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☆ Blasts Hit Russia-Controlled City in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Isabel Coles | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Explosions were heard in the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol overnight as Kyiv and its Western allies prepare for an offensive expected to begin in earnest later this spring. The city’s exiled Mayor Ivan Fedorov said a Russian base near an airfield was struck. Russian-installed occupation authorities in Melitopol said air defenses shot down six missiles fired by U.S.-supplied M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System or Himars. Western military analysts have said that Himars rockets probably can’t be intercepted by Russian systems.

☆ Blasts Hit Russia-Controlled City in Ukraine on Supply Route to Crimea
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Isabel Coles | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ukraine stepped up strikes on a Russian-occupied city in southern Ukraine that sits along a critical supply line to Crimea and is a potential prime target for Ukraine’s planned spring offensive. The exiled mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov , said a Russian base near an airfield was struck. Russian-installed occupation authorities in Melitopol said air defenses shot down six missiles fired by U.S.-supplied M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System or Himars. Western military analysts have said that Himars rockets probably can’t be intercepted by Russian systems.

☆ Putin built identical offices across Russia to conceal his location, a Russian intelligence officer who defected says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vladimir Putin has replicas of his offices across Russia, a former intelligence officer said. The officer, who defected from Russia, shed light on Putin's paranoia and obsession with safety. Karakulov told the Dossier Center that offices in Putin's residences in St. Petersburg, Sochi, and Novo-Ogaryovo had been designed to look identical. Karakulov said that Putin sometimes further obscured his location by sending his motorcade to the airport despite remaining at home. While in actual fact, he would stay in Sochi," Karakulov said.

☆ Ai Weiwei goes big for design-focused London exhibition
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Hanna Rantala | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Chinese artist Ai Weiwei poses during a photocall, amongst art pieces displayed in his exhibition "Ai Weiwei: making sense" at the Design Museum in London, Britain, April 4, 2023. Titled "Water Lilies #1", the artwork is one of the centrepieces of Ai's new “Making Sense” exhibition at London's Design Museum – his biggest UK show in eight years. There's a black door I integrated into this Monet's 'Water Lilies' because Monet is an artist my father liked. "Making Sense" also includes another new Lego artwork, "Untitled (Lego Incident"), one of five vast “fields” featuring hundreds of thousands of objects laid out on the gallery floor. "Ai Weiwei: Making Sense" runs at the Design Museum from April 7 to July 30.

☆ Putin lives in an 'information vacuum' and never uses a cellphone or the internet, a Russian intelligence officer who defected says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vladimir Putin lives in an "information vacuum," a Russian defector who accompanied him on trips said. Gleb Karakulov told the Dossier Center that Putin doesn't use a cellphone or the internet. Putin instead gathers information from secret service reports and Russian TV news channels, he said. "He only receives information from his closest circle, which means that he lives in an information vacuum." Putin generally gathers information from secret service intelligence reports, as well as Russian TV news channels, according to Karakulov.

☆ Chinese Christians Detained in Thailand While Seeking U.N. Protection
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Chun Han Wong | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Pan Yongguang, pastor of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church, in Thailand last year. A self-exiled congregation of Chinese Christians seeking United Nations protection from religious persecution faces potential deportation from Thailand, where police have detained the group along with two Americans who were assisting them. Thai immigration police rounded up 63 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church on Thursday, taking them from their hotel in the coastal city of Pattaya to a police immigration bureau facility, according to the church’s pastor and an American activist who has been supporting the congregation’s efforts to seek asylum.

[1/5] Grammy award-winning Fugees rapper Prakazrel (Pras) Michel, who is facing criminal charges in an alleged illegal lobbying campaign, arrives for opening arguments in his trial at U.S. District Court in Washington, U.S., March 30, 2023. "This is a case about foreign money, influence and concealment," Lockhart said during her opening statement in Washington on Thursday. "Through this scheme, the defendant duped the Obama campaign," Lockhart told the jury. For his work on these two lobbying campaigns on behalf of Low and China, prosecutors said Michel was paid $70 million. Low remains a fugitive in the Michel case.

☆ Here are 9 Twitter promises that Elon Musk has failed to deliver on as ‘chief Twit’
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Elon Musk’s record on delivering on the deluge of pledges he has made as “chief Twit” is less than ideal. Since then, Musk has made a number of wild changes and promises pertaining to Twitter. ► Maximal free speech: Musk repeatedly talked about Twitter being a home for free speech. When I reached out to Musk on Wednesday morning with questions about his failed promises, he didn’t respond. But I did receive an auto-reply poop emoji from the press@twitter.com email address, a feature Musk recently said he would implement.

