Two people wearing face coverings and dark clothing were spotted near the area when the car caught fire in the eastern suburb of Woollahra. By REUTERS DECEMBER 11, 2024 09:30 View of the torched car in Sydney, Australia. December 11, 2024. (photo credit: Via Maariv) A car was set alight, and two properties spray painted with anti-Israel messages in Sydney just days after an arson attack at a synagogue in Melbourne, which is being investigated as terrorism, Australian authorities said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the latest attack, the second targeting the Jewish community in the Sydney suburb in three weeks, was an “outrage,” and he would be briefed on it soon by a new antisemitism task force. “This isn’t an attack on a government; this is an
Category Archives: POLITICS
The Women Election Situation Room Ghana (WESRG) has described Ghana’s 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections as largely peaceful and conducted in a conducive environment, despite a few isolated incidents. Speaking at a final media briefing on Sunday, the Chairman of the WESRG, Dr Ernest Adu-Gyamfi, praised Ghanaians for their patriotism and patience during the electoral process. He noted that the voting process unfolded smoothly in most areas, adhering to the country’s electoral laws. “The Electoral Commission (EC) prepared for the elections with a Voters Register of 18,774,159 registered voters, comprising 51.6 per cent females and 48.4 per cent males. 13 candidates contested the presidential election, while 801 candidates vied for parliamentary seats across the nation’s 40,976 polling stations,” he stated. According to Rev. Dr Adu-Gyamfi, who is the Chairman of
Fred Harris, a former U.S. senator from Oklahoma, presidential hopeful and populist who championed Democratic Party reforms in the turbulent 1960s, died Saturday. He was 94. Harris’ wife, Margaret Elliston, confirmed his death to The Associated Press. It was not immediately clear where he died, but he had lived in New Mexico since 1976 and was a resident of Corrales at the time of his death. “Fred Harris passed peacefully early this morning of natural causes. He was 94. He was a wonderful and beloved man. His memory is a blessing,” Elliston said in a text message. Harris served eight years in the Senate, first winning in 1964 to fill a vacancy, and made unsuccessful bid for the presidency in 1976. It fell to Harris, as chairman of the Democratic
The indictment of Indian tycoon Gautam Adani on bribery charges by US authorities has raised questions about his close ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and created political fodder for opposition parties ahead of key state elections, analysts say. US prosecutors have accused Adani and his nephew of orchestrating a US$265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials to secure power-supply deals. The explosive allegations come at a crucial time, coinciding with the tail end of state elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. The charges against Adani wiped out billions of dollars in stock market trading on domestic bourses on Thursday, with Adani Group companies losing more than US$26 billion in market capitalisation. Adani Group shares extended the losses early on Friday, but later in the day made a partial recovery. “The
Getty Images Last year’s Coronation of King Charles III cost taxpayers £72m, government figures have revealed. Just over £50m was spent by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which coordinated the event, while policing costs came to almost £22m, which were paid for by the Home Office. The DCMS described the Coronation as a “once-in-a-generation” moment and the figures came broadly within unofficial estimates, which suggested it would be between £50 and £100m. The Coronation in May 2023 had been described as a “slimmed down affair”, with the Westminster Abbey guest list only a quarter of the size of Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation at the same venue in 1953. Being a state event, the Coronation was paid for by the UK Government and Buckingham Palace through the Sovereign
As controversy continues to cloud some of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks, his team has an ominous warning for Republicans who don’t fall in line behind his nominees. ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl reports that one senior Trump adviser said the message to lawmakers is, “If you are on the wrong side of the vote, you’re buying yourself a primary.” “That is all,” the adviser told Karl. “And there’s a guy named Elon Musk who is going to finance it.” “The president gets to decide his Cabinet. No one else,” the adviser added. President-elect Donald Trump attends the America First Policy Institute Gala held at Mar-a-Lago, Nov. 14, 2024, in Palm Beach, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images The threat comes as Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth (tapped for attorney
NAIROBI, Kenya Nov 21-President William Ruto has pledged a vigorous and uncompromising fight against corruption, urging independent institutions responsible for combating graft to intensify their efforts. Speaking on Thursday during the State of the Nation Address, President Ruto emphasized plans to foster collaboration across various arms of government, particularly the Judiciary and Parliament, to improve integrity and efficiency through digitization and automation. “This fight against corruption is one of the most difficult tasks I undertake, and I am determined to see it through. Let this serve as a warning to all: the institutions charged with this responsibility must step up their efforts,” the President declared. He warned lawmakers that corruption continues to undermine social justice, sustainable development, national security, and the success of his Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, which will
Vice President and New Patriotic Party (NPP) Presidential Candidate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has reaffirmed his commitment to building a modern, inclusive Ghana underpinned by transparency, good governance, and digital systems. Addressing Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Accra on Wednesday, Dr. Bawumia outlined his vision to use technology as a tool to transform governance and tackle corruption. He emphasised the critical role of CSOs and research institutions in shaping policy and ensuring accountability. Building systems for transparency and inclusion Dr. Bawumia highlighted the government’s achievements in digital transformation during his tenure as Vice President, citing the Ghana Card, digital address system, and mobile money interoperability as foundational systems. “When we came into office, I focused on building systems that ensure transparency. These include digital identity, property addressing, and
