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Female student at UC Irvine stabbed while walking dog near campus

A female student at the University of California, Irvine, was stabbed Sunday night as she walked her dog near the school’s student housing facilities, reports said.

A picture from the scene shows the woman being loaded into an ambulance. A UCI police spokesman said that a man approached the woman from behind and stabbed her. He remains at large.  A tweet from the school’s public safety account described the man as having a “large build.”

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Students were advised to shelter in place and a recreation center was shut down shortly after 10 p.m., KTLA reported.

Source: Fox News National

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$2M to victim of sex abuse by priest who made him confess

A Roman Catholic diocese in Pennsylvania has agreed to pay $2 million to a man who was sexually abused as a child by a priest who made him say confession after the assaults.

The settlement with the Diocese of Erie was announced Tuesday by the victim's attorney, Mitchell Garabedian.

The defrocked priest, David Poulson, was sentenced this year to 2 1/2 to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to the sexual assault of one boy and attempted sexual assault of another.

Poulson is one of a handful of priests criminally charged as a result of a Pennsylvania grand jury investigation that detailed decades of abuse by 300 priests.

He was accused of abusing an altar boy more than 20 times in various rectories.

The diocese said it would not comment until later in the day.

Source: Fox News National

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Seoul: North Korea withdrew staff from liaison office

South Korea says North Korea has withdrawn its staff from an inter-Korean liaison office in North Korea.

The development came after the second U.S.-North Korea summit talks in Vietnam last month collapsed due to disputes over U.S.-led sanctions on the country.

Seoul's Unification Ministry said Friday that North Korea informed South Korea of its decision during a contact at the liaison office at the North Korean border town of Kaesong.

The ministry calls the North's decision "regrettable."

It says the North didn't give a specific reason for its move.

The liaison office opened last September as part of a flurry of reconciliation steps.

Source: Fox News World

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Trump says ‘signing summit’ with Xi for U.S.-China deal possible soon

The Governors' Ball at the White House
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks on U.S. and China trade negotiations at the Governors' Ball, in the State Dining Room of the White House, in Washington, U.S., February 24, 2019. REUTERS/Al Drago

February 25, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he may soon sign a deal to end a trade war with Chinese President Xi Jinping if their countries can bridge remaining differences, saying negotiators were “very, very close” to a deal.

Markets rallied after Trump said on Sunday he would delay an increase in U.S. tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods and extend his March 1 deadline for a deal.

Trump’s decision avoided another escalation in a trade war between the world’s two largest economies that has cost both countries billions of dollars and roiled global financial markets.

Washington is demanding Beijing change the way it does business with the United States, demanding more access for U.S. companies, enforcement of intellectual property protection and an end to industrial subsidies.

“We’re going to have another summit, we’re going to have a signing summit,” Trump told a gathering of U.S. governors on Monday.

“So hopefully, we can get that completed. But we’re getting very, very close,” said Trump, who left later for Vietnam and a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

U.S. and Chinese negotiators met in Washington through the weekend, working toward a deal that would end a tit-for-tat tariff battle that began in mid-2018.

Trump cited progress in the talks as the reason for not raising tariffs further on Chinese goods. He also sounded a note of caution, when he said a deal “could happen fairly soon, or it might not happen at all.”

It remains unclear how long the tariff increase would be delayed. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office said the agency had no announcements at this time beyond the president’s remarks.

DIFFERENCES OVER ENFORCEMENT

Negotiators were still struggling to overcome differences on a mechanism to ensure that China fulfills any pledges it makes as part of the deal. Washington wants an enforcement mechanism built into the deal.

Assuming additional progress is made on both sides, Trump said he planned to meet with Xi at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Trump told the governors “it looks like” Chinese negotiators would be returning quickly to continue work toward a deal.

Talks over the weekend with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He were handled by a small team of top-level negotiators, including U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, said a source who had been briefed on the talks.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said on Monday that a number of agricultural issues were on the table in trade talks, including poultry access, issues over beef exports, feed grains, ethanol and an animal feed known as distillers grains.

“I thought it was a good sign that the Chinese extended their stay,” Perdue told reporters on Monday.

