Corax
UK secures agreement with Japan on first major post-Brexit trade deal after only three months of talks, trade minister Liz Truss says agreement goes far beyond the existing EU deal with 99% of Britain's exports to Japan tariff-free
World
UK secures agreement with Japan on first major post-Brexit trade deal after only three months of talks, trade minister Liz Truss says agreement goes far beyond the existing EU deal with 99% of Britain's exports to Japan tariff-free
2019 Christchurch shooter Brenton Tarrant sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole in first ever use of the penalty in New Zealand, Tarrant choose not to speak at his own sentencing despite opting to represent himself and did not oppose the sentence
New Zealand's High Court rules country's lockdown from March 26 to April 3 was unlawful, as directives to stay at home under threat of punishment breached section 5 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act, but judges agree measures were a necessary, reasonable and proportionate response to pandemic
1.116 million barrels of Iranian oil bound for Venezuela on four Liberian flagged, Greek owned tankers confiscated as the countries defied US sanctions, the fuel is transferred to other ships and taken to Houston, Texas
Russia and China speed up de-dollarization as share of the dollar in trade between the countries fell to 46% during first quarter of 2020 from 90% four years ago, the remaining 54% made up of 17% Chinese yuan, 30% euro, and 7% Russian ruble
China orders US to close its consulate in Chengdu in Sichuan Province after Beijing had promised to retaliate for Houston shutdown order, says it’s a legitimate and necessary response to the unjustified act by the US
US tells Chinese consulate in Houston to shut down in three days citing a need to protect American intellectual property and information, after which staff are seen burning documents in a container within the courtyard of the consulate facility
Red Bull fires two US top executives for leaking letter critical of public silence on Black Lives Matter signed by more than 300 employees and pushing for more diversity and inclusion, a third executive, Florian Klaass, also terminated for using a slide featuring supposedly racist stereotypes, billionaire owner and CEO Dietrich Mateschitz has previously spoken out against political correctness
Miscellaneous
Two strict vegan parents plead guilty to negligently causing serious injury after their baby developed cerebral palsy, they repeatedly ignored medical advice that their plant-based diet would not sufficiently nourish their young child, the father made his own vegan formula out of dates, fruit and other vegetables, he has now adjusted his own diet and eats meat
Oscars introduce diversity requirements for films that wish to be eligible for the Best Picture Award, needing to hire more black, female, LGBT or disabled cast and crew or address themes that affect those communities, new rules to be introduced in 2024
Liberty Minecraft announces end of project, libertarian game server will be online until June 2021 but will not receive any updates, founder Nathan Dempsey thanks players for five wonderful years
BBC sends TV licencing letter to Kew Palace in Richmond whose last resident was King George III and family in 1820, as free licences for over 75s are scrapped in Britain
A wooden statue honouring the 1980s movie Rambo First Blood has been erected in Hope, British Columbia, actor Sylvester Stallone was quite pleased with the statue before it went up in the city where the 1982 action movie was filmed
The vegan community was dominated by wealthy white women but black and racialized vegans want to take over, black people make up the fastest growing vegan demographic, unlike whites who had to culturally appropriate foods to fit a vegan agenda vegetable-rich diets are not new for people of colour
British farmer Stuart Baldwin in Wigan deposits 421 tyres on front yard of man who was caught on CCTV dumping them on Baldwin's land, had given the culprit a deadline to come and collect the tyres
Yvel is creating the world’s most expensive coronavirus mask with a price tag of USD 1.5 million, the 18-karat white gold mask will be decorated with 3,600 white and black diamonds, the buyer specifically requested it would be the priciest in the world, designer Isaac Levy said he would not wear it himself but he was happy the work was able to provide for his employees during very challenging times
George W. Bush publishes book with portrait paintings of 43 immigrants as well as biographical essays he has written about them, purpose is to campaign for liberal immigration laws but publication has been intentionally delayed to after the 2020 presidential election
Movement of "sovereign citizens" grows world-wide according to BBC, consists of individuals who do not see themselves as obligated to follow laws or pay taxes after using legal means to exist contract relationships with states, habit of challenging laws and regulations in court described as paper terrorism
Media
Twitter deletes Breitbart video of press conference held by America’s Frontline Doctors sharing their views on Covid-19 and the medical community’s treatment of the virus for violating social media's Covid-19 misinformation policy, also removes posts by President Trump and suspends Donald Trump Jr. for sharing video footage
John Malkovich blames social media idiocy for the death of comedy with its toxic outrage culture, says what is considered funny one day could well end an entertainer’s career the next, the ire of a generation a few clicks away from being sparked
Social media to be regulated through executive order by Donald Trump, could change interpretation of 1996 law which shields platforms from legal liability for content published by users
Dutch grandmother ordered to delete photos of grandchildren which she uploaded to social media against the wishes of parents, court finds GDPR applies despite exception for personal processing of data since pictures where made available to wider audience
New York Times develops own ad system and phases out third-party data collected on other sites, part of industry trend where publishers move toward more privacy-friendly solutions
Politics
