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British ex-soldier to be charged in Bloody Sunday killings of Northern Ireland protesters

A former British soldier will face murder charges in connection with the deaths of two civil rights protesters on Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland more than 40 years ago - but there is insufficient evidence to prosecute 16 others.

The Public Prosecution Service announced Thursday that there was enough evidence to prosecute the former paratrooper – only identified as “Soldier F” – for the deaths of James Wray and William McKinney.

He will also face attempted murder charges for Joseph Friel, Michael Quinn, Joe Mahon, and Patrick O’Donnell.

Prosecutors, who also considered files on two former members of the old “Official IRA,” said there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the other 16 former soldiers. One of the soliders has since died.

British troops arrest civilians on Rossville St, Londonderry during a civil rights march. The day went on to become known as Bloody Sunday as British paratroopers shot dead 14 civilians.

British troops arrest civilians on Rossville St, Londonderry during a civil rights march. The day went on to become known as Bloody Sunday as British paratroopers shot dead 14 civilians. (William L. Rukeyser/Getty Images)

UK LAWMAKERS REJECT 'NO DEAL' BREXIT, TAKE STEP CLOSER TO DELAYING DEPARTURE

"I wish to clearly state that where a decision has been reached not to prosecute, that this is in no way diminishes any finding by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that those killed or injured were not posing a threat to any of the soldiers," Stephen Herron, the director of public prosecutions for Northern Ireland, said as he announced the charges. "We recognize the deep disappointment felt by many of those we met with today."

Bloody Sunday was one of the darkest episodes during the unrest in North Ireland known as the Troubles. On January 30, 1972, troopers of the 1st Battalion of the Parachute Regiment fired on unarmed protesters in a civil rights march in Derry, also known as Londonderry. Thirteen people were killed and 15 were wounded.

The charges follow a decade-long investigation that concluded soldiers killed 13 unarmed demonstrators protesting Britain's detention of suspected Irish nationalists.

In this Jan. 30, 1972 file photo, soldiers take cover behind their sandbagged armored cars in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.

In this Jan. 30, 1972 file photo, soldiers take cover behind their sandbagged armored cars in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. (PA via AP, File)

But the results of the inquiry that concluded in 2010 could not be used in any prosecution, and Thursday's charges resulted from a separate police investigation into the incident.

GROUP CALLING THEMSELVES THE IRA CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY FOR LETTER BOMBS IN UK

The investigation into the kills included 668 witness statements, numerous physical exhibits such as photographs, video, and audio recordings and a total of 125,000 pages of material, according to Sky News.

The families of the victims have campaigned for decades for the former soldiers to face justice. They told Sky News on Thursday that they were “disappointed” by the result.

Families hold photographs of the victims of Bloody Sunday and march through the Bogside in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, Thursday, March 14, 2019.

Families hold photographs of the victims of Bloody Sunday and march through the Bogside in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, Thursday, March 14, 2019. (Liam McBurney/PA via AP)

Kate Nash, whose brother William was shot dead and father wounded on Bloody Sunday, said she thinks about her brother – who was 19 at the time – every single day.

"Justice matters to anybody. If you have a family member and something like that happens to them... your brother, your poor dead brother is treated like he never existed, that he wasn't worth justice, what every one of us are entitled to,” she said.

British Defense Minister Gavin Williamson said the government will offer full legal support to “Soldier F” – including paying legal costs and providing welfare support.

"We are indebted to those soldiers who served with courage and distinction to bring peace to Northern Ireland," he said in a statement. "The welfare of our former service personnel is of the utmost importance."

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The news of the charges comes amid a police investigation between Metropolitan Police and Police Scotland after letter bombs were sent to three London transportation hubs and a Scottish university last week.

On Monday, authorities said that a media outlet in Northern Ireland received a claim of responsibility from a group calling themselves members of the IRA, referring to the Irish Republican Army which has been in a cease-fire for years.

In this photo dated Tuesday March 5, 2019, issued by Britain's Metropolitan Police showing a suspect package after it ignited, sent to Heathrow airport, one of three packages being treated as a linked series by Britain’s counter-terrorism police. 

