RT

Tens of thousands of truckers set off to Ottawa to protest a Covid-19 vaccine mandate Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau argued on Wednesday that a convoy of up to 50,000 truckers protesting Covid-19 vaccine mandates in the country are a “fringe minority” with “unacceptable views.” Trudeau made his comment ahead of a trucker protest scheduled to take place in Ottawa this weekend. “The small fringe minority of people who are on their way to Ottawa, who are holding unacceptable views that they are expressing, do not represent the views of Canadians,” the PM said in a televised speech. Trudeau argued that […]

North Korea has appeared to have launched another missile into the Sea of Japan, the South Korean military announced on Thursday morning local time. Thursday’s launch comes just two days after the test-firing of two cruise missiles on Tuesday morning. It is the sixth such incident since the beginning of 2022, involving at least nine missiles of various types – ballistic, cruise and even hypersonic, as claimed by Pyongyang. While North Korea is prohibited from launching ballistic missiles under UN resolutions, cruise missiles are not explicitly banned by the UN. Last week, Pyongyang warned that it was considering resumption of “all […]

Discord, the leading voice chat service used by video gamers around the world, suffered a widespread outage on Wednesday, affecting millions of users for over an hour. Only half the user base has been able to return to the service by 1 pm Pacific time [21:00 GMT]. “We are currently investigating a widespread API outage and are working to resolve this ASAP [as soon as possible],” Discord announced shortly before noon Pacific on Wednesday, as the outage site DownDetector showed a massive spike in reports. The underlying issue was identified within 15 minutes, but resolving it has taken longer. The problem […]

An ongoing diplomatic visa row between Moscow and the US can only get worse, Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov believes The US State Department has told Russian diplomats that Ambassador Anatoly Antonov would have to leave the US by April if Moscow fails to meet certain demands by Washington, Antonov himself told journalists on Wednesday. The Russian ambassador would only be able to stay in the US if Moscow grants visas to the bodyguards of the US envoy to Russia, John Sullivan, Antonov explained, adding that this is all part of increasingly tense relations between the two nations. “There is no progress […]

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has revealed a list of diplomatic requests sent to his counterpart in Moscow in response to Russia’s security proposals, describing the paper as a “serious diplomatic path forward, should Russia choose it” during a Wednesday press conference. However, while he restated several of Washington’s talking points with regard to the confrontation over Ukraine, he declined to go into specifics, arguing that “diplomacy has the best chance to succeed when we provide space for confidential talks.” The top US diplomat described the document as addressing “core principles” that Washington is determined to uphold, such as “Ukraine’s […]

The government in Sofia is calling for a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis, strengthening its own military Bulgaria is a “loyal ally in NATO” and the alliance’s unity is the best response to the current crisis over Ukraine, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said on Wednesday, amid conflicting reports on Sofia’s participation in the US military buildup in Eastern Europe. Petkov’s government voted on Wednesday to follow the “Bulgarian strategy” of reducing tensions between NATO and Russia, including “absolutely all options for resolving this dispute by diplomatic means,” according to the state news agency BTA. The strategy will be based on […]

A large steel barn once used by the CIA to host suspected terrorists outside of US jurisdiction as part of its “extraordinary rendition” program is up for sale by the government of Lithuania. The Baltic state’s national real-estate fund, which handles assets that have gone out of use, announced this week that the facility will go on the market at an as-yet-undecided price. The 10-room building, which is located in a forest outside Vilnius, the capital, was used by America’s top spy agency from 2005 to 2006, when it was known as ‘Project No. 2’ or ‘Detention Site Violet’. The building […]

General Motors intends to boost spending on EV production to topple Elon Musk’s company American automotive giant General Motors said on Tuesday it will pour $6.6 billion into boosting its electric pickup truck production and building a new electronic vehicle (EV) battery cell plant in its home state of Michigan. The carmaker wants to overtake Tesla as the world’s biggest producer of electric vehicles. “We will have the products, the battery cell capacity and the vehicle-assembly capacity to be the EV leader by mid-decade,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement, as cited by CNBC. The investment will include $2.6 […]

Company that began as an aircraft engine maker powers car that transforms into a plane A car that can transform into a small aircraft has been awarded with an “official Certificate of Airworthiness” by the Slovak Transport Authority. According to Klein Vision, the company behind the AirCar, 70 hours of “rigorous flight testing,” including over 200 takeoffs and landings, have been completed. All of that was compatible with European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards. “The challenging flight tests included the full range of flight and performance maneuvers and demonstrated an astonishing static and dynamic stability in the aircraft mode,” Klein Vision […]

The law passed by the city council is likely to be challenged in court on constitutionality grounds The San Jose city council has passed a bill that will require gun owners to pay an annual fee and purchase liability insurance policies.  The piece of legislation was passed in two separate votes on Tuesday evening and became the first of its kind in a country where the right to own firearms is enshrined in the Constitution and ingrained in culture. One councilwoman dissented on both items, saying that the bill may be unconstitutional. She predicted that it would not help reduce gun […]

Boris Johnson’s comments come as tensions run high on the Russian-Ukrainian border Not a single member of NATO is ready to send a large fighting force to Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told MPs.  Addressing parliament on Tuesday, Johnson said that “the British Army leads the NATO battle group in Estonia, and if Russia invades Ukraine, we would look to contribute to any new NATO deployments to protect our allies in Europe.”  However, the Prime Minister stated that while “many people would yearn to send active, physical support in the form of […]

Footage has shown the moment the rally champion jumped from a building in a failed parachute stunt that hospitalized him A horrific video posted on social media has shown ex-NASCAR racer and Rally America champion Travis Pastrana suffering a parachute accident in Florida after falling from the top of the Hyatt Centric hotel. The 38-year-old, who is also a stuntman, was taken to the Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale after attempting to jump from the high-rise hotel in the city’s downtown area to the Huizenga Plaza while filming a web series.  Pastrana’s publicist told WSVN that Pastrana broke his pelvis in the […]

The Russian Army has deployed a new electronic warfare battalion in the Belgorod Region, close to the border with Ukraine, which will “reduce the time needed to obtain necessary information [about military movements],” it was revealed on Tuesday. Announced by the Western Military District, one of Russia’s five Army administrative divisions, the new battalion is armed with multiple different vehicles designed for electronic warfare, such as the Borisoglebsk 2, designed to disrupt communications and GPS systems, and the Zhitel portable communications jamming station. “A separate electronic warfare battalion has joined the Vistula Motorized Rifle Division of the Western Military District. The new military […]

