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☆ Yevgeny Prigozhin: Who is the Wagner chief turned rebel?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Yevgeny Prigozhin is the founder and bombastic leader of Russia’s private military group Wagner. Putin and Prigozhin share relatively humble beginnings, and the Wagner chief grew up in the tougher neighborhoods of St. Petersburg, also the president’s hometown. Prigozhin founded Wagner as shadowy mercenary outfit that fought both in Ukraine and, increasingly, for Russian-backed causes around the world. In recent months, Prigozhin has created a dilemma for Putin by becoming an outspoken critic of Russia’s military leaders. The Wagner mutiny began when Prigozhin unleashed a new tirade against the Russian military on Friday and then marched his troops into the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Defense Yunus, Bek Yevkurov, Mark Hertling, Misha Japaridze, Sergei Shoigu, Gen, Valery Gerasimov, “, Don Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, Defense, Reuters CNN, Central African, Russian, United, Russian Defense Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, St . Petersburg, Russian, Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya, Mozambique, Syria, Soledar, Prigozhin's, Russia, Bakhmut, Rostov

☆ Yevgeny Prigozhin: What is happening to Wagner boss?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Yevgeny Prigozhin, the bombastic chief of Russia’s private mercenary group Wagner, appears to be falling out of favor fast in Moscow, after he unleashed a tirade against the Russian military on Friday and vowed to retaliate against its leaders. Prigozhin on Friday accused Russia’s military of attacking a Wagner camp and killing a “huge amount” of his men. Prigozhin founded Wagner to be a shadowy mercenary outfit that fought both in eastern Ukraine and, increasingly, for Russian-backed causes around the world. While many regular Russian troops saw setbacks on the battlefield, Wagner fighters seemed to be the only ones capable of delivering tangible progress. In one particularly grim video from early May, Prigozhin stood next to a pile of dead Wagner fighters and took aim specifically at Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and chief of the Russian armed forces Gen. Valery Gerasimov.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Russia’s, ”, Prigozhin, Prighozhin, Vladimir Putin, Dimitry Peskov, Putin, Mark Hertling, Sergei Shoigu, Gen, Valery Gerasimov, “, ” Putin Organizations: CNN, Prigozhin, Kremlin, Defense, Russian Federation, Social, Central African, United, Bakhmut, Russian Defense Locations: Moscow, Russia’s Rostov, Russia, Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine, Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya, Mozambique, Syria

☆ Factbox: Graphite producers doing deals with automakers and battery groups
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Tomas Bergman/Handout via REUTERSLONDON, June 21 (Reuters) - Automakers are rushing to lock in graphite supply from outside dominant producer China as mined graphite demand for electric vehicle (EV) batteries outpaces other uses. Below are details of some Western companies producing, or planning to produce graphite, and their deals with auto makers and battery producers. It aims to start annual production at a battery anode plant in Mauritius in 2024 at 3,600 metric tons. SYRAH RESOURCES LTD (SYR.AX)Operates Balama mine in Mozambique, which doubled graphite production to 163,000 metric tons in 2022 from the year before. MAGNIS ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES LTD (MNS.AX)Developing Nachu graphite mine in Tanzania, aiming to produce 236,000 metric tons of graphite concentrate.

Persons: Tomas Bergman, Handout, steelmaker Thyssenkrupp, Talga, Magnis, Tesla, China's, Eric Onstad, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Talga Group, Reuters, REUTERS LONDON, INC, TALGA, Automotive Cells Company, ACC, Stellantis, Mercedes, Benz, Renault, LG Energy, Ford Motor Company, SK, MONDE, Panasonic Energy, Thomson Locations: Norrbotten, Sweden, China, Madagascar, Mauritius, Lulea, Mozambique, U.S ., Louisiana, Tanzania, United States, New York, South Australia, Macquarie, Canada, India, Alabama, Coosa

☆ Analysis: Auto firms race to secure non-Chinese graphite for EVs as shortages loom
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Eric Onstad | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Auto firms have been slow to plan for graphite shortages, focusing mainly on better-known battery materials lithium and cobalt, even though graphite is the largest battery component by weight. Graphite shortages are expected to rise in coming years, with a global supply deficit of 777,000 tonnes expected by 2030, Project Blue projections showed. China produces 61% of global natural graphite and 98% of the final processed material to make battery anodes, BMI said. Agreeing graphite supply deals is complex, requiring extensive safety testing for material going into each model of EV that can take up to three years. Natural graphite anodes tend to be cheaper and are beneficial for cell capacity and power output, allowing cars to run further distances before charging.

