Welsh AMS worried about 'looking like muppets'
there is consternation among some AMS at a suggestion their title should change to MWPs (Member of the Welsh Parliament).
it has arisen because of plans to change the name of the assembly to the Welsh Parliament.
AMS across the political spectrum are worried it could invite ridicule.
one Labour AM said his group was concerned "it rhymes with Twp and Pwp."
for readers outside of Wales: in Welsh twp means daft and pwp means poo.
a Plaid AM said the group as a whole was "not happy" and has suggested alternatives.
a Welsh Conservative said his group was "open minded" about the name change, but noted it was a short verbal hop from MWP to Muppet.
in this context The Welsh letter w is pronounced similarly to the Yorkshire English pronunciation of the letter u.
the Assembly Commission, which is currently drafting legislation to introduce the name changes, said: "the final decision on any descriptors of what Assembly Members are called will of course be a matter for the members themselves."
the Government of Wales Act 2017 gave the Welsh assembly the power to change its name.
in June, the Commission published the results of a public consultation on the proposals which found broad support for calling the assembly a Welsh Parliament.
on the matter of the AMS 'title, the Commission favoured Welsh Parliament Members or WMPs, but the MWP option received the most support in a public consultation.
AMS are apparently suggesting alternative options, but the struggle to reach consensus could be a headache for the Presiding Officer, Elin Jones, who is expected to submit draft legislation on the changes within weeks.
the legislation on the reforms will include other changes to the way the assembly works, including rules on disqualification of AMS and the design of the committee system.
AMS will get the final vote on the question of what they should be called when they debate the legislation.
Macedonians go to polls in referendum on changing country's name
voters will vote Sunday on whether to change their country's name to the "Republic of North Macedonia."
the popular vote was set up in a bid to resolve a decades-long dispute with neighboring Greece, which has its own province called Macedonia.
Athens has long insisted that its northern neighbor's name represents a claim on its territory and has repeatedly objected to its membership bids for the EU and NATO.
Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov, an opponent of the plebiscite on the name change, has said he will disregard the vote.
however, supporters of the referendum, including Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, argue that the name change is simply the price to pay to join the EU and NATO.
the Bells of St. Martin's Fall Silent as Churches in Harlem Struggle
"historically, the old people I've talked to say there was a bar and a church on every corner," Mr. Adams said.
"today, there's neither."
he said the disappearance of bars was understandable.
"people socialize in a different way" nowadays, he said.
"bars are no longer neighborhood living rooms where people go on a regular basis."
as for churches, he worries that the money from selling assets will not last as long as leaders expect it to, "and sooner or later they'll be right back where they started."
churches, he added, could be replaced by apartment buildings with condominiums filled with the kind of people who will not help the neighborhood's remaining sanctuaries.
"the overwhelming majority of people who buy condominiums in these buildings will be white," he said, "and therefore will hasten the day that these churches close altogether because it is unlikely that most of these people who move into these condominiums will become members of these churches."
both churches were built by white congregations before Harlem became a black metropolis - Metropolitan Community in 1870, St. Martin's a decade later.
the original white Methodist congregation moved out in the 1930s.
a black congregation that had been worshiping nearby took title to the building.
St. Martin's was taken over by a black congregation under the Rev. John Howard Johnson, who led a boycott of retailers on 125th Street, a main street for shopping in Harlem, who resisted hiring or promoting blacks.
a fire in 1939 left the building badly damaged, but as Father Johnson's parishioners made plans to rebuild, they commissioned the carillon.
the Rev. David Johnson, Father Johnson's son and successor at St. Martin's, proudly called the carillon "the poor people's bells."
the expert who played the carillon in July called it something else: "a cultural treasure" and "an irreplaceable historical instrument."
the expert, Tiffany Ng of the University of Michigan, also noted that it was the first carillon in the world to be played by a black musician, Dionisio A. Lind, who moved to the larger carillon at the Riverside Church 18 years ago.
Mr. Merriweather said that St. Martin's did not replace him.
what has played out at St. Martin's over the last few months has been a complicated tale of architects and contractors, some brought in by the lay leaders of the church, others by the Episcopal diocese.
the vestry - the parish's governing body, made up of lay leaders - wrote the diocese in July with concerns that the diocese "would seek to pass along the costs" to the vestry, even though the vestry had not been involved in hiring the architects and contractors the diocese sent in.
some parishioners complained of a lack of transparency on the diocese's part.
shark injures 13-year-old on lobster dive in California
a shark attacked and injured a 13-year-old boy Saturday while he was diving for lobster in California on the opening day of lobster season, officials said.
the attack occurred just before 7 a.m. near Beacon's Beach in Encinitas.
Chad Hammel told KSWB-TV in San Diego he had been diving with friends for about half an hour Saturday morning when he heard the boy screaming for help and then paddled over with a group to help pull him out of the water.
Hammel said at first he thought it was just excitement of catching a lobster, but then he "realized that he was yelling, 'I got bit!
I got bit! '
his whole clavicle was ripped open, "Hammel said he noticed once he got to the boy.
"I yelled at everyone to get out of the water: 'there's a shark in the water!'" Hammel added.
the boy was airlifted to Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego where he is listed in critical condition.
the species of shark responsible for the attack was unknown.
lifeguard Capt. Larry Giles said at a media briefing that a shark had been spotted in the area a few weeks earlier, but it was determined not to be a dangerous species of shark.
Giles added the victim sustained traumatic injuries to his upper torso area.
officials shut down beach access from Ponto Beach in Casablad to Swami's in Ecinitas for 48 hours for investigation and safety purposes.
Giles noted that there are more than 135 shark species in the area, but most are not considered dangerous.
Sainsbury's plans push into UK beauty market
Sainsbury's is taking on Boots, Superdrug and Debenhams with department store-style beauty aisles staffed with specialist assistants.
as part of a substantial push into the UK's £2.8bn beauty market, which is continuing to grow while fashion and homeware sales fall back, the larger beauty aisles will be tested out in 11 stores around the country and taken to more stores next year if it proves a success.
the investment in beauty comes as supermarkets hunt for ways to use up shelf space once sued for TVs, microwaves and homeware.
Sainsbury's said it would be doubling the size of its beauty offering to up to 3,000 products, including brands such as Revlon, Essie, Tweezerman and Dr. PawPaw for the first time.
existing ranges from L'Oreal, Maybelline and Burt's Bees will also get more space with branded areas similar to those found in shops like Boots.
the supermarket is also relaunching its Boutique makeup range so that the majority of products are vegan-friendly - something increasingly demanded by younger shoppers.
in addition, perfume retailer the Fragrance Shop will be testing out concessions in two Sainsbury's stores, the first of which opened in Croydon, south London, last week while a second opens in Selly Oak, Birmingham, later this year.
online shopping and a shift towards buying small amounts of food daily at local convenience stores means supermarkets are having to do more to persuade people to visit.
Mike Coupe, the chief executive of Sainsbury's, has said the outlets will look increasingly like department stores as the supermarket chain tries to fight back against the discounters Aldi and Lidl with more services and non-food.
Sainsbury's has been putting Argos outlets in hundreds of stores and has also introduced a number of Habitats since it bought both chains two years ago, which it says has bolstered grocery sales and made the acquisitions more profitable.
the supermarket's previous attempt to revamp its beauty and pharmacy departments ended in failure.
Sainsbury's tested a joint venture with Boots in the early 2000s, but the tie-up ended after a row over how to split the revenues from the chemist's stores in its supermarkets.
the new strategy comes after Sainsbury's sold its 281-store pharmacy business to Celesio, the owner of the Lloyds Pharmacy chain, for £125m, three years ago.
it said Lloyds would play a role in the plan, by adding an extended range of luxury skincare brands including La Roche-Posay and Vichy in four stores.
Paul Mills-Hicks, Sainsbury's commercial director, said: "we've transformed the look and feel of our beauty aisles to enhance the environment for our customers.
we've also invested in specially trained colleagues who will be on hand to offer advice.
our range of brands is designed to suit every need and the alluring environment and convenient locations mean we're now a compelling beauty destination which challenges the old way of shopping. "
Peter Jones' furious' after Holly Willoughby pulls out of £11million deal
dragons Den star Peter Jones left 'furious' after TV presenter Holly Willoughby pulls out of £11million deal with his lifestyle brand business to focus on her new contracts with Marks and Spencer and ITV
Willoughby has no time for their homewear and accessories brand Truly.
the pair's business had been likened to Gwyneth Paltrow's goop brand.
this Morning presenter, 37, took to Instagram to announce she is leaving.
Holly Willoughby has left Dragons "Den star Peter Jones fuming by pulling out of their lucrative lifestyle brand business at the last minute - to focus on her own new bumper contracts with Marks & Spencer and ITV.
sources say Jones was "furious" when TV's golden girl admitted during a tense meeting on Tuesday at the headquarters of his business empire in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, that her new deals - worth up to £1.5 million - meant she no longer had enough time to devote to their homewear and accessories brand Truly.
the business had been likened to Gwyneth Paltrow's goop brand and was tipped to double Willoughby's estimated £11 million fortune.
as Willoughby, 37, took to Instagram to announce she was leaving Truly, Jones jetted out of Britain to head for one of his holiday homes.
a source said: "truly was by far the top of Holly's priorities.
it was going to be her long-term future that would see her through the next couple of decades.
her decision to pull out left everyone involved absolutely stunned.
nobody could believe what was happening on Tuesday, it was so close to the launch.
there is a warehouse full of goods at the Marlow HQ which are ready to be sold. "
experts believe the departure of the This Morning presenter, who is among Britain's most bankable stars, could cost the firm millions due to hefty investment in products ranging from cushions and candles to clothing and homewear, and the potential for further delays to its launch.
and it could mean the end of a long friendship.
mother-of-three Willoughby and husband Dan Baldwin have been close to Jones and his wife Tara CAPP for ten years.
Willoughby set up Truly with CAPP in 2016 and Jones, 52, joined as chairman in March.
the couples holiday together and Jones has a 40 per cent stake in Baldwin's TV production firm.
Willoughby is to become a brand ambassador for M & S and will replace Ant McPartlin as host of ITV's I'm A Celebrity.
a source close to Jones said last night "We wouldn't comment on his business affairs."
tough talk 'and then we fell in love'
he joked about criticism he would get from the news media for making a comment some would consider "unpresidential" and for being so positive about the North Korean leader.
why has President Trump given up so much?
Trump said in his mock "news anchor" voice.
"I didn't give up anything."
he noted that Kim is interested in a second meeting after their initial meeting in Singapore in June was hailed by Trump as a big step toward denuclearization of North Korea.
but denuclearization negotiations have stalled.
more than three months after the June summit in Singapore, North Korea's top diplomat Ri Yong Ho told world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly Saturday that the North doesn't see a "corresponding response" from the U.S. to North Korea's early disarmament moves.
instead, he noted, the U.S. is continuing sanctions aimed at keeping up pressure.
Trump took a much more optimistic view in his rally speech.
"we're doing great with North Korea," he said.
"we were going to war with North Korea.
millions of people would have been killed.
now we have this great relationship. "
he said his efforts to improve relations with Kim have brought positive results - ending rocket tests, helping free hostages and getting the remains of American servicemen returned home.
and he defended his unusual approach in talking about relations with Kim.
"it's so easy to be presidential, but instead of having 10,000 people outside trying to get into this packed arena, we'd have about 200 people standing right there," Trump said, pointing at the crowd directly in front of him.
Indonesia Tsunami and Quake Devastate an Island, Killing Hundreds
in the aftermath of the Lombok earthquake, for instance, foreign nongovernmental organizations were told they were not needed.
even though more than 10 percent of Lombok's population had been dislocated, no national disaster was declared, a prerequisite for catalyzing international aid.
"in many cases, unfortunately, they've been very clear that they're not requesting international assistance, so it's a bit challenging," Ms. Sumbung said.
while Save the Children is putting together a team to travel to Palu, it is not yet sure whether foreign staff can work on the ground.
Mr. Sutopo, the national disaster agency spokesman, said Indonesian officials were assessing the situation in Palu to see whether international agencies would be allowed to contribute to the aid effort.
given the earth shaking that Indonesia constantly endures, the country remains woefully underprepared for nature's wrath.
while tsunami shelters have been built in Aceh, they are not a common sight on other coastlines.
the apparent lack of a tsunami warning siren in Palu, even though a warning had been in effect, is likely to have contributed to the loss of life.
at the best of times, traveling between Indonesia's many islands is challenging.
natural disasters make logistics even more complicated.
a hospital ship that had been stationed in Lombok to treat earthquake victims is making its way to Palu, but it will take at least three days to reach the site of the new calamity.
President Joko Widodo made improving Indonesia's tattered infrastructure a centerpiece of his election campaign, and he has lavished money on roads and railways.
but funding shortfalls have plagued Mr. Joko's administration as he faces re-election next year.
Mr. Joko is also facing pressure from lingering sectarian tensions in Indonesia, where members of the Muslim majority have embraced a more conservative form of the faith.
more than 1,000 people were killed and tens of thousands dislocated from their homes as Christian and Muslim gangs battled on the streets, using machetes, bows and arrows, and other crude weapons.
watch: Liverpool's Daniel Sturridge dips deep equalizer vs. Chelsea
Daniel Sturridge saved Liverpool from a Premier League loss to Chelsea with a score in the 89th minute on Saturday at Stamford Bridge in London.
Sturridge received a pass from Xherdan Shaqiri while about 30 yards out from the Chelsea goal with his team trailing 1-0.
he tapped the ball to his left before scooping a shot toward the far post.
the attempt sailed high above the box as it drifted toward the right top corner of the net.
the ball eventually dropped over a leaping Kepa Arrizabalaga and fell into the net.
"it was just trying to get into that position, to get on the ball and players like Shaq always play it forward as much as possible, so I just tried to create myself as much time as possible," Sturridge told LiverpoolFC.com.
"I saw Kante coming and took one touch and didn't think about it too much and just took the shot on."
Chelsea led 1-0 at halftime after getting a score in the 25th minute from Belgian star Eden Hazard.
the Blues striker heeled a pass back to Mateo Kovacic on that play, before spinning off near midfield and sprinting into the Liverpool half.
Kovacic did a quick give-and-go at midfield.
he then fired a beautiful through ball, leading Hazard into the box.
hazard outran the defense and finished into the far post netting with a left footed shot past Liverpool's Alisson Becker.
Liverpool battles Napoli in the group stage of the Champions League at 3 p.m. on Wednesday at Stadio San Paolo in Naples, Italy.
Chelsea faces Videoton in the UEFA Europa Leaguge at 3 p.m. on Thursday in London.
death toll from Indonesia tsunami rises to 832
the death toll in Indonesia's earthquake and tsunami has climbed to 832, the country's disaster agency said early Sunday.
many people were reported trapped in the rubble of buildings brought down in the 7.5 magnitude earthquake which struck Friday and triggered waves as high as 20 feet, agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told a news conference.
the city of Palu, which has more than 380,000 people, was strewn with debris from collapsed buildings.
police arrest man, 32, on suspicion of murder after woman is stabbed to death
a murder investigation has been launched after woman's body was found in Birkenhead, Merseyside this morning.
the 44-year-old was found at 7.55am with stab wounds on Grayson Mews on John Street, with a 32-year-old man being arrested on suspicion of murder.
police have urged people in the area who saw or heard anything to come forward.
detective Inspector Brian O'Hagan said: 'the investigation is in the early stages but I would appeal to anyone who was in the vicinity of John Street in Birkenhead who saw or heard anything suspicious to contact us.
I would also appeal to anyone, particularly taxi drivers, who may have captured anything on dashcam footage to contact us as they may have information which is vital to our investigation. '
a police spokesman has confirmed the woman whose body was found is local to Birkenhead and she was found inside a property.
this afternoon friends who believe they know the woman have arrived at the scene to ask questions about where she was found this morning.
investigations are ongoing as police have said they are in the process of informing the victim's next of kin.
a taxi driver who lives in Grayson Mews has just tried to get back into his flat but is being told by police no one is allowed in or out of the building.
he was speechless when he discovered what happened.
residents are now being told it will be hours until they are allowed back in.
a police officer was heard telling one man that the entire area is now being treated as a crime scene.
a woman appeared at the scene in tears.
she keeps repeating 'it's so awful'.
at 2pm two police vans were inside the cordon with another van just outside.
a number of officers were stood inside the cordon monitoring the block of flats.
anyone with information is asked to DM @ MerPolCC, call 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 quoting log 247 of 30th September.
Parliament's statue of Cromwell becomes latest memorial hit by 'rewriting history' row
its banishment would be poetic justice for his Taliban-like destruction of so many of England's cultural and religious artefacts carried out by his fanatical Puritan followers.
but the Cromwell Society described Mr Crick's suggestion as "folly" and "attempting to rewrite history."
John Goldsmith, chairman of the Cromwell Society, said: "it was inevitable in the present debate about the removal of statues that the figure of Oliver Cromwell outside the Palace of Westminster would become a target.
the iconoclasm of the English civil wars was neither ordered nor carried out by Cromwell.
perhaps the wrong Cromwell would be sacrificed for the actions of his ancestor Thomas in the previous century.
Sir William Hamo Thorneycroft's magnificent representation of Cromwell is evidence of 19th century opinion and part of the historiography of a figure who many believe is still worth celebrating.
Mr Goldsmith told The Sunday Telegraph: "Cromwell is regarded by many, perhaps more in the late 19th century than today, as a defender of parliament against external pressure, in his case of course the monarchy.
whether that is a wholly accurate representation is the subject of continuing historical debate.
what is certain is that the conflict of the mid 17th century has shaped the subsequent development of our nation, and Cromwell is an individual recognisable figure who represents one side of that divide.
his achievements as Lord Protector are also worth celebrating and commemorating. "
killer Pig mauls Chinese Farmer to Death
a farmer was attacked and killed by a pig in a market in southwest China, according to local media reports.
the man, identified only by his surname "Yuan," was found dead with a severed artery, covered in blood near a sty at the market in Liupanshui in Guizhou province, the South China Morning Post reported Sunday.
a pig farmer prepares to inject vaccines into pigs at a hoggery on May 30, 2005 in Xining of Qinghai Province, China.
he had reportedly travelled with his cousin from the neighboring Yunnan province Wednesday to sell 15 pigs at the market.
the following morning, his cousin found him dead, and discovered a door to a neighbouring pig sty open.
he said that in the sty was a large male pig with blood on its mouth.
a forensic examination confirmed that the 550 pound hog had mauled the farmer to death, according to the report.
"my cousin's legs were bloody and mangled," the cousin, referred to by his surname "Wu," said, as quoted by the Guiyang Evening News.
security camera footage showed Yuan entering the market at 4.40 am Thursday to feed his pigs.
his body was found about an hour later.
the animal who killed the man did not belong to Yuan or his cousin.
a market manager told the Evening News that the pig had been locked away to prevent it attacking anyone else, while police gathered evidence at the scene.
yuan's family and market authorities are reportedly negotiating compensation for his death.
though rare, cases of pigs attacking humans have been recorded before.
in 2016, a pig attacked a woman and her husband at their farm in Massachusetts, leaving the man with critical injuries.
ten years previously, a 650 pound pig pinned a Welsh farmer to his tractor until his wife scared the animal away.
after an Oregon farmer was eaten by his pigs in 2012, one Manitoba farmer told CBC News that pigs are not normally aggressive but the taste of blood can act as a "trigger."
"they're just being playful.
they're nippers, very inquisitive... they aren't out to hurt you.
you just have to pay them the right amount of respect, "he said.
hurricane Rosa's remnants to bring widespread heavy rain to southwest US
as forecast, Hurricane Rosa is weakening as it moves over the cooler waters of the northern coast of Mexico.
however, Rosa will bring flooding rains across northern Mexico and the southwest U.S. over the coming days.
Rosa had winds of 85 mph, a Category 1 Hurricane, as of 5 a.m. Eastern time Sunday, and was located 385 miles southwest of Punta Eugenia, Mexico.
Rosa is expected to move north on Sunday.
meanwhile, a trough is beginning to take shape over the Pacific Ocean and move east toward the West Coast of the U.S. As Rosa approaches the Baja California peninsula on Monday as a tropical storm it will begin to push deep tropical moisture northward into the southwest U.S.
Rosa will bring up to 10 inches of rain in parts of Mexico on Monday.
then, tropical moisture interacting with the approaching trough will create widespread heavy rainfall in the Southwest over the coming days.
locally, 1 to 4 inches of rain will cause dangerous flash flooding, debris flows and possibility landslides in the desert.
deep tropical moisture will cause rainfall rates to approach 2 to 3 inches per hour in spots, especially in parts of southern Nevada and Arizona.
as much as 2 to 4 inches of rain is expected in parts of the Southwest, especially over much of Arizona.
Flash flooding is possible with rapidly deteriorating conditions due to the scattered nature of tropical rain.
it would be extremely ill advised to venture out into the desert on foot with the threat of tropical rainfall.
heavy rain could cause canyons to become raging rivers and thunderstorms will bring locally gusty winds and blowing dust.
the approaching trough will bring some locally heavy rain to parts of the Southern California coastline.
rainfall totals of over half an inch are possible, which could cause minor debris flows and slick roadways.
this would be the region's first rainfall of their wet season.
some scattered tropical rain showers will begin to approach Arizona late Sunday and early Monday, before the rain becomes more widespread late Monday and Tuesday.
heavy rain will spread into the Four Corners on Tuesday and last through Wednesday.
October can see some intense temperature swings across the U.S. as the Arctic gets cooler, but the tropics remain quite warm.
sometimes this leads to dramatic changes in temperature over short distances.
there is a great example of dramatic temperature differences through the central U.S. on Sunday.
there is nearly a 20-degree temperature difference between Kansas City, Missouri, and Omaha, Nebraska, and between St. Louis and Des Moines, Iowa.
over the next few days, lingering summer warmth will try to build and expand again.
much of the central and eastern U.S. is expected to see a warm start to October with widespread 80s from the Southern Plains to parts of the Northeast.
new York City could reach 80 degrees on Tuesday, which would be approximately 10 degrees above average.
our long term climate forecast is indicating high chances for above-average temperatures for the eastern U.S. through the first half of October.
more than 20 million people watched Brett Kavanaugh hearing
more than 20 million people watched Thursday's gripping testimony by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and the woman who accused him of a sexual assault that allegedly occurred in the 1980s, Christine Blasey Ford, on six television networks.
meanwhile, the political standoff continued, with broadcasters interrupting regular programming for Friday's last-minute twist: an agreement engineered by Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake for the FBI to conduct a one-week investigation of the charges.
Ford told the Senate Judiciary Committee that she's 100 percent certain that Kavanaugh groped her drunkenly and tried to take off her clothes at a high school party.
Kavanaugh, in impassioned testimony, said he's 100 percent certain that it didn't happen.
it's likely that more than the 20.4 million people reported by Nielsen on Friday watched it.
the company was counting average viewership on CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC.
figures weren't immediately available for other networks that showed it, including PBS, C-SPAN and the Fox Business Network.
and Nielsen usually has some trouble measuring people who watch in offices.
to put that in perspective, that's an audience size similar to that for a playoff football game or the Academy Awards.
Fox News Channel, whose opinion hosts have strongly backed Kavanaugh's appointment, led all networks with an average of 5.69 million viewers during the all-day hearing, Nielsen said.
ABC was second with 3.26 million viewers.
CBS had 3.1 million, NBC had 2.94 million, MSNBC had 2.89 million and CNN had 2.52 million, Nielsen said.
interest remained high after the hearing.
flake was the central figure in Friday's drama.
after the moderate Republican's office issued a statement that he would be voting in favor of Kavanaugh, he was caught be CNN and CBS cameras Friday morning being shouted at by protesters as he tried to ride an elevator to a Judiciary Committee hearing.
he stood with eyes downcast for several minutes as he was berated, televised live on CNN.
"I'm standing right here in front of you," one woman said.
"do you think he's telling the truth to the country?
he was told, "you have power when so many women are powerless." "
flake said that his office had issued a statement and said, before the elevator closed, that he would have more to say at the committee hearing.
the cable and broadcast networks were all covering live hours later, when the Judiciary Committee was to vote to advance Kavanaugh's nomination to the full Senate for a vote.
but Flake said he would only do so with the understanding that the FBI would look into the allegations against the nominee for the next week, which minority Democrats have been urging.
flake was convinced in part by conversations with his friend, Democratic Sen. Chris Coons.
after a conversation with Coons and several senators afterwards, Flake made his decision.
flake's choice had power, because it was evident Republicans would not have the votes to approve Kavanaugh without the investigation.
President Trump has opened an FBI investigation into the allegations against Kavanaugh.
British PM May accuses critics of 'playing politics' over Brexit
Prime Minister Theresa May accused critics of her plans to leave the European Union of "playing politics" with Britain's future and undermining the national interest in an interview with the Sunday Times newspaper.
