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RHODES, Greece (AP) — A weeklong wildfire on the Greek island of Rhodes tore past defenses Monday, forcing more evacuations, as three major fires raged elsewhere in the country fueled by strong winds and successive heat waves.
The latest evacuations were ordered in south Rhodes after 19,000 people, mostly tourists, were moved in buses and boats over the weekend out of the path of the fire that reached several coastal areas from nearby mountains.
Help continued to arrive from the European Union and elsewhere, with Turkish firefighting planes joining the effort in Rhodes, where eight water-dropping planes and 10 helicopters buzzed over flames up to five meters (16 feet) tall despite low visibility.
“The risk of fire will be extreme in several areas of Greece today,” Fire Service spokesperson Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said a day after temperatures on the southern Greek mainland soared as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit).
Overnight, evacuations were also ordered on the western island of Corfu, where more than 2,000 people including tourists were moved to safety, on the island of Evia and in a mountainous area in the southern Peloponnese region.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen contacted Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis late Sunday to offer additional assistance.
“I called (Prime Minister) Mitsotakis to express our full support for Greece, which is confronted with devastating forest fires and a heavy heat wave due to climate change,” she wrote in a tweet.
On Rhodes, officials from the Greek Foreign Ministry were working at the international airport with several embassies and diplomats who traveled from the U.K. to assist tourists who had lost their travel documents.
British tourist Kevin Evans was evacuated twice Saturday with his wife and three young children — first from Kiotari to Gennadi, and then as the fire approached to the island’s capital in the northeast, he told Britain’s PA news agency.
“There were lots of people in Gennadi sent from the hotels — many in just swimsuits having been told to leave everything in the hotel,” he told PA. “As night fell, we could see the fire on the top of the hills in Kiotari. They said all the hotels were on fire.”
The army was also helping to set up temporary accommodations on Rhodes, where schools and sporting facilities were opened to help with the effort.
A relative respite from the heat on Monday, with highs of 38 C (100 F) forecast, is to be followed by yet more high temperatures starting Tuesday.
However, it should get significantly cooler on Thursday, with temperatures in the low- to mid-30s Celsius, the country's Meteorological Service said Sunday evening. ___ Gatopoulos reported from Athens. | Not_Explicit |
Madrid, 24 jul (EFE).- El colombiano Óscar Darío Pérez, copresidente saliente de la Asamblea Parlamentaria Euro-Latinoamericana (EuroLat), definió como “agridulce” la Cumbre la UE y CELAC celebrada en Bruselas el pasado 17 y 18 de julio.
En el marco de la decimoquinta Asamblea de EuroLat, que arrancó este lunes en el Senado español en Madrid, el senador colombiano analizó en una entrevista con EFE los impactos de esta reunión entre ambas regiones que no se daba desde 2015.
Para el colombiano, que entregará la copresidencia de EuroLat al panameño Amado Cerrud el próximo jueves, la cumbre dejó momentos “dulces” ya que “después de ocho años se volvieron a convocar a presidentes de ambos continentes”.
Por el contrario, Pérez se refirió a “lo agrio” de este encuentro porque “no hubo una condena precisa” a la invasión de Rusia a Ucrania, aunque sí una declaración en la que no se citaba al presidente ruso, Vladímir Putin, y aún así no contó con el apoyo de Nicaragua.
“Yo vi definitivamente unas posturas supremamente grises, nebulosas con lo que está pasando en Ucrania, en suelo europeo, vi casi una actitud silente”, criticó el miembro del Parlamento Latinoamericano y Caribeño (Parlatino).
“Nadie mencionó, al menos que yo hubiera visto, que se está acabando el acuerdo para la exportación de los granos ucranianos (...) y las consecuencias de esto para los cerca de 600 millones de habitantes del mundo”, enfatizó.
Con todo ello, el parlamentario mostró su preocupación y advirtió sobre cómo este conflicto entre Ucrania y Rusia está “perjudicando al mundo”.
PREVENIR PANDEMIAS, CRISIS FISCALES Y MEDIOAMBIENTALES
En cuanto a los temas que aquejan a la región latinoamericana, Pérez alertó que hay una serie de temas en los que la región necesita “la ayuda” de los “países desarrollados”.
“Las vacunas deben ser universales (...), necesitamos que haya una regulación precisa sobre las vacunas para prevenir futuras pandemias y que nos permitan las patentes para que nosotros podamos producir”, sentenció.
Además, el parlamentario expuso la necesidad de que se active una “banca multilateral” entre ambos continentes para “paliar la situación fiscal”: “si un país no es viable fiscalmente tampoco existirá democracia en ese país. Ahí es cuando surgen esos populismos que se apoderan de las angustias de la gente”.
Respecto a la agenda medioambiental, el político colombiano recordó que ya se sabe quienes son “los grandes productores de CO2” y apuntó que “ellos tienen una deuda con América Latina”.
“América Latina en su conjunto contribuye muy poco al calentamiento global (...) nosotros producimos oxígeno en la Amazonía, en los Páramos (zona andina), en los mares nuestros, en nuestras selvas, todos son fábricas de oxígeno”, concluyó para preguntarse: “¿y quién nos remunera eso?”
RECONOCIMIENTO A EUROLAT
El congresista latinoamericano celebró que los mandatarios europeos y latinoamericanos le den “la importancia debida a la EuroLat”.
"Nosotros somos quienes hacemos las leyes, los que marcamos la ruta jurídica de los gobiernos", dijo, al tiempo que consideró que los parlamentarios tienen "que tomar atenta nota" y "consciencia" de que sus decisiones "terminarán afectando favorable o desfavorablemente a la gente".
Por todo ello, Pérez opinó que “el reconocimiento” de esta decimoquinta asamblea es fundamental, porque, según insistió, “son los congresistas quienes aprueban las leyes y esas leyes son las que rigen los destinos de nuestros países”. EFE
Por Ana Báez
(c) Agencia EFE | Not_Explicit |
Ever since the first ball in Manchester, Australia had a mindset of not wanting to lose the crucial fourth Test.
They knew the rain, which ensured the game ended in a draw, was forecast for the last two days and were in survival mode, rather than looking to attack and dominate.
It was not the normal Australian way but I would never call it 'Un-Australian' because this is a successful Test team.
They did what they had to do.
It may have looked ugly and negative but Australia's tactics worked. Their first job when arriving here was to retain the Ashes, which they have now done courtesy of their 2-1 lead with one match to play.
But Australia's next job is to go and win a series in England for the first time since 2001 and I am hoping we see a different mindset at The Oval from Thursday.
- England denied by rain as Australia retain the Ashes
- 'How are we supposed to feel?' England's Ashes hopes washed away
I have to be honest, England dominated this match.
It was their 'Bazball' style in its finest form but Ben Stokes' decision not to declare earlier on day three cost them victory.
England were 506-8, leading by 189, but Stokes decided to bat long into the afternoon session.
Jonny Bairstow's 99 not out may have been brilliant for team morale but had Stokes pulled out England would have had another 10 overs when the ball was reverse swinging late on the third day.
England can say they were unlucky but it rained as much as was forecast.
Afterwards Stokes talked about the bigger picture, his desire to reenergise the longest format, and that is important.
But it is worrying me England might be using that as a tactic to deflect - that they are doing everything they can to take all of the pressure off themselves.
Yes, talk about your style of play but once you cross that line you have to do everything to win.
England have the attributes to become a great team but the best teams embrace the pressure. They should have declared at lunch and backed themselves to bowl Australia out.
Still, there is much to admire about England and this Test will be remembered for Zak Crawley's brilliant 189.
I have always been a big fan of Crawley and, on the best batting surface of the series, he gave Pat Cummins his most difficult day as Australia captain.
As England racked up 592 at almost five-and-a-half runs per over, Cummins looked tired - not physically but mentally.
He has done an excellent job since being appointed in 2021, winning the Ashes at home, the World Test Championship this year and had not had any real negative press.
In Manchester he was put under the pump for the first time.
Being skipper as a bowler is a hard job. You cannot wander down to fine leg between overs and switch off and the difficulty goes up another level in an Ashes series, when there is so much outside noise.
Cummins will now know all about it. The true Test of his captaincy will come at The Oval.
He had Sunday with his feet up and the pressure should be alleviated now Australia have retained the urn.
I hope Australia take something from the best of England's style when they turn up in south London and analyse what happened this week.
Cummins and the management have had this plan to set the field back ever since the opening delivery of the series but it was not the fours and sixes that hurt them at Old Trafford. It was the constant availability of ones and twos that had the bigger impact.
You have got to back yourself to force a batter to hit good shots for boundaries off good balls more often. Set a field with more chance of getting a wicket.
Australia may say this ploy has worked but now they have retained the Ashes I would like to see them be more aggressive. Play with freedom and take to the field without fear.
We saw it from Marnus Labuschagne with his century at Old Trafford on day four, and Mitchell Marsh at Headingley.
I would rather see Australia lose the last Test by backing themselves, really taking it to England, rather than going down with a whimper.
Winning in England for the first time since 2001, beating this energised England team under Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, should be massive motivation.
To return to Australia with a 3-1 victory would be huge response to Bazball - an incredible achievement.
People will say England could be 3-0 up and they would be right.
Had they been smarter earlier in the series, not dropped so many vital catches, they would still be alive. They certainly should have won the first Test at Edgbaston.
But England have also had the better of conditions and won four tosses.
Ultimately the series has been so tight it is pointless trying to debate which way the score should or should not be. The first three Tests could have gone either way.
Now Australia need to give everything they have got. It is time to not worry about saving anything and go out and win the Ashes.
Glenn McGrath was speaking to BBC Sport's Matthew Henry | Not_Explicit |
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote Thursday on a new ethics code for the Supreme Court, an attempt to respond to recent revelations about justices’ interactions with wealthy donors and others. Republicans are strongly opposed, arguing the ethics bill could “destroy” the high court.
The hearing is expected to begin at 9:30 a.m. EDT. Watch live in our player above.
The committee’s legislation would impose new ethics rules on the court and a process to enforce them, including new standards for transparency around recusals, gifts and potential conflicts of interest. Democrats first pushed the legislation after reports earlier this year that Justice Clarence Thomas participated in luxury vacations and a real estate deal with a top GOP donor — and after Chief Justice John Roberts declined to testify before the committee about the ethics of the court.
READ MORE: AP investigation reveals potential conflicts of interest for Supreme Court justices
Since then, news reports also revealed that Justice Samuel Alito had taken a luxury vacation with a GOP donor. And The Associated Press reported last week that Justice Sonia Sotomayor, aided by her staff, has advanced sales of her books through college visits over the past decade.
“Just about every week now, we learn something new and deeply troubling about the justices serving on the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land in the United States, and their conduct outside the courtroom,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said this week. “Let me tell you, if I or any member of the Senate failed to report an all-expense paid luxury getaway or if we used our government staff to help sell books we wrote, we’d be in big trouble.”
Even though the ethics legislation has little chance of passing the Senate — it would need at least nine GOP votes to pass, and Republicans appear united against it — Democrats say the spate of revelations means that enforceable standards on the court are necessary.
WATCH: What the Supreme Court’s latest term tells us about its future direction
“The Roberts court has not been able to clean up its own mess,” said Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, the lead sponsor of the ethics bill.
The legislation comes after years of increasing tension, and increasing partisanship, on the committee over the judiciary. Then-President Donald Trump nominated three conservative justices to the Supreme Court, all of whom were confirmed when Republicans were in the Senate majority and with considerable opposition from Democrats. The court has as a result shifted sharply to the right, overturning the nationwide right to an abortion and other liberal priorities.
In a news conference on Wednesday, Republicans on the committee said they would fight the ethics bill, which they said would undermine the separation of powers and is more about Democratic opposition to the court’s decisions than its ethics. They are expected to offer several amendments to the legislation in the committee meeting on Thursday.
READ MORE: What Americans think about affirmative action in college admissions
“It’s not about ethics or accountability,” said Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, a senior Republican on the panel. “It’s about outcomes they don’t like.”
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the Judiciary panel, said that if the bill were to ever pass, “the Supreme Court as we know it would be destroyed.” Congress should stay out of the court’s business, Graham said.
The legislation would mandate a new Supreme Court “code of conduct” with a process for adjudicating the policy modeled on lower courts that do have ethics codes. It would require that justices provide more information about potential conflicts of interest, allow impartial panels of judges to review justices’ decisions not to recuse and require public, written explanations about their decisions not to recuse. It would also seek to improve transparency around gifts received by justices and set up a process to investigate and enforce violations around required disclosures.
Though Democrats had pushed versions of the ethics legislation in the past, the current push came after news reports revealed Thomas’ close relationship with Dallas billionaire and GOP donor Harlan Crow. Crow had purchased three properties belonging to Thomas and his family in a transaction worth more than $100,000 that Thomas never disclosed, according to the nonprofit investigative journalism organization ProPublica. The organization also revealed that Crow gifted Thomas and his wife, Ginni, with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of annual vacations and trips over several decades.
READ MORE: Poll shows Americans’ trust in Supreme Court remains low
Durbin had invited Roberts to testify at a hearing, but he declined, saying that testimony by a chief justice is exceedingly rare because of the importance of preserving judicial independence. Roberts also provided a “Statement on Ethics Principles and Practices” signed by all nine justices that described the ethical rules they follow about travel, gifts and outside income.
While the rules were not new, the statement provided by Roberts said that the undersigned justices “reaffirm and restate foundational ethics principles and practices to which they subscribe in carrying out their responsibilities as Members of the Supreme Court of the United States.”
Besides Sotomayor’s push for book sales, the AP reported that universities have used trips by justices as a lure for financial contributions by placing them in event rooms with wealthy donors and that justices have taken expenses-paid teaching trips to attractive locations that are light on actual classroom instruction.
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Manchester United have unveiled their away kit for the 2023-24 season, and it sees the club return to vertical stripes for the first time in two decades, a design that harks back to the start of their existence.
However, rather than their original green and gold stripes of 1893 to 1899, or red and black as worn in the early 1900s, or even the green and white bars worn briefly from 1902 to 1905, United have instead chosen to meld them all together.
The result is a railing of white stripes all split by thin red pinstripes, which in turn sit atop a dark green backdrop. If there were a Guinness World Record for how many stripes you can fit on one jersey, this would surely go into the book.
According to manufacturers Adidas, elements of the palette are intended to mirror Manchester and its proud industrial heritage, with the red representing the bricks that were used to build much of the city and the grimy green apparently being a colour found in many of its urban structures (presumably in the form of mould or lichen?).
With almost no real estate on the body or the sleeves to spare, there are stripes absolutely everywhere. The long-sleeved version of the jersey boasts so many barcode-esque lines that it could probably check itself out at the club megastore. Indeed, the addition of the manufacturer's trademark three stripes down the arms adds even more clutter jammed into an already saturated field.
While certain to divide opinion among fans, it's safe to say that if you happen to like striped football kits -- like, really like them -- then United's latest away jersey is definitely the one for you.
The kit was actually first unveiled at the weekend on stage at Tramlines festival in Sheffield by Liam Fray, lead singer of Manchester band Courteeners.
Courteeners' association with United goes back a few years, to when their song "Not Nineteen Forever" became an anthem for the club's fans as they celebrated wining their 20th league title in 2013.
The stunt follows on from a similar one involving Manchester rapper Aitch, who revealed United's new home jersey while performing on stage at Glastonbury last month | Not_Explicit |
“QAnon Shaman” Jacob Chansley unsuccessfully tried to vacate the guilty plea and prison sentence he received in connection to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, but was admonished by a federal judge for basing his request on a furtherance of conspiracy theories.
Calling the face-painting, pelt-wearing Arizona man “the face of the riot,” Judge Royce Lamberth lambasted Chansley for contending that “cherry-picked” Capitol security footage of him behaving calmly between outbursts — aired without context by disgraced former Fox News host Tucker Carlson — was some kind of exoneration.
”The Court finds it alarming that the host’s viewers throughout the nation so readily heeded his command,” the judge wrote in response to a request filed by Chansley last week, according to the Arizona Republic. Lamberth compared Carlson’s coverage favoring Chansley to the nonsensical reporting that led many people to falsely believe Donald Trump won the 2020 presidential election.
At his Nov. 2021 sentencing hearing, Chansley described himself as a man “of honor” who accepts responsibilities for his “mistake.”
But Lamberth wrote that material he’s seen since Chansley was sentenced, including Carlson’s discredited coverage, makes him wish he had actually been harder on the defendant, according to the Daily Beast.
The 35-year-old convict was released to a halfway house in March — 14 months earlier than scheduled.
Carlson’s departure from television followed a $787.5 million settlement between Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems, which stopped the right-wing network from having to defend the lies it spread about 2020 election fraud.
Former MAGA radical Ray Epps also filed suit against Fox News last week claiming Carlson fueled lies about his involvement in the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol. | Not_Explicit |
Democrats put RFK Jr. on blast in change of strategy
Democrats are no longer trying to ignore Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and have taken to calling him out in public after a week of controversies.
National party leaders for the first time acknowledged Kennedy’s disruptive presidential bid with sharp criticism, and lawmakers met his claims of censorship head-on during his testimony on Capitol Hill.
It’s a notable change from their previous approach, in which Democratic leaders and party officials hoped Kennedy would simply fade away on his own. It also serves a purpose for President Biden, who has so far been cautious about addressing his primary rival directly.
“On his own, he was doing a really good job of showing everyone his initials stood for Real F—ing [K]razy, so made sense to let him be,” said Eddie Vale, a strategist who has worked on numerous Democratic campaigns.
“This week was different and made sense for folks to engage, because of the combination of outright antisemitism and being a witness for Republicans’ nonsense hearing,” Vale said.
Kennedy this week drew backlash for asserting without evidence that COVID-19 was “ethnically targeted” — a claim infectious disease and ethics experts refuted. Kennedy was caught on video by a reporter saying Chinese people and Ashkenazi Jews were not targeted as much as other races, including Black and white people.
“I’ve never even believed that he was a legitimate candidate,” said Arthur Caplan, a biomedical expert who’s spoken out about the various public relations storms that have dominated Kennedy’s campaign.
“COVID just doesn’t lend itself to being that kind of weapon,” added Caplan, who has written extensively about bioweapons and viruses. “I knew he was basically talking out of his rear end.”
But while Kennedy has frequently drawn negative attention for his views on vaccines, his remarks this week seemed to be even more offensive to many. A wave of White House officials and congressional Democrats rushed to criticize Kennedy, accusing him of spreading misinformation and making antisemitic and racist comments.
In a rare showing of condemnation toward a rival from the same side of the aisle, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre took to the podium to portray Kennedy’s comments as factually inaccurate and an “attack” on people.
“If you think about the racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories that come out of saying those types of things, it is an attack on our fellow citizens, our fellow Americans,” Jean-Pierre said on Monday.
“It is important that we essentially speak out when we hear those claims made more broadly,” she added.
Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.), who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, called the candidate’s COVID-19 comments “reprehensible” and said they were disqualifying.
“Last week, RFK Jr. made reprehensible anti-semitic and anti-Asian comments aimed at perpetuating harmful and debunked racist tropes,” DelBene said in a statement.
“Such dangerous racism and hate have no place in America, demonstrate him to be unfit for public office, and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms,” she added.
Adding fuel to the fire for Democrats, Kennedy on Thursday testified before a House Judiciary select subcommittee examining the “weaponization” of the federal government, using the event to argue he was being censored despite receiving widespread coverage from major news outlets. Although House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) defended him, Democrats — led by Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) — made their disapproval of him clear.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) also waded into the intraparty conflict, questioning why the GOP would grant Kennedy a forum in Congress.
“Why would you give Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a congressional platform to spew his hatred? Here’s the answer: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a living, breathing false-flag operation,” the New York congressman said.
The growing chorus of criticism poses a challenge for Kennedy, who always faced an uphill climb to defeat Biden. But the events of the past week could turn off even those voters who had been more open to his campaign.
Adding to the feeling of many Democrats that Kennedy is playing into the hands of the GOP, former President Trump recently praised the insurgent candidate as “a very smart person,” saying he “hit a little bit of a nerve.” Kennedy had expressed during a town hall hosted by NewsNation — owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill — that he was “proud” Trump liked him.
“His whole campaign is being run by right-wing political operatives who have one objective: try to take down President Joe Biden,” Jeffries argued this week.
That sentiment is shared by many others in the party. The Hill reported earlier this week that two pro-Israel House Democrats said he should not be allowed to serve in the Oval Office if elected following his COVID-19 remarks.
Still, Biden has been careful not to pile on, and some Democrats argue it’s better to disregard him again. Reached for comment, spokespeople from the Biden campaign and the White House also declined to comment on the record beyond what Jean-Pierre said at the podium this week.
As long as he teeters around the same polling numbers, Democrats say they should continue paying him no mind.
“I think it makes most sense to go back to ignoring him,” Vale said. “Let him just hang out with Steve Bannon and do weird push-ups in jeans.”
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
The leader of the United States Space Command, an Army general named James H. Dickinson, said Wednesday that megaconstellations such as SpaceX's Starlink network have played an important role in Ukraine's efforts to deter an invasion by Russia.
"We are seeing for the first time what a megaconstellation means to the world," Dickinson said. "That provides such resiliency and redundancy in terms of maintaining satellite communications in this example. That is powerful, and the department is moving in that direction."
Dickinson made his remarks at the Aspen Security Forum. As leader of the Space Command, Dickinson is responsible for the command and control of all US military forces in outer space. He said Starlink had facilitated communications among Ukraine's armed forces and that other commercial companies had provided essential observation services through means such as synthetic aperture radar, which can observe at night and through clouds.
Distributed the risk
Additionally, Dickinson said that by having a constellation of distributed satellites, it was more difficult for Russia to take countermeasures.
"Having a megaconstellation, quite frankly, frustrates our adversaries," he said, "because you don't know how many satellites it would take to have any kind of a degradation to that architecture, or which one if you had to pick one, you would have to, you know, have an effect against."
Last October a deputy director in Russia's foreign ministry, Konstantin Vorontsov, said the use of Western commercial satellites by Ukraine established "an extremely dangerous trend." While Vorontsov did not specifically name any satellites, he almost certainly was referring to SpaceX's Starlink satellite constellation, which has been used by Ukrainian soldiers for communications and for tracking Russian troop and tank movements.
The use of civilian satellites for wartime purposes, Vorontsov said, essentially made them military targets. Dickinson was asked how Space Command would respond to an attack on a US commercial satellite by a foreign adversary. Basically, he punted on the question.
"I do have a mission area protecting and defending, and that's widely known, assets on orbit," he replied. "But to be honest with you, those have to be directed to me by, you know, my boss, and my boss's boss, eventually if that were to happen."
At the time that US Space Command was reestablished in 2019, Dickinson said the organization was tracking about 25,000 objects in space—active and defunct satellites, as well as old rocket stages, debris, and more. Now that number is close to 50,000, he said. Some of this is due to the increasing number of satellites, but a large amount has been caused by activities such as Russia's anti-satellite test in 2021.
Striking a balance
Dickinson said that some of this growth has come down to new objects identified and tracked by commercial providers. At present, he said, Space Command works with 133 commercial space companies, which are performing various functions from satellite communications to space domain awareness. He said these partnerships have proven potent in enhancing the capabilities of the US Department of Defense.
But does this increasing reliance on commercial companies—which have their own priorities and at times mercurial leadership—not also threaten the ability of Space Command to do its job? What if a company decided that it no longer wanted its products to be used as part of the military's warfighting capabilities?
"It's a balance," Dickinson said. "In other words, we're not going to be all commercial. We may not be all military. But as we look at our mission areas within US Space Command and the Department of Defense, there is a balance between what is purely military and what might be relied upon as a service."
Already, he said, the US military relies heavily on commercial services in other domains, such as at sea, for shipping, and in the air, such as using commercial aircraft for some legs of troop deployments. Still, he acknowledged, space is a relatively new domain, and the extent to which the military relies on commercial services for its duties is still being worked out. | Not_Explicit |
Ashok Leyland Q1 Review - Seasonality Defies Profitability; Valuation Captures The Positives: ICICI Securities
As against flat M&HCV volume YoY, LCV volume was up 3%, spares revenue was up ~33% YoY and power genset volume grew ~two times YoY
BQ Prime’s special research section collates quality and in-depth equity and economy research reports from across India’s top brokerages, asset managers and research agencies. These reports offer BQ Prime’s subscribers an opportunity to expand their understanding of companies, sectors and the economy.
ICICI Securities Report
Ashok Leyland Ltd.’s Q1 FY24 Ebitda margin at 10% (up 560 basis points YoY) was ~100 bps ahead of consensus estimate, despite it being a seasonally weak quarter.
Margin expansion was led primarily by gross margin improvement through favorable mix (higher mix of spares and gensets), controlled discounting and cost-saving initiatives.
Ashok Leyland expects further margin improvement in the coming quarters led by falling commodity prices, better operating leverage and pricing discipline. Capex in Q1 FY24 was ~Rs 950 million, and the targeted investment for Switch Mobility remains at Rs 12 billion for FY24.
Ashok Leyland’s medium and heavy commercial vehicle market share during Q1 FY24 was at ~32%, up 100 bps YoY, and the company expects to increase it further by enhancing its share in the northern and eastern states, where it is currently sub-30%.
We estimate Ashok Leyland’s M&HCV volume compound annual growth rate at ~5% in FY23-FY25E, with its market share at ~33% (Ashok Leyland expects M&HCV industry growth of 6-8% in FY24).
Post ~30% rally in last three months and no change in estimates, we downgrade Ashok Leyland to 'Hold' (from 'Add') with a revised discounted cash flow-based target price of Rs 185 (earlier: Rs 176), implying 11 times FY25E enterprise value/Ebitda.
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This report is authored by an external party. BQ Prime does not vouch for the accuracy of its contents nor is responsible for them in any way. The contents of this section do not constitute investment advice. For that you must always consult an expert based on your individual needs. The views expressed in the report are that of the author entity and do not represent the views of BQ Prime.
Users have no license to copy, modify, or distribute the content without permission of the Original Owner. | Not_Explicit |
In the days and hours before the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, diehard Donald Trump allies gathered at Washington’s Willard Hotel, hunkered down as the last-ditch efforts to overturn the 2020 election went forward. What exactly they were doing in those meetings was a subject of intense interest for Congress’ Jan. 6 investigation, but the committee ran into the limits of its powers as it struggled to reconstruct the specifics of those eleventh-hour meetings.
Now, special counsel Jack Smith’s office is taking its shot, hoping to figure out exactly what went down in the Willard “war room” — and just how involved Trump himself was in the Willard-based efforts to stop the transfer of power to then president-elect Joe Biden.
Special counsel investigators are grilling witnesses about the crucial Willard meetings, two people with knowledge of the investigation tell Rolling Stone. It could prove to be a fruitful line of questioning. One former senior Trump administration official, who stayed on through the Jan. 6 riot, simply refers to it as “the crime headquarters.”
The Willard, a luxury hotel a block from the White House, became the site of what participants described as a “war room” for Trump-aligned lawyers and diehard MAGA operatives working to overturn the 2020 election. The summit took place in the days and hours before the certification of electoral college votes on Jan. 6, and participants included Trump advisers and allies such as Giuliani, John Eastman, Bernard Kerik, Boris Epshteyn, and Steve Bannon.
Investigators led by special counsel Jack Smith have questioned multiple witnesses — including then-top Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani — about the timeline and deliberations of the meetings, seeking to reconstruct the events, the sources say. The investigators also plan to bring in additional witnesses who have knowledge of the Willard meetings, the sources add.
The federal investigators are also focused on the level of Trump’s direct involvement in the meetings, the sources say. The then-president reportedly called Rudy Giuliani on Jan. 5 to complain about Vice President Mike Pence’s refusal to go along with a plan to block the counting of legitimate electoral college votes, according to interviews conducted by the Jan. 6 Committee.
The special counsel’s office declined to comment on this story. But Smith’s interest in Trump associates’ activities at the Willard Hotel, where the then-president’s lieutenants reportedly oversaw the effort to disrupt the count of legitimate electoral college votes, suggests the special counsel is exploring Trump’s role in and knowledge of the efforts to disrupt the proceedings.
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Early this week, the former president was sent a target letter related to this investigation, strongly suggesting that an indictment — Trump’s third of the year — could be coming soon. The letter listed the federal statutes under which Trump is expected to be charged, including conspiracy, obstruction, and civil rights violations.
Smith’s office’s efforts to reconstruct what occurred at the Willard during the tumultuous Trump-Biden presidential transition could address questions left unanswered by Congress’ wide-ranging investigation into Trump and his associates.
The January 6 House committee interviewed a number of Trump allies in attendance about the Willard “war room,” including Giuliani and Kerik. But others, including Trumpist attorney Eastman, invoked their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination when asked even basic questions about whether they were in attendance at the Trump “war room” in early Jan. 2021.
“We didn’t get to peek behind the curtain there because they stonewalled us,” a former Jan. 6 committee staffer tells Rolling Stone in reference to the Willard investigation.
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The House committee also focused on the phone call Trump apparently made to deputies at the hotel the day before the insurrection.
During Giuliani’s interview with the January 6 House committee, investigators asked about a phone call which they said took place between Trump, Giuliani, and Bannon at the hotel. Trump, one investigator said during Giuliani’s deposition, “called you and Mr. Steve Bannon and conveyed to you that the Vice President was very arrogant and that the President wasn’t happy with him,” according to transcripts released by Congress.
Giuliani, citing attorney-client privilege issues, declined to describe the substance of his call with the former president.
The Trump “war room” at the hotel was a subject of particular interest for the committee’s investigation for its role as a hub for the Trump campaign’s attempts to block the counting of electoral votes on January 6. Top Trump advisers used the so-called “command center” while pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to reject the counting of legitimate electoral votes and encourage state legislatures to instead send slates of bogus pro-Trump electors in battleground states where the former president had lost to Joe Biden.
In a sign that the fake electors plot could be a key part of the Smith investigation, the special counsel’s office has issued subpoenas to election officials in Arizona, Michigan, and Wisconsin seeking information about the activities of the Trump campaign.
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Despite the “command center’s” importance in Trump’s attempted coup, during the presidential transition, the Willard hub attracted the private ire of other Trump advisers who were quietly embarrassed by Giuliani and others’ efforts. Other members of the administration and Trump campaign advisers, the former official says, regularly mocked their work and had nicknames for the “Star Wars cantina” of 2020 dead-enders.
One former senior Trump campaign official tells Rolling Stone that, in discussions at the time with other Trump aides, they called the Willard hotspot “idiot island.” | Not_Explicit |
- US officials say there's been no change in US policy on sending ATACMS, despite Ukraine's pleas.
- Kyiv has repeatedly called on the US to send the powerful long-range missiles.
- No major discussions on the issue have taken place for months, officials told The Washington Post.
US defense officials said the Biden administration remains hesitant to provide long-range ballistic missiles to Ukraine, despite reports the US was considering sending the weapons earlier this month, according to The Washington Post.
They told the outlet there had been no substantive discussions on providing the Army Tactical Missile System, the ATACMS, to Ukraine, for months despite President Biden's remarks that the missiles were "still in play" in May.
The ATACMS are missiles with a range of about 190 miles, which could strike Russian targets beyond the front line and threaten any Russian base or ammunition depot in Ukraine, according to a retired US general.
ATACMS not a priority and could escalate the conflict
US resistance to sending ATACMS to Ukraine is partially down to fears that it could trigger Russian escalation of the conflict.
But the Pentagon is holding firm on its stance that the ATACMS are not a priority for Kyiv's forces, per the outlet. It remains concerned that sending enough missiles to Ukraine would deplete the US's limited stock, weakening its response to other potential conflicts, officials told The Post.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is seeking hundreds of missiles from the US. "Without long-range weapons, it is difficult not only to carry out an offensive mission but also to conduct a defensive operation," Zelensky said during a press conference earlier this month.
Ukraine's forces, engaged in a counteroffensive, have been forced to advance slowly on foot in the face of dense Russian minefields and an area of landmines the size of Florida. Yesterday, Zelenskyy told the Aspen Security Forum that Ukraine's counteroffensive was poised to "gain pace."
Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelenkyy's office, told the Forum that a decision on the ATACMS was at the top of Ukraine's list of security needs, per The Post.
No shift despite US lawmaker calls
The House Foreign Affairs Committee passed a resolution calling for ATACMS to "immediately" send the missiles to Ukraine earlier this month.
But one official familiar with the issue told The Post that the US position remained firm despite the perception that there was "some sort of slow, gravitational pull" towards sending the missiles.
The UK announced it sent Ukraine a number of Storm Shadow cruise missiles in May, which have a range of around 140 miles, according to The Post. The UK's Defence Minister Ben Wallace said the missiles were striking their targets with "accuracy" and "almost without fault." | Not_Explicit |
Wildfire evacuations: How our diverse experiences can strengthen disaster response
Wildfire affects us all differently. This is the central message from research about the social dimensions of climate hazards.
Considerable research has calculated potential land area burned, counted the dollars spent in evacuation and recovery and proposed technical and infrastructural adaptation measures to cope with longer and more intense fire seasons.
However, less attention has been paid to how different groups of people are affected and the intangible social losses they experience.
As researchers working on gender, diversity and environment, we believe that to effectively address climate hazards like wildfire, we must consider the diverse experiences of people. We must also account for longstanding "taken for granted" institutions and create processes that empower local people to plan, respond and learn from their specific experiences.
The diverse experiences of wildfire
Over the past decade, we have conducted multiple projects in the boreal region of western Canada to learn how residents experience and plan for wildfire.
While governments and the media tend to focus on the economic losses of wildfire, community residents tend to focus on losses associated with mental and emotional well-being, social exclusions and the grief they experience from changes to the places and landscapes they love.
Even within small communities, such effects vary considerably according to peoples' gender, socio-economic status, Indigenous identity, age, their social networks and other characteristics. And many of these characteristics intersect with one another, resulting in diverse experiences of wildfire.
In other instances, men felt pressure to stay and fight the fires to protect their assets, despite the health and safety risks. Meanwhile community members were worried about how the fires would affect their sense of belonging to a place.
Other studies have similarly shown that people experience wildfire differently at various intersections of, for example, rural identity and gender, youth or age and Indigeneity and affluence and physical mobility.
These differences are influenced by the social institutions that shape our experiences, such as colonial legacies and gendered norms and expectations.
In the above example, the women's experiences of anxiety were influenced by legacies of harmful assimilative practices of residential schools and the Sixties Scoop, which forcibly removed Indigenous children from their families. This in addition to the ongoing inequalities and injustices that see Indigenous children over-represented in foster systems.
Masculine norms and expectations to be community protectors also often influence men's decisions to "stay and fight" during the event and create barriers to their willingness to access mental health assistance afterwards.
Institutions can help or hinder
Institutions we take for granted can exacerbate the secondary risks people face from wildfire events.
Top-down, command-and-control approaches to emergency management are often very effective in getting people out of immediate harm's way when wildfires draw near. But evacuation triage processes that prioritize physical health risks may result in the fragmentation of extended family support networks.
Realizing these gaps, Indigenous residents and their governments have often taken the initiative to offer culturally appropriate and timely provision of food, supplies, temporary residences and social supports for evacuees in addition to fighting the fires.
The "Rez Cross," hosted by Beardy's and Okemasis First Nation in Saskatchewan in 2015, is but one example.
While people are impacted by wildfire and evacuations in different ways, community members also have important knowledge—including information about the land, social context, cultural protocols, and local values—which is critical during and after wildfires and other extreme events.
In our studies, when residents spoke about the need to rebuild their communities, they meant much more than the physical bricks and mortar, calling for projects that demonstrate care for one another and learn from the past.
Learning from these experiences, we are now engaging in research that supports local people from diverse situations to work together to share experiences and knowledge related to wildfire impacts and to co-design effective local strategies.
This is hopeful work.
Working together builds resilience
Addressing climate change and climate hazards requires governments, community-based organizations and even private sector entities at all levels to fund and support communities.
This will help communities plan and adapt in ways that account for diversity of experience, address underlying social inequalities and draw on local strengths and knowledge.
An inclusive approach involves meaningful engagement processes with diverse groups of people within communities, facilitated by robust funding and social infrastructure, alongside a re-thinking of institutions or "rules in use" that are taken for granted.
By accounting for social dimensions in each of these contexts, we can help empower communities to leverage local innovation and strengthen their resilience in the face of climate hazards.
Provided by The Conversation | Not_Explicit |
This Is No Way to Teach History
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At the end of the week, the Florida Board of Education approved new standards for how American history should be taught to that state’s students in that state’s public school. This, of course, is a direct result of Governor Ron DeSantis’s “War On Woke,” on which he’s attempting to ride to the White House, but which the available evidence says won’t even get him to Cedar Rapids. However, the damage he can do to Florida is serious, deep, and ongoing. The new standards by which American history will be taught look as though they were devised by Strom Thurmond on some very good mushrooms. From CNN:
The new standards require instruction for middle school students to include “how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit,” a document listing the standards and posted in the Florida Department of Education website said. When high school students learn about events such as the 1920 Ocoee massacre, the new rules require that instruction include “acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans.” The massacre is considered the deadliest Election Day violence in US history and, according to several histories of the incident, it started when Moses Norman, a prominent Black landowner in the Ocoee, Florida, community, attempted to cast his ballot and was turned away by White poll workers. Similar standards are noted for lessons about other massacres, including the Atlanta race massacre, the Tulsa race massacre and the Rosewood race massacre.
I was particularly intrigued by the instruction that the curriculum include “acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans.” Given that the list provided by the Board is composed entirely of violence by white mobs against Black citizens — Tulsa, Rosewood, and the turn of the century race riots in Atlanta, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C. — this equivocation reeks of trying to apply the standards of Both Sides Do It to racial violence. Even if you count Nat Turner, and that’s very arguable, this is a preposterous way to teach history, but it’s a great way to teach profitable ignorance. I know that first-hand, about which more anon.
The only reason I can come up with for that curious “and by African Americans” equivocation is that it might distressingly be referring to attempts by the victims of those bloody episodes to fight back. For example, the Ocoee Massacre, which occurred on election day in 1920. Armed members of the Klan prevented Black citizens from voting. A man named Mose Norman was particularly insistent to the point that the Klan and its affiliates went looking for him at the home of July Perry, a influential man among Ocoee’s Black community. From the Florida History Blog:
The group’s leader, a military veteran and former police chief of Orlando named Sam Salisbury, knocked on the door of the wood-framed home. Perry knew they were cornered and reluctantly answered the door. The officer insisted that Perry must come with him, to which the 51-year-old replied, “Yes suh, boss, let me get my coat.” At that moment, Salisbury grabbed Perry by the arm and put him in a headlock, thinking he might run. Perry’s daughter Coretha responded by placing a rifle in the officer’s belly. Salisbury instinctively brushed the weapon aside. In that intense moment, the gun fired, shooting the officer in the right arm; he retreated out of the door and rolled on the ground to escape.
With only Perry’s family inside, a volley of gunfire erupted in both directions. Two of Salisbury’s men, Elmer McDaniels and Leo Borgard, were killed when they tried to storm the house by kicking in the backdoor. Coretha was also shot in the arm, possibly by a stray bullet from her father’s gun. Though the wound was not life-threatening, she had a scar for the rest of her life.
The story goes that the family so valiantly defended their home that some were convinced there was a large group inside. The mob retreated temporarily to get reinforcements and manpower from Klan members in surrounding cities.
