Month: August 2024

Power production contracts with Chinese companies need review, Pakistani minister says

Posted on by SeeEA

ISLAMABAD — Pakistani Minister for Power Awais Leghari says contracts with Chinese power producers that built and run power plants in Pakistan need to be revised.

“I think the terms and conditions that we already have with the Chinese as far as their IPPs [independent power producers] are concerned, they need another look,” Leghari told VOA in an interview this week.

The power projects, set up mostly in the last decade, helped end hourslong blackouts. But contracts require that Pakistan pay for the entire generation capacity of each power plant, regardless of how much electricity is used. A failure to spur industrial growth that could help utilize additional power, and the inability to reduce transmission losses, has left Pakistan with huge bills to pay for unused and wasted power generation capacity in addition to repaying project loans.

Independent power plants set up by Pakistani companies in the country also have contract terms similar to those of Chinese-run plants. Experts say Pakistan’s efforts to conduct an across-the-board audit of domestic and foreign-owned independent power plants show Beijing does not want its companies to be singled out as problematic, nor does it want to be alone in offering concessions to Islamabad.

Leghari is leading a power sector reform task force created after his recent trip to China. Reform plans aimed at cutting power sector losses include auditing all independent power plants.

Experts say Pakistan’s efforts to conduct an across-the-board audit of domestic and foreign-owned independent power plants in the coming days show Beijing does not want its companies to be singled out as problematic, nor does it want to be alone in offering concessions to Islamabad.

Leghari said the Chinese government and companies are already engaging with Pakistan on the reprofiling of power sector debt and to convert coal-fired power plants to local fuel.

“Those are changes in the terms and conditions of how the Chinese IPPs are working with us. Those would give us very substantial benefits to harvest in terms of [electricity] tariff reductions,” the power minister said, referring to Pakistan’s efforts to also bring down skyrocketing electricity prices for consumers.

Islamabad owes more than $15 billion to Chinese power plant operators. It is seeking rescheduling of payments to gain financial breathing room in a bid to obtain much-needed financing from the International Monetary Fund.

Leghari and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb went to Beijing late last month to discuss power sector debt relief.

The trip came days after Islamabad reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF for a three-year, $7 billion loan program. The bank’s board must still approve the deal.

Leghari said China, like the IMF, wants to see broader reforms from Pakistan.

China and the IMF “are wanting to look at the entire economic or power sector reform that we have already authored and embarked upon,” Leghari said. “I think the more the confidence they have in our economic reform agenda, the better would be the response.”

Beijing has not publicly addressed Islamabad’s request for rescheduling energy sector debt. However, Pakistan’s daily Express Tribune reported it has agreed to convert three Chinese-owned power plants in Pakistan from using imported to local coal.

Pakistan hopes to save hundreds of millions of dollars annually by switching to local coal for power generation.

The change may come at a high cost. Experts say Chinese investors struggling to recover payments may demand higher insurance premiums and profit margins if they are to expand mining operations, reducing savings for Pakistan.

“It’s going to be a win-win situation for everyone,” Leghari said, rejecting the concerns.

“Unless that isn’t there, people will not invest, lenders will not give money.”

Pakistan will also need infrastructure to transport local coal long distances, and power plants may need to make technical design changes to use Pakistani coal, which is known to be dirtier and less efficient than imported coal.

“There has been an overwhelming response to have a look and run technical and financial feasibilities on all the aspects of coal conversion and reprofiling,” Leghari insisted, while rejecting environmental concerns about shifting to local coal.

Leghari played down the possibility of scaring Chinese investors as Pakistan seeks a review of past contracts, saying Islamabad holds relationships with investors “dear to our heart.”

“Whatever will happen, with whomever, will be with mutual consent,” he said.
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Sunflower oil dethrones olive oil in Spain’s kitchens as prices soar

Posted on by SeeEU

madrid — Sunflower oil has dethroned olive oil as king of the kitchen in Spain, the world´s largest olive oil producer, as rising prices force consumers to switch to cheaper options. 

Spaniards bought 107 million liters (28.3 million gallons) of all types of olive oil in the first half of 2024 compared with 179 million liters of sunflower oil, according to Spain’s biggest olive oil bottling association, Anierac.  

Until this year, olive oil has been the most popular cooking oil in Spanish households, accounting for 62% of sales by volume in 2023 while sunflower oil represented almost 34%, according to the Ministry of Agriculture. 

“It is clear that olive oil consumption is falling in Spain,” said Primitivo Fernandez, spokesman for Anierac. “There are households that used to buy only olive oil and for the first time are now buying sunflower oil and olive oil,” he said. 

Olive oil sales by volume fell 18% from the first half of 2023, Anierac said. Sunflower oil sales increased by 25% in volume last year, according to official data. 

A bottle of sunflower oil cost an average of 1.86 euros ($2.07) a liter last year, while pricier olive oil types cost upwards of 6 euros a liter, 50% more than in 2022, official data showed. 

Weather’s effects

Spain usually supplies around 40% of the world’s olive oil, but heat waves in the spring and a prolonged drought reduced olive harvests over the past two years, doubling olive oil prices to record levels. 

That has pushed the staple of the Mediterranean diet beyond the reach of poor households in Spain, which are switching to cheaper sunflower oil, according to a Ministry of Agriculture report on food consumption trends in 2023. 

At the end of last year, olive oil was mainly consumed in middle-class and upper-middle-class households, the report said. 

One-liter bottles of extra-virgin olive oil were selling for as much as 14.5 euros ($15.77) in some supermarkets last year, putting them in the category of products retailers fit with security tags. 

In June, the Spanish government cut the value added tax on olive oil to make it more affordable even as prices have eased a little this year. 

Spain’s largest supermarket chain, Mercadona, has cut the price of olive oil by 25% this year and this week was offering 1 liter bottles below 7 euros to try to woo back customers, a company source said.
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Weeks after floods, Vermont businesses struggling to get visitors to return

Posted on by SeeUS

burke, vermont — Two bouts of flooding from storms in July has hampered businesses and destinations in an economically depressed section of northern Vermont, with some still closed as they continue to repair damage and others urging visitors, who were deterred by the weather, to make the trip. 

Kingdom Trails, a popular destination for mountain bikers, draws tens of thousands of visitors a year. But the storms that hit the region on July 10 and July 30 washed away some roads and bridges, damaged homes and trails, and discouraged visitors at the height of the season. 

Businesses and destinations are picking up the pieces, with some still closed in nearby Lyndonville, while others want to get the word out that they are very much open. 

