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Mr. De Niro said that Mr. Trump had engaged in a “coward’s violence” after the 2020 election. The news conference was the sort of thing the Trump campaign would have done from the beginning if the political situation were reversed. The Biden campaign has rarely discussed that case or the verdict against Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump has sought to tie together all four of his pending criminal cases and has argued baselessly that Mr. Biden is behind them all. Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesman, said the Biden campaign was “making a political mockery” of the criminal case with its appearance.

Persons: Donald J, Biden’s, Biden, Robert De Niro, Harry Dunn, Michael Fanone, Trump, De Niro, ”, surrogates, Trump’s, —, Jean Carroll, Carroll, The Biden, “, Mr, “ We’re, ” Michael Tyler, Jason Miller, De, Steven Cheung, Karoline Leavitt Organizations: U.S . Capitol Police, Mr, Capitol Police, Biden Locations: Manhattan, Trump’s Manhattan, Georgia

After first ignoring former President Donald J. Trump’s criminal trial, then beginning to make sly insinuations about how he was “free on Wednesdays,” the court’s day off, President Biden’s campaign has jumped in with a stunt designed to emphasize the unprecedented situation of a major party’s presidential candidate awaiting a felony verdict. The Biden campaign on Tuesday held a news conference outside the Manhattan courthouse with Robert De Niro, the actor whose voice narrates the campaign’s latest ad, as well as Harry Dunn and Michael Fanone, two former U.S. Capitol Police officers who have attacked Mr. Trump over his role in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Mr. De Niro said that Mr. Trump had engaged in a “coward’s violence” after the 2020 election. “He directs the mob to do his dirty work for him,” he said. The news conference was the sort of thing the Trump campaign would have done from the beginning if the political situation were reversed.

Persons: Donald J, Biden’s, Biden, Robert De Niro, Harry Dunn, Michael Fanone, Trump, De Niro, ” Organizations: U.S . Capitol Police Locations: Manhattan

☆ South Africa, With Elections, Is Becoming Something New - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-28 | by ( William Shoki | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

On an overcast April day in South Africa’s administrative capital, Pretoria, President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered a lackluster speech commemorating the end of white-minority rule in South Africa. On several occasions, the former South African president Jacob Zuma proclaimed that the A.N.C. would rule “until Jesus comes back.” Now Mr. Zuma is hoping to unseat the party that enabled his notorious graft. The party’s emergence is one of the many morbid symptoms in South Africa today. Thirty years on from apartheid’s end, South Africa is in the midst of another complex transformation.

Persons: Cyril Ramaphosa, Nelson Mandela, Ramaphosa’s, Jacob Zuma, “, Jesus, Zuma, uMkhonto, —, ’, Ramaphosa Organizations: African National Congress, South, Mr Locations: South Africa’s, Pretoria, South Africa, South

☆ Opinion: Alito’s second red flag
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-26 | by ( Kirsi Goldynia | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

This is not the first time Alito has found himself in hot water over displaying a controversial flag on his property. The upside-down flag, a signal of distress, was adopted by Trump supporters who believed the false claim that the election had been stolen. (Alito said his wife had raised the upside-down flag in response to a disagreement with a neighbor. The discovery also comes at a time when the Supreme Court will be making a decision about Trump’s claims of sweeping presidential immunity, his get-out-of-jail-free card for the federal cases he faces. “The notion that the Supreme Court can be trusted to be an arbiter above partisan politics has suffered major blows in recent years.

