Putin, in Tehran, gets strong support from Iran over Ukraine
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin won staunch support from Iran on Tuesday for his country’s military campaign in Ukraine, with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei saying the West opposes an “independent and strong” Russia.
Khamenei said that if Russia hadn’t sent troops into Ukraine, it would have faced an attack from NATO later, a statement that echoed Putin’s own rhetoric and reflected increasingly close ties between Moscow and Tehran as they both face crippling Western sanctions. NATO allies have bolstered their military presence in Eastern Europe and provided Ukraine with weapons to help counter the Russian attack.
“If the road would have been open to NATO, it will not recognize any limit and boundary,” Khamenei told Putin. Had Moscow not acted first, he added, the Western alliance “would have waged a war” to return the Crimean Peninsula that Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014 back to Kyiv’s control.
In only his second trip abroad since Russia launched the military action in February, Putin conferred with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the conflict in Syria, and he used the trip to discuss a U.N.-backed proposal to resume exports of Ukrainian grain to ease the global food crisis.
Turkey, a NATO member, has found itself opposite Russia in bloody conflicts in Syria and Libya. It has even sold lethal drones that Ukrainian forces have used to attack Russian troops. But Ankara hasn’t imposed sanctions on the Kremlin, making it a sorely needed partner for Moscow. Grappling with runaway inflation and a rapidly depreciating currency, Turkey also relies on the Russian market.
Erdogan made Putin wait for nearly a minute before entering the room for talks and then praised what he described as Russia’s “very, very positive approach” during last week’s grain talks in Istanbul. He voiced hope a deal will be made, and “the result that will emerge will have a positive impact on the whole world.”
Speaking to Erdogan as their meeting began, Putin thanked him for his mediation to help “move forward” a deal on Ukrainian grain exports. “Not all the issues have been resolved yet, but it’s good that there has been some progress,” Putin added.
He later told reporters that Moscow would accept a deal to facilitate Ukrainian grain shipments if the West lifts restrictions on Russian grain exports.
“We have reached a preliminary agreement on that with international organizations, which have taken the labor to turn it all into a package,” Putin said. “Let’s see how it all evolves in the nearest time.”
He noted that “the Americans have effectively lifted the restrictions on Russian fertilizer supplies to global markets,” adding that “if they sincerely want to improve the situation in the global food market, I hope they will do the same with Russian grain exports.”
U.N., Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish officials had reached a tentative agreement on some aspects of a deal to ensure the export of 22 million tons of desperately needed grain and other agricultural products trapped in Ukraine’s Black Sea ports by the fighting. Reaching the agreement would mark a major step toward alleviating a food crisis that has sent prices of vital commodities like wheat and barley soaring.
Asked whether the talks with Ukraine on a political settlement could resume, Putin said that Russia was grateful to Erdogan and other international mediators but noted hat “we are seeing that Kyiv’s authorities have no such desire.”
The trip to Tehran has symbolic meaning for Putin’s domestic audience as well, showing off Russia’s international clout even as it grows increasingly isolated and plunges deeper into confrontation with the West. It comes just days after U.S. President Joe Biden’s visited Israel and Saudi Arabia — Tehran’s primary rivals.
From Jerusalem and Jeddah, Biden urged Israel and Arab countries to push back on Russian, Chinese and Iranian influence that has expanded with the perception of America’s retreat from the region.
It was a tough sell. Israel maintains good relations with Putin, a necessity given Russian presence in Syria, Israel’s northeastern neighbor and frequent target of its airstrikes. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have declined to pump more oil beyond a plan approved by their energy alliance with Moscow.
But all the countries — despite their long-standing rivalries — could agree on drawing closer to counter Iran, which has rapidly advanced its nuclear program since former U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned Tehran’s atomic accord with world powers and reimposed crushing sanctions. Talks to restore the deal have hit a deadlock.
Backed into a corner by the West and its regional rivals, the Iranian government is ramping up uranium enrichment, cracking down on dissent and grabbing headlines with optimistic, hard-line stances intended to keep the Iranian currency, the rial, from crashing. Without sanctions relief in sight, Iran’s tactical partnership with Russia has become one of survival, even as Moscow appears to be undercutting Tehran in the black market oil trade.
“Iran is (the) center of dynamic diplomacy,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian wrote on Twitter, adding the meetings will “develop economic cooperation, focus on security of the region ... and ensure food security.”
Fadahossein Maleki, a member of the Iranian parliament’s influential committee on national security and foreign policy, described Russia as Iran’s “most strategic partner” on Monday. His comments belied decades of animosity stemming from Russia’s occupation of Iran during World War II — and its refusal to leave afterward.
