Following an unauthorised crossing of the military border, North Korean officials captured a tourist from the USA.
Authorities have confirmed that he came into the nation from South Korea.
The individual allegedly joined a tour to the Joint Security Area (JSA), a border town in the demilitarised zone dividing the two Koreas where soldiers from both sides keep watch.
The United Nations Command said in a statement on Twitter: ‘A US National on a JSA orientation tour crossed, without authorisation, the Military Demarcation Line into the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
‘We believe he is currently in DPRK custody and are working with our KPA counterparts to resolve this incident.’
An earthquake of magnitude 7.2 that occurred late on Saturday off the coast of Alaska has prompted the publication of a tsunami warning, according to authorities.
The US Tsunami Warning Centre reports that the earthquake occurred on Saturday night at 2:48 a.m. ET at a depth of 13 miles offshore, approximately 55 miles southwest of Sand Point, Alaska.
From Unimak Pass to Kennedy Entrance, Alaska saw a brief tsunami warning following the earthquake, which was later changed to a tsunami advisory. The advisory stated that there is no tsunami concern for other Pacific coasts in the US and Canada.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory provided a threat notice for the Shishaldin volcano after it sent up a plume of ash earlier Saturday, according to a social media post.
There is a “watch” currently in effect for the Shishaldin volcano. According to the observatory, seismic tremor aptitudes began to increase at around 5 p.m. local.
Ghanaian musicians King Promise and Juls will perform at Afro Beat Festival, New Jersey’s largest celebration of African culture.
The festival will take place on July 15, 2023, at Military Park in Newark, USA.
Attendees can expect a day filled with captivating performances by renowned Afro Beat artists, mesmerizing visual art installations, engaging activities, delicious traditional African cuisine from local vendors, and a bustling market featuring black-owned businesses.
Joining the lineup are artists such as Teni and Tekno from Nigeria, as well as Bad Boy Timz and Mohammad Awdua from Ghana.
King Promise, a multi-award-winning artist known for his soulful melodies and infectious beats, will deliver thrilling live performances that are sure to captivate the audience.
Juls, an influential African music producer in the diaspora, will keep the energy soaring with his Afrobeat mixes. The festival will also showcase local talents like Zawadi African Dance and the Universal African Dance and Drum Ensemble.
Afro Beat Festival will feature live art installations by Yendor Arts, highlighting the vibrant talent and artistic vision of Newark’s artists.
Furthermore, the festival will provide a dedicated village for children, offering engaging activities and interactive games for families to enjoy together.
Linda Baraka, First Lady of Newark said, “Afro Beat Festival has become a beloved and iconic event in our city and state, embodying the vibrant culture and showcasing the immense talent within our community.”
“Beyond celebrating rich heritage, this festival promotes unity and nurtures a deep appreciation for the arts. I invite residents and visitors to join us in the military park for a family day filled with music, captivating art, and engaging activities”, she added.
At Afro Beat Festival, attendees can explore pop-up stores featuring unique products and services from black-owned businesses like Ane Clothier and Kwabs Couture.
A wide range of vendors will be offering delectable food and drinks, including refreshing ice creams from Salaam Ice Cream Parlor and flavorful dishes that capture the essence of African cuisine.
The festival aims to promote cultural understanding, unity, and celebrate the vibrant spirit of African culture within diaspora communities.
US President Joe Biden has stood by his “very difficult decision” to supply Ukraine with cluster bombs, despite concerns over their history of causing harm to civilians.
Biden acknowledged that it took some time for him to be convinced of the necessity, but he ultimately took action due to Ukraine’s depleting ammunition supplies.
While Ukraine’s leader expressed appreciation for the move, the decision has faced criticism from human rights organizations and certain members of the Democratic Party. Meanwhile, a Moscow envoy condemned the decision as “cynical” on the part of Washington.
Mr Biden told CNN in an interview on Friday that he had spoken to allies about the decision, which comes ahead of a Nato summit in Lithuania next week. Cluster bombs are banned by more than 120 countries, but have been used by both Russia and Ukraine during the war.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told Friday’s daily White House briefing that officials “recognise the cluster munitions create a risk of civilian harm” from unexploded bombs. “This is why we’ve deferred the decision for as long as we could.”
Mr Sullivan said Ukraine was running out of artillery and needed “a bridge of supplies” while the US ramps up domestic production. “We will not leave Ukraine defenceless at any point in this conflict period,” he said.
The munitions have caused controversy over their failure – or dud – rate, meaning unexploded small bombs can linger on the ground for years and indiscriminately detonate later on.
Mr Sullivan told reporters the American cluster bombs being sent to Ukraine were far safer than those he said were already being used by Russia in the conflict.
He told reporters the US ones have a dud rate of less than 2.5%, while Russia’s have a dud rate of between 30-40%, he said.
Mr Biden’s move will bypass US law prohibiting the production, use or transfer of cluster munitions with a failure rate of more than 1%. Early on in the war, when the White House was asked about allegations that Russia was using cluster and vacuum bombs, the then-press secretary said it would be a potential “war crime” if true.
Marta Hurtado, speaking for the UN human rights office, said on Friday: “The use of such munitions should stop immediately and not be used in any place.”
A special edition lager called ‘GOAT Beer’ has been created in honor of the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Messi, who recently became a free agent after the conclusion of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain, has agreed to join Inter Miami.
While he is yet to land in Miami, the city is abuzz with excitement, and the local Prison Pals Brewing Co. has released a beer with Messi’s iconic No. 10 printed on the front.
The ‘GOAT’ beer can features a predominantly pink design, resembling the colors associated with Inter Miami, with black fonts.
This unique brew pays tribute to Messi’s status as the greatest of all time and serves as a precursor to his upcoming journey with the American club.
Interestingly, Prison Pals CEO Juan Pipkin met co-founder Bruno and brewmaster Diego in Argentina and subsequently moved to the USA to set up a brewery.
The Adidas store in Miami already has huge cut-outs of Messi with the Argentine donning an Inter Miami kit with No. 10 on his back.
It carries a slightly tweaked version of Adidas’ slogan “Impossible is nothing” to “Impossible is coming”.
Messi is expected to make his debut for the David Beckham co-owned MLS franchise against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup on July 21.
Tragically, two Ghanaian female students pursuing their studies at Clemson University in the United States of America (USA) were involved in a devastating car accident on June 18, 2023, resulting in the loss of their lives, as reported by various media outlets. The individuals who lost their lives in this unfortunate incident have been identified as Abena Gyamfua Ofori, a 31-year-old graduate student specializing in English, and Alberta Oduraa Quartey, a 23-year-old graduate student.
Per a report filed by fskhub.com, the news of their untimely demise has left the entire university community in a state of mourning.
The report explained that the unfortunate accident occurred on Highway 11 near Elizabeth Drive, South Carolina USA. The incident took place when two vehicles traveling in opposite directions collided head-on, claiming the lives of Alberta Quartey and Abena Ofori.
In a press release, the Graduate Students Association of Ghana USA branch (GRASAG-USA) expressed its deepest condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of the deceased.
“Deepest Condolences on the Tragic Loss of Alberta Oduraa Quartey and Abena Gyamfua Ofori.
“Dear everyone, it is with immense sorrow and a profound sense of grief that we, the entire GRASAG-USA organization, express our deepest condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of two of our graduate students who tragically lost their lives in a devastating crash in South Carolina. We mourn the untimely passing of Alberta Oduraa Quartey and Abena Gyamfua Ofori, both Ghanaian graduate students who were an integral part of the Clemson University community,” part of the statement said.
The statement added “As an organization, we stand in solidarity with you, offering our unwavering support and condolences to their families, friends, and loved ones.
“May the memories of Alberta Oduraa Quartey and Abena Gyamfua Ofori serve as a beacon of light and inspiration for all who knew them. May their souls find eternal peace and rest.”
Arsenal striker, Folarin Balogun, scored a goal as the United States emerged victorious in the CONCACAF Nations League on Sunday. Following the victory, Balogun expressed his dissatisfaction with his club’s management, stating that he will not agree to another loan move.
Last season, Balogun, who recently switched his national team allegiance from England to the US, had a successful loan spell at Reims in the French Ligue 1, netting an impressive 21 goals.
With a clinical strike on Sunday, he further enhanced his growing reputation and secured a 2-0 victory for the US against Canada, earning a medal in only his second appearance for his new national team.
The 21-year-old said he now plans to take some vacation time but made clear he is not in the mood for another temporary transfer.
“What I can say is that I definitely won’t go on loan again,” he said.
“I’m not sure (about) the discussions that are going to take place, I’m not sure what’s going to happen. But I’m just committed to now, I try to stay present. I obviously want to enjoy the moment with my team and my family,” he said.
The New York-born striker moved to England aged two and joined Arsenal’s youth system, spending a six-month spell on loan at Championship club Middlesbrough in 2022.
Despite his breakthrough season in France, he will face a tough battle to break into the starting line-up at the Emirates where Brazil international Gabriel Jesus is the first choice centre-forward.
Arsenal also have another promising young striker in Eddie Nketiah and that situation has led Balogun to be linked with European clubs such as Inter Milan and AC Milan.
Balogun’s goal against Canada, where he latched on to a through ball from Gio Reyna and confidently fired home a first-time effort, crowned an impressive start to his life with the US team.
After making his switch in May, he joined the team in Los Angeles for a short training camp and then made his debut in a 3-0 win over Mexico on Thursday before Sunday’s trophy success.
“It’s amazing. It’s amazing. I mean, it’s a dream scenario for me,” said Balogun.
“To be here now, the transition is amazing. I’m just overwhelmed with delight,” he added.
The striker said he had been able to fit in quickly with his team-mates but said he had been impressed by the quality of the team he has joined.
“I think the thing that surprised me the most was just the actual talent in this group. I think there’s so many players who are going to go on to have top careers, who are all so young, including me,” he said.
US interim head coach B.J Callaghan praised Balogun’s impact on his team.
“I give him a lot of credit and I give the team a lot of credit for welcoming him in with open arms, making him feel part of it.
“You get the best out of players when they feel most comfortable calm and confident.
“I’m not surprised at all how quickly Balogun was able to integrate into the group and now have a really strong performance like he had tonight,” he said.
USA’s 3-0 victory over Mexico in the CONCACAF Nations League semifinal was marred by homophobic shouting from certain Mexican fans; Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton stopped the game in the eighth minute of stoppage time on a night that also saw four red cards handed in Nevada.
The referee called off theUSA’s match versus Mexico in the CONCACAF Nations League semifinals due to homophobic chants from the crowd.
With goals from Christian Pulisic (twice) and Ricardo Pepi, the Americans won 3-0 in Nevada to secure their spot in the final versus Canada, although the game was tainted by the behaviour of some of the visiting fans.
Play was halted in the 90th minute and when action resumed, 12 minutes of stoppage time were signalled but more discriminatory chanting caused Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton to end the match in the eighth minute.
In January, FIFA fined Mexico after homophobic chanting by fans at two games and they could now face more sanctions.
“In terms of the chant, I want to make it very clear first and foremost, for our beliefs and our culture, it has no place in the game,” USA interim head coach BJ Callaghan said. “It has no place in our value system.”
CONCACAF –the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football – said in a statement: “Chants heard during the game led to the activation of the anti-discrimination protocol by the match officials.
“Additionally, security staff ejected several fans for engaging in unacceptable behaviour in the stadium.
“These incidents were extremely disappointing and tarnished what should have been a positive occasion to showcase high-quality football in our region.”
It was an eventful fixture for referee Barton, who also sent off four players for their antics on the pitch including USA’s Weston McKennie and Sergino Dest.
