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☆ 20 Miss Universe contestants who made history during the 2024 pageant
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-17 | by ( Anneta Konstantinides | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

AdvertisementMultiple contestants made history at the 73rd Miss Universe competition on Saturday. This year also featured the oldest-ever contestant and the first to wear a hijab in the pageant. Miss Universe came back bigger than ever. Some countries, like Cuba and Samoa, returned to the Miss Universe stage after a long hiatus, while others made their grand debut. The 2024 competition also featured the oldest-ever Miss Universe contestant and the first contestant to wear a hijab in the pageant.

Persons: Miss Universe Organizations: 73rd Miss, Miss Locations: North Macedonia, Maldives, Cuba, Samoa

☆ After two presidential losses, women wonder what it will take to shatter the glass ceiling
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-08 | by ( Arit John | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

For the second time in eight years, the highest, hardest glass ceiling survived millions of tiny cracks, once again testing the optimism of those who hope to see the first female president elected. The late Rep. Shirley Chisholm, a former New York congresswoman, became the first Black woman to seek the office in 1972. “I’m ready for a female president, I just don’t think that most of America is yet, and I don’t know why,” she said. In the Senate, Angela Alsobrooks will be the first Black woman to represent Maryland and Lisa Blunt Rochester will be the first woman to represent Delaware. Together, the two Democrats will be the first two Black women to serve in the chamber at the same time.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Janet Edwards, Harris, “ I’m, ” Edwards, ”, Donald Trump, Shirley Chisholm, ” Harris ’, Chisholm, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Clinton, Joe Biden, –, Trump, Clinton –, Melinda Corey, “, ” Priya Lewis, Kamori Thomas, Howard University – Harris, alma, Thomas, ” Thomas, ” Lewis, Harris –, “ We’ve, Kelly Dittmar, Dittmar, Harris ’, Nadia Brown, Brown, Angela Alsobrooks, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Republican Julie Fedorchak, Sarah McBride of, David Axelrod, ‘, I’ve, Axelrod, – Harris, who’d, ” Harris, Christina Reynolds, doesn’t Organizations: CNN, Howard University, “, White House, Victoria, Equal Rights Party, Democratic, Trump, Center for American Women, Georgetown University, “ Research, House, Republican, Democratic National Convention Locations: Washington, Italy, North Macedonia, Mexico, New York, America, –, Maryland, Delaware, Sarah McBride of Delaware, DC

☆ Alex Salmond, leading figure in Scottish independence movement, dies at age 69
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-12 | by ( Lauren Kent | Natasha Maguder | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —Former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has died at 69, according to statements from Scotland’s main political parties and UK media reports. Salmond was taken ill while in North Macedonia, collapsing after delivering a speech on Saturday, according to British media reports. For many years he was the father of the nation and for several years he has been a father-like figure to me. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “For more than 30 years, Alex Salmond was a monumental figure of Scottish and UK politics. After losing his seat in parliament, Salmond remained a major figure in both Scottish and British politics, working as a commentator and hosting the Alex Salmond Show on Russian state broadcaster RT.

Persons: Alex Salmond, Salmond, “, Alex, Alex Salmond’s Alba, Chris McEleny, Keir Starmer, ” Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon, Alex Salmond’s, ”, Anas Sarwar, “ Alex Organizations: London CNN — Former Scottish, Scotland, British, Scottish, First, Alba Party, RT, Bute House, Daily, Scottish Labour, Scottish National Party, CNN Locations: North Macedonia, Scotland, British, Bute, Scottish

☆ Her teenage summer crush unexpectedly came back into her life. ‘I felt like I was reconnecting with my best friend’
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-13 | by ( Francesca Street | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

He remembers the way she walked down the beach, recalls noticing her immediately, wanting to talk to her. “We’d download songs and listen to the album at the same time,” recalls Vlad. “The emotion was really, really intense. Iga OlszakWhile Vlad and Iga were together in Germany, they talked about the potential of Iga visiting Vlad in the US. “He created that space for me where it felt really good and I finally felt okay to say the truth,” she says.

