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Everything posted by Mr.Talha
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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-65374093 In the middle of a forest not far from Kenya's coast, piles of fresh earth topped with crucifixes await the attention of forensic experts. About 14 mass graves have so far been dug up and Hussein Khalid has spent the past four days watching people exhume dozens of bodies. "The stench is unbearable," he tells the BBC. The dead - now numbering nearly 60 - are thought to have been members of the Good News International Church. It is believed they were persuaded to starve themselves in order to reach heaven before what they were told was going to be the end of the world. Mr Khalid runs the rights organisation Haki Africa, which took the authorities to the grave sites at the end of last week after being tipped off by some locals. The place is "quite hidden" inside Shakahola forest and he says that he and his team needed to cut back shrubs and bushes in order to drive there. Thirty-nine bodies have been exhumed so far but the police say that 58 have died in all as some who were rescued succumbed while being treated. The final count could be much higher as the Red Cross has said that said 112 people have been reported missing. Mr Khalid estimates that there are around 60 mass grave sites in the area and only a fifth of those have been examined. Police say that 29 survivors have been found so far, but it seems that not all of them wanted to be rescued, so convinced they were about what they were told about the end of the world. On Sunday, Mr Khalid came across a woman in her late 20s "looking extremely frail" with sunken eyes. But she did not want to be helped. "When we tried to administer first aid to give her sips of water with glucose with a spoon, she completely refused. She sealed her mouth shut and she was signifying that she doesn't want any help," Mr Khalid says, adding that the woman was now being treated in hospital. He also came across a man in his 40s who was able to talk. "He said he didn't need any saving, and that he was in his senses and he knows what he's doing and he should be left alone. He even called us enemies of him going to heaven." That man has also been taken to hospital. Victor Kaudo from the Malindi Community Human Rights Centre, which is helping exhume the bodies, says he thinks there are about 150 bodies. He said his organisation had been contacted by a whistleblower who wanted help rescuing his three children. "It was quite unfortunate because we only rescued one whom we found in a house, tied with a rope," he told the BBC. "And this kid we believe to be six years of age. But his sister and brother were already dead and they had been buried the previous day before we got there." Beyond the forest itself, there is shock in the country over how dozens of people could have willingly starved themselves to death. Kenya is a profoundly religious country with 85% of the po[CENSORED]tion identifying as Christian. President William Ruto, who is a devout man himself, has described the head of the Good News International Church, Pastor Makenzie Nthenge, as someone who did "not belong to any religion". Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki has called what happened a "massacre". Last month Mr Nthenge was charged in connection with the deaths of two children whose parents had joined his church. He was released on bail, but he is now back in police custody. The speaker of the Senate, Amason Kingi, asked how "evil of such an astounding magnitude [could] take place without being detected". There is also the question of why someone would starve themself. Theologian and psychologist Dr James Kipsang Barngetuny told the BBC that there was a problem in Kenya with the "mushrooming" of lots of small churches, which are not properly regulated. He said that unscrupulous leaders are able to brainwash people and take advantage of their desire to find a solution to their problems. Back in the forest, Mr Khalid has been told that there is a place deeper inside where people gathered to pray and he has urged the authorities to step up a search-and-rescue operation in the forest, which covers some 800 acres (325 hectares). Local people are beginning to come to the grave sites to tell the authorities about relatives who are missing. One man told Mr Khalid that his three sons, aged 21, 17 and 14, had been taken by his brother to join the church. He feared that they were all now dead.
