Obama Seeks Authorization From Congress to Fight IS
President Barack Obama sent Congress a request Wednesday for authorization to use military force in the campaign against the Islamic State group, urging lawmakers to "show the world we are united in our resolve to counter the threat."
In a letter to Congress, the president said he is committed to working with Congress on bipartisan authorization for the use of military force.
The proposed authorization for the use of military force (AUMF) would limit operations against the militants to three years and bar U.S. troops from what it terms "enduring offensive ground combat."
Obama's draft proposal said large-scale ground combat operations, similar to those in Iraq and Afghanistan, should be left to local forces instead of the U.S. military.
The proposal also would repeal the 2002 measure that authorized the Iraq war but keep a 2001 authorization, passed shortly after the September 11 attacks, for a campaign against al-Qaida and its affiliates.
"This is a difficult mission, and it will remain difficult for some time," the president said in nationally televised remarks. "But our coalition is on the offensive. ISIL is on the defensive, and ISIL is going to lose."
The president says the authorization would give him the flexibility he needs to go after the militants.
“For example, if we had actionable intelligence about a gathering of ISIL leaders, and our partners didn’t have the capacity to get them, I would be prepared to order our Special Forces to take action, because I will not allow these terrorists to have a safe haven,” he said.
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4 Dead In Southwest Miami-Dade Plane Crash
A small plane has crashed in a field in Southwest Miami-Dade, killing all four people on board.
According to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, a small prop plane crashed in the area of SW 144th Street and Krome Avenue.
The Beechcraft 1900 took off from Reliance Aviation at Tamiami Airport, now known as Miami Executive Airport, shortly before 2:20 with four people on board. All four people, who have not been identified, are confirmed dead.
The plane, which can hold up to 20 people, was headed to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
According to Miami International Spokesman Gregory Chin, the pilot had called in an engine problem and was trying to turn around when he crashed.
Nearly a dozen fire units have responded to the scene.
Source-CBSMiami
Cadillac will start pricing ATS-V at $61,460
Cadillac’s high-performance variant of its ATS sport sedan, the ATS-V, will start at $61,460. The coupe will start at $63,660.
Both prices include shipping.
“The V-Series is the ultimate expression of Cadillac’s re-ignited product substance and the passion at the core of our brand,” Cadillac President Johan de Nysschen said in a statement today.
“The ATS-V expands the V-Series lineup, bringing a new kind of performance character to Cadillac. Lightweight, agile and potent, the ATS-V will make an ideal pairing with the larger and even more powerful all-new 2016 CTS-V midsize sedan, which arrives later this summer,” he said.
The models are now available through dealers and will be available to order online in April, a statement said.
The V series has helped Cadillac burnish its performance credentials, a key part of its strategy to directly compete with more-established luxury rivals such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. The ATS-V will be the first V-series launch since the debut of the CTS-V coupe in mid-2010.
Cadillac dealers are discounting existing inventories of ATS sedan by thousands of dollars, Reuters reported today. Cadillac and its dealers had about six months’ worth of unsold ATS sedans at the end of January, Reuters said.
In January, GM sales rose 18 percent, but Cadillac sales only increased 2.6 percent, with ATS sales down 8 percent from a year ago and CTS sales plunging 24 percent. The brand is trying to establish new momentum with its 2016 V-series models. Engineers modified the base of ATS models, now featuring 25 percent stiffer structures to handle cornering and torque loads that go "significantly beyond" those of non-V models, Automotive News reported in November.
The 2016 ATS-V models are powered by twin-turbocharged V-6 engines rated at 455 hp and 445 pounds-feet of torque.
They speed from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds and reach a top speed of 189 mph. The engine comes with a six-speed manual or a paddle-shift, eight-speed automatic transmission.
The models also feature a variety of performance elements equipment including magnetic ride control, Brembo brakes and a carbon-fiber hood.
Mike Colias contributed to this report.
Lime to pay millions to Digicel for wrongly withholding money
Telecommunication company LIME is to pay more than J$1.5 billion (One Jamaica dollar =US$0.0087 cents) to Digicel (Jamaica) Limited for wrongly withholding money due for calls from LIME’s fixed-line customers to Digicel mobile phones,” the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper reported Tuesday.
It said the payment is as a result of two lawsuits filed by Digicel in 2007 and 2009, against Lime, whose parent company is the British telecommunication giant, Cable & Wireless over its refusal to hand over the funds.
LIME had denied that it was liable to refund Digicel and filed a counterclaim for more than J$600 million.
Justice Bryan Sykes, who heard the matters and in July last year ruled largely in favour of Digicel., said that LIME had wrongly deducted hundreds of millions of dollars from money collected from its fixed-line customers.
He had ordered the registrar of the Supreme Court to carry out a “taking of accounts” to assess the sum that should be refunded to Digicel. He also dismissed LIME’s counterclaim.
