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Zijin stops operate at Colombia cash cow after homemade bomb attack
Zijin Mining has stopped briefly production at its Buritica cash cow in Colombia after aggressors armed with homemade bombs harmed a crucial power source, the company said on Saturday. The attack happened early Friday when the armed group broke into the site, which is the biggest cash cow in Colombia, located in a rural area of the Antioquia province where roadway blocks and attacks by prohibited miners are regular. No injuries were reported. Zijin attributed the incident to unlawful miners who it said looked for to acquire gold from the mine. High-powered homemade bombs were tossed at our underground facilities, triggering serious damage of the electrical substation and rendering the backup power source unusable, Zijin Continental Gold, the local system of China-based Zijin, stated in a statement released on Saturday. The attack also interrupted ventilation and drain systems, Zijin said. Buritica produced 8.3 tons of gold in 2023, according to the company. Previous attacks by illegal miners have likewise affected operations at the mine. Colombia's Mining Association stated the attack was not an isolated event, and pointed to 3 other attacks at mines in various parts of Colombia in the last month. This is evidence of a pattern of methodical violence to control resources and perpetuate illegality, the group said in a declaration.
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Thousands gather in Washington to oppose Trump inauguration
Countless individuals collected in Washington on Saturday to protest Presidentelect Donald Trump's inauguration, as activists for women's rights, racial justice and other causes rallied against inbound policies they state will threaten their civil liberties throughout the Republican's second term. Some in the crowd wore the pink hats that marked the much-larger protest against Trump's very first inauguration in 2017. They wound through downtown amidst a light rain, past the White Home and towards the Lincoln Memorial along the National Shopping mall for the People's March. Protests versus Trump's inauguration are smaller sized this time, in part because the U.S. ladies's rights motion seems more fractured to lots of activists after Trump defeated Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in November. Organizers anticipated 50,000 would go to, while local police anticipated about 25,000. More than 300 other marches were prepared nationwide. Reproductive rights groups signed up with activists for civil rights, the environment and other causes in organizing the march versus Trump. He is preparing to take workplace on Monday, having lost his very first reelection quote in 2020 to President Joe Biden, a. Democrat. In both of his victories, Trump beat prospects who each. would have been the first female U.S. president: Hillary Clinton. in 2016 and Harris in 2015. This time, Trump won all seven. battleground states to protect the Electoral College required for. the presidency, and carried the popular vote in a very first for. Republican politicians in 20 years. Trump has vowed to make sweeping modifications on day one, from. migration raids to dismantling parts of the federal. government. A lot of people are disappointed, stated Olivia Hoffman,. 26, who works at the California-based Young Women's Freedom. Center, which supports impoverished women and transgender youth,. and traveled with her mother to march in the nation's capital. A great deal of individuals feel like we've been defending the same. things for so long. Saturday's march drew in a wide range of causes from. migration and democracy to climate change and the Gaza war. At. least one protester called out Trump's pressure on Canada,. bring a sign that read We are not your 51st state. MOSTLY PEACEFUL The demonstrations were mostly serene amid increased security. as patrol cars, with sirens on, drove close by. One protester in a. red MAGA hat who emerged near the front of the march was led. away by authorities, and anti-abortion activists displayed. graphic posters near the crowd's last gathering area. Vendors hawked buttons that said #MeToo and Love defeats. hate, and sold Individuals's March flags for $10. Demonstrators. brought posters that read Feminists v. Fascists and Individuals. over politics. Mini Timmaraju, CEO of the advocacy group Reproductive. Flexibility for All, praised the crowd's event in the face of. what's going to be some truly horrible extremism. With Trump's Republican politicians also controlling Congress and. conservatives leading the U.S. Supreme Court, it is unclear how. activists or Democrats can counter Trump's strategies. I'm thankful I can see some individuals here are enthusiastic, stated. Nancy Robinson, a 65-year-old retired printing and tech. expert from Maryland. That's not me. I think we're doomed. Other demonstrations are planned over the weekend, including on. Inauguration Day, which falls on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Civil rights leaders state they will rally and continue to. activate under Trump's administration. It's warming that people still care, said Preethi Murthy,. 28, who is based in Washington and works in global health. We. need to reveal that we're larger in numbers and we're not going to. pull back..
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DR Congo justice ministry orders probe into state mining company embezzlement
Democratic Republic of Congo has actually launched a probe into the embezzlement of over $300. million from state miner Gecamines between 2012 and 2020, the. justice ministry stated in a statement on Saturday. Gecamines, which holds minority stakes in several of the. world's biggest copper and cobalt projects, has actually long been dogged. by allegations of corruption made by non-governmental. organisations and opposition politicians. Congo's public financial resources watchdog, the General Inspectorate. of Financial Resources (IGF), discovered in 2022 that more than $400 million in. tax advances and loans that Gecamines said it paid to the. nationwide treasury might not be discovered. It stated in a report at the time that the missing out on $413. million were presumed to have been misused and that. auditors would continue their investigations. Gecamines has regularly rejected misbehavior. It did not. immediately respond to an ask for comment on Saturday. The IGF had also discovered in a different audit on the finances. of Congo's reserve bank that Gecamines had actually embezzled advance tax. payments worth around $315 million between 2012 and 2020. Congo's justice ministry stated in a declaration on Saturday. that it had advised the public district attorney to open a court. case against those accountable for the misappropriation of. public funds flagged by the IGF. It stated there would be a specific focus on the. embezzlement of advance tax payments worth around $315 million. in between 2012 and 2020. International arrest warrants have actually been issued for the. accused and forwarded to the judicial authorities of several. nations for their arrest, the declaration said, without citing. any names.
