FRIDAY THE 13

Transport minister Richard Holden has said he can not put a timeframe on when asylum seekers will be housed on the Bibby Stockholm barge in Dorset. The Home Office had been planning to send the first 50 migrants to the barge moored at Portland Port on Tuesday. But final safety checks are still being carried out, with fire service approval pending. Asked on Sky News when the barge would be available, Mr Holden said: "I can't put a timeframe on it." He added: "The checks are going to take as long as they're going to take. It's important we get these things right." Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said that "all accommodation has to go through a series of checks and inspections" when asked about the delay. He also defended the policy arguing that it was "not fair" for taxpayers to pay "six million quid a day to house illegal migrants in hotels". The barge could become operational on Wednesday, with a Home Office assessment expected later. The government wants to use barges to house male migrants in an attempt to reduce the bill for hotel rooms. Senior ministers hope to confirm the use of further barges in the coming months. They have struggled to find ports prepared to host them so far, with a site next to London City airport and another on the River Mersey in Wirral among those being rejected. The government believes a successful scheme in Dorset will help encourage other areas to sign up. But any safety issues would make increasing the use of barges less likely. The initial plan is for 50 men to live on Bibby Stockholm. But that could increase to more than 500 in the coming months. The Home Office decided men living on the barge could share rooms, which significantly increased the capacity. But there has been opposition to the plan - with local councillors and residents staging protests and Conservative MP for South Dorset Richard Drax calling on the government to remove the barge. link: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-66371897

The coach of the Honduran team, Reinado Rueda, announced the list of players who will make up the national team for the friendly game against Guatemala and the League of Nations duels against Jamaica and Grenada. The Catrachos will play on Sunday, September 3 in Fortlaurderdale, Florida, against the Chapines and then they will travel to Kingston to face the Caribbean on Friday the 8th and will host Granada on Tuesday the 12th at the National Stadium. For both commitments, the Honduran-naturalized Colombian coach called 30 players, 10 of whom play abroad. Among the novelties in Rueda's roster is the call of the Inter Miami midfielder, David Ruiz, who decided to play with Honduras and not for the United States. The coach of the Honduran team, Reinado Rueda, announced the list of players who will make up the national team for the friendly game against Guatemala and the League of Nations duels against Jamaica and Grenada. The Catrachos will play on Sunday, September 3 in Fortlaurderdale, Florida, against the Chapines and then they will travel to Kingston to face the Caribbean on Friday the 8th and will host Granada on Tuesday the 12th at the National Stadium. For both commitments, the Honduran-naturalized Colombian coach called 30 players, 10 of whom play abroad. Among the novelties in Rueda's roster is the call of the Inter Miami midfielder, David Ruiz, who decided to play with Honduras and not for the United States. freestar In addition, the return of Andy Najar (DC United), Michael Chirinos (Saprissa), Anthony Lozano (Getafe). While at the local level, the coach based his list on the Olimpia and Motagua clubs, calling 8 white players and 7 blue ones. Other novelties on the list are the presence of the Lone FC goalkeeper from the Promotion League, Juerguen García, and the Real España striker, Daniel Carter Bodden. The great absence on the list is that of the goalkeeper Luis "Buba" López, who has not played in the tournament due to renewal problems with Real España and that of the striker Alberth Elis, who still has not recovered from his broken arm suffered in the Gold Cup. Link: https://www.diariomas.hn/2023/08/28/honduras-con-10-legionarios-para-juego-con-guatemala-y-liga-de-naciones/

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has arrived via rail in Russia where he is due to meet President Vladimir Putin. Mr Kim left Pyongyang for Russia on Sunday on his private train, North Korea's state media reported. It is not known where the leaders will meet, as Mr Kim's train is reportedly heading north, away from the city of Vladivostok. A US official said they were expected to discuss an arms deal as Russia faces a Ukrainian counter-offensive. The Kremlin said that the "fully fledged visit" would cover "bilateral relations, the situation in the region and in the global arena". The meeting could take place as early as Tuesday local time - although the statement from the Kremlin said it would happen in the "coming days". Mr Kim left his train to meet Russian representatives when it pulled into the border station of Khasan on Tuesday morning. Footage shows him stepping off the train onto a red carpet to be greeted by a Russian delegation as a brass band plays. He also met Alexander Kozlov, Russia's minister for natural resources. According to Oleg Kozhemyako, a regional governor who released footage of the meeting, they discussed the potential launch this year of joint tourism and agricultural projects. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-66787449 Mr Kim's train is rumoured to include at least 20 heavy bulletproof carriages. The extra weight means the train is very slow - it can only travel at around 37mph (59 km/h). The North Korean leader's last trip abroad was to Vladivostok in 2019 for a summit with Mr Putin after the collapse of nuclear disarmament talks with the then-US president, Donald Trump. The Vostochny cosmodrome, located in Russia's far east near the border with China, has been suggested as the possible meeting place for the two leaders. It is the country's first commercial space centre and is one of Mr Putin's pet projects. The Russian president has announced he plans to go to the cosmodrome but has not confirmed that Mr Kim will meet him there. Responding to a question at the Eastern Economic Forum, Mr Putin said: "When I get there, you will know". North Korea may seek co-operation from Russia on its space programme, which late last month failed a for second time to place a spy satellite in orbit after a rocket failure. The White House said it had new information that negotiations between the Russia and North Korea were on a weapons deal "actively advancing". National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had tried to "convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition" to Russia during a recent visit to North Korea. Both sides have denied the reports. The US and its allies have expressed concern over the possibility of closer military ties between Russia and Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would always act in its national interest. "The interests of our two countries are important to us, and not warnings from Washington," he was quoted as saying by Russian media. North Korea also wants food aid and possibly technology to help its banned nuclear and missiles programme, analysts say.