In this photo dated Tuesday March 5, 2019, issued by Britain's Metropolitan Police showing a suspect package after it ignited, sent to Heathrow airport, one of three packages being treated as a linked series by Britain’s counter-terrorism police.  (Britain's Metropolitan Police via AP)

All homemade devices – sent to the Waterloo rail station in central London, offices at Heathrow and London City Airports, and the University of Glasgow – had stamps from the Irish Republic and had Dublin as the return address. They also bore stamps issued by Ireland’s post office to mark Valentine’s Day.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News World

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Singapore central bank seen keeping policy on hold amid trade woes

A view of the Monetary Authority of Singapore's headquarters in Singapore
A view of the Monetary Authority of Singapore's headquarters in Singapore June 28, 2017. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside

April 5, 2019

By Fathin Ungku and John Geddie

(Reuters) – Singapore’s central bank is expected to keep monetary policy unchanged next week, amid pressure from slowing global growth and softening domestic demand, according to a Reuters poll.

Seventeen of 20 analysts polled, or 85 percent, expect the Monetary Authority of Singapore to keep its exchange-rate based policy steady when it issues its semi-annual policy statement on April 12 at 8 a.m. (0000 GMT), after two tightening moves last year.

“There is no urgency for the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to tighten monetary policy a third time,” said Philip Wee, FX Strategist, at Singapore’s biggest bank DBS.

“Singapore’s economic outlook has dimmed.”

The poll results include five additional responses to an earlier poll published on March 29, which showed 80 percent of analysts expect the central bank to stand pat.

The announcement will coincide with the release of preliminary data for first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), which analysts expect to show the weakest growth in 2-1/2-years.

On a year-on-year basis, GDP likely grew 1.5 percent, down from 1.9 percent in October-December, according to the median forecast in a Reuters survey. That would mark the slowest such expansion since the third quarter of 2016, when it grew 1.2 percent.

On an annualized basis, first-quarter GDP is expected to have grown 1.2 percent, down from 1.4 percent in the fourth quarter.

The MAS manages monetary policy by letting the Singapore dollar rise or fall against the currencies of its main trading partners within an undisclosed policy band based on its nominal exchange rate (NEER).

The central bank increased the slope of the policy band twice last year in efforts to control rising price pressures and strengthen its currency – its first such tightening moves in six years.

(Graphic: MAS policy moves & SG$ – https://tmsnrt.rs/2V3EkUU)

However, the export-reliant economy is expected to cool in 2019 as the Sino-U.S. trade war and slowing global growth weigh on demand.

Singapore’s core inflation rate – a measure closely watched by central bankers – eased to a nine-month low in February, while its economy grew at its slowest pace in more than two years in the fourth quarter of 2018.

While exports rebounded from their biggest fall in over two years in February, economists say a decline in electronics shipments shows global demand has not improved.

(Graphic: Singapore inflation & employment – https://tmsnrt.rs/2V10cAk)

Across Asia, a slowing global economy and abrupt end to Federal Reserve policy tightening have shifted rate cut expectations to probable from possible, with the market betting on moves by a growing list of central banks.

“With most central banks in neutral mode and official rhetoric tilting towards a more dovish slant amid the global growth slowdown story, we see there is little impetus for MAS to lean against the wind by tightening,” said Selena Ling, OCBC’s head of treasury research and strategy.

(Reporting by Fathin Ungku, John Geddie and Patturaja Murugaboopathy; Graphics by Gaurav Dogra in Bengaluru; Editing by Vidya Ranganathan and Kim Coghill)

Source: OANN

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Mitt Romney Questions Report of Herman Cain Fed Nomination

Hours after it was reported President Donald Trump intends to nominate former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, raised issue with it.

"I doubt that will be a nomination. But if it were a nomination, you can bet [what] the interest rates he would be pushing for," Romney told Politico.

"If Herman Cain were on the Fed, you'd know the interest rate would soon be 9-9-9."

