WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator Marco Rubio said on Thursday he has urged U.S. President Donald Trump to create a high-level task force to provide ideas and advice for helping Puerto Rico to rebuild after Hurricane Maria, and that the president was receptive to the idea. Rubio, a Republican from Florida who has been deeply involved in discussions over the response, told Reuters that the task force could be a sounding board for Trump “as we move beyond the initial recovery phase to the broader long-term recovery phase.” Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico three weeks ago, killing at least 43 people and leaving much of the Caribbean island, a U.S. territory, without electricity or safe drinking water. Disaster costs are expected to run into the tens of billions of dollars. Prior to the hurricane, Puerto Rico was already struggling with $72 billion in debt, a flight of residents to the U.S. mainland and aging infrastructure, including a decrepit power grid that was incapacitated by the storm. Rubio said he suggested forming an advisory group during a conversation with Trump on Sunday. “He was asking me, ‘What do we need to do next?’” Rubio told Reuters. “My argument to him was, I have some ideas, but there are people who have even more, better ones, because they live or lived in Puerto Rico, they understand its politics, its economics, its pre-existing challenges and its long-term opportunities,” he said. “He seemed to like the idea, and said they would follow up and see what that would look like,” Rubio said. The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the discussions. Trump came under fire on Thursday for a series of tweets about the island’s economic problems. He said federal responders could not stay in the territory “forever.” Rubio said federal responders would likely be on the island longer than during a “conventional” disaster on the mainland but agreed they would not be there forever. “I’m not sure the timing is ideal given the fact that they’re in the midst of this challenge that continues to evolve,” he said. Rubio, who visited Puerto Rico on Sept. 25 to survey hurricane damage, said he was confident the island would get the help it needs in the short term through emergency legislation. “The bigger concern is in the long term,” he told Reuters in a 30-minute telephone interview as the House of Representatives moved ahead with a $4.9 billion loan for Puerto Rico as well as billions more in disaster relief. The House easily passed the bill, with the Senate expected to do so later month and send it to Trump for signing into law. Puerto Rico’s economy ground to a halt in the storm. Its government is poised to run out of money for payroll and essential services at the end of October. That left Congress with little choice but to help fill the gap, Rubio said. “Businesses aren’t functioning, taxpayers aren’t generating any sort of revenue or income to be paid to their coffers, so yeah, I think there’s a big question about whether that’s a loan that will ever be repaid. But what’s the alternative?” he said. Puerto Rico’s governor, Ricardo Rossello, also has asked for $4.6 billion in block grants and other types of funding. The White House is looking at how to address the long-term needs, including how to rebuild the power grid. The lack of electricity has been the biggest problem for Puerto Rico’s 3.4 million residents. “They’re basically three weeks now living in the 19th century,” Rubio said. Puerto Ricans, who are U.S. citizens, are likely to continue to flee to the mainland United States unless conditions improve, with Florida one of their top destinations. Rubio said it is up to the oversight board charged with resolving Puerto Rico’s debt crisis to determine how to address the island’s debt, noting that private debt owed to investors with legal recourse cannot simply be “forgiven” by the federal government.  “I don’t think there’s going to be a federal bailout in which billions of dollars are spent to bail out Puerto Rico. Quite frankly I’ve never had anyone in Puerto Rico’s government ask for that,” Rubio said. The island is also running out of money for Medicaid, the U.S. health insurance program for the poor, which about half its residents counted on even before the storm threw many people out of work. The exodus to the mainland could accelerate unless the perennial funding gap is addressed, Rubio said. In the meantime, he said he thinks Congress will find money to help Puerto Rico avert the cliff. On healthcare and many other structural issues, the hurricane could be the turning point “for better, or for worse,” Rubio said. The nation could “rally” to focus on Puerto Rico’s long-neglected economic problems. “Or it could be one of those moments when you have this horrible storm and it took so long that things never really got better, and a lot of people left and never came back,” he said.

Summary: प्यूर्टो रिको का पुनर्निर्माण कैसे किया जाएः रूबियो ने ट्रम्प से विशेषज्ञों को बुलाने को कहा


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump hopes to sign “several more” measures into law before the end of April to roll back Obama-era regulations under the time-limited Congressional Review Act (CRA), a White House official said on Wednesday. Aggressive use by Republicans in Congress of the obscure CRA has provided them with several small-scale legislative victories at a time when they have struggled with major legislation.  Highlighting these, White House Director of Legislative Affairs Marc Short said on a conference call with reporters: “There are several more that we hope to sign before this window closes on April 28.” The law has a short time span for introducing resolutions of disapproval: 60 legislative days after a regulation is finalized, meaning it can only be used shortly after a president of an opposing party leaves office. Since Trump, a Republican, took office on Jan. 20, House of Representatives Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy has led Congress in churning out 13 resolutions killing regulations by Democratic President Barack Obama, most of concern to business interests. Trump, who vowed in the 2016 election campaign to slash regulations, has signed 11 resolutions under the CRA, rolling back the rules they targeted and barring agencies from writing “substantially similar” measures in the future. On Monday, Trump signed a CRA resolution repealing broadband privacy protections. He has also signed resolutions killing rules meant to expand background checks for mentally ill gun purchasers, change public school assessments, and reduce coal waste runoff into streams. Democrats have assailed the reversals as harmful to the environment, education and checks on Wall Street, with many saying the measures were meant to please big-money lobbyists. Last Friday was the deadline for introducing new CRA resolutions. Now Republicans must complete voting on resolutions already in the legislative pipeline. Written in 1996 and successfully used only once before 2017, the CRA was meant to restore the balance of power between Congress and the federal bureaucracy. But lobbyists and lawmakers have seized on it as a tool to repeal rules written in the final months of a preceding administration. The U.S. government has thousands of regulations, which are categorized by their impact on the economy. The Congressional Research Service, a nonpartisan arm of Congress, has reported that 76 “major” new rules, subject to CRA review, were written in 2015, down from 81 in 2014. The busiest year on record for major new rules was 100 in 2010.

Summary: व्हाइट हाउसः ओबामा के नियमों को और अधिक वापस लिया जा रहा है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The collapse of Islamic State s self-proclaimed caliphate has not diminished the militant group s ability to inspire attacks on Western targets via the internet, U.S. national security officials told senators on Wednesday. The Sunni Muslim extremist group has been building its external operations over the past two years and has claimed or been linked to at least 20 attacks against Western interests since January, said Lora Shiao, acting director of intelligence at the National Counterterrorism Center.    Unfortunately, we don t see ISIS  loss of territory translating into a corresponding reduction in its inability to inspire attacks,  she told a U.S. Senate committee.  ISIS  capacity to reach sympathizers around the world through its robust social media capability is unprecedented and gives the group access to large numbers of HVEs,  Shiao said, using the government s acronym for homegrown violent extremists. The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State estimated on Tuesday that fewer than 3,000 fighters belonging to the hardline Sunni militant group remain in Iraq and Syria, where they declared a caliphate in 2014. ISIS was driven out of Raqqa, the Syrian city it called its capital, in October, prompting President Donald Trump to say  the end of the ISIS caliphate is in sight.  Yet  the elimination of the physical caliphate does not mark the end of ISIS or other global terrorist organizations,  said Mark Mitchell, acting assistant defense secretary for special operations/low-intensity conflict. As ISIS loses territory it will become more reliant on virtual connections, he said, and continue to inspire  stray dog  attacks by vulnerable people. Senators questioned the security officials about U.S. efforts to fight online recruitment of potential extremists.  This is the new caliphate - in cyberspace,  said Ron Johnson, the Republican chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The experts described an evolving threat including ISIS  ability to adapt its narrative after territorial losses to portray the struggle as a long-term process. The internet is the primary tool for radicalization and no group has been more successful than ISIS in drawing people into its message, said Nikki Floris, deputy assistant director for counterterrorism at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In a possible reference to Trump s use of Twitter, Democratic Senator Kamala Harris asked Floris,  Has the FBI examined the role that social media posts or videos from our own government officials affect the online recruitment tactics used by ISIS?  The answer was no.

Summary: अमेरिकी अधिकारियों ने आईएसआईएस के नए खलीफा होने की चेतावनी दीः साइबरस्पेस


The following statements were posted to the verified Twitter accounts of U.S. President Donald Trump, @realDonaldTrump and @POTUS.  The opinions expressed are his own. Reuters has not edited the statements or confirmed their accuracy.  @realDonaldTrump : - MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! [1000 EST] - Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone in the path of California’s wildfires. I encourage everyone to heed the advice and orders of local and state officials. THANK YOU to all First Responders for your incredible work! [1111 EST] - Join me live from the @WhiteHouse via #Periscope [1305 EST] -- Source link: (bit.ly/2jBh4LU) (bit.ly/2jpEXYR)

Summary: फैक्टबॉक्सः ट्विटर पर ट्रम्प (6 दिसंबर)-अमेरिका, कैलिफोर्निया के जंगलों में लगी आग


GENEVA (Reuters) - North Korean women are deprived of education and job opportunities and are often subjected to violence at home and sexual assault in the workplace, a U.N. human rights panel said on Monday. After a regular review of Pyongyang s record, the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women also voiced concern at rape or mistreatment of women in detention especially those repatriated after fleeing abroad. North Korean women are  under-represented or disadvantaged  in tertiary education, the judiciary, security and police forces and leadership and managerial positions  in all non-traditional areas of work , the panel of independent experts said.  The main issue is first of all the lack of information. We have no access to a large part of laws, elements and information on national machinery,  Nicole Ameline, panel member, told Reuters.  We have asked a lot of questions.  North Korea told the panel on Nov. 8 that it was working to uphold women s rights and gender equality but that sanctions imposed by major powers over its nuclear and missile programs were taking a toll on vulnerable mothers and children. Domestic violence is prevalent and there is  very limited awareness  about the issue and a lack of legal services, psycho-social support and shelters available for victims, the panel said. It said economic sanctions had a disproportionate impact on women. North Korean women suffer  high levels of malnutrition , with 28 percent of pregnant or lactating women affected, it said.      We have called on the government to be very, very attentive to the situation of food and nutrition. Because we consider that it is a basic need and that the government has to invest and to assume its responsibilities in this field,  Ameline said.   Unfortunately I am not sure that the situation will improve very quickly.  The report found that penalties for rape in North Korea were not commensurate with the severity of the crime, which also often goes unpunished. Legal changes in 2012 lowered the penalties for some forms of rape, including the rape of children, rape by a work supervisor and repeated rape. This has led to reducing the punishment for forcing  a woman in a subordinate position  to have sexual intercourse from four years to three years, the report said. It said women trafficked abroad and then returned to North Korea, are reported to be sent to labor training camps or prisons, accused of  illegal border crossing , and may be exposed to further violations of their rights, including sexual violence by security officials and forced abortions.

