Sunday, March 8

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NASA astronaut released from hospital after return from International Space Station
World News

NASA astronaut released from hospital after return from International Space Station

The International Space Station Photo: NASA A NASA astronaut who was hospitalised upon return from the International Space Station for an unspecified medical condition was released Saturday in "good health," the US space agency said. The four-member Crew-8 mission splashed down off the coast of Florida early Friday after nearly eight months aboard the orbital laboratory. NASA did not reveal which of the astronauts was hospitalised nor the reason, citing medical privacy. However, it said in a blog post that the crew member has returned to the Johnson Space Center in Houston "in good health and will resume normal post-flight reconditioning with other crew members." On its way back to Earth, the SpaceX Dragon executed a normal re-entry and splashdown, and recovery of the crew and spacecraf...
Australian Liberal National Party claims victory in Queensland election
World News

Australian Liberal National Party claims victory in Queensland election

Australia's Queensland Liberal National Party leader David Crisafulli speaks on 27 October, 2021. Photo: Bradley Kanaris The conservative Liberal National Party in Australia's Queensland state was on track on Sunday to end almost a decade of centre-left Labor government, after a general election held on Saturday. Votes were still being counted on Sunday, but a partial count showed the Liberal National Party was polling well at a primary vote of 41.9 percent with the governing Labor Party on 32.8 percent, according to the Electoral Commission of Queensland. "Today Queenslanders voted for hope over fear, they have voted for a fresh start, and they have voted for a majority LNP (Liberal National Party) government," the party's leader David Crisafulli told supporters on Saturday night. Cris...
Donald Trump open to eliminating income taxes, repeats ‘enemy from within’ rhetoric on Joe Rogan podcast
World News

Donald Trump open to eliminating income taxes, repeats ‘enemy from within’ rhetoric on Joe Rogan podcast

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign appearance on 31 July, 2024 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Photo: Spencer Platt / Getty Images / AFP By Kate Sullivan and Shania Shelton, CNN Former US President Donald Trump has said on Joe Rogan's podcast that he would be open to eliminating income taxes, while pushing his sweeping tariff proposal and praising the economic policies of the late 19th century. While talking about tariffs, Trump was asked by Rogan, "Did you just float out the idea of getting rid of income taxes and replacing it with tariffs?" "Well, OK," Trump said during the interview on The Joe Rogan Experience. Rogan asked, "Were you serious about that?" "Yeah, sure. Why not?" the former president responded. "Because, we, ready, our country was the richest in the, relati...
Foreign interference in the U.S. election is up – and being swiftly exposed – National
Politics

Foreign interference in the U.S. election is up – and being swiftly exposed – National

WASHINGTON — A presidential candidate’s phone is hacked. A fake video falsely shows ballots burned in Pennsylvania. National security officials warn that U.S. adversaries may incite violent protests after Election Day. These developments — all revealed in the past week — show how Russia, China and Iran have increased the pace of efforts to meddle in American politics ahead of next month’s election, just as intelligence officials and security analysts had predicted.At the same time, officials, tech companies and private researchers have adopted a more aggressive defense by swiftly exposing foreign election threats, highlighting the lessons learned from past election cycles that revealed America’s vulnerability to disinformation and cyberespionage.Officials say the U.S. election system is so...
You might think Israel’s airstrikes on Iran could lead to all-out war – but that doesn’t look likely | World News
Business

You might think Israel’s airstrikes on Iran could lead to all-out war – but that doesn’t look likely | World News

Israel's unprecedented night of airstrikes across Iran may be just what was needed to pull the Middle East back from all-out war.That might sound odd because for hours, it seems, Israeli jets ranged freely across Iranian airspace, apparently attacking targets and air defences at will in a flagrant violation of Iranian sovereignty and provocation, you might say. It was, you might have thought, just the sort of escalation to lead to Iran upping the ante and launching thousands of ballistic missiles to rain down on Israel's towns and cities.But that is not likely to happen.Why? Because neither side wants all-out war. For months now, Israel and Iran have been trying to act tough while trying desperately to avoid one. Last night's operation is no different. The reasons are clear. Iran cannot af...
Iran warns it will defend itself after Israeli strikes
World News