☆ Exiled leader tells US Congress Tibet faces 'slow death' under China
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, March 28 (Reuters) - Tibet is dying a "slow death" under Chinese rule, the head of the India-based organization known as Tibet's government in-exile said on Tuesday in a first address to the U.S. Congress. The Sikyong role was created in 2012 after the Dalai Lama, Tibetans' 87-year-old spiritual leader, relinquished political authority in favor of an organization that could outlive him. China has ruled the remote western region of Tibet since 1951, after its military marched in and took control in what it calls a "peaceful liberation." Actor and long-time Tibet activist Richard Gere told the hearing that Chinese policies in Tibet increasingly "match the definition of crimes against humanity." Reporting by Michael Martina and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Putin has taken Belarus 'hostage' with Russian plans to station nuclear weapons in the country, says Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia has taken Belarus as a "nuclear hostage," a top Ukrainian official said on Sunday. On Saturday, Putin announced plans to store tactical nuclear weapons in the country. On Saturday, Putin announced on Russian state television that he planned to build a storage facility in Belarus to hold tactical nuclear weapons. The Russian president said there is "nothing unusual" about his announcement, noting the US has "long deployed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allied countries," according to Reuters. Belarus and Russia have been long-time allies — and the former Soviet republic is generally seen as a Russian puppet state.

☆ How TikTok’s CEO prepared for his first grilling on Capitol Hill
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Shou Zi Chew is getting ready for his inaugural trip to Congress. In prep sessions, which have taken place in Washington, D.C. ahead of the high-stakes hearing, TikTok personnel have worked to sharpen and polish Chew’s presentation. The Biden administration demanded earlier this month that the company’s Chinese owners divest from the company or be exiled from the country. The app has raised bipartisan national security concerns and growing worries that its sophisticated algorithm poses a danger to young people. “Americans deserve to know the extent to which their privacy is jeopardized and their data is manipulated by ByteDance-owned TikTok’s relationship with China,” McMorris Rodgers said.

☆ At least 22 people killed in suspected massacre at Myanmar monastery
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Soldiers stand next to military vehicles as people gather to protest against the military coup, in Yangon, Myanmar, February 15, 2021. A spokesman for the KNDF said its soldiers entered Nan Neint on Sunday and found dead bodies scattered at a Buddhist monastery. Video and photographs provided by the KNDF and another group, the Karenni Revolution Union (KRU), showed bullet wounds to the torso and heads of the dead bodies and bullet holes in the walls of the monastery. "Since all the dead bodies were found within the compound of Nan Nein monastery, it is evident that this was a massacre." At least 3,137 people have been killed in the military crackdown since the coup, according to the non-profit Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

☆ Exiled Chinese businessman Guo charged with fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsExiled Chinese businessman Guo charged with fraudPostedThe U.S. government on Wednesday charged Guo Wengui, an exiled Chinese businessman with ties to former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon, with leading a complex conspiracy to defraud Guo's online followers out of more than $1 billion. Ryan Brooks reports.

☆ Miles Guo, the Chinese tycoon charged with defrauding his fans of more than $1 billion, once starred in a music video where he shadowboxed on a luxury yacht to lyrics like 'take down the CCP'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Guo Wengui, also known as Miles Guo, was arrested on 11 counts of fraud and money laundering. Guo, also known as Miles Guo, is credited on Apple Music and Spotify as the artist behind at least 14 hip-hop, pop, and lo-fi songs. One of the political activist's most well-known works is a music video on YouTube, titled "Fight For Hong Kong." Taking down the CCP, the evil CCP, is the only way for us to live without fear," Guo raps in Mandarin. Another video sees Guo hyping up Himalaya Coin, or Hcoin, a cryptocurrency that Guo and Bannon promoted.

☆ Guo Wengui Charged in Alleged $1 Billion Fraud Conspiracy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( James Fanelli | Corinne Ramey | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Guo Wengui , a former real-estate developer, has said he fled China in 2014 after hearing that a state security official to whom he was close would soon be arrested. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui with duping investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars to bankroll the purchase of a sprawling mansion, a 145-foot luxury yacht and other lavish items. Mr. Guo, also known as Kwok Ho Wan, was arrested Wednesday morning in New York and is charged with 11 counts of fraud and money laundering, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday in New York federal court. Prosecutors said he orchestrated a $1 billion scheme that preyed on hundreds of thousands of his online followers to purchase stock in his media company, fund a farm loan program and join a luxury-services club.

☆ Feds arrest Chinese tycoon linked to Steve Bannon and charge him with defrauding online fans to fund his yacht, Ferrari, and $36,000 mattresses
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A Chinese tycoon was arrested and charged with defrauding his online followers out of over $1 billion. Feds say Guo Wengui used stolen money to buy a $3.5 million Ferrari and two $36,000 mattresses. Wengui is facing various fraud and money laundering charges, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Wednesday. He allegedly asked his followers to invest in or give money to GTV, the Himalaya Farm Alliance, and the Himalaya Exchange. He also allegedly used the money to finance a $37 million luxury yacht, according to the charges.