Earlier predictions that Moscow could be poised to stage an assault have been pushed back Russian tanks and troops could be just weeks away from rolling across the Ukrainian border and sparking an all-out conflict in Europe, one of Kiev’s top generals has alleged. In an interview published in British newspaper The Times on Saturday, Lieutenant-General Alexander Pavlyuk said that the incursion could be staged in the days following the Winter Olympics, due to be held in Beijing next month. February 20 “is a date that concerns us,” he went on, arguing that Russian President Vladimir Putin would likely want to […]

El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) encouraged El Salvador to drop Bitcoin’s status as an official currency on Tuesday, warning that the cryptocurrency could cause financial instability. In a statement, the IMF claimed El Salvador’s decision to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender last year “entails large risks for financial and market integrity, financial stability, and consumer protection.” The IMF called for “strict regulation and oversight” of Bitcoin in the country and urged the government to “narrow the scope of the Bitcoin law by removing Bitcoin’s […]

The US’ acting ambassador to Ukraine reiterated claims Russia could invade Ukraine “any day now,” despite Kiev pouring cold water on the reports Kristina Kvien, the United States’ acting ambassador to Ukraine stated on Tuesday that it was out of “an abundance of caution” that the US moved to send off its non-essential embassy staff and dependents from Ukraine. Kvien told ABC News that part of the staffers were advised to leave the country “because right now Vladimir Putin and Russia have built up such military might on the border that they could take an action any day now.” “With that […]

Seven US Navy sailors were injured when the F-35C Lightning II stealth plane suffered a “landing mishap” during a drill The US Navy is working to recover a plane that fell into the South China Sea – which is claimed by China almost in its entirety – during a war drill this week that left several sailors injured. Three Navy personnel were transported to the Philippines for medical treatment, while another four were treated at sea on Monday after a US F-35C Lightning II stealth plane suffered a “landing mishap on deck while USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) was conducting routine […]

Extremists of all stripes see the power grid as a target for attacks, the US government warns in a new report The US Department of Homeland Security has claimed that American “extremists” have designed concrete plans to attack the nation’s power grid in the hopes of paralyzing the government and stirring unrest. AP obtained a report from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis which claimed extremists in the country had “developed credible, specific plans to attack electricity infrastructure since at least 2020.” The extremists – who allegedly belong to “a range of ideologies” – will “likely continue […]

Business owners have been protesting for months against changes to the tax system that took effect this year Chaotic scenes unfolded in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev on Tuesday, as representatives of small and medium-sized businesses tried to break into the building of the Ukrainian parliament – Verkhovna Rada.  Photos and videos that surfaced on social media showed a crowd of people waving Ukrainian national flags and various other banners marching through the center of Kiev. Police had to close off some roads and divert traffic from the route for the time of the protest. As demonstrators gathered in front of […]

The US cable channel labeled a prominent city in Ukraine “Russia” during its interview with NATO chief Amid allegations by US intelligence of an impending “Russian invasion” of Ukraine, the cable channel CNN has already altered the country’s borders, labeling the eastern city of Kharkov a part of Russia. The label appeared on CNN International’s show on Tuesday, as anchor Christiane Amanpour interviewed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the current situation in Europe. Showing footage of armored vehicles driving through a winter landscape, sourced to the Russian Defense Ministry, CNN put up a location label that said “Kharkiv, Russia.” Stoltenberg […]

American sailors should be prepared to take on Russia and show their strength as the country goes “head to head” with Moscow amid fears of a possible invasion of Ukraine, two US legislators have demanded. Senator Richard Blumenthal and Representative Joe Courtney, both Democrats from Connecticut, said that the Navy will be play a major role in any future confrontation with Russia. The pair were speaking as part of an appearance on Monday at a virtual event hosted by General Dynamics Electric Boat, the largest submarine builder in the country. Russian President Vladimir Putin “will test us in every single place that […]

Democrats to fast-track bill giving Kiev more military aid and sanctioning Russia in case of “significant escalation” The US House of Representatives is rushing a bill that would impose a series of sanctions on Russia and give Ukraine $500 million in military aid, skipping the committee mark-up process entirely, The Intercept reported on Tuesday, citing sources in Congress. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) reportedly told members on a caucus call that she wants the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022 up for a floor vote as soon as next week. The bill was introduced in the House Foreign Affairs Committee last week […]

The world number one will reportedly be back on court three weeks after the Australian Open finishes Exiled Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic appears to have agreed when his competitive return to tennis will be – and he looks likely to attempt to lift a fifth title at a tournament he skipped when the pandemic started. Thwarted Djokovic was forced to leave Australia hours before the start of his defense of his Melbourne title after Australian Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke succeeded in a second attempt to cancel the Serb superstar’s visa. While all the talk has been around whether Djokovic will be banned […]

The president of Ukraine came to power calling for peace, but continued his predecessor’s militaristic policies Something truly amazing happened in Ukraine in 2019. A country traditionally split into two practically equal parts almost uniformly chose the same president, casting 73.22% of the votes for famed comedian Vladimir Zelensky of the Kvartal 95 Studio. By electing the entertainers, the Ukrainian people showed that they were tired of career politicians and, most importantly, wanted peace for the Donbass region.   His predecessor Petro Poroshenko was tied to the civil war in the eastern regions of the country, while showman Zelensky was a fresh face who dropped […]

German care providers warn the sector can’t afford further staff shortages under an impending vaccine mandate Many German households could “have a problem getting the care they need” if the government makes Covid vaccination compulsory within the healthcare sector, Daniel Schloer, the owner of the SunaCare GmbH agency told Reuters. Schloer’s organization provides 24-hour home care services for the elderly in Germany, matching clients with private nurses from other EU states, primarily Poland. While the German population in general has an inoculation rate of 70%, Schloer estimated that the rate among the carers his company works with is around 40%, meaning a […]

Dr. Tom Prichard made a life-saving intervention during a match between Middlesborough and Blackburn Dr. Tom Prichard has been dubbed a hero for a second time this season after saving a fan’s life again during an English football fixture. Prichard formed part of the Middlesborough first team’s medical staff and had to take action during a televised Championship clash away at Blackburn Rovers when it became evident that a supporter in the stands needed attention in the second half of the eventual 1-0 win for the hosts. As play was halted for around 12 minutes, Prichard raced into the terraces with […]

