Dog Escapes New Home, Embarks On A 64-Km Journey Back To Former Owners

They say there is ''No love like a dog's love.'' Exemplifying the same, a golden retriever, whose owners were forced to give him up, escaped his new home and embarked on a 40-mile journey back to his former address.

According to a Metro report, the dog named Cooper leapt out of the car soon after arriving at his new home in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It then vanished for almost a month and covered an estimated 40 miles (64km) to Tobermore, County Londonderry, back to its original owners.

Missing pets charity Lost Paws NI said they received a tip-off on April 22 that the canine had been seen in a number of fields and hanging around by properties. Five days later, another caller reported seeing Cooper running towards his old house. They said the dog walked alone through back woods and along main roads, moving mostly at night, without any help from humans.

A spokesperson for Lost Paws NI, said, ''Cooper is a clever boy. Instinct took him back to a place he was familiar with. How he did it, I'll never know but he managed it. No food, no shelter, no help, just dogged determination and that incredible nose.

"We had searched in place, day and night and we had tracked him back to a spot where we lost him again but now we know he was almost back in the area where he'd started before he was given to the dog pound. Cooper crossed main A-roads, forests, fields, country roads all over 27 days to make his way back home from an area he had never been in before. We are absolutely delighted to have been part of his rescue and a story that.''

New owner Nigel Fleming said Cooper is ''safe now'' and ''eating small meals to build up his strength and put some weight back on slowly.''

Mr Fleming added, ''Even when he was missing, my faith in humanity was restored thanks to the incredible help I was offered, and today with him here by my side and with Molly, I don't really have the words to explain the gratitude I feel.''

A spokesman for Lost Paws NI said, ''Cooper is settling in well to his new home life with his sister and is enjoying some home comforts.   We visited him several days ago when he was caught and he was cuddled up by the fire, comfortable and loved.  I'd like to comment that his new owner Nigel is one of the most dedicated owners we've had the pleasure of meeting. Nigel never stopped fighting, never stopped asking for advice, and never stopped filling the food bowls every time we were on the move. This story is one about positivity, perseverance, loyalty, battling for what you want in life and never giving up.''

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Soviet Fashion Icon "Red Dior" Dies Aged 85: Report

Vyacheslav "Slava" Zaitsev, the couturier behind world-famous Soviet fashion that was often adorned with colourful Russian folkloric motifs, died on Sunday at age 85, Russian news agencies reported.

Born into a working-class family in 1938, Zaitsev's first international recognition came in 1963 when the French Paris Match magazine wrote about his collection of overalls for female workers, according to a note posted on the website of his fashion house.

The RIA news agency reported that the bright, flowery jackets and skirts of the collection were rejected by the Experimental Clothing Factory for which Zaitsev worked.

The French press nicknamed him "Red Dior" in the 1960s.

In 1965, he began working as the artistic director of the experimental All-Union House of Fashion Models in Moscow, and some of his designs, which often implemented flowery traditional Russian patterns, were displayed in the West.

In 1969, the Museum of Modern Art in New York hosted a show of women's dresses based on sketches by Zaitsev, among others. After the show, Zaitsev received offers to open stores in the West, which the Soviet authorities rejected.

In 1979, Zaitsev left the All-Union House of Models for a small atelier, which by 1982 he turned into the Slava Zaitsev Moscow Fashion House, becoming the first Soviet designer allowed to label his clothing.

Among Zaitsev's Russian clients were music stars, actors, socialites and politicians.

The patronage of Raisa Gorbacheva, the wife of the last Soviet Union leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, elevated his international fame in the 1980s.

He also counted the former wife of President Vladimir Putin, Lyudmila, as his client.

"I was incredibly lucky that at the beginning of my conscious life I decided, thank God, what to strive for, who I should be," Zaitsev wrote in a note on his website. "Thank God, I found the meaning of life in search of Harmony and Perfection through means of the Highest art of clothing, art of painting and graphics, photography ... in life, poetry."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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At Least 18 Dead As Bus Falls Off Cliff In Mexico

At least 18 people were killed and 33 injured when a bus fell off a cliff in western Mexico, local authorities said Sunday.

The prosecutor's office in Nayarit, the state where the accident occurred, said the vehicle fell some 15 meters (49.21 ft) down a ravine on Saturday night, on a highway that connects state capital Tepic and the tourist destination of Puerto Vallarta.

"From the first moment, we have worked in a coordinated manner with the various federal and state authorities to provide immediate attention to victims," the prosecutor's office said in a statement shared on Twitter.

Authorities reported that 11 women and seven men were killed. At least 11 minors have been transferred to hospitals for medical attention. 

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Suspected ISIS Chief Killed In Syria: Turkey President

The "suspected leader" of the ISIS has been killed in Syria in an operation carried out by Turkey's MIT intelligence agency, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday.

"The suspected leader of Daesh, codename Abu Hussein al-Qurashi, has been neutralised in an operation carried out yesterday (Saturday) by the MIT in Syria," he announced on television, using the Arabic acronym for the ISIS.

The ISIS announced the death of its previous chief, Abu Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, on November 30, replacing him with Abu Hussein al-Qurashi.

An AFP correspondent in northern Syria said Turkish intelligence agents and local military police, backed by Turkey, had on Saturday sealed off a zone in Jindires, in the northwest region of Afrin.

Residents told AFP that an operation had targeted an abandoned farm that was being used as an Islamic school.

Turkey has deployed troops in northern Syria since 2020, and controls entire zones with the help of Syrian auxiliaries.

The United States carried out a helicopter raid in northern Syria in an operation in mid-April, saying the ISIS had been planning attacks in Europe and the Middle East.

US Central Command said they had killed Abd-al Hadi Mahmud al-Haji Ali of the ISIS in the operation.

Suspected ISIS terrorists killed at least 41 people, 24 of them civilians, on April 16 in Syria.

In the first week of April, the US forces said they had killed an ISIS leader responsible for planning attacks in Europe, naming him as Khalid Aydd Ahmad al-Jabouri.

When it was at the height of its power, controlling swathes of Iraq and Syria, the ISIS claimed responsibility for a series of attacks in Europe.

In October 2019, Washington announced it had killed ISIS's Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in an operation in northwestern Syria.

Despite having been driven out of much of the territory it once controlled, the ISIS still launches attacks in Syria.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Man Arrested At US Airport For Carrying Titanium Vampire Straw

A 26-year-old passenger was arrested for carrying a self-defence titanium weapon known as a 'Vampire Straw' through the security check at Boston's Logan International Airport, as per a report in Independent. 

The Massachusetts authorities discovered the same and subsequently confiscated the weapon from the man's carry-on luggage. The picture of vampire straw, which resembles a dagger, was shared in a tweet from Transportation Security Administrator Dan Velez on Monday. He said in the caption, "This is a Vampire straw. These items are not allowed in passenger carry-on bags. A passenger found that out yesterday @BostonLogan when @MassStatePolice confiscated the item and eventually arrested the 26-year-old man on a state charge. #travelfail"

This is a Vampire straw. These items are not allowed in passenger carry-on bags. A passenger found that out yesterday @BostonLogan when @MassStatePolice confiscated the item and eventually arrested the 26-year-old man on a state charge. ??‍♂️?? #travelfail pic.twitter.com/8TGQYP93c7

— TSA_NewEngland (@TSA_NewEngland) April 24, 2023

As per the outlet, Chicago resident Arman Achuthan Nair was arrested on Sunday night and accused of possessing a dangerous weapon after a 10-inch titanium straw with a "bevelled end" was discovered in his backpack. The drinking straws are referred to as a "weapon" on the website of knife merchant Szaboinc.com. "Designed for self-defense, the Vampire straw is super tough and long enough to be used like a dagger; its chiselled tip is sharp enough to puncture most synthetic materials," the site added. 

The titanium vampire straw priced at $85 (Rs 6,900) is promoted on the Szabo website. The straw "enables the user to drink any thick shake or smoothie effortlessly," according to the product description. "The Vampire straw's dimensions make it the most comfortable straw to use; it's length and wide gauge allows the user to drink effortlessly any thick shake or smoothie. The Vampire straw is also long enough to drink from any long beverage can," reads the website. 

The straw is "designed for self-defence" and is "super tough and long enough to be used like a dagger," according to the website. The company claims that every 10-inch straw is produced to order in the United States.