“Being able to watch the journey out of the cabin window, seeing France fade away and Spain come into view, you experience the travel and the journey itself as part of the trip, rather than it being a means to an end. We both really love that,” says Katie Nicholson, who recently became a digital nomad, setting sail with Brittany Ferries from the UK to Spain on a new adventure with her partner, Ciaran. “We rented out our flat and are now remote working from Spain and Italy for a few months, and doing this on and off for the rest of the year,” she says. “We got the ferry mid-April from Portsmouth to Santander. Even before we bought the car for the road trip – an old convertible Saab 93 – we planned on getting the ferry, aiming to fly less.” As more people seek out greener ways to head abroad compared with flying, demand for ferry travel is on the up. And many travellers, like Nicholson, are reaping the benefits of avoiding busy airports and cramped airline seats in favour of fresh air, good food and plenty of space to take a stroll. “It feels like you’ve started your holiday early. You don’t really relax when you’re in an airport or on a plane, whereas on the ship, it’s more like: ‘What shall we eat? What shall we watch? Shall we go and sit in the sun and read?’ – all very nice decisions to have to make,” says Nicholson, who last took a ferry on the same route with her family about 20 years ago. “We loved it. It was such a novelty for me and my sister.” Boarding the Brittany Ferries service to Santander at about 8.30pm for a departure time of 9.30pm, she describes the process as “genuinely seamless”, queueing for about 20 minutes before tickets are scanned and you are directed to your room. Once en route, the couple settled into their “newly decorated, spotless” four-berth cabin with outside view and en suite (there are dog-friendly and more spacious “deluxe” cabins also available). While the upper deck offered seating and stunning sea views, there was plenty to keep them occupied indoors too, with a complimentary selection of new films and TV shows in the cabin, as well as entertainment in the cafe-bar, including bingo, DJ sets, a pub quiz, and football games shown on the big screens. “There was also morning yoga, talks on whales and dolphins – and whale-spotting at certain times of year – as well as lighthouse watching, which took place along a specific part of the route that came close to the French coast, with a guide explaining them all,” says Nicholson. “It kind of felt like we went to France in a way. Given that everyone was speaking French on board – plus, in the cafe, we had one of the best croque monsieurs I’ve ever eaten.” The ship also had a more formal restaurant serving a mix of “beautifully plated” Mediterranean dishes, from gazpacho with fresh crusty bread, Iberico ham and padron peppers, to Greek stifado stew and rack of lamb. After two relaxing nights on board they arrived quayside in Spain at 8am, refreshed and ready for their road trip. “The whole thing was so smooth. We got in the car and we were out and into the sunshine in maybe 15 minutes,” she says. “On the first day we drove straight down to Seville, because we wanted to get there for the Easter festival. I think if we’d flown, there’s no way we would have been up for getting into a car for eight hours,” says Nicholson. “We arrived in the city for the hottest April on record. It was pretty full-on, but amazing to be there and soak it all in.” After the bustle of Seville, it was on to Frigiliana, a small inland village with just a few cobbled streets of whitewashed buildings with blue and green shutters. The clear sparkling waters around Nerja were only 10 minutes by car for a day at the beach. Then it was on to Valencia for football at Spain’s oldest stadium, Estadio De Mestalla, and sampling local produce at the food markets, from fresh seafood and charcuterie, to sweet Valencia oranges, juiced to order. They stayed in Valencia’s buzzy neighbourhood of El Carmen, home to historic architecture, a thriving street art scene, and independent shops and restaurants serving a variety of cuisines. “We actually had Nepalese curry one evening. Valencia has a more multicultural dynamic so we stepped outside the Spanish food culture and tapped into the rest of what the city had to offer,” says Nicholson. https://www.theguardian.com/ferries-for-hassle-free-holidays/2023/jun/27/next-stop-spain-how-to-start-your-european-road-trip-on-the-sea

