‘GRAVE CONCERN’: A critic of the government died immediately following his complaints of torture at the hands of security forces, a human rights group said
Students on Friday clashed with police in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, as anger mounted at the death of a writer and government critic in a high-security jail. At least 18 police and an unknown number of protesters were injured in the clashes, authorities and witnesses said, amid international demands for an independent investigation into the death of Mushtaq Ahmed. An Agence France-Presse correspondent witnessed police using batons and firing tear gas at students who staged a torchlight march calling for “justice” near the University of Dhaka. At least six students who allegedly attacked security forces with torches were detained, police said. More protests were planned for yesterday. Ahmed was arrested in May last year under the Digital Security Act (DSA) — that opponents say undermines freedom of speech — after he criticized the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 53-year-old, a crocodile farmer, as well as a writer known for his satirical style, was charged with spreading rumors and conducting “anti-state activities” on Facebook. Jail authorities said Ahmed fell unconscious and died on Thursday at the Kashimpur High Security Prison outside of Dhaka. He had not been suffering from a major illness, prison head Mohammad Ghiasuddin said. Cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore was detained at the same time and remains in custody. Both men had several bail requests turned down, the latest this week, and their treatment has faced mounting criticism. Ahmed’s lawyer demanded an independent inquiry into the death. Thirteen ambassadors from countries including Canada, France, Germany, the UK and the US also expressed “grave concern.” “We call on the government of Bangladesh to conduct a swift, transparent, and independent inquiry into the full circumstances of Mr Mushtaq Ahmed’s death,” the ambassadors said in a statement. They said there would be follow-up approaches over “wider concerns about the provisions and implementation of the DSA, as well as questions about its compatibility
Victoria yesterday became the third Australian jurisdiction to ban single-use plastics, including polystyrene containers, straws, cutlery, plates and plastic cotton bud sticks. Victoria Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio announced a phase-out and ban of specific single-use plastics by 2023, including at bars, cafes and restaurants, in a bid to reduce the amount of plastic waste that goes to landfills each year. The phase out and ban would not affect medical or scientific equipment, emergency services or other activities that require these types of plastics. “Single-use plastic items — like straws and plastic cups — make up about one-third of Victoria’s litter,” D’Ambroisio said. “We need to change this, so we’re getting rid of them.” Each Victorian sends an average of 68kg of plastic waste to landfill every year. The government would consult businesses and the community throughout the year as part of a formal regulatory impact statement process. It follows South Australia, which in September last year became the first Australian state to ban some single-use plastics including cutlery, straws and stirrers. The South Australian legislation also lists items under consideration to be added to the ban list, including single-use coffee cups and lids and single-use plastic bowls, plates, food containers, balloon sticks, balloon ties, bags and plastic-stemmed cotton buds. However, the introduction of the legislation was delayed due to COVID-19. There is concern that the COVID-19 pandemic might have stymied some progress toward lessening a reliance on plastic, with an increase in medical waste from disposable masks, gloves and gowns, disposable wipes, and liquid soap. In December last year, Queensland also introduced legislation to stem the destructive effects of plastic on marine life and waterways. The government is seeking community feedback on whether the ban should be extended to include polystyrene containers. A 2019 report by the Center for International Environmental Law said that urgent action to
More than 60 fighters were on Friday killed in clashes in Yemen between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and government forces in the strategic northern province of Marib, government sources said. Earlier this month, the Houthis resumed a push to capture Marib city, 120km east of the rebel-held capital, Sana’a. The city lies close to some of Yemen’s richest oil fields and its capture would be a major prize for the rebels. Friday’s dead included at least 27 pro-government forces and 34 Houthi rebels, a government source said, adding that it was the “most violent” day of clashes since fighting erupted on Feb. 8. The rebels moved into hills near a dam southwest of Marib city — the last major toehold in the north for Yemen’s Saudi Arabian-backed government — with the area witnessing “the fiercest battles,” the source said. A military source said that pro-government forces repelled the Houthi advances and reported heavy fighting that lasted “more than eight hours” in the Ablah region, south of