Summary: उत्तर कोरियाई महिलाओं को भेदभाव, बलात्कार, कुपोषण का सामना करना पड़ता हैः संयुक्त राष्ट्र


MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) - Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont called on Saturday for a united political front in the Dec. 21 election to continue the drive for independence from Spain and to protest against the imprisonment of former members of the regional government.  Puigdemont, who went to Belgium after his government was fired following a unilateral declaration of independence, said on Friday he was considering standing in the election from Brussels. In Spain s gravest political crisis since the return of democracy in the late 1970s, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called the snap election after taking control of Catalonia a week ago. Political parties that wish to run on a common platform have until Tuesday to register any potential coalition and until Nov. 18 to put forward their candidates.     It is time for all democrats to join together. For Catalonia, for the freedom of political prisoners and for the republic,  Puigdemont said in a tweet that included the hashtag llistaunitaria.cat, a site calling for parties to unite against the Spanish government at the ballot box. Signatures on the website rose to over 40,000 from just 2,000 within a few hours of Puigdemont s tweet.  In a poll published on Tuesday, the pro-independence coalition Junts pel Si (Together for Yes) was seen winning with 35.2 percent if the vote was held immediately. That would return a parliamentary majority to independence supporters if the group stuck with its current pact with far-left party CUP.      The wealthy northeastern region continues to be evenly split between those that support leaving Spain and those that wish to remain part of the country, according to polls taken since the declaration of independence.  If pro-independence parties run on different tickets, it may be difficult for them to win a parliamentary majority, though the imprisonment of former government members may help unite an electorate already wary of Madrid s tactics, seen by many as heavy-handed. Pro-Spain candidates including Rajoy s People s Party (PP), the Socialists and market-friendly Ciudadanos were out canvassing on Saturday with modest rallies in the region calling for the so-called silent majority to vote en masse in December. Ines Arrimadas, the head of regional opposition Ciudadanos, called for anti-independence parties to join together on Tuesday. She singled out the Socialists and Podemos-associated Catalunya Si Que Es Pot to clarify if they would run with the independence party ERC in the election. The ERC general secretary Marta Rovira said on Saturday the party may shun the elections if the politicians jailed pending trial over the independence bid were not freed before the vote.   It is up to the state to show it s democratic. Let the prisoners go free so they can take part in the elections normally,  she said.  On Thursday, nine members of Puigdemont s sacked cabinet were ordered by Spain s High Court to be held on remand pending an investigation and potential trial. One member of the dismissed cabinet, Santi Vila, was released after paying bail of 50,000 euros ($58,000) on Friday. The other eight could remain in custody for up to four years. On Friday, Spain issued an arrest warrant for Puigdemont and  four associates to answer charges of rebellion, sedition, misuse of public funds, disobedience and breach of trust relating to their secessionist campaign. Catalan civic groups Asamblea Nacional Catalana and Omnium Cultural - whose leaders were imprisoned last month on sedition charges - have called for a general strike on Nov. 8 and a mass demonstration on Nov. 11 to protest against the detentions. Puigdemont has said he would not return to Spain until he has been given unspecified  guarantees  by the Spanish government. Following the warrant, any extradition process could take 45 days, though this could be extended up to 90 days.  Puigdemont reiterated on Saturday in a tweet that he would fully cooperate with Belgian justice following the warrant.  Asked if he would detain Puigdemont on Saturday, Belgian prosecutor Eric Van Der Sypt said it was unlikely.  Tomorrow, or it could be possible on Monday,  he said.  We are not in a hurry. He said he would collaborate. We don t have any reason to believe he will flee. We are going to do this thoroughly.   While anti-independence parties urged Catalans to go out and vote in the December election, the arrests helped fuel the antagonism felt by many in the region toward the central government in Madrid.   To pick someone up and arrest them is not politics. Politics is talking, discussing. To arrest some, it seems to me a little bit like a fascist government,  Barcelona resident Cristiano Gonzalez, 34, said.  ($1 = 0.8615 euros)

Summary: कैटलन के अपदस्थ नेता ने स्वतंत्रता के लिए संयुक्त मोर्चे का आह्वान किया


BEIRUT/DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran warned the United States against designating its Revolutionary Guards Corp as a terrorist group and said U.S. regional military bases would be at risk if further sanctions were passed. The warning came after the White House said on Friday that President Donald Trump would announce new U.S. responses to Iran s missile tests, support for  terrorism  and cyber operations as part of his new Iran strategy.  As we ve announced in the past, if America s new law for sanctions is passed, this country will have to move their regional bases outside the 2,000 km range of Iran s missiles,   Guards  commander Mohammad Ali Jafari said, according to state media. Jafari also said that additional sanctions would end the chances for future dialogue with the United States, according to state media, and issued a stark warning to American troops.  If the news is correct about the stupidity of the American government in considering the Revolutionary Guards a terrorist group, then the Revolutionary Guards will consider the American army to be like Islamic State all around the world particularly in the Middle East,  Jafari said. The Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) are Iran s most powerful internal and external security force. The Quds Force, the IRGC s foreign espionage and paramilitary wing, and individuals and entities associated with the IRGC are on the US list of foreign terrorist organizations, but the organization as a whole is not.  Iran sees the Sunni Muslim militants of Islamic State as an existential threat to the Islamic Republic where the majority of the population are Shi ites. On June 7, Islamic State claimed an attack on Tehran s parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, killing 18 people. The Guards fired missiles at Islamic State bases in Syria on June 18 in response. Guards commanders have framed their military involvement in Iraq and Syria, where they are fighting to support the government of President Bashar al-Assad, as a fight against Islamic State. Dozens of members of the Guards, including senior commanders, have been killed in Syria and Iraq. The website for state TV reported Jafari as adding that the United States was mistaken if it thought it could pressure Iran into negotiating on regional issues. Jafari also said that Tehran would ramp up its defense capabilities, including its missile program, if the U.S. undermined a nuclear deal between Iran and Western powers. Under the 2015 deal, Iran agreed to limit its disputed nuclear program in return for the easing of economic sanctions. However, Trump is expected to announce soon that he will decertify the deal, a senior administration official has said, in a step that potentially could cause the accord to unravel.  The Americans should know that the Trump government s stupid behavior with the nuclear deal will be used by the Islamic Republic as an opportunity to move ahead with its missile, regional and conventional defense program,  Jafari said, according to state media. The prospect of Washington backtracking on the deal has worried some of the U.S. allies that helped negotiate it, especially as the world grapples with another nuclear crisis in the shape of North Korea. If Trump does not certify that Iran is in compliance, the U.S. Congress will have 60 days to decide whether to reimpose sanctions waived under the deal. U.N. inspectors have verified Iranian compliance with the terms. The Guards navy was also carrying out a military exercise on Sunday in the Gulf, an area of tension with the U.S. navy in recent months. More than 110 vessels were involved in the exercise, including some that have rocket and missile capabilities, a state media report quoted a Guards commander as saying.