On November 24, last year, the registrar determined that J$1.3 billion was owing in one of the actions and J$179.7 million in the other. The amount carried an interest of almost J$$250,000 daily from the date of the judgment in July last year.
The newspaper said that the two companies had appealed Justice Sykes’ ruling but the appeals were recently withdrawn.
The judge ordered that Digicel was entitled to interest at the Bank of Nova Scotia’s base lending rate plus interest of two per cent. LIME was ordered to pay 70 per cent of Digicel’s legal costs, the Jamaica Gleaner reported.
Source-CMC
SEC sues Cayman Islands bank and four other companies
The United States regulatory agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sued the Cayman Islands-based Caledonian Bank and four other companies, claiming that they took more than US$75 million from unregistered sales of “virtually worthless” penny stocks.
The SEC sued Caledonian Bank, Caledonian Securities, Clear Water Securities, Legacy Global Markets, and Verdmont Capital, in US federal district court in Manhattan.
The Caledonian defendants are based in the Cayman Islands. Clearwater and Legacy are based in Belize, and Verdmont in Panama.
All of the allegations were the same, the SEC said in its 39-page complaint.
First, they filed “bogus registration statements” with the SEC, purporting to register securities to public shareholders, though there were no such sales and the securities stayed in the control of the issuers and their affiliates.
“In the sham offerings, the issuers pretended to sell securities to shareholders in such places as Serbia, Mexico, Ireland, Norway, Panama and Jamaica,” said the SEC in the court filing.
It alleged that the restricted securities were then “passed off” as free-trading stocks in the United States and sold to the public.
The agency claims the defendants operated as affiliates, dealers, sales outlets and underwriters, in connection with four shell companies: Swingplane Ventures, Goff Corp., Nostra Energy and Xuamnii Inc.
“These violations occurred simultaneously with aggressive and extensive promotion campaigns for the penny stocks of those shell companies,” the SEC said.
The defendants’ unregistered sales of securities generated more than $75 million in proceeds on penny stocks that were virtually worthless and whose prices fell to their former token levels within months of the defendants’ sales.”.
The SEC is seeking disgorgement, restitution, penalties and an injunction, according to the court papers filed.
Source-CMC
Several Dominicans figure in Swiss bank scandal
23 people linked to Dominican Republic, including some Dominicans figure with US$34.3 million in accounts in Switzerland’s HSBC bank subsidiary, according to a filtered list of people which the entity allegedly helped dodge taxes or launder money.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), made the revelation, whose publication ranks the country 127th among nations with the highest dollar amounts in the filtered Swiss files.
The maximum amount of money associated with a customer "linked" to Dominican Republic was US$8.0 million.
The Consortium didn’t disclose the identities of those linked to the country.
It emerged that in the filtered list of personalities figure Formula One driver Fernando Alonso, president of Banco Santander Emilio Botin, and king Abdullah II of Jordan, among others.
According to investigators, the Swiss entity collaborated so that many customers could evade taxes and hide millions of dollars in assets. It also opened accounts for arms and drug traffickers.
Most of the accounts investigated by the CIJ are from 1988 to 2007.
HBO expands reach in the TCI & Caribbean
HBO Latin America, the sole authorized distributor of HBO content in the Caribbean, continues its expansion in the market through a recent commercial agreement with Digicel in several countries, including Turks & Caicos, Dominica, Nevis, Montserrat, Anguilla and Jamaica, with further growth planned down the line. This agreement means that Digicel customers can now enjoy the quality, premium programming offered in the HBO/MAX family of channels.
“HBO is proud to announce this expansion with Digicel in the Caribbean, further demonstrating our commitment to the region and signifying another positive step towards establishing legitimate relationships with authorized distributors in these markets,” said Javier Figueras, Corporate Vice President of Affiliate Relations at HBO Latin America.
“We are excited for customers to enjoy our world-class programming and look forward to working more closely with local affiliates and authorities throughout the islands to further develop mutually beneficial relationships that bring viewers the best quality available.”
Subscribers of the HBO/MAX premium package can now enjoy over 300 new titles per month – including exclusive and award-winning series, films and documentaries, all with no commercial breaks – through the variety of channels offered in both their standard and high definition feeds: HBO, HBO Plus, HBO Plus (Pan-regional), HBO2, HBO Family, HBO Signature, MAX Prime and MAX UP, plus two channels created exclusively for the market, HBO (Caribbean) and MAX (Caribbean).
In addition to the premium package, a variety of basic channels are also available: AXN, Canal Sony, E!, Warner Channel, Cinemax and Telemundo Internacional.
"We are delighted and excited to work with HBO in the region. At Digicel, we are committed to delivering best in class content that provides our current and future valued customers with the best possible TV experience - and with this partnership with HBO, we are doing just that," said Digicel Group COO, Andy Thorburn.
