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Shilpa Shetty reveals she developed auto-immune disease, suffered miscarriages

It is that day when we celebrate motherhood, mothers, their unmatched love and every small and big thing they do for us. Bollywood celebrities have been sharing heart-warming photos and posts on social media, to mark the day. For Shilpa Shetty, however, it is an extra special day since her surrogate daughter Samisha came home a few months back, and she gets to celebrate the day with her two children now!

During a recent interview, Shilpa reveald that she always wanted two kids since she knows how impactful having a sibling can be, and did not want son Viaan to grow up alone. However, she developed an auto-immune condition called APLA which caused her miscarriages every time she got pregnant.

Before she decided to opt for surrogacy, Shilpa revealed she had also considered adoption as an option and put her name with an organisation for the same. However, it got pushed due to internal disputes and after waiting for four years, her patience got over and she and husband Raj Kundra decided to have a surrogate baby.

On Instagram, we keep coming across photos of the happy family, and Viaan always looks excited to have been promoted to a big brother.

Happy Mother's Day to you, Shilpa!




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PPC & Admin Manager-Ludhiana (MBA, 4yr exp,Coordination,PPC, Materials,SCM in a Mfg unit)

Company: P & I Management Consultants
Experience: 3 to 4
location: India
Ref: 24341093
Summary: Job Description: MBA Finance/Ops/DMM with 3-4 years experience as EA to Director/CEO or PPC, Materials, Coordination,Supply Chain Management & MIS. Willing to take overall responsibility for Assembly/dispatch of 20000 Bicycles PM at....




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PPC Manager(Bicycles)-Ludhiana (10 yr exp,Planning,Capacity & Material balancing to optimize Pdn.

Company: P & I Management Consultants
Experience: 0 to 50
location: India
Ref: 24341071
Summary: Job Description: Job Profile: The suitable candidate shall be responsible for following: • This job is mainly for Production planning and Control of Bicycle components. • Candidate should have worked in SAP environment for PPC....




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Private equity: Twilight for the buyout barbarians

The founding partners of some of the biggest buyout firms are preparing to hand control to a new generation who will face a more forbidding landscape




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My First Million: Victoria Robertshaw, founder Keelham Farm Shop

The farmer’s daughter is ready to take her farm shop business to the nation




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Ciudad del Este: gritty frontier city takes industrial path

Buccaneering centre for business on Brazil border provides haven for outside investors




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Four Beautiful Lehengas From Tara Sutaria’s Fashion Wardrobe Which You Can Opt For Upcoming Wedding

Bollywood actress Tara Sutaria has absolutely impressed us with her multiple talent. Her brilliant acting prowess has definitely left the audience stunned and with her melodious voice, she has won millions of hearts too. Apart from it, the diva




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Coronavirus wrap May 9 | First repatriation flight from London takes off for Mumbai with 326 Indians

Here are the key developments related to Coronavirus pandemic on May 9.




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Allu Arjun’s Icon: Why Did The Stylish Star Choose Pushpa Over The Venu Sriram Directorial

While the fans are eagerly waiting for the updates and the final release of Allu Arjun's Pushpa, the Stylish Star will also be a part of Venu Sriram's Icon. Earlier, it was rumoured that the actor will be taking up the




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Chiranjeevi To Join Hands With Rana Daggubati For KS Ravindra Directorial?

Megastar Chiranjeevi's upcoming film, Acharya and Lucifer remake are undoubtedly going to be one of the biggest Telugu releases. The actor is currently listening to scripts for other projects. Of lately, he has confirmed that he will be working with Meher




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Viraataparvam First Look Out: Sai Pallavi Looks Intense As She Waits Beside A Memorial In The Forest

Sai Pallavi's first look poster from Viraataparvam is finally out on the occasion of her birthday. The director of the thriller movie, Venu Udugula took to his social media handle to unveil the intriguing first look poster of the actress. {image-exi59ufwoaa4r2s-1589007113.jpg




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Here's how Neha Dhupia, Angad Bedi plan to celebrate second marriage anniversary amid COVID-19 lockdown

Angad also said that no matter how angry he gets with his wife, he says nothing can affect the love he has for her.




