is up for debate, mostly because fraudster are advanced and coming up with clever ways to pass tests. 'There is no single test that's ever been developed that can spot absolutely every every element of honey fraud,' Sarah explained. 'The tests are getting more sophisticated, but they're always a step or two behind the fraudster. 'Honey is a massive fraud that is being perpetrated. And it's it's there's a lot of money invested in it and it's also said to be the province of organised crime. 'If you think about it, a lot less risky than selling drugs. 'Groups in China are taking so-called honeys from all sorts of places. 'They may start out as being honey, but they probably don't meet the requirements, and they blend them. 'The product then isn't described in its flavours, it's defined by three things, the colour, the viscosity, the price of it. The easiest way for a consumer to get honey is to look at the label. Sarah advices avoiding anything with the word 'blend' on it - as 'there's never any reason to blend honey'. In particular, avoid anything that says 'blend of non-EU honeys' as this indicates it may be full of sugar syrups. Some estimations say these Chinese factories are now making more honey than all the bees in the world. Over the past two decades, global production has increased nearly 50 per cent. During the same period, the number of farmed beehives has increased, too but by less than 30 per cent to about 90 million, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation. Beekeepers warn that cheap imports threaten to put them out of business, meaning fewer bees to pollinate crops, wildflowers and trees risking ecological disaster. Yet in Britain we are eating record amounts of honey. Sales grew 20 per cent last year and were worth 150 million, according to data company Kantar. The problem is that booming sales have attracted fraudsters. Expensive Manuka honey, which comes from New Zealand and Australia and is used by celebrities such as Scarlett Johansson and Gwyneth Paltrow for its antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, was the first to be exposed. Only 2,500 tons are produced annually but 10,000 tons are sold. Police intelligence confirms fraudsters are targeting cheaper honeys. And beekeepers from Europe to South America allege the adulteration originates largely in China the world's biggest honey-producing nation. It sends 36,000 tons a year to Britain (its biggest global customer). 'Supermarket honey, which is essentially made as somebody has specified "I want this colour. This is how it should work. In terms of its viscosity, and it's got this price point'. 'Aldi and Lidl that can be as low as something pence at 86 pence per jar of honey, which is so far below the the actual cost of production - and it doesn't pass the test. Anything that says blend should be avoided, particularly if it indicated there are non-EU honeys (pictured) 'We put supermarket honey through the same battery of tests we put our own honey so that we've got markers and time and time again it comes up as being having sugars in it that had nothing to do with the bees. Honey-laundering is bad for the bees too - who play a huge part in maintaining broader agriculture. 'In many Asian countries, honey is often harvested too early,' wrote Professors Norberto Garcia and Stephan Schwarzinger in Food Fraud, a new academic textbook. 'This unripe honey usually lacks the typical taste and odour associated with honey and has far too high a water content.' Garcia, a bee physiologist at Universidad Nacional Del Sur in Argentina, and Schwarzinger, a food chemist at Bayreuth University in Germany, added: 'Water content of the immature product must be reduced before export in so-called honey factories that also filter to eliminate veterinary drug and pesticide residues.' The honey is then typically sent to factories for blending with different honeys and potentially other substances, too, such as cheap rice syrup. Some scientists question if such a substance can be called honey at all under the legal definition, it has to be stored 'in honeycombs to ripen and mature'. Factories in China even advertise adulterants online. 'Fructose syrup for honey,' says an advert on the online trading giant Alibaba, claiming it can pass tests to identify adulterated honey. Such practices are known to the Chinese authorities, who say they are working hard to detect them. 'Honey should be from a single source and, as such, becomes a perfect picture postcard of that time, that place, and the specific forage that the bees are bringing into the hive. Thats its authenticity. ' Sarah explains. 'So, if you're blending together honeys from numerous different sources, the result is a completely anonymised product that has no provenance, no authenticity and has been highly processed along the way to create the blend. There is no way that a blended honey can be traced back to the hive as some big supermarkets and honey packers claim. Thats greenwash. 'What I'm concerned with as a Honey Sommelier is the individual provenance of any honey and its quality in terms of its flavour, texture and nose. In other words, exactly the same things that engage wine sommeliers. Sarah doesn't believe fake honey should be banned, but instead labelling should be changed to make it clear it's not a natural product. 'It's not my call if people want to buy very highly processed products. 'But the real thing contains all the wonderful properties, nutritional makeup and individuality that processed/fake honey just cant match. 'The fact is that real honey can never be a cheap commodity. Its a luxurious natural foodstuff that humans have enjoyed since we first evolved. Bees have been on earth making honey for over 80 million years. Take caviar and fish eggs as an example of another luxury food. Yes, you can buy inexpensive fish eggs in supermarkets, but they dont come from sturgeon and therefore they are not caviar. Theyre a cheap substitute. People know that. 'It's a similar thing with honey. Real honey is a unique natural foodstuff, it can't be hurried and it cant be bought or sold cheaply. 'We shouldn't be banning cheap commodity honey though, because that becomes undemocratic and unhelpful. What we should be doing instead is seeking to define it better. 'So we have a really good model in the maple syrup industry. You have two products sitting next door to each other. One is a cheap version clearly labelled "maple flavoured syrup". And sitting next to it is certified maple syrup - the real thing a provenance assured natural product, costing three or four times more. As a consumer, the choice is clear to you, and you can make it according to your purse and preference. From a graveyard full of icy snow creatures to a recreation of Gulliver being strapped to the ground, the sky is the limit when snow falls out of it. People from around the world have shared the most interesting snow sculptures they've made - with the very best collated in an incredible gallery by Bored Panda. One long-haired dog found a canine companion in a snow sculpture with an uncanny likeness, while another snap showed a ravenous snowman eating a man whole. Elsewhere, a man created a fire complete with logs and smores, while a fourth shows an octopus as big as a small car, with huge snow tentacles. Here, FEMAIL shares some of the best examples... People from around the world have shared the most interesting snow sculptures they've made - with the very best collated in an incredible gallery by Bored Panda (pictured, this European sculptor created an incredible likeness to the Venus de Milo) This icy sculpture created by an American snow enthusiast was so convincing it actually looked warm, and that marshmallow looked surprisingly squidgy Spot the difference! Another person, from the US, shared their snow-dog which looked identical to their pooch in real life Making the most of a little snow! One grandfather from South Carolina made the tiniest snowmen to impress his family Even snow men are addicted to their phones! One British person shared this humorous snap of a very modern looking sculpture Post your letters here! One US person decided to create this humorous snowman as a surprise for the mailman It's a field of snowmen! One person, from an unknown location, was blown away after discovering hundreds of animated snowmen while out and about in the US I wouldn't want to come across this snow creature on a dark night! Another person in the US was wowed by a sculpture created in their local neighbourhood Is this the most impressive snow sculpture EVER? One person in Lithuania crafted an incredible huge octopus Snowie Sanders! One enthusiastic American created this snowman based on the politician - complete with mittens and even a face mask A snow Gulliver! Another person was stunned when they stumbled across a snowman who appeared to have been 'tied' to the ground by a hoard of smaller men The nightmare before Christmas! One person in an unknown location was left terrified after coming across several snow creatures bursting out of graves in a cemetery Glowmen! The builder of these ghostly creatures illuminated the path home for others on a dark snowy night Is this snowman builder talented - or TERRIFYING? One person, in an unknown location, shared their unusual creation online Feeling hungry?! One person, from the US, was left shocked after stumbling upon a huge snowman which appeared to be devouring a man A mother has penned an emotional letter to the organ donor who gave her 'the best gift ever' of a heart transplant just days before Christmas 2020 - to enable her to enjoy her first festivities with her new baby this year. Nicolette Somers, 30, from Detroit, Michigan, was diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) - a rare form of congestive heart failure associated with pregnancy - in October 2020, three months after her son Beckett, now one, was born. Although doctors initially hoped they'd be able to treat Nicolette for the condition, she was eventually told she would need a heart transplant - or she would risk missing her newborn son grow up. She was told the wait for a new heart could take up to 11 months - but received a call nine days later to say there was a donor heart ready for her and underwent the life-saving transplant on December 20 2020, before spending the next three weeks in recovery. The mother-of-one missed her son's first Christmas while in hospital but says that videos of him opening his presents and dressed in festive outfits gave her the strength she needed to get through it. This year, she's planning to spend her first proper Christmas as a family with her husband Mark, 31, an electrician, and little Beckett - and has also penned an open letter to her heart donor. Nicolette does not know her donor's background but hopes to meet their family one day to say thank you. Nicolette Somers (pictured in hospital), 30, from Detroit, Michigan, was diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) - a rare form of congestive heart failure associated with pregnancy - in October 2020, three months after her son Beckett, now one, was born Although doctors initially hoped they'd be able to treat Nicolette (pictured with her family) for the condition, she was eventually told she would need a heart transplant - or she would risk missing her newborn son grow up Her letter read: 'Because of your selfless act to become an organ donor, you gave the greatest gift anyone could give. 'You gave me the gift of life. Because of you, I'm able to be in my son's life and I will always tell him about the complete stranger who gave his mummy a new heart and saved her life. I think about you daily and I hope I'm making you proud.' Nicolette's open letter to her donor 'To my donor, whoever you may be, I just wanted you and your loved ones to know how eternally grateful I am. Because of your selfless act to become an organ donor, you gave the greatest gift anyone could give. You gave me the gift of life. Because of you, I'm able to be in my son's life and I will always tell him about the complete stranger who gave his mummy a new heart and saved her life. I think about you daily and I hope I'm making you proud. With this second chance, I'm doing my best to spread awareness about PPCM and organ donation. With this new heart, my goals are to give my son a wonderful life and to be an advocate for others. I'm hoping to get my story out there as much as I can and to help to save as many lives as I can. Thank you for this beautiful gift.' Advertisement Nicolette, a full-time mother, said: 'Last Christmas I was given the ultimate gift - the gift of life. Without it, I wouldn't be able to watch my son grow up. I will be forever grateful for the selfless act of my donor and their family. 'It's so hard knowing that for me to live my life, someone else's had to end, but I am doing my best to make the most of the incredible opportunity they have given me. It really felt like my Christmas miracle.' In July 2020, Nicolette gave birth to her first child Beckett after a smooth pregnancy. For the first month everything seemed fine, but by September Nicolette started getting extremely breathless. 'It took every ounce of what I had just to get off the couch - I was completely drained,' she said. 'I just felt like my body was giving up on me.' She decided to visit the doctor to find out what was wrong in October 2020. Five days later, she was diagnosed with heart failure - and further tests revealed the cause was a condition called peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM). Doctors explained PPCM was heart failure brought on by pregnancy - although the exact trigger within the pregnancy is largely unknown. 'I remember the doctor saying that the last resort would be that I would need a heart transplant, but they didn't see that happening,' Nicolette said. 'But my heart was too far gone to be saved with medication, so I was listed for a transplant - and nine days later got the call.' They'd estimated the wait-time for a new heart would be 11 months, so the call took Nicolette completely by surprise. 'I didn't tell anyone at the time, not even my husband, but I knew deep down I didn't have 11 months - I didn't think I'd be here this Christmas,' Nicolette said. 'So, when I got the call, it was scary, but I knew it was supposed to happen. I knew that heart was meant for me.' She had to get to Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, as quickly as she could on December 19 2020, because the organ only lasts for a few hours, before being sent for surgery in the early hours of December 20. She was told the wait for a new heart could take up to 11 months - but received a call nine days later to say there was a donor heart ready for her and underwent the life-saving transplant on December 20 2020, before spending the next three weeks in recovery. Pictured, Nicolette and baby Beckett Much to the family's relief, the surgery went as planned and was a success. Due to coronavirus, Nicolette wasn't allowed any visitors - although husband Mark was able to make a brief visit for when she woke following surgery. She remained in hospital for three weeks, during which time Beckett celebrated his first Christmas. 'I was really bummed I wasn't there, I love Christmas,' Nicolette said. 'Mark sent me some videos of Beckett opening his presents which was very cute and made me so happy. 'There were a lot of firsts I missed out on - but I had to remind myself that getting better was the best thing I could do as a mum, despite how hard it was.' The family celebrated Christmas together when Nicolette was discharged from hospital in mid-January, a moment she found 'incredibly overwhelming'. Due to coronavirus, Nicolette (pictured in hospital) wasn't allowed any visitors - although husband Mark was able to make a brief visit for when she woke following surgery 'I had a new chance at life and all I wanted to do was to enjoy every second of it,' she said. 'But it was so conflicting - I had this second chance but because I did it meant that some other family was suffering because they just lost a loved one. 'I didn't like being congratulated for the new heart for that reason - it was very hard.' She was worried that her baby boy wouldn't recognise her as they'd been apart for so long, but when she was finally able to hold him, he gave a 'massive grin', and Nicolette knew everything was going to be OK. Beckett will be Nicolette and Mark's first and only child, as the transplant and necessary anti-rejection medication can cause birth defects. 'I'm so grateful that I'm here still and that I get to enjoy life and make memories with my son - but I'm still struggling with that a little bit,' she said. Over the course of 2021, Nicolette has had countless biopsies and tests to examine her new heart for rejection but has had extremely positive results. Pictured, Beckett Over the course of 2021, Nicolette has had countless biopsies and tests to examine her new heart for rejection but has had extremely positive results. By April 2021, Nicolette said she finally felt as if she was 'getting back to normal', after weeks of chest pain, muscle tightness and general fatigue. 'After a year I feel fantastic - I don't even think you'd be able to tell I had a heart transplant without seeing my scar,' Nicolette said. As the transplant anniversary approaches, Nicolette says she can't help but think that it's also the one-year anniversary of her donor's death. She doesn't know anything about her heart donor, except that they passed just hours before the heart was given to her and will be in a four-hour radius of her home in Detroit. Nicolette has sent a letter to the donor's family via a mediator, to thank them for their loved one's incredible sacrifice. She hopes that they will respond when they feel comfortable, so that one day they can meet, and she can thank them face-to-face. There are already signs that the current situation may not be as bleak as previously predicted. The results of five studies published last week three of which were British point in the same direction: Omicron may be less deadly than previous variants. The concern is, of course, what will happen in the coming weeks in hospitals. Even if a small percentage of the 120,000 plus daily Covid cases become sick enough to need intensive treatment, thats still a very large number perhaps large enough to overwhelm the NHS. Some are still forecasting a tidal wave of hospital cases which, according to reports, have already begun to swamp some NHS wards. Health chiefs are yet to rule out Government scientists bleak predictions of 10,000 Covid-19 hospitalisations a day by the end of January, and 6,000 daily deaths. Yet speaking to The Mail on Sunday, some of the UKs leading hospital medics remain optimistic and insist predictions of January 2020 levels of disaster are unlikely to come to fruition. The prevailing message is that however bad the situation in hospitals gets, it is highly unlikely to be anything like the devastating scenes of March 2020 and January 2021. Why? Speaking to The Mail on Sunday, some of the UKs leading hospital medics remain optimistic and insist predictions of January 2020 levels of disaster are unlikely to come to fruition Its all thanks to a quiet revolution that has been taking place in hospitals across the country, with top medics joining forces to uncover groundbreaking treatments which have rescued thousands of the sickest Covid-19 patients. Thanks to clinical studies such as the world-leading RECOVERY trial, which has recruited more than 45,000 NHS patients since the beginning of the pandemic, experts say some drugs have already saved thousands of lives and cut the length of hospital stays dramatically. Dr David Strain, Covid lead at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, told The Mail on Sunday: Weve got an army of brilliant treatments now, which means not only are fewer people dying of this disease but patients are also being discharged earlier. Its not just medicines: doctors and nurses say they understand Covid better than ever before. Many have been treating virus patients every day for 18 months now and, as a result, intimately understand the way it affects people. Is Omicron more catchy but less severe than other variants? Last week, Imperial College London researchers found those infected with Omicron were 45 per cent less likely to need hospital treatment compared with those infected with the previous Delta variant, while University of Edinburgh scientists said the risk reduction could be up to 68 per cent. Then, on Thursday, research published by the UK Health Security Agency revealed the risk reduction to be more like 70 per cent. And hospital clinicians, speaking to this newspaper, also tentatively confirmed the optimistic picture painted in the studies. Thanks to clinical studies such as the world-leading RECOVERY trial, which has recruited more than 45,000 NHS patients since the beginning of the pandemic, experts say some drugs have already saved thousands of lives and cut the length of hospital stays dramatically Dr Ben Killingley, an acute medicine and infectious diseases consultant at University College London Hospital added: It is nothing like where we were last Christmas. 'There is no doubt that lots and lots of people are being infected, but so far thats not translating into the number of admissions wed expect. And we havent yet seen much of an increase of people being admitted to intensive care. GOOD NEWS One in ten patients admitted to NHS hospitals with Covid are signed up for the Recovery trial, which investigates new medicines Advertisement One doctor at Barts Health NHS Trust in London says: We have several cases of Omicron, including a cancer patient, but none of them are in intensive care or require ventilation. Across London, where Covid-19 cases are at their highest, the number of patients in intensive care has fallen over the past week. Hospitalisations in the capital are rising by roughly 30 per cent a week but data published showed patients admitted to hospital with Omicron were 60 per cent less likely than those with the Delta variant to be kept in for more than a day. Dr Killingley, who also sits on the Governments virus advisory group NERVTAG, says: The big difference now is that more people are vaccinated. This, along with data suggesting Omicron is milder, means its likely well avoid the trauma of having to switch off services such as cancer to focus on Covid. I dont think we will be in a position where intensive care wards are overflowing, either. Of course, it goes without saying that things may change. UK Health Security Agency research also suggested that protection from the booster wanes after just ten weeks when, for some, it could be only 35 per cent effective. So here we outline why, if you do find yourself very ill with Covid, there is possibly less to fear today. Success from statins and diabetes drugs An array of transformative Covid treatments are already said to be cutting deaths in half in British hospitals. But experts are most excited about what is in store for 2022 yet more groundbreaking medicines that are arriving imminently. The arthritis drug trial that saved Wendy as she faced the horror of a ventilator One of the first patients in the world to receive immune-suppressing drug tocilizumab to treat severe Covid-19 was 63-year-old Wendy Coleman, from Derbyshire. The financial executive contracted the virus in April 2020 while being treated in hospital for a broken leg. A week after testing positive, Wendys oxygen levels fell sharply. 63-year-old Wendy Coleman, from Derbyshire, pictured with daughter Clare They were giving me oxygen through a mask but it wasnt helping, says the mother-of-two. I was worried that if they put me under to go on the ventilator, I wouldnt wake up again. Wendy was then visited by the Recovery trial team, who test groundbreaking treatments. They asked if I wanted to go on to a trial, but warned that they didnt know if it would work. Over a 24-hour period, Wendy received two intravenous infusions of the arthritis drug tocilizumab which dampens the bodys immune response to Covid and she soon began to stabilise. Nearly 18 months on, and with tocilizumab now given to thousands of NHS patients every month, Wendy is 95 per cent recovered. Ive got plenty of energy back now, she says Advertisement Some of the UKs experts in acute medicine have told The Mail on Sunday of medicines showing promise which could be offered to thousands of hospital patients within a matter of months. Professor Anthony Gordon, an intensive-care specialist at Imperial College London who is chief investigator for a major international trial evaluating Covid treatments in 300 hospitals, said one such medicine is the common heart drug statins. The daily pill, which is already prescribed to millions of Britons to help lower cholesterol, reduces inflammation in blood vessels and blood clotting which are two of the most common, severe complications from Covid infection. A University of California San Diego School of Medicine study of 10,000 patients published in July found that taking statins made these serious consequences less likely, reducing the overall risk of in-hospital death from Covid by 41 per cent. According to Prof Gordon, 2,500 hospitalised Covid patients will have access to statins right now, as part of a medical trial, with results expected within the year. If successful, the treatment could easily be rolled out. Statins are cheap and easy to access, so they benefit a large group of patients if theyre found to be effective against Covid, says Prof Gordon. Other treatments could be expected even sooner, some within weeks. Doctors at the University of Oxford have been toying with higher doses of an affordable steroid commonly used on Covid patients in need of extra oxygen, called dexamethasone. The drug works by dampening down the bodys immune system, reducing the inflammation in the lungs that restricts oxygen intake. Current doses are known to reduce deaths by a third, but doctors say higher doses may cut fatalities even further. Doctors treating Omicron patients in South Africa are already using higher doses, on a trial basis, and while it is too early to draw conclusions, experts say the outcomes are expected to be positive. Professor Martin Landray from the University of Oxford, who leads the UKs Recovery trial, says: When you study a drug, the first thing you want to know is whether it works or not. We have had great results with dexamethasone, so its possible we may see even better outcomes if we push up the dose a bit. The Recovery trial is also expected to publish results this year on the effectiveness of a diabetes drug against Covid. Empagliflozin a routine treatment for type 2 diabetes reduces the amount of glucose absorbed by the body, which is then excreted into the urine instead. Scientists believe this process can also reduce inflammation in the lungs, improve heart and blood vessel function, and increase blood oxygen levels, all of which are affected by a serious Covid infection. NHS trials began in July, and a similar drug, dapagliflozin, was shown in a separate trial to reduce by a fifth the risk of organ failure and death in Covid patients. Treatment found in every hospital GOOD NEWS More than 620,000 people have been treated in hospital for Covid since the start of the pandemic, the NHS says. Advertisement While drug companies have poured millions of pounds into developing brand new drugs, doctors believe that two of the most effective treatments to become available this year were already widely available in hospitals across the country. Tocilizumab and Sarilumab are commonly used to treat arthritis, but studies have shown they can significantly improve the survival chances for those desperately ill with Covid. Both medicines restrict the spread of cytokine cells in the body, an inflammatory cell released by the immune system when it believes it is under attack. Covid can trigger what is known as a cytokine storm, where the immune system over-reacts, releasing an excess of cytokine cells which can lead ultimately to organ failure. When tocilizumab and sarilumab were used alongside standard immune-suppressing treatments such as steroids, both were capable of reducing deaths by a third in patients treated with oxygen, and by nearly 50 per cent for those requiring mechanical ventilation, according to recent NHS studies. When tocilizumab and sarilumab were used alongside standard immune-suppressing treatments such as steroids, both were capable of reducing deaths by a third in patients treated with oxygen, and by nearly 50 per cent for those requiring mechanical ventilation, according to recent NHS studies Since then, the treatments have become widely used across the NHS. We use these drugs regularly and they have a significant benefit, says Dr Ron Daniels, an intensive care consultant at University Hospitals Birmingham. The figures are clear: more and more people who go on to ventilators with Covid-19 are surviving. Best of all, Prof Landray says there is no reason at all to believe tocilizumab and sarilumab would be less effective against the Omicron variant. He adds: The challenge in the face of big wave of admissions however, would be a huge surge of demand for these drugs. Its still not clear whether our supply will hold up. Helping hands when the jabs dont work Many doctors are most concerned about how those with health conditions that make the vaccine less effective will fare in the Omicron wave. It is estimated that more than half a million Britons wont mount a strong immune response after three or even four jabs most of whom are suffering from conditions such as blood cancer and organ failure. It is these patients that doctors say are most likely to end up severely ill in hospital. Until now, doctors had one highly effective drug in their armoury for these patients. Ronapreve, given as an intravenous drip, works by seeking out Covid cells and destroying them. Pictured: A nurse works on a critical care patient at King's College Hospital, London Until now, doctors had one highly effective drug in their armoury for these patients. Ronapreve, given as an intravenous drip, works by seeking out Covid cells and destroying them. It became available on the NHS in September after data showed it could reduce deaths by as much as 70 per cent, but in the past few weeks studies have shown it is far less effective against Omicron. But there is good news. A fortnight ago, the NHS announced that thousands more immunosupressed patients will be granted access to a new drug which is effective against Omicron as well as the Delta variant. Sotrovimab has been shown in studies to bind tightly to Omicron and, if given early enough, can cut the risk of hospitalisation and death in high-risk patients by 85 per cent. GOOD NEWS Dexamethasone one of the first drugs found to effectively fight Covid is said to have saved 22,000 British lives so far, and about 1million lives worldwide. Advertisement Health chiefs have now accelerated the rollout of the drug, which was initially available to only small numbers on a trial basis. Dr Strain says: Prior to Omicron, my team were expecting wed have enough of this treatment for perhaps two to three Covid-19 patients a week. But now, well be able to treat as many as 30. There has also been a breakthrough in the race to discover medicines that prevent highly vulnerable patients needing to visit a hospital in the first place. A fortnight ago, health chiefs approved an antiviral drug called molnupiravir for use in hundreds of thousands of patients in this category. The pill is taken after infection every 12 hours for five days, and has been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalisations by a third. Over the past two weeks, eligible patients have been contacted by the NHS, and they will be sent PCR tests by the beginning of January. If they begin to get symptoms, they have been instructed to take one of the PCR tests and, if it comes back positive, they will be contacted by an NHS worker who will organise a delivery of molnupiravir to their house within days. Better yet, another similar drug is soon to come on stream Paxlovid, created by vaccine makers Pfizer. It has been shown to cut the risk of hospitalisation in vulnerable patients by 90 per cent and experts say it is expected to be as effective against Omicron as other variants. Last week the Government announced it had purchased 2.5 million doses, although it will need to undergo rigorous trials before being approved by UK health regulators. FEWER PATIENTS END UP ON VENTILATORS In the spring of 2020, being put on a ventilator was the utmost fear of anyone who went into hospital with Covid-19. The figures were stark: 50 per cent of those who require mechanical ventilation involving a medically induced coma and a procedure to insert a tube into the throat do not come out of hospital alive. But now doctors say things are vastly different. Many more severely ill patients are offered a less invasive alternative, called continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which pushes a high-volume stream of an air-oxygen mix into the mouth and nose, keeping the airways open and increasing the amount of oxygen entering the lungs. Patients remain conscious throughout the treatment. Dr Daniels says: This is an especially good option for frail patients for whom ventilation could be risky. In August, the results of a major trial also found using CPAP reduced the risk of needing further intense treatment such as mechanical ventilation by ten per cent In August, the results of a major trial also found using CPAP reduced the risk of needing further intense treatment such as mechanical ventilation by ten per cent. Other studies found that using the machine earlier, in the first few days of hospitalisation, can save the lives of up to 20 per cent of seriously ill Covid patients. And for the few, unfortunate patients who do end up treated with mechanical ventilation, some experts say the outcomes have generally improved. Dr Daniels says: Theres lots of different modes on a ventilator, and some work better with Covid-19 patients than others. One mode, called airway pressure release ventilation, has been found to be particularly effective in Covid patients at improving oxygen levels and clearing out harmful carbon dioxide. It does this by flooding the lungs with oxygen-rich air for extended periods, which inflates the fluid-filled air sacs, causing them to splinter and drain. Dr Daniels adds: Ventilators is one of the areas where we really have learned a lot. As for the devastating shortages of oxygen which hospitals battled last spring, Dr Strain says its unlikely to be a problem this time around: At the beginning we were throwing as much oxygen as possible at patients. Now we realise theres a limit to how much is helpful, so we now give specific quantities and we see better outcomes. INFECTIONS ARE UNDER CONTROL IN HOSPITALS The most crucial developments over the past year have been discovering new methods to stop Covid spreading in hospitals. At the beginning of the pandemic, a shocking number of people who went into hospital for a non-Covid-related issue caught the virus and died. The Mail on Sunday was one of the first newspapers to raise the alarm about this issue in November last year. Our investigation found one in ten Covid deaths in NHS hospitals between March and August 2020 were patients infected with the virus while there for another reason. Insiders told The Mail on Sunday that healthcare staff were often seen wearing PPE incorrectly, failing to sanitise their hands and not ensuring patients were masked while moving between wards. But today, thanks to a number of factors, such as infection-free mini-wards, better understanding among staff and, of course, vaccinations, hospital-acquired infection is far less common. At the end of November, before the arrival of Omicron, the number of hospitalised Covid patients who caught the disease in hospital had fallen to just seven per cent. Pictured: A nurse in full PPE at King's College Hospital, south east London At the end of November, before the arrival of Omicron, the number of hospitalised Covid patients who caught the disease in hospital had fallen to just seven per cent. One of the most crucial changes has been simply an upgrade in PPE. Since the spring, most healthcare workers have traded in disposable surgical masks for specialised filtered face coverings known as FFP3 masks. These are multi-layered, tight fitting and offer the highest level of protection against airborne viral particles compared with other commonly used surgical masks. A University of Cambridge study published in July found these masks provided hospital staff with most likely 100 per cent protection against infection on wards. Study author Chris Illingworth, an infectious diseases expert, wrote: Once FFP3 masks were introduced, the number of cases attributed to exposure on Covid-19 wards dropped dramatically in fact, our model suggests FFP3 respirators may have cut ward-based infection to zero. Other measures have made a difference, too. Dr Killingley believes another of the big advances was speedier testing. He says: Previously we would have to wait two to three days to find out whether a patient or member of staff had Covid, and in that time they could mix with others in the hospital and potentially pass on the disease. Now we know within hours, and during that time we make sure they do not mix. Reports have claimed ministers are watching hospitalisation numbers in the capital, with a two-week 'circuit breaker' lockdown set to be imposed if daily numbers surpass 400 Some hospitals have been especially innovative, creating mini-hospitals to segregate those going in for treatment, keeping them away from Covid patients on wards. Croydon University Hospital in South London, for instance, created what it called the Elective Centre, with its own entrance and separate team of hospital staff. GOOD NEWS Wearing a facemask is linked to a 53 per cent lower risk of Covid infection, according to an analysis in the British Medical Journal. Advertisement While some of these Covid-free centres were closed when Covid cases began to fall after increased vaccination, experts say that they could easily be reopened. There is some concern among doctors about whether hospital-acquired infections will begin to rise again with the highly contagious Omicron variant. Some hospitals in London have already seen this. Even so, doctors are confident we wont see the shockingly high figures of 2020 again. Its expected that the number of infections picked up in hospitals will rise, simply because Omicron is so infectious, says Dr Strain. But we are much better prepared this time round and have options which we know are effective for limiting spread. We have proper masks now, and were testing ourselves and the patients constantly. DOCTORS AND NURSES ARE NOW COVID EXPERTS Not only do healthcare workers know exactly what to do to stop infections spreading among patients, they know exactly what to do when disaster strikes and, crucially, when to act. When you treat the same disease, day in, day out, for 18 months, you begin to get a sixth sense for it, says Dr Strain. Patients never crash [when their health suddenly deteriorates] outside of intensive care now. Our team can spot when patients will need more intensive treatment before they get really bad. Before, often by the time wed taken patients to ICU for monitoring and intensive oxygen treatment, itd be too late. Now weve almost become Covid experts. Experts say nowhere else in the world has achieved anything close to the success story seen in Britain. Pictured: Boris Johnson wears a mask during a visit to Nissan's Sunderland factory in July Dr Killingley agrees: Over time weve become much more confident treating seriously sick Covid patients. Clinicians feel more comfortable making calls about when a patient needs to go on to a ventilator, and timing can often be the difference between life and death. The biggest challenge doctors face now isnt necessarily Covid per se, but the number of staff available to treat patients when they do arrive in hospital. A YouGov poll taken in April found that a quarter of NHS workers are considering quitting their job, in part due to the stress of the pandemic. Dr Killingley says: Staff wellbeing has taking a battering in the past 18 months, so looking after them needs to be a top priority. The main worry is that, if we are sent back into emergency mode, well start losing even more vital staff as the level of burnout increases further. Prof Landray says staff retention is crucial in enabling the UK to continue being a leading force in developing new Covid treatments. He adds: We now have a number of drugs we can use to combat this disease thanks to trials completed in British hospitals, with the help of committed NHS staff who dedicate extra time to helping out with studies. Its made a huge difference and, as a result, hospitals are in a much better position than they were a year ago. Nowhere else in the world has achieved anything close to that not the World Health Organisation, not the US or China. And thats because we, unlike other countries, have our NHS. Animal protection campaigners are increasingly concerned that the prolific 'Croydon Cat Killer' is on the prowl again after more grisly incidents. The so-called 'Croydon Cat Killer' is alleged to have killed, dismembered and mutilated 400 cats and other animals across England since 2014. Police carried out a three-year investigation into the cat killings but concluded it in 2018 saying they were 'probably killed by foxes'. However many owners and many animal protection campaigners believe the 'Croydon Cat Killer' is still at large. In a recent incident in Christchurch, Dorset, in November, Emma Blehs cat Alley went missing and was found decapitated afterwards. She believed it was the work of the 'Croydon Cat Killer.' The 40-year-old told the Metro in November: I have contacted the police, RSPCA and SNARL, who are investigating the cat killer. They say that the fact Alley was missing her head and tail is the killers signature as he keeps trophies.' She said the 'monster' needs to be stopped from carrying out anymore attacks. Another brutal attack happened in Christchurch, Dorset, in November, after Emma Blehs cat Alley (pictured) went missing and was found decapitated afterwards Killings began in Croydon in 2014 and spread across London and the rest of the UK (pictured). A 31-year-old man was arrested in January 2018 in connection with the killings but was later released Another cat went missing from its home in West Hill, Croydon, on October 8 and its body was found outside the family house on Sunday October 10. After a vet concluded that was deliberately killed, the shocking discovery was reported to police, according to Inside Croydon. Its distraught owner, Jodie Albutt, posted on social media at the time: 'It was only sheer luck that our children did not find him.' In another recent incident, a family's pet cat went missing from its home in West Hill, Croydon, on October 8 and its body was found outside the house on Sunday October 10 The attack has been described as 'truly awful' by animal protection campaigners. They believe that the killing has many tell-tale signs that it was carried out by the 'Croydon Cat Killer' and have warned pet owners to be vigilant and cautious. And another cat was found headless and butchered in a Crawley street recently. Investigators believe the September 2 discovery could also have been the work of the 'Croydon Cat Killer'. A 2018 map marked out the places the 'Croydon Cat Killer' was said to have dismembered, mutilated and killed cats And it isn't the only recent attack, with another cat found headless and butchered in a Crawley street. Investigators believe the September 2 discovery could also have been the work of the 'Croydon Cat Killer' Boudicca Rising (pictured right) in 2018 with ex-partner Tony Jenkins whom she founded South Norwood Animal Rescue (SNARL) with. She now heads up SLAIN (South London Animal Investigation) and said while animal killings have decreased because of patrolling public areas at night she fears the 'Croydon Cat Killer' is on the prowl again Boudicca Rising, from SLAIN, the South London Animal Investigation Network, said: 'We would ask that if anyone finds a mutilated animal that they contact us on 07957 830490 or via our Facebook page. We can then direct them to the nearest vet or arrange attendance to do so ourselves.' She said that patrolling public areas at night has cut down incidents in certain areas and there have been none for more than two years in two areas. Despite this, there have been more than 400 reports of dismembered, decapitated and killed cats and other animals. Killings began in Croydon in 2014 and spread across London and the rest of the UK. A 31-year-old man was arrested in January 2018 in connection with the killings but was later released. Police closed their 'Croydon Cat Killer' case in 2018, saying that it was 'probably foxes' carrying out the killings. Police closed their 'Croydon Cat Killer' case in 2018, saying that it was 'probably foxes' carrying out the killings. Owners reacted with fury, including Samantha Glass and her daughter Tabitha Brown (pictured), who found their cat Harley dead at their family home Owners reacted with fury, including Samantha Glass and her daughter Tabitha Brown, who found their cat Harley dead at their family home. Ms Glass said at the time: 'Words fail me - this is a massive fail on all accounts,' she said. 'We need victims to get together to march against the police. 'What else can we do? There is countless evidence from the Met saying cats have been mutilated by a clean slice. 'There have been decapitated heads lying across London; what happens when the killer drops back the tail to the doorstep?' She started a social media campaign in protest, with many others coming forward saying their own cats or animals had also been killed, mutilated or dismembered. The 'Jack the Ripper' for cats had 15 officers on their trail at one point. Ukiyo who was found dismembered near her owner's home in the Croydon area of London Investigations started in November 2015 because of reports of numerous mutilated cats, often with their heads and tails removed. Three CCTV recordings of foxes with the body parts of cats in their mouths were found. Officers worked with the RSPCA and local charity South Norwood Animal Rescue League (SNARL). It was later revealed that officers spent 140,000 on the investigation, including 8,000 on specialist post-mortems to conclude the killings were the work of foxes. But owners and SNARL refused to accept their explanation and previously vowed to find the culprit themselves. And in 2019, Sussex residents feared a 'Brighton Cat Killer' was at large after 25 cats were stabbed to death in 18 months. They found Steve Bouquet (pictured) was the culprit and killed 16 cats in Brighton- he was jailed for five years After a petition was launched to reopen the case, SNARL carried on the investigation. And in 2019, Sussex residents feared a 'Brighton Cat Killer' was at large after 25 cats were stabbed to death in 18 months. Police launched a separate investigation called 'Operation Diverge' to uncover who was behind the spate of killings. They found Steve Bouquet was the culprit and killed 16 cats in Brighton- he was jailed for five years. For now, the identity of the alleged 'Croydon Cat Killer' remains unknown but animal protection campaigners fear they will continue to strike. Councils across Britain are 'squandering' thousands of pounds every year on hold music, MailOnline can reveal. Many local authorities throughout the country use royalty-free music or tunes included in its overall telephone contract to punctuate the silence when taxpayers ring up to discuss issues like bin collections and planning. But exclusive figures reveal some town halls are shelling out big bucks to pipe pop anthems down the phone lines such as Toto's Africa, Shine by Take That and Band Aid classic Do They Know It's Christmas? Classics by Vivaldi and Mozart are also popular choices that town hall bosses are happy to pay to use while residents wait to speak to an operator. While campaigners slammed the move at a time when budgets are being stretched thinner than ever, some of the biggest spenders defended the policy. Councils across Britain are 'squandering' thousands of pounds every year on hold music such as Toto's Africa, MailOnline can reveal Pop classics councils spend thousands of pounds on to pipe down phone lines Take That - Shine Kylie Minogue - All the lovers Band Aid - Do they know it's Christmas? You Only Live Twice - Orchestral theme tune version Toto - Africa Years and Years - Shine George Ezra - Hold My Girl Michael Jackson - Love Never Felt So Good Adele - Rolling in the Deep Samantha Mumba - All I Want for Christmas Advertisement Danielle Boxall, media campaign manager at the TaxPayers' Alliance, told MailOnline: 'Taxpayers will be appalled that councils are wasting their hard-earned money on hold music when there are plenty of free options available. 'Residents expect their cash to be spent on essential frontline services, not squandered on expensive songs. 'Local authorities should be ensuring calls get answered rather than wondering how to entertain the ratepayers they leave hanging on the telephone.' The biggest spenders of the authorities that responded to a Freedom of Information request was Clackmannanshire Council in Scotland, which has shelled out more than 20,000 over the last five years for the rights to Take That's Shine, All The Lovers by Kylie Minogue, the orchestral theme tune version of You Only Live Twice and Band Aid's festive classic Do They Know It's Christmas? A spokesman for the council told MailOnline: 'The figures provided do not just relate to on hold music. 'The Council pays an fee to PPL/PRS annually for the playing of music in all of our buildings, including schools. This includes the playing of on-hold music. 'This fee covers a wide range of activities from having the radio on in an office to staging a concert in the town hall.' Also up there is Doncaster Council, which has spent 7,000 over the last five years for tunes on The Ultimate Classic FM album, which includes iconic anthems such as Nessun Dorma. The council did not respond to requests for comment. Other responses show Hambleton in North Yorkshire spent more than 2,000 over the last five years to secure the rights for Toselli Serenade by Starsound Orchestra and Teignbridge in Devon paid four-figures for an unspecified song in 2017/18. Shine by Take That is among the pop classics that councils are paying to obtain the rights Gravesham in Kent, meanwhile, also paid more than 2,000 for licences between 2017 and 2021, but insists a new phone system will provide royalty free music on hold from next year. Other local authorities made smaller one-off payments to individual artists, such as North Devon which paid Stewart Dugdale 39.90 to use Any One Day and Beautiful Days this year and Bristol, which bought five tracks in 2018/19 for 200. Other boroughs said rights to use certain music had been gifted to them by musicians who were residents or lived nearby, while Chorley in Lancashire said its telephony system was changed in July 2019, and included the rights to use George Ezra's 'Hold My Girl'. North Ayrshire has spent 730.18 in each of the last three years to use 'Africa' and 'Shine' and also previously used Michael Jackson's 'Love Never Felt So Good', 'Rolling in the Deep' by Adele and Samantha Mumba's 'All I Want for Christmas'. Some councils have defended the spending in the past by claiming the number of people who hang up while on hold reduced substantially since they began piping commercial tracks down the telephone to those in the queue. Scotland Yard's Madeleine McCann team has 'more open thinking' and is still treating her disappearance as a missing person's investigation despite German prosecutors insisting she is dead. Among other theories, the bespoke London unit of officers codenamed Operation Grange is still working on a possibility she may be alive. Grange is still in an 'active' phase of their probe, using 350,000 from a special grant awarded by the Home Office until 2022 to exhaust all further enquiries. It is in stark contrast to the German authorities who are certain convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner, 43, took and killed Maddie. In almost monthly updates since Brueckner was first named in June 2020, prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters, who is leading that investigation, said police had enough evidence to charge him. But a source confirmed to MailOnline: 'The Met Police's Operation Grange is still running this as a missing person's investigation. 'Clearly the Met have more open thinking than the German authorities have at the present. 'Madeleine's parents have always said if they are presented with hard proof she has died they will accept it. Madeleine went missing on May 3, 2007, from an apartment where the family were staying Kate and Gerry McCann are still hoping one day they will see their daughter alive once more Prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters has insisted Christian Brueckner abducted and killed her 'But the fact Operation Grange still exists and still gets funding shows the Met still thinks there is still work and investigation to be done.' Police in Britain and Germany launched a renewed appeal for witnesses in June 2020 after disclosing they had a new suspect, who was later revealed to be Brueckner. Mr Wolters went as far as holding a press conference where he addressed Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry over the air. He insisted: 'We are confident we have the man who took and killed your daughter. 'All I can do is ask for your patience.' But claims German detectives had sent multiple notes to Madeleine's family were rubbished within days. And the Met itself released a pointed statement correcting the allegations about the correspondence. It said last year: 'The Met received one letter from the BKA on June 12, which was passed to the family. The German suspect had lived in a warehouse outside Praia da Luz for several years but moved into a campervan just before Maddie vanished The suspect is said to have lived at this property named Escola Vehla - meaning 'old school' - during his time in Portugal What do we know about Maddie murder suspect Christian Brueckner? 1992: Christian Brueckner is arrested on suspicion of burglary in his hometown of Wurzburg, Bavaria. 1994: He is given a two-year youth jail sentence for sexually abusing a minor. 1995: Brueckner arrives in Portugal as an 18-year-old backpacker and begins working in catering in the seaside resorts of Lagos and Praia da Luz. But friends say he became involved with a criminal syndicate trafficking drugs into the Algarve. September 2005: He dons a mask and breaks into an apartment where a 72-year-old American tourist. The victim was bound, gagged, blindfolded and whipped with a metal cane before being raped for 15 minutes. She said afterwards that he had clearly enjoyed 'torturing' her before the rape. April 2007: He moves out of a farmhouse and into a campervan now linked to the crime. The farmhouse is cleaned and a bag of wigs and 'exotic clothes' is found. May 3, 2007: Madeleine McCann is snatched at around 10pm from her bed as her parents eat tapas with friends yards away. Brueckner's mobile phone places him in the area that night. He returns to his native Germany shortly after that. 2008-2016: He is in and out of jail for drug dealing and child abuse offences on 'little girls'. May 3, 2017: Brueckner is said to be in a bar with a friend when a ten-year anniversary appeal following Maddie's disappearance is shown on German television. He is said to have told him in a bar that he 'knew all about' what happened to her. He then showed his friend a video of him raping a woman. June 2017: He heads back to Portugal and extradited again to Germany. The reason was a sentencing of the Braunschweig district court to 15 months' imprisonment for the sexual abuse of a child. August 2018: He is released from prison and lives on the streets September 2018: Brueckner is arrested in Milan, Italy and extradited to Germany and put on trial for raping the American tourist in 2007 after a DNA match to hair found at the crime scene. December 2019: He is jailed for seven years after being convicted of rape and extortion. June 3, 2020: Scotland Yard and the German police reveal that that they have identified a suspect in the Maddie McCann case June 4, 2020: Prosecutors in Braunschweig, where he lives, say they believe Maddie McCann has been murdered, says spokesman Hans Christian Wolters. He is named in the German press as the prime suspect. Advertisement 'The letter did not state that there was evidence or proof that Madeleine is dead, the MPS continues to investigate Madeleines disappearance as a missing person investigation. 'No letter has been received by the Met from the German prosecutor.' In fact in May this year Kate and Gerry restated they still believed she could be still be alive. A statement that month said: 'The Covid pandemic has made this year even more difficult for many reasons but thankfully the investigation to find Madeleine and her abductor has continued. 'We hang on to the hope, however small, that we will see Madeleine again. As we have said repeatedly, we need to know what has happened to our lovely daughter, no matter what. 'We are very grateful to the police for their continued efforts.' Brueckner is currently serving a prison sentence for drug trafficking and is expected to remain behind bars until 2026 after losing a bid to overturn a rape conviction. He was last year found guilty of the 2005 rape of a 72-year-old American woman in the same Portuguese resort from which Madeleine vanished and sentenced to seven years in jail, at a court in Brunswick, Lower Saxony. Brueckner was in Praia da Luz when Madeleine went missing on the night of May 3, 2007, pinpointed there by a mobile phone call. Madeleine - then aged three - disappeared from an apartment where she was staying with her family. Kate and Gerry, had been dining with friends in a nearby restaurant and periodically checking on Madeleine and her two siblings - Sean and Amelie - as they slept. Around 9pm, Gerry went to check on the children and found them sleeping. At 9.30pm, a family friend went to the apartment and heard no noise, but did not check far enough into the room to see if Madeleine was there. At 10pm, Kate went to check on the children and found Maddie was gone. The disappearance was reported immediately and a search party launched the same evening including officers from the Guarda Nacional Republicana and the Policia Judiciaria, which launched an investigation. Amaral was brought in to head that investigation and ran it for several months, infamously naming both Kate and Gerry as suspects. He was sacked shortly after launching a public attack on British detectives - accusing them of only pursuing investigative lines given to them by the McCanns. He has since published a book and appeared in a documentary called 'The Truth of the Lie' in which he repeated his claims against the McCanns. The family won a libel suit against him in 2015, and were awarded 500,000 in damages. A spokeswoman for the Met said to MailOnline last night: 'The investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann remains ongoing.' A Home Office spokeswoman added: 'The Government has provided up to 350,000 for Operation Grange in 2021-22.' Mr Wolters told MailOnline: 'The investigation is ongoing. As you know, our preliminary investigation is a German preliminary investigation in which the BKA conducts the investigation. 'But there is still a good and close cooperation with the Metropolitan Police.' The UK saw 2,208 helicopter rescues over the last year with 50 per cent of the operations taking place on land, figures have shown. Data shows emergency crews across the country were sent out to six helicopter rescues on average a day from April 2020 to March 2021, with search and rescue helicopters saving 1,226 people and assisting 232 others. Prestwick in west Scotland recorded the highest number of helicopter rescues, with data showing 350 rescues were undertaken by emergency teams in the region. Meanwhile Newquay on the north coast of Cornwall saw 255 helicopter rescues and Lee on Solent saw 252. East Scotland saw 222 helicopter rescues from its Inverness base while Stornoway saw 139 helicopter rescues. The latest figures mark a seven per cent decrease compared to the year before when there were 2,380 civilian search and rescue helicopter operations undertaken. The UK saw 2,208 helicopter rescues over the last year with data showing emergency crews across the country were sent out to six helicopter rescues on average a day from April 2020 to March 2021. (Stock image) The were 139 rescue operations undertaken from the Stornoway base in north west Scotland and 128 taskings from the Sumburgh base. Meanwhile Prestwick in west Scotland recorded the highest number of helicopter rescues, with data showing 350 rescues were undertaken by emergency teams in the region Overall the number of search and rescue operation for the year ending March 2019 and year ending March 2020 followed broadly similar annual trends. But in the year ending March 2021, search and rescue were initially lower than previous years in April when the UK-wide lockdown was in place Figures show there were 1,054 land rescues, which accounted for 48 per cent of all rescues, and 883 coast rescues over the last year. Meanwhile there were 271 sea rescues carried out by search and rescue helicopter teams - this accounted for 12 per cent of all rescues, compared to 16 per cent in the previous year. Data shows the number of helicopter rescues were initially lower than in previous years, when the UK-wide lockdown was in place, with bases responding to just 64 taskings in April 2020. However the figure increased to near previous levels between May and June, with August 2020 recording 365 taskings - the second highest monthly volume of helicopter rescues on record. This may be due to the number of people taking to the nation's outdoor spaces in the summer of 2020 and the preference for domestic holidays in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Figures show 47 per cent of helicopter search and rescue operations took place on land - the same proportion as in the previous year - while 50 per cent of the helicopter rescues took place along the coast - a four per cent increase from last year. Figures from April 2019 to March 2020 showed Newquay and Prestwick had the most taskings, responding to 298 and 338 rescues respectively. Meanwhile Stornoway and Humberside had the least taskings, responding to 140 and 180 rescues respectively. The Sumburgh base had the highest proportion of rescue and recovery taskings (87%) with the majority taking place at sea. August 2020 recorded the second highest monthly volume of search and rescue operations on record (365 taskings) following the easing of lockdown easing. Meanwhile figures ffrom November 2020 to February 2021 were in line with previous years In the year ending March 2021, 69 per cent of pre-arranged operations took place on land - a decrease of 4 per centa compared to the previous year From April 2020 to March 2021, there were: 1,054 land based operations which accounted for 48 per cent of taskings, compared to 50 per cent in the previous year. There were 883 coast searhc and rescue operations and 271 maritime taskings Earlier this year figures from The National Water Safety Forum revealed that Cornwall recorded the highest number of drowning deaths of any UK region over the past five years. Data showed 80 people drowned in the county during this period, the equivalent of more than one every month, followed by 55 in Devon and 54 in Kent. The figures also showed that men were far more likely to die in the water than women, making up 82 per cent of total fatalities, with young men aged 21 to 25 the most affected age group. Almost half of all those who drowned had not intended to enter the water, according to the data. The study came as the RNLI and Maritime and Coastguard Agency launched a winter coastal safety campaign, reminding people to steer clear of stormy seas and cliff edges. Inverclyde in Scotland was the region which recorded the lowest number of accidental drowning fatalities at two in the last five years. Caerphilly, in South Wales, registered just three deaths while Neath Port Talbot documented five. Meanwhile, London recorded the fourth highest number of accidental water-related deaths at 47, followed closely by Scotland's Highland at 45. The statistics, released as part of the Water Incident Database (WAID) report, also found 46.8 per cent of those who died had not intended to enter the water. New statistics reveal how some of the nation's most picturesque locations have seen huge swathes of land being swallowed up by new build housing estates. The local authority with the biggest expansion in the last three years has been South Derbyshire where 7.3 percent of homes are new. South Derbyshire, which has villages dating back to the Domesday Book of 1086, has seen a total of 3,384 new dwellings built in three years, bringing its housing stock up to a total of 46,648. In contrast its near neighbour Chesterfield has a total housing stock of 49,998, but has only seen 576 new builds spring up in the last three years. Meanwhile, Salford saw a head-spinning 8,533 new build houses erected between 2017 to 2020, representing 6.9 percent of its total housing stock. An analysis of government data reveals the local authorities with the highest percentages of houses built in 2017 or after, with South Derbyshire topping the list at 7.3 percent, compared with the national average of 2.6 percent A new housing estate in Salford: 6.9 percent of Salford's dwellings were built in 2017 or after, with 8,533 properties constructed in the last three years Figures for England show there are a total of almost 25 million homes in the country of which 630,000 were built in the last three years. It means 2.6 percent of all homes have been built in the last three years but some areas have faced building at almost three times this rate while others have seen just a tiny fraction of new development added to their housing stock. The research, carried out by MyJobQuote, analysed how many houses were built in 2017 or later, breaking down the figures by local authority. Councils with the most new builds added to their housing stock (2017-2020) English Council Areas New builds (2017-2020) New builds as a percentage of total housing stock South Derbyshire 3,384 7.3 Salford 8,533 6.9 Vale of White Horse 4,094 6.8 Newham, London 7,805 6.5 Tower Hamlets, London 7,947 6.3 Stratford-on-Avon 3,945 6.3 Wokingham 4,255 6.1 Daventry 2,094 5.7 South Oxfordshire 3,576 5.6 Cherwell 3,686 5.4 Eastleigh 3,209 5.4 Tewkesbury 2,288 5.4 Aylesbury Vale 4,468 5.3 Greenwich, London 6,261 5.3 A new-build house in the village of Willington (pictured) is one of 3,384 dwellings constructed between 2017 and 2020 in South Derbyshire Other idyllic areas that have seen thousands of new homes built in the last three years are Shakespeare's birthplace Stratford-on-Avon as well as the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire. Councils in Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire have all seen new builds shoot up in recent years at a much higher rate than the national average. Seaside councils such as Portsmouth (0.5%), Brighton and Hove (0.6%), Southend-on-Sea (0.9%) and Torbay (1.1%) saw some of the smallest rises in housing stock due to new builds. Stratford-upon-Avon (pictured), the birth and final resting place of William Shakespeare, ranks sixth in England for most new builds, with 3,945 put up in the last three years - representing 6.3 percent of the area's total housing stock An aerial view of Salford displays a new build housing estate - a drop in the ocean when compared with the 8,533 dwellings erected over the past three years How many new builds are affordable houses? A total of 57,644 'affordable homes' were provided in 2019-20 across the country. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government defines 'affordable housing' in its National Planning Policy Framework as properties for rent or for sale 'for those whose needs are not met by the market'. Major housing developments must include at least 10 percent affordable housing by mandate of the central government. Meanwhile, rented housing developments have no stipulations around the percentage of affordable housing, with this decision left up to local authorities. There is disagreement over how affordable so-called 'affordable housing' really is. The Affordable Housing Commission - chaired by Lord Best and comprised of 15 key players from the housing world - concluded in a 2020 report that 'many' affordable housing products 'are clearly unaffordable to those on mid to lower incomes'. Advertisement Countryside campaigners complain rural locations are targeted for developments when so-called brownfield and urban areas should shoulder more of the burden for new housing. Critics claim developers prefer greenfield sites for developments as often they are easier to build on. Paul Miner, head of land use and planning at CPRE, the countryside charity, said: 'Planning by formulas simply doesn't work. We know from painful experience what a developer-led planning system will create the wrong types of homes in the wrong places. 'This is yet more evidence that the government's current proposals to change the planning system will massively increase pressure on green space and Green Belt in the south, while leaving brownfield land, or previously developed land, to rot in our northern towns and cities. 'But it's not too late for the government to rethink the changes to planning to put people and nature at the heart of new policy. Continuing with business as usual will just fly in the face of any levelling up agenda.' South Derbyshire Council, the area in England with the highest proportion of new builds, adopted a 'Local Green Spaces Plan' on 24 September 2020. According to the council's website, 'the Local Green Spaces Plan designates areas of land that are of particular value to the local community, for protection from most forms of development. 'The Plan will be used to guide development, together with the rest of the development plan, through the determination of planning applications in the District.' Salford City Council's draft local plan states: 'The scale of housing and employment development that needs to be accommodated within Salford over the plan period means that some changes to the Green Belt boundaries within the city are proposed, but these have been minimised as far as possible. Some new areas of Green Belt are also included.' Advertisement At 9am on July 13, 1955, Ruth Ellis was led out to the scaffold at HMP Holloway to meet the legendary hangman Albert Pierrepoint. The 28-year-old murderer stood briefly over the trapdoor, her hands tied behind her back; a hood covering her face. Pierrepoint, who described her neck as 'thin' placed the noose over her head and secured it into place. He had already determined that a drop of eight feet and four inches would be enough to end the life of the mother of two who stood 5ft two inches in her stockings. Moments later, she was dead with a fracture dislocation of the 2nd and 3rd cervical vertebrae. There was also 'little destruction of soft tissues' and a 'clean break of the spinal cord' and almost one-and-three-quarter inches separation. A measurement of the drop following the execution showed she had fallen a total of eight feet and six inches. She had narrowly avoided having her head being separated from her body. Less than 24 hours earlier as Pierrepoint was travelling down from the Rose and Crown bar in Hoole, Lancashire, Ellis was receiving her final visitors. Among them were her solicitors Mr Simmons and Victor Mishcon. A prison officer, Principal Officer Griffin, stood in the corner of the room taking notes which were placed into her file and sealed for more than half a century. Now those documents have been declassified and reveal critical details that were not raised during her one-day trial which condemned her to the gallows. On July 9, 1955, nightclub hostess Ruth Ellis, pictured right, was executed for the murder of her lover David Blakeley, left, a 25-year-old upper class racing driver, who had beaten her some ten days before the murder - causing her to miscarry their baby The details of the murder on Easter Sunday 1955 fascinated the nation especially after Ellis, pictured a year before her execution, refused to express any remorse for shooting Blakeley five times A group of 250 people gathered to protest outside Holloway Prison in North London where Ellis was executed at 9am on July 13, 1955 - just three months after the shooting Evidence which could have seen her sentence commuted was contained within her prison file but this was ignored by the Home Secretary Gwilym Lloyd George who refused to delay the execution The notes showed how her legal team still believed there was time to convince the Home Secretary Gwilym Lloyd George to commute the sentence. Though, while they sat with Ellis, the Under Sheriff of London, Harold Gedge, a representative of the newly installed Queen Elizabeth II, was in the hang house 'for the purpose of testing the apparatus'. Gedge filled a sandbag until it weighed 103lbs - the same as Ellis - and attached it to the rope before operating the trap door. The mechanism operated flawlessly and the the rope was left under tension until shortly before the execution the following morning to remove any elasticity. Inside Ellis' cell according to the note prepared by PO Griffin, which is held at the National Archives in Kew, 'Mr Mischon was very persistent in asking Ellis about the gun'. Mr Mischon said 'it was only fair that the Home Secretary knew the true facts of the gun' and the 'truth could be put on record'. Ellis told her lawyer that she 'didn't want to say anything that would get anyone else in trouble'. Mr Mischon assured her nobody else would be impacted though such detail could help her case. Other documents in her prison file suggest she might have believed that her execution would allow her to 'join Blakeley in the afterlife'. During the trial, the judge and jury heard that on Easter Sunday, April 10, 1955, Ellis had walked a quarter of a mile to The Magdala public house to wait for David Blakeley. She was hidden in the doorway of a news agent when the 25-year-old racing driver left the bar with a friend at 9.30pm. Albert Pierrepoint, pictured right, along with his uncle Thomas, left, described Ellis' neck as 'thin' according to documents relating to her execution held by the National Archives. Pierrepoint carried out the execution Hours before her death Ellis finally admitted that she received the gun used to murder Blakeley from another of her lovers, Desmond Cousins, who drove her to Hampstead to carry out the crime. These were details that were never raised in court The public were informed about the execution by a notice which was placed on the door of the prison along with a statement from the surgeon who declared Ellis' death Ellis managed The Little Club in Knightsbridge, pictured, which caused much speculation about her lifestyle The trial heard Ellis called out 'Hello, David' as her former lover sought his car keys. She took out a .38 calibre Smith & Wesson Victory from her handbag and opened fire. The first round missed and he tried to run around the side of the vehicle. The second round hit him forcing him to the ground. Ellis approached her former lover and stood over him before firing a further four rounds - one from point-blank range into his back. The final bullet ricocheted off the ground and wounded a bystander. Three months after the shooting and on the eve of her death, PO Griffin said with 'very, very great reluctance, Ellis said: 'Alright, I will tell you, but I can't in front of the Officer.' After some more persuasion, she continued with Griffin in the room and said on the night of the shooting she was given the weapon by Desmond Cousins. His name was not mentioned in the Old Bailey, nor was the jury aware that he was another lover. According to the report: 'He [Cousins] loaded it, and oiled it' before handing over the weapon. 'She says she was muddled through all the drink' and couldn't remember what Cousins had said when he handed over the gun. She said she had been drinking 'Vernat, a greenish liquid'. She said Cousins drove her to Hampstead without question. In the original court report, she claimed she had walked to the pub. The prison file on Ruth Ellis contained graphic details of the injuries she suffered during her execution by hanging The report claimed: 'She had never seen the gun before, only an air pistol in the flat, Blakeley was more jealous of Cousins than Cousins of Blakeley.' Shortly before the meeting ended, Ellis admitted she 'still doesn't want to live' and if she did, she could have 'pleaded insanity at the trial'. The public were fascinated by the case with around 250 people standing vigil outside the prison on the morning of the execution to protest against the sentence. Though in the House of Commons there were furious exchanges with accusations that some teachers brought their pupils to the jail to witness the spectacle. In Blackpool, public opinion was 'shocked and scandalised by the gross commercialism of certain showmen in Blackpool who put on exhibition an effigy of Ruth Ellis one day after she was hanged'. The Home Secretary, who ruled out abolishing the death penalty suggested 'if public opinion is really shocked, it would have been better served if the public had not gone to see the exhibition'. During her trial, the court heard that Blakeley had been violent towards Ellis, who tried to excuse the attacks as 'he only hit me with his fist or hands', or that 'I bruise easily'. At one stage she described one attack. She said: 'A few weeks or days previously, I do not know which, David got very violent. I do not know whether that caused the miscarriage or not. He thumped me in the tummy.' When asked her intention on Easter Sunday when she confronted Blakeley, she replied: 'It is obvious when I shot him I intended to kill him.' Ten days before her trial, a psychiatrist interviewed Ellis who found 'no history of any previous mental illness or nervous trouble'. Ellis, pictured at her flat on London's Brompton Road, said she intended to kill Blakeley when she shot him in Hampstead Her prison file said she thought her two children would be 'better off' if she was executed and that she wanted to die A psychiatric report conducted a week before her trial found no evidence of mental illness and said she was fit to plead According to the psychiatric report 'she became extremely angry with David Blakeley' after she stood her up over the Easter weekend having previously arranged to spend time with her. The psychiatrist asked Ellis about the day of the shooting. Ellis in reply said she left her home on Sunday evening taking with her 'a loaded gun with the intention of shooting David Blakeley'. She admitted she had a miscarriage ten days earlier, though she did not 'necessitate any medical attention'. She told the psychiatrist 'having shot David Blakeley she felt no regret, and considered that she was justified in having done what she did because of the way in which he had treated her'. Almost three months after the murder she 'still felt so justified'. The report by A C Dalzell concluded that there was no evidence Ellis 'was suffering from, or had been suffering from delusions, hallucinations or other symptoms of mental disorder'. He claimed Ellis knew that shooting Blakeley was wrong and was aware of the consequences. He said that in his opinion Ellis was 'of sound mind' and was 'fit to plead'. The day after her execution, a showman in Blackpool unveiled a waxwork of Ellis, pictured here in the flat above The Little Club in Knightsbridge. The public was outraged by the 'commercialisation' of the killer's notoriety and the exhibition was raised in the House of Commons A group of anti-vaxxers protested outside Trump Grill in New York City on Thursday after they were denied entrance to the restaurant. A police officer was recorded trying to reason with the handful of protesters, who appeared to be in the restaurant's lobby. None of the individuals involved in the argument were wearing masks, or practicing social-distancing. 'Trump is a fraud if he's enforcing this!' said one of the men in the video. Some supporters of former President Donald Trump were turned away from the Trump Grill in Trump Tower after they refused to show proof of vaccination The supporters filmed a video of their ordeal, in which a security officer explained to them that they needed to show proof of vaccination to get in 'Prove to us. that we are a threat... Yeah, so the burden of proof is on them because they are assuming that we are a threat because we don't have a vaccine. Well, prove to me that we are a threat,' added another man. The police officer answered that the restaurant didn't have to prove anything , and that restaurant service was not a constitutional right. 'You can make ten reservations, that doesn't guarantee...It's not a constitutional right,' the officer said. In New York City, people aged five and older are required to show proof they have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine for indoor dining, including restaurants, catering halls, hotel banquet rooms, bars, nightclubs, cafeterias, coffee shops, fast food restaurants and grocery stores with indoor dining. The Trump Grill is located in Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York City Former U.S. President Donald Trump received and promoted getting the COVID-19 vaccine booster shot earlier this week New York shattered its COVID cases record for the third day running, recording an enormous 44,431 new cases on Christmas Eve. The numbers were shared by State Governor Kathy Hochul at a Friday morning press conference. She blamed the huge spike on the Omicron variant, estimated to be behind 92percent of new infections in the Empire State, and said: 'This is a very, very contagious variant.' But Hochul also struck a note of optimism, insisting: This is not Delta. This is Omicron, which thus far has demonstrated that it's not as severe in its impact. This is not the same situation we had in March 2020 or even last winter's surge. We've had more testing. We've had more opportunities.' Hochul also revealed that COVID hospitalizations rose by five per cent in a day, and now sit at 4,744. But the governor highlighted that the figure is far fewer than the 7,000 who were hospitalized with the virus during Christmas 2020. On Friday, Hochul also said that essential workers in New York now only have to isolate for five days after they test positive for COVID if they're vaccinated and have suffered a so-called breakthrough infection. She says she is doing so to try and tackle staffing shortages blamed on current 10 day isolation rules. 'Trump is a fraud if he enforces this!' one upset supporter can be heard saying An Uber driver was charged with raping a female passenger who fell asleep before waking up as she was attacked during a ride in metro Las Vegas, according to authorities. Dawed Oumer Mekonene, 30, was arrested Tuesday and remained in jail Friday pending a court hearing on charges of sexual assault and battery by strangulation to commit sexual assault, according to Clark County Detention Center records. Clark County prosecutors declined to pursue the kidnapping charge, court logs show. Online court records didn't list a defense attorney for the man who might comment on his behalf about the allegations but said he was represented by the public defender's office. The office was closed Friday for the holiday. Pictured: Dawed Oumer Mekonene, 30, was arrested Tuesday on charges of sexual assault and battery by strangulation to commit sexual assault Mekonene was working as a rideshare driver for Uber, his exact car not pictured, when he allegedly raped his sleeping female passenger on Tuesday An arrest report said Mekonene, after stopping to rape the out-of-state passenger, took her to her destination at an apartment complex, pulled her out of the car and threw her clothes and belongings at her. The woman ran inside and asked the front desk for help, the report said. According to the report, police used Uber records to identify the driver and obtained surveillance video showing the woman being dropped off. Uber told the Las Vegas Review-Journal in an email that it was working with police in their investigation. Uber, whose San Francisco headquarters is pictured, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal in an email that it was working with police in their investigation 'The details described by the rider are horrific, and we immediately deactivated the driver,' Uber told the outlet. The company's website says background checks are conducted on its drivers yearly to check for criminal and driving histories and 'uses technology to look for issues in between' those checks. Uber also allows users of its app to report safety concerns to local law enforcement. Online court records did not list the name of Mekonene's defense attorney, but do say he's being represented by the public defender's office. Mekonene's bail was set at $200,000, although it was not clear if he had posted it as of Saturday. He is next court appearance is scheduled for December 30. A vegan activist has slammed those enjoying Christmas lunch in a disgusting rant, by comparing it to the holocaust. Infamous animal rights supporter Tash Peterson, posted the gruesome message to Instagram on Friday which involved her carrying a severed pig's head. 'Your Christmas Lunch = Their Holocaust,' she wrote. Vegan activist Tash Peterson, 27, has compared Christmas lunch to an animal holocaust (pictured) 'How can you celebrate family and peace with the body parts of murder victims and secretions of individuals who had their babies ripped away from them on your plate?' The 27-year-old uploaded the image alongside several photos of her holding a severed pigs head which she carried into a Coles a supermarket. In a video uploaded on Christmas eve the militant vegan is seen carrying the pig's head into a shopping centre while dressed in a bloodied costume. Ms Peterson posted the gruesome message on her Instagram on Christmas eve (pictured) 'Do you know where your Christmas ham really came from?' She shouts. She is then heard screaming graphic details about animal deaths at shoppers, while a security guard is heard reminding her she is banned from the centre. One shopper is seen trying to grab the pig's head from Ms Peterson who threatens to have the man charged with stealing. She uploaded a video showing her storm a shopping centre on Christmas eve carrying the severed pig's head (pictured) The activist's fans posted messages of support for the stunt, with one social media user writing: 'Amazing Tash. Gave me goosebumps.' 'You are a hero,' commented another. However, not everyone was convinced by the stunt, with some social media users detailing what exactly what they planned to eat for Christmas lunch. 'My Xmas lunch = yum,' commented one person. 'Cant wait for bacon Xmas morning followed by roast turkey for lunch! Yum,' said another. 'Tomorrow Im doing pulled pork, pork ribs, chicken breast fillets, beef short ribs and sausages. Will post up progress photos here during the day,' added a third. At one point a shopper attempted to remove the pig's head from Ms Peterson (pictured) during her rant The not-so-festive rant comes days after Ms Peterson found out the farmer who tossed her out of a cattle pen will not face any charges. The vegan activist had stormed Perth's Royal Show in September and leapt over the fence in the midst of a cattle judging event. Her stunt didn't last long when an irate farmer stepped in to grab her by the scruff of her shorts and hurl her back through the barrier. The stunt comes days after Ms Peterson posted a rant complaining a farmer who tossed her out of an event would not face charges In an incredible rant shared on Instagram on Wednesday night, she revealed she'd been informed by police they weren't pressing charges against the farmer who 'manhandled' her. 'This assault resulted in bruising all over my body and in my groin region due to the force of lifting me by my pants, which exposed my buttocks and the forceful slamming of my body into the fence,' she wrote. 'The police officer told me that because I was trespassing (I have not been charged trespass for this protest), he used reasonable force to remove me from the arena. She claimed she was 'assaulted' and was left with bruises after the incident 'He told me that the animals are easily frightened and can cause death, so I was being removed for safety. As you can see in the footage, I was clearly not being removed for safety as I was thrown around and slammed into a fence.' She then said if organisers of the event cared about safety they wouldn't be 'abusing' animals. 'They don't care about safety, they care about making money from animal abuse and murder,' she continued. 'Today, animal rights activists are assaulted and even murdered. Whatever violence we face, we will always continue the fight for animal rights.' A WA Police spokesperson confirmed to Daily Mail Australia no charges were laid in relation to the incident. A former rugby league great has admitted he 'cheated death' when he survived being crushed by a shipping container that collapsed on him. Former Origin and NRL star Chris Walker was working in a pop-up bar at an event in Townsville when the side of a shipping container fell after becoming unhinged and crushed his right leg. The former Broncos, Souths and Queensland winger was in excruciating pain for five minutes while trapped and feared he'd never see his wife Courtney and their three children again. Former Origin and NRL star Chris Walker was working in a pop-up bar at an event in Townsville when the side of a shipping container unhinged and and fell and crushed his right leg Walker feared he would never see his wife or three kids again during five minute of excruciating pain while he was trapped. He is pictured with his wife Courtney Walker was attended to by emergency staff on the scene after suffering a horrific leg injury. The force of a one tonne shipping container trapping his leg snapped both major bones 'All I thought was if I don't get out of here I won't see my kids or family again,' The Courier Mail reported. It is understood the weight that fell on his leg was one tonne. The force snapped his right tibia and fibula and caused the bones to break through the skin of his leg. Walker, 41, will not be able to walk for up to a year and had a knee-to-ankle titanium rod and two screws inserted in the leg in emergency surgery. He has kept fans and friends updated from his hospital bed, posting photos of his gruesome injuries and messages, including saying 'Cheating death anxiety plus!' 'Totally overwhelmed with the support from everyone regarding my accident Friday night, thank you to everyone who has reached out I really appreciate it,' Walker wrote. 'It's onto rehab and recovery as I have a very long hard road ahead of me.' Walker is recovering at home at Currumbin, on the Gold Coast. Walker, 41, will not be able to walk for up to a year and had a knee-to-ankle titanium rod and two screws inserted in his right leg during emergency surgery (pictured) Courtney Walker could not sleep out of fear for her husband as she received constant updates from the hospital Courtney Walker could not sleep out of fear for her husband as she received constant updates from the hospital. 'It was a bit scary, I didn't get much sleep that night,' she said. Ironically, Walker this year completed a 1,757 kilometre charity walk over 66 days to raise money for motor neurone disease research. He took on the epic challenge after his former team-mate Carl Webb developed the illness. Vice President Kamala Harris took another COVID test on Friday just hours before meeting with Los Angeles firefighters and previously testing negative earlier in the day. Harris, 57, has been tested multiple times since Wednesday after it was revealed she came into contact with an infected staffer on Tuesday, with her latest PCR test on Friday coming back negative. The White House said Harris has repeatedly tested negative in rapid and follow-up antigen tests this week, but her latest results from the PCR test came back after she already met with the first responders. 'You are so special and we really do appreciate you and we thank you,' she told the firefighters as she delivered doughnuts with her husband, Doug Emhoff. The White House confirmed that Harris has been tested regularly this week following the possible exposure. The vice president has been tested regularly since taking office. The news comes just three days after the White House announced that President Joe Biden was also in contact with a staffer who tested positive while traveling on Air Force One last week. Vice President Kamala Harris and husband Douglas Emhoff (center) visited the Los Angeles Fire Department Station 94 on Friday in between two COVID test results Although the vice president tested negative on Friday, a second test result was still pending before her visit to the fire house. It came back negative later in the day Both Harris and Emhoff have tested negative following the vice president's contact with an infected staffer on Tuesday. Harris has been testing all week It comes as Joe Biden (pictured with wife Jill on Friday) also tested negative after his own encounter with an infected staffer aboard Air Force One last week Biden, 79, took a second PCR test Wednesday morning, with the White House announcing the negative result around 12:30 p.m. Harris's chief spokeswoman Symone Sanders said in a statement that the staffer who came into contact with Harris had tested negative for COVID on Monday before another set of results came the following day. 'This staff member is fully vaccinated and boosted and did not experience symptoms,' Sanders wrote. 'Others who were in close contact with this staff member are being contacted and will be advised to get tested per CDC guidance.' Despite the possible exposure, Harris carried on with her holiday trip to Los Angeles on Wednesday. Both she and Emhoff are fully vaccinated and have tested negative. Harris' trip to the fire department came during her holiday retreat to Los Angeles The Vice President and the firefighters kept their masks on during the visit Harris and Emhoff have repeatedly tested negative following the possible exposure 'As CDC guidance does not require fully vaccinated people to quarantine after an exposure, the vice president will continue with her daily schedule,' Sanders said. News of the close contact comes hours after after Meena Harris, the niece of the vice president, revealed she has COVID and says her friend who doesn't have her booster shot has symptoms that are '10x worse.' 'I have COVID,' Meena Harris, 37, tweeted on Tuesday night. 'Based on what I know, after testing negative several times last week, either I infected my friend or she infected me. So far her symptoms are 10x worse than mine. I'm boosted. She's not. Get the booster, people.' Jozsef Piri, 49, was living in Connecticut and a practicing physician at Hartford Hospital before the shooting on Nov. 1, 2019 A Florida doctor will be arraigned on charges in connection to a fatal road rage shooting of a Boston delivery truck driver in Vermont more than two years ago, allegedly blaming it on having a 's**t day.' Jozsef Piri, 49, of Naples, Florida, was arrested on a second-degree murder charge for the death of Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, 44, on November 1, 2019, Vermont State Police said. Fonseca-Rivera was found shot to death in the Katsiroubas produce truck he was driving on Route 103 in Rockingham. The two men did not know each other, according to police. At the time, Piri lived in Connecticut and was returning home from his property in Londonderry, Vermont. He was driving immediately in front of Fonseca-Rivera just before the shooting, police said, based on surveillance footage, GPS data, photographs and other information. At the time of the incident, the victim had been talking to a friend on the phone when he started complaining about the way the car in front of his truck was being driven recklessly, according to court documents. The friend told police he heard Fonseca-Rivera take a 'deep inhale' before a sudden, loud noise popped off, sounding as if the victim's cellphone dropped onto the floor. Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, 44, was complaining about Piri's reckless driving while talking to a friend on the phone. At the time of the shooting, the truck driver was delivering produce to a Vermont restaurant. Interviewed a day after the shooting, Piri had allegedly told police that he hadn't slept well the night prior to the incident and was irritated by his discovery of the costs linked to his renovations at his secondary home. The doctor, who didn't admit to the shooting in that interview, said he had been having a 'st day,' according to the court documents. Following multiple searches in Piri's car, police found a magnetic gun holster on the driver's door and a total of five guns in his Vermont and Connecticut homes. One of them was matched with the one that was used to fatally shoot Fonseca-Rivera. An affidavit related to the case states that 'the bullet came from outside the cab of the [produce] truck, and it was fired from in front of the truck.' A 9 mm caliber handgun that was found by investigators had the 'same general rifling class characteristics' as the bullet found in Fonseca-Rivera's neck. Fonseca-Riveras body was found in the driver's seat of this Katsiroubas Bros produce truck. Bullets were found in the back of his neck when police were at the scene of the crime Investigators also checked Piri's phone and discovered a Google search on a news article that claimed the truck driver's death was 'suspicious,' according to the court documents. His phone's search history from the days before the shooting had allegedly been deleted. At the time of the deadly road rage incident in 2019, Piri was a practicing family physician at Hartford Hospital. Prior to his arrest on December 16, he was working at Physician's Regional in Tampa. He is currently awaiting extradition to Vermont, although the exact date for that remains unknown. The doctor's trial date also remains unknown. If he is found guilty in court, then Piri could face life imprisonment with a presumptive minimum term of twenty years. A New Jersey decorator - who created a fake Clark Griswold mannequin inspired by the 1989 holiday film Christmas Vacation - landed himself in hot water after a local fire department was called because of the prank. The well-designed automated mannequin was created by decorator Doug Peterson, of Oceanport, who posted the prank on TikTok. The mannequin was meant to resemble the popular Vacation series character Clark Griswold, played by Chevy Chase, who is portrayed as a fun-loving family man fixated on giving his family the perfect Christmas holiday. The decoration is inspired by a famous scene where Griswold is hanging Christmas lights before the ladder falls and he is trapped dangling from the roof as he calls his family for help. A decoration prank inspired by the 1989 film Christmas Vacation went viral as it resembled a famous scene with character Clark Griswold struggling to put his holiday lights on his home A local fire department was reportedly called as it was possibly assumed the mannequin was a real life decorator stuck hanging from the roof of his home The film's main character Clark Griswold, played by Chevy Chase, is portrayed as a fun-loving family man trying to give his family the perfect Christmas. One of the more famous scenes involves Griswold attempting to put his lights up Peterson, who constructed the mannequin himself, posted a video of the live-action figure mimicking the scene. In another video, Peterson posted the local fire department passing by his home as they possibly assumed the mannequin was a real-life decorator shouting for help. It is unclear if the fire department was part of the prank or if they were attempting to help out the fake decorator. DailyMail.com reached out to Peterson for comment. New Jersey decorator Doug Peterson constructed the figure himself by installing a motor system for his legs as well as assembling a sound system for his voice Peterson added Griswold's signature costume onto the mannequin and hung him from the edge of the roof in front of his home Peterson has since posted a series of videos on the fake decoration, as it has received viral social media attention since it was posted. He explained in a later video how the decoration was constructed in order to give it a realistic effect. He had used a Michael Myers figure, from the 1978 film Halloween, as a base to create the Griswold mannequin. In order to create the effect, he used a motor system to get the legs to swing back and forth as well as adding in a sound machine and lights. Griswold's signature costume was then put on the mannequin and hung on the roof of the home. A string of dangling lights and a fallen ladder were also added to resemble the iconic scene. Social media users have since delighted in the crafty prank after his first video of the decoration received more than four million views on TikTok. '911 what's your emergency? There's a guy......nevermind, @user7932315895924 commented. 'How many times have the cops been called about his house,' @user9383762215540 commented. 'Ha ha! As a 911 dispatcher I used to get calls every year about a house that hung a body for Halloween this is soooo much better,' @Porcha commented. Social media users shared in Peterson's humor over the outcome of the humorous realistic decoration This is also not the first time a Christmas Vacation decoration went wrong, after a Texas family pulled a similar prank on their neighbors in 2018. The Heerlein family from Austin created a similar scene from the film which caused a passerby to assume someone was actually dangling off the roof. The elderly passerby, who was a retired veteran, attempted to save the figure which was then captured from the front of the home with NestCam video. He had also called out for help from other neighbors and local police were dispatched to the scene. The family's nanny, who had been home at the time, then explained the prank to the officers. The incident prompted the family to hang a sign reading 'Clark G is part of our Christmas display please do not call 911.' The family also gave the passerby an apology who let out a sigh of relief after he initially assumed the incident was real. A family from Austin, Texas previously created a similar decoration for their home in 2018 James Franco has been served papers to appear in court in the long-running bitter legal battle between Johnny Depp, 58, and his ex-wife Amber Heard, 35. Franco, 43, who earlier this week admitted that he slept with his acting students, is to be quizzed in court over whether he possibly had an extramarital affair with Heard while she was still with Depp. Depp's lawyers are also keen to speak to the actor to determine whether he ever saw any of the alleged bruises to Heard's face. Depp has previously accused Heard of sleeping with her co-star, Franco, during the filming of The Adderall Diaries in 2015. Franco's deposition will take place early in the new year in the $50 million defamation lawsuit filed by Depp against Heard. James Franco is set to be deposed in Johnny Depp's $50 million defamation against Amber Heard. Franco lived in the same building as Depp and Heard and he is to be questioned over whether he knew about the estranged couple's fights or whether bruises appeared on Heard Franco will be quizzed over whether he had affair with actress and if she saw bruises on her face during a visit to her apartment Amber Heard and James Franco attend the premier of the Adderall Diaries in 2015. Johnny Depp has previously accused Heard of sleeping with her co-star during filming Depp is suing his ex-wife through a court in Virginia over an op-ed article she wrote for the Washington Post in 2018 where she described how she was a victim of domestic violence. She never referred to Depp by name but he believes that it was obvious Heard was referring to him as the abuser. Depp has denied any abuse towards her. 'I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture's wrath for women who speak out,' she wrote in the December 2018 article, which didn't mention the Pirates of the Caribbean actor by name. Depp claimed, nonetheless, that it implicated him as the abuser, damaging his reputation and causing him to lose his prized role of Captain Jack Sparrow. Depp is suing his ex-wife through a court in Virginia over an op-ed article she wrote for the Washington Post in 2018 where she described how she was a victim of domestic violence. Amber Heard is pictured with bruises to her face in evidence from an earlier court case Heard cataloged the 'horrific' abuse she claims to have suffered at Depp's hands, describing him as 'the monster' and recalling many of the allegations she made during their divorce. The filing included photos of bruises and scars (left and right) This is one of the clumps of hair left on the ground after Depp tore it from Heard during a December 2015 fight, she claims in legal filings His suit says he's the victim of an 'elaborate hoax' instigated by Heard to generate positive publicity and advance her career. 'Ms. Heard is not a victim of domestic abuse; she is a perpetrator,' it claims. 'She hit, punched and kicked me. She also repeatedly and frequently threw objects into my body and head, including heavy bottles, soda cans, burning candles, television remote controls and paint thinner cans, which severely injured me.' Heard responded with a lurid 300-page filing of her own, cataloging the 'horrific' abuse she claims to have suffered at Depp's hands, describing him as 'the monster' and recalling many of the allegations she made during their divorce. The filing included photos of bruises and scars, clumps of hair apparently torn from Heard's head and pictures of smashed up furniture to illustrate the violence she was allegedly subjected to after hooking up with Depp, her co-star in The Rum Diary, back in 2011. Johnny Depp and Amber Heart were married for two years from 20152017 As part of Depp's $50 million defamation case against Heard, he included images of his own bruised and battered face (left and right ) following Heard's alleged attacks The UK's High Court ruled against Depp following an explosive three-week trial in July 2020, finding allegations the actor was a 'wife beater' was 'substantially true.' The judge ruled that Depp assaulted Heard on a dozen occasions and put her in 'fear of her life' three times often while on drink and drugs binges, which he said turned the actor into a 'monster', in one of the most high-profile libel clashes of this century. James Franco's subpoena was sent to him by Depp's legal team after after surveillance video from May 2016 showed him getting into an elevator with Heard 24 hours after they had a massive fight in which Heard alleged she received a black eye at the hands of Depp. Franco and Heard can be seen on camera leaving the penthouse together where Depp and Heard lived together. Depp's legal team wants to speak to Franco to question him as a 'witness' to know if he discussed the fight with Heard or if Franco recalls seeing any injuries to Heard's face. A 12-day trial is expected to take place from April 11, 2022 in Fairfax County, Virginia. In the suit, as seen by Page Six, Depp said, 'I have denied Ms. Heard's allegations vehemently since she first made them in May 2016 when she walked into court to obtain a temporary restraining order with painted-on bruises that witnesses and surveillance footage show she did not possess each day of the preceding week. I will continue to deny them for the rest of my life. I never abused Ms. Heard or any other woman.' Depp explains that he filed the lawsuit 'not only to clear my name and restore my reputation, but to attempt to bring clarity to the women and men whose lives have been harmed by abuse and who have been repeatedly lied to by Ms. Heard purporting to be their spokesperson.' Heard's legal team has said that Franco also lived in the building around the time of the alleged incident and would sometimes take the elevator together Such claims, according to Depp's attorneys, are a 'lie'. The pair married in February 2015 but split less than two years later when Heard had a restraining order slapped on Depp over claims he threw a cellphone in her face at their downtown Los Angeles loft. Heard claimed police had evidence of the May 27, 2016 attack but two LAPD officers later said in a deposition that they found nothing to suggest a crime took place. The estranged couple eventually agreed to a $7 million divorce settlement in August 2016 - which Heard says she donated to charity - but their back-and-forth feud was only getting started. Meanwhile Franco has been dealing with his own lawsuit. Earlier this week he admitted in a wide-ranging interview that he was 'addicted to sex'. Franco admitted he slept with students at his acting school and 'cheated on everyone' he dated during a 20-year battle with 'sex addiction.' The actor was speaking for the first time since being accused of sexual misconduct by five women, four of his ex-students and one who said he was her mentor, in January 2018. One claimed that Franco removed a protective plastic guard covering actresses' vaginas and simulated oral sex on them while filming a scene for a movie, while another said he asked actresses to remove their shirts on set. Two of the women later sued the Spider Man star, saying he intimidated students at his now-defunct Studio 4 acting school into gratuitous and exploitative sexual situations. James Franco's involvement with Johnny Depp's and Amber Heard's lawsuit comes after surveillance footage shows him visiting Heard at her and Depp's apartment Committed: James has been dating Isabel since November 2017; Isabel and James pictured in 2019 Franco initially denied all of the allegations but settled for $2.2 million in July with the two women who sued him. The actor said he thought sleeping with students was 'cool' because it was 'consensual,' but admitted he was 'completely blind to power dynamics ... but also completely blind to people's feelings.' Speaking on the SiriusXM's The Jess Cagle Podcast, Franco said he 'did sleep with students, and that was wrong.' He also admitted he could 'never be faithful to anybody' before meeting 28-year-old actress Isabel Pakzad who he has been dating since November 2017. Actress Charlyne Yi who accused Franco of being a 'sexual predator' earlier this year reposted tweets criticizing the actor on her Instagram feed, including one which said: 'Took 4 years [for a response to the allegations] and still seems lacking and performative. He didn't know teachers sleeping with students crossed a boundary due to power imbalance? Yikes.' When Franco was a teenager he said he was 'addicted to alcohol' and 'got sober when [he] was 17,' but his addictive behaviors would, eventually, flood into other elements of his life. 'Once I couldn't use alcohol to fill that hole, it was like, 'Oh, success, attention, this is great.' I got addicted to validation or success or whatever that is. 'Along the road of trying to get success and climb the top of that mountain, attention from women, success with women also became a huge source of validation for me. The problem with that is, as I'm sure you can guess, is that there's never enough. 'I'm just trying to fill that hole and it never gets filled,' he explained. He described sex as 'such a powerful drug' and he, unfortunately, 'got hooked on it for 20 more years.' Advertisement It is normally a joyous season, but in tornado-blasted Kentucky thousands of families are in crisis days before Christmas. But with the help of volunteers from around the country, families in western Kentucky will be able to celebrate Christmas later on Saturday, two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction. 'We're just trying to provide Christmas,' said Jimmy Finch, a volunteer from the neighboring US state of Tennessee who came to Mayfield the day after the twisters hit. 'I haven't kept a total tally of how many people we have fed,' Finch said. 'We just encourage everybody to keep coming back.' Under a big yellow tent set up in a parking lot, the Scientology Volunteer Minister group also serves hot food and drink on a cold, windy Christmas Eve. Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, interacts with children during a toy drive on Christmas Eve in a heavily damaged neighborhood after tornadoes ripped through several U.S. states Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, looks off while volunteers associated with various church groups celebrate Christmas Eve Volunteers associated with various church groups celebrate Christmas Eve by passing out toys to children in heavily damaged neighborhoods Volunteers associated with various church groups celebrate Christmas Eve by passing out toys to kids affected by the storms Beverly Martin, dressed as Mrs. Claus, speaks to a young girl at a Christmas Eve celebration marked with a lunch and toy drive at the West Kentucky 4-H Camp, a youth outdoor youth recreational facility Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, looks out over a destroyed neighborhood from the bed of a pull-behind trailer Children get to speak with Santa during a toy drive on Christmas Eve in a heavily damaged neighborhood Steely Vanlue, dressed as Mrs. Claus, and Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, pass by a destroyed home on Christmas Eve in Dawson Springs, Kentucky Steely Vanlue, dressed as Mrs. Claus, passes by a destroyed home on Christmas Eve in Dawson Springs, Kentucky Steely Vanlue, dressed as Mrs. Claus, and Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, pass by an upside down trailer Steely Vanlue, dressed as Mrs. Claus, and Troy Black, dressed as Santa Claus, pass by a destroyed home Volunteers have descended on tornado-stricken Mayfield, in the US state of Kentucky, to provide hot food and drinks to the survivors, and hand out toys for the children Donations from around the country have helped survivors of the tornadoes have some semblance of a normal holiday One volunteer group estimates that they have served over 30,000 meals since arriving in Mayfield, the epicenter of tornado destruction At distribution sites across western Kentucky, families impacted by the tornadoes can pick up food, toys, and other staples Cleanup crews remove debris from destroyed homes during recovery efforts on Christmas Eve after tornadoes ripped through several U.S. states, in Dawson Springs, Kentucky Marisol Alvarez (L) helps her brother in law Jose Morales (R) at his destroyed house on December 24 two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction, in Mayfield, Kentucky Volunteers with Samaritans Purse distribute toys to people at a donation site set-up inside Graves County High School, on Christmas Eve two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction, in Mayfield, Kentucky Volunteers, many of them children, line up to load kids bicycles into a trailer to give away during toy drive and Christmas Eve celebration after tornadoes ripped through several states 'It's a very difficult time for everybody,' said Chad Adams, a member of the organization. 'We're trying to make sure everybody eats.' He estimates that they have served over 30,000 meals since the disaster struck, and invites everyone around to keep coming back to have food and hot chocolate. At other sites, organizations distributed toys to families who have lost everything, hoping to provide some joy amidst the tragedy. In the nearby town of Benton, Shane Cornwell dressed up as Santa for his volunteer shift at a donation site, where boxes of toys and food lined the walls of the local Elk Lodge. Volunteers with Samaritans Purse distribute toys to people at a donation site set-up inside Graves County High School in Mayfield, Kentucky Pastor Barb Rigdon and Pastor Tim Rigdon lead volunteers pray before organizing a toy drive and Christmas Eve celebration at Redemption City Church Volunteers with Samaritans Purse distribute toys to people at a donation site set-up inside Graves County High School, on December 24, 2021, two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction, in Mayfield, Kentucky Children of Ede Alvarez and Jose Morales play outside their destroyed house, on Christmas Eve, two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction, in Mayfield, Kentucky Ede Alvarez play with her children outside her destroyed house on Christmas Eve Jose Morales works in his destroyed house on Christmas Eve as he attempts to sort through the mess Marisol Alvarez (L) helps her brother in law Jose Morales at his destroyed house on Christmas Eve Children of Ede Alvarez and Jose Morales sit inside their destroyed house on Christmas Eve The son of Ede Alvarez and Jose Morales plays outside their destroyed house on Christmas Eve Outside, volunteers painted Christmas tree ornaments, while local families impacted by the storm collected toys from bins separated by age range. At least 79 people lost their lives in the tornados, which passed over several states from the night of December 10 to the early morning of December 11. 'The scope and scale of this destruction is almost beyond belief,' said US President Joe Biden after touring the damage in Mayfield. The December 10 tornadoes killed six in Illinois, five in Tennessee, two in Arkansas and two in Missouri. The victims in Kentucky range in age from 2 months old to 98 years old. The continuous tornado path spanned 163.5 mi, making it the longest continuous tornado track in Kentucky history. It's also the deadliest tornado outbreak in the US since May 2011, when more than 170 people were killed. In Mayfield, more than 100 employees of the Mayfield Consumer Products candle factory braved a tornado inside the facility, with some saying they were trapped under as much as five feet of rubble. Elijah Johnson, 20, has filed a lawsuit with 109 other employees against the family-owned candle factory in Kentucky. They are asking for an undisclosed amount after they say they were told that if they left the factory they'd be fired - despite tornado sirens going off. The storm left a trail of wreckage in its wake that stretched from Arkansas, where a nursing home was destroyed, to Illinois, where an Amazon distribution center was heavily damaged Volunteers dressed as elves prepare for a toy drive and Christmas Eve lunch for residents visiting the West Kentucky 4-H Camp, a youth outdoor youth recreational facility on Christmas Eve Members of the First Presbyterian Church and the First Christian gather for a ceremony to bid final goodbye to their church which were destroyed during the Tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky Members of the First Presbyterian Church and the First Christian house hug each other as they gather to bid final goodbye to their respective church which were destroyed during a Tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on Christmas Eve Members of the First Presbyterian Church and the First Christian house get emotional as they gather to bid final goodbye to their church which were destroyed during the Tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on Christmas Eve Members of the First Presbyterian Church and the First Christian (back) gather for a ceremony to bid final goodbye to their respective church which was destroyed during the Tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 24 With the help of volunteers from around the country, families in western Kentucky will be able to celebrate Christmas on Saturday, two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction People line up to get free food from a Non profit Organization - Scientology Volunteer Minister in Mayfield, Kentucky on Christmas Eve Corey Perkins (C) Jett Perkins (R) with their dog Knight Justice arrive to get free food from a Non profit Organization - Scientology Volunteer Minister in Mayfield Jimmy Finch prepares free food for the people in Mayfield, Kentucky Volunteers with Samaritans Purse distribute toys to people at a donation site set-up inside Graves County High School A man holding a candy cane and a baby laughs while other residents deposit goods into their bag during toy drive A volunteer works at a donation camp set up by Elks Club in Benton, Kentucky. It is normally a joyous season, but in tornado-blasted Kentucky thousands of families are in crisis days before Christmas John Stephens, looks at his daughters at his fathers's destroyed home on Christmas Eve in Mayfield, Kentucky A Christmas ball bearing a message for Mayfield is seen hanging to a tree at a donation camp set up by Elks Club in Benton, Kentucky Volunteers of a Non profit Organization - Scientology Volunteer Minister prepare free food for people in Mayfield, Kentucky A battery light lights up in the Christmas Tree inside the destroyed First Presbyterian Church during a ceremony to bid final goodbye to the church in Mayfield, Kentucky on Christmas Eve 'I don't know how anything could've survived not just the tornado but the destruction that came along with it,' Gibson said New disturbing details have emerged after the family of an American woman who was murdered at the Club Med Resort in Turks and Caicos in 2018 hired a private investigator to look into the unsolved murder. Marie Kuhnla, 61, a mother and longtime New York public defender, was strangled to death while vacationing at the the Club Med Resort in Turks and Caicos with her friends in October 2018. As the case of the Long Island native's murder had remained unsolved by local police, her family hired a New York based private investigator to dig into the cold case. The family hired Eddie Dowd in 2020 to delve into the case. No arrest has been made in connection to the murder. An autopsy obtained by NBC's 4 I-Team recently revealed new details surrounding Kuhnla's cause of death. 'This wasn't manual strangulation from behind, come up from behind. She was beat up,' Dowd told NBC 4. 'The first sign of assault was bruising on her rib. She's scratching, bruising on knees to her feet. Her underwear is inside out and pulled away from her private parts.' 'It's very clear to us the only ones investigating my mom's murder are us - not the police,' Rick Kuhnla Jr. said of his mother's death. Marie Kuhnla was found strangled to death in October 2018 in the bushes near the Club Med Resort in Turks and Caicos where she was staying. The case remains unsolved Kuhnla's family hired a private investigator in 2020 who recently found that her body was discovered with 'bruising on her rib,' 'bruising on knees to her feet,' and her underwear 'inside out and pulled away from her private parts' (Pictured: Marie Kuhnla, left, with her son Rick Kuhnla Jr., center, and her husband Rick Kuhnla, right) Her family has filed a wrongful death suit against Club Med for covering up the murder who they claim was conducted by fellow employee and resort guest, Frank Yacullo 'This was a vicious-intentional murder,' the grieving son said. Rick Kuhnla, Marie's husband echoed his son's sentiments and suspicions of local police and Club Med. 'They just wanted to sweep it under the rug. It's the easiest way to answer that,' Kuhnla said. Dowd had previously told NBC 4 that the evidence did not appear to show that Kuhnla had walked to the location where her body was found. 'She was not walking to that location. What happened is that she was either murdered there and dumped there, or she was murdered somewhere else and dumped there,' Dowd said. He is investigating whether or not the body as deliberately allowed to decompose at the island morgue before it was sent home weeks after the murder as part of a cover up. 'We want to know what happened, and we want justice for my mom,' Kuhnla Jr. said when the family first hired Dowd. 'We couldn't get her body back for two months and by then, it was so decomposed, we couldn't view it.' The family also points to the resort's initial public statement that claimed Kuhnla's had been found near the property, not on it. Kuhnla's bruised body was found hidden in the bushes near the resort and a popular beach area in Leeward a day after she was reported missing by her friends who became concerned after she disappeared after a day of drinking at the resort pool. Her friends claim the resort and local police appeared unconcerned when they first reported Kuhnla's disappearance. 'I didn't see any police, I didn't see any resort staff looking for anyone,' Kuhlna's friend, Helma Hermans said. Kuhnla's friends reported missing after a drinking of at the resort pool but claimed that the local police and resort workers seemed unbothered (Pictured: Club Med Resort at Turks and Caicos) No arrest have been made and the murder case remains open more than three years later (Pictured: The scene where Marie Kuhnla's body was found in October 2018) Kuhnla's family believe that they are only ones seriously investigating the 2018 murder case (Pictured: The scene where Marie Kuhnla's body was found in October 2018) The women who were traveling with Kuhnla have previously expressed their suspicions of fellow Club Med guest and former employee Frank Yacullo, who they claim was last seen with the American woman. Hermans claimed that Yacullo attached himself to the group and sexually assaulted her before Kuhnla's disappearance. Kuhnla's family filed a $10 million wrongful death lawsuit in 2020 against Club Med. The lawsuit also names Yacullo, a fellow Long Islander. The court papers accuse Yacullo of killing Kuhnla and Club Med of covering up the horrific crime. Yacullo has maintained his innocence and pleaded the fifth when he was deposed in August, the Kuhnla family attorney Abe George said. When questioned by NBC 4 in 2019, Yacullo said he 'had nothing to do with that. I had no interaction with her besides going to the pool.' George said that after three years, the family is still fighting to get evidence with the Turks and Caicos coroner. 'We're not just taking about crime scene photos. We're talking about the photos they are holding back inexplicably,' George said. He claims that Club Med 'failed to take the requisite action to keep Marie safe,' and insist that Kuhnla's death was 'absolutely' a murder. A US Navy warship with a fully vaccinated crew has paused its deployment in Cuba on Friday following a COVID outbreak. The USS Milwaukee, a littoral combat ship, has been forced to stay in port at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay where it had stopped for a visit. The ship had only been on the water for less than two weeks following its deployment from Mayport, Florida, on December 14 where it was heading into the U.S. Southern Command region. The Navy said in a statement that the ship's crew is '100 percent immunized' and that all of those who tested positive for COVID-19 have been isolated on the ship away from other crew members. They also said that 'a portion' of those infected are having mild symptoms, and that the specific variant is not yet known. 'The ship is following an aggressive mitigation strategy in accordance with Navy and CDC guidelines,' the Navy said. The number of the 105-member crew testing positive was not disclosed. In addition to the ship's crew, a member of the Coast Guard law enforcement personnel was also on board as well as an aviation unit used for operating helicopters and drones. This outbreak comes amid the surge of COVID-19 cases as the presence of the new Omicron variant which has become the dominant strain after accounting for 73 percent of the country's cases. The USS Milwaukee had stopped its deployment in Cuba's Guantanamo Bay due to a COVID outbreak The 105-member crew is '100 percent immunized' and all those who have tested positive have been isolated from the others The vessel was only on the water briefly after being deployed from Mayport, Florida on December 14 where it was heading to the Southern Command region The first major military outbreak of the virus was early last year on a Navy warship, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier that was operating in the Pacific. The Roosevelt was sidelined in Guam for nearly two months, and more than 1,000 of the 4,800 crew members tested positive. One sailor died, and the entire crew went through weeks of quarantine in a rotation that kept enough sailors on the ship to keep it safe and running. Members of the US military personnel are required to be vaccinated as enforced by the Pentagon in August. According to the latest data released by the Navy, more than 98 percent of all active duty sailors have been fully vaccinated. In addition, 9,000 sailors have remained partially vaccinated of this week, according to the Pentagon. As of Wednesday, 5,361 active-duty sailors remain unvaccinated as they have either refused the shot, failed to complete their vaccine series or are waiting on exemption requests, according to Stars & Stripes. The Navy has since approved seven permanent and 140 temporary medical exemptions. Around 2,844 active-duty sailors have requested vaccine waivers for religious purposes but were not approved. In addition, 51,230 soldiers have since caught the virus and 17 have died. The first early outbreak on a Navy warship took place last year after more than 1,000 out of 4,800 crew members tested positive One sailor died on the USS Theodore Roosevelt and the entire crew went through weeks of quarantine in a rotation period It comes as the Omicron continues to drive a surge of new COVID cases across the US, with Christmas Eve seeing total infections edge closer to the all-time record. Figures from Johns Hopkins University published Friday show there were 261,339 new cases in the last 24 hours, up 10 per cent from 238,378 the day before. The number of deaths caused by the virus have also skyrocketed to 3,354, a 52 per cent increase from 2,204 fatalities on Thursday. That is the highest single-day total since October 13, when 3,054 fatalities were recorded. American Omicron infections rose 45 per cent in a day, from 2,625 to 3,286. Those represent a tiny fraction of the true total, because the US only sequences a very small proportion of positive PCR tests to identify which strain caused a person's infection. The CDC estimates that at least 73 per cent of all new COVID infections are being caused by Omicron, with that figure as high as 92 per cent in five states including New York and New Jersey The United States logged a seven-day average coronavirus case count of 168,981 on Wednesday, surpassing a summer peak of over 165,000 infections, according to the Washington Post. While worrying, the figure still falls well short of the 249,000 average hit in January 2020. That marks the second largest surge in cases since the pandemic began nearly two years ago as the highly contagious Omicron variant has been detected in all 50 states, as well Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. Thousands of Americans have also been forced to spend Christmas alone after airlines across the US canceled more than 600 flights and delayed more nearly 2,500 on Christmas eve due to staffing shortages caused by surge in Omicron infections. Queensland Covid cases have spiked again to 765 with 151 confirmed as the Omicron variant after opening its borders to holidaymakers. The cases, which were announced by Health Minister Yvette D'Ath on Saturday, are up from the previous daily case number of 589. Ms D'Ath said five of the new cases were hospitalised, but no-one was in intensive care. Health Minister Yvette D'Ath (pictured) announced Queensland's Covid-19 cases have spiked to 765 on Saturday There were 33,971 tests recorded overnight with Ms D'Ath praising interstate travellers for undertaking a PCR test before crossing the border. 'I want to reinforce all those people travelling interstate have done the right thing and got their PCR test,' she said on Saturday. Late Friday afternoon, two out of three interstate travellers tested positive to Covid-19 while awaiting their PCR test results. The third is yet to receive their results. Ms D'Ath has praised interstate travellers for undertaking PCR testing before travelling to Queensland over the Christmas period Ms D'arth said one of the traveller's who tested positive had planned to attend a large family gathering of 25 to 30 people. 'At least one of those [family] members is over the age of 90 and another one is a newborn baby,' she said. 'Those family members have been protected from having a positive case gathering with them because of that PCR test and those young people doing the right thing and waiting for those results before they sought to travel.' More than 30,000 border passes had been issued on Friday, with 322,000 border passes applied for since the state opened its border on December 13. Queensland's long cherished Covid-free status has been demolished since it reopened its border to interstate visitors from 'hotspots'. Over 90 per cent of Queenslanders aged 16 and over have received one Covid-19 vaccine dose and more than 85 per cent are double jabbed. There were 33,971 tests recorded overnight with two out of three interstate travellers testing positive for Covid-19 while awaiting their PCR test results (pictured, people line up for Covid-19 testing in Brisbane in August) Ms D'ath said the number of residents in quarantine has decreased and understood the challenges of enduring Christmas in isolation away from loved ones. 'We only have 650 people who are formally in quarantine which is much smaller than what we have had in the past which shows the changes around the role of casual and close contact,' she said. 'But we thank those 650 people who are in quarantine, who are probably missing time with family and friends today. More than 30,000 border passes had been issued on Friday, with 322,000 border passes applied for since the state opened its border on December 13 (pictured, a masked woman walks along Southbank in Brisbane) 'We know it's difficult but we are so grateful for what you're doing.' Ms D'Ath said it had been a challenging year for Queenslanders and thanked frontline workers during a Christmas message. 'Merry Christmas, everyone, stay safe please just remember your masks, social distancing, good hygiene all the things we've been doing for two years,' she said. 'It'll help keep us safe and slow down the spread of this virus. Ms D'ath thanked healthcare workers in a Christmas message on Saturday saying she was 'grateful for the amazing work we've been doing' 'Again, thank you to our health workers who are doing such an incredible job. And I know we have a big 2022 coming up. I'm so grateful for the amazing work we've been doing.' This comes as daily Covid cases have doubled since last week prompting the state's Chief health Officer, Dr John Gerrard to declare the spread of the virus in Queensland was 'necessary'. 'In order for us to go from a pandemic phase, to an endemic phase, the virus has to be widespread,' he said on Thursday. 'You all have to develop immunity and there's two ways you can do that, by being vaccinated or getting infected. 'Once we've done that, once we all have a degree of immunity, the virus becomes endemic, and that is what is going to happen.' Dr Gerrard said on Friday the state could expect 'thousands of cases' in the coming weeks. 'Even though the proportion of people getting severely ill is going to be very small, when you have a large number of cases, that can translate to a significant number of people that has the potential to put a strain on our hospitals,' Dr Gerrard said. He said masks and other Covid restrictions were essential to enable Queensland's hospitals to cope with the rise in cases and allow people to get their booster jab in coming weeks. Advertisement Catholics gathered to celebrate Christmas Eve mass across the world, including in the Vatican City where Pope Francis called on the faithful to value the 'little things in life' and show solidarity with the poor. An estimated 2,000 members of the public and 200 religious figures attended the mass at St Peter's Basilica, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing as part of measures against the coronavirus, the Vatican's press office said. Those who had not managed to grab a ticket watched on huge screens outside the church. A maskless Francis processed down the central aisle of the basilica as the Sistine Chapel choir sang Noel, kicking off the Vatican's Christmas holiday that commemorates the birth of Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem. Across the world, worshippers were also seen gathering for annual masses in cities in the US, in Sri Lanka, Iraq, Kenya and Russia. The Vatican went ahead with its service despite the resurgence in Covid-19 cases that has prompted a new vaccine mandate for Vatican employees. Italy reported a further 50,599 new cases on Friday, a second successive daily record, up on Thursday's total of 44,595. Another 141 people died, bringing Italy's official death toll to 136,386. Pope Francis kisses a statue of Baby Jesus as he celebrates Christmas Eve Mass, at St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, in front of approximately 2,000 people Pope Francis arrives to celebrate Christmas Eve Holy Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. During the service, he called on the faithful to value the 'little things in life' and show solidarity with the poor An estimated 2,000 members of the public and 200 religious figures attended the mass at St Peter's Basilica, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing as part of measures against the coronavirus People visit Saint Patrick's Cathedral, in the Manhattan borough of New York, on Christmas Eve, as the Omicron coronavirus variant continues to spread And in Sri Lanka, Christian devotees take communion during a Christmas mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka in Ragama The midnight mass at the Vatican actually began at 7.30pm, a nod to the 85-year-old Pope's endurance and a hold-over from last year, when the service had to end before Italy's nationwide Covid-19 curfew. No curfew is in place this year, but cases this week have surged even beyond 2020 levels. Francis, in his homily, urged the faithful to focus on the 'littleness' of Jesus, and remember that he came into the world poor, without even a proper crib. 'That is where God is, in littleness,' Francis said. 'This is the message: God does not rise up in grandeur, but lowers himself into littleness. 'Littleness is the path that he chose to draw near to us, to touch our hearts, to save us and to bring us back to what really matters.' The Argentinian pontiff called for people to seek out 'littleness' - in 'our daily lives, the things we do each day at home, in our families, at school and in the workplace'. 'Jesus asks us to rediscover and value the little things in life', he said. A Midnight Mass service takes place at the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on Christmas Eve Christian faithful of the Legio Maria African Mission church attend the Christmas eve vigil mass at their church in the Fort Jesus area of Nairobi, Kenya A worshipper reaches out to receive a blessing during the Christmas eve mass at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Um al-Noor in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq Worshippers wearing face masks and keeping social distance listen to the first Christmas Mass conducted at the newly opened Our Lady of Arabia Cathedral, in Awali, Bahrain Members of the Christian minority community attend a Christmas mass at St. Andrew's Church in Karachi, Pakistan A Catholic devotee touches a baby Jesus doll at the Nativity scene during the Christmas Eve mass at the Holy Redeemer Church in Bangkok A female choir member looks on during the Christmas eve mass at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Um al-Noor in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq Francis, formerly the Archbishop of Buenos Aires Jorge Mario Bergoglio, called for more solidarity with those living in poverty. 'On this night of love, may we have only one fear: that of offending God's love, hurting him by despising the poor with our indifference,' he said. It was the second such Christmas Eve mass during the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, barely 200 people - mostly Vatican employees - were able to attend. Friday night's mass came after the Vatican secretary of state on Thursday imposed a new vaccine mandate on all Vatican staff, extending it to all employees except those who have recovered from coronavirus. Previously, only employees who dealt with the public directly had to be vaccinated, such as staff at the Vatican Museums and the Swiss Guards, while others could access their offices with regular testing. The mandate does not apply to the faithful attending mass, but they are required to wear masks. Priests, all wearing masks and socially distance from one another, wait for Pope Francis to celebrate Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican Young altar servers light up their candles during the Christmas eve mass at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Um al-Noor in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq Members of the Christian minority community attend a Christmas mass at St. Andrew's Church in Karachi, Pakistan An Iraqi Christian prays during Christmas Eve Mass in St. Teresa's Church ahead of Christmas celebrations, in Basra, Iraq A woman reads from a prayer book while holding a candle during the Christmas eve mass at the Syriac Orthodox Church of Um al-Noor in Arbil Christian devotees take communion during a Christmas mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka in Ragama, Sri Lanka The faithful attending Friday's mass, and the priests, bishops and cardinals concelebrating it, all wore masks. Francis, who is missing part of one lung and had intestinal surgery in July, has largely eschewed masks, even when greeting prelates and the general public. Francis is believed to have received the third booster shot, as has emeritus Pope Benedict XVI. Francis has previously said vaccination is an 'act of love' and he has called for wealthier countries to provide the shots to the developing world. Advertisement Covid hospital admissions in London Britain's Omicron ground zero are within touching distance of the Government's threshold of 400 for introducing lockdown restrictions across the country. Latest NHS data shows there were 386 new admissions for the virus in the capital on December 22, marking a 92 per cent rise on the figure last week. Covid hospitalisations are now doubling roughly every 10 days - though they are still a far cry from the 850 at the peak last January. Ministers are said to be watching admission rates in the capital before pulling the trigger on more national curbs because London is a few weeks ahead in its Omicron outbreak. Shoppers walk along Regent Street on December 24. A national two-week 'circuit breaker' lockdown has been mooted after Christmas if London's daily admissions breach 400 this week Reports have claimed ministers are watching hospitalisation numbers in the capital, with a two-week 'circuit breaker' lockdown set to be imposed if daily numbers surpass 400 Covid hospital admissions in London Britain's Omicron ground zero are within touching distance of the Government's threshold of 400 for introducing lockdown restrictions across the country Covid hospitalisations are now doubling roughly every 10 days - though they are still a far cry from the 850 at the peak last January A daily count of confirmed Covid-19 patients in hospital at 8am. Ministers are said to be watching admission rates in the capital before pulling the trigger on more national curbs because London is a few weeks ahead in its Omicron outbreak An age breakdown of the number of covid patients admitted to hospital since the start of the pandemic (left) and as the rate per 100,000 people since the start of the pandemic (right) A national two-week 'circuit breaker' lockdown has been mooted after Christmas if London's daily admissions breach 400 this week which would signal 'unsustainable' pressure on the NHS. London became the epicentre of the UK's Omicron outbreak two weeks before the super mutant variant became dominant across the country and experts are treating trends in the city as a sign of what could come for England. But NHS data recording lags mean it will be after Christmas before it is known whether admissions surpassed 400 in the last two days. MPs and experts have now demanded the Government distinguishes between people who are being hospitalised 'with' or 'for' Covid before deciding on social restrictions. MailOnline's analysis of London Covid admissions show that a third (127) of the 386 new patients only tested positive after arriving at hospital for a different illness. The proportion of so-called 'incidental admissions' was around 12 per cent in the last two weeks of the Delta variant at the end of November, for comparison. People walking in London on Christmas Eve. Covid hospital admissions in London Britain's Omicron ground zero are within touching distance of the Government's threshold of 400 for introducing lockdown restrictions across the country The body of a man has been found on Christmas day during a search for a missing jet-skier near southern Sydney. Emergency services were called to Burraneer Bay on the Hacking River in southern Sydney about 7.30pm on Friday, after receiving reports three men had been thrown from the jet ski. The driver - a 44 year old man - and one passenger - a 39-year-old man, were wearing life jackets when they were rescued but the third man could not be located. The body of a man has been found on Christmas day during a search for a jet-skier who went missing near Burraneer Bay on the Hacking River (pictured) The 44-year-old driver was taken to St George Hospital with suspected chest injuries, where he remains but his passenger was not injured. Police, surf lifesavers and paramedics searched for the third man, believed to be in his 30s, for about an hour on Friday, before pausing their efforts due to poor light. The search recommenced on Saturday at 7am with assistance from the Police Divers. The man's body was located at about 10.40am in the vicinity of Shiprock Reserve, Dolans Bay. While the body is yet to be formally identified, it is believed to be that of the missing jet skier. Officers from the Marine Area Command are continuing to conduct inquiries into the incident and will now prepare a report for the information of the Coroner. 'Australia had one incident. One, They FIXED IT. UK had ONE incident. They FIXED it. How? With action. Using their brains. It was not difficult for either country to find a workable and successful solution,' Trost wrote on her account Sara Trost, 40, was a British real estate agent living in Parkland, Florida, when she was shot in the driveway of one of the properties she was trying to rent out on Thursday A British real estate agent in Florida was allegedly shot dead by an evicted tenant outside a home she was showing to a potential new renter, after calling for tighter gun control on social media before her death. Originally from Southend, Essex, 40-year-old Sara Trost was fatally shot on Thursday while she was inside her Jeep, parked in the driveway of a home in the Coral Springs area, 40 miles north of Miami. The suspect, 51-year-old Raymond Reese was arrested later the same day. He reportedly used to be a tenant of the property in the area of the 5700 block of Northwest 48th Court. Police have not provided details on what led to the murder but neighbors said Reese was an upset tenant after he was thrown out of the $515,000 home. 'There was a disgruntled tenant who was evicted. He thought that the realtor, who was showing the home, he thought it was the owner of the house, and she was ambushed. She was sitting in her car,' Donna Smith, who lives in the area, told WPLG Local 10. Trost (left) was married to American husband, Jason (right), and lived in Parkland, 48 miles north of Miami with their three-year-old daughter (center) Raymond Reese, 51, allegedly shot Trost in the driveway of a $515,000 home on Thursday. He is being held without bond at the Main Detention Center in West Palm Beach on charges of first degree murder Trost was a married mother with a three-year-old daughter, living in Parkland, 48 miles north of Miami, with her American husband, Jason. Before developing her property business for the last eight years, she had worked as an interior designer. Paramedics rushed onto the three-bedroom property's driveway around 12.30p.m. on Thursday to try and save the mother-of-one's life. 'When officers arrived, they discovered a vehicle with one female occupant in the driver's seat suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Despite immediate medical treatment, the driver succumbed to her injuries on scene and was pronounced dead,' the Coral Springs police department said. Police arrested Reese in the town of Boca Raton, shortly after on the same day. 'There are no additional suspects being sought, nor is there a threat to the community,' the police report added. Investigators said Trost was shot multiple times while sitting in her Jeep, which was parked in the property's driveway in the area of the 5700 block of Northwest 48th Court (pictured). Prior to her death, Trost had been vocal on social media about America's gun culture after the infamous nearby high school shooting in 2018 in Parkland, where 17 people died and 17 others were injured. 'Australia had one incident. One, They FIXED IT. UK had ONE incident. They FIXED it. How? With action. Using their brains. It was not difficult for either country to find a workable and successful solution,' Trost shared on Facebook. 'Here in the US we seem to start and stop at 'thoughts and prayers.' Doesn't seem to be working right,' she added. A friend commented: 'Gotta move. It's not going to change.' 'You are right,' Trost responded. The shooting remains under investigation. No trial for Reese has been set at this time. As of Friday evening, Reese is booked into the Main Detention Center in West Palm Beach, according to arrest records. Reese is being held without bond. A UK backpacker who is isolating after attending the same rave as an unvaccinated French traveller has no regrets despite not being allowed out for Christmas. Jay Whitehill, 18, will be forced to spend the festive holiday and New Years Day alone after attending the rave at Perth Mess Hall on December 19. The same party was visited by an unvaccinated French backpacker who has sparked the latest Covid-19 scare in Western Australia with five cases recorded in the state. He also visited several other nightspots including trendy Geisha Bar. Ms Whitehill is now in isolation despite the fact she has already received both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine and previously been infected with the virus. A UK backpacker who is isolating after attending the same rave as an unvaccinated French traveller has no regrets despite not being allowed out for Christmas (pictured, revellers at the After Party at Library Club Northbridge) Jay Whitehill, 18, will be forced to spend the festive holiday and New Years Day alone after attending the rave at Perth Mess Hall on December 19 Ms Whitehill has remained in high spirits saying the rave was a once in a lifetime experience. 'It was an experience I'll never forget, so yeah I still think it was worth it,' she told The West Australian. 'But I won't be going out clubbing anytime soon anymore.' Ms Whitehill said she would be FaceTiming her parents who are living in the UK. She had moved to Perth earlier this year to start her own life. She has some family living in the state and they will drop groceries at her home later in the day. 'I'm feeling fine at the moment, just hope everyone else (that attended the rave) is OK,' she said. Footage of the rave has been uploaded to social media showing hundreds of revellers packed together and dancing. Strobe lights flash and the partygoers slap their hands agains the stage in time with the rhythm of the music. Following the rave revellers took their celebrations down the road to the 'After Party' at Library Club, Northbridge. Some 88 backpackers have also been forced into quarantine after sharing the same accommodation as the unvaccinated French traveller. The backpackers were staying at the Old Fire Station in Fremantle, Perth, before they were bussed into quarantine on Friday night. The 25-year-old French national arrived in Australia before the pandemic and travelled to Perth on December 12. The Frenchman partied at a series of bars and nightspots, staying out until 5am at Perth's trendy clubs (Geisha Bar pictured, where he stayed until 3am) on Saturday night, subsequently forcing hundreds of close contacts into isolation. He began feeling unwell on Sunday but wasn't tested until Wednesday, and was discovered to be positive on Thursday. Western Australia has tightened travel restrictions for Queensland and South Australia over concerns about an 'alarming' rise in COVID-19 case numbers. From midnight the states were reclassified from medium to high risk after Premier Mark McGowan referred to an alarming rise in cases in South Australia and 'worrying signs' in Queensland. It's a case from Queensland that also has the state on edge about its own case numbers. Western Australia recorded five new community infections on Thursday and Mr McGowan expects that number to continue to grow after an unvaccinated French backpacker attended a number of venues while infectious. Migrants including young children and a baby arrived in the UK just minutes before Christmas Day as 150 people attempted to cross the Channel overnight. In pictures taken at 11.30pm on Christmas Eve, a group of 35 people were seen being brought to safety by Border Force officials, at Dover, Kent, having been rescued from a small dinghy. There were two other rescues overnight bringing the total number of migrants arriving in the UK to 150. It comes as the Archbishop of Canterbury planned to use his Christmas sermon to preach a message of support to volunteers helping refugees. The Most Rev Justin Welby will preach the sermon at the Christmas Day Eucharist at Canterbury Cathedral at 11am. A baby was among a group of migrants rescued in the Channel and brought to Dover at about 11.30pm on Christmas Eve Border Force officials are being assisted by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency after being called to an incident in the Channel before 8.20pm on Christmas Eve Archbishop of Canterbury will use his Christmas sermon to urge worshippers to support refugees The Archbishop of Canterbury will use his Christmas sermon to preach a message of support to volunteers helping refugees. The Most Rev Justin Welby will preach the sermon at the Christmas Day Eucharist at Canterbury Cathedral at 11am. His expected to say that the Christmas story of Joseph and Mary searching for shelter demonstrates the need to treat those 'who risk everything to arrive on the beaches' with compassion. He will also say that 'there is no doubting' the human capacity to show 'great kindness' and that volunteers working to welcome refugees arriving on beaches close to Canterbury Cathedral are 'amazing people'. Mr Welby is expected to praise rescuers such as the crews of the RNLI and the Border Patrol cutters' crews in his sermon. He is also expected to pay tribute to those volunteering at food banks over the festive period. Mr Welby is expected to reference the way in which the pandemic experience has forced people to confront their 'fragility' as never before. 'We all face uncertainty, uncontrollability and unpredictability, from Sage and Cabinet to each one of us, from huge companies to those sleeping rough,' he is expected to say. The sermon will be available to live stream from Canterbury Cathedral's website and the final text of the sermon will be published on the Archbishop of Canterbury's website shortly after its delivery. Advertisement He is expected to say that the Christmas story of Joseph and Mary searching for shelter demonstrates the need to treat those 'who risk everything to arrive on the beaches' with compassion. The Border Force intercepted a number of boats containing migrants as they attempted to cross the Channel overnight. A young baby girl was among the 150 people who arrived in Dover, Kent, at about midnight. A second child was also one of 35 people on board a dinghy assisted by Border Force between the Dunkirk and Calais Ferries, shortly before 12am. A record-breaking number of migrants have crossed the Channel this year, including more than a hundred in the past week. All of those involved in the overnight rescues underwent a medical assessment and the adults have been transferred to immigration officials to be interviewed. The children will come under the care of social services, officials said. In another incident in French waters, nine migrants were rescued and are now in the UK after the engine of the vessel they were travelling in failed. They have been transferred to the Coastguard to be assessed. Alongside the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Border Force officials were called to an incident in the Channel before 8.20pm on Christmas Eve. Minister for Justice and Tackling Illegal Migration, Tom Pursglove MP, said: 'Seeking asylum for protection should not involve people asylum shopping country to country or risking their lives by lining the pockets of criminal gangs to cross the Channel. They should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach. 'This Government is reforming our approach to illegal entry to the UK and asylum by making the tough decisions to end the overt exploitation of our laws and UK taxpayers. 'The public have been crying out for reform for two decades and that's what this Government is delivering through our New Plan for Immigration. 'The Nationality and Borders Bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally and introduce life sentences for those who facilitate illegal entry into the country. 'It will also strengthen the powers of Border Force to stop and redirect vessels, while introducing new powers to remove asylum seekers to have their claims processed outside the UK. 'MPs have already voted to reform this broken and abusive system and the sooner the House of Lords approves the Borders Bill, the sooner these reforms can be delivered.' The latest rescues come after the total number of Channel crossings rose to a record breaking 28,020 - more than three times the 8,500 who made the crossing in 2020, according to Home Office figures. On Wednesday, at least 100 migrants, including children wrapped in blankets and snow boots, were intercepted attempting to cross the Channel despite temperatures plunging below freezing overnight. Small boat crossings had briefly stopped due to high winds and strong tides in recent weeks, but have since restarted due to calmer waters in the Channel. A total of 27 people, including seven women and a seven-year-old girl, are thought to have died when their boat sank during an attempted crossing. Wednesday's crossings took the tally for 2021 to a record breaking 28,020 - more than three times the 8,500 who made the journey in 2020, according to Home Office figures A small dinghy was also brought in to Dover after a group of migrants were rescued by Border Force and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency At least 100 migrants, including a child wrapped in blankets and snow boots (pictured), were intercepted on Wednesday morning, despite temperatures plunging below freezing overnight What happens to migrants after they arrive in the UK? Migrants who have been picked up after landing or intercepted at sea are taken to a Border Force processing centre, usually near Dover Here arrivals are triaged to identify any medical needs or vulnerabilities, fed and checked to see if they have a criminal record. Adults have an initial interview before being sent to accommodation centre across Britain, paid for by UK taxpayers and provided by private contractors. The migrants are given 37.75 per week for essentials like food, clothes and toiletries while they wait for a decision on their asylum application. Kent County Council normally takes unaccompanied children into its care, although other local authorities are also involved in this programme. Other migrants might be kept in a detention centre ahead of a plan to send them back to Europe. However, just five were deported last year as ministers admitted to 'difficulties'. Advertisement Dan OMahoney, Clandestine Channel Threat Commander, said: 'Last months tragedy is a devastating reminder of the dangers of Channel crossings and we are determined to work with our European and international partners to target the ruthless organised criminal gangs behind them. 'Unbelievably, these gangs continue their deadly trade with more crossings taking place today, shamelessly putting lives at risk. 'People planning to make the journey should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach instead of risking their lives by crossing the Channel from a safe EU country. 'The Governments New Plan for Immigration will be firm on those coming here via illegal routes and fair for those using safe and legal routes. This will reduce the pull factors in the current asylum and immigration system.' Last month, Priti Patel also vowed to stop '100 per cent' of migrant crossings after online crisis talks with her French counterparts. A joint statement released by the Home Office also said they also discussed the mounting migrant crisis in eastern Europe which Britain accused Belarus and Russia of engineering to undermine European unity. Miss Patel and Mr Darmanin said: 'Tonight, the Home Secretary spoke to her French counterpart Gerald Darmanin to discuss the problem of small boats crossing the Channel and the operational response to it. 'Both the Home Secretary and Interior Minister agreed to strengthen operational cooperation further. More must be done to stop the dangerous crossings. They agreed to accelerate the delivery of the commitments made in the joint agreement of July 2021 to deliver on their joint determination to prevent 100 per cent of crossings and make this deadly route unviable.' New York Governor Kathy Hochul pardoned nine immigrants and commuted one on Friday as she announced her plans to refurbish the state's clemency process. Hochul, 63, had selected the group she granted for clemency after a thorough process of choosing those who had fully reformed themselves in spite of their convictions. The governor has since announced that she does not plan to deport the immigrants as she is planning to help those pardoned stay within the country. Hochul also announced her plans to assemble an advisory panel to help her oversee clemency applications as a method of reforming the Executive clemency program. The nine pardoned include Ana Sanchez Ventura, Juan Vinas, Faustino Reyes, Sandra Williams, Francisco Vargas, Orlando Fernandez Taveras, Hanley Gomez, Juan Suazo and Edilberta Reyes Canales. Former Jamaican drug convict Roger Cole, 55, had his 125-year sentence commuted after receiving a lengthy imprisonment period for substance-related crimes. New York Governor Hochul, 63, pardoned nine immigrants and commuted one on Friday Hochul also announced on Friday that she plans to refurbish the clemency process including using an advisory panel to make decisions on an ongoing basis, rather than once a year, and provide more opportunity for applications to be thorougly considered Orlando Fernandez Tavera, 46, was one of the pardoned on Friday after he had been convicted of petit larceny, attempted petit larceny, fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, third-degree criminal trespass, attempted resisting Arrest, trespass, and third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle between 1998 and 2008 'As Governor, I have a unique and solemn responsibility to carefully use the power of clemency to address individuals in the criminal justice system who have made mistakes and have taken extraordinary steps to rehabilitate themselves,' Hochul said, according to the New York State site. 'I am granting clemency to these deserving individuals who have exemplified rehabilitation, and I am committed to increased transparency and accountability in this process going forward. 'No one should be defined by their worst mistake, and these individuals have worked tirelessly to atone for theirs.' As part of the new clemency process, Hochul has assigned experts from a variety of fields for the panel including members of law enforcement, public defense, the judiciary, and clergy, and former convicts. The new panel will review applications on an ongoing basis, rather than once a year, and increase attention to detail in order to ensure every candidate is being thoroughly examined. Rallies had been organized for Hochul to increase pardons in an attempt to argue for a refurbished clemency process In addition, Hochul also announced her office will release the number of applications being delivered on a year-to-date basis as well as how many have been accepted or denied. Applicants will also receive a notice biannually to confirm their case status and what additional information they can submit for review. However, the governor has been criticized by a campaign group who have pushed for further commutations and to reduce the state's jail population. 'Today, Governor Hochul has drastically failed Black and Latinx communities by only granting clemency to one incarcerated New Yorker,' Jose Saldana, the director of the Release Aging People in Prison Campaign said. 'While we welcome home that person and celebrate for their loved ones, and we also recognize the life-saving value of the pardons granted to people long since released, we are heartbroken knowing that so many of our mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers are suffering behind bars and facing a slow death penalty.' Governor Andrew Cuomo had commuted 41 prison sentences during his final years in office before he resigned in November Rallies had been organized for Hochul to increase pardons in an attempt to argue for a refurbished clemency process. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had commuted 41 prison sentences during his final years in office before he resigned in November due to sexual harassment allegations against him. However, Hochul's new plan for an upgraded clemency process will see more opportunities for people to be pardoned. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has officially shortened the quarantine for vaccinated 'critical workers' who test positive for COVID to five days. The governor made the announcement on Christmas Eve as the Omicron variant has caused a recent spike in positive cases, shutting down health care centers and hundreds of flights and keeping families apart for the holidays. New York's new guidelines will allow fully vaccinated 'critical workers' to quarantine for only five days after testing positive for COVID if they are asymptomatic or showing resolving symptoms. They must also have not had a fever for 72 hours or be on medication and are required to wear a mask when they return to work. 'We want to make sure that our critical workforce who we've relied on from the beginning that our workers can get back,' Hochul said on Friday. 'And that includes our health care, elder care, home health care, sanitation, grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants you know who you are. 'We need you again, we need you to be able to go to work,' she said. On Friday, New York reported 44,431 positive COVID cases and 4,744 COVID hospitalizations. Ahead of the holidays the state reported 82.9 percent of all New Yorkers have at least one vaccine dose with the state administering 32,979,809 doses to date. Governor Kathy Hochul shortened the 10-day mandatory quarantine to five days for 'critical workers' on Christmas Eve as many industries have begun facing staffing shortages New York's new guidelines will allow fully-vaccinated 'critical workers' to quarantine for five days if they are asymptomatic or showing resolving symptoms The CDC announced on Thursday that the quarantine time has been reduced to seven days for healthcare workers as staff shortages have hit the industry as COVID cases surge Hochul defended her response to the pandemic amid the recent holiday spike. 'We're going to continue to spread holiday cheer, not COVID,' Hochul said. 'We are going to keep things open. We're going to do the right things, but we will not get complacent. We are going to get through this battle, my friends. We're smart. We know how to do this. We're not shutting down business. We're not shutting down schools,' she insisted. Hochuls address also included a timeline of the safety measures she has implemented and the new plans she has to increase access to COVID testing and vaccines throughout the state. The newly appointed governor's newest COVID guidelines and Christmas speech were presented as she works to maintain her position as a top contender for the gubernatorial race ahead of next year's primary election. The surge in positive cases caused popular New York City urgent care center CityMD to shutter 13 of its locations across Brooklyn, Manhattan the Bronx and Queens due to staffing shortages amid the overwhelming demand. Lines of up to six hours formed outside many testing sites as people prepared for the holidays, with results that are supposed to be delivered within 48 hours now taking four or five days. Gov. Hochul's five day quarantine for 'critical workers' comes a day after the Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that they were shortening the mandatory 10-day COVID quarantine to seven days for some workers. The CDC cut the quarantine time to seven days for healthcare workers who are asymptomatic and can provide a negative test, officials announced on Thursday. They also announced that fully vaccinated healthcare workers- those whose have had their booster shot- no longer have to quarantine after being exposed to COVID. Dr. Anthony Fauci had previously said that healthcare officials are considering lowering the quarantine to seven days for all Americans. The CDC's changes come as healthcare systems have struggled with staffing shortages and follows after the U.K. changed their quarantine period to seven days for vaccinated people. Delta Airlines Chief Executive wrote an open letter to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky asking to reduce the 10-day quarantine to seven days for all fully-vaccinated Americans The request comes as hundreds of flights have been cancelled during the busy holiday season as Omicron cases surge and workers are forced to quarantine for 10 days The agency's adjustments also comes after Delta Airlines Chief Executive Ed Bastian asked CDC Director Rochelle Walensky to reduce the 10-day quarantine to a week for all Americans in a letter co-signed by airline health and medical advisors. Bastian noted that 90 percent of Delta airline workers are fully vaccinated and that the current 10-day quarantine 'may significantly impact our workforce and operations' and Omicron COVID cases continue to surge. Airlines are already seeing the negative impacts of COVID surges and the 10-day quarantine as travel picks up around the holidays. More than 600 flights were canceled and nearly 2,500 flights were delayed on Christmas Eve morning due to staffing shortages. Short staffing due to the breakthrough infections has led United Airlines to cancel at least 196 flights while Atlanta-based Delta said it canceled 171 and Jet Blue canceled 78 on Friday. More flight cancellations are expected throughout the next few days. Delta has already cancelled 247 flights for Christmas Day with United Airlines preemptively canceling 173 and Jet Blue canceling 75. The delays have thrown a wrench in many people's holiday plans, while others had already been forced to stay home due to positive or delayed COVID tests. A New York judge upheld his order for The New York Times to return documents they obtained about communications between the conservative activist group Project Veritas and the group's lawyers. In his Friday ruling, Justice Charles Wood ordered The Times to immediately give back all physical copies of their Project Veritas documents and destroy any electronic copies the newspaper has, as they were protected by attorney-client privilege. Wood also argued that The Time's story regarding the documents were of no 'general interest and of value and concern to the public.' A.G. Sulzberger, publisher of The Times, said the news outlet would seek a stay of the ruling and would appeal it on First Amendment grounds. 'This ruling should raise alarms not just for advocates of press freedoms but for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know,' Sulzberger said in a statement. A New York judge ordered the NY Times to return all the files it obtained regarding communications between Project Veritas and their lawyers. Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe is suing The Times for defamation against the far-right media outlet The Times' leadership said they would appeal the ruling and warned that it set a dangerous precedent against freedom of the press. New York Justice Charles Wood argued that The Time's story about Project Veritas was not newsworthy 'In defiance of law settled in the Pentagon Papers case, this judge has barred The Times from publishing information about a prominent and influential organization that was obtained legally in the ordinary course of reporting.' The judge's order came as part of a defamation lawsuit filed against The Times by Project Veritas leader James O'Keef. The group came under federal scrutiny in relation to the alleged theft of the diary of President Joe Biden's daughter Ashley, which the group considered publishing but never did. The group admitted to being in possession of the diary at some point but claim to have since handed it over to authorities. Portions of the diary were published by National File, a right-wing website, which said they were provided by a frustrated employee of a media outlet that passed on them. Project Veritas denies any connection to the publication of the diary. It has objected to a November 11 New York Times article that drew from memos from a Project Veritas lawyer, and purported to reveal how the group worked 'gray area between investigative journalism and political spying' using its lawyers to 'gauge how far its deceptive reporting practices can go before running afoul of federal laws.' O'Keefe and the group have been heavily criticized for allegedly using deceptive tactics to expose what it describes as liberal media bias. Elizabeth Locke, a lawyer for Project Veritas, said: 'Today's ruling affirms that The New York Times's behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law. 'The court's thoughtful and well-researched opinion is a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship,' Locke added. Ashley Biden (right), 40, is the only daughter of President Joe Biden and first lady Jill. A Project Veritas employee was accused of leaking her diary to an alt-right website The New York Times published this article on November 11 sparking allegations from Project Veritas claiming that the Department of Justice leaked documents to the newspaper This September 2020 New York Times report led Project Veritas to file a defamation lawsuit O'Keefe and Project Veritas have alleged that The Time's story is meant as nothing more than a smear campaign against the group. Following Friday's ruling, O'Keefe said, 'The Times is so blinded by its hatred of Project Veritas that everything it does results in a self-inflicted wound.' The group had been suing over a September 2020 The Times article describing a video it released that alleged voter fraud connected to the campaign of U.S. congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat. The New York Times reported that the allegations made in the video were made: 'through unidentified sources and with no verifiable evidence.' Media critics have frowned upon Wood's decision as they argued it threatened the freedom of the press. Erik Wemple, a media critic for the Washington Post, called the ruling 'a monster lump of First Amendment coal.' 'There are many gobsmacking aspects of this ruling, but the one that most alarmed me was the part where Judge Charles Wood tried to argue that the Nov. 11 NYT story was somehow not newsworthy because the documents were ho-hum,' Wemple wrote on Twitter. Theodore Boutrous Jr., a lawyer who represents media outlets, told The Times the ruling was 'way off base and dangerous.' 'It's an egregious, unprecedented intrusion on news gathering and the news gathering process,' Mr. Boutrous said. 'The special danger is it allows a party suing a news organization for defamation to then get a gag order against the news organization banning any additional reporting. It's the ultimate chilling effect.' Media critic Erik Wemple was among those worried about the kind of precedent Justice Charles Wood's ruling set for the freedom of the press Dean Baquet, The New York Times' executive editor, previously said Wood's November 18 order to stop newspaper set a 'dangerous precedent,' while the newspaper has said courts might find prior restraints acceptable only 'rarely,' such as to protect national security. The New York Times had not faced any prior restraint since 1971, when the Nixon administration unsuccessfully sought to block the publication of the Pentagon Papers detailing U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. An attorney for O'Keefe aso accused the Department of Justice of tipping off The New York Times about recent raids on current and former employees, while suggesting federal prosecutors may have also leaked the group's legal communications. The FBI conducted raids at O'Keefe's New York home and those of others connected to Project Veritas this month, seizing two of O'Keefe's cell phones, among other items. Days later The New York Times published a report based on memos from the group's lawyer, revealing his legal advice on the group's use of false identities and undercover filming, tactics that are eschewed by most modern journalists. Later that day, a federal judge ordered the DOJ to stop extracting data from the phones, granting a request from O'Keefe's legal team made the day before for an independent party to be appointed to oversee the review of the confiscated devices. A surfer was killed in an apparent shark attack - possibly a great white - on Christmas Eve off the central coast of California, authorities said. The male surfer, 31, was pulled from the water north of the famous Morro Rock around 10:45 a.m., Morro Bay police said on Twitter. He was not responsive after being brought to land. The surfer's identity was not immediately released and officials have ordered people to stay out of the water for 24 hours. 'He was pulled from the water suffering from an apparent shark attack,' police said. Morro Bay Harbor Director Eric Endersby told The San Luis Obispo Tribune that a female surfer nearby saw him face-down and got him out of the water. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The fatal shark attack took place off of Morro Strand State Beach around 10.45a.m. on Christmas Eve, police said on Twitter. The 31-year-old victim was not responsive after being taken out of the water. Morro Bay is about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Los Angeles A sign on a parking lot announces a beach closure for the day on Friday, Dec. 24, 2021, in Morro Bay, Calif. Locals and tourists will be allowed back into the water the next day 'As we were arriving, there was a female surfer in the water that was assisting the victim that apparently saw him a little distance away from where she was, facedown in the water,' Endersby said. 'About that time, we arrived on scene... so we took over,' Endersby added. 'It was an apparent shark attack victim, definitely deceased, no possibility of resuscitation.' Endersby said the attack appears to have been recent based on the condition of the surfer's body, who might have been killed by a great white. There were no apparent witnesses to the surfer's death, but crews will still patrol the area to look for the shark. 'Obviously, it's tragic and we're all sad, especially given the time this occurred,' Endersby told the Tribune. 'It's tragic this happened. We're all sad and our condolences go out to the families.' Morro Bay Police released a statement to the public on Twitter before confirming later that it will continue to patrol the area in to find the shark There have been three shark attacks in California in 2021 before today's incident. Pictured: A sign advising locals about today's shark attack. Morro Bay is about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Los Angeles. As of Dec. 12 there have been 80 shark attack bites worldwide in 2021 (8 fatal shark attack, 6 provoked) publicly reported and verified. There have been 41 shark attack bite in the US in this year (26 Florida, 7 Hawaii, 3 California). One provoked and zero fatal before today's incident. Four men have been arrested after a man was killed outside a restaurant in Hollywood in what the LAPD are describing as a 'follow-home' robbery. Police say that the trend sees suspects targeting victims in prime locations before following them home to a secluded area in order to rob them. On this occasion, Jose Ruiz Gutierrez, 23, was shot dead outside the Bossa Nova Brazilian restaurant on Sunset Boulevard on at 2am November 23. Gutierrez waiting in his car outside the restaurant to pick up takeout food when the women he was with was accosted by a group of men and was the victim of a robbery. Jayon Sanders and Joshua Saulsberry, both 21 were arrested Abraham Castillo and Tyree Singleton who are both 20 were arrested during a number of police raids Gutierrez, who was carrying a gun, got out of the car to intervene but the suspects shot him first and he was killed on the sidewalk. After hearing the gunshots, staff, patrons and security guards came rushing out of the restaurant to witness the tragic scene. 'I heard a lot of shots,' a man, who did not want to be identified, told CBSLA. 'I couldn't count how many. And then I heard a scream. This girl was constantly screaming 'help.' I come downstairs, the guy is laying down in front of the car. I check his pulse. Maybe I could do something, but he had too many gunshots in his head. So, there was nothing I could do.' Jayon Sanders and Joshua Saulsberry, both 21, and Abraham Castillo and Tyree Singleton who are both 20 were arrested during a number of police raids on Tuesday morning. Jose Ruiz Gutierrez, 23, was fatally shot outside the Bossa Nova restaurant in Hollywood on November 23 Gutierrez, who had a gun, was himself shot before he could fire off a round outside Bossa Nova Police are seen on the scene one day after the shooting looking for evidence All four were taken into custody. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office filed charges against Sanders, Castillo and Singleton for murder, robbery and attempted robbery, the LAPD said. They are being held on more than $2 million bail.. Saulsberry is charged with robbery, with bail set at $160,000. During the raids, authorities recovered a host items including a Rolex watch, handbags, gang paraphernalia, handguns including replicas, two cars that were used during the alleged crimes and more than $30,000 in cash. The LAPD say that follow-home robberies are becoming increasingly popular and the Department have now set up dedicated task force to investigate the crimes which often turn violent. Attractive locations such as the Jewelry District and Melrose Avenue have been targeted by the robbers as places where many of the crimes appear to start as victim are followed from pricey restaurants or nightclubs back to their homes. The victims are then robbed at gunpoint of watches, jewelry, cash and other valuables. LAPD Chief Michel Moore said that the department is investigating 150 follow-home robberies and similar crimes. 'People should not try to protect their property when confronted with robbers,' he said The LAPD is investigating 150 follow-home robberies and similar crimes. LAPD Chief Michel Moore said that people should not try to protect their property when confronted with robbers. 'There's no item of jewelry or piece of property that they have that is worth their life, and so if they find themselves in such a perilous situation, to cooperate, be a good witness. Do not chase people, do not try to pursue people and do not try to take actions yourself other than to minimize the chance that you become a victim of the type of violence we saw here,' he said to NBC4. A New York City Judge ordered the release of a prisoner at Rikers Island after claiming the city violated his constitutional rights by ignoring the squalid conditions and violent 'fight club' at the jail. In her decision on Wednesday, Judge April Newbauer slammed Department of Correction Commissioner Vincent Schiraldi and Mayor Bill de Blasio, who she claimed 'utterly failed' to prevent the crisis at Rikers. She said the conditions of confinement for the inmate, only identified as 'Relator G,' amounted to a clear violation of the constitutional right to due process as he was subjected to underground fights at the prison, which were allegedly ignored by a shrinking staff, according to the court documents. Schiraldi and de Blasio 'utterly failed the public as well as this (detainee) by ignoring the looming threat of a crisis at Rikers Island, by delaying emergency measures as staff shortages increased, and by not adopting an 'all hands on deck' approach to this entirely foreseeable crisis,' the Newbauer wrote. She added that the Department of Corrections choice not to rebut the claims of abuse made by the inmate 'spoke volumes' to the conditions of the prison. Judge April Newbauer ordered the release of a Rikers Island prisoner who was allegedly beaten, underfed and force to take part in a fight club while inside the prison this year Newbauer blamed NY City Mayor Bill de Blasio, left, and Correction Commissioner Vincent Schiraldi for allowing the prison to run under such conditions that it violated the inmates constitutional rights The judge said the Correction Department's 'deliberate indifference' was what ultimately forced her to release Relator G, who faces a first degree burglary charge, The New York Daily News reported. DOC lawyer's claimed the jail was taking reasonable care to mitigate risk of harm at Riker's and that the inmate was exaggerating about the injuries he suffered at the prison. The DOC also objected to Relator G's release because it might 'open the floodgates' for other inmates to argue their release. The DOC and de Blasio's Office did not immediately reply to DailyMail.com's request for comment. Relator G was arrested on June 21 in Manhattan, and after entering Rikers, he was held in a waiting room with 15 other people for three days before transferring to a cell, far longer than the required 24 hours, according to court record. '(The detainee) described squalid conditions, rampant violence among and to detainees, and a lack of essential services such as food and water,' Newbauer wrote. '(He) ascribed these conditions mostly to a lack of supervision of other detainees who bullied and commandeered resources.' Relator G alleged that he was attacked by four other detainees during his first days at Rikers. He said the attackers used sharp weapons made out of plastic and metal that left him with bruised ribs and a black eye. The inmate, known only as Relator G, said on October 19, prison gang leaders forced him and others to fight for their amusement as guards just ignored the situation The fight night took place after more than a 1,400 staff members were missing from their shifts amid staffing shortages and overworking conditions at Rikers Security footage of the incident showed that one of the attackers covered the camera with a towel for two hours, something Newbauer said should have been caught within minutes by staff. When a female guard did come to end the fight and pepper spray the assailants, they ended up throwing heavy objects at her and Relator G. The inmate was moved to another area of the prison where he was allegedly barely fed for 11 days. He claimed that inside the prison, gang leaders controlled all the detainees access to food and water while the jail worked on a skeleton crew. The leaders' power came on full display on October 19, as they held a 'fight night' to watch prisoners beat each other for their amusement, which was recorded on video and ignored by guards, according to the court documents. The documents also recount an instance where a guard allegedly told prisoners to quiet down and make the fight look less obvious. Relator G said he was forced to take part in the brawls and fight with all his strength until the leaders were satisfied. He was given food and cigarettes for his fight. During the event, 1,476 officers were out sick, 31 were AWOL and 73 housing areas were unstaffed, Newbauer wrote. The absences came as the prison saw thousands of staff members began calling out sick in fall due to chaotic working conditions and understaffing. Between September and late October, Rikers staff were working double and triple hours to make up for the lack of staff. What Relator G allegedly went through calls back the infamous 2008 'Rikers fight club' scandal, where correction officers essentially deputized gang members to run a housing where they would hold fights. Christopher Robinson, 18, was beaten to death in December 2008 during the fight nights, bringing attention to the prison conditions. Western Australia has recorded two new Delta Covid cases after an infected French backpacker visited several locations. The cases, which were announced on Saturday, come after the state recorded five cases the day before. Premier Mark McGowan shared on Twitter that both cases are linked to the French backpacker who arrived in Perth from Queensland on Sunday, December 12. WA health officials confirmed on Saturday the 25-year old backpacker was carrying the Delta variant of the virus, not the superspreader Omicron strain. A spokesman added: 'All cases related to this outbreak can be assumed to also be Delta.' Authorities have identified almost 1000 close and casual contacts. There were 88 backpackers from the hostel at the Old Fire Station in Fremantle, Perth, hauled into hotel quaratine on Friday night after the unvaccinated French traveller stayed in a 12 person dormitory at the hostel. Scroll down for video WA Premier Mark McGowan has publicly shamed revellers who are ignoring pleas to get tested for Covid ahead of Christmas on Saturday The backpackers continued to dance on the bus as they were transported to hotel quarantine Revellers were seen packed together, nursing drinks and dancing in the back courtyard before being taken to hotel quaratine on a bus. One partygoer was hoisted onto the shoulders of his friend as he pumped his fist into the air to the beat of the music. Their spirits appeared to remain high as the partygoers were loaded onto a bus and taken to hotel quarantine. Several backpackers danced in the aisle while their friends sang along to hit 80's song '99 Luftballons'. Old Fire Station's manager Bruce said he had unsuccessfully pleaded with authorities to keep the backpackers isolating at the hostel instead of a hotel. 'We've been told that we've got to possibly vacate all our backpackers and move them into separate isolation effective immediately,' he told The West Australian. Footage captured the wild celebration as the young revellers danced along to a DJ set at the Old Fire Station in Fremantle, Perth, on Friday 'We've been running a backpackers over 15 years and you know, we treat all those guys like our kids.' 'It just feels like they're trying to rip their home (from them) the day before Christmas.' The French backpacker could be the reason why Western Australia will be forced to tear down its hard border sooner and abandon its Covid-zero approach. Premier Mark McGowan locked out much of Australia for months in a zero-Covid strategy that made him popular at home but heavily criticised in other states. WA was due to open up at 90 per cent vaccination on February 5, but is now facing a potential outbreak that would make keeping the borders closed pointless. The 25-year-old traveller arrived from Queensland on December 12 - just an hour before WA shut its border to the Sunshine State at 12.01am. Reveller lets loose at the Christmas Eve bash as 88 backpackers prepared to go into hotel quarantine Western Australia backpackers who came into contact with an unvaccinated French traveller threw one final Christmas bash before they were bussed into quarantine He partied at a series of bars and nightspots, staying out until 5am at Perth's trendy clubs on Saturday night, subsequently forcing hundreds of close contacts into isolation. Mr McGowan said the next four days would determine if WA had its first cases of community transmission since it locked down over just one case in June. He immediately slapped an indoor mask mandate on Perth and Peel, closed nightclubs, banned dancing, and cancelled all large events. The premier admitted he had no idea how the man got in, and questions have been raised about how the unvaccinated backpacker was able to board a plane. But the explanation is fairly straightforward due to WA's tiered system of Covid risk that Mr McGowan applied to travellers. Queensland was at the time Covid-free and classed as a 'very low risk' area, meaning there were minimal border controls and no testing, quarantine, or vaccination requirements. Partygoers celebrating their final hours of freedom before they were bussed into hotel quarantine in Western Australia Backpackers nursed drinks as they packed together to for one big party on Christmas Eve Mr McGowan's government reportedly received legal advice that it would be unable to enforce proof of vaccination rules for travellers from states that were Covid-free. All travellers from very low risk areas have to do is fill out a G2G pass form with personal information, and submit to a basic health screening at the airport or border. The rules ramp up dramatically when an area is declared 'low risk', with vaccination required along with 14-day self isolation on arrival. After Queensland recorded a handful of Covid cases, Mr McGowan changed risk to 'low', but travellers had hours to make it in before having to isolate. This unvaccinated young man, who arrived in Australia in January 2020, again just before the borders closed, was one of them. For 11 days he was active in and around Perth, visiting two nightclubs on Saturday night where he partied on the dancefloor until the club closed at 5am. Western Australia's reopening date of February 5 may be 'redundant', Mrk McGowan said, now that a Covid outbreak had arrived in Perth Mr McGowan said more information will be available on December 27 to determine whether the new restrictions such as the city's mask mandate, should be continued or toughened. Pictured: A Perth resident in the city on Christmas Eve He also went camping and visited markets, shops and a cinema before he felt ill enough to get swabbed on Wednesday and got his positive result on Thursday. The man lives with four other people and his girlfriend and was tracked down on Thursday morning at an Airbnb and informed he was positive. All five, who are unlike him vaccinated, tested negative with rapid antigen tests, but the girlfriend is showing symptoms and waiting on a PCR test. The premier said 'hundreds' of people have already been contacted after potentially being exposed to the case, which experts believe is the Delta variant and not the highly-infectious Omicron strain. Should enough of them become infected to trigger an outbreak, Mr McGowan admitted the Feburary 5 date could be brought forward, labelling hard borders as 'redundant' if cases are already circulating. 'Obviously if we have community spread of the virus, then we will have to reconsider everything. How we reopen, when we reopen, all those sorts of things,' he said. 'The aim was to get to February 5 with over 90 per cent double dose vaccination of over-twelves, before such time as we opened the borders,' the premier said. 'But as I've said, it's not easy to make it that far because something could happen. 'And here we have a very unlikely event has occurred... someone came into Western Australia from Queensland, who was Covid positive, when Queensland had literally a handful of cases when he left that State.' Mr McGowan this week locked out the entire rest of the country unless they are exempt travellers, who must undergo testing and quarantine for two weeks. Anyone from Victoria or NSW is completely banned, even for compassionate reasons, under the 'extreme risk' category. Efforts to avoid a full-blown outbreak - and additional restrictions that could be brought in before Mr McGowan throws in the towel - are hampered by the infected man's movements. Authorities could not initially locate the Frenchman, who had left the city and was was camping with four friends when police were trying to contact him. 'Early on, we couldn't find the backpacker. We couldn't find him. Didn't know where he was. He got his test but he'd gone off and we obviously had to track him down and we couldn't find the four campers,' the premier said. 'The four people that he was living with who were out camping. We couldn't find them.' 'He is a backpacker who went out ant went to nightclubs, bars, museums, restaurants, and it is in the hundreds. That's why we are so concerned,' the premier told reporters. 'He has been to events where there has been lots of dancing, lots of fun, lots of interaction by lots of people in close proximity. That's why we are concerned about it. 'Some people are saying we are go took far in our reaction to this because it is one case, but the venues he has been to and the length of time he has been infectious means we have to take these steps.' Exposure sites cover the Perth suburbs of Mirrabooka, Joondalup, Girrawheen, Perth CBD, Subiaco, Northbridge, and Scarborough. He visited the WA Museum on December 16 then hit the Scarborough Sunset Markets and Galway Hooker pub. The next day he saw a film at Palace Cinema in Raine Square and got a taste of home by dining at Bloody French in Subiaco. Snap restrictions imposed across Perth and Peel from 6pm by Premier Mark McGowan will last four days despite there being only a handful of cases in the state. Masks must be worn indoors at all times unless in a home or during vigorous exercise, and are recommended outside when social distancing isn't possible. High risk, large public events like music festivals will be cancelled and all nightclubs closed. All dancing will be banned, except for weddings. Annastacia Palaszczuk has shared an old Christmas photo of her with her lookalike mum as she thanked Queenslanders for 'doing their part' in the Covid-19 pandemic. The Queensland premier delivered her Christmas message on Saturday as the state recorded 765 new Covid infections. 'Christmas is a time to be with families and loved ones. We think of those who can't be with us and remember the times that they were,' she said. 'I wanted to say thank you for all you have done to get us through yet another year of this pandemic. The Queensland Premier shared a throwback photo of her and her mother from 1970 at her second Christmas 'It has never been easy but we have weathered it far better than most other places around the world.' Ms Palaszczuk congratulated residents for getting the jab and protecting the state against the virus. 'Our willingness to look out for each other has once again kept us in good stead. It's what makes Queensland what it is.' The leader of the Sunshine State had earlier shared a snap of her two-year-old self clutching onto a teddy bear with her mother. 'My mum and me enjoying my second Christmas with Big Ted in 1970,' she captioned the post. Saturday's case numbers are up from the previous 589 infections recorded on Friday as Queensland grapples to get the virus under control. Health Minister Yvette D'Ath said five of the new cases were hospitalised, but no-one was in intensive care. There is a total of 151 Omicron infections around the state. The Queensland premier addressed her state in a Christmas message on Saturday, the same day a record 765 new Covid infections were reported around the state 'This virus is everywhere now and we have to assume that anywhere we go we could be exposed,' Ms D'Ath said. 'And we just need to constantly remind ourselves [to be vigilant] because most Queenslanders don't know someone who's had Covid. 'In the next few weeks or months, most of us will be able to say we have known someone, met someone, lived with someone or had Covid ourselves - so that is a reminder to take it seriously.' Just over 85 per cent of Queenslanders are fully vaccinated with the state's long cherished Covid-free status now demolished after it reopened its border to interstate visitors from 'hotspots'. The jump in cases prompted the state's Chief health Officer, Dr John Gerrard to declare the spread of the virus in Queensland was 'necessary'. 'In order for us to go from a pandemic phase, to an endemic phase, the virus has to be widespread,' he said on Thursday. 'You all have to develop immunity and there's two ways you can do that, by being vaccinated or getting infected. 'Once we've done that, once we all have a degree of immunity, the virus becomes endemic, and that is what is going to happen.' Dr Gerrard said on Friday the state could expect 'thousands of cases' in the coming weeks. 'Even though the proportion of people getting severely ill is going to be very small, when you have a large number of cases, that can translate to a significant number of people that has the potential to put a strain on our hospitals,' Dr Gerrard said. He said masks and other Covid restrictions were essential to enable Queensland's hospitals to cope with the rise in cases and allow people to get their booster jab in coming weeks. A current spokesman for former U.S. President Donald Trump filed a lawsuit on Friday after the January 6 House Committee requested his financial documents. The committee used a subpoena to obtain the documents from JPMorgan Chase to seek out the source of funding from an organization that helped promote a rally preceded by the Capitol riots. Spokesman Taylor Budowich said in a court filing that he has cooperated extensively with the congressional committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. In the lawsuit, filed in federal court in the District of Columbia, Budowich said he has produced more than 1,700 pages of documents and provided about four hours of sworn testimony to the House of Representatives panel. 'The Select Committee acts absent any valid legislative power and threatens to violate longstanding principles of separation of powers by performing a law enforcement function absent authority to do so,' the complaint reads. 'Mr. Budowich has not been afforded the opportunity to review the subpoena at issue in order to ascertain the extent or scope of information and records requested; moreover, the Select Committee has dispensed with all procedural rules, failed to accord due process, and neglected to provide formal notice.' Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich is fighting a subpoena from the January 6 House Committee after they requested his financial documents from JPMorgan Chase In the lawsuit, Budowich said that he produced more than 1,700 pages of documents and gave four hours of sworn testimony to the House of Representatives panel The committee is trying to obtain the documents to find information linked to a rally that was attended by former President Donald Trump prior to the January 6 riots Budowich, at a recent deposition, answered questions about the financing and planning of a speech by Trump to supporters near the White House on Jan. 6 that preceded the violence at the Capitol that day. Budowich's lawsuit sought a court order blocking the House committee from gaining access to his financial records at JPMorgan Chase & Co. 'The subpoena seeks personal financial material that is irrelevant to any conceivable legislation and not pertinent to any purported purpose of the Select Committee,' Budowich said in the lawsuit. The subpoena had first been sent by the committee to JP Morgan Chase on November 23 with notice sent to Budowich's Sacramento home complying with it on Wednesday, according to Fox News. He later found the deadline set for Friday so he could file something to block the release of the financial documents to the January 6 Committee. 'After complying completely with the Committee, including sitting for a four-hour deposition on December 22nd, I returned home on December 23rd only to find a notice from my banking institution, JPMorgan Chase, that theyd be handing over my banking records to the committee if I did not provide a court-ordered stoppage by December 24th, he said in the statement. 'To add to the absurdity, neither the committee nor JPMorgan Chase will provide me with a copy of the actual contents of the subpoena.' He claims that he has been cooperative in the investigation and claims he has not received a copy of the subpoena Supporters of President Donald Trump are seen outside the US Capitol on January 6 He also noted that the subpoena lacks 'a valid legislative purpose' and that requesting his private financial information violates his First Amendment rights. 'For me, this complaint being filed in federal court is not about politics or partisanship. 'Government should not be a weapon that's freely used against political opponents and private citizens but it seems like this Democrat-led Congress is intent on codifying that precedent. 'Democracy is under attack. However, not by the people who illegally entered the Capitol on January 6th, 2021, but instead by a committee whose members walk freely in its halls every day.' Budowich's lawsuit is the latest in a flood of litigation by targets of the committee seeking to prevent it from enforcing its subpoenas for information, but it is the first lawsuit to focus on a subpoena for financial records. This week, former Trump adviser Michael Flynn and right-wing radio host Alex Jones filed separate lawsuits alleging the Select Committee was not lawfully constituted and its subpoenas for their testimony are therefore unlawful. An appeals court has rejected that argument, ruling on Dec. 9 that the committee was valid and entitled to see White House records Trump has tried to shield from public view. Trump on Thursday appealed that decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. The committee has issued more than 50 subpoenas and heard from more than 300 witnesses in its investigation of the attack. Advertisement A new video released on Christmas Day showed the Russian army drilling in 'new forms and methods of modern combined arms combat in the Voronezh region' - which borders Ukraine. The video shows more than 1,200 air assault troops and 250 pieces of military equipment engaged in military drills in snow and fog at the Opuk range in Crimea, annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, and at the Rayevsky range near Novorossiysk in Krasnodar region, close to the Ukrainian border. The show of strength - coinciding with Christmas celebrations in the West - comes as Vladimir Putin maintains 100,000-plus troops and heavy military equipment on Ukraine's border, leading to fears he intends an imminent invasion. Russian President Vladimir Putin also announced a successful salvo launch of Russia's Mach-9 capable Zircon missiles which Russia boasts can evade all missile defences. 'Zircon are our newest missiles fired from the sea at sea targets, and land targets,' he said. 'The tests were carried out successfully, flawlessly. This is a big event for our country, a significant step in improving Russia's security, in increasing (our) defence capability.' It is the first time a successful Zircon salvo test has been reported, and was announced personally by Putin. A new video released on Christmas Day showed the Russian army drilling in 'new forms and methods of modern combined arms combat in the Voronezh region' - which borders Ukraine. The winter exercises involved 'motorised rifle, tank, artillery and reconnaissance units' The war games included military drones, 'electronic warfare equipment', army aviation helicopters and involved chemical defence troops, said reports. Russian troops engaged in a frenzy of 'exercises' on the Ukrainian border this week, hours after Vladimir Putin told US and NATO to 'go to hell', stoking fears of an invasion More than 1,000 troops were involved in firing exercises in five regions in recent days, while tanks conducted mobile defence drills involving 500 soldiers Russia's Northern Fleet also held infantry drills in Murmansk region in the Arctic in December 2021 The winter exercises involved 'motorised rifle, tank, artillery and reconnaissance units' as well as military drones, 'electronic warfare equipment', army aviation helicopters and chemical defence troops, said reports. 'Paratroopers hit targets simulating hostile UAVs (military drones) during training missions,' said the Russian defence ministry. 'Standard small arms, weapons of BMD-2K-AU amphibious combat vehicles, ZU-23 air defence systems, and Verba MANPADS were fired. 'Artillery, TOS-1A Solntsepyok and 2S9 Nona self-propelled systems deployed in three position areas suppressed firing nests, places of concentration and command posts of the mock enemy.' The exercises were inspected by Russian Airborne Forces Commander Col Gen Andrei Serdyukov. Russian forces in five different locations held combat drills and military exercises this week in the lead up to Christmas New satellite imagery shows a Russian battle group in the Crimea peninsula just two days ago As world powers race to develop advanced weaponry, Russia has carried out a number of successful tests of its Zircon hypersonic cruise missile. Pictured: An earlier test of Russia's Zircon missile in November Russian state TV channel Rossiya 1 lauded the salvo firings - saying Zircon is the 'first and only one in the world' of its kind, and hailing Russia as 'a leader in hypersonic' technology. The latest show of Russian firepower comes just one day after a senior Ukrainian security official said the Russian President 'wants to destroy' Ukraine. Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, said that talk of Moscow's invasion could destabilise Ukraine and play into Putin's hands. 'Putin wants to destroy our country. Will he succeed? No, he will not,' said Danilov. 'Our citizens will protect our country,' he said, adding that both the army and civilians will form a broad national 'resistance' movement if Russia attacks. 'We are going to protect our country. Full stop.' Tensions have been building since mid-November when Washington sounded the alarm over a massive Russian troop build-up on Ukraine's border and accused Putin of plotting an invasion. It comes just days after Russian troops staged combat drills and live-firing exercises near the Ukrainian border. Militants of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic walk at a fighting position on the line of separation from the Ukrainian armed forces near the settlement of Frunze in Luhansk Region, Ukraine December 24, 2021 Militants of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic - supported by pro-Russian separatists - observe the area at a fighting position on the line of separation from the Ukrainian armed forces near the settlement of Frunze in Luhansk Region, Ukraine December 24, 2021 Moscow has for weeks been massing tens of thousands of troops, tanks and artillery pieces along its eastern flank, sparking fears of an invasion, though the Kremlin has insisted it is merely a defence force (pictured, Russian forces currently massed in border regions) Ukrainian reservists attend a military exercise at a training ground near Kiev, Ukraine, 18 December 2021 (issued 19 December 2021), in preparation for a potential invasion But Danilov, 59, downplayed the risk of a major military escalation, saying Ukrainian officials have not seen any 'critical build-up.' According to Kiev's estimates, the number of Russian troops along Ukraine's borders has increased from around 93,000 troops in October to 104,000 now. 'We don't think this is a big surge,' Danilov said. The security aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed that authorities did not want to 'scare people' with war talk as that 'would destabilise the situation inside the country.' The Russian leader has for years questioned the legitimacy of Ukraine's borders and insisted that Russians and Ukrainians are 'one people.' During his end-of-the-year news conference on Thursday, Putin said Ukraine was 'created' by Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union, in the 1920s. Danilov accused the Kremlin of seeking to destabilise Ukraine from within by resorting to cyberattacks and deepening an energy crisis in one of Europe's poorest countries. 'I insist that it's the main task for Putin,' he said. If all else fails, the Kremlin could then move troops across the border, Danilov added. Ukrainian reservists conduct combat exercises in preparation for an invasion. According to a survey conducted by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in December 2021 and published on 17 December 2021, the 50,2 percent of Ukrainians said they would resist in case of a Russian military intervention into their city, town or village. Every third respondent to the poll, the 33,3 percent, said they were ready to engage in armed resistance. AFTER: Newly-published pictures dated December 13 show a new brigade-level unit comprised of several hundred armoured vehicles massed at a Russian base in Bakhchysarai, Crimea, around 110 miles from the Ukrainian border Five ultra modern MiG-31BM interceptor fighter jets (pictured) practiced yesterday amid claims 'mass grave' sties, each capable of accommodating 100 bodies, are being prepared along the Ukrainian border Militants of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic are seen at a fighting position on the line of separation from the Ukrainian armed forces near the settlement of Frunze in Luhansk Region, Ukraine December 24, 2021. Putin, speaking at his annual end-of-year press conference yesterday, accused NATO and the US of planning to deploy hypersonic missiles - which have not yet been successfully developed - to Ukraine What did Vladimir Putin say on each topic at his end-of-year press conference? On possible conflict with Ukraine: 'This is not our choice, we do not want this.' 'We have to think about ensuring our security prospects not just for today and next week but for the near future.' 'We just directly posed the question that there should be no further NATO movement to the east, the ball is in their court, they should answer us with something. In this regard, I would like to stress that on the whole we have seen a positive reaction so far, our American partners tell us that they are ready to start this discussion.' On NATO expansion: 'What is unclear here? Are we putting missiles next to the United States' borders? No, it is the United States that has come to us with their missiles, they are already on our doorstep.' 'The course of negotiations is not important to us, the result is important... 'Not one inch to the East,' they told us in the 90s. So what? They cheated, just brazenly tricked us! Five waves of NATO expansion and now already, please, the systems are appearing in Romania and Poland.' On Donbass: 'The future of Donbass should be determined by the people who live in Donbass... It cannot be any other way. We see our role as mediators in creating the best conditions for determining the future of the people who live in this territory.' On Russia labelling some media as foreign agents: 'We do not forbid the work of these organisations. We want organisations engaging in Russia's domestic political activity to clearly and concisely declare the sources of foreign funding for their work.' Advertisement The West has long accused the Kremlin of providing direct military support to pro-Russian separatists, who carved out two statelets in eastern Ukraine shortly after Moscow annexed Crimea in 2014. Russia denies the claims and Putin has suggested that the conflict, which has claimed over 13,000 lives, is genocidal. Danilov accused the Kremlin of seeking to further divide Ukraine. 'They want to tear apart our country so that it ceases to exist within its current borders,' he said. Moscow has denied it is planning to go on the attack and accused Kiev of planning to take back the Moscow-backed separatist statelets by force. Danilov however said an offensive was not an acceptable solution for Ukrainian authorities as it would lead to a massive increase in civilian casualties. 'We would like there to be negotiations, we would like Russians to withdraw their troops, their tanks and go home,' he said. 'But Putin does not want this.' US President Joe Biden has threatened Putin with sanctions 'like he's never seen before' in the event of an attack on Ukraine. Washington has also said it is ready to beef up its military presence in eastern Europe. But Ukrainian officials have urged the West to provide more military aid and to also slap Russia with a round of pre-emptive sanctions. 'Providing us with defensive weapons is the number one issue,' Danilov said. 'When our country is destroyed who are you going to impose sanctions against?' he added. Putin wants the United States to give Russia guarantees that NATO will halt its eastward expansion and that Ukraine will never join the military bloc. Washington says it is ready to discuss some of Moscow's security proposals in early January. Danilov warned the West against deciding Ukraine's fate without Kiev. Whatever the outcome of these talks, 'it will not work if it is not accepted by Ukrainians,' he said. 'We are not Russia. It is impossible to bring everyone to their knees because big men have decided for us.' According to a survey conducted by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in December 2021 and published on 17 December 2021, 50.2 percent of Ukrainians said they would resist in case of a Russian military intervention into their city, town or village. Every third respondent to the poll, 33.3 percent, said they were ready to engage in armed resistance while 21.7 percent said they were ready to participate in 'civil resistance actions'. More than 1,000 Russian troops were involved in firing exercises in five regions on Thursday, while tanks conducted mobile defence drills involving 500 soldiers and Sukhoi Su-27SM3 fighter jets practiced challenging warships. It came hours after Putin, speaking at his annual end-of-year press conference, accused NATO and the US of planning to deploy hypersonic missiles - which have not yet been successfully developed - to Ukraine. The Russian strongman blamed NATO's militarisation of former Soviet states, such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, since the end of the Cold War for the current crisis and threatened that Russia 'can do anything at any cost' to protect itself. Meanwhile, Kremlin deputy premier Yury Borisov said last month that Russia had outpaced the West in hypersonic weapons - and intends to maintain its lead. 'We have broken forward, specifically, in the sphere of hypersonic weapons and (those) based on new physical principles,' he said. 'We now have serious advantages in this regard over the leading Western countries - and will try to maintain this position.' The Zircon (Tsirkon) hypersonic missile was also successfully fired at a ground target on the coast of the Barents Sea on July 19, 2021 Ukrainian reservists attend a military exercise at a training ground near Kiev, Ukraine, 18 December 2021. Tensions with Russia have pushed many Ukrainians to sign up to territorial defence units. In the Black Sea Sukhoi Su-27SM3 fighter jets stationed in Krasnodar drilled on challenging Western or Ukrainian warships seen as threatening the Russian border, defence sources said. 'In the course of training flights, Su-27SM3 duos escorted Sukhoi Su-34 fighter bombers and practised airborne duty, detection and following of mock transgressor ships demonstrating an intention to illegal cross the Russian sea border,' said a fleet statement. Separately, the sprawling central military district announced a 50 per cent increase in drills for 2022, amounting to almost one every day. Video shows a batch of five ultra modern MiG-31BM interceptor fighters which were deployed in the district. And in Kemerovo, tanks conducted mobile defence drills involving 500 troops. Central district commander, Colonel General Alexander Lapin, said: 'We will continue to build up the combat potential of the district's troops and maintain it at a level that ensures the military security of Russia and its allies.' Another announcement said Russian forces would maintain 'on duty units' with reinforcements 'to remedy the consequences of possible emergencies will be designated in order to maintain the high-alert status in all forces and units of the Southern Military District during the [festive] holidays'. The statement from the military district stated: 'The air defence forces, crews of part of ships of the Black Sea Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla, electronic warfare units, on-duty crews of the operation-tactical, army, and drone aviation will continue serving on the combat watch in the first ten days of January.' The head of Poland's ruling party Jaroslaw Kaczynski said on Friday that Germany was trying to turn the European Union into a federal 'German Fourth Reich'. Speaking to the far-right Polish daily GPC, the head of the Law and Justice (known by its Polish acronym PiS) party said some countries 'are not enthusiastic at the prospect of a German Fourth Reich being built on the basis of the EU'. 'If we Poles agreed with this kind of modern-day submission we would be degraded in different ways,' said Kaczynski, 72, who is also one of four Polish deputy prime ministers. The head of Poland's ruling party Jaroslaw Kaczynski, 72, (pictured) said on Friday that Germany was trying to turn the European Union into a federal 'German Fourth Reich' He added that the EU's Court of Justice was being used as an 'instrument' for federalist ideas. Poland has been involved in a lengthy stand-off with the European Union, particularly over the judicial reforms that PiS has pushed through since 2015. In the latest twist, Poland accused the EU of 'attacking our sovereignty' and vowed to fight its 'bureaucracy' after Brussels launched legal action against the country for over-ruling European Union laws. In remarks broadcast on national television, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, 53, said the EU's decision reflected a trend towards 'bureaucratic centralism' in Brussels that 'has to be stopped'. Earlier this year Mr Kaczynski said the ability of Brussels to overrule the Polish government means that Poland is 'not a sovereign state'. The decision to launch legal action escalates a long-running feud between Warsaw and Brussels over Poland's perceived backsliding on EU democratic norms. In October, Poland's constitutional court ruled that Polish laws have supremacy over those of the EU in areas where they conflict. In November, the same tribunal ruled the European rights pact was incompatible with its constitution. When countries join the EU, as Poland did in 2004, they must bring their laws into line with the bloc's regulations and accept the European Court of Justice as the supreme arbiter of those rules. In launching its legal action, the EU's executive branch, the European Commission, said that it sees two constitutional tribunal decisions this year as 'expressly challenging the primacy of EU law'. Poland has accused the EU of 'bureaucratic centralism'. During German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's visit to Warsaw earlier this month, Prime Minister Morawiecki said the current German government's support for EU federalism was 'utopian and therefore dangerous'. It comes after heightened tension between Poland and the rest of the bloc as far-right politcians set an exit from the EU in their sights. The chances of 'Polexit' increased when the country's supreme court ruled in October that EU treaties were incompatible with the Polish constitution. The EU decision to launch legal action escalated a long-running feud between Warsaw and Brussels over Poland's perceived backsliding on EU democratic norms (pictured, thousands attend a pro-EU rally in Krakow, Poland on October 10, 2021 after the first ruling against the EU) Who is Jaroslaw Kaczynski? Jarosaw Kaczynski, 72, is one of four deputy prime ministers in Poland. He was Prime Minister for a little more than a year from 2006 to 2007 and is leader of the Law and Justice party (known by its Polish acronym PiS). Jarosaws identical twin brother Lech founded the party with him and was the President of Poland from 2005 until his death in 2010, when he died in a plane crash that killed 95 other people. The current PiS leaders political views are polarising and he sits on the far-right of the spectrum. Identical twin brothers Lech (left) and Jaroslaw Kaczynski from the Law and Justice (PiS) party during a meeting in Gdansk in 2005 Jarosaw believes Poland should shun Western culture and return to its conservative and Roman Catholic origins. He was widely criticised for his views on the gay community, views his brother Lech also held. While he said he accepted homosexuals should not be treated differently from the rest of the population, he said they shouldnt be allowed to teach in schools. He also previously said "The affirmation of homosexuality will lead to the downfall of civilisation. We can't agree to it." Yet although his views are traditionally ultra-conservative, he has a soft spots for animals, cats in particular. His bill to ban breeding animals for their fur was seen as a redeeming feature for Jarosaw in the eyes of some of his rivals. Advertisement Warsaw has disagreed with Brussels over democratic standards and the independence of its judiciary for a long time. The supreme court was asked to consider the status of EU law by the country's ruling coalition, which is dominated by the conservative EU-sceptic Law and Justice Party, and Prime Minister Morawiecki. Mr Kaczynski welcomed the court's ruling and said the ability of Brussels to overrule the Polish government means that Poland is 'not a sovereign state'. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (pictured) has said the current German government's support for EU federalism was 'utopian and therefore dangerous' Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (left) standing behind Poland's conservative ruling party leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski (right) earlier this month at a meeting of conservative populist party leaders in Warsaw, Poland He argued Brussels has 'no right to interfere' in Polish affairs, echoing the arguments made in Britain by pro-Brexit leaders who were angry at European red tape restricting Westminster's ability to rule. At the time EU leaders hit back at the ruling. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said she was 'deeply concerned' by the ruling. Meanwhile German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Poland must 'fully and completely' implement EU law. A UK Christmas Day reunion ended in tatters after an Australian family were stranded in Singapore Airport by Covid red tape for two days before being forced to fly home. Mark Donnelly, 43, his husband Robert Layfield, 35, and their twin sons Mitchell and Caleb, 12, should have been in London with relatives for the festive season. They'd been planning to see Mark's 89-year-old grandma Joyce after Robert lost his elderly grandmother to Covid earlier this year and then his grandfather soon after. But instead they spent the last two days begging Singapore Airport staff in vain for a Covid test to let them carry on their journey. Now they have lost around $26,000 in flights and accommodation - and have no hope of getting a refund. A Christmas Day reunion ended in tatters after an Robert Layfield (left) and Mark Donnelly (right) were stranded in Singapore Airport by Covid red tape for two days with their twin sons Mitchell and Caleb before being forced to fly home The family should have been celebrating Christmas in London (pictured) with relatives 'It's not about the money though,' Mark told Daily Mail Australia. 'We just really wanted to see our family. I've not seen my grandmother in three years.' The family flew out of Melbourne Airport on Wednesday afternoon on Jetstar to Singapore, with a British Airways flight booked to take them on to the UK. They had checked with the British High Commission that they only needed a recent PCR or rapid antigen test to get into the country. But when they arrived in Singapore, airport staff refused to let them carry on with their journey because their negative rapid antigen tests, which they'd videoed themselves taking, were not carried out and certified by a health professional. They'd been planning to see Mark Donnelly's 89-year-old grandma Joyce after Robert Layfield lost his elderly grandmother to Covid earlier this year and then his grandfather soon after (pictured, Robert, left, with Mark and Mark's mother, Hazel) Staff at Singapore airport (pictured) refused to let them carry on with their journey because their negative rapid antigen tests were not carried out and certified by a health professional Pleas for the tests to be repeated at the airport's in-house testing clinic were repeatedly denied, despite the help of British and Australian High Commission staff. The four were forced to sleep in the transit lounge seats while they waited out the nightmare, with the stress inflaming Mitchell's autism and Mr Layfield's multiple sclerosis. Hardly anything was allowed to open in the transit lounge because of Covid and the Christmas holidays. And from Wednesday lunchtime until Saturday morning, they only had the clothes they were wearing and the few possessions they'd packed in their carry-on holdalls. When they begged for access to their checked in baggage for vital medication, they were given just five minutes under security escort to access their suitcases. The four were forced to sleep in the transit lounge seats while they waited out the nightmare, with the stress inflaming Mitchell's autism and Mr Layfield's multiple sclerosis British High Commission had told the family they only needed a recent PCR or rapid antigen test to get into the country (pictured, a screenshot from the UK government health website) Singapore finally said they were 'inadmissable travellers' on Friday and kicked them out of the country back to Australia. They were forced to give up and had to fly home that evening, arriving back at dawn on Christmas Day to an empty house and no festive cheer. 'Luckily we had forgotten to throw out a litre of milk and loaf of bread before we left,' said Mr Donnelly, a primary school teacher from Keysborough, Melbourne. 'So we had cheese on toast and beans with a cup of tea for our Christmas dinner.' He said they were exhausted by the ordeal and were now just hoping Jetstar and British Airways took pity on them to at least give them flights later in the year. The family were forced to give up and had to fly home on Friday, arriving back at dawn on Christmas Day (pictured, Robert Layfield on the flight home) The family are now just hoping Jetstar and British Airways took pity on them to at least give them flights later in the year, but have given up hope of a refund 'It's been terrible, to be honest,' said Mr Donnelly. 'Now we're back home - with our own bed to sleep in again at least - we're in better spirits. 'But it's been awful. We didn't even know if we'd have to go into hotel quarantine as our last PCR tests had expired by the time we got back to Melbourne. 'Luckily though we got waved through arrivals and then we went straight to a testing clinic in Dandenong to get tested before we spent Christmas in isolation at home. 'It's been devastating.' Robert Layfield (pictured left) and Mark Donnelly (right) were exhausted by the ordeal - and could only have cheese on toast and beans for their Christmas dinner after they arrived home Aviation sources said checks should have been made that family were complying with the Covid requirements of all countries they were transferring through before being allowed to board. But Jetstar insisted: 'The customers provided evidence of a negative rapid antigen test. 'However transit in Singapore requires that test to be administered by a trained professional. Video of self swabs are not permitted.' A spokesman added: 'We appreciate this is an extremely difficult situation and our team is doing everything we can to assist them.' Advertisement In Bethlehem's Manger Square, visitors in Santa hats and scouts beating drums marked Christmas Eve on Friday but numbers were lower than usual as coronavirus fears overshadowed celebrations for a second straight year. The city where Christians believe Jesus was born is usually a focal point of the holiday, with thousands packing the streets and filling hotels. But Israel, which controls all entrances to Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, barred its borders to foreigners in an effort to rein in infections from the Omicron strain of the coronavirus. 'It's very strange,' said Kristel Elayyan, a Dutchwoman married to a Palestinian, who came to Bethlehem from Jerusalem. Bethlehem's Manger Square, the revered site of the birth of Jesus Christ, was remarkably quiet on Christmas Eve last night It was a stark change from 2019's celebrations in the world-famous town, before the coronavirus pandemic took hold of the globe The halls of the Church of the Nativity were equally quiet as the biblical town of Bethlehem is gearing up for its second straight Christmas Eve hit by the coronavirus Small crowds and grey, gloomy weather had a dampening effect on celebrations as Christmas Day approached Christians visit the Church of the Nativity yesterday. Usually the famous church would be crammed with people Israel, which controls all entrances to Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, barred its borders to foreigners in an effort to rein in infections from the Omicron strain of the coronavirus 'Before [the pandemic], you had a bunch of people coming in from different countries to celebrate Christmas, and now you know that everybody who is here is probably not a tourist.' Last year, Bethlehem curtailed celebrations sharply because of the pandemic, with a virtual tree lighting and just a handful of visiting scouts. This year, the celebrations were more vibrant - but still a fraction of their usual size. 'If it's one year, it's an interesting experience,' Elayyan said of the pandemic. 'But because this is the second year and we don't know what is going to come in the future, it's a huge loss for the people here.' This year, the celebrations were more vibrant - but still a fraction of their usual size, although Manger Square was still lit up with an array of colours Visitors walk in Manger Square on Christmas eve outside the Church of the Nativity yesterday evening, soaking in the festive spirit An upbeat Rula Maayah, Palestine's tourism minister, said it was 'thanks to the vaccines' that Bethlehem was celebrating again. In his homily for midnight mass celebrated in St Catherine's Church in Bethlehem, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa said it was encouraging that celebrations were 'certainly more joyful this year'. 'Compared to last year's Christmas, the participation is much greater and this is an encouraging sign,' he told the masked congregation, but regretted the absence of foreign worshippers due to the pandemic. The weather didn't help to make visitors forget the doom and gloom of the pandemic as they made their way through the town On average, Bethlehem welcomed three million visitors a year before the pandemic, with Christmas alone drawing 10,000 people to the city's hotels, around half from abroad The municipality said it worked this year to appeal to local visitors from Palestinian communities across the Holy Land 'We pray for them and at the same time ask for their prayers, so that all this may end soon and that the city of Bethlehem may once again be full of pilgrims.' On average, Bethlehem welcomed three million visitors a year before the pandemic, with Christmas alone drawing 10,000 people to the city's hotels, around half from abroad. The municipality said it worked this year to appeal to local visitors from Palestinian communities across the Holy Land. Some hotels were busy, but about a quarter of available rooms citywide were shuttered because of the pandemic, said Elias Arja, head of the Palestinian Hotel Association. Several businesses kept their doors shut on Friday, despite Christmas Eve being the most important day of the year for many in Bethlehem. Inside the Church of the Nativity, visitors were even able to meditate nearly alone at the grotto where Jesus is said to have been born. 'Surreal,' observed Hudson Harder, a 21-year-old American student at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. 'Of course, there is a selfish part where it's like, 'Oh, I get to see this place so empty' but on the other hand you feel for the shops, all the money they are losing.' Steps away from the basilica, images of Popes John Paul II and Francis covered the front of a shop selling carved olive wood figures and nativity scenes. Owner Victor Epiphane Tabash said it was his 57th Christmas behind the counter. For him, as for many shopkeepers around Manger Square, 'there is nothing to say about Christmas'. Palestinian scout bands paraded through Manger Square at the Church of the Nativity yesterday in one of the only scenes that were similar to pre-pandemic times 'Surreal,' observed Hudson Harder, a 21-year-old American student at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. 'Of course, there is a selfish part where it's like, 'Oh, I get to see this place so empty' but on the other hand you feel for the shops, all the money they are losing' Marching bands from Palestinian scout groups paraded through Bethlehem yesterday in ochre suits, beating navy blue drums Each scout member's uniform had the Palestinian flag adorned on the right breast above the pocket, below yellow and blue tassles Shop owner Victor Epiphane Tabash said it was his 57th Christmas behind the counter. For him, as for many shopkeepers around Manger Square, 'there is nothing to say about Christmas' 'Only the scouts give a bit of the holiday feeling,' Mr Tabash said, as the uniformed groups marched past, blasting out Christmas carols on drums, trumpets and bagpipes Pierbattista Pizzaballa, apostolic administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, arrives ahead of Christmas Eve mass in 2019 Christian clerics arrive the Church of St. Catherine to lead the ritual to mark Christmas in Bethlehem. Before the pandemic the town was packed at Christmastime Pierbattista Pizzaballa leads the Christmas Eve mass at the Church of the Nativity in 2019, merely weeks before the wider world first heard of Covid-19 Christian clergy take part in a Christmas Eve procession at Manger Square in 2019, leading to the Church of the Nativity, the traditionally accepted birthplace of Jesus Christ A young girl wearing a Santa Claus costume on Christmas Eve at the Manger Square leading to the Church of Nativity, the traditionally accepted birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, the year before last Christian scouts teams take part in a Christmas Eve procession at Manger Square, leading to the Church of the Nativity, the traditionally accepted birthplace of Jesus Christ, in 2019. This year the scout teams' marching band was one of the only similarities with usual Christmas celebrations 'Only the scouts give a bit of the holiday feeling,' he said, as the uniformed groups marched past, blasting out Christmas carols on drums, trumpets and bagpipes. Tabash said he kept his business alive during the pandemic by exporting because no customers came to buy in person. He compared the pandemic to two previous Palestinian uprisings, or intifadas. 'We have lived through the intifadas, wars. But the coronavirus is worse,' he said. Outside, Maram Saeed, a Palestinian woman from Jerusalem, took a selfie with her husband and two children in front of a towering Christmas tree decorated with shining red and gold spheres. Saeed said it was a time of joy after many days of depression. 'It's not like a usual year, we have the fear of the worst, we still fear Covid,' she said. 'When there is war, we know the enemy, and we know who we are fighting. But with Covid, it's a very tiny enemy that we don't see, so it's worse.' A man has been charged with murder after a stabbing outside a barber's in a busy London street. Jobari Gooden, 27, was attacked outside House of Ramish 2 barber shop in Peckham Rye, south-east London, in broad daylight at around 3.15pm on December 17. Emergency services responded to reports of a fight on Choumert Road where they found Mr Gooden with stab wounds. He was taken to a south London hospital where he died shortly after 6pm. Scotland Yard said Momodou Lamin Faal, 27, of Lyndhurst Way, Peckham, who was arrested at a residential property in Gillingham, Kent, on December 23, has been charged with murder. Jobari Gooden, 27 (pictured), was attacked outside House of Ramish 2 barber shop in Peckham Rye, south-east London, in broad daylight at around 3.15pm on December 17. Olushola Eletu, 39, whose address was not confirmed, and Elishah Anderson, 39, of Lettsom Street, Peckham, have been charged with perverting the course of justice. The Met said all three will appear at Croydon Magistrates' Court on Monday. The case's senior investigator, Detective Brian Howie, said he suspected that many people saw the fight outside the barber shop in which Mr Gooden was stabbed, because the street was busy with people going to the shops or the market in the early afternoon. Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Smith said: 'Our thoughts are with Jobari's family as they come to terms with this loss. 'To have a loved one taken from them in these circumstances just days before Christmas is devastating. 'We understand that the community will be shocked at the brazenness of such an attack, taking place as it did in the afternoon on a busy shopping street.' The case's senior investigator, Detective Brian Howie, said he suspected that many people saw the fight outside the barber shop in which Mr Gooden was stabbed, because the street was busy with people going to the shops or the market in the early afternoon (pictured: Police at crime scene) A press release from the Met Police said that Gooden's family continue to be supported by specially trained officers from the Met's Specialist Crime Command. Detectives continue to appeal for witnesses and information about the incident. To contact police directly, please call 101 and quote CAD 4252/17DEC. You can also report information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via crimestoppers-uk.org. Most people will be tucking into the turkey when it's time for Christmas dinner. Yet in Japan a peculiar festive tradition has taken hold, and it was all based on a lie a businessman told to save his company. Takeshi Okawara managed the first KFC franchise in Japan and he told people fried chicken was a common alternative to turkey in the West. It wasn't true, but Mr Okawara sparked a Japanese tradition that is now close to 50 years old. A statue of Colonel Sanders, the American who founded Kentucky Fried Chicken, wearing a Father Christmas costume in Japan Millions of Japanese people will eat KFC at Christmas this year, all because the first manager of a franchise in Japan told people chicken was a Western alternative to turkey More than three million Japanese families eat KFC on Christmas Eve each year after the American junk food firm launched its 'Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii!' campaign ('Kentucky for Christmas!') in 1974. Japan's population descends on KFC for an array of chicken buckets, burgers and wings, much of which is drenched in their festive gravy. Mr Okawara said the tradition begun when he dressed up as Father Christmas at a festive school party and served the fast-food to the children. Takeshi Okawara lied about the prevalence of chicken being eaten instead of turkey at Christmas but has created a festive tradition that is almost half a century old with his fib Junk food lovers may not have the healthiest of meals, which each item packed with a large number of calories and a meal costing around 20 Yet many in Japan won't mind to splurge on the fried chicken over the Christmas holiday However, KFC may not be the healthiest option for a meal. There are 1,075 calories in a single KFC Gravy Burger Box Meal, which consists of a chicken breast fillet burger with gravy-mayonnaise and cheese, topped with a cupped hashbrown you can fill with their gravy. It also comes with a mini fillet, chips and a drink. That meal is a limited time offer over the festive period. 'I know people are not eating chicken,' Mr Okawara told Business Insider. 'It was a lie, I still regret that. But people like it.' Queues of thousands of people are set for Christmas day, which each person splashing the equivalent of around 20 for a Christmas KFC meal. The taxman is set to spend an extra $111million to hunt down Australians who cheat their work expenses or get bad advice from their accountants. But in return, the Federal Government is set to rake in an extra $1.2billion in revenue over the next four years from the crackdown on tax frauds. The additional funding is part of renewed efforts by the Australian Tax Office to bring the hammer down on the shadow economy. Every year up to $11billion in taxes is lost through unreported or dishonest earnings, the ATO has estimated. The taxman is set to bring down the hammer on Australians who are overclaiming work expenses and those getting dodgy advice from their accountants (stock image) Over-claiming deductions like work-related expenses is one of the biggest issues for the AT to tackle. In the 2018-2019 financial year, more than eight million Aussies claimed an average $2,331 in work-related expenses, costing the treasury a fortune. Other things the ATO will focus on include investors not paying the right amount of tax on rental properties or investments and accountants who encourage clients to lodge dodgy tax returns. Unreported income including from overseas will also be targeted, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Companies using software to illegally interfere with their sales records will too be put under the spotlight, in a move that is known as electronic sales suppression tools. 'This allows sales and income to be under-reported, and in turn, less tax to be paid,' the ATO says on its website. Other things the ATO will focus on include investors not paying the right amount of tax on rental properties or investments and accountants who encourage clients to lodge dodgy tax returns (stock image) 'This contributes to the shadow economy and is unfair to honest businesses that do the right thing.' The major crackdown comes after it was revealed another 200,000 Australians started investing in cryptocurrency this year. The data shows there are more than 800,000 Australians - up from an estimated 600,000 in 2020 - using cryptocurrency, the ATO revealed earlier this month. The ATO matches data from cryptocurrency service providers to individual tax returns to make sure investors are paying the right amount of tax. As well as getting transaction data from cryptocurrency exchanges and banks, the ATO also shares data with the financial intelligence agency Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and overseas tax agencies. 'The majority of Australians do want to pay the correct amount of tax and seek to report their gains and losses correctly,' the ATO spokesman said. Advertisement The Queen has delivered her most personal Christmas message ever today. Speaking from Windsor Castle, the 95-year-old monarch paid a moving tribute to her beloved Philip, who died aged 99 in April. Remarking that one familiar laugh (was) missing this festive season her first without him in 73 years she described how the Duke of Edinburghs mischievous, enquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when I first set eyes on him. The head of state also reached out to the millions of people affected by the pandemic, and those who have lost loved ones this year. Read her entire Christmas Day message below. The Queen has delivered her most personal Christmas message ever today. Speaking from Windsor Castle, the 95-year-old monarch paid a moving tribute to her beloved Philip, who died aged 99 in April The Central Band of the Royal British Legion performing during the broadcast in the grounds of Windsor Castle The Singology Community Choir performing for the broadcast inside St George's Hall in Windsor Castle Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones. This year, especially, I understand why. But for me, in the months since the death of my beloved Philip, I have drawn great comfort from the warmth and affection of the many tributes to his life and work from around the country, the Commonwealth and the world. His sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation were all irrepressible. That mischievous, enquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when I first set eyes on him. But life, of course, consists of final partings as well as first meetings and as much as I and my family miss him, I know he would want us to enjoy Christmas. We felt his presence as we, like millions around the world, readied ourselves for Christmas. While Covid again means we cant celebrate quite as we may have wished, we can still enjoy the many happy traditions. Be it the singing of carols as long as the tune is well known decorating the tree, giving and receiving presents, or watching a favourite film where we already know the ending, its no surprise that families so often treasure their Christmas routines. We see our own children and their families embrace the roles, traditions and values that mean so much to us, as these are passed from one generation to the next, sometimes being updated for changing times. I see it in my own family and it is a source of great happiness. Prince Philip was always mindful of this sense of passing the baton. Thats why he created The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, which offers young people throughout the Commonwealth and beyond the chance of exploration and adventure. It remains an astonishing success, grounded in his faith in the future. He was also an early champion of taking seriously our stewardship of the environment, and I am proud beyond words that his pioneering work has been taken on and magnified by our eldest son Charles and his eldest son William admirably supported by Camilla and Catherine most recently at the COP climate change summit in Glasgow. Next summer, we look forward to the Commonwealth Games. The baton is currently travelling the length and breadth of the Commonwealth, heading towards Birmingham, a beacon of hope on its journey. It will be a chance to celebrate the achievements of athletes and the coming-together of like-minded nations. And February, just six weeks from now, will see the start of my Platinum Jubilee year, which I hope will be an opportunity for people everywhere to enjoy a sense of togetherness, a chance to give thanks for the enormous changes of the last 70 years social, scientific and cultural and also to look ahead with confidence. I am sure someone somewhere today will remark that Christmas is a time for children. Its an engaging truth, but only half the story. Perhaps its truer to say that Christmas can speak to the child within us all. Adults, when weighed down with worries, sometimes fail to see the joy in simple things, where children do not. And for me and my family, even with one familiar laugh missing this year, there will be joy in Christmas, as we have the chance to reminisce, and see anew the wonder of the festive season through the eyes of our young children, of whom we were delighted to welcome four more this year. They teach us all a lesson just as the Christmas story does that in the birth of a child, there is a new dawn with endless potential. It is this simplicity of the Christmas story that makes it so universally appealing, simple happenings that formed the starting point of the life of Jesus a man whose teachings have been handed down from generation to generation, and have been the bedrock of my faith. His birth marked a new beginning. As the carol says: The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight. I wish you all a very happy Christmas. Fire engines have raced to The Lodge, the Prime Minister's official residence in Canberra, in a Christmas Day emergency alert. Posts on Twitter showed the fire trucks at the entrance to the mansion with their red and blue lights flashing on Saturday night. There were no obvious signs of a fire and Prime Minister Scott Morrison is believed to be in Sydney with his family at the PM's Kirribilli residence. Fire engine has just arrived at The Lodge, lights flashing. #auspol 2/2 pic.twitter.com/Mdio0u0J8c Chris Wallace (@c_s_wallace) December 25, 2021 Fire engines have raced to The Lodge, the Prime Minister's official residence in Canberra, in a Christmas Day emergency alert (pictured) Posts on Twitter showed the fire trucks at the entrance to the mansion with their red and blue lights flashing on Saturday night (pictured) Fire engine has just arrived at The Lodge, lights flashing. #auspol 2/2 pic.twitter.com/Mdio0u0J8c Chris Wallace (@c_s_wallace) December 25, 2021 But that didn't stop Twitter trolls from leaping on the alert as excuse to take potshots at the PM. 'S***, who's holding the hose?' tweeted one, in a call back to Mr Morrison's famous 'I don't hold a hose' excuse for taking a family holiday in Hawaii during the bushfires. Twitter trolls leaped on the alert as excuse to take potshots at the PM (pictured) Another posted 'Pants on fire', referring to the accusations and Mr Morrison's denials about him being economical with the truth. Others wondered if he burnt a Christmas curry, after the PM's many social media posts about cooking curry for wife Jenny and his daughters Lily and Abby. The Lodge in Canberra's Deakin suburb, close to the Australian Parliament, is the primary official residence of Australian Prime Ministers. Prime Minister Scott Morrison (pictured) is believed to be in Sydney with his family at the PM's Kirribilli residence The Lodge (pictured) in Canberra's Deakin suburb, close to the Australian Parliament, is the primary official residence of Australian Prime Ministers It was built in 1927 in the Georgian revival style and has been renovated several times. Several prime ministers have chosen to live elsewhere during their terms in office, including John Howard and Tony Abbott - who preferred Kirribilli House on the waterfront of Sydney Harbour. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Australian Federal Police for comment. More to follow. Advertisement The Queen made no reference to Andrew, Harry or Meghan, but praised Charles, Camilla, William and Kate in her Christmas message. The 95-year-old monarch commended the Prince of Wales, his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge for their climate activism, while not making even a tactic mention of her middle son or the Sussexes. The House of Windsor was plunged into its most severe crisis since arguably Princess Dianas death in 1997 after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex quit royal duties last year. Harry and Meghan proceeded to make a series of bombshell allegations against the Royal Family during their interview with Oprah Winfrey. Accusations of racism forced the Queen to pointedly claim that recollections may vary as she issued an unprecedented plea to deal with their issues privately as a family. Though it is thought that Her Majesty has invited the couple to a service of thanksgiving for the Duke of Edinburghs life, concerns remain over Harrys forthcoming tell-all memoir due to be published next autumn after the Platinum Jubilee. Meanwhile, the Queens middle son Andrew stepped out of the public spotlight over questions about his friendship with convicted paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, and Epsteins madam Ghislaine Maxwell, who is on trial in New York accused of sex trafficking. She denies the allegations. The Duke of York is currently battling a civil lawsuit filed in the US which alleges that Epstein trafficking victim Virginia Roberts was forced to have sex with the senior royal on three occasions in 2001. Andrew has consistently and vehemently denied Miss Robertss claims, and his lawyers are trying to get the case thrown out. The Queens middle son Andrew stepped out of the public spotlight over questions about his friendship with convicted paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, and Epsteins madam Ghislaine Maxwell Harry and Meghan posed for a photo with their son Archie and baby daughter Lilibet Diana The 95-year-old monarch commended the Prince of Wales, his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge for their climate activism, while not making even a tactic mention of her middle son or the Sussexes She also spoke fondly of her eldest son Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and also of William and Kate, for their focus on climate change During her broadcast to the nation, the Queen praised Charles, Camilla, William and Kate for their climate activism. Speaking from Windsor Castle, she said: I am proud beyond words that his (Philips) pioneering work has been taken on and magnified by our eldest son Charles and his eldest son William admirably supported by Camilla and Catherine most recently at the COP climate change summit in Glasgow. Charles has long planned a slimmed-down Monarchy. Though full details have never been revealed, it has been speculated that only heirs to the throne and their immediate families will receive full titles, financial support from the public purse through the Sovereign Grant and police protection funded by the taxpayer. Charles and Andrew have already been at loggerheads about what security Andrews daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, should receive in future, the Mail on Sunday previously reported. An insider told the MoS: Charles has never made any secret of the fact that he wants a slimmed-down Monarchy when he becomes King. He realises that the public don't want to pay for a huge Monarchy and, as he said, the balcony at Buckingham Palace would probably collapse. The Queens Christmas message was her emotional ever, paying tribute to her beloved Philip following his death in April aged 99. Charles and his wife Camilla, and William and his wife Kate exiting a vehicle. The image is taken from the Queen's Broadcast The Queen paid an emotional tribute to her late husband Prince Philip in her Christmas message, while sitting beside a framed picture of the royal couple (pictured). On her jacket is the sapphire chrysanthemum brooch which she wore in a photograph to mark her 73rd wedding anniversary with Philip in November last year One of the images broadcast today showed the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at one of their 'happy places' the Coyles of Muick hills close to Balmoral, where they enjoyed walking and picnics throughout their long lives together. The head of state so loves the place that she named her new corgi puppy after it. The special photograph was taken by their daughter-in-law the Countess of Wessex in 2003 during one of their family summer holidays The Queen has given permission for Buckingham Palace to release a small number of treasured images of the prince Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones, the Queen said. This year, especially, I understand why. The monarch, with a sapphire chrysanthemum brooch pinned to her Christmas red Angela Kelly dress, said of Philip: His sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation were all irrepressible. That mischievous, enquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when I first set eyes on him. But life, of course, consists of final partings as well as first meetings. And as much as I and my family miss him, I know he would want us to enjoy Christmas. The Queen also acknowledged the impact of the Covid variant, having cancelled her regular trip to Sandringham in order to spend Christmas at Windsor. She was joined on the day by Charles and Camilla, Clarence House announced. While Covid again means we can't celebrate quite as we may have wished, we can still enjoy the many happy traditions, the head of state said. I am sure someone somewhere today will remark that Christmas is a time for children. Its an engaging truth, but only half the story. Perhaps its truer to say that Christmas can speak to the child within us all. Adults, when weighed down with worries, sometimes fail to see the joy in simple things, where children do not. And for me and my family, even with one familiar laugh missing this year, there will be joy in Christmas, as we have the chance to reminisce, and see anew the wonder of the festive season through the eyes of our young children, of whom we were delighted to welcome four more this year. The Queen also hinted at the prospect of reuniting with loved ones in the new year. February, just six weeks from now, will see the start of my Platinum Jubilee year, which I hope will be an opportunity for people everywhere to enjoy a sense of togetherness... and also to look ahead with confidence, she said. I wish you all a very happy Christmas. Pope Francis prayed today for an end to the coronavirus pandemic, using his Christmas Day address to urge health care for all, vaccines for the poor and for dialogue to prevail in resolving the world's conflicts. Amid a record-setting rise in COVID-19 cases in Italy this week, only a few thousand people flocked to a rain-soaked St. Peter's Square for Francis' annual 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and the world) Christmas address. Normally the square would be packed with tens of thousands of holiday well-wishers, but many will be grateful they were able to visit the square at all this Christmas, after last year's lockdown forced Francis to deliver a televised address from inside the Apostolic Palace. Although Italy this week counted more than 50,000 cases in a single day for the first time, the government has not ordered another lockdown. Pope Francis waves to the gathered faithful following his Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican on December 25, 2021. Amid a record-setting rise in COVID-19 cases in Italy this week, only a few thousand people flocked to a rain-soaked St. Peter's Square for Francis' annual 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and the world) Christmas address. The pope's Christmas Day speech gives him an opportunity to draw a global audience's attention to conflicts big and small, and this year was no different. Francis lamented ongoing conflicts in Syria, Yemen and Iraq, newly flaring tensions in Ukraine and Ethiopia, and an 'unprecedented crisis' in Lebanon. 'We have become so used to them (conflicts) that immense tragedies are now being passed over in silence; we risk not hearing the cry of pain and distress of so many of our brothers and sisters,' he said from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica as Swiss Guards stood at attention in the square below. Francis warned of the pandemic tendency to withdraw and isolate, urging instead dialogue to try to resolve the world conflicts. He prayed in particular for those most affected by the virus, including women and children who have suffered increased abuse during lockdowns. 'Son of God, comfort the victims of violence against women, which has increased in this time of pandemic. Offer hope to young children and adolescents suffering from bullying and abuse,' he said. He prayed for 'consolation and warmth' for older adults who are alone, as well as for health care workers who 'generously devote themselves' to caring for the sick. A handout picture taken and released by the Vatican Media shows Pope Francis delivering his Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican on December 25, 2021. Normally the square would be packed with tens of thousands of holiday well-wishers, but many will be grateful they were able to visit the square at all this Christmas, after last year's lockdown forced Francis to deliver a televised address from inside the Apostolic Palace (attendees stand in the rain at St. Peter's Square) Believers gather under the rain to listen to the Pope Francis' Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican on December 25, 2021 'Grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of good will to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects,' he said. 'Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care - and vaccines in particular - are provided to those peoples who need them most.' Francis delivered his speech hours after celebrating a 'Midnight Mass' service for some 2,000 people, a fraction of the basilica's capacity. The service actually began at 7:30 p.m., a nod to the 85-year-old pope's endurance and a hold-over from last year, when the service had to end before Italy's nationwide COVID-19 curfew. For the second day in a row, Italy on Friday set a daily pandemic record with 50,599 new cases. Another 141 people died, bringing Italy's official death toll in the pandemic to 136,386. With the arrival of the omicron variant in Italy, the Vatican secretary of state this week imposed a new vaccine mandate on Vatican staff, extending it to all employees except those who have recovered from COVID-19. Previously, only employees who dealt with the public directly had to be vaccinated, such as the staff of the Vatican Museums and the Swiss Guards. Other Vatican employees could access their offices with regular testing. Now, there is no test-out exemption. The Pope's Christmas Day balcony message followed Midnight Mass, during which Francis called on the faithful to value the 'little things in life' and show solidarity with the poor. Pope Francis uncovers the statue of baby Jesus during the Christmas Eve mass at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, on December 24, 2021 Pope Francis sprays incense to a figurine of baby Jesus before leading a Christmas Eve mass at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, on December 24, 2021 The Pope's Christmas Day balcony message was preceded by Midnight Mass, during which Francis called on the faithful to value the 'little things in life' and show solidarity with the poor. An estimated 2,000 members of the public and 200 religious figures attended the mass at St Peter's Basilica, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing as part of measures against the coronavirus, the Vatican's press office said. Those who had not managed to grab a ticket watched on huge screens outside the church. A maskless Francis processed down the central aisle of the basilica as the Sistine Chapel choir sang Noel, kicking off the Vatican's Christmas holiday that commemorates the birth of Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem. Across the world, worshippers were also seen gathering for annual masses in cities in the US, in Sri Lanka, Iraq, Kenya and Russia. The Vatican went ahead with its service despite the resurgence in Covid-19 cases that has prompted a new vaccine mandate for Vatican employees. Vice President Kamala Harris conceded in a televised interview this week that her 'biggest failure' since taking office last January has been 'not getting out of DC more,' as she continues to face criticism for making just one visit to the southern border despite the worsening migrant crisis. Speaking to CBS News' Margaret Brennan for a weekend edition of Face the Nation set to air Sunday, Harris made the remarks after interviewer Brennan asked the former California senator an open-ended, introspective question concerning her own perceived shortcomings. 'What do you think, as you come to the end of this first year, what do you think your biggest failure has been at this point?' Brennan asks in a preview clip for the White House-set interview. In the clip, Harris, 57, seems to laugh off the question at first, before admitting: 'To not get out of DC more.' Vice President Kamala Harris conceded in a televised interview this week that her 'biggest failure' since taking office last January has been 'not getting out of DC more,' as the politician continues to face criticism for her handling of the migrant crisis at the US-Mexican border .@VP Harris admits that her biggest failure is not leaving DC more due to COVID: My biggest concern is I don't ever want to be in a bubble when it comes to being aware of and in touch with what people need at any given moment. More of @margbrennans exclusive interview, Sunday pic.twitter.com/8nH0ByAs7v Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) December 24, 2021 Harris, who had a COVID scare earlier in the week after coming into contact with an infected staffer, went on: 'I mean, and I actually mean that sincerely for a number of reasons. 'You know, I, we, the president and I came in, you know, COVID had already started,' she continued. 'The pandemic had started. And when we came in we really couldn't travel.' 'You know, a large part of the relationship that he and I have built has been being in this, you know, together in the same office for hours on end, doing Zooms or whatever because we couldn't get out of D.C., and on issues that are about fighting for anything from voting rights to child care, to one of the issues that I care deeply about, maternal health. 'Being with the people who are directly impacted by this work, listening to them so that they, not some pundit, tells us what their priorities are. I think it's critically important.' 'People are, people have a right to know and believe that their government actually sees and hears them. 'My biggest concern is, I don't ever want to be in a bubble when it comes to being aware of and in touch with what people need at any given moment in time.' Harris' comments come as she continues to face rampant criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike for being largely withdrawn from the ongoing migrant crisis at the country's southern border - a predicament that the president asked her to solve. Since being named as the US' point person on the migrant crisis in March, Harris has visited the border region just once, more than six months ago in June, when she spent a few hours in El Paso, Texas, before jetting off to her $5million Los Angeles mansion, where she spent the rest of that weekend. Since being named as the US' point person on the migrant crisis in March, Harris has visited the border region just once, more than six months ago in June, when she spent a few hours at the the El Paso US Customs and Border Protection Central Processing Center Harris is pictured making her one and only visit to the southern border since becoming VP, during a June 2021 trip to El Paso in Texas The vice president then returned to her posh digs the very next weekend to celebrate July 4, and has since made several other visits to her home state - including a unexplained, non-public visit to Palm Springs in October - but has yet to make a second excursion to the border. Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar said that he's done trying to work with the vice president on border issues, as Border Patrol agents continue to record a rise in encounters between illegal immigrants and their officers. 'I say this very respectfully to her: I moved on,' Cuellar told The New York Times earlier in the week. 'She was tasked with that job, it doesn't look like she's very interested in this, so we are going to move on to other folks that work on this issue.' Cuellar's gripes originated when Harris said she'd be visiting the border in June and a phone call from his office to hers went unreturned. Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar (left) said that he's done trying to work with Vice President Kamala Harris (right) on border issues On immigration, Harris had been charged by President Joe Biden to deal with the root causes of migration The politician has also come under fire from other progressives after she declared publicly that undocumented migrants were not welcome in the US. With that said, the crisis is still pressing, with nearly 6,000 undocumented immigrants being apprehended by agents stationed along the border daily. During Harris' sole, brief visit to the region, the politician was not brought to the actual border line, but to nearby immigration facilities where she met with migrant girls aged 9-16. Harris' other trips out of DC have included visits to Guatemala and Mexico in June, to discuss the 'root causes' of the migrant crisis, as well as stops in Vietnam, Singapore, and Japan in August, in a show of solidarity with the Asian countries against China. Harris visited Vietnam over the summer, where spoke with the country's Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan at the Presidential Palace in capital Hanoi The politician also took a trip to France last month in an effort to mend the US' recently tarnished relationship with its longtime European ally, after the country was left out of the U.S.-U.K.-Australia deal on submarine technology that was spawned earlier this year. The politician also took a trip to France last month, where she met with President Emmanuel Macron, in an effort to mend the US' recently tarnished relationship with its longtime ally, after the country was left out of the U.S.-U.K.-Australia submarine deal spawned earlier this year In the White House-set CBS interview set to air Sunday, Harris told Teller that her proudest accomplishment as vice president is her empowering of today's youth Harris' domestic trips, meanwhile, have included trips to Las Vegas, Chicago, Charlotte, the San Francisco Bay Area and Newark, New Jersey - which she visited in October the same day that other top Biden administration officials were in Mexico City to attend a high-level meeting about border issues. Harris, meanwhile, was advocating for people in the urban, northeastern city to get vaccinated amid the then surging Delta variant. In her upcoming Face the Nation interview, Harris touted what she sees as her 'biggest accomplishment' since taking office. 'When I go to an event, whatever it is, and some dad or some mom brings their kids -- daughters, sons - and says "That's your vice president," and challenges their kids to think about who does what, as a way, I think, of empowering their kids to know they can do anything they want not be confined by who has traditionally done what I think that is, that's one of the things I, that gives me joy, is to know that, that might be a possible impact.' WATCH: @VP Harris discusses her biggest accomplishment during her first year in office: Inspiring children. More of @margbrennans exclusive interview this Sunday on Face The Nation pic.twitter.com/nw4pQ66wcr Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) December 24, 2021 On Christmas Eve, Harris visited with first responders and other first-line workers in Los Angeles along with her husband, Doug Emhoff. Two people are feared to have died in separate Christmas Day drownings after revellers tried to cool off from Saturday's scorching sunshine. One man died at a local beauty spot just west of Melbourne's city centre after he got into difficulties in the water at Newport Lakes Reserve. Emergency services were called after the swimmer suddenly went missing around 6.30pm. He was later spotted by a passer by who pulled him from the water. The member of the public tried to revive him but he was found to be dead at the scene. One man died at a local beauty spot just west of Melbourne's city centre after he got into difficulties in the water at Newport Lakes Reserve (pictured) Police were told a 42-year old man had jumped in the Ben Chifley Dam (pictured) around 1.50pm but never re-appeared In Bathurst, two hours west of Sydney, emergency services are still looking for a swimmer who went missing in a local dam on Christmas Day. Police were told a 42-year old man had jumped in the Ben Chifley Dam around 1.50pm but never re-appeared. A crime scene has been established at the popular local spot near the town, and State Emergency Service specialists had also joined the hunt. The dam has now been closed to the public. The search was called off as night fell and will resume at first light on Sunday. Advertisement Swimmers have headed to the coast for Christmas Day dips across the country, with both humans and pets braving the cold waters while donning a variety of festive hats. Congregating at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh on Christmas morning, swimmers wore full elf outfits and tutus to jump into the ocean. People also gathered at Tynemouth Beach in the North East, where similar Christmas costumes were worn by swimmers. There were around 450 swimmers taking part in the festive dip in Weymouth, all dressed in seasonal attire to take the icy plunge. Happy Christmas from the sea! Two women with Santa hats ready for their festive dip at Crooklets Beach in Bude, Cornwall Revellers at Crooklets Beach in Bude, Cornwall, head into the chilly water for the occasion, wearing their swim gear as well as festive additions like Santa hats Disappointed swimmers dressed as turkeys and a penguin stand on the beach in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day dip was called off due to adverse weather Swimmers in Felixstowe, Suffolk were sad to hear the news that the Christmas Day dip was cancelled because of bad weather Swimmers wading in the shallow sea water to avoid getting completely drenched, with all three in red and white striped leggings, one in a red tutu and two in blue and white Santa hats Swimmers braving the cold waters for a Christmas Day swim in Cornwall earlier today, in black and white swimsuits as others wade in the sea behind them A group of swimmer excitedly participate in a Christmas Day dip on Brighton Beach in southern England on Christmas Day People in red and black swimsuits donning festive Santa hats enter the sea for a Christmas Day swim on Brighton Beach in southern England A woman in a swimsuit and a woolly Santa hat wades in the chilly waters as she exits the sea after participating in a Christmas Day dip on Brighton Beach A pair of swimmer prepare to enter the sea in Brighton Beach, wearing swimming gear and festive elf and Santa hats during a Christmas Day swim A group of women braved the chilly water together, holding hands as they entered the water. However, due to bad conditions, the dip at Felixstowe, Suffolk was called off at the last minute, leaving many disappointed spectators and swimmers. In a series of tweets, St Elizabeth's Hospice, which was hosting the event, said their Christmas Day Dip was been postponed due to windy weather. The organisation tweeted they were advised that the safety of the participants in the sea could not be guaranteed due to the adverse conditions. Over 750 people turned out to Bournemouth's Boscombe Pier, Dorset, to raise funds for charity Macmillan Caring Locally who hope to make 50,000 on their 13th Christmas Day dip Swimmers at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh smile and wave as they don matching Christmas jumpers after their cold swim This festive pup wearing a Christmas elf jumper runs along the sand during the Christmas day dip at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh, Scotland Warming themselves up with a campfire, Christmas Day swimmers at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh wrap themselves in towels after taking part in the festive tradition One woman running out of the water at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh, after braving the cold water for Christmas Day Laura (left) and Julie Fear enjoy a festive Christmas Day swim, donning Santa hats, at Portishead Lido in Portishead, Somerset earlier today Ms Fear wades through the pool at Portishead Lido in Portishead, Somerset on December 25 for a Christmas Day swim Grin and bare it: Swimmers with red and white hats, wrapped with tinsel on their heads, take part in the annual Christmas morning swim in the Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park One swimmer wore a elf-themed Christmas swimsuit, with green and red details, a Christmas tree hat and finished off with some reindeer sunglasses Braving the cold: Swimmers, some wearing Christmas hats, swam through the chilly Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park, London Drink to that: Those who took part in the Christmas morning swim in the Serpentine Lake were greeted on land with cups of red wine Cheers: Swimmers enjoying a glass of red wine following the Peter Pan Cup annual Christmas Day swim at the Serpentine Swim Club in London Drenched! Two women dressed as Mrs Claus, one complete with tinsel wrapped around her waist, leave the water after a swim in Exmouth, Devon Swimmers posing for a photo before they take part in a Christmas Day dip in Exmouth, Devon, dressed in festive gear A swimmer wearing a Santa hat and a pair of gloves at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh, exiting the cold water for a Christmas Day dip Swimmers in colourful gear run out of the water following a frosty dip in the sea at at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh on Christmas Day A group of people wearing multi-coloured swimsuits and caps in Portobello Beach, Edinburgh braving the cold water for a Christmas Day swim Swimmers at Portobello Beach, Edinburgh, splashing around in the cold water as the waves come in during a Christmas Day dip earlier today A series of swimmers at Edinburgh's Portobello Beach splashing around as many kicked off the day with a celebratory dip in the frosty waters A group of people wearing multi-coloured swimsuits running out of the water following a Christmas Day swim in Cornwall earlier today It tweeted: 'We are so disappointed that we have to make a change like this so close to the event date. 'It is not a decision we have taken lightly and your safety will always be our number one priority'. They added that they knew the postponement would be a 'huge disappointment to many' and that 'attending the event is a family tradition and so many people were braving the cold in memory of their loved ones'. Saying it was 'truly sorry' for the delay to the 'iconic Christmas Day challenge', the charity confirmed that those who intended to take part will have their registrations automatically rolled over to the new date once confirmed. They later posted that the advice came from Felixstowe volunteer coastal patrol rescue service. Before the cancellation, two swimmers wearing full clown costumes did take the plunge for a splash in the sea. Among those who arrived for the Felixstowe swim were people dressed as turkeys, penguins and elves. One man dressed as a Christmas tree, with a star on his triangular green hat to act as the top of the tree, complete with tinsel and pretend ornaments Thousands of people lined Weymouth Harbour to see the swimmers take part in the swim, which has become a landmark event for the town We did it! Cheers from these three participants who wear medals around their necks as a prize for completing Weymouth's Christmas Day dip Celebrating the finish to their swim, these participants share a hug to say Merry Christmas after a chilly dip in Weymouth Harbour Wearing red swimsuits, red and white striped socks and a Santa hat, two women take part in Weymouth's festive swim today Arek Czajka and Lidia Smelz, from Poland, share a festive kiss during a Christmas Day dip at Sandycove beach, near Dublin, Ireland Patrick Corkery wears a Santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot, near Dublin, Ireland, during his Christmas Day dip A group of swimmers sporting Santa hats run into the water as they hold hands for a Christmas day dip at Tynemouth Beach on the North East coast A swimmer in fancy dress enters the water at the beach in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day dip has been called off due to inclement weather A festive swimmer in a Santa hat and Christmas-themed shirt dips her toes into the water for a today's dip at Tynemouth Beach A wild swimmer wearing a colourful swimming cap and some goggles takes a Christmas Day dip at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh A man in bright pink swimming shorts and a Santa hat runs into the cold waters for a swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh People enjoy swimming lengths at the pool as they go for a Christmas Day dip at the Portishead Lido in Portishead, Somerset Swimmers have a glass of red wine after taking part in the annual Christmas Morning swim in the Serpentine Lake in London's Hyde Park Over 750 people turned out, with many in fancy dress, for the festive dip at Boscombe Pier in Bournemouth, Dorset, for Macmillan Caring Locally charity hoping to raise 50,000 today. After raising 250,000 on the swim in 2019, and with last years' being cancelled due to the pandemic, lifeguards kept the hundreds safe as they braved the cold water down south. Sea temperatures were around 9-10 degrees today, but that didn't stop swimmers from taking part. A small group of Brighton & Hove swimming club members wading in the waters earlier this morning for the traditional morning swim at sunrise by the Place Pier A group of swimmers sporting Christmas hats and colourful boards run into the sea with joint hands as they go for a Christmas swim at Tynemouth Beach Disappointed swimmers dressed as penguins on the beach in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day dip has been called off due to the weather A person dressed as an elf walks dogs along the seafront on Christmas day in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day swim has been cancelled A group of excited and enthusiastic swimmers pose as they go for a Christmas day dip at Tynemouth Beach on the North East coast Perry Springate (left) and Chris Johnson enter the sea dressed as clowns in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day dip has been called off Swimmers jump into the Blackroot Pool, at Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham where the Christmas Day swim has become an annual tradition A man in a Santa hat smiles as he's seen swimming around at Blackroot Pool, at Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham earlier today People preparing to swim the cold waters of the Serpentine Lake for the Peter Pan Cup annual Christmas Day swim at the Serpentine Swim Club in London Organisers are putting the funds raised towards 'Brick by Brick', an appeal by Macmillian Caring Locally to build a new hospice to replace the Macmillan Unit at Christchurch in Dorset. Thousands of people lined Weymouth Harbour to see the swimmers take part in the swim, which has become a landmark event for the town. Swimmers at the Peter Pan Cup annual Christmas Day swim at the Serpentine Swim Club in London were lucky enough to enjoy a glass of red wine following their dip. Swimmers dressed up in red, green and white festive gear posing in the sea at Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day dip has been called off due to adverse weather A group of women wearing Santa and elf hats splash around in the water in Felixstowe, Suffolk, where the Christmas Day swim has been called off Bystanders take pictures of the Christmas Day swim in Felixstowe, Suffolk where many got dressed up just to hear it had been called off due to the weather A wild swimmer with a red Santa hat walks through the sea as she takes a Christmas Day dip at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh A swimmer runs and exclaims at the chilly water as they wade in the sea at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh earlier today A rookie NYPD cop who hit the headlines after giving a married lieutenant a lap dance at a holiday party has offered a tearful apology to the man's wife. Vera Mekuli, 26, has apologized to Melissa McGarry after giving her husband Lieutenant Nick McGarry a lap dance at Rory Dolan's bar in Yonkers on December 15. Mekuli also revealed she's been working from home since the story emerged - and angrily told of how she's felt 'judged' over the incident, which she says has been fueled by misogyny. 