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The Chinese economy is facing great difficulties, and among the limited recovery options there are two paths: the first is full reintegration into the global system, or strengthening the real estate sector. However, the fear is that the decline of the Chinese economy will result in suffering for the economy of the West and perhaps the entire world. In an article published in the American magazine "Newsweek", writer Simone Zhao said that integration into the global system was a major driver of the remarkable economic growth achieved by China over the past four decades, considering that China's economic foundation is based on three pillars: investment, consumption, and exports. However, the first two pillars (investment and consumption) have proven problematic. The Chinese economy has relied heavily on real estate and government infrastructure projects, but the real estate market has turned into a bubble that is not equivalent to the role it plays in ensuring the strength of the economy, despite temporary growth. Infrastructure investments aimed at boosting GDP face similar problems, which also makes investing in it an unreliable foundation. The second pillar, which is consumption, also suffers from problems, as the consumer base in China is still weak due to the great disparity in wealth, where a small group of wealthy people lives with a majority of poorer citizens, whose spending alone cannot support the economy. The writer stated that the real strength of the Chinese economy revolves around industrial exports, as the “global factory” status that China enjoys is where it reaps real profits. China's cooperation with the West has led to significant progress in the fields of science, technology and business operations. Gao believes that if China can rebuild this pillar, there is potential for economic recovery. However, the path to this has become very difficult, as there are rising labor costs and geopolitical factors, and the position of Chinese President Xi Jinping indicates that he is increasingly abandoning integration as a goal. His absence from the recent G20 summit in India was clear evidence of his reluctance to deal with the leaders of the richest and most influential countries in the world. play video Video duration: 02 minutes 47 seconds 02:47 Western interest Beijing also recognizes that U.S.-China relations are unlikely to return to their previous status, in which the United States provided access to markets, finance, technology, and management training, all of which are essential to China's economy. According to the author, the most convincing argument that China is currently presenting to the West is that the economic problems facing China will harm the global economy, including the United States and the West, if cooperation is not provided with it. Gao believes that China is right: It is in the West's interest to help China avoid economic collapse, as the Western world has a special interest in ensuring the stability of the Chinese economy. Recently, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said, “Our trade with China is more than $700 billion each year, which supports hundreds of thousands of jobs in the United States. So anything we can do in trade with China creates jobs in the United States or helps “If we achieve this, the growth of American companies and innovation is a good thing.” As China's hopes of reintegrating into the global system diminish, intensive policies have emerged to stimulate the real estate sector. These policies include lower mortgage down payments and much lower interest rates, along with the removal of purchase restrictions in many cities. These measures temporarily boosted the real estate sector, preventing economic collapse and buying time to explore alternatives. In contrast, shares of Chinese real estate companies rose. https://www.aljazeera.net/ebusiness/2023/9/24/نيوزيوك-لماذا-سيعاني

noises from the creature's gut, indicating there was a chance it could explode if opened. Wildlife experts were recently forced to abandon the autopsy of an enormous fin whale corpse that washed up on a beach in Ireland after sounds coming from the giant creature's gut suggested that it could explode if they cut it open. The dead fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), which was around 62 feet (19 meters) long, washed up in the early hours of July 9 at Baile Uí Chuill Strand, in County Kerry, the Irish Examiner reported. The cause of death is unknown but the hefty whale had likely been dead for up to three weeks before it washed ashore, based on the level of decomposition. Experts from the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) arrived at the scene to collect samples for a necropsy, or animal autopsy, but were forced to stop due to fears that the body could explode. "I got blubber, baleen and skin," Stephanie Levesque, strandings officer at IWDG, told the Irish Examiner. "I was going to attempt to get some muscle but I heard some sounds and was like, this is going to explode in my face if I go any deeper." When whales die, their guts begin to fill with methane gas, which often causes the corpses to inflate like a balloon, float on the ocean's surface — and occasionally float onto shore like the dead fin whale. In high enough concentrations, and when mixed with oxygen in the air, the gas can cause whales to explode, either spontaneously as pressure increases, or when the remains are cut open; although this is very rare, Levesque told Live Science in an email. In 2013, a marine biologist in the Faroe Islands had a lucky escape after a sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) that washed up dead violently exploded when the scientist cut into its stomach, The Guardian reported at the time. And in 2019, an unidentified baleen whale spontaneously exploded on the surface of the sea off the coast of California, spraying blood and guts into the water, according to IFLScience. Occasionally, wildlife officials will deliberately detonate the gas-filled corpses when they wash up to prevent them from slowly decomposing and releasing foul smells that drive away visitors. The most infamous example of this came in 1970, when a 45-foot-long (14 m) sperm whale that washed ashore in Florence, Oregon, was blown up with half a ton of dynamite, creating an enormous blast that obliterated the remains. With the fin whale in Ireland, it later became clear that the whale was unlikely to explode and it has been left to decompose naturally, Levesque told Live Science. "There was some bubbling [sounds] but nothing that led me to believe it would actually explode." The necropsy was abandoned as a precaution to make sure that the body cavity stayed intact, she added. Typically, about one to two fin whales wash up in Ireland a year, Levesque told the Irish Examiner. There are around 100,000 fin whales worldwide, but the species is still considered vulnerable to extinction due to pressures such as climate change, plastic pollution and overfishing of krill — their preferred food source — by humans, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. However, most po[CENSORED]tions are starting to increase from historic lows caused by the whaling industry in the 19th and 20th century. In January 2022, almost 1,000 individuals — the largest aggregation of the species ever witnessed — were spotted feeding on a giant mass of krill in Antarctica. https://www.livescience.com/animals/whales/fears-that-dead-60-foot-long-whale-in-ireland-could-explode-sends-experts-scrambling

