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NASA says it thinks it knows what caused a problem with Hubble’s main payload computer, which put the space telescope into a safe configuration and suspended scientific observations since June 13th. If plans to repair the problem should work the space agency say Hubble could resume normal operations within several days of the fix.
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NASA’s Cassini mission found geysers spewing jets of icy water high above Saturn’s moon Enceladus. Scientists detected methane mixed into the water. Researchers in Arizona and Paris say processes that create methane on the icy moon may be the same as on Earth or unknown processes that don’t involve any lifeforms.
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Uber Technologies Inc. on Thursday reached a preliminary agreement with a California regulator for sharing data on sexual assault and harassment claims on its platform while protecting victims’ privacy and avoiding a $59 million fine.

Under the proposal outlined in a regulatory filing with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), the penalty would be reduced to $150,000, but Uber would pay $9 million to support a state victims fund and help create industrywide safety and reporting standards.

“We’ve been able to find a path forward that preserves the privacy and agency of sexual assault survivors,” Tony West, Uber’s chief legal officer, said in a statement.

The CPUC fined Uber in December after the company refused to share victims’ detailed information, including full names and contact information, arguing that doing so would violate their right to privacy.

2019 safety report

The dispute stems from a safety report Uber released in December 2019, disclosing 6,000 reports of sexual assault related to 2.3 billion trips in the United States in 2017 and 2018.

That report, aimed at ensuring drivers and the public that Uber was serious about safety, has put the company in the spotlight. Rival ride-hailing company Lyft Inc. has promised a similar report but said it would await the conclusion of the CPUC procedures before releasing its data.

The agreement proposed by Uber, a division of the CPUC and an anti-sexual abuse group would see Uber provide anonymized data on past instances of assault to the agency.

Going forward, Uber will also provide anonymized data, but offer individuals the ability to opt in to being contacted by the CPUC when they report a claim. All ride-hail companies operating in California, including Lyft, would have to comply with those future data requests.

The agreement is subject to approval by an administrative judge and the full commission.
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The United States is experiencing a surge of new COVID-19 infections thanks to a combination of the more infectious delta strain of the coronavirus and low vaccination rates in several states.
 
Among the dozens of states that are reporting a steady increase in new COVID-19 infections is the midwestern state of Missouri, which has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the nation. About 45% of all Missourians have received at least one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, far behind the national average of at least 55%. The situation is far worse in the state’s rural areas, where fewer than 25% of residents have been inoculated.  
 
Officials in St. Louis County say the rate of new coronavirus cases have soared 63% in the last two weeks.
 
The worsening situation in Missouri prompted the Biden administration to deploy a “surge response team” made up of experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health agencies to help local officials with testing and vaccination efforts.
 
The surge of new coronavirus infections have been blamed on a general distrust of vaccines along with rising political opposition in some states.  
 
In the southeastern state of Tennessee, Dr. Michelle Fiscus, the director of the state government’s vaccine-preventable diseases and immunization programs, said she was fired this week amid a backlash from conservative state lawmakers over her efforts to raise awareness among teenagers and young Tennesseans about the COVId-19 vaccines.  
 
