Hurricane Nicole Gaining Strength, Headed for Bermuda
Nicole has re-formed as a Category 1 hurricane and is gaining strength as it takes aim at Bermuda.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says the storm has maximum sustained winds of about 120 kph and is expected to strengthen before its center reaches Bermuda on Thursday morning.
Nicole was located about 575 kilometers south-southwest of Bermuda late Tuesday and it was heading northwest at 7 kph.
Nicole forced the U.S. space agency to postpone a cargo supply trip to the International Space Station. NASA said the launch, initially set for Thursday, will now launch no earlier than Sunday from Wallops Island, Virginia.
NASA said the delay was necessary because the mission requires the use of a critical launch-tracking station that is based in Bermuda.
"The ability to support a launch will depend on the impact the storm has on not only our systems, but also the overall Bermuda infrastructure," said Steven Kremer, chief of the Wallops Range and Mission Management Office.
Britain Demands Syria No-Fly Zone as Russia Tensions Escalate
Britain has warned that Russia faces becoming an international outcast for its bombing campaign in support of Syrian government forces, which the West says has killed hundreds of civilians. The war of words has escalated sharply in recent days, after Russia vetoed a French motion at the United Nations Security Council calling for an end to airstrikes on Aleppo.
Barrel bombs, missile strikes and mortar shells have reduced much of Aleppo to rubble. Amid the twisted wreckage live an estimated 250,000 people at constant risk of annihilation as the bombs continue to fall.
Western powers have accused Russia of war crimes for firing bunker-busting and incendiary bombs on civilian areas — a charge Moscow has denied — despite the evidence on the ground. France has called for the International Criminal Court to investigate.
In an emergency parliamentary debate Tuesday, Britain’s Foreign Minister Boris Johnson said Russia was becoming "a pariah nation."
"And if President Putin's strategy is to restore the greatness and the glory of Russia, then I believe he risks seeing his ambition turned to ashes in the face of international contempt for what is happening in Syria," said Johnson.
Lawmakers repeatedly called for Britain to help enforce a no-fly zone to protect civilians. Conservative MP Thomas Tugendhat said some military hardware already is in place.
"The helicopters that are dropping barrel bombs could easily be brought down by rockets based in Turkey, in Lebanon or indeed from our own Type 45s [warships] in the Mediterranean," said Tugendhat.
A no-fly zone was pushed by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry last month following an attack on a U.N. aid convoy. More hawkish voices are calling for Britain to back the idea. Alan Mendoza, director of policy group the Henry Jackson Society, is urging aggressive support.
"Come out and publicly say, 'America, we will stand with you on this if you intend to do it. And we will support it, indeed, with an application of our military force.' They [Russia] will not risk a confrontation once there’s a firm military presence to fight against, and you will end up with a much better chance of a negotiated solution," said Mendoza.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has stopped short of supporting any military action to enforce a no-fly zone against the Syrian government or Russian forces, saying, "It is for the international community to continue to put more pressure on Russia."
As relations between Moscow and the West continue to sour, Russian President Vladimir Putin canceled a visit to Paris that was scheduled for next week.
Source-VOA
Russian Olympics Chief to Resign Amid Doping Fallout
Russian Olympic Committee chief Alexander Zhukov said Tuesday he wants to resign from the position to focus on duties as a lawmaker.
Russian media quoted Zhukov as saying he would step down from the Olympic committee to focus on his position as deputy speaker in the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, the State Duma.
Zhukov has served as Russia’s top Olympic official for the past six years, and his planned resignation comes after a massive doping scandal led to Russia’s track-and field team being banned from the 2016 Rio Olympics.
The World Anti-Doping Agency originally recommended a blanket ban of Russia’s 389-member Olympic team, based on an independent investigation that found evidence of a vast state-run doping program. Eventually, though, an International Olympic Committee panel cleared 271 Russian athletes to compete in the games.
The Russian Paralympic team was also banned from competing in the Rio Paralympic games.
In remarks Tuesday to a meeting of sports officials, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Zhukov made the right decision in choosing to step down, and said Zhukov had done a lot for Russian sports, though he made no mention of the doping scandal.