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The Requiem of Tomás Luis de Victoria (1603) / Owen Rees

Lewis Library - ML410.V63 R4 2019




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Music and Victorian liberalism: composing the liberal subject / edited by Sarah Collins

Lewis Library - ML3917.G7 M88 2019




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Data-based methods for materials design and discovery: basic ideas and general methods / Ghanshyam Pilania, Prasanna V. Balachandran, James E. Gubernatis, Turab Lookman

Online Resource




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Materials engineering, processing, and device application of hydrogel nanocomposites

Nanoscale, 2020, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/D0NR01456G, Minireview
Gi Doo Cha, Wang Hee Lee, Chanhyuk Lim, Moon Kee Choi, Dae-Hyeong Kim
The integration of patterning technologies and functional hydrogel nanocomposites enables their advanced device applications such as sensors, actuators, energy devices, and tissue engineering scaffolds.
To cite this article before page numbers are assigned, use the DOI form of citation above.
The content of this RSS Feed (c) The Royal Society of Chemistry




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Covid-19: Kerala adds two fresh cases in flurry of expatriate arrivals

The Vande Bharat mission of evacuation of expatriates has thrown up two fresh Covid-19 cases in Kerala and added significantly to the list of people u




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Eminent historian Hari Shankar Vasudevan dies

Eminent historian Hari Shankar Vasudevan died at a private hospital here on Sunday. He was 68. Vasudevan had tested positive for novel coronavirus o




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Vizag mishap: NDMA prescribes one week trial-run for all industries

Expert committee evaluating safety of deserted villages






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The Extinction Trials by S.M. Wilson


Stormchaser is a teen who lives in a world ravaged by hunger and disease. Food is scarce, and an illness that starts with the blistering and peeling of one's skin soon leads to death.

In her world, a few dinosaurs still exist. Stormchaser has befriended a plesiosaur she's named Milo. This is a secret she must guard closely because dinosaurs are universally hated.

When the Trials are announced, Stormchaser enters on a whim; she doesn't have a family, doesn't have anyone dying from the plague like the others.

The contest is a deadly one: enter the area of the world known as Piloria, where the dinosaurs are abundant, and retrieve as many dinosaur eggs as possible. The winner will receive health care and food, two things essential in order to survive their daily nightmare.

She's joined on the Trials by Lincoln and Leif, two boys with a lot on the line. As the competition heats up, they must learn to trust each other if they're going to avoid being eaten alive. But as Stormchaser soon learns, you can't really trust anyone in the Extinction Trials and what she finds hiding under the surface of Piloria will change her life forever.

The Extinction Trials is a super fast action adventure that anyone looking for a strong female hero will love. It's got elements of The Hunger Games without a doubt, and that's a good thing because it means it will make my job as a School Librarian all the easier when I promote this book in the coming weeks. And promote it I shall, because it's got some great scenes, fully realised characters and a ton of action. Highly recommended, can't wait for the sequel!




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When an Poltiical Party Uses This Photographer's Material for an Attack Ad, He Strikes Back





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Cholera bacteria infect more effectively with a simple twist of shape

Princeton University researchers have discovered that the bacteria behind the life-threatening disease cholera initiates infection by coordinating a wave of mass shapeshifting that allows them to more effectively penetrate their victims' intestines. The researchers also identified the protein that allows Vibrio cholerae to morph, and found that it's activated through quorum sensing. The findings could lead to new treatments for cholera that target the bacteria's ability to change shape or penetrate the gut.




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Tribune Editorial: We are all guinea pigs now




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Ariana Grande shut down Carole Baskin’s submission for her new song’s music video

thank u, next husband.




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Morrisons recalls Market Street Living Herbs because of possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes

Morrisons has taken the precautionary step of recalling Market Street Living Herbs because the products might contain Listeria monocytogenes.




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Pasquale Amore, who died of COVID-19, was the gregarious patriarch of a large family

Pasquale "Patrick" Amore, 88, had an infectious laugh and a zest for life. He died of COVID-19 at the age of 88.

       




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News24.com | Adriaan Basson: The revolution inside and hope's enduring ambition

We reassessed our hierarchy of needs, and survival always outweighs the rest. To be blunt, we would rather have load shedding than risk dying, writes Adriaan Basson.




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The Bo Xilai Trial and Chinese Politics

26 August 2013

Dr Tim Summers

Senior Consulting Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme (based in Hong Kong)

Scandal and speculation surrounding the demise of Politburo member Bo Xilai raised questions about the stability and cohesiveness of China's political elite. However as his trial comes to an end the main political challenge is not at the elite level, but in the Communist party's ability to gain legitimacy among the wider public. 