In a sign of increasingly close military cooperation, Russian officials in recent weeks visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice to review Tehran’s weapons-capable drones for possible use in Ukraine, the White House has alleged.
Putin hailed the importance of close ties between Moscow and Tehran at his meetings with the Iranian leaders.
“Our relations are developing at a good pace,” Putin said at the start of the meeting with Raisi, adding that they two countries have worked to “strengthen their cooperation on international security and contribute significantly to the Syrian settlement.”
In a closing statement, he offered strong support to Tehran over the deadlocked nuclear deal, calling for its full revival and a complete lifting of sanctions against Iran to allow a “free development of cooperation in any areas without any discrimination.”
During their trilateral talks, the presidents discussed the decade-old conflict in Syria, where Iran and Russia have backed President Bashar Assad’s government, while Turkey has supported armed opposition factions. Russia intervened in the conflict in 2015, pooling efforts with Iranian forces and using its air power to shore up Assad’s fledgling military.
Erdogan focused on Turkey’s action to push from its borders U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters, following up on previous threats of a new military offensive in northern Syria. The planned operation is part of Turkey’s efforts to create a safe zone along its border with Syria that would encourage the voluntary return of Syrian refugees.
Erdogan said Turkey was determined to “drive out the centers of evil” that target Turkey’s security.
He said Ankara expects Russia and Iran “to support Turkey in this fight,” adding that the regions of Tel Rifaat and Manbij — where Turkey has said it planned to send its troops — had turned into a “terror bed.”
“The greatest favor that would be made to the Syrian people would be the complete removal of the separatist terrorist organization from territories that it occupies,” Erdogan said.
In an apparent reference to Turkey’s concerns, the three presidents said in a joint statement that they “rejected all attempts to create new realities on the ground under the pretext of combating terrorism, including illegitimate self-rule initiatives, and expressed their determination to stand against separatist agendas.”
At the same time, in an earlier, separate meeting with Erdogan, Khamenei sternly warned against the planned Turkish incursion.
“Any sort of military attack in northern Syria will definitely harm Turkey, Syria and the entire region, and will benefit terrorists,” Iran’s top leader said, stressing the need to “bring the issue to an end through talks.”
Humanitarian issues in Syria have also come into focus since Russia used its veto power at the U.N. Security Council last week to restrict aid deliveries to 4.1 million people in Syria’s rebel-held northwest after six months, instead of a year. Erdogan stressed that six months weren’t enough.
Raisi said all parties urged expelling American forces from Syria. In a reference to the U.S. military, Putin denounced what he described as “attempts to cement unlawful foreign military presence and foment separatist sentiments,” and emphasized that all areas east of the Euphrates River should return to Syrian government control.
- Source: AP
What Alex Rodriguez said before Jennifer Lopez married Ben Affleck
(CNN) Alex Rodriguez sounds like he has no hard feelings when it comes to his split from Jennifer Lopez.
Days before Lopez married Ben Affleck in Las Vegas, an episode of "The Martha Stewart Podcast" featuring Rodriguez was released.
The former baseball player was asked about his former relationship with Lopez, to whom he had been engaged to for two years, until they called in quits in April 2021.
Rodriguez said he had no regrets, adding "We had a great time."
"More importantly, we always put the kids front and center in everything we do," he said. "Here's what I will tell you about Jennifer and I was telling some of my colleagues here the other day: She's the most talented human being I've ever been around, [the] hardest worker. And I think she is the greatest performer, live performer, in the world today that's alive."
When they were together, the pair were often seen in the company of their children from previous relationships.
As for life post Lopez, Rodriguez said he's "never been healthier, happier and more grateful."
It's official, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are married
(CNN) Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have officially tied the knot, a source close to Lopez tells CNN.
The couple wed Saturday, during an "intimate ceremony in Las Vegas," the source said.
Lopez confirmed their Vegas wedding in her newsletter Sunday, ending the letter with a new name: Mrs. Jennifer Lynn Affleck.
"Last night we flew to Vegas, stood in line for a license with four other couples, all making the same journey to the wedding capital of the world," Lopez wrote. "We barely made it to the little white wedding chapel by midnight. They graciously stayed open late a few minutes, let us take pictures in a pink Cadillac convertible, evidently once used by the king himself (but if we wanted Elvis himself to show, that cost extra and he was in bed)."
Lopez wrote she wore a dress from an old movie and Affleck wore a jacket from his closet.
"We read our own vows in the little chapel and gave one another the rings we'll wear for the rest of our lives," she wrote. "In the end it was the best possible wedding we could have imagined."
The Bennifer love saga is one that's been more than 20 years in the making. The couple initially met in December 2001 on the set of the rom-com "Gigli," where they played criminals stuck on a job together and the pair strike up real-life friendship.