The pair will be unavailable for the final against Canada, who beat Panama 2-0 thanks to goals from Jonathan David and Alphonso Davies.
Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, has been discovered dead in his jail cell, federal sources confirmed to the international media.
Kaczynski, 81, killed three people and injured 23 more during a mass mail-bombing spree between 1978 and 1995. He later pleaded guilty to his crimes.
He was sentenced to life without parole in 1996 after evading capture for almost 20 years.
The Harvard-trained mathematician was eventually caught in a Montana cabin.
He was a man who fascinated America for decades, and he became the focus of numerous TV documentaries.
Kaczynski spent the past three decades held at prisons across the US – most recently at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina.
Prison guards at the facility discovered Kaczynski’s body on Saturday morning at around 00:25 local time (04:25 GMT), a spokesperson for the US Bureau of Prisons told the BBC.
His cause of death was not immediately clear.
“Responding staff immediately initiated life-saving measures,” the spokesperson said. Kaczynski was then “transported by EMS to a local hospital and subsequently pronounced deceased by hospital personnel”.
Before suffering from declining health which prompted his transfer to the facility in December 2021, he had been held at the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, since May 1998.
Kaczynski’s violent campaign – which shook the US – left a number of his victims permanently maimed and changed the way Americans posted letters.
His crimes were uncovered after he forced the Washington Post and the New York Times to publish his unhinged and angry manifesto, called Industrial Society and Its Future, in September 1995.
They agreed to print the manifesto on the recommendation of the FBI and the US attorney general after Kaczynski said he would end his campaign if a national paper published his treatise.
The 35,000-word anonymised document railed against modern life and claimed that technology was leading to Americans suffering from a sense of alienation and powerlessness.
But after reading the papers, Kaczynski’s brother and sister-in-law recognised the tone and alerted the FBI, who had been searching for him for years in the nation’s longest manhunt.
In April 1996 authorities finally caught up with him in a 10-by-14-foot (3-by-4-metre) plywood and tarpaper cabin outside Lincoln, Montana.
The hut was filled with journals, a coded diary, explosives and two completed bombs.
While Kaczynski’s manifesto struck many as being overtly political in tone, he never sought to embody the revolutionary mantle some attributed to him.
In his own journals he wrote that he didn’t claim to be “altruist or to be acting for the ‘good’ (whatever that is) of the human race”, instead insisting that he acted “merely from a desire for revenge”.
His crimes seemed to begin shortly after he was fired from the family business by his brother for posting abusive limericks to a female colleague who had dumped him after two dates.
From there he retreated to the Montana wildness and to the cabin he had built by hand, without heating, plumbing or electricity.
His first attacks targeted Northwestern University in Illinois. The two bombings occurred almost a year apart on 25 May 1978 and 9 May 1979, injuring two people.
Then, in November 1979, an altitude-triggered bomb he had mailed went off aboard an American Airlines flight. Twelve people suffered from smoke inhalation.
The early attacks earned him the moniker Unabomber from the FBI, as his targets seemed to be universities and airlines.
Image caption,On 5 April 1996, FBI agents finally tracked Kaczynski to a remote cabin in Montana
Over the following years he attacked a further 13 times, killing three people – computer rental store owner Hugh Scrutton, advertising executive Thomas Mosser and timber industry lobbyist Gilbert Murray.
At Kaczynski’s trial, Mr Mosser’s wife said her husband had been killed on the day he was supposed to be picking up a Christmas tree with his family and recalled the moments after the attack.
“He was moaning very softly,” she said of her husband. “The fingers on his right hand were dangling. I held his left hand. I told him help was coming. I told him I loved him.”
Since his capture there has been endless speculation about Kaczynski’s motivations.
A test as a boy revealed he possessed an IQ of 167, and he had skipped two grades to attend Harvard University aged just 16.
FBI agents described him as “a twisted genius who aspires to be the perfect, anonymous killer” and he was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic by a psychiatrist who interviewed him in prison.
In a 47-page report Sally Johnson wrote that the “central themes” of his manifesto “involve his belief that he is being maligned and harassed by family members and modern society”.
But Kaczynski himself always insisted that he knew exactly what he was doing, and he tried to take his own life in prison after his legal team attempted to introduce an insanity plea.
In an interview with Time magazine in 1999 he said he didn’t suffer from “delusions and and so on and so forth”.
“I’m confident that I’m sane, personally,” he said.
Donald Trump has reportedly received notification of being a target in a criminal investigation regarding potential mishandling of classified files following his departure from the White House.
The move by federal prosecutors to inform the former president about the probe suggests that he may soon face charges. This would mark the second indictment for Mr. Trump, who is currently campaigning for another presidential run.
Since last year, prosecutors have been examining the transfer of files to Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. In August, the property underwent a search during which 11,000 documents were seized, including approximately 100 classified files, some of which were labeled as top secret.
According to three sources familiar with the matter, Mr. Trump was informed about being under investigation. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing and dismissed the investigation as politically motivated.
When asked by the New York Times if he had been told he is a target of a federal investigation on Wednesday, he said “you have to understand” that he was not in direct touch with prosecutors.
CNN, ABC News, and Politico all reported on Wednesday night that Mr Trump had been notified by letter that he was the subject of a criminal investigation.
All the outlets said the move signalled charges could happen soon, but that it was possible a person would not go on to be charged.
The New York Times cited two people familiar with the matter as saying the notification came from the office of Jack Smith, a former war crimes attorney turned special prosecutor who is considering evidence.
It comes after prosecutors obtained an audio recording of Mr Trump in which he acknowledges keeping a classified document after leaving the White House.
The details of documents that may have been in Mr Trump’s possession remain unclear. Classified material usually contains information that officials feel could damage national security if made public.
It is against US law for federal officials, up to and including a president, to remove or retain classified documents at an unauthorised location.
Grand juries, set up by a prosecutor to determine whether there is enough evidence to pursue a prosecution, are believed to have met in both Miami and Washington to hear evidence.
On Wednesday, the jury in Miami heard evidence from Taylor Budowich, a former aide and spokesman to Mr Trump.
It raises the possibility that any criminal charges could be filed in Florida for procedural reasons, CBS reported.
Earlier this week, members of Mr Trump’s legal team met with investigators at the Department of Justice in Washington.
Mr Trump, who is leading in opinion polls to be the Republican Party’s 2024 candidate for president, has consistently denied wrongdoing and has criticised the justice department’s investigation as “politically motivated” and a “witch-hunt”.
Any indictment over his handling of classified documents would come after Mr Trump became the first former president to be charged with a crime, after he pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records over a hush-money payment to a porn star.
He faces a trial in that case in New York next year.
On October 17, 2023, the national teams of Ghana, Black Stars and the United States of America (USA) are set to compete in an international friendly match.
As part of their preparations for the upcoming Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal matches, the U.S. Men’s National Team has organized two notable friendly encounters.
First, they will face the four-time World champions, Germany, on Saturday, October 14, in Hartford, Connecticut.
Following that, just three days later, the USA will welcome the Black Stars of Ghana to GEODIS Park in Nashville, Tennessee.
The match will be televised by TNT and Universo, with streaming available on Max and Peacock, starting at 8 p.m. ET. The kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
Ghana to face off USA in friendlies
Ghana has twice knocked the United States out of World Cups (2006, 2010) and will be seeking their first win on U.S. soil in the all-time series.
“We have always been looking for these kinds of opportunities to continue our team-building exercise so playing against the United States of America has come in handy” President Simeon-Okraku told ghanafa.
‘’We have two more matches to end the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers and would need matches of this nature to prepare for future assignments i.e. the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
“The game presents to us a very good platform to test our strength against one of the best teams in the World,’’ Simeon-Okraku added.
The imminent task ahead for the Black Stars is the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Madagascar next month.
The father of former WBO junior-featherweight champion Isaac Dogboe, Paul Dogboe, has shared the story of how his wife divorced him in the United Kingdom (UK).
According to him his ex-wife sold their only house, while his son Isaac texted him expressing his desire to no longer work together.
He further revealed that he declined to join his son in the USAin his recent fight against Robeisy Ramirez which Dogboe lost and claimed he was cheated by the judges.
The ex-British military man has told the story of how a Christian prophet successfully gossiped and lied about him to his wife in England leading to a divorce and the loss of his family.
He also revealed that Dogboe texted him that he won’t work with him again and he hasn’t seen his son for the past four years.
In relation to a Pentagon statement, China has turned down a US proposal for Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Li Shangfu to meet at the Shangri-La Dialogue Security Forum this week in Singapore.
China’s opposition to the meeting comes at a time when tensions between the two nations are high due to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the independent island of Taiwan in August of last year and the US’s decision to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon that flew over important US military installations in February.
In the statement, the Pentagon said China had declined an invitation extended in early May for a meeting, but said the refusal would not deter the US from seeking better lines of communication.
“The PRC’s concerning unwillingness to engage in meaningful military-to-military discussions will not diminish the Department of Defense’s commitment to seeking open lines of communication with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at multiple levels as part of responsibly managing the relationship,” Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder in the statement.
China’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday said the country “attaches importance” to developing US-China military relations but blamed Washington for hampering communication.
“Responsibility for the current difficulties faced by the two militaries in their exchanges lies entirely with the US side,” spokesperson Tan Kefei said when asked about reports that China rejected the Singapore meeting and other exchanges with US military officials.
“The US claims that it wants to strengthen communication, but in reality it disregards China’s concerns and creates artificial obstacles, seriously undermining mutual trust between the two militaries,” he added.
In a separate statement, the Chinese Embassy in the US questioned the sincerity and significance of the invitation, pointing to US sanctions imposed on Chinese officials, institutions and companies, and saying the US should lift its “illegal unilateral sanctions” to create favorable conditions for dialogue.
The statement did not specifically call out US sanctions against Li, which were imposed in 2018 by the administration of former president Donald Trump over China’s purchase of Russian weapons, including a Su-35 combat aircraft and a S-400 surface-to-air missile system.
The US has imposed a range of sanctions on China in recent years for a variety of reasons including alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang and restrictions on political freedoms in Hong Kong.
The Wall Street Journal first reported China’s refusal to participate in a meeting between the defense chiefs.
Austin told CNN earlier this year that he had not spoken to his Chinese counterpart in “months,” and China has continued to rebuff requests for meetings and phone calls, defense officials said.
“This is far from the first time that the PRC has rejected invitations to communicate from the Secretary, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or other Department officials,” a defense official said.
“Frankly, it’s just the latest in a litany of excuses. Since 2021, the PRC has declined or failed to respond to over a dozen requests from the Department of Defense for key leader engagements, multiple requests for standing dialogues, and nearly ten working-level engagements,” he added.
China’s Defense Ministry also refuted this characterization in its statement Wednesday, which said “in fact there has been no interruption in contacts and exchanges between the two militaries.”
Washington made known a series of economic restrictions on Thursday against Ivan Maslov, the head of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner in Mali, accusing him of attempting to collect military supplies for use in the Ukrainian conflict.
These sanctions “against the most important person in charge of the Wagner group in Mali aim to put an end to essential operations of support for the world activity of the group”, justified the under-secretary of the Treasury in charge of terrorism and financial intelligence, Brian Nelson, quoted in the release.
These sanctions involve the seizure of all of Ivan Maslov’s assets in the United States, financial and real estate, as well as companies having a direct capital link with Mr. Maslov, and prohibit American companies or companies present on American territory from carry out the slightest transaction with Mr. Maslov or companies that he controls.
“The presence of the Wagner group on the African continent is a destabilizing force for any country that allows its deployment on its territory,” Nelson added.