Persons: Iga Olszak, Vlad Dimovski, Iga, Vlad, “, Skotina, ”, ” Vlad, ” Iga, …, wasn’t, –, that’s, ’ ”, Vlad’s, She’d, he’d, Iga –, weren’t, they’d, Olszak, I’d, who’d, ”, “ I’d, Will, ’ ” Vlad, Luca, Klara, They're, – he’d, “ I’m, we’ve Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, “, Facebook Locations: Skotina, Greece, Poland, North Macedonia, Mount Olympus, Iga, Germany, Chicago, Republic of Macedonia, Europe, Bielefeld, “, Florida, Macedonia, pouting

☆ Venezuela’s Supreme Court certifies Maduro’s claims that he won presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-23 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Ap-Live-Blog-Byline-Image.Png | The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela’s Supreme Court has backed President Nicolás Maduro’s claims that he won last month’s presidential election and said voting tallies published online showing he lost by a landslide were forged. The high court is packed with Maduro loyalists and has almost never ruled against the government. Venezuelan Supreme Court of Justice President Caryslia Rodriguez in Caracas on Aug. 22. Gabriel Boric, the leftist president of Chile and one of the main critics of Maduro’s election gambit, lambasted the high court’s certification. “Today, Venezuela’s TSJ has finally consolidated the fraud,” he said on his X account referring to the initials of the high court.

Persons: Venezuela —, Nicolás Maduro’s, Maduro, Caryslia Rodriguez, Federico Parra, Edmundo González, ” González, Maria Corina Machado, Nicolas Maduro, Cristian Hernandez, González, Gabriel Boric, Venezuela’s TSJ, ” Organizations: Venezuela — Venezuela’s, Venezuelan, Getty, United Nations, Carter Center Locations: CARACAS, Venezuela, Caracas, AFP, Venezuelan, North Macedonia, Chile

A trove of artifacts from Egypt’s last dynasty has been discovered in 63 tombs in the Nile Delta area and experts are working to restore and classify the finds, an official with the country’s antiquities authority said Monday. An Egyptian archaeological mission with the Supreme Council of Antiquities discovered the mud-brick tombs at the Tell al-Deir necropolis in Damietta city in Damietta governorate, the ministry said in a statement last month. The site where 63 mud-brick tombs were discovered at the Tell al-Deir necropolis, in the Nile Delta town of Damietta, Egypt. Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities / APThe Ptolemaic dynasty was Egypt’s last before it became part of the Roman Empire. Egypt exhibited artifacts from the Ptolemaic period for the first time in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo in 2018, with around 300 artifacts on display.

Persons: Neveine el, Arif, Alexander the Great, Ptolemy, Ptolemy I, Cleopatra Organizations: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Supreme, of Antiquities, Egypt's, Egyptian Locations: Delta, Deir, Damietta, Damietta governorate, Nile Delta, Egypt, Roman, Macedonia, Cairo

☆ Tensions high in Venezuela after contested election, with more arrests feared
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty ImagesShops and public transport across Venezuela shut down on Wednesday as tensions over a fiercely disputed presidential election and rumors of more opposition arrests and sporadic violence kept many people home. Socialist President Nicolas Maduro, who has ruled since 2013, was proclaimed the winner of the Sunday vote by the electoral council. Meanwhile, international pressure on the government has mounted to release full results, including from regional heavyweights the United States and Brazil. At a session of the Washington-based Organization of American States, Brian Nichols, a senior U.S. diplomat for Latin America, said the reason Venezuela's electoral authority has failed to release full vote tallies is "obvious." Either officials do not want to confirm Gonzalez's lopsided triumph, or they need more time to falsify results, he argued.