Russia has denied running a state-sponsored doping program, and said it was being unfairly punished for political reasons while officials ignore doping in other countries.
Source-VOA
Nobody wants to host the Olympic Games
Cities use to covet the Olympic Games as it relates to hosting them, which meant glamour and prestige.
Not anymore.
Rome became the latest city to abandon a bid for the 2024 Summer Games when it withdrew on Tuesday because of worries over the cost.
Budget concerns have led city after city to drop their Olympic dreams in recent years. Hamburg, Germany, previously bailed on 2024. Stockholm and Krakow, Poland, pulled the plug on bids for the 2022 Winter Olympics, which were later awarded to Beijing.
An Olympic host city has to plan, pay for and construct massive infrastructure projects. Security costs can run into the billions of dollars. Thousands of hotel rooms must be built to house athletes and tourists.
Most of it happens on the taxpayer dime -- with little discernible economic benefit.
Elected leaders have argued that ticket sales, construction jobs and increased tourism outweigh the costs. But economists say the real return on hosting the Olympics is not so rosy.
Montreal, host city of the 1976 Summer Games, provides perhaps the best example of the long-term cost.
Before the games, the mayor declared: "The Olympics can no more lose money than a man can have a baby." He was wrong. Mismanagement and gross cost overruns left the city with $1.5 billion of debt that wasn't paid off until 2006.
The Olympic stadium, known as the Big O, was turned into a ballpark and now sits largely idle. The citizens of Montreal took to calling it the Big Owe.
While Montreal is an extreme case, researchers at Oxford's Saïd Business School have found that spiraling costs are the norm.
"The games overrun with 100% consistency. No other type of mega project is this consistent regarding cost overrun," they wrote in an academic paper in 2013. "Other project types are typically on budget from time to time, but not the Olympics."
The Montreal experience went a long way toward scaring off potential host cities for 1984.
Only one, Los Angeles, made a bid, and consequently was able to dictate terms to the International Olympic Committee.
It pursued a new model that relied heavily on private financing. Los Angeles also used existing stadiums as venues, erasing one of the largest costs associated with hosting the Olympics. The result? A profit.
But the days of minimal public investment appear to be over. Russia is said to have spent an incredible $50 billion on the 2014 Sochi Olympics. China spared no expense in hosting the 2008 Beijing Games. Several stadiums built in Rio are expected to be used only lightly now that this summer's games are over.
The IOC will meet next year to select a host city for 2024. Only Budapest, Paris and Los Angeles are still in the running.
Source- Livia Borghese contributed reporting for CNN
NIB takes two companies to court
The National Insurance Board continues its case against those companies who tries to side step paying into the fund.
On Tuesday October 11th 2016, defendant Dion Pratt formerly of Sky Juice Ltd. appeared in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to complaints filed by the NIB for failing to pay NIS contributions and additional as an employer during the period October 2009 to April 2011 in the amount of $65,227.02. The matter was set for plea on December 8th 2016 at 9am.
Also making an appearance on Tuesday October 11th 2016, Attorney Arthur Hamilton represented defendants Wayne Garland and Russell Garland of Konk Holdings, who were summoned to appear in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to complaints filed by the NIB for failing to pay nis contributions and additional charges as employers during the periods November 2011 to December 2012 in the amount of $43,461.93.
The matter was set for plea on December 8th 2016 at 9am.
Janet Jackson Pregnant at 50
Pop star Janet Jackson is pregnant with her first child, at age 50.
Jackson went public with her baby news to celebrity magazine People.
"We thank God for our blessing," she said.
Jackson, who is married to Qatari billionaire Wissam Al Mana, stirred speculation that something was up when she cancelled her tour, citing personal reasons.
"I thought it was important that you be the first to know," she said in a Twitter video at the time. "My husband and I are planning our family, so I'm going to have to delay the tour," she was quoted as saying in April.
She hasn’t been seen much since, but she was recently spotted shopping for baby clothes by staff at Hollywood industry program Entertainment Tonight.