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https://www.bbc.com/news/business-65375311 The UK's biggest business group has admitted it hired "culturally toxic" staff and failed to fire people who sexually harassed female colleagues. The CBI said a failure to act allowed a "very small minority" of staff to believe they could get away with harassment or violence against women. The embattled lobby group said it has now dismissed a number of people. The CBI was responding to an independent law firm report on misconduct allegations including rape. In an emotional letter to members, the business lobby group - which claims to represent 190,000 firms - admitted to a series of failings and said it had made mistakes "that led to terrible consequences". It said there was a collective "sense of shame" at "so badly having let down the...people who came to work at the CBI". "Our collective failure to completely protect vulnerable employees... and to put in place proper mechanisms to rapidly escalate incidents of this nature to senior leadership.... these failings most of all drive the shame," CBI president Brian McBride said in the letter. In early April, a number of claims of misconduct and harassment against CBI staff emerged including one allegation of rape at the lobby group's summer party in 2019. On Friday a second rape allegation emerged, after a woman told the Guardian she was raped whilst working at one of the CBI's overseas offices. Both rape allegations are being investigated by the police. In a letter following a report by law firm Fox Williams, which was appointed to lead an independent investigation into the lobby group, the CBI admitted to its members: It "tried to find resolution in sexual harassment cases when we should have removed those offenders from our business" The failure to sack offenders had led to a reluctance among women to formalise complaints This also allowed a "very small minority of staff with regressive - and, in some cases, abhorrent - attitudes towards their female colleagues to feel more assured in their behaviour, and more confident of not being detected" It failed to filter out culturally toxic people during the hiring process It promoted some managers too quickly "without the necessary prior and ongoing training to protect our cultural values, and to properly react when those values were violated" It paid "more attention to competence than to behaviour" It failed to properly integrate new staff The future of the CBI is hanging in the balance and it has suspended its operations until June while it tries to reform its workplace. There has been a mass exodus of CBI members, with a number of household names including John Lewis, BMW, Virgin Media O2, insurers Aviva, Zurich and Phoenix Group, banking firm Natwest, credit card company Mastercard; B&Q owner Kingfisher and media firm ITV all quitting the group. The government had already decided to pause any activity with the lobby group, but on Monday, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said there was "no point" engaging with the CBI when its own members had deserted them. "We want to engage with a body that speaks or business. It is incredibly important for me when I'm constructing budgets to have someone that I can turn to who speaks for British business." Mr McBride said he wanted to give members reasons to consider trusting the lobby group again. But said: "Whether that is possible, I simply don't know." Mr McBride said he was concerned that CBI staff felt that their only option was to go to the Guardian newspaper - which first published the claims - instead of feeling confident enough to raise the matter internally. One female CBI worker had told the Guardian that she had been stalked by a male colleague in 2018. The business group upheld a complaint of harassment against the man however, he was allowed to keep working in the same office as the woman. He eventually left for an unrelated reasons, according to the newspaper. Earlier this month, the lobby group fired its director-general, Tony Danker, who joined the CBI in 2020, following separate complaints of workplace misconduct. Mr Danker acknowledged he had made some staff feel "very uncomfortable" and apologised, but said his name had been wrongly associated with separate claims andthat his reputation had been "destroyed". He is being replaced by Rain Newton-Smith, the CBI's former chief economist, who is returning to the lobby group after a brief stint at Barclays. Dame Carolyn Fairbairn was the director-general of the CBI between 2015 and 2020. The BBC has contacted her for comment. 'Rebuilding trust' Mr McBride said the CBI had accepted all 35 recommendations made by Fox Williams investigators and added the organisation had 60 days to produce an action plan for its members to vote one. The CBI's president said the organisation had to "go for a much more zero-tolerance culture" and get "much more severe in dealing" with incidents of bullying and sexual harassment. "For us it's about rebuilding the trust that we obviously lost with the members who left us," he said. But Andy Wood, chief executive of the brewing company Adnams, which has cancelled its membership of the CBI, said he had not heard anything so far that "reassures me that I should become a member of the CBI again". He said he was not sure if the group was "salvageable". "Zero tolerance of bullying and sexual harassment - that has to be a given in a modern organisation," Mr Wood said. "It just shows really how archaic the CBI was behind the scenes. I applaud them for trying to put their house in order but this does feel [like] a few things being done far too late."