Romney was referring to Cain's proposal from his 2012 presidential campaign that would erase all existing taxes and implement a 9 percent personal income tax, a 9 percent federal sales tax, and a 9 percent corporate tax.

Cain previously served as chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City from 1995-1996. He also worked as the chairman and CEO of Godfather's Pizza from 1986-1996.

Bloomberg reported earlier Thursday that Trump plans to nominate Cain and Stephen Moore, a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation, for two open Federal Reserve Board seats. Both men are Trump supporters.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for raising interest rates, and Bloomberg News reported in December that Trump had even discussed firing him. One way the president can directly influence monetary policy is through nominations to the Fed board, though anyone he picks must be confirmed by the Senate.

Material from Bloomberg was used in this report.

Source: NewsMax America

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French consumer confidence jumps to pre-‘yellow vest’ level

FILE PHOTO: A protester wearing a yellow vest attends a demonstration of the
FILE PHOTO: A protester wearing a yellow vest attends a demonstration of the "yellow vests" movement in Nantes, France, December 22, 2018. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

February 26, 2019

PARIS (Reuters) – French consumer confidence jumped in February to its highest level since “yellow vest” protesters started their weekly demonstrations, as households took heart in an improvement in their finances and unemployment fears receded.

The reading of 95 points marked the highest level for the consumer confidence index since October, which was the month before “yellow vests” protesters started weekend marches against high living costs and President Emmanuel Macron’s policies.

The increase in the index by the national INSEE statistics office, which beat the average forecasts of economists, came as Macron’s costly measures to boost workers’ income and quell the protests kicked in this month.

In December, the French leader decided to speed up an increase in benefits received by the poorest workers, halt a planned rise in fuel taxes, and reduce taxes on overtime, for a total cost of 10 billion euros ($11.35 billion).

“The French consumer is recovering quickly,” Pictet economist Frederik Ducrozet said. “Confidence is rising post-‘gilets jaunes’ as Macron’s stimulus measures kick in and unemployment fears recede.”

The national statistics office, INSEE, said the number of consumers who had observed an improvement in their finances in the past year had increased, while more of them also expected the increase to continue in the future.

Households fears of unemployment also dropped markedly this month, INSEE said.

France’s unemployment rate fell unexpectedly at the end of last year to its lowest level since the start of 2009, official data showed earlier this month.

The brighter outlook is good news for Macron, whose popularity has started to recover from its worst level at the peak of the “yellow vest” crisis in December.

The 41-year-old leader has launched a series of debates across the country aimed at reconnecting with voters, particularly in rural areas.

Weekly “yellow vest” marches continue every Saturday, but turnout has fallen and support for the movement among the broader public as waned, polls show.

Named after the fluorescent jackets motorists must keep in their cars, the grassroot “yellow vest” protests started in mid-November as a revolt against high prices at the pump, before morphing into a broader challenge to Macron’s pro-business policies.

(Reporting by Michel Rose; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Alison Williams)

Source: OANN

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Video: Bully Attacks, Intimidates High School Trump Supporter For Wearing MAGA Hat

Another video has emerged showing a young Trump supporter being harassed, attacked, and intimidated — this time by a bigger student at a high school.

The attack reportedly occurred at the Edmond Santa Fe High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, whereby an older student knocked a Make America Great Again off the younger student and tried to rip away his Trump banner.

“You gotta take it off,” the bully told him. “Take it off now.”

As the younger student tried to walk past him, the bully said: “Hey where you think you’re going? You goin’ to take it off or you want me to rip it off? You want me to rip it off?”

“I can rip it off or I can burn it. Which one you want?” the bully continued.

The younger student didn’t retaliate, while other students tried to intervene and calm the unhinged bully, who only continued to try to tear the Trump flag from the boy’s grasp.

As we reported, attacks against Trump supporters wearing MAGA hats has reached a point of occurring almost daily while the mainstream media blacks them out, and instead covers hate crime hoaxes to demonize Trump supporters.

At least four attacks against Trump supporters took place in the last two weeks alone.

