Latest News
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Rome's Trevi Fountain restored in time for Jubilee year
A brought back Trevi Water fountain was unveiled on Sunday after more than 2 months of cleaning and remediation, part of Rome's preparations for the 2025 Roman Catholic Holy Year. The work, for which the city of Rome set a 327,000 euro spending plan, included eliminating dirt, pollution, iron oxide and limescale from the 18th century monument, among the best understood of Rome's lots of tourist attractions. Throughout that time, the water fountain had been drained but visitors were able to see it from a momentary footbridge. To prevent a return of the big crowds that customarily swallowed up the small square real estate the fountain, Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri stated visitors will have to form a line with 400 individuals at a time permitted by the fountain. Travelers will not have to hurry, with no time limit set to stroll from one end of the fountain to the other, however they will not be permitted to rest on its border. In the future, the city of Rome may consider introducing a ticket for the monument, Gualtieri included. The Vatican expects approximately 32 million tourists will come down on the Italian capital for the Jubilee, putting Rome's. old-fashioned infrastructure under huge stress and adding to. the headaches of handling the flow of visitors. Completed in 1762, the fountain is a late Baroque. work of art, with statues of Tritons guiding the shell chariot. of the god Oceanus, showing the style of the taming of the. waters. Custom dictates that visitors toss a coin into the. fountain to guarantee their return to Rome. Throughout the works,. visitors needed to throw coins into a short-lived swimming pool. It is also kept in mind for among cinema's most popular scenes. when in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita Anita Ekberg wades. into the fountain and beckons her co-star Marcello Mastroianni. to join her: Marcello! Come here!.
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Russia to begin humanitarian materials of electricity to breakaway Georgian area
Russia will begin humanitarian products of electrical power to Abkhazia, a breakaway Georgian region backed by Moscow, from Monday, Russian news firms priced quote local officials as saying. Electrical energy lacks, common in Abkhazia in the winter season months, started in early December when low water levels at the Enguri hydroelectric dam required an emergency situation shutdown. The area appealed to Russia for help, stating it was dealing with a humanitarian catastrophe due to an important shortage of power. In action to Abkhazia's appeal, the Russian management has once again extended a helping hand to us and is starting to perform a humanitarian transfer of electrical energy to the republic, Interfax news company cited Badra Gunba, Abkhazia's. self-styled president, as stating on Sunday. Shutdowns will be cut to four hours a day, the Abkhazian. state energy company Chernomorenergo stated, rather of the 9-11. hours the area is dealing with now. Abkhazia borders Russia's southern Krasnodar area. Russia's Energy Ministry did not immediately respond to a request. for comment. Russian electricity export operator InterRAO. decreased to comment. Abkhazia broke from Georgia's control in a war after the. collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, throughout which. numerous countless ethnic Georgians ran away the area. Moscow has long supported it and another breakaway Georgian. area, South Ossetia, and identified them as independent after. winning a five-day war versus Georgia in 2008.
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A minimum of 13 dead in 2 crowd crushes in Nigeria
A minimum of 13 individuals died in two events in Nigeria on Saturday as crowds, mainly females and children, rushed for charity, police authorities said. In the state capital Abuja, a minimum of 10 individuals died and many more were hurt in a scramble to receive gifts of charity being dispersed by the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama district. This regrettable event, which occurred around 6:30 a.m., led to a stampede that declared the lives of 10 people, consisting of four kids, and left 8 others with differing degrees of injuries, said Josephine Adeh, a cops representative. In Okija in Anambra state, southeastern Nigeria, a crowd crush occurred after a member of the community provided presents including rice, grease and cash. State police stated 3 people were verified dead however eyewitnesses and Amnesty International Nigeria put the death toll at 20 with more injured. In both incidents, the victims were mostly women and kids who were trampled as crowds tried to reach the provisions being offered. On Thursday, a minimum of 32 individuals passed away in a similar event at an Islamic high school in Ibadan, the capital of Nigeria's. southwest Oyo state. Africa's most populous nation faces its worst. cost-of-living crisis in years as reforms presented by. President Bola Tinubu have actually slashed subsidies for electrical power and. fuel while a decline has actually worn down the value of the currency. Inflation in November rose to 34.60% in annual terms. from 33.88% in October, marking a third consecutive. month-to-month increase. Amnesty International Nigeria in a declaration on Saturday. stated that for lots of Nigerians having regular rice in the house is. developing into a luxury. The London-based human rights group prompted authorities to. immediately, thoroughly, independently, and transparently. examine how these charity events came down into disaster.