Persons: ”, Scott Peck, Samuel Alito, “, Alito, Joe Biden’s, Trump, Julian Zelizer, Walt Handelsman, Michael J, Broyde, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Donald Trump, ‘, ’, ” Nikki Haley’s, Nikki Haley’s, Nikki Haley, Haley, Nancy Pelosi, She’s, Joe Biden ‘, I’ve, ” Clay Jones, Drew Sheneman, Judge Juan Merchan, Robert Costello, Michael Cohen, Norm Eisen, Costello, ’ Merchan, cautioning, …, Eisen, Sunak, Rishi Sunak, Henry Nicholls, Holly Thomas, Sunak —, Thomas, Joel Pett, Adolf Hitler, Ruth Ben, Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Said Ben, Anna Sauerbrey, Sauerbrey, Biden, America —, Richard Curtis ’, Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant, Laura Beers, it’s, —, Ebrahim Raisi, Frida Ghitis, Ali Khamenei, Peter Kuper, Cagle, “ I’m, What’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al, Masri, Ismail Haniyeh, Peter Bergen, ” Netanyahu, Israel’s, Netanyahu, Kerri Kennedy, Biden “, Israel, ” Don’t, Agency Carrie Sheffield, Noah Berlatsky, Singleton, Biden’s Morehouse, Jill Filipovic, Diddy, Cassie Ventura, Catherine Tan, Shanahan, Brian Castrucci, Frank Luntz, Mark Zandi, Trump Will Cathcart, Joyce M, Davis, Bill Maher, Jimmy Kimmel, Randy Holmes, Bill, ” Nicole Hemmer, Said Will, Maher, Hemmer, ” “ Maher, It’s Organizations: CNN, New York Times, Agency, Trump, South Carolina Gov, Republican, NHS, Labour, Tory, Social, Italiana, European Union, ”, Islamic, Education, Workforce, Harvard, University of California, Columbia University, Columbia, Criminal Court, ICC, Israeli, International Court of Justice, United Nations Security, American Friends Service Committee, RFK, Disney, Entertainment, Democrats Locations: Alito’s Virginia, New Zealand, AFP, ”, England, Trump’s America, America, Italian, Germany, Poland, France, Berlin, Hill, American, British, London, Notting Hill, Iran, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic, University of California Los Angeles, Gaza, United Kingdom, Rafah, Georgia’s, Moscow, Africa

☆ Libertarians Skip Over Trump and R.F.K. Jr. for Chase Oliver
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-26 | by ( Rebecca Davis O Brien | Michael Gold | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Libertarian Party chose one of its own as its presidential nominee on Sunday night, capping a grueling day of elimination voting and a boisterous four-day event, where both Donald J. Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. unsuccessfully sought to court the group’s backing. The nominee, Chase Oliver — an openly gay former Democrat who in 2022 forced a runoff in a race for a U.S. Senate seat in Georgia — beat out nine other candidates at the party’s national convention in Washington, including Mr. Kennedy. Mr. Trump, who was not an official candidate, received six write-in votes in the first round. The Libertarian Party is among the better-established minor parties, with name recognition and placement on the majority of state ballots in November. The Libertarian nominee is guaranteed to be on the November ballot in at least 37 states, a number that party leaders say they expect to grow in the coming months.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Chase Oliver —, Georgia —, Kennedy, Mr Organizations: Libertarian, Democrat, U.S, Senate Locations: Georgia, Washington

☆ Opinion | Marjorie Taylor Greene Has a Decision to Make
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-26 | by ( Michelle Cottle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Marjorie Taylor Greene seems even thirstier for attention than usual. Days later Ms. Greene dialed up the lunacy, claiming knowledge of a deep state plot to assassinate Donald Trump. “The Biden DOJ and FBI were planning to assassinate Pres Trump and gave the green light. Ms. Greene was just running wild with new details about the government’s 2022 efforts to recover the piles of documents Mr. Trump hoarded at Mar-a-Lago and spinning out a bonkers conspiracy theory. For weeks this spring, her threats against Mr. Johnson had reporters swarming all over her like flies on … honey.

Persons: Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jasmine Crockett, Greene, Donald Trump, “, Pres Trump, Trump, Greene’s, Mike Johnson, MAGA, Johnson Organizations: Democratic, Biden DOJ, FBI Locations: Georgia, Mar

☆ Zhongnanhai: The scenic garden that became China’s secretive seat of power
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-25 | by ( Jonathan Chatwin | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

As the seat of power, Zhongnanhai is often thought of as China’s equivalent to the White House, or the Kremlin. Architectural changesThere have been serious revisions to the architecture of Zhongnanhai since the end of imperial rule in 1912. Having re-established Zhongnanhai as a center of political power in the new China, Mao set about rebuilding the compound according to his tastes. “It was here,” noted Aldrich, “with the background trappings of a scholar, that he met Nixon and Kissinger in 1972.”Most subsequent leaders have preferred to keep a house outside the Zhongnanhai compound. However, the compound hasn’t always been so forbidden for the masses following the collapse of China’s imperial dynasty.

