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Trump Jr: Dems Trying to Distract Dad at Summit

President Donald Trump's eldest son is accusing Democrats of trying to distract his father during his summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un.

Donald Trump Jr. told Fox News on Tuesday that he believed the Democrats deliberately scheduled the congressional testimony of Michael Cohen, the president's former fixer, opposite the summit in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Trump Jr. said that the Democrats were trying to "counterprogram the kind of progress" that could be achieved in the Vietnam gathering and that it was evidence of the "disdain" they hold for the president.

He also argued that it was proof the Democrats were more interested in scoring political points than in national security by attempting to "stymie" the denuclearization talks.

Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for crimes including a campaign finance violation that he says was at the direction of the president.

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Al-Shabab says it executed 4 accused spies in Somalia

Somalia's al-Shabab Islamic extremist group says it has executed four men accused of spying for the British, Djibouti and Somali intelligence agencies.

Al-Shabab announced the killings on its Andalus radio station on Sunday, saying they were carried out by a firing squad in a public square in Kamsuma, a town in the Lower Jubba region.

The group's spokesman said its recent spate of attacks on hotels in the capital, Mogadishu, have been part of its drive against Somali intelligence agents and other government officials who he said were staying at the hotels.

"We don't attack every hotel in Mogadishu, but those specific ones (hotels) attacked by Mujahideen fighters have got specific features meriting them for attacks," said Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage, on the rebels' radio station.

"A standard public hotel that civilians stay in is not protected by blast walls and soldiers. These apostates have got no distinct offices, and most of those men were killed at hotels they use as their offices," he said, apparently referring to Somali government officials.

Mogadishu has seen series of attacks by al-Shabab in recent weeks, highlighting challenges facing the Somali government, which said recently that it is considering imposing a state of emergency in Mogadishu to try to contain the attacks.

Rage also said that the recent withdrawal of Kenyan forces, who are part of the multinational African Union forces in Somalia, from villages were made as result of increased attacks and deaths and budget constraints faced by the Kenyan government.

Al-Shabab, which is al-Qaida's East Africa affiliate, has fought for years to impose a strict version of Islam in the Horn of Africa nation. Despite losing territory in recent years, the extremist group continues to carry out deadly attacks in many parts of the country, especially in Mogadishu. A truck bomb there in October 2017 killed more than 500 people.

Source: Fox News World

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Arizona governor slams secular group for demanding he remove Easter message on Facebook

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey rejected demands from a secular group to remove posts on social media where he sent Easter greetings and cited a Bible verse, offering to provide copies of the Constitution to his critics.

Ducey, who’s a practicing Catholic, has been bombarded with calls from Secular Communities for Arizona to remove the post, which included a cross, a Bible verse, and the phrase, “He is risen.”

ARIZONA'S GOP GOVERNOR WAGING WAR AGAINST OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING LAWS

The group argued the posts crossed a line into government sponsorship of religious messages and was unconstitutional.

The governor fired back at the group, saying in a tweet that he will never remove the posts or other religious ones.

“We won’t be removing this post. Ever. Nor will we be removing our posts for Christmas, Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, Palm Sunday, Passover or any other religious holiday,” he tweeted. “We support the First Amendment, and are happy to provide copies of the Constitution to anyone who hasn’t read it.”

Dianne Post, an attorney for the secular group, told the Arizona Republic “elected officials should not use their government position and government property to promote their religious views.”

LICENSE REQUIRED TO REPAIR DOORS? REGS SPARK HEATED DEBATE IN ARIZONA

She added the courts have repeatedly “struck down symbolism that unites government with religion,” adding that Ducey’s office must “represent and protect the rights of all residents of Arizona, including those who do not believe in a monotheistic God or any gods at all.”

Many congratulated Ducey for not backing down amid the pressure, though some Facebook users sided with the secular group and criticized the governor on his original post.

“Why do you use a government platform to bring up your personal religion?” asked one person. “Are there no citizens in your jurisdiction that believe differently from you?”

Another stipulated that the post was somewhat discriminatory. “Great sensitivity, Doug. That's the last time this Jew votes for you,” one person wrote.

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Ducey wished in a statement Arizonans last week a “blessed and joyful Easter and Passover weekend.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Key events in Egypt since the 2011 pro-democracy uprising

Here are key events in eight years of turmoil and transition in Egypt, leading up to a national referendum on constitutional amendments that could allow President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to remain in power until 2030.