NBA CHAMPIONS, ROBERT HORRY AND LIONEL HOLLINS, TO JOIN WNBA ALL-STAR, SKYLAR DIGGINS, AT DIGICEL NBA JUMPSTART ELITE CAMP
Digicel and the National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today that seven-time NBA Champion, Robert Horry, 1977 NBA Champion and former NBA head coach, Lionel Hollins, and two-time WNBA All-Star, Skylar Diggins, will coach at the Digicel NBA Jumpstart Elite Camp in the British Virgin Islands from October 7th-9th.
The Elite Camp will feature the top 63 players – 45 boys and 18 girls – from the Digicel NBA Jumpstart Clinics held in nine Caribbean countries this fall. At the conclusion of the Elite Camp, the NBA and Digicel will choose the top thirteen players – eight boys and five girls – who will have an opportunity to take part in the Digicel Jumpstart Experience in the U.S. later this year.
The Digicel NBA Jumpstart Basketball programme, now in its second year, began August 24th and took place in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The clinics, run by NBA assistant coaches and D-League coaches, along with NBA International Basketball Operations staff, brought together hundreds of players and coaches from across the Caribbean. Each clinic featured the top boys and girls born between 1999-2001 as well as coaching clinics for local coaches.
“These boys and girls who have made it to the Elite Camp are not only the best in their countries, they are also the embodiment of hard work, dedication and a good attitude. Congratulations to all them,” said Digicel Group Director of Marketing, Peter Lloyd. “The players, along with their family and friends, will also be able to relive the memorable moments from the camp, which will be shared on all our social media platforms and on SportsMax.”
“The second year of the Digicel NBA Jumpstart programme has been a resounding success,” said NBA Vice President, Latin America Arnon de’Mello. “As a leading company in the Caribbean and a strategic NBA partner, Digicel shares our vision of growing basketball at the grassroots level and teaching the value of a healthy, active lifestyle. Congratulations to the boys and girls heading to the British Virgin Islands for this year’s Elite Camp.”
Last year, Digicel and the NBA announced a multi-year partnership that will deliver live games and extensive NBA programming to almost 30 Caribbean territories through SportsMax, which is the Official Wireless Partner of the NBA in the region. This partnership also allows Digicel customers to get in on the action through a number of promotions that will be launched across the Caribbean.
Egypt is getting a new capital - courtesy of China
Egypt's new capital city moved a step closer to reality with the announcement that Chinese developers will largely fund the megaproject.
The China Fortune Land Development Company (CFLD) agreed to provide $20 billion for the currently unnamed city, after a meeting between heads of the firm and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi.
This follows a previous commitment of $15 billion from another Chinese state-owned company, bringing the project close to its $45 billion budget requirements for phase I.
Plans for the new capital were first announced in March 2015. Government officials described the development as a solution to crowding, pollution and rising house prices in Cairo.
"Cairo Capital is a momentous endeavor to build national spirit, foster consensus, provide for long-term sustainable growth," said the project website. "(The) new city will create more places to live, work and visit."
The 700 square kilometer city to be constructed in the desert to the East of Cairo would become the new seat of government, and it is presented as a far grander vision than the current capital.
Proposals for the city include housing for five million people, over 1,000 mosques, smart villages, industrial zones, a 5,000-seat conference center, and the world's largest park.
Interest in the project has been brisk. An Indian company is reportedly planning a vast medical center and university, while a Saudi firm intends to build a 12.6 hectare mosque and Islamic museum.
Construction is already under way. According to Egypt's Al-Ahram newspaper, engineers have begun work on infrastructure including bridges and 210 kilometers of roads.
The first phase of the project will see government ministries and residential blocks rise from the sand. This phase could be complete within five years, with the first residents moving in.
Despite the optimism from officials, there are concerns that the project will encounter familiar problems. Egypt has already constructed several satellite towns around Cairo, which have registered low occupancy despite high investment.
"The needs of Cairo should be met by the existing eight new towns around it," says David Sims, an urban planner and author based in the Cairo. "But people call them ghost towns."
The satellites repeated the same mistakes, says Sims, which are also likely to affect the new capital.