The Perry family used the two or three-hour respite to escape the house. July had been seriously wounded during the incident and fled, with the help of his wife, into a nearby sugar cane patch. While her two young brothers hid in the barn, Coretha remained in the house to tend to her injuries alone.
By the time it was over, an estimated 58 Black citizens were dead, their community centers and churches were burned to the ground, and July Perry had been lynched on a telephone pole outside a country club. Now, this would be a helluva discussion topic in a history class — the role of violence in self-defense against oppressors. Was Coretha Perry right to draw down on the cops trying to haul her father away? Of course, to have that discussion, you would have to describe in some detail the oppression against which someone like Coretha Perry was defending herself. And that would be, I guess, “woke,” and we can’t have that.
Riding the "war on woke" straight to nowhere.
What’s really distressing to me is the knowledge that what DeSantis and his hirelings on the Board of Education are attempting to bring back is the truncated, bloodless American history that I was taught in elementary and in high school. I am the product of 11 years of Catholic education — seven with the Sisters of St. Joseph and four with the Xaverian Brothers. I treasure what I learned from all of them. (I still remember the day in sixth grade when Sr. Marie de Paul told me, “Charles, maybe you should be a writer when you grow up.” Made it, Sis! Top of the world!) But the history they taught left an awful lot out. All of the European history I learned was tangled up with an equally pale version of Church history.
(Why did I have to wait to be almost 40 to learn about the Cadaver Synod, perhaps my favorite historical event of all time?)
American history taught me that Manifest Destiny was largely an unusually clever land deal and that indigenous people were natural obstacles to it, like rivers or coyotes. The Civil War was about a clash of economic systems, and a dispute over states rights. Reconstruction was a matter of carpetbaggers and scalawags looting the defeated South. We skipped from the Industrial Revolution (America is on the move!) to World War I (A noble cause) to the Depression to World War II. And then everything went sideways while dealing with the Soviet Union. It wasn’t until I got to my senior year in high school, with the Vietnam debacle at high tide and some of the Xaverian Brothers having turned hippie on us in the wake of Vatican II, that it was intimated that the United States had lost quite a bit of its mind over Communism.
I’ve been filling in the gaps ever since, all the way through college and beyond. I have found American history to be richer and fuller and, God knows, more ambiguous in its morality than I was led to believe. (In college, I took a history course from a professor who taught the American Revolution from the British perspective. It was like a bucket of cold water in my face every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but I stood by my ancestors and refused to rise when he played God Save The Queen.) I now know as much about Denmark Vesey and Crazy Horse as I do about Paul Revere and Ulysses Grant. And I am so much the better for it.
The Carlise Indian School in 1901. Native American children were shipped off to boarding schools operating on the principle of, “Kill the Indian. Save the man,” and some of them never came back.
Woman, said I, I’ve heard that every fellow in this place is called Jams O’Donnell. If that’s the way it is, it’s a wonderful world we have and isn’t O’Donnell a wonderful man and the number of children he has.
— Flann O’Brien, The Poor Mouth (An Beal Bocht)
Bonaparte O’Coonassa, the hapless hero of the novel, is beaten with an oar on his first day of school by a schoolmaster who insists Bonaparte’s name is Jams O’Donnell. It turns out that he has insisted this was the case for every child in the benighted burg of Corkadoragha. Erasure of this sort is the first tool of colonial oppression. There are very few African Americans who know what their true family names are. Native American children were shipped off to boarding schools operating on the principle of, “Kill the Indian. Save the man,” and some of them never came back. Throughout my adult life, talented historians have worked to fill in the gaps in our common humanity that were torn by centuries of colonial oppression. It was an energizing process of simple validation through understanding and empathy. Plus, it was absolutely fascinating. And now it is under direct assault by the likes of Ron DeSantis and his pet Board of Education, who evidently want to take our future generation back to the amnesiac history that people of my generation were taught.
This is a threat to freedom, exactly the kind of “tyranny over the mind of man” that Thomas Jefferson swore eternal hostility “on the altar of God.” And, thanks to those historians — like, for example, the great Annette Gordon-Reed — that DeSantis wants to ignore, we have a better idea of TJ’s deeply flawed humanity and we are better for it. As the Irish playwright Brian Friel wrote in his masterful Translations, his play about colonial erasure of the Irish language and culture.
It is not the literal past, the ‘facts’ of history, that shape us, but images of the past embodied in language…we must never cease renewing those images; because once we do, we fossilize.
Republicans Will Turn Any Anodyne Bit of Congressional Business Into Performative Hatred
Thursday Was a Total Crackpot Day on Capitol Hill
Even a Whistleblower Hasn't Stopped Greg Abbott's Inhumanity in the Rio Grande
Trump's Lawyers Just Argued That Paying Hush Money to Stormy Daniels Was All Part of the Job
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Israeli CEOs Ditch The C-Suite To Lead Anti-Government Protests
Israel’s anti-government protest movement, the largest in the nation’s history, has taken over the streets for seven months.
(Bloomberg) -- Sixteen members of a roving paid workforce. A volunteer steering committee of former military chiefs of staff, public-relations gurus and top-tier lawyers who speak daily. A budget in the tens of millions of dollars.
Israel’s anti-government protest movement, the largest in the nation’s history, has taken over the streets for seven months since plans emerged to weaken the power of the courts. On Saturday night, they again brought hundreds of thousands out. But they are not radicals neglected by the establishment — they are the establishment. And they are using traditional symbols like the flag to fight the populist policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“This is the backbone of Israeli society — people who’ve founded companies and headed large organizations,” says Shikma Bressler, a physicist and protest leader. “Some have carried out special military operations.”
“People arrested on the streets include CEOs of unicorns,” she adds, referring to the term for a startup valued at more than $1 billion.
Five other activists with inside knowledge gave behind-the-scenes details on condition of anonymity.
They estimate that 270 groups are active, involving some 800,000 individuals. They’ve deployed scores of photography drones, mobilized late-night operations to wrap monuments with slogan-filled banners, and sent out thousands of women dressed in the red capes and white bonnets of the Margaret Atwood novel “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
They succeeded in stopping Netanyahu’s right-wing religious government from rushing the entire judicial overhaul through the Knesset, as the parliament is known. With the government preparing to pass at least one key change, the movement is calculating its next steps.
Netanyahu’s plans have unnerved global investors, with Israel’s stocks, bonds and currency performing badly this year relative to similar assets in other countries. The US has also criticized the overhaul.
“We will have to direct our efforts against actions that will become possible under the new law,” says Bressler.
Her grassroots group, known as the “Kaplan Force,” after a street in central Tel Aviv that has hosted the weekly Saturday night demonstrations, is the largest. And she’s become the face of the movement.
She’s not new to the demonstration business. She led anti-corruption protests against Netanyahu starting in 2019. That meant that when the judicial overhaul arose seven months ago, the group had a solid infrastructure for getting people onto the streets.
There are 140 sectoral or professional groups of military reservists, high-tech executives, women’s-rights activists, doctors and lawyers. At the Saturday night protests, they occupy the same spot, like at a farmers’ market. Some 130 additional groups organize local demonstrations across the country.
The groups are independent, with their own WhatsApp groups and agendas, but they quickly realized they needed funding and collaboration. This is how protest headquarters came about.
“Free in Our Country”
The oversight group goes by the name “Hofshi b’artzenu,” a Hebrew quote from Israel’s national anthem meaning “Free in our country.” Its 16 employees are full and part time and rotate among donated workspaces in different high-tech offices. The chief executive officer is Eran Schwartz, a former air force pilot and deputy general manager at the Ministry for Social Equality. Another employee is Daria Shaked Henig, a former venture investor dedicated to promoting women in Silicon Valley.
The team is overseen by a steering committee. Some are household names in Israel: Dan Halutz and Moshe Ya’alon, both former military chiefs of staff; Dina Zilber, aformer deputy to the attorney general; Gilead Sher, a top lawyer; and Yossi Kucik, a business consultant. Sher and Kucik both worked for former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who’s attended some of the protests.
Others include top business leaders such as Orni Petrushka, one of Israeli high tech’s founding fathers; Zohar Levkovitz, a tech entrepreneur and venture investor; Ilan Shiloah, former CEO and chairman of Israel’s largest advertising firm; and Itay Ben Horin, owner and CEO of a major public relations firm.
Hedge Funders Drive Protests in Battle Over Israeli High Court
They hold weekly meetings to discuss trends and provide the organizations’ back-office services that mainly involve funding allocations, strategic planning and legal assistance — so far, they say, 800 protesters have been arrested.
The high-powered nature of the protesters can cause friction. There are frequent disagreements on tone or direction. One of the steering committee’s main roles is to make peace and keep the movement united.
The operation’s funding, estimated in the low tens of millions of dollars, is provided by private donors and crowd sourcing. Committee members say 90% of donors are Israeli, and they don’t accept money from governments or politically affiliated organizations. The money is channeled through a nonprofit called “Future Blue and White,” established by Sher and Petrushka in 2009 to promote Israeli democracy and the two-state solution with Palestinians.
Elite Reservists
The street protests rely heavily on elite military reservists. Last spring, what stopped the overhaul in its tracks was an increasing number of combat-pilot reservists threatening to stop volunteering. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said security was at risk and called for the legislation to stop.
Now that a law barring judges from declaring government action “unreasonable” is headed for final passage in the Knesset, reservists — who play a key part in military operations — are once again vowing to get involved. On Friday, 1,142 Air Force reservists, including 422 pilots, signed a letter saying they’d abstain from volunteering if the bill becomes law.
Ten thousand other reservists issued a similar threat on Saturday. Gallant hasn’t backed them but there have been last-minute talks on a possible compromise. It’s a game of intense brinkmanship.
If the current bill does pass, attention will turn to whether the government advances a second part of the judicial overhaul, to ensure judge selections are driven more by political parties.
Bressler, the physicist, says, if so, the protests will adjust — but not stop.
“No one knows in what way this will manifest itself in Israel,” she said. “It’s unfathomable, but the whole reality now is unfathomable.”
©2023 Bloomberg L.P. | Not_Explicit |
Russia Blames Ukraine for "Terrorist" Drone Attack in Moscow
The Russian Ministry of Defense has accused Ukraine of carrying out an attempted "terrorist attack" in Moscow earlier today. According to the ministry's statement posted on Telegram, two Ukrainian drones targeted the Russian capital, but their attack was thwarted. The drones were reportedly "suppressed and crashed" before they could cause any casualties. Moscow's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, confirmed that the attack struck two non-residential buildings.
Escalating Tensions Amid Ongoing Hostilities
In the wake of the alleged drone attack in Moscow, tensions between Russia and Ukraine have escalated further. Ukraine has not yet officially responded to the accusations made by the Russian authorities.
Odesa Airstrike Deepens Conflict
This incident comes just a day after the beleaguered port city of Odesa in Ukraine faced a deadly Russian airstrike. The attack resulted in the loss of at least one life and left 22 others injured. The Odesa attack caused significant damage to a grain depot and the Spaso-Preobrazhenskyi Cathedral, a revered cultural heritage site in the region.
Rising Concerns Over Black Sea Grain Deal
Ukrainian officials have reported that Russia's departure from the UN-brokered Black Sea grain deal contributed to rising tensions in the region. The deal had facilitated the safe export of Ukrainian agricultural products to global markets, but Russia pulled out of the agreement, leading to disruptions in the flow of Ukrainian supplies.
International Efforts for Support
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been actively seeking support from the international community amid the ongoing hostilities. He recently thanked NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg for convening the first meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council, where Black Sea security and humanitarian corridors for agricultural exports were expected to be discussed.
Counteroffensive and Denials from Russia
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly acknowledged Ukraine's counteroffensive during talks with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, describing it as having "failed." However, the Russian Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to media inquiries regarding these claims.
Global Concerns and Vigilance
As the situation continues to escalate, global concerns over the Black Sea region's stability and rising food prices persist. The international community remains vigilant and closely monitors the developments on the ground. | Not_Explicit |
A nuclear-propelled U.S. submarine has arrived in South Korea in the second deployment of a major U.S. naval asset to the Korean Peninsula this month, South Korea’s military said Monday, adding to the allies' show of force to counter North Korean nuclear threats.
The USS Annapolis arrived at a port on Jeju Island about a week after the USS Kentucky docked at the mainland port of Busan.
The Kentucky was the first U.S. nuclear-armed submarine to come to South Korea since the 1980s. North Korea reacted to its arrival by test-firing ballistic and cruise missiles in apparent demonstrations that it could make nuclear strikes against South Korea and deployed U.S. naval vessels.
In between those launches, North Korea’s defense minister issued a veiled threat insisting the Kentucky’s docking in South Korea could be grounds for the North to use a nuclear weapon against it. North Korea has used similar rhetoric before, but the statement underscored how much relations are strained now.
The Annapolis, whose main mission is destroying enemy ships and submarines, is powered by a nuclear reactor but is armed with conventional weapons. The Annapolis mainly docked at Jeju to load supplies, but Jang Do Young, a spokesperson of South Korea’s navy, said the U.S. and South Korean militaries were discussing whether to arrange training involving the vessel.
Meanwhile, North Korea remained publicly silent on an American soldier, Private Travis King, who crossed the border last Tuesday. U.S. officials have expressed concern about his well-being and said North Korea has been ignoring their requests to provide basic information about King, including where he’s being detained and what his condition is.
Analysts say North Korea wait weeks or even months to provide meaningful information about King to maximize leverage and add urgency to U.S. efforts to secure his release. Some say North Korea may try to wrest concessions from Washington, such as tying his release to the United States cutting back its military activities with South Korea.
The United States and South Korea have been expanding their combined military exercises and increasing regional deployments of U.S. strategic assets bombers, aircraft carriers and submarines in a show of force against North Korea, which has test-fired around 100 missiles since the start of 2022. | Not_Explicit |
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Thursday said that the Chinese communist regime "bears responsibility" for helping tackle the fentanyl crisis in the U.S. – pointing to areas in which China can assist the U.S. in stopping the drug getting into the country.
Mayorkas was asked at the Aspen Security Forum about whether China bears some responsibility for the U.S. fentanyl crisis, given that the precursor chemicals originate there.
"The precursor chemicals, many of which have legal use, the precursor chemicals, the pill presses that are used to manufacture fentanyl, it's extremely easy to manufacture, it's extremely quick, it's easy to conceal," he said. "We seized vertical, long vertical candles that were hollowed out with pills. China bears responsibility. We need their assistance in interdicting the chemicals and pill presses that are going in volumes that don't reflect legitimate use."
Illicit fentanyl is typically created in Mexico by cartels in labs with the use of precursors shipped over from China. The U.S. has called for an international coalition to combat the crisis and has appealed for help from both China and Mexico.
The drug is 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine and is often cut with other drugs and pressed into pills, meaning that the user doesn’t know they are ingesting fentanyl. It kills more than 70,000 Americans a year.
The amount of drugs seized at the southern border has shot up to more than 22,000 pounds so far this fiscal year, up from 14,000 pounds in fiscal year 2022 and just 5,600 pounds in fiscal year 2020.
Republicans have said the amount of fentanyl being seized is a consequence of the border crisis bringing more drugs and migrants to the border. The administration has touted the increase in seizures as a sign of the success of its efforts in increasing detection. Mayorkas on Thursday said that "some have used the border as a cudgel and conflated migration and the trafficking of fentanyl" but noted that the majority of seizures happen at ports of entry.
Mayorkas said he recently visited JFK International Airport in New York City and saw the number of small packages stopped that contained drugs and firearms.
"We are addressing the supply side from an enforcement perspective. We are harnessing artificial intelligence to advance our capacity to interdict drugs, to be able to see anomalies in passenger vehicles, commercial trucks. I will say the creativity of the smugglers is extraordinary," he said. "And yet our ingenuity in building response protocols is also extraordinary."
The U.S. isn’t the only country to put pressure on the Chinese to do more to tackle the fentanyl threat. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to do more this year in a letter in which he couldn’t resist taking a shot at American politicians critical of his own handling of the cartels that are running rampant in Mexico.
"I write to you, President Xi Jinping, not to ask your help on these rude threats, but to ask you for humanitarian reasons to help us by controlling the shipments of fentanyl," he said.
Fox News' Aubrie Spady contributed to this report. | Not_Explicit |
It just happened to be in front of the biggest crowd ever to watch a women’s soccer match in Australia, a record 75,784. She just happened to be replacing Australia’s all-time leading scorer, Sam Kerr. The country name on the opposing jerseys just happened to be her father’s homeland.
“I feel ready, and everyone feels ready, so whoever is out there you know what you need to do and when you get out there you just play,” Fowler said after Thursday’s 1-0 victory over Ireland, which was making its tournament debut.
The 20-year-old Fowler was a replacement in the starting lineup for star striker Kerr, who was ruled out of the tournament co-host's opening match because of a calf muscle injury sustained in practice the previous day.
While the news of Kerr’s injury was announced publicly only an hour before kick-off, the team knew about the situation Wednesday night.
“I obviously feel for Sam, because it’s such a big tournament and she means so much to this team and this country,” Fowler said.
Fowler was born in Cairns in the far northeast of Australia, but played on Ireland’s youth national teams throughout her childhood. She never got a call-up to the Irish senior team.
Having an Irish father allowed her to play for either national team until appearing in a competitive match for one of them.
When she was 15, the Matildas gave her a chance at the senior level and all but secured her allegiance. That match was not a competitive one, so Ireland was still in the mix for Fowler's representative future. But the Irish federation could not convince her to switch back.
Since then, Fowler has scored 10 goals and earned 38 caps for Australia, with Thursday’s the most significant of those.
Fowler played 84 minutes against Ireland before being replaced by veteran Clare Polkinghorne. She had some skillful dribbling runs past Irish defenders but wasn't able to create a goal-scoring opportunity for the Matildas like she did in a warmup win the previous week against France.
“It’s nice to be able to put the Aussie jersey on, but feel connected to the Irish side,” Fowler said.
She’s played against Ireland once before, when she scored twice in a 3-2 loss in a 2021 friendly.
Fowler plays her club football for Manchester City in the English Women’s Super League, where she tallied five goals and two assists in 19 games in all competitions this season.
Kerr will be evaluated by team medical experts again after the Matildas’ second group-stage match against Nigeria, meaning there'll be at least one more game where somebody has to start in her absence.
So Fowler has time to shine, and make a name for herself on the biggest stage of all.
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Clay Witt is a student at the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
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AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | Not_Explicit |
Russia's ambassador to the United States has told Newsweek that Moscow is preparing to boost strategic ties with African nations in line with an emerging new international order as President Vladimir Putin prepares to host most of the continent's leaders for a summit later this week.
The gathering will come amid Western accusations that Russia is weaponizing food exports after Moscow pulled out of a grain deal and struck Ukrainian ports in a war that just entered its 18th month.
"Russia has rich and long-standing relations with African countries," Ambassador Anatoly Antonov told Newsweek. "Nowadays we intend to give an additional impetus to these ties and elevate them to a brand-new level."
This concept, he argued, "stands behind the Second Russia-Africa Summit, which will take place on July 27-28 in Saint Petersburg," the second of its kind since the debut event was held October 2019 in Sochi. Since then, Russia has maintained robust relations across much of Africa, even as a largely Western coalition of nations backing Kyiv seek to isolate Moscow on the world stage.
The upcoming summit will serve as an opportunity to showcase Russia's staying power in this part of the Global South amid a shift in a broader shift in global geopolitics.
"We look forward to developing the mutually beneficial strategic partnership with the countries of the continent at a time when a multipolar world order is taking shape," Antonov said.
While located far from the frontlines of the conflict raging in Ukraine, many African nations have been impacted directly by the war. Russia and Ukraine together account for nearly a third of global exports of critical grains such as wheat and barley, deliveries of which have been disrupted due to active fighting in Ukraine and Western sanctions against Russia.
A deal forged a year ago under the auspices of Türkiye and the United Nations, through which a rare mutual buy-in from Moscow and Kyiv was secured, allowed for the continued to export of grains from Ukrainian docks. However, Russia terminated the agreement last week, arguing that the arrangement did not sufficiently allow for Russia to export its own food and fertilizer as a result of ongoing sanctions.
In a statement published to the Kremlin's website and shared with Newsweek by the Russian Embassy to the United States on Sunday, Putin recited this reasoning and argued that the initiative ended up being "shamelessly used solely for the enrichment of large US and European businesses that exported and resold grain from Ukraine" rather than serving its initial humanitarian purpose.
The Russian leader also offered to replace the Ukrainian supply with Russia's own exports as food security is set to be a major topic in Saint Petersburg.
"I want to give assurances that our country is capable of replacing the Ukrainian grain both on a commercial and free-of-charge basis, especially as we expect another record harvest this year," Putin said. "Notwithstanding the sanctions, Russia will continue its energetic efforts to provide supplies of grain, food products, fertilizers and other goods to Africa."
Putin also took the opportunity to highlight growing ties with African countries, naming a number of initiatives in trade, education and other fields, while noting that "the potential of our trade and economic partnership is much higher." He noted potential cooperation "in the sphere of high technologies and geological exploration, in the fuel and energy complex, including nuclear power, in the chemical industry, mining and transport engineering, agriculture and fishery."
He touted his administration's efforts "to prepare an impressive package of intergovernmental and inter‑agency agreements and memoranda with individual states as well as regional associations of the continent" during the upcoming summit.
And he too referenced the rise of "a new multipolar world order," which he said "will be more just and democratic." He asserted that "there is no doubt that Africa, along with Asia, the Middle East and Latin America, will take its worthy place in it and finally free itself from the bitter legacy of colonialism and neo-colonialism, rejecting its modern practices."
Newsweek has reached out to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and U.S. State Department for comment.
African countries have also stepped up their diplomacy around the ongoing conflict. As previewed by Newsweek, a delegation of six African heads of state hailing from Egypt, the Republic of the Congo, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia traveled to both Moscow and Kyiv last month in a bid to advance Russia-Ukraine peace talks.
Weeks earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also appeared in South Africa alongside the African nation's foreign minister and top diplomats from Brazil, China and India for a BRICS ministerial. Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev also traveled to South Africa to attend the economic quintet's security meeting on Monday, when he accused the West of using "any means—from unilateral sanctions to waging hybrid wars—in an attempt to preserve its hegemonic global position."
But it would be Lavrov again who represented Russia in person at next month's BRICS leader's summit, with Putin instead appearing via video link amid a controversy over whether South Africa would be legally obliged to arrest Putin in line with an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant issued in March over war crime allegations related to the war in Ukraine.
South Africa and Ukraine are parties to the ICC's founding Rome Statue, while neither Russia nor the U.S. is. Washington has nonetheless welcomed the ICC decision and has increasingly criticized Moscow's inroads to Africa, including in security affairs.
Russia's security cooperation in Africa has been highlighted not only by official bilateral agreements but also the presence of the Wagner Group, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin. While the private military company's future remains uncertain following Prigozhin's abortive uprising last month, U.S. officials have accused Russia and the Wagner Group of influencing Mali's decision to withdraw consent for United Nations Peacekeepers just weeks later.
Mali is one of several nations in which growing support for Russia has manifested amid heightened frustration over the presence of Western powers, especially France, which has increasingly withdrawn its troops from the continent.
U.S. officials have also sought to counter Russia's narrative on food security as the war in Ukraine continues with no clear end in sight.
When Russian ambassador-at-large and head of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum Oleg Ozerov told Newsweek in May of "unprecedented momentum" in shoring up Russia-Africa relations, a U.S. State Department spokesperson argued that "Russia's unprovoked war against Ukraine has exacerbated the increase of food and commodity prices—especially wheat, fertilizer and cooking oil—just as African economies are striving to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, deadly drought, and the growing impact of the climate crisis on agriculture and food systems."
The State Department spokesperson told Newsweek at the time that U.S. officials "are confident that our partners will see through Russia's cynical attempts at disinformation and focus on the lives lost and the misery Russia's needless war has inflicted both on the people of Ukraine and also on vulnerable people far beyond Ukraine due to the war's exacerbation of food insecurity."
But, like Ozerov and Antonov, Putin expressed his own confidence that Moscow's message would resound at the upcoming gathering in Saint Petersburg.
"I am looking forward to welcoming the African leaders in St. Petersburg and stand committed to a fruitful constructive dialogue," Putin said in his statement Sunday. "I firmly believe that the decisions adopted at the Summit and Forum, coupled with continuous diversified joint work will contribute to further development of Russian‑African strategic partnership for the benefit of our countries and peoples." | Not_Explicit |
Russia’s parliament has voted to raise the maximum age at which men can be conscripted to 30 from 27, increasing the number of young men liable for a year of compulsory military service.
The bill comes as Moscow seeks to replenish its forces on the frontline in Ukraine without resorting to another mobilisation – a step the Kremlin took last September which proved unpopular.
“From January 1, 2024, citizens aged 18 to 30 will be called up for military service,” the lower house of parliament said after the bill was passed in a second and third reading.
The law also prohibits conscripts from leaving the country once the enlistment office has sent them their draft notice.
The bill still has to be approved by the upper chamber and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, steps that are considered a formality.
Previously, one year of military service was mandatory in Russia for men aged 18 to 27 with conscription carried out twice a year. Lawmakers also said they were dropping an initial proposal to gradually shift the conscription age to between 21 and 30.
“The wording of the draft law changed because the demographic situation is serious and affects the volume of the mobilisation resource,” Andrei Kartapolov, head of the Duma’s defence affairs committee, told the Interfax news agency.
Also on Tuesday, the Duma passed a bill significantly increasing fines for those who fail to show up at an enlistment office after a draft notice is received. They will be risking a fine of up to 30,000 rubles (about $330) when the law comes into force on 1 October. The maximum fine is currently 3,000 rubles.
The legislation passed on Tuesday also gives Russian governors the power to set up regional paramilitary units during periods of mobilisation or martial law. These units would be funded and armed by the state and given the right to shoot down drones, fight enemy sabotage groups and conduct counter-terrorist operations.
In 2022, Russia announced a plan to boost its professional and conscripted combat personnel by more than 30% to 1.5 million, an ambitious task made harder by its heavy but undisclosed casualties in Ukraine. In September, tens of thousands of men fled Russia last autumn after Putin announced a mobilisation of 300,000 reservists to prop up Moscow’s forces in Ukraine.
In April, Russian lawmakers adopted a law creating a digital conscription notice system. It allowed call-up papers to be served online instead of in person, greatly facilitating the mobilisation of Russians into the army.
Compulsory military service has long been a sensitive issue in Russia, where many men go to great lengths to avoid being handed conscription papers during the twice-yearly call-up periods.
Conscripts cannot legally be deployed to fight outside Russia and were in theory exempted from the September mobilisation – although some conscripts were sent to the front in error.
However, Russia unilaterally claimed four Ukrainian regions as its own last September, in a move not recognised internationally, fuelling fears that raw conscripts could now legally be sent into battle.
Agence France-Presse and Reuters contributed to this report | Not_Explicit |
SINGAPORE/HONG KONG/LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) - China's property sector crisis escalated again on Friday as a sharp fall in the shares and bonds of one of the country's biggest developers, Country Garden (2007.HK), capped a turbulent week for the long-troubled sector.
News that the firm, which has thousands of projects in nearly 300 Chinese cities, had moved to refinance part of a 2019 loan facility sent its Hong Kong-listed shares (2007.HK) down more than 5% and left its bonds close to record lows hit late last year.
"That doesn't get them completely out of the woods," said one Country Garden bondholder, who declined to be identified, adding that the developer was facing a further batch of bonds payments in coming months.
Raymond Cheng, head of China research at CGS-CIMB Securities, delivered a similar warning and said it was part of the broader issue of the government's approach to the crisis.
"If sales don't improve people will worry about the repayment ability for developers like Country Garden who have large exposure in smaller cities," Cheng said.
"Country Garden is a top developer in terms of sales. If it defaulted it would send a very bad signal to the market that the central government does not care (about) more developers going down and has no plan to bail out."
It has been another week of unsettling news in the property market in China. The sector has been on a downward trend that accelerated during the COVID pandemic, with home sales slumping and the government moving to rein in unsustainable borrowing built up during a decade-long building boom.
Other high-profile, but debt-strained China firms, including Dalian Wanda Group and state-backed Sino-Ocean (3377.HK), have also seen sizable sell-offs this week amid a flurry of major rating downgrades.
Analysts at ANZ said the worst may not be over either with the sector facing $12.8 billion of dollar-denominated bond repayments before the end of the year, they estimated.
"New measures, while helpful, are no panacea for the sector’s woes. Other efforts are needed to boost buyers’ sentiment about the long-term trajectory of the property market," they added.
Country Garden, which declined to comment on Friday's selloff, is one of China's top market players and its troubles are adding to the pressure for Beijing to provide additional support to the property sector, which previously accounted for around a quarter of China's economic output.
JPMorgan's analysts said Country Garden's loan refinancing was "marginally credit positive" as a large part of the outstanding amount was being rolled into a new 30-month term instead of facing immediate repayment.
"That said, the onshore operating environment remains challenging for the developers, especially with no indication of relaxation of escrow account supervision," they said.
This week's other main problems in the sector, at Dalian Wanda Group, another of China's most high-profile conglomerates, Sino-Ocean (3377.HK) and the second default in just over a year by state-backed Greenland (600606.SS), have also unnerved investors.
Wanda, owned by China's once-richest man Wang Jianlin, has $400 million bond payment due at its key property unit, Dalian Wanda Commercial Management (DWCM), on Monday. Rating agencies Moody's and S&P Global are uncertain it will make it.
Wanda was one of the few private firms to have navigated the property crash of the past three years. DWCM had even managed to sell bonds earlier this year, in what was seen as an encouraging step for the sector.
Friday's selloff saw Country Garden's bonds <XS2051371222=TE> , fall to between 17 and 21 cents on the dollar - around of a fifth of their face value. Its onshore bonds , slumped roughly 30% each.
"Country Garden is in great difficulties," said Yao Yu, founder of credit analysis firm Ratingdog, adding that it had more than 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) of debt due in the next two months.
Wanda Commercial's bonds, which have plunged over 70% this year also slipped, leaving them at less than a quarter of their original face value.
Since the crisis began to snowball in 2020 a total of around $120 billion worth of Chinese property debt has defaulted, JPMorgan estimates.
The bank's analysts expect another $9 billion of defaults this year. That does not include Country Garden, which has over $40 billion of debt, although the analysts say it is likely to need the government to provide fresh support to the sector.
($1 = 7.1807 Chinese yuan renminbi)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. | Not_Explicit |
The biggest Women's World Cup ever kicked off in Australia and New Zealand earlier this week with wins for both of the host nations.
For the first time, the women's version of FIFA's tournament has 32 teams participating, following the format of the men's competition for the past 25 years.
It comprises 64 matches across five time zones in nine cities, culminating with the final in Sydney on August 20.
On Saturday, England kick off their campaign with a match against Haiti in Brisbane at 7:30pm local time (10:30am BST).
MailOnline has taken a look at the innovations underpinning the player and fan experience this year, including AI-powered limb-tracking, a new video assistant referee procedure and a Web3 prediction game.
Some people love it and some people hate it – but controversial video assistant refereeing (VAR) is present at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.
VAR refers to a team of people behind the scenes watching instant video replays of the action at multiple angles to gain insights that may have been missed by the referee.
The VAR team advise the ref on key decisions, although opponents of the system argue that this often interrupts the flow of a match.
For Australia and New Zealand 2023, there is a 19-member video refereeing team, which, for the first time, includes six women.
But also this year there is a major update to how VAR decisions are relayed to the crowd.
Taking its lead from the NFL, VAR decisions are being explained by the referee to spectators, for the first time at an international football tournament.
When a decision is made based on info from the VAR team – such as overturning a red card or awarding a penalty – the ref speaks into a microphone to explain.
Her voice is broadcast over the stadium's loudspeaker, letting people in the crowd and at home in front of their TVs know what's going on.
Already, during New Zealand's opening match against Norway, the new system was used to award a penalty, which was subsequently missed by the co-hosts.
Usually, VAR decisions are accompanied by descriptions on the stadium's big screens – but these tend to be very brief and can cause confusion.
Speaking back in February, Pierluigi Collina, chairman of FIFA's referee committee, said: 'We decided to have this trial because we received some requests to make the decision taken by the referee after a VAR intervention more understandable for all.
'There are other experiences in other sports, namely the NFL in American football, who have been doing this for quite a long time.
'It seems that the referees are pretty comfortable with this.'
Live VAR decisions were trialed at the men's Club World Cup in February before coming to the Women's World Cup.
Semi-automated offside technology is a clever AI-powered system that helps match officials come to the right decision quickly – without causing frustrating delays to gameplay.
The technology tracks players' limbs to detect if they're in an offside position and sends an alert to the video assistant referee (VAR).
So how does it work?
All 10 stadiums at Australia and New Zealand 2023 have 12 cameras installed that collect data on up to 29 data points on every player's body 50 times per second.
These data points spread from the tips of a player's feet, to their arms and the top of their head.
Using footage from the cameras, AI tracks when exactly a pass was made and what position an attacking player was in, relative to the defending players.
It determines if any part of the player was offside in half a second and then send an alert to the VAR operator, who can validate and confirm the information and notify the referee.
Semi-automated offside technology is akin to goal-line technology, except that the cameras continuously track moving objects rather than the static goal line
It was successfully used at the men's World Cup in Qatar last year and the FIFA Club World Cup final in February.
For the first time at a Women's World Cup, the official football comes with smart 'connected ball technology'.
The ball, called OCEAUNZ, has a sensor placed in its centre that provides 'unprecedented insight' into every element of the movement of the ball.
Held aloft in the middle of the ball by a suspension system, the sensor sends data to the video operation room 500 times per second, allowing a precise detection of its location when kicked.
The connected ball works in tandem with semi-automated offside technology to ensure that the position of the ball, as well as the players, can be accurately judged during crucial moments.
It is also powered by a rechargeable battery that's charged by induction – the same type of wireless power transfer used for smartphones.
OCEAUNZ also has a polyurethane skin with 'micro and macro textures' and a 20-piece panel exterior to enhance aerodynamics.
Its blue and white design have been inspired by the unique natural landscapes of the two host nations, according to FIFA – white for the vast mountains of Aotearoa New Zealand and blue for Australia's connection with the Indian Ocean.
An official online game called Own the Zone has been specially created this World Cup for fans to predict all the action prior to each match's kick-off.
After signing up with a few details, users pick a team that's about to play a match and predict which quarter of the pitch certain actions will take place.
For example, it may ask, 'What will Canada do most often in zone 1?' and users can make four predictions from 13 options, including cross, tackle, intercept and foul.
Correct predictions reward fans with points as well as unique World Cup-themed digital collectibles known as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Those who earn enough points will be entered into a global leaderboard – and have the chance to win a 'money can't buy' prize.
The free game is the creation of OTZ Sports, a 'Web3' company that uses blockchain technology to power digital ownership and rewards.
Web3 is the third stage of evolution of the web, incorporating blockchains, digital currencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and user-owned content.
An incredible ad made by Orange, an official partner of the French women's team, has already fooled thousands of fans in the lead-up to the competition.
During the first minute of the clip, the viewer is made to think they are watching the dazzling skills of male stars such as Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappé.
But it then reveals the action was actually performed by female players – with the likeness of the men's team superimposed using CGI.
It was widely praised online as 'magnificent' and 'genius' for suggesting the women's game is as exciting as the men's – and how preconceptions make us think otherwise.
The ad was made for Orange by artificial intelligence company Marcel, although according to the firm it used frame-by-frame VFX software, not AI.
'Essentially, we searched for action images of the French women's team, created our montage, and once we were satisfied with the female version, we searched for similar images of the male French team for each action and shot,' VFX artist Nicolas Vogel told Red Shark News.
'After all this visual research, the VFX team worked on each image individually to change the bodies. It involved only masking and tracking, so there's no deepfake or AI involved.'
ChatGPT reveals its ultimate Women's World Cup line-up - but do you agree? When asked by MailOnline for an ultimate Women's World Cup line-up for 2023, the AI chatbot returned the following in a 4-3-3 formation: Alyssa Naeher (United States). ChatGPT says: 'A reliable and talented goalkeeper who has proven herself at the international level, with excellent shot-stopping abilities and strong leadership on the field.' Lucy Bronze (England) - ChatGPT says: 'A dynamic right-back with exceptional defensive skills and the ability to contribute to the attack. Wendie Renard (France) - ChatGPT says: 'A commanding centre-back known for her aerial prowess and leadership on the field.' Millie Bright (England) - ChatGPT says: 'A solid center-back with great positioning and tackling abilities. Crystal Dunn (United States) - ChatGPT says: 'A versatile left-back who can also play in midfield, known for her speed and defensive acumen.' Julie Ertz (United States) - ChatGPT says: 'A defensive midfielder with excellent ball-winning abilities and a strong presence in midfield.' Rose Lavelle (United States) - ChatGPT says: 'A talented and creative midfielder known for her dribbling skills, vision, and ability to score crucial goals.' Sam Kerr (Australia) - ChatGPT says: 'A dynamic midfielder/forward with a lethal goal-scoring instinct and great aerial ability.' Alex Morgan (United States) - ChatGPT says: 'A prolific striker known for her goal-scoring ability and poise in front of the goal. Marta (Brazil) - ChatGPT says: 'A legendary forward with exceptional dribbling skills and a knack for creating scoring opportunities. Pernille Harder (Denmark) - ChatGPT says: 'A skillful and versatile forward known for her ability to score goals and set up her teammates.' | Not_Explicit |
BYD Auto Co. of China has been denied permission to invest US$1 billion in India
India is becoming a popular investment destination for businesses from all over the world. The market is the driving force behind India’s rise as an investment destination. Recently, India surpassed the United Kingdom to become the world’s fifth-largest economy. Besides, India become a US$ 3.75 trillion economy last month.
As India’s economy grows to be a $5 trillion dollar economy around the end of this year and chip manufacturing hub, several Chinese enterprises are drawn to the Indian market. To capitalize on the possibility to benefit from the Indian market, Chinese EV automaker BYD Co. planned to invest in India’s EV industry and to develop a factory in India in collaboration with Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd.
The organization submitted its proposal to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) for that purpose. Following receipt of that proposal, DPIIT solicited feedback from other government departments on the investment plan, however, the proposal was outrightly rejected by the Government of India.
India rejected the proposal, citing security concerns in India’s internal affairs, as well as the fact that India’s present norms do not permit such investment.
BYD Auto Co., headquartered in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China, is the automobile subsidiary of the publicly traded Chinese multinational manufacturer BYD Company. BYD Auto produces passenger automobiles, buses, lorries, electric bicycles, forklifts, and rechargeable batteries. The company surpassed Tesla, the American EV manufacturing behemoth, as the world’s largest electric vehicle maker in June 2022, stating it had sold over 641,000 EVs in the first half of 2022.
Megha Engineering and Infrastructures is a Hyderabad-based infrastructure firm that has constructed highways, bridges, and power plants. Megha provided the finance, while BYD provided the technology and know-how.
Reasons for Not Allowing Chinese BYD’s Investment
Before 2020, the Indian government accepted billions of dollars in foreign direct investment (FDI) from China, but everything changed after then. China attempted to invade and occupy Indian territory in the Ladakh region in 2020, something it failed to do in 1962. Following that incident, the Indian government banned Chinese apps in India and regulated the country’s foreign direct investment policy, making government clearance essential for investments from nations with which it shares a land border. Such recommendations are decided upon by a committee chaired by the home secretary.