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives for the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Britain, September 29, 2018.
in another interview next to the one with her on the newspaper's front page, her former foreign minister Boris Johnson pressed his attack of her so-called Chequers plan for Brexit, saying a proposal that Britain and the EU should collect each other's tariffs was "entirely preposterous."
Wayde Sims shooting: police arrest suspect Dyteon Simpson in LSU player's death
police have arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting death of Wayde Sims, a 20-year-old basketball player at LSU.
Dyteon Simpson, 20, has been arrested and booked into prison on a second-degree murder charge, the Baton Rouge Police Department said.
officials released video of the confrontation between Sims and Simpson, and police said Sims lost his glasses during the fight.
police recovered the glasses from the scene and said they found Simpson's DNA on them, CBS affiliate WAFB reports.
after questioning Simpson, police said he admitted to fatally shooting Wayde.
his bond has been set at $350,000, the Advocate reports.
the East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office released a preliminary report Friday, saying the cause of death is a gunshot wound to the head into the neck.
the department is crediting the Louisiana State Police fugitive task force, the state police crime lab, Southern University police and area citizens in assisting in the investigation leading to the arrest.
LSU athletic director Joe Alleva thanked area law enforcement for its "diligence and pursuit of justice."
Sims was 20 years old.
the 6-foot-6 forward grew up in Baton Rouge, where his father, Wayne, also played basketball for LSU.
he averaged 5.6 points and 2.6 rebounds a game last season.
on Friday morning, LSU basketball coach Will Wade said the team is "devastated" and "in shock" by Wayde's death.
"this is what you worry about at all times," Wade said.
volcano spews ash on Mexico City
ash spewing from the Popocatepetl volcano has reached the southern neighborhoods of Mexico's capital.
the National Center for Disaster Prevention warned Mexicans on Saturday to stay away from the volcano after activity picked up in the crater and it registered 183 emissions of gas and ash over 24 hours.
the center was monitoring multiple rumblings and tremors.
images on social media showed thin layers of ash coating car windshields in neighborhoods of Mexico City such as Xochimilco.
geophysicists have noticed an increase in activity at the volcano that sits 45 miles (72 kilometers) southeast of the capital since a 7.1-magnitude earthquake rocked central Mexico in September 2017.
the volcano known as "Don Goyo" has been active since 1994.
police clash with Catalan separatists ahead of independence vote anniversary
six people were arrested in Barcelona on Saturday after pro-independence protesters clashed with riot police, and as thousands joined rival demonstrations to mark the first anniversary of Catalonia's polarizing vote on secession.
a group of masked pro-separatists held back by riot police pelted them with eggs and hurled powder paint, creating dark clouds of dust in streets that would usually be thronged with tourists.
scuffles also broke out later in the day with police using their batons to contain the fighting.
over several hours pro-independence groups chanting "No forgetting, no forgiveness" faced off with unionist protesters shouting, "Long live Spain."
fourteen people received treatment for minor injuries received in the protests, local press reported.
tensions remain high in the independence-minded region a year after the October 1 referendum deemed illegal by Madrid but celebrated by separatist Catalans.
voters chose overwhelmingly to become independent, though turnout was low with those against secession largely boycotting the vote.
according to Catalan authorities almost 1000 people were injured last year after police tried to stop the vote going ahead at polling stations across the region in violent clashes.
pro-independence groups had camped out overnight on Friday to prevent a demonstration in support of the national police.
the demonstration went ahead but was forced to take a different route.
Narcis Termes, 68, an electrician attending the separatist protest with his wife said he was no longer hopeful about the prospects of Catalonia gaining independence.
"last year we lived through one of our best moments.
I watched my parents cry with joy at being able to vote but now we are stuck, "he said.
despite managing a vital if narrow victory in regional elections last December, Catalan pro-independence parties have struggled to retain momentum this year with many of their best known leaders either in self imposed exile or in detention awaiting trial for their role in organizing the referendum and subsequent declaration of independence.
Joan Puig, a 42-year-old mechanic recording the protest in support of the police on his phone, said the conflict had been stoked by politicians on both sides.
"it's getting more and more tense," he said.
on Saturday, Oriol Junqueras, one of nine Catalan leaders in pre-trial jail since late last year, announced he would run in European Parliament elections next year.
"standing as a candidate for the European elections is the best way to denounce the regression in democratic values and repression we have seen from the Spanish government," he said.
Londonderry: men arrested after house rammed by car
three men, aged 33, 34 and 39, have been arrested after a car was repeatedly rammed into a house in Londonderry.
the incident unfolded in Ballynagard Crescent on Thursday at about 19: 30 BST.
det Insp Bob Blemmings said damage was caused to the gates and the building itself.
a crossbow may also have been fired at the car at some point.
menga strike gives Livingston 1-0 win over Rangers
Dolly menga's first goal for Livingston secured victory
promoted Livingston stunned Rangers to consign Steven Gerrard to just his second defeat in 18 games as manager of the Ibrox club.
Dolly menga's strike proved to be the difference as Gary Holt's side moved level with Hibernian in second.
Gerrard's side remain without an away win in the Premiership this season and face leaders Hearts, who they trail by eight points, next Sunday.
before then, Rangers host Rapid Vienna in the Europa League on Thursday.
Livingston, meanwhile, extend their unbeaten run in the division to six games, with head coach Holt still to taste defeat since replacing Kenny miler last month.
Livingston miss chances against blunt visitors
Holt's team should have been ahead long before they scored, with their directness causing Rangers all manner of problems.
Scott Robinson broke through but dragged his effort across the face of goal, then Alan Lithgow could only direct his effort wide after sliding in to meet Craig Halkett's header across goal.
the hosts were content to let Rangers play in front of them, knowing they could trouble the visitors at set pieces.
and that was the manner in which the crucial goal came.
Rangers conceded a free-kick and Livingston worked an opening, Declan Gallagher and Robinson combining to set up menga, who took a touch and scored from the centre of the box.
by that stage, Rangers had dominated possession but had found the home defence impenetrable and goalkeeper Liam Kelly was largely untroubled,
that pattern continued into the second half, though Alfredo Morelos did force a save from Kelly.
Scott Pittman was denied by the feet of Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor and Lithgow flicked wide from another Livingston set play.
crosses continually came into the Livingston box and were continually cleared, while two penalty claims - after Halkett's challenge on substitute Glenn Middleton, and one for handball - were waved away.
'Phenomenal 'from Livingston - analysis
BBC Scotland's Alasdair Lamont at the Tony Macaroni Arena
a phenomenal performance and result for Livingston.
to a man, they were excellent, continuing to exceed expectations on this upward trajectory.
their style of play and personnel has scarcely changed since their return to the top flight, but great credit has to go to Holt for the way he has galvanised the team since his arrival.
he had so many heroes.
Captain Halkett was immense, marshalling a superbly-organised defence, while menga kept Connor Goldson and Joe Worrall on their toes throughout.
Rangers were short of inspiration, though.
as good as they have been at times under Gerrard, they fell well short of those standards.
their final ball was lacking - only once did they cut the home side open - and it is something of a wake-up call for Rangers, who find themselves in mid-table.
Erdogan get mixed reception in Cologne
there were smiles and blue skies on Saturday (September 29) as the leaders of Turkey and Germany met for breakast in Berlin.
it's the last day of President Erdogan's controversial visit to Germany - which is aimed at repairing relations beteen the NATO allies.
they've fallen out over issues including human rights, press freedom and Turkey's accession to the EU.
Erdogan then headed for Cologne to open a giant new mosque.
the city is home to the largest Turkish population outside Turkey.
police cited security reasons to block a 25,000-strong crowd from gathering in front of the mosque, but plenty of supporters turned out nearby to see their president.
hundreds of anti-Erdogan protesters - many of them Kurdish - also made their voices heard, condemning both Erdogan's policies and the German government's decision to welcome him to the country.
the dueling protests reflect the divisiveness of a visitor hailed as a hero by some German Turks and reviled as an autocrat by others.
Deptford road crash: cyclist dies in collision with car
a cyclist has died in a collision involving a car in London.
the crash happened near the junction of Bestwood Street and Evelyn Street, a busy road in Deptford, in the south-east of the city, at about 10: 15 BST.
the driver of the car stopped and paramedics attended, but the man died at the scene.
the crash comes months after another cyclist died in a hit-and-run on Childers Street, about a mile away from Saturday's crash.
the Metropolitan Police said officers were working to identify the man and inform his next-of-kin.
road closures and bus diversions are in place and motorists have been advised to avoid the area.
long Lartin prison: six officers hurt in disorder
six prison officers have been injured in a disturbance at a high security men's jail, the Prison Office has said.
disorder broke out at hmp Long Lartin in Worcestershire at about 09: 30 BST on Sunday and is ongoing.
specialist "Tornado" officers have been brought in to deal with the disturbance, which involves eight inmates and is contained to one wing.
the officers were treated for minor facial injuries at the scene.
a Prison Service spokesperson said: "specially trained prison staff have been deployed to deal with an ongoing incident at hmp Long Lartin.
six members of staff have been treated for injuries.
we do not tolerate violence in our prisons, and are clear that those responsible will be referred to the police and could spend longer behind bars. "
hmp Long Lartin holds more than 500 prisoners, including some of the country's most dangerous offenders.
in June it was reported that the prison's governor received hospital treatment after being attacked by a prisoner.
and in October last year riot officers were called to the prison to deal with a serious disturbance in which staff were attacked with pool balls.
hurricane Rosa threatening Phoenix, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City With Flash Flooding (Drought Areas May Benefit)
it's rare for a tropical depression to hit Arizona, but that's exactly what's likely to happen early happen early next week as Hurricane Rosa's remaining energy tracks across the Desert Southwest, delivering flash flooding risks.
the National Weather Service has already issued flash flood watches for Monday and Tuesday for western Arizona into southern and eastern Nevada, southeastern California and Utah, including the cities of Phoenix, Flagstaff, Las Vegas, and Salt Lake City.
Rosa is expected to take a direct path over Phoenix on Tuesday, approaching late Monday with rain.
the National Weather Service in Phoenix noted in a tweet that only "ten tropical cyclones have maintained tropical storm or depression status within 200 miles of Phoenix since 1950!
Katrina (1967) was a hurricane within 40 miles of the AZ border. "
the latest National Hurricane Center models predict 2 to 4 inches of rainfall, with isolated amounts up to 6 inches in the Mogollon Rim of Arizona.
other areas of the Desert Southwest including the central Rockies and the Great Basin are likely to get 1 to 2 inches, with isolated totals up to 4 inches possible.
for those out of flash flood risk, Rosa's rain may be a blessing since the region is drought-stricken.
although flooding is a very serious concern, some of this rainfall will likely be beneficial since the Southwest is currently experiencing drought conditions.
according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, just over 40 percent of Arizona is experiencing at least extreme drought, the second highest category, "weather.com reported.
first, Hurricane Rosa's path leads to landfall across the Baja California peninsula of Mexico.
Rosa, still at hurricane strength Sunday morning with maximum winds of 85 miles per hour, is 385 miles south of Punta Eugenia, Mexico and moving north at 12 miles per hour.
the storm is encountering cooler waters in the Pacific and therefore powering down.
thus, it's expected to make landfall in Mexico at tropical storm strength in the afternoon or evening on Monday.
rainfall across portions of Mexico could be heavy, posing a significant flooding risk.
"rainfall totals of 3 to 6 inches are expected from Baja California into northwestern Sonora, with up to 10 inches possible," weather.com reported.
Rosa will then track north across Mexico as a tropical storm before reaching the Arizona border in the early morning hours Tuesday as a tropical depression, which will then track up through Arizona and into southern Utah by late Tuesday night.
"the main hazard expected from Rosa or its remnants is very heavy rainfall in Baja California, northwestern Sonora, and the U.S. Desert Southwest," the National Hurricane Center said.
these rains are expected to produce life-threatening flash flooding and debris flows in the deserts, and landslides in mountainous terrain.
Midsomer Norton attack: four attempted murder arrests
three teenage boys and a 20-year-old man have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a 16-year-old was found with stab wounds in Somerset.
the teenage boy was found injured in the Excelsior Terrace area of Midsomer Norton, at about 04: 00 BST on Saturday.
he was taken to hospital where he remains in a "stable" condition.
a 17-year-old, two 18-year-olds and a 20-year-old man were arrested overnight in the Radstock area, Avon and Somerset Police said.
officers have appealed for anyone who may have any mobile phone footage of what happened to come forward.
Trump says Kavanaugh 'suffered, the meanness, the anger' of the Democratic Party
"a vote for Judge Kavanaugh is a vote to reject the ruthless and outrageous tactics of the Democratic Party," Trump said at a rally in Wheeling, West Virginia.
Trump said that Kavanaugh has "suffered the meanness, the anger" of the Democratic Party throughout his nomination process.
Kavanaugh testified before Congress on Thursday, forcefully and emotionally denying an allegation from Christine Blasey Ford that he sexually assaulted her decades ago when they were teenagers.
Ford also testified at the hearing about her allegation.
the President said on Saturday that the "American people saw the brilliant and quality and courage" of Kavanaugh that day.
"a vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh is a vote to confirm one of the most accomplished legal minds of our time, a jurist with a sterling record of public service," he told the crowd of West Virginia supporters.
the President obliquely referred to Kavanaugh's nomination while talking about the importance of Republican turnout in the midterm elections.
"five weeks away from one of the most important elections in our lifetimes.
I'm not running, but I'm really running, "he said.
"that's why I'm all over the place fighting for great candidates."
Trump argued that Democrats are on a mission to "resist and obstruct."
the first key procedural vote on the Senate floor on Kavanaugh's nomination is expected to take place no later than Friday, a senior GOP leadership aide has told CNN.
hundreds killed by Indonesian quake, tsunami, with toll seen rising
at least 384 people were killed, many swept away as giant waves crashed onto beaches, when a major earthquake and tsunami hit the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, authorities said on Saturday.
hundreds of people had gathered for a festival on the beach in the city of Palu on Friday when waves as high as six meters (18 feet) smashed onshore at dusk, sweeping many to their deaths and destroying anything in their path.
the tsunami followed a 7.5 magnitude earthquake.
"when the tsunami threat arose yesterday, people were still doing their activities on the beach and did not immediately run and they became victims," Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the spokesman for Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency BNPB said in a briefing in Jakarta.
"the tsunami didn't come by itself, it dragged cars, logs, houses, it hit everything on land," Nugroho said, adding that the tsunami had traveled across the open sea at speeds of 800 kph (497 mph) before striking the shoreline.
some people climbed trees to escape the tsunami and survived, he said.
around 16,700 people were evacuated to 24 centers in Palu.
aerial photographs released by the disaster agency showed many buildings and shops destroyed, bridges twisted and collapsed and a mosque surrounded by water.
aftershocks continued to rock the coastal city on Saturday.
the series of earthquakes were felt in an area with 2.4 million people.
Indonesia's Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) said in statement the energy released by Friday's massive quake was around 200 times the power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in World War Two.
the geography of the city, which sits at the end of a long, narrow bay, could have magnified the size of the tsunami, it said.
Nugroho described the damage as "extensive" and said thousands of houses, hospitals, shopping malls and hotels had collapsed.
bodies of some victims were found trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings, he said, adding 540 people were injured and 29 were missing.
Nugroho said the casualties and the damage could be greater along the coastline 300 km (190 miles) north of Palu, an area called Donggala, which is closer to the epicenter of the quake.
communications "were totally crippled with no information" from Donggala, Nugroho said.
there are more than 300,000 people living there, "the Red Cross said in a statement, adding that its staff and volunteers were heading to the affected areas.
"this is already a tragedy, but it could get much worse," it said.
the agency on Saturday was widely criticized for not informing that a tsunami had hit Palu, though officials said waves had come within the time the warning was issued.
in amateur footage shared on social media a man on the upper floor of a building can be heard shouting frantic warnings of the approaching tsunami to people on the street below.
within minutes a wall of water crashes onto the shore, carrying away buildings and cars.
Reuters was not able to immediately authenticate the footage.
the quake and tsunami caused a major power outage that cut communications around Palu making it difficult for authorities to coordinate rescue efforts.
the military has started sending in cargo planes with aid from Jakarta and other cities, authorities said, but evacuees still badly need food and other basic necessities.
the city's airport has been reopened only for relief efforts and will remain closed until Oct.
President Joko Widodo was scheduled to visit evacuation centers in Palu on Sunday.
Indonesia Tsunami Toll Soars Above 800.
it Is Very Bad.
while World Vision's staff from Donggala have made it safely to Palu city, where employees are sheltering in tarpaulin shelters set up in the courtyard of their office, they passed scenes of devastation on the way, Mr. Doseba said.
"they told me they saw lots of houses that were destroyed," he said.
it is very bad.
even as aid groups began the grim motions of starting the gears of disaster relief, some complained that foreign aid workers with deep expertise were being prevented from traveling to Palu.
according to Indonesian regulations, funding, supplies and staffing from overseas can only start flowing if the site of a calamity is declared a national disaster zone.
that has not happened yet.
"it's still a province level disaster," said Aulia Arriani, a spokesperson for the Indonesian Red Cross.
"once the government says," O.K., this is a national disaster, "we can open for international assistance but there's no status yet."
as the second night fell on Palu after Friday's earthquake and tsunami, friends and family of those still missing were holding out hope that their loved ones would be the miracles that leaven the bleak story lines of natural disasters.
on Saturday, a little boy was plucked from a sewer.
on Sunday, rescuers freed a woman who had been pinned under rubble for two days with the body of her mother next to her.
Gendon Subandono, the coach of the Indonesian national paragliding team, had trained two of the missing paragliders for the Asian Games, which wrapped up earlier this month in Indonesia.
others of those trapped at the Roa Roa Hotel, Mr. Mandagi included, were his students.
"as a senior in the paragliding field, I have my own emotional burden," he said.
Mr. Gendon recounted how, in the hours after the news of the Roa Roa Hotel collapse circulated among the paragliding community, he had desperately sent WhatsApp messages to the Palu competitors, who were taking part in the beach festival.
his messages, though, only resulted in one gray check mark, rather than a pair of blue checks.
"I think that means the messages were not delivered," he said.
thieves take $26,750 during ATM refill at Newport on the levee
thieves on Friday morning stole $26,750 from a Brink's worker refilling an ATM at Newport on the levee, according to a news release from the Newport Police Department.
the car's driver had been emptying an ATM in the entertainment complex and preparing to deliver more money, Det. Dennis McCarthy wrote in the release.
while he was occupied, another man "ran up from behind the Brink's employee" and stole a bag of money meant for delivery.
witnesses spotted multiple suspects fleeing the scene, according to the release, but police did not specify the number involved in the incident.
anyone with information about their identities should contact Newport police at 859-292-3680.
Kanye West: rapper changes his name to Ye
rapper Kanye West is changing his name - to Ye.
announcing the change on Twitter on Saturday, he wrote: "the being formally known as Kanye West."
West, 41, has been nicknamed Ye for some time and used the moniker as the title for his eighth album, which was released in June.
the change comes ahead of his appearance on Saturday Night Live, where he is expected to launch his new album Yandhi.
he replaces singer Ariana Grande on the show who cancelled for "emotional reasons," the show's creator said.
as well as being an abbreviation of his current professional name, West has previously said the word has religious significance for him.
"I believe 'ye' is the most commonly used word in the Bible, and in the Bible it means' you, '" West said earlier this year, discussing his album title with radio host Big Boy.
"so I'm you, I'm us, it's us.
it went from Kanye, which means the only one, to just Ye - just being a reflection of our good, our bad, our confused, everything.
the album is more of a reflection of who we are. "
he is one of a number of famous rappers to change their name.
Sean Combs has been variously known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy or Diddy, but this year announced his preference for the names Love and Brother Love.
a former West collaborator, JAY-Z, has also made do with or without a hyphen and capitals.
Mexico's AMLO vows not to use military against civilians
Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has vowed to never use military force against civilians as the country approaches the 50th anniversary of a bloody reprisal against students.
Lopez Obrador promised Saturday at Tlatelolco Plaza to "never ever use the military to repress the Mexican people."
troops fired on a peaceful demonstration at the plaza on Oct. 2, 1968, killing as many as 300 people at a time when leftist student movements were taking root throughout Latin America.
Lopez Obrador has pledged to support young Mexicans by giving monthly subsidies to those who study and opening more free public universities.
he has said that unemployment and a lack of educational opportunities draws youth to criminal gangs.
U.S. should double A.I. funding
as China becomes more active in artificial intelligence, the U.S. should double the amount it spends on research in the field, says investor and AI practitioner Kai-Fu Lee, who has worked for Google, Microsoft and Apple.
the comments come after various parts of the U.S. government have made AI announcements, even as the U.S. overall lacks a formal AI strategy.
meanwhile, China introduced its plan last year: it's aiming to be No.1 in AI innovation by 2030.
"double the AI research budget would be a good start, given that all other countries are so much farther behind U.S., and we're looking for the next breakthrough in AI," said Lee.
doubling funding could double the chances that the next big AI achievement will be made in the U.S., Lee told CNBC in an interview this week.
Lee, whose book "AI superpowers: China, Silicon Valley and the New World Order" was published this month by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, is CEO of Sinovation Ventures, which has invested in one of the most prominent AI companies in China, Face + +.
in the 1980s at Carnegie Mellon University he worked on an AI system that beat the highest-ranked American Othello player, and later he was an executive at Microsoft Research and president of Google's China branch.
Lee acknowledged previous U.S. government technology competitions like the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Robotics Challenge and asked when the next one would be, in order to help identify the next visionaries.
researchers in the U.S. often have to work hard in order to win government grants, Lee said.
"it's not China that is taking away the academic leaders; it's the corporates," Lee said.
Facebook, Google and other technology companies have hired luminaries from universities to work on AI in recent years.
Lee said immigration policy changes could also help the U.S. bolster its AI efforts.
"I think green cards should automatically be offered to PhD's in AI," he said.
China's State Council issued its Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan in July 2017.
China's National Natural Science Foundation provides funding to people at academic institutions similar to the way that the National Science Foundation and other government organizations dole out money to U.S. researchers, but the quality of academic work is lower in China, Lee said.
earlier this year the U.S. Defense Department established a Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, which is meant to involve partners from industry and academia, and the White House announced the formation of Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence.
and this month DARPA announced a $2 billion investment in an initiative called AI Next.
as for the NSF, it currently invests more than $100 million per year in AI research.
meanwhile, U.S. legislation that sought to create a National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence has not seen action in months.
Macedonians vote in referendum on whether to change country's name
the people of Macedonia voted in a referendum on Sunday on whether to change its name to "Republic of North Macedonia," a move that would resolve a decades-old dispute with Greece which had blocked its membership bids for the European Union and NATO.
Greece, which has a province called Macedonia, maintains that its northern neighbor's name represents a claim on its territory and has vetoed its entrance into NATO and the EU.
the two governments struck a deal in June based on the proposed new name, but nationalist opponents argue the change would undermine the ethnic identity of Macedonia's Slavic majority population.
President Gjorge Ivanov has said he will not be voting in the referendum and a boycott campaign has cast doubts on whether turnout will meet the minimum 50 percent required for the referendum to be valid.
the question on the referendum ballot read: "are you for NATO and EU membership with acceptance of the agreement with Greece."
supporters of the name change, including Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, argue that it is a price worth paying to pursue admission into bodies such as the EU and NATO for Macedonia, one of the countries to emerge from the collapse of Yugoslavia.
"I came today to vote for the future of the country, for young people in Macedonia so they can be live freely under the umbrella of the European Union because it means safer lives for all of us," said Olivera Georgijevska, 79, in Skopje.
although not legally binding, enough members of parliament have said they will abide by the vote's outcome to make it decisive.
the name change would requires a two-thirds majority in parliament.
the state election commission said there had been no reports of irregularities by 1 p.m.
however, turnout stood at only 16 percent, compared to 34 percent in last parliamentary election in 2016 when 66 percent of the registered voters cast their ballot.
"I came out to vote because of my children, our place is in Europe," said Gjose Tanevski, 62, a voter in the capital, Skopje.
Macedonia's PM Zoran Zaev, his wife Zorica and his son Dushko cast their ballot for the referendum in Macedonia on changing the country's name that would open the way for it to join NATO and the European Union in Strumica, Macedonia September 30, 2018.
in front of parliament in Skopje, Vladimir Kavardarkov, 54, was preparing a small stage and pulling up chairs in front of tents set up by those who will boycott the referendum.
"we are for NATO and EU, but we want to join with our heads up, not through the service door" Kavadarkov said.
"we are a poor country, but we do have dignity.
if they don't want to take us as Macedonia, we can turn to others like China and Russia and become part of Euro-Asia integration. "
Prime Minister Zaev says NATO membership will bring much needed investment to Macedonia, which has an unemployment rate of more than 20 percent.