“I can’t stress enough that we are open and our community is welcoming people,” said Abby Long, executive director of Kingdom Trails. “We’re encouraging folks to not only come visit Kingdom Trails and have an awesome time but sign up to volunteer mucking and gutting houses for the morning and then relax on the trails in the afternoon.” 

The storms caused $300,000 in damages to the trails — and that doesn’t account for the loss of membership revenue, she said. The trails were closed for about a day and a half as crews worked furiously to get them back open. The cost of repairs comes on top of the $150,000 in damages suffered in last summer’s flooding. 

“That is not sustainable,” Long said. 

So far, 341 businesses in Vermont have reported flood damage to the state this year, according to Economic Development Commissioner Joan Goldstein. Last summer, about 1,100 businesses were affected, she said. 

In Lyndonville, a popular diner that had been in business since 1978 will not be reopening after getting damaged in the July 10 storms. The owner of the Miss Lyndonville Diner is having repairs done and plans to sell the restaurant. She told the Caledonian Record that the flooding convinced her it was time to retire. 

Leaving ski industry

The nearby Village Sport Shop, which also has been in business for nearly 50 years, has decided to close its flooded Lyndonville shop and exit the ski industry, according to a social media post by the business. 

“With the multiple flooding events we have endured and the evolution we have needed to take as a business, we have come to the decision it is time to turn our focus towards the summer side of the business and relieve ourselves from the flood risks the lowest lying real estate on the strip endures,” the post said. The business has a trailside bicycle shop in East Burke. 

A bagel shop and a Walgreens drugstore were still temporarily closed as they recover from the flood damage. 

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration making federal funding available to help individuals and communities recover from the July 9-10 flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Beryl. Governor Phil Scott has requested a separate disaster declaration for the July 30 storms and flooding. 

In May, Vermont became the first state to enact a law requiring fossil fuel companies to pay a share of the damage caused by extreme weather fanned by climate change. But officials have acknowledged that collecting any money will depend on litigation against a much-better-resourced oil industry. 

In Burke, a town of about 1,650 that is home to the Burke Mountain ski area, Kingdom Trails is a huge economic driver, said Town Administrator Jim Sullivan. 

“It’s traumatic, it’s unbelievable the extent that it ripples out,” he said. “If Kingdom Trails can’t open, people cancel their reservations at the Airbnbs and at the inns. We have restaurants that are counting on all of those people coming here. And it’s just a chain event that eventually dwindles where you have these absolutely beautiful days and you just don’t have the people here that we normally would have if we didn’t have this devastation.” 

‘Screeching halt’

The East Burke Market was having a really good summer but when the trails closed down, business “came to a bit of a screeching halt,” said co-owner Burton Hinton. 

Each of the storms caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in road and property damage, Sullivan said. The town lost a bridge in the July 10 flooding and the whole mountain road in the storm weeks later, he said. 

“We’re still waiting for some direction from the federal government. In the meantime, everybody has really come together and done a great job of helping each other. True community,” he said. 

About 60 student-athletes who race in cross-country mountain biking with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League, and 40 coaches, were in Burke to train at Kingdom Trails when the latest flooding hit on July 30. 

The group had to pivot to ride on gravel for a few days but then some trails reopened quickly, said Michael Morrell, with the National Interscholastic Cycling Association, who was with them. 

“The trail system up here and the trail crew are just so efficient, and the trails, many of the trails, they drain very well,” he said on August 1. 

Still, he said he felt terrible for those reliant on getting tourists to visit the local trails. 

“I feel so bad that their roads are closed,” Morrell said. ” … We’re just glad that we can help support them in any way we can.”
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Spanish athlete with albinism fled Mali, now chases gold at Paralympics

Posted on by SeeAF

LUGO, Spain — When Adiaratou Iglesias crossed the finish line at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, she did not know she had bagged a gold in the women’s 100-metre T13 race until she was told.

The visually impaired Spanish athlete, who goes by Adi and also won a 400m silver in Tokyo, said she now dreamed of hearing her adoptive family shout “gold” when she completes her races at the Paris Games this week.

Iglesias was born in Mali with albinism, a genetic condition that inhibits the production of melanin which pigments the skin, hair and eyes. Albinism impairs her visual perception by 90%, but thick corrective eyewear allows her to see around 20%.

“I don’t know anything when I cross the finish line because I can’t see what’s on my sides,” the 25-year-old told Reuters.

Iglesias said her biological parents decided to send her to Spain when she was 11 to prevent her from suffering attacks based on her albinism.

In some countries in sub-Saharan Africa, people with albinism are sometimes killed for their body parts, which are prized in ritual witchcraft.

As a child, Iglesias used to run errands for her mother in Bamako, and she invariably did it as quickly as possible.

“I’ve always loved running and been passionate about it but I couldn’t (practice athletics) due to life circumstances until 2014,” she said, crediting the support from her adoptive mother, Lina Iglesias, without which “this never would’ve been possible.”

After spending time at a children’s shelter in northern Spain, Iglesias was adopted in 2013 and moved to the northwestern city of Lugo, obtaining Spanish citizenship.

Lina, 60, held back tears and beamed with pride when asked what it would mean to hug her daughter after winning in Paris. “It’d be a big thrill for me but not much more than what I feel each time I see her run or win.”

Last year, Iglesias — who is a fan of Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal — was invited by the European Commission to talk about combatting hate speech and hate crimes.

Despite spending most of her time at a high-performance center for elite athletes in Madrid, she wants to keep her medals — which include two golds from the 2021 European Championships and two silvers from the 2019 World Championships — in her childhood room in Lugo.

“It’ll be my museum, and it makes (Lina) very happy,” Iglesias said while sitting on her bed.
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EU: Maduro has not shown evidence to declare victory in Venezuela elections

Posted on by SeeEU

MEXICO CITY — The European Union’s top diplomat on Saturday said that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has still “not provided the necessary public evidence” to prove he was the winner of July’s elections, days after the country’s Supreme Court backed the government’s disputed claims of victory.

The bloc joined a slate of other Latin American countries and the United States in rejecting the Venezuelan high court’s certification. Authorities repeated calls for Maduro to release the election’s official tally sheets, considered the one verifiable vote count in Venezuela as they are almost impossible to replicate.

“Only complete and independently verifiable results will be accepted and recognized,” Josep Borrell, the high representative of the EU, said in a statement.

Borrell’s comments came as the leaders of Brazil and Colombia also demanded the release of the tallies, saying on Saturday the “credibility of the electoral process can only be restored through the transparent publication of disaggregated and verifiable data.”

