| WFP chief: Nobel Prize message to world not to forget Sahel Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:20 PM PDT  The head of the World Food Program said winning the Nobel Peace Prize while he was visiting the impoverished and war-weakened Sahel was a message to the world that it should not forget the region. WFP Executive Director David Beasley spoke to reporters during a brief stop in Burkina Faso Friday, shortly after the agency won the Peace Prize for fighting hunger at a time when the coronavirus pandemic has driven millions more people to the brink of starvation. "The fact that I was in the Sahel when we received the announcement is really a message from above that, hey world with all the things going on around the world today please don't forget about the people in the Sahel!" said Beasley, who was in neighbouring Niger when he heard the news.
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| Armenia, Azerbaijan agree on cease-fire in Nagorno-Karabakh Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:19 PM PDT  Armenia and Azerbaijan say they have agreed to a cease-fire in Nagorno-Karbakh starting at noon Saturday. The announcement follows 10 hours of talks between the diplomats in Moscow, which were sponsored by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov said the cease-fire should pave way for talks on settling the conflict.
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| Britain, EU agree to pursue mini-deals if talks fail next week - The Times Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:00 PM PDT |
| Ferraris and frustration: Two faces of South Africa's corruption battle Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:45 PM PDT  Two images emerged this week offering starkly contradictory perspectives on the struggle against graft.
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| North Korea to defy coronavirus with huge parade Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:03 PM PDT  Nuclear-armed North Korea is expected to parade its latest and most advanced weapons through the streets of Pyongyang on Saturday, as the coronavirus-barricaded country celebrates the 75th anniversary of leader Kim Jong Un's ruling party.
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| Court: Son born abroad to gay couple is a U.S. citizen Posted: 09 Oct 2020 03:59 PM PDT  A federal appeals court has ruled against the U.S. State Department in its quest to deny the citizenship of one of two twins born abroad to a gay married couple. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Friday that a Los Angeles trial judge correctly concluded that 4-year-old Ethan Dvash-Banks was an American citizen despite being conceived with sperm of an Israeli father and born in Canada using a surrogate mother. The boy was granted a passport after the ruling, but the State Department appealed.
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| UN calls for Turkish Cypriots to close beach in Varosha Posted: 09 Oct 2020 03:40 PM PDT |
| Anti-government groups shift focus from Washington to states Posted: 09 Oct 2020 03:14 PM PDT  The alleged foiled plot to kidnap Michigan's governor is a jarring example of how the anti-government movement in the U.S. has become an internet-driven hodgepodge of conspiracy theorists who have redirected their rage from Washington toward state capitols. Deadly standoffs between FBI agents and extremists at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and Waco, Texas, stoked those groups' anger. Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, convicted in the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building that killed 168 people, were reported to have met with Michigan paramilitary activists.
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| Court allows NY virus restrictions ahead of Jewish holidays Posted: 09 Oct 2020 02:46 PM PDT  A federal judge refused Friday to block New York's plan to temporarily limit the size of religious gatherings in COVID-19 hot spots. U.S. District Judge Judge Kiyo Matsumoto issued the ruling after an emergency hearing in a lawsuit brought by rabbis and synagogues, arguing the restrictions were unconstitutional. In other areas within hot spots, indoor religious services are capped at 25 people.
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| 5 Things to Know About World Hunger Posted: 09 Oct 2020 02:05 PM PDT |
| McConnell tries to salvage Senate majority with court vote Posted: 09 Oct 2020 01:52 PM PDT  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spent a year prepping his Republican colleagues for this moment, telling them the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice is the "most important" vote they will take as senators, the chance to make "seismic change" that will stay with the nation for generations to come. Now, three weeks before Election Day, the GOP leader needs this moment more than ever. Confirmation hearings are set to begin Monday for President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee giving Republicans one last chance to salvage their Senate majority by wresting attention away from the White House and its COVID-19 response and onto the GOP's longtime goal of fashioning a conservative court.