"I believe the huge majority will be in favor because more than 80 percent of our citizens are in favor of EU and NATO," Zaev said after casting his ballot.
he said that a "yes" result would be "confirmation of our future."
a poll published last Monday by Macedonia's Institute for Policy Research said between 30 and 43 percent of voters would take part in the referendum - below the required turnout.
another poll, conducted by Macedonia's Telma TV, found 57 percent of respondents planning to vote on Sunday.
of those, 70 percent said they would vote yes.
for the referendum to be successful turnout needs to be 50 percent plus one vote.
a failure in the referendum would represent the first serious blow to policy of the pro-Western government since it took over in May last year.
watch: Manchester City's Sergio Aguero navigates through entire Brighton defense for goal
Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling dispatched of the Brighton defense in Manchester City's 2-0 win on Saturday at Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England.
Aguero made it look ridiculously easy on his score in the 65th minute.
the Argentine striker received a pass at midfield at the start of the sequence.
he raced between three Brighton defenders, before slashing into the open field.
Aguero then found himself surrounded by four green shirts.
he pushed around one defender before outrunning several more at the edge of the Brighton box.
he then pushed a pass to his left, finding Sterling.
the English forward used his first touch in the box to give the ball back to Aguero, who used his right boot to beat Brighton keeper Mathew Ryan with a shot into the right side of the net.
"Aguero is struggling with some problems in his feet," City manager Pep Guardiola told reporters.
"we spoke about him playing 55, 60 minutes.
that's what happened.
we were lucky he scored a goal in that moment. "
but it was Sterling who gave the Sky Blues the initial advantage in the Premier League scuffle.
that goal came in the 29th minute.
Aguero received the ball deep in Brighton territory on that play.
he sent a beautiful through ball along the left flank to Leroy Sane.
sane took a few touches before leading Sterling toward the far post.
the Sky Blues forward tapped the ball into the net just before sliding out of bounds.
city battles Hoffenheim in Champions League group play at 12: 55 p.m. on Tuesday at Rhein-Neckar-Arena in Sinsheim, Germany.
Scherzer wants to play spoiler vs. Rockies
with the Nationals eliminated from playoff contention, there wasn't much reason to force another start.
but the ever-competitive Scherzer hopes to take the mound on Sunday against the Colorado Rockies, but only if there are still playoff implications for the Rockies, who hold a one-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.
the Rockies clinched at least a wild-card spot with a 5-2 win over the Nationals on Friday night, but are still looking to lock up their first division title.
"even though we're playing for nothing, at least we can be able to toe the rubber knowing that the atmosphere here in Denver with the crowd and the other team would be playing at probably the highest level of any point I would face this year.
why wouldn't I want to compete in that? "
the Nationals have yet to announce a starter for Sunday, but are reportedly inclined to let Scherzer pitch in such a situation.
Scherzer, who would be making his 34th start, threw a bullpen session on Thursday and would be pitching on his normal rest Sunday.
the Washington right-hander is 18-7 with a 2.53 ERA and 300 strikeouts in 220 2 / 3 innings this season.
Trump rallies in West Virginia
the President obliquely referred to the situation surrounding his Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh while talking about the importance of Republican turnout in the midterm elections.
"all of what we've done is at stake in November.
five weeks away from one of the most important elections in our lifetimes.
this is one of the big, big -- I'm not running but I'm really running that's why I'm all over the place fighting for great candidates, "he said.
Trump continued, "You see this horrible, horrible radical group of Democrats, you see it happening right now.
and they're determined to take back power by using any means necessary, you see the meanness, the nastiness.
they don't care who they hurt, who they have to run over in order to get power and control, that's what they want is power and control, we're not going to give it to them. "
Democrats, he said, are on a mission to "resist and obstruct."
"and you see that over the last four days," he said, calling the Democrats "angry and mean and nasty and untruthful."
he referenced Senate Judiciary Committee ranking Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein by name, which received loud boos from the audience.
"remember her answer?
did you leak the document?
UH, uh, what.
no, uh no, I wait one - that was really bad body language - the worst body language I've ever seen. "
labour is no longer a broad church.
it is intolerant of those who speak their minds
when Momentum's activists in my local party voted to censure me, it was hardly a surprise.
after all, I'm the latest in a line of Labour MPs to be told we are not welcome - all for speaking our minds.
my parliamentary colleague Joan Ryan received similar treatment because she resolutely stood up to antisemitism.
in my case, the censure motion criticised me for disagreeing with Jeremy Corbyn.
on the importance of a responsible economic policy, on national security, on Europe, ironically similar issues on which Jeremy disagreed with previous leaders.
the notice for the Nottingham East Labour meeting on Friday stated that "we want the meetings to be inclusive and productive."
for most of my eight years as the local Labour MP, the Friday night GC meetings have been exactly that.
sadly today, it is not the tone of many meetings and the promise of "kinder, gentler" politics has long been forgotten if, indeed, it ever began.
it has become increasingly apparent that differing views are not tolerated in the Labour party and every opinion is judged on whether it is acceptable to the party leadership.
this started shortly after Jeremy became leader, as colleagues with whom I had previously thought I shared a similar political outlook began expecting me to do a U-turn and take positions I would never have otherwise agreed with - whether on national security or the EU single market.
whenever I speak publicly - and it doesn't really matter what I say - there follows a tirade of abuse on social media calling for deselection, denouncing the politics of the centre, telling me I should not be in the Labour party.
and that is not just my experience.
indeed, I know I am more fortunate than some of my colleagues as the comments directed at me tend to be political.
I am in awe of the professionalism and determination of those colleagues who face a torrent of sexist or racist abuse every day but never shy away.
one of the most disappointing aspects of this era of politics is how levels of abuse have become normalised.
Jeremy Corbyn claimed last week that the Labour party should foster a culture of tolerance.
the reality is we are no longer that broad church and with every "no-confidence" motion or change of selection rules the party becomes narrower.
I have had lots of advice over the past two years urging me to keep my head down, not to be so vocal and then I would "be all right."
but that is not what I came into politics to do.
ever since I joined Labour 32 years ago as a school pupil, provoked by the Thatcher government's neglect that had left my comprehensive school classroom literally falling down, I've sought to champion better public services for those who need them most - whether as a local councillor or government minister.
I have never hidden my politics, including at the last election.
no one in Nottingham East could have been in any way confused about my policy positions and areas of disagreement with the current leadership.
to those who promoted the motion on Friday, all I would say is that when the country is ploughing towards a Brexit that will hurt households, businesses and our public services, I do not understand the desire to waste time and energy on my loyalty to the Labour party leader.
but really the one message I have is not to Nottingham Momentum, it is to my constituents, whether Labour members or not: I am proud to serve you and I promise that no amount of deselection threats or political expediency will deter me from acting in what I believe are the best interests of you all.
Chris Leslie is MP for Nottingham East
Ayr 38 - 17 Melrose: unbeaten Ayr go top
two late tries may have skewed the final result somewhat, but there is no doubt Ayr deserved to triumph in this wonderfully-entertaining Tennent's Premiership match of the day.
they now top the table, the only unbeaten side of the ten.
in the end, it was their superior defence, as much as their better chance-taking, which carried the home side and coach Peter Murchie had every right to be pleased.
"we've been tested over our games this far, and we're still unbeaten, so I have to be happy," he said.
Robyn Christie of Melrose said: "credit to Ayr, they took their chances better than we did."
grant Anderson's 14th minute try, converted by Frazier Climo, put Ayr in front, but, a yellow card for Scotland cap Rory Hughes, released for the game by Warriors, allowed Melrose to make numbers tell and Jason Baggot grabbed an unconverted try.
Climo stretched the Ayr lead with a penalty, before, right on half-time, he scored then converted a solo try to make it 17-5 to Ayr at the break.
but Melrose began the second half well and Patrick Anderson's try, converted by Baggot, reduced the leeway to five points.
there was then a lengthy hold-up for a serious injury to Ruaridh Knott, who was stretchered off, and from the restart, Ayr surged further ahead through a Stafford McDowall try, converted by Climo.
Ayr acting captain Blair Macpherson was then yellow-carded, and again, Melrose made the extra man pay with an unconverted Bruce Colvine try, at the end of a spell of fierce pressure.
the home side came back, however, and when Struan Hutchinson was yellow-carded for tackling Climo without the ball, from the penalty line-out, Macpherson touched down at the back of the advancing Ayr maul.
Climo converted, as he did again almost from the restart, after Kyle Rowe gathered David Armstrong's box kick and sent flanker Gregor Henry away for the home side's fifth try.
still Game star looks set for new career in restaurant industry
still Game star Ford Kieran looks set to move into the hospitality industry after it was discovered he's been named as the director of a licensed restaurants company.
the 56-year-old plays Jack Jarvis on the popular BBC show, which he writes and co-stars with long-time comedy partner Greg Hemphill.
the duo have announced that the upcoming ninth series will be the final one in the show's run, and it appears Kiernan is planning for life after Craiglang.
according to official record listings, he is the director of Adriftmorn Limited.
the actor declined to comment on the story, though a Scottish Sun source hinted that Kiernan was looking to get involved in Glasgow's "thriving restaurant trade."
'the sea is ours': landlocked Bolivia hopes court will reopen path to Pacific
sailors patrol a rigging-clad naval headquarters in La Paz.
public buildings fly an ocean-blue flag.
naval bases from Lake Titicaca to the Amazon are daubed with the motto: "the sea is ours by right.
to recover it is a duty. "
throughout landlocked Bolivia, the memory of a coastline lost to Chile in a bloody 19th-century resource conflict is still vivid - as is the yearning to sail the Pacific Ocean once more.
those hopes are perhaps at their highest in decades, as Bolivia awaits a ruling by the international court of justice on 1 October after five years of deliberations.
"Bolivia has the momentum, a spirit of unity and serenity, and is of course expecting with a positive view the outcome," said Roberto Calzadilla, a Bolivian diplomat.
many Bolivians will watch the ICJ ruling on big screens across the country, hopeful that the tribunal in The Hague will find in favour of Bolivia's claim that - after decades of fitful talks - Chile is obliged to negotiate granting Bolivia a sovereign outlet to the sea.
Evo Morales, Bolivia's charismatic indigenous president - who faces a controversial battle for re-election next year - also has plenty riding on Monday's ruling.
"we are very close to returning to the Pacific Ocean," he vowed in late August.
but some analysts believe that the court is unlikely to decide in Bolivia's favour - and that little would change if it did.
the Netherlands-based UN body has no power to award Chilean territory, and has stipulated that it will not determine the outcome of possible talks.
that the ICJ's ruling comes only six months after the final arguments were heard indicates the case "wasn't complicated," said Paz Zárate, a Chilean expert in international law.
and far from furthering Bolivia's cause, the past four years may have set it back.
"the issue of access to the sea has been hijacked by the current Bolivian administration," said Zárate.
Morales's belligerent rhetoric has sapped any residual Chilean goodwill, she suggested.
Bolivia and Chile will at some point continue to talk, but it will be extremely difficult to hold discussions after this.
the two countries have not exchanged ambassadors since 1962.
former president Eduardo Rodríguez Veltzé, Bolivia's representative at The Hague, rejected the idea that the court's decision-making was unusually speedy.
Monday will bring Bolivia "an extraordinary opportunity to open a new era of relations with Chile" and a chance to "put an end to 139 years of disagreements with mutual benefits," he said.
Calzadilla also denied that Morales - still one of Latin America's most popular presidents - was using the maritime issue as a political crutch.
"Bolivia will never give up its right to have access to the Pacific Ocean," he added.
"the ruling is an opportunity to see that we need to overcome the past."
North Korea says nuclear disarmament won't come unless it can trust US
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho says his nation will never disarm its nuclear weapons first if it can't trust Washington.
RI was speaking Saturday at the United Nations General Assembly.
he called on the United States to follow through on promises made during a summit in Singapore between the rivals' leaders.
his comments come as US. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo seems to be on the verge of restarting deadlocked nuclear diplomacy more than three months after the Singapore with North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
RI says it's a "pipe dream" that continued sanctions and U.S. objection to a declaration ending the Korean War will ever bring the North to its knees.
Washington is wary of agreeing to the declaration without Pyongyang first making significant disarmament moves.
both Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump want a second summit.
but there is widespread skepticism that Pyongyang is serious about renouncing an arsenal that the country likely sees as the only way to guarantee its safety.
Pompeo is planning to visit Pyongyang next month to prepare for a second Kim-Trump summit.
Paris fashion shows reveal latest line in massive headwear on it's way to a High Street near you
if you want to upsize your hat collection or completely block out the sun then look no further.
designers Valentino and Thom Browne unveiled an array of wacky oversized head gear for their SS19 collection on the runway which dazzled the style set at Paris Fashion Week.
highly impractical hats have swept Instagram this summer and these designers have sent their eye-popping creations down the catwalk.
the stand out piece by Valentino was an over-the-top beige hat adorned with a feather-like wide brim that swamped the models heads.
other over-sized accessories included bejeweled watermelons, a wizard hat and even a pineapple - but they are not designed to keep your head warm.
Thom Browne also revealed a selection of bizarre masks- and just in time for Halloween.
many of the colourful masks had sewn up lips and resembled more like Hannibal Lecter than haute couture.
one creation resembled scuba diving gear complete with snorkel and goggles, while another looked like a melted ice cream cone.
and if you continue the huge fashion statement- you are in luck.
style watchers predict that the enormous bonnets could be making their way to high streets near you.
the out-sized hats come hot on the heels of 'La Bomba', the straw hat with a two-foot wide brim that's been seen on everyone from Rihanna to Emily Ratajkowski.
the cult label behind the highly impractical hat that was splashed across social media sent another big creation down the catwalk - a straw beach bag almost as big as the swimsuit-clad model toting it.
the burnt orange raffia bag, trimmed with raffia fringing and topped with a white leather handle, was the stand out piece in Jacquemus' La Riviera SS19 collection at Paris Fashion Week.
celebrity stylist Luke Armitage told FEMAIL: 'I'm expecting to see large hats and beach bags arrive on the high street for next summer - as the designer has made such a huge impact it would be hard to ignore the demand for the oversized accessories.'
John Edward: languages skills essential for global citizens
Scotland's independent schools maintain a track record of academic excellence, and this has continued in 2018 with another set of outstanding exam results, which is only strengthened by individual and collective success in sports, art, music and other community endeavours.
with upwards of 30,000 pupils across Scotland, these schools, represented by The Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS), strive to deliver the best level of service to their pupils and parents.
independent schools aim to prepare their pupils for further and higher education, their chosen career and their place as global citizens.
as an education sector that can design and implement a bespoke school curriculum, we are seeing modern languages continue as a popular and desired subject of choice within schools.
Nelson Mandela said: "if you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head.
if you talk to him in his own language that goes to his heart. "
this is a powerful reminder that we can't just rely on English when wanting to build relationships and trust with people from other countries.
from this year's recent exam results, we can see that languages are topping the league tables with the highest pass rates within independent schools.
a total of 68 per cent of pupils who studied foreign languages achieved a Higher grade A.
the data, collected from SCIS's 74 member schools, showed that 72 per cent of students achieved a Higher grade A in Mandarin, while 72 per cent of those studying German, 69 per cent of those studying French and 63 per cent studying Spanish also achieved an A.
this demonstrates that independent schools in Scotland are supporting foreign languages as vital skills that children and young people will undoubtedly require in the future.
languages now, as a subject choice, are being held in the same regard as STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) in independent school curriculums and elsewhere.
a survey by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills in 2014 found that of reasons employers gave for struggling to fill vacancies, 17 per cent were attributed to a languages skills shortage.
therefore more and more, language skills are becoming imperative in order to prepare young people for their future careers.
with more prospective job opportunities requiring languages, these skills are essential in a globalised world.
regardless of the career someone chooses, if they've learned a second language, they'll have a real advantage in the future having a life-long skill such as this.
being able to communicate directly with people from foreign countries will automatically put a multilingual person ahead of the competition.
according to a YouGov poll of more than 4,000 UK adults in 2013, 75 per cent were unable to speak a foreign language well enough to hold a conversation and with French being the only language spoken by a double-digit percentage, 15 per cent.
this is why putting the investment into language teaching now is important for today's children.
having multiple languages, particularly those of developing economies, will equip children with a better chance of finding meaningful employment.
within Scotland, each school will differ in the languages they teach.
a number of schools will focus on the more classic modern languages, whereas others will teach languages that are deemed to be most important for the UK when looking ahead to 2020, such as Mandarin or Japanese.
whatever your child's interest, there will always be a number of languages to choose from within independent schools, with teaching staff who are specialists in this area.
Scottish independent schools are dedicated to providing a learning environment that will prepare children and arm them with the skills required to succeed, whatever the future holds.
it can't be denied at this time, in a global business environment, that languages continue to be vitally important to the country's future, so this must be mirrored in education.
indeed, modern languages should really be considered "international communication skills."
independent schools will continue to offer this choice, diversity and excellence for Scotland's young people.
il faut bien le faire.
John Edward is Director of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools
LeBron to make Lakers debut Sunday in San Diego
the wait is nearly over for fans looking to see LeBron James make his first start for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Lakers coach Luke Walton has announced that James will play in Sunday's preseason opener against the Denver Nuggets in San Diego.
but just how many minutes he'll play has yet to be determined.
"it will be more than one and less than 48," said Walton on the Lakers "official website.
Lakers reporter Mike Trudell tweeted that James will likely play limited minutes.
following practice earlier this week, James was asked about his plans for the Lakers "six-game preseason schedule.
"I don't need preseason games at this stage of my career to get ready," he said.
Trump's West Virginia Rally Time, YouTube Channel
President Donald Trump begins a flurry of campaign rallies tonight in Wheeling, West Virginia.
it's Trump's first of five scheduled rallies in the next week, including stops in friendly places including Tennessee and Mississippi.
with the confirmation vote on hold for his pick to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, Trump is aiming to build support for upcoming mid-term elections since Republicans are at risk of losing control of Congress when votes are cast on Nov.
what time is Trump's West Virginia rally tonight and how do you watch online?
Trump's Wheeling, West Virginia rally is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET tonight, Saturday, September 29, 2018.
you can watch Trump's West Virginia rally online below via live stream on YouTube.
Trump is likely to address this week's hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, which became tense over sexual misconduct allegations with an anticipated Senate confirmation vote on hold for up to a week while the FBI investigates.
but the primary aim of this flurry of rallies is helping Republicans facing touch November elections gain some momentum.
thus, President Trump's campaign said these five rallies in the next week are aimed at "energizing volunteers and supporters as Republicans try to protect and expand the majorities they hold in the Senate and House of Representatives," according to Reuters.
"control of Congress is so critical for his agenda that the president will travel to as many states as possible as we head into the busy campaign season," a Trump campaign spokesman who declined to be named told Reuters.
scheduled for Wesbanco Arena in Wheeling, tonight's rally could bring supporters from "Ohio and Pennsylvania and draw coverage from the Pittsburgh media," according to the West Virginia Metro News.
Saturday will be the second time in the past month that Trump has visited West Virginia, the state he won by more than 40 percentage points in 2016.
Trump is trying to help West Virginia Republican Senate candidate Patrick Morrisey, who is trailing in the polls.
"it's not a good sign for Morrisey that the president has to come to try to give him a boost in the polls," said Simon Haeder, a political scientist at West Virginia University, according to Reuters.
Ryder Cup 2018: team USA show stomach for fight to keep hopes alive heading into Sunday singles
after three one-sided sessions, Saturday afternoon's foursomes might just have been what this Ryder Cup needed.
the swinging pendulum of momentum is a completely invented sporting concept but one that players truly believe in, and never more so than at competitions like these.
so where would they say the momentum is now?
"they had a six-point lead and now it's four, so we are carrying that as a little bit of momentum I guess," said Jordan Spieth as he strolled off for the day.
Europe have the advantage, of course, four points ahead with twelve more in play.
the Americans, as Spieth says, feel they have a little wind in their sails though and they have plenty to be encouraged by, not least the form of Spieth and Justin Thomas who played together all day and each boast three points from four.
Spieth has been lethal from tee to green and is leading by example.
those guttural screams of celebration got louder as his round went on, sinking a crucial putt to take match four all-square when he and Thomas had been two down after two.
his putt that won them the match on 15 was met with a similar scream, the sort that tells you he believes that the American team is not out of this.
"you've really just got to dig deep and worry about your own match," Spieth said.
it is all each of these players has left now.
18 holes to make a mark.
the only players with more points than Spieth and Thomas over the past two days are Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood, the indisputable story of the Ryder Cup.
Europe's odd but adorable couple are four from four and can do no wrong.
"Moliwood" were the only pair not to shoot a bogey on Saturday afternoon, but they also avoided bogeys on Saturday morning, Friday afternoon and the back nine on Friday morning.
that run, and the way their energy seems to flow both to and from this boisterous crowd cements that they are the players to beat on Sunday, and there would be no more popular player to seal a potential European victory as the sun sets over Le Golf National than Fleetwood or Molinari.
preferably both simultaneously on different holes.
talk of European glory remains premature, though.
Bubba Watson and Webb Simpson made short work of Sergio Garcia, the morning's fourballs hero, when he was paired with Alex Noren.
a bogey and two doubles on the front nine dug the Spaniard and the Swede into a hole they never got close to climbing out of.
on Sunday, though, there is nobody to help you out of your hole.
the fourballs and foursomes are so fascinating to watch up close because of the interactions between pairings, the advice they give, the advice they don't and the way that a strategy can change in an instant.
Europe have played better as a team thus far and take a significant lead into the final day but this foursomes session also showed that Team USA has the stomach for the fight that some, especially Stateside, had been doubting.
Europe take 10-6 lead into Ryder Cup final day
Europe will take a healthy advantage into the final day of the Ryder Cup after emerging from Saturday's fourballs and foursomes matches with a 10-6 lead over the United States.
inspired duo Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari led the charge with two victories over a struggling Tiger Woods to take their tally so far at Le Golf National to four points.
Thomas Bjorn's European side, bidding to retain the trophy they lost at Hazeltine two years ago, dominated a misfiring American side in the morning fourballs, taking the series 3-1.
the U.S. offered more resistance in the foursomes, winning two matches, but they could not eat into the deficit.
Jim Furyk's side need eight points from Sunday's 12 singles matches to retain the trophy.
Fleetwood is the first European rookie to win four points in a row while he and Molinari, dubbed "Molliwood" after a sensational weekend are only the second pair to win four points from their opening four matches in Ryder Cup history.
having crushed Woods and Patrick Reed in the fourballs they then gelled superbly to beat a deflated Woods and American rookie Bryson Dechambeau by an even more emphatic 5 & 4.
woods, who dragged himself through two matches on Saturday, showed occasional bursts of brilliance but he has now lost 19 of his 29 matches in fourballs and foursomes and seven in a row.
Justin Rose, rested for the morning fourballs, returned to partner Henrik Stenson in the foursomes to a 2 & 1 defeat of Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka - ranked one and three in the world.
Europe did not have it al their own way though on a pleasant, breezy day south west of Paris.
three-times major winner Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas set the benchmark for the Americans with two points on Saturday.
they earned a gritty 2 & 1 win over Spain's Jon Rahm and Ian Poulter in the fourballs and returned later to beat Poulter and Rory McIlroy 4 & 3 in the foursomes having lost the opening two holes.
only twice in Ryder Cup history has a team come back from a four-point deficit going into the singles, although as holders Furyk's side need only draw to retain the trophy.
after being second-best for two days, however, a Sunday counter-attack looks as though it will be beyond them.
North Korea says' no way 'will disarm unilaterally without trust
North Korea's foreign minister told the United Nations on Saturday continued sanctions were deepening its mistrust in the United States and there was no way the country would give up its nuclear weapons unilaterally under such circumstances.
RI Yong Ho told the world body's annual General Assembly that North Korea had taken "significant goodwill measures" in the past year, such as stopping nuclear and missiles tests, dismantling the nuclear test site, and pledging not to proliferate nuclear weapons and nuclear technology.
"however, we do not see any corresponding response from the U.S.," he said.
"without any trust in the U.S. there will be no confidence in our national security and under such circumstances there is no way we will unilaterally disarm ourselves first."
while Ri reprised familiar North Korean complaints about Washington's resistance to a "phased" approach to denuclearization under which North Korea would be rewarded as it took gradual steps, his statement appeared significant in that it did not reject unilateral denuclearization out of hand as Pyongyang has done in the past.
RI referred to a joint statement issued by Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump at a first ever summit between a serving U.S. president and a North Korean leader in Singapore on June 12, when Kim pledged to work toward "denuclearization of the Korean peninsula" while Trump promised guarantees of North Korea's security.