Marib city. There was loss of life on both sides, the military source added, without providing further details. Yemeni military sources said airstrikes targeted Houthi positions in several parts of the province. The Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV channel reported 21 air strikes in different areas. Yemen has been embroiled in a bloody power struggle since 2014 between its government, supported by Saudi Arabia, and Houthi rebels, who control most of the north. The grinding conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions, international organizations say, sparking what the UN calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The upsurge in violence this month has come shortly after Washington decided to remove the rebels from its list of terrorist groups, in order to ensure aid is unimpeded, and to pave the way to restart peace talks. Observers say the Houthis want to capture Marib as leverage before entering
Political tensions in Armenia remained high on Friday, a day after the prime minister accused top military officers who demanded his resignation of an attempted coup. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has faced opposition calls to step down over a peace deal on Nov. 10 last year that ended six weeks of fierce fighting with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The peace agreement saw Azerbaijan reclaim control over large parts of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas that had been held by Armenian forces for more than a quarter-century. Earlier this week, Pashinyan dismissed the first deputy chief of the military’s general staff that includes the armed forces’ top officers. In response, the general staff on Thursday called for Pashinyan’s resignation, but he doubled down and ordered that the chief of the general staff be dismissed. Pashinyan’s spat with the top military officers encouraged opposition supporters. More than 20,000 rallied in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, demanding the prime minister’s resignation, while Pashinyan led his own supporters at a rival rally. Some opposition demonstrators put up tents outside the government headquarters and barricaded the main avenue to press their demand for Pashinyan’s resignation. The top military officers did not make any further moves on Friday in the wake of their demand for Pashinyan to step down. Pashinyan’s order on Thursday to dismiss Colonel General Onik Gasparyan is subject to approval by the nation’s largely ceremonial president, Armen Sarkissian, who has three days to decide. Sarkissian, who has had previous frictions with Pashinyan and earlier called on him to step down, on Friday met with Gasparyan and opposition leaders, but did not make any public statements. Speaking at Friday’s rally, opposition leader Vazgen Manukyan said that “the next few days will be decisive for our struggle.” If Pashinyan succeeds in forcing the general staff chief out, “the army will rise,” he added. The crisis has
Brutal militant violence forced them to flee their homes, but hunger has driven some in Mozambique to risk their lives by sneaking back to their old residences to gather food — or even resume farming. Nearly 670,000 people have been displaced by an extremist insurgency that has raged for three years in northern Mozambique. Some have moved in with host families, some are living in temporary shelters, while others have resettled in newly created safe villages. A critical lack of food has led to a brave few returning to their old homes to forage for whatever they can. Lal Dady said that one day he left his new home in the Metuge resettlement camp to scour his granaries in Quissanga, a district in Cabo Delgado Province, where militants are waging their bloody campaign. “I got chestnuts and other food products to feed my family,” said the 22-year-old father of one. Mussa Cesar, 43, said that he goes back to Quissanga — an eight-hour walk — to work on his old farmland. “I have been going to Quissanga for my field. I stay there around three days, cultivating and then come back,” he said, sitting under a tree and playing a traditional game with friends. “And I bring back manioc for my family here,” he said. “We just don’t do the fishing, because we are afraid.” Attacks by militants affiliated with the Islamic State skyrocketed last year in the gas-rich province, triggering a humanitarian crisis. The number of violent incidents has dropped significantly, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project data, but the security situation remains precarious across the province. Local authorities warned reporters not to use some roads not far from the resettlement camps, because they were unsafe. Villagers in the far-north Palma district, the home of a multibillion-dollar natural gas project targeted by the militants, are particularly vulnerable. The UN’s
IRAN THREAT: The administration of US President Joe Biden is trying to draw the line between offensive and defensive weapons to be sold to Riyadh, an aide said
