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☆ Israeli troops kill 9 Palestinians in West Bank clash, medics say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Ali Sawafta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] Palestinians clash with Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West bank, February 22, 2023. REUTERS/Raneen SawaftaNABLUS, West Bank, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Israeli troops killed nine Palestinians, including at least three gunmen and three civilians, and wounded over 90 others during a raid on a flashpoint city in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, witnesses and medical officials said. The Islamic Jihad militant faction said two of its Nablus commanders had been encircled in a house by Israeli troops, triggering a clash that drew in other gunmen. Hamas, another Palestinian militant group that sometimes fights alongside Islamic Jihad, hinted at possible reprisals from the Gaza Strip, a territory that it controls. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are sworn to Israel's destruction but have in the past observed Egyptian-mediated truces with it.

☆ 'Survival of Kindness' star Hussein's inspiring road to the red carpet
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Mwajemi Hussein had never been in a cinema or acted before her leading role in "The Survival of Kindness", a film that stands a chance of winning the top prize at the Berlin Film Festival. People are not sure how I made it walking barefoot, but it was part of my life because I grew up without shoes," Hussein told Reuters in an interview. She auditioned for the role despite having no acting experience, after being encouraged by members of her community. The decision to cast Hussein as BlackWoman over someone with more experience was somewhat of a risk, de Heer told Reuters. Reporting by Swantje Stein; Writing by Miranda Murray; Editing by Friederike Heine and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Exclusive: Caligan urges Anika Therapeutics to conduct review, plans board challenge
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Caligan Partners owns a roughly 4% stake in Anika and is ratcheting up pressure to protest an underperforming stock price and losses at the company's joint preservation segment. "Anika may be better positioned as a private company or as part of a larger organization," Caligan's managing partner, David Johnson, wrote to the board. Anika's osteoarthritis knee pain relief injection treatments would be attractive to other companies and could be worth almost $60 per share, Johnson wrote. On Tuesday, the company's stock price climbed nearly 6% as the broader market declined. Anika is best known for its viscosupplement portfolio, including Monovisc and Orthovisc, marketed by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N).

☆ Russia says stranded astronauts to return from ISS in September
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 21 (Reuters) - Russia said on Tuesday that three astronauts left stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) by a leak on their return capsule last year would land back on Earth in a Soyuz MS-23 replacement capsule in September. "(Their return flight) is now scheduled to take place on Soyuz MS-23 in September 2023," Russian space agency Roscosmos said. The Soyuz MS-23 replacement capsule will launch on Feb. 24 and will dock with the ISS on Feb. 26, it said. The damaged MS-22 spacecraft is planned to land without a crew in March. "Micrometeoroid impacts on a spacecraft or orbital station have happened before, but unlike with the Soyuz MS-22, they have never had such serious consequences."

☆ Northern Ireland post-Brexit talks nearly done, EU says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Johanna GeronDUBLIN, Feb 21 (Reuters) - The European Union's Brexit chief said on Tuesday that the finishing line was in sight for talks on easing post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland ahead of a second successive day of discussions with his British counterparts. After weeks of intense London-Brussels talks, momentum has been building towards a deal to revise the Northern Ireland Protocol - the arrangements agreed to avoid a hard border with EU member Ireland when Britain exited the EU in 2020. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told his cabinet that intensive talks continued, his spokesman said, as his foreign and Northern Irish ministers prepared to speak to European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic later on Tuesday. But in such a negotiation, being close doesn't mean being done", Sefcovic told a press conference, declining to say when exactly an agreement might be reached. The DUP, Northern Ireland's largest pro-British party, has boycotted the region's devolved power-sharing parliament for the last year in protest at the protocol.

☆ Walmart sees lower 2023 performance in time of economic uncertainty
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Siddharth Cavale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"There's still a lot of trepidation and uncertainty with the economic outlook. "So, that makes us cautious on the economic outlook because we simply don't know what we don't know." Home Depot (HD.N) also forecast weaker-than-expected annual profits on Tuesday as soaring prices hit demand for home-improvement products. They want the allure of savings and Walmart provides that," said McNew, whose firm holds about 350,000 Walmart shares. Walmart signs are displayed inside a Walmart store in Mexico City, Mexico March 28, 2019.