Fiscus said a memo she wrote suggesting some teenagers might be eligible for vaccinations without their parents’ consent triggered her dismissal.  
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Female survivors of the war against the Islamic State have openeda new women-run restaurant in the northern Iraqi city ofMosul, providing homemade food for residents and an economic lifelinefor themselves. VOA’s Kawa Omer reports from the region in this storynarrated by Namo Abdulla.
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U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Sunday that deterring the use of tax havens will let countries compete on economic fundamentals — instead of by offering ever-lower tax rates that deprive governments of money for infrastructure and education.Yellen spoke after finance ministers from the Group of 20 major economies endorsed a global minimum corporate tax of at least 15%, a measure aimed at putting a floor under tax rates and discouraging companies from using low-rate countries as tax havens.”This deal will end the race to the bottom,” she said at a news conference after the end of the meeting in Venice.”Instead of asking the question: ‘Who can offer the lowest tax rate?’ it will allow all of our countries to compete on the basis of economic fundamentals – on the skill of our workforces, our capacity to innovate, and the strength of our legal and economic institutions,” she said.”And this deal will give our nations the ability to raise the necessary funding for important public goods like infrastructure, R&D [research and development] and education,” Yellen added.The global minimum proposal faces political and technical hurdles before it would take effect. Details are to be ironed out in coming weeks at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, followed by a final endorsement by presidents and prime ministers of the Group of 20 at an Oct. 30-31 meeting in Rome.Countries would then need to legislate the rate into their own laws. The idea is for headquarters countries to tax their companies’ foreign earnings at home if those earnings go untaxed in low-rate countries. That would remove the reason for using complex accounting schemes to move profits to subsidiaries in low-tax nations where the companies may do little or no actual business.The U.S. already has such a tax on overseas profits, but the rate is below the 15% minimum. Congressional Republicans have expressed opposition to President Joe Biden’s proposal to raise the rate on overseas corporate profits to 21% to help pay for infrastructure and investments in clean energy. The Democratic president has only a narrow majority in Congress.Three European Union countries that took part in talks over the minimum tax have refused to endorse the proposal. Ireland, Hungary and Estonia could obstruct adoption in Europe, where tax matters at the EU level require unanimity. Ireland, whose low tax rates are part of its pro-business economic model, has said its 12.5% headline rate is a fair rate.The tax proposal would also give countries the right to tax part of the profits of big global companies that earn money in their jurisdiction but have no physical presence. Examples would include online retailing and digital advertising.Some countries, led by France, have already started imposing such taxes on U.S. tech companies such as Google and Amazon. The U.S. considers such taxes to be unfair trade practices and has threatened retaliation through tariffs on imported goods. Under the tax deal, countries would drop those taxes in favor of a single global approach. 
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Pope Francis on Sunday made his first public appearance since major intestinal surgery last week, greeting well-wishers as he stood for 10 minutes on a hospital balcony, offering hearty thanks for all the prayers for his recovery and calling health care for all a “precious” good. Francis, 84, has been steadily on the mend, according to the Vatican, following his July 4 scheduled surgery to remove a portion of his colon which had narrowed due to inflammation. But it hasn’t said just when he might be discharged. On the morning after his surgery, a Holy See spokesperson said his hospital stay was expected to last seven days, “barring complications.”  At first the pontiff’s voice sounded on the weak side as he began his remarks after stepping onto a balcony outside his special suite at Gemelli Polyclinic at noon (1000 GMT; 6 a.m. EST).  That is the hour when traditionally he would have appeared from a window at the Vatican overlooking St. Peter’s Square. Exactly a week earlier, in his noon remarks he had given no hint that in a few hours he would have entered the hospital for surgery that same night. “I am happy to be able to keep the Sunday appointment,” this time at the hospital, the pope said. “I thank everyone. I very much felt your closeness and the support of your prayers,” Francis said. “Thank you from my heart!” exclaimed the pontiff.  Standing on the balcony with him were some children who are also hospitalized at the polyclinic, a major Catholic teaching hospital on the outskirts of Rome. The crowd below clapped often, in encouragement.  Reading from prepared remarks, he kept one or both hands on a lectern for support, including when he raised an arm in blessing. Francis described his hospitalization as an opportunity to understand “how important a good health service is, accessible to all, as it is in Italy and other countries.”  Although he stayed at a nonpublic hospital, Italy has a national public health service, and residents can often receive treatment at private hospitals, with the costs reimbursed by the government. “We mustn’t lose this precious thing,” the pope said, adding his appreciation and encouragement for all the health care workers and personnel at hospitals.  As he usually does on Sundays, Francis spoke of current events and of issues close to his heart. In his balcony remarks, he reiterated his closeness to Haiti’s people, as he recalled the assassination last week of its president and the wounding of the first lady. Francis prayed that the people of Haiti could “start going down a path of peace and of harmony.” The world’s environmental fragility has been a major theme of his papacy since it began in 2013. On Sunday, as countless people vacation at the shore, Francis urged them to look after “the health of seas and oceans.” “No plastic in the sea!” the pope pleaded. Without citing specific issues, he also voiced hope that “Europe may be united in its founding values,” a possible reference to tensions between the European Union leaders and member Hungary over LGBTQ rights crackdowns. Francis noted that Sunday marked the feast of St. Benedict, patron saint of the continent.  Francis ended with his usual invitation to faithful.  “Don’t forget to pray for me,” drawing rousing applause.  