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| Brits accused in beheading of hostages plead not guilty Posted: 09 Oct 2020 01:36 PM PDT  Two British men charged with helping the Islamic State group carry out executions and ransom negotiations for Western hostages pleaded not guilty Friday in a federal court. El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey are identified by authorities as two of four men who were dubbed "the Beatles" by hostages, who took note of their British accents. The indictment charges the men in connection with the deaths of four American hostages — journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller — as well as European and Japanese nationals who were also held captive.
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| Nobel Peace Prize spotlights the links between hunger and conflict Posted: 09 Oct 2020 01:36 PM PDT  The 2020 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to the United Nations World Food Program for its efforts to combat hunger, foster conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war. This choice starkly underscores growing concern about increasing global food insecurity and the clear connections between hunger and conflict. Today, more than 820 million people – about 1 in 9 worldwide – do not have enough to eat. They suffer from food insecurity, or not having consistent access to the right foods to keep their bodies and brains healthy. Humans need a varied diet that includes a range of critical nutrients. Food insecurity is especially important to young children and unborn babies because improper nutrition can permanently stunt brain development and growth.Hunger has many causes. It can be a weapon of war; the result of a global pandemic like COVID-19 that disrupts production; or the result of climate change, as extreme weather events and shifting climates increase crop failures around the globe. Meeting a global needThe World Food Program was created in the early 1960s at the behest of U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower. "We must never forget that there are hundreds of millions of people, particularly in the less developed parts of the world, suffering from hunger and malnutrition, even though a number of countries, my own included, are producing food in surplus," Eisenhower said in a 1960 speech to the U.N. General Assembly. "This paradox should not be allowed to continue." While the U.S. was already providing direct food aid to needy countries, Eisenhower urged other nations to join in creating a system to provide food to member states through the United Nations. The WFP is now one of the world's largest humanitarian agencies. In 2019 it assisted 97 million people in 88 countries.The WFP both provides direct assistance and works to strengthen individual countries' capacity to meet their people's basic needs. With its own fleet of trucks, ships and planes, the agency carries out emergency response missions and delivers food and assistance directly to victims of war, civil conflict, droughts, floods, crop failures and other natural disasters. When emergencies subside, WFP experts develop programs for relief and rehabilitation and provide developmental aid. Over 90% of its 17,000 staff members are based in countries where the agency provides assistance. Links between hunger and conflictThe Nobel award recognizes a key connection between hunger and global conflict. As the U.N. Security Council emphasized in a 2018 resolution, humankind can never eliminate hunger without first establishing peace. Conflict causes rampant food insecurity: It disrupts infrastructure and social stability, making it hard for supplies to get to people who need them. Too often, warring parties may deliberately use starvation as a strategy. Food insecurity also perpetuates conflict, as it drives people from their homes, lands and jobs, deepening existing fault lines and fueling grievances. Conflict-driven hunger has been widespread in the past several years in Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and Yemen. The growing threat of food insecurityFood insecurity is an urgent global challenge now and for the future. The WFP reports that unless urgent action is taken, the COVID-19 pandemic could almost double the number of people suffering from acute hunger by the end of 2020. Economic impacts of COVID-19 hit the world's poorest people hardest: If they can't work, they don't have money to buy food.In the longer term, climate change is an equally urgent threat. Agriculture is one of the industries that is most exposed and vulnerable to a shifting climate. Think of it as a "Goldilocks industry": The weather must be "just right" to grow crops, and conditions that are too hot, too cold, too rainy or too dry can mean poor harvests or total losses. All aspects of food security may be affected by climate change, including who ultimately gets the food, how much it costs and how much is wasted or lost along the way. Seeds of conflictThe best way to prevent future hunger crises is to take action before they develop. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed many flaws in global political and economic systems and worsened food insecurity for the world's poorest populations. Eisenhower, who commanded U.S. forces in Europe during World War II, understood where such conditions could lead. "In vast stretches of the earth, men awoke today in hunger. They will spend the day in unceasing toil. And as the sun goes down they will still know hunger," he observed in a 1958 speech. "They will see suffering in the eyes of their children. Many despair that their labor will ever decently shelter their families or protect them against disease. So long as this is so, peace and freedom will be in danger throughout our world. For wherever free men lose hope of progress, liberty will be weakened and the seeds of conflict will be sown."As the Nobel Peace Prize award makes clear, a world of peace and stability hinges upon everyone's receiving the most basic of human dignities: the food they need to live. [The Conversation's science, health and technology editors pick their favorite stories. Weekly on Wednesdays.]This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.Read more: * World hunger has risen for three straight years, and climate change is a cause * What if several of the world's biggest food crops failed at the same time?Jessica Eise does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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| Trump declares he's 'healed' of the coronavirus, bashes DOJ and curses in two-hour interview Posted: 09 Oct 2020 01:26 PM PDT  Declaring himself "healed" from the coronavirus, President Donald Trump on Friday did a two-hour appearance on Rush Limbaugh's radio show, during which he attacked the Justice Department, Hillary Clinton, Fox News and mail-in ballots, and dropped an F-bomb while talking about Iran. Trump, who tested positive for the coronavirus a week earlier, said doctors were initially more concerned about his prognosis than they've said publicly. "They said you were very bad," Trump said.
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| Small explosion at bakery in Lebanese capital kills 4 people Posted: 09 Oct 2020 01:06 PM PDT  A diesel tank exploded inside a Beirut building on Friday night, killing four people and injuring several others, the Lebanese Red Cross said. The state-run National News Agency said the blaze erupted inside a bakery in the basement of the building. The explosion came two months after a massive blast at Beirut's port killed nearly 200 people, injured about 6,500 and caused damage worth billions of dollars.
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| Plot puts focus on governors' safety amid threats, protests Posted: 09 Oct 2020 12:31 PM PDT  A plot to kidnap Michigan's governor has put a focus on the security of governors who have faced protests and threats over their handling of the coronavirus pandemic. While the alleged plot against Gretchen Whitmer is the most specific and highest-profile to come to light, it's far from the first threat against state officials, particularly Democrats who imposed business closures and restrictions on social gatherings. In New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said this week that news of the arrest of 13 men accused of planning the overthrow of Michigan's government rattled members of her family.
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| Why won't White House say when Trump last tested negative? Posted: 09 Oct 2020 12:13 PM PDT  It is a basic, crucial question and one the White House refuses to answer: When was President Donald Trump's last negative test for the coronavirus before he tested positive last week? "Yeah, I'm not going to give you a detailed readout with timestamps every time the president's tested," White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters last weekend. "I can't reveal that at this time," echoed Alyssa Farah, the White House director of strategic communications.
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| ‘If you f--k around with us ... we are gonna do things’: Trump threatens Iran in unhinged interview with Rush Limbaugh Posted: 09 Oct 2020 12:10 PM PDT  President Trump went on expletive-ridden rant against Iran on Friday, threatening the leaders of the Islamic Republic that his administration will do unspeakable things to them if they "f--k around with us." Trump, who's still recovering from COVID-19 in quarantine at the White House, lobbed the un-presidential threat during a freewheeling interview on conservative firebrand Rush Limbaugh's radio show. "If you f--k around with us, if you do something bad to us, we are gonna do things to you that have never been done before," Trump said.
