Category: World

Three US citizens, a Belgian and a Canadian were also sentenced to death after the botched attempt to overthrow the government in May.

A British citizen is among 37 people who have been sentenced to death in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) after being found guilty of an attempted coup in the central African country.

A foreign office spokesperson told Sky News they are giving consular assistance to “a British man detained in DRC” and are in contact with the local authorities.

“We have made representations about the use of the death penalty to the DRC at the highest levels, and we will continue to do so.”

Three US citizens, a Belgian and a Canadian were also among those sentenced, along with several Congolese.

Judge Major Freddy Ehuma, speaking at an open-air military court in Kinshasa that was broadcast live on television, said they had been given “the harshest penalty, that of death”.

The defendants have five days to appeal their verdicts after being convicted on charges that included terrorism, murder and criminal association.

Fourteen people were acquitted in the trial, which opened in June.

Six people were killed during the attempted coup in May, which was led by Christian Malanga, a little-known opposition figure.

The rebels occupied DRC President Felix Tshisekedi’s office in the presidential palace for almost an hour before they were arrested, mediacongo.net said.

Mr Malanga was fatally shot while resisting arrest soon after live-streaming the attack on his social media, the Congolese army said.

Mr Malanga’s 21-year-old son, Marcel, who is a US citizen, was convicted, along with fellow Americans, Tyler Thompson Jr and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun.

Marcel Malanga’s mother Brittney Sawyer has said her son is innocent and was simply following his father, who believed himself to be president of a shadow government in exile.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/british-citizen-among-37-people-sentenced-to-death-in-dr-congo-over-failed-coup-13214172

A look back at Prince Harry’s life in pictures – as the Duke of Sussex turns 40.

Prince Harry has turned 40 – spending his birthday in his new California home, where he lives with his wife Meghan and his children Archie and Lilibet.

This is a look at his life – from newborn baby to cheeky toddler, from teenager to man.

Harry was born on 15 September 1984 at St Mary’s Hospital, London.

As a young boy he was close to his mother Lady Diana and older brother William.

His parents divorced in 1996 – and Harry’s life changed forever when Lady Diana died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

Harry, then aged 12, and William walked behind her coffin as it proceeded through the streets from Kensington Palace to Westminster Abbey.

Harry later said no child “should be asked to do” what they did.

After the death of Diana, Harry became even closer to William.

Harry said of William when he turned 21: “Ever since our mother died, obviously we were close, but he is the one person on this earth who I can actually really… we can talk about anything.”

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/prince-harry-at-40-duke-of-sussexs-life-in-40-pictures-13213945

China’s legislature passed a policy which will see retirement age raised for both men and women for the first time since the 1950s as it tries to tackle a shrinking and ageing population.

China will begin raising the retirement age for the first time in more than 70 years as the 1.4bn-strong country faces a shrinking and ageing population.

China’s legislature, known as the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, has signed off a new policy which will see retirement age rise for both men and women as of January 2025, state broadcaster CCTV announced.

Over 15 years, the retirement age for men will be raised from 60 to 63 and for women, who can currently retire at 50 if they are in blue-collar employment or 55 if they have white-collar jobs, will retire either at 55 or 58 years, depending on the work they do.

The policy will be rolled out progressively based on people’s birthdates.

Having people work for longer would ease pressure on pension budgets with many Chinese provinces already reeling from large deficits.

Eleven of China’s 31 provincial-level jurisdictions are running pension budget deficits, finance ministry data show. The state-run Chinese Academy of Sciences said the pension system would run out of money by 2035 without further reform.

“We have more people coming into the retirement age, and so the pension fund is [facing] high pressure. That’s why I think it’s now time to act seriously,” said Xiujian Peng, a senior research fellow at Victoria University in Australia who studies China’s population and its ties to the economy.

The previous retirement ages were set in the 1950s, when life expectancy was only around 40 years, Mr Peng said.

The policy was passed as China faces a looming demographic disaster amid a shrinking and ageing population.

Analysts predict there will be 500 million people over the age of 60 in China by 2050.

That is on top of fewer births, as younger people opt out of having children, citing high costs.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/china-passes-law-raising-retirement-age-for-first-time-in-70-years-amid-shrinking-population-13213994

Tom Cruise pulled off his epic Hollywood stunt at the 2024 Paris Olympics for free.

The president and chairman of the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, Casey Wasserman, raved about the “Top Gun” star’s participation during the CNBC x Boardroom: Game Plan panel at the Fairmont Miramar hotel in Santa Monica, Calif., on Tuesday.

“He finished filming ‘Mission: Impossible’ at 6 p.m. in London, got right on a plane. He landed in LA at 4 a.m. and filmed the scene where he pulls onto a military plane,” the entertainment executive said, per the Hollywood Reporter.

Wasserman raved that “every step of the way, [Cruise] got more involved and more engaged” and ultimately did the pretaped stunt for free.

“We’re like, ‘Well, there’s no way we’re getting this. We’re going to get four hours of filming time. We’ll do the thing … with the Hollywood sign, he’ll hand the thing off and he’s done. Maybe we’ll get the other stuff, and the rest will be just a stunt double.’ About five minutes into the presentation, [Cruise] goes, ‘I’m in. But I’m only doing it if I get to do everything,’” he recalled.

The actor, 62, stunned viewers on Aug. 11 when he closed out the Paris Olympics and handed the torch to LA, where the next Summer Games will be held.

Cruise launched himself from the top of Stade de France and landed on the field, where he grabbed the Olympic flag.

He then took the flag from LA Mayor Karen Bass and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and rode off into the streets of Paris before getting on a plane near the Eiffel Tower.

The video later showed the movie star flying the symbolic flag to California and skydiving to the iconic Hollywood sign before adding the famous five colored Olympic rings to it.

Source: https://pagesix.com/2024/09/13/entertainment/tom-cruise-not-paid-for-paris-olympics-2024-stunt/

Of all the remaining multimillion-dollar music-catalog deals on the table, the rights to Pink Floyd’s recordings and name/likeness has been the most contentious. The catalog has been in play for several years with a reported asking price of $500 million, and the group was close to a deal in 2022, but the bitter infighting between the band’s members — primarily over main songwriter Roger Waters’ controversial political statements against Israel and Ukraine, and in favor of Russia — have complicated the deal enormously and scared off a number of suitors.

However, reports and Variety sources say that Sony Music, which has spent more than a billion dollars on catalogs from Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Queen’s non-North American rights in the past few years (with backing from investment firms like Eldridge Industries), is in “advanced” talks to acquire the group’s recorded-music rights for a price between $400 million and $500 million.

While specifics on the deal are unclear — and reps for the group and Sony declined or did not respond to Variety’s requests for comment — if the price is on the high end, as reported by Financial Times, that means Waters’ comments have had little impact on the price tag; if the low end, as reported by Music Business Worldwide, it means he has devalued the catalog by as much as 20%.

Other potential suitors were said to be underwhelmed with the catalog’s annual earnings.

Key bandmembers Waters and David Gilmour (pictured above right and left, respectively, in the early 1970s), have been feuding for decades, taking public potshots at each other while recently trying to find enough common ground to close a deal.

Sony has never officially confirmed its catalog deals, although the ones listed above have been either widely reported by informed sources or been listed later on earnings reports. However, if news emerges that the deal has closed, the company is likely to face a firestorm of criticism for paying such a hefty sum to Waters, who has vehemently denied that he is antisemitic but has been quite unambiguous about his fierce criticism of the governments of Israel, Ukraine and the United States, and his strong statements in support of Russia and Vladimir Putin.

Among many other incendiary statements, Waters has compared Israel to Nazi Germany and said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was “not unprovoked.” (Waters’ 2022 concerts in Poland were canceled over his comments about neighboring Ukraine.) “You are anti-Semitic to your rotten core,” Gilmour’s wife, novelist Polly Samson, told Waters on Twitter, amid other colorful comments; “Every word demonstrably true,” Gilmour added. Waters refuted their comments as “incendiary and wildly inaccurate.”

Gilmour recently told Rolling Stone that he is interested in a sale less for financial reasons than “to be rid of the decision making and the arguments that are involved with keeping it going,” which he described as “my dream.”

The companies that were close to a deal with the group in 2022 — said to be Hipgnosis, Warner Music and BMG — have all had leadership changes since then (and earlier this year, BMG dropped Waters from its roster as a solo artist). Waters’ comments were a major factor in the deals falling apart, although a variety of other factors — including rising interest rates, tax issues and the sinking value of the British pound — also played a role.

Sources told Variety early last year that the deal was “basically dead” because the surviving band members “just can’t get along,” although sources close to the band insisted that it wasn’t.

Source: https://variety.com/2024/music/news/pink-floyd-sell-catalog-to-sony-music-half-a-billion-dollars-1236143692/

There are fifty more Indian nationals still in battlefields in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, and efforts are under way to rescue them and get them released too, the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs added.

Forty five Indians who were illegally made to join the Russian army and fight for them on the battle fronts against Ukraine have been rescued from the war zone and discharged from the Russian military, the Ministry of External Affairs said today.

There are fifty more Indian nationals still on battlefields in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, and efforts are underway to rescue them and get them released too, the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs added.

During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Moscow, Russian President Vladimir had assured Mr Modi that Russia will discharge any and all Indians who had been misled and falsely inducted in the Russian Army and subsequently forced to go the battlefields in Ukraine.

HOW INDIANS WERE MISLED INTO JOINING RUSSIAN ARMY

A human trafficking network extending from New Delhi to Tamil Nadu used social media platforms and local agents to lure people to Russia by offering them lucrative jobs or admission to what Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) called “dubious private universities”.

Once they reached Russia, however, the victims’ passports were taken and they were trained in combat roles before being deployed at the front.

In recent weeks, Ukraine has been urging its allies to green-light its use of long-range missiles to strike deeper into Russian territory – but Sir Keir Starmer has given no indication if the UK and US will or won’t following a meeting with President Biden.

Sir Keir Starmer has talked up the US-UK relationship after a White House meeting with Joe Biden, but questions remain over Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles.

The prime minister travelled to Washington this week to meet with President Biden to discuss the wars in Ukraine and Gaza – among other issues.

Speaking before the “long and productive” meeting held in the White House on Friday, Sir Keir said the two countries were “strategically aligned” in their attempts to resolve the war.

Afterwards, he skirted around questions regarding Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles, saying: “We’ve had a long and productive discussion on a number of problems, including Ukraine, as you’d expect, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific, talking strategically about tactical decisions.

“This isn’t about a particular decision but we’ll obviously pick up again in UNGA (UN General Assembly) in just a few days’ time with a wider group of individuals, but this was a really important invitation from the president to have this level of discussion about those critical issues.”

Ukraine war latest: Putin threatens NATO with ‘war’

Decisions loom for Ukraine’s key Western allies as Volodymyr Zelenskyy has recently increased pressure on them to permit his forces to use long-range missiles to strike inside Russian territory.

However, despite repeated calls for a decision, the West has so far resisted green-lighting the use of the missiles.

Two US officials familiar with the discussions said they believed that Sir Keir was seeking US approval to let Ukraine use British Storm Shadow missiles for expanded strikes into Russia, according to Reuters news agency.

They added that they believed Mr Biden would be amenable.

The president’s approval would be needed because Storm Shadow components are made in the US.

But when speaking to journalists after the meeting, Sir Keir was repeatedly pressed on the long-range missile question but evaded giving a firm decision.

“This wasn’t a meeting about a particular capability. That wasn’t why we got our heads down today,” he said.

The US has been concerned that any step could lead to an escalation in the conflict and has moved cautiously so far, however, there have been reports in recent days that Mr Biden might shift his administration’s policy.

Vladimir Putin previously threatened the West, warning that allowing Ukraine to use long-range missiles to strike inside Russian territory would put Moscow “at war” with NATO.

Speaking to Russian state television, he insisted the decision would “significantly change” the nature of the war.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/keir-starmer-talks-up-us-uk-relationship-but-questions-remain-over-ukraines-use-of-long-range-missiles-13214338

Louis Vuitton has been hit with a lawsuit from a mother and daughter who claim they were treated unfairly at the fashion brand’s stores compared to white shoppers in the same stores.

According to court docs, Tracy Renee Williams says she preordered and paid about $50,000 for items at a Costa Mesa LV store, but never received the delivery. When she went to a Beverly Hills location, she claims a white manager told her she was no longer welcome and that she would be arrested if she stayed or came back.

Tracy claims a few days later, she sent her white assistant to the store, and he was treated respectfully and allowed to make a purchase with several thousand dollars in cash.

Williams says she has a lucrative social media presence where she reviews and showcases LV goods, and claims she’s lost about $40,000 a month in revenue since being banned from the stores.

Her daughter Brandi also alleges discrimination … saying an LV manager at a Beverly Hills store refused to let her shop, falsely accusing her of spending “drug money” and threatening to have her arrested if she didn’t leave. She claims the same thing happened at an LV store in New Orleans.

Russia started producing a new long-range attack drone called the Garpiya-A1 last year using Chinese engines and parts, which it has deployed in the war in Ukraine, according to two sources from a European intelligence agency and documents seen by Reuters.
The intelligence – which included a production contract for the new drone, company correspondence on the manufacturing process and financial documents – indicated that IEMZ Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian state-owned weapons maker Almaz-Antey, produced more than 2,500 Garpiyas from July 2023 to July 2024.

The Kamala Harris campaign had no advance notice that Taylor Swift would be endorsing her on Tuesday night.

But now that she’s on board, the campaign is moving quickly to capitalize. The Harris merchandise page offered Harris-Walz friendship bracelets — a Swift reference — for $20. They quickly sold out.

Now they are more overtly integrating Swift’s backing into their paid media. The Democratic National Committee is paying for outdoor advertising with a message alluding to Swift’s tour: “We’re in our Kamala era!”

The ad is slated to run on a digital display in Times Square in New York, and on billboards in Las Vegas. Nevada is a swing state where the Democratic Party thinks the connection to live entertainment — a major local industry — is especially powerful.

Another ad in the same locations will say “A New Way Forward… Ready for It?”

Swift endorsed Harris on Instagram shortly after Tuesday’s debate, saying the vice president “fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.”

She also applauded the selection of Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, noting his long-standing support for “LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body.”

She later shared a link to Vote.gov, the official government voter registration site, in her Instagram story, which drove more than 400,000 visits to the page in 24 hours, according to the General Services Administration.

Source: https://variety.com/2024/music/news/kamala-harris-ads-taylor-swift-era-1236142694

A Nevada judge has ruled that billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his family can hold a secret court battle over the future of his vast media empire behind closed doors.

The judge rejected a petition by a coalition of media organizations, including CNN, The New York Times, NPR, the Washington Post, Reuters and ABC, to unseal the case and allow access.

Though the Murdoch family is fighting over the trust and who will ultimately have control of the family businesses after the 93-year-old’s death, all of those involved agreed to sealing the case.

Nevada offers one of the most private court settings for issues like family trust decisions, allowing parties and judges to lock the cases behind closed doors to such an extreme degree that their very existence is not even publicized on court dockets. The existence of the case remained under wraps until The New York Times first reported on it in July. In a now-public docket, the case is only identified as “The Matter of the Doe 1 Trust, PR23-00813“.

Attorneys for the family members said in court filings that the case should remain sealed because it would otherwise reveal confidential information related to Murdoch’s business, which includes companies like the right-wing cable outlet Fox News and The Wall Street Journal, and could jeopardize Murdoch’s physical safety.

The judge agreed, writing, “A family trust like the one at issue in this case, even when it is a stockholder in publicly traded companies, is essentially a private legal arrangement, as the applicable sealing statues recognize.”

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/09/13/media/secret-murdoch-succession-fight-seal-media-nevada/index.html

California firefighters had to douse a flaming battery in a Tesla Semi with about 50,000 gallons (190,000 liters) of water to extinguish flames after a crash, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday.

In addition to the huge amount of water, firefighters used an aircraft to drop fire retardant on the “immediate area” of the electric truck as a precautionary measure, the agency said in a preliminary report.

Firefighters said previously that the battery reached temperatures of 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit (540 Celsius) while it was in flames.

The NTSB sent investigators to the Aug. 19 crash along Interstate 80 near Emigrant Gap, about 70 miles (113 kilometers) northeast of Sacramento. The agency said it would look into fire risks posed by the truck’s large lithium-ion battery.

The agency also found that the truck was not operating on one of Tesla’s partially automated driving systems at the time of the crash, the report said. The systems weren’t operational and “could not be engaged,” according to the agency.

The crash happened about 3:13 a.m. as the tractor-trailer was being driven by a Tesla employee from Livermore, California, to a Tesla facility in Sparks, Nevada. The Semi left the road while going around a curve to the right and hit a tree, the report said. It went down a slope and came to rest against several trees. The driver was not hurt.

After the crash, the Semi’s lithium-ion battery ignited. Firefighters used water to put out flames and keep the batteries cool. The freeway was closed for about 15 hours as firefighters made sure the batteries were cool enough to recover the truck.

