RUSSIA
Blogger jailed for photo
A blogger who criticized highway patrol officers was on Friday jailed for eight-and-a-half years in a “general regime colony,” after a court ruled he posted “fake news” about Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine. Alexander Nozdrinov, 38, ran a small YouTube channel where he posted videos of highway patrol officers from his home region of Krasnodar allegedly breaking the law. He was detained in March last year after investigators accused him of posting a photograph of destroyed buildings on social media with the caption: “Ukrainian cities after the arrival of liberators.” His wife, Ekaterina, denied he had posted the image, in an interview with the SOTA media outlet, which said his arrest was orchestrated by local police as revenge for his videos.
ZIMBABWE
Six dead, 15 stuck in mine
Six miners died after a ground collapse at the Bay Horse mine in Chegutu, 100km west of the capital, Harare, state television reported on Friday. Six bodies had been retrieved from the mine by Friday night, while another 15 miners were still trapped underground and rescue efforts were under way, ZBC TV said. The mine collapsed at about 10am on Friday, trapping 34 miners underground. Although 13 managed to escape, 21 had remained trapped underground, ZBC reported.
UNITED STATES
Heavy rain swamps NY
One of New York’s wettest days in decades left the metropolitan area stunned and swamped on Friday after heavy rainfall knocked out several subway and commuter rail lines, stranded drivers on highways, flooded basements and shuttered a terminal at LaGuardia Airport for hours. About 21.97cm of rain had fallen at John F. Kennedy International Airport by nightfall on Friday, surpassing the record for any September day set during Hurricane Donna in 1960, the National Weather Service said. Parts of Brooklyn saw more than 18.41cm, with at least one spot recording 6cm in a single hour, weather and city officials said. More downpours were expected yesterday. New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams declared states of emergency and urged people to stay put if possible, but schools were open.
UNITED STATES
Trump codefendant pleads
A codefendant of former president Donald Trump on Friday pleaded guilty in a case alleging a criminal conspiracy to overturn Trump’s 2020 election loss in the state of Georgia. Scott Hall, 59, was indicted in August along with Trump and 17 others by a Fulton County grand jury. Hall, a bail bondsman, is the first defendant charged in the sprawling racketeering case to plead guilty. He originally faced seven felony charges including racketeering, conspiracy to commit computer fraud and conspiracy to defraud the state. He pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to interfere with the performance of election duties at a live-streamed hearing before Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee. Hall was sentenced to five years of probation, a US$5,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. He also agreed to write a letter of apology to the citizens of Georgia and to testify at the upcoming trials of other codefendants in the case. Hall and several other codefendants were charged with tampering with voting machines in Coffee County, Georgia, following the 2020 election won by President Joe Biden.
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
BORDER SERVICES: With the US-funded International Rescue Committee telling clinics to shut by tomorrow, Burmese refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals Healthcare centers serving tens of thousands of refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border have been ordered shut after US President Donald Trump froze most foreign aid last week, forcing Thai officials to transport the sickest patients to other facilities. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), which funds the clinics with US support, told the facilities to shut by tomorrow, a local official and two camp committee members said. The IRC did not respond to a request for comment. Trump last week paused development assistance from the US Agency for International Development for 90 days to assess compatibility with his “America First” policy. The freeze has thrown
TESTING BAN: Satellite photos show a facility in the Chinese city of Mianyang that could aid nuclear weapons design and power generation, a US researcher said China appears to be building a large laser-ignited fusion research center in the southwestern city of Mianyang, experts at two analytical organizations said, a development that could aid nuclear weapons design and work exploring power generation. Satellite photos show four outlying “arms” that would house laser bays, and a central experiment bay that would hold a target chamber containing hydrogen isotopes the powerful lasers would fuse together, producing energy, said Decker Eveleth, a researcher at US-based independent research organization CNA Corp. It is a similar layout to the US$3.5 billion US National Ignition Facility (NIF) in northern California, which in 2022 generated
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