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The regular army and the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) issued statements accusing each other of failing to respect the ceasefire. "We have not received any indications here that there's been a halt in the fighting," United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric told a news briefing in New York. The fighting has triggered what the United Nations has described as a humanitarian catastrophe, including the near collapse of the health system. Fighting also raged in the west of the country, the United Nations said. [1/7] Satellite image shows a closer view of a burning building at the Merowe Airbase, Sudan, April 18, 2023.

☆ Just Stop Oil protester disrupts World Snooker Championship
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A protester disrupted the World Snooker Championship on Monday by climbing onto the table and throwing a bag of orange powder paint over the playing surface. Video footage shows the man – who was wearing a ‘Just Stop Oil’ t-shirt – running from the crowd and leaping onto the table during the game between Robert Milkins and Joe Perry. “It’s scary, actually.”The World Snooker Tour, who organizes the tournament, tweeted on Monday: “This is the Crucible. The show will go on.”In addition to sporting events, Just Stop Oil activists have targeted art galleries. The World Snooker Championship is being played at the iconic Crucible Theater in Sheffield, UK, and is now the latest high-profile sporting event to be disrupted by activists.

☆ U.S. House Republicans tangle over debt limit, spending cut plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Sometime this summer, the Treasury Department will be unable to manage its debt under the current $31.4 trillion limit on borrowing, according to the Biden administration and the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. "Don't bother with partisan wish lists and unrealistic proposals that will never solve this debt default crisis," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, warned House Republicans in a speech to the Senate. But Mace said McCarthy showed rank-and-file Republicans a series of options, projected onto a screen, that included the possibilities of a $1 trillion or $2 trillion debt limit increase with various time frames attached. Perry said referring to a debt limit hike. Hern did not respond directly when asked whether House Republicans would pare back funding for some federal law enforcement, such as the FBI, as former President Donald Trump has urged.

SYDNEY, April 17 (Reuters) - The lawyer for an Australian charged with foreign interference said his client had become "very worried" about two alleged foreign intelligence agents while living in Shanghai and returned to Australia after a decade-long career in China. Csergo is alleged to have accepted cash for writing reports, which Australian federal police say contained information about Australian defence, economic and national security arrangements. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation had searched Csergo's laptop and WeChat accounts upon his return from Shanghai, the court was told. "The Chinese did not want it to be known they were making these inquiries and receiving these reports," Barko commented. Csergo, 55, appeared in court via video link from Parklea Prison where he is being held as a high security prisoner.

☆ Opinion: Top secrets come spilling out
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

We’re looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. Writing for CNN Opinion, Rep. Justin Pearson noted, “This should be a chastening moment for revanchist forces in Tennessee’s legislature and across the country. Over the long haul, the undemocratic machinations employed to oust us from office are destined to fail. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once famously said that the moral arc of the universe bends toward justice. “As a Jewish historian,” Perry wrote, “I worry about the tension between preserving the memory of past hardships while not locking our entire history into a tale of oppression.

☆ I'm a celebrity photographer. I captured the true nightlife-energy of famous people and refused to sell photos to paparazzi.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Costa B. Pappas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Mark Hunter is a celebrity photographer who started uploading nightlife-photos to his blog in 2003. My approach to nightlife photography was very forward thinking. After every party I'd post the photos on my blog. I've learned nightlife photography is all about your reputation, working hard, and networkingI feel like I'm just as in demand now, if not more than I was back in the day. Becoming a nightlife photographer is going to be challenging because there's no formula like at a corporate job.

☆ Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Take That to perform at King Charles' coronation concert
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 14 (Reuters) - Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Take That will star in an eclectic lineup at a concert to celebrate King Charles' coronation next month, billed by organisers as a chance to celebrate a new chapter in Britain's history. The formal coronation ceremony for Charles, who became king on the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth last September, will take place at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, May 6. U.S. music star Richie said: "To share the stage with the other performers at the Coronation Concert is a once-in-a-lifetime event and it will be an honor and a celebration." The line-up also includes opera star Andrea Bocelli, singer-songwriter Freya Ridings, Welsh bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, and classical-soul composer Alexis Ffrench. The list of performers was announced by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), who will produce and broadcast the showcase.