The match culminated the activity of matchday 5 of the opening tournament at the Juan Ramon Breve Vargas Stadium. Olancho FC ended up drawing 0-0 against Real Sociedad in the match played at the Juan Ramon Breve Vargas Stadium, the game was played in two days, yesterday the first part was played and was suspended due to the lack of electricity in the largest department of Honduras, which has been without electricity for 48 hours. The colts could not take advantage of having one more man on the field from minute 27 on with the expulsion of goalkeeper Jeferrson Sánchez from Real Sociedad, the oil players withstood the onslaught of the Olancha team. The actions resumed this Monday at 10:00 am. The local team tried to provoke the goal in the frame defended by Francisco Reyes, which was a fundamental piece to reach the tie in his visit to Breve Vargas. The tie ended up triggering the internal problems that the current Honduran soccer runners-up keep inside the dressing room, speculation about the departure of coach Humberto Rivera from Potros increases after the rebellion of some players is known. The Olancho institution has not yet come to the fore to deny the information that is circulating and there is no official version from coach Humberto Rivera of a possible resignation from the Olancho FC team. Link: https://diariosportshonduras.com/olancho-fc-empata-ante-real-sociedad/

She had instructed more than 100 callers on how to do chest compressions, but when her father had a cardiac arrest, the ambulance service call handler realised just how difficult it is Estelle Williams. As told to Rachel Williams Sat 22 Jul 2023 11.00 BST 16 I’m a 999 call supervisor at the London Ambulance Service and I’ve instructed more than a hundred people on how to give cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) over the phone. But I’d never imagined in a million years that I’d end up using those skills on my own family. I was asleep after a night shift when my mum started screaming for me. My dad, Eddie, had collapsed and wasn’t responsive. He was making these weird noises – like the air was being pushed out of his body. I’d never actually seen a cardiac arrest, but I knew instinctively that he was about to stop breathing. Whenever I take a call, I visualise walking into the situation and try to imagine what’s happening. That morning was surreal: this time the story that’s normally in my head was my story. When I rang for an ambulance, I recognised the call handler’s voice from work and that’s when what was happening really hit me. At the same time my mum was shouting, my sister was screaming. And my dad wasn’t breathing. He went cold and his face got dark. I knew he was gone. Call handlers are trained in giving CPR, so I knew it was difficult, but it was still harder than I’d thought. You can practise as much as you want, but when you’re doing it for real, you’ve got your emotions to deal with as well. The responsibility felt like a big weight on my shoulders, given my job. I knew how much was riding on it – and also the outcomes. Fewer than one in 10 people who have a cardiac arrest [out of hospital] survive. I was doing chest compressions for 13 minutes before the first responder, Beth, got to me. It felt like for ever. At one point my arms gave way and I begged my mum to take over. But I could see her compressions weren’t as effective. I told her to get off and I got back to it. When Beth arrived there was a moment when we looked at each other I’ll always remember. I saw in her face that this was real. When she started cutting his shirt open to use the defibrillator, I just ripped it off. Some callers think our instructions won’t work. It frustrates me when I know first-hand how effective they are It didn’t quite work the first time, but the second shock was effective. Then my dad started breathing and within a few seconds he was talking. And then it was as if I needed to take a breath as well. I had to run to the window and just stick my head out. I felt as if I had a big ball of fire in my belly. Beth said my chest compressions had been fantastic. But I felt it was her shocking him that started him breathing again, so that’s what I’m thankful for. He was out of hospital after a week and is in great health.When I went back to work I was anxious about talking someone through CPR again, and the first time I took a cardiac arrest call, it did affect me differently. I had a flashback of my dad being in that way and it made me nervous because I understood how the caller was feeling. Before I was just guessing – now I actually know.Since then I’ve been fine on those calls. And now I feel I can sometimes tell when something isn’t right. I took a call where someone had fallen and was unconscious. The lady wasn’t saying the right things to trigger me to give CPR instructions, but I got that feeling I’d had with my dad. I told her to go back and tell me exactly what was happening. When she did, I was able to establish that the patient was in cardiac arrest. Sometimes callers are afraid to do what we tell them, or they think it’s not going to work. It does frustrate me when I know first-hand how effective our instructions are. I can’t tell callers about my experience, but I hope raising awareness will help give people courage if they ever need us. We always reassure people doing CPR, but it’s more meaningful when I do it now. “You’re doing well, keep going” – I know the value of that. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jul/22/the-999-operator-who-had-to-give-her-own-father-cpr-before-i-was-just-guessing-how-a-caller-felt-now-i-know

