A video posted on social media appears to have been the catalyst for a west-end Toronto shootout between two groups this week, with cops caught in the crossfire, a police source says.

A B.C. man who told police and hospital staff he had killed two people and wanted to harm others wasn't arrested until a month after he first confessed, according to court documents.

The release of iOS 18 brought a number of new features to Apple's Journal app, including the new ability to search and sort entries.

Donald Trump is wasting no time in planning his return to the White House.

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Who said wraps can only be made of maida? This high-protein, nutritious wrap will make you forget all those store-bought wraps in just a few minutes!

The figure of 82.8 crore is over four times the number in 1990, with the largest increase in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), researchers forming the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration

Ameesha addressed Nirvaan as "darling" in the caption

The band's previous performance in India was in 2016 as part of the Global Citizen Festival in Mumbai

Shanaya Kapoor, Vedang Raina were also a part of the celebrations

The series features Naseeruddin Shah, Atul Kulkarni, Sheeba Chaddha, Rajesh Tailang, Kunaal Roy Kapur

According to the Garda Siochana, Ireland's national police and security service, the US citizen was discovered unconscious on a bathroom floor Tuesday evening

San Juan County in Washington has reported an 85.5% spike in job applications, with open positions getting filled 23.75% faster after it shifted to the 32-hour workweek last year.

Red Hook, a neighbourhood in southwestern Brooklyn famous for its diverse community and unique geography today, was once among the most stigmatised places for its crime and extreme violence, according to a new book.

The list of HEIs entitled to offer programmes in ODL mode with names of programmes is available on UGC website.

A man with explosives died Wednesday trying to enter Brazil's Supreme Court in what appeared to be a suicide, officials said, days before the country hosts the G20 summit.

According to the Garda Siochana, Ireland's national police and security service, the US citizen was discovered unconscious on a bathroom floor Tuesday evening

World Diabetes Day 2024: In this article, we discuss how certain foods can increase your risk of diabetes.

[GroundUp] The City of Johannesburg says the land occupation is stopping a housing development

[GroundUp] The Supreme Court of Appeal has found that the former judge's inappropriate interventions resulted in a flawed judgment

[GroundUp] Nompumelo Nene is facing disciplinary proceedings and has launched several applications in an attempt to stop them

TOKYO — A 65-year-old American tourist was arrested for allegedly etching letters onto a traditional wooden gate at a Tokyo shrine, police said Thursday, the latest example of bad behavior by visitors flooding back to Japan post-pandemic. The traveller reportedly used his fingernails to scratch one of the gate’s pillars as a prank at Meiji Jingu, one of the capital’s most famous shrines. A police spokeswoman told AFP the man was arrested Wednesday “on suspicion of damaging property” at the shrine complex in the city center. READ: 100-year-old ginkgo trees could get the axe under disputed plan for Tokyo’s Jingu […]...