Recently, Indian authorities searched and apprehended Chinese mobile phone manufacturers on suspicion of money laundering. These Chinese mobile phone manufacturers record losses by siphoning money out of the country and sending it back to China via promiscuous investors all over the world. The Indian government also discovered several Chinese businesses involved in money laundering via mobile phone loan apps. The Indian government also nabbed a Chinese person living in India under the name of whom he obtained an Aadhar card and other forms of identification in order to engage in questionable financial operations involving money laundering.
In the pretext of doing business, China conducts shadow money laundering networks all over the world, including in India. The Chinese are concerned about India’s rise because they see it as a serious challenge to their superpower image, and they aim to undermine India’s economy and image in every way they can. India recognizes this geopolitical game, and after detecting suspicious actions in India, the government has chosen not to allow Chinese BYD to invest in the country. | Not_Explicit |
About 2,000 dead penguins have washed up on the coast of eastern Uruguay in the past 10 days, and the cause is a mystery.
Bird flu has been ruled out by environmental authorities after the Magellanic penguins, mostly juveniles, died in the Atlantic Ocean and were carried by currents to Uruguayan shores.
“This is mortality in the water. Ninety per cent are young specimens that arrive without fat reserves and with empty stomachs,” Carmen Leizagoyen, head of the Environment Ministry's department of fauna, told the AFP agency,
She stressed that all samples taken have tested negative for avian influenza.
Magellanic penguins nest in southern Argentina. In the southern hemisphere winter, they migrate north in search of food and warmer waters, reaching the coast of the Brazilian state of Espirito Santo.
“It is normal for some percentage to die, but not these numbers,” Ms Leizagoyen said, recalling that a similar situation occurred last year in Brazil, for undetermined reasons.
Hector Caymaris, director of the Laguna de Rocha protected area, told AFP that he counted more than 500 dead penguins along 10km of Atlantic coast.
Environmental campaigners blame the increase in Magellanic penguin deaths on overfishing and illegal fishing.
“From the 1990s and 2000s, we began to see animals with a lack of food. The resource is overexploited,” said Richard Tesore, of SOS Marine Wildlife Rescue.
A subtropical cyclone in the Atlantic, which hit south-eastern Brazil in mid-July, probably killed the weakest birds, he said.
As well as penguins, Mr Tesore said he has also recently found dead petrels, albatrosses, seagulls, sea turtles and sea lions on the beaches of Maldonado, a department east of Uruguay's capital, Montevideo. | Not_Explicit |
Relatives and associates of Nigel Farage have been refused bank accounts after being designated as politically exposed persons, or PEPs, the former Ukip leader has disclosed.
Mr Farage said someone close to him had been the subject of a “very nasty” account closure in the past fortnight and that others had been told they could not open accounts.
He said Coutts’s decision to close his personal and business accounts had left him “screwed” because he has been turned down as a customer by 10 other banks after having to tick a box saying he has been refused an account elsewhere.
Mr Farage has also dismissed as “a fable” claims by Coutts’s parent company NatWest that he was offered personal and business accounts with NatWest after being “exited” by the private bank.
After being told his accounts were being closed and convinced the decision was politically motivated, Mr Farage submitted subject access requests to Coutts and two companies which send them press cuttings and other information on customers, Lexis Nexus and Refinitiv.
As a result of their responses, Mr Farage discovered that a number of family members and associates, thought to be more than 10, were designated by the bank as PEPs, some of whom have now found it difficult to obtain banking facilities.
Mr Farage has always been protective of his family and private life and did not want to give details of who had been targeted.
But he told The Telegraph: “We have had several refusals to open accounts and a very nasty closure a couple of weeks ago.”
He said that as a result of being blacklisted by UK banks he would now have to open an account with an online bank licenced to accept payments and make payments, but he would still be unable to access the full range of banking services.
He said: “I can’t borrow money or have overdraft facilities. It’s very inconvenient. You are screwed if this happens to you.”
He said claims by NatWest that he had been offered accounts by them were untrue.
“It was only when I went public with this story about Coutts closing my account two weeks ago that someone called me 10 minutes before my show on GB News to say I could have a current account,” he said.
“She told me they hadn’t found a solution for the business account, which is far more important to me than the personal account.
“I have still not been offered a business account and they have never made any offer in writing.”
Mr Farage obtained a 40-page dossier from Coutts, using a subject access request, to gain information about the decision to shut his account.
The bank cited his retweet of a Ricky Gervais joke about trans women and his friendship with tennis player Novak Djokovic, who is opposed to Covid vaccinations, to flag concerns that Mr Farage is “xenophobic and racist”.
It also took issue with his defence of former US president Donald Trump’s behaviour and Mr Farage’s comments criticising the UK Government’s policy of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The former Ukip leader told the PA news agency that his experience has left him fearing the UK is moving towards a “Chinese-style social credit system” where only those with “acceptable views” can participate in society.
“I am effectively de-banked. How do I pay my gas bill? What have I done wrong? I haven’t broken the law,” he said. | Not_Explicit |
The war in Ukraine is also a ‘food fight’
In the 1930s, in a bid to pacify the still-unruly region of Ukraine, the Soviet leadership created a man-made famine on its territory. The consequences were horrific; between 1932 and 1933, an estimated 7 to 10 million Ukrainians died in the tragedy that has come to be known as the Holodomor.
Today, as part of its war against Ukraine, the government in Moscow is wielding the food weapon once again. On Monday, the Kremlin announced that it was suspending its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, and that it was no longer willing to guarantee the security of food exports transiting the Black Sea. The potential effects of this decision are both profound and profoundly destabilizing.
To understand why, it’s necessary to appreciate the outsized role that Russia and Ukraine play in global food consumption. In 2021, the two countries provided a combined 34 percent of the world’s wheat, 27 percent of its barley, and 55 percent of its sunflower oil. All told, according to European estimates, they jointly accounted for nearly 12 percent of “food calories traded globally” that year.
So when the Ukraine war broke out in early 2022, worries abounded that the result could very well be a global food crisis, as one of the participants in the conflict — and perhaps both — went offline as an international supplier. That did not happen, thanks largely to the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Inked a year ago this month between Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, it created a framework for the resumption of Ukrainian grain exports despite the war, staving off potentially disastrous food shortages and commodity shortfalls in the developing world.
From the start, Moscow’s adherence to the deal was tentative at best, with the Kremlin committing only to short extensions and repeatedly threatening to abandon the arrangement altogether. In support of its position, it has woven an elaborate web of falsehoods, accusing the West of (among other things) hoarding food intended for developing nations and creating trade obstacles for Russia’s own exports.
The real reasons for Russia’s intransigence are geopolitical in nature.
The first is strategic. It didn’t take long for the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin to figure out that it could use food as a weapon to pressure the West just as it has long used its energy supplies. Ever since, Moscow has taken pains to manipulate the current global food crisis (in which nearly 350 million people worldwide are facing starvation) to its advantage.
The second reason is economic. As the State Department has noted, Moscow has taken a series of measures to restrict its own exports of foodstuffs and fertilizer, thereby “profiteering” from a crisis it created itself by forcing global prices upward. By doing so, Russia has managed to soften the impact of Western sanctions on its economy, at least somewhat.
The approach has reaped concrete dividends for the Kremlin. Even as they have sought to punish Moscow for its military aggression, Western nations have quietly tried to mollify it. To that end, the European Union recently floated a proposal for the Russian Agricultural Bank, which is currently under international sanctions, to be allowed to reconnect to the SWIFT global financial network as an inducement to keep Russia in the grain deal. (Moscow, however, didn’t bite.)
Developing nations, meanwhile, have done even more. Eager for some sort of compromise that would allow “business as usual” to resume, thereby keeping their brittle economies afloat — and their restive populations fed — countries in the Global South have become de facto advocates for Russia. For instance, on the heels of his recent jaunt to Moscow, where he discussed food insecurity in Africa, South African president Cyril Ramaphosa flew to Kyiv and floated a 10-point peace plan extremely favorable to the Kremlin.
Russia’s plan, clearly, is to raise the specter of food shortages (and political instability) as a way to turn world opinion against Ukraine, and to force Western nations to scale back their own campaign of pressure. By doing that, Putin believes, it might just be possible to eke out some sort of victory in his protracted and exceedingly troubled campaign against Kyiv. And increasingly, it looks like Russia’s president might be willing to foment an international food crisis in order to do so.
Ilan Berman is senior vice president of the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, D.C.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
LONDON, July 24 (Reuters) - British radical Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary has been charged with three terrorism offences after being arrested in London last week, police said on Monday.
Choudary, 56, has been charged with membership of a proscribed organisation, directing a terrorist organisation and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation, police said. He will appear in court in London on Monday.
Once Britain's most high profile Islamist preacher, Choudary was imprisoned in Britain in 2016 for encouraging support for Islamic State before being released in 2018 after serving half of his five-and-a-half year sentence.
Choudary, former head of the now banned organization al-Muhajiroun, drew attention for praising the men responsible for the 9/11 attacks on the United States and saying he wanted to convert Buckingham Palace into a mosque.
His followers have been linked to numerous plots across the world.
A 28-year-old Canadian man, Khaled Hussein, has also been charged with membership of a proscribed organisation after being arrested on the same day as Choudary when he arrived on a flight at Heathrow Airport, police said.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. | Not_Explicit |
The legal team for former NYPD Commissioner Bernard Kerik reportedly secured a deal with Special Counsel Jack Smith to hand over thousands of documents related to the investigation into former President Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
Kerik’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, was quoted by The Daily Beast and CNN Monday as having agreed to turn over nearly 2,000 pages of material describing how Kerik investigated allegations of voter fraud.
Kerik’s legal team had initially refused to turn over the documents to the House select committee probing the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. They had cited attorney-client privilege, given that Kerik worked with Trump’s attorney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani on the probe.
Parlatore said Kerik had agreed to turn over the documents to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign for review in recent weeks, and the campaign waived the attorney-client privilege on Friday, ultimately allowing Kerik’s team to turn over the documents to Smith’s office on Sunday.
"From the time he received a subpoena from the January 6 Committee, Mr. Kerik has believed that full disclosure is the best policy so that the public can understand how extensive the legal team’s efforts to investigate election fraud were," Parlatore told The Daily Beast.
Kerik’s attorney noted that the documents could include exculpatory evidence for Trump, suggesting the former president’s investigators acted in good faith.
"I have shared all of these documents, appropriately 600MB, mostly PDFs, with the Special Counsel and look forward to sitting down with them in about two weeks to discuss," Parlatore told CNN.
Parlatore is reportedly scheduled to sit down with federal investigators some time in mid-August.
Last week, Trump announced that he received a letter from Smith notifying him that he was the subject of a Jan. 6 grand jury investigation, suggesting the former president could soon be indicted. Trump had similarly reported receiving a letter ahead of his federal indictment in connection to classified documents found during an FBI search of Mar-a-Lago.
Newsweek noted that Kerik, who served as the NYPD commissioner from 2000 to 2001, pleaded guilty in 2009 to felony charges of tax fraud and making false statements to the government. He spent about three years in prison before transitioning to home confinement and eventually supervised release. Trump pardoned Kerik for his past convictions in early 2020.
Fox News Digital reached out to Parlatore on Tuesday seeking comment. | Not_Explicit |
ISRO To Launch PSLV-C56 With DS-SAR Satellite Along With 6 Co-Passengers On July 30; Details Here
ISRO said that NSIL has procured PSLV-C56 to deploy the DS-SAR satellite from DSTA & ST Engineering, Singapore.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Monday announced launch the details of its upcoming mission.
The national space agency said the launch of PSLV-C56 carrying DS-SAR satellite along with 6 co-passengers is scheduled for July 30 at 06:30 Hrs. IST from first launch pad SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota.
In a tweet, ISRO said that NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) has procured PSLV-C56 to deploy the DS-SAR satellite from DSTA & ST Engineering, Singapore.
The co-passengers are:
VELOX-AM, a 23 kg technology demonstration microsatellite.
ARCADE Atmospheric Coupling and Dynamics Explorer (ARCADE), an experimental satellite
SCOOB-II , a 3U nanosatellite flying a technology demonstrator payload
NuLIoN by NuSpace, an advanced 3U nanosatellite enabling seamless IoT connectivity in both urban & remote locations.
Galassia-2, a 3U nanosatellite that will be orbiting at low earth orbit.
ORB-12 STRIDER , satellite is developed under an International collaboration
ð®ð³PSLV-C56ð/ð¸ð¬DS-SAR satellite ð°ï¸ Mission:— ISRO (@isro) July 24, 2023
The launch is scheduled for
ð July 30, 2023
â²ï¸ 06:30 Hrs. IST
ð©First launch pad SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota. @NSIL_India has procured PSLV-C56 to deploy the DS-SAR satellite from DSTA & ST Engineering, Singapore
and 6 co-passenger⦠pic.twitter.com/q42eR9txT7
As per ISRO, PSLV-C56 is configured in its core-alone mode, similar to that of C55. It would launched DS-SAR, a 360 kg satellite into a Near-equatorial Orbit (NEO) at 5 degrees inclination and 535 km altitude.
About DS-SAR
ISRO said that the DS-SAR satellite is developed under a partnership between DSTA (representing the Government of Singapore) and ST Engineering.
Once deployed and operational, it will be used to support the satellite imagery requirements of various agencies within the Government of Singapore.
ST Engineering will use it for multi-modal and higher responsiveness imagery and geospatial services for their commercial customers.
DS-SAR carries a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). This allows the DS-SAR to provide for all-weather day and night coverage, and capable of imaging at 1m-resolution at full polarimetry.
ISRO has also invited citizens to witness the launch from the Launch View Gallery at SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. The registration begins on Monday at 6 PM IST. Register here. | Not_Explicit |
(Reuters) -French-Italian automaker Stellantis and South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI on Monday said they plan to open a second joint-venture plant in the U.S. to build electric vehicle batteries, with a target to start production in 2027.
The companies said the transaction still needs to be finalized, and where the plant will be located is under review. Also, how much will be invested at the site and how many people it will employ will be announced later. The plant will have an initial production capacity of 34 gigawatt hours (GWh).
"This new facility will contribute to reaching our aggressive target to offer at least 25 new battery electric vehicles for the North American market by the end of the decade," Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said in a statement.
Stellantis, whose brands include Peugeot, Jeep, Ram, Alfa Romeo, Citroen and Opel, has announced plans to reach 100% electric passenger car sales in Europe and 50% car and light truck electric mix in the U.S. by 2030. To achieve that, it has said it wants to secure about 400 GWh of battery capacity.
In 2021, Stellantis said it planned to pump $35 billion into EV production and software globally through 2025. Stellantis said the second U.S. battery plant will be the sixth to support the company's goals.
"The second plant will accelerate our market penetration into the U.S.," Samsung SDI CEO Yoon-ho Choi said in the statement.
In May 2022, Stellantis and Samsung SDI said they would invest more than $2.5 billion to build their first joint battery plant, to open in the first quarter of 2025 in Kokomo, Indiana. That plant will have an initial capacity of 23 GWh, and eventually rise to 33 GWh.
The companies said then the Indiana plant would employ 1,400 people and investment could gradually rise to $3.1 billion.
Stellantis is also building a joint-venture battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, in Canada with South Korea's LG Energy Solution. That plant is set to open in 2024, creating 2,500 jobs and sporting an annual production capacity of over 45 GWh.
In April, Samsung SDI and General Motors said they would invest over $3 billion to build a joint-venture battery plant in U.S., to open in 2026 with an annual capacity of 30 GWh. That plant will also be built in Indiana and employ 1,700 people.
The United Auto Workers union, which has opened negotiations with Stellantis for a new labor agreement covering the automaker's U.S. hourly workers, wants employees at these joint-venture plants being built by GM, Stellantis and Ford Motor to be union-represented and paid higher wages.
Samsung SDI shares extended gains after Monday's announcement, rising to as much as 4.1% versus a 0.8% increase in the benchmark KOSPI.
(Reporting by Ben Klayman in Detroit and Heekyong Yang in Seoul; Editing by Christopher Cushing) | Not_Explicit |
Zharnel Hughes broke the 30-year British 200m record by clocking 19.73 seconds in front of a sell-out 50,000 crowd at the London Diamond League.
The 28-year-old took 0.21 secs off the previous mark of 19.94, set by John Regis at the 1993 World Championships.
The record time saw Hughes take third, with American world 200m champion Noah Lyles winning in 19.47 secs.
It is the second long-standing national mark Hughes has broken this season, having smashed the 100m record in June.
Hughes, who ran 9.83 secs in New York to better Linford Christie's time in 1993, previously ran 19.77 with an illegal wind speed to claim the UK 200m title in Manchester earlier this month.
Compatriot Dina Asher-Smith ran a 100m season's best of 10.85 secs to place second behind Marie-Josee Ta Lou of the Ivory Coast.
That put her ahead of Jamaica's world 200m champion Shericka Jackson, with Britain's Daryll Neita taking fourth in 10.96 secs.
However, Keely Hodgkinson withdrew before the women's 800m as a precaution because she was feeling unwell.
The 21-year-old Briton had been excited to compete at London Stadium for the first time but will now focus her attention on next month's World Championships in Budapest and the chance to achieve the gold she missed out on by 0.08 seconds last year.
Sunday's competition, the first major athletics meet to be held at London Stadium since 2019, represented one of the final opportunities for some of the sport's biggest names to fine-tune their preparations for the worlds, which start on 19 August.
Hughes delivers on brilliant day of athletics
Hughes, 28, predicted his 100m British record, writing it down in his notebook on the morning of the race.
While he would not commit to targeting the 200m mark on Sunday - despite Lyles' insistence during the pre-event news conference that the time was within reach - a captivated home crowd celebrated with the Briton as his time appeared on the big screen.
Hughes, born in Anguilla and living in Jamaica, uses a vision board at home to map out his goals.
He recently told BBC Sport he has another 100m time written down, which he hopes to achieve at the World Championships, and this performance will leave him full of confidence as his full attention turns to Budapest.
Lyles, who will target an ambitious trio of world golds in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay next month, showed he remains the man to beat over the longer sprint as he held off Botswana's Letsile Tebogo.
Asher-Smith continues to improve but Hodgkinson misses out
With less than four weeks to go until the World Championships, Asher-Smith continues to look sharper as the season progresses.
The 27-year-old 2019 world 200m champion followed up the 200m season-best she posted in Monaco on Friday with her best 100m performance of 2023 in a high quality field.
Jackson has recorded the fastest time in the world this year but was never involved at the head of the race as Ta Lou took victory, with Asher-Smith roared on all the way to her latest promising time.
Neita can also have few complaints after improving to 10.96 this season, finishing 0.02 secs behind Jackson.
Hodgkinson's absence was an undoubted loss, with the in-form Olympic and world silver medallist expected to produce the grand finale to proceedings.
However, in her absence, Jemma Reekie delivered a stunning run - setting a meeting record of one minute 57.30 secs to hold off Jamaica's Natoya Goule-Toppin.
Van Niekerk stars as world's best descend on London
Wayde van Niekerk continues to try to rediscover his best form after sustaining a serious knee injury in 2017, just months after retaining his world title at the World Championships in London six years ago.
Returning to that venue, South Africa's world record holder ran 44.36 secs to take victory in a race in which Matthew Hudson-Smith finished fourth in a season-best 44.72 secs before being assisted off the track in a wheelchair.
Elsewhere, the Netherlands' Femke Bol dominated the women's 400m hurdles field, winning by more than two seconds as she set an improved world-leading time of 51.45 seconds.
American Quanesha Burks jumped a personal best 6.98m to win the women's long jump, in which European indoor champion Jazmin Sawyers (6.67m) and former world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson (6.60m) finished fourth and fifth respectively.
American Yared Nuguse took victory ahead of Norway's Narve Gilje Nordas in three minutes 30.44 secs in the men's 1500m, with the pair followed by a trio of British athletes.
Neil Gourley (3:30.60), Elliot Giles (3:30.92) and Matthew Stonier (3:31.30) all ran personal bests.
London Marathon winner Sifan Hassan was made to settle for third in a women's 5,000m won by world champion Gudaf Tsegay in 14:12.29 - despite the Olympic champion running a European record time of 14:13.42.
Meanwhile, Britain's Aimee Pratt took third with a season-best time of 9:16.10 in the women's 3,000m steeplechase as Jackline Chepkoech stormed to victory in the women's 3,000m steeplechase in a new world lead of 8:57.36.
- Meet the world's largest-known dinosaur: Sir David Attenborough unmasks the titanosaur
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The summer transfer window is now open in Europe, and there's plenty of gossip swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals!
TOP STORY: Henderson to join Gerrard's Al Ettifaq?
Liverpool and Al Ettifaq have reached an agreement in principle regarding the fee for midfielder Jordan Henderson, reports Fabrizio Romano.
Romano adds that the 33-year-old Henderson has already agreed a three-year deal with Saudi Arabian side, with the relevant documents set to be signed.
The England international has been heavily linked with a move away from Anfield this summer, as Liverpool look to add fresh faces to their midfield following the departures of Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner.
Henderson travelled to Germany with the Liverpool squad for their pre-season tour but played no part in their 4-2 win over second-tier side Karlsruher, indicating that a move is close for the veteran.
Al Ettifaq recently announced the appointment of former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard as manager.
Henderson made 43 appearances across all competitions for the Merseyside outfit last season, however, with Fabinho also reported to be close to parting ways with the club, manager Jurgen Klopp looks to be eager to boast a more youthful midfield.
PAPER GOSSIP
- Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby is pushing for a move to Al Nassr, having reached an agreement with the Saudi club, per Rudy Galetti. The Frenchman has attracted interest from across Europe, following a stellar season in the Bundesliga, notching 14 goals and 11 assists in all competitions, with Aston Villa earmarking the 24-year-old as a priority target for the summer. Despite the interest from Villa, Diaby has reportedly informed Leverkusen of his desire to make the switch to the Saudi Pro League.
- Barcelona could include Franck Kessie and Ferran Torres in a potential deal for Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix, according to Sport. The report reveals that whilst there has been no contact between the two clubs regarding a deal for Felix, Atleti are keen to part ways with the Portugal international, who fell out with manager Diego Simeone last season. Torres and Kessie have both attracted interest from Atleti, however, the wages of the pair are understood to be a possible stumbling block, with this previously proving to be an issue when the club showed interest in midfielder Kessie.
- Liverpool will reject any offers for winger Luis Diaz following reported Al Hilal interest, report the Athletic. The report indicates that Liverpool view the 26-year-old as integral to their plans for the upcoming season, despite missing significant portions of last year through injury. Al Hilal have reportedly shown an interest in the Colombia international, but Diaz has not shown any indication that he wants to depart Anfield.
- Paris Saint-Germain are planning to make an opening bid of €75 million for Benfica forward Goncalo Ramos, reveals Ekrem Konur. The 22-year-old excelled in Portugal last season, notching 27 goals across all competitions, as well as providing 12 assists. PSG are reported to be in the market for attacking reinforcements this summer, following the departure of Lionel Messi, alongside the uncertain situation of Kylian Mbappe, who could also depart the Ligue 1 champions.
- Saudi clubs are monitoring the situation of Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku, who is still keen on a move to Juventus, suggests Fabrizio Romano. The 30-year-old looks certain to depart Stamford Bridge this summer, and whilst the Belgian would prefer a move in Europe, a deal has not yet materialised in the continent for the striker. Internazionale were previously reported to be keen on Lukaku following his loan spell at the club last summer, but Inter have pulled out of the race, following his discussions with rivals Juventus. | Not_Explicit |
A big lie, an attack on the Capitol — and soon, another indictment
How Trump’s disparate and increasingly desperate campaign to undermine the 2020 election led to his next expected criminal charges.
In a more than two-month blitz that ended in violence, Donald Trump lied, cajoled, inveighed and inspired his supporters to challenge the results of an election he lost. Now, special counsel Jack Smith appears on the verge of indicting Trump for those efforts.
Two and a half years have passed since the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021. Yet investigators are still piecing together the breadth of Trump’s attempt to derail the transfer of power. It wasn’t a singular plan but in fact was many disparate schemes, led by distinct groups of advisers who embraced increasingly fringe strategies and were not always working in harmony.
Each arm of the effort was held together by one core lie with Trump at the center: that the election was stolen. And each tentacle has faced withering scrutiny from Smith’s investigators, who may ask a federal grand jury any day now to approve criminal charges tied to Trump’s election subversion, mere weeks after Smith charged Trump in a separate case for hoarding classified documents.
But if and when Smith brings charges related to Trump’s wide-ranging bid to cling to power, it will fall to the courts and a jury to determine whether Trump’s conduct — no matter the broad powers and immunities of the presidency — crossed the line into criminality.
The exact charges that Smith will seek are unclear, but here’s a look at the extraordinary range of conduct that will figure into them.
The disinformation campaign
Key figures: Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell
Even before votes were cast, Trump began conditioning his supporters to distrust the outcome of the 2020 election, insisting that mail-in voting — which states embraced to contend with Covid-era dangers — would be exploited by Democrats, foreign adversaries and bad actors to steal the election.
Trump rejected advice from his own allies, like campaign manager Bill Stepien and House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, to embrace mail-in voting as a way to drive turnout among his supporters. Instead, he set up mail ballots to be a scapegoat for his possible defeat.
In tandem with this effort was Trump’s plan, which he telegraphed to advisers, that he would declare victory on election night — when interim results were likely to be tilted in his favor due to delays in counting mail-in ballots — even though large shifts toward Joe Biden were anticipated as all votes were tallied in the days following the election.
Trump did just that. In the wee hours of the morning on Nov. 4, 2020, at the urging of Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani and against the advice of virtually everyone else in his inner circle, Trump declared victory and warned his supporters that Democrats would try to steal the election.
Trump followed his early claim of victory with a weekslong campaign alleging — without evidence — widespread fraud in a handful of states Biden won: Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia and Arizona. He and his allies filed dozens of lawsuits aimed at overturning the results or throwing out millions of votes in areas that favored Biden. Most were summarily dismissed for lacking substance or being filed in untimely ways.
A last-ditch bid to challenge the results, filed by Texas but supported by Trump in a separate legal brief, was turned aside by the Supreme Court.
Despite being rebuffed in the courts, wild conspiracies proliferated in pro-Trump circles. Figures like Sidney Powell, an attorney who represented Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn in criminal matters, promoted the false notion that election machines made by Dominion Voting Systems had been manipulated by foreign governments to tip the election toward Biden.
In the meantime, Trump barraged the airwaves and his supporters’ inboxes with fundraising appeals and ads accusing Democrats of cheating, stuffing his campaign’s coffers even as many of his own advisers privately indicated that he had, in fact, lost the race.
Smith may be eyeing Trump’s fundraising and messaging tactics for potential crimes related to defrauding donors or the public at large.
The Electoral College, Part I: The states
Key figures: Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, Brad Raffensperger, John Eastman
As Trump’s efforts flailed in the courts, his allies began eyeing a second target: state legislatures. Although by late November election officials and governors had certified Biden’s victory, Giuliani began promoting the notion that state legislatures could simply override those decisions by citing fraud or “irregularities” that justified a different outcome.
To support this notion, Giuliani and Trump campaign attorney Jenna Ellis traveled to the states Trump was contesting and convened public hearings with sympathetic GOP legislators to highlight allegations of fraud. They pushed GOP-controlled legislatures to attempt to designate pro-Trump slates of presidential electors to replace or compete with Democratic electors that had been certified by election officials and governors.
Most notably, Trump leaned on Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, to simply “find” the votes that would put Trump ahead of Biden in the state. A recorded Jan. 2, 2021, phone call captured the lengthy exchange and has become fodder for Smith as well as investigators in Georgia.
Raffensperger balked. So did other state leaders, refusing to appoint their own slates of electors despite Trump’s increasing pressure.
This stage of Trump’s strategy is where John Eastman — a conservative attorney with fringe theories about the Electoral College — began gaining prominence in Trump’s orbit. He participated in Trump’s efforts to lean on state legislatures to act, appearing at public hearings convened by Republican legislators. Ultimately, Eastman would become the driving force behind Trump’s final, desperate bid to stay in power, a plan focused squarely on Jan. 6.
The Electoral College, Part II: The fake electors
Key figures: John Eastman, Rudy Giuliani
When the Electoral College met on Dec. 14, 2020, in 50 state capitals and Washington, D.C., no contested states had designated pro-Trump electors to compete with Biden’s electors. Nevertheless, in seven of those states, dozens of pro-Trump activists convened in state capitals, at the same time as Democratic electors, and cast ballots that they claimed made them legitimate presidential electors.
These “alternative” or “contingent” electors signed certificates claiming to be the states’ duly qualified electors and delivered them to the National Archives and Congress, following a process set out in federal law for actual presidential electors.
Enter Eastman. Emails released by the House select committee on Jan. 6 show that after the Electoral College ballots had been cast, he shifted his focus to legitimizing the uncertified electors.
The conservative attorney, who advised Republican legislators during the contested Bush v. Gore election of 2000, had been advising Trump and his allies since before the 2020 election, joining a working group assembled by attorney Cleta Mitchell to develop a post-election litigation strategy.
Within days of the Nov. 3 election, Mitchell asked Eastman to draw up a plan for state legislatures to appoint pro-Trump electors to supplant those certified by governors. Eastman obliged, and his plan, by late November, had made its way to the Oval Office.
Eastman, who would also author Trump’s Supreme Court brief in the Texas case, spent much of December leaning on state legislators to declare their elections invalid, citing fraud and irregularities, and use that as a pretense to appoint alternate electors. Eastman told allies at the time that without the imprimatur of a state legislature, these “contingent” electors wouldn’t have any legal force.
Mulling the seizure of voting machines
Key figures: Sidney Powell, Mike Flynn
After the Supreme Court refused to consider the Texas election challenge Dec. 11, 2020, Trump saw his options dwindle to an increasingly desperate few.
He had begun mobilizing members of Congress to formally challenge the election results Jan. 6, when the House and Senate were required to meet and count electoral votes. And he still hoped state legislatures would swoop in and send their own electors to Washington. But he also began eyeing a more extreme option.
Powell, Flynn and their allies had been in Trump’s ear about the prospect of invoking presidential authority to seize voting machines in the states he was contesting, using a combination of national security directives to justify the move. Various drafts of an executive order supporting such a move circulated in the White House (some of which were turned over to the Jan. 6 select committee).
The conversation culminated in a Dec. 18 Oval Office meeting with Trump, Flynn, Powell, Giuliani and others. At the meeting, Trump flirted with naming Powell a roving “special counsel” to pursue election-related matters, and Flynn advocated for taking the machines. But White House aides and Giuliani pushed back, and Trump ultimately opted against the move.
Hours later, in the middle of the night, Trump issued his first call to supporters to descend on Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021. “Be there,” he tweeted. “Will be wild.”
Deploying the Justice Department
Key figures: Jeff Rosen, Rich Donoghue, Jeff Clark, Pat Cipollone, Scott Perry
Trump was publicly frustrated that his own Justice Department had openly rejected his claims of widespread election fraud, and when Attorney General Bill Barr resigned in December 2020 — amid open conflict with the president — Trump eyed another mechanism to bolster his bid to remain in power.
Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA.), who espoused some fringe theories about election fraud, had begun connecting Trump with Jeff Clark, a Justice Department official who was sympathetic to his efforts. Several documented meetings or calls with Trump in late December 2020 and early January 2021 showed Clark had Trump’s ear during this crucial period.
Internally, Clark had been pressing Justice Department leaders to issue a letter to the states Trump was challenging, describing “irregularities” and recommending that their legislatures reconvene to consider whether Trump, rather than Biden, should be declared the winner.
Clark faced sharp pushback from Barr’s successor, acting attorney general Jeff Rosen, and his deputy, Rich Donoghue. But Trump briefly considered outflanking them by naming Clark acting attorney general and giving him the perch to implement the effort. But Trump backed down after a mass resignation threat by Trump Justice Department officials and top White House lawyers, including White House counsel Pat Cipollone.
Records revealed by the Jan. 6 select committee indicate that Trump may have briefly effectuated Clark’s appointment as acting attorney general before rescinding it.
The Electoral College, Part III: Pressuring Pence
Key figures: Mike Pence, John Eastman, Greg Jacob, Ken Chesebro
When all else failed, Trump turned firmly to Jan. 6, 2021, seen by his increasingly fringe group of allies as the ultimate deadline to stop the transfer of power to Biden. Though no states had endorsed alternative slates of electors, Congress was still in receipt of the unofficial slates sent in by pro-Trump activists.
The Jan. 6 session, required by the Constitution as well as an 1887 law known as the Electoral Count Act, has long been a formality, a ceremonial gathering to affirm the certified results of the states. Only a handful of times in American history have challenges been brought — and no challenge to a state’s electoral votes had ever been sustained.
But in Trump’s view, the Jan. 6 session was a last stand of sorts. And he had one final cudgel to attempt to stave off a Biden presidency: his vice president, Mike Pence.
The Constitution requires that the vice president — who doubles as the president of the Senate — preside over the counting of Electoral College ballots. So Trump spent the final weeks of his presidency pressing Pence to assert the power to simply refuse to count Biden’s electoral votes. Pence, Trump argued, could cite the competing slates of electors and declare the results to be in doubt, postponing the count and sending the matter back to the states for consideration.
His contention was backed by a coterie of fringe attorneys who had spent a frantic few weeks fleshing out what they dubbed “The president of the Senate strategy.” Emails obtained by the Jan. 6 select committee show Eastman communicating with lawyers like Giuliani and Ken Chesebro, who attempted to muscle through what they acknowledged was a constitutionally dubious plan.
But Pence resisted. He recognized that taking such steps would require violating provisions of the Electoral Count Act and would be an unprecedented assertion of single-handed authority to determine the outcome of the election.
Trump publicly and privately browbeat Pence to change course, but Pence repeatedly refused. On the morning of Jan. 6, Trump called Pence for one final, angry phone call in which he derided Pence for refusing to bend to his will. It was the last time they would speak that day.
As violence unfolded at the Capitol that afternoon, Eastman and Giuliani continued to press Trump’s allies to stop the election process. Giuliani called Republican members of Congress and asked them to mount continued challenges to the results that might buy more time, and Eastman corresponded with a Pence aide, counsel Greg Jacob, in a final effort to get Pence to delay the electoral vote count.
Jacob pushed back on Eastman, even as he fled from the first wave of rioters. He has since become a key witness in California bar discipline authorities’ bid to strip Eastman of his law license over his Jan. 6-related actions.
The rally
Key figures: Ali Alexander, Alex Jones, Steve Bannon
After Trump told his supporters to “be there” for a “wild” protest in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, a large pro-Trump faction responded. The tweet invigorated groups like Ali Alexander’s “Stop the Steal” organization, which made plans for a rally on Capitol grounds Jan. 6. Women for America First organized a rally near the White House that became Trump’s primary event that day.
The rally was the primary reason tens of thousands of Trump supporters descended on Washington. And Trump’s tweet imploring them to “be there” has figured into dozens of prosecutions stemming from the riot that followed the rally. It was the moment, prosecutors have argued, that extremists like Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes began mobilizing large contingents to descend on Washington. Both have since been convicted of seditious conspiracy.
The far-right conspiracy theorist and broadcaster Alex Jones, who attended the rally, helped lead hundreds of people from the Ellipse to the Capitol. Nearby, at the Willard Hotel, a pro-Trump “war room” was working to manage the ongoing efforts to overturn the election, featuring participation from Steve Bannon, Giuliani and other Trump allies.
Trump used the rally crowd as a means to pressure Congress, telling them that if they didn’t “fight” to stop Biden’s victory they wouldn’t “have a country anymore.” He then pointed them to the Capitol, where he urged them to march “peacefully and patriotically” to reject the election results.
But Trump’s rhetoric was overwhelmingly packed with apocalyptic imagery, which has led at least one federal judge to say he might plausibly be accused of inciting the violence that followed.
The riot
Key figures: Mark Meadows, Mike Pence, Pat Cipollone
After Trump’s rally speech, he retreated to the White House — furious that his Secret Service detail had resisted his desire to go to the Capitol, where violence had begun to break out.
Instead, he withdrew to the Oval Office dining room, where he watched the chaos at the Capitol unfold on TV. While watching, he resisted desperate pleas from allies like McCarthy and other Republicans in Congress, aides, advisers and family members to explicitly tell his supporters to go home. For hours, Trump ignored those appeals while outnumbered police officers were battered and members of Congress — and Pence — evacuated to safety.
While Pence fled, Trump tweeted an attack on his vice president, saying he lacked the courage to stop Biden’s election. That tweet appeared to inflame the crowd; the Jan. 6 committee has shown how the mob intensified in the ensuing moments and many on hand at the Capitol shared it with those around them.
Throughout the day, Trump held court with a long list of advisers, like chief of staff Mark Meadows and Cipollone. Both have become key witnesses in Smith’s probe. Pence has also testified to the special counsel.
When Trump finally did tell supporters to go home, 187 minutes after the first police line was breached, many in the crowd seemed to respond. Videos from the riot show supporters sharing the tweet with one another and heeding his call.
The damage, however, was done. Five people died during or shortly after the attack; hundreds more were injured. In the 30 months since, more than 1,000 rioters have been criminally charged for what they did Jan. 6. Now, Smith’s next moves — and the secret vote of a grand jury that has undoubtedly heard all of the evidence above — will determine whether Trump, and members of his inner circle, will stand trial, too. | Not_Explicit |
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders has not ruled out a special legislative session on tax cuts after Arkansas ended the fiscal year with a near-record surplus, she said Tuesday.
Speaking to the Rotary Club of Little Rock, the Republican governor said the state would have the opportunity to cut the income tax further "over the coming months." Sanders later said that could include the fiscal legislative session next April or a special session before then.
"We'll work with our partners and our friends in the Legislature to make that determination whether we do something sooner or do something during the fiscal session," Sanders told reporters after her talk.
When asked whether a special session was a possibility, Sanders said, "I never like taking anything off the table."
Arkansas finance officials said earlier this month that the state ended its fiscal year June 30 with a surplus of more than $1.1 billion, its second largest.
Sanders said she also wants to use the surplus to make further investments in education, but she did not elaborate on how much.
In April the governor signed legislation cutting individual and corporate income taxes by $124 million a year. | Not_Explicit |
Los Ángeles, 24 jul (EFE).- El gobernador de Texas, el republicano Greg Abbott, insistió este lunes en mantener boyas en el Río Grande para frenar migrantes en un desafío al Departamento de Justicia de Estados Unidos que el viernes amenazó con demandar en cortes la iniciativa al considerarla ilegal.
En una misiva dirigida hoy al presidente de EE.UU., Joe Biden, Abbott ha dicho que "Texas utilizará plenamente su autoridad constitucional para lidiar con la crisis que ha causado".
La carta responde a una advertencia de la Fiscalía al republicano para discutir la instalación de las boyas puestas en el sector fronterizo de Eagle Pass.
El republicano tenía hasta hoy para responder al Departamento de Justicia, pero desde el mismo viernes Abbott anticipó que seguiría con su plan, al señalar que se vería en corte con el presidente Biden.
El gobernador cita en la carta de hoy el interés soberano de Texas en proteger sus fronteras, que le otorga la Constitución estatal.
"Si realmente se preocupa por la vida humana, debe comenzar a hacer cumplir las leyes federales de inmigración. Al hacerlo, puede ayudarme a evitar que los migrantes apuesten sus vidas en las aguas del Río Grande", agregó Abbott.