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https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/report-uk-could-ban-young-drivers-taking-passengers New drivers aged under 25 could be banned from taking other under-25s as passengers during their first year on the road as part of a new ‘graduated driving licence’ scheme. The proposed licence structure, first reported by The Times, would prohibit new drivers aged under 25 from carrying passengers also aged under 25 in the first six months or year after passing their test. The change – reportedly set to be considered by roads minister Richard Holden on 16 May – could be made by amending the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act, legislation that currently puts new drivers on a two-year probationary period with a maximum of six penalty points. It has been lobbied for by Sharron Huddleston, 52, whose daughter Caitlin, 18, was killed in a 2017 car crash with friend Skye Mitchell, 18, who also died. In written evidence submitted to Parliament in April 2020, Huddleston proposed a graduated driving licence structure forcing new drivers to display a P-plate; imposing a night-time curfew between 10pm and 5am; the aforementioned ban on carrying passengers also aged under 25; a ban on hands-free mobile use; zero tolerance for alcohol; and restrictions on engine capacity. A graduated licence structure was previously considered by former prime minister Theresa May’s government but didn't materialise, due to concerns around night-time driving and young shift workers, such as doctors. The government instead focused on improving training for young drivers, making it possible for learners to use the motorway (with an approved instructor) for the first time. However, there remains no legal requirement for such tuition to take place before taking a driving test. Huddleston’s 2020 proposal recommended a minimum-12-month learning period with a logbook system as evidence, proving a driver’s ability to drive in the dark and in poor conditions, such as rain, fog and ice, and their capability on suburban roads and motorways.
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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-63832825 Standing in Singapore's tranquil Esplanade Park, Russell Heng pointed to the spot where he was once caught by the police - just for being gay. It looks like any other tree-lined corner in the city. But back in the 1980s, before the age of the internet and Grindr, it was a po[CENSORED]r meeting spot for gay men in a country where homosexuality was effectively criminalised. Nicknamed the Feet of Five Trees, the spot's towering raintrees provided cover and seclusion, recalled Mr Heng, a playwright and activist. "We were roaming about that night. And then suddenly, there was a loud voice - a plainclothes policeman - who started shouting at us," he said. The men were forced to line up in a row as the policeman fiercely berated them. "He said 'You should be ashamed of yourself'. "We were just walking in the park," he said. "You felt psychologically that maybe you did something wrong… basically it was bullying." For decades, Singapore's government preserved the controversial 377A law inherited from British rule, which banned sex between two men. Authorities argued that it reflected Singapore society's view that homosexuality was not acceptable. But last week its parliament repealed the law, just months after leader Lee Hsien Loong's surprise announcement they would scrap the ban because of changing attitudes. The repeal of 377A turns the page on a dark chapter of Singapore history that is rarely talked about these days, where gay men not only faced intense social stigma but were even actively targeted by authorities. Mr Heng and the other men at Esplanade Park that night were let off with only a warning. But others were not so lucky. For several decades, the police would conduct so-called "anti-gay" raids on nightclubs that gay men were known to frequent, or cruising spots in beaches and parks. Often this would include the controversial use of entrapment, where policemen would pose as gay men at po[CENSORED]r meeting spots and promptly arrest anyone who engaged with them. Those arrested usually would be charged with soliciting, outrage of modesty, or for committing indecent acts. National newspapers would carry details of their arrests, listing their names, ages and occupations. Most were fined or served a few months in jail. But in one particular incident in 1993 known as "the Fort Road raid" for its location, several men were arrested, then sentenced to Singapore's notoriously harsh punishment of caning. This was later overturned in an appeal, with the judge noting that the way the men were caught and charged was "disquieting". For many gay men, the raids sent a clear message that their existence was frowned upon. While anti-gay violence was not common in tightly-controlled Singapore, many in the community were fearful of coming out to their friends, family and wider society. "You always had to be furtive, you always feared the glare of scrutiny. That was part of the instinct of being gay back then," said Mr Heng, who is 71 years old. Singapore's move on gay sex sparks a new battle The British law that left an anti-LGBTQ legacy in Asia By the 2000s the raids had decreased, and the issue of homosexuality - once a taboo topic - became increasingly openly discussed. Then in 2007, in a landmark parliamentary debate over 377A, Singapore's government promised that while it would keep the law it would not enforce it. These moves came as Singaporeans slowly became more accepting of LGBT people. Recent surveys show that, while there is still a significant number who think homosexuality is "wrong", there is also rising support for gay rights. The city-state has developed a thriving LGBT scene, with