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Hong Kong leader says 8 pro-democracy activists who now live in the West ‘will be pursued for life’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader said Tuesday said eight pro-democracy activists who now live in the United States, Britain, Canada and Australia will be pursued for life for alleged national security offenses, dismissing criticism that the move was a dangerous precedent. Chief Executive John Lee expressed his support for the police’s efforts to seek the arrests of the eight. At his weekly media briefing, Lee said anyone, including their friends and relatives, who offered information leading to their arrests would be eligible for the bounties offered by the police.“The only way to end their destiny of being an abscondee who will be pursued for life is to surrender,” he said. The arrest warrants were issued for former pro-democracy lawmakers Nathan Law, Ted Hui and Dennis Kwok, lawyer Kevin Yam, unionist Mung Siu-tat and activists Finn Lau, Anna Kwok and Elmer Yuen. They were accused of breaching the Beijing-imposed National Security Law by committing offenses such as ...

Australian central bank leaves its benchmark cash rate at 4.1% but warns there may be further hikes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s central bank left its benchmark interest rate at 4.1% at a policy meeting Tuesday after inflation fell to 5.6% in May from 6.5% a month earlier.The Reserve Bank has lifted the cash rate 12 times since May last year to reduce inflation to a target range of 2% to 3%.Higher interest rates raise the cost of borrowing for both businesses and consumers, slowing economic activity and helping to relieve price pressures that have flared after the slowdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bank governor Philip Lowe said there might need to be further rises.“Some further tightening of monetary policy may be required to ensure that inflation returns to target in a reasonable time-frame, but that will depend upon how the economy and inflation evolve,” Lowe said in a statement.“The decision to hold interest rates steady this month provides the board with more time to assess the state of the economy and the economic outlook and associated risks,” Lowe added.In a rep...

Violence against women: Sex without consent is rape, say MEPs 

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

The draft report asks for a uniform, consent-based definition of rape in the EU, tougher rules on cyber violence, and improved support for victims, FEMM, LIBE.Last Wednesday (28 June), the committees on Civil Liberties and Women’s Rights approved changes to a proposed directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence.A consent-based definition of rapeBuilding on the Commission’s proposal for a criminal definition of rape based on the absence of consent, MEPs seek to add fear and intimidation to the list of factors that preclude free decision making. Consent must be assessed considering the specific circumstances, MEPs say. They propose complementary criminal rules on sexual assault (i.e. any non-consensual sexual act that cannot be defined as rape) and call for EU legislation on intersex genital mutilation, forced sterilisation, forced marriage, and sexual harassment in work.Harsher sentencing rules for perpetratorsMEPs want the list of aggravating circumstances to...

Kazakhstan and Luxembourg strengthen bilateral co-operation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with Luxembourg’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean Asselborn, noting that his official visit opens up good prospects for the development of bilateral cooperation.Tokayev warmly recalled a dialogue with Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Xavier Bettel on the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly about the long-term prospects for deepening the partnership between the countries.“Kazakhstan treats your country and people with great respect. We are optimistic about the future of our co-operation,” the President said.Speaking about the positive dynamics of interaction, Asselborn mentioned the agreement on increasing the number of flights to 21 per week. The Kazakh Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation, and Aerospace Industry signed a second memorandum of understanding in this regard.The parties also reviewed the prospects for cooperation in transport and logistics, digitalization, green energy, an...

SF Giants injury news: Thairo Estrada out 4-6 weeks with fractured hand, Mike Yastrzemski activated

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants received some tough news regarding second baseman Thairo Estrada on Monday, when it was revealed that Estrada suffered a fractured left hand.Estrada is expected to be out four to six weeks.“Could be a little sooner than that but we’re still in the information gathering state,” manager Gabe Kapler said after the Giants’ 6-5 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Monday.He was hit in the hand by Adam Ottavino in the eighth inning of the Giants’ 8-4 loss to the New York Mets on Sunday night and stayed in the game, but the Giants placed him on the 10-day injured list on Monday.“It’s in pain; the pitch hit me hard,” Estrada said. “It hit the protector. I feel like if it hadn’t hit the protector the injury would’ve been worse… First time I have a fracture in my career. They’ve been saying four to six weeks. Hopefully everything goes well. I’m a very positive person so I believe in them.”The 27-year-old...

