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MEPs urged to back democracy in Bangladesh and condemn opposition violence

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

Bangladesh has seen an upsurge in violence by supporters of the main opposition parties, in an apparent attempt to sabotage an election that they are unlikely to win. MEPs have been briefed by a leading think tank that advocates strong EU-Bangladesh relations and urged to condemn the violence that threatens the democratic process, writes Political Editor Nick Powell.At a briefing in the European Parliament entitled ' Democracy and Human Rights in Bangladesh’, MEPs and their aides were addressed by Syed Mozammel Ali, chair of the UK-based Bangladeshi think tank Study Circle London. He urged them to condemn the violence in the capital, Dhaka, unleashed by supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jamaat-e-Islami activists.The Dhaka Metropolitan Police had sanctioned a BNP rally on the same basis as one organised by the ruling Awami League. Such public demonstrations of support for different parties should be a normal part of democratic life in the run-up to a national electio...

Dear Abby: My son is in tears when my mother tells him he must walk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

DEAR ABBY: My son, who is 5, has a rare spinal cord injury from birth. He can crawl, but he does not walk well.Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: The thoughtless grandchildren won’t be happy about this gift Advice | Dear Abby: I like to video people who are behaving badly Advice | Dear Abby: The rest of the book club is appalled by the woman I invited Advice | Dear Abby: My sister-in-law always has ‘other plans.’ Should I stop asking? Advice | Dear Abby: I haven’t told my wife what I know. Should I stick around? We have spent many months and a lot of money ensuring he is getting the best physical therapy and medical care possible for his condition, and we adhere closely to the medical advice of these experts.My mother, who lives 2,000 miles away, loves my son and wants to spend time with him. However, whenever we visit, she obsesses over the fact that he can’t walk well.I h...

Five-bedroom home in Palo Alto sells for $4.1 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

3105 Bandera Drive – Google Street ViewThe property located in the 3100 block of Bandera Drive in Palo Alto was sold on Oct. 20, 2023. The purchase price was $4,100,000. This two-story home boasts a generous living space with five bedrooms and three baths. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. Additionally, the house comes with a two-car garage, allowing for convenient vehicle storage and additional storage space. 

South Pacific leaders will meet on the stunning island of Aitutaki to discuss climate change

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — South Pacific leaders are heading to the stunning beautiful island of Aitutaki to discuss climate change and other regional concerns. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was among the leaders who traveled to the Cook Islands this week for the annual Pacific Islands Forum. The forum culminates in a leaders’ retreat Friday on Aitutaki, renowned for its picturesque lagoon.Among other Pacific concerns is the release of treated radioactive wastewater from a nuclear power plant in Japan that was crippled by a 2011 tsunami.Albanese told reporters that Australia had gotten a positive reception in a region where climate change looms as an existential threat for many low-lying islands. “There’s a recognition that my government is committed to climate action and that we’re playing a positive role, not just with our commitment to reduce our emissions by 43% by 2030 and to reach net zero by 2050, but that, importantly, we are playing a role in the regi...

Ocasio-Cortez advierte que “crece” la preocupación entre los votantes jóvenes por la gestión de la Casa Blanca sobre Israel

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

(CNN) — En medio de las profundas divisiones entre los demócratas sobre la respuesta de Estados Unidos a la guerra entre Israel y Hamas, la representante progresista Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez advirtió que la posición de la Casa Blanca sobre Israel podría afectar la posición del presidente Joe Biden entre los votantes jóvenes, un bloque clave que ayudó a impulsarlo a la presidencia en 2020.“Creo que es significativo”, dijo la demócrata de Nueva York a CNN. “Los jóvenes han estado prestando atención a este tema. Y antes de que la gente diga, ya sabes, que esto se debe a las plataformas de redes sociales, este es un tema sobre el que he estado advirtiendo al partido durante mucho tiempo: que los jóvenes han estado cada vez más preocupados por la situación de los derechos humanos de los palestinos desde hace años, y ha estado creciendo y creciendo”.Estados Unidos advierte a Israel en medio de la matanza en Gaza que no falta mucho para que su apoyo se erosion...

