Thursday, January 11, 2018

Six In The Morning Thursday January 11

Trump-Russia inquiry: President says he is unlikely to be interviewed

US President Donald Trump has said it is "unlikely" he will be interviewed by Robert Mueller - the man investigating possible ties between the Trump presidential campaign and Russia.
There was no collusion, Mr Trump said, adding: "I'll see what happens."
In June 2017, Mr Trump said he would "100%" be interviewed under oath.
He has consistently denied that his campaign worked with Russia to undermine his opponent Hillary Clinton, calling the accusations a "witch hunt".


    Earlier this week the US media reported that Mr Trump's lawyers were in talks with the Mueller investigation to set a date for an interview.





    China church demolition sparks fears of campaign against Christians

    Footage has emerged of the Golden Lampstand Church in Shanxi province being razed by local authorities

    A church in northern China was demolished this week, the second in less than a month, sparking fears of a wider campaign against Christians as authorities prepare to enforce new laws on religion.
    Police cordoned off the area around the Golden Lampstand Church church in Linfen, Shanxi province, on Sunday before construction workers detonated explosives inside, according to witnesses and the head pastor. After the initial explosion, crews broke apart the remaining pieces with diggers and jackhammers.

    Iran drug law change could mean 5,000 Iranians are spared death penalty

    Rights groups call on leaders to abolish penalty entirely


    Changes to drug laws in Iran could shift more than 5,000 convicts off death row, according to media in the country.
    New regulations would limit the death penalty to drug kingpins, armed dealers and those convicted of smuggling more than 50kg of opium or 2kg of heroin.
    The pro-reform Shargh newspaper and other dailies reported that Ayatollah Sadegh Amoli Larijani, the head of the judiciary, has ordered officials to “quickly” review cases and implement the new regulations.

    Who are the Mercers, the wealthy backers of Breitbart?

    Steve Bannon, once hailed as the mastermind behind Donald Trump, was forced to step down from his post at Breitbart. Bannon has run afoul not only of Trump, but also of his key backers from the wealthy Mercer family.

    Steve Bannon's fall from grace apparently culminated on Tuesday, when he announced he would step down as head of the conservative outlet Breitbart. 
    Bannon's position has been deeply shaken by his feud with Donald Trump over the statements cited in the new "Fire and Fury" book. According to US media, the spat also created an open rift between the 64-year-old strategist and his powerful financiers, the conservative Mercer family, which had played a key part in Bannon's rise to power.

    Luxembourg court overturns verdict against Luxleaks whistleblower


    LUXEMBOURG (AFP) 
    A Luxembourg court on Thursday overturned the verdict against a "Luxleaks" whistleblower who was convicted of leaking thousands of documents that revealed tax breaks for multinational firms.
    Luxembourg's highest court rejected the conviction against former PricewaterhouseCoopers employee Antoine Deltour who in March had received a reduced six-month suspended jail sentence with a 1,500-euro fine.
    The sentence against his colleague Raphael Halet, who received a 1,000-euro fine after an appeal, was upheld.
    An appeal court will now hold a fresh trial with new judges, Luxembourg's highest court said in a statement.

    What's sending mysterious repeating fast radio bursts in space?


    By Ashley Strickland, CNN

    The only known repeating fast radio burst in the universe just got more extreme.
    These radio flashes usually last a millisecond and have an unknown physical origin. People love to believe that they're from an advanced extraterrestrial civilization, and this hypothesis hasn't been ruled out entirely by researchers at Breakthrough Listen, a scientific research program dedicated to finding evidence of intelligent life in the universe.
      Fast radio bursts in space themselves are not rare, but FRB 121102 -- first detected in 2012 -- is the only one that has been known to repeat. And the repetition is sporadic.




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