El Departamento de Justicia considera que las boyas aumentan los riesgos humanitarios, pueden interferir con la capacidad del gobierno federal para llevar a cabo sus funciones, y presentan serios riesgos para la seguridad pública y el medio ambiente.
La misiva del republicano también incluyó copias de varias cartas entregadas anteriormente al presidente en la que le pide cumplir con su obligación de proteger las fronteras.
Las boyas hacen parte de su más reciente esfuerzo migratorio y han provocado el rechazo de grupos proinmigrantes y ambientalistas, como también del Gobierno de México, que envió una nota diplomática a Estados Unidos advirtiendo que la barrera viola el Tratado de Aguas.
El gobernador Abbott ha ordenado la extensión de una barrera de boyas y además de un alambrado en un tramo del Río Grande para impedir el cruce de migrantes desde México.
El Gobierno Biden también investiga las recientes denuncias de medios sobre trato inhumano a inmigrantes en la frontera de Texas con México, y especialmente los riesgos que implican de las boyas y el alambre de púas para los migrantes.
(c) Agencia EFE | Not_Explicit |
It is over a year since I declared on my Planet Normal podcast that soon there would be no such thing as a “safe” Tory seat. When party members of 30 years’ standing email me to say they don’t just want the Conservatives to lose the general election, they are hoping for “evisceration”, you know something has gone very wrong indeed.
With what speed have we moved from murmurs of disillusion to outright mutiny. I was not in the least bit surprised to hear that the highly respected American pollster Frank Luntz recently told the 1922 Committee of backbench MPs that any Tory MP with a majority under 15,000 should look out.
No shock, then, that it is widely predicted that on Thursday the Conservatives will get a kicking in three by-elections, two of which a proper Tory party should have no business losing. Boris Johnson had a slim 7,210 majority in Uxbridge so it’s not unreasonable to expect a less charismatic candidate to come a cropper in west London, although Sadiq Khan’s ruinous Ulez policies could have provided an opportunity. But Selby and South Ainsty (20,137) should be a true blue Yorkshire stronghold. And what possible excuse is there for allowing Somerton and Frome (19,213 majority) to fall into the Pontius-Pilate, frangipane-scented hands of the Lib Dems who last held the seat back in 2010 with a wafer thin margin of 1,817?
Our reassuringly competent (yet somehow lacklustre and disastrously weak) Prime Minister tells his troops that mid-term by-elections are “always difficult”. In this case, that’s like saying the Battle of Stalingrad was “a bit tricky”. It’s not as if Tory voters are gagging for the alternatives. Low turnouts in recent by-elections suggest that many previously loyal Tories are too sick at heart to vote at all. The prevailing mood was summed up in the comments under a recent Telegraph article on how other European countries were increasingly choosing Right-wing governments. “If only we had a Conservative option here,” said one wag.
The overwhelming sense is that it’s not us who have left the party, but the party that’s left us. “I’m seriously struggling to call myself a Conservative,” emails a Tory donor who was recently invited by his MP to have dinner with Jeremy Hunt. “The irony of asking for £3,000 to have dinner with J Hunt Esq was seemingly completely lost on him,” boggles my friend.
Sunak has an almost uncanny ability to misread the room. Even when he alights on the right topic, he invariably gets the wrong end of the stick. The Tories I know are not obsessing about students doing useless degrees. Instead, parents are resentful and distressed about what young people have suffered at the hands of universities, acting as profit centres servicing international students, particularly after the terrible time they had during the pandemic. My son graduates this summer and his uni career has been a mixture of strikes and lockdowns. For the majority of the time, he has had no access to college facilities, no clubs, no sport, hardly any in-person teaching. Basically, our boy has done distance learning while paying the full cost of his course. What a con.
There has been no apology, no refund. Instead, students had to take their chances with exams being cancelled all around them because of lecturers downing tools. One mother told me that her daughter at Edinburgh had her language Oral cancelled as she was cycling to the exam. It might not be rescheduled, the distraught girl was told. I hear that some institutions were reduced to drafting in temporary, unqualified markers to grade papers.
The failure to process a year’s worth of graduates stores up another generation of problems for the country. Now, that is what a Conservative government should be concerned about – holding universities to account, not agonising over the drawbacks of Hedgehog Studies at Scunthorpe Metropolitan.
Another easy win for the Government would have been to ban self-identification in schools altogether. No longer could some stroppy, deluded 13-year-old compel teachers and fellow pupils to refer to them as a cat or whatever sex they fancied being that day. Nor would a teacher at an all-girls’ private school be ordered to apologise for greeting her class as “girls”.
Instead, it now looks as if the much-postponed new government guidance on trans issues will be a disastrous cop-out. The advice will make it clear that schools will have to tell parents if their child wants to identify as a different gender or start using a new name – that’s big of them! – and any child who does want to self-identify “should first undergo a period of reflection”.
What possible use is that against a cult that is aggressively grooming children?
What would help parents to protect their children is for schools not to to be allowed to lie about a pupil’s sex. Biology matters. “Change of pronouns” equals lying about a child’s sex because girls cannot simply become boys, and vice-versa, although thousands are now being sold that pernicious fantasy.
A hairdresser tells me that a group of 11-year-olds came into his salon recently and three of the girls asked to have all their hair shaved off because “we now identify as boys”. Their tearful mothers turned up later and admitted that they felt totally helpless. During PSHE lessons at school, their daughters had learnt they could pick a gender as easily as trying on a new set of clothes. When parents complained that their kids were too young to be exposed to that kind of thing they were called “bigots” and “transphobes”.
You hear these chilling stories all the time. The leader of the Reclaim party, Laurence Fox, encountered it first when he asked his son for a goodnight hug and the boy replied, “You need my consent for that, dad”.
Fox, who is standing as a candidate in the Uxbridge by-election tomorrow, went up to his son’s school and was horrified to find out that young children were being taught they could be born in the wrong body. Reclaim wants PSHE to be banned from the curriculum because it is wicked and “possibly criminal”.
It’s obvious that the Government would enjoy massive support if it took a firm stand against the pernicious, unscientific nonsense that is being taught to our children.
Just as I was coming to the end of this piece, an email arrived from Rory in Frome. Subject: A Few Reasons for No Longer Supporting the Conservative Party. Rory was copying me in on a “rant” to his local Tory party explaining why he, as “a once loyal but now ex-Conservative”, would not be casting his vote for their candidate in Frome tomorrow.
All of us could come up with pretty much the same list, I reckon. Complete failure to take meaningful steps to curb illegal migration. A profoundly unconservative Chancellor “raising corporation tax at exactly the wrong time”. No attempt at NHS reform. Hiding from the culture wars. Running down our Armed forces. “Wet career politicians” who might as well be Lib Dems or Labour. Blind adherence to “back of a fag packet” net zero ideology “which will wreck the country”.
Well said, Rory, a champion rant. If other Conservatives in Frome feel the same, then it’s game over. Who cares? Defeat will be richly deserved. When a political party thinks that appeasing their enemies is more important than consoling their voters, it’s no surprise if they end up friendless and unloved. | Not_Explicit |
WASHINGTON, July 19 (Reuters) - China does not want a trade or tech war but will definitely respond if the United States imposes more curbs on its chip sector, China's ambassador to Washington said on Wednesday.
Ambassador Xie Feng told the Aspen Security Forum China did not shy away from competition, but the way it was defined by the United States was not fair. He highlighted existing U.S. prohibitions on Chinese imports of equipment to make advanced chips.
"This is like ... restricting the other side to wear outdated swimwear in a swimming contest, while you yourself (are) wearing a Speedo," he said.
Xie referred to reports that Washington is considering an outbound investment review mechanism, and further prohibition on the export of AI chips to China.
"The Chinese government cannot simply sit idly by. There's a Chinese saying that we will not ... make provocations, but we will not flinch from provocations," he said.
"China, definitely ... will make our response. But definitely it's not our hope to have a tit for tat. We don't want ... a trade war, technological war, we want to say goodbye to the Iron Curtain as well as the Silicon Curtain."
The Biden administration has been finalizing an executive order that would restrict certain investment in sectors including advanced semiconductors, quantum computing and artificial intelligence, and a senior administration official said the aim was to wrap up reviews of it by Labor Day.
China targeted U.S. chip maker Micron Technology after Washington imposed a series of export controls on American components and chipmaker tools to ensure that they are not used to advance China's military capabilities.
The Cybersecurity Administration of China said in May that Micron failed its security review and barred operators of key domestic infrastructure from purchasing its products.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week at the end of a four-day trip to China she had spoken with Chinese counterparts about the proposed order, and said that any investment curbs would be "highly targeted, and clearly directed, narrowly at a few sectors where we have specific national security concerns."
She said the order would enacted in a transparent way, through a rule-making process that would allow public input.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. | Not_Explicit |
Before we decided to have a baby, I thought a lot about what being a mother would be like, but there were some respects in which my imagination failed me. Both are related to my living environment. I live in a first-floor flat with quite a few steps leading up to the front door from street level, and it did not occur to me that this would be what might politely be termed a “complete and utter ball-ache”, both in respect of getting myself and the baby outside, but also his many effects, meaning it requires at least two trips and, unless I am using the Babyzen Yoyo, which is extremely light, the assistance of my husband or sometimes my very kind neighbour. Without that pram and someone there to assist, I’d basically be housebound, which makes me feel pathetic and a tad vulnerable. (For a while I could pop the baby on a blanket in the communal hall while lugging the pram down the steps, but now that he is mobile he’s on a kamikaze mission to go headfirst after me.)
The other was toys. For some reason, I had not realised that there would be so many toys, and that not tripping over those toys in the dark at 3.55am when retrieving a bottle would become quite key.
So when a friend falls pregnant now, I tend to gently highlight these two things, especially the former, so that she can be prepared. Although what tends to happen is that her housing situation comes with its own issues, as in the case of the friend who moved to a ground floor apartment in preparation, but has found the neighbourhood outside it to feel crime-ridden and lacking in green space. Having a baby changes your approach to housing, both in a practical and an emotional sense. The way you use space changes, as does the way that you feel within that space. It’s all for someone else, now, and so your home’s shortcomings feel more depressing and distressing than ever.
I write this as a renter in an area that has gentrified so completely in the past decade that any former resident who comes to see you spends at least the first 10 minutes swearing in disbelief. As such, it’s been a lovely place in which to have a baby, and there is still a feeling of community here. On the other hand, it can be quite fatiguing being surrounded by millionaires, and now that I’m a parent, the absurdity of the wealth divide in my borough hits even harder. That there should be babies in beautifully appointed nurseries in Victorian townhouses, all decorated in various shades of sad beige (the satirical term used to describe the way upper-middle class parents eschew colour in pursuit of a Scandi aesthetic), a stone’s throw from children living in appalling cramped conditions: it breaks my heart.
It’s not that I begrudge the friends and acquaintances who have made it on to the property ladder (most of them), usually with huge cash injections from family. They are admirably candid about this. But living side-by-side with them at times makes that lifestyle feel achievable, when in fact you might as well wish that you had won the lottery. So successful has been the media manipulation around the housing crisis that to be renting at my age and stage of life feels like a personal failure, even though I know objectively that it isn’t. At one point a few years ago buying a house somewhere else in the UK started to look possibly achievable, though relocation work-wise would have been a challenge, and then Liz Truss happened.
There are many thousands of others in the same boat, or worse off, and many thousands of others living with mortgage terror, working multiple jobs in fear of losing their homes. The social contract in terms of being able to provide an affordable, comfortable home for your family by working hard has completely broken down. The landlord class continues to leech off the younger and the poorer. I think about the parents who are waiting to have the lift repaired for the seventh time, the ones who already have too many children in too little space, or who have decided that they can’t have another despite desperately wanting one because there’s nowhere to put them.
I think a lot about Awaab Ishak, the two-year-old boy who died because of a respiratory condition caused by exposure to mould at his Rochdale home. Especially last winter, when the black mould bloomed on our own windowsills, and while my husband scrubbed and scrubbed, I sobbed and sobbed because our son had needed help to breathe when he was born early, and I was scared for his tiny lungs. I couldn’t write about it at the time. I felt ashamed. Because how could someone with all my privileges, someone writing a parenting column for a national newspaper, be in such a situation?
I consider myself lucky. I have a landlord, Clarion Housing, that will eventually replace the windows, though it took two years for them to fix the crumbling brickwork that made my son’s room so damp, and they are yet to make the collapsing wall in the back garden safe, or provide an outside tap for a paddling pool, or fix the hob in the kitchen. But it’s better than what most tenants get (the bar is very low).
If you’re reading this in your beautiful, secure home, you are one of the fortunate ones - there are millions of parents out there who are not. I suppose I want them to feel seen. Because it used to be taken for granted that you could give your children a better life than you yourself had, and in the past decade we’ve lost that principle. I don’t know how we find it again.
What’s working
Colin and Zach, the paramedics who took my son to hospital last weekend, and were so kind to us (the baby is now on the mend). You joked that I’d write about you in the Guardian, so here I am doing it. Thank you. I couldn’t be more grateful for you and our NHS.
What’s not
My husband has noticed an alarming number of viral “funny kid” videos in which parents deliberately make their children cry. I feel queasy enough about putting children on social media without their consent, but to upset them and then film it seems doubly cruel. If someone treated their pet in such a way, for the cynical reason of simply getting likes, people would rightly be outraged.
Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a Guardian columnist | Not_Explicit |
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MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) — High-water rescue crews pulled people from flooded homes and vehicles Wednesday in Kentucky, where waves of thunderstorms prompted flash flood warnings and watches. A search continued for two children swept away after torrential rains in the northeastern United States.
The National Weather Service issued flash flood watches and warnings, estimating that as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain could fall in the area where Kentucky, Illinois and Missouri meet at the convergence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. The weather system will then move Thursday and Friday over New England, where the ground remains saturated after recent floods.
READ MORE: Massive search underway for missing children swept away in Philadelphia flash flood
Atmospheric scientists say the global warming responsible for unrelenting heat in the Southwest also is making this kind of extreme rainfall a more frequent reality, because clouds hold more moisture as the temperature rises, resulting in more destructive storms.
With so much rain falling so quickly, it was a “life-threatening situation” in the Mayfield and Wingo areas early Wednesday, according to Keith Cooley, a senior forecaster with the weather service in Paducah, Kentucky.
In Mayfield, a city of 10,000 that was especially hard hit by storms that produced deadly tornadoes in December 2021, the flooding appeared concentrated in older neighborhoods, where the overflowing Red Duck Creek usually meanders toward Mayfield Creek, which feeds the Mississippi.
“I know we’re weary of this, but also so hopeful for the future,” Mayfield Mayor Kathy O’Nan said. “I don’t think this is going to set us back any, but we all feel that enough is enough.”
READ MORE: Analysis: New flood control systems are getting federal funding. Here’s why it’s key to factor in climate change
In Connecticut, a woman died after being swept down a swollen river Tuesday with her 5-year-old daughter. State Fire officials say the pair were swimming in the Shetucket River in Sprague when they were swept away by currents that have been running high because of the recent heavy rains in New England. They were found unconscious downstream and taken to a local hospital, where the mother, a woman in her 30s, died. Fire officials say the daughter was stabilized at a local hospital and is expected to survive.
And in Pennsylvania, searchers are still trying to find two children visiting from South Carolina who were swept away in what one fire chief called “a wall of water” that hit their family and killed their mother Saturday. Four other people also died in those flash floods.
Emergency officials described the flash flooding as a catastrophic threat in Kentucky’s Graves County, where Mayfield is the county seat. With major flooding already occuring and more rain on the way, Sheriff Jon Hayden urged drivers Wednesday to stay off the roads.
“Many roads have been washed out, many cars have driven into water and drowned out,” Hayden posted on social media. He said His House Ministries opened their church for anyone needing shelter.
READ MORE: Floodwaters in New England begin to recede as communities shift to recovery
Mayfield police urged people to closely watch for updates since many roads were becoming impassable and the area was expecting another 3 to 6 inches of rain. A short time later they began restricting travel due to flooding, with numerous roads under water.
Crews have had to rescue people from homes, but there haven’t been any reports of injuries or deaths, said Trooper Sarah Burgess, a spokesperson for Kentucky State Police Post 1, which covers 11 western Kentucky counties. Graves County appears to be hardest hit so far, she said.
O’Nan said she had no reports of injuries or deaths from the flooding after about six inches had fallen since midnight. Emergency officials and police officers were going door to door and finding that most residents had self-evacuated.
“There have been no injuries reported, which is just a blessing,” O’Nan said. She added that power briefly went out in the southern part of the city, which is still recovering from the 2021 tornados that toppled the county courthouse and killed dozens of people.
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Biden video mocking Marjorie Taylor Greene speech hit over 30M views in 12 hours
President Biden’s video featuring clips from a Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) speech to tout his legislative accomplishments reached over 30 million views in 12 hours after it was posted on Tuesday evening, according to statistics first shared with The Hill.
The video received the second highest impressions on a Biden video since he was inaugurated, only behind his reelection campaign launch video that dropped in April.
The video received over 34 million views as of Wednesday around 10:30 a.m. and over 10 million of those were in the first three hours since it dropped. It also received over 200,000 shares and over 2 million engagements as of Wednesday morning.
Greene’s speech at Turning Point USA was intended to attack the president on policy issues. But, the Biden campaign video set the speech to uplifting music as she lists the president’s agenda and legislative priorities and compares him to former Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
“I approve this message,” Biden said on Twitter, sharing the video on Tuesday evening.
When it was first posted, other Democrats rallied around the video and shared it, including Gov. Gavin Newsom (Calif.) and Reps. Ilham Omar (Minn.) and Adam Schiff (Calif.).
“Joe Biden had the largest public investment in social infrastructure and environmental programs, that is actually finishing what FDR started, that LBJ expanded on, and Joe Biden is attempting to complete,” Greene said in her speech this weekend.
“Programs to address education, medical care, urban problems, rural poverty, transportation, Medicare, Medicaid, labor unions, and he still is working on it,” she added.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
Biden dog Commander bit multiple Secret Service officers: report
Commander, the Bidens’ German Shepherd, has reportedly been involved in several aggressive incidents that injured Secret Service officers — with emails obtained by a conservative legal activist group describing encounters similar to those that got another Biden dog booted from the White House.
The emails released Tuesday by Judicial Watch, which it said followed a Freedom of Information Act request lawsuit, detail 10 alleged attacks by Biden’s nearly 2-year-old dog, from October 2022 through last January.
Commander was involved in a biting incident last November, according to the emails, which left an officer with injuries on both the upper right arm and the thigh. The officer “had to use a steel cart to [shield]” themself “from another attack.” The officer, the email says, was “in a considerable amount of pain.”
Other communication includes an officer warning that the dog had been “exhibiting extremely aggressive behavior.”
“Today, while posted, he came charging at me. The First Lady couldn’t regain control of [Commander] and he continued to circle me,” the email said.
“I believe it’s only a matter of time before an agent/officer is attacked or bit,” the note said.
In another November message, an officer wrote in a memorandum that as they were walking towards a post assignment, “I noticed Commander and the First Lady” in the Kennedy Garden.
“As I continued walking, I saw Commander exit the Kennedy Garden and sprint towards me. I immediately stopped and put my hands up. Commander then bit me on my left thigh and then ran back towards the First Lady.”
“I am currently experiencing bruising, tenderness, and pain in the bite area,” the officer said.
Other emails recall a series of more minor biting incidents involving the dog.
A White House spokesman didn’t immediately return ITK’s request for comment.
In 2021, Major, another German Shepherd belonging to President Biden, was removed from the White House and relocated to the family’s home in Delaware following several reported aggressive episodes.
Major’s removal came after a “biting incident” with a security team member at the White House, as well as another instance when the animal “charged” at staff and security employees, CNN reported at the time.
Commander arrived at the White House in 2021. The presidential pup and Willow, Jill Biden’s cat, are frequently featured at events at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Last year, the Bidens’ holiday décor at the White House included miniature smiling statues of Commander and Willow to greet visitors entering the East Wing.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
Illinois will officially become the first state to eliminate cash bail in September, following months of legal action from opponents of the law who say it will leave residents and law enforcement officers less safe.
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled last week that the elimination of cash bail did not violate the state constitution, allowing the law to proceed and take effect on Sept. 18. Under the new regulations, judges will not require suspects charged with crimes to post bail in order to leave jail while they await trial. Suspects deemed a threat to the public or those who are likely to flee can still be required to remain in jail.
Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker celebrated the state Supreme Court’s ruling after arguing for years that eliminating cash bail is one step toward "dismantling the systemic racism that plagues our communities.
"In this terrible year, in the middle of a brutal viral pandemic that hurt Black people and Brown people disproportionately, lawmakers fought to address the pandemic of systemic racism in the wake of national protests," Pritzker said in a press release back in 2021.
Fox News Digital spoke to the former police chief of Riverside, a suburban village in Cook County located about 12 miles from Chicago, who sounded the alarm that residents and law enforcement will be left more vulnerable to crime due to the law, while arguing activists and politicians supporting the measure "overdramatized" the reasoning for it.
"They came up with this theory that … the court system, especially in Cook County, was unfair," retired Riverside Police Chief Tom Weitzel told Fox News Digital in a phone interview following the state Supreme Court’s ruling. "There were several different tiers of justice and if you were Black or Hispanic … that somehow you were receiving a different level of justice, especially when it came to the bond court.
"And then there were advocates that just didn't think you should be held in custody with a bond because your case had not been adjudicated yet, that you have not been found guilty," he added.
Weitzel said that bail was established to "ensure you're going to be in court in the future," and that local leaders and activists "kind of hijacked that and made the public think that ‘Oh, you know, we shouldn't hold people in custody at all if they haven't been found guilty or pled guilty.’"
He added that the reasoning that cash bail unfairly affected minority suspects was "overdramatized" to the public.
"Misdemeanor case defendants were never held in custody. That's a complete lie. Some of the low level felonies in Illinois, the class four felonies, drug possession … they were rarely held in custody. Most of them are put on electronic monitoring or very low bond," Weitzel said.
He added that in Cook County jail on a given day, most of the suspects behind bars are being held on violent crimes such as carjackings, armed robberies, sexual assaults and homicides.
Weitzel added he was "shocked" by the state Supreme Court’s ruling, explaining he thought it would at least be partially overturned.
The elimination of cash bail, which is part of the 2021 criminal justice reform bill, the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act, was set to take effect in Illinois on Jan. 1, but was met with fierce legal pushback from dozens of sheriffs and prosecutors in the state who said the law was unconstitutional, diminished public safety and put law enforcement at risk. A Kankakee County judge ruled in December that the law was unconstitutional, but that ruling was overturned by the state Supreme Court last week.
Now, sheriffs who previously spoke to Fox News this month say they are bracing for the fallout from the law, which they labeled as "America’s most dangerous law."
The exact ramifications of the law, however, won’t be known until it actually takes effect, law enforcement officials have said.
"We have 100 people sitting in jail or requiring cash bond. What happens with that? We have literally hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of arrest warrants that are assigned a cash bond. What happens with that?" Franklin County Sheriff Kyle Bacon told Fox News this month. "All of these questions exist and, quite honestly, I sit here and have no idea what the answers are."
The majority of Illinois residents live in Cook County, which is home to roughly 5 million people and encompasses the city of Chicago. It is where such policies originated, according to Weitzel. Now, rural and more suburban areas will have to follow the rules of Cook County policies, he said.
"You could go to other counties - DuPage County, Will County, farther out west - and they operate different and you could see that even in the court system. So they would hold people on higher bonds that and when they were convicted, they would receive stiffer sentences from judges in those counties," Weitzel said.
Meanwhile, Cook County "always had this reputation to be extremely lenient, and to not really support law and order to the extent that the rest of the state does."
The murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020 was a turning point for policing policies in Illinois and served as a "launching pad" for more lenient Cook County policies to go into effect for all of Illinois, he said.
"These bond policies, these warrant policies, all originated with politicians in either Chicago or the greater Cook County area," Weitzel said.
He was clear, however, that not all the policies in the SAFE-T Act are bad.
"There are some good things - the police keep body cameras are good, and no police chief has argued about that. There's some good training legislation in there … The only thing that's bad and this is this bond provision," he said.
Once the law takes effect, "chaos" will likely break out, especially with suburban departments, he said.
"The city of Chicago probably gets enough personnel to comply with whatever the courts put in. But you're going see a lot of dissatisfaction in the job, and you're going to see police officers say, ‘why even bother,’" Weitzel said. | Not_Explicit |
Cleaning up contaminated industrial sites in battle against soil pollution
The answer to cleaning up contaminated industrial sites in Europe could lie in the microbes that are already there.
Trees and other vegetation grow on the site of a former soap factory in northwestern France. While the greenery suggests all is well in the Ploufragan commune near the Brittany coast, the truth is that a plant for making cleaning products has left a mess. The surrounding soil is saturated with toxic hydrocarbons—byproducts of the soap production.
Pressing problem
Tackling such environmental damage is a priority for Dr. Thomas Reichenauer under a research project that has received EU funding to investigate how microbes can be used to break down contaminants in soil and groundwater.
The problem is pressing because poisonous substances in the soil can seep into plants, which may then get eaten by animals, and can leak into groundwater, according to Reichenauer, senior scientist at the Austrian Institute of Technology in Vienna.
"For these contaminants we are working on, it will take decades—or hundreds of years—until nature breaks them down completely," he said.
The EU has an estimated 2.8 million contaminated sites ranging from old industrial zones to landfills. Clean-up efforts vary across Member States, with Germany and the Netherlands leading the way.
The groundwater dimension is all the more acute because of worsening climate change, which threatens to cause increasingly severe droughts. So even as groundwater becomes a more precious resource, less may be available to drink if it contains industrial pollutants.
Reichenauer coordinates a project called MIBIREM that has received EU funding to speed up the process of decontaminating soil and groundwater by learning more about their microbiome—the collection of microorganisms in a particular environment.
The researchers are trying to figure out how microbes interact to break down three particular contaminants: cyanides, hexachlorocyclohexane and petroleum hydrocarbons.
Petroleum hydrocarbons are very common. While cyanides and hexachlorocyclohexane are less prevalent, they're toxic enough to warrant developing technology for breaking them down.
The initiative began in October 2022 and runs until end-March 2027.
Good riddance
The process by which microbes can be stimulated to ramp up their consumption of contaminants is called bioremediation.
In the case of cyanides, for example, glucose could be added to the soil, according to Reichenauer, who originally trained as a geneticist and plant physiologist.
"Bioremediation is eco-friendly as we don't have to introduce any toxic or dangerous chemicals," he said.
There are other ways of removing pollutants from soil.
Plants have been studied as a potential method for removing heavy metals. But few commercial ventures exist because the removal process—another form of bioremediation—is slow.
Chemical remediation, while quicker, offers only a partial solution because it typically removes toxic substances by adding fewer from the outset.
MIBIREM will focus entirely on using microbes because they have the potential to be the fastest and most eco-friendly option, according to Reichenauer.
Soil tools
The project ultimately wants to come up with bioremediation tools for different industrial spots across Europe. In some cases, researchers hope to identify particularly useful microbes and store them for later use.
MIBIREM is focused on developing technologies that can be used on-site, sparing itself the hassle of excavating soil and transporting it. Because the project targets mainly industrial spots, which are often located in urban areas, treating soil in the original place is sometimes the only option.
In the case of the factory site in Ploufragan, where soap was produced for almost half a century until the mid-1990s, this would mean being able to treat the area without digging up the vegetation that has grown there since the buildings were demolished in 2017.
"If you can show that it works in the fields, then there is a good chance that it can be commercially applied later on," said Reichenauer.
Reichenauer sought to soothe any concerns that people might have about altering the microbiome of soil to remove contaminants, saying such changes are neither negative nor positive and occur in line with environmental influences regardless of any human intervention.
MIBIREM could help the EU meet targets set under a mission called "A Soil Deal for Europe," which seeks a transition towards healthy soils by 2030.
Pilot projects
The use of microbes for bioremediation has also been the focus of an EU-funded project called GREENER, which is due to finish this August after four and a half years.
It has included pilot projects in Belgium, Ireland, Spain and China.
In the Spanish city of Toledo, for example, soil from a former machinery park was excavated and treated on-site, where microbes were used to remove hydrocarbons. For a wetland site in Belgium, microbes enabled the removal of heavy metals from the groundwater without extracting it.
"We are working with clients that have a contamination problem and assisting companies that are performing remediation of the site," said Rocío Barros, the project coordinator. "Better understanding the microbiome in the soil will be very important for improving technologies that address soil pollution."
Energy angle
GREENER went beyond MIBIREM in one respect: trying to create energy during the bioremediation process.
By coupling energy generation with soil and wastewater cleaning, GREENER sought to help diversify the EU's power sources while removing pollutants from the environment.
Results on this front have been less than promising when it comes to ramping up such activity, according to Barros, who heads an environment, sustainability and toxicology research group at the University of Burgos in Spain.
"Not all of the microbial fuel cells have reached a good enough performance for scaling up," she said.
This aspect of the project highlights the risks involved in research and development and, by extension, the importance of funding sources including the EU.
Some of the microbial fuel cells being used to treat water have shown potential.
"The use of the fuel cells with wetlands has been very good," said Barros.
Hoping that microbial fuel cells can be further advanced, she is now seeking to develop a film that could be added to them to improve electricity generation.
Provided by Horizon: The EU Research & Innovation Magazine | Not_Explicit |
Cleaning up contaminated industrial sites in battle against soil pollution
The answer to cleaning up contaminated industrial sites in Europe could lie in the microbes that are already there.
Trees and other vegetation grow on the site of a former soap factory in northwestern France. While the greenery suggests all is well in the Ploufragan commune near the Brittany coast, the truth is that a plant for making cleaning products has left a mess. The surrounding soil is saturated with toxic hydrocarbons—byproducts of the soap production.
Pressing problem
Tackling such environmental damage is a priority for Dr. Thomas Reichenauer under a research project that has received EU funding to investigate how microbes can be used to break down contaminants in soil and groundwater.
The problem is pressing because poisonous substances in the soil can seep into plants, which may then get eaten by animals, and can leak into groundwater, according to Reichenauer, senior scientist at the Austrian Institute of Technology in Vienna.
"For these contaminants we are working on, it will take decades—or hundreds of years—until nature breaks them down completely," he said.
The EU has an estimated 2.8 million contaminated sites ranging from old industrial zones to landfills. Clean-up efforts vary across Member States, with Germany and the Netherlands leading the way.
The groundwater dimension is all the more acute because of worsening climate change, which threatens to cause increasingly severe droughts. So even as groundwater becomes a more precious resource, less may be available to drink if it contains industrial pollutants.
Reichenauer coordinates a project called MIBIREM that has received EU funding to speed up the process of decontaminating soil and groundwater by learning more about their microbiome—the collection of microorganisms in a particular environment.
The researchers are trying to figure out how microbes interact to break down three particular contaminants: cyanides, hexachlorocyclohexane and petroleum hydrocarbons.
Petroleum hydrocarbons are very common. While cyanides and hexachlorocyclohexane are less prevalent, they're toxic enough to warrant developing technology for breaking them down.
The initiative began in October 2022 and runs until end-March 2027.
Good riddance
The process by which microbes can be stimulated to ramp up their consumption of contaminants is called bioremediation.
In the case of cyanides, for example, glucose could be added to the soil, according to Reichenauer, who originally trained as a geneticist and plant physiologist.
"Bioremediation is eco-friendly as we don't have to introduce any toxic or dangerous chemicals," he said.
There are other ways of removing pollutants from soil.
Plants have been studied as a potential method for removing heavy metals. But few commercial ventures exist because the removal process—another form of bioremediation—is slow.
Chemical remediation, while quicker, offers only a partial solution because it typically removes toxic substances by adding fewer from the outset.
MIBIREM will focus entirely on using microbes because they have the potential to be the fastest and most eco-friendly option, according to Reichenauer.
Soil tools
The project ultimately wants to come up with bioremediation tools for different industrial spots across Europe. In some cases, researchers hope to identify particularly useful microbes and store them for later use.
MIBIREM is focused on developing technologies that can be used on-site, sparing itself the hassle of excavating soil and transporting it. Because the project targets mainly industrial spots, which are often located in urban areas, treating soil in the original place is sometimes the only option.
In the case of the factory site in Ploufragan, where soap was produced for almost half a century until the mid-1990s, this would mean being able to treat the area without digging up the vegetation that has grown there since the buildings were demolished in 2017.
"If you can show that it works in the fields, then there is a good chance that it can be commercially applied later on," said Reichenauer.
Reichenauer sought to soothe any concerns that people might have about altering the microbiome of soil to remove contaminants, saying such changes are neither negative nor positive and occur in line with environmental influences regardless of any human intervention.
MIBIREM could help the EU meet targets set under a mission called "A Soil Deal for Europe," which seeks a transition towards healthy soils by 2030.
Pilot projects
The use of microbes for bioremediation has also been the focus of an EU-funded project called GREENER, which is due to finish this August after four and a half years.
It has included pilot projects in Belgium, Ireland, Spain and China.
In the Spanish city of Toledo, for example, soil from a former machinery park was excavated and treated on-site, where microbes were used to remove hydrocarbons. For a wetland site in Belgium, microbes enabled the removal of heavy metals from the groundwater without extracting it.
"We are working with clients that have a contamination problem and assisting companies that are performing remediation of the site," said Rocío Barros, the project coordinator. "Better understanding the microbiome in the soil will be very important for improving technologies that address soil pollution."
Energy angle
GREENER went beyond MIBIREM in one respect: trying to create energy during the bioremediation process.
By coupling energy generation with soil and wastewater cleaning, GREENER sought to help diversify the EU's power sources while removing pollutants from the environment.
Results on this front have been less than promising when it comes to ramping up such activity, according to Barros, who heads an environment, sustainability and toxicology research group at the University of Burgos in Spain.
"Not all of the microbial fuel cells have reached a good enough performance for scaling up," she said.
This aspect of the project highlights the risks involved in research and development and, by extension, the importance of funding sources including the EU.
Some of the microbial fuel cells being used to treat water have shown potential.
"The use of the fuel cells with wetlands has been very good," said Barros.
Hoping that microbial fuel cells can be further advanced, she is now seeking to develop a film that could be added to them to improve electricity generation.
Provided by Horizon: The EU Research & Innovation Magazine | Not_Explicit |
The Biden administration says it will do "everything we can" to bring home Private 2nd Class Travis King, the junior soldier crossed into North Korea earlier this week "willfully and without authorization."
John Kirby, director of strategic communications for the National Security Council, told VOA on Thursday that American officials have not had a chance to communicate with the 23-year-old soldier, who crossed the demilitarized zone earlier this week.
Kirby also expressed concerns about political infighting in Congress that has delayed passage of the National Defense Authorization Act, about concerns over Moscow's pullout from the deal that allowed grain shipments to leave ports in the Black Sea, and about the continued lack of direct communication between the militaries of the U.S. and China.
The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
VOA: Thank you for joining us this morning. Let's start with the saga of Private Travis King. Do we have any updates on his condition, his motivations, his whereabouts, and have we heard any communication from Pyongyang? And is the administration committed to bringing him home even if that's against his wishes?
Kirby: We don't have any updates on Private King. We continue to conduct appropriate outreach to the North Korean side to try to gain some information and insight as to his whereabouts and his well being, but we just don't know. And we are absolutely committed to working to getting him returned to his family. We don't know the motivation here. We haven't had a chance to talk to him. So we don't know exactly what he's thinking right now. But he's an American soldier. And we're going to do everything we can to try to find out where he is, how he is, and work to get him back home.
VOA: Let's move on to Russia and the grain deal. Is the administration looking at any workarounds to get these essential supplies out of port? Things like NATO escorts, or reflagging vessels? How seriously does the administration take the threat from Russia's defense ministry that it's going to treat all vessels in that port as carrying military equipment?
Kirby: We have to take that ridiculous threat seriously. We are working and we will work with Ukraine and our allies and partners to try to find other ways to get the grain out of Ukraine. It'll most likely have to go through ground routes. We've done this before [when] the grain deal was in effect. It's not as efficient; you can't get as much grain out that way. We understand that. But we're going to keep trying.
Look, what has to happen here is — aside from Russia ending its blockade and, make no mistake, what they're threatening to do is a military blockade that is a military act, so aside from just not doing that — they need to get back into the deal. The deal was good for everybody including Russian farmers. But it was really good for developing nations who have food scarcity issues that are only going to be exacerbated by this throughout the Global South, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
VOA: Let's move on to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. First of all, the Kremlin has said Putin is not going to South Africa, which allows him to avoid getting arrested. Does the U.S. still encourage International Criminal Court signatories to arrest him if they have the opportunity? And does this change or improve the relationship between Washington and Pretoria now that there's no longer this awkward situation between them?
Kirby: I'll let the South African leaders speak for themselves. We believe it's important that everyone responsible for the atrocities and war crimes in Ukraine to be held accountable and that includes Russian leaders who are responsible for the efforts of their troops on the ground in Ukraine.
VOA: We've seen Prigozhin resurface and say — allegedly — that Wagner troops are not willing to fight in Ukraine. What do you make of this? What are the implications?
Kirby: It's too hard to know right now exactly how seriously we should take this or what the impacts on the battlefield will be. I will tell you that Wagner forces — we haven't seen them fighting in Ukraine since Mr. Prigozhin attempted overthrow of the Ministry of Defense. It's unclear exactly how many are in Ukraine, but we haven't seen them contribute much to the fighting in Ukraine. So it's just too soon to know.
VOA: Moving on to the Aspen Security Forum: China keeps coming up as the big concern. U.S. Admiral John C. Aquilino said that they're still trying to reopen military-to-military communication with China. Can you update us on that effort and why it's so important?
Kirby: Military-to-military communications remain closed. That's unfortunate, especially when tensions are so high. You want to be able to pick up the phone and talk to your opposite. And try to take the tensions down and to avoid miscalculation when you have that kind of military hardware sailing so close together, flying so close together. The potential for miscalculation and risk only shoot up if you can't talk to one another.
VOA: On Iran: in April the U.S. confiscated some Iranian oil from a tanker. Iran's navy chief is very unhappy about this and says they'll retaliate. Is the U.S. ready to engage militarily with Iran on this? And what are the rules of engagement?
Kirby: Nobody wants to see armed conflict in the Gulf region. That said, Iran's attacks on maritime shipping have continued nearly unabated, some of them successful, some not, because we intervene. You saw that the Pentagon just recently announced some new force deployments to the Gulf region to make us more capable of deterring these kinds of attacks. And we urge the Iranian regime to stop these destabilizing behaviors. In the meantime, we're going to make sure we've got the capabilities that we need and our allies and partners have had the assurance that the United States has the capability that it needs to continue to defend ourselves and in our interests.
VOA: Last week, you told us about a mass grave in Sudan. Does this return of ethnically tinged violence at the hands of the Rapid Support Forces change the U.S. position on who to support in this conflict?
Kirby: We're supporting the people of Sudan. Make no mistake about it. And you saw us issue sanctions against both sides. You saw us condemn this report of mass graves in West Darfur. We are on the side of the people of Sudan. That's not going to change and we will continue to hold those accountable who are making it harder for the people of Sudan to live, to work and to achieve the kinds of civilian governance that they so desperately want.
VOA: My final question is about the National Defense Authorization Act. Earlier this week, you gave an impassioned argument for why the administration believes that reproductive care needs to be offered to service members and their families. Some right-wing media in the United States have taken your argument as justification for why women should be barred from the military. I understand that this is not a proposal that the White House or the Pentagon would take seriously. But can you remind us why diversity, equity and inclusion add to national security?