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Barack Obama, Steven Spielberg Surprise Staff At Barcelona Restaurant

Former US President Barack Obama, along with film director Steven Spielberg and singer Bruce Springsteen, surprised the staff members at a Barcelona restaurant, as per a report in The Guardian. 

The employees at Amar restaurant in Barcelona were left in shock on Thursday night as the trio walked in. Chef Rafa Zafra claimed that renowned Spanish-American restaurant Jose Andres had recommended the restaurant to them.

"They came recommended by José Andrés, who has a very close relationship with Obama," Mr Zafra told a radio station Cadena SER, as per the outlet. The chef stated that Mr Andres had informed the 44th President of the US that a reservation at the restaurant was essential. He further added that a reservation was just hours prior to their visit. 

"Jose Andres called me and told me that it was a very important table, but that we should please not say anything. And of course, I began to investigate and saw that Obama was coming, that Bruce had a concert.." Mr Zafra told Cadena SER, as per the outlet. 

He then understood that both Mr Spielberg and Mr Obama were in the city to attend a Springsteen concert along with the former first lady Michelle Obama. 

"We gave them oysters, shellfish and fish from Roses, my classic - the caviar bikini - a little bit of everything... and super grateful!" Mr Zafra continued telling the outlet.

The chef stated that the security detail had asked the employees not to ask for pictures. "The security people told us to please not ask them for photos, but just before leaving, Obama entered the kitchen and told us that this had been one of their best meals and if they could take a photo with the whole team." 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Pol Perello Franch (@pol_perello)

An employee of the restaurant, Pol Perello Franch, took to Instagram to share the now-viral photo. He wrote in the caption, "Pleasures that this job gives you!! Great night."

According to The Guardian, Barack and Michelle Obama visited a few of Barcelona's iconic cultural locations on Friday, including the Sagrada Familia and the Moco Museum. According to photos and videos shared online, the Obamas walked hand in hand through the city while being closely guarded by their security officers and occasionally waving at the crowd.

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Indian-Origin Man Convicted Of Killing US Teens Who Played Doorbell Prank

An Indian-origin has been found guilty of killing three teenage boys who played a doorbell-ringing prank at his house in the US state of California, according to a media report.

Anurag Chandra, a Riverside County resident, was found guilty of three counts of attempted murder and three counts of first-degree murder on Friday, the New York Post reported.

The incident took place on January 19, 2020, when a group of teenage boys rang Chandra's bell on a dare, the report added.

Chandra said that one of the teens flashed his buttocks before running away.

The crash killed all three teenagers who were 16 years old, it said.

Chandra, who drank 12 beers the day of the crash, said he was “extremely, extremely mad” at the prank and claimed he was worried about his family's safety.

He followed the boys and rammed their Toyota Prius off the road, which slammed into a tree in Temescal Valley.

The suspect testified that he did not plan to crash into the boys' car, according to the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

Chandra also said he did not stop after rear-ending their vehicle because he did not think anyone had been injured.

The driver, who was 18 years old, survived, along with two 13-year-old passengers.

Chandra is already facing charges in connection with a domestic violence incident in 2020 before the fatal crash.

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Elon Musk Changes Twitter's Parental Leave Policy: Report

Twitter's Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has made a number of changes to the platform and the policies of the company since taking over the reins last year. The latest change is the reduction of parental leave from 20 weeks - roughly 140 days - to just 14 days, according to internal company documents cited by New York Times. 

The change will affect employees who work in those states in the US that do not have a paid leave policy. 

"New: Twitter used to offer employees 20 weeks of paid parental leave. That's being changed to whatever is required by law in the region where the employees work, along with a "top up" of two weeks of leave, per internal docs," NYT reporter Kate Conger said in a tweet. 

As per a report in New York Post, there is no federal law in the United States mandating paid parental leave. The Family and Medical Leave Act, however, allows for "unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons'' for up to 12 weeks for certain employees. However, it is to be noted that there are 12 states that provide paid family and medical leave of some kind. Employees are permitted to take up to eight weeks of paid leave in California under state law. Both New York and New Jersey permit up to 26 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in addition to 12 weeks of paid leave.

Several people bashed the billionaire for reducing the leave as it will give mothers a little time to rest, recover and spend time with their newborns in many US states. 

"So let me get this straight... as an ex-Tweep who lives in MO - a state that doesn't require employers to give any time off - I would only get 2 weeks under this new policy? Also, how does this not breach the acquisition deal of protecting benefits for 1 year after close?" said a user.

"Shame on Twitter. Only two weeks of paid parental leave?! This is not the way," commented a second person.

A third person added, "As someone who got to take advantage of Twitter's 20 weeks for parental leave, i can say that being with my family during that time was a profoundly meaningful experience. Taking it away is _extremely_ sh****."

"This is how gender pay gap is entrenched. A woman now has the option of either returning to work two weeks after giving birth or taking a long, unpaid break from work. 20 weeks of paid parental leave minimizes that," noted another user.

"Only a company facing bankruptcy does this," said a person.

Another user added, "You can't be obsessed with declining birthrates and then incentivize your employees to not have children."

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"Being Taken Captive By Russia Would Be A Disgrace": Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky carries a pistol and would have fought to the death with his inner circle had the Russians attacked his Kyiv headquarters at the start of the war, he said in an interview shown on Saturday.

"I know how to shoot. Could you imagine (a headline like) 'The President of Ukraine is taken captive by Russians?' This is a disgrace. I believe this would be a disgrace," he told the 1 1 television channel.

In the first days after the February 24, 2022 invasion, Ukrainian officials said Russian intelligence units tried to break into Kyiv but were defeated and failed to reach Bankova Street in the centre, home to the presidential offices.

Other Russian units launched an attack on the outskirts of Kyiv, but were unable to advance. Officials also reported several unsuccessful sabotage attempts inside the city.

"I think if they had gone inside, into the administration, we would not be here," Zelensky said. It was not clear which Russian units he was referring to.

"No one would have been taken prisoner because we had a very seriously prepared defence of Bankova Street. We would have been there to the last," he said.

Asked whether he carried a pistol and practised using it, he replied that he did, while dismissing a suggestion he might have used it to kill himself rather than be captured.

"No, no, no. It's not (to shoot) myself. To shoot back, surely," he said.

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US Asks China To Stop "Provocative And Unsafe" Acts In South China Sea

The United States called on China Saturday to stop "provocative and unsafe conduct" in the disputed South China Sea after a recent near-collision with a Philippines coast guard boat there, ramping up rhetoric ahead of a visit by the Filipino president to the White House.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, in a statement two days before President Joe Biden is to host his Philippine counterpart Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said the incident was a reminder of China's "harassment and intimidation" of Philippine vessels in the contested waterway.

"We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct," he said, adding that any attack on Philippine armed forces would trigger a US response.

Joe Biden has been working to bolster relations with Asian allies as the US-Chinese relationship remains in a historically deep chill, and the Philippines' proximity to key sea lanes and Taiwan gives it particular strategic importance.

The near-miss Sunday off the Spratly Islands was the latest in a long string of maritime incidents between China and the Philippines.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, ignoring an international ruling that the assertion has no legal basis.

- A near-miss -

AFP was one of several media outlets that witnessed the incident after journalists were invited to join two Philippine Coast Guard boats on a six-day patrol of the waters, visiting a dozen islands and reefs.

The Philippine vessels approached Second Thomas Shoal, known in China as Ren'ai Jiao, in the Spratly archipelago.

As one boat, the BRP Malapascua, which was carrying Filipino journalists, neared the shoal, a Chinese Coast Guard vessel more than twice its size sailed into its path.

AFP journalists watched the incident from the other Philippine Coast Guard boat, which was less than a kilometer (0.6 miles) away.

The Malapascua's commanding officer said the Chinese ship came within 45 meters (50 yards) of his boat and only his quick actions avoided the steel-hulled vessels crashing into each other.

The Chinese foreign ministry said Friday that the Philippine boats had "intruded" without China's permission and called it a "premeditated and provocative action."

- Manila pushes back -

But Manila hit back, saying that "routine patrols in our own waters can be neither premeditated or provocative" and insisting they will continue to conduct the patrols.

The near-miss came just a day after Marcos hosted Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang for talks in Manila aimed at defusing tensions in the waterway.

Marcos has insisted he will not let China trample on the Philippines' rights in the sea, and has gravitated toward the United States as he seeks to strengthen defense ties.