The trial of Bo Xilai for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power has generated a number of surprises. To start with, there has been more transparency than most observers had expected, with the court issuing transcripts at regular intervals. Plus, the court used Chinese social media to post images of the proceedings.

This level of transparency is unusual in Chinese trials. However, we should be cautious about seeing this as a precedent for the future development of judicial practice. Bo's case is rather special, both because of the senior positions he held and because of the level of speculation around the case – and Bo's fate – ever since the drama began last February when Wang Lijun, Bo's former police chief in Chongqing, fled to the US Consulate-General in Chengdu. 

Wang, who is already serving a prison sentence after being convicted of abuse of power and other offences, gave testimony at Bo's trial. The exchanges between Bo and Wang will be picked over further, with their salacious details of the arguments that apparently ensued in January 2012 when Wang told Bo that Bo's wife was suspected of murdering British businessman Neil Heywood, in Chongqing the previous November. 

It is highly likely that Bo will be found guilty. Nonetheless, the trial gave Bo the opportunity to put across his views in court. He surprised observers on the first day by retracting confessions he made during the pre-trial investigation process. It is not clear whether this was expected by the prosecutors in advance of the trial, but it contributed to the trial lasting for five days – much longer than expected. 

Result already decided

Most media coverage and comment has focused on the details of the various events, which came out in court. However the political implications lie elsewhere. 

The trial should not be seen in isolation but as the culmination of a process which began in the days after Wang's attempted defection was brought to light. The party's subsequent handling of Bo Xilai proceeded in cautious stages: first the removal from his post as Party Secretary in Chongqing in March last year, then his 'suspension' from the Politburo and Party Central Committee a month later while an investigation was carried out by the party. Only in September 2012 was Bo expelled from the Communist Party and the file handed over to state authorities for prosecution.

This train of events serves as a reminder of the context in which China's judicial system operates. Whatever the transparency of proceedings in court, or the professionalism of judges and lawyers, the party's 'leadership' of judicial work means that politically important cases are often subject to direction from the party apparatus. 

Popular, not elite, politics is at stake

The Bo case has often been presented as a story of turbulence and factional infighting at the top of the party. But in November 2012 the party delivered a clear leadership transition at the top of both party and military from Hu Jintao to Xi Jinping, with the government handover in March this year. With the new team firmly in place, the transparency accorded to Bo's trial demonstrates confidence among the leadership, not division. 

Political challenges lie not at the top of the party, but in the ability of the party leadership to achieve legitimacy among the wider public. The revelations in the Bo case, from last spring and up to and including the trial, have increased levels of public cynicism about the behaviour of senior officials. Posts on China's social media will provide glimpses of the wider response to the trial; popular opinion is likely to be divided – as it was when Bo was still a serving official, and has remained since his removal from office. 

Given that the party seeks to present itself as being 'responsive' to public concerns, the main political implications of the trial will be seen in the impact it has on the leadership's credibility, not in elite politics. It is that imperative, not judicial reform, which explains what we have been allowed to see of the trial. 

To comment on this article, please contact Chatham House Feedback




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Politics in Northern Nigeria: The Impacts of Democratic Transition

Invitation Only Research Event

14 July 2014 - 9:00am to 10:00am

Abuja, Nigeria

Event participants

Dr Leena Koni Hoffmann, Centre for Population, Poverty and Public Policy Studies; Author, Who Speaks for the North? Politics and Influence in Northern Nigeria; ERANDA Junior Research Fellow, Africa Programme, Chatham House (2013)
Chair: Elizabeth Donnelly, Assistant Head, Africa Programme, Chatham House

As Nigeria celebrates one hundred years of unity, significant differences – real and perceived – remain between different parts of the country. This event marks the Nigeria launch of the Chatham House Briefing Who Speaks for the North? Politics and Influence in Northern Nigeria. Its author, Dr Leena Hoffmann, will discuss the effects of democratization and pacted politics on northern Nigeria, broader governance challenges, and how relations among decision-makers nationally have evolved.

Attendance at this event is by invitation only.

