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Big Ben Lands In Manchester For International Arts Festival

Entertainment

Koko Lawrence

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July 2, 2021

Big Ben Lands In Manchester For International Arts Festival

A replica of big ben that has been made to look like it has crash landed on its side in Manchester is among the sights that have sprung up at the start of the city’s international arts festival.

The 42m (138ft) sculpture in Piccadilly gardens has been created by argentine artist Marta Minujin and is covered in 12,000 politically-themed books.

It is “in some ways a response to the tussles and battles between Manchester and London, north and south, over the last year”, Manchester international festival director john McGrath said.

The festival takes place every other year – although this year, because of the pandemic, the range of artists who have made it to Manchester in person is less international than usual.

12-Year-Old Abhimanyu Mishra Becomes Youngest Grandmaster In Chess History

Entertainment

Koko Lawrence

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July 2, 2021

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12-Year-Old Abhimanyu Mishra Becomes Youngest Grandmaster In Chess History

12-year-old chess prodigy Abhimanyu Mishra has made history, breaking an almost two-decade long record to become the world’s youngest ever Grandmaster.

Mishra, who is from New Jersey, US, broke Sergey Karjakin’s record of 12 years and seven months in Budapest, Hungary on Wednesday at the age of 12 years, four months and 25 days old.

To become a grandmaster in chess, a player must achieve three grandmaster norms — an award given for a high level of performance in a chess tournament — as well as achieving a 2500 Elo rating given out by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE), the rankings that govern international chess competition.

Mishra defeated grandmaster Leon Mendonca in the thrilling ninth round at the Vezerkepzo GM Mix tournament to earn his third and final norm having earned his first two over the previous two months.

Mishra’s mother told The New York Post that they were thrilled with his achievement.

“We are over the moon that our kid is the youngest Grandmaster ever. We are elated,” mom Swati said.

“I can’t even describe the feeling. He wanted to be the youngest Grandmaster in the world and now he is.”

ShaCarri Richardson Fails Drug Test.

Sports

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July 2, 2021

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American Sprinter ShaCarri is trending after reports came in that the athlete had failed a drug test and might miss the Olympics.

The positive test came at the U.S. Olympic trials last month where Richardson won the 100m in 10.86 seconds, establishing herself as a contender for gold at the Olympics. But a positive test during the trials would mean all of Richardson’s results from the meet would be wiped out.

The 21-year-old tested positive for cannabis which is banned by the world anti-doping agency and will appear on NBC’s Today Show on Friday, July 2.

Richardson was billed to run in the 200m at the Stockholm Diamond League meeting in Sweden this weekend but she was not on the entry list for the race on the meet’s official website on Thursday.

While a failed drug test carries a weighty punishment, in the case of cannabis, if an athlete can prove that their ingestion of the substance was unrelated to sports performance then a suspension of three months rather than the usual four years is imposed.

If an athlete is willing to undertake an approved treatment programme in collaboration with their national anti-doping body then the ban can be reduced to a single month.

A 30-day ban backdated to the time of the adverse result could leave Richardson clear to race in the 4x100m relay at the Olympics on Aug. 6, if selected by USATF.

Reports from sources close to the matter have reported that Jenna Prandini, who finished fourth in the final, had already been approached to run for the U.S. in the 100m in Tokyo.

Richardson posted a tweet saying “I am human”.

Today In History – July 2

Global News

Angel Gimalo

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July 2, 2021

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311 St Miltiades begins his reign as Catholic Pope

626 Incident at Xuanwu Gate: in fear of assassination, Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng

706 Remains of Chinese Emperor Gaozong, his wife Empress Wu Zetian and family members interred in Qianling Mausoleum by Emperor Zhongzong, outside Chang’an on Mount Liangshan

963 The imperial army proclaims Nicephorus Phocas to be Emperor of the Romans on the plains outside Cappadocian Caesarea

1140 Hartbert becomes bishop of Utrecht

1776 Continental Congress resolves “these United Colonies are and of right ought to be Free and Independent States”

1823 Bahia Independence Day: the end of Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia

1964 US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act into law

1990 1,426 pilgrims trampled to death after a panic in a tunnel in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

U.N. To Myanmar Military: Now Release Aung San Suu Kyi

Asia

Zoe Maven

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July 1, 2021

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U.N. To Myanmar Military: Now Release Aung San Suu Kyi

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on Myanmar’s military to immediately release Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint.