Summary: ईरान ने अमेरिका को और प्रतिबंध लगाने के खिलाफ चेतावनी दी


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump told Congress on Tuesday he was open to immigration reform, shifting from his harsh rhetoric on illegal immigration in a speech that offered a more restrained tone than his election campaign and first month in the White House. Trump, in a prime-time address to a country that remains divided over his leadership, set aside disputes with Democrats and the news media to deliver his most presidential performance to date, seeking to regain the confidence of Americans rattled by his leadership thus far. The president’s speech was long on promises but short on specifics on how to achieve a challenging legislative agenda that could add dramatically to budget deficits. He wants a healthcare overhaul, broad tax cuts and a $1 trillion public-private initiative to rebuild degraded roads and bridges. Trump built a base of support behind his presidential campaign by vowing to fight illegal immigration. In his speech, he took a more moderate tone, appealing to Republicans and Democrats to work together on immigration reform. He said it was possible if both Republicans and Democrats in Congress were willing to compromise, although he also said U.S. immigration should be based on a merit-based system, rather than relying on lower-skilled immigrants. Comprehensive immigration reform eluded his two predecessors, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican George W. Bush, because of deep divisions within Congress and among Americans over the issue. Trump said reform would raise wages and help more struggling families enter the middle class. “I believe that real and positive immigration reform is possible, as long as we focus on the following goals: to improve jobs and wages for Americans, to strengthen our nation’s security, and to restore respect for our laws,” said the Republican president. Trump’s first month in office was dominated by a fight over his temporary travel ban on people from seven Muslim-majority nations, repeated attacks on the news media and harsh personal criticism of judges who blocked his immigration order. In his speech on Tuesday, he appeared to look for a reset, trying to move past a chaotic period that sowed doubts about his ability to govern effectively. “The time for trivial fights is behind us,” he said. Financial markets showed a muted reaction as Trump gave few specifics or new details. Early signs showed Trump’s speech drew a positive response. A CNN/ORC poll found 57 percent of viewers thought Trump’s speech was very positive and 69 percent said they felt more optimistic about the future of the country. “He’s lost his foot and mouth disease,” said Tom Beckwith, 71, of Seminole, Florida. “This was a tremendous speech. He’s cured.” Still, there was plenty of evidence of ongoing partisan divisions. In the chamber of the House of Representatives where Trump spoke, Democrats sometimes sat in silence and turned their thumbs down at his remarks. Many women lawmakers wore white in a subtle show of protest. Democratic Senator Christopher Coons of Delaware called Trump’s speech one of “the most coherent public addresses he’s given in a month.” But Coons said he viewed Trump’s forthcoming budget proposals as “gravely concerning,” citing the president’s plan for paying for a defense buildup by cutting foreign aid and other programs. Much of Trump’s speech focused on solving problems at home in line with his “America first” rhetoric. Apart from criticizing Obama for increasing the national debt, Trump did not mention the federal budget deficit, which will severely limit any new spending programs. On immigration, Trump again pledged to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, but he made no mention this time of Mexico paying for it. He also said he would “shortly take new steps to keep our nation safe,” referring to a new executive order he is to sign to replace one embroiled in the courts. Trump focused part of the speech on foreign policy, stressing his support for NATO but insisting allies pay more for their defense. In a possible nod to his bid to warm relations with Russia, which he did not mention by name, Trump said: “America is willing to find new friends, and to forge new partnerships, where shared interests align.” Trump has been criticized for his praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin. A U.S. congressional committee is investigating contacts between Trump’s election campaign and Russia to see if there were any inappropriate communications. “We want harmony and stability, not war and conflict,” said Trump, who said, however, he would embark on a big defense buildup. Trump said he wanted to provide “massive tax relief” to the middle class and cut corporate tax rates. But he did not offer specifics and failed to comment on the most pressing tax issue facing Congress, a proposed border adjustment tax to boost exports over imports. Lawmakers have been looking to Trump for more leadership on an issue that has divided corporate America and Republicans in Congress. Trump called on the Republican-led Congress to repeal and replace Obamacare with reforms that expand choice, increase access and lower costs.  Republicans remain divided on how to accomplish that goal and Democrats vehemently oppose tampering with a system that provides health insurance for millions of low-income Americans. While Trump’s comments lacked detail, it was the first time he publicly supported tax credits to help Americans purchase their own coverage, a nod to health insurers who say they are necessary to keep people in the market. Former Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear said in the Democratic response to Trump’s speech that “you and your Republican allies in Congress seem determined to rip affordable health insurance away from millions of Americans who most need it.” In the most emotional moment of the night, Trump singled out Carryn Owens, the widow of U.S Navy SEAL William “Ryan” Owens, who was killed in a raid on al Qaeda in Yemen.  Owens, tears streaming down her face, clasped her hands and looked upward from her spot in the balcony as lawmakers and the president applauded her in the longest ovation of Trump’s hour-long speech.  Trump said the mission that her husband participated in obtained vital intelligence that could be used against Islamist militants, taking issue with news reports quoting U.S. officials who said little was gained from the raid.

Summary: ट्रंप ने आव्रजन के रुख को नरम किया, भाषण में संयम बरता


RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Police shot and killed a Spanish tourist in a Rio de Janeiro slum on Monday after the car she was riding in failed to stop at a police road block, authorities said.  Rio s police confirmed in a written statement that Maria Esperanza Ruiz Jimenez, 67, died after being shot by a police officer in the Rocinha slum.  The Rio state security secretariat, which oversees all police forces, said the shooting would be investigated.  Rocinha has been the scene of severe violence for a month as rival gangs have clashed with each other for control over the drug trade. Intense shootouts between the gangs and also with police have taken place almost daily. Several other slums in the city that hosted the 2016 Olympics have also seen increased shootouts.  For several months police have struggled to maintain control of the city. President Michel Temer in July authorized the use of about 9,000 army soldiers to help patrol Rio, but it has had little effect on tamping down the violence.

Summary: रियो डी जनेरियो की झुग्गी बस्ती में स्पेनिश पर्यटक की पुलिस ने गोली मारकर हत्या कर दी


(This version of the Feb. 18 story was refiled to delete an extra word in paragraph one) MUNICH (Reuters) - James Jones, a former Supreme Allied Commander in Europe said on Saturday he is not under consideration to be U.S. President Donald Trump’s new national security adviser. “My policy is that I never turn down a job that hasn’t been offered,” Jones, who was attending the Munich Security Conference, told Reuters. Jones, a former U.S. Marine Corps general and President Barack Obama’s first national security adviser, was thought to be one of four people under consideration by Trump to replace Michael Flynn, who resigned over telephone calls he had with Russia’s ambassador to the United States before Trump was sworn in to office.

Summary: पूर्व अमेरिकी जनरल जोन्सः ट्रम्प के सुरक्षा सलाहकार के रूप में नहीं माने जाते हैं


BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Syrian Kurdish militia accused Turkish forces on Tuesday of  aggression and escalation  in the Afrin region, which it controls, on Syria s northwestern border with Turkey.  Ankara has sent forces into areas of Syria adjacent to Afrin to oppose the influence of the YPG militia, which it sees as a branch of the PKK movement that has waged a three-decade insurgency inside Turkey. The YPG spearheads the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias fighting Islamic State with the help of a U.S.-led coalition.  Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said last week that Turkey needed to  cleanse Afrin  of the YPG. On Monday, Ankara accused it of attacking an observation post in Idlib province.  In an apparent response to that charge, the YPG said in a statement that Turkey was  spreading several rumors about our forces attacking Turkish lands .  It said Turkey had fired artillery and machine guns at several villages in Afrin on Monday. Turkey backed an incursion into a part of Syria immediately east of Afrin last year in support of anti-government Syrian rebel factions, which led to frequent clashes with the YPG.  Last month, Ankara also sent some troops into Idlib, south and west of Afrin, as part of a deal it has agreed with Russia and Iran to set up so-called  de-escalation zones  to reduce fighting.

Summary: सीरियाई कुर्दिश वाई. पी. जी. ने तुर्की पर अफ़रीन आक्रमण का आरोप लगाया


DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday U.S. President Donald Trump would fail in his hardened stance towards Iran, saying Tehran was stronger than during the time of the  more powerful and smarter  Ronald Reagan.   Reagan was more powerful and smarter than Trump, and he was a better actor in making threats, and he also moved against us and they shot down our plane,  Khamenei said in a speech carried on state television. In 1988, a U.S. warship shot down an Iranian passenger plane over the Gulf, killing all 290 aboard, in an incident which Washington said was a mistake. Tehran said it was a deliberate attack on Iran, then at war with neighboring Iraq.   But Reagan is gone and, according to out beliefs, he now faces God s retribution ... while Iran has made great advances in all areas since Reagan s time,  Khamenei added.   This trend will continue under the current American president and any hopes on their part that the Islamic Republic would back off or weaken is futile.  Trump refused in October to certify that Tehran is complying with its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and warned he might ultimately terminate the agreement. He announced the shift in U.S. policy in a speech in which he detailed a more aggressive approach to Iran over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and its support for militant groups in the Middle East. Under the nuclear deal, sanctions on Iran were lifted in return for Tehran rolling back technologies with nuclear bomb-making potential.

Summary: रीगन की तरह ईरान के खिलाफ भी विफल होंगे ट्रंपः खामेनेई


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump will deliver a speech on the plan to overhaul the nation’s tax code on Wednesday, the White House said on Monday. “As we work with Congress to achieve historic tax cuts, the president plans to speak Wednesday to the American people on how tax reform will lead to a brighter future for them and their families,” said Lindsay Walters, the deputy press secretary.