US President Joe Biden’s administration is considering the cancelation of arms deals with Saudi Arabia that pose human rights concerns while limiting military sales to “defensive” weapons, as it reassesses it relationship with the kingdom. Four sources familiar with the US administration’s thinking said that after pausing US$500 million in arms deals with Saudi Arabia out of concern over casualties in Yemen earlier this year, officials are assessing the equipment and training included in recent sales to determine what can be considered defensive. Those deals would be allowed. “Our focus is on ending the conflict in Yemen even as we ensure Saudi Arabia has everything it needs to defend its territory and its people,” a US Department of State spokesperson said, adding that Biden has pledged to end US military support for the military campaign against the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Biden administration is recalibrating its relationship with Saudi Arabia, a country with which it has severe human rights concerns, but which is also one of Washington’s closest US allies in countering the threat posed by Iran. “They’re trying to figure out where do you draw the lines between offensive weapons and defensive stuff,” one congressional aide familiar with the issue said, describing the process. Sales of products deemed defensive — such as Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-ballistic missile defense systems made by Lockheed Martin or Patriot missile defense systems made by Lockheed and Raytheon — would still be allowed under such new policy. However, it would end big-ticket deals — for products such as precision-guided munitions and small-diameter bombs — like those brokered under former US president Donald Trump in the face of strong objections from members of the US Congress. After he lost the US presidential election on Nov. 3 last year, Trump’s State Department kept approving weapons sales that could be considered
The UK faced fresh calls to end unrestricted arms sales to Saudi Arabia after the US published a CIA assessment which concluded that Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had ordered the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Charities, civil rights groups and others said the disclosure threw the UK’s traditionally close relationship with Riyadh into stark relief in the aftermath of the release of the short, but unambiguous report. Aid agency Oxfam said that the UK should respond to the increasingly assertive approach taken by the administration of US President Joe Biden, which has already said it would halt arms sales to Riyadh that could be used in the long-running war in Yemen. Muhsin Siddiquey, Oxfam’s country director in Yemen, said: “At a time that the US seems to be evaluating its relationship with Saudi Arabia we would urge the UK government to do the same and stop its arms sales to Saudi Arabia, which are fueling the conflict in Yemen.” “Over 12,000 civilian lives have been lost since the start of the war, with atrocities on all sides. We need an immediate ceasefire to ensure no more innocent Yemenis are killed and that humanitarian agencies have safe access to deliver the support they need,” he added. Tobias Ellwood, the Conservative chair of the British House of Commons Defence Select Committee, reiterated a call he had made for the UK to follow the US in halting Yemen-related arms sales. “The CIA report is unambiguous in its conclusions and this will be inevitably be an embarrassment and shame to the wider country,” Ellwood said. He called on Saudi Arabia’s ruling royal family to respond swiftly “in response to the loss in international confidence and trust of the crown prince” and the “wider cultural atmosphere that allowed such decisionmaking to go unchallenged.” The UK has maintained a close
AVOIDING COLLAPSE: The measures bar people from traveling between counties except for work, and closes nurseries as well as schools for children with disabilities
With new infections soaring due to a highly contagious COVID-19 variant and hospitals filling up, one of the hardest-hit countries in the EU is facing the inevitable: the tightest lockdown since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis on Friday said the new series of measures is necessary “to protect the lives of our citizens.” “We have to do it prevent a total collapse of our hospitals,” Babis said. “If we don’t do it, the whole world will watch Bergamo in the Czech Republic.” He said his government made mistakes in dealing with the pandemic in the past, but called on the Czechs to abide by the rules that are becoming effective tomorrow for three weeks, with a goal “to stop the virus and return to normalcy.” Among the strictest restrictions, the government is set to limit free movement of people by not allowing them to travel to other counties unless they go to work or have to take care about their relatives. “If it’s possible, stay at home,” Czech Minister of the Interior Jan Hamacek said. Hamacek said the measure would be enforced by police and military forces. If people go out for sports or just a walk, they should not leave their municipality. Further measures include the closure of nursery schools and schools for children with disabilities that until now have remained open. Only the stores with essential goods are to remain open. “It’s not the best timing, it is in fact late,” Jan Konvalinka, a biochemist and vice rector of Prague’s Charles University, told Czech public radio. “But better late than never, we have to stop it somehow.” Konvalinka is a member of a group of scientists who have urged the government to immediately apply strict restrictions to reduce the number of new daily infections to 1,000 confirmed cases. It was 14,457 on