This is not the first time that sanctions have targeted the Wagner group or some of its members for its actions in Mali. The European Union had thus announced at the end of February a series of sanctions targeting a dozen people, including Mr. Maslov, because of the “violations of human rights” attributed to the paramilitary company on the spot.
Wagner, a paramilitary group founded in 2014, is considered by the United States to be an international terrorist organization. The United States, which has been trying for several years to thwart Russian influence in Africa, accuses the Wagner group of “committing human rights violations and extorting natural resources in Africa”.
The group has established itself as a major player in the conflict in Ukraine, particularly in the battle around the city of Bakhmout, and its mercenaries have also been seen in Syria or Libya and more recently in the Central African Republic and, therefore, in Mali.
Newly released FBI documents reveal that Queen Elizabeth II was potentially at risk of assassination during her visit to the United States in 1983.
The files, released after the Queen’s passing last year, shed light on the concerns of the FBI, which played a role in ensuring the monarch’s safety during her trips, particularly regarding threats from the IRA.
The threat of assassination was reported to a police officer based in San Francisco.
The documents state that the officer, a regular visitor to an Irish pub in the city, alerted federal agents about a phone call he received from an individual he had encountered at the establishment.
The officer said the man told him he was seeking revenge for his daughter who “had been killed in Northern Ireland by a rubber bullet”.
The threat came on 4 February 1983 – about a month ahead of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip’s visit to California.
“He was going to attempt to harm Queen Elizabeth and would do this either by dropping some object off the Golden Gate Bridge onto the Royal Yacht Britannia when it sails underneath, or would attempt to kill Queen Elizabeth when she visited Yosemite National Park,” the document says.
In response to the threat, the Secret Service had planned to “close the walkways on the Golden Gate Bridge as the yacht nears”. It is unclear what measures were taken at Yosemite, but the visit went ahead. No details of arrests were published by the FBI.
The 102-page cache was uploaded to the Vault, the FBI’s information website, on Monday, following a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by US media outlets.
Image caption,Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip spoke with National Park rangers during the visit to Yosemite
The recently released FBI documents highlight the fact that several of Queen Elizabeth II’s state visits to the United States, including her trip to the West Coast in 1983, took place during a period of heightened tensions related to the Troubles in Northern Ireland. During America’s Bicentennial celebrations in 1976, the late Queen visited New York City.
According to the files, a pilot was summoned for flying a small plane over Battery Park with a sign that read “England, Get out of Ireland.” This incident occurred during one of the Queen’s visits.
The documents also reveal the FBI’s continued vigilance regarding perceived threats to the late Queen. The assassination of her second cousin, Lord Mountbatten, in 1979 off the coast of County Sligo, Republic of Ireland, in an IRA bombing, further underscored the potential risks.
Overall, the released files shed light on the FBI’s dedication to ensuring the safety of Queen Elizabeth II during her visits to the United States, especially considering the context of the Troubles and the ongoing IRA threats.
Ahead of a personal visit by the late Queen to Kentucky in 1989, an internal FBI memo read “the possibility of threats against the British Monarchy is ever-present from the Irish Republican Army (IRA)”.
It continued that “Boston and New York are requested to remain alert for any threats against Queen Elizabeth II on the part of IRA members and immediately furnish same to Louisville,” in Kentucky.
The late Queen, who owned racehorses, is known to have visited Kentucky several times during her life to enjoy the state’s equestrian highlights, including the Kentucky Derby.
On a state visit in 1991, the late Queen was scheduled to see a Baltimore Orioles baseball game with President George H Bush.
The FBI warned the Secret Service that “Irish groups” were planning protests at the stadium and “an Irish group had reserved a large block of grandstand tickets” to the game.
The bureau told NBC News there might be “additional records” that exist besides the ones released this week, but it did not set out a timetable for their publication.
In a deeply distressing incident, the Georgia community, in the United States of America(USA) was left in shock as parents Tyler and Krista Schindley were arrested on charges of child abuse and negligence.
The couple’s 10-year-old son, malnourished and desperate for sustenance, was discovered wandering the neighborhood in search of a grocery store where he could beg for food.
Krista and Tyler Schindley were arrested after neighbors found their emaciated 10-year-old son wandering the streets.
The harrowing ordeal unfolded when concerned neighbors found the emaciated child on the streets, pleading with the authorities not to return him home.
Weighing a mere 36 pounds, similar to that of an average 4-year-old, the boy had endured intentional starvation, a fact that sent shockwaves through the community.
The parents are accused of intentionally starving their son and depriving him of sunlight and other basic needs.
During a press conference, Griffin District Attorney Marie Broder expressed her distress, stating, “This child was, simply put, being starved to death, and it is tragic. I truly believe that if he had not escaped that home, we would be facing an even graver situation.”
According to court documents, the parents were accused of subjecting the child to unimaginable cruelty.
They allegedly locked him inside his bedroom for extended periods, depriving him of access to essential necessities such as food, clothing, light, and adult interaction.
Furthermore, they withheld hot water, views of the outside world, toilet paper, and even basic human interaction.
In a horrifying revelation, it was discovered that the child had suffered physical abuse, enduring beatings that resulted in additional injuries.
Rescued from his dire circumstances, the malnourished child was swiftly transported to a nearby hospital, where medical professionals are providing treatment for his severe malnutrition and low heart rate.
Tragically, the child also bore dental injuries and disfigurement, further evidence of his prolonged starvation that the parents allegedly neglected to address.
The child was allegedly kept locked inside the house, but he was able to escape.
“This case is undeniably disturbing,” stated Broder, a seasoned prosecutor in child abuse cases. “It’s heart-wrenching.”
Authorities confirmed the presence of other children in the household, who have since been placed under the care of the state’s Department of Family and Children’s Services to ensure their safety and well-being.
The Schindleys now face a range of charges, including criminal attempt to commit a felony, false imprisonment, battery, and multiple counts of cruelty to children.
As the community grapples with the profound sadness and outrage brought forth by this tragic incident, it serves as a somber reminder of the importance of protecting and cherishing the well-being of our most vulnerable members – the children.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), a domestic intelligence and security department of the United States of America (USA), has been able to trace a modern Maserati that was snatched at gunpoint and had its owner fatally shot in the US to Ghana, The New Publisher can disclose.
The FBI were able to locate the vehicle shipped on their blind sight before it was cleared from the Tema Ports.
The FBI reportedly flew to Ghana even before the car arrived at the country’s ports. This was to allow them to obtain finger prints and other crucial clues to identify those responsible for the victim’s murder and the theft of his car.
According to insiders, the FBI flew to Ghana before the car arrived at the country’s ports in order to take finger prints and other crucial leads to identify those responsible for the victim’s murder and the theft of his car.
Security agents in Ghana towed the car from the ports of entry and collaborated with the FBI to unravel the case.
Since completing their initial investigations, FBI agents have left the country to further investigate the matter.
It is said that the vehicle was put in a container with some other luxurious vehicles that made way to the Tema Port.
Sources told The New Publisher for weeks since it was taken by the security agencies, no one has come forward to claim ownership with titles.
In a related story, the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) three weeks ago announced that some Ninety-Five(95) luxurious cars have been frozen by its Executive Director.
These cars which are in the possession of some individuals and car dealerships were supposed to be brought to the offices of EOCO no later than May 3, 2023.
Owners of these vehicles were expected to come along with the needed documents.
The statement from EOCO said if owners of the said vehicles do not report with them on the said date, it will take the needed steps to confiscate them in accordance with the law.
It would be recalled that in December last year, the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) in collaboration with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the FBI busted a vehicle stealing syndicate in Ghana.
A statement from EOCO said an Intelligence-led operation resulted in the retrieval of some luxury cars stolen from the United States of America and Canada.
During the operation, which took place on December 9, 2022, thirty-seven (37) of the cars were retrieved from garages in Accra.
Ten people were also arrested in the process. The suspects have since been questioned and granted bail.
If you have a low GPA (2.2), 3rd Class or HND, these are the things you must do to ensure you secure an admission in the US with funding.
Evaluating results with WES:World Education Services (WES) is a non-profit organization that evaluates international academic credentials for individuals who want to study or work in Canada or the US.
Their evaluations help academic institutions and employers understand the value of an individual’s educational qualifications. To evaluate your result with WES, you need to submit your academic credentials, including transcripts and certificates, to WES for evaluation.
2. Research interest: A research interest is an area of study that you are passionate about and would like to investigate further. It is an essential aspect of academic research as it helps you focus your research efforts and make meaningful contributions to your field.
3. Cold emailing professors: Cold emailing is the practice of sending unsolicited emails to individuals or organizations that you want to establish a connection with. In the academic context, cold emailing professors is a common practice among graduate students or individuals looking for research opportunities.
To draft a compelling cold email, you need to research the professor’s work, explain why you are interested in their research, and demonstrate how your skills and interests align with their work.
4. Academic CV: An academic CV is a document that summarizes your academic achievements, publications, research experience, and other relevant qualifications. It is an essential tool for academics, researchers, and graduate students looking for research or academic positions. To draft an irresistible academic CV, you need to highlight your accomplishments, tailor your CV to the job or position you are applying for, and ensure that your CV is well-organized and easy to read.
5. Additional skills: In addition to academic qualifications, individuals in the academic and research field require additional skills to succeed. These skills include communication, time management, data analysis, problem-solving, and project management.
To acquire additional skills, you can take courses, attend workshops, or seek mentorship from experienced professionals in your field. Examples of such skills include:
Statistical/computational ability
Research & Teaching skills
Communication ability
Volunteering and community Development experience
Admission in the US for MS/PhD is not necessarily about your CGPA. The defining requirements that makes an admission application strong are:
Components of the Academic CV
SOP
LoR
Research and Teaching Skills
Volunteering/Community service
Also below are some desirable skills schools and scholarship hubs look out for to award funding to students, especially in theUSA, UK and Canada.
Data Analytics Skills
Statistical Analytics Skills
Python or R programming Skills
Teaching Experience (even Virtual Teaching is ok)
Volunteering experience and Community Service
Research Interest
These are desirable aptitude for Graduate School. Especially if you are looking for an Admission that offers GTA and GRA, you need these.
However, note that this is both for those in STEM and NON-STEM fields.
STEM and non-STEM are two categories of academic fields. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, while non-STEM refers to fields that are not included in these categories.
Non-STEM fields, on the other hand, encompass a broad range of academic disciplines that are not included in the STEM categories. Examples of non-STEM fields include social sciences (such as psychology, sociology, and anthropology), humanities (such as history, philosophy, and literature), arts (such as music, fine arts, and theater), business, law, education, and many others.
It is worth noting that both STEM and non-STEM fields have their unique challenges and opportunities. While STEM fields often require strong analytical and quantitative skills, non-STEM fields may require excellent communication, critical thinking, and writing abilities. Ultimately, the choice of a field of study depends on personal interests, career goals, and academic strengths.
Consider the US if you’re seeking for a nation with more opportunities for scholarships.
Consider Canada if you’re seeking for a place where you have a better possibility of obtaining a passport for travel abroad.
If obtaining a scholarship is a key component of your study abroad plans and doing so in Canada seems difficult, you can come up with a smart plan.
Think about going to the US to study, then proceed to applying for Canadian permanent residence from there.
That’s a smart plan.
In the UK, you will easily get an admission if you have your money. A low undergraduate grade will also not be a huge barrier compared to Canada.
And just like the US, and any other country where you have a valid status, you can apply for Canadian permanent residence from UK too.