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Thousands gather in Washington to oppose Trump inauguration
Numerous thousand individuals, mostly females, gathered in Washington on Saturday to object Presidentelect Donald Trump's inauguration, with some using the pink hats that marked the muchlarger demonstration versus his initially inauguration in 2017. In Franklin Park, among 3 kickoff locations for the People's March that will wind through downtown, protesters collected in light rain to rally for gender justice and bodily autonomy. Other protesters gathered at 2 other parks likewise near the White Home, with one group concentrated on democracy and migration and another on local Washington concerns, before heading towards the march's final event at the Lincoln Memorial. Police cars, with sirens on, drove between the kickoff locations. Demonstrations against Trump's inauguration are much smaller than in 2017, in part because the U.S. females's rights motion fractured after Trump beat Vice President Kamala Harris in November. Suppliers hawked buttons that said #MeToo and Love surpasses hate, and offered Individuals's March flags for $10. Demonstrators brought posters that check out Feminists v. Fascists and People. over politics. It's truly recovering to be here with all of you today in. uniformity and togetherness, in the face of what's going to be. some really dreadful extremism, Mini Timmaraju, the head of. advocacy group Reproductive Freedom for All, informed the crowd as. occasions started. She stated the good news was that abortion rights remain. popular in spite of Trump's win, leading a chant of We are the. majority! Reproductive groups joined civil rights, environment and. other women's groups in organizing the march versus Trump and. his program as he prepares to take workplace on Monday. Trump won. all 7 battlefield states and the popular vote in November's. election.
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Wars top global risk as Davos elite gathers in shadow of fragmented world
Equipped dispute is the top risk in 2025, a World Economic Online Forum (WEF) study released on Wednesday revealed, a reminder of the deepening international fragmentation as federal government and magnate participate in an yearly event in Davos next week. Nearly one in 4 of the more than 900 professionals surveyed throughout academia, organization and policymaking ranked conflict, including wars and terrorism, as the most serious threat to financial development for the year ahead. Severe weather condition, the no. 1 issue in 2024, was the second-ranked risk. Increasing geopolitical tensions and a fracturing of trust are driving the global threat landscape, WEF Handling Director Mirek Dusek said in remarks accompanying the report. In this complex and vibrant context, leaders have an option: to find ways to foster collaboration and strength, or face compounding vulnerabilities. The WEF gets underway on Jan. 20 and Donald Trump, who will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, will address the meeting virtually on Jan. 23. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will participate in the conference and offer a speech on Jan. 21, according to the WEF organisers. Advisers to Trump yield that the Ukraine war will take months or even longer to deal with, Reuters reported on Wednesday, a sharp reality examine his pledge to strike a peace deal on his first day in the White House. Among other global leaders due to attend the Davos conference are European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and China's Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang. Syria, the dreadful humanitarian scenario in Gaza and the possible escalation of the dispute in the Middle East will be a focus at the gathering, according to WEF President and CEO Borge Brende. Arbitrators were working out the last details of a. prospective ceasefire in Gaza on Wednesday, following marathon. talks in Qatar. The threat of misinformation and disinformation was ranked. as the most serious global risk over the next 2 years,. according to the survey, the very same ranking as in 2024. Over a 10-year horizon environmental risks controlled. professionals' threat concerns, the survey revealed. Extreme weather condition was. the top longer-term international threat, followed by biodiversity loss,. vital modification to earth's systems and a shortage of natural. resources. Global temperatures last year exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius. ( 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial period for the. first time, bringing the world more detailed to breaching the promise. governments made under the 2015 Paris climate arrangement. A worldwide danger is defined by the study as a condition that. would negatively affect a substantial proportion of global GDP,. population or natural deposits. Professionals were surveyed in. September and October. Most of participants, 64%, anticipate a multipolar,. fragmented global order to continue.
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2 Supreme Court judges shot dead in Tehran, Iranian judiciary says
Two senior Iranian Supreme Court judges involved in handling espionage and terrorism cases were shot dead in the capital Tehran on Saturday, Iran's judiciary said. It said the opponent killed himself after opening fire at the judges inside the Supreme Court, and that a bodyguard of one of the judges was wounded. The judiciary recognized the judges who were killed as mid-ranking Shi'ite Muslim clerics Mohammad Moghiseh and Ali Razini. While the motive for the assassination was still unclear, judiciary spokesperson Asghar Jahangir told state television that the two judges had long been involved in nationwide security cases, including espionage and terrorism. In the previous year, the judiciary has carried out comprehensive efforts to determine spies and terrorist groups, a relocation that has actually stimulated anger and bitterness among the opponents, he stated. State TV stated these cases were connected to individuals linked to Israel and the Iranian opposition supported by the United States. It did not elaborate. Opposition sites have in the past stated Moghiseh was associated with trials of individuals they described as political prisoners. Razini was a target of an assassination effort in 1998.