Japan prime minister Abe Shinzo resigns due to health concerns, recently became the longest sitting prime minister in the post world war two era, Abe has a brief stint as prime minister between 2006 and 2007 when he was also forced to resign due to chronic illness which was later claimed to have been successfully medicated
Opinion
Ricardo Duchesne: White men are the most resented group because they are responsible for almost 100% of the greatest achievements in all fields of human endeavor in all of history, created all fields of academic study, were the foremost thinkers, artists, statesmen and explorers
Peter Hitchens: The lockdown and destruction of statues show the pillars of freedom and civilization are rotten as police chiefs and political leaders kneel like conquered slaves to the new gods of woke, and while the Left controls every lever of power, ignorant armies seek the final abolition of Britain as we face nothing less than a regime change
Europe
Japan prime minister Abe Shinzo resigns due to health concerns, recently became the longest sitting prime minister in the post world war two era, Abe has a brief stint as prime minister between 2006 and 2007 when he was also forced to resign due to chronic illness which was later claimed to have been successfully medicated
North America
At least 15 phones were wiped by top members of Mueller's investigative team before they could be reviewed, Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General had opened an investigation into possible bias in the origins of the Russia Investigation and asked for the phones to be handed over
Six Minnesota Democratic mayors endorse President Trump after writing letter stating that Joe Biden hasn't done anything to help working-class people and that hard-working Minnesotans that built their lives and supported their families here have been abandoned by radical Democrats
Chief Hennepin County Medical Examiner Dr. Andrew Baker said in May autopsy revealed no physical evidence suggesting George Floyd died of asphyxiation, that Floyd had a potentially fatal level of fentanyl and if he had been found anywhere else Baker would conclude it was an overdose death
Joe Biden formally nominated for president at the Democratic Party's largely virtual national convention, vowing his election would repair a pandemic-battered America and put an end to the chaos that has defined President Trump’s administration
Donald Trump announces plan to grant a posthumous pardon to women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony, who was charged with voting illegally in the 1872 presidential election, the president made the announcement while signing a proclamation marking the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which granted women with the right to vote
Joe Biden says unlike the African American community the Latino community is an incredibly diverse community, during interview aired at the NAHJ and NABJ convention, sparking controversy across social media
Andrew Cuomo has begged New York’s wealthy to return from their second homes and help it recover from the coronvavirus outbreak, lawmakers have proposed a wealth tax targeting the city's 100 billionaires to help fill a USD 30 billion budget shortfall, Mr Cuomo has said he would not support greater taxes on the ultra-wealthy as he fears they will leave for good if their taxes go up, “A single per cent of New York’s population pays half of the state’s taxes, and they’re the most mobile people on the globe.”
Latin America
Argentina’s government is considering a one-off tax on the super-rich, the tax would start at 2% and rise depending on wealth starting at a fortune of 2.7 million USD affecting about 12 000 people
The Cuban government has turned 72 state-run shops into "dollar stores", shelves, unlike many regular supermarkets dealing in local currency, are well stocked with basic food and hygiene products but must be paid for in USD, the government denies the new stores are part of a "dollarisation" process turning the USD into the official currency as has happened in Panama, Ecuador and El Salvador
Jair Bolsonaro tests positive for covid-19, is said to have mild fever and receiving treatment including hydroxychloroquine and azitromycin
London court rules British government recognizes Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s president in case to decide which leader controls USD 2 billion worth of Venezuelan central bank gold stored in Bank of England, Nicolas Maduro’s lawyers say they will appeal judgement
Argentina miss already delayed bond payments after missing payments on USD 503 million on Friday in country’s ninth sovereign default, source says ongoing talks between Argentina and its creditors are making substantial progress
Jair Bolsonaro takes to streets and joins protesters who demand end to pandemic lockdowns and return to military rule, gives speech from truck where he declares the people are in power and all must yield to its will, rejects accusations of attacking democracy and proclaims that he is the constitution
Asia
Singapore makes incoming travellers wear electronic monitoring device to ensure they comply with Covid-19 quarantines, similar to wristbands used in Hong Kong and South Korea, travellers will be allowed to isolate at home rather than at state-appointed facility
Russia is holding military exercises amid clashes between its ally Azerbaijan and Armenian forces, more than a dozen Armenian and Azeri soldiers have been killed in recent days, the countries at odds over Azerbaijan’s breakaway, mainly ethnic Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh
Taiwan officials in Hong Kong told they must sign document supporting Beijing's claim to Taiwan under its one-China policy before their visas are renewed, after Taipei opened an office to help people who want to leave Hong Kong due to the new security law imposed
Three Indian soldiers die after Indian and Chinese troops fight each other with metal rods and stones for a couple of hours at their disputed border in the Galwan Valley, the first deaths since the last major border clash in 1967
Pangolin scales removed from official 2020 Chinese listing of ingredients approved for use in traditional Chinese medicine, the move follows the country's State Forestry and Grassland Administration's decision to raise the protected status of pangolins to the highest level
29% rise in Asiatic lion population in Indian state of Gujarat last five years, the lion population has doubled to 674 lions since 2001 while its footprints have expanded 400%