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Patrik Laine, Habs shoot for home-and-home sweep of Wings
Patrik Laine has actually been mighty productive, particularly on the power play, given that signing up with the Montreal Canadiens. He likewise stays especially effective versus the Detroit Red Wings throughout his career. After notching the game-winner at Detroit on Friday, Laine seeks to stay hot and help the host Canadiens sweep a back-to-back set versus the Red Wings on Saturday night. Laine, obtained by the Canadiens from the Columbus Blue Jackets in an August trade, missed Montreal's first 24 video games due to a knee injury. However, in eight games since making his Canadiens debut Dec. 3, he has totaled 7 goals-- remarkably, all on the power play. In truth, all of Montreal's power-play goals, in 25 opportunities given that Dec. 3, have been scored by Laine. His newest objective featured 7:58 left in regulation on Friday and offered the Canadiens a 4-3 lead. That margin stood, and Montreal has actually now published back-to-back triumphes following a 1-3-0 stretch. Him scoring objectives and assisting the group win on the power play is big, Montreal coach Martin St. Louis stated. It's a big part of when your special groups are running good. The Canadiens, who are in the middle of a 6-3-1 stretch in your home, made simply their fourth road win of the season, tied for 2nd least in the NHL. A really good one for us, and turn the page for (Saturday), Montreal defenseman Kaiden Guhle said. Laine, who has actually scored four goals in the past two contests, has 11 goals (2. on the power play) plus 8 assists in 21 career video games vs. the Reds Wings. Detroit gets in the back end of the home-and-home amid a 3-5-2 stretch. On Friday, goals from Patrick Kane, Joe Veleno and Tyler Motte had the Red. Wings up 3-2 early in the 3rd duration. However, they might not hold that. benefit in their bid for a third consecutive success. Perhaps fortunately for Detroit is that it does not have long to wait for a. chance to avenge the defeat. That's the very best part about it, said Red Wings star Dylan Larkin, who was. blanked Friday after totaling six points, all assists, in the previous five. games. We've just got to capitalize on our opportunities and play with a little bit more. intensity. Reduce our errors. Kane has two objectives with 2 helps in the past three games after going nine. directly without a point. On the other hand, teammate Michael Rasmussen had two. assists Friday, and he has 4 points in the previous three video games. Detroit goalie Cam Talbot was credited with 29 saves on Friday, and he has actually a. 3.89 goals-against average during his current 0-3-1 stretch. Alex Lyon could get the start in the back-to-back situation after he enabled. four objectives on 19 shots dealt with throughout a 6-4 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on. Wednesday in his return from missing nine games with a lower-body injury. Montreal's Sam Montembeault (2.93 GAA) made 25 conserves to win his second. straight begin on Friday, and it's possible he could be in net once again on. Saturday. Canadiens backup Cayden Primeau has actually allowed 11 objectives on 60 shot. attempts in his past 3 outings-- two of which were starts. Teammate Jake Evans, who scored a short-handed objective in his 300th profession NHL. video game on Friday, and has four points in the past four contests. -- Field Level Media
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France adds first atomic power plant in 25 years to grid
France connected the Flamanville 3 atomic power plant to its grid on Saturday morning, staterun operator EDF stated, in the first addition to the country's nuclear power network in 25 years. The reactor, which began running in September ahead of the grid connection, is going online 12 years behind originally prepared and at an expense of around 13 billion euros - four times the original budget. EDF groups have attained the very first connection of the Flamanville EPR to the nationwide grid at 11:48 am (1048 GMT). The reactor is now creating electrical energy, EDF stated in a statement. The Flamanville 3 European Pressurised Reactor is France's. biggest at 1.6 gigawatts (GW) and among the world's greatest,. together with China's 1.75 GW Taishan reactor, which is based on a. similar style, and Finland's Olkiluoto. It is the very first to be connected to the grid because Civaux 2. in 1999 however is being brought into service at a time of sluggish. consumption, with France exporting a record amount of. electrical power this year. EDF is planning to construct another 6 new reactors to fulfil. a 2022 pledge made by President Emmanuel Macron as part of the. nation's energy shift plans, although concerns stay. around the funding and timeline of the brand-new jobs.