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Feb. 11, 2011: Autocrat Hosni Mubarak steps down after 18 days of nationwide protests against his nearly 30-year rule. The military takes over, dissolving parliament and suspending the constitution after the uprising leaves hundreds of protesters dead in clashes with security forces.

Nov. 28, 2011-Feb. 15, 2012: The Muslim Brotherhood wins nearly half the seats in multi-stage elections for the first post-Mubarak parliament.

June 30, 2012: The Muslim Brotherhood's candidate Mohammed Morsi takes office as Egypt's first freely elected president.

Aug. 12, 2012: Morsi removes the defense minister and military chief, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, and replaces him with Lt. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

Nov. 22, 2012: Morsi unilaterally decrees greater powers for himself, a move that sparks days of protests.

Dec. 15-22, 2012: Egyptians approve a constitution drafted and hastily passed by Islamists amid protests and walkouts by other groups.

June 30, 2013: On Morsi's anniversary in office, millions of Egyptians begin days of demonstrations demanding his resignation. The military gives him 48 hours to reach an agreement with his opponents, but he vows to remain in office.

July 3, 2013: El-Sissi announces Morsi's removal.

Aug. 14, 2013: More than 600 people, mostly Morsi supporters, are killed when police clear two pro-Morsi sit-ins in Cairo. Islamists retaliate by torching government buildings, churches and police stations. Hundreds more die in subsequent violence.

Dec. 25, 2013: The government designates the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization.

May 26-28, 2014: Egyptians vote in a presidential election. El-Sissi wins with 96.9 percent of the vote.

May 16, 2015: Morsi and more than 100 others are sentenced to death over a mass prison break during the 2011 uprising.

October 2015: Egypt holds parliamentary elections, leading to an assembly packed with el-Sissi supporters.

April 2, 2018: El-Sissi wins a second, four-year term in office, with more than 97% of the vote.

February 2019: Lawmakers submit proposed amendments to the constitution that allow el-Sissi to remain in power beyond his current second four-year term.

April 10: President Donald Trump welcomes el-Sissi to the White House for a second official visit.

April 17: The Parliament, packed with el-Sissi's supporters, overwhelmingly passes the proposed amendments.

April 18: Egypt's National Election Authority schedules three days of voting in a nationwide referendum on the amendments. The vote takes place Saturday through Monday.

Source: Fox News World

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Aerion designing supersonic jet to run completely on biofuels: CEO

FILE PHOTO: A logo of supersonic jet maker Aerion Corporation is pictured on their booth during EBACE in Geneva
FILE PHOTO: A logo of supersonic jet maker Aerion Corporation is pictured on their booth during the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland, May 22, 2017. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

March 29, 2019

By Allison Lampert

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Supersonic jet developer Aerion Corp is designing its first plane to run completely on biofuels to reduce emissions, even as the company calls for new global standards for planes that can conquer the sound barrier, the company’s chief executive said on Thursday.

Aerion’s business jet AS2, with a $120 million list price per jet, would be capable of running on synthetic paraffinic kerosene (SPK) biofuel, CEO Tom Vice said at a Wings Club event in New York.

Existing subsonic aircraft use a blend of biofuels and conventional jet kerosene to ensure the quality of the fuel does not harm the engine. Aerion’s plane would have an engine designed with seals that could handle the biofuel, he said.

“We believe that running biofuels will reduce our CO2 emissions by at least 40 percent,” Vice said.

Aerion and fellow supersonic plane makers Spike Aerospace and Boom Supersonic are working to reintroduce ultra-fast passenger planes for the first time since the Anglo-French Concorde retired in 2003.

Aerion, which recently secured an undisclosed investment from U.S. planemaker Boeing Co, has said the AS2 would fly at speeds of up to Mach 1.4, or about 1,000 miles (1,610 km) per hour, 70 percent faster than conventional business jets.

Its first flight is slated for 2023.

Today’s supersonic jets, while quieter and more fuel efficient than the Concorde, have difficulty meeting noise levels and carbon emissions standards for conventional planes due to engine constraints and higher fuel burn.

The United States has been pushing for the creation of new global rules on noise for supersonic jets, but faces opposition from Europe which wants these aircraft to meet the same standards as existing planes.

The United Nations’ aviation agency, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which sets global standards that are usually adopted by its 192 member countries, has said it would study supersonic jets. It has not committed to creating new standards for the planes.

“We definitely want to see differences between subsonic and supersonic standards,” Vice said. “There are differences between the airplanes.”