The requirements to apply for permanent residence from your home country is the same when applying from US/UK/Europe etc, as long as you have a valid status in those other countries
However, processing times may be faster & less cumbersome than applying from developing countries
The additional degree from those other countries will also increase your points for permanent residency in 🇨🇦Canada (if you only have a BSc or less)
You also now have travel experience, better means of raising/showing POF, processing your transcript for credential assessment, etc.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Thursday that the FBI had detained a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard in connection with the internet posting of classified documents.
The US authorities conducted a quick search for the identification of the leaker who uploaded secret papers to a social media site that is well-liked by video gamers before making the arrest of Jack Teixeira, 21.
Teixeira was arrested in Massachusetts without incident, Garland said, and will be arraigned in federal court there. “This investigation is ongoing. We will share more information at the appropriate time,” the attorney general said, declining to answer questions.
Teixeira will first appear in court on Friday in Boston, according to the US attorney’s office there.
The FBI said in a statement that it took Teixeira into custody “at a residence in North Dighton, Massachusetts, for his alleged involvement in leaking classified U.S. government and military documents.”
“The FBI is continuing to conduct authorizedlaw enforcement activity at the residence,” the agency said. “Since late last week the FBI has aggressively pursued investigative leads, and today’s arrest exemplifies our continued commitment to identifying, pursuing, and holding accountable those who betray our country’s trust and put our national security at risk.”
The leaked documents posted to social media, some of which have been obtained by CNN, included detailed intelligence assessments of allies and adversaries alike, including on the state of the war in Ukraine and the challenges Kyiv and Moscow face as the war appears stuck in a stalemate.
Multiple US officials told CNN that Teixeira is believed to be the leader of the group where a trove of classified documents had been posted.
The search for the suspect began with thousands of people who had access to the documents, but investigators were able to quickly narrow the search to potential members of the chat group with evidence collected in the days immediately following the discovery of classified documents online by US officials.
While there’s a large number of people who had access to the documents, investigators were able to home in on a small number for closer scrutiny thanks to the forensic trail left by the person who posted the documents.
Teixeira was under surveillance for at least a couple of days prior to his arrest by the FBI on Thursday, according to a US government source familiar with the case.
Earlier Thursday, President Joe Biden appeared to suggest that the US government was close to identifying the leaker. Biden was then briefed on the arrest in between his speech to parliament and his departure for a banquet dinner in his honor at Dublin Castle, according to a US official. He was at the hotel for roughly 90 minutes in between the two events.
Biden has been regularly briefed on the investigation, officials said, as well as the efforts by his top officials to engage with allies who have been identified within, or unsettled by, the content of the leaked information, according to one of the officials. Behind the scenes, it has been a reality that has loomed over a deeply personal and important foreign trip for Biden, one official acknowledged.
Jack Teixeira is taken into custody Thursday in Dighton, Massachusetts.WBZ
Joined Air National Guard in 2019
The Air Force released service details for Teixeira, an Airman 1st Class.
Teixeira is an enlisted airman at the Massachusetts Air National Guard, according to details from his service record released by the Air Force Thursday. He joined the service in September 2019 and his official job is Cyber Transport Systems journeyman. According to the Air Force, Cyber Transport Systems specialists are tasked with making sure the service’s “vast, global communications network” is “operating properly.”
On Wednesday, The Washington Post first reported that the person behind the leak worked on a military base and posted sensitive national security secrets in an online group of acquaintances. The leaker was described in the Post story as a lonely young man and gun enthusiast who was part of a chatroom of about two dozen people on Discord – a social media platform popular with video gamers – that shared a love of guns and military gear, according to a friend of the alleged leaker the Post interviewed who was also part of the group.
Several former high school classmates of Teixeira’s told CNN Thursday that he had a fascination with the military, guns and war. He would sometimes wear camouflage to school, carried a “dictionary-sized book on guns,” and behaved in a way that made some fellow students feel uneasy.
“A lot of people were wary of him,” said Brooke Cleathero, who attended middle school and high school with Teixeira. “He was more of a loner, and having a fascination with war and guns made him off-putting to a lot of people.”
John Powell, who also attended middle school and high school with Teixeira, said he recalled him as a pleasant and quiet kid who was sometimes picked on. “He didn’t have many friends,” he said.
A photo of Jack Teixeira taken from Instagram.From Instagram
Teixeira grew up in the suburbs of Providence, Rhode Island, according to public records. He attended Dighton-Rehoboth High School where he graduated in 2020, according to the superintendent of the regional school district.
Powell recalled Teixeira occasionally toting around a textbook on military vehicles – tanks, planes and submarines – and having a fascination with anything “military related” from an early age.
“He was dead set on joining some branch of the military, even as a kid,” he said.
Other students, who asked not to be identified, said they detected a more menacing vibe from Teixeira, who some recalled making comments they perceived as racist or mumbling derogatory things about people under his breath.
One student recalled him showing up for school wearing a shirt with an AR-15 on it the day after a mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017.
Teixeira didn’t behave in a manner that rose to the level where “people felt the need to report him,” another former classmate said, but “he made me nervous.”
The same student said she took his fascination with the military as a form of American nationalism, and was therefore surprised by the allegations against him. “I didn’t think he would be capable of doing something like this,” she said.
On Thursday, Biden said he was concerned about the fact the leaks happened, but not necessarily about their content.
“I’m not concerned about the leak. I’m concerned that it happened, but there’s nothing contemporaneous that I’m aware of that is of any consequence.”
Pentagon tightening access to classified intelligence
The Pentagon has begun to limit who across the government receives its highly classified daily intelligence briefs following the leak.
Some US officials who used to receive the briefing materials daily have stopped receiving them in recent days, sources familiar with the matter told CNN, as the Pentagon’s Joint Staff continues to whittle down its distribution lists.
The Joint Staff, which comprises theDefense Department’s most senior uniformed leadership that advises the president, began examining its distribution lists immediately after learning of the trove of leaked classified documents – many of which had markings indicating that they had been produced by the Joint Staff’s intelligence arm, known as the J2.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday that he is directing the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security to review intelligence access, following the arrest of the Air National Guardsman.
“As Secretary of Defense, I will also not hesitate to take any additional measures necessary to safeguard our nation’s secrets,” Austin said. “Accordingly, I am directing the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security to conduct a review of our intelligence access, accountability and control procedures within the Department to inform our efforts to prevent this kind of incident from happening again.”
Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder confirmed Thursday that the Defense Department is taking steps to tighten the community of people who receive classified intelligence.
Ryder said the Pentagon continues “to review a variety of factors as it relates to safeguarding classified materials. This includes examining and updating distribution lists, assessing how and where intelligence products are shared, and a variety of other steps.”
Ryder also emphasized that there are already “stringent guidelines” in place to safeguard classified intelligence.
“This was a deliberate criminal act,” he said, “a violation of those guidelines.”
The criminal investigation is being led by the FBI’s Washington field office, including a team of counterintelligence investigators experienced in hunting leaks.
Those investigators are also working with Pentagon officials on the damage assessment, which would become part of the evidence to be used in any potential prosecution that results.
When asked how Discord has cooperated with theFBI investigation, a spokesperson told CNN that they “have cooperated with officials and remain committed to doing so.”
The deadliest known cattle fatality occurrence in US history resulted from an explosion at a dairy farm in west Texas, which resulted in the deaths of 18,000 cows.
Tens of thousands of dairy cows were confined in holding cages at the South Fork Dairy farm outside Dimmitt, Texas, on Monday night when a fire broke out. Social media users posted pictures of a huge black plume of smoke and some burned cows that were salvaged.
What firefighters discovered once the fire was put out, according to Dimmitt Mayor Roger Malone, was “mind-boggling.”
‘I don’t think it’s ever happened before around here,’ Malone told USA Today. ‘It’s a real tragedy.’
The Castro County Sheriff”s Office, the Dimmitt, Hart and Nazareth Fire Departments responded to an explosion and fire at the Southfork Dairy Farms in Texas (Picture: Castro County Sheriff’s Office)
A worker was rescued from inside the holding pen and transported to a hospital. As of Tuesday, the victim was in critical but stable condition. No one else was injured or killed.
More cattle died in the incident than any other since the Washington-based advocacy group Animal Welfare Institute started tracking farm and barn fires in 2013. The deadliest event up until then had been a 2020 blaze that killed about 400 cows in an upstate New York dairy farm, according to a policy associate at the institute, Allie Granger.
‘The deadliest fire involving cattle we know of,’ Granger told the newspaper. ‘In the past, we have seen fires involving several hundred cows at a time, but nothing anything near this level of mortality.’
A farm equipment malfunction may have caused the explosion that ignited the fire, according to Castro County Judge Mandy Gfeller.
The Holstein and Jersey cows that perished were about 90% of the herd on the farm and were worth about $2,000 each. That equates to tens of millions of dollars, not including building and equipment losses.
Malone said he has taken courses on disposing animal carcasses after a disaster, but is still trying to figure out what to do.
‘How do you dispose of 18,000 carcasses?’ he said. ‘That’s something you just don’t run into very much.’
Meanwhile, residents are concerned about the disaster possibly hurting the local economy.
‘That’s a lot of the money that we have and then a lot of milk also too,’ Dimmitt resident Alex Aguilar told KFDA. ‘So I think it’s really crazy that that happened.’
Revelations from recent findings in classified documents that were released online, the US believes that the UN Secretary General is overly accommodating to Russian interests. The records imply that Washington has been paying close attention to Antonio Guterres.
In several documents, Mr Guterres and his deputy are mentioned in private communications.
It is the most recent from a leak of top-secret papers, whose cause US officials are trying to determine.
The documents contain candid observations from Mr Guterres about the war in Ukraine and a number of African leaders.
One leaked document focuses on the Black Sea grain deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey in July following fears of a global food crisis.
It suggests that Mr Guterres was so keen to preserve the deal that he was willing to accommodate Russia’s interests.
“Guterres emphasised his efforts to improve Russia’s ability to export,” the document says, “even if that involves sanctioned Russian entities or individuals.”
His actions in February, according to the assessment, were “undermining broader efforts to hold Moscow accountable for its actions in Ukraine.”
Saying he wouldn’t comment on leaked documents, one senior official said the UN was “driven by the need to mitigate the impact of the war on the world’s poorest.”
“That means doing what we can to drive down the price of food,” he added, “and to ensure that fertiliser is accessible to those countries that need it the most.”
Russia has frequently complained that its own exports of grain and fertiliser are being adversely affected by international sanctions, and has threatened at least twice to suspend co-operation with the grain deal unless its concerns are addressed.
Russian grain and fertilizer are not subject to international sanctions, but Russia says it has experienced difficulties with securing shipping and insurance.
UN officials are clearly unhappy with America’s interpretation of Mr Guterres’ efforts. And they say that Mr Guterres has made his opposition to Russia’s war very clear.
Another document from mid-February describes a frank conversation between Mr Guterres and his deputy, Amina Mohammed.
In it, Mr Guterres expresses “dismay” at a call from the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, for Europe to produce more weapons and ammunition as a result of the war in Ukraine.
The two also talk about a recent summit of African leaders. Amina Mohammed says that Kenya’s president, William Ruto, is “ruthless” and that she “doesn’t trust him.”
It’s well known that America is among a number of nations which routinely spy on the UN – but when the products of that espionage come to light, it’s highly embarrassing and, for the world’s leading diplomat, potentially damaging.
There were few clues as to who leaked the files until Wednesday, when the Washington Post reported it was a gun enthusiast in his 20s who worked on a military base.
It said he shared the classified information to a small group of men and boys who share a “love of guns, military gear and God” on Discord – a social media platform popular with gamers.
The BBC has been unable to verify the report, which was based on interviews with two members of the chat group.