On Thursday, Eri Kaneko, associate spokesperson for Guterres reiterated bodys call for the immediate release of all of those arbitrarily detained, including President Win Myint and State councilor Aung San Suu Kyi.

He expressed concern over the violence and intimidation, including arbitrary arrests, by the security forces

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army took power on Feb. 1 and ousted Suu Kyi’s elected government.

On Wednesday, Myanmar freed more than 2,000 detainees, among them journalists and others who the ruling military said had been held on incitement charges for taking part in protests.

Many of the military’s opponents have been held, some convicted, under a law that criminalises comments that could cause fear or spread false news. Suu Kyi is on trial for a similar offence, among others, and remains in detention.

Iran Names Hardline Cleric As Top Judge Amid Calls For Probe

Middle East

Zoe Maven

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July 1, 2021

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Iran Names Hardline Cleric As Top Judge Amid Calls For Probe

Iran’s supreme leader promoted a hardline cleric, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, to serve as head of the judiciary on Thursday, amid international calls for investigations into allegations of abuses.

Now the judiciary’s deputy head, Mohseni Ejei, will replace Ebrahim Raisi, who takes office in August as president after winning a June 18 elec

Ejei was put on U.S. and EU sanctions blacklists a decade ago for his role in a crackdown on a popular uprising when he served as intelligence minister during a disputed election.

The choice of someone with such a high profile as a hardliner could draw further attention to allegations of past abuses by Iran at a time when the new U.S. administration is trying to negotiate a thaw with Tehran.

This week, a U.N. expert called for a new investigation into Raisi’s alleged role in the deaths of thousands of political prisoners when he served as a judge in the 1980s. Raisi denies wrongdoing.

In a statement reported by state media, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Ejei to “promote justice, restore public rights, ensure legitimate freedoms, and oversee the proper implementation of laws, prevent crime, and resolutely fight corruption”.

Rights groups have criticised the election of Raisi in a vote in which prominent rivals were barred from standing.

In a statement, Khamenei urged Ejei to “promote justice, restore public rights, ensure legitimate freedoms, and oversee the proper implementation of laws, prevent crime, and resolutely fight corruption”, state news agency IRNA reported.

Now the judiciary’s deputy head, Mohseni Ejei, will replace Ebrahim Raisi, who takes office in August as president after winning a June 18 elec

Ejei was put on U.S. and EU sanctions blacklists a decade ago for his role in a crackdown on a popular uprising when he served as intelligence minister during a disputed election.

The choice of someone with such a high profile as a hardliner could draw further attention to allegations of past abuses by Iran at a time when the new U.S. administration is trying to negotiate a thaw with Tehran.

This week, a U.N. expert called for a new investigation into Raisi’s alleged role in the deaths of thousands of political prisoners when he served as a judge in the 1980s. Raisi denies wrongdoing.

In a statement reported by state media, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Ejei to “promote justice, restore public rights, ensure legitimate freedoms, and oversee the proper implementation of laws, prevent crime, and resolutely fight corruption”.

Rights groups have criticised the election of Raisi in a vote in which prominent rivals were barred from standing.

In a statement, Khamenei urged Ejei to “promote justice, restore public rights, ensure legitimate freedoms, and oversee the proper implementation of laws, prevent crime, and resolutely fight corruption”, state news agency IRNA reported.

Central American Officials Listed In Corruption Crackdown

Zoe Maven

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July 1, 2021

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Central American Officials Listed In Corruption Crackdown

Central American presidential aides, top judges and former presidents have been put on a U.S. State Department list who are allegedly engaged in corruption, obstructing justice or undermining democracy.

The so-called Engel List was created under a law sponsored by then-U.S. Representative Eliot Engel and enacted by Congress in December that required the State Department to assemble within 180 days a list of corrupt actors in the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

Seven current and former top Salvadoran officials appeared on the list, including President Nayib Bukele’s Labor Minister Rolando Castro, Cabinet Chief Carolina Recinos and former Justice and Security Minister Rogelio Rivas.

Bukele has drawn international criticism, including from the United States, over ousting and replacing senior judges and the attorney general.

Over a dozen Honduran lawmakers and two senior Guatemalan judges were also named, including recently appointed Constitutional Court judge Nester Vasquez.