Authorities took the truck to an open-air facility and monitored it for 24 hours. The battery did not reignite.

The NTSB said all aspects of the crash are under investigation as it determines the cause. The agency said it intends to issue safety recommendations to prevent similar incidents.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/tesla-semi-fire-battery-crash-water-firefighters-7ff04a61e562b80b73e057cfd82b6165#

Pope Francis said that American voters face the choice between “the lesser evil” in the U.S. presidential election during an in-flight press conference Friday on his return from his nearly two-week tour of Southeast Asia.

Speaking aboard the papal plane, a chartered Singapore Airlines flight, on Sept. 13, the pope encouraged Catholics to vote with their conscience.

“In political morality, in general they say that if you don’t vote, it’s not good, it’s bad. You have to vote, and you have to choose the lesser evil,” he said.

“What is the lesser evil? That woman, or that man?” he continued, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris and her Republican opponent, former president Donald Trump. “I don’t know. Each one, in his or her conscience, must think and do this.”

In the first press conference that Pope Francis has had to face in nearly a year, the pope expressed his satisfaction with the Vatican’s controversial diplomatic accord with communist China, and he firmly ruled out the possibility of attending the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. The pope was asked no questions about the alleged abuses and artwork of Father Marko Rupnik and he again underlined that abortion is “murder.”

CBS News reporter Anna Matranga asked Francis what advice he would give to an American voter who has to decide between a candidate “who is in favor of abortion and another who wants to deport millions of migrants.”

Pope Francis replied: “Both are anti-life — both the one who throws out migrants and the one who kills babies — both of them are against life.”

Harris, a Democrat who has made abortion without legal restrictions the centerpiece of her presidential campaign, and Trump, who has called for the deportations of perhaps millions of immigrants who have entered the U.S. illegally in recent years, are locked in a tight contest with just 52 days to go before the Nov. 5 election.

The Holy Father’s remarks about “the lesser evil” refers to the Church’s long-standing teaching that when faced with a choice between candidates who aren’t wholly aligned with the Church’s position on fundamental “nonnegotiable” issues — such as the sanctity of life, marriage, and religious freedom — it is permissible to cast a vote against the candidate who would do the most harm.

Abortion is ‘murder’
The pope went on to say that the science supports that life begins at conception, adding that although people may not like to use the word “kill” when discussing the topic, abortion is “murder.”

“To have an abortion is to kill a human being,” Francis said.

Source: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/259283/pope-francis-in-flight-press-conference-us-presidential-elections-harris-trump-catholic-vote

Loomer, who has pushed a number of conspiracy theories, was on Trump’s plane to the debate and accompanied him to memorial services on Sept. 11.

No one can keep former President Donald Trump away from Laura Loomer.

Throughout his third presidential campaign, aides and advisers have done their best to shield him from Loomer, a far-right social media influencer, and similar figures who stroke his ego and stoke his basest political instincts.

They lost that battle this week, as Loomer traveled on Trump’s jet to his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday and to Sept. 11 memorial services Wednesday. Her presence at the latter infuriated some Democrats and Republicans because one of the many conspiracy theories she has promoted is the false notion that the terrorist assault on the U.S. was an “inside job.” It wasn’t.

Loomer’s return to Trump’s side is pitting key figures in his coalition against one another, testing the strength of a campaign already reeling from his subpar debate performance Tuesday and Democrats’ resurgence in the wake of their July candidate switch. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., major Trump allies in Congress who represent opposite ends of the Republican ideological spectrum, are publicly pressing him to ditch her. Loomer fired back Thursday with a string of invective about Graham.

Moreover, her presence reflects Trump’s loss of faith in his campaign aides and their concomitant fear of upsetting him in a time of crisis, according to people familiar with the situation. Last month, he tapped his 2016 campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, to be an adviser to his top advisers — a move widely viewed as a rebuke of the existing leadership crew.

A senior official from Trump’s 2020 campaign team said that helps explain why Loomer is no longer being kept at arm’s length.

“The people that have the authority to stop it are hanging on to their jobs,” the former official said. “So are you going to pick that fight with him?”

Loomer didn’t respond to a request for comment Thursday, but fighting is a big part of her allure for Trump. She advocates as fiercely for him as she does for theories on the political fringe, like the baseless claim that Haitian immigrants are eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio. Trump promoted that during Tuesday’s debate, creating an unwelcome distraction from his substantive differences with Harris, according to many Republicans. Graham and Greene portray her as a counterproductive influence on Trump when he is locked in a tight battle with Harris for the presidency.

Graham said Thursday that Loomer is “really toxic” and shouldn’t be in Trump’s circle. Loomer clapped back on X with a schoolyard taunt.

“Senator Graham is working tirelessly day and night to help re-elect President Trump,” Graham communications director Taylor Reidy responded in a statement to NBC News. “This race is very much ours to lose. Ms. Loomer is a stain on society. There should be no place of prominence in this country for her vile, mean-spirited, destructive, racist rhetoric and views.”

A Republican senator who is also a Trump ally said Trump is “often drawn to people who like and promote him.”

“It’s really dumb,” the senator added.

Loomer’s willingness to hit below the belt and her influence within the Make America Great Again movement’s most aggressive elements are reasons enough for many of her critics to keep their mouths shut publicly. Few elected Republicans want to stick their necks out. But many lawmakers and donors back Greene’s posture toward Loomer, according to a source familiar with the situation, and some of them are reminding people in Trump’s orbit that Loomer lost two campaigns for Congress.

Greene’s beef with Loomer, which dates back a long time, was rekindled this week when Loomer wrote on X that a win by Harris, who is Indian American and Black, would mean “the White House will smell like curry & White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center.”

The remark yielded rare agreement from Greene and President Joe Biden’s White House about what constitutes racism: Loomer’s words.

Trump advisers are trying to distance themselves from her without drawing his ire, making it clear that she doesn’t speak for his operation. Loomer is “not a member of our staff,” said a Trump campaign aide, who asked to remain anonymous.

When NBC News asked for comment this week, Loomer similarly said by text: “Why do you want to speak to me? I don’t work for President Trump.”

Last year, she said she would “gladly” serve as press secretary in a Trump White House.

Democrats hammered Trump on Thursday for inviting Loomer to join him at the 9/11 memorial service.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/far-right-activist-laura-loomer-access-trump-crisis-campaign-rcna170915

The Ig Nobel gongs celebrate unusual areas of research that “make people laugh, then think” – such as mammals that can breathe out of their bottoms.

A Second World War project which involved training pigeons to pilot bombs has won this year’s spoof Nobel peace prize.

The Ig Nobel gongs – awarded annually by the science humour magazine the Annals of Improbable Research – celebrate unusual areas of research that “make people laugh, then think”.

Professor Burrhus Frederic Skinner, a psychologist at the University of Minnesota in the US, received the posthumous gong for his work on Project Pigeon, where he was able to teach pigeons to guide missiles with some success.

But the project never took flight because of scepticism from the US military and government officials.

However, Prof Skinner stood by the research, writing in a summary of the project published in 1960: “Call it a crackpot idea if you will. It is one in which I have never lost faith.”

The anatomy prize went to a team of scientists in France who wanted to investigate whether hair on the heads of most people in the Northern Hemisphere swirled in the same direction – clockwise or anticlockwise – as those from the Southern Hemisphere.

The chemistry award was won by a research team who used a lab technique to separate drunk and sober worms.

And US-based scientists Fordyce Ely and William E Petersen were awarded the biology prize for exploding a paper bag next to a cat standing on the back of a cow with aim to understand more about how and when cows spew their milk.

The two found that cows temporarily stopped ejecting milk when frightened.

Other awards presented at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, US, on Thursday, included the physiology prize for discovering that many mammals are capable of breathing through their anus and the physics prize for demonstrating the swimming abilities of a dead trout.

Meanwhile, the demography gong went to Dr Saul Justin Newman, senior research fellow at University College London, who discovered some people with the longest lives hailed from places that had poor recordkeeping.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/ig-nobels-pigeon-guided-bombs-and-drunk-worms-spoof-nobel-prizes-announced-13213752

The collapse of a 1.2km-high (0.7 miles) mountain peak in east Greenland last September caused water in the fjord below to splash back and forth, causing vibrations right through to the Earth’s crust.

A mega-tsunami caused by a landslide in Greenland caused the Earth to vibrate for nine days, a new study has shown.

The collapse of a 1.2km-high (0.7 miles) mountain peak last September caused water in the fjord below to splash back and forth, causing vibrations right through to the Earth’s crust, researchers found.

The men were charged following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police flying squad after the artwork was stolen from a gallery in New Cavendish Street, central London, on Sunday.

Two men have been charged with burglary after Banksy’s famous Girl With Balloon painting was stolen from a London gallery, police have said.

Larry Fraser, 47, of Beckton, east London, and James Love, 53, of North Stifford, Essex, were charged with non-residential burglary on Wednesday, the Metropolitan Police said.

They appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates Court the next day and were bailed to appear at Kingston Crown Court on 9 October.

The painting, one of the street artist’s most famous, was stolen from a gallery in New Cavendish Street in London at around 11pm on Sunday 8 September.

According to court papers, the print stolen from the Grove Gallery was valued at £270,000.

Following an investigation by the Met’s flying squad, it has now been recovered and will be returned to the gallery, police added.

Banksy claimed an unprecedented nine paintings in nine days this summer after they appeared at various locations around London.

The street artist usually leaves months between pieces, but the animal-themed works continued to pop up one day after the other.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/two-men-charged-with-stealing-banksy-painting-from-london-gallery-13213791

North Korea for the first time showed images of the centrifuges that produce fuel for its nuclear bombs on Friday, as leader Kim Jong Un visited a uranium enrichment facility and called for more weapons-grade material to boost the arsenal.
The state media report on Kim’s visit to the Nuclear Weapons Institute and a production base for weapon-grade nuclear materials was accompanied by the first photos of the centrifuges, providing a rare look inside North Korea’s nuclear programme, which is banned under multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.

The photos showed Kim walking between long rows of metal centrifuges, the machines that enrich uranium. The report did not make clear when the visit occurred nor the facility’s location.
Kim urged workers to produce more materials for tactical nuclear weapons, saying the country’s nuclear arsenal is vital for confronting threats from the United States and its allies.
The weapons are needed for “self-defence and the capability for a preemptive attack,” he said.

Uranium is a radioactive element that exists naturally. To make nuclear fuel, raw uranium undergoes processes that result in a material with an increased concentration of the isotope uranium-235.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said on Monday that the U.N. nuclear watchdog had observed activity consistent with the operation of a reactor and the reported centrifuge enrichment facility at Yongbyon.
NEW CENTRIFUGES
Kim stressed the need to boost the number of centrifuges so as to “exponentially increase” North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, and expand the use of a new type of centrifuge to strengthen the production of weapon-grade nuclear materials.
The centrifuges seen in the photos appear smaller and shorter than the types previously believed to be used by North Korea, suggesting it had developed its own centrifuges to enhance separation capabilities, said Lee Sang-kyu, a nuclear engineering expert at South Korea’s Korea Institute for Defense Analysis.

The photos also confirmed that the North is using a cascade system where large numbers of centrifuges are interconnected to achieve highly enriched uranium, he added.
The new type of centrifuge shows North Korea is advancing its fuel cycle capabilities, said Ankit Panda of the U.S.-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“Kim also appears to suggest that North Korean tactical nuclear weapons designs may primarily rely on uranium for their cores,” he said.
This is notable because North Korea is more able to scale up its highly enriched uranium stockpiles, Panda said, compared to the more complicated process for plutonium.
‘INCREASING ARSENALS’
North Korea invited some foreign scientists to view a centrifuge facility at Yongbyon in 2010, but Jenny Town of the U.S.-based Stimson Center said Friday’s report is the first and only photographs of the equipment.
“It shows how advanced their enrichment capability has become, which gives greater credibility to both their ability and commitment to increasing their nuclear weapons arsenals,” she said.
It could also be meant to influence the U.S. election and send a message to the next administration that denuclearisation is no longer possible and it should recognise North Korea as a nuclear state, said Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul.
On Friday, top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu met Kim in North Korea and discussed bilateral and international issues, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported.
The meeting is the latest high-level exchange between the two states amid deepening military cooperation. Pyongyang continues to supply weapons to Russia, according to analysts, including brand new ballistic missiles produced this year.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/north-koreas-kim-jong-un-visits-uranium-enrichment-facility-state-media-says-2024-09-12/

The daughter of the ruler of Dubai – who announced her ‘divorce’ in a brutal social media post – has announced she’s releasing a perfume line titled ‘Divorce’.

Sheikha Mahra bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum posted an announcement on her Instagram page reading: ‘I hereby declare our divorce,’ baffling her followers.

She married Sheikh Mana bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Mana Al Maktoum in April 2023, and welcomed a baby two months ago.

The post read: ‘Dear Husband, as you are occupied with other companions, I hereby declare our divorce. I divorce you, I divorce you and I divorce you.

‘Take care. Your ex-wife.’

It seems she’s capitalising on her heartbreak and newfound fame after her split with a matte black bottle of perfume with ‘Divorce’ scribbled on the front.

The luxe perfume has been advertised with Sheikha Mahra posing in glam shots with the black bottle.

Mahra has been praised for her eloquence after her split, with one user commenting: ‘So he cheats, she publicly humiliates him and divorce him then creates a business out of it! She is not a princess, she is a queen.’

Source: https://metro.co.uk/2024/09/11/dubai-princess-left-husband-scathing-post-launches-divorce-perfume-line-21587215/

A lack of accountability for the killing of United Nations staff and humanitarian aid workers in the Gaza Strip is “totally unacceptable,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told Reuters in a wide-ranging interview on Wednesday.

Guterres also said that establishing a U.N. peacekeeping force would not be the “best solution” for Haiti, where armed gangs have taken over much of the capital and expanded to surrounding areas, fueling a humanitarian crisis with mass displacements, sexual violence and widespread hunger.

Ahead of the annual meeting of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly later this month, Guterres summed up the past year as “very tough, very difficult.”
It has been dominated by the war in Gaza, which began just two weeks after leaders left New York following last year’s assembly when Palestinian Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages in a cross-border rampage into Israel, according to Israeli tallies.

Describing Israel’s retaliation against Hamas in Gaza – where local health officials say some 41,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began – Guterres said there have been “very dramatic violations of the international humanitarian law and the total absence of an effective protection of civilians.”
“What’s happening in Gaza is totally unacceptable,” he said.
The Israeli military says it takes steps to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and that at least a third of the Palestinian fatalities in Gaza are militants. It accuses Hamas of using Palestinian civilians as human shields, which Hamas denies.

Nearly 300 humanitarian aid workers, more than two-thirds of them U.N. staff, have also been killed during the conflict, according to the U.N. Guterres said there should be an effective investigation and accountability for their deaths.
“We have courts, but we see that the decisions of courts are not respected, and it is this kind of limbo of accountability that is totally unacceptable and that requires also a serious a serious reflection,” Guterres said.
The top U.N. court – the International Court of Justice – said in July that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements is illegal and should be withdrawn. The 193-member U.N. General Assembly is likely to vote next week on a draft resolution that would give Israel a six-month deadline to do so.
Guterres said he has not spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who has long accused the U.N. of being anti-Israel – since the deadly Hamas attack in Israel on Oct. 7 last year. The pair met in person at the U.N. a year ago and Guterres said he would do so again – if Netanyahu asked.
“I have not talked to him because he didn’t pick up my phone calls, but I have no reason not to speak with him,” Guterres said. “So if he comes to New York and he asks to see me, I will be very glad to see him.”
When asked if Netanyahu planned to meet with Guterres on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon said that Netanyahu’s schedule hasn’t been finalized yet.

HAITI ‘SCANDAL’
Guterres’ described the current state of the world as “chaotic.” He said the conflict in Gaza and Russia’s war in Ukraine were “stuck with no peaceful solutions in sight.”
When asked about Western accusations that North Korea and Iran are now providing Russia with weapons, Guterres said: “Any expansion of war in Ukraine is an absolutely dramatic development.”
Iran has rejected the Western accusations, while North Korea has denied the allegations against it. U.N. sanctions monitors said in April that debris from a missile that landed in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Jan. 2 was from a North Korean Hwasong-11 series ballistic missile.
In Haiti, a U.N.-backed international force has been slow to deploy – after Haiti asked for help in 2022 – and lacks funds. The United States wants the U.N. Security Council to ask the U.N. for a plan to transition the force into a U.N. peacekeeping operation.
“I don’t think peacekeeping is the best solution in a situation like this … peacekeeping means to keep the peace, and that’s not exactly the situation we have Haiti,” Guterres said. “I find it a scandal that it has been so difficult to mobilize funds for such a dramatic situation.”
TRUMP LOOMS
Guterres’ first five-year term as secretary-general coincided with the U.S. presidency of Donald Trump, who cut funding to the international body, calling it weak and incompetent. Trump is again the Republican president nominee and will face off against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in theNov. 5 election.
“We are ready to work in all circumstances in defense of the values of the (founding U.N.) charter and of the values of the U.N.,” Guterres said when asked if the world body had a contingency plan for a possible second Trump administration.
During his first term in office Trump also withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, an international pact to fight climate change, and Trump’s campaign said he would do it again if he wins in November. The U.S. is currently a full participant in the accord after President Joe Biden swiftly rejoined in 2021.
“It will survive. But, of course, it will probably survive severely undermined,” Guterres said of a second withdrawal from the pact by a potential Trump administration. Guterres has long pushed for stronger action to fight climate change.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/un-chief-says-lack-accountability-un-staff-killings-gaza-unacceptable-2024-09-11/

Pope Francis on Thursday urged political leaders in Singapore, a leading global financial hub, to seek fair wages for the country’s million-plus lower-paid foreign workers.
In likely the last major speech of an ambitious 12-day tour across Southeast Asia and Oceania, the 87-year-old pontiff singled out concern for Singapore’s rapidly ageing population and its migrant workforce, primarily centred in the construction and domestic services industries.