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Tennessee health officials say a small cluster of coronavirus infections has been linked to the June meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, according to The Tennessean.Epidemiologist Leslie Waller of Nashville’s Metro Public Health Department told the newspaper that about 10 infections had been found, but that the cluster was almost certainly larger. About 18,000 people attended the two-day annual meeting and then returned to their home states, the newspaper reported Friday.The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked health officials to contact the Tennessee department if they find other cases, according to The Associated Press.Nashville had lifted its mask mandate and restrictions on large gatherings about a month before the convention, which filled the city’s indoor convention hall.Disinclined to get vaccinatedThose who attended were not likely to have been vaccinated. A March poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 40% of white evangelical Protestants said they likely wouldn’t get vaccinated, compared with 25% of all Americans, 28% of white mainline Protestants and 27% of nonwhite Protestants. A spokesman for the Southern Baptist Convention’s executive committee said it had not told attendees about the infections but was working with health officials to determine what to do. FILE – A sign warning of COVID-19 danger is seen June 15, 2021, outside a state office building in Jefferson City, Mo. Gov. Mike Parson signed a bill in June limiting the duration of local public health restrictions such as workplace capacity limits.Infection clustersSeparately, Georgetown University researchers found clusters of coronavirus infections in 30 counties that have large populations and low vaccination rates, CNN reported Friday. What the university researchers described as the five most significant clusters, CNN said, cover large parts of eight states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. Coronavirus cases are rising in more than half of U.S. states, and hospitalizations are up in 17 states, with patients who are almost entirely unvaccinated, CBS News reported Saturday. About half of all new cases, 52%, are attributable to the delta variant. “We’re seeing people that are extremely sick with it,” Dr. Greg Gardner, chief of emergency medicine at Mountain West Hospital in Tooele, Utah, told CBS. “We haven’t seen anybody that has been vaccinated.” According to the CDC, as of Saturday, 158,954,417 Americans were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.Rolling average rises Also on Saturday, the CDC’s seven-day rolling average showed an increase of 16% in new cases from the previous seven-day measure. During Thursday’s weekly White House COVID Response Team briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the statistics showed “two truths”: The nation’s vaccination effort is significantly driving down cases, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 from their January peaks, but the areas with the lowest vaccination rates have the highest rates of new cases and highest percentages of the more contagious delta variant of the virus. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, CNN and CBS.
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One day after the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, the U.S. said it would respond to requests for help in investigating the attack. Experts said the U.S. should resist any temptation to intervene militarily in Haiti as it has in times of past upheaval.  VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.
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The foreign ministers of Egypt and Sudan appealed to the U.N. Security Council on Thursday to intervene in their dispute with Ethiopia over the operation of a mega dam on the Nile River.“We come here in search for a viable path towards a peaceful, amicable and negotiated solution, and to avert the dire consequences of our inability to reach a settlement to this matter,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said.Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry speaks in New York City about Ethiopia’s contentious dam project on July 7, 2021.“Our expectation is that this council will take the necessary measures to ensure the parties engage in an effective process of negotiation that could yield an agreement that serves our collective interests,” he added.Tensions have escalated since Addis Ababa said Monday it had begun its second phase of filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam — or GERD, as it is known. Downstream neighbors Egypt and Sudan object, insisting that a legally binding agreement that governs how the dam is filled and operated must first be in place.“Silence from the council would send out the wrong message and would signify a tacit approval of the fact that this unilateral filling was acceptable,” Sudan’s foreign minister, Mariam al-Mahdi said.The Nile flows northward, with one tributary (the White Nile) beginning in South Sudan and the other (the Blue Nile) in Ethiopia. They merge in Sudan and continue flowing north to the Mediterranean Sea. Along the way, the river crosses through 11 countries, and populations have depended on its water for millennia.Ethiopia started building the GERD in 2011 on the Blue Nile as a major hydropower project. Construction is nearly complete, and Addis Ababa says the dam will help bring electricity to 65 million Ethiopians who do not have it.Seleshi Bekele Awulachew, Ethiopia’s Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy speaks during a news conference on the current status of Great Renaissance Nile Dam construction in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sept. 18, 2019.