☆ Fintech Public just partnered with Chris Evans' civic-engagement company to help retail investors get better informed on public policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Paige Hagy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Investing app Public is partnering with civic-engagement company A Starting Point. A Starting Point was cofounded by Chris Evans, Mark Kassen, and Joe Kiani. The partnership offers Public's retail investors educational content produced by A Starting Point. Fintech Public wants its users to be better informed about public policy, and it's partnering with Captain America for the job. The series is aimed to educate retail investors by offering policy news briefs, fiscal and monetary policy explainers, and interviews with lawmakers.

☆ Opinion: Is Tucker Carlson the reason Texas Gov. Abbott says he’ll pardon a convicted killer?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Dean Obeidallah | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Abbott’s pardon announcement came after he was goaded to do so by figures on the right – from Fox News host Tucker Carlson to the chairman of the Texas Republican Party to Kyle Rittenhouse. There are conflicting accounts as to whether Foster pointed his weapon at Perry or Perry made the first move. They are rioting outside my apartment complex.” Defense attorneys said that Foster had threatened Perry by pointing his gun at Perry. Then Carlson and others on the right began to pressure Abbott to issue a pardon, because they didn’t agree with the verdict. On his Fox News show on Friday night, Carlson called on Abbott to pardon Perry, arguing that the defendant had acted in self-defense – despite the jury rejecting that argument.

☆ Ouster of Black TN lawmakers 'deeply anti-democratic' -analyst
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsOuster of Black TN lawmakers 'deeply anti-democratic' -analystPostedImani Perry, Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, says the expulsion of two Black Tennessee lawmakers from the state House of Representatives sets a dangerous political precedent in states where Republicans hold overwhelming majorities in the legislatures.

☆ Texas Governor Vows to Pardon Man Convicted of Killing BLM Protester
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Zusha Elinson | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Greg Abbott in Austin, Texas, last year. The Texas governor says he intends to approve a pardon in the Black Lives Matter case ‘as soon as it hits my desk.’Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he wants to pardon a man who was convicted Friday of murdering a Black Lives Matter protester. The Republican said on Twitter Saturday that he requested a state pardon board review the case of Daniel Perry, who was found guilty of murder for killing Garrett Foster at a demonstration in the summer of 2020 in Austin, Texas. Mr. Abbott said he would approve a pardon “as soon as it hits my desk.”

☆ Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he will pardon an Army sergeant who was convicted for shooting a Black Lives Matter protester ‘as soon as it hits my desk’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A jury unanimously convicted Perry on murder charges on Friday. Greg Abbott on Saturday said he will work "swiftly" to pardon an Army sergeant who was recently convicted of shooting and killing a Black Lives Matter protester. Daniel Perry for the shooting death of Garrett Foster, 28, at a 2020 Black Lives Matter protest in Austin, Texas. Perry then shot Foster five times with a revolver before driving away, the American-Statesman reported. "I look forward to approving the board's pardon recommendation as soon as it hits my desk," Abbott said in Saturday's tweet.

☆ Texas governor seeks pardon of man convicted of murder in Black Lives Matter shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Rich Mckay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 8 (Reuters) - Texas Governor Greg Abbott said on Saturday he is seeking the pardon of an Uber driver convicted of murder just a day earlier in the July 2020 shooting death of a man at a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Austin, the state capital. Perry was driving in the city the night of the shooting and turned his Uber vehicle onto a street where a Black Lives Matter crowd was marching, according to media. Protesters told police that they feared they were being assaulted with the vehicle, according to media accounts. Perry was convicted of murder after the jury deliberated for 17 hours in the eight-day trial, according to media accounts. Perry faces life in prison and is due to be sentenced by State District Court Judge Clifford Brown on Tuesday, according to online court records for the 147th District Court in Travis County, Texas.

