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☆ A new $1.1 billion weapons package will more than double the number of HIMARS Ukraine has to hammer key Russian positions
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A new $1.1 billion US weapons package will more than double the amount of HIMARS Ukraine has. Right now, Kyiv has 16 HIMARS in its arsenal and has used them effectively to strike key Russian positions. The new US military aid package will see 18 more HIMARS delivered to Ukraine, among other capabilities. The Pentagon announced on Wednesday that the new weapons package includes 18 US-made M142 HIMARS and the associated ammunition. HIMARS are lightweight, truck-mounted multiple rocket systems that can fire six GPS-guided missiles before quickly relocating to another position.

After Ukrainian forces stage ambushes and cut off the key access route to the capital, Russian soldiers tell their relatives that the military strategy is failing. … That’s what we’re fucking going to do, it seems. “Frankly speaking, nobody understands why we have to fight this war," Sergey tells his girlfriend. Replay‘I’ll quit at once.’Frustrated by continuous setbacks and fearing for their lives, Russian soldiers say they are fed up with the military. As quickly as they came, the Russian soldiers in northern Kyiv withdrew, regrouped and pivoted east, where Russian-backed separatists have been waging war for over eight years.

☆ Can a lesbian in Texas be the next 'queen of country music'? 'Monarch' star Beth Ditto gives it a shot
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Max Gao | Max Gao Is A Freelance Journalist Based Out Of Toronto. He Has Written For The New York Times | Nbc News | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

As a multiplatinum recording artist and the frontwoman of the indie rock band Gossip, Beth Ditto knows a thing or two about the cutthroat nature of the music industry. I know this person,’” Ditto, who hails from a liberal family of nine in Arkansas, told NBC News in a recent video interview. I grew up with country music. But I never changed the way that I was.”But Ditto also recognized the dearth of positive representation she had growing up. “We were in Hawaii with [record producer] Rick Rubin, and we made the record, and it’s been cooking,” Ditto said.

☆ LGBTQ Italians on alert as right-wing alliance triumphs in election
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

BERLIN — The triumph of a right-wing alliance in Italy’s election has raised concern among LGBTQ advocates, who fear nationalist leader Giorgia Meloni could adopt anti-gay policies as prime minister and set back their efforts to boost equality. What is Meloni’s stance on LGBTQ rights? Days before the election, however, a senior member of her Brothers of Italy (FdI) group suggested same-sex parenting was not normal. Despite lagging most of its EU neighbors on LGBTQ rights, a 2020 study by the U.S.-based Pew Research Center found 75% of Italians think homosexuality should be accepted. In the northern city of Verona, Stefano Ambrosini, a gay 28-year-old PhD student, said he feared Meloni’s election triumph could lead to an increase in homophobic violence.

☆ Shadow of war hangs over Ethiopia's Meskel festival celebrations
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Members of Ethiopian Orthodox choir sing during the Meskel festival celebration to commemorate the discovery of the true cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified on at Meskel square, in Addis Ababa Ethiopia, September 26, 2022. REUTERS/Tiksa NegeriADDIS ABABA, Sept 27 (Reuters) - The shadow of war hung over Ethiopia's Meskel festival in Addis Ababa on Tuesday, with high security, low turnout and Orthodox Christian priests calling for peace and forgiveness in their sermons. As they do year after year, hundreds of priests, musicians and singers clad in white robes came together on the vast expanse of the capital's Meskel Square. "Just like the mothers were crying under the cross, our mothers in the North are also crying. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Addis Ababa newsroom; Writing by Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Andrew HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cuba approves same-sex marriage in unusual referendum
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The code would allow surrogate pregnancies, broader rights for grandparents in regard to grandchildren, protection of the elderly and measures against gender violence. President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who has promoted the law acknowledged questions about the measure as he voted on Sunday. The measure had been approved by Cuba’s Parliament, the National Assembly, after years of debate about such reforms. But there is a strong strain of social conservatism in Cuba and several religious leaders have expressed concern or opposition to the law., worrying it could weaken nuclear families. That has meant a greater opening not only the once-dominant Roman Catholic Church, but also to Afro-Cuban religions, protestants and Muslims.