The event’s organizers argue that dressing professionally upholds “white supremacy” In a virtual talk scheduled for February 1, students at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, will hear how “professionalism,” understood here as codes of dress, behavior and etiquette in the workplace, is actually racist. The university’s website explains that “the term ‘professionalism’ has at times been used to silence and marginalize people of color, when attributes of appearance, language or interactions that have nothing to do with job knowledge or constructive collegial relationships are labeled as ‘unprofessional.’” “In this context, so-called professionalism is coded language, a construct that upholds institutional […]

The former boxing heavyweight world champion claims not to have been paid for his Roy Jones Jr. exhibition bout Mike Tyson has raised doubts he will step into the ring again and claims not to have been paid in full for his last fight. The Brooklynite was reportedly guaranteed a handsome minimum purse of $10 million for a November 2020 exhibition bout with former pound-for-pound great Roy Jones Jr., which is said to have generated 1.6 million purchases on pay-per-view.  But as explained during an appearance on the Full Send Podcast when asked by UFC president Dana White, promoter Triller – with whom Tyson has […]

US electric car manufacturer countersues banking giant over disputed bond contract Tesla submitted a filing in Manhattan federal court on Monday, accusing JPMorgan of “bad faith and avarice” for demanding $162.2 million after the bank had unilaterally changed the terms of warrants it received when the electric carmaker sold convertible bonds back in 2014. Warrants allow holders to purchase company stock at a set “strike” price and date.  “JPMorgan pressed its exorbitant demand as an act of retaliation against Tesla both for it having passed over JPMorgan in major business deals and out of senior JPMorgan executives’ animus toward Mr. Musk,” […]

Canada’s Denis Shapovalov launched a stunning tirade at the chair umpire during his Australian Open quarterfinal defeat to Rafael Nadal Canadian star Denis Shapovalov branded the umpire “corrupt” as the youngster launched an astonishing tirade after being angered by rival Rafael Nadal’s slow play during their Australian Open quarterfinal. Aiming to capitalize on the absence of Novak Djokovic in his quest for a record 21st Grand Slam title, Nadal won an epic five-set tussle with Shapovalov in the Melbourne heat.  Nadal raced into a two-set lead before being pegged back by the 22-year-old, but despite requiring medical treatment for an apparent […]

As murder and shooting cases rise, Mayor Eric Adams announced a new plan to tackle gun violence New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced a plan to tackle escalating gun violence on Monday, including the return of plainclothes anti-crime units, which were disbanded in 2020 after Black Lives Matter protests. “We will not surrender our city to the violent few,” said Adams, a former New York City Police officer, during a speech on Monday just days after an NYPD officer was killed in Manhattan. “I want to be clear. This is not just a plan for the future, it is a […]

A group of LGBTQ Catholics demand Vatican revises its strict church doctrine to accommodate them More than 120 LGBT priests, teachers and Church volunteers in Germany have launched an initiative – ‘OutInChurch’ – and demanded that Catholic higher-ups toss away their long-standing disdain for homosexual relationships and grant them greater freedoms within the Church. The group said they want “to be able to live and work openly as LGBTIQ+ persons in the church without fear,” including to serve in all Church occupations, even while in same-sex marriages or partnerships. They also urged the Church to revise “outdated statements” on gender and […]

New legislation proposed in California would prevent parents from invoking personal beliefs as a reason to not vaccinate their children against Covid-19 State Sen. Richard Pan introduced the Keep Schools Open and Safe Act on Monday, which would nix exemptions from the Covid vaccine based on personal beliefs.  Pan, a pediatrician who represents a Sacramento area, said that the pandemic has caused “disruption, anxiety, and trauma” for families in the state, and this legislation would bring “confidence and certainty” to them.  “What we’re saying is that if you choose not to vaccinate your child, there’s a consequence,” the senator told The […]

One student died and three were injured after a lone gunman opened fire in a German university A 23-year-old woman died from her injuries following a shooting attack at the Heidelberg University, Mannheim’s police chief Siegfried Kollmar said at a press conference in the wake of the Monday attack. Three more people – all of them students – were injured in the incident. The gunman was only identified as an “18-year-old German”. The suspect was allegedly a biology student at the very same university, German media reported. Armed with two weapons, including a shotgun, the teenager entered the lecture hall when […]

The pilot safely ejected from his aircraft during the failed landing, which, however, resulted in injuries to several sailors Seven US Navy personnel were injured after a pilot suffered a “landing mishap” on a US supercarrier and was forced to eject from the aircraft while performing operations in the South China Sea. The US Navy announced on Monday that one of its F-35C Lightning II stealth planes had a “landing mishap on deck while USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) was conducting routine flight operations in the South China Sea.” The pilot ejected from the aircraft and was rescued by a military […]

The lawsuit came as schools went through ‘standoffs’ with parents defying public school mask mandates Seven Virginia school districts announced a lawsuit on Monday directed at Governor Glenn Youngkin over his executive order making school mask mandates null and void by giving parents the ultimate choice on whether their children mask up or not.  Education officials claimed the effort was not “politically motivated,” but seeks to answer “fundamental questions about the framework of public education in Virginia.”  Alexandria City, Arlington County, Richmond, Fairfax County, Falls Church, Hampton City, and Prince William County are the school districts in opposition to Youngkin’s order, […]

The Wednesday meeting in Paris, yet to be confirmed by Moscow, was reported by AFP citing the Élysée on Monday Officials from Moscow and Kiev will meet in Paris on Wednesday, an aide to French President Emmanuel Macron told AFP on Monday on the condition of anonymity, adding that he sees a “path to de-escalation” ahead of the expected “Normandy Four” meeting between France, Germany, Russia, and Ukraine. Macron “thinks there is space for diplomacy, a path to de-escalation,” the aide told AFP on Monday. He added that Macron would speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin “in the coming days,” but […]

The EU strongly supports the government in Kiev against the alleged impending Russian invasion, but there is no reason to believe one is imminent, the bloc’s top diplomat told reporters after consultations with Washington. There are “no new elements” that would raise fears of an imminent attack by Russia, EU High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said Monday. He spoke to reporters after the EU Council of Foreign Ministers meeting, in which they were briefed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Now is not the time for a “nervous breakdown” over Ukraine, the […]