Summary: ट्रम्प बुधवार को अमेरिकी कर सुधार पर भाषण देंगेः व्हाइट हाउस


SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Conservative billionaire Sebastian Pinera will face center-left Senator Alejandro Guillier in a runoff for Chile s presidency next month, after a first round vote on Sunday that Pinera won, but with fewer votes than expected. Both candidates would keep in place the top copper exporter s longstanding free-market economic model, but former president Pinera has promised investor-friendly policies to turbocharge growth, while Guillier wants to press on with outgoing President Michelle Bachelet s overhaul of education, taxes and labor. With over 98 percent of votes counted, Pinera, a 67-year-old businessman, had clinched 36.6 percent, falling short of the 50 percent needed for an outright victory, Chile s electoral agency Servel said. Guillier, a 64-year-old bearded former TV news anchor elected to the Senate in 2013, had 22.7 percent, just over two points ahead of the third placed candidate, leftist Beatriz Sanchez, whose better than expected showing will likely ensure her Frente Amplio coalition will yield sway in Congress. Pinera s result was below pollster expectations, indicating that the Dec. 17 runoff will likely be a more closely-fought contest than previously forecast, especially if Guillier can rally supporters of Sanchez and four other left-leaning rivals behind him.      We re going to have a very competitive second round,  Pinera s campaign chief Andres Chadwick told journalists on Sunday evening. The most recent opinion survey by CEP last month had forecast Pinera securing 42 percent of likely votes in the first round, and easily defeating Guillier in the runoff. After a divisive race, Guillier called for  profound unity  to unite Chile s fractured left against Pinera.  There are more of us, and therefore we must win in December!,  Guillier told his cheering supporters.  Sanchez did not endorse Guillier in a fiery speech before her followers, even as she pilloried his opponent.  Sebastian Pinera is a step backward for the country and the country is going in a different direction!  Sanchez said. But Pinera, who previously led Chile between 2010 and 2014, flashed the optimism he has shown on the campaign trail, where he has repeatedly plugged his campaign slogan  better times.   This result is very similar to the one in 2009. And you ll remember that in 2009 we won the election,  Pinera said, before a buoyant crowd. Voter turnout was higher than expected, a factor which analysts forecast will count against Pinera if repeated in a runoff. Bachelet cannot run again this year because of term limits. Guillier was one of two candidates her center-left coalition Nueva Mayoria backed in the first round. Speaking from the presidential palace on Sunday evening, she urged Chileans to vote in December, saying her policy changes were at stake. Guillier faces a more polished opponent in Pinera, who oversaw robust economic growth in his first presidential term that overlapped with higher copper prices.     Pinera has vowed to double Chile s economic growth rate, with proposals that include trimming corporate taxes, making state-run miner Codelco more self-sufficient, and tweaking the pension system to include incentives for later retirement. But he must ease fears that he would wipe out gains made in Bachelet s government for students, women and workers - from expanding free education to strengthening unions. Should Guillier triumph in the runoff, he has pledged to tackle stubbornly high inequality in one of Latin America s most business-friendly economies. He wants to diversify Chile s dependence on copper, increase access to free higher education and write workers  rights into a new constitution.  I voted for Guillier because I think we have to continue to provide free education. It s a social right,  said unemployed voter Mario Giannetti, 53. Since its transition to democracy from dictatorship in 1990, Chile has stood out as one of the region s most developed countries. But public debt has grown as lower copper prices hit government revenues in recent years, and Bachelet s critics say she failed to court investments or prioritize economic growth that slowed to an annual average of 1.8 percent. In a first since the 1990s, credit ratings agencies Fitch and S&P downgraded Chile s debt rating this year. While investors see Pinera as a safe pair hands for the economy, his previous term was marred by massive student protests seeking an education overhaul. His responses were often seen as out of touch and grassroots groups still oppose him. Early on Sunday, a group of young protesters stormed Pinera s campaign headquarters before being arrested by police, TV images showed.

Summary: पिनेरा ने चिली चुनाव के पहले दौर में जीत हासिल की, रनऑफ का सामना करना पड़ा


CAIRO (Reuters) - Several European countries have criticized the detention of an Egyptian human rights lawyer who is helping investigate the murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni. For the first time, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Britain and Canada said they were  deeply concerned  at the ongoing detention of human rights lawyer Ibrahim Metwaly Hegazy.  We are concerned at the detention conditions that Ibrahim Metwaly Hegazy is reportedly enduring, and continue to call for transparency on prison conditions in Egypt,  a joint statement published on the British government website said late on Friday. Metwaly, who founded the Association of the Families of the Disappeared after his son disappeared in suspicious circumstances four years ago, went missing while heading for his flight to Geneva to attend a U.N. conference on enforced disappearances on Sept. 10. Members of Metwaly s group said he was taken from Cairo airport by airport security and he was not heard from until three days later when a state security prosecutor ordered his detention. Asked about the case, two judicial sources told Reuters that Metwaly had been detained on charges of spreading false news and joining an illegal group, and that his pre-trial detention was in accordance with the law. The sources said all prisoners are guaranteed the right to fair treatment without discrimination. Rights activists say Egyptian security forces resort to kidnapping government opponents and keeping them in secret jails where they can spend weeks, months, or years without charge. The authorities deny the accusation. Italian graduate student Giulio Regeni, who was conducting research on Egyptian trade unions, disappeared in Cairo in January 2016. His body was discovered in a ditch on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital on Feb. 3, showing signs of extensive torture. Metwaly has been assisting lawyers working on the Regeni case as an expert on enforced disappearances, according to one of the lawyers.

Summary: यूरोपीय देशों ने मारे गए इतालवी छात्र की जांच में वकील को हिरासत में लिए जाने की निंदा की


BATON ROUGE, La. (Reuters) - U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump toured flood-battered Louisiana on Friday, shrugging off the Democratic state governor’s plea for politicians not to stop in areas affected by deadly rains. President Barack Obama said he was also eager for a firsthand look at the damage done by floods that damaged more than 40,000 homes and killed at least 13 people, announcing plans to visit Baton Rouge on Tuesday. Obama’s travel requires a massive retinue of Secret Service agents and assistance from local and state law enforcement officials, so the White House usually waits to visit disaster zones to avoid tying up police and emergency resources needed elsewhere.   On Friday, Trump’s motorcade drove past piles of possessions and building materials that had been ripped out of flooded homes en route to Greenwell Springs Baptist Church in a hard-hit portion of East Baton Rouge Parish.  “You’re going to be fine,” Trump told several dozen supporters gathered outside, many asking for autographs and selfies.  The deluge that dumped more than 2-1/2 feet (0.76 meter) on parts of Louisiana has been described as the worst U.S. disaster since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Trump told reporters he came to help out, joined by vice presidential running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, in a visit to a state that is typically a Republican stronghold in presidential elections.  Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards’ office, however, had said Trump did not call to discuss plans. “We welcome him to (Louisiana), but not for a photo op,” the governor’s office said in a statement, urging Trump to volunteer or make “a sizable donation.” Trump told reporters he believed Obama should have cut short a vacation on Martha’s Vineyard in New England to visit the area of flood devastation. Trump told reporters he believed Obama should have cut short a vacation on Martha’s Vineyard in New England to visit the area of flood devastation. Some Louisianans and others, using the hashtag #wheresobama and #laflood on Twitter, had urged Obama to visit, and Baton Rouge's newspaper, The Advocate, voiced a similar view in an editorial published on Wednesday. (bit.ly/2bDpiiP) Obama’s vacation is due to end on Sunday. The White House said the president’s advisers had determined, in consultation with state officials, that Tuesday was an appropriate time to visit. “The president is mindful of the impact that his travel has on first responders and wants to ensure that his presence does not interfere with ongoing recovery efforts,” the White House said in a statement. Obama planned to visit Baton Rouge, the state’s capital city, which saw wide flooding. The White House said he would talk to local officials about what more the federal government can do to assist in the recovery. The president has declared much of the state a federal disaster, freeing up emergency resources.  He has been receiving updates from U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Craig Fugate, who both have visited Louisiana. In 2005, then-President George W. Bush, a Republican, drew criticism for flying over extensively damaged New Orleans, Louisiana, and then giving a speech in the still-flooded city following Hurricane Katrina.  Some 86,500 people have already filed for federal aid following the historic levels of rainfall. The state expected 4,000 would still need refuge in shelters on Friday night. Entire neighborhoods must now contend with flood-hit homes. “We’re talking about an awful lot of people, which is why we are trying to turn on the assistance as soon as possible,” Edwards said at a news conference on Friday afternoon, offering details on temporary housing. He spoke earlier in the day with Trump’s Democratic rival in the Nov. 8  election, Hillary Clinton, she said on social media.  “My heart breaks for Louisiana, and right now, the relief effort can’t afford any distractions,” she said on Facebook, directing people to support organizations providing assistance.  Yet Kellie Michelli, who lost her home in the flood and was also at the church to pick up food with her family, beamed as she showed off an autograph on a Trump hat from an earlier rally in Baton Rouge. “He took time out of his busy schedule to come here,” Michelli said. “I don’t care if he gives a nickel, he showed he cared by coming here.”

Summary: लुइसियाना में ट्रम्प की यात्राओं की बाढ़, ओबामा अगले सप्ताह करेंगे दौरा


VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria s newly formed conservative far-right coalition government said on Saturday it would be a reliable partner in a European Union it seeks to reform to return more power to national governments.  We will contribute as an active and reliable partner to the further development of the EU, in the sense that the principle of subsidiarity should be the focus,  the parties said in their government program. The program by the People s Party (OVP) and the anti-immigration Freedom Party (FPO), which has a partnership agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin s party, also listed relaxing relations between Russia and the West as one of their aims.

Summary: ऑस्ट्रिया की रूढ़िवादी-सुदूर दक्षिणपंथी सरकार का कहना है कि वह यूरोपीय संघ का विश्वसनीय भागीदार होगी


LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May s government was defeated on Wednesday, when lawmakers forced through changes to its Brexit blueprint that ministers said could endanger Britain s departure from the European Union. In a blow to May, already weakened after losing her Conservative Party s majority in a June election, the 650-seat parliament voted 309 to 305 in favor of an amendment to hand lawmakers more say over a final exit deal with the EU. Up until the last minute of an often bitter debate in parliament, May s team tried to convince lawmakers in her party to give up their demands and side with a government fearful that the move will weaken its hand in tough Brexit negotiations. Members of Parliament (MPs) are debating the EU withdrawal bill, which will repeal the 1972 legislation binding Britain to the EU and copy existing EU law into domestic law to ensure legal continuity after  Exit Day  on March 29, 2019. In focus on Wednesday was an amendment put forward by Conservative lawmaker and former attorney general Dominic Grieve who wants parliament to have a meaningful vote on any deal before it is finalised and for it to be written into law.  There is a time for everybody to stand up and be counted,  Grieve told parliament earlier, criticizing some fellow members of the Conservative Party for calling him a traitor over his decision to vote against the government. He dismissed a last-minute pledge by justice minister Dominic Raab for government to write the promise of a meaningful vote into law later on its journey through both houses of parliament as coming  too late . The government was  disappointed  by the vote, a spokeswoman said in a statement, adding that  this amendment does not prevent us from preparing our statute book for exit day . But with May due at an EU summit on Thursday to encourage the other 27 leaders to approve a move to the second phase of Brexit talks and begin a discussion about future trade, the defeat comes at a difficult time for the prime minister. In the European Parliament, which must also ratify any withdrawal treaty with Britain, its Brexit coordinator cheekily tweeted that his British counterparts had  taken back control  - a reference to the catchphrase of pro-Brexit campaigners.  A good day for democracy,  added Guy Verhofstadt. The EU withdrawal bill has been the focus of seven days of often bitter debate, underscoring the deep divisions over Brexit not only among the Conservatives but also in the main opposition Labour Party and across the country. It has also highlighted May s weakness. In June, she gambled on a snap election to strengthen her party s majority in the 650-seat parliament but instead bungled her campaign and ended up with a minority government propped up by the 10 votes of a small, pro-Brexit Northern Irish party. Since then she has struggled to assert her authority over a Conservative Party which is deeply divided over the best route out of the EU.   This defeat is a humiliating loss of authority for the government on the eve of the European Council meeting,  Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said in a statement.  Theresa May has resisted democratic accountability. Her refusal to listen means she will now have to accept Parliament taking back control.  Earlier, May had tried to persuade lawmakers to vote with the government for her Brexit blueprint, saying Grieve s amendment would put added time pressure on a government which wants to make Britain ready to leave the EU in March 2019.  That could be at a very late stage in the proceedings which could mean that we are not able to have the orderly and smooth exit from the European Union that we wish to have,  she told parliament before an hours-long debate on the exit plan. Her spokesman said the government had  in good faith come forward with a strong package of concessions to deal with the spirit of the amendment . Pro-Brexit lawmakers fear the amendment could force Britain to weaken its negotiating stance by offering parliament the opportunity of forcing ministers back to the negotiating table if it feels any final deal is not good enough.  Raab said that could convince the EU that Britain would not walk away from a bad deal.  Actually if that looked likely we d end up with worse terms, and we d be positively incentivizing the EU to give us worse terms,  he told parliament.