Persons: Jonathan Chatwin, “, Deng Xiaoping, Leung Chun, Xi Jinping, Simon Song, Xi Jinping’s, Ming, Geremie Barmé, Qianlong, Feng Li, ” Linda Jaivin, ”, Dowager Cixi, Zhongnanhai, Cixi, Dowager, M, Aldrich, Mao Zedong, ” Aldrich, China’s, Yuan Shikai, Yuan Shikai ‘, William Lewisohn, Xinhuamen, William Cooper, —, Qianlong Emperor, Yuan, Invincible Mao, — Mao, Kangxi, Mao, Zhou Enlai, Chen Yi, Zhang Wentian, Nikita Khrushchev, Khrushchev, Nixon, Kissinger, Hu Jintao, Jiang Zemin, Newscom Aldrich, Mao’s, Li Zhisui, Xi, Chicago's Walter, Hu Yaobang, Gong, “ Heck Organizations: CNN, Bell, Communist Party, CCP, White, Hong, China Morning, University of Bristol Library, Great Communist Party of China, ”, Shuangqing Villa, Alamy, State Council, China’s Politburo, Huairen, Chicago's Walter Payton College Preparatory, New York Times, Zhongnanhai, Bloomberg Locations: Modern China, Prospect, Tiananmen, Hong Kong, Zhongnanhai, City, China, Beijing, “, People’s Republic, New China, Arlington, Peking, Xinjiang, Russian, Beihai, Beijing’s, Huairen, Qinzheng Hall

☆ China has launched new drills encircling Taiwan. Why now?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Jessie Yeung | Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Tensions are once again ratcheting up in the Taiwan Strait, with China launching military drills encircling Taiwan just days after the democracy swore in a new leader long loathed by Beijing. The Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said it launched joint military drills involving the army, navy, air force and rocket force in areas around Taiwan early Thursday morning. The drills are being conducted in the Taiwan Strait – a narrow body of water separating the self-ruling island with mainland China – as well as north, south and east of Taiwan. The Chinese guided missile frigate Nantong, one of the vessels in the series of military drills around Taiwan. The defeated Nationalist Party fled to Taiwan, moving the seat of their Republic of China (ROC) government from the mainland to Taipei.

Persons: ”, Lai Ching, China’s, Xi Jinping, Li Xi, Lai, Wu Mei, Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Tsai Ing, Tsai –, Mike Gallagher Organizations: CNN, Communist Party, Eastern Theater Command, People’s Liberation Army, PLA, People's Liberation Army, Weibo, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry, Democratic Progressive Party, DPP, Chinese Communist Party, CCP, Nationalist Party, US, Communist, Beijing, Tuesday Locations: Taiwan, China, Beijing, Kinmen, Taipei, People’s Republic of China, Republic of China, Xi, Washington

A stage in northern Mexico where a presidential candidate was campaigning collapsed after a gust of wind blew through the area on Wednesday night, leaving at least five people dead and at least 50 others injured, a state governor said. The stage collapsed in a suburb of Monterrey, in the state of Nuevo León, during an event attended by the progressive candidate Jorge Álvarez Máynez and other members of the Citizens’ Movement party. The collapse was caused by strong wind, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico said on social media. Samuel García, the governor of Nuevo León, announced the deaths and injuries in a news conference. The stage, which had been erected on a baseball field in the city of San Pedro Garza García, was the site of a campaign event for the Citizens’ Movement party’s candidate for the city’s mayoral election, Lorenia Canavati.

Persons: Jorge Álvarez Máynez, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Samuel García, San Pedro Garza García, Lorenia Canavati Organizations: Citizens ’ Movement Locations: Mexico, Monterrey, Nuevo León, San

☆ Is Modi Worried? India’s Long-Deflated Opposition Finds Some Momentum.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Mujib Mashal | Pragati K.B. | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered India’s general election projecting supreme confidence. “Ab ki baar, 400 paar” went his party’s slogan, meaning this time his side aimed to surpass 400 seats in the lower house of Parliament, a staggering majority. But as the seven-week voting period enters its final stretch, with results expected on June 4, India is witnessing something unusual from its powerful leader. As Mr. Modi crisscrosses the country for rallies in 100-degree heat, he has often appeared on the defensive, and sometimes rattled. He has resorted to stoking anti-Muslim sentiments to fend off attempts to split his Hindu support base, only to deny his own words later.