By November 2002, the two were engaged, but postponed their wedding in September 2003 citing "the excessive media attention" surrounding their wedding.
They never made it down the aisle and officially called off their engagement in January 2004.
It then took another 17 years -- with children and marriages -- before Lopez and Affleck found their way back to one another.
Affleck proposed to Lopez again in April while she was soaking in a bubble bath.
"I was taken totally off guard and just looked in his eyes smiling and crying at the same time trying hard to get my head around the fact that after 20 years this was happening all over again, I was quite literally speechless and he said, 'is that a yes?' I said YES of course that's a YES," she wrote in her newsletter.
- Source: CNN
Netflix loses subscribers, but stops the bleeding
New York (CNN Business) Netflix reported Tuesday that it lost 970,000 subscribers in the second quarter of 2022 — a number far lower than its own forecasts, which had projected that the streaming giant would lose two million subscribers.
The company also said it would add another one million subscribers in the third quarter, a number that was slightly lower than Wall Street expectations. But investors were clearly happy with the results, and Netflix shares jumped as much as 8% on Tuesday in after-hours trading.
After disclosing in April that it lost 200,000 subscribers, leading to a steep drop in its share price, all eyes were on Netflix Tuesday, with Wall Street, Hollywood and the media world all hyper-focused on its subscription numbers. The company's shares had dropped dramatically during a nightmare year.
But Netflix's second quarter profit came in at $1.4 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue jumped roughly 8.6% year over year, to $7.9 billion.
Netflix's biggest subscriber loss came from its biggest market, the United States and Canada, where the streamer said it lost 1.3 million users in the second quarter. But that was offset by increased subscriptions elsewhere.
"Our challenge and opportunity is to accelerate our revenue and membership growth by continuing to improve our product, content, and marketing as we've done for the last 25 years, and to better monetize our big audience," the company said Tuesday in its letter to investors. "We're in a position of strength given our $30 billion-plus in revenue, $6 billion in operating profit last year, growing free cash flow and a strong balance sheet."
Running back up the hill
Netflix (NFLX) needs this type of result right now. The most recent quarter showed the biggest subscriber loss in its 25-year history, but even that could be considered a win for the company right now that the numbers came in much lower than expected.
In April's earnings report, the company disclosed that it lost subscribers for the first time in more than a decade. Its stock tumbled, hundreds of employees were laid off and doubts ran rampant about the company's future — and about the streaming business as a whole.
On Tuesday, those concerns all but vanished as investors were pleasantly surprised that the losses weren't worse, and cheered with the company's projection that it will see growth in the third quarter.
One thing that likely helped the Netflix subscriber count from falling further in the second quarter: The fourth season of its science fiction horror series "Stranger Things," which was wildly popular.
"In its first four weeks, 'Stranger Things' season four generated 1.3 billion hours viewed, making it our biggest season of English [language] TV ever," the company said.
The streamer's results Tuesday still showed losses for a company that needs to grow. Yet, after the last hellish months for Netflix, the company and really all of streaming can breathe a sigh of relief. And the company got some breathing room to right the ship without the pressures of a plummeting stock or negative press.
Long-term solutions
On Tuesday, Netflix explained to investors how it plans to keep the company on the right track.
"In the near term, a key priority to re-accelerate revenue growth is to evolve and improve our monetization," Netflix said in its shareholders letter.
In the early days of streaming, Netflix kept its "pricing very simple with just one plan level" before introducing multiple pricing tiers in 2014, the company wrote. Going forward it will "focus on better monetizing usage through both continued optimization of our pricing and tiering structures."
That includes a new, lower-price tier that will be supported by advertisements, which will "complement our existing plans." The company said it expects to launch the plan "around the early part of 2023."
It was reported last week that Netflix would partner with Microsoft (MSFT) on building this new ad tier.
"They are investing heavily to expand their multi-billion advertising business into premium television video, and we are thrilled to be working with such a strong global partner," Netflix said. "Our advertising business in a few years will likely look quite different than what it looks like on day one."
Netflix also spoke about clamping down on password sharing, saying that it's in the "early stages of working to monetize the [more than] 100 million households that are currently enjoying, but not directly paying for, Netflix."
"We know this will be a change for our members," the company said. "Our goal is to find an easy-to-use paid sharing offering that we believe works for our members and our business that we can roll out in 2023."
- Source: CNN
Judge orders October trial for lawsuit between Elon Musk and Twitter
New York (CNN Business) In an early victory for Twitter, a judge on Tuesday ruled that the company's lawsuit against Elon Musk over their $44 billion acquisition agreement should go to a five-day trial in October.