Summary: ब्रेक्सिट ब्लूप्रिंट को लेकर संसद में ब्रिटेन की मे को हार का सामना करना पड़ा


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three of President Donald Trump’s nominees to serve as commissioners on Wall Street’s top derivatives regulatory agency on Thursday pledged to work to complete rules that would restrict trading by market speculators who bet on the rise and fall of prices. The nominees to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Republicans Dawn Stump and Brian Quintenz, and Democrat Rostin “Russ” Behnam, told the Senate Agriculture Committee during their confirmation hearing that they are committed to working to craft a final “position limits” rule that would limit speculators without harming farmers, ranchers and others who rely on futures markets to hedge their business risks. “I look forward to helping... finalize this rule,” said Stump, adding that she will work to ensure that the strategies agricultural businesses use to hedge “are not prevented in the future due to unworkable bonifide hedging restrictions.” Bonham said: “The relevant question is not whether or not position limits should be completed, but how they should be completed.”  The CFTC won broad new powers under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform to police the massive over-the-counter derivatives markets.  The agency has largely implemented the bulk of the rules, which required many kinds of derivatives to be cleared centrally to reduce the risk of default and traded on platforms with greater price transparency. The CFTC is primarily focused on reviewing more carefully how the rules are working and whether certain rules should be tweaked to reduce burdens.  Acting CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo, who is awaiting Senate confirmation as permanent chairman, earlier this year launched a review that aims to streamline and simplify existing regulations.  However, there are still a number of outstanding rules that need to be completed, with the position limits rule one of the most notable. Although there has generally been considerable tension between Democrats and Republicans over Trump’s nominees to various positions since January, there was no such divisiveness on display Thursday. Both Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow signaled they intend to support the nominations of all three.

Summary: सी. एफ. टी. सी. आयुक्त नामितों ने पद सीमा नियमों को पूरा करने का संकल्प लिया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland has been sympathetic to government regulators in his almost two decades as an appeals court judge, frequently rejecting business-led challenges to federal action. His overall record, however, suggests he is a moderate who follows Supreme Court precedent and is not eager to spearhead efforts to adopt novel legal theories. Garland sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which hears a large proportion of the legal challenges to major federal regulations in areas such as environment and labor. They are often brought by business groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Cases are assigned randomly to three-judge panels. Garland has avoided some of the most contentious cases of recent years, including challenges to government efforts under President Barack Obama to curb carbon emissions and ensure equal access to Internet data via its so called “net neutrality” rule. Of the cases in which he has participated, some of his opinions and votes in his 19 years on the bench have already attracted criticism from conservative and pro-business groups following his nomination to the high court by Obama on Wednesday. They say he too easily defers to government action.  “We have great concerns about this nominee’s record,” said Juanita Duggan, president of the National Federation of Independent Business, which represents small business owners. The group cites several cases, including one from 2003 in which the appeals court ruled against a developer challenging a finding the federal government had authority to force it to take measures to protect an endangered toad on the property under the federal Endangered Species Act. The ruling, written by Garland, was a win for the administration of Republican President George W. Bush, which was defending the actions of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Garland wrote a narrow decision, saying he was merely staying in line with court precedent. One of the judges on the appeals court who disagreed with the outcome was John Roberts, who Bush appointed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 2005. Roberts questioned whether the federal government had the authority to issue regulations protecting what he described as “a hapless toad.” Roberts’ opinion was questioned by liberals when he was nominated to the high court as a sign that he would limit federal power to issue broad nationwide regulations. In another case mentioned by the business group, Garland was part of a three-judge panel that in 1998 upheld Environmental Protection Agency emissions limits for nitrogen oxides from electric utility boilers. More recently, he was on a panel in 2014 that upheld an Obama administration air pollution rule that limits emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants. The court held that the government was not required to consider the cost of compliance before issuing the regulation. The Supreme Court in June 2015 threw out that decision, although the regulation remains in place. In another 2014 case, he was part of a panel of 11 judges that ruled 8-3 to reject a food industry challenge to a federal rule concerning labeling requirements for meat. Despite those votes in favor of the government and against business interests, Garland is seen by legal experts as a moderate on the appeals court. “He’s a modest judge in that he really does try to stick to Supreme Court precedent,” said Jonathan Adler, a professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. Adler said Garland was somewhere in the middle of the 17-judge court when it comes to deference to agency action. Appeals court judges’ hands are somewhat tied on regulatory cases because they are bound by Supreme Court precedent that favors deference to government agencies. In 1984, the high court ruled that judges should not second-guess agencies if the law is ambiguous. Neal Katyal, a former Obama administration lawyer now in private practice with the Hogan Lovells law firm, said it is a “really tough argument” to suggest Garland’s rulings on regulations show an ideological leaning. He described Garland’s record on such cases as “very, very centrist.” The Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, another industry group that regularly fights government regulations, said they would not comment on the merits of Garland’s nomination. (This version of the story corrects the day of nomination announcement to Wednesday in paragraph five.)

Summary: अपीलीय न्यायाधीश के रूप में, गारलैंड को सरकारी नियामकों के मित्र के रूप में देखा जाता था


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump is increasingly unlikely to nominate Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen next year for a second term, and National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn is the leading candidate to succeed her, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing four people close to the process. Politico said sources in the White House, the Treasury Department and on Capitol Hill said that if Cohn decides he wants the job, he is likely to get it. “It’s Gary’s if he wants it, and I think he wants it,” Politico quoted one Republican whom it said was close to the selection process as saying. A few Senate Republicans may express reservations about Cohn but he would probably receive widespread support, a senior congressional Republican aide said, according to Politico.  In response to a query from Reuters, White House spokeswoman Natalie Strom said: “Gary is focused on his responsibilities at the NEC.”  Cohn, a Democrat and former Goldman Sachs president, did not work on Trump’s campaign and only got to know him after the November election. Yellen took over from Ben Bernanke as Fed chair in February 2014 with the U.S. economic recovery from the 2008 financial crisis still on shaky ground. She has made no secret she puts a priority on growth in jobs and wages and a broad recovery in U.S. household wealth. Yellen begins two days of congressional testimony on Wednesday on the Fed’s semi-annual report on the state of the U.S. economy. Under her leadership the Fed has pared the massive stimulus it put in place to counteract the 2007-2009 financial crisis and begun raising interest rates. Later this year Yellen expects to begin trimming the Fed’s $4.5 trillion balance sheet in a gradual and predictable manner.  “I do think the Fed’s trying to set a course toward normalization that won’t be knocked out by a new Fed chair,” said Eric Stein, co-director of global income at Eaton Vance. Still, Cohn would be a very different kind of leader than Yellen or her immediate predecessor, Ben Bernanke, both of whom hold doctorates in economics.  Cohn began his career at Goldman as a commodities trader in 1990.  “He has more knowledge of financial markets than almost any Fed chair would have and less of a monetary policy background,” Stein said.  During last year’s election campaign, Trump accused Yellen of accepting orders from then-President Barack Obama to keep interest rates low for political reasons, and he said he would replace her as Fed chair because she is not a Republican Party member. But in an interview with The Wall Street Journal in April, Trump said Yellen was “not toast” and that he respected her. A Fed spokeswoman had no comment on the Politico story.  Yellen has said she plans to serve out her full four-year term as chair, which runs through Feb. 3.  Cohn would join several other Goldman alumni around the Fed policymaking table, including New York Fed President William Dudley, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari and Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan.