☆ Factbox: In Middle East, once improbable ententes set new tone
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Some U.S. allies had concluded their interests are not best served by a highly polarised Middle East, he added. The agreement between leading Sunni Arab power Saudi Arabia and the Shi'ite Islamist government in Tehran could defuse tensions and conflicts such as the Yemen war. Saudi Arabia has turned to China at a time of strain in its historic alliance with the United States. Saudi Arabia took the lead in rebuilding ties in 2021, declaring an end to the boycott of Qatar. Sources say Syria and Saudi Arabia have agreed to reopen embassies.

☆ Apple CEO Tim Cook shares his No. 1 strategy for clearing his head: 'It's better than any other thing you could possibly do'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

At least, that's what Apple CEO Tim Cook does. Getting out into nature eases those tensions and helps Cook mentally reset, he told GQ on Monday. Its data showed that good health and wellbeing peaked after spending 200-300 minutes outside. Cook, who has an estimated net worth of $1.8 billion, isn't the only billionaire who prioritizes outdoor time. Take this survey and tell us how you want to take your money and career to the next level.

☆ ‘Equal Occupational Fatality Day’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

But to understand the folly of comparing aggregate statistics, consider Equal Occupational Fatality Day. That’s a commemoration coined as a thought experiment some years ago by economist Mark Perry , a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, who updated his numbers again this week. America’s most dangerous job in 2021, according to the official data, was held by loggers, who were 96% men. Also high on the list were roofers, 97.1% men, and electrical power line installers and repairers, 99.3% men. The most sex-balanced occupation in the top 10 most dangerous was trash collecting, 87.9% men.

☆ Iran says it warned off US Navy aircraft close to Gulf of Oman
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, April 2 (Reuters) - The Iranian navy said it identified and warned off a U.S. reconnaissance plane near the Gulf of Oman on Sunday, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported. "After the warning, the plane was prevented from entering the country's skies without authorization," said the report, identifying the plane as a U.S. Navy EP-3E. While the opening line of the Tasnim report said the aircraft had crossed into Iranian airspace, the same report also said the aircraft had not entered Iranian skies and had left after the warning. In 2019, Iran shot down a U.S. drone which it said was flying over southern Iran. Moscow has denied its forces used Iranian drones in Ukraine.

☆ Elon Musk appears to offer $1 million bounty to 'convict' those responsible for Twitter 'botnets'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk appeared to offer a $1 million bounty to help find the source of "botnets" on Twitter. The user said by taking control of several accounts, botnets were able to suppress certain accounts by mass blocking, unfollowing, and reporting them. Blogger Jane Wong pointed out that Twitter's algorithm specifically labels if Musk wrote a tweet. He plans to allow only the tweets of verified accounts and those users follow on the For You feed. "Legacy verified accounts," those verified by Twitter before Musk's takeover for free largely on the basis of noteworthiness, will begin to lose their verification marks this weekend, according to Twitter.

☆ Southeast Asian finance leaders discuss containing global risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NUSA DUA, Indonesia, March 31 (Reuters) - Talks between Southeast Asian central bank governors and finance ministers entered their final day on Friday, with the leaders focused on strengthening the region's resilience against global risks. The gathering of finance leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comes amid a backdrop of recent global banking turmoil after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the bailout and takeover of Credit Suisse. Indonesia's central bank governor Perry Warjiyo called on the forum to boost the use of local currencies for settlements to reduce volatility and exposure to major currencies. They also discussed cryptocurrencies and central bank digital currencies, he added. Reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman; additional reporting by Ananda Teresia in Jakarta Editing by Ed Davies, Kanupriya KapoorOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Relations between Taiwan and the United States
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Here are some facts about the relationship between Taiwan and the United States. * During the height of the Cold War, Taiwan hosted U.S. military bases and the two had a Mutual Defence Treaty. * In 1979, the United States severed official relations with the government in Taipei and instead recognised the government in Beijing. * Post-1979, the U.S. relationship with Taiwan has been governed by the Taiwan Relations Act, which gives a legal basis to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, but does not mandate that the United States come to Taiwan's aid if attacked. * The United States retains a large de facto embassy in Taipei called the American Institute in Taiwan, staffed by diplomats.