North Korea has been seeking a formal end to the 1950-53 Korea War, but the United States has said Pyongyang must give up its nuclear weapons first.
Washington has also resisted calls to relax tough international sanctions on North Korea.
"the U.S. insists on the" denuclearization-first "and increases the level of pressure by sanctions to achieve their purpose in a coercive manner, and even objecting to the" declaration of the end of war, "" Ri said.
"the perception that sanctions can bring us on our knees is a pipe dream of the people who are ignorant about us.
but the problem is that the continued sanctions are deepening our mistrust. "
RI made no mention of plans for a second summit between Kim and Trump that the U.S. leader highlighted at the United Nations earlier in the week.
the minister instead highlighted three meetings between Kim and South Korean leader Moon Jae-in in the past five months and added: "if the party to this issue of denuclearization were South Korea and not the U.S., the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula would not have come to such a deadlock."
even so, the tone of Ri's speech was dramatically different from last year, when he told the U.N. General Assembly that targeting the U.S. mainland with North Korea's rockets was inevitable after "Mr Evil President" Trump called Kim a "rocket man" on a suicide mission.
this year at the United Nations, Trump, who last year threatened to "totally destroy" North Korea, heaped praise on Kim for his courage in taking steps to disarm, but said much work still had to be done and sanctions must remain in place until North Korea denuclearizes.
on Wednesday, Trump said he did not have a time frame for this, saying "If it takes two years, three years or five months - doesn't matter."
China and Russia argue that the U.N. Security Council should reward Pyongyang for steps taken.
however, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday that: "enforcement of Security Council sanctions must continue vigorously and without fail until we realize the fully, final, verified denuclearization."
the Security Council has unanimously boosted sanctions on North Korea since 2006 in a bid to choke off funding for Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Pompeo met Ri on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly and said afterwards that he would visit Pyongyang again next month to prepare for a second summit.
Pompeo has visited North Korea three times already this year, but his last trip did not go well.
he left Pyongyang in July saying that progress had been made, only for North Korea within hours to denounce him for making "gangster-like demands."
North Korea pledged in a meeting with Moon this month to dismantle a missile site and also a nuclear complex if the United States took "corresponding measures."
he said Kim had told him the "corresponding measures" he was seeking were security guarantees Trump pledged in Singapore and moves toward normalization of relations with Washington.
Harvard students take course in getting enough rest
a new course at Harvard University this year has got all its undergraduates getting more sleep in a bid to combat the growing macho culture of studying through caffeine-fuelled 'all-nighters.'
an academic found students at the world's number one university are often clueless when it comes to the very basics about how to look after themselves.
Charles Czeisler, professor of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School and a specialist at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, designed the course, which he believes is the first of its kind in the US.
he was inspired to start the course after giving a talk on the impact sleep deprivation had on learning.
'at the end of it one girl came up to me and said: 'why am I only being told this now, in my senior year?'
she said no one had ever told her about the importance of sleep - which surprised me, 'he told The Telegraph.
the course, rolled out for the first time this year, explains to students the essentials of how good sleep habits help academic and athletic performance, as well as improve their general wellbeing.
Paul barreira, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and executive director of the university's health services, said the university decided to introduce the course after finding students were seriously sleep deprived during the week.
the hour long course involves a series of interactive tasks.
in one section there is an image of a dorm room, where students click on coffee cups, curtains, trainers and books to be told about the effects of caffeine and light and how athletic performance is impacted by sleep deficiency, and the importance of a bedtime routine.
in another section, participants are told how long-term sleep deprivation can increase risks of heart attacks, stroke, depression and cancer.
a map of the campus, with interactive icons, then encourages participants to think about their daily routine.
'We know it won't change students' behaviour instantly.
but we believe they have a right to know - just as you have a right to know the health effects of choosing to smoke cigarettes, 'Prof Czeisler added.
the culture of pride in 'pulling an all-nighter' still exists, he said, adding that modern technology and ever-increasing pressure on students meant sleep deprivation was a growing problem.
ensuring you have enough sleep, of a good quality, should be a student's' secret weapon 'to combat stress, exhaustion and anxiety, he said - even to avoid putting on weight, as sleep deprivation puts the brain into starvation mode, making them constantly hungry.
Raymond So, a 19-year-old Californian studying chemical and physical biology, helped Professor Czeisler design the course, having taken one of his classes last year during his first year at Harvard.
he said the course had opened his eyes and inspired him to push for a campus-wide course.
the next step, he hopes, it to ask all postgraduate students to complete a similar study programme before joining the competitive institution.
prof Czeisler recommended that students should consider setting an alarm for when to go to bed, as well as for when to wake, and be aware of the harmful effects of 'blue light' emitted by electronic screens and LED lighting, which can throw your circadian rhythm out of kilter, leading to problems falling asleep.
Livingston 1 - 0 Rangers: menga goal downs Gerrard's men
Rangers suffered another bout of away-day blues as Dolly menga's strike consigned Steven Gerrard's disjointed side to a 1-0 defeat at Livingston.
the Ibrox side were looking to record their first win on the road since February's 4-1 triumph at St Johnstone, but Gary Holt's team inflicted just Gerrard's second defeat in 18 games as manager to leave his side eight points adrift of runaway Ladbrokes Premiership leaders Hearts.
menga struck seven minutes before half-time and a Rangers line-up short on inspiration never looked like levelling.
while Rangers now drop down to sixth spot, Livingston climb to third and only behind Hibernian on goal difference.
and there could be further trouble in store for Rangers after linesman Calum Spence had to be treated for a head wound after an object was apparently thrown from the away end.
Gerrard made eight changes to the side which swept past Ayr into the Betfred Cup semi-finals.
Holt, on the other hand, went with the same livi 11 which took a point off Hearts last week and he would have been delighted with the way his well-drilled outfit suffocated their opponents at every turn.
Rangers may have dominated possession but Livingston did more with the ball they had.
they should have scored just two minutes in when menga's first-time lay-off sent Scott Pittman through on Allan McGregor's goal but the midfielder tugged his big chance wide.
a deep Keaghan Jacobs free-kick then found skipper Craig Halkett but his defensive partner Alan Lithgow could only stab wide at the back post.
Rangers did grab control but there looked to be more hope than belief about their play in the final third.
Alfredo Morelos certainly felt he should have had a penalty on the quarter-hour mark as he and Steven Lawless collided but referee Steven Thomson waved away the Colombian's appeals.
Rangers managed just two first-half shots on target but former Ibrox goalkeeper Liam Kelly was barely troubled by Lassana Coulibaly's header and a tame Ovie Ejaria strike.
while livi's 34th-minute opener may have been against the run of play, no one can deny they deserved it for their graft alone.
again Rangers failed to deal with a deep Jacobs set-piece.
Scott Arfield did not react as Declan Gallagher slotted the ball to Scott Robinson, who kept his cool to pick out menga for a simple finish.
Gerrard acted at the break as he swapped Coulibaly for Ryan Kent and the switch almost provided an immediate impact as the winger slotted in Morelos but the impressive Kelly raced from his line to block.
but Livingston continued to suck the visitors into playing exactly the type of game they enjoy, with Lithgow and Halkett sweeping up long ball after long ball.
Holt's side could have stretched their lead in the final stages but McGregor stood up well to deny Jacobs before Lithgow headed wide from the corner.
Rangers substitute Glenn Middleton had another late claim for a penalty as he tangled with Jacobs but again Thomson looked away.
almanac: the inventor of the Geiger Counter
and now a page from our "Sunday Morning" Almanac: September 30, 1882, 136 years ago today, and counting... the day the future physicist Johannes Wilhelm "Hans" Geiger was born in Germany.
Geiger developed a method for detecting and measuring radioactivity, an invention that eventually led to the device known as the Geiger Counter.
a mainstay of science ever since, the Geiger Counter became a pop culture mainstay as well, as in the 1950 movie "Bells of Coronado," starring those seemingly unlikely cowpoke scientists Roy Rogers and Dale Evans:
man: "what in the world is that?"
Rogers: "it's a Geiger Counter, used to locate radioactive minerals, such as uranium.
when you put these earphones on, you can actually hear the effects of the atoms given off by the radioactivity in the minerals. "
Evans: "say, it sure is popping now!"
"Hans" Geiger died in 1945, just a few days short of his 63rd birthday.
but the invention that bears his name lives on.
new cancer vaccine can teach the immune system to 'see' rogue cells
new cancer vaccine can teach the immune system to 'see' rogue cells and kill them
vaccine teaches immune system to recognise rogue cells as part of treatment
method involves extracting immune cells from a patient, altering them in lab
they can then 'see' a protein common to many cancers and then reinjected
a trial vaccine is showing promising results in patients with a range of cancers.
one woman treated with the vaccine, which teaches the immune system to recognise rogue cells, saw her ovarian cancer disappear for more than 18 months.
the method involves extracting immune cells from a patient, altering them in the laboratory so they can "see" a protein common to many cancers called HER2, and then reinjecting the cells.
Professor Jay Berzofsky, of the US National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, said: "our results suggest that we have a very promising vaccine."
HER2 "drives the growth of several types of cancer," including breast, ovarian, lung and colorectal cancers, Prof Berzofsky explained.
a similar approach of taking immune cells out of patients and "teaching" them how to target cancer cells has worked in treating a type of leukaemia.
Kanye West embarked on a Pro-Trump diatribe, Wearing a Maga Hat, After his SNL Appearance.
it Didn't Go Well
Kanye West was booed in the studio during a Saturday Night Live after a rambling performance in which he praised U.S. President Donald Trump and said he would run for office in 2020.
after performing his third song of the night, called Ghost Town in which he was wearing a Make America Great cap, he went on a rant against the Democrats and reiterated his support for Trump.
"so many times I talk to a white person and they say:" how could you like Trump, he's racist? "
well, if I was concerned about racism I would've moved out of America a long time ago, "he said.
SNL started the show with a skit starring Matt Damon in which the Hollywood star made fun of Brett Kavanaugh's testimony before the Senate Judicial Committee on sexual assault claims made by Christine Blasey Ford.
although it was not broadcast, the footage of West's rant was uploaded to social media by comedian Chris Rock.
it is unclear if Rock was trying to mock West with the posting.
also, West had complained to the audience that he had got a hard time backstage about his head wear.
"they bullied me backstage.
they said, 'don't go out there with that hat on.'
they bullied me!
and then they say I'm in a sunken place, "he said, according to the Washington Examiner.
West went on: "you wanna see the sunken place?" saying that he would "put my superman cape on, because this means you can't tell me what to do. you want the world to move forward?
try love. "
his comments drew boos at least twice from the audience and SNL cast members appeared to be embarrassed, Variety reported, with one person there telling the publication: "the entire studio fell dead silent."
West had been brought in as a late replacement for singer Ariana Grande, whose former boyfriend, the rapper Mac Miller had died a few days ago.
West puzzled many with a performance of the song I Love it, dressed as a Perrier Bottle.
West got backing from head of conservative group TPUSA, Candace Turner who tweeted: "to one of the most courageous spirits: thank YOU FOR STANDING UP TO THE MOB."
but talk show host Karen Hunter tweeted that West was simply "being who he is and that's absolutely wonderful."
"but I chose NOT to reward someone (by purchasing his music or clothing or supporting his" art ") who I believe is embracing and spewing ideology that is harmful to my community.
he is free.
so are we, "she added.
before the show, the rapper announced on Twitter that he had changed his name, saying that he was now "the being formally known as Kanye West."
he is not the first artist to change their name and follows in the footsteps of Diddy, also known as Puff Daddy, Puffy and P Diddy.
fellow rapper, Snoop Dogg has had the name Snoop Lion and of course the late music legend Prince, changed his name to a symbol and then the artist previously known as Prince.
attempted murder charge over Belfast restaurant stabbing
a 45-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after a man was stabbed in a restaurant in east Belfast on Friday.
the incident happened in Ballyhackamore, police said.
the defendant is expected to appear before Belfast Magistrates' Court on Monday.
the charges will be reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.
game of Thrones star Kit Harington hits out at toxic masculinity
kit Harington is known for his sword-swinging role as Jon Snow in HBO's violent medieval fantasy series Game of Thrones.
but the actor, 31, has hit out at the stereotype of the macho hero, saying such roles on screen mean young boys often feel like they have to be tough to be respected.
speaking to The Sunday Times Culture, Kit said he believes' something's gone wrong 'and questioned how to tackle the problem of toxic masculinity in the # MeToo era.
kit, who recently married his Game of Thrones co-star Rose Leslie, also 31, admitted he feels' quite strongly 'about addressing the issue.
'i feel personally, quite strongly, at the moment - where have we gone wrong with masculinity?, 'he said.
'What have we been teaching men when they're growing up, in terms of the problem we see now? '
kit believes television may be partly responsible for the rise in toxic masculinity thanks to its very masculine characters.
he continued: 'what's innate and what's taught?
what is taught on TV, and in the streets, that makes young boys feel they have to be this certain side of being a man?
I think that's really one of the big questions in our time - how do we change that?
because clearly something has gone wrong for young men. '
in the interview he also admitted that he wouldn't be doing any Game of Thrones prequels or sequels when the series comes to an end next summer, saying he is' done with battlefields and horses'.
from November Kit will star in a revival of Sam Shepard's True West which is the story of a film producer and his brother, who is a robber.
the actor recently revealed that he considers meeting his wife Rose to be the best thing to come out of Game of Thrones.
'i met my wife in this show, so in that way it gave me my future family, and my life from here on in, 'he said.
rose played Ygritte, the love interest of Kit's character Jon Snow, in the Emmy award-winning fantasy series.
the couple married in June 2018 on the grounds of Leslie's family estate in Scotland.
HIV / Aids: China reports 14% surge in new cases
China has announced a 14% jump in the number of its citizens who are living with HIV and Aids.
more than 820,000 people are affected in the country, health officials say.
about 40,000 new cases were reported in the second quarter of 2018 alone.
the vast majority of new cases were transmitted through sex, marking a change from the past.
traditionally, HIV spread rapidly through some parts of China as a result of infected blood transfusions.
but the number of people contracting HIV in this way had been reduced to almost zero, Chinese health officials said at a conference in Yunnan province.
year-on-year, however, the number of those living with HIV and Aids in China has risen by 100,000 people.
HIV transmission through sex is an acute issue in China's LGBT community.
homosexuality was decriminalised in China in 1997, but discrimination against LGBT people is said to be rife.
because of the country's conservative values, studies have estimated that 70-90% of men who have sex with men will eventually marry women.
many of the transmissions of the diseases come from inadequate sexual protections in these relationships.
since 2003, China's government has promised universal access to HIV medication as part of an effort to tackle the issue.
Maxine Waters denies staffer leaked GOP senators' data, blasts' dangerous lies' and 'conspiracy theories'
U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters on Saturday denounced allegations that a member of her staff had posted the personal information of three Republican U.S. senators onto the lawmakers' Wikipedia pages.
the Los Angeles Democrat asserted that the claims were being pedaled by "ultra-right wing" pundits and websites.
"lies, lies, and more despicable lies," Waters said in a statement on Twitter.
the released information reportedly included the home addresses and phone numbers for U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Mike Lee and Orrin Hatch, both of Utah.
the information appeared online Thursday, posted by an unknown person on Capitol Hill during a Senate panel's hearing on the sexual misconduct allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
the leak came sometime after the three senators had questioned Kavanaugh.
conservative sites such as Gateway pundit and RedState reported that the IP address that identifies the source of the posts was associated with Waters "office and released the information of a member of Waters' staff, the Hill reported.
"this unfounded allegation is completely false and an absolute lie," Waters continued.
"the member of my staff - whose identity, personal information, and safety have been compromised as a result of these fraudulent and false allegations - was in no way responsible for the leak of this information.
this unfounded allegation is completely false and an absolute lie. "
waters' statement quickly drew criticism online, including from former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer.
"this denial is angry," Fleischer wrote.
"this suggests she doesn't have the temperment to be a Member of Congress.
when someone is accused of something they didn't do, they must not be angry.
they must not be defiant.
they must not question the motives of the accuser.
they must be calm and serene. "
Fleischer was appearing to compare Waters' reaction to the Democrats' criticism of Judge Kavanaugh, who was accused by critics of seeming too angry during Thursday's hearing.
Omar Navarro, a Republican candidate running to unseat Waters in the midterm elections, also voiced his thoughts on Twitter.
"big if true," he tweeted.
in her statement, Waters said her office had alerted "the appropriate authorities and law enforcement entities of these fraudulent claims.
"we will ensure that the perpetrators will be revealed," she continued, "and that they will be held legally liable for all of their actions that are destructible and dangerous to any and all members of my staff."
Johnny English Strikes Again review - underpowered Rowan Atkinson spy spoof
it's traditional now to look for Brexit significances in any new film with a British slant and that does seem applicable to this revival of the Johnny English action-comedy spoof franchise - which started back in 2003 with Johnny English and spluttered back to life in 2011 with Johnny English Reborn.
will tongue-in-cheek self-satire on the subject of how obviously rubbish we are be the nation's new export opportunity?
at any rate, the pop-eyed, rubber-faced incompetent Johnny English has had his licence to cock things up renewed for the second time - that name of his signalling more than anything else that he is a broad comic creation designed for non-English-speaking cinemagoing territories.
he is of course the daft secret agent who despite his bizarre pretensions to smoothie glamour has got a little bit of Clouseau, a dash of Mr Bean and a dollop of that chap contributing a single note to the Chariots of Fire theme tune at the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony.
he's also originally based on the traveller and international man of mystery Atkinson once played in the now forgotten Barclaycard TV ads, leaving chaos in his wake.
there are one or two nice moments in this latest JE outing.
I loved Johnny English approaching a helicopter while dressed in a medieval suit of armour and the rotor blades briefly clanging against his helmet.
Atkinson's gift for physical comedy is on display, but the humour feels pretty underpowered and weirdly superfluous, especially as the "serious" film brands like 007 and Mission Impossible themselves now confidently offer comedy as an ingredient.
the humour feels as if it is pitched at kids rather than adults, and for me Johnny English's wacky misadventures aren't as inventive and focused as Atkinson's silent-movie gags in the persona of Bean.
the perennially topical premise now is that Great Britain is in serious trouble.
a cyber-hacker has infiltrated Britain's super-secret web network of spies, revealing the identities of all Britain's agents in the field, to the dismay of the agent on duty - a regrettably small role for Kevin Eldon.
it's the last straw for a prime minister who is a pompous and embattled figure, already suffering a complete meltdown of political unpopularity: Emma Thompson does her very best with this quasi-Teresa-May character but there's nothing much in the script to work with.
her intelligence advisers inform her that as every single active spy has been compromised, she will have to bring someone out of retirement.
and that means bumbling Johnny English himself, now employed as a schoolmaster in some posh establishment, but giving off-the-record lessons in how to be an undercover operative: some nice gags here, as English offers a School of Rock-type academy of spying.
English is whisked back to Whitehall for an emergency briefing and reunited with his former long-suffering sidekick Bough, played again by Ben Miller.
bough is now a married man, hitched to a submarine commander, a jolly-hockey-sticks role in which Vicki Pepperdine is a bit wasted.
so the Batman and Robin of getting things terribly wrong on Her Majesty's Secret Service are back in action, encountering Olga Kurylenko's beautiful femme fatale Ophelia Bulletova.
meanwhile, the prime minister is falling dangerously under the spell of the charismatic tech billionaire who claims he can solve Britain's computer woes: the sinister Jason Volta, played by Jake Lacy.
English and Bough begin their odyssey of farcical high-jinks: disguised as waiters, they set fire to a flash French restaurant; they create mayhem smuggling themselves aboard Volta's luxury yacht; and English triggers pure anarchy as he attempts to use a Virtual Reality headset to familiarise himself with the interior of Volta's house.
all the stops are certainly pulled out for that last sequence, but as amiable and boisterous as it is, there's quite a bit of kids' TV about the whole thing.
pretty moderate stuff.
and as with the other Johnny English films I couldn't help thinking: can't the British film industry give Rowan Atkinson a role that really does justice to his talent?
labour denies it is devising a plan for Britons to work a four day week but be paid for five days
Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party is to consider a radical plan which will see Britons working a four day week - but getting paid for five.
the party reportedly wants company bosses to pass on savings made through the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution to workers by giving them an extra day off.
it would see employees enjoy a three-day weekend - but still take home the same pay.
sources said the idea would 'fit' with the party's economic agenda and plans to tilt the country in favour of workers.
shifting to a four-day week has been endorsed by the Trades Union Congress as a way for workers to take advantage of the changing economy.
a senior Labour Party source told The Sunday Times: 'a policy review is expected to be announced before the end of the year.
'it won't happen overnight but a four-day working week is an aspiration that fits in with the party's approach to rebalancing the economy in favour of the worker as well as the party's overall industrial strategy. '
the Labour Party would not be the first to endorse such an idea, with the Green Party pledging a four-day working week during its 2017 general election campaign.
the aspiration is currently not being endorsed by the Labour Party as a whole, however.
a Labour Party spokesman said: 'a four-day working week is not party policy and it is not being considered by the party.'
shadow Chancellor John McDonnell used last week's Labour conference to flesh out his vision for a socialist revolution in the economy.
Mr McDonnell said he was determined to claw back power from 'faceless directors' and 'profiteers' at utility firms.
the shadow chancellor's plans also mean current shareholders in water companies may not get back their entire stake as a Labour government could make 'deductions' on the grounds of perceived wrongdoing.
he also confirmed plans to put workers on company boards and create Inclusive Ownership Funds to hand 10 per cent of private-sector firms' equity to employees, who stand to pocket annual dividends of up to £500.
Lindsey Graham, John Kennedy tell "60 Minutes" whether the FBI's investigation of Kavanaugh could change their minds
the FBI investigation into accusations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh has delayed a final vote on his nomination to the Supreme Court by at least a week, and raises the question of whether the bureau's findings could sway any Republican senators into pulling their support.
in an interview airing Sunday, "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley asked Republicans Sens. John Kennedy and Lindsey Graham whether the FBI could unearth anything that would lead them to change their minds.
Kennedy appeared more open than his colleague from South Carolina.
"I mean, of course," said Kennedy.
"I said going into the hearing, I said, I've talked to Judge Kavanaugh.
I called him after this happened, that allegation came out, said, 'Did you do it?'
he was resolute, determined, unequivocal. "
Graham's vote, however, appears set in stone.
"my mind's made up about Brett Kavanaugh and it would take a dynamite accusation," he said.
"Dr. Ford, I don't know what happened, but I know this: Brett denied it vigorously," Graham added, referring to Christine Blasey Ford.
"and everybody she names couldn't verify it.
it's 36 years old.
I don't see anything new changing. "
what is the Global Citizen Festival and Has it Done Anything to Decrease Poverty?
this Saturday New York will host the Global Citizen Festival, an annual music event which has a hugely impressive line-up of stars performing and an equally impressive mission; ending world poverty.
now in its seventh year, the Global Citizen Festival will see tens of thousands of people flock to Central Park's Great Lawn to not only enjoy acts such as Janet Jackson, Cardi B and Shawn Mendes, but also to raise awareness for the event's true goal of ending extreme poverty by 2030.
the Global Citizen Festival, which stated in 2012, is an extension of the Global Poverty Project, an international advocacy group hoping to end poverty by increasing the number of people actively fighting against it.
in order to receive a free ticket for the event (unless you were willing to pay for a VIP ticket), concertgoers had to complete a series of tasks, or "actions" such volunteering, emailing a world leader, making a phone call or any other meaningful ways to help raise awareness of their goal of ending poverty.
but just how successful has Global Citizen been with 12 years left to achieve its goal?
is the idea of rewarding people with a free concert a genuine way to persuade people to demand a call for action, or just another case of so-called "clicktivism" - people feeling like they are making a true difference by signing an online petition or sending a tweet?
since 2011, Global Citizen says it has recorded more than 19 million "actions" from its supporters, pushing for a host of different goals.
it says that these actions have helped spur world leaders to announce commitments and policies equating to more than $37 billion that is set to affect the lives of more than 2.25 billion people by 2030.
in early 2018, the group cited 390 commitments and announcements stemming from its actions, at least $10 billion of which have already been disbursed or fundraised.
the group estimates the secured funds have so far made a direct impact on nearly 649 million people across the world.
some of the key commitments include The Power of Nutrition, a U.K. based partnership of investors and implementers committed to "helping children grow to their full potential," promising to provide Rwanda with $35 million to help end malnutrition in the county after receiving more than 4,700 tweets from Global Citizens.
"with support from the UK government, donors, national governments, and Global Citizens just like you, we can make the social injustice of undernutrition a footnote in history," The Power of Nutrition ambassador Tracey Ullman told the crowd during a live concert in London in April 2018.
the group also said that after more than 5,000 actions were taken calling on the U.K. improve nutrition for mothers and children, the government announced funding for a project, the Power of Nutrition, that will reach 5 million women and children with nutrition interventions.
in response to one of the FAQs on its website asking "what makes you think we can end extreme poverty?"
global citizen replied: "it'll be a long and hard path - sometimes we will fall and fail.
but, like the great civil rights and anti-apartheid movements before us, we will succeed, because we are more powerful together.