Last week, a woman assaulted a man for simply wearing a MAGA hat.

A few days before that, a crazed lunatic pulled a gun on a Trump supporter outside of a Sam’s Club for wearing a MAGA hat.

In the same week, a shoe store employee berated a 14-year-old boy for wearing his MAGA hat in the store.

In October, a leftist assaulted a black Trump supporter for daring to wear a MAGA hat.

In one of the most notorious cases against young Trump supporters, a grown man stole the MAGA hat from a teenager inside a Whataburger, then tossed a drink in his face saying, “You ain’t supporting shit, nigga.”

Thanks to the frothing media, unprovoked attacks against Trump supporters have become commonplace in America, but you wouldn’t know that by watching the news.


It’s clear the “Jussie Smollett hoax” benefits the globalists’ false flag agenda. Alex calls in from the road to expose those that actually want to divide America.

Source: InfoWars

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The Latest: Hong Kong bans Boeing 737 Max from its airspace

The Latest on The Latest on Ethiopian Airlines crash (all times local):

10:55 a.m.

Hong Kong will ban the operation of all Boeing 737 Max aircraft "into, out of and over" the key Asian aviation hub beginning at 6 p.m. (1000 GMT) Wednesday.

The announcement from the Civil Aviation Department cited the crash of two of the planes within less than five months and said the ban would continue "until further notice."

The statement said: "The CAD has been closely monitoring the developments, the investigation progress and the information from relevant aviation authorities."

It said the CAD had noted that the U.S. Federation Aviation Administration has affirmed the planes' airworthiness and that investigations were ongoing.

It said the department has been in close contact with the FAA and other the relevant organizations, including the two airlines, SpiceJet of India and Russia's Globus Airlines, that use the aircraft to operate flights into and out of Hong Kong International Airport.

___

10:45 a.m.

Much of the world, including the entire European Union, grounded the Boeing jetliner involved in the Ethiopian Airlines crash or banned it from their airspace, leaving the United States as one of the few remaining operators of the plane involved in two deadly accidents in five months.

The European Aviation Safety Agency took steps to keep the Boeing 737 Max 8 out of the air, joining Asian and Middle Eastern governments and carriers that also had safety concerns in the aftermath of Sunday's crash, which killed all 157 people on board.

Referring to the Lion Air crash in Indonesia that killed 189 people last year, European regulators said Tuesday that "similar causes may have contributed to both events."

British regulators indicated possible trouble with a reportedly damaged flight data recorder.

Source: Fox News World

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Trump, riding high on news from Mueller probe, steps on his own applause lines

President Trump isn’t the first American politician to step on his own applause lines.

The President should have been reveling in what were the best moments of his presidency Tuesday afternoon. No indictment by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Mr. Trump’s declaration of a national emergency for a border wall remained in tact. As the President lunched at the Capitol with Republican senators, the House of Representatives stumbled to override his veto of a measure to terminate the national emergency.

CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS RATTLED BY TRUMP'S PIVOT TO OBAMACARE FIGHT AFTER MUELLER SUMMARY

Later on Tuesday, senators would cast ballots on a procedural vote to start debate on the Green New Deal, drafted by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., engineered the roll call to shine a spotlight on Ocasio-Cortez’s climate change blueprint. McConnell wanted to bait Senate Democrats -- vying for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination -- into taking a stand on Ocasio-Cortez’s controversial gambit.

And then the President offered this nugget to reporters as he ducked into the Senate GOP lunch:

“The Republican party will soon be known as the part of health care,” boasted Mr. Trump.

You’ll excuse the dry cleaning bills of Republican senators who rushed their neckties to the drycleaners after nearly choking on their Senate bean soup in the luncheon.

This came just hours after the Justice Department announced it would attempt to invalidate the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) in court.

“The human costs of this decision will be profound,” suggested Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., a moderate Democrat who represents a state President Trump won by 42 points, carrying all 55 counties. “Twenty million Americans will be left without the health insurance they rely on. The 133 million Americans and 800,000 West Virginians with a pre-existing condition will be at risk of losing their access to health insurance.”