The screenshots of the documents themselves, which have since been shared on several Discord discussion channels, have been verified by the BBC.
Discord said on Wednesday that it was co-operating with law enforcement in its investigation into the leak.
US national security spokesperson John Kirby told the BBC that the US government was scrambling to get to the bottom of the leaks.
“This was a series of dangerous leaks. We don’t know who’s responsible, we don’t know why. And we are assessing the national security implications, and right now there is also a criminal investigation,” he said on Wednesday.
“We want to get to the bottom of this, we want to find out who did this and why.”
Washington was “reaching out actively” to allies to answer questions they have about the leaks, so they know “how seriously we are taking this”, he added.
Mr Kirby said that while the authenticity of some of the documents had yet to be established, they “certainly appear to have come from various source of intelligence across the government”.
Joe Biden, the vice president of theUnited States, has just landed on Air Force One in Dublin in preparation for more engagements in the Republic of Ireland.
They will make their way to County Louth – where some of his ancestors hail from.
Due to the terrible weather, he will now travel by motorcade to Co Louth instead of by helicopter.
The White House says Biden will tour also Carlingford Castle
The president is also set for a full day of engagements in Dublin on Thursday.
These days, Washington’s polarised lawmakers can’t agree on practically anything. It is quite difficult to obtain bipartisan cooperation. But, there is one topic on which almost everyone is in agreement. Such is the significance of the Good Friday Agreement (GFA), which put an end to 30 years of violent death in Northern Ireland.
The accord itself is held up as a brilliant illustration of what tenacious diplomacy and smart negotiation can accomplish.
American politicians are rightly proud of the role the US played in securing the peace. The tireless work of Senator George Mitchell as well as the intense engagement of President Bill Clinton were essential.
President Biden sees the agreement as part of his own political legacy and can claim credit for encouraging US involvement in the peace process through the 1980s and 90s.
Defending the GFA, and the relative peace it ensures, has been a high priority for the Biden administration. There are deep concerns about how Brexit may affect the agreement.
This presidential visit would not be taking place if the Windsor Framework had not been secured to resolve the issues over trade between Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic.
The future of any free trade deal between the UK and US also hangs on the continued maintenance of the GFA.
In Belfast, President Biden will talk about how the US can help to support “Northern Ireland’s vast economic potential”.
In Dublin, he is expected to address the Irish parliament and stress the close co-operation between the two nations.
And he will make more personal visits to County Louth and County Mayo to revisit his family roots.
There is a long tradition of US presidents enjoying trips to Ireland more than they do many other official engagements.
Bill Clinton was greeted by ecstatic crowds in 1995 when he became the first American president to visit Northern Ireland as well as the Republic.
The New York Times said the “Irish gave Bill Clinton the best two days of his presidency”.
Since then, Presidents Nixon, Reagan, George W Bush, Obama and Trump have all made trips to the Emerald Isle – all to the great envy of many other European countries who do not get nearly so much attention.
The ‘most Irish’ US president in history
Joe Biden is inordinately proud of his personal Irish heritage. He mentions it at every opportunity. Just after he was elected president in 2020 he was asked by my colleague Nick Bryant for a “quick word for the BBC”. He swiftly replied: “The BBC? I’m Irish!”
He loves to quote Irish poets and uses the experience of Irish citizens living under British rule as a way to express empathy with persecuted minorities around the world.
The Irish diaspora in America does not have the same outsized influence in US politics as it once did. But with 30 million Americans claiming Irish roots – that is about one in 10 of the current population – it never does any harm for a US president to be seen embracing his Celtic connections.
With two great-grandparents coming from Ireland, Joe Biden is one of the most Irish presidents in history.
Edward Blewitt was an engineer and brickmaker who left the west coast town of Ballina, Mayo, in 1850. He decided to head to Scranton in Pennsylvania – with his family including son Patrick – as the devastating Irish potato famine was causing widespread starvation.
This week, his great-great-great-grandson will be greeted by a huge painted mural of his own face in the town square.
On the east coast of Ireland, the small town of Carlingford in Louth is also expecting a visit. It was from there that President Biden’s maternal great-great-grandfather, Owen Finnegan, departed in the late 1840s.
These days, the people of the Cooley Peninsula are anticipating the construction of a long-awaited bridge across Carlingford Lough that would improve economic links by joining them to Northern Ireland. Locals want to see it named the “Biden Bridge”.
The president can only dream of receiving such a rapturous welcome anywhere in the United States.
New York Times says, war plans that have been shared on social media allegedly include graphs, information on weapon deliveries, and other sensitive information.
Secret documents that outline US and NATO preparations to assist Ukraine in getting ready for a spring onslaught against Russia have leaked onto social media sites, according to the New York Times.
The alleged leak appeared to be a Russian disinformation campaign to cast doubt on Ukraine’s intended counteroffensive, a Ukrainian presidential official claimed on Friday.
Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters news agency the data contained a “very large amount of fictitious information” and Russia was trying to seize back the initiative in its invasion.
The Pentagon said on Thursday it is assessing the apparent security breach.
“We are aware of the reports of social media posts, and the department is reviewing the matter,” Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said.
The documents were spread on Twitter and Telegram, and reportedly contain charts and details about weapons deliveries, battalion strengths and other sensitive information, the Times said.
There was no explanation as to how the plans were obtained.
Information in the documents is at least five weeks old with the most recent dated March 1, the report said.The plans did not provide specific action such as when Ukraine would launch the offensive.
One of the documents summarised the training schedules of 12 Ukraine combat brigades, and said nine were being trained by US and NATO forces. About 250 tanks and more than 350 mechanised vehicles are required for the operation, the newspaper said.
The classified documents, at least one of which carried a “top secret” label, were circulated on pro-Russian government channels, it said.
Information in the documents also details expenditure rates for munitions under Ukraine military control, including for the HIMARS rockets, the US-made artillery systems that have proven highly effective against Russian forces, it added.
“To the trained eye of a Russian war planner, field general or intelligence analyst … the documents no doubt offer many tantalizing clues and insights,” the Times said.
The report quoted military analysts who warned some documents appear to have been altered in a disinformation campaign by Russia, with one inflating Ukrainian troop deaths and minimising Russian battlefield losses.
The leak comes as fighting continues in the town of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, which has been one of the deadliest battles of the war so far.
While Western analysts have played down its strategic significance, Kyiv has framed its dogged defence of the city as a way of wearing down Russian forces ahead of the expected counteroffensive bolstered by advanced Western-supplied weapons.
RussianPresident Vladimir Putin has called the invasion a “special military operation” necessary to eliminate Ukrainian Nazis and defend Russia from a hostile West. Ukraine and its allies call it an unprovoked war of conquest.
The conflict has killed thousands of people, wrecked cities and destabilised the global economy. Millions of Ukrainians have fled to neighbouring nations while others have been internally displaced.
In a rare phone call with his Russian counterpart,US Secretary of State Antony Blinken requested for the release of a detained Wall Street Journal reporter.
In response, Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, said that the US shouldn’t try to “make a fuss” or politicise the arrest.
On Friday, Evan Gershkovich was taken into custody on spying-related charges.
The espionage accusation has been vehemently refuted by The Wall Street Journal.
On Sunday, the Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed that Mr. Lavrov and Mr. Blinken spoke on the phone about Mr. Gershkovich’s arrest at the US’s request.
A readout of the call released by the US Department of State said that Mr Blinken conveyed “great concern over Russia’s unacceptable detention of a US citizen journalist”.
Mr Lavrov responded by repeating Russia’s claims that Mr Gershkovich was caught “red-handed attempting to obtain classified information” and that his case will be handled by Russian courts, a statement by Russia’s foreign ministry said.
Mr Lavrov also cautioned US officials and media not to fan “hysteria” around the journalist’s arrest.
“It was stressed that it is inadmissible for Washington officials and Western mass media to stir up hysteria with an obvious aim of giving a political overtone to this case,” the ministry said.
The White House has previously condemned Mr Gershkovich’s arrest “in the strongest terms”, and Mr Blinken said he was “deeply concerned” by his detainment.
During the call, Mr Blinken also urged the release of other US citizens detained in Russia, including former US Marine Paul Whelan, who has also been held on espionage charges for over five years.
Mr Gershkovich, 31, is a well-known correspondent in Moscow.
The Wall Street Journal lost all contact with him on Wednesday afternoon, after which it was revealed that he was arrested by Russia’s FSB security service.
The FSB claimed that it had halted “illegal activities” and that the journalist had been detained “acting on US instructions”.
They alleged that Mr Gershkovich had “collected information classified as a state secret about the activities of a Russian defence enterprise”. He was ordered to remain in detention until 29 May.
Mr Gershkovich’s arrest has been strongly condemned by journalists around the world.
In a letter to Russia’s US ambassador Anatoly Antenov, the Committee to Protect Journalists called Mr Gershkovich’s arrest “unwarranted and unjust”, and accused the Russian government of being anti-press.
A string of tornadoes tore throughout the South and Midwest cities of the United States, killing at least 26 people
Storms devastated multiple states, destroying homes and leaving people without electricity.
The Washington Post reported that there were more than 60 tornado reports.
Weather-related fatalities have been reported in Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, among other states.
One storm shredded through the Arkansas town of Wynne – a community some 100 miles (170km) east of the state capital, Little Rock.
Image caption,Wynne, Arkansas saw several deaths due to Friday’s tornado
Ashley Macmillan said she, her husband and their children huddled with their dogs in a small bathroom as a tornado passed, “praying and saying goodbye to each other, because we thought we were dead”.
A falling tree seriously damaged their home, but they were unhurt.
She told the AP news agency: “We could feel the house shaking, we could hear loud noises, dishes rattling. And then it just got calm.”
Lisa Worden, a teacher at Wynne High School, said a decision to send pupils home early was critical.
“We got out at 1:30, which was such a God blessing from our superintendent, because otherwise kids would have been on busses and teachers would have still been here. And so that would have been even more devastating,” she told Reuters news agency.
Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared a state of emergency in the state of Arkansas on Friday, with the national guard activated to help with recovery efforts.
Image caption,Wynne’s high school suffered heavy damage from the tornado
She said she had spoken to President Joe Biden about the situation, who promised federal aid.
Friday’s storms also led to the collapse of a theatre roof at a packed heavy metal gig in Belvidere, Illinois state, leading to one death and 28 injuries.
As storms continue to work their way east, hundreds of thousands of people are without power across several states.
Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania are the worst affected, according to the US PowerOutage website.
In a bulletin, the Storm Prediction Center warned some of the projected tornadoes could track across the ground for long distances.
Image caption,Investigators look over the Apollo Theater following a tornado in Belvidere, Illinois
The deadly tornadoes come a week after a rare, long-track twister killed 26 people in Mississippi.
The Mississippi tornado last week travelled 59 miles (94km) and lasted about an hour and 10 minutes – an unusually long period of time for a storm to sustain itself. It damaged about 2,000 homes, officials said.
President Biden visited the state on Friday to pay his condolences.
The court hearing for Donald Trump has been scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
Federal agents will be waiting to guard the former president as he flies in on his own jet from Florida to turn himself in.
In relation to a $130,000 (£105,000) payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, a grand jury has indicted Mr. Trump.
The allegations haven’t been made public yet, and Mr. Trump’s attorney claimed on Friday that he hasn’t even read the indictment.
According to a law enforcement source who spoke to CBS, Mr. Trump is anticipated to take his private jet to New York on Monday before turning himself in to authorities on Tuesday.
The process is likely to involve dozens or possibly hundreds of Secret Service agents, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Mr Trump will not be handcuffed, the official added, saying that shackles are typically only used on suspects who are thought to be a flight or safety risk.