Adán Celis Michelena was elected as the new president of Fedecámaras, at the end of the seventy-ninth Annual Assembly of the business leadership organization, held in Maracaibo. Adán Célis Michelena will be accompanied by the former presidents of Consecomercio Felipe Capozzolo and Tiziana Polesel, as well as Rafael Trejo. According to information collected in the Assembly, the advantage of Célis's board was very wide, to such an extent that the other candidate for the Fedecámaras presidency, Pedro Rivas, declined to participate in the second round of voting. As a curious fact, it should be noted that the new president of Fedecámaras, Adán Celis Michelena, and the new second vice president of the institution, Tiziana Polesel, are the children of former presidents of the organization, Adán Celis González (1983-1985) and Eddo Polesel (1989-1991). "We will continue to build bridges" "It's time to keep dreaming. The message of hope from this team, made up of Felipe Capozzolo, Tiziana Polesel, Rafael Trejo and myself, is an invitation to continue working to be the successful country that we all want. A Venezuela that awakens to work, to action, to commitment, to effort. A Venezuela at the service of its people," he said excitedly. “It is time to give our commitment: we are going to discover a new vocation for Venezuela. Together with you, businessmen who continue to demonstrate their commitment to their people on a daily basis”, they continue.. https://noticiasaldiayalahora.co/nacionales/adan-celis-michelena-nuevo-presidente-de-fedecamaras/