ObamaCare has never been popular. Republicans bristle about the health care law. But Republicans have been particularly maladroit when it comes to ditching the ACA. Republicans chanted “repeal and replace” for nearly a decade. They’ve gotten nowhere. Multiple efforts to pass another health care measure swerved violently into the political ditch.

“The President has offered no plan. None,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. “He talks about it. He doesn’t do anything about it – which is true of so much of the legislation he has talked about.”

“They simply cannot help themselves,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., about the GOP’s latest charge to unwind ObamaCare. “Republicans have shown their true colors.”

The very existence and staying power of ObamaCare perturbs Republicans. There’s a reason why the President tore again into the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a few weeks ago on Twitter. Mr. Trump never forgave McCain for the vote he took nearly two years ago to scuttle the GOP’s repeal and replace effort. McCain’s decision stung President Trump, handing him one of the biggest defeats of his term.

“Remember, in (President) Trump’s mind, ending ObamaCare is about exacting revenge on McCain,” said one source who asked they not be identified.

On Wednesday, the President bragged that “if the Supreme Court rules that ObamaCare is out, we will have a plan that is better than ObamaCare.”

But how does this happen? Congressional Republicans could never coalesce around their own plan to take the place of the ACA. All Republicans could agree upon was repeal. The GOP House finally muscled through a replacement health care package after a lengthy fight. But it died in the Senate. Does the President implement a new plan by executive order? Declare a national emergency, bypassing Congress yet again?

“It’s ridiculous. Ridiculous,” chafed Manchin. “Why this administration would go down that path and throw it out completely when they couldn’t do it legislatively is unconscionable.”

“I am vehemently opposed to the administration seeking to invalidate the entire ACA,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who faces a competitive 2020 re-election in a battleground state. “The answer is for the administration to work with Congress and present a plan to replace and fix the law, not through the courts and seek to invalidate it all together.”

Perhaps President Trump is simply seizing the customary Republican posture when it comes to health care. Mr. Trump has long pushed to repeal ObamaCare. And now he doesn’t have (yet) a bill to replace it.

TRUMP PUSH TO INVALIDATE OBAMACARE SPARKED CLASH WITHIN ADMINISTRATION

That’s how things have gone for Republicans on health care for a while. It also explains the private reluctance of many GOPers to drift down the perilous health care path again.

Congressional Republicans have taken dozens of votes over the past decade to repeal ObamaCare. But they’ve never closed the deal with a package to succeed the health care law.

Republicans hoped things might be different under President Trump.

The GOP initially struggled with “replace” in the House in the spring of 2017. This was the first time Republicans had played with live ammo. In other words, there were consequences to repealing ObamaCare. House GOPers had to have something ready to fill the gap. Furthermore, Republicans had a bill which could actually become law. The Republican brass yanked the first measure to repeal and replace ObamaCare off the floor after it melted down. But Republicans rallied. The House approved a successor plan a few months later. The measure then died in the Senate, thanks in part, to the vote by John McCain.

Democrats are marveling at this political gift presented them by the President. Democrats wanted to alter the narrative after the Mueller investigation failed to deliver the goods on Mr. Trump and others in his administration. Democrats ran on health care and pre-existing conditions in battleground districts they won in the midterms. Republicans may publicly embrace a new call to eliminate ObamaCare. But many are seething privately.

“This is the party of health care? This Republican Party? Come on. You can’t undo all the health care for tens of millions. The protections for pre-existing conditions for hundreds of millions. The drug costs for tens of millions of seniors. The protections for millions of young college graduates and say you’re for healthcare. You just can’t,” fumed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

“I’ll make this promise,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., at his weekly press conference on Thursday. “The Republicans will make sure pre-existing conditions are protected.”

But shortly after speaking with Mr. Trump by telephone Wednesday, the California Republican pivoted to a tried and true GOP talking point which has worked for years – and then tossed in a new one.

“ObamaCare is a failure,” said McCarthy. “The real fear I have is the Democrats’ plan of ‘Medicare for All.’”

