Author: Thomas Rowe

The head of Britain’s domestic intelligence agency warned the country’s leading research universities on Thursday that foreign states are targeting their institutions and imperiling national security. “We know that our universities are being actively targeted by hostile actors and need to guard against the threat posed to frontier research in the most sensitive sectors,” said the deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden, who also attended the briefing. The threat requires “further measures,” said the deputy PM, who announced that the government was launching a consultation with the sector so it could “do more to support our universities and put the right…

“A concrete kennel, measuring 2.5m x 3m. Most often, it is unbearable due to the cold and dampness. Water collects on the floor, and the window is tiny. The walls are thick, stifling any airflow, and not even the cobwebs stir. There is no ventilation, leaving one feeling suffocated at night, akin to a fish out of water. An iron bunk, reminiscent of those found on sleeper trains, is bolted to the wall.” This is how Alexei Navalny described the cell in which he spent 308 out of 1125 days in solitary confinement. His imprisonment amounted to both physical and…

After nearly seven years, Joe Biden is once again visiting Ireland, but now on his way to his ancestral homeland as the US president. On the first day of his Ireland visit, Biden arrived in Belfast to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of violence. Following his meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, a brief conversation with party leaders in Northern Ireland, and his speech at Ulster University on peace and prosperity in Northern Ireland, Biden departed from Ireland’s capital Dublin. On Wednesday, he visited the Irish town of Dundalk to meet…

The initial sympathy for Israel in the immediate wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks is diminishing as Tel Aviv’s response is widely viewed as disproportionate. Nearly 17,200 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, with an estimated 70% being women and children. After Oct. 7, ruling elites, government officials, establishment media and mainstream intellectuals were solidly pro-Israel, but there seems to be a shift as many scholars are now suggesting that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is using the attacks as a pretext to commit genocide against Palestinian people. A group of UN experts last month also called on the…

London (15/11 – 67) Colombo Supreme Court rules that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, former Prime Minister Mahinda, were among several government officials whose conduct contributed to Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis in decades. The court was ruling on a petition filed against 13 former officials by rights group Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) which said the Rajapaksa brothers and others were responsible for the crisis. “Their actions, omissions and conduct contributed to the crisis,” the ruling said. The court did not order any punishment, according to a statement by TISL. The two Rajapaksa brothers, two former central…

Starting this December, the City of Jackson will see one new City Council member, two re-elected members, and a re-elected Mayor. Jackson has re-elected Daniel Mahoney (53.71%) as Mayor of Jackson. As for City Council, three seats were elected last night. For Ward 2, Freddie Dancy was re-elected and will be serving his third term (54.57%). For Ward 4, Connor Wood was elected and filled the vacant seat after Laura Schlecte could not run again, after redistricting (55.30%). For Ward 6, Will Forgrave was re-elected and will be starting his second term (69.73%). The Mayor and all three councilpersons will…

London (04/11 – 50) US government last week intervened in a lawsuit triggered by Hamilton Reserve Bank in St Kitts & Nevis. Somehow, a small bank based in a county with 50,000 inhabitants and GDP of under $1billion has amassed a $250million face-value stake in a Sri Lankan bond. The mysterious ‘global financier’ aka cunning vulture investor, Benjamin Wey is suing Sri Lanka. This specific bond was issued in happier times in 2012 and lacks some now-common clauses that make bonds easier to restructure. HRB’s $250million is enough in theory to veto any restructuring proposal Sri Lanka makes to that…

Brussels (3/11 – 34) Dubai is calling for a united front to spur the development of generative artificial intelligence to maximise its potential and reap economic benefits, the chief executive of the Dubai Future Foundation has said. Countries need to come together to prepare society for the innovation and to help bridge the gap between policies and the advancement of the emerging technology, which has a reported business opportunity of as much as $4.4 trillion, Khalfan Belhoul said at the Dubai Assembly for Generative AI conference on Wednesday. The industries with highest AI potential include banking, software and platforms, energy, communications and media, and health, according to the DFF.…

A man has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the shooting death of a Jackson woman. Hinds County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release that Jimel Smith shot and killed Priddy Jackson, 19, in May 2021, “following an argument over text messages that Smith found in Jackson’s phone.” Investigators said Smith took Jackson’s body to a rural area in Leake County, where he tried to dispose of her remains. After Jackson’s family reported her missing, detectives with the Jackson Police Department identified Smith as a suspect in her disappearance. The district attorney’s office said Smith confessed to police…

Frankfurt, Brussels (14/7 – 30) North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has concluded a summit held on July 11-12 in Vilnius, Lithuania, having issued a 90-point communique, with the detailed elaboration on new members, the ongoing Ukraine/Russia conflict and other defense matters. Highlights of the Vilnius Summit Communique: New members Russia – Ukraine Conflict China Indo-Pacific region Technology and defense Nuclear weapons