The decision came at the end of the first hearing in the case over whether to expedite the proceedings. When it filed the suit last week, days after Musk moved to terminate the deal, Twitter (TWTR) filed a motion to expedite the proceedings and requested a four-day trial in September. Musk's legal team opposed the motion.
Tuesday's hearing featured sharply worded arguments from both sides — including Twitter's lawyer at one point referring to Musk as a "committed enemy" — setting the stage for what is almost certain to be a contentious legal battle.
Twitter's lead counsel William Savitt came out swinging against Musk at the start of the hearing as he argued in favor of a speedy trial. Savitt said the continued uncertainty hanging over the company from the outstanding deal and litigation "inflicts harm on Twitter everyday, every hour and every day." He also pointed to what he described as Musk's continued disparagement of Twitter, including on its own platform.
"Musk has been and remains contractually obligated to use his best efforts to close this deal," Savitt said. "What he's doing is the exact opposite; it's sabotage."
Musk lawyer Andrew Rossman pushed back saying that Musk "doesn't have an incentive to keep this hanging for a long time," noting that the billionaire remains one of Twitter's largest shareholders. He also noted that Twitter did not sue Musk over his alleged breaches of the deal until after he moved to terminate the deal, suggesting that the company's wait invalidated its desire for expedition. (The judge in her comments said Twitter's timing was not "unreasonable.")
Musk's team proposed that the dispute should go to trial early next year. "We're not opposing expedition full stop, we're not asking for years here," Rossman said. "What we're offering instead, Your Honor, is an incredibly rapid and sensible schedule."
Following each side's argument, the judge overseeing the case, Delaware Court of Chancery chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, said Musk's side "underestimate the ability of this court ... to quickly process complex litigation."
"The reality is that delay threatens irreparable harm [to Twitter] ... the longer the delay, the greater the risk," McCormick said in announcing the scheduling plan. She added that while few cases warrant a trial longer than five days, she would entertain a request from either side to extend the trial if necessary.
Even with this early scheduling dispute, the stakes were high for Twitter. The company was already struggling to grow its user base and advertising business before Musk's involvement, and now it and many other tech companies are pulling back on costs amid rampant inflation and fears of a recession. Twitter needs a swift resolution to the battle with Musk in order to limit the uncertainty for its shareholders, employees and customers, and any fallout for its business that could be exacerbated by costly, prolonged litigation.
Although Tuesday's hearing was largely a procedural one, it offered a look at how each side may approach what is likely to be a messy litigation process. It may also provide a glimpse as to how the judge overseeing the case is approaching the dispute.
"There may be hints from what she asks and what she says, and what they say, during the hearing that may tell us something," said Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law.
The case has already hit a small snag: While the hearing was originally scheduled to take place in-person, McCormick sent a letter to the two parties on Monday alerting them that she tested positive for Covid-19 and would be moving the hearing to Zoom.
Less than three months after the blockbuster acquisition deal was inked, Musk moved to terminate the agreement. He accused Twitter of breaching the deal by making misleading statements about the number of bot and spam accounts on the platform, and by allegedly withholding data Musk says he needs to evaluate the scale of the issue.
Twitter hit back last week in a 60-plus-page lawsuit alleging that it is Musk who has violated the agreement. In the suit, Twitter suggested Musk is using bots as a pretext to try to exit a deal over which he now has buyer's remorse, following the market downturn that has tanked Twitter shares, as well as those of Tesla (TSLA), which the billionaire is relying on in part to finance the deal.
Rossman on Tuesday called the idea that Musk's concerns about bots are a pretext to exit the deal "nonsense."
"We have reason to believe, based on what we've seen so far, that the real numbers [of bots and fake accounts on Twitter] are significantly higher [than Twitter has publicly reported], with enormous implications for the long-term value of the company," Rossman said. He added that Twitter's claims that Musk is in breach of the deal are "manufactured in order to try to strip Mr. Musk of his rights claim that he can terminate the agreement."
Twitter has asked the court to compel Musk to complete the deal to buy the company. While many legal experts say Twitter likely has the stronger argument in the dispute, some also expect the company may end up settling with the billionaire if the case starts to drag on, in an effort to reduce the disruption to its business.
As with the dispute generally, Twitter and Musk were far apart on whether to have a speedy trial. In its motion, Twitter said the expedition is necessary to ensure the deal can be completed prior to the "drop dead" date of October 24 that the two sides previously agreed to close the deal by, and to "protect Twitter and its stockholders from the continuing market risk and operational harm resulting from Musk's attempt to bully his way out of an airtight merger agreement."