House Republican Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., took a similar approach.

“ObamaCare is unconstitutional,” said Cheney. “We are seeing Democrats push this lie that Republicans don’t want to cover people with pre-existing conditions.”

Cheney described a possible end of ObamaCare as “a situation of desperation on behalf of the Democrats.”

Cheney said the timing of the announcement didn’t bother her, asserting that GOPers remain steadfast in their opposition to ObamaCare. But it rattled other Republicans.

“We felt vindicated,” said one senior House Republican about the conclusion of the Mueller probe. “We could have ridden this for a few weeks.”

Fox is told that many Republicans worry that voters could blame them if health care coverage is stripped from millions, to say nothing of the impact on the economy.

“It will destroy the infrastructure of health care in this country,” said Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Fla., who served for eight years as President Clinton’s Health and Human Services Secretary. “It would be a disaster for 100,000 people in my district.”

Rep. Bill Johnson, R-Ohio, represents a sprawling, rural district in Ohio, beset with staggering health care issues and opioid abuse.

“I’m not going to say the President made a mistake because he said all along he was going to repeal ObamaCare,” said Johnson. But the Ohio Republican noted that a GOP House, Senate and President failed to repeal and replace ObamaCare in 2017, after years of promising to do so.

“We missed a golden opportunity,” said Johnson.

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Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., chairs the Republican Study Committee (RSC), the largest bloc of conservatives in the House. Johnson said the President surprised Republicans with his ObamaCare swivel. That’s why the RSC is trying to prepare legislation to fill the void if ObamaCare is ruled to be unconstitutional.

“Congress isn’t going to let 40 million people go without health care,” said the Louisiana Republican.

So, the President was riding high after news the conclusion of the Mueller investigation. And then Mr. Trump stepped on his own applause lines.

“In the south, they put it another way,” said one senior Democratic lawmaker who asked to not be identified. “He stepped on his own ‘appendage.’”

Source: Fox News Politics

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Afghan President Ashraf Ghani speaks during the inauguration of the newly-elected parliament in Kabul
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani speaks during the inauguration of the newly-elected parliament in Kabul, Afghanistan April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Sobhani

April 26, 2019

By Rupam Jain and Hameed Farzad

KABUL (Reuters) – Afghan President Ashraf Ghani encouraged newly-elected lawmakers to participate in the peace process with the Taliban as he opened on Friday the first session of parliament since a controversial election.

Ghani has invited thousands of politicians, religious scholars and rights activists to an assembly known as a loya jirga next week to discuss ways to end the 17-year war.

Several opposition leaders have said they will boycott the four-day assembly in Kabul, saying it was pulled together without their input and is being used by Ghani as he seeks a second term in a September presidential election.

“We have presented the peace plan on a regular basis and we are committed to it,” Ghani said in the first session since parliamentary elections marred by technical problems, militant attacks and accusations of voting fraud last year.

“Based on this plan, there will be no peace deal and negotiation that does not have the green card of the parliament,” he added.

Officials from the United States and the Taliban have held several rounds of talks to end the Afghan war.

U.S. negotiator, Zalmay Khalilzad, has reported some progress toward an accord on a U.S. troop withdrawal and on how the Taliban would prevent extremists from using Afghanistan to launch attacks as al Qaeda did on Sept. 11, 2001.

The insurgents have so far rejected U.S. demands for a ceasefire and talks on the country’s political future that would include Afghan government officials.

The loya jirga, a centuries-old institution used to build consensus among competing tribes, factions and ethnic groups, is an attempt by Ghani to influence the peace talks and cement his position for a second term, Afghan politicians and Western diplomats say.

Amid growing political divisions in Kabul, opposition politicians have demanded that Ghani step down when his mandate ends next month, and give way to an interim government to oversee peace talks with the Taliban. Ghani has ruled that out.

The country’s top court said last week Ghani can stay in office until the presidential election in September.