Three major wildfires in Southern California’s mountains east of Los Angeles torched dozens of homes and forced thousands of people to evacuate, officials said Wednesday.

At least a dozen people, mainly firefighters, were treated for injuries that were mostly heat-related, authorities said. One person from Orange County was burned. No deaths have been reported.

The wildfires have been endangering tens of thousands of homes and other structures across the region after they sprung to life during a triple-digit heat wave over the weekend. Other major fires were burning in Idaho, Oregon and Nevada, where about 20,000 people had to flee a blaze outside Reno.

In the tight-knit community of Wrightwood that sits on the Pacific Crest Trail, authorities implored residents to evacuate the exploding Bridge Fire, which burned more than a dozen homes in the area.

Resident Erin Arias said she was racing up the mountain when she got the sudden order to leave and did, grabbing her passport and dog. On Wednesday, she and her husband doused water on the roof of their still-standing home. Their cat was missing, she said.

“It’s absolutely scary,” Arias said, looking at the burned embers of her neighbor’s home. “We’re really lucky.”

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said the fire moved extraordinarily fast across complex terrain, likely giving Wrightwood residents less time to evacuate than usual and surprising even seasoned fire officials.

The Bridge Fire “had to go up mountain sides, burn down slope, jump across valleys, burn across new ridges, and then make it down slope again at least two other times in effectively one burning period,” he said.

California is only now heading into the teeth of the wildfire season but already has seen nearly three times as much acreage burn than during all of 2023. The White House said President Joe Biden was monitoring the wildfires in the West and urged residents to heed state and local evacuation orders.

Cooler temperatures were expected to potentially start tempering fire activity as the week progresses.

The full extent of the damage was not immediately known as firefighters battled multiple fires simultaneously. The three blazes include:

— The Airport Fire in Orange County that burned over 35 square miles (91 square kilometers). The fire was 5% contained Wednesday night and was reportedly sparked by heavy equipment operating in the area. Orange County Fire Capt. Steve Concialdi said eight firefighters were injured, mostly heat-related. One resident suffered smoke inhalation and another burns, he said. Several homes burned in El Cariso Village.

— The Line Fire in the San Bernardino National Forest that was 18% contained Wednesday and charred 57 square miles (148 square kilometers). The blaze injured three firefighters. Authorities said it was caused by arson in Highland. A suspect was arrested Tuesday.

— The Bridge Fire east of Los Angeles that grew tenfold in a day, burning 78 square miles (202 square kilometers) and torching at least 33 homes and six cabins and forcing the evacuation of 10,000 people. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. It was zero percent contained Wednesday night.

With so many fires raging at once, crews were at their limits, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said.

“As a region, we’re currently at drawdown for fire personnel and resources,” he said, adding that authorities have requested assistance from Northern California and nearby states.

Gov. Gavin Newsom sent National Guard troops in to help with evacuations.

In El Cariso Village, a community of 250 along Highway 74 in Riverside County, an Associated Press photographer saw at least 10 homes and several cars engulfed in flames.

Kevin Fetterman, Orange County Fire Authority Incident Commander, said the blaze has been difficult to tame because of the terrain and dry conditions and because some areas hadn’t burned in decades.

More than 5,500 homes in Riverside County were under evacuation orders, affecting more than 19,000 residents. Several recreational cabins and structures in the Cleveland National Forest were damaged.

In San Bernardino County, some 65,600 homes and buildings were under threat by the Line Fire, and residents along the southern edge of Big Bear Lake were told to leave Tuesday.

The Line Fire blanketed the area with a thick cloud of dark smoke, which provided shade for firefighters trying to get ahead of winds expected later Wednesday, said Fabian Herrera, a spokesperson for the Line Fire.

A man from the town of Norco suspected of starting the Line Fire on Sept. 5 was arrested and charged with arson, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said. Officials did not specify what was used to start the fire.

Investigators collected evidence from the delivery driver’s vehicle and home that suggests he could have been involved in starting other fires, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said Wednesday.

On the Nevada border with California near Reno, the Davis Fire forced thousands of people to evacuate over the weekend, destroyed one home and a dozen structures and charred nearly 9 square miles (23 square kilometers) of timber and brush along the Sierra Nevada’s eastern front.

Rich Meyr and Evelyn Kelley were the first arrivals at an evacuation center set up Wednesday at a recreation center in south Reno. Both said they refused to evacuate previous fires but decided to play it safe this time.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/wildfires-california-wrightwood-heat-wave-64803e9fc481128f1839e729ad36544f

Taylor Swift posted her support after the vice president finished her debate on ABC News, but Donald Trump told Fox News the singer was a “very liberal person” who “seems to always endorse a Democrat”.

Taylor Swift has said she will vote for Kamala Harris in the US election, prompting a strong response from Donald Trump who claims she’ll “probably pay a price for it”.

The singer’s Instagram post showed her holding her cat Benjamin Button – a reference to Mr Trump’s running mate JD Vance’s “childless cat lady” comments.

Swift urged her 283 million followers to “do your research” – but said AI-generated images of her supporting Mr Trump made her realise “I need to be very transparent about my actual plans”.

“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election,” she said. “I’m voting for Kamala Harris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.

“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.

“I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate Tim Walz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”

Mr Walz, who was on air on MSNBC when the endorsement was announced, said he was “incredibly grateful” and urged the singer’s large fan base of “Swifties” to “get things going”.

Trump: Swift will ‘pay a price’

Mr Trump dismissed the singer’s endorsement of the Harris campaign, saying he “was not a Taylor fan” and “she’ll probably pay a price for it in the marketplace”.

During a phone call with Fox News he said: “It was just a question of time, she couldn’t possibly endorse Biden. She’s a very liberal person. She seems to always endorse a Democrat.”

Soon after the debate, the Harris campaign celebrated the endorsement on X by showcasing Harris-Walz friendship bracelets.

Friendship bracelets have become synonymous with Swift and her sold-out Eras tour with fans exchanging them with one another.

Referencing the lyrics of Swift’s hit …Ready For It? – Ms Harris’s team posted an image of the bracelets, which can be purchased on the campaign’s official website, saying: “Are you ready for it? Harris-Walz friendship bracelets have hit the store!”

‘Massive star’ endorsement could be ‘huge’

Sky News US correspondent James Matthews said after her post that Swift’s endorsement was “huge” for the Harris-Walz campaign.

“She is a massive star, huge,” he said. “She speaks to people in a way that politicians do not, and the message from Taylor Swift will resonate with a huge audience far beyond the kind of people watching what has gone on here.

“The timing will not have been an accident. Tonight, the headline is Taylor Swift. Tomorrow, all the talk is going to be about Kamala Harris and Taylor Swift and the momentum that will be behind her.”

Trump is not a Swiftie

Mr Trump also made a comparison between Taylor Swift and Brittany Mahomes – the wife of NFL star Patrick Mahomes – who made headlines last week after liking one of the former president’s social media posts, sparking online criticism.

“I actually like [Brittany] Mahomes better, if you want to know the truth – she’s a big Trump fan,” he said.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/taylor-swift-endorses-gifted-leader-kamala-harris-minutes-after-donald-trump-debate-13212693

Dovid Efune, who has owned the conservative-leaning US newspaper since 2021, is assembling a group of investors to bid for the British broadsheets, Sky News can reveal.

The owner of The New York Sun, a right-leaning American newspaper, is weighing a surprise bid to become the new owner of The Daily Telegraph.

Sky News has learnt that Dovid Efune, who acquired the former daily broadsheet in 2021, has expressed an interest in acquiring one of Britain’s most influential daily newspapers and its Sunday sister title.

Mr Efune is also chairman of The Algemeiner, a Jewish newspaper originally published in Yiddish but which now appears in English.

Mr Efune is being advised by the boutique investment bank Liontree while on Wednesday evening, Semafor, a US news outlet, reported that he had financial backing from Oaktree and Hudson Bay Capital, as well as the family office of hedge fund manager Michael Lefell.

The Daily and Sunday Telegraph are expected to change hands for between £400m and £500m.

A deadline for formal bids has been set for September 27, with National World, the London-listed vehicle headed by David Montgomery, and Sir Paul Marshall – who this week paid £100m for The Spectator – also among the likely bidders.

Mr Efune has not been publicly linked to the process until now, although industry sources said he first began exploring an offer when the original auction of the Telegraph titles kicked off last year.

One source said a management presentation had been scheduled for him with Telegraph executives.

In an opinion article published earlier this year, Mr Efune wrote: “At the Sun, we hold the view that the opportunity remains greater than ever for any newspaper that is compiled with a view to serve the reader above all.

“In the words of Charles Dana, a newspaper “must correspond to the wants of the people. It must furnish that sort of information which the people demand, or else it can never be successful.”

The Telegraph auction is being orchestrated by advisers to RedBird IMI, the Abu Dhabi-backed entity which was thwarted in its efforts to buy the media titles by a change in ownership law.

A separate bid orchestrated by Nadhim Zahawi, the former chancellor, is the subject of bilateral discussions with IMI, the Abu Dhabi-based venture which wanted to take a controlling stake in the British media assets before being blocked by the government.

Sky News revealed exclusively last month that Sir Paul was the frontrunner to buy The Spectator, which along with the Telegraph titles was owned by the Barclay family until their respective holding companies were forced into liquidation last year.

RedBird IMI, a joint venture between IMI and the American investor RedBird, paid £600m last year to acquire a call option that was intended to convert into equity ownership.

A sale of The Spectator for £100m would leave it needing to sell the Telegraph titles for £500m to recoup that outlay in full – or more than that once RedBird IMI’s fees and costs associated with the process are taken into account.

Of the unsuccessful bidders for the Telegraph, Lord Saatchi, the former advertising mogul, offered £350m, while Mediahuis, the Belgian publisher, also failed to make it through to the next round of the auction.

Lord Rothermere, the Daily Mail proprietor, pulled out of the bidding earlier in the summer amid concerns that he would be blocked on competition grounds.

Sky News recently revealed that Mr Zahawi had sounded out Boris Johnson, the former prime minister, about an executive role with The Daily Telegraph if he succeeded in buying the newspapers.

IMI is controlled by the UAE’s deputy prime minister and ultimate owner of Manchester City Football Club, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/new-york-sun-owner-weighs-takeover-bid-for-the-daily-telegraph-13213119

The 2024 MTV Video Music Awards went off without a hitch on Wednesday night, with artists including Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter descending on UBS Arena in Elmont, New York. The show, hosted by Megan Thee Stallion, featured standout performances from LL Cool J, Eminem, Shawn Mendes, Katy Perry, Benson Boone, Anitta, Karol G, LL Cool J, Camila Cabello, Halsey and more.

Swift led the winners with a total of seven moonmen of her 12 nominations, including artist of the year and song of the summer. The night was notable as she bested Beyoncé’s record for most solo VMA wins, tapping out at 30 wins over Bey’s 26. (Beyoncé has an additional two with Destiny’s Child, as well as two with her husband Jay-Z as the Carters.) Swift also became the first artist to ever win video of the year five times.

Eminem, Tyla and Megan Thee Stallion tied for second-most wins with two moonmen apiece. Em took home best hip-hop and best visual effects for “Houdini,” while Meg won best art direction for “BOA” and best trending video for “Mamushi.” Tyla secured best new artist and best Afrobeats for “Water.”

The rest of the winners picked up one apiece, with victors including Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande, Benson Boone, SZA, Billie Eilish, Carpenter, Lisa and Seventeen, among others. Notably missing from the winner’s circle was Beyoncé, whose “Cowboy Carter” was recently shut out of the CMA Awards nominations.

Eminem opened the show with a self-referential rendition of “Houdini” and “Somebody Save Me,” nodding to his 2000 VMAs performance by bringing out an army of lookalikes to join him on stage. Katy Perry gave an eye-popping performance of some of her biggest hits and newer songs as part of her Video Vanguard Award medley, while Camila Cabello ran through “Godspeed” in a selfie-style setup.

Sabrina Carpenter took it to outer space for her performance, a medley of songs from her latest album “Short n’ Sweet.” The singer descended from the rafters on a swing for “Please, Please, Please” before transitioning into “Taste,” dancing with an alien and astronaut behind her. A whole crew of astronauts took the stage as she segued into “Espresso,” dancing in unison as Carpenter sang her summer smash.

Chappell Roan invoked medieval times with her performance of “Good Luck Babe.” Dressed in armor and armed with a crossbow and pigtails, the singer led a coterie of male dancers set to the backdrop of a giant castle, full moon and tall gates that ignited with real fire at the beginning of the performance.

Source: https://variety.com/2024/awards/news/2024-vmas-winners-list-mtv-1236141425/

Alberto Fujimori, whose decade-long presidency began with triumphs righting Peru’s economy and defeating a brutal insurgency only to end in autocratic excess that later sent him to prison, has died. He was 86.

His death Wednesday in the capital, Lima, was announced by his daughter Keiko Fujimori in a post on X.

Fujimori, who governed with an increasingly authoritarian hand in 1990-2000, was pardoned in December from his convictions for corruption and responsibility for the murder of 25 people. His daughter said in July that he was planning to run for Peru’s presidency for the fourth time in 2026.

The former university president and mathematics professor was the consummate political outsider when he emerged from obscurity to win Peru’s 1990 election over writer Mario Vargas Llosa. Over a tumultuous political career, he repeatedly made risky, go-for-broke decisions that alternately earned him adoration and reproach.

He took over a country ravaged by runaway inflation and guerrilla violence, mending the economy with bold actions including mass privatizations of state industries. Defeating fanatical Shining Path rebels took a little longer but also won him broad-based support.

His presidency, however, collapsed just as dramatically.

After briefly shutting down Congress and elbowing himself into a controversial third term, he fled the country in disgrace in 2000 when leaked videotapes showed his spy chief, Vladimiro Montesinos, bribing lawmakers. The president went to Japan, the land of his parents, and famously faxed in his resignation.

He stunned supporters and foes alike five years later when he landed in neighboring Chile, where he was arrested and then extradited to Peru. He had hoped to run for Peru’s presidency in 2006, but instead wound up in court facing charges of abuse of power.

The high-stakes political gambler would lose miserably. He became the first former president in the world to be tried and convicted in his own country for human rights violations. He was not found to have personally ordered the 25 death-squad killings for which he was convicted, but he was deemed responsible because the crimes were committed in his government’s name.

His 25-year sentence did not stop Fujimori from seeking political revindication, which he planned from a prison built in a police academy on the outskirts of Lima, the capital.

His congresswoman daughter Keiko tried in 2011 to restore the family dynasty by running for the presidency but was narrowly defeated in a runoff. She ran again in 2016 and 2021, when she lost by just 44,000 votes after a campaign in which she promised to free her father.

“After a long battle with cancer, our father, Alberto Fujimori, has just departed to meet the Lord,” she said on X Wednesday. “We ask those who loved him to accompany us with a prayer for the eternal rest of his soul.”

Fujimori’s presidency was, in fact, a brash display of outright authoritarianism, known locally as “caudillismo,” in a region shakily stepping away from dictatorships toward democracy.

He is survived by his four children. The oldest, Keiko, became first lady in 1996 when his father divorced his mother, Susana Higuchi, in a bitter battle in which she accused Fujimori of having her tortured. The youngest child, Kenji, was elected a congressman.

Fujimori was born July 28, 1938, Peruvian Independence Day, and his immigrant parents picked cotton until they could open a tailor’s shop in downtown Lima.

He earned a degree in agricultural engineering in 1956, and then studied in France and the United States, where he received a graduate degree in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin in 1972.

In 1984 he became rector of the Agricultural University in Lima, and six years later, he ran for president without ever having held political office, billing himself as a clean alternative to Peru’s corrupt, discredited political class.

He soared from 6% in the polls a month before the 1990 election to finish second out of nine in the balloting. He went on to beat Vargas Llosa in a runoff.

The victory, he later said, came from the same frustration that fueled the Shining Path.

“My government is the product of rejection, of being fed up with Peru because of the frivolity, corruption and nonfunctioning of the traditional political class and the bureaucracy,” he said.