Persons: Tomas Bergman, Handout, there's, Mark Thompson, Australia's, Northvolt, Thompson, Talga, Mercedes, Brent Nykoliation, Tesla, George Miller, Reitumetse, Eric Onstad, Veronica Brown, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Talga Group, Reuters, Mercedes, Auto, Australia's Talga, BMO Capital Markets, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, BMI, Reuters Graphics, Toyota, Ford, Tesla Inc, Toyota Motor Corp, Ford Motor, Benz, Renault, NextSource, Syrah Resources, Magnis Energy Technologies, U.S, European Union, Thomson Locations: Norrbotten, Sweden, China, Madagascar, Mozambique, United States, Europe, U.S, Mauritius, CHINA, Western

☆ This man is traveling the world on non-motorized transport
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Tamara Hardingham-Gill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Not even an elevator,” Pukonen says of his epic adventure, which has seen him travel around 80,000 kilometers without using motorized transport. Ambitious questAdventurer Markus Pukonen has spent over seven years traveling the world using non-motorized transport. Before beginning the trip, Pukonen founded nonprofit organization Routes of Change, with the aim of raising funds and awareness for small social and environmental organizations throughout his journey. “So the fact that what I’m doing is such a crazy, astonishing thing [to some people] is really, really bizarre to me. Although Pukonen has used almost every form of non-motorized transport possible during the journey, he says there’s nothing quite like traveling on water.

Persons: Markus Pukonen, Pukonen, he’d, “, it’s, ”, he’s, ” Pukonen, Randy Mitson, ’, “ I’ve, ” He’s, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, Children’s, Swift, Toronto Locations: Toronto, rafted, Mississippi, Canada, Lake Ontario, Columbia, Washington, Hawaii, Macau, Vietnam, kayaked, Indonesia, Canadian, Winnipeg, Tofino, Vancouver Island, India, Seychelles, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Brazil, Florida, Savannah , Georgia, North America's, Superior, Georgia, Maine, Hudson, New York, Caribbean, Tobago, Asia, Pukonen, British Columbia

☆ Natural evolution: Record Galapagos deal sparks clamour for eco-friendly debt swaps
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The growing appetite comes as record numbers of developing world governments face debt pressures due to higher global interest rates. There have been around 140 over the past 35 years, but even including last month's super-sized Galapagos deal they have only involved around $5 billion of debt altogether. The top-level attendees will be urged to do more, not only debt swaps, but also by providing foreign exchange guarantees and automatic debt-payment breaks for countries hit by climate-related disasters. "Seeing something that has a group of countries involved would be amazing," Issa said. Ecuador says it is eyeing another transaction to capitalise on the halo effect from the Galapagos deal.

Persons: Ramzi Issa, Charles Darwin's, Issa, Ilan Goldfajn, Scott Nathan, Nathan, Emmanuel Macron, Mia Mottley, Suisse's Issa, Simon Jessop, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Ecuador, Credit Suisse, Inter, American Development Bank, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Reuters Graphics, Thomson Locations: Ecuador, Belize, Barbados, Gabon, Paris, Sri Lanka, Indian, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Seychelles

☆ I'm a former Navy SEAL who protects rich people on vacation. I've taken them everywhere from French Polynesia to Mt. Everest.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Claire Turrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

I used to move US Special Forces troops around Iraq and Afghanistan. As a Navy SEAL, I was awarded a Bronze Star Medal in Iraq and a Bronze Star with V for Valor in Afghanistan. While our services are expensive, we can make our clients' travel insurance cheaper. We protect the family, but we can also protect the yacht's contents — some of our client's yachts have multi-million-dollar art collections on board. If we have a guest who has never skydived before, we'll hook them up with a Special Forces instructor.