Early this month, the Philippines identified four additional military bases -- in addition to five existing sites -- to which US forces will have access, including one near the Spratly Islands.

The two countries also carried out their biggest ever military maneuvers in recent weeks.

This shift has alarmed China, which has accused Washington of trying to drive a wedge between Beijing and Manila.

- 'Ironclad commitment' -

US-Philippine ties were badly frayed under Marcos's predecessor, the authoritarian Rodrigo Duterte.

Marcos has sought to allay public fears that the reviving alliance with the US could bring the Philippines into the conflict if China were to invade Taiwan.

He has said that with Biden he will discuss the "need to tone down the rhetoric" over the South China Sea, Taiwan and North Korea.

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier in the month that Biden intended, in the meeting with Marcos, to "reaffirm the United States' ironclad commitment to the defense of the Philippines."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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US H-1B Visa Lottery System Resulted In Abuse, Fraud, Says Federal Agency

The computerised drawing of lots devised to select successful H-1B applicants every year has resulted in abuse of the system and a sharp increase in fraudulent efforts, a federal agency said on Friday.

In an unusual statement, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on Friday said, based on evidence from the Financial Year 2023 and Financial Year 2024 H-1B cap seasons, it has already undertaken extensive fraud investigations, denied and revoked petitions.

USCIS said it is in the process of initiating law enforcement referrals for criminal prosecution.

"The H-1B programme is an essential part of our nation's immigration system and our economy, and the USCIS is committed to implementing the law and helping meet the ever-changing needs of the US labour market," it said.

"We are working on an upcoming H-1B modernisation rule that will propose, among other improvements, bolstering the H-1B registration process to reduce the possibility of misuse and fraud in the H-1B registration system," it added.

USCIS said during the registration period for the FY 2024 H-1B cap, it saw a significant increase in the number of registrations submitted compared to prior years.

It said there were 780,884 applications for H-1B visas in this year's computer-generated lottery, against 4,83,927 in 2023 and 3,01,447 in 2022 and 2,74,237 in 2021.

Generally, it saw an increase in the number of registrations submitted, the number of registrations submitted on behalf of beneficiaries with multiple registrations, and the number of registrations submitted on behalf of unique beneficiaries with only one registration.

The number of registrations tied to people who applied more than once rose to 408,891 this year from 165,180 last year and 90,143 the year before, it said.

The federal agency warned that if the information provided by an applicant or a company was not correct, it will find the registration to not be properly submitted and the prospective petitioner would not be eligible to file a petition based on that registration.

The USCIS may deny a petition, or revoke a petition approval, based on a registration that contained a false attestation and was therefore not properly submitted.

"Furthermore, USCIS may also refer the individual or entity who submitted a false attestation to appropriate federal law enforcement agencies for investigation and further action, as appropriate," it said.

A group of US Tech Workers, who are campaigning against the H-1B visas, said it has spoken about such a fraud for the past several years.

"The Trump administration had proposed a fix to the H-1B lottery by prioritising selection based on highest wages. You sued the administration so now you have to deal with the fraud that you are complaining about," it said in a statement.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Pak Listed In 15 Worst Countries Under Enormous Debt Stress: Report

Amid its mounting external debt, Pakistan is listed among the 15 countries globally which are under enormous debt stress, Business Recorder reported.

Economic and financial analyst Ateeq ur Rahman said Pakistan needs to get rid of such circumstances as soon as possible.

Apart from the external debt, the government is facing soaring domestic borrowing costs due to ballooning high policy rates, which remain in the negative territory at 21 per cent, the report noted.

The analyst feared that borrowing costs would rise even further.

He mentioned that Pakistan's external financing need for fiscal year 2024 is about US 40 billion dollars whereas Pakistan has external debt repayments amounting to USD 30 billion (including interest payments). Hence Pakistan's current account deficit is always dwindling, reported Business Recorder.

Pakistan financing options beyond June 2023 are highly uncertain and hard, he said.

Pakistan can be placed amongst the 45 per cent of low-income countries at high risk of debt stress and a country facing borrowing at very high-interest rates, reported Business Recorder.

He said, "This is a real crunch; it looks as if the country continues to brace financial shortages without any solutions. We need to cut down our expenses at all levels and practice simplicity at every nook and corner of our dealings."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Cash-Strapped Pakistan Urges US To Restore Military Financing, Sales

Cash-strapped Pakistan urged the United States to restore military financing and sales, which was earlier suspended by Former America President Donald Trump, according to Dawn.

Addressing the seminar in Washington, Pakistan's envoy to US Masood Khan, on Thursday said, "It is important that the US restores, for Pakistan, Foreign Military Financing and Foreign Military Sales, suspended by the previous administration."

Since the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the US-Pakistan relationship has been stuck in a prolonged period of uncertainty. And, now with the rivalry between US and China, Pakistan's relations with America have strained and also damaged the country's deteriorating economy.

US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Elizabeth Horst, who was also at the event, focused on the need to help rebuild the troubled Pakistani economy and urged Islamabad to work with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to do so, reported Dawn.

"The reforms that Pakistan and the IMF agreed to are not easy," she said, adding, "But it's crucial that Pakistan take these actions to bring the country back to sound financial footing, avoid falling into further debt, and grow Pakistan's economy."

Washington asks Islamabad to implement 'tough reforms' agreed with IMF

Recently, the increase in high-level diplomatic engagements and dialogues gave Pakistan a ray of hope again with regard to repairing the strained ties with the US.

The half-day conference at Wilson Centre, Washington, focused on how the US-Pakistan relationship can be crafted against the backdrop of multiple challenging developments.

Responding to a question, Ambassador Khan said Pakistan placed its first order for Russian oil and did so in consultation with the US government, Dawn reported.

He also spoke about the role Pakistan can play in bringing stability to Afghanistan.

"Afghanistan's stability is imperative, first and foremost, for its own people who have suffered grievously over the past four decades," Dawn quoted Khan as saying.

Noting that the United States and China were both concerned about the growth of terrorism in Afghanistan, he said: "Let's work together to eliminate this threat. Today it is a threat for Pakistan and Afghanistan; if unchecked, it will spread to other parts of the region and beyond."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Twitter To Take 10% Cut On Content Subscriptions After 12 Months

Twitter Inc CEO Elon Musk said on Friday that the social media platform will take a 10% cut on content subscriptions after the first year, as the company looks to monetize content on the website in a bid to diversify its revenue sources.

Earlier this month, billionaire owner Musk said users of the social media platform will be able to offer their followers subscriptions to content, including long-form text and hours-long video.

He had also said that the company will not take a cut for the first 12 months on content subscriptions.

Musk has been bringing in changes at Twitter to boost revenue after the platform saw advertising income drop last year in the run up to his $44 billion acquisition that closed in October.

He added that the company's cut from subscriptions on iOS and Android platforms will drop to 15% in the second year from 30% in the first.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Russian Strikes Kill 26 Including 5 Children In Central Ukraine

Russian strikes battered cities across Ukraine on Friday, killing 26 people including five children, as Kyiv said preparations for a counter-offensive against Moscow's forces were nearly complete.

The deadly new attacks included a strike on a residential block in the historic city of Uman in central Ukraine, where AFP journalists saw rescue workers extracting victims' remains from a destroyed residential building.

The barrage of almost two dozen missiles overnight ended a weeks-long pause following the repeated Russian strikes that had aimed to paralyse Ukraine's energy grid during the winter months.

On Friday evening, workers in Uman, the site of an annual Hasidic pilgrimage, pulled the body of another child from under the rubble. Authorities said Russian cruise missiles killed 23 people -- including four children -- in Uman.

"I want to see my children, they are under the rubble," Dmitry, a 33-year-old local from Lugansk, an eastern city under Russian control, said earlier in the day.

Rescuers were using cranes to search for survivors among the remains of the multi-storey housing block in the central city of 80,000 inhabitants.

"I've seen a lot, but I haven't lost my children before. Now I want to see my children alive or dead," Dmitry said.

Russian missiles also hit the central city of Dnipro, already grief-stricken after a January strike on a tower block that killed more than 40 people.

Authorities said the strikes in Dnipro killed a 31-year-old woman and her two-year-old daughter in their sleep.

The young woman's parents were hospitalised.

"Neighbours say that it was a quiet and kind family," regional authorities said.

Separately, authorities in the southern region of Kherson said on Friday evening that Russian forces shelled the village of Bilozerka, killing a 57-year-old woman and wounding another three.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the latest barrage and vowed a response.