The joint statement from Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Colombian President Gustavo Petro didn’t go as far as to reject the court certification. Many had been waiting to see how the two leftist leaders would respond to the court because both are close allies of Maduro and have been working to facilitate talks with both sides.

Maduro claims that he won the presidential vote, but so far has refused to release the tallies. Meanwhile, the main opposition coalition has accused Maduro of trying to steal the vote.

Opposition volunteers managed to collect copies of voting tallies from 80% of the 30,000 polling booths nationwide that show former opposition candidate Edmundo González won by a more than 2-to-1 margin. The Supreme Court and other government entities alleged those tallies were forged.

The Venezuelan government rejected Borrell’s statements, calling them “interventionist.” Its Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday that the “continued disrespect” to Venezuela’s sovereignty by the EU could “considerably affect diplomatic, political and economic relations.”

Lula and Petro said they “take note” of the court’s ruling, but added they are still awaiting release of the tallies.

The Brazilian and Colombian leaders also called on actors in Venezuela to “avoid resorting to acts of violence and repression” as security forces arrested more than 2,000 people and cracked down on demonstrations that erupted spontaneously throughout the country protesting the results. But the two leaders didn’t directly accuse the Maduro government of carrying out the violence.

The arrests have again spread fear in a country that has seen other government crackdowns during previous times of political turmoil.

At the same time, key opposition figure Maria Corina Machado has since gone into hiding and the government said Friday it will order González to provide sworn testimony in an ongoing investigation, claiming he was part of an effort to spread panic by contesting the results of the election.

Both Lula and Petro have previously been criticized for what some say have been lenient policies toward Maduro’s government, but their tone has grown more stern in recent months, especially in the wake of the election fallout.

Their two countries are neighbors to Venezuela and their governments were to witness agreements struck between Maduro and the opposition that aimed to chart the path to free and fair elections, which the opposition and other observers accused Maduro of violating. The two leaders reiterated their willingness to facilitate dialogue between the government and the opposition.

“The political normalization of Venezuela requires the recognition that there is no lasting alternative to peaceful dialogue and democratic coexistence,” the statement read. 
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Sudan’s de facto ruler won’t join peace talks, vowing to ‘fight for 100 years’

Posted on by SeeAF

Port Sudan, Sudan — Sudan’s de facto ruler, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said Saturday his government would not join peace talks with rival paramilitaries in Switzerland, vowing instead to “fight for 100 years.” 

“We will not go to Geneva … we will fight for 100 years,” Burhan, whose troops have been battling the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for over 16 months, told reporters in Port Sudan. 

The United States opened talks in Switzerland on August 14 aimed at easing the human suffering and achieving a lasting cease-fire. 

While an RSF delegation showed up, the Sudanese armed forces were unhappy with the format and did not attend, though they were in telephone contact with the mediators. 

The talks were co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, with the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations completing the so-called Aligned for Advancing Lifesaving and Peace in Sudan Group (ALPS). 

They wrapped up Friday without a cease-fire but with progress on securing aid access on two key routes into the country, which is gripped by one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. 

The brutal conflict has forced one in five people to flee their homes, while tens of thousands have died. More than 25 million across Sudan — more than half its population — face acute hunger. 
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4 injured in stabbing attack in Sydney, Australia, police say

Posted on by SeeEA

sydney, australia — Four people — including a police officer — were injured on Sunday in a mass stabbing in Sydney, Australia, police said. It was the latest in a series of stabbing attacks in the city this year. 

Police said in a statement on Sunday morning that four people were “injured following a crash and suspected stabbing a short time ago.” 

“There is definitely an incident in Engadine,” a police spokesperson said, referring to a suburb in the south of the city of around 5 million people. 

Police said they did not believe anyone was killed in the attack. 

They said a man who allegedly ran from the scene was Tasered and has been taken into custody. 

A police officer was among those injured in the attack, authorities said. 

Sydney has seen a spate of knife attacks this year, prompting the New South Wales state government to toughen its knife laws. The state parliament passed laws in June giving police electronic metal-detecting scanners to check people without a warrant at shopping centers, sporting venues and public transport stations. 

In April, six people were killed and 12 injured in a knife attack at a mall in Sydney’s Bondi area. 
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CEO of Telegram messaging app arrested in France, say French media

Posted on by SeeEU

paris — Pavel Durov, billionaire founder and CEO of the Telegram messaging app, was arrested at the Bourget airport outside Paris on Saturday evening, TF1 TV and BFM TV said, citing unnamed sources. 

Telegram, particularly influential in Russia, Ukraine and the republics of the former Soviet Union, is ranked as one of the major social media platforms after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat. It aims to hit 1 billion users in the next year.  

Based in Dubai, Telegram was founded by Russian-born Durov. He left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he sold. 

Durov was traveling aboard his private jet, TF1 said on its website, adding he had been targeted by an arrest warrant in France as part of a preliminary police investigation. 

TF1 and BFM both said the investigation was focused on a lack of moderators on Telegram, and that police considered that this situation allowed criminal activity to go on undeterred on the messaging app. 

Telegram did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The French Interior Ministry and police had no comment. 

App becomes popular during wartime

After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Telegram has become the main source of unfiltered — and sometimes graphic and misleading — content from both sides about the war and the politics surrounding the conflict. 

The app has become preferred means of communications for Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his officials. The Kremlin and the Russian government also use it to disseminate their news. It has also become one of the few places where Russians can access news about the war.

TF1 said Durov had been traveling from Azerbaijan and was arrested at around 18:00 GMT.  

Durov, whose fortune was estimated by Forbes at $15.5 billion, said some governments had sought to pressure him but the app, which has now 900 million active users, should remain a “neutral platform” and not a “player in geopolitics.” 

The Russia Embassy in France told the Russian state TASS news agency that it was not contacted by Durov’s team after the reports of the arrest, but it was taking “immediate” steps to clarify the situation.  

Bloggers encourage protesting French embassies

Russia’s representative to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, and several other Russian politicians were quick to accuse France of acting as a dictatorship. 

“Some naive persons still don’t understand that if they play [a] more or less visible role in [the] international information space it is not safe for them to visit countries which move towards much more totalitarian societies,” Ulyanov wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

Several Russian bloggers called for protests at French embassies throughout the world at noon Sunday. 
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French authorities arrest suspect behind synagogue explosion that injured officer

Posted on by SeeEU

NICE, France — French police apprehended and detained the suspect behind the arson attack on a synagogue in a southwestern Mediterranean town that injured a police officer, the country’s acting interior minister said early Sunday.