Persons: Narendra Modi, paar ”, Modi, — Locations: India

☆ Cruz refuses to unconditionally accept results of 2024 election
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Shania Shelton | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

“I think that’s actually a ridiculous question,” replied Cruz when asked by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on “The Source” whether he will accept the results of the 2024 election regardless of who wins. Cruz, who objected to Arizona’s election results on January 6, 2021, then went on in his interview with Collins to suggest, baselessly, that the 2020 election was rife with fraud. “So my question for you again, free and fair election, will you accept the results regardless of who wins?” Collins asked. “If the Democrats win, I will accept the result, but I’m not going to ignore fraud regardless of what happens,” Cruz responded. Trump said earlier this month that he would only accept the 2024 election results “if everything’s honest.” Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York and Sen. J.D.

Persons: Republican Sen, Ted Cruz, “, ”, Cruz, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, ‘ Will, ” Cruz, Collins, ” Collins, I’m, Donald Trump, Trump, Elise Stefanik, Sen, J.D, Vance of Ohio, South Carolina Republican Sen, Tim Scott, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, We’re, Sam Alito, Martha, Ann Alito, Alito Organizations: CNN, Republican, Republicans, Trump, South Carolina Republican, Senate Locations: New York

☆ Once Critics of Trump, These Republicans Are Now Playing by His Rules
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

There was a time when Nikki Haley thought an “unstable and unhinged” person should not be president. Flip-flopping has a long if uninspiring history in American presidential politics. But rarely have the flip-flops been as stark and head-snapping as those prompted by Mr. Trump. Ever since he vaulted to the leadership of the Republican Party eight years ago, the same Republicans who once deemed him a “kook,” a “pathological liar” and a “delusional narcissist” nonetheless have come around to endorse handing him the nuclear codes. Even some Republicans no longer aspiring to hold public office have buried their apprehensions to stay with the choice of the party’s voters.

Persons: Nikki Haley, Donald J, Trump, “ kook, ”, narcissist ” Organizations: Trump —, Mr, Republican Party, Republicans

☆ UK election 2024: Everything you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Rishi Sunak’s rival for power is Labour leader Keir Starmer, who is heavily favored to become Britain’s new prime minister in July. Labour leader Keir Starmer -- the frontrunner in the election -- launches his campaign in Gillingham on Thursday. Given Labour’s standing in the polls, Starmer is more equipped to take the fight to other groups. In the UK, voters don’t elect a prime minister directly. But this is a formal role only; the King won’t contradict his prime minister or overrule the results of an election.

Persons: CNN —, Rishi Sunak, We’ll, Keir Starmer, Sunak, Downing, Maja Smiejkowska, – Sunak, Boris Johnson’s, Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, Johnson, Stefan Rousseau, Jeremy Corbyn, Theresa May, Sunak hasn’t, –, Starmer, Henry Nicholls, Rishi Sunak’s, Gareth Fuller, Reform Party –, David Cameron, King Charles III, won’t Organizations: CNN, CNN — Britain’s, Labour, Reuters, Sunak’s Conservative Party, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Conservative, Party, Getty, European Union, Reform Party, Scottish National Party, Green Party, National Health Service Locations: Westminster, Rwanda, England, AFP, Gillingham, Gaza

☆ U.K. 2024 General Election: What to Know
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Esther Bintliff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

How does Britain vote? The United Kingdom — which consists of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales — is divided into 650 constituencies. Voters in each constituency select a candidate to represent them as a member of Parliament, and the political party that wins the most seats usually forms the next government. That party’s leader also becomes prime minister.