"Only absolute evil can unleash such terror against Ukraine," he said in his evening address.

His advisor Mykhaylo Podolyak tweeted: "If you don't want THIS spread around the world, then give us weapons. Lots of weapons. And add sanctions."

Moscow said it had targeted reserve units of the Ukrainian military and that "all assigned objects were hit."

Moscow-installed officials in eastern Ukraine said that Ukrainian shelling had killed nine people, including an eight-year-old girl in the city of Donetsk.

- 'We are ready' -

There were no reported casualties in Kyiv, which was among the cities targeted Friday.

The capital had not been hit by missiles in more than 50 days, although last week it was attacked by 12 Iranian-made drones, eight of which were shot down without causing any casualties.

Ukraine said overall it had downed 21 of 23 Russian missiles and two attack drones.

The country's air defence system has been bolstered in recent months by the delivery of Western equipment crucial to the country's war effort.

The new strikes came as Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said his country's preparations to push back against entrenched Russian positions were almost complete.

NATO allies and partners have provided Ukraine with 1,550 armoured vehicles and 230 tanks to form units and help it retake territory from Russian forces, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.

"Equipment has been promised, prepared and partially delivered. In a global sense, we're ready," Reznikov said.

Kyiv has said throughout the war launched by Russia in February 2022 that it is intent on repelling Moscow's forces from territory they control in eastern and southern Ukraine.

"Preparations are coming to an end," Reznikov added of the planned offensive.

- 'Only way to survive' -

"As soon as there is God's will, the weather and the decision of the commanders -- we will do it."

Most of the fighting has been focused on the eastern Donbas region, particularly the city of Bakhmut, which has been almost completely destroyed.

Several Ukrainian soldiers told AFP that tough clashes in Bakhmut involved not only members of mercenary group Wagner but also Russian special forces.

Not far from Bakhmut, Alex, 34, said the situation was difficult.

"We lack soldiers, we have many wounded, and also dead," he said.

"Sometimes in the trenches, you have to hide behind a corpse," he said. "It's the only way to survive."

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said on Friday he had paid a rare visit to the embattled city and vowed Moscow would rebuild it.

In need of allies to support its drawn-out war effort, Moscow has cultivated its relationship with China.

The leaders of Ukraine and China spoke by telephone this week, with Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly advocating peace talks.

Xi and Zelensky's discussion on Wednesday was met by Russian accusations that Ukraine was undermining efforts to end the fighting.

Zelensky said Friday he had asked Xi to help bring back Ukrainian children deported by Russia.

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US Confiscates Iran Oil Cargo On Tanker Amid Tensions: Report

The U.S. confiscated Iranian oil on a tanker at sea in recent days in a sanctions enforcement operation, three sources said, and days later Iran seized another oil-laden tanker in retaliation, according to a maritime security firm.

As oil markets remain jittery, the cargo seizure is the latest escalation between Washington and Tehran after years of sanctions pressure by the U.S. over Iran's nuclear program. Iran does not recognise the sanctions, and its oil exports have been rising.

Tehran says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes while Washington suspects Iran wants to develop a nuclear bomb.

Maritime security company Ambrey said the U.S. confiscation took place at least five days before Iran's action on Thursday. "Ambrey has assessed the seizure by the Iranian Navy to be in response to the U.S. action," it said in an advisory to clients.

"Both tankers were Suezmax-sized. Iran has previously responded tit-for-tat following seizures of Iranian oil cargo."

The sources familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue, said Washington took control of the oil cargo aboard the Marshall Islands tanker Suez Rajan after securing an earlier court order. The tanker's last reported position was near southern Africa on April 22, ship tracking data showed.

The vessel's Greece-based manager, Empire Navigation, and the U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The U.S. Navy said Iran seized a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, the latest seizure or attack by Tehran on commercial vessels in sensitive Gulf waters.

Iranian state TV said on Friday the tanker ignored radio calls for eight hours following a collision with an Iranian boat, which left several crewmen injured and three missing.    "Before using force, we tried to call the vessel ...to stop but they did not cooperate," Iranian deputy navy commander Rear Admiral Mostafa Tajodini told the broadcaster.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was aware of the Gulf of Oman seizure and reaffirmed support for international maritime law, a U.N. spokesperson said on Friday.

Last year the U.S. tried to confiscate a cargo of Iranian oil near Greece, which prompted Tehran to seize two Greek tankers in the Gulf. Greece's supreme court ordered the cargo returned to Iran. The two Greek tankers were later released.

In a step likely to exacerbate tensions, 12 U.S. senatorson Thursday urged President Joe Biden to remove Treasury Department policy hurdles that have prevented the Department of Homeland Security from seizing Iranian oil shipments for more than a year.

In 2020, Washington confiscated four cargoes of Iranian fuel aboard foreign ships that were bound for Venezuela and transferred them with the help of undisclosed foreign partners onto two other ships which then sailed to the U.S.

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Watch: Donald Trump Mocks 'Stumbling' Rival Joe Biden, Vows To "Crush" Him

Draped in a colorful campaign banner and wearing an oversize "God, Guns and Trump" medallion around her neck, Angela Wilkinson insisted at a political rally that her hero will oust Joe Biden from the White House next year.

Just two days after Biden launched his 2024 reelection bid, his likely Republican opponent Donald Trump descended on early-voting New Hampshire Thursday to energize supporters and boost their confidence that he can reclaim the job he lost to the veteran Democrat.

Many including Wilkinson, a 48-year-old insurance agent who drove several hours from the northeasternmost state of Maine to see Trump speak, said at the rally in a Manchester hotel ballroom that they were relishing the prospect of another Biden-Trump showdown.

"A rematch? There wasn't even a match to begin with" back in 2020, an exasperated Wilkinson said, alluding to largely debunked claims of election fraud she and others repeated at the event.

"But bring it on," Wilkinson, hand on one hip, said with a grin. "Because Biden is going to get annihilated. And for sure we're not going to have any election meddling" in 2024.

New Hampshirite native Anne-Marie O'Neil agreed. "I don't like Biden," and "there should be a rematch," said the 63-year-old licensed nursing assistant.

Asked whether she was prepared for a bruising battle which could feature Trump campaigning while under a shadow of legal worries, O'Neil didn't flinch: "I have the stomach for anything."

'He's a fighter'

Trump arrived in New Hampshire with bad news weighing on his campaign.

This week a woman writer testified in a New York court that Trumped raped her in the mid-1990s.

His vice president Mike Pence appeared Thursday before a grand jury investigating the 2001 US Capitol riot by Trump supporters.

And earlier this month Trump appeared before a judge to face indictments related to hush-money payments he made to a porn star just before the 2016 election.

Still, the MAGA base refused to be distracted by the barrage of legal challenges.

"It pushes him forward, he's a fighter," O'Neil said. "They've been after Trump since Day 1."

And Trump reminded his audience as much, recounting a series of old grievances -- the 2020 election was "rigged," Democrats are "weaponizing" the subpoena process, the "corrupt global establishment" is aligning to defeat him once again.

I love @realDonaldTrump
Nobody can do what he does, NOBODY!!!
?????????
JUST IN ? Donald Trump mocks Biden by appearing to get lost at the stage pic.twitter.com/5D8n4G3JEH

— Fletch17 (@17ThankQ) April 28, 2023

His fans cheered wildly though when Trump, himself 76, mocked his 80-year-old Democratic rival, imitating a lost or stumbling elderly man and then pledging: "We're going to crush Joe Biden."

The brash billionaire also recounted a greatest hits of talking points in his more than 90-minute address.

He said, among other things, that he is the only candidate who "will prevent World War III," illegal immigration has made the United States a "dumping ground for the entire world," and that the United States is now, under the Biden administration, run by "stupid people."

'Like a zombie'

Despite an eye-popping $787.5 million payout by conservative-leaning Fox News to settle a lawsuit claiming the network willfully aired Trump's false claims including accusations of election fraud, his supporters in Manchester insisted much of what was deemed conspiracy theories by critics was actually true.

"I don't believe he lost the election at all," said Maureen Anderson, 43, from neighboring Massachusetts. "I think he won in a landslide, you know?"

One supporter, a Vietnamese American in his late forties who identified himself as Tin Tran, was decked out in a cowboy hat and a suit that read "ReTrumpbution Now" in gold letters down the back.