Event attributes

External event

Department/project




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Nigeria’s Priorities for Progress: Imperatives for Stability and Inclusive Growth

Research Event

24 July 2014 - 2:30pm to 3:30pm

Chatham House, London

Event participants

Dr Doyin Okupe, Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to the President of Nigeria 

Nigeria’s prospects, with its rise to international prominence as Africa’s largest economy, are tempered by the many development and security challenges the country faces. While essential reforms in the power and agriculture sectors are underway, such efforts are balanced against the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast, significant concerns around youth unemployment, and an increasingly contentious political environment in the run-up to the February 2015 elections. 

Dr Doyin Okupe, Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan, will discuss what steps the presidency is taking to address the country’s most urgent challenges, and how the political environment can be managed to overcome tensions that may impede progress.

Department/project

Christopher Vandome

Research Fellow, Africa Programme
+44 (0) 20 7314 3669




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Beyond Territorial and Resource Disputes: The Future of Geopolitics

Members Event

1 June 2016 - 6:00pm to 7:00pm

Chatham House London, UK

Event participants

Parag Khanna, Author, Connectography: Mapping the Global Network Revolution

Parag Khanna will draw on the themes of his new book, Connectography, to explain how the future of geopolitics lies less in determining national borders and territory but more in controlling infrastructure, supply chains and market access.

Khanna argues that new energy discoveries and innovations have eliminated the need for resource wars, global financial assets are being deployed to build productive infrastructure that can reduce inequality, and regions such as Africa and the Middle East are unscrambling their fraught colonial borders through ambitious new transportation corridors and power grids. He will contend that beneath the chaos of a world that often appears to be falling apart is a new foundation of connectivity pulling it together.

This event will be followed by a reception open to all attendees.
 

Members Events Team




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After Five Bloody Years in Syria, Russia Is Turning Against Iran—and Assad