an increasing number of LGBT-friendly establishments and companies promoting diversity policies. The biggest civil society gathering in Singapore - where mass rallies and demonstrations remain extremely rare - is Pink Dot, an LGBT rights event that draws thousands of supporters every year. Activism has become more prominent with more lobby groups and support communities emerging - a far cry from the days where gay rights organisations found it difficult even to exist. Mr Heng is a founding member of one of the oldest LGBT groups in Singapore, People Like Us, which was twice rejected permission to register as a society in the 1990s. In their early days they were closely monitored by the authorities, recalled Mr Heng, with plainclothes policemen sitting in on their public talks and meetings, and identifying themselves afterwards. "There are younger people now who were born during a time when Pink Dot was already a fact. They would take it as part of the landscape, that gay people are okay. They don't know about this other time before," said Mr Heng. Some want to change that. One recent evening a group of tourists threaded through the streets of downtown Singapore on a unique tour, led by their guide, 34-year-old Isaac Tng. Standing on the banks of the Singapore River, they were told about 19th Century Chinese male immigrants who turned to prostitution. The next stop was a nondescript office building, which used to be Singapore's first gay sauna. Later, they were taken to an upscale hilltop restaurant - a po[CENSORED]r gay cruising spot in the past, they were told. Mr Tng told the BBC he decided to start giving LGBT history tours after realising there was an "amnesia", particularly among younger Singaporeans. His tours have attracted a mix of both straight and gay attendees. One outcome of the lack of enforcement of 377A is that "there are people who don't really care because they've never been subjected to it," he said. With more attention paid to 377A in recent years, including legal attempts to overturn it, "there's been greater interest and people are more curious now" about LGBT history, though "the resources are still lacking", he added. With 377A's repeal, the law is now officially a thing of the past. But many in the LGBT community remain cautious even as they celebrate. Alongside the repeal, lawmakers voted to amend the constitution, which effectively rules out the possibility of gay marriage for now. The vote also saw parliamentarians voicing concern about "militant homosexuals" and the erosion of religious freedoms, which LGBT groups in turn have called "unsubstantiated rhetoric and fearmongering". "Some of these leaders are reluctantly repealing 377A. Going forward I think it means gay rights will become a lot more sensitive. It feels more like a compromise rather than a huge milestone," said Mr Tng. "I'm so glad it happened. But I'm also not elated, because it's taken so long," said Mr Heng. "I think a gay friend put it very well: it's like a nice, hot cup of coffee that got left on the table. "You drink it now, it's still coffee, it tastes like coffee. But it's gone cold."
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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63848257 Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticised a price cap set by his Western allies on Russian oil exports, calling it "weak". The cap, approved on Friday, is aimed at stopping countries paying more than $60 (£48) for a barrel of seaborne Russian crude oil. Russia says it will not accept a cap on prices for its oil exports. The measure - due to come into force on Monday - intensifies Western pressure on Russia over the invasion. But Mr Zelensky called the price cap "a weak position" and not "serious" enough to damage to the Russian economy. "Russia has already caused huge losses to all countries of the world by deliberately destabilising the energy market," he said in his nightly address. It is "only a matter of time when stronger tools will have to be used", he added. The price cap was put forward in September by the G7 group of industrialised nations (the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the EU) in a bid to hit Moscow's ability to finance the war in Ukraine. In a joint statement, the G7, the EU and Australia said the decision was taken to "prevent Russia from profiting from its war of aggression against Ukraine". On Saturday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow had prepared for the move but would "not accept" the cap. Though the measures will most certainly be felt by Russia, the blow will be partially softened by its move to sell its oil to other markets such as India and China - which are currently the largest single buyers of Russian crude oil. G7 and allies approve cap on price of Russian oil How can the world cope without Russian oil and gas? The agreement of a price cap comes just days before an EU-wide ban on Russian crude oil imported by sea comes into force, also on 5 December. The price cap - which is meant to affect oil exports worldwide - is meant to complement that. Countries which sign up to the G7-led policy will only be permitted to purchase oil and petroleum products transported via sea that are sold at or below the price cap. Ukraine's Western allies also plan to deny insurance to tankers delivering Russian oil to countries that do not stick to the price cap. This will make it hard for Russia to sell oil above that price. Before the war, in 2021, more than half of Russia's oil exports went to Europe, according to the International Energy Association. Germany was the largest importer, followed by the Netherlands and Poland. But since the war, EU countries have been desperately trying to decrease their dependency. The US has already banned Russian crude oil, while the UK plans to phase it out by the end of the year.