☆ Switzerland sent $3.6 bln of gold to Turkey in Jan, the most since at least 2012
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Peter Hobson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

It shipped 188 tonnes of gold worth 10.1 billion Swiss francs last year to Turkey, up from only 11 tonnes in 2021. Switzerland's gold exports to Turkey have never previously exceeded 34 tonnes in a single month, Swiss data shows. India and China are the two biggest gold consumer markets and demand often rises when gold prices are low and falls when gold prices increase. Gold prices rocketed from a low of $1,615.59 an ounce in early November to as high as $1,959.60 on Feb. 2 before slipping back to around $1,840 by Tuesday. SWISS GOLD EXPORTS, MONTHLY (KG)EXPORTS TO KEY MARKETS, MONTHLY (KG)* Source: Swiss customs.

☆ Financiers sentenced to 11 years for defrauding Libya fund - UK court
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - A former JPMorgan investment manager and an ex-Julius Baer banker were sentenced to a total of 11 years by a London court on Monday for defrauding a Libyan sovereign wealth fund out of millions of dollars. Marino, formerly head of JPMorgan’s alternative investment emerging market group, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison. Ohmura – ex-global head of structured investments at Julius Baer company Global Asset Management, who helped dishonestly extract investment fees from LAP – was sentenced to three-and-a-half years. The judge had previously issued a warrant for Marino’s arrest in October after he failed to appear at his trial. Reporting by Sam Tobin, editing by William James and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ 'Past Lives' director draws from real life for love story across continents, time
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

That scene re-creates a moment from director Celine Song's life that inspired her to make the film, her first feature, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews. The Korean-Canadian director recounts visiting a bar with her American husband and a childhood sweetheart from Korea. This idea from the movie that we've all known each other from our past lives," Lee told Reuters. "I really hope that people come for the romance and for the love and the idea of just a simple story about love," she said. "But maybe they can leave with something bigger about life and about what connects us to each other as human beings."

☆ Iran's currency falls to record low as sanctions to continue
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The reimposition of U.S. sanctions in 2018 by former President Donald J. Trump have harmed Iran's economy by limiting Tehran's oil exports and access to foreign currency. Since September, nuclear talks between Iran and world powers to curb Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of sanctions have stalled, worsening economic expectations for Iran's future. Over the last six months, Iran's currency has slumped nearly 60% in value, according to Bonbast.com. Meanwhile, the central bank said it was opening a new foreign exchange centre to ease access to foreign exchange and increase the volume of official transactions. Farzin was appointed in December as governor with the key job of controlling the value of foreign currencies, according to IRNA.

☆ Mauritius halts flights, shuts stock exchange as cyclone Freddy approaches
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PORT LOUIS, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Mauritius on Monday grounded flights and shut its stock exchange as Tropical Cyclone Freddy approached, posing a "direct threat" to the Indian Ocean island. A Class III cyclone warning was in force in Mauritius, allowing about six hours of daylight before the occurrence of wind gusts of 120 kilometres per hour. Mauritius, along with other Indian Ocean countries like Madagascar and African coastal nations like Mozambique, is regularly affected by severe storms and cyclones capable of destroying homes, infrastructure and crops. "As Freddy approaches Mauritius, (a) storm surge is likely to cause coastal inundation in risk areas. Reporting by Villen Anganan; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Alexander Winning and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Protesters "fight for Israel's soul" as parliament readies judicial overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Maayan Lubell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Polls have found that most Israelis want the reforms slowed to allow for dialogue with critics - or shelved altogether. Ahead of the afternoon reading, protesters posted online videos of themselves trying to prevent lawmakers from Netanyahu's coalition leaving for the Knesset. "Demonstrators who talk about democracy are themselves bringing about the end of democracy when they deny elected delegates the fundamental right in a democracy - to vote," Netanyahu said in a statement. Opposition leader Yair Lapid tweeted that demonstrations would mount "in the fight for the soul of the nation". Israel's head of state, President Isaac Herzog, has repeatedly urged the government and opposition to hold compromise talks.

☆ Syria quake response needs outstrip resources, Assad says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] People search under the rubble of a damaged building, in the aftermath of an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 15, 2023. "The scale of the disaster and the duties we must undertake are much greater than available resources," Assad said in his first televised address since the earthquake struck last Monday. The U.N. has said nearly 9 million Syrians were affected by the quake and launched a $400 million appeal to cover immediate humanitarian needs over the next three months. The quake eased Assad's international isolation after more than 11 years of civil war, with aid pouring in mostly from Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, which had funded the armed opposition to his government. Senior diplomats also met with him in Damascus including Jordan's foreign minister on Wednesday in the first such meeting since the war began.