In a Friday court filing, Musk's lawyers called Twitter's request an "extreme expedition" and claimed that the dispute is "extremely fact and expert intensive, requiring substantial time for discovery." They also claimed that the original agreement stipulated that drop-dead date would no longer apply if one party filed litigation over the deal, calling Twitter's request "moot," and asked that a 10-day trial be scheduled for on or after February 13, 2023.
Twitter's lawyer on Tuesday pushed back on Musk's team's claim that the discovery process would take months because it would require digging into the details related to the number of bot and fake accounts on the platform. The bot question is "emphatically and plainly not before the court in this case," Savitt said.
"Nothing in the merger agreement turns on that question, there is no representation or warranty in the merger that is related to how many false accounts there may be on Twitter," Savitt said. He added that "Musk could have conducted diligence about this issue" prior to signing the deal but did not.
Meanwhile, Twitter continues to take the steps necessary to proceed with the acquisition. The company on Friday sent a letter to shareholders inviting them to vote on the deal to sell Twitter to Musk for $54.20 per outstanding share at a special meeting on an undisclosed date and time later this year, according to a regulatory filing. Twitter's board previously unanimously recommended that shareholders vote in favor of the deal, a position it reiterated in the letter.
Despite Musk's move to terminate the deal, "we are committed to closing the merger on the price and terms agreed upon with Mr. Musk," the Friday letter states. "Your vote at the special meeting is critical to our ability to complete the merger."
- Source: CNN
UK smashes its hottest-day record, 100 million Americans under alerts in global heat emergency
(CNN) Heat waves across multiple continents have dashed records, threatened public health and buckled infrastructure, in what scientists say are signs of the climate crisis' impact on day-to-day weather.
Americans are used to switching on their air conditioners any time temperatures near 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 degrees Celsius). But in the UK, record-shredding heat this week has brought life to a pandemic-esque standstill.
Temperatures in the UK breached 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) for the first time on Tuesday, making it the country's hottest day on record.
In the US, one-third of the population was under heat-related weather warnings on Tuesday and Wednesday, with temperatures expected to climb north of 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius) in the Plains states.
Looking at the cause of these heat extremes in the US and Europe, there are different systems at play.
In Europe, a strong ridge of high pressure has allowed temperatures to build over the continent for the past several days. On Tuesday, an area of low pressure was moving in off the coast, acting to help funnel the extreme heat northward into the UK.
In the US, a strong dome of high pressure has set up over the Southern Plains and Mississippi Valley. Instead of heat being funneled in from the south, it is building unabated as the sun bakes down through cloudless skies.
The connecting tissue between these heat waves is the influence of greenhouse gas emissions and the planet's ever-warming baseline temperature.
The UK Met Office's chief scientist, Stephen Belcher, was in a state of disbelief as he delivered a video statement about the shocking temperatures the country experienced Tuesday, noting they would have been "virtually impossible" the UK in an "undisrupted climate."
"But climate change driven by greenhouse gases have made these temperatures possible, and we're actually seeing that possibility now," he said, adding that if the world keeps emitting greenhouse gases at the level it is now, such heat waves are likely to occur there every three years.
Forty degrees Celsius mat not be that hot to someone sitting in the Central US, Australia, the Middle East or in northern India. In the UK, it forced people to work from home and students to study remotely. Authorities told people not to take trains, which become dangerous on hot tracks that expand and bend in the heat.
In other words, don't leave home.
But in the UK, which is more likely to struggle with cold rather than hot, homes too are designed to keep heat in. Desk fans are selling out all over the country, but they only go so far.
The weather has got Brits so hot and bothered, poor heat management has become the latest criticism hurled at the nation's outgoing prime minister Boris Johnson -- this week held up as another example of the disgraced leader's failures.
"The all-time temperature record for the UK has not just been broken, it has been absolutely obliterated," said Hannah Cloke, natural hazards researcher at the University of Reading. "The mark of 39 degrees Celsius will never even exist as a UK temperature record, because we have just soared past it into the 40s in a single sweaty leap."
The UK is woefully unprepared for the impacts of the climate crisis. It struggles to manage floods when they occur. In the heat, the nation buckles.
So many fires ignited in London on Tuesday that the city's fire brigade declare a "major incident" and were stretched beyond their capacity. Four people have drowned as people flocked to beaches, rivers and lakes just to try to get cool. Even a runway at an airport on London's outskirts had to be closed off as it melted in the heat.
In southern Europe, a region more accustomed to extreme heat, at least 1,100 people have died in the latest heat wave, and French firefighters are overwhelmed with blazes tearing through forests. Twenty-one European nations are under heat-related warnings.
Americans may be more used to the heat, but heat waves are getting longer and more frequent there too, which means more time indoors, or wherever the air conditioning may be. No fewer than 100 million Americans -- almost a third of the nation -- were under heat alerts on Tuesday.
