Kenyan high court blocks police deployment to Haiti
The Kenyan High Court has blocked the government’s plans to send approximately 1,000 police officers to combat gangs in Haiti.
The judge asserted that the National Security Council lacks the authority to deploy police forces abroad.
The judge’s decision emphasizes a distinction in the council’s powers, allowing for military but not police deployment in international peacekeeping missions.
Kenya had previously volunteered to lead a multinational security force to address rising gang violence in Haiti.
In response to the ruling, Kenya’s government has announced its intention to appeal.
The United Nations this month reported nearly 4,800 killings in Haiti last year, up 119 percent from 2022. It recorded 2,490 kidnappings in 2023, up 83 percent from the previous year.
Border Force Opens New office in North Caicos
A new, fit-for-purpose building to house the Ministry of Immigrations’ Border Force and customer service unit, was on Thursday (January 25) unveiled in Bottle Creek, North Caicos.
Declaring the new location open, Minister of Immigration and Border Services, Hon Arlington Musgrove noted that it was a long time getting to this point. He said the event is an unfolding of his vision for the people of North and Middle Caicos, and as their representative, he is proud to have brought it to them.
The new building is intended to afford residents enhanced access to the ministry and advanced government service on the twin islands.
The opening of the office is an extension of the government’s integration of the Customs Department, Immigration Department, and Work Permit Unit into one intelligence-led-Border Force.
The opening of the office in the Twin Islands also signals the start of phase two of the transformation to a Border Force.
Phase one was launched in October 2023, and saw the implementation of the Border Force, while phase two will be – among other things - the opening of inland units so as to further enhance TCI’s border security.
As this transition progresses, the inland element of the Border Force will be brought to life, delivering all customs and immigration enforcement, alongside the establishment of one combined services function.
The new function will strive for an innovative approach to customer service, bringing the consideration and delivery of all applications in one place to allow the government to monitor response times and more efficiently meet demands.
Later in 2024, Border Force plans to introduce digital borders, including automation for low-risk travellers, biometrics to drive security and, for the first time, one end-to-end system containing the details of all known non-citizens in the Islands.
The Customs Department, Immigration Department, and work permit unit will gradually transition to the Border Force over the next few months, aiming to launch all units within the Border Force in April 2024.
Czech Republic signs a deal with the United States to purchase fighter jets....
The Czech Republic’s government signed an agreement with the United States on Monday to acquire 24 U.S. F-35 fighter jets as part of a deal worth about 150 billion Czech koruna ($6.6 billion), the biggest single purchase for the Czech military.
Czech Defense Minister Jana Černochová and U.S. Ambassador Bijan Sabet signed a memorandum of understanding for the deal. The Czechs also signed a letter of offer and acceptance, the final step in completing a contract between the governments.
The Czech government approved the deal in September of 2023.
The first of the 24 fighter jets should be delivered in 2031, with the rest by 2035. The American aircraft will replace the 14 JAS-39 Gripen fighter jets from Sweden that are currently used by the Czech army.
The Czechs will pay almost $5 billion to the U.S. for the aircraft, training of pilots, ammunition and other costs. The remaining money will be used to finance an upgrade of the Caslav air force base in central Czech Republic, fuel and training of staff.