Residents in Algeria return to areas blackened by wildfires By Laurence Peter in London & Bassam Bounenni at the Tunisia-Algeria border BBC News More than 40 people have died in Algeria, Italy and Greece and thousands have been evacuated as Mediterranean wildfires threaten villages and holiday resorts. The entire island of Rhodes has been put into a state of emergency, as fires also rage on Corfu and Evia. The current long heatwave shows no let-up - temperatures are expected to rise above 44C (111F) in parts of Greece. Fires in Sicily and Puglia have forced thousands of people to flee. High winds and tinder-dry vegetation mean firefighters are struggling in many areas to douse the flames and create firebreaks.The heaviest death toll so far is in Algeria, where the 34 victims included 10 soldiers surrounded by flames during an evacuation in the coastal province of Bejaia, east of Algiers. Bejaia is the worst-hit area, accounting for 23 of the deaths, local media report. Algerian authorities said 80% of the blazes had been put out since Sunday, but a massive firefighting effort continues, involving about 8,000 personnel, hundreds of fire engines and some aircraft. Fires have also raged in neighbouring Tunisia, where 300 people had to be evacuated from the coastal village of Melloula. BBC News spoke to one man whose restaurant was razed by the fires. Adil El Selmy's eco-friendly restaurant had stood halfway between the town of Tabarka and Melloula. "We left the restaurant as the flames approached," Selmy said. Water disturbances experienced in Tabarka last week during an unprecedented heatwave made things even harder. "We couldn't douse flames hours after the wooden building was devastated," Mr Selmi said. "I was employing 22 people," he adds. "I don't know how to get off this hook." The ravaged restaurant overlooks the sea. But the Mediterranean is barely seen, as the haze is still blanketing the area.In Greece, the Civil Protection Ministry warned of an "extreme danger" of fire in six of the country's 13 regions on Wednesday. A team of climate scientists - the World Weather Attribution group - said this month's intense heatwave in Southern Europe, North America and China would have been virtually impossible without human-induced climate change. Two pilots died on the island of Evia, just north of Athens, when their Canadair firefighting plane crashed into a ravine. Elsewhere on the island a man's charred body was found in a remote rural shack. On the island of Rhodes more than 20,000 people have been evacuated from homes and resorts in the south in recent days. An airport official told AFP news agency that more than 5,000 had flown home on more than 40 emergency flights between Sunday and Tuesday. Holiday firms Jet2 and Tui have cancelled departures for Rhodes for the coming days.Watch: The BBC's Jenny Hill at scene of Rhodes wildfire Tourism accounts for one in five jobs in Greece, and the industry is vital for Rhodes and many other islands. The UK Foreign Office has not advised against travel to the affected parts of Greece, but has urged tourists to check with tour operators for updates. Thousands of people have also been evacuated on Evia and Corfu, while Crete - another major holiday destination - is on high alert. Two pilots die in Greek firefighting plane crash How climate change affects heatwaves and wildfires Wildfires in Greece in pictures Italy has been hit by contrasting extreme weather events - with deadly storms in the north and wildfires in Sicily as well as several more southern regions. A couple in their 70s were found dead in a fire-gutted holiday home near Palermo, after fire came close to the boundary of the city's airport. An 88-year-old woman also died near the city. Parts of the city of Catania went without water and power after cables burned in temperatures that climbed to 47.6C on Monday. On the mainland, in Calabria, just east of Sicily, a man aged 98 was trapped by flames in his home and his daughter and son-in-law suffered burns while trying to save him. A wildfire in the Foggia region, on Italy's Adriatic coast, forced the evacuation of 2,000 people from hotels and campsites. The blaze approached Vieste from a nearby national park. The storms in the north, meanwhile, claimed two lives on Tuesday - victims of falling trees. Tornadoes, hailstorms and gale-force winds of up to 110km/h (70mph) struck Lombardy and other northern regions. Chiara Rossetti, 16, was on a scouts' summer camp trip when her tent was hit by a tree in the province of Brescia. "We are experiencing in Italy one of the most complicated days in recent decades - rainstorms, tornadoes and giant hail in the north, and scorching heat and devastating fires in the centre and south," said Civil Protection minister Nello Musumeci. He said he intended to appeal to the EU to boost its fleet of Canadair firefighting planes. Portugal did not escape the heatwave unscathed, with more than 600 firefighters deployed to try to put out a fire in a national park in Cascais on Tuesday, near the capital Lisbon. Local residents were evacuated - some by wheelchairs - but no injuries were reported. At least 130 firefighters worked to contain a fire near Croatia's southern city of Dubrovnik, with water-bombing planes used to stop a wildfire that burnt across the region on Monday. Local media reported that undetonated landmines exploded as a result of the fire. Fires also broke out on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica in the early hours of Wednesday. Gales of up to 130km/h (80mph) whipped up the flames and for several hours three villages came under threat. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66308728

Videos have gone viral on Twitter, TikTok and Facebook claiming that zoo animals have been released in Paris over the past few days. But all of the videos are from incidents over recent years that have nothing to do with the riots that have disrupted life during the past week following the killing a 17-year-old by French police. One video, which has over 1.8 million views on Twitter alone, has been shared by an account called Insane Reality Leaks. The account has a blue “verified” check mark, though Twitter stopped verifying the identity of users after Elon Musk bought the social media platform back in October 2022. Anyone with $8 per month can buy a check mark to spread rumors and lies that get amplified by Twitter’s algorithms, like the one below which claims three lions have been released from the Paris Zoo. In reality, this video dates from at least 2020, since it pops up around YouTube at that time, but it’s likely even older. As Newschecker points out, the video has been shared a number of times over the years, and it’s not clear who first posted the content, but we know one thing for certain: It has nothing to do with the riots in France. MORE FOR YOU What On Earth Happened With ‘The Witcher’ Season 3, Episode 5? The 50 Best 4th Of July Sales To Shop Now Before They re Gone Worst Stocks Of 2023’s First Half: Battered Banks And Vaccine Makers Another video that’s being shared on Facebook and Twitter shows a zebra galloping through traffic, claiming that elephants and “other” animals have escaped ruing the civil unrest in France. Forbes Daily: Get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday. By signing up, you accept and agree to our Terms of Service (including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and Privacy Statement. In reality, this video was also shot at least three years ago. And still another video that’s been going viral on Twitter includes claims that goats are among the animals that are now roaming the streets of France. It’s not clear precisely where this video was originally filmed, but it was posted to TikTok back in January in French before spreading on Arabic-language social media sites then making it to English-language Twitter. Why are people spreading these old videos? That part is unclear. But there have been a lot of fakes during these riots, including videos showing a fake sniper, a crowd in Mexico City and a stolen police van that’s actually from a Netflix movie. It seems every major news event brings out people who are causing confusion, whether it’s intentional or not. And, sadly, it’s harder than ever to figure out which accounts to trust now that Twitter owner Elon Musk got rid of the old verification process. Previously, Twitter users had a rough idea when someone was sharing information with a blue check mark that it was a real person who had a reputation they probably cared about. But now that Twitter verifies anyone with $8, it’s easier than ever for people who want to spread chaos to get help from Twitter’s algorithm. And it doesn’t look like it’s going to be getting any better anytime soon. Musk spent Saturday trying to explain why users were now only allowed to read about 600 tweets per day, a number that’s been raised since. But the damage has been done. Many people who are longtime Twitter users have jumped ship, heading to places like Bluesky, a Twitter competitor that’s become so po[CENSORED]r it had to temporarily halt new sign-ups on Saturday. And Bluesky isn’t even out of beta yet. News also broke today that Facebook’s parent company Meta is launching its own Twitter competitor called Threads on July 6, earlier than planned. Does Meta smell blood in the water, with Twitter crippled by self-imposed crisis after self-imposed crisis? Almost certainly. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattnovak/2023/07/04/no-zoo-animals-have-not-been-let-loose-during-the-riots-in-france/?sh=66c216a84a51