Covid-19 may have hit China as early as late summer 2019 satellite images showing dramatic spikes in traffic around major hospitals in Wuhan and elevated searches on Chinese internet for symptoms associated Covid-19 suggests, according to Harvard Medical School study
MIDDLE EAST
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab set to announce the resignation of his government after the explosion in Beirut which killed at least 163 people and has stirred public outrage and spurred a string of ministers to step down
At least 10 dead and hundreds wounded in a massive explosion at Beirut's port, General Abbas Ibrahim said it appears the explosion was caused by highly explosive material confiscated years ago stored in a warehouse
Southern Yemen separatists Southern Transitional Council announces having seized government facilities and military bases on the main island of Socotra, Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi condemns the action as a full-fledged coup, Socotra governor Ramzi Mahroos accuses coalition leaders Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates of turning a blind eye
Egyptian military in North Sinai kills 21 jihadi terrorists planning attacks later in May, the Armed Forces says 126 terrorists have been killed earlier this month in 22 raids and 12 operations in Central and North Sinai
19 Iranian sailors killed and 15 wounded when Iranian frigate Jamaran accidentally strikes support ship Konarak with a missile during an exercise in the Gulf of Oman
UAE-backed Yemeni separatists Southern Transitional Council declare state of emergency and say they will self-govern southern provinces, the Saudi-backed government says the move violates the November Riyadh agreement where the respective sides were to join a new national cabinet and place all forces under governmental control
Africa
More than 270 elephants have mysteriously collapsed and died in Botswana since early May, poaching has been ruled out while Covid-19 has not, the country is home to around 130,000 elephants which is a third of Africa’s total
Opposition activists in Zimbabwe say torture and sexual abuse is used by state security services to discourage protests, MDC members claim to have been arrested at roadblock and subjected to humiliating treatment for two days before being released
Libyan government forces retake eight cities west of Tripoli from militias loyal to warlord Khalifa Haftar, secure the road from the Tunisian border to the Abu Grein area, more than 1,000 government soldiers killed by Haftar's forces since last April
Economy
Scandinavian airline SAS signs SEK 3.3 billion three-year revolving credit facility agreement where 90% is guaranteed by the Swedish and Danish states approved by the European Commission, the company says it will further its dialogue with the Norwegian government regarding NOK 1.7 billion state guaranteed funding and that it will seek additional governmental support to ensure its providing of critical Scandinavian airline infrastructure
Technology
Segway ends production of iconic self-balancing transportation device which was hailed as revolutionary but remained a curiosity, brand name lives on as well as thousands of patents used in e-scooters, hoverboards and other successor technologies
Texas Instruments removes support for C-based and assembly-based programs on the TI-84 Plus CE and the TI-83 Premium CE to minimize security risks and impede cheating, the development community views the decision as the end of an era
Linus Torvalds switches from Intel processors after 15 years and upgrades his main computer with a 32-core AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970x, writes that while he has not yet switched to ARM, the allmodconfig test builds are now three times faster
Elon Musk tweets Tesla will move to Texas and Nevada from California as home of Fremont plant, Alameda County says lockdown will remain while rest of state will allow manufacturers to reopen, Musk has criticized the lockdown and stay-at-home orders calling them fascist
Drones capable of measuring body temperature from 58 meters away as well as detecting sneezing, coughing, heart and breathing rates to be tested by the police in Westport, Connecticut, to provide better support for at-risk groups, police says that the drones will only be used outside individual private yards and will not use facial recognition technology
Google and Apple announce joint effort to create tracing tool in order to assist governments and health agencies in managing Covid-19 pandemic, Bluetooth-based platform is said to be opt-in with user privacy and security central to the design, the project also involves releasing APIs enabling interoperability between Android and iOS devices using public health authority apps
Dyson designs and builds entirely new ventilator in 10 days and plans selling 10,000 units to the UK government as well as donating 5,000 units to international efforts, UK firm Gtech is also working to produce ventilators and has submitted two examples to the government for assessment, in the US Ford has announced working together with 3M and GE Healthcare to produce medical equipment and GM as well as Tesla have pledged to make ventilators
Science
Hundreds died or developed heart failure in Britain as result of not seeking treatment for their heart attack due to Covid-19 fears, with 5,000 fewer admissions with heart attack than expected by the end of May, according to University study published in The Lancet
22-year-old Grey parrot outperforms 21 Harvard students and 21 6- to 8-year-old children in complex version of shell game where participants needed to track locations of fluffy pom-poms hidden under cups that swapped places an increasing number of times
Magnetic north pole shifting with increasing speed from Canada toward Siberia due to changes in underground blobs of molten iron, blob under Canada split in two about 20 years ago and largest part is now shifting toward corresponding blob under Siberia
Female mosquitoes carrying the microbe Microsporidia MB are protected from being infected with malaria, 295 out of 4270 mosquitoes in Kenya tested postitive for the microbe while none were of these were infected with malaria study published in Nature Communications says, seen as potential for controlling spread of disease to humans
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