United States and South Korea close ranks on common global issues during Blinken visit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The United States and South Korea closed ranks behind common approaches to North Korea, Russia and China on Thursday, vowing to continue to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion and boosting humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in Gaza caught in Israel’s war against Hamas.In talks with South Korea’s leadership, including President Yoon Suk Yeol , U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the growing threat posed by North Korea and its alleged provision of military equipment and munitions to Russia to help it wage war on Ukraine, the State Department said. They also spoke of the importance of U.S.-South Korea cooperation on global challenges, including China’s assertiveness and the instability in the Middle East.“They shared concerns about the DPRK’s provocations in the region and strongly condemned the provision of military equipment and munitions by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the Russian Federation for use in its war again...

Alabama fija fecha en 2024 para la primera ejecución de un condenado a muerte con gas nitrógeno

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

(CNN) — Alabama fijó la fecha de ejecución del primer recluso del país que será ejecutado por hipoxia por nitrógeno, una alternativa a la inyección letal, según informó el gobernador.La ejecución por inyección letal de Kenneth Eugene Smith se canceló abruptamente el 22 de noviembre después de que el estado no pudiera colocar correctamente la vía intravenosa antes de que expirara la orden de ejecución. Smith pidió al estado que se le ejecutara mediante gas nitrógeno en lugar de inyección letal tras lo que calificó de ejecución “chapucera”.La ejecución de Smith está prevista entre el 25 y el 26 de enero del próximo año, según un comunicado de prensa de la gobernadora de Alabama, Kay Ivey.La muerte por hipoxia nitrogenada priva al cerebro y al cuerpo de oxígeno, por lo que el recluso moriría por asfixia, según el Centro de Información sobre la Pena de Muerte, una organización sin ánimo de lucro que supervisa, analiza y difunde información sobre la pena capital.Alabama...

UK’s Suella Braverman slams policing of pro-Palestinian rallies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

LONDON — Britain’s top interior minister, Suella Braverman, laid into the Metropolitan Police after it green-lit a controversial pro-Palestinian protest in London this weekend.In an article that has already attracted criticism from some of the home secretary’s own Conservative colleagues, Braverman accused the London police force of “playing favorites” and failing to treat “pro-Palestinian mobs” the same way as right-wing and nationalist protestors.It’s the latest intervention in an increasingly heated row over this weekend’s planned demonstration. Saturday’s march coincides with Armistice Day, which commemorates the end of World War I, and comes a day before Remembrance Sunday. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which organized the event, has stressed it will avoid any remembrance activity and focus on calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.But Braverman’s statement goes much further than her boss, Prime Minster R...

Aussie store pulls ‘Merry Ham-Mas’ Christmas bag after outcry

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

Australia’s Kmart retail chain on Wednesday was forced to remove a Christmas bag bearing the inscription “Merry Ham-Mas” from sale after the item attracted criticism from a Jewish group.The colorful drawstring bag, which can be used to store a Christmas ham in a refrigerator, could no longer be ordered on Kmart’s website as of Thursday morning.“We got it wrong on this occasion, and we apologise unreservedly,” a Kmart spokesperson said in a written statement to POLITICO on Thursday.“When designing this product we clearly didn’t think through all the implications and the product has been removed from sale,” the spokesperson added.Launched just a few weeks after the Palestinian militant group Hamas’ violent attacks which killed more than 1,400 people in Israel, the Christmas bag sparked public outcry after the Australian Jewish Association (AJA) asked for the product to be pulled.“Although this is potentially funny (the AJA co...

Putin rakes in extra €1B for his war chest via Bulgaria sanctions loophole

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:46 GMT

BRUSSELS — The Kremlin raked in an extra €1 billion for its war effort this year after Russia’s largest private oil firm exploited loopholes in EU sanctions rules — with help from Bulgaria.Taking advantage of a unique exemption to the EU’s Russian oil ban, Bulgaria allowed millions of barrels of Russian oil to reach a local Russian-owned refinery, which then exported various refined fuels abroad including to EU countries, according to an investigation by the NGO Global Witness, the think tanks Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) and Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and independent reporting by POLITICO.That loophole — raising enough revenue for Moscow to fund its Wagner mercenary group for a year, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin — also generated almost €500 million in profits for the refinery’s owner Lukoil since the exemption kicked on February 5, according to a classified analysis prepared for Bulgaria’s parliament and seen by POLITICO.This...