Lewis Hamilton beat Max Verstappen in Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying to take his first pole position since the penultimate race of the 2021 season. Hamilton snatched pole position from the world champion by just 0.003 seconds with the very final lap of the session. Lando Norris led team-mate Oscar Piastri to an all-McLaren second row. Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu impressed with fifth place on the grid ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Perez made it into the top 10 on the grid for the first time in six races but it will do little to release the pressure on the Mexican as he was ninth and 0.433secs slower than the Dutchman. Zhou's team-mate Valtteri Bottas was seventh fastest, ahead of Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, whose eighth place seemed to confirm his team's relative slump in recent races in the face of car upgrades from their main rivals. Haas' Nico Hulkenberg was the final man in the top 10, while Daniel Ricciardo managed 13th place on his return to Formula 1 with Alpha Tauri, out-qualifying team-mate Yuki Tsunoda at the first attempt. There were contrasting fortunes for Hamilton's Mercedes' team-mate George Russell, who will start 18th after being hampered by traffic immediately before his final run in Q1. The battle for pole Verstappen looked on course for yet another pole - he had won it at the past six races in a row - when he went fastest on his first run in the final part of qualifying. But Hamilton was only 0.126secs adrift on his own first run and looked like he might be able to challenge if he nailed his last lap and Verstappen did not quite. Verstappen failed to improve on his final run - he was 0.02secs down on his own time - and Hamilton nailed his on a track he has made his own with eight victories in his career. Hamilton, who has had a difficult time with his team since the advent of new regulations in 2022, said: "It's been a crazy year and a half. I have lost my voice from shouting so much in the car. "We have been pushing so hard to finally get a pole and it just feels like the first time. "I didn't expect to be fighting for pole so when I went into that final run I gave it everything. "It has been massively challenging for everyone in the team. We have been focusing so much on trying to improve. "We have been losing so much time in Turns Four and 11 compared to the others, so I just sent it. It has been so tough and it is going to continue to be tough after this, but this just shows we can do it." Verstappen, for his part, said he believed the upgrades Red Bull have introduced for this weekend had worked but that he had been struggling for balance and that he believed the team "haven't nailed it this weekend". Norris was also very close to pole - he was just 0.085secs off Hamilton's time and said he was "disappointed" because he felt that time was in the car.Hamilton's pole was more than compensation, but it was an up-and-down day for Mercedes, after Russell failed to make it out of the first knock-out session. Russell went out late for his final lap and became embroiled in a bunch of other cars at the final corner, affecting his preparation for the lap. Ferrari were another team to lose out with one car, after Leclerc knocked out team-mate Carlos Sainz with his final lap of the second session and left the Spaniard in 11th place. Alonso had been fourth after the first runs in the final session, but although he improved with his final lap, it was by only 0.008secs and that allowed Leclerc and both Alfa Romeos to slip ahead of the veteran Spaniard. The second Aston Martin of Lance Stroll was down in 14th.The focus before the weekend was Red Bull's decision to bring Ricciardo back to the grid with Alpha Tauri after sacking Dutchman Nyck de Vries following a disappointing start to his F1 career. Ricciardi built up steadily through the weekend and by qualifying was competitive with Tsunoda. He beat the Japanese by 0.013secs in the first part of qualifying and that was enough for the Australian to progress and Tsunoda to be knocked out. Ricciardo then beat Stroll and Alpine's Pierre Gasly to achieve Alpha Tauri's best grid position since Monaco. Meanwhile, Formula 1 announced that a new contract has been signed for the Hungarian Grand Prix to continue at the Hungaroring until at least 2032.https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/66278958