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| Brexit negotiations will continue beyond Boris Johnson’s October 15 deadline, Michel Barnier tells EU ambassadors Posted: 09 Oct 2020 11:21 AM PDT  Brexit negotiations will continue even if a deal is not reached by Boris Johnson's October 15 deadline, Michel Barnier has informed EU ambassadors. Senior EU diplomats said Brussels simply did not believe that the Prime Minister's threat to walk out of trade talks if a deal was not "in sight" by Thursday's European Council summit. "Negotiations will continue. It is not a deadline," a senior EU diplomat said on Friday. Negotiations between the two sides closed in London on Friday and will resume in Brussels early next week. Talks are expected to continue right up until Thursday afternoon. Diplomatic sources said that the week's talks had been positive and that the summit could be a launchpad for intensive tunnel talks but only if sufficient progress was made on the major obstacles to a deal next week. The sides are still divided over the level playing field, especially subsidy law, and the enforcement of the deal. The diplomat said Mr Barnier needed "a bit more" before beginning secret, intensive "tunnel" or "submarine" talks. The EU has set a deadline of the end of October to avoid Britain leaving the transition period without a deal. It says that the agreement must be finalised by then to ensure there is time to ratify it before January 1, when the UK leaves the Single Market and Customs Union. The senior EU diplomat said he did not believe fisheries would be "a major impediment to an EU-UK agreement" even though Mr Barnier has told ambassadors Brexit means they will lose some of their share of the catch.
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| Hopes rise of Nagorno-Karabakh truce after Russian-brokered peace talks Posted: 09 Oct 2020 11:19 AM PDT  Hopes were rising for a truce on Friday after two weeks of fighting in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, in the wake of high-level talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan. France, which along with Russia and the United States is part of a group mediating peace talks to end the flare-up of the long conflict between the two countries, said there was a chance of a breakthrough but it was far from certain. "We are moving towards a truce tonight or tomorrow but it's still fragile," President Emmanuel Macron's office said in a statement, although a belligerent address from Azerbaijan's president somewhat undermined the positive noises from the talks. Fierce clashes, described as the worst since the end of the conflict in the 1990s, have claimed hundreds of lives on both sides. The conflict has also highlighted Turkey's role as a new important power broker in the South Caucasus, and the peace talks began after a Russian invitation to the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, seen as a bid to reassert influence in the region. Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, said on Thursday that he had spoken to the leaders of both countries and called on them to negotiate the cessation of hostilities in order to exchange prisoners and the bodies of fallen troops. Fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh, a separatist, ethnically Armenian exclave within the internationally recognised borders of Azerbaijan, flared up at the end of September to become the worst outburst of hostilities since 1994 when a separatist war between ethnic Armenian forces and Azerbaijan troops ended.
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| Biden, Harris dodge questions about Supreme Court expansion Posted: 09 Oct 2020 11:16 AM PDT  There are few topics that Joe Biden isn't willing to opine on — except the Supreme Court. The Democratic presidential nominee and his running mate, Kamala Harris, are refusing demands from Republicans — and some fellow Democrats — to say whether they would seek to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court. Harris dodged persistent questioning about the issue on Wednesday during her debate against Vice President Mike Pence.
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| UN: New daily record as COVID-19 cases hit more than 350,000 Posted: 09 Oct 2020 11:13 AM PDT  The World Health Organization has announced a new daily record high in coronavirus cases confirmed worldwide, with more than 350,000 infections reported to the U.N. health agency on Friday. The new daily high of 350,766 cases surpasses a record set earlier this week by nearly 12,000. In a press briefing on Friday, WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan acknowledged that even as COVID-19 continues to surge across the world, "there are no new answers."
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| Ohio county says nearly 50,000 voters received wrong ballots Posted: 09 Oct 2020 10:33 AM PDT  Nearly 50,000 voters received incorrect absentee ballots in the county that is home to Ohio's capital and largest city, elections officials said Friday as they promised corrected ballots would be mailed within 72 hours. The error happened Saturday afternoon when someone changed a setting on a machine that places absentee ballots into mailing envelopes, Franklin County elections officials said Thursday. The Franklin County Elections Board said 49,669 voters received incorrect ballots out of 237,498 that were mailed.
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| AP Explains: Transfer of power under 25th Amendment Posted: 09 Oct 2020 10:13 AM PDT  A week ago, President Donald Trump was diagnosed with the coronavirus, spent several days at Walter Reed Medical Center for treatment and evaluation, and has since returned to the White House. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi cited the amendment Friday when introducing legislation to establish a commission that would help determine whether future presidents are capable of maintaining power during an illness.