Kirby: Diversity adds to national security because it helps us make better decisions. Yes, there is a representational aspect of this. We are an all-volunteer force. And we need to recruit people from all walks of life in the United States and this is a diverse nation. Why wouldn't you want your military to represent the very people they're defending? But I have seen, myself, in almost 30 years of naval service, that when you have diverse people in the room, decisions are smarter, they're more contextual, and the way we operate is better and more efficient and more effective to national defense. And that's not something that President [Joe] Biden will ever walk away from.
VOA: Do you want to say anything else about the delay in the passage of the NDAA and the effect that it's having on morale or national security?
Kirby: The president looks forward to getting the NDAA legislation on his desk. He knows it's going to look different when it gets to his desk than what it does right now. But it's important that we do get an NDAA to the president's desk as soon as possible so that the troops can have the resources that they need to continue to defend the nation. It is a national security issue.
VOA: Thank you so much for your commitment to our audience, John.
Kirby: It's a pleasure. | Not_Explicit |
The Conservatives are in danger of underestimating the scale of their electoral predicament, political strategists have warned, as the cost of living crisis is forcing the party’s core voters to cancel holidays and leaving them in fear for their livelihoods.
New focus group evidence on the economic plight of “Blue Wall” middle-class Tories has led one expert to predict that the party faces “electoral annihilation” if it fails to address the issue.
Tory MPs have long held onto the hope that, with at least a year still to go until the general election, there will be enough time for the party to turn their fortunes around and secure an unlikely victory at the ballot box in 2024.
Ministers regularly point to the remarkable feat of escapology carried out by John Major at the 1992 election, which saw the Conservatives clinch an unexpected win over a resurgent Labour party.
But academics and political strategists have started to paint a very different outlook for the party as a result of what has been described as an “unprecedented” set of economic shocks that have caused fissures in the bedrock of traditional Tory support.
Ed Dorrell, partner at political strategy firm Public First, recently carried out a series of focus groups of lower middle-class voters in the Home Counties, who voted for Boris Johnson in 2019, that will be a cause for significant concern for the Tory leadership.
He said that the country will have a better sense of the Conservatives’ political situation after the by-election results this week, which he said “may yet give the Tories hope”, despite current polling.
But he told i: “I get the impression that the Conservatives don’t yet seem to understand that the economy improving by 1 per cent will not have a huge tangible impact on people’s pockets – at least in the short or medium term. There is always a lag, particularly when it comes to how much people’s mortgages are, or how much they are paying for goods in the supermarket.
“Prices will still be much higher than what they were, mortgage repayments will remain very high and wages are likely to lag behind.”
Carrying out the focus group, he said he was struck by the gloomy prospects voiced by each of those taking part.
“There are now lots of voters who should be instinctive Tories who feel very poor in a way they haven’t before. And instinctive Tories feeling poor is very bad news for the Conservatives,” Mr Dorrell said.
“They are what I would call ‘Tebbit Tories’, who would admire Margaret Thatcher. These are people who have started their own small businesses, plumbing firms, electricians, who are now saying they are unsure how they will survive next year.”
He said that some members had been forced to cancel their summer holiday abroad and highlighted one member taking part in the focus group, who admitted: “I now head to Aldi for bargains. The days of Waitrose are long gone.”
Another focus group member said: “A couple of years ago I thought we were working quite hard and doing ok. Now I’m worried we might actually be poor.”
Mr Dorrell believes this could have disastrous consequences for the government. “If the Tories are not careful, they’re looking at electoral annihilation,” he wrote in an article for the CapX website.
The freefall in traditional Tory voters’ living standards coincides with the precipitous rise in interest rates, which has ramped up mortgage costs, while inflation has remained stubbornly high.
Of particular concern for Rishi Sunak and his Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is that around one million mortgage holders will see their monthly mortgage costs increase by £500 by 2026, the equivalent of a £10,000 cut in people’s annual wages, going on assumptions of homeowners’ salaries based on the size of their mortgages.
It means the mortgage pain being felt for homeowners, who are more likely to be Tory voters, will still be felt by the next election.
“Few economists seem to believe that mortgage rates will start going down substantially by the time of the general election next year and could still be climbing,” Mr Dorrell told i. “Unless something miraculous happens for the Conservatives – or Keir Starmer somehow implodes – this will likely spell disaster for Rishi Sunak.”
Despite this, some Tory MPs believe the mortgage crisis is either not affecting their constituents, or perhaps more surprisingly, being overplayed by the media.
One Tory backbencher representing an outer London constituency told i: “The mortgage issue hasn’t been raised with my office at all, the new affordability checks introduced post-2008 seem to have worked in that households have been ‘stress tested’ against rises like we have seen already.”
Although the MP added: “For new buyers who have lost cheap rates it’s incredibly frustrating.”
The comments were echoed by a former minister in a Tory/Labour marginal in the South East, who insisted the issue was not being raised by their constituents.
“Everyone understands the risks of rate rises when they take out a mortgage. It is entirely driven by the opposition and media,” the MP said.
Others within the Government are holding out for a repeat of what happened in 1992, as they look for a narrow path to power next year.
One Cabinet minister told i that the perception of both Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer as being similar “responsible managers of the country” means voters may be willing to stick with the incumbent “because we think these guys will get us out of the economic mess”.
“In ’92, we were in a recession and the economy was in a terrible bloody mess,” the Cabinet member said. “Norman Lamont was the chancellor, and yet people were frightened to make the change to [Neil] Kinnock.”
According to Will Jennings, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the University of Southampton, said too many within Westminster can become “obsessed about drawing analogies rather than looking at what’s really going on”.
“One difference was that John Major was actually quite popular, his approval ratings were around +4, despite his party being at -30, while Neil Kinnock was not popular and was polling behind where Keir Starmer is now,” Professor Jennings said.
“But the bigger thing is the economic comparisons. The recession in 1992 was short and sharp. Recessions then were seen as reflecting the business cycle and did not hugely impact the reputation of the Conservative government.”
He added the economic situation is fundamentally different. “We’re in a period of wage stagnation since 2008 that is exceptional. It is unprecedented. Whereas before this was offset by a lower cost of borrowing, now interest rates are going up and wages are not keeping up,” Professor Jennings said.
What the Prime Minister and the Tory party can hope for is for voters to have short memories, and that by the general election next year people’s standard of living will not be any worse than now. “Maybe then they can sell a story that things are beginning to turn around.” | Not_Explicit |
It was a night of contrasting results.
The Conservatives unexpectedly held on to seemingly vulnerable Uxbridge, but lost supposedly safe Selby to Labour.
Meanwhile, in Somerton and Frome, the Liberal Democrats pulled off a spectacular victory.
As a result all three main parties had a prize they could celebrate.
Labour needed just a 7.5% swing from the Conservatives to capture Boris Johnson's former Uxbridge seat. That was well below the 15% swing to the party in the latest national polls.
It was also less than the average swing of 11% Labour had previously secured in by-elections in three safe seats that have taken place since the demise of former PM Liz Truss.
Yet the party fell a little short of what was needed.
Nevertheless, at the same time Labour captured Selby and Ainsty on a 23.7% swing, the second biggest ever swing from Conservative to Labour in a post-war parliamentary election.
Indeed, Labour have not previously secured a by-election win in a seat that was previously so safe for the Conservatives. The last time Labour secured swings of over 20% was in the 1992-7 parliament, which, of course, concluded with the Conservatives being ejected from office.
Meanwhile, in Somerton and Frome the Liberal Democrats secured as much as a 29% swing from the Conservatives.
That was slightly less than the swing the Liberal Democrats enjoyed in their previous by-election victories in North Shropshire and in Tiverton and Honiton - yet it still represented the fifth biggest swing from Conservative to Liberal Democrat in any post-war by-election.
The Liberal Democrats have been making the spectacular seem routine.
But what broader lessons, if any, can be discerned from such a contrasting set of results?
Both the Conservatives and Labour agree that a local issue - London mayor Sadiq Khan's proposed extension of London's low emission zone to the capital's outer boroughs - played an important role in helping shore up the Conservative vote.
Indeed, the newly elected Conservative MP himself suggested the issue was crucial - and did not give Rishi Sunak and his government any credit for his success.
Together with the heavy scale of the party's losses in Somerton (a fall of nearly 30%) and in Selby (a drop of 26 points), it would seem unwise for Tory MPs to draw any conclusion other than that their party is still in deep electoral trouble.
Meanwhile, as in previous by-elections over the last couple of years, voters registered their dissatisfaction with the Conservatives by switching to whichever opposition party appeared best able to defeat the local Conservative candidate.
In Uxbridge and in Selby, the already low Liberal Democrat vote was badly squeezed, while in Somerton, Labour were pushed into fifth place. In a general election such a pattern of tactical voting could seriously accentuate the scale of Conservative losses.
Yet at the same time, Labour's failure to take Uxbridge will raise questions about the effectiveness of Sir Keir Starmer's electoral strategy. Characterised as it is by few promises and a focus on the centre ground, his critics may well argue that Labour's appeal proved too brittle when confronted by a difficult local issue.
Of course, Sir Keir himself may well feel the outcome illustrates the risk of promoting radical policy options.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Sr Ed Davey, will be delighted with his party's fourth by-election gain in this parliament - the party has not taken so many Tory scalps since the 1992-7 parliament (again a bad omen for the Conservatives). But whereas Labour is riding high in the national polls, the Liberal Democrats have still made little advance nationally.
The Liberal Democrat leader still has to find a way of turning his by-elections successes into a springboard for a wider revival for his party.
But it is Rishi Sunak who has the biggest headache. The coalition of Leave supporters that delivered Boris Johnson his majority in 1997 has collapsed - nearly half are no longer supporting the party, while Brexit itself has lost its allure for some voters.
The Tory leader needs to find a new tune for his party. But with living standards falling, the economy faltering, and public services struggling, enticing voters back into the Tory fold still looks far from easy.
John Curtice is Professor of Politics, University of Strathclyde, and Senior Research Fellow, National Centre for Social Research and The UK in a Changing Europe. | Not_Explicit |
When it comes to Europe’s cannabis market, the biggest piece of news this year is what didn’t happen. Contrary to what a lot of people expected, Germany isn’t on the way to legalizing recreational use of marijuana. Instead, the EU’s most populated country watered down its law reform plans after liaising with regulators.
Is Germany’s decision and the precedent it has set bad news for VCs who invest in cannabis startups in Europe? Not necessarily, and it could even be good news for some. According to Oliver Lamb, co-founder of Óskare Capital, Germany’s “push to slow down the legalization of recreational cannabis is positive for the medical and pharmaceutical market.”
“The hybrid recreational-medical experiment has already been played out in North America, and there were a painful amount of lessons learned that it would be reckless to ignore,” he said.
Lamb, like other investors, is wary of the mistakes they’ve seen being made in the U.S.: “The blurred line between the medical and recreational sectors has undoubtedly been to the detriment of targeted medication development,” he said.
“It is crucial to use lessons from paths that others have laid before you. In New York, we’ve seen a failure to do this, with just a handful of dispensaries up and running alongside lax law enforcement, which led to an overt and booming illicit market,” said Matt Hawkins, founder and managing partner at Entourage Effect Capital.
However, some funds are worried that the total addressable market for legal cannabis on the continent is limited and has been affected by Germany’s decision. “The scaling back by Germany has made us more hesitant to deploy capital in Europe,” Hawkins said. “Germany’s process has indicated the entire continent will struggle to create a commercial adult-use market in the coming years and have a limited TAM.”
Similarly, like other private businesses looking to raise venture capital, cannabis startups aren’t immune to the global repricing that investors are pushing for. “European cannabis companies are still overvalued,” said Emily Paxhia, co-founder and managing partner at Poseidon Investment Management.
For founders of cannabis-related startups hoping to weather the slowdown, the advice isn’t very different from what all entrepreneurs are being told at the moment: survive and advance. That’s Poseidon’s motto, Paxhia said.
For cannabis companies that know they won’t survive, finding a buyer seems to be a viable option, as consolidation is expected in the coming months. But whether we are talking about investments or M&A, we are in a strong buyer’s market, Lamb warned.
Read on to find out where these investors see the next opportunity, how they plan to tackle the market following Germany’s decision, and how to best pitch them.
We spoke with:
- Oliver Lamb, co-founder, Óskare Capital
- Emily Paxhia, co-founder and managing partner, Poseidon Investment Management
- Matt Hawkins, founder and managing partner, Entourage Effect Capital
Oliver Lamb, co-founder, Óskare Capital
Is cannabis more legally accessible in Europe this year than it was when we conducted our previous survey last year? Have there been any key regulatory changes at play?
On the medical side, cannabinoid therapeutics and non-cannabinoid therapeutics (i.e., therapeutics that modulate the endocannabinoid system but do so without cannabinoids) are notably increasing in availability.
There are many factors at play that explain this shift, amongst them [being] increases in tailwinds and reductions in headwinds. Today we have more, higher quality clinical data demonstrating the efficacy of these medications for various conditions, coupled with an uptick in highly qualified teams that are bringing these medications to market.
As for the tailwinds, difficulties in patient access have long hindered prescriptions of medications that target the endocannabinoid system (the mammalian regulatory system that reacts to cannabinoids and cannabinoid-like molecules, similar to the central nervous system).
However, we are excited to see a number of technologies and platforms linking specialized doctors with patients in need of these medications. One such example is Leva, whose digital clinic is tackling the vastly underserved chronic pain market in the U.K.
Alongside this, there is a growing acceptance within medical communities of the suitability of ECS-modulating medications for certain pathologies. At a conference in Berlin this month, a founder happily relayed that a recent meeting of general practitioners dedicated two hours to talk about medical cannabinoids. This is a clear indicator of the increasing understanding and adoption of these medications by doctors across Europe.
Aside from watered-down plans to legalize recreational use, Germany imported a record amount of marijuana for medical and scientific use in 2022. Is this taking focus away from the fact that imports are slowing?
Although Germany’s decision was undoubtedly unpopular at companies that bet on the legislation going in the opposite direction, this push to slow down the legalization of recreational cannabis is positive for the medical and pharmaceutical market.
The hybrid recreational-medical experiment has already been played out in North America, and there were a painful amount of lessons learned that it would be reckless to ignore. Specifically, legalizing recreational cannabis in tandem with medical use in North America can be seen to have diminished the incentives for researchers to develop targeted therapeutics for specific pathologies, given the flood of cannabis flower being distributed through dispensaries. That happened despite a preference held by the majority of doctors to prescribe targeted and licensed treatment that does not need to be smoked.
The North American approach also blurred the lines between the recreational and medical markets, strengthening the impression that users of such therapeutics were simply prioritizing pleasure while claiming a genuine need.
This misconception is not only counterproductive for patients looking for proven treatments, [but] it also detracts attention from the fact that ECS-modulating medications can provide not only far superior side-effect profiles compared to traditional pharmaceuticals such as opiates, but also treatments for conditions that are currently untreatable.
The Czech Republic might end up legalizing recreational cannabis use before Germany, but it is a smaller market. Is it big enough to move the needle and find out what the EU will tolerate?
Peter Lynch once noted that if you spend 13 minutes a year on economics, you’ve wasted 10 minutes. Politics is arguably the same. Influences on international regulation are vast and varied, and even if you have a good idea of the outcome, the timings are just as complicated to predict.
Therefore, as a rule, we don’t bet on regulation. Instead, we invest in what we know: strong teams, innovative science and untapped market opportunities. We select our investments assuming that the regulatory landscape is fixed as it is today. That way, if nothing changes, we know that they can succeed regardless, and as and when things continue to open up, they can be positioned to benefit further.
A prediction I do feel confident in making is that governments and medical communities will continue to gain understanding of the benefits of these medications.
How has your approach to investing in the cannabis sector changed in the last 12 months? What are your expectations for the next 12 months? Is consolidation in the cards in that period?
With regards to our thesis, not at all. We started by focusing on Europe and continue to do so. Likewise, we launched the fund to target life sciences and deep tech investments in the sector, and this remains unchanged, largely due to the fact that our portfolio is performing very well.
It’s also gratifying to see that a number of U.S. funds are now looking to Europe for the next wave of growth in the sector. This is an asset, as we like to syndicate rounds and having stakeholders across the pond is often helpful when it comes to intercontinental expansion.
We’re happy to say that most of our past predictions have come to fruition, and those for this year are on track to do the same.
What advice are you giving your cannabis-related portfolio companies right now in terms of preserving or extending their runway? | Not_Explicit |
LONDON -- A small spelling error has resulted in thousands of emails intended for the U.S. military being sent instead to Mali, an issue that Pentagon officials said they've taken steps to mitigate.
The suffix used for U.S. military emails is .mil, but leaving the "i" out by mistake would result in the email being redirected to .ml -- the domain used by government of the West African nation Mali.
"Since 2015, the Department of Defense has been aware that typographical errors could result in the misdirection of unclassified emails intended for a '.mil' recipient to the '.ml' domain," Lt. Commander Tim Gorman, a U.S. Department of Defense spokesperson, told ABC News.
Some of the emails sent to Mali reportedly reportedly contained sensitive Pentagon information such as diplomatic documents, passwords and the travel itinerary of top defense officers.
U.S. officials are "aware of these unauthorized disclosures of controlled national security information," Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokesperson, said on Monday.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Johannes Zuurbier, a Dutch internet entrepreneur who has a contract to manage Mali's county domain, said he identified the problem almost a decade ago. Zuurbier, who said has been collecting misdirected emails since January in effort to flag the issue to U.S. authorities, said he has close to 117,000 misdirected messages.
In one day, Zuurbier receiving 1,000 misdirected emails arrived as a result of the typo, he told the newspaper.
None of the redirected emails were marked as "classified," however some are reported to have contained "highly sensitive" data including information on serving U.S. military personnel, official itineraries, contracts, maps and images of bases, he said.
The Pentagon said it's taken steps to stop outgoing emails from being sent to the incorrect domain.
"The Department takes all disclosures of Controlled National Security Information or Controlled Unclassified Information seriously and the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) began blocking .ml lookalike domains immediately," Gorman said.
He added, "By 2023, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) was blocking outbound emails to 135 .ml domains and subdomains. In July 2023, DISA began blocking outbound email to the entire .ml domain with the ability to allow legitimate emails."
The Department of Defense says it is coordinating with interagency, industry partners and international allies to alert them to the possibility of unauthorized disclosure of information due to the typographical error.
Mali's government did not respond to ABC News' request for comment. | Not_Explicit |
Middle school students in Florida will soon be taught that slavery gave Black people a “personal benefit” because they “developed skills.”
After the Florida Board of Education approved new standards for African American history on Wednesday, high school students will be taught an equally distorted message: that a deadly white mob attack against Black residents of Ocoee, Florida, in 1920 included “acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans.”
Dozens of Black residents were killed in the massacre, which was perpetrated to stop them from voting.
According to members of the board, that distorted portrayal of the racist massacre is factually accurate. MaryLynn Magar, a member of the board appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, said at the board’s meeting in Orlando on Wednesday that “everything is there” in the new history standards and “the darkest parts of our history are addressed,” the Tallahassee Democrat reported.
The majority of the speakers who provided public testimony on the planned curriculum were vehemently opposed to it, warning that crucial context is omitted, atrocities are glossed over, and in some cases students will be taught to “blame the victim.”
“I am very concerned by these standards, especially some of the notion that enslaved people benefited from being enslaved,” state Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando) said, per Action News Jax.
“When I see the standards, I’m very concerned,” state Sen. Geraldine Thompson said at the board meeting. “If I were still a professor, I would do what I did very infrequently; I’d have to give this a grade of ‘I’ for incomplete. It recognizes that we have made an effort, we’ve taken a step. However, this history needs to be comprehensive. It needs to be authentic, and it needs additional work.”
“When you look at the history currently, it suggests that the [Ocoee] massacre was sparked by violence from African Americans. That’s blaming the victim,” the Democrat warned.
“Please table this rule and revise it to make sure that my history, our history, is being told factually and completely, and please do not, for the love of God, tell kids that slavery was beneficial because I guarantee you it most certainly was not,” community member Kevin Parker said.
Approval of the new standards is a win for the DeSantis administration, which has effectively sought to create a new educational agenda that shields white students from feeling any sense of guilt for wrongs perpetrated against people of color. The Florida governor signed the “Stop WOKE Act” last year to do just that, restricting how issues of race are taught in public schools and workplaces.
In keeping with the administration’s crusade against “wokeness,” Education Commissioner Manny Diaz defended the new standards against criticism, saying, “This is an in-depth, deep dive into African American history, which is clearly American history as Governor DeSantis has said, and what Florida has done is expand it,” Action News Jax reported.
Paul Burns, the Florida Department of Education’s chancellor of K-12 public schools, also insisted the new standards provide an exhaustive representation of African American history.
“Our standards are factual, objective standards that really teach the good, the bad and the ugly,” he was quoted as saying Wednesday by Florida Phoenix. He denied the new standards portray slavery as beneficial.
Although education officials say teachers are meant to expand upon the new curriculum in the classroom, critics say teachers are unlikely to do that for fear of being singled out and possibly punished for being too “woke.”
The Florida Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, called the new standards “a big step backward for a state that has required teaching African American history since 1994” in a statement after Wednesday’s vote.
Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, also condemned the new curriculum, saying in a statement: “Our children deserve nothing less than truth, justice, and the equity our ancestors shed blood, sweat, and tears for.”
“Today’s actions by the Florida state government are an attempt to bring our country back to a 19th century America where Black life was not valued, nor our rights protected. It is imperative that we understand that the horrors of slavery and Jim Crow were a violation of human rights and represent the darkest period in American history. We refuse to go back,” he said. | Not_Explicit |
U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) killed five members of Shabaab, Al Qaeda’s branch in East Africa, in a “self-defense airstrike” in central Somalia on July 19. AFRICOM has launched four self-defense airstrikes in Somalia this month as it continues to provide air support for the Somali National Army.
Yesterday’s strike brings the total number of US air strikes in Somalia so far this year to 13. US special operations forces additionally conducted a raid in northern Somalia earlier this year against the Islamic State.
The strike took place about 200 miles north of the capital of Mogadishu in “a remote area near Hareeri Kalle,” AFRICOM reported in a press release. Hareeri Kalle is just south of the town of Gal-Libaax in Somalia’s central Galguduud Region. The Somali military reported an operation against Shabaab in the area in recent days, adding that it was supported by “international partners.”
The Somali government claims to have killed around 100 Shabaab members in this operation, which is a number that cannot be independently verified. AFRICOM’s press release, though not indicative of the entire operation, provides a much smaller body count. The Somali government, much like its enemies in Shabaab, often inflates casualty numbers that its forces inflicted on Shabaab.
“The airstrike was in support of Somali National Army forces who were engaged by the terrorist organization,” AFRICOM noted. AFRICOM assessed that no civilians were killed or wounded in the strike.
Today’s strike was preceded by three other self-defense airstrikes, all which took place on July 8 near Afmadow, which is about 60 miles north of the southern city of Kismayo. AFRICOM reported that 10 Shabaab fighters were killed in the 3 strikes, which took place as the Somali military was engaged with the terror group.
In the past, the U.S. military masked offensive operations and counterterrorism strikes against Shabaab, such as raids on training camps and the targeting of individual terrorists, as defensive strikes. More recently, AFRICOM’s airstrikes against Shabaab have truly been defensive in nature, with just one offensive strike reported this year.
That air strike, which took place near Shabaab’s stronghold of Jilib in May, targeted Maalim Osman, the emir of Shabaab’s external operations wing. The terrorist leader reportedly survived. [See LWJ graphic, Detailing Shabaab’s Leadership and Key Personnel, for more]
AFRICOM is supporting the Somali National Army as its offensive to eject Shabaab from its strongholds in southern and central Somalia has largley stalled. Shabaab has responded by attacking and overrunning Somali, Ugandan, and Ethiopian military bases, and conducting a campaign of suicide and IED attacks, as well as assassinations. [See LWJ report, Analysis: Shabaab takes advantage of slowed counter-offensive.]
The Somalia government has been slow to actually implement the so-called second phase of its much-touted offensive, though counter-Shabaab operations in Somalia’s south have picked up in recent weeks. The problem is compounded by internal Somali clan infighting in Middle Shabelle and political squabbles in Hiraan, the imminent withdrawal of thousands of troops from the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) over the next several months. This turmoil further leaves Somali troops with less support and provides more opportunities for Shabaab to exploit any potential security gaps. [Listen to Generation Jihad podcast, Is Africa the epicenter of today’s jihad?, for more information.]
For instance, Shabaab is currently imposing a blockade against the southern city of Baidoa, impacting the ability of tens of thousands to access food and supplies. That Shabaab is currently able to blockade a city of this size should stand as a warning sign that the fight against it is far from over and that any premature announcements of victory harm the Somali government’s narrative.
And for its part, AFRICOM continues to describe Shabaab as “the largest and most kinetically active al Qaeda network in the world” that “has proved both its will and capability to attack partner and U.S. forces and threaten U.S. security interests.”
Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here. | Not_Explicit |
An 82-year-old grandmother affiliated with the local Republican Party spat at and attacked a group of veterans during a press conference in Tulsa last Friday, after they vocally protested against the enforced use of religion in public schools.
The incident, which was captured on camera, took place at a press conference called by State Superintendent Ryan Walters on the grounds of Tulsa Public Schools’ administration building.
Attendees were there to show support for E’Lena Ashley, a Tulsa school board member who had been criticized by parents and her fellow board members for praying during a high school graduation ceremony in May. Among those attending the event were members of the local chapter of extremist group Moms for Liberty, which endorsed Ashley’s campaign for school board last year.
Also in attendance were Roberta Pfanstiel and her husband Carl, who were there to support Walters’ call for “religious freedom” in schools. Last month at a Tulsa School Board meeting he called for the promotion of Christianity and “Western heritage” in every classroom, including displaying the Ten Commandments.
At the event, the Pfanstiels were standing next to three activists from Veterans Defending Democracy, who were calling out what they saw as Walters’ hypocritical calls for “religious freedom” in schools.
During the event Pfanstiel, who lives in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, approached one of the activists, Bailee Tyler, who was sitting on the ground wearing a hat bearing the name of one of the activist groups she is affiliated with, Defense of Democracy.
“[Tyler] was on her knees, on the ground in front of me, and [Pfanstiel] came up from behind her and smacked her hat off of her head,” Erika Stormont, one of the three activists said in a podcast discussing the incident.
Much of the exchange was captured on video and posted online. In the clips Stormont, who was deployed to Afghanistan in 2010 before becoming one of the Army’s first female cavalry scouts in 2015, told Pfanstiel that she cannot touch her or anyone else, and that if she does it again they would press charges.
At one point during the press conference a Christian pastor began praying, and at this point protesters called on Walters to allow a rabbi to pray also if he really believed in religious freedom, chanting “let him pray.”
“And it’s as we’re chanting that, again unprovoked, this woman comes up from behind my friend who’s still on the ground and it looks to me like both of her hands are going for her neck, her shoulders area, and that she made contact,” Stormont said.
In Stormont’s video, posted on TikTok, Pfanstiel’s husband is seen restraining his wife by holding both her elbows.
“As I turned my camera back to her and said: ‘That’s twice, you cannot touch people in public.’ She spits in my face and her saliva lands on my cheek,” Stormont said.
At this point in the video, Stormont is heard telling Pfanstiel to spit again because she has captured it on camera. “I know that’s a very inciting thing to say [but] when I say that, every single part of my body at that point was in fight flight [mode].”
Stormont says she drew on the training she had received in therapy about how to deal with such situations. “I refocused back to the event, I refocused on why I was there, and I ‘gray rocked’ her, which is a term we use when we talk about recovering from narcissistic abuse. You cannot give them any of your energy at that point. And I knew at that point we were going to be pressing charges.”
Stormont filed a police report online and received a tracking number, but told VICE News that she has not heard back from the Tulsa Police Department. She called the department this week to update them with the identity of the person who spat at her, after she had been identified by online sleuths, but had to leave a voicemail. The Tulsa Police Department did not respond to VICE News’ requests for comment on the case.
In total about 100 people attended the event according to Stormont, with about one third of the attendees opposing Walters’ and Ashley’s claims that the school board is being religiously intolerant.
Alongside members of the local Moms for Liberty chapter were prominent members of the state and county Republican Party, including Oklahoma GOP chair Nathan Dahm and Tulsa County GOP chairwoman Ronda Vuillemont-Smith. Moms for Liberty did not respond to questions about Pfanstiel’s affiliation with the group.
Pfanstiel, who deleted her Facebook account this week after VICE News contacted her, has in the past appeared in pictures posted online showing herself and her family with Dahm. One photo was taken in front of the Oklahoma State Capitol on January 6, 2021, to oppose the outcome of the 2020 presidential elections.
Dahm didn’t respond to VICE News’ request for comment but Vuillemont-Smith said the party “is aware of the allegations of assault that took place” and “while the party was not the organizer of this press conference, we are monitoring the situation.”
“The Republican Party of Tulsa County honors all veterans who served, and support the freedom of speech,” Vuillemont-Smith added. “We do not condone nor endorse violence of any kind, nor do we support actions or free-speech that disrupt and impede on others' right to free speech.”
When asked if Pfanstiel is a member of the Tulsa GOP, the chairwoman said “all registered Republicans in Tulsa County are considered members of the Tulsa GOP.” | Not_Explicit |
A new exoskeleton to support workers in railways maintenance and renewal operations
A back support exoskeleton has been developed at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (Italian Institute of Technology—IIT) to improve railway workers' safety and conditions for heavy manual material handling during maintenance and renewal operations.
The prototype, named StreamEXO, was validated in approximately 100 hours of use by 15 people during a 6-month test campaign hosted in Italy highlighting a 50% reduction in the ergonomic risk of physical overload and a 30% of muscle fatigue. The exoskeleton was recently presented during a live demonstration with workers wearing StreamEXOs at the port of Tarragona, in Spain, and it is ready to start an industrialization process.
The exoskeleton StreamEXO has been developed within the European project STREAM coordinated by Christian Di Natali, researcher of the IIT—the first major strategic transnational initiative aimed at promoting research and innovation in the railway sector to make it more competitive, efficient and sustainable.
The STREAM project has introduced a new technological solution from Industry 5.0, where workers' activities are connected, through the IoT, to wearable technologies and enhanced occupational exoskeletons. STREAM developed the exoskeleton StreamEXO and a fully automated excavator for accomplishing tasks in the rail worksites, such as ballast and sleepers' replacement.
On June 8, researchers showed the exoskeleton and the automatic excavator in a rail worksite while simulating the project's target activities at the STREAM's final event in Tarragona, Spain. The event, hosted at Port of Tarragona, was attended by the Shift2Rail Project Office and the port's authorities.
The STREAM exoskeleton (StreamEXO) generates forces which are distributed to the shoulders and legs to support the worker's back during handling activities, such as lifting and carrying heavy loads. The device's ergonomics have been studied to enhance comfort and provide totally free movements, ensuring a perfect fit on the worker's body while carrying out dynamic activities.
The system has an innovative one-size-fits-all solution that guarantees both robustness and power, and a lightweight design (7 kg of weight with a battery of 6 hours autonomy).
The device comprises of a mechanical structure, some electric actuators, and an electronics system, completed by specific algorithms that assist workers during work tasks to reduce the risk of injury. Therefore, thanks to the control algorithms, the exoskeleton can interpret the movements that a person does to manage the different intensities of work and can automatically implement assistance strategies. Workers can use StreamEXO in a versatile way, also while they are driving vehicles or walking on rough terrain.
The benefits of the exoskeleton have been evaluated during an experimental campaign of six months hosted in railway construction sites by RFI and MERMEC STE s.p.a, including a final phase near Milan. The campaign saw several laboratory tests and an on-site validation with railway workers.
The final demonstration involved 15 workers for about 100 hours of use during real work activities in railways sites. They wore StreamEXO for carrying and positioning concrete conduit whose weight was between 20kg and 30kg.
Results showed a 50% reduction in the musculoskeletal system's ergonomic risk of physical overload, particularly for the lumbar region. Fatigue was reduced by up to 30%, and muscle activity was also reduced by 25%.
The experimental campaign was fundamental to obtaining an advanced technological maturity level for the prototype, which is ready for future industrialization. The design of the StreamEXO created by IIT was intended to be a comfortable solution to be used during work shifts for workers employed in the heavy-duty industry and in the construction sector, such as railways. | Not_Explicit |
AP
toggle caption
In this image taken from video, a wildfire burns in Zbarbar, Bouira Province, Algeria, Monday, July 24, 2023.
AP
In this image taken from video, a wildfire burns in Zbarbar, Bouira Province, Algeria, Monday, July 24, 2023.
AP
ALGIERS, Algeria — Wildfires raging across Algeria have killed 25 people, including 10 soldiers trying to get the flames under control in the face of high winds and scorching summer temperatures, government ministries said Monday.
At least 1,500 people were evacuated, the Interior Ministry said, without providing details.
The Interior Ministry announced 15 deaths and 24 injuries. In addition, the Defense Ministry later announced 10 soldiers were killed and 25 injured as they fought fires in the resort area of Beni Ksila east of the capital Algiers.
It wasn't immediately clear over what period of time the casualties happened, but the fires have been burning for several days.
Wildfires, some spread by strong winds, moved across forests and agricultural areas in 16 regions causing 97 blazes in the north African country. The largest and deadliest fires ravaged parts of Bejaia and Jijel — in the Kabyle region east of Algiers — and Bouira, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southeast of Algiers, the Interior Ministry said.
Operations to tamp down the fires included some 7,500 firefighters and 350 trucks on the ground as well as air support.
Algeria is no stranger to summer wildfires.
At least 37 people were killed last August after wildfires blazed near Algeria's northern border with Tunisia.
A year earlier, authorities said dozens were killed in blazes — including soldiers called in to help fight the fires in the mountainous Kabyle region that is dotted with villages.
Strong winds and successive heat waves have fueled vicious fires in Greece and elsewhere around the Mediterranean this summer. | Not_Explicit |
- Ukraine took out a Russian military repair depot in Crimea, per an unofficial Russian source.
- The site was reportedly struck by the UK-supplied Storm Shadow missile.
- On the same day, Russia announced a nearby town had to be evacuated due to a hail of drone attacks.
A Russian vehicle repair base in Crimea was struck by a Ukrainian Storm Shadow missile on Monday, according to a Russian source.
The base was hit by one of four cruise missiles fired by Ukrainian Su-24 jets overnight, according to the Russian Telegram outlet Rybar, with one missile striking the repair depot near Dhzankoy, a town to the north of the peninsula, and the other three striking an ammunition store.
Insider was unable to independently verify the claim, which was also highlighted in a briefing by the US-based think tank the Institute for the Study of War.
Rybar is a prominent pro-Kremlin Russian blogger with more than a million followers, and is rumored to be connected to the Kremlin and the Wagner Group.
Dzhankoy and its surrounding villages were evacuated on Monday due to Ukrainian drone strikes, Russian news outlet TASS reported the Russian-installed leader of Crimea as saying. This would include the site where the repair depot is located.
TASS did not mention the reported Storm Shadow strikes, but said that 11 drones were shot down while one destroyed an ammunition pile.
According to Rybar, the drone attack preceded the Storm Shadow strikes.
The vehicle repair base south of Dzhankoy has served at earlier points in the war as a major repair hub, according to Forbes, housing hundreds of fighting vehicles, tanks, and trucks being fixed up for the invasion.
It's unclear how many were on-site, or indeed hit, on Monday.
But the episode highlights the growing pressures the UK-supplied Storm Shadow has laid on Russian command and control.
Ukraine has had its hands on the missile, also known as SCALP, since earlier this year.
With a range of up to 155 miles, the air-launched missile has put vast swathes of Russian-held territory within reach of Ukraine, pressuring Russian commanders to move their supply lines further behind the front lines.
The site of the Crimea repair depot is roughly 130 miles behind the front lines of the conflict.
Firing a Storm Shadow is both risky and expensive, as experts previously told Insider, and this means Ukraine is likely reserving its use for concentrated, high-value targets.
This could also pressure Russia's army to disperse its depots and ammunition caches into smaller, more nimble formations — which would be a fresh challenge for Russia's centralized, Soviet-style military command. | Not_Explicit |
President Biden is expected to sign a proclamation Tuesday designating locations associated withas a national monument on what would have been his 82nd birthday, recognizing the impact of his killing on the civil rights movement.
Graball Landing in Mississippi, the Tallahatchie River location where the brutally beaten body of 14-year-oldwas discovered in 1955, will soon be one of three sites designated as a national monument in his honor, CBS News has learned.
The White House is expected to announce the river site, the Tallahatchie County Second District Courthouse and the Robert Temple church in Chicago as part of a national monument, recognizing both the history of racial violence and the need for legal justice. Till's mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, is also being honored with the monument.
Brent Leggs, who helped secure the designation, hopes it will draw attention to approximately 5,000 additional Black historic sites across the United States that require approximately half a billion dollars for preservation.
"It isn't for our nation to remain stuck in a painful past. It really is to challenge our nation to say, 'we can do better,'" Leggs said.
The memory of Emmett Till remains imprinted on the banks of the Tallahatchie River.
"This landscape holds memory of one of the most painful moments in American history," said Leggs. The site serves as a grim reminder of the violent and threatening environment faced by Black youth in American society during that era.
Nearly 70 years later, Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr., Till's cousin, still remembers the fateful summer of 1955 when they traveled from Chicago to visit relatives in the Mississippi Delta. On their trip, the cousins visited Bryant's Grocery Store, owned by Roy and Carolyn Bryant. Till's innocent act of whistling at Carolyn Bryant, a White woman, resulted in fatal consequences.
"That's a death sentence," Parker said.
Days later, armed with guns, Roy Bryant and his brother J.W. Milam found the family at their home.
"I heard 'em talkin, 'You got two boys here from Chicago?'" Parker said. "I said, 'God, we're getting ready to die.' Shaking like a leaf on the tree. I closed my eyes to be shot but they didn't shoot me. They came to take Emmett. That's what they did."
Till was abducted from his relative's home, tortured and shot before his lifeless body was dumped in the Tallahatchie River.
The images of Till's beaten and bruised body appeared in Black-owned newspapers and magazines across the country, thanks to the efforts of the Black press, which played a crucial role in exposing racial disparities.
Mamie Till-Mobley, Till's mother, held an open casket funeral at Roberts Temple in Chicago, where nearly 50,000 people paid their respects. The public viewing of Till's disfigured face is considered a catalyst for the civil rights movement.
"She allowed the world to see what she saw when she opened that box that they shipped from in Mississippi: the face of racial hatred and racism in America," said Marvel Parker, Wheeler Parker's wife.
The Parkers are focused on restoring the 100-year-old church building, which requires approximately $20 million for full restoration.
At the Tallahatchie County Courthouse, restored to its 1955 appearance, Patrick Weems facilitates tours, reminding visitors of the battle between racial violence and legal injustice that took place there.
It was at that courthouse that an all-White male jury acquitted Bryant and Milam for Till's murder. Months later, the brothers confessed their crime to a magazine, but were never held accountable.