With homes almost beyond reach for all but the luckiest, it’s becoming a truth universally acknowledged that a potential partner’s housing situation has once more begun to have an outsized impact on their romantic suitability Barbara Speed Barbara Speed 693 Rosie’s boyfriend Carl is kind and generous – an “amazing person”. He earns more than she does, and often pays for her to come with him on work trips, or lends cash when she needs it. “He’s the kind of person who would pick up the bill in a heartbeat,” she says. Their relationship is happy – he loves her for her. But she knows, deep down, that he also loves her for her flat. Rosie’s parents are middle class, and bought her a flat years ago when prices were lower, renting it out to pay off the mortgage. Carl’s family, meanwhile, isn’t well off, and he wouldn’t have been in a position to buy on his own – his income isn’t enough to get a mortgage and he has no savings. Both now live in the flat with a housemate. link: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jul/22/is-housing-crisis-killing-romance-modern-dating-jane-austen

Congress will vote on the deal to extend the government's borrowing authority on Wednesday, just shy of the June 5 "X-date" when the Treasury estimates the government will no longer be able to pay its bills, plunging the world's biggest economy into turmoil. Biden said in a statement that the deal was "good news for the American people, because it prevents what could have been a catastrophic default and would have led to an economic recession, retirement accounts devastated, and millions of jobs lost." McCarthy, who spoke with Biden on Saturday to close the deal, said there was still "a lot of work to do, but I believe this is an agreement in principle that's worthy of the American people." Raising the debt ceiling – a legal maneuver that takes place most years without drama – allows the government to keep borrowing money and remain solvent. This year, Republicans demanded deep spending cuts – largely in social spending for the poor – in return for raising the debt ceiling, saying the time had come for bitter medicine to address the country's mammoth $31 trillion debt. Biden argued that he would not negotiate over spending issues as a condition for raising the debt ceiling, accusing the Republicans of taking the economy hostage. According to a source familiar with the negotiations, the deal includes freeing up the debt ceiling for two years, meaning there will be no need for negotiations in 2024, when the presidential election will be in full swing. According to a source familiar with the negotiations, the deal includes freeing up the debt ceiling for two years, meaning there will be no need for negotiations in 2024, when the presidential election will be in full swing. There will also be new rules for accessing certain federal assistance programs, though the source said the deal protected Biden's signature Inflation Reduction Act and student debt relief plan. Biden said "the agreement represents a compromise, which means not everyone gets what they want. That's the responsibility of governing." Biden called the agreement "an important step forward that reduces spending while protecting critical programs for working people and growing the economy for everyone." https://www.tag24.com/politics/us-politics/biden-and-republicans-reach-debt-ceiling-compromise-deal-to-avoid-catastrophic-default-2847413

The estimated income of remittances for 2023 is around 3,000 million dollars, with a slight reduction compared to 2022, estimates the economist Asdrúbal Oliveros, partner director of Ecoanalítica. Oliveros points out that this amount is equivalent to only 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), still very low compared to the around 10% average of Latin American GDP that remittances represent, due to a constant migratory movement. Mexico and Central America concentrate most of the remittances received in the region. "The remittances received by the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) during 2022 showed a growth of 11.6% compared to those observed a year earlier," says a report from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). "This increase is less than half of what was registered in 2021 (25.9%)... The growth of remittances in 2022 meant an additional influx of resources of US$15,072 million compared to the previous year for families in the region," he continues. The report. Oliveros estimates that remittances could register a more aggressive growth in the coming years until they represent 10% of the Venezuelan GDP to match the weight in economic value that these incomes have in the rest of the countries in the region. "Four years ago, remittances did not represent anything in Venezuela, but they will be increasingly relevant," Oliveros said at an event organized by the Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB). Indeed, even though Venezuela already had more than 7 million migrants at the end of 2022, data from the Inter-American Development Bank does not place the country as a relevant destination for these flows. By amounts, in South America Colombia stood out with 9,429 million dollars, equivalent to 2.8% of GDP; Ecuador, with 4,961 million dollars (4.3% of GDP); Brazil, with 4,711 million dollars (0.3% of GDP); Peru, with 3,866 million dollars (1.6% of GDP) and Bolivia with 1,436 million dollars (3.3% of GDP). https://noticiasaldiayalahora.co/economia/remesas-podrian-significar-5-del-pib-en-venezuela/