"The new towns produced housing that is unaffordable, unobtainable and inaccessible for the majority of Cairo's inhabitants," says Sims. "The new towns were built with a high modernist approach that did not allow the informal enterprises and activities that most Egyptians rely on."
Egypt has a fundamentally misguided approach to development planning, according to architect and planner and Kareem Ibrahim of the NGO Tadamun.
"We have a chronic problem with the urban government of existing cities, and no matter how many cities you build you are not solving this problem," he says.
Ibrahim's research found that around 50% of Cairo neighborhoods lacked access to sewage services, while public services were failing, and municipal councils were operating with as little as $4 per capita per year.
"The levels of deprivation were shocking," says Ibrahim. "The investment should be going towards providing equal rights to public services and utilities. Let's think about how to develop better governing structure for the cities we have, and then build new cities."
Source-CNN
Bargain-Hunting Tourists in the UK
When the pound plunged this month on new worries about Brexit, New Yorkers Derek Hotter and Ian Clark hopped on a plane for an impromptu holiday in Britain.
Record numbers of dollar-, yuan- and euro-rich tourists eager to snatch up a bargain could be the silver lining of the sharp decline in sterling since Britain voted to leave the European Union on June 23.
The vote took many investors and chief executives by surprise, triggering the deepest political and financial turmoil in Britain since World War II and the biggest one-day fall in sterling against the dollar.
The pound has fallen 28 cents since the night of the vote, dropping to $1.2215 Tuesday.
Britain saw tourist numbers rise in July, with visits up 2 percent from the same month last year to 3.8 million.
“We’ve done a bunch of shopping,” Hotter, who is in digital marketing, told Reuters in London’s Piccadilly Circus. “I was here a couple of years ago and it was a little harder spending and now you come over here knowing it’s so much better in our favor, you feel like you can shop a little bit more.”
Americans last year spent 3 billion pounds in Britain, making them the most important tourists for the United Kingdom.
“In a period post-referendum, post-Brexit, this is the shining star industry that is benefiting from, amongst other things, a weakening of the pound,” said Christopher Rodrigues, chairman of the British Tourism Authority.
He said the weak pound is an attraction for Chinese visitors, but the marketing focus for pulling in more of China’s 100 million who travel overseas is more long term.
“We need to keep going at that market because the real tidal wave of Chinese visitors is going to be probably five to 10 years from now when the market has got a lot bigger,” he said.
Bookings from China to Britain are up by nearly 25 percent between now and Christmas, with the lure of London’s luxury quarter attracting many.
“Exchange rate you know, it’s lower than before,” said one Chinese woman, explaining why her mother chose this month to visit.
“Many discounts here,” said another excited shopper. “Especially for Chinese customers I think.”
Even though visitors from continental Europe come for shorter stays and spend less money than Americans, they are important. Visit Britain predicts a rush of European visitors in the coming months.
Source-VOA
Gunmen Attack Shi'ite Shrine in Kabul
Gunmen, reportedly wearing Afghan police uniforms, stormed a packed shrine for Shi’ite Muslims in Kabul late Tuesday and opened fire, killing at least 14 people and wounding more than 30 others.
Officials and witnesses said a suicide bomber blew himself up as the assault began in the Kart-e-Sakhi area of the capital city, while two others were shot and killed by security forces, ending an hours-long siege.
Health officials confirmed at least 16 women were among those wounded and taken to hospitals.
Tuesday was the ninth day of Moharram, the first month on the Muslim calendar.
Shi'ites around the world conduct processions and gather in large groups to mourn the killing of the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad on the ninth and 10th of the month.
Security was particularly tight in Kabul for the annual Shi’ite religious rituals. Afghan authorities, fearing an attack, had requested the community not carry out large street processions but to gather inside their mosques or shrines.
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the deadly assault.
On Wednesday, the Shi’ite community will mark Ashura, the peak of Moharram. Attacks against Shi’ites are not uncommon in Afghanistan. Shi'ites comprise 15 percent of the country’s estimated 30 million people.
Militants, including the Taliban and Islamic State, consider Shi’ites apostates and are blamed for the sectarian violence.
Source-VOA