Two cars parked at the Beth Yaacov synagogue complex in the seaside resort town of La Grande Motte near Montpellier were set ablaze just after 8 a.m. (0600 GMT) Saturday, the National Antiterrorism Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement Saturday.

“The alleged perpetrator of the arson attack on the synagogue has been arrested,” Gerald Darmanin, the acting interior minister, said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. He visited the site Saturday afternoon along with acting Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and met with local officials and the synagogue staff.

Darmanin also hailed the “professional conduct” of police forces and its elite intervention unit “despite the gunfire” during the operation. He did not provide further information.

Firefighters discovered additional fires at two entrances to the synagogue. A police officer who walked up to the site was injured after a propane gas tank in one of the vehicles exploded, the prosecutor’s statement said.

Five people, including the rabbi, who were present in the synagogue complex at the time of the attack were unharmed, it added.

Prosecutors were investigating the attack as an attempted assassination linked to a terrorist group and destruction of property with dangerous means, and a crime planned by a terrorist group with an intent to cause harm, the statement said.

After the attack Saturday, Darmanin ordered police reinforcements to protect Jewish places of worship following what was “clearly a criminal act.”

“I want to assure our Jewish fellow citizens of my full support and say that at the request of President Emmanuel Macron all means are being mobilized to find the perpetrator,” Darmanin posted on X. He ordered more police officers deployed at Jewish places of worship around the country following a surge of antisemitism since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October.

La Grande Motte Mayor Stéphan Rossignol said that investigators were reviewing the city’s surveillance videos and said that a lone suspect was spotted at the site of the attack.

“The individual in question did not manage to get inside the synagogue, even though that was clearly his objective.” Rossignol said in an interview with broadcaster France Info.

Prosecutors said a male suspect spotted in surveillance videos fleeing the site was carrying a Palestinian flag and a weapon. They spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with regulations amid an ongoing investigation.

President Emmanuel Macron said the synagogue attack was a “terrorist act” and assured that “everything is being done to find (the) perpetrator.”

“The fight against antisemitism is a constant battle,” Macron said on X.

Attal, the acting prime minister, said the synagogue was targeted in the “antisemitic attack,” a “shocking and appalling” act of violence.

“Once again, French Jews have been targeted and attacked because of their beliefs,” Attal said after meetings in La Grand Motte. “We are outraged and repulsed.”

At least 200 police officers and other security personnel were deployed to apprehend the perpetrator, Attal added.

The assailant who hit the synagogue on the Shabbat morning was “very determined” to cause damage and casualties, Attal said and added that preliminary evidence collected by investigators shows that “we have narrowly avoided a tragedy.” 
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Unusual weather leads to summer snowfall in western mountains of US

Posted on by SeeUS

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, California — An unusually cold weather system from the Gulf of Alaska interrupted summer along the West Coast of the United States on Saturday, bringing snow to Washington state’s Mount Rainier and a lookout point of California’s Sierra Nevada.

Photos posted by the National Weather Service and local authorities showed a white-covered peak from Rainier and a dusting of snow at Minaret Vista, a lookout point southeast of Yosemite National Park in California’s Sierra Nevada.

Madera County Deputy Sheriff Larry Rich said it was “definitely unexpected” to see snow at Minaret Vista in August.

“It’s not every day you get to spend your birthday surrounded by a winter wonderland in the middle of summer,” he said in a statement. “It made for a day I won’t soon forget, and a unique reminder of why I love serving in this area. It’s just one of those moments that makes working up here so special.”

Snow also fell overnight on Mammoth Mountain, a ski destination in California, with the National Weather Service warning hikers and campers to prepare for slick roads.

More light snow was possible in California on the crest of the Sierra Nevada, mostly around Tioga Pass and higher elevations of Yosemite National Park, the National Weather Service said.

August snow has not occurred in those locations since 2003, forecasters said.

Tioga Pass rises to more than 9,900 feet (3,017 meters) and serves as the eastern entryway to Yosemite. But it is usually closed much of each year by winter snow that can take one or two months to clear.

“While this snow will not stay around very long, roads near Tioga Pass could be slick and any campers and hikers should prepare for winter conditions,” the weather service wrote.

While the start of ski season is at least several months away, the hint of winter was welcomed by resorts.

“It’s a cool and blustery August day here at Palisades Tahoe, as a storm that could bring our first snowfall of the season moves in this afternoon!” the resort said in a social media post Friday.

The “anomalous cool conditions” will spread over much of the western U.S. by Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.

Despite the expected precipitation, forecasters also warned of fire danger because of gusty winds associated with the passage of the cold front.

At the same time, a flash flood watch was issued for the burn scar of California’s largest wildfire so far this year from Friday morning through Saturday morning.

The Park Fire roared across more than 671 square miles (1,748 square kilometers) after it erupted in late July near the Central Valley city of Chico and climbed up the western slope of the Sierra.

The fire became California’s fourth largest on record, but it has been substantially tamed recently. Islands of vegetation continue to burn within its existing perimeter, but evacuation orders have been canceled.

California’s wildfire season got off to an intense start amid extreme July heat. Blazes fed on dried-out vegetation that grew during back-to-back wet years. Fire activity has recently fallen into a relative lull.

Forecasts call for a rapid return of summer heat as the cold front departs.
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Nikki Haley in Taiwan says an isolationist policy is not ‘healthy’

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TAIPEI, Taiwan — Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on a visit to Taiwan Saturday that an isolationist policy isn’t “healthy” and called on the Republican Party to stand with her country’s allies, while still putting in good words for the party’s nominee, Donald Trump.

Haley, who ran against Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, told reporters in the capital, Taipei, that supporting U.S. allies, including Ukraine and Israel, is vital. She underscored the importance of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory, to be brought under control by force if necessary.

“I don’t think the isolationist approach is healthy. I think America can never sit in a bubble and think that we won’t be affected,” she said.

While the U.S. doesn’t formally recognize Taiwan, it is the island’s strongest backer and main arms provider. However, Trump’s attempt to reclaim the presidency has fueled worries. He said Taiwan should pay for U.S. protection in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek published in July and dodged answering the question of whether he would defend the island against a possible Chinese military action.

When Haley shuttered her own bid for the Republican nomination, she did not immediately endorse Trump, having accused him of causing chaos and disregarding the importance of U.S. alliances abroad. But in May she said she would be voting for him, while making it clear that she felt her former boss had work to do to win over voters who supported her.