Organizations: Wales, Voters Locations: Britain, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland

☆ Cruz is just the latest Republican to appease Trump by raising 2024 voter fraud fears
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Washington CNN —Top Republicans are already rushing to buy into a new 2024 election fraud narrative sown by ex-President Donald Trump in their zeal to appease their party’s presumptive nominee. The new Republican trend of casting doubt on the integrity of the 2024 election in advance was exhibited by Sen. Ted Cruz on Wednesday in an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. Despite Trump’s claims of voting irregularities, multiple courts, including the US Supreme Court, rejected the former president’s claims he was cheated out of power. The positioning looks a lot like laying the groundwork for a challenge to the fairness of the 2024 election if Trump loses in November. The idea that the 2024 election may not be free and fair was also raised recently by Ohio Sen. J.D.

Persons: Donald Trump, Sen, Ted Cruz, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Trump’s, William Barr, Cruz, Collins, ‘ Will, ” Cruz, “, Trump, Biden, I’m, Mike Pence, I’ll, ” Trump, it’s, Georgia —, Nikki Haley, ”, Florida Sen, Marco Rubio, …, Al Gore, Ohio Sen, J.D, Vance, CNN’s Dana, Dana, ” Vance Organizations: Washington CNN —, Republicans, Republican, Trump, US, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Biden, South Carolina Gov, Republican Party, Democratic, Democrats, Supreme, Ohio, Union Locations: Trump’s, Texas, Arizona, Georgia, Trump The Texas, Florida, “ State

☆ UK general election: PM Rishi Sunak calls surprise July vote as his party seeks to defy dire polls
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

London CNN —UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a snap general election for July 4 in a statement outside Downing Street on Wednesday evening, as his Conservative Party faces an uphill struggle to extend its 14 years in power. But a fall in inflation rates, announced earlier Wednesday, provided the backdrop for his announcement. The move will be welcomed by the buoyant Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, which is soaring in the opinion polls and has sought to present itself as a reformed and moderate group that is ready for power. Sunak walks back inside on Wednesday after announcing the July 4 date for the election. But Johnson’s premiership collapsed after a string of scandals, paving the way for his then-finance minister Sunak to emerge as a frontrunner for the leadership.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Downing, King Charles III of, “, ” Sunak, Keir Starmer, Buckingham, Queen’s, Starmer, ”, Carl Court, Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, —, Theresa May —, King Charles III Organizations: London CNN —, Conservative Party, Conservative, Labour Party, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Party, Scottish National Party, European Union, Tories Locations: Britain, Buckingham Palace, Ukraine, Downing, Sunak, United Kingdom, Rwanda, Britain’s

☆ Nikki Haley says she’s voting for Trump in November
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Eric Bradner | Jeff Zeleny | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Nikki Haley plans to vote for Donald Trump, she said Wednesday in her first public remarks since exiting the Republican presidential primary more than two months ago. Earlier this year, Haley and Trump were engaged in what had become a bitter primary feud. Yet even in her absence, she’s been winning votes in one Republican primary after another. And I made that pitch to President Trump and also to Nikki Haley.”Norman said that while Haley has not expressed interest in joining Trump’s ticket, he believes she would be interested. As other former Republican contenders have fallen in line behind Trump, Haley has intentionally kept her distance – not hostile, but also not hungry for his adulation.

Persons: Nikki Haley, Donald Trump, Haley, Trump “, Joe Biden “, ”, Haley’s, Walter P, Stern, “, “ Trump, ” Haley, Trump, Biden, MAGA, he’s, Haley didn’t, “ Biden, Mike Johnson, Michael, she’s, Michael Tyler, Biden’s, Ralph Norman of, ” Norman, Haley “, ” Haley’s, CNN’s Kit Maher Organizations: CNN, Former South Carolina Gov, Republican, Trump, United Nations, Hudson Institute, GOP, Committee, Institute, Hamas, South, Democratic Locations: Washington , DC, United States, Ukraine, Israel, South Carolina, Philadelphia, Chester, Montgomery, Indiana, ’, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Trump’s, –, America

☆ Is the Party That Ended Apartheid Losing Its Grip on South Africa?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( John Eligon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The stadium boomed with chants like “We thank you, A.N.C., today we are joyful!” and it was hard to miss the gestures of solidarity with other liberation movements. Hanging high above the crowd was a Cuban flag, a reminder that Cuba was an important ally in the A.N.C.’s armed struggle. The spectators, who included officials from the liberation movements that now govern Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola and Mozambique, soaked up the event as if it were a spiritual experience. South Africa today struggles to provide the most basic needs for its people. The murder rate is among the highest in the world (six and a half times higher than in the United States), and most South Africans live in poverty.