“We are dealing here with a hydroelectric dam. We are not building a nuclear plant,” said Seleshi Bekele Awulachew, Ethiopia’s minister for water, irrigation and energy. “It’s not the first of its kind in Africa or in the world.”He urged the council not to become involved in the issue, which the African Union is mediating.“If the council consents to the path preferred by Egypt and Sudan, it will certainly be entangled in resolving disputes on all transboundary rivers,” Ethiopia’s minister said.After 10 years of negotiations, the three countries still have not resolved the situation. Council members urged them to find the political will and momentum to quickly resume substantive negotiations to resolve outstanding differences.U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, speaks to reporters during a news conference at U.N. headquarters, March 1, 2021.“A balanced and equitable solution to the filling and operation of the GERD can be reached with political commitment from all parties,” U.S. envoy Linda Thomas-Greenfield said. “Egypt and Sudan’s concerns over water security and the safety and operation of the dam can be reconciled with Ethiopia’s development needs.”She said the African Union is the most appropriate body to address the dispute and that Washington would provide political and technical support. The U.N., the European Union and South Africa have also been involved as observers to these talks, which recently stalled.Russia went a step further, proposing that the parties undertake a round of negotiations with the African Union chair while the three ministers are all in New York.Vassily Nebenzia, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, addresses the Security Council at U.N. headquarters in New York, April 10, 2019.“We believe that this would be the best contribution the council could make to finding a solution to the situation,” Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said.Egypt and Sudan asked the council to adopt a resolution put forward by council member Tunisia. It demands that Ethiopia stop filling the dam and calls for the three countries to resume negotiations and reach a legally binding agreement within six months.Sudan’s foreign minister acknowledged after the meeting that the council appeared to have little appetite to adopt the resolution.But Cairo and Khartoum insist the issue is an important national security issue.“This is a situation that Egypt cannot and will not tolerate,” Shoukry told the council. 
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A United Nations investigator is calling for international coordinated action to stem abuse by Myanmar’s military leaders against its people.   In a report to the U.N. Human Rights Council, the U.N. special rapporteur lists measures for bringing the country’s generals into compliance with international human rights norms.  Human rights investigator Tom Andrews accuses the international community of failing the people of Myanmar.   In an impassioned speech to the U.N. council, he presented documented evidence of widespread, systematic attacks by the military junta against the people of Myanmar. Since the Junta’s overthrow of the country’s democratically elected government five months ago, he says military forces have killed about 900 people.  He says they have forcibly displaced hundreds of thousands, tortured many and arbitrarily detained nearly 6,000 people. “Some in Myanmar have lost hope that help from the international community will be forthcoming and have instead sought to defend themselves through the formation of defense forces and acts of sabotage, while some are reportedly targeting suspected junta collaborators and officials — and the junta’s pattern of the use of grossly disproportionate force in response will likely lead to an even greater loss of life,” he said.  FILE – Protesters react after tear gas is fired by police during a demonstration against the military coup in the northwestern town of Kalay, March 2, 2021.Andrews says the people of Myanmar desperately need the support of the international community to end this nightmare, yet he says little action has been taken beyond international protestations of condemnation, the imposition of sanctions by some nations and resolutions by U.N. bodies.The U.N. investigator is calling for the establishment of a so-called Emergency Coalition for the People of Myanmar.  The plan proposes a series of five key measures he says would impose significant costs on the junta.  First and foremost, he asserts cutting off the junta’s source of income could reduce its ability to attack its citizens.  Therefore, he is calling on nations to impose economic sanctions on Myanmar’s oil and gas industry. “Oil and gas sector revenues are a financial lifeline for the junta and are estimated to be close to what is needed for the junta to maintain the security forces that are keeping them in power,” he said.  “They should be stopped.  Second, an Emergency Coalition for the People of Myanmar could outlaw the export of arms to Myanmar military, as called for in last month’s General Assembly resolution.”   The plan also calls for the pursuit of universal jurisdiction cases and filing charges against Myanmar’s senior security officials.  Other measures include ensuring that humanitarian aid goes directly to the people of Myanmar, and the denial of any claims of legitimacy by the junta, such as the false claim that it is recognized by the United Nations. 