Persons: Servius, —, They've, — we've, We've, we'll, we're, he's Organizations: Navy SEAL, Special Forces, Service, Valor, Monaco, Navy, Rangers, Marines, Everest Base, ex, extractions Locations: Iraq, Afghanistan, Polynesia, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, South Africa, Miami, South America

The Vatican announced his visit, which many observers see as an uphill effort, in a short statement. It said the main purpose was "to listen carefully to Ukrainian authorities on the possible ways to reach a just peace and support humanitarian gestures that may help ease tensions". At the meeting in May, Zelenskiy asked the pope to back Kyiv's peace plan, which Zelenskiy has repeatedly said is not open to negotiation. "There can be no equality between the victim and the aggressor," Zelenskiy said after his May 13 meeting with the pope. Zuppi hails from the Sant' Egidio Community, a Rome-based peace and justice group which has been instrumental in several peace negotiations, particularly in Africa.

Persons: Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Pope Francis, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Vladimir Putin, Zuppi, Sant, Philip Pullella, Nick Macfie Organizations: CITY, Vatican, Italian Bishops Conference, Diplomats, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Bologna, Russia, Zuppi, Crimea, Rome, Africa, Mozambique

☆ Ukraine’s cross-border tactics are aimed at destabilizing Russia. Judging by the response, they’re working
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Sam Kiley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The operations of Russian citizens, carrying Ukrainian military ID, wearing Ukrainian uniforms and attacking from Ukraine, remain officially opaque. Back then, “Little Green Men” in peculiar two-tone sport-hunting uniforms – and Russian military fatigues – appeared in Crimea. The Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom for Russia Legion – which fall under Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence structure – have been conducting short cross-border raids into Russia. Russia rattledIn Ukraine, it suits Kyiv to have Russians invade Russia on its behalf. Previous days with all the shelling - there was almost no response, no (Russian) military.

Persons: coy, what’s, “, fatigues –, Vladimir Putin, Moscow, Sergey Bobok, for Russia Legion –, –, Putin, it’s, ”, ” Putin, Prigozhin, Wagner, “ Wagner, Yulia Morozova, you’ve, ” Dmitry Medvedev, Medvedev, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Shebekino Organizations: CNN, Fighters, Russian Volunteer Corps, of Russia Legion, Getty, for Russia Legion, Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence, Frontline, Kremlin, Russian, Russian Federation, “ Wagner PMC, Russia, Kyiv, Reuters, Russian Telegram Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Crimea, Simferopol, Soviet, AFP, South, Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Pretoria, destabilization, Belgorod –, Moscow, Kursk, Smelensk, Russian, St Petersburg, Soviet Union, Belgorod, Shebekino, “

☆ South Africa's Standard Bank says it exceeds 2022 green financing target
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JOHANNESBURG, May 30 (Reuters) - South Africa's Standard Bank Group (SBKJ.J) funded renewable energy projects worth 55 billion rand ($2.79 billion) in 2022, exceeding its green financing target and putting it ahead of the world's top lenders, it said on Tuesday. Africa's biggest lender by assets earmarked 40 billion rand for sustainable projects last year, Kenny Fihla, its chief executive for Corporate and Investment Banking, said in slides prepared for journalists. However, in October he pegged that target at 50 billion rand. Standard Bank has been regularly criticised by environmental advocates and activist investors for funding climate-polluting hydrocarbon assets on the continent. "Our financing of renewable energy is 439% greater than our financing of non-renewable energy," Filha said, adding this achievement was significant when compared with the world's largest financiers.

