PARIS (Bernama-Anadolu) – Upon their arrival at the Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, Palestinian athletes were greeted warmly by a large crowd less than a day before the start of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, Anadolu Agency reported.
“We’re 15 million people without a country. So, when we’re here raising our flag, sometimes in protests, the police may try to stop you from raising the (Palestinian) flag, but they can’t stop me (from raising the flag). So, I’m doing that proudly today,” swimmer Yazan Al Bawwab told Anadolu.
Palestine Olympic athletes and members of the delegation pose with supporters upon arrival at Charles-de-Gaulle airport in Roissy-en-France, north of Paris, on July 25, 2024, ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. PHOTO: AFP
Thanking everybody for the support, Al Bawwab said:” We are an oppressed country, so we’re pleased to be here so people can listen to us. We are human beings. We want to play sports like everybody else, and we want to be treated like everybody else.”
Al Bawwab stressed that France doesn’t recognise Palestine as a country, adding: “We are striving to be acknowledged as a recognised people when we arrive here.”
Jibril Rajoub, president of the Palestinian Football Association and the Palestine Olympic Committee, Palestinian Olympic athletes and members of the delegation arrive at Charles-de-Gaulle airport in Roissy-en-France, north of Paris, on July 25, 2024, ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. PHOTO: AFP
Another Palestinian athlete Fares Badawi stressed that he was thrilled and appreciated this “very warm” welcome accorded to them upon their arrival.
“I hope we can do our best for our country in the best way,” he said, adding: “We are here, we are strong, and we will stay stronger. We will never give up.”
Boxer Wasim Abusal also said that he feels like he is among his family here, adding that “all the people here came for us. I thank them.”
WASHINGTON (Bernama-Anadolu) – United States (US) Vice President Kamala Harris said Thursday that she expressed concern about the situation in the Gaza Strip to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting at the White House.
“I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there, with over two million people facing high levels of food insecurity and half a million people facing catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity,” Anadolu Agency quoted Harris during a press conference after the closed-door meeting with Netanyahu.
US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to the press after meeting with Netanyahu in the Vice President’s ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC, on July 25, 2024. PHOTO: AFP
The meeting came a day after Netanyahu addressed a joint session of the US Congress, where he claimed that the war in Gaza has “one of the lowest ratios of combatants to non-combatant casualties in the history of urban warfare.”
Harris said that what has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is “devastating.”
“The images of dead children and desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third or fourth time.
“We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering. And I will not be silent,” she added.
With her remarks, Harris reflected a major shift in Gaza policy, while urging Netanyahu to reach a ceasefire in the besieged enclave.
“Thanks to the leadership of our president, Joe Biden, there is a deal on the table for a ceasefire and a hostage deal. I just told Prime Minister Netanyahu it is time to get this deal done,” she added.
On May 31, Biden said that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a ceasefire, a hostage-prisoner exchange and the reconstruction of Gaza.
“Let’s get the deal done to get a ceasefire to end the war. Let’s bring the hostages home, and let’s provide much-needed relief to the Palestinian people,” Harris said.
Harris also stressed that she remains committed to a path forward that can lead to a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine.
ISTANBUL (Bernama-Anadolu) – The United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) on Thursday demanded urgent measures to address a significant rise in avian influenza cases in the Asia Pacific region, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.
Key recommendations include enhanced surveillance systems, rapid diagnostics, cross-sectoral collaboration, strengthened biosafety in the poultry industry and increased public awareness.
Citing recent outbreaks in Cambodia, China, and Vietnam, FAO’s regional manager Kachen Wongsathapornchai emphasised the urgency of the measures.
File photo of an electron microscope image of avian influenza A H5N1 virion. PHOTO: AP
The FAO reported 13 new human cases of avian influenza in Cambodia, with additional cases detected in China and Vietnam.
The highly pathogenic H5N1 strain has spread to South America and Antarctica, infecting new animal species, including marine mammals and scavengers.
“The emergence of novel A/H5N1 strains, which are more easily transmissible, increases the pandemic threat. Immediate, coordinated preventive measures are essential,” added Wongsathapornchai.
FAO is a specialised agency of the United Nations (UN) that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.