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https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/move-electric/amazon-expands-e-cargo-bike-fleet-new-delivery-hubs Retail giant Amazon has expanded its fleet of electric cargo bikes after launching three further micromobility hubs in Manchester and London. Amazon’s new hubs are part of the company’s five-year £300 million investment in the electrification of its UK transportation network, with e-cargo bikes and walkers set to make more than two million deliveries per year. Manchester will now welcome the firm’s fleet of electric delivery vehicles, with the firm operating its e-cargo bike deliveries in the city for the first time. New hubs will also be opened in Wembley and Southwark, which Amazon says will more than triple the e-cargo bike fleet delivering parcels to customers across the capital. Earlier this year Amazon opened its first delivery hub in central London, with the Hackney-based facility serving as a base for its e-cargo bikes from Oxfordshire firm, EAV. Amazon says it has already made more than five million deliveries so far in 2022 using its e-cargo bikes and electric van fleet within London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). Volvo to supply Amazon with 20 heavy-duty electric trucks The delivery giant also announced plans to expand its operations across France and Italy, with the firm’s e-cargo bike and on-foot deliveries now operational from hubs in more than 20 cities across Europe. “With more than €1 billion committed to electrifying and decarbonising our European transportation network over the next five years, including more than £300 million in the UK alone, we remain laser focused on reaching net carbon zero by 2040,” said John Boumphrey, UK country manager at Amazon. “These new hubs will not only bring our customers more electric-powered deliveries, but also support local authorities looking for ways to reduce congestion and find alternative transportation methods. We look forward to expanding our e-cargo bike fleet further in the coming months.”
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https://www.bbc.com/news/business-63834419 French oil giant TotalEnergies has said it will cut North Sea investment by 25% next year after the windfall tax on oil and gas firms in the UK was extended. The company will cut £100m of spending on new wells in the region. The windfall tax - the Energy Profits Levy - was raised from 25% to 35% in last month's Autumn Statement and will now stay in place until March 2028. The government said the levy "strikes a balance between funding cost of living support while encouraging investment". "We have been clear that we want to encourage reinvestment of the sector's profits to support the economy, jobs, and our energy security, which is why the more investment a firm makes into the UK, the less tax they will pay," a Treasury spokesperson said. However, a spokesperson for the Scottish government said: "This decision highlights the fiscal and economic turmoil caused by the UK government is already having very real implications for Scottish industry." "We have also been consistently clear that the implementation of a windfall tax must involve a balanced approach across sectors and companies - not just energy companies, disproportionately based in Scotland." TotalEnergies is one of the North Sea's biggest oil and gas producers and its decision to cut investment will affect plans to drill a new well at its Elgin gas field. "Following another change to the fiscal environment for energy investors in the UK, we are now evaluating the impact of this change on our current and planned projects," said TotalEnergies' UK chairman Jean-Luc Guiziou. "The energy industry operates in a cyclical market and is subject to volatile commodity prices. We believe that the government should remain open to reviewing the Energy Profits Levy if prices reduce before 2028." The windfall tax on oil and gas companies operating in the North Sea was introduced in May after oil prices increased sharply. Oil prices had already been increasing as Covid restrictions were lifted around the world, but they jumped when Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to worries over energy supplies. The rate for the EPL was set at 25% originally. However, in the Autumn Statement last month, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced it would increase to 35% from January 2023, and stay in place until March 2028. It had previously been scheduled to finish at the end of 2025. Oil and gas firms operating in the North Sea are already taxed differently to other firms. Taxes on their profits are higher - they pay 30% corporation tax on their profits and a supplementary 10% rate on top of that. Other firms currently pay corporation tax at 19%. However, energy firms can also claim tax savings worth 91p of every £1 invested in fossil fuel extraction in the UK. Neivan Boroujerdi from energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie said that while TotalEnergies is the second biggest producer in the North Sea, it is not set to be one of the biggest investors over the next few years. "That's partly the reason why it's so adversely affected by the levy (windfall tax) in the first place, because they can't use the investment allowances to offset their levy payments against," Mr Boroujerdi said. 