Janet Jackson, the Weeknd, Shawn Mendes, Cardi B, Janelle Monáe are among some of the acts performing at this year's event in New York, which will be hosted by Deborra-Lee Furness and Hugh Jackman.
us could use Navy for "blockade" to hamper Russian energy exports - Interior Secretary
Washington can "if necessary" resort to its Navy to prevent Russian energy hitting the markets, including in the Middle East, US Internal Secretary Ryan Zinke has revealed, as cited by Washington Examiner.
Zinke alleged that Russia's engagement in Syria - notably, where it is operating at the invitation of the legitimate government - is a pretext to explore new energy markets.
"I believe the reason they are in the Middle East is they want to broker energy just like they do in eastern Europe, the southern belly of Europe," he has reportedly said.
and, according to to the official, there are ways and means to tackle it.
"the United States has that ability, with our Navy, to make sure the sea lanes are open, and, if necessary, to blockade, to make sure that their energy does not go to market," he said.
Zinke was addressing the attendees of the event hosted by the Consumer Energy Alliance, a non-profit group which styles itself as the "voice of the energy consumer" in the US.
he went to compare Washington's approaches to dealing with Russia and Iran, noting that they are effectively the same.
"the economic option on Iran and Russia is, more or less, leveraging and replacing fuels," he said, while referring to Russia as a "one trick pony" with an economy dependent on fossil fuels.
the statements come as Trump administration has been on a mission to boost the export of its liquefied natural gas to Europe, replacing Russia, the far cheaper option for European consumers.
for that effect, the Trump administration officials, including US President Donald Trump himself, try to persuade Germany to pull out of the "inappropriate" Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which according to Trump, made Berlin Moscow's "captive."
Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the $11 billion Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which is set to double the existing pipeline capacity to 110 billion cubic meters, is a purely economic project.
the Kremlin argues that Washington's fervent opposition to the project is simply driven by economic reasons and is an example of unfair competition.
"I believe we share the view that energy cannot be a tool to exercise pressure and that consumers should be able to choose the suppliers," Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak said following a meeting with US Energy Secretary Rick Perry in Moscow in September.
the US stance has drawn backlash from Germany, which has reaffirmed its commitment to the project.
Germany's leading organization for industry, the Federation of German Industries (BDI), has called on the US to stay away from the EU energy policy and the bilateral agreements between Berlin and Moscow.
"I have a big problem when a third state interferes in our energy supply," Dieter Kempf, head of the Federation of German Industries (BDI) said following a recent meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Elizabeth Warren Will Take "Hard Look" At Running For President in 2020, Massachusetts Senator Says
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren said on Saturday she would take a "hard look" at running for president following the midterm elections.
during a town hall in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Warren confirmed she'd consider running.
"it's time for women to go to Washington and fix our broken government and that includes a woman at the top," she said, according to The Hill.
"after November 6, I will take a hard look at running for president."
Warren weighed in on President Donald Trump during the town hall, saying he was "taking this county in the wrong direction.
"I am worried down to my bones about what Donald Trump is doing to our democracy," she said.
Warren has been outspoken in her criticism of Trump and his Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
in a tweet on Friday, Warren said "of course we need an FBI investigation before voting."
a poll released on Thursday, however, showed a majority of Warren's own constituents do not think she should run in 2020.
fifty-eight percent of "likely" Massachusetts voters said the senator should not run, according to the Suffolk University Political Research Center / Boston Globe poll.
thirty-two percent supported such a run.
the poll showed more support for a run by former Governor Deval Patrick, with 38 percent supporting a potential run and 48 percent against it.
other high profile Democratic names discussed in regard to a potential 2020 run include former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Biden said he would decide officially by January, the Associated Press reported.
Sarah Palin cites Track Palin's PTSD at Donald Trump rally
track Palin, 26, spent a year in Iraq after enlisting on Sept.
he was arrested and charged in a domestic violence incident on Monday night
"what my own son is going through, what he is going through coming back, I can relate to other families who feel ramifications of PTSD and some of the woundedness that our soldiers do return with," she told the audience at a rally for Donald Trump in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Palin called his arrest "the elephant in the room" and said of her son and other war veterans, "they come back a bit different, they come back hardened, they come back wondering if there is that respect for what it is that their fellow soldiers and airmen, and every other member of the military, has given to the country."
he was arrested on Monday in Wasilla, Alaska, and charged with domestic violence assault on a female, interfering with a report of domestic violence and possession of a weapon while intoxicated, according to Dan Bennett, a spokesman for the Wasilla Police Department.
18 states, D.C. support challenge to new asylum policy
eighteen states and the District of Columbia are supporting a legal challenge to a new U.S. policy that denies asylum to victims fleeing gang or domestic violence.
representatives from the 18 states and the district filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday in Washington to support an asylum-seeker challenging the policy, NBC News reported.
the full name of the plaintiff in the Grace v. Sessions suit that the American Civil Liberties Union filed in August against the federal policy has not been revealed.
she said her partner "and his violent gang member sons," abused her but U.S. officials denied her request for asylum July 20.
she was detained in Texas.
the states' attorneys supporting Grace described El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, which produce a large number of applicants for U.S. asylum, as nations facing pervasive problems with gangs and domestic violence.
the new U.S. asylum policy reversed a 2014 decision by the Board of Immigrant Appeals that allowed undocumented immigrants fleeing domestic violence to apply for asylum.
district of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine said in a statement Friday that the new policy "ignores decades of state, federal, and international law."
"Federal law requires that all asylum claims be adjudicated on the particular facts and circumstances of the claim, and such a bar violates that principle," the friend-of-the court brief said.
attorneys further argued in the brief that the policy denying immigrants entry hurts the U.S. economy, saying they are more likely to become entrepreneurs and "supply necessary labor."
attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered immigration judges to no longer grant asylum to victims fleeing domestic abuse and gang violence in June.
"asylum is available for those who leave their home country because of persecution or fear on account of race, religion, nationality, or membership in a particular social group or political opinion," Sessions said in his June 11 announcement of the policy.
asylum was never meant to alleviate all problems -- even all serious problems -- that people face every day all over the world.
desperate rescue efforts in Palu as death toll doubles in race to find survivors
for survivors, the situation was increasingly dire.
"it feels very tense," said 35-year-old mother Risa Kusuma, comforting her feverish baby boy at an evacuation centre in the gutted city of Palu.
"every minute an ambulance brings in bodies.
clean water is scarce. "
residents were seen returning to their destroyed homes, picking through waterlogged belongings, trying to salvage anything they could find.
hundreds of people were injured and hospitals, damaged by the magnitude 7.5 quake, were overwhelmed.
some of the injured, including Dwi Haris, who suffered a broken back and shoulder, rested outside Palu's Army Hospital, where patients were being treated outdoors due to continuing strong aftershocks.
tears filled his eyes as he recounted feeling the violent earthquake shake the fifth-floor hotel room he shared with his wife and daughter.
"there was no time to save ourselves.
I was squeezed into the ruins of the wall, I think, "Haris told Associated Press, adding that his family was in town for a wedding.
"I heard my wife cry for help, but then silence.
I don't know what happened to her and my child.
I hope they are safe. "
U.S. ambassador accuses China of 'bullying' with 'propaganda ads'
a week after an official Chinese newspaper ran a four-page ad in a U.S. daily touting the mutual benefits of U.S.-China trade, the U.S. ambassador to China accused Beijing of using the American press to spread propaganda.
U.S. President Donald Trump last Wednesday referred to the China Daily's paid supplement in the Des Moines Register - the state of Iowa's biggest selling newspaper - after accusing China of seeking to meddle in the Nov. 6 U.S. congressional elections, a charge China denies.
Trump's accusation that Beijing was trying to meddle in U.S. elections marked what U.S. officials told Reuters was a new phase in an escalating campaign by Washington to put pressure on China.
while it is normal for foreign governments to place advertisements to promote trade, Beijing and Washington are currently locked in an escalating trade war that has seen them level rounds of tariffs on each other's imports.
China's retaliatory tariffs early in the trade war were designed to hit exporters in states such as Iowa that supported Trump's Republican Party, Chinese and U.S. experts have said.
Terry Branstad, the U.S. ambassador to China and the former longtime governor of Iowa, a major exporter of agricultural goods to China, said Beijing had hurt American workers, farmers and businesses.
China, Branstad wrote in an opinion piece in Sunday's Des Moines Register, "is now doubling down on that bullying by running propaganda ads in our own free press."
"in disseminating its propaganda, China's government is availing itself of America's cherished tradition of free speech and a free press by placing a paid advertisement in the Des Moines Register," Branstad wrote.
"in contrast, at the newsstand down the street here in Beijing, you will find limited dissenting voices and will not see any true reflection of the disparate opinions that the Chinese people may have on China's troubling economic trajectory, given that media is under the firm thumb of the Chinese Communist Party," he wrote.
he added that "one of China's most prominent newspapers dodged the offer to publish" his article, although he did not say which newspaper.
Republicans alienating Women Voters Ahead of midterms With Kavanaugh Debacle, Analysts Warn
as many top Republicans stand-by and defend Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in the face of several allegations of sexual assault, analyst have warned they will see a backlash, particularly from women, during the upcoming midterm elections.
the emotions surrounding this have been extremely high, and most Republicans are on record already showing they wanted to go forward with a vote.
those things can't be walked back, "Grant Reeher, a professor of political science at Syracuse University's Maxwell School told The Hill for an article published Saturday.
Reeher said he doubts Senator Jeff Flake's (R-Arizona) last-minute push for an FBI investigation will be enough to placate angry voters.
"women are not going to forget what happened yesterday - they are not going to forget it tomorrow and not in November," Karine Jean-Pierre, a senior adviser and national spokeswoman for the progressive group MoveOn said on Friday, according to the Washington, D.C. newspaper.
on Friday morning, protestors chanted "November is coming!" as they demonstrated in the hallway of the Senate as the Republicans controlling the Judiciary Committee chose to move forward with Kavanaugh's nomination despite the testimony of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Mic reported.
"democratic enthusiasm and motivation is going to be off the chart," Stu Rothenberg, a nonpartisan political analyst, told the news site.
"people are saying it's already been high; that's true.
but it could be higher, particularly among swing women voters in the suburbs and younger voters, 18- to 29-year-olds, who while they don't like the president, often don't vote. "
even before Ford's public testimony detailing her allegations of sexual assault against the Supreme Court nominee, analysts suggested a backlash could follow if Republicans pushed forward with the confirmation.
"this has become a muddled mess for the GOP," said Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, early last week, according to NBC News.
"it's just not about the committee vote or the final vote or whether Kavanaugh is put on the bench, it's also about the way Republicans have handled this and how they have treated her," Guy Cecil, director of Priorities USA, a group that helps to elect Democrats, pointed out to the news channel.
however, Americans appear to be somewhat split over who to believe in the wake of Ford's and Kavanaugh's testimonies, with slightly more siding with the latter.
a new poll from YouGov shows that 41 percent of respondents definitely or probably believed Ford's testimony, while 35 percent said they definitely or probably believed Kavanaugh.
additionally, 38 percent said they thought Kavanaugh has probably or definitely lied during his testimony, while just 30 percent said the same about Ford.
after the push from Flake, the FBI is currently investigating the allegations brought forward by Ford as well as at least one other accuser, Deborah Ramirez, The Guardian reported.
Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee under oath last week that Kavanaugh drunkenly assaulted her at the age of 17.
Ramirez alleges that the Supreme Court nominee exposed his genitals to her while they attended a party during their time studying at Yale in the 1980s.
the Inventor of the World Wide Web Plans to Start a New Internet to Take on Google and Facebook
Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, is launching a startup that seeks to rival Facebook, Amazon and Google.
the technology legend's latest project, Inrupt, is a company that builds off of Berners-Lee's open source platform Solid.
solid allows users to choose where their data is stored and what people are allowed to have access to what information.
in an exclusive interview with Fast Company, Berners-Lee joked that the intent behind Inrupt is "world domination."
"we have to do it now," he said of the startup.
"it's a historical moment."
the app uses Solid's technology to allow people to create their own "personal online data store" or a POD.
it can contain contact lists, to-do lists, calendar, music library and other personal and professional tools.
it's like Google Drive, Microsoft Outlook, Slack and Spotify are all available on one browser and all at the same time.
what's unique about the personal online data store is that it is completely up to the user who can access what kind of information.
the company calls it "personal empowerment through data."
the idea for Inrupt, according to the company's CEO John Bruce, is for the company to bring resources, process and appropriate skills to help make Solid available to everyone.
the company currently consists of Berners-Lee, Bruce, a security platform bought by IBM, some on-staff developers contracted to work on the project, and a community of volunteer coders.
starting this week, technology developers around the world could create their own decentralized apps using the tools available on the Inrupt website.
Berners-Lee said that he and his team are not talking to "Facebook and Google about whether or not to introduce a complete change where all their business models are completely upended overnight.
"we are not asking their permission."
in a post on Medium published on Saturday, Berners-Lee wrote that Inrupt's "mission is to provide commercial energy and an ecosystem to help protect the integrity and quality of the new web built on Solid."
in 1994, Berners-Lee transformed the Internet when he established the World Wide Web Consortium at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
in recent months, Berners-Lee has been an influential voice in the net neutrality debate.
even while launching Inrupt, Berners-Lee will remain the Founder and Director of World Wide Web Consortium, the Web Foundation and the Open Data Institute.
"I'm incredibly optimistic for this next era of the web," Berners-Lee added.
Bernard Vann: WW1 Victoria Cross cleric celebrated
the only Church of England cleric to win a Victoria Cross during World War One as a combatant has been celebrated in his hometown 100 years on.
LT Col The Reverend Bernard Vann won the award on 29 September 1918 in the attack at Bellenglise and Lehaucourt.
however, he was killed by a sniper four days later and never knew he had won the highest British military honour.
a commemorative stone was unveiled by his two grandsons at a parade in Rushden, Northamptonshire, on Saturday.
one of his grandsons, Michael Vann, said it was "brilliantly symbolic" the stone would be revealed exactly 100 years on from his grandfather's award-winning feat.
according to the London Gazette, on 29 September 1918 Lt Col Vann led his battalion across the Canal de Saint-Quentin "through a very thick fog and under heavy fire from field and machine guns."
he later rushed up to the firing line and with the "greatest Gallantry" led the line forward before rushing a field-gun single-handed and knocked out three of the detachment.
LT Col Vann was killed by a German sniper on 4 October 1918 - just over a month before the war ended.
Michael Vann, 72, said his grandfather's actions were "something that I know that I could never live up to but something which is humbling."
he and his brother Dr James Vann also laid a wreath after the parade, which was led by the Brentwood Imperial Youth Band.
Michael Vann said he was "feeling very honoured to play a part in the parade" and added "the valour of a genuine hero is being demonstrated by the support that is going to be given by a lot of people."
MMA fans stayed up all night to watch Bellator 206, they got Peppa Pig instead
imagine this, you have stayed up all night to watch the a packed Bellator 206 only to be denied watching the main event.
the bill from San Jose contained 13 fights, including six on the main card and was being shown live through the night in the UK on Channel 5.
at 6am, just as Gegard Mousasi and Rory MacDonald were preparing to face each other, viewers in the UK were left stunned when the coverage changed to Peppa Pig.
some were unimpressed after they had stayed awake until the early hours especially for the fight.
one fan on Twitter described the switch to the children's cartoon as "some sort of sick joke."
"it's government regulation that at 6 a.m. that content was not suitable so they had to switch to children's programming," said Dave Schwartz, Bellator senior vice president of marketing and communication, when asked about the transmission.
"" Peppa the pig, "yes."
Bellator company president Scott Coker said that they are going to work on their scheduling to include UK viewers in the future.
"I think that when I think about the replay, I think that we can probably work it out," Coker said.
"but it's six in the morning on a Sunday there and we won't be able to work this out until Sunday our time, Monday their time.
but we are working on it.
believe me, when it switched over there were a lot of texts going back and forth and they all were not friendly.
we were trying to fix it, we thought it was a technical glitch.
but it wasn't, it was a governmental issue.
I can promise you the next time it's not going to happen.
we'll keep it down to five fights instead of six - like we normally do - and we tried to overdeliver for the fans and we just went over.
it's an unfortunate situation. "
desert Island Discs: Tom Daley felt 'inferior' over sexuality
Olympic diver Tom Daley says he grew up feeling inferior to everyone because of his sexuality - but that gave him the motivation to become a success.
the 24-year-old said he did not realise until he went to secondary school that "not everyone is like me."
speaking on the first Radio 4 Desert Island Discs presented by Lauren Laverne, he said he spoke out about gay rights to give others "hope."
he also said becoming a parent made him care less about winning the Olympics.
the regular presenter of the long-running show, Kirsty Young, has taken a number of months off because of illness.
appearing as a castaway on Laverne's first programme, Daley said he felt "less than" everyone else growing up because "it wasn't socially acceptable to like boys and girls."
he said: "to this day, those feelings of feeling less than, and feeling different, have been the real things that have given me the power and strength to be able to succeed."
he wanted to prove that he was "something," he said, so that he did not disappoint everyone when they eventually found out about his sexuality.
the two-time bronze Olympic medallist has become a high-profile LGBT campaigner and used his appearance at this year's Commonwealth Games in Australia to appeal for more countries to decriminalise homosexuality.
he said he spoke out because he felt lucky to be able to live openly without ramifications and wanted to give others "hope."
the three-time world champion said falling in love with a man - US film-maker Dustin Lance Black, who he met in 2013 - "caught me by surprise."
Daley married the Oscar winner, who is 20 years his senior, last year but he said the age gap had never been an issue.
"when you go through so much at such a young age" - he went to his first Olympics aged 14 and his father died of cancer three years later - he said that it was hard to find someone the same age who had experienced similar highs and lows.
the couple became parents in June, to a son called Robert Ray Black-Daley, and Daley said his "whole perspective" had changed.
"if you had asked me last year, it was all about 'I need to win a gold medal'," he said.
"you know what, there are bigger things than Olympic gold medals.
my Olympic gold medal is Robbie. "
his son has the same name as his father Robert, who died in 2011 aged 40 after being diagnosed with brain cancer.
Daley said his dad did not accept he was going to die and one of the last things he had asked was if they had their tickets yet for London 2012 - as he wanted to be on the front row.
"I couldn't say to him 'you're not going to be around to be on the front row dad'," he said.
"I was holding his hand as he stopped breathing and it wasn't until he'd actually stopped breathing and he was dead that I finally acknowledged he wasn't invincible," he said.
the following year Daley competed at the 2012 Olympics and won bronze.
"I just knew that this is what I had dreamt of my whole life - to dive in front of a home crowd at an Olympic Games, there was no better feeling," he said.
it also inspired his first song choice - Proud by Heather Small - which had resonated with him in the build up to the Olympics and still gave him goosebumps.
desert Island Discs is on BBC Radio 4 on Sunday at 11: 15 BST.
out-of-form Mickelson benched on Ryder Cup Saturday
American Phil Mickelson will set a record on Sunday when he plays his 47th Ryder Cup match, but he will have to turn his form around to avoid it being an unhappy milestone.
Mickelson, playing in the biennial event for a record 12th time, was benched by captain Jim Furyk for Saturday's fourballs and foursomes.
instead of being at the center of the action, as he so often has been for the United States, the five-times major winner split his day between being a cheerleader and working on his game on the range in the hope of rectifying what ails him.
never the straightest of drivers even at the peak of his career, the 48-year-old is not an ideal fit for the tight Le Golf National course, where the long rough routinely punishes errant shots.
and if the course on its own is not daunting enough, Mickelson, in the ninth match on Sunday, faces accurate British Open champion Francesco Molinari, who has teamed up with rookie Tommy Fleetwood to win all four of their matches this week.
if the Americans, four points down starting the 12 singles matches, get off to a hot start, Mickelson's match could prove absolutely crucial.
Furyk expressed confidence in his man, not that he could say much else.
"he fully understood the role that he had today, gave me a pat on the back and put his arm around me and said he would be ready tomorrow," Furyk said.
"he's got a lot of confidence in himself.
he's a Hall of Famer and he's added so much to these teams in the past, and this week.
I probably didn't envision him playing two matches.
I envisioned more, but that's the way it worked out and that's the way we thought we had to go.
he wants to be out there, just like everyone else. "
Mickelson will pass Nick Faldo's record for the most Ryder Cup matches played on Sunday.
it could mark the end of a Ryder Cup career that has never quite matched the heights of his individual record.
Mickelson has 18 wins, 20 losses and seven halves, though Furyk said his presence brought some intangibles to the team.
"he's funny, he's sarcastic, witty, likes to poke fun at people, and he's a great guy to have in the team room," he explained.
"I think the younger players had fun having a go at him, as well, this week, which was fun to see.
he provides a lot more than just play. "
Europe captain Thomas Bjorn knows big lead can soon disappear
Thomas Bjorn, the European captain, knows from experience that a sizeable lead heading into the last-day singles in the Ryder Cup can easily turn into an uncomfortable ride.
the Dane made his debut in the 1997 match at Valderrama, where a side captained by Seve Ballesteros held a five-point advantage over the Americans but only just got over the finishing line with their noses in front by the narrowest of margins, winning 14 ½ -13 ½.
"you keep reminding yourself that we had a big lead at Valderrama; we had a big lead at Brookline, where we lost, and at Valderrama, where we won, but only just," said Bjorn, pictured, after watching the Class of 2018 win 5-3 both on Friday and yesterday to lead 10-6 at Le Golf National.
so history will show me and everybody on that team that this is not over.
you go full bore tomorrow.
get out there and do all the right things.
this is not over till you've got the points on the board.
we have a goal, and that is to try to win this trophy, and that's where the focus stays.
I've said all along, I focus on the 12 players that are in our side, but we are so well aware of what's standing across on the other side - the greatest players in the world. "
delighted how his players have performed on a tough golf course, Bjorn added: "I would never get ahead of myself in this.
tomorrow's a different beast.
tomorrow is the individual performances that come forward, and that is a different thing to do.
it's great to be out there with a partner when things are going good, but when you're out there individually, then you're tested to the full of your capacity as a golfer.
that's the message that you need to get across to players, is get the best out of yourself tomorrow.
now, you leave your partner behind and he has to go and get the best out of himself, as well. "
in contrast to Bjorn, opposite number Jim Furyk will be looking for his players to perform better individually than they did as partners, the exceptions being Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, who picked up three points out of four.
Furyk himself has been on both ends of those big last-day turnarounds, having been part of the winning team at Brookline before ending up a loser as Europe pulled off the "Miracle at Medinah."
"I remember every damn word of it," he said in reply to being asked how Ben Crenshaw, the captain in 1999, had rallied his players heading into the last day.
"we have 12 important matches tomorrow, but you'd like to get off to that fast start like you saw at Brookline, like you saw at Medinah.
when that momentum gets going one way, it puts a lot of pressure on those middle matches.
we set up our line-up accordingly and put the guys out in the fashion that we felt like, you know, we're trying to make some magic tomorrow. "
Thomas has been handed the task of trying to lead the fightback and faces Rory McIlroy in the top match, with Paul Casey, Justin Rose, Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood and Ian Poulter the other Europeans in the top half of the order.
"I went with this group of guys in this order because I think it covers all the way through," said Bjorn of his singles selections.