This month, HBO subscribers can tune in to the premieres of original productions such as the behind-the-scenes special “Game of Thrones: A Day in the Life,” season two of the satirical news program “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” and an illuminating portrait of a provocative 20th-century thinker in the documentary “Regarding Susan Sontag.” Viewers will also enjoy exclusive premieres of blockbuster films every Saturday, like the Marvel hit “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and the action-packed “Need for Speed.”
On MAX, subscribers gain access to award-winning international films, documentaries and series. The channel features exclusive, weekly film premieres from the most respected directors and internationally recognized actors, with independent titles each Saturday such as this month’s debut of “The Hunt,” and blockbuster hits on Sundays like “Her” and “Prince Avalanche.” Every Thursday in February, viewers can also enjoy a Bollywood film.
Source-TDN
PREMIER EWING RESPONDS TO BRITISH MP EDWARD MILIBAND ON BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP & CENTRAL REGISTRY
Premier of the Turks & Caicos acknowledged learning about the recent information shared in the UK Press about the UKOT.
Premier Ewing described the various statements made by UK Opposition Labour Party Leader the Rt. Hon. Edward Miliband as quoted recently in a number of the UK Media Channels, where he charges that the UK Overseas Territories are not complying with UK directives as it relates to beneficial ownership of companies and public central registries of beneficial ownership of companies as unfortunate.
It must first be stated that as Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands, I have yet to receive or have sight of any correspondence from the UK Labour Leader in respect of this subject at hand or any other subject. However, I note the letter of Chief Minister Picardo of Gibraltar to Mr. Miliband and wish to align, in most parts, the Turks and Caicos Islands’ position with that of Gibraltar’s Chief Minister, and that of the Overseas Territories that stand in solidarity on this issue.
The Turks and Caicos Islands Government takes exception to the statement made by Mr. Miliband, in referring to our jurisdiction as a “Tax Haven”. The Turks and Caicos Islands is a well regulated and compliant financial services jurisdiction that has complied with the FATF Standards, Global Forum Standards and have signed numerous Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs), including the US-FATCA, UK-FATCA and multilateral agreement on automatic exchange of information in Berlin on 29 October 2014, among numerous others agreements.
The Turks and Caicos Islands, represented by the Deputy Premier in June 2014, along with other UK OT Leaders, supported the UK Prime Minister Cameron during his presidency of the G8 as the United Kingdom made commitments to improve transparency of information to combat tax evasion, money laundering and financing of terrorism. Prime Minister Cameron acted on his commitment and is progressing the establishment of a publicly available central registry of beneficial ownership of companies in the UK and is encouraging all of the UK OTs, which, Mr. Cameron emphatically stated are not tax havens, to follow suite.
In keeping with our joint UK/OTs commitment for transparency and to proactively combat illicit activities, the Turks and Caicos Islands devised an Action Plan and conducted a public consultation on the issues of maintenance of Legal and Beneficial Ownership information and the establishment of a Central or public Register of Beneficial Ownership information. This consultation was recently concluded and the Turks and Caicos Islands Cabinet has reviewed the results.
It is the position of the Turks and Caicos Islands that we will continue to comply with all of the global standards as issued by FATF, Global Forum, AML Directives, G20 Principles and we will continue to improve our systems, in ways that support sound business growth locally and globally. However, until such time as there is global agreement on appropriate exemptions and safeguards, and a public central registry becomes the internationally practiced standard, the Turks and Caicos Islands will continue to follow its current regime.
Perhaps it would have been more helpful to these Turks and Caicos Islands and other Overseas Territories for the Labour Leader to have sought an audience with the Leaders of the Overseas Territories during our many visits to the UK, the most recent being for the purpose of the Joint Ministerial Conference meeting during which meeting, the issue of beneficial ownership was of key debate. Such engagement would have allowed Mr. Miliband to familiarize himself with our jurisdictions, and perhaps he might have discovered that the OTs are not tax havens as he accuses, but, in fact, well and better regulated financial services jurisdictions than many larger jurisdictions. Mr. Miliband would have then been in a better position to more appropriately inform his party’s manifesto in support of assisting the Turks and Caicos Islands and other OTs economies, as one would expect of responsible leadership, rather than utilizing outdated and damaging descriptions that undermine the strident efforts made by OTs to date to meet and in some cases surpass internally accepted standards.
The Turks and Caicos Islands stands committed to support and implement any global transparency initiatives and directives that will combat tax evasion, money laundering and financing of terrorism, and welcome discussions with the UK as a part of the solidarity partnership among OTs on the eventual maintenance of a Central Registry, but this will be done cautiously and with sober thought to the appropriate level that the information should be made public. We must ensure that we are supporting law enforcement agencies and thwarting criminals, all while ensuring the sustainable growth and development of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the protection of the fundamental constitutional rights and privacy of the law abiding citizens and clients we serve.
