Officers used tear gas to disperse activists at Emory University campus amid a nationwide crackdown Police officers in the US state of Georgia used tear gas and tasers to disperse a pro-Palestinian student encampment on Thursday, as law enforcement targeted activists at university campuses nationwide. The clashes took place at Emory University in Atlanta, where activists – including students from several nearby universities – set up tents in the morning. They were rallying against what they termed “the genocide of Palestinians” by Israel, and against Cop City, a local police and fire departmen ..read more

Washington wants Beijing to disown Moscow so that it is isolated in a potential confrontation Antony Blinken traveled to China this week to warn Beijing about sanctions for supplying military technology to Russia, according to the Financial Times and Bloomberg in their previews of the US secretary of state’s visit. They didn’t specify which sanctions might follow. However, FT sources suggested that financial and other institutions in China could face restrictions. Meanwhile, the Izvestia newspaper has revealed that several Chinese banks, including the largest, ICBC, are already not accepting p ..read more

Many of the city’s residents are against new admission charge for visitors, introduced to reduce overcrowding Hundreds of Venetians took to the streets of their sinking city on Thursday in protest against an entrance fee that the local authorities started charging visitors to protect the UNESCO world heritage site from the effects of over-tourism. The new fee of about $5.50 (€5) is being sought from visitors entering the famous Italian city between 8:30am and 4pm local time and came into force on Thursday as part of a pilot program. Outside of those hours, access is free. Day-trippers failing ..read more

Advisers to the former US president are considering penalties for nations seeking to trade in national currencies, the outlet has reported Economic aides to former US President Donald Trump are looking for options to stop countries from shifting away from the US dollar as it faces a growing challenge from emerging markets, including BRICS nations, Bloomberg reported on Friday. The presumptive Republican nominee for the November presidential election and his team are discussing penalties against both allies and adversaries who seek to divert their trade from the greenback to other currencies. T ..read more

Voters in 12 states and one union territory are participating in the second phase of the general election  Over 160 million Indians are casting their votes on Friday despite an intense heat wave that is sweeping the country. The second (of seven) phase of the polling process is being conducted in 88 parliamentary constituencies across 12 states and the Jammu and Kashmir union territory. The elections, which will take place until June 1, will decide who gets a total of 543 seats in the lower house of parliament (Lok Sabha).  Rahul Gandhi, the de facto leader of the Congress, India’s l ..read more

The Pentagon says complete pullout will take place in Niger, while forces in Chad will be temporarily repositioned Washington will fully withdraw its troops from Niger and is also relocating military personnel stationed in Chad, as it considers other options for continuing America’s counterterrorism mission in the Sahel region, the Pentagon announced on Thursday. The move comes in response to demands from the military governments of both African nations that US forces discontinue operations there. Last month, Niger’s new leadership terminated a security agreement with the US, declaring as unwe ..read more

The West is supplying weapons and helping Kiev’s military instead of de-escalating hostilities, Sergey Shoigu claims Foreign military advisers in Ukraine are directly involved in the preparation of attacks on Russian territories, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Friday during a high-level meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) countries. Apart from helping to prepare attacks, the West is also continuing to offer Kiev real-time intelligence data and train its military personnel, while foreign specialists and mercenaries are actively taking part in the fighting, he claimed. “Al ..read more

The successful attack took place in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic, according to the Defense Ministry Russian forces have struck a freight train carrying military equipment supplied to Ukraine by its Western backers, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said. DETAILS TO FOLLOW ..read more

The US Secretary of State says Washington is prepared to impose more sanctions on Beijing over the alleged transfer of military components Washington is ready to introduce more sanctions against China over its alleged transfer of dual-use goods and components, which can supposedly be used by the Russian military industrial complex, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday. Speaking at a press conference in Beijing following his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US official recalled that Washington has already imposed sanctions against more than 100 Chinese entities and ..read more

Washington spreads global chaos for its own benefit, the Russian defense minister has claimed The Ukraine conflict is Washington’s doing and the US is deliberately trying to prolong the fighting, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Friday during a meeting with his counterparts from Asian nations. Shoigu is taking part in a gathering of military chiefs from members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a nine-strong mutual defense organization. The Russian minister used the forum hosted by Kazakhstan to reiterate Moscow’s position on the origins of its conflict with Ukraine ..read more