Friday, February 24, 2017

Six In The Morning Friday February 24

Kim Jong-nam killing: 'VX nerve agent' found on his face


Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korea's leader, was killed by a highly toxic nerve agent, says Malaysia.
Mr Kim died last week after two women accosted him briefly in a check-in hall at a Kuala Lumpur airport.
Malaysian toxicology reports indicate he was attacked using VX nerve agent, which is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations.
There is widespread suspicion that North Korea was responsible for the attack, which it fiercely denies.
It responded furiously to Malaysia's insistence on conducting a post-mortem examination and has accused Malaysia of having "sinister" purposes.

What does the toxicology report say?

Malaysia's police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said on Friday that the presence of the nerve agent had been detected in swabs taken from Mr Kim's eyes and face.








Israel denies visas to staff from 'hostile' Human Rights Watch

Decision to ban new HRW director from working in Israel is an ‘ominous turn’ and puts country in same league as North Korea says NGO

Israel is refusing to issue visas to the international staff of one of the most prominent international human rights NGOs - Human Rights Watch – accusing the group of an “extreme, hostile and anti-Israel agenda.”
The Israeli accusations against the organisation, which documents human rights abuses around the globe, follows a growth in official hostility to local human rights activists under the right wing government of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Human Rights Watch condemned the move as “ominous turn” adding it “should worry anyone concerned about Israel’s commitment to basic democratic values.”



I'm an Arab actor who's been asked to audition for the role of terrorist more than 30 times. If La La Land cleans up at the Oscars, I'm done


My first film job at the age of 14 – Steven Spielberg’s Munich – featured me as an Islamic terrorist’s son. When I complained about racial profiling to a director, I was told that I was lucky I could 'use my ethnicity as a playing card' in an industry where 'white actors are overlooked'



I’ve worked as a professional performer in the UK since the age of 12 – and my Arab heritage has pitted me against some pretty awful racial profiling in the industry. My first film job at the age of 14 – Steven Spielberg’s Munich – featured me as an Islamic terrorist’s son. Needless to say, that was an explosive introduction into showbusiness.
I’m now 26, and in my career, I’ve been sent nearing 30 scripts for which I’ve been asked to play terrorists on screen. Roles have varied from ones as meaty as “Suspicious Bearded Man on Tube” to “Muslim man who hides his bombs in a deceptive burka”.

Young couple in India stream “moral policing” incident on Facebook Live



A couple in India’s southern state of Kerala streamed a run-in with the police on Facebook Live on Tuesday, February 21, after being told off for a public display of affection. 

Vishnu, a 24-year-old student, and Arathy, a 23-year-old student, were sitting on a bench in a park in the Napier Museum compound in Kerala’s capital, Thiruvananthapuram, when two female police officers approached them and accused them of being “vulgar” in public – because Vishnu had put his arm around Arathy. [Neither of them wanted their surnames to be published].


India's problem with "moral policing"

The act of harassing or reprimanding someone for their allegedly immoral behaviour, known as moral policing, is a hot topic in India. On Valentine’s Day, a couple walking on Azheekal beach were insulted and assaulted by five people, three of whom were later arrested and charged for the attack. The chief minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, instructed the state police chief to crack down on moral policing after this incident, saying that this “kind of criminal activity would not be tolerated in Kerala”. 


FBI refused White House request to knock down recent Trump-Russia stories


Updated 0519 GMT (1319 HKT) February 24, 2017


The FBI rejected a recent White House request to publicly knock down media reports about communications between Donald Trump's associates and Russians known to US intelligence during the 2016 presidential campaign, multiple US officials briefed on the matter tell CNN.
But a White House official said late Thursday that the request was only made after the FBI indicated to the White House it did not believe the reporting to be accurate.
White House officials had sought the help of the bureau and other agencies investigating the Russia matter to say that the reports were wrong and that there had been no contacts, the officials said. The reports of the contacts were first published by The New York Times and CNN on February 14.


Will killing claims bring down Duterte?

New allegations that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte previously oversaw assassinations by death squad threaten to destabilize his strongman rule

By GEORGE AMURAO


The Philippine Senate will serve as the political battleground between administration lawmakers and opposition senators who aim to topple President Rodrigo Duterte on explosive new claims he ordered and orchestrated extrajudicial killings while serving as mayor of Davao City.
A closed-door caucus on Tuesday saw 10 senators vote to reopen a previous Senate inquiry into allegations Duterte created and commanded a “death squad” while serving as Davao City’s mayor. Eight administration senators opposed the motion while the rest abstained, a reversal that surprised even Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, a Duterte ally.






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