Once in office, Fujimori’s tough talk and hands-on style at first won him only plaudits, as car bombings still ripped through the capital and annual inflation approached 8,000 percent.

He applied the same economic shock therapy that Vargas Llosa had advocated but he had argued against in the campaign.

Privatizing state-owned industries, Fujimori slashed public spending and attracted record foreign investment.

Known affectionately as “El chino,” due to his Asian ancestry, Fujimori often donned peasant garb to visit jungle Indigenous communities and highland farmers, while delivering electricity and drinking water to dirt-poor villages. That distinguished him from the patrician, white politicians who typically lacked his commoner’s touch.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/fujimori-peru-lima-died-777fdfcb09eafd731a7412c8bf1a2f64#

Russia said on Wednesday that its partnership with China was not aimed against third countries but the two powers could “combine potential” if faced with a threat from the United States.

“I would like to remind you that Moscow and Beijing will respond to ‘double containment’ by the United States with ‘double counteraction’,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said when asked about a possible deployment of U.S. missiles in Japan.

The Japan Times reported on Sept. 7 that the United States had expressed an interest in deploying a Typhon mid-range missile system to Japan for joint military exercises.

“It is clear that both Russia and China will react to the emergence of additional and very significant missile threats, and their reaction will be far from being political, which has also been repeatedly confirmed by the two countries,” Zakharova told reporters at her weekly briefing.

She said Russia and China had a strategic partnership that was not aggressive in its intent.

“But if an aggressive policy of attack is being implemented against us from one centre, why don’t we combine our potential and give an appropriate rebuff?”

Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping signed a “no limits” partnership deal in 2022, less than three weeks before Putin sent his troops into Ukraine. In May this year they agreed to deepen what they called their “comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation” for a new era.

The two countries have not declared a formal military alliance, although Putin last week described them as “allies in every sense of the word”.

Source: https://www.aol.com/news/russia-says-could-combine-china-142351524.html

The NFL averaged 21.0 million viewers per game during the league’s opening week, making it the most-watched Week 1 on record.

The league and Nielsen said Wednesday morning that the per-game average on TV and digital platforms was a 12% increase over last year. Nielsen began electronic measurement of viewing in 1988.

All told, 123 million people saw at least part of one game, its highest total for an opening week since 2019.

“A great start with the viewership. It was great to be back and a lot to be excited about,” said Hans Schroeder, the NFL’s executive vice president of media distribution.

NBC had the most-watched game, with defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City’s 27-20 victory over Baltimore in last Thursday’s opener averaging 29.2 million on TV and digital. It was NBC’s second-largest regular season game since 2006, when it acquired the “Sunday Night Football” package. The Sunday night game between Detroit and the Los Angeles Rams, which the Lions won 26-20 in overtime, averaged 22.7 million, a 3% jump from last year.

Tom Brady’s first game as Fox’s top analyst — Dallas’ 33-17 win over Cleveland — averaged 23.93 million. The six games that were part of Fox’s doubleheader (four early, two late) averaged 18.64 million, making it the network’s best start since 2020.

This was the first time since 2020 that Fox solely had the Sunday afternoon doubleheader in Week 1. Both CBS and Fox carried two games apiece on the opening Sunday the past three seasons.

CBS averaged 17.79 million for its six games, its most watched Week 1 singleheader since it reacquired NFL rights in 1998. Most of CBS’ affiliates had games in the 1 p.m. EDT window, but New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Pittsburgh got Jim Harbaugh’s first game as coach of the Los Angeles Chargers against the Las Vegas Raiders at 4:05 p.m. EDT.

New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Pittsburgh could not air games in CBS’ early window because it is a league rule that no game is shown opposite the game of the local team.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/nfl-ratings-brady-01fce6b89c7d738c21badda85901e33c#

A US “ultra-endurance” cyclist has claimed a new world record for fastest woman to circumvent the globe by bike.
Lael Wilcox took 108 days, 12 hours and 12 minutes to cycle 29,169km (18,125 miles), starting and ending in Chicago.
She beat the 2018 record held by Jenny Graham, from Scotland, whose journey took 124 days 11 hours.
Wilcox, 38, of Alaska, set off on 28 May, crossing 21 countries on four continents before arriving back in Chicago around 21:00 local time (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday.

A Florida judge has declared Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner divorced and single, signing off on a confidential agreement reached between the two.

The Miami-Dade County judge approved the agreement on Friday, one year after the 35-year-old Jonas Brothers singer filed to divorce the 28-year-old “Game of Thrones” and “X Men” actor and five years after the two were married.

The split brought a quiet and relatively quick end to a divorce that briefly became acrimonious and looked headed for a long and ugly custody fight.

The documents said that moderated negotiations led to an agreement on splitting assets, spousal support and custody of their two daughters, 4-year-old Willa and 2-year-old Delphine.

Judge Gina Beovides declared that the marriage was “irretrievably broken,” and that the couple’s agreement, especially their parenting plan, was in the best interest of the family.

A representative for Turner declined comment. An email seeking comment from a representative for Jonas was not immediately answered.

The couple met through Instagram messages and began dating in 2016. They married in a secretive ceremony at a Las Vegas wedding chapel in May of 2019 after the Billboard Music Awards. Country duo Dan + Shay performed at the wedding.

CCTV footage shows the Livin’ on a Prayer singer leaning on the railings of the bridge as he speaks to the woman before helping her back to safety.

Rock legend Jon Bon Jovi has been captured on camera helping to persuade a “distraught” woman to step away from the ledge of a bridge in Nashville.

The US singer was reportedly filming a video for his band’s track “The People’s House” on the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge when the woman was spotted on the other side of the railings.

CCTV footage, shared by local police, shows the Bon Jovi frontman and woman walking down the middle of the bridge on Tuesday evening.

They then slowly approach the distressed woman before the singer leans on the railings and appears to begin talking to her.

The woman Bon Jovi was walking with is seen stroking the person’s back as they encourage her to come back to safety.

They are then seen helping the woman to climb back over the railings.

Bon Jovi then embraces her as they stand together for around a minute before walking back down the bridge together.

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department shared the video on its YouTube channel and said the singer had helped a “distraught woman”.

In a post on the X social media platform, the force wrote: “A shout out to @jonbonjovi and his team for helping a woman on the Seigenthaler Ped Bridge Tue night.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/jon-bon-jovi-helps-distraught-woman-to-step-away-from-ledge-of-nashville-bridge-13213178

A view of Earth shortly after the Polaris Dawn crew launched into orbit. Pic: SpaceX via APThe crew of a privately-funded space mission will today attempt the first spacewalk by non-professional astronauts.

The commander of the Polaris Dawn expedition – and one of his crewmates – will leave the relative safety of the SpaceX Dragon capsule more than 400 miles above the Earth and spend several minutes in the vacuum of space.

A spacewalk is considered one of the most dangerous activities an astronaut can do in orbit.

But the Polaris Dawn crew will do it without the usual training, from a space capsule that doesn’t have a safety airlock, while testing an experimental spacesuit.

Jared Isaacman, who is commanding and bankrolling the mission, said before lift-off: “Whatever risk is associated with it, it is worth it.”

It’s the first time since the early days of space travel that astronauts have attempted a spacewalk without an airlock.

The double-doored chamber – used on the International Space Station (ISS) and the US Space Shuttle – allows crew to exit to space while still sealing the rest of the spacecraft from the vacuum.

But Dragon is too small and not designed to host spacewalks.

So the entire capsule has been modified – from fittings to computers – to allow it to be depressurised for the two-hour event. Even the two crew members staying on board will have to wear full spacesuits to survive.

They’ll be attached to life support systems on board by an umbilical hose that provides power, communications and pure oxygen.

Once outside they will perform a series of tasks to test out a new SpaceX spacesuit. Critically it must allow full mobility, while still insulating astronauts from harsh extremes of temperature.

The suit itself is far slimmer than the bulky protective layers worn by NASA astronauts.

Data can also be displayed on the inside of the helmet visor.

Ms Gillis, a SpaceX employee, said in a video released of her training for the spacewalk: “So far only countries have been able to perform a spacewalk.

“Space X has huge ambitions to get to Mars and make life multiplanetary.

“In order to get there, we need to start somewhere. And the first step is testing out the first iteration of the spacesuit so that we can make spacewalks and future suit designs even better.”

To reduce the risks of a spacewalk, astronauts on the ISS repeatedly rehearse each task while wearing their suits in a deep-water pool to mimic weightlessness. Even small movements in zero gravity push astronauts in the opposite direction.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/spacex-mission-set-to-to-attempt-first-ever-commercial-spacewalk-13213009

Elon Musk’s trans daughter mocks ‘incel nonsense’ after Tesla founder offers to give Taylor Swift a baby

The estranged daughter of Elon Musk slammed his bizarre offer to impregnate Taylor Swift after the pop superstar dropped a surprise endorsement of Kamala Harris.

Vivian Wilson, 20, called her father’s indecent proposal ‘heinous incel nonsense’ in a post on X’s arch viral site Threads Wednesday.

The saga began when Swift signed her Harris endorsement as ‘childless cat lady’ in a sly jab at Trump. Musk then responded: ‘Fine Taylor … you win…I will give you a child and guard your cats with my life.’

Vivian, who is transgender, praised Swift’s endorsement, saying the timing ‘could not have been better’ before teeing off on her father, whom she has not spoken to.

‘Also, yes, I saw “the tweet,”‘ she said about Musk’s missive. ‘Heinous incel nonsense is in fact heinous incel nonsense. I don’t really have anything to add to it, it’s just abhorrent.’

She added that Musk’s words were ‘disgusting, belittling and incredibly sexist’ and said that her audience ‘deserve better’ if people speak to them like that’.

Wilson finished her thread by writing: ‘I really am not the biggest fan of this subject. I am my own person with my own name after all. However, I just feel like that had to be said even if it’s incredibly self-evident. Cheers’.

The ‘Cruel Summer’ singer made her endorsement on Instagram immediately following last night’s debate, signed ‘Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady’ – in a refence to Donald’s Trump’s running mate J.D. Vance.

However, less than two hours later, father-of-twelve Musk, who has also spoken out against underpopulation in the past, penned the bizarre proposal to Swift.

Vivian and Musk have been engaged in a war of words with each other on socials after Musk said he was tricked into Wilson being allowed to go on puberty blockers.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13840175/Elon-Musk-trans-daughter-mocks-incel-nonsense-Taylor-Swift-baby.html

He’s giving all his apologies.

Foo Fighters rocker Dave Grohl revealed he fathered a child “outside of” his marriage to Jordyn Blum and is working to “regain” his wife’s “trust.”

“I’ve recently become the father of a new baby daughter, born outside of my marriage,” he announced on Instagram Tuesday.

“I plan to be a loving and supportive parent to her. I love my wife and my children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness.”

The singer, 55, did not disclose any information about his newborn’s mother in his post.

Grohl and Blum, 48, recently celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary as they tied the knot in their Los Angeles home in 2003.

The couple share three children: Violet Maye, 18, Harper Willow, 15, and Ophelia Saint, 10.

The guitarist and the former model first met in 2001 at the Sunset Marquis Whiskey Bar. However, it wasn’t true love at first sight.

“When I first met my wife, we went out on a few dates and I decided that I wasn’t ready for a serious relationship, so I just stopped calling,” he shared in a 2007 interview with Elle.

However, he had a change of heart as time passed by.

“After three months, I had a revelation and called her back. She picked up the phone and said, ‘Oh, I never thought I’d hear from you again,’” he recalled.

Two years later, the former Nirvana drummer gushed about not wanting to spend time away from his kids while touring.

“I used to tour nine months out of the year. Now I don’t like being away from my kids for more than 12 days,” he told Time in 2009.

“It’s changed everything that I do. When you have kids, you see life through different eyes. You feel love more deeply and are maybe a little more compassionate. It’s inevitable that that would make its way into your songwriting.”

Source:https://pagesix.com/2024/09/10/parents/foo-fighters-rocker-dave-grohl-fathers-baby-outside-of-marriage-working-to-regain-wifes-trust/

Sun Dawu was a vocal critic of China’s ruling Communist Party. Now he’s serving an 18-year sentence for corruption. Criminal defense lawyers say he is one of the most prominent targets in a crackdown on business leaders, as the Party deepens control over the economy.

In a handwritten submission from his prison in rural northern China, billionaire pig and chicken farmer Sun Dawu implored the court to hear his appeal. He was serving an 18-year sentence on charges including corruption. There was far more at stake than his own unjust conviction, the 70-year-old tycoon wrote in his Nov. 16 plea.

Without his leadership, the business he’d built for decades would collapse, he warned. His company, Hebei Dawu Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Group, had more than ten thousand employees.

If his appeal was delayed, “the enterprise will be completely wrecked,” he wrote in the legal document, seen by Reuters. “I don’t think this is what leaders of the court, party committees and governments at all levels want to see.”

The collapse of the giant business Sun built would indeed be unwelcome for Chinese leaders, at a time when a massive property crisis poses the biggest threat to China’s economy in decades. But his jailing in July 2021 shows how power is as big a priority as prosperity for the Chinese leadership.

Sun is one of the highest-profile casualties in a campaign under President Xi Jinping to clamp down on tycoons and top executives who are seen as a threat to the Communist Party’s control over the economy, according to Chinese criminal defense lawyers and fellow entrepreneurs familiar with Sun’s case. In the past three-and-a-half years, at least three dozen top business and financial figures have been detained, investigated, indicted or jailed, according to the website of China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, police statements, reports in state-controlled media and stock exchange filings.

Of these, at least 22 were in the private sector and more than a dozen worked at state-controlled firms. The biggest names are in the private sector, which accounts for more than half of GDP and the majority of jobs in China.

In Sun’s case, he dared to be a persistent critic of the Party and a long-time supporter of pro-democracy activists and liberal intellectuals in China. His 18-year sentence effectively spells life in jail given his age, his lawyers say.

It sends a clear message, they add: The party is committed to quashing any threat to its monopoly on power, even at the cost of economic growth.

China’s leadership rejects that view. The government “attaches great importance to the private sector,” and the suggestion that China is “cracking down” on business is false, a government official told Reuters. A crackdown would contravene China’s stated policy goals and run counter to its interests in developing private enterprise, the official said.

So far, the Hebei Province People’s High Court hasn’t agreed to hear Sun’s appeal, his legal advisers say. In addition to Sun, his family and top executives were jailed in the case.

Sun’s company is also under new management. In April 2022, Dawu was sold to a group set up just three days before a court-ordered auction, Chinese corporate filings and court documents show. It was sold at a fraction of its true value, according to social media posts by his family. Reuters couldn’t independently confirm the value of Dawu Group or the current financial health of the business.

This account of Sun’s imprisonment and battle to regain his freedom is based on previously unreported legal and court documents, along with new details from interviews with his lawyers, dissidents and fellow entrepreneurs.

Xi’s forceful assertion of state control over big business is another chapter in the turbulent relationship between individual enterprise, capital and the Party since the Communists seized power in 1949. Private business played a crucial role in reviving China as it emerged from the economic calamity of the Maoist years, when it was better to be “red than expert,” according to one of the slogans at the time. After Mao, in the era of Deng Xiaoping, a new slogan emerged: “to get rich is glorious.”

Now, the Chinese leader sees menace in the rise of a tycoon class, say Chinese human rights lawyers, dissidents and some academics.

“You can’t look at Sun’s case in isolation,” said Li Jinxing, who was one of China’s top criminal defense and human rights lawyers before being disbarred for criticizing legal and political authorities. Unable to act in the case himself, Li assembled a team of about 30 lawyers who unsuccessfully represented Sun and some co-defendants. “In my opinion, the case is part of China’s wide-ranging elimination of private businessmen who have gained broad social influence.”

Sun’s fate does appear to fit a pattern. In September 2020, real estate tycoon and blogger Ren Zhiqiang was sentenced to an identical 18 years for corruption. Ren was detained after an article, widely attributed to him and circulated online, criticized the government’s handling of COVID-19. Without naming the Chinese leader, the article described the authority responsible for the pandemic response as a “clown stripped naked” – remarks widely interpreted as an attack on Xi.

Reuters couldn’t independently confirm if Ren was the author of the article. He couldn’t be reached for comment. When Ren was expelled from the Party in 2020, investigators said he had “shown disloyalty” and “besmirched” it, the government official told Reuters.

Also jailed for 18 years in 2018, for fraud and embezzlement, was Wu Xiaohui, former chairman of Anbang Insurance Group. Anbang was best known abroad for acquiring New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria hotel. Prosecutors said Wu displayed unchecked ambition and reckless expansion, which resulted in risks to the Chinese financial system – a charge also leveled at other business moguls. He was also charged with fraud and embezzlement involving more than $10 billion.

Li Jinxing, the former defense lawyer, said he was Wu’s attorney for his appeal but was barred from meeting him. Li noted that Wu, Ren and Sun – three different tycoons in different places charged with different crimes – all got the same sentence.

“This isn’t a coincidence,” said Li, who left China in 2022 and is now living in Tokyo. “It’s very simple. The authorities want them to die in jail. It’s terrifying when you think about it.”