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| Nigerian police fire tear gas at #EndSars protests against brutality Posted: 09 Oct 2020 10:08 AM PDT  Protesters demand a police unit is disbanded after a video seemed to show officers killing a man.
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| Judge lets ex-cop charged in Floyd's death live out of state Posted: 09 Oct 2020 10:03 AM PDT  A Minnesota judge cited safety concerns as he issued new conditions of release for an ex-Minneapolis police officer charged in the death of George Floyd that would allow him to live in a neighboring state while he awaits trial. Derek Chauvin posted $1 million bond on Wednesday and was allowed to walk free from the maximum security state prison where he had been held for his safety since shortly after his arrest. Floyd died after Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee against Floyd's neck for several minutes even after the handcuffed Black man pleaded for air before his death May 25.
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| Trump sets big events for WH, Florida, restarting campaign Posted: 09 Oct 2020 09:46 AM PDT |
| Russian police detain Pussy Riot activists for hanging pride flags around Moscow Posted: 09 Oct 2020 09:30 AM PDT  At least five members of the punk rock activist group Pussy Riot were detained by Russian police on Thursday, one day after the collective hung rainbow Pride flags on key government buildings in Moscow. In a Facebook post shared Wednesday, the group said it held the action on Oct. 7, President Vladimir Putin's birthday, to draw attention to his administration's poor treatment of Russia's LGBTQ community.
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| How post-Brexit plans could save Dartmoor's threatened hill ponies Posted: 09 Oct 2020 09:18 AM PDT  Threatened Dartmoor hillies and other native ponies could be saved from extinction by post-Brexit plans to pay farmers and landowners to keep them. Hill ponies have been part of the Dartmoor landscape since the Bronze Age, but numbers have dwindled in recent years, from an estimated 6,500 in the 1990s to just 1,000 now. Conservationists blame EU farming subsidies focused narrowly on production, which have forced out the ponies in favour of sheep and cattle. They now hope that post-Brexit agriculture legislation which arrives into the Commons on Monday could save the ponies from extinction.
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| Gracious David-West: Nigerian serial killer sentenced to death in Port Harcourt Posted: 09 Oct 2020 08:50 AM PDT  The nine killings provoked outrage, especially in the southern city of Port Harcourt, last year.
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| Enrollment drops worry public schools as pandemic persists Posted: 09 Oct 2020 08:33 AM PDT  Rather than wait to see how her children's Florida public school would teach students this fall, Erica Chao enrolled her two daughters in a private school that seemed better positioned to provide instruction online during the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic. The private school classes, by contrast, hold the girls' attention, and their mother no longer worries they will fall behind if she doesn't attend school with them at home. Parents across the country have faced similar choices about whether to keep their children in public schools as the pandemic extends into a new academic year.
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| Iran president calls on world to condemn new US sanctions Posted: 09 Oct 2020 08:30 AM PDT |
| US, Russia said close to deal on nuclear warhead freeze Posted: 09 Oct 2020 08:15 AM PDT  U.S. and Russian negotiators have agreed in principle to continue freezing their nuclear warhead stockpiles in a bid to salvage their last remaining arms control pact before it expires next year, a person familiar with the talks said Friday. The person said it's not yet clear if the agreement for a freeze will succeed or translate into an extension of the New START treaty that expires in February. The person said President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin have signed off on the freeze, but negotiators still need to iron out details, including compliance and verification issues.
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| Kenya's Westgate trial: Man cleared of terrorism ‘seized by armed men' Posted: 09 Oct 2020 07:52 AM PDT  Liban Abdullahi Omar, who was found not guilty this week, was abducted by armed men, witnesses say.