He said he understood discussions got into the “nitty-gritty” issues and that China’s vice premier “was directly involved in line-by-line negotiations over these issues, including agriculture.”

But Perdue noted the United States would not be “bought off” and that purchases themselves were not enough.

Later on Monday, Trump wrote in a tweet: “China Trade Deal (and more) in advanced stages. Relationship between our two Countries is very strong. I have therefore agreed to delay U.S. tariff hikes. Let’s see what happens?”

(Reporting by Steve Holland and Makini Brice; Additional reporting by David Lawder and Humeyra Pamuk; Writing by Susan Heavey in Washington and Chris Prentice in New York; Editing by Simon Webb, Tom Brown and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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IRS Fails to Meet Congressional Deadline to Hand Over Trump Tax Returns

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday failed to meet a congressional deadline for turning over President Donald Trump's tax returns to lawmakers, setting the stage for a court battle between Congress and the administration.

The outcome, which was widely expected, could prompt House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal to subpoena Trump's tax records as the opening salvo to a legal fight that may ultimately have to be settled by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Neal set a final 5 p.m. EDT deadline for the IRS and Treasury to provide six years of Trump's individual and business tax records. But a Democratic committee aide said the deadline passed without the panel receiving the documents.

Earlier on Tuesday, the White House said Trump was unlikely to hand over his tax returns. "As I understand it, the president's pretty clear: Once he's out of audit, he'll think about doing it, but he's not inclined to do so at this time," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley told Fox News in an interview.

"This is not up to the president. We did not ask him," said a Democratic committee aide, who cited a law saying the Treasury secretary "shall furnish" taxpayer data upon request from an authorized lawmaker.

"In terms of the law, what he says is largely irrelevant," said the aide, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the White House remarks.

Neal informed IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig in a letter earlier this month that failure to comply with the deadline would be viewed as a denial.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said that he intends to "follow the law" while pledging to keep the IRS from being "weaponized" for political gain.

Legal experts said House Democrats could vote to hold Mnuchin or Rettig in contempt of Congress if they ignored a subpoena, as a pretext to suing in federal court to obtain Trump's returns.

As Ways and Means chairman, Neal is the only lawmaker in the House of Representatives authorized to request taxpayer information under federal law. Democrats say they are confident of succeeding in any legal fight over Trump's tax returns.

"The law is on our side. The law is clearer than crystal. They have no choice: they must abide by (it)," Representative Bill Pascrell, who has been leading the Democratic push for Trump's tax records, said in a statement to Reuters.

Democrats want Trump's returns as part of their investigations of possible conflicts of interest posed by his continued ownership of extensive business interests, even as he serves the public as president.

Republicans have condemned the request as a political "fishing expedition" by Democrats.

Despite the law's clarity, Democrats have long acknowledged that the effort would likely result in a legal battle that could end up with the U.S. Supreme Court.

"If the IRS does not comply with the request, it is likely that Chairman Neal will subpoena the returns," Representative Judy Chu, a Democratic member of the Ways and Means Committee, told Reuters.

"If they do not comply with that (subpoena), a legal battle will begin to defend the right of oversight in Congress," she said.

Trump broke with a decades-old precedent by refusing to release his tax returns as a presidential candidate in 2016 or since being elected, saying he could not do so while his taxes were being audited.

But his former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, told a House panel in February that he does not believe Trump's taxes are under audit. Cohen said the president feared that releasing his returns could lead to an audit and IRS tax penalties.

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Hear ye, hear ye! Philly lands 2026 All-Star Game

MLB: Philadelphia Phillies-Fan Event
Apr 16, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; MLB commissioner Rob Manfred addresses fans and media during an event at Independence Mall to announce Philadelphia as the host of the 2026 All Star Game. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

April 17, 2019

Major League Baseball is gearing up to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with the announcement Tuesday that the 2026 All-Star Game will be played in Philadelphia.

Commissioner Rob Manfred delivered the news in front of Independence Hall, sharing the stage with All-Stars past and present including Phillies Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt and new Philadelphia outfielder Bryce Harper.