Persons: Nicolas Maduro, Edmundo Gonzalez, Maduro, Gonzalez, Venezuela's, Brian Nichols Organizations: Venezuelan, Anadolu, Getty, Socialist, Maduro, Carter, Reuters, American Locations: Caracas, Venezuela, North Macedonia, U.S, United States, Brazil, Washington, Latin America

☆ Venezuelans have seen this movie before, but Maduro should beware. This time, the ending could be different
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Rafael Romo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The month before, President Nicolás Maduro had declared a “constitutional state of emergency.”Julio Borges, in a photograph taken by CNN's Rafael Romo on June 9, 2016. Maduro, now 61, is a former bus driver who became a Caracas metro system union leader and rose through the ranks. In January of that year, Juan Guaidó, then president of the National Assembly, had proclaimed himself interim president of Venezuela. Supporters of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido scuffle with members of the Bolivarian National Police during a protest against the government of President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on November 18, 2019. The Venezuelan opposition political party Voluntad Popular said Tuesday that its leader Freddy Superlano has been kidnapped.

Persons: “, Caracas Osmary Hernández, Julio Borges, colectivos, Nicolás Maduro, ” Julio Borges, CNN's Rafael Romo, Rafael Romo, Hugo Chávez, Juan Guaidó, Guaidó, Juan Guaido, Nicolas Maduro, Yuri Cortez, María Corina Machado, Machado, Chávez, Edilzon Gamez, ”, Michael, ‘, would’ve, Maduro, they’ve, Edmundo González, Jorge Fernando “ Tuto ” Quiroga, ” Quiroga, Edmundo, González, could’ve, Popular, Freddy Superlano Organizations: CNN, National Assembly, Caracas Osmary, Electoral Council, Bolivarian National Police, Getty, Bolivian Embassy, Inter, Georgetown University, Venezuela’s CNE, Venezuelan, Foro Locations: Caracas, Venezuela, Maduro, United States, AFP, North Macedonia, Bolivian

☆ Analysis: In Venezuela, voters caught in Maduro’s dangerous dance are seeking answers
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-29 | by ( Flora Charner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“We want peace for Venezuela, for our family members,” a protester, who chose not to be identified, told reporting teams on the ground. Leo Ramirez/AFP/Getty Images/FileA ‘cyberattack’ curveballIt seems unlikely Maduro’s government will pay too much attention to the concerns raised over the results. Nearly 8 million people have left Venezuela since 2014, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro reacts following the election results in Caracas on July 29, 2024. “We want Venezuela to be free and for the people’s will to be respected,” she said.

Persons: CNN — It’s, Nicolás Maduro, “, Nicolas Maduro, ” Maduro, Edmundo González, González, Maria Corina Machado, ”, Federico Parra, Antony Blinken, Stephane Dujarric, Maduro’s, Miguel Díaz, Canel, Leo Ramirez, it’s, Tarek William Saab, Machado, Leopoldo López, Lester Toledo, Panamá, Consultores, Maduro, ” Eva Martinez, Will Freeman, Juan Barreto, Hugo Chavez, Chavez, sobbed Heczair Blanco Organizations: CNN, Bolivarian, Electoral Council, Armed Forces, Getty, UN, The United Nations, Carter Center, Washington, Twitter, AFP, CNE, Caracas Monday, Saab, ’, United Nations, Refugees, US Customs, Border Patrol, Council, Foreign Relations, Democrats, Biden Locations: Miraflores, Caracas, Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Venezuelan, AFP, United States, Tokyo, Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, Panama, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, China, Cuba, North Macedonia, Balkans, UNHCR, Spain, Brazil, Colombia, “, Buenos Aires

☆ Climate change is gentrifying neighborhoods. In Miami, residents fear high prices — and a lost soul
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +16 min

Part of the building site of the Magic City development in Little Haiti. Among the properties is Sixty Uptown Magic City, billed as a collection of luxury residential units. Plaza Equity Partners, a real estate developer and one of the Magic City partners, did not respond to CNBC's requests for comment. Magic City development site in Little Haiti. Magic City investors also invested $31 million in the Little Haiti Revitalization Trust, created and administered by the City of Miami to support community revitalization in Little Haiti.