The weeks building up to Hollywood’s awards season are usually a whirlwind of glitzy Los Angeles parties, lavish celebrity “gifting suites” and the raucous Golden Globes themselves — but not this year. Not even Tinseltown’s glamorous galas could avoid being turned upside-down by the COVID-19 pandemic. “If a studio has a hot film, they will throw a lot of events, and invite people to attend to honor the filmmakers,” Variety awards editor Tim Gray said. “Those films seem to become serious contenders, because there’s so much attention [given] to them. I haven’t been to any events this year, in honor of a film.” Hopes of a return to the “normal” carousel of VIP question-and-answer sessions and elite soirees designed to entice voters were dashed long ago, as California was slammed by a staggering winter COVID-19 outbreak. Tinseltown publicists — accustomed to throwing expensive celebrations at iconic landmarks from the Four Seasons to the Chateau Marmont — have had to improvise. As with many things around the world, that has meant honing their Zoom skills and shifting almost everything online. While the Sunset Strip is adorned with its usual giant “For Your Consideration” movie billboards, voters are staying home to watch nominated films, while journalists interview actors on their laptops. “I have been really strict about not doing any in-person gatherings. And the studios and networks have been very accommodating, actually,” The Hollywood Reporter’s awards columnist Scott Feinberg said. “Everyone’s just had to adapt.” Meanwhile the Globes — typically marketed as Hollywood’s champagne-soaked “party of the year” — are being held today largely as a remote event in Beverly Hills and New York, with most nominees expected to learn their fate from home. “Life does go on, as best as we can ... the only other option is to cancel everything and that would just kind of send
CANADA-FUNDED PRISON: An alleged gang leader, who had been convicted of murder and had escaped from prison twice, was killed in a shootout with police
More than 200 prisoners were on the run in Haiti on Friday, a day after they escaped from jail in a violent breakout that left 25 people dead, including the prison director, officials said. About 400 inmates fled from the Croix-des-Bouquets prison on Thursday, with Agence France-Presse photographs showing at least three dead bodies lying outside the prison and some captured prisoners under armed guard in the back of a truck. “Twenty-five people died including six prisoners and Divisional Inspector Paul Hector Joseph who was in charge of the prison,” Haitian Secretary of Communication Frantz Exantus said of the mass escape from the jail in the suburbs of the capital, Port-au-Prince. “Among those killed were some ordinary citizens who were killed by the prisoners during their escape,” Exantus said. About 200 prisoners were still at large, but “the police are working hard to get them back. Some are in handcuffs, they will not be able to go far,” he said. One of the prisoners who died was gang leader Arnel Joseph, who was gunned down on Friday at a police checkpoint 120km north of the prison. “Arnel Joseph was killed while attacking a police patrol, which had stopped the motorcycle he was on. The police responded and Arnel Joseph is dead,” Exantus said. Joseph, allegedly head of one of Haiti’s main criminal networks, was arrested in 2019 and had tried to escape from the prison in July last year after advertising his plan in a social media video a few days before the attempt. While serving a sentence for murder, Joseph had already escaped twice from another prison, in Port-au-Prince, in 2010 and 2017. Inaugurated in 2012, the high-security Croix-des-Bouquets prison was built with funding from Canada and has a maximum capacity of 872 inmates, although nearly double that number were incarcerated there before the escape.
Bruce Meyers was hanging out at Pismo Beach on California’s Central Coast one afternoon in 1963 when he saw something that both blew his mind and changed his life: a handful of old, stripped-down cars bouncing across the sand. It sure would be fun to get behind the wheel of one of those, Meyers thought, if only they were not so ugly and did not appear so uncomfortable. He built his own solution: A “dune buggy” fashioned out of lightweight fiberglass mounted on four oversized tires with two bug-eyed-looking headlights and a blindingly bright paint job. The result would become both an overnight automotive sensation and one of the talismans of California surf culture, especially when he created a space in the back to accommodate a surfboard. He called the vehicle the Meyers Manx and it turned the friendly, soft-spoken Meyers into a revered figure among off-roaders, surfers and car enthusiasts of all types. Meyers died on Friday last week at his San Diego-area home, his wife, Winnie Meyers, told reporters on Friday. He was 94. Bruce Meyers built thousands of dune buggies in his lifetime, but he did far more. He designed boats and surfboards, worked as a commercial artist and a lifeguard, traveled the world surfing and sailing, built a trading post in Tahiti and even survived a World War II Japanese kamikaze attack on his navy aircraft carrier the USS Bunker Hill. “He had a life that nobody else has ever lived,” his wife said with a chuckle. Bruce Franklin Meyers was born on March 12, 1926, in Los Angeles, the son of a businessman and mechanic who set up automobile dealerships for his friend Henry Ford. Growing up near such popular Southern California surfing spots as Newport, Hermosa and Manhattan beaches, it was wave riding, not cars, that initially captivated Bruce Meyers, who