Summary: ट्रम्प को फेड में येलेन की जगह एन. ई. सी. के कोहन के साथ देखा गयाः पोलिटिको


SEVNICA, Slovenia (Reuters) - The small Slovenian town of Sevnica, Melania Trump’s birthplace, savored her husband’s shock win in the U.S. election as a likely boon for tourism on Wednesday, while a former schoolmate remembered her as “creative and innovative”. Until about a year ago, the town of fewer than 5,000 people, nestled in the foothills of the Alps, was scarcely known in Slovenia, let alone abroad.   But on Monday, Sevnica was clearly looking forward to a financial spin-off from being the hometown of the 46-year-old future U.S. First Lady. “Sometimes the pressure of the media was too hard. The people of Sevnica are not used to it. On the other hand, the global attention is positive because Sevnica is developing into a tourist destination,” mayor Srecko Ocvirk said. Speaking to Reuters shortly after 7 a.m. (0600 GMT) in Sevnica’s Central cafe, the smiling mayor said local residents had supported Trump and his wife’s campaign. “We are very satisfied at the result,” he said. Born Melania Knavs in 1970, she lived in an apartment block in Sevnica with her family as a child. When she was a teenager, the family moved to a modest two-storey house above the Sava river on the outskirts of town, which sits below a well-maintained medieval castle. Residents say her father sold car parts and her mother worked for a factory that made a brand of children’s clothing very popular in communist Yugoslavia, before the country fell apart in the 1990s. Melania’s modeling career took her to Milan and thence to the United States, far away from her native Slovenia, a tiny former Yugoslav republic of 2 million people comparable in size to New Jersey. “Even as a child Melania was creative, innovative and Sevnica was too small for her,” said Mirjana Jelancic, Melania’s friend who is now a headmistress of Melania’s elementary school. “She was reserved and when I heard that Donald was running I said (to myself) this will be hard for her. She never wanted to be in the spotlight,” Jelancic said. “She was excellent at her job (in the campaign).” The head of the town’s health center, which received a donation from Melania in 2005 when she was pregnant with her son Barron, said she believed Melania would be a success in the White House, as well. “Melania will be an excellent First Lady who will take Slovenian values of generosity, loyalty and trust to the United States and the world,” Vladimira Tomsic said.

Summary: मेलानिया का स्लोवेनियाई गृहनगर ट्रम्प की जीत को पर्यटन के लिए वरदान मानता है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The latest attempt to overhaul the U.S. federal flood insurance program hit a stumbling block, but a coalition of business and environmental groups renewed their push on Wednesday for lawmakers to enact an overhaul before the program expires on Dec. 8. The SmarterSafer coalition sent a letter to members of the U.S. House urging passage of the compromise legislation that would extend to 2022 the federal program that has been heavily utilized after vast flooding from hurricanes Harvey and Irma. “This legislative package moves the flood program in the right direction and contains needed reforms that will better protect those in harm’s way, the environment, and taxpayers,” the letter states, according to a copy seen by Reuters.  The hurdle came with the House Rules Committee indefinitely postponed a hearing on the bill that was scheduled for Tuesday night. “Clearly they’re trying to make sure they’ve got all their ducks in a row and they’ve got all the votes they need,” said Steve Ellis, with the conservative group Taxpayers for Common Sense, which is part of a coalition pushing for reform of the program.  Joshua Saks, the legislative director of the National Wildlife Federation, said one of the shortcomings of the compromise is that it does not ensure that the money for flood mitigation projects will ever be spent.  “We need an Apollo project of mitigation right now, we need billions right now up front,” Saks said, referring to the project that put a man on the moon. Two prominent Republican members of the U.S. House announced last week they had struck a deal that would extend the life of the program that covers most of the nation’s flood-prone properties. House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana and House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling of Texas brokered the compromise and said the deal helps policy holders and taxpayers. Last month, President Donald Trump signed a $36.5 billion disaster relief bill, including $16 billion in forgiveness of some debt in the National Flood Insurance Program, which insures about 5 million homes and businesses.

Summary: दिसंबर की समय सीमा समाप्त होते ही व्यापारिक समूह अमेरिकी बाढ़ बीमा सुधार पर जोर दे रहा है


HANOI (Reuters) - In a telephone call, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump told Vietnam’s prime minister he wanted to further strengthen fast-warming ties between the two countries, the government of the Southeast Asian nation said on Thursday. Vietnam has advanced ties with the United States to a new level under the Obama administration as it faces down communist neighbor China’s challenge to its territorial claims in the busy waterway of the South China Sea.    During Wednesday’s conversation, Vietnamese premier Nguyen Xuan Phuc congratulated Trump on his election win and stressed the importance of maintaining friendship and cooperation. “President-elect Trump spoke highly of the achievements of Vietnam, as well as the positive developments in bilateral ties,” Vietnam’s government said on its news website. “He also asserted his wish to cooperate with Vietnam to accelerate the relationship between the two countries.” Trump has had conversations with several leaders of countries locked in maritime disputes with China, among them Japan, the Philippines and Taiwan. His trade platform runs counter to Vietnam’s interests, however, with his opposition to a Trans-Pacific Partnership proving a major setback for Southeast Asia’s biggest exporter to the United States. Trump and Phuc discussed ways to promote economic ties, trade and investment, the government added. In a statement, Trump’s transition team confirmed the conversation, saying the two men “discussed a range of shared interests and agreed to work together to continue strengthening the relationship between the two nations”. Just days after Trump’s win, Phuc told parliament that ratification of the TPP would be shelved because of political changes in the United States, but Vietnam still wanted good relations with Washington.    In a separate development, a U.S. guided-missile destroyer, the Mustin, visited Cam Ranh international port on Thursday in a routine technical stop, the U.S. embassy said.  The ship’s visit was “an example of the depth of our comprehensive partnership and the importance of strengthening our civilian and military ties,” said U.S. Ambassador Ted Osius. Vietnam has expressed support for the United States to maintain its security presence in Asia. Washington fully lifted a U.S. lethal arms embargo on Vietnam in May, allowing closer defense links and some joint military exercises.

Summary: ट्रम्प ने वियतनाम के प्रधानमंत्री से कहा कि उन्हें उम्मीद है कि संबंध मजबूत होंगे


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Tuesday that a new law allowing Russia s Justice Ministry to list foreign media outlets as  foreign agents  posed a threat to free press and it urged Moscow not to use the measure to tighten control over the media. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement on Tuesday,  Freedom of expression, including speech and media which a government may find inconvenient, is a universal human rights obligation Russia has pledged to uphold.  She said Russia s foreign agents law had been  used to justify a constant stream of raids, harassment, and legal proceedings that effectively obstruct non-governmental organizations from doing their work.  The law, signed by President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, allows Moscow to force foreign media to brand news they provide to Russians as the work of  foreign agents  and to disclose their funding sources. The legislation was rushed through Russia s parliament in two weeks after the United States required Russian state broadcaster RT to register its U.S.-based affiliate company as a  foreign agent.  Nauert rejected any comparison between the U.S. and Russian laws, saying the American law did not limit publication of information or restrict the organization s ability to operate. The move is part of the fallout from allegations that Russia interfered in last year s U.S. presidential campaign to try to help Donald Trump win. U.S. intelligence officials have accused the Kremlin of using Russian media to influence U.S. voters. Moscow has denied meddling in the U.S. election.  Expanding the Foreign Agents Law to include media outlets opens the door to onerous requirements that could further stifle freedom of speech and editorial independence in Russia,  Nauert said.

Summary: रूसी मीडिया कानून स्वतंत्र प्रेस के लिए खतराः अमेरिकी विदेश विभाग


MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Two human heads were discovered in a cooler outside an office of broadcaster Televisa in the Mexican city of Guadalajara, authorities said on Tuesday. It was not clear who the heads belonged to, but the cooler contained a threatening message signed off with  CJNG , the Spanish initials of a drug gang, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, a security official in the western city said. A second official at the office of the Jalisco state prosecutor said the cooler was left outside an office of the Televisa station.  However, media in the state suggested the gruesome find was directed at an official, not at the broadcaster. Elsewhere in the city, authorities found a second cooler containing a message threatening a judge, and a bag with suspected human remains with another threat, the second official added.  Both officials declined to be identified. In recent years, the CJNG has become one of the most powerful Mexican drug gangs, and authorities blame it for violence that has convulsed much of central and western Mexico.

Summary: मेक्सिको में प्रसारक के कार्यालय के बाहर दो मानव सिर पाए गए


YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar and Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday, a senior Myanmar official told Reuters, for the return home of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees who fled to the neighboring country to escape a Myanmar army crackdown.  We are ready to take them back as soon as possible after Bangladesh sends the forms back to us,  said Myint Kyaing, a permanent secretary at Myanmar s ministry of labor, immigration and population, referring to registration forms the Rohingya must complete with personal details before repatriation.

Summary: म्यांमार और बांग्लादेश ने रोहिंग्याओं की वापसी समझौते पर हस्ताक्षर किएः म्यांमार अधिकारी


LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May met with senior members of her ministerial team on Monday to discuss their response to European Union demands for more detail on how much Britain is willing to pay as part of its Brexit divorce package. The EU told May on Friday that there was more work to be done to unlock the Brexit talks, repeating its early December deadline for her to flesh out Britain s opening offer on the financial settlement   thought to be worth around 20 billion euros ( 17.72 billion). May met with ministers amid expectations that she will offer the EU more than she committed to during a speech in Florence in September which failed to provide a meaningful breakthrough in the stalled negotiations. Despite growing pressure from businesses to show she can drive talks onto the subject of future trading relations with the EU, May s office gave little away as to the conclusions of Monday s meeting.  It remains our position that nothing s agreed until everything s agreed in negotiations with the EU,  a source from May s office said.  As the Prime Minister said this morning, the UK and the EU should step forward together.  Media reports said the ministers had agreed to make an offer which would increase the value of May s existing commitment but  gave no specific details. The BBC reported that no specific amounts had been discussed during the meeting. May has repeatedly signalled that she will increase an initial offer that is thought to be worth about a third of what Brussels wants. But, wary of the need to keep the peace in her Conservative Party, which has a powerful faction insisting Britain should be paying the minimum possible to the EU and using the cash offer to leverage better exit terms, May has avoided publicly discussing any figure. Instead, she has said Britain will meet its financial obligations to the bloc   a commitment which remains wide open to interpretation.  Finance minister Philip Hammond said on Sunday that the government would submit its proposal to the EU before a Dec. 14-15 summit.  He warned Britain would be prepared to negotiate hard over the bill, acknowledging differences of opinion with the EU on the value of liabilities, and whether Britain was even liable at all for some elements of the total amount mooted by Brussels.