China’s top leadership has been promoting its support for the private sector as it seeks new investment at a time when economic growth has slowed. At a key meeting in July, the so-called third plenum, leaders resolved to leverage the role of market forces in the economy.

In comments in state media, Xi has stressed China remains committed to two “unswerving commitments” – developing the private and state sectors at the same time. Xi has also said the Party believes that private business owners and entrepreneurs “belong to our own family.”

Still, as the Party tightens control over business leadership, dozens of other high-profile entrepreneurs and executives have been jailed, arrested and sidelined – or have vanished from sight, widely believed to have been detained and put under investigation.

Alibaba’s Jack Ma, once a ubiquitous presence in the tech world, has been largely absent from the business since publicly criticizing Chinese regulators in 2020. He now stays mostly out of view.

Celebrity banker Bao Fan resigned from his posts of chairman and CEO of China Renaissance Holdings Ltd, citing health reasons and a desire to spend more time with his family, according to a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange in February. Earlier, the investment bank had announced that Bao was cooperating in an unspecified investigation, without elaborating. China Renaissance didn’t reply to a request for comment.

Also in February, a Chinese court imposed a suspended death sentence on the former president of China Merchants Bank, Tian Huiyu, after convicting him of charges including bribery and insider trading.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/china-economy-crackdown-tycoons/

Israeli strikes blasted a huge crater in a designated safe zone in southern Gaza before dawn on Tuesday, setting tents ablaze and burying Palestinian families under sand.
Palestinian officials said scores of people had been killed or injured in the strikes, with at least 19 dead bodies brought to hospital and other victims feared lost or buried. Reuters journalists saw several bodies in the morning aftermath. Israel disputed the Palestinian casualty figures.

Tents in the surrounding area had been incinerated, leaving only metal frames dusted with ghostly ash in a wasteland littered with debris. A car had been completely buried, only its top visible beneath the sand.

In the morning, mourners at a nearby hospital wailed over bodies heaped in white plastic bags or wrapped in bloodstained shrouds.

One of Raed Abu Muammar’s daughters had been killed. His wife and his other daughter had been buried but were pulled out alive. He carried the surviving baby girl.

“I was under the sand as well. I got out and started looking for my daughters and my wife. I saw body parts of the neighbours in my tent – I did not know those were our neighbours’ parts until I saw my family in one piece.”
“These are the Israeli targets. Look at them,” he said, gesturing to the baby girl in his arms. “We were in humanitarian areas that were supposed to be safe.”
The Gaza health ministry, which compiles casualty figures, said hospitals had so far received 19 bodies. Other victims were still under sand or on roads that rescuers could not reach, it said.
The Hamas-run Gaza government media office put the number of fatalities at more than 40. It said that at least 60 others were wounded in the strikes and many remained missing.
Residents and medics said the camp was struck by five or six missiles or bombs.

“We saw women cut in pieces, children cut in pieces and martyrs. There are still people missing. People are looking for them and they still have not found them yet,” survivor Ola al-Shaer told Reuters at the site.

The Gaza Civil Emergency Service said at least 20 tents caught fire. It estimated 65 dead or wounded including women and children.

“Our teams are still moving out martyrs and wounded from the targeted area. It looks like a new Israeli massacre,” a Gaza civil emergency official said.

U.N. Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland strongly condemned the Israeli strike on a densely populated safe area, while also saying civilians should never be used as human shields.

“The principles of distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack must be upheld at all times,” he said. “I reiterate my call for all sides to immediately reach an agreement that will bring about the release of all hostages and a ceasefire. The killing of civilians must stop, and this horrific war must end.”

ISRAEL DISPUTES CASUALTIES

The Israeli military said it had struck senior Hamas commanders who were operating in a command centre embedded inside the designated humanitarian area.

“These terrorists were directly involved in the execution of the Oct. 7th massacre and have been recently operating to carry out terror activities,” it said.

The military added that casualty figures published by Hamas-run authorities in Gaza “do not align with the information held by the IDF, the precise munitions used, and the accuracy of the strike”.

Hamas denied Israeli allegations that gunmen were present in the targeted area, and rejected accusations it exploited civilian areas for military purposes.

“This is a clear lie that aims to justify these ugly crimes. The resistance has denied several times that any of its members exist within civilian gatherings or use these places for military purposes,” said Hamas in a statement.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/several-palestinians-killed-wounded-israeli-strike-tent-encampment-gaza-medics-2024-09-09/

A long robot entered a damaged reactor at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant on Tuesday, beginning a two-week, high-stakes mission to retrieve for the first time a tiny amount of melted fuel debris from the bottom.

The robot’s trip into the Unit 2 reactor is a crucial initial step for what comes next — a daunting, decades-long process to decommission the plant and deal with large amounts of highly radioactive melted fuel inside three reactors that were damaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Specialists hope the robot will help them learn more about the status of the cores and the fuel debris.

Here is an explanation of how the robot works, its mission, significance and what lies ahead as the most challenging phase of the reactor cleanup begins.

What is the fuel debris?

Nuclear fuel in the reactor cores melted after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 caused the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant’s cooling systems to fail. The melted fuel dripped down from the cores and mixed with internal reactor materials such as zirconium, stainless steel, electrical cables, broken grates and concrete around the supporting structure and at the bottom of the primary containment vessels.

The reactor meltdowns caused the highly radioactive, lava-like material to spatter in all directions, greatly complicating the cleanup. The condition of the debris also differs in each reactor.

Midwife Siro Devi is clinging to Monica Thatte, sobbing. Monica, in her late 20s, has returned to her birthplace – the Indian town where Siro has delivered hundreds of babies.

Talk about “True Romance.”

Brad Pitt and girlfriend Ines de Ramon have taken their relationship to another level recently, making their red carpet debut together at the 2024 Venice Film Festival last week.

And after enjoying a double date with BFFs George and Amal Clooney in Italy ahead of the actors’ latest movie premiere, Pitt and de Ramon have also been circulating in New York City this week.

De Ramon, 31, and Pitt, 60, have been seen around the Big Apple on dinner dates, at a bar and at gallery openings hand in hand — and decked out in meaningful jewelry.

On Sept. 8, the “Fight Club” star chose eye-catching red gingham pants with a white button-up shirt, which he wore unbuttoned low enough to show off a slew of pendants from Anita Ko, the fine jewelry brand brand for which de Ramon’s served as vice president for more than three years.

The father of six’s many necklaces included a small, diamond-covered “I” pendant ($2,200) — presumably dedicated to his girlfriend, whom he’s been dating for two years.

De Ramon has her own version, stepping out last year wearing a “B” charm.

Pitt also added a Sagittarius zodiac pendant ($8,200), in a nod to both of their star signs. (Pitt’s birthday is Dec. 18, while de Ramon’s falls on Dec. 19.)

He also layered in a pear-cut emerald necklace ($16,500), also from Anita Ko.

For her part, de Ramon rocked a flashy diamond eagle pendant ($9,975) with her black vest and trousers, which she paired with a white Fendi purse ($4,700).

Source: https://pagesix.com/2024/09/10/style/brad-pitt-shows-love-for-girlfriend-ines-de-ramon-with-i-pendant-necklace/

The unaccompanied climbers had alerted rescuers on Saturday afternoon, but weather conditions prevented rescuers from reaching their location from the ground or by helicopter.

Four bodies have been found on the French side of Mont Blanc.

French rescue officials say the bodies of the four climbers were found close to the peak of the mountain after they went missing on Saturday in bad weather.

Scientists can now accurately map where dengue fever is likely to break out for the first time – and they’ve pinpointed the European holiday destinations at risk.

Scientists tracking the spread of dengue fever have named popular European holiday destinations they say are at risk from future outbreaks.

The disease is carried by Asian tiger mosquitos, which are becoming more common in Europe, including parts of southern France, Italy and Spain.

The mosquito was even spotted at the Paris Olympics this summer.

Dengue fever can cause severe muscle and joint pain – earning it the nickname “break-bone fever” – and in some cases can result in internal bleeding and death.

But until now, attempts to predict its spread haven’t been localised.

“Sicily is a hotbed,” said Dr Steven White, a theoretical ecologist who worked on the study, adding that the locations around the Mediterranean basin are also “high-risk areas”.

Antony Blinken, during a visit to the UK, said Moscow had received the missiles and that Russian military personnel had been trained on how to use them in Iran.

Iran has sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia and the Kremlin “will likely use them within weeks in Ukraine”, the US secretary of state has said.

Speaking during a visit to the UK, Antony Blinken said the development was “a threat to all of Europe” and showed how Iran’s “destabilising influence reaches far beyond the Middle East”.

He told a news conference: “Dozens of Russian military personnel have been trained in Iran to use the Fath-360 close range ballistic missile system, which has a maximum range of 75 miles.

“Russia has now received shipments of these ballistic missiles and will likely use them within weeks in Ukraine against Ukrainians.

“Russia has an array of its own ballistic missiles, but the supply of Iranian missiles enables Russia to use more of its arsenal for targets that are further from the front line.”

However, when asked if he would approve Ukraine’s use of the Storm Shadow long-range missiles to strike targets inside Russia, Mr Lammy said he would not comment on “operational issues”.

The US will be announcing further sanctions on Iran later on Tuesday, Mr Blinken said, including further measures against Iran Air.

He said other countries were also expected to announce fresh sanctions.

However, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff said imposing sanctions on Iran for supplying Moscow with ballistic missiles was not enough, and allies should allow Kyiv to carry out strikes deep into Russia using Western weapons.

“We also need permission to use Western weapons against military targets on the territory of the Russian Federation, deliveries of longer-range missiles, and strengthening our air defences,” the official, Andriy Yermak, said on Telegram.

Mr Lammy and Mr Blinken revealed they would be travelling together to Kyiv later this week, in what Mr Lammy described as the “first joint visit of this kind for well over a decade”.

Mr Blinken said Russia and Iran’s relationship was a “two-way street”, with the Kremlin sharing technology with Iran, including on nuclear issues and space information.

“So, as Iran’s destabilising activity spread, so does Russia, sowing even greater insecurity in their regions and around the world,” he said.

He added the US has been sharing intelligence behind the discovery with allies and partners “and working together to ensure that there will be significant economic consequences for Tehran’s actions”.

Nasser Kanani, spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, condemned the UK, France, and Germany for cancelling bilateral air service agreements and the sanctioning of Iran Air.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/a-threat-to-all-of-europe-iran-is-supplying-russia-with-ballistic-missiles-says-us-secretary-of-state-13212343

Four private astronauts blasted into space early on Tuesday in a modified SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, kicking off the company’s five-day Polaris Dawn mission, which aims to test new spacesuit designs and conduct the first private spacewalk.
The crew, a billionaire entrepreneur, a retired military fighter pilot and two SpaceX employees, lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida about 5:23 a.m. EST (0923 GMT).

The mission’s Falcon 9 booster landed safely on a seaborne pad.
It is Crew Dragon’s fifth – and riskiest – private mission so far. The spacecraft will eventually settle into an oval-shaped orbit, passing as close to Earth as 190 km (118 miles) and as far as 1,400 km (870 miles), the farthest any humans will have ventured since the end of the U.S. Apollo moon program in 1972.
An attempt to launch last month was postponed hours before liftoff over a small helium leak in ground equipment on SpaceX’s launchpad. SpaceX fixed the leak, but the company’s Falcon 9 was then grounded by U.S. regulators over a booster recovery failure during an unrelated mission, further delaying the Polaris launch. The launch on Tuesday was delayed about two hours because of unfavorable weather.

Only highly trained, well-funded government astronauts have done spacewalks in the past. There have been roughly 270 on the International Space Station (ISS) since its creation in 2000, and 16 by Chinese astronauts on Beijing’s Tiangong space station.
SPACEWALK PLANNED FOR THIRD DAY

The Polaris Dawn spacewalk is planned for the mission’s third day at 700 km in altitude and will last about 20 minutes. SpaceX’s Crew Dragon craft will slowly depressurize its entire cabin – it has no airlock like the ISS – and all four astronauts will rely on their slimmed-down, SpaceX-built spacesuits for oxygen.

The first U.S. spacewalk was in 1965, aboard a Gemini capsule, and used a similar procedure to the one planned for Polaris Dawn: the capsule was depressurised, the hatch opened, and a spacesuited astronaut ventured outside on a tether.

Jared Isaacman, 41, a pilot and the billionaire founder of electronic payment company Shift4, is bankrolling the Polaris mission, as he did for his Inspiration4 flight with SpaceX in 2021. He has declined to say how much he is paying for the missions, but they are likely to cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

Joining him is mission pilot Scott Poteet, 50, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel; and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis, 30, and Anna Menon, 38, both senior engineers at the company.

For the spacewalk, Isaacman and Gillis will exit the spacecraft tethered by an oxygen line while Poteet and Menon stay in the cabin.

The mission is the first in Isaacman’s private Polaris program that includes a follow-on Crew Dragon mission in the future, followed by a flight on SpaceX’s Starship, a giant rocket the company has spent billions of dollars developing as a flagship moon and Mars vehicle.

The four-person crew are effectively test subjects for an array of scientific experiments that will aim to shed light on how cosmic radiation and the vacuum of space affect the human body, adding to decades of studies on astronauts living aboard the ISS.

Since the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA has relied heavily on the company and its Crew Dragon, which has flown nine astronaut missions to and from the ISS for the agency as the only U.S. crew-grade vehicle in operation.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/spacex-set-launch-billionaires-private-crew-breakthrough-spacewalk-mission-2024-09-10/

Pictures on social media showed the tail of one of the planes had been shorn off.

Two planes have collided on the runway at Atlanta airport in the US state of Georgia.

Pictures on social media showed the tail of one of the planes had been shorn off.

Delta Air Lines said one of its planes struck a regional jet while taxiing for departure, damaging both aircraft.

No injuries were reported and Delta said passengers would be rebooked on other flights.

The airline said the wing of a Delta Airbus A350 that was set to depart for Tokyo-Haneda made contact with the tail of an Endeavor Air CRJ-900 scheduled to depart for Lafayette, Louisiana. Endeavor is a subsidiary owned by Delta.

A man who was on one of the planes tweeted to say “another plane appears to have clipped the back of our plane”.

“Very jarring, metal scraping sounds then loud bangs,” he added.

The Federal Aviation Administration said it will investigate.

The man accused of dousing in petrol and setting alight Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died from burns sustained during the fatal attack on the Ugandan athlete, a hospital official said on Tuesday.
Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the marathon at the Paris Olympics, suffered burns to more than 75% of her body in the Sept. 1 attack and died four days later.
Her former boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema Marangach, died at 1830 (1530 GMT) on Monday, said Philip Kirwa, chief executive officer of the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret in western Kenya where Marangach was being treated and where Cheptegei also died.

“This guy is dead because he killed my daughter. He has died because of his actions,” Cheptegei’s father, Joseph Cheptegei, told Reuters.

Rights groups say female athletes in Kenya, where many international runners train in the high-altitude highlands, are at a high risk of exploitation and violence at the hands of men drawn to their prize money, which far exceeds local incomes.

“Justice really would have been for him to sit in jail and think about what he had done. This is not positive news whatsoever,” said Viola Cheptoo, co-founder of Tirop’s Angels, a support group for survivors of domestic violence in Kenya’s athletic community.

“The shock of Rebecca’s death is still fresh,” Cheptoo told Reuters.

Cheptoo co-founded Tirop’s Angels in memory of Agnes Tirop, a rising star in Kenya’s highly competitive athletics scene, who was found dead in her home in the town of Iten in October 2021, with multiple stab wounds to the neck.

Ibrahim Rotich, Tirop’s husband, was charged with her murder and has pleaded not guilty. The case is ongoing.

Nearly 34% of Kenyan girls and women aged 15-49 years have suffered physical violence, according to government data from 2022, with married women at particular risk. The 2022 survey found that 41% of married women had faced violence.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/ex-partner-killed-ugandan-athlete-cheptegei-dies-hospital-star-newspaper-reports-2024-09-10/

Melania Trump’s promotional activities for her new book took a turn for the wackadoodle Tuesday with a video in which she raised the possibility that the attempt to assassinate her husband was actually some kind of conspiracy.

“The attempt to end my husband’s life was a horrible, distressing experience,” the former first lady says in the clip. “Now, the silence around it feels heavy. I can’t help but wonder: Why didn’t law enforcement officials arrest the shooter before the speech? There is definitely more to this story and we need to uncover the truth.”

The brief clip released on Melania’s X ends with a message encouraging viewers to pre-order her forthcoming book, Melania. The post also contained a link to her website, where a “Collector’s Edition” of the memoir is available to buy for $250.

Precisely how the July 13 attempt to kill Donald Trump relates to the book isn’t clear. The tone of her video is markedly different from that which Melania took in the letter she released the day after the shooting, in which she thanked “the brave Secret Service agents and law enforcement officials who risked their own lives to protect my husband.”

