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Haitian assassins falsely claimed to be U.S. drug agents, envoy to U.S. says

Haitian assassins falsely claimed to be U.S. drug agents, envoy to U.S. says

DAPHNE PSALEDAKIS and DOYINSOLA OLADIPO GUNMEN who assassinated Haitian President Jovenel Moise falsely identified themselves as agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Haitian ambassador to the United States has said, citing video footage the government has in its possession. "No way they were DEA agents," Bocchit Edmond told Reuters in an interview hours after Moise was shot dead and his wife was wounded by unidentified gunmen in their private residence overnight, stirring fears of a breakdown in order in the impoverished Caribbean nation, already reeling from rampant gang violence and facing a constitutional crisis. People walk past…
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Trump sues Facebook, Twitter and Google, claiming censorship

Trump sues Facebook, Twitter and Google, claiming censorship

JASON LANGE and JAN WOLFE FORMER  U.S. President Donald Trump has filed lawsuits against Twitter Inc, Facebook Inc, and Alphabet Inc's Google, as well as their chief executives, alleging they unlawfully silence conservative viewpoints. The lawsuits, filed in U.S. District Court in Miami, allege the California-based social media platforms violated the right to freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Trump is seeking class-action status for the lawsuits, meaning he would represent the interests of other users of Twitter, Facebook, and Google's YouTube who allege they have been unfairly silenced. He filed three lawsuits making…
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Bernard Madoff wants to make ‘dying, personal plea’ for freedom

Bernard Madoff wants to make ‘dying, personal plea’ for freedom

JONATHAN STEMPEL A dying Bernard Madoff wants to tell the U.S. judge who will decide whether to free him from prison that he has accepted responsibility for his massive Ponzi scheme, and is sincerely remorseful for his crimes and their impact on victims. In court papers filed late Wednesday and early Thursday, Madoff's lawyer Brandon Sample asked Circuit Judge Denny Chin to schedule a hearing in Manhattan where the 81-year-old Madoff could speak by phone from his prison in Butner, North Carolina, where he has served nearly 11 years of his 150-year term. A hearing would "likely to be the…
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Japan considers ban on Olympic spectators, prepares state of emergency for Tokyo

Japan considers ban on Olympic spectators, prepares state of emergency for Tokyo

YOSHIFUMI TAKEMOTO and JU-MIN PARK JAPAN is considering banning all spectators from the Olympics, several sources told Reuters on Wednesday, with authorities expected to declare a state of emergency for Tokyo to contain coronavirus infections 16 days before the Games begin. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said his government would decide on new measures to stop the spread of the virus on Thursday. Those measures are expected to determine whether spectators can attend Olympic events. Medical experts have said for weeks that having no spectators at the Olympics would be the least risky option amid widespread public concern that the Games…
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Myanmar activists remember dead with red paint protests

Myanmar activists remember dead with red paint protests

OPPONENTS of Myanmar's coup splashed red paint and dye on roads and signs outside government offices on yesterday to represent the blood of people killed protesting against the junta, on the second day of the traditional new year holiday. The display aimed at shaming the military took place in various towns and cities, according to pictures posted by media outlets, as people answered a call by activists to join what they termed a bloody paint strike. Some people marched with signs calling for the release of the leader of the ousted government, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. She has…
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Healthcare collapse imminent, Brazil’s Sao Paulo warns, as COVID-19 cases surge

Healthcare collapse imminent, Brazil’s Sao Paulo warns, as COVID-19 cases surge

EDUARDO SIMOES and LISANDRA PARAGUASSU BRAZIL’S richest and most populous state, Sao Paulo, has warned its ability to care for seriously ill COVID-19 patients was on the verge of collapse as it ran perilously low on key drugs, according to a letter to the federal government seen by the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper. Sao Paulo state said it expects to run out of crucial intubation drugs, needed to sedate patients, in the next few days, the paper reported on Wednesday. "The supply situation regarding drugs, mainly neuromuscular blockers and sedatives, is very serious," Sao Paulo Health Secretary Jean Gorinchteyn…
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‘Racist’ facial recognition sparks ethical concerns in Russia

‘Racist’ facial recognition sparks ethical concerns in Russia

UMBERTO BAACHI FROM scanning residents' faces to let them into their building to spotting police suspects in a crowd, the rise of facial recognition is accompanied by a growing chorus of concern about unethical uses of the technology. A report published by U.S.-based researchers showing that Russian facial recognition companies have built tools to detect a person's race has raised fears among digital rights groups, who describe the technology as "purpose-made for discrimination." Developer guides and code examples unearthed by video surveillance research firm IPVM show software advertised by four of Russia's biggest facial analytics firms can use artificial intelligence…
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China’s Xi takes dig at U.S. in speech to political parties around world

China’s Xi takes dig at U.S. in speech to political parties around world

YEW LUN TIAN CHINESE President Xi Jinping has urged political parties worldwide to oppose any country that engages in "technology blockades", an allusion to the United States which views China as its strategic competitor. As U.S. President Joe Biden's administration has sought support from like-minded democracies including the European Union and Japan to coordinate a tougher stance against China, Beijing has doubled down on seeking support and affirmation from friendly nations such as North Korea and Serbia. "Together, we must oppose all acts of unilateralism in the name of multilateralism, hegemony and power politics," Xi told a virtual gathering of…
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Servicemen who fled Taliban to Tajikistan being brought back to fight

Servicemen who fled Taliban to Tajikistan being brought back to fight

AFGHAN security personnel who fled into Tajikistan are being brought back to rejoin the fight against Taliban insurgents, Afghanistan's national security adviser said, and some 2,300 who abandoned positions across the country had returned to service. Hundreds of Afghan security personnel retreated across the Tajik-Afghan border in response to Taliban advances in northern Afghanistan, underlining a rapidly deteriorating situation as foreign troops near a complete withdrawal after 20 years of war and with peace negotiations stalled. "Those that went to Tajikistan are coming back and are once again going to be in the service of the people and in the…
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