'I want to apologize the lieutenant's wife, you know, I am sorry, truly I am,' she said in a video obtained by TMZ. 'I hope it didn't cause too much damage in the marriage or in your personal life. 'I know it's been rough,' she continued. 'It wasn't meant to be like this, I really had no knowledge of your marriage.' She claimed it was supposed to be for 's**ts and giggles' and that 'everyone had been having drinks,' but it has led to embarrassment. The cop is now 'working from home' this week. Vera Mekuli, 26, has apologized to Lieutenant Nick McGarry's wife Melissa, claiming she 'had no knowledge of your marriage' when she gave her husband a lap dance at the 44th Precinct's holiday party on December 15 The rookie cop said she has face a lot of judgement since the party The rookie cop was caught on tape giving her superior a festive lap dance. She said she is now working from home due to embarrassment and does not know when she'll return 'There's a lot of judgment and shame that shouldn't be there, even though there's a lot of support.' Mekuli also said that the 'mile of area' that her precinct patrols made her worry that people will recognize her and go: 'Oh, that's the girl, she gave the lap dance.' 'My work me, my work self, and the off duty are two different people. I can still patrol and police the streets like I used to and the way anyone can. I feel like I shouldn't be judged or anything of that sort because of a lap dance off duty, not in uniform.' She also claimed she was judged harsher because she was a 'woman' and 'not a man,' and that her 'rookie' status also played a role. She claimed that if she was a man 'it would have been more of a joking matter and remained in-house.' Footage from the event showed Mekuli grinding her backside on McGarry's lap as he sits in a chair and holds onto her thighs. Nick McGarry has been moved to Transit District 12 in the Bronx following the lap dance Mekuli also told Melissa (pictured) via video that she hoped it 'didn't cause too much damage in the marriage or in your personal life' In another video, the rookie cop turns around to face McGarry and straddles the 44th precinct commander as he grabs her by the waist. In the video, Mekuli appears carefree as she throws her hands in the air and dances on her superior to cheers from the crowd. One onlooker, meanwhile, yelled 'Oh my God,' and another appeared to hand the lieutenant a wad of cash. In a different scene, she grinds on a different man, who is bent over and facing the floor. McGarry lives in the city's northern suburbs with his wife, Melissa, and their kids NYPD brass wasted no time in disciplining McGarry, who has been with the NYPD since 2010. He was reportedly reassigned to serve in Transit District 12 in the Bronx after the tawdry video surfaced. An unnamed source told the New York Post in the aftermath that he 'knows he f***** up.' 'Messing with your subordinate is a no-no on the job,' the source said, adding that the rookie cop 'doesn't know any better because she just came on the job. 'I can't even tell you how many times they tell incoming supervisors that,' he said, noting: 'It sets a bad precedent.' Following the news of Mekuli's raunchy encounter with her boss, her father said she has been crying over the ordeal - and he now plans to sue. The rookie's dad told the Post on Monday that his daughter told him: 'Daddy, I made some mistake. I'm very embarrassed about what I did. I embarrassed you and my family.' The father said his daughter is 'frustrated' over the incident. 'She cried and cried,' he said. 'She is young. She doesn't know how but he is married, the lieutenant. He should know better. 'I am going to sue them.' There was further drama on Monday when Melissa McGarry yelled at a New York Post reporter and photographer outside the house in New Windsor, screaming 'F*** you!' at them as she was restrained by her husband. 'It's not worth it, get back in the car,' the lieutenant told his fuming wife as she continued her rant. Melissa McGarry told the press members: 'There are other things to worry about in this world!' As the couple drove away, Melissa McGarry took her hands off the steering wheel and flipped the bird to the reporter with both hands, screaming: 'F*** you! F*** you! F*** you!' This is the dramatic moment fireworks exploded in a supermarket crowded with 500 shoppers - although one shopper continued unperturbed. Sparks flew around the Lenta store in the Russian city of Tomsk, causing panic. Shoppers abandoned their trolleys and ran for cover as the supermarket turned into a war zone, with rockets streaking over the aisles. Yet one man was determined to finish his shop and strolled towards the mayhem with shopping under one arm and a bag in the other. An array of fireworks went off in a Lenta supermarket in the southern Russian city of Tomsk Yet one man calmly continued shopping, determined to finish his daily chores, seemingly unconcerned by the chaos He strode into the mayhem as fireworks continued to explode with one arm around his shopping while holding a shopping bag in his other hand There was fire and smoke that filled up the Lenta supermarket that had around 500 shoppers inside Heroic shoppers grabbed fire extinguishers to try put out the fire caused by the fireworks The fireworks were on sale for the New Year holiday but the reason they ignited was not clear. Hero shoppers reacted to grab fire extinguishers to put out the blaze. 'The staff behaved like stupid sheep and were at a loss what to do, but shoppers rushed to douse the fire,' said one witness. Worryingly, it is the second time in three days that fireworks have ignited in Lenta stores in the city. Thick smoke rose high into the sky as the inferno ripped through the building yesterday Pictured: The devastation left behind at the store by the blaze. 'Hundreds of thousands' of pounds worth of goods have reportedly been destroyed An aerial image shows the scale of the devastation caused by the blaze at the superstore Another store was almost totally destroyed in an arson attack. A disgruntled shop worker burnt down the superstore he worked at in Russia after being told off by his boss over a price tag mix up, according to police. According to reports, Alexander Schnaider, 33, had been changing price tags on items at the superstore he worked at in Tomsk, Russia, when he was reprimanded by his manager. Fed up with being complained at over his work, Schnaider allegedly doused a box of fireworks in alcohol and ignited it before leaving the store. Citing a police source, Life Shot reported: 'His job was to change price labels, but he constantly confused them and put the wrong ones in the wrong place. Alexander Schnaider, 33, (pictured) has been accused of burning down the superstore he worked at in Russia following a disagreement with his boss Pictured: The circled man is alleged to be Schnaider as he walked away from the fireworks, having just set them on fire 'The manager regularly criticised him and made him redo it. So he was fed up and outraged with her.' Following the incident on Tuesday, police arrested Schnaider and he has been charged with arson motivated by 'personal enmity' against the management, local media reports. The suspect reportedly confessed to police: 'There was white spirit on the counter 'I started spraying it.(then) set the whole thing on fire. 'As soon as it went up, I saw a guard run up to try and extinguish it 'There was screaming, panic. 'I just turned around, put on my coat, and went home.' In today's fire no injuries were reported and the fire was quickly extinguished. Former President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden sent their Christmas well-wishes in a pair of Twitter photos on Saturday, with Biden and First Lady Jill Biden in front of a fireplace displaying their grandchildren's stockings and Obama's beloved dog on display. The names of their grandchildren, Natalie, 17, Finnegan, 21, Navy, 3, Naomi, 27, Robert II, 15, and Maisy, 20, were decorated on the stockings hanging behind them. 'From our family to yours, Merry Christmas! May your time with loved ones be filled with warmth, comfort, and joy this holiday season,' the POTUS's tweet read. He wore his usual navy suit, a crisp white shirt and blue tie, while Jill looked immaculate in an off-white wool dress with gold details. Biden will be spending the holiday with his family at the White House, per reports. Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama offered his holiday well-wishes alongside his Portuguese water dog, Sunny, who's wearing a Santa hat in front of a Christmas tree. 'Merry Christmas, everybody! This year, I got a little help spreading holiday cheer from Sunny,' Obama said. 'Wishing you all a peaceful and joyful holiday season with the ones you love.' Pictured: President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden sending their Christmas well-wishes in a pair of Twitter photos on Saturday The names of their grandchildren that could be seen, Natalie, Finnegan, Navy and Maisy, were decorated on the stockings hanging behind them Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama offered his holiday well-wishes alongside his Portuguese water dog, Sunny, pictured First Lady Jill Biden (left) and President Joe Biden (right) visited the Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. to mark Christmas Eve Just a day before, Biden once again boasted his love of chocolate chip ice cream in a letter to Santa Claus in his first Christmas Eve message as president. The president shared a video on Friday showing him enter a festive room filled with Christmas decorations carrying a plate of cookies. Biden sets the plate down next to a Christmas tree and a roaring fire as he writes a note. The camera zooms into the page as Bing Crosby's White Christmas plays. 'Dear Santa, there is chocolate chip ice cream in the freezer if you would like some. Love, Joe' the note reads. Scroll down for video President Joe Biden shared a video message on his Instagram on his first Christmas Eve in the Oval Office The video shows Biden leaving a note and a plate of cookies beside a Christmas tree: 'Dear Santa, there is chocolate chip ice cream in the freezer if you would like some. Love, Joe' Earlier that day, a parent cheekily told Biden 'Let's Go Brandon!' during the NORAD Santa Tracker event with First Lady Jill Biden at the White House complex on Friday. The first couple were hosting kids and their parents in the South Court Auditorium at the time and talked to people virtually. A dad named Jared beaming in from Oregon said 'Merry Christmas' and 'Let's Go Brandon' - code on the right for 'f**k Joe Biden' - after his kids told the president what they wanted from Santa Claus. Reporters in the room said that Biden seemed unphased. 'Let's Go Brandon, I agree,' the president said in response. A dad named Jared beaming in from Oregon said 'Merry Christmas' and 'Let's Go Brandon' - code on the right for 'f**k Joe Biden' - after his kids told the president what they wanted from Santa Claus 'I think the let's go Brandon stuff is harmless and funny, but if you tell someone to go f**k themselves when they are being nice to your kid, you're just a d**k. Merry Christmas!' said Tommy Vietor, a former aide to President Barack Obama The first lady's spokesman Michael LaRosa answered 'Yep.' after conservative blogger Erick Erickson said the 'Let's Go Brandon' utterance was in 'poor taste,' as the internet swifly reacted to the dad's dig The clip of the exchange got immediate reaction online, with conservative blogger Erick Erickson commenting: 'Confession: I find it in poor taste to tell the President of the United States "Lets go Brandon" when the man just wanted to wish you Merry Christmas. Good manners should still matter.' The first lady's spokeman Michael LaRosa answered 'Yep.' to Erickson's tweet. 'I think the let's go Brandon stuff is harmless and funny, but if you tell someone to go f**k themselves when they are being nice to your kid, you're just a d**k.' 'Merry Christmas!' said Tommy Vietor, a former aide to President Barack Obama. Advertisement The weather is certainly frightful as the National Weather Service warned it will be 'wet, wintry, windy, and a White Christmas' for the West as the South hits record-breaking high temperatures. Washington, Nevada, Oregon, and Arizona are getting a picture-perfect white Christmas as heavy snow blankets the states, causing dangerous road conditions and closures. The Cascades could experience up to two to three feet of snow, with Portland, Oregon expected to get six inches. Oregon Governor Kate Brown declared a state of emergency through January 3 as 'winter storms increases risk for travel.' 'Winter storms mean increased risk for those traveling, as well as those staying home. Please make a plan with your family now and be prepared,' she posted on Twitter on Thursday. Arizona (pictured), Nevada, and Washington are enjoying a white Christmas as heavy snow blankets the states The Sierra Nevada mountains could experience up to 10 feet of snow, while the city itself could get five to eight feet (pictured: Sierra, Nevada) Oregon (pictured) has been blanketed with snow, with heavy drifts seen along this road Crews have been working diligently to clear roadways in an unknown state. Oregon have already a declared state of emergency and Nevada has started issuing evacuations Shelters have been open to help homeless people escape the harsh conditions in the state, as well. Sierra, Nevada, has issued an evacuation warning for 150 homes near the Twain Harte Lake Dam after cracks were found in the concrete structure. The mountains could also reach up to 10 feet of snow, which is equivalent to two floors of a building, while the city could see five to eight feet of snow. 'Travel across the Sierra will be difficult to impossible at times through the holiday weekend,' weather services in Reno, Nevada, said. Southern California is experiencing treacherous flash flooding that has already killed two people who got stuck in a submerged car under an underpass (pictured) near San Francisco. Rescue crews were unable to help the pair as conditions were unsafe Several counties has issued voluntary evacuations in Orange County, Yucaipa, and Lytle Creek, all burn areas from the wildfires earlier this year (pictured: underpass near San Francisco) Evacuations have been ordered due to mudslides and debris flows, as well as flooding (pictured: underpass near San Francisco) Powerlines are also down, leaving many people in California without power this holiday season (pictured: Southern California) 'Travel will be be hazardous, even impassable at times, in the hardest hit locations with towering snow drifts and whiteout conditions,' NOAA said on Friday. Those in lower elevations can expect rainfall. Northern California is experiencing rare snowfall, leaving Interstate 80 eastbound toward Donner Summit shut down for hours on Friday as cars traversed the snowy roads, causing spinouts. The California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, announced I-80 was reopened around 8pm on Friday, but required all vehicles to have chains on their tires to travel, unless the car was four-wheel drive with snow tires. Meanwhile, Southern California is experiencing deadly flash flooding that has already claimed two lives. Two people died in a submerged car under an underpass near San Francisco on Thursday after rescue teams couldn't reach them because the flooding was hazardous, San Mateo County Sheriff's Detective Javier Acosta said. The National Weather Service reported: 'In Christmas-speak, it means Snow Miser has control of the West while Heat Miser has full control of the weather in Southtown with no compromise of snow in Southtown this Christmas,' as the south hits record-breaking heatwaves this holiday Rescue teams were able to assist the car in front of them, where the passengers were able to stand on their roof as they wanted to be pulled from the treacherous waters. Southern California has issued voluntary evacuations in Orange County, Yucaipa, and Lytle Creek, all burn areas from the wildfires earlier this year. Evacuations have been ordered due to mudslides and debris flows, as well as flooding. Powerlines are down, leaving many without power, and heavy rainfall is destroying backyards and leaving one San Bernardino man with 'three or four feet of mud' against his house. The Mississippi Valley to West could experience temperatures in the 70s and 80s, 30 degrees higher than normal. The Ohio Valley will also experience temperatures higher around 25 to 35 degrees higher Unlike the heavy snowfall in Nevada, and the treacherous flooding California, most Americans will experience a green Christmas. 'In Christmas-speak, it means Snow Miser has control of the West while Heat Miser has full control of the weather in Southtown with no compromise of snow in Southtown this Christmas,' the National Weather Service reported. The Mississippi Valley to West Texas could experience record-high heatwaves, with temperatures soaring to 30 degrees above average, with temperatures expected to reach 70 to 80 degrees, according to CBS. The Ohio Valley is also expected to have a surge in temperatures, with a 25 to 35 degrees increase from normal temperatures. The scientist who warned the world about the Omicron Covid-19 variant has told China its 'Zero Covid' police won't work against the super-transmissible mutant variant. The Chinese city of Xi'an's 13 million residents were ordered on Thursday into a draconian stay-at-home lockdown because of 250 cases. It means all households may only send one household member outside once every two days to shop for necessities. But Tulio de Oliveira, director of the Centre for Epidemic Response & innovation (CERI) in South Africa, said the measures won't work. He wrote on Twitter: 'China will have great difficulty with #omicron and zero covid policy. 'They may need@ to join the rest of the world with mitigation strategies. #China should not punish its public health officials or citizens or foreigns because a more transmissible variant.' It is not know what variant the Chinese outbreak is but Omicron is thought to be the most likely. Pictured: A map showing Xi'an, a Chinese city of 13 million that has been locked down due to an outbreak of Covid-19, and its relative location to Beijing - where the 2022 Winter Olympics will be held in February - some 570 miles away Tulio de Oliveira (pictured), director of the Centre for Epidemic Response & innovation (CERI) in South Africa, said the measures won't work Mr Oliveira wrote on Twitter: 'China will have great difficulty with #omicron and zero covid policy' Pictured: Police officers patrol the empty Xi'an North Railway Station after a citywide lockdown was imposed to halt the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus on December 23, 2021 in Xi an, Shaanxi Province of China It comes after dozens of Communist officials in China have been punished for failing to stop the Covid-19 outbreak in Xi'an. China's disciplinary body announced the punishments of the officials on Friday, the latest state reprimands under Beijing's strict zero-Covid approach. China, where the Covid-19 was first detected in late 2019, is on high alert for new cases as it prepares to hold the Winter Olympics in February in the capital Beijing, and as the more infectious variant Omicron spreads rapidly around the globe. The world's most populous nation claims to have reduced cases to a minimum thanks to its zero-Covid strategy of tight border restrictions, lengthy quarantines and rapidly implemented, targeted lockdowns. But cases have been bubbling up in recent weeks - with Xi'an, home to the world-famous Terracotta Warriors, telling all 13 million residents to stay home from Thursday, shuttering businesses and launching several rounds of mass testing. Residents 'should not leave the city unless necessary,' the government said, adding that those seeking to leave would have to provide evidence of 'special circumstances' and apply for approval. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said Friday that 26 Communist Party officials had been punished for 'insufficient rigour in preventing and controlling the outbreak'. Xi'an reported another 49 cases on Friday, bringing the total outbreak to more than 250 in recent weeks. Chinese officials who are deemed to have failed at controlling the virus in their region are regularly sacked or reprimanded. Pictured: People line up for COVID-19 tests in Xi'an in northwestern China's Shaanxi Province, Thursday, December 23, 2021 The statement said inspections had revealed there had been a lax approach to testing and an uncoordinated response that hindered contact tracing in Xi'an. Authorities would clamp down on 'bureaucratic issues in disease control work such as shirking responsibility, not taking action, passing the buck and dealing with things in a negative way', a Party discipline official said. A party secretary in Inner Mongolia was sacked after his area was hit by a cluster of cases in October, while the head of Zhengzhou city's health commission was sacked in August after cases this summer. Cases from Xi'an have so far spread to five other cities including Beijing, according to state media - fuelling fears about how quickly the virus can spread geographically across the vast country. Under lockdown rules, since Thursday all households in Xi'an have only been permitted to send one member outside every two days to purchase necessities. Residents who want to leave the city must first apply for approval, while major venues including the museum housing the Terracotta Army - the mausoleum of China's first emperor - have been shut until further notice. Police officers patrol the empty Xi'an Railway Station after a citywide lockdown was imposed to halt the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus on December 23, 2021 in Xi'an Long-distance bus stations were closed and authorities have set up disease control checkpoints on highways out of Xi'an, government notices said. More than 85 percent of flights to and from the city's main airport have been grounded, according to flight tracker VariFlight. Inside the city, passenger capacity has been slashed on buses and trains, and schools closed. All 'non-essential' businesses and public facilities aside from supermarkets, convenience stores and medical institutions have been ordered to close, while the local government has urged employers to allow people to work from home, CCTV reported. Large-scale meetings including activities in outdoor parks have been suspended. China is one of the world's last countries holding on to the zero-Covid strategy, introducing regional lockdowns at the first sign of infections. Authorities say they have contained more than 30 outbreaks in the last two years with this method. Police officers patrol the empty Xi'an North Railway Station after a citywide lockdown was imposed to halt the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus on December 23, 2021 in Xi an, Shaanxi Province of China However, there are fears that China is unprepared for the more infectious Omicron Covid-19 variant, which could lead to more lockdowns and more economic disruption. Researchers from Hong Kong said in a statement that three doses of Sinovac's CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccine do not produce adequate levels of antibodies to fight the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. Their analysis revealed Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was more effective, as a third dose of the shot administered after two doses of the same or China's Sinovac vaccine provided 'protective levels' of antibody against Omicron. Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech have said their three-shot course was able to neutralise the new Omicron variant in a laboratory test. The latest study was conducted by researchers from the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and funded by the Health and Medical Research Fund and the Government of Hong Kong. The statement did not say how many samples were used in the analysis. Sinovac did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pictured: Cars drive down a nearly empty street in Xi'an in northwestern China's Shaanxi Province, December 23, 2021 Sinovac's CoronaVac and state-owned Sinopharm's BBIBP-CorV vaccine are the two most-used vaccines in China and the leading COVID-19 vaccines exported by the country. Sinopharm also has a second vaccine in use in China. Hong Kong has been using the Sinovac and Pfizer-BioNTech shots. But people aged 12-17 are eligible only for the BioNTech vaccine. Xi'an is not the only city to be forced into lockdown this week. The southern city of Dongxing on Tuesday ordered its 200,000 residents to isolate at home after an infection was detected. The country has stepped up its already-strict zero-tolerance Covid policy as it braces for the arrival of thousands of international athletes at the Olympics just over a month away, with the capital Beijing demanding negative Covid tests from visitors and limiting flights from other cities. Covid-19 is not the only scourge to hit Xi'an in recent weeks, with the city also logging several cases of potentially deadly haemorrhagic fever since the beginning of winter. Local authorities have urged calm about the rodent-borne disease, saying it is common across northern China and easily preventable through vaccination. The inspiring story of a Bletchley Park codebreaker who put aside personal anguish to help defeat the Germans has been revealed 76 years later. Former accounts clerk Daisy Lawrence deciphered intercepted enemy messages between the Japanese, Germans and Italians in her top secret role. She showed incredible mental fortitude as her soldier fiance Stanley was missing in action following the fall of Singapore in 1942. It later emerged that he had been captured and was in a hellish Japanese PoW camp. Daisy Lawrence (pictured) was working as an accounts clerk when she was recruited for the top secret role due to her maths skills Daisy, who was recruited as a codebreaker due to her maths skills, kept her work a secret for years afterward, even keeping it from her own family. It was only after her death that her own daughters, Jan Slimming and Jill Robertson, found out about it while going through their mother's possessions. They discovered letters, documents and newspaper cuttings about her time at Bletchley Park, the home of the government's World War Two codebreakers in Buckinghamshire. Mrs Slimming was so taken by it that she has now published it in a new book called 'Codebreaker Girls: A Secret Life at Bletchley Park.' She subsequently visited Bletchley Park to get the full story about her mother's time there. Daisy kept her work a secret for years after the Second World War, even keeping it from her own family She learnt that Daisy and the other codebreakers at Bletchley Park pored over 18,000 intercepted transcripts in the lead up to D-Day, providing vital intelligence for the invasion. Mrs Slimming, a former publisher who lives in Atlanta, Georgia, US, said: 'My mother said she was a filing clerk there and that is all we knew for many years. 'In fact, she did a six week secret course where she learned the rudiments of codebreaking including German Enigma intercepts. 'However, after training she was hand-picked for a different section, specifically in regard to intercepted Japanese communications from various diplomatic embassy departments including Germany and Italy. 'The enciphered messages were in the JN group of ciphers - Japanese Naval codes. She had been allocated to the Naval Section of Hut 7 to handle Japanese intercepts. 'After my mother died in 2006, my twin sister and I found hidden newspaper cuttings from the war, documentation from the Foreign Office and a handful of photographs of anonymous people. It was only after her death that her own daughters, Jan Slimming and Jill Robertson, found letters, documents and newspaper cuttings about her time at Bletchley Park, the home of the government's World War Two codebreakers in Buckinghamshire. Pictured: Daisy, second from left in front row 'From there, I wanted to discover her Second World War story.' Daisy and Stanley met when they were 16-years-old while working together at the Co-operative in Tooting, South London. After the war, she worked for the Foreign Office in the diplomatic section of the India office in Westminster. In later life, she did office jobs until her retirement in the 1990s. Stanley died in 2001 and she passed away in West Sussex aged 89 in 2006. The book has a foreword by Sir Dermot Turing, the nephew of Alan Turing who cracked the Enigma code. He writes: 'What makes Codebreaker Girls special is the personal element. 'The principal character is Daisy Lawrence, and it is through her eyes that we see Bletchley Park. 'This approach, richly coloured with Daisy's own archival material, allows us to see directly what the experience of a young woman at Bletchley was like.' It has been estimated that the work done by the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park, Bucks, shortened the war in Europe by more than two years and saved over 14 million lives. Codebreaker Girls: A Secret Life at Bletchley Park, by Jan Slimming, is published by Pen & Sword and costs 25. Candace Owens is asking that conservatives go easy on Trump because he is 'too old' to do 'independent research' on vaccines following an interview where he encouraged vaccinations and said he'd gotten a COVID booster. The conservative pundit reached out to her followers in an Instagram video posted after her Wednesday interview with former president Donald Trump and told them that Trump, 75, only praised vaccines because he is not savvy enough to do better research. 'People oftentimes forget that, like, how old Trump is,' she said. 'He comes from a generation -- I've seen a lot of people who are older, have the exact same perspective, like, they came from a time before TV, before internet, before being able to conduct independent research. And everything they read to them that was in a newspaper that was pitched to them, they believed that that was a reality.' Candace Owens reached out to her followers on Instagram and told them that Trump only praised vaccines because he is not savvy enough to do better research Donald Trump urged Americans to get vaccinated, arguing: 'If you take the vaccine, you're protected. Look, the results of the vaccine are very good, and if you do get it, it's a very minor form. People aren't dying when they take the vaccine' This comes after Trump pushed back against Owens anti-vaccine rhetoric during an interview that aired earlier this week. Trump told Owens that people unvaccinated against coronavirus are the ones getting 'very sick' and encouraged all Americans get the jab all while taking credit for its creation. 'I came up with a vaccine with three vaccines,' Trump told the Daily Wire host, referring to the development of the Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines while he was still president. 'All are very, very good. Came up with three of them in less than nine months. It was supposed to take five to 12 years.' Owens interjected: 'Yet more people have died under COVID this year, by the way, under Joe Biden, then under you and more people took the vaccine this year. So people are questioning how ' Former President Donald Trump (left) was heckled in Dallas Sunday for confirming he received his COVID-19 booster shot alongside former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly (right) But the former president interrupted Owens, assuring: 'Oh no, the vaccine work (sic), but some people aren't the ones. The ones who get very sick and go to the hospital are the ones that don't take the vaccine. But it's still their choice.' 'And if you take the vaccine, you're protected,' he continued. 'Look, the results of the vaccine are very good, and if you do get it, it's a very minor form. People aren't dying when they take the vaccine.' Owens has been one of the loudest Conservative leaders of the anti-vax movement and has said she will 'never ever' get the COVID-19 vaccine. 'I have no issue with any person who wants to get the vaccine,' she tweeted on Thursday. 'I just will never ever let that vaccine into my body. I believe firmly that Big Pharma is the greatest evil on the face of the planet. I am healthy, young, in shape and simply unafraid of Covid-19.' In her Instagram post she went on to say that many donors and supporters of Trump were horrified by his support of the vaccine and are 'questioning where all of this is coming from' 'I don't think anything evil is going on,' she said. 'I think he genuinely believes that and he needs to sit down and have a conversation with someone, a larger conversation with someone to really understand what's going on and why so many people are just horrified.' She blamed Trump's stance on vaccines on him only reading 'mainstream media news' instead of conducting research on 'obscure websites,' and said that the President, who in part won the presidency in 2016 because of his knowledge of social media, is not on the internet. 'I do not believe trump is on the internet, he just relies on typical mainstream sources,' she said. Trump praise of the vaccine goes against a large portion of his base, but in the interview with Owens he also opposed the increasing number of mandates related to masking and vaccinations. 'Forget about the mandates, people have to have their freedom,' Trump told Owens in the interview that aired Wednesday. 'But at the same time, the vaccine is one of the greatest achievements of mankind.' So far 61.6 per cent of Americans are fully vaccinated, but that isn't stopping a holiday surge in case rates. And some states are seeing numbers of new cases exceeding any other points during the pandemic as the highly transmissible Omicron variant continues to spread across the nation. Christmas Eve saw total infections edge closer to the all-time record with 261,339 new cases, up 10 per cent from Thursday, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University published Friday. Trump also showed his support for vaccines last weekend during an appearance with Bill O'Reilly in Texas where he revealed he received his booster shot, which led to him being booed by his supporters. His stance on vaccines is also one of the rare things him and his former rival President Joe Biden can agree on. On Tuesday Trump said he was 'very appreciative' of President Joe Biden paying tribute to his administration's efforts to create the vaccine earlier this week - adding that he was 'surprised to hear it.' Passengers at Heathrow Airport today faced more travel chaos as they were forced to queue for hours because of problems with arrival testing facilities. Images from Terminal 2 show endless lines of weary travellers in corridors waiting to pick up their arrival Covid tests. Some irate passengers have reported waiting up to four hours. It comes after millions of families had their festive plans disruption after more than 3,000 flights were cancelled worldwide on Christmas Eve. The huge hold-up is believed to have been caused by staff closing one of its testing centres, meaning extra pressure on the one open facility. Passengers at Heathrow Airport's Terminal 2 today faced more travel chaos as they were forced to queue for hours because of problems with arrival testing facilities One angry passenger told MailOnline: 'Currently there's chaos at Heathrow's Terminal 2 test centre. 'They appear to have booked in people in two test centres, and then closed one of them so the queues are insane. 'I've been here for 45 minutes, but been told by a staff member that the wait has been four hours for some people today. 'The queue is barely moving. Staff are working as hard as they can, but someone has clearly f***ed up. Christmas is very much about to be ruined for myself and most others here.' MailOnline have contacted Heathrow for comment. The huge hold-up is believed to have been caused by staff closing one of its testing centres, meaning extra pressure on the one open facility Britain has been besieged by travel woes in the run-up to Christmas, with rail strikes and line problems cancelling hundreds of trains in the last week. And yesterday, several airline companies said they had been forced to cancel over 1,500 flights because they were unable to staff them due to the rapidly-spreading Omicron variant. According to the flight tracking website FlightAware, 2,348 flights were grounded on Christmas Eve, while a further 1,556 have already been cancelled ahead of tomorrow. The most impacted airlines today were China Eastern with 477 cancellations, United with 189 and Air China with a further 188. United said the nationwide spike in Omicron cases has had a 'direct impact' on its staffing levels, forcing the airline to cancel flights. Terminal Three at Heathrow Airport - the busiest in the country - was packed with flyers trying to get into the UK for Christmas Day In the UK, a total of 13 flights - six departures and seven arrivals - were cancelled at Heathrow Airport today, with another 11 - five departures and six arrivals - already cancelled for Christmas Day. Heathrow travellers were among those complained of having to wait more than three hours to get through passport control with few Border Force staff on hand to help. Shocking pictures showed hundreds of customers packed into lanes with their luggage as they waited to be processed by officials. Hundreds of trains continued to be cancelled across the UK as operators were hit by Covid-related staff absences. Pictured: Euston train station on Christmas Eve Hundreds of trains continued to be cancelled across the UK as operators were hit by Covid-related staff absences. Almost one in 20 trains were shelved on Monday, and eight operators this week warned of the likelihood of last-minute cancellations. RAC analysis estimated that there would be 5.3million journeys by people embarking on overnight stays or day trips on Christmas Eve. Another survey of nearly 2,000 people in Britain for watchdog Transport Focus indicated that 44 per cent plan to travel to spend the festive period with their loved ones. Advertisement Christmas Day COVID figures show that the United States has recorded a total of 151,915 new infections - just 39,000 fewer than on December 25 2020. The latest figures from Johns Hopkins University show that on the same day last year, the US recorded 192,081 cases. One year on, diagnoses have dropped by just 26 per cent, largely due to the prevalence of the super-contagious Omicron variant now sweeping the United States. On Friday, Florida also recorded its highest number of cases in a single day ever - 32,850, according to CDC calculations released Saturday. Saturday's report beat out the previous record set on Christmas Eve, where the state reported 31,758 cases, Miami Herald reported. Floridas seven-day case average has steadily increased since December 10 when the seven-day average was just 1,700, the Herald reported. But figures also show the virus is now markedly less deadly than it was this time last year. America saw 1,013 deaths in the most recent 24 hours, down 72 per cent on the 2,899 recorded for the same period in 2020. Seven day average deaths are down too - they currently sit at 1,542, according to analysis from DailyMail.com, compared to 2,660 recorded for the seven days ending in December 25 2020. Last year, COVID vaccines were in the very early stages of being rolled out to a selected few recipients, whereas now they're available to all Americans aged five and up. Covid cases dropped from December 24 2020, when 192,081 cases were reported, to the same day a year later where there are 151,915 Covid deaths in the US have significantly decreased from December 24 2020, where 2,899 deaths were reported to the same day a year later where there were only 1,013 Philadelphia residents wait in a line extending around the block to receive free at-home rapid COVID-19 test earlier this week as cases go up As the US reports 151,915 new infections, Americans all over the country are pictured waiting on long lines to receive free at-home rapid COVID-19 test kits And while far more contagious than previous strains, multiple scientific studies have suggested that Omicron is up to 80 per cent less likely to lead to hospitalization, meaning deaths are also likely to remain lower. But although hospitalizations remain lower than the highs reached earlier this year during Delta's peak, the situation could worsen as tens of millions of Americans still remain unprotected from the most contagious COVID variant yet. Dr. William Schaffner, a professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told CNN that he is worried that with time hospitals will become overwhelmed. 'Although hospitalizations may be less, that doesn't mean zero. There are many places in the country where hospitalizations now are increasing,' he told host Poppy Harlow on Friday. On Christmas Eve more than 69,000 Americans were hospitalized with Covid-19, the US Department of Health and Human Services reported, up around two percent from last week. Bu according to experts hospitalization figures tend to lag with time as some illnesses worsen, it is still not known if Omicron is less likely to cause severe illness, CNN reported. Omicron cases surged by 26 per cent on Christmas Day as Americans tried to salvage festive holiday that has been badly disrupted by the latest surge in COVID. Figures from local health authority databases across the US show that confirmed cases of the variant sit at 4,464 on December 25. That is up from 3,286 confirmed cases on Christmas Eve. But the true number of Omicron infections is exponentially higher, with the United States now recording an average of 180,000 COVID cases daily over the last seven days. On December 20, the CDC said Omicron was causing at least 73 per cent of new infections, and that figure is now likely significantly higher. In five states including New York and New Jersey, its prevalence is said to be at least 90 per cent. The reason for the discrepancy between confirmed cases and estimated is that very few positive PCR tests are having their DNA sequenced to confirm which strain of COVID caused a patient's infection. Texas is the current confirmed Omicron capital of the US, with 703 confirmed cases - up 252 in a day. New York sits in second place, with 552 confirmed cases. California has 460, while Washington has 364 - an increase of 76 in 24 hours. Globally, there has been a surge in cases, with the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures revealing there were 1.69million infections per day in the week up to December 19 last Sunday rising 55 per cent compared to the previous week. In the UK, London is being battered hardest by the new variant, with one in 20 infected with the virus and ten of the worst hit postcodes in England located within a three square mile stretch. The surge has even affected blood banks- including the nation's top blood center the American Red Cross- as the number of healthy donors decreases. 'This is the biggest challenge that I've seen in my 30 years in the business,' Chris Hrouda, the president of biomedical services at the American Red Cross told the New York Times. Hrouda said that this month's national supply dipped to a decade low and they are struggling to keep a one day inventory when their usual average is three days.' Part of the reason for low donor turnout is because many Americans are back to working from home, and because of the limits colleges and businesses have placed on the number of people allowed in public spaces. 'We just didn't get as much access as we had hoped for this fall,' Hrouda told the Times. Dozens of migrants have arrived in Britain after attempting to make the perilous journey across the English Channel in the early hours of Christmas Day. A total of 67 people, including women and children, were taken in by UK authorities shortly before 1.30am in Dover, Kent, following an incident with two small boats at sea. French authorities also intercepted a third boat, although it is not known how many people the vessel was carrying. Minister for Justice and Tackling Illegal Migration, Tom Pursglove, said people should not be trying to cross the Channel, and instead should be claiming asylum in the first safe country they reach. He said the Government was reforming its approach to people making the dangerous crossing through the Nationality and Borders Bill. 'The public have been crying out for reform for two decades and that's what this Government is delivering through our new plan for immigration,' he said. 'The Nationality and Borders Bill will make it a criminal offence to knowingly arrive in the UK illegally, and introduce life sentences for those who facilitate illegal entry into the country. A baby was among a group of migrants rescued in the Channel and brought to Dover at about 11.30pm on Christmas Eve Border Force officials were assisted by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency after being called to an incident in the Channel before 8.20pm on Christmas Eve Archbishop of Canterbury uses his Christmas sermon to urge worshippers to support refugees The Archbishop of Canterbury has used his Christmas sermon to preach a message of support to volunteers helping refugees. The Most Rev Justin Welby gave the sermon at the Christmas Day Eucharist at Canterbury Cathedral at 11am. He said the Christmas story of Joseph and Mary searching for shelter demonstrates the need to treat those 'who risk everything to arrive on the beaches' with compassion. He also said that 'there is no doubting' the human capacity to show 'great kindness' and that volunteers working to welcome refugees arriving on beaches close to Canterbury Cathedral are 'amazing people'. Mr Welby praised rescuers such as the crews of the RNLI and the Border Patrol cutters' crews in his sermon. He also paid tribute to those volunteering at food banks over the festive period. Mr Welby referenced the way in which the pandemic experience has forced people to confront their 'fragility' as never before. 'We all face uncertainty, uncontrollability and unpredictability, from Sage and Cabinet to each one of us, from huge companies to those sleeping rough,' he said. Advertisement 'It will also strengthen the powers of Border Force to stop and redirect vessels, while introducing new powers to remove asylum seekers to have their claims processed outside the UK. 'MPs have already voted to reform this broken and abusive system and the sooner the House of Lords approves the Borders Bill, the sooner these reforms can be delivered.' A series of photos show UK agencies bringing the group of people in shortly before 1.30am on Christmas Day. They were huddled in white blankets and wearing blue surgical masks. It came after a further group of 35 people were seen being brought to safety by Border Force, also in Dover, at around 11.30pm on Christmas Eve, having been rescued from a small dinghy. The Archbishop of Canterbury used his Christmas sermon today to preach a message of support to volunteers helping refugees. The Most Rev Justin Welby spoke at the Christmas Day Eucharist at Canterbury Cathedral at 11am. He said the Christmas story of Joseph and Mary searching for shelter demonstrates the need to treat those 'who risk everything to arrive on the beaches' with compassion. Border Force intercepted a number of boats containing migrants as they attempted to cross the Channel overnight. A young baby girl was among the dozens of people who arrived in Dover, Kent, at about midnight. A second child was also one of 35 people on board a dinghy assisted by Border Force between the Dunkirk and Calais Ferries, shortly before 12am. A record-breaking number of migrants have crossed the Channel this year, including more than a hundred in the past week. All of those involved in the overnight rescues underwent a medical assessment and the adults have been transferred to immigration officials to be interviewed. The children will come under the care of social services, officials said. In another incident in French waters, nine migrants were rescued and are now in the UK after the engine of the vessel they were travelling in failed. They have been transferred to the Coastguard to be assessed. Alongside the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Border Force officials were called to an incident in the Channel before 8.20pm on Christmas Eve. 'MPs have already voted to reform this broken and abusive system and the sooner the House of Lords approves the Borders Bill, the sooner these reforms can be delivered.' The latest rescues come after the total number of Channel crossings rose to a record breaking 28,020 - more than three times the 8,500 who made the crossing in 2020, according to Home Office figures. On Wednesday, at least 100 migrants, including children wrapped in blankets and snow boots, were intercepted attempting to cross the Channel despite temperatures plunging below freezing overnight. Small boat crossings had briefly stopped due to high winds and strong tides in recent weeks, but have since restarted due to calmer waters in the Channel. A total of 27 people, including seven women and a seven-year-old girl, are thought to have died when their boat sank during an attempted crossing. Wednesday's crossings took the tally for 2021 to a record breaking 28,020 - more than three times the 8,500 who made the journey in 2020, according to Home Office figures A small dinghy was also brought in to Dover after a group of migrants were rescued by Border Force and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency At least 100 migrants, including a child wrapped in blankets and snow boots (pictured), were intercepted on Wednesday morning, despite temperatures plunging below freezing overnight What happens to migrants after they arrive in the UK? Migrants who have been picked up after landing or intercepted at sea are taken to a Border Force processing centre, usually near Dover Here arrivals are triaged to identify any medical needs or vulnerabilities, fed and checked to see if they have a criminal record. Adults have an initial interview before being sent to accommodation centre across Britain, paid for by UK taxpayers and provided by private contractors. The migrants are given 37.75 per week for essentials like food, clothes and toiletries while they wait for a decision on their asylum application. Kent County Council normally takes unaccompanied children into its care, although other local authorities are also involved in this programme. Other migrants might be kept in a detention centre ahead of a plan to send them back to Europe. However, just five were deported last year as ministers admitted to 'difficulties'. Advertisement Dan O'Mahoney, Clandestine Channel Threat Commander, said: 'Last month's tragedy is a devastating reminder of the dangers of Channel crossings and we are determined to work with our European and international partners to target the ruthless organised criminal gangs behind them. 'Unbelievably, these gangs continue their deadly trade with more crossings taking place today, shamelessly putting lives at risk. 'People planning to make the journey should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach instead of risking their lives by crossing the Channel from a safe EU country. 'The Government's New Plan for Immigration will be firm on those coming here via illegal routes and fair for those using safe and legal routes. This will reduce the pull factors in the current asylum and immigration system.' Last month, Priti Patel also vowed to stop '100 per cent' of migrant crossings after online crisis talks with her French counterparts. A joint statement released by the Home Office also said they also discussed the mounting migrant crisis in eastern Europe which Britain accused Belarus and Russia of engineering to undermine European unity. Miss Patel and Mr Darmanin said: 'Tonight, the Home Secretary spoke to her French counterpart Gerald Darmanin to discuss the problem of small boats crossing the Channel and the operational response to it. 'Both the Home Secretary and Interior Minister agreed to strengthen operational cooperation further. More must be done to stop the dangerous crossings. They agreed to accelerate the delivery of the commitments made in the joint agreement of July 2021 to deliver on their joint determination to prevent 100 per cent of crossings and make this deadly route unviable.' Vice President Kamala Harris paid tribute to President Joe Biden in her Christmas message with Amtrak train just days after 'frustrations' were reported among them. Harris, 57, wished Americans a 'very merry Christmas' on Twitter on Saturday, alongside a graphic showing a beautifully lit tree with an Amtrak train circling its base. The president is known for his love of the rail network, and was nicknamed 'Amtrak Joe' for his habit of taking the train between DC and his home in Delaware while he was a US senator. She wrote: 'From our family to yours, wishing you a safe and very merry Christmas filled with hope, happiness, and the comfort of loved ones.' Just days earlier, reports or 'frustrations' between the two was published in The New York Times, where some of Harris' allies criticized the way the White House utilizes its VP. Kamala Harris, 57, paid tribute to Joe Biden, 79, with an Amtrak train riding around the Christmas tree in her Christmas message (pictured) She wished Americans a 'very merry Christmas' just days after 'frustrations' were reported between Biden and Harris as she traverses her role as Vice President They're said to feel that Kamala was used to help Biden win the election, thanks to her historic status as the first female, African-American and Indian-American presidential candidate, only to then be left aside while Biden and his team deal with the business of governing. But it seems the VP is showing there's no bad blood between her and Joe Biden, 79, this holiday season as Biden's beloved Amtrak - which he claimed to have travel more than 200 miles a day between DC and his home in Delaware while being a Senator - makes its debut on her message. Despite her united front with the president, Harris' allies have been making rounds, criticizing the bad press and narrative that she is 'adrift' in her role. Mark Buell, a longtime fundraiser for Harris, told The New York Times he wished to see his friend utilized like she was during the Presidential campaign. 'I think she was an enormous help to the ticket during the campaign,' he told the Times. 'I would like to see her employed in the same way, now that theyre implementing their objectives or goals.' Biden does not always consult Harris on his biggest political relationships - such as his strained relationship with Senator Joe Manchin, who he has butted heads with several times, especially on climate change. One person reportedly suggested the recent meeting about climate control legislations between Biden and Manchin should stay private, excluding the Vice President from the meeting, The New York Times reported. Harris' allies are criticizing the way the Biden Administration is utilizing its VP, claiming that Biden used Harris to attract black voters to win the election, but doesn't use her as much as he did on the campaign Manchin would later reject the bill that proposed legislation to keep the planet from reheating. Moments like these leave Harris' critics rallying that she's falling short in her role and won't be on the ticket for 2024. Meanwhile, her allies are concerned that although Biden reportedly used Harris to win the election to gain black voters, he doesn't need her to govern, The New York Times reported. Biden said he could run in 2024 if his health permitted, but Harris has not confirmed if she would be along for the ride. White House officials have reported that her relationship with Biden is a partnership, but many remain skeptical, with the vice president's poor poll ratings suggesting she'll have her work cut out if she wants to win election in 2024 or 2028. 'The vice president has diligently worked alongside the president coordinating with partners, allies and Democratic members of the House and Senate to advance the goals of this administration,' Harris' deputy press secretary told the Times. Despite their so-called partnership, Harris is struggling to define herself and her role within the White House as her approval rating decline. Harris has faced even more criticism after several staff members have left after the VP's reportedly bad attitude and negative Republican views. The mounting pressure to perform has caused the Vice President to turn to none other Hillary Clinton, who has faced her own fair share of backlash. With her role hiding among the gray areas, many don't understand what tasks she's assigned and why. 'What the White House couldve done is been clearer with the expectations of what was supposed to happen under her watch,' Democratic representative Karen Bass told the Times. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has said that Harris' job is 'incredibly demanding' and not 'publicly understood,' but part of the VP role is not taking 'credit.' 'I think its no secret that the different things she has been asked to take on are incredibly demanding, not always well understood publicly and take a lot of work as well as a lot of skill,' Buttigieg said in an interview. 'You have to do everything except one thing, which is take credit.' However, on some of her bigger roles, such as immigration, she has fallen flat. Texas Representative Henry Cuellar claimed he's 'moved on' from Harris after a disappointing exchange from her office after he offered to accompany her to the border in June and didn't hear back. Harris, who has faced criticism for being 'adrift' in her role as VP, has been excluded from some of Biden's most important political relationships, such as Representative Joe Manchin (pictured). In a recent meeting between the two men, an advisor suggested their meeting be private to discuss legislation about climate control. The public have criticized Harris for falling short in her role over moments like this 'I say this very respectfully to her: I moved on,' Cuellar said. She was tasked with that job, it doesnt look like shes very interested in this, so we are going to move on to other folks that work on this issue.' He also said he would bypass Harris' office next time and go straight to Biden's office, because 'at least they talk to you.' Harris has also reportedly told allies that she believes her unfair criticism stems from her being a woman, and on top of that, a minority woman. 'There is a double standard; its sadly alive and well,' Clinton told the Times. 'A lot of what is being used to judge her, just like it was to judge me, or the women who ran in 2020, or everybody else, is really colored by that.' The two reportedly speak a few times a month over the phone. Bass also said she knew it would be difficult for Harris and she a 'first' for some many as the first Black Asian Vice President. 'I know, and we all knew, that she would have a difficult time because anytime youre a "first," you do,' she said. 'And to be the first woman vice president, to be the first Black, Asian woman, thats a triple. So we knew it was going to be rough, but it has been relentless, and I think extremely unfair.' Harris has also reportedly spoken to former secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Madeleine Albright and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Despite the 'frustrations' reported between them, one advisor liken them to 'good cop, bad cop,' The New York Times reported, and that Harris is still figuring out her role. Advertisement President Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by First Lady Jill Biden, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Qatar, Romania, Bahrain. 'As your commander in chief, I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, thank you, thank you,' he told the service members. 'We're grateful for your courage, your sacrifice, not only your sacrifice but your family's sacrifice.' Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them they're 'the solid steel spine of the nation,' and emphasized the 'truly sacred obligation' the nation has to care for soldiers and their families. The Bidens cited their experience as a military family as to why they were especially grateful for the troops' service. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, with their new dog Commander, speak virtually with military service members to thank them for their service and wish them a Merry Christmas Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them they're 'the solid steel spine of the nation,' and emphasized the 'truly sacred obligation' the nation has to care for soldiers and their families Jill expressed her gratefulness and her family's thanks 'as a military family' as her father and son both served 'We know what it's like to have you, our loved ones serving and being away during the holidays,' First Lady Jill said. 'I'm sorry you have to be away, we know what it's like for your families to have that empty seat at the table.' Jill spoke about her father, who served in the Navy in World War II, but more specifically about the Bidens' late son Beau, who was deployed to Iraq for a year. 'We certainly know, as a family, what your families are feeling today. That's why Joe and I will continue forever and ever to support you in anyway we can, but most of all serve your families.' Commander, the 16-week old German Shepherd, was so lively on the couch with the Bidens, the president joke he thought of 'sending him over.' The stream then transitioned to the Bidens speaking live to troops overseas, but the stream cut off as the White House told DailyMail.com those conversations were meant to be private. As the coronavirus pandemic surges anew, driven by the highly infectious omicron variant, the Bidens sought with their public appearances and statements to offer a sense of unity and normalcy in an otherwise challenging season for many. In a Christmas statement, the Bidens praised the 'enormous courage, character, resilience, and resolve' of the American people in the face of the pandemic, and offered prayers that the nation would find 'light in the darkness' during a difficult season. The Bidens spoke with troops stationed as far and wide as Qatar, Bahrain, Romanian and even with the newly established Space Force in Aurora, Colorado President Joe Biden, and first lady Jill Biden's new dog Commander, a purebred German shepherd puppy, arrived a little early to meet virtually with the servicemen and women President Biden joked that they were going to send the 16-week old puppy overseas and across the country to greet the troops President Joe and First Lady Jill Biden have been using a studio set up in the White House to contact troops and children waiting for Santa Claus over the Christmas holiday 'During this season of joy, we are inspired by the countless Americans who are a reminder that the things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic,' the Bidens said in their statement. And the call to soldiers was just the latest Christmas tradition the two participated in, after spending Christmas eve spreading holiday cheer around Washington. On Friday morning, they visited Children's National Hospital to offer holiday greetings to young patients and their families. The president showed off photos of their new puppy and Jill read a children's book to patients. Later, the two stopped by a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament amid branches decked out with photos of his wife's face, apples and small chalkboards, in homage to her teaching career. Both answered calls to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's Santa-tracking service, speaking to parents and children about their Christmas wish-lists. This led to the surreal moment when a parent told President Biden 'Let's Go Brandon!' during the event. The first couple hosted kids and their parents in the South Court Auditorium and talked to people virtually. A dad named Jared beaming in from Oregon said 'Merry Christmas' and 'Let's Go Brandon' - code on the right for 'f**k Joe Biden' - after his kids told the president what they wanted from Santa Claus. Reporters in the room said that Biden seemed unphased. 'Let's Go Brandon, I agree,' the president said in response. The clip of the exchange got immediate reaction online, with conservative blogger Erick Erickson commenting: 'Confession: I find it in poor taste to tell the President of the United States "Lets go Brandon" when the man just wanted to wish you Merry Christmas. Good manners should still matter.' The first lady's spokesman Michael LaRosa answered 'Yep.' to Erickson's tweet. 'I think the let's go Brandon stuff is harmless and funny, but if you tell someone to go f**k themselves when they are being nice to your kid, you're just a d**k. Merry Christmas!' said Tommy Vietor, a former aide to President Barack Obama. A dad told President Joe Biden (right) 'Let's Go Brandon!' during the annual NORAD Santa-tracking call alongside First Lady Jill Biden (left). Biden reportedly didn't react to the right-wing smear A dad named Jared beaming in from Oregon said 'Merry Christmas' and 'Let's Go Brandon' - code on the right for 'f**k Joe Biden' - after his kids told the president what they wanted from Santa Claus The first lady's spokesman Michael LaRosa answered 'Yep.' after conservative blogger Erick Erickson said the 'Let's Go Brandon' utterance was in 'poor taste,' as the internet swifly reacted to the dad's dig 'I think the let's go Brandon stuff is harmless and funny, but if you tell someone to go f**k themselves when they are being nice to your kid, you're just a d**k. Merry Christmas!' said Tommy Vietor, a former aide to President Barack Obama First Lady Jill Biden (left) and President Joe Biden (right) visited the Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. to mark Christmas Eve First Lady Jill Biden (left) and President Joe Biden (right) stand with Dito Sevilla (center), the bar manager at Floriana restaurant, which put up a Biden-themed Christmas tree on 17th Street N.W. in D.C. First Lady Jill Biden (left) and President Joe Biden (right) arrive at the Children's National Hospital Friday in Washington, D.C. The first lady reads the book Olaf's Night Before Christmas to patients at the Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C., bringing along President Joe Biden as a surprise guest President Joe Biden (left) speaks with a young patient during Friday's surprise visit to the Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. First Lady Jill Biden read Olaf's Night Before Christmas , starring the popular Frozen character to the hospital's patients President Joe Biden (left) shared a book with a child (right) at the Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C. The New York Times has blasted a judge who ordered the paper to return documents they obtained from the conservative activist group Project Veritas. Coming in the form of an op-ed piece penned by publication's editorial board, The Times' top brass utilized the power of the printed page to express their distaste towards New York Supreme Court Justice Charles Wood's Friday ruling. Barred from publishing the legally sensitive papers that potentially contain incriminating communications between the firm's lawyers, the storied news outlet contends the jurist's decision violates the First Amendment. In the verbose opinion piece, titled A Dangerous Court Order Against The New York Times, the paper's editorial board - a lineup of their most lauded journalists - lambasted Wood's decision as unconstitutional, and 'highly unusual and astonishingly broad injunction against a news organization.' The NYT published this editorial by its board members condemning the court order The board began the piece by comparing their halted coverage of the conservative group - which came under federal scrutiny earlier this year after its alleged theft of a diary belonging to President Joe Biden's daughter Ashley - to an instance decades ago, when the paper sought to publish the now infamous Pentagon Papers but was blocked by then-President Richard Nixon's administration. The Times sued, and the case reached the Supreme Court, with the court eventually choosing to side with the Times - an occurrence that the board chose to use as a precedent for their piece. 'That sentiment reflects one of the oldest and most enduring principles in our legal system,' a portion of the piece reads. 'The government may not tell the press what it can and cannot publish. It adds: 'This principle long predates the Constitution, but so there would be no mistake, the nations founders included a safeguard in the Bill of Rights anyway.' A New York judge ordered the NY Times to return all the files it obtained regarding communications between Project Veritas and their lawyers. Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe is suing The Times for defamation against the far-right media outlet 'On Friday, however,' the essay continues, 'a New York trial court judge broke from that precedent when he issued an order blocking The Times from publishing or even reporting further on information it had obtained related to Project Veritas, the conservative sting group that traffics in hidden cameras and fake identities to target liberal politicians and interest groups, as well as traditional news outlets.' 'The order, a highly unusual and astonishingly broad injunction against a news organization, was issued by State Supreme Court Justice Charles D. Wood, who wrote that The Timess decision to publish excerpts from memos written by Project Veritas's lawyers "cries out for court intervention to protect the integrity of the judicial process."' In his Friday ruling, Justice Charles Wood ordered The Times to immediately give back all physical copies of their Project Veritas documents and destroy any electronic copies the newspaper has, as they were protected by attorney-client privilege. Wood also argued that The Time's story regarding the documents were of no 'general interest and of value and concern to the public.' A.G. Sulzberger, publisher of The Times, said the news outlet would seek a stay of the ruling and would appeal it on First Amendment grounds. 'This ruling should raise alarms not just for advocates of press freedoms but for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know,' Sulzberger said in a statement. The Times' leadership said they would appeal the ruling and warned that it set a dangerous precedent against freedom of the press. New York Justice Charles Wood argued that The Time's story about Project Veritas was not newsworthy 'In defiance of law settled in the Pentagon Papers case, this judge has barred The Times from publishing information about a prominent and influential organization that was obtained legally in the ordinary course of reporting.' The judge's order came as part of a defamation lawsuit filed against The Times by Project Veritas leader James O'Keef. The group came under federal scrutiny in relation to the alleged theft of the diary of President Joe Biden's daughter Ashley, which the group considered publishing but never did. The group admitted to being in possession of the diary at some point but claim to have since handed it over to authorities. Portions of the diary were published by National File, a right-wing website, which said they were provided by a frustrated employee of a media outlet that passed on them. Project Veritas denies any connection to the publication of the diary. It has objected to a November 11 New York Times article that drew from memos from a Project Veritas lawyer, and purported to reveal how the group worked 'gray area between investigative journalism and political spying' using its lawyers to 'gauge how far its deceptive reporting practices can go before running afoul of federal laws.' O'Keefe and the group have been heavily criticized for allegedly using deceptive tactics to expose what it describes as liberal media bias. Elizabeth Locke, a lawyer for Project Veritas, said: 'Today's ruling affirms that The New York Times's behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law. 'The court's thoughtful and well-researched opinion is a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship,' Locke added. Ashley Biden (right), 40, is the only daughter of President Joe Biden and first lady Jill. A Project Veritas employee was accused of leaking her diary to an alt-right website The New York Times published this article on November 11 sparking allegations from Project Veritas claiming that the Department of Justice leaked documents to the newspaper This September 2020 New York Times report led Project Veritas to file a defamation lawsuit O'Keefe and Project Veritas have alleged that The Time's story is meant as nothing more than a smear campaign against the group. Following Friday's ruling, O'Keefe said, 'The Times is so blinded by its hatred of Project Veritas that everything it does results in a self-inflicted wound.' The group had been suing over a September 2020 The Times article describing a video it released that alleged voter fraud connected to the campaign of U.S. congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat. The New York Times reported that the allegations made in the video were made: 'through unidentified sources and with no verifiable evidence.' Media critics have frowned upon Wood's decision as they argued it threatened the freedom of the press. Erik Wemple, a media critic for the Washington Post, called the ruling 'a monster lump of First Amendment coal.' 'There are many gobsmacking aspects of this ruling, but the one that most alarmed me was the part where Judge Charles Wood tried to argue that the Nov. 11 NYT story was somehow not newsworthy because the documents were ho-hum,' Wemple wrote on Twitter. Theodore Boutrous Jr., a lawyer who represents media outlets, told The Times the ruling was 'way off base and dangerous.' 'It's an egregious, unprecedented intrusion on news gathering and the news gathering process,' Mr. Boutrous said. 'The special danger is it allows a party suing a news organization for defamation to then get a gag order against the news organization banning any additional reporting. It's the ultimate chilling effect.' Media critic Erik Wemple was among those worried about the kind of precedent Justice Charles Wood's ruling set for the freedom of the press Dean Baquet, The New York Times' executive editor, previously said Wood's November 18 order to stop newspaper set a 'dangerous precedent,' while the newspaper has said courts might find prior restraints acceptable only 'rarely,' such as to protect national security. The New York Times had not faced any prior restraint since 1971, when the Nixon administration unsuccessfully sought to block the publication of the Pentagon Papers detailing U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. An attorney for O'Keefe aso accused the Department of Justice of tipping off The New York Times about recent raids on current and former employees, while suggesting federal prosecutors may have also leaked the group's legal communications. The FBI conducted raids at O'Keefe's New York home and those of others connected to Project Veritas this month, seizing two of O'Keefe's cell phones, among other items. Days later The New York Times published a report based on memos from the group's lawyer, revealing his legal advice on the group's use of false identities and undercover filming, tactics that are eschewed by most modern journalists. Later that day, a federal judge ordered the DOJ to stop extracting data from the phones, granting a request from O'Keefe's legal team made the day before for an independent party to be appointed to oversee the review of the confiscated devices. Horrifically injured and trapped under rocks in the darkness way below ground, George Linnane had good reason to believe he would never make it out alive. An experienced caver, George had been making his way through Britain's deepest and most labyrinthine cave system in November when, with no warning, the rock floor beneath him suddenly gave way and he plunged into the void below. 'It was instantaneous,' he recalls. 'I remember the noise of boulders moving, my legs whirling, my arms scrabbling in mid-air. George Linnane, 37, pictured on October 17 2020. On November 6 he and two friends decided to explore the Upper Smithy, a rarely visited part of Ogof Ffynnon Ddu 'And then it all went black because, as I landed, more rocks fell on top of me and knocked me out.' It was the start of a 54-hour drama that ended with Britain's longest and most extensive cave-rescue operation, involving a 300-strong army of volunteers. Today, George, 38, is speaking for the first time about his fight for survival. Lying in the blackness hundreds of feet below the Brecon Beacons, George had broken four ribs and dislocated his collarbone. His jaw was shattered, he had lost several teeth and a hole had opened in his face, from his mouth down to the bottom of his chin. He had a fracture to his right tibia and fibula, and had injured his shoulder. He was bleeding copiously. And George didn't know it at the time, but he had also lacerated his spleen, which, if left untreated, could have seen him bleed to death. He needed urgent help, yet to extricate him through the passageways of the underground maze some tiny, others carrying a surging underground river would be fraught with danger. It was November 6 when George, a mechanical engineer from Bristol, and two friends decided to explore the Upper Smithy, a rarely visited part of Ogof Ffynnon Ddu or Cave of the Black Spring in the Brecon Beacons. Popular with experienced potholers, the network contains some 40 miles of intricate passages running up to 1000 feet beneath a rugged limestone mountain. The group had planned to meet up afterwards with George's partner Julie at the South Wales Caving Club headquarters for a fireworks display. But it was when they started to make their way back to the surface that disaster struck and the floor of the Upper Smithy simply gave way. 'When I stepped on it, it just went,' says George. It turned out that what seemed a solid floor was little more than a collection of rocks wedged together above a chasm. As he regained consciousness 30ft below, one of his team-mates, Mark Burkey, clambered down to him. 'He could talk, and he knew his own name,' says Mark. 'I could see a lot of blood coming from his face, and he had soft-tissue damage. I checked his spine and his limbs. And then I said, "George mate, I've got to go."' George Linnane's cave rescue mission in Ogof Ffynnon Ddu, in Wales pictured last month While Mark made his way to the entrance to raise the alarm, the third team member, Melissa Bell, 34, a charity development manager from Stratford, sat alone in the darkness, perched on a ledge above. The only light was from her head torch. She was fearful that if she moved, she would dislodge more boulders that might fall down and crush George, perhaps fatally. 'I felt incredibly helpless,' she says. 'There wasn't a lot I could do. I couldn't see him, but I could hear he was in a lot of pain. Yet he's so tough, it didn't cross my mind that he wouldn't come out of this.' George wasn't quite so sure, however. 'I didn't know if I was going to live at that point. I wanted to fight, I wanted to live, but there were times as I waited when it seemed a difficult thing to do. There were times when I felt, I'm going to die here, I should just accept what happens and go to sleep. Then I'd snap out of it and start fighting again. 'The pain came in waves. I could feel there were teeth missing. I knew my leg was broken. And I knew I had a hole in the bottom of my face.' While it might take an experienced caver only an hour to get from the site of the accident to the nearest entrance, Cwm Dwr, with George in this condition it would mean a long flat-out crawl replete with sharp and awkward bends totally impossible for a casualty lashed to a stretcher. Rescuers from the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team pictured in the Ogof Ffynnon Ddu cave during the rescue in Britain's deepest and most labyrinthine cave system To survive, he would need rescuers to stabilise him underground, then carry him miles back to daylight the long way round, via the cave's Top Entrance a huge undertaking that would involve many underground obstacles. However, although George was confident that Mark, 52, a rope access technician (an expert in building repairs without using scaffolding) from the Midlands, would 'go hooning out of there at top speed', he also knew it would likely be hours before help arrived. And with his head still pointing downhill, his weight was pushing down on his collarbone and ribs. 'I knew I had to move and I knew it was going to be nasty,' he says. 'I just clawed my way along by my fingertips with a compound leg fracture and my other injuries, screaming and screaming until I got to a place where the floor sloped up so my head was above my feet. 'It must have been terrible for Mel, hearing me scream as if I was dying, 30ft away. 'I managed to turn on to my back. That was also very painful and afterwards I realised that I wasn't in the recovery position, and that if I threw up or lots of blood started going down my throat, I'd be in big trouble. And then began the wait.' George, the son of a naval officer, was brought up in Fareham, near Portsmouth. He and Julie, a chartered accountant from France, have been together for 12 years. A rescue team from the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team, pictured last month He began caving in 2014, when they went on holiday to Mexico and went scuba-diving in a cenote, an underwater cave. 'I fell in love with it,' George says. 'I knew then I wanted to be a cave diver, and that meant being a dry caver too.' In recent years, he has accomplished arduous trips in many of Britain's longest and hardest caves, and has also become a qualified cave diver, a process requiring years of intensive training. The accident happened at 1pm. Mark finally emerged from the cave at 2.30pm and rushed to the nearby caving club headquarters. Luckily, part of the building is the command centre and equipment store for the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team. Mark was able to brief the rescue co-ordinators as to George's location, and the operation was swiftly under way. But it still took another two hours for the first responders rescue teams are composed entirely of caver volunteers to make their way through the sinuous Cwm Dwr, carrying their bags of first aid gear, to reach George. Meanwhile, he says: 'Mel talked to me for about three hours, about Julie, my girlfriend, life, what I do for a living. 'I was giving one-word answers. At times, I was semi-conscious, and I just wanted her to leave me alone.' In those cold, dark hours, he sensed the presence of his late grandmother, Flora Dawson. 'My mum worked as a nurse, and when she was on shift, my gran would look after me. Lying in the blackness hundreds of feet below the Brecon Beacons, George (pictured last month) had broken four ribs, dislocated his collarbone and more 'I'm not a superstitious or spiritual person, but I do believe that, somehow, she was keeping me going. At last I heard voices. 'The advanced first aiders checked me out and the next person to arrive was a doctor. 'As soon as people started turning up, I felt I had a chance. There were no more negative feelings. I trusted cave rescue to do what they do.' The rescuers had to extricate George from the cleft in the rocks where he was trapped, then get him to the much larger dry passages beyond. Then they would have to enter the cave's long underground river tunnel and carry him for more than a mile upstream. After that, they would have to haul him on ropes up a 100ft vertical shaft, then through a labyrinth of tunnels. After that, there would be another big vertical drop and more passages, before they reached a narrow gateway on to the mountainside, the cave's Top Entrance. The operation that unfolded over the next two days was enormous, involving members of eight regional cave rescue teams called in to assist their Welsh colleagues, with 254 people working underground in a series of six-hour shifts, including ten doctors. Others were on hand at the clubhouse providing hot meals and support. A huge boon, says surface controller Gary Smith, was Cave Link, a new technology that allows text messages to be sent through hundreds of feet of solid rock, so that rescuers on the surface always knew how far the cave rescuers had got. Rescuers from the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team. The 54-hour drama ended with Britain's longest and most extensive cave-rescue operation Being put on to the stretcher, says George, was one of the worst moments. 'They splinted my leg and asked me if I'd like some morphine. 'They gave me a couple of intramuscular shots but it wasn't powerful enough and the pain was still coming in waves. 'I was getting pretty cold. My temperature was slowly falling and my vital signs did tank at one stage my pulse shot up from 70 to 140 and I felt I couldn't breathe. They started to give me oxygen and I improved. My body was getting what it needed.' At last they emerged into a cavern known as Big Shacks. There the rescuers warmed him with electric packs. At about 4.30am on the Sunday, Dr Brendan Sloan, a caver and intensive care consultant at Pinderfield hospital in Wakefield, administered tranexamic acid, which stopped his internal bleeding. He was also given more potent morphine. 'That woke me up because my body came out of shock,' George says. 'I was more conscious and I started to fight a bit more.' While George warmed up, other rescuers were rigging ropes to get the stretcher past the cave's many obstacles. They knew that the river was going to be difficult, and they fitted the stretcher with a waterproof skirt enabling it to float, but many of the pools in the stream tunnel are at least chest deep. 'When we got to the deep bits, the stretcher's design meant my feet sank,' says George. 'The water came over me. I was saying, 'Look guys, I'm getting wet here.' I was worried about my temperature.' But his spirits stayed high. Many of the rescuers were his friends. 'Seeing faces that I knew was such a lift. Every time I saw a friendly face it gave me another boost.' Lashed to the stretcher, he became uncomfortable: 'You are totally immobile, which of course, is the whole point. I knew I didn't have spinal injuries. But they couldn't risk me falling out of the stretcher or my leg slipping out and bashing against a rock.' At last the rescuers got him to the home stretch, Salubrious Passage, an airy tunnel. 'The teams that had been in earlier on were back, to help on the final leg. All the way up Salubrious there was just a sea of faces, so many people I knew, so many I didn't. I was saying hello to people, nodding to others.' Pictured, a group of rescuers from the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team. The rescuers had to extricate George from the cleft in the rocks where he was trapped, then get him to the much larger dry passages beyond Eventually, he says, 'I could smell the outside world, the scent of rain and leaves. I was passed through the entrance gate and into a waiting Land Rover'. An honour guard of rescuers stood clapping as he emerged. 'We'd done it.' At hospital in Cardiff, he had two operations, to rebuild his jaw and his leg. His spleen has recovered, and although he developed a nasty infection in his jaw, strong antibiotics have beaten it back. 'I'm just glad he's still here,' says Julie. 'I'm not going to tell him not to go caving again, because it would just make him miserable. I just want to make sure he waits until he's ready.' Meanwhile, George has a message for his rescuers: 'I will be eternally grateful and I want everyone to know: the beer is in the pipeline.' Advertisement January: Britain is plunged into a new lockdown after the emergence of the Kent variant, but the vaccine rollout starts to gather pace February: The inspirational Captain Sir Tom Moore, who raised more than 30 million for NHS charities, dies from Covid aged 100 March: Harry and Meghans departure is still causing shockwaves but more bruising allegations would emerge in their Oprah interview April: The Duke of Edinburgh dies aged 99 and Mac imagines his typically no-nonsense reaction as he reaches the Pearly Gates May: The expensive refurbishment of the PMs Downing Street apartment by designer Lulu Lytle sparks a flurry of official investigations June: Holidaymakers face chaos after Ministers remove Portugal from the travel green list just weeks after opening it up to tourists July: As England play Italy in the Euro final at Wembley, two home fans perhaps choose the wrong venue from which to watch the match August: Skateboarder Sky Brown, 13, is the toast of the nation after she secures a bronze to become our youngest-ever Olympic medallist September: And another sporting prodigy, Emma Raducanu, is the Queen of Queens by winning the US Open at just 18 October: Her Majesty may have spent a night in hospital and been told to rest by doctors, but she remains as indefatigable as ever November: The Prince of Wales is left to cope alone after the loss of his most valuable aide, Michael Fawcett, in an honours scandal December: Boris Johnson celebrates the birth of daughter Romy as he comes under increasing fire over lockdown-busting parties Arnold Schwarzenegger personally donated $250,000 to build 25 tiny homes for homeless veterans in West Los Angeles on Thursday, giving dozens an early Christmas gift. Schwarzenegger, who coordinated with nonprofit Village for Vets, which is dedicated to providing food and shelter to homeless and at-risk veterans, as well as Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough and volunteer organization (AMVETS) to build the tiny homes. 'Today, I celebrated Christmas early. The 25 homes I donated for homeless veterans were installed here in LA,' the movie icon and former Governor of California tweeted Thursday. 'It was fantastic to spend some time with our heroes and welcome them into their new homes.' Schwarzenegger was inspired to make the donation after seeing a news report about a tent encampment occupied mainly by homeless veterans which was later removed by the City of LA, and its occupants given their own tiny homes to live in. On Thursday, Village for Vets tweeted that Schwarzenegger's $250,000 donation to the nonprofit 'made it possible' for the organization 'to purchase and build the remaining 25 shelters' at the Los Angeles VA's Care Treatment Rehabilitative Services (CTRS) site. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Arnold Schwarzenegger, pictured, personally donated $250,000 to build 25 tiny homes for homeless veterans in West Los Angeles on Thursday, giving dozens an early Christmas gift Four of the 25 tiny homes built with $250k in funds donated by Arnold Schwarzenegger, which were given to homeless veterans in Los Angeles before Christmas Pictured: many of the homeless veterans personally thanked Schwarzenegger 'Today, I celebrated Christmas early. The 25 homes I donated for homeless veterans were installed here in LA,' the former Governor of California tweeted Thursday, pictured above "This is the greatest Christmas gift! @Schwarzenegger donates 25 tiny homes to homeless vets at the VA in West LA. For the first time in a long time, these vets are now off the streets. Watch @TheIssueIsShow for an exclusive tour & interview w Arnold & @PSchwarzenegger pic.twitter.com/qaHkNpJ4Gj Elex Michaelson (@Elex_Michaelson) December 24, 2021 'I've made and have this great success because of America,' the former bodybuilder and actor born in Austria told Elex Michaelson, host of 'The Issue Is' on FOX 11 Los Angeles. 'If it isn't bodybuilding, if it isn't business, if it isn't show business, movies and politics whatever I tackled I achieved because of America, so to me, it's always great to give something back.' Veteran Bruce Henry Cooper personally thanked Schwarzenegger in an interview with 'It's been a life-saver for me,' Cooper, who lives in one of the tiny homes, told the outlet, adding that the former governor 'has not forgottenanybody.' Rob Reynolds, an American Veterans member, told FOX 11 that the tiny homes include a furnished bed, electricity, heating and air conditioning. Donations to Village for Vets go toward the organization's tiny shelters, which 'provide an elevated standard of living from tent encampments while veterans are on their journey to find permanent housing and stability, and other programs providing essential services to homeless and at-risk veterans, according to the nonprofit's website. The interior of one tiny home, pictured, shows the home fully-equipped with a fuse box and electricity, and a number of other necessities Rob Reynolds, an American Veterans member, told FOX 11 that the tiny homes include a furnished bed, electricity, heating and air conditioning Pictured: many of the homeless living in West Los Angeles encampments are veterans, 25 of which are now living inside tiny homes provided by Arnold Schwarzenegger A similar village of tiny homes for veterans exists in Kansas City, Missouri, where there is an innovative community of 49 tiny houses for homeless vets. The homes range in size from 240 to 320 square feet, meet all local city code requirements, and connect to city utility services. Similar to Missouri's VCP Village, staff on-site provide sanctuary and emotional space needed for the veteran and support services team to thoroughly address the underlying causes of his or her homelessness. 'Together, the veteran and VCP's specially-trained case managers work to achieve incremental, lasting results in the areas of health and wellness, education, employment, financial literacy, and the development of a personal support network,' the website reads. Once their desired goals are met, VCP assists the Veteran in securing a permanent housing solution. The Veteran is allowed to take the entire contents of the tiny home as they transition to a new life. Two soldiers are believed to have died by suicide within hours of each other at military bases on Salisbury Plain, it has emerged. The bodies of gunner Jaysley-Louise Beck, 19, and Lance Corporal Michael Joseph Miah, 28, were both found on December 15, at their respective bases in Wiltshire. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed it was investigating the deaths, while Wiltshire Police said there were not believed to be any suspicious circumstances. Both soldiers died from hanging, according to their post-mortem examinations, which were presented at two separate inquests at Salisbury last week. Both inquests have been adjourned, reported the Telegraph. Gunner Beck, from 14 Regiment Recruitment Team, was found by her colleagues in her room at Larkhill. Meanwhile, L/Cpl Miah, from the Household Cavalry, who was married, was found dead in his garage at Bulford. The bodies of gunner Jaysley-Louise Beck, 19, and Lance Corporal Michael Joseph Miah (pictured), 28, were both found on December 15, at their respective bases in Wiltshire The tragic deaths, just 10 days before Christmas, comes after at least five confirmed suicides at Salisbury Plain since 2018. In a Facebook post, the sister of L/Cpl Miah said her family was 'shocked and deeply devastated.' She said her 'beautiful baby brother' was 'full of energy, care and kindness.' She added: 'However, sometimes the biggest smiles have the saddest hearts. I want to take this time to let everyone know that it's okay to not be okay. It's okay to struggle. It's okay to be sad. The tragic deaths, just 10 days before Christmas, comes after at least five confirmed suicides at Salisbury Plain (pictured) since 2018 'But, let someone know; a stranger, a family member, a helpline, anyone. If this message could save one person from feeling the pain in my heart, I would write a million messages.' A Ministry of Defence spokesman said it was with 'great sadness' that they confirmed the death of the soldiers. They said: 'As there are ongoing investigations, it would be inappropriate to comment further, but any death is a tragedy and our sympathies remain with the families and friends of those affected,. 'We are committed to the mental health and wellbeing of our Armed Forces. 'All personnel are supported by dedicated medical services, which include a 24-hour mental health helpline, resilience training before, during, and after deployments, and annual mandatory mental health training.' A Colorado backcountry skier died after he was buried alive in an avalanche on Christmas Eve. On Friday an unidentified backcountry skier got caught in a 250-feet wide avalanche in Colorado on the northeast-facing slope on the South Diamond Peak near Cameron Pass around 2 pm, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said. The victim's partner was able to find him with a transceiver and probe pole and dig him out of the snow, but by then it was already too late. The area where the victim's body was later recovered by rescue crews from Jackson County and the Diamond Peaks Ski Patrol A unidentified backcountry skier got caught in a 250-feet wide avalanche in Colorado on the northeast-facing slope on the South Diamond Peak near Cameron Pass (pictured) The victim's body was later recovered by rescue crews from Jackson County and the Diamond Peaks Ski Patrol. 'Our deepest condolences go out to the friends and family and everyone affected by this tragic accident,' CAIC said. Currently the threat for avalanches across Colorado is at level four or five, which is high. 'The avalanche danger is HIGH (Level 4 of 5) across much of Colorado,' the CAIC warned. 'Be very careful if you are traveling in the mountains over the next few days.' 'When you put a lot of weight on the snowpack in a short amount of time, it has a hard time adjusting for that and breaks and produces avalanches,' CAIC Director Ethan Greene said. Friday's unidentified skier was the first avalanche death recorded in Colorado this season. During the 2020-2021 Colorado avalanche season, 12 people died which was double the 10-year average. Gabby Petito's mother, father and step-parents are establishing a foundation in her name to try to stop domestic violence and find people who went missing like she did. Petito, 22, was was discovered dead in September on the edge of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, with an autopsy later concluding she died by strangulation and was ruled a homicide. Her boyfriend Brian Laundrie is the prime suspect in the killing, and killed himself shortly after. The Gabby Petito Foundation has now been launched by her parents Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt to honor her memory. The search for Gabby started a conversation about domestic violence and the search for missing persons like her. The foundation's mission is 'to support organizations assisting families in locating missing persons, and to provide support to organizations that assist survivors of domestic violence through education, awareness and prevention.' The family doesn't want others to suffer the way they have over the loss of Gabby. Gabby Petito's family has launched The Gabby Petito Foundation, aimed at fighting domestic violence and finding missing persons Gabby's mother Nichole Schmidt and stepfather Jim announced that they've already raised $50,000 and helped out 300 people who've contacted the foundation's website 'I don't want to see this happen to another person,' Nichole Schmidt, Gabby's mother, told Good Morning America. 'I know that we can't save everybody, but I think that this -- just awareness alone is giving people the strength.' The foundation has already donated $50,000 to various domestic violence and missing persons charities and in two months, has helped 300 people who got in touch with their website. 'If we can even be a small piece of support network for somebody else in a similar situation and try to just help them get through it, that's it goes a long way,' said Jim Schmidt, Petito's stepfather. Gabby's father, Joe, said that his daughter is 'doing a lot of good and she's touched a lot of people.' Her family is celebrating their first Christmas without her Saturday. Mother Nichole said that the days have their ups and downs. Schmidt (pictured right) said that the days have their ups and downs as they reach their first Christmas without Gabby Schmidt holds up a photo of her daughter, Gabby Petito at an interview in Bohemia, New York with the press Father Joe Petito, pictured with Gabby, said that his daughter is 'doing a lot of good and she's touched a lot of people' 'We have our days where we just need to shut down and take a moment. But the whole goal is prevention and helping other young people,' Schmidt said. 'We hope that we save lives and in Gabby's name and because of what happened to her, that that gives us a lot of hope.' On September 11, Gabby's family reported her missing and two days later, her boyfriend Brian Laundrie vanished from his parents' home. On September 19, Gabby's strangled body was found in Wyoming. Police say she had been dead for three or four weeks. The young couple had been on a cross-country van trip but it turned sour and in August, just a few weeks before she died, they were ordered apart for the night by police. Witnesses had seen them arguing in their van and were worried. The police however ruled that Petito was the aggressor. Chris and Roberta Laundrie, Brian's parents, have been widely condemned for not talking with Petito's family or turning their son in to police when he returned home from his trip, especially after she was reported missing. He left their home on September 13, two days after her family on Long Island, New York, reported her disappearance. Petito's family criticized the Laundries for not helping them. Laundrie, 23, was reported to have died from a single, self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, his lawyer Steve Bertolino said on Tuesday. His remains were discovered in the Florida reserve near his parents' house on October 20. The 23-year-old went missing in September after returning alone from a trip with Petito, whose body was found in the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. An initial autopsy was inconclusive but the Laundrie family lawyer, Steve Bertolino, said on Tuesday he had been told by the forensic anthropologist who took over that Laundrie died by a single gunshot wound to the head. 'Chris and Roberta Laundrie have been informed that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head and the manner of death was suicide. 'Chris and Roberta are still mourning the loss of their son and are hopeful that these findings bring closure to both families,' the lawyer said. Laundrie with his fiancee, Gabby Petito, whose body was found in Wyoming on September 19 Petito seen here with Brian Laundrie, her boyfriend and the main suspect in her disappearance, whose own death was ruled a suicide after remains were discovered October 20 When Laundrie returned home to his parents' house in Florida on September 1, Petito was not with him. He had no contact with her family, who were becoming increasingly worried that she hadn't been seen or heard from. He told them he was going camping in the park. Police started searching the park for Brian in the hopes of finding him alive to question him over Gabby's death. Laundrie's remains were found in a Florida swamp on October 20 two months after he is believed to have killed Gabby Chris and Roberta Laundrie are shown arriving home in October after their son's remains were found. They were widely criticized for not turning their son into police after Gabby was reported missing MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Years Eve or risk devastating businesses. The Prime Minister will tomorrow be presented with the latest data on hospital admissions and could rule on whether to clamp down further to limit the spread of Omicron. It comes after papers released by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) on Friday included modelling for tighter restrictions from December 28 or New Years Day which could last as long as March 28. Last night Tory MPs issued a warning shot at Mr Johnson and his Government to resist any lockdown measures. Cabinet Ministers last week rejected Government scientist suggestions to tighten rules before Christmas. MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Years Eve or risk devastating businesses One MP, who is a member of the Tory backbench Covid Recovery Group, said: If it turns out that Cabinet Ministers last week just delayed more business-crushing, illiberal restrictions till after Christmas, then not one of them deserves my vote in a future leadership election. Separately another Tory MP, Alec Shelbrooke, said of the Sage papers: Despite this new warning, the Prime Minister must stand firm and refuse to impose new restrictions this week. 'Weve had dire forecasts before that have not come true. There is no justification for ruining peoples New Year celebrations and inflicting yet more damage on our economy. Following studies last week that showed Omicron is significantly less likely to cause hospitalisation than the Delta variant, Mr Johnson is not expected to bring in legally binding restrictions or lockdown measures. In a more likely scenario the Prime Minister could issues guidance telling people to limit their contacts. The Prime Minister will tomorrow be presented with the latest data on hospital admissions and could rule on whether to clamp down further to limit the spread of Omicron But writing in The Mail on Sunday, Sir Graham Brady, who chairs the influential 1922 Committee of backbench MPs, warns Mr Johnson not to do anything to ruin New Years Eve plans. Enough is enough, he writes. There must be no new unnecessary restrictions this week whether the PM sees fit to recall Parliament for an emergency session or whether he resorts simply to more guidance. Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade association UK Hospitality, said: For many beleaguered hospitality businesses the New Year period is the last chance they have of making some much needed revenue to be able to get them through the lean months of January and February. Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, said: The uncertainty is killing our sector at the moment. If the Government closes businesses for New Years Eve, people will simply gather in peoples households or at illegal events and its going to be counterproductive. Des Gunewardena, chief executive of the D&D London group, which owns 40 venues including Bluebird and Le Pont de la Tour, said: New Years Eve is massive, its the biggest night of the year for us across all of our restaurants. Meanwhile the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales has urged the Government not to close churches and places of worship once again. Speaking to the BBC, Cardinal Vincent Nichols said: I think this country has shown that people can make good judgments themselves. Were at that point of saying we understand the risk. We know what we should do. Most people are sensible and cautious. We dont need stronger impositions to teach us what to do. But a Government source told The Mail on Sunday there is a danger that people who were careful in the run up to Christmas to be able to see their loved ones will start mixing more after today. Last night Tory MPs issued a warning shot at Mr Johnson and his Government to resist any lockdown measures However the source said the overall picture on Omicron is more optimistic than people thought. Tomorrow a Covid-O committee of Ministers and officials will discuss the frontline staff shortages as a result of Omicron spreading. The meeting will include Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid. The appeals from MPs and business leaders came as new Sage papers and fresh modelling warned that Omicron may yet lead to a higher peak of hospitalisations than last winters despite its lower severity and widespread vaccination. Last January hospitalisations peaked at 4,583 daily admissions, over four times the current rate. But although three UK studies last week found that Omicron was much less virulent than Delta between 15 and 70 per cent less likely to lead to hospitalisation Sage cautioned against optimism. It warned these figures were largely based on younger people who have formed the bulk of infections so far. Unjabbed people who catch Covid are 60 TIMES more likely to end up in intensive care By Stephen Adams Medical Editor Unvaccinated people who catch Covid are up to 60 times more likely to end up in an intensive care ward than those who have been jabbed, startling figures reveal. And the difference that vaccination makes to the chance of needing intensive care is starkest among older people who are more likely to suffer serious Covid illness in the first place. Figures from the Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (ICNARC), which covers units in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, show that between May and November the rate of admission for double-jabbed Covid sufferers in their 60s was just 0.6 cases per 100,000 people per week. But among people of the same age who remained unvaccinated, the rate was 37.3 per 100,000 per week equating to a relative risk about 60 times higher. Among those in their 50s and 70s there was almost a 30-fold difference in average weekly admission rates between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated. In younger age groups the difference was lower but still marked unvaccinated people in their 30s and 40s were between ten and 15 times more likely to end up in intensive care with Covid than those who had received their jabs. Last night an intensive care consultant in London said the unvaccinated were putting extra pressure on intensive care units (ICUs), which also care for people with a wide range of problems from accidents to medical emergencies. The doctor, who wished to remain anonymous, said: Their presence puts extra pressure on our service. If these people had been jabbed they would be enjoying their Christmas and not filling our wards. The worry is more unvaccinated with Omicron coming through our doors. Even though people who have forsaken the jab make up only seven per cent of the countrys adult population, they are now responsible for the lions share of Covid admissions to ICUs. Separately, a survey by the Intensive Care Society found that at least two-thirds of Covid patients were unvaccinated in 12 of 16 ICUs they asked. At present, between 25 and 30 per cent of some 800 intensive care beds in Londons hospitals are filled by Covid patients, which is thought to be slightly higher than the national average. Last week Health Secretary Sajid Javid urged unvaccinated people to think about the damage that they are doing to society. He told Sky News: They take up hospital beds that could have been used for someone with maybe a heart problem, or maybe someone whos waiting for surgery. But instead of protecting themselves and protecting the community, they choose not to get vaccinated. The consultant said despite Omicron being less likely on average to cause serious illness than Delta, there was nothing mild about it for those who did need hospital treatment. Those who end up in hospital after catching the variant are quite unwell and many need oxygen continuously through a mask, he said. People should know that having to be admitted to hospital with Omicron means they are seriously ill, he added These people are quite sick and some of them have reached intensive care. But even being on a general ward with this mutation requires a lot of treatment to get people better again. Typically, they are going to be in hospital for a couple of weeks. So my message to anyone who thinks its not worth getting vaccinated or is not fully protected, is to get jabbed because you could be one of those who ends up spending weeks in hospital. 750,000 people spent Christmas home alone after testing positive for Covid About three-quarters of a million people are thought to have spent Christmas self-isolating due to record numbers testing positive for Covid in the previous week. In the seven days between December 18 and 24, the UK recorded 707,306 new confirmed Covid infections. In addition, thousands more will have received a positive test result yesterday brutally cutting short their Christmas celebrations as rules stipulate that individuals must self-isolate immediately. Among those in that unfortunate boat was rower and adventurer James Cracknell, 49. Among those in that unfortunate boat was rower and adventurer James Cracknell (above), 49 At lunchtime the double Olympic champion tweeted: Santa dropped off what Id been waiting all year for. Covid. Accompanying his downbeat message was a picture of his dog, Dug, clearly keen on being taken for a walk, and Cracknell showing him his positive lateral flow test. He added: Trying to explain to Dug that Im not just lazy. Hes not buying it. Have a fantastic Christmas everyone. Oxford Universitys Professor Sir John Bell, who helped develop the AstraZeneca vaccine, also revealed that he is positive, telling BBC Radio 4: Im sitting here with Omicron at this very moment. He said that although jabs were spectacularly good at stopping severe disease and death, they were less effective at preventing infection and mild illness. Until last week people with Covid had to self-isolate for ten days following a positive test result. However, that was downgraded to seven days as long as the person tests negative on a lateral flow test on day six and day seven of self-isolation. South Africa eases self-isolation rules as Omicron fades in the province where it first exploded By Stephen Adams SOUTH Africa has scaled back contact-tracing and requirements for people to self-isolate as it moves towards living with Covid rather than trying to contain it. The government announced a raft of changes on Friday including that people who have been in contact with a confirmed Covid case no longer have to isolate if they show no symptoms. They need only to monitor their health for five to seven days and avoid large gatherings. All quarantine in facilities outside the home is to be stopped, while contact tracing efforts will be scrapped apart from in specific scenarios such as tracking cluster outbreaks. Deputy health minister Sibongiseni Dhlomo told broadcaster SABC the move was based on advice from our scientists that it is not really having an impact any more. Harry Moultrie, of the countrys National Institute for Communicable Diseases, welcomed the changes. He tweeted: South Africa cancels contact tracing and quarantining and pivots to mitigation. Good decision. South Africas health department cited the emergence of the highly infectious, but milder Omicron strain as one of the reasons for the change. Other reasons were that at least 60 per cent of the population has some form of protection from vaccination or because they have previously been infected. Daily Covid cases in Gauteng province, where Omicron first exploded, have been in retreat for more than a week despite the lack of strict social-distancing laws, leading to hopes that the variants natural course is a sharp but short wave of infection. South Africa, which has 60 million people compared to the UKs 68 million, has recorded almost 91,000 Covid-related deaths while the UKs figure is just under 148,000. Advertisement Door-to-door teams armed with Covid jabs will be sent to the homes of unvaccinated Britons in plans being considered by Ministers to reach the estimated five million people yet to be inoculated. Discussions between the Department of Health, NHS England and No 10 over the past week have looked at a nationwide drive to send vaccine teams to areas with low uptake rates as a crucial way to avoid lockdown and other restrictions. It is also seen as a way to get jabs to rural areas or households where people cannot easily get to a vaccination centre. However, it is understood school closures are not being considered for January, with a source close to Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi saying: 'The PM and Nadhim are fully committed to keeping schools open, and there's a shared commitment across Government to do so. 'Education is a top priority and school closures are not something being considered.' One Cabinet Minister last night backed the plan, saying: 'I think anything that encourages the vaccine-hesitant is sensible,' before warning: 'The mood in the country is hardening against people who refuse to be vaccinated. This comes as SAGE warned the UK is about to be hit by a large wave of Covid hospitalisations and the peak could be even higher than last winter despite the reduced severity of Omicron. In minutes from a meeting on December 23 published last night, the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies warned that the peak on hospital admissions 'may be comparable to or higher than previous peaks' including the second wave in January. But MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses. Boris Johnson and wife Carrie (pictured with their daughter Romy) sit on their sofa and hold a video conference from their living room in Chequers Door-to-door teams armed with Covid jabs will be sent to the homes of unvaccinated Britons in plans being considered by Ministers to reach the estimated five million people yet to be inoculated. Pictured: An anti-vax march in London, December 2021 Discussions between the Department of Health, NHS England and No 10 over the past week have looked at a nationwide drive to send vaccine teams to areas with low uptake rates as a crucial way to avoid lockdown and other restrictions. Pictured: Health Secretary Sajid Javid It is also seen as a way to get jabs to rural areas or households where people cannot easily get to a vaccination centre Don't wreck our new year, Boris! Chorus of pleas from hospitality chiefs and MPs as Sage advisers warn wave of hospital cases could be 'higher than last peak' MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses. One MP, who is a member of the Tory backbench Covid Recovery Group, said: 'If it turns out that Cabinet Ministers last week just delayed more business-crushing, illiberal restrictions till after Christmas, then not one of them deserves my vote in a future leadership election.' Writing in The Mail on Sunday, Sir Graham Brady, who chairs the influential 1922 Committee of backbench MPs, warns Mr Johnson not to do anything to ruin New Year's Eve plans. 'Enough is enough,' he writes. 'There must be no new unnecessary restrictions this week whether the PM sees fit to recall Parliament for an emergency session or whether he resorts simply to more guidance.' Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade association UK Hospitality, said: 'For many beleaguered hospitality businesses the New Year period is the last chance they have of making some much needed revenue to be able to get them through the lean months of January and February.' Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, said: 'The uncertainty is killing our sector at the moment. 'If the Government closes businesses for New Year's Eve, people will simply gather in people's households or at illegal events and it's going to be counterproductive.' Advertisement This comes as SAGE warned the UK is about to be hit by a large wave of Covid hospitalisations and the peak could be even higher than last winter despite the reduced severity of Omicron. In minutes from a meeting on December 23 published last night, the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies warned that the peak on hospital admissions 'may be comparable to or higher than previous peaks' including the second wave in January. But MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses. 'I am all in favour of free choice but there comes a point when you cannot lock up 90 per cent of the country who are vaccinated for the ten per cent who refuse to be.' Doctors have said up to 90 per cent of Covid patients in intensive care units are unvaccinated. The move comes as: Hospitality bosses and MPs have begged Boris Johnson not to ruin New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses; The Cabinet is expected to meet early this week to decide on whether to impose new restrictions in light of the Omicron variant; Government scientists released scenarios where tougher restrictions could come in on December 28 and last until March; Modelling by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suggested there could be a large number of hospitalisations this winter, even though Omicron is less likely to cause severe illness The vaccination drive continued throughout Christmas Day. NHS England said thousands of first, second and booster jabs were given yesterday. Meanwhile more than 220,000 first doses of the vaccine were administered in the week to 21 December, up by 46 per cent compared to the previous week. First dose uptake in 18-24 year-olds rose by 85 per cent in the same period, and 71 per cent in 25 to 30-year-olds. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the rise in first dose uptake was 'excellent', as discussions were ongoing on how to reach more of the unjabbed. Door-to-door jabs visits are already being trialled in one area of Ipswich, which led to an extra 150 people getting their first, second or booster jab in a weekend. Downing Street sources said the aim is to expand this to the rest of the country and try to reach the estimated five milllion unvaccinated. Dan Poulter, the Tory MP and NHS hospital doctor who has been doing shifts in London hospitals, welcomed the plan. He said: 'In parts of London where there's very low vaccine uptake, you're bound to get a good uptake in jabs if you're knocking on doors. 'I think that would have a very positive effect in getting vaccination rates higher.' Meanwhile Tory MPs have warned the Government not to shut down the economy for the sake of people who have not got their jabs. Reports have claimed ministers are watching hospitalisation numbers in the capital, with a two-week 'circuit breaker' lockdown set to be imposed if daily numbers surpass 400 SAGE issues a new Christmas Covid alert: UK is about to be hit by a large wave of Covid hospitalisations and peak could STILL be higher than last winter despite Omicron's reduced severity, warn advisers - with Boris set to review rules on MONDAY The UK is about to be hit by a large wave of Covid hospitalisations and the peak could be even higher than last winter despite the reduced severity of Omicron, SAGE have warned. In minutes from a meeting on December 23 published last night, the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies warned that the peak on hospital admissions 'may be comparable to or higher than previous peaks' including the second wave in January. An Imperial College analysis of Omicron found that people who catch the variant are up to 20 per cent less likely to be admitted than those who get Delta. It also found that the chance of having to stay in the NHS overnight was even lower, with a reduced risk of up to 45 per cent. Even 'Professor Lockdown' Neil Ferguson, whose original modelling in early 2020 spooked the Government into the first national shutdown, said the fourth wave will be 'nothing like what we seen last year, with ICUs overflowing with patients' on the back of the new findings. However, new modelling by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suggests there could be a large number of hospitalisations this winter, even though the Covid variant is much less likely to cause severe illness, and even if fresh restrictions are introduced after Christmas. The modellers warned that December 28 is the last date that restrictions could be introduced before it is 'too late' for lockdown-type measures to have any effect. The UK is about to be hit by a large wave of Covid hospitalisations and the peak could be even higher than last winter despite the reduced severity of the Omicron variant, SAGE have warned One of the models considered restrictions lasting three months until the end of March, but found there was little difference compared to restrictions ending in January. But they stressed there is a high degree of uncertainty about what the real-world impact of Omicron's reduced severity will be and any new restrictions will be fiercely opposed by Tory MPs. In London, now regarded as the UK's Omicron 'ground zero', there were 386 new Covid hospital admissions on December 22, according to the latest NHS data. Though they are still a far cry from the 850 admissions achieved at the peak of the second wave in January, they mark a 92 per cent rise on the figure last week, and are within touching distance of the Government's threshold of 400 for further lockdown curbs. In minutes of the meeting, chaired by England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty and Downing Street's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, SAGE said: 'The earlier interventions happen, and the more stringent they are, the more likely they are to be effective.' Advisers on the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling, Operational sub-group said that even under 'rapidly enacted Step 2 measures, peak hospital admissions in the 20 per cent severity scenario are broadly similar to those seen in January 2021'. 'Peak admissions scale with the risk of admission given infection, so are 2.5 times lower in the 20 per cent severity scenario than the 50 per cent scenario and would be 4 times higher were Omicron 80 per cent as severe as Delta,' they said. The group added: 'More stringent measures would decrease the number of days when many people are in hospital.' SAGE's warnings are likely to pile pressure on Boris Johnson to impose curbs potentially including the Rule of Six and a ban on households mixing next week. The Prime Minister will decide on Monday whether to introduce stringent measures following a review of the latest data on Omicron. In a blow to the new year hopes of millions, Government scientists have indicated that these curbs could remain in place until March. Don't wreck our new year, Boris! Chorus of pleas from hospitality chiefs and MPs as Sage advisers warn wave of hospital cases could be 'higher than last peak' MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses. The Prime Minister will tomorrow be presented with the latest data on hospital admissions and could rule on whether to clamp down further to limit the spread of Omicron. It comes after papers released by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) on Friday included modelling for tighter restrictions from December 28 or New Year's Day which could last as long as March 28. Last night Tory MPs issued a warning shot at Mr Johnson and his Government to resist any lockdown measures. Cabinet Ministers last week rejected Government scientist suggestions to tighten rules before Christmas. MPs and hospitality bosses have warned Boris Johnson not to bring in new restrictions before New Year's Eve or risk 'devastating' businesses The Prime Minister will tomorrow be presented with the latest data on hospital admissions and could rule on whether to clamp down further to limit the spread of Omicron Last night Tory MPs issued a warning shot at Mr Johnson and his Government to resist any lockdown measures One MP, who is a member of the Tory backbench Covid Recovery Group, said: 'If it turns out that Cabinet Ministers last week just delayed more business-crushing, illiberal restrictions till after Christmas, then not one of them deserves my vote in a future leadership election.' Separately another Tory MP, Alec Shelbrooke, said of the Sage papers: 'Despite this new warning, the Prime Minister must stand firm and refuse to impose new restrictions this week. 'We've had dire forecasts before that have not come true. There is no justification for ruining people's New Year celebrations and inflicting yet more damage on our economy.' Low booster take-up in ethnic groups is deeply worrying, says senior medic People from Pakistani, Caribbean and African backgrounds have the lowest rates for receiving a booster or third dose of Covid-19 vaccine, new data suggests. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures suggest that the lowest third dose and booster take-up among people aged 50 and over in England was in the Pakistani (42.2 per cent), black Caribbean (44.4 per cent) and black African (45.4 per cent) groups. More than a quarter of people of black Caribbean ethnicity are estimated to not have received a first Covid vaccine dose up to December 12 - the highest proportion of all ethnic groups. A senior medic said that the figures, which were published on Friday, were 'deeply worrying'. Pictured: Dr Chaand Nagpaul A senior medic said that the figures, which were published on Friday, were 'deeply worrying'. Dr Chaand Nagpaul, council chair at the British Medical Association, told BBC Radio 4's World at One: 'This is deeply worrying because in many ways I fear a repetition of what happened in the first wave, where... we saw this rather alarming and disturbing disparity in illness and deaths amongst ethnic minorities from Covid. 'What we know now of course is that the patients, people who are becoming seriously ill, who are being hospitalised, are those who have not been vaccinated and those who have not had their boosters. 'Eighty per cent of patients in some ICUs are those who have not been vaccinated.' Muslims were the least likely religious group to have received a booster or third dose (46.3 per cent), the ONS said. The ONS also said that take-up was lower among people living in more deprived areas, those who have never worked or are long-term unemployed, those without qualifications and those who do not own their own home, compared to more-advantaged groups. Take-up was higher among non-disabled people, compared to those who said their day-to-day activities are limited 'a little' or 'a lot'. Advertisement Following studies last week that showed Omicron is significantly less likely to cause hospitalisation than the Delta variant, Mr Johnson is not expected to bring in legally binding restrictions or lockdown measures. In a more likely scenario the Prime Minister could issues guidance telling people to limit their contacts. But writing in The Mail on Sunday, Sir Graham Brady, who chairs the influential 1922 Committee of backbench MPs, warns Mr Johnson not to do anything to ruin New Year's Eve plans. 'Enough is enough,' he writes. 'There must be no new unnecessary restrictions this week whether the PM sees fit to recall Parliament for an emergency session or whether he resorts simply to more guidance.' Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade association UK Hospitality, said: 'For many beleaguered hospitality businesses the New Year period is the last chance they have of making some much needed revenue to be able to get them through the lean months of January and February.' Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, said: 'The uncertainty is killing our sector at the moment. 'If the Government closes businesses for New Year's Eve, people will simply gather in people's households or at illegal events and it's going to be counterproductive.' Des Gunewardena, chief executive of the D&D London group, which owns 40 venues including Bluebird and Le Pont de la Tour, said: 'New Year's Eve is massive, it's the biggest night of the year for us across all of our restaurants.' Meanwhile the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales has urged the Government not to close churches and places of worship once again. Speaking to the BBC, Cardinal Vincent Nichols said: 'I think this country has shown that people can make good judgments themselves. 'We're at that point of saying we understand the risk. We know what we should do. Most people are sensible and cautious. We don't need stronger impositions to teach us what to do.' But a Government source told The Mail on Sunday there is a 'danger' that people who were careful in the run up to Christmas to be able to see their loved ones will start mixing more after today. However the source said the overall picture on Omicron is 'more optimistic than people thought'. Tomorrow a 'Covid-O' committee of Ministers and officials will discuss the frontline staff shortages as a result of Omicron spreading. The meeting will include Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid. The appeals from MPs and business leaders came as new Sage papers and fresh modelling warned that Omicron may yet lead to a higher peak of hospitalisations than last winter's despite its lower severity and widespread vaccination. Last January hospitalisations peaked at 4,583 daily admissions, over four times the current rate. But although three UK studies last week found that Omicron was much less virulent than Delta between 15 and 70 per cent less likely to lead to hospitalisation Sage cautioned against optimism. It warned these figures were largely based on younger people who have formed the bulk of infections so far. Advertisement Jeff Bezos showed off his ripped torso during a yachting break in St Barts where he was spotted smooching his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez. The Amazon founder, 57, proved he's been putting in time in the gym as he relaxed in the hot sun on the boat with friends to celebrate the holiday season during their Caribbean trip on Friday. It seems Bezos, 57, who purchased a $78million estate in Hawaii in November, has settled into his new aloha lifestyle, as he boarded the boat in a pink and red bathing suit covered in Hawaiian flowers. He accessorized with shades and a white feather necklace. Sanchez, 51, matched her billionaire boyfriend's color choice, wearing a detailed bikini with a red and white pattern and showing off her stunning figure in the 81-degree heat. Bezos wore Hawaiian-inspired red and pink shorts and his girlfriend donned a pretty patterned bikini The billionaire Amazon founder rinsed off the saltwater after enjoying the cool water on a hot day They took their PDA to the water and curled up together on a raft in the sun The pair were spotting holding hands as they lounged on a covered boat deck surrounded by friends Bezos appeared carefree as he enjoyed a floatie in the warm Caribbean waters The very buff billionaire accessorized with shades and a white feather necklace during his yacht trip The pair could be seen loved up on a raft as they cooled off in the water. At one point, Bezos can be seen caressing Sanchez's face and his girlfriend kissed his neck. Bezos and Sanchez could also be seen lounging under a hooded deck holding hands. Earlier this week, the pair was seen canoodling on a hike on the island. Both dressed in sportswear and sneakers, they stopped to enjoy the view and share some kisses, during which Sanchez appeared to cop a feel of Bezos' behind. Jeff wore a t-shirt with shorts and Sanchez donned a pretty sundress and carried a Dior bag during the yacht trip The couple has been enjoying a vacation in St. Barts this week and they aren't afraid of showing off a little PDA as they go. Sanchez made sure to look her best as she stepped off the boat As they continued their hike, Bezos slung an arm around Sanchez's shoulders as they kept up the PDA. The couple, who went public with their relationship in January 2019 after Bezos split with wife MacKenzie, were quite handsy while communing with nature. At one point, Bezos and Sanchez stopped to take a bit of a break on a bench, on which they sat side-by side. Sanchez leaned up against Bezos, resting one of her hands on his thigh, while he wrapped his right arm around her shoulders. Bezos could barely keep his hands off his girl as he rubbed her shoulders on the boat It seemed the pair were able to catch a little alone time as their friends enjoyed the warm water Bezos follows some friends down the deck of the yacht in St Barts Bezos and Sanchez have vacationed together in St. Barts before. In 2019, they were joined by Sanchez's son, Nikko Gonzalez, 20. Bezos, who is estimated to be worth $210billion, is the second richest man in the world after Tesla owner Elon Musk, who recently knocked him off the top spot with a fortune of $276.2billion, according to Forbes. Bezos has made several highly-publicized donations since stepping down as CEO of Amazon in July, including to the Obama Foundation and Baby2Baby. His girlfriend Lauren Sanchez displayed her assets in a lace kaftan worn over her bikini Pictured: Jeff Bezos talks with guests on his yacht in St Barts while he puts on a T-shirt Jeff Bezos raises a glass with a friend on the yacht while lounging in the sunshine next to girlfriend Lauren Sanchez Just prior to Thanksgiving, he donated $100million to the Obama Foundation, the largest ever to the charity. The Obama Foundation gift represents less than 0.1 percent Bezos' estimated $210billion fortune. As part of the gift, Bezos asked that the plaza at the Obama Presidential Center be renamed to the John Lewis Plaza, after the late congressman and civil rights leader who spent decades fighting for voting rights. Earlier in November, he also pledged almost $100million to groups working to end homelessness and donated to Hawaii Land Trust shortly before moving to the island. Pitured: Jeff Bezos and his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez lounge in the shade while enjoying the yacht in St Barts Jeff Bezos accepts a snack from a masked member of staff on the yacht in St Barts Also since stepping down, Bezos has been enjoying a new Hawaiian property, which comes with three buildings and a private beach. The property was sold to Bezos in an off-market deal. The entrepreneur's new dig sits on a marine fishing reserve, the New York Post reported. Jeff Bezos peers into the ocean on the rear deck of the yacht in St Barts Jeff Bezos puts his feet in the water while he relaxes with friends at the back of the yacht in St Barts Jeff Bezos laughs with girlfriend Lauren Sanchez while lounging in the sunshine in St Barts It is also surrounded by dormant lava fields where the Haleakala volcano - which is eight times larger than the Empire State Building in New York City and its hotspots can reach up to 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit - last erupted in 1790, according to Haleakala Ecotours. It is expected to erupt again within 500 years, according to scientists. Bezos is also reportedly scouting more off-the-market properties in Maui to expand his real estate portfolio in the Aloha State and is reportedly searching for a home for his parents in Montage Kapalua Bay, where he often stays at a luxury resort, according to the New York Post. Bezos joined other billionaires, such as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who purchased land in Kauai, on the islands. An ITV newsreader wrongly announced the death of the Pope on live television during an awkward Christmas Day blunder. Journalist and presenter Kylie Pentelow mistakenly began announcing the death of the leader of the Catholic Church, before swiftly ending the segment in a toe-curling exchange on Saturday evening. Ms Pentelow was reporting on the Pontiff's Christmas Day address in the Vatican City, explaining how he implored world leaders to make vaccines available 'to those most in need'. She then went on to say, 'his death was announced', before realising her mistake and quickly adding: 'excuse me' as the segment ended. Pope Francis, 85, had led the Catholic church since 2013 when he replaced Benedict XVI. Francis today prayed for an end to the coronavirus pandemic, using his Christmas Day address to urge health care for all, vaccines for the poor and for dialogue to prevail in resolving the world's conflict. ITV journalist and presenter Kylie Pentelow mistakenly began announcing the death of the leader of the Catholic Church, before swiftly ending the segment in a toe-curling exchange on Saturday evening Many Twitter commenters seemed to revel in the embarrassing gaffe that was broadcasted to ITV's live audience. Sheenagh McCann wrote: 'This has just made me laugh so much. Good old Pope Francis still alive and well!' Meanwhile, Jack quipped: 'Christmas Day episodes are always so predictable. Theres either always a death or a wedding. Sometimes both, but always at least one.' And Stephen Brooks jokingly simulated a discussion Ms Pentelow might be having with her family once her shift ends: 'How was work? 'Accidentally announced the death of The Pope on national TV.' ITV News has been contacted for comment. Amid a record-setting rise in COVID-19 cases in Italy this week, only a few thousand people flocked to a rain-soaked St. Peter's Square for Francis' annual 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and the world) Christmas address. Normally the square would be packed with tens of thousands of holiday well-wishers, but many will be grateful they were able to visit the square at all this Christmas, after last year's lockdown forced Francis to deliver a televised address from inside the Apostolic Palace. Pope Francis waves to the gathered faithful following his Christmas Urbi et Orbi blessing in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican on December 25, 2021. Amid a record-setting rise in COVID-19 cases in Italy this week, only a few thousand people flocked to a rain-soaked St. Peter's Square for Francis' annual 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and the world) Christmas address. The Pope's Christmas Day balcony message was preceded by Midnight Mass, during which Francis called on the faithful to value the 'little things in life' and show solidarity with the poor. An estimated 2,000 members of the public and 200 religious figures attended the mass at St Peter's Basilica, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing as part of measures against the coronavirus, the Vatican's press office said. Those who had not managed to grab a ticket watched on huge screens outside the church. A maskless Francis processed down the central aisle of the basilica as the Sistine Chapel choir sang Noel, kicking off the Vatican's Christmas holiday that commemorates the birth of Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem. Across the world, worshippers were also seen gathering for annual masses in cities in the US, in Sri Lanka, Iraq, Kenya and Russia. The Vatican went ahead with its service despite the resurgence in Covid-19 cases that has prompted a new vaccine mandate for Vatican employees. The BBC has been branded anti-semitic by one of the worlds most respected Jewish organisations. The Simon Wiesenthal Center named after the famed Nazi-hunter has placed the BBC at No 3 on its annual Global Antisemitism Top Ten list. Last night, Rabbi Marvin Hier, head of the centre, told The Mail On Sunday: People might be surprised to see the BBC on our list but the decision to place the BBC at No 3 came after months of intense debate and discussion. We believe the BBC has been guilty of several incidences of anti-semitism during the past year. People might assume we would put neo-Nazi groups on our list but the BBC is there because when a globally recognised organisation allows antisemitism to creep into its reporting, it makes it all the more insidious and dangerous. The Simon Wiesenthal Center named after the famed Nazi-hunter has placed the BBC at No 3 on its annual Global Antisemitism Top Ten list People around the world trust the BBC and rely on it for truthful reporting of world events. The Rabbi singled out the Corporations reporting of an attack on a busload of Jewish teenagers by a group of men who chanted anti-Israel slogans. The incident took place in Londons Oxford Street last month as the teens celebrated the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The BBC falsely reported that a victim on the bus used an anti-Muslim slur. But what was heard on tape was a distressed Jewish man speaking in Hebrew appealing for help, Rabbi Hier said. The Mail on Sunday understands the BBC has investigated the reporting and maintains the alleged slur was included to ensure the fullest account of the incident. The BBC issued a statement earlier this month saying the story was a factual report that overwhelmingly focused on the individuals the police want to identify; those who directed abuse at the bus. The Wiesenthal Center report, which will be released on Tuesday, lists Iran whose leaders deny the Holocaust and have pledged to annihilate Israel at No 1 on the list and the Palestinian terror group Hamas at No 2. The report condemned former BBC reporter Tala Halawa who posted a series of tweets including Hitler was right and Zionists cant get enough of our blood in 2014. Ms Halawa no longer works for the BBC. Rabbi Marvin Hier highlighted BBC News reporting of an anti-semitic attack in London in his defence of the list It also criticised the Corporation for often referring to Israelis as settlers and cited a video tweeted by senior BBC producer Alaa Daraghme captioned: An Israeli settler ramming a Palestinian man near the Lions Gate. Rabbi Hier said: In fact, the car drove on to the pavement after an attempt by Palestinians to lynch the Jewish driver who lost control of the vehicle. A BBC source said the original tweet had been posted when there was some confusion over the incident. Mr Daraghme later published another tweet clarifying what had happened. The US-based Simon Wiesenthal Centers top ten also includes social media giants (for allowing hate to spread online) and the Unilever corporation, which owns Ben & Jerrys ice-cream. Ben & Jerrys board boycotted East Jerusalem and the West Bank. A BBC spokesman said last night: Antisemitism is abhorrent. The BBC strives to serve the Jewish community, and all communities across our country, fairly with accurate and impartial reporting. Britain's most famous secret agent James Bond would have died several times over in real life due to a multitude of job-related risks, a new study shows. Researchers have analysed all 25 of the James Bond films made by Eon Productions, starting from 1962's 'Dr No' up to 2021's 'No Time to Die'. In particular, they looked at whether the fictional agent 'adhered to international travel advice' during the 86 international journeys he made over the course of the films. The experts found any real-life agent in Bond's shoes would have suffered from sexually-transmitted infections (STIs), alcohol poisoning and infections from tropical diseases, as well as other hazards. Risks to Bond health in the films made by Eon Productions include alcohol consumption (as seen here in 'Casino Royale'), using another person's facemask ('You Only Live Twice'), casual sex, which risks STIs ('Goldfinger'), eating unwashed fruit ('Thunderball'), disease in tropical locations and smoking (both 'Dr. No') Depicted are travel related health threats experienced by James Bond during 86 international journeys involving 47 'geographically identifiable countries' in the 25 films. Health risks are presented in the following categories: Food safety (dark green), air and droplet borne viruses (yellow), vector borne and neglected tropical diseases (brown), health and safety (purple), sexual health (blue), exposure to animals (red), and diseases (light green) JAMES BOND'S OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS - Sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) - Food poisoning - Risk of hookworm infection - Malaria - Bitten by mosquitoes - Alcohol poisoning - Dehydration - Smoking Advertisement The analysis was conduced by Wouter Graumansa and Teun Bousemaab at the Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, along with William Stone at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. 'Overall, we found Bond poorly prepared for travel-associated health risks and particularly naive to the threat of infectious disease,' the team say in their paper. 'Despite the increased availability of online travel advice, Bond's risk of acquiring infectious diseases unfortunately did not decline in recent missions. 'Given the central role that agents with the double-0 status have in international counter-terrorism activities, we sincerely hope that MI6 will take its responsibility seriously.' Watching all 25 Bond films involved around 3,113 minutes of evening hours for each of the three study authors, which 'could easily have been spent on more pressing societal issues', they admit. For viewings of the most recent film 'No Time to Die', which was released at the end of September the team were likely the only members of the audience who brought notebooks to the cinema, they point out. As they watched, the scientists made notes of some of the more foolhardy behaviours that would have cost Bond his life. Researchers studied all 25 of the James Bond films made by Eon Productions. Pictured is Sean Connery as 007 in 'Diamonds are Forever' (1971) Notably, Bond has above-average sexual activity, often 'without sufficient time for an exchange of sexual history', which risks STIs. Researchers found there were a total of 59 on-screen sexual liaisons an average of 2.4 per film. There was a 'remarkably high mortality' among Bond's sexual partners, in some cases very soon after the act of love-making. More than a quarter of his partners do not survive, although there are no clear indications that sexually transmitted infections play a role in any of their deaths. For example, Jill Masterson in 1964's 'Goldfinger' hooks up with Bond only minutes after meeting him, but soon suffocates after being painted from head to toe in gold paint by the evil henchman Oddjob. In 'Goldfinger' (1964), Bond (played by Sean Connery) finds the dead body of Jill Masterson (played by Shirley Eaton) Bond also generally seems ignorant of the ways to avoid respiratory virus transmission, or simply does not care during his missions. For example, while in Japan in 'You Only Live Twice', he covers his face and mouth with a facemask used recently by another person, in an attempt at disguise. In the era of Covid-19, this is something health officials advise against, as it risks inhaling their recently exhaled, and possibly infected, respiratory droplets. Given that the SARS-CoV2 virus the cause of Covid-19 can be detected on surgical masks for a week after exposure, there's every chance other respiratory viruses can survive on the fabric too, the authors point out. Here, in an attempt at disguise in 'You Only Live Twice', Bond covers his face and mouth with a facemask used recently by another person. Given that the SARS-CoV2 virus can be detected on surgical masks for a week after exposure, there is every reason to believe that 1960s-era respiratory viruses can survive on such fabric Bond famously has a taste for vodka martinis, but this may come at the cost of a poor level of hydration, the team also found. Researchers have studied all 25 of the James Bond films made by Eon Productions, starting from 1962's 'Dr No' up to 2021's 'No Time to Die' Alcoholic beverages, shaken or stirred, do not prevent dehydration, which is a major concern given the extremes of physical activity he goes to, often in warm climates, they say. On only three occasions was Bond observed drinking non-alcoholic drinks orange juice in 'From Russia with Love', coffee in 'Dr. No' and salt water in 'Casino Royale'. The latter is 'particularly unhelpful in maintaining fluid balance', they point out, although to be fair, drinking it was Bond's attempt to vomit and thus avoid a fatal poisoning. Alcohol consumption has also been shown to increase attractiveness to malaria-transmitting mosquitoes, and more famously damage the liver. Bond is also a heavy smoker in the franchise's early films, although since the Daniel Craig era he's thankfully quit the habit. 'We only live once': English actor Daniel Craig is pictured here in his first portrayal of the fictional secret agent, in 2006's 'Casino Royale' Bond notoriously enjoys some of the most luxurious meals available to man, but even this aspect of his lavish lifestyle isn't without risk. He can be seen eating unwashed fruit despite bacteria thriving on fruit skins, and he repeatedly risks vibriosis, norovirus and hepatitis infection by eating raw oysters, the authors say. His appreciation of oysters is clearly linked with the belief that they're an aphrodisiac, but Bond overlooks one of their 'less-than-arousing side-effects' acute diarrhoea. Bond steals a grape in 'Thunderball'. Bacteria thrives on fruit skins, but 'food safety appears to take a backseat to Bond's appetites', the authors say In fact, the researchers appear surprised that Bond never suffered from an 'inopportune bout of diarrhoea in the midst of world-saving action' at any time during the 25 films. Bond's 'foolhardy courage', which sometimes leads to life-threatening situations for him to contend with, may be a consequence of Toxoplasmosis, the infectious disease. In mice, toxoplasmosis has been linked with a loss of fear of cats a clever manipulation by the Toxoplasma gondii parasite to increase the probability of transmission by way of ingestion by the feline. 'Although speculative, toxoplasmosis might explain Bond's often foolhardy courage in the face of life-threatening danger,' the authors say. The team conclude that his employer MI6 has the 'clear responsibility' to provide Bond with appropriate pre-travel advice to mitigate these risks. The study has been published in the journal Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has lifted off from European Space Agency's base in French Guiana Advertisement NASA's revolutionary James Webb Space Telescope has begun its one million mile voyage into solar orbit after successful lift off following decades of planning and delays. Jubilant scientists and engineers shouted 'Go Webb, go!' as the telescope module detached from its rocket and floated off into space far above the earth's surface. It is hoped that the observatory, a replacement for the 30-year-old Hubble telescope, will by travelling so far out be able to peer back in time 13.5bn years to a point within a mere 100m years of the big bang. A successful Christmas Day take off for the $10 billion telescope had been dubbed a 'Christmas miracle' after the project suffered a series of delays in the South American country's rainy season. But at 7.20am ET (12.20PM GMT) the world's most powerful space telescope, equipped with an Ariane 5 rocket, took off from the European Spaceport facility in French Guiana in magnificent form before blasting skywards over the Atlantic Ocean. Cheers were on pause for another nerve-wracking 27 minutes as the rocket ejected its boosters and soared to an altitude of 870 miles (1,398km) before finally detaching the telescope to begin its own journey. With its liftoff, a spokesperson for NASA said, 'Webb will usher in a new era of astronomy'. Stephane Israel, the CEO of Arianespace which provided the Ariane rocket, said: 'We launch for humanity this morning from the Guiana Space Center. We know what Webb is about, and after Webb we will never see the skies in quite the same way again.' If all goes according to plan, the 14,000-pound instrument will be released from its French-built rocket after a 26-minute ride into space. The Webb telescope will then take a month to coast to its destination in solar orbit roughly one million miles from Earth - about four times farther away than the moon. Jubilant scientists and engineers shouted 'Go Webb, go!' as NASA's revolutionary James Webb Space Telescope has begun its one million mile voyage into solar orbit after successful lift off following decades of planning and delays After a perfect flight out of the Earth's atmosphere and into space, the James Webb telescope module detached from the body of the Ariane 5 rocket that had blasted it skywards, leading to cheers from nervous scientists at mission control in Kourou, French Guiana NASA 's revolutionary James Webb Space Telescope has successfully lifted off to start its long flight into space to replace the Hubble telescope after decades of planning and delays Pictures from the European Space Agency's Spaceport facility in French Guiana show the Webb telescope module atop an Ariane 5 rocket blasting off from Earth at 7.20AM ET (12.00PM GMT) on its million-mile journey into solar orbit At 7.20am the world's most powerful space telescope, equipped with an Ariane 5 rocket, took off in magnificent form before blasting skywards over the Atlantic Ocean. Pictured: The rocket at lift off We have ignition: Engines on the Ariane 5 rocket engage for a whole seven seconds at the spaceship warms up before lift off actually takes place at 7.20AM ET Cheers were on pause for another nerve-wracking 27 minutes as the rocket ejected its boosters and soared to an altitude of 870 miles (1,398km) before finally detaching the telescope to begin its own journey If all goes according to plan, the 14,000-pound instrument will be released from its French-built rocket after a 26-minute ride into space. Pictured: The NASA live stream showing the trajectory of Webb, atop Ariane 5 rocket as it continues on its path into space Webb is intended to replace its 30-year-old counterpart Hubble, as it is about 100 times more sensitive and is expected to profoundly transform scientists' understanding of the universe and our place in it. The new telescope's special orbital path will keep it in constant alignment with Earth as the planet and telescope circle the sun in tandem. The project, which started in 1996, is an international collaboration led by NASA in partnership with the European and Canadian space agencies. It had been hit by months of launch delays, which followed years of delays to its construction, with the first launch date scheduled in 2007. The launch was lastly rescheduled for Christmas Eve, before finally being moved to December 25, with a launch window between 07:20 ET (12:20 GMT) and 07:52 ET (12:52 GMT). Ahead of the launch, it was loaded into the fairing of an Ariane 5 rocket, and moved on to the launch pad at the Europeans Space Agency facility in French Guiana. Live coverage of the launch was provided on NASA's TV channel and website kicking off at 06:00 ET (11:00 GMT). Officials had confirmed that the Ariane 5 was in good shape, and that the only problem facing the launch was the start of the rainy season in French Guiana. All systems go: Launch teams monitor the countdown to the launch of Arianespace's Ariane 5 rocket carrying NASA's James Webb Space Telescope this morning, December 25 Dubbed a 'Christmas miracle' by anxious astronomers, the massive, next generation Jame Webb Space Telescope is finally on the launch pad, ready to go to space The telescope has been hit by months of launch delays, which followed years of delays to its construction, with its first launch date supposed to be in 2007 Instruments on the James Webb Space Telescope NIRCam (Near InfraRed Camera) an infrared imager from the edge of the visible through the near infrared NIRSpec (Near InfraRed Spectrograph) will also perform spectroscopy over the same wavelength range. MIRI (Mid-InfraRed Instrument) will measure the mid-to-long-infrared wavelength range from 5 to 27 micrometers. FGS/NIRISS (Fine Guidance Sensor and Near Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph), is used to stabilize the line-of-sight of the observatory during science observations. Advertisement Work on the James Web Telescope, also known as JWST or Webb, first began in 1996 and at the time NASA had just a $500 million budget to complete it. The agency was set to launch it in 2007, but cost overruns and technical issues forced a major redesign in 2005 that led to its first delay. Construction of the telescope was completed in 2016, allowing testing to begin, but two years later the massive sunshield ripped during a practice run that led to another postponement. And then the coronavirus pandemic that hit in 2020 caused even more delays. In October 2021, James Webb finally arrived in French Guiana following a 16-day sea voyage onboard the MN Colibri, and was removed from the transport container prior to launch preparations. Fuelling operations began on November 25, according to NASA, and took about 10 days. The space telescope was then secured on top of the Ariane 5 rocket on Saturday, December 11, at the Guiana Space Center, as it geared up to launch on December 24. But Mother Nature seems to have other plans and the mission is now a day later. About 28 minutes after its eventual blast-off, the James Webb will detach from its launch vehicle and begin 'the most complex sequence of deployments ever attempted in a single space mission,' NASA said. The observatory is now set to take off on December 25, with a launch window between 07:20 ET (12:20 GMT) and 07:52 ET (12:52 GMT) Ahead of launch, it was loaded into the fairing of an Ariane 5 rocket, and moved on to the launch pad at the Europeans Space Agency facility in French Guiana It is so large it was folded, origami-style, to fit in the rocket, according to NASA, and unfurl 'like a Transformer' in space, spreading its mirrors out to collect light from deep in the history of the universe. Mark McCaughrean, ESA Webb Interdisciplinary Scientist, has been waiting more than 20 years for the chance to gather data using Webb. He told MailOnline he wasn't really nervous about it launching, as it had been tested, simulated and prepared to within an inch of its life, and he had faith in the engineers. 'Launch is always a worry, you've sat an expensive piece of kit on a barely guided explosion, but it is what we do, and the Ariane 5 is a workhorse,' he said. Officials confirmed that the Ariane 5 was in good shape, and the only problem facing the launch was the start of the rainy season in French Guiana It is so large it was folded, origami-style, to fit in the rocket, according to NASA, and unfurl 'like a Transformer' in space, spreading its mirrors out to collect light from deep in the history of the universe Already years late in leaving the Earth for space, Webb will look back to almost the beginning of time, to when the first stars and galaxies were forming Primarily an infrared telescope, Webb will have a wider spectrum view than Hubble and operate further out from the Earth, in a solar orbit. It will launch on a European Space Agency Ariane 5 rocket from near Kourou in French Guiana NASA BRUSHES OFF PETITION TO RENAME JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE In October, NASA announced that it will not rename the James Webb Telescope ahead of its launch in December, despite a petition against honoring a space pioneer who some have now claimed was homophobic. Webb, who died in 1992 aged 85, was the second administrator in NASA's history, taking over at the request of John F. Kennedy in 1961. He ran the agency until 1968 and was instrumental in the Apollo programs that would see, the year after his departure, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walk on the moon. In 2002 the agency announced that its $10billion new telescope - due for launch in December 2021 - would be named after him. Yet in recent years the decision has stirred criticism, and a petition this year to rename it has received 1,200 signatures. Organizers accuse Webb of being homophobic, due to his role in the 1963 firing of a gay NASA employee. Questions were also asked about his participation in a 1950-52 'Lavender Scare', when he was at the State Department, and 91 gay people were 'purged'. But on September 30 Bill Nelson, the NASA administrator, said they had decided against renaming the telescope. 'We have found no evidence at this time that warrants changing the name of the James Webb Space Telescope,' he told NPR. Advertisement Even if the launch goes to plan, the 'scary part' for many astronomers will come weeks later, when the observatory reaches its solar orbit. Webb will travel to an orbit about one million miles away from Earth and undergo six months of commissioning in space including unfolding its mirrors and sunshield, cooling down, aligning and calibrating. 'Astronomers worldwide will then be able to conduct scientific observations to broaden our understanding of the universe,' NASA says. The telescope is named after the late James E. Webb, an American government official who was the administrator of NASA from 1961 to 1968 and played an integral role in the Apollo program. NASA's decision to name the device after him was a controversial one he has been accused of homophobia since his passing in 1992 due to his role in the 1963 firing of a gay NASA employee. In October, NASA announced that it will not rename the James Webb Telescope ahead of its launch in December, despite a petition against honouring a space pioneer who some have now claimed was homophobic. Webb, who died in 1992 aged 85, was the second administrator in NASA's history, taking over at the request of John F. Kennedy in 1961. He ran the agency until 1968 and was instrumental in the Apollo programs that would see, the year after his departure, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walk on the moon. Primarily an infrared telescope, Webb will have a wider spectrum view than Hubble and operate further out from the Earth, in a solar orbit. McCaughrean said JWST lowers the floor for the type of objects we can see, mainly because the telescope itself is cold - down to -230 Celsius - meaning it doesn't emit much light in infrared, so astronomers don't have to 'fight' against infrared given off on Earth. Webb will take pictures ten times sharper than Hubble, but hundreds of times deeper. Hubble is about 340 miles above the Earth surface, whereas Webb will be over a million miles away. Work on the James Web Telescope, also known as JWST or Webb, first began in 1996 and at the time NASA had just a $500 million budget to complete it The telescope will observe the Universe in the near-infrared and mid-infrared at wavelengths longer than visible light. To do so, it carries a suite of state-of-the-art cameras, spectrographs and coronagraphs Research by Ohio State University claims that within five years of it coming online, James Webb will have found signs of alien life on a distant world. Graduate student Caprice Phillips calculated that it could detect ammonia created by living creatures around gas dwarf planets after just a few orbits. The James Webb Space Telescope has been described as a 'time machine' that could help unravel the secrets of our universe, with distant objects emitting light from further back in time. The telescope will be used to look back to the first galaxies born in the early universe more than 13.5 billion years ago. Research by Ohio State University claims that within five years of it coming online, James Webb will have found signs of alien life on a distant world About 28 minutes after its eventual blast-off, the James Webb will detach from its launch vehicle and begin 'the most complex sequence of deployments ever attempted in a single space mission' It will also observe the sources of stars, exoplanets, and even the moons and planets of our solar system. Thousands of astronomers around the world have built future careers based on the potential of the Webb telescope. One group of researchers hope to use Webb to witness 'cosmic dawn' - the moment of first light for the first stars in the universe billions of years ago. James Webb is designed to last for five years but NASA hopes it will operate for a decade or more - similar to the fact Hubble has outlasted its lifespan by decades - although unlike Hubble it cannot be easily repaired. The telescope will observe the Universe in the near-infrared and mid-infrared at wavelengths longer than visible light. To do so, it carries a suite of state-of-the-art cameras, spectrographs and coronagraphs. Aside from procuring the Ariane 5 launcher and launch services, ESA is contributing the NIRSpec instrument and a share of the MIRI instrument. The first images will be test shots, rather than of anything specific - it could copy Hubble and take an image of Jupiter as its first observation. Up to 30 percent of the first year of observations will be aimed at exoplanets, to study their orbit, size and atmosphere, in search of alien life. After a challenging year of highs and lows, the Irwin family will no doubt be looking forward to saying goodbye to 2021 come New Year's Eve. Terri Irwin, the widow of the late Steve 'The Crocodile Hunter' Irwin, has steered the ship through uncertain waters during the last 12 months as a feud erupted between family members and Australia Zoo faced unprecedented financial troubles. However, the one silver lining for the Irwins came on March 25 when Terri's daughter Bindi and son-in-law Chandler Powell welcomed their first child, a baby girl named Grace Warrior Irwin Powell. Australia Zoo's financial woes Moving on: After a challenging year of highs and lows, the Irwin family will no doubt be looking forward to saying goodbye to 2021 come New Year's Eve. Pictured from left: Chandler Powell, Bindi Irwin with daughter Grace, Terri Irwin and Robert Irwin The Irwins were already struggling early in the year, with the Covid-19 recession impacting the family business Australia Zoo throughout 2020. But things took a turn for the worse in November when Terri, 57, acknowledged the extent of the financial woes at the Sunshine Coast tourist attraction. She told The Courier-Mail she'd taken out a bank loan to secure the zoo's future, after months of border closures impacted their revenue due to lack of tourists. Matriarch: Terri Irwin (pictured), the widow of the late Steve 'The Crocodile Hunter' Irwin, has steered the ship through uncertain waters during the last 12 months as a feud erupted between family members and Australia Zoo faced unprecedented financial troubles Joy: The one silver lining for the Irwins came on March 25 when Terri's daughter Bindi and son-in-law Chandler Powell welcomed their first child, a girl named Grace Warrior Irwin Powell She said: 'We are 11 years from the GFC [global financial crisis] and still feeling the ripples of that. So I want to be prepared for whatever's coming next.' Despite state leaders promising borders would reopen soon, Terri said she'd adopted strategies to prevent the animal sanctuary from going under. The Irwin matriarch noted the early months of the pandemic were difficult because she needed to spend $80,000 a week just to feed the 1,200 animals. She was also forced to cut costs, reducing her staff from 500 to 200 personnel. Financial lifeline: Terri said in November she'd taken out a bank loan to secure Australia Zoo's future, after months of border closures impacted their revenue due to lack of tourists Terri had previously said on an episode of Crikey! It's the Irwins she was spending a whopping $400,000 per week on wages. She told The Courier-Mail her children Bindi, 23, and Robert, 18, were helping raise funds on the retail side of the business to assist with costs. While Covid has been economically devastating for Australia Zoo, Terri said she wasn't angry at the Queensland government for closing the border and enforcing restrictions. 'This is not the flu we are talking about. If you had open slather, then the health and wellbeing of the majority of people would have been devastating both in terms of the economy and human cost,' she said. Terri has been at the helm of Australia Zoo since her husband Steve died in a freak accident while filming a wildlife documentary in 2006. Crisis: Earlier this year, New Idea reported Australia Zoo was in even more financial strife than previously thought, with a source saying 'several key staffers' had been made redundant. Pictured: Bindi, Chandler and Grace in the Australia Zoo gift shop Earlier in the year, New Idea magazine reported Australia Zoo was in even more financial strife than previously thought. A source said 'several key staffers' had been made redundant - a claim Terri would later confirm to be true. At that time there were rumours Terri 'might soon explore the option of selling' the once-popular tourist destination. Last year, Bindi admitted her late father's legacy was almost on the brink of collapse as the family struggled to keep the business operational during the Covid pandemic. Struggles: Last year, Bindi admitted her late father's legacy was almost on the brink of collapse as the family struggled to keep the business operational during the Covid pandemic Then in January this year a source close to the family told Woman's Day 'they still aren't out of the woods yet'. Australia Zoo was forced to shut for 78 days last year due to the pandemic, but the Irwins still had to pay $80,000 a week to feed the animals. The huge outlay placed the zoo in a dire financial predicament, particularly with international visitors unable to enter Australia. Feud with Bob Snr The Irwin family feud was laid bare in June when Bindi publicly accused her estranged grandfather Bob Irwin Snr of 'ignoring her' since she was a child. She uploaded a Facebook 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 a fan asked why she hadn't included her grandfather, Bindi gave an uncharacteristically raw account of their relationship, claiming he'd ignored her since she was a 'little girl'. Strained: The Irwin family feud was laid bare in June when Bindi publicly accused her estranged grandfather Bob Irwin Snr of 'ignoring her' since she was a child. Pictured: Bob holding a photograph of Bindi in 2008 The mother of one wrote: 'I really wish that my entire family could spend time with [her newborn daughter] Grace. Unfortunately, my grandfather Bob has shown no interest in spending time with me or my family.' She went on to claim Bob Snr 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: She uploaded a Facebook 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 Speaking out: When a fan asked why she hadn't included her grandfather, Bindi gave an uncharacteristically raw account of their relationship, claiming he'd ignored her since she was a 'little girl' She added that her mother Terri still writes to him and sends birthday cards and Christmas gifts, but they receive no reply. 'We have also been his financial support since 1992 when he retired from Australia Zoo, sending him funds every week,' she said. '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.' While Bob Snr didn't respond to the allegations, Bindi was later condemned by two cousins and a family friend, all of whom described Bob as a kind and caring man. Warring factions: While Bob Snr didn't respond to the allegations, Bindi was later condemned by two cousins and a family friend, all of whom described Bob as a kind and caring man. Pictured: Bindi, Terri, Robert and Bob Snr in 2007, one year after Steve's death The rift emerged after years of simmering tensions between the opposing factions of the Irwin clan: those who side with Terri, and those who don't. The Irwins were once a close-knit unit, working together at the family-run Australia Zoo on Queensland's Sunshine Coast. However, everything changed when Steve Irwin, known to millions around the world as the Crocodile Hunter, was killed by a stingray barb in September 2006. Two years after Steve's death, Bob Snr - who had founded the zoo as Beerwah Reptile Park in 1970 with his wife Lyn - abruptly quit after reportedly falling out with Terri about how the business should be run. Bob later reached a financial settlement with Terri which allowed him to buy a property near Kingaroy, now known as Camp Chilli. He has been estranged from Terri and her children ever since. Falling out: The Irwins were once a close-knit unit, working together at the family-run Australia Zoo. However, everything changed when Steve Irwin, known to millions around the world as the Crocodile Hunter, was killed by a stingray barb in September 2006. Pictured: Terri, Bob Snr, Bindi and Robert at Steve's memorial service in 2006 Bob Snr first spoke about his fractured relationship with granddaughter Bindi in 2015, telling The Herald Sun they'd lost contact over the years. 'I don't like to talk about family matters but no we are not in contact,' he said. 'It's sad but it's just the way things are.' Speaking to Daily Mail Australia at the 2015 AACTA Awards, Bindi said her granddad had become reclusive in the years following his son's death. 'Everyone deals with grief differently. When my dad passed away he chose to distance himself from everything that dad loved the most,' she said. 'At the moment we're really just respecting his wishes because he hasn't had anything to do with us for a long time and he decided his own path. That's important, so good for him.' Family feud: Two years after Steve's death, Bob Snr - who had founded the zoo as Beerwah Reptile Park in 1970 with his wife Lyn - abruptly quit after reportedly falling out with Terri about how the business should be run. Pictured: Terri, Robert, Bindi and Steve Irwin in April 2004 Pictured: the Irwin family tree, including who sides with Bindi and who sides with Bob Snr Bindi's estrangement from Bob Snr made headlines again in July 2019, after she became engaged to her now-husband Chandler Powell. At the time, Bob Snr told the Courier Mail he had not received a response since writing a letter of congratulations to his granddaughter. He did not attend the couple's wedding at Australia Zoo in March 2020. Bindi and Chandler welcome baby Grace Despite the trials and tribulations of the last 12 months, 2021 will always be a special year for the Irwin family for one very important reason. It was the year Bindi and Chandler welcomed their baby daughter Grace Warrior. The Dancing with the Stars champ gave birth on March 25, which coincidentally was the couple's first wedding anniversary. Silver lining: Despite the trials and tribulations of the last 12 months, 2021 will always be a special year for the Irwin family for one very important reason: it was the year Bindi and Chandler welcomed their baby daughter Grace Warrior Grace is the only grandchild of the late Steve Irwin, and it's already clear to see she has inherited his passion for Australian wildlife. She has an affinity for the animals at Australia Zoo, as demonstrated by the countless photos her parents have shared on Instagram. The child is also quite outdoorsy, having accompanied her parents on a bushwalking trip through the Tasmanian rainforest in October. The legacy continues: Grace is the only grandchild of the late Steve Irwin, and it's already clear to see she has inherited his passion for Australian wildlife Curious: She has an affinity for the animals at Australia Zoo, as demonstrated by the countless photos her parents have shared on Instagram In the wild: The child is also quite outdoorsy, having accompanied her parents on a bushwalking trip through the Tasmanian rainforest in October Christmas Day marked Grace turning nine months old, and despite all the drama surrounding the Irwin family business, it's obvious the youngster is the centre of her grandmother Terri's world. Grace's mum and dad are equally smitten, with Chandler saying last month he was over the moon his daughter's first word was 'dada'. Meanwhile, 18-year-old Robert has happily taken on the role of fun uncle. Milestone: Christmas Day marked Grace turning nine months old Former Vogue editor in chief Grace Mirabella died Thursday at the age of 91 in her Manhattan home. Mirabella ran the fashion publication from 1971 through 1988, when Anna Wintour, who is Vogue's chief content officer and global editorial director, stepped into the role. Mirabellas stepson Anthony Cahan confirmed her death to The New York Times. The latest: Former Vogue editor in chief Grace Mirabella died Thursday at the age of 91 in her Manhattan home. She was snapped in 2012 in NYC Wintour lauded her predecessor for her stewardship of the publication amid a changing cultural landscape. 'Grace guided Vogue through a momentous time in American history - emancipation, sexual freedom, and vital and hard-won rights for women - and she made that time come alive on the magazines pages,' Wintour said in a Vogue obituary. 'She eschewed fantasy and escapism in favor of a style that was chicly minimalist and which spoke clearly and directly to the newly liberated ways we wanted to live. 'Grace showcased Helmut Newton at his most daring and championed so many American designers: Ralph [Lauren], Calvin [Klein], Donna [Karan], and Mr. Beene.' Wintour said Mirabella 'always exemplified the best of America in her vision and values, and she changed Vogue in ways which still resonate - and which we are profoundly thankful for - today.' Mirabella was seen posing inside her NYC home in February of 1989 Mirabella and TV personality Tim Gunn posed at an NYC restaurant in October of 2011 Mirabella was snapped at the Met Gala in NYC in December of 1992 Mirabella started working at the magazine during the 1960s under the late Diana Vreeland. When she took over the publication, she focused on emphasizing practical workplace style amid a burgeoning number of career-minded women in business joining the workforce. Mirabella's leadership at the helm of Vogue saw circulation rates rocket from 400,000 in 1971 to 1.2 million in 1988, according to the newspaper. During her stint, she also had sections about the arts, fitness, health and beauty added to the publication. She later founded her own women's magazine titled Mirabella, which ran from 1989 thru 2000. Mirabella was born in Newark, New Jersey and worked a number of jobs in the fashion industry, starting out at dress shops. Following her graduation from Skidmore College, she later worked at establishments including Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue before joining Vogue in the publication's credit department. Mirabella is survived by stepsons Anthony and Christopher Cahan, as well as seven step-grandchildren and three step-great-grandchildren, according to the Times. Advertisement Kim Kardashian unveiled the family Christmas card with her four kids North, eight, Chicago, three, Saint, six, and Psalm, two, on Friday afternoon. In addition to posing with her adorable littles ones, whom she shares with estranged husband Kanye West, the 41-year-old reality star's sister Khloe, 37, and 66-year-old mother Kris Jenner were also by her side in matching sweats. The Good American founder's daughter True Thompson, three, and Rob Kardashians daughter Dream Kardashian, five, made cameos with their cousins. Family time: Kim Kardashian shared new Christmas photos on Friday where she posed with all four of her kids, her sister Khloe, far right, and True, her mom Kris Jenner, center, and Rob's daughter Dream Proud mamma: Seen with her four kids North, eight, Chicago, three, Saint, six, and Psalm, two, on Friday afternoon Missing from the snaps are Rob, Kendall Jenner, Kylie Jenner and her daughter, Stormi, three, as well as Kourtney Kardashian and kids, Mason, 12, Penelope, nine, and Reign, six. 'Merry Christmas,' Kim captioned the slideshow, full of cute images of her tots hugging and goofing around. Among the sweet shots, the KKW Beauty founder could be seen giving her eldest a piggyback ride, while her younger sibling held hands with her nieces. Too cute! In addition to posing with her adorable littles ones, who she shares with ex Kanye West, the 41-year-old's sister Khloe, 37, and 66-year-old mother Kris Jenner were also by her side in matching sweats Family time: The Good American founder's daughter True Thompson, three, and Rob Kardashians daughter Dream Kardashian, five, made cameos with their cousins The post comes as it has been reported that Kris made the decision to have the annual Kardashian Christmas Eve extravaganza 'scaled way back' due to surging COVID-19 cases in the Los Angeles area. The 66-year-old matriarch has a few things planned for the evening and 'will still get her daughters and grandkids together on Christmas Eve, but that's it ... nothing over the top,' according to TMZ. The Omicron variant continues its surge across the country with 8,633 new cases of coronavirus reported in Los Angeles yesterday, per the LA County Department of Public Health almost triple the 3,052 cases reported on Monday. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recorded more than 200 million Americans fully vaccinated against COVID, which is roughly 60 percent of the US population. Majority of the family: Missing from the snaps are Rob, Kendall Jenner, Kylie Jenner and her daughter, Stormi, three, as well as Kourtney Kardashian and kids, Mason, 12, Penelope, nine, and Reign, six 'Merry Christmas,' Kim captioned the slideshow, full of cute images of her tots hugging and goofing around Adorable: Among the sweet shots, the KKW Beauty founder could be seen giving her eldest a piggyback ride, while her younger sibling held hands with her nieces Khloe and Kim both shared their challenging bouts with COVID on KUWTK, with Khloe recently suffering another breakthrough case in October where her daughter True also tested positive. The Good American founder told her followers that she was 'luckily' vaccinated and encouraged everyone to 'be safe.' In 2020, Khloe was the one to announce that the party wouldn't go on as planned due to the coronavirus pandemic. Change of plans: The post comes as it has been reported that Kris made the decision to have the annual Kardashian Christmas Eve extravaganza 'scaled way back' due to surging COVID-19 cases in the Los Angeles area Keeping it small: The 66-year-old matriarch has a few things planned for the evening and 'will still get her daughters and grandkids together on Christmas Eve, but that's it ... nothing over the top,' according to TMZ Family and close friends only: The Omicron variant continues its surge across the country with 8,633 new cases of coronavirus reported in Los Angeles yesterday, per the LA County Department of Public Health almost triple the 3,052 cases reported on Monday Recovered: Khloe and Kim both shared their challenging bouts with COVID on KUWTK, with Khloe recently suffering another breakthrough case in October where her daughter True also tested positive 'The Covid cases are getting out of control in CA,' she said via Twitter. 'So we decided that we're not doing a Christmas Eve party this year. It's the first time we will not be having a Christmas Eve party since 1978 I believe.' The last major Kardahian Christmas Eve extravaganza was hosted at Kourtney Kardashian's house in 2019. 'I want you guys to be able to do this until you're my age and one of your kids takes over. That's the joy,' Jenner told her kids during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians as she passed the baton over to Kourtney. The Good American founder told her followers that she was 'luckily' vaccinated and encouraged everyone to 'be safe' Trying to stay safe: In 2020, Khloe was the one to announce that the party wouldn't go on as planned due to the coronavirus pandemic Devastating: The last major Kardahian Christmas Eve extravaganza was hosted at Kourtney Kardashian's house in 2019 'It's just the thought of actually not doing at my house. I'm getting emotional. It makes me sad. It does. It makes me so sad. It's just that magic that you can make, and make everybody feel so amazing on one night a year. It's that love.' Kim went on to explain: 'Our Christmas Eve party was always this fun party that I just remember being friends and family and my grandparents and cousins. It was just the best night ever.' All eyes will be on social media to see if Pete Davidson makes an appearance as one of the coveted family members in tow after Kim recently introduced her new boyfriend to her kids. 'I want you guys to be able to do this until you're my age and one of your kids takes over. That's the joy,' Jenner told her kids during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians as she passed the baton over to Kourtney Moving on: All eyes will be on social media to see if Pete Davidson makes an appearance as one of the coveted family members in tow after Kim recently introduced her new boyfriend to her kids 'Pete met Kims kids and she introduced him to them as "mommys friend,"' according to HollywoodLife sources 'Pete met Kims kids and she introduced him to them as "mommys friend,"' according to HollywoodLife sources. 'Kim thought that it was really cute how he interacted with them and that he tried to make her kids laugh and smile just as he does everyone he meets!' This year's family festivities will also mark Kourtney Kardashians new fiance, Travis Barker's, first time at the Christmas bash. 'Kim thought that it was really cute how he interacted with them and that he tried to make her kids laugh and smile just as he does everyone he meets!' Expanding the family: This year's family festivities will also mark Kourtney Kardashians new fiance, Travis Barker's, first time at the Christmas bash Missing: Kylie Jenner and beau Travis Scott, who are expecting their second child, did not appear in any of the photos Laying low: Scott is currently named in several lawsuits after a deadly crowd surge at the 2021 Astroworld Festival Earlier in the day, Kim joked that her team of Elf on the Shelf elves were under strict quarantine measures after contracting the Omicron variant. 'Our elves have to quarantine until the end of the year,' Kim told her followers in clips of her elves in glass jars. 'You guys, our elves got the new COVID variant, Omicron, I think that's what it's called,' she said. 'One is missing, I think it's at the North Pole holding it down and hopefully it didn't get COVID also, but what are we gonna do?' Candace Rice has announced that she is expecting a baby boy. On Thursday, the 28-year-old Floribama Shore star shared a slideshow of photos in which she proudly displayed her burgeoning belly but revealed that a harrowing experience affected the timing of her announcement. 'I didnt want to post these yet, but unfortunately yesterday I went into pre term labor at 24 weeks,' Candace wrote in the caption of her Instagram post. She continued, 'Dr. Tosha Muse in addition to all the wonderful doctors & nurses have been doing all they can to keep baby Maxwell Michael Hardy inside the womb as long as possible.' 'Its wayyyy too early for him to enter,' the television personality added. In the photos, Candace went topless in a pair of light wash blue jeans and accessorized with large gold hoop earrings. Congratulations! Candace Rice has announced that she is expecting a baby boy. The MTV reality star has not disclosed the name of the baby's father, though she went on to express her gratitude to her 'love'; Seen in 2018 The beauty shone with the glow of pregnancy as she stood with one hand covering her chest and her other hand resting on her stomach. In the second photo, Candace was joined by a man who also went shirtless in a pair of blue jeans. He wrapped his arms around Candace, placing his hands over her her hands and beamed at the camera as she looked up at his lovingly. In the last photo, she posed solo with one hand covering her chest and her other hand placed on top of her mane of curly dark hair. Scary: In her post, Candace revealed that she was hospitalized due to pre-term labor at 24 weeks. She'll now be on bed rest for the rest of her pregnancy The Yaaganix founder is known for her privacy concerning her personal life. While fans speculated that she was pregnant, she had not confirmed the rumors until Thursday's post. The MTV reality star has not disclosed the name of the baby's father, though she went on to express her gratitude to her 'love' as well as her friends and family in the caption. Candace also described her struggles with hyperemesis gravidarum, a potentially life-threatening condition that causes severe nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. She wrote, 'Thank you to all my friends that have called me, checked on me throughout this entire pregnancy. Thank you to my amazing family, Mama & Papa Rice for being there for me every step of the way. Grateful: She also thanked her friends and family for their support. Seen in 2018 with her Floribama Shore castmates Jeremiah Buoni, Codi Butts, Kortni Gilson, Aimee Hall, Kirk Medas, Nilsa Prowant and Gus Smyrnios 'Thank you most of all to my love who have been there for me through the worst HG possible (I lost 20 pounds in the first 4 months and was throwing up on average 7 times a day) could barely walk or move and he was there for me every single day making sure I had what I needed all while working full time.' She continued, 'I couldnt ask for better support system. Praying for a healthy son and speaking a miracle over my sons life and health.' Candace revealed that she would now be on bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy. She also said that she would stay at the hospital until the beginning of the new year due to COVID. The Memphis, Tennessee native concluded her post with some words of advice for expecting mothers. 'This pregnancy has sat my busy body behind down. Now Im officially on bed rest for the remainder of my pregnancy and will be in the hospital for the remainder of the year in isolation thanks to COVID. 'Take it easy mommy-to-bes. I dont care what you think you have to do, the only thing you actually HAVE to do is let that baby bake, stress-free in peace.' Karl Stefanovic's wife Jasmine Yarbrough shared an emotional and moving tribute to her late Grandmother Isabel Hollingworth on Christmas Eve. Posting a video collage of pictures on Friday, Jasmine said she and her family were preparing to mark their 'first Christmas without out beloved Nana'. The shoe designer, 36, said in her Instagram post: 'We miss her so much.' Tribute: Jasmine Yarbrough penned a moving tribute to her late grandmother on Friday as her family marks their 'first Christmas without our beloved Nana' 'Our first Christmas without our beloved Nana,' Jasmine began. She added: 'For anyone who lost a loved one in the past year may you find some happiness in their memories tomorrow. We miss her so much. ' In the pictures, Jasmine is seen doting on her grandmother alongside her family. 'For anyone who lost a loved one in the past year may you find some happiness in their memories tomorrow. We miss her so much ,' Jasmine wrote Special memories: In the pictures, Jasmine is seen doting on her grandmother alongside her family In September, following the passing of her beloved grandmother at the age of 96, Jasmine and her sister Jade both shared touching tributes. Jasmine posted two photos of herself and her grandmother together in the tribute - one where she's a child and a more recent picture - along with a poem titled 'Nana's Love' by Sunburnt Poet Leanne Laydon. 'With the softest touch of Nana's love guiding as I've grown, you shone brighter than any star in a class, all on your own. I learnt the art of being a lady. The value of grace, and being kind,' it read in part. Their Nana: In September, following the passing of her beloved grandmother at the age of 96, Jasmine and her sister Jade both shared touching tributes. Jasmine shared a poem titled 'Nana's Love' by Sunburnt Poet Leanne Laydon 'You always matched your necklace and dress, these little things come to mind. And fill my cup with admiration for those values instilled along the way because I wouldn't be the woman I am, without Nana's love, today.' Jasmine and sister Jade had been taking care of their grandmother for a while, with Jasmine flying into Brisbane from covid-stricken Sydney in August to help look after her. Jasmine's husband, Karl Stefanovic, announced on-air on the Today show in August that his wife had flown into hotel quarantine with their one-year-old daughter Harper. He said that she had acquired a special exemption from Queensland Health. The TV host emphasised that Jasmine and Jade's grandmother was 'really, really, really sick' at the time. The shoe designer visited her ailing nan after she completed 14 days of hotel quarantine with Harper. Patrick Schwarzenegger showed off his new blond hairdo as he stepped out Friday evening to pick up cookies from the Brentwood, California, bakery SusieCakes. The Midnight Sun actor, 28, carried a large bag from the bakery, donning an olive green coat over a white top with an ash grey sweater tied about his waist. He wore navy blue shoes with white trainers to round out the casual ensemble on a chilly evening in Los Angeles. The latest: Patrick Schwarzenegger, 28, showed off his new blond hairdo as he stepped out Friday evening to pick up cookies from the Brentwood, California bakery SusieCakes Patrick, who is in a long-term relationship with model Abby Champion, 24, previously joked on Instagram that his mother Maria Shriver, 66, was 'gonna kill' him over the bold change in his look, but Shriver replied, 'You look great with any hair color.' Patrick on Thursday accompanied his father Arnold Schwarzenegger, 74, to a dedication event in Los Angeles after the action star donated $250,000 toward building 25 tiny homes for homeless veterans. Patrick said on Instagram he was 'really proud' of his father for 'donating all these houses to veterans.' Arnold tweeted Thursday: 'Today, I celebrated Christmas early. The 25 homes I donated for homeless veterans were installed here in LA. It was fantastic to spend some time with our heroes and welcome them into their new homes.' Casual outing: The actor carried a large bag from the bakery, donning an olive green coat over a white top with an ash grey sweater tied about his waist Charity: Patrick on Thursday accompanied his father Arnold Schwarzenegger, 74, to a dedication event in Los Angeles after the action star donated $250,000 toward building 25 tiny homes for homeless veterans Patrick bundled up under a Nike windbreaker on the rainy day in Southern California Arnold also thanked the Office of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, American Veterans (AMVets) and the nonprofit organization Village for Vets for their collaboration on the philanthropic endeavor. 'We proved that when we all work together, we can solve any problem,' he said. Arnold tweeted encouragement to his followers to do what they can to help others in need. 'All of you have the power to do something for someone else this holiday season,' he said. 'It doesn't have to be big. Just give a few minutes of your time to help someone else.' Lisa Vanderpump got some last-minute Christmas shopping done on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills on Friday, keeping warm in a dark ensemble on the chilly day in Southern California. The 61-year-old Bravo beauty layered a dark blue coat over a black top with a floral pattern, dark blue jeans and black boots as she went to the Prada and Gucci stores in the luxe locale. The English socialite wore her brown locks down and parted, and accessorized with a black leather purse on the outing, and she wore a black face mask on the winter day. The latest: Lisa Vanderpump, 61, got some last-minute Christmas shopping done on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, California on Friday, keeping warm in a dark ensemble on the chilly day on Southern California The reality star recently returned to Los Angeles after a trip to London, which she documented on her Instagram page. The Vanderpump Rules star announced earlier this month on the social media site that her beloved golden retriever Rumpy died after a battle with cancer. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum said in a December 1 post that the dog had died after she and husband Ken Todd came back from a previous trip to London. 'What a lovely boy, Rumpy passed away from cancer a few hours after we returned from London .. he waited for us,' she wrote. 'We will always love him.' Dark style: The Bravo beauty layered a dark blue coat over a black top with a floral pattern, dark blue jeans and black boots as she went to the Prada and Gucci stores in the luxe locale Cute: The animal-loving reality star pet a dog on her outing in the lavish shopping area She shared a series of photos of herself and Todd with their beloved pet. The tragic loss came less than three months after another golden retriever she owned named Avery had passed away in September. On September 27, she said in a tweet that things were 'a little overwhelming' as her 'two retrievers [were] both sick.' Saying goodbye: The Vanderpump Rules earlier this month announced that her beloved golden retriever Rumpy died after a battle with cancer Jessica Alba left things to the last minute on Friday as she picked up some desserts for her Christmas Eve festivities. The 40-year-old L.A.'s Finest star was spotted leaving a Whole Foods store in Los Angeles with several boxes of treats balanced in her arms. She rocked a cozy casual look for the grocery run, including a long colorful coat decorated with tiny floral patterns. Stocking up: Jessica Alba, 40, made a stop at Whole Foods on Friday to pick up some desserts ahead of her Christmas Eve festivities Jessica wore a ribbed cream-colored sweater underneath, which she paired with baggy brown slacks. She also rocked a relaxed set of white trainers that matched her white ski cap. The actress accessorized with a small red-and-white patterned Chanel handbag, along with a white patterned reusable grocery bag that was slung over her shoulder. She also wore a graygreen mask to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Staying warm: She wore a long, colorful coat with a cream-colored sweater, baggy brown slacks, white trainers and a matching ski cap The actress appeared to be out on her own without her husband Cash Warren or their three children: Honor, 13, Haven, 10, and Hayes, three. The whole family was seen out together earlier in December as they went hunting for the perfect Christmas tree in West Hollywood. Jessica has been focused on charity work as the holidays approached, and she joined other celebrities at the Baby2Baby holiday party in Inglewood, California, this month. Charity event: Jessica was joined at a Baby2Baby party earlier this month by Chrissy Teigen and husband John Legend, along with Eiza Gonzalez, Vanessa Bryant and comedian Ali Wong. The party doubled as a charity event to help supply children in need with essential supplies She was joined at the event by Chrissy Teigen and her husband John Legend, along with Eiza Gonzalez, Vanessa Bryant and the comedian Ali Wong. The party doubled as a charity event to help supply children in need with essential supplies. According to Baby2Baby's Instagram account, the charity provided 'warm jackets, healthy snacks, blankets, hygiene items, diapers and more plus the special toys and holiday experience they deserve' for children who had been negatively impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Love Island's Katie Salmon has revealed she is engaged to boyfriend Harry. The reality star, 26, is best known for appearing on the ITV2 series in 2016 where she made history by pairing up with the late Sophie Gradon in the show's first same-sex couple. Taking to Instagram on Christmas Day, Katie gushed over her fiance as she revealed he popped the question on the beach in Thailand. Love Island's Katie Salmon is engaged! Star who made history in shows first same-sex couple with late Sophie Gradon revealed boyfriend Harry popped the question on Christmas Day Alongside snapshots of the moment, Katie penned: 'HE ASKED ME TO BE HIS WIFE My best friend, my twin flame, The love of my life asked me to marry him and made me the happiest girl alive!!!! 'My baby, weve been through so much together and built so much, I cannot wait to share this next chapter with you and take your hand in marriage forever. I love you so much I have no other words to say! 'The best Christmas YES, YES YES @itsdirtyb*****d.' History: The reality star, 26, is best known for appearing on the ITV2 series in 2016 where she made history by pairing up with the late Sophie Gradon in the show's first same-sex couple The reality star's post was immediately flooded with well wishes from celebrity pals for the couple - who create racy content together on X-rated subscription site, OnlyFans. Katie is certainly no stranger to causing a stir after her Love Island 2016 appearance. She is best known to viewers of the ITV2 show for pairing up with the late Sophie Gradon on the reality dating series. Sweet: Taking to Instagram on Christmas Day, Katie gushed over her fiance as she revealed he popped the question on the beach in Thailand Katie shared: 'My best friend, my twin flame, The love of my life asked me to marry him and made me the happiest girl alive!!!!' Sophie was originally partnered with Tom Powell but later coupled up with Katie after he quit the show. However, Sophie later dumped Katie and bowed out of the show to be with Tom again, leading Katie to pair off with Adam Maxted. Their romance was short-lived, lasting just two weeks after the series drew to a close. In June 2018, Sophie tragically hanged herself following a cocaine and alcohol binge, hours after revealing she was 'struggling with the world'. Congrats: The reality star's post was immediately flooded with well wishes from celebrity pals for the couple - who create racy content together on X-rated subscription site, OnlyFans Katie previously opened up about the abuse she received from the LGBT community, following her same-sex romance with late Love Island star Sophie. Speaking on the Victoria Derbyshire programme last year, Katie admitted she was the subject of much uproar after her relationship with Sophie, who was tragically found dead in June 2018 aged just 32. She said: 'In the villa I was so scared because I didn't know what the outside world was thinking, what my family was thinking, what my friends were thinking, so I was really upset that they'd not supported me from my own community.' Kate Garraway was left mortified as she revealed too much about her correspondence with Kate Middleton after performing a reading on Royal Carols: Together at Christmas. Speaking on Good Morning Britain's Christmas Day special with co-presenter Richard Bacon, she detailed the moment that the Duchess Of Cambridge thanked her for her involvement. Richard, 46, asked Kate, 54: 'You mentioned that after you met William and Kate she sent you a note.' 'I'll be in the tower!': Kate Garraway was left mortified after discussing 'secret' thank you note from Kate Middleton for appearing in royal carol service He went on: 'Can I ask a technical question? If a senior royal sends you a note, what form does it come? Does it come on horseback? Does it have a wax seal?' Kate said: 'So I was sitting at home with a cup of tea and suddenly there was a knock at the door and there was a fanfare and there were people with trumpets. 'And then, a bit like in Cinderella, where you have a velvet pillow, there was a note with a seal and I opened it up and it was one of the most extraordinary moments of my life. 'It was really sweet, so lovely. She thanked everybody involved because it means so much to her. Eeek: Speaking on Good Morning Britain's Christmas Day special with co-presenter Richard Bacon, she detailed the moment she got invited to the event She then said, mortified: 'I wonder if that was a secret that I got a note?' Richard responded: 'Not anymore!' as Kate exclaimed: 'Crikey! I'll be in the Tower! Stop!' Kate delivered a heartfelt poem during ITV's special after an incredibly difficult year which saw her husband Derek Draper continue his lengthy recovery from Covid. Love and hope: Kate delivered a heartfelt poem during ITV's special after an incredibly difficult year which saw her husband Derek Draper continue his lengthy recovery from Covid Kate read: 'Love came down at Christmas, love all lovely, love divine, love was born at Christmas, star and angels gave the sign. 'Worship we the Godhead, love incarnate, love divine, worship we our Jesus, but wherewith for sacred sign, love shall be our token, love be yours, and love be mine. 'Love to God and all men, love for plea, and gift and sign.' Kate's husband Derek, 54, was rushed to hospital in March last year after contracting coronavirus, spending more than a year in medical care before returning home to be looked after by Kate and their children Darcey, 15, and William, 12. The journalist recently spoke during an appearance on Good Morning Britain of the moment she realised she and her loved ones realised Derek understands what they are saying to him. Kate added that Derek faces huge problems with communication, as well as mobility and fatigue as she explained: 'Sometimes it's like he's not present with you.' She spoke of a moment when playing a moral question game with their two children. Moving: Westminster Abbey was filled with guests who listened to Kate read the poem when the service was recorded on December 8 The screen star detailed that the group received the question 'Who's most likely to find money on the floor and keep it?' She added: 'Everyone in the room all said at the same time, Darcy! And he [Derek] started to laugh.' 'It was just the most lovely moment because you thought, he does get it, he does understand.' 'And he's right! Because she is the most likely!', she laughed. Former political advisor Derek was rushed to hospital after falling gravely ill with the highly infectious respiratory virus as it swept across the United Kingdom in March 2020. He spent last December in hospital but has recently returned home and she felt grateful to have him back this festive period. Kate admitted there was still a 'long, long way to go' with regards to his recovery, but that she felt grateful to have him home this festive period. Reflecting on having him home, she said: 'Last Christmas Eve, we did have a lot of promise and a lot of hope. But Derek was in hospital. 'We had no idea whether he was going to live or die, praying that it was going in the right direction.' Rhian Sugden led the stars being forced to cancel their elaborate plans after testing positive for coronavirus on Christmas Day. The glamour model, 35, shared a photo of a lateral flow test to Instagram along with a 'Merry Christmas' sticker. MailOnline analysis revealed on Friday that nearly 900,000 people could be forced to spend Christmas Day in self-isolation after catching Covid in the past 10 days, with celebrities being no exception to the rule. A very Covid Christmas: Rhian Sugden tested positive on the big day as she led a host of stars who had their festive plans ruined by the virus Among those forced to isolate was Rhian, who later revealed she had been being contacted by fans who had incorrectly concluded that she had shared news that she's expecting a baby. In her caption, Rhian wrote: 'The amount of people that think that was a positive pregnancy test!?? Where have you been for the last 2 years!!?' Meanwhile, Dianne Buswell, 32, and her boyfriend Joe Sugg, 30, tried 'to see the positives in the POSITIVE' after the Strictly dancer contracted Covid. She shared a masked-up selfie with her YouTuber boyfriend, who pulled a funny face while raising a glass of fizz. Tragic: The glamour model, 35, shared a photo of the lateral flow test to Instagram along with a 'Merry Christmas' sticker Optimistic: Meanwhile, Dianne, 32, and her boyfriend Joe Sugg, 30, tried 'to see the positives in the POSITIVE' after the Strictly dancer contracted Covid' The optimistic Australian Strictly star wrote: ' Trying to see the positives in the POSITIVE [laughing emoji, Christmas tree emoji] to spite the situation actually we are having a lovely day . 'And I sure hope you all are too xx Merry Christmas all [sic] @joe_sugg.' Joe added: 'Second year running for us having an unusual, unexpected Christmas.. unfortunately Diannes got the ol' covid (and a mini Christmas tree) so we're staying put in Santa land for now to stay safe. Oh no! On Christmas Eve, the YouTuber shared that they will be spending Christmas Day in Lapland as Dianne has tested positive for Covid-19 Lifting spirits: Dianne shared a screenshot from her family FaceTime, writing: 'I'm so lucky to have the most loving family can't wait to be back with you all' xx 'It's not exactly how we'd have liked to have spent Christmas Day but the main thing is that she's already feeling a lot better and it's another Christmas we'll always remember. 'Hope you all have a lovely day tomorrow and get merry and get your fair share of pigs in blankets.' Emily Atack, 32, took to the photosharing platform on the big day to confess that she was sorely missing her mum Kate Robbins, 63, on their first Christmas apart. Alongside, she uploaded an adorable throwback snap of the pair cosying up together during a recent trip to Paris. The Inbetweeners star wrote: 'Gutted to be having my first Christmas away from mum. But she's alive so I won't complain too much. 'It's just all a bit s**t isn't it! F**k you covid. Merry Christmas everyone.' She still made the best of her situation, however, taking to Instagram later to share a snap sipping champagne alongside her pet pooch. She captioned the image: 'Merry Christmas you filthy animals. A very different one this year, but feeling grateful nonetheless. Sending love to you all ' Frustrating: Emily, 32, (left) took to the photosharing platform on the big day to confess that she was sorely missing her mum on their first Christmas apart Positives: Emily still made the best of her situation, however, taking to Instagram later to share a snap sipping champagne alongside her pet pooch Another star who had their celebrations disrupted was Olympic rower James Cracknell, who tested positive for Covid on the day. Alongside a snap glaring at his lateral flow test, he penned: 'Santa dropped off what I'd been "waiting all year for." Covid. Trying to explain to Dug that I'm ill not just lazy. He's not buying it. Have a fantastic Chirstmas everyone. Jx' Seeing the funny side, James later shared a picture with his pet pooch that he captioned: 'I'm no Dr Dolittle but I reckon he's thinking "you can't give me covid and you're going nowhere." Right on both counts.' Bad timing: Another star who had their celebrations disrupted was Olympic rower James Cracknell, who tested positive for Covid on the day He penned: 'Santa dropped off what I'd been "waiting all year for." Covid. Trying to explain to Dug that I'm ill not just lazy. He's not buying it. Have a fantastic Chirstmas everyone. Jx' While it is possible for pets to contact Covid, Britain's Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss has stressed that Covid cases in animals are 'very rare'. Dogs become infected in the same way as humans do, by inhaling droplets after an infected person coughs or sneezes. There is no evidence that animals transmit it to humans, with research suggesting they do not shed enough virus to be infectious. Ashley Roberts sent temperatures soaring in a black bikini while spending Christmas Day holidaying in an exotic location. The Pussycat Doll, 40, looked sensational in the skimpy ensemble which showed off her pert posterior and ample assets. She styled her blonde locks into French plaits while going makeup-free for the photos. Wow: Ashley Roberts, 40, sent temperatures soaring on Saturday as she posed wearing a black bikini while holidaying in an exotic location She later posed for a mirror selfie with her hand on her hip. Ashley captioned the snaps: Sending Santa the pin location. Merry Jungle Xmas everyone! mucho love' The stunner posted the slew of photos to Instagram and also shared a snap posing on a beach in a bright blue bikini. The leggy beauty also donned a bucket hat as she leant on a rock on the beach. Amazing: Ashley looked incredible as she styled her blonde locks into French plaits while going makeup-free for the photos Looking good: The Pussycat Doll looked sensational in the skimpy ensemble which showed off her pert posterior and ample assets It comes after Ashley and her radio co-presenter Amanda Holden ensured they got into the festive spirit as they shared a kiss under the mistletoe last Friday. The duo could be seen locking lips in a snap shared to Amanda's Instagram page in celebration of their last Heart Radio Breakfast Show before Christmas. Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda, who presents the show alongside Jamie Theakston, 50, while Ashley appears as the showbiz reporter, thanked fans for their support, saying she and Ashley went out 'with a bang.' Catching the rays: The stunner posted the slew of photos to Instagram and also shared a snap of her posing on a beach in a bright blue bikini Sharing the picture of the pair kissing as well as one posing alongside Santa, Amanda wrote: 'Well.. last show of the year and we went out with a bang. '#Merrychristmas to you all .. we appreciate you sticking with us and making @thisisheart the biggest commercial breakfast show in the UK and Europe!! We couldnt do it without you. 'I kissed an #Elf and I liked it .' Bill Bailey paid tribute to his late friend Sean Lock on Christmas Day. Wishing his Twitter followers a good day, the comedian, 56, shared that he was thinking of the 8 Out Of 10 Cats star on Saturday, writing: Hello everyone hope youre having a good day. Today Im thinking about my old pal Sean Lock, and his family. He continued: 'And Im sending out good thoughts to all those of you who are missing someone today.' 'Today I'm thinking about my old pal and his family': Bill Bailey paid tribute to late comedian Sean Lock in a heartfelt Christmas Day tweet Alongside the heartfelt message he posted a picture with Sean while on a country walk to Coombe Hill. Sean passed away in August after a battle with lung cancer. His management Off The Kerb released a statement at the time of his death which read: 'It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Sean Lock. He died at home from cancer, surrounded by his family.' Sad: Wishing his followers a good day, the comedian, 56, shared that he was thinking of the 8 Out Of 10 Cats star on Saturday 'Sean was one of Britains finest comedians, his boundless creativity, lightning wit and the absurdist brilliance of his work, marked him out as a unique voice in British comedy. 'Sean was also a cherished husband and father to three children. Sean will be sorely missed by all that knew him.' Many of Sean's fans replied to Bill's tweet, with one even sharing that they had created a Sean angel for the top of their tree. Tribute: Many of Sean's fans replied to Bill's tweet, with one even sharing that they had created a Sean angel for the top of their tree Another tweet read: 'Sending good thoughts right back to you, a comic genius missed by the nation - I can't even imagine the laughs you two had as friends!' Another tweet read: 'Sending good thoughts right back to you, a comic genius missed by the nation - I can't even imagine the laughs you two had as friends!' One more wrote: 'You lost a dear friend and somehow we all feel like we did too.. The world is a less brighter place without Sean in it.' Sean hid the illness from the general public, only telling his closest friends and family about the diagnosis. Bill previously revealed that Sean was still in a good mood just a few days before he passed away. He said: 'Even in his last few days, we were still having a laugh, still joking, still coming up with ideas.' Its the party island famed for its welcoming peace and harmony vibe. So I was surprised to see millionaire businessman Gary Goldsmith, uncle of the Duchess of Cambridge, advertising his refurbished party palace on Ibiza as a place that would leave visitors jealous. Gary Goldsmith's Ibiza villa, formerly called Maison de Bang Bang (pictured above) where Kate and William stayed in 2006 has just been given a full revamp I was surprised to see millionaire businessman Gary Goldsmith, (left) uncle of the Duchess of Cambridge, advertising his refurbished party palace on Ibiza as a place that would leave visitors jealous His villa, formerly called Maison de Bang Bang where Kate and William stayed in 2006 has just been given a full revamp. Its website says it has room for 100 party guests and features marble and top-end spec throughout. But Gary also added that its a landscape crafted to relax in and entertain guests, while invoking a touch of jealousy. Thats not quite in the spirit of the island, Gary! The problem with taking a dozen large bags of luggage on holiday is there is more chance of one of them going missing. After posting a picture of herself with her family and their huge haul of baggage on the steps of their Cambridgeshire mansion before heading off to the United States for their holiday, socialite Alice Naylor-Leyland was left cursing British Airways when they touched down in Miami. Socialite Alice Naylor-Leyland, 35, was left cursing British Airways when they touched down in Miami after realising her bag was missing The 35-year-old lamented: Weve arrived but guess whose bag didnt come? She is visiting her father for Christmas with her husband Tom, the heir to the 176 million Fitzwilliam landowning fortune, and their three children. Sounds as if Alice will be booking a private jet next time! Spare a thought for poor Elton John, who is missing out on his annual ski trip to Colorado with David Furnish and their boys Zachary and Elijah all because of his dodgy hip. The family usually head to the US to hit the slopes before making their way to Los Angeles to prepare for Eltons glittering post-Oscars party. Spare a thought for poor Elton John, who is missing out on his annual ski trip to Colorado with David Furnish and their boys Zachary and Elijah all because of his dodgy hip The family usually head to the US to hit the slopes before making their way to Los Angeles to prepare for Eltons glittering post-Oscars party. Pictured: Aspen in Colorado But his recent hip replacement means theyve had to change their plans, and the boys will have to make do with a ski jaunt to Switzerland instead. Shes the delectable racing pundit whos captivated television audiences from here to Australia. Now, three months after I revealed that Francesca Cumani was loved up with dashing businessman and Ironman triathlete Max Johnson (no, not the PMs half-brother, nor even remotely related to those Johnsons), Francesca tells me that she and Max are expecting their first child. Three months after I revealed that Francesca Cumani, 38, (above) was loved up with dashing businessman and Ironman triathlete Max Johnson, Francesca tells me that she and Max are expecting their first child Were thrilled, says Francesca, 38, who has a son, Harry, five, by her marriage to Australian polo player Rob Archibald. That union fell victim to the couples professional commitments Rob is based Down Under and Francesca is working here as ITVs racing presenter, a role she took up in 2016. She and Max, 37, have resisted enquiring if shes expecting a boy or a girl. But the new arrival may make a precocious debut at Royal Ascot, which takes place in June, as Francesca is due mid-2022 But the new arrival may make a precocious debut at Royal Ascot, which takes place in June, as Francesca is due mid-2022. She is pictured above at Epsom in June, 2021 Romeo Beckhams model girlfriend Mia Regan has become the latest female celebrity to ditch the razor. Romeo Beckhams model girlfriend Mia Regan, 19, has become the latest female celebrity to ditch the razor I suspect fresh-faced Romeo, pictured above, also 19, is rather envious The 19-year-old proudly showed off her armpit hair on a video shared on Instagram, and joins Julia Roberts, Madonna and her daughter Lourdes who have also let nature take its course. I suspect fresh-faced Romeo, also 19, is rather envious Magic Daniel's 10m boost We havent seen a lot of Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe lately but he hasnt been hiding behind that invisibility cloak. I can reveal he has still conjured up 9.5 million in earnings this year, as profits at his acting company Gilmore Jacobs soared, taking his net worth to 89.2 million. We havent seen a lot of Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe lately but he hasnt been hiding behind that invisibility cloak The business was set up by his parents in September 2000, and hoovers up all his Harry Potter royalties. Thanks to this mountain of earnings, 32-year-old Daniel holds 3.1 million in investment properties, 43.1 million in short-term assets and 18.8 million in longer-term fixed assets as well as 10.3 million in cash. Thanks to this mountain of earnings, 32-year-old Daniel Radcliffe holds 3.1 million in investment properties, 43.1 million in short-term assets and 18.8 million in longer-term fixed assets as well as 10.3 million in cash His portfolio is thought to include properties in New York and Los Angeles. Although he has J. K. Rowling to thank, he has refused to back the author during her battles with trans activists this year. Boos all round for panto chiefs at Richmond Theatre, who have made a rather unsporting jibe at two of our most harmless Royals. The ugly sisters in its production of Cinderella, starring Anton Du Beke, are called Beatrice and Eugenie. A low blow, Id say. Boos all round for panto chiefs at Richmond Theatre, who have made a rather unsporting jibe at two of our most harmless Royals. Pictured: The Cinderella cast with Anton du Beke It is not unusual for a son to follow his father into the same line of work. But the trend has been given a new twist after the youngest boy of musician Sting the former frontman of rock band The Police applied to become a real-life officer of law and order. Stings band had a string of hits including Walking On The Moon and Roxanne. After completing a two-day trial to join the Metropolitan Police, Giacomo Sumner known to friends as Jack is hoping for good news in the New Year. If he gets the job it will be a dream come true, as he has declared on Facebook: Becoming a police officer has been my dream since I was 13 years old. A friend told The Mail on Sunday: He is interested in a police career and has applied to various departments. He has had an interview with the Met Police and a fitness test. He is waiting to hear back and hoping that he gets in. It is not unusual for a son to follow his father into the same line of work. But the trend has been given a new twist after the Giacomo Sumner (centre), the youngest boy of musician Sting (right), completed a two-day trial to join the Metropolitan Police Another source said: Giacomo will have taken a rigorous two-day assessment trial. The 26-year-old graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice from California Lutheran University in May last year. When he graduated, Giacomos mother Trudie Styler gushed on Facebook: Dad and I so very proud of you. Your hard work has paid off! She also praised his tenacity grit and determination. Giacomos elder brother and two sisters have all pursued glamorous careers in music and film, so in some respects despite the amusingly familiar job title Jack is bucking the family trend. A friend said that at the very least he is likely to be offered a job as a special constable like Rod Stewarts wife Penny Lancaster. Sting, 70, and his actress wife Trudie, 67, (pictured together) have four children together Sting, 70, and his actress wife Trudie, 67, have four children together. The eldest, Brigitte, who goes by the name Mickey, appeared in the Tom Cruise movie American Made and the Netflix hit Snowpiercer. Meanwhile, Jake is a film-maker who has worked on music videos for the likes of Bruno Mars and Damien Marley. Eliot had some modest chart success as a musician before turning to film, landing roles in the latest James Bond movie and a forthcoming TV series based on Patricia Highsmiths celebrated Tom Ripley novels. Giacomo made his acting debut at 11 and had small parts in a number of productions before making his move to join the constabulary. On his Instagram account he has written: Be kind to yourself and be kind to others. Im a huge dog enthusiast! Giacomo declined to comment. Some of the worlds biggest musicians are bracing themselves for a tell-all music book by their former publicist. Barbara Charone, a London-based American PR agent, is set to spill the beans in an explosive new memoir entitled Access All Areas. A former music journalist, Ms Charone helped make a star of Madonna, whom she spotted when still an unknown, and has previously represented the likes of Guns N Roses, REM, Elvis Costello, Christina Aguilera and Prince. She also spent three years living with Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards while she wrote his first authorised biography. The new book has yet to be formally announced but is listed on Amazon to be released in June. Insiders say it will detail Ms Charones close relationship with Madonna and reveal how they fell out in 2003. Ms Charone remains Madonnas publicist and also has the likes of Olly Murs, Rod Stewart and Jessie J on her books. However, Ms Charone remains Madonnas publicist and also has the likes of Olly Murs, Rod Stewart and Jessie J on her books. A well-placed source told The Mail on Sunday: There is some panic out there, this book is going to be full of revelations and will certainly get people talking. Imagine having a woman who has looked after so many A-list stars then deciding to write a book. It is going to be very interesting. Barbara is extremely well-connected. There will be details of when she worked with Keith Richards and some great anecdotes from the three years she spent living with him. There are very few top acts who Barbara hasnt looked after or spent time with., so her memoirs will surely be a dream read for any music fanatic. Insiders say it will detail Ms Charones close relationship with Madonna and reveal how they fell out in 2003 Publishers Orion say the book will be a time capsule for the last four decades of life seen through the eyes and ears of music and teases the story of an unnamed heavy metal band taking drugs en route to a music festival. Ms Charone, who grew up in Chicago, changed career from journalist to PR in the early 1980s when she joined Warner Music, looking after stars such as Stewart and Eric Clapton. In 2000, she started her own company, MBC PR, now based in St Johns Wood, North-West London, with colleague Moira Bellas. A Chelsea FC season-ticket holder, she guided Seal to stardom, helped Neil Diamond revive his career and turned Mark Ronson from a DJ into a pop star. A journalist once said of her: She has never once been made aware of the words shy or retiring. The music world would be dull without her. A BBC television doctor repeatedly referred to mothers-to-be as pregnant people on the popular daytime show Morning Live. Dr Xand van Tulleken was discussing the various groups who have so far declined to have the Covid jab when he said: Pregnant people, for instance, early in the pandemic there were very mixed messages [on whether expectant mothers should be given a shot] so people didnt get vaccinated when they were pregnant and they havent got it subsequently. Pregnant people are not unreasonably nervous about putting things into their bodies. Dr Xand van Tulleken was discussing the various groups who have so far declined to have the Covid jab on Morning Live (above) when he repeatedly referred to mothers-to-be as pregnant people He went on to discuss why some people from ethnic minority groups have not been jabbed, saying: For a long time they have not been treated well by the Government, by pharmaceutical companies, and so if they are reluctant to get the vaccine that is understandable. Maybe they are needle-phobic no one likes getting injected. Last night, an MP criticised the BBC wokeishness for presenters referring to pregnant women as pregnant people a sign that they are trying not to offend members of the trans community. Andrew Bridgen, the Tory MP for North-West Leicestershire, said: The more woke the BBC becomes the more out of touch they seem to the majority of licence-fee payers. Dr Xand went on to discuss why some people from ethnic minority groups have not been jabbed, suggesting the group's vaccine hesitancy was 'understandable' and adding they might be 'needle-phobic' Andrew Bridgen, the Tory MP for North-West Leicestershire, criticised the BBC wokeishness for presenters referring to pregnant women as pregnant people The Mail on Sunday has previously revealed how gender-neutral inclusive language is becoming widespread among medics. In 2016, the British Medical Association recommended that its staff use pregnant people instead of pregnant women. And in February last year, midwives at Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust were told to start using terms such as chest milk instead of breast milk. The BBC show also included a segment on how non-Christians, including atheists and a Wiccan high priestess, were celebrating Christmas. Rav Wilding, who was filling in for usual presenter Gethin Jones who is suffering from Covid, said: Christmas may be seen as a Christian tradition but it is a special time for everyone. The BBC were contacted for comment. Advertisement It is a moment that Kate Garraway feared would never happen. But after 21 difficult months, she has finally been able to enjoy a family outing with her husband Derek Draper as he continues to battle the ravages of Covid. Though still weak and poorly from the devastating effects of the virus, the former political adviser managed to raise a smile, as our heartwarming pictures show. And that, quite understandably, brought a look of glee to Ms Garraways face, too, as they enjoyed an afternoon out at the pantomime with their two children. Mr Draper had been allowed home for Christmas in what the presenter poignantly called the greatest gift she could receive. Last Christmas Eve, we did have a lot of promise and a lot of hope but Derek was in hospital, she recalled. We had no idea whether he was going to live or die, praying that it was going in the right direction. Though still weak and poorly from the devastating effects of the virus, former political adviser Derek Draper managed to raise a smile after a family trip to Cinderella at Richmond Theatre After 21 difficult months, Kate Garraway has finally been able to enjoy a family outing with her husband Derek Draper as he continues to battle the ravages of Covid The trip to watch Cinderella at Richmond Theatre in West London is the first time the 54-year-old (centre) has been seen outside since contracting Covid in March 2020 The trip to watch Cinderella at Richmond Theatre in West London is the first time the 54-year-old has been seen outside since contracting Covid in March 2020. He was so severely ill he was placed in a medically induced coma for several months, and continues to have extraordinary problems with communication, mobility is very limited, massive problems with fatigue and sometimes its like hes not present with you, in Ms Garraways bravely honest words. But despite such momentous troubles, the couple enjoyed a trip to the theatre with Darcy, 15, and son Billy, 12. The children hugged their father tightly as they waited for a taxi back to their home in Islington, North London, after the show. The former political advisor was rushed to hospital last March after falling gravely ill with the unpredictable respiratory bug (pictured in 2019) Derek Draper and wife Kate Garraway seen with friends attending the Cinderella pantomime at the Richmond Theatre starring celebrity friend Anton Du Beke The heartwarming scene is the first time Derek has been seen out since returning home from hospital after becoming the worst-affected living Covid patient in the UK Derek smiled as he embraced his children and chatted with friends wearing a face mask The panto stars Anton Du Beke, who was Ms Garraways partner when she took part in Strictly Come Dancing in 2007. These touching pictures were taken on Wednesday, just two days before she described his slow but positive progress on ITVs Good Morning Britain. Speaking of how she was heartened by signs of his recovery, she said: We were playing a silly game, one of those moral question games...and they asked Who is likely to find money on the floor and keep it? and everyone in the room said all at the same time Darcy, and he started to laugh. And honestly, it was just the most lovely moment because you thought he does get it, he does understand. And hes right! Because she is the most likely! Derek Draper was so severely ill he was placed in a medically induced coma for several months, and continues to have extraordinary problems with communication' Ms Garraway, 54, also delivered a touching message about love when she appeared on ITVs Royal Carols: Together At Christmas on Friday Ms Garraway, 54, also delivered a touching message about love when she appeared on ITVs Royal Carols: Together At Christmas on Friday. She read the poem Love Came Down At Christmas by Christina Rossetti in front of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at the concert, which had been recorded at Westminster Abbey on December 9. She also told Womens Own magazine they would be having a subdued Christmas, adding: Its adjusting to a new normal, but also grateful hes here at all...which we feared would never happen. She may have helped the nation accept the idea of women in the clergy but Dawn French has revealed that she's constantly apologising to real reverends over her portrayal of the Vicar of Dibley. The 64-year-old comedy star says women of the cloth often tell her they are nicknamed 'Geraldine' after her sitcom character, and she always responds: 'I'm so sorry.' But she adds: 'They say 'Don't say sorry, because it normalised it all' that's the power of comedy.' The 64-year-old comedy star says women of the cloth often tell her they are nicknamed 'Geraldine' after her sitcom character Speaking to presenter Rylan-Clark-Neal on his Ry-Union podcast, Ms French said she researched her character by chatting to Joy Carroll, one of the first female vicars. 'I needed to ask her questions how you wear the dog collar with the dress? 'What do you earn? 'Are you allowed to s**g your boyfriend? 'She just opened her heart.' 'I thought 'this is my kind of babe'. She lives in America now, she married an American preacher.' Geraldine Granger returned to the BBC for a series of short films last year, marking various moments from the pandemic. She was on our screens yesterday in a repeat but last year told of her desire to get a promotion. 'I've always said to Richard Curtis, she'd make a great Bishop,' Ms French recalled. Banker Phares is a practicing attorney and founding member of the Estate Planning and Probate Law certification by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is the John and Karen Mast Professor at SFA and teaches in the Department of Economics and Finance. Tips Industries, which will back the film in collaboration with Matchbox Pictures, shared the news on social media. (Photo: Katrina Kaif Instagram) Mumbai: Bollywood actor Katrina Kaif and south star Vijay Sethupathi are set to feature together for the first time in filmmaker Sriram Raghavan's next film, titled "Merry Christmas". Tips Industries, which will back the film in collaboration with Matchbox Pictures, shared the news on social media. "Winter Chills + Festive Thrill = #MerryChristmas 2022 winter promises a thrilling experience with #SriramRaghavan's next. #KatrinaKaif and @VijaySethuOffl will come together in this film produced by @RameshTaurani and #SanjayRoutray," the banner tweeted. Alongside the tweet, the production house posted a group photo of the two actors, Raghavan, producer Ramesh Taurani and Sanjay Routray. Kaif, who tied the knot with actor Vicky Kaushal earlier this month, also shared the news and expressed her excitement to be working with Raghavan, best known for hits such as "Ek Haisna Thi", "Badlapur", "Andhadhun". "New Beginnings. Back on set with director #sriramraghavan for Merry Christmas! I've always wanted to work with Sriram Sir, he is a master when it comes to narratives that showcase thrillers and it's an honour to be directed by him," the 38-year-old actor wrote on Instagram. Kaif said she is equally thrilled to be teaming up for the first time with Sethupathi, the star of critical hits like "Sundarapandian", "Pizza", "Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom", "Vikram Vedha" and "Super Deluxe". "Super excited to be teaming up with Vijay Sethupathi for this one produced by @rameshtaurani," she added. The film went on floors this week with the first schedule being extensively shot in Mumbai. "Merry Christmas" will be released in theatres on December 23, 2022. Some students and parents had blocked the road seeking action against the teacher, on Friday. (Representional Image: ANI) Coimbatore: A government school teacher, who was placed under suspension for allegedly sexually harassing some students, was arrested on Saturday under the POCSO Act, police said. The computer science teacher, C VIjay Anand of Government Higher Secondary school at Vellalore, was suspended pending inquiry into the complaint by some girl students that he used to touch them and send obscene messages during online classes. Some students and parents had blocked the road seeking action against the teacher, on Friday. Based on a complaint, police registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and arrested him this morning. In its orders, following concerns expressed by the Telangana High Court over the spread of the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus in the state, the Telangana government, however, said all rallies and public meetings will be prohibited in the state till January 2, 2022. (Representational Image: PTI) Hyderabad: New Year celebrations can go ahead as planned in the state, provided the congregations at such events, or other events where people were likely to gather, continue to adhere to the existing Covid-19 safety precautions, the government indicated on Saturday. In its orders imposing certain restrictions, following concerns expressed by the High Court over the spread of the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus, the government on Saturday said all rallies and public meetings will be prohibited till January 2, 2022. With respect to allowing all other congregations, be it family events such as weddings, or festivals, or New Year celebrations and the like, the government said: "Other events involving congregation of people will be permitted subject to the following directions physical distancing shall be ensured within the venue; No person without mask shall be allowed in the venue; and infrared thermometers/thermal scanners should be arranged at the entry point to scan persons entering venues where people are likely to gather. The government further said the order to penalise anyone not wearing a mask at such or any other gathering of people, will be strictly enforced. The penalty for not wearing a face mask while in public places is Rs 1,000. The Telangana High Court had on Thursday said the government should take an appropriate decision over concerns on possible spread of the Omicron variant and had given the government time till Saturday to announce the measures it would put in place to address these concerns. The state government on Saturday issued orders for payment of compensation to families of 113 farmers, who committed suicide. (DC file photo) Hyderabad: The state government on Saturday issued orders for payment of compensation to families of 113 farmers, who committed suicide. Each family will be paid Rs 6 lakh. The government released Rs 7.95 crore for the purpose on Friday. The government released compensation for the families of 27 farmers in Vikarabad district, 23 in Nalgonda, 12 in Jayashankar-Bhupalapally, 10 in Jangoan and nine each in Hanamkonda and Mulugu districts. The undivided AP government used to pay compensation of Rs 6 lakh to family members of a farmer in case of suicide. But the process was difficult and time-consuming and required an inquiry by revenue and police officials. After formation of the state in 2014, the TRS government launched Rythu Bima scheme in 2018 in agreement with LIC which pays Rs 5 lakh compensation in case of suicide by a farmer. The government has paid a premium of nearly Rs 1,000 crore premium on behalf of farmers who have digital pattadar passbooks. The government did not pay compensation between 2014 and 2018 and the families of a few of the farmers who committed suicide approached the High Court seeking compensation. The court directed the government to inquire into these cases and pay compensation. The so-called Dharma Sansad or Religious Parliament held at Haridwar over December 17-19 witnessed a level of hate, bigotry and open incitement to violence against Muslims that most Indians will find unbelievable. Prabodhanand Giri, the president of the self-styled Hindu Raksha Sena made a public call for ethnic cleaning of Muslims. Like Myanmar, our police, our politicians, our Army and every Hindu must pick up weapons and conduct a safai abhiyan (ethnic cleansing). There is no other option left. Another luminary, Pooja Shakun Pandey aka Sadhvi Annapurna, made a direct call for genocide. If you want to finish them off, then kill them. We need hundred soldiers who can kill 20 lakh of them to win this. These are but samples of the extraordinary rant of pure vitriol and venom at this meeting against fellow citizens based entirely on religious hatred. Some facts need to be clearly understood. All these speakers had usurped to themselves the garb of Hindu religious saints. Most if not all of them had verifiable connections with top BJP leaders. There are videos and photographs of Yogi Adityanath and the CM of Uttarakhand genuflecting before them. None of them hid their connections with the larger Sangh Parivar. And, BJP leaders themselves notwithstanding their subsequent claims to innocence were present at the meeting and even addressed the gathering. Such a dangerous and revolting display of religious hatred cannot be passed off as a one-off incident. It is a consequence of several years of nurturing and encouragement of precisely such sentiments, for which the BJP-RSS combine must accept responsibility. Much too often the members of these organisations and supporters of their divisive agenda have come out with statements that can only be seen as fuel for such a condemnable hate conflagration. Their MPs have openly expressed their admiration even veneration for Nathuram Godse, and their ministers have got away making statements in which they refer to Muslims as haraamzadas or bastards. Around 98 per cent of cattle lynchings since 2010 occurred after 2014; the overwhelming majority of these took place in BJP ruled states; and 86 per cent of the victims were Muslims. The BJPs policy of blatant religious polarisation for short-term electoral dividends has led it to endorse and encourage the demonisation of Muslims and other minorities. The attempt to consolidate Hindu vote has led the BJP to aggressively conjure the other, against whom enmity or ill will has to be fostered. The number of BJP leaders against whom hate speech allegations exist is proof of this. The so-called religious leaders who spoke at Haridwar are a symptom of this organised empowerment over a period of time. For precisely this reason, the gathering at Haridwar was not of fringe elements. It represented albeit in a particularly outrageous form the sentiments of the hard-core followers of the BJP-RSS. For too long Hindus and Indians generally have lulled themselves into complacency with the thought that some of these statements and actions are the monopoly of a few loonies, marginal elements, the odd few who are outside mainstream society. The truth is that over these last seven years the fringe has become the mainstream support of the BJP. It is the section from which the party derives its strength. Such elements are explicitly and implicitly encouraged and nurtured, and when something like Haridwar happens, the BJP makes a tokenistic and unconvincing gesture to somewhat distance itself from it. It is not surprising then that the BJP government of Uttarakhand took days before it registered a reluctant FIR against one of the perpetrators. There was no condemnation of the event by either the state government or the central high command. An eerie silence, akin to tacit support, was the only response. The perpetrators themselves were publicly unrepentant. They knew that they had the support of the powers that be. Hindus, in particular, need to be extremely worried by such developments. Vitriol of this nature is not confined to silos. These rabid high priests of the Hindu faith will soon tell all Hindus what to eat, what to wear, what to drink, who to meet, and how to pray. Their illiterate fanaticism will seek to rule your lives. Women will be special targets, and made to conform to what such people think are chaste Hindu naris. Those of us who say Diwali Mubarak will be attacked for the use of Urdu in the greeting. Celebrating Christmas will be considered un-Hindu. The self-anointed lumpen writ of such people will play havoc with the way the vast majority of Hindus wish to be Hindus. Violent hatred of this nature is also a severe distortion of the self-assured, tolerant, dialogic and inclusive nature of Hinduism. This is an attempt to whip our sanatani faith into some kind of Wahabi creed, hysterically bigoted, insecure, and exclusionist. Hinduism is being weaponised before our very eyes only to further the political agenda of a political party. The hugely impractical and outdated goal of a Hindu Rashtra, which animates these saffron dharis, would entail either expelling our large number of minorities, which is unfeasible, or subjugate them as second-class citizens, which is a recipe for disaster. Quite apart from the violent mutilation of the Constitution, it would lead to perennial instability, unmitigated religious strife, endemic community conflict and a state of public volatility that would put an end to the peace and harmony so necessary for progress and prosperity. Is this in the interest of Hindus? Hate speech emanating from any religious community is condemnable. It directly militates against the delicate filigree of our civilisational heritage, marked by antiquity, continuity, diversity, assimilation and peaks of refinement. The attempt to reduce Hinduism to its lowest common denominator is an assault on the sensibilities of all Hindus, and Indians. The time has come for ordinary Indians to say enough is enough. It is time also for those responsible for such outrages to understand that Indians will not be passive cannon fodder for their cynical political goals. Kabul: The Taliban said that they have not reached an agreement with Turkey and Qatar over the management of five airports in Afghanistan, reported local media. Afghanistan's Ministry of Transportation and Civil Aviation is still busy discussing the issue with the countries' technical team, reported Khaama Press. It comes amid reports that the Taliban had reached an agreement with Qatar and Turkey for the management of the country's airports. No agreement has been agreed, negotiations are still underway, said the Taliban's spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid during his interview with Radio Free Afghanistan said. Currently, technical teams of both countries are in Kabul. They are negotiating the management of Kabul International Airport, Kandahar International Airport, Mazar-e-Sharif International Airport, Khost airport and Herat airport. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has imposed a stay on the orders passed by the fair trade regulator CCI slapping penalties on several beer makers, including United Breweries Ltd that faces a fine of Rs 751.8 crore. Passing an interim order, a two-member NCLAT bench has directed parties, including United Breweries Ltd, to deposit 10 per cent of the penalty amount by way of Fixed Deposit Receipt within three weeks. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on September 24, 2021, imposed penalties totalling over Rs 873 crore on UBL, Carlsberg India, All India Brewers' Association (AIBA) and 11 individuals for cartelisation in the sale and supply of beer. The said order was challenged before the NCLAT, which is an appellate authority over the CCI. It hears appeals against any direction issued or decision made or order passed by the CCI. "... during the pendency of the Appeal, to prevent an aberration of justice and to secure the ends of justice, stays the impugned order dated 24.09.2021 in suo moto case no. 6/2017 subject to the payment of 10 per cent of the penalty amount levied by the first Respondent/CCI, by way of Fixed Deposit Receipt to and in favour of the Registrar, NCLAT, New Delhi, within three weeks from the date of passing of this order," said an NCLAT order passed on December 23. The NCLAT has also directed the CCI and the All India Brewers Association to file replies over the notices issued by it. The appellate tribunal has directed to list the matter on March 29, 2022, for admission. Confirming the development, UBL in a regulatory filing said it received an order passed by the NCLAT, staying the CCI order upon a condition of pre-deposit of 10 per cent of the penalty amount imposed on the company. "The company will comply with the directions and the said 10% amount shall be deposited through a fixed deposit receipt within stipulated time as mentioned in the Order," UBL had said, now controlled by Dutch-based multinational Heineken. Earlier this year, Heineken had acquired additional ordinary shares in UBL on June 23 taking its shareholding in the company from 46.5 per cent to 61.5 per cent. The CCI had passed the final order against United Breweries Ltd (UBL), SABMiller India Ltd, now renamed as Anheuser Busch InBev India Ltd (AB InBev), and Carlsberg India Private Ltd (CIPL), among other entities. In its 231-page order, which had come nearly four years after ordering a detailed probe, the CCI had also directed the companies, associations and individuals to "cease and desist" from anti-competitive practices in the future. The period of cartelisation was considered to be from 2009 to at least October 10, 2018, with Carlsberg India joining in from 2012 and AIBA serving as a platform for facilitating such cartelisation since 2013. All three beer companies were lesser penalty applicants before the regulator. Check out DH's latest videos: In the year since the first shots of coronavirus vaccines began going into arms, opposition to vaccines has hardened from skepticism and wariness into something approaching an article of faith for the approximately 39 million American adults who have yet to get a single dose. Now health experts say the roughly 15 per cent of the adult population that remains stubbornly unvaccinated is at the greatest risk of severe illness and death from the Omicron variant and could overwhelm hospitals that are already brimming with Covid patients. Compounding the problem, the pace of first-time vaccinations appears to be plateauing this month even as Omicron takes hold, and the numbers of children getting vaccinated and eligible adults getting booster shots are lower than some health experts hoped. Around 20 per cent of children 5-11 years old have gotten a dose of vaccine. And only around 1 in 3 fully vaccinated Americans has gotten a booster. Also read: Despite Omicron threat, 58% of Indians have travel plans in next three months, states online survey So far, the threat of Omicron is doing little to change peoples minds. Nearly 90 per cent of unvaccinated adults said the variant would not spur them to get shots, according to a recent survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation. And some of the unvaccinated said that Omicrons wily ability to infect vaccinated people only reaffirmed their decision to not get the shot. Public health campaigns and employee vaccine mandates have made progress since the summer at reducing the ranks of unvaccinated fence-sitters, people without easy access to health care and those who were hesitant but persuadable. The remaining ranks of unvaccinated Americans steadfastly opposed to getting a shot tend to be younger, whiter and more Republican than those who have received the vaccine or are still considering one, surveys have shown. The number of adults vaccinated has steadily grown since six months ago, when roughly 170 million had received a first shot, compared with around 220 million Saturday, an increase driven in part by mandates. Low vaccination rates are still heavily concentrated in rural areas and the South, with Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, Arkansas and Alabama near the bottom. Those states have recorded around half of their population as fully vaccinated, well below the national rate of about 62%. The United States continues to see a stark partisan divide in vaccination rates, with more than 91% of adult Democrats receiving at least one shot, compared with about 60% of adult Republicans. Check out DH's latest videos Indian-origin philanthropist and founder of disaster relief group 'Gift Of The Givers', Dr Imtiaz Sooliman has won the prestigious South African of the Year Award run by the Daily Maverick newspaper. South Africans across the board voted for Sooliman, putting Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo in second place. Zondo heads the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, which investigates fraud and corruption in the public sector, including state organs. Sooliman, in his acceptance speech at the Al Quds Mosque in Cape Town on Friday, called on Muslims worldwide to engage in caring for all communities to change Islamophobic perceptions. Sooliman started 'Gift Of The Givers' after his religious mentor in Turkey asked him to do so in 1994. Since then, the charitable and relief organisation has undertaken relief work in more than 44 countries after natural disasters such as earthquakes as well as assisting people in war-torn countries. Besides the Middle East, Eastern Europe and many countries in Africa, 'Gift Of The Givers' teams have also assisted during natural disasters in India and Pakistan. Relying almost entirely on donations and the obligatory 'zakat' tax paid by Muslims, 'Gift Of The Givers' has provided almost 4 billion rand (USD 260 million) worth of aid to drought-stricken areas, ranging from mobile hospitals, food hampers, and digging boreholes. The doctor recalled how his religious leader in Turkey had instructed him to establish the organisation 'Waqful Waqifin', which translates to 'gift of the givers' from Arabic. My son, the Sheikh said, you will serve all people, of all religions, of all races; all colours, all cultures; all classes, of any geographical locations and of any political affiliation, but you will serve them unconditionally. You will expect nothing in return, not even a thank you," recalled Sooliman, who practises medicine. "When we go into an area to do our work, we don't look at their belief systems. Whether they are Hindu, Muslim or Christians, whatever they may be, we don't go to be judgemental about anyone," he said. "This award came by South Africans who had voted across cultures, across religions, across people who do not have any faith too, but all of them were willing to vote for me," Sooliman said this symbolised that people in their souls, support goodness. Sooliman is recognised internationally for his works, winning scores of awards and accolades over the decades, lauded by South African and foreign heads of state for his organisation's assistance during times of crises. Sooliman has also received National Orders, South Africas highest civilian honour, and earlier this year was named Social Justice Champion by the University of Stellenbosch in Western Cape province. Sooliman said if all Muslims believed in these principles of caring for their fellow citizens, it would go a long way towards eradicating the scourge of Islamophobia and perceptions that Islam supports terrorisms. Sooliman denounced organisations which tend to support relief efforts only in Muslim countries. "We mustn't say Palestinians only; Syrians only; Iraq only; Afghanistan only; like other cultures don't exist. We go to every area to see the same pain, hardship and anxiety that we have. When you bring ease to that, they will never forget you and that Muslims brought goodness," he said. Sooliman used the example of a mosque in Cape Town using its facilities to hand out Christmas parcels to the needy on behalf of the Gift of the Givers. "There couldn't be a better example of building relations," he said in conclusion. Watch the latest DH videos: British police said on Saturday a 19-year-old man had been arrested after a security breach within the grounds of Windsor Castle, where Queen Elizabeth is spending Christmas. "The man has been arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody at this time," Thames Valley Police Superintendent Rebecca Mears said. The man did not enter any buildings, she said. Check out DH's latest videos With the help of volunteers from around the country, families in western Kentucky will be able to celebrate Christmas on Saturday, two weeks after a string of tornadoes wrought a path of deadly destruction. "We're just trying to provide Christmas," said Jimmy Finch, a volunteer from the neighbouring US state of Tennessee who came to Mayfield the day after the twisters hit. "I haven't kept a total tally of how many people we have fed," Finch said. "We just encourage everybody to keep coming back." Under a big yellow tent set up in a parking lot, the Scientology Volunteer Minister group also serves hot food and drink on a cold, windy Christmas Eve. "It's a very difficult time for everybody," said Chad Adams, a member of the organisation. "We're trying to make sure everybody eats." He estimates that they have served over 30,000 meals since the disaster struck, and invites everyone around to keep coming back to have food and hot chocolate. At other sites, organisations distributed toys to families who have lost everything, hoping to provide some joy amidst the tragedy. In the nearby town of Benton, Shane Cornwell dressed up as Santa for his volunteer shift at a donation site, where boxes of toys and food lined the walls of the local Elk Lodge. Outside, volunteers painted Christmas tree ornaments, while local families impacted by the storm collected toys from bins separated by age range. At least 79 people lost their lives in the tornados, which passed over several states from the night of December 10 to the early morning of December 11. "The scope and scale of this destruction is almost beyond belief," said US President Joe Biden after touring the damage in Mayfield. Watch latest videos by DH here: Ethiopia's government said on Friday that its troops would not advance further into the war-torn region of Tigray but warned that the decision could be overturned if "territorial sovereignty" was threatened. The announcement comes days after the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) rebel group declared a retreat to their Tigray stronghold, and signals a pause in fighting following a series of battlefield victories claimed by the government. Although unconfirmed, the TPLF pullout from the Amhara and Afar regions had raised hopes there would be talks to end a 13-month conflict that has killed thousands and left parts of the country on the brink of famine. On Friday, the government communication service released a statement saying federal forces had secured eastern Amhara and Afar and been ordered to "vigilantly remain in areas under our control". "The Ethiopian government has decided not to command its forces to further advance into the Tigray region," it said in the statement shared on Twitter. UN chief Antonio Guterres welcomed the Ethiopian government's announcement and the message from the Tigrayan forces, his deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said. "The secretary-general urges the parties to grasp this opportunity, cease hostilities in the year-long conflict, take all steps to ensure the provision of much-needed humanitarian assistance, the withdrawal of foreign fighters, and address political differences through a credible and inclusive national dialogue," Haq said in a statement. The temporary halt to fighting may help lower the temperature after months of battles that have seen both sides claim major territorial gains. At one point, the rebels claimed to be only 200 kilometres (125 miles) by road from the capital Addis Ababa, sparking alarm among foreign governments who urged their citizens to leave the country as soon as possible. But since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed -- the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner -- headed to the front last month, according to state media, the government has claimed to have retaken a string of key towns. The government has dismissed Monday's withdrawal announcement by the TPLF as a cover-up for military setbacks. Communications have been cut in the conflict zone and access for journalists is restricted, making it difficult to verify battlefield claims. The fighting in Africa's second most populous nation has displaced more than two million people and more than nine million are in need of food aid, according to UN estimates. There have been reports of massacres, mass rapes and other atrocities by all sides, and the UN Human Rights Council last week ordered a probe into a wide range of alleged abuses, a move condemned by Addis Ababa. The war broke out in November last year when Abiy sent troops into Tigray to topple the TPLF, accusing its fighters of attacking army camps. He vowed a swift victory, but the TPLF mounted a shock comeback, recapturing most of Tigray by June and then advancing into Afar and Amhara. Watch latest videos by DH here: At least 13 people died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 27 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favour a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greece's heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the country's migration crisis. The coast guard said 62 people were rescued after a sailboat capsized late Friday some 8 kilometres (5 miles) off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. Survivors told the coast guard that about 80 people had been on the vessel. Five coast guard patrol boats, nine private vessels, a helicopter and a military transport plane continued the night-time search for more survivors, authorities said, while coast guard divers also participated. Smugglers based in Turkey increasingly have packed yachts with migrants and refugees and sent them toward Italy. Earlier, 11 people were confirmed dead after a sailboat Thursday struck a rocky islet some 235 kilometres (145 miles) south of Athens, near the island of Antikythera. The coast guard said Friday that 90 survivors -- 52 men, 11 women and 27 children -- were rescued after spending hours on the islet. "People need safe alternatives to these perilous crossings," the Greek office of the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, said in a tweet. In a separate incident Friday, Greek police arrested three people on smuggling charges and detained 92 migrants after a yacht ran aground in the southern Peloponnese region. And a search operation also continued for a third day in the central Aegean, where a boat carrying migrants sank near the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen others were rescued, and the survivors reported that at least 17 people were missing. Authorities said the passengers originally were from Iraq. Greece is a popular entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But arrivals dropped sharply in the last two years after Greece extended a wall at the Turkish border and began intercepting inbound boats carrying migrants and refugees, a tactic criticised by human rights groups. More than 116,000 asylum-seekers crossed the Mediterranean to reach EU countries this year as of December 19, according to UNHCR. The agency said 55 per cent travelled illegally to Italy, 35 per cent to Spain, and 7 per cent to Greece, with the remainder heading to Malta and Cyprus. Watch latest videos by DH here: More than 30 people, including women and children, were killed and their bodies burnt in Myanmar's conflict-torn Kayah state on Friday, according to a local resident, media reports and a local human rights group. Karenni Human Rights Group said they found the burnt bodies of internally displaced people, including elders, women and children killed by the military that rules Myanmar, near Mo So village of Hpruso town on Saturday. "We strongly denounce the inhumane and brutal killing which violates human rights," the group said in a Facebook post. The Myanmar military said it had shot and killed an unspecified number of "terrorists with weapons" from the opposition armed forces in the village, state media said. The people were in seven vehicles and did not stop for the military, it said. The Myanmar military could not immediately be reached for comment. Photos shared by the human rights group and local media showed the charred remains of bodies on burnt-out truckbeds. The Karenni National Defence Force, one of the largest of several civilian militias opposing the junta that led a Feb. 1 coup, said the dead were not their members but civilians seeking refuge from the conflict. "We were so shocked at seeing that all the dead bodies were different sizes, including children, women and old people," a commander from group told Reuters, asking not to be named. A villager who asked not to be named for security reasons said he was aware of the fire on Friday night but could not go to the scene as there was shooting. "I went to see this morning. I saw dead bodies that had been burnt, and also the clothes of children and women spread around," he told Reuters by phone. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military overthrew the elected government of Nobel Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi almost 11 months ago, claiming fraud in a November election that her party had won. International observers have said the ballot was fair. Civilians enraged by the coup and subsequent crackdown on protesters have been taking up arms. Many local resistance forces have sprung up across the country. The military has outlawed many opponents, labelling them traitors or terrorists, including a self-proclaimed National Unity Government that seeks to lobby the international community and prevent the junta from consolidating power. Check out DH's latest videos: The UN Security Council announced that it has extended the exemption of the travel ban on senior members of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, including First Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, for a period of 90 days. In its announcement on Friday, the UNSC said that the ban, which came into force on Wednesday, will last until March 21, 2022, TOLO News reported. Besides Baradar, there are 14 other Taliban members on the ban list, including Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. Also Read | 40% of Afghan media outlets shut since Taliban takeover "The travel ban exemption is solely for travels required for participation in peace and stability discussions in a range of countries," TOLO News quoted the UNSC as saying in its announcement. "Individual itineraries will depend on the location of peace discussions. The Committee has also decided to grant a limited asset freeze exemption only for financing exempted travels." The Taliban-led government welcomed the UNSC's decision, while calling for the removal of its leaders' names from the UN and US blacklists. "It is necessary to remove the names of the officials of the Islamic Emirate from the US and UN blacklists based on the Doha Agreement," said Inamullah Samangani, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate. Check out DH's latest videos: The rise of the Omicron variant heralded on Friday another pandemic-tinged Christmas for billions, with Santa's arrival and longed-for family reunions overshadowed by the prospect of yet more Covid restrictions. Festive jokes about reindeer having "herd immunity" and millions isolating "Home Alone" may be wearing thin, but the emergence of the ultra-infectious Omicron variant means the pandemic is not going away anytime soon. For the second year, surging infections have complicated yuletide plans from Sydney to Seville. In Bethlehem -- the Palestinian town in the Israeli-occupied West Bank that Christians believe was Jesus' birthplace -- hoteliers have been disappointed. After a near-total lockdown last year, Israel has again closed its borders. Read | 'Booster protection fades in 10 weeks against Omicron' Just several hundred huddled under a grey sky in the city's Manger Square to watch the Palestinian scouts and bagpipers parade past. But this year, like last, midnight mass on Christmas Eve will be reserved for just a small circle of people by invitation only and celebrations on Friday were subdued. "It is a bit surreal," American student Hudson Harder told AFP. "There is a selfish part where it's like 'Oh I get to see this place so empty' but on the other hand you feel for the shops, all the money they are losing, it's really quite tragic." In Europe, governments are reimposing misery-inducing safety measures that are draining the fun from Christmas for many. The Netherlands is back in lockdown while Spain and Italy have made wearing masks compulsory outdoors. And with Britain hitting a record high number of Covid-19 infections again on Friday for a third day in a row, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suggested getting a vaccine booster shot as a Christmas gift for relatives. In France, the government urged people to get booster shots just three months after initial jabs, down from the current suggestion of five months as it sought to fight off the fast-spreading Omicron. Read | Europe, China clamp down in face of surging Covid infections Still, Christmas gatherings will be easier than a year ago in many other places around the world. Most Australians are allowed to travel interstate over the festive break for the first time in two years, with Sydney's Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher saying that Christmas was "a ray of light" in dark times. Pope Francis is still scheduled to deliver the traditional Christmas Eve midnight mass from St Peter's Basilica. Across the Atlantic, US First Lady Jill Biden took an unexpected guest to a children's hospital in Washington: her husband Joe, who is the first sitting president to accompany their spouse for the traditional Christmas book-reading. The couple chatted with patients and doctors, showing one boy a photo of "Commander" -- their new puppy -- before settling into chairs beside a Christmas tree and reading a book inspired by the Disney movie "Frozen". Biden and his wife plan to stay at the White House for Christmas -- an uncommon practice for recent American presidents. The family normally rings in the New Year in the sunny US Virgin Islands but will instead go to their home in chilly Delaware, a few hours northeast of Washington. Millions of Americans were on the move to see loved ones for Christmas, even as Covid infections surpass the peak of the previous wave and hospitals run out of beds. Thousands could face a grim holiday weekend, with major carrier United cancelling 120 flights because infection numbers had affected flight crews and other operations. But angst born from a seemingly interminable crisis, long testing queues, cancelled flights and close contact notifications was not going to prevent Santa from doing his rounds. The hirsute spreader of holiday cheer had reportedly been cleared for travel in Canada's airspace after showing proof of vaccination and a pre-flight negative Covid test, Ottawa's transport minister said. Santa's flight crew -- including reindeer Rudolph, whose "nose shone red and bright (but) made sure he had no Covid-19 symptoms before taking off" -- had also been given the all clear. And Australian authorities said they were working round the clock to ensure "Operation Present Drop" goes smoothly. "Our air traffic controllers will be guiding Santa safely through Australian airspace," said aviation safety authority Airservices. "He's cleared to fly at 500 feet so he can skim the rooftops and deliver his presents quickly and quietly -- after all, his magical sleigh isn't your average aircraft." Watch latest videos by DH here: A Yemeni rebel attack on Saudi Arabia's southern border town of Jizan killed two people and wounded seven more late Friday, Saudi state-run media reported. Yemen's Houthi rebels launched a projectile that killed a Saudi citizen and Yemeni resident in the southwestern Saudi province of Jizan, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. Six of the wounded were Saudis and one was a Bangladeshi national, Saudi media said. Shrapnel also smashed into nearby cars and shops. The cross-border attack is just the latest in Yemen's long-running civil war by the Shiite Houthi rebels following an escalation of Saudi-led military coalition airstrikes on the rebel-held capital of Sanaa. Saudi airstrikes rocked Sanaa earlier Friday, hitting a military camp near the city center, Houthi and Saudi media reported. Yemen's war erupted in 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthis seized Sanaa and much of the country's north. Months later, the US-backed Saudi-led coalition intervened to oust the Houthis and restore the internationally recognised government. The war has settled into a bloody stalemate and spawned the world's worst humanitarian disaster. Intermittently throughout the conflict, Iran-backed Houthis have staged drone attacks and fired missiles across the border at airports, oil facilities and military installations within Saudi Arabia. Those assaults have rarely caused substantial damage, but over the years have wounded dozens and rattled global oil markets. Within Yemen, the Saudi-led bombing campaign has drawn international criticism for hitting non-military targets like hospitals and wedding parties and devastating infrastructure in the Arab world's most impoverished nation. Yemen's civil war has killed some 130,000 people, including thousands of civilians. Earlier this week the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank, reported that attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia have more than doubled this year from last year. Based on an analysis of thousands of Houthi attacks between 2016 and 2021, it said Houthi attacks on the kingdom averaged 78 a month this year, compared to 38 a month last year. The cross-border assaults provide a broader view of the regional proxy war between Tehran and Riyadh. Although the regional powerhouses recently have engaged in Bagdad-brokered talks to cool down tensions, peace in Yemen remains elusive as diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting intensify. Check out DH's latest videos: More than 7 lakh hospital beds and enhanced daily medical oxygen capacity 80% more than the peak demand during the second Covid-19 wave were readied to tackle any new Covid-19 wave, a top health official said here on Friday with experts anticipating a new surge driven by the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2. The world is witnessing the fourth surge with 9.64 lakh cases being reported on Dec 23. We cant afford to lose our guard. We have to be fully cautious and vigilant, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said at a press conference. Though the Covid-19 epidemic is shrinking in India, the number of infections caused by Omicron is on a slow rise with the Union Health Ministry confirming 358 such cases till early morning Friday. Maharashtra, Delhi, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka account for nearly 250 of these cases. Read | Of 183 Omicron cases, 87 were fully vaccinated: Centre Worryingly, there seems to be a rise in new Covid-19 cases in Mumbai and Delhi with the former reporting over 1000 fresh Covid-19 cases for three consecutive days after two months and the national capital reporting 180 fresh cases in the last 24 hours a six months high. An analysis of 183 Omicron cases show 87 fully vaccinated persons were infected by the new variant of concerns whereas 70% were asymptomatic. Out of 183, there are 18 persons who were neither foreign travelers nor local contacts, indicating the possibility of local transmission. Earlier this week, the ministry alerted the states on Omicrons three times more ability to spread than the Delta variant that drove the second wave. The early evidence from South Africa and UK, however, point out a milder disease with no signs of the hospitals getting overwhelmed yet. Bhushan said 4.94 lakh oxygen supported beds and 1.39 lakh ICU beds were available and another 1.2 lakh such beds were sanctioned under a government funded programme. Also the medical oxygen capacity has been raised to more than 18,000 tons per day, which is 80% more than the peak demand of around 10,000 tons seen during the ferocious second wave. In addition there are 65,000 paediatric beds and 24,000 paediatric ICU beds. Read | Pressure mounts on India to begin boosters as Omicron spreads "There is a huge scale up in oxygen availability. I also request the private healthcare sector to be ready with proper training and deployment plans for their manpower, said NITI Ayog member VK Paul, the governments principal advisor on Covid-19. Poor vaccination coverage in some of the biggest states, however, remains a cause of worry. As against the national average of 61% of adults getting two doses of Covid-19 shot, the corresponding figures in poll bound Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Manipur are 46%, 40% and 42% respectively. Other big states with low full vaccination coverage are Maharashtra (56%), Tamil Nadu (55%), Bihar (52%) and Jharkhand (42%). Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana have imposed night curfews to stop New Year celebrations. The states took the decision after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the Omicron situation and asked everyone to be Satark (vigilant) and Saavdhan (careful) as the fight against the pandemic was not over. Watch latest videos by DH here: Gujarat has topped the composite ranking in the Good Governance Index (GGI), followed by Maharashtra and Goa while Uttar Pradesh showed an incremental growth of 8.9 per cent in the indicators launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the occasion of the Good Governance Day on Saturday. As many as 20 states have improved their composite GGI scores in 2021, according to the index. Gujarat topped the composite ranking in the 58 indicator index followed by Maharashtra and Goa. Uttar Pradesh has registered an 8.9 per cent improvement in the GGI indicators in the period 2019 to 2021 which Jammu and Kashmir registered an improvement of 3.7 per cent in the same period, it said. Delhi has topped the union territories category composite ranking. Shah released the GGI 2021 prepared by the Department of Administration Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) on Good Governance Day at Vigyan Bhawan here. Also read: Modi has brought back people's faith in democracy, says Amit Shah On this occasion, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said that the GGI would help assess the status of governance in states and union territories. The objectives of GGI are to provide quantifiable data to compare the state of governance in all states and union territories, enable them to formulate and implement suitable strategies for improving governance and shift to result oriented approaches and administration. December 25 is observed as the good governance day to commemorate the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The GGI-2021 said that Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa topped the composite rank score covering 10 sectors. While Gujarat registered a 12.3 per cent increase, Goa registered a 24.7 per cent increase over GGI 2019 indicators. Gujarat has performed strongly in economic governance, human resource development, public infrastructure and utilities, social welfare and development, judiciary and public safety while Maharashtra scored in agriculture and allied sector, human resource development, public infrastructure and utilities, social welfare and development. Goa's showed good performance was in agriculture and allied sector, commerce and industry, public infrastructure and utilities, economic governance, social welfare and development and environment. Among the sectors, Uttar Pradesh secured top position in commerce and industry sector and has also shown an increase in social welfare and development and judiciary and public safety. It also performed in citizen centric governance including public grievance redressal. The GGI 2021 framework covered 10 sectors and 58 indicators. The sectors are agriculture and allied sectors, commerce and industries, human resource development, public health, public infrastructure and utilities, economic governance, social welfare and development, judicial and public security, environment and citizen-centric governance. The GGI 2020-21 categorises states and union territories into four categories, -- other states - Group A; other states - group B; North-East and hill states and union territories. The GGI 2021 said that Jharkhand showed incremental growth of 12.6 per cent over GGI 2019 performance. It has performed strongly in seven of the 10 sectors. Rajasthan's incremental growth of 1.7 per cent was over the GGI 2019 performance. It has topped the other states (Group B) category in judiciary and public safety, environment and citizen centric governance. In the Northeast and Hill States category, Mizoram, and Jammu and Kashmir have registered an overall increase of 10.4 per cent and 3.7 per cent respectively over GGI 2019. Mizoram has performed strongly in commerce and industry, human resource development, public health and economic governance. Jammu and Kashmir has performed strongly in commerce and industry sector and has improved its scores in agriculture and allied sector, public infrastructure and utilities and judiciary and public safety sectors. The GGI 2021 said that in the union territories category, Delhi tops the composite rank registering a 14 per cent increase over the GGI 2019 indicators. Delhi has performed strongly in agriculture and allied sectors, commerce and industry, public infrastructure and utilities and social welfare and development. The GGI 2021 said that 20 states have improved their composite GGI scores over the GGI 2019 index scores. The sector-wise scores attained by the states and union territories indicates that strong performance in one or the other sector. Analysis of scoring also suggests that there is a very marginal difference among the states in their composite governance scores. This indicates that overall governance in the states of India is moving in the positive direction Check out DH's latest videos Hundreds of right-wing Hindu activists and monks rose in unison at a conference this week to take an oath: They would turn India, constitutionally a secular republic, into a Hindu nation, even if doing so required dying and killing. If 100 of us are ready to kill 2 million of them, then we will win and make India a Hindu nation, said Pooja Shakun Pandey, a leader of Hindu Mahasabha, a group that espouses militant Hindu nationalism, referring to the countrys Muslims. Be ready to kill and go to jail. Even by the standards of the rising anti-Muslim fury in India, the three-day conference in the city of Haridwar produced the most blatant and alarming call for violence in recent years. The crowded auditorium, where right-wing Hindu monks called for other Hindus to arm themselves and kill Muslims, included influential religious leaders with close ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modis governing party, and even some members of the party. Read | Opposition demands strict action against Haridawar 'hate speeches' Videos of the event have spread widely on social media in India this week. Yet Modi has maintained a characteristic silence that analysts say can be interpreted by his most extreme supporters as a tacit signal of protection. Police have been slow to take action. Even opposition political groups have been restrained in their response, an indication of the degree to which right-wing Hindu nationalism has gripped the country since Modi came to office in 2014. The inflammatory remarks come as some states governed by Modis Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, are holding elections, including in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, where the conference was held. Modi was busy campaigning this week in Uttar Pradesh for Yogi Adityanath, his hard-line protege and the states chief minister, who has frequently fanned anti-Muslim hatred. On Friday, four days after the conference ended, police in Uttarakhand announced that they had opened an investigation but that no arrests had been made. Officials said they have registered a case against organisers of the conference for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, which can mean a jail term of five years. We will do the investigation as per law, and such types of incidents will not be tolerated, said Ashok Kumar, a top police officer in the state of Uttarakhand. Watch latest videos by DH here: Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said citizen-centric administration is at the heart of the Narendra Modi government's governance model and it has brought a paradigm shift with the 'minimum government-maximum governance' approach. Citizen participation in administration is being done through crowd-sourcing of ideas through hackathons and ideas boxes, said Singh, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Delivering an address on the occasion of the Good Governance Day at Vigyan Bhawan here, he said, "A lot of information is being shared with citizens through the MyGov.in portal where data sets are updated regularly and the government has been receptive to the feedback that it received from its citizens." December 25 is observed as the good governance day to commemorate the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Singh said citizen-centric administration is at the heart of the Modi government's. The Modi government has brought a paradigm shift with the 'minimum government-maximum governance' approach in which citizens' interaction with functionaries of the government was sought to be reduced through digitalisation and consolidation of ministries, he said. Policy-making functions have been separated from execution, coordinated implementation is being monitored at the highest levels with well-defined accountability and a proper delegation being ensured, the minister said. "It has been the endeavour of the Modi government over the past seven years to establish that governance can be transformed through digital initiatives, enabling infrastructure and responsive institutions," he said. Singh said that as a democracy and a digital leader, India is ready to work with partners for shared prosperity and security. The country is turning the challenges of the past into an opportunity to leap into the future, he said, highlighting the five important transitions taking place in India. "We are building the world's most extensive public information infrastructure. Over 1.3 billion Indians have a unique digital identity. We are on our way to connecting 6,00,000 with broadband. "We have built the worlds most efficient payment infrastructure, the UPI. Over 800 million Indians use the Internet and 750 million are on smartphones. We are one of the largest consumers of data per capita and have one of the cheapest data in the world," Singh said. Second, the government is transforming the lives of the people by using digital technology for governance, inclusion, empowerment, connectivity, delivery of benefits and welfare, he said. "Recently, we have used technology to deliver over 1.1 billion doses of vaccines, across Indias vast geography using ArogyaSetu and Cowin platforms. We are also building a National Digital Health Mission for affordable and universal healthcare for our billion-plus people. One nation, one card will deliver benefits to the hundreds of millions of workers anywhere in the country." Thirdly, India has the world's third-largest and fastest-growing startup ecosystem. New unicorns are coming up every few weeks. They are providing solutions to everything from health and education to national security, the minister said. "We are also using digital technology for clean energy transition, conversion of resources and protection of biodiversity," Singh said. Fifth, there is a massive effort to prepare India for the future, he said, adding "We are investing in developing indigenous capabilities in telecom technology such as 5G." Singh said the government has taken the bold and visionary initiative of 'Mission Karmyogi' which will go a long way in creating civil servants and public administrators. "As we celebrate 'Azaadi ka Amrit Mahotsav', we must work together to make our youth future-ready who will lead India towards the goal of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat," he added. Watch the latest DH videos: In an abrupt move, the Congress on Saturday appointed Rajesh Lilothia as the new Chairman of AICC Scheduled Caste (SC) Department. He replaces Maharashtra Energy Minister and senior party leader Nitin Raut, according to a statement issued by AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal. The Congress also appointed K Raju as the Coordinator to oversee the activities of AICC SC/OBC/Minority departments and All India Adivasi Congress with immediate effect. The AICC has not specified any reason behind the removal of Raut from the powerful post. However, Raut sought to allay speculation over the reshuffle and claimed that the decision was expected six months ago. "The party president has taken this (decision) today," Raut said in a statement here. "I was unable to travel across the country and give justice to the post as I'm a minister in Maharashtra. That's why I requested the party president to free me from the post of president, SC department of AICC," Raut added. Besides, the minister pointed out that the party has a policy of 'one person one post'. Watch the latest DH videos: Anti-Christian vigilantes are sweeping through villages, storming churches, burning Christian literature, attacking schools and assaulting worshippers. In many cases, the police and members of Indias governing party are helping them, government documents and dozens of interviews revealed. Read more West Bengal Assembly Speaker Biman Bandyopadhyay, who has had several run-ins with Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in the recent past, on Saturday said he has written to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apprise them of Dhankhar's "interference" in legislative matters. The speaker had earlier expressed anguish over Dhankhar's insistence to administer the oath to TMC MLAs, including CM Mamata Banerjee, after the September 30 elections. He had engaged in a war of words with the governor over the appointment of Mukul Roy as Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman. The two have also sparred over a bill seeking separation of Bally Municipality from Howrah Municipal Corporation. The bill has been passed by the Assembly and is waiting for the governor's assent. Also Read Bengal governor accuses TMC government of not providing information sought on Bill "I have written to the PM and the President to complain against his (governor's) tendency to violate constitutional conventions and interfere in legislative matters. His conduct does not befit the constitutional head of a state," the speaker told PTI. Bandopadhyay recently alleged that polls to Howrah Municipal Corporation were getting delayed with the governor taking time to give his assent to the bill. Dhankhar, on his part, said he was yet to get the documents that he had sought pertaining to the bill. Check out the latest DH videos here: South Africa and India ramped up their political and trade ties in 2021 and the coronavirus crisis presented an opportunity to the two countries to extend cooperation in fighting the deadly pandemic. South Africa, like most of the rest of the world, started and ended 2021 with serious Covid-19 issues, with the pandemic looking set to dominate for a third year in a row in 2022. In January, South Africa was in the midst of its second wave and as the year was drawing to a close, a fourth wave hit the country following the discovery of the new and highly transmissible Omicron variant in November. In February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and they discussed the continuing challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The two leaders also discussed possibilities of collaboration between India and South Africa in various international platforms, to facilitate access and affordability of vaccines and medicines. Also read: India reaches out to South Africa amid unrest Prime Minister Modi reiterated to the South African President that India's considerable productive capacity for pharmaceuticals and vaccines would continue to serve the needs of all countries, including those in Africa. A week before the two leaders conversation, made-in-India vaccines had reached South Africa in an aircraft with President Ramaphosa receiving the consignment of doses. The current wave of the pandemic did not spare President Ramaphosa, who had to isolate himself after getting infected, forcing him to hand over his duties to Deputy President David Mabuza. Just days before he felt ill, Ramaphosa asked the scientists of the BRICS countries to work together in developing solutions for the pandemic. "The collaboration among BRICS countries is intended to broaden our knowledge of the Covid-19 virus not only for the benefit of member countries but for the global community more broadly, Ramaphosa said. Amid rapidly changing travel bans, Ramaphosa said during his State of the Nation address in February that India was one of the countries that South Africa was looking to as it sought to import skills and boost tourism in the wake of the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The economic slump caused by Covid-19 failed to deter Indian businesses from scaling up their production and expanding commercial footprint in South Africa. India was the top country of origin for vehicle imports into South Africa despite the lengthy Covid-19 lockdowns and overall declines in vehicle sales in 2020, according to the 2021 Automotive Export Manual report released by the Automotive Industry Export Council. ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA), a subsidiary of London-based Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittals Global steel giant ArcelorMittal, bounced back from a loss of 632 million rands (USD 39.6 million) in 2019 into a profit of 37 million rands ($2.3 million) for the previous fiscal year. Mahindra further entrenched its position in the South African market with a massive investment in skills training in southern Africa by opening a bigger training centre, effectively doubling its capacity. The company also opened a new national parts warehouse larger than its old facility. "South Africa is the regional hub for Mahindra and the brands second home outside of India. We will continue to support all levels of skill development to support the growing demand for Mahindra vehicles and the planned expansion on the continent, said Rajesh Gupta, CEO of Mahindra South Africa. Vedanta Zinc International started a new iron ore product line by ramping up iron ore production at its Black Mountain Mine (BMM) operations in Aggeneys in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. On the domestic front, South Africa saw arson attacks in mid-July following the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma. Protests erupted in parts of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Zumas home province, after the ex-leader handed himself over to police to serve a 15-month jail term for contempt of court. A number of Hindu organisations across the African continent rallied to the call from India for assistance during its oxygen concentrator crisis. "This unparalleled crisis has brought us all together to collaborate in order to help our fellow Indians back home. Its a very small gesture from us but would hopefully help in saving lives," said John Francis, Event Director of India Club, who oversaw the entire operation. The Indian missions across South Africa launched scaled-down celebrations of Indias 75th anniversary of independence this year, with lockdown restrictions reducing numbers. A major event was a project called On the Gandhian Trail, which took two busloads of people across seven towns where there are commemorative museums and busts marking Mahatma Gandhis two-decade fight against discrimination during his South African stay. Among the places visited was the Phoenix Settlement started by Gandhi, where his granddaughter Ela Gandhi heads up a developmental centre. The Settlement, surrounded by three largely Black townships, remained unaffected by the rampant violence and looting in the townships surrounding it in July. Tensions between the local Black and Indian communities resulted in Ela Gandhi calling for India to help South Africa in its efforts to rebuild the country during an online seminar organised by the Indian missions in South Africa to mark Independence Day. In the wake of the local government elections in South Africa, the Indian missions in Pretoria and Johannesburg organised a seminar titled Story of Worlds Largest Democracys Elections. Glen Mashinini, the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa, lauded the work of the Election Commission of India (ECI) as an example for the entire world. "The ECI provides the fountain of knowledge, understanding, and experience for all of us as electoral management bodies that are serving throughout the world, Mashinini said. Check out latest videos from DH: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid tributes to former prime minister and BJP stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birth anniversary. Born in Gwalior in 1924, Vajpayee was the face of the BJP for decades and was the first non-Congress prime minister to have served a full term in office. Modi tweeted, "Remembering Atal Ji on his Jayanti. We are inspired by his rich service to the nation. He devoted his life towards making India strong and developed. His development initiatives positively impacted millions of Indians." - Remembering Atal Ji on his Jayanti. We are inspired by his rich service to the nation. He devoted his life towards making India strong and developed. His development initiatives positively impacted millions of Indians. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 25, 2021 The prime minister also visited Vajpayee's memorial "Sadaiv Atal" along with other senior BJP leaders, including Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah besides party president J P Nadda, to pay tributes to him. The BJP on Saturday invoked the moderate persona of former prime minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee, reaching out to segments beyond the ambit of hardline Hindutva appeal to counter the soft Hindutva politics of Congress in UP. On Vajpayees 97th birth anniversary, the party lined up a series of events in poll-bound UP and other states besides Delhi, where it launched a special micro-donation campaign to raise funds through contributions as low as Rs 5 with BJP chief J P Nadda announcing that party workers will connect with millions of people through this campaign. I have donated Rs 1,000 towards the BJP party fund. Our ideal of always putting the nation first and the culture of lifelong selfless service by our cadre will be further strengthened by your micro-donation. Help make BJP strong. Help make India strong, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on the launch of the programme, which will continue till February 11, the death anniversary of the partys ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay. Nadda flagged how the party was fulfilling the vision of Upadhyay and Vajpayee under Modis leadership. In UP, where the party is battling an anti-incumbency post Covid-19, BJP planned motorcycle rallies in all 403 Assembly segments where it will hold Atal Yuva Sankalp Divas to reach out to youths at a time both Akhilesh Yadav of Samajwadi Party and Priyanka Gandhi of Congress are banking on young voters. During the Yatra, which will cross nearly 2,000 organisation circles of the party, BJP workers have been asked to apprise voters of the work done by the Modi government in the last seven years as the party plans to push its good governance plank. Also read: BJP's 2022 challenges: Saving Gujarat and reclaiming UP The focus on Vajpayee also comes amid a perception of disenchantment among a section of Brahmins against the BJP. Vajpayee, BJPs tallest leader in recent decades, a Brahmin, had a personality acceptable across cross sections. He had won the Lucknow Parliamentary seat for five consecutive terms from 1991 to 2004. Paying floral tributes in Lucknow, UP CM Yogi Adityanath recalled Vajpayee as a leader who rose above party lines and one who was respected by people from the ruling party and the Opposition. He also insisted that the traditions of Vajpayee have been emulated by Modi. Addressing an event in New Delhi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar talked about Vajpayees contributions to economic modernisation and national security while Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recalled his endearing personality and persuasive ways. Leaders from ally-turned-Opposition party Shiv Sena took a veiled dig saying Vajpayee was the only leader after Jawaharlal Nehru who was appreciated by people across the country, and that the sabka saath, sabka vikas slogan truly suits him. Sanjay Rauts comments were seen as a snub to PM Modi, whose pet slogan is this. Check out DH's latest videos The year 2022 is going to be a year of hopes and challenges for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which claims to be the world's largest party in terms of membership. In the new year, on the one hand, the party will have to work hard to save its stronghold Gujarat, while on the other, it hopes to win the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections again. The results of the Assembly elections to be held in seven states early next year, including Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh -- that sends maximum MPs to the Lok Sabha -- will indicate whose government will come to power at the Centre in 2024. While elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa are likely to be held in the early months of 2022, voting in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh is likely towards the end of the year. In 2022, the BJP will also be attempting to achieve its goal of an all-India expansion, which the party has been striving for since 1980. The BJP will continue to make efforts to strengthen its organisation in the southern states of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu. Also Read | UP parties race past people's issues for 2022 polls Saving its stronghold Gujarat the biggest challenge for BJP in 2022 The Legislative Assembly elections in Gujarat, the state which has remained a stronghold of the BJP for decades, will be held in the last months of 2022. Being the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, the election results are directly associated with the prestige of both. The term challenge is being used as the BJP could barely save its government in the state in the 2017 Assembly elections. The BJP has been in power in Gujarat since 1995. After Modi became the Chief Minister n 2001, the saffron party became invincible in the state. But after Modi became PM in 2014, the BJP has not been able to manage Gujarat so well. In the five consecutive Assembly elections of 1995, 1998, 2002, 2007 and 2012, the BJP has been forming the government by winning between 115 and 127 seats out of the total 182 seats in the state. But in 2017, the tally fell below 100 as it won only 99 seats. Congress won 77 seats in that election. Talking about the voting percentage, the BJP got the support of 49 per cent voters, while Congress secured 41.5 per cent of the ballots. After the setback in its stronghold, the BJP changed the entire cabinet along with the Chief Minister. Now the biggest challenge before the BJP is to again win over 115 seats in the upcoming polls. Victory will ensure a seventh consecutive term for the saffron party-led government in the state. Also Read | Arrests, beatings and secret prayers: Inside the persecution of Indias Christians Winning Uttar Pradesh again Uttar Pradesh, the country's largest state in terms of Lok Sabha seats, remains crucial for the BJP and especially for the Modi-Shah duo. In 2013, when it was decided that the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi would be the BJP's prime ministerial candidate in the 2014 general elections, he managed to place his most trusted ally, Shah, as the national general secretary in the team of the then party national president Rajnath Singh. Shah was also given charge of Uttar Pradesh. Later Modi opted Varanasi as his constituency to contest the Lok Sabha elections, this itself signified the importance of Uttar Pradesh for the BJP and the duo. The state has a total of 403 seats in the Legislative Assembly and in the 2017 election results, the BJP along with its allies won 325 seats. The BJP alone won 312 seats with a vote share of around 40 per cent, while its ally Apna Dal (S) won nine and Om Prakash Rajbhar's SBSP garnered four. In 2017, Samajwadi Party (SP) had won 47 seats with 21.82 per cent votes and Bahujan Samaj Party won 19 seats with 22.23 per cent votes. The opposition, especially SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, is trying to change the political atmosphere of the state ahead of the much-awaited polls. Rajbhar, who contested the 2017 elections with the BJP, is with the SP this time and Akhilesh is trying his best to break the caste equations of the saffron party. It is said that "the path to the throne of Delhi passes through Uttar Pradesh", and therefore the BJP does not want to lose the state, which sends the maximum 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha, so in 2022, repeating its 2017 perforfamce would be one of the biggest challenges for the BJP. Also Read | Delimitation double standards: One rule for J&K, another for South India After three Chief Ministers in five years, winning Uttrakhand again, another challenge for the BJP Since the formation of Uttarakhand, the people of the state have not given a mandate to the government of any one party for a second time in a row. Breaking this trend, forming the government consecutively for the second time is another big task for the BJP in 2022. In the 2017 Legislative Assembly elections, the BJP won 56 seats with 46.5 per cent votes while contesting on all 70 seats in the state. Intrestingly, the Congress had won just 11 seats in the assembly polls despite getting 33.5 per cent votes. Seeing the mood of the people of the state, BJP had to change its Chief Minister thrice within five years. After winning the election in 2017, it made Trivendra Singh Rawat the Chief Minister. In March 2021, he was replaced by Tirath Singh Rawat and after a few months the command of the state was handed over to Pushkar Singh Dhami. The BJP's main rival in Uttarakhand is the Congress, and by winning again, it wants to send a message that revival of the latter in 2024 is difficult. Challenge to prove popularity in the northeast by winning Manipur again To prove its popularity in the northeast, the BJP is aiming to form a government in Manipur once again. In the 2017 polls in Manipur, the BJP had won only 21 seats out of the total 60, while the Congress got 28 seats. The difference of votes between the two was less than 1 per cent. But with the help of other parties, the BJP formed the government for the first time in Manipur and ran it for five years. Now depending on the works of its government and the popularity of Prime Minister Modi, the BJP again wants to bloom in this northeastern state. Also Read | PM Modi says cows may be 'sin' for some but they are 'revered' by us Making a hat-trick in Goa, the BJP's goal In 2022, the BJP wants to do a hat-trick by forming the government for a third time in Goa. Like Manipur, the BJP had won fewer seats than Congress in the coastal state in 2017, but with the help of other parties, the saffron party formed its government. In the 2017 polls, out of the total 40 Assembly seats in the state, the maximum 17 (28.35 per cent of the votes) went to the Congress, while the BJP had secured victory over 13 seats despite getting a higher vote percentage (32.48). However showing political readiness, BJP, for the second time, formed the government in the state with the support of other parties and ran it for the five years. This time BJP wants to form the government on its own by getting a majority in the state. This small state with 40 seats is going to have an interesting political battle this time. The main contest maybe between the BJP and the Congress, but this time along with many old regional parties like Goa Forward Party and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, many other parties including TMC, Aam Aadmi Party, Shiv Sena will be contesting the polls. In this multi-cornered fight, the BJP is fully hopeful about winning Goa, but it is not less than a big challenge in itself for the BJP, which is going to contest the first election in the absence of late party veteran Manohar Parrikar in the state. Strengthening the party's support base in Punjab Among the states in which elections are going to be held in 2022, Punjab is also crucial. However, the BJP, which will fight the polls on its own for the first time after separating from the Akali Dal in Punjab, has nothing to lose and a lot to gain in the state. The BJP is going to contest the Assembly elections in Punjab along with Amarinder Singh, who was the Chief Minister in the Congress government and former Akali Dal leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa. The BJP is also well aware of the political situation in Punjab and therefore instead of making claims to form the government, the BJP leaders are seen saying that no government will be formed in the state without them. However, at the same time, the BJP is 'treating' the state as 'sensitive' because of its border with Pakistan and is promising to the people of Punjab that only the BJP government can give security to Punjab. The Punjab Legislative Assembly has a total of 117 seats. In 2017, the BJP and Akali had contested the elections together. The Akali Dal contested 94 seats and won 15 with 25.24 per cent votes. Whereas the BJP, which contested on 23 seats, won only three with 5.39 per cent votes. Congress had formed the government in the state by winning 77 seats with 38.5 per cent votes. However Amarinder Singh, who became the Chief Minister at the time, is now forming a new party and is going to contest the elections with the BJP in 2022. Goal to secure second term in Himachal Pradesh Like Uttrakhand, in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh too, since 1990, no government has got a mandate for the second time in a row. It is a big challenge for the BJP to break this trend in the state and form the government for the second time in 2022. In 2017, the BJP, which contested on a total of 68 seats in the state, won 44 with 48.79 per cent of the votes. At the same time, 21 seats came in the account of Congress with 41.68 per cent votes. The recent by-elections in the state have raised the concerns of the BJP high command and it is also fully aware of the fact that a 'lot' needs to be done to regain the mandate of the people of the state. Check out DH's latest videos Wary of possible shifting of the 'Rajbhar' (an OBC) community votes following an electoral alliance between Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP) of former saffron party ally Om Prakash Rajbhar, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath dubbed the SP leader as the disciple of the 11th-century Muslim warrior Syed Salar Masud Ghazi and said that the 'Rajbhars' would never 'support' his (Ghazi) followers. Addressing a public meeting at Baharaich, about 200 kilometres from here, Adityanath also dubbed the SP leaders as the 'supporters' of Mohammed Ali Jinnah and appealed to the 'Rajbhar' community members not to support them in the next assembly polls in the state. ''SP pays respect to those who divided the country whereas BJP always works to unite the country,'' the chief minister said. Also Read | BJP's 2022 challenges: Saving Gujarat and reclaiming UP Masud Ghazi was an 11th-century Muslim warrior and his tomb in Baharaich town was considered to be a place of pilgrimage and visited by a large number of Muslims. It is said that Maharaj Suheldev, the Rajbhar King, had fought Masud Ghazi. Adityanath also referred to the Ram Temple and said that it was not a symbol of 'communalism'. ''Ram Temple is the symbol of nationalism....it is Rashtra Temple.....talking about is not being communal as is averred by some people,'' he added. The chief minister's remarks on the Rajbhar community was apparently aimed at countering the SP-SBSP alliance in the polls. The 'Rajbhars' were in sizable numbers of over three dozen assembly seats, especially in some districts in the eastern UP region, including Varanasi, Mirzapur, Ballia, Mau, Ghazipur and others. Also Read | UP parties race past people's issues for 2022 polls SBSP president Om Prakash Rajbhar, who was a minister in the Adityanath cabinet and was sacked before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls after he turned a bitter critic of the chief minister, has been extensively campaigning in the Rajbhar dominated constituencies and seeking support for the alliance. SBSP had allied with the BJP in the 2017 assembly polls and according to the political analysts, the alliance had enabled the BJP to sweep the eastern UP region. Watch the latest DH Videos here: The AAP on Saturday slammed the BJP government in Uttarakhand over the alleged sacking of a Dalit woman cook at a school in the state and offered to give her a job in the Delhi government. Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and Social Welfare minister in Delhi government Rajendra Pal Gautam also hit out at Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on the issue, alleging that he is incompetent to render justice to the people of the state. He demanded that Dhami should apologise to the people of the state for the removal of the Dalit woman from her job. I invite her to come here. The Delhi government will give her a job as a cook, Gautam told reporters. A Dalit woman who served mid-day meal at a government secondary school in Uttarakhand's Champawat district was allegedly removed from her job recently after upper caste students refused to eat the meal cooked by her. Also read: Dalit cook sacked after upper caste students refuse to eat food prepared by her Following a row, the Uttarakhand chief minister on Friday ordered a probe into the incident and asked the authorities to take stern action against the guilty after visiting the school in Sukhidhang. Chief Minister Dhami is not competent. He cannot render justice to people. Their entire politics is to divide people on the lines of religion and caste, Gautam charged. He claimed that the Dalit woman was appointed as 'Bhojanmata' at the government school through a due process of selection but removed by chief education officer of Champawat R C Purohit because some of the upper caste students had refused to eat the food cooked by her. For this, Dhami Ji should apologise. He should have taken immediate cognisance of it and rendered justice to the victim, Gautam said. The removal of the Dalit woman from her job is an act of encouraging those who discriminate people on the lines of caste, he said. Check out DH's latest videos Farmers living close to the International Border (IB) on Saturday decided to resume cultivation beyond the border fence under the protection of the Border Security Force (BSF) in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba district. An official statement said on Saturday that the farmers of Samba district, whose agricultural fields are close to the IB, have resolved to start cultivation on fields beyond IB Fence after visiting the Suchetgarh sector where the BSF has facilitated their counterparts to resume agricultural activities on the fields across the IB fence. The district administration of Samba in collaboration with the BSF on Saturday organised a farmers' tour to Suchetgarh sector and encouraged them to take up agricultural activities beyond the fence in Samba sector as well. "During the exposure visit, the group of 100 farmers along with PRI members from Rajpura, Samba, and Ramgarh had detailed interaction with their counterparts at Suchetgarh and agriculture officers on cultivable crops and practices that can be taken up along the International Border," an official said. Deputy Commissioner (DC) Samba, Anuradha Gupta informed that on the direction of J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, district administration is encouraging Border farmers of Samba to cultivate their fields in the forward areas. An exposure visit of Samba farmers was organised to the Suchetgarh border to encourage them to follow the suit. The DC said that the district administration and BSF authorities will extend full cooperation to farmers by addressing their concerns and also support them in doing routine farming beyond the border fence. Around 500 hectares of cultivable land beyond border fencing is available for cultivation in Samba along International Border. "The district officers accompanying the farmers informed them that crops like aloe-vera, lemon grass etc can also be sown in the area along with conventional crops. "The uncultivated land across the fence can also be sown with the help of BSF and the farmers can be encouraged to take up agricultural activities," said the District Officer. Farmers said they had stopped cultivation due to the fear of Pakistan firing. Now with the government's encouragement farmers here are cultivating their land beyond the fence and we can also resume the cultivation under the security cover of the BSF. Later, the farmers also attended the retreat ceremony at Suchetgarh post. Check out DH's latest videos Four local militants affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGuH) outfits were killed in two separate gunfights with security forces in south Kashmirs Shopian and Pulwama districts on Saturday. The police said that the first encounter broke out during the wee hours of Saturday after security forces launched a cordon-and-search-operation (CASO) in Chowgam area of Shopian, 55 kms from here, following specific inputs about the presence of a militant in the area. Two Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists neutralised in the encounter that broke out between security forces and terrorists in the Chowgam area of Shopian, Inspector General Police (IGP), Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said. One terrorist was involved in grenade firing and killing of civilians. Another terrorist had joined recently. The slain militants were identified as Sajad Ahmad Check and Raja Basit Nazir, both locals. On December 8, three militants affiliated with The Resistance Front (TRF), an affiliate of the LeT were killed in a similar encounter with security forces in Shopian. Also Read | Ceasefire violations by Pakistan along J&K border declined sharply in 2021 Hours after the Shopian gunfight ended, two more militants were killed in an encounter after a joint team of J&K police, army and paramilitary forces cordoned off Hardumir village of Tral in south Kashmirs Pulwama. As the joint team of forces zeroed in on the target, the militants hiding in the village fired at them, leading to a gunfight, a police official said. In the brief shootout that followed, two militants were killed. The police identified the slain militants as Nadeem Bhat and Rasool alias Adil, who were affiliated with the AGuH, a local affiliate of Al-Qaeda. The police said that the slain militants were involved in several terror incidents and two AK rifles were recovered from them. Adil was an IED expert, police added. 165 militants have been killed in the Valley so far this year, of which 142 were locals and 23 Pakistanis. In 2020, the number of militants killed in the Valley stood at 195. According to official estimates over 200 militants were still active in the Valley. Also Read | Hizbul militant killed in Kashmirs Anantnag Militancy in Shopian on the decline: From 2015 to 2019, Shopian had emerged as a hub of new-age militancy in Kashmir as over 130 local militants were killed in the district during the period. Shopian emerged on the radar of security forces immediately after the killing of the poster boy of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen Burhan Wani in July 2016. Prior to that, a Facebook photo that marked the arrival of new-age militancy in Kashmir was taken in Turkwangam village of Shopian in July 2015. Burhan posed with 12 associates, carrying assault rifles and with faces unmasked. After the killing of Burhan, Shopian remained out of bounds for security forces due to the relentless protests for nearly seven months, with militants seen moving around freely and posting their videos as well. However, since 2020, there has been a decline in militancy in Shopian, though sporadic encounters between militants and security forces are still happening. Also Read | Delimitation double standards: One rule for J&K, another for South India A senior police officer involved in counter-insurgency operations said that after relentless operations by security forces broke the backbone of militancy in Shopian, militant handlers across the border instructed terrorists to lay low in the district. There is still a movement of militants in Shopian as dense apple orchards and nearby forests in gives terrorists an advantage as they often give a slip to security forces during search operations. Most villages in the district are located at a tri-junction connecting Shopian with Pulwama, Kulgam and Anantnag, he said. Spread over 30,741 hectares, Shopian has a population of 2.6 lakh (according to the 2011 census) and is relatively affluent, with money earned from the over 20,000 hectares under apple cultivation. Over two lakh metric tonnes of apples are produced in the district every year. Watch latest videos by DH here: Scores of guest teachers in the national capital staged a protest outside the residence of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday, demanding regularisation of their services. The protest was organised by the All India Guest Teachers Association. Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Anil Kumar also joined the protest extending the party's support to the demands of guest teachers. "The guest teachers have been betrayed as they have not been regularised despite the Aam Aadmi Party promising to do so in its three election manifestoes. "Sisodia, who had announced that the salaries of the guest teachers would be increased, did not bother to meet the protesting teachers outside his residence to pacify them regarding regularization of their services, which has been a long-pending demand," Kumar said. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced in Punjab that ad hoc teachers in the state would be regularized forgetting the fact that he had made a similar promise in the national capital to get teachers' votes, only to "betray" them," the Delhi Congress chief alleged. "The AAP government should first regularise the ad hoc teachers of Delhi, to set a golden example before making hollow promises in Punjab and other poll-bound states," he added. Watch the latest DH videos: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said it was for the first time during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee tenure that the government began proactively thinking and implementing basic social welfare schemes like those of potable water, health, education and roads, which were missing since Independence. The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways made the remark while laying the foundation stone for a 47-km stretch of national highway project worth Rs 753 crore and dedicating to people four other projects in Amethi on the 96th birth anniversary of late Prime Minister Vajpayee. In a subtle dig at the Congress and Samajwadi Party, Gadkari said the BJP is not a pariwarwadi (dynastic) party but a party of its workers and attributed his rise to the post of a Union minister to the fact that the BJP belongs to its workers. Also Read Yogi woos youth with tablets, smartphones ahead of UP polls; targets Akhilesh again He said that he "was able to occupy a chair by the side of late Prime Minister Vajpayee despite not having any MLA mother or MP father and despite being an ordinary party worker, doing the job of painting party posters on walls and campaigning for party on loudspeakers on rickshaws. Gadkari, whom Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya described as harbinger of road revolution in the country and whom his Cabinet colleague and Amethi MP Smriti Irani described as the leader of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna, also talked of how Vajpayee roped him into his village road-building programme. Gadkari recalled that it was Vajpayee who, after seeing his road building work in Maharashtra, asked him to prepare a report to link countrys villages with roads. "I subsequently prepared a project report on the subject and Vajpayee began its implementation," he said. It is because of Vajpyees vision that out of 6.5 lakh villages of India, over five lakhs of them have been connected to the nearest towns and cities today, said Gadkari. Also Read Poll panel will visit UP next week, take appropriate decision: CEC on HCs suggestion to defer poll amid Omicron scare Alleging a dismal situation in the education and health sector during the pre-Vajpayee era, Gadkari said in the field of education, either buildings or teachers or students remained missing and even when all three were there, the "education itself stayed missing". Similarly, in the health sector, either hospital or doctors and nurses or medicines used to missing, and even when all three were there, people lacked trust in them and did not go for treatment," said Gadkari. Addressing the rally, Irani recalled that in 2014, when Gadkari had first visited Amethi, people here had fervently pleaded to him that now that there was Narendra Modi government in the Centre, it must fulfil its 30-year-old demand of a bypass road for the city. Gadkari had promised them that he would visit Amethi again only with this gift, said Irani, adding it is not a chance that Gadkari has come here again only to gift the people here the bypass road as a stretch of the national highway. Talking of her work as Amethi MP, Irani said she was revealing it for the first time that she has been able to implement various developmental projects worth Rs 83,000 crore in Amethi during her short tenure as its MP. Talking of a recent visit of Congress leaders Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi to Amethi, Irani said the brother-sister duo had come here saying that they will stay here for two days but returned in two and half hours only. And during their visit, unable to have people accompany them and welcome them here, they had brought people from Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and neighbouring Sant Kabir Nagar and these outsiders went to the extent of misbehaving with local people here, she alleged. Also Read Akhilesh Yadav rebrands himself as 'Lord Ram' in Uttar Pradesh Referring to Priyanka Gandhi poll slogan of Ladki hoon, lad sakti hoon (I'm a woman, I can also fight), Irani lamented that it was an irony that women and girls of Amethi never got private toilets during the 70-year regime of the Congress and they got this basic civic amenity under the rule of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She also attacked Rahul Gandhi, saying it is his audacity that he does not mind insulting people taking a dip in the Ganga a reference to PM Modis bath in the river in Varanasi and get the courage to ask the meaning of Hindutva from those who have Lord Ram living in their hearts and minds. UP's Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on this occasion said there is no difference among SP, BSP and Congress. They are sides of the same coin. Maurya claimed that SP, BSP and Congress do politics in the name of caste and religion and said that as elections come near, they become Hindus." Check out the latest DH videos here: More than 33,000 cases have been registered in Madhya Pradesh under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the last four years, the state government has said. The number of cases registered under this Act has gone up in the state in the past two years, as per the data provided by Home Minister Narottam Mishra in the state Legislative Assembly on Friday in a written reply to a question asked by Congress MLA Jitu Patwari. The data said that 33,239 cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were registered in a period of around four years between January 2018 and November 2021. At 9,664, the highest number of such cases were registered in 2020, while as many as 9,249 cases were filed in 11 months of this year. A total of 6,852 cases were registered under this Act in 2018, while this number was 7,474 in 2019, the data said. Along with the cases registered under SC/ST Act, Patwari in the same question had also sought information about the annual conviction percentage in the cases related to atrocities against women. The reply said that there has been an annual average conviction of 27 per cent of the cases related to atrocities against women in Madhya Pradesh in the last seven years. It added that the conviction rate in the cases of atrocities against women was 27.16 per cent in 2015, 27.34 per cent in 2016, 26.98 per cent in 2017, 23.15 per cent in 2018, 29.39 per cent in 2019, 26.10 per cent in 2020 and 28.29 per cent in 2021. Check out latest videos from DH: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday said it was shameful that no arrest has been made for the alleged hate speeches made against a particular community during the 'Dharma Sansad' held at Ved Niketan Dham in Haridwar. The Congress leader said the Supreme Court should take cognisance of the matter and initiate action. The Dharma Sansad, held from December 17-20, was organised by Yati Narasimhanand Giri of the Juna Akhada, who is already under police scanner for making hate speeches and inciting violence against Muslims. In a series of tweets, Gehlot said it was shameful even though there are videos of "provocative and violence-inciting speeches" at an event, no arrest has been made so far. The prime minister, home minister and Uttarakhand chief minister are silent on this issue, he said. Also read: As Hindu extremists call for killing of Muslims, Indias leaders keep silent "Some unruly elements in our country talk about killing people of one community, but no action is taken against them. It seems that there is a jungle raj situation in BJP-ruled states. Wherever genocide took place in the world, there were similar inflammatory speeches on which no action was taken," Gehlot said. He said citizens will have to decide whether such violent people can be representatives of any religion. "Do the government that has avoided taking action against these miscreants have any right to continue?" Gehlot asked. An FIR has been lodged against Jitendra Narayan Tyagi and others in connection with alleged hate speeches delivered at a Dharma Sansad in Haridwar to incite violence against the minorities, police said on Friday. Tyagi, who changed his name from Waseem Rizvi after converting to Hinduism earlier this month, and other speakers at last week's event have been accused of making extremely provocative speeches and some video clips of it are doing the rounds on social media. Haridwar Kotwali Police station SHO Rakinder Singh said the FIR was registered on Thursday under IPC Section section 153A -- promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language -- and the matter is under investigation. The FIR has been registered based on a complaint by a resident of the Jwalapur area in Haridwar. Asked about the video clips being shared on social media, the official said the police does not have any footage of the event yet. Check out DH's latest videos As the Centre advised poll-bound states to ramp up Covid vaccination exponentially amid a steady rise in cases of the Omicron variant, several states imposed fresh restrictions during the holidays. In a letter to states and union territories, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan advised implementing strategic interventions for containment like imposition of night curfew, strict regulation of large gatherings, curtailing numbers in marriages and funerals besides increasing testing and surveillance. CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH Here is a list of states that have imposed Covid-related restrictions: Maharashtra Amid rising Covid-19 cases, Maharashtra prohibited gatherings of more than five persons in public places between 9 pm to 6 am. Under the new guidelines issued ahead of Christmas, more than 100 people can not attend weddings in closed places, while in open spaces the number will not be more than 250 or 25 per cent of the total capacity, whichever is less. This restriction will also apply to social, political or religious functions. At functions other than social, political or religious ones, the number of attendees in closed spaces should not exceed 50 per cent of the total capacity where seats are fixed and immovable. The number of attendees shall not exceed 25 per cent of the capacity where seats are not fixed. Delhi Sarojini Nagar market has been allowed to operate on an odd-even basis over the weekend in view of the large footfalls at the place in the past few days. The national capital reported a spike in daily Covid-19 cases on Christmas eve as people thronged markets and held gatherings despite health experts cautioning them not to lower their guard. The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) had earlier directed district magistrates to ensure no Christmas and New Year gatherings take place in the national capital. However, restaurants and bars will continue to operate with up to 50 per cent capacity. Marriage-related gatherings are permitted with a maximum of 200 people in attendance. Haryana The Haryana government imposed a night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am from December 25. The government also restricted the maximum number of people at indoor and outdoor events to 200 and 300 people, respectively. The restrictions will remain in place till January 5. Haryana also imposed some curbs in public places from January 1. Also Read | Karnataka: Experts fear surge in Covid cases in children amid Omicron scare Gujarat Amid Omicron concerns and an increase in the daily coronavirus cases, Gujarat extended the duration of night curfew in eight cities Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot, Vadodara, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar and Gandhinagar by two hours. The curfew would be in force in the cities from 11 pm to 5 am instead of 1 am to 5 am from December 25. Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh has not reported any case of Omicron so far but the state government imposed a night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am as a precautionary measure and advised people to strictly follow protocol. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Omicron has already reached 17 states and the possibility of the variant coming to Madhya Pradesh can not be ruled out. Also Read | Mumbai bans New Year parties, gatherings in closed or open spaces Uttar Pradesh The Yogi Adityanath government imposed a statewide night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am from December 25. He also instructed officials to cap the number of people attending events like marriages to 200. Meanwhile, in Kolkata, fine dining restaurants welcomed the relaxation in night curfew norms between December 24 and January 1 as the state government has announced that there will be no night curfew during that period and movement of vehicles is allowed between 11 pm and 5 am. Karnataka also did not impose any restrictions on Christmas celebrations and prayer meetings at churches. However, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said restrictions will be in place from December 30 to January 2. (With PTI inputs) Check out latest videos from DH: Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi stated that leaders of the opposition, especially Congress, are suffering from Modi-phobia, which is why they are opposing all the bills introduced by the Modi government. Speaking to media persons after participating in the cleanliness drive at Heggeri graveyard as part of the 98th birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee here on Saturday he said he fails to understand what is the reason for opposing the 'Election Laws (Amendment) Bill 2021' that envisages voluntary linking of electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem. Also Read | Linking Voter ID to Aadhaar: A selectively picked reform The bill was introduced in the parliament only after the Standing Committee, which consists of members from all party, approved it unanimously and without a single dissent note. The bill was also received approval from the Election Commission of India, which held discussions with all the political parties. This being the case, what is the need for the opposition leaders to oppose the bill, he said and questioned if the opposition is opposing only because the bill was introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government? "Looks like they (the opposition leaders) have decided not to allow smooth functioning of the parliament and the winter session was the second such session that was completely disturbed by the opposition leaders, he said and added that the 12 MPs who were suspended for their unruly behaviour also did not budge to tender apology. Ban on MES Responding to a query on the growing demand for banning the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), Joshi said being a political party it is not that easy to ban MES. However, the State government is taking stringent measures to punish the few miscreants within the MES for creating unrest in Karnataka. Joshi said Belagavi-Marathi linguistic is a dead issue and every time the MES faces an existential crisis a few miscreants among them start such nuisance. Marathi and Kannada speaking people are living peacefully in both the States. There is a need for both the governments in Maharashtra and Karnataka to rein in such miscreants and prevent flaring up of issue, he said and asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar to ensure that their party men do not make provocative statements. Joshi also urged the pro-Kannada organisations to withdraw their bandh call given on December 30 as such bandhs are going to affect the people of Karnataka, especially poor and daily wage labourers the most. Check out DH's latest videos: New publishing models and strategies are emerging; the publishing industry is pushing the boundaries; its heartening to see the brick-and-mortar model steadily return to the sales' mix. The pandemic was a wake-up call, for publishing is an intensive, immersive business. The worst effect of the two waves of the pandemic is tentatively behind us, and the publishing industry is upbeat as the world marches into 2022. "Disruptions are creative in that they clear up new spaces, though they can also pile up debris and blockages," Namita Gokhale, writer, literary activist and co-director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, which is described as the "greatest literary show on earth" for the sheer depth of its participation, told IANS. Read more: World rings in another pandemic Christmas "We find new publishing models and strategies emerging in the course of the pandemic and the continuing endemic," Gokhale said. "We encounter innovative ways of telling and sharing our stories, on different platforms, in different voices. The publishing industry is evolving in so many directions, though it's still work in progress. The pandemic and the two years of social retreat also gave many authors the impetus to write some outstanding books. The human race needs stories to make sense of our world," she added. Gokhale's just-published 19th book, The Blind Matriarch, is a poignant tale on the complex inner life of an extended family during the pandemic. For people around the world, the pandemic "was a time to take stock of their lifestyles," Mita Kapur, founder and CEO of leading literary consultancy Siyahi, told IANS. "The publishing industry is pushing the boundaries in the kind of stories they are choosing to tell, the kind of innovation they are looking for in narrative styles. Translations from Indian languages to English have spotlighted authors and translators and given the Indian reader access to exquisite stories from all over the country. The coming years can only take us to higher readership and more exciting writing," Kapur added. "The times of uncertainty and isolation that the pandemic brought upon us reinforced once again that books and reading were an important part of our lives -- and also prepared the industry for change," HarperCollins Executive Publisher Udayan Mitra said. "The pandemic years were a time of change, and the entire publishing industry -- from authors to editors to production teams to the book retail and marketing -- adjusted remarkably well to the new normal, which often involved embracing a digital model for key operations and activities, right from reading proofs on screen, to online launch events," Mitra told IANS. "I think this has prepared us for a more efficient, hybrid model of engagements and operations in the future." Read more: Disruptions triggered by pandemic hit Bengaluru's social organisations: Report He added: "And, more importantly, many of us had more time on our hands, and the urge to write. We've had a remarkable number of manuscripts completed and readied for publication during the pandemic years, and many more are in the making. There is a wonderful list of books lined up for publication in 2022 and beyond. This is great news for booklovers." In terms of trends, there have been some excellent works of imaginative fiction being written and published, alongside incisively analytical works of non-fiction. There has been a focus on children's literature, on speculative and fantasy fiction, and on biographies, Mitra said, adding: "It is certainly on our minds to celebrate the lives of remarkable individuals, during a time when we have sadly lost so many fellow human beings." Mitra concluded by observing that both ebooks and audiobooks are now options available for readers to engage with a book alongside the more traditional print edition, and dramatised interpretations of books are also on the rise. "Multi-platform avatars of creative content are going to be a significant trend for the future," he maintained. "Despite the second wave (of the pandemic) interrupting sales for over a month, 2021 closed well with overall sales numbers up," Hachette India MD Thomas Abraham told IANS. "And while online continued to be the dominant strand, it was heartening to see brick-and-mortar steadily return to the mix, and one hopes that next year will see a full return to normal patterns where they are concerned. The big concern remains the lack of traction for new releases that are not superbrands -- not a healthy sign for readership," Abraham added. The pandemic and the lockdown that followed was like a "shuddering stop", as demonetisation was, "an incredible experience in a country of the size and energy of India," Bloomsbury Editor-in-Chief Krishan Chopra said. "To the credit of all, the industry was remarkably nimble in tackling it. Sales and turnovers were badly hit, but the books and the work continued. There were many good books produced, as one can see in the awards lists and the publishing programmes," Chopra said. He added: "The pandemic was also a wake-up call. Publishing is an intensive, immersive business, and suddenly, away from long commutes and with fewer meetings, in the office or with the author, and the disaster unfolding all around, it was an opportunity to rethink what one was publishing. "It wasn't just that people with more time on their hands could dig out great cookery ideas for people to try out while they were stuck at home. There was this whole new perspective on how we live and what really counts. It was like you were midstream in a powerful river and suddenly carried by a wave to a quiet spot on the side, floating peacefully among eddies," Chopra told IANS. "After any traumatic experience such as this, it takes time to evaluate and come to terms with it. One hopes this is not one that will be, as is often the case, lost in the tide of new events. We have some books coming up that look at facets of the pandemic," Chopra said, adding: "Revival has been slow and is gathering pace. If future crises abate, we could be looking at a year of fresh and superb new books." The process of reviving is still on but "I agree that the worst effect of the two waves of the pandemic is tentatively over. I'm using the word tentative because a third wave is always looming large, especially after the discovery of omicron," said Trisha De Niyogi, Director and COO, Niyogi Books, which has carved a niche for itself by producing illustrated books on a variety of subjects connected with culture and heritage. The abiding trend noticed during the process of revival is perhaps the sudden escalation in the interest in non-fiction, De Niyogi said, adding: "Perhaps, because of the long lay-off during the pandemic, people have generally become more introspective, hence, we are now observing an interest in books on mental health and behavioural problems, along with gender issues, environmental issues, ecology and heritage preservation." She concluded by noting: "I believe that just like masks, certain trends will sustain themselves throughout 2022. I foresee more inclusive literature, with more fiction as well as non-fiction on mental health, people with disability, environmental sustainability, subaltern or suppressed voices, and so on." There was considerable damage at every level during the pandemic, and publishing, too, has had its share of ups and downs. But reading and book buying also increased during the period despite many impediments in the supply chain, Aarti David, Director, Publishing, SAGE India, observed. "The only channels that seemed to be working best were digital sales and online sales. Physical stores have been the worst impacted and many smaller players have shut down their businesses as there have been minimal or no sales," David told IANS. The issue of returns has become even more complex as a result of the pandemic; in addition, schools and colleges have remained shut almost throughout this period and have only restarted in a hybrid model -- that too very recently. "Academic publishing has been impacted as a result of these developments. Libraries are not releasing funds for book purchases and neither are textbook adoptions being done at the scale at which they previously were," David added. Watch the latest DH videos: Incidents of sacrilege threaten to derail communal peace and become a hot political issue in Punjab, with the state set to go for polls early next year. Since 2017, when the last elections were held, dastardly incidents of sacrilege churned the narrative and kept the state on the boil even now. Flared-up sentiments mounted with anger and frustration are turning out to be a deadly cocktail ahead of the upcoming elections. Data from the National Crime Bureau (NCB) shows that the number of crimes pertaining to sacrilege has been the highest in Punjab between 2018 and 2020. Justice in these cases continues to elude and the perpetrators of sacrilege escape the law, creating heightened hysteria around the emotive issue. But the recent incidents of lynching of those accused of the act have demonstrated the waning faith of the people in government to deliver justice. The process of investigation and subsequent trials that may have possibly unravelled the forces behind the nefarious acts will now be a sideshow. Also Read Sacrilege attempts could polarise people on religious lines, foment unrest: Amarinder Singh As developments unfold, Punjab stares at the risk of unrest ahead of polls, however fleeting it may appear to be. Political volatility in Punjab that essentially comes around the eve of elections benefits from polarisation on religious lines. Two recent incidents of sacrilege in quick succession one inside the holy Sanctum Santorum of the revered Golden Temple in Amritsar and another inside a Sikh shrine in Punjabs Kapurthala point towards a systematic design to flare up sentiments in this poll-bound state. A spurt in sacrilege incidents seen in the backdrop of an FIR in a drug case against former Punjab minister Bikram Majithia, who is the brother of former Union minister in Modis cabinet Harsimran Kaur, and a high explosive bomb blast in Ludhiana just a few days ago, has made the plot even more convoluted with political overtones orchestrating the narrative. The ruling dispensation in this Congress-dominated state led by CM Charanjit Singh Channi is drawing out uncanny links between the drug case against Majithia and the bomb blast. People in this Sikh-dominated state have been waiting for years for some finality and justice in crime incidents of desecration of the holy Guru Granth Sahib. But nothing tangible has come about even as the term of the Congress, which rode to power in 2017 promising justice in these cases, draws to a close in a couple of months. Investigations and inquiry commissions set up to probe incidents of sacrilege have failed to assuage hurt sentiments and bring the guilty to the book. The inapt action in incidents of sacrilege over the years has impacted the psyche of the community at large. Also Read Sidhu condemns 'sacrilege bids', says conspiracies being hatched to disturb Punjab Sacrilege incidents of 1978 and 1986 have a bloody history. The recent ones, since 2015 leave behind worrying signs, with several incidents of sacrilege in that year. Brazen attempts to vitiate the atmosphere that year first in June, then September and October led to unrest in the state. Torn pages of the holy Guru Granth Sahib were found on the streets leading to Bargari village in Faridkot district. Later, Sikhs, on a sit-in peaceful protest seeking speedy action to check sacrilege incidents and punishment for those involved in the crime, were fired upon by the police at Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura and subsequently two protesters were killed. The anger that ensued triggered a wave of resentment against the ruling SAD, and among other reasons, led to its rout in 2017. The Akali Dal-BJP combine moved a bill in 2016 to amend the IPC and the CrPC to deal with the crime of sacrilege with an iron hand. Any sacrilege of the holy Guru Granth Sahib was made punishable with life imprisonment. However, the Union government objected to the amendment as it excluded other religions from its purview. In 2018, the Punjab Assembly passed the new amendments when Capt Amarinder Singh was the CM. It currently states that "whoever causes injury, damage or sacrilege to Sri Guru Granth Sahib, Srimad Bhagwad Geeta, Holy Quran and Holy Bible with the intention to hurt the religious feelings of the people, shall be punished with imprisonment for life." However, the President is yet to accord consent to the amendments. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Saturday claimed here that Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar did not support cow worship. Savarkar had said in one of his books that there was nothing wrong with eating beef, the Rajya Sabha member said at a training program for party workers. "He also clearly wrote in his book that the Hindu religion has nothing to do with Hindutva," the Congress veteran added. Reacting to the statement, BJP leader Rameshwar Sharma claimed that Singh was misquoting Savarkar. Watch the latest DH videos: In a letter to sub-officers of the department, HR & CE Commissioner J Kumaragurubaran has quoted a recent amendment to the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act which has categorised encroachment of properties belonging to temples as a cognisable and non-bailable offence. The fresh amendment also allows any individual to complain against unlawful possession of any property belonging to temples and endowments. Earlier, only the HR & CE Commissioner was authorised to give a written complaint based on which courts or police will act against the encroachers. So, this letter urges the trustees or officials concerned of temples or religious institutions to file criminal complaints against those who have occupying properties without any formal agreement or without paying any rent. The complaints should be filed at police stations, Kumaragurubaran said. He also urged temple authorities to identify people who have been enjoying temple properties without any legal sanction and file complaints against them. The temple management, Kumaragurubaran said in his letter, should cooperate with the police in the investigations by providing details of the encroachments. Kumaragurubaran also attached a copy of the amendment law, which came into effect in October, in the letter. The letter by the HR & CE Commissioner comes in the wake of the department launching a massive drive in finding out encroachment of temple properties and recovering them. The DMK government, which assumed office in May this year, has taken several steps to infuse greater transparency in the functioning of temples and has begun uploading details of temple lands, buildings, and other records on its website as the first step. The department is also conducting a drone and DGPS survey of nearly 5 lakh acres of land owned by various temples and trusts that come under it after which 3D images of the land will be published online. As many as 44,121 temples in Tamil Nadu come under the HR&CE department which manages and controls them. Watch the latest DH videos: Around 25 tiffin bombs and cane bombs have been recovered by police in a forest in Jharkhands Latehar district, officials said. Based on a tip-off, a police team reached the spot near Barwaia Kalan village with a bomb disposal squad and defused the explosives on Friday, they said. A senior police officer said there was also information that members of a militant outfit were present in the forest, and investigation is under way. We believe they were planning something sinister with the explosives, which were recovered and defused in time, he said. Check out latest videos from DH: Gujarat on Saturday reported 179 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the highest number of daily cases in the last seven months. For the past two weeks, the numbers have been surging, forcing the state government to extend the duration of night curfew in eight major cities by two hours as a safety measure. Ahmedabad leads the chart with 61 cases. The number of active cases on Saturday stood at 837 while the death toll increased to 10,113 with two more deaths. The rising cases are also casting a shadow on the 10th Vibrant Gujarat Summit, 2022 slated to be held in Gandhinagar from January 10 to January 13. Earlier on Friday, the state government extended the duration of night curfew in eight cities by two hours that included Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot, Vadodara, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar and Gandhinagar. The curfew is in force from 11 pm to 5 am instead of 1 am to 5 am. Commercial activities in shops, restaurants, shopping complexes, hair cutting saloons, beauty parlors among others in these cities are allowed to remain open till 11 PM. 49 Omicron cases Gujarat also reported six new cases of Omicron variant of Covid-19, taking the total in the state to 49. The new cases were reported from Kheda, 3, Ahmedabad, 2 and one case from Rajkot. Check out DH's latest videos In view of the spike in coronavirus cases and the growing threat of the Omicron variant, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has banned New Year celebration programmes and gatherings in any closed or open areas in the city. Mumbai municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal issued an order to this effect late Friday evening. Also Read | Maharashtra prohibits gathering of more than 5 persons from 9 pm-6 am, imposes other curbs "There shall be no gathering or celebration of New Year in any closed or open areas under the BMC jurisdiction," the order said. The order came into effect from the midnight of December 25 and shall remain in force till the next directive. The order is applicable to all hotels, bars, restaurants as well as to privately-owned places that could be used for such gatherings and celebrations, it said. On Friday, Maharashtra government also prohibited gathering of more than five persons in public places between 9 pm and 6 am. The state recorded 1,410 coronavirus cases and 20 Omicron infections during the day. The BMC had on Friday also issued a separate order stating that Mumbai residents arriving here from Dubai will have to undergo seven-day home quarantine. The travelers who live in other parts of Maharashtra will be able to leave Mumbai on arrival from Dubai, but their transport will be arranged by the collector, it said. Check out DH's latest videos: Summit meetings, such as the Modi-Putin meet or the Biden-Putin meet, are followed up with a series of secretarial-level working meetings to implement the agenda decided by the leaders. But recently, Modi and Putin followed up their December 6 summit with a follow-up telephone call between the two leaders themselves. It is significant in the background of a number of geopolitical events and announcements. Presidential aide Yury Ushakov suggested that a Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meeting could be held soon, on the lines of the one that took place in June 2019 in Osaka on the sidelines of the G20 summit. According to the Kremlin spokesperson, Putin informed Chinese President Xi Jinping about his visit to New Delhi. It is not known if the possibility of the RIC meeting was discussed in New Delhi. The Chinese reaction to the proposal is also not known. The India-China standoff remains unresolved despite 13 rounds of military talks and political efforts to defuse the situation. However much Moscow may want to, there is little it can do to broker peace between India and China. Russia, meanwhile, is keen to activate its counter-terrorism mechanism, probably to flex its muscles in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Moscow seems to be eager to work with both India and China to regain its foothold in Kabul. In a video address to a Beijing symposium, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov reportedly recalled the Russian action plans to strengthen counter-terrorism efforts with its partners. Russia is prepared to pool efforts with China and to take real, constructive efforts, without politicisation, to combat global terrorism, including its manifestations in Afghanistan, Syromolotov is said to have told the Chinese leadership. Unlike the US, the Russian leadership does not seem to be fazed by terrorist threats to its internal security. In his address to the annual Security Agency Worker Day, Putin boasted of having foiled more than 200 terrorist attacks over the past 11 years, 32 this year alone. Calling for a tough and uncompromising attitude towards terrorism, he cautioned the agencies that the international situation is challenging and the nature and scale of current challenges and risks make higher demands on the work of special services. Given the single-party control over the political establishment and the zero tolerance to any unlawful activity, non-existent political opposition, and the unbridled powers of his highly authoritarian dispensation, Putin seems least worried about home grown terror. Rather, he is looking for a larger coalition to fight the international terrorist challenge. Afghanistan may emerge as ground for power contestation once again, this time with China as the additional contestant. Unlike during the earlier Cold War, the emerging conflict zone is closer home. Delhi needs to prepare for the challenges that could emerge from this situation. India faces a much greater challenge from terrorism and conventional and non-conventional threats. Considering the challenges from our western and northern neighbours, the need for unobstructed supply of energy to manufacturing centres around the country, and the growing need for defence preparedness, New Delhi has entered into a number of agreements with Russia, without compromising on the principle of strategic autonomy. At this juncture, it is important for New Delhi to expand bilateral and multilateral trade relations to reach out to a wider Indo-Pacific community and the Central Asian countries. Chinas strategy to increase its influence in the region and in Indias extended neighbourhood was prompted by the changed geopolitical realities after the disintegration of the former Soviet Union and the consequent situation emerging in the region common to both India and China. To realise its ambition of emerging as a regional and global power, China embarked on a growth plan that targeted Asia, Africa, and Latin America. China has followed a three-track balance of power strategy in Asia -- maximising the power gap between strong Asian neighbours through focussed military modernisation and, simultaneously, leveraging its economic and political clout; using states like Iran, Pakistan, the Central Asian Republics and Myanmar in its strategy to access critical oil and gas resources and to the Indian Ocean; and using soft power through multilateral economic and political engagement to enhance its strategic influence in Asia. A $10-billion loan to ASEAN for development of land and rail communication corridors, apart from development assistance, is a case in point. Thus, the central pillar of Beijings peripheral policy is to ensure peaceful and dependable periphery through economic engagement and infrastructure development. What is Delhis roadmap? The foreign ministers of the five Central Asian countries -- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan -- who were in Delhi to attend the third India-Central Asia Dialogue, hosted by External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, called on Modi. The Prime Minister highlighted the importance that India attaches to the Central Asian countries as part of its extended neighbourhood. Needless to say, India too has to build on this opportunity and improve rail and road connectivity and extend the seaports to these landlocked Central Asian neighbours. Unless we have our own independent, seamless route connecting to the region, any energy transportation or rail or road project will face the same fate as that of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline. The changing dynamics of geopolitics and geo-economics in the region only serve to underline the importance of the areas illegally occupied by Pakistan and those illegally ceded by it to China. Seamless and unfettered access and connectivity to Central Asia is possible only through those areas. Check out latest DH videos here The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill was passed on December 21, amidst protests by the Opposition in both Houses of Parliament. The crux of this new bill is that the Aadhaar, a unique identification system, is to be linked to the electoral rolls as a way to authenticate voters. The opponents of the bill have several suspicions about the bill which need to be addressed. The government has said that the bill sought to address the Election Commission (EC)s concern over identifying duplicate voters so as to clean up the rolls, and that the linking is designed to do exactly that. There are two principal reasons for the proposal to link. Improved accessibility to voting: With over 300 million migrant workers across the country, the Voter ID-Aadhaar linking will allow the EC to track them and allow them to participate in elections in their home states. Preventing voter fraud: Since Aadhaar information is linked to biometrics, which cannot be replicated, the EC had contended that voter fraud on the basis of this information would be very difficult. Voter cards linked with biometrics would be difficult to falsify. The EC had sent the proposal for voter card and Aadhaar linking in August 2019, suggesting that electoral law be amended to allow it to gain access to the Aadhaar records of registered voters and those of first-time voters getting registered. Earlier, in 2015, the EC had launched a pilot programme, the National Electoral Roll Purification and Authentication Programme, to use Aadhaar information to remove duplicate voters from the electoral rolls. The Supreme Court had stayed this action till it adjudicated whether it would violate citizens privacy. In August 2017, a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court delivered a unanimous verdict in K S Puttaswamy vs Union of India affirming that the Constitution guarantees to each individual a fundamental right to privacy. Before the SC stay, the EC had already collected and verified the Aadhaar data volunteered by 32 crore voters. The bill was met with a storm of opposition even at the time of its introduction in the Lok Sabha. Their opposition is based on primarily three grounds: 1) Linking the electoral roll with Aadhaar information could lead to personal information getting leaked. This could lead to targeted electoral campaigns and even disenfranchisement of groups of voters. What was mentioned as a proof of this having already happened was the tracking of millions of voters in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in 2019, and even the actual deletion of 55 lakh voters from the electoral rolls. 2) The scope of voter fraud remains even with the use of Aadhaar. In 2020, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) had admitted that it had had to cancel 40,000 fake Aadhaar cards. Multiple examples exist where Aadhaar has been faked, such as the incident in 2018 in which a Bangladeshi national was arrested at Bengaluru airport with a fake Aadhaar card and other documents that he had procured from an agent in Bengaluru. The voter ID-Aadhaar linking could thus potentially give non-citizens the right to vote, as Shashi Tharoor pointed out during the debate on the bill. 3) Justice B N Srikrishna, who was chairman of the committee that drafted the original Personal Data Protection bill, has said that the voter ID-Aadhaar linking could allow the government to profile voters. Precedent for this exists in Latin America, where authoritarian governments had brought in legislation to use a single form of identification (a national ID), which had actually caused disenfranchisement and a reduction in the number of voters due to marginalised communities failing to procure the ID and thus the vote. India, with its plethora of marginalised communities, could very easily face a similar problem. The EC has sent a number of electoral reform proposals to the government from time to time that have been languishing. If the reason the bill was rushed through Parliament was truly to purify the electoral rolls and system, then why have the other reforms been left out? Why has the government brushed the fears and apprehensions of the Opposition under the carpet, instead of addressing them and taking them along? In my view, the fear of voter information leakage is perhaps unfounded as the electoral roll information is already in the public domain in pdf format. The other information is the voting pattern which, in any case, is secret and not linkable to any database or network. The government has said, in view of the SC judgement on Aadhaar, that the linking is voluntary. How exactly can the voluntary assent of 90 crore voters be taken? Will a door-to-door campaign be conducted? What is the motivation for a voter to give consent to their data to be linked with Aadhaar? What if a majority or even a small number refuse the permission? That will not ensure a clean roll, defeating the purpose of the whole exercise. The bill answers none of these questions. The electoral roll is the foundation of the integrity of the entire election process. No doubts should be allowed to cloud its credibility. Every political party wants clean rolls. They should have been taken into confidence on how it is being attempted. If the government has no mala fide intention or a secret plan, why could it not attempt to take all parties along? By pushing it down the throat of the Opposition, it has itself created suspicion in public minds, as it did in the case of the three farm laws. Why burn your fingers again? (The writer is a former Chief Election Commissioner of India and the author of An Undocumented Wonder The Making of the Great Indian Election). Some call him a batsman. No, Ravikumar alias Cycle Ravi doesnt wield a willow. He gets his reputation from swinging longs, as machetes are called in the Bengaluru underworld. Known for meticulously planned crimes, Cycle Ravi once faced 35 cases. He has since been acquitted in 25 cases, including 10 in which he was accused of murder. Ravi had evaded arrest for three years. He surrendered on November 21, after the police threatened to get court orders to confiscate his property in Bengaluru and Karur in Tamil Nadu. He is now in judicial custody. Ravis name came into the spotlight in December 24, 2020 when he was linked with another criminal called Bombay Ravi. On behalf of his Mumbai namesake, police say, Ravi allegedly hatched to kidnap and murder producers of the Kannada blockbuster Roberrt. According to the police, Bombay Ravi had tried to extort money from the producers and failed, and so had deputed his men to go after them. From the Jayanagar police station, this reporter trailed him to a court on Nrupathunga Road, where he was to appear for a hearing. Ravi was handcuffed and escorted by six armed policemen and taken in a white Bolero. He had two policemen seated on either side and two behind him. A sub-inspector sat in the front. Ravi did not betray any signs of nerves. He was talking casually to the policemen. At the court, before he was taken in, the reporter got to speak to him. How did you evade arrest for so long? the reporter asked, without much ado. Ravi is six feet tall, and well built. Dressed in a clean white shirt and denim trousers, he wears matching slip-on sandals. He hails from Tamil Nadu, and I ask him which language he is comfortable speaking in. Kannada, he says, without a pause. I have my roots in Tamil Nadu in Karur, but I was born and brought up here in Karnataka, he says. In police records, 45-year-old Ravi is listed as a A rowdy sheeter in Yelahanka and Hanumanthnagar police stations in Bengaluru and B rowdy sheeter in 20 other police stations. That means he is accused in 35 cases but has never ever been convicted. A resident of Manganahalli near Kodigehalli in Yeshwanthpur, he got his name from his fathers trade. His father ran a cycle shop and Ravi used to help him at the shop after college hours. His first crime He was 19 when one of his friend was stabbed fatally in a fight between two gangs involving the issue of lottery tickets. In a bid to avenge the killing, Ravi stabbed the alleged killer, who died soon after. This was in 1997, and he was accused of murder for the first time. I got into crime by mistake and now after 25 years, I just want to lead a normal life with my family. My name is being repeatedly dragged into cases I am not involved in, he says. He hints he is used for crime by others: Powerful people want to keep me in the business of killing, extortion and settling land deals. Ravi is at ease sharing details about his life, but is cautious when it comes to talking about his methods, and his associates. All I can say is that nobody can be trusted and I have my own ways, he says. He claims he has served jail terms for crimes committed before 2010, and has not been involved in any crime after that. I was in and out of jail. But when I came out, thinking I had served all sentences, I was again sent to jail when Babu from a rival gang was murdered. I was dragged to jail on April 28, 2010. After three years, when I came out in 2013, I was again charged with 399 and 402. The reference is to sections of the Indian Penal Code dealing with preparation to commit dacoity. Ravi is familiar with some aspects of the law. Shot at by the police Many people want him eliminated, he says. He faced a murder attempt in 2018, when he was in Bengaluru. It was a narrow escape and I just about managed to survive. A bullet pierced through my leg and just missed my kidney, he says. Ravi says people from within his gang betrayed him. They went against me. It is true that I have committed some crimes, but none of it was for myself. It was all linked to other cases and I was just the executioner, he says. Throughout the conversation, he is calm. His face gives nothing away. Shamed by TV news By his own admission, Ravi began to change after his 14-year-old daughter saw news on TV about a shooting in 2010, and asked him whether all this was true. My family, especially my children, didnt know what my job was until then. The media went overboard talking about me. My children were ashamed and I thought I should start leading a normal life, he says. Ravis son, studying law, was also dragged to the police station. This is when I realised my family was as much a target as I was. Now that I have made a name and earned enough money, I want to stop, he says. Smart tactics Police say Ravi is one of the smarter criminals they have had to track. His location was always difficult to trace. He used multiple SIM cards and constantly changed his vehicles when he had to travel. A sleuth says Ravi even changes his shirts often. Yes. These small things make a big difference. If I am not guilty of something, why should I fall into a trap laid by the police? Ravi says. He uses multiple phones and communicates only with a close circle. Only my wife has my numbers. I dont share them with anybody else. I am not afraid of being caught, but I dont want my name to be dragged into cases I am not involved in, he explains. Police say Ravi uses code language to communicate his location to people close to him. He moves around only with trusted people, and doesnt let anybody new into his circle. Lawyers evaluation In court, this reporter met Ravis lawyer Ram Singh K defending him since 2016. He agrees to interact only after a word from Ravi. Singh is more guarded than Ravi. I dont know his history, but after 2016 Ravi has not been involved in any case. Whatever cases are slapped against him now are false, he says. The lawyer says that the police have framed Ravi in a narcotics case. He doesnt even allow any drug addicts near him. How can he smuggle ganja? Singh says. The proceedings are set to begin. Ravi is taken in and the lawyer hurries away. The police say Ravi should remain behind bars, even though he has been acquitted in big cases. Harish Pandey, DCP South, Bengaluru, says active gang wars have come down in Bengaluru and only a handful of rowdies, such as Cycle Ravi and Silent Sunila, are calling the shots. Ravi has been lying low since 2010 but why should we allow him to remain free? The intention of the criminal justice system is to provide a fair trial, and he needs to be inside for us to find witnesses willing to testify, Pandey says. Criminals like Ravi get away because witnesses turn hostile or are threatened into silence, he observes. They create fear. Even if he is not directly involved in a criminal act, Ravi sanctions the act. He has now turned to smuggling drugs, a more lucrative business, Pandey says. The charge Ravi now faces is that he procured ganja from Tamil Nadu and told his associates Pradeep and Beeraiah to sell it at small gambling dens. He also asked them to set up addas near colleges and bars. The proceeds, police say, was being transferred to Ravi through ATM deposits. The investigators say they are pursuing the five remaining cases seriously. Rowdies are like political parties: they get into alliances, and also break them, the officer says. They stay together as long as their common interests are met. But once there is a clash, they part ways and wont even hesitate to kill members from their own gang, he says. Strategic arrest In recent years, according to Harish Pandey, Ravi interfered in civil disputes, and settled them in favour of whoever paid him off. The police have evolved a new strategy to arrest criminals: going after their properties. A rowdy may have many benami properties, but if he cannot save them, it sends out a strong message that he is not so invincible after all, adds Pandey. Who is Ravi? Ravi did his schooling at Sri Raja Rajeshwari Public School, Bengaluru, where he studied till the seventh standard. He is Tamil, but was born and brought up in Bengaluru, and is fluent in written and spoken Kannada. His father Muniyappa, a cycle shop owner, died in 2006. Ravi has two older brothers and two wives, Ramya and Komala. He has two children from his first wife Ramya, a tailor. His son is studying law in Tamil Nadu and daughter is a ninth standard student. His second wife Komala runs a travel agency. He has two sons from her, both studying in college. They live in Yelahanka. Cell to monitor cases The south division of the Bengaluru police has set up a cell to speed up court procedures. The longer a case takes, the more the witnesses become hostile, explains Harish Pandey. The cell, set up in July 2021, monitors all criminal cases. The south division has 684 criminal cases at the moment. A sub-inspector and three constables now keep track of the rowdies who have missed their court appearances, Pandey says. The team also tracks who has been given exemption from attendance by the courts, and which witnesses have gone hostile. Why cant Ravi be trusted? The police consider Ravi cunning. He changes loyalties fast. He will do anything to retain his territory. He doesnt protect his gang either, which is why many have turned against him, says an investigator. Nexus with politics, real estate A retired police officer credited with curbing the activities of dons such as Kotwal Ramachandra, Agni Sridhar, Tanveer, Bachchan and Oil Kumar in the early 80s, says rowdies are now hand in glove with politicians and real estate developers, both of whom use them to grab land. The rowdies first create fake documents in the name of a person from the Dalit community. When the original land owner comes, they threaten to slap a caste atrocity case against him. In some cases, they get protection from the police, too, says the officer. Watch latest videos by DH here: India this year celebrated with much fanfare the Golden Jubilee of its landmark victory over Pakistan in 1971. It was indeed an occasion worth celebrating. Indias decisive victory in 1971 had come less than a decade after it had suffered humiliation in the conflict with China in 1962 and just six years after its 1965 war with Pakistan had ended in a stalemate. So, when Lt Gen A A K Niazi, the commander of the Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army, surrendered to Lt Gen Jagjit Singh Aurora of the Indian Army at the Ramna Race Course in Dhaka on December 16, 1971, India had emerged as a true leader of South Asia, cutting to size its arch rival Pakistan and tilting the balance of power in the region to its favour. It had brought to an end the barbaric genocide the Pakistan Army and the militias affiliated to it had unleashed on the people of East Pakistan. It had liberated East Pakistan into the new-born nation of Bangladesh. With this, India had indeed sent out a strong message of power projection in its neighbourhood with this victory against Pakistan. And, with an emboldened Indira Gandhi in the office of the Prime Minister, New Delhi had continued to signal its willingness to do whatever it would take to secure its periphery, if necessary even by making attempts to impose or thwart changes in its neighbourhood, as dictated by its own national security interests, be it along Indias disputed boundary with China, or in Mauritius, Maldives, Seychelles, Sri Lanka. It of course had significant political influence in Nepal, Bhutan and even Afghanistan. Also Read | India committed to assisting Bangladesh's march towards prosperity: President Kovind But, half-a-century later, as India has just celebrated the Golden Jubilee of its greatest military victory against its arch-rival Pakistan, how does its periphery look from New Delhi? Just a year after it had decisively won the war against Pakistan, India had asserted its sovereignty over North Eastern Frontier Agency by renaming it Arunachal Pradesh and elevating it to a separate Union Territory, raising hackles in Beijing. Sikkim had also merged with India in May 1975, notwithstanding strong protest by China. Years 2020 and 2021, however, saw China again emerging as a major security threat to India. The soldiers of the Indian Army are engaged in an eyeball-to-eyeball stand-off with the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army personnel along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh. Though the two sides mutually withdrew frontline troops from Pangong Tso and Gogra Post in February and August this year, they could not yet resolve the stand-off at other locations along the LAC. Chinas continued build-up beyond the western sector and all along the disputed boundary with India fuelled speculation about the tension spreading to the middle and eastern sectors too. India had not only helped Anerood Jugnauth come to power in Mauritius in 1982, but had even engaged its external intelligence agency to help him remain in the office of the Prime Minister despite strong challenges posed by his Finance Minister Paul Berenger in 1983. New Delhi had even prepared to launch a military intervention, codenamed Operation Lal Dora, which would have been activated in the event of a coup against the government in Port Louis. Though the Operation Lal Dora had never been actually activated, India had in 1986 indeed carried out Operation Flowers are Blooming and helped foil a coup against President France-Albert Renes government in another Indian Ocean island nation Seychelles. India out But, over three decades later, New Delhi is now competing with Beijing in both Mauritius and Seychelles. China is trying to scuttle Indias projects to develop Agalega Island in Mauritius and Assumption Island in Seychelles, prompting local political parties and civil society organisations to launch protests, alleging that both the islands are, in fact, being turned into remote bases for the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. Indias military intervention in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990 had not gone well. But its Operation Cactus had successfully thwarted a coup against President Maumoon Abdul Gayooms government in Maldives in 1988 and had earned it accolades even from the United States and the United Kingdom. Gayooms half-brother and former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom is now leading an India Out campaign in Maldives, opposing his successor President Ibrahim Mohamed Solihs India First campaign. Chinas debt-trap diplomacy already succeeded in making Sri Lanka give it Hambantota Port on a lease for 99 years. New Delhi remains concerned over the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill, which could end up allowing China to virtually establish a colony in Sri Lanka not far from the southern tip of India. New Delhis response to the new constitution of Nepal in 2015 triggered strong reactions against India. The government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accused of imposing an unofficial economic blockade, choking supply of essentials from India to Nepal. The territorial row between India and Nepal also escalated over the past few months. Thimphu stood by New Delhi all through the 74-day-long stand-off between the Indian Army and the Chinese PLA in Doklam in western Bhutan in 2017. But Bhutan of late agreed with China on a roadmap to resolve bilateral territorial disputes a move, which caused unease in India. Also Read | 2021: A year of record trade amid frozen India-China ties over Ladakh chill The year 2021 not only saw India celebrating 50th anniversary of its victory against Pakistan but ironically, it also saw Pakistan gaining a strategic edge against India in Afghanistan, where its proxy Taliban on August 15 last returned to power after two decades. India had never sent troops to Afghanistan. But it had over the past 20 years contributed over $3 billion to support reconstruction of infrastructure in the war-ravaged nation. The investment now appears to be at risk, although New Delhi is exploring its options to open up a channel of communication with the Taliban, while continuing to lend its voice to the call for an inclusive government in Kabul. Indias strategic rivalry with China and its security concerns stopped it from joining the western nations to criticise the military junta, which had taken over power in Myanmar on February 1 this year, overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy. Its cautious approach irked the pro-democracy activists in Myanmar, just as it did during earlier incarceration of Suu Kyi. Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla, however, recently visited Nay Pyi Taw and reiterated New Delhis call for early release of Suu Kyi and other political prisoners as well as return of democracy in Myanmar. Indias engagements with most of its neighbours remained largely benign since the 1990s, with subsequent governments focussing mainly on projection of soft power. The Modi government too stuck to this policy since 2014, except, of course, sending out politico-military messages, by launching strikes on terrorist infrastructures inside Pakistan in September 2016 and February 2019 and then making its military actions public. The 20-month-long stand-off along its disputed boundary with China, however, prompted India to renew its focus on repositioning itself as a net security provider for South Asia and the Indian Ocean region. Check out latest DH videos here In recent years, policy discussions have dwelt on the possibility of India as a net security provider in South Asia. At the outset, it needs to be outrightly stated that at least one country in the region Indias long-standing adversary Pakistan would promptly contest the proposition. From the standpoint of Islamabad, New Delhi is not only its principal external threat but also a detrimental force in the region. Quite apart from the wars that it had initiated and fought with India over Kashmir, Pakistan still has not come to terms with its role in the Bangladesh genocide of 1971. Instead, Pakistani apologists remain fixated on Indias intervention in the crisis. Also, the current Taliban regime in Afghanistan, to the extent that its views can be inferred, probably also shares some of Pakistans misgivings about Indias security role in the region. Worse still, Indias carefully targeted and highly effective aid programme is now in jeopardy. Despite the countrys dire and acute humanitarian needs, Indias ability and willingness to resume its earlier role under the current regime remains questionable. Nevertheless, it needs to be noted that despite Islamabads fitful cooperation, New Delhi has attempted to send much-needed supplies of wheat to the hapless country. India has, for some time now, in varying and fitful ways, sought to play the role of a net security provider to the region. For example, in November 1988, it deftly mounted Operation Cactus which forestalled a coup attempt against the government of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the Maldives. Around the same time, in an attempt to protect the rights of the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka and to broker an accord between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Sri Lankan government, it had sent the Indian Peace-Keeping Force (IPKF) to the country. That effort, as is well-known, despite the best of intentions, turned into an utter military and political debacle. Even today, significant segments of the Sri Lankan political establishment harbour doubts about Indias role as a security provider to the region. If one takes a more expansive view of what constitutes security, then Indias role in the region has much to commend it. For example, in 2005, when a massive tsunami swept both significant parts of South and Southeast Asia, even as it coped with its consequences at home, India mobilised its armed forces, especially its navy, to provide significant and swift humanitarian relief to the afflicted from Indonesia to Sri Lanka. Sadly, more recently, Indias informal blockade of Nepal in 2015 during the first Narendra Modi government, led to the dissipation of much, if not all, the goodwill that it had justly garnered as a consequence of its very swift and effective disaster assistance in the wake of the terrible earthquake in barely a year earlier. Despite New Delhis efforts to limit the damage that ensued from the blockade, there is little or no question that its stock took a battering in its aftermath. Worse still, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), which had long sought to diminish Indian influence in Nepal, promptly leapt into the breach. New Delhis record was also blemished in the very recent past owing to its highly uneven performance in providing much-needed vaccines to its neighbours during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite an initial willingness to bail out its less-fortunate neighbours, faced with its own domestic needs, it faltered in its efforts. Once again, despite the dubious efficacy of the Sinopharm vaccine, the PRC swiftly exploited Indias lapse in the matter. Despite this uneven record, there is little or no question that given the growth of its military capabilities and diplomatic clout, India can help secure much of the neighbourhood. Indeed, it can be argued that its own security interests dictate that it plays such a role. Pakistans irredentist claim to Kashmir and its security establishments continued chicanery in the region aside, India has a compelling reason to take up such a mantle. Bluntly stated, it stems from the concerted efforts of the PRC to expand its footprint in the region. The PRC, of course, would like the states of South Asia to believe that India is an untrustworthy and indeed malign force in the region. Simultaneously, it seeks to project itself as a possible benefactor especially with its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as well as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Pakistan, quite understandably, given its long ties to the PRC, has embraced the project. More to the point, it has had no qualms about allowing a portion of this massive infrastructural project to be run through the disputed territory in a portion of Kashmir under its control. India has protested about the matter but to no avail whatsoever. Sri Lanka, which had readily welcomed massive investments in its roads, airports and ports from the PRC based on colossal loans, is now not only saddled with enormous debts but also forced to lease the port of Hambantota to the PRC for 99 years to ease its financial burden. Since then, it has had significant concerns about the PRCs largesse but seems unable to extract itself from the latters grip. Bangladesh too, perhaps with an eye toward limiting Indias overweening presence, has flirted with closer ties to the PRC, signing a series of major development accords in the recent past. However, if Sri Lankas unhappy experience is any indicator, it may well discover that the PRCs apparent generosity can prove to be quite costly over the long haul. Under these circumstances, India can, despite lacking the very substantial financial resources of the PRC, nevertheless help secure the region from a range of threats both military and otherwise. With its increased military prowess, it can protect its littoral regions from piracy, from illegal exploitation of maritime resources and above all to secure regional sea trade routes. Also, as it has demonstrated in the past, it can promptly marshal resources to deal with a range of humanitarian crises across the region. These, unfortunately, at least in the near term, are likely to become more frequent owing to the inevitable vagaries of climate change. It is true that New Delhi has not always been a benign actor in the region. However, on balance, there is little or no question that its actions have, for the most part, been beneficial. As this troubled region enters the new year, India can demonstrate yet again that it remains ready and willing to protect its smaller neighbours from the vicissitudes of both human and natural threats. (The writer is a Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Indiana University, US. His forthcoming book, edited with Dinshaw Mistry, is Enduring and Emerging Issues in South Asian Security (Brookings Institution Press and Orient Black Swan, 2022) Check out latest DH videos here The BJP-led Karnataka government did not table the Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021, "with good intention" but with an eye on the vote bank politics, Mangaluru MLA U T Khader alleged on Saturday. "The Bill was tabled to create confusion among people... without even bringing it in the Assembly business agenda," he told media persons in Mangaluru. Noone will support forceful conversion in the country. There are already laws in place. The BJP government has tabled the Bill to fool the citizens of the state. If there are any loopholes in the existing laws, then it could have been strengthened, he said. To a query on Congress in the past drafting the anti-conversion bill, the MLA said that the Congress government had not drafted the bill. "The Karnataka Law Commission had prepared a draft bill. However, the then Social welfare minister had deferred it citing that it was not required in the state in 2016 and the government never discussed it for two years while in power, said the MLA. Stating that there are chances of Bill being misused for political gain, MLA Khader alleged that the government failed to discuss the woes of the people in Karnataka in the Winter Session. To a query on pro-Kannada organisations demanding a ban on MES and calling for a statewide bandh on December 31, Khader said We can not tolerate any dishonour to Kannada. We have to respect other languages while loving ones own mother tongue and Kannada. Marathi and Kannada speaking people are living in harmony in border areas. Banning MES is a legal issue. BJP was part of the MES in the past in Maharashtra, he added. Check out latest videos from DH: Home Minister Araga Jnanendra said that there is a need to think over the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, or the anti-conversion bill beyond the political parties. The Bill has been passed in the Legislative Assembly. We need to discuss why the Bill was tabled in the assembly. The religious and cultural framework of the country propagates love and respect for all religions. Such a mentality one can not see anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, the tree of love is attacked by the termite in the name of conversion, which needs to be checked to maintain harmony, he told the press at Mangaluru International Airport on Saturday. Also Read | BJP, Congress spar over North Karnataka; Assembly adjourned sine die The Bill was not tabled keeping in mind the upcoming election. It is for the countrys future. Bills like common civil code are required in the interest of the country, he said. Only BJP could abrogate Article 370 in Kashmir. It could not be scrapped by the Congress which believes in vote bank politics, said the minister. To a query on communal clashes in Uppinangady, the minister defended police action and said they "tackled the issue effectively". He added that they will act against those who take law into their hands. "Personnel had remained patient till they were allegedly attacked by the mob in Uppinangady, he said. To a query on Maoist leaders from the state surrendering and the relevance of Anti Naxal Force, the minister said, Several Maoist leaders have come to the mainstream. We can not stop till the police record claims that Naxal activities have come to zero level in Karnataka. Check out DH's latest videos Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday said he would hold a meeting with experts on Covid-19 on Sunday in Bengaluru in view of the rising Covid-19 cases in the country. "Omicron is rising in the country. My fear is that the Covid-19 cases are rising in Maharashtra, Kerala as well as in Tamil Nadu. This scares me. After reaching Bengaluru, I will discuss with all the important people and will decide the next course of action keeping in view the present situation," Bommai said. CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH Regarding the night curfew, he said it will be decided in the meeting. To a query on the possibility of giving booster dose, Bommai said the Centre will take a call on it. He also said that the guidelines issued earlier are still continuing in the state. However, after reviewing the situation, more strict measures can be initiated. Karnataka has seen 31 Omicron cases and a majority of infected persons were asymptomatic. Barring the minors, all of them have been vaccinated. Check out latest videos from DH: Less than a quarter of all known Omicron cases in the state are children. While the preliminary data indicates that the cases have survived Covid-19 without complications, experts are worried about an "inevitable" surge that could drive up child infections, owing to their lack of access to vaccinations. In an August action plan report, government experts had projected that there could be between 3,270 and 4,861 pediatric hospital admissions in the third wave. These projections were made before the emergence of Omicron which has a higher reproduction number than the Delta. Already, data from South Africa shows that while adults infected with Omicron have a lower propensity for hospitalisation, it is the reverse for children, where the rate of hospital admission is up 20%. This is said to have implications for schools. Read | Of 183 Omicron cases, 87 were fully vaccinated: Centre "Case numbers due to Omicron will increase, that is inevitable, but what we expect is the rate of infection of children roughly on par with the first and especially the second wave," paediatrician Dr Vishwanath Kamoji of Columbia Asia Hospital, also a member of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) pediatric panel, said. Between April and May 2021, 1,56,733 cases aged under 18 years were found positive for Covid-19 in Karnataka, out of which around 3% had required hospital admissions. However, the current situation is complicated by the fact that schools have reopened, unlike in previous waves. Dr R Vishal, Commissioner for Public Instruction, said that a reconsideration of schools was pending recommendations by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). "We are aware that many schools are adhering to 50% physical attendance in classes but many schools are also still continuing virtual learning. Any change to physical attendance will be recommended by the TAC," he said. Read | Pressure mounts on India to begin boosters as Omicron spreads "At the same time, we are cognizant of the fact that even if children are infected, the disease will be mild. This is not a virulent variant as per the existing scientific evidence," he added. According to Dr Kamoji, the initial numbers of Omicron cases have already compelled schools not to increase their physical attendance numbers. "People must nevertheless take all precautions to safeguard their children. Children under the age of 12 are generally safe but older children face a risk," he said. In Karnataka, six out of the 31 known Omicron cases to date are aged between 9 and 14, including two new cases disclosed on Thursday. All are girls. They constitute 18.7% of the states total. Nationwide, 25 out of the 310 cases recorded as of Thursday evening are children. However, discounting 189 cases for which ages are not yet known, the nationwide prevalence rate is 20.6%. Watch latest videos by DH here: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said it was not his governments failure to get the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill (anti-conversion bill) passed in the Winter Session of the Assembly, as the government knew, from the first, that they lacked number in Council. Also read: Anti-conversion bill not for political gains, says Araga Jnanendra Speaking to media persons here on Saturday, the chief minister said the government made all its efforts to table the bill in Council. A few of our party members could not attend the session. Had they attended the session, we could have tried to get the bill passed. We even tried to ferry the MLCs to the house but could do so in time. As we were short of number, we decided to legally withdraw the bill, he said. Bommai also clarified that the bill will be introduced again in the next joint session when the partys numbers will be just one vote short of a simple majority. Unacceptable behaviour The Chief Minister also condemned the behaviour of leaders of the opposition, especially Congress, for "being stubborn regarding how the house should function". Also read: Implement anti-conversion law effectively, seers demand govt Congress leaders behaviour with Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti is unacceptable. It was only after my intervention and leader of oppositions apology that Horatti decided to withdraw his resignation letter. Congress leaders should understand that Council time is for every member of the house and not limited to just a few, he said. No foreign visit Bommai also clarified that he has no schedule of visiting any foreign country in the near future. Earlier, I was supposed to attend the World Economic Forum, Davos meet. However, with the meet itself getting postponed, so I have no plans to visit any country, said a visibly irked chief minister, whose USA visit was seen by many as signs of his exit from the chief ministers post. Night curfew The chief minister said he would hold a meeting with top officials and a technical team regarding the measures to be taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19, specifically the Omicron variant. A meeting will be held in Bengaluru on Sunday and based on the suggestion given by the experts we will decide the future course of action, he said. Check out latest videos from DH: The National Talent Academy for Film & Television is launching three new opportunities for creative talent who want to develop a career in television or feature films. The focus on regional creative talent for these opportunities means the Academy is making individual calls to creatives in counties across the country, including Louth. All three initiatives are free and aimed at those new to the sector as well as those with emerging and established careers in the industry. They will be hands-on, immersive and highly interactive and are focused on screenwriting, directing and producing. The Academy, which was established earlier this year, aims to roll out a suite of experiential and exciting programmes and opportunities with a focus on diverse and regional creative talent across 2022. Today, it is launching its new website www.nationaltalentacademies.ie which provides a range of information and skills development as well as launching its first three programmes. They are: Pathways. This is aimed at opportunities for new talent; for those who dont work in the industry and want to find out more. Script Mentorship. This is a scheme for new writers and script editors. Ideally, for those who have gained a foothold in the industry but need to develop their craft to progress further. Shadowing. This programme allows screenwriters, directors and producers the opportunity to gain on-set experience on high-end TV and feature film productions. This is for established talent who want to take their career to the next level. Announcing the initiative, National Talent Academy for Film & Television, Galway Film Centre Talent Executive, Jade Murphy said: We are delighted to partner with Fis Eireann/Screen Ireland and the many stakeholders in the sector to bring the ambitions of the National Talent Academy for Film & Television to life. Our aim is to support talent in building sustainable careers in the sector by removing barriers to entry and providing tangible opportunities for people to upskill and develop. We encourage anyone interested to get in touch and start a conversation today. Gareth Lee, Skills Development Manager for Fis Eireann/Screen Ireland added: Were delighted to see the National Talent Academy for Film & Television Drama announce its first batch of activities for the sector. With the other Talent Academies and Crew Hubs coming on stream in 2022, it truly is an exciting time for skills development within the sector, with lots of opportunities on the horizon for new, emerging and established talent. Were looking forward to working collaboratively with stakeholders through the National Talent Academies network to grow the skills base and support further growth within the sector. Two North is a story about one Christmas when my mom was spending time on the psychiatric ward of our towns hospital after trying to commit suicide to escape a physically-abusive husband. I was thirteen. It was a cataclysmic event in our lives but it brought us together into a two-person tribe like no other event ever has in my life. I offer this story each year to my friends here at Eclectablog on Christmas as a tribute to my mother, a woman who went from a pregnant sixteen-year old to an executive for the Chrysler Corporation in the short span of thirty-five years. Much of who I am today is because of her and the lessons she taught me. Two North It was Christmas night and I was warm and felt very comfortable. Maybe the most comfortable I had felt in a long time. I wasnt in my own bed but that was okay because my mom was there and I hadnt seen her in awhile and it was nice to be with her. I was only thirteen but when I look back on it, it seems like I was older and I guess I was in some ways. Older than I should have needed to be, I suppose. I was laying in the darkness, mesmerized by a spacey lamp, the kind you find in head shops or at Spencers Gifts, designed especially for moments like this. Christmas was over and, although my memory of the day itself is lost in the fog of time, I have a vivid and distinct memory of the little bits of colored light going up and down and around and around the lamp. We had spent the day with my aunts and uncles at my grandparents house. My mom, Jacki, was pretty fragile and, although she was glad to be there with her mother and father and brothers and sister, she was just as glad when they all left and she could escape to the safety of the upstairs bedroom. We had gone up together and tucked into our beds, just single mattresses on the floor. My grandparents kept their house a sweaty 75 degrees and upstairs it was more like 80. But that night, the warmth felt good and comforting and safe. We laid there in the dark, unable to see each other in the dim light coming from the spacey lamp in the corner, and talked for what seemed like hours. It had been a crazy few months leading up to this night, for sure. That summer she had gotten married to John, her fourth husband. Shortly after the wedding, he proved that his tendency to become physically abusive when he was drinking wasnt just a passing phase. Although he had demonstrated this tendency while they were dating, Mom ignored all the warning signs and married him anyway. While it seems crazy that a strong-willed feminist could end up as a battered wife married to an unemployed hick, it is as much a testament to the power of manic-depressive illness as it is anything else. Its strong mania that makes a guy like that look irresistible. John had hit her a couple of times that summer and fall but each time we all somehow managed to convince ourselves that he wouldnt do it anymore. One afternoon in the fall, I had come home to our house on the lake to hear them shouting at each other inside. They were in the front room, their bedroom. It faced the lake and had windows all around on three sides. I heard her scream and could hear her crying but I was unable to do anything. I was thirteen and scared and was sure my Mom could handle this because I sure couldnt. I was paralyzed into inaction and to this day I think back about that time with some amount of shame, wondering why I didnt do something. Anything. Anything but just sit there while he beat her up. But I couldnt and I didnt and I just sat in a lawn chair in the yard for over an hour as they battled it out inside. Later, my mom noticed me and came out. She knelt in front of the chair and looked up at me. Her face was puffy and purple and bruised from being hit by the drunk monster we were living with. Her lip was bleeding. She was crying. Chris, Im so, so sorry. This redneck piece of shit has just beat the hell out of her and she was apologizing to me. Then she went inside and smashed out all ten windows in the front room with her bare hands. Looking back on that time, the thing that amazes me most is how normal we all acted. As if it were perfectly normal that my my mom would have a black eye periodically. Like there was nothing out of the ordinary that the cars would be smashed up from an altercation that ended up with John driving his car into the back of Moms car and holding down the gas as she held down her brake. It must have torn her up inside. After her third marriage, she had gone back to school and managed to get an undergraduate degree in political science while raising two school-aged boys. She had become very active in the feminist movement and had proven to herself, her friends and her family that she was smart, independent and capable. Given the paucity of jobs for political science graduates, she ended up as a district manager for a newspaper in Ypsilanti, Michigan and then decided to move back the tiny town of Michigan Center where her parents lived. Shortly after the move, my half-brother moved out to live with his dad so it was just the two of us in our new house in the little backwater town. It was there she met John, a regular at the Page One bar. When he was sober, John was a very engaging and charming man. He had a winning smile and a twinkle in his eye that certainly caught the eye of many of the women who hadnt been able to escape the small town life of Michigan Center. When my mother happened along, she noticed him and he most certainly noticed her. She was brassy. She shot pool. And, unlike many of the other barflies at the Page One, she was intelligent. They worked their charms on each other and soon were living together. Some people get sappy when they get drunk. Some people get overly jolly. Not John. John got mean. He got into fights at the bar. He argued with people. And, once he moved in with us, he hit my Mom. For Mom, his punches knocked her out of the ring. Nothing in her life prepared her for how to deal with this. While many battered women stay in abusive marriages for the sake of their kids and because they have no other alternatives, my mom had been on her own before meeting John and was perfectly capable of being on her own again. Yet something kept her from leaving him, even after he had hit her more than once. In completely foreign territory and in her manic state, she allowed herself to deny all the bad things that were happening and enjoy all of the good things that the new relationship had to offer. It was only later, after getting married and committing herself to the relationship, that she woke up and realized the situation she was in. After spending many years becoming independent and proving to herself that she could do whatever she wanted, she was now married to a wife-beater, had what seemed to be very limited options and had compromised nearly everything she had come to believe in. To add insult to injury, she had given her teen-aged son front row seats to the entire thing. It must have been a very difficult moment of realization for her and it happened right before Christmas. I was very close to both my grandmother and my great-grandmother and spent quite a bit of time with them. In fact, even as a young teen in eighth grade, I would pedal my bicycle to their house every day after school and spend an hour or so visiting with the two of them. My visits were an excuse for them to start cocktail hour and when I got there, they would each make a large tumbler of Kesslers whiskey and Squirt and wed look at magazines and catalogs, hook rugs and watch Match Game and Family Feud. As Christmastime approached that year, I began to spend more and more time at my grandparents house. Things at my own house were not that great and the familiarity of their home was comforting and safe for me. One afternoon a few days before Christmas, my grandmother came home from the grocery store and found a note on the counter: Im going to be gone for awhile. Please take good care of Chris. Dear Mom,Im going to be gone for awhile. Please take good care of Chris. Love, Jacki My grandmothers face faltered for only a moment then she said, Okay, looks like youre having dinner with us tonight. Lets go out to eat! Where would you like to go? But her breezy words couldnt hide from me what I knew in the pit of my stomach was obvious. My Mom was not going to be back that night and, given her past, this note did not bode well for her mental state. For a while I pretended not to notice the hidden message I couldnt miss in my Moms note. My grandmas behavior made it clear to me that she hadnt missed it either. Finally, it was too much for me and I went back to my Grandma with the note in my hand. What does she mean take good care of Chris, Grandma? I asked her, not wanting to know the answer. Grandma was quiet. Shes going to commit suicide, isnt she? I asked. Grandma moved next to me and then hugged me tight against her chest, rocking gently back and forth. Tears trickled down her cheeks. I dont know, Chris. I just dont know Later that night, right before bed, the phone rang. My heart leaped as I eavesdropped on my Grandmas end of the conversation. Hello? Oh, dear. I see. Where is she now? How is she? Is she going to be okay? When can we visit? Okay. Thank you. She hung up the phone, her face pale and sad. Your mother took a bottleful of sleeping pills then drove to her therapists office. They took her to the hospital to have her stomach pumped. Now shes on Two North. We can visit her tomorrow. Two North. Even as a kid, I had heard of Two North. Two North was the Loony Bin at Foote Hospital in Jackson. It was the ward where people with mental problems were taken, the crazy people. And my mom was there. On Two North. She had tried to kill herself and now she was on Two North. Merry Fucking Christmas. The next day after breakfast, my Grandma took me up to the hospital. We took the elevator to the second floor then followed the signs to the Psychiatric Wing. We came to a set of swinging doors that were locked tight. Over the door was a small plaque that read 2 North. My grandmother pushed a button on the wall that rang a buzzer somewhere behind the door. Shortly thereafter, a nurse came out, spoke briefly to my grandmother then allowed us to enter. The doors swung closed behind us and I could hear the click as the doors locked automatically. The locks on these doors were meant to keep the patients in as much as it was to keep unwanted visitors out. The nurse led us to a room with a television blaring and people in bathrobes sitting in groups or alone, some smoking cigarettes, some staring vacantly into space, others talking to people that werent there. My mom was sitting on her own, quietly smoking a cigarette and looking out the window. Hi, Mom. How ya doin? I asked her. She gave a small sob and grabbed me, hugging me close. Chris, Im sorry. Im so, so sorry. I didnt mean to scare you. Oh, Im so sorry It was hard seeing her there, so scared and alone. This wasnt like my Mom at all. My Mom was strong and normal. She was happy, not sad and scared. I looked around at the room we were in. Many of the other patients on Two North were quite mentally ill and they frightened me. I wanted her to come home with us in the worst way. I told her that. Honey, I need some time to figure things out. I can get help here and its safe. Ill be home soon, I promise. I might even get to come home for Christmas. We didnt stay long. What do you talk about in a situation like that? My Grandma gave her a few things she had brought along, cigarettes, toothbrush and toothpaste, some stuff for her hair. Then I hugged her and we left. I didnt cry. It seems like I never cry. Over the next few days before Christmas, I stayed with my grandparents. I avoided my friends. What could I tell them? That my Mom was on Two North? Everyone knew what that meant. It meant my Mom was crazy. Nuts. Mentally ill. I really didnt want to talk to them about it. On Christmas morning, my Grandpa went up and picked my Mom up from the hospital. I dont know what gifts I got that year although Im sure my Grandma was the one who bought them. But the best gift I got that year was my Mom being home on Christmas day. Somehow we made it through the day. We all knew my Mom and I had to get away from John but that discussion was for another day. We were just glad to be there together as a family, making small talk and pretending everything was normal. Thats how my family deals with things. Were pretty good at it, too. Later that night, in our snuggly cocoon upstairs, my Mom and I talked. We talked and talked and talked. We talked about my dad who I had never met. We talked about what we were going to have to do next. We talked for hours. The next morning I woke up late. My Mom was gone. She had gotten up early and had my Grandpa drive her back to the hospital. Back to Two North. She wasnt ready yet for the real world. She needed some time, some space, to get her head together. Over the next year my Mom would leave John and we would find a small apartment in town where we hid out, afraid of violent retribution after the divorce papers were served to him. The apartment was small, cozy, and warm. I started a new school and my mom started a new job as a paralegal, helping people work their way through the legal system. Typical of her, she did her own divorce without a lawyer. The apartment was a haven and the two of us grew closer than ever there. It was strange place for both of us but it was safe and gave us time and space to get our heads together. And the only crazy people there were me and my Mom. Queen Elizabeth II's first Christmas message immediately brought hope to the monarchy soon after her father, King George VI, died. At the young age of 25, Queen Elizabeth II had to take on the role of her father in the monarchy following his tragic and untimely death. In December of the year, she succeeded the throne, she delivered hope and support as she began the new phase of the monarchy. The royal family's official website shared and preserved the transcript of the Queen's speech, highlighting that her 1957 Christmas Broadcast was a historic event since it was the first-ever to be televised around the globe. After ordering to televise the Palace's Christmas message for the first time, royal fans started to see them differently. They witnessed how they transformed from being outmoded to a modernized one. "That it is possible for some of you to see me today is just another example of the speed at which things are changing all around us. Because of these changes I am not surprised that many people feel lost and unable to decide what to hold on to and what to discard. How to take advantage of the new life without losing the best of the old," the Queen said at that time. She also reminded people how abandoning the fundamental principles of history would cause them to lose the trust and respect they have for the world. But fortunately, those values continuously built the royal family and the country's greatness. What to Expect On This Year's Broadcast Before Queen's scheduled Christmas Broadcast 2021, BBC news royal correspondent Sean Coughlan reported that Her Majesty's message is expected to be personal this time. Buckingham Palace said the Queen would not make any public appearances on Christmas Day. Still, royal fans should reportedly suppose that this year would be different since Queen Elizabeth II lost her husband, Prince Philip. READ ALSO: Johnny Depp Victory: Actor's Fans Reveal Heartfelt Wishes This Christmas Ahead His Defamation Lawsuit Battle It also released an exclusive photo of the recorded message, and royal fans can see a picture of Her Majesty and Prince Philip on top of her table. The Palace did not disclose more information about the message, but it revealed that her theme and words are carefully written by the Queen herself with the help of her private secretaries. Queen's traditional message will be televised at 15:00 GMT on Saturday. READ MORE: Princess Diana's Last Christmas Before Her Death Heartbreaking: What Princess of Wales Did During Christmastime Explored It seems like the tension between Prince Harry and Prince William is only increasing as the brothers' feud now involves their popularity. One report claimed that the head of the Sussex household is instigating the feud as Prince Harry is apparently the one who has taken "shot after shot" at Prince William, who is now putting his foot down and will no longer put up with his younger brother's antics. According to Who via Suggest, rumors about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge making plans to "cross the pond over to the States" started circulating in November. However, the article also mentioned that the royal couple shouldn't "expect a warm welcome" from their relatives in California. Prince William to Visit Prince Harry "Harry and Meghan have made the U.S. their home base and their target audience. So, the prospect of William and Kate going over there will no doubt rock them," an insider close to the Sussexes revealed. The same source said that Prince William and Middleton's visit to America is inevitable and admitted that "a royal tour to the U.S. is long overdue." One reason was also mentioned that it's because the United States is one of the "most important allies" of the United Kingdom and that "there is a huge appetite for royals over there." Still, there is no official announcement from the Cambridges or the palace spokesperson about recently conducting an overseas tour to the U.S. READ ALSO: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Has Beaten The Cambridges Being The Most Talked About Royals, Here's Why Prince Harry and Prince William's Relationship Meanwhile, an article from New Idea reported that the competitive trait of both Prince William and Prince Harry had fueled their feud even more. This followed as the public has been more obvious about their favor towards the younger royal after his marriage to the American actress- Meghan Markle. The publication claimed that after years of being overshadowed by his older brother, the Duke of Sussex couldn't help but brag about his blatant popularity and newfound fame. "They might be family, but there's a lot of jealousy there," an inside source confessed. A royal documentary has previously discussed the topic of how the two were rivals that were secretly competing with each other all these years. The film revealed how Prince Harry always seemed to struggle with his image in the media and envied Prince William's apparent popularity back in the day. The same informant said, "Harry might claim he hates the press, but he has to admit he enjoyed lording it over William, given he's grown up being the spare to the heir." READ MORE: Kate Middleton, Prince William To Still Continue Christmas Tradition With Children Amid COVID Scare? Based on a qualitative study of women microworkers on Amazon Mechanical Turk, this paper explores the gendered modus operandi of global platform capitalism. For women from households negotiating caste and class status in small-town South India, digital labour platforms like AMT are the optimal choice; an answer to both economic necessity and familial validation. Women must, however, endure the platforms coercive disciplining, striving to meet its unknowable metrics. With the pandemic, even as they are forced to contend with the oppressive precarity of digital labourreducing job availability, falling pay, longer hours and the risk of suspensionwork on AMT, paradoxically, becomes non-negotiable. The artificial intelligence-based regimes of the platform economy urgently need a norm shift towards gender equality and redistributive justice. Digital work is increasingly being seen as an important pathway for developing countries to harness the rapidly growing opportunities of the digital economy (Banga 2020). From a development perspective, there is thus an imperative to take stock of the emerging trajectories of the platform labour market. This paper presents findings from a research study exploring the experiences of women working on the microwork platform, Amazon Mechanical Turk (AMT or MTurk). Microwork platforms refer to crowdwork1 platforms that provide businesses with access to a large, flexible workforce distributed across the globe for performing numerous small and quick, often repetitive, tasks (Berg et al 2018). According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), the rise of digital labour platforms is the most significant transformation in the world of work since the financial crisis of 2008 (Berg et al 2018). The reconstitution of the economy in the fourth industrial revolution, propelled by data and artificial intelligence has opened new labour markets. The production, development and support of artificial intelligence requires human intelligence (Altenried 2020) so that technology can learn cultural and social facts. Microwork is hence not a fringe phenomenon (Tubaro et al 2020), but a new workplace that needs to be understood in relation to how human computational labour inhabits the invisible spaces of the digital economy. The misuse of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act suggests that it deserves to be completely rewritten or scrapped. Justice (Retd) Madan B Lokur writes: Why do people believe that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 or AFSPA is a draconian legislation? A constitution bench of the Supreme Court dealt with its constitutional validity and, in 1997, held that the law is constitutionally valid and does not suffer from the vice of arbitrariness (Naga Peoples Movement of Human Rights v Union of India, 1997). In theory, the decision is undoubtedly correct but not on the grounds of implementation. . On 23 November 2021, in the context of serious malnutrition, the Government of Karnataka announced that eggs would be provided three days a week as part of the midday meal (MDM) scheme to students in seven districts, namely Bidar, Raichur, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Koppal, Ballari, and Vijayapura. This move was welcomed by activists and nutritionists who also insisted that eggs be extended to five days of the week and in all districts of the state. Eggs can also meet the National Food Security Act, 2013 mandate as each 60 gm egg can provide almost half the protein requirement of each meal (1220 gm of good-quality protein) as well as many other essential nutrients. Shockingly, in stark contrast, there have been objections raised by the All India Vegetarians Federation, along with other Lingayat and Jain religious leaders, against the distribution of eggs, purely for religious reasons. An earlier attempt in 2015 for eggs in Karnataka had been similarly clamped down by various religious groups. The Right to Food Campaign demands that the Government of Karnataka, as well as other states, base their nutritional interventions for children on sound scientific premise rather than religion, caste, or ideology. Scientific basis of nutrition intervention will also send out an important message to children and communities about healthy eating and nutrient-dense foods. Eggs have to be offered to all children as part of the MDM scheme in government/government-aided schools as well as anganwadis, with alternatives like an additional glass of milk, a bowl of curd, or a fruit offered to those children who cannot eat eggs. Sardar Udham is a timely reminder to question the nature of the independence we have been enjoying and around which so many government-sponsored celebrations are planned. Shoojit Sircars Sardar Udham (2021) is a powerful film with deeply moving performances that vividly depict the life of one of the most remarkable revolutionaries during the Indian freedom struggle, Udham Singh, rightly hailed as shaheed-e-azam. But, more importantly, it is also a hidden polemic against the recent historical films like Padmaavat (2018), Kesari (2019), and Tanhaji (2020) that present distorted versions of the past to valorise religious or ethnic identities by pitting them against a virulent construct of the otherised Muslim. Such representations have only fostered the belligerent majoritarianism that has gained momentum over the last decade. The film not only offers a gut-wrenching representation of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 but also vividly foregrounds the reality of colonial violence by documenting the actions of General Reginald Dyer and Lieutenant Governor of Punjab Michael ODwyer along with the violence inflicted on other revolutionaries incarcerated or shot dead by the colonial authorities. Particularly significant is a scene in which Udham Singh witnesses the shooting of Irish rebels by British police officials in London, including the assassination of a very young boy. Such scenes create a sense of typical post-colonial solidarity that underlines the global scale of the violence unleashed by the business of the empire. The dialogues by both Dyer and ODwyer clearly highlight this imperial logic and the repulsive racism and cold brutality that were integral to it. At the same time, through the voice of Udham Singh himself and his friend, the Sikh revolutionary, Bhagat Singh, leader of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), the film also lays bare the logic of colonial commercial exploitation through which colonies like India were impoverished to ensure the prosperity of the United Kingdoma process that continues to be reproduced through the contemporary networks of global finance capital. The screenplay and direction emphasise these mechanisms of empire in a manner that strongly undercuts the arguments of certain modern English apologists of Pax Britannica. . Environmental governance has become a popular concept in the past few decades. Since the Bhopal Gas Tragedy in 1984, the term environmental governance has been applied by institutions, states, policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to Indias diverse areas of development and well-being. Broadly speaking, environmental governance is the term we use to describe how we as humans exercise our authority over natural resources and natural systems. It is about questions concerning how we make environmental decisions, who makes them, and how they are held accountable. It encompasses all sectors, including biodiversity conservation, sustainable and equitable use of forest, land or water and other biotic resources, pollution and hazardous waste regulation, decision-making on massive irreversible transformations of ecosystems for developmental purposes, and now the question of climate change. The term also encompasses more actors. While regulation refers primarily to the actions of state agencies, governance includes all actors: regulatory agencies, regulated entities, legislature, judiciary, media, and the public. The role of other actors, especially the judiciary, has become quite visible in the Indian context in recent times. In response to the growing awareness about environmental issues nationally and globally, India incorporated several direct provisions for the protection of the environment in the Constitution starting 1976. It has also enacted a wide range of regulatory instruments for preserving and protecting its natural resources and entered into several international agreements to advance sustainable development programmes. At present, there are over 200 central and state statutes related either directly or indirectly to environmental protection (Divan and Rosencraz 2001). Even in the limited context of environmental pollution and its regulation,1 which is the focus of this review issue, the number of statutes, agencies, and the jurisprudence that have been generated is enormous. Corresponding to this plethora of laws, institutions, and practices, there is an expanding literature on the nature and process of environmental monitoring and compliance in India, the effectiveness of the multiple environmental regulatory authorities at various levels, and the implications of their functioning (or malfunctioning) for Indias environment and the human rights of the affected people. While much of the early literature focused on laws and their interpretation, researchers are now beginning to examine the functioning of the bureaucracy, the judiciary, the political arm, and social movements as well as the role of scientific and local knowledge on the one hand and values and world views on the other. T he price of rhodium is soaring. Its cost has quadrupled over the past four years and in 2020 it became the worlds most expensive metal, selling for as much as CHF 800 per gram CHF 800,000 per kilo. And for many reasons it is unlikely to stop there. Mined mostly in South Africa and the Russian Urals, production is no more than 20 tonnes a year, and deposits are inexorably diminishing. At the same time, demand for rhodium is exploding, mainly because of new anti-pollution measures for cars catalytic converters, for example. But it is a crucial component in other sectors too, for the nuclear industry, for lighting, mirrors, connectivity technology and more. The watchmaking sector is also a big user of rhodium. The whitest precious metal after silver, it is highly resistant to corrosion and does not tarnish. Fine coatings of it have been used since time immemorial to reinforce certain crucial parts of the movement such as the ebauches to which it gives a highly appreciated white finish. The price of rhodium is soaring. Its cost has quadrupled over the past four years and in 2020 it became the worlds most expensive metal, selling for as much as CHF 800 per gram CHF 800,000 per kilo. White platinum coating for movement blanks is a high-quality, innovative alternative that is far more economical than the traditional rhodium, now the most expensive metal in the world. Specialists STS Created in 2006 in the Joux Valley by Frederic Saulcy and Thierry Mesnier, STS, which is part of the Acrotec Group (see our article Acrotec - Vertical integration in the supply sector), has become one of the leading enterprises for surface treatments in the high-end watchmaking sector. It employs a workforce of 110 on four production sites in Switzerlands Watch Valley and Geneva. Its reputation in watchmaking has enabled it to diversify into the automotive, aviation and connectivity sectors. But its core business remains watchmaking, for which it provides numerous solutions for electroplating, varnishing, tribofinishing, heat treatments and decoration. STS has collaborated with the University of Franche-Comte and EPFL in Lausanne on several projects, and is also one of the few companies in its field to have a large R&D department. Which undoubtedly explains the companys far-sightedness regarding the inexorable rise in the price of rhodium. A less spectacular innovation than certain mechanical follies that occupy the spotlight, but undoubtedly more fundamentally useful to watchmaking and the watchmaking industry as a whole. In search of an alternative Historically, ebauches have been rhodium-plated for a very long time: its use dates back to the peasant watchmakers. But why? wondered the R&D managers at STS. There seems to be no real technical necessity, they explain. But rhodium plating also widely used in jewellery-making, especially for white gold protects parts and provides a superb white finish. And rhodium bath plating is undoubtedly one of the easiest electroplating techniques. But now that rhodium has become the most expensive metal in the world, a genuine alternative had to be found. More than a year of laboratory tests resulted in an innovative solution both technically and chemically: white platinum. Platinum and rhodium have got on well together, so to speak, for millions of years. Rhodium is physically related to platinum and always occurs with it in its natural state. It is also chemically combined with platinum in numerous applications. Back in 1896, the marriage of platinum and rhodium-plated platinum proved its worth in instruments designed to measure high temperatures. And that is just one example of the complicity between the two metals. Rhodium is physically related to platinum and always occurs with it in its natural state. It is also chemically combined with platinum in numerous applications. White platinum Unlike rhodium, which is something of an endangered species, platinum resources are sure to last longer, as large reserves of it exist. Its unbeatable price just over CHF 10 per gram compared to CHF 713 for rhodium (as of end October 2021) make it a far more stable proposition in the medium term. But thats not all. The result of a new, patented process, White Platinum by STS is composed of several metals, all from platinum mines. Developed by the R&D department, White Platinum provides a coating that is just as white and shiny as a rhodium coating, as well as being of similar thickness, up from 0.005-0.2 to 0.1-0.2. Its hardness is 650HV compared to rhodiums 850HV. This new White Platinum coating can be reliably mass-produced and meets all watchmaking test requirements. It is compliant with REACH (the European regulation on the safety in the manufacturing and use of chemical substances in the European Union, which came into force in 2007) and resistant to Tropical Climate Testing (NIHS 96-50 climate and corrosion standard). In short, it seems to have everything going for it. Including its whiteness and shine. Perfect timing Some innovations arrive with a clap of thunder and a lightning flash. Others may arrive more modestly but be of genuine importance. In a way, rhodium plating is part of watchmaking DNA. An ebauche without rhodium plating is but a shadow of itself. And so the fact that it is becoming unaffordable could, especially in these difficult times, damage the Swiss watch industry as a whole and its all-important volumes. The exhibitors at the last EPHJ trade show in Geneva didnt need to think twice. They awarded the 2021 EPJH Exhibitors Grand Prize to STS for their new White Platinum coating, which is comparable to rhodium plating on every score aesthetically and technically but at an unbeatable price. It may be a less spectacular innovation than certain mechanical follies that tend to occupy the spotlight, but undoubtedly more fundamentally useful to watchmaking and the watchmaking industry as a whole. My grandfather, William Kracht, was a fire chief in 1890. I read a long time ago that a census showed his position was chauffeur, but my dad Alfred Kracht said that was what they called the driver of the fire engine then and that the driver was in charge of the crew. He gave me the original photo (of his father as a firefighter) and (a shadow box with) his badge in 2001. I worked at the Crockett Hotel and took the badge to the fire station on the corner by the hotel. The captain showed me a book on the history of San Antonio firefighters (in which) the chief was identified as Bill Cook. I wish my dad was alive so I could ask him to verify everything, since he is the one who gave me the information a year before he died. I only knew my grandfather as an old man. We would speak to each other in German. Eventually he was moved to a nursing home on Woodlawn Avenue. He stayed in bed so my sister and brothers and I stayed in the lobby while my mom and dad went to see him every Sunday afternoon. How can I get this corrected? - Susan Kracht Pennington Family history, like local history in general, can be like the Whisper Game, where Player 1 whispers a sentence to the next person, who changes it slightly and so on, until the end of the line or circle, when the last player speaks aloud something quite different from the original statement. Likewise, a hundred or more years after a recollected event, theres faulty memory, conflation with other stories, embellishment, and hidden or lost information getting between us and the facts. It doesnt look as if William Henry Kracht Sr. was ever a chief in the San Antonio Fire Department, although he was a versatile firefighter who played several roles during at least seven years of service. Contemporary as well as current historical references show other people holding that position and point to Kracht taking a different path. Born in 1878 to a German-born father and a German-American mother, young Will, as he was called, went to work early. In the 1891 San Antonio city directory, the widowed Emma Kracht is listed as a laundress, and her 13-year-old son was a cash boy at Joske Bros. department store, meaning that he ran money from clerks to the cashier and back with the customers change. That was the same year the citys fire department changed from a collection of rivalrous all-volunteer companies to a paid professional force. Some of the volunteer firefighters signed on as city employees, and their ethnic profile would have given Kracht an advantage. Dating back to 1854, the volunteer companies more like fraternal organizations consisted mostly of Germans with a few Irish, Italian, Southern Americans and German Jews scattered among them, says Shirley Lerner in a 1986 academic paper on SAFD history published on the citys website, www.sanantonio.gov. Members were accepted from all socioeconomic classes, but men from the upper classes dominated the officers ranks. The abundance of German volunteers, Lerner says, indicates the influence and power of that particular ethnic group in the city during the 19th century. Members of the Kracht family were involved in predominantly German cultural organizations, such as the Hermann Sons, and members of St. Johns Lutheran Church, though not the fancy-schmancy Casino Club. However it happened, he didnt hook up with the fire department until more than a decade after it had turned into a somewhat less exclusive club. Courtesy of Susan Pennington. By 1899, says the directory, 21-year-old Kracht was a clerk at the Menger Hotel, and two years later he held a similar position at the C.H. Dean Co., purveyors of everything in the hardware and vehicle line. Still single, he shows up in the 1905 volume as a callman for Engine Co. No. 2, his entree into the fire department. Kracht started his career as an auxiliary firefighter, called when needed and paid only when he worked, something like a substitute teacher. He must have been a quick study because a year or less into his tenure, he was acting lieutenant of a truck and got a promotion to acting captain when E.L. Dorsett, the previous acting captain and second assistant fire chief, disappeared without word after taking a 20-day leave. As of the 1907 directory, Kracht was a full-fledged captain in the fire department, and when his sister Minnie and H.H. Paulus married the following year, it was noted in the San Antonio Light, March 12, 1908, that the brides brother was William Kracht, a well-known member of the fire department. William Kracht apparently considered himself financially secure enough to marry Magdalene Rickert later that year, one or both sufficiently identified with the local German-American community to announce their union in the German-language newspaper, Freie Presse fuer Texas, June 12, 1908. In 1909, the directory still has him as a captain, fire department, but in the 1910 U.S. census, Kracht was reported simply as a fireman. In the same years directory, he was a pipeman (no rank given) for Engine Co. No. 6, meaning that he was the firefighter directing the hose onto the fire. In 1912, hes the captain of a hook and ladder company, and the 1913 directory is the last to report him as city fireman. Whether from a career reversal or a family mans desire to work more regular hours in a safer job, hes an employee in a works (factory) by 1914. On his 1918 draft registration card, his occupation is given as teamster (horse team driver, which makes sense since he used to drive a horse-drawn fire truck), and his employer was Alamo Iron Works, manufacturers of iron and brass objects from doorstops to huge gates and fences. He must have learned to drive a truck with an internal-combustion engine, because the 1920, 1930 and 1940 censuses list him either as a chauffeur or truck driver for hardware or iron works. Since titles, acting or otherwise, could be fluid in the old-time SAFD, I checked the departments own list of former chiefs, also on the city website on a page titled Hall of Fire Chiefs. Their names and dates of service are given, along with a photo of each, usually in uniform. I checked all who held the office from the beginning of the professional department in 1891 to the last years Kracht served. Their names, when checked against obituaries or other biographical material, show a pattern: Early SAFD chiefs were prominent men chosen for their executive experience rather than firefighting skills. Nominated by the mayor and confirmed by City Council, most were businessmen, several of whom went from fire chief to other elected or appointed government posts. From 1891 to 1893, the chief was L.P. Peck, owner of Pecks Furniture Co. and the Peck Building at 301-393 E. Houston St.. He was followed in 1893-1894 by Gustav A. Duerler, head of the Duerler Manufacturing Co. and later a City Council member. Next, 1895-1896, was John W. Tobin, later Bexar County sheriff and San Antonio mayor; and in 1897 to 1899, J.W. Collins, later city auto-driver inspector. From 1899-1905, Will G. Tobin, brother of the previous Chief Tobin, held the position; and from 1905 to 1917, it went to Phil Wright, later police commissioner and acting mayor. Neither Krachts name nor that of Bill Cook appear anywhere on the list. Maybe the captain you spoke to was looking for assistant fire chiefs, and your grandfathers name didnt appear because he was acting, perhaps for a short time. According to his death certificate, Kracht died Sept. 20, 1963, of cardiac failure, a complication of bladder cancer. His former occupation is given as clerk, Alamo Iron Works. He was residing in the Laurelwood Nursing Home at 229 Dashiell St., a few blocks from his longtime home at 210 Nevada St. and the venerable metalworks. history column @yahoo.com | Twitter: @sahistorycolumn | Facebook: SanAntoniohistorycolumnhistory column @yahoo.com | Twitter: @sahistorycolumn | Facebook: SanAntoniohistorycolumn Hundreds of San Antonians started off their Friday outside in the chilly, foggy morning air praying for the safe return of 3-year-old Lina Sardar Khil. The interfaith prayer vigil organized by Pamela Allen, CEO of Eagles Flight Advocacy and Outreach drew about 200 people to the St. Francis Episcopal Church pavilion on Bluemel Road. Linas father, Riaz Sardar Khil, thanked everyone for coming out to pray for his daughter. During the ceremony he lit a candle in Linas name that was meant to symbolize hope, faith, prayer and unity. Im hopeful that my daughter will be back, her father said through Basir Qasmi, who translated most of the vigil to Pashto for the Afghan community members present. I know there is a good person among us whose prayer will be heard by God, and that will be the cause for the safe return of my daughter. Robin Jerstad, San Antonio Express-News Qasmi works for Catholic Charities and is a board member in the local Afghan community. Qasmi prayed at the event, reciting verses from the Quran. Lina has been missing since Monday evening. She last was seen on the playground inside of the gated Villas Del Cabo apartments, at 9400 Fredricksburg Road. The San Antonio Police Department and the FBIs San Antonio Field Office have been searching for her. Thursday, the Islamic Center of San Antonio, a nonprofit that aims to support the Muslim community, announced on Facebook that a reward for information that helps find Lina has grown to $100,000. Additionally, Crime Stoppers of San Antonio is offering a $50,000 reward. Linas family came to the United States from Afghanistan in 2019. Margaret Constantino, executive director of the Center for Refugee Services, said earlier this week that Linas family is among thousands of Afghan refugees in San Antonio, and they have been clients of the center since they arrived in the U.S. San Antonio police Chief William McManus attended the ceremony. Though he did not have any update, he recapped the efforts that have been made so far, noting that officials are working especially hard on this case. He said that about 300 units at the Villas Del Cabo apartments have been searched, some more than once. Were not giving up hope, he said. Robin Jerstad /Staff photographer The FBI has brought in its Child Abduction Response team, behavioral analysis unit, and data exploitation units, said Justin Garris, acting special agent in charge of the FBI San Antonio Field Office. Rev. Carrie Guerra, rector of St. Francis Episcopal Church, said the final prayer at the event. I think its lovely, Guerra said of the ceremony when it concluded. I think its lovely that so many people from different walks of life, different communities, multiple different languages, multiple faith practices all came together united for the sake of the safety of a precious baby. Attending the Friday ceremony was important to Bexar County Clerk Lucy Adame-Clark who said that she felt like she couldnt celebrate Christmas Eve with her loved ones without first standing alongside those praying for Lina. This child belongs to the community, she said. And I dont care what country they come from, were here to stand beside them. About 20 people with Guardians of the Children of San Antonio were at the event. The nonprofit made up of motorcycle enthusiasts aims to help children who have overcome abuse, according to its website. Robin Jerstad, San Antonio Express-News Allen, the event organizer, said the prayer vigil came together quickly and that Linas family was quick to agree to the gathering. Allen said that Linas father and two of her uncles attended the event. In his prayer at the ceremony, Pastor Kenny Vallespin of Summit Christian Center said it is a time to rise as a community on behalf of Lina. Father God, we stand and we have faith that you are just and that you will let justice prevail, he prayed. We ask Lord that even though many people may not know Lina out there, that her story is getting out there and that you will make a way where there seems to be no way. megan.rodriguez@express-news.net The lone surviving Nuremberg war crimes prosecutor, Benjamin Ferencz, is soon to turn 102. He is a national treasure. Born March 11, 1920, in the Transylvania region of what was then Hungary, Ferencz is living testimony to the quest for justice and peace. His family emigrated to the U.S., settling in the Hells Kitchen section of New York City, when Ferencz was only 10 months old. Ferencz proved to be a good student, graduating from City College of New York and gaining admission to Harvard Law School, where he studied under the legendary Roscoe Pound. Following law school graduation in 1943, he joined the U.S. Army and was sent to the war in Europe. As described on his website, Ferencz participated in battles from the beaches of Normandy, through the Maginot and Siegfried Lines, across the Rhine at the Remagen Bridge, and the final Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne, He was awarded five battle stars. Toward the end of the war he investigated Nazi war crimes in preparation for the Nuremberg trial of Hermann Goring and 23 other top Nazis. Ferencz investigated concentration camps, concluding they were all basically similar: dead bodies strewn across the camp grounds, piles of skin and bones cadavers piled up like cordwood before the burning crematoria. I had peered into Hell. AFP / Getty Images file photo Then, at 27, Ferencz was appointed chief prosecutor in the Einsatzgruppen trial, which held accountable Nazi commanders who oversaw the mobile killing squads in the first phase of the Holocaust. Those million-plus murders of Jews, Roma and Sinti, communists and Soviet intellectuals have been referred to as the Holocaust by Bullets. The Einsatzgruppen trial was one of 12 subsequent Nuremberg trials that occurred after the original International Military Tribunal of Goring and others. The subsequent trials were overseen by U.S. Gen. Telford Taylor. All 22 defendants in Ferenczs trial were found guilty of various crimes, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Associated Press called it the biggest murder trial in history. Thirteen defendants were sentenced to death. Four were executed. It was Ferenczs first criminal trial. The remaining 75 years of Ferenczs life have been devoted to working toward law not war. As he has reflected: Nuremberg taught me that creating a world of tolerance and compassion would be a long and arduous task. And I also learned that if we did not devote ourselves to developing effective world law, the same cruel mentality that made the Holocaust possible might one day destroy the entire human race. Ferencz became a leading proponent for the International Criminal Court, which was eventually established in 2002. Under President George W. Bush, the U.S. signed the treaty but did not ratify it. Ferencz has concluded this was a mistake, that law must apply equally to everyone and the U.S. should join the ICC. In the preface to a 2018 book about international criminal justice, Ferencz wrote that war-making itself is the supreme international crime against humanity and it should be deterred by punishment universally, wherever and whenever offenders are apprehended. It is apparent from reading Ferencz that his experiences as a young soldier made a permanent and horrifying impression that has never left him: Camps like Buchenwald, Mauthausen, and Dachau are vividly imprinted in my minds eye. Even today, when I close my eyes, I witness a deadly vision I can never forget. His hope in the Einsatzgruppen trial was to help deter the repetition of such horrors in the future. He wanted to do whatever I could to help lay a foundation for a more humane world than the one that had indelibly traumatized me during World War Two. Ferencz has made his quest for justice and peace today to be as important as his prosecution of war criminals in Nuremberg years ago. He shows that a persons contribution can literally last a lifetime. By just about any measure, Ferenczs life has been a rich and productive one. He married his childhood girlfriend, Gertrude Fried, in 1946. They had four children and were married without a quarrel until Gertrudes death in 2019. If the first part of Ferenczs story is notable for Nuremberg, the last part is notable for his books, lectures and teaching. In A Common Sense Guide to World Peace, he explains: Being a Prophet of Peace is not very profitable, but the work is steady. Ferenczs wish is for world leaders to overcome their fears and reconcile their differences so that all who dwell on this planet may live together in peace and dignity. Oh, if only the world had more people like Ben Ferencz. Roger C. Barnes is professor emeritus of sociology at the University of the Incarnate Word. What do Mein Kampf, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Between the World and Me, Call Me by Your Name and 50 Shades of Grey have in common? They represent controversial historical and literary works from both sides of the social-political spectrum that fanatics wish to ban. A recent surge of faux outrage over public school libraries has risen across the country. The First Amendment is the latest casualty in Texas. Since the 2020 election, conservative media have operated at full throttle calculated by their newest trigger words critical race theory. Although they cant explain it, they know its bad. Parents pulled into this right-wing maelstrom across the state are demanding school boards limit critical race theory because they deem it unpatriotic or targeting white America. This censorship mentality has seeped into the corridors of power, most recently with state Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth. In shameless, McCarthy-esque fashion, Krause has initiated a hit list of 850 books in public school libraries books I doubt Krause has read. The list includes but is not limited to books about race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation and anything ambiguously related to critical race theory. To be fair, liberals have practiced their own version of cancel culture with things they find racist or outdated. As a former library assistant at William Taft High School, I have witnessed this threat to literature firsthand. Just last year, we received word from Northside ISD that English teachers were advised not to make it mandatory for high schoolers to read To Kill a Mockingbird because of its racist vocabulary, even though the point of Harper Lees book was to confront the racial bigotry in America at the time. The same with Of Mice and Men and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Conservative administrators also didnt want to see rainbows on library display cases. I am reminded of my all-time favorite book, Ray Bradburys Fahrenheit 451. The book centers around Guy Montag, a fireman living in a dystopian world. In his world, reading is illegal, and Montag is assigned to set fires, instead of extinguishing them, burning any book found on sight. His fictional world is dominated by feelings (happiness) instead of logic and reason, anesthetized through commercialism, advertisements and television. After conversing with a curious young girl, Montag is intrigued and seeks to find answers in the books he has made a living out of reducing to ashes. His antagonist, fire chief Beatty, rationalizes their duty to set all books aflame because it gives people happiness and ease of mind. Colored people dont like Little Black Sambo, Beatty quips. Burn it. White people dont feel good about Uncle Toms Cabin. Burn it. Someones written a book on tobacco and cancer of the lungs? The cigarette people are weeping? Burn the book. Serenity, Montag. Peace, Montag. Take your fight to the incinerator. Nearly 70 years later, Bradburys message still rings true. We are living in Guy Montags bizarro world, and the underlying message must never be forgotten, by conservatives or liberals our First Amendment gives us the freedom to choose what we want to inform us; we should make the decisions on what we want to drive us, whether it is the Bible, an LGBTQ+ book or any controversial literature. Only then will we counter the true evil in the world ignorance. Alfredo Torres Jr. is an independent historian and adjunct professor of humanities in San Antonio. He is researching the history of Latinos and eugenics for Oxford University Press. Re: Embrace Christmas spirit, not holiday stress, by Cary Clack, Other Views, Sunday: My mother grew up in a one-parent home of seven. Her father died before she was born, and her mother worked very hard to provide the necessities. There was no money for gifts. One year, they were invited to a Christmas party at the home of a dear friend. Mom was sad, assuming there would be no gifts for her and her siblings. But one by one, they were called to get a gift from Santa. They were thrilled. This thoughtful gesture gave them the joy of Christmas. Inspired by this, our Christmas gifts became Santa gifts. I make sure to have extras in case someone brings a friend. That should be the spirit of Christmas bring joy to others. Rachel Diaz-Kennon Christmas every day Re: Embrace Christmas spirit, not holiday stress, Other Views, Sunday: Cary Clacks column was about the true meaning of Christmas, which we should strive to live each day. Christmas is about Christian qualities, not material status. Johnnie Davis Dona Juanitas spirit From the time I was born until her death, my grandmother Dona Juanita expected the whole family, including my mother, Velia, my Tia Lul and her children from San Antonio and many others, to arrive at her house in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, by Dec. 24. Get up! Get up, everyone! Dona Juanita would say, waking us at 4 a.m. Lets get to work. And we did. There were tamales and menudo to make for our celebration. The spirit of Christmas is to be happy and enjoy our families, but it is also to care for the less fortunate by sharing. Dona Juanita shared her fortune with everyone in her neighborhood, and we all played a part. My Tio Chato would set up the largest Nativity I have ever seen. Tia Rosa, Tia Sara, Tia Nena, Tia Lul, Tia Belia and Tia Kelo, and all their children rinsed the corn leaves, cooked the meat and made the dough for the tamales. They also prepared the bolo (a special treat). Tio Chato started the fire to cook everything outside in big, big pots. Dona Juanita expected us to have everything ready by 6 p.m. After we prayed the rosary, the actors would arrive for the pastorela, a play that re-enacted the birth of Jesus Christ. Then we served meals at times up to 200 people. We also hit the pinata and distributed El Bolo. The celebration of Jesus birth ended with fireworks at midnight lots and lots of fireworks. Dona Juanita and many of the others have died, but the joyous memories live on. Maria Guadalupe Lupita Johnson-Cavazos Farmers have welcomed the announcement from the Welsh government that Basic Payment Scheme payments will remain the same in 2022. Minister for Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths stated she had 'prioritised support' for the sector to help with the challenges facing farmers as a result of Brexit and the pandemic. The total direct payment ceiling of 238 million mirrors the level of support provided to farmers in 2020 and 2021. It comes alongside the announcement earlier this year that the BPS will continue in 2023. NFU Cymru welcomed the announcement, as the year ahead presented 'continued challenges for the sector'. The union's president John Davies said: As a union, we have stressed to Welsh government that the BPS is crucial to maintaining the supply of safe, high quality and affordable food to all in society. "This is as important as it has ever been, as the nation continues to battle against the effect of the coronavirus." Mr Davies said farmers were dealing with trade friction resulting from Brexit, trade deals with major agricultural exporting nations and significant hikes in input costs. "Todays announcement from the minister is therefore a welcome assurance to the nations farmers," he added. As well as providing security to farming businesses, this announcement is also a boost for our rural businesses and communities, as Welsh farms provide the economic, social and cultural foundation of our rural communities." Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release SubCategory Select Sub-Category On November 30, 2021 local time, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Eritrea Osman Saleh Mohammed on the sidelines of the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Dakar. Osman extended warm congratulations on the successful convening of the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee. He said, under the leadership of the CPC, China has not only made phenomenal development progress and become the engine of global economic development and innovation, but also ensured that the fruits of development are shared by all the people, which is really impressive. Wang Yi said, the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee adopted a historic resolution, and made a comprehensive review of the Party's glorious achievements and valuable experience over the past century, further strengthening the resolve and confidence of the Chinese people to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. China's development is the growth of developing countries' forces and the world's peaceful forces. China's rise will make the international forces more balanced and the world more peaceful. Wang Yi said, Eritrea always supports China in safeguarding its core interests. China also firmly supports Eritrea in opposing external interference, safeguarding sovereignty and independence, and opposing the unilateral sanctions which are groundless under the international law. China always believes that regional countries know best the problems within the region, and it's up to the people of a country to properly handle its internal affairs. Osman said, Eritrea and China share common ground in upholding multilateralism and maintaining fairness and justice. Eritrea firmly opposes interfering in other countries' internal affairs under the guise of human rights and democracy. Wang Yi said, democratic standards must be made in democratic ways. The so-called "Summit for Democracy" is in itself not democratic at all because it is the U.S. that labels and judges other countries, laying bare its hypocrisy. Unilateralism and arbitrariness are on the opposite side of democracy. Both sides also exchanged views on practical cooperation. The two sides agreed to take Eritrea's joining the Belt and Road Initiative as an opportunity to deepen cooperation in fields such as ports, energy, infrastructure, agriculture and mining. News Greyhound groups jockey for cut of $2M in residual purses LA MARQUE More than a year after closure of Gulf Greyhound Park, the states last dog track, the Texas Racing Commission has appealed to the Texas Attorney General for assistance in handling about $2 million earmarked for purse winnings in greyhound races. The money comes from gambling at Texas horse tracks, which are required by state law to pay 5.5 percent of the interstate cross-species earnings to the Texas Greyhound Association, according to the appeal. It is held in escrow by the Texas Greyhound Association and, under state law, must be used at racetracks in this state. But with no races held in Texas since La Marques Gulf Greyhound Park closed in June 2020 citing declining interest in the sport, the money is accumulating with nowhere to go. Its not taxpayers money, said Texas Greyhound Association President Billy Galbreath. Its money that, by law, goes to the greyhound industry. The December appeal to the attorney general came after the Texas Greyhound Association proposed the money accumulated from Mar. 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2021, be distributed to the kennel owners and owners of Texas-bred greyhounds that participated in the most recent meet in Texas, the last races at Gulf Greyhound Park. These people were harmed tremendously by this closure, Galbreath said. They had invested not only years of time but money as well to have greyhounds ready to race in the 2021 meet. But others, including Grey2K USA, an advocacy group focused on ending greyhound racing, oppose the proposal. Grey2K USA argued the money would become yearly subsidies for those in the industry. It just is incredibly strange, Executive Director Carey Thiel said. The appeal to the attorney general seeks an opinion on the legality of giving the $2 million to greyhound owners and whether future distributions would be permitted. It could take up to 180 days to get an answer. DECLINING INTEREST Interest in greyhound racing has declined in recent years as advocacy groups have sought to have the sport banned. Florida voters in 2018 banned greyhound racing, leading to the closure of the majority of the countrys dog tracks. The closure of Gulf Greyhound Park in 2020 ended greyhound racing in Texas. Although races still are scheduled at Valley Race Park in Harlingen, Texas, they likely will be canceled because the park isnt in condition to host races, said Galbreath, who has no hope greyhound racing will be revived in Texas. Now, only three states Arkansas, Iowa and West Virginia have operational dog tracks, although the tracks in Arkansas and Iowa have said theyll stop live racing in 2022. A GENERATIONAL PRACTICE Many of those involved in the greyhound industry have been for generations, Galbreath said. We have guys that are in their 50s, but theyve never done anything else, he said. Their parents did it; they grew up doing that. The closure of Gulf Greyhound Park, which came with just six months notice, was a blow to those who had invested thousands of dollars and years of work into their dogs, Galbreath said. Most found themselves with dogs ready to race and nowhere to go, he said. It is difficult for breeders and owners to get their dogs into out-of-state races, Galbreath said. Tracks are associated with kennels, which provide the dogs that race, he said. To get a dog into the kennel and therefore into a race, the owner or breeder needs to have a relationship with that kennel, he said. And in a country where dog tracks are scarce, few kennels have openings to work with new breeders, he said. Theres basically no openings because those trainers at other tracks have breeders that they work with in other states, he said. Although there arent many breeders in Texas, all were harmed by Gulf Greyhound Parks closure, Galbreath said. And after investing thousands of dollars into raising dogs to race, many have little choice but to adopt them out, he said. Luckily, there are a ton of adoption groups and theyre tremendous in helping us, he said. But still, youve got dogs and thousands of dollars invested in these dogs. THE PROPOSAL In proposals submitted to the Texas Racing Commission, the Texas Greyhound Association laid out two ways the money could be distributed. Under both proposals, roughly $1 million would be divided among the eight kennels that participated in the final meet at Gulf Greyhound Park. Under the first proposal, which the association prefers, the proportion of money each kennel received would be based on the proportions of purses paid to each kennel based on race outcomes. In the second proposal, each kennel would receive the same amount of money. Both proposals divide the remaining $1 million among the 39 owners of Texas-bred greyhounds that participated in the final meet, with each receiving just under $26,000. THE OPPOSITION The National Greyhound Association would prefer the money not be restricted to Texas-based owners and breeders, Executive Director Jim Gartland said. That money was earned, so to speak, and made off the backs of greyhound people all over the country, he said. Thiel and Grey2K USA worry because the money will continue to accumulate under state law, that one-time payout might become a regular occurrence. If you take that to its logical conclusion, it becomes a perpetual subsidy for these 47 individuals for dog races that will never happen, Thiel said. And although he acknowledged the greyhound industry has struggled in recent years, setting up a subsidy would set a bad precedent, Thiel said. To prevent that, the group unsuccessfully tried to change the law because greyhound racing no longer happens. Neither proposal from the Texas Greyhound Association addresses how future funds will be used. Galbreath said he didnt know whether the money would be a yearly subsidy. But the money would help those who have been harmed, he said. Can you imagine youre 50 years old, something youve done your whole life, and now its gone? he said. So what are you qualified to do? What job are you going to get? Fort Collins, CO, Dec. 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Colorado Coalition, the regional stakeholder group led by Innosphere Ventures in partnership with organizations from government, business, academia, and nonprofits named below, was named by the Economic Development Administration (EDA) as a finalist in the $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge. The Colorado Coalition will now advance to Phase 2 and compete for up to $100 million in American Rescue Plan funding to develop and scale the regions research and development (R&D) intensive industries. The Colorado Coalition's vision is to create innovation at scale in two of Colorados leading industries biosciences and cleantech. We will leverage our nationally recognized innovation assets to build a world-class ecosystem for our region's R&D-intensive growth industries, said Mike Freeman, CEO of Innosphere Ventures. These growth industries will be a leader in creating equitable growth across our region. The organizations that make up the Colorado Coalition include: Innosphere Ventures; State of Colorado; National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL); Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA); Colorado Cleantech Industries Association (CCIA); the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation; the cities of Boulder, Denver, and Fort Collins; Jefferson County; the research universities of Colorado School of Mines, University of Colorado, and Colorado State University. The Build Back Better Regional Challenge (Challenge) is assisting communities nationwide in their local efforts to build back better by accelerating the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and building economies that will be resilient to future economic shocks. The Challenge is the largest economic development initiative from the U.S. Department of Commerce in decades. Colorado has a real opportunity to advance and lead in bioscience and cleantech not just in the state, but nationally and internationally, said J. J. Ament, President and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. The Colorado Coalition is demonstrating our states proven track record of coming together to address the needs of our workforce and grow our economy for all Coloradans. Achieving Colorado's full potential lies in the opportunity to advance sub-segments of the bioscience and cleantech industries that require heavy R&D, specialized facilities, a well-trained workforce, and comprehensive startup support, said Mike Freeman, CEO of Innosphere Ventures. The Colorado Coalition proposed a total of eight projects within our Phase I proposal that are critical to the U.S. competitiveness in biosciences and cleantech. With our 6 construction and 2 non-construction projects, our proposal will propel the Colorado Front Range to higher economic performance and equitable growth. As a finalist, the Colorado Coalition was awarded $500,000 to develop a plan to execute eight tightly focused projects that advance the bioscience and cleantech industries: Denver Metro Chamber of Commerces Prosper CO: Scale the existing Prosper CO initiative through the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation to recruit, retain and promote women and people of color across the cluster and connect more BIPOC businesses to procurement opportunities. Expand startup and scaleup support for new ventures: Extend early support for all inventors at research universities and federal laboratories, invest in entrepreneurial training for a more diverse current and future workforce, expand product support, and improve industry access. Colorado School of Mines Sustainable Infrastructure Center: Construct an R&D center focused on manufacturing, sustainable resource management, sustainable and advanced energy systems, water, and sustainable infrastructure. Colorado State University BioMARC: Expand the existing BioMARC facility to create a national asset for infectious disease-related GMP product development. Boulder Wetlabs CU Boulder, City of Boulder, and Innosphere. Construct startup BSL-2 wet laboratory spaces, including offices, meeting rooms, and entrepreneurial incubator programs and services within the Boulder ecosystem. Denver Wetlabs Colorado School of Mines, City of Denver, and Innosphere. Construct startup BSL-2 wet laboratory spaces, including offices, meeting rooms, and entrepreneurial incubator programs and services within the Denver ecosystem. Colorado State University. Expand the existing Powerhouse Energy Campus to provide advanced laboratories for cleantech innovators to commercialize energy and climate solutions. State of Colorado, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and Jefferson County. Public-private partnership to create a Global Energy Park adjacent to the NREL campus focused on equitable energy transition, decarbonization, new climate solutions, improved public health, and environmental sustainability. The Build Back Better Regional Challenge aims to supercharge local economies and increase American competitiveness around the globe, said Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo. The outpouring of interest in this program shows the demand for the Build Back Better agenda and the desire to not only create good-paying jobs, but also strengthen our countrys economic resiliency for years down the road. Phase 1 of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge invited coalitions to apply for funding to implement a collection of three to eight distinct but related projects in their region. Projects need to be in coordination with industry and community partners, and aligned around a holistic vision to build and scale a strategic industry sector. EDA received 529 applications from regions in all 50 states and five territories, and the 60 finalists represent regions that formed extraordinary coalitions, demonstrated regional needs, and presented bold proposals to grow their target industry clusters. Colorado Coalition was the only applicant in Colorado to be named a finalist. Ranging from rural communities and coastal towns to major metros, the finalists make up a diverse cross-section of the United States. In Phase 2, finalists will compete for significant implementation assistance. EDA will award 20-30 coalitions each up to $100 million. These awards will assist communities in executing ambitious plans to supercharge their regional economies across a variety of strategic growth sectors. The deadline for Phase 2 applications is March 15, 2022. Learn more at eda.gov/arpa/build-back-better. Attachments New York, Dec. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "United States Generic Drugs Market, By Type, By Application, By Mode of Drug Delivery, By Form, By Source, By Distribution Channel, By Region, Competition, Forecast and Opportunity, 2026" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06192577/?utm_source=GNW United States generic drugs market was valued USD70.78 billion in 2020 and is forecast to grow at CAGR of 9.43% during the forecast period and may achieve market value of USD126.74 billion by the year 2026. Factors like cost effective nature of generic drugs and increasing demand from the developing economies are majorly responsible for this futuristic growth estimation of the United States generic drugs market in the upcoming five years. Generic drugs do not require extensive research and development as in case of prescription drugs and patented drugs. Market players and research institutes invest heavily on patent pharmaceuticals. Also, FDA approvals for the generic drugs are not required since generic drugs contain same composition as that of previously patented drug and thus supports the growth of the United States generic drugs market in the next five years. United States healthcare industry, in terms of the generic drugs, has grown from registering 80% growth in 2020 from previous growth of 20% in 2015. Increased export of generic drugs to the developing economies like Kenya, India, etc. is also substantiating the growth of the United States generic drugs market in the future five years. The United States generic drugs market is segmented based on type, mode of drug delivery, form, source of manufacturing, application, company and regional distribution.Based on type, the market can be split into small molecule generics and biosimilars. Small molecule generics are anticipated to register largest revenue shares of the market and dominate the market segment in the upcoming five years on the account of its simpler and easier manufacturing processes.Generic drug manufacturers during the production of small molecule generics are required to prove that the final product contains identical chemical compounds as that of the patent drug. With similar pharmacokinetic functions and properties, the small molecule generic is accepted. Moreover, the demand for the cost-effective generic drugs is anticipated to further support the growth of the United States generic drugs market in the future five years. Based on application, the market can be fragmented into cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, neurology, oncology, infectious diseases, and others.Cardiovascular diseases are expected to dominate the market segment while registering largest revenue shares of the market in the upcoming five years on the account of increasing instances of cardiovascular diseases in the United States. Moreover, increased demand for the treatment and prolonged medication protocols drives the growth of the sub-segment cardiovascular diseases meanwhile supporting the growth of the Untied States generic drugs market in the next five years. Increasing researches and pharmaceutical developments for the oncology disease is anticipated to drive the growth of the oncology sub-segment and drive the growth of the United States generic drugs market in the future five years. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., Pfizer Inc., Sandoz US, Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., Aurobindo Pharma USA, Inc., Abbott Laboratories Inc., Eli Lilly and Company, Sun Pharma Inc., Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Zydus Pharmaceutical USA Inc. are among the major market players in the United States that lead the market growth of generic drugs. Years considered for this report: Historical Years: 2016-2019 Base Year: 2020 Estimated Year: 2021 Forecast Period: 2022-2026 Objective of the Study: To analyze the historical growth in the market size of United States generic drugs market from 2016 to 2020. To estimate and forecast the market size of United States generic drugs market from 2021 to 2026 and growth rate until 2026. To classify and forecast United States generic drugs market based on type, application, mode of drug delivery, form, source, distribution channel, competitional landscape, and regional distribution. To identify dominant region or segment in the United States generic drugs market. To identify drivers and challenges for United States generic drugs market. To examine competitive developments such as expansions, new product launches, mergers & acquisitions, etc., in United States generic drugs market. To identify and analyze the profile of leading players operating in United States generic drugs market. To identify key sustainable strategies adopted by market players in United States generic drugs market. The analyst performed both primary as well as exhaustive secondary research for this study.Initially, the analyst sourced a list of manufacturers across the globe. Subsequently, the analyst conducted primary research surveys with the identified companies.While interviewing, the respondents were also enquired about their competitors. Through this technique, the analyst could include the manufacturers which could not be identified due to the limitations of secondary research. The analyst examined the manufacturers, distribution channels and presence of all major players across the globe. The analyst calculated the market size of the United States generic drugs market using a bottom-up approach, wherein data for various end-user segments was recorded and forecast for the future years. The analyst sourced these values from the industry experts and company representatives and externally validated through analyzing historical data of these product types and applications for getting an appropriate, overall market size. Various secondary sources such as company websites, news articles, press releases, company annual reports, investor presentations and financial reports were also studied by the analyst. Key Target Audience: Generic drugs manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and other stakeholders Government bodies such as regulating authorities and policy makers Organizations, forums and alliances related to generic drugs Market research and consulting firms The study is useful in providing answers to several critical questions that are important for the industry stakeholders such as manufacturers, suppliers, partners, end users, etc., besides allowing them in strategizing investments and capitalizing on market opportunities. Report Scope: In this report, United States generic drugs market has been segmented into following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below: United States Generic Drugs Market, By Type: o Small Molecule Generic o Biosimilars United States Generic Drugs Market, By Application: o Cardiovascular Diseases o Diabetes o Neurology o Oncology o Infectious Diseases o Others United States Generic Drugs Market, By Mode of Drug Delivery: o Oral o Parenteral o Topical o Others United States Generic Drugs Market, By Form: o Tablet o Capsule o Injection o Others United States Generic Drugs, By Source: o In House Manufacturing o Contract Manufacturing Organizations United States Generic Drugs Market, By Distributions Channels: o Retail Pharmacies o Online Pharmacies o Hospital Pharmacies o Others United States Generic Drugs Market, By Region: o South o Midwest o West o Northeast Competitive Landscape Company Profiles: Detailed analysis of the major companies present in global generic drugs market. Available Customizations: With the given market data, we offers customizations according to a companys specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report: Company Information Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players (up to five). Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06192577/?utm_source=GNW About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Reno, United States, Dec. 24, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Billionaire Zombies Club (BZC), a fast-growing decentralized NFT art community, has donated 1,000,000,000 tokens to ten nonprofits including OneMama, Presence WorldWide, Hope Refuge Inc, Could You?, Leyline, Wendell Scott Foundation, The First Parents, Splash International, Human Trust Foundation, and The Digital Legacy Foundation. Select non-profit partners from this group are currently offering small portions of their tokens for sale on www.billionairezombies.com. 100% of the token sales go directly to the not-for-profit entities. In addition, as a holiday gift to reward members of The BZC community, all Billionaire Zombies Club NFT holders, will receive 30,000 tokens on Christmas Day. The Billionaire Zombies club recently launched a proprietary online portal that is a hub for the clubs activity going forward. This portal currently enables consumers to buy and sell all assets from the Billionaire Zombies Club Collection and upcoming metaverse experience, including meta crystals, skeleton keys and Skeleton Kings. Billionaire Zombies Clubs members can also register for an official Billionaire Zombies Club membership card and mint new metaverse assets at www.billionairezombies.com The Billionaire Zombie Team recently released its full roadmap via their newly released White Paper. The white paper outlines the community full development roadmap, milestones, an overview of their Metaverse ecosystem, tokenomics structure, full team overview, DAO Governance model etc. The Billionaire Zombie Club released a preview of their upcoming immersive metaverse experience via a preview of an in metaverse castle. An overnight success, the BZC collection sold $500,000 of collectible digital art in its first minting; selling out its 10,000 unique art pieces in just 12 days. The art collection is now estimated to be worth north of $20,000,000 As with the cream of the crop of NFT projects and communities, these unique pieces of nonfungible token art actually represent more of a passport to a new digital reality rather than just something to look at or throw on a digital art display. People in the BZC community are buying into experiences, a community, and a technological future that they want to be a part of. The Billionaire Zombies Club movement has garnered celebrity attention across Instagram and Twitter from influencers such as The Game (12,000,000+ Followers), Amber Rose (25,000,000+ Followers),Brittany Renner ( 5,000,000+Followers), Mario Chalmers (1,400,000+ Followers), Brandon Thomas (2,000,000+ Followers), and Bow Wow (7,700,000+). The Billionaire Zombies Club has been featured in numerous global publications including Forbes, Entrepreneur, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Tech Times etc, About Billionaire Zombies Club The Billionaire Zombies Club or BZC community has aggregated cutting-edge marketers, entrepreneurs, game developers, etc. who have come together to create one of the Metaverses most unique communities. BZC minted its initial offering of 10,000 NFTs in less than 12 days. The BZC community currently boasts more than 23,000 Discord members. BZC launched an official token airdrop on Giving Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021, with over 1,000,000,000 tokens dropped to existing BZC NFT holders and 1,000,000,000 tokens to charity, 100,000,0000 to each of 10 non-profit partners.. Relevant Links Billionaire Zombies Club on Open Sea https://opensea.io/collection/billionairezombiesclub Billionaire Zombies Club Website https://billionairezombies.club/ Billionaire Zombies Club Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bzombiesc/ Billionaire Zombies Club Portal https://billionairezombies.com/ Contact Info: Name: Press Zombie Email: Send Email Organization: Billionaire Zombie Club Address: 18124 wedge Parkway Suite 1074, Reno, NV 89511, United States Website: https://billionairezombies.club/ New York, NY, Dec. 25, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To celebrate this holiday season, the Trademark Factory family has put together a joyful rendition of a beloved sing-a-long favorite, but with a trademark twist. From company owner Andrei Mincov: It's our annual tradition since 2010. Every year, we come up with something special for Christmas and New Years. This time around, we recorded our own trademark-infused version of Feliz Navidadan amazing, timeless song by Jose Feliciano. While Lets File Your Trademarks works its way to the top of holiday song charts, Trademark Factory continues to work hard and provide the very best trademarking services for your brand. As always, they want to make sure your trademark is secured and protected for the remainder of this year, all of next year, and beyond. Their team of licensed experts and professionals are standing by to help you start the new year off right with risk-free, guaranteed trademark approval. WATCH HERE Wishing all of their current and future clients a Merry Christmas from the bottom of their hearts and a Happy New Year, cheers to you from everyone at Trademark Factory! And if you are starting or growing your business next year and need to file a trademark, well you know where to go. About Trademark Factory Launched by former intellectual property lawyer in 2011, Trademark Factorys origins lay at the beginning of founder Andrei Mincovs legal career in Russia in 1996. His father, the famed Russian composer Mark Minkov, had heard a piece of his being played in the background of an advertisement by a local radio station without his knowledge or consent. Andrei, who was still law student at the time, sued the radio station for copyright infringement, and ultimately won a precedent-setting victory in Russias second-highest court. After a successful career working for the worlds largest international law firm, Andrei immigrated to Canada in 2007. After undertaking additional schooling in the law, Andrei set out to found a firm that would provide business owners trademarking services for a single, flat fee, and thus Trademark Factory was born. To date, Trademark Factory has filed for over 1,500 trademarks for over 800 clients around the world with an astonishing 99.3% rate of success. For more information, visit trademarkfactory.com and follow Trademark Factory on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram and subscribe to their YouTube channel. Attachment Germanys Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWi) has approved 900 million for the innovative funding instrument H2Global. The aim of the project is to advance the international market ramp-up of green hydrogen and to use double-auction procedures for this purpose. This means that hydrogen or hydrogen derivatives are bought cheaply on the world market and sold at the highest bid in the EU. Green hydrogen plays a central role in the transformation of our economy. In the future, we will have a high demand for green hydrogen and will also need imports in addition to production in Germany. Therefore, we are already starting the international ramp-up of the hydrogen economy and building long-term value creation and supply chains through the H2Global instrument. Robert Habeck, Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection The core idea of H2Global is a double-auction model: Hydrogen or hydrogen derivatives are purchased in non-EU countries at the lowest possible price with 10-year contracts via a competitive process. The contracts are processed via the intermediary HINT.CO. HINT.CO is a subsidiary of the H2Global Foundation founded by the private sector. Through the intermediary, products are sold to German and European companies through short-term auctions at the highest possible price, which can thus drive their decarbonization. Since the production price of green hydrogen is still relatively high in the current market ramp-up phase, HINT.CO is expected to pay more in purchasing than it can collect through sales. The resulting losses are compensated by the federal governments grant for a maximum of 10 years. Over time, losses will decrease as the willingness to pay for sustainable energy sources will increase in the foreseeable future. The producers of renewable hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives such as green ammonia, green methanol, and e-Kerosene wishing to participate in the tenders will have to strictly comply with the sustainability criteria for renewable hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives production, set by the revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED II). They will also have to contribute to the deployment or financing of the additional renewable electricity needed to supply the electrolyzers producing hydrogen under the scheme. After the funding instrument was approved by the European Commission under state aid law on 12/20/2021, the first acceptance contracts under H2Global are to be concluded as early as 2022. The first deliveries of sustainable hydrogen-based energy sources to Germany and Europe are planned for 2024. NASA has selected four university-led teams for potential awards in the agencys University Leadership Initiative (ULI) that will have them spend up to five years exploring novel ideas for improving aviation, including eliminating emissions and autonomy research in support of Advanced Air Mobility. Three of the four teams are working toward lowering or eliminating aircraft emissions, with each team approaching the problem from a slightly different perspective. The fourth teams autonomy research is in support of NASAs Advanced Air Mobility campaign. Another key ULI goal is for students to gain experience in leading a multidisciplinary team made up of partners from other universities and industry, including student populations who are underrepresented or have not applied their skills to aviation problems. Final negotiations could lead to awards of up to $31.5 million during the next five years. The four teams and their research topics are: University of Central Florida. The team will explore using liquid ammonia as fuel for a jet engine and generating electricity from the engines exhaust heat, reducing emissions, and saving on fuel. Team members include Georgia Tech, Purdue University, Boeing, GE Research, ANSYS, Southwest Research Institute, and the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority. Florida State University . The team will consider how hybrid hydrogen-electric power generation could be combined with fuel cell technology to lower emissions. Team members include Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, University at Buffalo, University of Kentucky, Georgia Tech, Raytheon, Boeing, and Advanced Magnet Lab. Georgia Institute of Technology. The team will turn its attention to sustainable aviation challenges related to a jet engines combustor but in this case the engine is powering a commercial supersonic transport. Team members include Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Virginia Tech, Spelman College, Missouri University of Science and Technology, General Electric, and Aerodyne Research Incorporated. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. The team aims to deliver trustworthy autonomy tools to help Advanced Air Mobility aircraft fly safely through complex airspace, typical of dense urban environments. Team members include Georgia Tech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, North Carolina A&T State University, University of Nevada at Reno, Lockheed Martin, and Sierra Nevada Corporation. This is the fifth time a set of teams have been selected to participate in ULI. Six teams were selected earlier in 2021, five teams were chosen in 2020, three teams were announced in 2019, and five teams were selected for the inaugural initiative in 2017. An official notice for the next request for proposals is expected to be posted online in March 2022. A research team has developed a new artificial photosynthesis device component with remarkable stability and longevity as it selectively converts sunlight and carbon dioxide into two promising sources of renewable fuels: ethylene and hydrogen. The researchers findings, which they recently reported in the journal Nature Energy, reveal how the device degrades with use, then demonstrate how to mitigate it. The authors also provide new insight into how electrons and charge carriers called holes contribute to degradation in artificial photosynthesis. By understanding how materials and devices transform under operation, we can design approaches that are more durable and thus reduce waste. senior author Francesca Toma, a staff scientist in the Liquid Sunlight Alliance (LiSA) and Berkeley Labs Chemical Sciences Division For the current study, Toma and her team designed a model solar fuels device known as a photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell made of copper(I) oxide or cuprous oxide (Cu 2 O), a promising artificial photosynthesis material. To better understand how to optimize the working conditions for this promising material, Toma and her team took a closer look at cuprous oxides crystal structure before and after use. Electron microscopy experiments at the Molecular Foundry confirmed that cuprous oxide quickly oxidizes or corrodes within minutes of exposure to light and water. In artificial photosynthesis research, researchers have typically used water as the electrolyte in the reduction of carbon dioxide into renewable chemicals or fuels, such as ethylene and hydrogenbut water contains hydroxide ions, which leads to instability. Another experiment, this time using a technique called ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (APXPS) at the Advanced Light Source, revealed an unexpected clue: cuprous oxide corrodes even faster in water containing hydroxide ions, which are negatively charged ions comprised of an oxygen atom bound to a hydrogen atom. We knew it was unstablebut we were surprised to learn just how unstable it really is. When we began this study, we wondered, maybe the key to a better solar fuels device isnt in the material by itself but in the overall environment of the reaction, including the electrolye. Francesca Toma This demonstrates that hydroxides contribute to corrosion. On the other hand, we reasoned that if you eliminate the source of corrosion, you eliminate corrosion. first author Guiji Liu, a LiSA project scientist in Berkeley Labs Chemical Sciences Division In electronic devices, electron-hole pairs separate into electrons and holes to generate charge. But once separated, if electrons and holes arent used to generate electricity, such as in a photovoltaic device that converts sunlight into electricity, or to perform a reaction in an artificial photosynthesis device, they can react with the material and degrade it. In artificial photosynthesis, this recombination can corrode cuprous oxide if it is not properly controlled. Scientists had long assumed that electrons were solely to blame for cuprous oxides corrosion. But to Tomas and Lius surprise, computer simulations performed at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) showed that holes also play a part. The simulations also hinted at a potential workaround to cuprous oxides inherent instability: a cuprous oxide PEC coated with silver on top, and gold/iron oxide underneath. This Z scheme, which is inspired by the electron transfer that takes place in natural photosynthesis, should create a funnel that sends holes from cuprous oxide to the gold/iron oxide sink. Moreover, the diversity in materials at the interface should stabilize the system by providing additional electrons to recombine with the holes of the cuprous oxide, explained Toma. To validate their simulations, the researchers designed a physical model of a Z-scheme artificial photosynthesis device at Tomas LiSA lab at Berkeley Lab. The device produced ethylene and hydrogen with unprecedented selectivity and for more than 24 hours. The researchers plan to continue their work on developing new solar fuel devices for liquid fuels production by using their new approach. The Liquid Sunlight Alliance is a DOE Energy Innovation Hub. The Advanced Light Source, Molecular Foundry, and NERSC are user facilities at Berkeley Lab. This work was supported by the DOE Office of Science. Resources GREENWICH As the new Citizens Police Advisory Committee takes shape, a new member of the Board of Selectmen wants the members to receive specialized training in recognizing unconscious bias. Selectwoman Janet Stone McGuigan, who began her first term on the board earlier this month, said she hoped that all the committee members would do the unconscious bias training in addition to going through the Citizens Police Academy. We need to be clear about what trainings this will require, Stone McGuigan said at Thursdays board meeting. The committee members, who will be volunteers, should also receive a one-page recommended orientation and training from the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement, she said. That would not be a specific training but rather a one-page outline of training topics that she said ideally should be covered, along with a list of resources. The Citizens Police Advisory Committee will give residents oversight of the police departments internal affairs and citizen complaint processes after allegations of police misconduct. The committee members have not yet been appointed, but the Board of Selectmen is interviewing candidates to fill the openings in the New Year. Stone McGuigan was not yet a member of the Board of Selectmen when it unanimously approved formation of the Citizens Police Advisory Committee in October. After the meeting Thursday, First Selectman Fred Camillo said he was not on board yet with mandating the unconscious bias training for the volunteer community members. But Camillo said he wanted to take a closer look at the proposal. During the meeting, Camillo said McGuigans point was well taken about unconscious bias training. He said that he and Selectwoman Lauren Rabin had been looking for the past year at the training, which town employees will be doing. But the training is very expensive, Camillo said, and it wasnt something that could currently be offered to volunteers, such as the committee members. He suggested reaching out to other organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League for similar training. Camillo said he would also discuss that further with Stone McGuigan. I think its a very good idea, Camillo said. Most of our volunteers if not all of them are terrific, but you never know and you always want to be careful. This is something we should all look into, and I think were all on the same page there. After Thursdays meeting, Stone McGuigan said she was hopeful Camillo would agree to include the unconscious bias training. Its a little challenging here because the towns training isnt ready to launch, and I didnt want to propose a change to the policy to require a training that hasnt been vetted, she said. But now the board has had a public discussion, and for now Im satisfied that the committee members will be offered an appropriate training. I just wanted to put this view out there before any members are appointed so that expectations are clear, she said. Training options The town has not finalized the format for the unconscious bias training that town employees will complete in 2022. Because of that, Stone McGuigan said she realized she might be a little ahead of myself, but she said she wanted to vocalize her view. Then, when the training is available for the town, the committee members could be asked to take it, she said. The Citizens Police Advisory Committee will consist of 10 members who will serve three-year terms. Under the current structure, town residents over the age of 17 are eligible to be members of the committee. They must also graduate from the Greenwich Police Departments Citizens Police Academy, which is held at least twice a year. The academy teaches town residents about police duties in classes and specialized training; the program also includes firearms training and a ride-along with officers. The advisory committee is designed to assist in enhancing the transparency and public accountability of the Greenwich Police Department through the review of monthly performance reports, citizen complaints and internal affairs investigations. At Thursdays meeting, Stone McGuigan offered her hope that the committees membership would reflect the demographics of the Greenwich community. In particular, we need to make sure there is representation from our community who may have a challenging relationship with law enforcement, she said. Im thinking that might be people under 30. Stone McGuigan said if there is anyone from that age group or knows anyone who was in that age group who was interested in being part of the committee, they should reach out and put their names forward for consideration. Anyone in that age bracket or anyone who knows someone in that age bracket who is interested in serving on the Citizens Police Advisory Committee, should reach out and put their names forward for consideration, Stone McGuigan said. I know there is going to be no difficulty finding candidates who appreciate our police department, she said. Greenwich is really fortunate to have the department that we have. Camillo said he expected the makeup of the committee would be quite diverse, but he said it might be difficult to get people under the age of 30 to take part. He said the town would keep an eye for candidates in that age group with an interest in joining the Citizens Police Advisory Committee. kborsuk@greenwichtime.com Christmas arrived around the world Saturday amid a surge in COVID-19 infections that kept many families apart, overwhelmed hospitals and curbed religious observances as the pandemic was poised to stretch into a third year. Yet, there were homilies of hope, as vaccines and other treatments become more available. Pope Francis used his Christmas address to pray for more vaccines to reach the poorest countries. While wealthy countries have inoculated as much as 90% of their adult populations, 8.9% of Africas people are fully jabbed, making it the worlds least-vaccinated continent. Only a few thousand well-wishers turned out for his noontime address and blessing, but even that was better than last year, when Italys Christmas lockdown forced Francis indoors for the annual Urbi et Orbi ("To the city and the world") speech. Grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of goodwill to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects, Francis said from the loggia of St. Peters Basilica. Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care and vaccines in particular are provided to those peoples who need them most. In the United States, many churches canceled in-person services, but for those that did have in-person worship, clerics reported smaller but significant attendance. Our hopes for a normal Christmas have been tempered by omicron this year still filled with uncertainties and threats that overshadow us, the Rev. Ken Boller told his parishioners during midnight Mass at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in New York City. Breakthrough used to be a happy word for us, until it was associated with COVID. And in the midst of it all, we celebrate Christmas. The Rev. Alex Karloutsos, of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church of the Hamptons in Southampton, New York, said attendance at the Christmas Eve liturgy was a third less than last year's, with the reality of the omicron virus diminishing the crowd, but not the fervor of the faithful present. St. Patricks Church in Hubbard, Ohio, held Mass on Christmas Eve in a nearby high school because of a church fire this year. The Mass drew about 550 people, said Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar, who presided. In Britain, Queen Elizabeth II noted another year of pain particularly personal after losing her husband, Prince Philip, in April and urged people to celebrate with friends and family. Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones, the queen said in the prerecorded message broadcast when many British families were enjoying their traditional Christmas dinner. This year, especially, I understand why. Thousands of people across Britain got a vaccine booster shot for Christmas as new cases hit another daily record of 122,186. The Good Health Pharmacy in north London was one of dozens of sites that stayed open Saturday to administer jingle jabs amid a government push to offer booster shots to all adults by the end of the year. The head of intensive care at a hospital in Marseille, France, said most COVID-19 patients over Christmas were unvaccinated, while his staff are exhausted or cant work because they are infected. Were sick of this, said Dr. Julien Carvelli, the ICU chief at La Timone Hospital, as his team spent another Christmas Eve tending to COVID-19 patients on breathing machines. Were afraid we wont have enough space. On the other side of the globe, hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines, Asias largest Roman Catholic nation, spent Christmas without homes, electricity, or adequate food and water after a powerful typhoon left at least 375 people dead last week and devastated mostly central island provinces. Gov. Arthur Yap of hard-hit Bohol province, where more than 100 people died in the typhoon and about 150,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, appealed for help. He was happy many Filipinos could celebrate Christmas more safely after COVID-19 cases dropped, but he pleaded: Please dont forget us. At least one American Christmas tradition was revived after the pandemic drove it online last year: the annual reenactment of George Washingtons daring crossing of the Delaware River in 1776. Reenactors in three boats completed the crossing in about an hour Saturday. Crowds were in the hundreds, down from the usual thousands. COVID-19 testing continued unimpeded in some places, while other sites closed for the day. Lines that in previous days wrapped around the block at a small testing center in Chicagos Lincoln Square neighborhood shrank considerably Saturday, when the only customers inside were Shayna Prihoda and Michael Boundy, whose negative tests freed them to visit Boundys parents in Michigan. We would have stayed home and quarantined, Boundy said. Swelling numbers of cases in Florida made tests almost as popular as Christmas ham. Florida hit a new case record for the second day in a row. Hours before a testing site opened at Tropical Park in Miami, dozens of cars lined up. To alleviate demand, county workers had distributed 12,500 at-home test kits Friday at libraries. Most of New York Citys 120 testing sites were closed Saturday, a day after police were summoned to a Brooklyn neighborhood to quell an angry crowd that had been expecting to receive free at-home testing kits, only to have the supply run out. Chairs went empty at some dinner tables after airlines around the world canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and reduced staffing. Airlines scrapped nearly 6,000 flights globally that had been scheduled to take off Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with nearly a third involving U.S. flights, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website. At a reception center for asylum-seekers in Cyprus, Patricia Etoh, a Catholic from Cameroon, said she did not have any special plans because it just did not feel like Christmas without her 6-year-old child, whom she had to leave behind. But she added: Were grateful, were alive, and when were alive, theres hope. ___ Winfield reported from Rome, Tarm from Chicago and Smith from Pittsburgh. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Bobby Caina Calvan and Larry Neumeister in New York, Michael Schneider in Miami, Ron Todt in Philadelphia, Danica Kirka in London, Jim Gomez in Manila and Daniel Cole in Marseille, France. PARIS (AP) Worshipers in face masks filed into Saint-Germain-lAuxerrois Church across from the Louvre Museum on Friday for Christmas Eve Mass, and were greeted by the rector of the closed Notre Dame Cathedral. It was the second year that holiday service are being held under the shadow of the coronavirus. Everyone was masked and members of the congregation sprayed people's hands with disinfectant as they entered. Children in the choir sang while masked and spaced out across the podium. They had to produce negative coronavirus tests to participate. We have very strict rules in place, said Monsignor Patrick Chauvet, who is rector of Notre Dame, which has been closed since a devastating fire nearly three years ago. The communion wafer is placed into worshipers hands and there is no kiss of peace. There is no contact whatsoever. Chauvet has been leading the congregation at Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois while the cathedral is being repaired. In the lead-up to Christmas, France has recorded its highest-yet number of daily coronavirus infections while hospitalizations for COVID-19 have been rising. But the government has held off on imposing curfews, closures or other restrictions for the festivities. Maria Valdes, a dual Mexican-French citizen at Mass, said she was resigned to the restrictions of the pandemic. She has gotten used to the ever-changing rules and regulations in her private and public life. As far am Im concerned, we have to live because this is a virus that isnt just going to go away," Valdes said. "Respect the rules, but we have to live. Chauvet said before celebrating the Mass that much as the fire ravaged Notre Dame, the pandemic has devastated communities, whole towns and families. The lockdowns and isolation have left people disoriented, tired and emotionally exhausted, he said. I meet with people who wonder if they are going to manage to get out of this situation, people who are sometimes losing hope, he said. Christmas is hope, Chauvet added. We have to continue to fight, to reach the point where we can try to see the light at the end of the tunnel. In September, the famed medieval cathedral was finally deemed stable and secure enough to start reconstruction from the blaze in April 2019 that tore through its roof and toppled its spire. Work on the spire started a few days ago and authorities hope to have Notre Dame open to visitors and religious services in 2024, the year Paris hosts the Olympics. Carpenters, scaffolding experts, professional climbers, organ mechanics and others are taking part the effort, which included special temporary structures to secure the iconic towers, vaults and walls of the huge roofless structure, and a special umbrella to protect it from the weather. Its not simple, Chauvet said of the work. But, he said, like people in his congregation will recover from the pandemic, the cathedral will recover its past glory. The spire will be the same, the roof will be the same, he said. ___ Associated Press journalist Barbara Surk in Nice, France, contributed to this report. Welcome to our recap of the top news articles of 2021. This is Q1, you can also take a look at the top stories of Q2, Q3 and Q4. We'll start with the main events of the first three months of the year and we'll cover the next quarters in the following episodes of the series. The first quarter of the year was transformative and shaped a lot of 2021. Qualcomm had just announced its Snapdragon 888 in the last month of 2020, and the first phones with the new flagship chipset came out at the turn of 2021. The Xiaomi Mi 11 pioneered the SD888, but notable phones with Qualcomm's new silicon included the Mi 11 Pro, the Redmi K40 Pro+, the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra, Mi Mix Fold, vivo's X60 Pro+, Oppo's Find X3 Pro, the Asus Rog Phone 5, 5 Pro and 5 Ultimate, the nubia Red Magic 6 and the Realme GT. The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra made big waves thanks to a new design that featured a massive camera bump on the rear. It turned out the size was warranted by the imaging hardware Xiaomi crammed in - the largest sensor used in a smartphone (to this day), as well as capable 5x zoom and ultrawide cameras. Samsung's flagship chip came out in Q1 as well and powered some of the regional versions of the Galaxy S21, S21+, and S21 Ultra, which were also officialized in this quarter. The Ultra brought refinement to the Galaxy Ultra formula with an LTPO AMOLED that was able to dynamically change screen refresh rates, ultimately leading to stellar battery performance. The Galaxy S21 Ultra also more than doubled the optical zoom reach of its predecessor with a 10x periscope. Samsung's extremely-popular Galaxy A52, A52 5G, and A72 were all unveiled in Q1, bringing high refresh rate displays (120Hz for the 5G, 90Hz for the others), a colorful and simple matte design, big batteries, and solid cameras. Xiaomi's sub-brands Poco and Redmi had popular releases in Q1 - the Poco X3 Pro and F3 came out with Snapdragon 860 and 870, respectively, while the Redmi Note 10 series were popular throughout 2021. Xiaomi's first foldable, the Mi Mix Fold was very promising, but ultimately never made it out of China. Huawei also revealed its second foldable - the Mate X2 combined a fresh new in-folding design with powerful cameras, but ultimately its lack of Google apps made it a poor showing outside China. OnePlus stuck to a single flagship for the entire year. The OnePlus 9 Pro and 9 arrived in Q1 with Hasselblad-branded cameras. But despite the strong name recognition that came with the new cameras, their performance was at the time subpar to the competition from Samsung and Apple. OnePlus has made strides in image quality through firmware updates in the months since. While Q1 was early for iPhone 13 solid rumors, there was one that aged like wine - brought on by Japanese blog MacOtakara, it said that the iPhone 13 Pro would have the same design as the 12, but be thicker (thanks to larger batteries) and have a smaller notch. That rumor materialized in Q3. Those were the key stories of Q1. Below you can find the entire list of major announcements, rumors, and other articles. Next up - Q2. Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra brings massive camera sensors and two screens, Mi 11i also announced The phone features 67W wireless fast charging developed in house, which can fully fill the battery in 36 minutes. Poco X3 Pro and Poco F3 debut with Snapdragon 860 and 870 Both phones come with 33W fast charging and the proprietary charger in the box. Samsung Galaxy S21 and S21+ bring new design, modest upgrades Same between the two models that is, but not far from the S20 triple setup either. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra announced with S Pen support, dual telephoto lenses The display can do 120Hz at the full 1440p+ resolution for the first time on a Samsung phone. The two tele cams are 10x periscope and 3x lens. Xiaomi's foldable Mi Mix Fold brings the first liquid lens with 3x magnification The internal OLED display measures 8" in size (4:3), the external display is 6.5" (27:9). The phone is powered by the S888 and has a desktop mode. Xiaomi Mi 11 arrives as the first phone with Snapdragon 888 There is no charger in the retail box but Xiaomi will give one for free if you ask nicely. vivo X60 Pro+ unveiled: camera monster with 1/1.3" main sensor, upgraded gimbal stabilization The phone also has two telephoto lenses - a 5x periscope and a 2x portrait lens. Also, new image processing algorithms to run on the S888 chipset. Huawei Mate X2 announced with in-folding design, periscope camera And it has a mid-range 3x telephoto lens as well. The two screens have 90 Hz refresh rate, the inner one is almost square, the outer one is 21:9. Oppo Find X3 Pro is official with two 50MP cameras and unique design The flagship has a Snapdragon 888 chipset and an LTPO display with 5-120Hz adaptive refresh rate. Asus unveils ROG Phone 5, Pro and Ultimate with 6.78" 144 Hz AMOLED displays, S888 chipsets The Ultimate is one of the first smartphone to be loaded with 18 GB of RAM. It and the Pro have secondary displays on the back. nubia Red Magic 6 series announced with 165Hz display, Snapdragon 888 Up to 18GB RAM and 512GB storage on the Transparent Edition Red Magic 6 Pro. Samsung announces ISOCELL 2.0 with improved light gathering abilities This is builds on ISOCELL Plus, which Samsung calls Phase 1. ISOCELL 2.0 is Phase 2 and will allow smaller pixels to perform better. Realme 8 Pro unveiled with 108 MP main camera, 50W dart charging, Realme 8 tags along The two phones are quite similar to the Realme 7 and 7 Pro. The 8 Pro has a far better camera, but little else has changed (not even the chipset). OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro unveiled with Hasselblad cameras, 120Hz display, upgraded charging The 9 Pro flaunts a bespoke Sony sensor, Fluid Display 2.0 and support for the new Warp Charge 50 Wireless charger. vivo X60 and X60 Pro go international: Snapdragon 870 in, periscope out The Pro+ is nowhere to be seen yet. As for the other two, there are changes to the chipset, OS and camera. Xiaomi introduces Mi Air Charge, wireless charging from across the room The companys new technology would let you charge a device while youre using it or walking around. The new Snapdragon 780G is a 5nm mid-range chip with flagship-grade modem It has a triple ISP and an NPU that is almost as fast as that in the 865/870. It features Kryo 670 CPU and Adreno 642 GPU. Alleged Huawei P50 Pro+ images show wild penta-camera design The P50 series will have a characteristic camera bump with two prominent circles - but what is inside those circles? These renders purport to show that. HOW-TO: Turn your Android phone into the best webcam for Zoom, Skype, Meet and Teams for free Looking for a webcam for video calls? You can probably skip that and get a better experience if you just use your smartphone. New BlackBerry phones with classic hardware keyboards and 5G are coming this year OnwardMobility is working with Foxconn to develop and build the phones. The primary focus will be on security. Exynos 2100 vs Snapdragon 888: Battery testing the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra versions After looking into the performance of the two chipsets, we decided to move on to some differential battery comparisons, as well. Samantha Taitano, executive director of Mane'lu, describes the benefits of their youth mentorship program for kids and adults alike. Mane'lu is aiming to recruit 50 mentors in the coming weeks, and will host a "Mentors Night Out" event on Friday, Jan. 7, 2022, from 3 p.m. to sunset at the To Even as the shining sun beats down on Tumon Bay, only a few people could be found enjoying the sand and surf in this Oct. 12, 2021, photo. Government of Guam leaders dont seem to grasp how critical it is for them to better support tourism small businesses. Korean Movie | 2014 Detective Directed by Kim Seok-yoon () Written by Kim Su-jin () Lee Nam-gyoo () 125min | Release date in South Korea: 2015/02/11 Link Formerly known as "Detective K: The Laborer's Daughter" (: , jo-seon-myeong-tam-jeong: nob-eui ddal) Synopsis Its our time to step up once more! In the 19th year of Jeonjos reign, Kim Min, Joseons top detective, who used to be a Kings secret messenger, has been banished to a remote island for some unclear reasons. The only visitors are his old partner, Seo-pil and a young girl, who comes every day to ask him to find her younger sibling. In the meantime, Kim Min happens to hear a rumor that bogus silver bars have been being distributed, which awakens his dormant traits as a detective. He finally makes a bold decision to escape the island and moves on to investigate the case of bogus silver bars fully and to find the young girls younger sibling. Joseons top detective, Kim Min and Seo-pil may be the first detectives in the history, who stepped up to solve two different cases at the same time! But Hisako, a beautiful, mysterious woman with her identity unknown, continuously interferes the investigation conducted by this excellent pair of detectives. Kim Min and Seo-pil, the excellent pair of Joseons top detectives return. Joseon in jeopardy. Leave it in our hands!. Source The fears that some Syrian activists have warned that the Damascus Government's "settlements" in Deir ez-Zor may be a trap being set for young people appear to be realized, the security services of the Damascus Government have summoned thousands of people who have undergone "settlements" in the Deir ez-Zor, al-Mayadin and Abu Kamal areas to a military session to later engage them in the battels. On December 21 st , the security services of the Damascus Government forces summoned more than 100,000 people who had been subjected to "settlements" in the areas of Deir ez-Zor, al-Mayadin and Abu Kamal to a 15-day military course at the "Al-Talaa Camp within the 137th Brigade" of the "Fourth Division" on the outskirts of Deir ez-Zor. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, those recruited will be sent after the course in Badia Deir ez - Zor to confront ISIS mercenaries. In the statement to ANHAs agency, the political opponent and chairman of Syria's Party of Modernism and Democracy, Firas Qassas, commented: "This measure is a method of recruiting young people with whom the so-called settlements have been made and placing them in its army (Damascus Government), but for purposes unrelated to ISIS. He added: " I do not believe that the Syrian regime was a serious in fighting ISIS, I think it was the main beneficiary the hardening, extremism and criminality that struck the country's revolutionary situation, particularly because of ISIS and Jabhet al-Nusra, and that it would probably not be serious about fighting ISIS unless it regained control over all Syrian areas beyond its control and if it was re-floated and normalized, and put into the international community. Of course, it needs to promote that it fights ISIS, even if it sacrificed a number of its soldiers For more than two years, cells of ISIS mercenaries in Syrian Badia have been targeting the forces of the Damascus Government from time to time and have suffered loss of life and materiel, despite intense Russian air strikes and support for Damascus Government forces on the ground. However, they have not yet been able to eliminate the remnants of ISIS there. For his part, the political opponent, Firas Qassas considered the "Settlements and Reconciliations," implemented by the Damascus Government, imposed on those who were affiliated with the (Revolution) against it, as deviation and procrastination adding: Damascus Government does not believe in the principle of dialogue. Added: " Syrian regime is betting on resolving the Syrian crisis depending on the restoration of the situation in the country until before 2011. It can only believe in the language of the power through which it came to power, and as long as it did not collapse according to its contents, it means to it that it will never collapse, change in the form of the State and restructure the relationship of power with society in its different forms to separate it, it means, on the truth, the collapse of the Syrian regime, every principle based on the peaceful circulation of power and the sharing of power and the redistribution of power over wider social spaces, Therefore, if the regime wants to prolong its presence, it has only to continue according to political, ideological and practical paths, and according to all centers of gravity that flow into it. He went on to say Damascus Governments settlements its main goal is to rehabilitate and normalize the tyranny of its ideology and its objectives within the consciousness of those targeted by these settlements in Deir ez-Zor, notify those who revolt against him that they have no choice in fighting him. Qassas added, " Syrian regime did not miss any opportunity to incite against the Syrian Democratic Forces. It tried to sabotage and undermine all efforts the values of coexistence among all components of the Autonomous Administration, which it worked on with a rare principle. These forces and with them the political forces related to their project, the regime continues to create contradictions in the face of the administration is begging some of its agents who are influenced by the racist ideology of the Baath party from the Arab component, and it will surely find an opportunity in the file of settlements to go far to ignite the contradiction between those who engage in a settlement with it and the Syrian Democratic Forces, and certainly will not refrain from using those who will be tempted to attack the Syrian Democratic Forces and in an attempt to weaken the experience of Democratic Autonomous Administration, DAA. At the conclusion of his speech, Qassas said: "The notables of the clans and the main actors in the Deir ez-Zor region must make every effort to prevent the regime from achieving its goals that it wants to achieve through these settlements, and they must stand united in supporting Autonomous Administration and defend it for the sake of the region and its components. In order to prevent tyranny from returning again. T/S ANHA The initiative for international justice for the Kurds, in order to remove the name of the PKK from the "list of terrorist organizations", launched a campaign on January 13, especially for the European Commission. From 30 countries, more than a thousand parliamentarians, academic figures, filmmakers, party leaders, and writers participated in the campaign. Signatures are collected in Europe and Latin America and through the Justice for the Kurds page. The campaign's demands were also published in some European newspapers as well. A member of the Presidium of the Kurdistan National Congress, Nilufer Koc said that this year's campaign was active and because of the resistance it showed, it prompted some countries to study removing the PKK from the list of terrorist organization. Nilufer Koc confirmed that the campaign is important breakthrough, affected by the current circumstances. She said that the latest campaign witnessed new developments. She demanded the lifting of the isolation and said: The ban and the regulation are used as the sword of Damocles against the people. The concept of terrorism is exploited as a means to suppress individual opinions, especially progressive peoples and parties. Our campaign exposes all these policies. There is no clear definition of terrorism legally or politically. One understands that the state is exploiting this concept in order to achieve certain political goals. Germany's pro-Turkish state pressure against the PKK, which has continued since 1985, has been challenged by the people, shows that the real terrorism is the Erdogan regime. As a result of the continuous struggle of the Kurdish people, the true face of the Turkish state was revealed. The signature campaign made clear to everyone what the demand of the Kurds, the leader Apo and the PKK . The process of breaking the ban began in 2014 Nilufer Koc reports that the issue of lifting the ban on the PKK in 2014 was discussed not only by left-wing democratic circles but by many liberal conservative groups as well. She said, "The PKK's ferocity against ISIS made known to the world that the PKK is a trustworthy force. The banning of the PKK and its presence in the "terrorist organizations list" was the beginning of the process of breaking the ban. The implementation of the ideas of the ecological democratic women's freedom of the leader in Rojava drew everyone's attention to the PKK." Nilufer Koc confirmed that among the signatories there are many parliamentarians, councilors, municipalities, European intellectuals, feminists, climate movements, youth movements, unionists, artists and many political and social figures. She noted that the profile of 1003 signatories shows that the fear and terror that the state wants to impose on the people have been overcome. This accession confirms the transcendence of intolerance towards the PKK and as a result there is no longer any existence or reason to fear. Nilufer continued, saying: The campaign will expand in 2022, because in the 21st century, solutions to conflicts and crises of the current era are found in Kurdistan led by the PKK. In order to keep the PKK on the list, no country has ever had a legal argument. In 1993 Germany, in 1997 the United States of America and in 2002 the European Union they never had human rights arguments. As terrorism does not have a reference definition, neither legal nor political. As states exploit the concept of terrorism to suppress the movements of the social center and thwart their solidarity together. The ban and the list exist mainly to serve political goals. The Kurdish issue, which the PKK seeks to solve in the first place, is a political problem. Nilufer Koc indicated that it is exercising against the Kurds a policy of denial through the Sykes-Picot Agreement and was completed by the Lausanne Agreement. She said: Europe has marginalized the Kurds, making Kurdistan an unhealed wound for the Middle East. The Palestine issue was also treated this way. They opened the way to committing massacres against the Kurds and left the Kurds homeless. The PKK emerged as a result of these practices against the Kurds. The stage of including the PKK in the "list of terrorist organizations" Nilufer Koc explained that on August 15, the PKK began armed resistance as a result of the military violations of the Turkish state. This step awakened kurds from their inattention. Nilufer Koc also made it clear that the Turkish state was in trouble as a result of this resistance and requested support from NATO. It reported that Germany in 1985 through the Dusseldorf cases in 1986 began to criminalize the PKK. Nilufer Koc said: Although she knows that she is a supporter of the oppressed, killing is also the basis of the Dusseldorf trial. Germany could not achieve its goals through the Dusseldorf cases. Nor could it confront the mass of the PKK, neither within nor outside its borders. The rebellions that began in 1990 in Southern and Northern Kurdistan gave way to Germany's ban in 1993. In 1990 PKK crossed the borders of Northern Kurdistan and increased its activity in Eastern and Southern Kurdistan During this stage, there were wide accessions to the PKK in Rojava. The struggle of the PKK spread in the international field and Middle East. In 1997, the United States considered the activity of the PKK a danger and responded to the calls of the Turkish state and placed the PKK on the list of terrorist organizations. But the most important thing here is that the PKK changed its strategies in its seventh conference on January 23, 2000. Where it decided to prioritize the political struggle. This strategic step opened wide doors for the PKK internationally. Nilufer indicated that there are countries about to try to remove the name of the PKK from the list, after many facts were revealed that proved that some of the terrorism charges leveled against the PKK were not true. PKK. The case was retried by DMME. The Luxembourg and Belgian courts re-discussed the regulation and ban. However, countries still continue to support the Turkish state. However, Erdogan and his fascist government are violating international rights. While the Turkish state exploits terrorist organizations such as ISIS to implement its expansionist plans, and this leads to serious problems in foreign policy. The world sees the PKK as a force for solution The United States of America and the European Union consider ISIS a terrorist organization. The Turkish state is the cause of insecurity and the spread of violence and conflicts. Erdogan practices politics on the basis of religious, sexual and national intolerance. In the face of this, the struggle of the PKK works to combat racism and consolidate participation and equality between peoples. Achieving women's freedom and spreading democracy. Respect for and equality of all religions is sanctified without favoring one religion or belief over the other. Therefore, the PKK is the solution and the Turkish state is the problem. The power of the PKK to resolve and resolve conflicts appeared with the Rojava revolution and spread to the whole world. Global sympathy for the PKK is growing and lobbying countries for it. Countries have confirmed that they can no longer continue their previous approach Nilufer Koc indicated that the countries to which the Turkish state is an ally, especially the United States of America and the European Union, are its allies. Those countries that ignore the massacres committed by the Turkish state and support it and ignore the illegal arrest of more than 5,000 Kurdish politicians. and the use of chemical weapons. It cannot undermine the resolve of the Kurds and repel their resistance under the leadership of the PKK. Nilufer Koc said that despite the torture that the leader has been subjected to for 22 years, the Turkish state has not been able to undermine him and break the will of him and his people. And she continued: "The goal of the isolation applied in Imrali is for the Kurdish people to forget their leader. However, the Kurdish people have been repeating their demand to liberate the leader on a daily basis for 22 years. In the end, the Council of Ministers, which is the highest body in the European Union, issued a decision to change the decision of the life sentence that Issued against the leader until September 2022. The countries undoubtedly see and follow the continuous resistance of the people, the guerrillas and the leader, and they note that it is time to change their view of the PKK. The Turkish state will not be able to hide its fascist face by imposing a ban on the PKK Nilufer Koc mentioned the report issued in June this year by all parties of the British Parliament on the Kurdish issue and said: The report proves that Turkey by imposing the ban on the PKK is destroying freedom and democracy, so this ban should be lifted. This opinion was repeated this year many times in Parliament The European Union, the European Union, and the United States Meeting on Human Rights. This report shows that Turkey can no longer cover up its fascism by banning the PKK. Nilufer emphasized that a political solution to the Kurdish issue must be found, and because the key to the solution is in the hands of the leader and the PKK, the ban on the PKK must be lifted. A ANHA A MOTHER and daughter spent five hours decorating the Christmas tree outside No 10 Downing Street. It was the fifth year running that Jane Ingram, from the Tree Barn in Christmas Common, had been asked to carry out the task. She decorated the 20ft Nordmann fir with the help of her daughter Rebecca. Mrs Ingram, whose husband Andrew grows Christmas trees, said: Its a huge privilege and its always exciting driving through the gates of No 10. It took us about five hours to decorate the tree as its a very tall and beautiful tree this year. We use the same decorations from one year to the next as they belong to us, No 10 doesnt buy them. The baubles have to be of certain colours but I try to sneak in some different ones, with gnomes and fairies for example, because I think its quite fun for the children to have a look at the tree and see what they can spot. If we were asked do it again next year we would love to but we never take it for granted. Meanwhile, the Tree Barn was featured on the BBCs Countryfile Christmas special on Sunday after filming took place last month. Presenter Matt Baker was taken on a tour of the snow-covered farm by Mr Ingram, who has been growing Christmas trees for 50 years. The farm has about 70,000 trees, which sell in their thousands in the run-up to the festive season. Mrs Ingram, who is responsible for the farm shop, which stocks all kinds of decorations, said: The crew was very relaxed and it was a very nice experience for us. We were so lucky with the weather as it had snowed and the trees looked just perfect. Fellow presenter Charlotte Smith headed to Watlington to meet a butcher, a baker and a candlestick maker and prepare festive treats. The butcher was Tom Calnan, of Calnan Brothers in High Street, who showed the presenter how to make festive sausages. Ms Smith then walked across the street to the Orange Bakery, where she made buns with baker Kitty Tait, 17, who runs the business with her father Alex. Kitty said: It was my first time on TV and it was exciting. Charlotte was very enthusiastic and keen to try lots of the stuff I had baked. It was really enjoyable and it was so nice to show off my town. The candlestick maker was Sarah Keeley, who runs House of Bluebelle and showed Ms Smith how to make festive candles. Dear Abby: I had an affair with Harold, a man I was helping. Hes 76; I am 52. His wife stays in Florida for extended periods of time. For 34 years, I have been married to a man who quit having sex with me because I stopped taking the pill. Harold provided me with the attention I needed. I finally confessed to my husband after I was caught in too many lies. My husband has forgiven me, but I can no longer be friends with Harold or help him anymore. Im worried about him living alone and needing help. Can I still help him if I have ended the affair? Worried About Ex-lover Dear Worried: No, not if you value your marriage to the man who has denied you a sex life for the last 34 years. Surely you both must have known there are/were successful methods of birth control besides the pill. Is this what you want for the rest of your life? Because the physical aspect of your affair with Harold has ended, there is still an emotional tie that needs to be severed. You wont be able to do this while you are taking care of him. Harold should be told he needs another caregiver, and you need to find a way to satisfy or sublimate your sex drive, because this problem isnt going to go away. Dear Abby: My mom passed away a year ago, and I struggle with it every day. I had promised her I would never put her in any kind of home, but she ended up in one because the hospital placed her there. I feel so guilty for letting her down. While she was in there, I saw her only once, through a window, but I never got to talk to her. I dont know how to cope with this. Since her death, many family members no longer talk to me. They blame me for it. Abby, Im the one who was with her 24/7 for years. Im the one who cooked for her and did her laundry, yet Im the bad person. Do I need professional help for blaming myself? Please help. Lost Daughter in California Dear Daughter: Please accept my sympathy for the loss of your mother. Your relatives are wrong to blame you for her death. Much of what happened to her was because thats what her doctors ordered. You are not a bad daughter. You are a daughter who cared and still cares about the mother to whom she devoted herself. You took care of her for as long as you could. Talk with a mental health professional about this. You may find it beneficial, if only to help you stop blaming yourself for circumstances that were beyond your control. Dear Abby: My husband passed five years ago. I have two grown daughters and a granddaughter, who will turn 21 soon. On her birthday, I would like to give her the wedding ring my husband gave to me. Is that being rude to my daughters? Grandma Looking Ahead Dear Grandma: I dont think it would be rude. I think it would solve the question of what to do with your wedding ring without creating jealousy between your daughters. To order How to Write Letters for All Occasions, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $8 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby Letter Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.) DearAbby.com Dear Abby P.O. Box 69440 Los Angeles, CA 90069 Andrews McMeel Syndication GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) The Central Nebraska Regional Airport in Grand Island has been awarded a $1 million federal grant under the new infrastucture law. The Federal Aviation Administration is awarding $22.2 million to Nebraska under the law, according to the Grand Island Independent. Kearney Regional and North Platte Regional Airport Lee Bird Field will each get around $1 million as well. MOSCOW (AP) People strolling across Moscow's snowy Red Square on the evening of Dec. 25, 1991 were surprised to witness one of the 20th centurys most pivotal moments the Soviet red flag over the Kremlin pulled down and replaced with the Russian Federation's tricolor. Just minutes earlier, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev announced his resignation in a live televised address to the nation, concluding 74 years of Soviet history. In his memoirs, Gorbachev, now 90, bitterly lamented his failure to prevent the USSR's demise, an event that upset the world's balance of power and sowed the seeds of an ongoing tug-of-war between Russia and neighboring Ukraine. I still regret that I failed to bring the ship under my command to calm waters, failed to complete reforming the country, Gorbachev wrote. Political experts argue to this day whether he could have held onto his position and saved the USSR. Some charge that Gorbachev, who came to power in 1985, could have prevented the Soviet breakup if he had moved more resolutely to modernize the anemic state-controlled economy while keeping tighter controls on the political system. The collapse of the Soviet Union was one of those occasions in history that are believed to be unthinkable until they become inevitable, Dmitri Trenin, the director of the Moscow Carnegie Center, told The Associated Press. The Soviet Union, whatever its long-term chances were, was not destined to go down when it did. By the fall of 1991, however, deepening economic woes and secessionist bids by Soviet republics had made the collapse all but certain. A failed August 1991 coup by the Communist old guard provided a major catalyst, dramatically eroding Gorbachevs authority and encouraging more Soviet republics to seek independence. While Gorbachev desperately tried to negotiate a new union treaty between the republics to preserve the USSR, he faced stiff resistance from his arch-rival, Russian Federation leader Boris Yeltsin, who was eager to take over the Kremlin and had backing from other independent-minded heads of Soviet republics. On Dec. 8, the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus met in a hunting lodge, declaring the USSR dead and announcing the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Two weeks later, eight other Soviet republics joined the newly formed alliance, handing Gorbachev a stark choice: step down or try to avert the country's breakup by force. The Soviet leader analyzed the tough dilemma in his memoirs, noting that an attempt to order the arrest of the republics' leaders could have resulted in a bloodbath amid split loyalties in the military and law enforcement agencies. If I had decided to rely on some part of the armed structures, it would have inevitably triggered an acute political conflict fraught with blood and far-reaching negative consequences, Gorbachev wrote. I couldnt do that: I would have stopped being myself." What would have happened had Gorbachev resorted to force is hard to imagine in retrospect, the Carnegie Center's Trenin observed.. It might have unleashed bloody events in Moscow and across Russia, maybe across the Soviet Union, or it might have consolidated some things, he said. Had he decided to go down that route...there would have been blood on his hands. He would have had to turn into a sort of a dictator, because that would have...done away with his most important element of legacy; that is, not using force in a massive way. When the leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine declared the Soviet Union defunct, they didn't pay much attention to what would happen to the 4-million-strong Soviet military and its massive nuclear arsenals. After the Soviet collapse, it took years of U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to persuade Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan to hand over to Russia the Soviet nuclear weapons left on their territories a process finally completed in 1996. The leaders of the republics that announced the end of the Soviet Union in December 1991 did not think through all the consequences of what they were doing, Gorbachevs aide, Pavel Palazhchenko, told the AP. Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose two decades at the helm is longer than Gorbachev and Yeltsin's tenures combined, has famously described the Soviet collapse as the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century. The breakup of the Soviet Union was the collapse of a historic Russia, Putin said in a documentary that aired this month on Russian state television. We lost 40% of the territory, production capacities and population. We became a different country. What had been built over a millennium was lost to a large extent. The Kremlin moved to redraw the post-Soviet borders in 2014, responding to the ouster of Ukraines former Moscow-friendly leader by annexing the Ukrainian Crimean Peninsula and throwing its weight behind separatist rebels in its neighbor's east. More than seven years of fighting in Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland has killed over 14,000 people. Tensions flared up in recent weeks over a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine that fueled Western fears of an invasion. Moscow has denied plans for an offensive and sternly urged the U.S. and its allies to provide a binding pledge that NATO wouldn't expand to Ukraine or deploy weapons there a demand rejected by the West. Putin and his officials countered the Western argument that Russia doesn't have a say in the alliance's expansion by emphasizing the country's right to protect its core security interests. Russia has never pretended to have the right of vote to make decisions for other countries, Konstantin Kosachev, a deputy speaker of the upper house of Russian parliament, told the AP. But we have an absolute right of vote to ensure our own interests and security, and to offer our vision of a security environment in the nearby regions." While Putin has repeatedly denied intentions to rebuild the USSR, he has described Russians and Ukrainians as one people over angry protests from Kyiv and charged that Ukraine unfairly inherited historic parts of Russia in the Soviet demise. The Russian leader further toughened his rhetoric Thursday amid spiraling tensions with the West, blaming Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin for handing Russian lands to Ukraine to create a country that had never existed before. ___ Harriet Morris, Tanya Titova and Anna Frants contributed to this report. SHORTER, Ala. (AP) Two railroad cars full of automobiles caught fire and burned in an east Alabama town, officials said. The Shorter Volunteer Fire Department, in a statement shared on social media, said the freight cars caught fire Thursday night in Macon County. Photos showed flames licking through openings on the sides of the car carriers at a rural crossing. Most Houston parents have not rushed out to inoculate their children against COVID-19, new data show, the latest indication that achieving widespread immunity among the young may be a faraway prospect, even as case counts explode across the region. Overall, about 85 percent of 5- to 11-year-olds in the nine-county Houston area have not yet received a COVID vaccine, according to tallies compiled by Texas Childrens Hospital. The remaining 15 percent have had at least one dose, the lowest rate among any eligible age range. The figures are far below what health officials hoped to see nearly two months ago when the shots became available. In promoting the shots, public officials including first lady Jill Biden, who visited Texas Childrens Hospital in November have struggled to reach the broad swath of parents who remain reluctant to vaccinate their children. On HoustonChronicle.com: Houston surpasses 300,000 COVID cases as omicron brings yet another surge Dr. James Versalovic, the hospitals pathologist-in-chief, said he hopes the arrival of the highly contagious omicron variant gives hesitant parents a renewed sense of urgency. The doses are tailored for children and have a tremendous safety record, he said. Waller, Chambers and Liberty counties have recorded uptake below 10 percent among 5- to 11-year-olds since early November, when Texas health care providers received the first 1.3 million doses of Pfizers pediatric vaccine. In Austin County, less than 5 percent of elementary school-aged kids have gotten the jab. And in the remaining five counties Fort Bend, Galveston, Brazoria, Harris and Montgomery COVID inoculations among the 5 to 11 set are above 10 percent, bringing up the overall regional average. Still, the Houston-area numbers fall below the state average of about 17 percent having received at least one dose. It is unclear whether the low rate of childhood vaccinations means the region has reached a saturation point, or whether harried parents simply have not had time to vaccinate their little ones. Theres not one specific reason why some parents havent vaccinated their kids, said Jermaine Monroe, co-chair of Texas Childrens COVID Task Force. We are trying to meet people where they are to help parents overcome their concerns. Monroe is part of a hospital team working to ensure equitable distribution of the vaccine by partnering with religious groups and school districts to offer pop-up vaccine clinics in the Houston area, complete with music and decorated selfie walls. The effort has vaccinated 35,000 children since November through appointments and the free clinics. But it appears that even the anticipation of holiday travel did not induce a flood of vaccine-seekers. In early December, Texas Childrens still had more than 20,000 unclaimed vaccination appointments at its 12 clinics. It was a marked difference from early November, when anxious parents quickly snapped up all of the hospitals available slots. Christina Williams hasnt yet vaccinated her daughter, but she plans to do so as soon as the 6-year-old recovers from a sinus infection. The Houston mother has started looking for appointments online. Its a necessary evil, Williams said while finishing a meal with her family at the Love Shack in Levy Park on Friday. Lots of people have different opinions. Im neutral. But if thats what is required for her to stay healthy and go to school, thats what well do. Health officials fear parents eagerness to give children the vaccine may remain muted, even as adult vaccination rates continue to creep up. According to a recent national poll by the Kaiser Family Foundations Vaccine Monitor, less than a third of parents surveyed said they intended to give their child the shot right away. Misinformation appears to account for many parents reluctance, the authors said, with many citing a fear of long-term effects. Two-thirds expressed concern the vaccine may affect their childs future fertility, despite no evidence to support that unfounded claim in any demographic. Close to half of parents said they feared having to pay out-of-pocket for the jab. Theres just been so much misinformation, said Monroe, of Texas Childrens. There are pockets of individuals that still need more time, more information, more grace to make the right decision to get vaccinated. We dont judge. Our role is to provide information for when theyre ready. Houston resident Yvonne Fedee believes the slow uptake may be due in part to parents waiting a while to see how it goes for other peoples kids. The mother of 9-year-old twins booked her two children appointments as soon as the shot became available in early November but said she has close relatives who refuse to get the shot. Ive trusted it all along, Fedee said. I was counting down the months. VACCINES AND FERTILITY: What do parents need to know? While the earliest waves of the pandemic affected children at low rates, the delta variant spurred a rash of pediatric hospitalizations that overwhelmed childrens ICUs and left some kids with lingering symptoms. At least 40 Texas children in the 5 to 11 age group have died from the virus. Hundreds have been diagnosed with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, a dangerous but poorly understood illness that arose with the coronavirus pandemic last year. Omicron could bring another pediatric wave. Texas Childrens Hospital detected the new variant in at least 35 percent of the hundreds of viral specimens that underwent genomic sequencing last week, and that number is almost certain to grow as its prevalence increases among adult populations. The parents of children under 5, meanwhile, will have to wait a while longer. Pfizer announced late last week its vaccine for kids ages 6 months to 5 years hit a stumbling block in trials. The modified dose was safe, but ineffective. Kelly Humphries, a Houston mom to a 3-year-old daughter, was saddened by the setback. I was really looking forward to her getting one, said Humphries. Parents hoping to vaccinate their children can find the full list of Texas providers here. They can also call their pediatricians office or check vaccines.gov. nora.mishanec@chron.com Ah, the holidays the season of mean-spirited pandering and chronic cowardice from people in leadership. Oh, wait. Thats just in Texas, which is currently led by a governor whose fear of opponents in the coming GOP primary apparently knows no bounds. Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday announced he will not be issuing a posthumous pardon to George Floyd for a 17-year-old drug arrest in Houston by a now-disgraced former cop whose investigations have been called into question. The two-term Republican also announced that he doesnt want to be held personally responsible for that decision. Rather, the governor would prefer us to blame the Texas State Board of Pardons and Paroles, which had unanimously recommended a pardon for Floyd back in October. Board members are appointed by the governor. According to Abbotts office, the board rescinded this clemency recommendation, along with 24 others it had made, after belatedly discovering procedural errors in the applications for them. And so, in Abbotts telling, there was literally nothing he could do; he cant even offer an opinion on the subject. As a result of the Boards withdrawal of the recommendation concerning George Floyd, Governor Abbott did not have the opportunity to consider it, said his spokesperson, Renae Eze, in a statement. Perhaps some Texans will buy that? The timing speaks for itself, said Allison Mathis of the Harris County Public Defenders Office, on Christmas Eve. Mathis filed the request for a pardon on behalf of Floyds surviving family members in April. Other observers were less diplomatic. Classic Greg Abbott. He didnt have the guts to grant George Floyd a posthumous pardon, nor the guts to reject it, observed Julian Castro, a Democrat and the former mayor of San Antonio. So he got the pardon/parole board to withdraw their recommendation. Magic! Floyd, 46, a former Houston resident, was killed in May 2020 when then-Minneapolis police Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds. The murder of Floyd, who was Black, by Chauvin, who is white, was bravely captured on video by a bystander, Darnella Frazier, who was just 17 at the time. The video of Floyds agonizing final minutes prone on a city street, telling the cops he couldnt breathe horrified the nation, and galvanized thousands of Americans to take to the streets to protest police violence against Black Americans that had led to a troubling number of deaths. Chauvin was convicted last April of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. But Floyds horrifying death and the rallies, protests and politics in its wake actually have nothing to do with the question at hand, which is whether he should be pardoned for a 2004 arrest in Harris County that we now know to have been deeply flawed from the outset. Floyd was charged with delivery of a controlled substance after Gerald Goines, then a Houston police officer, arrested him for allegedly dealing a small amount of crack cocaine. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 months in state prison. The issue with this conviction is that Goines the officer entirely responsible for it has since been thoroughly discredited. He came under scrutiny after a botched 2019 drug raid that left a husband and wife dead, fatally shot by police. Goines was subsequently charged with murder in connection with the Harding Street raid, as well as other forms of misconduct, including lying to obtain affidavits. He has maintained his innocence. As a result of this scandal, Goines previous cases have been revisited, for obvious reasons. And a number of them including this one dont pass muster with law enforcement, given the new information about Goines himself. [Goines] made up the existence of a confidential informant who provided crucial evidence to underpin the arrest, Mathis wrote in her application to the parole board. And no one bothered to question the word of a veteran cop against that of a previously-convicted Black man. We do not support the integrity of Mr. Floyds conviction and agree these circumstances warrant a posthumous pardon, wrote Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, a Democrat, in her own April letter to the board supporting the application. Mathis told me Friday that the social-justice movement Floyd galvanized had nothing to do with her application for a posthumous pardon. Rather, she said, Floyd was one of many Houstonians convicted as a result of Goines misdeeds, and given Floyds death a posthumous pardon is the only relief available, in this case. Its just about correcting the record, Mathis said. Goines attorney, Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube, has denied that her client targeted Floyd or fabricated evidence, calling the accusations political. There is no new evidence whatsoever to support there was anything wrong with the arrest of Mr. Floyd, she told the Chronicle in October. For the governor to demur when asked to weigh in on the parole boards recommendation is hardly respectable. Its possible that his mind resembles some kind of lunar landscape, arid and uninhabited. But that would be an uncharitable assumption, would it not? Its more likely that Abbott, who faces two primary opponents who may have even more extreme conservative positions than he does, was considering Republican primary politics rather than the merits of this particular case. Abbott, a former state attorney general and Texas Supreme Coirt justice, may understand that the law supports a pardon. But perhaps he also perceives a political downside with his conservative base of pardoning a man who cycled in and out of the criminal justice system, ultimately with tragicand galvanizingresults. What we continue to learn about this governor is that political considerations too often trump doing the right thing. erica.grieder@chron.com Surveyed Central Americans named economic factors, such as poor wages and unemployment, as the most common triggers of migration to the U.S. and other countries, according to a new report by the Migration Policy Institute. Natural disasters and violence were also listed as motivations to migrate, according to 2021 survey data from the U.N. World Food Programme in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, though they were less likely to be listed as the most important factors. Nearly 5,000 households participated in the survey. The report notes how violence, poverty, hunger and climate disasters are often interconnected, creating overall conditions that cause people to migrate to another country. Among the surveyed Central American household members who said they had migrated within the last five years, 85 percent said they left mainly because of poverty. That does not mean that there are not underlying reasons that tie together economics with insecurity and violence, said Ariel Ruiz Soto, Migration Policy Institute analyst, When you ask somebody in person about the reason why they want to migrate, theyll respond usually with the most triggering factor. But he said that in follow-up conversations, there was often more to the story. When we talked to people in El Salvador, they told us that they didnt feel like they could open up their own job or their own business, because they didnt want to pay the rents to the gang members and these quotas for gangs protection, he said. In the survey, violence and insecurity accounted for 8 percent of respondents main reasons to migrate. Nearly half of all surveyed Central Americans said violence either increased or remained the same when asked. Honduran migrant Douglas Mendez, 21, cited violence as a main reason he left his home country. They (gang members) told me they were going to kill me, Mendez said in Spanish. So, it was time for me to leave. Mendez spoke to the Houston Chronicle at a shelter near the Texas-Mexico border in Acuna, Mexico, and said his career choice to work for the police made him vulnerable to gang violence. When youre studying to be a police officer, youre among the ones they (the gangs) are most looking to kill, he said. Mendez said a friend was murdered by gang members that were looking for him. An official document from Honduras showed hes a protected crime witness. Mendez fled to the U.S. but said he was returned to Mexico before he could ask for asylum, likely under Title 42, an immigration policy implemented during the pandemic that denies many migrants access to request asylum under the justification that the government is protecting public health. The report also shows that 37 percent of Hondurans responding to the survey said they had a pessimistic view of their standard of living, which was worse than Guatemalans and Salvadorans. Only 9 percent of Hondurans had a positive outlook though other Central Americans didnt respond with much optimism either. The report also found the average Central American household in the survey spent $300 each month on needs such as food, housing, education and transportation. Though poverty was listed as a reason to leave Central America, it was also cited as a barrier to immigrate because the journey to the U.S. can be costly. Another recent report, from the Hope Border Institute, interviewed Central American migrants at three shelters in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. In the interviews, Central Americans noted gang and gender-based violence were major triggers that caused them to leave their home countries, while poverty exacerbated by natural disasters and the pandemic was another critical factor. The report highlighted the experience of a middle-class Honduran migrant whose salary at her job at a bank back home was cut by 65 percent after the start of the pandemic, prompting her to take out a loan. After paying off the loan amount, the lenders extorted her and threatened to kill her. When the police told her to keep paying, she decided to leave home and immigrate to the U.S. Luzs story is an example of the blow the pandemic dealt to the middle class throughout Latin America and the way that criminal groups seized the opportunity to take advantage of vulnerable and desperate people, the report said. Central American aid: Mexico, US announce development plan for aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador In the Migration Policy Institute report, the authors also listed regional investments that would create more livable conditions to help Central American stay in their home countries, especially in light of COVID-19 and climate-related emergencies. Creating and growing work training programs to improve unemployment was one recommendation, as well as creating tailored municipal-level investments such as an agricultural program in rural areas affected by climate change. Because of the powerful effect of remittances on Central American economies, the report noted that diaspora could also invest in public infrastructure where they have ties. The report also recommended that the U.S. create temporary employment visas, to create legal channels to decrease the estimated $1.7 billion that Central Americans spend annually on irregular migration with a smuggler and instead increase state revenues for instance, through reasonable application fees. If you focus on those legal pathways for labor migration not as a substitute to migration, but as an alternative to irregular migration, that would not only be to the benefit of migrants to have better and more safe mechanisms, but also to the benefit of countries, said Ruiz Soto. elizabeth.trovall@chron.com Clement Clarke Moores 1823 poem Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas redefined Christmas in America. As historian Steven Nissenbaum explains in The Battle for Christmas, Moores secular St. Nick weakened the holidays religious associations, transforming it into a familial celebration that culminated in Santa Claus toy deliveries on Christmas Eve. Nineteenth-century writers, journalists and artists were quick to fill in details about Santa that Moores poem left out: a toy workshop, a home at the North Pole and a naughty-or-nice list. They also decided that Santa Claus wasnt a bachelor; he was married to Mrs. Claus. Yet scholars tend to overlook the evolution of Santa Claus spouse. Youll see brief references to a handful of late-19th century Mrs. Claus poems especially Katharine Lee Bates 1888 Goody Santa Claus on a Sleigh Ride. But as I discovered when I began work on a class about Christmas in literature, the writers who created Mrs. Claus were not just interested in filling in the blanks of Santas personal life. The poems and stories about Mrs. Claus that appeared in newspapers and popular periodicals spoke to womens central role in the Christmas holiday. The character also provided a canvas to explore contemporary debates about gender and politics. The hardest-working woman in the North Pole Christmas in 19th century America depended on womens time and labor: Women prepared family celebrations, organized community and church events and worked in industries that fed seasonal demand for cards, toys and clothing. This work was both essential and, at times, exhausting: As the century drew to a close, the Ladies Home Journal urged its readers not to tire themselves out preparing for Christmas. Many literary depictions of Mrs. Claus paid tribute to the long hours, practical know-how and managerial skills that womens holiday preparations required. Sara Conants 1875 short story Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus, which appeared in an 1875 issue of Western Rural: Weekly Journal for the Farm & Fireside, celebrated these efforts by describing Mrs. Claus working alongside women across America as they cooked, cleaned and sewed. In Ada Sheltons 1885 story In Santa Claus Land, Santa acknowledged his debt to Mrs. Claus: Without her hard work, he could never get through the Christmas season. But on Christmas Eve, Mrs. Claus hit the North Poles glass ceiling. For Conant, Mrs. Claus was as indispensible as Santa, an equal partner in the joint work of preparing for holiday festivities. Still, in most Mrs. Claus literature, Santa traveled the world filling stockings while Mrs. Claus stayed home to await his return. In 1884s Mrs. Santa Claus Asserts Herself, Sarah J. Burkes tearful Mrs. Claus, ignored by Santa and his fans, is left to cower alone clasping the fingers shed worked to the bone as Santa speeds off on his sleigh. A few writers did, however, reward Mrs. Claus hard work with a sleigh ride of her own. Georgia Greys 1874 short story Mrs. Santa Clauss Ride allows Mrs. Claus to venture out alone, but only after Santa adamantly not a womans rights man makes her promise to remain unseen. To avoid questioning Santas authority or the belief that women belonged at home, the anonymous author of the 1880 tale Mrs. Santa Clauss Christmas-Eve manufactures an emergency: Santa has taken off without some dolls, so Mrs. Claus must saddle Blitzen and deliver them. Mrs. Claus on the naughty list Other writers were less willing to allow Mrs. Claus to step outside the home. Negative representations of her Christmas Eve travels reflected backlash against womens demands for independence and the vote. The majority of Mrs. Claus writing took place after the Civil War, alongside state and national efforts to grant voting rights to women. Publications geared toward women didnt necessarily advocate for more rights and political power. In 1871, the popular womans magazine Godeys Ladys Book published an anti-suffrage petition addressed to Congress and signed by a number of prominent women, with Godeys female editor, Sarah Hale, encouraging readers to collect additional signatures. Like Georgia Greys Santa, the petition argued that womens place was in the home, not in public. Charles S. Dickinsons Mrs. Santa Clauss Adventure, which appeared in the Dec. 1, 1871, issue of Woods Household Magazine, offered a cautionary tale for disobedient wives. Refusing to believe that some children were too naughty to visit, Mrs. Claus trades places with Santa on Christmas Eve. But when she attempts to climb down chimneys to deliver gifts, she is attacked by hateful imps that embody childrens naughty words and deeds. Depicting Mrs. Claus advocacy for children as unrealistic and naive, Dickinson echoes anti-suffrage arguments that emphasized the dangers awaiting women who abandoned the home. M.B. Hortons A New Departure took its title from the National Woman Suffrage Associations failed strategy to register women voters. The 1879 story published, like the anti-suffrage petition, in Godeys Ladys Book discredits womens rights activists through its negative portrayal of Mrs. Claus, called Mrs. St. Nicholas in this telling. Jealous of Santas fame, Mrs. St. Nick tries to deliver gifts in his place, but her plot to usurp Santas role as gift-giver fails when Santa tricks her into delivering a sack of worthless, embarrassing goods. Mrs. Claus seems an unlikely target of anti-suffrage propaganda, but her association with the ultimate domestic holiday made the idea of an independent Mrs. Claus especially shocking. Goody Santa Claus takes the reins Nineteenth-century writing about Mrs. Claus focused primarily on her work ethic and whether that work would ever allow her a share of Santas Christmas limelight. But scholar and suffragist Katharine Lee Bates, best known as the author of America the Beautiful, took a different tack: She gave Mrs. Claus a voice and personality of her own. Drawing upon elements of previous Mrs. Claus literature, Bates Goody Santa Claus on A Sleigh Ride creates an outspoken Mrs. Claus who loves her work and her husband and is not about to be left behind when Santa makes his deliveries. Like Burkes despondent Mrs. Claus, Bates Claus whose title, Goody, stands in for Mrs. begins her monologue with a question: Why does Santa get all the glory while she has nothing but work? Goody Santa Claus on a Sleigh-Ride first appeared in the childrens periodical Wide Awake. While the illustrations cast Mrs. Claus as affectionate, grandmotherly and nonthreatening, Bates text reveals the powerhouse behind Goodys meek exterior. Most Mrs. Claus literature highlights her domesticity, but Bates Goody is equally adept at housework and outdoor chores. As Santa snacks on Christmas treats and relaxes by the fire, Goody tends Christmas trees, an orchard and toy-growing plants; she also raises livestock and takes on the risky-sounding task of chasing thunder to fashion fire-crackers with the lightning. Although Santa allows Goody to ride beside him, her North Pole work resume isnt enough to convince him that she has enough brain to fill a stocking, and he fears that seeing her climb a chimney would give his nerves a shock. Left alone on the rooftop while Santa does his work, Mrs. Claus is on the outside looking in as she peers through the skylight. But the holes in a poor childs Christmas stocking stop Santa in his tracks: Sewing was Mrs. Claus department. Seizing her chance to shine, Goody mends the sock, proving the value of womens work and breaking Santas rules about chimney-climbing and stocking-filling in the process. The themes and plots of 19th century Mrs. Claus writing including stealth sleigh rides reappear in Mrs. Claus narratives to this day, and for good reason. Katharine Bates thunder-chasing, bonnet-wearing, sweet-talking Goody and the many Mrs. Clauses who came before her still speak to every woman who has ever dreamed of a little rest, a little recognition and a seat in the sleigh. Ives is a professor of English at Texas A&M University. This piece was first published by the Conversation. Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print. Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition. If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create. At least four people including a mother-daughter duo lost their lives after an explosion in a boiler at a chemical factory located in Vadodara GIDC area of Gujarat on Friday. The powerful blast at the Canton Laboratories factory also left at least 11 others injured and destroyed the entire boiler crushing many. The walls of surrounding houses also suffered damages due to the explosion. ANI "The massive blast and the fire in Canton Laboratories in the morning has killed four people, two male and two female, including a mother and daughter. We are investigating the incident," Karanraj Vaghela, the DCP Zone two, Vadodara police said. "The four persons died either due to burn injuries or after getting hit by some flying objects. A forensic team has reached the spot to investigate the cause of the blast," inspector of Makarpura police station, Sajid Baloch, said. ANI As per information, 80 labourers were working in the Canton Laboratory when the blast occurred. Canton Laboratories is based in Vadodara, manufacturing active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Rules violated According to reports, the company had built its residential units adjoining the boiler, in violation of the rules. ANI This is the second such incident in a span of eight days that has killed more than ten people in Gujarat. On December 16, a similar factory blast had killed seven persons and injured several in Panchmahal district. Last week a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to conduct a probe into the blast at Gujarat Fluorochemicals Ltd (GFL) plant. Preliminary reports have stated that the blast took place due to high pressure in a vessel at the plant. Because of the toxic gas emanating from the blast site, the district administration had to cordon off 5 km area surrounding the factory. For more on news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. The year of 2021 will be remembered as the year when cryptocurrency really took off - finding a voice in the mainstream and challenging everyone's notion of currency as the world prepares for Web 3.0. The foundations for complete migration to the the digital realm were laid this year - with all-things-metaverse finally starting to materialise. At the same time, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and blockchain-backed cryptocurrency markets took off, plummeted back down again, while another new meme-based token took its top spot. Crypto mining picked up all over the world, and countries are now taking the scope of crypto currencies like bitcoin more seriously. Here's a list of all-things-cryptocurrency and blockchain that paved the way for mass acceptance of tech in 2021. shutterstock 1. Storing Covid-19 medical data on blockchain To gather and store data of Covid-19 cases and tests in real time, Indian government used blockchain technology, Bloomberg reported. Blockchain technology is used to record and enable all cryptocurrency transactions. A decentralised way to pay and store data, blockchains allow encrypted ledgers of sorts that provide immediate verification of payments/data without the need for other players like banks and government authorities. Also read: Crazy For Crypto? 20 Terms You Must Know Before Investing In Cryptocurrency Unsplash 2. El Salvador becomes first country to accept bitcoin as legal tender In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to accept bitcoin as legal tender. Using the "Chivo" digital wallet, people of El Salvador may conduct transactions in bitcoin or in US dollars. To bolster its bitcoin efforts, El Salvador has set aside $203 million to give more people access to banking services and to make digital payments mainstream. Also read: India Will Carve Own Crypto Path Instead Of Following US Or El Salvador, Says Jayant Sinha 3. Metaverse opens scope of more NFTs Driven by the need to make current tech more immersive and futuristic, the tech makers of tomorrow are trying to blur the lines between what's physical and what's digital. In other words - the metaverse(s). Each metaverse represents a digital world akin to an open-world game - only created to mimic social settings and to enable more than gaming through professional collaborative tools and more. Also read: Another Virtual Record: Virtual Plot Worth $4.3 Million Sold On Metaverse By throwing open the gates of various metaverses, companies are effectively urging people to invest their money on digital land in a particular universe - to be sold as NFTs. Reuters 4. NFTs go mainstream The creations of artist Beeple kick-started the interest in NFTs around the globe, compelling the wealthy to invest heavily in digital goods and now, real estate. "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" by Beeple remains the most expensive NFT ever - with sale price of $69.3 million (converted from Ether). According to Investopedia, the average price of an NFT has jumped from $24.98 on January 1, 2020 to $913.48 on November 30, 2021. Also read: Non-Fungible Tokens: How 'Punk' Crypto Trend Gave Rise To NFTs For Digital Art 5. India's crypto ban rumour disrupts crypto When an old version of India's upcoming cryptocurrency bill leaked, crypto counters all over the country plunged sharply. This stemmed from what everyone assumed would be the end of cryptocurrency in the country. Also read: Govt Regulation Is Good: Five Crypto Startups React To India's Crypto Bill Noise Turns out, that was the earliest draft of the bill and it appears India is likely to allow some extent of cryptocurrency trading, ditching the Chinese route of a blanket ban. In addition, the Reserve Bank of India is working on a digital currency of its own to compete with cryptocurrencies. Reuters 6. Bitcoin finally gets Taproot With the release of Taproot for bitcoin transactions, the cryptocurrency became safer, cheaper, more secure and efficient. By introducing smart contracts, Taproot forces buyers and sellers to be more responsible yet also more anonymous. Instead of complicated pools of payments, a series of payments within one will now be stored as one. Also read: Bitcoin Is Getting Much-Needed 'Taproot' Upgrade This Weekend: What Will Change? With smart contracts, transactions are more personalised on bitcoin than ever before. In addition, the size of each bitcoin transaction is a lot smaller than before. 7. Crypto mining triggers reactions Cryptocurrency mining is an energy-intensive and noisy process. In fact, after China ban, the weight of most crypto mining has shifted to other countries in Europe and North America. Sweden is so overburdened for energy that it is asking the European Union to ban crypto mining across the bloc. In addition, Swedish authorities have warned that crypto mining could prevent the countries from meeting their climate change goals. Also read: Sweden Wants Crypto Mining Banned Across Europe To Meet Climate Change Goals unsplash 8. China's ban is US' profit In September 2019, China accounted for 75.5 per cent of all cryptocurrency mining owing to cheap electricity and weak regulations. After enforcing a blanket ban on all cryptocurrencies, China is staring at a $9 billion yearly loss in cryptomining revenue, according to Visual Capitalist. This meant a win for the US! It has emerged as the number 1 place of choice for cryptominers, accounting for 35.4 per cent of all cryptocurrency mining activities. It is now illegal to conduct any cryptocurrency-related activity in China. Th country claims it wants to reduce the carbon footprint by banning bitcoin. But the fact is that cryptocurrencies are decentralised and mostly out of government's reach, and no government likes that. Unsplash 9. 90% bitcoin mined Did you know that 90 per cent of all bitcoin have been mined? To mine the remaining 10 per cent, the world could take 119 years. About 18.98 million bitcoins (around 90 percent) of a maximum of 21 million are now openly being traded in the market, according to Blockchain.com. Also read: 90% Of All Bitcoins Have Been Mined, Remaining 10% Could Take 119 Years In 12 years, cryptocurrency has truly taken some giants leaps. 10. Bitcoin rallies, then falls Bitcoin has had quite the year. After jumping to record $69,000 in November, the world's most preferred cryptocurrency jumped to under $50,000 in December. Bitcoin started recording a spike in April, which culminated in its strong valuation in November. At the beginning of the year, bitcoin was just under $30,000. After Tesla announced a purchase of $1.5 billion bitcoins while adding that it would accept bitcoin payments, its priced soared immediately. Did you enjoy reading this round-up of all-things-crypto over the last year? Share your thought with us below if you think we missed anything. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com. Citation CNBCTV18.com. (2021, December 20). From $30k to $69k and back under $50k: Tracing Bitcoins rollercoaster ride this year. Top 5 Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) of 2021. (2021, December 15). Investopedia. Content, S. (2021, December 7). After Chinas Crypto Ban, Who Leads in Bitcoin Mining? Visual Capitalist. Bloomberg. (2021) Wall Street Finally Learns It Can't Ignore Crypto and NFTs The spousal work authorization backlog has prevented tens of thousands of immigrant women many of them from India from working, causing needless financial pain for their families, said the letter signed by Rep. Deborah Ross (above) and 22 House colleagues, including Indian Americans Ro Khanna and Raja Krishnamoorthi. (ross.house.gov photo) Secretary and director of the national Jal Jeevan Mission, Bharat Lal, speaks to the media as Nicolas Osbert, chief of WASH, UNICEF, looks on during an Interactive Session on the Jal Jeevan Mission, at Gujarat Bhavan, in New Delhi on Dec. 20. (ANI photo) Burma Junta Watch: Myanmar Coup Leader Seeks Divine Assistance; Picking a Fight With the UN and More Min Aung Hlaings son Aung Pyae Sone (second from right), Aung Pyae Sones wife Myo Yadana Htike (third from right) and Min Aung Hlaings daughter Khin Thiri Thet Mon (fourth from right) offer a new pennant-shaped vane for the Kyaik Devi pagoda to Dhammasuta Chekinda for consecration on Dec. 18 / Myawady Is nothing sacred? Pagodas as propaganda Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing, his wife Daw Kyu Kyu Hla, their daughter Khin Thiri Thet Mon, their son Aung Pyae Sone and his wife Myo Yadana Htike on Dec. 18 attended a ceremony marking the renovation of the centuries-old Kyaik Devi pagoda in Hlegu Township on the outskirts of Yangon Region. Two Buddhist monks were on hand to consecrate the pagoda. One of them, Vasipake Sayadaw, hails from Kengtung in eastern Shan State and is famous for his vows of silence. He is widely believed to be the coup leaders astrological adviser. The other, Dammasuta Chekinda, has barely appeared in public since the coup, though previously he was known for leading humanitarian relief efforts, including the COVID-19 control campaign. The Yangon monk is also renowned for his summer school programs, in which he teaches teenagers Buddhism and other subjects like civics, attracting hundreds of youngsters annually. The pagoda was built by a Mon King centuries ago, and successively renovated by Mon and Bamar kings. Given the presence of his astrological adviser, and the nature of the event, Myanmar people naturally concluded that the aim of the ceremony, and the generals efforts to breathe new life into the historic temple, was nothing more than to seek divine blessings to sustain Min Aung Hlaings rule. One year before his coup, the military chief placed the Hti umbrella atop Bagans 12th-century Htilominlo Templea move driven by his desire to win the countrys presidency in 2021. Traditionally, it is believed that rulers who make offerings to the pagoda will receive divine blessings and enjoy long reigns. Vasipake Sayadaw was also at the ceremony, supervising Min Aung Hlaing as he placed the Hti atop the pagoda. Additionally, Min Aung Hlaing is building a giant statue in Naypyitaw, which the regime says will be the worlds largest sitting Buddha statue. Perhaps Min Aung Hlaing, whose regime has killed more than 1,300 peaceful protesters since the coup, is attempting to convey a positive image of the junta as he strives to win the hearts and minds of the countrys religious majority. Whatever his motive for renovating and build pagodas, clearly it cant be a good omen for him that just as he was placing the new diamond orb atop Kyaik Devi pagoda, his military was suffering casualties in fierce clashes in Karen State. Sadly for the general, despite the colorful photos and footage of the ceremony published and broadcast on junta-controlled media, no one gives a shit. A desperate attempt to control the flow of arms On Dec. 19, the regime urged the public to hand over by Dec. 31 any arms and ammunition belonging to the parallel National Unity Government (NUG) and Peoples Defense Force (PDF) groups that they may be storing in their homes or apartments, warning it would take punitive action under existing laws against those who fail to do so. The warning comes as the Myanmar military continues to sustain heavy casualties in clashes with the ethnic Kokang armed group the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army in northern Shan State, as well as with the Karen National Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Karen National Union, and various other ethnic armed forces and PDF groups in Chin, Kayah and Karen states and Sagaing and Magwe regions. Overwhelmed and seemingly at its wits end, the regime is rushing to issue such warnings to prevent things from getting worse in Yangon and other major cities where security forces are still targeted in frequent explosions and shootings, despite tightened checks and crackdowns. In September, the junta warned against renting houses and apartments to resistance fighters, saying the properties would be seized if landlords failed to report to authorities about tenants who commit acts of terror. Isnt it a bit of a stretch to think that people would voluntarily and happily hand over weapons to the regime in response to such a warning? Anyone with any common sense knows they are sure to land in hot water once they hand over the weaponsso why bother? Regime leaders seek revenge on the UN (seriously) Since the coup, Myanmars top generals have been subjected to sanctions by a number of Western countries. In June, the UN General Assembly called for a stop to the flow of arms to Myanmar. The relationship between the international body and the regime has been badly strained since the takeover, with the former continuously condemning the regimes violence against its own people, and the latter dismissing the accusations as groundless and strongly opposing the UNs punitive actions. On Dec. 20, the regime, apparently having decided that two can play at the sanctions game, sought to exact some revenge by announcing it had shut down the office of the UNs Special Envoy for the country, reasoning that the term of envoy Christine Schraner Burgener had ended. Although Swiss diplomat Schraner Burgeners term ended in October, the mission is ongoing. In the same month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed another diplomat, Noeleen Heyzer, as Schraner Burgeners successor. The position of UN Special Envoy was created in 2018, mainly in response to the Rohingya crisis in western Myanmars Rakhine State, in partnership with the then NLD government. The envoys office in Naypyitaw was opened in December of the same year. On Dec. 16, the regimes Foreign Ministry reiterated its objection to the adoption the previous month of a resolution titled Situation of Human Rights of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar at the Third Committee of the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly. Junta cant stand the sight of ousted NLD leaders titles It seems the regime is upset with local media outlets continued use of ousted NLD government leaders ranks and positions when referring to them in news stories. The generals displeasure came to light when the new Myanmar Press Council, whose members were sworn in before coup leader Min Aung Hlaing last month, asked local media outlets on Dec. 22 to stop using the titles and positions of individuals who served in the NLDs ousted government. Needless to say, the ban targets usages such as State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint. The ban is hardly surprising from the new council, whose chair is a former lieutenant colonel and whose vice chair is a former captain from the Public Relations and Psychological Warfare Department of the Defense Ministry. The council said it would not intervene to help journalists who face legal consequences for continuing to use such titles. With a deliberate lack of deference, former military regimes bluntly referred to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as Suu Kyi in propaganda pieces published in state-run newspapers. Since the Feb. 1 coup, the regime has revoked the licenses of five local media agencies, and detained dozens of journalists and charged them with incitement, high treason and terrorism. Currently, around 50 journalists remain in detention, and media organizations are struggling to report the news as press freedoms are steadily eroded in the country. You may also like these stories: Myanmar Junta Police Arrest Muslim Teen After Civil Servants Murder Myanmar Junta Pushing China to Restart Stalled Infrastructure Projects Myanmar Civil Servant Murdered in Rakhine State , , (MoFA) , , , ' ' , , When Father Tom Hartman and I were together as the God Squad, before his passing in 2016, one of our most beloved annual traditions at this time of year was for Tommy to write a column on what he loved about Hanukkah and for me to write one on what I loved about Christmas. I am left alone now to hold up my end. It is not a chore, but I do miss Tommy most around Christmastime and truth be told, I really do love Christmas and it is not just the trees, Santa and the music. I love the idea that this holiday for Christians celebrates the birth of Christ, which is not a name. Christ is a title. It means Messiah. You would probably suppose that as a rabbi I would not be one who wants to put the Christ back in Christmas. The opposite is true. I love the fact that Christmas, when properly celebrated, revives for Christians the power of the miracle and mystery of the birth of the Messiah. Like most Christian beliefs, the belief in a Messiah descended from the line of King David who would bring peace on earth is a Jewish belief. The virgin birth and the resurrection were, of course, Christian additions to the core Jewish belief, and they are outside any version of Judaism (are you listening Jews for Jesus!). However, the idea of a human Messiah is a Jewish belief added to Judaism by the rabbis at the time of Jesus. The Bible speaks of a messianic time and a day of God, but it is silent on the idea that the Messianic Age would also include a Messiah. This is true despite all the eager attempts of evangelical Christians to find supposed references to Jesus in Isaiahs suffering servant. That reference is to the entire people of Israel who will suffer for their sins, not a person who by dying would wipe away the sins of the world. So let us get this straight. Jews believe (or should believe because it is in our sacred texts) that at some point in the future, a Messiah will emerge to defeat the forces of evil and usher in a time of peace. The rabbis also taught that this Messiah would bring the dead back to life so that they could also enjoy the glories of the end of time. That is why some orthodox Jews who have amputated limbs bury them in their grave before they die so that on the day of the resurrection of the dead they wont be missing their left foot! My favorite Jewish Messiah legend is that the Messiah will appear on earth as a leper at the gates of Rome waiting for some kindly person to stop and offer to bind up his wounds. After that act of kindness to the least of us, the Messiah would then announce himself (and I would add or herself) and begin the last war against evil at Armageddon. This is why I always give to beggars even though some friends and family constantly chide me about my gullibility to scam artists. Still, I give because I do not want to be the one who stiffed the Messiah and delayed the Messianic Age. I am a big believer in Heaven, or as it is called in Judaism The World To Come, but I am not a believer in the bodily resurrection of the dead. It is just too phantasmagorical for me. However, I do believe that someday a Messiah will arrive. Perhaps riding a white donkey over the hills around the city of Safed in Israel, or perhaps sitting bundled and cold on the sidewalks of New York City. What I believe is that there must be an end to the coruscating evil in the world. There must be some hope in us that is strong enough to survive all the evidence of evil in the world. And if that Messiah turns out to be Jesus returning, then I will slap my forehead and join the chorus welcoming the King of Kings. However, if (as I do believe) the Messiah turns out to be someone who never knew and never was Jesus of Nazareth, then Tommy and a whole bunch of Christians will be looking up recipes for Hanukkah latkes. What I believe most of all is that the name of the Messiah will not matter as much as people think. This Messiah wrangling should not be a debate about who got it right and who got it wrong. It should be the expression of a common hope that in the darkness of winter there is still a bright light of hope that our common history will lead to peace everlasting. And that hope and that message and that miracle to come is why I love Christmas. Send questions and comments to The God Squad via email at godsquadquestion@aol.com. Rabbi Gellman is the author of several books, including Religion for Dummies, co-written with Fr. Tom Hartman. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 EUGENE, Ore. -- One man was taken into custody around 8:15 Friday morning, after police say he swam to an island near Lakeridge Mobile Home Park in Eugene. Initally, police responded to reports of a burglary at a home in the 3500 block of North Delta Highway at around 7:40 a.m. Eugene Police Patrol officers, EPD K9 Mike Casey and K9 Marco, and an EPD Drone Team officer were dispatched to the area. Police reportedly entered the home but that's when the suspect, 27-year-old Travis Mattoon, swam away from police in a lake. Eugene Springfield Fire's Boat 6 responded to a report of a water rescue. They used a rapid deployment craft to assist Eugene Police. According to EPD, Mattoon swam to the north side of the lake, then got out and ran through thick blackberry bushes. They said because of frigid conditions, officials quickly transitioned the call into a life-saving mission. Mattoon was taken to a hospital for treatment where he was reportedly handcuffed to a bed. He then escaped the hospital into the parking lot before a Springfield Police K9 team found him in an employee vehicle with a window broken out, they said. Mattoon was taken back into custody in a hospital bed until he could be medically cleared. He's facing charges of Burglary in the First Degree, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, Elude by Vehicle, Interfering with a Police Officer, Resisting Arrest and Fugitive of Justice (warrant out of Nevada). For the hospital incident he is facing charges of Disorderly Conduct in the First Degree and Escape in the third Degree, as well as a Springfield Police Citation in Lieu of Custody for Unlawful Entry Motor Vehicle. PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) A new legal challenge seeks to curtail the use of solitary confinement as discipline in Oregon prisons. The Oregon Justice Resource Center argues the practice is cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the U.S. Constitution. The center asked the state appeals court Wednesday for a temporary restraining order halting the Oregon Department of Corrections from sending inmates to solitary confinement for over 15 days while justices consider the motion, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. Disciplinary solitary confinement is not only harmful to peoples mental and physical health, it is not even effective in achieving the goals that (Oregon Department of Corrections) has for it, Ben Haile, a senior lawyer for the Oregon Justice Resource Center, said. People in Oregon prison solitary confinement generally spend an average of 23 hours a day in their cells with 40-minute breaks five days a week for exercise and showering, according to the Oregon Justice Resource Center, a Portland-based nonprofit focused on civil rights and legal representation issues. The motion doesnt challenge the use of solitary confinement for non-disciplinary purposes such as a segregation order made for safety reasons. A spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Corrections did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the newspaper. Washington state abolished disciplinary solitary confinement in September, while Idaho and California generally limit solitary confinement to 10 or 15 days, according to the legal filing. Nevada allows isolation punishments of up to a year. While many of us will be relaxing over the Christmas and enjoying the break, our amazing Frontline Healthcare Workers will continue to look after our loved ones in hospitals all over the country. In recognition of their efforts throughout the pandemic, and to show a little appreciation, Heroes Aid has teamed up with Civil Defence to deliver Thank You hampers to ICU and Emergency Department staff who will be working on Christmas Day at almost 40 hospitals nationwide. The hampers include treats and snacks for the nurses and doctors to enjoy while on break. A special Christmas card (above) was designed by the children from St Marys National School in Fairview, Dublin and includes drawings, images, and many heartfelt messages from these 8 to11 year olds. The hampers are being delivered in the days leading up to Christmas by volunteers of the Civil Defence who have also been working on the frontline during the pandemic. Frontline Healthcare Workers will have seen the Heroes Aid mobile billboards that visited hospital locations in Dublin, Galway and Cork last week, creating awareness for the wellbeing support that Heroes Aid provides for these dedicated and inspirational professionals. Shenandoah, IA (51601) Today Bitterly cold. Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low -1F. NNW winds shifting to ESE at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Bitterly cold. Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low -1F. NNW winds shifting to ESE at 10 to 15 mph. If you have been to any Walworth County area Oktoberfest in the last several years, you probably saw Eddie Kobesko. Also known as Good Times Eddie, Kobesko is often making people smile at various public functions with his Hohner Button Box, which looks like an accordion. But his heart lies in the Lake Geneva area, where the lederhosen-clad musician lives and performs the most. Kobesko is a fixture at Oktoberfests in Lake Geneva and Elkhorn, and at the Walworth County Fair. Now at 70 years old, Good Times Eddie is frequently playing at festivals, church spaghetti feeds, fundraisers, birthday and anniversary parties, corporate events and at retirement centers. Few things give Kobesko greater joy than performing for seniors. Thats good for the soul and it also puts goodwill into my 401(k) plan upstairs, he chuckled. There is no satisfaction like playing a senior center, a retirement home. Thats where its at for me these days. The largest event Kobesko plays regularly is the Green County Cheese Days festival in Monroe, which draws crowds of 20,000 to 30,000. But the button box has taken him from coast to coast from playing in New York with former Village People member Randy Jones to the 2021 International Mars Society Convention. Kobeskos friend was in the rock band they hired to perform at the convention. Evidently, the gig exceeded their scope when Dr. Robert Zubrin, president of the society, informed them that he wanted to sing Russian polka songs. So they said, Oh, we got to get Eddie Spaghetti from Wisconsin for this, said Kobesko. Eddie Spaghetti is a name that has stuck with him since high school. Born in Chicago, Eddies family moved up north to Mercer in 1957, when his parents purchased a resort. At age 10, Eddie had already logged in a few years on the accordion, playing at the resort for nickels, dimes and candy. One day, the former resort owner showed up and performed on his button box. After hearing it, Eddie did not want to play the accordion anymore. It was the tone, he said, of the button box. It was like plugging people into a light socket. It was immediate happy music, and it has a distinct tone all its own. Eventually, Eddies mother saved up enough money to buy him a button box. Back then, it was $52. Today, a Hohner Button Box costs about $1,150. Playing the button box is different than the accordion. Despite having to expand and compress the bellows, the buttons are diatonic theres one note when the bellows are squeezed, and a different one when they are stretched out. Eddies mother would help him learn to play by humming each individual note of numerous classic waltzes and polkas. To this day, I still play some of those songs that she would hum each note of to me, he said. Often times, people mistake the button box for an accordion. Eddie used to try to explain what the button box is. But I dont correct people anymore, he said. If you want to call it an accordion, a toboggan, a shoe whatever. As long as they enjoy it, Im smiling. People are often smiling at Good Times Eddie performances, especially at the senior centers. For those shows, he plays for about an hour, taking his audience on a musical tour from France to California, among other places. Props are involved hats, maracas that the audiences can use to play along with the music, balloons because usually someone watching the show is having a birthday. Then theres the spittoon for when it comes time to sing saloon songs from Californias gold rush days. I say, This is my mothers spittoon. Then I go, Oh, no, she didnt chew snuff or anything like that. She collected antiques. That usually gets a little chuckle, said Eddie. While he has been in the area for around 25 years, Eddie has lived in Lake Geneva the last 17. A retired woodworker, Eddie still works part-time building custom furniture. Sometimes, he plays bass and keyboards for a friend he has known since childhood. When they were 12, Eddie and his friend started a rock band. Today, his friends band, Revolushn, is planning to tour the UK next spring. Eddie intends to go with them and start his biggest musical adventure yet. I have a passport that I never use and Ive never played overseas, he said. I do have some bucket lists, and one of them is I would like to play the button box to my girlfriend by the Eiffel Tower. The button box is just one secret to happiness for Eddie Kobesko. The other is I keep stress levels down and I dont deal with drama, he chuckled. Drama? Im gone. For more about Kobesko, visit goodtimeseddie.com. Today, his friends band, Revolushn, is planning to tour the UK next spring. Eddie intends to go with them and start his biggest musical adventure yet. Stay up-to-date on what's happening Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 25 (ANI/BusinessWire India): HDFC Bank's efforts in furthering financial inclusion through partnership with the Government of India's Common Service Centres (CSC) have been adjudged 'Most Innovative Best Practice' for financial inclusion at the coveted CII Digital Transformation Award 2021. HDFC Bank focuses on financial inclusion by offering entire bouquet of its world-class products through CSC's network of VLE centres: Also Read | Christmas 2021 Messages: Send Exciting Images, Wishes & Greetings to Your Loved Ones on Xmas Day!. *1.1 lakh VLE (Village Level Executive) centres run by CSC e-Governance *Of these, over 1 lakh VLE centres are in Rural & Semi-Urban locations Also Read | IND U19 17/3 in 3 Overs I IND U19 vs PAK U19 Live Score Updates of U19 Asia Cup 2021: Zeeshan Zameer Rattles Indias Top Order. *These locations cover close to 50,000 villages across India *These villages are spread across 685 districts and 5,176 sub-districts *Additionally, the bank has 5,686 branches across 2929 cities/ towns - 50 per cent of these are located at Rural & Semi-Urban locations. Partnering with CSC entailed 'creating a parallel bank' for over 1 lakh village-level entrepreneurs, manning the VLE centre, who would offer all products and services of the bank, in remotest areas of the country. Building the digital platform *Since VLEs are not employees of the bank, allowing them access to the existing bank system was not possible *To ensure that end-to-end services were provided to the customer at the remotely located VLE centre itself, without the need to visit the branch, a new digital platform that interacts with the Bank's network was built in 2018 Building digital journeys for all bank Products and Services *Digital journeys adhering to all mandated norms were built *It was also necessary that unlike internet banking wherein customers have access to non-assisted journeys, the journeys created for VLEs are assisted Training and education of 1.1 lakh VLEs based at remote locations *On-boarding and training the VLEs and doing so remotely with the constraints of level of education, technical know-how and language barriers across the country *Standardisation of customer experience across the VLE centres Some of the remotest locations where banking services were made possible through this innovation are - *Inaccessible areas of North-eastern states *Deep interiors of Chhattisgarh, impacted by extremism *Underserved districts of Andhra - Telangana The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) instituted the digital transformation award to recognize excellence in Digital Transformation in India. CII received 450 entries for the category. Of these, the jury invited 76 for the presentation and based its decision on four parameters viz. Optimal utilization of technology; Uniqueness of the solution; Cost benefits to the organization (financial and non-financial); and Scope of replicability. To read more about methodology, please click here. "We are thrilled to receive this award," said Smita Bhagat, Group Head - Government and Institutional Business, BC Banking (CSC partnership), and Start-ups, HDFC Bank. "I feel Roti, Kapda, Makaan and Access to banking and finance are basic necessities today. This initiative is changing lives for real and we are grateful we could bring about transformation at such a large scale. This would not have been possible without CSC e-Governance and its CEO Mr Dinesh Tyagi. This is just a beginning and we have many more miles to walk." 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) Shopian (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], December 25 (ANI): As many as two terrorists, belonging to the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit, have been killed in an encounter that broke out in the Chowgam area of Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday morning. The Jammu and Kashmir Police today informed that acting on specific input generated by Police regarding the presence of terrorists in a village in Chowgam area of Shopian, a joint cordon and search operation was launched by Police, 44RR and 14Bn CRPF in the said area. Also Read | Omicron Scare: Karnataka CM Basavaraja Bommai to Hold Meeting With Experts to Tackle Omicron Threat. During the search operation, after the presence of terrorists got ascertained, they were given ample opportunities to surrender. However, they denied the surrender opportunities and instead fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated leading to an encounter. In the ensuing encounter, two terrorists were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter. Also Read | Omicron In India: States Issue COVID-19 Guidelines Ahead of Christmas, New Year Amid Rising Cases Of New Coronavirus Variant; Check Complete List Here. They have been identified as Sajad Ahmad Chak and Raja Basit Yaqoob. As per police records, both Sajad and Raja were categorized terrorists linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT and were part of groups involved in several terror crime cases. Besides, the killed terrorist Sajad was also instrumental in motivating and recruiting the youth to join terror folds. Incriminating materials, arms and ammunition including two AK series rifles, four AK Magazines and 32 rounds were recovered from their possession. All the recovered materials have been taken into case records for further investigation. The Police have registered a case under the relevant sections of law and an investigation has been initiated. The police have also requested the people to cooperate with them till the area at the encounter site is completely sanitized and cleared of all the explosive materials, if any. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Delhi, December 25: Five under-trial prisoners died in different jails under Delhi's Tihar jail in the past eight days, as per jail sources. In one such death, deceased Vikram, also known as Vicky who was in one of the prisons of Tihar jail died on Friday allegedly due to health-related issues, as per jail authorities. Following his death, action has been initiated under Section 176 of CrPC. "As per rules inquiry proceedings are being conducted by Metropolitan Magistrate in each case", said Tihar authority. COVID-19 Vaccination In India: With Administration of Over 66 Lakh Vaccine Doses in Past 24 Hours, Cumulative Vaccination Coverage Surpasses 141 Crore. The jail officials have termed all the deaths as natural. (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, Dec 25 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested six women members of a gang for allegedly trafficking in infants, officials said on Saturday. The gang, involved in trafficking of over 50 infants, used to procure them from the parents belonging to poor financial background by offering them money and further sold the babies to childless couples for a hefty amount, police said. Also Read | PM Narendra Modi to Address Public Meeting in Himachal Pradeshs Mandi on December 27. On December 17, police were tipped off that the members of the gang would come near Shamshan Ghat, Gandhi Nagar, around 3.30 pm to sell an infant. Thereafter, a raid was conducted and three women, having a seven to eight months old boy with them, were apprehended from the spot. Three more members of the gang were arrested the next day and one baby girl was rescued, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rajesh Deo said. Also Read | Thane Shocker: 5-Month-Old Child Kidnapped, Murdered in Kalwa Area. Those who have been arrested were identified as Priya Jain, Priya, Kajal, Rekha, Shivani and Premvati, the officials said. During interrogation, the accused revealed that a few of them had come in contact with an IVF centre and started donating their eggs to be used in IVF process. In this process, they came in contact with several couples who had no children of their own and could not even get through the IVF process, police said. The gang would identify a pregnant woman having a poor financial background and strike a deal with her and her husband. When the child was born, they used to keep it in their custody, police said. They would simultaneously identify several possible buyers and circulate the child's photograph among all touts through WhatsApp and sell the child to one who agreed to buy, the DCP said. Kajal and Priyanka are the mastermind of the gang. It is also suspected that their network is spread in other states as well. Priyanka is absconding and efforts are being made to arrest the remaining accused, police added. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) By Siddharth Sharma New Delhi [India], December 25 (ANI): In a big move ahead of Punjab Assembly polls, the Congress party is unlikely to announce a chief ministerial face of the party for the state elections and is likely to opt for collective leadership. Also Read | Omicron Spread: COVID-19 Infection Rate in Goa Has Risen From 1.8% to 3.5%, Says CM Pramod Sawant. According to sources in the party, deliberations are going on to take a final call on this. It is a tough decision for the ruling Congress as the party made a change of guard in September by giving the command of the state to Charanjit Singh Channi, Punjab's first Dalit chief minister. However, the majority of state leaders believe that the party should choose collective leadership to balance the caste equations in the state. Also Read | Night Curfew in Maharashtra: State Govt Imposes Curfew From 9 PM to 6 AM To Curb Spread of Omicron COVID-19 Variant; Check Guidelines. Ahead of polls, the screening committee of Congress in Punjab has held several rounds of meetings with the state leaders, ministers, MLAs and MPs. One of the party leaders, on maintaining anonymity told ANI that they have expressed their desire to party top leaders that the party should go for collective leadership in upcoming polls. With this move, the party is seemingly avoiding the risk of vote polarisation as Channi, being a Dalit face as the chief minister, is likely to garner votes from the Dalit community but a sizeably larger population of voters also consists of Jat Sikhs and Hindus. Notably, the party has placed its top faces in a combination of castes by appointing Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is a Jat Sikh, as the president of the Punjab Congress and Sunil Jakhar, who is a Jat, as chief of the election campaign committee. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa is a Jat Sikh, while another Deputy Chief Minister OP Soni comes from a Hindu community. It is also important to be noted that Sunil Jakhar has been included in the screening committee for the Punjab polls though a good campaign committee chairman was never used to get the berth in the screening committee earlier. The Congress party is also doing a survey on a seat-by-seat basis for the selection of the candidates. Till now, two meetings of the screening committee have been held in the national capital for the selection of the candidates. The party has also adopted 'one family, one ticket' policy for the polls. State Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu has already made it clear that the candidates will be given tickets based on merit. "Congress is a secular party in which discussions and debates are properly conducted. It has been decided to give tickets keeping in view the merit. Tickets will be given to the winning candidates. Congress is a secular party that follows a proper procedure. Tickets will be given on merit," Sidhu told reporters. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, Dec 25 (PTI) In view of the spike in coronavirus cases and the growing threat of the Omicron variant, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has banned New Year celebration programmes and gatherings in any closed or open areas in the city. Also Read | Uttarakhand Shocker: 35-Year-Old Man Brutally Thrashes 18-Year-Old Girl For Calling Him 'Uncle' in Sitarganj. Mumbai municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal issued an order to this effect late Friday evening. Also Read | Telangana: 30 IPS Officers Transferred in State, CV Anand New Hyderabad Police Commissioner. "There shall be no gathering or celebration of New Year in any closed or open areas under the BMC jurisdiction," the order said. The order came into effect from the midnight of December 25 and shall remain in force till the next directive. The order is applicable to all hotels, bars, restaurants as well as to privately-owned places that could be used for such gatherings and celebrations, it said. On Friday, Maharashtra government also prohibited gathering of more than five persons in public places between 9 pm and 6 am. The state recorded 1,410 coronavirus cases and 20 Omicron infections during the day. The BMC had on Friday also issued a separate order stating that Mumbai residents arriving here from Dubai will have to undergo seven-day home quarantine. The travelers who live in other parts of Maharashtra will be able to leave Mumbai on arrival from Dubai, but their transport will be arranged by the collector, it said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], December 25 (ANI): As per fresh guidelines issued by Kerala DGP Anil Kant, officials have been told to prepare a district-wise list of those previously involved in criminal cases, including members of the RSS and the SDPI. These guidelines came in the backdrop of two killings of political members of the BJP and the SDPI in Alappuzha district. Also Read | Online Fraud in Mumbai: Bandra Doctor Duped of Rs 1.2 Lakh by Cyber Fraudsters Who Promised Her Job in UK. The accused against whom a warrant has been issued or those who are absconding will be arrested. Police will also examine whether the accused, who are out on bail, are violating bail conditions. The DGP said that legal action will be initiated against those who are directly or indirectly involved in committing a crime. Also Read | Delmicron in India? No New Strain of Coronavirus Yet, Time to Fight Omicron, Say Health Experts. Inquiries will be conducted to find out the source of funding for criminal activities. Law and order ADGPs and Zonal IGs have been ordered to give weekly reports to the DGP about the actions taken on these guidelines. In the last six days, the police have registered 51 cases for spreading hatred on social media. (ANI) (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, December 25: Emphasizing the aspects of good governance, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government redefined independence with good governance and brought all-inclusive development on the ground. Addressing the Good Governance Day programme in Delhi, Shah said, "The last 21 governments have taken decisions keeping in mind their vote banks. Narendra Modi government never took decisions that 'looks' good to the people, always took decisions that 'did' good to the people." Also Read | Ludhiana Court Blast: Sacked Cop Gagandeep Singh Went to Washroom to Assemble Bomb, Says Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya. "When Prime Minister Modi's government came to power in 2014, people experienced that the government came not just to function but to transform the country. 'Swaraj to mil gaya par suraaj kabhi nahi mila' (got independence but there was no good governance). In the last 70 years, the country's democratic system had lost credibility. Narendra Modiji has done the work of redefining the Swaraj with suraaj. He brought suraaj (good governance on the ground," he said. Shah said during the seven years of the Modi government, there has been development in all the sectors including agriculture, industrial, rural and urban. "Borders were secured and we have also made good relations with the whole world. Good Governance means all-inclusive development and Modi ji has realized this," he said. Also Read | WHO Experts Warn Tamil Nadu of Sudden Spurt in Omicron Cases. The Union Home Minister mentioned people's 'seven expectations of Good Governance' and said it is a joint responsibility of everyone those who are elected on Panchayat-level, public representative or people in the bureaucracy to fulfil these seven requirements. He said one of the seven expectations of people from good governance is that "the development model should be universal and all-encompassing". "There should not be any area of the country in which development does not take place and there should not be any person in the society who is not included in the model of development. This is the expectation of people from the government as good governance," Shah said. Counting the second expectation, Shah said people want "complete eradication of corruption". "Sincere effort to solve basic problems, sensitivity and accountability, innovation, and permanence are the other expectations which people want from good governance," said the Minister. "And all these efforts should be such that people have faith in the government and government has faith in the people," said Shah, adding "these seven expectations are expected by people from us (government)". He clarified that "us" means all those from people elected on Panchayat-level, public representatives or people in the bureaucracy who serve people from different modes. "It is the responsibility of everyone to fulfill these seven requirements." The Home Minister lauded the decision taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to celebrate "Good Governance Week" during "Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav" year, saying it helped in reaching good governance to far-flung villages from the national capital. Noting that Prime Minister Modi's initiative to celebrate "Good Governance Week", Shah said the "Good governance has been introduced from the Patwari of the village to the secretary of the ministry which is a great achievement as lakhs of complaints were addressed and several suggestions have been received that will be beneficial in establishing the good governance in future". (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Hubli (Karnataka) [India], December 25 (ANI): Amid rumours about him resigning as Karnataka Chief Minister, Basavaraja Bommai once again made it clear that he is not resigning. During interaction with the Press in Hubli, Bommai on Saturday made it clear that he is not travelling to any foreign country and that there is no question of any new Chief Minister in Karnataka. Also Read | NIOS Public Exam 2022 Admit Card Released At Official Website nios-voc.demodevelopment.com; Here Steps To Download The Admit Card. "The event which was supposed to be held in Davos is postponed to June. So no plans of travelling abroad", added Bommai. (ANI) (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 [India], December 25 (ANI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday suggested all the civil servants should understand the importance of their role, saying "our (politicians) term is for five years, but yours terms is for 25-30 years" so they have a bigger responsibility. Stressing the need to adopt different ways of good governance to benefit maximum people, Shah, while addressing the concluding session of the "Good Governance Week" event here, also urged the civil servants to understand the spirit of the rules despite reading it like paper. Also Read | NIOS Public Exam 2022 Admit Card Released At Official Website nios-voc.demodevelopment.com; Here Steps To Download The Admit Card. The Home Minister said even law should not be read as like a paper and its purpose and spirit should be understood. "Elected governments make law but it is yours (civil servants) responsibility to implement it. Understanding its spirit, you have to do the work of bringing it to the bottom. A special kind of trust has been placed on you people in our constitution," Shah said. Also Read | Jammu and Kashmir: Two LeT Terrorists Neutralized in Encounter in Shopian. "All of us (politicians) who come here come for five years. After five years, the people of the country decide whether to give us the reins of the country or not. In this sense, our term is five years but you come for 25-30 years because the constitution has faith in you. That's why I want to tell you that you have more responsibility than us." He further said that the administration should run as per rule because it is very important but it is also important to consider the role of the particular department. "If we understand this basic concept, we manage to solve most of the problems. We should not read rules like paper. We should understand its spirit and take decisions that are beneficial for the people of the country." (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Bhopal, Dec 25 (PTI) More than 33,000 cases have been registered in Madhya Pradesh under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the the last four years, the state government has said. Also Read | Uttarakhand Shocker: 35-Year-Old Man Brutally Thrashes 18-Year-Old Girl For Calling Him 'Uncle' in Sitarganj. The number of cases registered under this Act has gone up in the state in the past two years, as per the data provided by Home Minister Narottam Mishra in the state Legislative Assembly on Friday in a written reply to a question asked by Congress MLA Jitu Patwari. Also Read | Telangana: 30 IPS Officers Transferred in State, CV Anand New Hyderabad Police Commissioner. The data said that 33,239 cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were registered in a period of around four years between January 2018 and November 2021. At 9,664, the highest number of such cases were registered in 2020, while as many as 9,249 cases were filed in 11 months of this year. A total of 6,852 cases were registered under this Act in 2018, while this number was 7,474 in 2019, the data said. Along with the cases registered under SC/ST Act, Patwari in the same question had also sought information about the annual conviction percentage in the cases related to atrocities against women. The reply said that there has been an annual average conviction of 27 per cent of the cases related to atrocities against women in Madhya Pradesh in the last seven years. It added that the conviction rate in the cases of atrocities against women was 27.16 per cent in 2015, 27.34 per cent in 2016, 26.98 per cent in 2017, 23.15 per cent in 2018, 29.39 per cent in 2019, 26.10 per cent in 2020 and 28.29 per cent in 2021. (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 [India], December 25 (ANI): Covaxin has a proven record for safety and efficacy from all the variants of COVID-19, said Bharat Biotech after its vaccine received emergency usage approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for kids aged between 12-18 years. "Covaxin has established a proven record for safety and efficacy in adults for the original variant and subsequent variants," says the official release. Also Read | COVID-19 Vaccination Update: Citizens Above 60 with Co-morbidities Can Avail Precaution Dose Against Coronavirus on Advice of Doctor, Says PM Narendra Modi. "Covaxin has established a proven record for safety and efficacy in adults for the original variant and subsequent variants. We have documented excellent safety and immunogenicity data readouts in Children," it added. Bharat Biotech expressed gratitude to the Union Health Ministry, Drugs Controller General of India and National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation "for their diligent review of all data and for their fastidious approval process." Also Read | Coronavirus Vaccination for Children Aged 15-18 Years to Start From January 3, Announces PM Narendra Modi. Bharat Biotech also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "for his visionary leadership during this pandemic." (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Pune (Maharashtra) [India], December 25 (ANI): With the Maharashtra government asking the churches in the state to allow only 50 per cent of the devotees in the midnight mass prayers, a Pune church is celebrating Christmas following all the COVID protocols for "good health of society". Welcoming Christmas at St. Patrick's Church in Pune, nearly 250 devotees were allowed inside the Church having a seating capacity of 800 people. Also Read | Omicron Spread: COVID-19 Infection Rate in Goa Has Risen From 1.8% to 3.5%, Says CM Pramod Sawant. The people of the city followed COVID protocols while they prayed in unison at the Church on the occasion of Christmas. Speaking to ANI, the Father of the Church said that they followed the guidelines laid down by the government for the "good health of society". Also Read | Night Curfew in Maharashtra: State Govt Imposes Curfew From 9 PM to 6 AM To Curb Spread of Omicron COVID-19 Variant; Check Guidelines. "This Church has a capacity of accommodating more than 800 people but did not allow more than 250 people because of social distancing norms. Mask and sanitisation are a must for whosoever coming to the Church," he said. "We followed all the COVID protocols because it is good for health and for society. We want to convey to society that we are Christians but we are Indians first. We fully cooperated with the instructions given by the Central and State governments," he added. A devotee, Shweta who had come to pray along with her family, said that the pandemic has made a lot of difference in the way Christmas is being celebrated. "A lot of difference has come in the way we celebrate the festival due to the pandemic, but it should be celebrated following all the protocols laid down by the government," she said. Another devotee said that they are trying to celebrate the festival with lesser people around following the social distancing norms. As the clock ticked 12 midnight on Saturday, Churches across India welcomed Christmas with the Mass prayers. Midnight mass prayers were held in St. Michael's Church in Mumbai's Mahim, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church in Goa's Panaji, St. Teresa's Church in Kolkata, Saint Francis Church in Bengaluru and other Churches across India. Christmas is celebrated on December 25 marking the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ. (ANI) (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 [India], December 25 (ANI): On the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said on Saturday that Vajpayee brought people of different faiths together. Joshi, who was also his cabinet colleague, said, "Atal Ji kept 22-23 parties together and established India as a nuclear power. Taking 22 parties together, people of different faiths together, removing all differences he gave a new direction to India's politics." Also Read | Bhopal Shocker: 35-Year-Old Married Woman Raped By Colleague In Piplani; Case Registered. He also said that Vajpayee believed in democratic values. On the occasion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary, President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid floral tribute at 'Sadaiv Atal' Samadhi in the national capital. Also Read | Ludhiana Court Blast: Sacked Cop Gagandeep Singh Went to Washroom to Assemble Bomb, Says Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nirmala Sitharaman, Piyush Goyal and others also paid floral tribute at 'Sadaiv Atal' on the occasion. Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birthday is celebrated as the 'Good Governance Day'. Vajpayee, who led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government from 1998-2004, was the first-ever leader from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to have become the nation's Prime Minister. He served as Prime Minister thrice -- briefly in 1996, and then for two terms between 1998 and 2004. One of the prominent leaders of the country and founder members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vajpayee died on August 16, 2018, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after a prolonged illness. He was 93. The late leader was conferred Bharat Ratna in 2015. He had also been awarded Pt Govind Ballabh Pant Award for Best Parliamentarian in 1994. (ANI) (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, Dec 25 (PTI) Protean eGov Technologies (formerly known as NSDL E-Governance Infrastructure) has filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to raise funds through an initial public offering. The public issue is purely an offer of sale (OFS) of 1.2 crore equity shares, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP). Also Read | Vivo V23 Pro To Be Indias First Colour Changing Smartphone: Report. Those offering shares in the OFS are IIFL Special Opportunities Funds, NSE Investments, Administrator of the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Deutsche Bank A.G., Punjab National Bank and Union Bank of India. Protean eGov Technologies is one of the key IT-enabled solution companies in India engaged in conceptualizing, developing and executing nationally critical and population scale greenfield technology solutions. Also Read | Oppo K9x With MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC Unveiled; Expected Price, Features & Specifications. The company collaborated with the government and have extensive experience in creating digital public infrastructure and developing innovative citizen-centric e-governance solutions. Originally setup as a depository in 1995, it created a systemically important national infrastructure for capital market development in India. ICICI Securities, Equirus Capital, IIFL Securities and Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) are the book running lead managers to the issue. The equity shares are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Washington [US], December 25 (ANI): The foldable smartphone space is heating up with more and more companies announcing new devices frequently. Motorola was one of the pioneers of the space, with the original foldable Razr launched in 2019. The 5G follow-up to the phone a year later made much smaller waves, but the company is undeterred and in fact, it's already working on the next generation Razr, reported GSM Arena. Also Read | Christmas Wishes 2021: Celebrate the Festive Day by Sending Greetings, HD Images, WhatsApp Messages, Telegram Quotes and Wallpapers To Make It Special!. The details regarding the upcoming device come straight from a Lenovo executive, posting on Weibo. He promised that the next Razr will be more advanced in terms of performance, and it will come with an improved UI. Additionally, the design is said to be nicer too. Finally, it looks likely that the new Razr will launch first in the Chinese market, breaking with tradition. The next Razr will probably launch internationally as well since both of its predecessors have. (ANI) Also Read | NIOS Public Exam 2022 Admit Card Released At Official Website nios-voc.demodevelopment.com; Here Steps To Download The Admit Card. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Balochistan [Pakistan], December 25 (ANI): At least 11 people suffered injuries in a road accident in Uthal city of Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province on Saturday morning. The accident occurred due to a collision between a passenger bus and a truck full of stones, Xinhua reported. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. All the victims were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Uthal, rescue workers told local media. The ill-fated bus was heading from Balochistan's provincial capital of Quetta to the country's southern port city of Karachi, according to the reports. Also Read | Earthquake in Papua New Guinea: Quake of Magnitude 5.0 Hits Tari, No Casualty Reported. Recently, a large part of Pakistan, especially the open areas, are having dense fog, causing an increase in road accidents. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Brasilia [Brazil], December 25 (ANI/Xinhua): Brazil on Friday said it registered 164 more deaths and 4,164 new cases of COVID-19 infection in the previous 24 hours. The latest figures raised the nationwide death toll to 618,392, while the caseload reached 22,230,737, according to data from health authorities. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. Following a cyber attack on the Health Ministry website two weeks ago, pandemic statistics are being released by the National Council of Health Secretaries representing Brazil's state health secretaries, though their numbers are somewhat incomplete. On Friday, data was missing from the states of Bahia (northeast), Tocantins (north) and Mato Grosso (west) because the ministry's real-time platforms were not operating. Also Read | Earthquake in Papua New Guinea: Quake of Magnitude 5.0 Hits Tari, No Casualty Reported. Brazil has fully vaccinated 142.3 million people, or 67.9 percent of the population, according to data released by a media consortium tracking the figures. Brazil has the world's second highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third largest caseload, following the United States and India. (ANI/Xinhua) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kabul, December 25: As a part of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, China on Friday donated winter clothes and blankets. The aids were loaded in tens of trucks and are supposed to be distributed to people who have not yet received aids, reported Khaama Press. The aid will be distributed to 34 provinces of Afghanistan and will be distributed to people in need after a transparent survey in the provinces. Speaking to journalists in Kabul, the Acting Minister of Refugees and Repatriates Khalilurahman Haqqani said that the aids will be distributed to people in need after a transparent survey in the provinces, reported Khaama Press. Khalilurahman Haqqani expressed gratitude to countries that have delivered humanitarian aids to Afghanistan and called on other countries to continue delivering aids to the Afghan people. United Nations Security Council Exempts Taliban Leaders from Travel Ban for 90 Days. "Afghanistan is going through the toughest economic situation and the world must implement its pledges in delivering humanitarian aids to Afghan people," said Haqqani. Earlier, China had provided the Afghan people with several batches of foodstuff, non-food items, and COVID-19 vaccines. International humanitarian organizations including the UN have been repeatedly warning of a severe humanitarian crisis in the country after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in mid-August. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Banjul (Gambia), Dec 25 (AP) Gambia's former dictator, Yahya Jammeh, should face prosecution for murder, torture and sexual violence, according to a new report by a truth, reconciliation and reparations commission established after he fled into exile five years ago. The long-awaited report recommends that a special international court be set up to try Jammeh and others in West Africa, but outside of Gambia. Also Read | Earthquake of Magnitude 4.5 Strikes Afghanistan. The report, which is based on years of witness testimonies, already had been presented to President Adama Barrow, but its posting online late Friday marked the first time that the complete findings were made public. Gambian Justice Minister Amadou Dawda Jallow said that the government was committed to the implementation of the report," but wouldn't release a paper before May on how it plans to go forward. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. Reed Brody with the International Commission of Jurists said he expected pressure to now mount on Gambia's leader to deliver justice without further delay for victims who have already waited five years, and in some cases much longer." There is still a lot that needs to be done, but I wouldn't be surprised if we see Yahya Jammeh in a court sooner rather than later, said Brody, who also played an instrumental role in bringing former Chadian dictator Hissene Habre to trial at a special court in Senegal. Jammeh, who ruled Gambia for 22 years, lost the 2016 presidential election, but he refused to concede defeat to Barrow. He ultimately took exile in Equatorial Guinea amid threats of a regional military intervention to force him from power. It remains unclear whether Equatorial Guinean authorities would extradite Jammeh should criminal charges be filed. Barrow, who ultimately prevailed after the 2016 vote, was reelected earlier this month. The truth commission was mandated to establish an impartial historical record of abuses committed from July 1994 to January 2017, when Jammeh fled the country. More than two years of hearings that led to the report documented human rights abuses and horrors that occurred under Jammeh's rule. Human rights groups say arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and summary executions became the hallmark of the regime. Testimonies made by perpetrators before the truth commission confirmed that some killings were done at Jammeh's direction. The truth commission report also said that Jammeh had raped women including Fatou Jallow, who later testified before the truth commission and published a book earlier this year about her ordeal. Jammeh denies any wrongdoing. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kathmandu [Nepal], December 25 (ANI): Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is likely to visit India in early January, sources familiar with the development confirmed to ANI. As per the sources at Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi already has extended an invitation for the visit to his Nepali counterpart inviting him for visit to India. Also Read | Earthquake in Papua New Guinea: Quake of Magnitude 5.0 Hits Tari, No Casualty Reported. "Formal invitation has been extended to Nepali PM Deuba for the visit. It would be his second foreign visit. He is likely to embark on a visit to India in the early weeks of January next year," a senior official with the MoFA informed ANI. A source inside the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu aware of the matter also confirmed that Deuba has been invited over by the Indian counterpart. Also Read | Earthquake in Pakistan: Quake of Magnitude of 4.2 Hits Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. "This comes months after the Glasgow climate summit side-lines where both the Prime Ministers have extended invitation for visit. Nepali Prime Minister is likely to visit India in the first week of January," the source aware of the matter confirmed. It would be a first visit to India by Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba after being appointed over the post of Premier by the Supreme Court issuing a mandamus where it had annulled the decision of the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to dissolve the Parliament. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], December 25 (ANI): Amid the ongoing energy woes in the country, Pakistan's Federal Energy Minister has blamed the legal hitch for its inability to meet domestic gas needs. Speaking at a state-owned broadcaster, Federal Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar said domestic consumers' gas needs in winter are met by curtailing supply to non-export general industries and captive power plants. However this year the Sindh High Court (SHC) issued a stay order on the curtailment, the minister added. Also Read | Earthquake of Magnitude 4.5 Strikes Afghanistan. Azhar said there were some complaints of low gas pressure at the tail end of the transmission network, but there were certain reasons for the shortage of the commodity supply to domestic consumers in Karachi, Dawn newspaper reported. The minister told the media that gas companies had been making all-out efforts to ensure good management of gas supply to domestic consumers despite serious constraints such as depletion of existing natural gas reserves and high demand in the peak winter season. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. According to the minister, the gas demand of domestic consumers had increased by 3 to 5 per cent in the winter season, which was met by curtailing the supply to other sectors as per the priority list set by the government. Experts say that people in Pakistan don't have enough to cook their daily meals because successive governments handed out gas connections like sweet cakes. Gas has typically been cheap and readily available however, Pakistanis are now struggling to cope with hours-long gas outages, according to Turkish Radio and Television (TRT). Notably, household consumers in the country have also seen a sharp increase in their monthly bills. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Nangarhar [Afghanistan], December 25 (ANI): Pakistan on Friday released 42 Afghans from different jails and handed over them to Afghan officials in Torkham, a port city in eastern Nangarhar province. Forty-two Afghans released from different Pakistani jails extradited through Torkham to Afghanistan, the statement said, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. However, the statement did not say on what charges these Afghans were detained and for how long they were kept in Pakistani jails. Freed Afghans were sent to their homes after an administrative procedure and they were provided with some cash assistance too, reported Pajhwok Afghan News. (ANI) Also Read | Earthquake in Papua New Guinea: Quake of Magnitude 5.0 Hits Tari, No Casualty Reported. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], December 25 (ANI): A Pakistani soldier was killed after a terror attack in the country's North Waziristan on Saturday, reported local media. Pakistani army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the soldier was killed in the Shewa area after terrorists fired at a military post. Also Read | Earthquake of Magnitude 4.5 Strikes Afghanistan. The troops responded promptly and "effectively engaged the terrorists' location", said the ISPR, adding, "the soldier was killed during the exchange of fire between army and terrorists". Forces are carrying out the clearance of the area to eliminate any threats found in the area. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. Last week, terrorists attacked Pakistan's Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) in North Waziristan and killed a cop and injured three policemen. The region is witnessing an uptick in attacks on Pakistani forces in recent months. Attacks on security forces have increased in North Waziristan and adjacent South Waziristan tribal districts. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kabul [Afghanistan], December 25 (ANI): Russian President Vladimir Putin called on the US to provide aid to Afghanistan as they had "destroyed" its economy. He stressed that aid to the Afghans should be provided by the US and allies that fought for the past 20 years in Afghanistan, reported Tolo News. Also Read | Nepal PM Sher Bahadur Deuba to Visit India Next Month. " Now, it is necessary to provide assistance to the Afghan people. And this should be done, first of all, by those countries, which have caused such enormous damage to the Afghan economy and society. Those who have been there for 20 years, destroyed the economy, need to provide assistance first," Putin said as quoted by Tass news agency. Putin made the remarks in response to a question asked by Sputnik News Agency at his annual press conference. Also Read | US To Lift Omicron-Linked Travel Ban on Southern Africa. He also talked about the frozen assets of Afghanistan. He said, "First of all, Afghanistan's funds need to be unfrozen by foreign banks, primarily US ones, in order to provide humanitarian aid to the Afghan people to the full extent, otherwise [the country] is likely to face famine and other severe consequences which will affect the neighbouring states," he said. Calling on the Taliban, who now controls Afghanistan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that they should form an inclusive government by the representation of all ethnic groups. Putin linked the recognition of the current Afghan government with ground realities, saying that "forces that are now at the helm in Afghanistan should be prepared for all ethnic groups to be represented in the country's leadership", reported Tolo News. Further, he said that relations between Kabul and Moscow would develop in the "best possible way." "This is not an idle issue for us because we have open borders with Central Asian republics, the former republics of the Soviet Union, and, of course, the potential incursion of some extremist elements there cannot but cause us certain alarm and concerns," Putin added. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Kabul [Afghanistan], December 25 (ANI): The Taliban on Friday claimed to have dissociated nearly 2,000 affiliates for misbehaviour, including provincial heads of some directorates. Officials of the purification commission of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) said that they have dissociated 1,895 Taliban affiliates due to their misbehaviour, reported Khaama Press. Also Read | China Donates Winter Clothes, Blankets to Afghanistan as Humanitarian Aid. A spokesperson of IEA Inamullah Samangani in a Twitter post said that provincial heads of some directorates are also among those whose memberships have been dissolved. "Cases of most of these people have been referred to courts and a large number of ill-bred people left IEA after the commission was created," read his Twitter post. Also Read | Earthquake in Papua New Guinea: Quake of Magnitude 5.0 Hits Tari, No Casualty Reported. Samangani added that the officials and rank and file were dissociated after the investigations of the purification commission, reported Khaama Press. Purification commission, a newly created administration of IEA, observes the Taliban affiliates who misbehave with common people and do not abide by the rules. Earlier, the Taliban's supreme leader Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada had asked Taliban officials to identify influential people and dissociate them from their rankings. In the meantime, the head of the purification commission, Lutfullah Hakimi, has been asking people to cooperate with them in identifying those who misuse the name of the Taliban and misbehave with people, reported Khaama Press. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) A Chinese fishing boat has been seized by the South Korean Coast Guard for allegedly keeping ship logs with false information, officials said. pic.twitter.com/DhP08exhs4 IANS Tweets (@ians_india) December 25, 2021 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user's social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) Its Christmastime in Seoul the city decked out in festive lights, storefronts adorned with red and white decorations and the steady clang of Salvation Army bells echoing through subway stops. Here, though, its not the latest popular toys that fly off the shelves this time of year. In hot demand instead are birth control pills, condoms and Christmas-themed lingerie. A reservation at one of Seouls many rent-by-the-hour motels on Christmas Day? Many book up weeks earlier, even at prices that can be double or more the normal rate. Christmas, first brought to this nation by American missionaries in the late 19th century and designated a public holiday under U.S. military rule in the 1940s, has since evolved into a very different kind of celebration than the one across the Pacific. Advertisement Volunteer Santa Clauses throw their hats in the air during a Christmas charity event in Seoul in 2015. (Lee Jin-man / Associated Press) Even though South Korea is about 30% Christian, Christmas is widely celebrated as a secular lovers holiday not unlike Valentines Day, especially among the younger generation. And because its customary for most unmarried young adults to live with their parents, Christmas has become a cherished occasion for couples to seek some privacy. So much so that a few years ago, the convenience store chain 7-Eleven Korea said that it sold more condoms on Christmas Day than any other day of the year, more than 2 times as many as an average day. Its just expected that you spend it with a lover, said 24-year-old college student Jamie Park. Society and social media ads reinforce that. U.S. has little to show for stalled nuclear talks with North Korea His girlfriend, Lucy Kim, 27, chimed in: They say if you dont have a lover to spend it with, its a lonely and miserable holiday. Park and Kim, newly dating as of about a month ago, stood on a frigid Seoul street corner giggling and feeding each other spoonfuls of ice cream, near a stream decorated with holiday lights. They were planning to go to a concert on Tuesday for their first Christmas together. The two hadnt yet settled on plans beyond the concert, but Park said several of his friends were complaining about the difficulty of booking a motel for Christmas night. One resourceful friend had booked a room a month ago. How Christmas in Korea came to be more naughty than nice is a tale of the unlikely confluence of American cultural influence, military rule and young Koreans eager to party. After initially being celebrated as a religion holiday here by a small number of Christians in the early part of the 20th century, Christmas gained popularity in the years after the Korean War truce in 1953. During those years, the typically strictly enforced nighttime curfew was lifted on Christmas Day by the U.S. forces controlling Seoul. American-style dance halls were springing up around the same time, and while police usually cracked down on them as morally objectionable, they were given a pass on Christmas, according to Kang Jun-man, a communications professor at Chonbuk University who surveyed accounts in Korean newspapers about Christmas celebrations. The holiday never took hold as a family celebration because most families already gather during two Korean holidays Lunar New Year and the mid-autumn harvest festival. An unexpected consequence of the thaw between the two Koreas: a budding real estate boom along the DMZ By the 1960s, Christmas in Korea had became established as an occasion for cavorting for the young. In 1964, the Walkerhill Hotel held a massive Christmas Eve dance party that sold out despite steep ticket prices, and all of its 450 rooms were booked, according to a news article from the time. A Korean-language editorial published on Dec. 24, 1965, decried that Christmas Eve had become a night without rationality and questioned: Who made these youngsters roam the streets late at night and spend the night with obscene gestures? The customs of the night have long been repressed by curfew, the Joongang Ilbo editorial said, according to Kang. And because of the freedom of the night, curfew-free Christmas Eve could never just be holy. Tourists take a selfie in front of an 8-meter-tall installation by South Korean pop artist Im Ji-bin, which was set up ahead of Christmas in lieu of a tree in downtown Seoul. (Yonhap /EPA-EFE/REX) There are, of course, Christians appalled by the way the holiday is celebrated in Korea. The website GodPeople.com, an online Christian store and website, has been running an annual campaign since 2001 to recover the true meaning of Christmas. Nonbelievers think of it as a festival, an occasion to celebrate with family, friends and lovers, said general manager Kim Hee-dong, who conceived of the campaign. It was regrettable that the true meaning of Jesus birth was lost. But if Dr. Cho Byung-goos gynecology practice in the popular Hongdae area of Seoul is any indication, Christmas very much remains a lovers occasion. Each Dec. 26, Cho is invariably busy with several patients seeking emergency morning-after contraception. We dont consider it a family holiday, so many of us end up spending it with lovers, said Cho, a board member of the Korean Assn. of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which has used the Christmas season as an opportunity to increase awareness of birth control. People get excited on Christmas Eve, he said. There are new encounters and opportunities to meet people. victoria.kim@latimes.com Follow me on Twitter @vicjkim Everyone loves a good Christmas movie but how much do you actually know about your favourite festive films. Test your and your family's knowledge with these 50 teasers. The answers are below. 1: Who plays Buddy in the film Elf? 2: What name do the burglars give themselves in Home Alone? 3: Who provided the voice of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 2009 animated Christmas movie, A Christmas Carol? 4: In which Christmas movie does Buddy travel from the North Pole to New York to find his father Walter Hobbs? 5: Which English actor plays the villian in the first Die Hard movie? 6: In which film does Jim Carreys character try to ruin Christmas? 7: Which 2003 film features Billy Bob Thornton as a thief who disguises himself as a department store Santa Claus? 8: In which rom-com does the character Natalie fall in love with the British prime minister, played by Hugh Grant? 9: What is the name of the child that the story focuses on in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factor? 10: Which actor voiced several roles in The Polar Express? 11: What was Clarence the angel awarded for completing his mission in Its A Wonderful Life? 12: How much did Kevin McCallister spend on room service in Home Alone 2? 13: Tim Allen played a msn who has to take Santas place, in which film? 14: In which comedy is Clark Griswolds boss kidnapped and brought to Griswolds house? 15: Which animated 1993 film follows the misadventures of Jack Skellington, Halloweentowns pumpkin king? 16: Bill Murray plays a successful executive in which modern version of A Christmas Carol? 17: Joe Pesci stars as Harry and Daniel Stern is Marv in which comedy caper? 18: Who played Scrooge in The Muppet Christmas Carol? 19: Vince Vaughn played Santas older brother in which 2007 film? 20: Die Hard takes place on Christmas Eve in which city? 21: What is the Mogwi who is given to Billy in Gremlins? 22: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad battle it out for an action figure in which film? 23: Who starred as Kevin McCallister in Home Alone? 24: Which film sees the paths of Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy cross when they become part of an elaborate bet? 25: Who is the first child to meet a sticky end in Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? 26: Richard Attenborough plays Kris Kringle in which film? 27: Which film sees Kate Winslett and Cameron Diaz swap Christmas and meet new romantic partners in Jude Law and Jack Black? 28: In Its A Wonderful Life, what is the name of George Baileys guardian angel? 29: Which animated film features the song Walking In The Air? 30: In Die Hard, what is the name of the building the terrorists take over? 31: What do the Kranks decide to do instead of having a traditional Christmas in Christmas with the Kranks? 32: When the lights on the house do not work, what gets used instead in Deck the Halls? 33: In Home Alone 2, which shop do the bad guys break into on Christmas Eve? 34: Where do Brad and Kate get trapped while traveling in the film Four Chritmases? 35: Who wrote the picture book that was inspiration for the 2000 film How the Grinch Stole Christmas? 36: Which Cheers actor provided the narration for the Disney movie, Mickeys Once Upon A Christmas? 37: In the 1946 film Its a Wonderful Life, who plays George Bailey? 38: At what department store does Kris Kringle work in Miracle on 34th Street? 39: What is Father Christmas known as in The Nightmare Before Christmas? 40: Who plays the title role in the film, Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? 41: What are the three rules that Billy is told he must obey in the film Gremlins? 42: What does a drunk Dan Aykroyd hide in his Santa costume in Trading Places? 43: Which Disney film do the creatures watch in the cinema in Gremlins? 44: Who narrated the film version of Dr Seuss How The Grinch Stole Christmas? 45: Perry van Shrike and Harmony Faith Lane are characters in which Christmas movie? 46: Which Irish actress plays the Pigeon Lady in Home Alone 2? 47: What job did Hugh Grant just get in the film Love Actually? 48: Who are the people who make the sweets in Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? 49: In Die Hard 2, what airport is John McClaine waiting at when terrorists take over? 50: And finally, how many Home Alone movies are there? ANSWERS 1: Will Ferrell; 2: The Wet Bandits; 3: Jim Carrey; 4: Elf; 5: Alan Rickman; 6: How The Grinch Stole Christmas; 7: Bad Santa; 8: Love Actually; 9: Charlie Bucket; 10: Tom Hanks; 11: His wings; 12: $967; 13: The Santa Clause; 14: National Lampoons Christmas Vacation; 15: The Nightmare Before Christmas; 16: Scrooged; 17: Home Alone; 18: Michael Caine; 19: Fred Claus; 20: Los Angeles; 21: Gizmo; 22: Jingle All the Way; 23: Macaulay Culkin; 24: Trading Places; 25: Augustus Gloop; 26: Miracle on 34th Street; 27: The Holiday; 28: Clarence; 29: The Snowman; 30: Nakatomi Tower; 31: A ten-day Caribbean cruise; 32: Mobile phone lights; 33: Duncans Toy Chest; 34: San Francisco Airport; 35: Dr. Seuss; 36: Kelsey Grammer; 37: James Stewart; 38: Macys; 39: Sandy Claws; 40: Gene Wilder; 41: Keep them out of light; Keep them away from water; Never feed them after midnight; 42: A smoked salmon; 43: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; 44: Anthony Hopkins; 45: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; 46: Brenda Fricker; 47: Prime Minister; 48: Oompa-Loompas; 49: Washington Dulles International Airport; 50: Five (but only the first two are worth watching. ROCK solid Limerick corner-back Sean Finn is a lot more generous off the pitch than he is to corner-forwards on it. The four-time All Star winner from Bruff visited the Mullins family in Boher, representing a partnership between the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) and Clionas Foundation. He took time out of his busy schedule to meet Louis Mullins, aged 14, in a socially-distanced manner, to bring some festive cheer to Louis and his family. Its been a particularly tough year for Louis due to suffering ill-health. Sean said Louis is a remarkable young lad who is incredibly inspiring. "It was truly an honour to meet him and his fantastic family. I am delighted to support the work of Clionas Foundation - every day of the year they make a positive difference to the lives of families and children going through very challenging times," said Sean, who didn't come empty handed. He presented Louis with a hurley and jersey. The GPA and Clionas Foundation recently announced an official charity partnership to raise vital funds to make a difference to the lives of families across Ireland caring for a seriously sick child. This partnership will see county players across the 32 counties support Clionas Foundations life-changing work and contribute to the fundraising efforts of the charity for the next twelve months. Clionas Foundation is a national charity, based in Limerick, that uniquely provides financial assistance to families of children with complex care needs to help with non-medical expenses related to caring for their child. Cliona's has supported 148 families this year to date in 25 counties bringing the total number supported over the past 14 years to 997. Individuals wishing to donate or find out more about Clionas Foundations impact can donate to: clionas.ie/ Donations can also be made via text. To donate 4 text FAMILIES to 50300. Text costs 4 and Clionas will receive a minimum of 3.60 Government leaders are adjusting recommended quarantine periods to minimize workforce shortages and scrambling to boost testing capacity to limit the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Friday that critical workersincluding those in education, healthcare, transportation, grocery stores and sanitationwho tested positive for the virus will be allowed to return to work after five days under certain conditions. Her move comes after some airlines canceled dozens of flights because of staffing problems and some business leaders expressed concern that government quarantine rules could cripple crucial operations unless updated. Under New Yorks new rules, critical workers seeking to return to work five days after a confirmed case must be fully vaccinated and either they dont have symptoms or their symptoms are resolving and they havent had a fever for 72 hours. Those returning will need to remain masked, Ms. Hochul said. We need you again, we need you to be able to go to work," Ms. Hochul added. New York states move comes after the U.K. shortened its quarantine period to seven days for vaccinated people, and some airline executives wrote to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention seeking an adjustment in agency isolation guidelines to avoid disruptions to operations. On Thursday, the CDC revised its isolation and quarantine guidelines for healthcare workers, partly to help hospitals have enough staff to deal with any rise in admissions due to Omicron. Under the new CDC guidelines, healthcare workers can go back to work within seven days following a negative test, or potentially even sooner in a staffing crunch. Also, healthcare workers who are fully vaccinated and who got a booster wouldnt need to quarantine after high-risk exposure to the virus. CDC said it may adjust its guidelines further as more information about Omicron emerges. The changes suggest the march of the new strain, which has driven rapid and large increases in case counts around the U.S. and world, combined with the advent of new tools like booster shots is putting pressure on policy makers to calibrate pandemic-response measures. Covid-19 is now on the path toward becoming endemic in the U.S., eventually dissipating into something like a regular seasonal illness, according to some public-health experts. The degree of disruption it causes will likely now depend on what level of diseaseand restrictionsofficials and individuals are willing to tolerate. It is a tug of war between society and the virus," said Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious-disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco. In the U.S., the 7-day average of Covid-19 cases has eclipsed the peak during Deltas march through the country. The average reached 182,682 as of Dec. 23, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Johns Hopkins University data; the last time the figure was higher was Jan. 21. The more than 261,000 cases reported on Dec. 23 excludes statesIndiana, North Carolina, Mississippi and Kentuckythat have already started holiday blackouts for data. U.S. airlines, including United Airlines Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc., blamed Covid-19 as they canceled scores of flights for Christmas Eve and Christmas. At both airlines, the cancellations account for a relatively small share of planned flying. So far, United has canceled about 182 flights scheduled for Friday, about 9% of its planned schedule, and about 111 that were slated for Saturday, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking site. Delta cut about 163 flights for Friday, about 8% of its planned schedule, and another 140 planned for Saturday. To deal with increasing demand for testing, Ohios National Guard is running a mass testing site in Cleveland, while Palm Beach County, Fla., is opening one on Sunday. Ms. Hochul said New York would open 13 more state-run testing sites beginning next week, including one in each borough of New York City. Though 95% of New York residents aged 18 or older have had at least one vaccine dose, Ms. Hochul said Friday morning, the state had 44,431 new positive cases in the latest day of reporting. She said the state will be highly recommending" that counties and school districts adopt test-to-stay policies, which would keep more students in school when classes resume in January. We want healthy kids to stay in school," she said, adding that there will be at least two million take-home tests available by the time schools start again. Omicron was first identified in South Africa just last month. Indications are mounting that the disease caused by the variant is milder than previous strains such as Delta and progresses faster, though researchers say more study is needed to make a firm determination. A U.K. study released Thursday found that people infected with Omicron are between 50% to 70% less likely to be hospitalized than those who caught earlier strains. The U.K. Health Security Agency study follows similar findings from studies in Scotland and South Africa that also pointed to a substantially lower risk of hospitalization with Omicron than with earlier variants. In the U.K., the head of the Royal College of Nursing, Pat Cullen, told the British Broadcasting Corp. that the National Health Service is struggling with staff absences as Omicron spreads. The U.K. Health Security Agencys chief has indicated that the British government might decide whether to introduce more restrictions in England by assessing the wider social impact of the infection, rather than the severity of the disease itself. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said his government wont introduce further restrictions before Christmas, but it is possible more measures would be introduced next week. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have already announced wider social restrictions after Christmas. Elsewhere, Thailand detected its first domestic cluster of Omicron transmissions, in Kalasin province, north of Bangkok. Bangkok also canceled city-led New Year celebrations, including midnight prayers that are typically held by thousands of Buddhist monks. In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday that attendance at the annual New Years Eve celebration in Times Square will be limited to 15,000 compared with the typical 58,000. Austria has joined other countries now considering a fourth vaccination, which will be offered to healthcare workers and other key employees if it is approved. Israel has already made plans to offer a fourth shot to people over 60 years old, while Germany is considering a similar course of action. Also in Europe, the Spanish government this week reintroduced an outdoor mask mandate amid a surge in infections. The Italian government did likewise on Thursday, the same day the country reported its highest number of daily infections since the start of the pandemic. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Airlines continued to scrub flights Friday as Covid-19 infections hit pilots and flight attendants, leaving carriers short-staffed to operate busy schedules over the Christmas holiday weekend. Airlines have canceled more than 600 U.S. flights so far Friday, calling off hundreds more scheduled for Saturday, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking site. Some European airlines and rail operators are also grappling with higher rates of illness among employees, in the latest sign of how the rapidly spreading Omicron variant is upending business even in industries with heavily vaccinated workforces. Cancellations in the U.S. climbed at carriers including United Airlines Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc., which began pre-emptively cutting flights Thursday. Airlines have rushed to reassign and reroute pilots and planes to cover the flying, in some cases offering additional pay to encourage healthy employees to pick up shifts over the Christmas holiday. United canceled over 185 mainline flights10% of what was scheduled Fridayand another 120 on Saturday, according to FlightAware. Delta, which cited both winter weather and the impact of the new variant, said it canceled about 160 of the nearly 3,100 flights it had planned Friday. The airline said it expects upward of 150 cancellations on both Saturday and Sunday. Delta people are working together around the clock to reroute and substitute aircraft and crews to get customers where they need to be as quickly and as safely as possible," the airline said in a statement. The Omicron variant is becoming an increasingly disruptive force as it tears around the world. Its accelerating spread hampered operations and slowed sales at some businesses over the course of just a few days. Many travelers had aimed to avoid calling off their plans, and U.S. airports screened nearly 2.2 million people on Thursday. But airlines in the U.S. and Europe are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain staffing levels as workers call in sick. A significant increase in sick leave at Germanys flag carrier, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, overwhelmed its holiday contingency plans, a spokesman said Friday. That forced it to cancel some trans-Atlantic flights from Frankfurt to cities including Boston, Houston and Washington. The spokesman said the airline wouldnt comment on whether the sick leave was related to the coronavirus because it wasnt informed of the nature of the illnesses. We have planned with a very large buffer for the vacation period. However, this is unfortunately not sufficient for the high sick rate," the airline said in a statement. Connie Tzeng was supposed to fly from Chicago to Atlanta on Friday to visit her parents for her 30th birthday, which is on Christmas Day. She got tested for Covid-19, bought at-home tests for everyone to take and stocked up on high-quality masks. Around 8 p.m. Thursday night, she found out her United flight was canceled. Ms. Tzeng and her husband looked at the rebooking options and found they would either need to travel on standby or fly from Milwaukee, which would involve layovers and more time spent in airports. They decided to accept a refund for the canceled flight and will instead spend Christmas Day eating Chinese food at home. It does feel like a disappointment, in that a lot of the things that I put a lot of effort into feel a little moot now because were just staying at home, even though neither my husband nor I have Covid currently," she said. During the year, several U.S. airlines struggled with staffing shortfalls and other strains as they ramped up their operations, and they took additional steps to insulate themselves from potential holiday meltdowns. Some, like American Airlines Group Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co., have so far managed to avoid large numbers of cancellations this week. JetBlue Airways Corp. said it entered the holiday season with its highest staffing levels since the pandemic began, but has still run into problems due to an increasing number of Omicron-related sick calls. An airline spokesman said the carrier had to cancel a number of flights despite its best efforts, and more cancellations and other delays are possible. The airline, which has canceled 7% of scheduled flights Friday, according to FlightAware, said it is trying to minimize disruptions as it cuts flights and to give customers as much advance notice as possible. The airline is also trying to shore up staffing by deploying managers to front-line operations where possible and using incentives to encourage crew to pick up extra flying. Allegiant Travel Co., a Las Vegas-based budget carrier, has also been hit by staffing issues as cases of the Omicron variant have surged. Allegiant said it had issued refunds to customers whose flights were canceled and provided additional compensation of up to $300 and $150 in vouchers. Airline customer-service centers have been strained by calls. Jason Stapleton spent an hour on hold with United on Thursday after the airline canceled his flight from California to Kansas City, offering a trip with an overnight layover in Chicago rather than the one-hour stop in Denver he had planned. It was a complicated trip to begin with and they threw a huge wrench in it," he said. He ended up booking another flight on Southwest. In Europe, train servicea popular means of domestic and cross-border travelwas also being affected. U.K. train operators warned passengers Friday of widespread delays, cancellations, last-minute schedule changes and rerouting of journeys that could affect connections, stretching from London and across swaths of the U.K. We are experiencing increasing staff sickness due to Covid, the side effects from booster jabs and seasonal illnesses," read an update Friday on Britains National Rail website, a shared-services site that links passengers to rail operators across the country and helps them plan journeys. National Rail advised that late-scheduled Christmas Eve trains were especially in danger of cancellation. Some trains also were canceled Friday because of planned labor strikes affecting some services to Birmingham, Edinburgh and elsewhere, according to rail representatives. Southern Trains, which operates in the south of England, told customers that it was expecting to have to cancel various services at short notice over the holiday period. The company said in a statement: Like many other businesses across the country, we are experiencing increasing staff sickness due to Covid, the side effects from booster jabs and seasonal illnesses. This means we may unfortunately have to cancel or amend services at short notice." A spokeswoman for the SNCF, the French state-owned rail company, said Friday that national trains were running normally, but a small number of regional trains had been canceled and replaced by bus services. The disruption remains occasional, local and marginal," she said. Like other companies weve been affected by the fifth wave," She said some absenteeism was due to employees testing positive, or because they had been in contact with someone who tested positive. Eurostar, the train service that links the U.K. with France, Belgium and the Netherlands, said it canceled a small number of services because fewer people are traveling. Allison Pohle, Jenny Strasburg, Stu Woo, Trefor Moss and Nick Kostov contributed to this article. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. The U.S. Border Patrol announced on Thursday that a man was arrested with a previous sexual battery conviction. Border Patrol stated that a man, Salome Espinoza-Gonzalez, was arrested. He had a sexual battery by force conviction by the Newayro Police Department in Michigan. The beginning of the school year when you got to show off your new duds, new cars, new looks! Sports! Playing, cheering, watching high school athletics. The arts: Dramatic arts, musical groups and shows, graphic arts groups, debate, etc. The prom! No dancing the night away or punch bowl antics. The daily interactions. Just being with the group, hanging with friends and classmates. Access to college recruiters and advisors its harder to line up higher education. Walking onstage to get a diploma while all the family is watching with everyone elses family. Vote View Results The Irish health service is already under significant pressure and is facing an uncertain few weeks, the HSE chief executive has warned. The arrival of the Omicron variant will pose a significant challenge to an already stretched health system, Paul Reid told a press briefing. Mr Reid offered a stark warning, ahead of what he called another surreal festive period. We are actually heading into January next year with a much higher level of demand on our resources, on our healthcare, across the board. WATCH: COVID-19 update from Dr Steevens' Hospital https://t.co/5wpNL9k5hQ HSE Ireland (@HSELive) December 22, 2021 He said that 431 people are currently in hospital with the virus, and 102 people in intensive care nearly five times the number of people in intensive care this time last year. Last January, he said, was a very dark period for all healthcare staff as Covid-19 cases rocketed and hospitals came under severe pressure. The health chief warned that healthcare workers are apprehensive, anxious and understandably, probably fearful of what they will head into again in the January period. With days to go until Christmas, and tough new restrictions already in place, Mr Reid appealed to people to follow the public health advice. According to the latest figures, 53% of people in hospital with Covid-19 are not fully vaccinated. Mr Reid also said that 54% of those in intensive had not been vaccinated. While he assured people that the health service would be there if people needed it in the weeks ahead, he stressed that the vast demands on workers and resources could not be ignored. He paid tribute to HSE staff for their work. No words can express the thanks we have for them, he said. He also thanked the public for following Covid-19 restrictions. If you do want to give many people a really nice gift, that is not just for Christmas, please go and get your booster at the earliest opportunity you can. Earlier, the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, warned that Covid-19 cases are surging among people aged 16 to 34. Speaking today, he said Ireland will see a significant rise in cases as the Omicron variant continues to spread across the country. He also indicated that if cases do surge, the testing system will come under strain. Another record day in the vaccination & booster programme yesterday. 108,000 vaccines in total administered in one day (103,000 boosters). Thats 186,000 vaccines administered in just 2 days. 1.77M boosters & 3rd doses done. Thanks to all who are vaccinating & the public @HSELive Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) December 22, 2021 Like previous waves, the virus is spreading first among young people, Dr Holohan said. It is most dramatically increasing in those age groups at this point in time, he said. That is consistent with what were seeing in other European countries. He urged anyone not vaccinated, or waiting to get a booster jab, to come forward. The Government and health officials have said a booster jab should offer more protection against severe disease if someone is infected with Omicron. On Tuesday, 5,279 cases of the virus were reported by the Department of Health. Dr Holohan, who has been urging people to reduce their social contacts over Christmas, said health officials are still waiting for more data on the new variant to emerge. While we do hope the pattern of severity will be much less than Delta, there is not enough data seen yet in Europe to conclude that, he told RTE radio. He also warned that paradoxically, a less severe but more transmissible variant would still cause major pressure for the health system. Increased transmissibility alone represents substantial risks for us in terms of pressure on our health system, Dr Holohan said. Transport Minister Eamon Ryan is facing growing pressure to intervene in a simmering political row which has resulted in no funding being allocated next year for the long awaited upgrade of the N4 between Longford and Mullingar. It comes after Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) revealed in a report outlining funding for local authorities next year that no funding would be made available for the route but would be revisited for 2023 and subsequent years. Longford-Westmeath TD and junior Enterprise Minister Robert Troy said he has sought fresh talks with the Green Party leader over the impasse. It's a matter of fact TII didn't allocate money this year for the project, he said. It's a case of deja-vu, we have been here before. In 2010 when we (Fianna Fail) were last in government, we progressed the project up to design stage before it was shelved. The simple fact is it needs to be progressed and I will be doing all I can to make sure it is. Longford Fine Gael Senator Micheal Carrigy described the decision as simply not good enough for a county in dire need of infrastructural investment to keep pace with its own economic growth. It's extremely important, critical in fact, for the economic development of the region, not just Longford but the north west, he said. To that end, the former Longford County Council cathaoirleach revealed he has joined forces with Sligo-Leitrim Junior Minister for Health Frank Feighan with a view to establishing a pressure group. This involves not just Longford, but Westmeath, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Donegal, Roscommon and Donegal, he said. We need connectivity to the regions. The north west isn't served by dual carriageways and it stops at Mullingar. It has to be a priority, simple as that. He was supported in those calls at local authority level by Fianna Fail group leader Cllr Seamus Butler. The long serving local politician fronted a delegation which delivered a presentation to an Oireachtas Transport Committee in 2016 in a move he vowed to repeat unless TII bosses have a change of heart. What galls me is that it is perverse in logic in that if you draw a map of Ireland, the gap is in the north west. The projected cost of the project is expected to fetch somewhere between 550m and 650m with a construction timeframe still to be ironed out. It takes eight years to get a motorway off the ground in Ireland which is ludicrous, he said, adding there was nothing stopping a capital project being fast-tracked within a four year period. There is more than one way to skin a cat, stressed Cllr Butler. Homeowners are being warned of the increased risk of rats inside during colder weather as we approach Christmas. Rentokil, Irelands leading pest control provider, has issued the warning to home and business owners to be aware of the top threats from rodents during the winter period. The pest control provider believes that callouts for rats and mice will rise sharply in the coming weeks as these pests continue to move indoors to seek shelter from the cold weather. Dublin was the county that accounted for the most callouts for rodents in November this year, accounting for 15% of all callouts. Galway (14%), Meath (9%) Cork (7%) and Kerry (5%) are the next counties most affected by the pests Vacant buildings will offer rodents a warm, sheltered environment during the winter where they will be undisturbed by human activity and predators. Richard Faulkner, Advanced Technical Field Consultant with Rentokil said: As the temperature continues to drop during the winter period, many rodents will move indoors in search of food and shelter. We would advise home and business owners to practice some simple steps which will help to protect their premises from rodent activity such as carefully storing food, keeping your property tidy and sealing any cracks in premises. In addition to rodents, a number of pest insects will also begin to move indoors at winter time. There are a number of important key areas of pest control for the public to be aware of during the festive season: - Open boxes of decorations outside and inspect them for any signs of insects or rodents. When finished with them, wrap them in plastic for next year. - Inspect your tree: Both real and artificial Christmas trees can be nesting grounds for spiders, ants, fleas and a host of other pest insects. Ensure to shake your tree vigorously outdoors so that any insects or their eggs are shaken loose. - Avoid using edible treats such as gingerbread men, chocolate coins, and candy canes as Christmas tree decorations. - Ensure sweets, chocolate and other edibles used to fill Christmas stockings are sealed or wrapped in plastic or metal. - Clean up all Christmas dinner leftovers, food debris, and spillages to prevent a potential food source to rodents and insects. - Keep foodstuffs in metal or glass containers with tight fitting lids and put outdoor rubbish bags in metal bins with securely fitted lids to stop pest insects or rodents from feeding on the contents. - Dispose of any clutter in the form of Christmas gift wrapping and packaging, to limit potential hiding places for pests. Rentokil is advising businesses to explore unmanned, non-toxic pest control solutions, such as PestConnect, a digital solution which provides 24-hour protection from rodents. Through a system of infrared sensors, it detects and then captures or humanely kills rodents using automatically deployed bait stations and traps. Unmanned devices like PestConnect do not require human interaction and send updates and reports to users online. What does omicron mean for future of pandemic? Hello readers, I am Lovinas daughter Verena. Mom has been telling us girls we should take a turn writing. It has been over 10 months now that I have moved in with sister Susan. When I first moved in, my niece Jennifer (almost 4) had a hard time understanding why Im staying with them and her daddy wasnt coming back. She didnt like the idea at first but has grown to love having me here. Jennifer and Ryan, age 2, are playing doll right now. Jennifer is the mom, and Ryan is the dad. Ryan left the baby sitting on the couch alone, and Jennifer is lecturing him because no baby should be left alone on the couch. Ha! It is just so fun to see them play. I turned 24 on Friday, Dec. 10. Susan, Jennifer, Ryan and I went to Dad and Moms for supper. Some of the youth from our community came Christmas caroling for us. It was a very nice thought and we enjoyed it. I heard the horrible news about the tornados that went through Kentucky and the other states killing so many people. My heart broke for all the families who lost a loved one. So many families grieving. So many lives changed in an instant. So many homes demolished. God is above all, and He makes no mistakes. Ill continue to pray for the families who are struggling. Yesterday morning, church services were held not too far from Susans house. We were going to take her horse and buggy but Jodi (widow friend whose husband was killed in the same accident Mose was involved in) was able to take us. It made it easier not to have to worry about the horse when we got to church, especially since there is no man with us. After church Susan, Jennifer, Ryan and I took a nap. In the evening we made supper for Dad, Mom, Tim, Elizabeth and their three children, sister Lovina and her boyfriend Daniel. It was very enjoyable! Dad, Tim and Daniel grilled chicken. I always love when Dad grills chicken. He makes it very tasty and juicy. Dec. 14 was a year since Mose passed on. It is scary how quickly someone can become just a memory. Please remember to tell your friends and family that you love them because today could be your last day on this earth, or it could be their last day. Life is too short to take it for granted. A special memory of Mose I have is from when before Susan and Mose were married. He took Susan and me bluegill fishing a lot. We didnt want to touch the worms so Mose came to our rescue and hooked our worms. Pretty soon I had a fish, and Mose took care of it. Then Susan had a fish, and Mose took care of it. Susan and I were reeling the fish in one after another, and Mose was taking our fish and rebaiting our hooks. Mose seemed to enjoy it more watching us get excited than if he was fishing himself. On Dec. 18 our plans are to go to Dad and Moms for our family Christmas. I love when the family gets together. More memories are made and there is never a dull moment. Jennifers puppy Rose is four months now. She is a blue merle Pomeranian and very beautiful. Rose loves to pull at Ryans pant legs. She must think its a toy. My pomsky dogs, Lincoln and Kimmy, are very kind to Rose. I love dogs! Susan and I washed laundry earlier today. It was too cold outside so Susan hung it on clothes racks inside the house. We dont have enough room to hang it all at once so when some gets dry, we hang up more. Ryan came up to me and gave me a hug and said, I love you. That warms my heart. Children are so precious. Ryan has a hat on and is stomping around. He doesnt look tired at all. To think, its his bedtime! May God be with you all! Lovinas Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Her newest cookbook, Amish Family Recipes, is available wherever books are sold. Readers can write to Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails. Yoders Restaurant Cookies 3 cups sugar 4 eggs 2 cups butter 2 cups sour cream 2 tablespoons mayonnaise 1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons baking soda 2 tablespoons baking powder 8 cups flour Frosting: 2 cups powdered sugar 2 tablespoons butter, softened a little water Beat eggs, then add sugar. Melt butter, then add to sugar mixture. Add sour cream, mayonnaise, vanilla, salt, baking soda, and baking powder; mix well. Add flour, one or two cups at a time. Form the dough into balls and flatten slightly. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. For frosting, mix powdered sugar and butter with enough water to reach desired consistency. Many people may think that the Chinese New Year and the Lunar New Year are exactly the same thing, but there are a few noteworthy differences between the two despite them being related to one another. As one of the most important holidays in China, the Chinese New Year is celebrated worldwide in several countries with many Chinese immigrants such as Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Canada, the USA and, of course, all over the European continent. Here, we'll outline the differences that exist between the two. What are the differences between Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year? Firstly, it has to be noted that the Chinese Lunar New Year is celebrated on the first day of the first month in the Chinese calendar, which is considered to be both solar and lunar. Curiously, the Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year do not differ in China, but there are other countries where the latter is solely based upon the lunar calendar. Hence, in those countries the Lunar New Year date is different, while there is another difference that should be noted. This is the duration of the celebration period, as people in China are enjoying a one-week public holiday, while countries such as South Korea and Singapore have a three-day holiday. Chinese New Year 2022: All you need to know Next year, the Chinese New Year falls on Tuesday, February 1, 2022, and although the public holiday period is from January 31 to February 6, the celebrations last for 16 days. The culmination of the celebrations takes place on February 15, 2022, with the popular Lantern Festival, which is also known as Shangyuan Festival, and marks the final day of the festivities. Next year will be the year of the Tiger, with 2021 being the year of the Ox. In the last few years, the Hindi film industry has upped its game in terms of storytelling and pushing the boundaries. There was a time when Bollywood was all about song and dance, however, ever since the release of Baahubali: The Beginning more filmmakers are taking inspiration from the film and announcing grand projects. The year 2022 will see some of the biggest films coming out of Bollywood that include Brahmastra, Laal Singh Chaddha, Pathan and Tiger 3. On the other hand, there were also other films that were announced amidst massive hype but eventually got shelved for various reasons. Take a look at 8 such popular Hindi films that were shelved: 1. Inshallah Starring Salman Khan and Alia Bhatt in the lead role, Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Inshallahs announcement had immediately made it one of the most awaited films of all time. The film was slated for Eid 2020 release. However, just three days before it was supposed to go on floors, Salman Khan took to Twitter to announce that it has been shelved. He had tweeted, The film with Sanjay Leela Bhansali is pushed but I will still see you all on Eid, 2020. Insha-Allah!! The film with Sanjay Leela Bhansali is pushed but I will still see you all on Eid, 2020. Insha-Allah!! Salman Khan (@BeingSalmanKhan) August 25, 2019 Later in an interview with Mumbai Mirror, Salman had stated, Nothing changes between us as friends and Im sure nothing has changed in Sanjays heart for me. Im extremely close to his mother (Leela) and sister (Bela). I wish him all the best. He and I will still work in future on a film, Inshallah. Sanjay Leela Bhansali then went ahead with his leading lady Alia Bhatt and made Gangubai Kathiawadi. 2. Chanda Mama Door Ke Back in 2017, Sanjay Pooran Singh Chauhans space film Chanda Mama Door Ke was announced starring Sushant Singh Rajput and R Madhavan. It was also reported that Nawazuddin Siddiqui too is a part of the project. Twitter/Taran Adarsh For the training of the film, Sushant and Madhavan had even visited NASA. However, Nawazuddin Siddiqui was nowhere to be seen. Later, in an interview with BollywoodLife, he had stated, I haven't had a conversation with the makers whether I am doing the film or not! I have not been officially signed. The movie was supposed to go on floors by September 2017 but due to unforeseen circumstances, it couldnt happen. A year later, Sushant walked out of the film. His team had said in a statement to PTI, Since there was a lot of up and down in this film, Sushant will not be able to give his dates to this project since he has his hands full with many projects. Earlier this year, the director had stated that he still wants to make the film and it will be a tribute to the late Sushant Singh Rajput, who passed away in 2020. 3. Crack After working in films like Baby and Special 26, Neeraj Pandey and Akshay Kumar announced their third collaboration as director and actor - Crack. The psychological thriller was announced in 2016 with a first look poster for an Independence Day 2017 release. Friday Film Works However, later the film didnt take off and instead, Akshay released Toilet: Ek Prem Katha on the announced date. There were rumours of a fallout between Akshay and Neeraj. But, in a 2020 interview with Mumbai Mirror, Pandey refuted the rumours of fallout and stated, Its on the back-burner with no immediate plans of revival. I was not happy with the script, but if I manage to crack something good in the future, I might (revive it). 4. Paani Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur has a long history of shelved films. The filmmaker, in the early 00s, had envisioned his mega-budget Paani with Hrithik Roshan in the lead. The movie was later announced officially in 2010 at the Cannes Film Festival. And later in 2013, it was announced that now Sushant Singh Rajput has replaced Hrithik in the film and it will be backed by Yash Raj Films. Yash Raj Films However, in December 2016, Shekhar Kapur tweeted that Paani is shelved. His tweet read, Am as devastated as u that Paani did not get made @itsSSR but I've never met an actor that worked so hard in preparing for a part as you did. Am as devastated as u that Paani did not get made @itsSSR but I've never met an actor that worked so hard in preparing for a part as you did Shekhar Kapur (@shekharkapur) December 20, 2016 Sushant had later responded, I will be ever obliged to you sir for things I have learned or rather 'unlearned' because of you. Respect. After Sushants untimely demise in 2020, Shekhar stated in a tweet that if Paani is ever made, it will be his tribute to the young actor. 5. Shuddhi In early 2013, Karan Johar had announced Shuddhi to be directed by Karan Malhotra of Agneepath fame. It was also reported that the movie will star Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor in the lead roles. However, Hrithik walked out of it and Kareena too followed. Later, reports of stars like Salman Khan, Ranveer Singh, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt and Deepika Padukone joining the film were floated but nothing materialised. In 2015 during the release of Baahubali: The Beginning, Karan was asked about Shuddhi. He stated, Oh my god, oh my god, I am folding my hands and bowing down to you all, stop asking me questions about Shuddhi. I don't know what kind of bad omen the movie is going through, I am not able to make it. 6. Aankhen 2 Starring Amitabh Bachchan, Aankhen 2 was announced in 2016 at a grand event. The other star cast of the film included stars like Anil Kapoor and Arshad Warsi. It was supposed to be directed by Anees Bazmee. BCCL Later, the film went through several casting changes. At one point, it was reported that it will now feature Sidharth Malhotra and Akshaye Khanna along with Big B and will be helmed by Abhinay Deo. But, earlier this year, Deo made it clear in an interview with Spotboye that the film is shelved as Amitabh Bachchan is no longer interested in being a part of it. 7. Power BCCL In 2010, Rajkumar Santoshi announced his multistarrer Power starring Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Anil Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt. The muhurat of the film also happened. But, later it couldnt move ahead beyond the announcement stage. It was reported that date issues of its lead cast was the major reason 8. Here Pheri 3 In 2015, Hera Pheri 3 was announced at a media event. The film was supposed to mark the return of Suniel Shettys Shyam and Paresh Rawals Babu Rao. And Akshay Kumar was replaced by John Abraham and Abhishek Bachchan. BCCL BCCL In fact, in the same year, the shoot of the film had also begun with Abhishek posting about it on social media. However, according to a TOI report, due to financial issues, the movie was shelved. Hera Pheri shoot day 1. Here we go.. #GoForIt Bob Biswas (@juniorbachchan) April 9, 2015 In 2016, when Abhishek was asked about Hera Pheri 3, he told IANS, I am not going to be doing that film anymore. When further asked about the reason, he replied, It just didn't work out. There are also recent films like Karan Johars Takht, Aditya Dhars The Immortal Ashwatthama and Mahesh Mathais Saare Jahaan Se Achcha aka Salute, that have been put on the back burner for various reasons. During the early 90s and way into the 2000s, Saif Ali Khan was among those Bollywood actors who were famous for being the 'chocolate boys' of the industry. Whether it was blood-filled letters from fans or just fans sneaking into his home to find him, there have been plenty of crazy incidents around him, all because of his popularity in the films business. Prime Video Now, another such incident that surfaced was an early 90s one, which will probably give you goosebumps. As we know how dangerous it can be for celebrities to roam around in public without bodyguards, unfortunately for Saif, things could have been very, very deadly. According to reports, Saif was almost killed by a man in Delhi back in 1994. Yep! Crazy, right? Well, what happened was that reportedly, Saif had been in Delhi for the premiere of his movie Mai Khiladi Tu Anari, which had starred Akshay Kumar, Raageshwari and Shilpa Shetty. Prime Video However, it was later that Saif was caught up in a very sticky situation. Speaking in an old interview, Saif had said that two girls had approached him for a dance, but he denied their request. What followed next was absolutely crazy. This (the girls asking for a dance) kept happening for a while. Then we said please leave us. Their boyfriends came, and we told them to handle the situation, we dont want to talk to anyone He didnt like it and said, you have a million-dollar face I am going to spoil it, said Saif. Saif, while speaking with Neha Dhupia some time back on the chat show No Filter Neha, said that the man had approached the actor to dance with his girlfriend. However, when he refused, the man hit him with a whiskey glass. We ended up in the bathroom, and I was wiping my wound because it was bleeding a lot. So, there was a flood of blood, I thought I dont know whats happened, so I was wiping it with water, I looked at him and I said look what you did, as in lets make up now and he attacked me with the soap dish. So, he was a lunatic, and he might have killed me, Saif said. I mean, we kind of knew that Delhi Bar fights hit different, but this one was scary nonetheless. We're glad you're safe, Saif! I mean, you really must have used some emotional memory to say, "Dilli Se Hu Bc!" State of Michigan secures additional federal team to assist Mercy Health Muskegon with staffing Teams at Beaumont Hospital - Dearborn, Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids and Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw extended for an additional 30 days FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 22, 2021 CONTACT: Lynn Sutfin, 517-241-2112 LANSING, Mich. - Today, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced that the federal government has granted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's request for additional staffing assistance at a fourth Michigan hospital, Mercy Health Muskegon. Under the agreement, the federal government will send a 17-person medical team to support Mercy Health's doctors and nurses as they treat COVID-19 and other patients. "As the Omicron variant quickly becomes the dominant strain of COVID-19 across the United States, I am grateful to our federal partners for their continued support that is providing much-needed relief to Michigan's hospitals and health care personnel," said Governor Whitmer. "Michigan's health care heroes have been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic for over 18 months, and I am again asking Michiganders to take steps to help reduce the strain on our hospital systems. First, get vaccinated and if you are eligible, get your booster, to help keep you out of the hospital. If you plan on traveling for the holidays or attending an indoor gathering, please get tested beforehand and stay home if you're sick. Take these actions to keep yourself and your loved ones safe." "We continue to be grateful that our federal partners are supporting the dedicated health care staff in our state as they work to care for Michiganders during this latest surge of COVID-19," said Elizabeth Hertel, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services director. "The pandemic continues to take a tremendous toll on our health care workers and we are pleading with all Michiganders to do their part to support our state's health care workers by getting vaccinated, wearing a mask in public indoor settings regardless of vaccination status, social distancing and staying home and getting tested regularly." The additional staffing team will include registered nurses, a doctor and other health care workers. The team will begin treating patients Dec. 30 and provide support for the next 30 days. They will assist with providing monoclonal antibody treatment in addition to other support duties. Three additional teams were announced earlier this month and have begun providing support at Beaumont Hospital - Dearborn, Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids and Covenant HealthCare in Saginaw. MDHHS was notified by our federal partners that these three teams will be extended for another 30 days. "We are very grateful for the additional support from the state and federal levels to provide essential support for our care staff as they are in the midst of this fourth surge in Michigan," said Gary Allore, president of Mercy Health Muskegon. "COVID-19 has put our frontline staff under the most extreme conditions, but their unwavering commitment to the safety and health of all members of our community holds true. We need everyone's collective help to emerge out of this pandemic together." Michiganders are being asked to carefully consider where they seek health care. A primary care office, virtual visit or urgent care may be the best choice as hospital and emergency departments are experiencing high demand. However, for emergency conditions such as stroke symptoms, chest pain, difficulty breathing, significant injury or uncontrolled bleeding, Michiganders should still seek emergency care. The federal staffing teams come as Michigan hospitals strain due to a spike in COVID-19 patients, the vast majority of whom are unvaccinated. In October, unvaccinated people had 4.3 times the risk of testing positive for COVID-19 and 13.2 times the risk of dying from COVID-19 than people who were fully vaccinated. From Jan. 3 - Dec. 15, 2021, people who were unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated represented: 85.1% of COVID-19 cases, 88.1% of hospitalizations and 85.5% of deaths. As of Dec. 20, 3,944 Michiganders are hospitalized for COVID-19. # # # Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson's statement on calls for further review of the 2020 election Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson's statement on calls for further review of the 2020 election DECEMBER 21, 2021 "Michigan election professionals carried out more than 250 audits across the state, including a hand count of every ballot cast for president in Antrim County, and every one of those nonpartisan audits, as well as numerous court cases across the state and nation, and a report by the Republican-led State Senate Oversight Committee, have affirmed the accuracy and integrity of the 2020 election. Yet calls persist from those who have been lied to and taken advantage of by partisan state legislators, national figures, and others for unofficial, illegitimate reviews of the election results. These elites who lie about 2020 without a shred of evidence, who fail to speak the truth, are fueled by opportunism and cowardice. Over a year into this grift their goal is now clear. They no longer want only to change the outcome of the 2020 election, but to also undermine citizens' faith in our democracy and dissuade them from being engaged and informed voters in future elections. This small group of grifters and wealthy supporters is pursuing a political strategy that threatens the survival of our democracy, and our nation. Regardless of whether the petition language delivered today is part of this strategy, we are proud that the Bureau of Elections staff will process it in a nonpartisan and unbiased manner, as they would any other submission. And ultimately, the response to the escalating and unabated efforts to undo our nation's democracy must come from the people. Citizens across our state and nation must demonstrate the profound power of self-government by exercising their rights within it, calling on their elected leaders to speak the truth, holding partisan politicians accountable at the ballot box, and demanding their will and their vote be protected. And everyone is encouraged to review the audit analysis and report my office released earlier this year, speak directly with their local election officials about the safeguards and secure protocols in place to ensure the integrity of our elections, and volunteer to serve as election workers to protect our democracy and ensure it prevails." For media questions, contact Tracy Wimmer at 517-281-1876. We welcome questions and comments at the Contact the Secretary of State page. Customers may call the Department of State Information Center to speak to a customer-service representative at 888-SOS-MICH (767-6424). Gov. Whitmer Calls Deployed Michigan Troops on Christmas Eve Gov. Whitmer Calls Deployed Michigan Troops on Christmas Eve FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 24, 2021 Contact: press@michigan.gov Gov. Whitmer Calls Deployed Michigan Troops on Christmas Eve LANSING, Mich. - Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer called actively deployed members of the Michigan National Guard to wish them a merry Christmas. The governor spoke to Airmen of the 127th Wing currently deployed to Guam in support of U.S. Pacific Command, Soldiers deployed to Lebanon in support of U.S. Central Command and Soldiers deployed to Arizona and California in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection law enforcement missions along the US Southwest border. "Our men and women in uniform put their lives on the lines to keep us safe," said Governor Gretchen Whitmer. "On Christmas, we should recognize their service and honor the sacrifices they make on behalf of all of us. As we get to spend time with our loved ones at home, many active duty service members in uniform are away from their families, on the job. I hope we all take some time to think about our service members and their families this Christmas and pray for their safe return home." "Answering the call to serve anytime, anywhere is part of an ordinary day's work for the men and women of the Michigan National Guard," said U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Paul D. Rogers, Adjutant General and Director of the Michigan Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. "Today there are more than 500 members of the Michigan National Guard serving away from their homes and families. Whether supporting the ongoing COVID-19 response here in Michigan, aiding efforts at the Southwest Border or protecting our national security interests around the globe, it is an honor to remember their selflessness and devotion to duty during this holiday season." The governor spoke to members of the: 127th Wing of the Michigan Air National Guard (Harrison Township) 1775th Military Police Company of the Michigan Army National Guard (Pontiac) 1776th Military Police Company of the Michigan Army National Guard (Taylor) The Michigan National Guard service members Governor Whitmer spoke to are serving in Guam, Lebanon, Arizona and California. These brave men and women are tackling a wide range of challenges in each of their respective missions, bringing their expertise in operations, logistics, engineering, and communications to get the job done. ### BENI, Congo (AP) A suicide bomber attacked a restaurant and bar Saturday as patrons gathered on Christmas Day, killing at least six others in an eastern Congolese town where Islamic extremists are known to be active. Heavy gunfire rang out shortly after the bomb went off, with panicked crowds fleeing the town's center. Saturday's attack marked the first known time that a suicide bomber has killed victims in eastern Congo, where an Islamic State group affiliate earlier this year took responsibility for a suicide bombing near another bar in Beni who had caused no other casualties. The latest violence only deepens fear that religious extremism has taken hold in a region already plagued for years by rebels. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for the governor of North Kivu, said that security guards had blocked the bomber from entering the crowded bar and so the person instead detonated the explosives at the entrance. We call on people to remain vigilant and to avoid crowded areas during the holiday season, he said in a statement. In the city and territory of Beni, it is difficult, in these times to know who is who." Rachel Magali had been at the restaurant-bar for about three hours with her sister-in-law and several others when she heard a loud noise outside. Suddenly we saw black smoke surrounding the bar and people started to cry, she told The Associated Press. We rushed to the exit where I saw people lying down. There were green plastic chairs scattered everywhere and I also saw heads and arms no longer attached. It was really horrible. Among the dead were two children, according to Mayor Narcisse Muteba, who is also a police colonel. At least 13 other people were wounded and taken to a local hospital. Investigations are underway to find the perpetrators of this terrorist attack, he told The Associated Press. The town has long been targeted by rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF, a group that traces its origins to neighboring Uganda. But in June the Islamic State groups Central Africa Province said it was behind the suicide bomber and another explosion that same day at a Catholic church that wounded two people. Residents of the town have repeatedly expressed anger over the ongoing insecurity despite an army offensive and the presence of U.N. peacekeepers in Beni. From 2018 to 2020, the town also suffered through an Ebola epidemic that became the second deadliest in history. More than 2,200 people died in eastern Congo as vaccination efforts were at times thwarted by insecurity in the area. ___ Associated Press writer Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report. CAIRO (AP) Sudanese security forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters in Khartoum on Saturday as demonstrators once again took to the streets in the country's capital and elsewhere to denounce the October military coup. Thousands rallied since earlier in the day, even as authorities tightened security across Khartoum, deploying troops and closing all bridges over the Nile River linking the capital with its twin city of Omdurman and the district of Bahri, the state-run SUNA news agency reported. Authorities had warned protesters against approaching sovereign and strategic sites in central Khartoum a reference to main government buildings and key institutions. The citys Security Committee said Sudanese forces would deal with chaos and violations, SUNA had reported. The marches started in different locations, with protesters meant to converge on the presidential palace. But security forces fired live ammunition and used tear gas and water cannons disperse those attempting to approach the palace, said activist Nazim Sirag. Other marches elsewhere in the capital were violently dispersed, he added. At least five protesters were wounded by gunfire in Omdurman and Khartoum's East Nile neighborhood, he said. Many others suffered from breathing difficulties due to heave tear gas, he added. Rallies were also underway in other cities, including Wad Madani and Atbara. Last weekend, security forces violently dispersed demonstrators when they attempted to stage a sit-in near the presidential palace. At least three protesters were killed, and more than 300 were wounded on Sunday. There were also allegations of sexual violence, including rape and gang rape by security forces against female protesters, according to the United Nations. Volker Perthes, the U.N. special envoy for Sudan, urged security forces to protect the planned protests, and refrain from arresting people for simply wanting to take part in the demonstrations. Freedom of expression is a human right. This includes full access to the internet. No one should be arrested for his or her intention to protest peacefully, he said in a Twitter post. Ahead of the demonstrations Saturday, activists reported disruption of internet access on phones in Khartoum, a tactic that had been used by the generals when they seized power on Oct. 25. Advocacy group NetBlocks said Sudan was experiencing mobile internet disruptions early Saturday. The mechanism appears similar or identical to that used during the October post-coup blackout, Alp Toker, the groups director, told The Associated Press. The government did not comment on the disruptions. The October military takeover upended a fragile planned transition to democratic rule and led to relentless street demonstrations across Sudan. At least 47 people were killed and hundreds wounded in protests triggered by the coup, according to a tally by a Sudanese medical group. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, a former U.N. official seen as the civilian face of Sudan's transitional government, was reinstated last month amid international pressure in a deal that calls for an independent technocratic Cabinet under military oversight led by him. That deal, however, was rejected by the pro-democracy movement, which insists that power be handed over to a fully civilian government tasked with leading the transition. The prime minister is continuing discussions on finding a way out of the political deadlock. He met Friday with leaders of the countrys largest Umma Party, his office said. LOS ANGELES (AP) Two people died in a submerged car, evacuations were ordered for wildfire-scarred California, and Seattle and Portland faced the rare chance of snowy streets as a wave of storms rolled through the West. The new storms, which could drop rain and snow over much of the region into next week and plunge the Pacific Northwest into a lengthy cold snap, follow a now-departed atmospheric river that delivered copious amounts of precipitation this week. On Thursday, two people died when their car was submerged in a flooded underpass in Millbrae, California, just south of San Francisco. Firefighters rescued two people who had climbed atop a car but they couldn't reach the fully submerged vehicle, San Mateo County sheriffs Det. Javier Acosta said. In the Sierra Nevada, an evacuation warning was issued Thursday for about 150 homes downstream of Twain Harte Lake Dam after cracks were found in granite that adjoins the manmade part of the 36-foot-high (11-meter) structure. The warning was lifted around 6 p.m. after inspectors determined the dam was structurally sound and clear it for continued use, according to a Facebook post by the Tuolumne County Sheriffs Office. The Sierra range could see 5 to 8 feet (1.5 to 2.4 meters) of snow through the holidays, with 10 feet (3 meters) possible at higher elevations, and authorities urged people to avoid traveling through the mountain passes, which could be treacherous. Jane Tyska/AP A winter storm warning issued Friday remains in effect until 10 a.m. Tuesday for most of the Sierra, where as much as 3 feet (91 centimeters) of snow had fallen early Friday at Mammoth Mountain south of Yosemite National Park. About 2 feet (61 cm) fell Thursday at some Tahoe-area ski resorts. As much as 5 feet (1.5 meters) of new snow is possible by Tuesday on mountain tops around Lake Tahoe. One to 3 feet (30-91 cm) to is expected at lake level. Wind gusts over ridges could exceed 100 mph (160 kph), the National Weather Service said, making travel difficult to impossible. In Southern California, evacuation orders were issued Thursday night in Orange County because of possible mudslides and debris flows in three canyons where a wildfire last December burned the ground bare. The Orange County Fire Authority reported a mudslide Thursday night in one canyon that affected some roads but no injuries were reported. On Thursday, a slow-moving front dumped the most rain parts of eastern Nevada have seen on the date in more than a half century. The Ely Airport near the Utah line set records for both rain and snow. The 0.61 inch (1.5 cm) of rain broke the old record of 0.55 (1.4 cm) set in 1955. The 3.6 inches (19 cm) of snow bettered 3 inches (7.6 cm) set in 2001. A record 0.41 inch (1 cm) of rain fell at Eureka, smashing the old of 0.14 inch (40 millimeters) set in 1968. Jane Tyska/AP In preparation for freezing temperatures, snow and ice in the Pacific Northwest this holiday weekend and next week, state officials in Oregon have declared an emergency and shelters are being opened throughout the region to help the homeless. At least five severe weathers shelters in the Portland, Oregon, metro area will open starting at 3 p.m. on Christmas Day. And the citys public transportation service will befree for people who need to get to a shelter. Seattle city leaders will open two severe weather shelters in the evenings starting Saturday through at least Wednesday. Local government is working hard to get people to a warm, dry place but we cant be everywhere, Dr. Jennifer Vines, the health officer for Multnomah County home to Portland said Friday. As with the heat event almost six months ago to the day, we are asking all county residents to check on others, direct individuals to warming shelters and help hand out gear to keep people warm and alive. Recent forecasts show at least an inch of snow is likely to fall Sunday in the Seattle and Portland regions, which dont typically see snow. But forecasters and state officials say the main concern is cold temperatures in the region, with daytime highs next week struggling to reach above freezing, that are likely to impact people experiencing homelessness and those without adequate access to heating. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued a state of emergency declaration Thursday evening to remain in effect through Jan. 3, saying expected snow and sustained temperatures below freezing could result in critical transportation failures and disruptions to power and communications infrastructure. Portland and Multnomah County earlier declared states of emergency. ___ AP journalists Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles, Sara Cline in Portland, Oregon, and Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report. ___ Cline 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. Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media WEST HAVEN The attorney for the family of Mubarak Soulemane has filed a lawsuit against the city of West Haven, city officers and state troopers involved in the 2020 fatal shooting of the teen. Attorney Mark Arons filed the suit Tuesday in Superior Court in New Haven. He said the lawsuit was needed to preserve the two-year statute of limitations for negligence claims against the officers. DECATUR, Ala. (AP) Janice Williams thought something was dead near her Morgan County home based on the smell, but she couldn't decide what it was. "I thought the dogs might have killed an armadillo. I searched the yard for an armadillo, but then I found out where the smell was coming from, she said. The stench, according to the Decatur Daily, is from something called beneficial food waste byproducts," which is applied as fertilizer to land near where she lives. The sludge contains particles of dead chickens, along with other waste from rendering and processing plants. Williams lives near Hidden Valley Farm, which is owned by Georgia-based Recyc Systems Southeast, a division of Arkansas-based Denali Water Solutions. The farm has been the subject of numerous citizen complaints to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management since Denali began spreading poultry sludge on the land last year. Statewide, ADEM has received 51 citizen complaints about Denali in the last year, almost all involving odor. Twenty involved Hidden Valley Farm, but others involved Denali operations in Jefferson, Clay, Jackson, Barbour, Cullman, Russell, Etowah and Marshall counties, the newspaper reported. Rickey Turner, senior project manager at Denali, said the company provides an important service that saves money for poultry processors, disposes of waste that would otherwise fill landfills and helps farmers. Its a lack of education, he said of Denalis critics. As an industry we dont really counteract. Every single time we try to rebuttal, it always gets misrepresented. Were always made out to be the bad guy. ADEM has notified Denali of regulation violations a total of six times this year on farms in Morgan, Russell, Etowah, Blount, Clay and Marshall counties. It also issued a cease-and-desist order and fined the company for alleged violations in northern Jefferson County. Public concern over the sludge application led to the recent formation of a group called Alabama Waste Sludge Awareness, which had its inaugural meeting Dec. 2 in Guntersville. About 50 people attended, and most had stories about the smells emanating from farms used by Denali. Ken Thompson, who lives near the Morgan County farm, is one of several neighbors who has filed complaints with ADEM. Another great week of chicken death up here, he wrote in a July 23 complaint. Thanks ADEM for the smell of death up here at our homes in Cullman County. Looking forward to a weekend and running to the car so you dont puke when the smell overtakes you. Nelson Brooke of Black Warrior Riverkeeper, which is fighting for additional state oversight of the practice, said strict regulations are needed because poultry processors and waste distributors like Denali have an economic incentive to over-apply sludge on farmland, which increases the smell. Turner said extensive testing requirements are unnecessary because the chicken sludge is merely food waste, most of which is water. One of the company's largest customers is a plant in Gadsden that produces McDonald's chicken nuggets, he said, and the waste sprayed as fertilizer is virtually the same thing that's included in a meal. "Its flour, got some corn meal, got some cooking oil, and thats all it is. Its 95% water, he said. Snow fell across southern Connecticut on Friday morning as authorities urged drivers to take it slow to prevent crashes. The National Weather Service said light snow fell across the region and continued through daybreak. A light coating accumulated on roadways, especially side roads and untreated streets. Along the coast, a wet, heavy snow fell. Further north, the snow was lighter. Connecticut State Police urged drivers to be cautious and drive slow, stressing that just a coating of snow can lead to dozens of accidents. Interstate 95 in the Norwalk area continues to see traffic delays Friday with the left and center lanes of I-95 north and the left lane of I-95 south closed between exits 16 and 17 and exits 17 and 16 respectively because of a jackknifed tractor-trailer reported around 5:30 a.m., the Department of Transportation reported. Westport fire officials said crews responded to help in the crash. Officials said the driver was headed north and crashed into the median, blocking northbound and southbound lanes. Around 8 a.m., officials said firefighters were still on scene. Expect delays, Westport fire officials cautioned drivers. Around 7 a.m., the DOT reported an overturned tractor-trailer on Interstate 84 east between exits 63 and 64. The right two lanes remain closed to drivers. The weather service said with temperatures below freezing, slick spots of black ice are possible. Use extra caution if traveling early this morning as slippery conditions are expected, the weather service said. The light snowfall tapered off later Friday morning, with a second quick-moving low pressure system set to bring a mix of freezing rain and rain Friday night into early Saturday. The weather service has issued a winter weather advisory for northern Fairfield, northern New Haven, northern Middlesex and northern New London counties from 10 p.m. Friday through 9 a.m. Saturday. WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden says the federal government will buy half a billion COVID-19 rapid test kits and distribute them free of charge to people to use at home. But despite the high public demand for tests, it will still be several more weeks before these kits are available to be shipped. The administration is still working on details for how the program will work. DOES THE GOVERNMENT HAVE THE TESTS? Not yet. As of this week, the departments of Defense and Health and Human Services were executing on what's called an accelerated emergency contract,'" the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, said. The contract is expected to be signed soon. WHEN WILL THE TEST KITS BE DELIVERED? The first delivery is expected in early January. All 500 million kits will not arrive at the same time but instead will be delivered in batches. MY DRUGSTORE DOESN'T HAVE ANY TESTS. HOW CAN I GET A FREE KIT FROM THE GOVERNMENT? You'll go to a new government website to request a kit, but the site won't be functional until after the first batch of test kits have been delivered, Psaki said. She said the process was being handled that way to avoid creating more confusion for the public. But the idea is that anyone who wants a test kit would log onto this website to request one. Were obviously not going to put the website up until there are tests available, Psaki said. WHICH HOME TEST WILL I GET? It's unclear. But Psaki noted that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved several different brands of rapid home tests that are currently on the market. WILL I BE LIMITED TO ONE TEST OR CAN I REQUEST MULTIPLE? To be determined, Psaki said. WHY IS BIDEN BUYING THESE TEST KITS? It represents an acknowledgement by the president that the administration needs to do more to increase access to COVID-19 testing, which is an important tool to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. In cases where infected people show symptoms or not, testing is the only way to find out if they have the virus so they can avoid being out and about and potentially spreading disease. But demand for test kits soared as the holidays neared and people grew eager to test themselves and their families before traveling and as the easily transmissible omicron variant spread rapidly in just a few weeks to become dominant strain in the U.S. Biden's promise of 500 million test kits is in addition to the administration's earlier pledge to send 50 million rapid tests to community health centers across the country. HOW MUCH WILL THE PROGRAM COST? The purchase will be paid for with money from the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill Biden signed into law in March, the White House said. The exact cost will be known soon. IS THERE ANOTHER WAY TO GET A TEST KIT FOR FREE Biden said in a speech Tuesday that, starting in January, private insurers will cover the cost of at-home testing. So people will have the option of buying tests at a store or online and then seeking reimbursement from their health insurance provider. The government will also provide access to free at-home tests for people who may not have health insurance, Biden said. SPRING HILL, Tenn. (AP) A family in Spring Hill, Tennessee, adopted a set of four siblings in 2021 making them a family of 12 in time for the holidays. When theyre in foster care, its a roller coaster ride. Its a roller coaster ride so you dont know what the end result is. And I just love my children. I love my children. And Im happy that its permanent, explained adoptive mother Lisa Perra. She and her husband Diego adopted four children ages 17, 14, 12 and six after fostering them for nearly three years. When they first came to live with us, they were temporary, explained Lisa. We had made an obligation for another sibling group so they were going to be with us for three weeks. And that other sibling group, fortunately went to their grandma and so we got to keep the set of four we have now permanently and were thrilled. The Perras already had six children of their own, most already living on their own outside of their house. They explained once the four foster children moved in temporarily during the fostering period, they knew they wanted to adopt them and expand their family. Theyre part of our family. And I think people really expressed to us what a big deal that was or what a sacrifice that was and we didnt look at it as that, recalled Lisa. It was a smooth transition. Thanks to an open adoption, the Perras help their four adopted children keep in contact with the healthy members of their biological family and traveled to the childrens home state in December for a Christmas party. We want the best for them. And then the holiday season brings kind of all of that out when we can incorporate their bios with us and just have one big family you know? said Lisa Thats what it is because everybody loves them. Everybody loves them. And they want the best for them... Its a good feeling when everybody comes together. During 2021 in Tennessee, more than 1,600 children in foster care joined forever families through adoptions or subsidized permanent guardianship finalizations. Over the past year, we have given even more children the hope they deserve, said Jennifer Nichols, commissioner of Tennessee Department of Childrens Services. Im so happy for these children and proud of the work the DCS family does every day. Even in the pandemic, our staff has continued to work tirelessly with families and the courts to make these adoptions possible. And we intend to keep building on these heartwarming successes. The number of adoptions and subsidized permanent guardianship finalizations in Tennessee increased 8% between 2017 and 2021. As of Dec. 16, the Tennessee Department of Childrens Services said about 400 children in the states guardianship are still looking for a home to call their own with a majority being teenagers. The Perras became foster parents in 2018. One of their new daughters, Kristina is grateful the Perras became attached and helped keep her and her siblings together. (Separation) was a fear because I remember them (DCS) kind of telling us that theyve called a lot of homes and they cant get us together. And theyll try one more place and if they didnt want to take us all then we would be split apart, said Kristina. It was scary because youve lived your whole life with them and then you would have been split apart. Dont be afraid to open up your heart. We found the perfect fit and they are our perfect fit for our family and, yeah, we love them with all our hearts, said Lisa. Her new daughter Kristina said she will always be grateful the Perras welcomed her siblings with open arms. They just like did the right thing, stated Kristina. They wanted us, they made us feel loved even the first day we came here not knowing us. They didnt know our story but they still like felt for us and just loved us even when they didnt even know us. WEST HAVEN, Conn. (AP) The family of a 19-year-old fatally shot by police in January 2020 following a car chase has sued the city of West Haven, city police officers and state troopers involved in the case. Attorney Mark Arons filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Superior Court in New Haven, the New Haven Register reported Friday. He said the suit was needed to preserve the two-year statute of limitations for negligence claims against the police. HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) The number of children under the care of Connecticut's child welfare agency trails the number children statewide when it comes to getting vaccinated for COVID-19, according to recently released figures. While 30% of children ages five to 11 across Connecticut have received at least one dose of the vaccine, 3.5% of children in the care of the state Department of Children and Families who are in the same age group have received at least one dose, the Hartford Courant reported on Friday. PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) Rest assured, kids of all ages: Santas coming this Christmas Eve, and a second holiday with COVID-19 wont stop him. Thats the word from the joint U.S.-Canadian military operation that for 66 years has been tracking Jolly Old St. Nicholas on his global mission and has assured us all first by land line and more recently by iPhone, Android, OnStar, Facebook, YouTube and more that hes on his way with a sleigh stuffed with toys and a welcome dose of joy. In whats become its own wildly popular tradition, the Colorado-based North American Aerospace Defense Command provides real-time updates on Santas progress Dec. 24, from 4 a.m. to midnight MST. NORADs Santa Tracker lets families watch Father Christmas in 3D as he transits the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. From deep inside NORAD headquarters, dozens of volunteers field an unrelenting wave of phone calls to 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723). They and other volunteers working off-site because of coronavirus distancing protocols will answer such questions as When will he come to my house? What kind of cookies does he like? said program manager and NORAD spokesman Preston Schlachter. Want to watch? Visit https://www.noradsanta.org, check out #NORADTracksSanta and @NoradSanta on Twitter, or use the associated apps. You can also email noradtrackssanta@outlook.com for the latest. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden also participated in tradition, answering calls to the Santa tracking service. It is a longstanding tradition for first ladies, but the president joined this year as well. Even before Fridays takeoff, the NORAD webpage had been visited more than 3 million times, Schlachter said. Every household, every country is having to deal with the impact of this pandemic. Santa Claus is an icon, and he is a source of joy for a lot of people, Schlachter said. For those worried about Santas safety or their own the bearded man likely will be wearing a mask at each stop, and of course hes wearing gloves, Schlachter noted. For the technically inclined, NORADs website offers more data on the voyage (Weight of gifts at takeoff: 60,000 tons, or 54,600 metric tons; sleigh propulsion: nine RP, or reindeer power). Like any good Christmas tale, the programs origin has been told for generations. In 1955, Air Force Col. Harry Shoup the on-duty commander one night at NORADs predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command answered a call from a child who dialed a number that was misprinted in an ad in a newspaper, thinking she was calling Santa. Shoup answered the call, thought it was a prank at first, but then realized what had happened and assured the child that he was Santa, and thus started the tradition that we are celebrating now 66 years later, Schlachter said. NORADs mission is to watch the skies above North America for any potential threats. Come early Christmas Eve, the Santa operation begins when a cluster of radar stations in northern Canada and Alaska pick up an infrared signature emanating from Rudolphs nose. NORADs array of geostationary satellites above the Earth monitor the journey. Its all shown on large, unclassified display screens in a festively decorated command post at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs. Masked volunteers sit at tables equipped with telephones, garland, miniature Christmas trees, plenty of caffeine-laden candy and coffee and hand sanitizer. We Have the Watch, is NORADs military-mission motto. And when it comes to Santa, NORAD adds: Santa calls the shots. We just track him. ___ Associated Press journalist Terry Chea in San Francisco contributed to this report. Key Latitude & Longitude (WGS84): Estimate based on other nearby localities or region boundaries. 40 North , 112 West (est.) Margin of Error: ~9km GRN: N28W61 Locality type: Mining District Koppen climate type: Cfa : Humid subtropical climate Other/historical names associated with this locality: West Mountain Mining District The Bingham (West Mountain) mining district is located 22 mi southwest of Salt Lake City in southwest Salt Lake County. Bingham is the oldest and largest district in Utah and hosts a giant porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit. The Bingham Canyon open pit porphyry Cu-Au-Mo mine is the largest mine in the U.S. and the Bingham district is the largest Cu, Mo, Au, Ag, Pb, and Zn producer in Utah. The districts total historical metal production at modern metal prices is valued at approximately $174 billion and the Bingham Canyon mine is still in production. The Bingham district forms a lynchpin in the Bingham-Park City mineral belt in the Basin and Range Province. The district is centered on a giant, high-K, calc-alkaline, porphyry Cu-Mo-Au-Ag deposit (USGS Model 17). This deposit is associated with a small, composite monzonite stock dated at about 38 Ma. This stock intrudes a thick, intercalated sequence of Pennsylvanian- Permian marine quartz sandstones and limestones. A 400- to 1000-ft-wide quartz monzonite porphyry dike and a swarm of narrower, east-northeast-trending dikes cut the north flank of the early monzonite stock. The hypogene porphyry mineralization is concentrically zoned around the quartz monzonite porphyry dike from a deep, inner, low-sulfide core through progressively overlapping hypogene molybdenite, bornite-chalcocite, chalcopyrite, and pyrite zones. The inverted cup-shaped Cu shell is largely coincident with potassic alteration and garnet Cu-Au skarns (USGS Model 18a). The surrounding pyrite halo is spatially associated with propylitically-altered rocks. Each of three major phases of porphyry intrusion is followed by cycles of fracturing, alteration, veining, and metal deposition. This cyclic vein formation resulted in complex vein relationships partly constrained by age dates and crosscutting relations. The quartz monzonite porphyry dike and younger dikes are spatially coincident with the highest grades of Cu and Au in the orebody (Porter and others, 2012). The exposed quartz monzonite porphyry stock is too small to have provided the fluids and metals for the district, necessitating a connection to a far larger magma chamber at depth. The outermost fringe of the pyrite halo is overprinted by the inner margin of a 3000-ft-wide, intermediate-sulfidation, sphalerite- galena tetrahedrite manto-vein zone where alteration is largely confined to the immediate vein walls (USGS Model 19a). The outer perimeter of the Pb-Zn veins locally contains rhodochrosite and/or barite. The Barneys Canyon and Melco distal disseminated Au deposits (USGS Model 19c) lie 4 mi north-northeast of the center of the district and outside Binghams megascopically recognizable sulfide and alteration system, but on the outer fringe of a weak As-Au geochemical halo (Babcock and others, 1995). In 1848, Erastus Bingham and his two sons were the first to discover mineralization in Bingham Canyon. Because the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (L.D.S. church), of which they were members, discouraged mining, the location was forgotten until 1863, when Colonel P.E. Conner of the U.S. Army stationed at Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City and others rediscovered the silver-rich lead ore while picnicking in the area. On September 17, 1863, George Ogilvie (a logger who first reported the find), Colonel Conner, and 23 others staked the Jordan claim in Bingham Canyon (Eldredge and Wilkerson, 1990). This claim was the first in the district and the first recorded in Utah. In 1863, the West Mountain mining district was officially organized. In 1864, placer gold was discovered near the mouth of Bingham Canyon by a group of California miners. With this discovery, gold became the first mineral mined in the district. Placer mining recovered approximately 72,600 ounces of gold. The largest gold nugget (over 7 ounces) ever found in Utah was in Bingham Canyon. By the early 1870s, placer mining was declining because the deposit was almost played out. Beginning in 1870, mining began on the silver-rich oxidized lead ores at the Highland Boy, Jordan, Last Chance, Brooklin, and Yosemite mines (the Jordan, Last Chance, and Brooklin mines have since been consumed by the present-day Bingham Canyon open-pit mine). By the late 1880s, most of the shallow silver-rich ore bodies had been exhausted, and between 1890 and 1900 many of the mining properties were consolidated. Extensive underground mining of the silver, lead, gold, and copper ores began at mines that included the Lark, U.S., Butterfield Group, Highland Boy, and Carr Fork. Underground mining continued until 1971 when the Lark and U.S. mines closed. In 1885, native copper found growing in organic rich portions of upper Bingham Creek led to the discovery that the creek water contained copper in solution. A small operation began to produce metallic copper by running creek water over scrap iron, where the copper in solution would precipitate onto the iron. In 1897, Enos Wall noticed copper carbonate mineralization on both sides of Bingham Canyon and scattered copper mineralization in monzonite in several abandoned mining tunnels. He subsequently staked a number of claims, known as the Wall Group (subsequently acquired by the Utah Copper Company). About the same time, Samuel Newhouse, who developed and sold the Highland Boy mine, also was aware of scattered copper mineralization and acquired property southwest of the Wall Group for the Boston Consolidated Mining Company. The Boston Consolidated and Utah Copper companies began to mine copper ore in the early 1900s. Both companies started steam-shovel stripping or open-pit mining in 1906. Utah Copper shipped the first ore in 1907, and Boston Consolidated shipped ore in 1908. Over the next several years, Utah Copper and Boston Consolidated properties were the leading producers of copper in the district. In 1910, Utah Copper merged with Boston Consolidated for 310,000 Utah Copper shares valued at nearly $19 million. In 1936, Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation acquired the mine from the Utah Copper Company. During World War II, Kennecott supplied one-third of the total amount of copper used by the allied forces. In 1978, Kennecott Utah Copper was sold to Standard Oil Company, a subsidiary of British Petroleum. British Petroleum sold its interests to the Rio Tinto Zinc Corporation in 1987. In the 1980s, copper became uneconomical to mine due to high labor, haulage, smelting, and refining costs. Over the next several years, Kennecott spent $2 billion modernizing its operations and facilities. As a result, the mine is now one of the most efficient in the world. At present (2005), the Bingham Canyon mine is more than a half-mile deep and about 2.5 miles across from rim to rim. The Barneys Canyon and Melco gold deposits, located north of the Bingham Canyon mine, were initially found in 1878, but the significance was unrecognized. Sampling was conducted in 1968-69 at an old mine dump in Barneys Canyon that returned values of 0.10 to 0.20 ounces of gold per ton. Drilling on the Barneys Canyon deposit began in 1985 and the deposit was discovered on the third hole. In 1986, drilling began on the Melco deposit and the ore body was discovered on the first hole. Mining began at Barneys Canyon and Melco deposits in 1989 and continued until late 2001. Select Mineral List Type Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements References Sort by Year (asc) Year (desc) Author (A-Z) Author (Z-A) In-text Citation No. USGS Professional paper 38 (1905) Babcock, R.C., Jr., Ballantyne, G.H., and Phillips, C.H., 1995, Summary of the geology of the Bingham district, Utah, in Pierce, F.W., and Bolm, J.G., editors, Porphyry Copper Deposits of the American Cordilleran: Tucson, Arizona, Arizona Geological Society Digest 20, p. 316335. Porter, J.P., Schroeder, K., and Austin, G., 2012, Geology of the Bingham Canyon Porphyry Cu-Mo-Au Deposit, Utah, in Hedenquist, J.W., Harris, M., and Camus, F., editors, Geology and genesis of major copper deposits and districts of the worldA tribute to Richard H. Sillitoe: Society of Economic Geologists Special Publication 16, p. 127146. Warnaars, F.W., Smith, W.H., Bray, R.E., Lanier, G., and Shafiqullah, M. (1978) Geochronology of igneous intrusions and porphyry copper mineralization at Bingham, Utah. Economic Geology: 73: 1242-1249. Phillips, C.H., Smith, T.W., and Harrison, E.D. (1997) Alteration, metal zoning, and ore controls in the Bingham Canyon porphyry copper deposits, Utah. In: Geology and Ore Deposits of the Oquirrh and Wasatch Mountains, Utah (.A. John & .H. Ballantyne, editors). Society of Economic Geologists, Guidebook Series 29: 133-145. Waite, K.A., Keith, J.D., Christiansen, E.H., Whitney, J.A., Hattori, K., Tingey, D.G., and Hook, C.J. (1997) Petrogenesis of the volcanic and intrusive rocks associated with the Bingham Canyon porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit, Utah. In: Geology and Ore Deposits of the Oquirrh and Wasatch Mountains, Utah (D.A. John & G.H. Ballantyne, editors). Society of Economic Geologists, Guidebook Series 29: 1242-1249. Redmond, P.B. (2002) Magmatic-Hydrothermal Fluids and Copper-Gold Ore Formation at Bingham Canyon, Utah. Ph.D. dissertation, Stanford University, Stanford, California. Redmond, P.B., Einaudi, M.T., Inan, E.E., Landtwing, M.R., and Heinrich, C.A. (2004) Copper deposition by fluid cooling in intrusion-centered systems: new insights from the Bingham porphyry ore deposit, Utah: Geology: 32: 217-220. Singer, D.A., Berger, V.I., and Moring, B.C. (2005): Porphyry Copper Deposits of the World: Database, Map, and Grade and Tonnage Models. USGS Open-File Report 05-1060. Ege, C. L., (2005), Selected Mining Districts of Utah, Miscellaneous Publication 05-5, p. 9-10. External Links Localities in this Region A Cu-Au-Ag-Mo-Sb-Pb-Mn-Hg-Bi-As mining district with porphyry Cu-Au-Mo ores at the heart of the district and Ag-Au ores in replacement bodies surrounding the intrusive.also see an old movie here: http://www.archive.org/details/copper_mining_and_smelting Tensions between Brussels and Warsaw have reached new heights after the EU warned of legal action against Poland for ignoring European Union law and undermining its judicial independence. The move prompted a sharp rebuke from senior Polish figured who said EU was turning into a Nazi-style "fourth reich." Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the EU's was headed towards a type of "bureaucratic centralism" that needed to be stopped. This week's events escalate a long-running feud over Poland's perceived backsliding on EU democratic norms. Earlier on, Deputy Justice Minister Marcin Romanowski echoed other Polish leaders when he said Germany was leading the EU towards a "fourth reich,'" referring to the Nazi "Third Reich" under Adolf Hitler. His public remarks follow widespread reports that ruling party leader Jarosaw Kaczynski used exactly the same words at a private meeting with his MPs. Poland's Prime Minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, and Justice Minister, Zbigiew Ziobro, have also in recent days warned that efforts are underway to turn the EU into a single, federal superstate. The hardening of rhetoric comes with a worsening of relations over the supremacy of EU law over the Polish constitution. Poland's Consitutional Court ruled on October 7 that Brussels may not override Poland's top legislation. Frustration Brussels contests this, and on 22 December launched an "infringement procedure," arguing the Polish decision was a "breach of the general principles of ... union law and the binding effect of rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union." Poland has two months to reply. In the event of no satisfactory reply, the matter could be sent to the European Court of Justice. "Even the European Commision's patience has run out. Better late than never," tweeted influential Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt. "The PiS (Law and Justice party) government is playing with Poland's EU membership, against the welfare and wishes of an overwhelming majority of polish citizens." Meanwhile, Brussels is withholding approval of coronavirus recovery funds for Poland. Warsaw had requested 23.9 billion in grants under the fund and 12.1 billion in loans. Ongoing defiance The ECJ has already ruled against Poland for implementing a mechanism to lift the immunity of judges in the Constitutional Court and to sack any not deemed acceptable by the parliament dominated by the PiS. The European Commission is also upset over a 2019 Polish law that prevents Polish courts applying EU law in certain areas, and from referring legal questions to the ECJ. The Poland-EU spat puts Brussels in an awkward position in its relationship with Russia. Since 2008, Russia has become increasingly hostile towards the west, Nato declared on 3 April of that year in its Bucharest Declaration: that it "welcomes Ukraine's and Georgia's Euro-Atlantic aspirations for membership in Nato." Four months later, Russia supported the breakaway Georgian republics South Ossetia and Abkhazia in an 8-day war against Georgia. And in February 2014, after the Euromaidan protests in Ukraine lead to ouster of Russian-backed president Vladimir Yanukovich, Russian troops annexed Crimea. A month later, they went on to support Donbass seperatists in the west of Ukraine, leading to EU sanctions which hardened after Russia refused to take responsability for the shooting down by seperatists of the MH17 Malaysian Airlines flight over the Donbass region in July. A former Warsaw Pact member, joined the EU in 2004 and has been a staunch supporter of the EU's criticism of Russia. Five years before joining the bloc, Poland had already joined Nato, eager to escape from Moscow's control. In 1939, the then Soviet Union had invaded Poland, then split the country with Nazi-Germany before putting it under its total control after the German defeat in 1945, making it the headquarters of the anti-Nato Warsaw Pact alliance in 1955. After that, Moscow excerted repressive control over the population through the Polish United Workers' Party until it was dissolved in 1989. Poland indispensible According to the Poland page at the Supreme Headquarters of Allied Powers in Europe (Shape), Poland has since become an indispensible member of the alliance, taking part in operations in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia and Iraq. Polish Armed Forces regularly contribute warships to Alliance's maritime operations in the Mediterranean and (on the rotational basis) MiG 29 Fulcrum fighters to carry out Air Policing over the Baltic States. Poland's use of these Russian made warplanes to patrol former Soviet states-turned-Nato members must have particularly irritated Moscow. Warsaw has also taken a hard line against Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which was designed by Moscow to circumvent Ukraine and deliver gas directly to the EU. Washington has called Nord Stream 2 a "political weapon" deployed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to put pressure on the EU. Poland's central position in Nato's European deployment may make it hard for Brussels to take a line that exceeds stern sounding warnings. (With agencies) Pope Francis called for more solidarity with those living in poverty as he celebrated mass in Rome in front of a masked congregation of around 2,000 people, while billions around the world again marked Christmas under the shadow of the coronavirus. An explosion in cases driven by the rise of the Omicron variant has meant a Christmas season tainted by the pandemic for a second year running, with Santa's arrival and longed-for family reunions overshadowed by the prospect of yet more Covid-19 restrictions. In St Peter's Basilica, the 85-year-old Argentine pontiff urged the faithful to "value the little things in life". Global death toll and coronavirus cases as of December 24 at 1100 GMT, based on AFP tallies. By Simon MALFATTO (AFP) "On this night of love, may we have only one fear: that of offending God's love, hurting him by despising the poor with our indifference," he said. About 2,000 members of the public and 200 religious figures attended the Christmas Eve mass, wearing face masks and respecting social distancing as part of measures against the coronavirus. In Bethlehem's Manger Square, visitors in Santa hats and scouts beating drums marked Christmas Eve, but numbers were lower than usual as coronavirus fears overshadowed celebrations for a second straight year. The city where Christians believe Jesus was born is usually a focal point of the holiday, with thousands packing the streets and filling hotels. In Bethlehem's Manger Square, visitors in Santa hats and scouts beating drums marked Christmas Eve, but numbers were lower than usual as coronavirus fears overshadowed celebrations for a second straight year. By ABBAS MOMANI (AFP) But Israel, which controls all entrances to Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, barred its borders to foreigners in an effort to rein in infections from the Omicron strain of the coronavirus. "It is a bit surreal," American student Hudson Harder told AFP. "There is a selfish part where it's like 'Oh I get to see this place so empty' but on the other hand you feel for the shops, all the money they are losing, it's really quite tragic." Flights cancelled In his homily for midnight mass celebrated in St Catherine's Church in Bethlehem, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa said it was however encouraging that celebrations were "certainly more joyful this year". Members of a scout band perform outside the Church of the Nativity during Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem. By JAAFAR ASHTIYEH (AFP) "Compared to last year's Christmas, the participation is much greater and this is an encouraging sign," he told the masked congregation, but regretted the absence of foreign worshippers due to the pandemic. "We pray for them and at the same time ask for their prayers, so that all this may end soon and that the city of Bethlehem may once again be full of pilgrims." For the second year, surging infections have complicated yuletide plans from Sydney to Seville. The new coronavirus strain severely disrupted holiday travel, with tracking website Flightaware.com reporting more than 2,300 flights had been cancelled around the world, hundreds of them in the United States. US President Joe Biden, and First Lady Jill, visited a children's hospital in Washington on Christmas Eve. By Nicholas Kamm (AFP) Millions of Americans were nevertheless on the move to see loved ones for Christmas, even as Covid infections surpass the peak of the previous wave and hospitals run out of beds. In Washington, US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill visited a children's hospital for the traditional Christmas book-reading by the first lady. The couple chatted with patients and doctors, showing one boy a photo of "Commander" -- their new puppy -- before settling into chairs beside a Christmas tree and reading a book inspired by the Disney movie "Frozen". In Europe, governments are reimposing misery-inducing safety measures that are draining the fun from Christmas for many. Dressed as Santa, Mohamed Maarouf distributes gifts to children in a slum near the centre of Iraq's southern city of Basra. By Hussein FALEH (AFP) The Netherlands is back in lockdown while Spain and Italy have made wearing masks compulsory outdoors. And with Britain hitting a record high number of Covid-19 infections again on Friday for a third day in a row, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suggested getting a vaccine booster shot as a Christmas gift for relatives. France notched up record positive cases for the second day in a row and its health authorities urged people to get booster shots just three months after initial jabs, down from the current five. 'Ray of light' Still, Christmas gatherings will be easier than a year ago in many other places around the world. Most Australians are allowed to travel interstate over the festive break for the first time in two years, with Sydney's Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher saying that Christmas was "a ray of light" in dark times. And Santa Claus was not deterred from doing his rounds and been cleared for travel in Canada's airspace after showing proof of vaccination and a pre-flight negative Covid test, Ottawa's transport minister said. According to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's (NORAD) Santa-tracking website, Father Christmas had delivered nearly five billion gifts and was flying over Canada at around 0200 GMT. "He's been at it for many hours already and will go throughout the evening as well," said Major General Eric Kenny, commander of the Canadian NORAD region. burs/mtp/jah Nasa's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is expected to lift off from Europe's spaceport in French Guiana on Saturday morning after a 48-hour delay due to technical glitches and tropical storms. The 10 billion telescope fitted into the hold of an Ariane 5 rocket should have left on 22 December. However, if final weather checks prove favourable, blast-off should occur between 7.20 and 7.52am local time, or 12.20 GMT. The telescope will be released from the rocket after a 26-minute ride into space. It will then boldly go where no ubertelescope has gone before 1.6 million kilometres from Earth to a destination known as the second Lagrange Point, or L2. This is a so-called "sweet spot" in space where gravitational forces and the orbital motion of a body balance each other. Unlike Hubble, the existing main space telescope that revolves around Earth, the JWST will orbit the Sun. Named after Nasa's chief during the 1960s, the telescope's primary mirror consisting of 18 hexagonal segments of gold-coated beryllium metal has a much bigger light-collecting area, enabling it to observe objects at greater distances and farther back into time than Hubble. New look It is expected to revolutionise astronomers' understanding of the universe and our place in it. The JWST will view the cosmos in the infrared spectrum, allowing it to gaze through clouds of gas and dust where stars are being born, while Hubble operated primarily at optical and ultraviolet wavelengths. Webb's instruments also make it ideal to search for potentially life-supporting atmospheres around scores of newly documented exoplanets celestial bodies orbiting distant stars and to observe worlds much closer to home, such as Mars and Saturn's icy moon Titan. The telescope is an international collaboration led by Nasa in partnership with the European and Canadian space agencies. The Ariane launch vehicle is part of the European contribution. The whole reason we launch telescopes like Webb is that we know that planets of all sizes are out there," said Dr Knicole Colon, an astrophysicist at Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Centre in the United States. "We want to find ones that have similar temperatures and sizes as Earth to see if they could possibly be anything like Earth. This week, Zuma was given leave to appeal a Pretoria High Court ruling that he return to jail because the medical parole granted him less than two months into his 15-month sentence for contempt of court was unlawful. For a man wearing a prisoner's orange jump suit only five months ago, former President Jacob Zuma now appears to have the wind in his sails. Zuma is spending Christmas at his super-secure home Nkandla. That security, along with a number of luxury features, were provided from the public purse during his nine-year presidency. The gates to his residence were manned by veteran fighters of the liberation war against the apartheid regime and by personnel of the South African Police Service. "Glorious years" Supporters gathered there on Christmas Eve to celebrate what they call his "glorious years at the helm." They say his presidency advanced the economic standing of black South Africans but complain that this trend is now being reversed. His detractors within the party refer to his tenure as "nine wasted years" and maintain that much of the economic malaise can be ascribed to corruption that has become endemic within the ANC. President Cyril Ramaphosa and the ruling party's top echelon is considering a request by the ANC leadership in Zuma's home province of KwaZulu/Natal to come out openly in support of the disgraced former president. Proud father Zuma also celebrated the election of his son Duduzane as chairperson the ANC branch in Durban, possibly a first step on the way to become a Council president in the future. The Supreme Court of Appeal did not set a date for the next hearing. It is expectd that Zuma's counsel will argue that the time he spent on medical parole will count as time served, making him eligible for the ordinary parole prisoners may receive after serving a third of their sentence. I had gone to Stanford University, California (USA) on March 3, 2020, for a conference that was to last for about a week. But a few weeks before the start of the conference, everyone started feeling the pangs of yet another dispensation that would forever disrupt us. This was because of the news trickling in from China about a menacing virus. While the news about this so-named apocalyptic-prototype virus should have troubled the world into collective action, the enriched countries decided to rather evacuate their citizens as if to tell the world that it is China that is troubled. Indeed, just when the novel coronavirus was declared a pandemic, the Chinese and Asians became subjects of deepened racial slurs and stigmatisation in several of the Euro-American worlds. Beyond the developed nations evacuating their citizens trapped in a "virus-infested" China to an imagined safe home, illusions of "Don't worry, we are in control" were heard from the corridors of western leaders. They claimed they had a robust healthcare system that could contain the virus. In England, the political elites kept assuring us of a resilience NHS. In the face of rhetoric of control, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared what some of these western leaders tagged as a Chinese virus as a pandemic. Concurrently, before long, people in the West were sadly dying in their numbers leading to reasonable stress and anxiety. In the end, a question that required the same answer circulated globally: WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic? Answer: WHO. Ironically, while Africans were tipped to fall en mass to the virus dying in record-high numbers (as the continent, unfortunately, happens to be the receiving end of most major pandemics that start from somewhere away from the continent), Africans survived. This was such that while deaths were obviously recorded in several countries in Africa, the rate of deaths was comparatively insignificant. Several reasons were adduced for Africa's perceived low mortality rate. Some recapitulated the geographical determinism theory (of Ibn Khaldun, Hegel, Jared Diamond etc) pointing to the hot climate as inhospitable for the virus; others talked about Africans' natural immunity as a result of living in a supposedly disease-burdened continent; there was also the idea of Africans having acquired decades of experiences in fighting epidemics, including Ebola and HIV/AIDS. Similarly, others talked about political repression from African leaders that cowed citizens to stick to lockdown rules. Nevertheless, under the logic of secularism that brackets the world out of the control of God and the spirit world, hardly did any analyst talk about Africans praying for divine intervention as a mitigating factor. Indeed, historically, Africans and everyone else, had prayed whenever disaster struck. Even so, since the birth of modern science in the eighteenth century, the West had developed an appetite for a "We have figured it all out, so we don't need God" attitude towards life. If anything at all, God was introduced into any serious conversation, it was part of the "God-in-the -gap" theory, where any trace of divine intervention was waiting to be eliminated as science progresses. As the virus proved to be transnational in deconstructing the illusions of control of modern science and technology, the WHO, on March 11, 2020, declared the virus a pandemic. At this point, internationalism caved in to nationalism as nations were crying their own cry with more of Cains philosophy Am I my brothers keeper? Concomitantly, the pandemic and its related matters have been monetised, politicised, and weaponised to deepen systemic inequality and injustice. Back to my experience: Graciously, the conveners of the conference at Stanford cancelled the conference early enough, as several participants could not fly over from their respective countries obviously because of the menacing virus. Fortunately, a few of us who had arrived early enough had a mini-conference, where I presented my paper to the admiration of my supervisor. By March 9, 2020, I managed to return to England to spend time with my family. I heaved a sigh of relief when I arrived in Birmingham, as my supervisor was concerned I may be locked up in California. As the pandemic holds us captive and continues to cause more brain-racking, we see the mutating of the virus as a factor a reason for more stress. Given the mutations of the virus, making it more treacherous at every major turn, it is doubtless that human wits have been seriously overstretched. As brains are overstretched and rationalism proves inadequate in making sense of the complexities of the pandemic, conspiracies, myths, superstitions, fairy tales loom large. Nevertheless, whether rationalism or conspiracies as approaches to making sense of the virus, human beings must seek and where necessary invent meaning, especially as the totalising impact of the virus is unprecedented in the last century of human history. Consequently, it is either a few individuals who have hijacked the world for their capitalistic gain or the gods are angry with human beings, leading us into an apocalyptic end of history. Bill Gates and Anthony Fauci have, in some quarters, been declared the mortal enemies of the sons and daughters of God, as these individuals are profiled as the forerunners of the anti-Christ or anti-natalists (or enemies of procreation). As these men are believed to have sponsored or contributed to the development of vaccines and facemasks, they are reified as the frontiers of a cosmic Armageddon. I wonder whether any of these two persons stand to benefit from any supposed agenda of depopulation. This is because both economics and political regimes are based on population growth. If China, as a result of COVID-19, has eliminated their one-child policy, why would Gates and Fauci seek to depopulate the world? This one, I struggle to come to terms with it. In response to hard to establish conspiracies, several Christians, including respected pastors, have joined the fray to admonish their followers to avoid both the wearing of a facemask in public and vaccination. Others told their members to defy the lockdown rules to hold religious services. Political leaders who pushed for COVID-19 safety protocols were seen as compradors, sell-outs, and proxies of anti-Christ. Strangely, some of our own ancestral religious practitioners said that COVID-19 was because of global womens infidelity. For example, the Chief Priest of Aflao, Tronua Sadzi, said, the gods were not happy with adultery among women in the world, hence, the disease (Aflao Traditional Council consults deities over coronavirus - https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Aflao-Traditional-Council-consults-deities-over-coronavirus-906694). The assertion by the Chief Priest rather hit me hard. I was wondering whether the Priest was only reacting to women whose level of enlightenment has demobilised men from having more women at will? Anyways, millenarian religious groups like the Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA), had their leaders quickly stepping in to stem the tide against any needless conspiracies that could burden the global fight against the pandemic. This was significant because some members of the SDA tend to read virtually every historical oddity as part of the imposition of a supposed ahistorical National Sunday Law. Other churches also stepped in the debunk all conspiracies of an anti-Christ-inspired pandemic. Alas, despite all these, conspiracies reign large such that several Ghanaians (and of course people around the world) have refused to both stick to the safety protocols or receive a vaccination. In Ghana, non-vaccination (or vaccine apathy) is read as part of rebelling against the demons of the world and Western imperialism. Consequently, when I first visited Ghana on November 27, 2021, ever since the pandemic broke, I realised that I was among the few COVID-diots (inverted targets) in town. Right from day one, anytime I hopped on a Trotro (commercial mini-bus), I realised I would usually be the only one in a facemask. Even when I visited a church service at Lashibi, Accra, a day after my arrival, in the congregation numbering about 60, I realised only about three of us wore a facemask. In Kumasi, people had simply discarded all known safety protocols. Paradoxically, as major cities, Accra and Kumasi continue to suffer the ravages of the virus. When a few of my friends met me in my facemask, they told me I would soon give up, because face covering was a mark of disbelieving in God, acceptance of Western imperialism, and an acceptance of the Mark of the Beast. I responded to them that I had already received the beastly mark, as I had taken my two full vaccinations already. As I write, I am waiting to go for more of the beast, my booster vaccine. As conspiracies disrupt the fight against the pandemic, I have deliberately refused to engage in any serious theological discussions with pastor-friends who patronise these conspiracies. Instead, I wrote journalistic articles expressing my views against conspiracies. These articles included: If a man dies, will he live again? An inquiry (https://www.modernghana.com/news/1005628/if-a-man-dies-will-he-live-again-an-inquiry.html); Because the Lord Heard I am not loved: Leah, Africa and COVID-19 (https://www.modernghana.com/news/999604/because-the-lord-heard-i-am-not-loved-leah.html); Better a promise than nothing! Why we must pay attention to the presidents promise (https://www.modernghana.com/news/998613/better-a-promise-than-nothing-why-we-must-pay.html); How much of Jesus are you? Christians helping in a perilous time of COVID-19 (https://www.modernghana.com/news/995335/how-much-of-jesus-are-you-christians-helping-in.html); COVID-19, Easter and the question of pain and evil in our world (https://www.modernghana.com/news/995159/covid-19-easter-and-the-question-of-pain-and-evil.html); Do not fear, but let I give in to We to conquer the COVID-19 (https://www.modernghana.com/news/991329/do-not-fear-but-let-i-give-in-to-we-to-conque.html) etc. As the new variant of the virus, Omicron, takes a toll on Ghanaians in the face of wanton disregard for COVID-19 safety protocols, I want to shed some insight as to how I fight the virus as a Christian with a predilection towards Calvinistic theology routinised in TULIP (Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints). While several Ghanaian Presbyterians have lost track of the blessedness of Calvinistic theology in favour of Charismatic theology, the oxymoron is rather that, for me a member of the Church of Pentecost, I have hardly turned away from this doctrinal school of thought since I got know about it in 2002. Indeed, before 2002, I had read lots of literature from Arminian scholars, including R.B. Thieme Jnr. As I appeal to Calvinistic theology, I humbly ask everyone to freely consider the COVID-19 safety protocols, including vaccination for one central reason: The sovereignty of God. One of the reasons and force behind all the conspiracies and scientific arrogance is fear. As a Christian, I read several years ago that FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real. Unfortunately, several Christians have succumbed to the fear that some individuals want to depopulate the world by biologically re-engineering COVID-19. In all humility, this is very bizarre and lack of faith in the God who created all things and in whom all things subsist. Logically, such fears do not make sense. Haven't such conspirators realised that more children have been born as a result of lockdown-induced social isolation than perhaps any time in our recent history? Since the end of 2020, including just yesterday, all my friends who had married for years without children are giving birth. In fact, those who were dilly-dallying with marriage had married and had child/ren partly because of the lockdown rules. That procreation is rather high is precisely because, as the world of work, enmeshed in fasts, has denied couples for the blessedness intimacy for procreation, and while stress is affecting the fertility of several men, the pandemic-induced "stay home" was nearly read as "stay home and enjoy your marriage to refill the world". Also, "Stay away; keep the distance" partly meant, "stay with your spouse only". In all this, more children have been born than several depopulation conspirators had conspired. Cant COVID-19 conspirators see the hand of God in all this? Cant they see God telling the so-called men and women who an imagined as agents of depopulation that, I am God and my counsel of sustaining the world through procreation will stand? Because my God is sovereign, I pray over the vaccine and take it without any fear whatsoever. In fact, the vaccine conspiracies remind me of Paul's response to the Corinthians who were unsure about eating meat that had obviously been sacrificed to idols. I can imagine Paul doing two things and, indeed, he did. First, he said these Corinthians are ignorant about the sovereignty of God. Second, he asked: what do these baby Corinthian Christians think? Do they think there is any other power apart from God? Responding to them, therefore, Paul said, For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many so-called gods and lords), yet for us there is but one God the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came through whom we exist (I Corinthians 8: 6). Relating this to the conspiracies against vaccination, Paul is simply telling me, "Prempeh, go for the vaccine and more, for there is nothing that anyone can do to you, for all these men and women and spirits are as powerless as dependent creatures before the uncreated Triune God". If you are a Christian, there is nothing to worry about, including fear of vaccination or respecting and keeping the safety protocols of the virus. You should rather fear dying by suicide dying because you recklessly allowed conspiracies to deify human beings and science. In fact, God did not ordain us to go to heaven by death. While God knew before the foundation of the world that death would upset His creation and majestically allowed it, death is not natural. Death is not a friend, so we never get used to it. Death is an enemy, so we never stop cursing it. Death will be conquered, for that is our only hope. So, it will be strange for a Christian to go for death which is decidedly in contradistinction to our faith. If, for any reason, the early Apostles and several other Christians suffered martyrdom, they did not surrender themselves willingly to death without a cause. They did that because they had to stand for their faith. That is why Peter was very clear in telling us that, If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Indeed, none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or wrongdoer, or even as a meddler. But if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but glorify God that you bear that name (I Peter 4:15). If we Christians refuse to be wise as a serpent, we would be the idiots of the world, because we would not desire to live. This is because not every scientist/inventor is a Christian. Not every inventor has good intentions for the world. Not every farmer begins cultivating the land with the name of God. Some companies have pacts with their own cultic practices. If we Christians go about being picky in all these, when are we to occupy until the Lord comes? A few years ago, we were told some corned beef were from the depths of the sea! I know that ever since some people read Iyke Nathan Uzormas, Occult Grandmaster now in Christ, a book I read several years ago, conspiracies about malevolent spirits capturing the world has increased. But we must be assured that our Triune is God sovereign. Similarly, if you want to follow the elites who hardly respect COVID-19 protocols to ground your conspiracies, you are mistaken. I always tell people that, I am unlike everyone else, in terms of my vision and positionality in my family. I am Abusua Krachie (a corruption of clerk), so when I was nearly crashed on the Kumasi-Accra road on December 3, 2021, I caused the arrest of the driver. This is because my death would not mean well for my poor family in the ghettos. When would my mother give birth to a son who would rise to receive a PhD from the University of Cambridge? Perhaps, there is more at stake for you than me. So, if I were you, I will do things that would protect me and allow God to take care of the conspiracies I have certainly have no control over. I hope I have spoken enough. Lets avoid death as much as we can, even though the worst of death will lead to the best that will ever happen to us. Blessings Satyagraha Prempeh Charles ([email protected]yahoo.com), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi-Ghana Psychologically, the place called Nigeria cannot continue pretending to be something it is not: Unity. Persistently, Nigeria is divided along the lines of ethnic and religious tensions that from time to time boil over into grand ridiculousness. If Nigeria was truly a secular society the violations of the basic rights of the newly crowned 44th Miss Nigeria, Shatu Garko, would not occur. Irrespective of her faith, for whatever reasons her freedom of assembly which implies freedom of association, and freedom of expression and movement should not be violated. Not in this day and age. Nigeria's 1999 so called constitution luckily contains a 'no state religion' clause but the North for the most part, said no, we will mix religion and government. And it Did. Which is a boost for the likes of Sheik Harun Ibn Sina the Commander General (CG) of the religious Police force, Hisbah, an Islamic organization, funded by the Government of Kano State. CG Harun Ibn Sina in an interview with BBC Hausa expressed selective discrimination and prejudice towards the new Miss Nigeria when he singled out the beauty queen over the way she dressed for a special occasion. The CGs approach to her was a form of discriminatory harassment at least in the eyes of the Constitution. Ms. Garko made history as the first hijab adorning Muslims to win the national beauty pageant, an annual celebration which started in 1957 showcasing positive attributes of Nigerian women. But in the eyes of historic muslim northern Nigeria, especially the Hisbah board of religious police, social educational celebrations like the beauty pageant, is part of Western education, and Western education is a sin. Could it be that psychologically, the Hisbah police chief has become more emboldened by many past and current influences. President Muhammadu Buhari in 2001 once asserted that I will continue to show openly and inside me the total commitment to the Sharia movement that is sweeping all over Nigeria God willing we will not stop the agitation for the total implementation of Sharia in the country. Buhari noted that the spread of Sharia is a legal responsibility which God has given us, within the context of one Nigeria to continue to uphold the practice of Sharia wholeheartedly... CG Harun Ibn Sina takes this very seriously. The likes of this Islamic police chief are further emboldened by a society where strategic national leadership positions are in the hands of powerful Muslims like Director-General of the Department of State Service (DSS), Yusuf Bichi; the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, NSCDC commandant-general Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ahmed Abubakar Audi, Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Haliru Nababa, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (Rtd), National Security Adviser, Major General Babagana Monguno (Rtd) and Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami. In the mind of the Kano Sharia Police chief, Harun Ibn Sina. According to the Muslim North, there is no separation of religion from civic affairs and the state, as such participation in a national show like the Miss Nigeria beauty pageant is deemed illegal. Because religion says so. In other words, it is the secular part of Nigeria that does that despite the national pride that the beauty pageant draws to Nigeria. Whether the Islamic police, invited the parents of newly crowned Miss Nigeria or not for questioning, is not the issue but what it represents. Among which are the on-going inherent contradictions that exist between the Islamic and secular approach to nationhood. A nation with no common reference point in an atmosphere of pluralism only leads to a faulty unity and pretentious democracy. Matters like the one of Garko, has again normalized divisiveness in Nigeria. Because of religion, she is being seen as a non-decent Muslim lady, which could be dangerous for her safety. The fact that she was present at the beauty pageant makes her a sinner. Incredible. The economic benefit of her winnings is supposed to be a plus for the economically strangled North but that does not matter because of religion. Garko, who even wore a hijab during the pageant, won the beauty pageant and took home the prize of N10m, one-year residency in a luxury apartment, brand new car, and many brand ambassadorship opportunities. Yet, all this means nothing to Northern muslim Nigeria because she is acting from the other wing of the society, the secular Nigeria. From the look of things, it appears that we have already built a psychological wall between the Islamic Northern Nigeria and the secular environs of Nigeria. Just waiting for a real wall. So why using strategic placed appointments to stop the wall from being built? To ensure that fairness prevails in human life, as Islam recognizes through the concept of al-'adl (justice) and al-ihsan (benevolence) why the resistance? Is it because concentrated power is sweet? I ask again, how does female discrimination on religious grounds enhance democracy? How does the existence of a secular institution like the Nigeria Police, functioning under the 1999 Constitution, collaborate healthily with the Hisbah police with very strict Islamic values? How does a wing of the country, Islamic North, that strongly oppose amending the constitution to facilitate State policing allow the practice of a religious state police like Hisbah? Even regional security outfit in the west, Amotekun was opposed by Northern Nigeria. What is the ulterior motive behind such reasoning? Currently, how does theocratic ideology, Islamism especially, that is directly targeting liberal democracy and its values as seen in the case of Miss Nigeria, expand democratic state? The Nigeria religious police, Hisbah approaches to national matters in economics, law enforcement, commerce, dressing, hair style, and association remain persistent, so why not just physically demarcate the Nigeria space? If Northern Muslims for the most part say secular democracy is purely a Western concept imposed on Muslim spaces, to avoid the continued crisis of religious politic why not physically demarcate the Nigeria now? As part of the divide, the Hisbah police as an agency established to enforce Sharia law in Nigerias northern states, fits well into Sharias based court system and customary courts of appeals at the State and federal levels. As a matter of fact, Miss Nigeria is lucky that she was not presented before a Sharia court for civil misconduct. The Sharia court system across at least 12 States, exist as part of rivalry with secular legal systems in secular Nigeria. The impact of colonialism on the divide of Nigeria has left Nigerians to struggle unsuccessfully to clearly convey the relationship between religion and the state. The British colonialists in a psychological way bequeathed to the brand-new nation a secular regime at independence, and equally allowed Muslim North, to institute sharia legal order, a paradox that has left Democracy building an uphill battle. Nigeria seems to be retarding backwards awkwardly. Nigeria, whether it is known or not, is in a state of silent psychological distress between the secular Nigeria, and Islamic Northern Nigeria, and as usual Nigerias identity crisis is again rearing its ugly head across the society. It is time all of us to be less stupid about religion and region. Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, like him or not once summed up Nigerias reality in this way; One of the challenges facing Nigerians is that we are so good at pretending. We bury our heads in the sand and just pretend that nothing is happening. But something is happening. We cannot continue to remain as a nation of pretext. A place that is always declaring public holidays through the lens of religion as if Nigeria is at unity and Nigerians are at peace. John Egbeazien Oshodi who was born in Uromi, Edo State in Nigeria, is an American based Police/Prison Scientist and Forensic/Clinical/Legal Psychologist. A government Consultant on matters of forensic-clinical adult/child psychological services in the USA; Chief Educator and Clinician at the Transatlantic Enrichment and Refresher Institute, an Online Lifelong Center for Personal, Professional and Career Development. A former Interim Associate Dean/Assistant Professor at the Broward College, Florida. The Founder of the Dr. John Egbeazien Oshodi Foundation, Center for Psychological Health and Behavioral Change in African settings. In 2011, he introduced the State-of-the-Art Forensic Psychology into Nigeria through N.U.C and the Nasarawa State University where he served in the Department of Psychology as an Associate Professor. The Development Professor and International Liaison Consultant at the African University of Benin, and a Virtual Faculty at the ISCOM University, Benin of Republic. Founder of the Proposed Transatlantic Egbeazien University (TEU) of Values and Ethics, a digital project of Truth, Ethics, Openness. Author of over 40 academic publications/creations, at least 200 public opinion writeups on African issues, and various books. He specializes in psycho-prescriptive writings regarding African institutional and governance issues. John Egbeazien Oshodi wrote in via [email protected] Christian faithful in Nigeria and the world are celebrating the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ. However, Leah Sharibu, the lone girl who has remained in Boko Haram captivity since February 2018 because of her decision not to renounce her faith and other Christian faithful, spends another Christmas as captives. Leahs story best depicts courage: her resilience to remain steadfast in her faith in the face of terror continues to be an inspiration to many Christians across the world to date. However, Leah Sharibu is still not back home to her family despite the Nigerian government promising to ensure her release. The last time the world heard from her was while begging a few months after her abduction that Boko Haram released a 35-second audio recording. In the previous three years, there have been reports of her conversion to Islam, her alleged marriage to a Boko Haram commander as well as news that she has become a mother. Open Doors, a non-denominational mission supporting persecuted Christians globally, estimates that more than 340 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith globally. Nigeria ranks 9th on the 2021 World Watch List, an annual ranking of the 50 countries where Christians face the most extreme persecution. Leahs story is not an isolated experience: many people have had their freedom taken away in the same manner. Many cases go unreported. Four years before her abduction, 276 female students were abducted from the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno state. More than 90 percent of these girls were Christians. While some managed to escape, others were released following negotiations, but many remain in captivity. The pressing question is, what has the government done to protect vulnerable religious communities in the last year? The Nigerian government must be seen to be doing more to protect the freedom of religion. It should tackle the issue of lopsided appointments into public office, especially for persons who have been denied their rightful and deserving entitlements because of their religion. Attention to the plight of Leah and other persons in captivity is waning. The Federal government and security agencies must uphold the freedom of religion and conscience, a fundamental human right enshrined in Section 38 (1) of the 1999 constitution. Another issue is the pervading insecurity in the country that has seen a string of school abductions in the last few months. More should be done to ensure the safety of schools, especially those in the north. Security agencies must make sure that all hands are on deck to ensure the security of lives and property. The consequences and implications of Leah Sharibus case, among several others, is the vulnerability of girl-child education. What this has further compounded is the fact that the northern part of Nigeria has been lagging in terms of school enrollment most especially, for the girl-child. Leahs continued captivity is a sad reminder of how simply trying to get educated can turn into a tragedy. Her story represents the worldwide struggle both for freedom of religion and belief. It also raises a myriad of issues. One is the discourse on religious freedom. The government has made many promises regarding Leahs continued captivity. Now is the time for action. They must take responsibility for freeing Leah, the remaining Chibok girls, and others in captivity. The government must ensure the security of lives and the safety of schools across the country. Temitope Bademosi is a writing fellow at African Liberty Accra, Ghana U.S. Ambassador Stephanie Sullivan joined Ghana Minister of Health Hon. Kwaku Agyeman Manu at Accras Kotoka International Airport this evening to share 1.7 million newly arrived doses of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine with Ghana on behalf of the American people. Since September, the United States has delivered more than seven million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Ghana in coordination with COVAX and UNICEF. The holidays are about sharing what we have with friends and family. We are pleased to share these safe and effective vaccines today. They are the best protection against serious illness from COVID-19. Vaccines are here in Ghana and readily available, for free. Now is the time to get your jab, said Ambassador Sullivan. Since September, the United States has shared 7,040,470 COVID-19 vaccine doses with the Ghanaian people. President Biden has committed to donating 1.2 billion doses worldwide the U.S. Government has already shared well over 350 million doses, including nearly 100 million to 43 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Earlier this week, the United States announced $580 million in additional funding to support the work of multilateral partners to help end the pandemic, strengthen public health systems, and provide urgent relief. The United States will contribute $280 million to the World Health Organization (WHO); $170 million to the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF); $75 million to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO); $20 million to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); $20 million for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA); $10 million to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); and $5 million for UN Women.. Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in his 2021 Christmas message to the nation has urged Ghanaians to use the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ to deepen the cohesion that exists among them to facilitate the growth of the country. In a statement on his social media handles, Dr Bawumia said "Hajia Samira and I wish all Christians a Merry Christmas." Vice President implored Ghanaians to use the period to reflect and for the renewal of mindsets, to ensure collaborative, cohesive national development. "May the commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ bring to us a regenerative mindset and deepen the bond of togetherness in developing Ghana our motherland," he added in his message. Dr Bawumia recalled the complications that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused and pleaded with celebrants, individuals and families to adhere to the safety precautionary measures as they make merry and help the socially disadvantaged. "Let's continue to adhere to the COVID-19 safety protocols as we put smiles on the faces of humanity," Vice President Bawumia ended. Turkey is finding itself trapped between Russia and Ukraine. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has, until now, maintained good relations with his Ukrainian and Russian counterparts. But now, analysts warn that escalating tensions between Moscow and Kyiv could mark the end of Erdogan's diplomatic balancing act. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has cultivated close ties with both his Ukrainian and Russian counterparts. But as Ukrainian and Russian armor continues to build upon their shared border and with it the looming threat of confrontation, Turkey is caught in the middle, warns Mustafa Aydin, professor of international relations at Istanbul'sIstanbul's Kadir Has University. "Turkey has developed a close relationship with Russia in different localities and neighborhoods of Turkey. But Ukraine has always been, since its independence, one of Turkey's closer, let's say, friends and allies, and in recent years that has branched out into the security aspect. (So) if there's a conflict there, Turkey would be very hard positioned not to take sides," said Aydin. Turkey's precarious position Turkey's precarious position is seeing Ankara turning to historic diplomatic tactics. "The tense situation between Ukraine and Russia forcing Turkey to take sides," said Huseyin Bagci, head of the Ankara-based Foreign Policy Institute. "In this case, Turkey uses classic of nineteenth-century politics to try to satisfy both sides expectation with its statements," added Bagci. Turkey, touting its neighbors' good relations, is offering to mediate between Kyiv and Moscow, a move welcomed by Kyiv. But Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova dismissed the offer. Turkey and NATO But, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov struck a more diplomatic tone saying the issue would be discussed between the two presidents. Zaur Gasimov of Bonn University says Moscow is wary of damaging its highly prized close ties with Ankara, given Turkey Nato membership. "For Russia, it's a priority to deepen cleavages within the NATO community," said Gasimov. "Turkey is very important for Russia, and deepening its contact with Ankara, Russia deepens cleavages within NATO. And its ability to counterbalance the US America presence and NATO in the region." But Moscow's patience with Ankara could be wearing thin. Turkey's decision in April to let a US warship use Istanbul's Bosphorus waterway to participate in a NATO-Ukrainian naval exercise drew swift condemnation from Russian President Vladimir Putin. In addition, Turkey's continued sale of military drones to Ukraine, which Kyiv used recently against Russian-backed separatist forces, drew further criticism from Moscow. "Russia would like to see the breakup of Turkey from NATO in this topic (Ukraine) in this conflict," said Arda Mevlutoglu, an independent defense analyst. "Therefore, the support, the existence of Turkish support to Ukraine itself would be a key concern for Russian decision-makers." Turkey is heavily dependent on Russian energy and cooperation in hotspots, including Syria. Ankara is thus aware that Moscow could extract a heavy price if Ankara sides with its NATO partners in a conflict over Ukraine. Thousands of Sudanese protesters rallied Saturday two months after a military coup, demanding soldiers "go back to the barracks" and calling for a transition to civilian rule. Waving flags, beating drums, dancing and chanting, crowds marched on the streets of Khartoum despite a heavy deployment of security forces -- who later fired tear gas to break them up. Officers had earlier blocked bridges connecting the capital to suburbs, cut phone lines and restricted the internet ahead of the planned protests. At least 48 people have died in crackdowns during weeks of demonstrations, according to the independent Doctors' Committee, and Khartoum's state governor has warned that security forces "will deal with those who break the law and create chaos". Demonstrators converged on the presidential palace in Khartoum, the headquarters of the military government in control since General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan seized power on October 25. Map of the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. By ClAa PACULIER (AFP) Burhan held civilian leader Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok effectively under house arrest for weeks, but after international pressure reinstated him on November 21 under a deal promising elections for July 2023. The move alienated many of Hamdok's pro-democracy supporters, who dismissed it as providing a cloak of legitimacy for Burhan's coup. Protesters online had encouraged supporters with slogans, including demanding "no negotiations" with the army. As well as rallies in Khartoum and its suburbs, protesters also marched on the streets of Wad Madani, a city around 150 kilometres (more than 90 miles) to the south, witnesses said. Others reported demonstrations at Atbara in the north and Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast. Internet cut at dawn Protesters march demanding civilian rule in Sudan's capital Khartoum on December 25, 2021. By - (AFP) Security forces with cranes used shipping containers to block the bridges across the Nile River connecting Khartoum to the cities of Omdurman and North Khartoum, and web monitoring group NetBlocks reported mobile internet services cut at sunrise on Saturday. Activists reported the arrest of several colleagues beginning on Friday night, and Volker Perthes, the United Nations special envoy to Sudan, urged the authorities to "protect" the protests, not to stop them. "Freedom of expression is a human right," Perthes said on Saturday, adding that it includes "full access" to the internet. "No one should be arrested for his or her intention to protest peacefully." The Doctors' Committee, which is part of the pro-democracy movement, called on the world "to monitor what happens in Sudan on the issue of the revolutionary movement for freedom and democracy". Protesters chant slogans in the Sahafa neighbourhood of Khartoum on December 25, 2021. By - (AFP) Khartoum's governor warned that "approaching or attacking buildings of strategic sovereignty is punishable by law". At rallies last Sunday, held on the third anniversary of mass demonstrations that led to the ouster of veteran strongman Omar al-Bashir, crowds began a "sit-in" protest outside the presidential palace. Rape used as 'weapon' Sudan's top general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan greets soldiers on December 8, 2021. By Ebrahim HAMID (AFP) Within hours, security forces dispersed the thousands of protesters with truncheons and tear gas. Activists have condemned sexual attacks during those protests, in which the UN said at least 13 women and girls were raped. The European Union and the United States issued a joint statement Thursday condemning the use of sexual violence "as a weapon to drive women away from demonstrations and silence their voices". Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries, has a long history of military coups, enjoying only rare interludes of democratic rule since independence in 1956. More than 14 million people, roughly a third of Sudan's population, will need humanitarian aid next year -- the highest level for a decade, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Activists say more demonstrations are planned for December 30. The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has announced a review of the Ghanas COVID-19 isolation procedures for international arrivals at the Kotoka International Airport. The review includes strict monitoring of persons deemed eligible and cleared to isolate at their homes after testing positive at the airport. In a statement on Friday, the Ghana Health Service said the review comes to add to the previous protocols that have existed since September 2020. Ghana introduced a policy on COVID-19 testing and management for international arrivals at the Kotoka International Airport in September 2020. Periodic reviews of these guidelines are undertaken as part of policy implementation measures. The Ghana Health Service is introducing additional measures on COVID-19 protocols for persons who test positive for COVID-19 at the Kotoka International Airport, it said in a statement. Officials at the Ghana Health Service said the review has become necessary following a trend of positive cases of COVID-19 being among vaccinated and asymptomatic persons. The measures are; introduction of of home isolation for eligible persons persons who following assessment by the port health unit of the Ghana Health Service are found to be eligible will be allowed to undergo isolation in their homes. They will however be subject to strict monitoring to ensure compliance to the protocols. All such passengers will be briefed on the self-isolation protocols Also, persons who are eligible for home isolation will continue to be isolated in the designated National Isolation Centre for designated hotels, the statement added. Following the confirmation of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in Ghanas population and amidst the Christmas festivities, the government of Ghana has introduced strict measures to control the spread of the virus. Earlier this month, it said all persons flying in and out of the country are to be fully vaccinated and to strictly follow stipulated guidelines for both self-preservation and the protection of the larger society. It also warned that Airlines which bring in passengers to the Kotoka International Airport who are not fully vaccinated shall be surcharged U$3,500 per passenger; and Airlines which board passengers without PCR test results, or transport and disembark passengers with Positive PCR test results into Accra will also be fined US$3,500 per passenger. citinewsroom Scientists in India say the country must step up plans to fight the Omicron variant that is already swamping Europe and the United States, despite high vaccination rates and exposure to the Delta variant. At the height of India's second Covid wave in April and early May, the daily number of new cases often exceeded 400,000 with a highest single-day death toll of 4,529 fatalities. Hospitals grappled with an acute shortage of lifesaving oxygen and medicine. Patients were denied beds and many died outside of care facilities because of lack of treatment. Until a week ago, India was registering just 30 to 40 fresh Omicron cases a day - but the numbers are rising. With a third wave Omicron wave looking imminent among India's large population, there are fears the country will be unable to cope. Lockdowns on cards The Health Ministry has issued recommendations for state governments to implement new night-time lockdowns, ban large gatherings, and watch out for infection clusters. The western state of Maharashtra recorded the highest number of the new variant cases, at 88, followed by Delhi with 67. Given the high seropositivity (having antibodies) of Indians, many of the infected patients so far remain asymptomatic or have displayed mild symptoms. A slew of studies by Indian scientists shows that amid rising cases of Omicron, the third wave may hit its peak in February next year. The report forecasts India's third wave of Covid-19 to start around mid-December 2021 and the cases to peak in the beginning of February 2022," Subhra Sankar Dhar, an associate professor of the, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, wrote in a recent paper. The daily caseload is expected to rise as Omicron begins to displace Delta as the dominant variant, said the forecast. Deadly second wave While virologists believe there will undoubtedly be an expansion of symptomatic infections in India over the coming weeks and months, they also point out that the severity of the wave may not be as intense and crippling as was witnessed mid-2021. One redeeming factor is that, compared to the second wave, any third wave will hit a population that is expected to have substantial hybrid immunity, from infections during the Delta wave and vaccinations, expert Gautam Menon told RFI. Sixty percent of the eligible 944 million adult population in India is fully vaccinated, but there is still a larger pool of unvaccinated people. In addition, the six-month period has lapsed, which means that many of those who got their first dose at the start of the vaccination programme are vulnerable to coronavirus infection. India has not considered authorizing booster doses yet. Stocking up State governments are working at a war footing by procuring buffer stocks of medicine and oxygen to mitigate any crisis and 48,000 ventilators have been distributed to states and more genome sequencing labs set up. The ability to set up large quarantine and treatment facilities at least in the larger cities has been demonstrated. Also, oxygen availability, at least in urban India, is a largely solved problem. Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting in New Delhi on the country's Covid-19 preparedness attended by top officials of the health department and of the departments of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and urban development Modi asked officials present to ensure that health systems were in place until the level of districts to meet any challenges the spread of the omicron variant may pose, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the capital was making preparations to handle a potential outbreak of the omicron variant leading to 100,000 new cases a day. The Right Reverend Dr Hilliard K.Dela Dogbe, the Presiding Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, has admonished Ghanaians to eschew blind partisanship, self-centredness and all divisive tendencies during the festive season. Rev Dogbe urged all to strive for open and honest engagement, tolerance, social cohesion, appreciation of and respect for diversity, excellence and a growing love for the nation. The Clergyman said this in his Christmas message copied to the Ghana News Agency on the theme: "The Freedom Church: Serving our Flock." "As we prepare to cross over to the new year 2022, it is my prayer that each of us will pay heed to this call and actively engage in building bridges and fostering an environment of peaceful coexistence even as we pursue excellence at all times," he said. Rev Dogbe said the unfortunate development, which was witnessed in Parliament recently was a wakeup call to all, particularly those in positions of leadership across the nation to engage more. He noted that notwithstanding the huge economic challenges confronting the country and the wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ghana remained an oasis of peace and prosperity in the turbulent sub-region. "We must do more to preserve this peace and grow the economy. God will not do for us that, which He has equipped and resourced us to accomplish," he said. He urged all to commit to peaceful coexistence and uphold the virtues of hard work, honesty, patriotism, excellence and unity in the year 2022. "On behalf of the leadership and membership of the Church I wish His Excellency Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo and the good people of Ghana a merry Christmas and a very prosperous new year," Rev Dogbe said. GNA Ghanaians especially, leaders have been advised to rely solely on Jesus Christ for the economic solutions of the country. Pastor Joseph Daadune, the Area Pastor of the Deeper Life church in Tumu gave the advice on the eve of Christmas during a church service. He said Christmas marks the birth of Jesus, which brought salvation as he came to save mankind from sins saying, "Desist from the evil things that we do and receive Jesus Christ as our saviour". He expressed hope that the new year will bring new things to all Ghanai ans as they embarked on the global crusade on the 24th night where the headquarters shared the word of God with all. He said Ghana and parts of the world was currently experiencing economic hardship and stressed the importance of prayer and relying on God for improvement in the economic situation. Pastor Kwabena David Dorsu, the Area pastor of the Pentecost church said the burden of sin brought on people could be solved by living righteous lives. "If Ghana is looking for somebody to take it out of its economic problems, then it's only Jesus Christ who is a saviour of the world and we must rely on Him", he said. GNA The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) and the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) have liberated three young men kept in the Sekondi prisons for petty offenses. Ghana's prisons are overcrowded by 52 percent against the estimated capacity, according to data from the Ghana Prison Service. Meanwhile, a significant number of these prisoners were petty offenders who were mostly the poor and marginalized in society. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the problem because prisons are usually places with a high concentration of people deprived of their liberty in confined spaces. The prisoners cannot do social distancing and have restricted access to hygiene and healthcare, posing a serious risk to the prisoners and the prison officers themselves. The state also has to spend scarce resources/money to take care of the inmates in the prisons daily. Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) Africa office, with the support of OSIWA, as part of its project called 'Increasing Advocacy for the Decriminalization of Petty Offences Through COVID-19 Response Interventions', is paying the court-imposed fines of some petty offenders in Ghana's prisons for their release. Ms Eva Ankrah, the Executive Director of Hurds Foundation told the Ghana News Agency that it was to help decongest Ghana's already overcrowded prisons, and also part of CHRI's advocacy to decriminalise petty offenses in Ghana. She said the two organisations have paid for the fines of the three petty offenders as well as facilitated their sojourn to their respective communities. She admonished them to start a new life leaving the past behind as they reunited with their families. ASP Eines Akligoh, in charge of inmates' welfare, was full of gratitude to the organizations for the gesture. He said, "these are productive young men who cannot waste their potentials here" GNA Tens of thousands of Sudanese protesters rallied Saturday two months after a military coup, demanding that soldiers "go back to the barracks" and calling for a transition to civilian rule. Waving flags, beating drums, dancing and chanting, crowds marched on the streets of Khartoum despite severed communications and a heavy presence of security forces who later fired tear gas to disperse them. An AFP journalist saw injured people being evacuated by demonstrators. The Doctors' Committee, part of the pro-democracy movement, reported that security forces fired tear gas into hospitals, attacking doctors as well as the wounded. A Sudanese youth carries a fellow protester to safety. By - (AFP) Officers had earlier barricaded bridges connecting the capital to suburbs, cut phone lines and restricted internet access ahead of the planned protests. At least 48 people have died in crackdowns during weeks of demonstrations, according to the Doctors' Committee, and Khartoum's state governor has warned that security forces "will deal with those who break the law and create chaos". Demonstrators converged on the presidential palace in Khartoum, the headquarters of the military government in control since General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan seized power on October 25. Protesters chant slogans in the Sahafa neighbourhood of Khartoum. By - (AFP) Burhan held civilian leader Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok effectively under house arrest for weeks. After international pressure including a cut-off of vital aid, Burhan reinstated him on November 21 under a deal promising elections for July 2023. The move alienated many of Hamdok's pro-democracy supporters, who dismissed it as providing a cloak of legitimacy for Burhan's coup. "What happened on October 25 was a coup... and we will not stop demonstrating until we have a civilian government," a masked woman protester near the presidential palace told AFP on Saturday. Map of the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. By ClAa PACULIER (AFP) Othman Mustafa, a 31-year-old male demonstrator, said: "We don't just want the military out, we want to choose our own Sudan that looks like us, that responds to our demands and gives everyone equal rights". As well as rallies in Khartoum and its suburbs, protesters also marched on the streets of Wad Madani, a city around 150 kilometres (more than 90 miles) to the south, witnesses said. Others reported demonstrations at Atbara in the north and Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast. Internet cut at dawn Security forces with cranes used shipping containers to block the bridges across the Nile River connecting Khartoum to the sister cities of Omdurman and North Khartoum, and web monitoring group NetBlocks reported mobile internet services cut at sunrise on Saturday. Sudanese youths carry away a fellow protester from the scene of confrontations with security forces during the demonstrations in Khartoum. By - (AFP) Activists reported the arrest of several colleagues from Friday night onwards, and Volker Perthes, the United Nations special envoy to Sudan, urged the authorities to "protect" the protests, not prevent them. "Freedom of expression is a human right," Perthes said on Saturday, adding that it includes "full access" to the internet. "No one should be arrested for his or her intention to protest peacefully," he said. The Doctors' Committee called on the world "to monitor what happens in Sudan on the issue of the revolutionary movement for freedom and democracy". Khartoum's governor warned that "approaching or attacking buildings of strategic sovereignty is punishable by law". At rallies on December 19 crowds began a "sit-in" protest outside the presidential palace. It recalled the action which ultimately led to the ouster of veteran strongman Omar al-Bashir three years earlier after mass demonstrations. Rape used as 'weapon' But this time, within hours, security forces dispersed the thousands of protesters with truncheons and tear gas. Security forces in Port Sudan take away a protester they detained in the eastern city on December 25, 2021. By - (AFP) Activists have condemned sexual attacks during the December 19 protests, in which the UN said at least 13 women and girls were raped. Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries, has a long history of military coups, enjoying only rare interludes of democratic rule since independence in 1956. More than 14 million people, roughly a third of Sudan's population, will need humanitarian aid next year -- the highest level for a decade, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Activists say more demonstrations are planned for December 30. December 25, 2021 Experts Warn ... bigger "Moscow likes to commit aggression when the world is not paying attention. It invaded Afghanistan during the Christmas season in 1979 and attacked Georgia during August vacation season," ambassador John Herbst, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine from 2003 to 2006, told Newsweek. Check the date ... and maybe read John Kiriakou: Those Nasty Russians Posted by b on December 25, 2021 at 10:21 UTC | Permalink Comments Every night before bed, Pat and John Sullivan list at least three things for which they are grateful that day. Their 40 years together are each better than the last. The joy they get from art and music. Their ability to keep loving and supporting each other through all the challenges they face. "John started the practice, but he doesn't remember doing it," said Sullivan, whose husband was diagnosed two years ago with Lewy body dementia, a common type of dementia that can interfere with thinking, balance, behavior and mood. Practicing gratitude is something John can still do. There are many things he can't: hold a job; walk down steps without assistance; pay the bills; launch a Zoom call; or remember the name of the disease that's slowly robbing him of independence. Sullivan, who is 79, does these things for him while juggling work, running their household and managing her own chronic illness Type 2 diabetes. "The hardest thing is not having a break," she said. "And looking at him and knowing he's not going to come out of this alive." Sullivan is one of more than 16 million people in the U.S. who provide care for loved ones with dementia. The vast majority of people with dementia about 80% receive care at home, often from family members or friends whose work is unpaid, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Two-thirds of these caregivers are women; 1 in 3 are 65 or older. As the population ages, the need will continue to grow. But caring for loved ones can take a toll, especially if the caregiver also has health issues. About 40% of caregivers have two or more chronic illnesses, and around 35% age 65 and older have a disability, according to the CDC. Providing care to others makes it harder for them to take good care of themselves. It also places them at higher risk for a range of mental disorders and other health issues, including anxiety, depression and cognitive decline. Even so, the Sullivans' gratitude list grows nightly. Sullivan believes that practice along with mindfulness and other types of self-care are crucial. "When I feel burdened, which happens at least twice a day," she said, "I stop and say, 'What am I not facing, and how am I not caring for myself?' The truth is, this is hard. It's very hard." How much stress a caregiver feels is a greater indication of how much the job will affect their health than the amount of caregiving they provide, said David Roth, director of the Center on Aging and Health at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. His research found caregivers who reported a lot of strain didn't live as long as those who better managed the stress. Caregiving involves a range of tasks, such as managing a person's money, medications and personal care, including bathing, feeding and toileting. Roth said he asks people in his studies to describe the help they provide as well as how much strain it causes them. "We get a wide range of responses. For some people, helping with toileting, for example, is very stressful. For others, it is not." Caring for people with dementia can be more stressful than other types of care, experts say. One reason it may be harder on families is that people with dementia often need care longer than people with other age-related conditions. According to the CDC, more than half of dementia caregivers provide care for four years or more. "The main people who are at risk of physical health problems are those who feel overwhelmed by their responsibilities and have been doing it many months or even years, so it has a wear and tear effect on their systems," Roth said. "They feel like they have little control or choice and can't get additional resources to help them carry the load." Sullivan said she gets help from neighbors, friends and community organizations, but it's no longer enough. Soon, she and her husband will move from their apartment in Oakland, California, to her childhood home in Shenandoah, Virginia, where they will live with her sister. Having support from extended family and a larger, more suitable living environment where everything is on one floor "will be huge," she said. Families should start having conversations early on about what long-term care will look like for their loved ones, including who will provide that care and who will provide support to the primary caregiver, said Christina Irving, client services director for the Family Caregiver Alliance in San Francisco. "The earlier people get help and support the better," she said. "Caregiving can take a toll and caregivers are not always able to step back and see that they need help. Don't wait until the caregiver is burned out or overwhelmed." Irving also advises families put legal documents in place long before they are needed. These may include advance care directives in case the person is unable to make medical decisions on their own or power of attorney in case they are no longer able to pay their own bills or make financial decisions. "Individual circumstances will differ, but make sure there is somebody there to manage your affairs if you are no longer able to manage them for yourself," she said. Roth said one caregiver shouldn't be expected to do it all. Family members, neighbors, churches and other community resources such as adult day care providers can all be tapped for support. "Partly as respite, but also as a second set of ears to contribute a positive voice and contribute new ideas to make the caregiving experience more peaceful and meaningful." Because while the work of providing care to someone can be challenging, the experience doesn't have to be negative, he said. "For older, retired people, sometimes it gives them a sense of purpose, like being a volunteer in their own family," Roth said. For an adult child, it may feel like an opportunity to "give back care and affection to a parent who has cared for you your whole life. It helps people feel like they are contributing in a positive way to the care of someone they love." Sullivan finds the job both stressful and rewarding. "You're still there with each other," she said. "Always. The big difference is whether you go into it consciously and intentionally," which she has. She discusses the situation openly with John, who is aware of his condition, even if he can't remember what it's called or how long he's had it. Together, they find ways for him to contribute as much as possible to his own care. "It's less about providing care it's about being engaged in a very rewarding partnership with this person I love." Another COVID Christmas brings anxiety, but also optimism View Photo Christmas arrived around the world Saturday amid a surge in COVID-19 infections that kept many families apart, overwhelmed hospitals and curbed religious observances as the pandemic was poised to stretch into a third year. Yet, there were homilies of hope, as vaccines and other treatments become more available. Pope Francis used his Christmas address to pray for more vaccines to reach the poorest countries. While wealthy countries have inoculated as much as 90% of their adult populations, 8.9% of Africas people are fully jabbed, making it the worlds least-vaccinated continent. Only a few thousand well-wishers turned out for his noontime address and blessing, but even that was better than last year, when Italys Christmas lockdown forced Francis indoors for the annual Urbi et Orbi (To the city and the world) speech. Grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of goodwill to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects, Francis said from the loggia of St. Peters Basilica. Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care and vaccines in particular are provided to those peoples who need them most. In the United States, many churches canceled in-person services, but for those that did have in-person worship, clerics reported smaller but significant attendance. Our hopes for a normal Christmas have been tempered by omicron this year still filled with uncertainties and threats that overshadow us, the Rev. Ken Boller told his parishioners during midnight Mass at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in New York City. Breakthrough used to be a happy word for us, until it was associated with COVID. And in the midst of it all, we celebrate Christmas. The Rev. Alex Karloutsos, of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church of the Hamptons in Southampton, New York, said attendance at the Christmas Eve liturgy was a third less than last years, with the reality of the omicron virus diminishing the crowd, but not the fervor of the faithful present. St. Patricks Church in Hubbard, Ohio, held Mass on Christmas Eve in a nearby high school because of a church fire this year. The Mass drew about 550 people, said Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar, who presided. In Britain, Queen Elizabeth II noted another year of pain particularly personal after losing her husband, Prince Philip, in April and urged people to celebrate with friends and family. Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones, the queen said in the prerecorded message broadcast when many British families were enjoying their traditional Christmas dinner. This year, especially, I understand why. Thousands of people across Britain got a vaccine booster shot for Christmas as new cases hit another daily record of 122,186. The Good Health Pharmacy in north London was one of dozens of sites that stayed open Saturday to administer jingle jabs amid a government push to offer booster shots to all adults by the end of the year. The head of intensive care at a hospital in Marseille, France, said most COVID-19 patients over Christmas were unvaccinated, while his staff are exhausted or cant work because they are infected. Were sick of this, said Dr. Julien Carvelli, the ICU chief at La Timone Hospital, as his team spent another Christmas Eve tending to COVID-19 patients on breathing machines. Were afraid we wont have enough space. On the other side of the globe, hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines, Asias largest Roman Catholic nation, spent Christmas without homes, electricity, or adequate food and water after a powerful typhoon left at least 375 people dead last week and devastated mostly central island provinces. Gov. Arthur Yap of hard-hit Bohol province, where more than 100 people died in the typhoon and about 150,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, appealed for help. He was happy many Filipinos could celebrate Christmas more safely after COVID-19 cases dropped, but he pleaded: Please dont forget us. At least one American Christmas tradition was revived after the pandemic drove it online last year: the annual reenactment of George Washingtons daring crossing of the Delaware River in 1776. Reenactors in three boats completed the crossing in about an hour Saturday. Crowds were in the hundreds, down from the usual thousands. COVID-19 testing continued unimpeded in some places, while other sites closed for the day. Lines that in previous days wrapped around the block at a small testing center in Chicagos Lincoln Square neighborhood shrank considerably Saturday, when the only customers inside were Shayna Prihoda and Michael Boundy, whose negative tests freed them to visit Boundys parents in Michigan. We would have stayed home and quarantined, Boundy said. Swelling numbers of cases in Florida made tests almost as popular as Christmas ham. Florida hit a new case record for the second day in a row. Hours before a testing site opened at Tropical Park in Miami, dozens of cars lined up. To alleviate demand, county workers had distributed 12,500 at-home test kits Friday at libraries. Most of New York Citys 120 testing sites were closed Saturday, a day after police were summoned to a Brooklyn neighborhood to quell an angry crowd that had been expecting to receive free at-home testing kits, only to have the supply run out. Chairs went empty at some dinner tables after airlines around the world canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and reduced staffing. Airlines scrapped nearly 6,000 flights globally that had been scheduled to take off Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with nearly a third involving U.S. flights, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website. At a reception center for asylum-seekers in Cyprus, Patricia Etoh, a Catholic from Cameroon, said she did not have any special plans because it just did not feel like Christmas without her 6-year-old child, whom she had to leave behind. But she added: Were grateful, were alive, and when were alive, theres hope. ___ Winfield reported from Rome, Tarm from Chicago and Smith from Pittsburgh. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Bobby Caina Calvan and Larry Neumeister in New York, Michael Schneider in Miami, Ron Todt in Philadelphia, Danica Kirka in London, Jim Gomez in Manila and Daniel Cole in Marseille, France. By NICOLE WINFIELD, MICHAEL TARM and PETER SMITH Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) The president of Ukraine held a video call with 20 U.S. senators and members of Congress on Friday amid tensions with Russia, which recently stoked fears of a possible invasion by massing troops near Ukraine's border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with the senators and congressional representatives about the Russian troop buildup and the situation in his country's war-torn east, according to Zelenskyy's office. Russia-backed rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine since 2014. A statement from the president's office described the importance of getting the United States involved in the process of a peaceful settlement to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, an area known as Donbas. Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive actions, the statement quoted Zelenskyy as saying. My goal is to stop the bloodshed in the east of Ukraine. It's impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas." Zelenskyy and the lawmakers also talked about applying further sanctions pressure on Russia, Washington's support of Kyiv's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and Ukraine's prospects for NATO membership. Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter tug-of-war since Moscow annexed the Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and threw its support behind the separatist insurgency that has since left more than 14,000 people dead. A 2015 peace deal, brokered by France and Germany, ended large-scale hostilities in Donbas, but efforts to reach a political settlement of the conflict have failed so far. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine reignited over the troop deployment near Ukraine's border. Officials in Ukraine and the West feared it might indicate plans for an invasion, but the Kremlin has denied that intent. Instead, Moscow has accused Kyiv of its own troop buildup in the east, saying Ukrainian military could be planning to reclaim the rebel-held areas by force. Russian President Vladimir Putin also has pressed the United States for guarantees that would preclude NATO from expanding east to Ukraine. The Western alliance and Ukraine have bristled at the demand. During his call with the American lawmakers and senators, Zelenskyy said not a single third country can have a say in Ukraine's integration into NATO. No agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine, he said. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) A Yemeni rebel attack on Saudi Arabia's southern border town of Jizan killed two people and wounded seven more late Friday, Saudi state-run media reported. Yemen's Houthi rebels launched a projectile that killed a Saudi citizen and Yemeni resident in the southwestern Saudi province of Jizan, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. Six of the wounded are Saudis and one is a Bangladeshi national, Saudi media said. Shrapnel also smashed into nearby cars and shops. The fatal cross-border attack marks an escalation in Yemen's long-running civil war. Saudi-led military coalition airstrikes struck Sanaa earlier on Friday, hitting a military camp near the city center, Saudi media reported. Houthi media said the strikes had hit a populated neighborhood, damaging homes. On Saturday, Yemeni Brig. Gen. Yehia Sarie, a Houthi spokesman, said the rebels fired three ballistic missiles on Jizan, targeting what he described as vital and sensitive sites there. He provided no further details. Yemen's war erupted in 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthis seized Sanaa and much of the country's north. Months later, the U.S.-backed Saudi-led coalition intervened to oust the Houthis and restore the internationally recognized government. The war has settled into a stalemate and spawned the world's worst humanitarian disaster. Throughout the conflict, the Houthis have increasingly staged drone attacks and fired missiles across the border at airports, oil facilities and military installations within the kingdom. Those assaults have rarely caused substantial damage, but over the years have wounded dozens and rattled global oil markets. Within Yemen, the Saudi-led bombing campaign has drawn international criticism for hitting non-military targets such as hospitals and wedding parties in the Arab worlds most impoverished nation. Yemen's civil war has killed some 130,000 people, including thousands of civilians. Earlier this week the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank, reported that attacks by the Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia have more than doubled this year from last year. Based on an analysis of thousands of Houthi attacks between 2016 and 2021, it said Houthi attacks on the kingdom averaged 78 a month this year, compared to 38 a month last year. The cross-border assaults provide a broader view of the regional proxy war between Tehran and Riyadh. Although the regional powerhouses recently have engaged in Bagdad-brokered talks to cool down tensions, a political settlement in Yemen remains elusive. J.D. Crowe, a pioneering banjo player with his progressive bluegrass group the New South, died Friday morning, according to a post on the musicians Facebook page. He was 84. This morning at around 3 a.m. our dad, JD Crowe, went home, Crowes family wrote. Prayers needed for all during this difficult time. A seminal figure in the bluegrass world, Crowe was a disciple of Earl Scruggs and played banjo in Scruggs three-fingered style. Yet he was also an experimentalist and pushed the genre outside of its traditional, at times constrictive, boundaries. In 1975, he released one of bluegrasss most important albums in J.D. Crowe and the New South, simply known among fans as 0044, its catalog number on Rounder Records. Led by the fast-picking Crowe, New South was an acoustic powerhouse, a band that became airtight by playing five nights a week at the Sheraton Inn in Lexington. Ricky Skaggs and Jerry Douglas were both members, as was Tony Rice, the wildly influential flatpicking guitarist who died last Christmas a year and a day before Crowes death. We had gotten to the point that we knew what each other was thinking by just looking at each other, and thats a great feeling to have, Crowe told Rolling Stone in 2020. Tony was very good at paying attention because whatever he was playing he wanted it right, as good as he could get it. I loved that because theres so many pickers that dont feel that way. Born James Dee Crowe in Lexington in 1937, the musician got his start working with a giant of bluegrass, the guitarist Jimmy Martin, in the early Fifties. Crowe would play gigs with Martin in Ohio and, later, Detroit while shuttling back and forth to Kentucky to finish school. In 1958, Martin and Crowe enlisted guitarist Paul Williams, and the trio developed a following by playing radio shows like the Louisiana Hayride and the Wheeling Jamboree. Crowe left Martin in 1961 and returned home to Lexington, where he ran across the musicians Doyle Lawson and Bobby Slone. Together they formed the group the Kentucky Mountain Boys, which evolved into the New South in the Seventies. While Skaggs, Slone, Rice, and Douglas all appear on 1975s 0044 with Crowe, the New South had an ever-changing lineup, including future country star Keith Whitley, who played guitar and sang on the bands albums My Home Aint in the Hall of Fame and Somewhere Between. Along with expanding the scope of bluegrass with the New South, Crowe also worked to preserve the genres traditions and legacy. In 1981, he recruited players like Tony Rice and Doyle Lawson to release The Bluegrass Album, a collection of classics by Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt and others. Crowe toured and cut albums throughout the Nineties and into the next century. In 2006, he released the LP Leftys Old Guitar with yet another iteration of the New South, earning him his second Grammy nomination. (He was previously nominated, and won, in 1983 for Best Country Instrumental Performance.) Crowe was inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame in 2003. He retired from touring in 2019, but continued to perform and record. The news of Crowes death resonated throughout the bluegrass community. We lost one of the greatest banjo players ever to pick up the five, banjoist Bela Fleck tweeted. Billy Strings called Crowe an absolute legend and cited his tone, taste and timing. The space in between the notes he played and the way he rolled them out just kept the band driving, running on all cylinders like a V8 engine, the guitarist tweeted. He was just the best bluegrass banjo player out there. San Antonio's restaurant scene cooked up a whole bunch of new options this year, from high-rise hot spots to unique supper club experiences. Some were extensions of beloved brands while others are completely new to the scene. After the year that was 2020, which forced San Antonio to say goodbye to a list of beloved favorites due to the pandemic, seeing grand opening signs and new names coming to town filled a foodie's heart. Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com Naco Mexican Eatery's first brick-and-mortar restaurant is nestled in Los Patios, a wooded oasis off Loop 410 and Nacogdoches Road that makes city life feel miles away. The indoor-outdoor restaurant is an extension of Naco Mexican Eatery, the popular food truck owned by husband-wife duo Francisco Estrada and Lizzeth Martinez. The creekside eatery serves all-day chilaquiles with new sauce options, including almond mole; eggs Benedict topped with brisket and huitlacoche; Mexican-inspired croissants with guava and cheese; and tacos, of course. Courtesy, The Box Street Social Downtown's all-day brunch spot in Hemisfair opened just before the end of 2021. First look photos shared by the restaurant show decked-out French toast, burgers, and cocktails among the menu items. Box St. All Day also offers an espresso bar. The interior is a pop of pastels and natural touches, such as plants and wicker pendant lighting. Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com Westover Hills is joining Camille and Adrian De Los Reyes' Filipino empire, which includes a Leon Valley restaurant, a Stone Oak market, and a food truck. Sari-Sari Supper Club is in a soft opening phase. The restaurant will eventually host monthly dinner series and offer reservations for a chef's table experience to give guests a behind-the-scenes look inside the kitchen. Courtesy, May Carlson, Emily and Houston Carpenter Up Scale, the posh Southtown restaurant, was one of the buzziest openings of the year. Houston and Emily Carpenter, who also own Little Em's Oyster Bar, previously described their new restaurant as Little Em's "sexy" sister. The menu expands on Little Em's seafood offerings with a sushi bar serving rolls, nigiri, and sashimi, as well as scallops, branzino, and halibut. Steaks also have a spot on the menu. Up Scale opened in October and has already nabbed global nods for its elegant design. Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com The new deli opened on November 14 with Jason Fiske and Charlie Nuttall at the helm. All sandwiches are made to order. Daniel Flores The all-you-can-eat sushi spot quietly opened earlier this year in Thousand Oaks. The restaurant serves single plate sushi and hibachi menu items, but it's the all-you-can-eat offering that's made it a social media star. Courtesy, Chef Jean Tardif Chef Jean Tardif opened his first San Antonio venture, a brasserie "with a Texas twist," in the fall. Lunch and dinner is offered. Lunch fare consists of items such as croque monsieur, croque madame, warm salads with foie gras, onion soup, and gourmet Kurobuta pork chops. Dinner has a heavy seafood focus with langoustines and an escargot twist. Rather than using snails, chef will serve mussels cooked in a similar sauce. Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com Leonard "Lem" Dixon and Michael Hicks opened the Southtown options for fresh salads, wraps, and smoothies in July. Roots offers nine signature salads. There's also an option to build your own salads, wraps, or bowls. Protein choices include salmon, shrimp, skirt steak, ham, and turkey. The menu also offers smoothies with an option to add protein for a post-workout refuel and acai bowls. Courtesy, Regina Gonzalez Tu Asador brought Monterrey's "true carne asada" atmosphere to San Antonio's food scene when it opened in June. The restaurant serves steaks and favorites like enchiladas regias, which are lightly fried red tortillas filled with queso fresco. Courtesy, Little Rhein Prost Haus The storied River Walk spot that once housed Little Rhein Steak House opened as an Oktoberfest-themed restaurant called Little Rhein Prost Haus in March. The menu is Bavarian-focused and is all about "big biers, brats and pretzels," according to the website. The downtown restaurant boasts River Walk views from its patio. 12. Bar Loretta - 320 Beauregard Street Shanna Hickman The restaurant and bar filled the former Madhatters space this year. It serves Texas-inspired cuisine with specialty cocktails, including a menu of drinks inspired by Buc-ee's. Mike Sutter /Staff Sichuan House owner Kristina Zhao expanded her local footprint with the opening of Chinese restaurant Dashi Sichuan Kitchen & Bar on Thousand Oaks Drive at Jones Maltsberger Road this summer. Thompson San Antonio The two places to eat and drink opened inside the luxurious Thompson Hotel in March. 