Persons: Kenny Fihla, TotalEnergies, Filha, Anait Miridzhanian, Promit Mukherjee, Emelia Organizations: Standard Bank, Corporate, Investment Banking, Bank, Oil Pipeline, Absa, Thomson Locations: JOHANNESBURG, Mozambique, South Africa

☆ Kenya and Russia to sign trade pact, President Ruto says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Speaker of the National Assembly of Kenya Moses Wetangula shakes hands with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Nairobi, Kenya May 29, 2023. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERSNAIROBI, May 29 (Reuters) - Kenya will sign a trade pact with Russia aimed at boosting cooperation between businesses, President William Ruto's office said on Monday, after hosting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Nairobi. Kenya's presidency said in a statement that bilateral trade with Russia was still low despite the potential and the pact would give business the "necessary impetus". Russia says its invasion of Ukraine, launched on Feb. 24, 2022, is aimed at protecting its own security against Ukraine's pro-Western leadership. Lavrov has visited the African continent at least three times this year, while Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba travelled to countries including Ethiopia, Rwanda and Mozambique last week.

☆ Fulgence Kayishema: Rwanda genocide suspect appears in South African court
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Wendell Roelf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

We are sorry to hear what was happening," he responded, coming up from holding cells at Cape Town Magistrates' Court. REFUGEES[1/7] Rwandan genocide suspect Fulgence Kayishema holds up a Christian book, as he appears in the Cape Town Magistrates Court, in Cape Town, South Africa May 26, 2023. REUTERS/Nic BothmaAccording to a charge sheet seen by Reuters, Kayishema faces five charges in South Africa, including two of fraud. Then two years later to eSwatini and then in the late 90s he ended up in South Africa," Brammertz said. The prosecution persuaded a small number of former Rwandan soldiers with false identities living in South Africa as refugees to provide information on Kayishema's whereabouts, he added.

☆ Pope asks Italian cardinal to carry out Ukraine peace mission
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Cardinal Matteo Zuppi attends the opening of the inter-religious meeting "The Cry of Peace" in Rome, Italy, October 23, 2022. REUTERS/Remo CasilliVATICAN CITY, May 20 (Reuters) - Pope Francis has asked Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, head of the Italian bishops' conference, to carry out a peace mission to try to help end the war in Ukraine, the Vatican said on Saturday. Pope Francis made him a cardinal in 2019 and he was elected head of the Italian Episcopal Conference last year. Zelenskiy met Pope Francis at the Vatican last Saturday but afterwards appeared to downplay the possibility of a papal mediation. "With all due respect for His Holiness, we do not need mediators, we need a just peace ... Putin only kills.

Climate change drove heat in the city to a record-breaking 48C (118F) in 2016. While traditional insurance can take months to pay, with so-called "parametric" insurance there is no need to prove losses. At annual climate talks in Egypt last year, nonprofits urged richer nations to help finance parametric insurance as a way of compensating victims of worsening weather extremes. At the moment, insurance schemes in the developing world are largely subsidized by nonprofit groups, national governments, or wealthy countries. Insurance payouts allow them to buy things like gloves to protect their hands from scorching hot metal tools, or fans to stay cool and avoid heat exhaustion.

☆ Malawi: Six more bodies found after hippo capsized boat
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Rescuers have recovered six more bodies from a river in southern Malawi days after a boat carrying about 37 people was capsized by a hippo on Monday. Police spokesperson Agnes Zalakoma said the bodies were recovered Wednesday from the Shire River in Malawi’s Nsanje district, bringing the death toll to seven. A lawmaker for the Nsanje district, Gladys Ganda, said the villagers were crossing the Shire River to get to their farms at the Malawian border with Mozambique when the boat they were traveling in was struck by the hippo. Police spokeswoman Zalakoma earlier told CNN that accidents are common on the river. In January, a canoe carrying 15 people capsized in the Shire River after hitting a tree trunk, leaving one person dead and six others missing and feared dead, Zalakoma told CNN.