The Czech ministry has been negotiating the deal with the United States for more than a year during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
CONCACAF Qualifying groups, schedule for the FIFA World Cup 2026
Groups and schedule for the first and second round matches of the CONCACAF Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 announced Monday:
FIRST ROUND
March 22, 2024
Anguilla vs Turks and Caicos Islands
US Virgin Islands vs British Virgin Islands
March 26, 2024
Turks and Caicos Islands vs Anguilla
British Virgin Islands vs US Virgin Islands
* The aggregate score winner in each Play-off will progress to the second round
GROUPS
Group A: Honduras, Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, Bermuda, Cayman Islands
Group B: Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Bahamas
Group C: Haiti, Curaçao, St. Lucia, Barbados, Aruba
Group D: Panama, Nicaragua, Guyana, Montserrat, Belize
Group E: Jamaica, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Dominica, Winner Play-off 2
Group F: El Salvador, Suriname, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Winner Play-off 1
SECOND ROUND
June 5, 2024
(A) Antigua and Barbuda vs Bermuda
(B) Trinidad and Tobago vs Grenada
(C) Curaçao vs Barbados
(D) Nicaragua vs Montserrat
(E) Guatemala vs Dominica
(F) Suriname vs St. Vincent and the Grenadines
June 6, 2024
(A) Honduras vs Cuba
(B) Costa Rica vs St. Kitts and Nevis
(C) Haiti vs St. Lucia
(D) Panama vs Guyana
(E) Jamaica vs Dominican Republic
(F) El Salvador vs Puerto Rico
June 8, 2024
(A) Cayman Islands vs Antigua and Barbuda
(B) Bahamas vs Trinidad and Tobago
(C) Aruba vs Curaçao
(D) Belize vs Nicaragua
(E) Winner Play-off 2 vs Guatemala
(F) Winner Play-off 1 vs Suriname
June 9, 2024
(A) Bermuda vs Honduras
(B) Grenada vs Costa Rica
(C) Barbados vs Haiti
(D) Montserrat vs Panama
(E) Dominica vs Jamaica
(F) St. Vincent and the Grenadines vs El Salvador
June 11, 2024
(A) Cuba vs Cayman Islands
(B) St. Kitts and Nevis vs Bahamas
(C) St. Lucia vs Aruba
(D) Guyana vs Belize
(E) Dominican Republic vs Winner Play-off 2
(F) Puerto Rico vs Winner Play-off 1
June 4, 2025
(A) Bermuda vs Cayman Islands
(B) Grenada vs Bahamas
(C) Barbados vs Aruba
(D) Montserrat vs Belize
(E) Dominica vs Winner Play-off 2
(F) St. Vincent and the Grenadines vs Winner Play-off 1
June 6, 2025
(A) Antigua and Barbuda vs Cuba
(B) Trinidad and Tobago vs St. Kitts and Nevis
(C) Curaçao vs St. Lucia
(D) Nicaragua vs Guyana
(E) Guatemala vs Dominican Republic
(F) Suriname vs Puerto Rico
June 7, 2025
(A) Cayman Islands vs Honduras
(B) Bahamas vs Costa Rica
(C) Aruba vs Haiti
(D) Belize vs Panama
(E) Winner Play-off 2 vs Jamaica
(F) Winner Play-off 1 vs El Salvador
June 10, 2025
(A) Cuba vs Bermuda
(A) Honduras vs Antigua and Barbuda
(B) St. Kitts and Nevis vs Grenada
(B) Costa Rica vs Trinidad and Tobago
(C) St. Lucia vs Barbados
(C) Haiti vs Curaçao
(D) Guyana vs Montserrat
(D) Panama vs Nicaragua
(E) Dominican Republic vs Dominica
(E) Jamaica vs Guatemala
(F) Puerto Rico vs St. Vincent and the Grenadines
(F) El Salvador vs Suriname
* Group winners and runners-up (12 teams in total) will progress to the third round
Pentagon identifies Army reservists killed in drone attack on U.S. base in Jordan
The Pentagon on Monday announced the names of the three Army reservists killed in the drone attack over the weekend on a U.S. base in Jordan near the border with Syria.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh announced the names at a briefing Monday afternoon: Sgt. William Jerome Rivers, 46, of Carrollton, Georgia; Spc. Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, of Waycross, Georgia; and Spc. Breonna Alexsondria Moffett, 23, of Savannah, Georgia.
The three reservists were killed Sunday when a one-way unmanned aerial system hit their container housing units, where they were sleeping at the time. The working theory about how an enemy drone slipped past defenses at a U.S. base in Jordan is that American personnel mistook the enemy drone for one of their own returning from a surveillance mission, two U.S. officials confirmed Monday.
Source-ABC
Lionel Richie’s “pumped” to be a grandfather again
Lionel Richie’s daughter Sofia Richie Grainge and her husband, Elliot Grainge, recently announced they were expecting their first child, and Lionel is excited to be a grandfather again.
People talked to Lionel at the premiere of the Netflix "We Are The World" documentary, The Greatest Night in Pop, and he said he was “pumped up” about the upcoming addition to the family.
