World
BBCZimbabwean with football dreams to be kicked out of UK
Christopher Arundell grew up in the UK but after doing time in jail is being deported to Zimbabwe.
Associated PressTunisia opens corruption probes of leading Islamist party
Tunisian prosecutors have opened investigations into alleged foreign campaign funding and anonymous donations to Islamist movement Ennahdha and two other political parties, according to local media. Ennahdha is the dominant party in parliament, whose activities were suspended this week by President Kais Saied. Tunisia's leader also fired the prime minister and key Cabinet members, saying it was necessary to stabilize a country in economic and health crisis.
BBCTanzania's Samia Suluhu Hassan gets Covid jab in policy reverse
After the Covid scepticism of her predecessor, Tanzania's President Samia launches a vaccine campaign.
Associated PressRescuers search for 5 missing workers at German blast site
Rescue teams in western Germany searched for five missing workers Wednesday at an industrial park for chemical companies a day after an explosion killed at least two people and injured 31 others. The industrial park is located in the city of Leverkusen, near Cologne. The CEO of Currenta, which operates the Chempark industrial park, said there was little hope for the five missing workers — four Currenta employees and one outside contractor.
- Associated Press
Germany charges Syrian doctor with crimes against humanity
A Syrian doctor has been charged in Germany with crimes against humanity for allegedly torturing people in military hospitals in his homeland and killing one of them, German federal prosecutors said Wednesday. The Federal Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe said in a statement that Alla Mousa, who came to Germany in 2015 and practiced medicine before he was arrested last year, is accused of 18 counts of torturing people in military hospitals in the Syrian cities of Homs and Damascus. The allegations include charges that Mousa tried to make people infertile.
Associated PressChinese farmer who praised lawyers sentenced to 18 years
A prominent Chinese pig farmer who was detained after praising lawyers during a crackdown on legal activists by President Xi Jinping’s government was sentenced Thursday to 18 years in prison on charges of organizing an attack on officials and other offenses. Sun Dawu, chairman of Dawu Agriculture Group, was among 20 defendants who stood trial in Gaobeidian, southwest of Beijing in Hebei province. Sun also was fined 3.1 million yuan ($480,000), the People's Court of Gaobeidian said in a statement.
Associated PressIran's supreme leader criticizes US as nuclear talks stalled
Iran's supreme leader on Wednesday called the U.S. "stubborn" in stalled nuclear talks in Vienna for discussing Tehran’s missiles and regional influence, likely signaling more trouble ahead for the negotiations. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s remarks come as his hard-line protege, President-elect Ebrahim Raisi, is poised to be sworn in next week as the head of the country’s civilian government.
Associated PressThe AP Interview: Japan minister urges vaccines for young
As Olympics host Tokyo saw another record number of coronavirus cases Wednesday, Japan’s vaccination minister said the speed of the country’s inoculation campaign is less urgent than getting shots to young adults, whom some health experts are blaming for the current surge in infections. Taro Kono told The Associated Press that Japan is “overshooting” its goal of a million shots a day, so “speed doesn’t matter anymore.”
- GlobeNewswire
Portfolio Update
The sale of Ixaris to Nium plc was due to have been completed by the end of July 2021. The Company has been informed there will be a delay, as before the sale can complete the regulators have to approve the change of control. Covid and Brexit have combined to cause an unusually high workload in the regulatory authorities. We have been advised that no problems have been encountered and none are anticipated. A further announcement will be made in due course. This announcement contains inside infor
Associated PressCapitol police testimony blunts GOP's law-and-order message
The Republican Party's self-portrayal as champions of law and order is colliding with searing testimony from police officers themselves. Heading into the 2022 midterms, the GOP is seeking political advantage in Americans' concern about rising crime nationwide. It highlighted the GOP's effort to brush past the violence unleashed by a mob of Trump's supporters that endangered hundreds of officers.
Associated PressPalestinian killed by Israeli troops in West Bank
Palestinian health officials said a man was shot and killed on Tuesday by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military said the man approached troops wielding an iron bar. Shadi Omar, 41, was shot near the town of Beita, where residents have held weeks of protests against an unauthorized Israeli settlement outpost.
- Associated Press
Appeals court upholds conviction of NY man in terror case
The conviction of a New Yorker charged with providing material support to Hezbollah by seeking targets in New York City for terrorist attacks was upheld Tuesday by an appeals court, though one of three judges questioned the 40-year prison sentence, saying it was too long because nobody was harmed directly by the crimes. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled on Ali Kourani’s appeal challenging the conviction and the sentence. Prosecutors said the Lebanon-born Kourani spent years conducting surveillance at federal buildings, airports and day care centers after he was recruited, trained and deployed by Hezbollah’s Islamic Jihad Organization.
Associated PressWhite House considering vaccine mandate for federal workers
The White House is strongly considering requiring federal employees to show proof they’ve been vaccinated against the coronavirus or otherwise submit to regular testing and wear a mask — a potentially major shift in policy that reflects growing concerns about the spread of the more infectious delta variant. The possible vaccine mandate for federal employees — regardless of the rate of transmission in their area — is one option under consideration by the Biden administration, according to a person familiar with the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss deliberations that have yet to be made public. The White House is expected to announce its final decision after completing a policy review this week.