Members of the African nation’s military say they’ve deposed the president, seized control, and suspended the constitution Members of Burkina Faso’s military appeared on state television channel, RTB, on Monday, claiming to have seized control of the West African nation. The soldiers said that they had suspended the constitution due to the failure of Kaboré to unite the country and stop a wave of nationwide jihadist attacks. Kaboré’s whereabouts are currently unknown, but he was reportedly detained by the soldiers on Sunday night, the AFP news agency reported. Although heavy gunfire was reported throughout the capital, Ouagadougou, on Sunday night, the […]

Khamzat Chimaev has been preparing for his next UFC test in the Swedish wilderness Chechen-born Swede Khamzat Chimaev is poised for an assault on the UFC welterweight championship in 2022 and, ahead of what is expected to be a serious uptick in competition this year, the undefeated superstar has shown off exactly what he is doing to ready himself to take on the top fighters at 170lbs. Chimaev is a perfect 4-0 since debuting with the UFC on ‘Fight Island’ in the summer of 2020 and enhanced his already glowing reputation even further with a shutdown win against tough Chinese striker […]

Oil market realizing many OPEC producers may not have the capacity to boost output much further As the OPEC+ group unwinds its production cuts, the oil market has realized that not only do many producers in the pact lack the capacity to boost output further, but those who can pump more are reducing the global spare production capacity, thus exposing market balances to unexpected supply disruptions, and oil prices to further spikes.  Most of the world’s global spare capacity is currently held by OPEC’s Middle Eastern members Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Those two producers have the potential […]

The WHO’s special envoy on Covid has warned that the virus still poses a “very serious threat” despite optimism from officials in Europe Speaking to Sky News on Monday, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Covid-19 special envoy, Dr David Nabarro, warned that the pandemic could still throw up “challenges and surprises” despite the progress that has been made in some parts of the world in tackling the coronavirus. Criticizing politicians who are playing down the threat still posed by the virus, Nabarro said they “should not suggest” that Covid be treated like the flu or that it “has suddenly got incredibly […]

Ukrainian athletes have been told to avoid standing near their Russian rivals at the Beijing Games Ukrainian athletes should avoid standing beside their Russian competitors at the Beijing Winter Olympics, the country’s sports minister has said, warning about potential “provocations.” Reports in Russia last week stated that Ukrainian athletes had been told to avoid speaking Russian in interviews at the Games or being photographed alongside their Russian rivals. Ukraine’s minister of youth and sports, Vadim Gutzeit, now appears to have confirmed those recommendations in comments shared by public broadcaster Suspilne. “We had an online meeting with all athletes and coaches on […]

The first part of the fourth and final season of ‘Ozark’, the hit Netflix show about a Middle American family that launders money for a murderous drug cartel, is finally here. ‘Ozark’, much like ‘The Sopranos’ before it, has split its final season into two parts, and premiered the first seven episodes of its final season on January 21, with the last seven coming out later this year.  When ‘Ozark’ first appeared back in 2017, I had little faith it would be a worthwhile watch. The premise – a regular guy getting caught up in the drug trade – seemed derivative, […]

Bandai Namco and From Software have temporarily shut down PC servers for all ‘Dark Souls’ games after players began reporting an exploit that allowed malicious hackers to invade users’ games and subsequently take remote control of their PCs. It started when a post on the ‘Elden Ring’ subreddit revealed that a Remote Code Execution (RCE) exploit had been discovered within the ‘Dark Souls’ games and urged players to stay away from them until it’s fixed. Essentially, this exploit allows hackers to run scripts on a user’s PC, ultimately allowing them to take complete control of a computer and do what they […]

The UK has begun withdrawing staff from its embassy in Kiev “in response to growing threat” from Moscow, as tensions on the Ukrainian-Russian border continue to remain high amid fears that the Kremlin is planning an invasion. In an update published on the website of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), it was revealed that London has opted to “temporarily” withdraw some staff and their dependants from Kiev, noting that the embassy would remain open and continue providing assistance to British nationals in Ukraine. UK passport holders have also been told to register their presence in the country. READ MORE: […]

Scott Morrison has allegedly been unable to access the Chinese social network for months The chairman of Australia’s parliamentary intelligence committee has accused China of interfering with the country’s democracy after Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s WeChat account was allegedly blocked. Victoria Senator James Paterson – who serves as chair of Australia’s Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security – claimed on Monday that Morrison has been unable to access his account on the Chinese social network for several months. “My view is, given that WeChat is such a closely controlled company by the Chinese Communist Party, that this amounts to foreign […]

The US Navy staged a drill with Japanese allies in the Philippine Sea, showing off two aircraft carriers, two amphibious ships, and dozens of fighter jets, amid persistent regional tensions with China. Supercarriers USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) led the drill, flanked by amphibious assault ships USS America (LHA-6) and USS Essex. Guided missile cruisers USS Mobile Bay (CG-53) and USS Lake Champlain (CG -57) also took part in the drill, along with 26 aircraft and the destroyers USS Spruance (DDG-111), USS Chafee (DDG-90), and USS Gridley (DDG-101). Japan aided the drill with its own destroyer, JS […]

Taiwanese military scrambled fighter jets and prepared air defense missile systems after a group of 39 Chinese planes, including a bomber, were allegedly spotted entering its Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense claimed that dozens of Chinese planes had crossed its southwest ADIZ, prompting the island to activate its military resources “to monitor” their activities. The planes allegedly included dozens of J-10 and J-16 fighter jets, and a Xian H-6 bomber, as well as several Y-8 and Y-9 military transport aircraft. China’s latest flyby took place the same day that a group of US and allied warships sailed […]

The Center for Covid Control is accused of providing ‘deceptive’ test results The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted a search of a Covid-19 testing company which has been accused of providing “inaccurate and deceptive” results and enriching its owners. The Illinois headquarters of the Center for Covid Control – which has received more than $124 million from the US government for its Doctors Clinical Lab – was searched by federal agents on Saturday just days after the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit accusing the company of providing bogus test results. FBI Chicago spokesperson Siobhan Johnson told USA Today that […]

Crowds marched from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial in opposition to Covid-19 vaccine orders Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Washington, DC on Sunday in protest of Covid-19 vaccine mandates, with protesters calling for an end to medical ‘segregation’. Protesters chanted, “My body, my choice,” “No mandates,” and “We the people will not comply” as they marched from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. The event featured a number of prominent speakers, including former Trump administration health official Dr Paul Alexander and mRNA vaccine researcher Dr. Robert Malone, as well as at least ten other doctors, and […]