The hearing is due to take place at 14:15 local time (19:15GMT).
Mr Trump’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, told ABC News that Mr Trump will “probably” appear in court on Tuesday, “but nothing is certain”.
Prosecutors “will try and get every ounce of publicity they can from this thing”, he said, adding “the president will not be put in handcuffs”.
“I understand they’re going to be closing off blocks around the courthouse, shutting down the courthouse,” he continued.
Security is being co-ordinated by the FBI, NYPD, Secret Service and New York City court officers.
Sources tell CBS that they are bracing for possible scenarios that include attacks against Mr Trump, prosecutors, jurors or members of the public. The district attorney’s office has received “many threats”, the sources said.
Image caption,Members of law enforcement were seen discussing security near the courthouse on Friday
On Friday morning, the streets around the courthouse were calm but the barricades were going up in anticipation of what may come next week.
Police officers were on patrol and security plans were being put into place. Many expect the area to go into lockdown when the former president attends court.
The district attorney’s office had initially asked Mr Trump to surrender on Friday, according to Politico, but the request was rejected because more time was needed for security preparations.
Mr Trump, 76, denies wrongdoing. He is the first serving or former US president to face a criminal charge.
It is unclear how many charges are contained in the indictment, which is still sealed.
Media reports have said the ex-president faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud and Mr Tacopina said on Thursday he thought there would be 34. But on Friday, he said he did not know how many.
“We know what the subject matter is, we know the basis of the charges. We don’t know the exact counts or how they’re formulated,” he said.
On Friday Mr Trump began attacking the judge assigned to his case in an effort to undermine the credibility of the investigation and rally his base to his defence.
Republicans – including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy – have accused the Manhattan district attorney of weaponising the criminal justice system to influence next year’s presidential election. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green, who Mr Trump recently suggested should run for Senate, called on followers to protest and said she plans to be present in New York next week.
In response, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the charges had been brought by citizens of New York doing their civic duty – and neither the former president nor Congress could interfere with proceedings.
In Washington, the US Capitol Police, which are tasked with safeguarding lawmakers in Congress, said the force believes protests will take place across the country and have plans in place to increase security at the US Capitol.
In 2016 adult film star Stormy Daniels contacted media outlets offering to sell her account of what she said was an adulterous affair she had with Mr Trump in 2006 – the year after he married his current wife, Melania.
Mr Trump’s team got wind of this and his lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid $130,000 to Ms Daniels to keep quiet. This is not illegal.
However, when Mr Trump reimbursed Mr Cohen, the record for the payment says it was for legal fees. Prosecutors say this amounts to Mr Trump falsifying business records, which is a misdemeanour – a criminal offence – in New York.
Image caption,A Secret Service agent guards Mr Trump’s Florida home
President Joe Biden declined to comment on the indictment, despite being pressed on the issue by journalists as he left the White House on a trip to Mississippi.
Mr Tacopina said Mr Trump was being “pursued by a prosecutor who has obviously very diverse political views from the president. So it’s a very troubling case”.
He said the former president was “not worried at all” about the charges.
“He’s upset, angry. He’s being persecuted politically. That is clear to many people, not only on the Right but on the Left.”
1. Get the best of a refined draft an academic CV, SOP and LORs
2. Get your Academic Transcript and merge it with your academic CV in one PDF document.
3.Obtain four or five research areas that fit your course of study. Please take note that some of your research interests may span multiple departments. For instance, a graduate in chemistry, physics, or polymer has a research interest in material science.
Gender Studies and Diversity is a research area of Int’l relations, Public admin, Sociology, Pol Sci.
4. Find universities with professors who have similar interest in your research field.
Example: Enter “Professors inCommunication in US Universities” into the search bar on Google. Take note of these professors . You can repeat same on Twitter and LinkedIn.
5. Find universities that waive the GRE, TOEFL, and valuation by sifting through the universities.
6. Be on the look-out for application waiver codes, school fairs, and virtual open days.
7. Submit an application to as many universities as have professors who specialise in your field of study.
8. Keep an eye out for positions that have been advertised and submit a compelling Letter of Intent.
A solid letter of intent is based on thorough research into the kind of work being done at the lab or workgroup where the advertisement is being placed.
9. Look out for Universities in the Cold Regions of the USA. They usually have less applicants and thus lesser competition for you.
10. Get your resume ready for GRA/GTA/GA offers. These funding positions are typically given to graduate students who demonstrate aptitude for research, teaching, or administrative responsibilities. They waive tuition fees and pay stipends of between 18,000 and 26,000 USD.
Partnerships between African governments will focus on what America can do with Africa, not only what it can do for Africa, according to USA Vice President Kamala Harris.
She made this statement while giving a keynote speech on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 at the Black Stars Square in Accra as part of her activities while visiting Ghana.
“So, then, what does it mean that the United States of America is all in? It means that the United States is committed to strengthening our partnerships across the continent of Africa — partnerships with governments, the private sector, civil society, and all of you.
“Partnerships based on openness, inclusiveness, candor, shared interests, and mutual benefits,” she said.
She continued,”And to be clear, America will be guided not by what we can do for our African partners, but what we can do with our African partners. Together, she said America and Africa will address the challenges they face and and as well pursue the incredible opportunities ahead.
Investment in innovation
Kamala Harris also recommended the investment in innovation for African Governments.
“Innovation I believe to be the pursuit of what can be unburdened by what has been. Innovation results in one’s ability not only to see, but to do things differently. New methods, new products, new approaches, new ideas. We innovate to be more effective and to solve problems.
“From the invention of new technology, to the origin of social movements, innovation has come about by challenging the premise, questioning the status quo, and bold thinking,” she said.
The US Vice President added that, ”And so to the young leaders here today, you, by your very nature, are dreamers and innovators. It is your spark, your creativity, and your determination that will drive the future.
“And with that then, African ideas and innovations will shape the future of the world. And so we must invest in the African ingenuity and creativity, which will unlock incredible economic growth and opportunities, not only for the people of the 54 countries that make up this diverse continent, but for the American people and people around the world.”
The friendly will take place on July 25 at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium.
With the recent signing of former United goalkeeper Ben Foster, Wrexham is vying for National League promotion.
They are three points ahead of Notts County and advanced to the FA Cup fourth round before losing to Sheffield United, who later advanced to the semifinals.
The Welsh club were bought by Hollywood A-listers Reynolds and McElhenney in 2020.
“We’re looking forward to being able to play in the United States for the first time in the club’s history,” said Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson.
Wrexham last faced United in an FA Cup tie in 1995. The Red Devils’ team will be mainly made up of academy players.
“We’re looking forward to being able to play in the United States for the first time in the Club’s history. The match against Manchester United is sure to be a memorable occasion at the Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego." 👇
Folarin Balogun would be a “great addition” to the American team, but Arsenal’s Matt Turner only wants the striker to switch if it “comes from the heart.”
Balogun, an Arsenal forward, has performed admirably while on loan with Reims this year, scoring 17 goals in 27 Ligue 1 games, second only to Kylian Mbappe and Jonathan David (both 19).
With the New York-born star eligible to represent England, the United States, and Nigeria, the 21-year-stellar old’s play has sparked talk of a fight for his international allegiance.
Balogun has been a pillar of the England Under-21 setup, but he withdrew from the team for this month’s international matches due to injury.
That development has led to fresh hope Balogun will pledge himself to the USMNT, and Turner confirmed he had spoken to his Gunners team-mate on the matter.
“I spoke to Flo. We obviously had most of our preseason together, and I knew going into it he had some roots in the USA,” the goalkeeper said on Wednesday.
“So, he and I developed a relationship pretty quickly. That’s pretty much the extent of it. We check in on each other here and there.
“He’d be a great addition to our national team. I think he’s done really well, obviously, for his club on loan, and we’ll see.
— U.S. Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) March 22, 2023
“The decision has to come from the heart, because it’s not necessarily an easy task to come and play in theseCONCACAF games. It’s a tough region at times.
“So, for us, we’d be really grateful to have him, but his heart needs to be in it.”
Earlier in the week, Balogun told Sky Sports he was yet to decide on his future but has aspirations of playing at the highest level.
“My international future is not decided yet in terms of who I’ll play for,” he said. “But of course I want to play international football at the highest level, in the World Cups, and I want to compete at the highest level.
“I want to put myself in positions where I’m performing in front of millions of people.”
Automatic participation spots have been given to the three host countries.
Along with Mexico and Canada, the men’s national team of the United States will automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
In a joint North American bid, the three nations were successful in winning the right to host the World Cup. Although this is the first time FIFA has had to reserve three host bids, FIFA has historically granted host nations the right to compete in the World Cup without first participating in the customary qualification competitions.
The tournament is set to expand from 32 teams to 48 in 2026. Another three berths will be awarded to CONCACAF nations via qualifying.
FIFA released a statement Tuesday saying, “In addition, the FIFA Council confirmed that, in line with the long-standing tradition of having all hosts competing at the FIFA World Cup, as well as sporting and operational considerations, the hosts of the FIFA World Cup 2026, namely Canada, Mexico and the USA, will qualify automatically for the final round of the competition, with their slots, therefore, being deducted from the overall allocation of six assigned to CONCACAF.”
While the U.S. and Mexico tend to qualify for most World Cups, it was good news for Canada, whose men’s national team broke a 36-year drought between World Cup appearances when it qualified for Qatar in 2022. Canada lost all three of its group-stage matches.
The FIFA Council also determined its timetable for bidding for the right to host the 2030 World Cup, saying it will make its decision next year.
That meeting will be separate from FIFA’s meeting to select a host for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, which will be held first, earlier in 2024.
There are three confirmed bids for 2030 hosting duties: a South American joint bid featuring Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay and Chile; a Spain-Portugal joint bid that added war-torn Ukraine last year; and Morocco.
A large Chinese balloon that the US shot down earlier this month off the coast of South Carolina has all of its debris recovered. Despite China’s denials, analysis to date indicates that the balloon was used for surveillance.
Officials claim that the US is confident that Navy, Coast Guard, and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) personnel have recovered all of the balloon’s wreckage from the ocean floor, including crucial payload gear that might reveal what data the payload was able to monitor and collect.
The US Northern Command stated in a statement on Friday that the balloon’s final remains were being sent to the FBI for study and that recovery efforts had concluded on Thursday.
In a statement on Friday, the US Northern Command said that the last remnants of the balloon were being sent to the FBI for study, and that recovery efforts had concluded on Thursday.
“Final pieces of debris are being transferred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratory in Virginia for counterintelligence exploitation, as has occurred with the previous surface and subsurface debris recovered,” according to the statement.
The end of the recovery efforts came after several weeks of tense relations between Beijing and Washington, with China denying that the balloon was for surveillance purposes and accusing the US of overreaction.
Speaking to MSNBC News on Friday in Munich, US Vice President Kamala Harris said the US was confident that the balloon was being “used by China to spy on the American people”.
“That balloon was not helpful, which is why we shot it down,” Harris said.
The incident heightened tensions between the US and China.
Chinese military officials refused calls from their US counterparts after the balloon was shot down.
Earlier this month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a scheduled visit to China following the balloon incident, which he said “undermined” the purpose of the trip. It has not been rescheduled.
However, the Biden administration has also said that the US is not seeking conflict with China, which has the second-largest economy in the world after the US and is seen as essential for tackling global issues such as the climate crisis.
“We are not looking for a new cold war,” Biden said in remarks on Thursday. “I expect to be speaking with President Xi. I hope we are going to get to the bottom of this, but I make no apologies for taking down that balloon.”