Germany's new warship postponed yet again
German Navy's newest frigate should have been commissioned in 2014 to replace ageing Cold War-era warships, but it won't be there until at least the next year due to faulty systems and snowballing cost, local media reported.
commissioning of the "Rheinland-Pfalz," the lead ship of the brand new Baden-Wuerttemberg-class frigates, has now been postponed until the first half of 2019, according to Die Zeit newspaper citing a military spokesman.
the vessel should have joined the Navy in 2014, but the troubling post-delivery issues plagued the fate of the ambitious project.
the four Baden-Wuerttemberg-class vessels the Navy ordered back in 2007 will come as replacement to the ageing Bremen-class frigates.
it is understood they will feature a powerful cannon, an array of anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles as well as some stealth technologies, such as reduced radar, infrared and acoustic signatures.
other important features include longer maintenance periods - it should be possible to deploy the newest frigates for up to two years away from home ports.
however, continuous delays mean that the cutting-edge warships - said to allow Germany to project power overseas - will already become outdated by the time they enter service, Die Zeit notes.
the ill-fated F125 frigate made headlines last year, when the German Navy officially refused to commission the vessel and returned it to Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg.
this was the first time the Navy has returned a ship to a shipbuilder after delivery.
little was known about the reasons behind the return, but German media cited a number of crucial "software and hardware defects" that made the warship useless if deployed on a combat mission.
software deficiencies were particularly important as the Baden-Wuerttemberg-class vessels will be operated by a crew of some 120 sailors - just half of the manpower on older Bremen class frigates.
also, it emerged that the ship is dramatically overweight which reduces its performance and limits the Navy's ability to add future upgrades.
the 7,000-ton "Rheinland-Pfalz" is believed to be twice as heavy as similar-class ships used by the Germans in the Second World War.
aside from faulty hardware, the price tag of the entire project - including the training of the crew - is also becoming an issue.
it is said to have reached staggering €3.1billion ($3.6bn) - up from initial €2.2 billion.
problems gripping the newest frigates become especially of importance in light of recent warnings that Germany's naval power is shrinking.
earlier this year, Hans-Peter Bartels, chief of the German parliament's defense committee, acknowledged the Navy is actually "running out of deployment-capable ships."
the official said the issue has snowballed over time, because old ships were decommissioned but no replacement vessels were provided.
he lamented that none of the of the Baden-Wuerttemberg-class frigates were able to join the Navy.
national Trust eavesdrops on secret life of bats
new research being carried out at an estate in the Scottish Highlands aims to reveal how bats use the landscape in their hunt for food.
it is hoped the findings will shed new light on the behaviour of the unique flying mammals and help guide future conservation activities.
the study by scientists at the National Trust for Scotland will follow common and soprano pipistrelles as well as brown long-eared and Daubenton bats at Inverewe Gardens in Wester Ross.
special recorders will be placed at key locations around the property to track bat activities throughout the season.
NHS staff and volunteers will also carry out mobile surveys using hand-held detectors.
expert sound analysis of all recordings will ascertain the frequency of the bat calls and which species are doing what.
a habitat map and report will then be produced to create a detailed landscape-scale picture of their behaviour.
Rob Dewar, nature conservation adviser for NTS, hopes the results will reveal which areas of habitat are most important to the bats and how they are used by each of the species.
this information will help determine the benefits of habitat management work such as meadow creation and how best to maintain woodlands for bats and other associated species.
bat populations in Scotland and across the UK have declined considerably over the past century.
they are under threat from building and development work that affects roosts and loss of habitat.
wind turbines and lighting can also pose a risk, as can flypapers and some chemical treatments of building materials, as well as attacks by pet cats.
bats are not actually blind.
however, due to their nocturnal hunting habits their ears are more useful than their eyes when it comes to catching prey.
they use a sophisticated echo-location technique to pinpoint bugs and obstacles in their flight path.
the NTS, which is responsible for the care of more than 270 historical buildings, 38 important gardens and 76,000 hectares of land around the country, takes bats very seriously.
it has ten trained experts, who regularly carry out surveys, roost inspections and sometimes rescues.
the organisation has even set up Scotland's first and only dedicated bat reserve at Threave estate in Dumfries and Galloway, which is home to eight of Scotland's ten bat species.
estate manager David Thompson says the estate is the ideal territory for them.
"here at Threave we have a great area for bats," he said.
"we've got the old buildings, lots of veteran trees and all the good habitat.
but there is much about bats that is still unknown, so the work we do here and at other properties will help us understand more about what they need to thrive. "
he stresses the importance of checking for bats before carrying out maintenance within properties as it is possible unwitting destruction of a single maternity roost could kill up to 400 females and young, possibly wiping out an entire local population.
bats are protected and it is illegal to kill, harass or disturb them or destroy their roosts.
Elisabeth Ferrell, Scottish officer for the Bat Conservation Trust, has encouraged the public to pitch in to help.
she said: "we still have a lot to learn about our bats and for many of our species we just don't know how their populations are faring."
Ronaldo dismisses rape claims as lawyers set to sue German magazine
Cristiano Ronaldo has branded rape claims against him as "fake news," saying that people "want to promote themselves" by using his name.
his lawyers are set to sue German news magazine Der Spiegel, which published the allegations.
the Portugal and Juventus forward has been accused of raping an American woman, named as Kathryn Mayorga, in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2009.
he is alleged to have then paid her $375,000 to keep quiet about the incident, Der Spiegel reported on Friday.
speaking in an Instagram Live video to his 142 million followers hours after the claims were reported, Ronaldo, 33, slammed the reports as "fake news."
"no, no, no, no, no.
what they said today, fake news, "the five-time Ballon d'Or winner says into the camera.
"they want to promote themselves by using my name.
it's normal.
they want to be famous to say my name, but it is part of the job.
I am a happy man and all good, "the player added, smiling.
Ronaldo's lawyers are preparing to sue Der Spiegel over the allegations, which they have called "an inadmissible reporting of suspicions in the area of privacy," according to Reuters.
lawyer Christian Schertz said the player would seek compensation for "moral damages in an amount corresponding to the gravity of the infringement, which is probably one of the most serious violations of personal rights in recent years."
the alleged incident is said to have taken place in June 2009 at a suite at the Palms Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
after meeting in a nightclub, Ronaldo and Mayorga reportedly went back to the player's room, where he allegedly anally raped her, according to papers filed at Clark County District Court in Nevada.
Mayorga claims Ronaldo fell to his knees after the alleged incident and told her he was "99 percent" a "good guy" let down by the "one percent."
the documents claim that Ronaldo confirmed the pair had sex, but that it was consensual.
Mayorga also claims she went to the police and had photographs taken of her injuries at a hospital, but later agreed to an out-of-court settlement because she felt "terrified of retaliation" and was worried about "being publicly humiliated."
the 34-year-old says she is now seeking to overturn the settlement as she continues to be traumatized by the alleged incident.
Ronaldo was on the verge of joining Real Madrid from Manchester United at the time of the alleged assault, and this summer moved to Italian giants Juve in a €100 million deal.
Brexit: UK 'would forever regret' losing carmakers
the UK "would regret it forever" if it lost its status as a world leader in car manufacturing after Brexit, Business Secretary Greg Clark has said.
he added it was "concerning" that Toyota UK had told the BBC that if Britain left the EU without a deal it would temporarily halt production at its factory in Burnaston, near Derby.
"we need a deal," Mr Clark said.
the Japanese carmaker said the impact of border delays in the event of a no-deal Brexit could cost jobs.
the Burnaston plant - which makes Toyota's Auris and Avensis - produced nearly 150,000 cars last year of which 90% were exported to the rest of the European Union.
"my view is that if Britain crashes out of the EU at the end of March we will see production stops in our factory," said Marvin Cooke, Toyota's managing director at Burnaston.
other UK car manufacturers have raised fears about leaving the EU without agreement on how cross-border trade will function, including Honda, BMW and Jaguar Land Rover.
BMW, for example, says it will close its Mini plant in Oxford for a month following Brexit.
the main concerns relate to what carmakers say are supply chain risks in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Toyota's production line is run on a "just-in-time" basis, with parts arriving every 37 minutes from suppliers in both the UK and the EU for cars made to order.
if the UK leaves the EU without a deal on 29 March, there could be disruption at the border which the industry says could lead to delays and shortages of parts.
it would be impossible for Toyota to hold more than a day's worth of inventory at its Derbyshire plant, the company said, and so production would be stopped.
Mr Clark said Theresa May's Chequers plan for future relations with the EU is "precisely calibrated to avoid those checks at the border."
"we need to have a deal. we want to have the best deal that will allow as I say not just the success at present to be enjoyed but for us to grasp this opportunity," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"the evidence from not just Toyota but other manufacturers is that we need to absolutely be able to continue what has been a highly successful set of supply chains."
Toyota was unable to say how long production would be stopped, but in the longer term, warned that added costs would reduce the plant's competitiveness and eventually cost jobs.
Peter Tsouvallaris, who has worked at Burnaston for 24 years and is the Unite union convenor at the plant, said his members are increasingly concerned: "in my experience once these jobs go they never come back.
a government spokesperson said: "we have put forward a precise and credible plan for our future relationship with the EU."
Trump meeting with Rosenstein may be delayed again, says White House
Donald Trump's high-stakes meeting with deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein could be "pushed back another week" as the fight over supreme court nominee Brett Kavanaugh continues, the White House said on Sunday.
Rosenstein oversees the work of special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian election interference, links between Trump aides and Russia and potential obstruction of justice by the president.
whether or not Trump will fire the deputy attorney general, and thereby endanger Mueller's independence, has fuelled Washington gossip for months.
earlier this month, the New York Times reported that Rosenstein discussed wearing a wire to record conversations with Trump and the possibility of removing the president via the 25th amendment.
Rosenstein denied the report.
but last Monday he went to the White House, amid reports he was about to resign.
instead, a meeting with Trump, who was then at the United Nations in New York, was announced for Thursday.
Trump said he would "prefer not" to fire Rosenstein but then the meeting was delayed to avoid a clash with the Senate judiciary committee hearing in which Kavanaugh and one of the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct, Dr Christine Blasey Ford, both testified.
on Friday, Trump ordered a one-week FBI investigation of claims against Kavanaugh, further delaying a full Senate vote.
Trump's press secretary, Sarah Sanders, appeared on Fox News Sunday.
asked about the Rosenstein meeting, she said: "a date for that hasn't been set, it could be this week, I could see that pushing back another week given all of the other things that are going on with the supreme court.
but we'll see and I always like to keep the press updated. "
some reporters would contest that assertion: Sanders has not held a White House press briefing since 10 September.
host Chris Wallace asked why.
Sanders said the scarcity of briefings was not due to a distaste for TV reporters "grandstanding," although she said: "I won't disagree with the fact that they grandstand."
she then suggested direct contact between Trump and the press will increase.
"the president does more Q & A sessions than any president has prior to him," she said, adding without citing evidence: "we've looked at those numbers."
briefings will still happen, Sanders said, but "if the press has the chance to ask the president of the United States questions directly, that's infinitely better than talking to me.
we try to do that a lot and you've seen us do that a lot over the last few weeks and that's going to take the place of a press briefing when you can talk to the president of the United States. "
Trump regularly takes questions when leaving the White House or participating in open sessions or press conferences with visiting dignitaries.
solo press conferences are rare.
in New York this week the president perhaps demonstrated why, making a freewheeling and at times bizarre appearance before gathered reporters.
health secretary writes to EU workers at NHS Scotland over Brexit fears
the Health Secretary has written to EU staff working in Scotland's NHS to express the country's gratitude and wish for them to stay on post-Brexit.
Jeane Freeman MSP sent a letter with less than six months to go until the UK withdraws from the EU.
the Scottish Government has already committed to meet the cost of settled status applications for EU citizens working in its devolved public services.
in her letter, Ms Freeman wrote: "over the summer, negotiations between the UK and EU on withdrawal have continued, heading towards expected decisions this autumn.
but the UK Government has also been stepping up its preparations for a possible no-deal scenario.
I know this must be a very unsettling time for all of you.
that is why I wanted to reiterate now how much I value the contribution of every member of staff, regardless of their nationality.
colleagues from across the EU, and beyond, bring valuable experience and skills that strengthen and improve the work of the health service, and benefit the patients and communities we serve.
Scotland is absolutely your home and we very much want you to stay here. "
Christion Abercrombie undergoes Emergency Surgery After Suffering Head Injury
Tennessee State Tigers Linebacker Christion Abercrombie underwent emergency surgery after suffering a head injury in Saturday's 31-27 defeat to the Vanderbilt Commodores, the Tennessean's Mike Organ reported.
Tennessee State head coach Rod Reed told reporters the injury happened shortly before halftime.
"he came to the sideline and just kind of collapsed there," Reed said.
trainers and medical personnel gave Abercrombie oxygen on the sideline before placing him on a stretcher and taking him back for further evaluation.
an official from Tennessee State told Chris Harris of WSMV in Nashville, Tennessee, that Abercrombie was out of surgery at Vanderbilt Medical Center.
Harris added that there are "no details on type / extent of injury yet" and Tennessee State is trying to figure out when the injury occurred.
Abercrombie, a redshirt sophomore, is in his first season with Tennessee State after transferring from Illinois.
he had five total tackles Saturday before exiting the game, which brought his season total to 18 tackles.
foreign buyers will be charged higher stamp duty when they buy a property in the UK
foreign buyers will be charged higher stamp duty when they buy a property in the UK with the extra cash used to help the homeless under new Tory plans
the move will neutralise the success of Corbyn's drive to attract young voters
the stamp duty rise will be levied on those who are not paying tax in the UK
the Treasury expects it raise up to £120 million a year- to help the homeless
foreign buyers are set to be charged a higher stamp duty rate when they buy property in the UK - with the extra cash used to help the homeless, Theresa May will announce today.
the move will be seen as an attempt to neutralise the success of Jeremy Corbyn's drive to attract young voters with pledges to provide more affordable housing and target high earners.
the stamp duty rise will be levied on individuals and firms not paying tax in the UK, with the extra money boosting the Government's drive to combat rough sleeping.
the surcharge - which is in addition to the present stamp duty, including the higher levels introduced two years ago on second homes and buy-to-lets - could be as much as three per cent.
the Treasury expects the move to raise up to £120 million a year.
an estimated 13 per cent of new-build London properties are bought by non-UK residents, driving up prices and making it harder for first-time buyers to get a foot on the housing ladder.
many wealthy areas of the country - particularly in the capital - have become "ghost towns" because of the high number of foreign buyers who spend most of their time out of the country.
the new policy comes just weeks after Boris Johnson called for a stamp duty cut to help more young people own their first home.
he accused big construction firms of keeping property prices high by snapping up land but not using it, and urged Mrs May to abandon quotas on affordable homes to fix Britain's "housing disgrace."
Mr Corbyn has announced an eye-catching series of proposed housing reforms, including rent controls and an end to "no-fault" evictions.
he also wants to give councils greater powers to build new homes.
Mrs May said: "last year I said I would dedicate my premiership to restoring the British dream - that life should be better for each new generation.
and that means fixing our broken housing market.
Britain will always be open to people who want to live, work and build a life here.
however, it cannot be right that it is as easy for individuals who don't live in the UK, as well as foreign-based companies, to buy homes as hard-working British residents.
for too many people the dream of home ownership has become all too distant, and the indignity of rough sleeping remains all too real. "
Jack Ross: 'my ultimate ambition is to manage Scotland'
Sunderland boss Jack Ross says his "ultimate ambition" is to become the Scotland manager at some stage.
the Scot, 42, is relishing the challenge of reviving the North-East club, who currently sit third place in League One, three points off the top.
he moved to the Stadium of Light this summer after guiding St Mirren back to the Scottish Premiership last season.
"I wanted to play for my country as a player.
I got a B cap and that was it, "Ross told BBC Scotland's Sportsound.
"but I grew up watching Scotland at Hampden a lot with my dad as a kid, and it is always something that has drawn me back.
that opportunity would only come, though, if I am successful in club management. "
Ross's predecessors as Sunderland manager include Dick advocaat, David Moyes, Sam Allardyce, Martin O'Neill, Roy Keane, Gus Poyet and Paulo Di Canio.
the former Alloa Athletic boss says he felt no trepidation in following such established names at such a big club, having previously rejected overtures from Barnsley and Ipswich Town.
"success for me at the moment will be gauged by 'can I return this club to the Premier League?'
because of the structure and facilities at this club, it undoubtedly belongs in the Premier League, "he said.
"it is not an easy task to get it there, but I would probably only view myself as being successful here if I can get the club back there."
Ross is only three years into his management career, after a period as assistant boss at Dumbarton and a 15-month spell on Hearts' coaching staff.
he then helped Alloa recover from relegation to the third tier, and transformed St Mirren from the brink of relegation to Championship title winners the following season.
and Ross says he feels more comfortable now than he ever did during his playing career at Clyde, Hartlepool, Falkirk, St Mirren and Hamilton Academical.
"it was probably a real crossroads," he recalled, of taking charge of Alloa.
"I genuinely did believe management was the right fit for me, more so than playing.
it sounds bizarre because I did okay, made a reasonable living out of it, and enjoyed some reasonable highs.
but playing can be tough.
there are a lot of things you have to get through on a weekly basis.
I still go through that in terms of the stresses and pressure of the job but management just feels right.
I always wanted to manage and now I am doing it, it feels the most comfortable I have been in my own skin throughout my entire adult life. "
you can listen to the full interview on Sportsound on Sunday, 30 September, on Radio Scotland between 12: 00 and 13: 00 BST
perfect time for a pint is 5.30pm on a Saturday, survey finds
the summer heatwave has boosted takings for Britain's struggling pubs but heaped more pressure on restaurant chains.
pub and bar groups saw sales rise 2.7 per cent in July - but takings in restaurants were down 4.8 per cent, figures revealed.
Peter Martin, of business consultancy CGA, which compiled the figures, said: "continued sunshine and England's longer than expected participation in the World Cup meant July followed a similar pattern to the previous month of June, when pubs were up 2.8 per cent, except that restaurants were hit even harder.
the fall of 1.8 per cent in restaurant trading in June just got worse in July.
drink-led pubs and bars performed by far the strongest with like-for-likes up more than restaurants were down.
food-led pubs also suffered in the sun, although not as dramatically as the restaurant operators.
it seems people just wanted to go out for a drink.
across managed pubs and bars drink sales were up 6.6 per cent for the month, with food down three per cent. "
Paul Newman, of leisure and hospitality analysts RSM said: "these results continue the trend we've seen since the end of April.
weather and the impact of major social or sporting events remain the biggest factors when it comes to sales in the out-of-home market.
it comes as no surprise that restaurant groups continue to struggle, albeit a sales drop of 4.8 per cent year-on-year will be particularly painful on top of ongoing cost pressures.
the long hot summer could not have come at a worse time for food-led operators and time will tell whether the more moderate temperatures we've experienced in August will provide some much-needed respite. "
total sales growth across pub and restaurants, including new openings, was 2.7 per cent in July, reflecting the slow down in brand roll-outs.
the coffer Peach Tracker industry sales monitor for the UK pub, bar and restaurant sector collects and analyses performance data from 47 operating groups, with a combined turnover of over £9 billion, and is the established industry benchmark.
one in five children have secret social media accounts that they hide from their parents
one in five children - some as young as 11 - have secret social media accounts that they hide from their parents and teachers, survey reveals
survey of 20,000 secondary school pupils revealed growth in "fake insta" pages
the news has heightened fears that sexual content is being posted
twenty per cent of pupils said they have a "main" account to show parents
one in five children - some as young as 11 - are creating social media accounts that they keep secret from adults.
a survey of 20,000 secondary school pupils revealed a rapid growth in "fake insta" accounts - a reference to photo-sharing site Instagram.
the news has heightened fears that sexual content is being posted.
twenty per cent of pupils said they operate a sanitised "main" account to show parents, while also having private ones.
one mother who stumbled across her 13-year-old's daughter's secret site found a teenager urging others to "rape me."
the research, by Digital Awareness UK and the headmasters "and Headmistresses" Conference (HMC) of independent schools, found 40 per cent of 11 to 18-year-olds had two profiles, with half of those admitting to keeping private accounts.
HMC chief Mike Buchanan said: "it's disturbing so many teenagers are tempted into creating online spaces where parents and teachers cannot find them."
Eilidh Doyle will be "voice for athletes" on Scottish Athletics board
Eilidh Doyle has been elected to the board of Scottish Athletics as a non-executive director at the governing body's annual general meeting.
Doyle is Scotland's most decorated track and field athlete and chairman Ian Beattie described the move as a great opportunity for those guiding the sport to benefit from her wide-ranging experience at international level over the past decade.
"Eilidh has massive respect across the Scottish, UK and world athletics community and we are sure athletics in Scotland would benefit hugely by bringing her on to the board," Beattie said.
Doyle said: "I am keen to act as a voice for athletes and I am hoping I can really contribute and help guide the sport in Scotland."
the American, who won the 200 metres and 400 metres at the 1996 Games in Atlanta among his total of four Olympic golds and is now a regular BBC pundit, was left unable to walk after suffering a transient ischemic attack.
he wrote on Twitter: "a month ago today I suffered a stroke.
I could not walk.
doctors said only time will tell if I will recover or to what degree.
its been grueling work but made a full recovery, re-learned how to walk and today doing agility drills!
thanks for the messages of encouragement! "
breast pump advert comparing mothers to cows divides opinion online
a breast pump company has divided opinion online with an advert that compares nursing mothers to cows being milked.
to mark the launch of what is said to be the "world's first silent wearable breast bump," consumer tech company Elvie released a tongue-in-cheek music video-inspired advert to showcase the freedom the new pump gives to expressing mothers.
four real mothers dance in a hay-filled barn of cows to a track that includes lyrics like: "yes, I milk myself, but you don't see no tail" and "In case you hadn't noticed these are not udders, they're my boobs."
the chorus continues: "pump it out, pump it out, I'm feeding them babies, pump it out, pump it out, I'm milking my ladies."
however, the advert, which has been published on the firm's Facebook page, has caused controversy online.
with 77,000 views and hundreds of comments, the video has received mixed reactions from viewers, with many saying it makes light of the "horrors" of the dairy industry.
"very poor decision using cows to advertise this product.
like us they need to get pregnant and give birth in order to produce milk, except their babies are stolen from them within days of giving birth, "one wrote.
the Elvie breast pump fits discreetly inside a nursing bra (Elvie / Mother)
another commented: "understandably traumatic for both mother and baby.
but yeah why not use them to advertise a breast pump for mothers who get to keep their babies? "
someone else added: "such an out of touch advert."
others defended the advert, with one woman admitting that she found the song "hilarious."
"I think this is a genus idea.
I would've had one if I was still breastfeeding.
pumping made me feel exactly like a cow.
the advert is a little mad but I took it for what it was.
this is a genius product, "one wrote.
another commented: "this is a fun advert aimed at mums who pump (often in their workplaces or toilets) and feel like" cows. "
this is not an advert praising or judging the dairy industry. "
at the end of the video the group of women reveal they've all been dancing with the discreet pumps tucked in their bras.
the concept behind the campaign is based on the insight that many women who breast-pump say they feel like cows.
the Elvie Pump however, is completely silent, has no wires or tubes and fits discreetly inside a nursing bra, giving women the freedom to move, hold their babies, and even go out while pumping.
Ana Balarin, partner and ECD at Mother commented: "the Elvie Pump is such a revolutionary product that it deserved a bold and provocative launch.
by drawing a parallel between expressing women and dairy cows we wanted to put breast pumping and all its challenges in the spotlight, while demonstrating in an entertaining and relatable way the incredible sense of freedom that the new pump will bring.
this is not the first time the Elvie pump has made the headlines.
during London Fashion Week, a mother of two appeared on the catwalk for designer Marta Jakubowski while using the product.
hundreds of Migrant Children quietly Moved to a Tent Camp on the Texas Border
the number of detained migrant children has spiked even though monthly border crossings have remained relatively unchanged, in part because harsh rhetoric and policies introduced by the Trump administration have made it harder to place children with sponsors.
traditionally, most sponsors have been undocumented immigrants themselves, and have feared jeopardizing their own ability to remain in the country by stepping forward to claim a child.
the risk increased in June, when federal authorities announced that potential sponsors and other adult members of their households would have to submit fingerprints, and that the data would be shared with immigration authorities.
last week, Matthew Albence, a senior official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, testified before Congress that the agency had arrested dozens of people who applied to sponsor unaccompanied minors.
the agency later confirmed that 70 percent of those arrested did not have prior criminal records.
"close to 80 percent of the individuals that are either sponsors or household members of sponsors are here in the country illegally, and a large chunk of those are criminal aliens.
so we are continuing to pursue those individuals, "Mr. Albence said.
seeking to process the children more quickly, officials introduced new rules that will require some of them to appear in court within a month of being detained, rather than after 60 days, which was the previous standard, according to shelter workers.
many will appear via video conference call, rather than in person, to plead their case for legal status to an immigration judge.
those who are deemed ineligible for relief will be swiftly deported.
the longer that children remain in custody, the more likely they are to become anxious or depressed, which can lead to violent outbursts or escape attempts, according to shelter workers and reports that have emerged from the system in recent months.
advocates said those concerns are heightened at a larger facility like Tornillo, where signs that a child is struggling are more likely to be overlooked, because of its size.
they added that moving children to the tent city without providing enough time to prepare them emotionally or to say goodbye to friends could compound trauma that many are already struggling with.
Syria tells US, French and Turkish 'occupying forces' to withdraw immediately
addressing the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem also called on Syrian refugees to come home, even though the country's war is now in its eighth year.
Moualem, who also serves as deputy prime minister, said the foreign forces were on Syrian soil illegally, under the pretext of fighting terrorism, and "will be dealt with accordingly."
"they must withdraw immediately and without any conditions," he told the assembly.