On Saturday, she spoke in Trump’s favor. She said that having previously served with Trump’s administration, “we did show American strength in the world,” pointing to their pushback against China and their sanctioning of Russia and North Korea, among other efforts.

“I think that all of that strength that we showed is the reason that we didn’t see any wars, we didn’t see any invasions, we didn’t see any harm that happened during that time. I think Donald Trump would bring that back,” she said.

Trump has claimed that if elected, he would end the conflict in Ukraine before Inauguration Day in January. But Russia’s United Nations ambassador said he can’t. Trump’s public comments have varied between criticizing U.S. backing for Ukraine’s defense and supporting it, while his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, has been a leader of Republican efforts to block what have been billions in U.S. military and financial assistance to Ukraine since Russia invaded in 2022.

Concerns among Ukraine and its supporters that the country could lose vital U.S. support have increased as Trump’s campaign surged.

Haley criticized Trump’s rival, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, saying she would “do exactly” what President Joe Biden had done. She said Harris was part of his administration when the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021, when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and when the Hamas-Israel war broke out last year.

“She was in the situation room right next to Joe Biden. She was there making the exact same decisions. Those decisions have made the world less safe,” she said.

Haley added that while the Republicans and Democrats may not currently concur on much, they agree on “the threats of China,” adding that Taiwan is now looking “to make sure that if China starts a fight with them, that they are prepared to make sure that they can fight back.”

She said her party should stand with the country’s allies and make sure that U.S. shows strength around the world. She also said any authoritarian regime and “communists” harming or hurting other free countries should be a personal matter to the U.S.

“We don’t want to see communist China win. We don’t want to see Russia win. We don’t want to see Iran or North Korea win,” she said.

Haley met Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te during this week’s trip. She called for more international backing for the self-ruled island, a coordinated pushback against China’s claims over it, and for Taiwan to become a full member of the United Nations.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said Saturday that 38 warplanes and 12 vessels from China were detected around the island during a 24-hour period from Friday morning. Thirty-two of the planes crossed the middle of the line of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary that’s considered a buffer between the island and mainland.
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11 dead, 14 missing in China after heavy rainstorms

Posted on by SeeEA

BEIJING — Heavy rainstorms that swept through a city in northeast China this week killed 11 people and left 14 others missing, while causing more than $1 billion in damages, state media reported Friday. 

State broadcaster CCTV said an officer who was trying to save lives was one of the people who died in the city of Huludao in Liaoning province. Rescuers were still trying to find the people who went missing during the “historically rare” destructive rainfall, it said. An image from the broadcaster showed roads seriously flooded. 

According to preliminary estimates, 188,800 people were affected by the natural disaster, with losses amounting to about $1.4 billion, officials announced. A large number of roads, bridges and cables were damaged. 

CCTV said the maximum daily rainfall recorded was 52.8 centimeters (nearly 21 inches), breaking the provincial record. The hardest-hit parts of the city experienced a year’s worth of rain in just half a day, and overall, it was the strongest rainfall in Huludao since meteorological records began in 1951, it said. 

The Chinese government allocated a fund of $7 million to support disaster relief efforts. 

China was in the middle of its peak flood season over the past month. Chinese policymakers have repeatedly warned that the government needs to step up disaster preparations as severe weather becomes more common. 

Landslides and flooding have killed more than 150 people around China in the past two months as torrential rainstorms battered the region. 
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Hungary’s foreign minister accuses EU of disrupting oil supplies from Russia

Posted on by SeeEU

BUDAPEST, hungary — Hungary’s foreign minister said Saturday the European Commission’s decision not to mediate in a dispute over a blockage of oil supplies from Russia via Ukraine into his country suggested that Brussels was behind the stoppage. 

Hungary and its neighbor Slovakia have been protesting since Ukraine put Russian oil producer Lukoil on a sanctions list in June, stopping that company’s oil from passing through Ukrainian territory to Slovak and Hungarian refineries. 

The assertion from Hungary’s Peter Szijjarto, which he made without providing evidence, came a day after the European Commission declined a request from Hungary and Slovakia for it to mediate between them and Ukraine over the sanctions. 

“The fact that the European Commission declared that it was unwilling to help to secure the energy supply of Hungary and Slovakia suggests that the order was sent from Brussels to Kyiv to cause challenges and problems in the energy supply of Hungary and Slovakia,” Szijjarto said at a conservative political festival. 

A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment on Szijjarto’s remarks. 

The Commission, which has been supportive of Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion, has repeatedly urged EU countries to end their dependency on energy supplies from Moscow. The EU has imposed sanctions on most Russian oil imports. 

On Friday, a Commission spokesperson said there were no indications that Ukraine’s sanctions had endangered European energy supplies, as Russian oil continued to flow through the separate Druzhba pipeline, which also connects Russia to Slovakia and Hungary via Ukraine. 

Ukraine’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Hungarian statement Saturday. 

Slovakia and Hungary are both EU countries that have opposed Western allies’ military aid to Ukraine as it fights the invasion that Russia launched in February 2022. 

The pipeline’s southern branch runs through Ukraine to the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, and has served as their refineries’ primary supply source for years. 

Last month, Szijjarto made similar comments when he accused the European Commission of blackmail in the oil dispute and said that maybe it was “Brussels, not Kyiv, that invented the whole thing.” 

A Hungarian government official said Thursday that Hungarian oil company MOL was in the final stages of discussions to establish a scheme to ensure crude oil flows from Russia. 
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Islamic State claims responsibility for knife attack in Germany

Posted on by SeeEU

SOLINGEN, Germany — The Islamic State group claimed responsibility on Saturday for a knife attack in the German city of Solingen that killed three people and wounded eight others.  

Police have detained a 15-year-old and were investigating whether this person was linked to the attacker. The perpetrator was still at large on Saturday.  

Describing the man who carried out the attack as a “soldier of the Islamic State,” the militant group said in a statement on its Telegram account: “He carried out the attack in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.”  

The statement did not immediately provide any evidence for its assertion, and it was not clear how close any relationship between the attacker and Islamic State was. 

Hendrik Wuest, premier of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, described Friday evening’s attack during a festival in the city as an act of terror.  

“This attack has struck at the heart of our country,” Wuest told reporters.

Before the IS claim, Markus Caspers, an official with the public prosecutor’s office in Duesseldorf, said authorities were treating the attack as a possible terrorist incident because there was no other known motive and the victims seemed unrelated.  