☆ Malawi: Toddler dead, 23 others missing as hippo capsizes boat in Nsanje district
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —A toddler has died after a boat ferrying more than 30 villagers across the Shire River in Malawi’s Nsanje district was attacked by a hippo, causing it to overturn, authorities said. A police spokesperson, Agnes Zalakoma, said the incident happened early Monday and 23 of the boat’s 37 passengers were missing and feared dead in the water, which is infested with crocodiles and hippos. “Well-wishers managed to rescue 13 people while 23 others went missing and the dead body of the toddler has been found,” Zalakoma said in a statement Monday, adding that the deceased child was only one-year-old. According to a lawmaker for the Nsanje district, Gladys Ganda, the villagers were crossing the Shire River to get to their farms at the Malawian border with Mozambique when their boat was hit by a hippo. In December, a two-year-old Ugandan boy was attacked by a hippo which swallowed half of his body before spitting him out, Uganda’s police said.

☆ China's rising clout spotlighted at finance chief meetings before G7 summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Tetsushi Kajimoto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

China is among the biggest markets for most G7 countries, particularly for export-reliant economies such as Japan and Germany. In a joint statement on Saturday, the G7 finance chiefs stressed the urgency of addressing debt vulnerabilities in low- and middle-income countries, mentioning Zambia, Ethiopia, Ghana and Sri Lanka. "There were talks about coercion" at the G7 finance leaders' meeting, the Japanese finance ministry official said. The G7 summit will most likely have a special session on China to debate Beijing's "economic coercion" against other countries, according to a Reuters report. "No matter how the G7 want to fence in the Global South, it's not easy," said Atsushi Takeda, chief economist at the Itochu Economic Research Institute.

☆ Hurricanes of Data: The Tiny Craft Mapping Superstorms at Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Porter Fox | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +35 min

The Tiny Craft Mapping Superstorms at Sea Shortly after dawn on Sept. 30, 2021, Richard Jenkins watched a Category 4 hurricane overrun his life’s work. That August, a sister ship, SD 1031, successfully entered Tropical Storm Henri, but only in its early stages. Hurricane research, modeling and forecasting requires many terabytes of data for every square mile the storm passes through, including vitally important sea-level data from inside a storm. The next day, the depression was upgraded to a tropical storm and officially given the name Sam. And four months later, Tropical Storm Megi killed more than 150, wiped out several villages with landslides and displaced more than a million people.

☆ UNICEF: More than 1 million polio vaccines destroyed in Sudan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Smoke is seen rise from buildings during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan. REUTERS/ Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File PhotoGENEVA, May 5 (Reuters) - More than 1 million polio vaccines intended for children have been destroyed as a result of looting in Sudan during the upsurge in violence since April, the U.N. children's agency UNICEF told Reuters on Friday. "A number of cold chain facilities have been looted, damaged and destroyed, including over a million polio vaccines in South Darfur," Hazel De Wet, deputy director of the Office of Emergency Programmes, UNICEF told Reuters in an email. Africa was declared free of wild polio in 2020 but Malawi, Mozambique and Sudan have reported imported cases since last year. Numerous humanitarian agencies have reported looting during the Sudan crisis including the World Food Programme, which said it lost $13-$14 million worth of supplies.

From the 15th to the 19th century, 6 million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly transported across the Atlantic by Portuguese vessels and sold into slavery, primarily to Brazil. But so far Portugal has rarely commented on its past and little is taught about its role in slavery in schools. Reparations and public policies to fight inequalities caused by Portugal's past were essential, Cardoso said. "We continue to suffer in Brazil the effects of a legacy of slavery," Almeida said in a statement. Europe's top human rights group previously said Portugal had do more to confront its colonial past and role in the transatlantic slave trade in order to help fight racism and discrimination today.

Buarque was awarded in 2019 the Camoes Prize, which every year recognises an author from a Portuguese-speaking nation. The prize, named after Portuguese poet Luis de Camoes, was created by Portugal and Brazil in 1988. When Buarque won, Bolsonaro refused to sign the award diploma, delaying the ceremony. Buarque was also an opponent of the two decade-long military dictatorship in Brazil that began in 1964. "It is for me a satisfaction to correct one of the biggest mistakes ... committed against Brazilian culture in recent times," Lula said.