He expressed fears that Trump was facing a corrupt Democratic team that would do anything to keep the Republican leader out of the White House.

"They're going to steal the election again!" he said with a loud flourish as Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U" played on the rally's audio system.

Biden is "like a zombie, so easy to control him behind the scenes," Tran added.

While Mike Osene and his wife Anne, both 45 and from Connecticut, expressed less radical views about the race, and conceded that Trump lost in 2020, they both were optimistic about challenging Biden once again.

"If there is a rematch, I think Trump will wipe the floor with him," Mike Osene said.

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Two US Army Helicopters Crash During Alaska Training Flight

Two US Army attack helicopters crashed while on a training flight in Alaska on Thursday, the military said, the second such incident in less than a month.

The AH-64 Apache helicopters "crashed today near Healy, Alaska, returning from a training flight. First responders are on the scene. The incident is under investigation and more information about the incident will be released when it becomes available," the US Army's 11th Airborne Division said in a statement.

It wasn't immediately clear the condition of those involved in the crash.

The accident followed a similar incident in late March in which two US Army Blackhawk helicopters crashed during a training flight in Kentucky, killing all nine soldiers on board.

There have been multiple other crashes of US military aircraft in recent years, including another involving a Black Hawk that killed two Tennessee National Guardsmen during a training flight in Alabama in February.

Four US Marines were killed during NATO exercises in Norway last year when their V-22B Osprey aircraft went down, possibly after hitting a mountain, investigators said.

And two US Navy pilots were rescued after their T-45C Goshawk jet crashed during a training exercise in a residential neighborhood near Fort Worth, Texas in 2021. The pilots ejected before the plane went down.

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Oldest Convicted Nazi Camp Guard Dies Aged 102 While Awaiting Appeal

Josef Schuetz, the oldest Nazi to have ever been prosecuted for Holocaust crimes, has just died at the age of 102. Last year, he was found guilty of crimes committed during the Holocaust.

Between 1942 and 1945, while serving as a prison guard in the Sachsenhausen camp in Oranienburg, north of Berlin, Josef Schuetz was found responsible for at least 3,500 murders as an accessory. He was the oldest person ever to be found guilty of participating in atrocities during the Holocaust as a result of the verdict.

It had always seemed unlikely that Schuetz would ever go to jail, as he remained free while awaiting the outcome of an appeal.

Schuetz had expressed no regret during his trial and pleaded innocent, saying he did "absolutely nothing".

After the war, Schuetz was transferred to a prison camp in Russia before returning to Germany, where he worked as a farmer and a locksmith.

More than 200,000 people, including Jews, Roma, regime opponents, and gay people, were detained at the Sachsenhausen camp between 1936 and 1945.

Tens of thousands of inmates died from forced labour, murder, medical experiments, hunger, or disease before the camp was liberated by Soviet troops, according to the Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum.

Germany has been scrambling to bring former Nazi war criminals to justice since a landmark ruling in 2011 paved the way for several trials.

One former guard, John Demjanjuk, was convicted on the basis that he served as part of Hitler's killing machine, even though there was no proof he had directly killed anyone.

Since then, several former concentration camp workers have been found guilty of being accessories to murder on the same basis.

However, with time running out, several cases have been abandoned in recent years after the accused died or were physically unable to stand trial.

(With inputs from AFP)

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UN Security Council Demands Taliban 'Swiftly Reverse' Women Bans

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution Thursday calling on the Taliban to "swiftly reverse" all restrictive measures against women, condemning in particular its ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations.

The resolution, unanimously adopted by all 15 Council members, said the ban announced in early April "undermines human rights and humanitarian principles."

More broadly, the Council called on the Taliban to "swiftly reverse the policies and practices that restrict the enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights and fundamental freedoms."

It cited access to education, employment, freedom of movement, and "women's full, equal and meaningful participation in public life."

The Council also urged "all States and organizations to use their influence" to "promote an urgent reversal of these policies and practices."

The body stressed "the dire economic and humanitarian situation," and the "critical importance of a continued presence" of the UN mission in Afghanistan and other UN agencies.

"The world will not sit by silently as women in Afghanistan are erased from society," United Arab Emirates' ambassador to the UN Lana Zaki Nusseibeh said.

But despite his country's vote in favor of the resolution, Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzia criticized the text, saying it did not go far enough, blaming the West.

"We seriously regret and are disappointed that steps and a more ambitious approach and texts were blocked by Western colleagues," he said.

"If you're so sincere, why not return the assets you've stolen from the country and without any preconditions," he said, referencing the $7 billion in Afghan central bank assets frozen by the United States after the Taliban took over the country in 2021.

In September, the United States announced the creation of a fund based in Switzerland to manage half the money.

The United Nations announced on April 4 that the Taliban had banned Afghan women from working for UN offices countrywide, a prohibition that had previously spared NGOS.

The move sparked opprobrium from the West and a United Nations review of the world body's Afghanistan operations, which is to last until May 5.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is organizing a meeting in Doha next week with envoys from various countries to "reinvigorate the international engagement around the common objectives for a durable way forward on the situation in Afghanistan."

Since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021, it has reverted to its austere interpretation of Islam that marked its first period in power from 1996 to 2001.

A slew of restrictions on Afghan women have included banning them from higher education and many government jobs.

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Barack Obama To Spotlight In New Netflix Documentary. Watch Trailer

Barack Obama will be back in the public view next month, in a Netflix-produced documentary series whose trailer was released Thursday, in which the former US president explores the role of work in Americans's lives.

"I'm excited to share the trailer for 'Working,'" Obama tweeted.

"In this series, I talk to American workers across various industries – from hospitality and technology to home care – to understand their jobs and hopes for the future," he added.

I'm excited to share the trailer for Working. In this series, I talk to American workers across various industries – from hospitality and technology to home care – to understand their jobs and hopes for the future. I hope you'll check it out on @Netflix on May 17. pic.twitter.com/GNQPns6Mzf

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 27, 2023

In the series entitled "Working: What We Do All Day," Obama takes on hot topics such as the appeal of certain jobs, repercussions of the development of artificial intelligence and even the quest for finding meaning at work.

His approach was inspired by the book "Working" by Studs Terkel (1912-2008), an influential figure of the American left.

Obama, who left office in 2017, employs his famous speaking voice to narrate the series, which will "explore ways to find meaning at work, and to create a bond through the experiences and the difficulties," the US streaming giant said on its site.

The series was produced by Concordia Studio and Higher Ground, a production company founded by Obama and Michelle Obama, in 2018, which bought distribution rights to the Oscar-winning 2019 documentary "American Factory," which also looked at the culture of work within the United States.

The documentary series will be broadcast from May 17 on Netflix.

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Tech Company Dropbox Slashes 16% Of Workforce Amid "Slowing Cloud Growth"

Cloud storage provider Dropbox Inc said on Thursday it would reduce its global workforce by 16% to cut costs amid slowing cloud growth, and instead hire new talent to build its AI offerings.

San Francisco, California-based Dropbox is the latest tech company to tap AI as Big Tech players from Microsoft Corp to Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc battle for a slice of the fast-growing market with new products and offerings.

Dropbox's chief executive officer, Drew Houston, said the company's core cloud business growth was slowing as challenges from the economic downturn put pressure on customers, making some of its profitable investments no longer sustainable.

At the end of 2022, the company had 3,118 full-time employees, of which 2,583 were located in the United States.

The company said it had shifted some employees from one team to another to focus on its AI projects, but would need more talent with a different mix of skill sets, particularly in AI and early-stage product development.

"We've been bringing in great talent in these areas over the last couple years and we'll need even more," Houston said in a memo to staff.

"The AI era of computing has finally arrived ... The opportunity in front of us is greater than ever, but so is our need to act with urgency to seize it."

Houston is also on the board of Meta Platforms, which said on Wednesday AI was helping it boost traffic to Facebook and Instagram and earn more in ad sales.

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Argentina Says It Will Pay For Chinese Imports In Yuan Instead Of Dollars

Argentina will pay for Chinese imports in yuan instead of US dollars in order to preserve its dwindling foreign reserves, Economy Minister Sergio Massa said on Wednesday.

The South American country will be able to "program a volume of imports in yuan worth (the equivalent of) more than $1 billion from next month," Massa said at a meeting in Buenos Aires with China's ambassador Zou Xiaoli.

This would "replace" the use of Argentina's US dollar reserves.