Aerion’s AS2 would meet noise levels for subsonic planes, but not the carbon standard for emissions.

“For CO2 they haven’t set the standard for supersonic. So all we have is the subsonic standard. AS2 has a higher fuel burn so we won’t meet that standard,” he said.

Creating an engine capable of running on biofuels would lower emissions, although there is a limited supply of such fuel available, he said.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

Source: OANN

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NBCUniversal, Sky team up to expand global advertising product

The Comcast NBC Universal logo is shown on a building in Los Angeles, California
FILE PHOTO: The Comcast NBC Universal logo is shown on a building in Los Angeles, California, U.S. June 13, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Blake

March 18, 2019

By Sheila Dang

(Reuters) – Comcast Corp is pooling the advertising power of its NBCUniversal and British-based Sky units to better target viewers worldwide, it said on Monday, a major step by the top U.S. cable TV provider to transform itself into a global media leader.

The initiative would allow global advertisers to target specific households based on their interests, widely seen as the future of TV advertising. It comes ahead of an important ad sales period in May called the upfronts, when major U.S. networks including NBC will tout upcoming shows and advertising technology in hopes of selling commercial time in advance of the next television season.

The AdSmart service offers the strengths of NBCUniversal’s artificial intelligence in media planning, and Sky’s long experience in targeting ads to households based on their interests. Comcast paid $40 billion for Sky, a satellite TV, broadband and mobile operator, in September to fuel global growth and counter declines in U.S. cable TV subscribers.

The service would ultimately allow global advertisers to automatically place ads on the most relevant shows, and measure the results across NBCUniversal and Sky’s TV and digital platforms as advertising becomes more global. “The strategy is no longer country by country or market by market,” said Jamie West, group director of advanced advertising for Sky, in an interview. “It eases the friction of purchasing across NBCUniversal and Sky.”

Showing viewers ads that more closely match their interests improves the viewing experience, and is ultimately better for marketers, said Linda Yaccarino, chairman of advertising sales and client partnerships for NBCUniversal, in an interview.

NBCUniversal, which includes CNBC and U.S. Spanish language network Telemundo, uses AI to scan scenes in a TV show to place an ad in the optimal spot, a strategy called contextual alignment. For example, if a TV show depicts a flooded home, the AI-powered system could insert an ad for a home insurance provider.

(Reporting by Sheila Dang; Editing by Richard Chang)

Source: OANN

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76-year-old man charged with killing wife last seen in 1981

A 76-year-old man was charged Thursday with killing his wife nearly 40 years ago and plotting to murder a suburban Philadelphia police sergeant who investigated the case in the 1980s.

William W. Korzon, of East Prospect, Pennsylvania, was charged with criminal homicide in the death of Gloria Korzon, who has not been seen or heard from since 1981.

William Korzon, who is known as Bill, was jailed after being arraigned at district court in Jamison, and court workers said no attorney appeared for him at the hearing. He was also charged with solicitation to commit criminal homicide, forgery and perjury.

He denied killing Gloria Korzon after the arraignment.

As he was led from the courthouse Thursday, he told reporters "she went to Florida" and that he has no idea where her body is.

Gloria Korzon, who would be 75 years old, was declared dead in 1997.

Gloria Korzon's brother, Ralph Kidder, of Springfield, Massachusetts, said the arrest gave him hope.

"It's been a long time waiting to have justice," Kidder said Thursday. "Until we find out what happened and where she is, it's still not going to be put to rest. This is a step in the right direction, but until we absolutely know, it's still not over."

A police affidavit said Korzon repeatedly abused his wife over many years. Kidder said the couple met while working at an electronics plant in Chicopee, Massachusetts.

About a year after their 1967 marriage in Massachusetts, he was committed to a psychiatric facility following an arrest on charges he threatened to kill her.

The abuse continued after the couple moved to Pennsylvania in 1968, police said in the affidavit. The couple had no children.

"During these incidents of domestic violence, Gloria suffered multiple injuries, including a broken arm, a broken collarbone, damage to her nasal bone and a black eye. Many of these injuries required hospitalizations," police said. Gloria Korzon documented the abuse in letters to her attorney.

Gloria Korzon was last seen working at an electronics plant in the Philadelphia suburb of Horsham on March 6, 1981. A few days later, police said, Bill Korzon told her employer to terminate her because of mental and physical health problems, retrieved her belongings and directed that her last paycheck be mailed to their home.