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| Nobel win reflects 'hunger for international cooperation' Posted: 09 Oct 2020 07:44 AM PDT  At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has fractured global alliances and go-it-alone has turned ugly, some world leaders say Friday's awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the U.N. World Food Program was a commitment to the belief that only a concerted effort can save humanity from further disaster. "This not only recognizes your tireless work for food security on our planet, but also reminds the key importance of multilateralism that delivers results," European Council President Charles Michel said in a congratulatory message. More succinctly: "Multilateralism now more important than ever before," Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven tweeted.
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| Coronavirus: Is the rate of growth in Africa slowing down? Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:57 AM PDT  The overall rate of increase may be slowing, but there have still been sharp rises in some countries.
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| Russia’s Post-Soviet Hegemony Is Fading Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:49 AM PDT |
| Germany warns Thai King not to govern from its soil Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:32 AM PDT  Angela Merkel's government has warned the King of Thailand not to try to rule his country remotely from Germany, it has emerged. Thailand is in the grip of anti-government protests that have seen thousands take to the streets and growing calls for the powers of the monarchy to be curbed. But King Maha Vajiralongkorn spends most of time in Bavaria, where he has rented an entire luxury hotel for his entourage. "We have made it clear that Thai politics should not be conducted from German soil," Heiko Maas, the German foreign minister, said this week. "If there are guests in our country who choose to conduct their state business from our soil we would always want to prevent that." The foreign minister's comments were a rare glimpse of what is said to be the German authorities' growing frustration with their long-term royal guest. The 68-year-old Vajiralongkorn, who is also known as Rama X, has long preferred to reside in Germany rather than his own kingdom.
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| Nearly 3 million migrants stranded by COVID-19 - UN report Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:22 AM PDT |
| WFP fights hunger in food-deprived places, crises, war zones Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:17 AM PDT  The World Food Program won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for its efforts to combat hunger amid the coronavirus pandemic, recognition that shines light on vulnerable communities across the Middle East and Africa that the U.N. agency seeks to help, those starving and living in war zones that may rarely get the world's attention. From Yemen to South Sudan, food insecurity is a growing scourge, made worse by a mixture of military conflict, environmental disaster and the economic fallout of the pandemic. In war-torn Yemen, described as the world's worst humanitarian disaster, millions depend each month on WFP for survival.
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| Wedding before the storm: Delta speeds up couple's nuptials Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:12 AM PDT  Hurricane Delta sped up one Louisiana couple's wedding by a few days, but judging by the smiles on the bride and groom, it certainly didn't dampen the affair. Ian and Taylor Gaspard from Abbeville were supposed to get married Saturday, Oct. 10, with 300 people to wish them well inside the Saint Mary Magdalen Church, a scenic brick building in the town's center surrounded by green lawn and oak trees. After watching the storm slowly make its way toward Louisiana — and after a bit of what Taylor described as bridal hysterics — the couple swiftly changed gears and held the wedding at the church Thursday instead, with friends and family in attendance.
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| Michigan governor: `Domestic terrorists' targeted her Posted: 09 Oct 2020 06:12 AM PDT  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Friday that governors from both major political parties have reached out to share stories of extremism in their states since authorities revealed that a group of men had been plotting for months to kidnap her. "I know this isn't unique to Michigan, but this is uniquely American in this moment and it's on all of us, people of good will on both sides of the aisle, to take it on," Whitmer, a Democrat, told The Associated Press. Authorities announced Thursday that they had foiled an incredible plot to kidnap Whitmer in a scheme that even included rehearsals to snatch her from her vacation home before the Nov. 3 election.
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| And the Nobel Peace Prize goes to… Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:30 AM PDT  The United Nations World Food Program was awarded the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to combat hunger around the globe.
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| These were our 7 favorite highlights of TNW2020 Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:25 AM PDT  According to UNHCR, in 2017 alone 18.8 million people were displaced due to climate-related natural disasters. The effects of climate change are being seen across the globe, but underprivileged communities suffer greater risk due to a lack of advanced warning signals, access to resources, and more. Deputy director, climate, and environment division – CBC, Food, and Agriculture Organization at the United Nations, and Amanda Southworth, Founder and Executive Director of Astra Labs, held an illuminating session on this topic.