Persons: Greg Iacurci, Greg Iacurci MIAMI — Nicole Crooks, James Brown, Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald, Jackie Robinson, Joe Louis, Overtown, Crooks, Nicole Crooks, Carl Gershenson, Gershenson, Moody's, Robert Zangrillo, Princeton's Gershenson, Andrew Rumbach, Chris Rogers, Rumbach, Brown, Fredericka Brown, Carolyn Donaldson, Greg Iacurci Carolyn Donaldson, Donaldson, David Arditi, Greg Iacurci Flood, Arditi, homebuyers, Han Li, Richard J, Grant, Todd Crowl, Urban Institute Paulette Richards, Richards, who's, Carl Juste, Greg Iacurci Carl Juste's, — Viter, Maria Juste, Little, Little Haiti —, " Juste, Juste, Neil Fairman Organizations: Lyric, Greg Iacurci MIAMI, Catalyst Miami, Princeton University Eviction, Magic City, Liberty City —, Dade, Harvard University, Florida International University, Magic City Innovation, Dragon, Miami ZIP, Liberty City, Miami, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Urban Institute, Marshall Fire, Photodisc, Georgia Institute of Technology, Brookings Institution, Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, Macedonia Missionary Baptist, Grove Rights, Community Equity, Development, Developers, City, Aria Development, Federal Emergency Management Agency, University of Miami, Florida International University Institute of Environment, Women, Leadership Miami, Little Haiti, Magic City Innovation District, Dragon Global, Magic, Plaza Equity Partners, Lune, Lambert, Little Haiti Revitalization Trust Locations: Miami's Overtown, Miami, Overtown , Miami, Magic, Little Haiti, U.S, Zillow, Overtown, Allapattah, Liberty, Dade County, Kendall, West Palm, Delray, Honolulu, Louisville , Colorado, Colorado, Coconut Grove, Macedonia, West, West Grove, Bahamas, Grove, City of Miami, Brickell, Caribbean, Liberty City, Haitian Diaspora, Magic City, Lune Rouge

☆ Greece shuts Acropolis and Adriatic Sea hits record-high temperature as extreme heat bakes Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Story Associated Press | Angela Dewan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Athens CNN —The Acropolis in Greece shut for hours, record-breaking ocean temperatures off Croatia and plans to feed zoo animals popsicles in Italy — southern Europe is baking under a “hellishly hot” heat wave. If you don’t come prepared, you’re going to sweat.”Tourists leave the Acropolis hill in Athens, on July 17, 2024. The site was shut at 12 p.m. for five hours to keep visitors out of the heat. Nikolas Kokovlis/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesThe heat has come largely from hot air blowing in from Africa, which meteorologists forecast will continue through Sunday. The brutal heat wave hitting southern Europe has so far spared Paris, which is set to host the Olympics later this month.

Persons: ”, Toby Dunlap, Nikolas Kokovlis, Carmen Díaz, “, Patrizia Valerio, goer Mattia Rossi, ” Rossi Organizations: Athens CNN, Culture Ministry, Cross, Tourists, Aris Oikonomou, Getty Locations: Athens, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Europe, Pennsylvania, AFP, Africa, Basilicata, Palermo, Sicily, Verona, Rome, Madrid, Varese, Balkans, Dubrovnik, Serbia, Albania, Neighboring, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Turkey, Paris

☆ Archaeologists find marble god in ancient Roman sewer
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Rupite, Bulgaria Reuters —Bulgarian archaeologists stumbled upon unexpected treasure this week during a dig in an ancient Roman sewer — a well-preserved, marble statue depicting the Greek god Hermes. Archaeologists pictured with the statue, which was covered with soil in an ancient Roman sewer. There are a few fractures on the hands,” said Lyudmil Vagalinski, who led the team of archaeologists, adding that the statue was a Roman copy of an ancient Greek original. Heraclea Sintica was a sprawling city founded by the ancient Macedonian king Philip II of Macedon, between 356 B.C. After the earthquake, the Heraclea Sintica fell into a rapid decline and was abandoned by around A.D. 500.