“Major League Baseball is honored to have the 2026 All-Star Game in Philadelphia be part of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence,” Manfred said in a statement. “This event will continue a tradition established in 1976 where the National Pastime plays an important role in a milestone for our country.”

This will be the fifth Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia, which was hosted at Shibe Park in 1943 and 1952 and at Veterans Stadium in 1976 and 1996, but will mark the first All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park, which opened in 2004.

Choosing the site so far in advance — and before the previous five years’ games are awarded — is unusual, but Manfred said the league has its reasons, according to a report by The Inquirer. Although Philadelphia is a logical location to help mark America’s 250th birthday, by announcing it seven years in advance, MLB could boost the city’s efforts to attract other marquee events for the celebration, just as it did for the bicentennial in 1976.

Also, Manfred noted the league likely won’t have to look hard for a Phillies player around whom to build their 2026 All-Star marketing campaign. By 2026, Harper will be just more than halfway through his 13-year, $330 million contract.

“Let’s hope he gives us a home run derby like he gave us in Washington last year,” Manfred said during the announcement. “That would be great.”

Harper told the crowd, “There’s nothing more exciting than going to an All-Star Game and enjoying it with some of the best players in the game. I can’t really explain how exciting it is to be in the home run derby, to be part of the (pregame) parade. Just for the city and the fans, you guys are going to enjoy it so much.”

Cleveland will host this year’s 90th All-Star Game on July 9, and Los Angeles will host the 2020 game at Dodger Stadium. Sites for 2021-25 have not been named.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

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Exclusive: Exxon weighs sale of Nigerian oil and gas fields for up to $3 billion

FILE PHOTO: Darren Woods, chairman & CEO, Exxon Mobil Corp, attends a news conference at the NYSE
FILE PHOTO: Darren Woods, chairman and CEO of Exxon Mobil Corp, attends a news conference at the New York Stock Exchange, March 1, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

April 2, 2019

By Ron Bousso and Julia Payne

LONDON (Reuters) – Exxon Mobil recently held talks on the sale of a suite of oil and gas fields in Nigeria as the company focuses on new developments in U.S. shale and Guyana, industry and banking sources told Reuters.

The potential disposals are expected to include stakes in onshore and offshore fields and could raise up to $3 billion, two sources said.

“Exxon is actively divesting in Nigeria,” one source who was briefed on the divestment plans said.

Exxon declined to comment.

The Irving, Texas-based company is one of the largest oil and gas producers in Nigeria, with 106 operated platforms. Its oil output in the West African country reached 225,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2017, its website says.

Exxon officials have held talks in recent weeks with several Nigerian companies to gauge their interest in the fields.

One source said Exxon was soon due to open a “data room” – which would provide technical information on the fields, such as seismic and production details – in Nigeria.

The discussions focused on a number of onshore fields Exxon shares in joint ventures with Nigerian state oil firm NNPC, including oil mining leases 66, 68, 70 and 104, one source said. Exxon’s share of oil production in those fields reached 120,000 bpd in 2017, the last year for which data was available.

Exxon is also weighing the possible sale of stakes in offshore fields in Nigeria, two sources said.

It is looking into offering for sale assets in Equatorial Guinea and Chad, according to two sources.

The Nigerian government has in the last decade supported a drive by domestic firms such as Oando, Seplat and privately held Aiteo to expand their operations in the country as international companies including Royal Dutch Shell sought to lower their presence due to oil spills resulting from pipeline sabotage.

Exxon recently launched the sale of its stake in Azerbaijan’s largest oilfield, which would mark its retreat from the former Soviet state after 25 years.

Exxon announced earlier this year plans to boost its capital spending from $26 billion in 2018 to $30 billion in 2019 and up to $35 billion next year as it seeks to develop oilfields in Guyana and the U.S. Permian basin as well as gas projects in Mozambique and the U.S. Gulf Coast.

In an analyst presentation last month, Exxon said it would accelerate its divestments to around $15 billion by 2021.

(Additional reporting by Gary McWilliams in Houston; Editing by Dale Hudson)

Source: OANN

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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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