"There was a battle here. There's a battle of the souls of this nation about what was gonna win out. Are they gonna say segregation is right and what the murderers did was OK? Or is justice going to prevail? And that day — we all lost," Weems said.
for more features. | Not_Explicit |
Chelsea and Saudi club Al-Hilal have begun the process of trying to sign 24-year-old France forward Kylian Mbappe, who has not travelled with Paris St-Germain on their pre-season tour of Asia. (RMC Sport - in French)
Mbappe is prepared to sit out an entire season and leave PSG on a free transfer next summer after the French champions put him up for sale on Friday. (Sky Sports)
Harry Kane's wife has been spotted in Munich, looking for properties and schools ahead of a potential move from Tottenham to Bayern Munich for the 29-year-old England striker. (Bild - in German; subscription required)
Inter Milan believe it is now impossible to consider bringing Romelu Lukaku back to the club from Chelsea after the Belgium striker, 30, approached rivals AC Milan and Juventus about a potential move. (Gazzetta dello Sport - in Italian)
England striker Ivan Toney, 27, is considering changing agents, a sign that he is looking to leave Brentford even before his eight-month ban for breaking betting rules ends in January. (Sun on Sunday)
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi has hinted at a potential swap deal involving Levi Colwill, with Chelsea using their English centre-back, 20, to help them sign the Seagulls' Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo, 21. (Talksport)
Southampton have turned down a new approach from Newcastle for England Under-21 right-back Tino Livramento, 20. (Talksport)
Watford's Senegal winger Ismaila Sarr, 25, is closing in on a move to Marseille despite interest from Everton, which will not affect the French club's pursuit of Sarr's compatriot, Sheffield United forward Iliman Ndiaye, 23. (FootMercato - in French)
Manchester United are set to announce the double signing of twin brothers Jack and Tyler Fletcher, sons of former United midfielder Darren Fletcher, from Manchester City in a British record deal for 16-year-olds. (Fabrizio Romano)
Our coverage of your Premier League club is bigger and better than ever before - follow your team and sign up for notifications in the BBC Sport app to make sure you never miss a moment | Not_Explicit |
The final stage of this 2023 Tour de France before Sunday’s procession to Paris should see a fierce battle both for the polka dot jersey and the stage win.
Stage 20 is relatively short at 133km, riding from Belfort to Le Markstein ski resort in the Vosges mountains, and features six categorised climbs. There are King of the Mountains points available at the top of each ascent and Giulio Ciccone will need to sweep up as many as possible to hold on to the polka dots, under pressure from Austrian rider Felix Gall.
Meanwhile Jonas Vingegaard would love to close out his second Tour de France victory by winning a stage in the yellow jersey, but he will face fierce competition from the other climbers across the peloton, not least Thibaut Pinot, looking to win the fourth Tour stage of his career in what is his last hurrah before retirement.
Follow updates from stage 20 of the Tour de France below.
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20
Stage 20 is 133km ride to Le Markstein ski resort in Vosges mountains
Jonas Vingegaard set to seal yellow jersey and eyeing stage win
Giulio Ciccone trying to keep hold of polka dot jersey
98km to go: Podium-chasing Carlos Rodriguez crashes
Tour de France LIVE – breakaway forming ahead of peloton
13:53 , Lawrence Ostlere
85km to go: A breakaway of around 15 riders is trying to pull clear of the peloton, but UAE Emirates are working hard to haul them back and ensure Tadej Pogacar gets a look at winning this stage. The break are only around 20 seconds clear of the rest.
Tour de France LIVE: Sepp Kuss receives medical attention
13:46 , Lawrence Ostlere
91km to go: Jumbo-Visma’s Sepp Kuss is also struggling – he’s got a very similar injury to Rodriguez around his left eye and he’s receiving medical attention as he tries to catch up with the escaping peloton. Kuss’s teammate, the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard, was just one bike away from being involved in that crash. That could have been hugely dramatic.
Tour de France LIVE: Carlos Rodriguez injured in crash
13:39 , Lawrence Ostlere
98km to go: A crash in the peloton! It looks like Carlos Rodriguez, the man currently fourth in the overall standings, has hit the ground and he looks hurt, with blood pouring from around his left eye and more on his left arm and leg. The young Spaniard is back on his bike, trying to catch up with the peloton, but this looks pretty bad.
Tour de France LIVE – stage 20
13:34 , Lawrence Ostlere
Here is how the top of the King of the Mountains standings look after that ascent:
Giulio Ciccone 93 points
Felix Gall 82
Jonas Vingegaard 81
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20
13:32 , Lawrence Ostlere
At the top of the first climb of the day, the Ballon d’Alsace, Giulio Ciccone is teed up by his teammates before sprinting to pick up the maximum five King of the Mountains points on offer for this category two climb. Felix Gall wasn’t bluffing when he said he wasn’t interested in contested for polka dots, but Jonas Vingegaard sneaks to the front to try and grab some extra KoM points – but Ciccone’s teammate Mads Pedersen spotted what Vingegaard was up to and sprinted ahead to deny Vingegaard any points haul.
So now we know: the polka dots will be fought between Ciccone and Vingegaard today.
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20
13:24 , Lawrence Ostlere
110km to go: Victor Campenaerts has been reeled in and the peloton is back together as one. Lidl-Trek are working hard on the front to help Giulio Ciccone win the points he needs to protect the polka dot jersey.
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20
13:09 , Lawrence Ostlere
Interesting to hear from Felix Gall ahead of the stage, who tells ITV he is not prioritising the polka dot jersey today. He is only seven points behind Giulio Ciccone and there are a maximum of 37 King of the Mountains points up for grabs here, but Gall insists he won’t be fighting for it.
“If it happens it’s somehing, we’ll see how it plays out, but for sure it’s not the first priority today.”
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20 preview
12:57 , Lawrence Ostlere
Here’s a closer look at today’s stage...
What is left to play for? The team category has been sewn up by Jumbo-Visma, to go with Vingegaard’s yellow jersey, and the green jersey has been won by Jasper Philipsen, assuming he can get through this day unscathed and before the time cut – his Alpecin-Deceuninck teammates will ensure that he does. The best young rider’s white jersey will almost certainly be won by Pogacar for the fourth year in a row.
But the polka dot jersey is still very much on the line. Giulio Ciccone currently wears the famous red and white colours but his tally of 88 points at the top of the standings is not definitive. Austrian rider Felix Gall – winner of the Souvenir Henri Desgrange as the first over the top of the highest point of the race – has 82 points on the board. Then there is Vingegaard, with 81 points. There are 37 points available on stage 20, so this is where the King of the Mountains will be decided.
There is also a final podium spot up for grabs. Pogacar’s UAE Emirates teammate Adam Yates currently occupies third in the general classification, an impressive achievement given the work he has put in for his leader throughout the Tour. But Yates is only a minute or so up on Ineos’s Carlos Rodriguez and his twin brother Simon Yates, while Bahrain Victorious’s Pello Bilbao is around two minutes back from the podium. We can expect some attempts to dislodge Adam Yates, who will now doubt have his teammates’ support in defence of his place, which comes with plenty of prize money as well as prestige.
Tour de France 2023 – stage 20
12:49 , Lawrence Ostlere
Stage 20 has just begun and in news that will shock no one who has followed this Tour de France, Belgian chaos-magnet Victor Campenaerts has gone on the attack immediately. He has won both of the past two combativity awards for his aggression over the last two stages and he’s on one again.
Tour de France 2023: Latest updates from stage 20
12:45 , Lawrence Ostlere
Follow all the action from the final stage before Paris. | Not_Explicit |
Democrats tear into RFK Jr. during weaponization hearing
Democrats on the newly created House subcommittee on the “weaponization” of the federal government on Thursday blasted Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democratic candidate for president, as he testifies at a hearing on censorship, tech companies and free speech.
Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands) in her opening statement ran through a list of some of Kennedy’s claims related to COVID-19 and vaccines, including “that COVID-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people, [and] the people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese;” and implications that “Jews in Nazi Germany had more freedoms than unvaccinated Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The Democrat, who is the ranking member on the panel, dismissed the idea that Republicans invited Kennedy before the committee in an attempt to protect his free speech. She argued that Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) have “affirmatively chose” to give Kennedy’s “hateful, evidence-free rhetoric” a platform.
“They intentionally chose to elevate this rhetoric to give these harmful dangerous views a platform in the halls of the United States Congress. That’s endorsing that speech. That’s not just supporting free speech. They have co-signed on idiotic bigoted messaging,” Plaskett said.
“There’s no doubt as to why they’re making the choice. It’s not o guard free speech or to ensure equality for all. All of this … is to show us by their conduct, over and over again, that any attack on Joe Biden to get Donald Trump back in the White House, is what they need to do.”
After Kennedy’s opening statement, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) made a motion to move the committee into executive session, arguing “Mr. Kennedy has repeatedly made despicable antisemitic and anti-Asian comments” in violation of a rule against testimony that would tend to defame or degrade. The motion failed.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
MELBOURNE, Australia -- Morocco’s debut game at the Women’s World Cup ended in a 6-0 loss to two-time champion Germany in what head coach Reynald Pedros described as a “David versus Goliath" contest.
Germany is ranked No. 2 and the Atlas Lionesses are No. 72 and the first Arab or North African team to qualify.
The margin of defeat on Monday was the biggest so far at the tournament where Morocco is one of eight teams on debut.
Pedros has made it clear the opening game is now history, and Morocco's focus must shift swiftly to the next game against South Korea.
“Our objective is obviously to as quickly as possible get back to work," he said. "We’re still going to stay positive, that’s extremely important.”
A large contingent of Morocco fans, many gathered in the southwest corner of the stadium in Melbourne, cheered vocally for the recent Africa Cup of Nations finalists.
“We were coming up against a team that’s extremely high level,” Pedros said. “We could have avoided some of the goals we conceded, but I think we gave it our all, and we’re in a competition that’s a high-level competition.”
Throughout the match, Morocco struggled defending crosses and corner kicks. Germany opened its scoring with captain Alexandra Popp finding the back of the net with two first-half headers serviced from out wide.
In the second half, Klara Bühl and Lea Schüller added to Germany’s tally, bookending two own goals that bounced off Morocco’s Hanane Aït El Haj and Yasmin Mrabet after German corners.
Pedros described the third goal – coming from Bühl just 23 seconds into the second half – as a “hard blow,” noting that if the team could have scored after Popp’s opening wo goals, the end result may have been different.
The Atlas Lionesses will look to earn crucial points against No. 17-ranked South Korea on Sunday, before finishing the group stage against No. 25 Colombia on Aug. 3.
“As soon as one (goal) goes in, and you don’t really gain momentum after that against a team like Germany, it’s always going to be hard,” Morocco forward Rosella Ayane said. “We have the spirit, we have the fight, and we’ll regroup.”
___
Cassidy Hettesheimer is a student at the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
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AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup | Not_Explicit |
Ukrainian military intelligence comments on the placement of nuclear weapons in Belarus
According to the statement from Ukrainian Military Intelligence representative Andriy Yusov during a TV interview, the placement of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus does not alter Ukraine's security situation significantly. However, it can serve as an additional tool for coercion.
"For Ukraine, this fundamentally changes nothing. It's a repetition of the Caribbean Crisis, only closer and on a smaller scale," he said.
Yusov emphasized that Russian nuclear weapons remain in Belarusian territory, and this serves as an additional instrument for blackmail, pressure, possible negotiations, and raising the stakes. They could withdraw the weapons they have deployed if someone wants to engage in talks with the dictator.
The intelligence representative also highlighted that globally, it does not alter the security situation for Europe or Ukraine.
"Our border with Russia is so vast, and nuclear facilities, including elements of nuclear weapons, are located in different areas. So, for Ukraine, it changes nothing... It's primarily about blackmail and raising the stakes: 'Please start talking with me, and maybe we'll come up with something and reach an agreement,'" he added.
Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus
In late May, the defense ministers of Russia and Belarus signed an agreement on the placement of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. Moscow was to transfer the "Iskander-M" missile complex to Minsk, which is capable of launching missiles with nuclear warheads.
U.S. intelligence has no doubt that Russia has already transported the first batch of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus.
However, the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, believes that Russia will not launch a nuclear strike against Ukraine.
Caribbean Crisis
This tense standoff between the United States and the Soviet Union arose from the secret placement of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba in 1962, in response to the installation of missiles in Turkey. The superpowers came close to direct military confrontation and the imminent threat of nuclear war. | Not_Explicit |
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All eyes are on the Republican primary this election cycle, but one Democratic underdog has been getting attention for his controversial comments spreading misinformation on a range of subjects. Lisa Desjardins reports on how Robert F. Kennedy Jr. captured the attention of some voters and Geoff Bennett discusses Kennedy's vaccine stances with Dr. Paul Offitt.
Lisa Desjardins is a correspondent for PBS NewsHour, where she covers news from the U.S. Capitol while also traveling across the country to report on how decisions in Washington affect people where they live and work.
Saher Khan is a reporter-producer for the PBS NewsHour.
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Sir Keir Starmer has said the Labour party must have been doing something “very wrong” over the controversial Ulez expansion policy after their loss in the Uxbridge and South Ruislip byelection.
In a speech at the national policy forum in Nottingham on Saturday, the Labour leader said that despite the party’s success at the Selby and Ainsty byelection, their loss in Uxbridge and South Ruislip showed that there “is still a long way to go”.
Starmer added: “We are doing something very wrong if policies put forward by the Labour party end up on each and every Tory leaflet. We’ve got to face up to that and learn the lessons.”
Starmer’s comments comes a day after he urged Sadiq Khan to “reflect” on the impact of extending Ulez into Uxbridge and Ruislip, where Labour was unexpectedly defeated in a byelection on Thursday.
Both Conservative and Labour campaigners have attributed the narrow Tory victory to London mayor’s decision to expand the capital’s ultra low-emission zone (Ulez) – which charges drivers who use older, more polluting vehicles £12.50 a day to use their vehicles – to every borough next month.
Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, said the party had lost by 495 votes in Uxbridge because it had failed to “listen to voters” over concerns about the expansion of Ulez, but environmentally minded Conservatives urged Rishi Sunak to hold firm on net zero commitments.
Despite the intensifying climate emergency, with world temperature records broken twice in the last week alone, the prime minister is facing calls from other Tories to rethink “very unpopular” green policies, such as the current plans to phase out gas boilers by 2035 and ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.
One Tory cabinet minister told the Daily Telegraph: “It is about pace and practicality. This isn’t the area for pure ideology, it is an area for balance.” Another said: “There probably is a broader lesson that the Conservatives should stand for sensible approaches to net zero.”
Craig Mackinlay, chairman of the Net Zero Scrutiny Group, told the Daily Telegraph: “This is a wake-up call to warn politicians against anti-motorist policies across the entire country.
“We need to get the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars overturned at least until 2035, which is where most of the developed world is going.”
But Conservative Chris Skidmore, who led a recent net zero review of the UK’s climate goals, said: “It helps no one in politics if we are not honest about the reality of pollution in our cities and the health consequences of this, but we also need to be honest about what investments are needed to deliver policies with public support.
“This was what the net zero review very clearly set out: we need long-term investment to encourage private sector investment and to create a just transition by establishing the effective incentives to decarbonise.”
Meanwhile, The Times reports that Sunak is preparing to launch an aggressive political campaign on crime, migrant boats and transgender rights in an attempt to drive down Labour’s lead in the polls.
The newspaper said the Conservative party is planning to focus on “divisive” issues, with the government said to be drawing up a series of policies for a crime and justice bill that will include tougher sentences for antisocial behaviour, fraud, burglary and robbery.
Sunak is also expected to press ahead with plans to change the Equality Act to introduce explicit protections for biological women in same-sex spaces such as changing rooms and hospital wards. | Not_Explicit |
FARGO, N.D. -- A New Jersey man has been sentenced to a year-and-a-half in federal prison for trying to smuggle people from Mexico across the U.S.-Canada border into North Dakota.
Jose Gonzalez-Resendiz, 41, was sentenced Monday, becoming the third man sentenced in the scheme. On July 13, Armando De Dios-Carrillo received a two-year sentence, and Victor Manuel Perez-Aguilera was sentenced to 18 months. All three men pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to transport people into the U.S. illegally.
Prosecutors say the conspiracy involved smuggling a group of people from Mexico across the border from Canada into North Dakota in March, with plans to eventually move them to other U.S. locations. In exchange, the smugglers would be paid thousands of dollars by each person.
Authorities said the plan fell apart when a pickup truck carrying the people got stuck in the snow. The truck was towed and later seen by Border Patrol agents at a hotel in Langdon, North Dakota, where the smugglers and some of the people they brought into the U.S. were staying, according to prosecutors. | Not_Explicit |
Manager Carlo Ancelotti said Real Madrid are "lucky" to have the "fantastic" Jude Bellingham after the England midfielder impressed on debut in a 3-2 pre-season win against AC Milan in Los Angeles.
It was another Englishman, Fikayo Tomori, who got his name on the scoresheet, heading the opener for AC Milan, but two second-half goals from Federico Valverde and a superb winner from Vinicius Jr, who ran on to a sublime Luka Modric pass, sent the majority of fans in a 70,000 crowd at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena home happy.
Bellingham's 62-minute debut had flashes of his natural technique and confidence, twice bringing roars of approval from the crowd and then praise from his manager Ancelotti.
In the opening stages Bellingham went on a mazy run by the touchline, leaving a couple of Milan defenders in his wake.
Then, as the opening period drew to a close, a brilliant first-time half-volleyed pass, blending dexterity and a sure touch in a crowded penalty area, almost put Brahim Diaz in on goal.
"It is rare to find player with this kind of quality," Ancelotti said. "He is only 20, so he can improve. We are lucky to have him in our squad.
"He was fantastic. He has a lot of rhythm, moves well and has quality finding open spaces."
Real paid Borussia Dortmund £88m to sign Bellingham on a six-year contract. They can already be assured the 20-year-old is the real deal.
Bellingham eases his way into life at Real
At his public unveiling as a Real player last month, Bellingham said he liked the idea of being out of his "comfort zone".
There is no club in the world where the glare is quite as intense for quite as long.
But everything about Bellingham - from his solid family background and parental guidance, to the bravery of his move to Dortmund from Birmingham aged only 17, to his decision not to join any of the Premier League suitors this summer in favour of a switch to the Bernabeu - suggests that if anyone can deal with what lies ahead, it is Bellingham.
"Real Madrid is a big team with big pressure, but from what he did at Borussia Dortmund, he is ready to accept that," said football writer Joel Del Rio, who was covering the AC Milan game for Madrid-based newspaper Marca.
"He is a player who can do everything."
Watching Bellingham in the build-up to the game and then the opening hour, before he was replaced with a congratulatory handshake from Ancelotti, was instructive.
First of all, Ancelotti picked him at the tip of a diamond, which is the role he has earmarked for the Midlander.
It allowed Bellingham to ghost and glide into positions of space as Toni Kross, deployed in the sitting position at the base of that midfield, could dictate play.
Despite his tender years and the elite trophy-winning environment he has joined, Bellingham is not scared to demand the ball. When he gets it, he rarely takes the easy option.
Ancelotti said: "He is distinct from our other midfielders and he is going to help us a lot.
"He could play left or right to use his characteristics, but his best position is as a number 10, where he has more possibility to get near to the opposition goal."
Bellingham already seems to have a connection with former Manchester City forward Diaz.
The pair did the pre-match passing drill together and twice Bellingham almost set the 23-year-old up, first with a flicked pass with the outside of his right foot, which drew appeals for a penalty as Tomori slid in to block, then that beautifully delicate half-volley pass very few players can execute.
Tomori, 25, was in conversation with Bellingham after the game and told BBC Sport: "He is so elegant and will be a really good player for them. He said he has gelled in well and a few of the guys speak English, which makes it easier for him.
"It is good to see so many English players move to different countries. I know the Premier League is big, but there is football beyond that."
Judging by the names of the back of the Madrid shirts being worn at the Rose Bowl, Bellingham is not yet vying with Vinicius in terms of popularity.
But there were still plenty of number five shirts - most famously worn by Zinedine Zidane, now with Bellingham on the back - in the crowd.
Bellingham was showing signs of tiredness when his outing was brought to an end and, with matches against Barcelona and Juventus to come before Real return to Madrid, it will be interesting to see how much involvement he has against Manchester United - who were so keen to sign him before he went to Dortmund - in Houston on Wednesday. | Not_Explicit |
Two teams at the Tour de France -- including overall leader Jonas Vingegaard's squad -- may not be raising glasses to cheer when the famed cycling race ends Sunday.
Groupama-FDJ hit out at Richard Plugge, the team manager for Vingegaard's Jumbo-Visma, after he said that riders from the French-based team drank "large beers" during Monday's rest day.
Plugge told L'Equipe that Vingegaard and his team's success was due to an extreme attention to "details," saying none of the riders drank alcohol.
"We were with a French team at our hotel during the rest day. We could see riders drink large beers," Plugge said. "... Alcohol is poison, and when you're tired [and you drink], it makes you more tired."
Groupama-FDJ was the only French team sharing the same hotel in Saint Gervais on Monday.
"Who does he think he is? Frankly, it's an exceptionally vile attack on his part," Groupama-FDJ team manager Marc Madiot said. "... Let him keep his mouth shut! I don't intend to see him. I don't care about him. I'm not going to go and see him. I'm angry. It's pathetic. I don't watch what he puts in his riders' bowls."
Groupama-FDJ sports director Philippe Mauduit also challenged Plugge's comments, telling Reuters that the team's riders had socialized during the rest day but none had drunk alcohol.
"Everyone orders the drink they want, and the guys are so tired this year that they're not fooling around," he said.
The performance of defending champion Vingegaard, who holds a 7-minute, 35-second lead, has come under tight scrutiny after the Danish cyclist pulverized his rivals in Tuesday's individual time trial to solidify his grasp on the title.
The final major chance for second-place Tadej Pogačar and the other riders to catch Vingegaard will be Saturday's hilly 20th stage before the Tour finishes Sunday on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. | Not_Explicit |
Christine Sinclair missed out on becoming the first player to score at six Fifa World Cups as Canada were held by Nigeria.
Nigeria keeper Chiamaka Nnadozie kept out Sinclair's spot-kick early in the second half as the Olympic champions were frustrated in Melbourne.
Deborah Abiodun was sent off late on for Nigeria, however they earned a point with a battling display.
Canada and Nigeria have one point in Group B, behind co-hosts Australia.
The Canadians face Republic of Ireland in their next game on 26 July, after the Irish were beaten by Australia on Thursday.
Their captain Sinclair went into this game aiming to make some personal history. The 40-year-old forward was making her 324th international appearance and has scored 190 goals for her country.
She is one of three players to score at five Fifa World Cups - alongside Marta and Cristiano Ronaldo - and seemed destined to make history when she was fouled inside the area by Francisca Ordega early in the second half.
Referee Lina Lehtovaara awarded the penalty after the video assistant referee intervened, however Sinclair's effort was weak and well saved by impressive Nigerian keeper Nnadozie.
Nigeria, ranked 33 places lower than Canada in the Fifa rankings, defended deep and prevented Canada from many clear chances other than the penalty.
Sinclair fired narrowly wide from the edge of the area in the first half, while Nnadozie kept out Evelyne Viens' stabbed effort in the second.
Nigeria came closest to a goal in the first half when a mistake from Canadian keeper Kailen Sheridan allowed forward Asisat Oshoala to round her, however the Barcelona forward's shot from a tight angle was well blocked by Ashley Lawrence.
VAR again intervened in the final seconds to instruct Lehtovaara to send off Abiodun for a high tackle on Lawrence, after the Finnish official originally only gave a yellow card.
However Nigeria held on to give them fresh hope of getting out of their Women's World Cup group for only the third time in nine tournaments. | Not_Explicit |
SoftBank-Backed Paytm Posts Narrower Loss After Winning Users
Paytm posted a narrower loss after winning more users, helped by a campaign to target customers such as small merchants.
(Bloomberg) -- Paytm posted a narrower loss after winning more users, helped by a campaign to target customers such as small merchants.
The SoftBank Group Corp.-backed fintech company reported a net loss of 3.57 billion rupees ($43.6 million) for the quarter ended June 30, compared with 6.44 billion rupees a year earlier. Analysts had estimated a loss of 3.33 billion rupees. Revenue from operations rose 39% to 23.4 billion rupees.
The payment services provider is one of the biggest players in India’s emergent fintech industry, which is benefiting from the country’s growing mobile phone use and expanding middle class. The company, also backed by Jack Ma’s Ant Group Co., has added to its product offerings to reach more users.
Read more: Paytm Leads $6 Billion Rally as India Tech Firms Seek Redemption
Paytm earlier this month disclosed a 23% jump in average monthly transacting users to 92 million for the quarter ended in June. Loan disbursements, a key growth metric, more than doubled to 148.5 billion rupees.
But the shares remain down by more than 60% since its $2.5 billion initial public offering in 2021, depressed by concerns over intensifying competition from the likes of Alphabet Inc.’s Google Pay, Amazon.com Inc.’s Amazon Pay and Walmart Inc.’s PhonePe.
Paytm’s stock price has been volatile after a one-year lock-in for certain shareholders expired on Nov. 15, freeing them to reduce their holdings. SoftBank recently trimmed its stake to about 9.2%.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P. | Not_Explicit |
The federal government has launched a civil rights probe into Harvard University’s use of legacy admissions, the U.S. Department of Education said Tuesday, increasing pressure on universities already grappling with intense backlash to the practice.
The disclosure arrived three weeks after a Boston civil rights group filed a complaint with the Education Department over Harvard’s use of legacy admissions — the practice of advantaging the children of alumni in admissions decisions — and almost a month after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision banning affirmative action nationwide.
Legacy admissions, a controversial practice used by many elite universities, can disproportionately benefit white applicants. Civil rights advocates have seized on the fight against legacy admissions after the U.S. Supreme Court sharply curtailed colleges’ ability to give admissions bumps to Black and Latino students.
About 70% of legacy applicants to Harvard are white, and legacy applicants are about six times more likely to be admitted to the school than non-legacy applicants, according to the complaint filed earlier this month by the Boston firm, Lawyers for Civil Rights.
“Harvard is on the wrong side of history,” Oren Sellstrom, the firm’s litigation director, said in a virtual news conference Tuesday.
Shortly after the Supreme Court ruling, President Biden pledged that the Education Department would study legacy admissions and other “systems that expand privilege instead of opportunity.”
The investigation into Harvard marks his administration’s most aggressive step against legacy admissions to date.
The Education Department’s Civil Rights Office said it would investigate whether Harvard “discriminates on the basis of race by using donor and legacy preferences” in admissions, according to a notice letter dated Monday and released by Lawyers for Civil Rights. The letter was addressed to the firm.
The Education Department said in a Tuesday statement that it “can confirm” the investigation, but that it does not comment on pending probes.
Legacy admissions, like race-conscious admissions, appear broadly unpopular in the U.S. A Pew Research Center survey last year found 75% of respondents did not think legacy considerations should play into admissions decisions.
Some selective schools have voluntarily given up legacy admissions. Wesleyan University in Connecticut said last week that it would stop giving preferential admissions treatment to the children of alumni.
But top universities seem largely reluctant to withdraw from a practice that supporters say can sharpen school spirit and supercharge fund-raising efforts.
Harvard has declined to comment on the complaint from Lawyers for Civil Rights. The firm filed the complaint on July 3 on behalf of three Boston-area advocacy groups: the Chica Project, the Greater Boston Latino Network and the African Community Economic Development of New England.
In one section, the complaint lifts directly from the conservative Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision, arguing that if the practice is scrapped so should legacy admissions.
”Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it,” the complaint said, quoting Chief Justice John Roberts’ majority opinion.
The fate of legacy admissions could ultimately be decided in the courts, but lawmakers in some states — including New York — have sought to take legislative action against the practice.
Colorado outlawed legacy admissions in public universities in 2021, but the state remains an outlier.
And last year, New York State lawmakers proposed a bill banning the practice in the state’s public and private schools, but the legislation floundered. The bill appears likely to get a second life next year.
Some New York schools, including NYU, say they do not consider legacy status in admissions decisions. Johns Hopkins University in Maryland and Amherst College in Massachusetts ended their use of legacy admissions in recent years.
It was unclear if New York’s two highly selective Ivy League universities — Columbia in the city and Cornell in upstate Ithaca — would move to give up legacy admissions. The two schools did not immediately reply to requests for comment Tuesday on the federal probe into Harvard. | Not_Explicit |
Ferocious wildfires have inflicted devastating damage across southern Europe and forced thousands of people to flee for their lives.
But just how bad are they in comparison to previous years?
It's important to point out that this is 'prime fire season' for the Mediterranean and that such natural disasters are not unusual because of its 'especially flammable' landscape.
The region's climate is the only one in the world with mild wet winters which allow vegetation to grow, and dry, hot summers that dry it out and make it a tinderbox.
In Greece, for example, wildfires have blighted communities for centuries.
Not only that, but as terrifying as the current blazes tearing across the islands of Rhodes and Corfu might be, experts say the country has been 'devastated by much more severe fire events in recent years'.
One example is August 2007, when more than 250,000 hectares of forests, olive groves and other land were charred.
But what makes the current wildfires so scary is the power of them.
Why this is Greece's worst July on record for wildfires
The intensity of this month's blazes has meant it has been the worst July since satellite monitoring began in 2003.
Almost 800,000 tonnes of carbon have been released into the atmosphere this month so far, eclipsing the previous high for July in Greece which was 470,000 tonnes in 2007.
Most years the the number is below 200,000.
The data comes from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), which relies on the beady eyes of two Earth-observing satellites in space.
With the wildfires still raging, attention has now turned to whether July and August combined will eclipse the worst carbon emissions in Greece's recent history.
That title currently belongs to the fires which broke out as a result of a heatwave in summer 2021, but experts say 2023 could yet beat that record if the scorching temperatures continue.
Dr Douglas Kelley, a land surface modeller at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, said that the intensity and speed at which the Rhodes wildfires have spread is what have caught a lot of scientists off guard.
In a dire warning for the future, he added: 'We predict there will be a global increase in these extreme fires of up 50 per cent by the end of the century. '
What does this mean for people's health?
A concerning thing to note is the danger these wildfires pose to humans. Not only in terms of burn risk, but also by inhaling the smoke and toxic particles of scorched matter that can be carried by the wind.
These wildfire-related PM2.5 – particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometres in diameter – are linked to asthma, lung disease and premature death.
They can also cause problems to a person's cardiovascular system when they pass into the bloodstream.
Signs of high carbon monoxide levels in the blood include headaches, dizziness, nausea and decreased mental functioning.
'Smoke particles are one of the most toxic forms of particles we can generate,' said Athanasios Nenes, an atmospheric chemist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne.
'When you breathe them, they increase your chance of getting all kinds of cancers.'
How much of the landscape has been burned?
Intensity is one measure of the scale of a fire. Another is burn area.
The total area of Greece that has been scorched is well above the norm for the past 16 years.
More than 35,000 hectares have gone up in smoke, according to the latest data from July 22.
This compares to the average of 6,600 hectares for this time of year.
For Europe as a whole, wildfires have sparked a burn area of more than 173,000 hectares — yet again higher than the average of 128,000.
The elephant in the room of course is climate change. How much effect has that had on the wildfires?
It's too early to say exactly - experts need to carry out an attribution study first - but there is no doubt that heat-induced fire weather will become more prevalent as our planet continues to warm.
Guillermo Rein, a professor of fire science at Imperial College London, said wildfires in southern Europe are nothing new, but that 'climate change is making them larger, faster, and harder to stop'.
The reason for this is that searing heat creates dry conditions that make it easier for fires to take hold and spread.
Europe has been in the grip of a 40C record-breaking heatwave for the best part of July, while another one now waits in the wings.
As Cerberus dies out, Italian weather forecasters are warning that the next heatwave - dubbed Charon after the ferryman who delivered souls to the underworld in Greek mythology - will push temperatures even higher.
A newly-released scientific study has said such heatwaves would have been 'virtually impossible' without human-induced climate change.
It also concluded that global warming has made the Cerberus heatwave in southern Europe 2.5C hotter.
'Human-driven climate change is increasing the likelihood and intensity of heatwaves.' said Dr Thomas Smith, of the London School of Economics and Political Science.
'This is the second major heatwave in the Mediterranean this year.
'The first heatwave was found to have been made 100-times more likely due to the human impact on climate change, and at least 2C hotter.
'I expect there will be a similar finding for the current situation, which is ultimately responsible for the wildfires we've been seeing over the past week.'
Dr Kelley stressed that it was 'too early to say if climate change has caused these wildfires'.
However, he added that 'the fact there are now so many across the world, most recently in Greece and Canada, is a clear sign that climate change is causing an increase in the number of severe wildfires globally'.
How do the evacuations compare to past years?
The Greek government says the mass exodus of more than 20,000 people from the islands of Rhodes and Corfu has been the 'largest ever' wildfire evacuation in the country's history.
'It's a testament to the Greek authorities that the evacuation was swift and effective,' said Dr Smith.
'Greece has been devastated by much more severe fire events in recent years, and they were clearly very well prepared for this fire.'
The blazes have destroyed locals' homes and businesses in some areas, while tourists in Rhodes have had to flee hotels as flames sweep towards resorts on the eastern coast.
Up to 10,000 Britons are believed to be staying on the island, with repatriation flights home continuing throughout the week for those caught up in the drama.
Where could wildfires strike next?
As well as Rhodes, parts of Sardinia, Crete, Sicily and southwestern Turkey all have extreme fire weather outlooks for the coming days.
That is according to Europe's Copernicus Emergency Management Service, which produces a map of wildfires and a 'fire danger forecast'.
The programme's 'fire danger forecast', which is based on the Canadian Forest Fire Weather Index (FWI) System, has six different levels: very low, low, moderate, high, very high and extreme.
It involves coming up with a numeric FWI rating after calculating daily observations of temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and 24-hour precipitation.
On the map, very low is shown as green, low as greenish yellow, moderate as yellow, high as orange, very high as red and dark brown as extreme.
To be forecast as extreme, the FWI rating must be greater than 50.
Much of the central and southeastern part of inland Spain has received that classification over the coming days, along with the Italian islands of Sicily and Sardinia and the Greek island of Rhodes.
There is also a risk of less intense wildfires in parts of southeastern France, the north-east of Austria, eastern Germany, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.
How you can stay safe
The British Red Cross has issued the following guidance for people caught up in wildfires.
If you see one, you should:
Ensure you are in a safe location away from vegetation and smoke
If you are in a car, close all windows and vents
If you are at home, keep doors and windows closed but unlocked
Provide information on the location and size of the wildfire, as well as any other relevant details such as a What3Words address
Carry wet towels to cover your head or bare skin or to wrap your feet, in case you need to run through a small area of fire | Not_Explicit |
Tuberville still dug in after Pentagon abortion policy briefing
Senior Defense officials failed to change minds with a Wednesday briefing to senators on the Pentagon’s abortion policy, with Alabama Republican Tommy Tuberville describing the meeting as “not very good.”
Tuberville is holding up approval of senior military officials in protest of a Pentagon policy that reimburses travel costs for service members who must go across state lines to seek an abortion.
The White House and Democrats have slammed Tuberville for the hold, which they say is damaging military readiness. But the Biden administration’s public shaming, combined with efforts to directly engage with Tuberville, have so far been fruitless.
The senator said defense officials on Wednesday could not explain how the abortion policy helped military readiness, or define the parameters around when the Pentagon would allow service members or their dependents to receive the procedure.
“They didn’t explain it very well,” he said. “They had no clue about readiness. They had no clue what month they’d do an abortion. We asked them eight or nine months — well they didn’t know.”
He said he had gone into the meeting with “open mind, to be convinced that this is affecting readiness, and they gave a poor answer – [it’s] affecting recruiting, very poor answer on that.”
Tuberville since March has held firm on blocking some 300 military promotions over the policy, which was established after the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade last year.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has called the senator three times — including once in March, once last week, and again on Tuesday — in an effort to get him to loosen his grip.
Austin explained to Tuberville “that his blanket holds were increasingly harming U.S. military readiness and national security at a critical geopolitical moment,” a Pentagon official told The Hill.
Tuberville earlier suggested that he could be convinced to drop his hold should the Senate vote on an amendment to curtail the Pentagon policy in its annual defense policy bill, which lawmakers hope to pass before August.
The House’s version of the $886 billion National Defense Authorization Act, which narrowly passed on Friday, included a provision that would end the policy.
GOP senators have offered up similar proposals for the upper chamber’s NDAA — which it will begin to debate this week — but if included, the amendment would hamper the likelihood the bill passes the Democrat-controlled Senate.
Tuberville was not the only senator who left Wednesday’s briefing unmoved. Armed Services ranking member Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) also complained that the Defense officials failed to give data on how abortion access affects enlistment and readiness.
“Officials from the Department of Defense could not supply that information, which clearly indicates that this policy was entered into for political reasons and not based on the facts, not based on data,” Wicker told reporters. “So I’m very disappointed, though not surprised, at what we are learning today.”
But Senate Armed Services Chairman Jack Reed (D-R.I) offered a far different take of the briefing, saying that after today “there can be no doubt in my colleagues’ minds about the legality of the Department’s policy. I am even more convinced of the necessity and appropriateness of this policy, which is critical for the health of our military women, men, and their families.”
He added: “The Defense Department laid out clear, plain facts to the committee. The Department of Justice has examined the Pentagon’s policy and found it to be entirely legal, consistent with 40 years of precedent through both Republican and Democratic administrations.”
And Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) told The Hill that the presentation was “very thorough and answered a lot of questions.”
King noted that only four to five Republican senators attended the briefing.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
The White House published a memo Wednesday seeking to drive a wedge between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Rep. James Comer (R-KY), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, over the United States' support for Ukraine.
Comer has led Republican efforts to investigate corruption allegations levied against President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden for overseas business dealings. The White House has issued a blanket denial of allegations made by Comer and other Oversight Republicans, but press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre rarely goes into detail when the topic is raised during press briefings.
Wednesday's memo highlighted comments Comer made Wednesday morning on Fox News claiming that Ukraine is an "adversary of the United States" and should not receive additional support in its ongoing attempts to fend off Russia's invasion.
"As Comer continues to struggle in his wild goose chase to attack the President, his dangerous comments about Ukraine play right into Putin’s hands to sow opposition to Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invasion and to erode support for America’s firm commitment to support Ukraine and rally the world against Putin’s aggression," wrote Ian Sams, the White House spokesperson for oversight and investigations. "We only have one question: Does Speaker McCarthy agree with his top lieutenant that Ukraine is an 'adversary' of the U.S.?
"McCarthy should condemn these dangerous comments from his top ally," he concluded.
Despite McCarthy's objections to many of Biden's policies, he has repeatedly defended U.S. support for Ukraine, despite raising concerns about handing over a "blank check" without U.S. oversight of Ukraine's security apparatus.
He notably dressed down a Russian reporter at a May press conference in Israel for suggesting he doesn't "support" arming Ukraine against the invasion.
"I do not support what your country has done to Ukraine. I do not support your killing of the children either," McCarthy said at the time. "We will continue to support because the rest of the world sees it just as it is." | Not_Explicit |
Match ends, Japan 2, Costa Rica 0.
|Fifa Women's World Cup 2023|
|Hosts: Australia and New Zealand Dates: 20 July-20 August|
|Coverage: Live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website & app. Full coverage details; latest news|
Japan are on the verge of qualifying for the Fifa Women's World Cup round of 16 after a routine win over Costa Rica.
Hikaru Naomoto and Aoba Fujino both scored in the space of three first-half minutes to ease the 2011 champions to three points.
Japan will be the first side to secure their place in knockout stages, if Spain earn at least a point against Zambia later.