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The streets of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, were mostly empty Wednesday following the assassination of President Jovenel Moise at his private residence in the early-morning hours. Businesses were closed, most people remained home and armored police vehicles were seen on the main roads. Armed guards stood watch in key locations of the capital.A state of siege was declared by interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph, who said he was in charge of the country.Haitian officials said heavily armed gunmen posing as U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) officers who spoke Spanish and English shot and killed the president in a “highly coordinated” attack. His wife, Martine Moise, was gravely injured and remained in critical but stable condition at a Miami hospital.Haitian media reported the late president’s “alleged assassins” had been intercepted late Wednesday, although details about the arrest were scarce as the investigation continued amid a national border lockdown.Speaking to people on the street about the president’s killing, VOA Creole received a diverse range of responses.One resident of the president’s Pelerin neighborhood, a wealthy suburb of the capital, said she heard the gunfire but was confused about what was happening at the time. She told VOA Creole the gunfire lasted for about an hour.A forensic investigator carries a bagful of bullet casings collected at the residence of Haiti’s President Jovenel Moise, where he was killed by gunmen in the early morning hours, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, July 7, 2021.”We are victims of our own insecurity,” the woman, who declined to give her name, said. “We hope this will not happen again, but, hopefully, the next president will do better so this type of event doesn’t repeat itself.”A man in his 20s who spoke to VOA Creole near the downtown area of the capital said he worried that the killing would damage Haiti’s image abroad.”I think this presents a problem for the country’s image,” he told VOA. “Jovenel should have been brought to justice to explain his actions. I blame him for the impunity that exists currently and for putting guns in the hands of young people. He likened himself [in a speech] to a fish bone stuck in the Haitian people’s throat. I would have liked to ask him to explain what he meant by that. The people need to unite now and take hold of our government and choose a leader who can represent us well, improve our image and allow us to move forward.”Another man in his 30s who spoke to VOA Creole near the national palace, and who also did not want to give his name, said, “It really hurts me to hear Jovenel Moise died this way. This is not what I wished for. I would have preferred he be imprisoned for all the bad things he did [while in power] and explain what happened with the PetroCaribe funds, the Bel Air massacre, the La Saline massacre. I did not wish for his death.”Security forces investigate the perimeters of the residence of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, July 7, 2021. Gunmen assassinated Moise and wounded his wife in their home early Wednesday.PetroCaribe is a corruption scandal linked to profits from oil sold to Haiti by Venezuela at a discount, which were supposed to be used for social, educational and infrastructure projects. Most of the money was allegedly misused, and efforts to bring those responsible to justice have so far failed.Moise was blamed by some Haitians — as well as U.S. officials such as U.S. Representative Maxine Waters  and Ambassador Michele Sison — for failing to bring to justice those responsible for the mass killings of residents in the capital’s Bel Air and La Saline slums. Gangs with ties to the president were blamed for the killings.Another man in his 20s who spoke to VOA Creole in a downtown neighborhood expressed sorrow over Moise’s death. “It pains me to hear President Jovenel Moise was assassinated. Today his death does not make us feel good at all,” he told VOA. “We would prefer to have a real government leading us. For now, all we can say is, ‘Rest in peace.’ “A man who described himself as a Moise supporter said he thought the killing was politically motivated.”I believed in Jovenel Moise. I believe he was assassinated today because of his political convictions,” the man, who did not give his name, said. “[Moise] is a Haitian citizen who was fighting against the oligarchs and greedy people. I blame those oligarchs for his murder. This was a heinous act.”Former government attorney Francisco Rene, who spoke to VOA at his office in Port-au-Prince, expressed concern about the gravity of the event.”This is serious. It impacts the future of our democracy, the future of the country,” he said. “It’s also serious with regards to the economic fallout. Many countries may decide to prevent their citizens from traveling to Haiti. This has diminished our standing in the world.”It was unclear how long the state of siege would be in effect. Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic and its airports were closed until further notice.
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Darnella Frazier, the teenager who videoed George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis last year, said Wednesday that a man killed during a high-speed police chase in the city early Tuesday was her uncle.Police confirmed that the man, Leneal Lamont Frazier, was not involved in the chase.”Minneapolis police has cost my whole family a big loss … today has been a day full of heartbreak and sadness,” Frazier posted on her Facebook page. According to police, a squad car collided with two other vehicles during a high-speed pursuit of a driver linked to a carjacking and multiple robberies.Police confirmed Wednesday that the driver of one of those vehicles was taken to a hospital, where he later died, but they have not released the name of the victim, The Associated Press reported.”Another black man lost his life in the hands of the police!” Frazier wrote.Frazier was given a Pulitzer Prize special citation last month for capturing the murder of Floyd on video. She testified earlier this year in the murder trial of former Officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty of murdering Floyd after he kneeled on his neck for over nine minutes last year.”When I look at George Floyd, I look at my dad. I look at my brothers, I look at my cousins, my uncles, because they are all Black. I look at how that could have been one of them,” she told the jury at the time.Floyd’s murder sparked global protests over racial injustice and police brutality. Locally, the Minneapolis Police Department has come under intense scrutiny, with calls to defund the police seriously considered by the city’s government over the past year.