At the time, she also called for Americans to “ascend above the hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence.” Melania was not at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where 20-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at the stage where her husband spoke, wounding the former president and several attendees, including one fatally.

Crooks was killed by countersnipers during the attack. An FBI investigation has yet to establish a motive for the incident.

In the wake of the attempt on Donald Trump’s life, questions were raised about how Crooks was able to get so close to killing the former president. Kimberly Cheatle resigned from her position as the director of the Secret Service after acknowledging her agency was responsible for lapses in security at the event.

By contrast, some of the Republican nominee’s most ardent supporters have interpreted the law enforcement failure to stop Crooks before he opened fire as evidence of a conspiracy. Donald Trump’s son, Eric, quickly blamed Democrats, as did Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) who baselessly claimed the party had “tried to murder President Trump” (Crooks was a registered Republican).

Despite being largely absent from her husband’s campaign trail this year, Melania’s remarks about the assassination attempt are the latest in a recent flurry of public comments to promote her book. Last week, she released a black-and-white video advertising the memoir, saying its composition had been a “deeply personal and reflective journey for me.”

Source: https://www.thedailybeast.com/melania-goes-full-truther-on-trump-assassination-bid

Kamala Harris pressed a forceful case against Donald Trump on Tuesday in their first and perhaps only debate before the presidential election, repeatedly needling him in an event that showcased their starkly different visions for the country on abortion, immigration and American democracy.

The Democratic vice president seemed to get under the skin of the Republican former president, provoking him with reminders about the 2020 election loss that he still denies, mocking his rally crowds and delivering derisive asides at his other false claims. Trump tore into Harris as too liberal and questioned why she was proposing ideas she hadn’t accomplished while serving as vice president. He often launched into the sort of freewheeling personal attacks and digressions from which his advisers and supporters have tried to steer him away.

Harris promised tax cuts aimed at the middle class and said she would push to restore a federally guaranteed right to abortion overturned by the Supreme Court two years ago. Trump said his proposed tariffs would help the U.S. stop being cheated by allies on trade and said he would work to swiftly end the Russia-Ukraine war — though he twice refused to say he wanted Ukraine, which bipartisan majorities in Congress have backed, to win the war.

On a sweltering summer morning in Serbia’s capital Belgrade, Vadim Morus, a professional ice skater from Russia, glides across an outdoor rink. Morus is 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from his native Moscow, but is beginning to feel at home.
He fled Russia with his fiancee in 2022, part of a wave of tens of thousands who came to Serbia after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It’s a long way to come, but many chose Belgrade for its ancient cultural and religious ties to Moscow.

Russian-owned clubs, kindergartens, and medical practices have sprung up. Russians buy food in Russian shops. Russian bands, singers and comedians are performing in Russian clubs, and Russian artists showcase their work in Russian-owned galleries.

Between February 2022 and mid-2023, more than 30,000 Russians registered for temporary residence in Serbia, the latest interior ministry data show. Officials did not provide data for the comparative period before this but said that the numbers represented a sharp increase.

During this influx, Russians established 11,081 businesses across various sectors, from internet-based services to hospitality and sports schools, according to Serbia’s business registry.

RUSSIAN CLIENTELE

Viktor, 42, a veterinarian from St. Petersburg, fled Russian mobilisation in the fall of 2022. Without the necessary qualifications to practise in Serbia, he works as a handyman in Belgrade, exclusively serving Russians.

“I repair plumbing, electrical installations, windows, and even make furniture. I don’t really need Serbian customers,” said Viktor, who asked not to be named for fear of his family’s safety back in Russia.

Relations between Serbia and Russia date back centuries and remain cordial today, although Serbia is also trying to join the European Union, which condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

After World War I, thousands of so-called White Russians fled the Communists during the civil war to the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes.

Still, many struggle to integrate and prefer instead to cling to a mini Russia inside Serbia. Ironically many Serbians support Putin and do not share the views of those who fled.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/mini-russia-emerges-serbia-thousands-flee-war-2024-09-09/

World Bank President Ajay Banga said in a speech on Tuesday after visiting 27 countries from Peru to Tuvalu that the global lender needs to work faster and simplify its processes in a world experiencing greater polarisation.
Speaking at the Lowy Institute think tank in Sydney on Tuesday, Banga said his visit on Friday to Tuvalu in the South Pacific marked the end of a journey that began just over a year ago when he started in the job and promised to listen to voices in every region where the Washington-based lender operates.

“Though aspirations of people around the world are universal, we live in a world of greater polarisation and extremes,” Banga said.
The countries he visited “need more and require us to be faster, simpler, and more impact oriented”, he added, after meeting Pacific Islands leaders in Fiji last week, who said small island states sometimes struggled to meet World Bank requirements.
In Fiji, Banga visited chronically understaffed health clinics facing rising rates of non-communicable disease such as diabetes, an example of the importance of the bank’s new focus on job creation. The bank’s new targets include bringing affordable health care to 1.5 billion people by 2030.

The World Bank saw global challenges of climate change, inequality and fragility as intertwined, he said.
“We understand that the challenges of the Pacific Islands are a microcosm of forces playing out around the globe,” he added.
The Pacific Islands, the region most impacted by warming oceans, is also the most aid-reliant region, according to the Lowy Institute.
Banga said reforms to the World Bank in the past year were already starting to bring change, citing a corporate scorecard cutting the bank’s goals from 150 to 22 items and the shortening of approval times for projects by an average three months.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/peru-tuvalu-world-bank-chief-says-global-lender-must-change-2024-09-10/

American actor James Earl Jones, an imposing stage and screen presence who overcame a childhood stutter to develop a stentorian voice recognized the world over as intergalactic villain Darth Vader, died on Monday at the age of 93.
Jones, a longtime sufferer of diabetes, died at his home surrounded by family members, his agent, Barry McPherson, said.
No cause of death was provided.
Jones had a great physical presence on stage and television, as well as in movies, but he would have been a star even if his face was never seen because his voice had a career of its own. The resonating bass could instantly command respect – as with the sage father Mufasa in “The Lion King,” and many Shakespeare roles – or instill fear as the rasping Vader in the “Star Wars” films.

“#RIP dad,” Hamill wrote on X on Monday with a broken heart emoji above a story about the death of Jones.

Jones said he never made much money off the Darth Vader part – only $9,000 for the first film – and that he considered it merely a special effects job. He did not even ask to be in the credits of the first two “Star Wars” movies.

His long list of awards included Tonys for “The Great White Hope” in 1969 and “Fences” in 1987 on Broadway and Emmys in 1991 for “Gabriel’s Fire” and “Heat Wave” on television. He also won a Grammy for best spoken word album, “Great American Documents” in 1977.

Although he never won a competitive Academy award, he was nominated for best actor for the film version of “The Great White Hope” and was given an honorary Oscar in 2011.

He began his movie career playing Lieutenant Luther Zogg in Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 classic “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.”

Later acclaimed movie roles included novelist Terence Mann in 1989’s “Field of Dreams” and South African Reverend Stephen Kumalo in 1995’s “Cry, the Beloved Country.” He also starred in “Conan the Barbarian,” “Coming to America,” “The Sandlot,” “Matewan,” “The Hunt for Red October” and “Field of Dreams,” among others.

Jones also was heard in dozens of television commercials and for several years CNN used his authoritative “This is CNN” to introduce its newscasts.

ESTRANGED FROM FATHER

James Earl Jones was born on January 17, 1931, in the tiny community of Arkabutla, Mississippi, to a family with a mixed ethnic background of Irish, African and Cherokee.

His father, prizefighter-turned-actor Robert Earl Jones, left the family shortly afterward. James was raised by his maternal grandparents, who forbade him to see his father, and the two did not get together until James moved to New York in the 1950s. Eventually they appeared in several plays together.

Jones was about 5 years old when his grandparents moved the family from Mississippi to a farm in Michigan and it was around that time that he quit speaking because of his stutter.

He was mostly silent for a decade until a ploy by his high school English teacher got him to speak up. The teacher made Jones recite to the class a poem that he said he had written to prove he was familiar enough with it to be the author.

Although after that he said he still had to choose his words carefully, Jones learned to control his stutter and became interested in acting.

After studying drama at the University of Michigan, he moved to New York, where his theater performances increasingly attracted critical attention and acclaim.

His breakthrough role on Broadway was “The Great White Hope,” playing a character based on Black heavyweight champion Jack Johnson. The play examined racism through the lens of the boxing world and critics raved about Jones’ performance.

A popular theater draw for decades, his Shakespeare leading roles included Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear and Othello. He also had a notable portrayal of singer-actor-activist Paul Robeson on Broadway in 1977 and of author Alex Haley in the television mini-series “Roots: The Next Generation.”

He was “capable of moving in seconds from boyish ingenuousness to near-biblical rage and somehow suggesting all the gradations in between,” the Washington Post wrote in a 1987 review of “Fences.”

Jones’ first wife was Julienne Marie Hendricks, one of his “Othello” co-stars. Earl and his second wife, actress Cecilia Hart, who died in 2016, had one child, Flynn Earl Jones.

Jones was a trailblazing Black actor, winning big roles in racially charged movies and plays that broke ground for Black actors that came after him.

But Jones, who first found fame at the height of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s and 1970s, largely kept himself out of direct action on matters of race.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/james-earl-jones-voice-darth-vader-dies-93-2024-09-09/

The plane was carrying parts for a British Airways plane that has been grounded since another plane collided with it in April.

An unusually-shaped plane has landed at London’s Heathrow Airport to deliver spare parts.

The Airbus Beluga, named after the whale the aircraft resembles, flew to the airport from Toulouse in France.

It was carrying parts for a British Airways plane that has been grounded since another plane collided with it in April.

An empty Virgin Atlantic 787 was being towed from the stand at Terminal 3 when it clipped the wingtip of the British Airways Airbus A350.

Footage of the crash shows minor damage to the planes as well as emergency services and ground crew on the runway.

A spokesperson from British Airways said its plane was stationary when the collision happened.

No passengers were injured.

While the Virgin Atlantic plane returned to service the British Airways aircraft was grounded due to serious damage.

The Airbus Beluga was delivering spare parts to repair the damaged plane.

It will return to Toulouse later today, according to Flightradar24.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/airbus-beluga-lands-at-londons-heathrow-airport-13211889

Surgeons said they had been “truly amazed” by the 47-year-old’s recovery and said the “whole thing has been a monumental achievement” after he lost most of his face in an accident three years ago.

An army veteran who received the world’s first whole-eye transplant has said he has been given “the gift of a second chance”.

Aaron James, 47, from Arkansas in the US, lost his left eye and most of his face after an electrical cable touched the left side three years ago.

He also lost his left arm in the accident and now wears a prosthetic.

In May 2023, he underwent 21 hours of surgery involving more than 140 healthcare professionals to replace his face – which included receiving a new eye and has been hailed by doctors as a “monumental achievement”.

More than a year later, his donor eye continues to maintain normal pressure and blood flow – despite surgeries on animals showing a different outcome where the eye often shrank significantly, doctors said.

Mr James said: “This has been the most transformative year of my life.

“I’ve been given the gift of a second chance, and I don’t take a single moment for granted.”

India had a lone shining moment at the 2012 London Paralympics when Girisha Hosanagara Nagarajegowda won a silver medal in the men’s high jump.
The country hadn’t won any medal at the 2008 edition in Beijing, so it felt special to millions of Indians.
But Nagarajegowda’s win also sparked discussions on whether a lone medal was enough for a country that has millions of people with disabilities.
It also raised questions around India’s attitudes to para sport and disability in general. But something seems to have clicked for the country since 2012.
India won four medals in Rio in 2016 and 20 at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
And it closed the Paris Paralympics with an impressive tally of 29 medals. There have been so many moments to savour for India in Paris – from Sheetal Devi, who competes without arms, winning a bronze with Rakesh Kumar in a mixed compound archery event to Navdeep Singh registering a record throw of 47.32m in javelin to win a gold in the F41 category (athletes with short stature compete in this class).

These achievements are special given the leap of growth Indian para athletes have shown in just over a decade.
India still has a long way to go to take on countries like China (220 medals), Great Britain (124) and the US (105) but supporters of para sports in the country say the tide may be turning.
So what changed in this relatively short period of time?
Plenty.
Several government agencies, coaches and corporate firms came together to invest in para athletics.
And as they helped more heroes emerge, more children and their parents felt confident to take up para sport as a profession.
Gaurav Khanna, the head coach of the Indian para badminton team, says having people to look up to has changed mindsets:
“This has increased the number of athletes who are participating and who are having confidence that they can do better. When I joined the para badminton team in 2015, there were only 50 athletes in the national camp. Now that figure has gone up to 1,000.”

Disability rights activist Nipun Malhotra also acknowledges the change in mindset. He says the biggest change he has noticed is that parents now believe that children with disabilities can also become heroes:

“I think families have started playing a much more important role, and people with disabilities have got integrated much more into families today than they were 20 years ago. This also affects how society looks at disability as well. The fact that there are people with disabilities who are excelling in sports also gives hope to the future generations.”

Khanna and Malhotra both give credit to government schemes like TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) for identifying and supporting young talent.

Private organisations like the Olympic Gold Quest, which is funded by corporate houses, have also helped para athletes realise their full potential.

And then there are people like Khanna who started talent scouting and coaching using their own money, and continue to do so.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c990z4pgd8mo

Man accused of shooting 5 on Kentucky interstate vowed to ‘kill a lot of people,’ warrant says

The man suspected of opening fire on a highway in Kentucky sent a text message vowing to “kill a lot of people” less than 30 minutes before he shot and wounded five people on Interstate 75, authorities said in an arrest warrant.
“I’m going to kill a lot of people. Well try at least,” Joseph Couch, 32, wrote in the text message, according to the warrant affidavit filed in court. In a separate text message, Couch wrote, “I’ll kill myself afterwards,” the affidavit says.
The Lexington Herald-Leader identified the woman Couch sent the text messages to as his ex-wife. The affidavit does not describe the relationship between Couch and the woman who received the texts.
The affidavit, written by Capt. Richard Dalrymple of the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office, said that before authorities received the first report of the shooting about 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a dispatcher in Laurel County got a call from a woman who told them Couch had sent her the text messages at 5:03 p.m.

In response to that call, police initiated a tracker on Couch’s cellphone but the location wasn’t received until 6:53 p.m., the affidavit states, almost 90 minutes after the highway shooting.

The affidavit obtained by The Associated Press charges Couch with five counts each of criminal attempt to commit murder and first-degree assault.

On Sunday, law enforcement officers searched an area near where Couch’s vehicle was found, with a view of I-75. There, they found a green Army-style duffel bag, ammunition and numerous spent shell casings, the affidavit says. A short distance away, they found a Colt AR-15 rifle with a site mounted to the weapon and several additional magazines. The duffel bag had “Couch” hand-written in black marker.

Searchers have been combing thousands of acres in the rugged, hilly area near London, a small city of about 8,000 people about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Lexington.

Residents and medics at the scene said at least 20 tents caught fire after the missile strikes, which left craters as deep as nine metres in the tent camp near Khan Younis. The IDF has said the strike hit “significant Hamas terrorists” operating in the area.

Israeli strikes have killed more than 40 people and wounded at least 60 others in a tent camp for displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza, according to the Hamas-run government.

According to the Gaza civil emergency service, a tent encampment near Khan Younis in the Al-Mawasi area – which is a designated humanitarian zone – was struck by at least four missiles in the early hours of Tuesday.

Residents and medics at the scene said at least 20 tents caught fire after the missile strikes, which left craters as deep as nine metres (30ft).

A Gaza civil emergency official said their teams “are still moving out martyrs and wounded from the targeted area” and claimed “it looks like a new Israeli massacre”.

The emergency service said women and children were included in the 65 killed and wounded, but did not say how many had died or had been injured respectively.

In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces confirmed it had carried out an attack, which they said “struck significant Hamas terrorists who were operating within a command and control centre embedded inside the Humanitarian Area in Khan Younis”.

They added: “The terrorists advanced and carried out terror attacks against IDF troops and the state of Israel.

“Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional means.”

Hamas denied Israel’s claims that it had gunmen in the camp and that it exploited civilian areas for military purposes, and claimed they were “a clear lie that aims to justify these ugly crimes”.

In a statement, Hamas called the strike a “brutal act of genocide” and claimed Israel’s attacks “are being deliberately carried out without regard for international law, humanitarian law, or resolutions calling for an end to the aggression”.

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/israeli-airstrikes-in-khan-younis-tent-camp-kill-or-wound-65-people-gaza-emergency-service-says-13212132

Despite no rain throughout Monday, not a single ball could be bowled on Day 1 of the Afghanistan vs New Zealand one-off Test.

Deplorable conditions at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex, subpar drainage, a sodden outfield and woeful facilities played spoilsport as the opening day of the historic one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand was called off on Monday without a ball being bowled. Rain had affected the buildup to the Test, the first between the two nations, with New Zealand not being able to complete a single practice session properly.

Apart from overnight shower, rain did not affect the venue throughout Monday. But the absence of modern facilities left the inexperienced ground staff struggling to prepare the field as the sack of saw dust saw more action than the players on the opening day.