Argentina's government on Tuesday accused the country's rightwing opposition of fueling a dramatic erosion of the peso against the dollar, and ordered an investigation.

The peso stood at 227 to the dollar at the official exchange rate Tuesday, but reaching more than double that on the parallel "blue" market.

The slide started last week after several days of pressure on the peso in a period of pre-election uncertainty in a country with exchange controls in place to limit the effects of a financial crisis and rampant inflation of more than 100 percent year-on-year.

Economist Maria Castiglioni told the TN broadcaster the devaluation was partly the result of Argentines seeking "refuge" in the US dollar to protect their purchasing power.

Massa said the decision to pay in yuan "improves the perspective of Argentina's net reserves."

It also "allows us to maintain the level of activity, the volume of imports, the pace of trade between Argentina and China and the levels of economic functioning that Argentina needs" following a poor year for domestic agriculture, and thus exports, amid persistent drought.

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Biden Downplays Age Concerns After Launching Re-Election Bid

Joe Biden on Wednesday addressed the elephant in the room of his 2024 re-election bid: the fact that he is already the oldest ever president  and would be 86 when he stepped down if he wins.

The veteran Democrat rarely talks about his age.

But polls show it's a matter of overwhelming concern for voters -- and one his Republican opponent will weaponize.

At a press conference Wednesday, the day after the low-key launch of his campaign via video, the 80-year-old president said it was normal for people to ask questions.

He admitted he'd thought hard about the issue himself.

"I respect them taking a hard look at it. I'd take a hard look at it as well – I took a hard look at it before I decided to run," he said.

Biden, speaking alongside South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in the White House Rose Garden, said he was confident about what is likely to be a grueling election battle, all while working in one of the world's most demanding jobs.

"I feel good, I feel excited about the prospects," he said. "People are going to find out. They are going to see a race and they are going to judge whether I have it or don't have it."

Biden tried joking, saying "I can't even say I guess how old I am. I can't even say the number -- it doesn't register."

- Trump's insults -

Gentle jokes about how long he has been around -- serving as a senator for 36 years and vice president to the younger Barack Obama for eight -- are usually the only way Biden discusses the age question.

Voters, however, are not laughing.

An NBC News poll released last weekend found that 70 percent of Americans, including 51 percent of Democrats, believe he should not run in 2024. And 69 percent of all respondents who said he shouldn't run cited concerns over his age as a major or minor reason.

If re-elected, Biden would be 82 when he took office for a second term in January 2025. The previously oldest president was Ronald Reagan, who was 77 when he completed his second term in 1989.

Biden seems driven to keep going not just because that's what first term presidents always do but from a sense of historic mission to stop Donald Trump, whom he defeated in 2020, from coming back.

Trump is currently the overwhelming frontrunner for the Republican nomination, despite being the subject of multiple legal cases -- the latest hearing this week was on a rape allegation in a New York court -- and his role in trying to overturn the 2020 election.

When Biden challenged Trump in 2020, the Republican savaged him over his age, deriding him as "Sleepy Joe" and offering up crude insults about his mental state. The attack will certainly return, likely in new intensity, if Trump wins his party nomination.

Asked Wednesday if he considered himself the only person who could defeat Trump, Biden said: "I may not be the only one, but I know him well, and I know the danger he presents to our democracy and we've been down this road before."

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Biden Says Nuclear Attack By North Korea Would Result In "End Of Regime"

President Joe Biden and his South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk Yeol warned North Korea it would face a nuclear response and the "end" of the leadership there if Pyongyang uses its own arsenal.

Speaking at the White House after Oval Office talks during only the second state visit so far in the Biden presidency, the two leaders said the US security shield for South Korea was being strengthened in the face of the nuclear-armed North's aggressive missile tests.

And they made clear that if the isolated, communist dictatorship in North Korea attacks the South or the United States, the response will be devastating.

"A nuclear attack by North Korea against the United States or its allies... will result in the end of whatever regime were to take such an action," Biden told reporters at a joint press conference with Yoon.

Yoon said his priority was to secure peace through "superiority of overwhelming forces and not a false peace based on the goodwill of the other side."

"In the event of a North Korean nuclear attack," he said, Washington and Seoul have agreed to "respond swiftly, overwhelmingly and decisively using the full force of the alliance including US nuclear weapons."

A military honor guard and hundreds of guests massed outside the White House where Yoon and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, arrived for a day of pomp and ceremony. They were due to wind up proceedings with a lavish state dinner in the historic East Room.

- 'Washington Declaration' -

Yoon and Biden issued what was titled the Washington Declaration, bolstering the US nuclear umbrella over South Korea, which is increasingly nervous about the saber-rattling in the north.

"President Biden has reaffirmed his ironclad commitment to extended deterrence towards the Republic of Korea," Yoon said.

This will include a mechanism for the two countries to share information and consult in event of a North Korean attack, even if US commanders will still retain full control on the nuclear weapons. It will also see more integration of South Korea's conventional military with US nuclear forces.

A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the new arrangement as an echo of moves last seen when Washington oversaw the defense of Europe against the Soviet Union.

"The United States has not taken these steps, really, since the height of the Cold War with our very closest handful of allies in Europe. And we are seeking to ensure that by undertaking these new procedures, these new steps, that our commitment to extended deterrence is unquestionable," the official said.

US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, stressed that there are no plans to station nuclear weapons in South Korea -- a difference from the Cold War, when US strategic weapons were deployed to Europe.

In addition, Seoul reiterated its pledge in the declaration not to seek its own nuclear arsenal.

- Nuclear sub -

The US official said initial steps would include "regular deployment of strategic assets, including a US nuclear ballistic submarine visit to South Korea, which has not happened since the early 1980s."

In addition to submarines, there will be a "regular cadence" of other major platforms, "including bombers or aircraft carriers," the official said, emphasizing however that there will be "no basing of those assets and certainly not nuclear weapons."

A US official said that steps are being taken in advance to defuse potential tensions with Beijing over the tougher military posture.

"We are briefing the Chinese in advance and laying out very clearly our rationale for why we are taking these steps," the official said, adding that the Biden administration is "disappointed that China has been unprepared to use its influence" on North Korea.

Yoon will address a joint session of Congress on Thursday and have lunch with US Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. On Friday, he will visit MIT and Harvard University in Boston, before returning home on Saturday.

On Tuesday, Yoon and Biden visited the Korean War Memorial, which features life-sized steel statues of US soldiers marching during the 1950-53 war against the communist north.

Yoon also laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery and joined Harris for a tour of a NASA facility near Washington.

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Brazil Court Suspends Telegram Messaging App In Neo-Nazi Probe

A Brazilian court on Wednesday ordered the countrywide suspension of messaging app Telegram after its parent company failed to provide data sought by authorities on neo-Nazis operating on the network, officials said.

In the framework of a probe into neo-Nazi activity on social networks, the court fined Telegram a million reais (about $198,000) per day for "not complying," and ordered the "temporary suspension of (its) activities," Justice Minister Flavio Dino said in a video sent to journalists.

"There are groups called 'Anti-Semitic Front' and 'Anti-Semitic Movement' acting in those networks, and we know that this is at the core of violence against our children," he added, in reference to a recent spate of attacks in schools.

Earlier this month, a man carrying a hatchet killed four children between the ages of four and seven at their school in the same week as two other, non-fatal school attacks.

Last month, a 13-year-old boy killed a teacher in a knife attack at a school in Sao Paulo.

And last November, a 16-year-old shooter killed four people and injured more than 10 others in twin attacks on two schools in Aracruz in the southeastern state of Espirito Santo.

The G1 news portal, citing police sources, reported the teenager had allegedly interacted with anti-Semitic groups on Telegram.

According to a document from the federal justice authority in Espirito Santo, investigators had asked Telegram for the personal data of members of two stated anti-Semitic groups on the platform.

The company handed over only data on the administrator of one of the groups, said the document, adding there was "intent by Telegram not to cooperate with the ongoing investigation."

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Jair Bolsonaro Denies Role In Brazil Capital Riots

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday denied all involvement in anti-government riots by his supporters in January as he appeared before federal police.

The far-right leader is being investigated for his alleged role in masterminding and instigating the riots that sought the overthrow of his successor, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Bolsonaro, who returned to Brazil in late March after spending three months in the US state of Florida, was questioned for more than two hours at the federal police headquarters in Brasilia, but left in a vehicle with tinted windows without speaking to reporters.