HULU SELANGOR (Bernama) — A police officer was charged in the Kuala Kubu Bharu Magistrate’s Court on Friday with the murder of Nur Farah Kartini Abdullah, whose body was found in a palm oil plantation.
Lance Corporal Muhammad Alif Monjani, 26, is accused of killing Nur Farah Kartini, a former student of Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI), at the palm oil plantation in Kampung Sri Keledang, Hulu Bernam, between July 10 and July 15.
Suspect Muhammad Alif Monjani arrives in court. PHOTO: BERNAMA
He was charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code, which stipulates either a death penalty or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years, as well as a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane upon conviction.
Judge Nurul Mardhiah Mohammed Redza presided over the proceedings.
The court set Aug 30 for mention.
Deputy public prosecutor Ku Hayati Ku Haron appeared for the prosecution while lawyers Aida Jaafar Mad Ariff and Nur Aida Md Zainuddin represented Muhammad Alif.
Also present in court were family members of the victim and the accused.
Earlier, before the proceeding commenced, a policeman reminded the family members of the victim and the accused to control their emotions.
Muhammad Alif, wearing a black T-shirt, arrived at the court at 9.05 am escorted by the police.
Nur Farah Kartini, 25, was reported missing on July 10 before her body was found in an oil palm plantation in Kampung Sri Kledang, Hulu Selangor, at about 6 pm on July 15.
The Chinese Embassy in Brunei Darussalam held a dinner reception to celebrate the 97th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (CPLA) at Tarindak D’Polo in Jerudong on Thursday night.
The guest of honour was Minister at The Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof and spouse, Datin Hajah Kalshom binti Haji Suhaili. Also present was Royal Brunei Armed Forces Major General Dato Paduka Seri Haji Muhammad Haszaimi bin Bol Hassan.
On hand to welcome the guest of honour was the Ambassador of China to Brunei Darussalam Xiao Jianguo.
China Defence Attaché in Brunei Senior Colonel Dai Qilin reviewed the history of the CPLA since its founding and the contributions of the CPLA in safeguarding national sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests.
(From L-R) China Defence Attaché in Brunei Senior Colonel Dai Qilin, Minister at The Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof and Ambassador of China to Brunei Darussalam Xiao Jianguo cutting a cake during the dinner reception to celebrate the 97th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (CPLA). PHOTOS: ADIB NOOR
China adheres to the path of peaceful development and pursues an independent foreign policy of peace and a national defence policy that is defensive in nature.
“This year marks the 40th anniversary of Brunei’s independence and the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and both countries are committed to the modernisation and the realisation of a better life for their peoples,” he said
“Last November, President Xi Jinping and His Majesty The Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam held a successful meeting in San Francisco. China is willing to work with Brunei to follow the important consensus of the two Heads of State at last year’s meeting in San Francisco, carry forward the traditional friendship, deepen the strategic mutual trust, and promote the two countries’ strategic cooperative partnership into a new level,” he shared.
The Defence Attache then stated that China and Brunei will co-chair the ADMM-Plus Expert’s Working Group (EWG) on Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) between 2024 and 2027. The Chinese side will host an EWG PKO meeting, and representatives and peacekeeping experts from the UN and ADMM-Plus countries will be invited to contribute their insights and views and share experience and approaches.
“The cooperation between China and Brunei in the field of peacekeeping not only reflects the strategic mutual trust, but also demonstrates the strategic orientation of both sides to jointly maintain regional peace,” he added.
The event continued with a cake-cutting ceremony and souvenir presentation by the Ambassador of China to Brunei Darussalam Xiao Jianguo to the guest of honour. – ADIB NOOR
PETALING JAYA (ANN/THE STAR) – Six districts across Peninsular Malaysia are experiencing unusually high temperatures, according to the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia).
A Level 1 hot weather alert has been issued for Raub, Temerloh, Maran, Bentong, and Rompin in Pahang, as well as Kuala Krai in Kelantan.
This alert is triggered when temperatures range between 35°C and 37°C for three consecutive days.
In a related development, Kampung Raja Besut in Terengganu recorded an unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) reading of 167 as of Thursday.