☆ Father of accused July 4th gunman to be arraigned in Chicago suburb
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

His son, Robert Crimo III, is accused of opening fire on spectators watching an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, Illinois, last summer, killing seven people and injuring dozens. The younger Crimo pleaded not guilty in August to 117 counts, including 21 charges of first-degree murder. The alleged threat in September 2019 followed a prior incident in which police responded to an emergency call reporting that the younger Crimo had attempted suicide. The younger Crimo could not have legally applied for a FOID card in 2019 without a parent or guardian signing for him because he was under 21 at that time. Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago; Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S., China, other nations urge 'responsible' use of military AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

However, the statement was a tangible outcome of the first international summit on military AI, co-hosted by the Netherlands and South Korea this week at The Hague. Signatories said they were committed to developing and using military AI in accordance with "international legal obligations and in a way that does not undermine international security, stability and accountability." Under Secretary of State for Arms Control Bonnie Jenkins put forward a U.S. framework for responsible military AI use. China representative Jian Tan told the summit that countries should "oppose seeking absolute military advantage and hegemony through AI" and work through the United Nations. "It paves the path for states to develop AI for military purposes in any way they see fit as long as they can say it is 'responsible'," she said.

☆ German police use of software to fight crime unlawful, court says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Feb 16 (Reuters) - A top German court ruled on Thursday that police use of automated data analysis to prevent crime in some German states was unconstitutional, dealing a win to critics of the CIA-backed Palantir Technologies (PLTR.N) that provides the software. Provisions regulating the use of the technology in Hesse and Hamburg violate the right to informational self-determination under the German constitution, a statement from the constitutional court said. U.S.-based Palantir Technologies makes software for data analytics used by intelligence and law enforcement agencies around the world, according to its website. In comments to the Handelsblatt newspaper, Palantir's strategy chief in Europe, Jan Hiesserich, said the company merely provides the software for processing data, not the data itself. The German Society for Civil Rights (GFF), which brought the case against police data analysis, said Palantir software used innocent people's data to form suspicions and could also produce errors, affecting people at risk of police discrimination.

☆ U.S. concerned about debt Pakistan owes China, official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ISLAMABAD, Feb 16 (Reuters) - The United States is concerned about debt owed to China by Pakistan and other countries, U.S. State Department Counselor Derek Chollet said on Thursday during a visit to Islamabad as the country dealt with an economic crisis. Pakistan, historically a close ally of Washington, has become increasingly close to China, which has provided billions in loans and is Islamabad's largest single creditor. Pakistan faces a crippling economic crisis, with decades-high inflation and critically low foreign exchange reserves depleted by continued debt repayment obligations. Cholett said Washington was talking to Islamabad about the "perils" of a closer relationship with Beijing, but would not ask Pakistan to choose between the United States and China. Officials from China and the United States will be part of a multi-country meeting of a new sovereign debt roundtable on Friday.

BERLIN, Feb 15 (Reuters) - This year's Berlin International Film Festival marks a resurgence for the global film industry after years in the doldrums due to the COVID-19 pandemic, industry expert Scott Roxborough said on the eve of the event. "The film industry is starting to come out of the pandemic, starting to revive itself," said Roxborough, Europe bureau chief of the Hollywood Reporter. "It's going to be here in Berlin where we really see the green shoots of the future of cinema." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will address Thursday's opening night gala by video link, the festival announced on Wednesday. One of China's biggest stars, her lengthy absence had prompted speculation she had fallen foul of China's leadership.

☆ Northwest Syria of 'greatest concern' after quake -WHO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"It's clear that the zone of greatest concern at the moment is the area of northwestern Syria," WHO's emergencies director, Mike Ryan, told a briefing in Geneva. We have to remember here that in Syria, we've had ten years of war. Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), speaks with a man as he visits quake survivors at a hospital in Aleppo, in the aftermath of the earthquake, Syria February 11, 2023. We've seen the deployment of emergency medical teams. We've seen all the things that we need to see in a disaster.