UNITED STATES Woman dragged by car A woman was dragged by a car in Oakland’s Asian business district during a robbery that her husband said left her bruised and shaken, marking the latest in a series of attacks against people of Asian descent in the San Francisco Bay Area and in other parts of the country. Eric Nghiem said that his wife, Jenny, who is Vietnamese, had her purse crossed around her neck and shoulder as she was walking to a grocery store when a thief grabbed it and jumped into the passenger side of a car on Wednesday. Surveillance video shows the victim clinging to her purse as she gets dragged for a short distance before letting go. At least 32 Asian Americans in the Bay Area have been assaulted or robbed since the start of this year. CANADA AstraZeneca shot approved Regulators on Friday authorized AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine for all adults. It is the third COVID-19 vaccine given the green light by the country, following those from Pfizer and Moderna. “This is very encouraging news. It means more people vaccinated, and sooner,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, adding that the nation of 38 million people would get 6.5 million vaccines in total before the end of next month, 500,000 more with the new approval. Health Canada approved the AstraZeneca vaccine for use in people 18 and over, expressing confidence it would work for elderly people. BRAZIL Capital under lockdown The governor of the nation’s capital, Brasilia, on Friday decreed a 24-hour lockdown for all but essential services to curb a worsening COVID-19 outbreak that has filled its intensive care wards to the brim. “The lockdown will start today and be total, it will be 24 hours a day,” said a press aide for Brasilia Governor Ibaneis Rocha. A decree published at the end
GREAT ESCAPE: After traveling 32 hours by train and two by bus, Russian diplomats and their family cheered as they crossed the border on a ‘non-self-propelled railcar’
Eight Russian diplomats and family members — the youngest of them a three-year-old girl — on Thursday left North Korea on a hand-pushed rail trolley due to Pyongyang’s COVID-19 restrictions. Video posted on the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ verified Telegram account showed the scene as the trolley, laden with suitcases and women, was pushed across a border railway bridge by Russian Third Secretary Vladislav Sorokin. The group waved and cheered as they made the final approach toward their homeland, the culmination of an expedition that began with a 32-hour train ride from Pyongyang, followed by a two-hour bus ride to the border. “It took a long and difficult journey to get home,” the ministry said in the post, describing how and why the group left on the trolley. MAIN ‘ENGINE’ “Finally, the most important part of the route — walking on foot to the Russian side,” it said. “To do this, you need to make a trolley in advance, put it on the rails, place things on it, seat the children — and go,” it added. Sorokin, the only man in the group, was “the main ‘engine’ of the non-self-propelled railcar,” it said, and had to push it for more than 1km. Once on Russian territory they were met by foreign ministry colleagues and were taken — by bus — to Vladivostok International Airport. “Don’t leave your own behind,” the ministry added as a hashtag. LOCKED OUT North Korea imposed a strict border shutdown in January last year to try to protect itself from COVID-19. The shutdown has canceled all flights in or out of the nuclear-armed, sanctions-hit country, and cross-border trains. With staff and supplies unable to enter the country, the restrictions have severely hampered the activities of diplomats and aid workers, and several Western embassies have pulled out their entire staff. Russia has close relations with North Korea and maintains a
Twenty-five years after Pokemon first began delighting children and adults alike, the phenomenon is still capturing hearts, with the smartphone craze Pokemon Go reaching a record success amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The augmented-reality game raked in US$1 billion in just the first 10 months of last year — its most lucrative yet — according to market tracker Sensor Tower, and experts see no sign that interest is flagging as the world’s highest-grossing media franchise evolves. “The characters themselves are so appealing, and the mechanics of the actual video and card games are so well executed that it has this very timeless quality,” said Brian Ashcraft, an author who writes about Japanese pop culture. Dan Ryan, a 29-year-old who works in London’s finance sector, has been