☆ Jailed Malaysian ex-PM Najib loses final bid to review graft conviction
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Rozanna Latiff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KUALA LUMPUR, March 31 (Reuters) - Malaysia's top court on Friday dismissed a bid by jailed former prime minister Najib Razak to review his corruption conviction over the multi-billion dollar scandal at state fund 1MDB, ending Najib's judicial efforts to challenge the guilty verdict. Najib was jailed last year after Malaysia's Federal Court upheld a guilty verdict and 12-year prison sentence handed down to him by a lower court. Federal Court Judge Vernon Ong said a five-member panel voted 4-1 to dismiss Najib's application to review the conviction. Najib faces three other trials related to graft at 1MDB and other government agencies. Reporting by Rozanna Latiff; Writing by A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Ed Davies and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Australia passes tougher emissions reduction law that hits gas investments
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, March 30 (Reuters) - New rules that cap total Australian greenhouse gas emissions and curb some new gas and coal investments in the country will come into effect on 1 July after parliament passed an upgraded emissions reduction plan on Thursday. Negotiations with the Greens, who wanted a ban on all new fossil fuel investments, resulted in a law including a hard total emissions cap, ministerial review for projects that raise total emissions and compulsory disclosures for polluters that rely heavily on carbon offsets to meet their targets. Under the revised legislation, projects such as the massive Browse field that Woodside Energy (WDS.AX) wants to develop would have to have carbon capture and storage to achieve net zero. The legislation also requires all new gas projects in the Beetaloo Basin to have net zero carbon emissions and new gas fields supplying existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants to have net zero reservoir emissions, imposing new costs. Reporting by Lewis Jackson; Editing by Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

It suspended its probe in November 2021 at the request of the Philippines after Manila said it was carrying out its own investigations. The ICC investigation was reopened in January 2023 and on March 27 the ICC rejected Manila's request to suspend it pending an appeal questioning the court's jurisdiction and authority. It is not clear even among some government officials what cutting contact meant or whether the Philippines will completely drop its appeal against the ICC investigation. Police say they killed 6,200 suspects during anti-drug operations that ended in shootouts but reject accusations by human rights groups of systematic executions and cover-ups. There doesn't seem to be any political will within the Philippine government to seriously investigate," Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, told CNN Philippines.

☆ China's economy improves in March, will consolidate recovery, says Premier Li
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BOAO, China, March 30 (Reuters) - China's economic performance has improved in March from the first two months and the country will expand domestic demand and consolidate its economic recovery, Premier Li Qiang said on Thursday at an economic forum in Boao. No matter how the world situation is evolving, China will remain committed to reforms and opening up, Li said at the Boao forum in the southern island province of Hainan. In particular, major economic indicators such as consumption and investment continue to improve, while employment and prices are generally stable," Li said. Premier Li also said chaos and conflicts must not happen in Asia or the future of the region would be lost. China offers an "anchor" for global peace and development in the uncertain world, Li said.

☆ Vietnam communist party chief, Biden agree to boost ties in phone call
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HANOI, March 30 (Reuters) - The chief of Vietnam's ruling Communist Party Nguyen Phu Trong and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed in a telephone call on Wednesday to "promote, develop and deepen" ties, Vietnam's state media reported. The United States is now Vietnam's largest export market and the two former foes are celebrating the 10th anniversary of a "comprehensive partnership" this year. The report said Trong, who is Vietnam's most powerful figure, and Biden repeated invitations to visit each others country. In October, Trong was the first foreign leader to meet Xi Jin Ping in Beijing after he secured a precedent-breaking third term as General Secretary at the Chinese Communist Party. Reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi and David Brunnstrom in Washington Editing by Ed Davies and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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