The alerts run from the southern Plains into the Mississippi and Tennessee River Valleys, and there are scattered alerts through the Southwest. The Northeast has already issued heat advisories for heat "feeling like" 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius) for Wednesday.
The most dangerous heat is forecast around parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas where excessive heat warnings are in place for Dallas, Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Little Rock. Temperatures there are expected to soar to 100 to 110 degrees Farhenheit (as high as 43 degrees Celsius) over the next few days.
Scientists who work on just how much of a role the climate crisis is playing in extreme weather now say that just about every heat wave in the world is influenced by humans burning fossil fuels.
Friederike Otto from the Grantham Institute for Climate Change at Imperial College London said that it was up to the world to reach net zero -- where humans emit as little greenhouse gas as possible and "offsets" the rest -- to stop heat waves from becoming even worse, "deadly and disruptive."
"We have the agency to make us less vulnerable and redesign our cities, homes, schools and hospitals and educate us on how to keep safe," Otto told CNN. "40 degrees Celsius in the UK is not an act of god, but to a large degree due to our past and present burning of fossil fuels."
In China, the annual "sanfu" -- which is usually three lots of 10 days in July and August when temperatures and humidity peak -- is now forecast to run for an "extended period" of 40 days, the state weather forecaster said, according to Reuters.
It warned of scorching heat waves this week, despite seasonal rain, with temperatures likely climb as high as 42 degrees Celsius (107.6 Fahrenheit) in the south from Wednesday.
In central London on Tuesday, a student named Asser who braved the heat told CNN that world wasn't doing enough to battle the heat waves.
"In fact, the world is doing nothing. The world is burning and we are doing nothing about it. We are just consuming, the industry is running and nobody is doing anything about the climate" he said.
"You've got heat waves in Europe and London and US, everywhere -- you can see it, it's obvious. You've got floods and wildfires and everything."
- Source: CNN
TCIG Making Payments Safer & More Convenient (Cashless)
The Financial Services and Supplies Management Unit (Treasury) of the Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment, understands the need to continuously improve on business processes to better serve its customers by finding ways to make payment collection easier, safer and more convenient.
As a result, we have been working with the bank on an ongoing basis to ensure that Point of Sale (POS) machines are installed at strategic locations and relevant governmental offices so that payments can be made on the spot using your debit or credit cards.
This reduces the need for persons to physically visit a Treasury location as well as minimizes the need for customers to walk around with large amounts of cash which poses a significant security risk.
Below is a list of departments and locations where payment can be made via a Point of Sale machine:
- Financial Services & Supplies Management Unit (The Treasury)
- Customs Department
- Planning Department
- Customer Services
- Revenue Deaprtment
- Road Safety Department
- Crown Land Unit
- Publishing Department
- Supreme Court
- Magistrate's Court
- TCI Community College
We urge you to continue to utilize these services to make your payment experience quicker and safer and we remain committed to exploring all options for improving your customer service experience with us.
Ministry of Health Investigates a Suspected Case of Monkeypox
As a result of the increased vigilance of the national surveillance system in response to the spread of monkeypox, the Ministry of Health and Human Services is investigating a suspected case of monkeypox. Based on the information received thus far, it is unlikely that the individual has monkeypox, however, out of an abundance of caution, the individual is being quarantined as per the protocols pending the outcome of testing. The Ministry thanks and urges its partners (public and private sector) to be unceasingly vigilant and follow established reporting protocols for detection of Monkey Pox and other communicable diseases.
Monkepox is a viral zoonosis and primarily occurs in central and west Africa, however more recently the a multi country outbreak has been occurring which is unprecedented with cases occurring in countries which are not usually endemic for this disease. Since January 1 2022, 50 countries and territories have reported cases of monkeypox. This disease is spread via human-to-human transmission and can result from close contact with respiratory secretions, skin lesions of an infected person or recently contaminated objects (such as soiled clothing or linens). Transmission via droplet respiratory particles usually requires prolonged face-to-face contact, which puts health workers, household members and other close contacts of active cases at greater risk.
The incubation period (interval from infection to onset of symptoms) of monkeypox is usually from 6 to 13 days but can range from 5 to 21 days.
Symptoms of monkeypox can include:
- Fever
- Headache
- Muscle aches and backache
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Chills
- Exhaustion
- A rash that can look like pimples or blisters that appears on the face, inside the mouth, and on other parts of the body, like the hands, feet, chest, genitals, or anus.
The rash goes through different stages before healing completely. The illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks.
Preventative measures include the following;
- Avoid close, skin-to-skin contact with people who have a rash that looks like monkeypox.
- Do not touch the rash or scabs of a person with monkeypox.
- Do not kiss, hug, cuddle or have sex with someone with monkeypox.