a fan nearly his whole life and is not shy about his hobby, even with colleagues. “They know I disappear every Thursday to go and play Pokemon cards, they see me come in with my Pikachu jacket, and they see my Pokemon mugs,” he said. He said he spends “too much money” on rare Pokemon cards, whose prices have boomed as virus lockdowns push people toward indoor pursuits, with some in mint condition going for more than US$500,000. Pokemon is inspired by the childhood tradition of collecting bugs — popular during Japan’s hot and humid summer holidays — and part of its enduring appeal is its simple goal: to catch them all. Hundreds of round-eyed “pocket monsters,” inspired by everything from mice to dragons, can be caught and trained to full strength in battles. The winning concept has sold countless toys, film tickets and more than 30 billion Pokemon cards since the first monochrome Game Boy titles were released in Japan in 1996. Atsuko Nishida, who designed the electric mouse-like creature Pikachu, once said she modeled it on a round Japanese sweet called a
‘WIDE-OPEN RACE’: The senate minority leader said that he knew of four people who would seek the Republican nomination for the 2024 US presidential election
Less than a month after excoriating former US president Donald Trump in a blistering floor speech, US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday said that he would “absolutely” support Trump again if he secured the Republican presidential nomination in 2024. McConnell told Fox News that there was still “a lot to happen between now” and the next presidential election. “I’ve got at least four members that I think are planning on running for president, plus governors and others,” McConnell said. “There’s no incumbent. Should be a wide-open race.” When asked if he would support Trump again were he to win the nomination, McConnell said: “The nominee of the party? Absolutely.” McConnell’s comments precede an annual gathering that this year is expected to showcase Trump’s grip on the Republican Party’s base. Trump, along with most other leading 2024 presidential prospects, is set to address the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, which opened yesterday and finishes tomorrow. Shortly after voting to acquit Trump at his second impeachment trial, McConnell delivered a scalding denunciation of him from the Senate floor, calling him “morally responsible” for the Jan. 6 storming of the US Capitol in Washington. Trump responded by calling McConnell a “dour, sullen and unsmiling political hack.” While Trump was in office, they secured key Senate victories, such as 2017 tax cuts, and confirmations of three US Supreme Court justices and more than 200 other federal judges. The relationship between the two soured after Trump said that the presidential election on Nov. 3 last year was “rigged.” It deteriorated further last month, after Republicans lost Senate control with two Georgia runoff defeats followed by the attack on the Capitol. On the day of the riot, McConnell railed against “thugs, mobs or threats,” and described the attack as “this failed insurrection.” Still, McConnell’s comments on Thursday might prove prescient. US Senator Mitt Romney, a
EX-AIDE’S ALLEGATIONS: Bill de Blasio said the charges were serious and ‘a full and independent investigation’ was warranted into the accusations by Lindsey Boylan
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday joined a growing chorus of politicians calling for an investigation into sexual harassment allegations made against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Lindsey Boylan, a former aide to Cuomo, in a blog post published on Wednesday accused the governor of sexually harassing her when she worked for his administration from 2015 to 2018. She wrote that Cuomo kissed her on the mouth without consent, suggested that they played strip poker during a flight, and went “out of his way to touch me on my lower back, arms and legs.” Cuomo’s office said in a statement that Boylan’s “claims of inappropriate behavior are quite simply false.” When Boylan first accused Cuomo of sexual harassment, without providing details, on Twitter in December last year, the 63-year-old governor said it was “just not true.” “We need a full and independent investigation,” De Blasio said. “This is a very serious charge. We have got to know the truth.” Tina Tchen, president of the Time’s Up Foundation, which campaigns against sexual harassment, said that the Cuomo administration “should conduct a full and independent investigation into these claims immediately.” The harassment allegations come as Cuomo faces a growing storm over his handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes in his state. New York federal prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into whether his administration deliberately concealed the number of deaths in care homes. His government was forced to revise the number of fatalities up from 8,500 to 15,000, after New York State Attorney General Letitia James said that the administration had underestimated the toll by several thousand. Cuomo is also facing accusations that he is a bully, after state lawmaker Ron Kim said that the governor vowed to “destroy” him for attacking Cuomo on the nursing home claims.