GAZIANTEP, Turkey—After five years fighting to preserve Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, Russia now appears inclined to dispose of its infamous client. Assad’s persistent brutality and corruption, and his inability to establish even the semblance of a functioning state, has grown to be a burden Moscow would prefer not to bear.And then there’s the problem of Iran. Assad, members of his family, and his Alawite clansmen enjoy close, perhaps unbreakable, bonds to the regime in Tehran and to Iranian-backed militias in Syria. All of which undermines Moscow’s primary mission there: to rehabilitate the Assad regime as a symbol of stability capable of attracting hundreds of billions of dollars of foreign investment for reconstruction, which Russian firms would then be poised to receive. As long as Assad’s relatives continue to function as a mafia and give free rein to Iranian troops using Syria as base of operations to threaten Israel and plan attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq, those countries likely to foot the bill for Syrian reconstruction—the nations of Europe and the Gulf—are unlikely to come up with the cash. Amid Escalating Syrian Carnage, Turkey Shoots Down Assad’s PlanesThis has not gone unnoticed by the United States.“Assad has done nothing to help the Russians sell this regime,”James Jeffrey, the U.S. special envoy for the Coalition to Defeat ISIS, told reporters in a State Department briefing on Thursday. “You find Assad has nothing but thugs around him, and they don't sell well either in the Arab world or in Europe. We have heard repeatedly from Russians we take as credible that they understand how bad Assad is.” The Syrian president’s “refusal to make any compromises” in order to secure diplomatic recognition and acceptance for his regime has jeopardized “hundreds of billions of dollars in reconstruction assistance” for Syria, according to Jeffrey. Yet the Trump administration is unlikely to exploit this growing rift. “Getting Russia out of Syria,” Jeffrey said, “has never been our goal. Russia has been there for 30 years. It has a long-term relationship with Syria. We don’t think it has been healthy for the region. We don’t think it really is even healthy for Russia. But that’s not our policy.”  MEDIA FRENZYJeffrey’s statements come just one week after Russian state media unleashed a slew of reports and editorials targeting Assad, portraying the beleaguered president as hopelessly corrupt and unfit to govern, and suggesting the time had come to replace him with a new leader.The first batch of articles was published by the Russia’s Federal News Agency (FNA), an outlet owned by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Russian oligarch and chairman of several companies implicated in the 2016 U.S. elections scandal. Appearing over the course of a mere three hours on April 17, they would shake Syria to its core. The first of the three articles in question highlighted a corruption scheme carried out by the regime in summer 2019 in which the Syrian prime minister purportedly lied to citizens about oil and gas scarcities in order to justify the occurrence of long power outages while selling Syrian electricity to businessmen in Lebanon. The second piece cited an opinion poll claiming only 32 percent of Syrians would vote for Assad in the country’s upcoming 2021 presidential election. The third and final article, entitled, “Corruption is Worse than Terrorism,” chastized President Assad for personally failing to combat corruption, prevalent at all levels of the state.  That these were published by Prigozhin’s news agency was the kind of signal it would be hard for Assad to miss. Prigozhin, who first built his fortune as a caterer, is sometimes known as “Putin’s chef.” But of particular relevance to Syria is his role as chairman of the Wagner Group, whose mercenaries have fought alongside Assad regime forces since October 2015 and helped the latter take back control of key revenue generating infrastructure such as the al-Sha’ir gas field in Homs province.Deputy Assistant Secretary Christopher Robin told the same State Department briefing Thursday, “Wagner is often misleadingly referred to as a Russian private military company, but in fact it’s an instrument of the Russian government which the Kremlin uses as a low-cost and low-risk instrument to advance its goals.”The article on corruption would also point out, suggestively, that the Assads are not the only powerful family in Syria, “there are also the Makhloufs.”Rami Makhlouf, who is in fact Bashar al-Assad’s first cousin, is Syria’s wealthiest man, and also, it would seem, Russia’s man. Certainly he has strong ties to the Kremlin and for years has been one of the most vocal critics of Iran’s presence in Syria. In July 2018, the al-Watan newspaper, one Syria’s most prominent pro-regime mouthpieces and owned by Rami Makhlouf since 2006, published a then unprecedented public rebuke to Iran, accusing it of sponsoring Islamist fanaticism throughout the Middle East alongside Turkey and Qatar, the main backers of Syria’s opposition. (Rami Makhlouf’s father Muhammad and brother Hafiz meanwhile are alleged by some to be living in Russia.) The April 17 articles published by Prigozhin’s FNA preceded the release of a wave of other articles and items in the media over the next 12 days that would further drive home the point that Moscow was considering options other than Assad to rule Syria. TASS, Russia’s largest state-run news agency, wrote in one editorial that, “Russia suspects that Assad is not only unable to lead the country anymore, but also that the head of the Syrian regime is dragging Moscow towards the Afghani scenario.” This is like evoking the Vietnam War for an American audience, a reference to the Kremlin’s botched campaign through the 1980s that helped bankrupt the Soviet Union and finally break it apart.Amid this coverage, TASS would also take swipes at Iran, claiming that the Islamic Republic has “no interest in achieving stability in the region, because it considers it a battlefield with Washington”.On April 30, the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), a think tank established by Moscow’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, released a scathing report saying Russia was in talks with other parties to the Syrian conflict to draw up plans for a political resolution that did not include Bashar al-Assad as president. The report highlighted purported Russian efforts to compel the Syrian regime to commit to ceasefires with both American-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) opposition, while beginning steps to form a new unity government that would include representatives from both. That day, Rami Makhlouf, whose assets were frozen five months earlier as part of a tax dispute, uploaded a video onto his personal Facebook page accusing the Assad regime of corruption. In a state known for carrying out the full-scale slaughter of those who test its authority, Makhlouf’s videos, coming on the heels of the unprecedented Russian attacks in the media, sent shockwaves throughout the country.  