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| Kyrgyz president declares state of emergency amid protests Posted: 09 Oct 2020 05:10 AM PDT  The embattled president of Kyrgyzstan ordered a nearly two-week state of emergency Friday in the capital in a bid to end turmoil sparked by a disputed parliamentary election as clashes between rival factions escalated and gunshots were fired at several political leaders. President Sooronbai Jeenbekov decreed that the state of emergency, from 8 p.m. Friday through 8 a.m. on Oct. 21, could include a curfew and travel restrictions. "We are witnessing a real threat to the existence of our state," Jeenbekov said in a statement.
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| Belgium banks on King Charles II to save its fishermen from no-deal Brexit Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:49 AM PDT  Belgium will invoke a 1666 Royal charter granting its fishermen the eternal right to fish British waters if there is a no deal Brexit. Boris Johnson has threatened to quit negotiations with Brussels if a trade deal is not in sight by the Oct 15 EU summit. No-deal would hit Belgian fisherman hard because they would face being shut out of British waters. King Charles II granted 50 men of Bruges the right to fish UK waters for "eternity" after staying in the city during his 1656 to 1659 exile after the English Civil War that ended with the execution of his father, Charles I. The regional government of Dutch-speaking Flanders said it would use the ancient charter in the courts if necessary. "Our goal is to reach a negotiated deal," a spokesperson for Flemish Fisheries Minister Hilde Crevits told Belgian radio. "But if we don't reach a deal, we could invoke the charter. It dates back to 1666 but was confirmed by a UK lawyer in 1820." EU boats land about eight times more fish in UK waters than British fishermen do in EU waters. Three quarters of the fish sold in the Belgian port of Ostend are caught in British waters. "One wonders if it is in Belgium's, or anyone's interests to start going back to such historic claims. A lot could get put back on the table," a British source said. Britain began fishing negotiations with the newly established Kingdom of Belgium in 1849. A treaty was signed but Belgium insisted at the time it was "without prejudice" to the 1666 "fishing privilege". The charter was rediscovered in Bruges city archives by alderman Victor Depaepe in 1963, who wrote to Queen Elizabeth pressing the claim. Mr Depaepe, an accountant and owner of a fishing fleet, contrived to have himself arrested by the Royal Navy while fishing off the coast of East Sussex. British authorities never brought the case to court, which has fuelled speculation prosecutors believed the charter could still be legally enforceable. Dr Lee Rotherham, former director of special projects at Vote Leave, said the potential legal logjam could be easily solved. "The UK could quite legitimately state that the Bruges fishermen count against the EU quota. They just go to the top of the access list," the longstanding fisheries campaigner said. A UK government spokesman said: "We suspect that the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea might supersede this charter."
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| Judge denies motion to extend Florida's voter registration Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:46 AM PDT  A federal judge has denied a motion to extend voter registration in Florida even though a computer meltdown on the final day of registration might have prevented thousands of potential voters from taking part in November's presidential election. In a 29-page ruling on Friday morning, U.S. District Court Judge Mark E. Walker said his decision was "an incredibly close call" but added that "the state's interest in preventing chaos in its already precarious —and perennially chaotic — election outweighs the substantial burden imposed on the right to vote." Walker shared in the exasperation of voter advocacy groups even as he ruled against them, peppering his opinion with sharply worded criticisms of the state.
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| Election 2020 Today: Debates uncertain, election unrest prep Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:44 AM PDT  DEBATES UNCERTAIN: The fate of final debates between President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden was thrown into uncertainty as the campaigns offered dueling proposals for moving forward with faceoffs that have been upended by the president's coronavirus infection. It was unclear when or how the next debates would proceed, or whether voters would even get to see the two men running for the White House on the same stage again before Election Day.
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| The daily business briefing: October 9, 2020 Posted: 09 Oct 2020 04:24 AM PDT |
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