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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A U.N. investigator accuses Belarusian authorities of enforcing a policy of repression aimed at purging its society of what the country’s leadership describes as undesirable, dissident elements.   The U.N. special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus has submitted her report to the U.N. Human Rights Council.  U.N. investigator Anais Marin has issued a blistering attack against the brutal methods employed by the government of President Alexander Lukashenko to keep its population in line.  She says Belarus has suffered an unprecedented human rights crisis since the August 9 presidential election, widely viewed as fraudulent.    Over the past year, she notes more than 35,000 people have been arbitrarily detained for exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly or in support of victims of abuse.  Marin accuses the Belarusian authorities of launching a full-scale assault against civil society.  “Thousands of people are undergoing violence, beatings, humiliation and intimidation from the police.  I have been told of a systematic use of torture or other forms of degrading or inhuman treatment directed against people in detention,” she said.Marin says the government’s violent crackdown on civil society and the fear of reprisals have driven tens of thousands of people to seek safety abroad.  However, she adds opponents no longer feel safe anywhere.  This, since Belarus forced a civilian airplane to land in the capital, Minsk, on May 23 for the sole purpose of arresting a dissident aboard.FILE – In this May 23, 2021, photo, a Ryanair jet that carried opposition figure Raman Pratasevich was diverted to Minsk, Belarus, after a bomb threat.“This incident, which shocked the international community highlights the desire of the authorities to put an end to any form of dissidence,” she said.  “Purging society of those elements which it considers to be undesirable.  And I am deliberately using the word purge… It is a form of purge reminding us of those which totalitarian regimes practice.”    FILE – Belarusian blogger Raman Pratasevich is said to be seen in a pre-trial detention facility in Minsk, Belarus May 24, 2021, in this still image taken from video. (Telegram@Zheltyeslivy/Reuters TV)Polish Ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva Zbignew Czech delivered a joint statement on behalf of 46 states.  He condemned the forced diversion and landing of the Ryanair jet and the arrest of journalist Raman Pratasevich and his partner, Sofia Sapega by Belarusian authorities. “This act apparently endangering the lives of passengers and crew was an attack on human rights and an affront to international norms,” he said. “We deplore the ongoing and systematic repression of the Belarusian people… We stand in solidarity with the imprisoned journalists and of all the Belarusian political prisoners reaching 500.”On behalf of the 46 states, Czech called on Belarus to immediately and unconditionally release Pratasevich and his partner and all those unjustly detained.   Belarus boycotted the meeting so was not present to take the floor as a concerned country. 
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A press watchdog group, Reporters Without Borders, named 37 world leaders Monday as media “predators” who “crack down massively” on press freedom, including for the first time a Western European leader, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.The Paris-based group, in its first such list in five years, included two women, Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh’s prime minister since 2009, and Carrie Lam, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region since 2017.Reporters Without Borders said the “most notable” name on the new list “is undoubtedly Saudi Arabia’s 35-year-old crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who is the center of all power in his hands and heads a monarchy that tolerates no press freedom. His repressive methods include spying and threats that have sometimes led to abduction, torture and other unthinkable acts. [Journalist] Jamal Khashoggi’s horrific murder exposed a predatory method that is simply barbaric.”The group said the officials it cited all “trample on press freedom by creating a censorship apparatus, jailing journalists arbitrarily or inciting violence against them, when they don’t have blood on their hands because they have directly or indirectly pushed for journalists to be murdered.”The group said Orban “has steadily and effectively undermined media pluralism and independence since being returned to power in 2010” by using “varied predatory techniques.”  “The methods may be subtle or brazen, but they are always efficient,” the report said. The watchdog group said oligarchs close to Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party controls more than 80% of the media in the country, while private media is discriminated against and characterized as publishing “fake news.”Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs assailed the report and said the watchdog should be called “Fake News Without Borders.”Reporters Without Borders said Hasina’s “predatory exploits” in Bangladesh included “the adoption of a digital security law in 2018 that has led to more than 70 journalists and bloggers being prosecuted.”It said Lam “has proved to be the puppet of Chinese President Xi Jinping, and now openly supports his predatory policies towards the media.” The watchdog condemned the recent closing of Hong Kong’s leading independent newspaper, Apple Daily, and the jailing of its founder, Jimmy Lai.Christophe Deloire, the watchdog’s secretary-general, urged world governments to disavow the attacks on media by the 37 leaders it cited.”We must not let their methods become the new normal,” he said.This report includes information from the Associated Press.
 
