Category: z-Exclude

State Dept. Works Senator Menendez on F-16 Fighters Sale for Turkiye

American online political news daily Punchbowl News reported Tuesday, citing three people familiar with the negotiations, that the Biden administration supports the $20 billion sale worth of F-16 fighters to Ankara and has informally informed Congress on the willingness to do so, but Menendez and the leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee can place holds on major weapons sales as part of the review process. Top Biden administration officials want to make sure that the senator will not obscure…

White powder found at White House said to be cocaine

WASHINGTON – A white powder found inside the White House late on Sunday, which led to the temporary closure of part of the presidential complex, was identified by Washington fire department as cocaine, the Washington Post reported. The Secret Service confirmed to Reuters that an “unknown item” had been found that led to part of the White House being closed, but referred other questions to the fire department, which declined to comment. “On Sunday evening, the White House complex went…

China state banks lower US dollar deposit rates again to stop Renminbi currency slide: Sources

SHANGHAI – China’s major state banks have lowered their US dollar deposit rates for the second time in a month, seven banking sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as the authorities step up efforts to arrest a slide in the Renminbi currency. Interest rates offered by the “Big Five” state-owned lenders on most dollar deposits are now capped at 2.8 per cent, down from 4.3 per cent previously, said the people. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC), which…

US Backs Israel ‘Right to Defend’ Itself After Deadly Raid in West Bank

The United States said Monday that ally Israel had a right to “defend its people” against Islamist militants but called for protection of civilians after a major, deadly raid in the occupied West Bank. “We support Israel’s security and right to defend its people against Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist groups,” a State Department spokesperson said. “It is imperative to take all possible precautions to prevent the loss of civilian lives,” the spokesperson added. The United States, Israel’s…

Military suicide stats released, Army saw highest increase of deaths

  Editor’s note: This report contains discussion of suicide. Troops, veterans and family members experiencing suicidal thoughts can call the 24-hour Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-8255, text 838255 or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net. The number of suicides across the active-duty military increased from 75 in the first quarter of 2022 to 94 in the first quarter of 2023, according to the Defense Suicide Prevention Office. The Pentagon’s office on prevention said to be wary of extrapolating and interpreting the…

Climate change spells ‘terrifying’ future: UN rights chief

Climate change threatens to deliver a “truly terrifying” dystopian future of hunger and suffering, the United Nations’ human rights chief warned Monday. Volker Turk slammed world leaders for only thinking of the short term while dealing with the climate crisis. Turk told a UN Human Rights Council debate on the right to food that extreme weather events were wiping out crops, herds and ecosystems, making it impossible for communities to rebuild and support themselves. “More than 828 million people faced…

Sputnik News: Russian Forces Destroy Starlink Communication Station Near Artemovsk

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian forces have destroyed a Ukrainian Starlink satellite communication station and a drone control center near Artemovsk (Bakhmut), a Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson told Sputnik. “… the artillery of the group [of Russian forces] destroyed a Starlink communication station, a control center for unmanned aerial vehicles together with a Leleka-100 drone, a communication center and a pickup truck with an infantry group,” the spokesperson said. In addition, Russian forces have repelled an attack by a Ukrainian assault…

Matt Taibbi: Assange’s Indictment is terrifying. Would Criminalise National Security Reporting

After years of contamination, Florida moves forward on phosphogypsum radioactive road material

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has approved a plan to use phosphogypsum, a radioactive waste material, in “demonstration projects.” Here, signs block a roadway in Boca Raton during a construction project in 2021. Florida is another step closer to paving its roads with phosphogypsum — a radioactive waste material from the fertilizer industry — after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a controversial bill into law Thursday. Conservation groups had urged DeSantis to veto the bill, saying phosphogypsum would hurt water quality and…

FRCE Secures Future Components Workload for Air Force MH-139A Grey Wolf

US Navy 22 June 2023 From Fleet Readiness Center East Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) recently secured designation as the Depot Source of Repair (DSOR) for 81 major structural and dynamic components of the Air Force MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter, the planned replacement for the UH-1N Huey. FRCE performs maintenance, repair and overhaul of the legacy UH-1N platform at its North Carolina Global TransPark detachment in Kinston. Current projections place the start date for the new work in fiscal year…

Military families battle mold, rodents and more at Washington base

Editor’s note: This story was first published in InvestigateWest, an independent news nonprofit dedicated to investigative journalism in the Pacific Northwest. Subscribe to their newsletter. Amanda Klinksiek knows that when she breaks out in hives, she likely has another problem: mold. Hives tipped Klinksiek off to mold in a previous home. And in September, when she moved into a two-bedroom townhouse at Joint Base Lewis-McChord with her husband and two kids, the itchy red bumps appeared again. Klinksiek, 30, tried…

SPR Investors Have Opportunity to Lead Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. Securities Fraud Lawsuit

BENSALEM, Pa., June 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Law Offices of Howard G. Smith announces that investors with substantial losses have opportunity to lead the securities fraud class action lawsuit against Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. (“Spirit” or the “Company”) (NYSE: SPR). Class Period: April 8, 2020 – April 13, 2023 Lead Plaintiff Deadline: July 5, 2023 Investors suffering losses on their Spirit investments are encouraged to contact the Law Offices of Howard G. Smith to discuss their legal rights in this…

China issues social interaction norms for military officials

By GT staff reporters Published: Jun 19, 2023 11:55 PM China’s Central Military Commission (CMC) has issued a code of conduct for the social interactions of military officials, including behaviors on social media platforms. Chinese experts believe the code of conduct highlights improving discipline of military personnel and strengthening their sense of confidentiality so as to better protect national security in the big data era. With the approval of the CMC, the Political Work Department and the Discipline Inspection Commission…

TerraUSD: South Korea ‘cryptocrash king’ Do Kwon jailed for forging documents

Do Kwon, the cryptocurrency boss behind the $40bn (£31.3bn) collapse of the terraUSD and Luna tokens, has been sentenced to four months of jail in Montenegro. Mr Kwon was found guilty of forging official documents. He was arrested in March as he tried to board a flight to Dubai at Podgorica Airport, in the country’s capital. Mr Kwon also faces charges in the US and South Korea over the collapse of the two digital tokens last year. The former finance…

Scientists Discover Universe’s Hottest Object – And It’s Not the Sun

  New findings by an international team of researchers recently revealed the scorching discovery of a brown dwarf that far eclipses the level of heat emitted by the sun. Sitting 1,400 light-years from Earth, the brown dwarf has since been named WD0032-317B. It was discovered by a team led by astrophysicist Na’ama Hallakoun from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. The brown dwarf has an orbit that is so close to its host star, that it maintains a temperature…

China vows not to supply weapons to Russia – Blinken

“It’s not news that China has been saying in recent weeks, not just to us but to many other countries, that they are not providing lethal assistance to Russia for use in Ukraine, and this is an important commitment and policy,” said the secretary. However, Blinken also expressed concern about the possibility of military aid being transferred to Russia by Chinese private companies. In certain cases, such deliveries can be directed towards strengthening Russia’s military potential. “This is worrisome, and…