Ministry Of Health Provides Free Vaccination To Hotel Staff
Public Health Nurses from the Ministry of Health and Human Services administered more than 100 free flu vaccines to Beaches Turks and Caicos Team Members On Tuesday, 3rd of February 2015. The exercise was part of the Beaches Turks and Caicos Healthy Living Initiative’s event for the month of February, “Beat The Flu”.
“2014-2015 Influenza (flu) season has reached its peak. Seasonal flu outbreaks can happen as early as October” stated Dr. Jamillah Berry, Health Planner “However, most of the time flu activity peaks between December and February, although activity can last as late as May.
“We are committed to keeping the Turks and Caicos healthy and this was another step in spreading the word that the seasonal flu vaccine for adults and children are available at all Government operated Primary Health Care Clinics free of charge.”
Please contact the Ministry of Health and Human Services, Primary Health Care Clinics in the TCI Hospitals (941-2900 in Grand Turk and 941-2800 in Providenciales) or your local Island Clinic to schedule a time to get your vaccine.
It is recommended that everyone over the age of 6 months has a flu vaccine annually. In addition to having a flu vaccine, the Ministry of Health and Human Services recommends the following healthy habits, which can stop the spread of the infection:
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
Put your used tissue in a waste basket.
If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve or elbow, not your hands.
Wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds or long enough to sing the birthday song twice.
If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth (germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth).
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
If you or your child is sick with the flu stay home from work, school or daycare. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill.
Get plenty of rest, drink plenty of fluids, eat nutritious foods, manage your stress, and be physically active.
Everyday preventive actions can help slow the spread of germs that can cause many different illnesses including the flu.
TCIG issues Measles Alert Outbreak in the USA
There is currently a multi-state outbreak of Measles in the USA associated with travel to Disneyland Resort Theme Parks in California. This has affected 14 US states and Mexico. From the 1st through the 30th of January 2015, 102 measles positive cases were reported. Last year, the US experienced the highest number of measles cases reported in 20 years, 644 cases in 27 States.
The Caribbean sub-region has been successful in maintaining a measles-free status since 1991. In light of the strong travel ties between the Caribbean and the USA, and given that we are in the midst of the tourism high-season, the Ministry of Health and Human Services encourages local residents and visitors to be watchful for fever-rash syndromes.
Measles spreads quickly among unvaccinated people. The majority of the adults and children that have reported cases of measles in the US did not get vaccinated or do not know whether they have been vaccinated. Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is safe, effective and highly recommended. Maintaining high vaccination coverage is very important and it's the best protection we have against disease outbreaks.
Measles is a highly contagious viral respiratory disease that occurs over a period of two to three weeks. It spreads through the air by coughing and sneezing. Measles starts with a fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes and sore throat, and is followed by a rash that spreads all over the body. A person with measles can spread the virus to others for about eight days, four days before the rash appears and four days after the rash appears.
Persons are protected against the disease in two ways: 1) through vaccination and 2) through previous infection, i.e., if you have had the measles already, you cannot get measles again. The vaccine is given in two doses in the TCI, the first at age 1 year and the second at age 2 years. Children who receive the vaccine at age 1 are protected up to 98% until the second dose is due at age 2.
Persons not protected against the disease can contract the virus when a person with measles coughs, sneezes or talks in their face. Also, droplets from coughing, sneezing and talking can fall on surfaces and remain there for hours. Persons who have not been immunized can contract the virus by touching the infected surface and putting their fingers in their mouth, nose or eyes.
The Ministry of Health and Human Services is pleased to advise that the Turks and Caicos Island is currently MEASLES FREE. Over the years, the 1st dose of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine coverage have been 95% - 98%. However, children remain at risk of contracting measles if they have not received the 2nd dose of MMR vaccine and they come into contact with someone who has the disease. Children who have not received the 1st dose of MMR vaccine are at an increased risk of contracting measles if they come in contact with someone who has the disease.
In order to reduce the risk of local transmission of measles to our population in the TCI, the Public Health Staff from the Primary Health Care Department will be conducting the following initiatives:
• Vaccination in schools throughout Providenciales commencing the first week in February 2015.
• Catch-up and Mop-up campaigns in the community. “The target group” are children ages 1 year for the 1st MMR vaccine and 2 years or older for the 2nd MMR vaccine.
• Routine immunization of measles vaccine will continue to be administered at well-baby clinics throughout the country.
• Vaccinations administered at Public Health Clinics are free of charge.
Parents are encouraged to cooperate with the Public Health Nurses and send their children’s immunization take home cards to school upon request. Travellers to the USA or Mexico from TCI (adults and children) are advised to ensure their vaccination records are up to date prior to travelling.