Ukraine sends Georgian ambassador home amid warnings ex-President Saakashvili could die in jail

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

Mikheil Saakashvili must not be allowed to die behind bars, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned, as new photographs reveal the toll the former Georgian leader’s long-running hunger strike is having on his health.In a statement issued late Tuesday, Zelenskyy said Saakashvili, who is serving a six-year prison sentence in Georgia, is now at risk of being “killed by Russia at the hands of Georgian authorities.” Saakashvili was the president of Georgia from 2004 to 2007 and from 2008 to 2013. He was stripped of his Georgian passport in 2015 after becoming a Ukrainian citizen — and the governor of Odesa.Kyiv has summoned the Georgian ambassador and asked him to leave Ukraine within 48 hours for talks with his own government. Zelenskyy’s intervention came after pictures emerged from a court hearing in Tbilisi that showed Saakashvili looking emaciated and gravely ill.Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the move was “extremely harsh...

Turkey and Egypt reappoint ambassadors, ending years of tensions between the regional powers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Egypt and Turkey took a further step toward restoring full diplomatic ties on Tuesday by dispatching ambassadors for the first time in years, the latest step in the reconciliation between the two regional powers.In a joint statement, the two countries announced the appointment of Salih Mutlu Sen as Turkish ambassador to Cairo and of Amr Elhamamy as the Egyptian ambassador to Ankara.“This step aims to establish normal relations between the two countries once again and demonstrates their mutual determination to work towards enhancing their bilateral relations for the best interest of both the Turkish and Egyptian peoples,” the statement said.Egypt and Turkey withdrew their ambassadors as tensions between them flared following the Egyptian military’s 2013 ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi amid mass protests against his divisive one year of rule. Morsi hailed from the Muslim Brotherhood group, which Turkey supported. Egypt has designated the group a terro...

Polish climber dies after scaling Pakistan’s ‘killer mountain,’ Nanga Parbat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A Polish climber has died after scaling Pakistan’s Nanga Parbat, known as “killer mountain” for its dangerous conditions, local police and a mountaineering official said Tuesday.Pawel Tomasz Kopec had suffered breathing problems while descending the 8,126-meter (26,660-foot) mountain with two other climbers in harsh weather conditions, a local police official Zahid Hussain said. It was unclear whether any operation will be launched to bring down the climber’s body. Authorities said the other two mountainers were safe and returning to their base camp.Karrar Haidri, secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, said he had also received a report from an expedition company about the Kopec’s death. He said any decision to bring down the body of the climber will be made after consulting his family. Haidri said a Pakistani mountaineer, Asif Bhatti, was stranded on Nanga Parbat because of snow blindness, and efforts were underway to rescue him.Every ...

Business travel for Indonesians to Australia will be made easier in a deal between national leaders

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Business travel for Indonesians to Australia will be made easier in a bid to boost the economic partnership between the two countries following a deal struck on Tuesday between their leaders. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indonesian President Joko Widodo agreed on visa changes, climate initiative funding and education partnerships during talks at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo. Albanese announced Indonesians will be able to access extended business visas for Australia, increasing from three to five years, while Indonesian e-passport holders will be prioritised. Indonesians will also be able to access a frequent traveler visa.“This offers a 10-year visa validity making an enormous difference and removing bureaucratic impediments to our closer relationship,” Albanese said. “Today our relationship shifts up another gear, our countries continue to choose to draw closer together.”Albanese said Indonesia would play a critical role in boosting the su...

France returns 35 citizens from camp in Syria housing thousands linked to Islamic State extremists

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:21:54 GMT

PARIS (AP) — France has returned 35 people — 10 women and 25 minors — from a sprawling camp in northeast Syria housing thousands of people linked to Islamic State extremists. Al-Hol Camp — named after a town near the Iraqi border — holds about 51,000 people, including many widows, wives and children of Islamic State fighters. Iraqis make up nearly half the population, but a sizeable minority are from outside the Middle East. Part of the camp called the Annex holds around 8,000 women and children from 60 nationalities who are considered the most die-hard among the residents, and experts have warned for years that the camp’s wretched conditions and confined spaces risk creating another generation of Islamic State fighters. French citizens made up the largest European contingent of people who joined the Islamic State at the height of the extremist group’s reach. With its territorial defeat in 2019, France has brought home women and children in successive waves. All 10 of the adul...