The attack took place in the Fronhof, a market square in the western German city where live bands were playing as part of a festival marking its 650th anniversary. 

A police official, Thorsten Fleiss, said the assailant appeared to aim for his victims’ throats. 

“The perpetrator must be quickly caught and punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a post on X. 

Police cordoned off the square on Saturday and passers-by placed candles and flowers outside the barriers. 

“We are full of shock and grief,” Solingen Mayor Tim-Oliver Kurzbach told journalists. 

Authorities canceled the remainder of the weekend festival. 

Fatal stabbings and shootings are relatively rare in Germany. The government said earlier this month it wanted to toughen rules on knives that can be carried in public by reducing the maximum length allowed. 

In June, a 29-year-old policeman was fatally stabbed in Mannheim during an attack on a right-wing demonstration. A stabbing attack on a train in 2021 injured several people. 

Solingen, well known for its knife manufacturing industry, is a city of some 165,000 people.  

The episode comes ahead of three state elections next month in Thuringia, Saxony and Brandenburg, in which the anti-immigrant far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has a chance of winning. 

Though the motive and identity of the assailant were not known, a top AfD candidate for one of the state elections, Bjoern Hoecke, seized on Friday’s attack, posting on X: “Do you really want to get used to this? Free yourselves and end this insanity of forced multiculturalism.” 
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RFK Jr. endorses Donald Trump

Posted on by SeeUS

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced his endorsement of former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, on Friday. VOA’s Carolyn Presutti reports from Glendale, Arizona, where the two politicians campaigned together for the first time.
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Cholera poses new risks for millions of Sudan’s displaced

Posted on by SeeAF

GENEVA — U.N. agencies are scaling up cholera prevention and treatment programs to get on top of a new, deadly cholera outbreak in Sudan that threatens to further destabilize communities suffering from hunger and the ill effects of more than 16 months of conflict.

The recent cholera outbreak has resurged after several weeks of heavy rainfall and resulting flooding,” Kristine Hambrouck, UNHCR representative in Sudan, told journalists Friday in Geneva.

Speaking on a video-link from Port Sudan, she warned, “Risks are compounded by the continuing conflict and dire humanitarian conditions, including overcrowding in camps and gathering sites for refugees and Sudanese displaced by the war, as well as limited medical supplies and health workers.”

She expressed particular concern about the spread of the deadly disease in areas hosting refugees, mainly in Kassala, Gedaref and al-Jazirah states.

“In addition to hosting refugees from other countries, these states are also sheltering thousands of displaced Sudanese who have sought safety from ongoing hostilities,” she said.

The United Nations describes Sudan as the largest displacement crisis in the world.  Latest figures put the number of people displaced inside Sudan at more than 10.7 million, with an additional 2 million who have fled to neighboring countries as refugees.

Additionally, the UNHCR says Sudan continues to host tens of thousands of refugees from countries such as Ethiopia and Eritrea.

Sudan’s health ministry officially declared a cholera outbreak on August 12. In the one month since the first suspected cases were reported, the World Health Organization says 658 cholera cases and 28 deaths have been reported by five states, “with a high case-fatality ratio of 4.3%.”

Kassala has reported the highest number of cholera cases at 473, followed by Gedaref with 110 cases, and al-Jazairah with 51 cases. Two other states, Khartoum and River Nile, have reported fewer numbers.

“These cases are not linked to the previous cholera outbreak, which had been declared in September 2023,” said Dr. Shible Sahbani, the WHO representative to Sudan, noting that the outbreak “technically ended” in May 2024 after no cases were reported for two consecutive incubation periods.

Speaking from Port Sudan, Sahbani described the situation in Kassala as very worrisome. He said the state’s health system already was under stress because of the large number of displaced people and refugees living there. “So, the health system is not able to cope with the additional influx of refugees and IDPs [internally displaced persons].”

“But in addition to that, it puts a big burden on the WASH system — the water, sanitation, and hygiene system. So, this makes the situation more complicated in favor of the spread of cholera,” he said.

Besides the dangers posed by cholera, UNICEF representative Hambrouck also warns of an increasing number of cases of waterborne diseases, including malaria and diarrhea, which also need to be brought under control.

“Constraints in humanitarian access are also impacting response efforts. Violence, insecurity and persistent rainfall are hampering the transportation of humanitarian aid,” she said.

She noted that more than 7.4 million refugees and internally displaced Sudanese living in White Nile, Darfur and Kordofan states are having to do without “critical medicines and relief supplies” because of delays in delivery.

The WHO and UNHCR are working closely with Sudan’s Ministry of Health to coordinate the cholera outbreak response. Among its many initiatives, UNHCR says it is working with health partners to strengthen surveillance, early warning systems and contact tracing in affected locations.

“Disease surveillance and testing are ongoing, and awareness-raising and training on cholera case management for health staff are also being conducted,” said Hambrouck.

For its part, Sahbani said the WHO has prepositioned cholera kits and other essential medical supplies “in high-risk states in anticipation of the risks associated with the rainy season.”

He said the WHO was spearheading a cholera vaccination campaign, noting that “a three-day oral cholera vaccination campaign in two localities of Kassala state concluded Thursday.”

He said the campaign already has used 51,000 doses and “the good news is that we got the approval of an additional 155,000 doses of cholera vaccine. So, this is the good news in the middle of this horrible crisis.”

One dose of the vaccine, he said, would protect the population against cholera for six months, while two doses would provide protection for up to three years.

“So, this is really good news because this will help us to contain the outbreak,” he said.  Without more funding, however, he warned the good news will quickly evaporate, noting that the WHO has received just one-third of its $85.6 million appeal.

“This will indeed limit our capacity to launch a robust response to reach a larger segment of the people in need,” he said.

His UNHCR colleague, Hambrouck, echoed the sentiments.

“With the humanitarian situation and funding level already precarious prior to this latest cholera outbreak, funds are desperately needed to support the provision of health care and other life-saving aid,” she said.
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Canadian rail arbitration hearing ends without decision; strike looms

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TORONTO — A workers’ union Friday threatened a strike at one of Canada’s two major freight railroads, only hours after the company’s trains restarted following a potentially devastating stoppage. A government-ordered arbitration hearing wrapped up without a decision, and Canadian National trains were expected to keep moving at least through Monday morning.

CN and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. locked out their workers Thursday when negotiations over a new labor contract reached a deadline without an agreement. That resulted in a near total shutdown of freight rail in the country for more than a day, until Canadian National resumed its service Friday morning. Trains operated by CPKC remain parked, and its workers, who had already been on strike since Thursday, stayed on the picket line Friday.