"In the months and years following Gloria's disappearance, Bill Korzon engaged in a series of actions to lie, conceal and profit from it," police said.

He allegedly forged her signatures on two checks in 1981 and filed a joint tax return months after she disappeared, police said.

A tenant who lived in the Korzon home in 1981 told police five years later that Korzon had asked him to help ambush and kill a Warrington Township Police sergeant who was investigating Gloria Korzon's disappearance, the charging documents allege.

The Bucks County Courier Times said police dug up the Korzon home's yard in 1986, but found only the remains of a dog.

Police said that Korzon told them earlier this year he had battered his wife for years, including breaking her collar bone.

"Korzon further admitted that following the date that Gloria was last seen alive, he forged Gloria's final paycheck, credit union check and tax return so that he could illegally access Gloria's money," the affidavit said. "He further admitted to having perjured himself during a 1988 Orphan's Court hearing that he initiated, in order to determine what percentage of property he was entitled to from Gloria's estate."

During the police interview this year, investigators say, Korzon admitting signing a 1981 Mother's Day card in Gloria Korzon's name and sending it to her mother to make her think her daughter was still alive.

He's also alleged to have asked investigators this year: "Did you find the body?"

Source: Fox News National

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FILE PHOTO: Naqvi Founder and Group Chief Executive of Abraaj Group attends the annual meeting of the WEF in Davos
FILE PHOTO: Arif Naqvi, Founder and Group Chief Executive of Abraaj Group attends the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, January 17, 2017. REUTERS/Ruben Sprich/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Tom Arnold

LONDON (Reuters) – A London court case to extradite Arif Naqvi, founder of collapsed private equity firm Abraaj Group, to the United States on fraud charges was adjourned until May 24, a court official said on Friday.

Naqvi was remanded in custody until that date, the official said. A former managing partner of Dubai-based Abraaj, Sev Vettivetpillai, was released on conditional bail to appear again at Westminster Magistrates Court on June 12, the official said.

Under the U.S. charges, both men are accused of defrauding U.S. investors by inflating positions held by Abraaj in order to attract greater funds from them, causing them financial loss, the official said.

Vettivetpillai could not be reached for a comment.

Naqvi, in a statement released through a PR firm, has pleaded innocent.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleges that Naqvi and his firm raised money for the Abraaj Growth Markets Health Fund, collecting more than $100 million over three years from U.S.-based charitable organizations and other U.S. investors.

Naqvi and Vettivetpillai were arrested in Britain earlier this month. Another executive, Mustafa Abdel-Wadood was arrested at a New York hotel, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Griswold said at a hearing in Manhattan federal court on April 11.

Abdel-Wadood appeared at the Manhattan hearing and pleaded not guilty to securities fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy charges.

(Editing by Jane Merriman)

Source: OANN

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Former Vice President Joe Biden announces his 2020 candidacy
Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden announces his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination in this still image taken from a video released April 25, 2019. BIDEN CAMPAIGN HANDOUT via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES

April 26, 2019

By James Oliphant

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, in his first interview as a Democratic presidential candidate, said on Friday that he does not believe he treated law professor Anita Hill badly during the 1991 confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Biden had joined the burgeoning 2020 Democratic field a day earlier.

Biden’s conduct during those hearings, when he was chairman of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, became a renewed subject of controversy after the New York Times reported that Biden had called Hill earlier this month in the run-up to his presidential bid and that Hill was dissatisfied with Biden’s expression of regret.

Appearing on ABC’s “The View,” Biden largely defended his actions as a senator almost 30 years ago, saying he believed Hill’s allegations of sexual harassment levied at Thomas and tried to derail his confirmation.

Activists have long been unhappy that Hill was questioned in graphic detail by the all-white, all-male committee chaired by Biden.

“I’m sorry she was treated the way she was treated,” Biden said, but later, he asserted, “I don’t think I treated her badly. … How do you stop people from asking inflammatory questions?”

“There were a lot of mistakes made across the board and for those I apologize,” he said.

Biden praised Hill as “remarkable” and said she is “one of the reasons we have the #MeToo movement.”

Asked why he had not reached out to Hill earlier, Biden said he had previously publicly stated he had regrets about her treatment and that he “didn’t want to quote invade her space.”

That seemed to be a reference to another controversy that looms over Biden’s presidential run: allegations by several women that he made them uncomfortable by touching them at political events.

Biden also addressed that criticism, saying he was now more “cognizant” about a woman’s “private space.” But he maintained that he had been “trying to bring solace.”

