Russian Authorities Arrests Over 1,400 At Rallies For Hunger-striking Navalny

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April 21, 2021

Police rounded up more than 1,400 protesters on Wednesday as Russians in dozens of cities took part in rallies organised by allies of hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny over his failing health in jail.

His spokeswoman was jailed for 10 days, and another close ally detained, on the same day that President Vladimir Putin delivered a state-of-the-nation speech warning the West not to cross Russia’s “red lines” and pointedly made no mention of Navalny. read more

“This is one of the last gasps of a free Russia, as many are saying. We came out for Alexei … against a war in Ukraine and the wild propaganda,” said Marina, a student at the Moscow protest.

OVD-Info, a group that monitors protests and detentions, said 1,496 people had been arrested, including 662 in St. Petersburg and 95 in the Urals city of Ufa.

Protesters in central Moscow chanted, “Freedom to Navalny!” and “Let the doctors in!”. Navalny’s wife Yulia joined the rally in the capital, where demonstrators chanted her name.

The opposition had hoped the rallies would be the biggest in modern Russian history, and presented them as an attempt to save Navalny’s life by persuading the authorities to allow his own doctors to treat him.

But turnout looked smaller than during protests earlier this year before Navalny was jailed for 2-1/2 years for parole violations related to what he said were politically motivated charges of embezzlement.

Police said 6,000 people protested illegally in Moscow, while Navalny’s YouTube channel said turnout in the capital was up to 10 times higher.

The 44-year-old, who last year survived a nerve agent attack that Russian authorities denied carrying out, is thin and weak after starving himself for three weeks, and his allies say he risks kidney failure or cardiac arrest. The United States has warned Russia it will face “consequences” if he dies.

Taking A Knee, Raising A Fist To Be Punished At Tokyo Games – IOC

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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Taking a knee during the Tokyo Olympics or lifting a fist in support of racial equality will be punished as the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday maintained its ban on athletes’ protests inside stadiums, at ceremonies and on podiums.

The IOC’s Rule 50 forbids any kind of “demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda” in venues and any other Olympic area and the Games body concluded the rule should be maintained following an athlete consultation.

Against the backdrop of the Black Lives Matter movement protesting racial injustice, calls have increased in recent months for a change to that rule that would allow athletes to protest.

Some international federation chiefs, including World Athletics’ President Sebastian Coe, have said that athletes should have the right to make gestures of political protest during the Games.

The IOC’s Athletes’ Commission chief Kirsty Coventry, who led a review of the rule, said the majority of athletes consulted were against any protests within the fields of play or the podiums.

“I would not want something to distract from my competition and take away from that. That is how I still feel today,” Coventry, a former Olympic swimming champion for Zimbabwe, said in a online presentation of the Rule 50 consultation results.

Coventry said there were a series of recommendations approved by the IOC’s Executive Board on Wednesday, including providing clarity on sanctions, more information about Rule 50, a change of wording of the Olympic Oath with messages on inclusion, and producing athlete apparel with inclusive messaging.

When asked, however, if athletes would be punished in Tokyo for making political statements such as taking a knee on the podium in support of racial equality, Coventry said: “Yes that is correct.”

“That is also because of the majority of athletes we spoke to. That is what they are requesting for,” Coventry said.

The IOC’s recommendations are the result of a consultation process that started in June 2020 and involved over 3,500 athletes.

Coventry said some 70% of those athletes did not want protests on podiums, ceremonies and fields of play.

Ohio Officials Probe Police Shooting Of Black Teenage Girl

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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Ohio State University students hold a sit-in at the Ohio Union to demand that OSU sever ties with Columbus Police Department in the wake of the killing of 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio, U.S., April 21, 2021.

State investigators in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday were probing the fatal police shooting of a Black teenager in a confrontation caught on body-camera video that appeared to show her holding a knife and lunging at two people.

The girl, identified by police as 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant, was shot on Tuesday around the same time a Minneapolis jury convicted a white former police officer of murdering George Floyd last year by kneeling on his neck.

Her shooting triggered immediate protests in Columbus, Ohio’s biggest city and the state capital, just as the announcement of the guilty verdict in the Floyd case brought relief and jubilation to the Minnesota city.

Interim Police Chief Michael Woods identified the officer who shot Bryant as Nicholas Reardon, who was hired in December 2019. It appears from the video is white and that he fired four shots at Bryant. Woods said Reardon “would be taken off the street” pending an investigation.

A spokeswoman for Franklin County Children Services said Bryant was a foster child in the agency’s care.

Bryant’s aunt, Hazel Bryant, told the Columbus Dispatch newspaper that the teenager had become involved in an altercation with someone at her foster residence.

“She was a good kid, she was loving,” the aunt told reporters on Tuesday, according to a video posted to Twitter. “She didn’t deserve to die like a dog on the street.”