API values between 101 and 200 are categorised as unhealthy. Other areas nearing this threshold include Seberang Jaya and Seberang Perai in Penang, Taiping in Perak, Banting in Selangor, and Tanah Merah in Kelantan.
The National Disaster Management Agency reported 112 cases of heat-related illnesses as of July 23. These included 26 cases of heatstroke, 78 cases of heat fatigue, and eight cases of heat cramps.
Kedah reported the highest number of cases with 19, followed by Terengganu with 17, Johor and Pahang each with 14, Perak with 11, Negri Sembilan and Selangor each with nine, Sabah with seven, Kelantan and Perlis each with four, Kuala Lumpur with three, and Penang with one.
The cases comprised 86 adults, 21 teenagers, three children, and two senior citizens.
MetMalaysia’s drought monitoring report, issued on July 11, states that Malaysia is currently in the southwest monsoon phase, resulting in fewer rainy days across most of the country. This phase is expected to continue until mid-September.
While most parts of the peninsula can anticipate regular rainfall in August, Perlis, Kedah, and northern Perak are forecasted to receive below-average rainfall. Most parts of Sarawak are expected to receive average rainfall, with above-average rainfall predicted for Sri Aman, Sibu, Bintulu, and Kapit.
Sabah and Labuan are projected to experience average rainfall throughout August.
AP – A court case could soon settle a spicy dispute: Who invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos?
A former PepsiCo executive is suing the company, saying it destroyed his career after questioning his claim that he invented the popular flavour of Cheetos snacks.
PepsiCo said Thursday it has no comment on the lawsuit, which was filed July 18 in California Superior Court.
According to his lawsuit, Richard Montañez began working for PepsiCo as a janitor at its Frito-Lay plant in Ranch Cucamonga, California, in 1977. Montañez was the son of a Mexican immigrant and grew up in a migrant labour camp.
One day, a machine in Montañez’s plant broke down, leaving a batch of unflavored Cheetos. Montañez says he took the batch home and dusted them with chilli powder, trying to replicate the flavour of elote, the popular grilled seasoned corn served in Mexico.
In 1991, Montañez asked for a meeting with PepsiCo CEO Roger Enrico to pitch his spicy Cheetos, confident they would be a hit with the Latino community. Enrico granted the meeting, liked the presentation and directed the company to develop spicy Cheetos, according to the lawsuit.
Montañez said PepsiCo sent him on speaking engagements and actively promoted his story. But in the meantime, Montañez claims the company’s research and development department shut him out of its discussions and testing.
PepsiCo introduced Flamin’ Hot Cheetos in 1992. Montañez says he continued to develop spicy snacks, like Flamin’ Hot Popcorn and Lime and Chili Fritos, and in 2000 he was promoted to a business development manager in Southern California. Montañez eventually became PepsiCo’s vice president of multicultural marketing and sales.
Montañez said demand for speaking engagements was so great that he retired from PepsiCo in 2019 to become a motivational speaker full time. He published a memoir in 2021 and his life story was made into a movie, “Flamin’ Hot,” in 2023.
But according to the lawsuit, PepsiCo turned on Montañez in 2021, cooperating with a Los Angeles Times piece that claimed others in the company were already working on spicy snacks when Montañez approached them, and that they – not Montañez – came up with the name, “Flamin’ Hot.”
Montañez said PepsiCo’s about-face has hurt his speaking career and other potential opportunities, including a documentary about his life.
He is seeking damages for discrimination, fraud and defamation.
FILE – Flamin’ Hot Cheetos are pictured near the front door of La Azteca Market in South Los Angeles, Aug. 22, 2008. PHOTO: AP
FILE – SAG-AFTRA captains Iris Liu, left, and Miki Yamashita, center, and SAG-AFTRA chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland lead a cheer for striking actors outside Paramount Pictures studio, Nov. 3, 2023, in Los Angeles. PHOTO: AP
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hollywood’s video game performers announced they would go on strike Thursday, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage after talks for a new contract with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections.
The strike — the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists — will begin at 12.01 am Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros and Walt Disney Co, over a new interactive media agreement.
SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA’s negotiating committee said that the studios’ definition of who constitutes a “performer” is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected.
“The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement,” SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as “data.”
Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor’s voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said.
“We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can,” Rodriguez told reporters. “We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we’re doing it now.”
Cooling said the companies’ offer “extends meaningful AI protections.”
“We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations,” she said.
Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union’s negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies’ offer.
“The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn’t look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier,” Norris said. “We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn’t a performer.”
The global video game industry generates well over USD100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said.
Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year’s film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months.
The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labour action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood’s two largest actors unions in 2012.
The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 “off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers,” according to the union.
Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected.
Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agreement or interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said.
(FILES) Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez gestures during the weigh-in ceremony prior to his fight against British boxer John Ryder for the WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO super middleweight titles in Guadalajara, Mexico, on May 5, 2023. PHOTO: AFP
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) – Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez announced on Thursday that he will defend three super-middleweight world boxing titles on September 14 against undefeated Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas.
Alvarez continues a tradition of fighting on the Mexican Independence Day weekend with a card that also includes World Boxing Association middleweight champion Erislandy Lara defending his crown against fellow American Danny Garcia, a former welterweight and light welterweight champion.
Alvarez, 61-2-2 with 39 knockouts, risks his WBA, World Boxing Council and World Boxing Organization crowns against the top-rated WBA contender in the 168-pound division.
Berlanga, an American of Puerto Rican heritage, is 22-0 with 17 knockouts. He enters his first world title bout coming off a sixth-round stoppage of Ireland’s Padraig McCrory in February.
“I’m very happy for this fight between Mexico and Puerto Rico,” Alvarez said. “I’m proud to contribute to this legacy and facing an opponent like Edgar Berlanga adds even more excitement and meaning to this event.”
Alvarez comes off a fourth defence of the undisputed world title with a 12-round decision over Mexico’s Jaime Munguia in May at Las Vegas.
“This is the opportunity of a lifetime,” Berlanga said. “I deserve to be here and I’m going to shock the world and silence the critics by delivering a masterful performance and knocking out Canelo Alvarez.”
Cuban-born Lara, 30-3-3 with 18 knockouts, stopped Australian Michael Zerafa in the second round in March to defend his WBA crown.
“My fight with Danny Garcia will be a classic battle between two legendary fighters of our era,” Lara said.
Garcia, 37-3 with 21 knockouts, is a former world champion at 140 and 147 pounds and steps up to 160 to challenge for Lara’s throne.
“This is an opportunity to win a championship in my third weight class,” Garcia said. “Lara is a great champion who has been around for a while but so have I.”
PARIS (AP) – Carrying backpacks and small children, hundreds of people sleeping on the streets of Paris climbed aboard buses surrounded by armed police on Thursday, the latest group of migrants and homeless people to be driven out of the city ahead of the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics.
The group of largely African migrants headed for the fringes of the city in buses paid for by the French government and into temporary lodging until at least the end of the Games.
While some living on the streets were happy to have a roof over their head for the night, few knew what laid ahead once the world’s eyes were off Paris.
“It’s like poker. I don’t know where I will go, or how much time I will stay,” said Nikki, a 47-year-old homeless Parisian who asked that her last name not be used to protect her privacy.
French authorities have been clearing out migrant and homeless encampments for months leading up to the massive global sports event, which is an important moment for President Emmanuel Macron at a time of political turmoil.
Protesters release smoke in the colors of the Olympic rings during a demonstration by several associations for what they called the “Counter Opening Ceremony” on Republique plaza against the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Paris, France. (PHOTO: AP)
But the Games also have faced criticism as Parisians have complained about everything from elevated public transit fees to government spending on cleaning up the Seine River for swimming instead of investing in the social safety net.
Authorities also have been sharply criticized as they have bused camping migrants from the city center where the Olympics are taking place to the fringes of Paris or other areas. Activist groups and migrants have called the practice – long used in other Olympic host cities like Rio de Janeiro in 2016 – a form of “social cleansing.”
“They want to clean the city for the Olympic Games, for the tourists,” said Nathan Lequeux, an organizer for the activist group Utopia 56.