☆ Russian reservists leave behind sobbing relatives, new brides
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

People bid farewell to reservists drafted during the partial mobilisation in the Siberian settlement of Bolsherechye in the Omsk region, Russia September 25, 2022. Recruits were summoned as part of the partial mobilisation announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin after a decisive counter-offensive by the Ukrainian military. Protests against the call-up and Russia's military operation have taken place in dozens of cities, and long queues have formed at Russia's land borders with several countries. The military recruitment office in Bataysk sits next to the local marriage registry office on the town's central square. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Reuters; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A British fighter captured in Ukraine by Russian forces says he was beaten up, stabbed, and 'treated worse than a dog'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A British fighter who was captured by Russians in Ukraine was freed with other prisoners last week. Aiden Aslin told The Sun on Sunday that he was "treated worse than a dog" under Russian captivity. He said he was beaten if he did not sing the Russian national anthem every morning. Aslin told The Sun on Sunday. Shaun Pinner, another British fighter who was released alongside Aslin, told Good Morning Britain on Monday that the whole experience was "very scary."

☆ A far-right nationalist looks likely to become Italy’s first female prime minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Patrick-Smith-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Patrick Smith | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +12 min

Meloni leads the Brothers of Italy Party (Fratelli d’Italia, or FdI), a populist party with roots in Italy’s post-war fascist movement. From left, The League's Matteo Salvini, Forza Italia's Silvio Berlusconi, and Brothers of Italy's Giorgia Meloni attend the final rally of the center-right coalition in Rome on Thursday. Meloni’s office and the Brothers of Italy Party did not answer requests for comment by NBC News. Clashes between protesters and police close to a rally held by election frontrunner Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday in Palermo, Sicily. And now it’s happening with Giorgia Meloni,” he said.

☆ Cubans head to polls to vote on government-sponsored code to legalize gay marriage, adoption
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

referring to a family code referendum to take place on September 25, is displayed in Havana, Cuba, September 19, 2022. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"My expectation is that most of the population will vote 'yes'," Diaz-Canel said. The code, which has undergone 25 drafts, nearly 80,000 townhall-style meetings and 300,000 suggestions from the public, is expected to draw millions of Cubans to the polls. There are no independent, outside observers of Cuban elections, however, citizens may observe the count at their precincts immediately following the vote. "The vote will be close ... aspects of this code have divided the opinions of the public, even families," she said.

☆ A bargain hunter picked up a 700-year-old medieval script for $75 at a yard sale that could be worth $10,000
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A shopper got a surprise when he picked up a 700-year-old script for $75, per the Maine Monitor. Academic Lisa Fagin Davis confirmed the piece was genuine, and could be worth up to $10,000. Will Sideri, who bought the script, told the Maine Monitor he doesn't intend to sell the document. The Maine Monitor reported last week that Will Sideri picked up the 700-year-old document at an estate sale in Maine after noticing the leaf adorned in Latin writing alongside some musical notes. "An estate sale in Maine isn't even the most unexpected place where a Beauvais Missal leaf has turned up.

The crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich , and a jet-set Ukrainian negotiator played key roles in months of talks that led to the release of more than 250 prisoners by Russia and Ukraine this week in a broader deal involving Turkey, according to U.S. and Saudi officials and others familiar with the negotiations. Mr. Abramovich personally accompanied 10 prisoners, including British and American detainees captured by Russia in Ukraine, on a private jet that took them to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Russia earlier this week, Saudi officials said. Other people familiar with the situation confirmed Mr. Abramovich’s involvement.

The crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich , and a top Ukrainian negotiator played key roles in months of talks that led to the release of more than 250 prisoners by Russia and Ukraine this week in a broader deal involving Turkey, according to U.S., Ukrainian and Saudi officials and others familiar with the negotiations. Mr. Abramovich personally accompanied 10 prisoners, including British and American detainees captured by Russia in Ukraine, onto a private jet that took them to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Russia earlier this week, Saudi officials said. Other people familiar with the situation confirmed Mr. Abramovich’s involvement.

☆ Half of US borrowers in a new poll said their student loan debt is harming their mental health
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Half of borrowers in a 2,000 person poll said that their student debt is harming their mental health. It found that 63% of Americans still had student loan debts, with 54% of respondents saying the debt contributed to mental health issues. More than three-quarters of Black and African American borrowers surveyed said they struggled to make loan payments. In August, the Biden Administration announced plans to forgive a portion of student loan debt. Most Americans with student debt will be eligible to have $10,000 worth of loans forgiven.

☆ Deutsche Bank in $26.3 mln shareholder settlement over Epstein, Russian oligarch ties
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe logo of Deutsche Bank is pictured on a company's office in London, Britain July 8, 2019. Sewing has since taking over in 2018 tried to show investors that Deutsche Bank has addressed its internal controls shortfalls. New York's Department of Financial Services fined Deutsche Bank $150 million in July 2020 over its relationships with Epstein and Danske Estonia. Friday's settlement covers Deutsche Bank investors in the United States from March 14, 2017 to Sept. 18, 2020. The case is Karimi v Deutsche Bank AG et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

☆ Billionaire Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich met Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman to help broker a Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich and Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman met in late August. Their meeting helped broker a Ukraine-Russia prisoner swap announced Thursday, Bloomberg reported. In a major prisoner swap announced Thursday, Ukraine handed over 55 captives, including pro-Russian tycoon Viktor Medvedchuk. The Saudi, Ukrainian, and Russian governments did not immediately respond to separate requests for comment from Insider on the prisoner swap Friday. The Sun newspaper reported Thursday that Abramovich was on a private jet used to transport the freed foreign prisoners from Russia to Saudi capital Riyadh.

☆ Deutsche Bank in $26.3 million shareholder settlement over Epstein, Russian oligarch ties
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

☆ Dozens of Trump’s phony electors, many under investigation, still hold powerful GOP jobs in key states
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Natasha Korecki | Kaitlyn Francis | Natasha Korecki Is A Senior National Political Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +13 min

Law enforcement activity has not pushed these false electors from their political perches. Al Drago / Bloomberg via Getty ImagesAll told, 23 of those false electors hold positions of power within their Republican parties. Then there are additional actors that didn’t serve in the slate of false electors themselves but were instrumental in the scheme. Others hold positions of power within the state GOP, including Shafer, who is chair; Joseph Brannan, state GOP treasurer; Vikki Consiglio, the state party’s assistant treasurer; and Ken Carroll, the assistant secretary. On June 21, federal agents scattered across key states to deliver subpoenas to those who acted as Trump electors.

☆ 54% of Americans say their mental health issues like anxiety and depression are directly related to student loan debt
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Renée Onque | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

While the previous student debt cancellations implemented by the Biden Administration have been beneficial for some, they haven't even put a dent in the debt acquired by many others, a new survey finds. Of 2,000 U.S. participants polled in a survey conducted by online education program, ELVTR, 63% of Americans are still wrestling with debt from student loans. And 54% of respondents say their mental health struggles are directly related to that debt. Close to 2% of student loan debt has forgiven by the Biden administration. Additionally, the Biden administration's larger plan — announced in August — will rid working- and middle-class borrowers of up to $10,000 of student loan debt, and Pell Grant recipients in the same income bracket could have up to $20,000 shaved off of their student debt.