Shortly afterward, Bolsonaro's spokesman Fabio Wajngarten told the press that the former president had "repudiated all the unfortunate events that happened in Brasilia" on the day of the riot.

One reason the investigation was launched was because two days after the riot, Bolsonaro shared a video to social media of a prosecutor contesting the validity of Lula's victory.

Bolsonaro's lawyer Paulo Bueno said the president had been under the effect of medication and had just been admitted to hospital when he shared the video.

"The sharing was so accidental that he did not mention it afterward and soon deleted it," said Bueno after the hearing.

Lula, who previously led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, narrowly beat Bolsonaro in a fractious, divisive election last October.

Thousands of Bolsonaro's supporters stormed Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace in Brasilia on January 8, a week after Lula took office.

In scenes reminiscent of the January 6, 2021 riots in Washington by supporters of ex-president Donald Trump -- Bolsonaro's political role model -- they trashed offices, smashed windows, vandalized artworks and called for the military to intervene to oust Lula.

Some 1,800 people have been arrested.

- Numerous investigations -

Bolsonaro left Brazil for Florida on December 30, two days before he was due to hand over the presidential sash to Lula.

On January 13, Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes opened an investigation into Bolsonaro's alleged involvement in the January 8 rampage, in which rioters easily broke through a security cordon.

A parliamentary committee of inquiry is due to be set up soon in Congress to shed light on the events of January 8.

Former army captain Bolsonaro was previously interviewed by police on April 5 in relation to an accusation that he tried to illegally import millions of dollars worth of jewelry gifted by Saudi Arabia.

A source close to the former president told AFP that he denied that accusation.

Bolsonaro is the subject of at least 16 other investigations in which, if found guilty, he could be sentenced to prison or disqualified from politics.

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ISIS Leader Behind 2021 Kabul Airport Bombing Killed By Taliban: US

The Taliban have killed an Islamic State militant who was the "mastermind" behind a suicide attack at Kabul's international airport in 2021 that killed 13 U.S. troops and scores of civilians during the United States' chaotic evacuation from the country, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.

The bombing occurred on Aug. 26, 2021, as U.S. troops were trying to help Americans and Afghans flee in the chaotic aftermath of the Taliban's takeover, and compounded America's sense of defeat after 20 years of war.

"He was a key ISIS-K official directly involved in plotting operations like Abbey Gate, and now is no longer able to plot or conduct attacks," White House spokesperson John Kirby said in a statement, referring to the Abbey Gate entrance to the Kabul airport where the blast occurred. He did not name the official.

The Afghan affiliate of Islamic State, known as Islamic State Khorasan or ISIS-K, after an old name of the region, is an enemy of the Taliban. Fighters loyal to Islamic State first appeared in eastern Afghanistan in 2014 and later made inroads in other areas.

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Turkey's Erdogan Cuts Off Live TV Interview, Cites Health Issues

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday interrupted a live television interview before returning and apologising, saying he had developed a stomach bug.

The 69-year-old Turkish leader on Tuesday gave three campaign speeches heading into a knife-edge parliamentary and presidential election on May 14.

He was due to close out the night by appearing live for a joint interview with Ulke TV and Kanal 7.

However, his television appearance began more than 90 minutes behind schedule and then cut off in the middle of a question ten minutes into the show.

The camera shook and the reporter asking the question stood up from his chair when the broadcast cut off.

"Oh wow," an unidentified voice could be heard saying off camera.

Erdogan returned about 15 minutes later to apologise for getting sick.

"Yesterday and today were hard work. That's why I got a stomach flu," Erdogan said.

"At one point, I wondered if it would be misunderstood if we cancelled the programme. But we promised. I ask for your and our audience's forgiveness."

His face looked tired and his eyes appeared to water as he spoke.

The Turkish leader then took a few more questions before ending the broadcast.

Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted party have dominated Turkish politics for the past 20 years.

But the campaign is posing one of Erdogan's toughest challenges of his mercurial rule.

Polls show him running neck-and-neck or losing to opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

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British American Tobacco Fined For Violating North Korea Sanctions

British American Tobacco has agreed to pay more than $600 million to settle charges it sold cigarette materials to North Korea for years in violation of US sanctions, the US Justice Department announced Tuesday.

In the most severe action ever taken by US authorities against a company for breaking North Korea sanctions, BAT's Singapore subsidiary also agreed to plead guilty to felony charges of bank fraud and sanctions-breaking.

The Justice Department said that over 2007-2017, BAT operated a web of front and shell companies to supply North Korea cigarette makers.

The company knew it was violating sanctions placed on Pyongyang over its development of nuclear weapons, US officials said.

In 2007, BAT's Standing Committee, including top company executives in London, approved the scheme "due to concerns over its public association with North Korea and difficulty remitting profits out of the country," the US Treasury said in a statement.

- Selling to NKorea's embassy -

Besides trading with North Korea, the BAT operation routed dollar payments from trade through US banks, masking the origins of the funds, according to the charges.

BAT's Singapore subsidiary "maintained control over all relevant aspects of the North Korean business," the Justice Department said.

And even though BAT moved to pull out of the setup in 2016 due to increasing international sanctions on Pyongyang, it continued to sell cigarettes to North Korea's embassy in Singapore in 2017, US officials said.

"British American Tobacco and its subsidiary engaged in an elaborate scheme to circumvent US sanctions and sell tobacco products to North Korea through a corporate cutout in Singapore," said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen.

"This is the single largest North Korean sanctions penalty in the history of the Department of Justice, and the latest warning to companies everywhere about the costs and the consequences of violating US sanctions," said Olsen.

- Deep regrets -

The Justice Department put the full figure at $629 million; BAT said it was $635 million, without explaining the difference.

The company, which has already set aside $540 million to cover the settlement, said it would have no impact on its financial guidance to investors for 2023.

"We deeply regret the misconduct arising from historical business activities that led to these settlements, and acknowledge that we fell short of the highest standards rightly expected of us," said BAT chief executive Jack Bowles.

The company said it ended its activities with North Korea in 2017.

The United Nations imposed sanctions on North Korea after Pyongyang staged a nuclear test in 2006, with the United States unilaterally imposing even stronger restrictions on trade with the country.

- Separate NKorea tobacco ring targeted -

The Justice Department meanwhile issued an indictment for North Korean banker Sim Hyon-Sop and Chinese nationals Qin Guoming and Han Linlin for an operation they ran to acquire leaf tobacco for North Korean cigarette makers.

Dubai-based Sim worked with the others to route the trade and payments through a number of New Zealand, UK and Dubai-registered companies.

Their operations involved processing at least $74 million in payments through the US banking system, violating sanctions.

Meanwhile North Korean manufacturers brought in some $700 million as a result of the trade, according to an indictment.

The indictment noted that North Korea's tobacco industry is known for exporting large amounts of counterfeit cigarettes under popular brand names like Marlboro and Mild Seven, earning large amounts of foreign exchange.

The US State Department offered a $5 million reward for Sim and $500,000 each for Qin and Han.

If caught and convicted, they face up to 30 years in prison for bank fraud.

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Brazil's Lula Says Russian Invasion Of Ukraine "Unacceptable"

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva criticized the Russian invasion of Ukraine on Tuesday, but said no one is talking about peace in what he called an "insane war."

Speaking during a visit to Spain, Lula said he is committed to finding a peace formula to end the conflict.

"I understand the European view of this war. It is unacceptable that one country invades another, but it is a war in which I do not see anyone talking about peace," he said in speech at a business conference.

Lula angered many in the West this month when he called for the U.S. and European allies to stop supplying arms to Ukraine saying they were prolonging the war, prompting a White House spokesperson to accuse him of "parroting Russian and Chinese propaganda."

After the backlash, the Brazilian leader toned down his comments and on a visit to Portugal and Spain he has condemned Russia's violation of Ukraine's territorial integrity.

In Spain, Lula again called for more peace efforts "so that Ukraine can keep its territory", backtracking a recent suggestion that the invaded country needs to make concessions to end the war and Russia should return recently invaded territory but could keep Crimea.

Lula talked about investments by Spanish companies in Brazil, mentioning a major infrastructure program to be launched in May that will be "promising" for Spain's firms.

"We want to attract a new wave of Spanish investments," he told the business audience.

A senior Spanish government official said his country's companies are expected to gain better access to public procurement in Brazil after Lula's visit to Madrid.

Brazil and other members of the Mercosur trade bloc are discussing concluding a trade agreement with the European Union that he hopes will happen before the end of the year, Lula said.