White House health advisor is ‘confident’ there are only weeks until Omicron hits its peak Dr. Anthony Fauci said that he is as “confident as you can be” that Omicron cases in the US will hit their peak in mid-February, though he acknowledged in an ABC interview on Sunday that “you never want to be overconfident when you’re dealing with this virus.” Fauci has been one of the lead advocates for Covid-19 vaccinations and boosters, but he admitted that varying vaccination rates across the country will not significantly affect Omicron infection rates in the US. Some areas, however, may face “a […]

South Korea used Tehran’s own frozen assets to pay off its debt to the global organization Majid Takht Ravanchi, Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the UN, confirmed on Sunday that Iran has earned back its voting rights after its membership fees were paid.  The suspended voting rights should be back in place on Monday. The $18 million that was paid for by South Korea with Iranian assets, frozen due to US sanctions. There is currently over $7 billion in Iranian oil shipment payments frozen in two South Korean banks, according to AFP. Seoul’s finance ministry also announced the payment had […]

The EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, was pictured inspecting his damaged HQ in Brussels after Covid-19 protests turned violent The head of the European Union’s External Action Service on Sunday said that he “strongly condemns” what he called “senseless destruction and violence” after his agency’s headquarters were attacked by an angry mob during a massive anti-lockdown rally. Borrell also thanked the police for their actions during the incident. The top diplomat also posted a picture of himself inside what appears to be the EU diplomatic service’s office. The photo shows large impact marks left on the office’s glass walls in the […]

A new study has found that peoples’ political activism seems to inversely correlate to how fast their internet connections are Researchers from Cardiff University and Sapienza University of Rome have concluded that the faster someone’s internet speed is, the less likely they are to be involved in their communities through volunteering, politics, or other forms of civic engagement.  “We observed that civic participation and the form of engagement in the activities of voluntary organisations and political participation declined with proximity to the network,” said Fabio Sabatini, a co-author of the study, which was published in Journal of Public Economics.  Participation in […]

Former UFC fighter Maiquel Falcao was discovered with three serious stab wounds at 3am local time on Sunday morning outside of a bar in his hometown of Pelotas, a city in the south of Brazil which is around 80 miles from the Uruguayan border.  He was rushed to a nearby hospital but did not survive his injuries, according to GZH. The Homicide and Personal Protection Police Station authority has launched an investigation into the incident.  Falcao appeared once for the UFC, beating Gerald Harris by unanimous decision at UFC 123 in Michigan in November 2010. He was subsequently released by the organization after reports emerged that […]

The guide suggests employees recommend to others that they stop using offensive words The University of Washington’s information technology department has released a new language guide highlighting “problematic words” that are commonly used but are supposedly racist, sexist, ageist, or homophobic. On this list of words to be avoided are “grandfather,” “housekeeping,” “minority,” “ninja,” and even “lame.” “Lame,” for example, is offensive because it’s slang for “uncool” and “it’s using a disability in a negative way to imply the opposite, which would be not lame, to be superior,” according to the guide.  Other words are deemed offensive because of their history or relationship […]

Controversial tennis star Nick Kyrgios has revealed what happened when he says an opposing coach tried to fight him and his doubles partner after a heated match Tennis bad boy Kyrgios rarely strays too far from the headlines and has again found himself at the center of controversy after he and his partner in the ongoing Australian Open claimed that the coach of Croatian doubles top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic attempted to fight them backstage after a contentious match on Friday night. Kyrgios and Kokkinakis dumped the top seeds out of the men’s doubles competition in a showdown which, at times, appeared may […]

A missile fragment discovered in the debris after Friday’s devastating airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition on the Yemeni city of Saada has been identified as having come from a bomb produced by a US weapons manufacturer. The January 21 attack on a migrant detention facility in a Houthi rebel stronghold claimed several dozen lives, including those of a number of children, and prompted UN General Secretary António Guterres to call for an “effective and transparent investigation.” Video footage filmed in the aftermath of the airstrike by members of the Houthi rebel movement, which is in conflict with the Saudi-backed government, and […]

Lia Thomas won two races days after USA Swimming said it will release a new policy for top transgender athletes University of Pennsylvania star Lia Thomas swept aside her competition again as the transitioned 22-year-old won a 100-yard race by almost a second and a 200-yard race by a wider margin in a meet against Harvard University. Former men’s team competitor Thomas, who went through puberty and has had hormone-suppression therapy, picked up more honors in the same week a female teammate accused her of plotting to lose amid increasing disquiet about her dominance in the pool. Thomas broke school and national […]

Soaring prices for fuel and low gas storage levels force Brussels to ‘improve risk-preparedness’ The European Union is in talks with its trading partners in search of viable options to increase supplies of natural gas to its member states, according to the bloc’s Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson. “The gas storage levels in the EU are significantly lower than usual at this time of the year,” Simson said, after a meeting with European energy ministers in France on Saturday. The energy chief added that EU authorities need to remain “extremely vigilant” to make sure the bloc is ready for emergency situations at […]

Angelina Kuznetsova, a Russian pornstar and Instagram model, has fired up public indignation by posing naked with a friend against the background of a church outside their hotel room. KP reported on Thursday that Kuznetsova’s racy photo session took place in her room in the hotel RentHouse, across the street from the Great Zlatoust Church in the city of Ekaterinburg, in Russia’s Ural region. The historic house of worship was first constructed in the 19th century, then destroyed by the Soviets in 1930, and rebuilt 80 years later. According to KP, the photographs were meant to serve as a means of […]

‘Such is life,’ New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern said as she announced the decision New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern has called off her wedding as the island nation is set to introduce the highest ‘red light’ restrictions in order to stem the spread of the super-mutant Omicron variant of Covid-19. With the country about to tighten anti-coronavirus measures from 11.59pm on Sunday, its prime minister announced she had canceled her upcoming wedding celebration. Ardern and her partner Clarke Gayford, who have a daughter together, were planning to officially tie the knot later in summer. New Zealand is in the southern hemisphere, […]