(Reporting by Hameed Farzad, Rupam Jain, Editing by Darren Schuettler)

Source: OANN

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Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein Thursday defended special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation while slamming former President Barack Obama’s administration for being slow to take action on Russian interference in U.S. elections and ex-FBI Director James Comey for telling Congress the agency was investigating collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

“Our nation is safer, elections are more secure, and citizens are better informed about covert foreign influence schemes,” Rosenstein said in a speech to the Armenian Bar Association, marking his first public remarks after the Mueller report was released, reports CBS News.

He also pointed out that the investigation revealed a pattern of computer hacking and the use of social media to undermine elections as “only the tip of the iceberg of a comprehensive Russian strategy to influence elections, promote social discord, and undermine America, just like they do in many other countries,” reports The Wall Street Journal.

The Obama administration also made “critical decisions,” including choosing not to publicize the full story about Russian hackers and social media trolling, “and how they relate to a broader strategy to undermine America,” said Rosenstein.

He noted that the Mueller probe began after Comey disclosed during a hearing before Congress that President Donald Trump “pressured him to close the investigation and the president denied that the conversation occurred.”

Rosenstein said two years ago, when he was confirmed, he was told by a Republican senator that he would be in charge of the probe and that he’d report the results to the American people.

However, he said he didn’t promise to do that, because it is “not our job to render conclusive factual findings. We just decide whether it is appropriate to file criminal charges.”

Source: NewsMax Politics

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FILE PHOTO: The Huawei logo is pictured outside its Huawei's factory campus in Dongguan, Guangdong province
FILE PHOTO: The Huawei logo is pictured outside its Huawei’s factory campus in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China, March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Ben Blanchard

BEIJING (Reuters) – Britain must get to the bottom of the leak of confidential discussions during a top-level security meeting about the role of China’s Huawei Technologies in 5G network supply chains, British finance minister Philip Hammond said on Friday.

News that Britain’s National Security Council, attended by senior ministers and spy chiefs, had agreed on Tuesday to bar Huawei from all core parts of the country’s 5G network and restrict its access to non-core elements was leaked to a national newspaper.

The leak of secret discussions has sparked anger in parliament and amongst Britain’s intelligence community. Britain’s most senior civil servant Mark Sedwill has launched an inquiry and written to ministers who were at the meeting.

“My understanding from London (is) that an investigation has been announced into apparent leaks from the NSC meeting earlier this week,” said Hammond, speaking on the sidelines of a summit on China’s Belt and Road initiative in Beijing.

“To my knowledge there has never been a leak from a National Security Council meeting before and therefore I think it is very important that we get to the bottom of what happened here,” he told Reuters in a pooled interview.

British culture minister Jeremy Wright said on Thursday he could not rule out a criminal investigation. The majority of the ministers at the NSC meeting have said they were not involved, according to media reports.

Hammond said he was unaware of any previous leak from a meeting of the NSC.

“It’s not about the substance of what was apparently leaked. It’s not earth-shattering information. But it is important that we protect the principle that nothing that goes on in national security council meetings must ever be repeated outside the room.”

Allowing Huawei a reduced role in building its 5G network puts Britain at odds with the United States which has told allies not to use its technology at all because of fears it could be a vehicle for Chinese spying. Huawei has categorically denied this.

There have been concerns that the NSC’s conclusion, which sources confirmed to Reuters, could upset other allies in the world’s leading intelligence-sharing network – the Five Eyes alliance of the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

However, British ministers and intelligence officials have said any final decision on 5G would not put critical national infrastructure at risk. Ciaran Martin, head of the cyber center of Britain’s main eavesdropping agency, GCHQ, played down any threat of a rift in the Five Eyes alliance.

(Writing by Michael Holden; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: OANN

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President Trump on Friday said “no money” was paid to North Korea for Otto Warmbier, after reports that the U.S. received a $2 million hospital bill from Pyongyang for the late American prisoner’s care.

“No money was paid to North Korea for Otto Warmbier, not two Million Dollars, not anything else. This is not the Obama Administration that paid 1.8 Billion Dollars for four hostages, or gave five terroist[sic] hostages plus, who soon went back to battle, for traitor Sgt. Bergdahl!” Trump tweeted Friday.