The TelegraphBrussels pauses legal action against UK over Northern Ireland protocol
The European Commission has paused legal action against the UK for allegedly breaching the post-Brexit deal on Northern Ireland. Brexit minister Lord Frost has demanded that significant changes are made to the Northern Ireland Protocol, an element of the deal he negotiated, as he said "we cannot go on as we are". He called for a "standstill" period, preserving the current grace periods and suspending legal action taken by the EU against the UK while changes are negotiated. A European Commission
BBCIvory Coast president and rival in first meeting since civil war
President Alassane Ouattara and Laurent Gbagbo shook hands at the presidential palace on Tuesday.
- Associated Press
UN says closing Darfur peacekeeping operation has hiccups
The U.N. logistics chief said Tuesday that closing down the joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping operation in Sudan’s western Darfur region is proceeding on schedule, though with some hiccups. Undersecretary-General for Field Support Atul Khare told the Security Council problems include troops seeking asylum in Sudan, thefts at 10 sites handed over to local authorities and armed groups stationing forces around the main remaining logistics base. Almost 6,000 soldiers and police returned to their home countries, nearly 1,200 staff are gone and only 360 police remain to secure the El Fasher logistics base and personnel wrapping up the mission, he said.
Associated PressAP Interview: Tunisia Islamist party counters president
The leader of Tunisia’s Islamist party and speaker of parliament said Tuesday that his party is working to form a “national front” to counter President Kais Saied’s decision to suspend the legislature, fire top government officials and take control of the fragile democracy amid the country’s multi-layered crisis. Ennahdha party head Rachid Ghannouchi told The Associated Press in a video call that the goal is to pressure the president “to demand the return to a democratic system.”
Associated Press$15 wage becoming a norm as employers struggle to fill jobs
The signs and banners are dotted along suburban commercial strips and hanging in shop windows and restaurants, evidence of a new desperation among America's service-industry employers: “Now Hiring, $15 an hour.” It is hardly the official federal minimum wage — at $7.25, that level hasn't been raised since 2009 — but for many lower-skilled workers, $15 an hour has increasingly become a reality.
- Associated Press
Sweden prosecutes Iranian man for 1980s war crimes at prison
Swedish public prosecutors said Tuesday they have charged an Iranian citizen with committing grave war crimes during the final phase of the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. The Swedish Prosecution Authority said the suspect worked in July-August 1988 as an assistant to the deputy prosecutor in the Gohardasht prison outside the Iranian city of Karaj and allegedly took part in severe atrocities there. During the eight-year Iran-Iraq conflict, Iran was subjected to attacks by the People’s Mujahedin of Iran, a political-militant organization, which advocated overthrowing the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran and installing its own government.
Associated PressPalestinians fire official who criticized activist's death
President Mahmoud Abbas has fired the director of the Palestinian national library after he criticized the government over the death of an activist in the custody of Palestinian security forces. In a letter obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday, Ehab Bessaiso was removed from the post, as well as from the library's board of directors. The letter, dated June 27 and signed by Abbas, did not give a reason for the dismissal.
- Associated Press
Officials: US-sanctioned militia leader killed in east Libya
A Libyan militia leader sanctioned by the United States for allegedly killing civilians was shot dead Tuesday in an exchange of fire with forces attempting to arrest him in an eastern city, officials said. Libyan officials said security forces raided Mohamed al-Kani’s house in Benghazi to carry out an arrest warrant on charges of killing civilians. Libyan officials and the U.S. allege al-Kani was responsible for the deaths of people found in mass graves last year in the western town of Tarhuna.
Associated PressUN says its food aid runs out this week in Ethiopia's Tigray
The head of the United Nations World Food Program says the agency will “run out of food” in Ethiopia’s conflict-hit Tigray region on Friday, while hundreds of thousands of people there face the world’s worst famine crisis in a decade. International pressure is again rising on Ethiopia’s government to allow badly needed food and other supplies into Tigray, where aid hasn't reached some communities since the war started in November between Ethiopia’s military and Tigray forces. Shortly after the WFP chief’s statement, Ethiopia’s government blamed the aid delivery problem on Tigray forces’ “provocations” in the Afar region, which the U.N. says has the only remaining road route into Tigray.
Business InsiderNorth and South Korea have restored direct communication hotlines that were abruptly severed over a year ago
Last summer, North Korea decided to cut off all communication with South Korea, but now the two sides are talking again.
- Politico
Biden wants Putin to behave. So why not go after his money?
Kremlin critics say the U.S. president needs to do more than take incremental measures. But insiders warn that aiming for Putin’s pocketbook could be dangerous.
Associated PressBosnia's outgoing international overseer urges new approach
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — Western powers should adopt a new approach to promoting reconciliation in politically fragmented Bosnia to prevent nativist leaders from turning the Balkan country into a deserted wasteland, according to the top international overseer of a 1995 peace agreement. Austrian diplomat Valentin Inzko, who is stepping down next week as the U.N.'s high representative in Bosnia, said he thinks a hands-off attitude the international community adopted a little more than a decade ago to promote local autonomy has failed to produce the intended unity, in part because Bosnian political leaders “are not sincere.” The Office of the High Representative, which Inzko has led since 2009, was charged with shepherding the implementation of the peace agreement that ended Bosnia's devastating 1992-95 interethnic war.
“[The program] stands likely to leave millions of families — disproportionately the poorest and most fragile ones — behind.”
“[Paying] families monthly, instead of one lump sum ... will provide parents with more stability knowing when cash is coming.”
“More parents will disappear from the workforce, and more children will be locked into dependency.”
“Poverty is a political choice, not an inevitability.”
“Time is running out. There are only six months until monthly payments of the credit cease."