Costa Rica will be eliminated from the World Cup if Spain avoid defeat.
Japan get the job done
Since stunning the football world by beating the United States in the 2011 final, Japan have underwhelmed on the global stage.
But following the Tokyo Olympics - where Japan were eliminated in the quarter-finals on home soil - Futoshi Ikeda was appointed manager and has put together a side which has impressed with its attacking, possession-focused football.
Japan will face much tougher tests than Costa Rica and Zambia in their opening game, and they will need to be more clinical than they were at Dunedin Stadium. However, two wins and seven goals cannot be ignored.
This game was settled by the 27th minute - first Naomoto found the far left corner with a low shot from the left of the box, before Fujino shrugged off a tackle on the right wing, cut into the box and beat keeper Daniela Solera at the near post for her first Japan goal.
It was a moment of redemption for Fujino following a bizarre incident on 15 minutes where she prevented team-mate Risa Shimizu scoring with an inadvertent sliding tackle as both went to finish a chance.
Solera shines but Costa Rica outclassed
Costa Rica were outclassed here just as they were in their opening loss to Spain.
Nervous in possession, they were not technically able enough to play out from the back and inaccurate with long balls, constantly ceding possession to their opponents.
Solera - who has now made a tournament-high 19 stops at this World Cup - was once again the only factor between Costa Rica and a truly embarrassing scoreline.
Line-ups
Japan
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 1Yamashita
- 5Miyake
- 4Kumagai
- 3Minami
- 2ShimizuSubstituted forMoriyaat 90+1'minutes
- 14Hasegawa
- 16HayashiSubstituted forNaganoat 74'minutes
- 6Sugita
- 15FujinoSubstituted forMiyazawaat 59'minutes
- 8NaomotoSubstituted forSeikeat 74'minutes
- 11TanakaSubstituted forUekiat 59'minutes
Substitutes
- 7Miyazawa
- 9Ueki
- 10Nagano
- 12Takahashi
- 13Endo
- 17Seike
- 18Tanaka
- 19Moriya
- 20Hamano
- 21Hirao
- 22Chiba
- 23Ishikawa
Costa Rica
Formation 4-4-1-1
- 23Solera
- 3Coto
- 20Villalobos
- 4Benavides
- 12Elizondo
- 7Herrera
- 15GranadosSubstituted forRodríguezat 64'minutes
- 16Alvarado
- 2GuillénSubstituted forVillalobosat 45'minutes
- 9SalasSubstituted forScottat 76'minutes
- 14ChinchillaBooked at 85mins
Substitutes
- 1Pérez
- 5del Campo
- 6Sánchez
- 8Campos
- 10Villalobos
- 11Rodríguez
- 13Valenciano
- 17Varela
- 18Tapia
- 19Pinell
- 21Scott
- 22Estrada
- Referee:
- Maria Ferrieri Caputi
- Attendance:
- 6,992
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home57%
- Away43%
- Shots
- Home24
- Away6
- Shots on Target
- Home12
- Away2
- Corners
- Home9
- Away0
- Fouls
- Home7
- Away13
Live Text
Second Half ends, Japan 2, Costa Rica 0.
Riko Ueki (Japan) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Rocky Rodríguez (Costa Rica).
Attempt missed. Sheika Scott (Costa Rica) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Mélissa Herrera with a headed pass.
Attempt saved. Riko Ueki (Japan) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Hinata Miyazawa.
Attempt missed. Riko Ueki (Japan) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Hinata Miyazawa.
Attempt saved. Riko Ueki (Japan) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Hina Sugita with a cross.
Substitution, Japan. Miyabi Moriya replaces Risa Shimizu.
Corner, Japan. Conceded by María Coto.
Fuka Nagano (Japan) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Gloriana Villalobos (Costa Rica).
Priscila Chinchilla (Costa Rica) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Yui Hasegawa (Japan) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Priscila Chinchilla (Costa Rica).
Attempt saved. Mariana Benavides (Costa Rica) header from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Katherine Alvarado with a cross.
Foul by Kiko Seike (Japan).
Rocky Rodríguez (Costa Rica) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Moeka Minami (Japan).
Daniela Solera (Costa Rica) wins a free kick in the defensive half. | Not_Explicit |
Buddhist murals in China that date back to the 4th century are being threatened by heavy rain and rapidly fluctuating humidity, Greenpeace experts said on Monday.
Art in the the Dunhuang cave temples and at historical sites in Zhangye, both in the northwestern province of Gansu, are under threat from increased heavy rainfall. The region is historically dry, which has preserved a lot of the ancient art and structures. Dunhuang is home to the Mogao Caves, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The caves hold more than 40,000 square meters (430,550 square feet) of murals and thousands of painted statues that date from the year 400 to the 1400s. Artifacts in nearby Zhangye include cave temples that are national heritage sites, according to Greenpeace.
The temples and ancient art have withstood over a thousand years, but climate change has challenged their continued existence. Overall rainfall in the Gansu region has decreased since 2000, but that has been replaced with increased instances of extreme rainfall. Rainwater has seeped into some of the structures, damaging them. Murals have begun to crack and even flake and detach from the foundation, according to Greenpeace.
During a meeting in Beijing earlier this week, climate scientists and conservation experts from the Dunhuang Research Academy discussed how weather shifts caused by climate change in Gansu were hurting the historic sites.
“Gansu is famous for its caves and the art stored inside them for centuries. Increased bouts of rainfall in the desert pose an acute risk. Spikes in humidity, flash floods, and cave-ins are already happening,” said Li Zhao, a senior researcher in the Greenpeace Beijing office.
Researchers in China are conducting a cultural heritage survey throughout the country to protect important historical sites from further damage. But Li has warned that some could already disappear by the time the ongoing survey is completed. “They’re dissolved before our very eyes. This is a painful reality of the impact of climate change,” Li said, according to Greenpeace.
Sadly, climate change is threatening historical sites all over the world. Peatlands throughout the United Kingdom, which are waterlogged ecosystems that have little oxygen, naturally preserve different types of organic materials. The lack of oxygen has stopped leather, textiles, and even human remains from decomposing for hundreds or even thousands of years. Some of the preserved sites hail back from before the Roman era. But as the UK becomes hotter, and weather around the world changes, some of the peatlands are drying out and exposing heritage sites that were once protected from the elements.
Other human history sites are in danger of disappearing due to the climate crisis. The frozen body of a Iñupiat girl that is about 800 years old in what is now Alaska, was once preserved in the permafrost. But as global temperatures continue to rise, that permafrost is now melting and unveiling what were once protected archeological sites.
Want more climate and environment stories? Check out Earther’s guides to decarbonizing your home, divesting from fossil fuels, packing a disaster go bag, and overcoming climate dread. And don’t miss our coverage of the latest IPCC climate report, the future of carbon dioxide removal, and the un-greenwashed facts on bioplastics and plastic recycling. | Not_Explicit |
Almost 72 hours after 23-year-old U.S. Army Private 2nd Class Travis King entered North Korea, American officials say they have not been able to gain clarity on his location or condition -- and even the circumstances that led him to cross the border remain a mystery.
The Pentagon announced on Thursday that Army counterintelligence officials were investigating what prompted King to separate from a tour group visiting the Demilitarized Zone dividing South and North Korea, where witnesses say he sprinted across the border sometime on Tuesday.
He was originally supposed to fly out of Seoul after being taken to the airport on Monday, officials have said. Back in Texas, he was set to face a "pending administrative separation actions for foreign conviction," one U.S. official has said. He had been in detention for more than a month after an altercation with locals, according to an official.
So far, efforts to gather information have been hamstrung by Pyongyang's stonewalling. Although various agencies and intermediaries have attempted to communicate with the North Korean government about King, none say they have received any response and the country's state media has also remained uncharacteristically silent.
"We're still doing everything we can to try to find out his whereabouts, his well-being and condition and making it clear that we want to see him safely and quickly returned to the United States and to his family," White House spokesman John Kirby said Thursday.
"Not for lack of trying, we just don't have anything," he said.
One U.S. official said that after King entered North Korea, he was immediately taken away in a van. But the Pentagon says they see no reason to suspect the soldier pre-planned his crossing with the North Korean government.
Asked whether the State Department feared for King's safety, its spokesperson Matthew Miller said Thursday that Pyongyang's past treatment of American nationals held in its custody was cause for worry.
"Certainly, I think we would always have concern given the treatment by North Koreans of past detained individuals -- we would have that concern and that's why, one of the reasons why, we are reaching out to ask for more information about his well-being," he said.
But those asks continue to go unanswered -- illustrating just how much communication between the countries has deteriorated under the Biden administration.
Although the U.S. government has made multiple attempts to engage with Pyongyang on issues like nuclear proliferation, those efforts have yet to elicit any response from the hermit kingdom.
"There is no regular contact. I will say communications between our two countries are limited," Miller said.
Anthony Ruggiero, senior director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies' Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program and the former deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs, said North Korea may just be biding its time.
"They're probably taking the time to speak with [King] and see what to do next," Ruggiero said.
In prior cases involving Americans held in North Korea, Pyongyang has ignored outreach from the U.S. and Sweden -- America's diplomatic liaison in North Korea -- for weeks on end.
Ruggiero said that Pyongyang could seek to turn the latest incident into "a benefit" if it senses having the American soldier in its custody is a source of diplomatic pull.
If that's the case, Ruggiero explained, its reticence to engage with U.S. officials could evaporate.
"I think you're likely to see that the North Koreans want to talk to an American official directly as possible," he predicted.
Kim Jong Il, the former supreme leader of North Korea and father of its current ruler, Kim Jong Un, approved the release of American detainees after visits from former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.
But even if there is direct contact between the U.S and North Korea, Ruggiero and other experts expect that the Biden administration will be reluctant to expend any significant political capital to secure the freedom of a soldier who fled while facing disciplinary action.
If that's the case, North Korea may elect to release King, Ruggiero said, as they did with Bruce Byron Lowrance -- a U.S. national who entered North Korea in 2018 and was freed a month later -- a move that helped set the stage for the first summit between then-President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un.
"The North Koreans may believe that this is more headache than it's worth," Ruggiero said.
ABC News' Ben Gittleson, Luis Martinez, Martha Raddatz and Matt Seyler contributed to this report. | Not_Explicit |
Melbourne, Australia -- Alexandra Popp scored twice in the first half and Germany added four more in the second in a 6-0 rout of Morocco in its Women’s World Cup opener on Monday.
The margin of victory is the largest of the tournament so far, with the two-time champions against a Moroccan team on debut at the tournament.
Popp scored her 63rd and 64th international goals, moving to third on Germany’s all-time list.
The Wolfsburg player quickly made her mark on the tournament after missing out on the final of the 2022 European Championship against England because of injury.
The second half featured two Morocco own-goals sandwiched between goals from Klara Bühl and Lea Schüller. Morocco is the first Arab and North African country to qualify for the tournament
KEY MOMENTS
In the 11th minute, Popp scored with a header off a cross from Kathrin Hendrich. She doubled her tally with another header in the 39th off Klara Bühl's corner kick.
Bühl scored the third goal with a right-foot strike just 23 seconds into the second half. For the fourth goal in the 54th, Svenja Huth served a ball in off a rebound from a corner. The ball then bounced off Morocco defender Hanane Aït El Haj for an own goal.
Another own goal by Yasmin Mrabet followed before Lea Schüller rounded out the scoring for Germany in the 90th minute.
WHY IT MATTERS
After losing to Zambia and Brazil in recent friendlies, Germany announced itself as a contender to win the tournament with the comfortable victory. The 2003 and 2007 World Cup winners have advanced to at least the quarterfinals in each of its eight previous World Cup appearances. Germany is on top of Group H, with Colombia and South Korea set to play their opening match on Tuesday.
Morocco's lopsided loss on debut adds pressure to its remaining group-stage matches. The first Arab and North African nation to compete in the Women's World Cup will be aiming to improve on this performance in order to keep its hopes alive of advancing to the tournament's knockout stage.
WHAT’S NEXT
Germany will travel to Sydney for its next game against Colombia, who advanced to the round of 16 in its last World Cup appearance. Morocco will play South Korea at Adelaide’s Hindmarsh Stadium. Both games are scheduled for Sunday.
___
Savannah Hernandez is a student at the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
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AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup | Not_Explicit |
Washington — Israeli President Isaac Herzog sought to reassure U.S. allies Wednesday on the state of Israel's democracy and the strength of the U.S.-Israel relationship, in a speech to Congress acknowledging "intense and painful debate" at home over actions of.
Herzog, whose post in Israel is largely symbolic, became the second Israeli president, after his father, Chaim Herzog, to address Congress. While his speech officially marked modern Israel's celebration of its 75th year, he also indirectly addressed deep unease in the Biden administration and among Democratic lawmakers over the Netanyahu government'sof Israel's judicial system, in the occupied West Bank and other matters.
The divide was reflected in the audience of House and Senate members Wednesday. While lawmakers in attendance repeatedly rose to their feet in thundering applause of Herzog's recounting of Israel's founding, a handful of leading young progressive Democrats boycotted his speech.
On the eve of the address to the joint meeting of Congress, the House passed a Republican-led resolution reaffirming its support for Israel with strong bipartisan approval — an implicit rebuke of Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who over the weekend called the country a "racist state" but later apologized.
"Mr. Speaker, I am not oblivious to criticism among friends, including some expressed by respected members of this House. I respect criticism, especially from friends, although one does not always have to accept it," Herzog said.
"But criticism of Israel must not cross the line into negation of the state of Israel's right to exist. Questioning the Jewish people's right to self-determination, is not legitimate diplomacy, it is antisemitism."
The House resolution, introduced by Republican Rep. August Pfluger of Texas, passed with more than 400 lawmakers backing the measure. It did not mention Jayapal by name but was clearly a response to her recent remarks about Israel. The measure was drafted soon after she criticized Israel and its treatment of Palestinians at a conference on Saturday.
Jayapal, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, walked back the comments the next day, insisting they were aimed at Netanyahu and not at Israel.
"I do not believe the idea of Israel as a nation is racist," Jayapal said in a statement. "I do, however, believe that Netanyahu's extreme right-wing government has engaged in discriminatory and outright racist policies and that there are extreme racists driving that policy within the leadership of the current government."
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat of Michigan and the only Palestinian-American in Congress, boycotted Herzog's speech and criticized the resolution as normalizing violence against those living in the occupied West Bank, given the Netanyahu government's approval of expanded Jewish settlements there.
"We're here again reaffirming Congress' support for apartheid," Tlaib said during floor debate Tuesday on the Republican measure. "Policing the words of women of color who dare to speak up about truths, about oppression."
After the speech to Congress, Herzog was to return to the White House on Wednesday to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris. Her office said the leaders will announce that both governments intend to spend $70 million over five years to support climate-smart agriculture programs.
During anwith President Biden on Tuesday, Herzog sought to assure Mr. Biden that Israel remains committed to democracy amid deepening U.S. concerns over Netanyahu's plans to overhaul his country's judicial system.
Netanyahu and his allies say the overhaul is needed to rein in the powers of unelected judges. Opponents say the plan will destroy Israel's fragile system of checks and balances and move the country toward authoritarian rule.
Herzog has appealed for a compromise that has thus far proven elusive. Many American Jewish groups and Democratic lawmakers have expressed concerns about the plan.
Herzog's visit comes weeks after Israeli forces carried out one of their most intensive operations in the occupied West Bank in two decades, with ain Jenin, a militant stronghold. Senior members of Netanyahu's government have been pushing for increased construction and other measures to cement Israel's control over the occupied West Bank in response to a more than yearlong wave of violence with the Palestinians.
U.S. officials have broadly supported Israel's right to defend itself from militant attacks but have also urged restraint to minimize harm to civilians and have lobbied against additional settlements that would further diminish the chances of securing a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
Just before Herzog's visit, Mr. Biden spoke with Netanyahu by phone and invited him to meet in the U.S. this fall, although the president expressed reservations about several of the policies from Netanyahu's hard-right coalition.
The Biden administration declined to say whether Mr. Biden would host Netanyahu at the White House — as the Israeli leader has hoped — or in New York on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly in September.
White House visits are typically standard protocol for Israeli prime ministers, and the delay in Netanyahu receiving one has become an issue in Israel, with opponents citing it as a reflection of deteriorating relations with the U.S.
On Wednesday, Herzog evoked what are now 28 weeks of large grassroots protests at home against the proposed judicial overhaul by Netanyahu's government, a mix of ultra-Orthodox and ultranationalist parties.
"Dear friends, it's no secret that over the past few months, the Israeli people have engaged in a heated and painful debate" while "renegotiating the balance of our institutional powers," he said.
"In practice, the intense debate going on back home, even as we speak, is the clearest tribute to the fortitude of Israel's democracy," Herzog said.
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- Ukraine's use of HIMARS against Russia has earned the US-made rocket-artillery system high praise.
- Other European countries are pursuing their own rocket artillery, buying HIMARS or building new systems.
Impressed with the success of the US-made M142 HIMARS multiple rocket launcher in Ukraine, more European nations want to buy HIMARS — or develop their own version of it.
German defense contractor Rheinmetall and US defense firm Lockheed Martin have partnered to offer GMARS, a replacement for Germany's aging MARS 2 multiple launch rocket system, according to Defense News.
The acronym "GMARS" seems to reflect HIMARS as much as MARS 2, of which Germany has delivered several to Ukraine. MARS 2 is the European version of the US-made M270 multiple launch rocket system.
GMARS would be similar to HIMARS but bigger, with a larger chassis based on Rheinmetall's HX 8x8 truck, and would have 80% commonality with HIMARS munitions and logistics, a Lockheed Martin official told Defense News. The GMARS vehicle would be about 39 feet long vs. the 23-foot length of a HIMARS truck and carry two rocket pods instead of HIMARS' one.
Meanwhile, the US State Department approved a $10 billion sale of 18 HIMARS for Poland in February. Significantly, the sale includes 45 M57 Army Tactical Missile Systems — long-range guided rockets that Ukraine has repeatedly requested but which the US has declined to provide for fear of escalating the conflict.
HIMARS will help Poland "deter regional threats," the department said in an announcement. "The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region."
HIMARS has a range of about 50 miles. An ATACMS projectile can reach up to 190 miles and can be fired from a HIMARS launcher, though that feature reportedly has been disabled in HIMARS systems supplied to Ukraine.
The Biden administration is now debating whether to send ATACMS to Ukraine after the UK gave Ukraine its Storm Shadow missile, which has a range of more than 150 miles. (France is also sending its version of the missile.)
Multiple launch rocket systems have been around since World War II, when the legendary Soviet Katyusha battered Nazi forces.
Until the 1980s, the US and its allies favored howitzers rather than MLRS, which were considered inaccurate weapons suited for firing over a large area. For the Soviets, who preferred massed firepower, and for dictators and warlords unconcerned about collateral damage, rockets were just fine.
But rocket artillery has changed. A new generation of GPS-guided rockets, such as HIMARS and Russia's Smerch and Tornado-S systems, combine the accuracy of a howitzer with the range of a rocket and have the ability to fire salvoes quickly. What was once a blunt-force weapon that pulverized city blocks and the civilians living there is now a smart weapon.
That "smartness" explains the buzz around modern MLRS at least as much as their actual military effectiveness, which is often overstated.
HIMARS initially proved devastating against Russian forces that placed their command posts and ammunitions dumps too close to the front line. But Russia adapted and moved its command and supply centers out of HIMARS range, though at the price of compromising some efficiency.
Russian GPS jammers have also hampered HIMARS and the Joint Direct Attack Munition glide bombs that the US has given Ukraine.
Rocket artillery can't replace howitzers, which offer some advantages, such as the ability to fire barrages continuously for hours. Still, rocket artillery is certain to join howitzers as the backbone of Western artillery.
Modern MLRS rockets have greater range than howitzer shells — although long-range rocket-propelled howitzer shells are being developed — and in an era when battlefield footage is spread wide, far, and fast, there will always be something impressive about the fiery trail of a rocket heading toward its target.
Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master's in political science. Follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn. | Not_Explicit |
Donald Trump faced a deadline of midnight on Thursday to say if he would appear before a Washington grand jury convened by the special counsel Jack Smith to consider federal charges over his election subversion and incitement of the attack on Congress on 6 January 2021.
Late on Wednesday, citing two people familiar with the matter, the Guardian reported that prosecutors had assembled evidence to charge Trump with three crimes.
They were: obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and an unusual statute that makes it unlawful to conspire to violate civil rights.
Obstruction of an official proceeding is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Conspiracy to defraud the United States carries a maximum five-year sentence. The civil rights charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
By Thursday afternoon, all indications were that Trump would not agree to testify.
Indictments regarding Trump’s attempted election subversion are expected soon – not only at the federal level but also in Fulton county, Georgia, where a grand jury to consider charges was recently formed. Elsewhere, this week brought charges against 16 people in a “false electors” scheme in Michigan, another battleground state.
On Thursday morning, meanwhile, Politico reported that Trump had extracted a promise from the Republican speaker of the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, to hold votes on expunging Trump’s two impeachments.
Trump was impeached first for withholding military aid in an attempt to extract political dirt from Ukraine, then for inciting the Capitol attack. In both cases, Senate Republicans ensured his acquittal at trial.
Trump reportedly got the promise of an expungement vote, which Politico said McCarthy “made reflexively to save his own skin”, after the speaker provoked outrage from Trump allies after declining to endorse the former president in the Republican presidential primary for the 2024 election, citing an obligation to remain neutral.
An expungement vote would not be guaranteed to succeed. Republicans control the House by a very slim majority. Two sitting GOP congressmen, David Valadao of California and Dan Newhouse of Washington state, voted to impeach Trump over the Capitol riot. Republicans in swing districts, particularly in heavily Democratic north-eastern states, already face uphill fights to keep their seats.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, McCarthy denied making a promise, saying “There’s no deal” with Trump, but added: “I’ve been very clear from long before – when I voted against impeachments – that [Democrats] put them in for purely political purposes. I support expungement but there’s no deal out there.”
In polling averages for the Republican primary, Trump leads by about 30 points. He has maintained that lead even while facing 34 criminal charges in New York, over hush-money payments to the porn star Stormy Daniels; 37 federal charges over his retention of classified documents; the prospect of state and federal indictments over his election subversion; a $5m fine after being held liable for sexual abuse and defamation against the writer E Jean Carroll; and ongoing investigations of his business affairs.
Denying all wrongdoing, Trump has pleaded not guilty to all criminal charges.
Nonetheless, polling regarding a notional general election shows him in a close race with Joe Biden. Earlier this week, Miles Taylor, who was a US homeland security official when in 2018 he wrote a famous anonymous New York Times column warning of Trump’s unfitness for office, told the Guardian Trump could yet return to the White House.
“There’s been a number of polls that show the ex-president beating Joe Biden by several points,” Taylor said. “It would be hubris to say, ‘Oh, no, we would beat him again a second time.’ Actually, I don’t think that. If the election was held today, I think Donald Trump would defeat Joe Biden, and that really concerns me.”
Taylor also pointed to the supine nature of the Republican party, saying McCarthy, the House speaker, “thought Trump was a buffoon and a danger and I’m sure Kevin still thinks that privately” but is unwilling, or unable, to move in any way against him.
Taylor said: “Those people publicly, because they’re afraid, are still supporting the man. That collective anonymity is putting us in pretty seriously great danger.”
Trump revealed on Tuesday that Smith had told him he faced potential charges. According to the New York Times, since then Trump has consulted with Washington allies including McCarthy and the New Yorker Elise Stefanik, chair of the Republican House conference and a staunch supporter who many observers think is eyeing selection as Trump’s running mate next year.
Trump’s closest challenger for the Republican nomination, Ron DeSantis, this week mildly criticised Trump for his inaction on 6 January 2021, as the Capitol was attacked, but also said charges against the former president over his election subversion would not “be good for the country”.
Court dates are set to clash with the Republican primary calendar. Trump faces three civil trials in New York, one to begin in October and two in January.
In the criminal cases, Smith, the special counsel, has asked for trial over the classified documents charges to begin later this year. In the hush-money case, the trial is scheduled for March – in the thick of the Republican primary. Lawyers for Trump are attempting to delay both trials until after the general election next year, when Trump or another Republican president could order all cases dropped.
On Thursday, Benjamin Ginsberg, a Republican elections lawyer, told the Washington Post the US was “in as precarious a situation as we’ve ever been”.
“I don’t know what the chances are of things really going off the rails,” Ginsberg said, “but no question that there is a toxic mix unprecedented in the American experiment.” | Not_Explicit |
TALLINN, Estonia -- Russian prosecutors asked a court to sentence imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny to 20 years in prison on extremism charges, his ally Ivan Zhdanov said Thursday.
According to Zhdanov, the trial against Navalny, which went on behind closed doors in the prison where the politician is serving another lengthy sentence, is scheduled to conclude with a verdict on Aug. 4.
Navalny, 47, is President Vladimir Putin's fiercest foe who exposed official corruption and organized major anti-Kremlin protests. He was arrested in January 2021 upon returning to Moscow after recuperating in Germany from nerve agent poisoning that he blamed on the Kremlin.
The authorities sentenced him to 2 1/2 years in prison for parole violations and then to another nine years on charges of fraud and contempt of court. The politician is currently serving his sentence in a maximum-security prison east of Moscow.
The new charges relate to the activities of Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation and statements by his top associates. His allies said the charges retroactively criminalize all the foundation's activities since its creation in 2011.
Navalny has rejected all the charges against him as politically motivated and accused the Kremlin of seeking to keep him behind bars for life. | Not_Explicit |
Held for the first time in its home country of Korea, this summer’s Samsung Unpacked event is happening July 26 in Seoul, with expected new iterations of the Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Flip foldable phones, among other devices.
It’s no surprise that Samsung plans to unveil its most ambitious phones at this event, held roughly two months before Apple’s singular annual phone launch, where we expect to see the iPhone 15 (maybe even with a USB-C port).
The livestream is presented above, and will kick off at 7am ET. As new products are revealed, we’ll add details below.
Want more of Gizmodo’s consumer electronics picks? Check out our guides to the best phones, best laptops, best cameras, best televisions, best printers, and best tablets. If you want to learn about the next big thing, see our guide to everything we know about the iPhone 15. Click here to save on the best deals of the day, courtesy of our friends at The Inventory. | Not_Explicit |
A Labour MP last night distanced himself from a documentary which pushes a vile conspiracy theory that Boris Johnson lied about nearly dying from Covid.
Chris Bryant, an outspoken critic of Mr Johnson's, is set to appear in the programme and features in an online trailer for it.
But last night he claimed he had no idea it would make the baseless claim about Mr Johnson's health when he agreed to take part, and insisted he does not subscribe to the theory.
It came a day after the BBC's highest-paid presenter Gary Lineker, who also features in the trailer, demanded that his contribution be removed after being approached by The Mail on Sunday.
Mr Bryant said: 'I took part in an interview about lying in politics. We talked about whether there should be a new offence of lying to Parliament.
'But we never discussed this kind of conspiracy theory, which I would have immediately dismissed.'
When asked if he had been told the documentary would feature claims that Mr Johnson lied about the severity of his Covid in 2020, he said: 'That was never even mentioned to me. I don't subscribe to such a theory.'
Mr Bryant said he was under the impression the film was being made by Netflix, but it is not involved.
Instead, the film is being crowd-funded and made by arch-Remainer Marcus Ball, who once tried to prosecute Mr Johnson over Brexit.
Mr Johnson was taken to hospital with Covid in April 2020. He spent three days in intensive care and required 'litres and litres of oxygen' to stay alive.
Mr Ball started casting doubt on the legitimacy of his illness on April 14, 2020 – two days after he was released from hospital. He tweeted: 'The PR timing is just too perfect. I fear that he may be dodging responsibility by becoming a victim.'
The first trailer features celebrities including Lineker, who says 'the public deserve the truth'.
After being contacted by The Mail on Sunday, he refused to endorse the film.
The trailer was taken down from YouTube but can be viewed elsewhere online. Barbara Rich, a barrister who specialises in crowdfunding law, said Lineker should have known what he was getting himself into.
She said: 'Three minutes of Googling would have revealed what Marcus Ball is all about – his conspiracy theories, misuse of crowdfunded money and disastrous private prosecution of Boris Johnson.
'One has to take Lineker's denial at face value, but did he really not know about this theory or was he turning a blind eye?
'He has a history of stepping into things which are a hell of a long way from football commentary and using his likeable, centrist-dad persona to carry his political views far and wide.'
Mr Bryant refused to comment on whether he will ask for his interview to be removed from the film.
Lineker and Mr Ball failed to respond to requests for comment. | Not_Explicit |
Havells Q1 Result Review - Net Profit Missed On Lower Margin; Rebound Likely In H2: Systematix
Lloyd, sustains strong growth momentum but losses continue.
BQ Prime’s special research section collates quality and in-depth equity and economy research reports from across India’s top brokerages, asset managers and research agencies. These reports offer BQ Prime’s subscribers an opportunity to expand their understanding of companies, sectors and the economy.
Systematix Research Report
Havells India Ltd.’s ~6% profit after tax miss in Q1 FY24 was driven by weak Ebit margins in Lloyd (-4.5%), lighting (14.3%, down 209 basis points YoY), electrical consumer durable (10.9%, down 220 bps YoY) and others (3.5%, down 184 bps YoY), despite the 7% beat in revenue (up 14% YoY, Lloyd up 20%, cables up 24%) versus our estimate.
Demand in April and May was quite soft, prior to recovery in June. Management is hopeful consumer sentiment would revive and boost revenue and margins in H2.
A rebound in the fans category (15% BLDC portfolio) and easing raw material prices should aid margins; management aims for 13-15% Ebitda margin in the core business.
Lloyd focused on market share (revenue up 20% YoY at Rs 13.1 billion) over margins (Rs 608 million Ebit loss in 1Q; Rs 2.2 billion loss in FY23) and maintained its top three status as an room air conditioner player.
After having doubled its RAC capacity to two million units, Havells now plans to export white-label products to global brands to achieve a quick breakeven.
We maintain our estimates post 1Q and estimate 13%/28%/32% compound annual growth rate in revenue/Ebitda/profit after tax over FY23-25E (16%/9%/10% CAGR in over FY18-23).
Robust operating cash flow will likely be utilised to fund future capex and help generate strong 22% return on equity and 46% return on invested capital in FY25E.
While we remain upbeat on Havells’ healthy long-term prospects, at 45 times FY25E price/earning the stock seems fairly valued, which is why we reiterate our 'Hold' rating, with a revised target price of Rs 1,341, based on 45 times FY25E price/earning (earlier Rs 1,359 at 45 times FY25E).
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DISCLAIMER
This report is authored by an external party. BQ Prime does not vouch for the accuracy of its contents nor is responsible for them in any way. The contents of this section do not constitute investment advice. For that you must always consult an expert based on your individual needs. The views expressed in the report are that of the author entity and do not represent the views of BQ Prime.
Users have no license to copy, modify, or distribute the content without permission of the Original Owner. | Not_Explicit |
Marseille have signed Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The 34-year-old Gabon forward scored just three goals in 22 appearances for Chelsea after joining from Barcelona in a £10.3m deal last September.
Neither club have revealed whether Marseille have paid a fee for the France-born player.
Aubameyang exits the Premier League for the second time in 18 months, having spent four years at Arsenal from 2018 before joining Barca in January 2022.
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He scored 13 goals in 23 matches in his six months in Spain, but was unable to replicate that form under three different managers during a season-long stay at Stamford Bridge.
The 2015 African footballer of the year arrived at the end of the summer transfer window and made just one appearance under Thomas Tuchel, his former boss at Borussia Dortmund, before the German was sacked and replaced by Graham Potter.
A run of three goals in three appearances in October signalled a potential return to form, but Aubameyang failed to make the scoresheet again.
He was left out of Chelsea's Champions League squad for the knockout rounds after a slew of new signings arrived in January, including forwards Mykhailo Mudryk and Noni Madueke.
Potter's departure in April saw caretaker boss Frank Lampard restore Aubameyang to the first team, culminating in a poor display in a 3-1 defeat at former club Arsenal in early May.
After touching the ball just nine times in the opening 45 minutes - including four from kick-offs - Aubameyang was substituted at half-time and never played for the West London club again.
A return to Ligue 1 follows spells in France at the start of his career at Dijon, Lille, Monaco and St Etienne, where he won the Coupe de la Ligue in 2013.
Aubameyang is the latest departure during what has been a summer of change for Chelsea under new manager Mauricio Pochettino.
Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic has signed for Manchester City, Kai Havertz has joined Arsenal and Mason Mount has moved to Manchester United, while goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and defender Kalidou Koulibaly have made the switch to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli.
N'Golo Kante has also moved to Saudi Arabia, joining Al-Ittihad, while midfielders Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Christian Pulisic have joined AC Milan and former captain Cesar Azpilicueta is now an Atletico Madrid player.
The Blues have made just three signings - Brazilian winger Angelo Gabriel, 18, from Santos, France forward Christopher Nkunku, 25, from RB Leipzig, and 22-year-old Senegal striker Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal.
- Our coverage of Chelsea is bigger and better than ever before - here's everything you need to know to make sure you never miss a moment
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The leader of Spain's opposition conservative party Alberto Núñez Feijóo has claimed victory in a snap election, but without the result he needed.
Even with the support of the far right, his Popular Party has fallen short of a majority in parliament.
The cheers at the rival Socialist camp were just as loud as Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declared: "The reactionary bloc has failed."
While both can claim success, Spain is left with an inconclusive result.
Mr Sánchez has been vindicated in his controversial decision to call elections in the searing heat of a Spanish summer, when temperatures reached 40C in some parts of the country.
"No pasarán," his supporters chanted - they shall not pass - referring both to far-right party Vox and the anti-fascist slogan of the Spanish civil war.
But it was Mr Feijóo who told cheering supporters that it was now his duty to try to form a government. "Spaniards know we have gone from being the second force to the party with the most votes," he said.
But with Vox on 33 seats and his PP on 136, they would be seven seats short of an absolute majority in parliament, so the most likely result of this election is another poll by the end of the year. That is why Mr Sánchez's Socialists and his far-left allies Sumar can feel happy.
The 70% turnout was remarkably higher than in 2019, despite the summer heat. That was partly due to almost 2.5 million postal votes being cast, but polling stations were busiest in the morning before the heat took hold.
Vox remains the third biggest party, with the support of three million of Spain's 37 million voters, but not significantly ahead of Sumar and with a big drop in seat numbers.
Voting numbers were buoyed by 1.6 million young voters having the right to take part in the election for the first time.
An estimated 10 million Spaniards are already on holiday and some voters turned up at coastal polling stations carrying their beach chairs while one man made a point of wearing a snorkel and flippers.
A couple called Pilar and Luis who got married in Granada on Saturday headed out to vote in their wedding clothes hours after their party ended the night before.
Many voters said they felt there was too much at stake in this election, even if it was being held in mid-summer. One father of three, called Sergio, told the BBC that many people he knew were anxious and angry that an extreme-right party might end up in government.
But Vox voters came out in force too, backing leader Santiago Abascal's platform of anti-immigration and anti-feminism.
I support Vox because I see it as the only party that can radically change all the left-wing policies that have been approved little by little | Not_Explicit |
'Barbenheimer' fever took hold in the UK as Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig's Barbie took £30m on their opening box office weekend.
According to the UK Cinema Association, that makes it the most successful weekend for UK cinema-going since 2019.
That year, Disney blockbuster Avengers: Endgame opened with takings of £43.7m.
The Vue cinema chain said this weekend marked the second biggest in its history by admissions.
Barbie is now on track to become the biggest film of 2023, ahead of Super Mario Bros.
A more detailed breakdown of the weekend's UK box office figures will be published later on Monday.
Barbie's marketing campaign has been huge - and hugely successful - with debut takings worldwide of $337m (£293m).
US and Canada takings were enough to make it the biggest opener of 2023 so far in that region.
The film took an estimated $155m (£120m) according to distributor Warner Bros, while Oppenheimer made $93.7m (£72m), Universal Pictures said.
The North American box office figure broke the opening weekend record for a female director, easily overtaking the $103.3m opening of Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman.
Both films have been a welcome relief for cinemas who are battling against the juggernaut of streaming.
Oppenheimer's plot is centred on the development of the first atomic bomb, starring Cillian Murphy and directed by Christopher Nolan.
Barbie tells a coming-of-age story of the children's character where she explores her identity and encourages friend Ken to establish individuality.
According to Billboard, film polling service PostTrak reported that women made up 65% of the Barbie audience, while 40% of ticket-buyers were under the age of 25.
It wasn't all plain sailing for Barbie, however. In China, the world's second biggest movie market, the film opened in fifth place.
It took just $8.2 million in its opening three days, according to data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway, although it's not unusual for Chinese audiences to favour homegrown cinema over Hollywood and some analysts considered that hitting the $8m mark was above expectations.
Meanwhile, Indian cinemagoers were in for a surprise at one screening of Nolan's film, which was reportedly accompanied by Barbie subtitles.
"Friend of my cousin posted on insta that a cinema played Oppenheimer with Barbie subtitles," wrote Twitter user Sapun.
Barbie's release was delayed in Pakistan's Punjab province on Friday over "objectionable content", officials said. | Not_Explicit |
BEIJING: It is China's "priority" to stop Taiwan's vice president and presidential frontrunner William Lai from visiting the United States next month, the country's ambassador in Washington said on Wednesday (Jul 19), as Beijing steps up its warnings against the trip.
China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up military and political pressure over the past three years to try and force the island to accept Beijing's sovereignty claims, which the government in Taipei strongly rejects.
Taiwan will hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January, with Lai, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) presidential candidate, the frontrunner in most opinion polls.
Lai is making what are officially stop overs in the United States on his way to and from Paraguay for the Aug 15 inauguration of its new president, drawing anger from Beijing which slammed Lai as a separatist.
Chinese ambassador Xie Feng told the Aspen Security Forum that "Taiwan is China's Taiwan" and that the country wanted a peaceful "reunification", but Taiwanese "separatists" were advancing their agenda, seeking US support.
"They even do not admit they are Chinese. So this is a very dangerous path they are taking," Xie said. Provocative moves by Taiwan "separatists" should be contained, he added.
"Now the priority for us is to stop Lai Ching-te from visiting the United States, which is like a grey rhino charging at us," Xie said, using Lai's Chinese language name.
A "grey rhino" event refers to a highly obvious yet ignored threat.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and her government have repeatedly offered talks with China but been rejected, as Beijing views them as separatists. Both Tsai and Lai say only Taiwan's people can decide their future.
The top US diplomat in Taipei said on Wednesday that there was no reason for China to take "provocative" action in response to Lai's stop overs in the United States and that such transits have happened for many years and are routine.
In August and then again in April, China staged large-scale war games around Taiwan, angered by the August visit to Taiwan of then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and in April by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen meeting current House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles, while she was transitting back from a visit to Central America. | Not_Explicit |
SII Manufactured BCG Vaccine To Treat Bladder Cancer Gets Export Nod
The government has approved the export of BCG vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India to Canada for immunotherapy to treat bladder cancer, official sources said on Monday.
The government has approved the export of BCG vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India to Canada for immunotherapy to treat bladder cancer, official sources said on Monday.
The permission was granted after Prakash Kumar Singh, director of Serum Institute, wrote to the Drugs Controller of India (DCGI) seeking approval to export BCG for immunotherapy to Canada, they said.
BCG as immunotherapy is a live freeze-dried preparation derived from attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis (Bacillus Calmette Guerin).