'Extreme burden' Last week, Brindex, an organisation representing smaller independent oil exploration companies in the North Sea, wrote to the chancellor saying the windfall tax increase represented an "existential threat" to the industry. Robin Allen, the chairman of Brindex, said in the letter that its members can "no longer shoulder this extreme open ended tax burden", and warned that it could impact jobs and the country's energy security. Like TotalEnergies, Brindex has called for a price floor mechanism whereby the windfall tax would only be triggered above a certain price level for oil and gas. Both Shell and BP have said that they will review North Sea investments following the tax increase, but have not announced any specific cuts to spending in the region. The main North Sea industry body, Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), said the decision to increase the EPL was "undermining investor confidence". Deirdre Michie, chief executive of OEUK, said: "Our industry was planning to invest £200bn in the broader energy sector - this includes low-carbon solutions - by 2030. This would help to ensure that the UK can meet its net-zero and climate goals and boost its energy security while we make that low-carbon transition. "But... these tax changes really do jeopardise this." Wood Mackenzie's Mr Boroujerdi said many people in the industry agreed "something had to be done" when the EPL was first introduced in May. "We saw energy prices spiralling out of control [and] eye-watering profits. But moving the goal posts for a second time in the space of six months hasn't gone down well and it's not conducive to future investment." However, Philip Evans, oil campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said the windfall tax was "nowhere near strong enough". "Ultimately investments like those from TotalEnergies are a terrible deal for the British people. The jobs they provide are increasingly precarious. The fossil fuels they seek to extract will only trash our climate targets," he said. "The future of the North Sea is in renewable energy and the quicker the government wakes up and helps us get there the better."
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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63834683 Israeli troops had entered the village warning of plans to demolish a Palestinian home. Footage shows a group of men and teenagers throwing rocks - then pulling back - as two shots ring out. Raed al-Naasan runs around a corner and collapses, blood seeping into his top, fatally wounded. He was killed on Tuesday - one of four Palestinians shot dead by Israeli troops during confrontations in different villages that day in the occupied West Bank. And now that footage of his killing is throwing a fresh spotlight on Israel's use of lethal force, as violence in the region reaches levels unmatched in years. In the hours after his death the army said soldiers used live ammunition in response to a suspect "spotted hurling Molotov cocktails [petrol bombs]" at them. But video evidence and eyewitnesses suggest this wasn't the case when he was struck. This year in the West Bank more than 140 Palestinians have been killed, nearly all by Israeli forces. The dead include civilians and armed militants. Meanwhile a series of Palestinian attacks targeting Israelis, as well as militant gunfire at troops during arrest raids, have killed more than 30 people including civilians and troops. The United Nations' envoy to the region Tor Wennesland warned this week that the conflict and military occupation was "again reaching a boiling point". Campaigners from the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem are currently probing Mr Naasan's death, saying that a significant number of cases of protesters being shot dead this year amount to "excessive use of force". The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it had acted to stop "violent rioters" and the incident was being "examined". Troops entered the village of al-Mughayyir on Tuesday to serve demolition orders against "illegal construction" - this happens when Israeli authorities plan to bulldoze Palestinian homes built without permits, even though these are often impossible to obtain. Mr Naasan, 21, was shot dead after a group of around 20 young men and teenagers gathered and threw stones towards the jeeps and soldiers. Under international law, the use of firearms by security forces against civilians is defined as a measure of last resort, and can only take place to stop