"We want a balanced agreement that will contribute to the re-industrialization of Brazil," he said, reinforcing his view of his country's need for technology and not just imported manufactured goods.

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2 Iranian Actresses Charged For Not Wearing Headscarves: Report

Iran has charged two prominent actresses for publishing pictures of themselves flouting the country's dress code for women, just weeks after announcing a crackdown on breaches, local media reported.

Police in Tehran have referred the case against Katayoun Riahi and Pantea Bahram to Iran's judiciary, accusing them of "the crime of removing the hijab in public and posting photos on the internet", the Tasnim news agency said late Monday.

If prosecuted, the pair could face fines or prison terms.

Earlier this month police said they would begin using "smart" technology in public places to crack down on women defying Iran's compulsory dress code.

Last week, photos of Bahram, 53, went viral after she posed without a headscarf at a film screening, while Riahi, 61, posted several photos taken in public places around Tehran in which she did not wear a headscarf.

The requirement for women to wear the headscarf in public was imposed shortly after the Islamic revolution of 1979.

The number of women in Iran defying the dress code has increased since a wave of protests following the September 16 death in custody of Kurdish-Iranian Mahsa Amini, 22, for allegedly breaching it.

On April 16, authorities said they had closed 150 commercial establishments whose employees were not complying with the dress code.

Ms Bahram and Ms Riahi have won several awards at Iran's leading cinema event, the Fajr International Film Festival.

In November, Ms Riahi was released on bail after more than a week's detention for posting photos to Instagram in solidarity with the Amini protests, showing herself without a headscarf.

She was the first Iranian actress to post such images on social media in support of the protest movement.

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Scotland Cops Stop To Find A Car Full Of Heroin, Cocaine. And Also A Lamb

Cops in Scotland were left scratching their heads after they found a little lamb inside a car carrying 10,000 pounds (Rs 10,17,400) worth of drugs, Metro reported. The incident occurred on Sunday when Police Scotland stopped a car on a motorway near Glasgow and made the bizarre discovery. 

A police dog Billy sniffed out the drugs, and the police found heroin with an estimated value of 7,000 pounds and cocaine worth around 3,000 pounds. Two men, and a woman, were arrested and charged with drug offences.

Later, Police Scotland joked about the situation on social media, saying that the car was ''not a Lamborghini.'' They also shared pictures of the lamb sitting on the back seat along with a bag of chips, and also a positive drug test.

They tweeted, ''Oh, ewe! Officers from #GlasgowRP stopped this vehicle (not a Lamborghini!) on the #M74 J3 NB yesterday. In addition to this wee fella, roughly £10k in Class A drugs were recovered with assistance from @PSOSDogs. The driver was further arrested for failing the roadside swap for cocaine.''

See the image here:

Oh ewe! Officers from #GlasgowRP stopped this vehicle (not a Lamborghini!) on the #M74 J3 NB yesterday. In addition to this wee fella roughly £10k in Class A drugs were recovered with assistance from @PSOSDogs. Driver further arrested for failing the roadside swap for cocaine. pic.twitter.com/K2HItyaVN9

— Road Policing Scotland (@PSOSRoads) April 23, 2023

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Officers in Glasgow have seized drugs with a potential value of 10,000 pounds from a vehicle on the M74 northbound. Around 18:10 BST on Saturday, 22 April, 2023, officers stopped a car on the M74 northbound carriageway, near junction 3.

The three occupants of the vehicle were arrested and a search of the car was carried out with assistance from the dog unit. PD Billy entered the car and indicated drugs were present. Two men, aged 52 and 53, and one woman, aged 38, were arrested and charged with drugs offences. They have been reported to the procurator fiscal."

According to Metro, the lamb has been taken in by a local farmer. Meanwhile, the cops are trying to find out how the animal ended up in the car in the first place.

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2 FlyDubai Officials Banned From Kathmandu Airport Over Bird-Hit Rumours

Nepal's civil aviation authority on Tuesday banned two managers of the FlyDubai airline from entering the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) "for spreading rumours of a bird-hit" involving an aircraft of the Gulf-based airline.

The FlyDubai aircraft, which took off from Kathmandu airport on Monday with 168 people on board and developed a problem in one of its engines, landed safely in Dubai on Tuesday morning.

The Kathmandu-Dubai flight of FlyDubai encountered a problem while taking off at 9.20 PM on Monday. The aircraft made a round in the sky of Kathmandu and reached the sky in Dhading district located in the West of Kathmandu.

The pilot later informed the air traffic controllers at the Kathmandu airport that the problem had been resolved, and the aircraft headed towards its destination, Dubai.

The aircraft had a problem with one of its engines and part of the aircraft caught fire. After checking all the indicators the pilot found no further problem with the engine, it flew towards the destination, where it landed safely.

Despite an engine problem, the aircraft flew towards its destination. But the official page of FlyDubai claimed that the aircraft was hit by a bird.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) rejected the claim, saying the aircraft didn't encounter a bird hit during the incident. CAAN has taken action against two of the managers of FlyDubai.

"As the two managers of the FlyDubai spread rumour that there was a bird hit involving the Kathmandu-Dubai flight, action has been taken against the country manager and airport manager of the FlyDubai," the CAAN said in a statement.

According to CAAN, the two managers of the FlyDubai have been banned from entering the airport and their airport passes have also been deactivated.

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Climate Activists Glue Themselves To Roads, Block Traffic In Berlin

BERLIN - Scores of climate activists glued themselves to roads across Berlin, blocking rush hour traffic and enraging some drivers on Monday.

Passersby shouted at the protesters from the "Letzte Generation" (Last Generation) group who stuck their hands to the tarmac and sat in rows across busy intersections in a bid to press the government to do more against climate change.

One man ran at a line of campaigners before he was pushed over by police, then helped to his feet and told to calm down.

A video shared by the campaign group on Twitter showed another man dragging two activists, one of them apparently by her ponytail, to the side of a road. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of that footage or when or where it was taken.

"This is just unbelievable, does everyone have to suffer because of them ... It's chaos everywhere, the whole city is in chaos, just lock them up!," said one passerby called Ali as he watched police carrying protesters off the A100 highway.

The group said it wanted the federal government to submit a detailed plan on how Germany can meet a target of limiting temperature increases to 1.5 Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.

"We no longer accept that the government has no plan to stop the destruction of our livelihoods. We're resisting now!" Last Generation activist Carla Rochelin said in an emailed statement.

Police said they detained around 200 people in 35 locations across the capital. Officers watched over protest sites and used swabs to free the activists' palms from the tarmac.

The protests comes less than a month after campaigners failed to get enough votes in a referendum that would have forced the city administration to bring in measures to be climate neutral by 2030.

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UK Plans To Ban Drivers Under Age 25 From Giving Their Friends A Lift

In a bid to cut down the number of car crashes, the United Kingdom government is soon planning to ban young drivers from giving a lift to their friends in their vehicles, the Independent reported. As part of the suggested restrictions, new drivers under the age of 25 would not be able to take any young passengers in the car for the first 6 months to a year of driving.

The proposal will be considered by Richard Holden, the roads minister, at a meeting on May 16 and might be introduced as part of a "graduated driving licence" scheme. The scheme could be implemented via the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act, which imposes a probation period on new drivers who get their licence revoked if they get six penalty points within two years of passing.

It comes following a campaign by a woman whose 18-year-old daughter was killed in a car crash after taking a lift with a friend who had passed her test four months earlier. The driver, 18, was also tragically killed. Another teenager in the back seat survived the crash with serious injuries.

Speaking about her campaign, 52-year-Sharron Huddleston told the Sunday Times, "It has left a huge, gaping hole in our family. Every Christmas, every birthday, it is just devastating. There is nothing I can do to bring Caitlin back but I am determined, in her memory, to ensure that no other family goes through the pain and agony that we go through every day.''

She is also scheduled to meet the roads minister next month regarding her campaign. Additionally, Radd Seiger, a crisis consultant who secured justice for the family of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, will also attend the meeting. 

According to road safety charity Brake, one in five drivers crash within a year of passing their test. It also added that new drivers carrying passengers of a similar age are four times as likely to die in a crash than those driving alone. Young drivers make up only six per cent of total licence holders in the UK but they account for over one in five fatal and serious crashes.

Other countries like Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and some US states also have introduced similar schemes for people who have only recently passed their test.

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