Hazel Bryant could not immediately be reached on Wednesday.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that President Joe Biden had been briefed on the “tragic” shooting.

“She was a child. We’re thinking of her friends and family and the communities that are hurting and grieving her loss,” Psaki said.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) has opened an inquiry into the incident, which began when officers responded at 4:44 p.m. ET (2044 GMT) to a 911 emergency call from someone who reported an attempted stabbing at a home on the city’s southeast side, Woods said.

In a rare move by a law enforcement agency, Columbus police quickly released Reardon’s body-camera video of the incident, which shows Bryant apparently trying to stab two women.

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther told reporters on Wednesday that the city did so in the interest of transparency and would release more videos of the event in the days and weeks ahead.

“It’s very important to be as transparent and responsive as possible,” Ginther said. “The public deserves to know what happens.”

Lakers Forward Davis Expects To Return Against Mavericks

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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Los Angeles Lakers star forward Anthony Davis expects to make his NBA return on Thursday after a nine-week injury absence.

Davis told reporters in a virtual press conference that he felt “100%” after recovering from a right calf strain and tendinosis.

As long as he continued to feel fine after practice on Wednesday, Davis said, he was ready to return.

Davis, an eight-time All-Star who teamed with LeBron James to lead the Lakers to the NBA title last season, was averaging 22.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 23 games this season before he was sidelined in February.

Lakers coach Frank Vogel, who had announced last week that Davis had been cleared for “full on-court activity,” said Davis would return as a starter playing limited minutes.

Davis said it was a frightening moment when he was hurt.

“I never tore an Achilles, but I kind of felt like sharp pain, like it was ripping, which I had never felt before,” he said. “So I knew it was something serious. It wasn’t as serious as it could have been, but it was still a pretty significant injury.”

The Lakers are 14-16 since Davis was sidelined, dropping from second to fifth in the Western Conference.

For part of that time, James has also been sidelined with a right ankle sprain.

Davis estimated Wednesday that James was probably “a couple of weeks” away from returning.

Chevron, Toyota Announce Alliance On Hydrogen Technology

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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Chevron and Toyota announced Wednesday a first step towards a strategic alliance to commercialize hydrogen, which is seen as an environmentally-friendly transportation fuel option.

The alliance, which is centered on the United States, is expected to focus on three areas: collaborating on public policy to promote hydrogen infrastructure, assessing the market for fuel cell electric vehicles and the hydrogen supply that will be needed, and exploring opportunities to jointly research and develop hydrogen powered transportation and storage.

The venture aims “to advance a functional, thriving global hydrogen economy,” the companies said in a joint press release.

The memorandum of understanding announced Wednesday is non-binding, but “lays out the path to a formalized strategic alliance by early third quarter 2021,” a Chevron spokesman said in an email.

At this week’s Shanghai motor show, Toyota unveiled plans for its first global line-up of battery electric vehicles, including an SUV expected to reach consumers in just over a year.

Chevron has faced pressure from environmentalists to match commitments by European oil giants like Royal Dutch Shell and Total, which have set targets to reach net-zero carbon emissions.

Chevron said it has no plans to shutter its gas stations.

“Fuels have and will continue to change over time and offering hydrogen at retail sites is a continuation of that change,” a Chevron spokesman said.

“Ultimately, consumer preferences help drive the offerings at Chevron-branded retail fuel stations; however, we anticipate that gasoline and diesel will continue to be important offerings that consumers will require. We are committed to the Chevron and Texaco brands, and reliably supplying gasoline and other fuels to our loyal customer base.”

At its annual meeting in May, Chevron is expected to battle against a number of shareholder proposals that require specific actions on climate change as well as a measure requiring more disclosure about the company’s lobbying activities.

US Stocks Bounce Back After Two Days Of Losses

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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Wall Street stocks resumed their upward climb Wednesday, shrugging off disappointing results from Netflix and advancing after two down days.

Most sectors enjoyed a strong session, including industrial companies like Caterpillar, oil firms including ExxonMobil and financial giants like Bank of America.

“The mood is very positive and it’s a good sign,” Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities told AFP. “It seems the market has finished with that small technical adjustment over the past few days.”

Equities had fallen the last two days amid valuation concerns and worries over growing Covid-19 outbreaks in India and other countries.

But investors took the drop as a cue to buy, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 0.9 percent to 34,137.31.

The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.7 percent to 4,173.44, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index surged 1.2 percent to 13,950.22.

Among individual companies, Netflix dropped 7.4 percent despite blowout earnings, as it projected lower-than-expected new subscribers.

Netflix executives said the slowing membership growth points to “big Covid-19 pull forward in 2020” and limitations to its programing due to pandemic-related production delays.

Intuitive Surgical jumped almost 10 percent after reporting a 36 percent increase in profits to $426.3 million as demand for its robotic-assisted surgical systems rose.

CSX gained 4.3 percent after the freight railroad company projected double-digit full-year revenue growth as the economic rebound accelerates.