Los Angeles school children will be forced to wear non-cloth masks ‘at all times’ The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has implemented even stricter mask rules for school children, now requiring students to wear surgical and other high-grade face coverings instead of more comfortable cloth masks. The school district announced that, from Monday, “masking will be required at all times, indoors and outdoors,” and children will be required to wear “well-fitting, non-cloth masks with a nose wire.” Shannon Haber, a spokeswoman for the district, told the Los Angeles Times that though Covid-19 rates in schools had dropped, the district is […]

Prime Minister Boris Johnson allegedly fears a coup if he goes too far with his Covid-19 policies The UK government’s threat to fire unvaccinated National Health Service (NHS) staff is likely to be delayed amid fears of a Conservative Party revolt against Prime Minister Boris Johnson, according to The Telegraph. The NHS vaccine mandate will probably be “kicked down the road” and delayed by six months, though not scrapped altogether, an unnamed government source told the publication on Saturday. The Telegraph reported that the government fears a backbench revolt as some MPs are preparing to file a motion of no confidence […]

Israel did not deny using “advanced technology” to track the population, but rejected allegations that the practice was illegal An Israeli minister has denied reports that police illegally used Pegasus surveillance software to spy on the country’s own citizens, calling the “central claim” – that the practice was illegal – “not true.” Several government investigations were launched this past week after the Israeli newspaper Calcalist reported that law enforcement had been using NSO Group’s infamous Pegasus spyware to illegally intercept the calls of citizens. The newspaper claimed that police had been using the spyware since 2013 to carry out surveillance on […]

Hard-hitting American brawler Matt Frevola lived up to his nickname by downing opponent Genaro Valdez four times – almost equaling the record for a UFC bout in just one round. ‘The Steamrolla’ pulled no punches as he made up for a seven-second defeat against Terrance McKinney at UFC 263 in June 2021, battering Mexican Valdez in a shockingly brutal display that lasted three minutes and 15 seconds. Valiant Valdez repeatedly returned to his feet and occasionally landed back in a formidable display of tenacity, while there was conjecture that Frevola had managed six knockdowns as many viewers insisted he had matched the record of five during the […]

Albert Bourla hopes the idea of annual vaccinations will be far easier to sell to the public The CEO of Pfizer has tried to appease vaccine skeptics with an idea of Covid-19 booster shots only once a year – instead of every few months – all while attacking the most vocal anti-vaxxers as “criminals” who “profit from circulating misinformation.” In a series of interviews with Israeli TV channels, Albert Bourla said that it would “not be a good scenario” if people were to get boosters every four to five months. “What I’m hoping [is] that we will have a vaccine that […]

Swiss health minister Alain Berset says the country is heading in the right direction, but warns the coronavirus can be ‘unpredictable’ Swiss health minister Alain Berset has signaled that the Alpine nation’s controversial use of a Covid-19 certificate system could soon be over since the public health response to the pandemic appeared to be “on the right track.” The document – which indicates whether a person has been vaccinated, tested or recovered from the coronavirus and determines entry into public venues – has been in use since July 2021. But Berset suggested on Saturday that the time may have come to […]

A Ukrainian commander named “a date of concern” tied to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, after Bloomberg claimed Xi Jinping asked Putin to hold off his “invasion” In an interview with the Times newspaper, Alexander Pavlyuk, lieutenant-general in the Ukrainian army, has claimed Russia could invade Ukraine on February 20 – the day the 2022 Winter Olympics wrap up in Beijing. Pavlyuk described it as a “date that concerns us,” surmising that the Kremlin would not want to spoil the sporting event hosted by China. The Ukrainian commander went on to issue a warning to Moscow, claiming that Ukrainians were “ready […]

US citizens in Ukraine advised to board commercial flights in case push comes to shove A spokesperson for the US Department of State has warned Americans currently in Ukraine that they should not “anticipate that there will be US government-sponsored evacuations,” suggesting that they use the available commercial flights instead. The official made the comment to media outlets on Friday, responding to questions on recent Ukraine evacuation reports. Several US media sources have claimed that Washington was considering evacuating its diplomatic personnel from Kiev in anticipation of an “invasion” that Russia was allegedly planning to launch. Those reports were further amplified […]

Thich Nhat Hanh died peacefully in the Tu Hieu Temple in Vietnam, his Zen teaching organization, Plum Village announced on Saturday. The influential Buddhist monk, who was born in 1926, suffered a stroke in recent years, which left him unable to speak or preach. He then expressed a wish to return to the temple where he had been ordained decades ago, and was allowed to spend his final years in his native country. The monk, often referred-to as the second most prominent Buddhist person after the Dalai Lama, spoke seven languages and spent a large part of his long life in […]

A fan has been arrested for striking two Aston Villa players with a ‘missile’ during Saturday’s Premier League game with Everton Lucas Digne, who joined Aston Villa from Everton earlier this month, and his colleague Matty Cash were hit with the object thrown from the Everton supporters section as they celebrated what proved to be the only goal of the game from Emiliano Buendia just before the half-time break.  Digne and Cash appeared to be dazed after being stuck with the projectile but both were deemed fit to continue playing.  Everton later said that they worked alongside local police to identify the supporter […]

Rublev, who had drawn criticism for suggesting he flew to Australia while infected with Covid-19, was beaten by Croat Marin Cilic The World number six’s hopes of his first Grand Slam win have again been derailed after the 24-year-old Moscow native suffered a shock defeat to Cilic, the former Australian Open finalist who earned just his second win against a player ranked in the top ten since 2018. Cilic was in imperious form throughout, taking the win by a score of three sets to one, 7-5, 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-3, on Margaret Court Arena, and sending Rublev home just hours after he issued […]

Aaron Rodgers has slammed Joe Biden after the US President was critical of the quarterback’s vaccine stance Rodgers, whose Packers team are the bookies’ favorites to win next month’s Super Bowl, was the recipient of widespread criticism late last year after admitting that he was unvaccinated against Covid-19 despite telling reporters some months prior that he was “immunized” against the virus. This led to a fine issued by the NFL – but also to Rodgers being seen by some as something on an anti-vaxx pariah, especially after he revealed that he had treated a Covid infection with a host of alternative […]

Numerous former Ukrainian politicians have been cooperating with Russian intelligence services, according to London An embargoed UK Foreign Office release to media outlets, which has been seen by RT, claims that Britain has exposed a plan by Moscow to install a pro-Russian leader in Kiev as tensions continue to mount over an alleged threat of “invasion” by Moscow. “We have information that indicates the Russian government is looking to install a pro-Russian leader in [Kiev] as it considers whether to invade and occupy Ukraine,” reads the correspondence, which was sent to media representatives on the Foreign Office’s mailing list on Saturday. No evidence […]