an "imminent threat of death or serious injury". Video given to the BBC filmed for nearly a minute before the shooting shows the group, including Mr Naasan, appearing to pick up stones from the street and throw them towards troops who are not visible in the footage. None can be seen throwing petrol bombs. Mr Naasan then stands in front of his family home apparently holding stones, when two gunshots can be heard. The second is thought to be the shot which left him fatally wounded. Paramedic Mujahid Abu Aliya rushed to treat him at the scene. "No-one threw a Molotov cocktail, I was here…. When I picked him up he was screaming: 'I will die, I will die'," he said. Mr Naasan's mother Fatma described how she ran after him moments later desperately trying to help. "[The troops] are the ones who attacked us - they came towards the house in the confrontations and the young people participated," she told the BBC shortly after her son's funeral. Another eyewitness, Raghd Jehad, said: "When they started shooting live ammunition, all the men dispersed except him, he was standing there." "They have been raiding the village for a week now. This is an occupation and they come when they like," he added. Mr Naasan had recently finished his studies and was training as an officer in the Palestinian Authority security services, the internationally-backed force that carries out internal policing in parts of the West Bank. In a statement the IDF said: "Only a portion of the event is depicted in the video. IDF soldiers encountered violent rioters… among them the deceased." "The man hurled a Molotov cocktail at the forces, who opened fire in response. The circumstances of the event are being examined." The village of Al-Mughayyir has witnessed years of confrontations with Israeli troops. It is close to some of the West Bank's most ideologically-driven Israeli settlements from where groups have tried to build outposts on land near the village. Settlements are seen as illegal under international law, and most outposts are also prohibited under Israeli laws. Residents of Al-Mughayyir said they feared a worsening situation. Israel's incoming national security minister is set to be the far-right firebrand Itamar Ben-Gvir - a staunch supporter of settlements who calls for stone-throwing Palestinians to be shot. He also wants Israeli soldiers to have immunity from prosecution in cases where Palestinians are killed. Dror Sadot from B'Tselem, the human rights group, described 2022 as an "extreme year" in terms of Palestinian fatalities. "There are many cases of protests where the Palestinians are using rocks, stones and sometimes other means, and Israel's army almost always uses disproportionate force," she said. The IDF rejects this, routinely saying it carries out internal investigations into Palestinian fatalities. But human rights groups have described such inquiries as a "whitewash". Amid the worsening violence this week, an Israeli soldier was left seriously wounded when a Palestinian man - later shot dead - rammed his car into her near a West Bank settlement. Israeli forces are also still searching for suspects after a twin bomb attack in Jerusalem last week which killed two Israelis. Since the spring, Israel has carried out near nightly search and arrest raids in the West Bank, and says it will continue its operations to prevent the threat of further attacks.
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https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/volkswagen-extends-meb-lifespan-radical-strategy-overhaul Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume has given the go-ahead for a substantial investment in the MEB (Modularer E-Antriebs Baukasten) electric car platform, setting up a fundamental revision of the German car maker’s electric car strategy up to and beyond 2030. The reported €1.5 billion (£1.3bn) investment, which encompasses the development of more advanced battery cell, power electronics and inverter technology among other changes, comes as the Volkswagen Group begins to roll back on plans originally initiated by former CEO Herbert Diess, following an internal review of future electric car expenditure and processes, much of which has now been placed on hold for further consideration by its board members. The internal review identified the four-year-old MEB platform, which supports both single-motor rear- and dual-motor four-wheel drive, as a central pillar in instilling greater competitiveness, economies of scale, production efficiency and profitability into the company’s planned electric models. The investment in the structure, first reported by German newspaper FAZ, is aimed at extending its production life well beyond that of earlier strategy planning, which called for the MEB platform to be phased out during the latter half of this decade in favour of the SSP (Scaleable Systems Platform) structure. Blume is claimed to have already initiated steps to integrate the