NORTH KOREA GAVE US $2M HOSPITAL BILL OVER CARE OF AMERICAN OTTO WARMBIER, SOURCES SAY

The Washington Post first reported that North Korean authorities insisted the U.S. envoy sent to retrieve Warmbier, 21, who was a student of the University of Virginia, sign a pledge to pay the bill before allowing Warmbier’s comatose body to return to the United States. Sources confirmed the bill and the amount to Fox News on Thursday.

Sources told the post that the envoy signed an agreement to pay the medical bill on instructions from the president, but a source told Fox News that the U.S. did not ever pay money to North Korea.

The White House declined to comment when asked on the bill, with Press Secretary Sarah Sanders saying in a statement that: “We do not comment on hostage negotiations, which is why they have been so successful during this administration.”

Meanwhile, the president added: “’President[sic] Donald J. Trump is the greatest hostage negotiator that I know of in the history of the United States. 20 hostages, many in impossible circumstances, have been released in last two years. No money was paid.’ Cheif[sic] Hostage Negotiator, USA!”

Warmbier was on tour in North Korea when he allegedly stole a propaganda sign from a hotel. He was arrested in January 2016 and sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labor in March 2016. Warmbier, for unknown reasons, fell into a coma while in custody and was held in that condition for an additional 17 months.

North Korean officials did not tell American officials until June 2017 that Warmbier had been unconscious the entire time. He died less than a week after he returned to the U.S. North Korean officials, though, have repeatedly denied accusations that Warmbier was tortured, instead claiming that he had suffered from botulism and then slipped into a coma after taking a sleeping pill.

AMERICAN PRISONERS HELD IN NORTH KOREA ON THEIR WAY HOME AFTER POMPEO VISIT, TRUMP SAYS

Fred and Cindy Warmbier sued North Korea over their son’s death and in December were awarded $501 million in damages – money that the Hermit Kingdom will probably never pay.

While the Warmbiers blamed North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Trump has said he believes Kim’s claims that he did not know about the student’s treatment.

Trump and Kim have met in two separate summits. The most recent, held in February, ended without an agreement on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, told Fox News: “Otto Warmbier was mistreated by North Korea in so many ways, including his wrongful conviction and harsh sentence, and the fact that for 16 months they refused to tell his family or our country about his dire condition they caused.  No, the United States owes them nothing. They owe the Warmbier family everything.”

Last year, the Trump administration was also able to save three American prisoners held by North Korea. Kim Dong Chul, Tony Kim, and Kim Hak Song were all detained in North Korea. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brought the three Americans home last May, and said they were all in “good health.”

Fox News’ John Roberts, Rich Edson, Nicholas Kalman, and Mike Emanuel contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon
Park Yoo-chun, a K-pop idol singer, arrives at the Suwon district court in Suwon, South Korea, April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

April 26, 2019

SEOUL (Reuters) – K-pop and drama star Park Yu-chun was arrested on Friday on charges of buying and using illegal drugs, a court said, the latest in a series of scandals to hit the South Korean entertainment business.

Suwon District Court approved the arrest warrant for Park, 32, due to concerns over possible destruction of evidence and flight risk, a court spokesman told Reuters.

Park is suspected of having bought about 1.5 grams of methamphetamine with his former girlfriend earlier this year and using the drug around five times, an official at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said.

Park has denied wrongdoing, saying he had never taken drugs, and he again denied the charges in court, Yonhap news agency said.

Park’s contract with his management agency had been canceled and he would leave the entertainment industry, Park’s management agency, C-JeS Entertainment, said on Wednesday.

Park was a member of boyband TVXQ between 2003 and 2009 before leaving the group with two other members, forming the group JYJ.

A scandal involving sex tapes, prostitutes and secret chat about rape led at least four other K-pop stars to quit the industry earlier this year.

The cases sparked a nationwide drugs bust and investigations into tax evasion and police collusion at night clubs and other nightlife spots.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Additional reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: OANN

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