Organizations: International Court of Justice Locations: Cuban, Cuba, Palestinian, Gaza, Israel, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, United States, Johannesburg

☆ Chinese Firms Face Authoritarianism at Home and Hostility Abroad
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Li Yuan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

One April afternoon in 2018, Zhang Yiming, the founder of the Beijing-based online media company ByteDance, got a notice from Chinese regulators to shut down an app where people shared jokes and silly videos. He followed orders and expressed his deep remorse in a public apology. “I feel regretful because I have let down the guidance and expectations of the supervisory authorities all along,” he wrote. On top of the list: Build up the Communist Party’s presence at ByteDance and educate its employees to think from the perspectives of the party and the government. Now ByteDance, which owns TikTok, is facing a similar order from the U.S. government: It needs to divest the short video app or it will face a ban.

Persons: Zhang Yiming, “, ”, Zhang Organizations: U.S . Locations: Beijing, U.S

☆ Jacob Zuma not eligible to run for parliament, South Africa’s top court says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( David Mckenzie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Johannesburg, South Africa CNN —South Africa’s apex court has ruled that former president Jacob Zuma is not eligible to run for parliament in next week’s critical general election. He was found guilty of contempt of court by the same constitutional court for his refusal to testify to an anti-corruption commission. It is that sentence that barred him from running, the court ruled on Monday. A contempt of court sentence is an extremely important sentence, and it is a sentence that cannot be treated lightly. While the court ruled that Zuma is not eligible to run for MP, his party will still contest the election and his face will remain on the ballot.

Persons: Jacob Zuma, Zuma, “, ”, Leona Theron, Neeshan Balton, Ahmed, Nelson Mandela Organizations: South Africa CNN, National Congress, ANC, WeSizwe Party, CNN Locations: Johannesburg, South Africa, KwaZulu, Natal

☆ Opinion: Hardened like diamonds, these Gen Z protesters fight for a European future
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Opinion Will Cathcart | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

They snatch protesters from the crowd and drag them back into a mass of black uniforms. Will Cathcart Will CathcartHundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets across Georgia in recent weeks to protest the government’s adoption of a Kremlin-inspired “foreign agents” bill. As with the foreign agents law, the bill’s authors claim it promotes transparency, an absurd notion. The foreign agents bill is a symptom of a deeper issue – money. The pressures of authoritarian intimidation and systematic violence have hardened Georgia’s young protestors like diamonds.

Persons: Will Cathcart, Mikheil Saakashvili, Cathcart Will Cathcart, Vladimir Putin’s, Putin, Hans Gutbrod, ”, Salome Zourabichvili, aren’t, Gen Z, Europe –, Giorgi Arjevanidze, Bidzina Ivanishvili, Party ” –, Mamuka Mdinaradze, Shalva Papuashvili, – “, “, James O’Brien’s, Ivanishvili, Zviad Organizations: CNN, Tbilisi CNN — Riot, Georgian, Ilia State University, European Union, Getty, Global, Party, Georgian Orthodox Church, US, State, Eurasian Affairs, Fletcher School of Law, NATO, Special Forces Exchange Locations: American, Tbilisi, Georgia, Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Europe, AFP, Georgian, Soviet, Russian, United States, Brussels, Washington, Moscow, EU

Lai, 64, a former doctor, was inaugurated alongside new Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, who recently served as Taiwan’s top envoy to the United States. Both leaders and their party are openly loathed by Beijing for championing Taiwan’s sovereignty. Lai takes up the mantle from DPP predecessor Tsai Ing-wen, who bolstered the island’s international standing and recognition during her eight years in office. He is also expected to project goodwill to China with a message of pursuing peace and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait. That deliberately nuanced stance mimics his outgoing predecessor Tsai, Taiwan’s first female president, who was unable to stand again because of term limits.