The government forced the companies and the union, Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, into arbitration overseen by the Canada Industrial Relations Board — an order the union is challenging. Friday’s nine-hour hearing ended with no order from the board.

The union filed a 72-hour strike notice against CN on Friday morning shortly after it announced that it planned to challenge the arbitration order, union spokesperson Marc-Andre Gauthier said.

If the board orders the union back to work, “the TCRC will lawfully abide by the decision, but will undertake steps to challenge to the fullest extent,” the Teamsters said in a statement. “Unfortunately, this will not provide immediate relief, but the Union is prepared to appeal to federal court if necessary.”

Canadian National, which has about 6,500 workers involved in the dispute, said the impact of the strike notice will depend on the timing of the Canada Industrial Relations Board’s decision. “It is in the national interest of Canada that the CIRB rule quickly, before even more harm is caused,” the railroad said in a written statement. CPKC has about 3,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers involved.

Perrin Beatty, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said the union’s latest actions “will prolong the damage to our economy and jeopardize the wellbeing and livelihoods of Canadians, including union and nonunion workers across multiple industries.”

Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon announced the decision to force the parties into binding arbitration Thursday afternoon, more than 16 hours after the lockout shut down the railroads, saying the economic risk was too great to allow them to continue. The government had declined to order arbitration two weeks ago. MacKinnon said he had hoped that negotiations between the companies and the union on a new contract would succeed.

“This is not about disobeying the minister’s order. It’s about exercising our right,” Teamsters Canada President Francois Laporte said Friday in announcing the strike. “We will exercise our right within the legal framework.”

Canadian National trains had begun rolling at 7 a.m. across Canada, said CN spokesperson Jonathan Abecassis. The development initially appeared to at least partially end a work stoppage that threatened to wreak havoc on the economies of Canada and the United States. Both countries, across all industries, rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products.

“While CN is focused on its recovery plan and powering the economy, Teamsters are focused on getting back to the picket line and holding the North American economy hostage to their demands,” Abecassis said following the union’s strike notice.

Getting even one of the railroads running again is a relief for businesses. In most past rail labor disputes, only one of the Canadian railroads stopped and the economy was able to weather that disruption.

The negotiations that began last year are hung up on issues around the way workers are scheduled and contract rules designed to prevent fatigue. The railroads had proposed shifting away from the current system that pays workers based on the number of miles they travel, to a system based on the hours they work. The railroads said the switch would make it easier to provide predictable schedules. But the union resisted because it feared the proposed changes would erode hard-fought protections against fatigue and jeopardize safety.

In Canada, another issue at CN is the railroad’s intention to expand a system that allows it to temporarily relocate workers to other parts of its network when it’s short on employees in a certain region.

Regarding wages, the railroads said they both offered raises in line with other recent deals in the industry for what are already well-paying jobs. Canadian National has said its engineers make about $150,000 and conductors earn roughly $121,000 for working 160 days a year, although some of their time off is spent stuck at hotels on the road between train trips while getting required rest. CPKC says its pay is comparable.

Nearly all of Canada’s freight handled by rail — worth more than $730 million a day and adding up to more than 375 million tons of freight last year — stopped Thursday along with rail shipments crossing the U.S. border.

About 30,000 commuters in Canada were also affected because their trains use CPKC’s lines. CPKC and CN’s trains continued operating in the U.S. and Mexico during the lockout.

Billions of dollars of goods move between Canada and the U.S. via rail each month, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“There are a lot of goods and services shipped across borders,” Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said at a rally in Calgary, Alberta, on Friday. “If this company chooses to continue its bad behavior, then it is going to have an impact. … They’ve got a lot of decisions they need to make. And they need to make the most important decision: Reward these workers with what they’ve earned and don’t try to diminish safety just so they need to feed their bottom lines.”
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Hone approaches Hawaii; Big Island under tropical storm warning

Posted on by SeeUS

HONOLULU, HAWAII — Tropical Storm Hone was approaching the southern edges of Hawaii on Saturday with gusts of wind and heavy rain, potentially inflicting flooding and wind damage on the Big Island over the weekend and raising the risk of wildfires on the drier sides of the islands.

The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm warning for Hawaii County, which includes all of the Big Island, and a red flag warning for the leeward sides of all islands.

Hone, which means “sweet and soft” in Hawaiian, had top winds of 105 kilometers per hour (65 miles per hour) early Saturday. It will likely strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane as it passes near or south of the Big Island from Saturday night into early Sunday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority told travelers it’s still safe to come to the islands but recommended that people postpone outdoor activities.

“We are not advising visitors to cancel their trips,” the agency said in a news release.

Hone was centered 465 kilometers (290 miles) east-southeast of Hilo and 805 kilometers (500 miles) east-southeast of Honolulu early Saturday.

The eastern and southeastern parts of the Big Island could get 11 to 25 centimeters (5 to 10 inches) of rain. The island could get sustained winds of 32 to 64 kph (20 to 40 mph) and gusts near 97 kph (60 mph).

The dry air north of the storm will spread arid conditions across the archipelago on Saturday, combining with strong winds to raise wildfire risks. Most of the state is already abnormally dry or in drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

The weather service’s red flag warning will be in effect from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. It issues the alert when warm temperatures, very low humidity and stronger winds combine to raise fire dangers. Winds are expected to be strongest where they blow downslope from higher terrain, over headlands and through passes, the hurricane center advised.

The situation recalls last year’s deadly wildfires on Maui, which were fueled by hurricane-force winds. But Hone’s wildfire risks are lower, said Laura Farris, a weather service meteorologist in Honolulu.

The August 8, 2023, blaze that torched the historic town of Lahaina caused the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. Powerful winds whipped up in part by a hurricane passing to Hawaii’s south helped fuel the flames that killed 102 people. Dry, overgrown grasses and drought helped spread the fire.

The state’s two power companies, Hawaiian Electric and the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative, said they would be monitoring conditions this weekend and ready to shut off power if necessary to reduce the chance that live, damaged powerlines could start fires.

The cause of the Lahaina blaze is still under investigation, but it’s possible it was ignited by bare electrical wire and leaning power poles toppled by the strong winds.