Packaging in a limited range of KitKat chocolate bars has prompted furor over depictions of sacred Hindu deities Nestle has been forced to apologize and recall a range of KitKat chocolate bars that featured images of Hindu deities on their wrappers, after a furious backlash from Indian social media users, who criticized the company for “hurting religious sentiments.” The offending wrappers were part of the Indian version of the company’s global ‘KitKat travel breaks’ range, which has artwork by local artists printed on the packaging. However, wrappers designed to “celebrate the culture” of the state of Odisha sparked an outcry after […]

Daniil Medvedev offered an olive branch to the Australian Open crowd following his straight sets win against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp The world’s second ranked player surged into the fourth round of the Australian Open with a straight sets win against Botic van de Zandschulp early on Saturday – and afterwards made sure to get in the good graces of the home support after previously drawing flak for telling them to “show some respect” following his second round win against Aussie favorite Nick Kyrgios. Medvedev, who lost out to Novak Djokovic in last year’s final, claimed a straightforward win against the world number 57 […]

A truck carrying some 100 monkeys was involved in a crash with a dump trailer in Montour County, Pennsylvania on Friday afternoon. The animals were being transported to a laboratory, local media reported, citing police. While it is unclear whether any animals were injured, some of them were confirmed to have escaped. The authorities have launched a search and asked for the public’s assistance. At least four of the monkeys – reported to be long-tailed macaques – are believed to be on the loose. The incident may have endangered not only the animals in question, but the public too, according to […]

Alexander Zhulin has commented after a row surrounding his remarks on non-binary US skater Timothy LeDuc Russian former ice dancing world champion Alexander Zhulin has questioned what ‘the American way of life’ is leading to, as he discussed his controversial comments about US non-binary figure skater Timothy LeDuc. Zhulin, 58, made headlines when he replied that he “doesn’t want to discuss freaks” when asked about LeDuc, who identifies as neither male nor female and is set to become the first openly non-binary Winter Olympian at the Beijing Games in February. LeDuc will line up in China in the figure skating pairs […]

The Hollywood star allegedly ran a red light and crashed his GMC Yukon SUV into a red Toyota Prius around 4:30pm local time at Sunset Boulevard and Allenford Avenue. The resulting pile-up reportedly also involved two other vehicles. The woman who was driving the hybrid received non-life-threatening injuries, but, according to TMZ sources, was “bleeding heavily from her head” as an ambulance rushed her to the hospital. The actor was pictured at the scene of the crash, seemingly unharmed, while his car could be seen on top of the Prius. Schwarzenegger, 74, sustained no physical injuries, and his “only concern” was the woman wounded in […]

USS Harry S Truman joins Neptune Strike ‘22 wargames in the Mediterranean Sea amid tensions with Russia The nuclear-powered fleet aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman will take part in next week’s NATO exercise in the Mediterranean Sea dubbed “Neptune Strike ‘22,” the Pentagon has announced. The 12-day exercise kicks off Monday and is supposed to “demonstrate NATO’s ability to integrate the high-end maritime strike capabilities of an aircraft carrier strike group to support the deterrence and defense of the alliance,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters Friday. Though the Truman and its strike group will be placed “under NATO operational […]

Wisconsin man killed and dismembered his parents after they discovered a ‘web of lies’ about his job A Wisconsin man accused of spinning an “amazing web of lies,” including a job offer from Elon Musk’s aerospace firm, has been found guilty of all charges by a jury and now faces a life sentence. The verdict against 23-year-old Chandler Halderson was handed down on Thursday in Dane County Circuit Court in Madison, Wisconsin. He was convicted on two counts each of first-degree intentional homicide, mutilating a corpse, hiding a corpse and making a false report to police.  Halderson was charged with killing […]

Saudi-led coalition’s bombing left hospitals in Yemen overwhelmed with dead and wounded victims Scores of people have been killed and potentially hundreds have been injured by airstrikes in Yemen, the latest escalation in the Saudi Arabia-led coalition’s war against Houthi rebels in the shattered country. Targets struck on Friday reportedly included a prison and an airport in the northern city of Sa’ada, various government facilities and a telecommunications building in Hodeidah. Many of the victims were rushed to Al-Gumhourriyeh Hospital in Sa’ada, which received 138 wounded and 70 dead, according to the aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Al-Gumhourriyeh is so […]

Kiev to receive Russian-made helicopters the US originally bought for Afghanistan The Biden administration is expediting the transfer of five transport helicopters to Kiev, as Washington insists Moscow is about to “invade” Ukraine any day now. The Mi-17 helicopters were originally purchased from Russia and intended for the US-backed government in Afghanistan, before it surrendered to the Taliban last August. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Friday that Congress has been notified of the move, which will be conducted under the Excess Defense Articles program. The State Department said on Thursday this was the “fastest transfer ever” for the […]

One of Joe Biden’s latest federal judge nominees has environmental activists questioning the Democrat’s connections to Big Oil President Joe Biden nominated a list of judges this week, and one has particularly stood out due to her history with the Republican Party, including Donald Trump, and her involvement in a lawsuit by Chevron against environmental and human rights lawyer Steven Donziger.  “Outraged to learn that Biden has named @Chevron lawyer Jennifer Rearden to be a federal judge,” Donziger tweeted on Thursday in reaction to the nomination, highlighting the lawyer’s work with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP on behalf of Chevron, and […]

A project in Hong Kong will see 2,000 pixelated hamsters created and sold as NFTs to spread awareness about the mass culling A Hong Kong group has launched a non-fungible token (NFT) project that will “mint into existence” 2,000 pixel art hamsters to protest a government decision to cull the pet rodents over concerns about the risk of Covid-19 transmission to humans. The project, known as ‘Carries Hamsters’, is reportedly named after Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam. It was apparently launched on Thursday, as hamster owners and pet shops on the Chinese-ruled island handed over the critters after health authorities […]

The Ukrainian Sports Ministry has reportedly told its athletes to avoid taking photos with Russian counterparts at the Winter Olympics Officials from the Ukrainian Sports Ministry have reportedly advised their athletes at next month’s Winter Olympics in Beijing to avoid speaking Russian during interviews.  According to Russia’s Match TV, it has also been suggested that Ukrainian athletes should refuse to appear in photographs featuring Russian sports stars throughout the Games. This comes amid tensions between the two countries, as well as prior instances during the Tokyo Olympics last summer which prompted the intervention of high-level officials of the Ukrainian government. One such flashpoint came […]