Persons: Taipei CNN — Lai Ching, te, Lai, Hsiao Bi, China’s, Tsai Ing, Tsai –, –, Xi Jinping, Tsai, Taiwan’s, rebuking Organizations: Taipei CNN, Democratic Progressive Party, Communist Party, CNN, Kuomintang, KMT, Taiwan People’s Party, DPP, ” Locations: Taipei, China, United States, Beijing, Taiwan

☆ Can Biden Recapture Lightning in a Bottle in Georgia?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-18 | by ( Rick Rojas | Maya King | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The official purpose of Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s trip to Georgia in the final days of 2020 was to rally support for two Democratic Senate candidates facing tight runoffs. “I have to say, it feels pretty good,” Mr. Biden told a crowd in Atlanta, reveling in the distinction of being the first Democrat to win Georgia in a presidential election in nearly 30 years. The moment — along with the Democrats’ win of both Senate seats a few weeks later, tipping control of the chamber — seemed to affirm the party’s resurgence in a state long dominated by Republicans. This weekend, as Mr. Biden returns to Atlanta with ambitions of winning the state again in a rematch with former President Donald J. Trump, he faces a much different climate. The optimism that soared among Georgia Democrats after his win has been overtaken by frustration and worry, not just about his campaign prospects but also about the direction of the country.

Persons: Joseph R, Biden, “, Mr, Donald J, Trump Organizations: Democratic, Democrat, Georgia, Democrats ’, Republicans, Georgia Democrats Locations: Georgia, Atlanta, reveling

☆ Bollywood and Indian politics: Influence of Modi and BJP on world’s largest film industry
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-17 | by ( Jessie Yeung | Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

And most of these are Hindi films, meaning Bollywood holds an outsized influence on the country’s culture, identity and economy. A screengrab from the 2022 Bollywood film "The Kashmir Files." CNN reached out to several people from the film industry for this story, some of whom declined to be interviewed due to sensitivities around the topic. It encouraged some Bollywood filmmakers to “(lean) into the caricature of the Muslim villain,” he says. These films are growing fast; outside Bollywood, earnings from the South Indian media and entertainment industry have nearly doubled year on year, according to a 2023 report by the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Persons: India’s, Narendra Modi, Indranil Mukherjee, ”, Raja Sen, “ It’s, Modi, Tanul Thakur, …, Veer Savarkar, –, ” Adah Sharma, Pandits, Vivek Agnihotri, ” Sudipto Sen, Debashree Mukherjee, it’s, Thakur, Sen, Darab Farooqui, Sonu Mehta, Farooqui, “, she’s, Aamir Khan, ” Farooqui, Jawaharlal Nehru, Mukherjee, Yash Chopra, ” That’s, ” Thakur, ” Sen, “ We’ve, ’, Dharmendra, Noemi Cassanelli, “ Something’s Organizations: India CNN —, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Observers, Hollywood, Republican, Modi’s, Getty, CNN, Ministry of Culture, of, Netflix, Columbia, Social Democratic Party of India, Hindustan Times, Columbia University, Journalists, Confederation of Indian Industry Locations: Mumbai, India, Kerala, Kashmir, Jammu, Columbia University’s, Middle Eastern, South, Jaipur, New Delhi, Pakistan, United States, Tamil Nadu

☆ Housing market: China unveils sweeping measures to rescue its crisis-hit property sector
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-17 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Hong Kong CNN —China has unveiled wide-ranging measures to rescue its property sector, including asking local governments across the country to buy unsold homes from beleagured developers and easing rules on purchases. In a coordinated move, the People’s China of China (PBOC) announced that it will set up a nationwide program to provide 300 billion yuan ($41.5 billion) in loans to fund state purchases of unsold homes. The 300 billion yuan provided by the central bank could eventually underpin 500 billion yuan ($69 billion) worth of credit to support such purchases, she estimated. Expectations that Beijing was preparing a plan to have local governments across the country buy millions of unsold homes have successfully buoyed China stocks. On Friday, He also urged local governments to buy back or directly purchase land that has been sold to developers but not yet used.

Persons: Lifeng, Tao Ling, Larry Hu, ”, Société Générale Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Communist, China Real Estate Business, Macquarie Group, Reuters, provident Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beijing

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