Prague Gives Moscow Ultimatum To Let Czech Diplomats Return

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Angel Gimalo

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April 21, 2021

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The Czech government on Wednesday warned Moscow it might expel more Russian diplomats unless the 20 Czech nationals ejected from Russia were allowed to return to work within a day.

Moscow responded by saying the ultimatum was “unacceptable”.

On Saturday, Prague expelled 18 Russian embassy staff in a row over Russia’s alleged role in an explosion that killed two people in the Czech Republic in 2014. Moscow sent back the Czech diplomats in retaliation on Monday.

“The Russian Federation has until 1200 tomorrow (1000 GMT) to allow the return of all expelled diplomats back to the Czech embassy in Moscow,” Jakub Kulhanek, the new Czech foreign minister, told reporters.

“If they cannot return, I will cut the number of Russian embassy staff in Prague so it would correspond to the current situation at the Czech embassy in Moscow,” he added.

After summoning Russian ambassador Alexander Zmeyevski, Kulhanek said Moscow’s retaliation had been “disproportionate and it in fact paralysed the embassy”.

Pakistan Hotel Bomb: Deadly Blast Hits Luxury Venue In Quetta

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Zoe Maven

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April 21, 2021

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At least three people have been killed and eleven and wounded following a bomb explosion at a luxury hotel in the Pakistani city of Quetta the capital of Balochistan province where the military has been fighting a decade-long low level insurgency.

Correspondents say the Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan is suspected to have been the target of the attack in the car park of the Serena hotel for which the Pakistani Taliban have claimed responsibility.

Azhar Ikram, a senior police official in the city, confirmed the death toll and said that the Chinese ambassador was staying at the hotel, but was not present at the time of the blast.

Pakistan’s interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed described the April 21 bomb blast in Quetta, Pakistan as “an act of terrorism”

Resentment has been fueled by billions of dollars of Chinese money flowing into the region through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which locals say gave them little benefit as most new jobs went to outsiders.

In recent months, the group, and other militant organisations, have stepped up attacks in tribal areas near the border with Afghanistan.

In 2019 gunmen stormed a luxury hotel overlooking a flagship CPEC project — the deep-water seaport in Gwadar that gives China strategic access to the Arabian Sea — killing at least eight people.

And in June, Baloch insurgents targeted the Pakistan Stock Exchange, which is partly owned by Chinese companies.All the attacks were claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army .

EU Agrees To Be Carbon Neutral By 2050

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Zoe Maven

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April 21, 2021

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The European Union has agreed a tentative climate deal that should make the 27-nation bloc climate-neutral by 2050.

The move comes with member states and parliament agreeing on the targets on the eve of a virtual summit that U.S. President Joe Biden will host.

Under the provisional deal reached after officials negotiated through the night, the EU also commits itself on an intermediate target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55 percent by 2030.

Early Wednesday, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said their political commitment to becoming the first climate neutral continent by 2050 is now a legal commitment.

MEP Peter Liese, the negotiator for the EPP Christian Democrat group said It was high time for the agreement, as Europe had to show where it stands in view of the positive developments in the USA and China.

Up to now, the 2030 target had been 40% but under the pressure of increasing evidence of climate change, that target was pushed up, even if the EU legislature had wanted a 60% target.

The United States, the world’s second-biggest polluter after China, is preparing to announce its new target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

Under Biden, the United States has returned to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and all global partners will be meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, to push for strong targets.

However, Wednesday’s EU deal still needs to be officially approved by the member states and the legislature but should be little more than a rubber stamp.

Chad’s New President Mahamat, Appoints 14-man Cabinet

By

Zoe Maven

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April 21, 2021

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Mahamat Idriss Deby, head of the presidential guard, is set to take over as Chad’s new head of state, according to a charter released Wednesday by the presidency.

The presidency moved swiftly to put the reins of power in the hands of the 37-year-old general, establishing a “Transition Charter” that lays out a new basic law for the country of 16 million people.

The new charter issued Wednesday proclaimed that Mahamat, a career soldier like his father, will “occupy the functions of the president of the republic” and also serve as head of the armed forces.

Mahamat had already been named the head of a military council on Tuesday soon after the announcement of Deby’s death in combat, a move Analysts say has sidelined other political institutions in Chad and has been branded a coup d’etat by opposition groups.

Mahamat immediately took charge of a transitional military council and appointed 14 of the most trusted generals to a junta to run Chad until “free and democratic” elections in 18 months’ time.

The military council said Chad reopened its borders on Wednesday, a day after they were closed following the death in combat of President Idriss Deby Itno.

In the meantime, the rebel forces who have been blamed for Deby’s death have categorically rejected the transition of power and have vowed to press on with their offensive.

A statement from the group known as the Front for Change and Concord in Chad said Chad is not a monarchy and so there can be no dynastic devolution of power in the country.”