Moualem insisted that the "war on terror is almost over" in Syria, where more than 360,000 people have died since 2011, with millions more uprooted from their homes.
he said Damascus would continue "fighting this sacred battle until we purge all Syrian territories" of both terror groups and "any illegal foreign presence."
the United States has some 2,000 troops in Syria, mainly training and advising both Kurdish forces and Syrian Arabs opposed to President Bashar al-Assad.
France has more than 1,000 troops on the ground in the war-wracked country.
on the issue of refugees, Moualem said the conditions were fine for them to return, and he blamed "some western countries" for "spreading irrational fears" that prompted refugees to stay away.
"we have called upon the international community and humanitarian organizations to facilitate these returns," he said.
"they are politicizing what should be a purely humanitarian issue."
the United States and the European Union have warned that there will be no reconstruction aid for Syria until there is a political agreement between Assad and the opposition to end the war.
UN diplomats say a recent agreement between Russia and Turkey to set up a buffer zone in the last major rebel stronghold of Idlib has created an opportunity to press ahead with political talks.
the Russian-Turkish deal averted a large-scale assault by Russian-backed Syrian forces on the province, where three million people live.
Moualem however stressed that the agreement had "clear deadlines" and expressed hope that military action will target jihadists including fighters from the Al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, who "will be eradicated."
UN envoy Staffan de Mistura is hoping to soon convene the first meetings of a new committee comprised of government and opposition members to draft a post-war constitution for Syria and pave the way to elections.
Moualem laid out conditions for the Syrian government's participation in the committee, saying the panel's work should be restricted "to reviewing the articles of the current constitution," and warned against interference.
why Trump Will Win a Second Term
by that logic, Mr. Trump would win re-election in 2020 unless, as many liberal viewers are probably hoping, impeachment and scandal end his presidency prematurely.
in what would no doubt be "The most dramatic finale of a presidency ever!"
as of now, there are no signs of viewer fatigue.
since 2014, prime-time ratings have more than doubled to 1.05 million at CNN and nearly tripled to 1.6 million at MSNBC.
Fox News has an average of 2.4 million prime-time viewers, up from 1.7 million four years ago, according to Nielsen, and MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" has topped cable ratings with as many as 3.5 million viewers on major news nights.
"this is a fire that people are being drawn to because it's not something we understand," said Neal Baer, show runner of the ABC drama "Designated Survivor," about a cabinet secretary who becomes president after an attack destroys the Capitol.
nell Scovell, a veteran comedy writer and author of "Just the Funny Parts: and a Few Hard Truths About sneaking Into the Hollywood Boys" Club, "has another theory.
she remembers a cab ride in Boston before the 2016 election.
the driver told her he would be voting for Mr. Trump.
why? she asked.
"he said," Because he makes me laugh, "" Ms. Scovell told me.
there is entertainment value in the chaos.
of course, unlike anything else on TV, the story lines coming out of Washington could determine the future of Roe v. Wade, whether immigrant families can reunite and the health of the global economy.
tuning out is a luxury only the most privileged viewers can afford.
and yet, it goes beyond being an informed citizen when you find yourself on hour six of watching a panel of experts debate Bob Woodward's use of "deep background" sourcing for his book "Fear," Paul Manafort's $15,000 ostrich-leather bomber jacket ("a garment thick with hubris," The Washington Post said) and the implications of Stormy Daniels's lurid descriptions of Mr. Trump's, um, anatomy.
I, for one, will never look at Super Mario the same way again.
"part of what he's doing that makes it feel like a reality show is that he is feeding you something every night," said Brent Montgomery, chief executive of WHEELHOUSE Entertainment and the creator of "Pawn Stars," about the Trump show's rotating cast and daily plot twists (picking a fight with the N.F.L., praising Kim Jong-un).
you can't afford to miss one episode or you're left behind.
when I reached Mr. Fleiss this week, it was a sunny 80 degrees outside his home on the north shore of Kauai, but he was holed up inside watching MSNBC while recording CNN.
he couldn't peel himself away, not with Brett Kavanaugh set to face the Senate Judiciary Committee and the future of the Supreme Court hanging in the balance.
"I remember when we were doing all those crazy shows back in the day and people said," This is the beginning of the end of Western civilization, "" Mr. Fleiss told me.
"I thought it was sort of a joke, but it turns out they were right."
Amy Chozick, a writer at large for The Times covering business, politics and media, is the author of the memoir "Chasing Hillary."
outside money floods into tightest midterm election House races
it's not surprising that Pennsylvania's 17th is seeing a flood of cash, thanks to a realignment of a congressional districts that landed two incumbents in a race for the same seat.
this recently redrawn suburban Pittsburg district pits Democrat Rep. Conor Lamb - who won his seat in another district in a special election last spring.
lamb is running against another incumbent, Republican Keith Rothfus, who currently represents the old Pennsylvania 12th district, which overlaps heavily with the new 17th.
the maps were redrawn after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in January that the old districts were unconstitutionally gerrymandered in Republicans' favor.
the race in the new 17th has touched off a campaign finance slugfest between the major party finance arms, the Democratic Campaign Congressional Committee (DCCC) and the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC).
lamb became a familiar name in Pennsylvania after a narrow win in a widely watched in March special election for Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District.
that seat had been held by a Republican for over a decade, and President Donald Trump won the district by 20 points.
political pundits have given Democrats a slight edge.
U.S. weighed penalizing El Salvador Over Support for China, Then Backed Off
diplomats noted that the Dominican Republic and Panama had already recognized Beijing, with little pushback from Washington.
Mr. Trump had a warm meeting with President Juan Carlos Varela of Panama in June 2017 and had a hotel in Panama until partners evicted the Trump Organization's management team.
State Department officials decided to call back the American chiefs of diplomatic missions from El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Panama over the "recent decisions to no longer recognize Taiwan," Heather Nauert, the department's spokeswoman, said in a statement early this month.
but penalties were only considered against El Salvador, which received an estimated $140 million in American aid in 2017, including for narcotics controls, development and economic support.
the proposed penalties, which included cuts to financial aid and targeted visa restrictions, would have been painful for the Central American country and its high unemployment and murder rates.
as internal meetings progressed, North American and Central American officials postponed a high-level conference focused on security and economic prosperity to follow up a similar gathering last year that was seen as a step forward in efforts to prevent migrants from heading to the United States.
but by mid-September, top administration officials made clear that they wanted the conference to go forward, effectively ending any consideration of penalties for El Salvador.
Vice President Mike Pence is now slated to address the conference, now scheduled for mid-October, in a signal of the import the administration places on the gathering, the diplomats said.
and the three American envoys quietly returned to El Salvador, Panama and the Dominican Republic with no new tough messages or punishments from Washington.
a White House spokesman for Mr. Bolton declined to comment on the details of the debate that were described by the three American officials, including two diplomats, who agreed to discuss the internal deliberations on the condition of anonymity.
their accounts were corroborated by an outside analyst who is close to the administration and also spoke on the condition of anonymity.
study History
the next shoe to drop could be the special counsel Robert Mueller's report on Mr. Trump's possible obstruction of justice, of which there now is very substantial evidence in the public record.
Mr. Mueller is reportedly also turning his investigation to whether Mr. Trump's campaign colluded with Russia in its attack on our elections.
should Congress change hands, Mr. Trump will find himself facing accountability in that body, just as he prepares to go again before the voters, and perhaps eventually a jury of his peers.
that is a lot of ifs, and I do not mean to suggest that Mr. Trump's fall is inevitable - nor that of his equivalents in Europe.
there are choices to be made by all of us on both sides of the Atlantic that will affect how prolonged the struggle may be.
in 1938, German officers were ready to stage a coup d "état against Hitler, if only the West had resisted him and backed the Czechoslovaks at Munich.
we failed, and missed an opportunity to avoid the years of carnage that ensued.
the course of history pivots around such inflection points, and democracy's inexorable march is accelerated or delayed.
Americans face several of these inflection points now.
what will we do if Mr. Trump fires Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the man who controls the fate of Mr. Mueller's investigation?
Rosenstein has been in hot water ever since this paper reported that, last year, he suggested secretly recording the president and speculated about his being unfit for office.
Mr. Rosenstein says The Times's account is inaccurate.
"how will we respond if the newly requested F.B.I. investigation of Brett Kavanaugh is not full or fair - or if he is confirmed to the Supreme Court despite credible accusations of sexual assault and dishonest testimony?
and above all, will we vote in the midterms for a Congress that will hold Mr. Trump accountable?
if we fail those tests, democracy will be in for a long winter.
but I believe we will not fail, because of the lesson I learned in Prague.
my mother was a Czechoslovak Jew who was deported to Auschwitz by the same Nazi regime that once occupied my ambassadorial home.
she survived, immigrated to America and, 60 years later, sent me off to light Sabbath candles on that table bearing the swastika.
with that as my heritage, how can I not be an optimist about our future? "
Norman Eisen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, is the chairman of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the author of "The Last Palace: Europe's Turbulent Century in Five Lives and One Legendary House."
Rangers' Graham Dorrans optimistic ahead of Rapid Vienna clash
Rangers host Rapid Vienna on Thursday, knowing that victory over the Austrians, following the impressive draw in Spain against Villarreal earlier this month, will put them in a strong position to qualify from Group G of the Europa League.
a knee injury prevented midfielder Graham Dorrans from making his first appearance of the season until the 2-2 draw with Villarreal but he believes Rangers can use that result as a springboard to greater things.
"it was a good point for us because Villarreal are a good side," said the 31-year-old.
"we went into the game believing we could get something and came away with a point.
maybe we could have nicked it in the end but, overall, a draw was probably a fair result.
they were probably better in the first half and we came out in the second half and were the better side.
going into Thursday, it's another big European night.
hopefully, we can get three points but that will be tough game because they had a good result in their last game but, with the crowd behind us, I'm sure we can push on and get a positive result.
last year was definitely tough, between everything that happened with my injuries and the changes at the club itself but there's a feelgood factor about the place now.
the squad's good and the boys are really enjoying it; the training's good.
hopefully, we can push on now, put last season behind us and be successful. "
women are losing sleep over this retirement savings fear
despite the fact that survey participants had a clear idea of how they wanted to be cared for, few people were talking to their family members about it.
about half of the individuals in the Nationwide study said they were speaking with their spouses about the cost of long-term care.
only 10 percent said they spoke with their kids about it.
"people want a family member to care for them, but they aren't taking the steps to have the conversation," said Holly Snyder, vice president of Nationwide's life insurance business.
here's where to begin.
talk to your spouse and the kids: you can't prepare your family to provide care if you don't make your wishes known well ahead of time.
work with your advisor and your family to discuss where and how to receive care, as those choices can be a significant factor in determining the cost.
bring in your financial advisor: your advisor can also help you come up with a way to pay for those expenses.
your funding choices for long-term care can include a traditional long-term care insurance policy, a hybrid cash-value life insurance policy to help cover these expenses or self-insuring with your own wealth - as long as you have the money.
hammer out your legal documents: head off legal battles at the pass.
get a health-care proxy in place so that you designate a trusted individual to oversee your medical care and ensure that professionals comply with your wishes in case you're unable to communicate.
also, consider a power of attorney for your finances.
you would select a trusted person to make financial decisions for you and ensure your bills get paid if you're incapacitated.
don't forget the small details: imagine that your elderly parent has a medical emergency and is on the way to the hospital.
would you be able to answer questions on medications and allergies?
spell out those details in a written plan so that you're ready.
"it's not just the financials that are in play, but who are the doctors?" asked Martin.
"what are the medications?
who will care for the dog?
have that plan in place. "
man shot multiple times with air rifle in Ilfracombe
a man has been shot multiple times with an air rifle as he walked home from a night out.
the victim, in his 40s, was in the Oxford Grove area of Ilfracombe, Devon, when he was shot in the chest, abdomen and hand.
officers described the shooting, which took place at about 02: 30 BST, as a "random act."
the victim did not see his attacker.
his injuries are not life-threatening and police have appealed for witnesses.
earthquakes and tsunamis in Indonesia
at least 384 people have been killed by a powerful earthquake and tsunami that hit the Indonesian city of Palu on Friday, officials said, with the death toll expected to rise.
with communications knocked out, relief officials have not been able to get any information from Donggala regency, an area north of Palu that is closer to the epicenter of the 7.5 magnitude quake.
in Palu, more than 16,000 people were evacuated after the disaster struck.
here are some key facts about Palu and Donggala, on the island of Sulawesi:
Palu is the capital of Central Sulawesi province, located at the end of a narrow bay on the west coast of Sulawesi island, with an estimated population of 379,800 in 2017.
the city was celebrating its 40th anniversary when the quake and tsunami hit.
Donggala is a regency stretching along more than 300 km (180 miles) of coastline in the northwest of Sulawesi island.
the regency, an administrative region below a province, had an estimated population of 299,200 in 2017.
fishing and farming are the mainstays of the Central Sulawesi province's economy, especially the coastal region of Donggala.
nickel mining is also important in the province, but is mostly concentrated in Morowali, on the opposite coast of Sulawesi.
Palu and Donggala have been hit by tsunamis several times in the past 100 years, according to Indonesia's Disaster Mitigation Agency.
in 1938, a tsunami killed more than 200 people and destroyed hundreds of houses in Donggala.
a tsunami also struck western Donggala in 1996, killing nine.
Indonesia sits on the seismically Pacific Ring of Fire and is regularly hit by earthquakes.
here are some of the major quakes and tsunamis in recent years:
2004: a major quake on the western coast of Indonesia's Aceh province in northern Sumatra on Dec. 26 triggered a tsunami that struck 14 countries, killing 226,000 people along Indian Ocean coastline, more than half of them in Aceh.
2005: a series of strong quakes hit the western coast of Sumatra in late March and early April.
hundreds died in Nias Island, off the coast of Sumatra.
2006: a 6.8 magnitude hit south of Java, Indonesia's most populated island, triggering a tsunami that smashed into the southern coast, killing nearly 700 people.
2009: a 7.6 magnitude quake struck near the city of Padang, capital of West Sumatra province.
more than 1,100 people were killed.
2010: a 7.5 magnitude quake hit one of the Mentawai islands, off Sumatra, triggering up tsunami of up to 10 meters that destroyed dozens of villages and killed around 300 people.
2016: a shallow quake hit the Pidie Jaya regency in Aceh, causing destruction and panic as people were reminded by the devastation of the deadly 2004 quake and tsunami.
no tsunami was triggered this time, but more than 100 were killed by fallen buildings.
2018: major quakes hit Indonesia's tourist island of Lombok, killing more than 500 people, mostly on the northern side of the island.
the quake destroyed thousands of buildings and left thousands of tourists temporarily stranded.
Sarah Palin's eldest Son Arrested on Domestic Violence Charges
track Palin, the eldest son of former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, has been arrested on assault charges.
Palin, 29, of Wasilla, Alaska, was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, interfering with a report of domestic violence and resisting arrest, according to a report released Saturday by Alaska State Troopers.
according to the police report, when a female acquaintance attempted to call police to report the alleged crimes, he took her phone from her.
Palin is being remanded in Mat-Su pretrial Facility and is being held on a $500 unsecured bond, reported KTUU.
he appeared in court Saturday, where he declared himself "not guilty, for sure" when asked his plea, reported the network.
Palin faces three Class A misdemeanours, meaning he could be imprisoned for up to a year and fined $250,000.
he has also been charged with a Class B misdemeanour, punishable by a day in jail and a $2,000 fine.
it is not the first time criminal charges have been filed against Palin.
in December 2017, he was accused of assaulting his father, Todd Palin.
his mother, Sarah Palin, called police to report the alleged attack.
the case is currently before Alaska's Veteran's Court.
in January 2016 he was charged with domestic assault, interfering with the report of a domestic violence crime, and possessing a weapon while intoxicated in connection with the incident.
his girlfriend had alleged that he punched her in the face.
Sarah Palin was criticised by veterans groups in 2016 after linking her son's violent behaviour to PTSD stemming from his service in Iraq.
Indonesia earthquake tsunami: hundreds killed
at least 384 people have died after an earthquake hit the Indonesian island of Sulawesi on Friday.
the 7.5-magnitude earthquake triggered a tsunami and has destroyed thousands of homes.
electricity and communication networks are down with death tolls expected to rise in coming days.
the earthquake hit just off central Sulawesi which is northeast of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta.
videos are circulating on social media showing the moment of impact.
hundreds of people had gathered for a beach festival in the city of Palu when the tsunami smashed on shore.
Federal prosecutors seeking rare death penalty for NYC terror attack suspect
Federal prosecutors in New York are seeking the death penalty for Sayfullo Saipov, the suspect in the New York City terror attack that killed eight people -- a rare punishment that hasn't been carried out in the state for a federal crime since 1953.
Saipov, 30, allegedly used a Home Depot rental truck to carry out an attack on a bike path along the West Side Highway in Lower Manhattan, mowing down pedestrians and cyclist in his path on Oct.
in order to justify a death sentence, prosecutors will have to prove that Saipov "intentionally" killed the eight victims and "intentionally" inflicted serious bodily injury, according to the notice of intent to seek the death penalty, filed in the Southern District of New York.
both of those counts carry a possibly death sentence, according to the court document.
weeks after the attack, a federal grand jury slapped Saipov with a 22-count indictment that included eight charges of murder in aid of racketeering, typically used by federal prosecutors in organized crime cases, and a charge of violence and destruction of motor vehicles.
the attack required "substantial planning and premeditation," prosecutors said, describing the manner in which Saipov carried it out as "heinous, cruel and depraved."
"Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov caused injury, harm, and loss to the families and friends of Diego Enrique Angelini, Nicholas Cleves, Ann-Laure Decadt, Darren Drake, Ariel Erlij, Hernan Ferruchi, Hernan Diego Mendoza, and Alejandro Damian Pagnucco," the notice of intent states.
five of the victims were tourists from Argentina.
it has been a decade since the Southern District of New York last prosecuted a death penalty case.
the defendant, Khalid Barnes, was convicted of murdering two drug suppliers but was ultimately sentenced to life in prison in September 2009.
the last time the death penalty was carried out in a New York federal case was in 1953 for Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, a married couple executed after they were convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage for the Soviet Union during the Cold War two years before.
both Rosenbergs were both put to death by the electric chair on June 19, 1953.
Saipov, a native of Uzbekistan, demonstrated a lack of remorse in the days and months following the attack, according to court documents.
he stated to investigators that he felt good about what he had done, police said.
Saipov told authorities he was inspired to carry out the attack after watching ISIS videos on his phone, according to the indictment.
he also requested to display the ISIS flag in his hospital room, police said.
he has pleaded not guilty to the 22-count indictment.
David Patton, one of the federal public defenders representing Saipov, said they are "obviously disappointed" with the prosecution's decision.
"we think the decision to seek the death penalty rather than accepting a guilty plea to life in prison with no possibility of release will only prolong the trauma of these events for everyone involved," Patton said.
Saipov's defense team had previously asked prosecutors not to seek the death penalty.
Tory MP says NIGEL Farage should be put in charge of Brexit negotiations
Nigel Farage vowed to 'mobilise the people's army' today during a protest at the Tory conference.
the former UKIP leader said politicians had to 'feel the heat' from Eurosceptics - as one of Theresa May's own MPs suggested he should be in charge of negotiations with the EU.
conservative backbencher Peter Bone told the march in Birmingham that the UK 'would have been out' by now if Mr Farage was Brexit Secretary.
but the challenge Mrs May faces in reconciling her deeply divided ranks has been underlined by pro-Remain Tories joining a separate protest against Brexit in the city.
the premier is struggling to keep her Chequers compromise plan on track amid attacks from Brexiteers, Remainers and the EU.
allies insisted she will push ahead with trying to strike a deal with Brussels despite the backlash - and force Eurosceptics and Labour to choose between her package and 'chaos'.
Mr Bone told the Leave Means Leave rally in Solihull that he wanted to 'chuck Chequers'.
he suggested Mr Farage should have been made a peer and given responsibility for negotiations with Brussels.
'If he had been in charge, we would have been out by now, 'he said.
the Wellingborough MP added: 'I will stand up for Brexit but we need to chuck Chequers.'
setting out his opposition to the EU, he said: 'we didn't fight world wars to be subservient.
we want to make our own laws in our own country. '
Mr Bone dismissed suggestions that public opinion had changed since the 2016 vote: 'the idea that the British people have changed their minds and want to remain is completely untrue.'
Tory Brexiteer Andrea Jenkyns was also at the march, telling reporters: 'I am simply saying: Prime Minister, listen to the people.
'Chequers is unpopular with the general public, the Opposition's not going to vote for it, it's unpopular with our party and our activists who actually pound the streets and get us elected in the first place.
please drop Chequers and start listening. '
in a pointed message to Mrs May, she added: 'Prime ministers keep their jobs when they keep their promises.'
Mr Farage told the rally politicians must be made to 'feel the heat' if they were about to betray the decision made in the 2016 referendum.
'This is now about a matter of trust between us - the people - and our political class, 'he said.
'They are trying to betray Brexit and we are here today to tell them 'we won't let you get away with doing that'. '
in a message to the enthusiastic crowd he added: 'I want you to make our political class, who are on the verge of betraying Brexit, feel the heat.
'We are mobilising the people's army of this country that gave us victory in Brexit and will never rest until we have become an independent, self-governing, proud United Kingdom. '
meanwhile, Remainers marched through Birmingham before holding a two-hour rally in the city centre.
a smattering of activists waved Tories Against Brexit banners after the launch of the group this weekend.
labour peer Lord Adonis mocked the Conservatives for the security issues they suffered with a party app as the conference opened.
'These are the people who tell us they can have the IT systems in place and all of the technology for Canada plus plus, for the frictionless border, for free trade without borders in Ireland, 'he added.
'it is a complete farce.
there isn't such a thing as a good Brexit, 'he added.
Warren plans to take a 'hard look' at running for president
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren says she'll take a "hard look at running for president" after the November elections.
the Boston Globe reports the Massachusetts Democrat spoke about her future during a town hall in western Massachusetts Saturday.
Warren, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, is running for re-election in November against GOP state Rep. Geoff Diehl, who was co-chairman of Trump's 2016 Massachusetts campaign.
she has been at the center of speculation that she might take on Trump in 2020.
Saturday afternoon's event in Holyoke was her 36th meeting with constituents using the town hall format since Trump took office.
an attendee asked her if she planned to run for president.
Warren replied that it's time "for women to go to Washington to fix our broken government, and that includes a woman at the top."
arrest made in shooting death of LSU's Sims
police in Baton Rouge, La., announced Saturday that a suspect has been arrested in the shooting death of LSU basketball player Wayde Sims on Friday.
the Baton Rouge Police Department announced the arrest of Dyteon Simpson, 20, at an 11 a.m. ET news conference.
they had released a video of the shooting on Friday, asking for help identifying a man seen in the footage.
Sims, 20, was shot and killed near Southern University's campus early Friday.
"Wayde Sims suffered a gunshot wound to the head and ultimately died as a result," police chief Murphy J. Paul told the media Saturday, per 247sports.
Wayde stepped in to defend his friend and was shot by Simpson.
Simpson was questioned and admitted to being on scene, in possession of a weapon, and admitted to shooting Wayde Sims.
Simpson was arrested without incident and taken into custody at East Baton Rouge Parish Police Department.
a 6-foot-6 junior who grew up in Baton Rouge, Sims played in 32 games with 10 starts last season and averaged 17.4 minutes, 5.6 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
Russian Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton closes in on world title after team orders hand him win over Sebastian Vettel
it became clear from the moment that Valtteri Bottas qualified ahead of Lewis Hamilton on Saturday that Mercedes "team orders would play a large part in the race.
from pole, Bottas got a good start and almost hung Hamilton out to dry as he defended his position in the first two turns and invited Vettel to attack his teammate.
Vettel went into the pits first and left Hamilton to run into the traffic at the tail of the pack, something which should have been decisive.
the Mercedes pitted a lap later and came out behind Vettel, but Hamilton went ahead after some wheel-to-wheel action that saw the Ferrari driver reluctantly leave the inside free at risk of holding out after a double-move to defend on the third corner.
Max Verstappen started from the back row of the grid and was in seventh by the end of the first lap on his 21st birthday.
he then led for a large part of the race as he held onto his tyres to target a quick finish and overtake Kimi Raikkonen for fourth.
he eventually came into the pits on the 44th lap but was unable to increase his pace in the remaining eight laps as Raikkonen took fourth.
it's a difficult day because Valtteri did a fantastic job all weekend and was a real gentleman told let me by.
the team have done such an exceptional job to have a one two, "said Hamilton.
that Was Really Bad Body Language
President Donald Trump mocked Senator Dianne Feinstein at a rally on Saturday over her insistence she did not leak the letter from Christine Blasey Ford accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault.
speaking at a rally in West Virginia, the president did not directly address the testimony given by Ford before the Senate Judiciary Committee, instead commenting that what was going on in the Senate showed that people were "mean and nasty and untruthful."