Elon Musk outlined plans Wednesday for his new role as “efficiency” tsar – signalling an assault on US federal spending and staffing that would be backed by President-elect Donald Trump’s executive powers and a conservative Supreme Court. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, the world’s richest man said he was taking aim at hundreds of billions of dollars in government spending – including funding for public broadcasting and international aid – as well as at bureaucracy that represents, according to him, an “existential threat” to US democracy. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, who also owns the X social media platform, said that he and Vivek Ramaswamy, a fellow businessman and Trump loyalist, would work to slash federal regulations and make major administrative changes. “We are entrepreneurs, not politicians. We will
In a post on X, Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton decried the ICC as a “kangaroo court” and called Karim Khan a deranged fanatic.” By HANNAH SARISOHN NOVEMBER 21, 2024 17:09 Congressman Mike Waltz speaks on Day 1 of the Republican National Convention (RNC) at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, July 15, 2024. (photo credit: REUTERS/MIKE SEGAR) Florida Congressman and incoming National Security Advisor Mike Waltz slammed the ICC’s issuing of arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday, saying the international court has “no credibility.” “These allegations have been refuted by the US government,” Waltz wrote in a post on X. “Israel has lawfully defended its people & borders from genocidal terrorists. You can expect a strong response to the
As a fellow born and bred on the Copperbelt in the mining town of Luanshya, I am grossly perturbed and disturbed by the astronomical levels of illegal mining in the country. Copper cartels established by high profile criminals who are veritable Mafias with the wicked schemes akin to the Sicilian criminal barons are now taking hostage of many Copperbelt towns. In the evening we see truckloads of rowdy, insolent and brutal youths loaded on trucks in hundreds of numbers packed like sardines in tins heading for the mines. In the colonial days just as the Kaunda days, there was no illegal mining which is now rampant and almost uncontrollable in the whole Zambia. The founding fathers of Zambia among them Kenneth Kaunda, Simon Kapwepwe, Justin Chimba, Munukayumbwa Sipalo, Nalumino Mundia
Donald Trump picked Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead a new government-efficiency commission. Their aim is to cut government spending, and one idea they’ve floated is to ax federal agencies. Millions of Americans are employed by the US government. Here’s how the agencies break down and what workers make. Elon Musk’s government-efficiency commission could end up costing some federal workers their jobs. As he and the former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy begin to outline their priorities as leaders of the Department of Government Efficiency, created by Donald Trump, one of those priorities seems to be eliminating government agencies. Most recently, Ramaswamy told Fox News, “We expect certain agencies to be deleted outright.” More than 2 million Americans collect their paychecks from the federal government, so Business Insider looked
President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for the director of national intelligence, former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, has little experience working with the nation’s spy agencies and a long track record of echoing the Russian disinformation they work to expose and to counter — a combination her critics claim should be disqualifying. Gabbard, 43, who represented Hawaii as a Democrat from 2013-2021 and ran for the party’s presidential nomination in 2020 before becoming a Republican earlier this year, has been accused of harboring sympathies for the Kremlin and parroting propaganda generated by Russia to justify its invasion of Ukraine. At the outset of the conflict, Gabbard blamed the Biden administration and NATO, claiming they had provoked Russia’s aggression by ignoring what she called its “legitimate security concerns” about Ukraine potentially becoming a member
Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang has pledged to ensure that all building infrastructure in the state undergoes rigorous integrity to avoid building collapse, even as he vowed to recover all illegally acquired government properties. Recall that 22 students of Saint Academy College Jos died in July this year when a two-story classroom building collapsed on them while writing their NECO examinations. A score of others also sustained fatal injuries in the tragedy. Receiving the report of the committee set up to investigate the incident, Governor Muftwang commended the chairman of the committee, Prof. Danladi Slim Matawal, and the other members for their thorough and insightful work, describing the report as a critical guide for government actions. The Governor further directed the committee to extend its scope to include assessments of
Only a few reported holding company shares worth under R100 000. Members of Parliament (MPs) have declared their financial interests following a decision by the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests on Thursday. Parliament has declared the public section of the register, in line with Parliament’s code of conduct, which mandates that after a general election, members must disclose their registrable interests within 60 working days of Parliament’s opening. Based on MPs’ disclosures, it appears most rely primarily on their parliamentary salaries, with limited external business interests. Only a few reported holding company shares worth under R100 000, with the exception of Mzwanele Manyi. Most declared ownership of just one or two residential properties. ALSO READ: Shares, family trusts and acres of land: MPs’ assets and gifts declared to