☆ Sotheby's to auction world's largest ruby in New York in June
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Jessie Pang | Thomson Reuters | Jessie Pang Joined Reuters In After An Internship. She Covers Hong Kong With A Focus On Politics | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An employee shines a light at the 55.22 carat "The Estrela de Fura" ruby, the largest in the world and expected to fetch up to $30 million in an upcoming New York auction, during a preview at Sotheby's, in Hong Kong, China April 17, 2023. REUTERS/Lam YikHONG KONG, April 17 (Reuters) - The largest ruby in the world to come to auction will be offered by Sotheby's in New York in June, the auction house said at a preview in Hong Kong on Monday, and is estimated to achieve more than $30 million. That would probably make the 55.22-carat gem, known as the Estrela de Fura, the most expensive ruby ever sold at auction, said Uni Kim, a specialist in Sotheby's jewellery department in the Asian financial capital. The current world record for a ruby sold at auction was set in May 2015 by "Sunrise Ruby," a 25.59-carat Burmese stone that fetched $30.3 million at Sotheby's in Geneva. "We estimate Estrela de Fura to be sold in excess of $30 million," Kim added.

☆ Uganda’s anti-gay bill is the latest and worst to target LGBTQ Africans
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Aditi Bhandari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +14 min

Same-sex activity in Africa is punishable by … Map of the 32 African countries where same-sex activity is illegal. Same-sex activity in Africa … Map of the 22 African countries where same-sex activity is legal. In 1993, Guinea-Bissau became the first African country to legalise LGBTQ activity when it adopted a new Penal Code that didn’t include any laws criminalising it. Country Constitutional protection Broad protections Employment Hate crime Incitement Marriage or civil union Adoption Angola No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Botswana No No Yes No No No No Cape Verde No No Yes Yes No No No Gabon No No No No No No No Guinea-Bissau No No No No No No No Lesotho No No No No No No No Mozambique No No Yes No No No No Sao Tome and Principe No No Yes Yes No No No Seychelles No No Yes No No No No South Africa Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes YesNote: Broad protections include laws protecting against discrimination in at least 3 of 4 categories: the provision of goods and services, housing, healthcare and education. Namibia and Mauritius criminalise same-sex activity, but around 35% of respondents said they would dislike having a gay neighbour.

☆ Is global warming helping loggerhead turtles colonise the Med?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Borja Suarez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Borja SuarezTALIARTE, Spain, April 5 (Reuters) - Growing numbers of loggerhead sea turtles are nesting and laying eggs on western Mediterranean beaches in what some scientists suggest could be a case of climate change causing habitat expansion of a threatened species. Along with the warming sea water, another factor probably benefiting the world's largest hard-shelled turtle, which is considered a vulnerable species, are protection programmes in countries like Spain and Cape Verde. The group rescues injured turtles in Spain's Canary Islands and studies their population in Cape Verde, the eastern Atlantic's main reproduction area. Their size and hard shell generally protect them from predators, but fishnets, ship rotors and pollution have become significant threats. Reporting by Borja Suarez, writing by Inti Landauro, editing by Andrei Khalip and Andrew CawthorneOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Credit Suisse has violated U.S. tax evasion deal, Senate Committee finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, March 29 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) violated a 2014 plea deal with U.S. authorities by continuing to help ultra-wealthy Americans evade taxes and concealing more than $700 million from the government, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee found on Wednesday. After concluding a two-year investigation into Credit Suisse - which this month agreed to a rescue takeover by rival UBS (UBSG.S) - the committee said it had uncovered "major violations" of the 2014 agreement between the Swiss lender and the U.S. Department of Justice for enabling tax evasion. In an emailed statement, Credit Suisse said it did not tolerate tax evasion and had been cooperating with U.S. authorities. Credit Suisse in 2014 became the largest bank in 20 years to plead guilty to a U.S. criminal charge, agreeing to pay a $2.5 billion fine to authorities for helping Americans evade taxes in a conspiracy that spanned decades. Swiss authorities engineered the rescue of Credit Suisse earlier this month as they scrambled to prevent the lender from collapsing.

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