Persons: Hermes, Sergieva, Reuters “, ”, Lyudmil Vagalinski, Heraclea Sintica, Philip II of Macedon Organizations: Bulgaria Reuters —, Archaeologists, Reuters, CNN Locations: Rupite, Bulgaria, Heraclea Sintica, Heraclea, Bulgarian, Pirin Macedonia, Roman

☆ Russia can’t fight NATO on the battlefield – so it’s waging a hybrid war instead
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

And while they might look minor in isolation, taken together these incidents amount to what security experts say is Russia’s hybrid war on the West. Thornton said Russia was resorting to a campaign of sabotage as an alternative to a full-on war with NATO, which would be disastrous for Russia. Article 5 is the cornerstone principle that an attack on one member of NATO is an attack on all members. Danylyuk said the Russian security apparatus doesn’t shy away from using criminals to do its dirty work, tapping into its links with international organized crime. Russia can only be strong if the West and NATO are weak.

Persons: –, Petr Fiala, Jens Stoltenberg, Rod Thornton, there’s, ” Thornton, Vladimir Putin, Thornton, “, ”, It’s, ” Nicole Wolkov, Andrei Averyanov, Averyanov, Sergei, Yulia Skripal, d’etat, Oleksandr Danylyuk, …, Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Danylyuk, Olga Lautman, Fiala, Sergei Skripal, Yulia, Frank Augstein, ” Lautman, Lautman, Alexander Litvinenko, Andrei Lugovoi, Theresa May, Nikolai Glushkov, Salisbury, Putin, ” “, let’s, ’ ”, that’s, Litvinenko, Skripal Organizations: CNN, Occupation, . Police, European Union, NATO, King’s College London, ”, Royal United Services Institute, Czech Police, GRU, London –, German Federal Public, Ukraine, Russian, Russia NATO, Center for, European, of Human, Duma, Metropolitan Police, Command, Soviet, West Locations: Prague, Czech, Moscow, Europe, Riga, London, Warsaw, Germany, Russia, Belarus, Russian, Spain, Lithuania, Canada, Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia –, United States, al Qaeda, France, EU, Salisbury, England, Czech Republic, Vrbetice, Montenegro, Moldova, Macedonia, Ukrainian, Poland, Salisbury , England, Finland, Estonia, Lautman, Soviet Union

☆ Euro 2024 day 16 – Lightning stops play, Italy’s coach goes backwards, five cruel minutes
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-29 | by ( The Athletic Uk Staff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +9 min

Lightning stops playAfter several days of hot weather, the skies above Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park had been gathering throughout the evening. Thunder and lightning could be heard from afar, with the rain arriving after 32 minutes of Germany’s last-16 game against Denmark. Soon after, lightning flashes could be seen from inside the stadium, with two to three ear-splitting cracks of thunder. The suspension lasted for around 24 minutes — with preparations to restart occurring as soon as the lighting had moved out of the area. Players reemerged from their changing rooms five minutes before the resumption, and waited momentarily for groundstaff to test the pitch.

Persons: Michael Oliver, Oliver, Alex Gottschalk, Bjorn Kuipers, Alex Livesey, Jonathan Richter, Jacob Whitehead Italy, Spalletti’s, Luciano Spalletti didn’t, Spalletti, “, That’s, I’ll, ”, Masashi Hara, Italy haven’t, Strikers Gianluca Scamacca, Mateo Retegui, Giacomo Raspadori, ” Spalletti, “ It’s, Gabriele Gravina, James Horncastle, Joachim Andersen, Manuel Neuer, Christian Eriksen’s, Andersen, Thomas Delaney, Robert Andrich, David Raum’s, Kai Havertz, Kasper Schmeichel, Musiala, What’s Organizations: England, Denmark, UEFA, Getty, FC Nordsjaelland, Major League Soccer, International Broadcasting Centre, Fiat, Croatia, Albania, Strikers, Spain, Italian Football, Georgia Locations: Slovakia, Denmark, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Ukraine, France, England, Sweden, Danish, Real Salt, LAFC, Utah, —, ignominy, Korea, Macedonia, Gelsenkirchen, Iserlohn, Gelsenkirchen . Debutants Georgia, Portugal, Spain