“As treatment of migrants is becoming more horrible and infamous, people are being chased off the streets. … Since the Olympics, this aggressiveness, this policy of hunting has become more pronounced.”
Christophe Noël Du Payrat, chief of staff of the regional government of Île-de-France that surrounds Paris, firmly denied those accusations and said the government has relocated migrants from the city for years.
Police officers escort away man during a migrants’ protest at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 25, in Paris, France.
“We are taking care of them,” he said. “We don’t really understand the criticism because we are very much determined to offer places for these people.”
He spoke as dozens of police rounded up migrants, blocking them from walking on the streets and putting up caution tape. When asked why there were so many armed police officers for a group largely made up of families, Noël Du Payrat said it was to maintain “peace and calm.”
The buses Thursday came after three days of protest by hundreds of migrants and other homeless people like Nikki, who slept in front of a local government office as athletes and tourists flooded into Paris. They railed against authorities breaking up homeless encampments and demanded better access to temporary housing.
Among them was Natacha Louise Gbetie, a 36-year-old migrant from Burkina Faso, and a one-year-old son she carried on her back. Gbetie, who once worked as an accountant in her country, migrated to the southern French city of Montpellier with family members five years ago.
Many of the families relocated by French authorities are like Gbetie — from African countries once colonised by the French, including Burkina Faso, Guinea, Ivory Coast and Senegal.
Migrants react before boarding buses at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Paris, France. PHOTO: AP
After an abusive situation, she moved to Paris. She was able to make ends meet working as a babysitter and sleeping in public housing. That ended during the lead-up to the Olympics, when she said access to social housing was slashed and prices of lodging in hostels soared. She said most employers in France don’t want to hire her because she’s an immigrant without legal status and she has felt rejected as an anti-immigrant far-right party has gained greater power in France.
“I think France is saturated. They’re tired of migrants, they want us to leave their country,” Gbetie said.
The protest group agreed that families would board buses to a province near Paris and families would remain together in shelters.
Despite the agreement, protest leaders expressed concern that the move would isolate migrants and said it was still unclear what would happen to the city’s homeless people.
Others like Gbetie worried for the future of her one-year-old son, Richard. Despite being born in France, he was among those who had been forgotten, Gbetie said.
“We have children who are French,” she said. “They will be the future engineers and executives of this country. Think of them first and, for now, forget about the Olympics.”
At Place de la République in central Paris, a popular square for protests, they were trying to encourage people to do just that on the eve of the grandiose opening ceremony on the Seine River.
People gesture during a migrants’ protest at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, July 25, in Paris, France. PHOTO: AP
Several associations gathered for what they called the “Counter Opening Ceremony,” giving speeches about the cost of the Games. They said authorities have been using them as a pretext for social cleansing, by removing migrants and homeless people off the streets in order to preserve a picture-postcard image of the city.
“Even in these past weeks there was an archway under a subway line where people were sleeping and they put a wall of cement to stop people coming back,” said Paul Alauzy, a spokesman for the Revers de la Médaille group (the other side of the medal). “There is a quay in Aubervilliers where they put blocks of concrete with spikes on.”
A giant banner was draped on the square’s iconic statue reading “JO de l’exclusion, 12,500 personnes éxpulsées” (The Games of Exclusion, 12,500 evicted).
“Shame, shame, shame,” the crowd of around 200 people chanted as smoke canisters in the colors of the Olympic rings were set off.
Various banners were dotted around the square.
One read “La France, championne du mal-logement” (France, champion of bad housing). Another read “L’heure est grave. Pas de logements, pas de Jo” (The situation is serious. No accommodation, no Games). Another called to extinguish the Olympic flame and one flag depicted French President Emmanuel Macron with his hands through the Olympic rings as if handcuffed.
Noah Fargeon, a spokesman for Saccage 2024 — a group that has long campaigned against the Games, called the Paris Olympics “a monstrous waste of public funds.” He said the image presented is just a veneer.
“Paris is being transformed into Disneyland for the tourists, a LVMH (Louis Vuitton) image,” Fargeon said. “But on the other hand, those who actually live in the city are being moved along. Rather than put money into helping people get lodgings, money is put into repressing them.”