The umpires conducted as many as six inspections throughout the day. Several New Zealand players too came out to assess the field, including skipper Tim Southee, all-rounders Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra also ventured onto the pitch to evaluate the conditions.

But the mid-on and mid wicket area seemed cause of concern while there were also several patches inside the 30-yard circle.

At one point with the sun shinning nice and bright, it looked like the match could get underway but the hopes of that were dashed when Kane Williamson tread wearily towards the pitch around 2pm IST.

Even Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott looked unimpressed as the groundsmen struggled. The Super soppers inexplicably came into action only after 1pm.

The day’s play was eventually called off at 4pm. The toss has been scheduled for 9am tomorrow and the remaining four days will have 98 overs each starting at 9.30am, instead of 10am.

Ahead of the Test, the ground staff had resorted to using table fans to dry the ground for Afghanistan’s training sessions.

The absence of modern facilities extended beyond the field itself, impacting operations off the pitch. The venue lacked a proper media stand and adequate seating arrangements for fans.

Additionally, the accredited media faced significant inconveniences, including a lack of water, power supply, and access to a female washroom. The fans too had no idea what was going on as there was no public announcement system.

There was poor communication and complete mismanagement between the stadium authority and the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB).

“This is a huge mess, we are never coming back here. The players are also unhappy with the facilities here,” an ACB official said.

“We had spoken with the concerned people well in advance and were assured by the stadium guys that everything will be in order (pertaining to the media facilities),” he added, While the Test is not a part of the World Test Championship, it is an ICC affiliated tournament.

The stadium, managed by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority, had hosted a pink ball Duleep Trophy match in 2016.

However, it had been banned by the BCCI in September 2017 due to match-fixing during corporate matches. No BCCI affiliated match has been hosted here since.

The stadium has served as the home ground for Afghanistan in the past.

Source: https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/huge-mess-never-coming-back-afghanistan-slam-facilities-in-greater-noida-as-day-1-washed-out-vs-new-zealand-6526818

Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab on Monday unveiled its long-awaited, artificial intelligence-boosted iPhone 16 and promised improvements in its Siri personal assistant as it rolled out new software, beginning in test mode next month.
“The next generation of iPhone has been designed for Apple Intelligence from the ground up. It marks the beginning of an exciting new era,” Chief Executive Tim Cook said at a product launch.

Apple Intelligence, the company’s AI software, will be used to improve Siri as well as enhancing features such as understanding and identifying objects captured by the phone camera, executives said.

A test version of Apple Intelligence will be available in the U.S. version of the English language next month. It will be available for other localized versions of English in December, with versions in languages including Chinese, French, Japanese and Spanish next year. Features including improvements to Siri will be rolled out over time, Apple said. It did not say, however, when it would move beyond test.

.The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will cost the same as models they replace and use a new chip and an aluminum case. A customizable button that can control the camera was one of the most touted hardware features in a format that looks similar to previous models.
The higher-end 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max are made from titanium and have more AI capability, such as offering suggestions on how to set up a photo shoot more effectively and audio-editing capabilities aimed at professional-level video production.
Apple’s new iPhone chips use the latest version of Arm’s architecture that includes specific features to speed AI applications.
“Existing iPhone users who have had their device for 3-4 years will definitely be enticed to upgrade, even if some things are rolling out later, as this will future-proof their device for AI,” said International Data Corp analyst Nabila Popal.
Still, several analysts described the delays in features as keeping many potential buyers on the sidelines initially.
“You might see people wait a little bit to see how these things work out, how well they function, and then they’ll start to investigate it. But I don’t think we’ll see the mad rush that we’ve seen in years past,” said TECHnalysis Research founder Bob O’Donnell.
By comparison, Huawei’s website showed on Monday that it had garnered more than 3 million pre-orders for its Z-shaped tri-fold phone ahead of its official unveiling. This underscores Huawei’s ability to navigate U.S. sanctions and solidifies its position against Apple in China, where consumers are hankering for more AI features and are willing to pay for them.

WATCHES AND AIRPODS
Apple also unveiled new Watches and AirPods with health-focused capabilities, as well as hardware-design improvements. Apple highlighted the Watch’s ability to discover longer-term health conditions such as sleep apnea as well as detecting and responding to emergencies such as a fall.
As it updated AirPods, Apple rolled out hearing-aid features that it has submitted for U.S. regulatory review.
Apple fans globally have been waiting to see the new phones with AI. IPhones accounted for more than half of Apple’s $383 billion sales last year.
“While Android phones may have some of these features, Apple has packaged them well and will be able to market them far more broadly,” said D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria.
China offers particular challenges to Apple.
“Apple fell out of the list of top five smartphone vendors in China in Q2,” said eMarketer senior technology analyst Gadjo Sevilla. “It was the first time that China’s domestic smartphone firms held all five spots. Since Apple Intelligence still needs to be approved by Beijing for a rollout in China, it will likely not initially be a key driver for adoption in the region.”
In China, Apple aggressively slashed prices earlier this year, prompted by government restrictions and increased domestic competition.
The iPhone 16 lineup is the first Apple smartphones designed around these AI features though those are expected also to be available on iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, the top-end versions of the previous-generation devices.
Rivals including Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google are also showcasing AI features to try to upend Apple’s dominance in the high-end smartphone market.

Taiwan’s exports to the US topped the record for any month’s shipments to China, underscoring rapidly shifting East Asian supply chains.

The archipelago’s shipments to the US rose to $11.89 billion in August, data from the Finance Ministry in Taipei showed on Monday. That beat the previous high of $11.72 billion to China in 2021.

Also, Taiwan’s exports climbed to a record last month, coming in at $43.64 billion.

The new monthly record is partly the result of a yearslong campaign by the US to rewire Asian trade, highlighted by President Joe Biden’s sweeping tariff hikes on a range of Chinese imports. Japan’s exports to the US have been above shipments to China for 22 months, the longest stretch since 2017.

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-09/taiwan-exports-to-us-surpass-china-record-to-hit-monthly-high

Kensington Palace released new images of Kate, Princess of Wales alongside her family, alongside an update on her chemotherapy treatment.

Kate Middleton has confirmed her preventative chemotherapy treatment has ended in a new update.

The Prince of Wales made the announcement at 11.30am ET today as Kensington Palace released new images of her family.

In a video showing the family walking through woodland, Kate says: “As the summer comes to an end, I cannot tell you what a relief it is to finally have completed my chemotherapy treatment.

“The last nine months have been incredibly tough for us as a family. Life as you know it can change in an instant, and we’ve had to find a way to navigate the stormy waters.

“The cancer journey is complex, scary and unpredictable for everyone, especially those closest to you. With humility, it also brings you face to face with your own vulnerabilities in a way you have never considered before, and with that, a new perspective on everything.

“This time has above all reminded William and me to reflect and be grateful for the simple yet important things in life, which so many of us often take for granted. Of simply loving and being loved. Doing what I can to stay cancer free is now my focus. Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long and I must continue to take each day as it comes.

“I am, however, looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can.

“Despite all that has gone before I enter this new phase of recovery with a renewed sense of hope and appreciation of life. William and I are so grateful for the support we have received and have drawn great strength from all those who are helping us at this time.

“Everyone’s kindness, empathy and compassion has been truly humbling. To all those who are continuing their own cancer journey – I remain with you, side by side, hand in hand. Out of darkness, can come light, so let that light shine bright.”

Kate was also pictured looking reflective while walking through a field and also smiling alongside husband Prince William and her three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

In March, she disclosed treatment had begun on order of doctors who noticed irregularities following abdominal surgery five months earlier.

The Princess, 42, has spent most of her time out of the public eye as she recovers, though has made occasional appearances, such as at Trooping the Colour in June.

Speaking at the time, she described making positive progress while experiencing “good days and bad days.”

“On those bad days you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting. But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well,” Kate said in June.

Source: https://www.the-express.com/news/royals/148159/kate-middleton-cancer-update-chemotherapy-health-latest

The mother of the teenager charged with fatally shooting two students and two teachers at a Georgia high school on Wednesday called the school that morning and warned a counselor about an “extreme emergency,” the Washington Post reported.
Marcee Gray, the mother of the suspected shooter, 14-year-old Colt Gray, said she told the counselor to find her son immediately, the newspaper reported. Phone records provided by a relative to the Post show a 10-minute call to Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, at 9:50 a.m., about 30 minutes before the attack began.

Musk, 53, is currently the richest person in the world, with a net worth of $251bn (£191bn), according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

Elon Musk is on track to become the world’s first trillionaire by 2027, according to a new global wealth report.

Musk, 53, is currently the richest person in the world, with a net worth of $251bn (£191bn), according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

The 15-year-old’s victory in New York came 24 hours after Jack Draper’s semi-final defeat to world number one Jannik Skinner in the men’s draw.

A British teenager has become the first tennis player from the UK to win a US Open junior title in 15 years.

Mika Stojsavljevic, 15, beat her Japanese opponent Wakana Sonobe 6-4 6-4 to lift the championship cup in New York on Saturday.

‘Very dangerous’ British prisoner among five to escape from high-security prison in Portugal

A “very dangerous” British prisoner is among five inmates who have escaped from a high-security prison in Portugal.

Mark Cameron Roscaleer, 39, had been serving a nine-year sentence for kidnap and robbery at the Vale de Judeus jail, about 43 miles (70km) north of Lisbon.

The five men, aged between 33 and 61, fled on Saturday morning and received “external help” from accomplices who provided a ladder which “allowed the inmates to scale the wall”, according to the Portuguese prison service (DGRSP).

Frederico Morais, president of the National Union of Prison Guards (SNCGP), described Roscaleer as “very dangerous” and advised people that if they see him or the other inmates, they should not approach them.

He also provided details about the escape: “They managed to jump a net because there are no guards to watch the perimeter… put the ladder against the wall and, from there, with a handmade rope, they climbed over the wall”.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to take up the hearing of a case related to the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital today, September 9.

A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra will hear the case. It comes after the initial hearing on August 22 when the Supreme Court took suo moto cognisance of the incident.

The bench is also likely to consider the recent application filed by the Union government accusing the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government of not cooperating with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) which has been deployed for security purposes at RG Kar Hospital.

Here are the latest updates: 

Mamata Urges Sircar to ‘Reconsider’ Resignation

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee urged TMC MP Jawhar Sircar, who on Sunday announced his resignation as the party’s Rajya Sabha member in the wake of the RG Kar Hospital rape and murder case, to reconsider his decision.

In a letter to Banerjee on Sunday, the parliamentarian mentioned about his plan to travel to Delhi to submit his resignation to Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. After Sircar’s decision, Banerjee dialled him and urged him to reconsider his move, claimed reports.

Sircar also wrote that he had thought Mamata Banerjee would interfere in the RG Kar Hospital case in the “old Mamata style.”

“I thought you would interfere in the ongoing movement in the old Mamata style, but I did not see it,” he said adding that ongoing agitation of doctors was against the “unchecked overbearing attitude of the favoured few and the corrupt”.

Victim’s Mother Accuses Kolkata Police Of ‘Cover-Up’ Attempts

Joining a large-scale protest demanding justice for their young daughter, the parents of the victim on Sunday accused the Kolkata Police of ‘covering up’ the crime that took place on August 9 inside RG Kar Hospital.

The father of the victim said the huge public support gave them the courage to voice their demand for justice for their young trainee doctor. “We won’t get justice easily. We have to snatch it. This will not be possible without everybody’s help and support,” he was quoted as saying by the news agency PTI.

The mother of the victim said that whenever she thinks about the pain experienced by her daughter on that night, she shudders. “She had dreams to serve the society, Now, all these protesters are all my children,” said the mother of the victim accusing the Kolkata Police of not helping them.

Bengal Guv Asks Mamata to Replace Top Cop

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Sunday directed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to hold an immediate emergency Cabinet meeting to discuss people’s demand to replace Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal.

Asserting that state authorities cannot shirk their responsibility or remain silent on such serious cases, Bose said that the state government must function in line with the Constitution and the rule of law. “The ostrich-like attitude will not pay,” he said.

‘Reclaim The Night’ Protest March in Kolkata

Thousands took to the streets of Kolkata on Sunday midnight to mark one month of the horrific incident that took place on August 9. Forming human chains, the protesters demanded justice for the victims in the third edition of the ‘Reclaim the Night’ protest march.

Source: https://www.news18.com/india/supreme-court-to-hear-rg-kar-rape-murder-case-today-guv-bose-asks-mamata-to-replace-top-cop-updates-9043911.html

Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González has vowed to “continue to fight” for democracy in his own country, after being granted asylum in Spain.
Mr González left Venezuela on Saturday, having spent weeks in hiding at the Spanish embassy in Caracas – arriving at the Torrejón de Ardoz military air base in Madrid with his wife at about 16:00 local time (14:00 GMT).
The departure of the 75-year-old from the country followed turmoil in the wake of the 28 July elections, in which President Nicolás Maduro claimed victory – something which was disputed by Mr González, and many sections of the international community.
In an audio message distributed by his press team, he said he was “confident that soon we will continue the fight to achieve freedom and the recovery of democracy in Venezuela”.

Two NATO members said Sunday that Russian drones violated their airspace, as one reportedly flew into Romania during nighttime attacks on neighboring Ukraine while another crashed in eastern Latvia the previous day.

A drone entered Romanian territory early Sunday as Moscow struck “civilian targets and port infrastructure” across the Danube in Ukraine, Romania’s Ministry of National Defense reported. It added that Bucharest had deployed F-16 warplanes to monitor its airspace and issued text alerts to residents of two eastern regions.

It also said investigations were underway of a potential “impact zone” in an uninhabited area along the Romanian-Ukrainian border. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Later on Sunday, Latvia’s Defense Minister Andris Sprūds said a Russian drone fell the day before near the town of Rezekne, and had likely strayed into Latvia from neighboring Belarus.

Rezekne, home to over 25,000 people, lies some 55 kilometers (34 miles) west of Russia and around 75 kilometers (47 miles) from Belarus, the Kremlin’s close and dependent ally.

The family that owns Fox News and The Wall Street Journal is headed to a Reno, Nevada, courtroom for a high-stakes showdown.

The battle for Rupert Murdoch’s global media kingdom is headed to the biggest little city in the world.

Murdoch, the 93-year-old billionaire press baron, reportedly wants to alter the terms of an irrevocable trust so that his eldest son, Lachlan, inherits his throne and keeps control of prized assets such as Fox News and The Wall Street Journal. But three of the mogul’s other children — James, Elisabeth and Prudence — are pushing back, insisting that all four siblings continue to receive equal voting shares.

The family feud goes before a judge at the Washoe County Courthouse in Reno, Nevada, next week, but the proceedings and case filings are shrouded in secrecy. Alicia L. Lerud, an administrator at the Second Judicial District Court, confirmed to NBC News that the Murdoch matter is under seal and “confidential pursuant to court order.” (Reno probate court frequently deals with family trusts and estates.)

In late July, however, The New York Times published an article based on a copy of a sealed court document laying out some of the case’s key issues. NBC News has not independently seen the document or confirmed its authenticity. Gary A. Bornstein, the litigator representing the three siblings, and Adam Streisand, the lawyer representing their father, did not respond to requests for comment from NBC News.

Murdoch is one of the most powerful and influential media titans of the modern age. He built a small Australian newspaper business into a mighty collection of broadcast and cable television properties. The crown jewel remains Fox News, a pillar of the American conservative movement and home to high-profile opinion hosts who staunchly defend former President Donald Trump.

The palace intrigue inside the Murdoch family has often lent itself to breathless public fascination, inspiring the HBO series “Succession” and behind-the-scenes books.

The family is divided partly by differences in political opinion — and how those beliefs could shape the future of its sprawling media empire. Lachlan Murdoch, who took over as chairman of Fox Corp. and News Corp. last September, tends to be more aligned with his father’s conservative worldview.

James Murdoch, Elisabeth Murdoch and Prudence Murdoch are believed to be more politically moderate. James Murdoch has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential candidacy, and Federal Election Commission records show he has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Democratic congressional candidates and Democratic state parties.

The Times, citing the court document, reported that the elder Murdoch believes the “lack of consensus” among the four children “would impact the strategic direction at both companies including a potential reorientation of editorial policy and content.” The mogul filed a petition to amend the trust as he seeks to “consolidate decision-making power in Lachlan’s hands and give him permanent, exclusive control.”

Nevada’s probate commissioner found in June that Murdoch could change the irrevocable trust if the wealthy patriarch was able to demonstrate he was acting in good faith, for the sole benefit of his heirs, according to a copy of the 48-page decision cited by The Times. (Murdoch has two other children, both in their early 20s, from his third of five marriages.)

In the event Lachlan Murdoch cements control of the corporate properties, Fox News’ opinion programming will likely continue to be solidly conservative and a major influence on Republican politics.

Fox News has been tightly linked with Trump in recent years. The company was sued by Dominion Voting Systems for airing baseless claims of vote-rigging after the 2020 election. The two sides ultimately settled for $787.5 million, heading off a jury trial.