☆ Cristiano Ronaldo: The performance, the pitch invaders and a moment of Portuguese purity
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-22 | by ( James Horncastle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

“Can I ask you something?” he said when invited to justify Cristiano Ronaldo’s continued selection in Portugal’s starting XI. If Ronaldo doesn’t score, what else does he bring to the team apart from the histrionic gesturing of a frustrated traffic warden? “Do you know how many minutes Ronaldo played last season?” Martinez knowingly queried. Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Cancelo were all smiles moments after the captain had been furious with his team-mate (Friso Gentsch/Picture Alliance via Getty Images)Pitch invaders marked Ronaldo closer than Turkey’s ragged centre-backs. “You can understand it was a difficult moment — if those intentions are wrong, the players are exposed and in danger.

Persons: Roberto Martinez, ”, Cristiano Ronaldo’s, Ronaldo doesn’t, He’s, Arda Guler, Ronaldo, ” Martinez, Cristiano, “, Fernando Santos, Goncalo Ramos, Conceicao’s, didn’t, Nuno Mendes, Bernardo Silva’s, Orkun, Joao Cancelo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Friso, Bernardo, Ruben Neves, Bruno Fernandes, Fernandes, Martinez, Fernandes ’, Will, Ramos, Germain, it’s, You’re, he’ll, Etsuo Hara Organizations: Saudi Pro League, Turkey’s, Georgia, Turkey, Portugal, Getty, Altay Bayindir, North, Portugal’s, Ronaldo, Paris Saint, selfies Locations: Portugal’s, Czech Republic, Leipzig, Portugal, Dortmund, Germany, Switzerland, Qatar, North Macedonia, Hamburg, Paris

☆ Power outage hits Balkan states as heat overloads system, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-22 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Montenegro’s energy minister said the shutdown was caused by a sudden increase in power consumption brought on by high temperatures, and by the heat itself overloading systems. “This was just waiting to happen in this heat,” Gentiana, a 24-year-old student in Montenegro’s capital Podgorica, told Reuters. Suppliers in the four countries said they started restoring supply by mid-afternoon and power was largely back by the evening. Power in Albania was restored within half an hour, but the country remained at a high risk of further shutdowns as power usage and heat levels were still high, he said. Western Balkan nations have seen a boom in solar energy investment, meant to ease a power crisis that had threatened a shift away from coal.

Persons: ”, Sasa Mujovic, Belinda Balluku, Balluku Organizations: CNN, Reuters, Suppliers, Air, HRT, Albanian Energy, North Macedonia’s Energy Regulatory Commission Locations: Montenegro, Bosnia, Albania, Croatia’s, Balkans, Montenegro’s, Podgorica, European, Bosnia’s, Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Mostar, Croatian, Split, Greece, Croatia

☆ Ethnic ‘Balancer’ for Government Jobs Becomes Focus of Ethnic Division
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Andrew Higgins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After drawing up a plan for 20 hires this year by the city administration, the head of the municipal personnel department plugged it into the Balancer — a website run by the government of the Balkan nation of North Macedonia. Seconds later, he received a chart giving the mandatory ethnic breakdown of the people to fill the jobs: 16 ethnic Albanians, three ethnic Macedonians and one Roma. The computer-generated quotas, which match the size of different communities in the heavily ethnic Albanian city of Tetovo, in the country’s northwest, are part of one of the world’s most comprehensive and rigidly mathematical government programs aimed at enforcing ethnic diversity through affirmative action. Critics say it puts ethnicity above merit, while supporters credit it with helping to pull the country back from ethnic civil war. Both sides agree the program has become riddled with fraud, especially as ethnic-based political parties try to game the system, and that it and other efforts to promote diversity have contributed to the proliferation of unnecessary state sector jobs.