He suggested he was still trying to sort out the guidelines for his conduct going forward.

“I should be able to read better,” he said. “I have to be more careful.”

Pressed by the show’s panel for an apology to his accusers, Biden would not entirely capitulate.

“So, I invaded your space,” he replied. “I mean, I’m sorry this happened. But I’m not sorry in a sense that I think I did anything that was intentionally designed to do anything wrong or be inappropriate.”

Biden, 76, served as former President Barack Obama’s vice president for two terms. He is competing with 19 others for the Democratic presidential nomination and the chance to likely face President Donald Trump next year in the general election.

His first public event as a presidential candidate is scheduled for Monday in Pittsburgh.

(Reporting by James Oliphant; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: The logo of Tesla is seen in Taipei
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Tesla is seen in Taipei, Taiwan August 11, 2017. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Noel Randewich

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Tesla Inc’s stock slumped over 4% on Friday to its lowest price in two years, rounding out a rough week that included worse-than-expected quarterly results and a pitch by Chief Executive Elon Musk on autonomous cars that failed to win over investors.

With investors betting Tesla will soon raise capital, the stock has fallen 13% for the week to its lowest level since January 2017, before the launch of the Model 3 sedan aimed at making the electric car maker profitable.

One positive development for Tesla: a U.S. District Court judge on Friday granted a request by Musk and the Securities and Exchange Commission for a second extension to resolve a dispute over Musk’s use of Twitter.

On Wednesday, Tesla posted a worse-than-expected loss of $702 million for the March quarter. Musk said Tesla would return to profit in the third quarter and that there was “some merit” to raising capital.

Musk is still battling to convince investors that demand for the Model 3, the company’s first car aimed at the mass consumer market, is “insanely” high, and that it can be delivered efficiently to customers around the world.

Tesla ended its first quarter with $2.2 billion, down from $3.7 billion in the prior quarter, and the company is planning expansions including a Shanghai factory, an upcoming Model Y SUV, and other projects.

(GRAPHIC: Tesla’s cash – https://tmsnrt.rs/2DyJjX6)

On Monday, Musk hosted a self-driving event, where he predicted Tesla would have over a million autonomous vehicles by next year. Some analysts perceived the presentation as a way to deflect attention from questions about demand, margin pressure, increasing competition and even Musk’s ongoing battle with U.S. regulators.

Tesla’s stock has now fallen 29 percent in 2019 and the company’s market capitalization has declined to $41 billion from $63 billion in mid-December.

(GRAPHIC: Tesla’s declining market cap – https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dwd62r)

Analysts now expect Tesla’s revenue to expand 19% in 2019, compared with 83% growth in 2018 and 68% growth in 2017, according to Refinitiv.

Following Tesla’s quarterly report, 12 analysts recommend selling the stock, while 11 recommend buying and eight are neutral. The median analyst price target is $275, up 16% from the stock’s current price of $236. Berenberg analyst Alexander Haissl has the most optimistic price target, at $500, while Cowen and Company’s Jeffrey Osborne has the lowest, at $160, according to Refinitiv.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

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Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee said Friday that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s rare public criticism of the Obama administration was a “soft” way of accusing the previous administration of covering up Russia’s attempts at hacking the 2016 presidential election.

While speaking Thursday in New York at the Public Servants Dinner of the Armenian Bar Association, Rosenstein said that the Obama administration “chose not to publicize the full story about Russian computer hackers and social media trolls and how they relate to Russia’s broader strategy to undermine America.”

During an appearance on “America’s Newsroom” Friday morning, Huckabee called the comments an “unusually candid moment for Rosenstein.”

“I thought it was a soft way of him saying there was a cover-up,” Huckabee said. “They knew the Russians were attempting to influence the election and attempting to hack the election but they didn’t fully disclose that to the American people and certainly didn’t disclose it to the Trump campaign.

SWALWELL NOT CERTAIN TRUMP ISN’T A ‘RUSSIAN ASSET’

“Instead they tried to set a trap for them. It failed. The Trump team did not take the bait. And that’s the one conclusion that we can certainly come away with from the $35 million worth of investigation,” Huckabee continued.

Next week, Attorney General William Barr will testify before Congress and is expected to answer questions about Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of President Trump, which found that there was not adequate evidence to conclude that President Trump and his administration colluded with Russia, though the president could not be exonerated in terms of the possibility that he obstructed justice.

