News Archives - Page 68 of 81

Thousands of Iraqis Call Death to America during General’s Funeral

4Jan

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

News, International

Thousands of Iraqis Call Death to America during General’s Funeral

Thousands of Iraqis scanned "death to America" on Saturday at the funeral of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani and Abou Mehdi al-Mouhandis, his chief lieutenant in Iraq, who died in an American attack. Among other things, a photographer from the French press agency AFP has established this on the spot. Early this morning, thousands of civilians came to the streets of Baghdad for the commemoration of Soleimani and Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, which took place this morning. Many participants chanted slogans such as "Death to America". Some people in the crowd held up a portrait of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, or Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese Shiite Hizbollah movement. Nasrallah yesterday called for a "just punishment" for the "...

Greta Thunberg Turns 17: No Cake, but Climate Protest

3Jan

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

International, News

Greta Thunberg Turns 17: No Cake, but Climate Protest

The Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg celebrated her seventeenth birthday on Friday not with cake, but with an hour-long protest at the parliament in Stockholm. "I'm not the kind of person who celebrates birthdays," the teenager said. "I stand here as usual from 8 am to 3 pm. Then I go home." Greta Thunberg Tweets! Thunberg has had a busy year. She travelled the world to demand that governments take more action against climate change. "It was a strange and busy year. But also a great year because I have found something that I want to do with my life. And what I do has an impact," the activist said. The teenager started her so-called climate strike when she was fifteen. She skipped school to take action at the Swedish parliament. That made her world-famous — the American ...

Cyprus Court: British Woman Lied about A Group Rape by Israeli Gang

30Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

News, UK

Cyprus Court: British Woman Lied about A Group Rape by Israeli Gang

A Cypriot court ruled Monday that a British woman lied about a group rape six months ago by Israeli youth. The woman, then 19 years old, claimed that twelve Israeli teenagers had sexually abused her. The case, before the district court in Paralimni, was closely followed by human rights groups. The woman was arrested after she withdrew the accusation that the Israeli teenagers raped her in a hotel room in the Ayia Napa resort in mid-July. She said she had withdrawn her allegation under police force during ongoing interrogations without a lawyer present. Prosecutors and the court rejected her defence. "My conclusion is that her guilt is undoubtedly proven," the president said in his verdict, describing her claims as inconsistent and adding that she had tried to mislead the court....

China Denies Death Sentence for Uighur Academic Tashpolat Tiyip

27Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

International, News

China Denies Death Sentence for Uighur Academic Tashpolat Tiyip

China denies that it has secretly sentenced to death the Uighur academic Tashpolat Tiyip. Human rights organisation Amnesty International already suspected a "secret and unjust conviction" in September. The United Nations, therefore, demanded answers from the Beijing government. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs publicized on Friday that the trial against Tiyip is still ongoing and that his rights are being protected "following the law". According to the Chinese government, the geographer and former president of the University of Xianjing are suspected of "corruption and bribery". The Uyghurs form a Muslim minority in China and live mainly in the northwestern region of Xinjiang. Many of them are locked up there in detention camps. China itself has repeatedly denied that ...

The Stock Market in Japan is Closed Somewhat Lower on Wednesday

25Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News

The Stock Market in Japan is Closed Somewhat Lower on Wednesday

The stock market in Japan is closed somewhat lower on Wednesday. The trading session was tranquil due to the holidays. Many international financial markets are closed for Christmas. The Nikkei index finished 0.2 percent in the minus at 23,782.87 points. The stock market in Shanghai also saw a small minus. Nissan was a striking fall. The car manufacturer sees one of his top drivers leave. Jun Seki, who is in charge of the significant reorganisation at Nissan, is going to work as chief executive of maker of electrical power sources Nidec. On a macroeconomic level, it was announced that Chinese imports of American soybeans in November reached the highest level in twenty months. The doors remained closed in Hong Kong, Seoul and Sydney, among others.

British Church Examines Whether Tech Investments are Compatible with Faith

23Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

UK, News, Technology

British Church Examines Whether Tech Investments are Compatible with Faith

The Church of England has begun an investigation into whether interests in large technology companies are compatible with the Christian faith. A church advisory group takes twelve months for the examination. This includes investments in robotics and artificial intelligence. The latter could undermine "the idea of God." According to the British newspaper The Telegraph, ethics specialists and theologians help determine the course. In doing so, it is tested whether the investment fund of the Church of England, which contains many billions, should have interests in companies such as Amazon, Facebook and Google. The Church of England has almost 12 billion pounds in investments under management through various funds. The church previously played a pioneering role in the movement to s...

Australian Prime Minister Apologises for being on Vacation during Forest Fires

20Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Australia, News

Australian Prime Minister Apologises for being on Vacation during Forest Fires

Australian Prime Minister Apologises for being on Vacation during Forest Fires. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison returns from vacation early after criticism from the home front. Parts of the country have been struggling with fierce forest fires for weeks, which are difficult to control. Two volunteer firefighters were killed yesterday. There is little understanding that Morrison was on vacation in Hawaii in silence just now. The prime minister has already apologised. Two days earlier than planned, Australian Prime Minister Morrison packs his bags in his vacation home in Hawaii. His intention was to spend a week with his family, but the forest fires in his home country decided otherwise. While the size of the fires did not diminish in recent days and the temperatures onl...

The British Government wants New House of Commons to Vote on Brexit on Friday

17Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

UK, News

The British Government wants New House of Commons to Vote on Brexit on Friday

On Friday, the British government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson will present the Brexit agreement negotiated with the European Union to the new parliament. Possibly it will be voted on the same day in the Lower House. Besides, Johnson wants to introduce legislation that makes it impossible to extend the transition period between the Brexit date and the actual separation of the United Kingdom and the EU. The UK and the EU have to reach a new trade agreement in that short period of eleven months, an almost impossible task. Today the British House of Commons and its new members resume work after last week's elections. The 650 MPs - including 365 Torys from the Boris Johnson Conservative party - reconfirmed Lindsay Hoyle as chairman. The new legislature will resume on Thursday. T...

Hong Kong Violence Breaks Out again in Shopping Centres

15Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Asia, International, News

Hong Kong Violence Breaks Out again in Shopping Centres

After three weeks of shelter, protests in Hong Kong have once again collided between protesters and riot police. The new protests were held in and around shopping centres. This time the protests took place mainly around shopping centres, which are already visited during this period in the run-up to Christmas. Black-clad and masked activists gathered in different shopping malls, calling for slogans for more democracy and freedom. They barred access to stores. In some places, the protest led to vandalism. Some branches of a restaurant chain were destroyed. The chain became the target of protest after the owner's daughter had criticised the protest movement in Hong Kong. The riot police used tear gas and pepper spray. Under the cheers of passers-by, she made a few arrests ...

US Test Rocket again from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California

12Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

US, News

US Test Rocket again from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California

The US has conducted another rocket test. The projectile was fired Thursday from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the US Department of Defense confirmed. The test feeds the fear that a new arms race between the great powers America and Russia will start. Washington cancelled the INF treaty at the beginning of August in which a ban on testing with (nuclear) medium-range missiles with a range between 500 and 5500 kilometres was agreed. That agreement was signed in 1987 by American and Soviet leaders Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. According to the US, Russia had not complied with that prohibition for some time by testing with the SSC-8 system with projectiles that could travel more than 2000 kilometres. It was the second time since the treaty was cancelled that t...