Keep on reading: US tourist arrested for defacing Tokyo shrine

Taipei, Taiwan — Chinese President Xi Jinping departs on a nine-day diplomatic tour to Latin America on Wednesday, during which he will inaugurate a Chinese-financed megaport in Peru and attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Lima and the G20 Summit in Brazil. Analysts say the trip is part of China’s attempt to expand its global influence and present itself as “a responsible global power” at a time when countries around the world brace for uncertainties following U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s victory on November 5. “The trip is especially significant since Latin America is viewed as ‘the backyard’ of the United States; and [since] the next U.S. president is likely to return to a unilateral approach in world affairs, it provides China with the opportunity to expand its influence around the world as a champion for global development and multilateral cooperation,” said Zhiqun Zhu, an expert on Chinese foreign policy at Bucknell University. During his state visit to Peru, Xi will inaugurate the $3.5 billion Chancay port with his Peruvian counterpart Dina Boluarte on Thursday. Situated 80 kilometers north of the Peruvian capital Lima, the port has a maximum depth of 17.8 meters and is expected to become a major trading hub between Latin America and China. “The port will become the largest deep-water port in South America and it will drastically reduce the time needed to ship products from Peru to China,” Leland Lazarus, associate director of national security at Florida International University, told VOA in a video interview. China’s state-run Cosco Shipping Corporation has a majority 60% stake in the port and a 30-year concession to operate the terminal. According to China’s official data, the port can handle up to one million containers and 160,000 vehicles in the first year of operation.  The port is among 17 ports globally where China holds a majority stake, according to the Council on Foreign Relations and is one of more than 100 port projects built globally under China’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative. The port is expected to become a major hub for exporting critical commodities such as lithium, copper, iron and soybeans to China more efficiently. Latin American countries including Peru, Chile, Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador, which had a combined export of $135 billion to China in 2023, could all benefit from the launch of the Chancay Port.  “There is a huge gap in infrastructure development in Global South countries and Western powers are not active in helping [to] fill the gap. [As a result,] China’s investments in such large infrastructure projects are welcomed by host countries,” Zhu at Bucknell University told VOA in a written response. While Latin American countries will likely welcome the inauguration of the Chancay Port, the U.S. has warned about the potential for the port to be used for military purposes by China. That Washington claims could threaten its interests in Latin America.  “It could be used as a dual-use facility, it’s a deepwater port,” said Laura Richardson, the outgoing chief of the U.S. Southern Command told the Financial Times in a recent interview, adding that the Chinese navy could use the port in a scenario that, she said, fits “Beijing’s playbook.” Some experts say it’s difficult for China to deploy its naval vessels to Latin America in the near future and that Peru is unlikely to let Beijing militarize the Chancay port. “Currently, the Chinese navy is not capable of projecting its power across the Pacific, and since Peru still needs to maintain its relationship with the U.S., Peruvian authorities won’t allow the port to be militarized,” Kung Kwo-Wei, an expert of Latin American affairs at Tamkang University in Taiwan, told VOA by phone. However, Lazarus told VOA that Beijing’s activities in other ports around the world suggest it could still use the Chancay port for military purposes in the future. “When looking at Chinese behaviors [at other ports around the world], such as the Port of Bata in Equatorial Guinea and the Ream Naval Base in Cambodia, Chinese state-owned enterprises would promise to expand the ports for commercial purposes, yet there have been allegations that there’s been construction for what looks like military purposes on these areas,” said Lazarus. In addition to the Chancay Port, Peruvian Foreign Minister Elmer Schialer told Reuters news agency in an exclusive interview that Beijing and Lima plan to sign around 30 agreements, including an updated free trade agreement, during Xi’s visit.  Kung in Taiwan said these developments show that China’s investment in Latin America is now focusing on logistical infrastructure and access to minerals from Latin America. “China relies heavily on ports and logistical infrastructure to ensure it can export and import commodities at a steady pace, and as Beijing continues to expand its renewable energy industries, its appetite for minerals from Latin America will also grow,” Kung told VOA. As the U.S. could possibly adopt a more isolationist foreign policy approach during Trump’s second term, Lazarus said Xi will use the upcoming APEC and G20 summits to amplify the message that China is a more consistent global power than the U.S. “While the U.S. is going to potentially look inward with another Trump administration, [the summits] are Xi’s big opportunities to show that China is playing a much more global role,” he told VOA. However, some experts say it remains unclear whether China will achieve its intended goals. “Beijing will double down on the image of being the leader of the Global South and some countries will be attracted by that message,” said Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore. “But others who are more clear-eyed and who have followed developments from the Belt and Road Initiative and other Chinese projects will recognize that China is just another great power,” he told VOA in a phone interview. 

new york — A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday threw out a $1.68 billion judgment against Iran's central bank that had been won by family members of troops killed and injured in the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine Corps barracks in Beirut.  The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said a lower court judge should have addressed questions of state law before ruling against Bank Markazi and Luxembourg intermediary Clearstream Banking, a unit of Deutsche Boerse.  In a 3-0 decision, the panel also rejected a claim that a 2019 federal law designed to make it easier to seize Iranian assets held outside the United States waived Bank Markazi's sovereign immunity.  That law "neither abrogates Bank Markazi's jurisdictional immunity nor provides an independent grant of subject matter jurisdiction," Circuit Judge Robert Sack wrote.    The court returned the case to U.S. District Loretta Preska, in Manhattan to address state law questions in the 11-year-old case, and whether the case can proceed in Bank Markazi's absence.  Bombing victims sought to hold Iran liable for providing material support for the October 23, 1983, suicide attack that killed 241 U.S. service members, by seizing bond proceeds held by Clearstream in a blocked account on Bank Markazi's behalf.  Bank Markazi claimed immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which generally shields foreign governments from liability in U.S. courts.  Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Bank Markazi's and Clearstream's lawyers did not immediately respond to similar requests.  Iran, other U.S.-designated sponsors of terrorism, and banks accused of providing services to terrorists face thousands of claims in U.S. courts by victims and their families. It is often difficult for these claimants to collect judgments.  In the Bank Markazi case, the plaintiffs sued in 2013 to partially satisfy a $2.65 billion default judgment they had won against Iran in 2007.  Another judge dismissed the case in 2015, but the 2nd Circuit Court revived it in 2017.  Then in 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a fresh review in light of the 2019 law, which then-President Donald Trump signed as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.  The plaintiffs have said they hold more than $4 billion of judgments against Iran and have been unable to collect for decades.  The case is Peterson et al v. Bank Markazi et al, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 15-690. 