“I am now going to spoil yet another child in the world,” he said. “And I am not quite sure what the child will do to me, but I'm hoping that the child gives the parents a bit of a run because every parent wants to get even as to what you did to me.”
He adds, “I'm in a position right now where I'm going to love this child to death, spoil him to death. And on very special occasions give the child back so the parents can raise this child.”
Lionel, who already has two grandkids thanks to daughter Nicole Richie and hubby Joel Madden, is confident Sophia's going to be a “fantastic” mom. When it comes to guidance, he doesn't think any advice he'd offer would matter.
“These are two loving parents, and I don't think they know what's coming because every kid is different,” Lionel says. “So no matter what advice I give them, there's no manual for this. They'll figure it out.”
Source-ABC
House of Assembly passed two Gaming ‘Amendment’ Bills
A new methodology for calculating gaming machine taxes will be introduced in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The government will be moving away from tax collection based on the drop box recovery method and a new cabinet-approved Adjusted Gross Receipts system will be introduced, as part of its efforts to better regulate the gaming sector.
This comes as the House of Assembly recently passed two Gaming ‘Amendment’ Bills to bring the local Gaming Industry on par with international standards.
On Tuesday, January 23, 2024, Hon Premier Charles Washington Misick laid the
Gaming Control (Amendment) Bill 2023 and the Gaming Machines (Amendment) Bill 2023 are on the table of the House of Assembly for debate.
In presenting the bills to the House, Premier Misick underscored that the Gaming Control (Amendment) Bill 2023 is critical for the territory to stay abreast with evolving international standards, to ensure "a responsible, fair and sustainable gaming environment”.
Misick explained that the Bill further "revises the tax payable rate to 30%” of the adjusted gross receipts, creating a more streamlined and equitable tax structure.
Misick underscored that the Amendment Bill 2023 is a testament to his government’s commitment to evolving and adapting the regulatory framework to meet the challenges of the dynamic gaming industry.
Gaming is a big revenue earner for the government, however, it attracts the attention of the international community due to the money laundering concerns.
In December 2021, the House passed the Gaming Control (Amendment) Bill 2020 aimed at imposing stricter measures related to the detection or prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing and to ensure all gaming activities are completely regulated and transparent.
Caribbean tax administrators to meet in St. Lucia
The annual general assembly and technical conference of the Caribbean Organization of Tax Administrators (COTA) is scheduled to take place here in July.
The Director for Economic Policy and Development at the Guyana-based Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, Evelyn Wayne, said issues and solutions relating to the impact of the international tax agenda on Caribbean jurisdictions will feature at the conference.
Established in 1971, the COTA aims to improve tax administration within CARICOM, promote regional tax cooperation and harmonization as well as closer collaboration with other tax organizations within the region and worldwide. Saint Martin is the only observer within the grouping.
“The purpose of COTA is to improve the efficiency of tax administrators within the community. At this point when member states are encountering considerable problems with fiscal space, the issue of revenue generation is high on our agenda.
“So, our role is to collaborate to ensure that we share our experiences and for the betterment of tax administration within the Caribbean Community,” said Wayne, who is also the COTA executive secretary.
Speaking at the end of the executive council meeting held here, Wayne said it was to discuss COTA’s strategic priorities and work program for 2024 in addition to planning for the annual general assembly.
President of COTA’s executive council and Deputy Commissioner of Revenue for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Channel Andrews, said each country would have to implement its measures outside of the tax administration “but of course, revenue is key to any country.
“The more revenue we collect the better government will be able to provide services to the people of that specific country. So, once we can discuss ways that we can effectively and efficiently implement revenue measures that can better enable the collection process for the country as well as do not put a burden on the taxpayers.”
Comptroller for Inland Revenue in St. Lucia, Marcia Vite, said she is pleased that Castries will be hosting the annual general assembly.
“Countries would volunteer to host the meeting. It’s always good when you can be the host, you can show off your island and you get the opportunity to invite some of your other teammates to the meeting to listen to all of the discussions.
At these meetings, you will get more comptrollers and heads of departments coming in and making their contributions at that meeting. So it will be at that level with many speakers coming on. Speakers will range around the world. So whether it be UN speakers, OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) but more on the Caribbean and the Caribbean Experience.”