- Do not share eating utensils or cups with a person with monkeypox.
- Do not handle or touch the bedding, towels, or clothing of a person with monkeypox.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Persons with symptoms or signs of monkeypox should contact their health care provider for further advice and adhere to instructions to self-isolate in order to prevent further disease spread.
The Ministry of Health will continue to provide updates as they become available.
Claudell Seymour-Miller Appointed as Vice Principal of the HJ Robinson High School
The Office of the Deputy Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands is pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs. Claudell Seymour-Miller to the post of Vice Principal of the Helena Jones Robinson High School within the Ministry of Education, Labour, Employment and Customer Services.
Mrs. Seymour-Miller professional life in Education, Psychology and Administration began in 2007 when she graduated from the Turks and Caicos Islands Community College with an Associate’s degree in Elementary Education.
She then went on to pursue her Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Development with a concentration in Child and Adolescent Development and a Minor in Psychology, graduating Magnum Cum Laude from Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 2010.
Upon completing her bachelor’s degree, she returned to the Turks and Caicos Islands and joined the public service employed at the time at the largest secondary school in the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Clement Howell High as a Guidance Counsellor.
After spending three years in this role she decided to further advance her education by enrolling in the prestigious Bristol University in the United Kingdom where she completed a Master of Education Degree in Counselling in Education in 2014.
Since then Mrs. Seymour- Miller was employed as a Guidance Counsellor at the H.J. Robinson High School for the past 7 years before being appointed as Acting Vice Principal in January 2022.
Commenting on her new appointment Mrs. Seymour-Miller stated:
“I am constantly guided by the scripture verse: ‘For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. '” — Jeremiah 29:11.
Humbled and honored are the two words that are fitting to express how I feel about this appointment.
I am more than grateful for the opportunity to serve as the Vice Principal of such a noble institution, My Alma Mater, the H.J. Robinson High School.
Having spent more than 10 years of committed service to the Education system in the Turks and Caicos Islands, my goal, with Gods’ help is to continue to give of my utmost best and to work in partnership with our well-equipped staff, supportive parents and our major stakeholders of the H.J. Robinson High School as we build upon the holistic wellbeing and success of our students and the entire success of the Education system.
Thanks to the Deputy Governor, the Ministry of Education and the Education Department for trusting me with such great responsibility. I look forward to serving in this new role.”
Deputy Governor and Head of the Public Service Her Excellency Anya Williams in congratulating Mrs. Seymour-Miller on her new appointment stated:
“It gives me great pleasure to congratulate Mrs. Claudell Seymour-Miller on her appointment as the new Vice Principal of the Helena Jones Robinson High School on the island of Grand Turk.
This follows on from the previous appointment of the former Vice Principal Mr. Berkley Williams to the post of Principal earlier this year.
Mrs. Seymour-Miller is a hardworking, dedicated civil servant who is passionate about the field of education and about her love for her students
.
We are certain that along with Principal Mr. Berkley Williams, our new VP Mrs. Claudell Seymour-Miller will do an excellent job at leading the H.J. Robinson High School going forward.
Congratulations on your well deserved promotion Claudell!”
'Succession' tops Emmy nominations, 'Squid Game' also scores
LOS ANGELES -- “Succession” received a leading 25 Emmy nominations Tuesday, but the satirical drama about the rich and ruthless has a landmark rival in “Squid Game,” the first non-English language series to vie for television’s top honor.
Netflix's “Squid Game,” a South Korea-set drama in which the poor are fodder for brutal games, earned a best drama nomination and 13 other bids for September’s Emmy Awards. HBO's “Succession” captured the best drama trophy and six other awards when it last vied for Emmys, in 2020.
Series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk said he appreciated that “Squid Game” was chosen as the “first milestone” for a Hollywood and U.S. change of attitude.
“Instead of just exporting the content around the world, it is now shifting to become a participant in the global content realm to facilitate exchanges of cultures around the world,” he told The Associated Press through a translator.
“Ted Lasso” was the top comedy series nominee with 20 bids and has the chance to earn its second consecutive best comedy trophy, as academy voters proved undeterred by its sophomore season turn to the emotional dark side.
Other top nominees included the tropical resort-set anthology dramedy “The White Lotus,” which also received 20 nominations; the comedies “Hacks” and “Only Murders in the Building” with 17 bids each, and teenage dysfunction drama “Euphoria.” Its star, Zendaya, was crowned best actress in 2020 and is nominated again.
Departing series that might have expected salutes were instead snubbed, including the beloved family drama “This Is Us,” which received one bid, for original music and lyrics. An equally beloved family comedy, “black-ish,” earned costume and hairstyling nominations. “Ozark,” which wrapped its run last season, fared better, with 13 bids including best drama series.