Summary: मे ने ब्रेक्सिट तलाक विधेयक पर चर्चा करने के लिए वरिष्ठ मंत्रियों से मुलाकात की


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - There has been no evidence of widespread election fraud in the Nov. 8 presidential contest, the White House said on Monday in reaction to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s tweet over the weekend alleging millions of illegal votes and fraud in three states.  White House spokesman Josh Earnest, speaking to reporters at a daily briefing, deferred comments on Trump’s specific tweets to the president-elect’s team, but added: “What I can say, as an objective fact, is that there has been no evidence produced to substantiate a claim like that.”

Summary: व्हाइट हाउसः अमेरिकी मतदान धोखाधड़ी के बारे में कोई सबूत सामने नहीं आया है


(Reuters) - Highlights of the day for U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday: A crisis over the relationship between Trump’s aides and Russia deepens as a growing number of Trump’s fellow Republicans demand expanded congressional inquiries into the matter. The Trump administration offers the job of national security adviser to U.S. Vice Admiral Robert Harward, sources say, but it is not clear if he accepted. The Kremlin says U.S. media reports about Russian intelligence connections to Trump’s presidential campaign are groundless. Russia also says it will not return Crimea to Ukraine or discuss the matter with foreign partners after the White House says Trump expects the annexed Black Sea peninsula to be  returned. Trump’s nominee for labor secretary, Andrew Puzder, withdraws his name from consideration amid concerns that he could not garner enough Senate votes to be confirmed.     Trump’s choice of Representative Mick Mulvaney to become White House budget director on Wednesday appears to pick up enough Republican votes to vault him into the job. Trump drops U.S. insistence on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a long-standing bedrock of Middle East policy, even as he urges Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to curb settlement construction. Trump says tax code revisions are a critical way to boost the nation’s economy as he kicks off a White House meeting with chief executive officers of Target Corp, Best Buy Co Inc and six other major retailers. Trump’s defense secretary seeks to reassure NATO of steadfast U.S. support at talks in Brussels as nervous European allies try to look past the president’s rhetoric and the turmoil within his administration. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is heading to Bonn to interact with counterparts from the Group of 20 top economies at a time many are wondering how strongly Trump’s “America First” message will reshape U.S. foreign policy. Vice President Mike Pence also is bound for Europe this week to meet with allies seeking clarity on the administration’s foreign policy strategy and its stance toward Russia. Staff at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been told that Trump is preparing a handful of executive orders to reshape the agency, to be signed once a new administrator is confirmed, two sources say. The Trump administration proposes changes to the Obamacare individual insurance market that insurers welcome as a good start but that others say could raise consumers’ out-of-pocket cost.

Summary: ट्रम्प प्रेसीडेंसी 15 फरवरी को रात 8.29 बजे ईएसटी


HOUSTON (Reuters) - The city of Houston on Saturday witnessed two milestones on its road to recovery from Hurricane Harvey: a visit from the president of the United States and the return of baseball a week after deadly floodwaters engulfed the metropolis. President Donald Trump, in a widely watched test of his handling of the disaster, distributed food and played with children at a center for evacuees in his first trip to Houston since it was slammed by one of the most destructive storms to hit the United States. A few miles away, Major League Baseball returned to downtown Houston for the first time since Harvey came ashore last Friday as the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in 50 years, bringing a welcome distraction to the fourth-most populous city, facing years of rebuilding. In his second Texas visit since the storm struck, the president and his wife, Melania Trump, were greeted warmly on an unannounced stop to NRG center, a convention complex converted into a facility to assist storm evacuees. “Really, I think people appreciate what has been done,” Trump told reporters. “It has been done very efficiently, very well. There is a lot of love, a lot of love.” The visit gave Trump an opportunity to show an empathetic side to victims. Some have criticized him for staying clear of the disaster zone during a Texas visit on Tuesday, when he said he did not want to hamper rescue efforts. The storm is expected to be one of the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history, displacing more than 1 million people and leaving behind wreckage in an area stretching more than 300 miles (480 kms). Some areas of Texas received more than 50 inches (127 cm) of rain and the storm led to the deaths of at least 47 people. The city of Houston ordered a mandatory evacuation for about 4,600 residences in the western part, where several hundred people have not left their homes. “Put your own personal safety above your property,” Mayor Sylvester Turner said, adding that residents should also  consider the safety of first responders who would have to handle any emergencies.   The Trump administration on Friday asked Congress for a $7.85 billion appropriation for response and initial recovery efforts. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who accompanied the Trumps, has said his state may need more than $125 billion. The first couple’s initial stop was at the center’s “kid zone” where they hugged and chatted with some children playing there. At one point, Trump, dressed in a black rain jacket and no tie, picked up a child and kissed her on the cheek.  Later, the couple handed out prepared meals to the crowd, pausing frequently to greet and take “selfies” with aid recipients.  Kevin Hipolito, 37, an unemployed Houston resident rescued from the roof of his car two days earlier when his first-floor apartment was flooded, said he saw the Trump visit to the fourth-most populous U.S. city as a show of support.  “I’m a Democrat. It raises the morale,” he said while the Trumps served lunch. The Trumps later flew to flood-hit Lake Charles, Louisiana. Harvey came on the 12th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which killed about 1,800 people around New Orleans. U.S. President George W. Bush’s administration was roundly criticized for its botched early response to the storm, and the Trump administration appeared intent on avoiding such a misstep. For a graphic on Harvey's energy impact, click tmsnrt.rs/2xzso1S For a graphic on hurricane costs, click tmsnrt.rs/2vGkbHS For a graphic on storms in the North Atlantic, click tmsnrt.rs/2gcckz5 Late Saturday night, Trump tweeted “Just got back to the White House from the Great States of Texas and Louisiana, where things are going well. Such cooperation & coordination!” Robert Hendricks, 48, an electrical engineer standing on line at NRG Stadium, was skeptical about Trump’s visit helping. “What’s he going to do, use us as props to serve us lunch?” he said before adding: “It’s good that he’s showing his face.” At Minute Maid Park, the Houston Astros opened a double-header against the New York Mets, the first time the team played at home since Harvey struck. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner threw out the first pitch and a moment of silence was observed for those who died. The Astros won the first game of the doubleheader 12-8. The devastation from the unprecedented flooding to the Houston metropolitan area, with an economy as large as Argentina’s, has been enormous. By Saturday, nearly 200,000 homes had suffered flood damage and about 12,600 were destroyed, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Thirteen Texas Superfund sites, heavily contaminated former industrial zones, were flooded or damaged by Harvey, but the full impact on surrounding areas was not immediately clear, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said. The announcement came amid rising concern about the health risks posed by Harvey’s record floodwaters, which contain a toxic soup of chemicals, oil and bacteria from Houston’s notoriously leaky sewer system. For many people in the region, there was little time for baseball or the Trump visit as receding waters allowed them to return to flood-damaged homes for the first time since the Harvey came ashore on the Gulf Coast. In a neighborhood in east Houston, streets were lined with 8-foot (2.4 meter) piles of soggy debris, including mattresses, carpets and other belongings ripped out of homes. Volunteers had set up shade tents with water and food and were helping residents remove the wreckage. “It’s overwhelming. It’s sad to see it. We have a lot of good memories here,” said Sergio Estrada who grew up in the neighborhood and came to help salvage the home where his parents live. Many areas still were battling floodwaters from swollen rivers that were expected to last for a week or more. In Beaumont, about 85 miles (140 km) east, officials tried to repair a flood-damaged pumping station that caused the city of about 120,000 people to lose drinking water days ago. To the east, flood-hit Orange County implemented a curfew from Saturday night to keep the community safe and give its residents “peace of mind,” officials said. The storm shut about a fourth of U.S. refinery capacity, much of which is clustered along the Gulf Coast, and caused gasoline prices to spike to a two-year high ahead of the long Labor Day holiday weekend. Meanwhile a new storm, Irma, strengthened on Friday into a Category 3 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale. It remained more than 1000 miles from the Leeward Islands, where residents were advised to monitor its progress. The National Hurricane Center said in an advisory late Saturday night it was still much too early to determine what direct impact it might have on the Bahamas and the continental United States.

Summary: तूफान से तबाह ह्यूस्टन के लिए, राष्ट्रपति की यात्रा और बेसबॉल की वापसी


OMAHA, Neb. (Reuters) - President Barack Obama visited a young family in their suburban Nebraska living room on Wednesday, the first stop on what the White House said will be a year-long tour to talk before he leaves office about fixing the country’s polarized politics. His trip to Nebraska, a Republican “red state,” is meant to help promote the big-picture ideas he laid out in his final State of the Union speech on Tuesday, where he said he regretted American politics had become more rancorous. Obama spent about 40 minutes visiting with Lisa Martin, who sent him a letter last year she wrote at 4 a.m. when she was awake feeding her son Cooper. In the letter she described her “overwhelming sense of dread” about climate change. “Will he be able to experience the small things, such as winter in Nebraska, where he has snow days and sledding?” Martin wrote in the letter, expressing feelings of powerlessness. “Call it sleep deprivation or desperation, but something made me want to email the president that night, so I did,” Martin said on Wednesday. Afterwards, Obama reprised his address to a packed-to-the-rafters crowd of 11,000 at a hockey rink at the University of Nebraska, a state where he acknowledged he got “whupped” in his 2012 re-election campaign. Obama said that American economic and foreign policy is stronger than described by “a bunch of folks right across the river” - a jab at Republican presidential candidates campaigning for the party’s nomination in the early voting state of Iowa. “That’s just hot air. That’s bluster. That’s not serious,” Obama said. “There’s another word for it that starts with a ‘b’ - it’s baloney,” he said. Obama has said he hopes to work with the Republican-led Congress on a few issues where there is common ground in his final year: criminal justice reform, passing a sweeping Asian trade deal, and addressing heroin addiction and poverty. But on a host of issues Congress does not support him, such as curbing climate change, and the race to win the Nov. 8 election to succeed him overshadows Obama’s push to cement his legacy. Obama was due to fly on Wednesday to Baton Rouge, Louisiana - another red state - where he will take questions from residents at a town-hall meeting on Thursday.