The product is for intravesical instillation and is available from the Serum Institute in 40 mg and 80 mg presentations, the sources said.
As part of the therapy, the vaccine is administered into the bladder through a catheter where it stays in the lining of the bladder for a specific duration affecting the cells and fighting cancer without impacting other body parts. | Not_Explicit |
A U.S. watchdog says it has disclosed to Congress information about diversion and control of international humanitarian assistance by de facto Taliban authorities in Afghanistan.
“We have just uncovered, as part of our response to the House Foreign Relations Committee, some really horrific information about the problems with the U.N. operations in Afghanistan,” John Sopko, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), told an event at King’s College London on Thursday.
Sopko did not offer more details about his findings saying the foreign relations committee had tasked SIGAR to investigate and report to it whether U.S. aid to Afghanistan benefited the Taliban.
“A lot of congressmen are torn in this conundrum between giving humanitarian assistance to Afghans who are suffering versus how much of that [aid] is going to a regime which we hate,” said Sopko.
United Nations officials have not yet responded to VOA questions sent Thursday about what they know about diverted aid.
The Taliban are under U.S. sanctions that date back decades when the group was first in power over much of Afghanistan in the 1990s.
After spending over $146 billion on reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan between 2002 and 2022, the United States government suspended all development aid to the country following Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.
The Taliban deny they are interfering in humanitarian programs and accuse the U.S. and other Western donors of politicizing aid to Afghanistan.
However, the Islamist regime has imposed gender-based restrictions on aid activities denying Afghan women’s work for the U.N. and other non-government organizations – a move globally condemned as misogynistic.
Meanwhile, the U.N. says there continue to be many incidents of interference involving U.N. aid workers.
“118 gender-related incidents were recorded, with some 97 percent attributed to the de facto authorities and involving, inter alia, interference with programming, incidents at checkpoints, threats against humanitarian workers, assets and facilities, and mahrams [male escorts] required for movement of female staff,” the U.N. Special Representative for Afghanistan reported to the Security Council last month.
The U.N. has reported progress in reducing risks of fraud and diversion of funds in Afghanistan but has not given more details.
Robust funding
The United States, even while enforcing sanctions on the Taliban, has maintained humanitarian funding to Afghanistan amounting to about $2 billion since August 2021.
Despite a reported drop in donors’ response to the U.N. humanitarian appeal for Afghanistan, the United States remains at the top of the donors’ list with over $336 million contribution so far this year. Last year, the United States contributed over $1.26 billion to the U.N. appeal.
As of July 20, only 23% of this year’s Afghanistan appeal has been funded, according to the U.N.
Aid agencies have warned that a lack of funding to the appeal will force millions of vulnerable Afghan households into extreme poverty.
Citing North Korea and Syria, among other countries, John Sopko said in the past “we in the United States held our nose and delivered assistance to people around the world who live under governments we hate.”
Last month, the U.S. Department of States announced an additional $920 million in humanitarian assistance for the people of Syria taking the total U.S. assistance to the country since 2011 to $16.8 billion.
SIGAR said a new proposed draft law, which was passed by the House and under consideration by the Senate, will prohibit any U.S. assistance going “directly or indirectly” to the Taliban. Sopko predicted the bill, if passed, would have “serious implications” for aid to Afghanistan. | Not_Explicit |
Murkowski: If 2024 matchup is between Biden, Trump then ‘I would go with Joe Manchin’
Sen. Lisa Murkowksi (R-Alaska) said Thursday if the 2024 presidential matchup is between President Biden and former President Trump, she would go with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who so far has not launched a presidential bid.
“If it’s a matchup between Biden and Trump, I know exactly where I’d go. I would go with Joe Manchin,” Murkowski said in an interview with PBS’s Margaret Hoover on “Firing Line.” “I am one who doesn’t like to use my vote for the lesser of two evils. I want to be proactive in who I think could do the job.”
Murkowski said people are hungry for an independent or someone who’s “offering something in the middle,” noting she is “very close” with Manchin.
Manchin appeared earlier this week at a town hall in New Hampshire that was sponsored by political organization No Labels, sparking conversation of a possible third-party bid for the West Virginia senator.
Some Democratic senators have expressed concern a third-party presidential run could take votes away from Biden and boost Trump.
“I have no qualms, no qualms providing my endorsement to a Democrat who I think has been not only extraordinarily helpful to me and Alaskan issues, but in the Senate as well,” Murkowski said, pointing to her and Manchin’s past endorsements of one another.
The Alaska senator said her constituents have asked her to talk Manchin into running, to which she said, “That’s not for me to do.” She said she does think about what a third party could “bring to the equation.”
“If we go into a 2024 scenario, where it’s basically a redo of 2020 between Trump and Biden, what does that say? That we have nobody better than these two?” Murkowski said.
Manchin is also up for reelection in 2024, meaning his key Senate seat and potentially the majority in the chamber could go to the GOP if he runs for president instead.
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Gaetz says he’ll offer bill to defund Jack Smith investigations of Trump
Gaetz made the announcement hours after Trump said he’d been notified he is a target of the Justice Department’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack and efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Smith is leading the investigation.
“They are attacking our democracy and engaging in election interference right now,” said Gaetz, who vowed to “defund the Jack Smith investigation.”
He also alleged the investigation lacks transparency, saying the Justice Department has been nonresponsive to his request for information about who is on Smith’s team.
Gaetz sits on the House Judiciary Committee. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the committee’s chairman, has threatened to cut funding for the Justice Department and FBI, alleging those agencies have been “weaponized” for political purposes.
After Trump was indicted in the investigation into documents found at his Mar-a-Lago home — another investigation Smith is leading — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) called for defunding Smith’s office.
Gaetz said he knows President Biden (D) would not sign his proposal into law and that Senate Majority Leader “Chuck Schumer [D-N.Y.] would never bring such a thing up.”
“But you deserve to know where your members of Congress are counted. Will they cosponsor my legislation? I certainly hope they will,” he said.
If Trump is indicted in the Jan. 6 investigation, it would be his third indictment this year and his second on federal charges. Trump has pleaded not guilty in the other indictments. One stemmed from charges in Manhattan related to an alleged hush money scheme, and the other was in the Smith-led case related to Trump’s holding of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump said in a statement Tuesday the various investigations are a “witch hunt” and “all about election interference” in all caps.
A spokesman for Smith’s office declined to comment.
This story was updated at 11:10 a.m.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
CreditAccess Grameen Q1 Review - Margin Expansion, Opex Efficiencies Led To A Strong Quarter: Motilal Oswal
Earnings performance typical of the leader within the NBFC-MFI sector.
BQ Prime’s special research section collates quality and in-depth equity and economy research reports from across India’s top brokerages, asset managers and research agencies. These reports offer BQ Prime’s subscribers an opportunity to expand their understanding of companies, sectors and the economy.
Motilal Oswal Report
CreditAccess Grameen Ltd. is primed to dominate the segment by:
providing the lowest-cost organised financing,
improving operational efficiency through continuous technology enhancement, and
integrating risk management in every process to drive superior asset quality and lower credit costs.
CreditAccess Grameen’s robust execution has been vindicated by its resilience across various credit cycles and external disturbances.
With strong capital position (tier-I of ~23.5%), the company can very well navigate any potential disruptions in the future and also capitalise on the growth opportunity over the medium term.
We reiterate our 'Buy' rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 1,660 (based on 3.2 times FY25E price/book value).
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DISCLAIMER
This report is authored by an external party. BQ Prime does not vouch for the accuracy of its contents nor is responsible for them in any way. The contents of this section do not constitute investment advice. For that you must always consult an expert based on your individual needs. The views expressed in the report are that of the author entity and do not represent the views of BQ Prime.
Users have no license to copy, modify, or distribute the content without permission of the Original Owner. | Not_Explicit |
TAIPEI -- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. said it will push back the start of mass production at its plant in Arizona to 2025 due to a shortage of skilled workers and technicians needed to move equipment into the facility.
TSMC Chairman Mark Liu said the world's biggest contract chipmaker is entering a critical phase of handling and installing some of the "most advanced equipment" at the plant, its advanced first chip facility in the U.S. in more than 20 years. Mass production was previously slated to begin late next year. | Not_Explicit |
Brace yourselves, travel agents of Britain! People have been watching those hysterical chaps with their flapping arms and their weather maps like a homicidal pizza on the telly. Last week, Europe was burning in the hellish heat of Cerberus, this week it’s Charon.
“Sharon who?”
“Oh, Neville, do keep up. It’s Charon. You know, the man who ferried the dead to the underworld in Greek mythology.”
“What’s that got to do with our fortnight in La Palma, Mary?”
“It’s unbearably hot there, wildfires and everything, according to the BBC. Better cancel, Nev.”
Brrrring brrring, brrring brrrrring.
Neville: Hi there, I’d like to cancel our holiday in La Palma. They say on the news it’s very hot.”
Travel agent (sighing audibly): It’s the summer, Sir. It’s always hot in the Med.”
Neville: I know, but they say it’s dangerously hot in La Palma.”
Agent: Actually, the temperature in La Palma has been in the 20s and it’s forecast to remain below 30. Very pleasant, actually, for the time of year.
Neville: What about the wildfires?
Agent: The fires have nothing to with the heat, Sir. I think you’ll find the BBC spliced clips of the fires in La Palma into its heatwave report to make it look like it was happening in Spain.”
Neville: La Palma isn’t in Spain?”
Agent: Er, no, its 1500 kilometres away, Sir.
Neville: So we shouldn’t bother to cancel?
Agent: I’m afraid your travel insurance doesn’t have a clause covering Nervous Nellies scared half to death by the weather forecast on the TV. Sorry, Sir, it’s non-refundable. You won’t get your money back.”
Neville: Ah, okay. I’ll be glad to get away from this awful weather to be honest with you. Not exactly summer, is it?”
You may have noticed that climate catastrophism has gone nuclear over the past week, as if on cue (we’ll come back to that), but the good old British weather refuses to co-operate. Disappointingly for the We’re All Gonna Fry brigade, it’s cool, rainy and sullen here with fitful gusts of wind; almost autumnal at times. As a July baby, I can tell you this is not unusual for July. (Prince George will have to get used to having his parties in the cloudy drizzle on our mutual birthday.) Still, reporters scour the rest of Europe for better (ie bad) news. Tourists at the Trevi Fountain in Rome are invited to agree that the weather is “unbearable”. If it’s unbearable, why aren’t they back in their hotel rooms with a wet towel on their heads instead of happily licking their pistachio gelato and soaking up the rays? Why are reports of wildfires in La Palma being linked to soaring temperatures, when the weather on the island is in fact unusually mild, and set to be in the mid-20s all week?
Really not very unusual weather events have suddenly acquired important, scary names drawn from the mythological flames of hell. After Cerberus and Charon, get ready for Heatwave Hades. If the current weather in the UK had a name it would be Colin.
Are Brits really “cancelling their holiday plans” because of the “truly terrifying conditions”? Or are they, like me, stocking up on Hawaiian Tropic (used to be sniffy about it, now addicted) from Boots and crawling through the final fortnight of work before I can replenish my stocks of Vitamin D on a Turkish sunlounger.
There is something horribly familiar about all these apocalyptic warnings of catastrophic consequences if people don’t act. “Temperatures across the Mediterranean are nearing the highest ever recorded in Europe with travellers being warned that local medical and health services are strained in some areas.”
Ah, yes, that’s it. Knew we’d heard it before: Stay At Home, Save on Sunscreen, Support Net Zero.
It’s almost as if the same people who scared the pants off us during the pandemic, terrorising people into obeying often idiotic rules, were at it again. The Behavioural Insights Team (aka the Nudge Unit) – spun out of the Cabinet Office, and now working many large corporates, global institutions and national governments – is teaming up with broadcasters to drive messages about climate change.
A report by the BIT in collaboration with Sky TV called ‘The Power of TV: Nudging Viewers to Decarbonise their Lifestyles’ says that “behavioural change on climate can be driven by TV... It comes at a critical time as experts now widely accept that we must shift the behaviour of millions of people to deliver our collective net zero goals”.
You don’t have to be a climate sceptic to find something sinister in the idea of broadcasters plotting to manipulate the public into reaching “our collective goals”. Whose goals are they? Why no questioning of whether this is in the population’s best interest or not? Where are the alternative points of view?
After the disastrous impact of its Covid propaganda on the nation’s mental and physical health, a period of embarrassed silence would be welcome from the Nudge Unit. Yet, here they go again with their sly tricks, their cold calculation of human weakness, their sneaky sleight of hand. What is the betting that the sudden change in TV weather maps, from pastoral greens and shy yellows to diabolical reds, even bruised purples and black, was suggested by the Nudge Unit?
And why has the Foreign Office weighed in, updating the Greece and Spain sections of its website, adding an ‘Extreme Weather’ section detailing how to stay safe during the heatwave as well as “important resources to take note of if heading to the holiday hotspots in the near future”? For heaven’s sake, has no one at the FO heard of this excellent thing called “a siesta”?
None of this is to deny that it looks like a very hot summer for southern Europe – although we must wait for the full statistics to properly assess how it compares with previous heatwaves. But if you were being cynical, and after two years of the entire population being professionally frightened by our own government it’s hard to be otherwise, you would conclude that sunshine is being weaponised in a bid to get the British people to adjust their ways to hit an unattainable and self-harming net zero target.
No. No. We have been shamefully mistreated by our masters, criminally misled by “models”, controlled and horribly hurt by unseen forces, and now the wily bunch think because they got away with it last time we will roll over again and do as we’re told. No.
By happy chance, I’ve just read an important new book, Free Your Mind: The New World of Manipulation and How to Resist It. Authors Laura Dodsworth and Patrick Fagan have some great ideas how to recognise Nudge Unit tactics and how to fight back because “there is a war on for your mind”.
They have over-reached this time, I think, with their lurid weather maps and their brazen attempt to get us to cancel our summer hols. Rebellion is stirring. People are mocking. “In Cyprus, we’re just about holding out,” reports one laconic reader, “Locals simply call it ‘summer’, but what would they know?”
We shall fight the Nudgers on the beaches. We shall fight in the seas and swimming pools. We shall revel in the heat and defend our fortnight in the sun. We shall never surrender our minds to them, for our minds are ours and ours alone. | Not_Explicit |
Many readers still fondly recall its print edition because The Independent offered a different kind of quality newspaper, from its campaigning frontpages to its innovative design and format.
However, The Independent is not what it used to be.
It’s not a broadsheet with a print edition. It’s now entirely online, sustained by clicks rather than sales. But this was an early sign of where many media organisations would later turn.
The Independent’s print edition was phased out in 2016.
This was a sad moment for readers who had come to trust it as one of the nicer, more humane and generally less vile national newspapers.
Before leaving Downing Street, Tony Blair called The Independent “a viewspaper”. He wasn’t wrong in a way. It ran on news analysis, commentary and opinion more than anything else.
Blair was taking issue with the paper’s scathing criticisms of his foreign policy.
He had courted news media for many years but now viewed the industry as a haven of ‘feral beasts’ baying for his blood.
It was a great compliment to The Independent’s coverage that the prime minister was so agitated by it.
So the newspaper decided to own this label and made it a sticker on its home page for a while.
While the tabloids used football and soft porn to sell copies, The Independent relied on commentary to keep readers interested, which it came to avow.
Views could sell on the days when the news couldn’t. It’s not hard to see where The Huffington Post’s initial all-opinion editorial approach came from.
The truth is that the newspaper industry has long not been the source of news for most people, and newspapers have had to find other ways to appeal to readers.
This was the case whether it was celebrity gossip, cricket coverage or pictures of topless girls.
You can tell a lot about a person by what newspaper they read, and The Independent tended to be the choice of liberals who fancied themselves sophisticated.
Breakthrough Years
Established in 1986, The Independent was first launched as a centre-left newspaper.
Initially, it was a broadsheet targeted at people who might pick up The Guardian or The Times but wanted something different.
The newspaper was launched against the backdrop of the Wapping dispute.
Rupert Murdoch was battling with print unions to move production from Fleet Street to the East London plant and cut jobs to streamline costs.
This was an ambitious, uphill battle, but the newspaper drew away talent.
The Independent brought in two brilliant Middle East correspondents: Robert Fisk and Patrick Cockburn.
Between them, Fisk and Cockburn covered the 1991 Gulf War, interviewed Osama bin Laden and criticised the US sanctions on Iraq and the War on Terror.
A crucial part of its URP (unique readership point) was that it was not an organ of the media establishment.
It was not owned by any of the usual suspects. It wasn’t owned by Murdoch or his rivals Conrad Black and Robert Maxwell.
Originally the newspaper was owned by Newspaper Publishing PLC, and its first chairman was Baron Marcus Sieff, former chairman of Marks & Spencer.
Meanwhile, the editorial agenda was set by the former Telegraph journalists Andreas Whittam Smith, Stephen Glover and Matthew Symonds.
Whittam Smith edited the newspaper from 1986 until 1994. He saw The Independent amass a readership of 400,000 by 1989. This was still small compared to many national titles at the time, but it was a respectable feat in just three years.
In 1990, The Independent on Sunday was launched with Stephen Glover as its editor. It had joined the ranks of the Sunday papers, alongside The Sunday Times, The Mail on Sunday and The Sunday Telegraph.
At the time, The Observer had been in decline for several years under the reign of corrupt tycoon Tiny Rowland, and there was an opening for a new centre-left Sunday newspaper.
Three years later, The Independent would attempt to buy out The Observer, but its efforts faltered, and The Guardian snapped up the rival Sunday paper. Nevertheless, it was clear that The Independent had serious ambitions.
These titles would define the market for liberal opinion consumption for years to come. Soon enough, the paper became a place for rising stars rather than just an alternative for established journalists.
Andrew Marr became editor of The Independent in 1996. He would edit the paper for two years before joining the BBC, though he later returned to team up with Rosie Boycott as co-editors.
Belgian publishing company Independent News & Media (Mediahuis today) bought The Independent in 1997.
This ownership still made it stand out in a media business where dynasties prevailed.
Long Decline
By 2000, The Independent had become a part of the press establishment, with its writers and editors jumping back and forth between it and other platforms.
However, its readership had dwindled to around 222,000.
It was never quite able to outflank The Guardian for liberal readers, just as it couldn’t win a price war with Murdoch titles.
The Independent may have earned a reputation for supporting noble causes, but some lacked a popular reach in a country gripped by conservative media.
Critical coverage of the British royal family was unpopular with a large swathe of readers, while support for electoral reform was, unfortunately, more a cause of the middle classes.
In 2003, The Independent adopted a new style: running the same quality content as a broadsheet but in a tabloid format. This was the so-called ‘compact’ style, named as such to distance it from the red-top form.
Other newspapers followed its example, but The Independent was not expanding its readership and losing £5 million a year by 2004.
The paper had already undergone restructuring and refinancing more than once in its brief history.
By 2006, The Independent was increasing its readership to 258,000, but it wasn’t enough to prevent staff cuts and production changes just two years later.
The newspaper eliminated 25% of the company’s 230 editorial staff in 2008.
The Independent had 250,000 readers then, but its circulation would continue to contract. It would never return to the heights of its early years when it seemed like 200,000 readers was a start, and 400,000 was a sign of things to come.
By the end of the 2000s, The Independent looked like its best days were behind it, even though it had an outstanding editorial team.
Good journalism doesn’t always make a profit, and the newspaper needed a solution.
Saved By the Oligarch
The Independent had long marketed itself as one of the few newspapers not owned by an oligarch or a dynasty.
So it was a strange twist for this paper to be rescued by an oligarch looking to establish a media dynasty.
Russian billionaire and former KGB agent Alexander Lebedev bought The Independent for just £1 in 2010 in a deal pledging to invest millions. His son Evgeny was parachuted in to oversee the media interests.
It looked like The Independent may have finally found a generous patron to back its quality journalism. The paper continued its viewspaper strategy of running young, upcoming political commentators.
Under the new ownership, The Independent launched a sister paper called the i , styled as a smarter version of the Metro targeted at a young, liberal audience. Millennial journalist Oliver Duff was appointed editor.
Like its sibling, the i was designed as compact-style paper, but it was intended to reach an audience that The Independent couldn’t. Selling for 20p, the i was more likely to be bought by people who would never buy a broadsheet.
During this period, The Independent helped launch the media career of Owen Jones after he published his much-praised book Chavs in 2011. Jones would make a name for himself as a straight-talking proponent of democratic socialism.
However, there was trouble ahead. One of the newspaper’s best-known columnists Johann Hari was embroiled in a scandal over falsifying stories and plagiarising the work of others.
Hari was caught not just falsifying quotes and key facts but he had misled readers about people he didn’t much like.
Once the star columnist at The Independent, Hari lost his Orwell Prize and left the newspaper for good.
This would have been a serious loss for any newspaper. Fortunately, The Independent still had many high-profile correspondents on its staff, and it could easily move on without Hari.
Former Lebedev media adviser Amol Rajan took over as editor in 2013. He was just 29 years old and the first non-white person to edit a national British newspaper in more than a century.
Even though The Independent continued to run articles taking apart government policy, notably austerity, there was a shift underway.
It happened gradually from the top, and few readers had any sense of it until the 2015 general election.
Although the newspaper did not formally endorse any party in 2015, The Independent ran an editorial arguing that the Conservative-Lib Dem Coalition should continue.
This is after years of publishing critical coverage of austerity. Many loyal readers were baffled and appalled by this endorsement.
Though more than 40% of Independent readers had voted Lib Dem in 2010, 32% of them had also voted Labour. By 2015, the Lib Dems were set to face the merciless wrath of their 2010 voters.
The newspaper had supported the Liberal Democrats in 2010 and the Green candidate in the 2008 London mayoral election.
Though lukewarm on Labour, The Independent had never been a Tory media.
Far from it, The Independent was supposed to be the paper for people who didn’t accept the status quo and its conventional wisdom.
Much like its liberal rivals, The Independent did not capitalise on the left turn in Labour under Jeremy Corbyn.
Following The Guardian and The Observer, The Independent clung to establishment hopes during the Brexit crisis and declared itself ‘neutral’ in the next two elections.
It couldn’t bring itself to fully oppose the Tories after a decade of austerity.
Its readership had fallen to just 55,000 in 2016 when Lebedev decided to phase out the print edition and disband the Sunday title. Rajan stayed to oversee this painful transition, which cost a lot of jobs.
As part of the plan, the i was flogged off to Johnston Press and later became an asset of the Daily Mail and General Trust. It had outgrown the newspaper that nurtured it.
Many readers felt the end of The Independent’s print run was the death of the newspaper they had once loved.
It was certainly the end of an era: The Independent was no longer the go-to paper for people who loathed the Murdoch press.
Today, The Independent may just be another app, but it did escape the print race before the cost of paper skyrocketed.
Photograph courtesy of Steve Rhodes. Published under a Creative Commons license. | Not_Explicit |
Leaders of 26 opposition political parties in India have united to form an alliance in an attempt to oust the country’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, in next year’s general election.
During a conclave of opposition parties held this week, it was decided that the coalition will be called the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance: otherwise known as India.
The meeting of the leaders marked a significant step forward in the relationship between the country’s main national and regional opposition parties, who have previously struggled to unite due to power struggles, personality clashes and ideological differences.
However, a consensus was reached earlier this year that unless they formed a united front, no single party stood a viable chance against Modi and his Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) government, which will be seeking a third term in the election, to be held in May 2024.
Included in the coalition are India’s largest national opposition, the Congress party, as well as powerful regional parties such as Trinamool Congress, which governs the state of West Bengal under the popular chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, and the Aam Aadmi party, which governs Delhi and Punjab.
“This was a very important meeting to save democracy and the constitution in the interest of the people of the country,” Mallikarjun Kharge, the president of the Congress party, told reporters.
Kharge emphasised that, unlike in the past, Congress would not be asserting its dominance in the opposition alliance and was not interested in the prime ministerial post.
In a document drawn up at the leaders’ meeting, which was held in Bengalaru in the southern state of Karnataka, the India coalition said it had “come together to defeat the hatred and violence being manufactured against minorities” under the Hindu nationalist politics of the BJP government.
A full election strategy will be decided by the coalition at meetings due to be held over the next few months but its tagline will be “Jeetega Bharat”, meaning “India will win”.
Even as a united alliance, the opposition parties face an uphill battle in taking on Modi, who still commands huge popularity across India, even among voters who do not consider themselves supporters of the BJP’s politics on a state level.
Between the 26 parties, the alliance governs 11 states while the BJP governs 15. The BJP also holds an overwhelming parliamentary majority after the 2019 election, in which it won 303 seats out of 543.
During his nine years in power, Modi has consolidated his power as prime minister, while the opposition parties have been the targets of raids and investigations by state agencies and several opposition leaders have been jailed, which has systematically weakened the opposition.
The former leader of the Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, who lost the last two elections to Modi, was in March disqualified from parliament and from running in next year’s election, and sentenced to two years in jail, over a court case that critics alleged was politically motivated. Speaking at the opposition gathering, Gandhi said the election battle was between “Narendra Modi and India [the alliance], his ideology and India. India always wins all fights.”
While opposition parties such as Congress and Trinamool Congress have been emboldened by state election results in which they beat the BJP, overall the BJP’s funds, resources and power far outstretch those of any other political party.
On the same day as the coalition was announced, the BJP held a meeting of representatives from its own 38 political allies. Modi launched a scathing attack on their alliance, calling it a “hardcore corruption convention”. He added that “alliances built on negativity have never won”. | Not_Explicit |
Trump’s GOP primary rivals ramp up pressure on him to debate
Former President Donald Trump’s rivals are upping the pressure on him to take part in next month’s GOP primary debate, seeking to draw the front-runner onto a crowded stage as they look to put a dent in his polling lead.
Trump has repeatedly signaled he is leaning against attending the first debate, scheduled for Aug. 23 in Milwaukee, arguing there’s no reason for him to stand on stage and absorb attacks given his comfortable lead in national polls.
But several other candidates, some of them in need of a signature moment or a way to contrast themselves directly with Trump, have publicly chided the former president for suggesting he may duck the debate.
Their arguments have included accusing Trump of cowardice if he does not show up, contending the former president has to earn the nomination in part through the debates, and, in the case of the Republican National Committee (RNC), maintaining that voters deserve to hear from all candidates at party-sponsored events.
“The other candidates want him to be there because, for one thing, it juices interest and ratings in the debate itself if Trump is participating, and they are hoping to attract some attention to themselves, and they won’t be able to attract as much if fewer people are watching,” said David Hopkins, an associate professor of political science at Boston College.
“Without Trump on the stage then it underscores the extent to which the rest of the candidates are in some sense in competition with each other to become the main alternative to Trump,” Hopkins added.
While Republicans running against Trump have at times been reluctant to criticize the former president, fearful of upsetting his loyal base of supporters, they have shown no such qualms about swiping at Trump for his threat to duck the event.
“Nobody’s entitled to be nominated. You gotta earn it. And I think he should show up and make his case and answer questions like the rest of us,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has typically polled in second behind Trump, said in a Wednesday night interview with Newsmax.
Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur who has gained momentum in recent polling, has embraced Trump at nearly every turn of the campaign. But when asked in recent weeks about the potential for Trump to sit out the debate, Ramaswamy told NBC News, “I’m not going to let him get away with that.”
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), who has positioned himself as Trump’s chief antagonist, has repeatedly gone after the former president for the suggestion that he may sit out the first debate.
Christie has asked if Trump is a “coward” in response to his suggestion that he will skip the debate, while at other times suggesting Trump’s own ego will not allow the former president to miss the chance to be at the center of attention.
Former Vice President Mike Pence has said he would “relish” the opportunity to debate Trump, while Nikki Haley, who previously served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, said this week that Trump owes it to voters to get on stage and address his mounting legal problems.
“In every campaign ever, the trailing candidates want to debate the front-runner,” said Alex Conant, who worked on Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) 2016 presidential bid. “The status quo is not great for any candidate not named Trump. Their hope is he shows up at the debate, does poorly and creates an opening for his challengers.”
Trump has for months threatened to skip at least the first two GOP debates. As recently as last weekend, he indicated he was still inclined not to attend.
“When you have a big lead, you don’t do it,” Trump told Fox News. “Why would you let somebody that’s at zero or at one or two or three be popping you with questions?”
But there are risks for Trump in sitting out the debate. It would allow his competitors a chance at the spotlight without the former president dominating the proceedings, and candidates would be able to take free swings at Trump without fear of an immediate counterpunch.
Ronna McDaniel, chairwoman of the RNC, said Wednesday she’s made the case directly to Trump that he should participate in the first debate, which is sponsored by the party and will air on Fox News.
While it’s in the party’s interest to have Trump on stage, both because he’s the front-runner and because it would boost ratings, McDaniel argued there are also short- and long-term benefits for the former president himself.
“One, short-term, you want to win the nomination. You’ve got to get in front of those primary voters,” McDaniel said on Fox News. “But for me, it’s another part of it, which is if you end up getting the nomination for any of these candidates, this is an audience of 20 million people plus.”
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Not_Explicit |
Mphasis Q1 Results Review - Growth Recovery Already Factored Into Valuation: Motilal Oswal
Margins to remain within the guided range; maintain Neutral.
BQ Prime’s special research section collates quality and in-depth equity and economy research reports from across India’s top brokerages, asset managers and research agencies. These reports offer BQ Prime’s subscribers an opportunity to expand their understanding of companies, sectors and the economy.
Motilal Oswal Report
Mphasis Ltd.’s Q1 FY24 revenue performance (-3.5% QoQ constant currency) was weaker than our estimate (-1.2% QoQ CC) on account of persistent headwinds in the direct business (including mortgage) and the ongoing moderation in the DXC vertical (- 10.5% QoQ CC).
But the company delivered record deal closures in Q1 at $707 million (twice of average run rate).
Despite a weak revenue performance in Q1, the management is confident that growth will rebound in Q2 FY24, driven by the bottoming out of its mortgage processing business (Digital Risk) in Q1 and scale-up of large deals as clients resume spending.
With the interest rate hike cycle coming to an end, Mphasis is seeing early signs of revival in DR amid a pickup in volumes and capacity commitments. Additionally, the management indicated improvement in revenue conversion, which was impacted by slow decisionmaking and cuts in discretionary spends over the last few quarters.
We believe that although the commentary was good, it was not a positive surprise as it was in line with our expectation. Given the Q1 miss, we trim our FY24/FY25 U.S. dollar revenue growth estimates by 2.4%/2.1% YoY.
Despite a strong pickup expected in FY25, revenue is expected to clock a muted 4.9% compound annual growth rate over FY23-25 due to a 4.6% YoY CC decline in FY24E.
The Q1 margin performance (inline) was positive given the steep revenue decline. The management has demonstrated its ability to maintain margins in a tight range.
We see FY24 margins at 15.5% (lower end of the guided rage of 15.25%-16.25%) before improving to 16.5% in FY25. This should result in Indian rupee profit after tax growth of 11.4% over FY23-25E.
We lower our FY24-25 earnings per share estimates by ~2% each on account of a Q1 FY24 miss. We believe that the current valuation of 22 times FY25E EPS fairly factors in near-term earnings growth. Our target price of Rs 2,250 implies 21 times FY25E EPS.
Click on the attachment to read the full report:
DISCLAIMER
This report is authored by an external party. BQ Prime does not vouch for the accuracy of its contents nor is responsible for them in any way. The contents of this section do not constitute investment advice. For that you must always consult an expert based on your individual needs. The views expressed in the report are that of the author entity and do not represent the views of BQ Prime.
Users have no license to copy, modify, or distribute the content without permission of the Original Owner. | Not_Explicit |
Genya Savilov /AFP via Getty Images
toggle caption
Anti-tank obstacles on a wheat field at a farm in southern Ukraine's Mykolaiv region. The country's grain exports were curtailed this week when Russia pulled out of a deal that allowed grain-laden ships to sail out of Ukrainian ports.
Genya Savilov /AFP via Getty Images
Anti-tank obstacles on a wheat field at a farm in southern Ukraine's Mykolaiv region. The country's grain exports were curtailed this week when Russia pulled out of a deal that allowed grain-laden ships to sail out of Ukrainian ports.
Genya Savilov /AFP via Getty Images
On July 17 the Russian government announced that it was pulling out of a deal to facilitate the export of millions of tons of grain from Ukrainian ports. The arrangement had been in place since July 2022. The Kremlin's move immediately sparked concern, particularly in food insecure countries. The Kenyan government was quick to denounce the withdrawal as a "stab in the back" for drought-hit nations in the Horn of Africa. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that Russia's withdrawal "will strike a blow to people in need everywhere."
Grain prices have been fluctuating since. On Monday morning after the announcement, Chicago wheat futures – a global benchmark for prices – briefly jumped around 3% before falling later in the day. By Wednesday afternoon Russia announced that all ships in the Black Sea bound for Ukrainian ports will be considered potential military cargo starting Wednesday. Wheat futures jumped 9%.
Monday's withdrawal announcement came hours after explosions damaged a bridge connecting Russia with the annexed Crimean peninsula. Moscow blamed the incident on Ukraine but said the attack was unconnected to the termination of the grain deal. On Tuesday, Moscow launched a barrage of missiles against the Ukrainian port city of Odessa, a key export point for grain.
The Ukraine grain crisis unfolded in March 2022, when Russia invaded its neighbor. Ukraine had been one of the world's largest exporters of grain and sunflower oil, which reached hundreds of millions of people in low-resource countries. Russian forces imposed a naval blockade on Ukrainian ports, immediately engulfing the world in a food security crisis. Food prices soared as millions of tons of grain exports were stranded for five months.
Hope arrived in July 2022: Turkey and the U.N. negotiated the Black Sea Grain Initiative, enabling cargo ships to pass safely out of Ukrainian ports to the Bosporus Strait. From there a joint inspection by Ukrainian, Russian, Turkish and U.N. officials – checking to see that no weapons are on board — and vessels proceed to their destinations around the world. According to the World Food Programme, the initiative allowed over 725,000 tons of wheat to be shipped to Afghanistan, Yemen, and east Africa.
But the deal was far from perfect. Joseph Glauber, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), says Russia has been criticized for dragging their heels on inspections and repeatedly threatening to pull out of the deal.
"Having said that," he added, "you're still talking about 33.5 million tons of agricultural product going out last year, which is remarkable."
Glauber says that the suspension of the deal is "unfortunate" and exacerbates an already difficult situation. Export costs have been rising since the war, storage capacity has been tight and with some fields now in occupied areas, Ukrainian production is down 35-40%.
"The reality is that there is less grain to ship. If Ukraine will be producing half the amount it usually does over the next year or so, that's a deficit the world has to make up."
International aid charities are keen to point out that for people living in low resource countries, the situation was already perilous before the war in Ukraine.
Elise Nalbandian, regional hunger crisis advocacy manager for Oxfam in Africa, says that food, fuel, and fertilizer in east Africa were already expensive due to regional conflicts and the climate crisis.
"(The grain deal) was an important diplomatic solution for a conflict that is affecting the whole world, but the bigger issue is that the food system globally is inconvertibly broken," she told NPR from Nairobi. "It is only when something like the Black Sea grain initiative stops, then everyone pays attention to how unfortunate the situation has become."
Of particular concern is the Horn of Africa, where years of insufficient rainfall have caused the worst drought in forty years, threatening millions with famine. According to the World Health Organization, last year's drought claimed 40,000 lives in Somalia alone due to malnutrition.
Nalbandian says that the new blockage of Ukraine's grain should be seen in the wider context of poor access to food for countries in need
"Africa has 60% of world's cultivatable land, and the fact it is a net importer of food is a scandal. We must diversify production and invest in small-scale farmers, specifically women farmers in low-income countries."
Nana Ndeda, who is the humanitarian, advocacy and policy lead for Save the Children International, told NPR that the halting of the deal "worries us."
"We predict there will be another spike in hunger," said Ndeda, who added that food disruptions are contributing to increased pressures on national health systems in the neediest places.
"Areas like the Horn of Africa and the Sahel have suffered from chronic food insecurity for a long time. Families skip meals and eat less nutritious food. This leads to an increase in malnutrition, which harms immune systems and causes outbreaks of fast-spreading diseases like measles and cholera."
Ndeda points to the need to provide relief to stricken countries' hamstrung economies, who owe billions of dollars to China and private western lenders.
"One way to address the future resilience of these countries is the renegotiation of debts, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, to allow them to have more resources to strengthen food security systems."
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that despite Russia's curtailment of the deal, he believes that Vladimir Putin wants the grain deal to continue. Some speculate that Russia may demand relief from sanctions imposed by the West in exchange for its resumption. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested that the arrangement can continue without Russian participation, though it is unclear who would provide security guarantees for the grain-carrying ships.
Joseph Glauber from IFPRI says that the situation last year was helped by bumper harvests in Canada and Australia, as well as other producers like India and Brazil experiencing a good crop, but stocks worldwide are still not replenishing at significant levels to withstand the unexpected.
"There's not a lot of buffer to absorb another big exporting region having a serious drought. That's the main concern," he warned.
Andrew Connelly is a British freelance journalist focusing on politics, migration and conflict. | Not_Explicit |
Ashneer Grover Reveals He Invested Rs 2.95 Crores In Shark Tank Season 1; Details Here
The former BharatPe co-founder also slammed a couple of media houses for publishing " incorrect and invalidated stories"
Former BharatPe Co-founder Ashneer Grover, who was a judge in first season of Shark Tank India has revealed that he invested Rs 2.95 crores in 11 details on the show.
Taking to Twitter, Grover said that this makes him the second highest investor, only after Namita Thapar, Executive Director of Emcure Pharmaceuticals, who was the highest both in terms of absolute and % closure.
"No surprises - Namita is a great pay master ! Both Namita and I are the top 2 in terms of absolute, % deals completed and % commitment invested," the founder of Third Unicorn tweeted.
Read Ashneer Grover's Tweet
I, Ashneer Grover, invested â¹2.95 crores | 11 deals in Shark Tank Season 1.— Ashneer Grover (@Ashneer_Grover) July 19, 2023
This makes me second highest deployer, only after @namitathapar who was highest both in terms of absolute and % closure. No surprises - Namita is a great pay master ! Both Namita and I are the top 2 in⦠pic.twitter.com/Ot16kHOrpc
In the same tweet, Ashneer Grover hit out at two media publications for publishing "incorrect and invalidated stories" on Shark Tank Season 1.
"No surprises how blatantly wrong they were - ‘press is opposite of maths’. Putting my investments by date in public - what Shark Tank should’ve done in the first place," the tweet said.
Grover reacted after media outlets published a report by PrivateCircle Research, a private market intelligence company which stated that the sharks (investors) completed only 27 of the 65 soft commitments that they had agreed to deploy in startups on the show. The report claimed that Grover invested Rs 1.99 crore after committing to invest Rs 5.54 crore.
Aman Gupta on Funding Controversy
Meanwhile, Shark Tank India judge and boAt co-founder Aman Gupta asserted that due diligence is and will continue to be an integral part of funding startups amid the controversy and allegations of delayed funding even after deals are struck on the show.
Gupta said it is important for people to understand that there will not be quick money and that proper procedures and checks will be followed before actual funding.
'If someone thinks it's easy money…that rich businessmen are cutting cheques, this was a misconception that has been cleared,' Gupta told PTI in an interview.
He said that he and other 'sharks' earned their money through hard work and grit, and asserted that proper procedures of checks will be followed.
'We have earned the money with hard work and we will not just give our money without due diligence,' Gupta said. | Not_Explicit |