"the one thing that could happen and the beautiful thing that is going on over the last few days in the Senate, when you see the anger, when you see people that are angry and mean and nasty and untruthful," he said.
"when you look at releases and leaks and then they say" oh, I didn't do it.
I didn't do it. "
remember?
Dianne Feinstein, did you leak?
remember her answer... did you leak the document - "oh, oh, what?
Oh, no.
I didn't leak. "
well, wait one minute.
did we leak... No, we didn't leak, "he added, in an impression of the senator.
Feinstein was sent the letter detailing the allegations against Kavanaugh by Ford back in July, and it was leaked earlier in September - but Feinstein denied that the leak came from her office.
"I did not hide Dr. Ford's allegations, I did not leak her story," Feinstein told the committee, The Hill reported.
"she asked me to hold it confidential and I kept it confidential as she asked."
but her denial did not appear to sit well with the president, who commented during the Saturday night rally: "I'll tell you what, that was really bad body language.
maybe she didn't, but that's the worst body language I've ever seen. "
continuing his defense of the Supreme Court nominee, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by three women, the president suggested that the Democrats were using the allegations for their own ends.
"they are determined to take back power by any means necessary.
you see the meanness, the nastiness, they don't care who they hurt, who they have to run over to get power and control, "Mediaite reported the president saying.
elite League: Dundee Stars 5-3 Belfast Giants
Patrick Dwyer hit two goals for the Giants against Dundee
Dundee Stars atoned for Friday's Elite League loss against Belfast Giants by winning the return match 5-3 in Dundee on Saturday.
the Giants got an early two-goal lead through strikes from Patrick Dwyer and Francis Beauvillier.
Mike Sullivan and Jordan Cownie brought the home side level before Dwyer restored the Giants' lead.
Francois Bouchard equalised for Dundee before two Lukas Lundvald Nielsen goals secured their victory.
it was a third Elite League defeat of the season for Adam Keefe's men, who had come from behind to beat Dundee 2-1 in Belfast on Friday night.
it was a fourth meeting of the season between the sides, with the Giants winning the previous three matches.
Dwyer's opener came in the fourth minute on 3: 35 from a Kendall McFaull assist, with David Rutherford providing the assist as Beauvillier doubled the lead four minutes later.
in what was a busy opening period, Sullivan brought the home side back into the game on 13: 10 before Matt Marquardt became provider for Cownie's equaliser on 15: 16.
Dwyer made sure the Giants took a lead into the first break when he hit his second goal of the night at the end of the first period.
the home side regrouped and Bouchard once again put them on level terms with a power play goal on 27: 37.
Cownie and Charles Corcoran combined to help Nielsen give Dundee the lead for the first time in the match late in the second period and he made sure of the win with his team's fifth halfway through the final period.
the Giants, who have now lost four of their last five matches, are at home to Milton Keynes in their next match on Friday.
air Traffic Controller Dies To Ensure Hundreds On Plane Can Escape Earthquake
an air traffic controller in Indonesia is being hailed as a hero after he died ensuring that a plane carrying hundreds of people made it safely off the ground.
more than 800 people have died and many are missing after a major earthquake hit the island of Sulawesi on Friday, triggering a tsunami.
strong aftershocks continue to plague the area and many are trapped in debris in the city of Palu.
but despite his colleagues fleeing for their lives, 21-year-old Anthonius Gunawan Agung refused to leave his post in the wildly swaying control tower at Mutiara Sis Al Jufri Airport Palu airport.
he stayed put to make sure that the Batik Air Flight 6321, which was on the runway at the time, was able to take off safely.
he then jumped off the traffic control tower when he thought it was collapsing.
he died later in hospital.
spokesman for Air Navigation Indonesia, Yohannes Sirait, said the decision may have saved hundreds of lives, Australia's ABC News reported.
we prepared a helicopter from Balikpapan in Kalimantan to take him to a bigger hospital in another city.
unfortunately we lost him this morning before the helicopter reached Palu.
"our heart breaks to hear about this," he added.
meanwhile, authorities fear that the death toll could reach the thousands with the country's disaster mitigation agency saying that access to the the towns of Donggala, Sigi and Boutong is limited.
"the toll is believed to be still increasing since many bodies were still under the wreckage while many have not able to be reached," agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
waves that reached up to six meters have devastated Palu which will hold a mass burial on Sunday.
military and commercial aircraft are bringing in aid and supplies.
Risa Kusuma, a 35-year-old mother, told Sky News: "every minute an ambulance brings in bodies.
clean water is scarce.
the mini-markets are looted everywhere. "
Jan Gelfand, head of the International Red Cross in Indonesia, told CNN: "the Indonesian Red Cross is racing to help survivors but we don't know what they'll find there.
this is already a tragedy, but it could get much worse. "
Indonesia's President Joko Widodo arrived in Palu on Sunday and told the country's military: "I am asking all of you to work day and night to complete every tasks related to the evacuation.
are you ready? "CNN reported.
Indonesia was hit earlier this year by earthquakes in Lombok in which more than 550 people died.
Micronesia plane crash: air Niugini now says one man missing after lagoon plane crash
the airline operating a flight that crashed into a Pacific lagoon in Micronesia now says one man is missing, after earlier saying all 47 passengers and crew had safely evacuated the sinking plane.
air Niugini said in a release that as of Saturday afternoon, it was unable to account for a male passenger.
the airline said it was working with local authorities, hospitals and investigators to try to find the man.
the airline did not immediately respond to requests for more details about the passenger, such as his age or nationality.
local boats helped rescue the other passengers and crew after the plane hit the water while trying to land at the Chuuk Island airport.
officials said on Friday that seven people had been taken to a hospital.
the airline said six passengers remained at the hospital Saturday, and all of them were in stable condition.
what caused the crash and the exact sequence of events remains unclear.
the airline and the U.S. Navy both said the plane landed in the lagoon short of the runway.
some witnesses thought the plane overshot the runway.
American passenger Bill Jaynes said the plane came in very low.
"that's an extremely good thing," said Jaynes.
Jaynes said he and others managed to wade through waist-deep water to the emergency exits on the sinking plane.
he said the flight attendants were panicking and yelling, and that he suffered a minor head injury.
the U.S. Navy said sailors working nearby on improving a wharf also helped in the rescue by using an inflatable boat to shuttle people ashore before the plane sank in about 30 meters (100 feet) of water.
data from the Aviation Safety Network indicates 111 people have died in crashes of PNG-registered airlines in the past two decades but none involved Air Niugini.
analyst lays out timeline of night woman was burned alive
the prosecution rested its case Saturday in the retrial of a man who is accused of burning a Mississippi woman alive in 2014.
U.S. Department of Justice Analyst Paul Rowlett testified for hours as an expert witness in the field of intelligence analysis.
he outlined for the jury how he used cellphone records to piece together the movements of 29-year-old defendant Quinton Tellis and the 19-year-old victim, Jessica Chambers, on the night she died.
Rowlett said he received location data from several cellphones that showed Tellis was with Chambers the evening of her death, contradicting his previous claims, The Clarion Ledger reported.
when data showed his cellphone was with Chambers' during the time he said he was with his friend Michael Sanford, police went to talk to Sanford.
Sanford took the stand Saturday and testified that he wasn't in town that day.
when prosecutors asked if Tellis was telling the truth when he said he was in Sanford's truck that night, Sanford said he was "lying, because my truck was in Nashville."
another inconsistency was that Tellis said he had known Chambers for about two weeks when she died.
cellphone records indicated they'd only known each other for a week.
Rowlett said that sometime after Chambers' death, Tellis deleted Chambers' texts, calls and contact information from his phone.
"he erased her from his life," Hale said.
the defense is scheduled to begin its closing arguments Sunday.
the judge said he expected the trial to go to the jury later that day.
the High Breed: what is conscious hip hop?
a hip hop trio wants to challenge the negative view of the genre by filling their music with positive messages.
the High Breed, from Bristol, claim hip hop moved away from its origins of political messages and tackling social issues.
they want to go back to its roots and make conscious hip hop popular again.
artists like The Fugees and Common have seen a recent resurgence in the UK through artists such as Akala and Lowkey.
another black person?!
NY nanny sues couple over firing after "racist" text
a New York nanny is suing a couple for discriminatory firing after receiving a misdirected text from the mother complaining that she was "another black person."
the couple deny they are racist, likening the suit to "extortion."
Lynsey Plasco-Flaxman, a mother of two, expressed dismay when finding out that the new child care provider, Giselle Maurice, was black upon arriving for her first day of work in 2016.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO ANOTHER BLACK PERSON," wrote Mrs Plasco-Flaxman to her husband in a text.
however, instead of sending it to her husband, she sent it to Ms. Maurice, twice.
after realizing her gaffe, an "uncomfortable" Plasco-Flaxman fired Ms. Maurice, stating that their outgoing nanny, who was African-American, had done a bad job and that she was instead expecting a Filipino, according to the New York Post.
Ms. Maurice was paid for her one day of work and then sent home for an Uber.
now, Maurice is suing the couple for compensation over the firing, and is seeking compensation to the tune of $350 a day for the six-month, live-in gig she had initially been hired to do, albeit without a contract.
"I want to show them, look, you don't do stuff like that," she told the Post on Friday, adding "I know it's discrimination."
the couple have hit back at the claims that they are racist, saying that terminating Maurice's employment was the reasonable thing to do, fearing they could not trust her after offending her.
"my wife had sent her something that she didn't mean to say.
she's not a racist.
we're not racist people, "husband Joel Plasco told the Post.
"but would you put your children in the hands of someone you've been rude to, even if it was by mistake?
your newborn baby?
come on. "
likening the suit to "extortion," Plasco said his wife was just two months off having a baby and was in a "very difficult situation."
"you're going to go after someone like that?
that's not a very nice thing to do, "the investment banker added.
while the legal case is still ongoing, the court of public opinion has been quick to denounce the couple on social media, slamming them for their behavior and logic.
Paddington publishers feared readers wouldn't relate to a talking bear, new letter reveals
bond's daughter Karen Jankel, who was born shortly after the book was accepted, said of the letter: "it's hard to put oneself in the shoes of somebody reading it for the first time before it was published.
it's very amusing knowing now what we know about Paddington's huge success. "
saying her father, who had worked as a BBC cameraman before being inspired to write the children's book by a small toy bear, would have been sanguine about his work being rejected, she added the 60th anniversary of the books publication was "bittersweet" after his death last year.
of Paddington, whom she describes as a "very important member of our family," she added her father was quietly proud of his eventual success.
"he was quite a quiet man, and he wasn't a boastful person," she said.
"but because Paddington was so real to him, it was almost like if you have a child who achieves something: you're proud of them even though it's not your doing really.
I think he viewed Paddington's success sort of in that way.
although it was his creation and his imagination, he always used to give the credit to Paddington himself. "
my daughter was dying and I had to say goodbye over the phone
on landing her daughter had been rushed to Nice's Hospital Louis Pasteur 2, where doctors worked in vain to save her life.
"nad was calling regularly to say it was really bad, that she wasn't expected to make it," said Mrs Ednan-Laperouse.
"then I got the call from Nad to say she was going to die within the next two minutes and I had to say goodbye to her.
and I did.
I said, "Tashi, I love you so much, darling.
I'll be with you soon.
I'll be with you.
the drugs doctors had given her to keep her heart pumping were slowly petering out and leaving her system.
she had died some time before hand and this was it all shutting down.
I had to just sit there and wait, knowing this was all unfolding.
I couldn't howl or scream or cry because I was in a situation surrounded by families and people.
I had to really hold it together. "
eventually Mrs Ednan-Laperouse, by now grieving for the loss of her daughter, boarded the plane alongside the other passengers - oblivious to the ordeal she was going through.
"no-one knew," she said.
"I had my head down, and tears were falling the whole time.
it's hard to explain, but it was on the flight I felt this overwhelming sense of sympathy for Nad.
that he needed my love and understanding.
I knew how much he loved her. "
grieving women post cards to prevent suicides on bridge
two women who lost loved ones to suicide are working to prevent others from taking their own lives.
Sharon Davis and Kelly Humphreys have been posting cards on a Welsh bridge with inspirational messages and phone numbers that people can call for support.
Ms Davis' son Tyler was 13 when he began suffering with depression and killed himself aged 18.
"I don't want any parent to feel the way I have to feel everyday," she said.
Ms Davis, aged 45, who lives in Lydney, said her son was a promising chef with an infectious grin.
"everyone knew him for his smile.
they always said his smile lit up any room. "
however, he gave up work before he died, as he was "in a really dark place."
in 2014, Tyler's brother, who was 11 at the time, was the one to find his sibling after he had taken his own life.
Ms Davis said: "I continually worry that there's going to be a knock on effect."
Ms Davis created the cards, "to let people know there are people out there that you can go to and you can talk to, even if it's a friend.
don't sit in silence - you need to talk. "
Ms Humphreys, who has been friends with Ms Davies for years, lost Mark, her partner of 15 years, not long after the death of his mother.
"he didn't say that he was feeling down or depressed or anything," she said.
"a couple of days before Christmas we noticed his change in attitude.
he was at rock bottom on Christmas Day - when the kids opened their presents he didn't make eye contact with them or anything. "
she said his death was a huge trauma to them, but they have to work through it: "it rips a hole through the family.
it tears us apart.
but we've all got to carry on and fight. "
if you are struggling to cope, you can call Samaritans free on 116 123 (UK and Ireland), email jo @ samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website here.
Brett Kavanaugh's future hangs in the balance as FBI begins investigation
"I thought, if we could actually get something like what he was asking for - an investigation limited in time, limited in scope - we could maybe bring a little unity," said Mr Flake on Saturday, adding that he feared the committee was "falling apart" amid entrenched partisan gridlock.
why didn't Mr Kavanaugh and his Republican supporters want the FBI to investigate?
their reluctance is all due to timing.
the midterm elections are only five weeks away, on November 6 - if, as expected, the Republicans do badly, then they will be severely weakened in their attempts to get the man they want elected to the highest court in the land.
George W. Bush has been picking up the phone to call Senators, lobbying them to support Mr Kavanaugh, who worked in the White House for Mr Bush and through him met his wife Ashley, who was Mr Bush's personal secretary.
what happens after the FBI produces its report?
there will be a vote in the Senate, where 51 Republicans and 49 Democrats currently sit.
it's still not clear whether Mr Kavanaugh can get to at least 50 votes on the Senate floor, which would allow Mike Pence, the vice president, to break a tie and confirm him to the Supreme Court.
North Korea defector numbers' drop 'under Kim
the number of North Korean defectors to South Korea has fallen since Kim Jong-un came to power seven years ago, a South Korean lawmaker has said.
park Byeong-seug, citing data from the South's unification ministry, said there had been 1,127 defections last year - compared with 2,706 in 2011.
Mr Park said tighter border controls between North Korea and China and higher rates charged by people smugglers were key factors.
Pyongyang has made no public comments.
the vast majority of defectors from the North are eventually offered South Korean citizenship.
Seoul says more than 30,000 North Koreans have illegally crossed the border since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
most flee via China, which has the longest border with North Korea and is easier to cross than the heavily protected Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between the two Koreas.
China regards the defectors as illegal migrants rather than refugees and often forcibly repatriates them.
relations between the North and the South - who are still technically at war - have markedly improved in recent months.
earlier this month, the leaders of the two countries met in Pyongyang for talks that centred on the stalled denuclearisation negotiations.
this came after June's historic meeting between US President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un in Singapore, when they agreed in broad terms to work towards the nuclear-free Korean peninsula.
but on Saturday, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho blamed US sanctions for the lack of progress since then.
"without any trust in the US, there will be no confidence in our national security and under such circumstances, there is no way we will unilaterally disarm ourselves first," Mr Ri said in a speech to the UN General Assembly in New York.
Nancy Pelosi calls Brett Kavanaugh "hysterical," says he is unfit to serve on the Supreme Court
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh "hysterical" and said that he was temperamentally unfit to serve on the Supreme Court.
Pelosi made the comments in an interview Saturday at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas.
"I couldn't help but think that if a woman had ever performed that way, they would say 'hysterical,'" Pelosi said about her reaction to Kavanaugh's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.
Kavanaugh emotionally denied allegations that he had sexually assaulted Dr. Christine Blasey Ford when they were both teenagers.
during his opening statement, Kavanaugh was very emotional, at times nearly shouting and choking up while discussing his family and his high school years.
he also explicitly condemned Democrats on the committee, calling the allegations against him a "grotesque and coordinated character assassination" organized by liberals angry that Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 presidential election.
Pelosi said that she believed Kavanaugh's testimony proved that he could not serve on the Supreme Court, because it showed that he is biased against Democrats.
"I think that he disqualifies himself with those statements and the manner in which he went after the Clintons and the Democrats," she said.
Pelosi demurred when asked if she would try to impeach Kavanaugh if he is confirmed, and if Democrats gain the majority in the House of Representatives.
"I will say this -- if he is not telling the truth to Congress or to the FBI, then he's not fit not only to be on the Supreme Court, but to be on the court he's on right now," Pelosi said.
Kavanaugh is currently a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Pelosi added that as a Democrat she was concerned about potential Kavanaugh rulings against the Affordable Care Act or Roe v. Wade, as he is considered to be a conservative justice.
in his confirmation hearings, Kavanaugh sidestepped questions on whether he would overturn certain Supreme Court decisions.
"it's not time for a hysterical, biased person to go to the court and expect us to say, 'isn't that wonderful,'" Pelosi said.
and Women Need to Wield It.
it is a righteous diatribe, months and years of fury spilling over, and she can't get it out without weeping.
"we cry when we get angry," Ms. Steinem said to me 45 years later.
"I don't think that's uncommon, do you?"
she continued, "I was greatly helped by a woman who was an executive someplace, who said she also cried when she got angry, but developed a technique which meant that when she got angry and started to cry, she'd say to the person she was talking to," You may think I am sad because I am crying.
I am angry. "
and then she just kept going.
and I thought that was brilliant. "
tears are permitted as an outlet for wrath in part because they are fundamentally misunderstood.
one of my sharpest memories from an early job, in a male-dominated office, where I once found myself weeping with inexpressible rage, was my being grabbed by the scruff of my neck by an older woman - a chilly manager of whom I'd always been slightly terrified - who dragged me into a stairwell.
"never let them see you crying," she told me.
"they don't know you're furious.
they think you're sad and will be pleased because they got to you. "
Patricia Schroeder, then a Democratic congresswoman from Colorado, had worked with Gary Hart on his presidential runs.
in 1987, when Mr. Hart was caught in an extramarital affair aboard a boat called Monkey Business and bowed out of the race, Ms. Schroeder, deeply frustrated, figured there was no reason she shouldn't explore the idea of running for president herself.
"it was not a well-thought-out decision," she said to me with a laugh 30 years later.
"there were already seven other candidates in the race, and the last thing they needed was another one.
somebody called it "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." "
because it was late in the campaign, she was behind on fund-raising, and so she vowed that she wouldn't enter the race unless she raised $2 million.
it was a losing battle.
she discovered that some of her supporters who gave $1,000 to men would give her only $250.
"do they think I get a discount?" she wondered.
when she made her speech announcing that she would not launch a formal campaign, she was so overcome by emotions - gratitude for the people who'd supported her, frustration with the system that made it so difficult to raise money and to target voters rather than delegates, and anger at the sexism - that she got choked up.
"you would have thought I'd had a nervous breakdown," recalled Ms. Schroeder about how the press reacted to her.
"you'd have thought Kleenex was my corporate sponsor.
I remember thinking, what are they going to put on my tombstone?
"she cried"? ""
how the US-China trade war may be good for Beijing
the opening salvos of the trade war between the US and China were deafening, and while the battle is far from over, a rift between the countries may be beneficial to Beijing in the long term, experts say.
Donald Trump, the US President, fired the first warning earlier this year by taxing key Chinese exports including solar panels, steel and aluminium.
the most significant escalation rolled in this week with new tariffs affecting $200 billion (£150 billion) worth of items, effectively taxing half of all goods coming into the US from China.
Beijing has retaliated each time in kind, most recently slapping tariffs of five to ten per cent on $60 billion of American goods.
China has pledged to match the US shot-for-shot, and the world's second largest economy is unlikely to blink anytime soon.
getting Washington to back down means caving into demands, but publicly bowing to the US would be far too embarrassing for Xi Jinping, China's president.
still, experts say if Beijing can play its cards right, US trade war pressures could positively support China over the long term by lowering the inter-dependence of the two economies.
"the fact that a quick political decision in either Washington or Beijing could create the conditions that start an economic tailspin in either country is actually a lot more dangerous than onlookers have acknowledged before," said Abigail Grace, a research associate who focuses on Asia at the Center for New American Security, a think tank.
Syria 'ready' for refugees to return, says Foreign Minister
Syria says it's ready for the voluntary return of refugees and is appealing for help to rebuild the country devastated by a more than seven-year long war.
speaking to the United Nations General Assembly, Foreign minister Walid al-Moualem said conditions in the country are improving.
"today the situation on the ground is more stable and secure thanks to progress made in combating terrorism," he said.
the government continues to rehabilitate the areas destroyed by terrorists to restore normalcy.
all conditions are now present for the voluntary return of refugees to the country they had to leave because of terrorism and the unilateral economic measures that targeted their daily lives and their livelihoods.
the UN estimates that more than 5.5 million Syrians have fled the country since the war began in 2011.
another six million people still living in the country are in need of humanitarian assistance.
al-Moualem said the Syrian regime would welcome help in rebuilding the devastated country.
but he stressed that it would not accept conditional assistance or help from countries that sponsored the insurgency.
Europe clinches Ryder Cup victory in Paris
team Europe has won the 2018 Ryder Cup defeating Team USA by a final score of 16.5 to 10.5 at Le Golf National outside Paris, France.
the US has now lost six consecutive times on European soil and has not won a Ryder Cup in Europe since 1993.
Europe regained the crown as the Danish captain Thomas Bjorn's team reached the 14.5 points they required to beat the United States.
us star Phil Mickelson, who struggled most of the tournament, plunked his tee-shot into the water at the par-3 16th hole, conceding his match to Francesco Molinari.
the Italian golfer Molinari shined in all of his rounds, becoming 1-of-4 players to ever go 5-0-0 since the tournament's current format begun in 1979.
American Jordan Spieth was blown out 5 & 4 by the lowest-ranked player on the European team, Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark.
the world's top-ranked player, Dustin Johnson, fell 2 and 1 to Ian Poulter of England who may have played in his final Ryder Cup.
a veteran of eight Ryder Cups, Spaniard Sergio Garcia became the tournaments all-time winningest European with 25.5 career point.
"I don't usually cry but today I can't help it.
it's been a rough year.
so thankful for Thomas to pick me and believe in me.
I am so happy, so happy to get the cup back.
it's about the team., and I'm happy I was able to help, "said an emotional Garcia following the European victory.
he passes the torch to his fellow countryman John Ram who took down US golf legend Tiger Woods 2 & 1 in singles play on Sunday.
"the incredible pride I feel, to beat Tiger Woods, I grew up watching that guy," said 23-year-old Rahm.
woods lost all four of his matches in France and now has a record of 13-21-3 career Ryder Cup record.
a strange statistic by one of the greatest players of all-time, having won 14 major titles second to only Jack Nicklaus.
team USA struggled all weekend to find the fairways with the exception of Patrick Reed, Justin Thomas and Tony Finau, who played high-calibre golf throughout the entire tournament.
us captain Jim Furyk spoke after a disappointing performance for his squad, "I'm proud of these guys, they fought.
there was time this morning when we put some heat on Europe.
we scrapped.
hats off to Thomas.
he is a great captain.
all 12 of his players played very well.
we'll regroup, I'll work with the PGA of America and our Ryder Cup Committee and we'll move forward.
I love these 12 guys and I'm proud to serve as captain.
you have to tip your cap.
we got outplayed. "
red Tide Update: concentrations decrease in Pinellas, Manatee and Sarasota
the newest report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission shows a general decrease in Red Tide concentrations for parts of the Tampa Bay area.
according to the FWC, patchier bloom conditions are being reported in areas of Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte and Collier counties - which suggests decreasing concentrations.
a bloom the Red Tide extends approximately 130 miles of coastline from northern Pinellas to southern Lee counties.
patches can be found about 10 miles offshore of Hillsborough County, but at fewer sites relative to last week.
red Tide has also been observed in Pasco County.
medium concentrations in or offshore of Pinellas County have been reported in the past week, low to high concentrations offshore of Hillsborough County, background to high concentrations in Manatee County, background to high concentrations in or offshore of Sarasota County, background to medium concentrations in Charlotte County, background to high concentrations in or offshore of Lee County, and low concentrations in Collier County.
respiratory irritation continues to be reported in Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Lee, and Collier counties.
respiratory irritation was not reported in Northwest Florida over the past week.