“Rupert Murdoch has always been good at harmonizing his business interests and his ideological goals, and he seems to view Lachlan as the one sibling who can thread that needle,” said Reece Peck, an associate professor of media culture at the City University of New York-College of Staten Island and the author of “Fox Populism: Branding Conservatism as Working Class.”

The succession drama — a real-world blend of “King Lear” and prestige TV — promises to draw significant interest from players in the overlapping realms of media, entertainment, politics and corporate power. That’s partly why a coalition of major news organizations recently filed a petition to make the secret proceedings open to the public.

Six news companies — The Associated Press, CNN, National Public Radio, The New York Times, Reuters and The Washington Post — banded together “seeking access to court proceedings and the unsealing of, and access to, court records and filings and in this matter,” according to a legal filing shared with NBC News by a spokesperson for The Times.

“The fate of the Murdoch Family’s enormous fortune and vast media empire is a matter of immense public interest, and the public also has an interest in ensuring that public courts administer justice in a proper, impartial manner,” the document says in part.

National newsrooms are not alone in their quest to make the Murdoch proceedings more transparent. Alex Falconi, a Nevada software engineer and advocate for courtroom access, filed his own petition to Washoe County Judge David Hardy requesting the placement of a camera in the courtroom. (Faconi’s effort was first reported by the news website Puck.)

“Trust cases are usually of no interest to the public,” Falconi said in an email, but “this case presents a rare opportunity to show Nevadans how trust cases work due to the high level of public interest.”

Lerud, the court administrator, said she could not comment on Falconi’s petition because the Nevada Code of Judicial Conduct bars court judges and officers from weighing in on “individual matters pending before the Court.”

It was not clear whether Falconi’s petition had been formally rejected. Falconi said he would file an emergency petition in the event his request is denied.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/rupert-murdoch-media-empire-family-feud-court-rcna168776

Russia said on Sunday its forces had taken full control of a town in eastern Ukraine as Moscow’s forces advance on the strategically important city of Pokrovsk and seek to pierce the Ukrainian defensive front lines.
Russian forces, which control about a fifth of Ukraine since invading in February 2022, are advancing in eastern Ukraine in an attempt to take the whole of the Donbas, which is about half the size of the U.S. state of Ohio.

Former Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, issued a warning on Saturday predicting the United States will collapse in an “imminent new civil war” amid this year’s election over Russian sanctions.

Since the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022, Western countries have imposed sanctions on Moscow, with several thousand sanctions on Russian individuals, businesses, and government institutions. The U.S. has gradually expanded the sanctions it imposed as President Joe Biden issued an executive order in December, which allows the U.S. to directly sanction foreign banks facilitating significant transactions for Russia. Washington threatened to block such banks that conduct business with firms that support Russia’s defense industry from its financial system.

In a Saturday Telegram message, Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, spoke about the current political climate of the U.S. and the 2024 presidential race, which will see former President Donald Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, face off against Vice President Kamala Harris, who won the Democratic presidential nominee after Biden dropped out of the race on July 21.

“Out of spite for the current administration, Donald Trump has threatened to lift sanctions against Russia. But will he really do it if elected? No, of course not. For all his apparent bravado as an ‘outsider’, Trump is ultimately an establishment insider. Yes, he is an eccentric narcissist, but he is also a pragmatist. As a businessman, Trump understands that sanctions harm the dollar’s dominance in the world. However, that’s insufficient reason to stage a revolution in the United States and go against the anti-Russian line of the notorious Deep State, which is much stronger than any Trump,” Medvedev said.

He added: “But what about Harris? You shouldn’t expect any surprises from her. She is inexperienced and, according to her enemies, just plain stupid. Beautiful meaningless speeches and boring ‘correct’ answers to questions will be prepared for her, which she will read off a teleprompter while laughing contagiously. There were sanctions against the USSR throughout the 20th century, and they’ve returned on an unprecedented scale in the 21st. So, it’s sanctions forever. Or rather, until the US collapses during an imminent new civil war. After all, Hollywood makes films about this for a reason.”

Newsweek has reached out to the White House as well as Harris’ campaign via email for comment.

In response to Medvedev’s remarks, in an emailed statement to Newsweek on Saturday, Trump’s spokesperson Steven Cheung took aim at Harris by stating, “Putin has endorsed Kamala Harris because he knows she will be a pushover for Russia.”

Source: https://www.newsweek.com/putin-ally-dmitry-medvedev-predicts-us-collapse-imminent-civil-war-1950276

A TERROR plot to kill Pope Francis has been uncovered with Indonesian cops swooping on seven suspects believed to be ISIS-inspired.

The foiled ploy targeted the Pope during his visit to Indonesia, where he started a 12-day tour of the Asia Pacific.

The suspects were arrested across September 2 and 3 after cops were tipped off by concerned citizens.

Cops raided one of the alleged militant’s houses to find bow and arrows, a drone and ISIS leaflets, according to The Straits Times.

The wannabe terrorists were apparently angered by the Pope popping into a Jakarta mosque.

Indonesian TV stations were reportedly asked not to broadcast the usual Islamic call to prayer while they showed Pope Francis’ visit, enraging the alleged maniac Jihadis.

The suspects have been named only as HFP, LB, DF, FA, HS, ER and RS.

It’s not yet clear whether they were all linked to one another.

A spokesman for Indonesia’s terror-crushing unit “Densus 88” – or Detachment 88 – said threats were aired on social media.

Colonel Aswin Siregar said: “We have a mechanism to monitor and filter.

“We had tip-off information from members of the public.

“Densus 88 has taken legal action against seven individuals … who made threats in the form of propaganda or terror threats via social media in response to the Pope’s arrival.

Ukraine appears to be calling on a fleet of fire-spewing “dragon drones” in its war with Russian invaders, putting a modern twist on a munition used to horrific effect in both world wars.

A series of videos posted on social media, including on Telegram from the Ukrainian Defense Ministry on Wednesday, show the low-flying drones dropping torrents of fire – actually molten metal – onto Russian-held positions in tree lines.

The white-hot mixture of aluminum powder and iron oxide, called thermite, burns at temperatures up to 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,200 degrees Celsius). It can quickly burn off trees and vegetation giving cover to Russian troops, if not killing or disabling the troops outright.

As it falls from the drone, the thermite resembles the fire coming from the mouth of the mythical dragon, giving the drones their nickname.

“Strike Drones are our wings of vengeance, bringing fire straight from the sky!” a social media post from Ukraine’s 60th Mechanized Brigade said.

“They become a real threat to the enemy, burning his positions with an accuracy that no other weapon can achieve,” the post continued.

“When our ‘Vidar’ works – the Russian woman will never sleep,” it added. Vidar is the Norse god of vengeance.

Creating that kind of fear is likely the main effect of Ukraine’s thermite drones, according to Nicholas Drummond, a defense industry analyst specializing in land warfare and a former British Army officer.

“It is very nasty stuff. Using a drone to deliver it is quite innovative. But used in that way its effect will have been psychological more than physical,” Drummond told CNN.

“I understand that Ukraine only possesses a limited capacity to deliver a thermite effect, so this is a niche capability rather than new mainstream weapon,” he said.

But he acknowledges the terror thermite can create.

“I would not have liked to have been on the receiving end,” Drummond said.

Incendiary weapons in war

Thermite can easily burn through almost anything, including metal, so there’s little protection from it.

It was discovered by a German chemist is the 1890s and was originally used to weld railroad tracks.

But its military potency soon became apparent, with the Germans dropping it from zeppelins as bombs over Britain in World War I, according to a history from McGill University in Montreal.

Both Germany and the Allies used thermite aerial bombs in World War II, and they also utilized it to disable captured artillery pieces, putting thermite into the breech and melting the weapon shut from the inside.

AMAZON’S satellite internet service has reached a big milestone in its attempt to take on Elon Musk’s Starlink.

Billionaires are turning to the skies to beam broadband to people’s homes from above.

Musk, 53, has so far led the way with more than 6,000 Starlink satellites in the sky.

The SpaceX-operated service has been used by Ukraine to maintain communications in the war against Russia.

Starlink has even started signing deals with mobile networks starting with T-Mobile in the US.

More recently, Musk announced that Starlink will allow free calls to emergency services.

Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, 60, has similar space ambitions and the two billionaires have been competing over Nasa contracts to fly to Mars.

But where satellite internet is concerned, Bezos’ Project Kuiper has so far lagged behind.

The company hasn’t launched any into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) yet, except for two prototypes in November last year.

Project Kuiper is preparing to blast more than 3,000 satellites into space.

One of the biggest hurdles is regulatory approval.

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has already granted Amazon permission to launch those 3,236 satellites across five phases.

However, the firm wil also need permission to operate in other countries as well.

And in a big milestone, it appears the UK’s Ofcom regulator is prepared to give the go-ahead too, it’s been revealed today.

“Our preliminary view is that we will grant an NGSO [non-geostationary orbit] network licence to Kuiper, having considered the technical coexistence and competition impacts of its NGSO system on existing and future NGSO systems and other spectrum services operating in the same frequencies,” Ofcom said.

While it’s a big step forward Amazon isn’t cleared to go just yet.

Ofcom is now seeking feedback as part of a consultation that will run until October 4.

But experts at ISPreview believe it’s “highly unlikely” the regulator will reject it.

There could be some opposition from astronomers who have already complained that too many satellites are ruining the night sky view.

They say the huge growth in satellites is obstructing telescopic space exploration.

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/tech/12386545/elon-musk-jeff-bezos-rivalry-starlink-amazon-space-satellite/

A MONSTER cat weighing as much as a toddler was found living in a basement gorging on biscuits and soup.

The flabby feline – named Crumbs – tipped the scales at nearly 38lbs and was found to be too fat to even walk.

Animal rescuers found him living in the basement of a hospital in Perm, Russia.

He is believed to have piled on the pounds after being fed by the staff.

The fat cat – who bears more than a passing resemblance to the cartoon character Garfield – was so rotund he could barely move.

His new home now plans to shift almost three-quarters of his weight – getting him down to around 10lbs.

But unlike his orange doppelganger, the mammoth was gorging on a diet of biscuits and rich soup rather than lasagne.

He is believed to have been abandoned by his owners before taking up residence beneath the hospital.

He was named Kroshik – the Russian word for Crumbs – after his ability to hoover up every scrap of food.

Vets at the city’s Matroskin Shelter were even unable to perform an ultrasound scan on the stray because of his thick layers of fat.

Centre volunteers have not put him on a strict diet and plan to give him workouts on a treadmill once he can walk again.

They told local media: “Kroshik’s story is an extremely rare case when someone loved a cat so much that they fed him to such a state.”

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/news/12387576/massive-cat-too-fat-to-walk-basement/

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft landed uncrewed in a New Mexico desert late on Friday, capping a three-month test mission hobbled by technical issues that forced the astronauts it had flown to the International Space Station to remain there until next year.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who became the first crew to fly Starliner in June, remained on the ISS as Starliner autonomously undocked at 6:04 p.m. ET (2204 GMT) on Friday, beginning a six-hour trek to Earth using maneuvering thrusters that NASA last month deemed too risky for a crew.

Though the mission was intended to be a final test flight before NASA certifies Starliner for routine missions, the agency’s decision last month to keep astronauts off the capsule over safety concerns threw the spacecraft’s certification path into uncertainty, despite the clean return Boeing executed.

Wilmore and Williams, stocked with extra food and supplies on the ISS, will return to Earth on a SpaceX vehicle in February 2025. What was initially supposed to be an eight-day test has turned into an eight-month mission for the crew.

The ISS, a football field-sized science lab some 250 miles (402 km) in space, has seven other astronauts on board who arrived at different times on other spacecraft, including a Russian Soyuz capsule. Wilmore and Williams are expected to continue doing science experiments with their crewmates.

Five of Starliner’s 28 maneuvering thrusters failed with Wilmore and Williams on board during their approach to the ISS in June, while the same propulsion system sprang several leaks of helium, which is used to pressurize the thrusters.
Despite successfully docking on June 6, the failures set off a monthslong investigation by Boeing – with some help from NASA – that has cost the company $125 million, bringing total cost overruns on the Starliner program just above $1.6 billion since 2016, according to a Reuters analysis of securities filings.
Boeing’s Starliner woes have persisted since the spacecraft failed a 2019 test trip to the ISS without a crew. Starliner did a re-do mission in 2022 and largely succeeded, though some of its thrusters malfunctioned.
The aerospace giant’s Starliner woes represent the latest struggle that call into question Boeing’s future in space, a domain it had dominated for decades until Elon Musk’s SpaceX began offering cheaper launches for satellites and astronauts and reshaped the way NASA works with private cFompanies.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/without-astronauts-boeings-starliner-undocks-space-station-2024-09-06/

Melanie Leahy, whose son Matthew is among those who died, has said she believes the fatalities were part of a “cull of our most vulnerable, our most gentle, our most needy”.

The deaths of around 2,000 mental health patients will be investigated as a long-awaited new public inquiry begins on Monday.

Warning: The following article contains details some readers may find distressing

Families of the patients who died in Essex have been campaigning for years, claiming they have not been told the truth about what happened to their loved ones.

Melanie Leahy, whose son Matthew is among those who died, believes the large number of deaths being investigated will continue to grow.

“I think we’re going to find there’s a lot, lot more. And I think it’s absolutely horrendous,” she told Sky News.

“I believe it’s a cull. It’s a cull of our most vulnerable, our most gentle, our most needy.”

Matthew Leahy, 20, died in November 2012.

He was found unresponsive in his room at the Linden Centre, a secure mental health unit in Chelmsford, eight days after he was sectioned.

His mother received a call to tell her what had happened. She raced to the hospital but it was too late.

She recalls going in and “there lay Matthew, on the trolley, he had a blue hospital gown on… And in that instant I just wanted to go and grab him and hold him and bring him back to life”.

Mrs Leahy says she was told by staff: “Don’t touch, he’s a crime scene.”

“I was taken into a side room and asked what undertaker I had planned,” she remembers. “I was planning his 21st birthday.”

It was soon after Mr Leahy’s death that she grew concerned that things she was being told about what happened didn’t add up.

Mrs Leahy also has unanswered questions about a serious allegation her son had made days before his death.

Mr Leahy had called his father and told him he had been raped.

He then called police and can be heard on the 999 call telling the operator: “I’ve been raped and the doctors refuse to acknowledge it.”

Police went to the unit but no arrests were made.

An inquest into Mr Leahy’s death found it occurred after a “series of multiple failings and missed opportunities”. Staff even falsified his care plan after he died.

US health officials have confirmed a human case of bird flu in a patient that had no immediately known animal exposure.
The patient, in the state of Missouri, was treated in hospital and has since recovered, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said.
It is the 14th human case of bird flu in the US in 2024 and the first without a known occupational exposure to infected animals, according to the CDC.
The agency said that, based on their current data, the risk to the general public remains low.

Bird flu is a viral disease that primarily affects birds and other animals. Human infections are rare.
Previous US cases have been traced back to exposure to infected poultry or cattle, but the Missouri patient marks “the first case of H5 without a known occupational exposure to sick or infected animals,” the CDC said in a statement on Friday.
The Missouri case was detected through routine flu season surveillance. The patient had underlying medical conditions, and received flu antiviral medications.
Bird flu has been on the rise among cows in the US this year. An outbreak was first reported in March, and cattle in 14 states had been affected as of 3 September, according to the CDC.
While outbreaks of bird flu have not been reported in Missouri’s cattle, it has been reported in poultry this year and in wild birds in the past, health officials said.
US health officials discovered a human case of bird flu in March 2024, which was identified after an exposure to dairy cows that were potentially infected.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0rzqwxp7jo

Former Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González has fled into exile after being granted asylum in Spain, delivering a major blow to millions who placed their hopes in his upstart campaign to end two decades of single party rule.

The surprise departure of the man who Venezuela’s opposition and several foreign governments consider the legitimate winner of July’s presidential race was announced late Saturday night by Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez.

She said the government decided to grant González safe passage out of the country, just days after ordering his arrest, to help restore “the country’s political peace and tranquility.”

Neither González nor opposition leader Maria Corina Machado have commented.

Meanwhile, Spain’s center-left government said the decision to abandon Venezuela was González’s alone and he departed on a plane sent by the country’s air force.

“Spain is committed to the political rights and physical integrity of all Venezuelans,” Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said on the X social media platform.

González, a 75 year old former diplomat, was a last minute stand in when Machado was banned from running. Previously unknown to most Venezuelans, his campaign nonetheless rapidly ignited the hopes of millions of Venezuelans desperate for change after a decade long economic freefall.

While President Nicolás Maduro was declared the winner of the July vote, most Western governments have yet to recognize his victory and are instead demanding that authorities publish a breakdown of votes. Meanwhile, tally sheets collected by opposition volunteers from over two-thirds of the electronic voting machines indicate that González won by a more than 2-to-1 margin.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-opposition-candidate-gonzalez-asylum-spain-749131a560dd9d762e04e201e43b9495