The final season for “Insecure” earned a lead comedy actress bid for its creator-star Issa Rae, while the return of “Atlanta” brought its creator and lead Donald Glover a shot at a best actor trophy to bookend his 2017 award.
The crowd-pleasing and acclaimed “ Abbott Elementary” made a splashy debut in its first year, earning seven nominations including a best comedy nod and a lead acting bid for its creator, Quinta Brunson. The recognition for the ABC show was a rare bright spot for broadcast networks, which were otherwise shut out of the comedy and drama series races.
The other nominees for best comedy series are “Barry”; “Curb Your Enthusiasm”; “Hacks”; “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”; “Only Murders in the Building”; "Ted Lasso" and “What We Do in the Shadows.”
Best drama series nominees include “Better Call Saul”; “Euphoria”; “Severance”; “Stranger Things” and “Yellowjackets.”
The modern vampire comedy “What We Do in the Shadows” and “Yellowjackets,” a combined thriller and coming-of-age saga that's created major buzz, showed that Emmy voters have both a sense of humor and adventure. Controversy apparently left them unfazed: “Dave Chappelle: The Closer,” which drew criticism for its transgender mockery, picked up a pre-recorded variety special nomination.
“Only Murders in the Building," a cheery crime romp headed by the charmingly unlikely trio of Selena Gomez, Steve Martin and Martin Short, earned best comedy actor bids for its veteran stars but left Gomez off the acting list.
Netflix's global sensation "Squid Game” followed in the footsteps of 2020 Oscar darling “Parasite,” also made in South Korea. But “Pachinko,” a sweeping and much-lauded South Korean family drama failed to garner any Emmy nods.
Emmy rules allow for a non-English language show with a U.S. production partner to compete, but it took the rise of streaming services to make it happen. The Emmys were once dominated by broadcast and later cable shows made primarily for North America, but streamers target that market and a wide swath of others — and are finding that shows made in Asia, Europe and elsewhere can carry worldwide.
The longstanding lack of shows with any dialogue other than English is demonstrated by NBC’s 1980 miniseries “Shōgun,” based on the James Clavell novel about early 17th-century Japan. The bilingual production by a U.S. studio was groundbreaking but not a trend-setter when it won the best limited series Emmy and acting nods.
“Squid Game” boosted rare Asian representation with its five acting nominations, including a lead actor bid for Lee Jung-jae and supporting actress nod for Jung Ho-yeon. The show already had proved a groundbreaker at this year’s Screen Actors Guild, where Lee and Jung received the first guild acting trophies for a non-English language show.
The series was such “a phenomenon that it would have been really odd if it hadn’t done well” with Emmy voters, said Eric Deggans, television critic for National Public Radio. The impressive number of acting nods it received indicates the academy “valued the performances they were delivering as well as the impact of the entire show.”
Other performers of Asian descent received nominations, including Sandra Oh for “Killing Eve" and Bowen Yang for “Saturday Night Live." But there were opportunities missed for Black actors, including the stars of “black-ish,” and for series recognition of Black-led shows “Atlanta' and ”Insecure," said Deggans.
Voters also missed the chance to salute the well-reviewed Native American comedy “Reservation Dogs” and another series with Native characters and culture, “Rutherford Falls,” and there's scant Latino representation in the nominations.
The other nominees for best comedy series actress besides Brunson and Rae are Rachel Brosnahan, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”; Kaley Cuoco, “The Flight Attendant”; Elle Fanning, “The Great,” and last year's winner, Jean Smart for “Hacks.”
Other nominees for actor in a comedy series include: Bill Hader, “Barry”; Nicholas Hoult, “The Great”; Jason Sudeikis, “Ted Lasso”; Steve Martin, “Only Murders in the Building”; Martin Short, “Only Murders in the Building.”
For drama series actor, the field also includes Jason Bateman, “Ozark”; Brian Cox, “Succession”; Bob Odenkirk, “Better Call Saul”; Adam Scott, “Severance” and Jeremy Strong, “Succession.”
The other best drama series actress nominees are Jodie Comer, “Killing Eve”; Laura Linney, “Ozark”; Melanie Lynskey, “Yellowjackets” and Reese Witherspoon, “The Morning Show.”
The limited series nominees are: “Dopesick"; “The Dropout”; “Inventing Anna”; “The White Lotus”; “Pam & Tommy.”
The nominees for variety talk series are: “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah”; “Jimmy Kimmel Live”; “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”; “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
The Emmy ceremony is set for Sept. 12 and will air on NBC and stream on Peacock, with a host yet to be announced.
- Source: AP Entertainment Writer Ryan Pearson contributed to this report.