THE ROYAL FAMILYWhile the Makhlouf clan clearly has thrown its lot in with Russia, key members of Bashar al-Assad’s immediate family and others with ties to Qardaha in Syria’s largely Alawite Latakia province, are among the most prominent Iranian-backed militia leaders in Syria. It’s an alliance that traces back to his father Hafez al-Assad, who was born in Qardaha, and who forged ties with the Iranian revolution almost from its beginning more than 40 years ago. The Iranians responded by offering religious legitimacy to the Alawite sect, which is regarded as heretical by Sunnis and indeed by many Shi’a.These Qardaha militia leaders have regularly engaged in armed clashes against Russian backed units. They are among the most egregious violators and abusers of power, overseeing wide networks of corruption similar to those lamented in the Russian media. And foremost among them is Bashar’s younger brother, Maher al-Assad. Since April 2018, Maher al-Assad has commanded the Syrian Army’s 4th Armored Division, one of country’s oldest, best equipped and overwhelmingly Alawite brigades. After the 2011 outbreak of the Syrian revolution, when the loyalty of much of the army was in doubt, it became a refuge for numerous Alawite-Shi’a dominated pro-regime militias.Currently, the 4th Armored Division’s members control many smuggling operations throughout the country, in cities from Albu Kamel on Syria’s eastern border with Iraq to Latakia on the Syrian coast, where the port was leased to Iran on October 1 last year. It has since become one of the biggest export hubs for drugs headed to markets in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Examples abound: On July 5, 2019, Greek coast guard and drug enforcement officials announced the biggest drug bust in history, seizing 5.25 tons (33 million pills) of Captagon amphetamines worth $660m hidden in shipping containers loaded at the Latakia port in Syria. That followed a long string of such seizures made by Greek authorities. More recently, in late April, customs officials in both Saudi Arabia and Egypt also announced the seizure of similar quantities of drugs in containers traced back to Latakia. Local reports have accused a range of actors including Maher al-Assad’s 4th Division, Hizbollah, Rami Makhlouf, and others of profiting from the massive drug exports emanating from the port. In January 2019 the 4th Armored Division launched attacks on the Russian-backed Tiger Forces unit in an attempt to wrest control of smuggling routes between regime- and opposition-held territory in Idlib province. The clashes led to the death of 70 fighters. These and other skirmishes prompted Russia to back a major campaign to arrest 4th Division and other Iranian-backed units throughout the country beginning in April 2019, which succeeded in rounding up numerous mid-ranking Iranian-backed officers. Among those targeted in the campaign was Bashar Talal al-Assad, a cousin to the president (similar name, different people) who was wanted on drug and weapons trafficking charges. Unlike others who were detained in the roundup, Bashar Talal al-Assad and his ‘Areen Brigade managed to fight off Russian-backed forces that sought to arrest him in Qardaha. He then pledged to attack Russia’s Hmeimim military base, located 17 miles east of Latakia city, in the event the regime sought to arrest him again.For Russia, the threat of such attacks on its military infrastructure is a real concern. The Hmeimim base—from which Moscow has directed its entire military campaign in Syria—had already been subject to a series of attacks from January to October 2018 by other Iranian-backed militias in the area. The threat posed by both Iran’s acquisition of the Latakia port and its support for local Assad family proxies in Syria’s coastal region is exacerbated by the fact that Tehran has also begun making progress toward completing construction of its Shalamcha railroad, which, via stops in Basra, Baghdad, Albu Kamel and Damascus, will give Tehran direct access to the Syrian and Lebanese coasts. If Iran succeeds in integrating the Latakia port with the Shalamcha rail line, this will cut off Hmeimim from Russian forces in central and southern Syria and enable Tehran to quickly deliver weapons to proxy forces in Latakia that are already engaged in clashes against Russian-backed groups. WORLDWIDE CONSENSUSMoscow’s inability to control Iranian backed Syrian militiamen engaged in widespread crime, corruption, and assaults on Russian forces has infuriated the Kremlin. But Russia is not the only major player on the ground with scores to settle against Iran, and the Russian military leadership in Syria has ignored if not largely encouraged Israeli strikes on Iranian troops throughout the country.It may not be coincidental that the Israeli attacks have increased in pace and scope since April, following the flurry of Russian media articles attacking Assad and his regime. “We have moved from blocking Iran’s entrenchment in Syria to forcing it out of there, and we will not stop,” Israel’s new defense minister, Naftali Bennett, declared on April 28. Without Russia, Iran has found itself the odd man out in Syria, the single party still seeking to push for war at a time when most other international players have been struck with fatigue and simply seek to put Syria’s pieces back together. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, the last patron of Syria’s battered FSA opposition, has himself made peace with Moscow, effectively agreeing last March to cede control of wide swaths of rebel held territory after a particularly bloody Russian led campaign against the last FSA holdout in Idlib province that ended in victory for regime forces. Ironically, Erdoğan’s long-held desire to overthrow Syria’s president may still come to fruition, albeit not as he expected, as Assad’s ouster may come at the hands of Russia itself, and not the revolution. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.