Barr will testify to the Senate Judiciary Committee next Wednesday and to the House Judiciary Committee the following day.

TRUMP ASSESSES 2020 DEMS; TAKES SWIPES AT BIDEN, SANDERS; DISMISSES HARRIS, O’ROURKE; SAYS HE’S ROOTING FOR BUTTIGIEG 

“It is going to be a theater, an absolute show,” Huckabee said of the hearings. “Just like the Kavanaugh hearings were and like everything else is in Congress. We ought to close the curtain on them and can’t come back until after the election. They aren’t doing their job anyway. We aren’t paying them because they’re doing a wonderful service to the country and spare us the hypocrisy of thinking they’re interested in getting to the bottom of the facts,” he continued.

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Ultimately, Huckabee argued, if Americans “took their partisan hats off,” they would see that President Trump was exonerated by the investigation.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Sri Lanka's former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa greets his supporters after his return from the United States, in Katunayake
Sri Lanka’s former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa greets his supporters after his return from the United States, in Katunayake, Sri Lanka April 12, 2019. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

April 26, 2019

By Sanjeev Miglani and Shihar Aneez

COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s former wartime defense chief, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, said on Friday he would run for president in elections this year and would stop the spread of Islamist extremism by rebuilding the intelligence service and surveilling citizens.

Gotabaya, as he is popularly known, is the younger brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the two led the country to a crushing defeat of separatist Tamil rebels a decade ago after a 26-year civil war.

More than 250 people were killed in bomb attacks on hotels and churches on Easter Sunday that the government has blamed on Islamist militants and that Islamic State has claimed responsibility for.

Gotabaya said the attacks could have been prevented if the island’s current government had not dismantled the intelligence network and extensive surveillance capabilities that he built up during the war and later on.

“Because the government was not prepared, that’s why you see a panic situation,” he said in an interview with Reuters.

Gotabaya said he would be a candidate “100 percent”, firming up months of speculation that he plans to run in the elections, which are due by December.

He was critical of the government’s response to the bombings. Since the attacks, the government has struggled to provide clear information about how they were staged, who was behind them and how serious the threat is from Islamic State to the country.

“Various people are blaming various people, not giving exactly the details as to what happened, even people expect the names, what organization did this, and how they came up to this level, that explanation was not given,” he said.

On Friday, President Maithripala Sirisena said the government led by premier Ranil Wickremesinghe should take responsibility for the attacks and that prior information warning of attacks was not shared with him.

Wickremesinghe said earlier he was not advised about warnings that came from India’s spy service either, presenting a picture of a government still in disarray since the two leaders fell out last October.

Gotabaya is facing lawsuits in the United States, where he is a dual citizen, over his role in the war and afterwards.

The South Africa-based International Truth and Justice Project, in partnership with U.S. law firm Hausfeld, filed a civil case in California this month against Gotabaya on behalf of a Tamil torture survivor.

In a separate case, Ahimsa Wickrematunga, the daughter of murdered investigative editor Lasantha Wickrematunga, filed a complaint for damages in the same U.S. District Court in California for allegedly instigating and authorizing the extrajudicial killing of her father.

Gotabaya said the cases were baseless and only a “little distraction” as he prepared for the election campaign. He said he had asked U.S. authorities to renounce his citizenship and that process was nearly done, clearing the way for his candidature.

‘DISMANTLE THE NETWORKS’

He said that if he won, his immediate focus would to be tackle the threat from radical Islam and to rebuild the security set-up.

“It’s a serious problem, you have to go deep into the groups, dismantle the networks,” he said, adding he would give the military a mandate to collect intelligence from the ground and to mount surveillance of groups turning to extremism.

Gotabaya said that a military intelligence cell he had set up in 2011 of 5,000 people, some of them with Arabic language skills and that was tracking the bent towards extremist ideology some of the Islamist groups were taking in eastern Sri Lanka was disbanded by the current government.

“They did not give priority to national security, there was a mix-up. They were talking about ethnic reconciliation, then they were talking about human rights issues, they were talking about individual freedoms,” he said.

President Sirisena’s government sought to forge reconciliation with minority Tamils and close the wounds of the war and launched investigations into allegations of rights abuse and torture against military officers.

Officials said many of these secret intelligence cells were disbanded because they faced allegations of abuse, including torture and extra judicial killings.

Muslims make up nearly 10 percent of Sri Lanka’s population of 22 million, which is predominantly Buddhist.

(Reporting by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Frances Kerry)

Source: OANN

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