☆ DOJ charges Chinese businessman Guo Wengui, associate of Steve Bannon, in $1 billion fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon greets fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui before introducing him at a news conference on November 20, 2018 in New York. The controversial exiled Chinese billionaire businessman Guo Wengui — an associate of former Trump White House advisor Steve Bannon — was arrested in New York on Wednesday for orchestrating what federal prosecutors called a more than $1 billion fraud conspiracy that duped online followers with promises of outsized investment returns. Former President Donald Trump months later pardoned Bannon in that case, shortly before Trump left the White House. IThe defendants are charged with wire fraud, securities fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering in the criminal case. Both Guo and Je face ossible sentences of up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

[1/5] Guo Wengui (also known as Miles Kwok) holds a news conference with Steve Bannon in New York, New York, U.S., November 20, 2018. Guo, 52, was charged with 11 criminal counts including securities fraud, wire fraud and concealment of money laundering, after "lining his pockets with the money he stole," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in Manhattan said in a statement. They will propose a "robust bail package," according to Tamara Giwa, a federal public defender who represented Guo at Wednesday's hearing. Bannon is not accused of wrongdoing in Guo's criminal case. It said it also seized assets purchased with proceeds from Guo's alleged fraud, including a Lamborghini Aventador, and wants Guo to forfeit the yacht.

☆ Police limit anti-government protest in Moldova
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Alexander Tanas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Moldovan law enforcement officers stand guard during an anti-government protest against the recent countrywide increase of power rates and prices, which is organised by opposition political movements including the Russia-friendly party Shor, in Chisinau, Moldova, March 12, 2023. REUTERS/Vladislav CuliomzaCHISINAU, March 12 (Reuters) - Police in Moldova kept several thousand demonstrators away from government buildings on Sunday after officials warned of possible organised disorder at the protest, the latest of a series denouncing pro-European President Maia Sandu. Moldova accused Russia last month of plotting to overthrow Sandu, while the United States pledged to support her government against destabilisation. Andrei Spinu, head of Sandu's administration, denounced Sunday's rally as "not a protest. This was yet another attempt by Russia to destabilise the situation in Moldova."

☆ Smuggled note exposes violence against women in Myanmar jail - lawyers, activists
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The junta has previously denied holding political prisoners, saying people in jail broke the law and were sentenced after due legal process. "During that incident, more than 100 female political prisoners were seriously injured including a broken arm, eye injuries and facial bruises," the note said. The activists, lawyers and family members interviewed by Reuters asked not to be identified for fear of repercussions as they are working inside Myanmar. "As these people are women prisoners, they have to be handled by women prison guards. The anti-junta group and two Mandalay-based lawyers who work with political prisoners said those involved in the violence were also denied medical care.

☆ Watch CNBC's full interview with Belarusian exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWatch CNBC's full interview with Belarusian exiled opposition leader Sviatlana TsikhanouskayaSviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, exiled opposition leader of Belarus, speaks to CNBC's Dan Murphy after receiving a 15-year prison sentence.

☆ Our movement is unstoppable, exiled Belarusian opposition leader says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailOur movement is unstoppable, exiled Belarusian opposition leader saysSviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, leader of the Belarusian Democratic Movement, speaks to CNBC's Dan Murphy about her 15-year prison sentence.

☆ 'Our movement is unstoppable': Exiled Belarusian opposition leader speaks out after receiving 15-year prison sentence
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Emma Graham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the exiled opposition leader of Belarus, told CNBC she "wasn't surprised" by the court's verdict after she was handed a 15-year sentence in a prison camp. "It was predictable that Lukashenko would try to take revenge on me," Tsikhanouskaya told CNBC's Dan Murphy Tuesday after the verdict. Lukashenko's 2020 election victory, in which he claims to have won 80% of the vote, was called a "deeply flawed and fraudulent presidential election" by multiple western governments. The U.N. criticized Belarus "for police violence against peaceful protesters and journalists" following the "controversial presidential election." Tsikhanouskaya was forced into exile with her children a day after the 2020 vote.

☆ Belarus court sentences exiled opposition leader to 15 years in prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

March 6 (Reuters) - A court in Belarus has sentenced exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya to 15 years in prison in absentia, the state news agency Belta reported on Monday. Tsikhanouskaya, 40, fled Belarus after running for the presidency in 2020 against veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko. The election was followed by mass protests after the opposition accused Lukashenko of electoral fraud, something he denied. Tsikhanouskaya, whose supporters have dismissed the charges against her as a meaningless farce, was put on trial in absentia for treason charges in January. Reporting by Reuters Editing by Andrew OsbornOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Nobel winner Bialiatski jailed in Belarus for a decade, sparking outcry
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Footage from the cramped Minsk court showed Bialiatski, who co-founded the Viasna (Spring) human rights group, looking sombre, his hands cuffed behind his back, as he and his co-defendants watched proceedings from a courtroom cage. Bialiatski, who was arrested in 2021, and three co-defendants were charged with financing protests and smuggling money. Belarusian state news agency Belta confirmed the court had handed down long jail sentences to all the men, including a decade in prison for Bialiatski. That, she said, placed human rights defenders at risk of criminal prosecution for their legitimate activities. Viasna, the organisation he co-founded, took a leading role in providing legal and financial assistance to those jailed.

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