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Islamist militants in northwest Pakistan kill 16 security personnel, law enforcement officers states
Sixteen security personnel were killed in northwest Pakistan in an attack by Islamist militants early on Saturday, a senior authorities official in the South Waziristan region stated, as Islamist fighters step up their attacks on the security forces. Another eight personnel were injured in the attack on a. security forces post, which took place at 2 a.m. (2100 GMT on. Friday), authorities deputy superintendent Hidayat Ullah informed. Reuters. A search operation is under way in the area, he added,. stating the assailants had actually utilized light and heavy weapons. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), likewise referred to as the Pakistan. Taliban, claimed obligation for the attack, giving a higher. figure for the number of security workers eliminated. At least 35 security personnel were killed and 15 hurt. in the attack, the group stated in a WhatsApp channel broadcast. It did not say whether any of its fighters had actually been killed. The TTP has performed more regular attacks in current. months, primarily targeting members of the security forces. An umbrella group of different Sunni Islamist militant groups,. it has actually long been combating in a quote to topple the federal government. and change it with a stringent Islamic-led system of governance. It is separate from the Afghan Taliban movement, however pledges. commitment to the Islamist group that now rules Afghanistan after. the withdrawal of U.S.-led worldwide forces in 2021.
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Petrobras Steps Closer to Developing Hydrogen Plant Powered by Renewables
Petrobras has signed a protocol of intent Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) and CSN Inova Soluções, marking a first step towards structuring a business partnership aimed at setting up a low-carbon hydrogen plant on a commercial scale in Brazilian state of Paraná.Low-carbon hydrogen can be used in industrial processes or as fuel and will be obtained through the electrolysis of water from renewable sources of electricity. The initiative aims to support the decarbonization efforts of CSN and Petrobras' operations and products.Petrobras did not specify which renewable energy sources would be used to power the production of hydrogen.The signing of this Protocol of Intent is in line with the Petrobras’ Strategic Plan 2050 and Business Plan 2025-2029, which aim to prepare Petrobras to lead the fair energy transition, reducing its emissions and expanding the supply of more sustainable products.
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Thai ceremony for the dead brings good karma and psychological closure
When two month old Bibeam passed away in November 2023, the temples in her district would not cremate her, considering her too young for such an event. Rather she was buried without any religious rites in a. cemetery in Rayong, about two hours southeast of the Thai. capital Bangkok and one hour from her household's home. It was just this year that Bibeam was given the Buddhist. cremation her parents had wanted when she was consisted of in a rare. Lang Pa Cha cemetery cleaning ceremony, a ritual that. originated during China's Tune dynasty and was brought to. Thailand by Chinese immigrants. I am extremely pleased and delighted that my baby can have her. funeral rite like others, her mother, 26-year-old Paikaew. Thaijaroen, informed Reuters. Lang Pa Cha ceremonies occur every year at cemeteries. throughout Thailand's 77 provinces and are organised by a small. group of non-profit organisations. The ritual involves exhuming remains and performing Buddhist. and Taoist rites in an event that is now special to the. Southeast Asian country, stated Sayomphu Kiatsayomphu, president. of Thailand's Cemeteries Cleansing Network. Cremation is extensively practised in Thailand, but people who. pass away without being officially identified, perhaps because they. moved a lot of were a migrant worker, are normally buried. Bibeam was included in the ceremony because when the. volunteers exhumed her grave, which was in the very same area as. those who were unclaimed, her body was found to have actually been. uncommonly well protected. The ultimate objective is to guarantee the ascension of these. unclaimed souls to paradise, Kiatsayomphu stated. When exhumed, the remains are cleaned by Buddhist volunteers. before a medium identifies their gender. For some of the volunteers the event assists in benefit. making - a Buddhist principle where performing kindness. adds to that individual's own joy and wellness. I first started Lang Pa Cha around 20 years back as a. volunteer, stated Tonploy Boonporn, a 63-year-old masseur. After. that, I found real spiritual fulfilment in this ceremony, so I. kept going. As the day of cremation draws near, the volunteers utilize. tooth brushes and holy water to carefully wash the mud from the. remains, before decorating them with gold leaf. The embellished remains are then set up in two different. pyres - one for males and one for women. The cemetery in Rayong, where Bibeam was cremated, had not. been cleansed for almost twenty years and included about 1,000. unclaimed bodies, according to Pakkhapoom Boonchothirun, an. executive member of the Sawang Pornkuson Foundation that runs. the graveyard and arranged the ceremony. The Lang Pa Cha happened between March and May. On the day of the cremation, Bibeam's body was put on top. of the funeral pyre, symbolically leading the souls of the. left on their journey to heaven. Seeing her maintained body put on the top of a female. funeral pyre makes me feel more complete, Paikaew said.