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Cell-specific expression of the transcriptional regulator RHAMM provides a timing mechanism that controls appropriate wound re-epithelialization [Glycobiology and Extracellular Matrices]

Prevention of aberrant cutaneous wound repair and appropriate regeneration of an intact and functional integument require the coordinated timing of fibroblast and keratinocyte migration. Here, we identified a mechanism whereby opposing cell-specific motogenic functions of a multifunctional intracellular and extracellular protein, the receptor for hyaluronan-mediated motility (RHAMM), coordinates fibroblast and keratinocyte migration speed and ensures appropriate timing of excisional wound closure. We found that, unlike in WT mice, in Rhamm-null mice, keratinocyte migration initiates prematurely in the excisional wounds, resulting in wounds that have re-surfaced before the formation of normal granulation tissue, leading to a defective epidermal architecture. We also noted aberrant keratinocyte and fibroblast migration in the Rhamm-null mice, indicating that RHAMM suppresses keratinocyte motility but increases fibroblast motility. This cell context–dependent effect resulted from cell-specific regulation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) activation and expression of a RHAMM target gene encoding matrix metalloprotease 9 (MMP-9). In fibroblasts, RHAMM promoted ERK1/2 activation and MMP-9 expression, whereas in keratinocytes, RHAMM suppressed these activities. In keratinocytes, loss of RHAMM function or expression promoted epidermal growth factor receptor–regulated MMP-9 expression via ERK1/2, which resulted in cleavage of the ectodomain of the RHAMM partner protein CD44 and thereby increased keratinocyte motility. These results identify RHAMM as a key factor that integrates the timing of wound repair by controlling cell migration.




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Five-year INDECOM Act inertia - Williams, Golding still want prosecutorial powers for commission; DPP, Chuck, cops not sold on idea

Almost five years ago, lawmakers on a bipartisan committee of Parliament agreed unanimously to amend the law to give the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) the power to arrest and prosecute cops. That proposed amendment, which was...




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Gut bacteria regulate nerve fibre insulation

Research suggests that gut bacteria may directly affect brain structure and function, offering new ways to treat multiple sclerosis and psychiatric conditions

Far from being silent partners that merely help to digest food, the bacteria in your gut may also be exerting subtle influences on your thoughts, moods, and behaviour. And according to a new study from researchers at University College Cork, your gut microbes might affect the structure and function of the brain in a more direct way, by regulating myelination, the process by which nerve fibres are insulated so that they can conduct impulses properly.

The surprising new findings, published today in the journal Translational Psychiatry, provide what is perhaps the strongest evidence yet that gut bacteria can have a direct physical effect on the brain, and suggest that it may one day be possible to treat debilitating demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis, and even psychiatric disorders, by altering the composition of the gut’s microbial menagerie in some way or another.

Related: Brain’s immune cells hyperactive in schizophrenia

Related: White matter might matter much more than we thought | Mo Costandi

Continue reading...




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Senate Judiciary Testimony on Immigration Enforcement Priorities and Use of Prosecutorial Discretion

Testimony of Marc Rosenblum before the Senate Judiciary Committee for the December 2, 2015 hearing on priorities for immigration enforcement and the use of prosecutorial discretion. 




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Yellowknife memorial garden hopes to return to 'spectacular glory' with new repairs

The city of Yellowknife is hoping make repairs to a local memorial garden this summer, after it has been the target of vandalism and has fallen into disrepair for a variety of reasons in recent years.



  • News/Canada/North

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AGS awards highest honor to West Health for visionary work to improve geriatric care

For only the second time in its near 80-year history, the American Geriatrics Society will award one of its highest honors typically reserved for individuals to West Health, a family of nonprofit organizations dedicated to lowering healthcare costs to enable older adults to successfully age in place.




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Research reinforces the idea of embracing nonantibiotic approaches to treat bacterial infections

As interest in the application of plasma medicine -- the use of low-temperature plasma created by an electrical discharge to address medical problems -- continues to grow, so does the need for research advancements proving its capabilities and potential impacts on the health care industry.




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Ravi Zacharias

Ravi Zacharias (date: 5/10/2020 - Rank: 6)




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Report: Memorial to allow fans and use technology to ensure social distancing

The Memorial could be the first PGA Tour event to reopen with fans, and people on the course grounds will be wearing badges equipped with chip technology to ensure social distancing.




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Sowing among Syrians in Turkey

OM worker joins a new Arabic-speaking ministry among Syrians in Turkey.




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Trans-Siberian adventure!

OM Russia's short-term outreach team travels across Russia sharing about Christ with as many travellers as possible.




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To Russia with love - a Trans-Siberian adventure

A team member from the USA who participated in a short-term trip on the Trans-Siberian railroad across Russia shares her experience.