Summary: रिपब्लिकन राज्य में ओबामा ने चिंतित अमेरिकी मां से बात की


TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan has assured the United States it has no intention of causing trouble in the Taiwan Strait, the self-ruled island s envoy to a summit of Asia-Pacific leaders said on Monday.  The comments by James Soong came after he told reporters in the Vietnamese city of Danang at the weekend that he had good exchanges with both U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during informal moments between summit events.  We don t want to create trouble in the Taiwan Strait, and lead the U.S., China and Japan, and all observers, to think we are a troublemaker. The whole world doesn t hope for Taiwan to be a troublemaker,  Soong said in response to a question on his interactions with Trump and Tillerson.  We hope to use peaceful means to solve relevant problems.  Soong also said he had a  natural interaction  with Chinese President Xi Jinping.  Relations between Beijing and Taipei have nosedived since President Tsai Ing-wen was elected last year. China believes she wants formal independence for Taiwan, a red line for Beijing. For her part, Tsai says she wants to maintain peace with China but will defend Taiwan s democracy and security. China has suspended a regular dialogue mechanism with Taiwan since Tsai came to power and stepped up military exercises around the island. It has also increased diplomatic pressure by winning over another two of the island s dwindling number of diplomatic allies. Soong, who is chairman of the China-friendly People First Party, emphasized at the summit that Tsai had repeatedly talked about seeking peaceful relations and stability with China. This month, Xi told Trump in Beijing that Taiwan was the most important and sensitive issue in Sino-U.S. ties.

Summary: ताइवान ने अमेरिका से कहा कि वह ताइवान जलडमरूमध्य में परेशानी पैदा नहीं करना चाहता


BERLIN (Reuters) - The mayor of a small town in western Germany known for pursuing liberal migrant policies was stabbed in the neck at a kebab shop on Monday evening and seriously hurt in an attack that officials suspected was politically motivated. The conservative mayor of Altena, Andreas Hollstein, appeared at a news conference on Tuesday to describe the attack which left him with a 15 cm long cut on his neck, covered in a white plaster.    I feared for my life,  said the 57-year-old mayor who has received a German integration prize from Chancellor Angela Merkel. He said the attack took place in an atmosphere of growing social tension and hate.  The attacker asked him if he was the mayor, before saying:  You let me die of thirst and let 200 refugees into Altena,  Hollstein recalled. Then the man plunged a 30 cm long kitchen knife into him. Police told reporters that the suspect, identified only as Werner S., had been arrested. They believed his motives were xenophobic and political, although they took it to be a spontaneous attack, adding he had alcohol in his system. The attack comes as Germany struggles to deal with an increasingly fractured society. Many voters are still angry  about the influx of more than 1.6 million people seeking asylum in the two years to the end of 2016.  In a September election, some 13 percent of Germans voted for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) which campaigned hard against Merkel s open-door migrant policy.  It brings us no further forward if we transmit political views with hate,  Hollstein said. He said his wife had warned him about possible attacks due to his policies but he was determined to continue his work.  I will push for refugees and for other people in a weaker social situation,  he vowed, thanking the owner of the shop and his son for probably saving his life.  Under his leadership, the town of Altena, with 17,000 residents and 450 refugees, has taken in more migrants than it was allocated. Politicians including Merkel expressed their shock.  I am horrified by the knife attack on the mayor Andreas Hollstein - and very relieved that he can already be back with his family. Thanks also to those who helped him,  Merkel said via her spokesman on Twitter. The attack is reminiscent of the stabbing two years ago of a candidate for mayor of Cologne, Henriette Reker, in an anti-refugee attack. She was seriously hurt but went on to win the election and become mayor.

Summary: शरणार्थी समर्थक जर्मन मेयर पर संदिग्ध राजनीतिक हमले में चाकू से हमला


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic Senator Al Franken announced his resignation on Thursday after facing a series of sexual misconduct allegations, and Republican Representative Trent Franks also said he was stepping down as he too was hit with ethics charges.  Franken, buffeted for weeks by sexual harassment charges and under pressure from party colleagues, said on the Senate floor he would leave in a few weeks, although he denied some of the allegations against him and questioned others. The 66-year-old former comedian from Minnesota had been seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party. “I know in my heart that nothing I’ve done as a senator - nothing - has brought dishonor on this institution,” he said. “Nevertheless, today I am announcing that in the coming weeks, I will be resigning as a member of the United States Senate.” Hours later, Franks announced his resignation after two former staff members complained about discussions he had with them about his efforts to find a surrogate mother. “I deeply regret that my discussion of this option and process in the workplace caused distress,” said Franks, who was first elected to his Arizona congressional seat in 2002 and is an outspoken opponent of abortion.  Franks said in a statement that he and his wife “have long struggled with infertility.” The developments came with Congress already held in low regard by voters. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, only 20 percent approved of the way Congress was handling its job, with 70 percent disapproving. In recent weeks, charges of sexual misconduct have taken down prominent people in the worlds of entertainment, media and politics. It is somewhat rare for members of the Senate or House of Representatives to resign from office, but veteran Democratic Representative John Conyers also resigned earlier this week amid sexual harassment accusations that he has denied. The House Ethics Committee said on Thursday it was investigating yet another lawmaker. Blake Farenthold, a Republican representative from Texas, faces allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation involving a former female staff member. Franken has the highest profile of the lawmakers hit by allegations in the past few weeks.  Reuters has not independently verified the accusations against Franken, Franks, Conyers or Farenthold. Franken’s seat will initially be filled by a Democrat appointed by Minnesota’s Democratic governor, meaning the  Republicans’ slim majority in the Senate will not change. Allegations that Franken had groped and tried to kiss women without their consent began to surface three weeks ago. He initially said he was embarrassed and ashamed by his behavior but would not resign.  But the majority of his Democratic colleagues in the Senate called on Wednesday for his resignation after a new allegation, denied by Franken, hit the news.  “Some of the allegations against me are simply not true. Others I remember very differently,” Franken said on Thursday.  Striking a tone of defiance, he also sought to contrast himself with two prominent Republicans - President Donald Trump and Senate candidate Roy Moore. “I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact that I am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the Senate, with the full support of his party,” he said. Trump was heard bragging about kissing and forcibly touching women in a 2005 videotape that surfaced last year as he was running for the White House. He apologized for the remarks, but called them private “locker-room talk” and said he had not done the things he talked about.  Trump also denied allegations at that time by at least 12 women of sexual advances and groping in the past. Moore, who is running for the Senate in Alabama in a special election on Tuesday, has been accused by several women of sexual assault or misconduct when they were teenagers and Moore was in his early 30s. Moore, 70, has denied the accusations, which Reuters has not independently verified. Trump has backed Moore, but Senate Republicans have been cooler toward his candidacy. In pressing Franken to step aside, Democrats have tried to capture the moral high ground and draw a distinction between their party and Republicans.         “In every workplace in America, including the U.S. Senate, we must confront the challenges of harassment and misconduct,” said Amy Klobuchar, Franken’s fellow Democratic senator from Minnesota.     Similarly, House Republican Speaker Paul Ryan said on Thursday he had told Franks that he should resign. A special election will be scheduled to determine a replacement for Franks. While a Democrat will be appointed initially to replace Franken, his departure could complicate the party’s efforts to maintain or build on the 46 Senate seats they hold. Two independent senators also vote with the Democrats. Republicans are defending eight seats in the congressional elections in November 2018 but Democrats will be defending 26 if Minnesota holds a special election for Franken’s seat. The election to fill Franken’s seat could be close. When he ran in 2008, the race was decided after an extensive recount, with Minnesota’s Supreme Court weighing in.  In the 2016 presidential election, Democrat Hillary Clinton won the state by less than 2 percentage points.

Summary: कांग्रेस में कदाचार के आरोपों के बाद फ्रेंक और फ्रैंक्स ने दिया इस्तीफा


LONDON (Reuters) - Ethnic minorities in Britain have a lower employment rate than white people and are under-represented in senior public sector jobs, Prime Minister Theresa May will say on Tuesday, releasing the findings of a government audit on racial disparity.   Bogged down by Brexit and a botched snap election since taking control of the ruling Conservative party last July, May has struggled to deliver on social reforms to tackle what she has called  burning injustices  that exist in Britain. Attempting to relaunch that agenda, May will publish the findings of a  Race Disparity Audit , which will not, she says, come as a surprise to many.   People who have lived with discrimination don t need a government audit to make them aware of the scale of the challenge,  May will say according to extracts of remarks due to be delivered at a launch event on Tuesday.  But this audit means that for society as a whole   for government, for our public services   there is nowhere to hide. These issues are now out in the open. And the message is very simple: if these disparities cannot be explained then they must be changed.  The data covering 130 topics including health, education, employment and the criminal justice system will be made publicly available on a website, with new datasets being added over time. May will describe it as an  essential resource in the battle to defeat ethnic injustice .

Summary: सामाजिक एजेंडा को फिर से शुरू करने की कोशिश में, नस्लीय असमानता को दूर करने के लिए ब्रिटेन की मई