The U.S. government said the 55 people named were on the list for reasons including knowingly engaging in corruption, obstructing investigations into corruption and undermining democratic processes or institutions.

The State Department said the listed officials would immediately have their visas revoked and would be unable to enter the United States,.

The governments of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The list’s publication sparked reactions on Thursday, including by some officials whose names were included.

Iran Restricts Access To Main Enrichment Plant After Attack

Zoe Maven

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July 1, 2021

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Iran Restricts Access To Main Enrichment Plant After Attack

Iran has been restricting U.N. nuclear inspectors’ access to its main uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, citing security concerns after what it says was an attack on the site by Israel in April.

Diplomats say the standoff, which one official said has been going on for weeks, is in the course of being resolved, diplomats said, but it has also raised tensions with the West.

This is more so as indirect talks between Iran and the United States on reviving the Iran nuclear deal have adjourned without a date set for their resumption.

It follows various moves by Iran that breach the 2015 nuclear deal or have angered Washington and its allies, ranging from enriching uranium to close to weapons-grade to failing to explain the origin of uranium particles that the U.N. nuclear watchdog found at several undeclared sites.

One Western diplomat who follows the International Atomic Energy Agency closely said Iran was provoking them, adding that inspectors should be able to have full access next week.

Iranian officials were not immediately available for comment. The IAEA declined to comment, citing its general policy of not commenting on inspection matters.

Any reasons for Iran’s move beyond the official security and safety concerns it cited as explanations are unclear, but it has quarreled with the IAEA over access before.

Iran in 2020 denied the IAEA access to two locations for snap inspections. In 2019, Iran held an IAEA inspector and seized her travel documents.

The IAEA has so far stopped short of reporting the issue to its member states and calling an emergency meeting of its 35-nation Board of Governors as it did in November 2019 when Iran briefly held the IAEA inspector who diplomats say had sought access to Natanz.

Oil Climbs 2% As OPEC+ Considers Output Hikes

Business

Angel Gimalo

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July 1, 2021

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Oil climbs 2% as OPEC+ considers output hikes, demand surges
Crude prices rose to their highest levels since 2018 on reports that OPEC+ had reached a tentative agreement to hike oil output but the deal now hangs in the balance after word came late Thursday that a key member objected to it.

OPEC+’s plan to ease output cuts was thrown in jeopardy on Thursday and the pact’s meeting pushed to Friday after a key member – the United Arab Emirates – blocked the deal.

Oil prices continued to climb on Thursday as press reports suggested that OPEC+ is considering a two-million-barrel-per-day (bpd) output hike from August through December – but the deal was thrown into disarray after the United Arab Emirates blocked a plan for an easing of cuts and their extension to the end of 2022.

Global benchmark Brent settled at $75.84 a barrel, up $1.22, or 1.6 percent while United States West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.76, or 2.4 percent, to settle at $75.23 a barrel.

During the session, both Brent and WTI reached their highest levels since October 2018.

OPEC+ ministers met on Thursday via video conference to consider a monthly increase of below 500,000 bpd, according to press reports.

“If OPEC+ does keep a conservative stance and increases its production in a cautious manner – and up to 500,000 bpd is definitely cautious – prices will be supported, as demand will easily absorb that,” Rystad Energy’s Oil Markets Analyst Louise Dickson wrote in a Thursday note.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, a grouping known as OPEC+, discussed loosening the taps to allow more barrels into the market as demand continues to recover after being plundered by the coronavirus pandemic last year.

House Of Reps Rejects Lifting Twitter Ban

Nigeria

faith Jegede

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July 1, 2021

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House Of Reps Rejects Lifting Twitter Ban

The Nigerian House of Representatives, has rejected the lifting of the micro blogging app, Twitter’s suspension.

The rejection came after the committee tasked with the job of investigating the circumstance surrounding the suspension of the app, presented its findings. After considering the matter, the house rejected it.

At the consideration of the report, the Deputy Minority Leader of the House, Toby Okechukwu suggested an amendment to one of the recommendations.

It states “That the Federal Government should take into cognizance the negative effect of the Twitter suspension on Nigerians who depend on the platform for their livelihood,” and lift the suspension.

Seconded by another member, the motion was however rejected by the majority of the House when put to vote.