SAO PAULO — Two explosions outside Brazil's Supreme Court on Wednesday killed a man and forced the justices and staff to evacuate the building in the capital of Brasilia. The court said in a statement that two very strong blasts were heard at about 7:30 p.m. local time, shortly after Wednesday's session had finished. It added that all the justices and staff left the building safely after the incident. A police statement had said earlier that an artifact exploded outside the court. Local firefighters confirmed that one man died at the scene but did not identify him. Local media reported that the second explosion occurred about 20 seconds after the first. The incident took place in Brasilia's Three Powers Plaza, where Brazil's main government buildings, including the Supreme Court, Congress and presidential palace, are located. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was not in the neighboring presidential palace at the time of the blasts, spokesperson José Chrispiniano said. Police blocked all access to the area, and the presidential security bureau was conducting a sweep of the grounds around the presidential palace. Brazil's federal police force said it was investigating and did not provide a motive. The Supreme Court in recent years has become a target for threats by far-right groups and supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro due to its crackdown on the spread of false information. Justice Alexandre de Moraes in particular has been a focus for their ire. Earlier, another explosion was heard outside Brazil's Congress, but it apparently did not cause damages. 

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The Limassol art scene is about to welcome a new exhibition. The Larnaca-born artist, Nikolas Antoniou, returns to Lumiere Gallery in Limassol for the second time to present his exhibition titled Vibrations of Being. The showcase will run from November 20 to December 7, inviting viewers into the artist’s vivid creative journey of expression. “Antoniou’s […]

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[CPJ] Washington, D.C. -- Egyptian authorities sentenced in absentia journalist Yasser Abu Al-Ela to 20 years in prison on charges of joining a terrorist organization and spreading false news. Separately, press freedom advocate Rasha Azab accused the Interior Minister and the head of the National Security Agency of orchestrating recent threats against her and surveilling her movements, which culminated in the theft of her car on November 5.

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MUMBAI: India’s Supreme Court on Wednesday strongly criticised states which were demolishing properties of suspected criminals, a practice critics say targets mostly minority Muslims, and issued guidelines to authorities.

The verdict came in response to many petitions filed after demolitions in states ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in recent years.

BJP governments in the states have torn down what they say are illegal houses or shops of people accused of crimes, many of them Muslims, in what has come to be popularly known as “instant, bulldozer justice”.

Rights groups and opposition parties have denounced the practice, saying it targets mostly poor Muslims while circumventing the judicial process.

Verdict comes in response to many petitions filed after demolitions targeting Muslims

BJP governments have rejected the accusations and said such properties were in violation of local laws and the owners had been served notices.

On Wednesday, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court ruled that the state and its officials cannot take arbitrary action against suspects or convicts without following the due process of law. It also laid down guidelines, including issuing prior notice and taking a video of the demolition process. “It is not a happy sight to see women, children and aged persons dragged to the streets overnight. Heavens would not fall on the authorities if they hold their hands for some period,” the court said. There was no immediate reaction to the verdict from the BJP.

Bulldozer action

Calls for India to enshrine Hindu supremacy in law have rapidly grown louder after Modi government’s success in 2014. Hindu nationalist groups were emboldened in their campaign against Muslim religious structures.

“Bulldozer action”, popularly known as “bulldozer justice”, were actions observed by many practitioners as a campaign against the Muslim minority, bulldozing their homes, mosques and shopfronts.

The practices were mainly observed after Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and a saffron-robed Hindu monk seen as a potential successor to Prime Minister Modi, championed the bulldozer as a symbol of his commitment to law and order and as a potential tool to use against “trouble-makers” in 2017. Since then “bulldozer politics” have spread elsewhere in the country and demolition campaigns have begun quickly following on the heels of outbreaks of religious unrest.

Officials said the spate of demolitions were lawful as they only targeted buildings constructed without legal approval. But victims of the campaign deny that their dwellings are illegal, and say they are not given the legally required notice period to dispute demolition orders.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2024

QUETTA: Unknown armed men attacked the camp of a road construction company in Duki district on Wednesday, setting fire to machinery and kidnapping three labourers working at the site.

Police officials said the armed men stormed the camp, which was set up for the construction of a road linking Duki to the Chamalang coal mines field. The attackers cordoned off the camp, ransacked it and set fire to the construction machinery and other equipment.

“Machinery was completely gutted in the fire,” said a senior police officer, adding that the armed men, while fleeing the scene, also abducted three labourers at gunpoint. The kidnapped workers belong to Kuchlak.

The Duki region has been experiencing such incidents for several months. Last month, 21 coal miners were killed and six others injured when unknown armed men attacked the coal mine area in Duki. In addition, several trucks transporting coal to Punjab and other parts of the country were set on fire along the Duki-Loralai road and other areas.

Just last week, four coal-laden trucks were attacked and set on fire, and a truck driver was killed in the assault. Due to the ongoing violence, many mine owners in the area have been forced to close their mines for security reasons.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2024

A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that an FTC complaint alleging that Facebook's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp were anticompetitive should proceed to a jury trial.

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