QUOTES-What are they stating at the COP29 climate top?
World leaders are speaking at the U.N. climate top in Baku on Tuesday where United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has actually informed them to pay up to prevent climateled humanitarian disasters.
Here are the current comments:
UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTONIO GUTERRES
The noise you hear is the ticking clock. We remain in the last countdown to restrict international temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) and time is not on our side.
Doubling down on fossil fuels is unreasonable. The clean energy revolution is here. No group, no business, and no government can stop it. But you can and need to guarantee it is fair, and quick enough to limit international temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
There is no time to lose on climate financing, the world must pay up, or humankind will pay the rate.
AZERBAIJAN PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV
When they call us a petrostate now today, this is not fair, and it only shows the absence of political culture and understanding. Today, Azerbaijan's share in global oil production is 0.7(%), in worldwide gas production (it) is 0.9%.
But phony news media of the nation, which is (the) number one oil and gas manufacturer in the world and produces 30 times more oil than Azerbaijan, call us petrostate. They much better look at themselves.
Azerbaijan's share in global gas emissions is just 0.1%. I. need to bring these figures to the attention of our audience,. because right after Azerbaijan was elected as a host nation of. COP29, we ended up being a target of a coordinated, well-orchestrated. campaign of slander and blackmail.
Western fake news media and so-called independent NGOs and. some politicians, as if (they) were completing in spreading. disinformation and false info about our nation.
BARBADOS PRIME MINISTER MIA MOTTLEY
The truth is that these extreme weather events that the. world is facing daily recommend that humanity and the planet are. hurtling towards catastrophe.
The severe weather condition requires from us a severe commitment. at this COP with regard to new collective, measured goals. that enable us to reverse the present trajectory and to fund. mitigation, adjustment, and, obviously, loss and damage.
Every COP should make progress, irrespective of the. geopolitical dynamics. There's an urgent need to reform this police. procedure, and I hope that we can meet that.
MALDIVES PRESIDENT MOHAMED MUIZZU
It is the absence of financing that prevents our ambitions,. which is why this police, the financing police officer, we require to deliver. The. brand-new environment finance objective must show the true scale of the. environment crisis. The requirement remains in trillions, not billions. It must. think about the special situations of small island establishing. states.
As we take a look around the world, we see funds running easily to. wage war, but scrutinised when it's for environment adjustment. We. need to reprioritise, modify the worldwide monetary system. We need to choose the path that alters lives, not the environment.
CONGO REPUBLIC PRESIDENT DENIS SASSOU NGUESSO (via. translator)
We're especially concerned over the concern of climate. financing.
The new cumulative quantified objective for environment financing. should be based on clinical information that takes into consideration the. effect and needs of establishing nations in tackling environment. change.
We know that these requirements amount to over $1,000 billion. Our. impassioned dream is that the quantity in this brand-new goal will be. established and defined from a perspective of environment justice. and the just shift. This objective must enable our. countries to lower our debt burden rather than worsen it.
BELARUS PRESIDENT ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO (by means of translator)
Today, when there's been so much issue about the. deterioration of climate, all we see is individuals who are. responsible for this are missing ... and we have actually simply had the. governmental election in the United States.
So the concern is, how reliable are our actions at such. conferences? When the president of France, which was the nation. responsible for the Paris Contract, is not even here?
There's absolutely nothing to be happy about at present.
EUROPEAN COUNCIL PRESIDENT CHARLES MICHEL (through translator)
This is how the Paris agreement must be - our peace. treaty with nature: the concept of cooperation ought to govern. our execution of this contract, boldness instead of. procrastination, solidarity rather of selfishness, aspiration. rather of surrender. We need to opt for the survival instinct. instead of burying our heads in the sand.
We hope that this COP will be among self-confidence,. decision, and the COP that will stroll the talk. You can. count on the European Union.
CHINA SPECIAL AGENT DING XUEXIANG (through translator)
We get in touch with developed nations to increase monetary. assistance and innovation transfer for establishing countries, and. anticipate more ambitious funding targets to be set at COP29 so that. self-confidence and assurances can be attended to an international environment. action in the next phase..
(source: Reuters)