An assembly worker of Ford Motor works on the 40 millionth Ford Motor F-series pickup truck at the Dearborn Truck Plant in Dearborn, Michigan, U.S., January 26, 2022. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook/File PhotoDETROIT, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Automotive industry suppliers are raising prices to their customers across the board, not just with Ford Motor Co(F.N), which warned this week it was taking a $1 billion inflationary cost hit. Several suppliers said Ford isn't suffering alone, as automakers across the board are being asked to shoulder more of the burden suppliers have faced from spiking energy, labor and raw material costs. Suppliers contacted by Reuters said they have raised prices on parts in the range of 7% to 20%. Many suppliers can't move fast enough, offering trailing contracts that leave them squeezing costs and accepting lower profit margins when prices spike.

Sea level rise will flood huge swaths of the country and submerge billions of dollars’ worth of land, according to a new report. The analysis indicates that sea level rise could reduce the value of that private land by more than $108 billion by the end of the century. Risk isn’t evenly distributedClimate Central found that, unsurprisingly, the effects of sea level rise aren’t evenly distributed across the U.S. In Galveston County, Texas, more than 4,200 buildings that are currently above sea level will be at least partially underwater. While sea level rise is one of the major impacts of the climate crisis, it’s not the only one.

A rainbow flag is seen on the wall of a Catholic church as the building is open for same-sex couples to receive a blessing in Cologne, Germany, May 10, 2021. REUTERS/Thilo SchmuelgenVATICAN CITY, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Flemish Roman Catholic bishops on Tuesday issued a document effectively allowing the blessing of same-sex unions, seemingly in direct defiance of a ruling against such practices by the Vatican's doctrinal office last year. The document published on the website of the Belgian bishops conference suggested a ritual that included a prayer and a benediction for stable same-sex unions while stressing that it is not "what the Church understands by a sacramental marriage". It said the Church wanted to be "pastorally close to homosexual persons" and be a "welcoming Church that excludes no one". In March 2021, in response to formal questions from a number of Roman Catholic dioceses on whether the practice of blessing same-sex unions was allowed, the Vatican's doctrinal office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), ruled that it was not.

☆ Morgan Stanley's Southeast Asia M&A chief to head Raine's Southeast Asia coverage
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Andrew KellySINGAPORE, Sept 19 (Reuters) - U.S. investment bank Raine Group has tapped Jonathan Pflug, Morgan Stanley's head of Southeast Asia M&A, to lead its coverage in Southeast Asia, two sources familiar with the matter said on Monday. Morgan Stanley and Raine did not immediately reply to Reuters questions about the move. Singapore-based Pflug, a managing director at Morgan Stanley, has been with the investment bank since 2011. Pflug is set to join Raine early next year and launch its Singapore office as the firm seeks to expand into Southeast Asia, the sources said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterIn Asia, Raine currently has offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Mumbai.

GAZA, Sept 18 (Reuters) - An ornate Byzantine floor mosaic showing a variety of colourful birds and other animals has been discovered by chance in Gaza after a Palestinian farmer tried to plant new trees on his land. Trying to figure out why some trees had not properly taken root, Nabahin said he and his son began digging. 1/5 Palestinian farmer Salman al-Nabahin cleans a mosaic floor he discovered at his farm and which dates back to the Byzantine era, according to officials, in the central Gaza Strip September 18, 2022. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa Read MoreThe Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said the flooring included several mosaic panels depicting animals and other features of social life during the Byzantine era. But due to a lack of funds and relevant professionals, Gaza has usually invited international groups to help with the process of excavation and preservation.

☆ A Russian woman nicknamed 'Simba' who defected and fought for Ukraine buried in a military funeral
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A funeral was held in Kyiv on Friday for a native-Russian woman who joined the Ukrainian army. Olga Simonova, 34, previously fought in the war in the Donbas for Russia before switching sides. AP reports that an honor guard fired a three-gun salute to honor Olga Simonova, 34, who was killed in combat. Simonova said she never hid her Russian origin from the people she fought alongside. Friends and colleagues told AP that Simonova was redeployed to the Kherson region after Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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