15. Domingo - 123 North St. Mary's White Lodging The tribute to South Texas cuisine" opened inside the Canopy by Hilton Hotel in April. From Bethlehem and Frankfurt to London and Boston, the surging coronavirus put a damper on Christmas Eve for a second year, forcing churches to cancel or scale back services and disrupting travel plans and family gatherings. Drummers and bagpipers marched through Bethlehem to smaller than usual crowds after new Israeli travel restrictions meant to slow the highly contagious omicron variant kept international tourists away from the town where Jesus is said to have been born. In Germany, a line wound halfway around Colognes massive cathedral, not for midnight Mass but for vaccinations. The offer of shots was an expression of care for ones neighbor that was consistent with the message of Christmas, cathedral provost Guido Assmann told the DPA news agency. Around the world, people weary from nearly two years of lockdowns and other restrictions searched for ways to safely enjoy holiday rituals. We can't let the virus take our lives from us when we're healthy, said Rosalia Lopes, a retired Portuguese government worker who was doing some last-minute shopping in the coastal town of Cascais. She said she and her family were exhausted by the pandemic and determined to go ahead with their celebrations with the help of vaccines and booster shots, rapid home tests and mask-wearing in public. She planned a traditional Portuguese Christmas Eve dinner of baked cod. In New York City, where omicron has spread widely, people waited in long lines to get tested, many doing so as a precaution before traveling to reunite with family. Brianna Sultan and her daughter Ava, 8, spent Friday in one of those long lines waiting for a test after they got word of another infection at school. Its a terrible way to be spending Christmas Eve, Sultan said after more than two hours in line and as the chill deepened into the evening in New York Citys Harlem neighborhood. Its terrible that we cant see our families because this COVID strain is coming back up again. Holiday travel was dealt a blow when major airlines canceled hundreds of flights amid staffing shortages largely tied to omicron. Sadia Reins arrived in New York City from Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday to be with with her 75-year-old mother. Reins said the two havent spent Christmas together in two years, and despite the risks in traveling during the outbreak, she couldn't bear to be apart from her mother again this year. Were going to cry, she said, adding: We talk on the phone all the time, but its not the same as looking at someone. In Britain, where the coronavirus variant is ripping through the population, some houses of worship hoped to press on. At St. Pauls Old Ford, an Anglican church in East London, priests planned to hold services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. But to protect parishioners, the church called off its Nativity play. You might have to cancel the service, but you cant cancel Christmas, said the Rev. April Keech, an associate priest. You cant stop love. Love still stands. Numerous churches in the U.S. canceled in-person services, including Washington National Cathedral in the nations capital and historic Old South Church in Boston. Others planned outdoor celebrations or a mix of online and in-person worship. In Rome, a maskless Pope Francis celebrated Christmas Eve Mass before an estimated 2,000 people in St. Peters Basilica, where admission was limited and worshippers had to wear masks. While the number of faithful was far more than the 200 allowed in last year, it was a fraction of the 20,000 the basilica can seat. Before the pandemic, St. Peter's was routinely packed for midnight Mass. In Germany, churchgoers faced a thicket of health restrictions and limits on attendance. Some had to show proof of vaccination or testing. Frankfurts cathedral, which can hold 1,200 people, offered only 137 socially distanced spaces, all of which were booked days in advance. Singing was allowed only through masks. People in the Netherlands tried to make the best of the holiday, despite living under one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe. All nonessential shops were closed, including bars and restaurants, and home visits were limited to two people per day, four on Christmas. We are just meeting with some small groups of family for the next few days, Marloes Jansen, who was waiting in line to buy the traditional Dutch kerststol, a Christmas bread with fruits and nuts. A glitch in a computerized appointment system prevented scores of people from scheduling COVID-19 tests and undermined the governments efforts to administer booster shots in a country already lagging far behind its neighbors. In France, some visited loved ones in the hospital. In the Mediterranean city of Marseille, the intensive care unit at La Timone Hospital has been taking in more and more COVID-19 patients in recent days. Amelie Khayat has been paying daily visits to her husband, Ludo, 41, who is recovering from spending 24 days in a coma and on a breathing machine. They touched their heads together as she sat on his bed, and now that he is strong enough to stand, he got up to give her a farewell hug, as a medical worker put final decorations on the ICU Christmas tree. Parisians lined up at chocolate shops, farmers markets and testing centers. France has posted record numbers of daily COVID-19 infections, and hospitalizations have been rising, but the government has held off on imposing curfews or closings during the holidays. It does affect our enthusiasm to celebrate Christmas. It does makes us a bit sad. But at least we are sure not to contaminate or get contaminated. We will all do the test in our family, said Fabienne Maksimovic, 55, as she waited in line at a pharmacy in Paris to get tested. In Antwerp, Belgium, Christmas trees hung upside down from windows in a protest against the closing of cultural venues. In Bethlehem, the scene was much more festive than it was a year ago, when musicians marched through empty streets. This year, hundreds of people gathered in Manger Square as bagpipe-and-drum units streamed through. Before the pandemic, Bethlehem would host thousands of Christian pilgrims from around the world. The lack of visitors has hit the city's hotels, restaurants and gift shops especially hard. ___ Associated Press journalists Nicole Winfield in Rome; Danica Kirka in London; Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal; Aritz Parra in Madrid; Daniel Cole in Marseille, France; Molly Quell in the Netherlands; and David Crary in New York contributed to this report. Jasmine Hamilton is determined to walk again, but first, she needs help leaving her house. On March 27, 2020, then-19-year-old Hamilton was walking up Gulf Street to see her father during spare time off from working three jobs and a side business doing hair a passion shed planned to make her future. The next thing Hamilton remembers is waking up in the hospital, unable to move and surrounded by medical personnel. I was just crying and crying, she told The Enterprise earlier this month, recalling the incident from her wheelchair with new puppy TJ by her side. Hamilton had been hit from behind by a hit-and-run driver going more than 20 miles over the speed limit. A passerby who stopped and called an ambulance saved her life, said mother, Erin Turner, who was heartsick after reading the EMS report describing her daughter was found face down and unresponsive. That same passerby answered Hamiltons phone when her her father called to check on his missing daughters whereabouts. He then called Turner, who was with family just hanging out and having a good time, when she learned their daughter was en route to the hospital. Frantic, Turner arrived at Christus St. Elizabeth, where Hamilton was one of two crash victims listed as Jane Does brought to the emergency room simultaneously. They told me to prepare myself, as one woman had died and the other was still alive, she recalled. Turner prayed for both as she entered the room of the still-living victim, where she found her daughter bloodied and in critical condition. For three days, they said I wasnt going to live, Hamilton said. The driver of the car was sentenced just weeks ago by Judge Raquel West to seven years in prison a sentence Turner said is not enough. He ruined her life and changed all our lives. Their sentence isnt seven years its life-long. Hamilton was left paraplegic after the accident. She spent five months in the ICU, her signature long hair shaved off as a brace was affixed to her skull for head stabilization during recovery. Hamilton now suffers from anxiety so severe, she feels like she cant breathe. Erin Turner and sister Shayla Hamilton have been caring for Jasmine at their home in South Park since her release from the hospital, finding creative ways to make up for a lack of equipment, such as a head brace to keep her neck upright and prevent the ventilator trach, which holds the airway open to allow air to move in and out of the lungs, from popping out. In its stead, a hair extension is tied taut to the back of the chair. And the home is structurally ill-suited for Hamiltons needs. It has no ramp and is in need of leveling. Moreover, the family lacks adequate transportation, like a handicap-equipped van, for their weekly medical trips to Houston or simply getting out of the house. She needs to get out instead of being in the house 24 hours, Turner said. For over a year, Hamilton has been trapped inside her body and her home; and with Turner forced to quit her 25-year job at Turner Industries to provide constant care, the financial burden is mounting. Turners insurance bore the brunt of medical bills as the driver was uninsured. Its since run out, with Hamiltons medical bills numbering in the trillions, she said. The electric bill alone is daunting, averaging $700 a month with Hamiltons ventilator running 24-hours a day. The familys story inspired Sheryl Richard-Jackson and members of her non-profit It Takes A Village Beaumont to adopt the family this Christmas, providing necessities like toiletries, home supplies, clothing that can be adapted to fit Hamilton in her wheelchair-bound state and more. Turner initially was skeptical of the gift. Since her daughters homecoming, shed received numerous offers of help, including one from a guy who showed up at the house one night saying he could build a ramp, she recalled. He left promising to start work the next day. Turner never saw him again. After that, I didnt trust nobody, she said. But on Monday, Jackson and Villager Shirley Chachere made good on their vow to help, arriving with two carloads of gifts and $1,125 in donations. We were still picking up donations this morning on the way here, Chachere said. And theres more coming, because people are just running late, Jackson added. I know youve been told a lot of things and people didnt come through, but dont worry, youll be getting that ramp, Jackson said as they gathered inside Turners home, where Hamiltons medical bed was quickly overtaken by gift bags. If I tell you Im gonna do something, its gonna get done. I was on Facebook every day pushing and pushing, sharing Hamiltons wish-list, she told them. It included items any 20-year-old might request at Christmas. Jasmine loves make-up, anything with bling, and having her hair done, Jacksons post read. But there were other items on the list, less likely to elicit joy from a woman her age paper towels, diapers, cleaning supplies. Oh, yay, Puffs! said Turner, as she sorted through one of the bags, bringing out a stack of tissues. Thats the ones you like. Theyre soft, Hamilton said, before Turner opened a small bag from Zales containing a silver infinity bracelet. God is good, said Turner, who admitted she was overwhelmed by the need amid their financial struggles, especially during Christmas and with Hamiltons 21st birthday coming a day after New Years Day. Though some items on Hamiltons wish-list, like a tablet, were unmet, Jackson told Hamilton, Mama got you. Shes gonna find that tablet. A mothers love all I can say is, theres nothing like it. Im just a 24-hour mom, Turner responded. You can never have too many resources, though, Chachere said; before Jackson cautioned, Take your time, dont get overwhelmed. Dont think this is over. Were gonna be here for you. Jackson has already fielded multiple offers to help with the familys biggest needs a home ramp and a van. Meanwhile, Turner is awaiting the okay for a procedure in Dallas to implant a diaphragmatic pacemaker, which will enable Hamiltons ventilator to be removed. The less equipment we have to deal with, the better, Turner explained. We were supposed to have it in November, but needed $50,000 more from (auxiliary) insurance to kick in. It Takes A Village will help with costs incurred while traveling for the procedure, Jackson promised. After the surgery, Hamilton will go straight into Houstons TIRR program, which has found success restoring mobility to patients like Hamilton, who were paralyzed and told theyll never walk again. They help you to rehabilitate different motor skills to get them working again, Turner explained, adding, A lot of people came there in a wheelchair and later walked out the door. Its whats topmost on Hamiltons wish list the ability to walk again, live the dream of owning her own business and one day, get married. Jackson has faith that list will be filled, as well. Not only will you get married, youre going to walk, Jackson told a smiling Hamilton, adding, Baby, were gonna be walking together, because I need a walking partner. Until that happens, Erin Turner remains grateful for her biggest blessing since that traumatic day in March 2020. Im just happy to have my baby here, and as long as shes happy, Im happy, she said. kbrent@beaumontenterprise.com Yves here. This post performs the useful service of trying to explain Manchins position on Build Back Better (which is such an awful name that it suggests Team Dem never had its heart in it). The author also believes a deal can be had. But that may ignore whether House progressives will swallow further concessions to Manchin. By Samuel Workman, Professor of Political Science, West Virginia University. Originally published at The Conversation Joe Manchin isnt averse to taking a shotgun to policy he dislikes. In 2018, the senator starred in a political ad in which he explains how a lawsuit to repeal the Affordable Care Act something his opponent, state attorney general Patrick Morrisey, was at the time trying to do would strip health care from numerous West Virginians. Manchin then takes out a shotgun and unloads on the Morrissey lawsuit. The ad, titled Dead Wrong, simultaneously displays Manchins support for a popular program while signaling a pro-gun stance. It is also instructive for understanding the political challenge that Manchin faces over the Biden administrations Build Back Better bill legislation that Manchin has seemingly torpedoed. As a scholar and native of the state who has long followed West Virginian politics, I know that Manchin is typically deft in balancing support for government programs that will benefit people in the state with the social conservatism that many adhere to. It is what he did in the Dead Wrong ad, and it is what he is trying to do now by delivering tangible benefits on some dimensions, while standing up to the president and Democratic leadership on others. What Say the Lodestar? There are reasons to suppose that West Virginians would be in favor of many elements contained in Build Back Better, Bidens package of legislation that aims to fix problems ranging from child care costs to climate change. The legislation contains not only the child tax credit, which would send monthly payments of up to $300 per child to families across the U.S., but also improvements to the Affordable Care Act, upgraded infrastructure for health care, and better access to housing. Its largest portion is $555 billion dedicated to climate change representing the first major legislative action on climate in the U.S. In a state where poverty is high, rural health care is sparse and climate change threatens to bring frequent, intense flooding, it seems unimaginable that the senator would fail to support the legislation. Yet on Dec. 19, 2021, Manchin announced on Fox News that he would not. That Manchin did this on Fox News speaks to the general public sentiment in West Virginia. It sparked a very public battle of the Joes in which Biden maintained that Manchin dealt in bad faith after months of personal cajoling and negotiations by the president. Manchin, for his part, reportedly offered Biden everything in Build Back Better except for the Child Tax Credit. The fight threatens consequences for man and party. The viability of the razor-thin Democratic majoritys ability to govern headed into the 2022 midterms is at stake. But the conflict also poses a major problem for Manchin himself, with Biden using Manchins opposition to the child tax credit as a political pressure point publicly shaming the West Virginian for failing to support a measure that would deliver support to many families in his own state. Reconciliation Masks Broad Agreement To understand what Manchin opposes, its useful to understand what reconciliation does to a multidimensional bill. Normally, major legislative initiatives would each have their own bill. But each would need to pass the Senate with 60 votes in order to avoid a filibuster that could end up killing the bill. To get past that hurdle, Democrats have piled all of Bidens initiatives into whats called a budget reconciliation bill, which only requires a majority of votes to pass a much lower threshold and one that a united Democratic Party could meet in the Senate. Yet because legislators must cast a single vote for what is a diverse package, disagreement on one dimension can sink the whole reconciliation bill even if there is broad agreement on the other proposals. In this case, Manchin wants to jettison the child tax credit, but made an offer that reportedly includes the improvements to the ACA, health care infrastructure, as well as the climate change provisions remarkable for a senator from a state so dependent on fossil fuels for economic growth and stability. It is likely Manchin will return to the bargaining table over the next few weeks, absent, or in spite of, the public shaming over the child tax credit from the president. The Typical Manchin Pivot West Virginians tend toward conservative views on typical culture war issues like guns, abortions and race. The purported support for Build Back Better in West Virginia is likely overstated among the electorate polling is sparse and generally done by supportive organizations though West Virginians typically are in favor of government programs that benefit them. Winning elections in West Virginia historically entails candidates pledging to bring home benefits to the state. And this is exactly the approach Manchin typically adopts, delivering policy that has majority support, while signaling his fidelity to culture war issues. Manchin has continually referred to his constituents as his lodestar If I cant go back home and explain it, I cant vote for it. Normally, Manchin gets pressure on social issues from the more liberal wing of the Democratic Party. This criticism from the wider party is fuel for his positioning and policy goals within the state. On such issues, the more criticism he receives from the Left, the better. He is deft at pivoting on this pressure to make policy that has general support in the state, such as displayed in the Dead Wrong ad. The public pressure on child tax credits is not the norm and does not offer the same pivot for Manchin. West Virginians value programs like the child tax credit. Furthermore, support in the state for child tax credits means Manchin is left exposed politically in a way that damages his ability to maintain the fragile coalition that he normally relies on. And, despite progressive outcry for a primary challenger, make no mistake about it, no other Democrat could hold that West Virginian seat. Manchins seeming obstinance can be understood in two ways. Hes either a conservative Democrat failing to get behind the presidents legislative agenda, or he simply wants to prioritize programs within that agenda that keeps to a general spending target. Manchins opposition to the child tax credit reflects his concern about how the monthly benefit will affect the budget. Simultaneously, colleagues say he is concerned over how lower-income citizens will spend the money, reportedly worrying about it being spent on drugs. This second concern echoes a common conservative trope. But if a comment like that might hurt a politician in a liberal state, it is understandable in the context of the West Virginia electorates social conservatism. Despite Manchins comments sparking predictions that his position doomed Build Back Better, it may not be as clear cut as that. The senators willingness to accept all the other major provisions in the bill leaves plenty of room for bargaining. If Manchin can find a way to do his customary pivot supporting the Democratic proposals while satisfying his constituents that hes being socially conservative and standing up to the Left he may well get on board and put away the shotgun. (Natural News) A top Harvard University professor has been found guilty of lying about payments received from China. Charles Lieber, a former head of Harvard Universitys department of chemistry and chemical biology, was found guilty of making wrong statements to government authorities, filing bogus tax returns and failing to disclose a Chinese bank account. His sentencing date is yet to be announced. The 62-year-old was accused in 2020 as part of a U.S. campaign to counter economic espionage from China. He was found guilty on all six counts of lying relating to his work at the Wuhan lab. (Related: Harvard nanoscientist tied to Wuhan convicted of numerous crimes related to Chinese influence on U.S. research.) He was first arrested by federal authorities in January 2020 and was charged with making false statements regarding his participation in the Thousand Talents Plan. Chinas Thousand Talents Plan aims to attract foreign research specialists and it has been flagged as a security concern by the U.S. Lieber joined Chinas Wuhan University of Technology as a scientist in 2011 and was given a monthly salary of $50,000 and living expenses of $158,000 according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Remember the Thousand Points of light? Thats what its really about. They use these university professors, they use these highly-skilled people all over the world for their evil. The rest of us, they just keep us in the dark to keep busy doing this or busy doing that, said Melissa Redpill during the Dec. 22 episode of the Freedom Force Battalion show on Brighteon.TV. And were just having fun doing our lives, while they unbeknownst to us are running this terrible game on us. And this man was part of it. And just I want you to be encouraged that he has just been found guilty. Hes working with the enemy. Thousand Talents Plan an arm of New World Order The Freedom Force Battalion host revealed that the Thousand Talents Plan is a Chinese recruitment program or cabal which is basically the arm of the New World Order. So when people tell you nothing is happening, dont believe it. Because this is called holding people to account. Basically, who works with (Dr. Anthony) Fauci. People in positions of power know that this is happening, said Redpill. Under federal law, Lieber was compelled to disclose the financial relationship he had with the Wuhan University of Technology. According to the DOJ, Lieber hid the payments from the Wuhan lab on his tax returns and lied to federal investigators about the extent of the relationship. The jury deliberated for three hours before he was found guilty on all six counts. Following his arrest, Lieber sued Harvard University saying that he was just working for the university. Follow the money and you realize that hes in what you know, you cant blame somebody else alleged the institution was obliged to cover his legal fees. These people know no shame, like the professors arrest was part of the DOJ China initiative, remarked Redpill. The counter espionage program began during the Trump administration that focuses on identifying and prosecuting those engaged in trade, secret theft, hacking, and economic espionage. The Freedom Force Battalion host added: Weve talked before about all the patents that theyve stolen, all these patents, they go through the universities, the universities get the money from the government, which is basically your tax dollars in mind, thats the funnel through which they do their nefarious works, and then how they use our money to do it. Its just so evil, you cant even our minds cant even go there. But thats what they do what theyve done. She added that people are now being held on account and attention to bring to justice people like Fauci and Bill Gates who have brought evil upon the American people. There are those who have actually filed a case, have filed a litigation in the International Criminal Court against Fauci and against Gates and all of these people whove done this evil against us, Redpill said. Watch the full Dec. 22 episode of Freedom Force Battalion with Melissa Redpill the World on Brighteon.TV. You can catch Freedom Force Battalion with Melissa Redpill the World on Brighteon. TV Follow Corruption.News for more news related to corruption. Sources include: Brighteon.com BBC.com A forensic lab technician lays out an ancient human skeleton in Lima, on November 26, 2020, which was unearthed from a crib-like tomb discovered by a crew laying a natural gas pipe under a street in the San Juan de Lurigancho district in the Peruvian capital on July, 2018. - A mummified woman in her early twenties who lived over 600 years ago was called "Wayaw, the Lady of El Sauce", for the area where she was found. According to specialists, the woman lived in the times of the Ruricancho chiefdom, under the administration control of the Inca empire. (Photo : Photo by LUKA GONZALES/AFP via Getty Images) By using DNA, experts discovered the corpses of 27 household members in an approximately 6,000-year-old tomb. The tomb was discovered in England, indicating five-generation bloodline direct descendants, through one man and four women. The Discovery of 6000-Year-Old-Tomb The discoveries imply that polygamous marriages existed in the highest reaches of Neolithic society, since the scientists think it is improbable that the prehistoric man had four wives sequentially. Rather, he most presumably had more than one partner simultaneously. However, the burial chamber was divided into two L-shaped compartments, situated to the north and south of the framework, and which compartment individuals were entombed in relied on the first-generation ladies they were originated from, the decedents of two of the women were entombed in the northern enclosure, and the heirs of the other two women were laid to rest in the southern enclosure. Two of the lineage's daughters who actually died as children were entombed in the mausoleum, and yet no elderly women of the bloodline were submerged there. They might be placed in the household graves of their husbands, as per Olalde. He believes the female were married to men embedded in the grave but had no kids or only grown children who were then entombed elsewhere. Whereas Neolithic tombs on the European union do not display such ambiguity, Olalde believes the connections among those entombed in the Hazleton North grave mirror much previous lineage systems within the immigrant civilization. According to Olalde, this discovery indicated that these 1st generation females were also clearly relevant in their society and that their prestige was accepted when the burial chamber was constructed. "Those certain step kids might be adopted into the household when their parents merged it," he quipped. Yet it was also feasible that the female also has kids from men from outside household that were not accepted as their spouses. Also read: 41,000 Years Ago, Auroras Were Visible in the Equator Due to Geomagnetic Disruption The World's Oldest Known Family Tree Olalde also outlined four men entombed in the grave whose parents were member of the bloodline but which fathers were not. These men were dubbed the "Four Brothers' stepchildren". This discovery proposed that ancestry was highly patriarchal, which means that future generations entombed at the mausoleum were linked to the ancient era through their male members, according to the investigators. Theye also found evidence of three women and five men that had no biological ties to the household in same mausoleum. The importance of the five unassociated men is unknown, though they might have been adopted into the household or linked through connections that cannot be ascertained biologically, according to Olalde. The Hazleton North burial chamber went from the premature Neolithic period in England, and it's likely people entombed there came to Britain from mainland Europe as portion of a surge of Neolithic landowners at the time, he told reporters. The barrow, or funeral berm, was in a rice field where millennia of barreling confronted to completely ruin it, so archaeologists excavated to retain what was left, according to Olalde. "This study is significant because it is the first family size tree we have from ancient times," he explained. Also read: 'Doomsday Glacier' Almost Size of Florida Could Meet its End in 3 Years Due to Global Warming According to a report published by the UKs House of Commons Defense Committee on December 7, 2021, the British Royal Navy is planning to introduce five Type 32 frigates, which would increase the escort fleet (frigates and destroyers) from 19 to 24. Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link British company Babcock has announced that the Type 32 frigate will be based on the design of Type 31. (Picture source Babcock) The Type 32 is a frigate currently in development in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy. Admiral Radakin described the British Navys current thinking on the project, confirming that the vessel will be a general-purpose frigate whose purpose would be to increase the overall number of vessels in the fleet, rather than fill a specific capability gap. In November 2020, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the first outcome of the defence review by pledging increased funding in the range of 16.5 billion over four years to stabilise the defense budget and to provide new funding for space, cyber and research activities. A plan to construct a new class of frigate, the Type 32 frigate, was also announced with five vessels envisaged and likely entering service starting in the early 2030s. In March 2021, the British government's defense command paper, Defense in a Competitive Age, elaborated further on the Type 32 frigate stating that it would be designed to protect territorial waters, to provide persistent presence and to support the Royal Navy's new Littoral Response Groups (LRGs). During the DSEI, British defense exhibition in September 2021, British company Babcock International revealed it was pitching its Arrowhead 140 design, used by the Type 31 frigate, as the base design for the Type 32. According to information from the UKs Minister for Defense Procurement Jeremy Quin, the new Type 32 frigate will be a platform for autonomous systems, adding to the British Navys capabilities for missions such as anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures. Citing British navy military experts, the Type 32 will offer an ability to host MMCM modules in addition to supporting littoral operations by the Royal Marines. Initiated in 2012 under a cooperation agreement between France and the United Kingdom, the MMCM program develops a prototype autonomous system for detection and neutralization of sea mines and underwater improvised explosive devices (UWIEDs). The MMCM contract includes three stages, starting with a first phase for design. The next stages, which are subject to contract options, will manufacture and experiment the future mine countermeasures capabilities of both France (SLAM-F future mine countermeasures system) and the United Kingdom (MHC Mine countermeasures and Hydrography Capability). The program will deliver an autonomous, remotely operated mine countermeasures solution. According to information published by "The Rio Times" newspaper website on December 21, Argentina is studying the possibility to purchase submarines. The Argentine Minister of Defense, Jorge Taiana, already held talks with the French company Naval Group to sound out the possibility of purchasing a submarine to replace the loss of the ARA San Juan. Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link Argentine Navy Submarine TR-1700 Class (S-41) ARA "Santa Cruz". (Picture source Wikimedia) ARA San Juan (S-42) was a TR-1700-class diesel-electric submarine in service with the Submarine Force of the Argentine Navy from 1986 to 2017. It was built in West Germany, entering service on 19 November 1985, and underwent a mid-life update from 2008 to 2013. On 15 November 2017, San Juan went missing during a routine patrol in the South Atlantic off the coast of Argentina, believed to have suffered an electrical malfunction. In 2018, Argentine had already signed a contract with the French company Naval Group to provide four multi-mission offshore patrol vessels. A.R.A. Bouchard (ex-L'Adroit) had been delivered in December 2019 and A.R.A. Piedrabuena on 13 April 2021. A.R.A. Storni was launched on 10 May 2021 and will be delivered next October, in accordance with the original contractual schedule and despite the global health situation. On September 2021, the last of the four Offshore Patrol Vessel 87 (OPV 87) ordered to Naval Group by the Argentinean Navy, the A.R.A. Contraalmirante Cordero, was launched in Concarneau, France. Argentinas surface and submarine fleets remain small, with expired munitions, as well as delayed upgrades and service-life extensions for its core surface combatants, its four Meko 360 destroyers, and six Meko 140 frigates. According to open sources, the Navy of Argentine has two submarines including the Santa Cruz S-41 and the Salta s-31. The TR-1700 (Santa Cruz) is a class of diesel-electric patrol submarines built by Thyssen Nordseewerke for the Argentine Navy in the 1980s, with two submarines completed. The Salta is type 209 is a diesel-electric attack submarine developed exclusively for export by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft of Germany. The submarine fleet of the Argentine Navy is suffering from a lack of maintenance and training. The submarines accumulated a total of only 19 hours submerged in 2012 against a minimum requirement of 190 days. As of 2020, the entire fleet is inactive. One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021 (Newser) In CNN's telling, there been a growing but misguided effort in recent years to try to attack the science behind shaken baby syndrome in court, "efforts [that] are even keeping cases of alleged child abuse from coming to trial." It takes a deep, multi-part dive into one such case, that of Rehma Sabir. Relatives flew in from London and Toronto to celebrate the girl's first birthday in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The party happened two days before she actually turned one, on Jan. 14, 2013what should have been the happiest of days, but ended up being quite the opposite. Mom Nada Siddiqui fed and played with Rehma before heading to work and turning her over to her nanny, Aisling Brady McCarthy, at 9:30am. Rehma cried as she left, so Nada checked with the nanny 45 minutes later; she said Rehma was asleep, which was unusual. Rehma's paternal grandparents, in town for the party, came over at 11:30am and were told she was napping. story continues below They waited an hour for her to wake up, then left and returned at 4:30. She was still asleep, which concerned the grandmother enough that she ran into the room to try to wake the child. She couldn't. Rehma arrived at Boston Childrens Hospital in a coma, and what doctor's found perplexed Rehma: not just bleeding in the brain and bruising on her skull and spine, but healing fractures in Rehmas left arm and leg. "No one ever picked up on" those fractures, she says. "No doctor. Not me ... not her nanny who was with her all the time." She was declared brain dead on Jan. 16. Police, in their search of the apartment, did pick up on some things: a missing piece of drywall by the changing table and bloody baby wipes. Nada and her husband hoped the autopsy would show that it wasn't the unthinkable: that the nanny "they liked and trusted could have hurt their daughter." It didn't. The cause of death was listed as homicide. But just weeks before the 2015 trial was to begin, a "shocking development": the medical examiner decided it wasn't homicide after all. (Read part one of the story here.) (Newser) "If two people are left in an apartment in the morning, and at the end of the day, one of them is dead, theres no way that there would not be a trial in that situation." Except that scenario Sameer Sabir described is the one he found himself in. He and his wife left their daughter Rehma on her first birthday to go to work. When they returned home, she was unconscious, then in a coma, then brain dead, with the initial cause of death being given as homicide by blunt force traumaa case of shaken baby syndrome. But just before Aisling Brady McCarthy, the nanny who had spent that day with Rehma, was to go on trial some three years later, Boston medical examiner Dr. Katherine Lindstrom changed the cause of death to a brain bleed of unknown cause; McCarthy returned home to Ireland. In part two of its deep dive into Rehma's case, CNN looks at why Lindstrom changed her mind and the role defense experts who "testify against mainstream medical opinion in shaken baby cases" had in this case and others. story continues below Lindstrom attributed her about-face to having access to new materials; the defense had supplied her with the opinions of nine medical experts who didn't cite trauma as the cause but suggested alternatives including "stroke, a short fall from a bed, metabolic disorders, bleeding disorders," and more. Three experts suggested she died of acute necrotizing encephalopathy, a disease recorded in just 110 people, and one in which there are symptoms days in advance: vomiting, diarrhea, seizures. But days before Rehma's death, she was with relatives celebrating her birthday, with nothing amiss. As CNN explains, "child abuse specialists say defense experts often 'cherry pick' a symptom and claim its a sign of a rare disease ... or they suggest causes of death that do not match all the facts about a babys injuriesjust as occurred in the Rehma Sabir case." (Read part two for more, including how the "battle of the experts" came to be in 1997, and how medical organizations are speaking out over the "growing success of [shaken baby syndrome] denialism." Or catch up on part one.) (Newser) For nearly 10 years, Joseph Moore lived a secret double life. At times the US Army veteran donned a white robe and hood as a hit man for the Ku Klux Klan in North Florida. He attended clandestine meetings and participated in cross burnings. He even helped plan the murder of a Black man. However, Moore wore something else during his years in the klana wire for the FBI. The married father of four would help the federal government foil at least two murder plots, according to court records from the criminal trial for two of the klansmen. He was also an active informant when the FBI exposed klan members working as law enforcement officers in Florida at the city, county, and state levels. story continues below Since 2018, he and his family have lived under new names in a Florida subdivision of manicured lawns. Apart from testifying in court, the 50-year-old has never discussed his undercover work in the KKK publicly. But he reached out to a reporter after the AP published a series of stories about white supremacists working in Floridas prisons that were based, in part, on records and recordings detailing his work with the FBI. Moore was not a klansman before working for the FBI, he said. He said he joined because the government approached him, and asked for his help. The FBI first asked Moore to infiltrate a klan group called the United Northern and Southern Knights of the KKK in rural north Florida in 2007. At klan gatherings, Moore noted license plate numbers and other identifying information of suspected law enforcement officers who were members along with connections between the hate group and law enforcement in Florida and Georgia. He said he came across dozens of police officers, prison guards, sheriff deputies, and other law enforcement officers who were involved with the klan and outlaw motorcycle clubs. "From where I sat, with the intelligence laid out, I can tell you that none of these agencies have any control over any of it. It is more prevalent and consequential than any of them are willing to admit." He said he never adopted the KKK's racist ideology. To keep a lifeline to his true character, Moore claims to have never used racial slurs while in character; on FBI recordings reviewed by the AP, he was never heard using racial slurs like his former klan brothers. But he also acknowledges that successful undercover work required him to change into a wholly different person and lie to his wife. Today Moore is worried that the men he helped put into prison know where he is and are looking for revenge. Theyre all due out in a few years. Moore has installed motion-detecting surveillance cameras outside the home that allow him to monitor any activity, and carries a gun everywhere he goes. (Read the very lengthy full story.) (Newser) Children largely escaped illness during last winter's COVID-19 surge. Not this time. In many parts of the nation, pediatric hospitals already are dealing with a surge in admissions, now that the omicron variant has arrived before their delta patients have recovered and gone home, the Washington Post reports. And that's on top of the usual cases of the flu, accidents, and regular treatments for young patients with cancer and other conditions. Over the past three days, admissions are averaging about 800 a day at children's hospitals. story continues below A Post analysis shows 1,987 confirmed or suspected pediatric COVID patients in US hospitals as of Thursday. That's a 31% increase over the past 10 days. Most cases have been mild so far, doctors say. But the age group that worries health officials most right now is children under 5, who are too young to be vaccinated. Children overall are the largest unvaccinated group in the nation, per ABC, despite the fact that everyone over 5 has been eligible for a dose since at least late October. More than 90 million Americans have not had a dose of vaccine, 51 million of them under 18. Even if the cases are mild, hospitals worry about capacity because omicron is infecting so many people. At University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Childrens Hospital in Cleveland, almost every bed is claimed. The hospital already is "in a crisis," a specialist said. Health experts again urged parents to have their children vaccinated. After almost two years of this, "everyone is tired, and everyone is frustrated," conceded the president of the American Academy of Pediatrics. "I think our kids are struggling," Dr. Lee Beers said. (Read more COVID-19 stories.) We use cookies. By Clicking "OK" or any content on this site, you agree to allow cookies to be placed. Read more in our privacy policy (Newser) A New York judge has upheld an order preventing the New York Times from publishing documents between conservative group Project Veritas and its lawyer and ruled that the newspaper must immediately relinquish confidential legal memos it obtained. The decision Thursday by state Supreme Court Justice Charles Wood in Westchester County, released Friday, comes in a defamation lawsuit Project Veritas filed against the Times in 2020, the AP reports. Months after the suit was filed, the newspaper reported that the US Justice Department was investigating Project Veritas in connection with the theft of a diary belonging to Ashley Biden, the president's daughter. story continues below In that story, the Times quoted the memos, leading Project Veritas to accuse the newspaper of violating attorney-client privilege. Wood upheld his earlier order preventing the Times from further publishing the memos and also ruled that the newspaper must turn over physical copies of the documents and destroy electronic versions. The newspaper reported it would appeal the ruling and seek a stay in the meantime. Publisher A.G. Sulzberger decried the ruling as an attack of press freedoms and alarming for "anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know." He also said it risked exposing sources. Project Veritas bills itself as a watchdog, often of media. It's known for using hidden cameras and hiding identities to try to ensnare journalists in embarrassing conversations and to reveal supposed liberal bias. In a statement Friday, Project Veritas lawyer Elizabeth Locke hailed the ruling as "a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists and affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship." News organizations, including the AP, supported the Times and asked the court not to impose what they called an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech in a friend of the court brief filed last month by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. (Read more Project Veritas stories.) A reenactor in period uniform walks along an unpaved road in Bastogne. U.S. Army Garrison Benelux Soldiers commemorated the 77th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge December 10 through 12, 2021 in Bastogne, Belgium. (U.S. Army photo by Libby Weiler, USAG Benelux Public Affairs) (Libby Weiler) David James is a freelance writer who lives in Fairbanks. He can be emailed at nobugsinak@gmail.com. Bahrain all set to launch first stage of health insurance for expats Bahrain all set to launch first stage of health insurance for expats TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Bahrain is all set to boost ahead to a more advanced phase of its ambitious health care project designed to provide mandatory health insurance for expatriates in the Kingdom. The project dubbed Mandatory Private Cooperative Health Insurance Programme (PCHIP) for Expatriates is nearing the launch of its first stage. This development is as per a tender launched by the Supreme Council for Health seeking a supplier to perform specific tasks during the first stage. According to the tender board, the tender attracted two companies. Aon Bahrain quoted BHD 210,000.000, and Marsh (Bahrain) Company quoted BHD 5,287,586.000 for taking up the work. A successful vendor, SCH says, should provide administrative and brokerage services for the first stage of the programme concerning mandatory health insurance for residents. Tender Board, however, says that the company quoting the lowest amount may not necessarily award the tender, as price becomes a principal concern only after fulfilling technical and other criteria set. National Health Plan As per Health Insurance Law No. 23 of 2018, health insurance is mandatory for all citizens, residents and visitors. The decision is also part of the National Health Plan (2016- 2025) that paves the way forward for the health industry in Bahrain. One of the main objectives of the Plan is the adoption of the Social Health Insurance Programme (SEHATI) to develop the quality of the current health system and ensure sustainability. Sehati on way Recent reports say that the National Health Insurance Programme Sehati will be implemented early next year by launching a self-management project at health centres and government hospitals on a trial basis. The scheme is expected to cover expatriates in the second quarter of next year and nationals early 2023. How does autonomy for primary healthcare centres works? Under the new system, each individual will get paired with a family physician. The family physician will provide therapeutic and preventative services: such as vaccinations, and early detection of diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and others. If specialist care is needed, the patient will get it through a secondary healthcare hospital. Follow up will be through a family physician at the primary healthcare centre. Hospitals will also be granted more autonomy in the direct day-to-day running of their activities regarding budgeting and human resource capital. Driving my kids around town means a lot of time listening to the radio. A short trip doesnt justify the effort of picking my own music, so I take my chances with whatever is coming over the airwaves. The scan/seek buttons get a lot of use. There arent many surprises on the radio. Since there are roughly six artists in a given genre in constant rotation, its always a little jarring when something unexpected catches your attention. Thats what happened in the car a few weeks ago, when it took me a minute to register that (1) I was hearing the Beach Boys and (2) I couldnt remember the last time I heard a Beach Boys song on the radio. This is, of course, one of the best-known bands of the past half-century, with more than 100 million albums sold along with an array of hits known to basically every American out of grade school. But what I heard wasnt one of those surfer hits it was Little Saint Nick, and it was on because Christmas music is unavoidable in December. Thats not a value judgment if you love Christmas music, thats fine. But weve reached a point where the biggest acts in the world are being remembered for one possibly throwaway holiday song, or else not at all. The Beach Boys best-known songs are basically gone from radio, at least the Connecticut and New York stations that come in around here. Thats part of a broader trend thats seen the decline of what used to be called oldies radio. Anything recorded in the 50s and 60s is most likely to be enjoyed by people outside advertisers targeted demographics, so that format has mostly faded away. (Somehow, though, the Journey-saturated classic rock format is basically unchanged since I was in high school). Over a 10-year period between 2007 and 2017, stations with an oldies format dropped from 709 outlets nationally to 293, the largest decline of any category. Its likely fallen more since then, and now exactly one of the dozens of radio stations in Connecticut that I could find reports that it uses that format (WATX, 1220 AM, in Hamden). The biggest gainer was whats referred to as classic hits radio, which generally means top 40 songs from the mid-1970s to the 2000s. Even more chances to hear Journey. It happens that I listened to oldies radio a lot as a kid. It gave the family something to agree upon in the car, and it meant I knew a lot of music from long before I was born. The Beach Boys, like many acts of their day, were huge long past their peak of popularity in part because they were constantly on the radio. Not anymore. Theyre in the process of turning into Brenda Lee. Brenda Lee, for people who didnt know (for instance, me), had 47 U.S. chart hits in the 1960s, good for fourth most in the entire decade, behind only the Beatles, Ray Charles and Elvis (a lot of them from his movies). She was a huge deal, inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 and widely respected among her peers. Today, shes known by most anyone under 50 for exactly one song: Rockin Around the Christmas Tree. An entire multidecade career has been subsumed by two jaunty minutes played ad nauseum every year as everyone ponders the meaning of the new old-fashioned way. This appears to be where the Beach Boys are headed. Hard to imagine, but it could eventually be Elvis fate, too, since Blue Christmas is temporarily in heavy rotation, but hell mostly vanish from the airwaves for the next 11 months. The Beatles can probably get by a while longer, but there may come a day when its members collective output is best remembered for the guy who is simply having a wonderful Christmastime. More recent artists are in the same predicament. Mariah Carey may have more chart-topping songs than any woman in history, but its already clear what shell be remembered for in 50 years, and its not any of her first 18 No. 1 hits. Its the one that set a record two years ago as the first to drop straight from No. 1 to completely off the charts, because no one wants songs about mistletoe in January. Theres a lesson here. If you want true longevity, if you want your grandkids grandkids to sing your praises, youd better make sure you have a durable Christmas song. For that reason alone, Wham! will never die. Alternatively, youd be advised to have recorded a classic rock smash in 1978. Theyll be playing that stuff forever. Hugh Bailey is editorial page editor of the Connecticut Post and New Haven Register. He can be reached at hbailey@hearstmediact.com. When COVID-19 hit in March 2020, Scott Schaakes business was greatly impacted like so many others around the world. With businesses closing their doors and offices moving remote, being unable install lighting in those buildings became problematic. Because of that, the future of the business was up in the air. Schaake, the owner and president of USA LED Lighting Solutions, had to think quick. The business, originally known as Tiger Technologies LLC, evolved under its new name in 2010 and manufactures, retrofits, installs and sells lighting predominantly for commercial buildings. COVID-19 started injuring our business in March 2020, the owner of the Southbury-based business, said. From March-August in 2020 our USA LED company had no business. We couldnt produce any sales. During those six months at the height of the pandemic building owners werent able to allow us to make installations. We couldnt call on businesses to produce a new pipeline of clients and customers. Struggling to find a way for his business to survive, Schaake took advantage of a perfect storm of events that led to a new business opportunity. Schaakes wife Betty is a nurse and he knew firsthand about the need for PPE in the health industry, in particular the need for masks. Through Schaakes PCB business, he had ties to clients in China. During a conversation with a Chinese client in March 2020, Schaake discussed the need for masks in the United States. Schaake said at the time the height of the pandemic had passed through China and plenty of N95 masks were available. The Chinese client sent Schaake a box of 200 masks for his wife and family to use. Schaake started getting requests for the masks so he connected with a Chinese PPE supply company. I purchased as many masks as I could, Schaake said. At the time, the normal supply chain couldnt handle the demand for PPE. I applied to several assisted living community services and anyone I could think of who needed PPE. The company sold gowns, gloves and goggles, along with masks. The PPE sales we did in 2020 saved my business, he said. One of the biggest sales Schaake had from March-August was selling two million masks to the New York Transit Authority. By August 2000, the normal medical supply chain was able to get caught up to the PPE demand and that pushed me out of the PPE business. But at the same time, the LED business was slowly returning. From August to December (2020) we were allowed to get our clients back and our installations those three months were good. Southbury economic development director Kevin Bielmeier said while increasing the number of businesses in town has been important, especially following the COVID outbreak, retaining them has been just as vital. He pointed to creativity, like Schaakes for helping make that possible. We have many new businesses and thats great, but business retention is great too, Bielmeier said. The tenacity and creativity required by some of our long-standing businesses who were not taken out by the pandemic showed resiliency, including pivoting in some cases. Schaake said the LED business is still recovering from the pandemic hit in 2020 with his business at about 65 percent of what it was pre-pandemic. Schaake says his company has developed three new products that he expects to help with the companys overall recovery. USA LED has developed a 2x2 ceiling grid panel light with UVC that kills viruses. The company has also developed LED lighting for the horticulture market for vertical indoor farming facilities, helping the fresh vegetable market. Schaake hopes the new cannabis industry in Connecticut takes notice. USA LED will also enter the electrical vehicle industry with plans to develop new EV chargers with custom installation for residential and commercial users. We were lucky to have survived the pandemic due to the PPE business, but we didnt sit still, Schaake said. Were always looking to evolve and produce new products. The cash flow is horrible, but the LED recovery is continuing and I believe it will come back strong. The bottom line is our company and other local businesses have shown resiliency. Contributed Photo / Connecticut State Police / Contributed Photo SOUTHBURY An overturned vehicle has closed a stretch of Interstate 84 west near Southbury, according to state police and the Department of Transportation. The accident took place just before 11 a.m. Saturday, according to the Department of Transportation. MORRO BAY, Calif. (AP) A surfer was killed in an apparent shark attack on Christmas Eve off the central coast of California, authorities said. The male surfer was pulled from the water north of the famous Morro Rock around 10:45 a.m., Morro Bay police said on Twitter. He was not responsive after being brought to land. The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday decided to impose a night curfew from December 25 following COVID-19 concerns in the country. The Maharashtra government issued guidelines prohibiting gathering of more than five persons in public places from 9 pm-6 am, Several states have decided to restrict Christmas and New Year celebrations by imposing night curfews to curb the spread of Covid-19. The Union Health Ministry has already warned that the Omicron variant of Covid-19 is at least three times more transmissible than the Delta variant. On Friday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan told the press that analysis of data reveals 91% of the total Omicron patients in India were fully vaccinated prior to infection. The two factors have made public restrictions all the more necessary during the festive season to prevent the transmission of Covid-19. The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday decided to impose a night curfew from December 25 following COVID-19 concerns in the country. As per the governments directives, a night curfew will be put in place from December 25 from 11 pm-5 am. No more than 200 people will be allowed at weddings, as per the order. Chief Minister said that every single passenger coming from outside in the state should be duly traced. The Maharashtra government on Friday issued new COVID-19 guidelines prohibiting gathering of more than five persons in public places from 9 pm-6 am, among other such measures, applicable from the intervening night of December 24-25. Haryana and Gujarat governments also announced night curfews on Friday. Night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am has been imposed in Haryana from Friday. In Gujarat, eight cities including Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Gandhinagar, and Junagadh will be under night curfew from Saturday. Odisha will also see festive season restrictions from December 25 to January 2. Zero Night celebration, Welcome to New Year in hotels, clubs, restaurants, parks, convention halls, Kalyan Mandaps, etc. is completely banned across the State, the Odisha government order read. In Madhya Pradesh, the state government imposed a night curfew from Thursday. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, In view of COVID-19 cases, Madhya Pradesh govt imposes night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am from today till further orders. Former head constable Gagandeep Singh was dismissed from service in 2019 and was released in September this year after spending two years in jail for alleged drug links. Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya on Saturday confirmed that a former head constable of Punjab Police, Gagandeep Singh, was identified as the handler of explosives in the Ludhiana district court blast case. Singh was dismissed from the service in 2019 and spent two years in jail for alleged drug links, said Chattopadhyaya. The deceased person, former policeman Gagandeep Singh was carrying the explosion. He was dismissed from service in 2019 and spent two years in jail following his arrest in a drug-trafficking case, said the Punjab DGP in his statement to the media. According to sources, he was tracked from a SIM card and a network dongle. Sources also said that though his face and body were disfigured, Gagandeeps family confirmed his identity. Gagandeep Singh was released in September this year and the hearing in his case was scheduled for Friday. Media reports suggest that the police are now probing why he visited the court premises a day earlier on Thursday. Initial probe into the blast had revealed that the explosive handler was one of the casualties of the blast. Congress leader and former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat said on Friday that he will be the face of partys election campaign in Uttarakhand. Harish Rawat made the remarks after meeting party leader Rahul Gandhi. Some other Congress leaders from Uttarakhand also met Gandhi along with Rawat. Kadam, kadam badhaye ja, Congress ke geet gaye ja.(Keep on marching forward, sing praises of the Congress), I will be the face of the election campaign in Uttarakhand. I will lead the campaign as the chairman of the campaign committee and everyone will support me in fulfilling that responsibility, Rawat told reporters later. Rawat did not directly answer questions about the chief ministerial face of the party in the state. In Congress, after the election is completed, legislature party meets to decide their leader. They send their recommendation to Congress president and then the president decides who will lead the legislature party. We will follow the same procedure on Uttarakhand too, he said. Ganesh Godiyal, president of the Uttarakhand Congress unit, said the party will fight the polls under the leadership of Rawat. We will fight this election under the leadership of Harish Rawat who is the chairman of the campaign committee, he said. Rawat met Gandhi two days after making a veiled attack on the Congress leadership ahead of assembly polls in Uttarakhand over the lack of cooperation from the state unit. However, before leaving for Delhi to meet Gandhi, Rawat had used lines of a popular Hindi song to express his loyalty to the party. Kadam kadam badhae jaa, Congress ke geet gae jaa. Zingadi hai Uttarakhand ke vaaste Uttarakhand par lutae jaa, he had said. Taking a dig at the party leadership, Rawat had said on Wednesday that nominees of those whose directions one has to swim (in the electoral battle) are tying my hands and feet. In his cryptic tweets, Rawat has also expressed anguish at factionalism in the state unit saying there was non-cooperation from the party organisation in the state at most places and that thought has been crossing his mind that it is time to rest. Rawat, a member of the Congress Working Committee, is seen as the partys face for the elections in Uttarakhand. Rawat had also expressed faith that Lord Kedarnath will provide him guidance in the new year. The Congress is keen to come back to power in Uttarakhand in assembly polls early next year. Two weeks ago, Saudi Arabia outlawed the Tablighi Jamaat. In Pakistan, the imposition has been roundly condemned. Tablighi Jamaat, however, according to all Pakistani parliamentarians, has nothing to do with terrorism. However, Saudi Arabias religious ministry announced the ban at the same time, claiming that the group is a terrorist entry point. After Friday prayers, the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs asked mosques to warn people not to join them in Takreer. Minister of Islamic Affairs, Dr Abdullatif Al-Alsheikh, advised all mosques to include it in their rituals and to make people aware of the hazards linked with it, according to a series of tweets from the ministry. Earlier on Tuesday, Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhary Pervez Elahi scheduled a special session of the House. MLA Khadija Umar made a motion in favor of Tablighi Jamaat during this time. The Speaker of the House read the motion and stated that the House agrees with the people who are working to promote trust. He asserted that Tablighi Jamaat has no ties to terrorism and that their history demonstrates they have never been involved in such activities. The motion was later overwhelmingly passed by the House. It is noteworthy that the Punjab assembly, on the other hand, banned Tablighi Jamaat from universities in January 2016. It was also prohibited from mosques near all campuses because lawmakers believed the Tablighi Jamaat was sympathetic to terrorist organisations and would try to mislead young students. Five years later, the Punjab Assembly has praised the Tablighi Jamaat for bringing goodwill to Pakistan. Given Pakistans current economic circumstances, its improbable that Imran Khan could even consider defying the Saudi ruler. Imran Khan is well aware that he must turn to religion to conceal his shortcomings and deceive the public. In a scenario like this, when Pakistans general elections are near, Imran might try to secure the support of fundamentalists by backing the Tablighi Jamaat. Pakistan will have another election in 2023, therefore Imran Khan is keeping a close eye on his voter base. NEW YORK (AP) Airlines continued to cancel hundreds of flights Saturday because of staffing issues tied to COVID-19, disrupting holiday celebrations during one of the busiest travel times of the year. FlightAware, a flight-tracking website, noted nearly 1,000 canceled flights entering, leaving or inside the U.S. Saturday, up from 690 flights scrapped on Friday. Over 250 more flights were already canceled for Sunday. FlightAware does not say why flights are canceled. Delta, United and JetBlue had all said Friday that the omicron variant was causing staffing problems leading to flight cancellations. United spokesperson Maddie King said staffing shortages were still causing cancellations and it was unclear when normal operations would return. This was unexpected, she said of omicron's impact on staffing. Delta and JetBlue did not respond to questions Saturday. According to FlightAware, the three airlines canceled more than 10% of their scheduled Saturday flights. American Airlines also canceled more than 90 flights Saturday, about 3% of its schedule, according to FlightAware. American spokesperson Derek Walls said the cancellations stemmed from COVID-related sick calls." European and Australian airlines have also canceled holiday-season flights because of staffing problems tied to COVID-19. For travelers, that meant time away from loved ones, chaos at the airport and the stress of spending hours standing in line and on the phone trying to rebook flights. Peter Bockman, a retired actor, and his daughter Malaika, a college student, were supposed to be in Senegal on Saturday celebrating with relatives they hadn't seen in a decade. But their 7:30 p.m. flight Friday from New York to Dakar was canceled, which they found out only when they got to the airport. They were there until 2 a.m. trying to rebook a flight. Nobody was organizing, trying to sort things out, he said, faulting Delta for a lack of customer service. Nobody explained anything. Not even, Oh were so sorry, this is what we can do to help you. Their new flight, for Monday evening, has a layover in Paris, and they are worried there will be issues with that one as well. They have already missed a big family get-together that was scheduled for Saturday. FlightAware's data shows airlines scrapped more than 6,000 flights globally for Friday, Saturday and Sunday combined as of Saturday evening, with almost one-third of affected flights to, from or within the United States. Chinese airlines made up many of the canceled flights, and Chinese airports topped FlightAware's lists of those with most cancellations. It wasn't clear why. China has strict pandemic control measures, including frequent lockdowns, and the government set one on Xi'an, a city of 13 million people, earlier this week. Employees who answered the phone Sunday at customer hotlines for Air China and China Eastern airlines said they had received no notice of cancelations of flights to or from the United States. Air China usually flies between New York City and Shanghai twice a week. China Eastern has two weekly flights to Los Angeles, one from Beijing and the other from the southern city of Shenzhen. Another Chinese airline, Hainan Airlines, suspended flights to the United States early in the pandemic. The Civil Aviation Administration of Chinas flight schedule through the end of March shows a total of 408 international flights planned per week. That is down 21% from a year earlier. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year. Airlines encouraged workers to quit in 2020, when air travel collapsed, and were caught short-staffed this year as travel recovered. To ease staffing shortages, countries including Spain and the U.K. have reduced the length of COVID-19 quarantines by letting people return to work sooner after testing positive or being exposed to the virus. Delta CEO Ed Bastian was among those who have called on the Biden administration to take similar steps or risk further disruptions in air travel. On Thursday, the U.S. shortened COVID-19 isolation rules for health care workers only. ___ Joe McDonald in Beijing contributed to this report. STAMFORD Renee Reopell wants transgender and gender nonconforming teenagers and children in Connecticut to have a place to call home. Even if that home is many miles away. Reopell, who uses the pronouns they/them, has been hired as the director of a fledgling program based in Stamford called Gender, Diversity and Resilience. The program is designed to provide psychosocial and medical support to high risk young people between the ages of 10 and 18 who are transgender, non-binary or questioning the gender assigned to them at birth. The original idea from the founders of the program part of the Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut was to offer it to youth in Fairfield County. But only a few weeks after the program was established in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the region, shutting down many in-person services. Like other healthcare providers, the program had to adapt. And one of the ways it did was by moving more toward telehealth, offering consultation and guidance online. That turned into en eye-opening experience as young people contacted the center from various areas of the state outside of Fairfield County. Folks who wouldnt normally have access to a community of trans and nonbinary folks get to have that space, Reopell said. Reopell said they work with youth who experience high rates of anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation, some of the common issues young transgender and nonbinary youth deal with. I think anyone who holds one or maybe multiple historically under-served identities, after a certain point, you start to internalize the message you hear about yourself, Reopell said. Youre a problem, you wont be loved, you deserve bullying, it was your fault, you asked for it. You start to believe those things about yourself. By giving these youth tools to cope with navigating their lives, Reopell said they hope to give participants the opportunity to feel free to be themselves. The larger goal is for transgender and nonbinary people to see themselves as just another variation of a young person, Reopell said. What were saying is you are welcome to be your authentic self here. We encourage it. We celebrate it. Jessica Welt, the CEO of the Child Guidance Center, which was recently incorporated into Connecticut-based healthcare organization Community Health Center, was part of a five-person team that created the Gender, Diversity and Resilience Program. She said that when looking at the organizations reach in Fairfield County, she and others noticed a gap in services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer youth. Some studies, she said, estimate that about 2 percent of high school students identify as nonbinary or gender diverse. In Stamford, the high school population is about 4,900 students, and 2 percent of that total number is 98. So the program was created. If we build it, there are way more kids than we are aware of and its just a matter of time before they find us, Welt said, explaining the impetus for creating the service. What makes the program special, she said, is that it offers both mental health services and medical care, making it essentially a one-stop place for youth to find help in a variety of ways. That is something that is very much needed in gender-affirming care, she said. Welt ran the program since its inception along with Reece Ramponi, a psychiatric nurse practitioner. But it became clear early on that the service would need its own dedicated leader, Welt said. When we saw how significant the need was, we recognized that the program would grow, she said. Reopell was suggested by an employee at the center, and Welt said she was impressed when they met. When I had the opportunity to meet them, they impressed me with their professionalism, and the fact that they worked with the population that were trying to reach, Welt said. As a cis woman, I understand the limitations in what I can offer as a therapist without having that lived experience. Reopell, who identifies as genderqueer, has been the director of the program since Dec. 6, and said such services are sorely needed for a community of people who often live in isolation, an issue only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. For Reopell, just showing transgender and nonbinary youth positive role models and happy, healthy trans adults can go a long way. Having a family is possible, Reopell said. Having a career is possible. Having an education is possible. ignacio.laguarda@stamfordadvocate.com NEW YORK (AP) Ghislaine Maxwell reached her 60th birthday behind bars Saturday as she awaited the outcome of her sex trafficking trial. The British socialite is scheduled to return to a Manhattan courthouse Monday to await word from a jury entering its third full day of talks after hearing over two dozen witnesses and viewing dozens of exhibits over three weeks. Messages sent to her lawyer and a website where items expressing support for Maxwell are regularly posted were not returned Saturday. Prosecutors said in their closing arguments last Monday that the crucial evidence was the testimony of four women who say they were sexually abused as teenagers by financier Jeffrey Epstein with help from Maxwell when she was his girlfriend, and later when she morphed into his close confidante and an employee valued highly enough that he gave her over $20 million. Prosecutors called her the lady of the house from 1994 to 2004, saying she recruited and groomed teenagers as young as 14 to meet Epstein's seemingly insatiable need to be touched by vulnerable girls who came from impoverished and despairing backgrounds or who counted on his claims of wealth and connections to aid their quests for success and fame in the performance arts. Defense lawyers, though, say she was a U.S. government scapegoat after Epstein killed himself in the Manhattan federal jail cell where he was awaiting his own sex trafficking trial in August 2019. They said the memories of her accusers were corrupted by the passage of time and the influence of lawyers steering them toward multimillion-dollar payouts from a fund set up to compensate Epstein victims. The jury already has asked to review the testimony of the four women, along with former Epstein housekeeper Juan Patricio Alessi, but they have given little hint of their overall progress on six charges, including a sex trafficking count that carries a potential penalty of up to 40 years in prison. Alessi testified that when he worked at Epsteins sprawling Florida home from 1990 to 2002, he saw many, many, many female visitors, appearing to be in their late 20s, often lounging topless by the pool. He also testified that two accusers, underage teens at the time, were repeat visitors to the Epstein mansion. Each day of deliberations without a verdict seems to boost the defense team, which is aware that fast verdicts almost always go in the government's favor and that deliberations that stretch out can sometimes indicate dissension or confusion among jurors. On Wednesday, two defense lawyers gave each other a high-five. The deliberations are happening as a wave of coronavirus infections fueled by the omicron variant sweeps through New York state, particularly severe where jurors live. The anxiety over the spread was evident when U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan asked jurors to deliberate Thursday. They declined. When she sent them away Wednesday for the long holiday weekend, she told them there would be new courthouse protocols Monday to fight the coronavirus, including a requirement that the most protective masks be worn. And she offered to give them the masks to protect themselves and others through the weekend. Please stay safe over the long weekend. Obviously weve got the variant, and I need all of you here and healthy on Monday," Nathan said. So please take good care and take cautions. ATHENS, Greece (AP) At least 13 people died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 27 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favor a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greeces heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the countrys migration crisis. The coast guard said 62 people were rescued after a sailboat capsized late Friday some 8 kilometers (5 miles) off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. Survivors told the coast guard that about 80 people had been on the vessel. Five coast guard patrol boats, nine private vessels, a helicopter and a military transport plane continued the night-time search for more survivors, authorities said, while coast guard divers also participated. Smugglers based in Turkey increasingly have packed yachts with migrants and refugees and sent them toward Italy. Earlier, 11 people were confirmed dead after a sailboat Thursday struck a rocky islet some 235 kilometers (145 miles) south of Athens, near the island of Antikythera. The coast guard said Friday that 90 survivors 52 men, 11 women and 27 children were rescued after spending hours on the islet. People need safe alternatives to these perilous crossings, the Greek office of the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, said in a tweet. In a separate incident Friday, Greek police arrested three people on smuggling charges and detained 92 migrants after a yacht ran aground in the southern Peloponnese region. And a search operation also continued for a third day in the central Aegean, where a boat carrying migrants sank near the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen others were rescued, and the survivors reported that at least 17 people were missing. Authorities said the passengers originally were from Iraq. Greece is a popular entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But arrivals dropped sharply in the last two years after Greece extended a wall at the Turkish border and began intercepting inbound boats carrying migrants and refugees a tactic criticized by human rights groups. More than 116,000 asylum-seekers crossed the Mediterranean to reach EU countries this year as of Dec. 19, according to UNHCR. The agency said 55% traveled illegally to Italy, 35% to Spain, and 7% to Greece, with the remainder heading to Malta and Cyprus. ___ Derek Gatopoulos on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dgatopoulos ___ Full AP coverage of global migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration Hartford Police / Contributed Photo HARTFORD Two 22-year-old men died after their car crashed into a utility pole in Hartford early Christmas morning, according to the Hartford Police Department. Police responded to the intersection of Main and Montville streets just before 4 a.m. for a report of a serious one car crash. There, officers found a gray 2008 Acura TL that hit a utility pole, police said. The wife of the Olu of Warri, Olori Atuwatse III, has admonished christians to celebrate Christmas with Jesus birth in mind. This was conta... The wife of the Olu of Warri, Olori Atuwatse III, has admonished christians to celebrate Christmas with Jesus birth in mind. This was contained in her Christmas message on Saturday, where she also prayed for the nation. The wife of the foremost Itsekiri monarch took to her Instagram page to share a family portrait alongside the message She wrote, Merry Christmas! For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 The birth of Jesus commemorated a whole new government on earth; the King of the entire universe, Immanuel wrapped Himself in human flesh just to dwell amongst the most rebellious people and save them from themselves. So as the Warri Kingdom and the rest of the Nation celebrate with carols, food, gifts and all-round Christmas cheer, it is prudent to do so with the reason for Jesus birth in mindto redeem humanity. It is my prayer in this yuletide season that the light of Jesus Christ will shine brightly before the people and lead the entire Nation into the unique path designed especially for her. Merry Christmas one and all! There was confusion on Friday, December 24, 2021 as the Osun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) announced a new Acting Chairman. The Actin... There was confusion on Friday, December 24, 2021 as the Osun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) announced a new Acting Chairman. The Acting Chairman, Barrister Wale Ojo, according to sources belonged to the Olasoji Adagunodo faction of the party in the state. Barrister Wale Ojo is the Former Senatorial Chairman of PDP representing Osun East Senatorial district. The appointment was arrived at after the ratification of a resolution by some stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State. Wale Ojos appointment, it was noted was intended to fill the vacuum created by the exit of Adagunodo as the Vice Chairman, South West of the party. The Stakeholders from all the local government areas in the State said the move became necessary sequel to an Osun State High Court order recognising and affirming that all actions taken by Adagunodo while in office as chairman were valid and legal. In his acceptance speech, the new factional Acting Chairman who stated that it was time for party members work together as one big family promised to ensure members were on the same page. He also vowed to use his position to push the party over the edge. Meanwhile, the embattled chairman of the party in the state, Sunday Bisi had described the action of some of the party leaders who ratified Ojo as acting state party chairman as a charade Speaking through the Media Director of the party, Bamidele Olabamiji, Bisi said his legal team was studying the court judgement which nullified him as substantive chairman of the party in Osun State for an appeal. While referring to the referendum that ratified Wale Ojo as Acting Chairman as a kangaroo selection process, he maintained that Sunday Bisi still remains the party chairman in the state as the organisers of the referendum did not carry all the concerned stakeholders along. Olabamiji added that the individuals who branded themselves as stakeholders should not be seen and taken seriously. Four of the aspirants jostling for the partys ticket for the next years gubernatorial election in the State, Sanya Omirin, Akin Ogunbiyi, Alhaji Fatal Akinbade and Dele Adeleke were present at the meeting. The military government in Sudan has shut down internet access in Khartoum, the countrys capital, in response to anti-coup protests. Mi... The military government in Sudan has shut down internet access in Khartoum, the countrys capital, in response to anti-coup protests. Military forces, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, had on October 25 arrested some members of Sudans transitional government and other civilian leaders including Abdalla Hamdok, the countrys prime minister. Hamdok was later reinstated on November 21 after signing a deal with the military promising elections for July 2023. But since then, pro-democracy supporters have staged several protests demanding civilian rule be restored According to the BBC , more than a hundred people were injured in clashes with police during last weeks protests and at least 44 people have been killed since the protests started two months ago. The security forces were also accused of sexually abusing more than a dozen women and girls. Prior to the internet shut down on Saturday, protest organisers were said to have planned a series of street rallies. Several bridges connecting Khartoum to other cities have also been closed by security forces. Watertown, NY (13601) Today Snow this evening will give way to lingering snow showers late. Low 19F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90%. Snow accumulating 1 to 3 inches. Heavier amounts in persistent snowbands.. Tonight Snow this evening will give way to lingering snow showers late. Low 19F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90%. Snow accumulating 1 to 3 inches. Heavier amounts in persistent snowbands. The opening of American Townhouse restaurant and bar at 1012 N. Rampart St. marks a rite of passage for Matt Giglio, a realized dream that hes thrilled to achieve at the age of 50. If I could have written a wish list, this place is it, Giglio says. Giglio has literally grown up in bars in New Orleans, working in them since he was a kid, first at The Mint on Esplanade Avenue and then for many years at the Bourbon Orleans. He opened his own place in a leased building at 700 Burgundy St. when he was 36. He named it the 700 Club, an LGBTQ-friendly lounge that had zero in common with the Christian talk show of the same name. We wanted to buy the building, but that wasnt going to happen, Giglio says. Instead, he purchased the 1857 Greek Revival townhouse on North Rampart in April 2019, and with the help of his husband Bryce Scholl, transformed the space into something magical. We took it down to repointing the bricks, he says. Downstairs, an expansive bar and dining area opens onto a lit and landscaped brick courtyard. Upstairs, theres an event space that includes a balcony overlooking Rampart Street. Beautiful wood floors, original art by David McPherson, 14-foot ceiling, funky lighting and the warm texture of aged brick come together to create a beautiful space. Giglio is happy to see many of his French Quarter regulars at the new bar. We have an eclectic clientele, he says. He also invited the lead cook from the 700 Club kitchen to join the team at American Townhouse. Zach McGee, 26, is a Florida native whose family is all from New Orleans East. He moved to New Orleans a little more than five years ago, taking a job at the Faubourg Cafe, the leased kitchen space in the 700 Club, which closed in December 2019. Chef Ely Navarro Hernandez runs the pop-up Only Flans Ely Navarro Hernandez talks with Gambit about learning to cook, focusing on flan and starting her pop-up. Giglio and McGee wanted to keep some of the popular menu items from the Burgundy Street location while expanding in a few areas. We wanted to be more diverse than the typical French Quarter fare, not just jambalaya and red beans and rice although we might feature those kinds of dishes as specials, McGee says. The expanded menu starts with snacks including blistered shishito peppers and black garlic truffle potato chips dusted with Cotija cheese. Under the category Bar Faves, there are nachos, loaded waffle fries and house marinated and dredged chicken fingers. The chicken and waffle appetizer is also available as a Death by Waffle sandwich, featuring buttermilk battered fried chicken spiked with Crystal hot sauce which is drizzled with hot honey and Steens and sandwiched between two hot waffles. There also are more fresh options along with vegetarian and vegan choices. Impossible Burger meat, the plant-based meat substitute, is a protein choice along with chicken, shrimp, pulled pork and wagyu beef. There are three salads including a kale Caesar, a taco salad and Asian chicken salad made with kale, arugula, red cabbage, bell peppers and cilantro, all tossed in a peanut dressing. Diners can top salads with a choice of proteins, including catfish and poke tuna. A handful of dishes bear a South of the Border influence. There is house-made salsa with chips and an elote dip, a nod to the Mexican street snack, which combines roasted corn, crema and jalapeno, topped with Cotija cheese. The Townhouse trio rounds up three dips to share. Street tacos also come three-to-an-order, and crispy tostados are topped with grilled chicken and guacamole. A lineup of burgers includes one that McGee couldnt let go of from the 700 Club days. The peanut butter and bacon burger is just the best, he says. Wagyu beef is stacked with applewood-smoked bacon, a layer of peanut butter, onion, house-made pickles, tomatoes and arugula on a bun. Id say we have something for everybody, Giglio says. 1012 N. Rampart St., (504) 354-8533 Lunch, dinner and late-night daily Two consecutive hurricane seasons brought hellish storms that battered the electrical grid and left millions languishing in the summer heat, waiting for the power to come back on. A chorus of voices called for major investments in the grid to prevent a recurrence. Sound familiar? That was the scene in Florida in 2004 and 2005. The Florida hurricanes of the early aughts eerily similar in strength and timing to those that thrashed Louisiana in 2020 and 2021 resulted in reforms to the Sunshine States utility regulations and massive infrastructure investments. The local, state and federal governments and Floridas power companies spent billions upgrading above-ground structures, burying power lines and investing in smart grid technology. According to regulators and some consumer advocates, the effort made a huge difference. Floridas improved grid may be able to serve as a roadmap of sorts for Louisiana, where a similar onslaught of hurricanes in 2020 and 2021 has prompted cries for massive investment. While hopeful in some ways, Floridas experience also illustrates the limits of grid-hardening under the current system of investor-owned utilities, which recoup their costs from ratepayers. Recent hurricanes have still knocked out power to millions of Floridians, though the lights come back on faster now. As would likely be the case in Louisiana, Florida ratepayers are the ones footing the bill for the investments. An unprecedented four hurricanes hammered Florida over a six-week period in 2004, punctuated by Category 4 Hurricane Jeanne. The next year, there were four more. Collectively, the storms caused 15.5 million customer power outages meaning the average Floridian lost power more than once and calls for a more resilient electrical grid followed. Regulators pushed power companies to make a slew of changes. The Florida Public Service Commission required regular inspections of wooden poles, 10-year grid hardening plans and annual hurricane preparedness briefings. Utilities were also ordered to regularly inspect transmission lines and substations, and to replace or upgrade those that failed. The state also made a push to bury more power lines after roping in universities to study grid hardening. Before the onslaught of storms, burying lines had been difficult to justify because its expensive and the cost falls on utility customers. The state started requiring utilities to compare the cost of burying lines with installing hardened above-ground lines, and by making power companies consider the long-term benefits of having the lines safe from high winds. Plus, it allowed the costs of burying lines to be spread among all ratepayers if there are quantifiable benefits to everyone. The state also invested in smart grid technologies that gather and analyze data from around the power system, leading to better maintenance and allowing utilities to recognize outages quicker, according to regulatory documents and interviews. One of the most important things Florida did, according to Ted Kury, who heads an energy research center at the University of Florida, was to bring academics, power companies, regulators, consumer advocates and other stakeholders together to tackle storm resilience. Nothing like that has ever been attempted in Louisiana. Every year, the FPSC hosted workshops where power companies were asked what your plans are for the future and how we are going to make sure that its in the best interest of the people who are paying the bills, Kury said. While burying power lines and installing concrete poles have a steep price tag, Kury noted that there is also a cost of inaction: When hurricanes wreak havoc on the grid, ratepayers are on the hook for repairs. There are also the indirect costs of the outage itself, which can be considerable. No matter what your decision is whether youre going to improve the resilience of the grid or not the people are ultimately paying the cost of that decision, he said. Floridas method, though costly, has shown results. In 2018, the FPSC issued a report concluding Floridas aggressive storm hardening programs are working. The length of outages was reduced markedly from the 2004-2005 storm season, very few failures of transmission facilities were reported, and underground lines performed much better than overhead lines. The improved system is not impregnable. In recent years, hurricanes have continued to cause mass outages: Irma knocked out power to nearly two-thirds of Florida customers in 2017. In 2018, outages endured for more than a week in parts of the Florida Panhandle after Michael hit. Partly in response to those storms, lawmakers took a fresh look at grid-hardening in 2019, passing a bill that would set up a separate regulatory track for funding burying power lines. Opponents of the new law warned it could lead to higher rates. JR Kelly served as Floridas public counsel from 2007 until January of this year, an appointed position in which he advocated for consumers in often-dense FPSC meetings. Kelly cautioned the new bill gives power companies license to charge ratepayers more, and said he would advise states like Louisiana to keep storm hardening as part of the normal rate-making process. He also pointed to bolstered tree management and newly required pole inspections as key parts of the endeavor. Kelly said the grid is more resilient now, but noted it can be difficult to measure exactly how much more and that customers ultimately pay for the investments. I think whatever you authorize, make sure you put proper checks and balances for accountability in place, Kelly said. Its clear that the changes made over the years have lessened the length of outages in some recent storms. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, it took just one day to restore power to half the affected customers, according to a 2020 report by an IEEE Power & Energy Society task force. By way of comparison, it took five days to restore power to half of customers after Wilma, a less-powerful storm that struck in 2005. Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up But there are caveats for Louisianans looking to the Sunshine State for guidance. The big one is the cost. Rates for customers of Floridas five investor-owned utilities shot up from an average of $102 a month in 2006 to $119 a month for someone who used 1000 kilowatt hours in 2009, according to Florida PSC figures. Rates have fluctuated in the years since and were at $114 a month in 2020, though its difficult to say how much is attributable to storm-hardening. Bradley Marshall, an attorney representing the environmental group EarthJustice, also pointed out the base rates which exclude things like fuel costs have more than doubled for customers of Florida Power and Light, the states largest utility, from 2006 until now. Marshall said the increasing base rates leave very little wiggle room for when fuel prices shoot up. While FPLs rates are actually lower now than in 2006, thats slated to change soon when rates go up, to about $15 a month higher than they were back then. Floridas grid has become very reliable, Marshall said. Obviously theres a tradeoff between reliability and costs and rates. Rates have gone up and continue to go up substantially. And unlike Louisiana, Florida has seen a significant increase in population over the last decade: Its growth of nearly more than 14% works out to nearly 3 million new residents, which means there are more potential ratepayers to share the cost of infrastructure investments. The increase in population alone is about two-thirds as many people as live in Louisiana. Floridians incomes are higher on average than in Louisiana, making it easier for power companies to charge ratepayers for grid investments. Some cities have moved to bury all their overhead lines. Winter Park, a city of about 31,000, and the small, wealthy enclave of Palm Beach are both in the process of doing so. Palm Beach is covering the cost with a 30-year property tax, according to the Palm Beach Daily News. Still, the debate over how aggressively to bolster the grid in Florida remains contentious. Robert Schef Wright, an attorney who represents customers and local governments before the Florida PSC, said he tangled for years with power companies who were reluctant to bury distribution lines the low-voltage overhead lines typically seen in neighborhoods. The 2004-2005 hurricane season changed that. We have had significant beef with some of the utilities regarding what they want to charge us to put our power lines underground, Wright said. That situation is improving across the board, he added, a development he attributes to power companies and residents starting to see the benefits. The money spent by utilities has also drawn criticism for helping rich neighborhoods first, while burdening all ratepayers with higher bills. Marshall, of EarthJustice, said burying lines is expensive, and that utilities tend to target wealthier neighborhoods first, even though the costs may be spread more broadly. He cautioned against giving power companies a blank check. Phillip May, President and CEO of Entergy Louisiana, pointed to the high costs of burying power lines, but said in an interview that the power company agrees lines should be buried in some instances. May said Entergy is looking at what Florida has done, but noted some things, like putting up concrete poles, are more difficult in coastal Louisiana. Entergy spokesperson David Freese added the company has chosen wooden poles that are as windproof as concrete poles because it's easier to find crews to work on them, making restoration quicker after a storm. Weve proven we can build robust structures, May said. Mother Nature will likely find a way to challenge whatever we build What we have to have is a plan A, a plan B, a plan C. We have to have alternatives and redundancies built into the system. While Entergy says its continually replacing older poles with newer ones, the company wouldnt provide a breakdown of how its newer structures fared versus older ones during Ida. Lawmakers requested similar data in a September hearing; another hearing is expected in the coming months. Experts say the ticket to a resilient grid is a combination of putting lines underground where feasible, along with erecting stronger above-ground poles that wont topple over when high winds come. Its very much a decision thats best made at the local level, taking into account the local threats, said Kury, of the University of Florida. Ultimately, the people pay for everything. There really is no way to get around that. After New Orleans was left in the dark for days following Hurricane Ida, City Council members are now searching for ways to force Entergy, rather than ratepayers, to cover the cost of needed repairs to the area's power grid. But experts say it's historically unprecedented for the utility itself to shoulder the cost of the recovery, despite the wishes of council members, who serve as the local power company's regulators, or its customers. And that's even with questions swirling about whether Entergy did enough to harden its transmission system to withstand storms like Ida. Instead, such money comes from ratepayers in New Orleans, thats done indirectly through an on-going fee that pays into a Storm Recovery Fund and from various levels of government. As Ida restoration continues, Entergy keeps wary eye on storm in gulf Tropical Storm Nicholas, which formed Sunday morning in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico, could impact restoration of power for some of the sli Elected officials have over the past weeks have taken a line that ratepayers shouldnt see an increase in their bills after the storm, though that would not preclude money coming from the ratepayer-funded pool. But there are signs a harder line could be emerging. Councilmember Helena Moreno, who chairs the Utility Committee that regulates Entergy New Orleans, said Monday she plans to launch various investigations and audits into the power company and its performance during the storm. Those could provide the jumping-off point for whats known as a prudence investigation, or an examination of whether the utility acted properly and, if not, assessing a fine. There are multiple avenues that Moreno said she expects the council to pursue. First theres a review of the utilitys performance during Hurricane Zeta last year, the report on which has not yet been completed. Then theres the overall review of Ida and an audit of the companys management that she said could help uncover inefficiencies. Such investigations could look into whether the system was properly prepared for a storm like Ida or whether its New Orleans Power Station near Michoud lived up to the promises made by the company when it said it would help should transmission lines fail. +3 Entergy gave shifting rationales for New Orleans East plant at center of Ida response When Hurricane Ida's winds knocked down transmission lines and plunged the New Orleans area into darkness Sunday night, many residents turned While that work goes on, Moreno said shes pausing consideration of a rate increase requested by Entergy earlier this summer that would add about $24 to the average customers bill. That measure was expected to go before the council in November. Im not letting anything happen now, until we have a full picture, a full assessment of what everything looks like and then its going to be a full-court press to make sure the ratepayers dont get stuck with this burden, Moreno said. Entergy New Orleans spokesperson Lee Sabatini said in an email the company was disappointed that Moreno would put a hold on those plans "without fully taking into consideration the consequences to the company and its customers." "We are eager to discuss this matter with the council," Sabatini said. The possibility of probes and a halt to Entergy's rate increases come amid increased scrutiny on the local power utility as well as the work of City Councilmembers to oversee them. In recent years, the council has tried to take a harsher line with Entergy on its missteps. The company was fined $5 million for its use of paid actors to support its controversial power plant in New Orleans East and then another $1 million for repeated outages in 2019. And with council elections set for November, oversight of Entergy as well as other issues related to Ida, including the city's stumbles with trash collections, are set to be front of mind for voters. Ultimately, however, it's still not clear how ratepayers, or state and federal funding, would avoid paying for the repairs. Entergy executives have said that they plan to seek reimbursement for the costs of bringing tens of thousands of workers to Louisiana to make the repairs needed to restore power to the more than a million customers who had outages after Ida. Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up They've argued that a Category 4 storm will undoubtedly knock out power due to downed trees, flooding or high winds taking out transmission infrastructure, and that they've done a good job restoring power as quickly as possible. During a recent press conference with New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell, Entergy New Orleans President and CEO Deanna Rodriguez suggested the ratepayers would likely end up paying some of the costs, according to Gambit. "Were going to have to take stock of what federal funds, infrastructure funds we can get to help us on the transmission [repairs], Rodriguez said. Were hoping that well be able to supplement some of what is the impact of the storm, so that it doesnt all go to the ratepayers," she added. The total cost of the power restorations efforts is not yet known. But restoration in New Orleans alone after Hurricane Zeta last year cost $35.8 million. Hurricane Isaac in 2012 cost $47.3 million for work restoring customers in the city. Entergy, like most power companies, typically gets reimbursed for the costs it bears for getting the lights and air conditioning back on after a disaster, either through various government programs or directly from the ratepayers themselves. In New Orleans, the costs that would normally be added onto a bill typically come from the utilitys Storm Recovery Fund, an account filled by a charge on every monthly bill that can be tapped when a storm blows through. That fund, which currently sits at $39 million, has gained increased attention since Idas winds knocked out all of Entergys eight transmission lines leading into the New Orleans area, plunging the city and three other parishes into darkness that didnt even begin to lift for days. Denying money from the fund would require the Council to find Entergy had acted imprudently, said Clint Vince, the councils outside consultant on its regulation of the company. Well have to look at what theyve done here and make sure everything was properly done but we havent done that examination yet, Vince said. Still, Vince said he couldnt think of any cases where the company had been found to be on the hook for storm-restoration costs. One potential complication for any such effort would be the nature of the outage in New Orleans. The overarching problem in the days after the storm was a failure of transmission lines that fall outside the city, and therefore are part of Entergy Louisiana and under the jurisdiction of the state Public Service Commission. If there were issues with those lines, it's not clear what it would take to make a case that Entergy New Orleans should be on the hook for failings by Entergy Louisiana, even though the two are sibling companies. In the longer term, officials are also floating the ultimate sanction for the power company: severing the citys ties with Entergy altogether. Moreno said she plans to kick off a study of alternatives to using the company as the citys electric monopoly, which could include getting power from a company elsewhere in the country, creating a consumer-owned non-profit or creating a municipally-owned power company. Its not entirely clear how realistic it would be to disentangle the city from Entergy, which currently controls the lines and power supplies throughout the parish and, through its parent company, much of the state. I get questions about competition for Entergy on a daily basis, from my constituents, from people within City Hall, from my friends, from my family, Moreno said. The answer is not a simple one. New Orleans Police were investigating a homicide in the Plum Orchard neighborhood of New Orleans East on Christmas morning, according to a press release from the department. Police responded shortly before 11 a.m. to a call of a man shot in a grassy lot behind a home on Plum Orchard Avenue. They discovered the victim fatally shot in the lot, which is in the 7300 block of Chef Menteur Highway. Additional details were not immediately available. Stay with nola.com for more on this developing story. For example, @UniverseIce claims that Samsung has included a special AI mode when shooting in 108 MP. By default, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will use pixel binning to reduce the ISOCELL HM3's output from 108 MP to 12 MP, thereby artificially creating larger pixels. Supposedly, Samsung's new AI mode will enhance details, with more impressive contrast, colours and details than using the standard 108 MP mode. Presumably, the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) in the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 has allowed Samsung to integrate this feature within the Galaxy S22 Ultra. Samsung is yet to announce the Exynos 2200, although we suspect that the SoC will also feature an improved NPU compared to the Exynos 2100. For reference, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will be the only device in the Galaxy S22 series that will have a 108 MP camera. "It's a pretty cool theme based on how the owner's relatives served in Vietnam and World War II," Jacobs said. "Our ceilings are higher so we could do some pretty cool stuff. There's supply chain issues right now but we hope to have a two-dimensional plane coming out of the brick wall. We might have to work with a fabricator." The Bombers will be located in a former furniture store, taking up about a quarter of the building. "Crown Point is growing, especially with all the medical coming in," he said. "I also happen to live in Crown Point and won't have to drive with friends to Munster to get that great barbecue." The menu will be the same as the Munster location. Top sellers include brisket, pulled pork and jalapeno cornbread. "We smoke our meat fresh every day," Jacobs said. "There are two smokers for the restaurant and a third for the catering orders." Bombers will do catering for as few as 50 people and as many as 500. "We're not even opening yet and already have a catering order for a wedding in Hebron." The restaurant serves a variety of local craft beers. It places an emphasis on quality. EAST CHICAGO A holiday homicide marred the otherwise peaceful streets of East Chicago early Christmas morning. Eric Douglas, 32, of East Chicago, was shot and killed in the 3900 block of Alder Street, about three blocks from Douglas' Butternut Street home, around 1:45 a.m., according to the Lake County coroner's office and East Chicago police. East Chicago Deputy Chief Jose Rivera said officers initially were dispatched to the area after the department's ShotSpotter tool indicated four rounds were fired nearby. After police arrived, officers discovered Douglas face down on the sidewalk in front of Ralo's Bar with an apparent gunshot wound to the head. Medics pronounced Douglas dead at the scene, Rivera said. According to Rivera, detectives attempted to speak to potential witnesses inside the bar but the door was locked. When detectives knocked on the door, neither patrons nor staff would come to the door or open it. Rivera said East Chicago detectives plan to follow-up with the owner of the bar and contact the Indiana State Excise Police "regarding previous problems with this establishment." CEDAR LAKE A South Lake County school district received a large grant as a part of a nationwide Department of Justice school safety initiative. The Department of Justice has doled out a total of $126 million in efforts to increase school safety under the STOP School Violence Act. On Thursday it was announced that the Hanover Community School Corporation was awarded $350,150, a DOJ news release said. Hanover was one of two Indiana school systems to be awarded the grants, including Rochester Community School Corporation. The funds are aimed at instituting safety measures in and around schools, supporting violence prevention efforts, giving training to faculty and students and implementing evidence-based threat assessments. I applaud the Rochester and Hanover, Indiana School Districts in their endeavors to enhance school safety with these federal grants, U.S. Attorney Clifford D. Johnson said. A total of 78 grants were awarded by the Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance and Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. The COPS School Violence Prevention Program also focuses on bullying and mental health issues. The site was nearly deserted. A few locals were tidying up after recent restoration work, and young camel drivers were out looking for clients. In the midday heat, the bright glow of the desert helped focus my attention on the pyramids themselves. Situated on the east bank of the Nile, some 150 miles by car northeast of Sudans capital, Khartoum, the Meroe pyramids around 200 in total, many of them in ruins seemed to be in perfect harmony with the surrounding landscape, as if the wind had smoothed their edges to accommodate them among the dunes. Hi, old friends! Margaux here, filling in for Em today. Once I file this newsletter, Im taking off for an almost two-week break. (But with kids at home and 892 presents to wrap before tomorrow morning, I use the term break very loosely.) Im not traveling, but my goal is to watch too many holiday movies, eat my weight in Italian rainbow cookies, find the best Christmas light display in North Jersey and cook as little as possible. Of course, I still plan to fulfill my Christmas cooking duties (no-yeast cinnamon rolls and sausage rolls made with store-bought puff pastry for breakfast; garlicky beef tenderloin, mashed potatoes, Yorkshire pudding and buttered green beans for dinner), but after that, Im phoning it in inasmuch as possible. There will be plenty of takeout, but Ill fill the gaps with simple, cozy dishes like those below. I hope you like them. If you celebrate the holiday, I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas. And if you dont, I wish you much to be merry about in 2022. (You can find me on Instagram, if you do that sort of thing.) In practical terms, that will mean U.S. cabinet secretaries make fewer calls to Pakistani army chiefs and more to civilian ministers. It will mean that President Biden should finally make a long-awaited call to Pakistans prime minister to discuss China, India, counterterrorism and the economy, not just cooperation on Afghanistan. There are risks to this approach. The military and intelligence services in Pakistan wont be thrilled about this downgrade in their status, and they may choose to retaliate by reducing cooperation in areas like intelligence sharing or by limiting access to Pakistani airspace for counterterrorism operations. This approach might also seem to be asking the U.S. government to overlook past issues with Pakistan (especially its support of the Taliban) and will require a level of generosity that some believe Pakistan does not deserve. But the benefits from such a reset stronger Pakistani civilian institutions, which will mean a more reliable partnership both diplomatically and militarily for the United States will ultimately outweigh short-term risks. Once Americas reliance on Pakistans military is explicitly and clearly reduced, U.S. policy toward Pakistan can be steered toward economic and other forms of engagement. This can be a step-by-step process. First, America and Pakistan should look for avenues to boost trade. (The United States is Pakistans top export destination, but Pakistan is Americas 56th-largest trading goods partner.) Washington could, for example, provide technical support to industries like textiles while making clear Pakistan must produce and market its goods at competitive prices. Second, U.S. firms should be encouraged to consider investments in Pakistan which could be a strong incentive for Pakistan to further improve its investment climate. America can also engage with Pakistan in other ways, like helping it tackle its massive air pollution problem. Engagement that is not conditional on security concerns wins hearts and minds in Pakistan. Thats not to say there wont need to be an Afghanistan element to this new approach, given that America still needs Pakistans help for over-the-horizon counterterrorism options to deal with any threats from militant groups in Afghanistan. Plus, America wants Pakistan to withhold recognition of the Taliban. But it should be only one aspect not all of U.S.-Pakistan policy. This new approach can reset the relationship in a constructive direction in the longer term, compared to the alternative: a policy menu of disengagement and sanctions. It felt sort of like old times, the other night at Sardis. Joe Petrsoric, back in his familiar red jacket, was lining up martini glasses at the second floor bar where he has worked since arriving from Yugoslavia in 1972. Manning the front door, his traditional dark suit now accessorized with a face mask, was Max Klimavicius, who started working in the kitchen in 1974 after immigrating from Colombia; he now runs the place. It had been 648 days since Sardis, a watering hole so closely entwined with Broadway that it was name-checked in the Rodgers and Hart song The Lady Is a Tramp, last served its cannelloni au gratin. And now, on the long night of the winter solstice, the oft-imperiled Main Stem mainstay with caricature-covered walls was ready to try again. The timing is nerve-racking. The Omicron variant is rampaging through New York City, wreaking havoc in the theater industry. There were 33 Broadway shows scheduled to perform Dec. 21, which Mr. Klimavicius chose for a soft reopening with limited hours, a limited menu and reduced capacity. But so many actors and crew members are now testing positive for the coronavirus that only 18 shows actually took the stage that night, and one of those made it to curtain only because the playwright grabbed a script and went on to replace an ailing performer. He coughed on me last night when I hugged him, she said. I dont feel scared. I never was scared. Dr. Luciana Borio, a former chief scientist at the Food and Drug Administration who advised Mr. Biden during the transition, said reaching the unvaccinated was now arguably the hardest aspect of the U.S. response one that would require a change of course in federal and state priorities, such as reopening community vaccine sites or urging providers to put more focus back on first doses. A spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services pointed to a wide-ranging vaccine public education campaign still underway at the agency, with special attention now to reaching young children and those in need of a booster. New ads this week targeting rural, younger Americans featured the language: When youre done with Covid, it doesnt mean its done with you. Other ads targeting rural adults warned of the financial costs of contracting the virus. In Cleveland, the Covid picture is one of the bleakest in the country. Intensive care units are crammed with patients with the Delta variant, with a surge of new Omicron infections looming. New infections in Cuyahoga County, which includes Cleveland, have grown by 234 percent in the past two weeks. Ohio, where 60 percent of people have gotten at least one shot, now has the countrys highest rate of Covid-19 hospitalization, and doctors say emergency rooms and I.C.U.s are running out of beds. They are being forced to call people in from holiday vacations as growing breakthrough infections whittle away at their staff levels. There was just a single open bed in a sixth-floor intensive care unit at the main campus of the Cleveland Clinic on Thursday morning, where about 90 percent of I.C.U. patients were unvaccinated. The demand for intensive care has gotten so great that when a bed opens up, nurses are cleaning rooms and moving patients themselves to make space for the next patient. It feels like it will never end, said Claire Strauser, a nurse manager in the intensive care unit whose adult son still has refused her entreaties to get vaccinated. Ms. Strauser said she will probably not see him over Christmas to reduce her own chances of getting infected and sidelined from a job she is devoted to. I dont know what can change, she said. Theyre just dug in. In 2019, a team of researchers confirmed that a wooden wreck resting off the muddy banks of the Mobile River in Alabama was the Clotilda, the last known ship to bring enslaved people from Africa to the United States. Now, the researchers say they have made another startling discovery: The wreck is remarkably well-preserved. As much as two-thirds of the original structure remains, including the hold below the main deck where 110 people were imprisoned during the ships final, brutal journey from Benin to Mobile in 1860. The researchers said it was possible that DNA could be extracted from the sealed, oxygen-free hull, which is filled with silt. Barrels, casks and bags used to stow provisions for the captives could also be found inside, they said. Its a time capsule that is cracked open and it survives, said James Delgado, an archaeologist who has been helping to study the site on behalf of the Alabama Historical Commission. Strong winds and whiteout conditions contributed to a 20-car pileup and other crashes in western Nevada on Sunday after a winter storm slammed into the Northwest over the holiday weekend. At least six people were injured, including one driver who crashed into the back of a Nevada highway patrol vehicle that had its emergency lights on while a trooper was helping a stranded driver. The trooper was unhurt. The crashes led officials to shut down Interstate 580 in Washoe Valley, Nev., in both directions. If you do not need to be out and about today, the Washoe County Sheriffs Office told drivers, please stay home. NAIROBI, Kenya Thousands of protesters flooded the streets of several cities in Sudan on Saturday, activists and pro-democracy groups said, denouncing the October military coup that imperiled the nations fragile steps toward stability and its attempt at a democratic transition after decades of military rule. The protests on Saturday were the 10th major demonstrations in the last two months, as coup opponents have remained defiant despite a continued crackdown from security forces, repeatedly pouring into the streets week after week to demand a return to civilian rule. Anticipating Saturdays protests, the authorities cut mobile internet starting from 6 a.m. local time, according to the internet monitoring organization NetBlocks. They also obstructed major roads in the capital, Khartoum, and closed bridges linking it to the neighboring city of Omdurman across the Nile River. As the protests got underway, television channels carried footage of security forces firing volleys of tear gas against protesters who were trying to march to the presidential palace. At least 16 people died late Friday in the Aegean Sea after a boat carrying migrants capsized, the Greek authorities said, the third episode in three days that when combined have led to at least 30 deaths this past week in Greek waters. Sixty-three people were rescued in what the Greek Coast Guard described in a statement as a gigantic operation that began Friday, after a boat foundered off the island of Paros, and that continued Saturday morning. The cause of the latest sinking was unclear as of Saturday afternoon. The Greek authorities are still searching for survivors from the two earlier wrecks, which were farther south in the Aegean, off the islands of Folegandros and Antikythera. On Thursday and Friday, divers recovered 11 bodies after a boat struck rocks near Antikythera, leaving about 90 migrants stranded there for the night. A video released on Friday by the Greek authorities showed the rescue mission. In her first Christmas address to Britain since the death of her husband, Queen Elizabeth II offered a personal message on Saturday as the nation is again experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases as the pandemic enters its third year. Since her husband, Prince Philip, died in April, Britons have been whiplashed by Covid. After prolonged restrictions, England reopened this summer to much rejoicing, but mere months later, many saw their plans upended again as the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the virus took hold. The royal family has also experienced its own turbulence. Concerns for the health of Queen Elizabeth, 95, have hung over much of the year, especially after she canceled a series of public engagements this fall. In her televised address on Saturday, the queen was seated at a desk in the White Drawing Room in Windsor Castle. Next to her was a photograph of her and Philip taken on their 60th wedding anniversary in 2007. KYIV, Ukraine Nations have chosen their leaders from among many fields, including the military and academia, but Ukraines government might be the first to draw heavily from television and film comedy. Before turning to politics, President Volodymyr Zelensky was a television actor and comic, and he has placed allies with similar histories in key positions throughout the government, including top advisers, legislators, administrators and even an intelligence chief. At a time when Russia has built up forces on Ukraines border and fear of an invasion is running high, Mr. Zelensky has surrounded himself with people drawn from his comedy studio, Kvartal 95. Few have any experience in diplomacy or warfare. There is that risk of people not having the gravitas, and not having experience, Orysia Lutsevych, the director of the Ukraine studies program at Chatham House in London, said in an interview. I wouldnt want to be in the room when there are just a couple of guys who know how to produce videos. This is not a peaceful time. This is a time of war. The Milwaukee had more than 100 sailors plus a helicopter combat crew and Coast Guard law enforcement unit on board when it left its home port in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 14 as part of the U.S. Southern Commands efforts to fight drug trafficking. The ship made a refueling and resupply stop at Guantanamo Bay on Monday and extended its stay there because of the outbreak. Commander Meadows added that the sailors had been confined to the pier and had not entered the base since arriving, sparing the small community at Guantanamo Bay the possibility of being exposed. In a statement on Friday, the Navy said that the ship is following an aggressive mitigation strategy and that the vaccine continues to demonstrate effectiveness against serious illness among the crew. Before the Milwaukee left Florida, Brian A. Forster, the ships commanding officer, said in a Navy news release that many of the crew members were on their first deployment and eager to see the world and accomplish missions. In March 2020, one of the militarys first encounters with the virus occurred aboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt. The ship docked in Guam, in the South Pacific, and ended up stranded there for months after dozens of sailors were infected and one died. The ships commander at the time sent a letter to Navy officials pleading for help tackling the outbreak and criticizing the Navys failure to provide the proper resources. He was removed from command of the ship after the episode. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Pope Francis said that those who are indifferent to the poor "offend God." In a Christmas season overshadowed by coronavirus worries, he also urged followers to value the "little things in life." A migrant boat carrying 80 people capsized off the coast of the island of Paros, leaving at least 16 dead. It is the third shipwreck this week involving migrants in Greek waters. A policeman has killed four fellow officers and injured three others in a shooting at a police station in Sri Lanka. A British estate agent who was shot dead in a senseless tragedy in the US has been described as kind, vivacious and.. Belfast Telegraph 26 Dec 2021 Daily Record 25 Dec 2021 The monarch delivered an emotional speech in which she paid tribute to her late husband's 'sense of service, intellectual curiosity.. A surfer has been killed in an "apparent shark attack" off the central coast of California on Christmas Eve, authorities have said. Sky News 25 Dec 2021 Authorities say a suicide bomber has killed six people in eastern Congo as diners gathered at a restaurant on Christmas Day The New York Times has appealed the ruling, saying the judge's decision should "raise alarms" about press freedoms and government overreach. 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. Prime Minister indicated he will not hesitate to act after Christmas if required Hull Daily Mail 25 Dec 2021 The Archbishop of Westminster and leader of Catholics in England and Wales has urged the Government not to reintroduce restrictions on churches amid record Covid-19 infection rates. Prime Minister indicated he will not hesitate to act after Christmas if required Three people have been arrested after a man was fatally stabbed outside a barbers shop in a busy London street in broad.. Belfast Telegraph 24 Dec 2021 Essex Chronicle 25 Dec 2021 Sara Trost was from Southend, and was the mother of a toddler, according to reports The toll on health care workers, many of whom are giving up their holiday to treat dangerously ill Covid patients, is severe. 2021 saw its fair share of tragic and jaw-dropping court action. While most South Africans will gather in festive cheer to recap the year; others will spend it from their cold jail cells. Anglican Archbishop Thabo Makgoba has delivered his Christmas Eve message, saying that more people are distrustful of the government. A German NGO said that one of its migrant rescue ships has picked up more than 270 people from the central Mediterranean Sea in three operations since Friday. The president of Ukraine held a video call with 20 United States senators and members of Congress on Friday amid tensions with Russia, which recently stoked fears of a possible invasion by massing troops near Ukraine's border. President Joe Biden has been ambushed on a live broadcast in the United States after phoning in to speak to children on Christmas Eve.Biden and his wife Jill were taking part in the annual program where NORAD (North American Aerospace... A bomb exploded at a restaurant on Saturday as patrons gathered on Christmas Day in an eastern Congolese town where Islamic extremists are known to be active.There was no immediate word on fatalities following the blast in Beni,... autoevolution 05 Jan 2022 At the time of writing, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is well on its way to the designated point in our solar system from.. It was a landmark event that ended an era: Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev's resignation 30 years ago finalized the USSRs demise. The AP's Moscow photo chief at the time, Liu Heung Shing, was the only foreign photographer who captured the pivotal moment on Dec. 25, 1991. In the fall of 1991, the Soviet Union was speeding up quickly to its dissolution. On Dec. 8, 1991, the leaders of the three Slavic Soviet republics met to declare that the Soviet Union was no more, and to create the new Commonwealth of Independent States, which was joined by eight other republics two weeks later. ___ EDITORS NOTE: Liu Heung Shing worked as The Associated Press Moscow photo chief in 1990-1993. Liu and his AP colleagues won the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography for documenting the Soviet collapse. ___ It was clear at that point that Gorbachev was unable to reverse the countrys de-facto breakup, and when Liu got a call on Dec. 24 inviting him to the Kremlin he realized that the terminal moment had come. Next evening, Liu entered the Kremlin with a crew led by CNN President Tom Johnson to attend Gorbachev's live televised address to the nation. I had covered China earlier in post-Mao times, and I know how much China was influenced by the Russian revolution of 1917 and how after World War II the whole of Europe and America soon fell into the Cold War, said Liu, who left the AP in 1995 and became the founder and director of the Shanghai Center of Photography. So I said to myself: You know, this is a big deal in terms of history. When he took his position under a TV camera tripod, a KGB guard sternly warned him not to take any pictures during Gorbachevs speech so that the click of his cameras shutter wouldnt ruin the live broadcast. Liu pondered how to best capture the watershed moment and quickly decided that an image of Gorbachev putting down his speech in the end would best convey the mood. He decided not to use flash that would make the picture look like a routine press conference-style shot, and opted for a slow shutter speed to capture sheets of paper moving and reflect the fleeting moment. The most important consideration was I want to make sure that you still see the paper moving, Liu said, adding that he thought it would best reflect the passing of the moment of history. Once Gorbachev ended his speech and closed the folder containing it, Liu pressed the button and as soon as I took that one picture the KGB guard standing on my left behind the camera ... punched me through the tripod, Liu recalled. But it didnt hurt really bad. Eager to quickly process the film and send the picture to AP clients, he sprinted down a giant red-carpeted Kremlin staircase. I was running like mad, I was running like I was running in two hundred meters in the Olympics, he recalled. Down the stairs he saw hundreds of journalists waiting to get in, who immediately realized that they had missed the moment. I heard them all screaming four-letter words to me and sticking middle fingers up in the air, but I just kept running, he said. I went straight to my car and I saw the Soviet Unions flag coming down and the Russian flag, the Russian Federation flag, went up and I was driving madly to go back to the bureau. In that pre-digital age Liu would only know whether his image was sharp after processing the film, and he feared that the slow shutter speed might have left Gorbachev blurred: It would have been my lifetime failure. So I went back and processed the film, he recalled. What a sigh of relief, you know. Mr. Gorbachev was sharp, the paper was moving, and thats the picture. And then, Liu said, it made the front page of practically all papers next day around the world end of the Soviet Union." New York, US (PANA) - In the wake of recent developments in northern Ethiopia, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged warring sides to seize the opportunity to bring an end to more than a year of fighting in the Tigray region This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact the Parsons Sun office at (620) 421-2000 if you have any questions A Russian court has jailed for 21 years a former Orthodox priest, said to have adopted 70 children, for a string of child abuse offences. Nikolai Stremsky was found guilty of raping several children and committing other violent acts in his parish in the Urals region of south-west Russia. Stremsky was reputed to have the largest family in Russia and was awarded the national Order of Parental Glory. He has been stripped of his honour as well as his priesthood. Stremsky and his wife ran a foster home in Saraktash as an abb Read Full Story .... intimes.in >>> : Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video An American lady has expressed shock after her phone which she lost in Washington DC, was put up for sale at a phone shop in Ghana. The lady said after she decided to track her phone with the help of an Apple Support System Find My Phone after it got missing in Washington DC in October, she got a mail from Apple telling her that the phone had made a sound. When she tracked the location of the iPhone, she found out it was in Ghana. She made further checks and realized it was on sale at a shop in Circle Accra. She expressed shock that her phone got to Africa so fast. Watch the video below.... Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A man from Baltimore City Maryland and a Registered Nurse anesthesiologist named Jay Black (Rajaee) has been spotted in a viral video shooting his ex-girlfriend after which he drove to his ex-wifes resident to finish her off too. The man who seemed to have been battling with depression for a while then took his life by shooting himself. Shortly before committing the heinous crime, he shared a video where he shared his last words and what his intentions were. He posted; I am not happy for doing this. For everybody that supported me, knows what is going on, thank you all..I have been going through a custody battle, I have been going through having my ex-wife said that I molested by children and all kinds of craziness. I have been fighting for custody for three years. So, you know..What up oliver, you know about all these things. I started dating somebody new, she got pregnant, we got into a fight, she also threatened that she is going to do the same thing my ex-wife did . That you are not going to see your kids, bla bla bla . This is holiday; I dont have any family or nothing. Anyway, I just did something crazy. I just shot my ex-girlfriend in the head ye all . It felt like a dream ahhmm..I never thought that I will be that guy. I cant go to prison, so the person that really started my depression is my ex-wife. So she is next and then I am going to do same to myself. I just want to say this to people, dont play with peoples emotion, and dont lie on these men ohh here is my ex-wife Today is the day View this post on Instagram A post shared by Van De Maestro (@vandemaestrogh) Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Silver Haircut & Silver hair have commissioned and dedicated a state-of-the-art barbershop to the Senior Correctional Center formerly Borstal Institute. The CEO of Silver Haircut, Mr. Eric Frimpong on his part expressed happiness that Silver Haircut Gh has achieved its goal of undertaking this initiative after an appeal was made to them when they donated to the facility during the COVID-19 era. According to Mr. Frimpong, the commissioning of the barbershop is to help transform the lives of juveniles who are in conflict with the law. He stated that Silver Haircut Gh is not only providing the barbershop but will also provide tutors to assist juveniles at the Senior Correctional Centre in learning a skill that will benefit them much. He commended his staff for their enormous support in making this project a reality and also thanked his customers for patronizing their services. We hope our commitment and support will go a long way to augment your efforts towards rehabilitating inmates he added. Addressing the press, DOP Samuel Adjei - Attah expressed his profound gratitude to Silver Haircut Gh for such benevolence and indicated it will go a long way to improve the wellbeing of the juveniles. According to him, the acquisition of skills by prison inmates is very important because it contributes to reducing recidivism. In addition to the vocational skills training available at SCC, the barbershop will widen the variety of vocational skills at the disposal of the juveniles, thereby giving them more options to choose from. He however urged the officers to ensure the facility gifted them is well maintained and operated judiciously to achieve its intended purpose. OIC at the Senior Correctional Center, Madam Victoria thanked Silver Haircut Gh for such a laudable initiative and assured that trained officers will be put in charge to sustain and maintain the facility. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The National Cathedral, when completed, is also going to be a burial place for all ex-presidents and important personalities when they die, the Founder and General Overseer of Power Chapel Worldwide, Prophet Victor Kusi Boateng, who is also the Secretary to the Board of the National Cathedral, has said. He explained that the project, which is going to be the biggest Bible Museum in the world, will serve multi-purposes. It is not just about the cathedral, it is Biblical museum which is going to be the biggest. We are building in terms of space, in terms of contents and in terms of technology. We are building the biggest Bible museum in the world that is an African Bible Museum because a lot of people dont know that there is a business white man who came to colonize us and there was the religious white man who came to empower us. They were the ones that came to help us build schools like Prempeh College , Opoku Ware, St Augustines , Wesley Girls, Holy Child . A lot of people dont know that Africa plays role in the Bible. We dont know of who the Ethiopian Eunuch is and his influence, we dont even know that Africa was the place that saved Jesus from being prematurely killed, he said on the Good Evening Ghana show on Thursday December 23. He added We are building the state-of-the-art and one of the best museums in the world and the biggest Bible Museum in the world but to be called the African Museum of the Bible. It is going to bring African significance in the Bible. Five thousand expandable to 20,000, you can open it up . We have a museums down there, where ex-presidents who enter into eternity will be buried, we call it a Museum. What we are doing has never been done anywhere in the world, Rev Kusi Boateng added. The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta had told Parliament that Cathedral would be officially opened on March 6, 2024, upon completion. He said this while delivering the 2021 mid-year budget review in Parliament on Thursday, July 29, 2021. Mr. Speaker, work on the National Cathedral is progressing speedily, and following the program of the contractors, and with God helping us, the National Cathedral is expected to be officially commissioned on March 6, 2024. Upon completion, the National Cathedral would provide a sacred space for formal religious activities of State and symbolize the enormous contribution of faith to Nation Building. The board, which was inaugurated in March 2017, is chaired by a former Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Ghana, the Most Rev. Samuel Asante Antwi, with the Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast, the Most Rev. Charles Palmer-Buckle, as Vice-Chairman. Source: 3news.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A Surete du Quebec police car is seen in Montreal on Wednesday, July 22, 2020. Quebec provincial police say several people are injured after dozen of cars were involved in a pileup on Highway 40, northeast of Montreal, this afternoon. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson British Columbia's provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, Friday July 3, 2020. Police are thanking a Good Samaritan who found an envelope containing $9,000 in downtown Victoria on Tuesday and turned it in. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld Johnny Chan Out as Owner, Houston Poker Room Rebranded as 101 Poker Club December 24, 2021 Jon Sofen Johnny Chan's venture as a poker room part-owner in Texas was short-lived. Three weeks after the club mysteriously closed its doors, a new owner has purchased the business and is rebranding the club as the 101 Poker Club. When Johnny Chan's 88 Social poker room closed temporarily in early December, a number of players still had chips to be cashed in for money. The new owner, Sanjeev Vora, who spoke with PokerNews via a phone conversation, has a plan in place to ensure funds are available to cover all chips whether they are in lockboxes or elsewhere. Assessing Risk Texas poker rooms, due to state laws, operate differently than most brick-and-mortar casinos. Instead of taking rake, which would be illegal in the state, the rooms operate as clubs and charge monthly membership and/or daily seat fees. Most poker clubs, such as the room formerly known as Johnny Chan's 88 Social, are located in strip malls or business centers as opposed to being attached to a hotel and inside a full casino. As Vora acknowledged, there's always going to be the threat that Texas lawmakers may one day attempt to shut down the card rooms, but he remains positive and understands the risk. I am aware of the risk, and anything that you do there is a level of risk involved," Vora said. "So, going in, my management team and I will operate the business in a manner we believe will comply with Texas Law. I have lawyers that are very experienced with the gaming laws of Texas and how we should operate in order to not be clearly in violation of the gaming laws. He continued saying that he believes "there's less energy among politicians to shut this thing down, and more energy to make it work." Vora is the CEO of Chemium International Corp, a petrochemical company, and has worked in the energy industry for the past 35 years. The University of Colorado graduate with a degree in chemical engineering recently decided to make a side investment in a business related to a game he loves. Renovations and Reopening Date Vora has taken over ownership of former world champion Johnny Chan's poker room in Houston and is already in the process of completely renovating and rebranding the place. He expects to soft launch the new room on December 27, and he praised his new general manager, Jeff Faber, for tirelessly working to prepare for opening. I am so fortunate to have Jeff on my team with his reputation and experience," Vora said. A glimpse inside the new 101 Poker Club in Houston, Texas. Major renovations are already in the works for the business previously part owned by the poker icon. Vora said they've "replaced the outdated carpet," new signage appears outside the building, and that his customers will love the new "feel and warmth" when they walk in the doors. He did, however, make it clear that players shouldn't expect the full renovation to be complete for a few months. What I want is people to come next week and check out the new look," the new poker room owner said about the soft launch on Monday. Why the 101 Poker Club Partnership Vora is the sole owner of the poker club, and there's a reason why he's affiliating his business with the 101 Poker Club brand, although that company holds no ownership stake. He's been a regular at the 101 Poker Club in Katy, Texas, and has great respect for how that room is operated. "101 is my family," Vora says. "I love the way I'm treated by the players, dealers, and owner at 101." Sanjeev Vora cashing out. The new card room owner is a known player in the area. He admits he isn't the best player in the world, and acknowledged that he knows why so many players get on a wait list for a game he's in. "They love to play against me because I play a bit sloppy sometimes," he said. "But I'm not an idiot who doesn't know why they want to play with me." Being an action player isn't the only reason others enjoy playing with him. He prides himself on being friendly and social at the table and doesn't berate opponents. Despite his loose reputation, he says he's better at poker, mostly pot-limit Omaha (PLO), than some might think. "I get called often when I have the nuts because they never believe me," he joked. Vora wants to bring the same positive environment he's enjoyed at the 101 Poker Club in Katy to his new operation. He'll be partnering with the owners of 101 on future tournaments in a licensing deal, and he expects to host "some of the largest events in Houston" down the road. I would say that if everything goes as anticipated, we should have large tournament events coming up in the second quarter of 2022," Vora projects. The PLO grinder anticipates running a successful business and said Chan's room was profitable likely until a falling out between the co-owners, although he made it clear he doesn't like speculating when he doesn't have all the facts. If I make money, everybody surrounded by me should be making money. Im in this business to be profitable, yet I want to make sure the integrity, ethics, honesty is extremely important to me. Big Name Pros Getting in on the Texas Poker Craze Mike Matusow said earlier this month he had interest in buying a stake in Chan's poker room. Vora said he wasn't sure if the four-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner was part of a group of investors that initially attempted to buy into the club. In the end, with the advice from his kids, he determined that being the sole owner was the wisest decision. Matusow and Chan aren't the only prominent poker pros to dabble in the Texas poker scene. Doug Polk has also publicly stated that he's contemplating opening a card room in Austin, where he moved to from Las Vegas earlier this year. Texas' poker industry has grown significantly over the past couple of years, including in Houston where Vora's poker club will be opening. Games are known to be juicy in many of these card rooms, and it's the reason a number of poker players have relocated to the Lone Star State in recent years. *Images courtesy of Sanjeev Vora. Moncks Corner, SC (29461) Today Partly cloudy. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 41F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 41F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Get the SC business stories that matter. Our newsletter catches you up with all the business stories that are shaping Charleston and South Carolina every Monday and Thursday at noon. Get ahead with us - it's free. NORTH CHARLESTON Charleston Animal Society President Joe Elmore said he believes the lack of health care access for animals has moral implications because many people view their pets as more than property. "Folks consider their pets part of their families," he said. Several animal shelters across South Carolina are overcrowded, an issue that animal advocates say is due to a statewide veterinarian shortage. The situation is keeping shelter animals from being spayed or neutered in a timely fashion and, because of that, the animals can't be adopted. This has created a backlog of animals stranded in shelters. The lack of animal doctors became an issue particularly in 2021, said Denise Wilkinson, CEO of Pawmetto Lifeline in Columbia. In South Carolina, 51 out of the state's 75 animal shelters don't have a vet, Wilkinson said. The state also has a small number of privately owned clinics. Wilkinson acknowledged that some health care professionals have argued the issue could be addressed if vets were paid more money. Wilkinson noted Pawmetto Lifeline has an ad offering $110,000 to $140,000 for a veterinarian, but the organization hasn't gotten any responses. "It's not just about pay," she said. "There's a vet shortage." The situation puts animals at risk. Extended stay in shelters leads to mental deterioration, which leads to aggression in many cases. Animal caretakers say a long-term solution is for a vet school to be established in South Carolina. But advocates say the issue can be more immediately addressed by improving health care access for animals. Several shelters across the state attempted to bring attention to the problem in August by joining together to declare a state of emergency, announcing the lives of "thousands" of animals were at stake as homeless animals had been pouring into shelters for weeks. Since last summer, the Charleston Animal Society's emergency adoption campaign has helped free up space in its North Charleston facility. Also, in the past two months, the group has led a statewide spay and neuter initiative that brought in veterinarians from outside South Carolina to treat 700 pets. The Charleston shelter has also worked to help transport dogs and cats from the most at-risk shelters in South Carolina to facilities outside the state in areas such as Boston. More solutions need to be brought to the table, Elmore said. The Charleston-area shelter is overcrowded by more than 100 pets. The center's current efforts to address the problem are not sustainable, he said. We cannot continue to bring additional vets from out of state to help us with our spay and neuter needs," he said. Wilkinson said the South Carolina Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners and the state's Association of Veterinarians should embrace a "human medical model" for animals. There should be trained, certified vaccinators for animals, allowing pets to be treated by people other than veterinarians, Wilkinson said. "We can all go now to a pharmacy and get vaccination for COVID by a technician," she said. "We dont have to be vaccinated by a doctor." Telemedicine appointments should be an option for animal shelters and clinics as well, she said. "It's about expanding access to care," she said. The Rev. Adam Shoemaker sees a connection between faith and animal care. The Bible speaks about people's responsibility to care for the created order, he said. He's also witnessed firsthand the deep pain felt by those who've lost their animals. He's often sought to comfort those families with prayer. "I do think we should be sensitive to the health care needs of the animals in our life," he said. "There is a morality to that." Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations. The U.S. Justice Department announced this week that thousands of federal prison inmates who were sent home due to the pandemic will not be required to return to prison to serve their sentences. The DOJ reversed an opinion by the Trump administrations Department of Legal Counsel stating that the Bureau of Prisons must recall prisoners in home confinement to correctional facilities if they do not meet the normal home-arrest criteria. Nate Hochman at NRO has the details. He calls the Garland DOJs reversal what it is effectively a jailbreak, engineered by left-wing activist groups such as the ACLU and the Justice Action Network under the pretenses of public health. Hochman notes that the Biden DOJ originally agreed with the position of the predecessor administration. However, after months of pressure from activist groups, the pathetic Garland did an about face. It appears that approximately 3,000 criminals will avoid returning to prison thanks to the Garland jailbreak. Many, I assume, will be characterized as low-level offenders. But were talking about criminals who broke federal law, including drug laws. Federal prisons house very few drug offenders, or other kinds of inmates, who properly can be characterized as low level. And a great many federal prisoners committed more serious crimes than they were convicted of, but benefited from plea deals. A deal is a deal. These prisoners must be presumed to have committed only the crime of which they were convicted. But by the same token, they should serve the prison sentence they agreed to in the deal. There is no justification for the Garland jailbreak. Its one year since one of Nollywoods pioneer directors and scriptwriters, Chico Ejiro, passed on but his footprints in the industry remain evergreen. Mr Ejiro died in the early hours of Christmas Day, December 25, 2020, as a result of complications arising from high blood pressure. He had only just concluded directing his new movie on Christmas eve. Despite the festivities, the Christmas of 2021 turned gloomy when one of nollywoods finest exports made his eternal exit from earth. He was 57. Ejiro was buried on February 20, 2021. Nicknamed Mr Prolific, in his lifetime, he directed over 80 movies within a five-year periodeach one was shot in as little as three days. While the exact number of movies he has worked on as either director, producer, or both is unknown, his colleagues said they were over 300 movies. Contributions The late veteran filmmaker epitomised the creative genius of early Nollywood and the survival spirit that spurred their artistic race. The straight-to-home video productions became popular in 1992 with the production of Living in Bondage by Nek Video Links headed by Kenneth Nnebue. Nollywoods soaring popularity at the time piqued his interest. Ejiro, who bagged a diploma in Agriculture from the Obafemi Awolowo University and a degree from the Federal University of Agriculture, Umudike, soon kicked off his very rewarding career in filmmaking. As a screenwriter, he partnered with over 30 different movie organisations for television and film productions through his company, Grand Touch Pictures. He held what is obviously an unbroken record of being the Nigerian director with the greatest number of home videos produced for public viewing. The prolific directors last works were filled with humour. The likes of Jim Iyke, Ramsey Nouah, Victoria Iyama and Uche Iwuji, whom he discovered, owe their careers and success to Ejiro. Even in death, the late filmmaker has been remembered and honoured for his enormous contributions to the industry. Intimidating profile He was the most popular filmmaker between the late 90s to the early 2000s which included movies like Full Moon (1998), Blood money (1997), Outcast (2001), Outkast (2001/2002), Ashanti (2003) and Deadly Desire (2004). Ejiro was featured in the American movie and documentary film director, Jamie Meltzers 2007 documentary titled Welcome to Nollywood. Meltzer followed Ejiro as he shot Family Affair 1 and Family Affair 2 which was released in the same year. The film explored the peculiar inner workings, economic challenges, and diverse array of colourful Nollywood movies. It premiered at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, Avignon Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival in the summer of 2007. The recent Aki and Pawpaw movie, which was released on December 12, was also dedicated to late Ejiro and Sam Loco, two industry stars who are greatly missed in Nollywood. Advertisements He is survived by his wife, Joy, three children and two brothers (Peter Red Ejiro and Zeb Ejiro). His last son, Viano, died in November 2021 after an illness. A top leader at the National Assembly has dismissed media reports that members of the two chambers of the assembly had commenced collection of signatures to counter President Muhammadu Buharis refusal to assent the electoral amendment bill. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, made this known when he fielded questions from State House correspondents after a closed door meeting with President Buhari in the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The Speaker, who met the president alongside the Senate President, said he was not aware of any move by the legislators to override the president, saying collection of signatures was not an easy task as being speculated. He said: Im not aware of any such as at least not in my chambers. Were on a break right now, a collection of signatures is not something that is done when were on break, when everybodys scattered. What I said very clearly, I made it abundantly clear at our last sitting, that we will look at the Presidents veto and his reasons. And when we come back, its not something were going to do on a knee jerk. When we come back from our recess, theres still ample time, we will decide one way or the other which way to go, the options are there. We will do what is right for the Nigerian people. And I made it very clear that were not going to throw away the baby with the bathwater. Nigerians want it and Nigerians will get it. We may have tarried a little while. But by the time we come back, right, at least as far as the house, and Im sure the Senate as well, will be the first thing on our agenda. The very week we come back from recess. The Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, who also addressed the correspondents, revealed that the recently passed 2022 appropriation bill of N17.13 trillion would be transmitted to the president by next week for signing. He said: Were very optimistic. In fact, were very sure that Mr President will sign the bill into an act of the National Assembly next week by the grace of God. And this is the way we should always work together. This is our third appropriation bill to be passed before we go on Christmas break. It has shown how important the passage and the assent to the budget before the end of the year has been. (NAN) The Nigerian government has increased the hazard allowances applicable to health workers in federal government-owned healthcare facilities across the country. The government increased the allowance for doctors from N5,000 to between N32,000 to N40,000, while other health workers are to receive between N15,000 and N34,000. But a group of doctors under the umbrella of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has kicked against the approved percentages of the increment, insisting that it contradicts the content of the template jointly drawn by the union and government representatives at various meetings held over the matter. Increment The new increment was contained in a circular with Reference SWC/S/04/S.218/11/406, dated December 22, 2021, from the office of the executive chairman, National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission (NSIWC). It reads in part; Concerning the review of the Hazard Allowance applicable to Health Workers in the services of the Federal Hospitals, Medical Centres and Clinics in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). The hazard allowance was reviewed to a flat rate that ranges from N5,000 to between N15,000 and N34,000 for health workers on the CONHESS salary structure, while doctors on CONMESS had theirs reviewed from N5,000 to between N32,000 and N40,000. Hazard allowance Hazard allowance, a wage supplement paid to workers who do dangerous jobs, has been among key negotiation points between Nigerian doctors and the government for many years. Following the interventions of prominent Nigerians and relevant stakeholders and the commitment of the government to address grey areas, the then striking members of NARD, the countys larger group of doctors, suspended its nine-week prolonged strike. The new announcement by the government is, therefore, part of the efforts by the government to fulfil its pledge during the negotiations with the workers. But the concerned doctors have kicked against the fresh decision. New template unacceptable -NARD The leadership of NARD on Friday rejected the newly revised hazard pay. The association, in a statement jointly signed by its president, secretary general and publicity secretary, Dare Ishaya, Sulaiman Ismail and Alfa Yusuf respectively, said the new allowance does not reflect the true collective bargaining agreement (CBA) entered with the government. It said members of the association are dissatisfied with the governments resolutions. The statement reads in part; Whilst we acknowledge the FGs frantic efforts in improving the welfare of Health Workers in Nigeria in this regard, we wish to state that, this resolution is a far cry from the Final Position of NMA/NARD in the last meeting with the FG. Hence, the NARD are disenchanted and dissatisfied with this resolution and therefore reject it in its entirety. This new hazard circular is not the product of a true collective bargaining agreement (CBA), but a one-sided conclusion that betrays the spirit of sincere amicable wage negotiations. The doctors appealed to the government to implement what they described as the agreed hazard allowance rates to avoid another lengthy negotiation process in future. The rampaging wave of the dangerous coronavirus pandemic has hit Nigerias State House, otherwise called Presidential Villa, as some administration officials and aides of President Muhammadu Buhari have contracted the virus. But the Nigerian government is keeping a sealed lip on the matter, even as newspapers correspondents are advised against reporting the surge in infections at the villa. Presidency sources named those believed to have been infected by the virus to include the Permanent Secretary in the State House, Tijani Umar; the Presidents aide-de-camp (ADC), Yusuf Dodo; his chief security officer (CSO), Aliyu Musa, and his senior special assistant on media and publicity, Garba Shehu. One source included the minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on the list. But the minister told PREMIUM TIMES he was neither infected nor down with the virus. But Mr Shehu, who confirmed that he was afflicted by the mild variant of the COVID-19, in a text message shared with our reporter on Saturday, said he has no confirmation of other cases mentioned to him. He added that he was already fit, claiming he just completed his physical exercises when our reporter called, but that it would require scientific evidence to claim that he no longer had the virus. His message reads in part; I have no confirmation of the cases you mentioned, but yes I have been afflicted by the mild variant of the COVID-19. I felt okay from the beginning, maybe because one had received all three jabs, and right now, I feel 100 per cent. I just finished my hour-long running exercise. But the strange thing about this ailment is that it is the scientists, not you, that will say you are okay. Right now, Im taking my prescriptions and isolating, and would go back for a test to ascertain if the virus is still here or it has left me. Thanks for your goodwill. Efforts to get the reaction of Mr Garbas colleague and special adviser on media and publicity to the president, Femi Adesina, on the matter, were unsuccessful as his phone always indicated busy when called many times, and he also did not reply to a short message sent to him, many hours after. On his part, the special assistant to the President on digital and new media, Tolu Ogunlesi, said he could not comment on the matter, as he referred our reporter to those he described as the governments spokespersons. Initial efforts to reach the information minister, Mr Mohammed, were unsuccessful as his phone line was not available for more than 24 hours while his aide, Segun Adeyemi, neither picked his calls nor replied to a short message sent to him. But the minister later reached out after this report was published to say he was not infected by the virus as claimed. He said he was at the presidential villa for different engagements on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I attended FEC meeting at the villa on Wednesday, an extraordinary FEC meeting on Thursday and the swearing-in of the new minister on Friday. Journalists saw me at this engagements. I am a member of the presidential committee on COVID-19 and if I am infected by the virus, I know what to do. Also note that to be infected by the disease is not something to conceal or to be ashamed of. Reason for Mrs Buharis early closure of office This newspaper understands that due to the number of officials affected by the pandemic, governance may have been affected at the centre. Sources, who do not want to be quoted for fear of sanctions, said the decision to shut down the office of the wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, earlier in the week, was not unconnected to the huge number of officials at the State House that were already confirmed positive for the virus. The special adviser on media to Mrs Buhari, Aliyu Abdullahi, said although the situation was not part of the reason advanced for the early closure in the statement issued, it could also not be unconnected to it. He, however, declined to either confirm or decline, saying the presidents wife may have taken the decision to avoid the spread of the virus. Asked if the virus scare was part of the reasons for the early closure of the presidents wifes office, Mr Abdullahi, after much hesitation, said; Well, I think that is part of the reasons, though it wasnt stated in the release announcing the closure. But that would be part of the reasons. But this is also a holiday time and so the first lady might have felt that the office should close early to avoid a widespread. However, Mr Abdullahi said his statement never meant that he confirmed that anyone had contracted the virus, saying he didnt have such information. But you know it could be just a caution, he said. Nigerias rising COVID-19 cases The Nigerian government on Thursday threatened it might be forced to impose fresh restriction measures to curb the spread of the virus as the nation on Wednesday recorded 4,035 new cases. Wednesdays figure has remained the highest daily number of cases recorded in Nigeria since the outbreak in the country in February 2020. While appearing as a guest on Kaakaki, a morning programme on the Africa Independent Television (AIT) on Thursday, the director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Ifedayo Adetifa, said in spite of the efforts by the government to sensitise Nigerians on the virus, many still doubt its existence. He said the disbelief is quite a phenomenon that is making the war against the spread of the pandemic a difficult fight for the government. Advertisements He said; It is quite a difficult phenomenon, because for some people, there is no evidence you can provide to convince them. We report infection records daily as part of the efforts of being transparent. Even the cases that we report are just underestimated because we simply are unable to test as many people as can be done in a well-resourced location. It is everywhere, we all know, there are many people who have tested positive and isolated at home and the evidence we have is our surveillance system which now shows exponential rise in the number of cases. He said the disease that has claimed about 3,000 lives in Nigeria cannot be said to be phantom, saying only the affected families can tell of the consequences of the vacuum created by the departed. Speaking on the curfew threat, Mr Adetifa said; I am sad to report that already, it looks like in addition to the wave of confirmed cases, we may now be seeing an increase in the number of patients that have been admitted to isolation centres because people are not adhering to safety measures as advised and are not taking vaccination. By that, we are allowing transmission to continue in an unmitigated fashion which means that there is a risk that our health system might get overwhelmed, and if it continues, then the government may be forced to put in place, more stringent measures, that includes restrictions of gathering and and even curfews. The NCDC boss has also consistently advised Nigerians against lowering their guards while also urging everyone to take the vaccines as the only antidote available globally at the moment. At a media briefing on Friday, Mr Adetifa said a total of 45 Omicron variants of the virus have been recorded in Nigeria, making Nigeria the third country with a high figure of Omicron cases in Africa. EDITORS NOTE: This post has been updated with the comments by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed. The minister and his spokesperson could not be reached before the initial publication of this report. President Muhammadu Buhari has denied endorsing any of the two factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State. Mr Buhari stated this in a statement by his spokesperson, Garba Shehu, on Saturday. Mr Shehu said his statement was to counter a public statement by one of the factions of the All Progressives Congress in Kano State, that they have received the endorsement of President Muhammadu Buhari. This is blatantly untrue. This cannot happen when matters are awaiting adjudication by the courts. To be clear on this one, President Buhari has not endorsed any faction. His support is for the All Progressives Congress as a Party, united and strong, and not of any faction, Mr Shehu said. The APC in Kano is split into two factions, one loyal to the state governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, and the other to a senator, Ibrahim Shekarau. Just like some other state chapters, the crisis within the Kano chapter degenerated into a legal tussle after the October 18 parallel congresses that produced two sets of executives loyal to the two leaders. Mr Shekaraus faction elected Haruna Danzago as chairman while Mr Gandujes faction elected Abdullahi Abbas. It is against this backdrop that a High Court in Abuja on two different sittings ruled on the matter. The court, in November 30 and December 17, ruled in favour of the faction loyal to Mr Shekarau, the senator representing Kano Central, after the APC headquarters had endorsed the congresses that produced Mr Abbas-led executive. While the matter remains in court, Mr Danzago, after meeting with Mr Buhari on Friday, told BBC Hausa that the president congratulated him as the legitimate chairman of the party, a claim Mr Shehu has now denied. He (the President) asked me what did you get? I replied to him that I got the chairmanship of APC in Kano, then he congratulated me, Mr Danzago reportedly said in Hausa. He added that there was no discussion around the Kano APC crisis between him and the president owing to the fact that the matter is still in court. The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Friday rejoiced with Nigerians on the joyous occasion of Christmas which commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ. In a statement by its national secretary, John Akpanudoedehe, the party urged Nigerians to use the occasion of Christmas to spread love among themselves, particularly the needy and vulnerable among us. The Party urges prayers and support for our selfless security and other essential services massively deployed around the country to ensure safe travel and yuletide festivities, the ruling party said. The APC said: We assure citizens of President Muhammadu Buhari governments capacity, intent and urgency to check and contain all criminalities so that Nigerians can go about their legitimate activities across the country safely. The party urged Nigerians to be mindful of the COVID-19 global pandemic as they go about visiting and celebrating with family, friends and loved ones, especially with the recent wave of the Omicron variant. We encourage citizens to take the widely available vaccines and adhere to public health protocols in order to halt the spread of the virus, the statement said. It said: The polity is rife with assorted views on the 2021 Electoral Act Amendment Bill. For us in the APC, we remain solidly-committed and support constitutionally-permitted as well as practical innovations and processes that will improve the transparency and credibility of Nigerias electioneering processes and internal democracy, specifically the nomination of political party candidates. The APC said the recently-launched National Development Plan (NDP) for 2021 to 2025 by Mr Buhari will further spur Nigeria to achieve robust development through the use of science, technology and innovation to drive growth. The plan, the party said, will consolidate on the implementation of ongoing major infrastructure and other development projects across the country and open up economic opportunities for Nigerians. The APC wishes all a Merry Christmas and urge citizens to pray for a prosperous 2022 New Year, the party said. The federal government says it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a UK-based Developing Africa Group to create Africas first Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Commercialisation project in the country. This is contained in a statement by Ibrahim Haruna, Head, Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, on Saturday in Abuja. The statement said the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Richard Adebayo, disclosed this during the signing ceremony held recently in Abuja. It said that the minister was represented at the occasion by the Registrar, Trademarks, Shafiu Adamu-Yauri. Mr Adeniyi was quoted as saying that the MoU would allow the Group to use IPR as a means of resolving some of the issues and challenges facing Nigeria as well as to create jobs and trade services. The minister said the pilot project was structured for three years, adding that, it is designed to place International Property Rights (IPR), directly into some of the key issues and challenges in Nigeria as it would take advantage of technology. This is to address some of the issues surrounding unemployment and allow rural communities in Nigeria to start attracting commercial interests. Since trademarks are crucial to the promotion of trade and economic development, and Nigeria happens to be one of the strong regional hubs of trade in Africa being the continents biggest economy. It is no surprise that it has attracted the worlds IP governing body in Abuja, as Nigeria hosted one of the only two World Intellectual Property Offices (WIPO) External Offices in Africa. According to the statement, the project will assist the Registry of Trademarks in the effective administration and enforcement of Trademark rights in Nigeria. Africa in general and Nigeria, in particular, faces an enormous challenge of industrialisation and unemployment generation given the significant population growth. The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimates that youth unemployment is twice as high as that of adults. And that young people account for approximately 60 per cent of the Continents jobless population. The problem is only set to become more acute given estimates that some 12 million young people on the Continent enter the job market each year, Mr Adeniyi was quoted as saying. The minister urged the group to work closely with the WIPO Office in Nigeria to achieve the goals. The statement also quoted the chairperson of the group, Jamila Ahmadu-Suka, as assuring that the use of the IPR would create a series of technology-based projects in Nigeria. This, she said, included a project to make Nigeria become a zero tolerant nation for trademarks abuse through the application of a Gig-economy mobile social media app. It will create up to 15,000 jobs across Nigeria for the detection of fake labels and abuse of trademark rights and other IPR violations in Nigeria, she said. (NAN) A Muslim group, popularly called the Shiites, on Saturday attended a Christmas church service at HEKAN Church in Zaria, Kaduna State, as part of an effort to strengthen religious tolerance and peace in the state. The Muslim group also presented a gift to the church as a sign of love. Speaking in an interview with newsmen, shortly after the service, the leader of the team, Isa Mshelgaru, said the essence of attending the service was to promote love, tolerance and understanding among Nigerians. He said: We decided to attend this church service today because today is Christmas Day, a day that the birth of Jesus Christ is being celebrated over the globe and we feel that we also have our concern to share with them the feelings of the day Jesus was born. The coming of Jesus to this world is a blessing to everybody, so we wish that we should come and celebrate this glorious day with them. He said that as Muslims they considered Christians as their fellow brothers and sisters in humanity, stressing that they were at the church service to join them in celebrating and sharing the joy of this day with them. As they (Christians) attach importance to this day so also we attach so much importance to the day and that is why we came today to clear all the unnecessary imaginary boundaries that have been created between Muslims and Christians. This is important now that the country is facing multiple security challenges that require all hands to be on deck in other to overcome them, he noted. On his message to other Nigerians, Mr Mshelgaru advised that Nigerians must come together irrespective of religious, tribal or political divide to save the nation. In his remarks, Hakila Darmah expressed his appreciation for the visit, adding that it is a milestone that would open a new beginning and would remain a memorable one for a very long time. He called for a sustained relationship to keep the spirit of brotherhood floating between the two religious. In fact, I am so excited that they can think of a thing like this to come and visit us on Christmas Day celebration like this, he said. Mr Darmah appealed to Nigerians to emulate the kind gesture of the Shiite group in order to further strengthen tolerance, understanding and brotherliness among Nigerians. (NAN) Six persons died in an accident involving two vehicles on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Christmas Day, the FRSC has said. Ahmed Umar, the sector commander in Ogun State, 12 other persons sustained various degrees of injuries in the accident. The incident occurred hours after seven persons died in an accident on the Sagamu-Benin Expressway. Mr Umar said the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway accident involved 18 persons and occurred at about 3.20 a.m. He said that the two vehicles involved in the accident are a Toyota Hiace bus with registration number, MKA 567 XZ and an Iveco articulated vehicle marked XF 854 KTN. The corpses of the victims have been deposited at Idera Hospital, Sagamu, while the survivors are taken to different hospitals for treatment, he said. He blamed the crash on excessive speeding and loss of control and urged motorists to desist from over speeding to avoid unnecessary loss of lives and property. Mr Umar also told NAN that N127,900 was recovered from the accident scene. He advised cautious driving and enjoined families of those who might have travelled in the Toyota bus to contact FRSC Ibafo Outpost for more information. The sector commander commiserated with the families of the crash victims and prayed God to grant them the fortitude to bear the loss. Premium Times early today reported how even persons were killed, while seven others sustained injuries on Saturday in an accident involving a Mercedes Benz luxury bus at Ososa Bridge on the Sagamu-Benin Expressway. (NAN) The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has issued COVID19 protection enforcement measures for the Christmas and New Year celebrations in the territory. The Secretary of FCTA Health and Human Services Secretariat, Abubakar Tafida issued the measures in a statement on Saturday in Abuja. Mr Tafida said the administration had observed with dismay the attitude of people who fail to adopt simple measures that offer protection against being infected by the COVID-19. He said that the current status of the COVID-19 in the FCT was worrisome, adding that the cases so far on December 24, are 2,591, which is 1,028 per cent increase of the 252 cases confirmed in November 2021. In addition, hospital admissions for COVID-19 have increased by over 634 per cent from 35 in November to 222 so far in December. Also, the number of active cases being treated in the treatment centres and at private homes rose from 130 at the end of November to todays figure of 2,352 (1,809 per cent) increase. About 25 per cent of all cases over the months were between 30 to 39 year olds. Unfortunately, all COVID-19 deaths in December 2021 have occurred in unvaccinated persons, Mr Tafida said. He said that the current upsurge in number of COVID-19 cases was most likely being driven by the Omicron variant that is much more transmissible than the other variants. He said that the FCTAs deployment of more resources, health workers, funds and materials to control the disease could only be successful if the residents of the FCT played their parts during this festive period with increased social interactions and travels. The secretary called on all residents of the FCT to take action to protect themselves and their loved ones against the pandemic. As such it is critical that scientifically proven actions that prevent the COVID-19 disease must become our habit. Guidelines Consequently, during the Christmas and New year celebration period, the residents of the FCT are urged to practice the following measures as advised by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, which will be enforced by FCTA. Any gathering in excess of 50 people must be done in open spaces. Street parties are discouraged. All night clubs and related activities are banned during this period. Indoor religious congregation should be limited to 50 per cent capacity with full compliance to public health social measures such as physical distancing (two metres apart) and use of face masks. Mr Tafida said the use of facemask and hand sanitiser for both the vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals at all times while in public spaces should be strictly adhered to. He said the administration had continued to put in place measures to control the increase in cases and prevent deaths, in conjunction with the Federal authorities and developmental partners. Mr Tafida said that scientific data had shown that a very important tool to control the pandemic was herd immunity, which was only possible when at least 70 to 80 per cent of the FCT populace was fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Thus the ongoing vaccination programme that aims to vaccinate at least 1.5 million residents of the FCT by Jan. 31, 2022, using 283 vaccination teams located in public and private hospitals, markets, religious places, shopping malls and other locations with high human volume. As good members of the FCT community, we must be cautious, vigilant and adhere to the governments advisory on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. Nobody is certain that they will survive if infected or have mild or severe symptoms. Also, let us note that, even symptom-free individuals can still pass on COVID-19 to others who may develop serious complications or even death. He urged residents to avoid crowded places, wear face mask, wash hands frequently, saying that the administration had put in place the machinery to enforce all non-pharmacological COVID-19 prevention measures. (NAN) President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday hosted Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and members his immediate family, who paid him Christmas homage in the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the vice-president was accompanied by his wife and children during the visit. NAN observed that the vice-president, who spent Christmas in Abuja for the first time in the last six and half years, offered special prayers for the general progress of the country as well as the well-being of the first family and the citizens. The vice-president, who also spoke to State House correspondents, described the visit as memorable. I though it will be a good thing to come and say hello to Mr President and wish him a Merry Christmas. I usually spend the Christmas in Lagos with my family, but this Christmas we are in Abuja. So, we thought its a good thing to come and greet Mr President and wish him a Merry Christmas, talk and have a good time. I came with the entire family, he said. Mr Osinbajo also used the opportunity to reassure Nigerians of the unshakable resolve and genuine commitment of the Buhari administration to live enduring legacies in critical economic sectors for posterity. He said the challenges bedevilling Nigeria might be daunting but not insurmountable in the last lap of the administration. The vice-president, who described the president as a good example of an incorruptible leader, commended him for his untiring efforts towards transforming and enhancing the nations economy. (NAN) A stubborn commitment to a conventional military approach to solving an asymmetric security challenge is unwise, especially with an Army that is already stretched thin by involvement in roughly 30 Nigerian states. Abuja must restrategise. Localised policing and well-thought-out community engagement must be a key factor in the choices made for the future and the 900-kilometre boundary that the Nigerian North-West shares with the Niger Republic must be properly secured. Elon Musk once said, Some people dont like change but you need to embrace change if the alternative is disaster, and that is the path that Nigerians have to commit themselves to if we are going to see any success in the fight against terrorism. The Nigerian militarys tactics against the terrorist groups have been rigid, while the opponents have embraced adaptability. One accepts that the tactics of guerrilla warfare are aided by the lack of a need to secure and control territory, which is a constraint sometimes for conventional national armies, but more needs to be done. Not only is Nigeria reeling from these attacks, but were also losing our soldiers on the battlefield and to a style that has become a depressing pattern, in which locations get attacked and ambushes are set up to hit the reinforcements that get called in, in response. This was how we lost Brigadier-General Dzarma Kennedy Zirkusu in Askira Uba, Borno, and others like Colonel Dahiru Bako and Lt.-Col. M.Z. Manu. The acquisition and use of mine-resistant armoured protected vehicles (MRAPs) have helped protect Nigerian soldiers from roadside bombings and mine explosions but now the terrorists have resorted to attacking military bases to steal these vehicles. I expect that the Nigerian Army would have the equipment and aptitude required to foresee these attacks and work at nullifying them with intelligence obtained from aerial surveillance equipment that provides early warnings on enemy movements. One worries about the soldiers getting weary, and while there is news that the army has killed the new ISWAP leader, Mallam Banu, ISWAPs capacity to carry out operations seems unharmed as they have still launched attacks without missing a beat, and are still able to carry out attacks after the loss of two leaders in quick succession. The death of Brigadier-General Zirkusu hurt and angered the military establishment and we can only hope that the 50 Islamic States West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters that were reported killed days later in the area were not just random revenge killings, as that would poison the hearts of the locals and make it harder to win this war. With that said, we return to the issue of adaptability and how important it is for Nigerias military high command to re-evaluate its basic battle playbook after over a decade of limited success in fighting this insurgency. One worries about the soldiers getting weary, and while there is news that the army has killed the new ISWAP leader, Mallam Banu, ISWAPs capacity to carry out operations seems unharmed as they have still launched attacks without missing a beat, and are still able to carry out attacks after the loss of two leaders in quick succession. Telecom services were shut down in some states in the hope that the communication difficulties would make it harder for the terrorists, but they have resorted to the use of walkie-talkies, and the attacks on some local government areas in Sokoto State have shown that these measures not only failed to hinder the terrorists but mainly prevented innocent members of the general public from being able to call for help from the authorities. It felt even worse when word got out that the attacks were joint operations by erstwhile rival groups headed by kingpins, Halilu Sububu and Kachalla Turji, who seem to have chosen to unite their forces in a manner that has been felt in the deadly Goronyo market attack that had 60 casualties a month ago. In early October, these terrorists moved to Sokoto State after suffering attacks from the Nigerian Army in their traditional hideouts in Zamfara. Their choice of location is said to be partly inspired by the need to be placed in the space between the Niger Republic and Zamfara to move for cover when attacks come from the Army of the Republic of Niger. In early October, these terrorists moved to Sokoto State after suffering attacks from the Nigerian Army in their traditional hideouts in Zamfara. Their choice of location is said to be partly inspired by the need to be placed in the space between the Niger Republic and Zamfara to move for cover when attacks come from the Army of the Republic of Niger. This is frustrating to see. A stubborn commitment to a conventional military approach to solving an asymmetric security challenge is unwise, especially with an Army that is already stretched thin by involvement in roughly 30 Nigerian states. Abuja must restrategise. Localised policing and well-thought-out community engagement must be a key factor in the choices made for the future and the 900-kilometre boundary that the Nigerian North-West shares with the Niger Republic must be properly secured. Cheta Nwanze is a partner at SBM Intelligence. Buharis most significant trait is after all his Achilles heel, and he would be remembered largely as a cold, taciturn, insensitive, and annoyingly insouciant leader. By the time he vacates office, history may not be kind to him not necessarily because of his action, but essentially because of his inactions. He looked rather gangly, and so his gestures werent particularly dreadful. But he barked orders that sent shivers down the spines of Nigerians. He threatened to tamper with the press, and then struck through the Protection Against False Accusations Decree, infamously dubbed Decree 4. He ordered Nigerians to form neat queues, as part of his War Against Indiscipline (WAI), which he prosecuted alongside his never-smiling partner, Tunde Idiagbon. He whipped many people back to the lines, literally so, recording modest success in that area. Many a citizen ready to queue for essentials endured the stress, sweating under the fiendish intensity of the afternoon sun. No pain, no gain they must have reasoned. And so when he materialised as Nigerias Head of State in the wake of the coup detat of December 1983, jackboots and all, Muhammadu Buhari came across as a reformist. In 2015, thirty-two years after he first showed up from the shadows of the coup he would later deny knowledge of, Buhari emerged yet again as the darling of many Nigerians. But this time, his presence wasnt particularly announced with martial music, but with sounds of gongs, Goje, Sekere, Kakaki, Kora and, er, Odu-mkpalo. Nigerians, reeling from damages inflicted upon the nation by a weak and profligate government, called upon the man they fondly referred to as Baba to come rescue Nigeria from the brink of collapse. His tough stance in his first coming resonated with some older folks, and they fantasised about WAI, queues, and the relative orderliness. Some younger people bought into the dream, ostensibly because there was the near-widespread belief among Nigerians that corruption and its attendant chaos was a major impediment militating against national development. The economy was sick, corruption was endemic, and, bent under the crush of insurgency, Nigerians were unsafe. Buharis handlers claimed he had the right analgesic for an ailing economy, the most potent antidote for corruption, and the wealth of experience to help flush out terrorists. Many even invoked the legend of his exploits in the handling of the Maitatsine conundrum in the 1980s. Buhari and his political allies thereafter came into our lives smiling, with flowing Agbadas and well-ironed Babarigas, reeling out a long list of promises. But six years into the second coming of Buhari, Nigerians are now being haunted by the spectre of 1984. First, the economy has relapsed into comma, having limped through two recessions in five years. Now dealt another heavy blow by COVID-19, it is gasping desperately for air. In the area of corruption, we have only recorded a change in the conception and dimension of that cancer, and, of course, there has also been a change in the nomenclature of people so privileged to be so corrupt. Yet, except that we do not remember with tact, but with emotions, the events playing out are quite reminiscent of the Nigerian reality in the wake of Buharis first coming at about this period in 1984. In 1985, barely 20 months after he assumed power as head of state, Buhari was toppled by then Major General Ibrahim Babangida, who offered some justification for the August 27, 1985 coup that ousted his former friend and ally. The last 20 months have not witnessed any significant changes in the national economy, said Babangida, ever sly and scheming. Contrary to expectations, we have so far been subjected to a steady deterioration in the general standard of living; and intolerable suffering by ordinary Nigerians have (sic) risen higher, scarcity of commodities has increased. Unemployment has stretched to critical dimensions. In that inaugural broadcast as military president, Babangida, no hero by many accounts, could as well have taken his words from looking clairvoyantly at the reality of 2021 Nigeria. But then, if he did, he would perhaps have missed the big elephant in the room: the spectre of insecurity. as far as Buharis scorecards on security go, the most indicting records would come from his own region, the North-West, whose vast land and forests, under the watch of a son of the soil as Commander-in-Chief, have become a commodious theatre of blood, carcasses and fear, controlled largely by terrorists masquerading as bandits. With regard to security, unlike in 1985, Nigeria has now become a huge graveyard of burnt and butchered humans, with others so lucky to be alive moving about with trepidation, permanently haunted by the eternal fear of being kidnapped or killed like chicken. In the first week of December, the nation dissolved into tears when 23 persons died of injuries sustained from burns, after bandits shot at a bus conveying travellers from Sokoto to Kaduna. Like the daily carnage that is now a regular item in news reports from Kaduna, the Sokoto attack, horrible as it appeared, was only a mere drop in an ocean of largely untold stories depicting how worthless the human life has become under the Buhari government, a la the hobbessian state, where life is short, nasty, and brutish. For one, the spectre of insecurity now defies geography, with terrorist bandits, secessionists, murderous herdsmen, and other outlaws sharing grief across the country, as though they are paying obeisance to federal character. The South-West is reeling from the pains inflicted by robbers and other criminal elements, including, until recently, murderous herders. The South-East is dangerously going the way of the North-East in the hands of violent secessionists and other outlaws perpetrating evil under the guise of secession. The Deep South has always been in thrall of the fiat of militants. Although there are faint signs of victory here and elsewhere, the recovery of the North-East is still being kept at bay by insurgents. The North-Central/Middle Belt has been a huge field of corpses lying in a heap, often in the wake of perennial herder-farmer clashes. But as far as Buharis scorecards on security go, the most indicting records would come from his own region, the North-West, whose vast land and forests, under the watch of a son of the soil as Commander-in-Chief, have become a commodious theatre of blood, carcasses and fear, controlled largely by terrorists masquerading as bandits. From Sokoto to Kano through Kaduna and even Daura in Katsina, where Buhari hails from, the narrative is the same: Nigerians are being butchered daily in their tens and hundreds, while others continue to flee villages that have now been overtaken by bandits. So bad has the situation become that many villagers have resigned to fate, submitting their sovereignty to almighty bandits, while paying taxes and all. Last week, when the news went viral that one Adamu Ayuba sang praises of Bello Turji, a known bandit in Sokoto, the government typically reacted with empty theatrics. Ayuba was declared wanted. But could we have rather been concerned about a plausible psychological answer to the question of this loss of faith in the government and near-total submission to the supremacy of a band of marauding thugs, as exemplified in Ayubas misadventure? In all of these, the president has been most taciturn and insouciant, occasionally picking his teeth or cracking some lifeless joke, even as Nigerians struggle to breathe under the devastating impact of country-wide insecurity. Aside taking no responsibility for his actions, Buhari compounds the problem with crass insensitivity. Penultimate week, when the Sokoto carnage generated outrage, the president played Nero, and materialised in Lagos for a book launch. But to be sure, Muhammadu Buharis most significant trait has been his trademark insouciance anyway, one which the Yoruba, in informal parleys, would perhaps capture as Adonkia (I dont care). Not for him the Maradona-esque gambit of an IBB, or the serpentine calmness of Abacha, or the bucolic rage of OBJ, or, even, the act of sitting permanently on the pity potty, like Jonathan. With that insouciance, at the height of the 2015 electioneering, he was able to manage and ignore the hateful wishes and rhetoric of the Femi-Fani Kayodes (FFKs) and Fayoses. But the ironic twist is that while this insouciance might appear good for him during electioneering and partisan politics, it obviously isnt any good for Nigerians, in terms of governance and the sustenance of democratic ethos. His Adonkia attitude aspires to stifle, if not whimsically strangulate, the culture of accountability and responsibility, two pillars upon which good governance rests. A president that shows no concern at all times, even at a time of country-wide despair, leaves the citizens with no option but to lose faith in the ability of the nation to offer succour, material and otherwise, irrespective of what the government is doing behind the scenes. Last week, amid outcries over the apparently bad optics of staging a show of vanity in the wake of the wanton killings across northern Nigeria, which erupted in protests, Yusuf Buhari, the presidents son, was turbaned as Talban Daura. First, since corruption is only defined in literal, medieval terms under him, Buhari didnt cringe at the obscenity of having his son crowned district head on the strength of nothing but his status as a presidents son. Beyond that, from media reports, the president wasnt there at the ceremony, but the presidency was there. That way, Buhari played an old trick: Indulging in things without taking responsibility for them. The illogic is that perhaps since he was not in Daura, we wouldnt know whether he was in support of the vanity or not. That is classic Buhari, anyway, shifting the goalposts and taking no responsibility for anything. For instance, some accounts of the coup that brought him to power in 1984 contain claims that he was in on the coup plot, but Buhari has denied such claims. There is also this viral meme of a tweep who googled Buhari Blames and had his page flooded with a litany of presidential blame-shifting alibis. Aside taking no responsibility for his actions, Buhari compounds the problem with crass insensitivity. Penultimate week, when the Sokoto carnage generated outrage, the president played Nero, and materialised in Lagos for a book launch. Leadership, as TV host Oprah Winfrey noted, is about empathy. And empathy isnt even merely about empty theatrics; its about finding echoes of another person in yourself, as Britis- Pakistani novelist, Mohsin Hamid, quipped. Advertisements Buharis handlers are often quick to point in the direction of his railways and other infrastructural projects. Good imprints, to be sure, even though they have come with extra baggages of asphyxiating loans. And considering how central infrastructure is to the economy, the jury is still out on the desirability of these projects in the context of Nigerias debt problem. But beyond that, he has failed to tackle a security conundrum that would even allow people enjoy these projects. And yet even in the midst of these glaring failures, he enjoys an incredible level of goodwill among a section of Nigerians, especially in the North, where the people have since lowered the bar of presidential expectations to the point of not asking for something as basic as empathy. But on that front, too, he has failed woefully. So, Buharis most significant trait is after all his Achilles heel, and he would be remembered largely as a cold, taciturn, insensitive, and annoyingly insouciant leader. By the time he vacates office, history may not be kind to him not necessarily because of his action, but essentially because of his inactions. Oladeinde Olawoyin tweets via @Ola_deinde. Seven persons were killed, while seven others sustained injuries on Saturday in an accident involving a Mercedes Benz luxury bus at Ososa Bridge on the Sagamu-Benin Expressway. Ahmed Umar, Sector Commander of the FRSC in Ogun confirmed the incident in Abeokuta. Mr Umar said the accident occurred at 12:20 a.m. and it was caused by excessive speeding, wrongful overtaking and loss of control by the driver. He said that the unregistered vehicle rook off from Ojuelegba, Lagos, and was heading to the eastern part of the country when the accident happened. He added that 63 persons 40 male adults, 15 female adults and eight children were in the bus and that 49 of them, including all the children escaped unhurt. He added that the injured victims were rendered first aid treatment while the deceased were deposited at State Hospital Mortuary, Ijebu-Ode in Ogun State. The sector commander cautioned motorists about dangerous driving, especially during this period of high vehicular movement and night travels when visibility is poor. He advised motorists to drive defensively, maintain safe speed avoid night travels and obey traffic rules and regulations. Umar commiserated with the families of the crash victims and enjoined them to contact FRSC Ijebu-Ode unit for more information about the crash. (NAN) Eliassen Group is a leading professional services firm focused on strategic consulting and talent services in multiple areas, including Agile consulting, cloud services, risk management, and business optimization, as well as life sciences consulting and IT talent solutions. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Reading, Massachusetts, Eliassen Group is positioned for continued long-term success with a commitment to positively impacting the lives of their employees, clients, consultants, and the communities in which they operate. This acquisition of Fidato will bring expanded solutions that complement Eliassen Group's business consulting capabilities notably their risk management and business optimization offerings, while also bolstering their professional services practice. Furthermore, their clients will benefit from the deep knowledge of the Fidato Partners team, which has expertise in technical accounting and reporting, systems selection, implementation and support, financial planning and analysis, finance transformation, risk and controls, and project management. Founded in 2010, Fidato Partners provides proven and trusted business consulting and recruiting services in risk management & transformation, accounting & finance, and information technology, enabling companies to achieve greater growth and performance by filling critical resource and knowledge gaps. Serving a variety of industries, Fidato Partners takes pride in raising the standard for professional services through a full commitment to their clients' success. "A strategic partnership with Eliassen Group provides the entire Fidato Partners team with an unequalled opportunity for growth," said Fidato Partners CEO and Co-Founder John Rapchinski. "With a wide range of comprehensive capabilities and a vast geographical presence, Eliassen has solidified their place in the consulting and talent solutions business, and we're thrilled to have this opportunity to introduce these capabilities to our clients." "Fidato Partners are fully dedicated to their clients' success, which fits perfectly into the values we live by at Eliassen," said Dave MacKeen, CEO of Eliassen Group. "Their thriving accounting & finance and risk management & transformation service offerings enable Eliassen to better empower our clients to protect and sustain their success," adds Scott Cordeiro, Executive Vice President of Professional Services. "We are excited about adding their strengths to our own to achieve exponential growth while continuing to serve our communities." About Fidato Partners Fidato Partners provides proven and trusted business consulting and recruiting services in accounting & finance, risk & transformation, and information technology, enabling companies to achieve greater growth and performance by filling critical resource and knowledge gaps. Our unique business model, which includes a full range of consulting, interim staffing, and recruiting services, allows us to seamlessly place the right resource for every situation to ensure the highest level of quality and service is delivered every time to our clients. About Eliassen Group Eliassen Group provides strategic consulting and talent solutions to drive our clients' innovation and business results. Our purpose is to positively impact the lives of our employees, clients, consultants, and the communities in which we operate. Leveraging over 30 years of success, our expertise in talent solutions, life sciences consulting, Agile consulting, cloud services, risk management, business optimization, and managed services enables us to partner with our clients to execute their business strategy and scale effectively. Headquartered in Reading, Massachusetts, and with offices from coast to coast, Eliassen Group offers local community presence and deep networks, as well as national reach. Media Contact Sandra G. Callahan VP of Marketing Eliassen Group 781 205 8148 SOURCE Eliassen Group WALNUT, Calif., Dec. 25, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- This holiday season, Island Pacific Market launches the "Giving is Better Than Receiving" Campaign to all Island Pacific Bonus Rewards Card Members through their Sendwave partnership. As an Island Pacific bonus reward member, customers are now entitled to receive EXCLUSIVE discounts, offers and rewards just by signing up to be a Bonus reward Member. The Island Pacific BONUS rewards program is the gift that keeps on giving, especially with Sendwave, a money remittance app. Customers who send $1 or more to their loved ones in the Philippines for the first time through Sendwave will be matched by Island Pacific for a P1,000 cash gift that can be remitted to the Philippines, with no remittance fees. SAY GOODBYE TO REMITTANCE FEES FOREVER with high exchange rates! Procurement Automobile Fuel Injection System Procurement report explains key category management objectives that should form the base for sourcing strategy, including: Top-line growth Scalability of inputs Green initiatives Category innovations Supply base rationalization Demand forecasting and governance Minimalization of ad hoc purchases Adherence to regulatory nuances Cost savings Customer retention Reduction of TCO Supply assurance Sign Up for a Sample Procurement Automobile Fuel Injection System Procurement Market Report: www.spendedge.com/report/automobile-fuel-injection-system-procurement-report This report evaluates suppliers based on provision for applicable insurance policy, real-time analysis, pipeline software solutions, and conduct pipeline surveys. In addition, suppliers are also shortlisted based on business needs, technical specifications, operational requirements, security compliance, regulatory mandates, legal requirements, quality control, change management procedures, pricing models, penalty clauses, SLA nuances, acceptance criteria, and evaluation criteria. Top Selling Report's Include: Asset Recovery Services - Forecast and Analysis: The asset recovery services will grow at a CAGR of 9.49% during 2021-2025. Asia Asset Recovery Pte Ltd., TES-Amm Singapore Pte Ltd., and Iron Mountain Inc. are among the prominent suppliers in asset recovery services market. Click the above link to download the free sample of this report. Vulnerability Management Sourcing and Procurement Report: Vulnerability Management Procurement Market, prices will increase by 4%-6% during the forecast period and suppliers will have a Moderate bargaining power in this market. Click the above link to download the free sample of this report. Celebrity Talent Management Services - Sourcing and Procurement Intelligence Report: This report offers key advisory and intelligence to help buyers identify and shortlist the most suitable suppliers for their celebrity talent management services requirements. Click the above link to download the free sample of this report. Table of Content Executive Summary Market Insights Category Pricing Insights Cost-saving Opportunities Best Practices Category Ecosystem Category Management Strategy Category Management Enablers Suppliers Selection Suppliers under Coverage US Market Insights Category scope About SpendEdge: SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions. Contact SpendEdge Anirban Choudhury Marketing Manager Ph No: +1 (872) 206-9340 https://www.spendedge.com/contact-us SOURCE SpendEdge Total Pages: 120 120 Companies: 10+ Including Henkel AG and Co. KGaA, Kao Corp., Kose Corp., LOreal SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, Natura and Co., Shiseido Co. Ltd., The Estee Lauder Co. Inc., The Procter and Gamble Co., and Unilever Group among others. 10+ Including Henkel AG and Co. KGaA, Kao Corp., Kose Corp., LOreal SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, Natura and Co., Shiseido Co. Ltd., The Estee Lauder Co. Inc., The Procter and Gamble Co., and Unilever Group among others. Coverage: Key drivers, trends, and challenges; Product insights & news; Value chain analysis; Parent market analysis; Vendor landscape; COVID impact & recovery analysis Key drivers, trends, and challenges; Product insights & news; Value chain analysis; Parent market analysis; Vendor landscape; COVID impact & recovery analysis Segments: Product (regular dry shampoo and natural and organic dry shampoo) & Distribution channel (offline and online) (regular dry shampoo and natural and organic dry shampoo) & (offline and online) Geography: North America, Europe , APAC, South America , and MEA Didn't Find What You Were Looking For? Customize Report- Don't miss out on the opportunity to speak to our analyst and know more insights about this market report. Our analysts can also help you customize this report according to your needs. Our analysts and industry experts will work directly with you to understand your requirements and provide you with customized data in a short amount of time. We offer USD 1,000 worth of FREE customization at the time of purchase - Speak to our Analyst now! According to the recent market study by Technavio, the Dry Shampoo Market is expected to increase by USD 1.21 billion from 2020 to 2025. However, the growth momentum is likely to decelerate at a CAGR of 11.48%. The report provides a detailed analysis of drivers & opportunities, top winning strategies, competitive scenario, future market trends, market size & estimations, and major investment pockets. 33% of the market's growth will originate from North America during the forecast period. US and Canada are the key markets for dry shampoo in North America. Download FREE Sample: for more additional information about the key countries in North America Vendor Insights- The Dry Shampoo Market is fragmented, and the vendors are deploying growth strategies such as focusing on product delivery through multiple distribution channels to compete in the market. For Instance, Kao Corp - one of the leading companies offers dry shampoo through its brand Essential. Find additional highlights on the vendors and their product offerings - Download Free Sample Report Regional Market Outlook The Dry Shampoo Market share growth in North America will be significant during the forecast period. US and Canada are the key markets for dry shampoo in North America. Market growth in this region will be faster than the growth of the market in the South American and MEA regions. Dry shampoo products have gained the attention of consumers due to their instant results and other benefits. This will facilitate the dry shampoo market growth in North America over the forecast period. Download our FREE sample report for more key highlights on the regional market share of most of the above-mentioned countries. Latest Drivers & Trends Driving the Market- Dry Shampoo Market Driver: Product Innovation Leading to Product Premiumization: The key factor driving growth in the dry shampoo market is product innovation leading to product premiumization. Dry shampoos are an emerging product innovation that eliminates the use of water and are available for all hair types in the market. The use of regular shampoo to wash hair daily can cause damage as the natural oils are stripped from the hair cuticles. Vendors are focusing on launching dry shampoos with multifunctional benefits as value additions to meet consumer needs. The addition of extra benefits to the product leads to product premiumization. Dry Shampoo Market Trend: Growing Adoption of Personalized Home Salon Services: The growing adoption of personalized home salon services is another factor supporting the dry shampoo market share growth. Personalized home salon service is an emerging trend in developed regions such as North America and Europe. Over the last decade, the number of players that offer mobile app-based home salon services has proliferated in the market. Using these mobile apps, customers can avail salon services at home. Such service providers prefer to offer hair treatment solutions with minimal usage of water and use products such as dry shampoos. Find additional information about various other market Drivers & Trends mentioned in our FREE sample report. Related Report- Hair Care Market -The haircare market has the potential to grow by USD 26.56 billion during 2021-2025, and the market's growth momentum will accelerate at a CAGR of 5.47%. Download a free sample now! Geranium Oil Market in India -The geranium oil market share in India is expected to increase by USD 1.03 billion from 2021 to 2026, and the market's growth momentum will accelerate at a CAGR of 2.61%. Download a free sample now! Dry Shampoo Market Scope Report Coverage Details Page number 120 Base year 2020 Forecast period 2021-2025 Growth momentum & CAGR Decelerate at a CAGR of 11.48% Market growth 2021-2025 USD 1.21 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth (%) 13.97 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA Performing market contribution North America at 33% Key consumer countries US, Canada, UK, Germany, and China Competitive landscape Leading companies, competitive strategies, consumer engagement scope Companies profiled Henkel AG and Co. KGaA, Kao Corp., Kose Corp., LOreal SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, Natura and Co., Shiseido Co. Ltd., The Estee Lauder Co. Inc., The Procter and Gamble Co., and Unilever Group Market Dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and future consumer dynamics, market condition analysis for the forecast period. Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio MIAMI, Dec. 25, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Maritime Management LLC, based here, has reported that a ship under the company's management, the M/T Tropic Breeze, was struck last night at 22:03 p.m. by the super yacht M/Y Utopia IV approximately 15 miles NNW of New Providence Island, The Bahamas. The 160-foot tanker was traveling on its proper watch en route to Great Stirrup Cay when it was rear-ended by the 207-foot super yacht. The catastrophic force of the collision pierced the stern of the tanker causing the tanker to sink to the ocean floor at an estimated depth of 2000 feet. Fortunately, the crew of the Tropic Breeze were uninjured, have been rescued and safely returned to a company-owned facility on shore. The tanker's cargo included all non-persistent materials LPG, Marine Gas and automotive gas all of which are lighter than water and will evaporate if exposed to surface air. The Tropic Breeze, sailing under the flag of Belize was recently inspected in December of this year and was found by the authorities to be fully compliant with all national and international safety and vessel integrity standards. Due to the depth of the ocean at the location of the sinking, it has been determined that the tanker cannot be safely salvaged. Relevant Bahamian authorities have been notified and Maritime Management continues to work with local and international maritime authorities and marine experts to ensure best outcomes with minimal environmental impact. Maritime Management has expressed its sincere gratitude to Bahamian authorities for their support and assistance throughout this incident and are particularly grateful to the crew of the M/Y Mara who responded to the Tropic Breeze's distress call and rescued all seven crew members on board the sinking tanker. Media Contact: Sean Fitzgerald Witt O'Brien's [email protected] SOURCE Maritime Management LLC Didn't Find What You Were Looking For? Customize Report- Don't miss out on the opportunity to speak to our analyst and know more insights about this market report. Our analysts can also help you customize this report according to your needs. Our analysts and industry experts will work directly with you to understand your requirements and provide you with customized data in a short amount of time. We offer USD 1,000 worth of FREE customization at the time of purchase. Speak to our Analyst now! According to the recent market study by Technavio, the Automotive Antenna Module Market Share in Auto Parts & Equipment Industry is expected to increase by USD 525.67 million from 2020 to 2025, with an accelerated CAGR of 8%. The report provides a detailed analysis of drivers & opportunities, top winning strategies, competitive scenario, future market trends, market size & estimations, and major investment pockets. North America will register the highest growth rate of 40% among the other regions. The US is the key market for automotive antenna module. Moreover, market growth in North America will be faster than the growth of the market in other regions. Download FREE Sample: for more additional information about the key countries in North America Vendor Insights- The automotive antenna module market is fragmented and the vendors are deploying organic and inorganic growth strategies to compete in the market. Continental AG - In January 2019 , the company collaborated with German-based start-up company, Automotive Artificial Intelligence to enhance its approach for virtual development of its automated driving technology In , the company collaborated with German-based start-up company, Automotive Artificial Intelligence to enhance its approach for virtual development of its automated driving technology Schaffner Holding AG - In November 2019 , the company introduced extensions for 50 Hz eco sine Evo line passive harmonic filter series In , the company introduced extensions for 50 Hz eco sine Evo line passive harmonic filter series Amphenol Corp. - In July 2019 , the company launched a new facility in New Messa, Arizona (US). Find additional highlights on the vendors and their product offerings. Download Free Sample Report Regional Market Outlook The automotive antenna module market in North America is expected to garner significant business opportunities for the vendors during the forecast period. The US is the key market for automotive antenna modules in North America. Market growth in this region will be faster than the growth of the market in regions. The high demand for automobiles in the US will facilitate the automotive antenna module market growth in North America over the forecast period. Download our FREE sample report for more key highlights on the regional market share of most of the above-mentioned countries. Latest Drivers & Trends Driving the Market- Automotive Antenna Module Market Driver: Increasing connectivity technologies in vehicles: The global automotive market is witnessing an increase in the adoption of connectivity technologies for added comfort through connected infotainment systems and navigation systems. The growing penetration of connectivity in cars is driving the global automotive antenna module market. Remote diagnostics is witnessing increasing adoption in vehicles and will be crucial for the adoption of automotive antennas in mid-segment cars during the forecast period. More than half of the vehicles in the US are fitted with remote diagnostics, and the adoption rate of the same is expected to increase further during the forecast period. The demand for luxury cars in emerging markets such as China is increasing because of the rise in average disposable income. The connected technology is also gaining traction in mid-segment vehicles, which will increase the volume sales of automotive antenna modules. Automotive Antenna Module Market Trend: Growing popularity of cellular V2X technologies: The growing popularity of cellular V2X technologies is another major factor supporting the automotive antenna module market share growth. Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology adoption has its origins in The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11p standards. Dedicated short-range communication (DSRC) is highly adopted across the world for V2X communication. However, cellular connectivity technology is being tested in the V2X market because of the wider presence of the cellular network. The developments in 4G LTE and 5G wireless technology are helping the testing and adoption of cellular V2X communication. With the adoption of 4G LTE for connectivity in a few regions, C-V2X technologies for connectivity would have a positive impact on the global automotive antenna module market in the near future. Find additional information about various other market Drivers & Trends mentioned in our FREE sample report. Here are Some Similar Topics- Automotive V2X Antenna Market by Communication Type and Geography - Forecast and Analysis: The automotive V2X antenna market size has the potential to grow by 35.60 million units and the market's growth momentum will accelerate during the forecast period. Download Exclusive Free Sample Report Global Commercial Vehicle Antenna Market: This industry research report identifies Continental, Delphi Automotive, HARADA INDUSTRY, Hirschmann Car Communication, Kathrein Automotive, LAIRD, and Yokowo as the key vendors in the global commercial vehicle antenna market. Download Exclusive Free Sample Report Automotive Antenna Module Market Scope Report Coverage Details Page number 120 Base year 2020 Forecast period 2021-2025 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 8% Market growth 2021-2025 $ 525.67 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth (%) 6.32 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA Performing market contribution North America at 40% Key consumer countries US, Germany, France, China, Japan, and UK Competitive landscape Leading companies, competitive strategies, consumer engagement scope Companies profiled Amphenol Corp., ANTONICS-ICP GmbH, Continental AG, HARADA INDUSTRY Co. Ltd., Kymeta Corp., Laird Plc, Lorom Industrial Co. Ltd., Schaffner Holding AG, Taoglas Group Holdings Ltd., and TE Connectivity Ltd. Market Dynamics Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and future consumer dynamics, market condition analysis for the forecast period, Customization purview If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized. About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio Related Links http://www.technavio.com/ Srinagar, Dec 25 : An encounter has started between terrorists and security forces at Chowgam area in South Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday, officials said. "Encounter has started at Chowgam area of Shopian. Police and security forces are on the job," police said The firefight between terrorists and security forces took place after a joint team of the police and the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of terrorists. As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter. Athens, Dec 25 : At least a dozen of people have lost their lives before Christmas Eve while their vessels, carrying refugees and migrants heading for Europe, sank in Greek waters. Two bodies have been retrieved as a rescue operation was underway Friday night near the Aegean Sea island of Paros, after the sinking of a vessel carrying refugees and migrants, Xinhua news agency reported, citing the Greek media reports. So far, 57 passengers have been rescued, with survivors stating that about 80 people were on board, Greek national news agency AMNA reported. Earlier, the Hellenic Coast Guard announced that the death toll of the sinking of a refugee and migrant sailing boat on Thursday off the island of Antikythera on the edge of the Aegean Sea has reached 11. Ninety passengers were rescued and transferred to Piraeus port, according to an e-mailed press statement. The Greek authorities also announced on Wednesday that a similar boat sank near Folegandros island. Three people lost their lives, 13 were rescued and an unknown number of people were missing. Greece has been at the forefront of the refugee and migrant influx since 2015. Hundreds have perished in the Aegean Sea in the past six years. Kabul, Dec 25 : The UN Security Council announced that it has extended the exemption of the travel ban on senior members of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, including First Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, for a period of 90 days. In its announcement on Friday, the UNSC said that the ban, which came into force on Wednesday, will last until March 21, 2022, TOLO News reported. Besides Baradar, there are 14 other Taliban members on the ban list, including Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. "The travel ban exemption is solely for travels required for participation in peace and stability discussions in a range of countries," TOLO News quoted the UNSC as saying in its announcement. "Individual itineraries will depend on the location of peace discussions. The Committee has also decided to grant a limited asset freeze exemption only for financing exempted travels." The Taliban-led government welcomed the UNSC's decision, while calling for the removal of its leaders' names from the UN and US blacklists. "It is necessary to remove the names of the officials of the Islamic Emirate from the US and UN blacklists based on the Doha Agreement," said Inamullah Samangani, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate. Los Angeles, Dec 25 : Actress Freida Pinto shot her new festive film in New York and London "at the height of summer", but the cast were forced to bundle up in warm clothing to make the scenes seem realistic. Speaking to HELLO! magazine, Pinto said: "We were shooting a Christmas movie in jackets and scarves at the height of summer." Pinto found some benefits to her roomy winter costumes as they helped conceal her baby bump because she was pregnant with her and husband Cory Tran's son Rumi-Ray - who was born in November - at the time, reports femalefirst.co.uk. She said: "The genius costume design helped with that." The movie 'A Christmas No. 1' sees the actress play music manager Meg, who flees New York for London and, while tasked with finding a Christmas chart topper for a boy band, she comes across a track written by an ill teenage girl. However, she clashes with the youngster's uncle, who is played by Iwan Rheon. She said: "They're at loggerheads and don't even like each other to begin with. But that's how all romances begin - at least in the movies." The actress' next project is 'Mr. Malcolm's List' and she's thankful she'll be given loose-fitting Regency outfits to wear. She said: "I love the period costumes but don't think corsets are my go-to." Los Angeles, Dec 25 : Hollywood star Daniel Craig has urged people not to stream James Bond films because "event movies" deserve to be seen on a big cinema screen. Craig said: "One of the greatest things that's happened is we got this movie into the cinema. "That's where Bond movies should be. They don't look so good on a phone. They look great on an Imax screen. It looks great on a 30ft screen. "And they are family events. It gets the family out. As long as there's event movies like this then cinemas got a chance of surviving." While Daniel's Bond successor has yet to be announced, the 'Knives Out' star has offered some tips for whoever takes over as the suave spy, reports femalefirst.co.uk. He told The Sun newspaper: "There's a couple things I'd say. One is don't be s***. I would say you have to grab it and make it your own."For the new Bond, Craig thinks the franchise is in a "good place" and he believes there are still a lot of good stories to be told. He added: "I hope I've left it in a good place and I hope the next person can just make it fly. It's an amazing franchise. I still think there's a lot of stories to tell." He recently shared that he thought it was "very satisfying" that Bond was apparently killed at the end of 'No Time To Die' after he sacrificed himself to save partner Madeleine (Lea Seydoux) and his daughter Mathilde (Lisa-Dorah Sonnet). Reflection on the dramatic finale, he said: "There were lots of different ideas that came and went and some of it stuck. The through line of this is family (and) love, plus the fact we had an end so it was about hanging the film off that." Washington, Dec 25 : The US will lift Covid-related travel restrictions on eight African countries on December 31, the White House announced. "On December 31, (President Joe Biden) will lift the temporary travel restrictions on Southern Africa countries," and the decision was based on the recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), White House Assistant Press Secretary Kevin Munoz said on Twitter on Friday. Announced on November 29, the travel ban barred non-American citizens from entering the US if they had travelled to South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique or Malawi within 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival. Munoz said the restrictions "gave us time to understand" the highly transmissible Omicron variant of Covid-19, which first emerged in southern Africa and soon spread around the world, now making up over 70 per cent of new cases in the US, as per CDC data. Getting fully vaccinated and boosted is still an effective way to fight against Omicron, he said. Srinagar, Dec 25 : Two terrorists were killed in an encounter with the security forces at Chowgam area in South Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday, officials said. "Two unidentified terrorists killed. Incriminating materials including arms and ammunition recovered," the police said. Earlier in the day, a joint team of the police and the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of terrorists. As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where the terrorists were hiding, they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter. Bengaluru, Dec 25 : After introducing guidelines for Christmas and New Year celebrations, the Karnataka government has decided to depute marshalls at all major churches in Bengaluru to assist the managements in maintaining Covid guidelines amid fears of the Omicron variant. The authorities have entrusted the responsibility of maintaining Covid guidelines to respective police, district and corporation commissioners to ensure that no huge crowds gather during this period. Although the state government has given permission for mass prayers, it has prohibited public places, roads, parks to be used for Christmas celebrations. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has requested church authorities to follow guidelines while conducting mass prayers and limit the gatherings as much as possible. The special team of church marshals have been formed to control gatherings and ensure that devotees are wearing masks and maintaining social distance. BBMP sources also explained that the churches have been issued with a circular to undertake all required measures to prevent the spread of the infection during mass prayers. They have also been asked to consult BBMP ward officers if any assistance is required. Christmas celebrations in the state started on Friday evening. Thousands of people participated in the mass prayers. The devotees also burst crackers and cut special cakes to distribute them among people. Hyderabad, Dec 25 : The latest promo of Telugu celebrity talk show 'Unstoppable with NBK' features 'Pushpa: The Rise' star Allu Arjun with host Nandamuri Balakrishna. As 'Pushpa' was released a few days ago, Allu Arjun has been promoting his movie. The makers of the celebrity talk show unveiled a few pictures and a promo video, featuring Balakrishna having a good time with Allu Arjun and the 'Pushpa' team. Actress Rashmika Mandanna, and 'Pushpa' director Sukumar also appeared to share a good time on the show. A promo in which Balakrishna mouths Allu Arjun's famous dialogue from 'Pushpa' has gone viral, with the veteran actor perfectly imitating Allu Arjun's signature gesture 'Thaggede le' from his recent release. Allu Arjun developed a great bonding with Balakrishna in recent times. He was also seen in the pre-release event of the recent hit movie 'Akhanda' in which Balakrishna plays the hero. Allu Arjun seems to be buoyed with the kind of response he has been receiving for his acting in 'Pushpa'. The movie has been doing great at the box-office. 'Pushpa: The Rise' was released in multiple languages across India on December 17. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Patna, Dec 25 : Unidentified miscreants, after failing to steal cash from an Automatic Teller Machine (ATM), uprooted the kiosk from Bihta town in Patna district late on Saturday night. The ATM kiosk located at Amraha locality of Bihta, belonged to IDBI bank. The incident came to light on Sunday morning when passersby spotted the shutter of the building, where the ATM machine was installed, broken. Shanu Kumar, manager of the Amraha IDBI bank branch said: "We have been informed about the incident by local residents. I immediately rushed to the bank gave a written complaint in the local police station." "The kiosk contained Rs 5.5 lakh cash," he said. Bihta SHO Atulesh Kumar confirmed the incident. "Scanning of CCTV footage is underway to identify the robbers," he said. "Preliminary investigation reveals that the robbers first tried to cut the cash section of the machine but failed. Hence, they uprooted the kiosk and took it away," he said. This is the second such incident in last 10 days. Earlier, a group of robbers had uprooted the ATM machine in Phulwari Sharif area in Patna. In Nalanda, unidentified robbers looted three shops on Saturday night and decamped with cash and valuables worth lakhs of Rs. The robbers broke open the shutters of the shops located at Prajatantra Chowk. City Police are investigating the incident. Police believe that robbers are taking advantage of fog and low visibility to execute the crime in this winter session. New Delhi, Dec 25 : Five prisoners at the high-security Tihar Jail in the national capital have died in the past eight days, a Delhi Police official said here on Saturday. Despite all the deaths appearing to be from natural causes, the official said that a "Magesterial inquiry under Sec 176 of the CrPC has been initiated in all the fatalities". On Friday also, an inmate's death was reported in Tihar Jail no 3. The official said that the prisoner was found unconscious in his cell and was immediately taken to a hospital where the doctors declared him dead. He also allegedly died because of health issues. The deceased prisoner was identified as Vikram alias Vicky. Director General (Prisons) Sandeeep Goyal told IANS that these deaths of the prisoners took place in different jails and "none were related to any kind of violence". "In all these, the circumstances indicate natural causes like old disease or other unknown reason," Goyal said, adding as per rules, inquest proceedings are being conducted by Metropolitan Magistrate in each case. Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 25 : After getting justice from the Kerala High Court, an eight-year-old girl and her father, who were publicly humiliated by a woman police official, have now decided to share the Rs 1.5 lakh compensation given by the state government. A part of the compensation will be allotted towards empowering 'adivasi' (tribal) children and another portion will be given to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF). On Wednesday, Justice Devan Ramachandran, while taking a humane position all through the hearings in the case, asked the Kerala government to pay Rs 1.5 lakh as compensation to the girl for the rude behaviour of lady police official Rejitha towards them. Jayachandran, the father of the minor girl, on Saturday said that if the state government without filing an appeal before a higher bench gives Rs 1.5 lakh compensation as directed by the single bench, the former will share it. "One portion will be used for my daughter, another portion will be given to the CMDRF and the third portion will be used to empower the adivasi children for educating them," Jayachandran added. Justice Ramachandran while delivering the judgement said, "We cannot let our daughters grow up in anger so immediate remedial steps must be taken. No one can dispute that her fundamental right under Article 21 to lead a dignified life was violated." The court granted a compensation of Rs 1,50,000 to the petitioner and imposed a cost of Rs 25,000 towards legal expenses in the matter. The court directed that disciplinary action must be initiated against the police official concerned while clarifying that this does not mean she should be removed from her service. The girl had approached the Kerala High Court seeking compensation for the trauma she faced due to Rejitha, the official of 'Pink Police', an all-women team that aims at protecting women in public, private and digital spaces. During the previous hearing, Justice Ramachandran had said it was justified to grant compensation as sought by the petitioner and asked the state government as to how much it was willing to pay her. The state government replied and said they do not intend to pay any compensation as there was no wrong done at all. The court then asked a top police official to see the video of the entire sequence of events and posted the case for Wednesday. In her petition, the girl said that despite several pleas, no action was taken against the woman police official, therefore they moved the court to seek justice and after the trial began, the girl's family said that since they failed to get justice from any quarter, they have rejected the unconditional apology that the erring police official had tendered. The incident occurred on August 27 when 38-year-old Jayachandran and his daughter were outside their house in the outskirts near Attingal to watch the movement of a huge trailer carrying equipment to the ISRO unit. Suddenly Rejitha, the woman police official, found her mobile phone missing and accused Jayachandran, who was standing near the police patrol vehicle, of stealing it. She said that he must have given the mobile to his eight-year-old daughter who she thought was his accomplice. Rejitha publicly humiliated the father and the daughter and threatened to take both of them to the nearby police station which was witnessed by a large crowd. Later, Rejitha found the mobile phone in the vehicle. The entire sequence of events was filmed by an onlooker, who shared it on social media and it went viral. On August 31, Jayachandran approached the state Police Chief Anil Kant, seeking action against Rejitha as his daughter was in a state of shock for being publicly humiliated. Promising action, Kant asked the South zone Inspector General of Police, Harshita Attaluri, to conduct a probe following which Rejitha was transferred. However, it was found out that Rejitha was transferred to a more convenient location and there was no action taken against her. Finding no further action in September, the family observed a day-long protest before the Kerala Secretariat protesting inaction against the woman police official. When this went unnoticed, the family approached the high court. New Delhi/Dehradun, Dec 25 : The Uttarakhand BJP on Saturday claimed to have persuaded state Forest Minister Harak Singh Rawat who had announced his resignation after walking out of the Cabinet meeting. After Rawat walked out of the Cabinet meeting, there was a lot of speculation about him and his confidant Umesh Sharma Kau's next political move, as both of them have switched to the BJP from the Congress fold. Just after Rawat walked out of the meet, the BJP's crisis management system swung into action. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, along with a senior BJP leader in Delhi, spoke to Rawat and urged him to change his mind. Rawat is said to have been upset over the delay in construction of a medical college in his constituency Kotdwar. This was cited as a reason for his resignation. Though, he has not tendered his resignation in writing till the filing of this report. According to sources, the state government has now decided to provide Rs 10-20 crore grant for the construction of the medical college. Uttarkhand is slated to go to polls early 2022. The Election Commission is likely to announce dates for the polls in January, 2022. The BJP, which is looking to form government for the second time in a row, is wooing leaders of opposition parties into the saffron fold and trying its best to retain bigwigs. New Delhi, Dec 25 : As the debate rises in India over a new Coronavirus strain being called 'Delmicron', leading health experts said on Saturday advised people not to pay heed to rumours and wait for the global health agencies like the World Health Organisation (WHO) or US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to confirm or deny the presence of such Covid variant. Several news reports talking about 'Delmicron' surfaced this week in India, quoting Dr Shashank Joshi, a member of Maharashtra's C-19 task force, who said: "Delmicron, the twin spikes of Delta and Omicron, in Europe and US, has led to a mini-tsunami of cases." There is no such Covid variant as of now, and there is no information either on another mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus after Omicron, which is spreading wildly worldwide. Neither the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) nor the Indian national Covid-19 task force have spoken about the presence of so-called 'Delmicron'. Harshal R Salve, Associate Professor at the Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS, New Delhi, told IANS that no such variant exists. "There is no new Covid virus variant called 'Delmicron' yet," Salve said. "Omicron is also no new virus as it's a mutated Coronavirus. As per evidence available so far, its infectivity is on the higher side but the symptoms are milder in nature. So there is no need to panic about it," he added. India has reported a total of 415 Omicron cases, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. At least 115 have recovered. Maharashtra has the highest number of Omicron infection with 108, followed by Delhi with 79. Gujarat has 43 cases and Telangana 38. According to Dr Neha Gupta, Infectious Diseases Specialist at Medanta-The Medicity in Gurgaon, Delta is still the predominant Covid strain in India while Omicron is now spreading. "As of now, studies have shown that the Omicron variant has a short incubation period of just 3 days as compared to Delta variant where it could be 2-28 days. This implies that the third wave would be of shorter duration and, perhaps, reach a higher peak if Covid-appropriate measures are not followed," she told IANS. As for the so-called Delmicron variant, "there is no need to have unnecessary fear", she added. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text New Delhi, Dec 25 : 2022 is going to be a year of hopes and challenges for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which claims to be the world's largest party in terms of membership. In the new year, on one hand the party will have to work hard to save its stronghold Gujarat, while on the other hand winning the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections again also comes as a big challenge. The results of the Assembly elections to be held in seven states early next year, including Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh -- that sends maximum MPs to the Lok Sabha -- will indicate whose government will come to power at the Centre in 2024. Thus, 2022 can also be termed as the year for predicting 2024. While elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa are likely to be held in the early months of 2022, voting in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh are likely towards the end of the year. In 2022, the BJP will also be attempting to achieve its goal of an all-India expansion, which the party has been striving for since 1980. The BJP will continue to make efforts to strengthen its organisation in the southern states of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu. Saving its stronghold Gujarat - the biggest challenge for BJP in 2022The Legislative Assembly elections in Gujarat, the state which has remained a stronghold of the BJP for the last several decades, will be held in the last months of 2022. Being the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, the election resultare directly associated with the prestige of both, so defending the state in 2022 is going to be a big 'challenge' for the BJP. The term 'challenge' is being used as the BJP could barely save its government in the state in the 2017 Assembly elections. The BJP has been in power in Gujarat since 1995. After Modi became the Chief Minister n 2001, the BJP became invincible in the state. But in 2014 after Modi became the Prime Minister, the BJP has not been able to manage Gujarat so well. In the five consecutive Assembly elections of 1995, 1998, 2002, 2007 and 2012, the BJP has been forming the government by winning between 115 and 127 seats out of the total 182 seats in the state. But in 2017, the tally fell below 100 as won only 99 seats. The Congress had won 77 seats in that election. Talking about the voting percentage, the BJP got the support of 49 per cent voters, while the Congress secured 41.5 per cent of the ballots. After the setback in its stronghold, the BJP changed the entire cabinet along with the Chief Minister. Now the biggest challenge before the BJP is to again win over 115 seats in the upcoming polls. Victory will ensure a seventh consecutive term for the saffron party-led government in the state. Winning Uttar Pradesh againUttar Pradesh, the country's largest state in terms of Lok Sabha seats, remains crucial for the BJP and especially for the Modi-Shah duo. In 2013, when it was decided that the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi would be the BJP's prime ministerial candidate in the 2014 general elections, he managed to place his most trusted ally Shah as the national general secretary in the team of the then party national president Rajnath Singh. Shah was also given the charge of Uttar Pradesh. Later Modi opted Varanasi as his constituency to contest the Lok Sabha elections, this itself signified the importance of Uttar Pradesh for the BJP and the duo. The state has a total of 403 seats in the Legislative Assembly and in the 2017 election results, the BJP along with its allies won 325 seats. The BJP alone won 312 seats with a vote share of around 40 per cent, while its ally Apna Dal (S) won nine and Om Prakash Rajbhar's SBSP garnered four. In 2017, Samajwadi Party (SP) had won 47 seats with 21.82 per cent votes and Bahujan Samaj Party won 19 seats with 22.23 per cent votes. The opposition, especially SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, is trying to change the political atmosphere of the state ahead of the much-awaited polls. Rajbhar, who contested the 2017 elections with the BJP, is with the SP this time and Akhilesh is trying his best to break the caste equations of the saffron party. It is said that "the path to the throne of Delhi passes through Uttar Pradesh", and therefore the BJP does not want to lose the state, which sends the maximum 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha, so in 2022, repeating its 2017 perforfamce would be one of the biggest challenges for the BJP. After three Chief Ministers in five years, winning Uttrakhand again, another challenge for the BJP Since the formation of Uttarakhand, the people of the state have not given a mandate to the government of any one party for a second time in a row. Breaking this trend, forming the government consecutively for the second time is another big task for the BJP in 2022. In the 2017 Legislative Assembly elections, the BJP won 56 seats with 46.5 per cent votes while contesting on all 70 seats in the state. Intrestingly, the Congress had won just 11 seats in the assembly polls despite getting 33.5 per cent votes. Seeing the mood of the people of the state, BJP had to change its Chief Minister thrice within five years. After winning the election in 2017, it made Trivendra Singh Rawat the Chief Minister. In March 2021, he was replaced by Tirath Singh Rawat and after a few months the command of the state was handed over to Pushkar Singh Dhami. The BJP's main rival in Uttarakhand is the Congress, and by winning again, it wants to send a message that revival of the latter in 2024 is difficult. Challenge to prove popularity in the northeast by winning Manipur againTo prove its popularity in the northeast, the BJP is aiming to form a government in Manipur once again. In the 2017 polls in Manipur, the BJP had won only 21 seats out of the total 60, while the Congress got 28 seats. The difference of votes between the two was less than 1 per cent. But with the help of other parties, the BJP formed the government for the first time in Manipur and ran it for five years. Now depending on the works of its government and the popularity of Prime Minister Modi, the BJP again wants to bloom in this northeastern state. Making a hat-trick in Goa, the BJP's goalIn 2022, the BJP wants to do a hat-trick by forming the government for a third time in Goa. Like Manipur, the BJP had won fewer seats than Congress in the coastal state in 2017, but with the help of other parties, the saffron party formed its government. In the 2017 polls, out of the total 40 Assembly seats in the state, the maximum 17 (28.35 per cent of the votes) went to the Congress, while the BJP had secured victory over 13 seats despite getting a higher vote percentage (32.48). However showing political readiness, BJP, for the second time, formed the government in the state with the support of other parties and ran it for the five years. This time BJP wants to form the government on its own by getting majority in the state. This small state with 40 seats is going to have an interesting political battle this time. The main contest maybe between the BJP and the Congress, but this time along with many old regional parties like Goa Forward Party and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, many other parties including TMC, Aam Aadmi Party, Shiv Sena will be contesting the polls. In this multi-cornered fight, the BJP is fully hopeful about winning Goa, but it is not less than a big challenge in itself for the BJP, which is going to contest the first election in the absence of late party veteran Manohar Parrikar in the state. Strenghtening the party's support base in PunjabAmong the states in which elections are going to be held in 2022, Punjab is also crucial. However, the BJP, which will fight the polls on its own for the first time after separating from the Akali Dal in Punjab, has nothing to lose and a lot to gain in the state. The BJP is going to contest the Assembly elections in Punjab along with Amarinder Singh, who was the Chief Minister in the Congress government and former Akali Dal leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa. The BJP is also well aware of the political situation in Punjab and therefore instead of making claims to form the government, the BJP leaders are seen saying that no government will be formed in the state without them. However, at the same time, the BJP is 'treating' the state as 'sensitive' because of its border with Pakistan and is promising to the people of Punjab that only the BJP government can give security to Punjab. The Punjab Legislative Assembly has a total of 117 seats. In 2017, the BJP and Akali had contested the elections together. The Akali Dal contested 94 seats and won 15 with 25.24 per cent votes. Whereas the BJP, which contested on 23 seats, won only three with 5.39 per cent votes. Congress had formed the government in the state by winning 77 seats with 38.5 per cent votes. However Amarinder Singh, who became the Chief Minister at the time, is now forming a new party and is going to contest the elections with the BJP in 2022. Goal to secure second term in Himachal PradeshLike Uttrakhand, in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh too, since 1990, no government has got a mandate for the second time in a row. It is a big challenge for the BJP to break this trend in the state and form the government for the second time in 2022. In 2017, the BJP, which contested on a total of 68 seats in the state, won 44 with 48.79 per cent of the votes. At the same time, 21 seats came in the account of Congress with 41.68 per cent votes. The recent by-elections in the state have raised the concerns of the BJP high command and it is also fully aware of the fact that a 'lot' needs to be done to regain the mandate of the people of the state. Gang-rape of tourist in Cox's Bazar- 'Strict action will be taken'-Law Minister. Image Source: IANS News Gang-rape of tourist in Cox's Bazar- 'Strict action will be taken'-Law Minister. Image Source: IANS News Gang-rape of tourist in Cox's Bazar- 'Strict action will be taken'-Law Minister. Image Source: IANS News Dhaka, Dec 25 : A female tourist has been allegedly gang raped in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district after her husband and son were taken hostage by the perpetrators. A group of men took the victim's husband and child hostage from the Laboni Point area and allegedly raped her several times. RAB-15 Commander Lt Col Khairul Islam told IANS that officials of the elite paramilitary unit rescued the victim from Zia Guest Inn at around 1.30 a.m. on Thursday. The elite force detained the hotel manager and identified the perpetrators after checking video footage from a CCTV camera. A manhunt has been launched to arrest the criminals. Hamimun Tanjin, a Senior Judicial Magistrate of Cox's Bazar, recorded the victim's statement at around 5 p.m. on Friday, Law Minister Anisul Huq told IANS. "Strict action will be taken against the perpetrators of the crime," the Minister added. owever, no arrests were made by police until Friday night. Women's rights activists and legal experts told IANS that the country still lacks a strong legislation that will work as a safeguard against rape. They demanded justice for the rape victims of the country and also called upon the authorities to introduce sex education from an early age. "For the last 50 years, we're fighting for the legal right of women. Still, police used to accuse the rape victim; instead of controlling the crime, even denied filing a case against those accused. However, we're thankful to RAB, the elite force of the police. If they're not, the criminals were not identified even. It's of course not enough; without exemplary punishment of the perpetrators, rapid action to collect the evidence, rape cannot be stopped," Nurjahan Khan, Executive Director of LEERHO, told IANS. "Police must receive the cases filed by the rape victims besides cooperating the rape victims to get quick medical support, as they can produce the evidence before the court. Instead of supporting the victim, the local police of Cox's Bazar blamed the victim, also some of the newspapers published the attacking comment of police against the rape victim, it is a very sad scenario of our society where law enforces are supporting crime like rape," Makhduma Nargis Ratna, vice President of Bangladesh Mahila Parisad, told IANS. Although the two rights defenders have said that women empowerment has increased by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, women in the country were still not secure if the rapists are not punished in each and every incident. The perpetrators must go through strict legal action, which police should never deny. Incidents of rape in recent months have raised serious concerns over the safety of women in Bangladesh with the country witnessing an average of three cases daily in the first 11 months of 2021. At least 1,247 women were raped in the January-November period, while 286 faced attempts, Ain O Salish Kendra revealed on Thursday. Forty-six of them died, while nine committed suicides. New Delhi, Dec 25: Maulana Hidayatur Rehman Baloch, the leader of the 'Give Rights to Gwadar' movement has warned Pakistan that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and resources of Balochistan rightfully belong to the local people. Addressing Baloch fishermen in Ormara, he said that nobody would be allowed to rob resources from the Balochistan sea as these belong to the local fishermen. Maulana Baloch was referring to the Chinese commercial fishing trawlers that have been cleaning out fisheries from the Arabian Sea. He also referred to the fencing being done by the Pakistan Navy, saying: "From now on, if the Pakistan Navy builds a fence, it will have to ask the people of Ormara or else we will cut the fence and destroy it," reported the Dawn newspaper. The Pakistani government has fenced off portions where China is building naval or CPEC projects. The local people have been protesting against Chinese projects as these have cut off their access to the sea and have curbed their movement even within Balochistan. The Baloch people also resent that jobs at CPEC projects are not coming their way and are being offered to Chinese nationals instead. Speaking with India Narrative, Geopolitical analyst Mark Kinra said: "Maulana Hidayatur Rehman is back in the limelight after his partially successful Gwadar Ko Haq Do Tehreek movement. He is not going away from the scene as his agreement with the Balochistan government for the rights of Baloch people have fallen flat as trawlers are still visible in Balochistan waters and businessmen are protesting against bribes and illegal checkpoints." Capitalising on regional dissatisfaction among the people of Balochistan, Maulana Baloch said: "Resources of the province are ours, Balochistan is ours, CPEC is ours, the beach is ours and Gwadar Port is also ours." Kinra adds that the Maulana, who is a local Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader, plans another protest from December 28 against drug menace in the Makran region. "During the Ormara rally he talked about ownership of CPEC with the people but clearly that was not part of his agreement with the government. He even challenged the Pakistan Navy not to fence any part without the permission of the people but this challenge is an empty threat as was of enforced disappearances," Kinra says. The 'Give Rights to Gwadar' leader warned the Balochistan chief minister with staging a massive sit-in with one million people in Quetta if their demands are not met. Maulana Baloch said: "Our struggle will continue till all check-posts of security forces are removed and illegal fishing in Balochistan sea waters by trawlers was stopped." (The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative Bengaluru, Dec 25 : Karnataka police arrested three persons and seized over 4 kg ambergris (whale vomit) worth Rs 4 crore, here on Saturday. According to South East Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Srinath Mahadev Joshi, based on a tip-off, the police arrested the accused near Bengaluru's Mico Layout. "The accused had brought Ambergris from Tamil Nadu to Bengaluru to make easy money. About 4.1 kg of Ambergris has been seized from the accused person. The police have also seized a car used for the crime," he said. Ambergris which means grey amber in French, also known as floating gold, is a waxy substance that originates from the digestive system of the protected sperm whales. From there, ambergris floats around in the ocean for decades, where it hardens and becomes valuable. It is used in the high-end fragrance industry. Ambergris was the main ingredient in a super-expensive, 200-year-old perfume originally made by Marie Antoinette. In another case, Bengaluru CCB Anti Narcotics Wing seized 15 kg of Cannabis in Jnanabharathi police station limits and arrested six accused. "Close watch is being kept on drug trafficking for the new year," Sandeep Patil, Joint Commissioner (Crime), said. Chennai, Dec 25 : Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO), including Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan, has warned the Tamil Nadu Health Department against the possibility of a sudden spurt in Omicron cases. The experts have warned the possibility of a hike in Omicron cases following inadequate vaccines and lack of Covid-appropriate behaviour during the upcoming festival season. Swaminathan in a review meeting with the Chief Minister, Health Minister and Health Department officials virtually on Friday said that the Omicron variant may not give time to prepare for healthcare providers. The WHO Chief Scientist, according to the state Health Department officials, warned that the Omicron variant has a high transmission rate and it evades antibodies and immunity. The experts cautioned the government to be prepared with more beds, oxygen cylinders, drugs and testing kits. The state's Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan urged people to celebrate Christmas, New Year and Pongal in a subdued manner. He said that people must try to have online 'darshans' and virtual celebrations instead of physical visits to religious places. The department will release education materials and media briefs to prevent misinformation. However, the STATE government will not impose any fresh restrictions and the existing curbs would continue till December 31. Meanwhile, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in an official statement appealed to the people to make use of the vaccination facilities through camps across the state. New Delhi, Dec 25: Peoples Daily, the authentic voice of the Communist Party of China (CPC), has made a sensational omission. In a writeup on a critically important Party conclave, which concluded last month, it did not make any reference to Xi Jinping, Chinas omnipresent political giant, who doubles as CPCs General Secretary and the President of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). The absence of any reference to Xi, who starred at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC in November, has triggered an avalanche of speculations. That tongues among the political elites of Beijing are wagging is not surprising. There was more than one reason for the rumour mill to get rolling. Apart from marginalising Xi, the article heaps praise on Deng Xiaoping - the architect of China's political reforms. Xi kept Deng's formidable legacy, of powering China's economic rise through fundamental market reforms in the shade, though he never formally repudiated it. Instead, Mao Ze Dong's iron-fisted rule, and his personality cult, with caveats, was lionised, as part of a New Era scripted by Xi. The Chinese President visualises the "new era" reaching a new point of inflection in 2049, when, he envisages that the PRC would become the foremost power in the world in all spheres of human endeavour. The People's Daily article has been written by Qu Qingshan, president of the Institute of Party History and Literature of the Central Committee of the Communist Party. Surprisingly he has a reputation of being a Xi Jinping loyalist. What is the article about? The commentary is full of praise for Deng, who appeared on the political scene after the death of Mao in 1976. It was also a time when the entire China was traumatised by Mao's disastrous Cultural Revolution, and confused about its future direction. In its back-to-Deng message, the article described the reform and opening-up policy marshalled in the 1970s by the Little Helmsman - Deng's nom de guerre - as "a great awakening of the Party". Deng also "liberated people's thoughts from the long-running constraint of leftist dogmatism," writes Qu, president of the Institute of Party History and Literature of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, as reported by the Nikkei Asia Review. Shifting focus away from Xi, the writeup lauds Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao who extended Deng's legacy, ahead of Xi's arrival centre-stage in late 2012. The effort to revive Deng is puzzling as Qu, on account of his status and official position, would have been part of drafting the "resolution on history," which seeks to elevate Xi's status over Deng. This resolution was passed during the sixth plenum. Qu's commentary appears to presage the rumble of a bitter power struggle between the reformists who see Deng as their inspiration and Xi's loyalists supporting the President's unique brand of digital authoritarianism. Unsurprisingly, Qu's line was swiftly slammed in another follow-up article which also appeared in the People's Daily. An article written by Jiang Jinquan, director of the Policy Research Office of the Party Central Committee showers fulsome praise on Xi's policies. Jiang's article studiously ignores Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao. Mao's name is mentioned twice, while there are six references to Xi, as reported by Nikkei. It is now apparent that ideological war within the CPC between Deng-Jiang-Hu followers and Mao-Xi disciples has begun to rage. It is likely to culminate at next year's 20th Party Congress, when a new line of leadership for the next five years will be decided. (The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com) --indianarrative Vijayawada, Dec 25 : Chief Justice of India Justice N.V. Ramana on Saturday offered prayers at Kanaka Durga temple here. Accompanied by his wife, and clad in traditional dress, the chief justice paid obeisance at goddess Mahalkshmi on Indrakeeladri hill. The couple took part in the temple rituals and were blessed by Veda pundits. Temple officials and priests welcomed the CJI and his wife. They later felicitated him and presented him 'prasadam' and mementoes. Transport Minister Perni Nani, MP Kesineni Nani, endowments secretary Vani Mohan, endowment commissioner Hari Jawaharlal, Krishna district Collector J. Nivas and others welcomed the CJI. The CJI, who is on a three-day visit to his home state, will attend high tea to be hosted by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy later in the day. At the programmes to be held at Indira Gandhi Municipal Corporation (IGMC) stadium in Vijayawada, the chief minister will introduce his Cabinet colleagues to Justice Ramana. This will be the first meeting between Justice Ramana and Jagan after the latter wrote a letter to then CJI, Justice S.A. Bobde, in October 2020 making certain allegations against Justice Ramana. The apex court had dismissed the complaint in March this year through an in-house procedure. Justice Ramana had on Friday visited his native village Ponnavaram in Krishna district, where he was accorded civic reception. The CJI took a bullock cart ride in the village and also offered prayers at a local temple. This was the maiden visit by Justice Ramana to his native village after taking over as CJI in April this year. Beirut, Dec 25 : Lebanon registered 2,119 Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the highest daily increase since August 11, the Health Ministry reported. It has raised the total number of infections to 709,242 in the country, while the death toll from the virus went up by 16 to 9,012, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying. Assem Araji, head of Lebanon's Parliamentary Health Committee, urged citizens to follow the health precautionary measures during the festive season. Kabul, Dec 25 : Uzbekistan has provided 3,700 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the war-torn Afghanistan in an effort to help millions of people in need amidst the chilling winter. Transported by 63 rail wagons to Afghanistan's northern city Mazar-I-Sharif and received by Afghan officials, the batch includes foodstuffs, fuel and winter clothes that will be distributed among destitute Afghans as the country is undergoing an economic crisis, reports Xinhua news agency. Expressing gratitude to Uzbekistan, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy Foreign Minister of Afghanistan's Taliban-led government, called for further enhancing relations between Kabul and Tashkent. Stanikzai called on Uzbekistan to help Afghanistan in rebuilding airports, building railways and providing scholarships for Afghan students. Since the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August, which resulted in the US-led forces' departure and slapping sanctions on the new administration, Afghanistan has been facing economic crisis as more than 22 million out of the country's some 36 million population are reportedly facing acute food insecurity. To overcome the crisis, the Afghan government has called on the international community to provide humanitarian aid. So far, many countries including China, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, Qatar, among others, have provided humanitarian aid to the country. Hyderabad, Dec 25 : Tension prevailed at the KPHB police station in Hyderabad on Saturday as BJP workers staged a protest demanding justice for the families of three girls, who drowned in a water body formed at an abandoned government construction site. Family members and relatives of the three girls and BJP workers led by Medchal urban district president Harish Reddy staged the protest outside the police station. They demanded Rs 12 lakh ex-gratia, two-bedroom houses each for the families of the deceased. Police shifted the mother of one of the victims to her house. Later, a senior official of the Housing Board reached there and assured the protestors that they would convey the demands to higher-ups. Sangeeta (12), Sofia (10) and Ramya (seven) drowned while playing at the construction site in KPHB Colony's phase IV on Friday afternoon. Police with the help of NDRF teams and expert swimmers pulled out the bodies on Friday night. The bodies were shifted to the government-run Gandhi Hospital and after autopsy, they were handed over to their families on Saturday. According to the police, a group of five girls entered the government property by sneaking in through a narrow gap in the boundary fence. Three of them entered the flooded trench on the site and drowned. Two others who had stayed out ran out to inform their families. The deceased were students of a government school. Chandigarh, Dec 25 : After seven decades in politics, the grand old man of Punjab politics and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) patriarch, Parkash Singh Badal, at 94 is still not ready to ride off into the sunset. Despite the political turbulence in the past few years in the state, Badal, affectionately known as Badal Sahab for being a moderate leader with no extreme position even during the height of militancy in the border state, is once again trying to prove his mettle of being a people's politician with a whole host of policies enacted under his five helms that started by becoming the country's youngest Chief Minister in 1970. Also holding a tag to become the youngest Sarpanch in India in 1947 at the age of 20, the elderly Badal -- who handed over the reins of the party in 2008 to his only son Sukhbir Badal, the man known for micro poll management for his now own controlled 100-year old party -- is once again set to return to 'active' politics after making 11 stints in the Assembly and Parliament. Just weeks ahead of the Assembly elections announcement, Badal senior has started touring his Lambi constituency in Muktsar district. Accompanying his daughter-in-law and Bathinda MP, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the not-so tech-savvy Badal, who still believes in one-on-one connect, is regularly interacting with his constituents. At one of the recent public meetings, former Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal was quoted as saying: "When the SAD-BSP comes to power, Sukhbir Badal will be your Chief Minister and Badal Sahab will be your super Chief Minister. "You all convince him to contest the poll. He keeps on saying that health does not allow him. But you all convince him, you can make him win elections even if he sits at home." Without mincing words, even Badal senior is categorically clear in saying in his speeches that, "whatever duty the party assigns him, he will do that". Reacting strongly and firmly after a drugs case was registered against former Akali minister Bikram Singh Majithia, Badal senior dared the government not to resort to vendetta politics to hide its failure. Talking to the media here on December 23, the elderly Badal, who firmly believes sacrilege acts hurt every devout Sikh, said the recent incidents of sacrilege and violence have a direct link with the writing on the wall about the outcome of the 2022 Assembly polls. He said the sacred Sri Harmandar Sahib had been made the target of devious and dangerous designs by the Mughals, the British and the Congress rulers. "After 1984 this is the first time that the most sacred shrine of humanity has been made the target of evil designs and it is not merely a coincidence that this too happens during a Congress government," a beaming 6'2" towering leader, who has spent 17 years in jail in various Akali movements, a fact that prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to call him Nelson Mandela, said. Also he said his opponents registered hundreds of cases against him and his family, but it did not bother him. "I have spent 17 years in jail in various Akali 'morchas' for democracy, civil liberties, peace and reconciliation and I am not afraid of going to jails once again," the senior Badal, country's oldest politician next only to BJP veteran L.K. Advani, told IANS. "The Congress has not spared even my wife. If it thinks this can weaken the Akali Dal, it is mistaken," he added. The shrewd and grounded Badal, who played a major role in bringing another Akali stalwart Ranjit Singh Brahmpura back into the party this week, said: "Today I am very happy that two brothers have joined hands again." Appealing to other turncoat Akali leaders to follow Brahmpura's example, he said: "Every time we have been attacked we have emerged stronger. Even Indira Gandhi could not break our will. False cases being registered against us by the Congress won't deter us from our goal in any manner whatsoever." He believes the total neglect of governance, stoppage of all welfare and development initiatives by the government will be the reasons behind the rout of the Congress in the forthcoming polls. Political observers say the biggest poll issue this time will be again the drug menace and the recent acts of sacrilege and the turn of events in the aftermath. The Akali Dal is yet to announce its candidate from Lambi despite party chief Sukhbir Badal announcing 91 candidates for the upcoming polls that the party will fight in alliance with the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The Akali Dal and the BSP will contest 97 and 20 seats respectively for the 117-member Assembly. Snapping over two-decades-long ties, the Akali Dal pulled out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in September 2020 after sharp differences over the three controversial farm laws. "Since Sukhbir lacks the political acumen of his father, the party is banking largely on the senior Badal to resurrect it ahead of the forthcoming do-or-die poll for the party," a senior Akali leader admits to IANS. The Congress, which was out of power in Punjab for a decade (2007-17), got 77 seats in the February 4, 2017, Assembly elections after drubbing the Akali Dal-BJP combine. (Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in) Guwahati, Dec 25 : More than 840 students, including 133 girls, of the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) have bagged job offers in the first phase of placement with one student having bagged Rs 2.05 crore package per annum offer from a multi-national firm, officials said on Saturday. Abhishek Kumar, IIT-G's Centre for Career Development Head, said in the first phase of placement a total of 843 students, an all-time high in the 27-year history of IIT-G, have got job offers as compared to 610 students in 2020. "Rohit Negi, a student pursuing M.Tech in Computer Science and Engineering at IIT-G, got Rs 2.05 crore package per annum offer from Uber," Kumar told IANS. He said that the students of all departments in the first phase of placement drive that concluded earlier this week received an average annual cost offer of Rs 23.73 lakh with minimum annual salary of Rs 6.25 lakh. The various companies from where the IIT-G students bagged the job offers include Uber, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Graviton, Goldman Sachs, American Express, Squarepoint Capital, Accenture Japan, Rakuten Japan, Texas Instruments, Oracle, Bajaj, Qualcomm, Nvidia, Cisco, JPMC, Walmart, Amazon, Intel, Mercedes, Schlumberger, and ATVS R&D. Kumar, an Associate Professor of the Department of Civil Engineering, said the students are quite excited about this significant jump in the number of offers in the first phase of placements. "They are also excited about some new profiles and companies that have participated in the selection process. Many students who earlier did not register for the placement are also coming forward to take part in phase-two of the placement. For phase-two as well, a large set of companies have shown interest to participate," he added. Another official of the IIT-G quoting the students said that receiving the job offers the students felt very happy and thrilled. The students thanked IIT-G and the placement team led by Abhishek Kumar for giving them a good opportunity to go ahead in the future and managed the entire placement process seamlessly. IIT-G was established in 1994 and completed 25 years of existence in 2019. At present, the institute has eleven departments, five inter-disciplinary academic centres and four schools covering all the major disciplines -- engineering, science and humanities, offering B.Tech, B.Des, M.A, M.Des, M.Tech, MSc and PhD programmes. The institute headed by Director T.G. Sitharam, with more than 6,000 students, offers a residential campus to 412 faculty members. "Besides its laurels in teaching and research, IIT-G has been able to fulfil the aspirations of people of the northeast region to a great extent since its inception in 1994. The picturesque campus is on a sprawling 285-hectare plot on the north bank of the Brahmaputra, nearly 20 km from heart of the Guwahati city," a spokesman of the institution said. The IIT-G is the only academic institution in India that occupied a place among the top 100 world universities -- under 50 years "ranked by the London-based Times Higher Education in 2014 and continues to maintain its superior position even today in various international rankings. (Sujit Chakraborty can be contacted at sujit.c@ians.in) New Delhi, Dec 25 : A person, who was trying to smuggle in gold biscuits from Sharjah, was arrested at the Jaipur International Airport by customs officials. A senior custom official said on Saturday that customs officials at Jaipur International Airport intercepted a passenger who arrived by Air Arabia flight from Sharjah. "While examining his checked-in baggage in the x-ray machine, dark images of some objects inside the shaver-cum-trimmer was noticed. We had a doubt that he was concealing some heavy precious metal which could be gold," the official said. On being questioned, the passenger denied carrying any such item. However, he could not provide any satisfactory explanations. "We then dismantled the shaver-cum-trimmer only to find four solid biscuits of fine gold (of 99.99 per cent purity) duly packed in a black carbon plastic sheet of multi layers. One small gold biscuit of fine gold (purity of 99.99 per cent) was found separately packed in black Carbon plastic sheet," the official said. The official said that the gold biscuits were then seized. The smuggled gold was around 491.0 grams, valued at Rs 25 lakh. "We seized the gold under the provisions of custom act, 1962. Later, the local police was also informed," said the custom official. The official said that further investigation is going on. IANS atk/shb/ Johannesburg, Dec 25 : South Africa has with immediate effect stopped tracing and quarantining contacts of confirmed cases of Covid-19, said the Department of Health. "All contact tracing be stopped with immediate effect except in congregate settings and cluster outbreak situations or self-contained settings. All contacts must not be tested unless they develop symptoms," said Department of Health Director-General Sandile Buthelezi. He said all contacts should continue with their normal duties with daily temperature testing, symptom screening of any early signs, reports Xinhua news agency. If contacts develop symptoms, they should be tested and be managed according to the severity of the symptoms. "All quarantine is to be stopped with immediate effect. This applies to both vaccinated and unvaccinated contacts. No testing for Covid-19 is required irrespective of the risk exposure unless the contact becomes symptomatic," he added. Buthelezi said the people who have been infected and have been in isolation can return to work after eight or 10 days depending on the individual's clinical status, adding there is no need for the Covid-19 test to be performed before returning to work after isolation. Hyderabad, Dec 25 : The climax of 'Pushpa: The Rise' was to have originally featured actors Allu Arjun and Fahadh Fassil in the nude but the makers backed off, apprehensive of the response from the conservative Telugu audience. In a conversation with the media, director Sukumar let the secret slip. "The climax confrontation scene is different from the one we originally shot," Sukumar revealed. Disclosing the fact that both Allu Arjun and Fahadh Fassil were supposed to appear nude in the scene, Sukumar explains that only then would the scene have appealed in its rawest form. "Allu Arjun and Fahadh were supposed to go nude for the climax scene. But, we did not go for it because going nude is too much for the Telugu audience," the 'Nannaku Prematho' director said. Despite these changes, 'Pushpa: The Rise' is considered a movie close to reality, with a couple of raw scenes. Staying true to the subject and hero's idiosyncrasy, Sukumar had shot a scene between Rashmika and Allu Arjun which also evoked a negative reaction from the audience. Some of the viewers also had demanded the makers to take down that scene from the original print. Sukumar also revealed that the second part - 'Pushpa: The Rule' - would be more earthy and raw. Chennai, Dec 25 : Actor Tovino Thomas, whose just-released superhero film 'Minnal Murali' has been getting rave reviews, says he has not just found a friend in Tamil actor Guru Somasundaram but also a mentor as well. Posting pictures of himself with his co-star Guru Somasundaram on social media, Tovino said, "For obvious reasons, I had to wait for so long to post these pictures. But here's to having met one of the most sweetest persons, with whom I have had endless conversations about cinema, life and what not." "It was important to have a connection and chemistry for us to play Jaison and Shibu, and my bond with him has been one of the biggest takeaways from 'Minnal Murali'. I'm happy beyond words in having found a friend who I see in the place of a mentor and Guru as well. Guru Somasundaram Sir! Thank you for joining hands with us in making history. Cheers to many more." Guru Somasundaram, best known for his brilliant portrayal of Mannar Mannan in the critically accalimed superhit Tamil film 'Joker' which won over 12 awards including two National Awards, plays Shibu in 'Minnal Murali'. Directed by Basil Joseph and produced by Sophia Paul, 'Minnal Murali' has music by Sushin Shyam and cinematography by Sameer Thahir. The film, which was originally supposed to release in theatres, is streaming on Netflix. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Seoul, Dec 25 : A Chinese fishing boat has been seized by the South Korean Coast Guard for allegedly keeping ship logs with false information, officials said on Saturday. The Coast Guard, based in Mokpo on the southwestern coast, said it seized a 99-tonne vessel at around 3.50 p.m. on Friday in waters about 180 km south of an island located in Shinan, South Jeolla Province, about 350 km south of Seoul, reports Yonhap News Agency. The unidentified ship is suspected of some 48 cases of breaching operation rules, such as omitting dates and signatures in the ship logs, according to the officials. Chennai, Dec 25 : The Tamil Nadu Election Commission (EC) is likely to announce the dates for the upcoming urban local body elections after Pongal. Pongal is on January 14 and sources in the state polls told IANS that elections are most likely to be held in February 2022. The delimitation exercise is taking place for the newly created and expanded urban local bodies. According to Tamil Nadu EC officials, elections would be held for 21 corporations, 138 municipalities and 490 town panchayats. Sources in the EC told IANS that the elections are likely to take place in February 2022 and a notification would be issued immediately after Pongal. The state would soon be announcing free gift hampers for Pongal which include 20 items comprising rice, jaggery and sugarcane to 2.15 crore public distribution system cardholders. Gift hampers will also be provided to Sri Lankan Tamils residing at rehabilitation centres and would cost the state government to the tune of Rs 1,088 crore. With the DMK not announcing the cash gift during Pongal, there is resentment brewing at the grassroots level and it has to be seen how the response will be in the upcoming civic body polls. D. Jayakumar, former Minister in the previous AIADMK government, told IANS, "The DMK government has failed miserably in maintaining law and order in the state which is abysmal. Resentment has started brewing after the government failed on its poll promises and it will not be like rural local body polls when they won comfortably." The Bharatiya Janata Party will be contesting in alliance with the AIADMK and this would lead to an interesting political fight in western Tamil Nadu. DMDK and PMK, the former allies of the AIADMK, are contesting the upcoming civic polls alone. Makkal Needhi Maiam led by party Chief Kamal Haasan and Naan Tamilar Katchi are desperate for a win. The possible spread of Omicron variant of the coronavirus is also a matter of concern. Following the emerging scenario after detection of Omicron cases, the Allahabad High Court on Thursday suggested postponement of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls which are due in early 2022. The EC will visit UP next week to take a call on the issue. New Delhi, Dec 25 : New publishing models and strategies are emerging; the publishing industry is pushing the boundaries; its heartening to see the brick-and-mortar model steadily return to the sales' mix. The pandemic was a wake-up call, for publishing is an intensive, immersive business. The worst effect of the two waves of the pandemic is tentatively behind us, and the publishing industry is upbeat as the world marches into 2022. "Disruptions are creative in that they clear up new spaces, though they can also pile up debris and blockages," Namita Gokhale, writer, literary activist and co-director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, which is described as the "greatest literary show on earth" for the sheer depth of its participation, told IANS. "We find new publishing models and strategies emerging in the course of the pandemic and the continuing endemic," Gokhale said. "We encounter innovative ways of telling and sharing our stories, on different platforms, in different voices. The publishing industry is evolving in so many directions, though it's still work in progress. The pandemic and the two years of social retreat also gave many authors the impetus to write some outstanding books. The human race needs stories to make sense of our world," she added. Gokhale's just-published 19th book, 'The Blind Matriarch', is a poignant tale on the complex inner life of an extended family during the pandemic. For people around the world, the pandemic "was a time to take stock of their lifestyles," Mita Kapur, founder and CEO of leading literary consultancy Siyahi, told IANS. "The publishing industry is pushing the boundaries in the kind of stories they are choosing to tell, the kind of innovation they are looking for in narrative styles. Translations from Indian languages to English have spotlighted authors and translators and given the Indian reader access to exquisite stories from all over the country. The coming years can only take us to higher readership and more exciting writing," Kapur added. "The times of uncertainty and isolation that the pandemic brought upon us reinforced once again that books and reading were an important part of our lives -- and also prepared the industry for change," HarperCollins Executive Publisher Udayan Mitra said. "The pandemic years were a time of change, and the entire publishing industry -- from authors to editors to production teams to the book retail and marketing -- adjusted remarkably well to the new normal, which often involved embracing a digital model for key operations and activities, right from reading proofs on screen, to online launch events," Mitra told IANS. "I think this has prepared us for a more efficient, hybrid model of engagements and operations in the future." He added: "And, more importantly, many of us had more time on our hands, and the urge to write. We've had a remarkable number of manuscripts completed and readied for publication during the pandemic years, and many more are in the making. There is a wonderful list of books lined up for publication in 2022 and beyond. This is great news for booklovers." In terms of trends, there have been some excellent works of imaginative fiction being written and published, alongside incisively analytical works of non-fiction. There has been a focus on children's literature, on speculative and fantasy fiction, and on biographies, Mitra said, adding: "It is certainly on our minds to celebrate the lives of remarkable individuals, during a time when we have sadly lost so many fellow human beings." Mitra concluded by observing that both ebooks and audiobooks are now options available for readers to engage with a book alongside the more traditional print edition, and dramatised interpretations of books are also on the rise. "Multi-platform avatars of creative content are going to be a significant trend for the future," he maintained. "Despite the second wave (of the pandemic) interrupting sales for over a month, 2021 closed well with overall sales numbers up," Hachette India MD Thomas Abraham told IANS. "And while online continued to be the dominant strand, it was heartening to see brick-and-mortar steadily return to the mix, and one hopes that next year will see a full return to normal patterns where they are concerned. The big concern remains the lack of traction for new releases that are not superbrands -- not a healthy sign for readership," Abraham added. The pandemic and the lockdown that followed was like a "shuddering stop", as demonetisation was, "an incredible experience in a country of the size and energy of India," Bloomsbury Editor-in-Chief Krishan Chopra said. "To the credit of all, the industry was remarkably nimble in tackling it. Sales and turnovers were badly hit, but the books and the work continued. There were many good books produced, as one can see in the awards lists and the publishing programmes," Chopra said. He added: "The pandemic was also a wake-up call. Publishing is an intensive, immersive business, and suddenly, away from long commutes and with fewer meetings, in the office or with the author, and the disaster unfolding all around, it was an opportunity to rethink what one was publishing. "It wasn't just that people with more time on their hands could dig out great cookery ideas for people to try out while they were stuck at home. There was this whole new perspective on how we live and what really counts. It was like you were midstream in a powerful river and suddenly carried by a wave to a quiet spot on the side, floating peacefully among eddies," Chopra told IANS. "After any traumatic experience such as this, it takes time to evaluate and come to terms with it. One hopes this is not one that will be, as is often the case, lost in the tide of new events. We have some books coming up that look at facets of the pandemic," Chopra said, adding: "Revival has been slow and is gathering pace. If future crises abate, we could be looking at a year of fresh and superb new books." The process of reviving is still on but "I agree that the worst effect of the two waves of the pandemic is tentatively over. I'm using the word tentative because a third wave is always looming large, especially after the discovery of omicron," said Trisha De Niyogi, Director and COO, Niyogi Books, which has carved a niche for itself by producing illustrated books on a variety of subjects connected with culture and heritage. The abiding trend noticed during the process of revival is perhaps the sudden escalation in the interest in non-fiction, De Niyogi said, adding: "Perhaps, because of the long lay-off during the pandemic, people have generally become more introspective, hence, we are now observing an interest in books on mental health and behavioural problems, along with gender issues, environmental issues, ecology and heritage preservation." She concluded by noting: "I believe that just like masks, certain trends will sustain themselves throughout 2022. I foresee more inclusive literature, with more fiction as well as non-fiction on mental health, people with disability, environmental sustainability, subaltern or suppressed voices, and so on." There was considerable damage at every level during the pandemic, and publishing, too, has had its share of ups and downs. But reading and book buying also increased during the period despite many impediments in the supply chain, Aarti David, Director, Publishing, SAGE India, observed. "The only channels that seemed to be working best were digital sales and online sales. Physical stores have been the worst impacted and many smaller players have shut down their businesses as there have been minimal or no sales," David told IANS. The issue of returns has become even more complex as a result of the pandemic; in addition, schools and colleges have remained shut almost throughout this period and have only restarted in a hybrid model -- that too very recently. "Academic publishing has been impacted as a result of these developments. Libraries are not releasing funds for book purchases and neither are textbook adoptions being done at the scale at which they previously were," David added. (Vishnu Makhijani can be reached at vishnu.makhijani@ians.in) Srinagar, Dec 25 : Two terrorists belonging to the proscribed terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chowgam area of south Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday, Jammu & Kashmir police officials said. The police said that acting on a specific input regarding the presence of terrorists in Chowgam village area of Shopian, a joint cordon and search operation was launched by the police, Army's 44 Rashtriya Rifles and the Central Reserve Police Force. "During the search operation, as the presence of terrorists got ascertained, they were given ample opportunities to surrender. However, they refused to surrender and instead fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which retaliated leading to an encounter," the police said. In the encounter, two terrorists were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site. They have been identified as Sajad Ahmad Chak, a resident of Braripora in Shopian district and Raja Basit Yaqoob, a resident of Achan Litter in Pulwama district. "As per police records both the killed terrorists were categorized terrorists linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT and were part of groups involved in several terror cases. Besides, the killed terrorist Sajad was also instrumental in motivating and recruiting the youth to join terror outfits," the police added. Incriminating material, arms and ammunition, including two AK-series rifles, four AK magazines and 32 rounds were recovered from them. Bengaluru, Dec 25 : Karnataka High Court has granted interim approval to a woman for holding prayers at her residence in Udupi district of Karnataka on Friday. The lady from Udupi, Esthela Louies has questioned the police notice issued to her in the court. She claimed that the notice by the Karnataka police on October 26 has violated her fundamental rights. She prayed before the court that she has been conducting prayers since 11 years at her residence. The police stated in their notice that she was holding gatherings without police consent and license and it was a violation of law. The police had asked her to submit documents in this regard. Considering her plea, a bench headed by Justice Krishna S Dixith, permitted Esthela Louies to hold service meetings. It also instructed her not to disturb the neighbours. She was also asked to honour the condition that police personnel are free to make audio and video recordings of service meetings. The court has also stated that there should not be any large congregations at the house. The order will be in place until the next hearing. Esthela Louies's petition claimed that she has been holding prayers and is involved in community services since 11 years. The prayers are being conducted at her residence in Devalkanda in Kundapur taluk of Udupi district on Fridays and Sundays. Meanwhile, a police notice was issued by the Kundapura Rural police station house officer questioning her on hosting service meetings. She challenged the police notice of the court claiming that it violated her basic fundamental right. The petitioner has also given undertaking to the court that she would see to it that there would be no large congregation and Covid guidelines are followed and neighbours are not troubled. She has also mentioned that she would not give room for any allegations of religious conversion activities. The counsel for the government stated that the petitioner's residence is located in a communally sensitive area and the congregation at her residence is likely to pose threat to peace and harmony and law and order situation as well. Chennai, Dec 25 : Tamil Nadu government has urged electronic items manufacturer Foxconn Technology India Ltd to provide necessary basic facilities at the hostels where its women workers are staying. The state government said it has urged the Foxconn to improve (a) the boarding and lodging facilities of its contract workers (b) provide adequate number of bathrooms and toilets, drinking water facilities and well ventilated rooms (c) get the District Collectors permission for the worker's hostels (d) cook and supply the food at the place where the workers are staying and (e ) sanction leave for the workers when they ask for and make alternate arrangements with the man power supply agencies during their absence. According to the government, the Foxconn has agreed to implement the suggestions. Hundreds of workers of Foxconn recently protested on the National Highway demanding to know the status of colleagues who were affected by food poisoning recently. About 14,000 men and women are employed in the Foxconn unit that makes electronic components, iPhones for Apple and others. Many of the women workers are staying in the nearby dormitories. According to workers, several women workers were affected due to food poisoning after taking lunch at one of the dormitories. The affected workers were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment and some were admitted. According to workers, the management did not give any proper answer when queried about the health condition of women workers who were admitted to the hospital. Bengaluru, Dec 25 : Former Prime Minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a great visionary with a proactive approach towards development, C.N. Ashwath Narayan, Minister of Higher Education, IT/BT and Skill Development of Karnataka, said here on Saturday. In his address at the event of 'Good Governance Day' observed in honour of Vajpayee on his 97th birth anniversary, he said projects envisaged by Vajpayee entirely changed the course of development in the country. Moving in the path guided by Vajpayee, our government strongly believes in empowering citizens with quality education. Further, it has been decided to upgrade UVCE college in Bengaluru as 'University of Eminence' and every district of the state will be having at least one university in the near future, he said. All the processes including teaching-learning in the higher education system has been digitized and priority is being given to impart futuristic skills to students. The government engineering colleges will be transformed as centres of excellence, the minister pointed out. "Vajapayee introduced the concept of 'Minimum Government & Maximum Governance'. He implemented projects such as Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak, Golden Quadrilateral, was responsible for a revolution in the telecom sector, National Rural Health Mission, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan when others had not even imagined such possibilities," he explained. The present union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also believes in taking governance to the doorstep of citizens, he said. Technology is being used to deliver every kind of service, starting from opening a bank account to delivering LPG cylinders to consumers and this is the hallmark of good governance, he opined. Narendra Modi being inspired by the thoughts of Vajpayee, is responsible for the implementation of the GST system, facilitating ease of doing business, bringing in transparency in the system, eradication of corrupt practices, and creating a level playing market system for products across the country, he said. Chennai, Dec 25 : The bank accounts of former Tamil Nadu Milk and Dairy Development Minister and AIADMK leader from Virudhunagar, Rajenthra Bhalaji, have been frozen. Police sources told IANS that six bank accounts of the former minister, who is on the run, have been frozen. The district crime branch police have registered two cases of job racket against Bhalaji. The former minister is evading arrest since Friday, December 17 after the Madras High Court refused anticipatory bail in the case related to allegedly cheating 20 job aspirants of Rs 3 crore promising to get them government jobs in various institutions including 'Aavin', the Tamil Nadu Milk cooperative. A former functionary of the AIADMK, Vijay Nallathambi from Virudhunagar against whom youths have filed cases alleged that he had taken money from them, has also filed a case against Rajenthra Bhalaji complaining that he had given Rs 1.6 crore to the former minister for providing jobs to various aspirants. While rejecting the anticipatory bail plea of the former minister, the Madras High Court said that there seems to be prima facie material evidence against the former minister in two job racket cases. The former minister has moved an appeal in the Supreme Court for anticipatory bail and has not surfaced before the investigating team. The Virudhunagar police have formed eight special teams in search of the former minister and have already issued a lookout circular against him to prevent him from leaving the country. Lucknow, Dec 25 : Political parties are making all out efforts to woo voters in the run-up to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, which will decide the political fate of many of them. Leaving no stone unturned, the ruling BJP has appointed in-charges in the state to lead the party's campaign. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited his parliamentary constituency Varanasi twice this month and dedicated various welfare schemes to the people. Foundation stones for various schemes are continuously being laid. Besides Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani have also entered the political arena to campaign for the saffron party. The BJP will take out 'Rath Yatra' in 403 Assembly constituencies to persuade the electorate in its favour. Central and state ministers are likely to join the yatra. Shah will not only hold public meetings and roadshows from December 26 to 31 but also organisational meetings, during which he will give tips to the cadres. He will stay for the night at those places and study the ground realities. Shah, who is the BJP's chief strategist and is considered a poll expert, especially for Uttar Pradesh, has a significant contribution in bringing the party to power in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, 2019 Assembly polls and the 2019 general elections. To come to power, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav has stitched together alliances with small parties to set the caste equations right. Besides Akhilesh patched-up with estranged uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav. Shivpal has also accepted Akhilesh as his leader. In Western UP, the SP has an alliance with Jayant Chaudhary's RLD. Akhilesh had addressed a joint rally with Jayant. The SP chief took out "Vijay Rath Yatras" in Kanpur, Kanpur Dehat, Jalaun, Hamirpur, Banda, Mahoba, Lalitpur, Jhansi, Rai Bareli, Jaunpur, Mainpuri, Etah, but whether this will convert into votes is yet to be seen. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati kicked-off her poll campaign by organising a prabudh sammelan. Mayawati's party is eyeing the bastions of other political parties, but whether it will succeed in its endeavour or not will be known in the times to come. The Congress is also claiming that it will win the Assembly polls. The grand old party has announced schemes for women in a bid to woo the fairer sex. It has roped in chief ministers of the Congress-ruled states for campaigning. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president Asaduddin Owaisi is scrambling to win a few seats in the polls. Political analyst PN Dwivedi said that an interesting poll battle is in the offing as all parties are putting their best foot forward to emerge victorious. Chandigarh, Dec 25 : Twenty-two unions of farmers, which were part of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) to protest three contentious farm laws, on Saturday announced to form a political front 'Samyukta Samaj Morcha' to contest the 2022 assembly elections in Punjab on all 117 seats. Chief Minister's face Balbir Singh Rajewal, however, clarified there was no alliance as of now with any political party, not even with AAP. But at the same time he didn't rule out any future possibility. Rajewal told the media here that they were doing it on public demand. "Some of the unions are against it but won't oppose," he said. Ten other unions belonging to the state and were part of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha have refused to be part of the political front. They comprised the Krantikari Kisan Union (Darshan Pal), the BKU Krantikari (Surjit Phool) and the BKU Sidhupur (Jagjit Dallewal). Responding to the announcement of the political front, farmer leader Darshan Pal said, "Most of the demands of the farmers like the MSP (minimum support price) are yet to be accepted. By launching the political front, the movement of farmers might be weakened." He said the SKM was formed for bigger purpose and he has suggested that the farm leaders should not do injustice to farmers by entering politics. "Every union has the right to make its own decisions. We have earned the trust of farmers across the country and will not enter politics," Pal added. Earlier this month, BKU (Haryana) President Gurnam Singh Chaduni announced his political outfit Samyukta Sangharsh Party, saying the party will fight the upcoming Punjab elections. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Chennai, Dec 25 : The team of actress Samantha's upcoming Tamil-Telugu bilingual 'Yashoda' has wrapped up the film's first schedule. Directed by Hari and Harish, the film also features actors Varalaxmi Sarathkumar and Unni Mukundan in pivotal roles. Says producer Sivalenka Prasad, "We're making this Telugu-Tamil film in an uncompromising fashion. We plan to release the film in Kannada, Malayalam & Hindi also simultaneously." Pointing out that the first schedule, which commenced on December 6, came to an end on December 24, the producer says, "Sampath Raj, Shatru, Madhurima, Kalpika Ganesh, Divya Sripada and Priyanka Sharma played pivotal scenes in this schedule. Rao Ramesh & Murali Sharma are also playing major roles in the film." The producer informs that the second schedule will commence from January 3 and go on till January 12. "The final schedule will be from January 20 to March 31," he says and points out that despite being debutants, the directors were making the film in a neat and confident manner. Stating that cameraman Sukumar's work in the film was brilliant, the producer says they have not compromised on the budget to ensure that the film has technical and visual grandeur. Guwahati, Dec 25 : Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday asked the BJP leaders and party functionaries to give up their personal security officer (PSO), saying "this is a culture of the Congress party". Sarma, who also holds the Home portfolio, said: "I will ask the state BJP president (Bhabesh Kalita) to impress upon the party leaders to give up PSOs. "There is no need for PSOs. This is the Congress party's culture. We do not have any threat to life as we have done nothing wrong," the Chief Minister said while addressing a function in Guwahati on the occasion of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 97th birth anniversary. He said: "We do not need PSO to open the doors of the cars, we have the strength to open our doors. I was in the Congress party. I have a list of such types of practices which the Congress party patronage." Referring to Vajpayee, the Chief Minister said that his contribution in Assam and the northeast region's development would always be cherished. "As we celebrate Su-Sashan Divas (good governance day) to mark the occasion, it is time to reaffirm our commitment towards delivering highest standards of public service through the best governance practices," Sarma tweeted. Assam Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Bhabesh Kalita said: "We must be with the people and must not do things which do not allow us to be with the people." Hyderabad, Dec 25 : The Telangana government on Saturday banned rallies and public meetings in the state till January 2 in view of the Omicron threat. Acting on the direction of the Telangana High Court, the state government issued a Government Order (GO) imposing the curbs on public gatherings. However, the state has not banned New Year celebrations. The GO merely says other events involving congregation of people will be permitted subject to three conditions. The organisers have to ensure physical distancing at the venue, should not allow any person without mask and should arrange IR thermometers/thermal scanners at the entry point to scan persons entering the venue. The High Court on December 23 had directed the state government to impose curbs during festivals and New Year celebrations in view of the Omicron strain of the coronavirus. The court had asked the government to issue orders within three days. The court orders had come a day after Telangana reported a spike in Omicron cases. As many as 14 new Omicron cases were reported on December 22, pushing the state's tally to 38. The GO also made it clear that orders for imposition of fine for not wearing masks by people in public spaces issued in April will be strictly enforced. New Delhi, Dec 25 : Punjab Police on Saturday claimed to have cracked the Ludhiana court bomb blast case after identifying the accused-cum-victim, Gagandeep Singh (31), who reportedly had links with Pakistan-based pro-Khalistan elements. A high intensity explosion occurred in a public toilet at the district court complex in Ludhiana on Thursday, which left one person dead and six others injured. As per the police, Singh was the person who died while planting the bomb. Singh, a former head constable with Punjab Police who was dismissed in August 2019 after heroin was recovered from his possession, had reportedly strapped the bomb around his stomach to give the security personnel a slip. "To avoid detection, he strapped the IED around his stomach, as he knew that it would be next to impossible to enter the court premises otherwise. By strapping it to his body, he was able to take the bomb inside," a reliable source said. Singh also reportedly conducted a recee of the court complex to execute his plan. The Punjab Police have found that ISI was helping a German-based radical Khalistani group which helped in execution of the blast. The probe of Punjab Police has also revealed that Khalistani operatives are working with the drug mafia and Pakistan-based arms and narcotic dealers. It is probably the first time when durg dealers having international connection are working with Khalistani operatives and ISI agents with an intention to create terror and to carry out terror activities across the nation, especially in Punjab. A top police source said that they want to create an anarchy-like situation in Punjab. ISI is helping Khalistani groups to spread their agenda against India. In the Ludhiana blast too, ISI's name has cropped up. Singh reportedly had links with Khalistani operatives who were working at the behest of ISI. He developed contact with ISI and Khalistani operatives when he was lodged in a jail Ludhiana in connection with the NDPS case filed against him for possessing heroin. Kolkata, Dec 25 : West Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said he is yet to sign the Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021, and it is under consideration as inputs from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee are awaited, a day after the Bengal Advocate General made a submission before the Calcutta High Court that the Raj Bhavan cleared the bill on Wednesday. Accordingly, on Thursday, the State Election Commission proposed elections to Howrah Municipal Corporation, along with Bidhannagar, Asansol, Siliguri and Chandernagore, on January 22. The polls to Howrah and Bally were earlier planned to be held along with Kolkata Municipal Corporation on December 19. The revelation comes as a major embarrassment to the state government as well as to the ruling Trinamool Congress. Taking to Twitter, Dhankhar said: "Reports in media that West Bengal Governor Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar has put his seal of approval on the Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021 are not correct. It is under consideration under Article 200 of Constitution as inputs @MamataOfficial are awaited." Article 200 of the Constitution empowers a Governor to either give or withhold assent to a bill or reserve it for the consideration of the President. The Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021 that proposed to separate 16 wards of Bally Municipality from the jurisdiction of the HMC, was passed by the state assembly recently. The state government had also proposed to conduct the elections of Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Howrah Municipal Corporation together but as the Bill was pending with the governor so the HMC election had to be deferred. Meanwhile, West Bengal State Election Commissioner Saurav Das called-on Dhankhar on Friday and discussed issues related to pending polls to civic bodies in the state, amid allegations of rigging and intimidation against the ruling TMC by opposition camps during the just-concluded Kolkata Municipal Corporation elections. Elections to 111 municipal bodies are due in the state. Mumbai, Dec 25 : Maharashtra on Saturday reported 2 new cases of the Covid-19 variant Omicron and the state tally zoomed to 110, as the state entered a series of restrictions including prohibitory orders banning assembly of 5 or more persons between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. from this evening. Of the 2 new cases, both are from Aurangabad and fully vaccinated, and one had a history of recent international travel to Dubai, from where all the incoming passengers are being subjected to enhanced health scrutiny. While one patient is aged 50, the other is his close contact aged 33, one has mild symptoms and the second is asymptomatic, said the state health department. Intensive surveillance of passengers arriving at the three international airports - Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur - is currently underway since December 1. A total of 24,922 travellers have landed here from the 'high risk' countries of which 153 have tested positive and 55 from other countries, with all their reports sent for genomic sequencing to confirm if they are afflicted by Omicron. Besides, 729 samples from field surveys conducted since November 1 have been sent for genomic sequencing with the results of 162 awaited, said Health Department officials. The current spread of Omicron is extensive in the state, with the maximum - 46 cases - in Mumbai, followed by 41 in Pune, 5 each in Satara, Osmanabad and Thane, 2 each in Nagpur and Aurangabad, 1 each in Palghar, Latur, Ahmednagar and Buldhana. On the Covid-19 front, Mumbai, Pune and Thane remain at the top with the highest number of 'active cases' of the total 9,102 ill patients currently in the state, with a recovery rate of 97.68 per cent. As the state entered into 'night-curfew' style restrictions from 9 p.m. on Saturday night, the Hotels and Restaurants Association of Western India and Federation of Hotels and Restaurants Association of India have resented the cancellation of New Year and festival season events. "This is a huge disappointment to the industry which has borne the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Our staffers are fully vaccinated, follow full Covid appropriate behaviour, we are operational and ready to welcome guests," urged HRAWI and FHRAI office-bearer Pradeep Shetty. Meanwhile, police fanned out onto the streets and in public areas, erected checkpost at various points to implement the new restrictions that became effective tonight amid increasing Covid-19 and Omicron cases. Bhubaneswar, Dec 25 : The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) led by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday decided to nominate at least 40 per cent OBC candidates for the upcoming panchayat and urban local body elections in the State. The BJD executive committee has passed a resolution to this effect at its meeting held here on Saturday, said BJD leader and minister Arun Kumar Sahoo. Party's organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das moved the proposal, which was approved at the meeting, said Sahoo. Notably, the state government had removed reservation of seats for the OBC community from the panchayat and urban polls following the Supreme Court's direction. Meanwhile, Opposition BJP and Congress have termed the decision an eyewash to woo the OBC voters. OBC wing president of the BJP, Suratha Biswal said, "Though there was no reservation, about 50 OBC MLAs are there in the present Assembly. So, without playing politics over the issue, will the BJD government file a review petition in the Supreme Court?" Similarly, Gyana Beura, OBC cell chairman of Odisha Congress, said the ruling party has taken this step for its political gain. During the last panchayat polls, the BJD had nominated about 60 per cent OBC candidates. So there is no meaning of saying they will give 40 per cent reservation to the OBC for the upcoming polls, he said. Hyderabad, Dec 25 : BJP leaders in Telangana have threatened to stop the show of stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui in Hyderabad. State BJP president Bandi Sanjay on Saturday asked Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) to stop the show of Faruqui. The stand-up comedian is scheduled to perform in the city on January 9. After Telangana's industry and information technology minister K.T. Rama Rao extended an open invite, Faruqui announced that he will be performing in Hyderabad. His show is titled 'Dhandho'. However, this has evoked strong reaction from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders. Addressing the BJYM workers, Sanjay said it was their responsibility to prevent the comedian from entering the city. He alleged that Faruqui insulted Hindu gods and goddesses and Bhagwad Gita in his shows. Sanjay, who is also an MP from Karimnagar, slammed KTR for inviting Faruqui, and dubbed him an atheist. Earlier, BJP MP from Nizamabad, D. Arvind said Faruqui's show will not be allowed in Hyderabad. He said while states like Karnataka banned his shows, KTR has invited him to Telangana. "Has Hindu society become a comedy for KTR and his father KCR?" asked the MP. BJP MLA from Goshamahal constituency in Hyderabad has also threatened to stop Faruqui's show. The stand-up comedian had earlier tweeted that he was receiving several calls and mails from Hyderabad to perform in the city. Last week, KTR had extended an open invitation to comedians to perform in Hyderabad saying the city is truly cosmopolitan. The minister took a jibe at the BJP government in Karnataka, after stand-up comedians Munawar Faruqui and Kunal Kamra's shows were cancelled in Bengaluru over threats from some right-wing groups. "In our city, stand-up comedians get an open invite. We don't cancel shows of Munawar Faruqui and Kunal Kamra just because we are not aligned with them politically," KTR had said at an event on Friday. "You claim to be a cosmopolitan city, and then you end up taking comedy very seriously. I don't understand that at all," he had told people from Bengaluru. "We (Hyderabad) are a truly cosmopolitan city who are welcoming of all cultures, welcoming of criticism. You can come here, criticise government. In fact, we receive a lot of brickbats from our opposition every day but we are very tolerant," KTR had said. Guinean woman held at IGI by custom official with 10.35 Kg heroin worth rs 72 crore Image Source: IANS News Guinean woman held at IGI by custom official with 10.35 Kg heroin worth rs 72 crore Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, Dec 25 : A Guinean woman was held here at the Indira Gandhi International Airport for carrying 10.35 kg heroin valued at Rs 72.45 crore, officials said on Saturday. A senior Customs official said the woman arrived at IGI from Addis Ababa via Dubai. "She was carrying the heroin in a bag. The search of her baggage led to the recovery of two leather file folders, which appeared to be heavy even as it was empty. When it was cut open, we detected four packets," said a Customs official. The official said that two more packets were later recovered. During questioning, she told the Custom officials that the bag she was carrying was given to her by a woman in Addis Ababa. A case has been booked against her under the NDPS Act. New Delhi, Dec 25 : An inter-state gang involved in kidnapping and trafficking of newborn babies has been busted by the police in the national capital and six women have been arrested in this connection, the police said on Saturday. The six women -- identified as Priya Jain, Priya, Kajal, Rekha, Shivani and Premvati -- used to procure newborn babies from the parents belonging to the poor strata of the society by offering them money, and further sold the babies to the needy for hefty sums. The cops have also identified the kingpin of the gang named Priyanka, who is yet to be nabbed. Furnishing details about the case, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch), Rajesh Deo, said that on December 17, an information was received that a gang involved in kidnapping and trafficking of newborn babies is active in the national capital and some members of the gang would come near the Shamshan Ghat in Gandhi Nagar to sell a newborn baby. Acting on the tip-off, a team was constituted and a raid was conducted. Three among the accused, Priya Jain, Priya and Kajal, who had brought a baby boy aged around 7-8 days along with them, were apprehended from the spot. During interrogation, they revealed that they had gone there to sell the baby boy to earn quick money, and the boy had been arranged by Priyanka, who is the elder sister of Priya, the official said. Subsequently, the cops registered a case under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and arrested two more members of the gang and recovered one more baby girl from their possession. "During interrogation, it was revealed that they all belonged to the poor strata and initially few of them came in contact with IVF centres and started donating their 'eggs' to be used in the IVF process for which they were paid Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000," the police said. Soon they came in contact with several couples who had no children of their own and were desirous to have a baby, but could not get one even through the IVF process. One of the accused, Kajal, took several women to the IVF centres for egg donation against a small commission. She soon created a large network of people, who were ready to donate their eggs. Later, she started convincing them to sell their child due to their stark poverty and several other requirements, and the hapless parents fell to her words and started selling their child. The police said that the accused persons also convinced the sellers and the buyers that this was not illegal, and in some cases they also got notarised documents made in which the buyers would claim that they legally adopted the child. According to the police, the gang had developed a unique modus operandi -- they would identify a pregnant woman belonging to the poor strata and strike a deal with her and her husband, and as soon as the child was born, they would take him/her away from the parents and keep the child in their custody. They would simultaneously identify several possible buyers and circulate the child's photograph among all touts through WhatsApp and subsequently sell the child. "Kajal and Priyanka are the masterminds of the gang. Their network is reportedly spread in other states also," the official said. All the accused persons are in police custody, except Priyanka who is still absconding. Meanwhile, identities of 10 babies sold by the accused persons have also been established. Gandhinagar, Dec 25 : Gujarat on Friday reported 6 new Omicron cases, taking the state's tally of the new Covid variant to 49. Alarmingly, the state also reported 179 fresh Covid cases and 2 deaths on Saturday against 34 recoveries, nearly double than the 98 new cases it had reported on Friday. Of the 6 new Omicron cases, 3 were found in Kheda, 2 in Ahmedabad city and 1 in Rajkot. Majority of these cases had returned from the UK. Of the 49 Omicron cases in Gujarat, Vadodara tops the chart with 17 cases, followed by Ahmedabad (11), Kheda (6), Anand (4), Jamnagar city and Mahesana (3 each), Surat (2), and Gandhinagar, Rajkot and Rajkot city (1 each). The state's active Covid caseload presently stands at 837, as compared to Friday's 694. Among the new cases reported on Sunday, Ahmedabad reported the most at 61, followed by Surat (20), Vadodara (14) and Rajkot (13), among others. Over 81,000 doses of covid vaccines were administered in the day, taking the total statewide figure above 8.81 crore so far. New Delhi, Dec 25 : The petitioner in the politically-sensitive three-and-a-half-decade old Bofors scam case has knocked the doors of the apex court seeking an early hearing in the Special Leave Petition filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2018. According to the application filed by BJP leader Ajay Kumar Agarwal, there has been a recurrence of scams in the defence sector since the accused in this first ever scam have not been punished. "Some of these scams are AgustaWestland Chopper Scam, Scorpene Submarine Scam, Barak Missile Deal. It is expedient in the interest of justice that the matter be heard at an early date," Agarwal said in his plea. On February 2, 2018, CBI filed a Special Leave Petition of 2018 CBI vs Srichand P. Hinduja & Ors. in the same matter after more than 12 years of Delhi High Court order. The plea filed by Agarwal on December 24, said that this is one case in the history of independent India "wherein Gandhi family-run Central governments have been trying to scuttle the investigation and misleading the courts and abusing the judicial process". "Even the senior law officers of the government including Attorney General of India, Solicitor General of India and Additional Solicitor Generals were giving solicited opinions and trying their best to save the accused person," the plea said. "The accused persons got the kickbacks out of payment towards the purchase of Bofors gun, which is hard-earned money of poor people of the Country. Much evidence is on record that one of the accused namely Ottavio Quattrocchi was very close to Sonia Gandhi and other family members, it contended. "This case has to be decided and guilty be punished so that it would have deterrent effect on the society and such type of criminal acts be not repeated in future, like the AgustaWestland which also occurred with the same modus operandi involving the same Gandhi family and the Italian Defence manufacturing company with many middleman and agents," it added. "Had Bofors scam did not happened then the country would have acquired Sofma Guns manufactured by the French government which were far better than Bofors. The senior most officers of the Army including its Chief of staff consecutively for four years in series of trials and meetings preferred Sofma over Bofors since it has a better shooting range of 29 km while Bofors had only 21 km. And these were cheaper in cost than Bofors," the plea noted. Mumbai, Dec 25 : In an abrupt move, the Congress on Saturday appointed Rajesh Lilothia as the new Chairman of AICC Scheduled Caste (SC) Department. He replaces Maharashtra Energy Minister and senior party leader Nitin Raut, according to a statement issued by AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal. The Congress also appointed K. Raju as the Coordinator to oversee the activities of AICC SC/OBC/Minority departments and All India Adivasi Congress with immediate effect. The AICC has not specified any reason behind the removal of Raut from the powerful post. However, Raut sought to allay speculation over the reshuffle and claimed that the decision was expected six months ago. "The party president has taken this (decision) today," Raut said in a statement here. "I was unable to travel across the country and give justice to the post as I'm a minister in Maharashtra. That's why I requested the party president to free me from the post of president, SC department of AICC," Raut added. Besides, the minister pointed out that the party has a policy of 'one person one post'. Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Subdued in Nagaland, Christmas celebrated with zeal, fervour in other NE states Image Source: IANS News Aizawl/Shillong/Kohima, Dec 25 : Christmas is a season of joy and festivities for most of the northeastern states, but in Nagaland the celebrations were subdued this year due to the killing of 14 civilians by the armed forces personnel on December 4 and 5. Villagers of Oting in Mon district of Nagaland organised a special midnight prayer -- with wreaths and flowers laid and verses read from the Bible -- on Friday night at the mass grave, where their loved ones had been buried. "Christmas has always been special for us for the past many decades. We enjoy the festivity with all. But this year we are saddened and Christmas turned to grief, as we lost our sons and family members," Chemwang Konyak, a resident of Oting village, said. The villagers on Saturday carried placards seeking justice for those killed and demanded repeal of the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. Christmas celebrations in other parts of Nagaland were also very low-key due to the Mon district killings. The Planning and Coordination Department of Nagaland government requested the people to celebrate a sustainable and environment-friendly Christmas. An official of the department said that the key objective of this campaign is to align the Christmas festival celebrations to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals dissemination and spark action among the residents of Nagaland for making this Christmas and beyond, sustainable. However, the Christmas celebrations in other parts of northeast region, especially in Meghalaya and Mizoram, were very colourful and spirited. The houses and churches were lit up with colourful lights, flowers and Christians motifs. Churches across the eight northeastern states, including Meghalaya and Mizoram, which have a major percentage of Christian population, were full of festive joy and fervour. Church leaders said that special prayers and Christmas carols are being conducted since Friday night. Local cable television channels and various social media platforms have been telecasting the prayers and celebrations at the churches. Mizoram, Meghalaya and other northeastern states looked beautiful as Christmas masses were conducted and the streets were lit up beautifully since Friday midnight. In Mizoram, the community feast and Christmas carols were held with strict Covid restrictions as the authorities imposed certain restrictions on public gathering, due to high Covid-19 positivity rate. This year, Mizoram is witnessing the 150th year of Christmas celebrations after it was first celebrated by the colonial British troops back in 1871. The Assam Rifles troopers erected a 47-foot Christmas tree -- the largest in the northeastern region -- ahead of Christmas, at Lunglei in Mizoram. Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and his Mizoram counterpart Zoramthanga wished people on social media on the occasion of Christmas. Many of the state governments in the northeastern region have announced holidays for several days so that people can take part in Christmas festivities in limited circles. Christmas in Assam, Tripura, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh was also celebrated maintaining Covid-19 protocols and health restrictions. Over six million Christians live in Mizoram, Nagaland, Meghalaya while there are a significant number of Christians in the other northeastern states of Manipur, Tripura, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. Churches in Mizoram, Nagaland and Meghalaya play a very significant role in the life and culture of the people in these states. Bengaluru, Dec 25 : The Haryana Steelers went down fighting 38-40 against Jaipur Pink Panthers in Pro Kabaddi League Season 8, here on Saturday. Captain Vikash Kandola was Haryana's best player with 14 raid points in the match. The Haryana Steelers carried out a fantastic tackle in the fourth minute and took a two-point lead at 4-2. Kandola pulled off a brilliant raid moments later and helped the Steelers take a four-point lead at 7-3. The Haryana side carried out an all-out in the next minute and extended their lead by six points. The Steelers pulled off a brilliant Super Tackle in the 15th minute and led at 17-12. The Jaipur Pink Panthers carried out an all-out in the last few minutes, however, the Steelers held on to their lead at 22-21 at the end of the first half. Both sides were neck-and-neck in the first four minutes of the second half as Haryana and Jaipur were locked at 26-26. The Panthers carried out an all-out in the 30th minute and led at 33-27. The Steelers tried to fight back with a brilliant tackle and a couple of raids, however, the Jaipur side kept forging forward. Rohit Gulia pulled off a fantastic Super Raid in the last few minutes of the match and reduced Jaipur's lead, however, the Panthers held on to their lead and closed out the match at 40-38. Gwangju, Dec 26 : A Chinese fishing boat has been seized by the South Korean Coast Guard for allegedly keeping ship logs with false information, officials have said. The Coast Guard, based in Mokpo on the southwestern coast, said on Saturday that it seized a 99-ton vessel at around on Friday in waters about 180 km south of an island located in Shinan, South Jeolla Province, about 350 km south of Seoul, Yonhap news agency reported. The unidentified ship is suspected of some 48 cases of breaching operation rules, such as omitting dates and signatures in the ship logs, according to the officials. Tehran, Dec 26 : Iran has announced the decision to close its land borders with neighbouring countries for 15 days to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 variant of Omicron. Ruhollah Latifi, spokesman for Iran's Customs, said on Saturday thar the Iran's land borders with Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Pakistan and Armenia are closed for half a month from Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported. Iran's Health Ministry on Saturday reported 1,121 new Covid-19 cases, raising the country's total infections to 6,182,905. The pandemic also claimed 42 lives in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll to 131,348, according to the ministry. A total of 6,024,211 people have recovered from the disease or been discharged from hospitals across the country, while 2,781 remain in intensive care units, it said. By Saturday, 59,464,524 Iranians have received their first vaccine doses, 51,096,388 two jabs, and 5,478,443 in the country third booster shots. A total of 41,388,312 tests have so far been carried out across the country. On December 19, Iran detected the first Omicron case in a traveller who returned from the UAE. Restore. Build. Grow. Opportunity Zone Fund The mission and fund impact of RBG Opportunity Zone Fund is to restore, build, and grow local communities by investing in low and middle income regions to create and develop Opportunity Zone Real Estate and Businesses. Restore Build Grow Opportunity Zone Fund (RBG) now seeking accredited investors for High Tech Manufacturing, Innovative Technologies, Indoor Ag, Workforce & Transitional Housing. The Fund is authorized to raise $50,000,000 in the Series A Round. RBG Opportunity Zone Fund The mission and impact of RBG Opportunity Zone Fund is to restore, build, and grow local communities by investing in low and middle income regions to create and develop Opportunity Zone Real Estate and Businesses leveraging the significant tax benefits under The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 passed by the US Congress. The selected portfolio companies will possess a strong investment thesis and meaningful social and environmental impact including sustainable workforce & affordable housing to enable economic growth and community redevelopment. The Funds business investments will focus on novel technologies within product solutions targeting large unmet consumer, commercial, and industrial market needs. By coupling a strong fundamental investment thesis, the significant federal and state tax benefits of the opportunity zone program, and other stackable federal and state tax programs, investors will now have the opportunity to maximize their investment returns. RBGs approach to strategically invest in businesses and real estate will generate positive economic trickle-down effects, increasing the demand and availability for local jobs and businesses, raising property values, and reducing crime. Targeted geographic areas include Delaware, California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Targeted business investments by the RBG Fund will be in the areas of high tech manufacturing for disruptive product solutions enabled by innovative and patented technologies. This includes: -Green Lighting Technology from Azentive, LLC emulating true sunlight indoors for completely regenerative food growth in California and New Jersey. -World Changing Technologies with Noitavonne Inc., in the heart of Black Wallstreet in Tulsa, Oklahoma. -Collaborating with the founder of Yor Water with Cutting Edge Technology platform for live streaming and e-commerce. Targeted real estate investments by the RBG Fund will be in the areas of workforce, affordable, and transitional housing for average median income (AMI) families, veterans, people with disabilities, neurodivergent population & senior citizen population, as well as aging out youths, and reentry population. This includes: -Innovative mixed-use affordable housing development -Commercial and/or residential land uses near transit hubs -Retail & commercial office space -Supportive services -Entrepreneurial Innovation hubs and more -5G broadband We are also evaluating potential investment opportunities within advanced nanomaterials, battery cell design & engineering, and battery manufacturing technologies. Given the explosive growth in electric vehicles and the rapidly increasing global adoption of wind and solar power generation, there will be an exponential increase in demand for Lithium-ion batteries over the next 10 years to power the EVs and store the energy from wind and solar. Opportunity Zone Tax Incentives Opportunity Zones are designed to spur economic development by providing tax benefits to investors. First, investors can defer tax on any prior Capital Gains deposited into a Qualified Opportunity Zone Fund (QOF) for up to five years. Then, after five years they will only be required to pay taxes on 90% of the original amount deposited thanks to a "10% Step Up Basis." Additionally, those deferred taxes at 90% will only be assessed at the CURRENT rate of 23.5% and therefore are likely to avoid far higher future capital gains tax rates. Finally, after a required ten-year minimum term, the initial amount deposited PLUS all the accrued interest derived from QOF property (real estate and business stock) can then be withdrawn from the QOF entirely tax free. Today - 0% Tax Due - One million dollars invested today will appreciate tax free for five years. 5 Years - 10% Step Up Basis on Deferred Capital Gains tax due at 23.5% assessed on $900,000, which is 10% less the total one million invested. 10 Years Tax Free - If Opportunity Zone investment generates another 9 million in profit over the ten-year term the entire 10 million can then be withdrawn tax free. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 offers an extraordinary tax break to investors by allowing them the opportunity to defer certain capital gains by investing them in qualified Opportunity Zone investments. Opportunity Zones are specially created geographic districts that allow investors to receive substantial tax breaks for investing in these zones, including the potential for avoiding taxes on gains altogether. The monies eligible for investment extend only to realized capital gains from the sale of any property to an unrelated person. These capital gains can come from any asset class and do not have to be placed through an intermediary. Investors are eligible for tax deferral on such gains up to the amount of such gains that are invested in a certified Qualified Opportunity Fund within 180 days of the sale date (See Income Tax Considerations Opportunity Zone Investment). QOZF BENEFITS TO THE TAXPAYER / INVESTOR Taxpayers may defer paying tax on capital gains, if such capital gains are invested in a QOF, within 180 days from the gain. The deferral period ends the earlier of when the taxpayer sells its interest in the QOF or the 5-year mark. Investments held for 5 years prior to that date will also qualify for a 10% increase in the tax-payer's tax basis of the amount of the deferred gain. Any taxpayer that holds its investment for a minimum of 10 years, can achieve no capital gain tax on the appreciation of its investment. Fund Terms and Team Restore Build Grow RGB Opportunity Zone Fund was formed by three minority women. RESTORE. The funds initial project will be Restoring the communities through high tech manufacturing and patented innovative technologies. REGINA ROBINSON - Fund Manager Regina Robinson has managed multi-million-dollar portfolios for the past twenty-five years. She would consider herself a portfolio surgeon mastermind who takes an unhealthy portfolio and will RESTORE it and make a trained Olympic Winner out of it. As such, she has managed and turned million-dollar budget shortfalls from red to into the black. Ms. Robinson has extensive experience managing multimillion-dollar portfolios for manufacturing companies and public entities. Prior to entering the public sector, she was last responsible for managing a $450MM portfolio for one of the largest Fortune 500 Companies. Currently, she serves as the Chief Financial Officer of one of the largest educational systems in the State of New Jersey and is responsible for the business and operational affairs of an $810MM entity. Ms. Robinson has overseen major projects that include environmental remediation, natural gas conversions, structural assessments and repairs, of more than five million square feet of instructional space. Building and Growing sustainable communities is a long standing commitment of Regina. She shows her gratitude to pay it forward by serving as the Founder and President of Crossroads Community Resource Development Center, a nonprofit dedicated to the development of supportive services that promote and sustain the education, social and economic well-being of children, families and communities in underserved areas. She also serves on the Board of Directors of The Chrysalis Initiative which provides Black women and other disparate groups tools to address racism in their cancer care, with the purpose of erasing the line of inequality in breast cancer care. BUILD. By Building back the neighborhoods and population for families to thrive, RBG will create state-of-the-art affordable housing developments, and workforce opportunities. BERNICE JOHNSON - Fund Manager Bernice Johnson is a reticent person by nature and prefers to BUILD a company behind the scenes given the opportunity. Ms. Johnson has been involved in real estate in various property sectors for almost 20 years. She has played a key role in numerous real estate acquisitions and dispositions, property management, and oversight of construction projects totaling in the multi-millions. Ms. Johnson has a real estate license in two states and an insurance license for life, property and casualty. Ms. Johnson has an extensive history of supporting small businesses and has dedicated herself to tackling problems with transformative solutions. She has held a variety of positions in marketing, sales, social media, procurement, public safety, risk mitigation, business development, operations, and compliance. Ms. Johnson also works for Tisdale Legal Group, PLLC., which is a real estate and labor & employment law firm. She serves as a VP for a national and international engineering firm and a Director of Business Development for Eazy Do It, Inc., which is the number 1 opportunity zone fund development company in the USA. GROW. Without everyone, we cannot Grow as a Community. That is why part of the funds road map will focus on green and energy-efficient transitional-housing and mixed-use development. GWENDOLYN GWEN SAMUEL - Fund Manager Ms. Gwen Samuel is a mom, education and economic freedom activist, and a community relations consultant with a national reach. Ms. Samuel has founded three Connecticut community-based organizations on her decades-long advocacy to help GROW communities and has championed two historical parent empowerment bills that became law in Connecticut. Ms. Samuel has presented workshops at various educational conferences and colleges throughout the country, including the U.S. Department of Education; as well as testifying before Congress at the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education. The hearing examined state and local efforts to increase parental engagement and educational opportunities. In recognition of her work, Parenting Magazine selected Ms. Samuel as one of fifty-one moms, representing their state, at the inaugural Mom Congress on Education and Learning in D.C. She was featured in Parade Magazine, Mothers Day edition, Moms We Love: Four Women Doing Amazing Work to Help Others. Also, Ms. Samuel was featured in the book about public education entitled Waiting for Superman and was a panelist for NBCs Education Nation. Ms. Samuel launched an Urban Experience in Family and Community Engagement (F.A.C.E.)helping Teachers Transition into Diverse Classrooms and Community workshop series. This parent-led Urban Experience in Family and Community Engagement Workshop Series provides educators, administrators, and lead school support staff with solution-oriented strategies critically needed to build sustainable relationships with parents, families, and communities who are marginalized within the educational system. Ms. Samuel participated in the Denver Colorado Leadership Program of the Rockies (LPR) with a focus area on training emerging leaders in Americas founding principles while teaching and fine-tuning the leadership skills necessary to impact public policy. In addition, she co-founded the Connecticut Charter Oak Leadership Program which focuses on teaching and fine-tuning the leadership skills necessary to impact public policy. Fund Terms & Highlights Status: Open to Investors Fund Focus: Business & Real Estate Total Fund Maximum Offering: $250M Round A Target Offering: $50M Minimum Subscription: $100K Fund Administration: OZInvested Anticipated Returns: 20% Contact: Restore Build Grow Opportunity Zone Fund Regina Robinson Fund Manager Phone: (302) 276-8253 Email: info@rbgozfund.com For more information, please visit https://www.RBGOZFund.com Privacy Policy DISCLAIMER: Articles featured on this website are for informational purposes only. This is not an offer to sell nor a solicitation to buy Restore Build Grow Opportunity Zone Fund, LLC. That can only be done by our current Confidential Private Placement Memorandum (CPPM). Securities offered by Restore Build Grow Opportunity Zone Fund, LLC. For accredited Investors only. Limited liquidity. The shares being sold in this offering have not been approved or disapproved by the Securities and Exchange Commission or any states securities division. Nor has the Securities and Exchange Commission or any state securities department passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of the CPPM, or the disclosures provided therein. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by Restore Build Grow Opportunity Zone Fund, LLC and while we endeavor to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability, or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk. Thailand Launches Online Cooking Space, Showcasing Recipes of "Worlds Tastiest Medicine" Thailand Launches Online Cooking Space, Showcasing Recipes of "Worlds Tastiest Medicine" In tune with todays current health awareness across the globe, an increasing number of people are paying more attention to food and healthy eating. To carry this direction further, Thailand's Department of Cultural Promotion is promoting Thai foods as medicinal and beneficial for ones health through the website ThaiTasteTherapy.com an online Thai cooking space showcasing 50 recipes. Additionally, information on raw ingredients and Thai herbs are available. Already renowned worldwide for its appealing diversity in flavors, Thai gastronomy takes centuries-old local wisdom to a new level in health, well-being, and medicinal care. Thailand is honored to share its knowledge of local dishes from throughout the Kingdom that not only appeal to the taste buds but have healing properties for a number of ailments. Mr. Chai Nakhonchai, Director-General of the Department of Cultural Promotion, revealed that while Thai food is an intangible cultural heritage praised worldwide for its diverse flavors, the wonder of Thai cuisine doesnt end with great taste. Nearly every dish is bursting with vegetables, herbs and spices containing nutraceutical properties (food containing health-giving additives and having medicinal benefits) which in turn can aid the body to fight off diseases and help maintain a level of health and vitality. Its not an overstatement to refer to Thai cuisine as The Worlds Tastiest Medicine. Sample dishes Immune-Boosting Chicken Soup with Turmeric, which contains curcumin (helps the immune system work efficiently*). The sharp, tart smoky flavor comes mainly from the garcinia fruit with an overall balanced deliciousness coming from galangal (helps prevent inflammation caused by bacteria and viruses and helps prevent allergic reactions) and lemongrass (contains quercetin which enhances immunity). Spicy and Sour Chicken Soup the bold and delectable Tom Yum dish with juicy chicken meat, herbal aroma, galangal and lemongrass. Five-Spice Jungle Curry a popular spicy dish that does not contain coconut milk, instead containing a host of spices and herbs to balance the strong scent of fish or meat and to enhance appetite. Key ingredients include fingerroot, a kind of ginger, which also contains quercetin (helps relieve cough and cold symptoms*), galangal, turmeric, lemongrass, and peppercorn (helps to relieve nausea, headaches, poor digestion). For healthy eating, visit http://www.thaitastetherapy.com for easy-to-follow Thai food recipes and an online directory of where to purchase ingredients. WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by his wife, Jill, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Qatar, Romania, Bahrain and the U.S. As your commander in chief, I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, thank you, thank you, he told the service members. Were grateful for your courage, your sacrifice, not only your sacrifice but your familys sacrifice. Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them theyre the solid steel spine of the nation, and emphasized the truly sacred obligation the nation has to care for soldiers and their families. Jill Biden expressed empathy for the difficulties their families experience spending the holidays away from their loved ones, noting that the Bidens experienced the same when their son Beau, who served as a major in the Delaware Army National Guard, was deployed to Iraq. The Bidens planned a relatively quiet Christmas at the White House with family. On Friday night the president and the first lady participated in Holy Trinitys Christmas Eve Mass virtually in the East Room, according to the White House, and held a pasta dinner and sleepover with their children and grandchildren, a Biden family tradition. As the coronavirus pandemic surges anew, driven by the highly infectious omicron variant, the Bidens sought with their public appearances and statements to offer a sense of unity and normalcy in an otherwise challenging season for many. In a Christmas statement, the Bidens praised the enormous courage, character, resilience, and resolve of the American people in the face of the pandemic, and offered prayers that the nation would find light in the darkness during a difficult season. "During this season of joy, we are inspired by the countless Americans who are a reminder that the things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic," the Bidens said in their statement. And the call to soldiers was just the latest Christmas tradition the two participated in, after spending Christmas eve spreading holiday cheer around Washington. On Friday morning, they visited Childrens National Hospital to offer holiday greetings to young patients and their families. The president showed off photos of their new puppy and Jill read a children's book to patients. Later, the two stopped by a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament amid branches decked out with photos of his wife's face, apples and small chalkboards, in homage to her teaching career. Both answered calls to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's Santa-tracking service, speaking to parents and children about their Christmas wishlists. CHICOPEE, Mass. (AP) The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts has received $5 million in state funding to help it build its new distribution center and headquarters in Chicopee. Food bank officials and state lawmakers met this week to announce the funding which was approved earlier this month and is from the states American Rescue Plan money. The food bank that serves residents of Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin, and Berkshire counties still needs another $4 million to reach its $26 million goal for the 60,000-square-foot (5,575-square-meter) facility. Groundbreaking is scheduled for April. The new center will replace the current inadequate 30,000-square-foot (2,790-square-meter) distribution center in Hatfield, where food is often stored in the aisles and on refrigerated trailers parked permanently at loading docks, creating warehouse inefficiencies and delays in food distribution. The food bank provides food to more than 100,000 people per month, about 30% of whom are children, and need has soared during the pandemic, officials say. NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa (AP) Preparing to leave his North Liberty home on a winters day, Bob Randolph fills his pockets with miniature hand-knitted stockings. Hes become accustomed to giving them to untold amounts of people he runs into: kids playing down the street, residents and caretakers at his mothers assisted living home, churches in town and patients at the childrens hospital. Hes careful to not leave out the the guy behind the meat counter, whose daughter might like one, the gal behind the desk at physical therapy, or the folks at the dentists office, either. If you see the little kids when they get one, its pretty special, Randolph told the Press-Citizen. Especially in the last year with the pandemic going on, if you can put a smile on someones face, I think thats a good thing to do. Randolphs mother, Margaret, taught him to knit and sew when he was growing up in Anamosa. Now 63, he picked up the skill again after spending nearly 30 years working at a factory job. He came away from the decades of manual labor with injuries to his neck and shoulders, 13 surgeries, and plenty of time on his hands. I think its a wonderful thing to have something to occupy your time. It keeps me busy and it keeps me happy. In todays world, thats major, Randolph said. Now he gets to work sitting in a cozy brown living room chair with a row counter hanging around his neck. Surrounding him are reminders of his family of eight siblings, like blankets and slippers knitted by his mother and sisters, and about 50 skeins of yarn. To his left and right are embroidery needles, scissors and crochet hooks, plus bells and buttons to adorn each stocking. Theres also special tape waiting to be wrapped around his calloused fingers, which get sore from gilding the needles some the width of a toothpick, size 000 through so many loops of yarn. I have to remind myself, go slow, Randolph said of the tiniest stockings, which look small in palm of his hand. If you drop a stitch there, its terrible to try and pick up or re-do. Each stocking takes four to five hours depending on the size of the needle. Hes memorized the pattern after creating an estimated 600 of them over the past three to four years, some to gift and some to sell. A current batch is being sold at the Knitting Shoppe in Iowa City. Randolph has also created hats and scarves for plastic bottle snowmen made by children at a local library, and full-sized stockings to send overseas with a local church. To say thank you for what she taught him, he sewed new curtains for his mothers kitchen; hes also made purses for his sisters and bag bags, to hold plastic bags in the kitchen, for every member of the family. This Christmas, he looks forward to playing Shanghai rummy and making jigsaw puzzles with his family. And knitting. Ill keep doing these until I get tired of it, Randolph said. Right now it seems to bring too much joy. Ned Gerard / Hearst Connecticut Media BRIDGEPORT Police are looking for a man who stole a persons purse just at the start of Christmas day. The citys Emergency Communications Center received a call just after midnight Saturday. The caller said an older man took a persons purse by force near Morgan Avenue and Windsor Street, according to Scott Appleby, the director of Bridgeports Office of Emergency Management. Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media BRIDGEPORT A red vehicle fled after hitting a pedestrian early Christmas day, sending the person to the hospital, according to a city official. The citys Emergency Communications Center received a call about a pedestrian being struck near Madison Avenue and Federal Street around 2 a.m. Saturday, according to Scott Appleby, the director of Bridgeports Office of Emergency Management. Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Thursday: Scientific Games Corp., up $5.57 to $67.75. The company withdrew its offer to buy the remaining 19% of SciPlay that it does not currently own. Stitch Fix Inc., up $1.47 to $19.74. Working Capital Advisors disclosed a purchase of more stock in the online clothing styling service. Quidel Corp., down $28.85 to $137.39. The medical diagnostics company is buying Ortho Clinical Diagnostics. Crocs Inc., down $16.25 to $123.53. The footwear company is buying Hey Dude for $2.5 billion in a cash-and-stock deal. JD.com Inc., down $5.10 to $68.65. Tencent Holdings is cutting its stake in the Chinese e-commerce company. United Parcel Service Inc., up $3.75 to $212.19. The package delivery service and its peers gained ground as the holiday shopping season and shipping crunch nears its end. DXC Technology Co., up 61 cents to $32.57. Ness Technologies is reportedly buying the information technology and consulting company's unit in Israel. Valero Energy Corp., up 43 cents to $71.73. Oil prices rose and helped send energy stocks higher. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) In a major development in the Ludhiana court blast, the investigative agency on Saturday made the first arrest. The arrested - a lady working as a constable is said to be friends with the prime accused, Gagandeep Singh - a suspended constable in the Punjab Police, as per sources. Sources further say, of the many calls the suspended constable had made on the day of the blast, a call was also made to the lady constable. An explosion occurred at a Ludhiana court on Thursday at around 12:25 PM. As per sources, the blast occurred in a women's washroom on the third floor inside the court premises. Visuals from the scene show walls and parts of the ceiling damaged in the third-floor washroom of courtroom no. 14. Ludhiana Blast As per the investigative agencies, the preliminary probe has revealed that one of the two killed-Gagandeep Singh is the prime accused in the case. Singh was a police constable posted as munshi at Sadar Khanna police station but was dismissed from service after a case was registered against him under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. As a result, he was put in jail in 2019 and was only released in the month of September this year. Investigators suspect that some parts of the explosive were handed over to him just before he entered the court premises. Post getting the parts, he was trying to assemble them all together, and had even called his handlers to trigger the bomb via his phone, during which the bomb accidentally exploded, killing him and one other, and injuring 6 others. Agencies suspect that its accomplices may be in UP, Delhi, Himachal. Of the names, that of Gangster Ranjit Singh alias Cheeta and Gangster Rinda Singh Sandhu is coming up. They are most likely to be interrogated in relation to the case. Pakistan's ISI aiding pro-Khalistani groups? Sources in the IB and BSF say that agencies are looking into the intel inputs to the Centre that had warned that Pakistan's ISI is aiding pro-Khalistani groups to execute terror attacks in a bid to create disharmony in the state ahead of the 2022 Punjab assembly polls. The first set of inputs of the terror attack came in September, as per sources, after which increased activity has been witnessed, including the increased sighting of drones and ammunition droppings along the border. As Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyay said that there is a Pakistan link in the Ludhiana Court Blast case, senior BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa lambasted state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, asking him if he would still be in denial mode and continue favouring his 'Bhai Jaan' (Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan). The DGP of Punjab clearly named Pakistan as the mastermind behind Ludhiana Bomb Blast Are you still on denial mode @sherryontopp? Would you continue favouring your Bhai Jaan over Punjabs peace? pic.twitter.com/KdTq8G9afC Manjinder Singh Sirsa (@mssirsa) December 25, 2021 Even on Thursday, in a video message that he tweeted, Sirsa had said, "Sidhu's claim that Ludhiana Blast took place to target a particular community is an irresponsible statement. He has made this an issue of communal hate which can spread fear amongst the common people and can also be a threat to the Sikh community. He is trying to protect Imran Khan and Pakistan even though his own CM said that there could be involvement of Pakistan. This is not a new strategy of Congress, they had done the same thing in 1984." What did the Punjab DGP say on Pakistan's involvement in Ludhiana Blast? In a press meet earlier, the DGP had said, "I do have full doubt that there is an involvement of Pakistan, because that's what the leads suggest. It is possible that those behind it are operating from Pakistan." Ludhiana Court Blast On Thursday, an explosion took place on the second floor of the District and Sessions court complex in Ludhiana which claimed the life of one person and further injured six others. Following the major incident, several political leaders including Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi reached the spot. Also, a high-level meeting was called to discuss the security situation in the country and further on the Ludhiana blast. Officials of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), National Investigation Agency (NIA), Border Security Force (BSF), and others were among those present at the meeting held at the Home Ministry. Image: PTI, ANI Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter on Saturday morning and remembered former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihar Vajpayee on his birth anniversary. Making his wish for the former PM and BJP leader, PM Modi said that the country was 'inspired' by his service. The PM also noted that he had impacted the lives of millions of Indians. Taking to his Twitter handle, PM Modi paid tribute with a heartfelt message to the visionary leader. "Tributes to respected Atal ji on his birth anniversary," PM Modi wrote in Hindi. "Remembering Atal Ji on his Jayanti. We are inspired by his rich service to the nation. He devoted his life towards making India strong and developed. His development initiatives positively impacted millions of Indians," he added. - Remembering Atal Ji on his Jayanti. We are inspired by his rich service to the nation. He devoted his life towards making India strong and developed. His development initiatives positively impacted millions of Indians. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 25, 2021 Last year on Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 96th birth anniversary, PM Modi and other top leaders visited the 'Sadaiv Atal' memorial and paid tributes. President Ram Nath Kovind, Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal were also present to pay tribute to the former PM. Speaking about Vajpayee, PM Modi called him a 'visionary' leader who took the country to unprecedented heights of development. Remembering Atal Bihari Vajpayee 'A man of masses' who was 'firm in his political convictions', Atal Bihari Vajpayee served three terms as the Prime Minister of India - first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months from 1998 to 1999, and finally for a full term from 1999 to 2004. A veteran Parliamentarian whose career stretched over four decades, Vajpayee was elected to the Lok Sabha (House of the People) nine times and to the Rajya Sabha (House of the States) twice. As India's Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Chairperson of various important Standing Committees of Parliament and Leader of the Opposition, he was an active participant in shaping India's post-Independence domestic and foreign policy. During his tenure as Prime Minister, India carried out the Pokhran-II nuclear tests. He also sought to improve diplomatic relations with Pakistan. He travelled to Lahore by bus to meet then Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. After the 1999 Kargil War, he sought to restore relations with Pakistan by inviting the then President Pervez Musharraf to India for a summit at Agra. Vajpayee is still honoured by many as one of the strongest leaders of the country. Image: PTI Experts have predicted that B.1.1.529 Omicron strain will be eliminated completely from South Africa, the country where the strain was first detected. Within a matter of just a few weeks the wave has largely subsided and the health officials are now predicting that the peak of B.1.1.529 is spiralling downwards. According to several reports, more than 70% of the total population previously infected with other COVID-19 variants has been able to more robustly fight the infection. South Africas top infectious disease scientist, Salim Abdool Karim, explained to the Washington Post on December 24, Friday that Africa has officially passed the peak of Omicron. If previous variants caused waves shaped like Kilimanjaro, omicrons is more like we were scaling the North Face of Everest, said Karim in reference to South Africas sharp rise in COVID-19 cases during the first weeks of December. Now were going down, right back down, the south face, Karim continued. And that is the way we think it may work with a variant like Omicron, and perhaps even more broadly what well see with subsequent variants at this stage of the pandemic. Cases 29.8% lower than previous day South African health minister stressed that the trend in new COVID-19 cases has been going downwards but last week Omicron accounted for nearly every new Coronavirus case in South Africa. The official told the paper that the recent data indicates theres a slow decline which is being noticed as the cases go down. South Africas 'The National Institutes for Communicable Diseases' found this week that the seven-day average of positive COVID-19 cases across the country was 29.8% slightly low as compared to the day before, which was nearly 30.1%. The health officials believe that the rising trajectory and the lower severity of illness could be a factor that South Africa is finally seeing a decline. In South Africa, variants, even highly mutated ones, will run out of people pretty quickly. Pretty much by the end of last week it was running out of steam; there just arent enough people left to infect, said Karim. He then estimated that South Africa is between two and three weeks ahead of the U.S., about two ahead of Norway and Denmark, and substantially ahead of, probably up to four weeks, the UK and the rest of Europe. China has changed and its foreign policy has totally changed since the incumbent President Xi Jinping came in power, said an Australian foreign policy expert. According to Dr Michael Fullilove, Executive Director of the Lowy Institute of Australia, since Xi Jinping became President, the country has become more aggressive in the border areas, particularly in the east and west region. While speaking at the 2nd Atal Bihari Vajpayee Memorial Lecture, Dr Fullilove noted that the world is heading for a prolonged period of bipolar competition in the Indo-Pacific region. Watch the full speech here: Though the Australian foreign policy expert noted that the Chinese economy has seen phenomenal growth, he added India's economic rise is also important for the Asian success story. "Emerging Asia is the most dynamic part of the world accounting for more than half of the global growth despite representing only the third of the global economy," Dr Fullilove said in the address. Notably, his statement comes at a time when China is expanding its border areas under the direction of President Xi Jinping. Several neighbouring countries including India, Bhutan, Japan and Bangladesh have raised grave concerns about the plan of Beijing, still, the Communist government is implementing the same strategy. "World is heading "for a prolonged period of bipolar competition" Meanwhile, speaking on 'Australia, India and the Indo-Pacific: The need for strategic imagination,' Fullilove said if "the economic outlook is positive is in Asia, the security outlook is not". Also, he highlighted the current situation wherein China and the United States are at loggerheads to prove their power in the Indo-Pacific region. Further, the Australian foreign policy expert cautioned that the world is heading "for a prolonged period of bipolar competition in the Indo-Pacific region"."Both US and China have exhibited troubling behaviour in the Indo-Pacific over the past decade." The Australian expert also took a dig at the Donald Trump policy and added if Washington's international stance over the past decade has been changeable, that of Beijing "has been consistent and increasingly concerning". "Since the ascension of President Xi Jinping in 2012, China has become much more aggressive in the borders towards the east and west and its relations with other states. Australia is an extreme case," he said in an apparent reference to deterioration in China-Australia ties. "China has changed. Its foreign policy has hardened. The constraints on people within China have tightened. Its willingness to accept criticism has disappeared," he noted. With inputs from ANI Image: ANI More than 200 migrants rescued at sea by the German humanitarian ship Sea-Eye 4 disembarked Friday in the Sicilian port of Pozzallo. The Sea-Eye crew pulled the 214 migrants to safety last week in four separate rescue operations in the Mediterranean. The zone where they were picked up is coordinated by Maltese authorities, but Malta refused to assign them a port, the group said. The migrants, including eight children and 29 women - seven of them pregnant - were assisted and treated on board by the crew. One child had a broken arm and another a broken finger. Two pregnant women had stomach pains and several people had to be treated for chemical burns and hypothermia. Nine people were evacuated by the Italian coastguard while the Sea-Eye 4 was waiting to be allowed into port. In total, the charity ship has saved over 1,400 people in distress at sea over the past year. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) Christmas celebrations kicked off Friday evening in the rebel-controlled Ukrainian city of Donetsk, despite tensions between Ukraine and Russia. A big Christmas tree was erected in the main square where residents gathered for a ceremony to mark Christmas Eve. "We are in a festive and joyous mood," said Alexei Kulemzin, head of the rebel-controlled Donetsk administration, saying that steps to integrate the region with Russia were moving forward. "Our home is Russia," he added. "We want... to become one with our motherland." Locals were in a joyous mood Friday and keen to celebrate the coming New Year, singing and dancing in the open air despite low temperatures. Earlier in the day, children living in areas near the front line between separatist and Ukrainian government forces were treated to a concert and gift-giving ceremony sponsored by the All-Russia-National Front, a civic organization in Russia. Donetsk is the self-proclaimed capital of the Russian-backed Donetsk People's Republic, which has been at war with Ukrainian government forces since 2014. The fighting has killed over 14,000 people and devastated Ukraine's industrial heartland, known as the Donbas. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) Head of Polands ruling party Jarosaw Kaczynski has said that Germany is trying to turn the European Union into a federal German Fourth Reich. Kaczynski, who also serves as Polands Deputy Prime Minister, on Friday said that his compatriots were opposed to what he said was modern-day submission to the bloc's largest economy, Germany. The term Fourth Reich is a hypothetical Nazi Reich that is the successor to Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. Additionally, it also suggests the resurgence of Nazi ideas. Earlier this week, the 27 member bloc said that it was launching legal action against Poland for ignoring EU law and also undermining judicial independence. The move was strongly denounced by Warsaw with Polish PM saying Mateusz Morawiecki labelled it as bureaucratic centralism that needs to be stopped. Meanwhile, speaking to polish daily GPC, the head of the Law and Justice Party (PiS) said that some countries were not enthusiastic at the prospect of a German Fourth Reich being built on the basis of the European Union. If we Poles agreed with this kind of modern-day submission we would be degraded in different ways, said Kaczynski. He added that the European court of justice was being used as an instrument for federalist ideas, as reported by The Guardian. Polexit? In October, Polands Constitutional Tribunal ruled against the primacy of EU laws over the countrys legislation in certain judicial matters. In addendum, it also declared some of the blocs treaties as being incompatible with the countrys constitution. The declaration was quick to catch the attention of the European Commission, which threatened action against it. Meanwhile, it also triggered fear of what is now being dubbed as Polexit amongst other members of the bloc. The term Polesxit, inspired by Brexit represents Poland's exit from European Union. Late on Friday, Foreign ministers of both Germany and France rebuked Poland saying that EU membership relied upon "complete and unconditional adherence to common values and rules" and this was "not simply a moral commitment. It is also a legal commitment". French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian announced that Polands exit was now a de facto risk. (With inputs from AP) Image: AP The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has approved an open-ended international investigation into Israels treatment of Palestine. In May, the UNs Human Rights Body (OHCHR) had first voted to initiate a probe into whether or not Israel committed war crimes during the 11-day war, which eventually lead to the deaths of over 200 people. While the proposal was staunchly opposed by the Zionist regime, OHCHR had moved ahead with the resolution 24-9 vote, with 14 abstentions. On Thursday, UNGA gave a go-ahead to the budget requirements of the investigation. The vote saw 124 countries in support of the probe with eight in opposition. A total of 24 countries including Australia, Germany and Canada were in abstention. Those who opposed the bill included Israel, the US, Hungary and the Pacific nations of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau and Papua New Guinea. According to the Times of Israel, the resolution called for the creation of a permanent Commission of Inquiry to monitor reports and question any rights abuses in Palestine. It is imperative to note here that Israel has multiple times accused the UN of being biased in favour of Palestine. On May 10, Gaza-based terror outfit Hamas fired its first projectile onto Israel, starting 11 days of obliterating aerials exchanges between the warring sides. As the conflict turned bloodier and the international call for peace gained momentum, a truce was signed. The war claimed over 200 lives, including women and children on both sides. However, experts deem the pact to be short-lived as both Israel and Hamas continue to claim victory against each other and attack each other's territories. It is imperative to note that quasi-democratic group Hamas and the State of Israel have fought four bitter wars in just over a decade and each of them has ended inconclusively. ICC investigation Separately in March 2021, the International Criminal Council (ICC) announced an investigation into possible war crimes in West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem since June 2014. Back then, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had welcomed the probe asserting that it was long overdue, but, the zionist regime had refused to co-operate with former PM Benjamin Netanyahu even terming it as an attack on Israel. Image: AP Saudi Arabia said a Yemeni rebel attack on the southern border town of Jizan killed two people and wounded seven more late on Friday. The statement published by the official Saudi Press Agency said Yemen's Houthi rebels launched a projectile that killed a Saudi citizen and Yemeni resident. Six of the wounded were Saudis and one was a Bangladeshi national, Saudi media said. The cross-border attack is the latest in Yemen's long-running civil war by the Shiite Houthi rebels following a series of Saudi-led military coalition airstrikes on the Yemeni rebel-held capital of Sanaa. Yemen's civil war has killed some 130,000 people and spawned the world's worst humanitarian disaster. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) In a bid to ramp up the fight against coronavirus, Bhutan has started giving COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to its citizens, becoming the first South Asian country to do so. From December 24, Bhutan started administering the third dose to target groups, including "at-risk" adults and those aged 65 and older. Additionally, those eligible for the booster dose will also include health workers, those suffering from chronic ailments and adults living in and around COVID hotspots or travelling to another country. "As we did for the second dose, mix and match is recommended even for the booster dose given its higher efficacy," a Bhutan Health official told it's state media BBS broadcaster. Bhutan has planned to jab more than 2 lakh people in a week as the health department began its booster drive from December 24. Mass vaccination campaigns are also to be held in areas of high risk in all districts in Bhutan's capital Thimphu, where priority groups can avail booster shots adhering to safety protocols, Bhutan Health Minister Dechen Wangmo was quoted as saying to BBS broadcaster. Now something worrying for us is the transmission given that its transmissibility is two to three-fold higher than the delta variant. For example, last time with the delta variant, you will remember that sometimes the parents would be infected but the children were not. Even in the Schools, some students were infected and some were not. But now with the Omicron variant, that will not be the case. Everyone will get infected. Now we are also observing more of the unvaccinated and younger children are getting hospitalized and seeing severity with the infection," Wangmo added, as reported by BBS. Bhutan becomes the first country in South Asia to begin COVID booster shots Bhutan has become the first country in South Asia to introduce COVID booster shots, BBS broadcaster said. It has now joined the other 36 countries, including Germany z Austria, Canada and France, which were among the first few to administering third jabs, Our World in Data reported. The US tops the list with at least 60 million booster shots given since it began rolling out the third dose. It is followed by the United Kingdom with 30.84 million and Germany, Brazil, and Russia completing 28.4 million, 23.78 million and 6.49 million simultaneously on December 23. It is pertinent to mention that Bhutan has not reported any cases of the vaccine-evasive Omicron variant, which was first reported from South Africa's Gauteng province. Owing to its stringent COVID-related protocols, the Himalayan country of 7,50,000 people has reported only 2,659 cases and 3 deaths since the pandemic began in early 2020. (Image: @LotayTshering/Facebook/AP) The president of the Philippines said he is worried the omicron variant of the coronavirus could further drain the nation's finance. Duterte said in a televised meeting with Cabinet officials on Tuesday, that additional funds are urgently needed to deal with Typhoon Rai's massive devastation. In the Philippines, one of the worst-hit by the pandemic in Southeast Asia, daily COVID-19 infections have considerably dropped from an average 22,000 cases just three months ago during an alarming spike set off by the delta variant to just a few hundred in recent days after a delayed vaccination campaign considerably intensified with more vaccine shipment deliveries. Quarantine restrictions were eased, allowing large numbers of Filipinos and their children to troop back to shopping malls ahead of Christmas and attend traditional pre-Christmas dawn masses in churches in the largest Roman Catholic nation in Asia. Some hospitals have begun dismantling Covid-19 wards. The emergence of the omicron variant of the coronavirus prompted the Philippine government to recall a decision to reopen the Southeast Asian nation to foreign tourists starting Dec. 1 and further intensify a vaccination campaign, including the provision of booster shots. More than 43 million of the country's 110 million people have been vaccinated so far. Health officials have detected only three omicron infections in recently arrived Filipino and foreign travelers, but President Rodrigo Duterte worried the omicron strain could ignite a new outbreak that could further strain the government's finances, especially after a powerful and deadly typhoon devastated several central and southern provinces last week. The Department of Health in Manila has reported more than 2.8 million COVID-19 cases with 50,916 deaths in the Philippines, the second-highest totals in Southeast Asia after Indonesia. IMAGE: AP (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) Bethlehem's Manger Square was awash with festive lights Friday evening as hundreds gathered to celebrate Christmas Eve. People could be seen singing, drinking coffee and eating sweetcorn around a large decorated tree in the centre of the square. Layla Harathi, a visitor from the West Bank city of Tulkarem, said she was glad to join the celebrations after last year's coronavirus restrictions. Nearly all who gathered in the biblical city were local residents or visitors from nearby - Israel has banned almost all flights from abroad because of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus. For McKenna Swindle, an American student studying in Jerusalem, the event was a reminder of the religious meaning of Christmas. "Before, Christmas for me was about spending time with family and being around friends," she said. "But this is really cool ... I am here because I believe in Jesus Christ." Manger Square is home to the Church of the Nativity - built on the grotto where Christians believe Jesus was born. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) As a part of an annual drill, the Paramilitary Revolutionary Guard of Iran on Friday fired more than a dozen surface-to-surface ballistic missiles aimed at Israel. At least 16 missiles were fired during the ongoing major military exercise across the southern part of the country, with one "successfully" hitting a "target," Iran's state media IRNA news agency reported, quoting the Guard. During the second day of its drill, Iran also launched cruise missiles showing "readiness of its forces." According to the Guard, the missiles named Emad, Ghadr, Sejjil, Zalzal, Dezful and Zolfaghar were a part of the five-day annual exercise 'Payambar-e-Azam' that kicked off on Monday. This came days after Vienna talks to revive Tehran's Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) broke. As discussions are still underway to reach a resolution over Iran's compliance to the nuclear deal, the nuclear-power-holding nation has continued to hold military exercises aimed at displaying the strength of its forces and testing new weapons, the Associated Press reported. Missiles are response to 'massive but pointless threats by Israel': Iran Chief of Armed Forces As per the Associated Press, Iran state media showed the launch of the modified warfare weaponry. The short-range and medium-range missiles, as Iran said, can reach US bases in the region as well as its arch-enemy Israel. The aforementioned missiles have a range from 350 to 2000 kilometres. "Sixteen missiles aimed and annihilated the chosen target. In this exercise, part of the hundreds of Iranian missiles capable of destroying a country that dared to attack Iran. These exercises were designed to respond to the massive but pointless threats made in recent days by the Zionist regime...make the slightest mistake, we will cut off their hand," Iran Chief of Armed Forces, Major General Mohammad Hossein Bagheri told the state media, as quoted by The Times of Israel. It is to mention that recently US national security advisor Jake Sullivan met Israeli PM Naftali Bennett on Wednesday as the JCPOA struggles to make a headway. Meanwhile, Israel leaders have hinted at responding to Iran's hostilities, with Bennett accusing Tehran of "nuclear blackmail." The British Foreign Office also condemned Iran's use of ballistic missiles, saying that the move is "a threat to regional and international security." (Image: AP) After the officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) announced that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued an invitation to Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to visit India, it is now speculated that PM Deuba is expected to visit India in early January next year. As per the reports of ANI, a top official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Nepali Prime Minister Deuba has been formally invited to visit and that this would be his second trip to another country. The official also stated that he will most likely travel to India in the first few weeks of January in the next year. A source inside the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu who is familiar with the situation also verified that Deuba has been invited by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The source stated that this comes months after both Prime Ministers issued invitations to each other to visit during the Glasgow climate summit, according to ANI. It would be Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's first visit to India after being named Premier by the Supreme Court. PM Deuba to be a part of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit Diplomatic sources in Kathmandu and New Delhi suggests that Deuba is visiting India to be a part of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, according to the Kathmandu Post. It will take place from January 10 to12, which is its 10th iteration. The Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit is a biennial event that began in the year 2003. Deuba would meet with some other senior Indian leaders in addition to PM Modi. On his visit, PM Deuba will also have a bilateral meeting with PM Narendra Modi. PM Deuba last met his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, during the COP26 session in Glasgow last month. The two then addressed measures to further improve bilateral cooperation, notably in the context of continuing efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. They also acknowledged the collaboration between the two countries throughout the pandemic, particularly in the transfer of vaccinations, medications and medical equipment from India to Nepal, as well as in assuring the free flow of products across borders. Inputs from ANI Image: AP Russia has doubled the purchases of natural gas from Turkmenistan this year amid rising global demand, the Russian ambassador in Ashgabat said Friday. Ambassador Alexander Blokhin said Russia this year stands to import about 10 billion cubic meters (353 billion cubic feet) of gas from Turkmenistan, nearly twice the amount imported in 2020. This year's volumes were on par with the period before 2016, when Russia halted gas imports from the ex-Soviet Central Asian nation amid pricing disputes and a slump in global prices. Moscow resumed the purchases of Turkmen gas in 2019 when it signed a five-year contract envisaging annual deliveries of 5.5 billion cubic meters (194 billion cubic feet). Turkmenistan is overwhelmingly dependent on exports of its vast natural gas reserves, and Russia's 2016 move to halt supplies dealt a heavy blow to the Turkmen economy. China has replaced Russia as the top export destination for the Turkmen gas. Turkmenistans President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said the country annually supplies 40 billion cubic meters (1.4 trillion cubic feet) of gas to China. Earlier this year, Chinas state-owned CNPC started work to set up new wells at Turkmenistans giant natural gas fields in exchange for future gas supplies. Under the deal with CNPC, Turkmenistan will pay for its services by supplying 17 billion cubic meters (600 billion cubic feet) of gas a year for the period of three years to a total of 51 billion cubic meters (1.8 trillion cubic feet) of gas. Turkmenistan also has been working to build a pipeline that would pump gas to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) In the latest legal spat over Moscow's controversial social media regulation laws, a Russian court on Friday slapped Google and Facebook parent company, Meta, with a cumulative $127 million fine for failing to delete content deemed illegal by Moscow. On Friday, the Tagansky District Court ruled that Google is ordered to pay about 7.2 million roubles ($98.4 million roughly), while Meta is to pay 2 million roubles ($27 million) for repeatedly failing to comply with the directives of Russian legislation on content. The ruling against Facebook comes a week after it was scheduled for another court trial after it had paid Russia at least Rs.1.7 crore on December 20. As per the Associated Press, the ruling comes after Russian state communications watchdog Roskomnadzor specifically accused Google and Meta of violating the ban on distributing content that promotes "extremist ideology," insults religious beliefs, and encourages dangerous behaviour by minors. The agency also informed that Facebook and Instagram, two parts of Meta, have failed to delete 2,000 items while Google failed to remove 2,600 posts, comments and other related data. According to the latest updates, Moscow has also warned that the two social media giants could be fined a percentage of their annual revenue. Facebook pays 1.7cr to Russia Earlier on December 20, Facebook paid 17 million roubles (Rs. 1.7 cr) for failing to comply with the Russian social media laws. Meta was scheduled to face court this week over repeated violations of Russian legislation on content. In October, Moscow sent state bailiffs to enforce the collection of 17 million roubles. Meanwhile, as per Interfax report citing a federal bailiffs' database, on Sunday, there were more enforcement proceedings against the company. Apart from the popular social media app, Telegram has also paid 15 million roubles in fines for failing to comply with the Russian social media legislations that came into force in 2016. In November, Facebook paid another 4 million roubles ($53,000 over its refusal to adhere to Russian data localisation laws, the Moscow Times had reported. It is pertinent to mention that, under the Russian social media localisation laws, all foreign technology companies are required to store data related to Russian customers and users on servers located in Russia. The apparatus has drawn considerable flak as it's provisions are said to severely breach privacy rights and allow unfettered back-door access to personal data that could be used to harass Kremlin critics. (With inputs from AP) (Image: AP) The Taliban leadership in Afghanistan has applauded the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) decision to exempt a number of high-ranking Taliban officials from the travel ban. The UNSC has decided to exempt senior Taliban leaders from the travel ban for 90 days, from December 22, 2021, to March 21, 2022. Leading Islamic Emirate officials such as Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai have been exempted primarily for travel to participate in peace and stability discussions in other countries. Meanwhile, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) spokesperson Inamullah Samangani has called for the removal of Taliban officials from the UN and US blacklists. He stated that the removal should have been done long ago, ANI reported citing Khaama Press. The UN Security Council's terrorism blacklist includes at least 14 members of the Taliban's interim administration in Kabul, including acting Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund. After seizing control of Afghanistan and announcing an interim government, the Taliban is also struggling to gain international recognition. Afghanistan's economy on the brink of collapse: UN Afghanistan is battling to support its economy, which is on the verge of collapse, according to UN estimates. Adding to the country's woes, Organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have stopped disbursing allotments to the war-ravaged country since the Taliban took control of Kabul. In addition, the United States also blocked nearly $9 billion in Afghan Central Bank accounts. Subsequently, several relief organisations and foreign governments cut off funding to Afghanistan, causing a severe scarcity of food, medical supplies, and other essentials in the war-torn country, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). UN intends to recommend $8 billion in aid to Afghanistan Meanwhile, the United Nations has decided to recommend $8 billion in aid to Afghanistan for the coming year in order to help the country's economy recover. The UN's plan would have to go beyond its existing humanitarian mission to include restoring governance structures and social services, such as providing meals in schools, creating jobs, and finding a way for Afghanistan to meet its electrical obligations to its neighbours, reported Wall Street Jornal. Since the Taliban's takeover, International donors have provided more than $1 billion to tackle growing needs for the remainder of 2021, including providing food to seven million people in November. With inputs from ANI Image: Twitter/@HabibiSamangani/PTI Catholic and local Thais celebrated Christmas Day despite growing concerns on the arrival of the omicron variant of COVID-19 in the country. Churches have limited the number of attendees for their Christmas Day masses and many sightseers chose to start their day early to avoid crowds. Father Adisak Somsaengsuang from the Assumption Cathedral said the church couldn't admit all worshippers for Christmas Day mass because of COVID concerns and social distancing rules. Despite the midday heat, visitors took pictures with a 40-meter-tall (130 feet) Christmas tree outside Central World, a shopping mall in downtown Bangkok. While Thailand isn't a Christian country - 90 percent of the people are Buddhists - in recent years, more and more Thais are drawn to the fun side of the festival. Many said they decided to come early to enjoy the festive mood and avoid the crowd in the evening because of concerns over COVID. This week Thailand reported over 200 cases of omicron variant with a largest cluster of 22 confirmed cases in a northeastern town of Kalasin. The cluster is believed to be linked with travelers returning Belgium via Thailand's minimal quarantine travel policy which is now suspended. The country is rolling out COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to curb the spread of the variant. (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) Nearly a month after the United States restricted the international flights from South African nations to touch down the American soils, the White House on Friday announced to lift restrictions amid surge in Omicron cases. The restrictions were imposed in November after South Africa detected several cases of the new COVID variant Omicron. While announcing the latest order, the White House assistant press secretary Kevin Munoz said that the decision was taken after consulting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) department. According to him, the restriction has given enough time to the Biden administration to learn more about the new variant. "On December 31, @POTUS will lift the temporary travel restrictions on Southern Africa countries. This decision was recommended by @CDCgov," Munoz said in a tweet. "The restrictions gave us time to understand Omicron and we know our existing vaccines work against Omicron, especially boosters," he added. Surprisingly, the new announcement came merely two days after the CDC said Omicron now accounts for 73.2% of new cases in the US. Notably, US President Joe Biden had announced the restriction for eight South African nations including, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi. At that time Biden had said the US scientists needed to study more about the new COVID variant and therefore, it was necessary to impose such restrictions. Earlier on Tuesday, Biden said that his government was mulling to lift the coronavirus restrictions, telling reporters "I'm going to talk with my team in the next couple of days." He reiterated that the administration implemented the bans "to see how much time we had before it (Omicron) hit here so we could begin to decide what we needed by looking at what's happening in other countries," The Hill reported. Biden sanctions $580 million to support fight against Omicron variant Moreover, the Biden administration announced to provide an additional amount of $580 million to support seven partners who are working tirelessly in the global fight against coronavirus. He informed that the additional fund will be spent on implementing new coronavirus guidelines and other necessary steps to curb the spread of the Omicron variant. "This additional USD 580 million is a significant contribution to turn vaccines into vaccinations; strengthen public health capacity; support communities in need, and provide urgent, life-saving relief," read a statement by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. (With inputs from ANI) (Image: AP/Pixabay) As tensions on the Moscow-Kyiv border continue to simmer, a former US ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, on Tuesday, said that Russian President Vladimir Putin's "fabricated threats" towards Ukraine are frightening and quite unsettling. Quote-tweeting a press conference of Putin at the Russian Defence Ministry, McFaul remarked, "If he is trying to scare us by acting crazy then he is succeeding (with) me." Noting that he has attended many of the Russian President's speeches, McFaul added, "This speech is different- Putin's list of completely fabricated threats here is truly striking and scary." McFaul's tweet came as a reaction to a presser at which Putin threatened with 'reciprocal actions' while blaming the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the US for fuelling tensions between the two former Soviet nations, adding that Russia could undertake "adequate measures" in response to the "unfriendly steps" resulting from aggressive western politics, the Associated Press reported. Delivering his keynote speech on Russia's potential countermove against any aggression at the Donbas region, a Moscow-based journalist wrote in a roughly translated tweet, "Do they really think well sit idly as they create threats against us?". President Putin has often made several controversial remarks as tensions erupted from early October. Earlier in December, the Kremlin head had compared "the war-like situation" in the eastern Ukraine border with "genocide". Furthermore, the Russian President had also said that Russophobia is the first primary catalyst deepening the ongoing crisis. Joe Biden asks Russia to 'return to diplomacy' With Putin's repetitive aggressive remarks, Washington has warned the ex-Soviet nation of strong economic sanctions in the event of military escalation. Reiterating support for Kyiv's sovereignty and territorial integrity, US President Joe Biden also called for de-escalation of tension and "return to diplomacy" following which US NSA Jake Sullivan has told the media that the US was preparing for 'specific robust actions' just as a step ahead. Meanwhile, in his meeting with Biden, the Russian President stressed that Moscow should not be held responsible for the tensions amid NATO's "dangerous attempts" to enter Kyiv, making it sparklingly clear that Kremlin doesn't want Ukraine to become "anti-Russian". Russia-Ukraine Conflict It is pertinent to mention that the tensions between Ukraine and Russia have continued since 2014 when Russia invaded and seized Crimea, the first time when a European country annexed territory from another nation since World War II. Recently, with Moscow deploying over 90,000 troops in Ukraine's Donbas region along with Putin's hostile assertions against Kyiv, experts believe that Putin "just declared war", pretending to be provoked by Western powers, especially US, wrote Evelyn Farkas, who was the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia under Obama's administration. (Image: AP) Morro Bay Harbor Department stated that on Christmas Eve, a male surfer was killed in a shark attack in Morro Bay, California, US. The Harbor Department issued a statement saying that after they heard about the attack, the Harbor, Police and Fire Departments rushed to the male victim, who was unresponsive on the beach after he was retrieved from the sea, as per a CNN report. The Department also stated that the man was suffering from an apparent shark attack. Harbor Director Eric Endersby stated that the male surfer was discovered around 10:48 am off the beach at Morro Bay State Park. Endersby claims that when they arrived at the scene a female surfer was assisting the victim, but after their arrival they took control. Endersby believes that the assault was recent based on the condition of the surfer's body, who may have been killed by a great white shark, according to Daily Mail. There were no obvious witnesses to the surfer's death, but personnel will continue to monitor the region in search of the shark. San Luis Obispo County Coroner's Office identified the victim The man was declared dead at the scene. Endersby noted that the San Luis Obispo County Coroner's Office has identified the victim and is working to notify about his death to the people closest to him before revealing the victim's name. Endersby said that it is a tragedy and their hearts go out to the family of the victim. While beaches in the Morro Bay and State Parks region are now open, officials have warned beachgoers to stay out of the water for the next 24 hours. According to CNN, Endersby remarked that it is a terrible accident and thanked the rain and wind, which have halted the surf for the time being. He stated that because of the rain there are not many surfers at this time. Representatives from the state parks are presently examining the accident. 80 officially documented and verified shark attack Morro Bay is located around 320 kilometres north of Los Angeles. There have been 80 officially documented and verified shark attacks globally this year, according to Daily Mail. In the United States this year, there have been 41 shark attacks, out of which 26 were in Florida, 7 in Hawaii, 3 in California. Image: Unsplash Five teenagers face charges in Delaware after they were found in a vehicle that was stolen at gunpoint in Philadelphia from U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon. State police say Scanlon's blue Acura MDX was located Wednesday night in Newark, Delaware. That's about 45 miles from Philadelphia. The FBI charged a 19-year-old man with carjacking, a weapons charge, and aiding and abetting. A 14-year-old girl and three boys, ages 13, 15 and 16, are charged with receiving stolen property. The 15-year-old also is charged with resisting arrest and criminal mischief. Scanlon was unharmed. Speaking during a press conference late Thursday afternoon, Scanlon said the incident was "obviously a scary thing to have happen" and added that she was thankful no one was hurt. She said the carjacking occurred shortly after she had returned to the parking area at the park. As she spoke with one of her team members, Scanlon said another vehicle pulled up. A short time later, she noticed people "fidgeting" in the other vehicle, and then some of the occupants came out with guns and told Scanlon to give them the keys to her car, which she said she did because "I was afraid someone would do something more stupid than just stealing a car." Scanlon also noted it wasn't the first time she has been at a crime scene this year, as she was present in the House during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol. Scanlon said President Biden spoke with her Thursday to see how she was faring after the incident. "I was quite touched that the president reached out to me," she said. "It was mostly a personal call, but we talked a little bit about my frustration with not getting the NRA and right to do common sense gun control measures." Scanlon has also expressed gratitude to city police for their quick response. She also thanked her local police department and the Sergeant at Arms in Washington for working with Philadelphia police "to ensure her continued safety." IMAGE: AP (Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com) Life in North Korea as mother, housekeeper and breadwinner is exhausting, escapees say. Women work at the Kim Jong Suk Pyongyang textile mill during a government organised visit for foreign reporters in Pyongyang, North Korea May 9, 2016. Kim Seo-yeong and Lee Su-jin left North Korea to make a dangerous 3,700-mile-trek to freedom not only to escape a tyrannical government and a dire economy. They also wanted to escape a relentlessly patriarchal society that would have tied their destinies to the men in their lives. In North Korea, they said, their identities would be limited to being wives, mothers or housekeepers. As two twenty-somethings, Kim Seo-yeong and Lee Su-jin (both pseudonyms) yearned for more. To be honest, I lived a hopeless life in North Korea, Kim Seo-young told RFA. Its not easy to live in a society where I cant do what I want to, and where my efforts dont bear fruit. She and Lee Su-jin were part of a group of 13 North Korean escapees who arrived in Southeast Asia in October 2019, en route to their final destination, South Korea, the following year. Not being allowed to pursue my dreams pained me the most, Lee told RFA. I really wanted to attend medical school, but I couldnt go because of my todae, she said, referring to the North Korean governments practice of ranking every citizens social standing based on their assessment of their familys loyalty dating back several generations. Many people are held back by their todae, no matter how smart or motivated they are. Three of four escapees are female Her only hope for any kind of success, she said, was to find a good man and get married right away. More than 33,000 North Koreans have successfully made their way to South Korea in the past several decades, according to statistics from the South Korean Ministry of Unification. More than 72% of these escapees have been female. Young women in North Korea are under intense societal and familial pressure to get married early, so much so that a wedding can feel more like an obligation than a voluntary choice. This is even true for women with successful careers, according to Lindsey Miller, the wife of a former British diplomat stationed in Pyongyang. A bride and groom pose before a fountain during a wedding photo shoot at a park in Pyongyang on April 18, 2019. (Photo by Ed JONES / AFP) Miller, who lived in the North Korean capital between 2017 and 2019, told RFA she frequently interacted with female officials of the North Korean Labor Party and with single women from privileged families. [One woman] said the pressure from her parents to date and find someone was very strong. I heard from other North Korean women in Pyongyang who told me they felt under pressure from their parents as they got older, to find a husband to get married and have a family, Miller said. Death of autonomy Kim and Lee said they came to view marriage as the death of their autonomy. In North Korea, once you marry and have a child, your own life as a woman ends, Kim said. The ambitions you had in your youth become irrelevant after getting married and having children. Its really sad. When I was in North Korea, I thought often that I want to get married late, Lee said. My aunt always said that the earlier women get married and settle down, the better, but I did not like that. A woman carrying a baby on her back rides on a motorbike with a North Korean soldier along the banks of the Yalu River near the North Korean town of Qing Cheng, located around 50 kilometres north of the Chinese border city of Dandong September 12, 2008. A married woman must fulfill three roles: caretaker, housekeeper and, increasingly, breadwinner. In years past men could support their families with the salary they got from their government-assigned jobs. But after the economy tanked with the collapse of North Koreas main patron the Soviet Union 30 years ago, monthly salaries could barely cover a days expenses. With housing and other basic necessities tied to their state jobs, men were unable to walk away, despite the meager pay. Increasingly, wives had to make money to support the family, usually by running family businesses trading in marketplaces that sprung up to serve demands the crumbling state sector failed to meet. Its genuinely exhausting being a woman in North Korea, said Park Sun-hwa, an escapee in her 40s who settled in South Korea in 2012, told RFA. The men cannot go out and earn money, so in order for us to prosper, women have no choice but to go out to make money while also doing all the housework, Park Sun-hwa, also a pseudonym, said. Mustered for free labor In addition to their family duties, women are also routinely mobilized for free labor on government projects and mustered to waive flags in crowds for visiting foreign delegations, Kim Hye-yeong, a 50-year-old escapee who settled in South Korea in 2002, told RFA. A North Korean cheerleading group wave flags to propaganda music near a road intersection as people start their day early morning on Saturday, June 17, 2017, in Pyongyang, North Korea. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E) During the morning rush hour, the members of the Socialist Womens Union must play the drums and sing as part of the governments propaganda efforts. They also have to deal with various tasks as assigned by the neighborhood watch unit, starting with cleaning the village every morning. When it snows, the main road must be cleared, and snow must be removed, Kim Hye-yeong, a pseudonym, said. In South Korea, men have a duty to earn money and take responsibility for the household, but North Korean men are forced to work [almost] without pay, making it hard for everyone to survive, said Kim. Its so frustrating. Its been many years since I left my hometown and came here, and it makes my heart ache every time I hear the news that nothing has changed and things have gotten worse, she said. Lee said that North Korean society generally disregards the concerns of women. Everyone just thinks that women should marry, have kids and submit to their husbands. This is so unlike South Korea, which has the mindset that women and men should be equal, said Lee. Kim Seoyoung and Lee Sujin who enjoy traveling in Jeju Island. A place with no pleasures Lee acknowledged that the North Korean perspective on women I slowly changing, it has not progressed as far as South Korea. That these two women find South Korea to be an egalitarian utopia is particularly telling. South Korea ranked 104th out of 156 countries in the World Economic Forums 2021 Global Gender Gap report, between Indonesia and Cambodia. The report did not rank North Korea due to lack of available data. Life as a mother in North Korea is so hard that women no longer want to have children, the 2012 escapee Park said. Why should they suffer having a child in North Korea. Why make life worse by having a child in a place with no pleasures nor answers, where we cant even fend for ourselves, she said. Though the global Me Too movement has not spread widely in North Korea, Park said that some women do stand up for themselves to protect their rights. Me Too isnt a thing yet. Many women are reluctant to report such things because they are too shy about speaking up. Kim and Lee recently vacationed together in Jeju, a large island off South Koreas southern coast known for its beaches, resorts and tourist attractions. Reflecting on their past two years in South Korea, they both said they are closer to achieving their dreams now than they were at any time in the North. I want to become a nurse and work in a hospital, with competence and composure, Lee said. Translated by RFAs Korean Service Written in English by Eugene Whong. The chaotic withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan and the lightning collapse of the internationally recognized government in Kabul in August spelled the end of the Wests nearly 20-year foothold in the war-torn country. Now, with the Taliban back in control of Afghanistan, other powers that have fallen out with the West or are considered its rivals are vying to fill the void. There have been predictions that the geopolitical realignment could transform the Central and South Asian region into a hub of anti-Western sentiment. Some analysts say that Russia, China, Pakistan, and Iran could come together in the next chapter of the Great Game -- a reference to the 19th-century struggle between great powers for dominance over Afghanistan, a strategically located nation in the heart of Asia. But others argue that Moscow, Beijing, Islamabad, and Tehran are each merely looking to advance their own interests in the new geopolitical order. Shift To East Asia Washington made it clear as far back as the Obama administration that it was withdrawing from Afghanistan in order to shift its global focus on China. James Reardon-Anderson, a professor of history at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, predicted then that the withdrawal would lead to the disappearance of U.S. influence in Central Asia. There may be a new Great Game in Central Asia, but it is going to have a lot less importance to the United States than the new Great Game in the Western Pacific and East Asian waters, Reardon-Anderson told RFE/RL in 2013. In defending the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan, President Joe Biden said the world was changing and that Washington was engaged in a serious competition with China. And theres nothing China or Russia would rather have, would want more in this competition than the United States to be bogged down another decade in Afghanistan, he said in a speech on August 31. But some observers have said that the pullout from Afghanistan could complicate, not enable, Bidens pivot toward countering China. There has also been criticism by U.S. allies and lawmakers that, by leaving Afghanistan, Biden has amplified the terrorism threat to the U.S. homeland. The Taliban, which is still allied with the Al-Qaeda terrorist network, is fighting an escalating war with the rival Islamic State (IS) militant group, which observers say has been boosted by the Wests retreat from Afghanistan. The Biden administration has said that it will counter any terrorist threats from Afghanistan with an "over-the-horizon mission. But there is skepticism over the missions effectiveness at neutralizing threats emanating from the region. Meeting with NATO diplomats in Brussels in November, U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West signaled the rising importance of other powers in the region following the U.S. withdrawal. West said it was imperative that NATO allies work with the region -- with Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, and the Central Asian states -- on our common and abiding interest in a stable Afghanistan that does not represent a threat to its neighbors, is at peace with itself, and respects human rights, womens rights, the rights of minorities, and so forth. But notably, while the United States and its NATO allies continue to demand that the Taliban respect human rights and womens rights, such calls are not being issued by Moscow, Beijing, or Islamabad. Shia-ruled Iran has insisted that it will not officially recognize the Taliban government until its Sunni leadership creates an inclusive cabinet in Kabul that includes Shia members of Afghanistans Hazara community. Meanwhile, different approaches on development, counterterrorism operations, and the fight against drug trafficking make cooperation difficult between the West and the new regional power players. The reconstruction plans of the United States and European Union were focused on civilian aid, development assistance, and police reforms as part of a state-building strategy. China and Russia are now focused on preventing Islamic extremism and drugs from spreading out of Afghanistan into Central Asia and Chinas western Xinjiang region. For its part, Tehran fears Taliban-backed Sunni militants infiltrating eastern Iran from Afghanistan. The Iranian government is also concerned that the Taliban could use opium smuggling into Iran as part of a strategy to undermine Tehrans authority. Kirsten Fontenrose, director of the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative in the Atlantic Councils Middle East Programs, says countries that have functional relations with the Taliban are China, Russia, Pakistan, Qatar, and Turkey. Of those, Fontenrose says, Qatar is the only one of these countries without either hostile intentions toward the United States or a list of concessions it hopes to obtain from Washington. Fontenrose says the nature of the withdrawal from Afghanistan has U.S. allies in the broader region wondering whether Washington is flying by the seat of its pants all across the region. Regional Interests, Global Game At the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), experts Sabine Fischer and Angela Stanzel say Russia and China are benefiting most on the global level from the weakening that the West has been experiencing since its withdrawal from Afghanistan. But they argue that neither Moscow nor Beijing have found solutions for serious regional security challenges they are now confronted with. From the Chinese and Russian perspectives, the withdrawal from Afghanistan is further evidence of the progressive weakening of the Western alliance, Fischer and Stanzel wrote in a recent analysis. They say this bolsters the narratives from Moscow and Beijing that call for an end to a Western-dominated liberal world order. But those who limit the perspective of both actors to the global level will fall short, Fischer and Stanzel warn. The failure of the West does not automatically mean gains for Beijing and Moscow, they argue. After all, China and Russia must also confront the dangers that could emanate from Afghanistan at the regional level and directly endanger Chinese and Russian interests. Other experts argue that Pakistan sees itself as the biggest regional winner, at least in the short term. They say Taliban control of Afghanistan gives Pakistan strategic depth against its main rival, India, because the Taliban-led government in Kabul can be influenced by Islamabad. But critics of that view note that Islamabad has its own regional irritant -- the fact that the Pashtun-led Taliban has never recognized the 19th-century British colonial frontier between Afghanistan and Pakistan as an official border. That leaves open the potential for territorial claims by the Taliban-led government on tribal regions of Pakistan that are the power base of Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and his Haqqani network. Pakistans all-weather friendship with China will allow Beijing to exert its influence in Afghanistan, observers say. Experts say Moscows calm reaction so far to an expanding Chinese presence in Central Asia merely indicates that Russia is ready to tolerate a greater role for Beijing in regional security -- not necessarily to cooperate on their long-term geopolitical goals. That is because the common interests for China and Russia in Afghanistan diverge on issues like the role of India in the region and Central Asian security. Despite recent cooperation in the region, Chinese and Russian interests in Central and South Asia are not identical, Fischer and Stanzel conclude. China and Russia project an appearance of coordination, but in practice their differing regional interests and identities set real limits. China aims to integrate these regions economically into the Belt and Road Initiative, while keeping Indian influence at bay and addressing perceived security threats to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, they say. By contrast, they say Russia wants to maintain its role as the primary security provider of a greater Eurasian region through the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Moscow also wants to balance its long-established relations with India against a new approach to Pakistan, they say. Under the umbrella of the CSTO, Russia has expanded its military presence in Central Asia through a series of joint counterterrorism exercises on Tajikistans border with Afghanistan. But an investigative report by RFE/RLs Tajik Service revealed in October that China has also been expanding its military presence at a base in the far eastern corner of Tajikistan, near the area where Tajikistan, China, and Afghanistan meet. Meanwhile, although Russia and China have agreed at meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that coordination is needed by all SCO members toward Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, they have not announced any road map or detailed proposals on working together. Since the Talibans return to power, talks have been hosted by Pakistan, Russia, and China under what is known as the troika plus process on Afghanistan. That grouping also includes the United States. None of the group has formally recognized the Taliban-led government in Kabul. But Pakistan, Russia, and China have also had their own bilateral meetings with Taliban leaders. Iran has also not formally recognized the Taliban. In October, Tehran also hosted a meeting with Russia and officials from countries neighboring Afghanistan to discuss the geopolitics of the region and security concerns. Taliban delegates were not invited to those talks. Meanwhile, in early December, a tense situation along a segment of the Iran-Afghanistan border deteriorated into armed clashes between the Taliban and Iranian border guards. Iranian state media later said the violence was the result of a misunderstanding by the Taliban. Blaming The West Part of Irans diplomatic outreach to the Taliban regime has been to blame Afghanistans chaos and humanitarian crisis on Americas two-decade presence in the country. President Ebrahim Raisi has said that Iran backs efforts to restore stability in Afghanistan as a neighboring brother nation. Ali Akbar Velyati, an adviser to Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has described Taliban-ruled Afghanistan as part of an Axis of Resistance with Iran at the center of countries seeking resistance, independence, and freedom. But Jamshee Choksy, a professor of Eurasian and Iranian studies at Indiana University, says such rhetoric belies the deep concerns many in Tehran have about the Taliban. Ismail Qaani, the commander of the Quds Force of Irans powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), warned the Iranian parliament in September that sectarian friction cannot be allowed to spread across the border from Afghanistan. Qaani declared that sectarian rivalries in the past have shown that the new Taliban regime is no friend of Iran. Tehrans revolutionary leaders periodically even publicly cheer the Taliban victory -- mainly because the U.S. withdrawal permits Iran freer rein across the region, Choksy says. Yet the potential of Afghanistan becoming the global hub of terrorist training robs Iran of true satisfaction. The danger from a re-Talibanized Afghanistan may also compel greater reliance on Russia and China, a situation which would undermine the independence so dear to many Iranians, Choksy adds. A Kazakh delegation led by Trade and Integration Minister Bakhyt Sultanov visited Kabul on December 25 to discuss trade, transit routes, and other economic cooperation as well as political ties with the Taliban-led government, Afghan media reported. The Talibans acting minister of industry and commerce, Nooruddin Azizi, said that efforts were under way to establish a mutual chamber of commerce between the two countries. The two sides discussed the resumption of direct flights, Azizi added without providing further details. Sultanov was quoted as saying that Kazakhstan was also interested in expanding trade through Afghanistan to South Asia. Sultanov also met with the Talibans acting deputy prime minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, and the acting foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi. The Kazakh delegation brought 500 kilos of medical products for humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. Sultanov said that the next aid packages from Kazakhstan will arrive in Afghanistan by ground. Kazakh government officials have visited Kabul several times since the hard-line Taliban group took control of Afghanistan in August. On one of these visits in October, the Kazakh delegation said that Kazakhstan delivered 5,000 tons of flour and other humanitarian aid to the Afghan people and also offered to provide its domestically-developed QazVac vaccine against COVID-19. Kazakhstan and fellow Central Asian countries Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have also been in talks with the Taliban about future projects connecting Central Asia to South Asia through Afghanistan. None of the Central Asian states, however, have signaled their readiness to officially recognize the Taliban government. Based on reporting by tolonews.com and pajhwok.com Mali's government has denied any deployment of Russian mercenaries from the Vagner group following charges earlier this week by more than a dozen European countries as well as Canada. Bamako "gives a formal denial to these baseless allegations" of "an alleged deployment of elements from a private security company in Mali," the government said in a statement on December 24. Over a dozen Western countries on December 23 strongly condemned the deployment in Mali of Russian mercenaries working for the Vagner group, accusing Moscow of providing material backing for the fighters. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the Vagner Group does not represent the Russian state and is not paid by it. He has also said private military contractors have the right to work and pursue their interests anywhere in the world as long as they do not break Russian law. The countries, who included, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, called on Russia to "revert to a responsible and constructive behavior in the region." "This deployment can only further deteriorate the security situation in West Africa, lead to an aggravation of the human rights situation in Mali," the world powers said. Their statement said the powers "deeply regret" the choice of the Malian authorities to use "already scarce public funds" to pay foreign mercenaries instead of supporting the Malian armed forces. Washington was not a signatory of the statement but U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this month warned Mali not to accept Vagner mercenaries, saying a deal would further destabilize the country. Mali's government said on December 23 that "Russian trainers" were in the country as part of efforts to strengthen the operational capacity of the national security forces. Mali has experienced sustained political instability since 2012. A military transitional government took power in May. Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters, and dpa Pope Francis on December 25 called for dialogue amid a "tendency to withdraw" during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 5.3 million people worldwide in just over two years and is now in one of its worst phases as the omicron variant rages around the world. "On the international level too, there is the risk of avoiding dialogue...Yet only those paths can lead to the resolution of conflicts and to lasting benefits for all," he said during his "Urbi et Orbi" blessing and message to the faithful gathered in St Peters Square. The pope cautioned against fresh violence in the long-simmering conflict in Ukraine amid rising tensions between Russia and Western countries, which accuse Moscow of having massed around 100,000 troops near Ukraine's borders in a possible prelude to an invasion. "In Ukraine, prevent fresh outbreaks of a long-festering conflict," the pope said in his Christmas Day message to the faithful gathered at St Peter's Square at the Vatican. Pope Francis also said that "immense tragedies" in conflict-torn Syria, Yemen, and Iraq were "being passed over in silence. The Pope will celebrate Christmas Mass at 7:30 p.m. local time, the same time as last year when a 10 p.m. curfew was in effect. The Vatican will check temperatures of worshipers as they enter St. Peter's Basilica and require everyone to wear a mask and observe social distancing. Last year the pope called for coronavirus vaccines to be made available to the worlds neediest people. He said then it was a time of darkness and uncertainty regarding the pandemic, which by then had killed 1.7 million people worldwide. Pope Francis on December 24 called for more solidarity with those living in poverty as he celebrated Christmas Eve Mass in front of a masked congregation of around 2,000 people. As he spoke, surging coronavirus cases around the world put a damper on Christmas Eve for a second year, forcing churches to cancel or scale back services, disrupting holiday travel plans, and requiring people to once again comply with mask mandates. With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP Two jailed members of the Pussy Riot protest group in Russia have begun a hunger strike at the prison near Moscow where they are currently serving sentences for online posts they made several years ago, Russian media said. Maria Alyokhina and Lyusya Shtein are demanding that they be placed in one cell and allowed to communicate with each other, the activists lawyer was quoted as saying on December 25. The Tver district court in Moscow sentenced the two activists on December 17 -- Alyokhina to 15 days in jail and Shtein to 14 days -- after finding them guilty of propagating Nazi symbols online. The two women had been detained a day earlier. The charge against Alyokhina stemmed from a picture she posted on a social network six years ago of Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka with Nazi swastikas on it, comparing him with "fascists." Shtein, who is also a Moscow municipal lawmaker, was sentenced over a caricature showing her in a hat with swastika on it that was posted on a social network in 2018. Alyokhina, Shtein, and other members of the protest group have been sentenced to up 15 days in jail several times in recent months over taking part in protest actions and unsanctioned rallies. Alyokhina and two other members of Pussy Riot came to prominence after they were convicted of "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" for a stunt in which they burst into Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral and sang a "punk prayer" against Vladimir Putin, who was prime minister and campaigning for his return to the presidency at the time. Alyokhina and bandmate Nadezhda Tolokonnikova were close to the end of their two-year prison sentences when they were freed in December 2013 under an amnesty, which they dismissed as a propaganda stunt to improve Putin's image ahead of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. Based on reporting by Interfax and dpa Russias communications regulator has blocked the website of OVD-Info, a prominent human rights monitor that tracks political persecution and anti-Kremlin protests, the group said on December 25. OVD-Info, which also provides support to victims of political persecution, said Russian media regulator Roskomnadzor had blocked its website earlier this week. "At the moment, we have not received a notice and do not know the reason for being blocked," the group said on Twitter. The Interfax news agency said the ruling on restricting access to the ovdinfo.org site was issued by a court in the Moscow region on December 20. Russia declared the OVD-Info group a "foreign agent" in September, in a move that critics say is designed to stifle dissent. OVD-Info co-founder Grigory Okhotin had blasted the move as being part of the pressure campaign against independent organizations and media. Russias 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. Human Rights Watch has condemned Russias foreign agent laws, calling them another repressive tool the government can use to harass independent groups. Russian authorities have unleashed a sweeping crackdown against opposition activists as well as independent media and rights groups in recent months. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters The United States grew "arrogant and self-confident" after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev said in an interview published on the eve of the 30th anniversary of his resignation as president of the U.S.S.R. Gorbachev, 90, said there was a triumphant mood in the West, especially in the United States after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The former Soviet president told state news agency RIA Novosti in the interview published on December 24 that the Kremlin had been in a weak bargaining position because the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 provoked economic chaos. In such a position, how can you expect equal relations with the United States, with the West? Gorbachev said. Thats the first thing. Secondly, and no less important, is the triumphal mood in the West, especially in the U.S. Arrogance and self-confidence went to their heads. Gorbachev blamed a U.S. desire to build a new empire for current disputes over NATO and Ukraine. But he welcomed forthcoming security talks between Moscow and Washington prompted by a Russian military buildup near its border with Ukraine. "I hope there will be a result," he said. Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union on December 25, 1991, days after the leaders of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine said the U.S.S.R. no longer existed. In recent years President Vladimir Putin has grown increasingly critical about NATOs expansion and recently demanded "legal guarantees" that would prevent any further NATO expansion to the east and the deployment of weapons to neighboring states, primarily in Ukraine. The U.S. has said that some of Russias demands are unacceptable. Putin said in a news conference on December 23 that Washington had been willing to discuss the proposals and talks could happen at the start of next year in Geneva. A senior U.S. administration official said the United States was ready to engage in talks with Russia in early January regarding its demand for security guarantees, but the official did not name a location. Putin once called the collapse of the Soviet Union "the greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century, and in a documentary that aired on state television earlier this month he said it was the disintegration of historical Russia. With reporting by AFP This decision was made so as to reduce transport costs and adjust to the disruption in the supply chain, which has become a serious concern for many export-import businesses. Nonetheless, Vietnam still remains a huge manufacturing hub for several global fashion giants. Vietnam role in supply chain The Japanese fashion brand Uniqlo is familiar to many Vietnamese consumers. It opened its first shop in Vietnam in December 2019, and it has since opened nine retail shops in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, along with a recently opened online shop. Uniqlo will certainly expand its business in Vietnam in the next few years, because Vietnam is considered a big market by the company due to its large young population, high per capita income, and a growing middle class. Furthermore, Vietnam is the second biggest manufacturing base for Uniqlo. In particular, Uniqlo purchases products of 45 Vietnamese apparel companies for the domestic and international markets. The company highly values the improved quality of the Vietnamese workforce. The Vietnamese textile and footwear industry has become more and more important in the global supply chain of several international giants. The world famous brands Nike and Adidas are buyers from about 200 Vietnamese suppliers. For instance, Vietnam provides 30% of the products that Adidas supplies to the global market. Even during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in Southern Vietnam, Nike still trusted the Vietnamese suppliers the most. Viettien Garment Corporation, for instance, has not lost a single order from Nike despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The latest figures from the World Trade Statistical Review 2021 released by the World Trade Organization show that Vietnam has overtaken Bangladesh to becoming the world's second largest exporter of readymade garments, reaching a market value of USD 29 bn in 2020, just behind China. Garments made in Vietnam make up 4.6% of the world market. Vietnam has recently produced lots of high quality garments because of the improved quality of its workforce. Together with the garment sector, the Vietnamese footwear products are playing a more and more important role on the world stage. The Vietnam Industry and Trade Information Centre of the Ministry of Industry and Trade cited data from the World Footwear Yearbook, showing that Vietnam ranked second in the world in footwear exports, reaching 1.23 billion pairs in 2020. With this result, for the first time Vietnam surpassed 10% of the world total footwear exports by reaching 10.2%, and increasing by 4.4 times compared to 2011 when it was just 2.3%, with 316 million pairs of shoes being exported. Vietnam has become the world's largest exporter of canvas shoes in terms of value, outstripping even China. This is the first time that China has not led the export of a particular type of footwear. Several world famous footwear brands like Nike, Adidas, Reebok and Puma have had large quantities of their products made in Vietnam. The prospect of the Vietnamese footwear industry is very likely to go even further, since China continues to reduce incentives for investments in footwear in order to focus on high-tech technology, making international footwear orders move from China to Vietnam. Commitment of Vietnamese companies Despite the advantage of lower labor costs at a reasonable level, businesses are also making great efforts to invest more in technology to meet the increasingly strict requirements of buying partners. Mr. Vu Duc Giang, Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, explained why Nike has not moved any orders previously placed at Viettien Garment Corporation, because as of October when we reopened, Nike had not yet found another manufacturer capable of meeting its requirements in terms of time, quality and quality control like the ones in Vietnam. He also pointed out that only when the pressure of delivery time is too high, making it impossible to balance the delivery and sales time, do famous brands move their orders to manufacturers in countries that can satisfy these requirements. However, a number of seasonal orders have been moved out of Vietnam to ensure the year end shopping season deliveries to major markets. Mr. Vu Duc Giang said that during the social distancing period, Vietnamese textile and garment companies could not meet the delivery schedule, so a certain number of orders for delivery in November and December were moved away, about an estimated 13% to 14%. Yet now there are signs of orders coming back. Similarly, the footwear industry also saw a small number of seasonal orders moved out of Vietnam. The commitment and reputation of Vietnamese companies could also be one of the most important factors for foreign partners to feel secure for long term cooperation. The fourth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic that lasted from June until September in Vietnam obviously proved this point. As soon as businesses reopened in early October, factories immediately let workers work overtime, and some even arranged for products to be delivered by air at a cost several times higher than by sea, in order to have their products delivered as per the schedule, especially for the holiday season and coming new year. In the long term, Vietnam's participation in many major Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) such as CPTPP or EVFTA will also be the reason why globally famous brands will prioritize Vietnam as a vital production base, because they can enjoy the tax incentives under these FTAs when products are exported from Vietnam. Buying partners also give priority to Vietnamese suppliers because of assurance of on time delivery, despite the many disruptions to the supply chain because of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Thanh Dung Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. When a phone alert from her Kaiser app pinged Andrea Case awake at 4:30 Wednesday morning, she knew within seconds that her familys Christmas would change. The health care provider had sent an alert that her coronavirus test had come back positive. I was thinking I just have to tell people, said the 45-year-old Brentwood resident, who wanted to inform friends she had spent her birthday with last week. But, she thought, I cant be that crazy person and text them at 4:30 in the morning. With the omicron variant roaring through the Bay Area, Case is among thousands of people who suddenly had to change holiday plans after testing positive for the coronavirus in recent days. Getting the diagnosis has caused many people to cancel road trips or flights to visit family and instead patch together alternative gatherings with others who also have COVID, or, in Cases case, resign themselves to solo meals. With more than 800,000 Americans dead from COVID, many Bay Area residents know it could be much worse. Theyre thankful that the vaccines and boosters do a great job at protecting against severe illness and the regions high vaccination rates give some measure of protection. But theyre still disappointed that the latest surge and their COVID diagnosis is robbing them of spending time with loved ones. Of course for those who are unvaccinated or for the vaccinated who are elderly, high-risk or immunocompromised, a positive coronavirus test can also be scary, and hospitals in some parts of the country are filling up. Case lives with her adult son and parents. Ever since she can remember, the family has celebrated the holiday with Christmas breakfast, always with the same menu. Its kind of eclectic and everybody always laughs at us, but we always have tamales, kielbasa, pancakes and eggs, she said. She doesnt know how the tradition got started the family doesnt have Polish or Mexican ancestry. They were supposed to get together with her niece and nephew who are in town from Idaho, but because of her positive test, they cant and she already ordered 24 tamales. Instead, they are separated, and Case planned to eat the breakfast alone in her room, where she is isolating away from the rest of the family. Afterward, she planned to take it easy the rest of the day. Just me and my cat and Hallmark movies, she said. Katy Worthing, 40, of San Francisco canceled plans to drive to Grass Valley (Nevada County) to spend Christmas with her parents and sister after testing positive for the coronavirus Tuesday. She heard that several other friends had gotten the virus too, via separate exposures, despite having gotten their vaccines and booster shots. She only had mild symptoms and thought: Why not get the COVID orphans together? The plan was to gather in her backyard at her Marina district apartment. A lot of people had to cancel flights and other things. So theyre feeling quite lonely. So I thought itd be fun to get together for a little bit, she said. Everyone would wrap an item from their house for a gift exchange because they cant go to the store, and bring a bottle of wine. Meanwhile, her parents and sister would be together in Grass Valley. Its funny because normally this would be very depressing for me, she said. I feel kind of lucky that there are people here, versus just facing this down alone. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Like Case, Lara Starr of San Rafael will be spending the holidays by herself. She had to cancel her Christmas plans with her mom after testing positive for the coronavirus Wednesday. But she isnt feeling so alone. Im so grateful. I had friends drop me off little care packages and gifts. People have been checking in on me, she said. I really feel taken care of and connected. Starr who hasnt been sick for eight years woke up Wednesday feeling kind of crappy, she said. A friend of hers, whos a nurse, had a few at-home rapid tests, so Starr took one. Shes vaccinated and boosted, but wasnt surprised when a test came back positive. The next day she went to a county testing site in Novato for a PCR test to confirm it. We were in this parking lot in the rain waiting in line to get this test, she said, laughing, and Im like, how is this even the world? While she would have gone out for Chinese food and a movie with her mom and some friends, Starr had a pastry and made herself some candied bacon, a family tradition. She opened some gifts from friends and her son, who just moved to Illinois after graduating from UC Santa Cruz. She said shes feeling a lot better already and doesnt mind the quiet time. I feel really content, just here with my pastry and my bacon and my little presents, she said. Ive got funny TV to watch. Ive got books to read. I keep waiting to feel sorry for myself, but Im really OK. Tara Duggan and Danielle Echeverria are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: tduggan@sfchronicle.com, danielle.echeverria@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @taraduggan, @DanielleEchev A state appeals court has granted a new murder trial to a man convicted in 2018 of a fatal shooting a decade earlier in Hayward. In overturning Dereak Turners second-degree murder conviction and sentence of 40 years to life in prison, the First District Court of Appeal in San Francisco said Thursday he was denied a fair trial because prosecutors charged him with a second, unrelated murder, but shelved that charge before the case went to the jury, and later dropped it. The second case could have influenced jurors deliberations on whether Turner was guilty of the Hayward murder, the court said. Turner, of Vallejo, fatally shot Thomas Cunningham on a Hayward street in November 2009 after one of Cunninghams dogs walked up to him and sniffed his leg. Cunninghams daughter testified that the dog never touched Turner and posed no threat, but Turner said he feared both the dog and Cunningham, who called him a racist slur and lunged at him. His lawyer asked the jury to convict him of voluntary manslaughter. In the same trial, Turner was charged with murdering another man, Jamal Waters, after an argument in Oakland in 2008, a killing Turner denied committing. But prosecutors presented little evidence about the Oakland killing, and agreed at the end of testimony to remove that charge from the case. They later dismissed the Oakland charge altogether. Superior Court Judge Paul Delucchi rejected a defense request for a new trial in the Hayward case and instead told jurors to consider only what they had heard about Cunninghams slaying and disregard evidence about the Oakland shooting. Courts normally assume juries follow a trial judges instructions, but that would not be a fair assumption in this case, the appellate panel said. It noted that the only disputed issue in the Hayward case was whether Turner had killed Cunningham without provocation, as the prosecution argued. In the Oakland case, the jury heard substantial but inadmissible evidence that (Turner) committed an unrelated brutal and senseless murder, Justice Alison Tucher wrote in the 3-0 ruling. Turner needed jurors to believe Cunningham had used a racial slur and lunged at him, Tucher wrote, but his credibility was surely damaged when they heard this was not the first time he shot and killed an unarmed man for no apparent reason. Cunningham, 38, worked as a school custodian in Dublin. After having a few drinks on an evening in November 2009, he went to a store with his 13-year-old daughter and their two dogs to get some ice cream, then was walking home when one of the dogs, a 1-year-old German shepherd, slipped off the leash and sniffed the leg of a passerby, the 20-year-old Turner. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Cunninghams daughter testified that the dog did not touch the man or bark at him. But Turner said the dog pawed at his leg and he feared being attacked. He said the girl apologized and led the dog away, but when he told Cunningham he should get a leash for the animal, the white man shouted angrily, called him the n-word, raised his fist and started to lunge in his direction. Turner said he shot Cunningham with a gun he carried because he had been robbed and beaten at age 13. He testified he had not intended to kill the dog owner and was ashamed to learn he had died. Jurors rejected a charge of premeditated first-degree murder but convicted Turner of second-degree murder for an intentional and unjustified killing. Delucchi sentenced him to 15 years to life for the murder and an additional 25 years for use of a firearm. Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko More than a dozen young people will still be locked up in cells in San Franciscos juvenile hall when the new year rings in, despite legislation passed 18 months ago calling for the jail-like facility to shut down by the end of this month. The failure to meet the deadline, which required finding an alternative site for the handful of juvenile offenders requiring a secure lockup, follows months of community input and countless hours of task force meetings, but no tangible solution for how and when the city will stop incarcerating kids. The delay is a blow to San Franciscos reputation as a juvenile justice reformer, after officials boasted it was the first major U.S. city to pass legislation ending the jailing of young people. They vowed to continue the process. We will get there but need additional time to do it right, said Supervisor Hillary Ronen, who co-authored the legislation. And as the first city in the nation to close juvenile hall, we must get it right. There is no new timeline for when the facility might close. Ten of the 11 supervisors supported the measure in June 2019, which required a task force to come up with a plan to develop homelike rehabilitation centers in San Francisco to house youth offenders, including a secure site for those who pose a public safety threat. Supervisors were expected to review and approve final plans six months prior to the closure. That didnt happen. Mayor London Breed supported the closing of juvenile hall but did not support the legislation. It passed without her signature. From the beginning Ive said that we must have an alternative that meets all legally mandated standards before we close juvenile hall, she said as the deadline approached this month. Its easy to shut something down but it is much more difficult to build an alternative that will work to rehabilitate and prepare our youth who need help and need to be held accountable for their acts, regardless of age. Still, the delay frustrated youth activists, who cried tears of joy when the board voted to shut the facility down in June 2019. There were a lot of young people really counting on this facility being closed so there could be better alternatives, said Julia Arroyo, managing director of the Young Womens Freedom Center, which has been working on juvenile justice reform efforts in San Francisco and across the state. The adults just havent come to a decision yet. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle 2018 Officials, however, noted the process was marred by the pandemic, which put a pause on the task force before it resumed online. In addition, the state decision to close the California youth prisons meant, as of July 1 this year, that counties assumed the responsibility of housing and treating youth who commit the most serious crimes, often a long-term placement in a state-approved secure setting. Trying to juggle the closure of juvenile hall with the lack of state youth prisons is complicated, said Juvenile Probation Chief Katy Weinstein Miller. There is still a long process ahead of us, she said. In recent days, about 16 young offenders were in the hall, including 10 who are over 18, but who committed the crimes as juveniles. Four of the 16 were held on homicide cases, while several others were gun cases, Miller said. The facility was made to hold about 150 youths. The young offenders inside juvenile hall on a typical day sleep in locked cells, their bed a thin mat on a concrete platform. Its costing San Francisco $3,000 per day, or the equivalent of $1.1 million annually, for each youth. City officials deemed this type of detention for children unacceptable, given the trauma inflicted as well as the exorbitant cost. The 2019 decision to close juvenile hall came on the heels of a national conversation about the school-to-prison pipeline and how to bring down incarceration in California. City officials cited The Chronicles Vanishing Violence investigation, which highlighted dramatic declines in juvenile crime, resulting in near-empty juvenile lockups and skyrocketing costs to maintain the facilities across the Bay Area and California, in their decision. The juvenile hall closure task force recently submitted a report to the board outlining recommendations on processing juvenile offenders as well as possible options for a secure facility. It outlined a need for three separate secure facilities, one for girls who are held before and after a judges ruling in the case; one for boys held before a judges determination; and one for boys requiring a secure setting after adjudication in their cases. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Suggested sites included cottages on the Edgewood Center for Children and Families campus, which uses other spaces for mental health crisis care and other treatment. Other options include a former Academy of Arts residential building or the purchase of an industrial warehouse converted into a therapeutic setting. The report also recommended diverting 80% of youth subject to a law enforcement response, meaning they never enter the juvenile justice system, among other efforts. Those who are detained should have a same-day or expedited hearing to reduce the waiting time spent in the secure setting, the report stated. The recommendations will now go to the Board of Supervisors to review and pursue next steps, said board President Shamann Walton. This work was hard and challenging, but the commitment we make today will change lives forever, he said, adding he is reviewing the report and will push for reforms. I understand for some that a full closure of facilities would be desired; however, we are bound by state laws that require us to provide secured facilities for certain charges. Yet the ongoing goal of the legislation was to create a secure setting in the city that offered a more homelike and rehabilitative environment, for short- and long-term stays. The goal, said Margaret Brodkin, a juvenile probation commissioner, was to stop locking young people in cement rooms. The work that should have been done was not done, she added. A lot of people have responsibility for that because there were a lot of eyes on this. The end result, she said: Kids are still locked up. Theyre in cells. The burden will now fall on the Board of Supervisors, she said. I hope, I desperately hope, they will take responsibility, Brodkin said. Theres data about what just one day does (to a child) locked in a cell. It can change your life forever. Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Jilltucker Audrey Butler sat on the couch of her two-bedroom town house in Novato, pulled out her cell phone, and scrolled to a video of herself crooning an old James Brown soul ballad. It was a warm November afternoon, yellow and crimson leaves bristling outside the small complex where Butler lives near a Trader Joes and a commuter railroad crossing. After a rocky year and a half, things were starting to look up. Although unemployed and recovering from a recent surgery, Butler had sought help to pay the mortgage and keep the electricity on, hired a repair person to fix her broken furnace, and was able to practice singing in her living room, filling the house with her gravelly alto. In two days, she was set to perform at a free community event at Boeddeker Park in San Franciscos Tenderloin neighborhood. Its a place freighted with painful memories for Butler. I was homeless in that park, the 56-year-old mother of three said. I went to sleep in that park. Butler threw back her head and gave a triumphant laugh. And here, 30 years later, Im going back to that park, and Im going to be singing. Growing up in the Sunnydale area of San Francisco, Butler learned that she could survive just about any hardship with grit, a sense of humor and a little help from others. Her life took a turn in her teens, when she began using crack cocaine at a time when she also joined the cheerleading squad at Balboa High School. During that period, crack had begun infiltrating Black and Latino communities, and no one could have predicted the resulting public health crisis, the harsh prison sentences, or the toll it would take on people such as Butler, whose life devolved as she entered adulthood. By the mid-1980s, Butler by then a young mother had fallen into addiction and often wound up sleeping in cars or couch-surfing with family members. Eventually she landed in a drug treatment program in Marin County, which she successfully completed. She would raise her three children in San Rafael, become a mentor to people struggling with addiction, and work in patient admissions at Kaiser Permanente for 13 years. When Butler lost her job during the pandemic and her unemployment insurance ran out, she turned to the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund. It covered her mortgage for August, September and October and helped pay her utility bills. The fund works throughout the year to prevent homelessness and hunger in the Bay Areas nine counties. All donations directly help people in need, with administrative costs covered by The Chronicle and the Walter and Evelyn Haas Jr. Fund. Now I got a second chance at a first-class life, Butler exulted. August and September were excruciating months for anyone who lost work at the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, because most people saw their unemployment payments end around that time, said Chris Miranda, safety net services manager at Community Action Marin, a nonprofit that fights poverty. Everyone was trying to scramble, Miranda said of his clients in Marin County, where the cost of living is high enough that people with minimum-wage jobs generally have to live with extended family or rent apartments with roommates. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Some clients of Community Action Marin got so desperate when rent and mortgage payments came due, Miranda said, that they began working as day laborers, waiting at the local truck stop each morning to pick up whatever jobs they could. The devastation of COVID-19 may leave a financial scar, Miranda said, not only on folks receiving (checks from) the state Employment Development Department, but on people not eligible for that money, because they were paid under the table before their work evaporated. In some ways, Butler was more fortunate. Recuperating from surgery for the past several months, she took online classes to become a medical assistant and indulged her passions. She makes elaborate jewelry, including beaded vests that dangle from a coat rack in her living room. And she sings the whole canon of R&B hits, sometimes practicing with a group of friends she met at karaoke clubs. Though she is grateful for her hobbies and her home, Butler still has to come up with creative strategies and rely on family to survive. December brought new travails. After her 2018 Jeep Liberty broke down, she began borrowing her sons car during the day until its engine sputtered. Without a functioning car or consistent income, she scrapes by on charity donations and income from selling jewelry. So Im just figuring it out, she said, drawing a breath. Her voice had an edge of desperation. Sometime in the new year she has to have both knees replaced. After shes healed, she said, shell return to the job market. Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan DOVER, Del. (AP) Dr. Ron Sarg, concerned over his immunosuppressed condition as a cancer survivor, has been basically confined to his home throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. So he had a thought: Why not grow his hair out during his 22-month hiatus from barbershops and other social situations? Dr. Sarg wasnt making any kind of political statement or trying to start a new trend for 77-year-old men. He simply wanted to grow his hair, so he could donate it to Locks of Love, an organization whose mission is very close to his heart. I remember I saw my mother lose her hair several times, he said, recalling her own battle with cancer. She died at age 87, and it wasnt until I saw her the last couple of days (before her death) that I realized that she didnt have any eyebrows. She had tattooed them in. It just surprised the heck out of me that I hadnt noticed that before. (Cancer survivors) try to present themselves as best they can despite their shortcomings and especially physical shortcomings. I know how difficult it is for folks to go through chemo and suddenly lose their strength and their overall appearance, and its very, very depressing to them. It has been Locks of Loves mission since 1997 to return a sense of self-confidence and normalcy to financially disadvantaged children suffering from hair loss by utilizing donated ponytails to provide high-quality hair prosthetics free of charge. Perhaps fittingly, on Dec. 7, the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dr. Sarg a retired U.S. Air Force colonel had a long overdue visit to JK Tangles Hair Salon on Lebanon Road. Jesse Allen, owner of JK Tangles, was more than happy to oblige and carefully clipped and gathered the gray locks into a bundle for donation. Dr. Sargs hair had to reach at least 10 inches to be given to Locks of Love. This simple community outreach endeavor was a true privilege and pleasure, to safely and painlessly dedicate my hair to fellow cancer survivors who could use it more than me, said Dr. Sarg. It was the longest (my hair has) ever been. It got down to almost 12 inches, and the requirement was 10 inches. The great thing about Locks of Love is that they also took gray hair. It was an easy win-win for everyone. My neck felt a little chillier (after the haircut), but thats OK. While Dr. Sarg hasnt been outside his home much since the pandemic began, he has remained active via Zoom meetings with the Delaware Commission of Veterans Affairs, the Council on Brain Injury, the Delaware Employment First Oversight Commission and the Military Officers Association of America. He said he has endured occasional good-natured gibes from his fellow commissioners about his ponytail and his resemblance to Benjamin Franklin. Dr. Sarg, a retired dentist, said making the decision to confine himself at home wasnt a very difficult one since he wanted to make it through the pandemic. My mom was a cancer survivor for many, many years and kind of succumbed to it, he said. Im a cancer survivor, and Ive got (multiple sclerosis) and Agent Orange exposure and kidney disease, a whole bunch of things, so when COVID hit, that pretty much cut down my outside activities because Im a super-high-risk individual. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Ive been spending the last two years like many people, tied to Zoom meetings. Im on three different commissions and active politically, and it just became a simple effort with having trouble with cross-contamination and what have you. Im a retired dentist, and so I understand that type of thing. Dr. Sarg was more than happy to do his part to help out somebody else with his Locks of Love donation. It was the type of thing (where) I felt very blessed in my life because I started out with a broken family and in poverty, and Ive risen to what Im doing now, he said. Im very comfortable, and Im a retired doctor, and Im a retired full colonel military-wise, and youve got to pay it forward you pay it back when you pay it forward. So would he be willing to let his hair grow again for another donation? I hadnt thought about it. Possibly, he said. But now, Im 77 years old, and Im starting to get a little bit thin up there myself. Regarding Daily fine expected for water wasters (Front Page, Dec. 19): This story doesnt reflect the current reality. Most suburban water users have already pared back their total water use. The reason reservoirs are going dry so quickly is in large part due to almond farming. California almond farmers added about 340,000 acres of orchards in just three years from 2018 to 2020. A single almond can take 1.1 gallons of water to grow. Just a few trees could use as much water as some households for an entire year. Add to these facts that 80% of California almonds are exported, and farming overall accounts for 80% of California water use. We are in effect exporting our water overseas in the form of a nut. So while our rivers are being pumped dry, salmon fisheries collapse and lawns turn brown, almond farmers are laughing their way to the bank. Stop sending our water resources overseas and start addressing the true culprits of depleted reservoirs. Mike Aughney, Sebastopol Tree is Christian Regarding No Christianity in tree (Letters, Dec. 21): Most people call it a Christmas tree, not a winter holiday tree or a Saturnalia tree or a solstice tree. Decorating a tree in winter may not have originally been a Christian tradition, but it certainly has been for the past five centuries. (And by the way, the decorated tree proscribed in Jeremiah Chapter 10, Verses 3 through 5, was an idol that was worshiped, not an element of holiday home decor.) Would you argue that Easter is not a Christian holiday because of its pagan roots as a spring fertility celebration? A tree is part of the modern celebration of Christmas, the holiday on which Christians celebrate the birth of the son of God, the messiah (no matter when he was actually born, which no one knows anyway). The tree is therefore a religious symbol. Todd Silverstein, San Rafael Boudin is out of touch Regarding Breeds Tenderloin crackdown assailed (Front Page, Dec. 21): San Francisco faces an epidemic of overdose deaths, open-air drug dealing and intravenous drug use. Our mayor, London Breed, had the insight and the courage to launch some bold steps to combat it. Our district attorneys response? They are certainly not the only tools available, Chesa Boudin said. No doubt, there are other tools. How hard is it to see that the other tools arent working? Meanwhile, the deaths and the intolerable living conditions for the locals roll on. How San Francisco is that? Ed Moore, San Francisco Elder care is in crisis Regarding Elder care in U.S. just got harder (Open Forum, Dec. 21): Thank you for publishing Dave Iversons deeply moving piece. Iverson himself is a legend in the Bay Area Parkinsons community for his two documentaries, Capturing Grace, about the groundbreaking dance for Parkinsons movement, and My Father, My Brother and Me, about families. Iverson was a hero of my husband, who died recently after 20 years with Parkinsons, the past several with growing dementia, which fortunately Iverson appears to have dodged. Like Iversons mother, but not for as long, my husband Tim required 24/7 care from me and a growing cohort of caregivers. (Unlike Dave, I was aging but did not have a progressive, incurable disease.) We, too, had resources to draw on, and an insistence on paying decent wages to highly valued caregivers. Iverson understands that thousands probably millions do not have these options and that for a growing number of struggling families, desperately needed change is not a move on a political chessboard, but a sheer tragedy that our country and its leaders must address. SACRAMENTO On a busy street a short walk from the state Capitol stands a three-story Italianate Victorian mansion, a towering white structure with a turret and spires, that has been vacant for the better part of three years. The 144-year-old home is the California Governors Mansion, the states official residence for its chief executive. But like many of his predecessors, Gov. Gavin Newsom has declined to live there. The building is rarely used today just a half-dozen years after the state spent $4.1 million to renovate it, including replacing aging electrical, plumbing and fire-safety systems. Renovations included a new kitchen, light fixtures and repainting. Former Gov. Jerry Brown moved into the mansion after the remodel in late 2015, and stressed that the work would make the home suitable for state business again. Andri Tambunan/Special to The Chronicle The state continues to spend money to maintain and upgrade the mansion. Annual maintenance was about $12,000 in 2020, and California spent an additional $406,000 that year to build a 7-foot security fence around the property, according to records obtained by The Chronicle under the Public Records Act. Newsoms office said the fence was paid for using a federal homeland security grant. The barrier replaced a waist-high fence, which protesters occasionally hopped in the past. Now, California is struggling to figure out what to do next with the mansion, which was once a museum that hosted an average of 30,000 visitors per year. Newsoms administration has said little about its plans for the building. Newsom and his family, including his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, and four young children, lived in the mansion for a few weeks after he was inaugurated in January 2019, before moving to a more kid-friendly and secluded home in the Sacramento suburbs. Andri Tambunan/Special to The Chronicle For Sacramento officials and history buffs, the mansions future has been a lingering question. Some want to restore the building as a museum, including bringing back exhibits with furniture and clothing from past eras. Mike Testa, president of Visit Sacramento, the capital regions visitor bureau, said the mansion was once among its top-five historic draws, along with sites like the Crocker Art Museum and the Capitol building. It would be a shame if it was left empty and people didnt have the opportunity to enjoy it, he said. Id love to be able to offer that to visitors. The building has seen little use in the past three years, aside from about a dozen events. Daniel Lopez, Newsoms press secretary, said the COVID-19 pandemic has cramped plans for further events. The administration looks forward to resuming the practice of hosting public events, as health and safety conditions improve and more Californians across the state continue to get vaccinated, Lopez said in an email. Lopez said the governor and his wife made opening the mansions doors for state events a priority early in his administration, including a reception to honor the 2019 California Hall of Fame inductees, Earth Day celebrations and a panel for International Womens Day. Newsoms office hasnt said whether the governor would support reopening it as a museum. Furniture, clothing and other artifacts that once filled the home are stored in a warehouse. The $4.1 million renovation in 2015 was paid for using funds from the sale of another governors residence, which private donors built for former Gov. Ronald Reagan, though it was never used. Other costs associated with the mansion, including for aesthetic repairs and special events and holiday celebrations, are typically paid by a nonprofit that raises money from private donors. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle 2019 Still, the status of the mansion has raised some eyebrows in Sacramento. California is one of a handful of states where the governor doesnt live in an official state mansion, and such residences often serve as a hub of state activity. Californias mansion, near downtown at the corner of H and 16th streets, was built in 1877 as a private home for a wealthy family. In 1903, the state purchased the building for an executive residence. Twelve governors and their families lived there. That changed in 1967, after Reagan chose to live instead in a tony East Sacramento neighborhood. Nancy Reagan had labeled the old mansion a firetrap. In 1969, Reagans supporters donated land to build a permanent governors mansion in Carmichael, an upscale Sacramento suburb. But the effort was controversial and the mansion, which was completed after Reagan left office, was mocked by critics for its massive footprint and lack of architectural flavor. Max Whittaker/Prime/Special to The Chronicle 2014 Brown, during his first stint as governor from 1975 to 1983, declined to live in the new mansion, calling it the Taj Mahal. Then a 30-something bachelor, Brown opted for an apartment near the Capitol, sleeping on a mattress on the floor. California sold the new residence in 1982, and the proceeds from the sale later paid for the 2015 renovations of the old mansion. Subsequent governors in the 1980s and 90s George Deukmejian, Pete Wilson and Gray Davis lived in a nondescript split-level home in east Sacramento. Arnold Schwarzenegger bucked that trend in the 2000s, when he typically commuted from his home in Los Angeles, using a private plane, or stayed at the Hyatt hotel across the street from the Capitol. In the meantime, the historic mansion had become a popular museum. Generations of schoolchildren from Northern California wandered the homes winding Victorian hallways and staircases by the busload. Associated Press 1969 Marcia Eymann, Sacramentos city historian, recalled her daughter was so fascinated by the mansion after a school tour that she begged her mother to go back a second time. She said the home is intriguing not just because of the association with past governors: Its extravagance showcases the Gold Rush and railroad eras that coincided with California gaining statehood in 1850, when the capital city was a center of riches. That was a row of where all the wealthy people lived in Sacramento at one time, Eymann said of the site. Its part of Californias story. I hope people can see it because it should be a source of pride for the state. Andri Tambunan/Special to The Chronicle The mansion remained a museum for almost 50 years, until it closed for renovations on Jan. 1, 2015. Brown moved in in time for Christmas that year, and the mansion once again became a center of state business. As Brown prepared to leave office three years ago, he said he would miss the mansion and shaded the architectural sensibilities of his predecessors who passed up the chance to live there. I mean, whats not to like about it? Brown told The Sacramento Bee at the time. It started with Reagan and then some of the Southern California governors, who were used to ranch-style houses. The idea of a Victorian house like this is a little alien to the L.A. mentality. Dustin Gardiner is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dustin.gardiner@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dustingardiner Patrick Schuler was getting ready to fly from San Francisco to New Jersey when he got the dreaded text message from United Airlines on Thursday. It told him his Christmas Eve flight home had been canceled due to an increase in Covid cases limiting crew availability, and that he could tap a link to book a new flight, let the airline schedule one for him, or seek a refund. Determined to be with his mom on Christmas, he followed the link. Within minutes, Schuler had booked himself on a new flight that would depart a few hours later than his original one. The whole thing was super painless, he said. It is what it is. Things happen, Schuler said while standing near the quiet United Airlines check-in area inside San Francisco International Airport. It hasnt been as bad as everyone is saying. Constanza Hevia H./Special to The Chronicle That seemed to ring true at the Bay Areas largest airport at least. Despite thousands of omicron-induced flight cancellations across the country, SFO was calm and quiet on one of the busiest travel days of the year. Couples in Christmas sweaters popped out of ride-hailing vehicles before waltzing through security. Families reuniting for the holidays embraced before driving home. Screens in front of security said wait times were only seven minutes, some even less. While 44 total flights in and out of SFO were canceled on Christmas Eve, they made up a fraction of the roughly 1,000 total flights scheduled that day, according to FlightAware, an online air travel tracker. Oakland International Airport and San Jose International Airport each had one cancellation for the day, both incoming flights. Scott Wintner, a spokesperson for the San Jose airport, said it was not seeing any unusual operational problems. But the calm could belie a post-Christmas storm. Coronavirus cases have skyrocketed on the East Coast, and health officials predict that California will meet the same fate thanks to the highly contagious omicron variant. Were watching New York really carefully. They are probably a week or two in the surge ahead of us, said Dr. Grant Colfax, director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Kaley Skantz, a spokesperson for Oaklands airport, said that its hard to predict whether flight cancellations will become a bigger problem as cases rise, as the airlines not the airports make those calls. We just dont know what theyre going to do, she said. Constanza Hevia H./Special to The Chronicle Wintner said San Jose airport officials dont have any current information to suggest cancellations will become more of a problem, but that they certainly recognize the possibility given the statements several airlines have made about how cases are impacting their operation. Representatives for SFO did not respond to requests for comment. Airlines are already predicting more cancellations over the holiday weekend, with no telling what the future holds. United Airlines, which canceled the most flights Friday because of COVID-19 illnesses among staff 192, according to FlightAware told the New York Times that it was expecting to cancel an additional 120 flights on Christmas Day. But a company spokesperson noted that those cancellations make up only a small portion of the airlines 4,000 daily flights during the holiday season. Constanza Hevia H./Special to The Chronicle Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Delta Airlines said a combination of issues, including staff coronavirus infections and weather, led to the cancellation of 158 of 3,100 flights Friday. A Delta spokesperson said the airline will probably experience even more cancellations over the holiday weekend, with upwards of 150 cancels expected Saturday and Sunday, also because of weather and staff infections. In all, FlightAware tallied 2,400 cancellations and more than 10,000 delays Friday. Airport officials advised people to keep a close eye on their flight statuses through their airlines before getting to the airport. Constanza Hevia H./Special to The Chronicle Thats especially helpful in circumstances where there are widespread delays and cancellations, Wintner said. But cancellations arent always all bad. For Schuler, who made it through security two hours before his flight was scheduled to leave, rebooking meant getting a better seat. I got an upgrade, he said. So Im smiling. Danielle Echeverria is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: danielle.echeverria@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @DanielleEchev Thousands of frustrated travelers hoping to fly to Christmas celebrations faced a wave of last-minute cancellations, as a spike in coronavirus cases sidelined airline workers who had contracted the virus or had been exposed to the fast-spreading omicron variant. About 4,000 flights around the world scheduled for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day were scrapped, according to FlightAware, an aviation data provider more than 1,000 of them in the United States, disrupting a holiday season that travelers had hoped would represent a return to relative normalcy as the pandemic enters its third winter. The cancellations forced stranded passengers in crowded airports from Atlanta to Minneapolis to Washington, D.C., to embark on frantic planes-trains-and-automobiles efforts to get where they were going. In many cases, that proved impossible. Thursday, one of the most hectic travel days of the year, started off well, with fewer than 300 cancellations in the United States, but in the evening, carriers began announcing problems. Delta Air Lines, which FlightAware said canceled about 160, or 8%, of its flights scheduled for Friday, was exhausting all options and resources, including rerouting and substituting planes and crews to cover scheduled flights, said Kate Modolo, a spokesperson for the carrier. The cancellations were caused by a combination of issues, including weather and omicron, and Delta expected to cancel at least 150 more flights over the weekend, she said. United Airlines canceled about 185 of its flights scheduled for Friday, said Maddie King, a spokesperson for the Chicago-based carrier. The main cause: crew members calling in sick. Another 120 cancellations were planned for Saturday. When possible, the carrier is swapping in larger planes to carry more passengers on flights that are flying, King said. Brett Snyder, a self-described aviation dork who worked in the industry and now blogs at the website Cranky Flier, noted that such stopgap measures were no real match for the disruptions caused by the virus. You can only be so prepared when omicron starts racing through your pilot corps, Snyder said. If your pilot has a cold, they can still fly. If a pilot gets COVID, they have to stay away for 10 days. That can easily snarl an operation. Anticipating how the omicron variant would exacerbate personnel shortages, Airlines for America, a trade group, on Thursday asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to shorten the recommended isolation period for employees who test positive for COVID-19 from 10 days to no more than five days, with a negative test to return, as the agency has done for health care workers. Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants union, resisted the change, telling the CDC in a letter that changing protocols should be based on science, not staffing, and they should be made by public health professionals, not airlines. A substantial number of cancellations have hit carriers based in Australia and India, with some resulting from virus-related staffing issues. More than 1,500 cancellations over the past few days have taken place in China, where such disruptions were not uncommon even before the emergence of omicron. United Airlines officials could not say what will happen Jan. 2, a critical date when airlines expect large numbers of travelers to return home. A lot of decisions are being made close in, so that if we don't need to cancel a flight, were not going to, King said. A spokesperson for JetBlue, one of the carriers supporting a shorter quarantine period for workers, said additional flight cancellations and other delays remain a possibility as we see more omicron community spread. It is a disorienting moment in the pandemic. While the highly transmissible omicron variant accounts for more than 70% of new coronavirus cases in the United States, President Joe Biden and European leaders are increasingly reluctant to impose the kind of unpopular restrictions that were put in place to blunt the first wave of the pandemic and the delta variant. Moreover, there is a growing sense that such measures are either ineffective or are not worth the trouble. On Friday, officials in South Africa, encouraged by data showing that infections from the omicron variant are not as severe, announced they were dropping quarantine restrictions for all but symptomatic people. That new policy allows people who have tested positive but show no symptoms to gather with others, provided they wear a mask and practice social distancing. Airlines follow strict policies aimed at keeping crew members from becoming vectors of infection, including mandatory isolation for employees exposed to the virus. This is going to be a problem for some time, certainly through the holidays, Snyder said. While cancellations throughout 2021 have been at the lowest levels since 2014, theyve carried an outsize psychic weight, said Kathleen Bangs, a former commercial pilot who is a spokesperson for FlightAware. There has been a hyperfocus on airline travel because people have been so cooped up, Bangs said. People have a short memory, and they forgot just how clogged up airline travel was before the pandemic. Tramelle Howard, 32, a director at an education nonprofit, said his Delta flight on Christmas from Nashville, Tennessee, to his home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was abruptly canceled Thursday evening. Although Howard will most likely have to miss seeing his family on Christmas because his flight was rescheduled for Sunday, he said he was trying to make the best of the situation and planned to relax and watch Netflix instead. At this point, Im accepting it, Howard said. Its one of the risks that you take when you travel during the holidays, especially during a pandemic. International travel remains well below pre-pandemic levels, but domestic travel has fared better, paring much of the losses from the early months of 2020, when jets were parked and airports were nearly empty. Airlines passed their first trial of resurgent travel over Thanksgiving, with few cancellations and nearly as many passengers as in 2019. They have much less room to manage disruptions, though, than they did before the pandemic. Southwest, American and Spirit airlines all had meltdowns in late summer and fall, at times canceling half of their flights. You have this choppiness in trying to get back toward whatever a new normal may be, Snyder said. The industrys reserve of on-call pilots is thinner than it used to be, after the pandemic ushered in a wave of early retirements and career changes. A steady stream of news about unruly customers and their viral encounters with airline staff hasnt made it easier to recruit. For safety and regulatory reasons, pilots typically only fly one model of plane, making it harder to juggle staff if there is a shortage. The setbacks were evident for travelers around the country. On Christmas Eve morning, mats, blankets and pillows lined the floors of the Twin Cities airport, where people had been forced to sleep the night before. Catherine Lynn, a sales specialist in Watersound, Florida, said she had spent more than two hours Friday attempting to rebook a flight for her son, who learned his flight that afternoon had been canceled when he tried to check in on the Delta app. Lynn said she was happy that she had been able to book a new flight for her son on Friday evening, but she will have to drive to a farther-away airport to pick him up, potentially missing out on Christmas Eve dinner. At the end of a line for rebooking flights, Cesar Zerrato of Elizabeth, New Jersey, let out a long, anguished moan that drew the attention of a few travelers before him in line at Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York. Zerrato, 52, was supposed to be in Bogota, Colombia, with family for Christmas. Instead, he was caught in an airport loop. On Wednesday, his flight to Bogota from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was canceled, and he had traveled back to the Northeast for a flight to Bogota from JFK. Except now that flight had been canceled, too. He was trying to rebook on a flight scheduled for Christmas morning. Zerrato, still sporting on Friday the jeans and Star Wars T-shirt he had been wearing since Wednesday, described the journey as, all the time, lines, lines. He was back in New York, but without his luggage. He feared his bags had managed to do what he hadnt: get on a plane out of the country. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. WASHINGTON (AP) The U.S. recently added two new weapons to its small arsenal against the coronavirus: pills that patients can take at home to treat COVID-19. The drugs from Pfizer and Merck join a handful of other therapies that have been shown to blunt the worst effects of the virus. But each treatment has different advantages and tends to work best for certain types of patients at different stages of the disease. Here's a look at the current COVID-19 drugs and how they are used: PILLS The prescription pills are the first COVID-19 therapies that don't require infusions or injections delivered by health professionals. The Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizers Paxlovid on Wednesday and Mercks molnupiravir on Thursday. Mercks drug is for adults with a positive COVID-19 test, early symptoms and who face the highest risks of hospitalization. Pfizer's is for anyone 12 and older who likewise face the highest risks of hospitalization. Pfizer's drug is likely to become the first-choice treatment against the virus, because of its superior benefits and milder side effects. Molnupiravir carries a warning against use during pregnancy and the potential to cause birth defects. The FDA also said molnupiravir should be considered only when other treatments are unavailable or otherwise inappropriate for a patient. Both treatments should be started soon after symptoms develop, which means patients must get tested and diagnosed quickly. Experts predict antiviral pills eventually could be used in combination to combat COVID-19, similar to HIV drugs. ANTIBODY DRUGS For more than a year, antibody drugs have been the first-choice treatment for patients with early COVID-19 symptoms who dont yet require hospitalization. Three such drugs are authorized as treatments in the U.S. and theyve been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization and death by 70% or more when given within 10 days of symptoms. They are mainly used for high-risk adults with early COVID-19 symptoms, but they are also occasionally used to try to block infection in people who are highly vulnerable to the virus. But the omicron variant is dampening enthusiasm for them. Drugmakers Regeneron and Eli Lilly recently warned that laboratory testing suggests their antibody therapies will be much less potent against omicron, which contains dozens of mutations that make it harder for the treatments to attack the virus. The third option, from British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, appears to be the best positioned to fight omicron, but it's not widely available in the U.S. The drugs have several limitations: They have to be infused or injected by a health worker and they are expensive and complicated to manufacture. HOSPITAL TREATMENTS Remdesivir, an antiviral infusion, remains the only drug for hospitalized patients that specifically targets the coronavirus. It is used for patients who need extra oxygen but dont require breathing machines. In those cases its been shown to cut recovery times by several days. But the drug has fallen out of favor with many doctors because it hasnt been shown to improve survival. And the World Health Organization doesnt recommend it, given its cost and the lack of clear benefit. Steroids drugs a staple of emergency care have been shown to boost survival in hospitalized COVID-19 patients by blunting inflammation and other immune-system reactions, which drive the worst effects of the disease in later stages. U.S. regulators also authorized giving newly infected people transfusions of blood plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19. But theres little evidence it significantly reduces illness and death. A U.S. panel of experts concluded the evidence is insufficient for many people and that it's not recommended for hospitalized patients without impaired immunity. And the WHO recently recommended against its continued use. ___ 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. LOS ANGELES A 14-year-old girl killed by Los Angeles police when they opened fire on a suspect who was allegedly assaulting someone in a North Hollywood clothing store on Thursday has been identified as Valentina Orellana-Peralta, according to the Los Angeles County coroners office. Valentina was in a changing room with her mother when an officer fired a round through a wall near the assault suspect, striking her and killing her at the scene, according to preliminary information from police. The teenager was at the Burlington store trying on dresses for a quinceanera, a Los Angeles Police Department source confirmed to the L.A. Times. The assault suspect, who has not been identified, was also shot and killed by police, the department said. A woman who was injured by the suspect was transported to a local hospital, police said. LAPD Chief Michel Moore called the girls death absolutely heartbreaking and promised a thorough investigation, as did William Briggs, president of the Los Angeles Police Commission. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the state Department of Justice would also investigate the shooting under rules set by a law that took effect July 1. Police critics and others outraged by the girls death blasted the LAPD for opening fire in an occupied clothing store citing the shooting two days before Christmas as just the latest example of what they see as LAPD officers being too quick to draw and fire their weapons. As of Friday, LAPD officers had shot at least 36 people in 2021, killing 17 of them substantially more than they shot or killed in either of the last two years. They have killed four people just in the last week, with two men killed in separate incidents on Saturday. LAPD officers shot 27 people, killing seven, in all of 2020, and shot 26 people, killing 12, in 2019. Officers shot 33 people in 2018. The 26 shootings in 2019 marked a 30-year low in the number of LAPD shootings in a given year, and a dramatic drop in such shootings from a high of more than 100 per year in the early 1990s. In Thursdays shooting, officers responded to a call about an assault with a deadly weapon at the store in the 12100 block of Victory Boulevard about 11:45 a.m. Thursday and shot the suspect a short distance from a woman suffering from various injuries and bleeding, police said. The unidentified woman was later taken to the hospital for treatment of her injuries, police said. Her condition was not immediately known. During a search of the premises for additional suspects or victims, an officer found the slain girl, LAPD officials said. One of the officers rounds penetrated a wall that was behind the suspect, beyond that wall was a dressing room, according to a tweet from the LAPDs media relations office. Officers searched the dressing room and found a 14 year old female victim who was struck by gunfire. A heavy metal cable lock no gun was recovered from near the suspect, police said. Moore promised to release body-camera and surveillance video from the incident by Monday. The Burlington store, which normally opens about 7 a.m., remained closed shortly before 9 a.m. Friday. Throughout the morning, people walked up to the doors where they saw multiple signs, posted in Spanish and English, that read closed until further notice!!! Martin Morales, 32, had come on Friday morning to buy an outfit to wear for Christmas with his family. Morales, who lives about a mile away, was surprised to see that it was closed. He hadnt heard about the shooting the day before. He had planned to come to the store on Thursday afternoon but had put it off. I guess I was lucky, he said. WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Two police officers responding to a domestic violence call in Wichita, Kansas, were shot and wounded in the early hours of Christmas Day, authorities said. A woman told police that her boyfriend, 24-year-old Malik Rogers, had threatened and attacked her. Early Saturday, officers went to Rogers' apartment to arrest him, but police say he resisted and got into a struggle with the officers. SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Tiffany Hatch isnt quite a unicorn, but a new state audit suggests shes done something nearly half of her teaching cohort hasnt: stuck it out in the profession. While the audit shows that in 2017 Utah teacher retention was the highest nationally, the turnover of Utah teachers during their first five years on the job exceeds 40%, the Deseret News reported. This is higher than national averages which range between 17% and 46%, said the audit released recently by the Office of Legislative Auditor General. Hatch is in her sixth year of teaching after graduating from Weber State University. The mother of five children said she decided to become a teacher one morning after dropping her kids off at school. It was a rainy day, she recalled. After telling her kids goodbye and that she loved them, she lingered to watch them walk into their school. I thought, I hope those teachers are being so good to my kids because they will be with them way more today than I will, she said. I thought, I hope they dont just teach my children but build up their self-esteem. Thats what I wish for as a mom and thats what I could do if I were a teacher. At the time, Hatch didnt have an undergraduate degree, so she decided to apply for a job in a school office. A principal who was in one of my interviews knew that a school was looking for a teacher assistant and said, Oh, she would be really good, Hatch said. She got the job, which entailed heading up the schools before-school program. Shes also served as a kindergarten tutor and assisted elementary school teachers that taught fifth and second grade. In doing that, I just realized how much I loved it, she said. As Hatch explored university teaching programs, she learned about Weber State Universitys Teacher Assistant Pathway to Teaching program, or TAPT for short. The program provides teacher assistants financial support and mentoring to become fully licensed teachers. It is supported with state funds but also by private donors and businesses. Hatch, now a first grade teacher at South Clearfield Elementary School, calls the program a gift on a silver platter. The TAPT program covered her tuition and provided academic and emotional support, which was a win-win, she said. They would bring in people to talk about classroom management or they would bring in people to talk about ethics, or they would bring in different people from the university, and it was just awesome. So I think that gives a huge leg up to anybody, she said. The TAPT program helps existing school employees advance in their careers. It focuses on a population of people who already work in schools and are familiar with classroom conditions. Kristin Hadley, dean of Weber States Moyes College of Education, said the participants experience of working in schools contributes to the programs success. Ninety-five percent of those folks who graduated from that program are still teaching, she said. One factor is they dont get any of this shock of, Oh, I had no idea it was like that. They know exactly what teaching is because theyre working in the schools, and then we support them through their education, she said. According to the recent legislative audit, where a student completes a teacher education program in Utah also factors into teacher retention. For the five-year period reviewed by the auditors 2017-2021 Weber State University graduates had the lowest teacher turnover at 36%. Hadley said Weber State graduates lower rate of turnover may also be attributed to how the university delivers its teaching program. Our program is very embedded in our local school districts. We have students out in the field early and often working with students at a variety of schools, Hadley said, such as Title I schools or schools where students families have more personal resources. Title I funds assist schools in meeting the educational needs of students living near or at poverty levels. Weber States College of Education, in a partnership with Davis School District, teaches some courses at an elementary school, and students can practice what theyre learning in the classrooms so they get a much richer experience, Hadley said. According to the audit, University of Utah and Dixie State University each had 41% turnover, followed by Utah Valley University at 45%, Southern Utah University at 48% and Utah State University at 49%. Turnover among students educated at private, nonprofit universities Brigham Young University and Western Governors University was 75% and 81%, respectively. The audit notes differences in teacher turnover among the universities may be the result of different student populations. Furthermore, proportional differences of out-of-state students (who may go on to work out of state), student demographics and backgrounds and career paths may not be evenly distributed among each university. The audit shows that teachers who graduate from traditional university educator preparation programs or complete an alternative program approved by the Utah State Board of Education have lower turnover than people who enter the profession via nonprofessional licensure. Turnover rates for the 2015-16 cohort show a difference of nearly 20 percentage points between professionally licensed and nonprofessionally licensed teachers, the audit states. Nonprofessionally licensed teachers are people who have entered the teaching workforce via other pathways such as the associate or local education agency-specific licenses. To obtain an associates license, a candidate must pass the State School Boards background check and ethics review. They must either have earned a bachelors degree or are seeking the degree. They must demonstrate knowledge of what they will be teaching and complete the state boards pedagogical modules. An LEA license requires a background check and ethics review. The district school board or charter school board must apply on behalf of the educator. The school or district must create a personalized plan for educator support. The audit notes that Utahs teacher workforce is increasingly composed of higher proportions of these nonprofessionally licensed teachers. Heidi Matthews, president of the Utah Education Association, said a growing reliance on teachers who were not trained in educator preparation programs is concerning. It means that theyre learning on the job, and we have to think about what impact that has on the educators themselves but on our own student learning, she said. Matthews said lawmakers have made strides in recent years to increase teacher pay, but many educators report struggling with stress and workload, issues that were made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. Stress is a cumulative result of a wide variety of issues that have many of our educators at the breaking point. When you add into that the attacks on our professional integrity, about discussions about teaching race in our schools, teaching honest and accurate history, not making anyone uncomfortable, creating limitations on creating welcoming classrooms, and curriculum transparency, it adds up, she said. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Sydnee Dickson said educators are cognizant of lawmakers efforts to increase educational funding and also to support initiatives that provide schools with needed supports. During the Utah Legislatures last general session, lawmakers appropriated more than $6 billion to public education from state, federal and local sources, which they described as historic. The base budget included more than $400 million in new education funding, a 6% increase to the value of the weighted pupil unit, which is the building block of education funding in Utah, and funding for enrollment growth and inflation. Dickson said lawmakers also need to be mindful of the impact of their policy decisions particularly as the divisiveness in the country is playing out in our classrooms as well, she said. As the State School Board establishes policies and rules Im always thinking how does this impact the classroom? So its this duality of the arm around our teachers but then putting more on their plate and saying carry more, she said. At South Clearfield Elementary School, Hatch said she continues to refine her teaching practice and mentor students and teachers new to the profession. She said she is compelled to give back because she benefited immensely from veteran educators who guided her. Hatch said she believes that state and local education leaders are mindful of teacher turnover and continue to improve teacher pay and make other efforts to support their efforts such as teacher supply funding and the bonus granted to educators for their hard work during the pandemic. Sometimes, its the small kindnesses that pull a teacher through challenging times. Two years ago, Hatch was in the middle of a lesson when she saw her principal and a group of people in suits filter into the back of her classroom. So Im teaching, teaching, teaching. Theyre standing in the back and as they file out, Sydnee Dickson came over to me in front of class and said, Thank you for being a teacher. Of course, my principal follows right up and its like, Mrs. Hatch, this is Sydnee Dixon, the state superintendent. And Im like, Oh, my gosh, I know. Im going to write about this in my journal. I mean, its just so kind. Who does that? I mean, talk about leadership. Who does that? MILWAUKEE (AP) Authorities have identified a pregnant woman who was killed in in a three-vehicle crash near Weyauwega in northeastern Wisconsin. The State Patrol identified the woman killed in the Thursday morning crash as 26-year-old Genesis Stanton of Appleton, WBAY-TV reported. Her unborn child did not survive. THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) A 21-year-old man allegedly tortured and killed his girlfriend in Southern California early Christmas Eve, authorities said. Saul Nava is being held on $2 million bail in the Ventura County Jail on suspicion of murder, mayhem and torture. The felony of mayhem in California alleges that the suspect unlawfully and maliciously disfigures or disables a victim's body. Nava is scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday. It was not immediately clear Saturday morning if he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. The name of Nava's 24-year-old girlfriend has not been made public. She was pronounced dead in their Thousand Oaks apartment. Deputies from the Ventura County Sheriff's Office responded to the home around 1:15 a.m. after getting an emergency call. They found the woman unresponsive and suffering from serious injuries. Investigators found evidence that the victim had been tortured prior to her death, the sheriff's office said without providing additional details. Thousand Oaks is about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles. WYOMING, Mich. (AP) A western Michigan city plans to install a dozen cameras that will record license plate numbers. The effort in Wyoming is aimed at solving and reducing violent crime, MLive.com reported. The 12 automatic license plate recognition cameras will be installed within the next two months at six intersections. Theyll capture video as well as every license plate and the make, model and colors of vehicles that pass by them. The locations of the cameras can be changed. Right now, we have about six or seven police officers on the street, and its difficult for us to be everywhere at every time, Wyoming Police Chief Kim Koster told the newspaper. We need assistance. We need some technology to help us in that regard, and the license plate readers are something that we started to see utilized by other agencies." License plate numbers or descriptions about vehicles involved in crimes can be entered into a system which will notify officers if and when vehicles matching the plates or descriptions are detected passing through intersections equipped with the cameras, Koster said. The system will primarily be used for investigations into major crimes, including crimes against people, as well as aid in the search for stolen vehicles. The system wont be used for traffic enforcement. One way of reducing crime is to solve crime, and especially violent crimes or crimes against persons, Koster said. Im looking for this technology to provide us and our investigators with leads and evidence that will help us to bring closure to cases that might not otherwise be solved. Data and images captured by the system are only stored for 30 days, according to MLive.com. When Illinois classrooms fully reopened for in-person learning this fall, teachers anticipated many of their students would need plenty of academic and emotional support to recover from 18 months of COVID-19 disruptions to their education. But just three months into the new school year, pandemic-era quarantines and virus outbreaks have been upstaged by a surge in troubling student behavior that even veteran educators say is unlike anything they have witnessed during decades of teaching. "Every morning, one of our elementary school teachers has started putting on shin guards, as she knows her shins will take a beating from a student who has been kicking her," said Joe Blomquist, a teacher and union leader at St. Charles Community Unit School District 303. Blomquist, an elementary school music teacher, said the number of incidents requiring crisis intervention in the district's elementary school classrooms this fall has already doubled from incidents reported during the entire school year pre-pandemic. "All of our staff do their best, and we really want to take care of our kids, so it breaks our hearts to see them in crisis," Blomquist said. While virus rates have climbed in recent weeks, many educators in Illinois and across the U.S. are reporting the hardships posed by COVID-19 quarantines and school outbreaks this school year pale in comparison to dealing with the daily barrage of inappropriate student behavior erupting in their classrooms. This fall, educators have reported everything from violent assaults of teachers and frequent student fistfights, to a spate of menacing threats. While school shootings are rare, there has been a significant increase in reports of school violence during the new school year nationwide, including at least 38 incidents of gunfire on school campuses that resulted in death and injury between Aug. 1 and Nov. 30, compared with 14 incidents in the same period in 2019, according to data compiled by the nonprofit organization Everytown for Gun Safety and analyzed by the National Association of School Resource Officers. Between Aug. 1 and Nov. 30, at least 136 incidents involved a gun being brandished, fired or a bullet hitting school property, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database compiled by the Naval Postgraduate School's Center for Homeland Defense and Security. In Illinois, there were 23 such incidents so far in all of 2021, up from seven in 2019. Dwayne Bearden, a special education English teacher, said teachers are feeling "traumatized" by an increase in violent student behavior. "Over the past few months, outside of adjusting to in-person instruction, we've been faced with an alarming number of violent incidents ... students physically fighting, students assaulting teachers and sharing photos picturing them brandishing weapons," Bearden said. "We're not here to point fingers at anybody. ... But we need to take a collaborative approach to this problem, because a top-down approach is not working," he added. Noting the pandemic's "devastating impact on the mental health of children, teens and young people," the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the Children's Hospital Association recently declared a national mental health crisis among children and teens. The number of teens "arriving at emergency rooms and primary care clinics for behavioral and mental health problems and suicide attempts have increased significantly during the pandemic," AAP officials said. Determined to support teachers who report feeling increasingly unsafe in their classrooms, officials with the Illinois Education Association last week called on school districts that are not adhering to Illinois school safety laws to immediately comply. "Violence is increasing in our schools across the state. Our educators should not have to constantly worry about their safety and the safety of their students," IEA President Kathi Griffin said. "This is not their problem to solve. They're under enough stress already. School administrators need to take immediate action to keep our students, staff and communities safe," Griffin said. Two Illinois legislators, state Rep. Fred Crespo, a Democrat from Hoffman Estates, and Rep. Tony McCombie, a Republican from Savanna, are partnering with the IEA to sponsor new legislation that will ensure school districts comply with requirements in the School Threat Assessment law. The law requires schools to develop a threat assessment team and protocol and also calls for districts to review each of their school building's emergency and crisis response plans. In addition to the trauma many students have experienced during the pandemic, the increase in violent crimes being reported in many communities across the U.S. is another factor likely fueling disruptive student behavior in the classroom, said Mo Canady, executive director of the National Association of School Resource Officers. "Schools are microcosms of our communities, so how can the violence not spill over into our school buildings?" Canady asked. While violent student behavior at high schools presents the greatest safety threats to students and teachers, many elementary school-age children are displaying defiant and disruptive behavior that even experienced educators have found daunting, teacher Michael Williamson said. "In a lot of ways, the youngest children doing remote learning during the pandemic forgot what school was. ... Some of them had a few months of kindergarten, then came back in second grade, and were saying, 'This is weird'," Williamson said. Schools can provide extra support in the classroom to help students improve their aptitude in reading and math, but far more difficult is teaching classroom manners, like raising your hand, waiting in line in the lunchroom and treating classmates with respect and kindness, Williamson said. "We're seeing this whole big gap in social maturity that only happens when children grow together in person in the classroom," he said, adding that some teachers are reporting their students are arriving at school "angry, stressed and aggressive." "One teacher told me she has a child who come comes into school every morning, and tells her how much he hates her, but she told me, 'I know he's really not talking to me,' " Williamson said. At the end of each school day, several hours after the morning outburst, the child seeks out his teacher to apologize, he said. "I asked her how she was dealing with this, and she told me, 'I don't know what's happening in his life, but I know he's taking out on me, so I always answer, 'OK, but I still care about you'." Rick Rycroft/AP SYDNEY (AP) Australia's most populous state recorded more than 6,000 new COVID-19 cases for the first time Saturday, adding a somber note to Christmas celebrations. New South Wales reported 6,288 new infections over the past 24 hours, an increase of 676 cases from the previous day and by far the highest number of cases in any Australian state since the pandemic began. Early benchmarks from Denmark on infections and hospitalizations are providing grounds for guarded optimism that highly vaccinated countries might be able to weather the omicron wave. The developments, coupled with Denmark's speedy rollout of booster shots, have raised hopes the country can avoid the dire surge for which it has been bracing. "It's too early to relax, but it's encouraging that we are not following the worst-case scenario," said Tyra Grove Krause, the chief epidemiologist at Denmark's State Serum Institute. Denmark's detailed, nationwide program for coronavirus testing and analysis gives its scientists a trove of real-time data about the pandemic. Because of that - and because it was one of the first countries outside of Africa to witness omicron's explosive potential - it has turned into a European bellwether for what to expect with the omicron variant. And over the last week, the country has fared better than it was expecting. After surging to record-breaking levels, the number of daily cases has stabilized. Officials recorded 12,500 cases on Thursday, compared to 11,000 late last week. More important, hospitalizations have come in - so far - on the very low end of what was projected. A week ago, Denmark's government science institute was said daily new coronavirus hospital admissions could range between 120 and 250 patients by Christmas Eve. In recent days, daily admissions have hung around 125. "That is quite promising," Grove Krause said. The early signals from Denmark do not provide any direct measure on the severity of the variant, one of the key questions in this phase of the pandemic. But they track with other emerging data and studies from Britain and South Africa that suggest omicron is less likely to lead to hospitalization than the delta variant. Scientists caution that there are still many uncertainties, and that even if omicron is less likely to cause hospitalization, its increased transmissibility means countless sicknesses and disruptions. The virus could also spread so widely that it nonetheless leads to an influx at hospitals. Concerns remain about the health system in Denmark, Grove Krause said, because omicron infections are still disproportionately concentrated among the young. For now, Grove Krause said, temporary school closures and social precautions have helped slow the spread - but the country could still see a spike after holiday gatherings that bring together the young and old. Even as cases have slowed, there are other signs of omicron's potential to cause chaos. Over the last two weeks, the number of cases among health care workers has more than doubled. A weekly government monitoring report said there had also been two omicron outbreaks in nursing homes. Since omicron emerged in November, scientists have been racing to understand the implications and make sense of a variant that is moving far more quickly than its predecessors. A few data points emerged this week, with one Scottish study suggesting the risk of hospitalization was almost 60 percent less with omicron than delta. Another analysis, conducted by Imperial College London, said people with omicron cases were 20 percent less likely to go the hospital, and 40 percent less likely to be hospitalized overnight. And South Africa, epicenter of the first apparent outbreak, has seen much lower hospitalization rates than in other waves. But it remains unclear whether trends from South Africa - where demographics skew younger - will play out in other parts of the world. It's also unclear whether and to what extent omicron's reduced severity is a feature of the virus itself, or rather a sign of population-level immunity stemming from vaccinations and prior infections. Compared with delta, omicron is far better at evading vaccines and causing infections in those who have already been inoculated. But Denmark's experience shows that a rapid booster rollout might be able to nonetheless help cut down rising infection numbers. A team of scientists at the State Serum Institute said in a research paper this week that Pfizer-BioNTech booster shots appeared to provide a 55 percent protection against infections, compared against cases from those who had received only two doses. Even if that level of protection dips over time, boosters "can help us through the next months," Grove Krause said. According to Our World in Data, Denmark has issued the most per capita booster shots of any European Union country. Denmark said in its latest monitoring report, released Thursday, that 36.8 percent of its population had been boosted, more than double the level from two weeks earlier. Overall, 77.2 percent of the country's population has received at least two doses. Denmark also carefully tracks hospitalization rates, comparing cases for delta and omicron. Between Nov. 22 and Dec. 17, the hospitalization rate was higher for delta cases: 1 percent, compared with 0.6 percent. The hospitalization numbers include both those who tested positive before arriving, as well as those who tested positive within 48 hours after admittance. But for now, because the omicron cases are skewed among the young, scientists say an outright comparison is premature. BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) A South Florida man shot and wounded another man on Christmas Eve in a dispute over loud music, authorities said. Relatives of the victim were able to hold down Zachary Moncada until deputies arrived in suburban Boca Raton and arrested him authorities said. PEORIA, Ill. (AP) To Jill Greulich, it seems almost unimaginable that Dan Fogelberg would have turned 70 earlier this year. She thinks back to their youthful romance, wistfully memorialized in song years later, thanks to a chance encounter at a Peoria quick mart on Christmas Eve. During and after their days at Woodruff High School, she was a hand-holding eyewitness as Fogelberg would plop down along the Illinois River to strum his guitar and muse big dreams. Steeped in those recollections, she can hardly envision a septuagenarian Fogelberg. Indeed, amid a long career as a respected artist, Fogelberg who died at age 56 in December 2007 always carried a certain boyish charm. Even as the decades and albums rolled by, many of his followers (especially in his hometown of Peoria) continued to harbor a minds-eye view of him as a long-haired, wide-eyed young man looking to strike it big. I certainly remember him much younger, Greulich told the Journal Star. Many fans feel the same way, perhaps a result of his strong sense of privacy. He kept interviews to a minimum, focusing only on his music. Record buyers could listen and witness him grow as an artist. But as far as his personal life, he never shared or, thus, changed much publicly. I really dont find myself that fascinating, to be honest with you, he said in a 1985 radio interview. ... It just isnt that fascinating to tell people who I am. I think Ive done that musically, to a point. And also its obvious I want to preserve my privacy. So, when he would visit kin in Peoria, he would keep a low profile. Im deeply honored that the people in Peoria are excited that were coming in to play, he told this paper in 1995. I just dont want everyone making too big of a deal of this. Just come to the show and listen to what I can do. Thats what its really about. In that way, as far as a public persona, he always stayed the same, almost stuck (or at least, slowed) in time. Locally, that phenomenon was reinforced by the nostalgia underpinning two of his biggest hits, Same Old Lang Syne and Leader of the Band. Those songs, both of which hit No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, are deeply steeped in Peoria inspiration. Outsiders and non-fans wouldnt have any clues as to the characters and settings of those songs. But Peoria knows and savors those connections, especially Same Old Lang Syne, each December. Jill Greulich understands the power of the past. During her Woodruff days, she was Jill Anderson, courted by a teen Fogelberg already scribbling his fledgling song lyrics. After their 1969 graduation, they went their separate ways to college he to study art and theater at the University of Illinois in Urbana, she to Western Illinois University to major in elementary education but continued an on-again, off-again relationship. Greulich recalls that they often would grab a spot along Grandview Drive, just her and Fogelberg and his guitar, and watch the Illinois River roll by. We spent so much time there, Dan playing or just talking, she says. We could talk for hours. Over time, hed share snippets of melodies and lyrics, many of which ended up on his 1972 debut album, Home Free. One song seemingly leaped from their visits to Grandview Drive: The River, which starts, I was born by a river, rolling past a town. ... He was so proud of this, Greulich says. Theyd seek out other nature scenes, often jumping into a car and wandering out of town. (Wed go) driving back-country roads and loving the new visions we learned, Greulich says. Theyd sometimes stay in. Theyd bake cookies, which he especially appreciated when sick. And hed create paintings for her, depicting something that had significance for us, she says. Sometimes, the relationship seemed as if destined to move far forward. (We) joked about having twins in the future and naming them Romeo and Juliet, she says. Many times we would act out scenes from the play! Ah, youth. But the couple split for good when he left Illinois to pursue something else: his music, in Colorado. Meanwhile, she eventually graduated from college and moved to Chicago to work as an elementary teacher. There, she got married, and Dan Fogelberg faded into her mental scrapbook. Until Christmas Eve 1975. You know the story, if youve ever heard Same Old Lang Syne. She and her husband had come to Peoria to visit her parents, who still lived near Woodruff. For a home full of guests, her mom asked her to run out for eggnog. A few blocks away, the Fogelberg clan started to make Irish coffees, but needed whipping cream. So, Dan Fogelberg visiting for the holidays volunteered to seek the missing ingredient. By happenstance and because almost every other business on the East Bluff was closed the two ended up at the Convenient Food Mart at the top of Abington Hill, at Frye Avenue and Prospect Road. She got there first, and Fogelberg noticed her shortly after arriving. After hellos, they bought a six-pack Olympia, a brand then enjoying a strong national advertising push and sipped it in her car as they gabbed away. They eventually returned to their families, and that was that. Once again, Fogelberg faded into her memories. Until five years later. One morning, driving to work, Greulich turned on the radio. A new song popped on. That sounds like Dan, she thought. She listened to the lyrics, about two former lovers who have a chance encounter at a store. Oh, my gosh! her head screamed. That really happened! But the song didnt affect her life. By then, she had not only divorced the husband mentioned in the song, but married Chicago-area native Jim Greulich. They soon would move to a St. Louis suburb, where she would teach second grade. Jill Greulich remained out of touch with Fogelberg until several years after the songs release, when they had a reunion backstage after a concert. Their chat was as pleasant as it was illuminating. In part, he explained a few liberties he had taken with the song. For instance, though her eyes are actually green, the lyrics turned them blue, which he found easier to rhyme. They smiled and went their separate ways. Over time, Fogelberg fans wondered more and more about the identity of the old lover. But Greulich, out of respect for Fogelbergs artistry and privacy, stayed mum. However, she broke her silence in the wake of his death, revealing her role in the song to the Journal Star. At the time, she said, Ill always have a place in my heart for Dan. ... Dan would be a very special person to me, even without the song. BANJUL, Gambia (AP) Gambia's former dictator, Yahya Jammeh, should face prosecution for murder, torture and sexual violence, according to a new report by a truth, reconciliation and reparations commission established after he fled into exile five years ago. The long-awaited report recommends that a special international court be set up to try Jammeh and others in West Africa, but outside of Gambia. The report, which is based on years of witness testimonies, already had been presented to President Adama Barrow, but its posting online late Friday marked the first time that the complete findings were made public. Gambian Justice Minister Dawda A. Jallow said that the government was committed to the implementation of the report," but wouldn't release a paper before May on how it plans to go forward. Reed Brody with the International Commission of Jurists said he expected pressure to now mount on Gambia's leader to deliver justice without further delay for victims who have already waited five years, and in some cases much longer. There is still a lot that needs to be done, but I wouldnt be surprised if we see Yahya Jammeh in a court sooner rather than later, said Brody, who also played an instrumental role in bringing former Chadian dictator Hissene Habre to trial at a special court in Senegal. Jammeh, who ruled Gambia for 22 years, lost the 2016 presidential election, but he refused to concede defeat to Barrow. He ultimately took exile in Equatorial Guinea amid threats of a regional military intervention to force him from power. It remains unclear whether Equatorial Guinean authorities would extradite Jammeh should criminal charges be filed. Barrow, who ultimately prevailed after the 2016 vote, was reelected earlier this month. The truth commission was mandated to establish an impartial historical record of abuses committed from July 1994 to January 2017, when Jammeh fled the country. More than two years of hearings that led to the report documented human rights abuses and horrors that occurred under Jammehs rule. Human rights groups say arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and summary executions became the hallmark of the regime. Testimonies made by perpetrators before the truth commission confirmed that some killings were done at Jammeh's direction. The truth commission report also said that Jammeh had raped women including Fatou Jallow, who later testified before the truth commission and published a book earlier this year about her ordeal. Jammeh denies any wrongdoing. ___ This story has been corrected to show that the justice ministers name is Dawda A. Jallow, not Amadou Dawda Jallow. FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (AP) The 10 students in Stephen Tates cybersecurity fundamentals class are unwitting multitaskers. In addition to preparing to pass the Computing Technology Industry Associations Security+ examan exam usually given to those who have worked in the cybersecurity industry for at least two yearsthey are earning college credits and blazing a trail by participating in the first dual-enrollment cybersecurity program in the state. The program, which is offered at Spotsylvania Career and Technical Center and will soon be offered in Fredericksburg City and Stafford County public schools, is funded by a grant from GO Virginia, the state coalition for promoting economic growth and opportunity in high-demand industries. There is a huge workforce deficit right now and cybersecurity jobs are highly in demand, and so this is definitely a big win for our region, said Jennifer Morgan, economic development coordinator for the George Washington Regional Commission, which administers GO Virginia initiatives in the Fredericksburg region. The goal is to engage students at a high school level to get them credentialed and hopefully see a strong pathway towards creating higher paying jobs in the region, she continued. Germanna Community College applied to GO Virginia for the grant, which totals $634,938 over three years. Amy Henecke, dean of professional and technical studies and workforce development for Germanna, said cybersecurity jobs are very difficult to fill. So its important to start that pipeline earlier, she said. With the dual enrollment program, students can start to earn credentials and apply for college credit. Tate is partnering with a Germanna professor to teach this years first dual-enrollment course. Students come to Spotsylvania Career and Tech Center from their home high schools every other day for half the day, and they earn credits that will transfer to Germanna or any other Virginia community college. They can also apply to transfer them to a four-year college. Even with this one class that they have, they could graduate (high school) and go into the workforce if thats what they decided to do, Henecke said. Tate, who has been teaching computer systems courses for 13 years, said about 25 percent of his graduates do go straight into the workforce, anywhere from entry-level Geek Squad tech support jobs to local cybersecurity firms that contract with the Department of Defense. Another quarter of his graduates go into the military, where he said they almost always take on a tech or cyber-related MOS, while another 25 percent go to two- or four-year colleges. The remaining quarter might take a while to bloom, he said, but often eventually go into the cyber workforce. Senior Marie Kriewaldt is one of two female students in the dual-enrollment course this year. She said she first took a cybersecurity course as a sophomore because she had room in her schedule and it looked interesting, and she has continued on the track because of her fathers encouragement. Its challenging for me, but I enjoy the challenge, Kriewaldt said. She said she thinks girls continue to be scared away from computer science and cybersecurity classes because of majority male enrollment, and she believes career options in those fields need to be presented to girls at a much earlier age. With literally hundreds of jobs out there, Henecke said, there are plenty of positions to fill. Henecke said Germanna is training more instructors in Spotsylvania County schools, as well as in Stafford and Fredericksburg City. The goal of the GO Virginia grant is to certify 20 teachers to instruct cybersecurity courses throughout the region, including in Caroline and King George counties. HOBBS, N.M. (AP) It will be up to residents in Hobbs to approve a proposed change to the New Mexico citys economic development ordinance that could result in larger retailers locating in the community. Voters on March 1 will be asked about changing the city's Economic Development Strategic Plan Ordinance to include cultural facilities and retail businesses as qualifying entities for receiving public support as defined by the state's Local Economic Development Act. State lawmakers earlier this year expanded the types of support and the definition of retail businesses to account for municipalities with populations of more than 15,000. During a legislative session earlier this year, Hobbs Mayor Sam Cobb and Clovis Mayor Mike Morris urged lawmakers to make changes to the state economic development statute to allow cities like Hobbs to compete with other municipalities. The Hobbs News-Sun reported that before those changes were made, municipalities were not able to use public support toward retail establishments or cultural facilities, nor were municipalities with populations more than 15,000 and less than 35,000 able to use it for retail establishments or any other businesses. City Attorney Efren Cortez told commissioners during a recent meeting that Hobbs has a chance to level the playing field with nearby cities. If you look at Lubbock, Texas, for example, Texas has for years utilized tax revenue to spur retail incentives, he said. If youve been to Lubbock, you can see the exponential growth in their retail sector. I believe a measure like this not only puts the city of Hobbs in the same ballpark, but also New Mexico in general. If the measure passes, the ordinance would go into effect July 1. INDIANAPOLIS (AP) When Debra Treeshs children moved away, she and her husband didnt need as much venison, but they didnt know what to do with the leftovers. Thats when she contacted a local food bank. And they went nuts, said Treesh, who owns a small butcher shop with her husband in northwest Indiana. They said they dont get many meat donations and its one of the most important things. That spawned an idea: Could hunters donate some of their deer to help feed hungry individuals across Indiana? And so it began. What at first was just a one-time donation has since turned into a passion project. She officially launched her nonprofit, Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry, in 2011 making this year its 10th anniversary. Treeshs group now works with nearly 85 meat processors and 500 hunger relief organizations statewide to help the deer meat that hunters provide get to those who need it. All told, theyve donated enough venison to provide millions of meals. Her organization isnt the only one with this mission; it partners with a hunters club in southwest Indiana doing the same thing. A program in the states Department of Natural Resources also provides grants to these groups and processors to help cover the cost of making the deer edible and fit for donation. We all fall on tough times and someone is there wanting to help, said Capt. Jet Quillen, who is in the DNRs law enforcement division and runs the Sportsmen Benevolence Fund that provides the grants. Whether thats hunters or a state law enforcement agency, someone is there for them. Since Treesh first started her group, she estimates theyve been able to donate about 500,000 pounds of venison. Each pound can provide about four meals, she said, meaning theyve provided nearly two million meals over the last decade. Their partner group, Hunters for the Hungry out of the Dubois County Sportsmens Club, has donated roughly 72,000 pounds of venison. That equates to a quarter million meals, according to Gene Kuntz, who runs the group across four counties in southern Indiana. Thats no small thing from either group, Treesh said. When I look at the numbers, its hard to believe that I said two million meals of venison. Thats a lot, she said. But also it unfortunately doesnt even scratch the surface, especially during COVID times. In Indiana, nearly 850,000 people are facing hunger and more than a quarter of them are children, according to Feeding America, the nations largest hunger relief group. That amounts to one in every eight people in the state being food insecure and that was in 2019. Across the country, and including here in Indiana, the coronavirus has caused millions of Americans to newly experience food insecurity. Projections from Feeding America showed the rate of food insecurity increasing in every single Indiana county in both 2020 and 2021. There are a lot of people unemployed and COVID has hurt a lot of folks, Kuntz said. They are focused on keeping the lights on and food becomes an afterthought. Not only that, but shortages in labor and a slowed supply chain has the price of meat going up. Treesh recalled a recent grocery trip when she saw it was $6.99 for a pound of ground beef, the cheapest meat. I can see why people cant afford to get meat, Treesh said. Thats expensive. And local food banks and nonprofits are also seeing fewer donations, which can be attributed to the pandemic, said Quillen with the DNR. But theres another thing thats come out of the pandemic, he added: People are spending more time outside. The agency has seen record use of state properties and even more hunters and fishers signing up for licenses. Thats an opportunity to help more people, he said. There are a lot of new hunters and fishermen, Quillen said, and we need to educate those new folks and let them know this program is available. The process is simple. Treesh recommends that deer hunters first check the list of approved processors to know where they can take it, and then check with that butcher to make sure they have availability to take it. Only processors and butchers who are food safe-certified with the Board of Animal Health and DNR can be used for this program. Then all the hunter has to do is go out hunting, legally take a deer, field dress it and then drop it off at the processor. Im a deer hunter myself and a lot of hunters would like to go out and harvest more deer but they can only eat one and then theyre done, Kuntz said. But now we have a program where hunters can go out and take another deer or two and donate it to feed the hungry. The butchers process all the deer meat into ground venison, which gets the most out of it and is the most versatile for families. The processor then contacts different food banks and pantries in their area to let them know they have venison available, and that organization will come and pick it up. They will also reach out to Treesh or Kuntzs group to cover the cost of the processing. The cost to process a deer is usually between $100 to $150, though they sometimes give the groups a deal for around $75. The groups will get funds from donations in their communities, but they also can apply for grants from the DNRs Sportsmen Benevolence Fund. Those grants help pay the processors to cover their costs. Were the law enforcement division of DNR and want to serve our public and the citizens of Indiana, and this is just another way to give back, Quillen said. It truly is a partnership between all of us, which is with one goal to donate back to those who need it. Still, Quillen said hes surprised to learn how few people know about this program. Thats why their main goal is to expand it and get the word out. The number of deer donated peaked about five years ago at just over 1,000 deer, Treesh said, but has been on the decline in the last few years. Treesh, Quillen and Kuntz would all like to see that trend turned around as more people get outdoors. There are a few different ways that these groups are trying to do that, and one that Treesh has started is called give five. While some hunters might not be able to donate an entire deer, which usually is around 50 pounds, processors will ask if the hunter is willing to donate five pounds when they bring their deer in. We can all give five pounds, Treesh said, because whats five pounds? Treesh is also asking all those who know about the program to tell two other people, even if they arent hunters. Those who dont hunt can still donate to the Sportsmen Benevolence Fund or Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry to help cover the costs for processing. Quillen said he thinks many other hunters and individuals would participate, if only they knew about the program. Kuntz said his group also has started doing a giveaway in recent years to encourage more hunters to donate. With some of the funds donated to Hunters for the Hungry, the group purchases a hunting rifle and then everyone who donates a deer gets an entry into a raffle for the gun. I think thats really helped a lot because people say they can help people and get a chance to win the prize, Kuntz said. Kuntz said he tries to donate at least one deer each year, but last year he got a new person involved, too. His 14-year-old grandson took his first deer last year and their family didnt need the meat. Kuntz said he explained the program to him and his grandson immediately said he wanted to give that to feed people. That made a full circle impression on him that not only can I, as his grandpa, take him out to hunt, but we can donate this deer to help feed the hungry, Kuntz said. His grandson is hoping to be able to do the same this year, and Kuntz hopes to see more young people get involved with this effort. The shotgun hunting season in Indiana kicked off just a few weeks ago and the donations have been coming in. But they will always take more, Kuntz said. When you consider everything weve done, he said, its a testament to what were doing and also the fact that the need is still there. If you would like to get involved, you can find more information online for the Sportsmen Benevolence Fund at www.in.gov/dnr/law-enforcement/sportsmens-benevolence-fund/. There they also have information about how to contact Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry and the Dubois County Sportsmens Club. - Source: The Indianapolis Star LOS ANGELES Not long after Los Angeles police killed a teenage girl while firing at a suspect in a North Hollywood clothing store Thursday, Albert Corado started getting texts from friends and jumped on the phone with his father to process the familiar emotions together. The similarities to the fatal LAPD shooting of his 27-year-old sister, Melyda Mely Corado, as she worked a shift at a Trader Joes in Silver Lake in July 2018, were clear, he said and infuriating. To think, over three years after what happened to Mely happened, that theres been no change whatsoever in the way the police deal with these situations, just shows the police have no desire to change, Corado said. They use deadly force pretty much whenever they feel like it. Much about the fatal LAPD shooting of 14-year-old Valentina Orellana-Peralta who was at the Burlington store with her mother trying on dresses for a quinceanera when she was shot through a dressing room wall remained unclear on Christmas Eve. Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP But it has already sparked widespread anguish and outrage, particularly in a year in which shootings by Los Angeles police officers increased after years of declines. The violence has also brought scrutiny about the tactics used by the responding officers and whether there were ways to de-escalate the situation without opening fire or at least not putting Valentina in harms way. Two things I promise is to be deliberate and thorough, and to be totally transparent, Mayor Eric Garcetti said Saturday. Thats what everybody deserves that we get to the bottom of what happened and share [it] with the public. Its just a horrible, horrible tragedy. Many questions loomed Friday at the bustling North Hollywood shopping district where the shooting occurred. Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP Como se pueden disparar a lo loco? asked 70-year-old Graciela Cornejo, who lives nearby and stood outside the store Friday as workers inside vacuumed and swept shattered glass. How can they shoot crazy like that? Theyre trained for all of this, Cornejo said of the officers. I just cant understand. Edwin Arroyo, supervisor of Nancys Cleaning Services, spent Friday morning cleaning up broken glass near the front doors before heading inside to the second-floor dressing rooms. There, he said, was blood smeared on a wall, on a cream-colored dress left on a hanger, and on more than a dozen other items which he called a horrible scene. I dont know how many gunshots there were, he said, but there was a lot of blood. After wheeling a trash can filled with the dress and other items outside to dispose of, Arroyo said he was headed home. Once he got there, he said, he planned to hug his own daughters tight. The little girl was trying on a dress, he said, his tone grim. The parents never imagined their daughter would die here. Genaro Molina/TNS According to police, officers responded to a call about an assault with a deadly weapon at the store in the 12100 block of Victory Boulevard about 11:45 a.m., and soon after shot the suspect a short distance from a woman who he had been assaulting and who was suffering from various injuries and bleeding. The man, identified by the Los Angeles County coroners office Friday as Daniel Elena Lopez, 24, was fatally shot in the chest. The unidentified woman he had allegedly been assaulting was taken to a hospital for treatment. Only after the shooting, as they searched the store for additional victims or suspects, did officers find Valentina, who had been struck by an officers round that had pierced a wall near Lopez and struck her in a changing room, police said. She was pronounced dead at the scene. A heavy metal lock was recovered near Lopez, police said, but no gun. Video posted online appeared to show a man smash a front glass window of the store with a lock on a chain and then enter the store shortly before multiple police vehicles arrived and officers began walking toward the entrance with guns and projectile launchers drawn. Police and city officials said video from the store and from officers body cameras would be released Monday, and that the investigation and review of the shooting will be thorough and fair. They asked for the publics patience as detectives do their work reviewing the case. Critics say theyve heard the same before, and that it never changes the fact that LAPD officers are empowered to pull out their guns too quickly and fire them too freely especially when they are confronting suspects who do not have guns of their own or who appear mentally ill or intoxicated. In a year in which LAPD officers have shot 37 people, 17 of them fatally, such questions have become increasingly common. While those figures represent a significant decline from the highs of more than 100 police shootings per year in the early 1990s, they are a significant increase from the 27 people shot by the LAPD, seven of them fatally, in all of 2020, and the 26 shot, 12 fatally, in 2019. An LAPD estimate earlier this year, when police had shot 30 people, indicated about a third of them were exhibiting signs of mental illness at the time. Officers in recent years have also shot suspects at much farther distances than they perceived them to be in relation to themselves, and when they were unarmed, according to investigations. There has been much debate about whether there are better tactics for dealing with mentally ill people, including using trained medical clinicians alongside officers. Some have questioned why police are trained to shoot people with knives or blunt objects at a distance, and why officers cant shoot people in the legs to stop them from getting closer rather than in the center of their bodies, where they are trained to aim. Its unclear whether the suspect in the Burlington case had mental issues. Often in recent years, LAPD reviews have found officers broke policy in how they approached a situation or positioned themselves in relation to suspects, even in instances where the shots they later fired were ruled justified. In some cases, the shots themselves were ruled out of policy. Punishment for such breaches has been meted out, though rarely made public. In other cases, officers have been cleared of any wrongdoing even when they cause harm to individuals who just happened to be in the vicinity of an incident as was the case in the shooting of Mely Corado, a manager at Trader Joes who was fatally shot by LAPD officers who were chasing and exchanging gunfire with a suspect outside her store. Police Chief Michel R. Moore and the Police Commission determined that the two officers who opened fire in the encounter that killed Corado were justified in doing so, given the threat posed by the gunman they were chasing, and prosecutors under former Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey determined they had committed no crimes. The killing, which devastated Corados family, enraged activists and spurred concerns about police tactics across the city, seemed to then be glossed over by some of the same officials who had called her killing a tragedy, her brother said. Albert Corado, who is running to unseat City Councilman Mitch OFarrell in Council District 13 in part to gain more leverage to force change in the police force, said he now fears the same will happen with Valentinas killing. Theres not a lot of will in the LAPD for them to change and theres not a lot of will in City Hall, in city government, to hold the police accountable, he said. That gives the green light to police to keep doing it. Valentinas family could not be reached for comment Friday. The LAPD had not identified the officers who opened fire at the Burlington as of Friday. A woman who answered the door Friday at Elena Lopezs home in North Hollywood declined to comment. Records show that Elena Lopez had previously been convicted of car theft, carrying a loaded gun in public and carrying a gun as a felon. He was arrested by LAPD officers in the San Fernando Valley in August 2020 and charged with domestic battery, stealing a car and recklessly fleeing the police, records show. He pleaded guilty to domestic battery and fleeing the police and was sentenced to two years in state prison. He was also convicted in Glendale in 2020 of stealing a car and identity theft and sentenced to 141 days in county jail, records show. In June, Elena Lopez was transferred from Los Angeles County jail to the custody of the state prison system. Dana Simas, a spokeswoman for the corrections department, declined to release his commitment history, citing the LAPD investigation. At the Burlington store on Friday, strangers came to pay their respects and leave flowers. As rain started to come down, Leila Murca, 22, and her mother Linda ran up to leave white roses in front of a flickering candle outside the store. As a mom, I just wanted to leave flowers, said Linda Murca. My heart really goes out to the mom in this difficult time. ------- (Times staff writer Melanie Mason contributed to this report.) JENNINGS, La. (AP) The threat of rain did not deter dozens of friends, family and volunteers from paying tribute Dec. 18 to veterans buried at the Southwest Louisiana Veterans Cemetery. During the event, fresh balsam wreaths were placed on the graves of the nearly 200 veterans buried in the cemetery as part of the National Wreaths Across America Day. Similar wreath laying ceremonies took place at cemeteries across the country, including the Central Louisiana Veterans Cemetery in Leesville. Cemetery Assistant Administrator Sue Daggett said laying the green wreaths with red bows at Christmas is a fitting way to honor those buried on the sacred grounds. Right now across the country, at hundreds of memorial sites like this one, we are gathered as one nation to remember, to honor and teach, Daggett said. Daggett said four million veterans wreaths were placed by family and volunteers on headstones at 3,136 participating locations around the country in honor of the service and sacrifices made by veterans for the nations freedom. Wreaths Across America volunteers work around the year to ensure military laid to rest are remembered, their families and living veterans are honored and the next generation is taught about the value of freedom, she said. Laura Nusbaum said the wreath laying is a way to commemorate the service and sacrifice of the veterans. We are here to honor all those who gave their all for us and those who went on to have a long life, but were willing to give their all, Nusabuam said, It is an ultimate gift to lay down ones life for ones brother. During a ceremony prior to the wreath laying guest speaker Army Retired Sgt. Major Steve Theriot said the wreaths are a way to live up to the nations fallen heroes legacy by celebrating acts of kindness, compassion and love for one another and offering help to one another in need The theme for this years ceremony was Live Up to Their Legacy. Gloria Brady Cross of Lafayette had mixed emotions while laying the wreath on her husbands grave. Its bittersweet because my husband and I were involved in many veteran organizations, she said. Her husband John Partan Cross, a career veteran for more than 20 years, died in April. Even though Sarah Jane Beasley, 12, of Lake Charles did not know anyone buried in the cemetery she volunteered to help lay the wreaths. It makes me feel good doing something and remembering those who served our country, Beasley said. Max Maddox, 10, of LeBleu Settlement, was proud to pay respect to the veterans who he did not know. These people have served for us and I feel like we have to honor them, Maddox said. We need to let them know that it was not in vain that they served. Deborah Woolridge of Lake Charles said laying the wreaths on the graves at Christmas time is the least that can be done to honor those who served. Because of these men and women we can stand up to worship and pray together, she said. They did so much for our country to not be remembered and recognized. Charlene Lacombe of Iota and her 15-year-old grandson, Hunter Hebert also volunteered to help lay the wreaths. This is an honor to be able to do this for those who served our country, she said. Without them we wouldnt be here. Kamela Royer of Lake Arthur represented her family in placing a wreath on her father, Roger Dale Fontenots grave, Fontenot died in August. I am proud that I was able to do this for my Dad, she said. He served our country and fought for our freedom. Cemetery Director Dwayne Guidry said family members, veterans groups and other donors sponsored the wreaths to help ensure that wreaths were placed on every grave. PORTLAND, Maine (AP) Maine state parks had a record number of visitors this year for a second year in a row. The Portland Press Herald reports that Maines 42 state parks and historic sites had more than 3.2 million visitors through November, according to Jim Britt, spokesman for the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands. Last year the attendance was 3.1 million visitors, which was the previous yearly record. PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) A man was fatally shot in Portlands Old Town neighborhood on Christmas Eve, marking the fifth killing in the city in less than a week and the 87th homicide in 2021, above the annual record of 70. Central Precinct officers were called to the intersection of Northwest Sixth Avenue and Davis Street about 8:50 p.m. Friday. They found a man wounded at the scene. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, where he pronounced dead, the Oregonian/OregonLive reported. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Authorities say a man was hospitalized after being shot during an apparent carjacking attempt in south Minneapolis. The Star Tribune reports officers responded to reports of gunfire Thursday night. When the officers arrived, two men at the scene said they had just emerged from a vehicle when two young-looking suspects approached and demanded the vehicle at gunpoint. CHICAGO (AP) A man has been wounded after shots were fired at police officers in Chicago's University Village neighborhood. The officers were patrolling about 10:45 p.m. Friday when they saw two men with guns, according to Chicago police. COLUMBUS, Miss. (AP) Community leaders in north Mississippi are discussing how gun violence affects children, as victims and participants. The Commercial Dispatch reported the Columbus Municipal School District hosted a meeting to explore problems and possible solutions. At the beginning, a bill chimed 71 times once for each student in the district who has experienced gun violence the past five years as a victim or shooter. The impact of gun violence, especially with youth, traumatizes our children, Superintendent Cherie Labat said. It makes our school district a triage for the wounded. Until the most vulnerable children in this community are our top priority, change cannot happen." Labat mentioned Jadah Brewer, an 8-year-old Columbus student who was shot to death at home in June. I promised myself when Jada died that her death and the deaths of every child lost would not be in vain, Labat said. The fury in my heart is for the students and the educators who have been impacted by gun violence. Jadah was a smart, precocious 8-year old, "just a beautiful young lady, her Gifted and Talented teacher Heather Rowland recalled. Jadah was in a summer school program, working on a history project with classmates. Rowland said that one day, Jadah gave her a hug in the morning and another hug to say goodbye in the afternoon. That night, Rowland learned Jadah had been killed. The next day, the teacher had to tell other children their classmate had died. Its very hard to explain to them because there is no explanation, really, said Rowland, who has taught in the Columbus Municipal School District for 14 years. Rowland said some of her former students have been in the paper because they are the ones who fired the gun. My heart breaks for them, too, because I knew them when they were in the first grade. District Attorney Scott Colom said he finds it troubling that people sometimes refuse to give information to police after shootings. Weve had situations (where) people have been shot, in the hospital, 16 years old, F the police. I aint saying nothing. I dont know who shot me. Well, obviously you know who shot you," Colom said. Colom said the community needs to have tough conversations about youth access to guns. As an example, he talked about being suspended three days after getting in a fight in middle school. The difference now is that people involved in that fight tend to have guns or knives, Colom said. When you are young, you have a gun and your brain is not fully developed and you have not developed the (relationship with) your parents that maybe you should have, your self-control is lower than it should be, and you therefore are more likely to make bad decisions. And you have a gun, so it makes that bad decision worse than you could ever imagine. The Columbus school district requires students to enter the building through metal detectors at least three times a week, or more often after a violent event has occurred in the community, Labat said. She said metal detectors have found no firearms, but they have found knives and gun paraphernalia. The district's violence prevention program includes parent meetings and crisis response training for bus drivers, as well as exposing children to workforce development training that would give them opportunities to join the middle class as adults. Labat said the district is evaluating options for hiring more social workers and school resource officers, as well as recalibrating officers' pay to assure full staffing. The school district also is working with the district attorneys office on a restorative justice program. To explain how it works, Colom again turned to his own middle school fight experience. After we got suspended, there was no communication from the school. Nobody ever asked us why we fought, he said. Thats what restorative justice does. It tries to get to the root cause of the problem before it escalates into something worse. INDIANA, Pa. (AP) Eleven-year-old Lucas McCormick didnt want to get out of bed when his mom, Kayla McCormick, woke him up on the first day of rifle season in late November. Like most young hunters, this Marion Center sixth-grader was stuck choosing between the determination to shoot his first buck and the desire to sleep in on a Sunday. In the end, Lucas chose to bundle up in orange and set out into the snow-covered woods with his dad, Dan McCormick. He was giggling as I got him dressed, Kayla remembered. He was half asleep and I kept asking him, Are you tired?. He just kept giggling, but he couldnt even keep his eyes open. It turned out to be the right decision and a day the McCormick family will cherish forever. When Lucas was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as an infant, the McCormick parents decided that they would do anything possible to ensure Lucas disability never interfered with his happiness. Part of that happiness was finding a way to include Lucas in the family tradition of hunting. The McCormicks reside in Home and have been hunting for generations. Its a rite of passage and a passion for the oldest of the three McCormick sons. They started by tying a shoestring to the trigger of a .243-caliber rifle and telling Lucas when to pull. It was successful enough, allowing Lucas to shoot his first doe at 8 years old. But the boy couldnt see the deer when he pulled the trigger, so they needed to find something better. In 2020, the family went on a trip to Wisconsin, where Lucas was able to use a motorized hunting system designed specifically for those with disabilities. However, those rigs can cost thousands of dollars for base models not an easy expense to spare when youre raising three young children. Dan McCormick was inspired. He studied the rig and realized, with some effort, he could put together something similar on a much more manageable budget. A family friend used a 3-D printer to create some of the more expensive parts and made substitutions for others. The system is a hodge-podge of ingenuity with door lock actuators and phone mounts among a range of other equipment to develop a uniquely personal rig. It was a year-long process of trial and error and a brief pause for Dan to recover from a liver transplant, but he figured it out. Lucas was so excited to use the system that he skipped archery season entirely. He wanted to wait and use his new rig to get his first buck. It was well worth the wait. Dan and Lucas made the 400-yard trek to their elevated tree stand, where the son promptly fell back to sleep before his dad nudged him awake when the buck strolled into view about 90 yards away. Lucas saw the buck in a phone screen mounted to the rifle, told his dad which way to adjust the tripod through a fit of giddiness and giggles, and then pressed a button to shoot. He gets really happy and giggly so you have to kind of shush him because he gets so excited, Kayla said. But this time he could see the deer because theres a screen and it got him even more excited. He couldnt see the deer before. He pushed the button and just screamed. You couldnt hear anything else. He was so happy. Kayla posted the photos of Lucas with his buck on her own Facebook page, as she has done with each of her sons bucks for years. A friend urged her to share the photos to the PA Trophy Takers page, where it surpassed more than 3 million views, 12,000 likes, 2,600 comments and 22,000 shares. The outpouring of support from the community has been borderline overwhelming for the McCormick family, which never expected their story to reach so far. Im glad that he could touch so many peoples hearts with just his smile, Kayla said. I didnt think it was going to blow up. Its so nice to hear peoples stories and have all these people reach out to me for Lucas. Its been unreal. Several businesses across the country reached out, offering the family hunting trips, taxidermy and processing. Swarthouts Skull Works in Roaring Branch is mounting the buck free of charge for Lucas with the promise to do the same if he can bag another one come next archery season. Through everything, Dan and Kayla are focused on doing whatever they can to continue making Lucass dreams come true. Hes a typical kid, Kayla said. He tells me he wants to do these things that all kids want to do, and, as a parent, you think, Were going to make it happen. He doesnt know any different. Hes always grown up with a disability. If youre a parent and you love your child, youre going to do whatever you can to make anything happen. Seeing how happy it makes him really makes us want to do more for him. A lot of his doctors told us that hes not going to talk, hes not going to walk, hes not going to x, y and z; but hes done everything. For Kayla and Dan McCormick, being a parents means clearing a 400-yard path and building a ramp to the tree stand to make sure Lucas can have an easier trip into the woods. It means spending a year constructing specially made rigs for his rifle and next his crossbow to ensure he can fully partake in a family tradition. And it means learning how to edit videos to help Lucas fulfill his dreams of becoming a professional YouTube gamer. We just do it because we love them, Kayla said. ___ Online: https://bit.ly/3GWuVWM CINCINNATI (AP) Nancy Keating, a charitable volunteer and matriarch of a large family with deep and philanthropic ties to the Cincinnati area, has died. She was 94. She died peacefully at her home Friday, son Mike Keating said in an email. Keating was the wife of the late William J. Keating, who after leaving Congress in the 1970s spent three decades as an Ohio newspaper executive and served on the board of The Associated Press. Her brother-in-law Charles Keating was a finance executive who was a key figure in the 1980s national savings and loan crisis. Mom was very kind, very wise and had a wonderful sense of humor," Mike Keating wrote. "She was always patient and calm with us. As they say, you cant pick your parents, but we were so blessed and so fortunate to have mom and dad as our parents. Nancy Keating was president of her senior class and valedictorian at St. Ursula Academy in Cincinnati. She attended the University of Cincinnati, where she was active in student politics. She christened the submarine USS Cincinnati in 1977 and served on the commission that marked Cincinnatis 200th birthday. She was a longtime soup kitchen and Meals on Wheels volunteer, her son wrote. Her husband was a founding partner of a major law firm, was an assistant Ohio attorney general, judge and city council member, and was elected to the U.S. House in 1971 as a Republican. In 1974, he gave up his seat to run the Cincinnati Enquirer. Increased circulation and profits, a Pulitzer Prize and acquisition by the Gannett Co. followed. He served on the AP's board for 15 years from 1977 to 1992 and chaired the global news cooperative for the last five of those years. He held executive positions at Gannett, where he served as general counsel, a regional newspaper president, and architect of the joint operating agreement that combined the business operations of Detroits two competing daily newspapers. Keating for decades was a key civic leader in Cincinnati. His great-nephew Gary Hall Jr. won swimming gold medals in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics. The University of Cincinnati aquatic center is named for William Keating, while he and his brother helped fund St. Xaviers natatorium, named for their father Charles H. Keating. William J. Keating attributed his success to his wife and her support, Mike Keating wrote. He would often say 'Its always Nancy and Bill Keating. I put her first because she was first to me in everything I ever did. She made me a better man, her son wrote. She was preceded in death by her husband in 2020 and her son Bill Jr. in 2017. Survivors include six other children, 28 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren. The family plans private services but no visitation. Geo. H. Rohde & Son Funeral Home is handling arrangements. ___ This story was published Dec. 26, 2021. It was updated Dec. 27, 2021, to correct what years William J. Keating served on the board of The Associated Press. He served from 1977 to 1992, not 1987 to 1992. ALAMOGORDO, N.M. (AP) Otero County commissioners have approved a resolution voicing opposition to a proposed plan that will guide forest management practices for the 1.1 million-acre Lincoln National Forest in southern New Mexico for the next 10 to 15 years. The commissioners voted on the resolution earlier this month and approved an official comment letter that stated the draft forest plan and the draft environmental impact statement conflict with county ordinances outlining land use. The letter also notes that federal forest officials failed to address the conflicts and did not request or attempt to coordinate with the county to work out any concerns. A second letter approved by the commissioners was addressed to Lincoln National Forest Supervisor Travis Mosley. It complained about the forest administrations failure to communicate with the county regarding the drafting of the plan. Forest officials have pushed back, noting that the county was not only presented the draft plan early and often, but given an extended period to comment. The final plan is expected to be ready by spring 2022, the Alamogordo Daily News reported. Forest spokeswoman Laura Rabon said the U.S. Forest Service had invited the county to participate in the process as far back as 2019. She said forest officials presented the draft plan to the county several times including in October 2021 when the Lincoln National Forest urged the county to submit any comments, questions or concerns by the first comment deadline in November. I want people to know that we really have tried to reach out to the county, Rabon said. We invited them on numerous occasions to participate, to comment, to take the next step and become a cooperating agency and, unfortunately, we havent heard back from them. The U.S. Forest Service even extended the deadline for comments from Nov. 15 to Dec. 15, she said. The recently approved Otero County comment letter was received by the Lincoln National Forest on Dec. 15. Otero County officials said that the proposed wilderness areas listed in the forest plan would encroach on established grazing allotments and that the designations would not be appropriate since some lands fail to meet wilderness qualifications. They pointed to roads, fences, pens, water wells, pipelines and other structures that dot some of the areas. The county commissioners also said they worried about the use of prescribed burns in designated wilderness areas as a wildfire mitigation effort, rather than a regular strategy of forest health. WINCHESTER, Ky. (AP) Former Winchester Sun publisher Betty Berryman, the first female president of the Kentucky Press Association, died Saturday morning, the newspaper reported. Berryman, who served as publisher of the newspaper between 1988 and 2006, was 92. Her career at the Sun began in 1954 when she was hired as assistant to publisher James Tatman. She became general manager in 1974 and publisher in 1988. Newspapering is exciting business, Berryman said in an interview published by the Sun in 2018. No two days are alike ever. Theres something new everyday. Berryman became the first female president of the KPA in 1986 and was one of the first female press association presidents in the nation. She was inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in 1996. Betty was the kind of individual who commanded respect from newspaper folk, publishers, owners, editors all granted her the respect she deserved. Everyone thought so much of Betty, longtime KPA Executive Director David Thompson said. Sun publisher Kevin Smith added, Today, we mourn the death of a local leader in journalism and a pioneer for women at a time when men dominated the workplace. WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) A North Carolina man was arrested on multiple charges Saturday after he dragged two deputies with his car while he attempted to flee from a traffic stop, according to a sheriff's office. Deputies with the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office stopped a car for speeding on northbound U.S. 52 at around 1 a.m. Saturday, a news release said. The deputies called a K-9 team for backup. DENVER (AP) Mesa County has occupied an uncomfortable place in the national spotlight since last summer, when security information from the countys voting machines was leaked to a right wing website. Months into this unfolding saga, the fallout is still ongoing, complicating life for elected officials on the Western Slope and raising one big unanswered question: What will happen with next years election and who will oversee it? Republican County Commissioner Scott McInnis remembers that day in August when he first heard that Mesa countys election equipment was compromised. It all happened in a big rush. He cant even remember who first called to notify him, but said the message was blunt. Hey, your secret passwords for your Dominion machines theyre posted on a national conspiracy operation. What state investigators quickly pieced together was that Mesas Clerk and Recorder, Republican Tina Peters, had let an unauthorized person access the voting machines and be present for a secure software system update. That individual made copies of hard drives and took pictures and now those images were up online. What happened after the news broke, McInnis said, was a cascading series of mini crises. The machines were decertified, leaving county commissioners to quickly replace them before the November election. And then there were all the legal questions and fights to navigate. Its been a major disruption in the administration office of the county. Its been a major consumer of legal hours in our legal department. We have nine attorneys or something like that, but so its been a major disruption in this county. All of that legal time and other safeguards comes with a cost, which McInnis estimated could top a million dollars for what he called Peters little fishing expedition. But McInnis said whats been most upsetting to him is that the security breach has encouraged people to believe Mesa countys 2020 election was corrupt. I know some good people that really believed it, he said, and it caused a disruption in their lives. Not a good look for us Over the past few months, Peters and her supporters have attended county commission meetings, voicing their disdain for the commissioners. The situation it would appear has resulted in a major breakdown in the regular relationship between the clerks office and the commissioners. In this solidly red region, the fight is happening within the GOP; Peters and all three commissioners are Republicans, as is the county District Attorney leading the criminal investigation into the security breach. It creates a problem for us as a party, said Mesa County GOP Chair Kevin McCarney. Having the county commissioners and the county clerk at each others throat, is not a good look for us. And its both sides fault. Im not gonna lie. Both sides are at fault in this. He added that its not a good way to run a county. Its as simple as that. And I have to support all those people. And I do support all those people because theyre elected Republicans. County commissioner Janet Rowland believes there are a lot of other pressing issues in Mesa County that need to be addressed, from schools and infrastructure to social services but Peters actions and ongoing remarks about it have absorbed a lot of the publics attention. Theres never been one person called when one child has died in Mesa County. So why they get upset about this and not some of the things that actually are real and matter, I dont know. But I wish there was a little outrage about that. Questions of trust, and authority Commissioner Cody Davis, who won his seat in 2020, said that hed heard so much mistrust about the presidential race that in January he urged Peters to recheck Mesas results and settle the rumors, and she talked him out of it. Shes the one that said we could actually trust our elections. She convinced me that our elections are completely trustworthy. She went through the entire process, he recalled. So how she got from there to here, I will never know. Davis has met regularly with Peters and her supporters to hear their arguments he said he tried to keep an open mind, but has come to think Peters is just wrong. She has not brought any information that has risen to the level of fact. Its all speculation, rampant speculation. Peters did not respond to a request for an interview for this story, but told CPR News earlier that she believes the data copied from the county machines does show evidence of fraud. I think peoples faith in elections nationwide has been shaken, she said. Its just that it took a small town and theres other small towns exposing this in a lot of different ways, that people need to wake up to. Peters lawyer submitted an 82-page report that showed thousands of files were deleted during the software update. The state has explained that those files were routine logs of past activity and not actual election records. A required post-election audit conducted last year under Peters oversight found no irregularities with the 2020 tally. The FBI and state officials have been investigating Peters and others involved in the security breach since last summer, an effort that recently escalated when law enforcement searched several homes in November. So far, no criminal or civil charges have been filed. Its the rare case that facts are not disputed, said Mesa County District Attorney Dan Rubenstein. I think there are some facts which will be disputed, but the vast majority of them will come down to whether or not Tina had the authority to do these things. Peters has argued repeatedly that as elected clerk she does have that authority and stands by her actions. I have attempted to investigate the results of the elections, a duty that I have to my constituents, she told CPR. They were coming to me. 2021 election quells some fears, leaves others still worried The ongoing investigation into Peters also complicated Mesas recent November election; a court banned Peters from overseeing it and the county had to turn to outside help to manage the offices career staff. The whole thing has been a rollercoaster for the employees and volunteers who handle Mesa Countys elections. Stephanie Wenholz, Mesa Countys elections manager, choked up talking about the effort they put in to pull off the November vote. We take pride in what we do. We have a great team. We had a great team this year, she said. I think thats the main thing that I want people to understand, that their community members are still coming out, making sure that the elections are safe, secure, (and) that they can believe in them. The county recently completed a hand recount, and in January will re-run all of the paper ballots through the machines of Dominions competitor, Clear Ballot, to verify that the original tally was correct. The county is also in the process of posting all ballot images online. Im thrilled with both the speed and the accuracy of the results, said Mesa Countys designated election official Wayne Williams of the hand count. Even the largest variation was less than a tenth of a percent, which demonstrates the accuracy of Mesa Countys Dominion paper ballot system. To put this into perspective, a difference five times this size is necessary to trigger an automatic recount under Colorado law. The extra checks on the fall election and the fact that Republican candidates did quite well have won over even some of those convinced that the 2020 results were manipulated. Conservative political activist Nova Tucker is a close friend and ally of Peters and worked to help elect conservative school board candidates. She trusts the results for a simple reason: Because all eyes are on Mesa county, all eyes are on Mesa county. There was no way they were going to cheat in this election. But that doesnt give Tucker confidence in the overall election system. She calls this years security a temporary pass and worries about the upcoming midterms. Its unclear at this point whether Peters will be allowed to oversee that election. The court order against her only applied to this year. But she will be involved one way or another; Peters is up for reelection in 2022, trying to win another four year term as clerk. If people dont want me in this office which I get lots of cards and letters praising me on what Im doing then when the 2022 election comes around, they can vote me out, said Peters. I only want to be here to serve the citizens of Mesa county as long as theyll have me. SACRAMENTO, Calif. A California Public Employees' Retirement System audit says three police chiefs and a police commander in a small community just outside of San Francisco defrauded the giant pension system for a decade, collecting retirement benefits while working full-time jobs. The alleged fraud detailed by CalPERS includes two chiefs working in the Broadmoor police district after receiving disability payouts, covering-up full-time work in order to collect retirement benefits and in one of the chief's cases, returning to active duty, then becoming an annuitant again, to enhance benefits. CalPERS said one pensioner, identified as former Police Chief David Parenti, increased his yearly pension retirement by nearly $60,000 a year, going from $93,000 a year to $152,292 a year by coming out of retirement, working for 13 months and then retiring again. But the pension plan said Parenti was never actually retired. He continued to draw more than $6,000 in salary per two week-pay period in addition to the pension benefits. He also received a $100,000 disability benefit for unspecified injuries and another approximate $100,000 payment that couldn't be explained. Parenti and the three other former Broadmoor police officials can be forced to pay back retirement benefits they collected while working. They could also face criminal charges. The San Mateo County District Attorney's Office opened a criminal investigation into the former chiefs after CalPERS released its audit, District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe said. It focuses on Parenti and a second former chief, Greg Love. Wagstaffe said the alleged behavior by the police chiefs seems "outrageous" and said the audit raises questions as to whether the small police district that covers an unincorporated half-mile area of San Mateo County of 4,000 residents should be eliminated. His office already prosecuted a former Broadmoor police chief earlier this year. Michael Connolly was one of volunteer Broadmoor police commissioners who oversaw the police department. He was charged with misdemeanor conflict-of-interest changes after voting in March 2019 to install himself as Broadmoor police chief and approving the police district's budget, which included his salary and a pay increase. Connolly, a retired San Francisco Police Department deputy chief, entered a plea deal in August that required him to pay a $235 fine and prohibits him from holding public office for four years. CallPERS did not name any of the top police brass cited in its Dec. 9 report but Wagstaffe confirmed their identities. Parenti could not be reached for comment and Love did not respond to requests for comment. The Broadmoor Police Protection District is an anomaly in the state of California. It has less than a dozen police officers and taxes its 4,000 residents directly to fund its budget. It is surrounded by Daly City on all sides. The audit of the small police department examined records from 2011 to 2021. The audit shows a succession of top police officials misrepresenting their hours, gaming the system to make it appear they were complying a state law that limits how much retired civil servants can work for government agencies while collecting CalPERS benefits. CalPERS General Counsel Matt Jacob in a statement blamed the three Broadmoor' volunteer police commissioners who had oversight of the police department over the years for not taking action to stop the illegal activities. None of the city's current three commissioners responded to requests for comment. "Former top officials of the Broadmoor Police Protection District defrauded CalPERS by illegally employing several police officials in violation of California retirement law," he said. "CalPERS will not tolerate this kind of abuse and will seek appropriate remedies, including restitution." The police district in a written response to CalPERS said it generally agreed with the pension system's findings concerning the former top police officials. "To our knowledge, it seems that certain previous employees intentionally obfuscated and abused reporting processes in an attempt to circumvent CalPERS retired annuitant rules, receive additional compensation and inflate their own compensation and CalPERS pension allowance, said the response from the law firm of Best Best & Krieger representing the district. In its response, the police district said it would do everything in its power to cooperate. It noted however, that in Parenti's case, the former chief had taken the payroll records with him upon his termination. "The District intends to fully cooperate with outside law enforcement, CalPERS, and the District's lawyers to seek restitution from those responsible," said a separate press release posted on the Broadmoor Police District website, signed by interim-Chief Ronald Banta. Banta resigned last week. CalPERS said annuitant 1, Parenti, worked at the Broadmoor Police District from May 2006 to July 2020, starting as a reserve police officer. He then became a lieutenant, commander, chief of police and inspector. As commander from July 2007 to November 2012, payroll records show that Parenti was paid $144 an hour even though the maximum compensation for that position was $60 an hour, the audit said. Parenti retired from the department after serving as commander but then became chief of police in December 2012. The report said that he rescinded his retirement in December 2012 for a 13-month period. After the 13-months were up in December 2013, the CalPERS audit said the chief went back on retirement. But he continued to work as chief, making $173.61 an hour or $6,250 per two-week pay period, the audit said. Parenti's retirement benefit, based on his reinstatement period, went up close to $60,000, giving him $152,292 a year. CalPERS said it was unable to get an explanation of why Parenti retired again, but noticed the extra year of active service enabled him to increase his pension. Connolly, the indicted chief, replaced Parenti in June 2019. Parenti moved to a lower position in the police department. He was fired by Connolly in July, 2020. CalPERS records show Parenti today receives a monthly pension of $14,128,94 a month. Annuitant 2, former chief Love, had already retired as Broadmoor police chief but continued to work in the position from May 2009 to December 2012. Love had worked in Broadmoor in various positions since 1996. The CalPERS report said annuitant 2 made more than $6,000 per two-week pay period while employed as police chef full-time even though he was retired and collecting pension benefits. CalPERS said Love currently collects $13,265 a month in retirement benefits. Annuitant 3 in the report, identified by Wagstaffe as Edward Nakiso, is a retired Burlingame police sergeant receiving pension benefits through CalPERS. Nakiso served as a commander for the Broadmoor police department from December 2012 to January 2014, the CalPERS aduit said. The CalPERS audit said he was paid $106.86 per hour for a two-week full-time paycheck of nearly $4,000 while collecting retirement benefits. Nakiso did not respond to requests for comment. CalPERS said he receives $11, 955.84 a month in retirement benefits and that his full-time work as a commander in Broadmoor was not reported to the pension agency. A fourth annuitant listed by CalPERS, was identified by the district attorney as former Broadmoor Police Chief Arthur Stellini. Stellini retired in December 2018 after serving for approximately one-year as police chief in Broadmoor. The CalPERS audit said he became a reserve police officer for the department from December 2018 to February 2019. CalPERS said a $32,000 lump sum payment made to the annuitant could not be explained by the Broadmoor police commissioners. Stellini receives the smallest monthly pension from CalPERS of the top police officials cited in the report, $1,664.58. He also collects about $180,00 a year in pension income from the San Francisco Employees' Retirement System, according to public records. Stellini had served in the San Francisco police department before joining Broadmoor. It is not illegal to collect San Francisco retirement benefits and CalPERS benefits. On Dec. 14, another new police chief, Mark Melville, was named by the three police commissioners. Melville has worked in various police departments, most recently as a San Mateo County deputy sheriff. CalPERS said he is receiving monthly retirement benefits of $4,078. San Mateo County has its own retirement system and Melville can also legally collect a benefit from that county system. His San Mateo County pension benefit could not be immediately determined. Under state law, though, Melville can't legally work full-time as police chief in Boadmoor and collect CalPERS retirement benefits, like the other chiefs are accused of doing. Melville did not return phone calls and it's unclear if he has rescinded his CalPERS retirement. CalPERS spokeswoman Amy Morgan said she was bound by confidentiality rules in terms of whether Melville has rescinded his CalPERS retirement benefits. SLIDELL, La. (AP) A man stole a car at a suburban gas station before the owner could refill the tank, crashed and was caught after a chase that started when he was pumping gas at another station 20 miles (30 kilometers) away in New Orleans, police said. Police in Slidell, near the eastern end of Lake Pontchartrain, said Arsenio Wells, 31, of New Orleans was arrested Thursday on one count of carjacking. DURHAM, N.C. (AP) The suspects in a fatal drive-by shooting also are accused of robbing two people in a nearby apartment complex moments earlier, a North Carolina police department said. The Durham Police Department said in a news release that officers responding to a location in east-central Durham around 6 p.m. on Thursday found a man and a juvenile who had been shot, The Herald-Sun of Durham reported. The man and juvenile were shot at from a vehicle as they stood outside, police said. TUPELO, Miss. (AP) A board of supervisors in north Mississippi is requesting that the state Legislature dedicate stretches of highway to a former sheriff and Korean and Vietnam war veterans. Under the proposal, the intersection of Auburn Road and Interstate 22 would memorialize late Lee County sheriff Harold Ray Presley. The proposed designation is the Harold Ray Presley Memorial Interchange," The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports. MOSCOW (AP) A Russian organization that tracks political arrests and provides legal aid to detainees said Saturday that government regulators blocked its website, the latest move in a months-long crackdown on independent media and human rights organizations. OVD-Info reported that Russia's internet and communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, blocked the group's website. The organization said in a tweet that it wasn't formally notified about the decision and doesn't know the reason for the action beyond that it was ordered by a court outside Moscow on Monday. The website was unavailable to Russian internet users on Saturday and was listed on the government's registry of banned web pages. In light of the move, OVD-Info urged supporters to follow its pages on a number of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Russian social network VK and messaging app Telegram. In comments to the Interfax news agency, Roskomnadzor said the website was blocked because, according to the court ruling, it was involved in propaganda of terrorism and extremism by containing materials that justify actions of extremist and terrorist groups. The agency said social media platforms have been told to remove the group's accounts. OVD-Info co-founder Grigory Okhotin rejected the accusations in an interview with The Associated Press on Saturday. Naturally, we are sure that we are not justifying extremism or terrorism," he said. "Of course we write about such cases, this is our job, but it is not justifying (extremism or terrorism)." Okhotin said the ruling to block the website came as a surprise, even though the group knew the prosecutor's office in Lukhovitsy, a town 120 kilometers (75 miles) southeast of Moscow, had opened an investigation of some kind. Our lawyer went there, but they refused to provide documents or to explain anything about the substance of the case, even though they summoned him themselves, Okhotin said. We, of course, didn't know that it would get to court so quickly which we haven't been invited to, by the way and to blocking of the website over accusations of justifying terrorism and extremism. OVD-Info gained prominence for its meticulous tracking and counting of arrests at street protests in Russia. Activists first started the practice during mass protests triggered by a 2011 Russian parliamentary election tainted by numerous reports of voter fraud and then formed a group that has continued the work over the years. The data has been indispensable to news outlets over the years as Russian authorities largely kept quiet or underplayed the scale of mass arrests at protests and demonstrations. OVD-Info operates as a legal aid group as well, dispatching lawyers to help detained protesters at police stations and in courts. In September, a Sweden-based international human rights organization awarded OVD-Info its Civil Rights Defender of the Year award. That same month Russian authorities designated the group as a foreign agent a label that comes with excessive government scrutiny and strong pejorative connotations that can discredit recipients. OVD-Info's founders vowed to continue the organization's work despite the designation. Russian authorities have mounted pressure on rights groups, media outlets and individual journalists in recent months, naming dozens as foreign agents. Some were declared as undesirable a label that outlaws organizations in Russia or accused of links to undesirable groups. On Friday, Russia's Justice Ministry added two more rights groups to the registry of foreign agents: Coming Out and Revers, which advocate for LGBT rights and provide assistance to Russia's embattled LGBT community. Russian law mandates a non-governmental organization, a media outlet, an informal movement or an individual to be listed as a foreign agent for having received foreign funding even a small donation from a foreign national counts and engaging in loosely defined political activity. OVD-Info, together with other rights groups, launched a campaign in September to abolish the foreign agents law. As of late December, more than 240 organizations and over 260,000 individuals had signed a petition that describes the law as discriminatory and unlawful. OVD-Info submitted the signatures to Russia's lower parliament house, the State Duma. Okhotin called the website's obstruction a new round of pressure on us and on the civic society. He said he thinks OVD-Info was targeted because of its prominence and its campaign against the foreign agents legislation. We're very big, we're very visible, we're supported by a huge amount of people in Russia, Okhotin said, adding that more than 100,000 Russians support OVD-Info with donations. He said the group would continue to inform Russians about political repression despite the website being unavailable to viewers. We will definitely find some form or another to keep the public informed, he told the AP. ___ Daniel Kozin contributed to this report. NEWBURG, Mo. (AP) Investigators in a small southern Missouri town are trying to determine the identity of a serial arsonist who is believed responsible for nearly two dozen suspicious fires. KYTV-TV reports that 20 fires have occurred over the past three years in Newburg, a Phelps County town of fewer than 500 residents. Resident Nicole Smith said that in some cases, buildings have been set on fire and when they didn't burn to the ground, the arsonist came back to the same structure and burned it again. LOS ANGELES A 31-year-old man was pronounced dead Friday morning due to a shark attack off the coast of Morro Bay in what is believed to be San Luis Obispo Countys first such fatality in 18 years. County officials are in the process of contacting family members before releasing the mans identity, said Eric Endersby, Morro Bay harbor patrol director. The man appeared to be a bodyboarder, Endersby said. The man was initially aided by a nearby female surfer, who paddled over to help. Endersby said she does not appear to be related, and its unknown whether she saw the attack. The man was dragged to the beach by the surfer. Fire and police reached the scene at 10:48 a.m., Endersby said, and paramedics declared the bodyboarder dead. David Middlecamp/AP The county coroner is investigating. Endersby said a state Fish and Wildlife biologist was on hand to determine the type and size of the shark. Surfers and swimmers have been ordered out of the waters of State Parks Beach near Morro Strand, where the attack took place, and nearby Morro Bay beaches for the next 24 hours. The beaches remain open to walkers and others. Endersby estimates that about 25 to 30 people were in the vicinity when the man was dragged out of the water, and its not clear whether anyone witnessed the attack. By the time harbor patrol cleared out the waters at 11 a.m., there were only three people swimming. Word spread like wildfire, and people quickly got out of the water, Endersby said. Endersby believed that weather conditions may have contributed to smaller crowds than usual on a holiday weekend. Rain throughout Thursday led to runoff near the beach, and winds kicked up the surf higher than normal, he said. Mother Nature was on our side because we could have had more people out for sure, he said. Endersby, a 28-year harbor patrol employee, recalled a few recent area shark attacks in the last 10 years, but not a death. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo student Nick Wapner was bitten by a great white shark on Jan. 9, 2019, off Montana de Oro State Park. Another attack also took place at the same beach in 2015 when a man in his 50s was believed to have been attacked by an 8- to 10-foot juvenile. Endersby believes the last shark attack death occurred in August 2003 when a 50-year-old woman was killed at Avila Beach. In that instance, the woman was believed to have been swimming with seals at the time. Endersby said the appearance of the marine mammal, a food source for a variety of sharks, should serve as a warning. If you see a lot of bird or seal activity in the water, thats a sign that people should be looking to get out of the water, he said. Human attacks are largely a case of mistaken identity. MADRID (AP) Authorities on one of Spain's Canary Islands declared a volcanic eruption that started in September officially finished Saturday following 10 days of no lava flows, seismic activity or significant sulfur dioxide emissions. But the emergency in La Palma, the most northwest island in the Atlantic Ocean archipelago, is not over due to the widespread damage the eruption caused, the director of the Canaries' volcanic emergency committee said in announcing the much-anticipated milestone. It's not joy or satisfaction - how we can define what we feel? It's an emotional relief. And hope," Pevolca director Julio Perez said. "Because now, we can apply ourselves and focus completely on the reconstruction work. Fiery molten rock flowing down toward the sea destroyed around 3,000 buildings, entombed banana plantations and vineyards, ruined irrigation systems and cut off roads. But no injuries or deaths were directly linked to the eruption. Perez, who is also the regions minister of public administration, justice and security, said the archipelagos government valued the loss of buildings and infrastructure at more than 900 million euros ($1 billion). Volcanologists said they needed to certify that three key variables - gas, lava and tremors - had subsided in the Cumbre Vieja ridge for 10 days in order to declare the volcanos apparent exhaustion. Since the eruption started on Sept. 19, previous periods of reduced activity were followed by reignitions. On the eve of Dec. 14, the volcano fell silent after flaring for 85 days and 8 hours, making it La Palma's longest eruption on record. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called the eruption's end the best Christmas present. We will continue working together, all institutions, to relaunch the marvelous island of La Palma and repair the damage," he tweeted. Farming and tourism are the main industries on the Canary Islands, a popular destination for many European vacationers due to their mild climate. ___ Follow AP stories on volcanic eruptions at https://apnews.com/hub/volcanic-eruptions. LOS ANGELES (AP) T. Mark Taylor, artist and toy designer for the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe franchise as well as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, died Thursday at his Southern California home. He was 80. The cause was congestive heart failure, Taylor's family said in an email to The Associated Press on Saturday. He-man was the muscled frontman for toy manufacturer Mattels Masters of the Universe franchise, which would later spawn an animated series that became a staple for children. Kids squeezed in homework between scenes featuring the strapping cartoon hero as he battled sorcerers and other villains. He-Man might have been known as a hulking superhero warrior but also became an icon within the LGBTQ community, who saw parallels in the secret life of Prince Adam, He-Mans alter ego. As in the case of many creative endeavors, many hands shaped the franchise. Taylor has said the prototypes date back to his own childhood as he fantasized about being the next hero. He said he based the concept of He-Man on his vision of Cro-Magnon men, as well as Vikings. Mattel sold more than 70 million action figures from its Masters of the Universe collection within 30 months after it hit stores nearly 40 years ago, according to The New York Times. Taylor began his career with El Segundo-based Mattel in 1976 as a packaging designer, his family said. Mattel did not respond to a request for comment Saturday. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise featuring pizza-loving Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael and Leonardo launched a long-running animated series, live-action movies and a catchphrase: cowabunga! While Taylor did not create any of the characters, his work as a designer helped propel them into iconic childhood images for many around the world, including action figures and costumes that flew off stores' shelves. Terrell Mark Taylor who went by his middle name, Mark was born on June 5, 1941, according to California voter registration records. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, designer Rebecca Salari-Taylor of Ranchos Palos Verdes. I felt him say goodbye to this world as I held him in my arms for one final loving kiss, Salari-Taylor wrote in a Facebook post. Taylor's family said his father-in-law, Tony Salari, told the artist, If you can draw well, everything will be okay. Taylor took pinstriping commissions for hot rod cars as a teen in Redondo Beach in the early 1950s, his family said. He later attended the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena. Taylor went on to work for the U.S. Department of Defense in Pasadena and contributed to projects for submarines, biological and technical sonar technology and seafloor mapping, his family said. Taylors toy work was featured in documentaries, including Power of Grayskull and The Toys That Made Us. If I was going to do a hero for today, it would be a female hero because its the time, because the heroes of our time are women. ... Us men had our day, Taylor told fans during an appearance at a He-Man festival in 2015. ___ Calvan reported from New York. RENO, Nev (AP) Wildfires and art exhibits dont necessarily go hand in hand. But Forest = Fire, a new art exhibit in Truckee, is an effort to break the mold of how people think about wildfires. The walking exhibit at the Truckee Community Recreation Center on Donner Pass Road merges data from scientists and area agencies with work from California writers, artists and Washoe tribal leaders to look at the impact of wildfire in the Sierra Nevada over the past 13,000 years. The result is an immersive and multi-sensory display of paintings, textiles, beadwork, sculptures, writings and photography. We wanted to be part of the climate conversation, but thats such a big, vague thing, Michael Llewellyn, one of the artists behind the show, told the Reno Gazette Journal. So, we thought, what can we do around here? What could we do that has implications for the people that live here but also represents whats going out in the world? He and his wife, Heather, set out to develop a show that would spark a conversation and get people to see forests, and forest fires, differently, he said. The result is a show that mimics a giant picture book. Each chapter of the book features art pieces with accompanying essays written in English, Spanish and the native Washoe language. The 17 chapters focus on topics such as smoke, soil health, species loss and area watersheds. Its a visual story thats visceral that people can walk into, Heather said. They can look at things, they can read things and kind of get a feel for why we are having catastrophic fire and visualize where it needs to go to create a healthier forest. The Llewellyns started the project about five years ago after spending time at the Sagehen Creek Field Station near Donner Summit and hiking the Pioneer Trail from Nevada City, California, to Lake Tahoe. Artist Sara Smith works on what will be an interactive art pieces for the Forest=Fire exhibit at the Truckee Community Arts Center on Dec 10, 2021. We couldnt figure out how they got wagons through there, the trees were so dense, Heather said. Then, the couple realized they were hiking through forest that had been altered by decades of logging and fire suppression, resulting in a denser, thicker forest. The combination of logging and fire suppression in the area substantially altered forest ecology, Michael said. And the relationship between fires, humans and history is what the show explores. I hope that people realize the forest that they love is not a happy forest, but they have the opportunity to help it become a healthy forest, Michael said. This is not how the forest was meant to be. Forest = Fire opened earlier this month at the Truckee Community Recreation Center, 10981 Truckee Way, and runs through June. Admission is free. Our exhibition gives voice to real solutions from the science community, industry, federal, state and local fire and water agencies, and our tribal populations, Eliza Tudor, executive director of Nevada County Arts Council, said in a press release. We invite the public to join us for this conversation while living the history and future of our forests in a deeply visceral and beautiful way. Wilfredo Lee/AP MIAMI (AP) Florida hit a new record in the pandemic for the second day in a row as the state reported 32,850 daily new cases on Saturday. Only a day earlier, with 31,758 new daily cases reported, Florida broke its previous record of more than 27,000 cases set in August during the height of the delta wave in Florida. The current surge is being driven by the spreading of the highly contagious omicron variant. NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. (AP) A woman who volunteered to take a wounded North Augusta police officer to the hospital after a shootout with the driver of a pickup truck has been honored by the city. Allison Hudson Shellstrom ended up in the gunbattle as she drove around with her granddaughter on Dec. 9, authorities said. Shellstrom's actions meant North Augusta Public Safety Lt. Aaron Fittery received immediate medical attention for his wounded leg, helping him recover faster, North Augusta Mayor Briton Williams said at a City Council meeting earlier this month. The city of North Augusta is blessed to have such a thoughtful, caring and compassionate citizen who was not afraid to come to the lieutenants aid, Williams said, reading from a proclamation. Fittery and other officers at the shooting scene were at the meeting along with Shellstrom and her granddaughter. It happened very quickly, Fittery said. But I was glad that she had a willingness to help me. Fittery and other officers chased the truck for nearly 2 miles (3 kilometers), investigators said. Thomas Michael Airington let the other people in the truck out before stopping, getting out and firing on the officers, who fired back in a chaotic scene around 4:30 p.m. on U.S. 25 Business in the heart of the city, according to authorities. The shootout was captured on video posted to social media. Airington was not hit. North Augusta police released pictures of Fittery's patrol car with bullet holes in the windshield. Airington is charged with three counts of attempted murder, one count of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person convicted of a violent felony and one count of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. It was not clear whether he had an attorney. Unions representing Sonoma County workers expressed mixed feelings Friday about the county's requirement that workers in high-risk jobs get a COVID-19 booster vaccine if they are eligible. The mandate, issued Thursday by county Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase, requires school employees, firefighters, law enforcement officers, medical workers and temporary disaster shelter operators to get a booster by Feb. 1, 2022, if they are eligible or get tested for the virus at least twice a week. The North Bay Labor Council said in a statement that it commended the county for taking steps to protect local workers from the virus, especially in light of the Bay Area's rise in cases of the highly contagious omicron variant. California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced this week that the state Department of Justice will award nearly $5 million to 10 sheriff's departments across the state in an effort to get more guns out of the hands of people prohibited from owning them. The total $4.9 million in grant funding through the DOJ's Gun Violence Reduction Program will go to sheriff's departments in San Francisco, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Lake, Sacramento, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Orange, and Los Angeles counties. The funding will help strengthen law enforcement resources and help the DOJ reduce the number of people on the department's Armed and Prohibited Persons System, which is used to monitor people who have legally purchased or acquired a gun but later become prohibited from owning or possessing them. State regulators are seeking tens of thousands of dollars in penalties from a company that treats hazardous waste in Newark, officials with California Department of Toxic Substances Control said. Regulators are seeking fines of $25,000 to $70,000 per day for each violation by Safety-Kleen at 6880 Smith Ave. Safety-Kleen is owned by Clean Harbors, which is also facing penalties for waste violations at operations in Los Angeles County. Regulators are also taking legal action against Emerald Transformer Los Angeles LLC and Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. in connection with violations at a used oil recycler that Clean Harbors sold to Emerald Transformer four years ago. A 24-year-old Healdsburg man has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and then attacking an officer who was trying to take him into custody in Petaluma, police said Friday. The arrest of Federico Morales occurred after an officer saw a minor collision at 5:22 p.m. Wednesday in the area of Lakeville Highway and Casa Grande Road and had the drivers of both vehicles pull over, according to Petaluma police. Morales allegedly showed signs of intoxication and became confrontational with officers conducting field sobriety tests, then struck one of the officers who were trying to take him into custody, police said. He was eventually booked into Sonoma County Jail on suspicion of DUI, resisting arrest, battery on a peace officer, threatening a peace officer and violation of probation. Copyright 2021 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area. Copyright 2021 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Blog Archive January 2022 (3) December 2021 (14) November 2021 (15) October 2021 (15) September 2021 (14) August 2021 (8) July 2021 (9) June 2021 (4) May 2021 (12) April 2021 (14) March 2021 (18) February 2021 (16) January 2021 (20) December 2020 (17) November 2020 (12) October 2020 (16) September 2020 (13) August 2020 (16) July 2020 (11) June 2020 (3) May 2020 (13) April 2020 (9) March 2020 (17) February 2020 (17) January 2020 (17) December 2019 (19) November 2019 (22) October 2019 (27) September 2019 (23) August 2019 (20) July 2019 (23) June 2019 (24) May 2019 (22) April 2019 (26) March 2019 (22) February 2019 (20) January 2019 (21) December 2018 (26) November 2018 (19) October 2018 (26) September 2018 (24) August 2018 (22) July 2018 (28) June 2018 (23) May 2018 (23) April 2018 (25) March 2018 (24) February 2018 (21) January 2018 (29) December 2017 (26) November 2017 (21) October 2017 (24) September 2017 (23) August 2017 (25) July 2017 (27) June 2017 (25) May 2017 (23) April 2017 (20) March 2017 (20) February 2017 (21) January 2017 (22) December 2016 (23) November 2016 (21) October 2016 (21) September 2016 (21) August 2016 (22) July 2016 (24) June 2016 (26) May 2016 (26) April 2016 (27) March 2016 (29) February 2016 (25) January 2016 (26) December 2015 (28) November 2015 (27) October 2015 (29) September 2015 (23) August 2015 (25) July 2015 (19) June 2015 (17) May 2015 (15) April 2015 (19) March 2015 (19) February 2015 (16) January 2015 (21) December 2014 (16) November 2014 (20) October 2014 (22) September 2014 (20) August 2014 (24) July 2014 (27) June 2014 (26) May 2014 (27) April 2014 (20) March 2014 (25) February 2014 (19) January 2014 (23) December 2013 (24) November 2013 (19) October 2013 (22) September 2013 (20) August 2013 (21) July 2013 (17) June 2013 (16) May 2013 (14) April 2013 (19) March 2013 (16) February 2013 (12) January 2013 (14) December 2012 (20) November 2012 (17) October 2012 (14) September 2012 (14) August 2012 (20) July 2012 (15) June 2012 (15) May 2012 (17) April 2012 (16) March 2012 (6) February 2012 (7) January 2012 (6) December 2011 (12) November 2011 (14) October 2011 (16) September 2011 (9) August 2011 (12) July 2011 (8) June 2011 (11) May 2011 (11) April 2011 (11) March 2011 (10) February 2011 (12) January 2011 (17) December 2010 (16) November 2010 (10) October 2010 (21) September 2010 (21) August 2010 (24) July 2010 (36) June 2010 (19) May 2010 (14) April 2010 (15) March 2010 (13) February 2010 (6) January 2010 (3) We spent months in lockdown and now our plans for a hot vaxxed summer are hanging by a thread (thanks, Omicron). But despite the years hardships, Sydneys whos who managed to keep tongues wagging with secrets and scandals that spanned extra-marital affairs, cocaine busts and, of course, COVID rule breaches. Rita Ora and Taika Waititi found love during their stay in Sydney. Credit:Getty Around March, hardly a day went by without a Bombardier Challenger landing in the harbour city as international celebrities fled pandemic-ridden countries for solitude, safety and sun Down Under. Sydney transformed into a mini Hollywood after the NSW government allowed international productions to film here. It started with Zac Efron and Matt Damon - then Sacha Baron Cohen and wife Isla Fisher jetted in, and dozens of other celebrities followed. Natalie Portman became a regular at Double Bay Woolies, while and Rita Ora and Taika Waititi found love together (and who could forget that balcony tryst with Tessa Thompson?) The jam-packed visitor book expanded to include Awkwafina, Melissa McCarthy, Tilda Swinton, Tom Hanks and Liam Neeson. There were celeb sightings across the city from film sets, synagogues and even in the school yard as famous offspring were enrolled in private schools around the eastern suburbs. But not everyone was pleased - while some stars seemed to jet in and out at their leisure, thousands of Australians were stuck overseas as flight after flight was cancelled. Of course, the celeb set made a mass exodus out of the country just as their respective projects began to wrap and Sydney was thrust into stricter lockdown. And it wasnt just Hollywood stars bidding adieu: Emerald City was the first to reveal Atlassian boss Mike Cannon-Brookes and his wife Annie were uprooting their family from Point Piper to the Southern Highlands - where the couple boast an extensive property portfolio including six homes totalling about $50 million. Of all the misguided and questionable ideas proffered by federal and state governments since the pandemic began, the latest from NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard must rank in the top tier. Last week, Mr Hazzard said the government was considering forcing unvaccinated people to pay their own medical expenses if they ended up in hospital with COVID-19. It is an unnecessary and reckless proposal; the start of a path we must not go down. Crowds gather at the Sydney Fish Markets on Christmas Eve. Credit:Rhett Wyman As the Australian Medical Association pointed out, it is contrary to the principles and universal tenets of medical practice which is to be non-judgmental and provide quality care to everybody, irrespective of who they are or what theyve done. It would also indulge one of the most unfortunate aspects of the pandemic: the instinct to blame and punish individuals and turn contracting COVID-19 into some kind of moral failure. A three-year-old boy has drowned after wandering off from a waterfront property at Lake Macquarie on Christmas evening as police resume searches for other missing swimmers around the state. According to police, the toddlers body was pulled from the water by neighbours on Fishing Point Road in Rathmines about 6.30pm on Saturday, in an episode that has contributed to 26 drowning deaths in Australia so far this summer. It is believed the boy was playing out the front of the property, south of Newcastle, before walking off and falling into the water. The bystanders who found him began first aid until paramedics arrived, however he was unable to be revived. Police are investigating the circumstances of the tragedy and are preparing a report for the coroner. More than 100 aged care facilities across the country have been hit by COVID-19 outbreaks over Christmas, plunging dozens of residents into isolation and prompting restrictions to be placed on visitors. It is the nations highest number of active aged care outbreaks reported this year, and almost double the figure recorded last week. The surge in infections, with 385 cases across residents and workers, has prompted consumer aged care bodies to renew calls for state and federal governments to mandate visitor policies that would allow residents to have at least one caregiver visit, regardless of an outbreak in a home. There are currently 105 active COVID-19 outbreaks in aged care homes across Australia. Credit: Across NSW, 65 aged care homes are managing coronavirus outbreaks, including twenty-seven facilities that have two or more active cases and four homes where at least a dozen residents and workers have been infected. The federal government will rush an extra 800,000 COVID-19 booster jabs to GPs and pharmacists in the first week of January, as medical practitioners say they are rapidly exhausting their vaccine supplies and struggling to keep up with sky-rocketing demand. Amid the surging number of Omicron cases, with more than 6000 reported in NSW on Christmas Day, pharmacists say they have been swapping doses between chemists after being swamped with people trying to book booster jabs. NSW recorded 6288 new COVID-19 cases on Christmas day. Large lines a formed at Bondis testing clinic. Credit:Rhett Wyman About 2.7 million people in NSW will become eligible for a third dose within days after the federal government slashes the booster interval to four months from early January. The additional 800,000 doses which a health department spokesman said came from existing stock on hand are in addition to current orders and the 1.7 million delivered last week. NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet is calling on people entering high-risk environments such as household visits to get rapid antigen tests instead of PCR tests to lessen the strain on the health system as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to soar. As Health Minister Brad Hazzard said everyone in NSW is probably going to get Omicron at some stage, Mr Perrottet warned of more sacrifices and inconveniences as the country grapples with the Omicron outbreak. He reiterated there was no need for people who were not unwell to get a PCR test, as NSW negotiates with other states to drop that interstate travel requirement, while thousands of people isolate and holidaymakers reconsider travel plans. It is actually less safe for there to be longer queues because the turnaround time is longer, and as a result, we will have more people in the community with COVID, Mr Perrottet said during a press conference on Sunday morning. This weeks fracas at the Sydney Festival over the inclusion of Decadance, a renowned dance piece in the repertoire of Israels Batsheva Dance Company, and the festivals sponsorship by the Israeli embassy, has followed a familiar script. In response to the sponsorship, some artists have now withdrawn from the festival, with Khaled Sabsabi saying he was doing so out of solidarity with the Palestinian people and the Palestinian cause. Israeli dance company Batshevas Decadance will be performed at the Sydney Festival. Israels largest contemporary dance company, Batsheva is hailed as one of the most important in the world today, having developed its acclaim over the last 30 years during choreographer Ohad Naharins time at the helm. During these decades, the company and Naharin himself have pushed every boundary, challenged every taboo, and remain a national treasure. Naharins movement language Gaga is world renowned and productions using the dance vocabulary are popular around the globe. Decadance itself has been performed for more than two decades. STAMFORD Last year, members of Temple Sinai synagogue in Stamford held a Christmas Day lunch at the New Covenant Center on the citys West Side on a rainy day amid a global pandemic. They faced the same gloomy conditions for this years meal and were again undeterred from serving the community. At New Covenants soup kitchen-cafe at 174 Richmond Hill Ave. on the citys west side, Temple Sinai volunteers prepared and provided about 80 takeout meals on Saturday continuing the congregations Christmas Day tradition of helping out at New Covenant that started more than 30 years ago. Recipients said that they appreciated the generosity, which provided much-needed holiday cheer at the end of another grueling year. Were glad to do this, Temple Sinai member Marian Freed told The Stamford Advocate. But its a shame that we have to do it in this format and that there are people who need it. As they did last year, recipients received their meals in plastic foam boxes handed out through a doorway on Richmond Hill Avenue, as social distancing regulations again ruled out traditional sit-down meals. The menu featured turkey, ham, sweet potatoes, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, green beans, rice, beans, gravy and cranberry sauce, as well as cookies, brownies and candy. The volunteers also handed out gift bags with hats, gloves, socks and scarves. I am very happy, said Stamford resident Anibal Orellana after picking up a meal. If we dont eat, its bad. Freed said other recipients were equally grateful. People were walking up and taking their food and gift bags and saying, Thank you so much, and God bless you. Now I can have a holiday with my family, she said. New Covenant maintenance professional Brandon Johnson led the distribution of the meals and gift bags. Ive been working here for four years now, so helping out the community is something that Im proud of and that I love to do, Johnson said. As the scents of turkeys and sweet potatoes wafted through the room, New Covenant cook Rene Alexander oversaw the final stages of meal preparation in one of Connecticuts largest soup kitchens. Operating under the umbrella of Catholic Charities of Fairfield County, New Covenant provides more than 600,000 meals annually through its soup kitchen-cafe and food pantry. The volunteers from Temple Sinai make a very big difference, Alexander said. Theyre always here to lend a helping hand. All of the food was made by members of Temple Sinai, a progressive and Reform Jewish congregation based at 458 Lakeside Drive. In total, about 80 families contributed to the event. In addition to Freed, her husband Bob Martino and fellow Temple Sinai congregants Stu Madison, Liz Rubin and married couple Michelle and Peter Ebstein also volunteered Saturday. All of them have also helped out at past Christmas lunches, and they are also year-round volunteers at New Covenant. The volunteers credited fellow Temple Sinai congregant Sally Kelman, who founded the event. They said she did not attend this year as a social distancing precaution because she is in her late 80s. We want to be here, Madison said. Were both providing meals to the community and providing a way for the regular staff to be able to take the day off. New Covenant also held a grab-and-go community lunch on Friday, serving about 100 guests. Members of Temple Beth El, a Conservative synagogue based at 350 Roxbury Road, sponsored and prepared those meals as they have done for many years on Christmas Eve. In addition to the meals Friday and Saturday, New Covenant held a food drive Friday at LaRoccas Country Market, 105 Old Long Ridge Road an event that benefited the New Covenant pantry. LaRoccas staff pre-packed items. Customers then selected the bags they wanted to purchase and dropped off their donations at a table supervised by New Covenant volunteers. A number of LaRoccas customers also made cash contributions. Meal recipients on Saturday expressed hope for a brighter 2022. Orellana said he is currently homeless, but he said he was heartened to know he could seek assistance at New Covenant. There are good people here, he said, with a smile wide enough to be seen under his mask. God is beautiful. pschott@stamfordadvocate.com; twitter: @paulschott For many, it may not feel like the holidays with cases of COVID-19 on the rise. And for residents who are struggling to get by, this may be a time of crisis instead of a time of joy. The Giving Fund, now in its 38th year, offers readers the opportunity to make donations and help their fellow neighbors in the community. Donations made to The Giving Fund directly benefit two local nonprofits, Greenwich-based Family Centers and Darien-based Person to Person, which both help struggling families in Greenwich, Stamford, Darien and throughout lower Fairfield County. On Sundays and Thursdays throughout the holiday season, The Stamford Advocate, Greenwich Time and The Darien Times are printing the stories of area residents in need. In our stories today, an older man who had hip replacement surgery needs to pay for transportation to doctor appointments; an older woman on a fixed income wants to replace her old bed; and a widow seeks help in buying a new winter coat and paying for groceries for her familys holiday meal. Many of the needs are simple: paying a utility bill, buying food or covering part of a rent payment, for example. We are living amid a pandemic, and people are scraping to get by, put food on the table and pay bills. The Giving Fund can help people stay afloat during these troubled times, said William Brucker, chief advancement officer at Family Centers. Brucker said the fundraising drive addresses needs that many in our affluent community may take for granted. Were certainly thankful to live in a very giving community, he said. So many people ask, What can we do to help? These are stories that showcase the need in our community. The Giving Fund allows you to offer up that help. The stories Each case in the Giving Fund includes an estimated dollar amount to help an individual or family tackle everyday challenges. The names in the stories have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals. Case #400: Jeffery is an older man living alone in Stamford who doesnt have family support in the area. Ten years ago, Jeffery had one hip replaced, and a few weeks before these holidays, he had his second hip replaced. Jeffery tries to be as independent as possible: He goes to medical appointments alone and does grocery shopping using public transportation or walking. Jefferys budget is limited and now his mobility will be, too. A gift $400 would allow Jeffery to use private transportation for a few months while he heals. Case #401: Michael is a young disabled man living in Stamford. He is social and likes to sit outside his building to listen to music, dance and interact with his neighbors. His health has started to fail, and he suffers from debilitating headaches. Michael recently spent two weeks unable to leave his bed. A gift of $300 would help him purchase new bedding, new clothing and new towels for his home. Case #402: Harriett, 86, is an older woman living in Stamford who is in need of a new bed. The one she has is old, its sinking and it offers her no support. Because she lives on a limited budget, Harriett is not able to afford a new one. A gift of $500 would cover the cost of the new bed that she desperately needs. Case #403: Jemma is an 86-year-old resident of Rippowam Manor who relies on friends to assist her with transportation to the grocery store and medical appointments. She finds it hard to ask for help and will often go without and also not go out for several weeks at a time. Jemma doesnt have any family nearby and often spends the holidays alone. A gift of $500 would help Jemma pay for private transportation to medical appointments and cabs to allow her to go out more often for groceries. Case #404: Nube is a single mother whose 2-year-old daughter was removed from her care because of domestic violence. She has diligently complied with the DCF-mandated services. DCF provided her with a two-bedroom apartment two months ago to accomplish the goal of family reunification. Nube bought a bed for her daughter, but she does not have other furniture and is sleeping on an air bed. She is working part time, however, she has not made enough money to buy a bed for herself. A gift of $500 would allow Nube to buy a set of mattresses. Case #405: Ms. Rosa is a 71-year-old widow who lives at her daughters home. Her brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and she says she feels hopeless because she cant help her brother pay for his medication. Ms. Rosa attends multiple medical appointments because of a history of breast cancer. She worries that she lacks the income needed to help her family with Christmas dinner. A gift of $500 would help Ms. Rosa to purchase groceries, pay medical and medications co-payments and prepare her Christmas dinner. Case #406: Elena, a single mother of a 2-year-old, is unable to get a full-time job because of a lack of child care. She was able to work for six months painting homes and apartments until October. She is not eligible for government financial assistance or to apply for food stamps because of her immigration status. Her sons father is not paying child support. She is anxious and depressed because of the holidays. Meanwhile, she keeps searching for a job. Elena would be grateful to receive a gift of $500 for rent, food and winter clothes for her son. Case #407: Ms. SE is a 77-year-old widow who lives with her daughter, who lost her job this past April due to COVID-19. Ms. SE has been depressed since she was sick with COVID-19 and hospitalized for two weeks in October. She needs financial assistance so she can contribute to the family Christmas dinner, buy a coat that she needs, cover medication co-payments, buy organic food and pay rent. Ms. SE would be grateful to receive a gift of $500. Case #408: Ms. MA is a 45-year-old married woman who has a 12-year-old daughter with ADHD, autism, anxiety, tics and depression. Ms. MAs husband was in a car accident two months ago and is unable to work, which is making a big financial impact on the family. Ms. MA said she is feeling hopeless and anxious about the lack of sufficient income to cover the familys monthly bills. Ms. MA and her family would be grateful to receive a gift of $500 to help pay for food, Christmas items and rent. Case #409: Ms. AR, a 53-year-old single woman, has chronic medical problems that leave her unable to work. Social Security has denied her benefits twice, and she has no source of income. Ms. AR walks long distances to go to medical appointments because she cant afford transportation. Her bills are past due, and she needs financial assistance. Ms. AR is also depressed since the deaths of her mother, cousin and uncle from COVID-19. A gift of $500 would help Ms. AR with food, transportation and rent while alleviating stress. Case #410: Ms. RM, 62 and single, is in great need of financial assistance. She previously worked in maintenance, but the company closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ms. RM has been unemployed for nearly 1 years and has not found a job. She depends on her three adult children financially and emotionally, and moved in with her eldest daughter because she could not pay her rent. She needs to buy a new pair of prescription eyeglasses. A gift of $ 500 would be helpful for Ms. RM to cover her bills. Case #411: SL is a 36-year-old single mother of a 4-year-old diagnosed with autism. SL cannot afford childcare for a full-time job; therefore, she is working a part-time job only. SL is worried about not having money for her holiday dinners. The father of her child does not pay child support and is not involved in her son's life. SL would be very grateful to receive a gift of $500 to help with food, rent, holiday dinners and gifts for her son. . Case #412: Ms. MM is a 60-year-old single mother of a son who is diagnosed with autism and ADHD. Ms. MM lost one of three jobs during the pandemic. Although she works two jobs to make ends meet, she doesnt have the resources to purchase some basic necessities. Ms. MM would be grateful to receive a gift of $500 for Christmas dinner, other food and basic items for December. Case #413: AM, 15, lost his father two years ago due to pancreatic cancer, and a few months ago his 40-year-old brother died from COVID-19. AM's mother, 60, works two jobs one in maintenance and another as a nanny. But she doesnt earn enough to purchase basic living items or buy a winter coat for AM. He feels insecure about the holidays without his father and brother and upset by seeing his mother working so hard. This family would be grateful to receive a gift of $800 to help with food and utilities and to buy a winter coat for AM. Case #414: Ms. CT is in need of financial assistance after losing income due to COVID-19 and undergoing two surgeries in recent weeks. She won't be able to work for two to three months while recovering. Ms. CT needs financial aid to put food on the table and pay for rent and transportation. A gift of $800 would provide Ms. CT with much-needed stability this holiday season. Case #415: Ms. SV is married and the mother of children ages 17 and 8 and a 2-month-old baby. Her husband works 12 hours a day and six days per week. Ms. SVs immigration status does not allow her to receive government financial assistance and she needs help in paying her basic bills. Ms. SV would be grateful to receive $800 for this Christmas season to buy food and winter clothes for her baby, and pay for rent and transportation. Case #416: Ms. NG is a 62-year-old single mother who was unemployed for more than eight months during the pandemic. She is making less money because she works only 10 hours per week. Ms. NG also has medical complications due to varicose veins. She applied for but was denied unemployment. Her bills have become past due, and she needs financial assistance. A gift of $800 would help Ms. NG to pay for food, medical supplies and medication co-payments and assist her daughter, who is at college in Pennsylvania. Case #417: KF, 20, started to attend Norwalk Community College but could not continue after losing her job. KF lives with her mother, who is making less money after her work hours were cut. KFs income is not sufficient to cover the monthly expenses. They moved to a smaller apartment after they were evicted, and KF does not have a bed. She would be grateful to receive $800 to buy a new mattress and have some money for transportation, rent and Christmas dinner. Case #418: Ms. MM is the primary caregiver for her 95-year-old mother, who was diagnosed with dementia. Also, Ms. MM's basement was flooded by Hurricane Ida in September, and she lost her computer, TV and furniture. A gift of $800 would help Ms. MM, who lost income during COVID-19, to pay some of her utility, grocery and mortgage bills. Case #419: Jasmin and Andrew are loving parents of three who always do their best to meet their childrens needs. They are both back to working full time, but their finances were greatly affected when Andrew lost his job last year. They havent yet recovered from the financial loss. A gift of $500 would help this family pay for heating and grocery bills this winter. All the Giving Fund cases will be listed online. To make a donation online, visit https://givingfund .isecuresites.com/. In his first pastoral encyclical on the Nativity of the Lord in 1977, Romanias fourth Patriarch Iustin Moisescu stressed the joyful way Christians need to welcome the Baby Jesus in their lives. 1. Listening to Christmas hymns, let us all now bow our heads before the icon of the Nativity, thanking God for the saving gifts He has poured out upon us as His Son descended into the world. 2. The Son of God was born in the likeness of humans because He would save humans. 3. In the service of the great feast of the Nativity of the Lord, as in other days, words like these resound for centuries in our ears: Heaven and earth have been united today, as Christ is born. Today, God came to earth, and man ascended to heaven. 4. Let us sing praises, today, to our Lord Jesus Christ for His appearing on earth, in the image of the humility of our flesh. 5. With joy to go forth before Him, welcoming Him as God while He descends to us. With love, let us receive Him, preparing in our hearts a place worthy of His holy abode in us. Christ came into the world as a Child to reveal the great mystery of humble and giving love: a child can be ignored, as it often happens, it can be rejected, it can be killed in the womb or it can be granted all the attention, all the care and all the affection fit for the great mystery of life the mystery of Gods co-working with man, said Patriarch Daniel on Monday to the first Christmas carolers of this year. The child cannot survive if it doesnt receive help, if it is not carried in the womb and then in our arms. It cannot feed by itself in the first part of its life, it cannot dress, it cannot walk by itself. Thus, God the Child totally depends on the affection offered by the Mother of God, on the care ensured by Rightous Josef, His adoptive father, on the benevolence of those surrounding Him and on the holy angels, who protected Him when His life was threatened by Herod the Great, added the Patriarch. Therefore God the Child totally depends in His humanity by the surrounding peoples love. We can see revealed here the mystery of His humbleness and also the mystery of our freedom: a child can be neglected, forgotten, ignored or it can be loved and helped. This years first group of Christmas carolers received at the Patriarchal Residence was made of two pro-life organizations: Studenti Pentru viata Romanias pro-life students association and Romania Pentru viata Romania for Life association. Both entities are involved in organizing Romanias March for Life and in supporting women in pregnancy crisis. Photo: Ziarul Lumina / Mihnea Paduraru His Beatitude said they perform soul-saving work by reminding people that they are called to lovingly protect the most vulnerable born and unborn children. You have emphasized the mystery of Jesus the Child, Patriarch Daniel told them. This is also the focus of the pro-life students association, as we have been taught that the mystery of Jesus the Child is the mystery of God the Child. Theologians have insisted less on this great mystery of the Almighty God Who is making Himself totally powerless at two crucial moments: His Nativity and His death on the Cross. These moments show us that Gods humbleness, according to St. Basil the Great, is stronger than His almightiness. Better said, His almightiness is best revealed by His becoming Flesh it is revealed not so much at the creation of the world, but rather at His Incarnation, through His ability to humble Himself as a Child, obeying even in death and even willingly-accepted death through crucifixion, added Patriarch Daniel. Blessed Augustine says Jesus the Child runs the galaxies from His Mothers womb. Therefore He humbles Himself by becoming a Child, never ceasing to be the Almighty Creator in Whom, through Whom and for Whom everything was created. Holy Apostle Paul, in his Epistle to the Colossians, is the only biblical author who says the world was created for Him. Thus, the whole universe is the gift of the Father for the Son, since the Son was to descend into the world in order to consecrate it and perfect it, the Patriarch of Romania further explained. Therefore, while running all the galaxies, He is also a little Child in Virgin Marys womb, reiterated His Beatitude. We have here the great mystery of Christ, Who, while remaining what He is, that is while remaining God, He also became what He was not, He became a Man. The question is why Christ did not come into the world as a 30-year old man, to fight with the surrounding world and to teach people how to go through death and Resurrection? Why did he have to be a Child first? It was needed that Christ the Lord show, through the mystery of His Incarnation, the importance of the child in the life of its parents and in the life of mankind, explained the Patriarch of Romania. Through each child, the parents remember they were once children and they were cared for, fed, protected and, later, educated. So, Child Jesus humbleness calls upon the adults to increase their attention, care and responsibility, and urges children to show gratitude. Patriarch Daniel added that scholastic theology put less emphasis on the mystery of Gods Incarnation, which remains, to the end of time, the mystery of Gods humble love. Photo: Ziarul Lumina / Mihnea Paduraru Generally, people are used to believing that God is almighty, but the Nativity of Child Jesus shows us that Gods love is essentially humble, giving and merciful. That is why the salvation of ones soul will depend on how much merciful love we have shown not possessive love, but merciful and giving love. Therefore, the pro-life students perform soul-saving work: salvation is attained only through communion communion among people and between people and God. This is also the mystery of the Church, His Beatitude mentioned. We wish you happy holidays, help from God in your activity and may you announce the good tidings of Christs humble and giving love as the mystery of eternal life, which starts here, in history, and continues in the heavenly love of the Holy Trinity. Merry Christmas! concluded the Patriarch. Patriarch Daniel received on Wednesday a group of young beneficiaries of Bucharests Down Plus Association. His Beatitude blessed the young people with Down Syndrome and told them they intensified the joy on the Patriarchates Hill. You sang very beautifully and conveyed joy, as the song said, especially since we are here in Bucharest, which means the City of Joy, and here, the Patriarchate Hill has been called the Hill of Joy in recent years, the Patriarch told the carolers. You have intensified joy by being here and singing Christmas carols, His Beatitude added, congratulating the Down Plus Bucharest Association for the activities with these young people. Photo: Basilica.ro / Mircea Florescu We wish you the feast of the Lords Nativity with lots of joy, help from God and blessing. May you be blessed and enjoy your beautiful chants and the friendship that you share. To many blessed years! Patriarch Daniel wished them. Although recent studies show that 99% of persons with Down Syndrome are happy with their lives, 92% of the unborn people diagnosed with this medical condition are aborted. The syndrome is caused by an additional chromosome in their genetic code. Defense lawyers, though, say she was a U.S. government scapegoat after Epstein killed himself in the Manhattan federal jail cell where he was awaiting his own sex trafficking trial in August 2019. They said the memories of her accusers were corrupted by the passage of time and the influence of lawyers steering them toward multimillion-dollar payouts from a fund set up to compensate Epstein victims. The jury already has asked to review the testimony of the four women, along with former Epstein housekeeper Juan Patricio Alessi, but they have given little hint of their overall progress on six charges, including a sex trafficking count that carries a potential penalty of up to 40 years in prison. Alessi testified that when he worked at Epsteins sprawling Florida home from 1990 to 2002, he saw many, many, many female visitors, appearing to be in their late 20s, often lounging topless by the pool. He also testified that two accusers, underage teens at the time, were repeat visitors to the Epstein mansion. Each day of deliberations without a verdict seems to boost the defense team, which is aware that fast verdicts almost always go in the government's favor and that deliberations that stretch out can sometimes indicate dissension or confusion among jurors. The house was ready to put it on the market, but we both said Nobodys coming through this house now. A week later Sandra had a call about the house. The guy who originally sold us the Carondelet house had moved to Florida. His wife called Sandra and (said), Were moving back, and we want to buy the house, and they did. They saw photos but never stepped foot in the house. The Lees needed to find a house fast. We were looking for a spot with fewer stairs, a quiet place where we could take a deep breath and not be so rushed, Sandra Lee says. They found it in Webster Groves. Their new home retained many of its original details. The 1940s two-story cottage style home set on a slight hill with its wide welcoming porch spoke to them. The coffered ceilings and applied wood trims and all the appointments in this house were still in place, Chris Lee says. Whoever did the work on this house when it changed hands kept its character. The woodwork is original, as are the kitchen cabinets. We even had the original vent in the kitchen to the outside restored. It now opens with a pull chain. I really dont find myself that fascinating, to be honest with you, he said in a 1985 radio interview. ... It just isnt that fascinating to tell people who I am. I think Ive done that musically, to a point. And also its obvious I want to preserve my privacy. So, when he would visit kin in Peoria, he would keep a low profile. Im deeply honored that the people in Peoria are excited that were coming in to play, he told this paper in 1995. I just dont want everyone making too big of a deal of this. Just come to the show and listen to what I can do. Thats what its really about. In that way, as far as a public persona, he always stayed the same, almost stuck (or at least, slowed) in time. Locally, that phenomenon was reinforced by the nostalgia underpinning two of his biggest hits, Same Old Lang Syne and Leader of the Band. Those songs, both of which hit No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, are deeply steeped in Peoria inspiration. Outsiders and non-fans wouldnt have any clues as to the characters and settings of those songs. But Peoria knows and savors those connections, especially Same Old Lang Syne, each December. The samples were collected from Dec. 13 to 15. With the lag required for analysis, Johnson says that means the new variant could now be much more widespread. But signatures of the omicron variant are not nearly as prevalent as those from delta at least not yet. Johnson said that less than 10% of the genetic traces of the virus are from omicron in each of the sewersheds where it was found, suggesting that it may not be the main culprit fueling the rise of Missouris new COVID cases. So far, omicron is only a fraction of the reason for the increase, Johnson said on Friday. But that mightve changed by now, because our data is always a week old. Geographically, though, omicron is taking off faster than the delta variant did when it first began to spread in Missouri. The states sewage analysis first saw delta in just one place one week, and then in three places the next week not nearly as explosive as omicrons leap from two to 15 sewersheds in its first two weeks of detection. Airlines canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels at some carriers during the busy holiday travel season. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines said they canceled dozens of flights because of staff shortages tied to the omicron variant. Delta canceled 145 flights on Friday and 111 for Christmas Day, according to FlightAware. (Other factors, such as weather, are also causing cancellations.) United called off 175 flights on Friday and 69 on Saturday. "The nationwide spike in omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation," United said in a prepared statement. "As a result, we've unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport." The airline said it was working to rebook as many people as possible. Delta said it canceled flights Friday because of the impact of omicron and possibility of bad weather after it had "exhausted all options and resources including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying." But heres the problem: The Platform is directed toward causes and ideals that, since the early 1900s, have been embraced by the Democratic Party while often held at arms length by the Republicans. The more we adhere to The Platform as a newspaper, the more we get labeled as liberal. We cannot afford this appearance if we want to honor The Platforms call to maintain our independence. At the same time, we cannot abandon our rock of truth. It wasnt always this way. In the late 1800s, the Republicans were the ones fighting for racial justice while Democrats, especially in the South, stood squarely for policies of racial segregation and oppression. That would seem to have aligned the newspaper more toward Republican ideals, especially as Theodore Roosevelt assumed the presidency following William McKinleys assassination. But Pulitzer absolutely detested Roosevelt, which helped drive the newspapers opinion pages away from the GOP and add to the inappropriate appearance of partisanship. Provides Highly Complementary ERP and MES Solutions to Apteans Food and Beverage Solutions Enhances Apteans Subvertical Expertise within Protein Processing ALPHARETTA, Ga., Dec. 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Aptean, a global provider of mission-critical enterprise software solutions, announced the acquisition of Systems Integration (Trading) Ltd. (SI), a leading provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP), and manufacturing execution system (MES) solutions to the UK food processing industry. Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Staordshire, England, SIs fully integrated and modular food planning, ERP, MES and specialist sector software solutions are designed for the food production and processing industry, particularly perishable food and protein processing. SIs solutions result in demonstrable ROI for its customers by addressing three core challenges: regulatory compliance, margin improvement and quality control. With a strong presence in the UK, SI serves more than 150 food processors worldwide and has long-term partnerships with leading food manufacturers across the UK, Republic of Ireland, U.S. and Canada. SIs capabilities are highly complementary to Apteans current food and beverage offerings, providing additional vertically-focused ERP and MES solutions for the protein processing market. The transaction enhances Apteans ability to serve customers in primary and secondary protein processing and provides additional scale in the UK alongside Apteans existing Food and Beverage ERP solutions. Aptean plans to leverage its global scale, resources and technological expertise to support SIs product and geographic expansion. We are excited to further strengthen our award-winning Food and Beverage ERP solutions with SIs proprietary software solutions in the protein processing segment, while also expanding our footprint in the UK, said TVN Reddy, CEO of Aptean. SIs expert team of food industry and software professionals deeply understands the operational complexities this industry faces, and we are excited to welcome them to the Aptean family. With our combined set of unique software solutions across the food and beverage industry, we can deliver enhanced efficiency and outcomes for our customers operations. Aptean and SI are aligned in a mission to deliver world class tailored solutions and deep industry specific expertise to food manufacturers, said Rob Stephens, CEO and founder of SI. Going forward, in combination with Aptean, we will be part of a larger group of industry and technology experts focused on continuing to serve the Food and Beverage industry. Aptean will give SI the scale and expertise to further enhance our customer experience allowing the business to continue to grow both in the UK and globally. About SIEstablished in 1991, SI is the leading provider of integrated ERP and shop floor data capture solutions to the UK food processing industry. SIs proprietary suite of end-to-end fit for purpose software solutions, Integreater, was created solely for the perishable food processing environment and spans both the shop floor and back-office operations. SIs team of industry experts work closely with customers to address their specific needs with tailored solutions that provide superior levels of real-time control and understanding throughout their food manufacturing operations. To learn more about SI, please visit https://sifoodsoftware.com/. About ApteanAptean is one of the worlds leading providers of purpose-built, industry-specific software that helps manufacturers and distributors effectively run and grow their businesses. With both cloud and on-premise deployment options, Apteans products, services and unmatched expertise help businesses of all sizes to be Ready for Whats Next, Now. Aptean is headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. To learn more about Aptean and the markets we serve, visit www.aptean.com. Aptean is a trademark of Aptean, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated. For Media Inquiries Please ContactNicole ORourkeChief Marketing OfficerNicole.ORourke@aptean.com (770) 715-0362 Source: Aptean Inc. VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Carbon Corp. (First Carbon or the Company), a developer of a proprietary, decentralized, carbon credit non-fungible token (NFT) onboarding platform, is pleased to provide the details for the launch of its MintCarbon.io channel on the Discord social media platform (Discord). MintCarbon.io is the Companys user-friendly interface that is being developed to enable carbon offset holders to easily convert their credits into highly customizable and ERC-1155-compliant NFTs. With the launch of the MintCarbon.io channel on Discord, an endless number of carbon offset holders, investors and other parties interested in the community can now chat directly with MintCarbon.io operators. Discord is a free, secure and rapidly growing voice, video and text-based communication application currently used by more than 46 million users each month. The integration of Discord into the MintCarbon.io ecosystem will create a community through which users can talk about NFT values, carbon offset pricing trends, and the securitization of carbon offset markets. This is expected to evoke valuable discussion and community input, while generating significant traffic towards MintCarbon.ios proprietary minting platform and digitized token offerings. Leveraging the power of the blockchain and the low-emission, Ethereum-powered Polygon network, the NFTs minted on MintCarbon.io will be able to be listed for trading on decentralized marketplaces such as Opensea.io. Every customised NFT is being planned to be embedded with unique characteristics and may potentially represent millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide. Management Commentary "A first-of-its-kind in the carbon credit industry, said Mo Yang, CEO of First Carbon, the MintCarbon.io Discord channel now enables offset holders, individuals and other stakeholders to chat directly with our platforms operators, ask them questions, offer input and receive feedback on the minting and selling of carbon credit NFTs. Derek McKenzie, Chief Operating Officer of First Carbon, further commented, Building a global and connected MintCarbon.io community is an important component of our big picture strategy. We believe that Discord, as one of the fastest growing online communities in the world, will play a critical role in help us to achieve critical mass. About First Carbon Corp. First Carbon Corp is a next generation technology platform company focused on democratizing tokenized access to carbon credits and ESG solutions. Its flagship platform MintCarbon.io offers carbon offset holders an onramp to the blockchain by enabling the minting of carbon credits into decentralized NFTs on the low-emission Polygon network. MintCarbon NFTs are powered by Ethereum and tradeable on global decentralized platforms based on the blockchain. The ERC1155-compliant tokens are to be backed by real, verified carbon credits, providing increased transparency, liquidity and security in carbon offset trading. MintCarbon makes it easier for companies to take part in the global effort to reduce their impact on the environment. Benefits of the platform include: Permission-less global trading on decentralized trading platforms (such as OpenSea.io) operating 24/7/365; Secure and easy access for investors into an emerging asset class; Access to a growing pool of capital in the cryptocurrency markets; Programmable functionality through smart contracts and composable primitives that enable new types of capital formation and trading; and a reliable framework designed to increase the flow of capital into carbon reduction initiatives, helping underfunded environmental companies and projects. Visit MintCarbon.io and sign up to the newsletter to be alerted to platform updates and our upcoming launch and visit our corporate website FirstCarbonCorp.com to learn more about the Company. On social media, follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/firstcarbon. And for partnership and corporate related inquiries, please send an email to: corporate@firstcarboncorp.com. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD Mo Yang Mo Yang, CEOTel: +1 604-800-5648Email: corporate@firstcarboncorp.com Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information This news release contains forward-looking statements. Statements in this news release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations, or intentions regarding the future. Such forward-looking statements include, among other things: the Company's ability to digitize and allow for the trading of tokenized carbon credits by the global carbon offset market on its platform which is interoperable with the Ethereum blockchain while ensuring that minting activities will be both low emission and cost. The material assumptions supporting these forward-looking statements include, among others, that: the Company could mitigate the risks associated with the blockchain and NFT industry; and the ability to compete with other businesses in the NFT market. Although management considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including: the risk that the Company's offerings are not accepted by the consumer, the risk that other competitors may offer similar digital offerings; the risk that there may be negative changes in general economic and business conditions; the risk that the Company may have negative operating cash flow and not enough capital to complete the development of any of its technologies; the risk that the Company may not be able to obtain additional financing as necessary; the risk that there may be increases in capital and operating costs; the risk that the NFT technology may be subject to fraud and other failures; the risk that there may be technological changes and developments in the blockchain that make the NFT solutions obsolete; risks relating to regulatory changes or actions which may impede the development or operation of the blockchain solutions; the risk that other competitors may release similar blockchain offerings; the potential future unviability of the NFT market in general; the volatile cost of the amount of computational effort required to execute specific operations on the blockchain, and other general risks involved in the blockchain solutions. Any of these risks may cause the Companys actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Further, although the Company has attempted to identify factors that could cause actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results, levels of activity, performance or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States and Canada. Although the Company believes that any beliefs, plans, expectations and intentions contained in this news release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any such beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. The Company does not assume any liability for disclosure relating to any other company mentioned herein. In addition, this news release includes third-party market data and statistics which management has not independently verified. The Company expressly disclaims any responsibility for the accuracy thereof. SOURCE: First Carbon Corp. Source: First Carbon Corp. Army Brig. Gen. Laura Clellan, Adjutant General of Colorado, receives her first COVID-19 vaccine at Buckley Garrison in Aurora, Colo., on Jan. 14, 2021. According to a report on Thursday, Dec. 23, the Colorado National Guard will not disclose how many of its troops have complied with an order to be vaccinated against COVID-19. (Kinder Blacke/U.S. Air Force) (Tribune News Service) The defense secretary ordered all National Guard troops to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, but the Colorado National Guard, which repeatedly has been called to assist the states health care system during the pandemic, will not disclose how many of its troops have complied. A Nov. 30 memo from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said those who do not follow the order will lose pay and would not be allowed to participate in weekend drills and other assignments. But Austin left it up to the National Guard Bureau chief and secretaries of the Army and Air Force to determine how to discipline those who do not comply. Elena OBryan, a spokeswoman for the Colorado National Guard, would not say whether any of the states 3,800 soldiers or 1,700 airmen had been disciplined for refusing to get the vaccine. In some states, governors are pushing against the Defense Departments requirement for vaccines. Oklahoma, Wyoming, Iowa, Alaska, Nebraska and Mississippi sent a joint letter to Austin asking that he rescind his order that bars guard troops from attending drill weekends and other mandatory training while under the authority of their states. Conor Cahill, a spokesman for Gov. Jared Polis, said in a statement, Members of Colorados National Guard have stepped up to help our state respond to the challenges of the pandemic from setting up and running testing sites, to the historic distribution of the safe and effective vaccine, and volunteering their time away from their families. The governor has encouraged everyone including members of our National Guard to receive the safe and doctor approved vaccine and to get a third dose. During the pandemic, Colorados National Guard troops have operated mass testing and vaccination sites and again are on standby if needed to run COVID-19 testing sites or to deliver supplies to hospitals as the omicron variant rapidly spreads. In December 2020, a pair of Colorado National Guard members tested positive for what later was named the alpha variant of COVID-19 after they were sent to Elbert County to assist with staffing at a nursing home during an outbreak. They were the first cases of the new variant in the United States. At the national level, 68.64% of National Guard troops were fully vaccinated as of Dec. 13 with 74.2% of receiving one dose, according to data provided by the National Guard Bureau. Approximately 440,000 people serve in the National Guard across the United States. The Air National Guard is doing better than its Army Guard counterpart with 91.2% of airmen fully vaccinated compared with 61.4% of Guard soldiers, according to the data. While the National Guard Bureau will release vaccination data on a federal level, it is up to state commanders to report publicly how many of their troops have received shots, said Wayne Hall, a spokesman at the National Guard Bureau. But OBryan said it was a matter of operational security and the numbers would not be released. Every soldier has to be ready to do the mission, OBryan said. If they dont get the vaccine, then theyre not ready to do the mission. Unless they are called to support a national military mission, National Guard troops fall under the command of their states adjutant general and governor, but the Secretary of Defense still has authority over the members, including the ability to order them to get vaccinated. The Air Force placed a Dec. 2 deadline for Guard troops to get vaccinated. Active duty airmen were to be vaccinated as of Nov. 2, and earlier this month the Air Force announced it dismissed 27 members for refusing the shot. Army officials said more than 3,800 soldiers refused to be vaccinated by its Dec. 15 deadline, and they could be kicked out of the military next month, the Associated Press reported. ___ (c)2021 The Denver Post Visit The Denver Post at www.denverpost.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller called for accountability from senior military and civilian leaders for failures in Afghanistan, in a video he posted on social media platforms. (U.S. Marine Corps) A Marine officer who criticized military and civilian leaders over the Afghanistan evacuation in a widely shared video this summer has been discharged from the service. Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller had mixed emotions after being released, he said in a Facebook post crediting the Marine Corps with forging me into a man and thanking those who served, led, bled and suffered alongside me throughout his 17-year career. But the now former infantry officer also accused the Marine Corps of slandering him, among a list of other defeats that followed his demand for accountability from senior officials over failures in the nearly 20-year war, just hours after an Aug. 26 bombing in Kabul killed 13 U.S. troops. Scheller was given a general discharge under honorable conditions, the lowest characterization allowed under a plea deal reached during his October court-martial, he said. He also lost his retirement benefits. In an emailed statement Saturday, a Marine Corps spokesperson said Scheller was no longer on active duty and was separated Friday. Conservative lawmakers and critics of President Joe Biden rallied behind Scheller after his first video. He followed up with other controversial videos and posts that led to him being jailed and eventually court-martialed. He was quickly fired from command of the Advanced Infantry Training Battalion at Camp Lejeune after the first video, later pledging to resign his commission and refuse any benefits in a video recorded in a school bus in the North Carolina woods. The Corps soon issued a gag order, which he defied, before putting him in confinement ahead of a special court-martial in October on six charges of violating the Uniform Code of Military Justice. He would eventually plead guilty to charges that he had displayed contempt toward officials, disrespected and willfully disobeyed commissioned officers above him, was derelict in performance of his duties and failed to obey an order or regulation, and displayed conduct unbecoming of an officer and a gentleman. But Scheller said Thursday that out of respect for senior leaders, he had not given a single media interview throughout the ordeal. Now, he said, he plans to launch a media blitz beginning with a Jan. 4 appearance on Tucker Carlsons show on Fox, he said. Carlson has lambasted the military in recent months over its handling of the Afghan War, perceived politicization and progressiveness. In his latest post, Scheller said hed expanded his social media accounts and announced the launch of his website AuthenticAmericans.com. At trial, he said his life had spiraled after the first video, as his wife left him, fellow Marine officers abandoned him and the Corps launched an investigation into his actions. But he kept posting with support from others. "Many Gold Star families, junior enlisted Marines and members of Congress reached out to support my statements," Scheller said, according to The Washington Post. A group of 27 Republican lawmakers had called on the Corps to release him from the brig ahead of the trial, and Congress members Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., testified at his trial. He was also backed by more than $2.5 million in donations through the Pipe Hitter Foundation, run by former Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher and his wife, Andrea. Gallagher was tried on war crimes accusations in 2019 and acquitted of most of the charges. Scheller eventually pleaded guilty under an agreement that allowed the military judge to sentence him to no more than a letter of reprimand and seizure of two-thirds of his pay for up to a year a sum that would total in the tens of thousands of dollars. He was ultimately sentenced to a letter of reprimand and $5,000 in forfeited pay, though the Corps had sought to have more of his pay docked. Scheller agreed to resign his commission. The Marine judge who oversaw the trial, Col. Glenn Hines, rejected the services call for further punishment and blasted the service over its handling of the situation, Marine Corps Times reported. Scheller has previously framed his actions as part of a revolution, promising at one point to bring the whole (expletive) system down, though he later clarified he meant to do so in a constitutional manner. His latest post harkened to the American Revolution and to George Washingtons mounting of a surprise attack on forces allied with the British king on Dec. 26, 1776. Scheller plans to make one social media post a day, beginning on the anniversary of that attack this year, leading up to his appearance on Carlsons show, he said. The attack on December 26th wasnt decisive, he said. But as history shows, it was a turning point in the war. Chad Garland Chad is a Marine Corps veteran who covers the U.S. military in the Middle East, Afghanistan and sometimes elsewhere for Stars and Stripes. An Illinois native whos reported for news outlets in Washington, D.C., Arizona, Oregon and California, hes an alumnus of the Defense Language Institute, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Arizona State University. A MiG-21 conducts training at Campia Turzii, Romania. (Armando A. Schwier-Morales/U.S. Air Force) NEW DELHI (Tribune News Service) A MiG-21 Bison of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in Rajasthan on Friday evening, killing the pilot, Wing Commander Harshit Sinha. This is the fifth crash involving a Bison jet this year. This evening, around 8:30 pm, a MiG-21 aircraft of IAF met with a flying accident in the western sector during a training sortie..., the IAF said in a statement. Later, in another tweet, the IAF confirmed the pilots death. With deep sorrow, IAF conveys the sad demise of Wing Commander Harshit Sinha in the flying accident this evening and stands firmly with the family of the braveheart, it said. The crash has once again turned the spotlight on Indias longest-serving fighter plane, its safety record and the IAFs plans to replace the ageing jets with newer ones in the coming years. The Bison is the latest variant of Mig-21 in IAF service. IAF operates four squadrons of MiG-21 Bison aircraft a squadron has 16 to 18 fighter jets. The last of these upgraded MiG-21s are set to be phased out in three to four years. The air force got its first single-engine MiG-21 in 1963, and it progressively inducted 874 variants of the Soviet-origin supersonic fighters to bolster its combat potential. Of the 874 MiG-21 variants inducted by the IAF, over 60% were licence-produced in India. More than 400 MiG-21s have been involved in accidents that have claimed the lives of more than 200 pilots during the last six decades, earning the fighters ominous epithets such as Flying Coffin and Widow Maker. Experts have said that more MiG-21s have crashed than any other fighter because they formed the bulk of the fighter aircraft in the IAFs inventory for a long time. IAF had to keep its MiG-21 fleet flying longer than it would have liked because of delay in the induction of new fighters. The Bison was involved in IAF operations after the unprecedented, peacetime, cross-border strike against terror targets in Pakistans Balakot two years ago. Wing Commander (now Group Captain) Abhinandan Varthaman scripted military aviation history by downing a Pakistan Air Force F-16, seconds before his own MiG-21 Bison was hit by a missile forcing him to eject on February 27, 2019. ___ (c)2021 the Hindustan Times (New Delhi) Visit the Hindustan Times (New Delhi) at www.hindustantimes.com British police on Saturday said that an armed intruder was arrested on Christmas morning on the grounds of Windsor Castle, the main residence of Queen Elizabeth II, where the British monarch was celebrating Christmas. (Royal.uk) LONDON British police on Saturday said that an armed intruder was arrested on Christmas morning on the grounds of Windsor Castle, the main residence of Queen Elizabeth II, where the British monarch was celebrating Christmas. The man has been arrested on suspicion of breach or trespass of a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody at this time, Thames Valley Police Superintendent Rebecca Mears said in a statement. The 19-year-old man was arrested after he was found entering the grounds of the castle at around 8:30 a.m., police said. He did not enter any buildings. Members of the royal family have been informed about the incident, Mears said. We do not believe there is a wider danger to the public. A spokeswoman for Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the incident. The queen had been planning to host Christmas this year at her Sandringham estate in Norfolk, England. But those plans were scrapped, for the second year in a row, following a spike in coronavirus infections confirmed daily cases hit a record high on Saturday. Instead, the queen spent Christmas Day at Windsor Castle, her main residence since the start of the pandemic in 2020. She was joined by a small group of family members, including her eldest son, Prince Charles, and his wife, Camilla. This was the queens first Christmas since the death of her husband, Prince Philip, in April at age 99. The queen paid tribute to him in her annual Christmas Day speech, which was broadcast Saturday was but recorded last week. Referring to Philip, the queen said that there was one familiar laugh missing this year. An iPhone screen shows a Telegram account of OVD-Info, prominent legal aid group in Russia that tracks political arrests in Moscow, Russia, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. A Russian organization that tracks political arrests and provides legal aid to detainees says government regulators have blocked its website. OVD-Info said in a tweet on Saturday that it wasnt formally notified about the action by Russias internet and communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP) MOSCOW A Russian organization that tracks political arrests and provides legal aid to detainees said Saturday that government regulators blocked its website, the latest move in a months-long crackdown on independent media and human rights organizations. OVD-Info reported that Russia's internet and communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, blocked the group's website. The organization said in a tweet that it wasn't formally notified about the decision and doesn't know the reason for the action beyond that it was ordered by a court outside Moscow on Monday. The website was unavailable to Russian internet users on Saturday and was listed on the government's registry of banned web pages. In light of the move, OVD-Info urged supporters to follow its pages on a number of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Russian social network VK and messaging app Telegram. In comments to the Interfax news agency, Roskomnadzor said the website was blocked because, according to the court ruling, it was involved in "propaganda of terrorism and extremism" by containing materials that "justify actions of extremist and terrorist groups." The agency said social media platforms have been told to remove the group's accounts. OVD-Info co-founder Grigory Okhotin rejected the accusations in an interview with The Associated Press on Saturday. "Naturally, we are sure that we are not justifying extremism or terrorism," he said. "Of course we write about such cases, this is our job, but it is not justifying (extremism or terrorism)." Okhotin said the ruling to block the website came as a surprise, even though the group knew the prosecutor's office in Lukhovitsy, a town 120 kilometers (75 miles) southeast of Moscow, had opened an investigation of some kind. "Our lawyer went there, but they refused to provide documents or to explain anything about the substance of the case, even though they summoned him themselves," Okhotin said. "We, of course, didn't know that it would get to court so quickly which we haven't been invited to, by the way and to blocking of the website over accusations of justifying terrorism and extremism." OVD-Info gained prominence for its meticulous tracking and counting of arrests at street protests in Russia. Activists first started the practice during mass protests triggered by a 2011 Russian parliamentary election tainted by numerous reports of voter fraud and then formed a group that has continued the work over the years. The data has been indispensable to news outlets over the years as Russian authorities largely kept quiet or underplayed the scale of mass arrests at protests and demonstrations. OVD-Info operates as a legal aid group as well, dispatching lawyers to help detained protesters at police stations and in courts. In September, a Sweden-based international human rights organization awarded OVD-Info its Civil Rights Defender of the Year award. That same month Russian authorities designated the group as a "foreign agent" a label that comes with excessive government scrutiny and strong pejorative connotations that can discredit recipients. OVD-Info's founders vowed to continue the organization's work despite the designation. Russian authorities have mounted pressure on rights groups, media outlets and individual journalists in recent months, naming dozens as foreign agents. Some were declared as "undesirable" a label that outlaws organizations in Russia or accused of links to "undesirable" groups. On Friday, Russia's Justice Ministry added two more rights groups to the registry of foreign agents: Coming Out and Revers, which advocate for LGBT rights and provide assistance to Russia's embattled LGBT community. Russian law mandates a non-governmental organization, a media outlet, an informal movement or an individual to be listed as a foreign agent for having received foreign funding even a small donation from a foreign national counts and engaging in loosely defined political activity. OVD-Info, together with other rights groups, launched a campaign in September to abolish the "foreign agents" law. As of late December, more than 240 organizations and over 260,000 individuals had signed a petition that describes the law as "discriminatory and unlawful." OVD-Info submitted the signatures to Russia's lower parliament house, the State Duma. Okhotin called the website's obstruction "a new round of pressure on us and on the civic society." He said he thinks OVD-Info was targeted because of its prominence and its campaign against the "foreign agents" legislation. "We're very big, we're very visible, we're supported by a huge amount of people in Russia," Okhotin said, adding that more than 100,000 Russians support OVD-Info with donations. He said the group would continue to inform Russians about political repression despite the website being unavailable to viewers. "We will definitely find some form or another to keep the public informed," he told the AP. ___ Daniel Kozin contributed to this report. (Tribune News Service) The Russian Defense Ministry said more than 10,000 troops would return to their permanent bases in the Southern Military District after more than a month of training in the region, including in areas near the Ukraine border. The exercises took place throughout the district, including in the Crimea and Rostov regions that border Ukraine, according to a statement posted Saturday on the ministrys website. Ukraine estimates 122,000 Russian troops are within 124 miles of their shared border, up from about 100,000 just weeks ago, as Western nations and officials in Kyiv say Russia continues to amass forces ahead of a potential attack. A U.S. official, briefing reporters Thursday on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. also sees signs of a stepped up disinformation campaign from Russia, seeking to pin tensions on Kyiv. 2021 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. State Historical Museum and the Kremlin Tower on Red Square in Moscow on Dec. 8, 2021. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg) In this image released by Ukrainian Defense Ministry Press Service, Ukrainian soldiers use a launcher with US Javelin missiles during military exercises in Donetsk region, Ukraine, Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. (Ukrainian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP) () KYIV, Ukraine The president of Ukraine held a video call with 20 U.S. senators and members of Congress on Friday amid tensions with Russia, which recently stoked fears of a possible invasion by massing troops near Ukraine's border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with the senators and congressional representatives about the Russian troop buildup and the situation in his country's war-torn east, according to Zelenskyy's office. Russia-backed rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine since 2014. A statement from the president's office described "the importance of getting the United States involved in the process of a peaceful settlement" to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, an area known as Donbas. "Now, more than ever, it is not words that matter, but decisive actions," the statement quoted Zelenskyy as saying. "My goal is to stop the bloodshed in the east of Ukraine. It's impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas." Zelenskyy and the lawmakers also talked about applying further sanctions pressure on Russia, Washington's support of Kyiv's "Euro-Atlantic aspirations" and Ukraine's prospects for NATO membership. Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter tug-of-war since Moscow annexed the Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and threw its support behind the separatist insurgency that has since left more than 14,000 people dead. A 2015 peace deal, brokered by France and Germany, ended large-scale hostilities in Donbas, but efforts to reach a political settlement of the conflict have failed so far. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine reignited over the troop deployment near Ukraine's border. Officials in Ukraine and the West feared it might indicate plans for an invasion, but the Kremlin has denied that intent. Instead, Moscow has accused Kyiv of its own troop buildup in the east, saying Ukrainian military could be planning to reclaim the rebel-held areas by force. Russian President Vladimir Putin also has pressed the United States for guarantees that would preclude NATO from expanding east to Ukraine. The Western alliance and Ukraine have bristled at the demand. During his call with the American lawmakers and senators, Zelenskyy said "not a single third country can have a say in Ukraine's integration into NATO." "No agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine," he said. A Ukrainian navy sailor at his post on the command ship Donbas off Mariupol, Ukraine, on Dec. 15. (Serhiy Morgunov/for The Washington Post) MARIUPOL, Ukraine When the Ukrainian navy command ship was close enough to Russias shore to get the countrys state television channels, Capt. Oleksandr Hryhorevskyi switched on the news and wondered: Why all the fuss about his rusty old boat? The appearance of his more-than-50-year-old vessel aptly named Donbas, for the eastern region locked in an eight-year conflict between Ukraines armed forces and Moscow-backed separatists dominated Russian broadcasts one night this month. With an estimated 100,000 Russian troops massed on Ukraines border, the near-confrontation between Russian forces and the Donbas in the Sea of Azov could have been the spark for war on the ground. Russias main domestic intelligence agency, the FSB, accused the Donbas of navigating toward the Kerch Strait, the waterway between mainland Russia and annexed Crimea, which the ship hadnt filed for permission to pass. The FSB said the Donbas ignored its instructions to correct course and Kremlin propagandists quickly labeled the ships action a provocation. Margarita Simonyan, editor in chief of the government-funded television channel RT, banged the war drum loudest on Twitter. Has it started? Mother, dont let me down, she wrote. The flare-up ended when the Donbas turned around, less than three nautical miles from the Kerch Strait. But the incident, though ultimately harmless, underscored a strategic weakness for Ukraines military in a tinderbox for war. The Sea of Azov, a shallow internal body of water, smaller than Lake Michigan and bounded by Russia and Ukraine, is the one place the two countries forces risk direct conflict daily. Its packed with Russian ships there are about four times as many of them as there are Ukrainian vessels, according to Andrii Klymenko, the Kyiv-based editor in chief of the Black Sea News. And because there is no maritime border in the sea, the Russian fleet can get as close to the Ukrainian shore as it wishes, arguably making Ukraines southeastern seaside cities the most vulnerable in the country. U.S. intelligence has warned that the Kremlin could be planning a multipronged military attack against Ukraine as soon as early next year. For all the international attention paid to the concentration of Russian troops on Ukraines land borders, if an invasion originates from the sea, Ukrainian forces are largely powerless. They cannot legally take any action against until the first Russian soldier steps on land. Meanwhile, Ukraines fleet is limited in its movement on the Azov by what Kyiv says is Russias regular practice of restricting some zones at little notice for what it claims are artillery training exercises. The Ukrainian navy said this month that nearly 70% of the Azov was blocked for transport because of navigation warnings from Moscow. In terms of security, the Sea of Azov is dominated by Russia, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told The Washington Post. And in case of war, it will be heavily used by them to put pressure on our southern cities on the Azov shore. Under the current circumstances, Kuleba said, of course Russia dictates the situation in the Azov and basically uses it as a war theater. (The Washington Post) Captain 3rd Rank Oleksandr Hryhorevskyi, commander of the Donbas, on board the ship. (Serhiy Morgunov/for The Washington Post) The Ukrainian Maritime Border Guard boat approaching the ship Onyx off Mariupol on Dec. 16. (Serhiy Morgunov/for The Washington Post) Hryhorevskyi said the Donbas was anchored on Dec. 8 when he received a Russian navigation warning that the zone it was in was closing. That left him nowhere to go but in the direction of the Kerch Strait, he said. At around 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 9, a Russian ship contacted the Donbas to remind it that passage through the waterway required 48 hours notice. Hryhorevskyi said the Donbas responded that it did not plan to sail through the Kerch Strait. He said the vessel was unarmed. The Russian ship then asked for the Donbass plans. Hryhorevskyi said he declined to reveal them. They repeated the exchange four times, he said. By evening, the Donbas was flanked by three Russian ships with little room to maneuver, Hryhorevskyi said. He warned the Russians to back off as the Donbas turned around. Hryhorevskyi said a Russian attack aircraft flew over the Donbas and one of the Russian ships tailing it threatened to open fire if it didnt reverse course. The next day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told state television that the Donbas represented a new provocation at sea that was part of a string of provocative actions that are being carried out around our borders. In recent weeks, Russian officials have claimed that it is Ukraine and NATO that are threatening Russia at its border. Ukrainian officials have accused Russian ships of harassing their fleet in the Azov for years. Maritime border guards who patrol the sea in camouflage-patterned speedboats have documented actions by the Russians they deem provocations to present as evidence in international court filings. Lt. Cmdr. Volodymyr Yarovyi, acting deputy chief of staff of the Maritime Border Guard. (Serhiy Morgunov/for The Washington Post) Sometimes, a Russian ship will launch an aggressive course toward a Ukrainian one before making a last-second turn away, said Lt. Cmdr. Volodymyr Yarovyi, acting deputy chief of staff for the Ukrainian Maritime Border Guard. More often, he said, the Russian coast guard will attempt to hinder Ukrainian commercial ships by blocking their predetermined routes or conducting time-consuming searches of the cargo. One armed guard, standing on the stern of a Ukrainian Maritime Border Guard patrol boat, described an attempt to check a foreign cargo ship. His team informed the crew over radio dispatch, but then a Russian coast guard boat closer to the cargo ship moved between the vessels and threatened to consider it an attack if the Ukrainians came within two nautical miles. This is war, too, said Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraines national security and defense council. This is an element of their military strategy of how to beat our country. Other behaviors are more petty, Ukrainian naval officials said: Crew members on Russian ships occasionally point a laser light into a Ukrainian boats cabin. Though those alleged actions by Russia arent new, other, perhaps more troubling, ones are. Klymenko, the analyst, said Russia has started issuing navigation warnings to close sectors nearer to the shore, sometimes just three miles away, where you dont need binoculars to scout the location, Klymenko said. Russia has declared three such areas, near the Ukrainian ports of Mariupol, Berdyansk and Kherson, closed from Dec. 8 to Jan. 8, Klymenko said. What they have in mind, only time will tell, Klymenko added. Maybe its just psychological pressure, or maybe its really preparation for a possible war landing on the shore. Theres a case to be made that the Azovs shoreline is of more strategic and economic value to Russia than Ukraines war-battered eastern border regions. The Ukrainian land along the sea is what divides mainland Russia from annexed Crimea. The Ukrainian port cities of Mariupol and nearby Berdyansk on the seas western shore export products from the region. Just 60 miles up the coast, the Russian port of Taganrog is a hub for trade through Russias southwest. Danilov, of the national security and defense council, called the Azov a very difficult spot for us. Ukraine lost 70% of its naval fleet in 2014 when Russia seized Sevastopol, the Black Sea port on the Crimean Peninsula. Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said last month that construction of a new naval base in the Azov port of Berdyansk would be accelerated to repel Russian aggression in that region. Danilov warned that any attempt to invade Ukraine through the sea would be countered by Ukraines arsenal of Neptune anti-ship missiles, a batch of which the country ordered last year. Fydor Pahomov and his wife, Natalia, at home in the village of Berdyanske, recall memories of surviving the shelling of nearby Shyrokyne during the war with Russia-backed separatists. (Serhiy Morgunov/for The Washington Post) The trickle-down effects of tension at sea can also be felt on the shore, 15 miles east of Mariupol. There, the small village of Berdyanske used to be a cozy vacation spot and a hub for fishers. Now, because its close to territory controlled by Russia-backed separatists, cars have to pass at least three Ukrainian military checkpoints to get there. The flow of tourist money has stopped. So has fishing. The Ukrainian military fortified the shoreline several years ago by deploying land mines throughout the water. Though locals say a winter freeze long ago caused all of the mines to explode, signs still warn people against entering the water. Theres no longer a fishing base in the village, which means permits for those in the area arent issued. In Fydor Pahomovs sea-facing yard, tangled bundles of fishing nets hang off clotheslines. He used to have five fishing boats working under him. His main source of income has been stunted for years now. Pahomov said hes worried about a looming war with Russia. But most of all, hed like to get back on the sea. How am I supposed to feed two kids? he asked. This is nonsense. But this is how we live. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden speak with the NORAD Tracks Santa Operations Center on Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., and families calling into the NORAD system via teleconference in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus in Washington, Friday, Dec. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (Carolyn Kaster) NEW YORK CITY (Tribune News Service) Even tracking Santa Claus on Christmas Eve can turn ugly for President Biden these days. The commander-in-chief was ambushed during a feel-good holiday event with children when an Oregon parent participating remotely interjected Lets go Brandon, a phrase that is code for an expletive aimed at the president. Biden affably agreed with the parent, possibly reflecting that he does not know what the phrase means. I agree, lets go Brandon, Biden said. The moment quickly went viral as right-wing supporters of former President Donald Trump suggested Bidens reaction shows he is too old to be president. Biden supporters called the presidents remark a brushoff of the gibe that reflects his old-school classiness. The unwelcome political drama unfolded as Biden and First Lady Jill Biden took part in the annual pre-Christmas White House tradition of tracking Santa Clauss fictional journey from the North Pole to childrens homes across the world. During the event, the first couple heard from the commander of the U.S. militarys NORAD tracking system, who told them Kris Kringle and the reindeer were already zooming through the sky somewhere over Central Asia. Santas really moving, Man, Biden said. Thats a heavy sleigh. Biden chatted with children about Christmas in person, warning them to make sure to be in bed on time so Santa could deliver their presents. There was no hint at the nastiness to come as the president chatted with the four children. They told him they were hoping to get a piano, Nintendo gadgets and a Barbie doll, among other gifts. Jill Biden joked that she still has her childhood now ancient Barbie doll. The Oregon father and his children participated in the event via phone. The president was wrapping up the call by reminding the children to be in bed by 9 p.m. when the father, identified only as Jared, spoke out. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, Biden told the man. Yeah, I hope you guys have a wonderful Christmas as well. Merry Christmas and lets go Brandon, he said. After Biden agreed, the audio abruptly cut off and the Bidens moved on to talk with other families. Earlier Friday, the first couple made pre-Christmas visits to see a Washington, D.C., Christmas tree and to cheer ailing kids at Childrens National Hospital. The president, who has battled low polling numbers in recent months, whipped out his cell phone to show one boy a picture of the first familys new puppy, Commander. Both Bidens read from a childrens book called Olafs Night Before Christmas, from the Frozen story. Youre bringing us some joy, the president said to the kids. President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden and their new dog Commander, a purebred German shepherd puppy, meet virtually with service members around the world, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus in Washington, to thank them for their service and wish them a Merry Christmas. (Carolyn Kaster/AP) WASHINGTON President Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by his wife, Jill, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Qatar, Romania, Bahrain and the U.S. "As your commander in chief, I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, thank you, thank you," he told the service members. "We're grateful for your courage, your sacrifice, not only your sacrifice but your family's sacrifice." Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them they're "the solid steel spine of the nation," and emphasized the "truly sacred obligation" the nation has to care for soldiers and their families. Jill Biden expressed empathy for the difficulties their families experience spending the holidays away from their loved ones, noting that the Bidens experienced the same when their son Beau, who served as a major in the Delaware Army National Guard, was deployed to Iraq. The Bidens planned a relatively quiet Christmas at the White House with family. On Friday night the president and the first lady participated in Holy Trinity's Christmas Eve Mass virtually in the East Room, according to the White House, and held a pasta dinner and sleepover with their children and grandchildren, a Biden family tradition. As the coronavirus pandemic surges anew, driven by the highly infectious omicron variant, the Bidens sought with their public appearances and statements to offer a sense of unity and normalcy in an otherwise challenging season for many. In a Christmas statement, the Bidens praised the "enormous courage, character, resilience, and resolve" of the American people in the face of the pandemic, and offered prayers that the nation would find "light in the darkness" during a difficult season. "During this season of joy, we are inspired by the countless Americans who are a reminder that the things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic," the Bidens said in their statement. And the call to soldiers was just the latest Christmas tradition the two participated in, after spending Christmas eve spreading holiday cheer around Washington. On Friday morning, they visited Children's National Hospital to offer holiday greetings to young patients and their families. The president showed off photos of their new puppy and Jill read a children's book to patients. Later, the two stopped by a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament amid branches decked out with photos of his wife's face, apples and small chalkboards, in homage to her teaching career. Both answered calls to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's Santa-tracking service, speaking to parents and children about their Christmas wishlists. The collapsed Champlain Towers South on June 26, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. (Ricky Carioti/For The Washington Post) MIAMI The night before Christmas was always the most joyful one of the year for Elena Blasser. Nochebuena the good night was all about family and food and music. Blassers mother, Elena Chavez, would cook a huge pot of black beans. She made enough for 20 people, and the Dos Elenas, as they were called, would spend the day and most of the evening in celebration with their children and grandchildren in Miami. Eating, drinking, then more eating, just hanging out. Doing nothing, but doing everything, you know? remembered Pablo Rodriguez, Blassers son. The big thing was being together. Around midnight, Blasser would return to her condominium in Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Fla., about 30 miles away. Chavez often stayed there with her, and both would then be back at Rodriguezs house early Christmas morning to start opening presents. This year, Nochebuena comes amid the familys ongoing grief. Christmas Eve marks six months since the condo tower collapsed in the predawn hours of June 24, killing the two women. Ninety-six others died with them. It was going to be difficult enough, but the fact that its the exact date makes it so much worse, Rodriguez said recently. It was my moms favorite holiday. She looked forward to it every year. This year its going to be excruciating. This was just so unnatural The awful, unique aspects of the disaster one of the deadliest building failures in U.S. history have made healing especially difficult, as have the ensuing investigations and lawsuits, families say. None of us knew exactly how to handle it, said Rodriguez, who is struggling to help his 6-year-old son cope. When I was younger, my grandfather died of a heart attack. My dad died of cancer. I can deal with that. Its hard, but its part of life. This was just so unnatural that I was at a loss. Therapist Edith Shiro continues to counsel numerous people whose loved ones died. Some feel marginalized within the overall tragedy because their relatives had only been visiting Surfside by sheer happenstance on that summer night. All the contents of their lives were not obliterated. Since they didnt own a unit, they didnt suffer the same financial loss as other families. They feel they dont have a voice, simply because theres no name on a deed, Shiro said. They feel a little like theyre in the shadows. Chana Wasserman lives in Surfside, not far from the apartment her parents, Tzvia and Ingrid Ainsworth, had been renting since January. They were on the 11th floor, with a balcony where her mother, Itty, liked to watch the sunrise. Whats left is now a gaping pit in the ground. I ride my bike or walk by it. Its part of my daily routine, Wasserman said in mid-December. My birthday was yesterday. I wrote a letter to my mother, and I wrote a letter to my father. I read the letters and spent the morning crying. Crying - thats how I turned 35. Time and again since late June, she and her siblings have gathered for events and felt a huge space at the table because of their parents absence. Thanksgiving, the Jewish holidays, birthdays weve had at least 12 different occasions in the last six months where they would have been here, not to mention the daily interaction and support, she said. For Hanukkah, they would have been here lighting the menorah with the kids. This year, it was just sad and empty. The site where the 136-unit building once stood was cleared months ago of masses of broken concrete and pulverized debris. The attorneys acting as receivers in the main lawsuit against the condominium association are paying $100,000 a month to protect and preserve the property. More than half of that goes to dewater it and keep rain and tidal water from flooding what once was an underground garage. Maria Iliana Monteagudo, shown in late June, barely escaped from her Champlain Towers apartment and still feels traumatized. (Lori Rozsa/For The Washington Post) Haunting escape Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Michael A. Hanzman is encouraging the receivers to sell the land as quickly as possible so condo owners can be compensated. The only potential buyer to date is Dubai-based Damac Properties, led by billionaire developer Hussain Sajwani, a business partner of former president Donald Trump. His offer of $120 million is well below the $150 million that Hanzman has set as the minimum families should get. Even half a year later, the cause of the collapse remains unknown. A local grand jury released a report of its investigation last week and made 40 recommendations. It called for building recertifications every decade Champlain Towers was about to undergo its 40-year recertification when the south structure collapsed and for requiring condo associations to document annually that regular and routine maintenance is being done. We cannot let this happen again! the report states. Maria Iliana Monteagudo is one of the survivors. Yet her harrowing escape rushing six floors down a dark stairwell as walls groaned and cracked haunts her still. She now rents an apartment a few miles away. It is on the 16th floor, and I pray every time I go into the elevator, she said. I lost everything She had invested almost everything she had in her condo, moving in late last December. That didnt leave time to decorate for the holiday as she usually would. Its my favorite time of the year. My birthday is December 3rd, and my gift to myself is to have the house ready to receive baby Jesus, she said. But I lost everything. Photos of my children, my wedding. I left with nothing but the clothes I was wearing and my purse. Some of her new neighbors have invited her over for Christmas, but she is unsure whether shell go. Like Blasser and Chavez, Monteagudo always celebrated the night before with food and family. I have no heart or desire to decorate or cook or do anything. I dont know when that feeling will leave me, she said. There is no joy. Rodriguez and his wife will try to make their celebration as normal as possible for son JP, who was close to his grandmother and great-grandmother. The family will see other relatives, eat cherished foods, open gifts. And theyll play traditional Christmas music, including his mothers favorite - a lively, upbeat, 11-minute song called Medley Navideno by Trulla Express that is popular in Puerto Rico. Blasser was raised there after she and her mother fled Cuba in 1959. Its a long song, but she would have so much fun with it, especially on the 24th, Rodriguez said. I heard it playing the other day when I was out, and it stopped me in my tracks. Everything just hit me, all over again. The Bay of Plenty winning ticket was one of seven to share First Division winnings with the winning ticket sold on MyLotto. Other winning tickets were brought in Northland, Kaikohe, Hawera, Paraparaumu and two in Wellington. Powerball was not struck and has therefore rolled over to Wednesday night, where the jackpot will be $17 million. Meanwhile, Strike Four has also rolled over tonight and will be $500,000 on Wednesday night. To round out a night of winning, Lottos Triple Dip Christmas promotion with more than 300 extra prizes was also drawn, including one prize of $1 million cash and five All-Electric Mercedes-Benz EQCs vehicles. A lucky player from Levin will be celebrating after winning the top promotion prize of $1 million. The winning $1 million voucher was sold at Levin Mall Lotto in Levin. The winning Mercedes-Benz EQC voucher numbers and locations are as follows: Voucher number Store Location 1338842 New World New Plymouth New Plymouth 452248 Waiouru Four Square Waiouru 1168606 Pak N Save Porirua Porirua 1243502 Kirby's Candies Spark Central Wellington 874204 MyLotto Wellington The full results of Lottos Christmas promotion are available on www.mylotto.co.nz. All of New Zealand is now in the COVID-19 Protection Framework - otherwise known as the traffic light settings. Lotto NZ counters can open at all traffic light settings providing retailers comply with health and safety guidelines set out by the Ministry of Health. Auckland will move to the Orange traffic light setting at 11.59pm on 30 December. As a result, planning and preparation is now underway for Lotto NZ to recommence the live Lotto draw, with the first live draw scheduled to take place on Saturday 8 January 2022. Until then, we will continue using computer generated draws under Audit New Zealand scrutiny for Lotto, Powerball, and Strike. Anyone who bought their ticket from any of the above stores should write their name on the back of their ticket and check it at any Lotto NZ outlet, online at mylotto.co.nz, or through the Lotto NZ App. Meri Kirihimete, we did it, says Predator Free Bay of Plenty interim coordinator Fiona Lavin. Fiona is celebrating not only Christmas, but the reaching of a significant goal. We hit a major project milestone, reaching 4000 trappers in our network, says Fiona in a Christmas email out to all the Predator Free Bay of Plenty supporters. Predator Free BOP is a community initiative to trap rats in order to protect NZ native birds. The aim of the organisation is to get a rat trap in every fifth backyard, covering suburban Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty area. I am so amazed by the hard work of our community of volunteers and I cannot thank you enough for all that you contribute to our project. Thank you for all that you do. If you are like me, your inbox has been filled with end-of-year emails wishing you a Happy Holidays, and letting you know close-down periods, says Fiona in her email. Well this will be a little different! Firstly, pests don't stop for the holidays and so you will still be able to get hold of me if you need to by email, preferably. Rats, possums and stoats kill an estimated 25 million native birds per year in New Zealand. Fiona will be back in her office from January 10 for anyone wanting to do a trap pick-up. As I sit here typing this email, I can hear tui calling outside and I know that we are making a difference, 2022 will be the year that we begin our monitoring so we can show that difference! Thank you again for everything that you contribute, we rely on our community leaders to be our voice across the region. Nga mihi nui, says Fiona. To contact Fiona Lavin at Predator Free Bay of Plenty email predatorfreebop@gmail.com or go to the website www.predatorfreebop.nz or Facebook: www.facebook.com/predatorfreebop Inter-hospital transfers, winch rescues, motor vehicle accidents, farm/rural rescues, medical events and search and rescues were all missions attended to throughout the year, helping patients get the medical care they need rapidly, saving lives across the North Island every single day. The year started with a busy month for the crew, carrying out 53 missions in January. Thats at least 1 mission every day. While kiwis were out doing the things they love over the summer period, the rescue helicopter crew were always rescue-ready. With winter coming into play, the high demand continued. From motor vehicle accidents to medical events and rescues, the TECT Rescue Helicopter carried out 104 missions from June to August. Throughout the year, the TECT Rescue Helicopter was seen in various different locations including Whakatane, Matakana Island, Te Kaha, Coromandel and Opotiki, to name a few. The rescue helicopter at a Lake Rotokawau job. Supplied. Whakatane was the most visited location, with 35 missions being carried out to Whakatane Hospital. Every second counts in a rescue situation. A rescue helicopter can provide medical care to a patient in need much faster than a road ambulance, particularly when the patient is in rural or remote areas. This could be the life-saving factor. Rural missions made up over 24 per cent of missions in 2021, with the TECT Rescue Helicopter carrying out 108 missions to rural or remote areas. Another 14 were carried out to bush walking or hiking incidents to which the patients required a rescue helicopter. Whilst many of us are looking forward to a well-earned break after a challenging year, the rescue crew is gearing up for a busy holiday season. The TECT Rescue Helicopter will remain operational 24/7 throughout the entire holiday period, meaning the residents of the Bay of Plenty, Coromandel and Waikato can rest assured knowing they will be there if needed. The greatest gift you could give this Christmas is time, time for patients to spend with their loved ones this holiday period, says a TECT Rescue spokesperson. Help keep these life-saving missions available to your family and friends this summer. Donate today at rescue.org.nz. ebonho Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune Posts: 5,594 Thanked: 7,416 Times Re: My Karizma Dilemma due to lockdown Quote: charanreddy Originally Posted by Please do understand the risks of doing this. A Fine is the tip of the iceberg. God forbid you hit some one by accident or worse get hit, you will find no lenience from the authorities, due to lack of TP insurance and registration. Essentially you are not allowed to ride the vehicle on road per law of the land. See if you can do some Jugaad at RTO. You can carry the engine number stenciled papers if needed. Else its too much of a hassle for a 15+ Year old bike. If it has sentimental value , then be prepared to spend money and effort to getting this back on the road. These bikes and cars were driven and ridden on our roads for decades without hassle, with a one time lifetime registration. This new "policy" is only red tape to make money. Both small scale and for vested industry interests, to increase throughput and sales. So pay the money. I'll stick to what I said. Its no different to any other fine. An unregistered vehicle (like a brand new one as well) is not the same as riding or driving on the road and hitting someone without a valid License. Ditto for not having Insurance. If you do not have Insurance, pay out of pocket. Yet the new "laws" mandate having compulsory TP insurance. The reason is that without that, in most cases people just used to put their hands up stating with a shrug of their shoulders an inability to pay. Karo kya karna hai attitude. So its a workaround to a social malaise. In ending, its not like authorities are going to go easy on you if you hit someone with all of the above. Its an all or none thing. I am not proposing that the gent ride around indefinitely on an unregistered vehicle. Just giving him the path of least resistance as one of the possible options. Cheers, Doc I'm aware of this. I currently have 2 cars, 2 bikes, and 1 scooter, all without a valid registration.These bikes and cars were driven and ridden on our roads for decades without hassle, with a one time lifetime registration.This new "policy" is only red tape to make money. Both small scale and for vested industry interests, to increase throughput and sales.So pay the money. I'll stick to what I said. Its no different to any other fine. An unregistered vehicle (like a brand new one as well) is not the same as riding or driving on the road and hitting someone without a valid License.Ditto for not having Insurance. If you do not have Insurance, pay out of pocket. Yet the new "laws" mandate having compulsory TP insurance. The reason is that without that, in most cases people just used to put their hands up stating with a shrug of their shoulders an inability to pay. Karo kya karna hai attitude. So its a workaround to a social malaise.In ending, its not like authorities are going to go easy on you if you hit someone with all of the above. Its an all or none thing.I am not proposing that the gent ride around indefinitely on an unregistered vehicle. Just giving him the path of least resistance as one of the possible options.Cheers, Doc Last edited by ebonho : 25th December 2021 at 13:46 . Contracting COVID-19 a week out from Christmas has been the proverbial cherry on top of a tough year for Kingsville mother Ferdi Hepworth. After a tough second year of lockdowns, Ms Hepworth has been confined to her bed for the past six weeks with a serious spinal injury. Then, last weekend, her nine-year-old daughter, Olive, who has special needs, tested positive for COVID-19. Cohealth worker Heather Svendsen dropping off a Christmas hamper to Kingsville mum Ferdi Hepworth who is battling COVID-19 and a spinal injury alone on Chirstmas Day. Credit:Chris Hopkins Finally, four days ago, the virus came for Ms Hepworth, too. Its actually been quite bad, she said. Its like a bad flu, but the first few days were like nothing else [Ive experienced]. Labor leader Anthony Albanese has gained ground against Prime Minister Scott Morrison in key election tests on managing the economy and the pandemic, building a narrow lead when voters are asked who is best to oversee health and aged care. Voters have swung to Labor over the past six months when asked which party and leader is united and competent, while cutting Mr Morrisons lead from 11 to 5 per cent on whether he is the best choice for households. The long-term story is one of Scott Morrison and the Coalition losing skin but Labor not necessarily benefiting or at least not benefitting fully, said Resolve director Jim Reed. Credit: Mr Morrison and the Coalition retain big leads on policy performance on the nations finances, borders and security, in exclusive findings from the Resolve Political Monitor that reveal the contest on key issues ahead of the election. Asked which party and leader was best to manage the economy, voters favoured Mr Morrison and the Coalition by 16 per cent in net terms in November, down from a lead of 23 per cent in June. News of the Duke of Edinburgh, in hospital and nearing the end of his life at the age of 99, did not halt the onslaught. Having already declared he felt really let down by [his] father, who had stopped taking his calls, Prince Harry went on to give a series of candid interviews. Having therapy on air to overcome his past trauma, he spoke of the genetic pain and life as a royal as a mix between The Truman Show and living in a zoo. Later in the year, the announcement of his autobiography coming in 2022 promised his unvarnished truth about his years growing up in Britain before fleeing to California with his new family to find financial freedom. Even the birth of the second Sussex baby, a little girl in June, was marred by a muddle over her name, Lilibet Diana. She was named in the Queens honour, said Harry and Meghan. The Queen whose childhood nickname of Lilibet was used by Prince Philip, her parents and her closest friends was not asked but told, sources replied. Prince Harry and Meghan released a Christmas card featuring son Archie and the first public photo of their daughter, Lilibet. Credit:Alexi Lubomirski/Archewell Foundation The duchess won her case against the Mail on Sunday twice, but more was aired about her relationship with the royal family than anyone would have wished. Her in-laws were constantly berating her husband over why they hadnt put a stop to Thomas Markles misbehaviour, she said in text messages revealed in the case paperwork. They fundamentally dont understand. Scandals and sadness And so it went on. The Prince of Wales was embroiled in an embarrassing cash-for-honours story, which saw his one-time closest aide resign from his charity after coordinating with fixers over an honour for a Saudi billionaire donor without the Princes knowledge, of course. Barbados removed the Queen as head of state in what was seen as the first of a domino effect for the Commonwealth realms over the coming years. In May, the Queens new five-month-old puppy Fergus died, just as she was finding her feet again after the loss of the duke. Prince Andrew has said he unequivocally denies the allegations against him. Credit:AP Most seriously, the ghost of the Duke of Yorks decades-long association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein finally reached crunch point, with his accuser Virginia Giuffre serving legal papers and former friend Ghislaine Maxwell in court. Loading That was the moment, says a palace source, that led to the family working in consultation. The Duke was encouraged to step back from his public duties. That was really the beginning of the formulation of what you could call a Queen, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cambridge alliance. And major decisions about anything affecting the future of the monarch now include Prince Charles and Prince William, where they once would have gone to the Queen alone. The private secretaries of Kensington Palace, representing William and Kate, are involved in the big institutional meetings in a way they were not several years ago, and each generation is having input into decisions they will one day live with once the Queen is no longer with them. What its proved is that when it comes to the big issues, they all think alike, says a different palace source, of recent challenges. You couldnt get a bit of paper between them. Therefore, there is this continuity: they understand whats important and what isnt. When push comes to shove, can you be half a member of the Royal family or not? No you cant. Theyre rock solid on that. Youve got to go out and be seen - they all agree on that. A third added: The Queen is still very much the boss. I see it almost like a chairman, COO, CEO roles. She sets the values and makes the ultimate decision, [the Prince of Wales] advises and enforces, and [the Duke of Cambridge] provides further advice and support. They all have different strengths. They all have, very usefully, different perspectives as well. It helps, when youre taking decisions that people will have different views about, if youve got multi-generational apparatus for trying to get to the right answer. The consequence of that of course is that it brings father and son closer together, and all three ultimately closer together because theyre doing more all together. Family pride The result has been some of the brightest moments of the year. The public warmth has been unmistakable. In the once icy seas of emotionally stunted filial relationships has come gushing praise. I am very proud of my son, William, said Charles, ahead of his Earthshot Prize to help save the environment. It is a source of great pride to me that the leading role my husband played in encouraging people to protect our fragile planet, lives on through the work of our eldest son Charles and his eldest son William, the Queen told COP26 in her official address. I could not be more proud of them. Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, laugh as the Queen prepares to cut a cake with a sword at The Big Lunch initiative, during the G7 summit in June. Credit:AP In June, the ladies of the family - the Queen, Duchess of Cornwall and Duchess of Cambridge - giggled their way through their first joint engagement in nearly a decade, as Her Majesty cut a cake with an ornamental sword. And who can forget the great return for British cinema, which saw Prince Charles, Camilla, William and Kate team up on the red carpet for the glittering James Bond premiere? In the tough moments, too, there has been unity. Statements which would once have been drafted and issued by Buckingham Palace alone are largely agreed by aides across all three households and - for the most important - the royals themselves. From left, Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, and Prince Charles, on the red carpet for the premiere of the James Bond film No Time to Die. Credit:Getty Everyone realised that stories about households fighting is just a distraction from the far more important things going on in the world, a palace insider says. The family focus has been on that, looking outwards. When the Queen said recollections may vary over the Sussexess most shocking claims of racism, it would have been with Prince Charles and Prince Williams approval. When Prince Harry had to forgo his military patronages against his will at the end of his trial year living the American dream, the working Royal family were regretful but firm that the line between the monarchy and making money must be clear. The recent row with the BBC, which infuriated aides with the Princes, saw a rare joint statement from all three palace press secretaries representing their bosses. Loading Some of this, of course, has been for practical reasons. While private and press secretaries once had to arrange a formal meeting in the diary, or telephone through a switchboard to put pen to paper, they now fire WhatsApp messages to one another day and night. The technological leap of the pandemic made it suddenly possible for the Queen to simply videocall her two heirs for a chat at the same time, should she wish to. With Prince Charles and Prince William now doing investitures for the Queen at Windsor Castle rather than Buckingham Palace, they can pop in for a cup of tea and a chat in the private apartments close by. There is not, several sources said, a great reimagination of the Prince of Waless personal relationship with his son. While much closer than they were a decade ago, it is unwise to imagine any huge emotional outpouring between them. Rather, there has been a concerted effort to support each others work publicly, uniting in their causes and messaging. Prince William, one canny royal observer pointed out, has steered well clear of the cash-for-honours stories involving his fathers charity, keenly aware of the risk of being tarred with the same brush. Prince Harry, left, and Prince William at the unveiling of a statue they commissioned of their mother, Princess Diana, on what would have been her 60th birthday, July 1, 2021. Credit:AP Above all, sources say, the Queen, Prince Charles and Prince William are agreed on the purpose of the head of nation: to unify, to provide stability, to celebrate the achievements of others and support their service. Increasingly this year, they have also been embracing what lesser mortals might describe simply as the fun side of the job. The happiness business Lord Charteris, the Queens former private secretary, once described the Royal family as being in the happiness business, spreading a little cheer where it is in short supply. In the sometimes very dark days of 2021, this objective has come into its own. Little has topped Her Majestys rather unexpected visit to the cobbles of Coronation Street in July, where she walked out to meet a cast of old favourites to the soaps theme tune. For others, it was a letter that brought joy. In October, when she must already have been feeling somewhat unwell, the Queen elegantly turned down an Oldie of the Year Award, claiming you are only as old as you feel and she therefore did not qualify. The day the Queen went to Coronation Street, to meet actors in the long-running soap, on July 8, 2021. Credit:AP Prince William, too, has embraced the lighter side of life, after the serious work of his Earthshot Prize. Recent interviews have heard him share his headbanging music taste, answer quickfire questions about his Christmas plans from children, and delight in talking about his three childrens cheeky antics at home. For keen observers of the British monarchy, the loyal public has rallied in protective support of a Queen enduring a terrible time, even before she was laid low with a mystery illness which left her undergoing tests in hospital. She has lost her husband of 73 years, she has endured the public fallout of family matters, and all against the backdrop of the pandemic, said Emily Nash, royal editor at Hello! magazine, and yet she has remained as steadfast as ever with her family rallying around her. Certainly, after seeing her sitting alone at Prince Philips funeral, there was a huge outpouring of sympathy and support for her, particularly from people who had gone through similar experiences themselves during Covid-19. The photo of the Queen sitting alone in St Georges Chapel ahead of the funeral of Prince Philip touched many who had attended funerals under COVID restrictions. Credit:AP The future The Sussexes will continue to plough their furrows with Netflix and Spotify, serving up books and interviews and - hopefully for all involved - finding quiet contentment in their new riches and healthy family. Their mission to activate compassion in action and uplight and unite communities continues through their non-profit, Archewell. The civil suit against the Duke of York will see justice done in one way or another. Hopes of a full return to public life are vanishingly small, despite the plans for his rehabilitation dreamt up during his imposed isolation at Royal Lodge. The Queen, when she is fully recovered and back in the public eye, will be joined at all times by a member of her family, both for companionship and to step in should she have to make a last-minute decision to stay at home. Loading It has definitely been a turbulent year for the family and the institution more broadly, says a source. Some of that has brought some of the family closer together. The Queen is untouchable and will always be untouchable now. Its been a hard year and everyone will do everything they can to support and serve her. As the Queen recovers her strength after illness, she has much to look forward to. That affection from the public and that unmatched thrill of seeing her in real life will be made plain next year, as she reaches her 70th year on the throne a feat unmatched in British history. Every detail of her Platinum Jubilee celebrations has been planned with the Queens taste and comfort in mind. An all-singing, all-dancing pageant, a horse show designed around her love of all things equine, a concert, the street parties, the tree-planting and the flag-waving: it will be pomp and pageantry of the like this worn-down nation has forgotten can exist. And she will never stand alone. The Telegraph, London Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Airlines Cancel Flights Due to COVID-19 Staffing Shortages NEW YORKAirlines canceled hundreds of flights as measures taken in response to the Omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels at some carriers during the busy holiday travel season. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines together canceled more than 600 flights on Friday and Saturday. As of early evening Friday, Delta canceled had 149 flights on Friday and 188 for Christmas Day, according to FlightAware. (Other factors, such as weather, are also causing cancellations.) United called off 189 flights on Friday, about 10 percent of its schedule, and 140 on Saturday. Planned cancellations continued into Sunday. Not all airlines said COVID-19 was disrupting their travel schedules. American Airlines said it had nothing to report, while Southwest Airlines said things are running smoothly. JetBlue, which FlightAware said had canceled nearly 150 flights over Friday and Saturday, did not respond to a request for comment. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year. Airlines encouraged workers to quit in 2020, when air travel collapsed, and were caught short-staffed this year as travel recovered. The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation, United said in a statement. As a result, weve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport. Delta said it canceled flights Friday because of the impact of Omicron and possibility of bad weather after it had exhausted all options and resourcesincluding rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying. The airlines both said they were trying to rebook passengers. While some travelers canceled holiday plans because of rising case numbers, many others kept to their vacations during some of the years busiest travel days. The Transportation Security Administration said it expects to screen nearly 30 million people from Dec. 20 through Jan. 3, compared with nearly 44 million during the last holiday season before the pandemic. Germany-based Lufthansa said Friday that it was canceling a dozen long-haul transatlantic flights over the Christmas holiday period because of a massive rise in sick leave among pilots. The cancellations on flights to Houston, Boston, and Washington come despite a large buffer of additional staff for the period. The airline says it couldnt speculate on whether COVID-19 infections or quarantines were responsible because it was not informed about the sort of illness. Passengers were booked on other flights. Australian airline Jetstar said many of its workers had to test and isolate because of COVID-19 spread, leading to last-minute delays and cancellations. It said it has rebooked the majority of passengers. FlightAware said Jetstar had 45 cancellations on Thursday and 34 on Friday. Travelers pass a sign near a COVID-19 testing site in Terminal E at Logan Airport in Boston, on Dec. 21, 2021. (Charles Krupa/AP Photo) According to FlightAware, there are more than 3,900 canceled flights on Friday and Saturday, with close to half of the cancellations by Chinese airlines. About 30 percent of affected flightsmore than 1,100were to, from or within the United States. This is still a small fraction of global flights. FlightAware says it has tracked more than 100,000 arrivals in the past 24 hours. Coronavirus infections fueled by the new variant have also squeezed staffing at hospitals, police departments, supermarkets, and other critical operations that have struggled to maintain a full contingent of front-line workers. To ease staffing shortages, countries including Spain and the United Kingdom have reduced the length of COVID-19 quarantines by letting people return to work sooner after testing positive or being exposed to the virus. Delta CEO Ed Bastian was among those who have called on the Biden administration to take similar steps or risk further disruptions in air travel. On Thursday, the United States shortened COVID-19 isolation rules for health care workers only. By David Mchugh and Tali Arbel The Google and Facebook logos, and the Australian flag are displayed in an illustration photo. (Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters) Australia Puts Website Accused of Fake Journalists on Register for Payment by Facebook, Google Australias ground-breaking law forcing platforms like Google and Facebook to pay local publishers for news faces an unlikely test case: a website that experts say uses fake journalist profiles that has won regulatory backing for its bid to be paid. Australias regulator in charge of enforcing the law, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, last month added News Copan almost-unknown site without a physical address to the public register of companies who can negotiate licensing deals with the parents of Facebook and Google under the government system. The move by the ACMA to clear the site through an initial vetting process intended to support local news by giving the Australian government the power to shape deals with Facebook and Google raises questions about how the still-contentious law will be implemented, several legal experts said. News Cop features articles rewritten from other news providers. It has no physical address other than a post office box, and was registered as a company on Feb. 21, 2021, records show, three days before the content law was passed. It is the only media company on the register with no business records before 2021. Until recently, the News Cop site credited reporters with accompanying pictures that appear to have been faked, according to two experts. Adam Cox, named on the ACMA register as News Cops contact, declined to answer questions about the journalist profiles. In emails and calls with Reuters, he said that News Cop did not stand to benefit financially from being on the ACMA register and that the company made money from donations from readers. Richard Holden, an economics professor at the University of New South Wales, said including News Cop on the register, which defines which news providers the Big Tech companies must compensate for their content, undermined the laws intent to support public interest journalism and shows you that these rules are easily gamed. The fact that this appears to have got through the gate, at least so far, is kind of troubling, he said. An ACMA spokesperson said that since authorising News Cop, the agency had gone back to the company and asked about the registered news business and its production of news source content. The spokesperson declined to provide details of its inquiries. Inclusion on the register does not guarantee News Cop will get payments from Facebook and Google. The office of the federal treasurer first must designate one of the tech giants for government interventionin which a mediator decides what the companies must pay for contenta step it has not yet taken. Representatives for Facebook, which changed the name of its parent entity to Meta, and Google, which is owned by Alphabet Inc, also declined to comment. Both companies opposed the law and threatened to pull operations out of Australia, but relented when the government added steps that raised the bar for designation. News Cop is not related to Rupert Murdochs News Corp, which secured deals with Facebook and Google before the Australian licensing regime became law. The 28 companies on ACMAs list may secure deals if the government intervenes. A News Corp spokesperson did not respond to Reuters calls and emails requesting comment. More Oversight Required Tim Graham, a misinformation researcher at Queensland University of Technology, analysed 14 photographs posted as though they were News Cop staff and found 13 almost certainly had been generated by AI software. Elise Thomas, an analyst with the Institute for Strategic Dialogue who specialises in online misinformation, said most of the profile images had a strong chance of having been software generated. After Reuters inquiries, all bylines on News Cop articles were changed to Coxs name, with journalist photographs changed to a picture of a monkey. Asked about the change, Cox said, I have no idea, Im sorry. On its website, the company says profit will be donated to charity. It also says Australias media law, which was passed in February, is intended to address the power imbalance between big tech and news media organisations like ourselves. If fake news organisations are appearing on the register of eligible news businesses, it is clear that more oversight is required and definitions of what can be included need to be reviewed, said Tanya Notley, an associate professor at University of Western Sydney and deputy chair of the Australian Media Literacy Alliance. Other critics of the law include free-market proponents such as Holden, who say the market, not the government, should decide who is paid for their news. From the beginning, Facebook and Google opposed being forced to pay at all. The laws impact is being closely watched globally; France and Canada, among others, are considering similar regimes in which Big Tech pays news providers for content. Several other established media organisations are campaigning for Facebook and Google to be pushed into mediation. If they succeed, the tech giants would be required to negotiate licensing deals with every company on the ACMA register, including News Cop. Representatives for Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher, who oversees ACMA, declined to comment about News Cops inclusion on the register and the scope of the law. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which drafted the law at the treasurers request, declined to comment. ($1 = 1.4059 Australian dollars) By Byron Kaye President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden meet virtually with service members around the world to thank them for their service and wish them a Merry Christmas, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, on Dec. 25, 2021. (Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo) Bidens Mark Christmas With Holiday Calls to Service Members WASHINGTONPresident Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by his wife, Jill, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps., Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Qatar, Romania, Bahrain, and the United States. As your commander in chief, I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, thank you, thank you, he told the service members. Were grateful for your courage, your sacrifice, not only your sacrifice but your familys sacrifice. Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them theyre the solid steel spine of the nation, and emphasized the truly sacred obligation the nation has to care for soldiers and their families. Jill Biden expressed empathy for the difficulties their families experience spending the holidays away from their loved ones, noting that the Bidens experienced the same when their son Beau, who served as a major in the Delaware Army National Guard, was deployed to Iraq. The Bidens planned a relatively quiet Christmas at the White House with family. In a Christmas statement, the Bidens praised the enormous courage, character, resilience, and resolve of the American people in the face of the pandemic, and offered prayers that the nation would find light in the darkness during a difficult season. During this season of joy, we are inspired by the countless Americans who are a reminder that the things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic, the Bidens said in their statement. On Friday morning, they visited Childrens National Hospital to offer holiday greetings to young patients and their families. The president showed off photos of their new puppy and Jill read a childrens book to patients. Later, the two stopped by a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament amid branches decked out with photos of his wifes face, apples, and small chalkboards, in homage to her teaching career. Both answered calls to the North American Aerospace Defense Commands Santa-tracking service, speaking to parents and children about their Christmas wishlists. By Alexandra Jaffe Child Recovered Safely After Shes Allegedly Kidnapped by Armed Father LOS ANGELESA 26-year-old man considered and armed dangerous has been arrested after allegedly snatching his 23-month-old daughter from her mothers home in the Echo Park community of Los Angeles, authorities said Dec. 24. The child was safely recovered. Leonardo Rosales and another man were spotted at an apartment complex on Pico Canyon Road in Stevenson Ranch, where he was taken into custody, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Departments Santa Clarita Station. It wasnt clear when the arrest took place. Catalina Reyes Canino was seen with her father, Rosales, at about 10:45 p.m. Dec. 23 in the area of South Reno Street and Beverly Boulevard, near the Echo Park community, the California Highway Patrol reported. Officers responding to a radio call of a kidnap in progress in the 100 block of South Reno Street were met by the girls mother, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) reported. She told the LAPD officers that she and Rosales, her ex-boyfriend, had an ongoing child custody dispute and that there was a restraining order on file against him. Police said Rosales has no custodial rights to Canino. The mother said Leonardo showed up at her residence with two additional male suspects, according to an LAPD statement. Leonardo forced his way into the residence and threatened the family while armed with a knife. He forcibly removed the child and fled in a gray Honda Accord with unknown license plate. Travelers wait in line at Delta Airlines check-in at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Calif., on Dec. 24, 2021. (David McNew/AFP via Getty Images) Christmas Eve Air Travel Doubles Over Last Year as American Flyers Shrug Off Omicron Fears American travelers seemed to shrug off fears of the Omicron variant as they took to the skies with confidence on Christmas Eve, with airport security data showing over twice as many people flying on Dec. 24 compared to the same day last year, even as multiple airlines across the country canceled hundreds of flights. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said in a Dec. 25 tweet that over 1.7 million travelers were screened at checkpoints across the United States on Christmas Eve, a number thats over twice as high as the nearly 847,000 screened on the same day last year. Still, thats around 800,000 fewer screenings than on Christmas Eve 2019, an indication that the outbreak continues to bedevil air travel and hold back the industrys rebound to pre-pandemic levels. In the face of last years COVID-19 winter surge, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urged Americans not to travel for Christmas, stoking fears that Americans taking trips would fan the flames of the outbreak. This years domestic travel guidance from the CDC recommends people avoid travel unless theyre fully vaccinated or have recovered from a COVID-19 infection within the past 90 days. But if they do decide to travel, the agency urges people get tested before and after their trips. COVID-19 is the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus. The Omicron variant has been detected in most states and territories in the United States and is rapidly increasing the proportion of COVID-19 cases it is causing, the CDC said on Dec. 20. The agency added that scenario analyses show that the spread of Omicron in the country is likely to lead to a national surge in the coming weeks with peak daily numbers of new infections that could exceed previous peaks. Early studies from drugmakers indicate that some of the current treatments for COVID-19 seem to be effective against Omicron, while early data from South Africa suggests it is far less severe. Still, even if Omicron infection does lead to less severe disease, its rapid growth ratebelieved to come from a combination of higher transmissibility and increased immune evasionwill likely mean more infections overall and so the absolute numbers of people with severe outcomes could be substantial, the CDC said. The higher number of Christmas Eve airport screenings comes as multiple airlines across the United States canceled hundreds of flights on Dec. 24, citing a nationwide surge in Omicron cases that has jumbled schedules and drawn down staffing levels. According to Flight Aware, which provides real-time flight tracking data, United Airlines canceled 201 flights on Friday, Delta canceled 173, and American Airlines cancelled 24. In total, 690 flights have been canceled within, into, or out of the United States on Christmas Eve, while total cancellations globally amounted to 2,380. In the United States, the highest number of Christmas Eve flight cancellations was at Los Angeles International airport (42), followed by Newark Liberty International (39), and Denver International (31), according to Flight Aware. While some U.S. travelers canceled holiday travel plans because of rising COVID-19 case counts, many others were expected to shrug off Omicron fears and stick to their plans over the holidays. TSA said it expects to screen nearly 30 million people from Dec. 20 through Jan. 3, compared to nearly 44 million during the last holiday season before the pandemic. Inyoung You, a former Boston College student from South Korea, leaves court after being arraigned on involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with the suicide of her boyfriend, in Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston, Mass., on Nov. 22, 2019. (Katherine Taylor/Reuters) Former Boston College Student Charged Over Boyfriends Suicide Pleads Guilty BOSTONA former Boston College student pleaded guilty on Thursday to an involuntary manslaughter charge stemming from what prosecutors said was her role in encouraging her boyfriend to commit suicide through unrelenting verbal, physical, and psychological abuse. Inyoung You, 23, entered the plea in Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors under outgoing District Attorney Rachael Rollins that could allow her to avoid serving any time in jail. Judge Robert Ullmann sentenced her to a 2.5-year suspended jail sentence and 10 years of probation and barred her from profiting from her high-profile case, prosecutors said. If she complies with her probation terms, she could avoid incarceration. Prosecutors said You sent 22-year-old Alexander Urtula in the last two months of their 18-month relationship 47,130 text messages, during which she waged a campaign of abuse and told him to kill himself and to go die. Urtula, of Cedar Grove, New Jersey, leaped to his death from a parking garage in May 2019 hours before his graduation. The allegations bore similarities to the high-profile Massachusetts case of Michelle Carter, who was convicted in 2017 of involuntary manslaughter and accused of goading her teenage boyfriend into committing suicide with text messages and phone calls. You had been fighting the charges, and the states top court was scheduled in February to hear her appeal of a ruling that allowed the 2019 case to move forward. You decided to give that appeal up and accept responsibility instead, her lawyer said. Today marks the end to a two-year living hell that has upended Ms. Yous life, her lawyer, Steven Kim, said in a statement. Her probation terms call for mental health treatment, 300 hours of community service, and an agreement to not profit financially by selling her story. By Nate Raymond The United States has been sliding into socialism, as the idea grows in popularity among younger generations and in public policy. Yet this is actually not a new phenomenon. According to Kevin Hassett, former chairman of the presidents Council of Economic Advisers, this has been something going on for a long time, and the Trump administration may have tried to stop it. In his new book, The Drift: Stopping Americas Slide to Socialism, he defines it as a battle between freedom and socialism. He details as well how the United States and the American people can push back against this drift into socialism. To learn more about this, we invited Kevin Hassett to speak with us. Subscribe to the new Crossroads newsletter and stay up-to-date! Follow EpochTV on social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EpochTVus Twitter: https://twitter.com/EpochTVus Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/EpochTV Gettr: https://gettr.com/user/epochtv Gab: https://gab.com/EpochTV Telegram: https://t.me/EpochTV Parler: https://parler.com/#/user/EpochTV The Greek and EU flags flutter in front of the ancient Acropolis hill in Athens on Jan. 15, 2015. (Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Images) Greece: 6 Dead, Several Missing in New Migrant Boat Accident ATHENS, GreeceAt least six people died and more than a dozen were believed missing after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 20 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favor a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greeces heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the countrys migration crisis. The coast guard said 57 people were rescued in Fridays deadly incident after a sailboat capsized some 5 miles off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. Survivors told the coast guard that about 80 people had been on the vessel. Five coast guard patrol boats, nine private vessels, a helicopter and a military transport plane continued the night-time search for more survivors, authorities said, while coast guard divers also participated. Smugglers based in Turkey increasingly have packed yachts with migrants and refugees and sent them toward Italy. Earlier, 11 people were confirmed dead after a sailboat Thursday struck a rocky islet some 235 kilometers (145 miles) south of Athens, near the island of Antikythera. The coast guard said Friday that 90 survivors52 men, 11 women, and 27 childrenwere rescued after spending hours on the islet. People need safe alternatives to these perilous crossings, the Greek office of the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, said in a tweet. In a separate incident Friday, Greek police arrested three people on smuggling charges and detained 92 migrants after a yacht ran aground in the southern Peloponnese region. And a search operation also continued for a third day in the central Aegean, where a boat carrying migrants sank near the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen others were rescued, and the survivors reported that at least 17 people were missing. Authorities said the passengers originally were from Iraq. Greece is a popular entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. But arrivals dropped sharply in the last two years after Greece extended a wall at the Turkish border and began intercepting inbound boats carrying migrants and refugeesa tactic criticized by human rights groups. More than 116,000 asylum-seekers crossed the Mediterranean to reach EU countries this year as of Dec. 19, according to UNHCR. The agency said 55 percent traveled illegally to Italy, 35 percent to Spain, and 7 percent to Greece, with the remainder heading to Malta and Cyprus. By Derek Gatopoulos Head of US Energy Alliance Says Biden Administrations Energy Policies Are Driving Up Costs of Oil and Gas While the COVID-19 pandemic has spurred energy demand, leading to increased prices, the Biden administrations reliance on imports is a greater contributor to the increased costs of oil and gas, according to Jerry Simmons, the president of the Domestic Energy Producers Alliance (DEPA). On Nov. 23, the Biden administration announced that it would be taking oil out of the Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) in an effort to lower gas prices, which are at a 20-year high. I believe that the White House probably said that a 2-cent drop in gasoline prices nationwide was a result of that, Simmons told NTDs Capitol Report on Dec. 23. NTD is a sister media outlet of The Epoch Times. Simmons said, referring to the 50 million barrels that the Biden administration took out of the SPR. Simmons said taking oil out of the reserves will ultimately end up costing the taxpayer more, rather than saving money. According to the most recent data from the Labor Departments Consumer Price Index, October saw a 30 percent increase in the price of all sources of energy, while the price of gasoline itself increased by 49.6 percent. The Biden administration has blamed the high gas prices on increased demand and a lack of supply from foreign sources. Thats why President [Joe] Biden is using every tool available to him to work to lower prices and address the lack of supply, White House officials said in a statement. Simmons disagrees with the Biden administration. And whats it going to end up costing us is another question, he said. What was the price of those barrels that we put into the reserve? Were they purchased at maybe $30 a barrel, and now were going to have to replace them with $80 oil? And we will have to replace what weve taken out. The Bryan Mound Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an oil storage facility, is seen in this aerial photograph over Freeport, Texas, on April 27, 2020. (Adrees Latif/Reuters) The DEPA is a coalition of 39 associations from across the United States that aims to lower the cost of energy by ramping up U.S. gas and oil production. Simmons said the organization wants a U.S. energy-independent solution to climate concerns, saying that the United States has an abundance of natural gas and produces the least carbon pollution when refining oil, so importing it from adversaries doesnt make sense. I think the most dramatic thing about the Russian imports to this country for me, is natural gas, Simmons told The Epoch Times. The largest gas field in the world is the Marcellus and Utica shales in Northeast Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia. And because of restrictions on building pipeline infrastructure in the Northeast, this winter, in Boston Harbor, you will see Russian flagged ships downloading liquefied natural gas for the citizens of Massachusetts, which is ridiculous. Simmons said the Biden administrations rush to green energy will also make the U.S. energy-dependent. He said that the demand for energy is going to increase, and electric, wind, and solar energy cant meet those needs. I just want a real-world discussion. There are huge limitations on what we can do as far as building solar panels and windmills, Simmons said. Most of those have to have what are called rare earth metals: lithium, cobalt, neodymium. Theres a whole list of those. The Chinese communist government controls about 70 percent of those rare metals worldwide. Number one, youve got to produce it all. Do we have enough to do that? Thats another problem, Simmons said, referring to the Biden administrations push to replace fossil fuel vehicles with electric ones by 2035. I think theyre being dishonest. Theyre pandering to a part of their political base. But its just not true. It cant happen. Simmons cited the fact that the Chinese Communist Party has been building hundreds more coal-fired power plants in the past few years while the United States has been required to reduce carbon emissions and stop the use of fossil fuels with a move to green energy. Simmons said after just one year, the United States is producing 2 million fewer barrels of oil. Simmons believes that the use of U.S. fossil fuel sources, which are readily available, must be stressed to lower energy costs and mitigate climate challenges. Everything in this country is cleaner and better because of the way we do business, and that were required to do this. The other countries arent, he said. If you want to produce the cleanest barrel of oil and the cleanest cubic foot of natural gas, you produce it in this country, not any other country. Members of the Australian Defence Force walk through the city in Melbourne, Australia, on July 27, 2020. (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images) Hundreds of Australian Troops Deployed at Christmas More than 430 members of the Australian Defence Force will spend Christmas Day on deployment both at home and overseas. The Department of Defence told AAP 230 of these members would be overseas while 200 would be on operations and border protection duties in Australia. About 15 defence force members were still in the Solomon Islands in the days leading up to Christmas and continued to provide support to Australian Federal Police officers and local law enforcement maintaining stability in the country. Additionally, more than 150 AFP personnel are posted overseas across 33 countries. Commissioner Reece Kershaw and assistant commissioner of international command Mike Pannett thanked deployed members and wished them a merry Christmas. Our members in overseas posts are helping to keep our region safe and by doing that we are helping to keep Australians safe, Mr Pannett said. Prime Minister Scott Morrison thanked the deployed Australians and wished them a merry Christmas at the end of a difficult year. Thank you to all of those selfless Australians. May God especially bless you and your families this Christmas, especially if youre apart, he said in his Christmas message. May those who have been alone this year experience the warmth of companionship this Christmas. By Dominic Giannini The Huntington Beach Police Department made a local familys Christmas a little more special this year by showing up on their doorstep with toys for their three boys in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Dec. 22, 2021. (Courtesy of Huntington Beach Police Department) Huntington Beach Police Department Plays Santa for Underprivileged Family HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif.The Huntington Beach Police Department made a local underprivileged familys Christmas a little more special this year by showing up on their doorstep with toys for their three boys. The department normally partners with CHOC (Childrens Health of Orange County) Childrens Hospital to spread cheer during the holidays, which was canceled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the department posted on social media, asking residents to nominate families who might need some additional support this holiday season. After nominations were made, the department came across one family whom they felt would need some toys this Christmas for their children, whose ages ranged from 3 to 10 years old. After talking with the family, a number of officers showed up at their door on Dec. 22 with various gifts donated by the police department, fire department, and the Qruisin PCH car club, though the boys were to wait until Christmas to open them. The Huntington Beach Police Department made a local familys Christmas a little more special this year by showing up on their doorstep with toys for their three boys in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Dec. 22, 2021. (Courtesy of Huntington Beach Police Department) After speaking with the family, we were able to kind of gauge some of their interests. What they had been asking for this year was scooters, so we were able to get some Razor scooters and also Legos, monster trucks, and nerf guns, Jennifer Carey, Huntington Beach Police Department spokeswoman, told The Epoch Times. Carey said the boys were thrilled by the officers visit. They were all just really excited to see the officers at the house, and I think that kind of was more exciting to them initially than receiving the gifts, she said, adding that the eldest said he wants to become a police officer when he grows up. The department plans to continue its work in helping the less fortunate in the community. Were always looking for opportunities to help out families in need, Carey said. So if theres any families that someone feels there is an overwhelming need to support feel free to message us on social media and we can see what we can do. The New York Times building is seen in New York on Aug. 3, 2020. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters) Judge Orders The New York Times to Return Legal Memos to Project Veritas Also orders NYT to remove story it published based on the confidential memos A New York judge has ordered The New York Times to return confidential legal memos that it obtained between investigative journalism organization Project Veritas and the groups attorney. The New York Times had obtained the memos that were prepared by Project Veritas attorney Benjamin Barr. It remains unclear how they were obtained. The media outlet then published the documents online. It later took them down, but an article published on Nov. 11 describing the memos was still available on the papers website. The memos, in part, contained advice from Barr as to how Project Veritas could avoid running into legal problems with its methods of reporting, which largely involve reporters going undercover. The organization sued the paper and accused it of having obtained the privileged materials without authorization. The court finds that Project Veritas has met its burden of showing that the subject memoranda were obtained by irregular means, if not both irregular and improper means, New York State Supreme Court Justice Charles D. Wood in Westchester County said in his Dec. 23 ruling (pdf). Wood upheld his earlier order in November that blocked the newspaper from further publishing the memos. He also ordered The New York Times to return the memos to Project Veritas, including physical copies. The paper must also destroy all copies of the memos it has, including removing them from the internet,' and retrieve all copies of the memos that it had provided to third parties. Furthermore, The New York Times must confirm its compliance within 10 days. Wood told Project Veritas to notify the court by the end of January 2022 if the newspaper doesnt comply and warned The New York Times of potential sanctions in such a case. Wood also ordered the paper to not use the memos or any information obtained from them, in a separate lawsuit that Project Veritas filed against The New York Times in late October 2020. The defamation suit was filed after The New York Times had published an article in September 2020 calling Project Veritas reporting deceptive. A.G. Sulzberger, publisher of The New York Times, said the newspaper will appeal Woods ruling and will seek to have the order stayed until such an appeal can be heard. Attorney-Client Privilege The New York Times in November ran a report about how the FBI raided the home of Project Veritas founder James OKeefe, as well as the homes of other current and former Project Veritas staffers. OKeefe said in a statement at the time that the Justice Department appeared to be investigating the alleged theft of a diary of Ashley Biden, the daughter of President Joe Biden. Project Veritas never threatened or engaged in any illegal conduct, OKeefe said. In its report, The New York Times quoted the memos, which included attorney-client communications, leading Project Veritas to accuse it of having violated attorney-client privilege. Wood, in his Dec. 23 order, said the memos werent a matter of public concern and that its clear that the balance tips in favor of the attorney-client privilege. The court rejects [The New York Times] position that Project Veritas attorney-client communications are a matter of public concern. Undoubtedly, every media outlet believes that anything that it publishes is a matter of public concern, the judge wrote. But some things are not fodder for public consideration and consumption. These memoranda are only between an attorney and a client, and it does not matter one bit who the attorney and client are. A client seeking advice from its counsel simply cannot be a subject of general interest and of value and concern to the public. It is not the publics business to be privy to the legal advice that this plaintiff or any other client receives from its counsel. That is not to say that aspects of Project Veritas and/or its journalistic methods are not of public interest. Wood noted that The New York Times is perfectly free to investigate, uncover, research, interview, photograph, record, report, publish, opine, expose, or ignore whatever aspects of Project Veritas its editors in their sole discretion deem newsworthy, without utilizing Project Veritas attorney-client privileged memoranda. Sulzberger characterized Woods ruling as an attack on press freedoms and said its alarming for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know. He decried the ruling as unconstitutional and a prior restraint,a term that refers to government action prohibiting speech or other expression before theyve taken place. Sulzberger also said the ruling could present obvious risks to exposing sources should it be allowed to stand. Wood addressed the matters in his ruling. Here, the courts protective order does not act as an impermissible prior restraint on the Times, he said. As important as the First Amendments protection against prior restraint is, on the present facts, the erosion of the attorney-client privilege is a far more imminent concern. He quoted an extract from a prior ruling in 1979, Greenberg vs. CBS Inc. to illustrate his point. What is also at stake in the dissemination of privileged information into the public domain is the privacy of the individuals mentioned or discussed therein and the importance of full and free communication between attorney and client, the 1979 ruling reads. Hit and run journalism is no more protected under the First Amendment than speeding on a crowded sidewalk is permitted under a valid drivers license. Wood said his ruling is grounded in the recognition that the First Amendments primary aim is the full protection of speech upon issues of public concern, as well as the practical realities involved in the administration of justice and the attorney-client privilege. Project Veritas attorney Elizabeth Locke praised the ruling, calling it a victory for the First Amendment for all journalists while noting that it affirms the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship. The New York Times has long forgotten the meaning of the journalism it claims to espouse and has instead become a vehicle for the prosecution of a partisan political agenda, Locke said in a Dec. 24 statement. Todays ruling affirms that the New York Times behavior was irregular and outside the boundaries of law. Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Screenshot of countries where ivermectin is used for COVID-19. (ivmstatus.com/screenshot via The Epoch Times) No Supply Issues With Ivermectin: Pharmaceutical Supplying PRINCIPLE Oxford Trial The New Jersey pharmaceutical company supplying ivermectin to a UK trial that was paused for a short period of time, says there are no supply issues with its pills. Ivermectin is being investigated as part of the government-backed Platform Randomised Trial of Treatments in the Community for Epidemic and Pandemic Illnesses (PRINCIPLE) in the United Kingdom as a possible home treatment for COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus. The trial was put on hold due to temporary supply issues as reported by Medpage Today on Dec. 14. Details were not provided on the cause of the supply issues. The trials joint chief investigator, professor Chris Butler, and the trials press team declined to comment and respond to a query asking when the supply issue is expected to be resolved. The Epoch Times also reached out to Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust in Englandone of two organizations responsible for QP (quality person) release, importing, and, labeling of ivermectin in the trialbut did not receive a reply. Daniel Worley Jr., Vice President of Business Development and Associate General Counsel of Edinbridge Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer supplying the medicine, told The Epoch Times in an email that the company is not experiencing any supply issues related to its ivermectin tablets (3mg) product. The companys ivermectin tablets were added to the World Health Organizations (WHO) Prequalified Medicines List last year in September, which ensures that a medicine meets acceptable standards of quality, safety, and efficacy for international procurement agencies to purchase and distribute in resource-limited countries. The list is part of the United Nations Prequalification of Medicines Programme and is run by the WHO. The halt on the trial has since been lifted as of Friday. However, PRINCIPLE says it is now pausing for registrations over the Festive Break and will reopen for registrations on January 4th, according to the trials website. Doctors Question Lack of Ivermectin Supply A health worker shows a bottle of Ivermectin as part of a study of the Center for Paediatric Infectious Diseases Studies, in Cali, Colombia, on July 21, 2020. (Luis Robayo/AFP via Getty Images) When PRINCIPLE announced its ivermectin trial in June 2021, Butler, the co-chief investigator, said the drug was safe and readily available, suggesting that there was an appropriate supply of the drug. Ivermectin is readily available globally, has been in wide use for many other infectious conditions, so its 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, Butler said in a news release. Several doctors questioned the sudden pause on the PRINCIPLE trial as a result of the ivermectin supply. Dr. Tess Lawrie, director of the Evidence-based Medicine Consultancy, said the supply issue cited was plainly ridiculous. The WHO is one of Lawries companys clientele. To cite supply issues is plainly ridiculous, Lawrie told The Epoch Times via email. We are talking about a most abundant off-patent medicine that is produced in many countries around the world. There are many European manufacturers too, including Huvepharma in Bulgaria. Chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the Eastern Virginia Medical School Dr. Paul Marik said the reason given by PRINCIPLE was nonsense. Its clear this is an ominous plot. A supply issue with IVERMECTIN; you must be kidding, Marik told The Epoch Times in an email. After 3.7 BILLION doses have been dispensed in the last 2 decades; we have a supply issue; what nonsense. Marik is also the co-founder of a medical organization called the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care (FLCCC) Alliance that has developed several COVID-19 treatment protocols using ivermectin as a core medication in the prevention and treatment along with other medicines that are federally approved, inexpensive, readily available, and have been used for decades with well-established safety profiles. Dr. Robert Malone, the inventor of the messenger RNA vaccine technology, says that it is unlikely there is a shortage of ivermectin, alleging the Oxford University team was either lying or incompetent. The first thing you do before you launch the study is you lock down your trial supply so that one completely fails the sniff test, Malone said on Foxs The Ingraham Angle show. Either theyre grossly incompetent at the University of Oxford or lying. Its one or the other because [the] worldwide supply of ivermectin is enormous, and theres no way that a competent clinical research team would not have locked down their trial supply. The Oxford University trial team did not reply to The Epoch Times request for comment. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the WHO, and the European Medicines Agency advises against the use of the anti-parasitic drug for COVID-19, claiming that more data are needed on its effectiveness and safety. Still, some countries like Mexico and Uttar Pradesh, India, widely made ivermectin available as part of their treatment protocol to treat COVID-19. Proponents of the drug say that the oral FDA-approved ivermectin formulation for humans, which comes in tablet forms, has a high safety profile. About 4.4 billion doses of the medicine (renamed Mectizan) have been administered in 49 countries to treat river blindness and lymphatic filariasis since 1987. In 2020 alone, a total of 417 million Mectizan treatments were approved, according to the Mectizan Donation Program (pdf). According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), ivermectin is generally well tolerated with minimal side effects that include dizziness, nausea, or diarrhea. The NIH neither recommends for nor against the use of ivermectin for COVID-19. In addition, world-known French toxicologist, Prof. Jacques Descotes, in his comprehensive assessment of the safety profile of ivermectin based on an analysis of more than 350 articles, concluded that the safety profile of ivermectin has so far been excellent in the majority of treated human patients so that ivermectin human toxicity cannot be claimed to be a serious cause for concern. He also wrote in his analysis (pdf) that, The present extensive review of adverse events reportedly associated with ivermectin treatment for [the] therapeutic or prophylactic purpose did not reveal any significant cause for concern. In fact, adverse events were mainly mild to moderate and infrequent. NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Dec. 24) Hundreds of flights across the United States are canceled on Christmas Eve, shoppers are on the hunt to find last-minute gifts, and the victim of a fatal shooting in Los Angeles has been identified. SoftBank Faces Investment Difficulty in China as US Bans Chinese Military Firms News Analysis Japanese investment giant SoftBank has been bracing for successive financial losses in China, not only because of Chinas tighter regulations, but also because its investment business in Chinas artificial intelligence technology sector has fallen into the realm of the latest U.S. ban on the Chinese military. U.S. Treasury Department announced on Dec. 10 that U.S. entities are prohibited from investing in SenseTimea Chinese artificial intelligence company that is one of the SoftBank investment targetswhich has been accused of supporting the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) use of repressive surveillance technology and is listed on the Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Company list. SenseTime was scheduled to go public in Hong Kong the same day. The company was valued at $6 billion in 2018 when SoftBank invested $1 billion in it. A senior Hong Kong trader told the Financial Times that some clients with share orders for SenseTime have warned that they may exit, and the prospect of the companys Hong Kong listing is likely becoming uncertain. The U.S. Treasury Department alleges that SenseTime played a role in the CCPs suppression of Uyghurs by developing a facial recognition program that could identify the target ethnic group, with a particular focus on identifying Uyghurs. Wang Jun, former director of the international department of Unirule Institute of Economics based in Beijing, told The Epoch Times that it would be very troublesome for Chinese high-tech companies, especially those related to the military industry, to go public in the U.S. in the future. The economic expert believes that Chinese high-tech companies will be scrutinized by U.S. regulators and will be subject to heavy restrictions on raising U.S. capital and acquiring U.S. technology. As a result, it will be difficult for Chinese companies to attract foreign investment. By leaving the U.S. stock market, the amount of money Chinese technology companies could raise in the future will be greatly reduced. Hong Kong is not comparable to Wall Street. Hong Kong is a financial market in the Asia-Pacific region, but Wall Street is the financial center of the world, said Wang Jun. You may raise $500 million in Hong Kong, but you can raise $5 billion or $2 billion in the U.S. SoftBanks other major venture investment in China is Didi, a Chinese ride-hailing service. On Dec. 3, after six months of joint scrutiny by seven official departments of the Chinese Communist Party, Didi announced that it had delisted from New Yorkit listed for only 156 daysand moved to Hong Kong. As of that day, Didis market value was $37.6 billion, a 44.3 percent drop from its offering price. Softbank from 2016 to 2017 spent $10 billion on Didis strategic finance, which was then valued at more than $50 billion. An updated financial report (pdf) released by SoftBank showed that from July to September, the combined loss of the banks affiliate Vision Fund, the largest technology-focused equity fund in the world, reached 825.086 billion yen (about $7.209 billion), it surpassed the record single-quarter loss in the early pandemic outbreak. Masayoshi Son, CEO of SoftBank, said the company is currently amid a blizzard and the value of net assets, one of the most important economic indexes, fell by more than $77 billion in one year, reported Securities Times, a Chinese financial media, on Nov. 9. As the largest shareholder of Alibaba, Chinas e-commerce leader, the share market value that SoftBank held shrank by $53 billion in the third quarter when Alibabas share price has braced for an accumulative fall of 34.7 percent from July to September. A house is covered by ash from a volcano that continues to erupt on La Palma in Spain's Canary Islands, on Oct. 30, 2021. (Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo) Spanish Eruptions End Brings Emotional Relief, Rebuilding MADRIDAuthorities on one of Spains Canary Islands declared a volcanic eruption that started in September officially finished Saturday following 10 days of no lava flows, seismic activity, or significant sulfur dioxide emissions. But the emergency in La Palma, the most northwest island in the Atlantic Ocean archipelago, is not over due to the widespread damage the eruption caused, the director of the Canaries volcanic emergency committee said in announcing the much-anticipated milestone. Its not joy or satisfactionhow we can define what we feel? Its an emotional relief. And hope, Pevolca director Julio Perez said. Because now, we can apply ourselves and focus completely on the reconstruction work. A flow of lava is observed near la Laguna mountain on the Canary island of La Palma, Spain, on Nov. 22, 2021. (Involcan/via Reuters) Fiery molten rock flowing down toward the sea destroyed around 3,000 buildings, entombed banana plantations, and vineyards, ruined irrigation systems, and cut off roads. But no injuries or deaths were directly linked to the eruption. Perez, who is also the regions minister of public administration, justice, and security, said the archipelagos government valued the loss of buildings and infrastructure at more than 900 million euros ($1 billion). A fissure is seen next to a house covered with ash on the Canary island of La Palma, Spain, on Dec. 1, 2021. (Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo) Volcanologists said they needed to certify that three key variablesgas, lava, and tremorshad subsided in the Cumbre Vieja ridge for 10 days in order to declare the volcanos apparent exhaustion. Since the eruption started on Sept. 19, previous periods of reduced activity were followed by reignitions. On the eve of Dec. 14, the volcano fell silent after flaring for 85 days and 8 hours, making it La Palmas longest eruption on record. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called the eruptions end the best Christmas present. We will continue working together, all institutions, to relaunch the marvelous island of La Palma and repair the damage, he said on Twitter. Farming and tourism are the main industries on the Canary Islands, a popular destination for many European vacationers due to their mild climate. Sustaining the Professionalism of the US Military Commentary The bedrock of U.S. security, those of its allies, and stability in international politics is the U.S. military. At a time when civil-military relations are strained by the policies of the Biden administration, by deeper tensions within U.S. society, and by the China threat, it is important to recall the importance of professionalism and its history within the U.S. military. In his study of civil-military relations, political scientist Samuel Huntington advanced the idea of objective civilian controlthe military consists of professionals who obey civilian leadership. In turn, civilians recognize the appropriate military domain. Civilian control is assured if the officer corps is permitted to develop into a highly professional institution. With objective control, officers are given the necessary autonomy for operations for which they have expertise. The history of the U.S. military in the Cold War is a testament to the objective civilian control and serves as the model for the U.S. military today. While there were several profound civil-military tests during the Cold War, Vietnam was its greatest. At the outset of the U.S. military involvement in Vietnam, the Johnson administration and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) clashed over manpower levels to fight and win the conflict. U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Harold Johnson considered resigning during the Vietnam War, but he chose to remain in office, as did Marine Commandant Wallace Greene and U.S. Army General Earle Wheeler. Generals Johnson and Greenes decisions were particularly salient as they were fighting the land war. Thus, the impact of their services was greatest, and Wheelers was equally important as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The fact that Generals Greene, Johnson, and Wheeler remained in office and faithfully executed orders was also appropriate and underscored objective civilian control. Johnson and Greene had conveyed their advice regarding necessary troop levels to fight the war. It was rejected. The president issued his orders, and Johnson and Greene faithfully followed them. The outcome was lamentable for the United States in Vietnam and particularly for the U.S. Army as it recovered from Vietnam in the 1970s. But it was a success as measured by the criterion of objective control. A picture released on May 5, 1975 shows an American soldier watching South Vietnamese refugees crowding a U.S. Navy boat off the coasts of Vietnam at the end of the Vietnamese war. (AFP via Getty Images) Indeed, when the objective control of the U.S. military in the trying circumstances and considerable civil-military stresses of the Vietnam War is compared with the French militarys gross violations of objective control during the Algerian War (19541962), U.S. professionalism is underscored. The Algerian War placed similar stresses on the French military as on the U.S. military in Vietnam. Yet, the French incurred three major civil-military crises as a result. First, the French militarys coup detat against democratically-elected civilian leadership in 1958 brought an end to the Fourth Republic and General Charles de Gaulle to power as president in the Fifth Republic. Second, in April 1961, there was the Algiers Putsch of the Generals (Putsch dAlgier or Putsch des generaux). In a last effort to save Frances colonial position in Algeria, and its European community and French supporting Muslims, four retired French generals supported by serving officers attempted to reverse Frances commitment to withdraw from Algeria. The Putsch collapsed after four days as the military did not support it. Third, on Aug. 22, 1962, a serving French officer in league with another officer and civilians in a paramilitary group failed to assassinate de Gaulle and his wife over the final decision to grant Algeria independence. The professionalism of the U.S. military in Vietnam is touted when compared with the open contempt for civilian leadership, even of de Gaulle, the hero of World War II, and the willingness of the French military to rebel through a coup detat, an aborted Putsch, and an assassination attempt against civilian leadership in their failed Algerian war. In the later years of the conflict there were other challenges to professionalism that ran a panoply of problems, including racial incidents and drug abuse. Falsification of aircraft and other records was also an issue, as witnessed during the covert bombing of Cambodia by tactical aircraft and B-52s. This occurred during the Johnson administration and later the 19691970 MENU operation, which was leaked to the press and became a scandal for the Nixon administration and Air Force. With every military action or major national security decision, there was ample criticism, yet this rarely occurred openly. There are two notable examples. First, U.S. Army Major General John Singlaubs 1977 public criticism of the Carter administrations consideration of reducing the size of the U.S. commitment to the Republic of Korea. Second, at the end of the Cold War was the September 1990 firing of Air Force Chief of Staff General Michael Dugan by Defense Secretary Dick Cheney. Gen. Dugan was relieved for discussing with journalists planned decapitation targeting strategies against Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi leadership just after the start of operation Desert Storm. Cpl. Ray Penna guards the camp perimeter with an M-16A2 rifle during an Imminent Thunder training exercise, a part of Operation Desert Shield in 1991. (DOD via Getty Images) The U.S. military in the Cold War was the archetype of objective control. The ethos of objective control was strong due to training in its principles as well as their adoption by officers and NCOs. As a consequence, civilian leadership could allow the military to operate in its own domain. The result was a military well able to advance and defend U.S. global interests. The force met the strategic, theater, and tactical requirements of extended deterrence against a formidable foe, and conducted the wars and interventions required to advance U.S. national security interests. In contrast to the civilian-military relations of its major democratic allies, the United States is the archetype for objective control. The United States and France fought major counterinsurgencies during the Cold War. The United States maintained objective civilian control. The French military sustained this during its war in French Indochina (19461954), but abandoned its professionalism in Algeria and a portion of its leadership became an anti-democratic force and a danger to the Republic. As the U.S. military confronts China while enduring a period of ideological tumult within the United States, it is essential for civilian and military leadership to comprehend the necessity of objective civilian control. In turn, this requires that each understand their respective roles, and the necessity of acknowledging military autonomy. In a sustained competition with China, the U.S. military must be as professional as it was during the Cold War. To preserve civilian control of the military, the U.S. military must have its autonomy, and this must be respected by civilian leadership. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. A security guard wearing a face mask stands guard at St. Joseph's Church during a mass on Christmas eve in Beijing on Dec. 24, 2020. (Noel Cells/AFP via Getty Images) The Crackdown on Christmas in China The Grinch regime is slowly outlawing 'foreign festivals' Commentary The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is a totalizing party because it requires absolute obedience from its citizens. Any groups, organizations, or philosophies to which Chinese citizens belong, must be consistent with CCP rule. This includes all religions, including Christianity and its celebration of Christmas. CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping called for the sinicization of religion this month at a conference on religious affairs. In effect, this means the subordination of religious leaders, including Christians, to CCP officials. Xi told the national conference to develop a religious theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics, work in line with the Partys basic policy on religious affairs, and uphold the principle that religions in China must be Chinese in orientation. That doesnt leave much room for old Father Christmas. According to the Independent, Some Chinese officials have tried to deflect attention from Christmas in the country by instead encouraging people to celebrate the birthday of Mao Zedong, the former leader and architect of modern China who was born on 26 December 1893 and died aged 82. In 2019, officials in Linyi, Shandong province, placed a birthday cake for Mao at the foot of his statue in a temple on Christmas Day. Its hard to imagine what effect Santa Mao in Linyi could have on the millions of people who want to celebrate the real Christmas. But the signal is there, loud and clear, for the communist faithful: celebrate Mao not Santa. While Christians have gotten off easily compared to Uyghurs, Falun Gong, and Tibetans, who are all undergoing a genocide by the U.N. definition, those who look to Christ for inspiration are increasingly persecuted in China. Christian churches are torn down, Christian leaders forced to take orders from Beijing, and since about 2018, even the celebration of Christmas is discouraged by local authorities. A Dec. 24 article titled China cancels Christmas: why Santa Claus is not coming to town for Chinese kids, by Jane Cai in the South China Morning Post, provides the latest evidence of an ongoing persecution of Christianity in China. And, there are plenty of Christians to persecute. A man stands near the razed remains of a Catholic church in a village in Pingyang county of Wenzhou in eastern Chinas Zhejiang Province on July 16, 2014. (Didi Tang/AP Photo) As many as 84 million Protestants and 21 million Catholics live in China, according to one estimate. This would be 7.5 percent of the population. However, young people of all religions, including atheists, have increasingly celebrated Christmas since the 1990s. Its a fun and youth-oriented holiday to shop, date, skate, and have a feast, according to Cai. But the Grinch regime scorns Christmas. According to Ahmed Aboudouh writing in the Independent, the CCP calls it Western spiritual opium and the Festival of Shame. The Post attributes increasing anti-Christmas sentiment in China to rising nationalism triggered by the Sino-U.S. trade war started by President Donald Trump in 2018. The Independent adds military tensions and more recent human rights legislation, for example the Dec. 23 U.S. law that bans the import of goods from the Xinjiang region of China. The U.S. government has recognized that Uyghur Muslims, who are from Xinjiang, are suffering from genocide. Since 2018, according to the Post, local governments from Hebei in the north to Guizhou and Guangxi in the south have been issuing orders to ban extravagant festive decorations and large-scale gatherings to celebrate Christmas. The Post notes that shopping malls and stores must keep Christmas decorations and sales promotions in check. Schools and universities across the nation have been instructed by education authorities not to celebrate Western festivals. A primary school in Shanghai, for example, has a rule against celebrating any non-Chinese holidays, including this Christmas season. Its a rule emphasized by education authorities again and again in recent years, one teacher told the Post. We are told that any teacher found in violation [of the rules] will be punished. Parents also feel the pressure. One civil servant in Beijing told the Post that he would not buy a Christmas tree for his two daughters this year to avoid trouble. He said, Though I enjoy decorating the tree with my kids, Ive decided we will no longer celebrate Christmas for the sake of political correctness. Chinese propaganda films also discourage the celebration of Christmas, according to the Post. One 2021 film called The Battle at Lake Changjin, the highest-grossing film in China at $874 million, depicts brave and stoical Chinese soldiers in Korea fighting lazy and sadistic Americans eager to return home for Christmas. The moral of the story for the holidays: dont celebrate if they are western, especially not Christmas. Outraged and inspired by the film, thousands of social media users launched an online campaign against Christmas and any Chinese citizens who share photos of Christmas cheer. CCP notices have banned party members, government agencies, and even universities from taking part in any festivities while slogans urging citizens to boycott Christmas are common on social media platforms, according to the Independent. Aboudouh notes the example of Hengyang city in Hunan province, where the regime in 2018 banned any Christmas sales and activities that blocked streets. The year prior, the regime warned CCP officials against celebrating Christmas and recommended the promotion of traditional Chinese culture instead. According to the letter, Party members must observe the belief of communism and are forbidden to blindly worship the Western spiritual opium. During an anti-Christmas street protest, university students wearing traditional Chinese outfits holding banners reading Resist Christmas, Chinese people should not celebrate foreign festivals in Changsha, central Chinas Hunan province on Dec. 24, 2014. (STR/AFP via Getty Images) Many Chinese parents who would otherwise celebrate, are grudgingly giving up the holiday. I dont see the direct link between Christmas and patriotism, the civil servant told the Post. I think most Chinese celebrate the holiday just for fun. Anyway, it is easy for people to be judged politically nowadays. To play [it] safe, I have to forgo Christmas and let down my kids. In a society where church and state are constitutionally separated, like the United States, it is true that there is no necessary link between Christmas and patriotism. Christians can be patriots, or not. But this does not apply in China because the CCP aims to replace true religion with its own purely political ideology that can withstand no competitors other than those that have vanquished themselves through subordination to the CCP hierarchy. As Mao said, political power grows from the barrel of a gun. When that gun is pointed towards Father Christmas, there is no room for religious diversity. Chinese citizens are gradually being forced to choose: either the Party, or their Christian beliefs. They cannot have both. If they choose the Party, they must forgo Christmas to demonstrate a purist form of subordination to the state as demanded by Beijing. If they choose even the spiritually thinnest of Christmas celebrations, they are heading down the road of not only trouble, but much worse if Uyghurs, Falun Gong, and Tibetans are any indication. Yet, despite all the threats felt by Christians in China, the Christmas spirit is still flickering. According to the Independent, one can still see trees, lights, and decorations adorning public spaces and shopping malls in major cities including Shanghai. Lets help China keep that Christmas spirit alive. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. An American flag flutters at the premises of the former U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem on March 4, 2019. (Ammar Awad/Reuters) To Open a Palestinian Consulate in Jerusalem Would Ignore Thousands of Years of History Commentary The Biden State Department is seeking to create a consulate in Jerusalem that would serve only Palestinians. There are two possible explanations. One, the Biden administration has forgotten several thousand years of history. Two, they are aware of that history, but aim to sever the connection of the Jewish people to their ancient capital today. It increasingly seems both explanations are plausible. The Christian world recently celebrated the birth of Jesus in the small town of Bethlehem, or Bet-Lehem, meaning House of Bread in Hebrew. Joseph and Mary were only there because the Roman colonialist governor had ordered a census of the Jews in Judea. Jesus was raised in Nazareth, Natzeret in Hebrew, meaning offspring or sprout. Archaeologists recently announced the discovery of a second ancient Jewish synagogue in Migdal, a town close to Nazareth. Migdal was the place of origin of a woman famous in Christian scripture: Mary Magdalene. Both she and Jesus went to Jerusalem because it was the site of Solomons Temple, and, thus, the center of Jewish worship. In other words, Jesus was born a Jew. He grew up in a Jewish family. He kept company with other Jews. He practiced Judaism. He went to the Jewish temple. All in Jewish territory that is now the Jewish State of Israel. All this is found in Christian gospel. The idea of opening the Palestinian consulate was first floated in a memo written by Hady Amr, deputy assistant secretary for Israel and Palestinian affairs in the Biden administration. This is the same Hady Amr who called the Jewish homeland occupied Palestine. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas claims that the State of Israel was formed as a colonial project that has nothing to do with Judaism. Hes ignoring not just archeology and the historical record, but also the very foundation of Christian theology. You wouldnt expect President Joe Biden to embrace Abbass anti-Christian, reality-denying position since the White House has declared that hes a devout Catholic. Yet here we are. By calling Israel a colonial project, Abbas and others willfully ignore the fact that indigenous Jews never left Judea except at the point of a sword. They were scattered across Europe and Arab lands by the same Roman Empire that persecuted Jesus and his early followers. Its the colonialists, not the indigenous documented in the Bible, who stamped the name Palestine upon the Holy Land. Still, even after repeated expulsions, Jews always returned to Israel, heeding the many exhortations ensconced in the Bible, Jewish law, and prayer. Every chapter of the Torah and page of Talmud reminds Jews that they have but one homeland, to which the Jewish faith binds them for all time. This is why the great medieval Jewish philosopher Maimonides migrated from Spain to the Holy Land, and why Rabbi Yosef Karo, author of the Code of Jewish Law, followed in his footsteps centuries later. It is why Rabbi Isaac Luria, father of modern Kabbalah, moved from Egypt, and why followers of the father of Hasidism, the Baal Shem Tov, and those of his leading opponent, Rabbi Eliyahu Cramer, the Vilna Gaon, made the arduous journey to Jerusalem. They were not colonialists or occupiersthey were indigenous Jews returning home. Yet Jews in Israel today, including those who can trace their family trees back centuries, are ridiculously called bothdirectly by Israels sworn enemies and by proxy by the elected officials and bureaucrats alike of the U.S. government. Its long overdue that such false and malicious narratives be put to rest. In particular, it would be a significant setback for indigenous rights and civil liberties if the United States were to create a Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem. The current U.S. Embassy, opened by President Donald Trump in 2018, serves all who need its services. If a separate office were actually needed, its correct location would be in Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority. The Biden administration must recognize history as well as the Old and New Testaments, rather than listen to the dogmatic revisionist voices that would deprive the indigenous of Israel the God-given right to live and worship freely in their Holy City. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Photo showing a representation of the cryptocurrency Binance Coin. The illustration was taken on Nov. 29, 2021. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters) Turkish Unit of Crypto Exchange Binance Fined, News Agency Says ISTANBULTurkeys Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) imposed an 8 million lira ($751,314) fine on the local unit of cryptocurrency exchange Binance over violations found during liability inspections, the Anadolu news agency said on Saturday. The fine imposed on BN Teknoloji was the first of its kind after the authority took on responsibilities to oversee crypto asset service providers in May, the state-owned news agency said, without elaborating on the violations or inspections. A Binance spokesperson said the company did not discuss publicly its communications with the authorities and regulators. MASAK could not be reached for comment at the weekend. ($1 = 10.6480 liras) By Ezgi Erkoyun Police officers in personal protective equipment (PPE) investigate around the police cars destroyed by a bomb explosion in front of Central Police Station in Kampala, Uganda, on Nov. 16, 2021. (Lawrence Kitatta/AFP via Getty Images) Uganda Charges 15 With Terrorism for Role in ISIS-Linked Bombings KAMPALAUganda on Thursday charged 15 people with offenses including terrorism and aiding terrorism related to their alleged role in bombings in the countrys capital and elsewhere in October and November that left at least nine people dead. In the early hours of Nov. 16, a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance of a police station in the center of Kampala. Three minutes later, two other suicide bombers detonated along a road that leads to the parliament. People extinguish a fire on cars caused by a bomb explosion near Parliament building in Kampala, Uganda, on Nov. 16, 2021 (Ivan/AFP via Getty Images) Those bombings killed at least seven people, including the bombers, and injured dozens. At least two people were killed in two other bombings in October, one at a restaurant and another on a bus. ISIS terrorist group, which is allied with the rebel Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), claimed responsibility for the Nov. 16 attack and the restaurant attack. Originally a Ugandan group, the ADF has operated in the dense forests in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo across the border with Uganda for more than three decades. The group began killing civilians in large numbers in 2014. The attacks in October and November prompted the Ugandan military to deploy in eastern Congo in late November to take on the ISIS terrorists. The suspects were remanded until Jan. 13, when they will appear in court again. People talk before the start of a rally against "critical race theory" being taught in schools at the Loudoun County Government center in Leesburg, Va., on June 12, 2021. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images) Virginia Parents Sue School District Over CRT Curriculum Parents in Virginia have sued Albemarle County School Board over so-called anti-racist curriculum materials that they allege are indoctrinating their children with the tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT) that are actually racist at their core. The plaintiffs, nine parents and their children, filed the complaint (pdf) in Albemarle County Circuit Court on Dec. 22 with the help of attorneys from Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a legal nonprofit. ADF said in a statement that the parents had filed suit against the school board for enacting discriminatory policies and indoctrinating students in radical ideology, violating students civil rights by treating them differently based on race. Our clients believe that every person is made in the image of God, deserves respect, and therefore, should not be punished or rewarded for something over which they have no control, ADF Senior Counsel Kate Anderson said in a statement. Public schools have no right to demean students because of their race, ethnicity, or religion. Phil Giaramita, the communications officer for Albemarle County Public Schools, told The Epoch Times that they are not able to review the lawsuits allegations because they have not been served. The parents complaint notes that, in 2019, Albemarle County Public Schools adopted an Anti-Racism Policy with the stated goal of eliminating all forms of racism, but that this policy and its implementation into the school curriculum are steeped in the ideas of CRT, which views everyone and everything through the lens of race. Far from exploring ideas or philosophies surrounding justice and reconciliation, that ideology fosters racial division, racial stereotyping, and racial hostility. So does the Policy, the complaint states. The parents claim that incorporation of CRT into the curriculum amounts to embracing a radical new understanding of racism that harms and denigrates everyone, classifying all individuals into racial groups and identifying them as either perpetually privileged oppressors or perpetually victimized members of the oppressed, denying agency to both. The complaint says that the ideas of CRT impute racism not just to those who consciously discriminate on the basis of race but also to those of a certain race (white) who do not actively participate in the prescribed dismantling of what CRT advocates argue is systemic racism baked into Americas institutions and implicitly present in the attitudes of those who arent actively anti-racist. One example of CRT in the school curriculum involves a slide instructing eighth graders to understand racism as the marginalization and/or oppression of people of color based on a socially constructed racial hierarchy that privileges white people, according to classroom materials cited in the complaint. Another example features a slide encouraging students to be anti-racist, because [i]n the absence of making anti-racist choices, we (un)consciously uphold aspects of white supremacy, white-dominant culture, and unequal institutions and society. The parents are asking the court to block the school district from implementing parts of the anti-racist policy that require the indoctrination of Albemarle students in an ideology that denigrates studentsall studentsbased on their race. They argue that the policy violates the plaintiffs equal protection rights, forces them to affirm messages that go against their beliefs, silences dissenting opinions in violation of free speech rights, and interferes with parents rights to direct the upbringing and education of their children. The Wisconsin Supreme Court (shown here on Dec. 4, 2021) will hear a challenge to mask mandates issued by the health officer for Madison and Dane County. (Joseph Hanneman/The Epoch Times) Wisconsin Supreme Court Takes Up Challenge to COVID-19 Mask Orders MADISON, Wis.A long-simmering dispute is headed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court over the frequent use of local health department mask mandates in an attempt to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Wisconsins capital city and county. The high court granted a motion from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) and its clients to bypass the Wisconsin Court of Appeals directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit against Dane County argue that the county health director has no powers to order mask mandates or set rules about public gatherings in an effort to control COVID-19. This case presents the court with an opportunity to clarify that local health officers cannot unilaterally issue orders that restrict daily life without approval from a legislative body, said Luke Berg, deputy counsel for the Milwaukee-based WILL. The Dane County Board cannot pass the buck and allow an un-elected health officer to issue whatever orders she sees fit. Janel Heinrich, director of Public Health Madison & Dane County, has made frequent use of emergency health orders to require face masks in buildings open to the public in the county of nearly 565,000 people. On Nov. 1, the health agency issued Face Covering Emergency Order No. 4, continuing the requirement to wear face masks in indoor spaces. The order was in effect until Nov. 27. At this time, we do not plan to renew the Emergency Order after November 27, the agencys website read. Protesters against the states extended slow-the-spread stay-at-home order demonstrate at the Capitol building in Madison, Wis., on April 24, 2020. (REUTERS/Daniel Acker) On Nov. 23, the agency revoked the sunset of the mask order, putting in place Emergency Order No. 5, extending mandatory masking until Jan. 3, 2022. On Dec. 20, Emergency Order No. 6 was issued, effective until Feb. 1, 2022. Case averages and the number of people hospitalized in Dane County hospitals with COVID have reached the highest levels of 2021 this month, the new order reads. Dane County remains in CDCs highest level of community transmission. We are confident that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will uphold the legality of our public health orders, Sarah Mattes, Public Health Madison & Dane County spokesperson, told The Epoch Times. Lawsuit Challenges Health Orders The lawsuit against the health agency and its COVID orders was filed in January by plaintiffs Jeffrey Becker, Andrea Klein, and A Leap Above Dance LLC. The suit alleges that Heinrich has no legal authority to issue such orders and that the Dane County Board of Supervisors cant delegate its authority to an unelected employee. The Dane County Circuit Court sided with the health agency in a summer 2021 ruling. The plaintiffs appealed and filed a request to take the case directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has yet to schedule oral arguments; it will use the briefs already filed in the appeal to develop a ruling after oral arguments. In June, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that Heinrich and her department had no authority to order most grades of public and private schools to halt in-person instruction to control COVID-19. Just days before the start of the fall 2020 semester, Public Health Madison had issued an order to close down in-person instruction in grades 312. Three lawsuitsincluding a coalition of Catholic, Protestant, and other private schoolschallenged the order. The high court combined the cases, and on Sept. 10, 2020, issued a temporary injunction against the closure order. In its June ruling, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the health order, ruling it was an illegal infringement on parents rights to freely practice their religion. The court also ruled that local health officers dont have such power; that only the state of Wisconsin has statutory authority on such matters. Heinrich says she has general authority to do what is reasonable and necessary for the suppression and prevention of disease, and that includes closing schools. She is incorrect, Justice Rebecca Grassl Bradley wrote for the courts majority. Illegal, Unnecessary, and Unconstitutional If local health officers authority to take measures reasonable and necessary included the extraordinary power to close schools, then the Legislatures specification of particular powers, such as the power to inspect schools, would be superfluous, Bradley wrote. The power to take measures reasonable and necessary cannot be reasonably read as an open-ended grant of authority. Dane County, Wis., health orders require that masks be worn inside buildings open to the public. Masked volunteers work the presidential recount in Madison, Wis., on Nov. 20, 2020. (Andy Manis/Getty Images) At the time, Rick Esenberg, WILLs general counsel, said the local health order was illegal, unnecessary, and unconstitutional. Even as the COVID-19 pandemic recedes, the courts decision provides a critical correction that ought to prevent future abuses of power in an emergency, he said. Esenbergs agency represented one of the plaintiff groups in the case. Public Health Madison & Dane County began issuing emergency orders on May 13, 2020, the same day the state Supreme Court struck down Gov. Tony Everss Safer at Home program that largely restricted the states population to their homes. The agency cited statutes that refer to the powers of the state Department of Health Services, not to local health officers, the court ruled. It cited changes to state law going back to 1883 that could have empowered local health departments with such authority, but did not. If Heinrichs argument were correct, then the general provision would essentially afford local health officers any powers necessary to limit the spread of communicable diseases. This cannot be, the court ruled. What is reasonable and necessary cannot be reasonably read to encompass anything and everything. Nothing in the text of the statute confers upon local health officers the power to close schools. Because we are a court and not the Legislature, it would exceed the constitutional boundaries of our authority to rewrite the law in this manner. That court case was the fourth in about a year that put checks on Wisconsin government actions taken during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2021, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down Everss repeated use of emergency declarations to impose statewide restrictions such as mask mandates. Five of Everss six emergency declarations were illegal, the court said. Demonstrators protest the extension of Wisconsins stay-at-home order outside the State Capitol building in Madison on April 24, 2020. (REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton) Two weeks after that decision, the Wisconsin high court ruled that Evers overstepped his authority by regulating the size of gatherings at businesses, restaurants, and other venues in an effort to control COVID-19. Public Health Madison & Dane County issued an emergency order in August requiring anyone over age 2 to wear a face mask when in any enclosed space open to the public where other people, except for members of the persons own household or living unit, are present. The order required that face masks be worn while riding on public transportation. Those orders were renewed monthly through the rest of this year. An original action filed by WILL at the Wisconsin Supreme Court asked for an injunction and court review of what it called an unlawful delegation of legislative power to an executive official. Last time, it was schools, this time, it is masks; next time, it could be vaccine passports and permanent masking, WILL stated in its petition. Respondents power is not unlimited, and the residents of Dane County deserve protection from these unchecked mandates. Dane County attorneys argued that health officials were within their authority and were using one of the least restrictive measures to control COVID. They cited state law that allows health departments to do what is reasonable and necessary to control contagious disease. In a 43 ruling, the Supreme Court declined to hear the challenge to the mask orders. Justice Brian Hagedorn, who voted with the majority against Dane County in the June decision, voted against taking the masking case in August. Now the issue is back before the court. Xi Jinpings Emphasis on the Partys Gang Rules Underscores CCP Escalated Infighting: Expert Chinas ruling party head Xi Jinping recently stressed the importance of internal Party regulations to maintain the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) absolute control over the country. Analysts believe that this indicates that the internal struggle in the CCP has intensified after the 19th plenary session of the 6th Central Committee. Use internal Party regulations to safeguard the centralized and unified leadership of the CCPs central committee in order to guarantee the Partys long-term rulership, Ding Xuexiang, a member of the political bureau of the central committee conveyed Xis words when presiding over a national party conference on Party regulations on Dec. 20. Lu Tianming, a political commentator based outside of China, told The Epoch Times that these words are Xi Jinpings attempt to sound the alarm to his political opponents. These gang rules will be imposed to punish opponents, said Lu, adding that the Partys internal struggle has become more intense after the sixth plenum, the CCP is seriously divided, and the regime is in chaos. According to Lu, many public comments call the internal Party regulations gang rule since the CCP is regarded as a gangster since it always deems itself as being greater than the country and it places its internal discipline ahead of state law. CCTV, the CCPs mouthpiece, stated that party organizations, members, and cadres should respect the authority of the Partys internal regulations on Dec. 21, the same day an organ newspaper of CCPs school also called for Party unity, saying the CCPs primary political task is to safeguard its centralized and unified leadership. This official rhetoric does not directly mention Xi core and Xi central as before because it might meet too much resistance from political rivals the CCPs internal struggle has escalated to some level so that Xi can only pressure the rules over the party to establish his authority, Lu added. In reality, Xi has changed his approach but still means the same thing, because he is still the top leader of the Communist Party. Xis words will be a threat to political opponents, Lu further explained the CCPs punishment procedure for its infighting: whoever violates the rules within the gang of the CCP will be dealt with by the rules of the gang, and the Central Discipline Inspection Commissionwhich is not a law enforcement agency, but a CCPs internal regulations enforcement arm, so it has greater powerwill act first as the gangs enforcer. The disciplinary committee will first announce its findings and determine the charges, and then refer those under investigation to the public prosecution system for action. According to state-run People on Dec. 21, the highest-ranking attendee was Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and secretary of the central secretariat, along with Yang Xiaodu, deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection; Chen Xi, organization minister of the Central Committee; Guo Shengkun, secretary of the Central Committee for Political and Legal Affairs; and Huang Kunming, minister of the propaganda department. There are much easier ways to help people than by working for emergency medical services. Thats something of which John Arnold, Eastons EMS chief, is well aware. Other jobs in medicine such as working as a technician in a doctors office arent nearly as demanding as riding in an ambulance and responding to medical calls at all hours. Its an easier setting, Arnold said of doctors offices. Its warm. Its dry. You dont work odd hours where youre going into somebodys house at 2 a.m. and theyre throwing up on you. Maybe being a tech in doctors office is a little more desirable. He said, particularly in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, hes seen people get certified to work in EMS, then go on to work in another setting. He isnt alone. Many EMS services throughout the state are either short-staffed or fear being short-staffed in the near future, due to a variety of factors. These could include retirements, an increased call volume and people leaving EMS behind for more comfortable health fields. Staffing challenges really started to pick up this year, said William Schietinger, regional director for American Medical Response in Southern Connecticut. Weve lost full-time employees whove either left the industry or gone to other EMS services that are not as busy. AMR is a national private ambulance company that, in Connecticut, has operations in Bridgeport, Hartford, New Haven and Waterbury. In addition to losing people to less demanding work, Schietinger said, hes seen people retire, and hes also seen a dearth of qualified candidates, as the COVID-19 pandemic limited the number of certification classes that were available. Robert Ziegler, president of Emergency Resource Management an EMS staffing company based in Portland said the staffing problems of companies like AMR trickle down to other EMS services. Ziegler said he represents 13 EMS clients throughout the state (but wouldnt say where) and said he feels like hes in constant competition to hire staff. Its a challenge when commercial (ambulance companies) start to pay $4, $5 or $6 more an hour because theyre also hurting for people, he said. At least one hospital-based EMS program said it was experiencing issues too. There are several factors that affect EMS recruitment and retention in general, including career transitions and retirements,said Aaron Katz, director of EMS at Norwalk Hospital. The hospital is part of Nuvance Health, which also includes Danbury, New Milford and Sharon Hospitals. Most notably at this time, Nuvance Health EMS, including at Norwalk Hospital, are experiencing some staffing shortages from the toll the pandemic has taken on all healthcare workers, Katz said. Consequently, we are always looking for qualified candidates. He said Norwalk Hospital alone responds to more than 12,000 calls a year on average. Even those who said they arent short-staffed now worried about what the future holds. That includes Easton, where Arnold said the EMS service is in relatively good shape. The department has 38 volunteers and two paid staff members, and the volunteer side has actually grown from five years ago, when there were 24 volunteers. But Arnold said he has seen call volume go up, particularly when it comes to offering assistance to other towns. In 2020, he said, Easton provided mutual aid to other communities 16 times. As of Dec. 17, he said, Easton EMS had provided mutual aid 89 times in 2021. We expect to exceed 100 mutual aid request by the end of the year, Arnold said. Thats an explosive amount of patient care that were doing. Many other local departments tell a similar story, including Trumbull, where EMS Chief Leigh Goodman said staffing levels are fine for now, but shes still anxious. Were very well-staffed, but there are shortages region-wide, which impact us, Goodman said. Like Arnold, she said she sees many people complete EMS training only to move on to other health fields. What were seeing as an industry (are challenges in) getting people to stay in the industry, Goodman said. Theres a lot of fatigue. People are tired. Its not regular hours. Michael Loiz, Stratfords director of EMS, is also in the well-staffed for now category, but he has seen call volumes going up by 3 percent to 8 percent a year for at least the past five years. What that means is that our crews are going to be doing more calls and possibly there will be a need for mutual aid to come in, he said. In Westport, the picture is a bit cloudier, said Marc Hartog, deputy director of Westport EMS. The service lost roughly 30 volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, falling from 90 to 60. Of those that remain, Hartog said, many arent always available. For instance, a good bulk of them are college students who are in classes much of the year. There are some days where were struggling because we dont have volunteers sign up for shifts, he said. So what is everyone doing to try to manage current or potential shortages? Whatever they can, EMS officials said. Schietinger said AMR has increased wages for its staff in Bridgeport and Hartford. The starting salary for staff in those cities went from $18 an hour to $24 an hour. The hourly rate for a paramedic in those cities also went up, from $27 to $33. Schietinger said AMR is negotiating with unions in New Haven and Waterbury to offer higher wages to staff there too. AMR also started its Earn While You Learn program earlier this year, which allows people to take EMT classes while getting paid. Town and city EMS services also have tried to manage any shortages or potential shortages. In Stratford, Loiz said officials manage the schedule very aggressively to make sure whatever staff is available is deployed when and where theyre needed most. If Tuesdays are busier than Fridays, then were going to focus our energies on making sure theres staff on Tuesdays at the busiest time, he said. In Trumbull, Goodman mentioned several steps the service is taking to retain staff, such as expanding their leadership tracks. In Easton, Arnold said, EMS is examining measures such as offering tax incentives for volunteers and better pay for paid staff. Many of the EMS programs are also trying to run as many classes as safety allows to train new staff. I dont have anybody right now that Im going to lose out the door, but you have to always have that in the back of your head, Arnold said. NEW ORLEANS Tulane University in New Orleans is delaying the start of its spring semester because of the latest surge in coronavirus cases, and another private school says students must get booster shots before returning. The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate says Tulane has put the semesters beginning back one week, to Jan. 25. The report also says Loyola University is keeping its Jan. 18 start for most classes and Jan. 10 at its law school, but requiring both booster shots and proof of a negative coronavirus test. Loyola says students not yet eligible for a booster must get one six months after their basic vaccination. Louisianas Department of Health estimates that the omicron variant accounted for more than 84% of all coronavirus infections diagnosed in the week that ended Dec. 18. ___ HERES WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC: Hospitals, police departments struggle to stay staffed as omicron infects workforces Fear of infection takes back seat to food insecurity as pandemic pummels African economies Coronavirus dampens Christmas joy in biblical Bethlehem Go to https://APNews.com/coronavirus-pandemic for updates throughout the day. ___ HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING TODAY: SACRAMENTO, Calif. California health officials say the omicron variant is evident in 50% to 70% of new coronavirus cases in parts of the most populous state heading into the holidays, with the state nearing a total of 5 million virus infections for the pandemic. The U.S. recorded its first confirmed omicron infection just three weeks ago in a San Francisco resident who had recently traveled to South Africa. On Friday, the state had 4,990,016 confirmed coronavirus cases to date and more than 75,000 deaths from COVID-19, the disease that can be caused by the virus. Case reporting is expected to lag because of the holidays. ___ JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. Health officials in Missouri say the omicron variant of the coronavirus has spread across much of Missouri, according to wastewater testing data. The variant has now been detected at low levels in 15 of the 63 test locations, including in St Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, Columbia, Branson, St. Joseph, Union, Clinton, Warrensburg and Fulton. Jeff Wenzel at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services says the data released Friday is based on samples collected last week. He says that tests a week earlier detected the omicron variant in just St. Joseph and in the Kansas City area. Wenzel says that for now, though, the delta variant remains the dominant strain in Missouri. Federal health officials said Monday that nationally, omicron accounts for 73% of new infections. ___ MADRID Spains King Felipe VI has warned citizens to remain cautious as the coronavirus can still inflict widespread damage. His annual Christmas Eve speech came amid a record number of infections in the country Friday. Spanish health authorities have reported three days in a row of record-breaking caseloads and have reinstituted mandatory mask-wearing in open spaces with few exceptions. We all have to do everything possible not to take steps backwards in this health crisis that has caused so much suffering, Felipe said. ___ ROME Pope Francis has celebrated Christmas Eve Mass before an estimated 2,000 people in St. Peters Basilica, going ahead with the service despite the resurgence in COVID-19 cases that has prompted a new vaccine mandate for Vatican employees. A maskless Francis processed down the central aisle of the basilica Friday as the Sistine Chapel choir sang Noel, kicking off the Vaticans Christmas holiday. For the second day in a row, Italy on Friday set a new pandemic daily record with 50,599 new cases. Another 141 people died, bringing the official death toll to 136,386. The Vatican secretary of state on Thursday imposed a new vaccine mandate on all Vatican staff, except those who have recovered from the coronavirus. The faithful attending Mass are required to wear masks. Francis, who is missing part of one lung and had intestinal surgery in July, has largely eschewed masks. He is believed to have received the third booster shot. ___ ALBANY, N.Y. -- New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has defended her response to the coronavirus, insisting that the state acted early and did all it could against the omicron variants rapid spread. Hochul also told a news conference Friday that the state is shortening the amount of time essential workers must stay home after testing positive. Fully vaccinated people in health care and other frontline fields can return to work after five days instead of 10 if theyre not showing symptoms or if their symptoms are resolving. They must also wear masks on the job. Some Republican officials have called the mask mandate an overreach. ___ HARTFORD, Conn. -- A spokesperson for Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont says a small number of attendees at a recent holiday party hosted by the Democrat and his wife at their Greenwich home have tested positive for COVID-19. Both Lamont and wife Annie have regularly tested negative for the coronavirus since the Dec. 11 private event. Lamont spokesperson Max Reiss says guests were required to provide proof of being fully vaccinated and present a negative test. Hearst Connecticut Media reported Thursday that Reiss says the couple get tested regularly and have tested negative in each instance since the party. He did not say how many guests were at the event. ___ MIAMI A COVID-19 outbreak has been recorded on a South Florida-based cruise ship, as the number of coronavirus cases in Florida has hit its second-highest level since the start of the pandemic. An undisclosed number of passengers and crew aboard the Carnival Freedom caught the virus and the ship was denied entry to Bonaire and Aruba, Carnival said in a statement. The ship has 2,497 passengers and 1,112 crew members and was scheduled to return to Miami on Sunday following an 8-day cruise. Passengers were required to be vaccinated and they were tested before leaving last Saturday, according to Carnival. Carnival Freedom is following all protocols and has a small number on board who are in isolation due to a positive COVID test, the statement said. Our protocols anticipate this possibility and we implement them as necessary. It was the third outbreak this week affecting cruise ships operated by Carnival and Royal Caribbean departing Miami and Fort Lauderdale ports. ___ ISTANBUL Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of the worlds Orthodox Christians, has tested positive for COVID-19 and is displaying mild symptoms. The Istanbul-based Patriarchate said Friday that Bartholomew, who is 81 and recently had heart surgery, is fully vaccinated. It added that his general condition is good. The Patriarch has urged people to get their shots and follow the recommendations of doctors. Bartholomew was hospitalized overnight in the United States in late October and later had a stent installed to open up a clogged coronary artery. He is considered first among equals among Eastern Orthodox patriarchs, which gives him prominence but not the power of a Catholic pope. ___ NEW DELHI Indias Health Ministry says an analysis of 183 omicron variant infections showed that 87 were in fully vaccinated people and three involved individuals who had booster doses. India has confirmed a total of 358 cases of the omicron variant and 114 of the infected individuals already have recovered, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan told reporters Friday. He said Asian countries are seeing COVID-19 cases decline overall, unlike in North America and Europe. India was overwhelmed by two massive outbreaks in September 2020 and in May of this year. It recorded more than 400,000 new cases in 24 hours at the peak of its second surge in May. In the past two weeks, the country has averaged around 7,000 new cases a day. Bhushan said 61% of Indias over-18 population has received two vaccine doses. Despite being home to some of the worlds largest vaccine makers, India has relied largely on two jabs: the Astra Zeneca vaccine made by Serum Institute and Bharat Biotechs domestically developed vaccine. ___ BERLIN Germanys health minister says the country's proportion of coronavirus infections with the new omicron variant will increase sharply in the days ahead. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach acknowledged there would be delays in local health offices reporting figures over the holidays, but he appealed on Twitter for people to take steps to avoid infection during Christmas festivities. According to the national disease control center, Germany had 3,198 COVID-19 cases attributed to omicron as of Wednesday, a 25% increase from the previous day. The disease control center said Thursday that of those cases, 48 people were hospitalized and one person had died. So far, the delta variant remains the dominant form of the coronavirus in Germany. Authorities are introducing new contact restrictions, while most regions are shutting nightclubs and putting other measures in place. In most cases, the curbs are set to take effect just after Christmas, though a few will go into force starting Friday. ___ TOKYO Japan has approved the COVID-19 pill developed by U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. for use beginning next week, the Japanese health minister said Friday. Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto told reporters that a ministry drug panel authorized Mercks molnupiravir under a fast-track process and the drug will be shipped to hospitals and pharmacies beginning next week. Its one of two medications for treating COVID-19 that Japan has secured. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the country is procuring 1.6 million doses from Merck. Japan has also arranged for a shipment of 2 million doses of a COVID-19 pill made by Pfizer that hasnt yet received approval for use in the country. Until recently, Japan largely kept out coronavirus infections involving the new omicron variant by enforcing stringent border controls. The first known locally transmitted cases were reported in Osaka on Wednesday. ___ BETHLEHEM, West Bank The biblical town of Bethlehem is marking its second straight Christmas Eve under the shadow of the coronavirus. Small crowds and gray, gloomy weather dampened celebrations on Friday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus. A ban on nearly all incoming air traffic by Israel -- the main entry point for foreign visitors heading to the occupied West Bank -- kept international tourists away for a second consecutive year. Instead, local authorities are counting on the Holy Lands small Christian community to lift spirits. It is a theme seen around the world as revelers, weary from nearly two years of lockdowns and safety restrictions, search for ways to celebrate safely. Before the pandemic, Bethlehem would host thousands of Christian pilgrims from around the world, bringing a strong dose of holiday spirit to the town and a huge jolt to the local economy. ___ PARIS Protesters angry over virus and vaccine rules have occupied Guadeloupes regional legislature because of stalled negotiations over their grievances about management of the French Caribbean island. Officials in Guadeloupe and Paris denounced Thursdays incursion as unacceptable and a threat to the democratically elected Regional Council. Officials posted images online that showed a Christmas tree knocked over and a banner reading No to Obligatory Vaccination, No to the Health Pass. Vaccinations are mandatory for all French health workers and a health pass is required to enter many venues. The measures have met the stiffest opposition in Guadeloupe and Martinique, reflecting long-running frustrations over inequality between the islands and the French mainland. __ SYDNEY Australias New South Wales state is reporting more than 5,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours for the second straight day as the state and federal governments roll out measures meant to curb the spread of the virus. The Federal health minister also said experts have recommended the gap between second vaccine doses and boosters be shortened from five months to four starting Jan. 4 and down to three beginning Jan. 31. State Premier Dominic Perrottet had resisted mandating mask-wearing indoors until Thursdays record caseload led him to reconsider. Testing centers have been swamped by people seeking tests before traveling for family Christmas gatherings. People are now being advised to seek tests only if they are symptomatic or are close contacts of existing cases. ___ QUITO, Ecuador Ecuador is making vaccination against the coronavirus mandatory. The government said Thursday that only Ecuadorians with a medical condition that could be complicated by vaccination will be exempt. Those people must provide documentation. Officials say the order comes because of an increase in coronavirus infections and the circulation of new variants such as omicron. Ecuador says it has enough vaccine to immunize the entire population. As of Tuesday, about 77% of Ecuadors 17.3 million people had been vaccinated. About 33,600 people in Ecuador have died from COVID-19. ___ SANTIAGO, Chile -- Chile plans to offer a fourth dose of the coronavirus vaccine to its citizens. President Sebastian Pinera said Thursday that the fourth dose is expected to start in February. Health Secretary Enrique Paris says the shot will be different than the one people got previously. Chile has reported almost 86% of its population fully vaccinated. It has the highest level of immunization against the coronavirus in Latin America, and among the best levels in the world, according to online research website Our World in Data. Pinera says 10,2 million out of Chiles 19 million people have received a third dose. Chile has recorded almost 39,000 COVID-19 deaths. The Department of State Services (DSS) has released a man accused of preparing charms for embattled Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo popularly called Sunday Igboho. Dada Ifasooto was detained by the secret service on July 16, some two weeks after its operatives stormed Igboho's Ibadan residence in a Gestapo style, killing two of his aides and arresting 12 others. A few weeks later, the DSS freed the 12 detainees on bail, although the whereabouts of the two corpses of the agitator's aides remain unknown. In a statement on Friday, one of Igboho's lawyers, Pelumi Olajengbesi, said that the whereabouts of Ifasooto were unknown till the 12 aides of Igboho, upon their release, revealed that they met him in DSS custody. This is to announce the release of Mr. Dada Ifasooto who was secretly arrested by the State Security Service (SSS) on 16th July, 2021 on the allegation that he is a native doctor who prepares charms for Chief Sunday Igboho, the statement read. Mr. Dada Ifasooto's whereabouts was unknown for months until one of the released detainees from SSS custody informed our office that he is in the custody of the Secret Service in an underground cell. The strange allegations against Mr. Dada Ifasooto and his incarceration defies logical and legal thoughts and underpins the ill-motivated persecution of Chief Sunday Igboho and his associates. Amongst other things, it exposes the straw-clutching antics of the State Security Service in this matter even as it underscores the ridiculous and unlawful length the agency is willing to go. In July, Igboho was arrested by Interpol in the Benin Republic when he tried to catch a Germany-bound flight and has since been detained in the Francophone West African nation where he is facing migration-related charges. Prior to his arrest, he was declared wanted by the DSS after he escaped a midnight raid on July 1. School na scam is a threading slogan among the young demographic populace in Nigeria. The notion which the slogan connotes is that formal education is not by any means a way to attain high - stand in the society. In other words, school education is a wasteful, irrelevant and time waster in this our contemporary times. Whether this assertion is rationally justifiable by their palpable justifications which are sometimes considered reasonable, it is still imperative to make balance of the argument. And, of course, to re-examine the general perspective of school as place to learn. We know in the history of our country, Nigeria, education was the best legacy parents could proudly afford their children at any cost. Aside that it was lucrative at the end as graduates were promptly employed and paid high salary and given many luxurious benefits; formal education was very inexpensive with high quality. As it was told, classrooms were enough and commodious. Basic school infrastructures which were to facilitate academic progress were fully provided and well functioning in both federal and state government owned schools. Even, to ease the burden of those incapacitated to send their offsprings, despite the low or no price school charges, scholarships were made available for interested and best candidates. This was also undoubtedly a strategy to motivate students for academic excellence. Indeed, school life is the best was the popular quote during this best time of our history. By implication of this accessable and quality education, our country experienced rapid growth in terms of economy, human development, political independence and just to mention a few. Unfortunately, reversal is the case in our current dispensation. All of the aforementioned credits of country were facts in history; they are no more of truth today. Our enthusiasm for education is rapidly diminishing due to a lot of reasons which are not limited to government and leadership failure, parents negligence and social influences. First, our once admirable schools have become dilapidated environment not conducive for wall geckos, lizards or any other animal specie. The few manageable functioning classrooms are usually populated with pupils hanging on the windows or sitting on the floor due to lack of enough chairs and desks. Above all, the higher prices which are charged in public and especially private schools with no iota confidence of employment opportunities is an engine oil smooth running the slogan. These are omens of leadership and structural failure. To make matters worse, our education curriculum does not practically makes students self reasoning and innovators. This is because much of what they are being taught are not put into practical even when they are still in schools. And to this, it is due to lack of necessary equipment and infrastructures which the government fails to provide. Also, the little or no funds and attention given to aid implementation of academic research and theories for the use of the society is also a stone in the wheel of academic scholarship. Until government takes absolute responsible to do the needful to salvage our education sector from shambles, there would not be confidence of secured future through school education. Moving on, gone are days when parents take absolute responsible in teaching and imbibing social- cultural norms in their children order to live moderate life. Most parents nowadays give little attention in bringing up their children. They however shifted their parental responsibilities to the hands of the school teachers of their wards. And during the period of off school service, the children are left with all kinds of social ills and abnormalities which they can learn from their peers in school or in their neighbourhoods. Consequently, within a space of time, these young children become the products of the society by forming gang and become chasing materialistic items as their parents do. Even, when they financially support the family perpetually with no apparent work they do, they are well commended and eulogised. Moral education and formal education are no more prioritised within the family. Moreover, many a parent prefers their children to go into vocational training to school. Perhaps, this is not totally wrong. However, the best is , if they want their children have alternative vocational training, school should not be neglected. Until parents stand as role models for their children as they give attentive care and also let them see hope and encourage them for formal education, standard social norms may diminish while mediocrity and social vices thrive. Another factor which has let school na scam gained widespread among the young Nigerians is social influences. Our present dispensation undoubtedly values money more than intellectual. While the society rewards those with little or no academic achievement momentary stardom and quick riches, but the educationists are being ignored and not recognised. What moral do we expect of a society where people with academic minds are being ridiculed for pursuing dreams that is of no more relevant to success? Upon that, my fear is that possibly high number of illitrates who can read but value not reading or schooling in general among our high- increasing population. In conclusion, while I may agree that school may be scam, it is important to evaluate what school should be. Evidently, schools are not only places to acquire new knowledge or learn new things, they are but also venues to discover oneselfs potentials and where to put the raw potentials into practical through exploration. The onus is on a pupil or student to explore his/ her school setting to showcase his talent or ability to the world. While I also agree that education is not only a ladder to success, I will always implore young individuals to still go to school. The basis of education is to make oneself independent and self discovery to provide solutions to our societal problems which can bring development to the society in general. As artisans with quality education, it is unarguably that the field one chooses to thrive, exposure to education will always give a edge and will make one stands out among ones counterparts who possessed not formal education. Adeleye I. Damilare is an Undergraduate in Lagos State University Can be reached via; [email protected] Nigerian Government has dismissed reports of planned terror attack on Abuja. The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) had reportedly, in a leaked letter dated December 23, 2021, and signed by the Land Border Patrol Commander, Edirin Okoto, on behalf of the Acting Comptroller General Of Immigration Service, Idris Jere, said it received intelligence from the Presidency that some terrorists from Mali, want to move through the border Nigeria shares with Niger Republic to launch an attack in Abuja. While briefing State House correspondents on the outcome of the emergency meeting of the National Security Council, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, on Friday in Abuja, Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola described the reported imminent attack on the FCT as false and untrue. According to the minister, Abuja is safe and secured from terrorist attacks. Ive given you the outcome of the Security Council meeting, but to your question, there isnt any threat to safety and security of Abuja. Abuja is secure and very safe. If there was a leak as you have mentioned, it could just be operational alert that does not require any worry or concern. The Council has mandated us to assure Nigerians of their safety, of their security and enduring peace for the period of the festivities, he said. The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, who also addressed the correspondents on the outcome of the meeting, condemned Thursdays rockets attack on Maiduguri by the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP). Baba said the terrorists were, however, unable to achieve their objectives with the rocket attacks. They are launching it in major towns, they are launching it in Maiduguri. It is a concern. And it has been seriously checkmated. There are efforts to continuously checkmate it. What they have done yesterday (Thursday), yes, they have done it, but to a large extent, they have not achieved what they have intended to achieve because of the measures the security agencies, particularly the military, put in place, he said Intersociety, Onitsha-Nigeria, Saturday, 25th Dec 2021: Today marks a total of 2,022 years after the earthly birth of a Principal Leader of the Abrahamic Religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam)-Jesus Christ of Nazareth and 1,989 years after his crucifixion and death. For the record, Jesus Christ was born between 001BC and 001AD or 2,022 years ago and crucified in AD33 or 1,989 years ago, after which the Hanging Church of Asyut in present Egypt in Africa was built in AD60; 27 years after the death of Christ. Out of the three dominant Abrahamic Religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam; Judaism is the oldest and worlds oldest monotheistic religion, dating back to 4000 years or about 1,978BC; followed by Christianity founded in AD35 or 1,986 years ago by Jesus Christ of Nazareth; and Islam founded in AD622 or 1,399 years ago by Prophet Mohammed who was born in AD570 and died in AD632. The designation of 25th Dec as Christmas Day was decreed on 25th Dec 336AD during the reign of the Emperor Constantine; a year after the date for Easter or commemoration of the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary was proclaimed by the First Council of Nicaea (todays Vatican Council) of 325AD. Today, Christianity is worshipped by not less than 2.4billion people around the world, followed by Islam with not less 1.92billion people and Hinduism with about 1.16billion worshippers. Judaism is worshipped by tiny population of 15.2million people around the world. By the recent account of the Religion of Peace or TROP, not less than 270million non Muslim faith members including Christians, Hindus and Buddhists have been put to death on the ground of their faith by radical Muslims and Jihadists since 622AD or 1,399 years ago. Many of the victims belonged to Christianity. The faith based butcheries had peaked and worsened during Islamic Intifada or Uprising between 622AD and 750AD; 1071AD and 1,683AD; and lately or since the beginning of Cold War era in 1989 following the collapse of Eastern European bloc and German Berlin Wall. In Nigeria, killings and attacks targeted at Christians, their homes and sacred places of worship and learning have been dated back to the Anti Igbo Christian Katsina Railway Riots of 1937 and the Anti Igbo Jos Riots of 1945. In recent years or since July 2009, over 44,000 Christians have been targeted and hacked to death in direct attacks while tens of thousands of others died indirectly in the course of the former. Over 17,000 churches and 2000 Christian schools have also been lost to such attacks and burnings. Therefore, as the world is marking the 2,022years of the birth of Jesus Christ and 1,986years of formation of the Church of Christ including 164years (since 1857AD) of CMS (Anglican and Methodist) and 136years (since 1885AD) of RCM (Roman Catholic Mission) in Eastern Nigeria, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law-INTERSOCIETY is deeply worried, sad and dismayed that Satanism, Immorality and Judases are now in control of the House of Christ in Nigeria. Satanism or opposite of the teachings and noble ways of life of Jesus Christ is now leading the way in Christendom and their affairs in Nigeria; same goes to immorality which is now a common salutation among the clergies and the laities. Judases have also become General Overseers, Bishops, Vicars/Parish Priests and Resident/Host Pastors-brainwashing and demonizing their members so as to hoodwink them into coughing out millions or billions for building paradises on Earth. The Holy Bible and its sacred verses have been demonically twisted and monetized by church leaders. Human miseries arising from public governance failures and personal tragedies and misfortunes have also become money making ventures for the Judases in the House of Christ and God. As a matter of fact, Christianity in Nigeria is now dominated by pretenders who falsely proclaim and falsely love God and Godliness in the open but despise, hate and mock them in secret. Not even sanctification and purification sanctuaries including Catholic Monasteries have been spared as they are brazenly and mindlessly defiled and desecrated. Today, Bishops Conferences have been hijacked, politicized and monetized by corrupt and immoral politicians. During such conferences, politicians jostle to take care of the Bishops bills including quartering them in their palatial residences or state-of-art properties procured with stolen public funds or keeping them in expensive hotels, feeding them and having their flight tickets paid fully, etc. Such politicians are usually rewarded with favorable and watery communiques or issuance of image laundering statements or watering down of issues critical of the sitting Government or key appointees and other politicians. Our constant monitoring of churches and their leaders in the country particularly in Eastern Nigeria has clearly indicated that the growth and development of churches are nothing to write home about. As a matter of fact, they have been very abysmal especially since 2015. In other words, many, if not most of the church leaders have grossly derailed and incurably deviated; abandoning the defense of faith and protection and safety of the vulnerable and defenseless faith members. There has also been little or zero impartation of morals on faith members and reprimanding of immoral others. Before the very eyes of vulnerable and defense faith members, their leaders including the so called powerful preachers dot themselves with bullet-proof vests and move with long convoys of sophisticated armed security bodyguards; only to turn around and brainwash their lay members into believing that they are invincible and beyond human destruction. In all, they have wrecked havocs on families and afflicted them with irreconcilable differences, divisions and untimely deaths. They have also pitched parents against parents, siblings against siblings, kindred against kindred, clans against clans and visited unspeakable violence and destructions upon ancient trees and benevolent sacred altars and symbols of worship and traditional institutions. The twists and turns in the Christendom of todays Nigeria have also forced and are still forcing hundreds of thousands, if not millions out of the Christendom in preference for traditional religious practices and atheism. Intersociety hereby renews its earlier call for scrapping and replacement of the Christian Association of Nigeria-CAN. CAN, apart from overstaying its welcome and usefulness having long been heavily infiltrated and compromised by jihad enablers and other inter-faith intolerant forces will continue to supervise the degradation, humiliation and under-growth of Christianity in Nigeria, until it is scrapped and replaced. The days of CAN in Nigeria or any part thereof are therefore over and must be replaced with a purposeful and focused new central Christian body whose leaders are not capable of being compromised, misled and intimidated. Our investigative checks have clearly shown that in the past twelve years under CAN or between 2009 and 2021, the growth and security and safety of Christianity and their Faith Members as well as their sacred places of worship and learning have fallen from bad to worse, if not worst-with Christianity and Christians almost totally overrun in the Northeast, Northwest and North-central. This is to the extent that their clergies now almost minister empty church buildings. Christianity and Christians under CAN have also faced grisly and egregious threats of persecution, extermination and destruction in the Rainforest Regions of the Southwest, South-south and Southeast Finally, the time has also come and long overdue for a new World Vatican Council under the leadership of the Catholic Church and Pope Francis. It must be stated that one of the wisest decisions ever taken by the Catholic Church was the institution of the Vatican Council with the last being :the Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican held on 11th Oct 1962 to Dec 8, 1965 in the Vatican City. The Second Vatican Council was declared open in Oct 1962 by Pope John XXVIII and closed on Dec 8, 1965 by Pope Paul V1 and it was also the 21 Vatican Councils in the row since 325AD First Council of Nicaea. Apart from Sixteen Magisterial Documents produced by the Second Vatican Council, extensive reforms were done on: liturgy, theology of the Church, revelation, laity, a new approach between the church and the world, ecumenism, issues bordering on non Christian religions and religious freedom, etc. In addition to calling for review of all of the above in the new Vatican Council (22nd Vatican Council) being demanded, Intersociety is strongly but persuasively calling on the Church to critically look into issues of church clergies and ministration/materialism; defense of faith and protection and safety of faith members and Christian sacred centers of worship and learning; laity/clergy and immorality and inter-faith and intra faith evangelism, etc After much pondering and consulting, it is evident that the President of Nigeria has let go of his assent to the New Electoral Bill sent to him by the Legislature. This New Electoral Bill addressed a couple of election issues in Nigeria, such as Electronic transmission of results and Direct Primaries. Unfortunately, the President returned the Bill to the National Assembly without his expected assent. Citing his objection to the idea of direct primaries as posited by the legislature.The President opined that direct primaries would be highly undemocratic. He expressed concerns that the suggested mandatory use of direct primaries will amount to the violation of the rights of citizens and will lead to the marginalisation of smaller political parties. The President added that political parties should decide the best way to pick their candidates for elections, explaining that his bearing was based on mindful scrutiny and consultations. Many would say the reasons cited by the President are rather subjective, but I would agree with the President on the issue of Direct primaries as discretionary. Political parties should be given the sole authority to choose their candidates however they find requisite. It is also important to note that the House of Representatives and the Senate had initially differed on the framework of the electronic transmission of results, but after persuasion from the public, the Senate changed its direction. There was never any fuss about direct primaries between the both chambers of the Legislature. It is now obvious that both the INEC office and the Office of the Attorney General had advised the President to abruptly reject the Bill. Occasionally, this rejection is not final as there are supplemental actions existing. The National Assembly subsequently presented to its members, the Presidents resolve to veto the Electoral Act Amendment Bill of 2021. Therefore, what aftermath can we anticipate? The decisive option available to the National Assembly as enumerated in Section 59 (4) of the Nigerian Constitution is that Where the President, within thirty days after the presentation of the bill to him, fails to signify his assent or where he withholds assent, then the bill shall again be presented to the National Assembly sitting at a joint meeting, and if passed by two-thirds-majority of members of both Houses at such joint meeting, the bill shall become law and the assent of the President shall not be required. Profoundly, the Legislature can override the Presidents veto. But will this current Legislature, where the Presidents party (APC) is dominant, override his veto? Clearly, it is unlikely. The constitution plainly expressed the independence of the legislature and the peak of its powers under Section 4, but this 9th Assembly is more than hesitant on issues that affect the executive;The Presidency. What is the way forward? Accurately, the proposed direct primaries subverts the principles of the Constitution and the rights of political parties. The Presidents focus on one unit of this bill out of others is very clear now. In the 2023 general elections, the President would want to show Nigerians a distinction about his government. If this deed has no prospects, the National Assembly has an essential role to play in this finding. First, as required by law, they could look at this Bill again, make the necessary rectifications and send it to the President for his assent, or they could just override his veto, only for the sole purpose of doctrinal democracy. President Buharis rejection of the Electoral Amendment Bill is not only subjective but for the case of Direct primaries, also Didactic. Contact: [email protected] 3 doses of AZ urged to combat Omicron BANGKOK: The Public Health Ministry is urging those who have received two doses of AstraZeneca to get a booster shot to protect themselves against the highly infectious new variant of COVID-19. COVID-19CoronavirushealthVaccine By Bangkok Post Saturday 25 December 2021, 01:46PM Photo: Bangkok Post Citing academic research, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Friday (Dec 24) that those who get three doses of AstraZeneca will greatly reduce their chances of being infected by Omicron, reports the Bangkok Post. Thailand has its own AstraZeneca manufacturing facilities. It was confirmed that 61 million doses will be delivered by years end, while another 60mn doses, including second-generation vaccines, will be handed over at the beginning of next year. I also want to ask people to avoid panicking as long as the information from the Department of Disease Control [DDC] shows Omicron has much less severe symptoms than Delta, said Mr Anutin. DDC Director-General, Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, said Oxford University believes that three doses of AstraZeneca has the same efficacy against Omicron as two doses do against Delta. The DDCs sub-committee on promoting disease immunity is now discussing how to adjust the current vaccination regimen. Dr Opas said the administration of Pfizer shots for children aged 5-11 years will not be rushed as it requires the consent of their parents. Information from the Education Ministry shows there are about 5.04mn children in that age bracket. Yesterdays meeting also agreed to administer a fourth vaccine shot for frontline health personnel, as well as people who suffer from chronic diseases and immunodeficiency disorders. Dr Apisamai Srirangson, assistant spokeswoman for the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), said the body is working with Oxford University to produce a specific vaccine against Omicron. Technically, adenovirus-based vaccines like AstraZeneca are best suited to protect against the new variant in a faster manner, she added. Since Feb 28, 101.6mn doses of vaccines have been administered in Thailand 50.86mn as a first dose, 45.01mn as a second dose and 5.731mn as a third dose. Phuket Governor offers blessings for New Year PHUKET: Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew yesterday delivered his message for the New Year, wishing one and all happiness, prosperity and the coming year free from suffering and disease. cultureCOVID-19tourismhealth By The Phuket News Saturday 25 December 2021, 09:30AM Although Phuket Governors usually deliver their message for the new year on New Years Eve or New Years Day, Governor Narong broke tradition to deliver his message on Christmas Eve. New Year is coming, and I would like to take this opportunity to invite the people of Phuket together to pray for all the sacred things in their own religion to please take care and give blessings to honour His Majesty The King, Her Majesty the Queen and all members of the royal family, as His Majesty is the figurehead for all Thai people, Governor Narong wrote in his formal New Year address. And this new year, may the sacred blessings of Luang Por Chaem of Chalong Temple and the spirits of Ya Mook and Ya Chan [the Phuket Heroines] help us and inspire Phuket people to experience happiness, prosperity, and be free from suffering and disease. May this New Year be a golden year for Phuket people after we have gone through a hard time during COVID-19. I wish everyone a happy and prosperous New Year. Phuket Vice Governor Pichet Panapong yesterday also offered his New Year blessings This year [2021] is the year of the Ox, following the Thai 12-year cycle of animals. Its like the year of the cow that is difficult to eat, only eating grass. But we must be patient. Its like we have been facing COVID-19 problems non-stop since last year. Many people have to stop their business or some people have to quit their jobs and go back to their homeland. Some people have to change careers. We have a hard time together. Lets support each other, and the public sector has never left everyone, trying to support everyone to be able to overcome the crisis. It is considered that we have to take the lessons of last year to improve our work, Vive Governor Pichet said. To live better than before, I recommend living with two spare baskets, the first one is the main job that everyone must have, a main income. It is a job that we have to do every day. The second one is the spare basket as an additional job that we must keep for a day when the main occupation slips out of hand. We will have a second basket to support us, he added. We hope that next year will be considered the year of the golden tiger, following the Thai 12-year animal cycle. It will be a lucky year for everyone, and a year without COVID-19 or at least fewer infections. Vaccinations have reached more than 85% [first injection, of the target population] and there are measures for boosters every six months. The next step is to restore the economy and stimulate spending. In terms of public sector and private sector budgets, they have organised economic revival activities such as outstanding products which we sell to foreign tourists. Together they have also organised sport activities and hosted national and international competitions in order to promote more tourism to Phuket, Vice Governor Pichet said. Next year, everyone should not let their guard down, and must continue to wear a mask, maintain social distancing and use alcohol-based hand sanitiser. Basically, we need to act with moderation in terms of spending. On the auspicious occasion of the New Year, I wish holy things to inspire everyone to be happy and prosperous. Live life with care and I wish you all success in your work and life throughout 2022. Thank you, he said. Sea turtles return to Thailands shores during pandemic PHUKET: After laying eggs on a deserted Thai beach, a green sea turtle dives back into the turquoise-coloured waters of the Andaman Sea - a welcome sight for biologists who say the absence of tourists spurred the marine animals return. animalsCoronavirusCOVID-19Chineseenvironmentmarinepollutionwildlifetourism By AFP Saturday 25 December 2021, 10:00AM A turtle swims past coral in the sea off Thailands Andaman coast, Nov 24, 2021. Photo: AFP The turtles nesting was spotted in November by scientists. In about two months, the 100 eggs will hatch and babies will slide towards the sea, guided by the moonlight. Pre-pandemic, millions of tourists thronged to the white sand beaches of southern Thailand, ferried to the islands by tour boats which dissuaded the skittish creatures from venturing ashore. But with almost 20 months of COVID travel restrictions in place, several different species of sea turtles have returned to nesting around Phuket, an ultra-popular beach destination before the pandemic. Between October 2020 and February 2021, 18 nests of leatherback turtles - which can grow up to 400 kilograms as an adult and are the largest species of sea turtles - were found in Phuket. Their nesting has improved in the last two years thanks to the absence of tourists, noise and light pollution, Kongkiat Kittiwatanawong, director of the Phuket Marine Biological Center, told AFP. We had never seen such a number in 20 years. Although chances of survival are very low - about one egg hatched out of 1,000 will reach adulthood - Kongkiat said the increase in nesting is a positive sign for efforts to preserve endangered species. A nest of the olive ridley sea turtle was also spotted - the first time in two decades. Other species that live in the warm waters around Thailand include leatherback, hawksbill, green and loggerhead turtles. No long-term reprieve But as Thailand tentatively begins to reopen its doors to fully vaccinated international tourists, scientists have tempered their optimism. The pandemic may offer sea turtles a welcome break, Thon Thamrongnawasawat from Kasetsart University in Bangkok said. But they live long and are a highly migratory species. Without effective policies to protect them, we cant expect many long-term benefits to population recovery. In Thailand - as in many other countries - the marine animals future is threatened by global warming, which harms coral reefs and increases temperatures of waters. The hotter conditions could in turn disrupt turtle species populations: studies have shown that warmer sands where they nest leads to more female hatchlings relative to males. Pollution is also a problem. At the moment, plastic and discarded fishing lines and nets remain the primary cause of disease and death. In 56% of the cases, the turtles that are brought to us have ingested marine waste or become trapped in it, said Dr Patcharaporn Kaewong from the Phuket Marine Biological Center. Currently, 58 turtles are being treated there. Some need operations, amputation or prosthetics before they are released back into the wild. Tracking the turtles At the moment, scientists and local authorities are on high alert for nesting seaon, which runs until February. After a female turtle lays a nest, the authorities will act quickly - either moving them to a safe place if they are too close to the water or surrounding it with bamboo fences and security cameras. After hatching, we take care of the weak turtles until they are strong enough to go to the sea, Patcharaporn said. She added that educating the public about conservation was also important. Up until a few decades ago, eating turtle eggs was a common custom in Thailand, but gathering them was banned by the Thai government in 1982. Illegally possessing or selling leatherback turtle eggs is now punishable by three to 15 years in prison, and carries fines of up to US$50,000 (B1.6 million). Some marine protection NGOs are also financially rewarding locals who report a nest, while technology - like microchipping a turtle - also plays a part in long-term monitoring. Thanks to satellite tracking, we have observed that they can migrate much further than we thought, Kongkiat said, adding that some have gone as far as Australia. Southern Pines, NC (28387) Today Chance of a shower or two during the evening, followed by partly cloudy skies overnight. Low 31F. S winds shifting to NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Chance of a shower or two during the evening, followed by partly cloudy skies overnight. Low 31F. S winds shifting to NW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%. ___ Russian court slaps Google, Meta with massive fines MOSCOW (AP) A Moscow court has fined Google nearly $100 million and Facebooks parent company Meta $27 million over their failure to delete content banned by local law. The Tagansky District Court ruled on Friday that Google repeatedly neglected to remove the banned content, and ordered the company to pay a 7.2-billion ruble ($98.4-million) fine. Google said it would study the court documents before deciding on its next steps. Later Friday, the court also slapped a 1.9 billion ruble ($27.2 million) fine on Meta for its failure to remove banned content. Russian authorities have ramped up pressure on tech companies this year, accusing them of failing to remove calls for unsanctioned protests in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. ___ Omicron is latest blow to pandemic-weary front-line workers BOSTON (AP) The surge in coronavirus cases driven by the new omicron variant is the latest blow to hospitals, police departments, supermarkets and other critical operations struggling to maintain staffing levels. COVID-19 absences among workers at London hospitals tripled this month, and nearly 10% of the citys firefighters were out sick. In New York, about twice as many police officers took sick time this week than normal. Countries such as Spain have eased quarantine rules to allow more people to continue working. Some U.S. states have called in the National Guard to help boost short-handed hospitals. ___ US to lift omicron-linked travel ban on southern Africa WASHINGTON (AP) The U.S. will lift travel restrictions on eight southern African countries that it imposed to try to blunt the spread of the COVID omicron variant. The White House says the temporary travel bans bought scientists necessary time to study the new virus variant first discovered in South Africa. The World Health Organization and leaders in southern Africa criticized the travel ban as ineffective. The ban had barred entry to all non-U.S. citizens who had been in South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Namibia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. It will be lifted on New Years Eve. ___ Airlines cancel flights due to COVID staffing shortages NEW YORK (AP) Airlines are canceling hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels at some carriers during the busy holiday travel season. Delta Air Lines and United Airlines said Friday they canceled flights because of staff shortages tied to the omicron variant, while other airlines say operations are proceeding normally. Flight delays and cancellations tied to staffing shortages have been a regular problem for the U.S. airline industry this year as travel recovered. While some travelers canceled holiday plans because of rising case numbers, many others kept to their vacations during some of the years busiest travel days. ___ China denounces US law on Xinjiang imports BEIJING (AP) The Chinese government has denounced a U.S. law that restricts imports from Xinjiang as a violation of international law and dismissed complaints of abuses against mostly Muslim minorities in the region as lies. President Joe Biden signed the measure amid mounting tension including appeals by activists for a boycott of Februarys Winter Olympics in Beijing. It prohibits U.S. businesses from importing goods from Xinjiang unless they can be proven not to have been made by forced labor. A foreign ministry spokesman said the measure disregards the truth and interferes in Chinas affairs. Foreign governments and researchers say more than 1 million Uyghurs and other minorities have been confined in camps in Xinjiang. ___ Spains king urges renewed caution amid surge Spains King Felipe VI has warned citizens to remain cautious as the coronavirus can still inflict widespread damage. His annual Christmas Eve speech came amid a record number of infections in the country Friday. Health authorities have reported three days in a row of record-breaking caseloads and have reinstituted mandatory mask-wearing in open spaces with few exceptions. We all have to do everything possible not to take steps backwards in this health crisis that has caused so much suffering, Felipe said. ___ Stocks mixed across global markets in quiet holiday trading BEIJING (AP) Global stocks were mixed in quiet trading on Friday, with many markets closed or ending early in observance of Christmas. Stocks slipped in Paris and Tokyo, inched higher in Seoul and Hong Kong and were nearly unchanged in London. Financial markets took the day off in the United States, Germany and many other countries. A day earlier, Wall Streets S&P 500 set a record as fears ebbed about how badly the omicron variant will hit the economy. Of course, much is still uncertain about omicron, which seems to spread extremely quickly. Several airlines canceled flights Friday because many workers called in sick. ___ DEC. 18 - 24, 2021 From migrants at a checkpoint at the Belarus-Poland border, to protests against COVID-19 measures in Bucharest, to holiday celebrations across the globe, this photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images from around the world made or published by The Associated Press in the past week. PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) A woman who returned from a flight to Europe with more than $3,000 worth of gifts in her luggage found the contents gone and replaced with dog food. Gina Sheldon, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, also found an old T-shirt and a shaving cream bottle in her bag, WMUR-TV reported Friday. TROY Rensselaer Countys history has been told in the Hart Cluett Museums galleries through the 171 exhibits Stacy Pomeroy Draper created during her 43-year career. The 66-year-old museum curators touch in researching and depicting the local stories of the people, places and artifacts in the county, Troy and other communities is ending as the energetic and always curious curator retires from the museum staff. It was a starter job. I figured Id be here for maybe five years. There had been five curators in a decade, said the graduate of Smith College and the Cooperstown Graduate Program in history museum studies. The native of Bronxville in Westchester County didn't just find work at the museum. She found love there too, meeting her now late husband Steve Draper in the galleries. Together, they raised their daughter Kathryn Draper in Lansingburgh. An American studies major with a history concentration from Smith, Draper was enraptured by explaining local history that ranged from life in Troys Black community and the local history of labor to the lives of the wealthiest residents and the way their money transformed downtown's architecture. Theres a lot of compelling stories. Theres so much potential for a whole range of things getting people excited about their history, Draper said of the museum. The exhibits often dealt with work in the county, culminating with the current The Way We Work(ed) done in collaboration with the Smithsonian. Smaller exhibits such as one about the bridges over the Hudson River drew attention to. The states first bridge to span the Hudson River was between Troy and Waterford. The bridge's successor span still stands. Drapers second day on the job in 1978 found her caught in the middle of the filming of the PBS docudrama The Molders of Troy, about 19th century ironworkers. As she neared retirement, she saw the museum play a key role in providing the historical perspective for HBOs upcoming period drama The Gilded Age. We have worked together for 35 years. She was my mentor when I came in as an intern from SUNY Albany, said Kathy Sheehan, the historian for the city of Troy and Rensselaer County. She began at the museum as Drapers curatorial assistant. Shes always excited to try something new. She knows a lot about everything. If youre cast with a challenge, shes incredibly thoughtful in figuring out all of the angles to make something work. I feel like half my brain is walking out the door. Weve worked together so long we literally know what each other is about to say, Sheehan said. The breadth of the elegantly poised Drapers interests can be seen in her two favorite pieces in the museums collections. One is the 1840s watercolor portrait of Peter F. Baltimore, a Black leader and barber from Troy who played a prominent role in the Capital Region's 19th-century abolitionist movement and whose son Garnet Douglass Baltimore was the first Black graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Raising the funds for the portrait and and being able to buy it when it became available was a challenge, Draper said. The portrait itself is so pleasant, Draper said. Drapers second favorite piece is the diary of Maria Tillman Hart, whose family home is part of the Hart Cluett Museum complex a 57 Second St. Draper relishes the insights the diary provides about life in 19th century Troy. You begin to build not just the story but the context for the story, Draper said. Harts diary takes an event like a party and brings it alive, explaining how different rooms were used and describing interactions among the partygoers. Its a scene-by-scene account of cultural events from a past era that projects like The Gilded Age strive to bring back to life on the screen. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. During her nearly two generations at the museum, Draper has seen financial challenges the imperiled the institution, its name change from the Rensselaer County Historical Society, the evolution of museum education and the expansion of exhibit space. Throughout her career, Draper earned a reputation in the museum world, said Starlyn DAngelo, the executive director of the museum. She met Draper in the 1990s while she was a graduate student in Cooperstown. Stacy was always known for being a consummate, solid museum professional who is truly dedicated and known for doing quality work, DAngelo said. Just as Draper mentored Sheehan, DAngelo said she has done the same in guiding Samantha Mahoski, the curatorial assistant, who will succeed Draper. Thats to be expected from Draper, said Karin Kraevac-Lenz, who retired in early 2021 as executive director of the museum. Stacy has dedicated much of her personal and professional life to the museum and has gone above and beyond in putting in extraordinary work and hours. Draper co-authored The Marble House in Second Street: Biography of a Town House and Its Occupants 1825-2000 with Douglas Bucher and Walter Richard Wheeler. It tells the story of the museums buildings. She plans to tackle another book in retirement. Martin I. Townsend, known as Troys Grand Old Man, is Drapers subject. Townsend was a lawyer whose career spanned most of the 19th century. He played prominent roles in local and state politics. Draper called his story compelling. GREENFIELD Local maple syrup tastes better, according to the website of Twin Leaf Farms, a new brand on an old plot of land in Saratoga County. Now, its owners are gearing up to market a similar bid for a different leaf: marijuana. While the land and home next to Twin Leaf has been in Claudia Brights family for seven generations, she and her husband, Kevin Bright, bought the farm about four years ago, when the former owner who had run it himself for decades was looking to get out. Public records show they registered the brand in August 2019. Since then, we've upgraded the maple operation, Kevin Bright said. He explained, from a couch in the couples nearby Saratoga County home, how vacuum pumps and a few additional staff members had allowed them to double their output to 150 gallons last year. Sitting in his Lincoln Logs-style New York cabin, the open-faced man cozied up with his wife in front of a purple accent wall reminiscent of the interiors made famous by Rachel and Monicas Manhattan apartment in the 1990s sitcom "Friends" a megahit for which Kevin Bright was the executive producer, along with David Crane and Marta Kauffman. Kevin Bright was himself a native Manhattanite, eventually kindling a sociology 101 romance with his wife, Claudia, as a SUNY Plattsburgh student and putting down roots in her native community in Greenfield. But the pair is decidedly bicoastal, with a residence in Los Angeles, after first moving to California in 1982. The initiation of Brights interest in cannabis may have drawn a laugh track from the room well, I was 16 years old but he nodded at more serious insights from when he and Claudia watched the West Coast industry unfold. The couple have been public cheerleaders for the plant ever since Kevin Brights elderly, treatment-resistant mom saw a significant quality-of-life benefit after being prescribed the synthetic cannabinoid Marinol (known also by its generic name dronabinol). After watching her improvements, a decade ago the couple approached UCLA looking to support cannabis-related research. While the school didnt have much to say on the topic at the time, years later it came back to them for support of its now-robust Cannabis Research Initiative. But the Brights were less than enthusiastic about the way Californias adult-use legalization played out. I think were bringing the experience with us of what not to do, Kevin Bright said. The state grows more than literally the inhabitants of California combined. This leads to a lot of black market growing. And these dispensaries open up in vacant stores and they open for a month and then they get busted and then they move on and they open another one, that's part of the process of what they do. They're underselling the legitimate dispensaries." Kevin Bright said the pair was encouraged to jump into the market in New York in spite of the California wild west because it sounded to them like the state would do things differently, including investing the industrys revenue in communities most affected by its criminalization. Their vision for the 400 acres of their Twin Leaf Farms is to keep producing maple syrup and doing other traditional farming, while also trying their hand at cannabis, and technological advances like solar energy but to lodge the latter two deeper onto their property, out of sight. Our solar field will not be an eyesore because it will be in the middle, said Claudia Bright, noting that residents of the area have protested solar based on how it changes the character of the regions agricultural land. Similarly, they hope to apply for a license for mom-and-pop, craft-scale cannabis farming and listen carefully to neighbors' concerns about issues like security. Paul Buckowski/Times Union But nearly nine months after the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act was passed in New York to legalize cannabis, all of their plans are speculative the newly formed Cannabis Control Board and Office of Cannabis Management have yet to release regulations and license categories that will allow the couple to know where they might fit. Board Chair Tremaine Wright recently said she was sticking to a previously announced 18-month timeline since the boards completion in October for the states adult-use industry to be up and running, which means such operations would not be operational until April 2023. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. But many public relations agents, lobbyists and lawyers across the state have been stacking up clients who are hoping to give themselves an early edge in the market including Mercury Public Affairs, who the Brights have begun working with already. Many of these attorneys and lobbyists have told the Times Union that its not too early to start drumming up interest in a plan. They advise versions of what Kaelan Castetter, vice president of the New York Cannabis Growers & Processors Association, called creating an air of inevitability engaging community leaders, senators, assembly members, even residents of the area. According to the Mercury representatives for the Brights, the pair has already made strides to share their plan with leaders, even offering a tour of the property to Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner, whose district skirts Greenfield Center. (Twin Leaf Farms) is one of maybe four potential grow businesses that have reached out to me to talk about what their ideas are, and how they'd like to proceed, Woerner said. Woerner does not have a say in who will get the licenses the Office of Cannabis Management will submit recommendations on decisions to Wright, whose ultimate approvals will rely on a lack of objection from the five-person board. But the Assemblywoman does have hopes for what the industry will look like in her area. We really wanted to encourage locally grown businesses as opposed to candidates coming in from out of state, Woerner said. So I'm really encouraged by the conversations I've had. Woerner learned about the Brights plan from Kevin Veitch, who has been involved in managing the farm and who she knows from her time working in local government. Veitch will take on the role of town supervisor in Greenfield in the new year. Meanwhile, Kevin and Claudia Bright have high hopes for Claudias native region: they see it as a potential Napa Valley of the East Coast, with agrotourism and cannabis at its core. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Delaware State News. A federal judge says Montanas Public Service Commission districts, which have not been reapportioned in two decades, are likely unconstitutional Delaware State University will delay the return of students to campus by two weeks because of the surge in coronavirus cases that's being driven by the omicron variant Two killed in wrong-way collision on I-40 in North Carolina A North Carolina police department says two men were killed and a third was injured after a wrong-way crash on Interstate 40 in North Carolina, a police department said Right now we share a bevy of recent stories on all manner of local human suffering from court cases to police action and ongoing investigations. Here's TKC news gathering . . . Kansas City area daughters wish for breaks in their mother's cases this Christmas KANSAS CITY, Mo. - This Christmas two daughters are praying for answers. Both women's mothers are missing. One from Kansas and one from Missouri. FOX4's Sherae Honeycutt has followed both of their cases and spoke with the women ahead of the holiday. KCPD investigating Dec. 5 fatal hit-and-run KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department is investigating a hit-and-run that took place on Dec. 5 and has since become fatal for one of the victims. On Dec. 5, the East Patrol Division was dispatched on reports of a two-vehicle collision around east 43rd Street and Sterling Avenue at 9:15 a.m., according to a release from KCPD. 6 years later, Kansas City family still hoping for arrest in loved one's shooting death KANSAS CITY, Mo. - All a Kansas City family wants right now is an arrest in their loved one's murder. James Townsend, a businessman, was shot and killed six years ago around this time. "It's like everybody has forgotten about him," Lois Lane, Townsend's Daughter, said. "He was a pillar in this community." 6-year sentence for fatal shooting leaves victim's family frustrated KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- A Kansas City family is expressing frustration with the justice system after a judge sentenced a man to six years in prison for their loved one's death. The family of Cameron Douglas waited just a month shy of three years to see his killer sent to prison. Group finds body behind Kansas City home while searching for missing teen UPDATE: Police ID body found earlier this week as Amara Jones KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City police are investigating a body found behind a home Wednesday evening. A group of teens found the body near the 4500 block of Hedges Avenue. "Every time I close my eyes, I can see him. 17-year-old to stand trial as adult for death of 2 teens KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A 17-year-old will stand trial as an adult for the murder of two other teens that occurred in March 2021. Edward T. Shelton faces two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of armed criminal action. He stands accused of killing 15-year-old Dominique Nelson and 15-year-old Dominik Simmons. Friends of Northland father of eight ask for help for his family before Christmas Friends of a Northland father of eight are asking the community to help his family just days before Christmas.Roman Yslas, 46, was found shot to death in the parking lot of the Barrewoods apartments, 8700 North Kansas Place, just after 12:30 Tuesday morning."I can't imagine why some senseless person did this to such a great guy," said Angela Parker, best friend to Yslas' fiance.Parker set up a GoFundme page to help his family.Yslas was an Air Force veteran whose youngest child was just one year old. Developing . . . We have a special treat for our blog community this morning and a sign of shifting political tides in Kansas City . . . This one comes our way via a holiday message from one of the many KICK-ASS INSIDERS who still read this humble blog . . . Here's the word . . . MAYOR Q SUFFERED A DISMAL HOLIDAY AS FAR AS CAMPAIGN DONATIONS ARE CONCERNED!!! MANY LONGTIME SUPPORTERS OPTED OUT OF GIVING TO THE CITY HALL HONCHO AFTER THE FAILED PALACE COUP AGAINST THE CHIEF OF POLICE!!! A bit more insight . . . "The local donors are walking away and that's why we've seen Mayor Q reach out and try to take his case to DNC friends on a national level. In Kansas City there have been two major law firms who are offering their partners 'guidance' against giving to him. And the country club set seem to be looking for a challenger to fund." It gets worse . . . "Mayor Quinton Lucas has just created too many enemies. From the airport to police and the COVID crackdown on small business . . . There just isn't a lot of love for the guy this holiday." A glimpse at the future . . . "For a candidate with connections and a path to to some serious level of funding . . . There's definitely an opportunity. As far as locals are concerned, people are turning their back on the guy . . . And that's surprising." Now . . . Let's be fair . . . According to the latest available campaign finance report the Mayor has around $262K on hand and that's actually more than former Mayor Sly banked at this point in his cruise to reelection. However there's reason for a moment of doubt . . . Again, according to the latest Missouri campaign finance reports, Mayor Q banked less than 50 grand during 2021 and that's an abysmal total. Last year, even during a pandemic, he earned DOUBLE that amount. Few locals in KCMO understand how the politics of this cowtown REALLY works. Hint: Just like every other part of the world . . . It's all about money. It's just a bit more passive aggressive than most places. Local corporations treat elected officials like loser children and typically send cash their way for the holidays. The Mayor of KC usually CLEANS UP WITH CHRISTMAS DONATIONS and that's the crux of insider news we're getting . . . Local leaders played the Grinch this year with Mayor Q and its mostly due to his anti-police machinations along with a growing list of miscalculations and other political sins. Developing . . . Most local churches opened last night and will do the same this morning. However, there's no denying that the shadow of pandemic death still persists. Accordingly, we offer a peek at how local parishes confront the ongoing public health crisis along with a big picture perspective . . . Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com news links . . . Ministry tackles pandemic with flexibility, creativity - The Leaven Catholic Newspaper by Therese Horvat While their jobs regularly involve helping families and individuals who are mourning, COVID-19 intensified responsibilities for staff of funeral homes and Catholic cemeteries. As they lived with the uncertainties, personal risks and restrictions during the pandemic, these workers strove to continue to provide compassionate service to those who had lost loved ones. Church leaders put COVID-19 safety measures in place for Christmas services KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Thousands of families across the Kansas City metro will be gathering for in-person Christmas services this year. As the metro sees another surge in COVID-19 cases, church leaders are asking church-goers to take every step possible to avoid outbreaks. COVID puts a damper on Christmas Eve again around the world From Bethlehem and Frankfurt to London and Boston, the surging coronavirus put a damper on Christmas Eve for a second year, forcing churches to cancel or scale back services and disrupting travel plans and family gatherings. Many U.S. churches canceling in-person Christmas services as Covid-19 surges NEW YORK - Amid the surge of coronavirus cases across the U.S., numerous churches have canceled in-person Christmas services, disappointing pastors and churchgoers who consider them an annual highlight. Other churches planned outdoor services or proposed a hybrid of online and in-person worship, often imposing tight restrictions for those in attendance. COVID-19 spreads holiday misery, as canceled flights strand thousands on Christmas Eve The COVID-19 pandemic is once again upending holiday plans around the world, from halting air travel to scaling back festive celebrations. All this as new infections in the U.S. have spiked 55 percent in the last two weeks alone, largely due to the highly contagious omicron variant. Stephanie Sy has our report. Four ways to celebrate Christmas Day if you are forced to self-isolate o, ho ... oh no. This second Covid Christmas will not be a huge improvement from the first for many in the UK. More than 600,000 people will be forced to self-isolate on Christmas Day after a record 119,789 tested positive for Covid, the highest daily figure since the pandemic began. Developing . . . Before we get started, let's make it clear that TKC doesn't go in for any of that "War On Christmas" nonsense because it's cynical rubbish propagated by nincompoops who communicate with the American public mostly by way of offering toxic rhetoric to the least common denominator without caring that the plebs might actually risk alienating family & friends by mindlessly repeating talking points regarding issues that are mostly controlled by a handful of disconnected rulers. Nevertheless . . . It's hard not to notice a myriad of bad news for the holiday season and the nation getting increasingly angry as we slouch toward midterm elections and the red wave promise of more political upheaval. And so . . . We simply offer best holiday wishes and a brief insight . . . HAVING A MERRY CHRISTMAS MIGHT BE THE MOST REWARDING ACT OF POLITICAL PROTEST FOR AMERICANS RIGHT NOW!!! At the very least, it appeals to our cynical nature that genuine happiness and joy have turned into subversive attitudes which challenge the status quo that seems to benefit by inflicting emotional turmoil on their followers . . . At the very least it's just a bit of an incentive to avoid walking around like ridiculously bummed out emo music fan. Here's our argument . . . Our progressive friends want to paint their right-wing opposition as angry and vengeful fascists who seek to overthrow Democracy by way of panty raid insurrection and surprisingly effective racist whisper campaigns. Meanwhile . . . Of course we know that a great many conservatives mistakenly believe their progressive opposition is comprised of nothing more than communist operatives who hate the baby Jesus and spend Christmas plotting to hand the nation over to the Chinese or ghoulish billionaires . . . Whoever pays the lower price because capitalism must also be destroyed. And so . . . Celebrating a Merry Christmas in Kansas City with family, friends and a nice meal contradicts so many disgusting culture war tropes that only serve to incite unproductive partisan hate and subsequent gridlock along with the tragic misconception that people actually care what Anderson Cooper & Tucker Carlson say when the truth is that most of us are just watching for the lulz. Accordingly . . . We share just a bit more of our favorite TKC links for today because we probably won't update any time soon . . . Queen Elizabeth Chooses Photo of Prince Philip for Christmas Speech and Wears a Touching Tribute In a first look photo of the speech released on Thursday, the Queen, 95, is wearing a touching tribute to her husband of 73 years Queen Elizabeth is honoring one of her most steadfast traditions on Saturday with the broadcast of her Christmas Day speech. NASA launches James Webb telescope into space on Christmas Day It was the best Christmas present NASA could have asked for. The agency's James Webb Space Telescope, the world's largest and most powerful telescope built to date, successfully blasted into orbit Saturday. The launch marked the long-awaited start of the Webb telescope's mission, after more than 30 years of development and countless delays. Why a photo of Donald Trump is decorating a Biden White House Christmas Tree It's a picture of season's greetings. Tucked among the branches of the White House Christmas tree in the State Dining Room is a photo of former President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump. Covid: Push for Christmas Day jabs as thousands spend the holiday in isolation In some cases, your question will be published, displaying your name, age and location as you provide it, unless you state otherwise. Your contact details will never be published. Please ensure you have read our terms & conditions and privacy policy. Quarantined over Christmas: Here's what the newly infected have to say. Tens of thousands of people in the U.S. won't be spending the holidays with their families but will instead be stuck in isolation after they contracted Covid-19 during the surge of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. After scientists at the University of California, San Francisco, confirmed on Dec. A complete guide to what is - and isn't - open this Christmas Still have a few (or a majority of) things to get on your holiday shopping list? Or, are you trying to plan when you can make that last grocery store run to grab something just in case? This year more than ever, Christmas traditions can bring us comfort and joy In uncertain times, there's a lot to be said for Christmas traditions. Tastes and smells, like familiar tunes, can instantly transport you back to childhood. Food matters, especially at Christmas - and tradition is part of the reason why it packs such a punch. Let's start with the stocking. And just for the record . . . MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! WE THANK TKC READERS FOR SPENDING JUST A BIT OF THEIR HOLIDAY WITH OUR GULLY KANSAS CITY BLOG COMMUNITY!!! As always, thanks for reading this week and have a safe and fun Christmas. Most of our readers have seen this one but it didn't merit as much discussion as we thought . . . Moreover . . . Agree or disagree, what we like about this card is the unabashed viewpoint and strong political stance. It might not be TKC's style . . . But there's no denying that it makes a very clear statement: The state senator says his message in the card is clear and to the point. "Its not meant to be offensive to anybody. Its more so to send a message of where we stand on the Second Amendment, Missouri State Senator Rick Brattin said. The card features Brattin's family holding real weapons, like shotguns and assault rifles. Even the youngest of the group has a gun in their hands. "I would much rather train my children to know and respect the tool in which theyre handling that way there is no such tragedy that occurs or accident," Brattin said. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com news link . . . For the first time since obtaining Javelin portable anti-tank missile systems from the U.S. as part of lethal aid, the Ukrainian Army used this weapon in a live-fire exercise in the Joint Forces Operation zone. Thats according to the press service of the JFO HQ, Ukrinform reported referring to a Facebook post. The drill was approved by JF Commander Lieutenant General Oleksandr Pavliuk, the statement says. It is specified that this is the first time that this man-portable fire-and-forget anti-tank missile system was used in a live-fire exercise in the zone of the Joint Forces Operation. The troops were tasked to hit a conventional target a tank in a trench at a nearly 1.5-km range. Among other things, the drill aimed to determine the effectiveness of the missile system in frigid weather conditions low air temperatures and high winds. "Despite the fact that the soldiers fired this weapon for the first time, the task was completed successfully the target of the conventional enemy was hit," the statement said. An officer who commanded the exercise praised convenience in firing a Javelin missile and the fact that the missile is self-guided once launched while achieving almost 100 percent accuracy. Operating the said system poses no challenges to servicemen who have gained experience in firing domestic and Soviet-era models of man-portable anti-tank missile launchers. As Ukrinform reported earlier, American journalists with ABC News in a report from the east of Ukraine aired footage from the Ukrainian Armys exercise, showing Javelins at the site. Ukrainian war journalist Andriy Tsaplienko also published a photo of the Ukrainian troops carrying these weapons in the Joint Forces Operation zone. Russia has expressed outrage once seeing U.S.-supplied Javelins in the zone of hostilities in eastern Ukraine. Russias Permanent Representative to the OSCE Oleksandr Lukashevich has traditionally accused Ukraine of violating the Minsk agreements and allegedly seeking to use force to resolve the conflict with the support of Western partners. The United States Mission to the OSCE responded to Russia's outrage by pointing to Ukraine's right to self-defense and the exclusively defensive nature of the Javelin anti-tank missile systems. im The production of armed drones Bayraktar TB2 has been launched in Ukraine, according to Andriy Yermak, head of the President's Office. In an interview with the Focus magazine on Friday, December 24, Yermak said the Ukrainian government is expanding cooperation with Turkey, which sent the first batch of Bayraktar TB2 drones to Ukraine in July this year. "Now we have launched their production in Ukraine. When they say that these are 'Turkish' Bayraktars, yes, we got them from Turkey, but it is important to point out that the engines for these drones are made in our country," he said. According to Yermak, Kyiv has "a huge program of military assistance from the West," with the UK involved in building up the Ukrainian Navy. "With this country, we are implementing a GBP 1.7 billion project to develop our navy. The size of our joint programs with France reaches EUR 1.3 billion," Yermak said. He also recalled that Ukraine had received Javelin anti-tank missile systems and other military equipment from the United States. "The U.S. president said that they would provide all the necessary military assistance so that Ukraine could repel any attack on its territory," Yermak said, adding that "today they are really cooperating with Ukraine as a strategic partner." Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said earlier that the Ukrainian Defense Ministry would purchase an additional batch of Bayraktar drones next year for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. op Russia's Southern Military District is returning 10,000 troops to their permanent bases after a month of "field training." That's according to the Echo of Moscow, Ukrinform reports. The military are returning after exercises at the Astrakhan, Volgograd and Rostov regions, the Stavropol and Krasnodar regions, the North Caucasus, and Russia's military bases in Armenia, occupied Crimea, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the report said. "More than 10,000 servicemen will march to the places of their permanent deployment from the territory of the general military training grounds," the statement said. Battalion tactical groups and "tactical groups of troops of all formations and air defense units" participated in the training. According to the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, 122,000 Russian military are positioned at a distance of 200 kilometers and 143,500 troops at a distance of 400 kilometers from Ukraine's border. op Euro-Atlantic security is currently at stake in Ukraine, therefore Ukraine should take part in U.S., EU or NATO security consultations on the matter. We support the idea of the US, the EU, NATO talking to Russia as long as the primary topic is ending the international armed conflict, Russias war on Ukraine. Euro-Atlantic security is at stake in Ukraine, therefore Ukraine should be part of security consultations on the matter, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba posted on Twitter. Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the final press conference on December 23 that the talks with "American partners" on security issues could be held at the beginning of next year in Geneva. According to him, "representatives from both sides have been appointed." The United States said that the date and venue of talks with Russia in the format of a strategic dialogue had not yet been determined, thus refuting Putin's words about the alleged agreement to hold consultations in Geneva next month. ol Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has held a video meeting with co-chairs of Ukrainian caucuses and a group of U.S. senators and congressmen. According to Ukrinform, Zelensky announced this on Twitter. "We had an important, productive talk with the co-chairs of the Ukrainian caucuses, senators, congressmen on Christmas Eve. We appreciate strong bicameral, bipartisan support for Ukraine. It is especially important for keeping peace and security in the region!" he tweeted. According to the president's website, the situation in eastern Ukraine and on the country's borders was discussed at the meeting. It was noted that it remains difficult and the withdrawal of Russian forces is not observed. The president briefed U.S. lawmakers on the steps being taken to achieve peace within the existing negotiating formats - the Normandy Four, the Trilateral Contact Group and the Minsk process. The importance of involving the United States in the peace process was emphasized. "Now, more than ever, what matters is not words, but decisive action. My goal is to stop the bloodshed in eastern Ukraine. It is impossible to imagine security in Europe without ending the war in Donbas," Zelensky said. The issue of increasing sanctions pressure on Russia and the Ukrainian-U.S. cooperation in the security sphere was raised separately. The important role of the Congress in expanding support for the defense sector of Ukraine was noted. The importance of the United States' support for Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and of an understanding of the prospects for the country's joining NATO was emphasized. "No agreement on Ukraine without Ukraine. No third country can have the right to vote on Ukraine's integration into NATO," Zelensky said. The issues of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline were discussed separately at the meeting. The risks of this geopolitical project, which is an energy weapon against Ukraine and the entire European continent, were noted. During the conversation, U.S. lawmakers expressed their unanimous support for the Crimea Platform initiative and stressed their continued support for Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity. Zelensky briefed U.S. senators and congressmen on progress in the land, banking and judicial reforms and the fight against the oligarchic system. The president invited U.S. lawmakers to visit Ukraine next year. Photo credit: President's Office The U.S. administration must increase supplies of defensive weapons, including lethal weapons, to Ukraine to strengthen the defense capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces amid Russian aggression. That's according to a statement issued by U.S. Senator Rob Portman, Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, following a video conference call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrinform reports. "The United States must continue to increase the amount of defensive lethal military weaponry it sends to Ukraine and tailor it to the threat they will face so Ukraine can better defend itself," the statement said. It says the U.S. Congress has reaffirmed its commitment to increase military support for Ukraine. In particular, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA 2022), recently passed by both chambers, increased U.S. military support for Ukraine through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. "The initiative has been extended through 2022 and its funding increased from $250 million in FY 2021 to $300 million next year with at least $75 million specifically designated for lethal assistance," the statement said. The funds are used to help train, equip, and provide support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in their effort to defend their independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity against Russian aggression. Zelensky on December 24 held a video conference call with co-chairs of Ukrainian caucuses and a group of U.S. senators and congressmen. op The head of the President's Office, Andriy Yermak, has said that Ukraine is ready to implement the Minsk agreements, but what is needed is a clear plan for the de-occupation of part of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and Russia's desire to fulfill its commitments. He stated this in an interview with the Focus magazine, Ukrinform reports. "Ukraine has repeatedly demonstrated to the world that it is persistent in fulfilling all of its commitments. And we always say that our country is ready to continue to implement the Minsk agreements, but there must be a clear plan for the de-occupation of part of two regions of Ukraine," Yermak said. At the same time, he stressed that the Russian side must also show its desire to implement the Minsk agreements, from full compliance with the ceasefire to other agreements reached at the Normandy Four summit in Paris. "That's because Minsk agreements themselves contain several provisions that can be interpreted differently by the parties. Today we need a clear mechanism for their implementation. And we must start with the agreements already reached by the leaders of the four states. That's what the latest proposals by Ukraine are based on," Yermak said. However, he stressed that the referendum on eastern Ukraine was not currently being discussed. "[Ukrainian President] Volodymyr Zelensky noted that he, as the president who professes the principle of democracy, believes that if the society raises an issue that requires the opinion of all the people of Ukraine, such referendums should take place. The president said he did not reject the idea of holding the referendum. But we are not talking about it at the moment," Yermak said. op AJMAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 25th Dec, 2021) Ajmans Department of Finance has been awarded the Most Innovative Digital Initiative in Finance 2021, for its digital wallet and contributions in supporting digital transformation by Global business Outlook, a UK-based publication dedicated to covering vital industry sectors. The award comes as part of the Departments efforts and its innovation-based strategy, in line with the directives of H.H. Sheikh Ammar bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Crown Prince of Ajman and Chairman of Ajman Executive Council, and Ajman Vision 2021 that focuses on positioning the emirate as a major contributor to the progress of the UAE and its transformation to a green and sustainable economy. Commenting on this, Sheikh Ahmed bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, representative of H.H. the Ruler of Ajman for Administrative and Financial Affairs and Chairman of Ajmans Department of Finance, said: "The digital transformation initiatives in the emirate have resulted in facilitating and providing various smart services to all government departments. What we are witnessing in the development of modern technology and the launch of several innovative initiatives represent a qualitative leap in upgrading the services provided to the public and reflect Ajman Department of Finances keenness to ensure continuous development, in line with the vision of Ajman government. " "We value and appreciate the efforts of the Departments staff and we urge them to continue this dedication to achieve more for the emirate of Ajman and the UAE as a whole," H.H. Ahmed Al Nuaimi added. The award criteria included studying the best practices adopted by the candidates to keep abreast of developments in the technology sector, and their ability to benefit from them in providing smart digital solutions that would ensure smooth procedures and processes. Expressing his happiness about this new achievement, Marwan Ahmed Al Ali, Director General of Ajmans Department of Finance, stated: "Winning this award is a result of implementing innovative and creative standards in providing our smart services. This milestone also comes in the line with the Departments strategic goals to maintain the leading position of Ajman and the UAE in general in the field of digital transformation." Ajman government customers and UAE residents can use Ajman Wallet to pay for various government services, as well as utilities such as telecommunications and electricity through the AjmanOne mobile app. (@FahadShabbir) Athens, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Dec, 2021 ) :At least sixteen people died when a migrant boat sank in the Aegean, Greece's coastguard said early Saturday, just hours after a similar incident claimed another 11 lives. The latest tragedy -- the third since Wednesday -- came amid high smuggler activity not seen in Greek waters in months. According to Athens news Agency, the coastguard found 16 bodies late Friday, including those of three women and a baby, and rescued 63 people from a boat that overturned and sank near the island of Paros. Hours earlier, 11 bodies were recovered from a boat that ran aground on an islet north of the Greek island of Antikythera on Thursday evening. Ninety people stranded on the islet were rescued, the coastguard said. On Wednesday, a dinghy carrying migrants capsized off the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen people were rescued, while dozens remain missing, Greek authorities said. The UN refugee agency UNHCR said the Folegandros accident was the worst in the Aegean Sea this year. "This shipwreck is a painful reminder that people continue to embark on perilous voyages in search of safety," said Adriano Silvestri, the UNHCR's assistant representative in Greece. Earlier Friday, the coastguard had intercepted another boat with 92 men and boys on board after it ran aground on the coast of the Peloponnese peninsula. Three suspected smugglers who fled the boat on foot were later arrested. The UNHCR estimates that more than 2,500 people have died or gone missing at sea in their attempt to reach Europe from January through November this year. Nearly one million people, mainly Syrian refugees, arrived in the European Union in 2015 after crossing to Greek islands close to Turkey. "These days, the criminal activity of smugglers, who are indifferent to human life, has intensified, stacking dozens of distressed people, without life jackets, on boats that do not even meet the basic safety standards," Giannis Plakiotakis, Maritime Affairs Minister commented late Friday. Najaf, Iraq, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th Dec, 2021 ) :The governor of Iraq's Najaf province resigned on Friday, a day after another governor also quit following demonstrations against living conditions and corruption. Louai al-Yasseri resigned from his leadership in Najaf, in central Iraq, a day after the governor of Nasiriyah province in the south quit following the violent suppression of protesters. Their departures underline the challenges facing war-scarred Iraq and how little has changed despite protests that swept Baghdad and the South two years ago. Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets to express their anger at corruption, unemployment and crumbling public services, and hundreds lost their lives in protest-related violence. Yasseri announced at a press conference that he was leaving his post in the holy Shiite city, according to the official Iraqi News Agency. His resignation follows harsh criticism from prominent Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr, who emerged as kingmaker following legislative elections in October. Sadr paid a public visit to the municipality in Najaf on Wednesday after "reports of corruption and shortcomings in this institution", according to the news agency. "We will work on dismissing the governor of Najaf and replacing him legally," he said. On Friday evening, Sadr welcomed the governor's resignation as a "step in the right direction". In the past weeks, sporadic demonstrations have broken out across Najaf and the neighbouring province of Diwaniya, as well as in Nasiriyah. Protesters have decried living conditions and called for job opportunities for young graduates. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi held a security meeting Wednesday to discuss the protests, where he repeated the need to avoid "the use of force or shoot". The following day, the governor of Nasiriyah, Ahmed Ghani Khafaji, announced his resignation after protests in which three people were shot and wounded, according to a medical source. The 2019 demonstrations petered out after bloody crackdowns and the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 600 people were killed and tens of thousands injured throughout the protests. Kadhemi moved the elections forward to October as a concession to the demonstrators. But anger gave way to disillusion and the ballot saw record-low turnout. The movement of Sadr -- who once led a militia against American and Iraqi government forces -- won 73 out of the assembly's total 329 seats, the election commission said. A soldier of Pakistan Army on Saturday embraced martyrdom while thwarting a terrorists' attack who fired at a military post in Shewa area of North Waziristan District RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Dec, 2021 ) :A soldier of Pakistan Army on Saturday embraced martyrdom while thwarting a terrorists' attack who fired at a military post in Shewa area of North Waziristan District. The Army troops initiated a prompt response and effectively engaged the terrorists' location, said an Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) media release. The martyred soldier was identified as Naik Noor Merjan, age 32 years, resident of Kurram who embraced Shahadat (martyrdom) during intense exchange of fire. The clearance of the area was being carried out to eliminate any terrorists found in the area, it added. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Iran is expecting Russia's state-owned nuclear company Rosatom to speed up the construction of the second and third power units at the Bushehr nuclear power plant, which is almost two years behind schedule, Mohammad Eslami, the head of the country's Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI), told Sputnik TEHRAN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th December, 2021) Iran is expecting Russia's state-owned nuclear company Rosatom to speed up the construction of the second and third power units at the Bushehr nuclear power plant, which is almost two years behind schedule, Mohammad Eslami, the head of the country's Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI), told Sputnik. "The construction of the second and third power units is roughly 23 months behind schedule ... We expect Rosatom to make it possible to speed up the project's implementation with an agreed plan to compensate for all of the delays," Eslami said. The construction of power units at the Bushehr NPP is the largest joint Russian-Iranian project. The first block of the nuclear power plant, completed in cooperation with Russia, was connected to Iran's national power grid in September 2011. The construction of the second block is underway, while a contract for the construction of the third power unit has been signed. Pope Francis said in his Urbi et Orbi speech for Christmas on Saturday that people should prioritize dialogue and discussion over unilateralism and isolation, including in the resolution of international conflicts such as Syria and Ethiopia MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th December, 2021) Pope Francis said in his Urbi et Orbi speech for Christmas on Saturday that people should prioritize dialogue and discussion over unilateralism and isolation, including in the resolution of international conflicts such as Syria and Ethiopia. Delivering the annual address at the Saint Peter's Basilica plaza in Vatican City, the Pope said that the pandemic is putting on test people's "capacity for social relationships," unearthing the "growing tendency to withdraw, to do it all by ourselves, to stop making an effort to encounter others and do things together." "On the international level too, there is the risk of avoiding dialogue, the risk that this complex crisis will lead to taking shortcuts rather than setting out on the longer paths of dialogue. Yet only those paths can lead to the resolution of conflicts and to lasting benefits for all," he said. Pope Francis cited the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the crises in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Sudan and South Sudan in particular. He also called for "reconciliation and peaceful coexistence may prevail in the hearts of the peoples of the Americas" through dialogue, mutual respect and recognition of each other's rights and cultural values. From 21 to 23 December, the Secretary for Relations with States was in Juba, to meet South Sudanese political and religious authorities and collaborators of the Archbishop of Canterbury. By Paul Samasumo & Salvatore Cernuzio There is no perfect time for any such visit, but it is not excluded that Pope Francis will visit South Sudan next year. This is a wish already expressed several times by the Pope himself and that receives "strong support" so that it can be organized by the authorities. This is according to Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, who made a three-day visit to Juba - from 21 to 23 December - during which he met with local political and religious leaders. We believe that there is great support for a visit by the Holy Father, the Archbishop said speaking to Mbikoyezu John Gbemboyo, a collaborator of Vatican News English for Africa Section: " Though like all these things, there is never the perfect time so we have to move forward in the whole process of discerning, Archbishop Gallagher said." The Pope's wish The pre-Christmas visit to South Sudan by the Secretary for Relations with States had been in the planning for months, coordinated with Lambeth Palace, the organizational support of the Archbishop of Canterbury. And it was with the Anglican Primate, Justin Welby, that Pope Francis in 2017 expressed his desire to carry out an ecumenical mission to South Sudan. Meeting with the Anglican community at All Saints Church in Rome, the Pope had revealed his intention: "My collaborators are studying the possibility of a trip to South Sudan. But why? Because the Anglican, Presbyterian and Catholic bishops came to tell me: 'Please come to South Sudan maybe just for one day. But don't come alone, come with Justin Welby'. This came from the young church in that country, and it got us thinking about a very bad situation there, and about the fact that they want peace, to work together for peace." Already in October of that year, it seemed that the visit could take place, but the worsening of the political context and the escalation of clashes in different areas of the country, that led to which a break in the "ceasefire" and a serious humanitarian crisis, put the brakes on the initiative. Archbishop Gallagher in Juba The retreat in the Vatican On the occasion of the spiritual retreat in the Vatican of South Sudans highest religious and political authorities in April 2019, Pope Francis reiterated his desire to travel to the nation. The meeting, conceived by the Archbishop of Canterbury, was attended by President Salva Kiir and the Vice Presidents-designate, including Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, widow of South Sudanese leader John Garang, and Riek Machar, leader of the opposition. Pope Francis knelt to kiss their feet pleading for the gift of peace for a people disfigured by nearly six years of civil war. That unexpected and symbolic gesture is recalled by Gallagher: "The retreat at the Vatican got a lot of attention especially because of the Holy Father's extreme gesture of pleading with the leaders of South Sudan to move the peace process forward for the good of the people. So, we worked on that" during the days of the visit. Listening to the people and to the leaders Obviously, Gallagher explains, "its been a visit that is affected by Covid-19, but in the end, we decided that there is no perfect time for any such visit. We decided we should come now. We have come with the objective of listening to the people; listening to the leaders, both political and Church leaders, in order to see what is the situation here and what contribution can both the Holy See, in particular, Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury, make in moving this process forward. Archbishop Gallagher and South Sudanese bishops The meetings Arriving in Juba in the early afternoon of December 21, accompanied by Monsignor Andrea Piccioni of the Section for Relations with States, Gallagher was welcomed by the Apostolic Nuncio to South Sudan, Archbishop Hubertus Matheus Maria van Megen (who is resident in Nairobi), by Mgr. Ionut Paul Strejac, Charge d'Affaires at the Vatican embassy in Juba, by the Archbishop of Juba and the Bishops of Malakal and Wau, as well as by a representation of religious serving in the country. At the airport he had a private meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mayiik Ayii Deng. In the afternoon, at the Nunciature, he met the Anglican Bishop Precious Omuku and Martha Jarvis, representatives of Lambeth Palace, and some diplomats, with whom he discussed the current political, economic and social situation in South Sudan. This was followed by a conversation with the South Sudanese Bishops, who expressed their gratitude to the Pope "for his paternal closeness" and renewed "the commitment of the local Church in favour of the country". In conversation with President Salva Kiir On the morning of December 22, Gallagher, along with delegations from the Holy See and Lambeth Palace, was received by President Salva Kiir Mayardit, at his residence. A cordial conversation, during which the Vatican's support for the peace process was reaffirmed and the possibility of a visit to South Sudan next year by the Pope, Welby and the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland was discussed. The proposal was welcomed with great satisfaction by the Head of State, who reiterated the government's commitment to the implementation of peace, while thanking the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury for promoting unity and stability in South Sudan. In particular, Salva Kiir thanked Pope Francis for the humanitarian assistance offered to the populations affected by the recent floods, especially in the diocese of Malakal. Gallagher's trip continued with a meeting with some representatives of the Ecumenical Council of Churches of South Sudan and with representatives of civil society. On the morning of December 23, the Archbishop presided at a Mass in the Cathedral of Juba - in the presence of the third Vice-President, Taban Deng Gai-, during which he encouraged the faithful to live the mystery of Christmas, in the constant search for unity, charity and forgiveness. After the celebration, the prelate met with religious men and women of South Sudan and visited St. Claires House for Children orphanage in Juba, where he offered a gift from Pope Francis. Archbishop Gallagher in Juba A people of optimism and great faith At the conclusion of the trip, the Secretary for Relations with States said he was "optimistic" about Africa, despite the many challenges the continent faces: from insecurity to constant poverty to the devastation caused by flooding. "I am a great believer in Africa. I am optimistic about Africa. I understand the many problems and challenges, but I think, in the end, there is an energy and an optimism. There is talent here which will take the people of Africa forward, including the people of South Sudan, said Archbishop Gallagher. He concluded with a thought for Christmas: " This is a country of great faith, with a great Christian tradition. And Christmas is a moment when indeed Jesus Christ, in his frailty, comes among us. God chooses humanity. Therefore, there is a great message of hope, a message of perseverance. At least six people have been killed in attacks by suspected jihadis in Niger near its border with Burkina Faso, authorities said Friday. "The provisional toll is six dead, including a policeman, two customs officers and three civilians" during the attacks overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, the interior ministry said in a statement. Ten others were wounded when heavily armed gunmen simultaneously attacked a border post and a bridge near the border town of Makalondi, it said. Local sources had told AFP earlier that the attack had caused deaths and casualties, but exact numbers were not known. The Makalondi border post, where customs officers, gendarmes and police officers are stationed, lies in a zone frequently targeted by jihadis. Makalondi is the last major town in Niger before the Burkina Faso border, about 100 kilometers (65 miles) southwest of the capital, Niamey. It lies in the Tillaberi region, which is in the so-called tri-border area, a flashpoint zone where the frontiers of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali converge. Niger, the world's poorest country according to the U.N. Human Development Index, is contending with two jihadis insurgencies. As well as the attacks in the west from groups such as the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, it is also dealing with Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province in the southeast, near the border with Nigeria. On Wednesday, the regional authorities in Tillaberi announced that a number of gas stations would be closed in several counties in a bid to disrupt fuel supplies for the jihadists, who typically move around by motorcycle or four-wheel-drive vehicles. The authorities have closed markets and refugee camps and declared a ban on movement by motorbike in sensitive areas. Senior German and Russian government officials have agreed to a rare in-person meeting next month in an effort to ease political tensions over Ukraine, a German government source said Saturday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's foreign policy adviser Jens Ploetner and Russia's Ukraine negotiator Dmitry Kozak agreed to meet after a lengthy phone conversation Thursday, the source said on condition of anonymity. The German government has not made any official comment. A spokesman for Kozak declined to comment. There has been a flurry of phone calls between western leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months over Russia's military build-up on the Ukrainian border and resulting fears of an invasion. In-person meetings between senior Western and Russian government officials have been few and far between, though U.S. President Joe Biden held talks with President Putin in Geneva last June. Since taking office this month, Scholz has emphasized the need for dialog with Russia over its military build-up on the Ukrainian border while joining western allies in backing sanctions should Moscow invade. Berlin doubts more than Washington whether Russia actually wants to attack Ukraine and is keen to de-escalate tensions, two government sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Critics accuse Germany of being beholden to Putin because of its need for Russian gas, attacking construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between the countries, bypassing Ukraine. Berlin says Nordstream 2 is not political and would be only one of several pipelines transporting Russian gas to Europe. "The German side's goal remains to achieve a swift reactivation of the Normandy format," the German government source said, referring to multilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany. SPD parliamentary leader Rolf Mutzenich told Reuters the party was not "naive" and knew who it was dealing with, adding that it still believes that engagement could help to de-escalate the Ukraine situation. President Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by his wife, Jill, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Quatar, Romania, Bahrain and the U.S. "As your commander in chief, I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, thank you, thank you," he told the service members. "We're grateful for your courage, your sacrifice, not only your sacrifice but your family's sacrifice." Speaking from a studio set up at the White House, Biden told them they're "the solid steel spine of the nation," and emphasized the "truly sacred obligation" the nation has to care for soldiers and their families. Jill Biden expressed empathy for the difficulties their families experience spending the holidays away from their loved ones, noting that the Bidens experienced the same when their son Beau, who served as a major in the Delaware Army National Guard, was deployed to Iraq. The Bidens planned a relatively quiet Christmas at the White House with family. As the coronavirus pandemic surges anew, driven by the highly infectious omicron variant, the Bidens sought with their public appearances and statements to offer a sense of unity and normalcy in an otherwise challenging season for many. In a Christmas statement, the Bidens praised the "enormous courage, character, resilience, and resolve" of the American people in the face of the pandemic, and offered prayers that the nation would find "light in the darkness" during a difficult season. "During this season of joy, we are inspired by the countless Americans who are a reminder that the things we hold sacred unite us and transcend distance, time, and even the constraints of a pandemic," the Bidens said in their statement. And the call to soldiers was just the latest Christmas tradition the two participated in, after spending Christmas eve spreading holiday cheer around Washington. On Friday morning, they visited Children's National Hospital to offer holiday greetings to young patients and their families. The president showed off photos of their new puppy and Jill read a children's book to patients. Later, the two stopped by a Jill Biden-themed Christmas tree in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. The president hung the 2021 White House Christmas ornament amid branches decked out with photos of his wife's face, apples and small chalkboards, in homage to her teaching career. Both answered calls to the North American Aerospace Defense Command's Santa-tracking service, speaking to parents and children about their Christmas wishlists. Despite a second year of travel restrictions because of COVID-19, the town of Bethlehem, the site of Jesus birth, is reviving its annual Christmas Eve celebration. "Last year, our festival was virtual, but this year it will be face to face with popular participation," Bethlehem Mayor Anton Salman told the Associated Press. On a typical Christmas, the biblical town is a popular destination for tourists from around the globe. An average of 3 million tourists come each year. Much smaller crowds attended the holiday celebrations in Bethlehem on Friday, accompanied by gloomy weather. "It's very strange," said Kristel Elayyan, a Dutch woman married to a Palestinian, who came to Bethlehem from Jerusalem. "If it's one year, it's an interesting experience," she told Agence France-Presse. "But because this is the second year and we don't know what is going to come in the future, it's a huge loss for the people here." Events included traditional marching band parades and street celebrations. Scout bands with drums and flags gathered in Manger Square to celebrate the holiday. While celebrations are scaled down this year, Salman is hopeful that 2021s festivities will exceed last years, when residents were forced to celebrate inside their homes because of lockdown restrictions, the AP reported. Israels ban on nearly all incoming air traffic, which has lasted two years, continues to prevent tourists from entering the occupied West Bank, and subsequently, the historic town. The travel ban to curb the spread of COVID-19 was lifted in November to allow foreign tourists in but was soon reimposed with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant. Coinciding with the holiday season, the diseases newest strain has hampered Christmas celebrations. Without the flood of tourists, local authorities hoped that the Holy Lands small Christian community would keep the holiday spirit alive. Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the top Roman Catholic clergyman in the Holy Land, celebrated a midnight Mass at the Church of the Nativity, the grotto where Jesus is said to have been born. "Compared to last year's Christmas, the participation is much greater, and this is an encouraging sign," he told the masked congregation, but regretted the absence of foreign worshippers because of the pandemic. "We pray for them and at the same time ask for their prayers, so that all this may end soon and that the city of Bethlehem may once again be full of pilgrims," he said, according to AFP. Clashes between two rival factions of the security forces in a port city in northeast Somalia have forced hundreds of families to flee their homes, a local official said Saturday. The fighting has for several days rocked Bosaso, the commercial capital of the semi-autonomous state of Puntland in the country's northeast. "Thousands of the residents in the Bosaso town fled ... as sporadic fighting was going on in some parts of the town," local official Abdirizak Mohamed told Agence France-Presse. "Most people decided to leave their houses after the warring sides used heavy machine guns and mortars", mostly from two of the town's neighborhoods, he said. Mohamed said it was not clear exactly how many people had quit the town on the shores of the Gulf of Aden, but he estimated it was "hundreds of families." On Thursday, the United Nations' humanitarian agency OCHA had said it was "extremely concerned" about the escalation in violence that had led thousands to flee in search of safety. "With the fighting in Bosaso town continuing ... more than half of the city's population has reportedly been displaced from their homes," OCHA representative for Somalia, Adam Abdelmoula, said in a statement. He added that the fighting also had uprooted families already displaced by previous unrest. "Some 40 percent of 70,000 internally displaced persons hosted in Bosaso town are also reported to have experienced secondary displacement," Abdelmoula said. Located on the northernmost tip of Somalia, Puntland is one of the restive Horn of Africa country's five semi-autonomous states. Greek coast guards scoured for survivors in the Aegean Sea on Saturday after the latest in a series of migrant boat accidents that have killed at least 30 people in just days. Late Friday, the coastguard found 16 bodies, including those of three women and a baby, and rescued 63 people from a boat that overturned and sank near the island of Paros. According to those rescued, around 80 people had been on the vessel. Three coast guard patrol boats, private vessels, a coast guard plane as well as divers searched for more survivors, officials said. The latest tragedy -- the third since Wednesday -- came amid high smuggler activity not seen in Greek waters in months. Hours earlier, 11 bodies were recovered from another boat that ran aground on an islet north of the Greek island of Antikythera on Thursday evening. Ninety people stranded on the islet were rescued, the coast guard said. And on Wednesday, a dinghy carrying migrants capsized off the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen people were rescued, while dozens remain missing, Greek authorities said. Survivors gave conflicting accounts: Some said there had been 32 people on board, while others put the number around 50, a coast guard official told AFP. The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said the Folegandros accident could end up being the worst in the Aegean this year, as an unknown number of people are still missing. "This shipwreck is a painful reminder that people continue to embark on perilous voyages in search of safety," said Adriano Silvestri, the UNHCR's assistant representative in Greece. Earlier Friday, the coastguard had intercepted another boat with 92 men and boys on board after it ran aground on the coast of the Peloponnese peninsula. Three suspected smugglers who fled the boat on foot were later arrested. The UNHCR estimates that more than 2,500 people have died or gone missing at sea as they tried to reach Europe from January through November this year. Nearly 1 million people, mainly Syrian refugees, arrived in the European Union in 2015 after crossing the sea to the Greek islands close to Turkey. "These days, the criminal activity of smugglers, who are indifferent to human life, has intensified, stacking dozens of distressed people, without life jackets, on boats that do not even meet the basic safety standards," Giannis Plakiotakis, maritime affairs minister said late Friday pointing the finger at Turkey, saying Ankara "lets smugglers act unchecked." Rivals Greece and Turkey regularly spar over the issue of migrants, with Athens accusing Ankara of turning a blind eye to people attempting to cross into EU member Greece and Turkey denying the charges. It may be known as midnight Mass, but for the second year running, Pope Francis chose to celebrate the service marking the birth of Jesus Christ in the early evening. Although conditions at the Vatican this year differed from last year, when Italy was in near-total lockdown, authorities did step up restrictions this Christmas season as well, as COVID-19 infections, particularly of the omicron variant, continued to rise fast. Last year, a very limited number attended the popes Christmas Eve Mass, while this year St. Peters Basilica was filled with faithful, although all were wearing masks, including all the Mass concelebrants. The Vatican on Thursday tightened restrictions to enter all Vatican offices. Employees must now show they are fully vaccinated or show evidence they have recovered from COVID-19. At the start of his homily, Pope Francis told the faithful of the message the night Jesus was born. To you is born this day a saviour, who is Christ the Lord, the pope said a poor child, wrapped in swaddling cloth, a baby lying in the dire poverty of a manger, with shepherds standing by. The pope said God is in littleness, adding that the message is that God does not rise up in grandeur but lowers himself into littleness. Littleness, Francis said, is what God chose to draw near to us, to touch our hearts, to save us and to bring us back to what really matters. God does not seek power and might, the pope added; he asks for tender love and interior littleness. And that grace of littleness, he said, is what we should be asking for at Christmas. The pope urged the faithful to put aside complaints, gloomy faces and greed that never satisfies. Accepting littleness, the pontiff added, also means honoring the poor. Jesus is born close to the shepherds who were there to work because they were poor. God came to fill with dignity the austerity of labor, the pope said; he reminds us of granting dignity to men and women through labor. On the day of life, he added, let us repeat: No more deaths at the workplace! On Christmas Day, Francis is expected to deliver his traditional "Urbi et Orbi" message and blessing to the city and to the world. Save the Children said two of its Myanmar staff were missing Saturday, after the charred remains of more than 30 people were found, in an attack a monitoring group and local media blamed on junta troops. Myanmar has been in chaos since the February coup, with more than 1,300 people killed in a crackdown by security forces, according to a local monitoring group. "People's Defense Forces," or PDF, have sprung up across the country to fight the junta, and have drawn the military into a bloody stalemate of clashes and reprisals. On Saturday, photos appeared on social media purporting to show two burnt-out trucks and a car on a highway in Hpruso township in eastern Kayah state, with the charred remains of bodies inside. A member of a local PDF group said its fighters had found the vehicles Saturday morning after hearing the military had stopped several vehicles in Hpruso after clashes with its fighters nearby on Friday. "When we went to check in the area this morning, we found dead bodies burnt in two trucks. We found 27 dead bodies," he told AFP on condition of anonymity. "We found 27 skulls," said another witness who did not want to be named. "But there were other dead bodies on the truck, which had been burned to pieces so we couldn't count them." Save the Children said later Saturday that two of its Myanmar staff had been "caught up" in the incident and were missing. It added it had "confirmation that their private vehicle was attacked and burned out." The two had been traveling home after carrying out humanitarian work in the region, the charity said in a statement, adding it had since suspended its work in several regions. "We are horrified at the violence carried out against innocent civilians and our staff, who are dedicated humanitarians, supporting millions of children in need across Myanmar," chief executive Inger Ashing said. In October the group said its office in the western town of Thantlang was destroyed in junta shelling that also razed dozens of homes following clashes with a local anti-junta group. 'Cruel' Myanmar's junta previously said its troops had been attacked in Hpruso Friday after its troops attempted to stop seven cars driving in a "suspicious way." Troops had killed a number of people in the following clash, spokesman Zaw Min Tun told AFP, without giving details. The Myanmar Witness monitor said it had confirmed local media reports and witness accounts from local fighters "that 35 people including children and women were burnt and killed by the military on 24 December Hpruso township." Satellite data also showed a fire had occurred about 1:00 pm (0630 GMT) Friday in Hpruso, it added. AFP was unable to confirm the reports surrounding the clash, but AFP digital verification reporters said the images purporting to show the incident had not appeared online before Friday evening. PDF groups have surprised the army with their effectiveness, analysts have said, as the military struggles to break resistance to its rule. Earlier this month the U.S. said it was "outraged by credible and sickening reports" that Myanmar troops had seized 11 villagers, including children, in the Sagaing region and burned them alive. Win Myat Aye, a member of a group of ousted lawmakers, condemned the atrocity. "This is a cruel present from the military to our people on Christmas Day," he said. Protesters opposed to military rule marched near the presidential palace in the Sudanese capital on Saturday for the second time in a week, television images showed, despite heavy tear gas and a communications blackout. A Reuters witness said security forces fired tear gas to disperse the crowds on the 10th day of major demonstrations since the October 25 coup. The Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said 178 people were injured during Saturday's protest, with eight caused by live bullets. In separate statements, the committee said security forces entered Khartoum Hospital and Port Sudan Hospital. Internet service spotty Protests against the coup have continued even after Abdallah Hamdok was reinstated as prime minister last month. The demonstrators have demanded that the military play no role in government during a transition to free elections. A week ago, demonstrators began a sit-in at the gates of the palace before being dispersed. On Saturday they were met by security forces and turned back. Internet services were disrupted in the capital, and residents were unable to make or receive phone calls, witnesses said, while soldiers and Rapid Support Forces blocked roads leading to bridges linking Khartoum with Omdurman, its sister city across the Nile. Internet service began to return for at least some users late on Saturday. Some people managed to post images on social media showing protests in several other cities, including Madani and Atbara. In Omdurman, security forces fired tear gas at protesters near a bridge connecting the city to central Khartoum, another Reuters witness said. 'Chaos and abuses' "Departing from peacefulness, approaching and infringing on sovereign and strategic sites in central Khartoum is a violation of the laws," SUNA state news agency reported, citing a provincial security coordination committee. "Chaos and abuses will be dealt with," it added. Protesters in Khartoum chanted: "Close the street! Close the bridge! Burhan we will come straight to you," referring to military leader and sovereign council head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. U.N. Special Representative to Sudan Volker Perthes urged Sudanese authorities not to stand in the way of Saturday's demonstrations. "Freedom of expression is a human right. This includes full access to the internet. According to international conventions, no one should be arrested for intent to protest peacefully," Perthes said. The military could not immediately be reached for comment. Sources told Reuters they heard gunshots in the vicinity of the offices of UNAMID peacekeepers in Darfur on Saturday morning. UNMID is the acronym for the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur. Last Sunday, hundreds of thousands of people marched to the presidential palace and security forces fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse them. Forty-eight people have been killed in crackdowns on protests against the coup, the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said. The Taliban have dissolved Afghanistan's election commission, a panel that supervised polls during the previous Western-backed administration, a spokesman for the Islamist government said on Saturday. "There is no need for these commissions to exist and operate," Taliban government spokesman Bilal Karimi said, referring to the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and the Independent Electoral Complaints Commission. "If we ever feel a need, the Islamic Emirate will revive these commissions," he added. The Taliban swept to power in August as a Western-backed government imploded in the final stages of the military withdrawal of the U.S. and its allies. Established in 2006, the IEC was mandated to administer and supervise all types of elections, including presidential, according to the commission's website. Hasty decision "They have taken this decision in a hurry and dissolving the commission would have huge consequences," Aurangzeb, who led the panel until the fall of the previous regime, told AFP. "If this structure does not exist, I'm 100 percent sure that Afghanistan's problems will never be solved as there won't be any elections," said Aurangzeb, who like many Afghans goes by one name. Halim Fidai, a senior politician in the previous regime, said the decision to dissolve the electoral commission shows the Taliban "do not believe in democracy." "They are against all democratic institutions. They get power through bullets and not ballots," said Fidai, who was governor of four provinces over the past two decades. Before the Taliban takeover, several electoral commission officials were killed by extremist groups. Ministries dissolved Karimi said the authorities had also dissolved two government departments this week: the Ministry of Peace, and the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. The deeply conservative Taliban had already shut down the former administration's Ministry of Women's Affairs and replaced it with the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. That ministry earned notoriety during the Taliban's first stint in power in the 1990s for harshly enforcing religious doctrine. The Islamists are pressing the international community to restore billions of dollars in suspended aid and have pledged a more moderate rule this time around. Hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines, Asia's largest Roman Catholic nation, marked Christmas on Saturday without homes, adequate food and water, electricity and cellphone connections after a powerful typhoon left at least 375 people dead last week and devastated mostly central island provinces. Elsewhere, New Zealanders are celebrating Christmas in the warmth of mid-summer with few restrictions, in one of the few countries in the world largely untouched by the omicron variant of COVID-19. Australia is marking the holiday amid a surge of COVID-19 cases, worse than at any stage of the pandemic, which has forced states to reinstate mask mandates and other measures. And adding more pain for travelers, airlines around the world canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and drew down staffing levels. According to FlightAware, there are more than 3,900 canceled flights on Friday and Saturday, with close to half of the cancellations by Chinese airlines. About 30% of affected flights more than 1,100 were to, from or within the U.S. This is still a small fraction of global flights. FlightAware says it has tracked more than 100,000 arrivals in the past 24 hours. Before Typhoon Rai hit on Dec. 16, millions of Filipinos were trooping back to shopping malls, public parks and churches after an alarming spike in infections in September eased considerably. Gov. Arthur Yap of hard-hit Bohol province, where more than 100 people died in the typhoon and about 150,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, asked foreign aid agencies on Saturday to help provide temporary shelters and water-filtration systems to supplement Philippine government aid. "I refuse to believe that there's no Christmas spirit today among our people. They're conservative Catholics. But it's obviously very muted. There is overwhelming fear, there are no gifts, there were no Christmas Eve dinners, there is none of that today," Yap told The Associated Press. Yap said he was happy that many Filipinos could celebrate Christmas more safely after COVID-19 cases dropped, but he pleaded: "Please don't forget us." In Manila, which was not hit by the typhoon, Filipino Catholics were relieved to be able to return to churches on Christmas, although only a fraction were allowed inside and worshippers were required to wear masks and stand at a safe distance from each other. In South Korea, tough social distancing rules remained in place, requiring churches to allow only a limited number of worshippers 70% of their seating capacity and attendees had to be fully vaccinated. In Seoul's Yoido Full Gospel Church, the country's biggest Protestant church, thousands of masked worshippers sang hymns and prayed as the service was broadcast online. Many churches across the country offered both in-person and online services. South Korea has been grappling with soaring infections and deaths since it significantly eased its virus curbs in early November as part of efforts to return to pre-pandemic normalcy. The country was eventually forced to restore its toughest distancing guidelines, such as a four-person limit on social gatherings and a 9 p.m. curfew for restaurants and cafes. Christmas celebrations were subdued in much of India, with more decorations than crowds as people feared a new wave of the omicron variant potentially sweeping the country in the coming weeks. Authorities reintroduced nighttime curfews and restrictions on gatherings of more than five people in big cities like New Delhi and Mumbai. People attended midnight Mass in Mumbai and elsewhere but in smaller numbers. Christians comprise just over 2% of India's nearly 1.4 billion people. In New Zealand, where 95% of adults have had at least one dose of the vaccine, making it one of the world's most vaccinated populations, the only omicron cases that have been found have been safely contained at the border. As the pandemic spread around the world the past two years, New Zealand used its isolation to its advantage. Border controls kept the worst of the virus at bay. By Christmas this year, New Zealand had recorded 50 deaths in a population of 5.5 million. But that success has come at a cost. There were empty chairs at some tables this holiday season because some New Zealanders living and working overseas were not able to return home due to limits in the country's managed isolation and quarantine program. The traditional dining tables of a northern winter turkey and all the trimmings are common. But Kiwis also celebrate in an antipodean manner, with barbeques on beaches fringed by the native pohutukawa tree, which blooms only at Christmas. At New Zealand's Scott Base in Antarctica, some New Zealanders enjoyed a white Christmas. During summer on the frozen continent, the sun never dips below the horizon and in 24 hours of daylight the temperature hovers around 0 degrees Celsius. Around 200 people pass through the base over the summer season scientists, support staff and defense personnel who provide communications and other services. Numbers are lower this year because of the pandemic and all staff traveling to the continent have had to isolate and undergo COVID-19 testing before departure. Most Pacific Island nations whose health systems might have been overwhelmed by COVID-19 outbreaks have largely managed to keep out the virus through strict border controls and high vaccination numbers. Fiji has an ongoing outbreak and has had almost 700 deaths. About 92% of the adult population is now fully vaccinated, 97.7% have received at least one dose and many in the deeply religious nation will celebrate Christmas at traditional church services and family gatherings. Health Secretary James Fong, in a Christmas message, urged Fijians to "please celebrate wisely." In remote Macuata province, residents of four villages received a special Christmas gift: Electricity was connected to their villages for the first time. In his Christmas message, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison referred to the COVID-19 toll. "This pandemic, it continues to buffet us," Morrison said. "The omicron variant is just the latest challenge that we have faced. But together, always together and only together, we keep pushing through." The omicron variant is prevalent in some states and is estimated to represent more than 70% of all new cases in Queensland. Summer heat might have discouraged outdoor Christmas feasts in some places. The temperature in Perth in Western Australia was expected to hit 42 degrees Celsius on Saturday, making it the hottest Christmas since records began more than a century ago. On Christmas Eve, a student driver in the Northern Territory made off with a truck containing more than $10,000 in Christmas hams that was empty when it was found. "This behavior can only be described as Grinch-like," police detective Mark Bland said. Rest assured, kids of all ages: Santa's coming this Christmas Eve, and a second holiday with COVID-19 won't stop him. That's the word from the joint U.S.-Canadian military operation that for 66 years has been tracking Jolly Old St. Nicholas on his global mission and has assured us all first by land line and more recently by iPhone, Android, OnStar, Facebook, YouTube and more that he's on his way with a sleigh stuffed with toys and a welcome dose of joy. In what's become its own wildly popular tradition, the Colorado-based North American Aerospace Defense Command provides real-time updates on Santa's progress December 24, from 4 a.m. to midnight MST. NORAD's Santa Tracker lets families watch Father Christmas in 3D as he transits the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. From deep inside NORAD headquarters, dozens of volunteers field an unrelenting wave of phone calls to 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723). They and other volunteers working off-site because of coronavirus distancing protocols will answer such questions as "When will he come to my house?" and "What kind of cookies does he like?" said program manager and NORAD spokesman Preston Schlachter. Want to watch? Visit https://www.noradsanta.org, check out #NORADTracksSanta and @NoradSanta on Twitter, or use the associated apps. You can also email noradtrackssanta@outlook.com for the latest. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden also participated in tradition, answering calls to the Santa tracking service. It is a long-standing tradition for first ladies, but the president joined this year as well. Even before Friday's takeoff, the NORAD webpage had been visited more than 3 million times, Schlachter said. "Every household, every country is having to deal with the impact of this pandemic. Santa Claus is an icon, and he is a source of joy for a lot of people," Schlachter said. For those worried about Santa's safety or their own the bearded man likely will be wearing a mask at each stop, and of course he's wearing gloves, Schlachter noted. For the technically inclined, NORAD's website offers more data on the voyage (weight of gifts at takeoff: 60,000 tons, or 54,600 metric tons; sleigh propulsion: nine RP, or reindeer power). Like any good Christmas tale, the program's origin has been told for generations. In 1955, Air Force Colonel Harry Shoup the on-duty commander one night at NORAD's predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command answered a call from a child who dialed a number that was misprinted in an ad in a newspaper, thinking she was calling Santa. Shoup "answered the call, thought it was a prank at first, but then realized what had happened and assured the child that he was Santa, and thus started the tradition that we are celebrating now 66 years later," Schlachter said. NORAD's mission is to watch the skies above North America for any potential threats. Come early Christmas Eve, the Santa operation begins when a cluster of radar stations in northern Canada and Alaska pick up an infrared signature emanating from Rudolph's nose. NORAD's array of geostationary satellites above the Earth monitors the journey. It's all shown on large, "unclassified" display screens in a festively decorated command post at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs. Masked volunteers sit at tables equipped with telephones, garland, miniature Christmas trees, plenty of caffeine-laden candy and coffee and hand sanitizer. "We Have the Watch" is NORAD's military-mission motto. And when it comes to Santa, NORAD adds: "Santa calls the shots. We just track him." Commercial airlines around the world canceled more than 4,300 flights over the Christmas weekend, as COVID-19 infections driven by the omicron variant created greater uncertainty for holiday travelers. Airline carriers globally scrapped at least 2,366 flights on Friday, which fell on Christmas Eve and is typically a heavy day for air travel, according to a running tally on the flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. Nearly 9,000 more flights were delayed. The website showed that 1,616 Christmas Day flights were called off worldwide, along with 365 more that had been scheduled for Sunday. In that same three-day period last year, more than 191,000 commercial flights were flown, according to FlightAware.com. Commercial air traffic within the United States and into or out of the country accounted for more than a quarter of the canceled flights over the weekend, FlightAware data showed. United, Delta Among the first U.S. carriers to report a wave of holiday weekend cancellations were United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, which scrubbed nearly 280 flights combined on Friday, citing personnel shortages because of COVID-19 infections. COVID-19 infections have surged in the United States in recent days because of the omicron variant, which was first detected in November and now accounts for nearly three-quarters of new U.S. cases and as many as 90% in some areas, such as the Eastern Seaboard. The average number of new U.S. coronavirus cases has risen 45% to 179,000 per day over the past week, according to a Reuters tally. New York and at least 10 other states set new one-day case records on Thursday or Friday. In Britain, many industries and transport networks were struggling with staff shortages as sick workers self-isolated, while hospitals have warned of the risk of an impact on patient safety. One in 20 Londoners had COVID-19 last week, a figure that could rise to one in 10 by early next week, according to data released Thursday by the Office for National Statistics. Government data showed a record tally of 122,186 new infections nationwide on Friday, marking a third day in which the number of new known cases has surpassed 100,000. While recent research suggests omicron produces milder illness, and a lower rate of hospitalizations, than previous variants of the coronavirus, health officials have maintained a cautious note about the outlook. "There is a glimmer of Christmas hope but it definitely isn't yet at the point where we could downgrade that serious threat," Jenny Harries, head of the UK Health Security Agency, told the BBC. Record in France France set another COVID-19 infection record on Friday, with its daily tally exceeding 94,000 while hospitalizations from the virus reached a seven-month high, prompting the government to convene a special meeting for Monday that could trigger new public health restrictions. Despite the uncertainties and grim news around the world, millions of Americans carried on with travel plans through a second pandemic-clouded holiday season. Moses Jimenez, an accountant from Long Beach, Mississippi, flew to New York with his wife and three children, even though the latest torrent of coronavirus cases dashed their hopes of catching a Broadway performance of Hamilton or visit some museums. Hamilton was one of a dozen productions to cancel shows this week as cast and crew members tested positive for COVID-19. Museums were scratched from the family's itinerary because many now require proof of vaccination and the two younger children are ineligible for the shot. Instead, Jimenez, 33, said his brood would make the best of roaming the city's streets and parks, while also seeing relatives and friends. "We just wanted to get out of the house, really, get the kids out to the city for Christmas," Jimenez told Reuters on Thursday at New York's LaGuardia Airport. New York planned to sharply limit the number of people it allows in Times Square for its annual outdoor New Year's Eve celebration, in response to the surge of new coronavirus cases, capping the number of attendees 15,000. The Biden administration will next week lift travel restrictions on eight southern African countries imposed last month over concerns about the omicron variant, the White House said. The Biden administration will lift travel restrictions on eight southern African countries imposed last month over concerns about the fast-spreading COVID-19 Omicron variant, the White House said Friday. Foreign nationals who are barred from the United States because they have been in one of the eight countries within the prior 14 days will again be allowed on U.S.-bound flights leaving after 12:01 a.m. ET on Dec. 31, a senior official said, confirming a Reuters report. The United States on Nov. 29 barred nearly all non-U.S. citizens who had recently been in South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi in an "abundance of caution" over the variant detected in South Africa. White House spokesman Kevin Munoz tweeted that Biden "will lift the temporary travel restrictions on Southern Africa countries" effective Dec. 31. He said the decision was recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "The restrictions gave us time to understand Omicron and we know our existing vaccines work against Omicron, esp boosted," Munoz tweeted. Reuters reported earlier U.S. public health agencies had recommended lifting the travel restrictions because retaining them would have not a significant impact on U.S. cases given the widespread current U.S. transmission, confidence that an Omicron-specific vaccine would not be necessary and that existing vaccines and booster shots are highly effective. "This travel pause has served its purpose. It bought time to understand the science, it gave time to analyze the variant," the official, who did not want to be identified because the decision has not yet been made public, told Reuters. "This was not meant to keep Omicron out. We knew we couldn't do that. The point was to reduce the number of cases coming in - in those early days and weeks." The restrictions have not prevented flights or Americans from returning from southern Africa. Top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Monday that lifting the restrictions was likely "because we have enough infection in our own country... We're letting in people from other countries that have as much or more infection than the southern African countries." The official emphasized the restrictions were meant to be temporary and lifting them after about a month "sends a pretty clear signal that there's not going to be a significant penalty" for coming forward to disclose new variant information. The United States had only lifted travel restrictions on South Africa on Nov. 8 put in place since late January to address COVID-19 concerns. In the wake of Omicron, the United States tightened testing rules for international travelers and extended a requirement to wear masks on airplanes and at airports through March 18. On Dec. 6, CDC toughened testing rules for international air travelers arriving in the United States, requiring them to obtain a negative COVID-19 test within one day of travel. Under prior rules, vaccinated international air travelers could present a negative test result obtained within three days of their day of departure. CDC last week started distributing free COVID-19 home test kits to international travelers at several airports. The CDC encourages - but does not mandate - international air travelers to get a new COVID-19 test three to five days after arriving in the United States. The CDC last month ordered airlines to disclose passenger names and other information about those who have recently been in the eight southern African countries. (Reporting by David Shepardson in Grand Rapids, Michigan; Editing by Nick Macfie) Some Zimbabweans were on Friday burnt beyond recognition when a bus collided with a fuel tanker in the countrys Manicaland province, according to the state-controlled Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC). The ZBC reports that the bus belonging to Beta Private Limited allegedly collided with the tanker, which burst into flames and people were burnt beyond recognition. Police spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi, was unavailable for comment as he was not responding to calls on his mobile phone. Nyathi, who could not release the number of the casualties, told NewsDay newspaper that police are investigating the accident. He said, "We received the disturbing news that a bus collided with a fuel tanker on that road. The bus was coming from Harare. Some people have died, and some were left with serious injuries. Our officers are there on the groundWe will release more details later during the night. According to the ZBC, at least seven passengers were pulled out of the inferno with serous burns. The ZBC quoted witnesses as saying the bus, which was traveling from Harare to Mutare, was reduced to a metal hulk. Meanwhile, police report that a person was killed and eight others were injured on Wednesday in a road traffic accident along the Masvingo-Beitbridge Highway. The ZRP reports a fatal road traffic accident which occurred on 23/12/21 at 1400 along Masvingo Beitbridge highway at 235 km peg in which one person died while eight others were injured. In a tweet, the police said the Marcopolo bus with 29 passengers on board which was travelling to Masvingo veered off the road and overturned before landing on its roof after the left front tyre burst. Takawira Chitendere (49) died on the spot and his body was taken to Beitbridge District Hospital for post-mortem while the injured are admitted at the same hospital. BEIJING The Chinese government has denounced a U.S. law that restricts imports from Xinjiang as a violation of international law and dismissed complaints of abuses against mostly Muslim minorities in the region as lies. President Joe Biden signed the measure amid mounting tension including appeals by activists for a boycott of Februarys Winter Olympics in Beijing. It prohibits U.S. businesses from importing goods from Xinjiang unless they can be proven not to have been made by forced labor. A foreign ministry spokesman said the measure disregards the truth and interferes in Chinas affairs. Foreign governments and researchers say more than 1 million Uyghurs and other minorities have been confined in camps in Xinjiang. Republicans have either forgotten Abraham Lincolns Gettysburg Address, or worse, have come to reject its message. Lincoln began by noting that we are a nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. He concluded by calling on Americans to pledge themselves to the proposition that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. We were overjoyed when we received confirmation about a week before Thanksgiving that her loans, which I had co-signed for, had been zeroed out. But I often think that wiping out the debt would have made a bigger difference earlier on. We applied for the program about a decade ago, at a time when we shopped for groceries at Dollar General because we couldnt afford Walmart. We could have used the extra cash while Tracy was teaching in a public school, assigned to the hardest-to-reach students. We could have used it as we were depleting our meager checking account to finance her nonprofit, Freedom Readers, which has helped hundreds of students over the past decade. It would have been a godsend on the days we were literally searching in our couch cushions for coins to pay for gas, or during the months I strapped my son into a car seat and took him to interviews as a reporter at a small daily newspaper, hoping my bosses would never find out. Later, I had my son and daughter quietly sit in the back of classrooms eating Happy Meals while I taught journalism at a local university as an adjunct, paid enough to make a tiny dent in our monthly pile of bills but far from enough to make child care affordable. The official IRNA news agency said the accident happened as a truck hit a minibus that was carrying laborers on the road linking the city of Khorramshahr with the city of Ahvaz in Khuzestan province. The shooting occurred Friday night inside a police station in the small town of Thirukkovil in eastern Sri Lanka, a police statement said. The town is located in the islands former war zone, which has been largely peaceful since the civil war ended in 2009. The town is about 336 kilometers (208 miles) east of the capital Colombo. An ersatz revolution with rock music as its soundtrack, the 1960s shook up the Wests ingrained conservatism across matters of politics, conscription, the arts, sexual mores, marriage, drug-taking and fashion, while also stamping civil rights, womens rights, Indigenous rights, gay rights, multiculturalism and environmentalism on the mainstream agenda. This polymath background lent him broad expertise when looking back at that tumultuous time, and especially at how music seeped into the fault-lines of political and social upheaval and widened the cracks just a little. His book allots a chapter to each year of the decade, with the Beatles and the Vietnam War providing through-lines. If you remember the 60s, goes the old line, you werent really there. Tony Wellington was there as a child and teen: young enough to avoid terminal brain damage but old enough to be infatuated by the music. He became a musician himself, as well as an artist, film-maker, photographer, columnist and author (full disclosure: once in collaboration with me). He was also Noosas mayor, and perhaps being inside the political process allows insights that are alien even to specialist journalists. The eras emphasis on sharing and camaraderie was not only a counter-culture phenomenon, but something entrenched in the wider community, hence JFKs famed, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. As Wellington points out, can you seriously imagine a Western political leader saying that today? Mick Jagger looks on as Hells Angels bikers drag a person onstage at the Altamont rock festival in December, 1969. Credit:AP Despite his obvious fondness for it, Wellington does not whitewash a decade that ultimately saw that spirit of collectivism give way to greed and egocentricity in the 70s, and that was capped by violence and self-indulgence before its end. Putting the terrifying calamity of Vietnam to one side, the violence included race-hate crimes, assassinations of Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King jnr, the Manson murders and the debacle that was the Altamont Speedway Free Festival trying to replicate Woodstock. The indulgence included drug use coming to be an end in itself rather than a purported agent of change, and musical creativity losing a little of its regenerative power. Wellington essentially confines his political and sociological observations to Australia, the US, Britain and Vietnam. Culturally, he restricts himself to populist forms: primarily rock music and its cousins, with forays into folk, film and literature as suits his purpose of tracing intersecting areas of catalysis. Jazz undergoing its own drastic revolution in the 60s and, closely associated with the civil rights movement lies outside his purview. Of course, the decade has been exhaustively covered before, so Wellington makes no pretence at uncovering radically new information. Rather, the book rides buoyantly along on his illumination and interpretation of the facts and anecdotes he selects, the connections he makes, and the quality of his critical judgment. Noting that Durer drawings are extremely rare and that he thought all were accounted for, Schorer said he told Phillipson, As someone who knows Albrecht Durer in and out, its impossible. Eleven days later, the owner texted pictures of the artwork to Schorer, who said he drove straight to the mans house, where, he said, the man and his wife lived modestly. Schorer sat down at the kitchen table to look at the piece. It was either a masterpiece or the greatest forgery I had ever seen, he said. Schorer, who specialises in recovering lost art, paid the man a $US100,000 advance to sell the drawing, he said. (The exact terms are confidential, but both will get money when it sells, he said.) Schorer would lose his advance if the work turned out to be a forgery. Phillipson said his friend, the owner of the drawing, declined to comment. Loading Three days later, Schorer boarded a flight to England to rush the drawing into the hands of Jane McAusland, a paper conservator who advises museums, dealers and auction houses. She did not respond to emails this week from The New York Times. Three weeks after his visit, McAusland told him that the drawing had been stained with tea or coffee to make it look like an antique, Schorer said. But he asked her to look again, and she replied by email the next day with an image. He clicked on it, and the picture showed a translucent light shining through the paper. It had the trident watermark, which is only in Albrecht Durers drawings, he said. My mind was blown. Durers preferred medium was a special paper made by his patron, Jacob Fugger, one of the richest men who ever lived. Only Durers workshop had access to that paper, which bore Fuggers signature watermark, according to Christof Metzger, a Durer expert and chief curator at the Albertina Museum in Vienna. Scholars noted the signature had been written with the same ink used in the drawing. Credit:Getty Images Schorer said he met Metzger on his tour of 14 cities around the world to try to authenticate the drawing. Over more than two years, he said, he met a slate of experts, all but one of whom agreed that the drawing was an original Durer. Clues like the paper, the pen strokes and the style of the Madonna suggested that this was not a forgery, Metzger said. He dated the piece to 1503, when Durer made a similar depiction of the Virgin Mary on a grassy bench. Metzger believes the artist was drawing ideas for a 1506 watercolour titled The Virgin With a Multitude of Animals. The newly discovered drawing was the first complete, finalised composition of Durers to be discovered since 1932, Metzger said. The artists works have long been collected because of his mastery of both granular details and hallucinatory fantasies, Metzger said, and for this reason, a new, absolutely unknown work is absolutely once in the lifetime. Not all are convinced, however, that the work was drawn by Durer. Loading Fritz Koreny, a senior researcher at the Institute for Art History at University of Vienna, believes it was made by a Durer apprentice, Hans Baldung. He declined to elaborate, because he is working on his own publication about the drawing. He said, however, All the significant details speak for Baldung. Koreny estimated that if Baldung made the drawing, its value would be only up to a quarter of what it would be worth if Durer drew it. No matter who created it, the artwork had travelled from Germany to a noble family in Italy to the Louvre Museum and private collectors in France before it wound up in Massachusetts, Metzger said. Jean-Paul Carlhian, an architect, took the piece to Massachusetts sometime after his family acquired it in 1912, Metzger said. At some point in the last century, the family decided the drawing was not a real Durer, Schorer said. That is most likely how it ended up at the Carlhian familys estate sale that the unidentified buyer of the drawing attended in 2016. Carlhians daughter Penny Carlhian declined to comment. Durer churned out piece after piece until he died in 1528. About 1500 have been accounted for, Metzger said. Only 24 are known to remain in private collections, which is what makes the newly discovered drawing so special, he said. For now, the drawing is being housed at Agnews Gallery in London. It will be displayed next month at the Colnaghi gallery in New York. Schorer and the drawings owner stand to make a significant windfall when the drawing goes on sale, probably sometime in the new year. He declined to speculate on its value, but he said it could be the most valuable work by a Renaissance master to hit the market since a chalk sketch by Raphael sold for nearly $US48 million in 2012. Agnews Gallery plans to ask for an eight-figure sum for the drawing, according to a statement from the gallery last month. Schorer has travelled the world to learn about art, but he remains astonished that the greatest piece he helped discover was found, as he put it, in my backyard. Life is downhill from that moment forward, he said. Ill never have an experience like that again. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Jurors in the fraud trial of former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes returned to the courtroom Thursday to listen again to audio recordings that captured Holmes' brash promises about vaunted blood-testing technology that propelled her meteoric rise and scandalous downfall. In those recordings from a December 2013 presentation to prospective investors, Holmes bragged about partnerships with established drug companies that hadn't panned out and potential U.S. military contracts that never materialized because of problems with Theranos' technology. She was unaware she was being recorded at the time. The jurors previously heard the recordings in late October and a few excerpts in closing arguments last week. They sent a note before noon asking to review them, prompting U.S. District Judge Edward Davila to bring the eight men and four women of the jury back to the courtroom for the first time since they were ushered out at the end of last week to begin deliberations. Holmes, 37, returned to the courtroom too, and intently watched the jurors and their reactions to the recordings from her usual seat in the courtroom. She seemed to try to make eye contacts with the jurors when as they walked out of the courtroom following the audio replay, but none appeared to return her gaze. In the recordings, Holmes boasts about how Theranos would change the reality of lab testing" and bring down health costs so dramatically that it would save Medicaid and Medicare about $150 billion over a decade. But she didn't say how long that would take to happen. Holmes also promised that a deal that Theranos had to deploy its blood-testing technology in Walgreens pharmacies was poised to quickly ramp up. The question now is how fast do we scale?" Holmes told the group of investors on the conference call.. The fact that we will scale is a given." Walgreens only ended up using Theranos technology in about 40 of its stores, mostly in Arizona, before bailing out of the deal because of concerns that the blood tests were wildly unreliable. The recordings could prove pivotal to the jurors' decision because many of the accusations against her revolve around alleged lies she told to raise more money for Theranos. By the time the recordings were made, a decade after she founded Theranos, Holmes estimated that the company was worth about $7 billion. By mid-2014, Theranos was valued at $9 billion, with half of that that paper wealth owned by Holmes, the company's controlling shareholder. But it all began to unravel in 2015 and 2016 after a series of articles in The Wall Street Journal and regulatory audits exposed serious flaws in the Theranos technology, which Holmes repeatedly promised would quickly scan for hundreds of health problems using just a few drops of blood. That would have been a dramatic change from the traditional method of relying on vials of blood drawn through a needle stuck in a vein. Holmes will face up to 20 years in prison if the jury finds her guilty. The jury left Thursday without reaching a verdict and are scheduled to resume deliberations Monday. Today Sunshine followed by increasing clouds; seasonably chilly. Tonight Cloudy with snow developing between 9pm and midnight, then steadier snow from midnight to sunrise. A few inches of snow for everyone, with a widespread 1-3" with most getting closer to 3". Higher 3-6" amounts closer to the I-95 corridor. Tomorrow Snow tapers to flurries around sunrise, then some clearing as skies become partly sunny; breezy and cold with wind chills well below freezing. The views expressed by public comments are not those of this company or its affiliated companies. Please note by clicking on "Post" you acknowledge that you have read the TERMS OF USE and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Your comments may be used on air. Be polite. Inappropriate posts or posts containing offsite links, images, GIFs, inappropriate language, or memes may be removed by the moderator. Job listings and similar posts are likely automated SPAM messages from Facebook and are not placed by WFMZ-TV. JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) Marines on snowmobiles helped Santa this month while delivering toys to boys and girls in Alaska's Arctic. In a photo provided by the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Federico Gomez, dressed as Santa Claus, hands a gift to a student in Shungnak, Alaska, Dec. 8, 2021. Marines on snowmobiles delivered toys to boys and girls in Alaska's Arctic. (Cpl. Brendan Mullin/U.S. Marine Corps via AP ) JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) Marines on snowmobiles helped Santa this month while delivering toys to boys and girls in Alaska's Arctic. Marines flew to Kotzebue, which is 549 miles (884 kilometers) northwest of Anchorage and 26 miles (42 kilometers) above the Arctic Circle, on a KC-130 operated by the Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 based in Okinawa, Japan. In a photo provided by the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Jake Paolucci fist-bumps a child while dressed as Santa Claus in Kotzebue, Alaska, Dec. 11, 2021. The half-dozen Marines who participated were primarily from Delta Company of the 4th Law Enforcement Battalion, a Reserve unit. (Cpl. Brendan Mullin/U.S. Marine Corps via AP ) From there, they rode commercial flights and snowmobiles to get toys to 2,500 children in 11 villages, the Juneau Empire reported. Cpl. Brendan Mullin, who took pictures of the event, could hear children gasp when a Marine Santa entered a pre-kindergarten classroom. "When you can see the smile through the mask, you know its a big, genuine smile, Mullin said. Their joyful job was part of the Toys for Tots program run by the Marine Corps and a nonprofit foundation. Started in 1947, the program now delivers 18 million toys to 7 million less fortunate children each year. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Its really just to benefit kids. The sparkle in the kids' eyes, that makes it worth it, said Capt. Keith G. Lowell, a Marine stationed in Anchorage who oversaw the mission to Alaska's Northwest Arctic Borough. The half-dozen Marines who participated were primarily from Delta Company of the 4th Law Enforcement Battalion, a Reserve unit. Everyone got an opportunity to play Santa, Lowell said. The Okinawa-based crew has partnered with Delta Company on the program the past few years, Lowell said. Traveling to Alaska helps them get the flight hours they need, he said. He praised the hospitality that greeted the visiting Marines. Weathers always an obstacle out there. We trained for it, we had the right gear. I cant thank the locals enough. They would help us repair our snowmachines or lend us their snowmachines to make these deliveries, Lowell said. ROME - Christmas arrived around the world Saturday amid a surge in COVID-19 infections that kept many families apart, overwhelmed hospitals and curbed religious observances as the pandemic was poised to stretch into a third year. Alona Nacua, right seated, eats with her family as they stay at the house of their neighbor after their home got damaged due to Typhoon Rai in Cebu city, central Philippines on Christmas Day, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. Nacua said she and her husband managed to receive rice and four small cans of sardines and corned beef to be able to feed their family Saturday. "It's the saddest Christmas for me, seeing my children suffer this way on this day," added Nacua, who is pregnant. (AP Photo/Jay Labra) ROME - Christmas arrived around the world Saturday amid a surge in COVID-19 infections that kept many families apart, overwhelmed hospitals and curbed religious observances as the pandemic was poised to stretch into a third year. Yet, there were homilies of hope, as vaccines and other treatments become more available. Pope Francis used his Christmas address to pray for more vaccines to reach the poorest countries. While wealthy countries have inoculated as much as 90% of their adult populations, 8.9% of Africas people are fully jabbed, making it the worlds least-vaccinated continent. Only a few thousand well-wishers turned out for his noontime address and blessing, but even that was better than last year, when Italys Christmas lockdown forced Francis indoors for the annual Urbi et Orbi ("To the city and the world") speech. Grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of goodwill to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects, Francis said from the loggia of St. Peters Basilica. Open hearts to ensure that necessary medical care and vaccines in particular are provided to those peoples who need them most. Romel Lo-ang plays with his horn, a Christmas gift from his godfather, near their damaged home due to Typhoon Rai in Cebu city, central Philippines on Christmas Day, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. His mother Alona Nacua said she and her husband managed to receive rice and four small cans of sardines and corned beef to be able to feed their family Saturday. "It's the saddest Christmas for me, seeing my children suffer this way on this day," added Nacua, who is pregnant. (AP Photo/Jay Labra) In the United States, many churches canceled in-person services, but for those that did have in-person worship, clerics reported smaller but significant attendance. Our hopes for a normal Christmas have been tempered by omicron this year still filled with uncertainties and threats that overshadow us, the Rev. Ken Boller told his parishioners during midnight Mass at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in New York City. Breakthrough used to be a happy word for us, until it was associated with COVID. And in the midst of it all, we celebrate Christmas. The Rev. Alex Karloutsos, of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church of the Hamptons in Southampton, New York, said attendance at the Christmas Eve liturgy was a third less than last year's, with the reality of the omicron virus diminishing the crowd, but not the fervor of the faithful present. Alona Nacua, right, stands beside her son as she looks at their damaged house due to Typhoon Rai in Cebu city, central Philippines on Christmas Day, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. Nacua said she and her husband managed to receive rice and four small cans of sardines and corned beef to be able to feed their family Saturday. "It's the saddest Christmas for me, seeing my children suffer this way on this day," added Nacua who, is pregnant. (AP Photo/Jay Labra) St. Patricks Church in Hubbard, Ohio, held Mass on Christmas Eve in a nearby high school because of a church fire this year. The Mass drew about 550 people, said Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar, who presided. In Britain, Queen Elizabeth II noted another year of pain particularly personal after losing her husband, Prince Philip, in April and urged people to celebrate with friends and family. Although its a time of great happiness and good cheer for many, Christmas can be hard for those who have lost loved ones, the queen said in the prerecorded message broadcast when many British families were enjoying their traditional Christmas dinner. This year, especially, I understand why. Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa leads a Christmas midnight Mass at Saint Catherine's Church in the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. (Mussa Qawasma/Pool Photo via AP) Thousands of people across Britain got a vaccine booster shot for Christmas as new cases hit another daily record of 122,186. The Good Health Pharmacy in north London was one of dozens of sites that stayed open Saturday to administer jingle jabs amid a government push to offer booster shots to all adults by the end of the year. The head of intensive care at a hospital in Marseille, France, said most COVID-19 patients over Christmas were unvaccinated, while his staff are exhausted or cant work because they are infected. Were sick of this, said Dr. Julien Carvelli, the ICU chief at La Timone Hospital, as his team spent another Christmas Eve tending to COVID-19 patients on breathing machines. Were afraid we wont have enough space. People sit at a Christmas day soup kitchen for fragile people, the poor, the homeless, and asylum seekers, set by the Sant'Egidio Community, at the Santa Maria in Trastevere Basilica in Rome, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) On the other side of the globe, hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines, Asias largest Roman Catholic nation, spent Christmas without homes, electricity, or adequate food and water after a powerful typhoon left at least 375 people dead last week and devastated mostly central island provinces. Gov. Arthur Yap of hard-hit Bohol province, where more than 100 people died in the typhoon and about 150,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, appealed for help. He was happy many Filipinos could celebrate Christmas more safely after COVID-19 cases dropped, but he pleaded: Please dont forget us. At least one American Christmas tradition was revived after the pandemic drove it online last year: the annual reenactment of George Washingtons daring crossing of the Delaware River in 1776. Reenactors in three boats completed the crossing in about an hour Saturday. Crowds were in the hundreds, down from the usual thousands. Christians attend a Christmas mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral, in Lahore, Pakistan, on Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary) COVID-19 testing continued unimpeded in some places, while other sites closed for the day. Lines that in previous days wrapped around the block at a small testing center in Chicagos Lincoln Square neighborhood shrank considerably Saturday, when the only customers inside were Shayna Prihoda and Michael Boundy, whose negative tests freed them to visit Boundys parents in Michigan. We would have stayed home and quarantined, Boundy said. Christians attend a Christmas Mass in Our Lady of Fatima Church in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Swelling numbers of cases in Florida made tests almost as popular as Christmas ham. Florida hit a new case record for the second day in a row. Hours before a testing site opened at Tropical Park in Miami, dozens of cars lined up. To alleviate demand, county workers had distributed 12,500 at-home test kits Friday at libraries. Most of New York Citys 120 testing sites were closed Saturday, a day after police were summoned to a Brooklyn neighborhood to quell an angry crowd that had been expecting to receive free at-home testing kits, only to have the supply run out. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. A woman wearing a face mask to protect against COPVID-19, prays during a morning Christmas Mass at Holy Cross Cathedral in Lagos, Nigeria, Saturday Dec. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba) Chairs went empty at some dinner tables after airlines around the world canceled hundreds of flights as the omicron variant jumbled schedules and reduced staffing. Airlines scrapped nearly 6,000 flights globally that had been scheduled to take off Friday, Saturday or Sunday, with nearly a third involving U.S. flights, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website. At a reception center for asylum-seekers in Cyprus, Patricia Etoh, a Catholic from Cameroon, said she did not have any special plans because it just did not feel like Christmas without her 6-year-old child, whom she had to leave behind. But she added: Were grateful, were alive, and when were alive, theres hope. ___ Winfield reported from Rome, Tarm from Chicago and Smith from Pittsburgh. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Bobby Caina Calvan and Larry Neumeister in New York, Michael Schneider in Miami, Ron Todt in Philadelphia, Danica Kirka in London, Jim Gomez in Manila and Daniel Cole in Marseille, France. TORONTO - Some of the most active companies traded Monday on the Toronto Stock Exchange: TORONTO - Some of the most active companies traded Monday on the Toronto Stock Exchange: Toronto Stock Exchange (21,229.68, up 10.75 points.) ECN Capital Corp. (TSX:ENC). Financial Services. Down three cents, or 0.56 per cent, to $5.31 on 3.0 million shares. TC Energy Corporation (TSX:TRP). Energy. Up 16 cents, or 0.27 per cent, to $60.45 on 1.9 million shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSX:CM). Financial Services. Down $1.52, or 1.02 per cent, to $146.89 on1.8 million shares. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB). Energy. Up nine cents, or 0.18 per cent, to $48.75 on 1.6 million shares. Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B). Industrials. Up one cent, or 0.58 per cent, to $1.74 on 1.5 million shares. Hexo Corp. (TSX:HEXO ). Healthcare. Up three cents, or 2.91 per cent, to $1.06 on 1.3 million shares. Companies in the news: The billionaire Weston family is selling its luxury British department store chain Selfridges to Thailand's Central Group and Austrian real estate group Signa. The deal, confirmed Friday by Central Group, is reportedly worth four billion pounds, or about C$6.87 billion. Central already owns up-market retailers including Rinascente in Italy, Illum in Denmark, Switzerlands Globus and The KaDeWe Group in Germany. W. Galen Weston acquired Selfridges in 2003 and combined it with other luxury retailers into the Selfridges Group in 2010. The company, which now owns 18 department stores, was offered for sale after Weston passed away in April. His daughter, Alannah Weston, who is chair of Selfridges Group, said in a statement that the sale was the successful realization of my fathers vision for an iconic group of beautiful, truly experiential, department stores." This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 24, 2021. MONTREAL - As the world tuned in on Christmas morning to see NASA's James Webb Space Telescope lift off, Canadian scientists who played a crucial part in its creation were emotional. Arianespace's Ariane 5 rocket with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope onboard, lifts off at Europe's Spaceport, the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, Saturday, Dec. 25, 2021. As the world tuned in on Christmas morning to see NASA's James Webb Space Telescope liftoff, Canadian scientists who played a crucial part in its creation were emotionally admiring the successful launch of their historical contribution. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-ESA-CNES-ARIANESPACE MONTREAL - As the world tuned in on Christmas morning to see NASA's James Webb Space Telescope lift off, Canadian scientists who played a crucial part in its creation were emotional. The collaboration between European and Canadian space agencies soared from French Guiana on South America's northeastern coast on Saturday, riding a European Ariane rocket into the Christmas morning skies. Rene Doyon, principal investigator of the telescope, said seeing the launch in-person was the best Christmas gift he could have ever hoped for. COVID-19 requirements meant most Canadian scientists who worked on the project had to stay home. It was an intense moment, absolutely incredible emotions after 20 years of working on the project, Doyon said in an interview Saturday. I could have never imagined that it would have happened on Christmas. It was a good moment for Canada." Nathalie Ouellette, outreach scientist for the Webb at the Universite de Montreal, was with her family watching the long-awaited launch in Montreal. "To see the telescope leave Earth what a joy for Christmas," Ouellette said. "I cried. We took a video to commemorate the moment. The launch went perfectly." The telescope will search for unprecedented details on the first galaxies created after the Big Bang, and on the development of potentially life-friendly planets beyond our solar system. For Lisa Campbell, president of the Canadian Space Agency, the launch was the culmination of a 30-year-old dream. "What an exceptional day," Campbell said. "It's the most powerful and complex space observatory ever built." Canada has been working on the James Webb Space Telescope almost from the start and will be among the first countries to study its discoveries, she said. "It is a new step in astronomy, in understanding the universe, and our place in it," Campbell said. "And these scientific discoveries will be possible thanks to Canada's expertise in astronomy." At least half of the 600 scientists in the Canadian Astronomical Society have been involved with the telescope and dozens of engineers are part of its design team. Ouellette noted that the Webb's work is only beginning. Most people are familiar with Hubble Space Telescope which was launched in 1990 but the Webb is set to be 100 times more powerful, she said. "We often talk about Webb as Hubble's successor," she explained. "Webb is much bigger, it will capture more distant objects with low luminosity, look further into the history of the universe." The $10 billion telescope started to hurtle toward its destination 1.6 million kilometres away, or more than four times beyond the moon, on Saturday. It will take a month to get there and another five months before its infrared eyes are ready to start scanning the cosmos. Key to that work will be the Fine Guidance Sensor, which helps aim the telescope, and the Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph, which helps analyze the light it observes. Both have been designed and built in Canada. "We are the eyes of the telescope, it's Canadian eyes that allow all observations," Ouellette said. "Canada has never been involved at this level in this kind of project." Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne issued a statement to congratulate Canadian's expertise, saying past investments in space technologies made it possible for the country to be "an active partner in this exciting mission." "Once again, Canada's space sector is pushing the frontier of science and, more so, of astronomy," Champagne said. "Webb is the largest space science project in the 60-year history of Canada's space program." For Daryl Haggard, a professor of physics at Montreal's McGill University and James Webb Space Telescope co-investigator, the telescope is an undeniable source of pride. "We were looking at the launch video, and my husband was pointing out that he could see the logo for NASA, but also the Canadian Space Agency, right there on the rocket," she said, her voice breaking with emotion. "It's pretty awesome." Haggard said she hopes the project will put Canada on the map for its astronomical expertise. People usually refer to Canadarm from the Canadian Space Agency, but this country does much more than that, she said. Canadarm is a robotic arm that supported American space shuttle missions for about 30 years from 1981. In exchange for Canadas contribution on the telescope, the country is guaranteed at least five per cent of the telescope's observation time, once data starts to come in about six months. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Campbell said this will allow Canadian scientists to further their studies on exoplanets and black holes among other things. "We will be able to see phenomena at the origin of the creation of our universe, its history," she said. "We often wonder why we explore space, but it will tell us so much." With files from The Associated Press With files from Bob Weber in Edmonton This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 25, 2021. PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. - Charges are no longer being pursued against two journalists who were arrested last month while reporting on the RCMP's enforcement of an injunction at a pipeline construction site in northern British Columbia. PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. - Charges are no longer being pursued against two journalists who were arrested last month while reporting on the RCMP's enforcement of an injunction at a pipeline construction site in northern British Columbia. Documents filed with B.C. Supreme Court this week show the company building the Coastal GasLink pipeline filed notices to discontinue the proceedings against photojournalist Amber Bracken and documentary filmmaker Michael Toledano. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. The pair had been charged with civil contempt of court and were conditionally released by a judge three days after they were arrested along with members of the Gidimt'en clan, who oppose the construction of the natural gas pipeline in Wet'suwet'en territory. Bracken and Toledano are no longer required to appear in court in February or to comply with the terms of the injunction first granted in December 2019. Opposition among Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs to the 670-kilometre pipeline sparked rallies and rail blockades across Canada last year, while the elected council of the Wet'suwet'en First Nation and others nearby have agreed to the project. The pipeline would transport natural gas from Dawson Creek in northeastern B.C. to a processing facility in Kitimat. It is more than halfway finished with almost all the route cleared and 200 kilometres of pipeline installed, Coastal GasLink has said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 24, 2021. ATHENS, Greece (AP) At least 13 people died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 27 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. ATHENS, Greece (AP) At least 13 people died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 27 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters. The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favor a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greeces heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the countrys migration crisis. The coast guard said 62 people were rescued after a sailboat capsized late Friday some 8 kilometers (5 miles) off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. Survivors told the coast guard that about 80 people had been on the vessel. Five coast guard patrol boats, nine private vessels, a helicopter and a military transport plane continued the night-time search for more survivors, authorities said, while coast guard divers also participated. Smugglers based in Turkey increasingly have packed yachts with migrants and refugees and sent them toward Italy. Earlier, 11 people were confirmed dead after a sailboat Thursday struck a rocky islet some 235 kilometers (145 miles) south of Athens, near the island of Antikythera. The coast guard said Friday that 90 survivors 52 men, 11 women and 27 children were rescued after spending hours on the islet. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. People need safe alternatives to these perilous crossings, the Greek office of the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, said in a tweet. In a separate incident Friday, Greek police arrested three people on smuggling charges and detained 92 migrants after a yacht ran aground in the southern Peloponnese region. And a search operation also continued for a third day in the central Aegean, where a boat carrying migrants sank near the island of Folegandros, killing at least three people. Thirteen others were rescued, and the survivors reported that at least 17 people were missing. Authorities said the passengers originally were from Iraq. Greece is a popular entry point into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But arrivals dropped sharply in the last two years after Greece extended a wall at the Turkish border and began intercepting inbound boats carrying migrants and refugees a tactic criticized by human rights groups. More than 116,000 asylum-seekers crossed the Mediterranean to reach EU countries this year as of Dec. 19, according to UNHCR. The agency said 55% traveled illegally to Italy, 35% to Spain, and 7% to Greece, with the remainder heading to Malta and Cyprus. ___ Derek Gatopoulos on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dgatopoulos ___ Full AP coverage of global migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration DOLGEVILLE, N.Y. (UPDATED) -- On Saturday afternoon, around 1:04 p.m., State Police and a member of the Dolgeville Police Department responded to a stabbing on 203 Mers Way in Dolgeville. Police say, 24-year- old Carson Dobson allegedly broke into a home and stabbed an individual several times, then left the scene. Law enforcement says they located Dobson a short distance away from where the initial incident happened, where Dobson was armed with a knife and sword. Police tell NewsChannel2 Dobson refused to drop the weapons and was tased. Despite being tased, police say Dobson approached the officers and threatened them. In a press release, police say a member from the State police fired their weapon, hitting Dobson. Dobson died at the scene. Officials tell NewsChannel2 the initial individual was taken to a local hospital to be treated for their injuries and is expected to be okay. The Attorney Generals Office is now investigating. The investigation into the stabbing and officer-involved shooting are ongoing. Governor Kathy Hochul announced New York will adopt the new CDC guidelines to help New Yorkers get back to work. The new CDC guideline allows employers to let an individual who tested positive for COVID to return to work. The individual can return after 5 days if they are fully vaccinated, asymptomatic, or their symptoms have been resolving and they have no fever for the last 72 hours without medication. Hochul said this decision was targeted at critical workers. Hochul said critical workers are healthcare, elder care, home health aides, pharmacists, sanitation, and grocery store workers. Hochul said, "Again, we're always trying to adapt to changing data as we receive it and process it. So, this is a new announcement from the CDC." Hochul added, "We immediately wanted to translate that into the New York State workforce and people all over the state, and mainly focused on making sure we can get people back to work." Hochul also announced that 95 percent of New Yorkers 18 and older have now received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine. Any big travel issues will be northwest, north & northeast of us tonight with widespread dense fog & <0.25 mile visibility from Iowa to Wisconsin, Michigan & southwest Ontario as that entire region is bathed in unusually warm air riding up & over cold ground with even some snow pack. The accumulating ice & snowfall will be way north from far northern Minnesota to Ontario & then over New England. That icing in New England will occur over cold areas that received 2-5" of snowfall this morning as the warm air glides up & over it. Here, patchy drizzle & showers will be on the increase this evening-tonight with patchy fog. Temperatures will be very mild in the 54-58 range overnight. Although we will not break the record high of 66 set in 1889 for Christmas Eve, or the 64 record for Christmas Day set in 1982, our 50s tonight will be in the 1889 & 1982 record territory for low temperatures. Rainfall coverage & intensity should peak late tonight to Christmas morning with even a t'storm or two possible. Highs of 56-63 are expected over the area, though temperatures will fall to 45-52 later in the day with wind turn to the northwest & rainfall will decrase & taper with time. Totals of 0.25-0.75" (with isolated 1" amounts) are expected with highest totals in our southeastern areas. Sunday is drier, but we cloud up again with time after morning areas of fog, patchy black ice & frost. Lows of 26-30 are likely, followed by highs of 42-49 with north wind becoming northeast, east, then southeast. Rain will overspread the area Sunday night with lows 35-44. Rain could begin as brief sleet in our northern & northeastern areas. After rain & even a few embedded t'storms Monday morning, clearing trend is expected Monday afternoon. After highs 53-58, temperatures should fall to 47-51 by afternoon with west to northwest winds after south to southwest winds early. 0.25-0.60" rainfall is possible. After brief cool-down with 32-39 Monday night, rain overspreads the area Tuesday PM with highs 50-56 late with the wind becoming southeast. Temperatures rise to 53-58 Tuesday night & hit 55-62 Wednesday early, then fall to the 30s & 40s with strong northwest wind. The rain will taper Wednesday after soaking rainfall Tuesday night-Wednesday AM with even a couple t'storms embedded. 0.60-1.15" of rainfall is possible A total of 1-3" of rainfall is expected Christmas Eve-Wednesday. Rivers & streams will rise to flood stage to exceed it with this rainfall over several days. Much colder, drier weather arrives Thursday with highs 28-34. New Year's Eve currently looks dry with highs in the 30s that day & lows in the 20s that night. New Year's Day shows skies clouding up with highs in the 30s to 40 & lows in the 30s that night. We are still watching January 2-3 & 5-6 for mix &/or snow potential. We will monitor. GARY, Ind. (AP) Gary's mayor has imposed the first wave of planned restrictions, including limits on traffic at city offices, in response to surging COVID-19 cases in the northwest Indiana city. Mayor Jerome Prince said Thursday that the first phase of the city's two-phase effort would begin immediately and stay in effect through Dec. 31, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported. He ordered all city department heads to immediately identify employees who must report in-person for work and the remote workers who can do their jobs from home. Prince said the goal is have fewer people physically working together in city offices to reduce foot traffic at city facilities during Indiana's current surge in coronavirus cases. Prince asked residents for patience if they face longer waits at city hall due to a decrease of in-person staff, and urged contractors and businesses seeking to renew permits and licenses to do those renewals through the city's online portal. Prince said he would announce the second phase of the COVID-19 restrictions next week, but stressed that those steps would not affect businesses, schools, churches. On Thursday, Lake County had seen 491 new COVID-19 cases and six new deaths in the previous 24 hours and the county's positivity rate stood at 16%. So, proportionately in Gary, we have seen similar increases, said Gary Health Commissioner Dr. Roland Walker, who advised residents planning indoor holiday gatherings to limit the number of people and allow for social distancing. LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)- An IU Health Arnett employee's plan to take care of her staff has turned into an outpouring of support from the community. Local emergency departments continue to be overwhelmed patients. As staff put patients first, they are putting their needs aside. An IU Health Arnett employee say this and decided to take action. "We've literally just been overrun with patients." Times are tough in IU Health Arnett's Emergency Department. "We've been seeing patients in hallways. We converted our ambulance bay, again, into a nine bed emergency department." The stress is weighing hard on staff during their 12 hour shifts. "It's a lot of busyness, and a lot of really, really sick patients that they just don't feel like they can step away and take that time to even grab a bite to eat." So, Emergency and Trauma Services Director Amanda Rardon started brainstorming to help the more than 100 member staff. "Even if they can't step away for a long, 30 minute lunch, maybe if we just had some things available they could grab, have a seat, eat a little snack and then get back on their feet," Rardon said. Rardon created an Amazon Wish List. "Individually packaged snacks, some lotion, some chapstick. It's getting cold. We need those things as well," she explained. Her plan started to pay off. "I got home from work and had almost 20 packages of snacks, and that was just individual boxes. Then inside the boxes were boxes and boxes of things," said Rardon. Rardon also said she is blown away by the outpouring of support. "To know that there is still that kindness and that goodness out there to know that people want to help us is just really, pretty amazing," she remarked. And it's making a difference for her staff as well. "It just feels really dark in our world right now, and this is just a little bit of sunshine that we can give to the team," Rardon said. For more information on how to donate to the Amazon Wish List, click HERE. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)- The Student Rental Survey is performed by the area plan commission every year. This year, the survey recommended that West Lafayette lift its moratorium on high rises. News 18 spoke with the mayor about what this means for future developments in the city. The city of West Lafayette put a hold on adding more high rises to it's community a few years ago, but now city officials are open to the idea. However, it comes with some ground rules. "Making sure that it fits the personality; make sure that it fits our geographic foot print make sure that it doesn't over densify any particular area and we have to make sure that the building itself doesn't have a look that doesn't sort of compliment what we already have going on," said West Lafayette Mayor, John Dennis. But city officials recognize more housing is needed especially as more students continue to seek education at Purdue University. "When you look at our rental market the prices are extremely high and the availability of space is extreme low. I mean we live in one of the most densely populated states in Indiana," said Dennis. The city has two plans one for Downtown and one for the Chauncey neighborhood both of which don't just take in to consideration how much rental space is needed or is available. "We have to weigh several factors other then just the availability rental properties. That is the impact on traffic the impact on population density during rush hour. The impact it has on quality of life for the folks that are permanent residents in near campus neighborhoods," Dennis explained. The city also hope to diversify the rental market; meaning not only cater to college students but also young professionals. As for seeing a new high rise anytime soon Mayor John Dennis had this to say. "There is a no single grand finale fix we will continuously be evolving we will be continuously looking at what is the right thing to do based on the guidance that we get and the people that we serve." Dennis also said they hope to develop parts of the city that need areas of improvement as well. BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has called for consolidating and expanding the achievement of a campaign on studying the Party's history. Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in a recent instruction. A meeting was held in Beijing on Friday to summarize the campaign, carried out among all Party members in 2021, the year of the CPC's centenary. As a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee, the campaign has put Party members and officials through a thorough and profound political, thought and spiritual education, Xi said. Through the campaign, the whole Party has notably enhanced its historical consciousness and confidence, and has significantly strengthened its capacity to innovate, unite and fight, he added. Demanding a long-term and regular education system and mechanism to consolidate the achievement of the campaign, Xi urged the whole Party to focus on studying and implementing the guiding principles of the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee and deepen understanding of the Party's innovative theories. Efforts should be made to rally and lead Chinese people of all ethnic groups on the new journey with new achievements, and to prepare for the 20th CPC National Congress with concrete actions, Xi said. Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Wang demanded the earnest implementation of Xi's important instruction, which has set out clear requirements regarding the study and implementation of the guiding principles of the sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee and promoting the campaign on a long-term and regular basis. Efforts should be made to lead Party members and cadres to think and act in line with the requirements of the CPC Central Committee, Wang said, urging them to strive for new achievements with a stronger sense of initiative. Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, attends the meeting to summarize the campaign on studying the Party's history in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 24, 2021. [Xinhua/Liu Weibing] (Source: Xinhua) Weather Alert ...VERY COLD TONIGHT... As we clear out tonight, temperatures will drop to lows in the single digits most areas to just above 10 degrees toward the Missouri Bootheel. Combined with north, northwest winds 5 to 10 mph, minimum wind chill temperatures should bottom out from the single digits to a few degrees below zero, making for a very cold start to the day Friday. A483 reopens after incident involving horses on carriageway near Rossett Update: The road has reopened to traffic. Update: Reports from the incident suggest one or more horses are believed to be have been on the carriageway and involved in a collision with a vehicle. Was horrible we were there with hazards and another car trying to warn people travelling and cars speeding past but cars not slowing down think they got spooked and starting running but wasnt much we could do just hope everyone ok jodie ryan (@jodierya28) December 25, 2021 Update: Traffic Wales have said the road is now fully closed in both directions, with reports of multiple emergency services attending the incident. The northbound carriageway is closed from Gresford. @wrexham cars overtaking line of stationary vehicles on the a483 have now blocked the road for ambulances approaching the accident now two fire engines 4 police vehicles Pip (@aspenmonkey1) December 24, 2021 Original information below. The A483 from the Belgrave junction by Chester southbound is closed as of 11pm. Traffic Wales has said part of the A483 is closed due to an incident, however mentioned one further junction south Gresford which appears open. Diversions are in place on Wrexham Road through to Rossett. Craig tweeted @Wrexham with the following detail: Looks like theres been a major collision on the A483 just before the Rossett turn off going towards @wrexham Emergency services are on the scene and its been at a complete standstill for a while. Try and avoid if possible. Hope everyone is ok Craig Jones (@craigyjones17) December 24, 2021 More shortly. On Thursday, the WSWS interviewed Dr. Jose-Luis Jimenez as part of the Global Workers Inquest into the COVID-19 Pandemic. Dr. Jimenez is a professor of chemistry at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and an expert in aerosol physics. He has been a leading advocate calling on the World Health Organization and world governments to acknowledge that COVID-19 spreads primarily through airborne transmission. The most critical element of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic has been developing an understanding that the principal mechanism of viral transmission is through airborne particles, not droplets. The whole conception of what public health measures must be implemented flows from this basic truth, including the need for masking, social distancing, temporary lock-downs, the renovation of filtration and ventilation systems in all public places, and more. In this interview, Dr. Jimenez reviews the science of airborne transmission, the development of the struggle waged by himself and other aerosol scientists to prioritize airborne transmission throughout the pandemic, and the historical, political and economic factors underlying the refusal of the WHO and world governments to educate the population on airborne transmission. He also discusses the present threat of the Omicron variant and the measures that workers can take to protect themselves. Viewers can follow Jose-Luis Jimenez on Twitter @jljcolorado If you wish to participate in the work of the Inquest, please fill out the form below. Dire Straits/Sting photo: Pete Still/Redferns Band Aid is to celebrate one billion views on its official Live Aid and Live8 YouTube channels with a unique day of streaming on December 28. For 24 hours only, viewers will be able to tune in for free to a special collection of programming including performances from the original Live Aid concert of 1985 and others. The special will be live from 5pm GMT/12pm ET/9am PT on December 28 until the same time the next day, at the Live Aid and Live8 channels on YouTube. Every viewing will generate money for the Band Aid Trust. The broadcast will tell the story of Band Aid from its inception in 1984 as an all-star charity record to raise money for famine in Ethiopia, and the subsequent establishing of the Band Aid Charitable Trust, all the way to the present day. It will also feature newly-recorded interviews, remixed performances from the original Live Aid, and documentaries. Mark Knopflers Instagram account has been among those to flag up the event, with Dire Straits memorable performance at Live Aid among those to be featured. Taking to the stage at Wembley Stadium at 6pm, the band gave a 19-minute performance including Money For Nothing, with guest vocalist Sting, and an epic 11-minute version of Sultans of Swing. Live Aid and its US sister event at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, and others around the world, ultimately raised more than $125m in famine relief for Africa. Its estimated live audience was more than one billion, in 110 countries. A teaser for the special streaming event features British star Robbie Williams performing his signature ballad Angels, from the subsequent Live8 concert at Londons Hyde Park on July 2, 2005. The Live8 series of all-star fundraisers, ten simultaneously and one on July 6, were held in the G8 countries and in South Africa. Story continues The 2008 concerts supported the UKs Make Poverty History campaign and the Global Call to Action Against Poverty. The London show also starred Pink Floyd, in a reunion performance with Roger Waters, as well as The Who, Paul McCartney, U2, Elton John, Annie Lennox, R.E.M. and many others. Looking for holiday gift ideas? Check out uDiscover Musics gift guides here exclusive and unique gifts for fans of all ages and all types of music! For the latest music news and exclusive features, check out uDiscover Music. uDiscover Music is operated by Universal Music Group (UMG). Some recording artists included in uDiscover Music articles are affiliated with UMG. Count Basie photo: Bettmann The festive selection of classic performances from the archives of The Ed Sullivan Show includes the chance to swing into Christmas with Count Basie and his Orchestra. Theyre featured in an appearance on the long-running variety series from December 18, 1966 with Jingle Bells. Basie, both with and without his orchestra, was a frequent visitor to the studios of the top-rated show, originally broadcast from the Maxine Elliott Theatre at Broadway and 39th St. in New York. He had played on an April 1966 edition that also featured Diahann Carroll and Alan King. The pre-Christmas show also featured pioneering Black actress Carroll, as well as comedian Totie Fields and dancer Peter Gennaro. Basie and cos booking came at the end of a typically busy year for the celebrated pianist and bandleader and his musicians. They had released two themed albums Basie Meets Bond, featuring their interpretations of music from the first four James Bond films (Dr No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, and Thunderball); and Basies Beatle Bag, which was filled with their versions of Fab Four tracks. The same year, they also played on the famed summer 1966 release Sinatra at the Sands, captured at Franks appearances at the Copa Room of the former Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Jingle Bells, credited to James Pierpoint and first published in 1857 as The One Horse Open Sleigh before soon being renamed, has been recorded more than 1500 times. The first commercial release of the song was by Will Lyle in 1889; the earliest surviving version was by the Edison Male Quartette in 1898. A version of Jingle Bells by the latter-day line-up of the Count Basie Orchestra, directed by Scotty Barnhart, was included on the 2015 album A Very Swingin Basie Christmas! Released by Concord, the set featured guest appearances by Ellis Marsalis, Johnny Mathis, Ledisi, Carmen Bradford, and Plas Johnson. Story continues Listen to the best of Count Basie on Apple Music and Spotify. Looking for holiday gift ideas? Check out uDiscover Musics gift guides here exclusive and unique gifts for fans of all ages and all types of music! For the latest music news and exclusive features, check out uDiscover Music. uDiscover Music is operated by Universal Music Group (UMG). Some recording artists included in uDiscover Music articles are affiliated with UMG. Sunday, Dec. 26 Insecure series finale, 10 p.m., HBO, rerunning at 11:23 p.m. and 12:45 a.m. These five years have seen Issa Raes career soar. Once confined to short-form humor (YouTube and, later, A Black Lady Sketch Show), she created and starred in Insecure, getting two Emmy nominations for best comedy actress and one for best comedy series. She also wrote a book and did movies, including a serious drama, The Photograph. Tonight, her character looks back at what got her where she is. More finales. Three other shows end their seasons tonight with no word on whether theyll be back. At 9 p.m., theres Hightown on Starz and a two-hour, high-octane (and high-body-count) Condor on Epix. At 10:43 on HBO (rerunning at 12:05 p.m. and 1:30 a.m.) is Curb Your Enthusiasm, which has done 11 seasons, scattered over 21 years. The Equalizer, 8-11 p.m., CBS. After resting for a month, this will finally return to new episodes next week. First, here are three reruns good ones, in general, even if they do sometimes strain believability. In the first hour, Robyn (Queen Latifah) is ensnared in an international crisis, when trying to rescue a mathematician. In the second, Mel (Liza Lapira) goes undercover at a political campaign. In the third, a woman worries that her husband is planning a bombing. 1883, 9:14 to 10:30 p.m., Paramount Network. Heres one more over-the-air episode, before this settles into Paramount+. In the opener, we met James Dutton (Tim McGraw), who kills a lot of people but doesnt like it. We also met his wife (Faith Hill, McGraws real-life wife), son, daughter, sister and niece. Theyre accompanying some immigrants from Texas to Montana; the son will be the grandfather of John Dutton (Kevin Costner), whose Yellowstone (8 and 10:30 today) ends its season next week. Double Lucy. Amazon Prime has Being the Ricardos. a brilliant Aaron Sorkin film that pretends all the Lucille Ball/Desi Arnaz crises happened in one week. And at 8 p.m., Turner Classic Movies has a different sort of Lucy role. She stars with Henry Fonda in the pleasant Yours, Mine and Ours (1968). Its based on the true story of a widow with eight children who married a widower with 10. This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Sunday's TV's Best Bets A surfer was killed in an apparent great white shark attack off the central California coast Friday, authorities said. The incident occurred at the Morro Bay State Park beach before 11 a.m. local time, according to the Morro Bay Police Department. MORE: Man in serious condition after being bitten by great white shark at California beach The man was unresponsive after he was pulled from the water "suffering from an apparent shark attack," the department said in a statement. A woman surfing nearby saw a boogie board and someone face down in the water whom she tried to bring to shore, Morro Bay Harbor Patrol Director Eric Endersby told ABC News. Morro Bay Harbor Patrol showed up shortly after and assisted in bringing the victim in, he said. PHOTO: A person was killed in an apparent shark attack in Morro Bay, Calif., on Dec. 24, 2021. (KEYT) The surfer was pronounced dead at the scene and has not been identified yet, police said. There doesn't appear to be any witnesses to the attack, Endersby said. The bite, which will be measured by a coroner, appeared to be consistent with that of a great white shark, based on what responding officers saw, Endersby said. MORE: Baby white sharks can't tell difference between humans and seals: Study The San Luis Obispo County Coroner's Office and state parks representatives were investigating the scene, police said Friday afternoon. A biologist with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife was also on scene, Endersby said. The beaches in the area of the apparent attack will remain open but authorities have ordered people to stay out of the water for the next 24 hours. PHOTO: View of Morro Bay and Morro Rock from the Elfin Forest, Baywood Park, San Luis Obispo County, California. (Universal Images Group via Getty Images, FILE) Shark attacks are very rare, especially fatal ones. There were 33 unprovoked shark attacks on humans in the United States last year, three of which were fatal, according to data from the Florida Museum of Natural History at the University of Florida. Nearly half of the unprovoked attacks occurred in Florida. The fatalities were in California, Hawaii and Maine. ABC News' Nicholas Kerr contributed to this report. Surfer killed in apparent great white shark attack at California beach originally appeared on abcnews.go.com A pair of hurricanes and an earthquake left Puerto Ricos power system in tatters. But now residents and clean-energy advocates see hope in the islands effort to rebuild the electric grid saying it could offer the rest of the nation a model for achieving President Joe Bidens ambitions for a reliable power network free of greenhouse gas pollution. First, though, the U.S. territory has to get past a pitched fight over the privatization of its power grid, as well as a debate on how to leverage billions in recovery dollars from the federal government. The electricity network that serves 3 million people in Puerto Rico has long suffered from outages that experts blame on poor management and under-investment. And its transition to a cleaner, more reliable power system is off to a rough start. Just six months into a 15-year contract to run Puerto Ricos electricity transmission and distribution network, LUMA Energy is facing protests from residents who say blackouts have worsened, criticism from greens that it is moving too slowly to add renewable power and growing scrutiny from the territorys legislature. That last dynamic reached a peak in November when lawmakers sought the arrest of the companys top executive. LUMA, owned by Canada's ATCO group and U.S.-based Quanta Services, has also become the target of an activist campaign seeking to revoke its contract, an effort that has drawn the attention of the House Natural Resources Committee, which is looking into whether the company is living up to its promises. Solar vs. gas The Federal Emergency Management Agency has $9.4 billion the largest amount awarded in the agencys history allocated to restore and protect Puerto Ricos power network from the type of disasters that have plagued it. Renewable energy and consumer advocates say that money is best spent on putting solar panels on the roofs of every home on the sunny island, with the aim of creating a decentralized source of power generation. This could minimize the widespread blackouts that have occurred when storms damage the miles of power lines that run across rugged terrain from the oil-fired power plants that provide most of the islands electricity. Story continues Those plants are still owned by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, the local government-owned utility being privatized that turned the grid over to LUMA and which most experts blame for years of poor management. Besides being plagued by blackouts, the grid is expensive: Residents on the island paid an average of 19.24 cents per kilowatt hour in 2020, nearly 50 percent higher than the average U.S. home. A new coalition of clean energy, union and other organizations, Queremos Sol, is lobbying federal officials to intervene in the rebuilding to sharply expand the amount of solar energy on the island. It says such an initiative aligns with Bidens plan to achieve 100 percent carbon pollution-free electricity nationwide by 2035, as well as his goals of transitioning away from fossil fuel infrastructure that has been primarily sited in low-income areas and communities of color. Puerto Rico is a very big test, said Ruth Santiago, a community and environmental attorney in Puerto Rico and a member of Queremos Sol, noting that this is one fight Biden can win without any resistance from Republicans in Congress. The funds are already allocated. Theyre fully within the control of FEMA under the Biden administration. But opposition remains, particularly among skeptics who think a wholesale shift to renewable power sources will introduce new doubts about reliability. Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon, a Republican who is Puerto Ricos congressional representative, doesnt want the island to be a test case for a fast push to renewables expressing concern about the islands economy, particularly its pharmaceutical and medical devices industry. She says the best way to ensure reliability is to get energy from diverse sources, including liquefied natural gas imports. Puerto Rico could be the big experiment for the whole nation in terms of having a diversified portfolio of energy, not just one experiment in terms of renewables, she told POLITICO. 'The grid is in need of complete replacement' PREPA, which regularly put off grid maintenance because of financial shortfalls, will have a major voice in how the incoming FEMA funds are spent because it must put forth projects for the agency and its regulator to approve. The utility is under pressure from the Queremos Sol coalition and other organizations to shift its focus more toward renewables rather than rebuilding existing or developing new petroleum-based infrastructure. The system has been in severe decay due to years of poor maintenance and further destabilized by the 2020 earthquake, said Luis Martinez, director of Southeast energy for the Natural Resources Defense Councils climate and clean energy program. I think the grid is in need of complete replacement, he said, adding that it was not designed to withstand the more powerful hurricanes that climate change will increasingly stir in the Atlantic. Just the layout with generation in the South being sent to the San Juan area in the Northeast across the central mountain range makes it very difficult and costly to repair and maintain. Plants that run on fuel oil or diesel still provided half the islands power in 2020, while imported natural gas has seen its share reach 29 percent and coal generated 19 percent. Hydropower and other renewables provided only 2.5 percent. Under the 2019 Puerto Rico Energy Public Policy Act (17-2019), PREPA is required to obtain 40 percent of its electricity from renewable resources by 2025, 60 percent by 2040 and 100 percent by 2050. The law also requires it to phase out coal-fired generation by 2028. Those figures are roughly in line with Bidens goal for the country and set a pace that climate advocates say should preclude further dependence on fossil fuels on the island. I do think Puerto Rico has the opportunity to go from a system based on petroleum, which is very antiquated in terms of generating electricity, to essentially a state-of-the-art distributed renewable-based system, which can then be a model for other states, Martinez said. He advised against taking that intermediate step that a lot of folks seem to be pushing for, which is to go to imported liquefied gas, which is even more expensive. But Gonzalez-Colon dismissed those green ambitions as unfeasible for the immediate future, saying the island needs to take an all-of-the-above approach while the grid is being rebuilt to enable more renewables. We need to use LNG as a way to cut expenses and stabilize the system at the same time you are investing in renewable energy, she said. For LUMA, the problems are more immediate. Data the company supplied to the legislature show that its average power outage time more than doubled to five hours compared with less than half that time in 2020 since it took over the grid in June, according to a report in The New York Times, though CEO Wayne Stensby has said figures from previous years undercounted the outage time. Those service disruptions prompted a protest that closed a highway in San Juan in October. The relationship between LUMA Energy and Puerto Rican legislators has also deteriorated to the point that a judge in Puerto Rico found Stensby in contempt of court and issued an arrest order on Nov. 10 for failing to provide requested documents, including those pertaining to executive salaries and the makeup and experience of its workforce. The judge later nullified the order after LUMA provided the documents. The grid in Puerto Rico was already in pretty bad shape due to the deferred maintenance by PREPA, said Cathy Kunkel, energy program manager with Cambio PR, an organization promoting sustainable policies and strategies in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. But the LUMA privatization has certainly made things worse. Before joining Cambio, Kunkel was lead author of a report published in August by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis that described significant issues with the LUMA Energy contract as well as damaging voltage fluctuations and poor customer service since the company took over the grid. The report attributed the problems to a lack of personnel, insufficient transparency and the absence of effective oversight. Stensby, at an Oct. 6 hearing by the House Natural Resources Committee, blamed a union blockade for a slow start to repair work and observed that PREPA is unquestionably the worst performing utility in the United States by each and every measure. It took two decades for PREPA to get in this state, we shouldnt forget, and thats why its so important to get started and continue to push ahead, he said. The company has since reached an agreement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which will represent LUMA lineworkers, while the company will invest $10 million in a technical training program for those workers. LUMA said it has made improvements in its first six months of managing the grid, such as upgrading more than 1,800 power poles and dozens of critical distribution breakers to reduce the likelihood of future outages. Any service interruption is one too many and we are working hard to make the service and infrastructure improvements so that customers see fewer interruptions, the company said in a Dec. 3 statement. LUMA said it has connected solar panels for 12,000 customers since June, amounting to 50 megawatts of renewable energy. In September, LUMA has also launched a map on its website to show customers and developers what areas could most easily accept solar projects. And the company said its on track to eliminate a backlog of solar connection requests by January. Pushing ahead with fossil fuels In the meantime, PREPAs regulator authorized the utility to begin preliminary work for a new fossil fuel-powered unit or energy storage at the fuel-oil power plant Palo Seco to protect against near term price fluctuations of solar PV and battery energy storage and other potential reliability concerns. Environmental justice advocates have objected to the project because of the public health and other harms it could cause for nearby communities. Environmental advocates are hoping with $9.4 billion in FEMA money flowing to Puerto Rico, the federal government will help tip the scales toward renewable power. But in August, the agency dashed their hopes by declaring that the power grid work in Puerto Rico would have no significant impact on the environment. A coalition called the Alianza Energia Renovable Ahora, the Alliance for Renewable Energy Now, asked the agency in October to reconsider that finding. The coalition accused FEMA of bucking repeated instructions from Congress to direct funding away from infrastructure vulnerable to storms, failing to comply with National Environmental Policy Acts mandates to consider all energy alternatives and their climate impacts, and failing to account for environmental justice. In particular, the group says the agency should look at alternatives such as battery energy storage and rooftop solar. A FEMA spokesperson said via email that it carefully reviews all requests and is evaluating this one. But NRDCs Martinez said FEMA could put its foot down and say the funding proposals must meet the Biden administrations goals, requirements imposed by the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau and the islands renewable energy legislative target. If they say that, I think that will clarify how much wiggle room the utility has to essentially go rogue, he said. Theyre not following what the law says or what the regulators say. A PREPA spokesperson could not be reached for comment, but a FEMA spokesperson said via email that while FEMA has no standing in the terms of the contract between PREPA and LUMA, FEMA has worked with the Government of Puerto Rico to maximize the flexibility of funding, including the ability to pursue renewable energy resources. But Queremos Sols Santiago said the islands continuing power outages and its slow transition to solar power pose an environmental justice issue one that the Biden administration has the power to address. What were seeing right now is that anyone who can afford to get rooftop solar and batteries is doing it. The problem is we dont have a lot of people who can afford to do that on their own, she said. The way to get this solution in place and everyone agrees its a solution to have rooftop solar and battery energy storage systems onsite is to use those federal funds. Colleen Wynn is an assistant professor of sociology and co-director of the Community Research Center at the University of Indianapolis. She is a Public Voices Fellow through The OpEd Project. This column was produced for The Progressive magazine and distributed by Tribune News Service. New Delhi: On the topic of Dish TV's share transfer, the Promoter Group Company has filed an application with the Bombay High Court. The company wanted the HC to halt any stock transfers until the hearing was completed. The company has asked the Bombay High Court to halt any attempt to exert control over Dish TV in its case. The promoter firm of Dish TV, JSGG Infra Developers LLP, has filed the application. Request for a stay on the transfer of shares until the hearing is completed. The company has requested that the share transfer of Dish TV be halted until the outcome of the hearing. Dish TV had already filed a complaint with SEBI against Yes Bank prior to filing this application. Yes Bank has not published an open bid, according to the company's letter to SEBI, which is a violation of acquisition guidelines. Yes Bank is attempting to take control of Dish TV's board of directors, according to Dish TV, by proposing a shareholder EGM to make changes to the board. However, till recently, it has not made any open offer in this area. The Ministry of Finance, Yes Bank, and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) have been included as parties to the dispute in an application filed with the Bombay High Court. Exchanges, Catalyst Trusteeship, and Dish TV have also been added to the list of parties. Catalyst Trusteeship and Yes Bank have been the subject of an investigation. Aside from that, IDBI Trusteeship has been the subject of an investigation. The promoter firm claims in its application that Yes Bank is attempting to seize control of Dish TV and that this must be halted. Live TV #mute New Delhi: To prevent the Sarojini Nagar market from becoming a COVID-19 super spreader, the Delhi Government ordered that the market will operate on an odd-even basis on December 25 and 26. The shops and street vendors in Delhi`s Sarojini Market have been asked to follow the odd-even rule over this weekend. "Increasing footfalls have been seen in Sarojini Nagar market during the last few days; and therefore with the need to control the same in the light of the rapid spike in daily cases and positivity; it was decided unanimously by all market trade associations on Friday to follow odd-even operations for the weekend of December 25 and 26," an order passed by Vasant Vihar SDM Ankur Prakash Meshram stated. A meeting of all stakeholders of Sarojini Nagar Market was held on Friday regarding the maintenance of COVID appropriate behaviour. It was decided at the meeting that the Director (Enforcement) of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the Station House Officer (SHO), Sarojini Market, will ensure that no unauthorised vendors are operating in the market and that there are no encroachments in the entire market. They have also been asked to ensure that entry to the market is only from gates number 1, 3 and 5, and exit from gates number 2, 2A and 4. All shopkeepers are required to ensure their staff is 100 per cent vaccinated. Meanwhile, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has banned Christmas and New Year celebrations in Delhi in light of increasing new COVID-19 variant Omicron cases in the city. Delhi on Friday reported 180 new COVID-19 cases. The active caseload stands at 782, and the test positivity rate is at 0.29 per cent. According to Union Health Ministry, Delhi has reported 67 cases of Omicron. Live TV New Delhi: The government said on Friday (December 24, 2021) informed that of the 358 cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus reported in India so far, 183 were analysed and it was found that 87 of them were fully vaccinated with three having received booster doses while 70 per cent were asymptomatic. Two were partially vaccinated, seven people were unvaccinated while 16 were ineligible to receive vaccine doses in the country's national vaccination programme. The vaccination status of 73 is still unknown, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said at a press conference. "Of the 183 Omicron cases analysed so far, 87 cases were fully vaccinated with three -- two in Delhi and one in Mumbai -- having received booster shots, 70 per cent were asymptomatic and 61 per cent were males," he said. Bhushan said 121 cases had foreign travel history, while in 44 cases the infected had come in contact with foreign travellers and information about 18 people were still not available. ICMR Director-General Dr Balram Bhargava said, "The predominant strain in India continues to be Delta, including the recently identified clusters. Therefore, we need to continue with the same strategy of following Covid-appropriate behaviour and ramping up vaccination." Infection due to Omicron variant "does not necessarily lead to severe symptomatic clinical disease". In India, about a third of all the detected cases were mildly symptomatic and the rest were asymptomatic, he underlined. "Therefore, I want to emphasise that the treatment for Omicron infected symptomatic individuals remains the same. It does not change from that for Delta, Alpha or the Beta variant." Noting the world is witnessing the fourth surge in COVID-19 cases, the government on Friday cautioned people against lowering the guard, particularly during year-end festivities, even as it underlined that infection due to Omicron does not necessarily lead to severe symptomatic disease. Of the 358 cases of Omicron variant detected so far in 17 states and Union Territories, 114 have recovered or migrated, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated at 8 am. The country has 244 active cases of the omicron variant of coronavirus. Maharashtra has recorded the maximum of 88 cases of the Omicron variant followed by Delhi at 67, Telangana 38, Tamil Nadu 34, Karnataka 31 and Gujarat 30. Bhushan said that 1,51,368 cases of the Omicron variant and 26 confirmed deaths have been detected across 108 countries, Bhushan said. The 10 countries classified on basis of the highest Omicron cases are the UK, Denmark, Canada, Norway, Germany, the US, South Africa, France, Australia and Estonia, he added. Live TV New Delhi: Senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said on Saturday that former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee brought people of different faiths together, on the latter's birth anniversary. "Atal Ji kept 22-23 parties together and established India as a nuclear power. Taking 22 parties together, people of different faiths together, removing all differences he gave a new direction to India`s politics," Joshi is quoted as saying in an ANI report. Joshi, who was also the former Prime Minister's cabinet colleague, said that Vajpayee believed in democratic values. On the occasion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee`s birth anniversary, President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid floral tribute at `Sadaiv Atal` Samadhi in the national capital. PM Modi tweeted, "Remembering Atal Ji on his Jayanti. We are inspired by his rich service to the nation. He devoted his life to making India strong and developed. His development initiatives positively impacted millions of Indians." Among other senior BJP leaders who paid tributes to Vajpayee, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nirmala Sitharaman, Piyush Goyal and others. Atal Bihari Vajpayee`s birthday is celebrated as the `Good Governance Day`.Vajpayee, who led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government from 1998-2004, was the first-ever leader from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to have become the nation`s Prime Minister. Vajpayee served as Prime Minister thrice -- briefly in 1996, and then for two terms between 1998 and 2004. One of the prominent leaders of the country and founder members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vajpayee died on August 16, 2018, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after a prolonged illness. He was 93. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who was conferred Bharat Ratna in 2015, had also been awarded Pt Govind Ballabh Pant Award for Best Parliamentarian in 1994. Birth anniversary of Vajpayee: BJP launches special micro-donation campaign The BJP launched a "special micro-donation campaign" on the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Saturday, seeking to raise funds through small contributions from its members and others. Several BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, made donations and urged others to contribute. PM Modi tweeted, "I have donated Rs 1,000 towards the party fund of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Our ideal of always putting Nation First and the culture of lifelong selfless service by our cadre will be further strengthened by your micro-donation. Help make BJP strong. Help make India strong." Donors can choose from the contribution options of Rs 5, Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 500 or Rs 1,000. BJP president J P Nadda said, "Our karyakartas will connect with millions of people through this micro-donation campaign. 'Donation' module in the NaMo App will be the medium through which we will collect these donations. I seek the blessings of people to strengthen the world's largest nationalist movement." The campaign will continue till February 11, the death anniversary of the party's ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay. (With Agency Inputs) Live TV New Delhi: India is today (December 25, 2021) celebrating the 97th birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Known as a man of the masses, Vajpayee was born in 1924 in the family of a school teacher in Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh). His first brush with nationalist politics was during his student days when he had joined the Quit India Movement in 1942. Vajpayee, a Bharat Ratna awardee, was a student of political science and law and had developed a keen interest in foreign affairs in college. (Photo credits: PTI) He had also embarked upon a journalist's career, which was cut short in 1951 when he joined the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the forerunner of Bharatiya Janata Party. Vajpayee was also a critically acclaimed poet and also used to indulge in music and in a bit of gourmet cooking. A veteran Parliamentarian whose career stretched over four decades, he was elected to the Lok Sabha nine times and to the Rajya Sabha twice. He first took charge as Prime Minister of India for a short period in 1996, followed by a second and a third term between 1998-2004. Vajpayee, notably, was the first PM since Jawaharlal Nehru to have become Prime Minister of India with two successive mandates. (Photo credits: PTI) As Indias Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Chairperson of various important Standing Committees of Parliament and Leader of the Opposition, he was known as an active participant in shaping the country's post-Independence domestic and foreign policy. The country's second-highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan, was conferred upon Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1992. He was then conferred India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, by the then president of India Pranab Mukherjee in 2015. (Photo credits: Reuters) In 1994, he was also named Indias Best Parliamentarian'. Vajpayee, who died on August 16 in 2018 of age-related illness, will always be known as an erudite politician, a selfless social worker, forceful orator, poet and litterateur. Live TV NEW DELHI: The central government on Saturday said that it will deploy multi-disciplinary teams in at least 10 states amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and growing fears about the new Omicron variant. "...A decision has been taken to deploy multi-disciplinary Central teams to 10 identified states some of which are either reporting an increasing number of Omicron & COVID-19 cases or slow vaccination pace...," the Union Health Ministry said. Multi-disciplinary Central teams will be deployed in Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Punjab to monitor the spike in COVID-19 cases, the Union Health Ministry said in an official statement. #COVID19 | Multi-disciplinary Central teams to be deployed in Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Punjab. ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 "These teams shall be stationed in States allotted for 3 to 5 days and will work along with the state health authorities," read the Union Health Ministry's letter. "These teams shall be stationed in States allotted for 3 to 5 days & will work along with State Health Authorities," reads the Union Health Ministry's letter pic.twitter.com/wd9WXTEhXo ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 The teams will contact tracing, including surveillance, containment operations along with Covid-19 testing including sending of adequate samples from clusters to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium(INSACOG) network for genome sequencing. Covid appropriate behaviours and its enforcement, availability of hospital beds, sufficient logistics including ambulances, ventilators, medical oxygen etc and vaccination progress, the Health Ministry release stated. The order from the Union Health Ministry came as India on Saturday logged 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. The tally of cases of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus in the country has risen to 415. As per the Health Ministry, the country`s active caseload stands at 77,032, presently the lowest in 579 days. "Active cases constitute 0.22 per cent of the country`s total positive cases, which is lowest since March 2020," said the Ministry. With 387 COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, the cumulative death toll due to the virus has climbed 4,79,520. The Ministry further informed that as many as 7,286 patients recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative tally of recovered patients since the beginning of the pandemic to 3,42,23,263. Consequently, India`s recovery rate stands at 98.40 per cent, the highest since March 2020.11,12,195 COVID tests have also been conducted across the country in the last 24 hours. "India has so far conducted over 67.10 crore (67,10,51,627) cumulative tests," said the Ministry. As per the release, the weekly positivity rate at 0.60 per cent remains less than 1 per cent for the last 41 days now. While the daily positivity rate has been reported to be 0.65 per cent." The daily positivity rate has remained below 2 per cent for last 82 days and below 3 per cent for 117 consecutive days now," stated the Ministry. Amid growing concerns over rising cases of COVID-19 and its fast-spreading new Omicron variant, several states and UTs have imposed night curfews and similar restrictions to tackle the situation. Night curfews have been imposed in states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Haryana and eight cities of Gujarat (Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Gandhinagar and Junagadh) from 11 pm to 5 am. Live TV New Delhi: Taking note of Punjab's socio-political turmoil, AAP National Convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal guaranteed the state of giving an honest & stable, strong, and disciplined government. He said that AAP will put an end to sacrilege incidents and punish all masterminds and conspirators hell-bent on disrupting peace in Punjab. He added that AAP will take 5 crucial steps to strengthen security and promote brotherhood in Punjab; and will end corruption in the police force, strengthen border security to prevent the entry of terrorists and drugs. He assured that all cases of sacrilege and blasts will be probed, masterminds will be jailed to make sure no such occurrences take place in the future; additional police force will be constituted for all religious places. He appealed and said giving 6 months to AAP; will completely eradicate the drug problem in Punjab. AAP National Convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal addresses a massive Jansabha and celebrates Christmas in Punjab AAP National Convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal addressed the media regarding the tragic incident of sacrilege and the blast in Ludhiana and expressed his condolences for those who lost their lives. Following this, he spoke at the Jansabha at Hanuma Chowk in Gurdaspur amidst roaring crowds, where he guaranteed to transform Punjab. Arvind Kejriwal also attended the Christmas festivities at the New Egertin Woollen Mills Ground in Dhariwal, extending his wishes and speaking about the importance of the teachings of Jesus Christ. Amidst roaring crowds chanting Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Inquilab Zindabad, and Jo Bole So Nihaal, Sat Sri Akaal, AAP National Convenor and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said, I extend my heartiest greetings to everyone gathered here in such large numbers today. I have been informed that the highest number of soldiers in the Indian army are from Gurdaspur and Pathankot. And hence, most of the people that have been martyred have belonged to these districts. Both these districts are the ultimate homes for patriotism in our country. People with tainted intentions executing horrific occurrences like sacrilege and blasts in order to disrupt peace in Punjab ahead of elections: Arvind Kejriwal Speaking about the recent incidents of sacrilege and the blast in Punjab, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said, It is deeply tragic to hear about the blast that took place in Ludhiana yesterday. It is a very unfortunate incident in which one person was killed and several are injured right now. Bhagwant Mann Ji has gone to visit them. I hope that the departed soul rests in peace with God and pray for a speedy recovery for the injured. A few days ago, an incident of sacrilege against the Guru Granth Sahib took place at the most sacred place for the Sikh community, Sri Harmandar Sahib. We are suspecting that the occurrence of such incidents happening right before the elections could have a possible conspiracy behind them, that theyre being deliberately initiated in order to disturb Punjabs atmosphere." "During the last election season as well, a bomb blast had taken place in Morh a week or so before the elections. In 2015 as well, an incident of sacrilege occurred in Bargari. And again, just in time before the elections, a certain group of people with highly tainted and questionable intentions are executing such horrific occurrences in order to disrupt peace and stir fear in peoples minds. Who are these people? They must be identified, caught, and punished immediately. In my opinion, the person who entered the Golden Temple and committed sacrilege was definitely motivated by an external authority, that he did not do it on his own and was sent by someone. There is definitely a mastermind behind these occurrences who is calling the shots. Such incidents will keep taking place until the government itself is stable and committed enough to stop them at the source, Kejriwal added. Punjab has a weak and incompetent government; incapable of bringing about development and peace: Arvind Kejriwal He added, Years have passed and governments have changed since the last sacrilege incident which took place back in 2015. Akali Dal Government left, Congress came in under Captain Amarinder Singh, then again leadership changed to current Punjab CM Charanjeet Channi Sahab. But till today the perpetrators are roaming free. No action has been taken in over 6 years by any of these governments, clearly giving a message of incompetence and connivance with the criminals." "Had the mastermind behind these horrific incidents been tracked and punished then itself, no one would have had the courage to commit sacrilege ever again. So the message is clear, all past governments are complicit. Todays government in Punjab is pathetically weak and incompetent. The Channi Government has plenty of its own internal turbulence and infighting and has no time or will to handle a state, forget actually working for Punjabs progress. How will these people run a government? Such a government is incapable of bringing about the development and peace in Punjab that it needs. said AAP National Convenor. AAP will give Punjab an honest & stable, a strong, and a disciplined government: Arvind Kejriwal AAP Convenor Arvind Kejriwal continued, The Aam Aadmi Party will give Punjab what it urgently needs an honest, stable, a strong, and a disciplined government. Until a robust and honest government takes charge in Punjab, peace will be a far-fetched dream for the state and such horrific incidents will continue to occur. The Aam Aadmi Party is the only party in the country which works with brutal honesty. We have worked wonders and eradicated corruption in Delhi, and will do the same for Punjab. We will give Punjab a united government which doesnt spend its time bickering and infighting. Today, I am standing here on his holy land and giving the people of Punjab a guarantee that once the Aam Aadmi Party comes to power, we will bring peace, safety, and promote brotherhood among all communities in the state. AAP will take 5 crucial steps to strengthen security and promote brotherhood in Punjab; will end corruption in the police force: Arvind Kejriwal He elaborated, We will take 5 crucial steps in this direction: First, it is well known that there is a widespread system of exchange of money while assigning positions in the police force, be it an SHO, a certain police station, SP, DSP, and everyone else. The current Punjab government has also put a price on all police positions. We will put an end to this current system of bribery and corruption. Hardworking and efficient police officers will be appointed with full transparency and honesty under our government and they will be enabled to ensure peace and safety in Punjab. No MLA or politician will be allowed to interfere in the polices work. The copy of the FIR will be found at the station and not at the MLAs house." "Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who is with us today, was an honest officer at the post of IG in the police force. He probed the Bargari case and found many important people guilty in the matter. But his report was dismissed and buried. Had the then Punjab administration let this honest police officer do his work diligently, then another sacrilege incident would not have occurred for all these masterminds would have been behind bars. We will hence let the honest police officers in Punjab take centre stage and not tolerate any external interference in their work, AAP National Convenor said. Will equip the army, BSF and police in Punjab with the most state-of-the-art technology: Arvind Kejriwal He continued, Second, we will probe all cases of sacrilege and bomb blasts in Punjab till now, expose all the perpetrators behind these occurences all the way up to the mastermind, and take firm action against them will send them all to jail. We will take such strict measures against them that forget repeating, even the thought of sacrilege against any religious texts will not strike them. Third, we will secure each and every inch of the border to completely obstruct the entry of any terrorists from outside the country as well as the inflow of drugs from Pakistan. Fourth, I was speaking to some police officers about the increase in drones coming from Pakistan. To prevent this, we will equip our army, BSF, police force with the most advanced technology to spot and shoot down any drone entering Punjabs air space. Fifth, a separate police force will be constituted to ensure tight security in all religious places be it gurudwaras, temples, mosques, or churches so that no incident of sacrilege can ever take place again. Congress had vowed to end the problem of drug addiction in Punjab within a month of coming to power, but changed nothing: Arvind Kejriwal Arvind Kejriwal said, Last time during the 2017 elections, Congress leaders pledged to completely eradicate the drug racket in Punjab. Were they able to eradicate the problem of addiction from Punjabs villages, from the lives of Punjabs youth? No, it has instead been on the rise. Nothing happened. Every village, district, Halka has drug networks running deep within. Our young population either went away to Canada or got caught up with the drug crisis. All the Congress Government has done to curb the drug racket in 5 years is merely registering an FIR against one single person. And they go about boasting on top of their voices about achievements that they do not have. All they did was below the bare minimum by registering an FIR a few days before the elections, and both Channi Sahab and Sidhu Sahab are boasting about it as if they have eradicated the entire problem from the state." "Did the problem end with this one FIR? It is a mere election gimmick and a betrayal to the public. This clearly shows that the Congress Government doesn't care about ending the drug problem, their sole aim is to scour for votes right before elections. The problem of drug addiction is plaguing all of Punjab, which makes it clear that there is a prominent presence of major dealers in every locality in Punjab. Who will stop them? The Channi Government has not taken action against a single dealer, nor have they seized a single gram of drugs. Once the Aam Aadmi Party forms the government in Punjab, I ask for 6 months from you we will completely eradicate the drug rackets from Punjab within those 6 months. We have brave and honest police officers like Kunwar Vijay Pratap on our side. They know their job well. We know how to actually bring about change because our intentions are clear. We are not running some gimmick or putting on a show like the current Punjab Government. Appeal to the people of Punjab to vote for Aam Aadmi Party if you want good schools and quality education for your children: Arvind Kejriwal Speaking about AAPs work in education, Arvind Kejriwal said, Many of you must have heard about the transformation of schools in Delhi. Earlier, the condition of government schools in Delhi was also extremely poor there were broken desks, collapsing walls, no attendance and absolutely no education. No parent wanted to send their children to these schools. We worked very hard for over 5 years to transform them and turn them into splendid education institutes. This year, 95% of students from Delhis government schools have passed with flying colours. The reform in these schools was so impressive that this year 2.5 lakh students transferred from private schools to Delhis government schools." "I ask you all, would you ever transfer your kid from a private school in Punjab to a government one? Never. The condition of government schools is extremely poor in Punjab. Theres no sign of any proper education taking place in Punjabs government schools. Shouldnt Punjabs schools also be well developed and fully functioning like Delhis? Channi Sahab said that Punjabs schools are world-class, that there is no need to fix them. So clearly, he has no intention of improving the condition of Punjabs government schools. If they come back to power, the dismal condition of education in Punjab will persist. So if you want good schools with quality education, you should vote for the Aam Aadmi Party," Delhi CM said. Credit for the transformation of Delhi schools goes to the teachers and principals: Arvind Kejriwal He added, I would like to make it clear that the improvements that took place in the government schools of Delhi werent made by Arvind Kejriwal or Manish Sisodia, but the teachers themselves. We owe it to the principals and the teachers that Delhis government schools are rolling out world-class students today. All we did was create an environment for them to thrive. As soon as we did that, they worked their magic and did a splendid job on their own. The teachers in Punjab are great, theyre talented, but they are extremely distressed with the state of affairs. I have met with them and I know that they also want to change the face of education in Punjab." "Once the Aam Aadmi Party forms the government in Punjab, like Delhi, we will begin by transforming the ambiance and give the teachers the right kind of atmosphere so that we can work hand-in-hand with them to revolutionise the face of the education sector in Punjab. This is an assured promise from me to the teachers and to all the parents. The then American President Donald Trump came to Delhi to visit PM Modi last year, and his wife Melania requested to visit the government schools in Delhi." "This is how far and wide the praises of Delhis government schools have traveled, all the way to the White House in America. Despite Modi Ji's attempt to divert Melania Trumps attention to Central Governments schools and private schools, Melania was adamant about wanting to visit a Delhi government school. We will also make sure that the same change occurs in Punjabs schools as well, he said. Our government will provide free treatment to the people in Punjab like Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal Talking about AAPs work in healthcare, Arvind Kejriwal further said, We revolutionised healthcare in Delhi. We built a lot of Mohalla Clinics, and vastly improved the condition of all government hospitals. Earlier the condition of these hospitals was extremely poor no doctors, or medicines, faulty machines and so on. But we have now transformed these hospitals and made them even better than private ones like Max and Fortis. Treatment has become such a hassle these days, that 2-3 lacs are easily spent in private clinics and hospitals if someone falls sick. To take this burden off the shoulders of the people of Delhi, we have provided them with a safety net." "If someone falls sick in Delhi, no matter how big or small the treatment is, no matter what the cost is, the patient gets free treatment. Be it a crocin or a 70 lac treatment, they get it for free. Shouldnt Punjab also get this facility? Shouldnt the people in Punjab also get free treatment? We will make it happen. We will make all medicines, surgeries, tests, everything free for the people of Punjab. Channi Sahab accuses me of throwing away money and giving everything for free," he added. "Do the children in Punjab not deserve quality education? Do they not deserve free and proper treatment for their illness? Is spending money on the people of your state illegal? Is it immoral? No, it isnt, but yet they say it because they dont want commoners to get facilities like they do. If a government cannot work for the education and treatment of its people, then they should be ashamed of themselves. What else is the money in your budget meant for? The public doesnt pay taxes for your flights and ACs, it pays its government for better facilities, for schools and hospitals. Our intentions are clear. We will transform healthcare in Punjab as well, Delhi CM said. Will give free electricity to everyone in Punjab, as I have done in Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal Speaking further about electricity, he added, When the Aam Aadmi Party came to power in Delhi, the city used to experience power cuts lasting 7-8 hours at a time. It took me 3-4 years, but I personally went to each and every street, and got the wires and transformers changed. Today Delhi received electricity 24x7. I found out that Punjab also sees long power cuts, and we will change that. Like Delhi, we will provide 24x7 electricity supply in Punjab as well. Earlier, the electricity bills were also extravagant in Delhi. Today, the people of Delhi get electricity for free. Many people dont believe the miracle we have brought about, but we have done it, we have brought the bills down to zero." "I have brought proof with me: heres someone whose bill for 170 units of electricity came out to be zero, another who used 180 units, again had a bill of zero rupees. Who wants free electricity in Punjab? I can see everyone raising their hands. We will also waive off all pending bills. Channi Sahab keeps accusing me of giving out everything for free and spending the government treasury away. He says I shouldnt give free electricity, while he himself gets a supply of 5000 units of electricity for free. But if the public gets even 300 units of free electricity, he immediately takes offense. I have pledged to make all those facilities available to the public for free that Channi Sahab gets. We will turn every common man into a special man, Kejriwal said. Addressing the women at the Jansabha, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal said, I can see a lot of participation of women in todays gathering. We made an announcement that we will give a thousand rupees a month to every woman above the age of 18 in Punjab. Shouldnt every woman receive this amount? A Punjab politician says that this scheme will spoil the women. What about you? Did you not get spoiled after scamming thousands of crores? And you have the audacity to say that our women will get spoiled after receiving a mere thousand rupees a month? They say that Punjabs government vaults will run out if women are given this monthly allowance. But Punjabs treasury was truly emptied by these corrupt politicians themselves by acquiring land after land, property after property, building hotels and so on. They garnered so much wealth at the expense of Punjabs treasury. No vault will run out when we give our women their deserved share. In fact, the state of Punjab will flourish because of their good wishes and blessings. Punjab has to decide whether they want a government which plays Gilli-Danda or one which builds schools and hospitals for them: Arvind Kejriwal He added, Channi Sahab has been making the rounds claiming to be the true Aam Aadmi (common man), saying Kejriwal isnt an Aam Aadmi. He proudly says that he knows how to play Gilli-Danda and Kancha, does Kejriwal? He goes on to mention ridiculous activities like mounting a tent, milking a cow asking whether I can do these things. Today, I will personally address these questions. No, I dont know how to play Gilli Danda. But what I do know is how to make great schools for my students to excel. I dont know how to play Kancha, but I know very well how to build hospitals and Mohalla Clinics for your treatment. I dont know how to mount a tent, but I know how to provide free electricity to my people. I dont know how to milk a cow, but I know how to make sure my people get 24x7 electricity supply with no power cuts. Now it is on the people of Punjab to decide if they want a government which plays Gilli-Danda or one which builds schools and hospitals for them. Remarking on the state of the current Punjab Government, he said, The Congress Party has completely broken down. It is plagued by incessant internal politics and has become a circus and is filled with jokers. No senior leader in their party gets along with the other. Siddhu Sahab doesnt get along with Channi Sahab. Channi Sahab doesnt get along with Jakhar Sahab, who in turn doesnt get along with Pratap Bajwa, and on and on." "There is immense internal feud and cabinet meetings are full of conflict and arguments. In the end all I ask for is one opportunity. You, the people of Punjab, gave chance after chance to the Congress party for 25 years. Then 19 years you gave to the Badal family. All these people did was wreak havoc in Punjab and made matters worse. I am asking for just five years from you. If I do not deliver on my guarantees in these 5 years, you can kick me out of power in the next election season. I am giving you my word, he added. All 3 crore people in Punjab rise above their religion and caste and live as a united front; this is the beauty of the state: Arvind Kejriwal Addressing the gathering at the Christmas celebration, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal said, I thank the Archbishop for explaining the meaning behind the word Hallelujah so well as well as the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. I extend my heartiest greetings to all pastors, priests and everyone gathered here today and wish them a Merry Christmas. I can see Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims all in large numbers alongside the Christians this is the beauty of Punjab, that all 3 crore people in Punjab rise above their religion and caste and live as a united front. You displayed a brilliant example of your unity by leading the Farmers Movement against the 3 black laws, and had the entire country rally behind your cause eventually causing the Centre to give up. This is the unity that the people in power fear. All religions teach us to serve those in need; AAP Government is implement the same in Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal He added, We have gathered here today to celebrate a very auspicious occasion. Jesus Christs life and lessons are truly inspiring. After college and working at Tata Steel, I left my job to work at a Mother Teresa ashram for months. We brought in infected beggars and poor people and treated them, took care of them. It was at this point in my life that I realised how much joy serving people brought me. Jesus Christ spent his life selflessly looking after others and forgiving all those who spoke against him. Even during his last breath while being crucified, he prayed for forgiveness for the very people who killed him. Today, the Aam Aadmi Partys government in Delhi walks on the path shown by Jesus, and by all other religions, as they all teach us to selflessly serve the helpless and the needy. That is what the Delhi Government is trying to do through its development measures, be it schools for poor children, free treatment for the helpless in government hospitals, free electricity and water. Live TV New Delhi: Virtually addressing the Gurpurab celebrations on Saturday (December 25) at Gurudwara Lakhpat Sahib in Kutch of Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "The contribution of our Gurus is not limited to society and spirituality only. It is the great penance of the Sikh Gurus at the core, that the faith and integrity of our nation is safe today. Guru Nanak Dev Ji and our different gurus not only kept the consciousness of India ignited but also made a way to keep India safe." "Guru Tegh Bahadur`s valour against Aurangzeb teaches us how the country fights against terror and religious extremism. Similarly, the life of the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh Sahib is also a living example of tenacity and sacrifice at every step. The way the country gave him the title of `Hind ki Chadar`, shows the attachment of every Indian towards the Sikh tradition," added PM Modi. Prime Minister further underlined the contribution of the fourth Gursikh, Bhai Mokham Singh Ji and said, "It has always been a matter of pride for Gujarat that the fourth Gursikh, Bhai Mokham Singh Ji, was from Gujarat, who played an important role in the establishment of Khalsa Panth." PM Modi also mentioned the easy access to Kartarpur Sahib facilitated with the help of the Kartarpur Corridor. "The countrymen had been wishing for easy access to Kartarpur Sahib. In 2019, our govt completed the work of the Kartarpur Corridor," PM stated. Live TV New Delhi: India may witness an unexpected jump in COVID-19 and Omicron cases by January end, a senior Hyderabad-based doctor has warned. Dr Sambit, Director (Medical) of KIMS, Hyderabad, however, said that the number of critically ill patients will possibly be low. Speaking to news agency ANI, he said, India is no different from the world and it will face what the world is already facing. "We expect a surge in COVID numbers by January end because we are no different from the world. We will face what the world is facing. Hopefully, we will not have the number of critically ill patients this time that we had earlier," Dr Sambit said. #Omicron | We expect a surge in COVID numbers by Jan end because we're no different from the world. We'll face what the world is facing. Hopefully, we'll not have number of critically ill patients this time that we had earlier: Dr Sambit,Director (Medical),KIMS, Hyderabad (24.12) pic.twitter.com/1iBbdb4aOL ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 Meanwhile, a member of the COVID expert committee, Kerala has said that the number of Omicron cases is likely to increase to 1,000 in two to three weeks and 10 lakh in two months, given the global trends. "We don't have more than a month before a major outbreak happens in India. We need to prevent this," Dr TS Anish told news agency ANI. Global trends show that number of #Omicron cases is going to reach 1000 in 2-3 weeks & one million, maybe, in 2 months. We don't have more than a month before a major outbreak happens in India. We need to prevent this: Dr TS Anish, Member, COVID Expert Committee, Kerala (24.12) pic.twitter.com/XgOx0fphj6 ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 National COVID-19 Supernodal Committee recently said that the third wave of coronavirus is likely to peak in the country early next year but it would be milder than the second wave due to a large-scale immunity present in the country now. Several scientists also suggested that the third wave of COVID-19 in India is likely to peak in February 2022. However, according to their projections, the Omicron-driven surge is likely to be milder than the second wave, possibly subsiding within a month. So far, over 358 cases of the highly-contagious Omicron variant of coronavirus have been reported in India across 17 states and Union Territories of which 87 are fully vaccinated with three having received booster doses. Delhi on Friday reported 180 Covid cases in 24 hours - a six-month high. Mumbai reported 680 new cases - a 78-day high. Delhi also has 67 Omicron cases. Maharashtra has 88. In view of the rising cases of coronavirus and growing concern over the Omicron variant, several states have announced fresh COVID restrictions, including night curfew. UP and Madhya Pradesh have become the first states to impose restrictions in the face of the Omicron threat. Both states have announced 11 pm - 5 am night curfews. Over 1.5 lakh Omicron cases have been reported from 108 countries, with the UK accounting for over 90,000 and Denmark over 30,000. 26 deaths have been linked to the virus. The WHO has urged countries to 'boost, boost, boost' in the face of the threat. Live TV Bengaluru: Seven new cases of Omicron variant have been confirmed in Karnataka taking the total cases to 38, according to State Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar. In a tweet, Dr K Sudhakar said, "Seven new cases of Omicron variant have been confirmed in Karnataka on December 25." 7 new cases of #Omicron have been confirmed in Karnataka today: Karnataka Health Minister Dr Sudhakar K pic.twitter.com/6wP9J01YSb ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 Those who tested positive were: a 76-year-old man from Bengaluru, who had travelled from Delhi, a 30-year-old woman from Bengaluru, who came from UAE, a 63-year-old man from Bengaluru who arrived from Zambia and a 54-year-old man from Bengaluru, who was a primary contact of a United Kingdom traveller, said Karnataka's health minister. Sudhakar said that a 21-year-old man from Bengaluru who arrived from the UK, a 62-year-old man from Bengaluru, who came from Delhi, and a 15-year-old boy from Bengaluru who travelled from the USA have also been found infected. The Health Department said that except for the 15-year-old, all are vaccinated. Among the infected people, four have symptoms of the new variant of coronavirus. Karnataka's Health Minister also added that all primary and secondary contacts have been tracked, traced and tested. 270 COVID-19 cases, four deaths in Karnataka Karnataka on Saturday logged 270 fresh COVID-19 cases and four deaths, taking the caseload to 30,04,239 and the toll to 38,309. Recoveries numbered 246, taking the total to 29,58,630, leaving 7,271 active cases, a health department bulletin said. Bengaluru Urban remained the major contributor of cases, reporting 152 infections and two deaths. Kodagu logged 25 cases, Tumakuru and Udupi 14 each, Mysuru 13 and Dakshina Kannada 11, it said. Other than Bengaluru, one death each occurred in Dharwad and Udupi. The positivity rate for the day was 0.27 per cent and the Case Fatality Rate was 1.48 per cent. A total of 97,782 samples were tested today in the state, taking the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 5.59 crore, the bulletin said. The day also witnessed 91,707 people being vaccinated, taking the total number of those given the jabs so far to 8.45 crore. (With Agency Inputs) Live TV Chandigarh: Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya on Friday directed senior police officials to take effective and stern action against those found disturbing peace and communal harmony in the poll-bound state. DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya directed all commissioners of police/SSPs to launch preventive, precautionary and operational security measures to ensure peace and communal harmony in the state. The DGP held a virtual meeting with the officers to review the crime situation. The meeting took place in the wake of a bomb blast in the Ludhiana district courts complex. The bomb blast killed one person and injured six others, prompting the Punjab government to declare a high alert in the state. The DGP directed the police officers to keep vigil at all sensitive places and deploy maximum police force at checkpoints besides ensuring patrolling at crowded places, including markets, bus stands and railway stations. He directed police officers to activate control rooms and mobile patrolling. The DGP said no unauthorised security be given to any individual without the proper order from him or the ADGP, Security. In case it has already been given, it should be withdrawn within a day, he said. Chattopadhyaya asked them to continue the crackdown against drug smugglers/suppliers. He exhorted police officers to work together to identify people involved in drug smuggling and said efforts should be made to work in tandem with the Special Task Force (STF) to curb the sale of narcotics. Man killed in Ludhiana blast dismissed Punjab Police cop: Sources The man killed in the Ludhiana districts court complex blast is learnt to have been identified as a dismissed Punjab Police head constable. Gagandeep Singh was a resident of Khanna in Ludhiana and dismissed from the post of head constable in some drug case, said police sources. Police had earlier said they suspect that the man killed in the blast was trying to assemble or plant the explosive device. Gagandeep's family in Khanna also learnt to have identified him, the sources said. He was dismissed from service in 2019, the police sources said. His mobile SIM card is believed to have helped identify him. A bomb went off in the district courts complex in Ludhiana on Thursday, killing one person and injuring six others, prompting the Punjab government to declare a high alert in the state. Ludhiana Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar had earlier in the day claimed that they have got some important clues during the investigation which would prove useful in cracking the case. Police had earlier said a preliminary probe has revealed that the deceased is suspected to be either carrier of the explosive or a human bomb himself. He had a religious tattoo mark on one of his arms. A mobile phone has also been recovered from the debris, police said. Live TV New Delhi: As Omicron cases in India continue to rise rapidly, various states are gearing up to impose COVID restrictions in order to curb any further spread. Delhi, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana are some such states that have already imposed night curfews and ban on gatherings during Christmas and New Year festivities. About the Omicron spread, India has so far reported 358 new infections scattered in 17 states and Union territories with the highest number of active cases, at the moment, are Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Karnataka. Heres a list of states that have imposed restrictions on Christmas and New Year in view of Omicron cases. Maharashtra Gatherings of more than 5 persons in public places across the state are prohibited from 9 pm-6 am. Only 100 people are allowed in indoor weddings & not more than 250 in outdoor weddings. 50% capacity for gyms, spa, hotel, theatre and cinema hall No large gatherings, processions, rallies, fireworks or other programs that attract large crowds shall be allowed. Devotees in churches for the midnight mass on December 24-25 shall be permitted only up to 50% capacity. Section 144 in Mumbai. All employees functioning at public places and establishments as well as all attendees at events and ceremonies must be fully vaccinated in Mumbai. Gujarat The Gujarat government on Friday decided to impose a night curfew in eight cities from December 25 in view of Omicron cases in the state. A night curfew will be put in place from December 25 from 11 pm to 5 am every day. Cities to be affected are Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Gandhinagar and Junagadh . Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh has imposed night curfew on Friday from 11 pm to 5 am in all the citieS All DMs have been directed to maintain a vigil in their jurisdiction area to ensure proper COVID protocols. Delhi Delhi has extended its COVID-related curbs, banning social and cultural gatherings till December 31 midnight. DDMA has said that no mask, no entry should be strictly ensured at shops/workplaces across the national capital. The seating capacity in bars and restaurants has been limited to 50 per cent. Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh imposed a night curfew in the entire state from 11 pm to 5 am. Karnataka Karnataka clubs and restaurants will be operational with only 50% seating capacity without DJ during the festive season. Mandatory vaccination for everyone participating in these celebrations. The restrictions will come into effect from December 30 to January 2. Live TV Thiruvananthapuram: One more case of Omicron was detected in Kerala on Saturday, taking the total number of infected people to 38. A 51-year-old Kannur native has been detected with the new variant, according to the State Health Department. The Kannur native was in the primary contact list of a COVID-infected student in his neighbourhood, and his infection was confirmed in a genetic sequencing test carried out as part of the sentinel surveillance, the health department said. Kerala's Health Minister Veena George said that the state has reported one more case of Omicron from the Kannur district, taking the total tally of the state to 38. Kerala reports one more case of #Omicron from the Kannur district, taking the total tally of the state to 38: Kerala Health Minister Veena George (file photo) pic.twitter.com/WgQnxzZaro ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 Kerala reported 2,404 new cases, 11 deaths, and 3,377 recoveries on Saturday. Of these, active cases were at 24,501 and the death tally stood at 46,318. As many as 104 deaths were added to the death tally as per the new guidelines of the Central government, said Kerala govt in an official statement Meanwhile, an Omicron positive patient in the Malappuram district was discharged from the hospital today after 12 days of treatment. The first Omicron positive patient in the state was discharged from hospital on Friday. Kerala detected its first case on December 12 in Ernakulam district when a person who had returned from the UK tested positive. Daily recoveries outnumber new COVID-19 cases The state today clocked 2,407 fresh coronavirus cases, taking the total caseload to 52.21 lakh. However, 3,377 people recuperated from the deadly disease during the same period, taking the total number of those cured in the southern state to 51,61,800. Kerala's health department said 115 deaths were recorded which raised the toll to 46,318. Of the 115 deaths, 11 were recorded over the last few days and 104 were designated as COVID-19 deaths after receiving appeals based on the new guidelines of the Centre and the directions of the Supreme Court. Thiruvananthapuram recorded the highest number--505, followed by Ernakulam 424 and Kozhikode 227 cases in the state, which tested 44,754 samples in the last 24 hours and there are six wards across five local self-government bodies with a weekly infection population ratio above 10 per cent. There are 1,24,904 people under the observation of which 3,858 are in isolation wards of various hospitals. According to the state Health Department, "Currently there are 24,501 active COVID-19 cases in the state out of which only 9.3 per cent are admitted to various hospitals in the state." 7,189 new COVID-19 cases in India India`s total Covid-19 caseload increased to 3,47,79,815 on Saturday after 7,189 fresh cases, of which 415 were of the Omicron variant, were reported in the past 24 hours, said the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. As many as 387 Covid-19 deaths and 7,286 recoveries increased the respective overall tallies to 4,79,520 and 3,42,23,263, while the daily active cases have declined to 484. As far as the Omicron variant is concerned, Maharashtra has the highest number of cases with 108, followed by Delhi with 79, Gujarat 43, Telangana 38, Kerala 37 and Tamil Nadu 34. The Centre has deployed multi-disciplinary teams to 10 states which are reporting an increase in the number of infections or slow vaccination pace. These teams will be deployed in Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Punjab and for three to five days working with the state health authorities, said the notice. (With Agency Inputs) Live TV New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (December 25, 2021) virtually addressed the Gurpurab celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji at Gurudwara Lakhpat Sahib in Kutch of Gujarat. PM Modi also called for a united India "from Kashmir to Kanyakumari". "From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from Kutch to Kohima, the whole country is dreaming together, striving for their accomplishment together. Today, the goal of the country is the revival of a new and capable India," PM Modi said. Addressing the Gurpurab celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji at Gurudwara Lakhpat Sahib in Gujarat's Kutch via video conferencing, he said that the dangers against which the Gurus alerted the people continue to exist even today, and hence it is important for everyone to be cautious and ensure that the country remains secure. The countrymen had been wishing for easy access to Kartarpur Sahib. In 2019, our government completed the work of the Kartarpur Corridor," PM Modi said while addressing the celebrations. In 2021, we are celebrating 400 years of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji's Prakash Utsav, you must have seen we were successful in bringing the copies of Guru Granth Sahib from Afghanistan, PM Modi added. In 2021, we are celebrating 400 years of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji's Prakash Utsav, you must have seen we were successful in bringing the copies of Guru Granth Sahib from Afghanistan: PM Modi addressing the Gurpurab celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji via video conferencing pic.twitter.com/2nlnzRfRAG ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 The prime minister also recalled Bhai Mokham Singh ji and said that It has always been a matter of pride for Gujarat that the fourth Gursikh, Bhai Mokham Singh ji, was from Gujarat, who played an important role in the establishment of Khalsa Panth. Guru Tegh Bahadur's valor against Aurangzeb teaches us how the country fights against terror and religious fanaticism. Similarly, the life of the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh Sahib is also a living example of tenacity and sacrifice at every step, said the prime minister. Live TV New Delhi: A total of Rs 177.45 crore cash has been recovered and seized from the premises of Kanpur`s Fragrance company promoter Piyush Jain, informed sources. "The counting of cash finished yesterday late at night. Search is still on," official sources told ANI. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, the apex body of investigation agency Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) who is conducting a search, called this the biggest cash seizure in history. Sources told ANI that the DGGI Ahmedabad unit`s search on Trimurti Fragrance Pvt Ltd, Kanpur, manufacturers of Shikhar brand Pan Masala and Tobacco products is still on and the agency is evaluating the tax evasion by the parties who are under investigation. The official further said that no arrests have been done so far and the search is still on in Kanpur and Kannauj. As per a top government source, the cash recovered from the search has been seized under the provisions of section 67 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act and deposited in the State Bank of India. "Most of the currency is of Rs 500 denomination. Some are of Rs 2000 denomination," the top government source said. ALSO READ | India records 7,189 new COVID-19 cases, Omicron tally rises to 415 Further, the sources told that the cash recovered is a part of sales proceed and was secreted in the premises. "Pan masala company has committed a massive tax evasion,` they said. Currently, assorted tobacco items, pan masala are among the products that attract the highest GST rate of 28 percent and also compensation cess. The rate of cess on tobacco products is Rs 4,170 per 1,000 sticks or 290 percent ad valorem, while that on pan masala is 135 percent ad valorem. The DGGI team is evaluating the tax evasion figure by matching the sale of the pan masala. An amount of Rs 3.09 crores has been recovered so far towards tax due with Trimurti Fragrance. Sources told that this whole search operation is being held by DGGI`s Ahmedabad branch with the support of officers of local Central GST. "No other agencies are involved in the operation as reported by in some media reports," said sources. Sources further informed ANI that inside the premises of the transporter, M/s Ganpati Road Carriers, more than 200 fake invoices, used in the past for transportation of goods without payment of GST, have been recovered. "The transporter has also admitted that goods were being transported without e-way bills under the cover of fake invoices. He also admitted that the sale proceeds were being collected in cash, to be handed over to the manufacturer," the sources said. "An amount of Rs 1.01 crores in cash has been seized from the possession of transporter. 4 such trucks outside the factory premises have been seized,` they added. Live TV Jaipur: Rajasthan on Saturday (December 25) has reported 21 new cases of 'Omicron', taking the number of people infected with the new variant of COVID-19 to 43, stated the State Health Department. Of these, 11 are from Jaipur, six from Ajmer and three from Udaipur. One of the patients is from Maharashtra. Results from National Institute of Virology Pune showed all of them positive for Omicron, a spokesperson of the health department said on Saturday. Among these infected, five had returned from foreign countries while three others had come in contact with foreign travellers. Of the total 43 cases of Omicron in the state, 28 are from Jaipur, seven from Ajmer, four from Sikar, three from Udaipur, and the other being the patient from Maharashtra. The number of active COVID-19 cases in Rajasthan is 244, the official told PTI. Live TV Jammu: Security forces on Saturday (December 25) killed 4 terrorists in two different encounters in the Shopian and Pulwama districts of south Kashmir. 2 terrorists were killed in the Tral encounter. An encounter started between terrorists and security forces in Hardumir village of Tral area district Pulwama in South Kashmir. Confirming the news of the undergoing operation, Kashmir zone police tweeted #Encounter has started at Hardumir, #Tral area of #Awantipora. Police and security forces are on the job. Further details shall follow (sic). A CRPF official said, "A joint team of security forces after having input about the presence of terrorists in the area launched a search operation. As the suspected spot was cordoned, the hiding terrorists fired which was retaliated and an encounter started." Sources in the police said that there was the input of 2-3 terrorists hiding in the area but the actual number can be confirmed only once the operation concludes. This is the second encounter in South Kashmir in the last 12 hours earlier two LeT terrorists were killed in Chowgam Shopian and arms and ammunition were also recovered. Live TV New Delhi: Two unidentified terrorists were killed in an encounter in Shopian on Saturday (December 25, 2021). According to Police, an encounter between terrorists and security forces started in the wee hours of Saturday in the Chowgam area of Shopian. "Two unidentified terrorists killed. Incriminating materials including arms and ammunition recovered. Search going on," tweeted Kashmir Zone Police. Further details awaited. Live TV Shopian: A fierce encounter is currently underway in the Shopian district of South Kashmir where two unidentified terrorists are believed to be trapped by the security forces, said sources on Saturday. The encounter broke out in the Chowgam village of Shopian between security forces and the terrorists in the wee hours of Saturday. Confirming the exchange of fire, Kashmir Zone Police tweeted, #Encounter has started at Chowgam area of #Shopian. Police and security forces are on the job. Further details shall follow. @JmuKmrPolice A police officer present at encounter spot said, a joint team of security forces Police, CRPF and local Army unit, on specific input about the presence of terrorists, had the launched a cordon and search operation in the area. As the searching party cordoned the suspected house, an exchange of fire started, which resulted in an encounter, he added. Sources in police said that inputs were received about the presence of two terrorists in the area, The terrorists were given opportunity to surrender but they refused to do so. However, the actual number of terrorists trapped in the area can be known once the operation concludes, the sources said. This is the second encounter in the last 48 hours. On Friday, the security forces claimed to have killed a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist in Ariwani village of Anantnag and also recovered one AK47 rifle and ammunition from the spot. Live TV SSC GD Constable Answer Key 2021: The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) on Friday (December 24, 2021) released the SSC GD constable answer key 2021 on its official website. The candidate's Response Sheet and the Tentative Answer Key are now available at https://ssc.nic.in. "Representations in respect of the Tentative Answer Key(s), if any, may be submitted online from 24.12.2021 (06:00 PM) to 31.12.2021 (06:00 PM) on payment of 100/- per Question/ Answer challenged. Representations received after 06:00 PM on 31.12.2021 will not be entertained under any circumstances," the Commission said in a notice. The candidates need to take a printout of their respective Response Sheets, as the same will not be available after December 31. This is noteworthy that the Computer Based Examination of Constable (GD) in CAPFs, NIA & SSF and Rifleman (GD) in Assam Rifles Examination, 2021 was held between November 16, 2021, to December 15, 2021, at different centres across the country. Live TV NEW DELHI: Actor Shilpa Shetty celebrated this year's Christmas with her husband Raj Kundra, kids and friends in Mussoorie. The 46-year-old shared a few pictures and videos from her holiday getaway on her Instagram handle. In one of the videos, Shilpa could be seen enjoying with her children while sitting near the Kempty waterfall and playing with the water. In the clip, her personal chefs are also seen preparing a special dinner table for the family. Sharing the clip, she wrote, "Ho ho ho. Merrrryyyyy Christmas to all my Instafam.. An unusual Christmas.. we trekked all the way down to Kempty Fall stream to have lunch here .. It's trips like these that make me realise how Incredible India really is!" She also shared a slew of pictures on her Instagram stories, one of which sees her posing in front of a Christmas tree with her family--husband Raj Kundra, son Viaan and friends. Earlier in November, Shilpa and Raj made their first public appearance for a temple visit in Himachal Pradesh, post the latter's bail in a pornography case. Raj was arrested by police on July 19 along with 11 other people on charges related to the alleged creation of pornographic films. New Delhi: In India, many people shy away from filing income tax returns, especially those whose salaries fall in the non-taxable category. While filing ITR wont give them any monetary returns, they can still enjoy several other benefits that come with submitting income tax returns on time. For the financial year 2020-21, the last date to file an income tax return (ITR) is December 31. Taxpayers and salaried individuals are required to file income tax returns for the income earned between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021, till December 31. Benefits of filing tax returns even if your salary is non-taxable Filing ITR on time comes with several benefits. For starters, the ITR filing can be used as income proof required to apply for loans. Archit Gupta, Founder and CEO, Clear said, "Keeping proof of your income levels and current financial status will help you apply for loans such as auto loans, personal loans, housing loans, etc., and VISA. Gupta added that even though your income level is below the basic exemption limit, regular ITR filing will help you fasten your loan application processing without difficulties. Bankers generally demand for the last three years income proof. You may not be able to provide all the years returns if the deadline of filing the ITR of that particular year is missed, he explained. To carry forward losses incurred on the sale of capital assets or business or profession, you need to file ITR within the due dates, and you can set off such losses with the profits earned in the subsequent years, Gupta added. Also, Indian residents who own assets or investments outside the country are required to file ITR for every financial year even though their salary falls in the non-taxable category. Also Read: Fake Paytm App Alert! Check how to identify fraud or you could lose money Moreover, you need to file ITR to claim the refund of excess tax deducted from incomes like fixed deposits, recurring deposits, etc, Gupta added. Also Read: Bank holidays in January 2022: Banks will remain closed for 16 days; check important dates Live TV #mute New Delhi: Aniket is a 40-year-old professional who earns roughly Rs 90,000 each month in take-home pay. He is currently paying roughly Rs 25,000 in home loan EMI and around Rs 5,000 in monthly school fees for his 7-year-old daughter. He puts aside roughly Rs 10,000 per month in order to save for his daughter's higher education and marriage. Aniket is now aiming to invest in mutual funds that will help him create roughly Rs 5.50 crore when he retires, which will be in 20 years. In response to the question of whether Aniket's investment goal is financially feasible, Pankaj Mathpal, Founder & MD of Optima Money Managers, stated, "The investor has Rs 50,000 in cash because his monthly income of Rs 40,000 (Rs 25,000 home loan, Rs 5,000 daughter's school fee, and Rs 10,000 for daughter's future) is spent on home loan EMIs, child school fees, and future planning. The investing vehicle must be equities mutual funds because the time horizon is 20 years and the investment goal is high at Rs 5.5 crore. The investor must remember the mutual fund's 15 X 15 X 15 rule, which states that by following this mutual fund SIP guideline, one can become a crorepati." According to Pankaj Mathpal, using the 15 X 15 X 15 mutual fund formula, one can expect a 15% mutual fund return after investing for 15 years. However, if one invests Rs 15,000 every month for 15 years, one can accumulate Rs 1 crore. In Aniket's instance, though, the time horizon is 20 years. As a result, the investor can create a pun in this SIP rule by changing it to the mutual fund's 20 X 15 X 15 rule. Even if this is done, the maturity amount will only be roughly Rs 2 crore, according to the SIP calculator. Amit Gupta, MD of SAG Infotech, advised on the SIP step-up plan "With an increase in income, the monthly SIP amount should be increased. Because the investor has a 20-year time horizon, a regular Rs 15,000 monthly SIP won't be enough to reach the Rs 5.5 crore investment target. The investor should choose a 15% annual step-up rate. If he continues to do so for the following 20 years, an investor who starts a mutual fund SIP today with a monthly investment of Rs 15,000 will be able to accumulate roughly Rs 5.55 crore." When asked about mutual fund SIP plans that could assist an investor get a 15% yearly return, Pankaj Mathpal of Optima Money listed the following: 1] Nippon India Flexi Cap Fund; 2] Aditya Birla Sun Life Equity Advantage fund; 3] ICICI Prudential MNC Fund; and 4] Canara Robeco Flexi cap. Live TV #mute Chandigarh: Two days after the Ludhiana court blast, Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya said on Saturday that the deceased police officer, who was suspended from the service, had carried the explosive material to the court. Addressing a press conference, DGP Chattopadhyaya said, "The deceased person, former policeman Gagandeep Singh was carrying the explosion. He was dismissed from service in 2019 and spent two years in jail following his arrest in a drug-trafficking case." Ludhiana Court Blast Case | The deceased person, former policeman Gagandeep Singh was carrying the explosion. He was dismissed from service in 2019 and spent two years in jail following his arrest in a drug-trafficking case: Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya pic.twitter.com/wmaGR3qrWL ANI (@ANI) December 25, 2021 One person was killed and five others were injured in the explosion at Punjab`s Ludhiana District Court Complex on Thursday. Ludhiana Commissioner of Police informed that the explosion was heard near the Record Room on the second floor of the Ludhiana Court complex. "One person died, few persons were injured in the incident. Bomb disposal team and forensics team have been called from Chandigarh for probe," he said. Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said no one shall be allowed to disturb the hard-earned peace of Punjab. He also announced free treatment for all five persons injured in a blast that took place in the gents' toilet on the second floor of the District Courts Complex. The blast damaged the roof and walls of the toilet. Following the explosion, the bathroom grill fell on the vehicles parked on the ground floor. Besides, the CM also ordered a high-level probe to crack the case. Live TV Jaipur: COVID-19 vaccination will be made mandatory for entering and using facilities at various places in Rajasthan from February 1 next year, officials said on Friday. Officials confirmed that the state government is also preparing a list of those who are refusing to get vaccinated. The decision was taken at a meeting in which Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot held detailed discussions with divisional commissioners, district collectors, principals of medical colleges and health officials through video conferencing about the COVID situation in the state. The Chief Minister also directed the officials to ensure strict compliance of various measures like wearing a face mask and social distancing from the first week of January. Earlier in the day, Gehlot held a COVID review meeting with senior officials and doctors. After this, the Chief Minister called another meeting with divisional commissioners, collectors and other officials for discussion. Expressing concern over the spread of the new Omicron variant to about 110 countries of the world, Gehlot said it is necessary for all people of the prescribed age group to get themselves vaccinated and there should be effective adherence to COVID protocols. He directed the district administration to make people aware of vaccinations and wearing face masks. It was decided that vaccination will be made mandatory for entry and use of various facilities in the state from February 1. The Chief Minister said people have become careless in adhering to COVID protocols because the number of daily cases was very less but the virus is again spreading. "The district administration should make the public aware that they should get vaccination compulsorily because this is the most effective way to prevent COVID infection. According to experts, the risk of infection and death is very low in those who get both doses of the vaccine," he said. Health Minister Parsadi Lal Meena said the system of screening should be strengthened at airports, railway stations and other places. "Special vigil should be kept on the people coming in from abroad. Along with this, the testing system should also be strengthened,'' he said. Ayurveda Minister Subhash Garg, Minister of State for Home Rajendra Singh Yadav, Chief Secretary Niranjan Arya and other officials were also present in the meeting. Live TV New Delhi: Uttarakhand Minister Harak Singh Rawat is in touch with Congress and is likely to join the party, said sources in the party. According to sources, cabinet minister Harak Singh Rawat has already given his resignation. Some MLAs also reportedly resigned with the Kotdwar MLA. However, during the briefing, cabinet minister Subodh Uniyal denied all the reports. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader has had several meetings with Congress MLA Pritam Singh in the recent past. Rawat had walked out of the state Cabinet meeting of the ruling BJP at the secretariat on Friday as he was reportedly upset over alleged "government inaction" over a proposed medical college in his constituency, Kotdwar. Attacking Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami-led Bharatiya Janata Party government, the Kotdwar MLA also expressed anger over the government's indecision to his demand for approval for the medical college in Kotdwar. Having served as an MLA in both Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, Rawat has been part of the Indian National Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party in the past. He switched to the Saffron party in 2017 and won from Kotdwar assembly seat, Notably, Rawat was a candidate of Congress from Garhwal in the 2014 general election. In the 2017 Uttarakhand Assembly election, BJP came to power by winning 57 seats in the 70-member House, succeeding the Harish Rawat-led Congress government. The 2022 polls are likely to be a triangular contest between BJP, Congress and Aam Aadmi Party. AAP has declared Colonel (retd.) Ajay Kothiyal as its CM face, while Pushkar Dhami is likely to lead the saffron party. The Congress on Friday said former CM Harish Rawat would lead the party in the upcoming polls. Live TV New Delhi: Vijay Sales has started an Apple Days sale in honour of the Christmas season, with various Apple products available at a significant discount. The Vijay sales website is hosting an Apple Days offer. The deal, which runs until December 31, offers discounts on Apple devices such as phones, Apple Watches, and AirPods. Following that, the prices of the iPhone 13 pro max, iPhone 13 pro, iPhone 13, and iPhone 12 in India have decreased, and you may take advantage of such discounts during the Apple Days sale. These deals can be a decent value for you if you've been wanting to acquire an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Air Pod for a long time or simply upgrade. Apple Days sale: Check offers, prices, other discount deals A brand new iPhone 13 Pro Max may be purchased at a discounted price of Rs 1,23,400 during the Apple Days sale. Holders of HDFC bank cards are eligible for an extra discount. During the Vijay Sales Apple Days sale in India, the iPhone 13 Pro was reduced to Rs 1,13,900. The 128GB edition of the iPhone 13 is available in India at a discounted price of Rs 75,900. The iPhone 13, which normally costs Rs 79,900, can now be purchased for Rs 75,900. In addition to the Rs 4,000 discount on the iPhone 13, HDFC Bank cardholders will receive an additional Rs 6,000 discount. During the sale, the Apple iPhone 13 mini is available at a discounted price of Rs 66,400 until December 31. During the Vijay Sales Apple Days deal, the Apple iPhone 12 was reduced to Rs 61,299 in India. Holders of HDFC bank cards will also receive a discount on the iPhone 12. Apple iPhone 11 can be bought at Rs 47,400 during the Vijay Sales Apple Days sale till New Years Eve. Besides this, you will further get an additional Rs 4,000 off on transactions made using HDFC Bank Cards. Aside from Apple phones, the price of the iPad in India dropped dramatically during the sale. The Apple iPad 9th generation is available in India through Vijay Sales for Rs Rs 29,900. There will be an additional discount of Rs 3000 for HDFC Bank members. Apple iPad Air price in India: The Apple iPad Air is currently available for Rs 50,900. To get a better deal on an iPad Air, use your HDFC Bank card to make the purchase and get Rs 4,000 off. iPad Pro price in India: The Apple iPad Pro is available for Rs 67,500 until New Year's Eve during the Vijay Sales Apple Days event. In addition, transactions made with HDFC Bank debit and credit cards would save you an additional Rs 4,000. Apple Watch Series 7 price in India: The Apple Watch Series 7, which was originally priced at Rs 41,900, is now available for Rs 39,100. For transactions made with HDFC Bank debit and credit cards, you will also receive an additional Rs 3,000 savings on Apple smartwatch for iPhone. AirPods in India: During the sale, the AirPods 3rd Gen may be purchased at a discounted price of Rs 17,300. HDFC Bank cardholders will receive a Rs 2,000 extra discount. Apple Watch SE price in India: During the sale, the Apple Watch Series 6 is available at a reduced price of Rs 25,900. A rebate offer of Rs 2,000 is also included in the package. Apple MacBook Air M1 price in India: During the Vijay Sales Apple Days event, the price of an Apple MacBook Air M1 in India decreased to Rs 83,610. Holders of HDFC bank cards will also receive a discount on the iPhone 12. The base 256GB variant of the Apple MacBook Air M1 was launched in India for Rs 92,900. Live TV #mute New Delhi: While the pandemic has fueled digital transactions in India, it has also invited scamsters to loot the innocuous first-time users of the technology. The bad actors are deploying various methods to dupe and steal the hard-earned money of individuals. In one such case, it was found that a fake Paytm app is being used to steal lakhs of rupees from the bank accounts of Indians. So far, Hyderabad Police has arrested 8 people alleged to be duping and stealing lakhs of rupees from individuals, according to a report by The Indian Express. Moreover, the police have also reportedly recovered Rs 75,000 from the alleged fraudsters who have been arrested for online fraud. However, the rising number of digital frauds is now making authorities worried. For instance, fake Paytm apps are being used to steal money. The spoof apps look very similar to the genuine Paytm app, which makes it difficult for individuals to differentiate between the fake and the original one. Similar fraud cases have been reported in other Indian cities and states such as Indore and Chattisgarh. In a scam incident, an alleged fraudster reportedly bought salmon worth thousands of rupees and showed the shopkeeper a fake payment screen by using the phone number and other details on the app. The fraudster was later caught and handed over to the police. Using the fake Paytm app, fraudsters enter the details of the purchase. Using the details, the app generates a fake successful payment notification that appears so genuine that shopkeepers believe that the customer has paid the money. But in actuality, its just a fake notification, and no funds are transferred to the account of shopkeepers. The scam, therefore, is difficult to catch, as shopkeepers usually dont have the time to check their balance. Also Read: BGMI gamers alert! Krafton will now ban devices of users cheating in game However, its advised that shopkeepers should check the balance after each transaction or at least should wait for the payment message to arrive before providing the goods or services to the customers. Also Read: Garena Free Fire redeem codes for today, December 25: Check steps to avail free items Live TV #mute Live TV #mute New Delhi: WhatsApp is one of the most popular platforms for talking, messaging, and exchanging images, audio, video, and other media. However, it is now also used to send money. Yes, WhatsApp users can utilise the WhatsApp Payments tool to send money to others. If you wish to use this function, you'll need a UPI account to enable bank-to-bank money transfers using WhatsApp Payments. UPI (Unified Payments Interface) is a national payment system established by the NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India), which is supported by the majority of India's major banks. Your bank account information is identified by WhatsApp using the phone number linked with your account. You should also be aware that your UPI PIN is a four- or six-digit number that you must input before making any payment. Your personal UPI PIN protects every payment you make and should not be shared with anyone else. You will not be required to create a new UPI PIN in WhatsApp if you already have one for your bank account. If you don't remember your UPI PIN, you can modify it or create a new one. You can do so by following the steps outlined below: For Android Users: Step 1: Open WhatsApp and select More options from the menu. Step 2: Select the bank account from the Payments menu. Step 3: Change your UPI PIN or reset your UPI PIN by tapping Change UPI PIN or Forgot UPI PIN. Step 4: If you choose Forgot UPI PIN, hit CONTINUE, then enter the debit card number's last six digits and the expiration date. It's worth noting that some banks may require you to submit the CVV number here. Step 5: Enter the existing UPI PIN, a new UPI PIN, and confirm the new UPI PIN if you selected Change UPI PIN. For iPhone Users Step 1: Tap Payments after opening WhatsApp Settings. Step 2: Change UPI PIN or Forgot UPI PIN by tapping the bank account. Enter the last six digits of your debit card number and the expiration date if you chose Forgot UPI PIN. Enter the existing UPI PIN, a new UPI PIN, and confirm the new UPI PIN if you chose Change UPI PIN. Live TV #mute New Delhi: The Tamil Nadu Government has formally requested the local unit of Taiwanese hardware manufacturing firm Foxconn, to provide better basic amenities for its workers. Among the facilities enlisted as part of the suggestions were- better hostels, spacious living areas, adequate bathrooms and toilets, potable water, living spaces with proper ventilation and overall improved infrastructure in hostels/dormitories. This comes nearly a week after hundreds of Foxconn workers protested and blocked the crucial Chennai-Bengaluru highway, as over 150 women workers had fallen sick after consuming the food provided in the hostels. According to the protestors, there were long-standing issues between the management and the contractual workers, which the management allegedly refused to address or resolve. Among the issues highlighted were the basic living facilities, better working conditions, hygienic food and water etc. According to the Government, they are keen on bringing investments and job opportunities to the state, but are also keen on voicing out for the welfare of workers (especially women). In line with this, top Government officials, including IAS and IPS officers had met with representatives of Foxconn on Thursday and offered suggestions. Among the points highlighted to the company were, District Collector's certificate of approval for the living spaces provided to workers, provision of hygienic meals that are cooked within the premises of the hostel, ensuring timely approval of emergency leave for contractual workers and also utilising services of manpower agencies for seeking replacement/backup workforce to make up for those absent. According to the Government, the company had agreed to implement the suggestions and has also expressed its intention to expand its operations and offer more job opportunities. Nearly 14,000 men and women are employed in the Foxconn unit that manufactures electronic components, iPhones for Apple and handsets for other leading smartphone brands. Many of the women workers are staying in the nearby dormitories. It was after consuming their meals from one such dormitory that over 150 workers were affected by food poisoning and had to be taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. According to workers, the management did not offer any response when queried about the health condition of women workers who were admitted to the hospital. There were also rumors of a few women workers having died, owing to food poisoning. This is said to have been a major trigger for the protest. However, the Government authorities formally dismissed the claims of workers having died and assured action against rumor mongers. Live TV #mute New Delhi: Smartphone brand Vivo on Friday confirmed that it is all set to launch its upcoming smartphone series -- V23 Series -- on January 5. The company took to micro-blogging site Twitter to confirm the launch of its upcoming smartphone series. "With stylish design, delightful selfies and power-packed performance #VivoV23Series is all set to make you and your moments stand out," the company wrote on Twitter. #vivoV23Series launching on 05.01.2022 at 12 PM. Block your date and welcome delightful moments in your life. Know more: https://t.co/AdnmuyWtL3#DelightEveryMoment pic.twitter.com/3HdNqAAVfL Vivo India (@Vivo_India) December 24, 2021 "Vivo V23 Series launching on 05.01.2022 at 12 PM. Block your date and welcome delightful moments in your life," it added. According to GSMArena, the Vivo V23 series will "come with Indias First 50MP Eye Autofocus Dual Selfie camera," ruling out the launch of the V23e or the V23e 5G since both feature single front-facing cameras. A short clip shows a sunshine gold-coloured smartphone with a curved screen and three cameras on the back, the report said. The V23 Pro was initially expected to be a global version of the recently launched China-exclusive S12 Pro, but it seems the V23 Pro won`t be a complete clone of the S12 Pro despite having some similar features, it added. Also Read: File ITR and win Royal Enfield Bullet! Centre-run CSC launches special offer, check details The Vivo V23 Pro is also rumoured to be touted as "India`s slimmest 3D curve display smartphone at 7.36mm". Also Read: Despite India ban, TikTok dethrones Google to become most popular website: Report Live TV #mute Lucknow: The Yogi Adityanath government has decided to reimpose the night curfew in Uttar Pradesh from Saturday night amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and growing fears about the new Omicron variant. According to an official statement, the curfew will be in place from 11 pm to 5 am. An upper limit of 200 guests will be in force for weddings and the district administration will have to be duly informed. Government sources said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also asked all shopkeepers and traders to follow the "no mask, no goods" policy. Officials have also been asked to ensure that all those arriving in UP from abroad, and other states, are tested for Covid, with particular attention to be paid to railway and bus stations. The decision has been taken in view of the increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in the state. The Uttar Pradesh night curfew order also comes a day after the Allahabad High Court requested the Election Commission to consider postponing Assembly elections due in two months. Thirty-one new COVID-19 cases were reported across UP on Thursday - much lower than the tens of thousands of cases detected daily in April-May. The state has reported two Omicron cases so far. After Madhya Pradesh, the poll-bound UP has become the second state to impose night-time restrictions. Keeping the health situation in mind and to contain the spread of Covid-19, several states have come up with Covid-related restrictions from Christmas onwards. Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan had on Friday said a night curfew of 11 pm to 5 am would be enforced effective immediately. The state hasn't yet recorded an Omicron Covid case. Maharashtra With Maharashtra crossing the 100-mark in Omicron cases, the state has imposed fresh restrictions and has night curbs in place. The gathering of more than 5 persons in public places across the state has been prohibited from 9 pm-6 am. Gujarat In Gujarat, night curfew time in eight cities has been extended by two hours over Omicron concerns, curfew to be in force from 11 pm to 5 am, said officials. Earlier, it was from 1 am to 5 am. The new time will be implemented from December 25 in the cities of Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot, Vadodara, Junagadh, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar and Gandhinagar. Gujarat has reported 98 new cases and 3 deaths today. Also, 13 fresh Omicron cases were reported in the state on Monday, a total of 43 cases so far, the state government said. Haryana Haryana has also come up with its own restrictions. Gathering of more than 200 people in public places and other programs is not allowed, and movement of people to be restricted from 11 pm to 5 am, Haryana Chief Minister's Office was quoted by ANI. Unvaccinated people cannot enter public places from January 1 in Haryana. Live TV New York: Commercial airlines around the world canceled more than 4,500 flights over the Christmas weekend, as a mounting wave of COVID-19 infections driven by the Omicron variant created greater uncertainty and misery for holiday travelers. Airline carriers globally scrapped at least 2,401 flights on Friday, which fell on Christmas Eve and is typically a heavy day for air travel, according to a running tally on the flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. Nearly 10,000 more flights were delayed. The website showed that 1,779 Christmas Day flights were called off worldwide, along with 402 more that had been scheduled for Sunday. Commercial air traffic within the United States and into or out of the country accounted for more than a quarter of all the canceled flights over the weekend, FlightAware data showed. Among the first U.S. carriers to report a wave of holiday weekend cancellations were United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, which scrubbed nearly 280 flights combined on Friday alone, citing personnel shortages amid the surge of COVID-19 infections. COVID-19 infections have surged in the United States in recent days due to the highly transmissible variant Omicron, which was first detected in November and now accounts for nearly three-quarters of U.S. cases and as many as 90% in some areas, such as the Eastern Seaboard. The average number of new U.S. coronavirus cases has risen 45% to 179,000 per day over the past week, according to a Reuters tally. New York reported more than 44,000 newly confirmed infections on Friday alone, shattering that state`s daily record. At least 10 other states set new one-day case records on Thursday or Friday. Rising hospitalizations were hitting healthcare systems especially hard in the U.S. Midwest, with intensive care units in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan bracing for the worst even as they remain under pressure from an earlier wave of Delta variant cases. In Britain, many industries and transport networks were struggling with staff shortages as sick workers self-isolated, while hospitals have warned of the risk of an impact on patient safety. One in 20 Londoners had COVID-19 last week, a figure that could rise to one in 10 by early next week, according to data released on Thursday by the Office for National Statistics. Government data showed a record tally of 122,186 new infections nationwide on Friday, marking a third day in which the number of known cases has surpassed 100,000. While recent research suggests Omicron produces milder illness, and a lower rate of hospitalizations, than previous variants of COVID-19, health officials have maintained a cautious note about the outlook. "There is a glimmer of Christmas hope ... but it definitely isn`t yet at the point where we could downgrade that serious threat," Jenny Harries, head of the UK Health Security Agency, told the BBC. France hit another COVID-19 infection record on Friday, with its daily tally exceeding 94,000 while hospitalizations from the virus reached a seven-month high, prompting the government to convene a special meeting for Monday that could trigger new public health restrictions. Despite the uncertainties and grim news around the world, millions of Americans carried on with travel plans through a second pandemic-clouded holiday season. Moses Jimenez, an accountant from Long Beach, Mississippi, flew to New York with his wife and three children, even though the latest torrent of coronavirus cases dashed their hopes of catching a Broadway performance of "Hamilton" or visit some museums. "Hamilton" was one of a dozen productions to cancel shows this week as cast and crew members tested positive for COVID-19. Museums were scratched from the family`s itinerary because many now require proof of vaccination and the two younger children are ineligible for the shot. Instead, Jimenez, 33, said his brood will make the best of roaming the city`s streets and parks, while also seeing relatives and friends. "We just wanted to get out of the house, really, get the kids out to the city for Christmas," Jimenez told Reuters on Thursday at New York`s LaGuardia Airport. New York planned to sharply limit the number of people it allows in Times Square for its annual outdoor New Year`s Eve celebration, in response to the surge of new coronavirus cases, capping the number of attendees 15,000. The Biden administration will next week lift travel restrictions on eight southern African countries imposed last month over concerns about the Omicron variant, the White House said. Live TV