The US has also shot down three unidentified objects in US and Canadian airspace over the last several weeks, in a series of bizarre incidents that have prompted speculation and rumours about the origin and nature of the objects.
On Thursday, Biden said that the objects were harmless and probably connected to private entities or research, adding that it is not likely that the three objects were connected to the Chinese balloon that the US shot down off the coast of South Carolina on February 4.
Tensions between the two countries are not new: China and the US have previously traded accusations over issues like trade and technology, human rights violations, and China’s desire to bring the self-governing island of Taiwan under its control.
Tyre Nichols was killed after a violent traffic stop in Memphis, which sparked protests and renewed calls for an end to police violence. In his death, five former US police officers have entered not guilty pleas.
On Friday, before a judge in Shelby County Criminal Court, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III, and Justin Smith made their first court appearances with their attorneys.
In relation to the videotaped arrest of Nichols on January 7, the former officers entered not guilty pleas to charges of second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct, and official oppression.
The footage shows the officers beating the 29-year-old father and FedEx worker for three minutes in an assault that the Nichols family’s legal team likened to the 1991 police beating of Los Angeles motorist Rodney King, which was also videotaped.
“I am numb, just numb as I can be right now,” Nichols’s mother, RowVaughn Wells, said on Friday as she walked into the courtroom dressed in black.
After the court hearing, Wells dismissed the officers’ not-guilty plea, saying that it was expected.
“I’m going to leave it up to the district attorney’s office to get them prosecuted… and then they’ll find them guilty,” Wells told reporters outside the courtroom. “So, them saying they’re not guilty, that’s a preliminary thing. Everybody’s going to say that.”
She pledged to attend every session in court going forward.
“I want each and every one of those police officers to be able to look me in the face. They haven’t done that yet. They couldn’t even do that today. They didn’t even have the courage to look at me in my face after what they did to my son,” Wells said.
Nichols, who died in hospital three days after the traffic stop, attempted to converse with police as they shouted orders and threatened him with violence during the ordeal.
“You guys are really doing a lot right now. I’m just trying to go home,” he said at one point as he sat on the street and officers stood over him.
“Stop! I’m not doing anything,” Nichols said, just before breaking free and running.
The five officers, all of whom are Black, have been fired from the police force, and the special unit they were members of has been disbanded. They were all released on bond as they await trial. Their next hearing has been scheduled for May 1.
“Be patient. Work with your attorneys,” Judge James Jones Jr said to the officers during Friday’s court appearance. “There may be some high emotions in this case.”
Nichols’s case has recalled the 2020 killing of George Floyd, who died when a police officer knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His death set off mass protests worldwide that demanded an end to racism and police brutality.
Memphis police said Nichols had been suspected of reckless driving, but no verified evidence of a traffic violation has emerged in public documents or in video footage.
The city’s police chief, Cerelyn “CJ” Davis, has said she has seen no evidence justifying the stop or the officers’ response. Davis also previously said the video footage of the fatal incident depicted “acts that defy humanity”.
One white officer who was also involved in the initial traffic stop has been fired while an additional officer who has not been identified has been suspended.
The Memphis case has stood out for the speed in which the officers were fired and charged.
On Friday, civil rights attorney Ben Crump – who is representing Nichols’ family – warned against “any unnecessary delays” in prosecuting the former officers. “It’s important that we move swiftly towards justice,” He told reporters.
According to spokesman John Kirby, the objects “may be tied to commercial or research entities and therefore benign.”
The three downed aircraft’s wreckage has not yet been found or recovered by US or Canadian authorities.
Beijing previously charged the US with having “a trigger-happy overreaction.”
China has denied that one of its balloons, which was destroyed by a US fighter jet earlier this month off South Carolina, was being used for espionage, saying it was merely a weather-monitoring airship that had blown off course.
At Tuesday’s daily news conference, Mr Kirby said it will be difficult to determine the purpose or origin of the three other objects that were destroyed over Alaska, Canada, and Michigan until the debris is found and analysed.
“We haven’t seen any indication or anything that points specifically to the idea that these three objects were part of the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China] spying programme,” the White House National Security Council told reporters, “or that they were definitively involved in external intelligence collection efforts.”
A “leading explanation” being considered by US intelligence, he added, was that “these could be balloons that were simply tied to commercial or research entities and therefore benign”.
But he noted that no company, organisation, or government had yet laid claim to the objects.
In the most recent strike – over Lake Huron – the first Sidewinder missile fired by a US F-16 warplane missed its target, the top US general has confirmed.
“First shot missed.” “Second shot hit,” said Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley during a visit to Brussels on Tuesday.
“We go to great lengths to make sure that the airspace is clear and the backdrop is clear up to the max effective range of the missile. And in this case, the missiles land, or the missile landed, harmlessly in the water of Lake Huron.”
A spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, meanwhile, criticised the American response.
“Many in the US have been asking, ‘what good can such costly action possibly bring to the US and its taxpayers?’” said Wang Wenbin on Tuesday.
Watch: ‘What’s going on?’ The mind-boggling balloon mystery in 61 seconds
Sensors from the alleged Chinese spy balloon shot down over the US on 4 February were recovered from the Atlantic Ocean on Monday, and are being analysed by the FBI.
Search crews found “significant debris from the site, including all of the priority sensor and electronics pieces identified” off the coast of South Carolina, said US Northern Command.
The Chinese balloon was being tracked by US intelligence since its lift-off from a base on Hainan Island on the south coast of China earlier this month, US media report.
Shortly after take-off the balloon drifted towards the US islands of Guam and Hawaii before moving north towards Alaska, American officials told CBS News, the BBC’s partner.
The unnamed officials say that its path indicates that it could have been blown off course by weather, but that it was back under the Chinese control again by the time it reached the continental US.
The entire US Senate received a classified briefing on Tuesday about the matter from military leaders.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the chamber would launch an inquiry into why the aircraft were not detected earlier.
“It’s a good question,” Mr Schumer told reporters. “We need to answer it.”
The rapid response from Washington to Beijing’s accusation widens the dispute that started last week after the US military allegedly shot down what it believes to be aChinese spy balloon.
More than ten times in the previous year, China has accused the US of illegally using high-altitude balloons to fly over its territory. Each time, the US government has responded with a denial.
Days prior to the allegation on Monday, the US shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon that had travelled from Alaska to South Carolina, igniting a fresh crisis in relations between the two largest economies in the world. Beijing has maintained that the object was a weather craft that had veered off course.
“It is also common for US balloons to illegally enter the airspace of other countries,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a news briefing.
“Since last year, US high-altitude balloons have illegally flown over China’s airspace more than 10 times without the approval of Chinese authorities,” Wang said without giving details about how they had been dealt with or whether they had government or military links.
The US should “first reflect on itself and change course, rather than smear and instigate a confrontation”, Wang said.
The White House swiftly denied China’s assertions.
“Not true. Not doing it. Just absolutely not true,” national security spokesman John Kirby said in an interview with MSNBC. “We are not flying balloons over China.”
After the downing of the alleged Chinese airship last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken cancelled a visit to Beijing that many had hoped would put the brakes on the sharp decline in relations over Taiwan, trade, human rights and Chinese claims in the disputed South China Sea.
The US has since placed economic restrictions on six Chinese entities it said are linked to China’s aerospace programmes.
US Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves has said his department “will not hesitate to continue to use” such restrictions and other regulatory and enforcement tools “to protect US national security and sovereignty”.
The US House of Representatives also voted unanimously to condemn China for a “brazen violation” ofUS sovereignty and efforts to “deceive the international community through false claims about its intelligence collection campaigns”.
Separately on Monday, the Philippines accused a Chinese coastguard ship of targeting a Philippine coastguard vessel with a military-grade laser and temporarily blinding some of its crew in the South China Sea. Manila called the incident a “blatant” violation of the Philippines’ sovereign rights.
Wang said a Philippine coastguard vessel had trespassed into Chinese waters without permission on February 6 and that Chinese coastguard vessels responded “professionally and with restraint”. China claims virtually all of the South China Sea and has been steadily building up its maritime forces and island outposts in the strategic waterway.
“China and the Philippines are maintaining communication through diplomatic channels in this regard,” Wang said.
In nine days, US fighter jets have shot down four flying objects. Here is what we currently know.
Concerns about North American security and strained relations with China have increased as a result of the shooting down of a large Chinese balloon off the US coast and the subsequent shooting down of three smaller objects over Canada, Alaska, and Lake Huron on the US-Canada border.
Here is what we know so far:
What were the four objects?
Late last month, a giant Chinese balloon – termed a “spycraft” by US officials – drifted for days through US skies before being shot down on February 4 by an F-22 jet off the South Carolina coast.
China insisted the balloon was conducting weather research and had gone astray.
The Pentagon said it had a gondola the size of three buses and was equipped with multiple antennas, and had solar panels large enough to power several intelligence-gathering sensors.
It also appeared to be able to steer itself, using winds and possibly a propulsion mechanism, officials said.
On February 10, US fighter jets downed another object off northern Alaska. It was much smaller than the previously shot-down balloon and lacked any system of propulsion or control, officials said.
On February 11, a US F-22 jet shot down a “high-altitude airborne object” over Canada’s far northwest Yukon territory, saying it posed a threat to the civilian flight. Canada described it as cylindrical and about the size of a Volkswagen Beetle car.
On February 12, President Joe Biden ordered US warplanes to down yet another unidentified object over Lake Huron. The object was described as an octagonal structure with strings hanging off it. It posed a hazard to civil aviation as it flew at about 20,000 feet (6,000 metres), officials said.
The Pentagon said none of the four objects appeared armed or posed any threat of attack.
Officials would not comment on the origin or function of the three objects that came after the Chinese balloon.
What has been recovered?
Military teams working from planes, boats and minisubs are scouring the shallow waters off South Carolina for debris from the balloon, with military images showing the recovery of a large piece.
Operations to recover the second object continue on sea ice near Deadhorse, Alaska. Recovery teams are searching for debris from the third object in the Yukon, while US and Canadian teams were preparing an operation to recover the fourth object’s debris.
Heino Klinck, former US deputy assistant secretary of defence for East Asia from 2019 to 2021, said there is concern about the lack of information about the flying objects over North America.
“It’s rather odd, frankly, that in a span of three days that the US air force shot down three objects in the air, and our government has yet to tell us anything about if there is a continuous threat or the origins of the aircraft,” Klinck told Al Jazeera.
What was the objects’ purpose?
US officials say the Chinese balloon, which flew over sensitive US nuclear missile sites, had surveillance equipment that could intercept telecommunications.
They said such balloons skirted US territory at least four times in the past six years, but none had flown deep into US territory.
The balloons were part of a “fleet” operated by China that has conducted surveillance on some 40 countries over five continents, US officials said.
Why so many objects now?
On Sunday, Melissa Dalton, assistant defence secretary for homeland defence, said after the Chinese balloon was detected, US air defence made adjustments to radar systems to be able to detect smaller and slower-moving objects in the atmosphere.
Analysts said normally, US and Canadian intelligence constantly receive huge amounts of raw data and generally screened some out to focus on the threat of incoming missiles, not slow-moving objects like balloons.
Beijing denounced the first balloon’s downing, saying it “seriously violated international practice”. It reserved the right “to use necessary means to deal with similar situations”.
Dalton said on Sunday that after Beijing rejected US overtures for several days, US officials have had “contacts” with China over the balloon.
US Senator Chuck Schumer stated that a proposal to outlaw TikTok in the US “should be looked at.”