battery cell technology originally envisaged for the SSP structure into an updated MEB platform, known internally as MEB-EVO. It centres around a so-called ‘unified cell’ to be used across the Volkswagen Group as part of cost amortisation efforts for the company, which sold 366,000 electric cars during the first nine months of 2022. Other changes planned for the MEB platform include an increase in charging capacity. Nothing is official yet, although an internal document cited by FAZ is claimed to reveal the upgraded MEB structure will support charging at speeds of between 175kW and 200kW. This represents a significant increase on the peak 135kW of existing MEB-based models. Despite the investment, though, the updated MEB platform is expected to retain a 400V electric architecture in the interests of cost competitiveness. The decision to invest in the MEB platform will mean the introduction of the SSP structure – which has been conceived around a more advanced 800V electric architecture, allowing a charging capacity of up to 350kW – is delayed until 2028 at the very earliest. Confirmation of this was first aired by Volkswagen brand CEO Thomas Schäfer at the recent 2022 Los Angeles motor show, where he told Autocar: “We’re not 100% sure what comes when. But what we know is that everything slides back a bit by, say, two years.” Plans for the construction of a new manufacturing site in Warmenau, close to Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters in Germany, specifically for SSP platform models have also been abandoned, in a move that is claimed to provide savings of up to €2bn (£1.7bn). First used by the Volkswagen ID 3 hatchback at its European market launch in September 2019, the MEB platform currently underpins six electric Volkswagen models, including the Volkswagen ID 4, Volkswagen ID 5 and Chinese-market ID 6 SUVs as well as the recently introduced ID Buzz and ID Buzz Cargo.
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Musician Name: Lena Meyer-Landrut Birthday / Location: 23 May 1991 (age 31) Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany Main instrument: Vocals Musician Picture: Musician Awards & Nominations: 12 AWARDS & 8 nominations Best Performance: --- Other Information: Lena Johanna Therese Meyer-Landrut[2] (German: [ˈleːna]; born 23 May 1991), also known by the mononym Lena, is a German singer. She rose to fame after representing Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, winning the contest with her song "Satellite". Both "Satellite" and her debut album My Cassette Player (2010) debuted at number one in Germany and became platinum sellers. With her three entries from the German national final Unser Star für Oslo, Meyer-Landrut set an all-time chart record in her home country by debuting with three songs in the top five of the German Singles Chart. She represented Germany for the second consecutive time in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf with the song "Taken by a Stranger", finishing in tenth place. Meyer-Landrut followed this with a series of successful albums, including Good News (2011), Stardust (2012), Crystal Sky (2015) and Only Love, L (2019), all of which entered the top two of the German Albums Chart. Several singles from these albums became top ten hits on the pop charts throughout German-speaking Europe, including "Stardust" and "Wild & Free." One of the best-selling female German artists to emerge in the early 2010s, Meyer-Landrut has won several high-profile prizes as a recording artist such as the 1LIVE Krone, a Comet, the Radio Regenbogen Award, three Echo Music Awards, and five MTV Europe Music Awards. Beyond her music career, Meyer-Landrut has been featured as a coach on seven seasons of the reality competition television series The Voice Kids as well as an expert panel member for the Eurovision Song Contest on several occasions. In 2017, she joined the cast of the fourth season of Sing meinen Song – Das Tauschkonzert, the German version of the series The Best Singers whose accompanying compilation album topped the Austrian and German Albums Chart. In addition, Meyer-Landrut has also voiced characters in audiobooks and animated films, including A Turtle's Tale (2010), Tarzan (2013), Trolls (2016) and Wonder Park (2019), and has been a brand ambassador for L'Oréal hair coloring and skin care products.
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Artist: Bill Kaulitz Real Name: Bill Kaulitz Birth Date /Place: 1 September 1989 (age 33) Leipzig, East Germany Age: 33 Social status (Single / Married): Married Artist Picture: Musical Genres: Pop rock, pop punk, alternative rock, electropop, emo pop, power pop Awards:--- Top 3 Songs (Names): monsoon, white lies, automatic OTher information: Bill Kaulitz (born 1 September 1989),[1] also known mononymously as Billy for his solo act, is a German singer and songwriter. He is best known for his work as the lead singer of pop rock band Tokio Hotel.