Iran warns it will defend itself after Israeli strikes

By Ramin Khanizadeh, AFP A general view of Tehran after several explosions were heard in Tehran on 26 October, 2024. Photo: AFP/Atta Kenare Iran warns it will defend itself after Israeli air strikes killed at least two soldiers and further stoked fears of a full-scale regional war in the Middle East. Israel warned Iran would "pay a heavy price" if it responded to the strikes, and the United States, Germany and Britain demanded Tehran not escalate the conflict further. US President Joe Biden said he hoped "this is the end" after the pre-dawn Israeli strikes, noting that "it looks like they didn't hit anything other than military targets". The European Union called for all parties to exercise utmost restraint to avoid an "uncontrollable escalation". Other countries, including many of I...
Quebec Liberals seek probe of closing of newcomers’ French-language classes
Politics

Quebec Liberals seek probe of closing of newcomers’ French-language classes

The Quebec Liberal Party has called for the province’s French language commissioner to investigate the cancelling of some French-language training courses for newcomers. Citing an “ongoing series of closures of francization programs,” the Opposition party announced Saturday morning in a news release that its critics for the French language and French classes, André Albert Morin and Madwa-Nika Cadet, sent a letter to the Commissioner of the French Language.The letter asks commissioner Benoît Dubreuil to “investigate to ensure that the right to French language learning services, included in the Charter of the French Language, is respected,” the release said.The Liberals are blaming the Coalition Avenir Québec government’s budgetary decisions, which it says, “jeopardize the possibility for im...
Georgia’s ruling party leads key election race which could decide role in Europe | World News
Business

Georgia’s ruling party leads key election race which could decide role in Europe | World News

Georgia's ruling party is leading the crucial election race that could decide the country's role in Europe.The Central Election Commission said the ruling Georgian Dream party had won 52.99% of the vote after 97% of the electronic vote was counted. Not all paper ballots and votes cast by Georgians abroad have been counted. Both Georgian Dream and the opposition blocs trying to end its 12 years in power have portrayed the vote as an existential choice.After the polls opened Bidzina Ivanishvili, a billionaire who set up Georgian Dream and made his fortune in Russia, accused opposition parties of being "an agent of a foreign country that will only fulfil the tasks of a foreign country" - suggesting the West wants Georgia to go to war with Russia.He also pledged to ban all pro-Western oppositi...
100 Princes Street, Edinburgh review: a chic new addition to Scotland’s hotel scene
Life Style

100 Princes Street, Edinburgh review: a chic new addition to Scotland’s hotel scene

As this is a boutique city-centre hotel, there’s no spa, nor is there a fitness centre. There are, however, plenty of delicious things to eat and drink, and the impeccable staff are always on hand to provide any local tips and advice. Dressed in a chic uniform of blue silk dresses or sharp tartan suits, they’re friendly and knowledgeable without being overbearing, keen to make guests feel right at home. Source link
Videos lift veil on hidden horrors in Sudan after ‘100 villagers massacred’ | World News
Business

Videos lift veil on hidden horrors in Sudan after ‘100 villagers massacred’ | World News

Bodies wrapped in blankets are laid out in a front yard. Some on beds, others on the hard ground."These are the martyrs of Al Sireiha - more than 100," the man recording the video says, as mourners pray and walk around the corpses in the poorly lit evening darkness. Civilians were massacred in the farming village of Al Sireiha in the eastern parts of Sudan's Al Jazira state on Friday.The horror has emerged in a handful of videos uploaded to social media amid a telecommunications blackout."The number of deaths we've received so far is 124, though due to communication outages, we haven't been able to confirm this or if it has risen," says Mohamed Tarek. He is a member of the Madani Resistance Committee, the state capital's branch in a network of grassroots, frontline volunteer groups born ou...