Locations: Balkan, North Macedonia, Albanian, Tetovo

☆ These snakes not only fake their own deaths, they use gory special effects to do it
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Dice snakes can fake their own death when being attacked by predators, putting on a theatrical display that includes smearing themselves with their own poop and letting blood ooze from their mouths. To test this, the researchers traveled to Golem Grad, an island in a lake in North Macedonia, where the snakes are common. They observed that some snakes played dead by leaving their mouth wide open, some smeared themselves with poop and others oozed blood from their mouth, too. Overall, the snakes spent between about six and 24 seconds playing dead. While the snakes don’t squirt blood directly at their predators, like horned lizards do, bleeding from the mouth signals their apparent death to the predator.

Persons: Jozef Kaut, ” Vukašin, ”, Bjelica Organizations: CNN, University of Belgrade, Golem Locations: North Macedonia, Serbia

☆ I've visited 93 countries, 57 of them with kids. These 5 underrated spots are great places to enjoy with your family.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Since 2000, I've visited 93 countries and 57 of them have been with my four children who are all under the age of 10. We went on a safari tour in TanzaniaOur family visited Tanzania in 2019 in collaboration with a tourism brand. We love Sri Lanka so much, we're building a villa thereIn 2022, my family and I moved to Sri Lanka from Abu Dhabi. Edwards' daughter and son on a beach in Sri Lanka. Courtesy of Karen EdwardsI visited the country in 2008, and then again in 2012 with my then-boyfriend and now-husband.

Persons: Karen Edwards, Edwards, —, I've, Abu, Abu Dhabi, you'll, Al, we're, It's, We'd Organizations: Service, Disney, Mto, United Arab, Oasis, Catalonian Locations: Tanzania, Abu Dhabi, America, California, Florida, Zanzibar, Tanzanian, Lake, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Al Ain, Hafeet, Sri Lanka, Galle, Andorra, Pyrenees, Spain, Barcelona, Toulouse, France, Karen Edwards Andorra, Macedonia Macedonia, Balkan, Greece, Europe, Albania, Macedonia

☆ US welcomes new governments in fight against spyware as it finds more American personnel have been targeted
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Sean Lyngaas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

A year ago, the Biden administration put the tally of US government personnel either suspected of or confirmed to have been targeted by spyware at 50. The market for commercial spyware has exploded over the last decade as companies from Israel to North Macedonia have hawked their services and many governments have been willing buyers. Poland’s prime minister has claimed the previous government used spyware on a long list of victims. The Biden administration’s review “did not identify widespread use” in the federal government of commercial spyware, the official said in a rare interview on the subject. Spyware companies often hide behind opaque corporate structures and companies to stay in business, according to US officials and researchers who track those companies.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, “ Organizations: CNN, US National Security Council, NSC, US Treasury Department, Summit for Democracy, State Department, NSO Group, FBI, Pegasus, White Locations: Israel, North Macedonia, Poland, Ireland, Finland, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Seoul, ”, Africa, —

☆ Photographer steps inside Vietnam’s shadowy ‘click farms’
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Bibek Bhandari | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“With social media, our attention is a product for advertisers and marketers.”Jack Latham’s project took him to five click farms in Vietnam. Though it is unclear when click farms began proliferating, tech experts warned about “virtual gang masters” operating them from low-income countries as early as 2007. In the following decades, click farms exploded in number — particularly in Asia, where they can be found across India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines and beyond. The photographer added that TikTok is now the most popular platform at the click farms he visited. He included them in the book to represent the kind of content he saw being boosted by click farms.