Lady Gaga’s dog walker was shot on Wednesday and two of the singer’s French bulldogs were stolen in Hollywood during an armed robbery, police said. The singer is offering a US$500,000 reward. The dog walker was shot once and is expected to survive his injuries, said Los Angeles Police Captain Jonathan Tippett, commanding officer of the department’s Robbery-Homicide Division. The man was walking three of Lady Gaga’s dogs at the time, but one escaped. That dog has been recovered safely. Tippett told reporters that the dogs belong to pop star Lady Gaga. It is not yet clear if the dog walker was targeted because of his celebrity client, the captain said. Lady Gaga is offering the reward for the return of her dogs — whose names are Koji and Gustav — with no questions asked, her representative said. An e-mail address for tips has been set up. Lady Gaga is in Rome to film a movie. Police were initially called to North Sierra Bonita Avenue, a street off Sunset Boulevard, at about 9:40pm following several calls to emergency services reporting a man screaming and the sound of a gunshot, said Captain Steven Lurie, commanding officer of the department’s Hollywood Division. The man who was shot, whose name has not been released, was walking the dogs when a white Nissan Altima pulled over and two men tried to steal the animals, police said. “Two suspects exited the vehicle and demanded the victim turn over the dogs at gunpoint,” a police statement said. “The victim struggled with the suspects and was shot once by one of the suspects.” The suspects nabbed two of the three dogs and drove off in the sedan, the statement said. Video captured by the doorbell camera of a nearby home shows the white sedan pulling up next to the dog walker and two men in dark clothing getting out. Although most of
The EU on Thursday declared Venezuela’s ambassador to the bloc “persona non grata” in a tit-for-tat move after Caracas expelled its own envoy. A statement said that member states had agreed on the move, proposed by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell after Venezuela ordered the European ambassador to leave. “This is a response to the decision by the Venezuelan government to declare the head of the EU delegation to Venezuela as persona non grata,” it said. “The EU considers this declaration as wholly unwarranted, and contrary to the EU’s objective of developing relations and building partnerships in third countries.” Venezuelan Ambassador to the EU Claudia Salerno wrote on Twitter that “the independence and sovereignty of our homeland are not negotiable.” On Wednesday, Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs Jorge Arreaza announced the move against EU Ambassador to Venezuela Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa and gave her 72 hours to leave the country. That came two days after EU foreign ministers agreed to sanction 19 Venezuelan officials for “undermining democracy.” The EU expanded its sanctions list after rejecting a legislative election in December last year that saw Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro win control of the Venezuelan National Assembly after an opposition boycott. Until the disputed vote, the assembly was run by an opposition majority with Juan Guaido at the helm as speaker — the only branch of government not under Maduro’s control. Guaido is considered Venezuela’s legitimate head of state by about 50 foreign governments, while Maduro is subject to Western sanctions and labeled a dictator over alleged voter fraud and other abuses.
Hasbro on Thursday created confusion when it announced that it would drop the “Mr” from the Mr Potato Head brand to be more inclusive and so all could feel “welcome in the Potato Head world.” It also said it would sell a new playset this fall without the Mr and Mrs designations that would let kids create their own type of potato families. However, Hasbro later on Thursday wrote on Twitter that while the brand is changing, the actual Mr and Mrs Potato Head characters would still live on and be sold in stores. In an image posted on Twitter, the “Mr” and “Mrs” names are less prominently displayed at the bottom of the box, instead of the top. “While it was announced today that the POTATO HEAD brand name & logo are dropping the ‘MR.’ I yam proud to confirm that MR. & MRS. POTATO HEAD aren’t going anywhere and will remain MR. & MRS. POTATO HEAD,” the company wrote. The post came after news of the brand name change exploded on Twitter, with people asking if Barbie would change her name next. “I think Hasbro needs to drop the ‘Bro’ and just be ‘Has,’” another person wrote. Hasbro appears to want to have it both ways: expand the brand, while not killing off its most iconic characters, which appeared in the Toy Story films. “They are looking to broaden the franchise,” said Robert Passikoff, founder of marketing consultancy Brand Keys. “You take the focus of what is essentially one character and now allow it to be a platform for many characters.” Kimberly Boyd, a senior vice president at Hasbro, said that the intention of the brand name change was to be more inclusive and to have the characters still live within the Potato Head universe. “It created a lot of excitement,” she said about the reaction. “It’s a potato,
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