The US Secretary of State has urged Moscow to ‘convince the world’ it has no plans to attack its neighbor During talks on Friday in Geneva with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked his counterpart to prove a negative.  The diplomat urged Moscow to move troops, stationed on  its own territory, away from the Ukrainian border so as to “convince the world” it harbored “no aggressive intent” toward its neighbor. Blinken said the other step Russia could take was to engage in dialogue and diplomacy, “which is what we did today.” He warned Lavrov of a “united, swift, […]

Victor Lindelof’s family were unharmed during the break-in which happened while the defender was playing a Premier League game Manchester United have given their Swedish international defender Victor Lindelof a leave of absence after his wife and children were forced to hide from home invaders who targeted the family’s home while Lindelof was playing for his club against Brentford on Wednesday evening. During the game, which Manchester United won 3-1 and in which Lindelof played the full 90 minutes, a gang of burglars gained entry to the home and prompted his wife, Maja Nilsson Lindelof, and their young children to hide.  “We […]

Reports have claimed that Manchester United ace Cristiano Ronaldo could have his wages slashed by 25% if the struggling club fails to qualify for the Champions League next season. The 36-year-old rejoined the Red Devils from Juventus on the last day of the summer transfer window and has individually made a reasonable start to his second life at Old Trafford with 14 goals in 23 apperances. Slowly but surely, however, collective results dipped under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was fired in late November, and haven’t been much better on the watch of his interim replacement Ralf Rangnick. United currently languish in […]

An investigation is underway by German police after two hidden cameras were allegedly found in the changing rooms of a top women’s handball team. TuS Metzingen play in Germany’s top-tier Bundesliga, and said that the cameras were discovered this week. According to the club, an unnamed person who previously worked with them is being treated by the authorities as a suspect while their contract has already been terminated. As relayed by Spiegel, a spokesman for the Reutlingen police department told a local paper that “evidence” was found on the individual, who may face up to two years behind bars for a violation of […]

A report from MPs has blamed the UK government for failing to be “transparent” about problems with the state pension payment system The UK House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) released a scathing report on the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on Friday, highlighting “errors dating as far back as 1985.” Problems with the state pension payment system have resulted in an estimated 134,000 pensioners being underpaid by over £1 billion ($1.36 billion). Of the pensioners impacted by the problems, it is thought 94,000 are alive today. “The errors happened because of the Department’s use of outdated systems and […]

The military then dismissed reports of the bombing as “crazy” and preemptively blamed ISIS In 2017, the US bombed a piece of strategic infrastructure in Syria, the Tabqa Dam on the Euphrates River, despite it being on a no-strike list, the New York Times reported. A B-52 bomber dropped some of the heaviest weapons in the US Air Force arsenal on the target, including at least one BLU-109 bunker buster, which is designed to destroy fortified concrete targets. This bomb pierced through five stories in one of the dam’s towers, but didn’t explode. If the Soviet-designed earth-and-concrete structure had failed, tens […]

The Biden administration accused the two opposition politicians of working for Moscow to undermine Ukraine’s Western-backed government The US Treasury Department on Thursday sanctioned two Ukrainian MPs – Taras Kozak and Oleg Voloshyn – and two former officials – Volodymyr Oliynyk and Vladimir Sivkovich, accusing them of participating in a Moscow-backed conspiracy to destabilize the pro-Western government of Volodymyr Zelensky “Russia has directed its intelligence services to recruit current and former Ukrainian government officials to prepare to take over the government of Ukraine and to control Ukraine’s critical infrastructure with an occupying Russian force,” read a statement from the Treasury, which […]

‘Highly sensitive data’ including staffer info stolen from charity’s Swiss contractor A massive hack of the International Committee of the Red Cross has compromised information from employees, refugees, detainees, migrants, and family members of all those groups, and the culprit remains unknown. Information on some 515,000 “highly vulnerable” individuals has been stolen the Red Cross revealed on Wednesday in a statement posted to its website. The data was apparently stolen from a third-party Swiss contractor with whom the ICRC stored it, and there is no indication that it has yet been leaked or otherwise shared publicly. The ICRC has urged the […]

Teenager acquitted over Kenosha riot shootings asks court for return of his rifle and other property Kyle Rittenhouse has begun the process of trying to get back his rifle from the Wisconsin prosecutors who tried unsuccessfully to convict him of homicide and other charges for shooting three people during the August 2020 riot in Kenosha. Mark Richards, a lawyer for Rittenhouse, filed a motion on Wednesday for the return of his client’s gun and other property – including ammunition, an iPhone, clothing, a $1 bill, and a face mask. His spokesman David Hancock texted a reporter earlier this week indicating that […]

Billionaire’s neurotechnology firm is hiring clinical trial staffers as it awaits regulatory approval Neuralink, the US neurotechnology firm co-founded by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, has begun recruiting key employees to run its clinical trials, signaling that it’s inching closer to starting human testing of its brain implants. The company has posted advertisements to hire a clinical trial director and a clinical trial coordinator. The ads note that the staffers will “work closely with some of the most innovative doctors and top engineers, as well as working with Neuralink’s first clinical trial participants.” Neuralink said the director will lead and help build […]

A Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) should “complement, rather than replace, current forms of money and methods for providing financial services” the Federal Reserve Board of Governors said in a study released on Thursday, which it said was the first step in a public discussion about a “digital dollar.” Clocking in at just 40 pages, including appendices and footnotes, the study examines the pros and cons of a CBDC and solicits feedback from the public and the authorities. “We look forward to engaging with the public, elected representatives, and a broad range of stakeholders as we examine the positives and negatives […]

The UK-based media company Space Entertainment Enterprise plans to launch a film studio and sports arena into space, aiming to dock its core module at the International Space Station by December 2024. The multipurpose structure will initially serve as part of the ISS’ “commercial arm,” Axiom Station, which hopes to ultimately be able to detach to free float by 2028. The operation’s founders, Dmitry and Elena Lesnevsky, described SEE-1 as “a unique and accessible home for boundless entertainment possibilities in a venue packed with innovative infrastructure, which will unleash a new world of creativity” and “start an exciting new chapter in […]