Persons: Jack Latham, Vietnam —, ” Latham, Jack Latham’s, Latham, ”, Cambodia’s, Hun Sen, Donald Trump, — Organizations: CNN, Facebook, Twitter, China Advertising Association, “, BBC, Here Locations: Vietnam, Hanoi, Asia, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Philippines, China, Silicon, Hong Kong, —, North Macedonia, Vevey, Switzerland

☆ We've visited 50 states and 91 countries and almost always choose hotels over Airbnbs. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Initially, we were going to live in a golf community in Palm City, Florida, and also do some traveling. Courtesy of John and Beverly MartinJohn: When COVID hit, we realized we couldn't travel internationally. So we sold our house, bought the Airstream for $50,000, and visited all 50 states and 51 national parks in two years. John: After about a year, we started noticing we could stay at hotels for a similar price to the Airbnbs. Beverly: We've had some amazing stays, like a luxury hotel in Delhi.

Persons: —, John Martin, Beverly, Beverly Martin John, Bev, Beverly Martin Beverly, John, We've, Airbnb, we're, We're, would've Organizations: Service, Beverly, Central America, The, YouTube, Kruger National Park Locations: United States, Palm City , Florida, Beverly, New Zealand, California, Florida, Greece, Panama, Sri Lanka, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Europe, Central, Asia, Norway, Albania, Bulgaria, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Santorini, Hyatts, Laos, Delhi, South Africa, Victoria Falls, West Africa

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Kremlin dismisses threat from anti-war election hopeful; Zelenskyy visits front-line war hot spot
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

As part of the Western Balkans block waiting for EU-membership, Serbia is caught in a geostrategic rivalry between its Western allies and Russia. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine brought fresh political momentum to the European Union and its plans for enlargement in the Western Balkans. "I see the European Union more ready for the Balkans than the Balkans for the European Union," Miroslav Lajčák, EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and Western Balkans, told CNBC last month. Within days of Russia's invasion, Ukraine, neighboring Moldova and, soon after, nearby Georgia applied for EU candidate status — which they were granted in quick succession. "Now, it's very clear that the European Union is serious."

Persons: Russia's, —, Miroslav Lajčák, Lajčák, — Karen Gilchrist Organizations: EU, European Union, Belgrade, Pristina, CNBC, European Locations: Ukraine, Belgrade, Serbia, Balkans, Russia, Western Balkans, European, Albania, Bosnia, Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Europe, Yugoslavia, Moldova, Georgia, European Union

☆ Russia's war in Ukraine has had an unlikely consequence — it has revived the EU's plans to get even bigger
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

People hold a banner and Ukrainian flags during a rally to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2023 in Belgrade, Serbia. As part of the Western Balkans block waiting for EU-membership, Serbia is caught in a geostrategic rivalry between its Western allies and Russia. Davos, SWITZERLAND — As spiking geopolitical tensions thrust the European Union into the spotlight, attention has turned to the strategically important Western Balkans. The Western Balkans, comprised of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Serbia, represent a notable gap in the map of EU membership in southeastern Europe. "I see the European Union more ready for the Balkans than the Balkans for the European Union," Miroslav Lajčák, EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and Western Balkans, told CNBC last month.

Persons: —, Miroslav Lajčák, Lajčák Organizations: EU, Union, European Union, Belgrade, Pristina, CNBC Locations: Ukraine, Belgrade, Serbia, Balkans, Russia, Davos, SWITZERLAND, Albania, Bosnia, Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Europe, Yugoslavia, European, Western Balkans

MACEDONIA, Ohio (AP) — Environmental officials in Ohio were back on the scene Sunday of a fiery tanker truck crash, working to contain thousands of gallons (liters) of diesel fuel that spilled during the accident. The truck that crashed Saturday morning, killing the driver, was carrying about 7,500 gallons (28,390 liters) of diesel, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. A nearby creek briefly caught fire, and the agency worked to stop the spread of the fuel. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesThe truck landed on the northbound lanes of State Route 8 and exploded in flames. Fire departments responding to the scene found the driver of the tanker had died from injuries related to the crash.

Organizations: —, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, Officials, Sheriff’s, Macedonia Police Department Locations: MACEDONIA, Ohio, Northfield Center Township

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