“We do know there’s Chinese ownership of the company that owns TikTok. And there are some people in the Commerce Committee that are looking into that right now,” Schumer, the Senate majority leader, told George Stephanopoulos of ABC News in a Sunday interview. “We’ll see where they come out.”
US lawmakers Marco Rubio, a Republican senator from Florida, and Angus King, an independent from Maine, said Friday they had reintroduced new legislation that aims to ban TikTok from operating in the United States unless it cuts ties with its current owner.
TikTok is owned by ByteDance, one of the most valuable private companies in China.
US officials have raised concerns that China could use its laws to pressure TikTok or ByteDance to hand over US user data that could be used for intelligence or disinformation purposes.
Those worries have prompted the US government to ban TikTok from official devices, and more than half of US states have taken similar measures, according to a CNN analysis.
TikTok has previously pushed back on the claims, saying it doesn’t share information with the Chinese government, and that a US-based security team decides who can access US user data from China.
The company did not immediately respond to a new request for comment on Monday morning Asia time.
TikTok’s Singaporean CEO, Shou Zi Chew, is slated to testify before Congress in March, on topics including TikTok’s privacy and data security practices, its impact on young users and its “relationship to the Chinese Communist Party,” according to a House committee statement.
“We hope that by sharing details of our comprehensive plans with the full Committee, Congress can take a more deliberative approach to the issues at hand,” the TikTok spokesperson.
In a joint operation by the North American neighbours, a US fighter jet shot down an unidentified cylindrical object over Canada.
After a week-long saga over a rumoured Chinese spy balloon, North America appeared to be on high alert. The shootdown on Saturday was the second such action in as many days.
The shootdown was first reported by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who also promised that his country’s forces would recover and examine the aircraft’s wreckage.
Canadian defence minister Anita Anand declined to speculate on the origin of the object, which she said was small and cylindrical in shape. She stopped short of describing it as a balloon but said it was smaller than the Chinese balloon shot down off South Carolina’s coast a week ago, but similar in appearance.
She said it was flying at 12,100 metres (40,000 feet) and posed a risk to civilian air traffic when it was shot down at 3:41 EST (20:41 GMT).
“There is no reason to believe that the impact of the object in Canadian territory is of any public concern,” Anand told a news conference.
The Pentagon said the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) detected the object over Alaska late on Friday evening. US fighter jets from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, monitored the object as it crossed over into Canadian airspace, where Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 aircraft joined the formation.
“A US F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile following close coordination between US and Canadian authorities,” Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said in a statement
US President Joe Biden authorised the country’s military to work with Canada to take down the high-altitude craft after a call between Biden and Trudeau, the Pentagon said. The White House said Biden and Trudeau agreed to continue close coordination to “defend our airspace”.
“The leaders discussed the importance of recovering the object in order to determine more details on its purpose or origin,” the White House said in a statement.
Shortly after the 3:41 pm (2041 GMT) downing of the object, aviation authorities also shut down part of the airspace over the northwest US state of Montana after detecting what they called a “radar anomaly,” the US Northern Command said.
In a sign of jitters over possible intrusions, Northern Command said US fighter jets took to the skies but “did not identify any object to correlate to the radar hits”. Skies were then reopened to commercial air traffic.
Suspected Chinese spy balloon
A day earlier, Biden ordered another shootdown of an unidentified flying object near Deadhorse, Alaska. The US military on Saturday remained tight-lipped about what, if anything, it had learned as recovery efforts were under way on the Alaskan sea ice.
The Pentagon on Friday offered only a few details, including that the object was the size of a small car, it was flying at about 12,100 metres and could not manoeuvre and appeared to be unmanned. US officials have been trying to learn about the object since it was first spotted on Thursday.
“We have no further details at this time about the object, including its capabilities, purpose or origin,” Northern Command said on Saturday.
It noted difficult arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow and limited daylight that could hinder search and recovery efforts.
“Personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” Northern Command said.
On February 4, a US F-22 fighter jet brought down what the US government called a Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina, following its week-long journey across the US and portions of Canada. China’s government has said it was a civilian research vessel.
Some US legislators criticised Biden for not shooting down the Chinese balloon sooner. The US military had recommended waiting until it was over the ocean out of fear of injuries from falling debris.
US personnel have been scouring the ocean to recover debris and the undercarriage of electronic gadgetry since the shootdown of the 60-meter-high (200-foot-tall) Chinese suspected surveillance balloon.
The Pentagon has said a significant amount of the balloon had already been recovered or located, suggesting US officials may soon have more information about any Chinese espionage capabilities onboard the vessel.
Sea conditions on February 10 “permitted dive and underwater unmanned vehicle (UUV) activities and the retrieval of additional debris from the sea floor,” Northern Command said.
“The public may see US Navy vessels moving to and from the site as they conduct offload and resupply activities.”
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has refuted reports that it had a deal with a third party to import a lot of pork from the United States.
The Ministry in a statement explained that, the Veterinary Services Directorate (VSD) of the ministry rather requested from veterinary medical officers in the USA for certification for meat and poultry healthiness intended to be exported to Ghana.
“MoFA categorically denies the validity of the allegation as it has not signed any such agreement with any party. For clarity, the Veterinary Services Directorate (VSD) of MoFA has on record, a request from Dr. Charmaine McJee, Veterinary Medical Officer, Export Development of FSISUSDA, Washington for Certification for Meat and Poultry Wholesomeness intended to be exported to Ghana which was granted following laboratory analysis of samples”, the statement said.
The statement added that it is an obligation of VSD to render the requested services professionally in accordance with ethics of the Organization of World Animal Health for which Ghana is a Member.
“Rather unfortunately, the VSD legal mandate has been misconstrued. We therefore take this opportunity to assure the general public that, no agreement has been signed between the Ministry and any party for the unbridled importation of pork to flood the Ghanaian market”.
MoFA assured that it will never undermine the efforts and narrow market opportunities of the Ghanaian pig farmer.
As competition between the two nations grows, the fallout from the alleged Chinese “spy” balloon that flew over the United States has solidified a nearly bipartisan consensus in Washington about the need to “stand up” to Beijing.
Despite the heightened tensions, US officials emphasise that they are still open to dialogue with China. However, many politicians in Washington are using the incident as justification for tougher regulations.
During his annual State of the Union address, which was seen by an estimated 23.4 million TV viewers on Tuesday night, US President Joe Biden personally warned China against endangering US sovereignty.
“The Biden administration has shown that it is very concerned with attacks particularly from the right, from Republican critics, that they are being too soft on China,” said Tobita Chow, director of Justice Is Global, a project that advocates for a more sustainable international economy.
“And because of that pressure coming in from the right, I think we often see them leaning further in the direction of confrontational politics.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a previously scheduled trip to Beijing over the balloon incident, which the Biden administration has called an “unacceptable” violation of American sovereignty.
The US military shot down the balloon on Saturday as it flew over the Atlantic Ocean, after days of debate and congressional calls to bring it down.
In his State of the Union speech, Biden said the US is not seeking confrontation in its competition with China but warned that Washington will stand up for its interests against Beijing.
“As we made clear last week, if China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country — and we did,” he said.
What do we know about the balloon?
Little is publicly known about the Chinese balloon or what it was doing in US airspace. Nonetheless, its presence caused a significant political stir and produced countless news headlines and wall-to-wall coverage.
China initially expressed regret for the incident, describing the balloon as a civilian airship used for meteorological research that “deviated far from its planned course”. Beijing later condemned the US hit to bring down the aircraft.
But the Pentagon insisted it was a “high-altitude surveillance balloon”, although US defence officials said the balloon did not pose a “military or physical threat”.
Still, some Republican lawmakers kept describing the aircraft as a risk to national security.
Republican Senator Tom Cotton denounced the Biden administration for allowing the balloon to traverse the continental US for days before shooting it down.
Cotton told Fox News earlier this week that he felt the delay in Biden’s response was “dangerous for the American people”. He also accused the administration of pushing to salvage Blinken’s visit to Beijing, which he described as “already ill-advised”.
US officials had previously said that, if the balloon were brought down over land, falling debris could “potentially cause civilian injuries or deaths or significant property damage”.
Christopher Heurlin, an associate professor of government and Asian studies at Bowdoin College in the US state of Maine, said while the balloon may not have been a direct threat to Americans, it created a “shock” in the country.
“We like to think in the United States that we live in North America and we’re oceans away from any kind of competitors — and in that sense, not very vulnerable,” Heurlin told Al Jazeera.
“Whereas having the spy balloon flying overhead, I think, does create some kind of visceral sense of vulnerability in the collective psyche.”
China has condemned the US hit on the balloon [Chad Fish via AP Photo]
As for Blinken’s trip, Heurlin said “political considerations” played a role in the decision to postpone it.
“I’m not sure that politically Biden would have been able to get away with sending Secretary of State Blinken to China under these circumstances,” he told Al Jazeera.
Chow, the director of Justice Is Global, agreed that the “panic” over the balloon likely led to postponing the visit.
“I think the Biden administration correctly judged that the balloon was not really that big of a deal,” Chow told Al Jazeera. “But they felt overwhelmed by this wave of media coverage and this very extreme freakout from the right.”
How we got here
The balloon incident came against the backdrop of growing animosity between Washington and Beijing.
Last year, the White House released a national security strategy that described China as the “most consequential geopolitical challenge” for the US. The Pentagon also prioritised competition with Beijing in its defence strategy.
Both assessments primarily focused on China, not Russia, despite the latter’s invasion of Ukraine, which has disrupted global supply chains for vital goods like food and energy and ushered in the most intense violence in Europe since World War II.
Ties between Beijing and Washington have soured over numerous points of tension in recent years, including trade issues, the status of Taiwan, China’s claims in the South China Sea and an ongoing US push against growing Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific.
The US has also been warning China against coming to Russia’s aid in Ukraine.
So how did we get here?
As Washington’s so-called “war on terror” — initiated during the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks — began to wind down, the US turned its focus to competing with China, whose economic power and push for global influence has been growing.
Chow said the root of the tensions is “neoliberal free-trade globalisation”. That economic framework, he explained, has been experiencing deeper systemic problems since the 2008 financial crisis and has led to “zero-sum competition, which then became the breeding ground for dangerous nationalist politics”.
Heurlin, the professor, linked the current state of affairs between the two countries to economics as well. He said that, with the loss of manufacturing jobs to outsourcing, the anger of many in the US has shifted to China
He added that since the rise of President Xi Jinping in 2012, Beijing has pursued an assertive foreign policy that includes a “vocal defence of Chinese interests”.
“That is something that they’ve been doing really to appeal to Chinese nationalists back home,” Heurlin told Al Jazeera.
“So I think on both sides, this is something that’s been happening for a while. And then especially once Donald Trump comes to the American presidency and starts the trade war with China, that’s when relations really start to bottom out.”
Ultimately, Heurlin said, the US government’s goal is to “maintain its status quo position as the most militarily and economically powerful country in the world”.
What’s next for US-China relations?
Despite the deteriorating relationship, officials in both countries continue to call for cooperation on shared global challenges — namely combatting climate change and the COVID pandemic — as well as warn against confrontation.
But for the foreseeable future, the tensions show no sign of subsiding.
“What we should anticipate is that conflict between the US and China is going to continue and build and escalate over time,” Chow said. “And if things don’t change, then yes, this is going to be a long-term great power conflict that is going to have enormous consequences for people in the US and China and around the world.”
Heurlin echoed that prediction but said he hopes that, with China ending its“zero COVID” policies, more people-to-people interactions between US and Chinese citizens would soften public opinion in both countries.
“It’s getting harder and harder to manage the US-China relationship from the perspective of both Beijing and Washington and I don’t think there really is any kind of magical solution,” he said.