☆ Record surge in films at Berlin festival marks industry revival post-COVID
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Feb 15 (Reuters) - This year's Berlin International Film Festival, known as the Berlinale, marks a resurgence for the global film industry after years in the doldrums due to the COVID-19 pandemic, industry expert Scott Roxborough said on the eve of the festival. And, after a three-year pandemic lull, the volume of movies seeking distributors or financing is setting records, with 827 films from 121 countries chasing 1,168 buyers, according to the festival. "The film industry is starting to come out of the pandemic, starting to revive itself," said Roxborough, Europe bureau chief of the Hollywood Reporter. "It's going to be here in Berlin where we really see the green shoots of the future of cinema." One of China's biggest stars, her lengthy absence had prompted speculation she had fallen foul of China's leadership.

☆ A third of euro zone employees want more remote working -ECB study
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FRANKFURT, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Nearly a third of euro zone workers want to work from home more frequently than their employer allows them to, and are willing to change jobs to be able to do so, a European Central Bank study showed on Wednesday. Businesses are still negotiating policies around working remotely, with the subject causing tension between unions and employers including at the ECB, which is offering fewer remote working days than its employees desire. "Workers are more willing to change jobs if they have remote work preferences that exceed those they perceive their employers to have," an ECB study showed. "30% of workers had work from home preferences that exceeded what they expected their employers to offer." Employees wanting greater remote work opportunities were more likely to seek fresh employment and actually change jobs, the study said.

☆ 'Executed' Russian Wagner fighter shown unharmed in new video
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 15 (Reuters) - A Russian mercenary shown on video this week ostensibly being executed for desertion by the Wagner private militia has appeared, unharmed, with Wagner's chief on another clip aired on Wednesday. Russian war correspondent Alexander Kots posted footage on his Telegram channel of the fighter, who had identified himself as Dmitry Yakushchenko, answering questions from journalists about time he had spent in Ukrainian captivity. Wagner, which promotes itself as Russia's premier fighting force, says it is the main unit fighting to seize the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine's Donetsk province. Wagner has adopted the sledgehammer as its symbol after reportedly using it to execute a defector from its ranks last year. A video posted on Monday by Grey Zone, a Telegram channel linked to Wagner, appears to show a man swinging a sledgehammer into Yakushchenko's head and Yakushchenko collapsing, although the video blurs at the crucial moment.

Ford can save up to $2.5 billion this year through better management of production schedules and a drop in commodity prices, the company's chief financial officer, John Lawler, said at an auto conference. The automaker posted dismal quarterly results earlier this month and blamed chip shortages, supply chain disruptions and production "instabilities" for adding to its costs. Lawler has said Ford faces $5 billion in higher costs this year and that the company will be "very aggressive" in reducing expenses in its manufacturing, supply chain and distribution operations. Longer term, the company aims to reduce dealer inventories and drive more transactions online, among other measures, according to Chief Executive Jim Farley. Making an EV more aerodynamic can save "thousands of dollars in battery costs," Farley said.

The withdrawal is the first by a foreign asset manager that has submitted an application for a China mutual fund license, as rising Sino-U.S. tensions cloud the prospects for foreign businesses in the world's second-biggest economy. China in 2020 removed foreign ownership caps in its mutual fund industry, allowing global asset managers such as BlackRock and Fidelity to set up fully owned retail fund units. It’s not publicly known how much the firm had planned to invest in the China business. Richard Tang, who was hired to lead Van Eck's China mutual fund unit, is on leave but has not officially terminate his role within the company, according to two sources. China only saw 1.8% growth in the size of its mutual fund market last year, ending a years-long streak of double-digit annual expansion.

☆ Finland to discuss NATO ratification that may leave Sweden behind
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Anne Kauranen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"Our position on Finland is positive, but it is not positive on Sweden," President Tayyip Erdogan said last week. A 53% majority of Finns polled on Feb. 2 for daily Ilta-Sanomat said they did not want Finland to wait for Sweden. For that to happen, Turkey and Hungary need to ratify the Finnish membership first and NATO to officially invite Finland as a member. Finland's Chancellor of Justice Tuomas Poysti told Ilta-Sanomat the process would leave Finland some room to wait for Sweden if need be, but not endlessly. Officially, Finland has reaffirmed time and time again that it wants to join NATO with Sweden.

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