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At his first large event since his inauguration, President Joe Biden hosted a party at the White House in honor of the Fourth of July holiday Sunday.
 
“America is coming back together,” Biden said.
 
“Today, we’re closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus.”
 
The White House was open to hundreds of invited guests Sunday, serving up hamburgers and other dishes.
 
Among the guests were essential workers who helped with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as military families.
In his remarks to his guests Sunday, Biden encouraged those who have not yet been vaccinated against the coronavirus to do so.
 
“My fellow Americans – it’s the most patriotic thing you can do,” he said.Attendees listen as President Joe Biden speaks during an Independence Day celebration on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington, July 4, 2021.The administration had set a goal of having 70% of American adults vaccinated by the holiday. The nation got close: about 67% have had at least one shot.
 
Sunday also marked one of the first times that fencing, which had been erected around the White House during the anti-police violence protests in 2020 and in the wake of the January 6th assault on the Capitol, was removed. Visitors can now walk up to the North Lawn fence in front of the White House.  
 
Though the event is the largest since Biden took office in January, the crowds are much smaller than White House Independence Day events in previous years.  
 
With fireworks and gatherings, Americans celebrated their country’s 245th Independence Day this year with a sense of renewal as new cases of COVID-19 continued to drop but also with the reminder that more than 600,000 in the U.S. — the most of any country — have died of the disease.
 Some information for this report came from Reuters. 
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As the last U.S. forces are withdrawn from Afghanistan after nearly 20 years of fighting, the American commander says he is worried about the territorial advance of Taliban insurgents attempting to take back control of the country. U.S. Army Gen. Scott Miller, in an interview broadcast Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” show, said the Taliban is “gaining strength.” “We should be concerned,” he said. “The loss of terrain is concerning.” For the Afghans trying to maintain control, he said, “Hope matters. Morale matters.” “I don’t like leaving friends in need,” Miller said as he oversaw the last U.S. troops leaving the mammoth Bagram Airfield this past week. “You look at the security situation and it’s not good.” he said. “The Taliban is on the move.” The Taliban have captured more 100 districts since early May. U.S. President Joe Biden ordered the U.S. troop withdrawal, a position also favored by former President Donald Trump before he left office in January. In April, Biden announced, “It is time to end the forever war” in Afghanistan, saying that the United States had accomplished its stated goal of denying terrorists a haven in the country. The U.S. invaded Afghanistan in 2001 to combat al-Qaida terrorists who had been training there in advance of their September 11 attacks on New York and the Pentagon outside Washington that killed nearly 3,000 people. Miller said there were “judgments” that had to be made about the withdrawal. He said there were U.S. victories in the Afghan fighting, even as 2,300 U.S. troops were killed over two decades. But he also said, “The amount of self-reflection [about the U.S. military performance in Afghanistan] will be important.” 
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