Suits beats The Office's pandemic record for top-watched streaming show in 2023
In a detailed analysis of what Americans were watching on streaming in 2023, Suits toppled a record previously held by The Office during the pandemic.
According to Nielsen data quoted by Variety, U.S. viewers watched 57.7 billion total minutes of the former USA legal drama in 2023, making it the most-watched show on streaming — and beating The Office's record of 57.1 billion from 2020.
Interestingly, we weren't all stuck at home in 2023, but viewers still found a way to cram in pandemic levels of bingeing.
Coming in second place was the kid's show Bluey on Disney+; it pulled in 43.9 billion minutes watched, followed by NCIS in third place (39.4 billion), Grey’s Anatomy (38.6 billion), and another kids show, Cocomelon (36.3 billion).
The trade points out that four of the top 10 titles stream exclusively on Netflix: Grey's, Cocomelon; the #7 spot holder, Gilmore Girls, and the tenth-place finisher, Supernatural.
Netflix also had bragging rights over the top 10 most-watched original streaming titles: Seven out of the top 10 were Netflix shows. Apple TV+'s Ted Lasso was the most-watched original show, followed by Netflix respectively filling in the rest of the top five with The Night Agent, Ginny & Georgia, Virgin River and Love is Blind.
When it comes to movies, family films dominated the top five: Disney+'s Moana was the most-watched with 11.6 billion minutes watched; Disney's Encanto (9.7 billion) was second; The Super Mario Bros. Movie was third on Netflix and Peacock with 8.8 billion; Disney's Elemental ranked fourth (8.6 billion), and Minions: The Rise of Gru rounded out the top five with 7.1 billion for Netflix.
Source-ABC
TCI 3-DAY PUBLIC WEATHER FORECAST
GENERAL SITUATION: A STRONG COLD FRONT LOCATED ACROSS THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS IS PROGRESSING QUICKLY THROUGH THE ARCHIPELAGO AND IS EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS TONIGHT.
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY WITH ISOLATED SHOWERS POSSIBLE TODAY. PARTLY CLOUDY AND BREEZY WITH A SLIGHT CHANCE OF WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS TONIGHT.
WINDS: WEST TO NORTHWEST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS, INCREASING TO 15 TO 20 KNOTS TONIGHT
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET, INCREASING TO 3 TO 5 FEET TONIGHT
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE 81°F 27°C
OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURE 73°F 23°C
SUNSET: 05:35 PM
NEXT LOW TIDE: 05:01 PM (1.0 FT)
NEXT HIGH TIDE: 11:04 PM (2.3 FT)
EXTENDED FORECAST FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS: THE AFOREMENTIONED COLD FRONT WILL MOVE EASTWARD AND PAST THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS BY TUESDAY AND THEN WEAKEN. HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD ACROSS THE AREA, SLIDE EASTWARDS, AND WEAKEN ALLOWING WINDS TO WEAKEN GRADUALLY ACROSS THE ISLANDS.
FORECAST FOR TUESDAY
WEATHER: A MIX OF SUN AND CLOUDS WITH ISOLATED SHOWER POSSIBLE…MOSTLY FAIR AND COOL AT NIGHT.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT CAUTION WILL COME INTO EFFECT
WINDS: NORTHWEST TO NORTH AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS
SEAS: 5 TO 7 FEET IN NORTHWESTERLY TO NORTHERLY SWELL
SUNRISE: 06:27 AM
SUNSET: 05:36 PM
HIGH TIDE: 05:12 AM (1.0 FT)
LOW TIDE: 11:21 AM (2.3 FT)
FORECAST FOR WEDNESDAY
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND COOL. MOSTLY FAIR, COOL, AND A BIT BREEZY AT NIGHT.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT CAUTION WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT
WINDS: LIGHT AND VARIABLE DURING THE DAY, BECOMING NORTHWEST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET IN NORTHERLY SWELL
SUNRISE: 06:27 AM
SUNSET: 05:37 PM
HIGH TIDE: 05:58 AM (1.0 FT)
LOW TIDE: 11:57 AM (2.0 FT)