Moving westward across the Pacific behind Hone was Category 2 Hurricane Gilma, but it was expected to weaken over cooler waters as it encounters drier air in coming days and was forecast to become a tropical depression by Wednesday. Gilma may bring rain to Hawaii, but it’s not clear how much, Farris said.
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German police scour city for knife attacker who killed 3 at festival

Posted on by SeeEU

SOLINGEN, Germany — Special police units on Saturday joined the search for an unknown man who carried out a stabbing attack at a crowded festival in the western German city of Solingen, killing three people and wounding at least eight others, five of them seriously.

“The police are currently conducting a large-scale search for the perpetrator,” police said in a statement. “Both victims and witnesses are currently being questioned.”

Police did not indicate that they had yet established the identity of the attacker and warned people to stay vigilant even as well-wishers started to leave flowers at the scene. Police established an online portal where witnesses could upload video and any other information relevant to the attack.

People alerted police shortly after 9:30 p.m. Friday to an unknown attacker having wounded several people with a knife on a central square, the Fronhof. Police said they believe the stabbings were carried out by a lone attacker and gave no information about the identities of the victims.

“Last night our hearts were torn apart. We in Solingen are full of horror and grief. What happened yesterday in our city has hardly let any of us sleep,” the mayor of Solingen, Tim Kurzbach, said, speaking to reporters on Saturday near the scene of the attack.

The “Festival of Diversity,” marking the city’s 650th anniversary, began Friday and was supposed to run through Sunday, with several stages in central streets offering attractions such as live music, cabaret and acrobatics.

The attack took place in the crowd in front of one stage. Hours after the attack, the stage lights were still on as police and forensic investigators looked for clues in the cordoned-off square.

One of the festival organizers, Philipp Muller, appeared on stage on Friday and asked festivalgoers to “go calmly; please keep your eyes open, because unfortunately the perpetrator hasn’t been caught.” Solingen has about 160,000 residents and is near the bigger cities of Cologne and Duesseldorf.

The rest of the festival was canceled.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Saturday that the perpetrator of the attack must be caught quickly and punished with the full force of the law.

“The attack in Solingen is a terrible event that has shocked me greatly. An attacker has brutally killed several people. I have just spoken to Solingen’s mayor, Tim Kurzbach. We mourn the victims and stand by their families,” Scholz said on social media platform X.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also spoke to the mayor Saturday morning.

“The heinous act in Solingen shocks me and our country. We mourn those killed and worry about those injured, and I wish them strength and a speedy recovery from all my heart,” Steinmeier said in a statement on Saturday.

“The perpetrator needs to be brought to justice. Let’s stand together — against hatred and violence.”

There has been concern about increased knife violence in Germany. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser recently proposed toughening weapons laws to allow only knives with a blade measuring up to 6 centimeters (almost 2½ inches) to be carried in public, rather than the 12 centimeters currently allowed.
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Italy opens manslaughter probe in superyacht sinking

Posted on by SeeEU

ROME — Prosecutors in Italy said Saturday they have opened an investigation into culpable shipwreck and multiple manslaughter after a superyacht capsized during a storm off the coast of Sicily, killing seven people onboard. They include British tech magnate Mike Lynch and his daughter.

Termini Imerese prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio confirmed the investigation has been launched but said no suspect has been identified.

“We are only in the initial phase of the investigation. We can’t exclude any sort of development at present,” he told reporters at a news conference.

Cartosio said his team will carefully consider each possible element of responsibility, including those of the ship’s captain, the crew, individuals in charge of supervision, the shipbuilder and others.

“For me, it is probable that offenses were committed, that it could be a case of manslaughter, but we can only establish that if you give us the time to investigate,” he said.

The main question investigators are focusing on is how a sailing vessel deemed “unsinkable” by its manufacturer, Italian shipyard Perini Navi, sank while a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed.

Prosecutors said the event was “extremely rapid” and information they gained seemed to point to a “downburst,” a localized, powerful wind that descends from a thunderstorm and spreads out rapidly upon hitting the ground.

Initially, civil protection officials said they believe the yacht, which featured a distinctive 75-meter (246-feet) aluminum mast, was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.

Investigators were also asked why the crew was almost entirely saved, except for the chef, while six passengers remained trapped in the hull.

Local officials confirmed that most of the bodies recovered were found in the same part of the ship, close to the exit, suggesting that passengers had tried to get out.

Deputy Prosecutor Raffaele Cammarano said it was likely that the passengers were asleep, adding that one focus of the investigation is to ascertain whether anyone alerted them.

Cammarano confirmed that one person was on watch in the cockpit.

Rescuers on Friday brought ashore the last of seven bodies from the sinking of The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged luxury yacht that went down in a storm near the Mediterranean island in southern Italy early Monday. The boat was carrying a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers.

The seventh victim was Hannah Lynch, 18, the daughter of Mike Lynch, whose body was recovered Thursday. He had been celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with his family and the people who had defended him at trial in the United States. His wife, Angela Bacares, was among the 15 survivors.

Rescuers struggled for four days to find all the bodies, making slow headway through the interior of the wreck lying on the seabed 50 meters (164 feet) below the surface.

The other five victims are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch’s U.S. lawyers, and his wife, Neda; Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley’s London-based investment banking subsidiary, and his wife, Judy; and Recaldo Thomas, the yacht’s chef.
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Moscow, Kyiv exchange attacks as Ukraine marks Independence Day

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KYIV, Ukraine — Russia and Ukraine exchanged drone, missile and artillery attacks on Saturday as Kyiv marked its third Independence Day since Moscow’s full-scale invasion.

A woman was killed and a man wounded when Russian forces shelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, the capital of the partially occupied Kherson region, according to the regional prosecutor.

Ukraine’s air force said it had intercepted and destroyed seven drones over the country’s south. Russian long-range bombers also attacked the area of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island with four cruise missiles, while the wider Kherson region was also struck by aerial bombs.

In Russia, the Defense Ministry said Saturday that air defenses had shot down seven drones overnight.

Five drones were downed over the southwestern Voronezh region bordering Ukraine, wounding two people, regional Governor Aleksandr Gusev said. News outlet Astra published videos appearing to show explosions at an ammunition depot after being hit by a drone. The videos could not be independently verified.

Two people were wounded in a drone attack in the Belgorod region, also bordering Ukraine, regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. Local authorities did not report any casualties in the Bryansk region, where the fifth drone was intercepted.

In the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces launched their surprise offensive into Russia two weeks ago, regional Governor Alexei Smirnov said Saturday that three missiles were shot down overnight and another four on Saturday morning.

Russian air defenses shot down two more drones on Saturday morning, Russia’s Defense Ministry said — one over the Kursk region and one over the Bryansk region.
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