Hiding in plain sight
Why Hong Kong is a preferred spot for North Korea's money launderers
Updated 0844 GMT (1644 HKT) October 17, 2017
Easey Commercial Building is an unassuming mid-rise office tower on Hennessy Road, an artery that runs through Hong Kong's busy Wan Chai district. The structure sits among scenery that's classic Hong Kong: bright lights, tall buildings, people rushing about.
But camouflaged in the normalcy is a business that seemingly exists in name only.
Take the elevator to the Easey building's 21st floor, and in room 2103 is the registered office of Unaforte Limited Hong Kong. It's a company accused by the United Nations of violating sanctions on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea's official name) for helping the country make money internationally, funding everything from its nuclear weapons program to the lavish lifestyles of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un and Pyongyang's most important players.
UN report on Rohingya hunger is shelved at Myanmar's request
Exclusive: Document warned of spiralling food crisis among Rohingya population
The United Nations food aid agency withdrew a critical report revealing desperate hunger among the persecuted Rohingya population after the Myanmar government demanded it be taken down, the Guardian has learned.
The July assessment by the World Food Programme (WFP) warned that more than 80,000 children under the age of five living in majority-Muslim areas were “wasting” — a potentially fatal condition of rapid weight loss.
The six-page document, which was reported on at the time, has since been replaced with a statement saying Myanmar and WFP were “collaborating on a revised version”.
Spanish judge jails two Catalan independence leaders
The Catalan pro-independence leaders have been accused of sedition in the run-up of a referendum. The Spanish judge said they used social media as part of a "complex strategy" to push Catalonia towards independence.
A Spanish judge on Monday ordered two leaders of Catalonia's pro-independence movement remain in custody on possible charges of sedition.
Jordi Sanchez of the Catalan National Assembly and Jordi Cuixart (pictured above) of the pro-independence Omnium Cultural group allegedly urged supporters to block police from carrying out raids against Catalan leaders.
Spanish Judge Carmen Lamela found that the men used websites and social media to organize demonstrations, which formed part of a "complex strategy" to push the wealthy region towards independence from Spain.The battle of Kirkuk: why it matters
Three weeks after Iraq's Kurdish region held a referendum on independence, Iraqi forces entered the disputed city of Kirkuk, forcing Kurdish fighters to withdraw. Here's what you need to know:
Why?
Kirkuk has found itself at the heart of a long-running dispute between Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region and its central government that reached fever pitch after Kurdish authorities staged a non-binding independence votein late September.
The city sits on the edge of an expansive oil field that can be tapped for about a half million barrels per day. And while Iraq's oil revenues are supposed to be shared, disputes among the provinces have often held up transfers, leading parties to find leverage in holding the fields.
How the Kochs are using Mike Pence to shape Trump's White House
Three key takeaways from the New Yorker's Pence profile.
Updated by
The power struggle between populist hardliners and moderate generals in the Trump White House is well documented. Vice President Mike Pence has largely stayed out of the drama, while quietly becoming one of the most powerful people in the Trump administration, according to a new profile of Pence from the New Yorker’s Jane Mayer.
Mayer’s piece shows that behind the scenes, the vice president has made a huge mark on President Trump’s policy agenda, while putting himself in a good position for his own presidential ambitions. Mayer writes that Pence’s influence has shaped White House policies far more than that of other important members of the administration, including Breitbart executive chair Steve Bannon or Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. In particular, Pence’s longstanding connection to libertarian megadonors Charles and David Koch — former political enemies of Trump — has helped shape the current White House.
Two stars crash into each other, wobbling the universe and flinging out huge amounts of gold
The discovery opens a 'new chapter in astrophysics', say experts, and has been described as one of the most exciting ever
Scientists have observed two stars slamming into each other deep in space, sending out huge amounts of gold in an alchemical explosion.
The super-dense stars crashed together 130 million light years away, spewing out precious metals and other heavy elements like platinum and uranium – and experts say the event has kickstarted a "new chapter in astrophysics" and confirmed theories about the origin of the mysterious neutron stars.
The huge explosion rocked the fabric of the universe, distorting spacetime. That is a major discovery in itself, marking only the fifth time that gravitational waves have been spotted on Earth.
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