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3 dead in night-time Russian attack on Kyiv, military administration says
Three people were killed early on Saturday in the centre of Kyiv in a nighttime Russian attack, said Timur Tkachenko, head of the Ukrainian capital's military administration. Tkachenko published on the Telegram messaging app that the deaths had actually taken place in the city's Shevchenkivskyi district. He said falling debris had also hit the Desnyanskyi district on the other side of the Dnipro River that runs through the capital. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko stated air defences remained in operation around the city. He stated windows had actually been shattered in Shevchenkivskyi district, consisting of at a city station, and smoke was coming out of an apartment building. A water pipe had actually been damaged and repair teams had been dispatched to the website. Authorities raised the air raid alert on the capital after it had actually been result for a little bit more than an hour.
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Trump's Interior Nominee Lauds Energy Production Expansion
Donald Trump's pick to lead the Interior Department, Doug Burgum, said on Thursday he will vigorously pursue the president-elect's goals of maximizing energy production from U.S. public lands and waters, calling it key to national security.Burgum's comments to lawmakers during his nomination hearing signal a coming sharp turn in policy after President Joe Biden attempted for years to limit oil and gas drilling by reducing federal lease auctions and banning future development in some offshore waters to fight climate change."America produces energy cleaner, smarter and safer than anywhere in the world. When energy production is restricted in America, it doesn't reduce demand, it just shifts production to countries like Russia, Venezuela, and Iran – whose autocratic leaders don't care about the environment," Burgum told a U.S. Senate panelconsidering his nomination.Maximizing energy output can lower consumer prices, and can be done while ensuring clean air and water, he added.The Interior Department oversees millions of acres of lands and offshore waters stretching from the Arctic to the Gulf of Mexico, and leases out parcels for drilling operations that now produce around a quarter of the U.S. oil and gas output.The U.S. is already the world's top oil and gas producer thanks to a years-long drilling boom, mainly on private lands in Texas and New Mexico, fueled by improved technology and strong world demand since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.Burgum said that, as Interior secretary, he would expand drilling lease auctions on public lands in accordance with the law. He said he would also support permitting reforms that could speed the pace of energy projects, including those that help boost transmission and pipelines feeding the power sector."Electricity is at the brink. Our grid is at a point where it could go completely unstable," he said. "We've got to get to work in permitting reform and speeding permitting right now."Burgum said the U.S. currently has an imbalance of intermittent power sources like wind and solar, and needs to offset that with an increase in baseload generation - like natural gas-fired power plants - that can produce electricity regardless of weather conditions. "Because if the sun's not shining, the wind's not blowing, and we don't have base load, then we've got brown outs and blackouts," he said.He also criticized Biden's support for the electric vehicle industry, saying it increases U.S. dependence on critical minerals from China.Burgum, who served as governor of North Dakota - a big oil and wind power producer - is also being considered to head a new national council to coordinate policies to boost U.S. energy output after Trump takes office.He declined to say if he would support the wind power industry if confirmed by the Senate to lead the Interior Department. Trump has vowed to put an end to the industry, which he says is too expensive and can harm whales offshore.(Reuters)
Gold gains on Fed rate cut bets, renewed purchases by China reserve bank
Gold prices got on Monday as China's reserve bank resumed gold purchases after a sixmonth time out, while expectations for an interest rate cut at the Federal Reserve's conference next week enhanced.
Spot gold got 0.7% to $2,650.63 per ounce, as of 0910 GMT. U.S. gold futures added 0.5% to $2,672.30.
Falling U.S. interest rates and continuous strong demand from central banks are supporting the gold cost. (It) Was absolutely great to see once again purchases by the Chinese central bank last month, but other reserve banks have been likewise purchasing large quantities, stated UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
Top customer China's reserve bank resumed gold purchases in November, possibly enhancing investor need. Individuals's. Bank of China (PBOC) paused its 18-month buying streak in May.
The decision to increase gold holdings, particularly. following Trump's recent election success, shows the PBOC's. proactive technique to protecting financial stability amidst. developing international conditions, OCBC analysts stated in a note.
Robust reserve bank buying, financial policy easing and. geopolitical tensions have driven gold to several record highs. this year, setting the metal on track for its finest year since. 2010 with an almost 28% boost up until now.
Today, financiers will focus on the U.S. Consumer Cost. Index (CPI), due Wednesday, followed by the Producer Cost Index. ( PPI) on Thursday.
Traders are pricing an 87% possibility of a 25-basis-point. rate of interest cut at next week's Fed conference, up from 61.6% last. week, according to the CME Group's FedWatch Tool, which would. mark the 3rd decrease this year.
Zero-yielding bullion thrives in a low rate of interest. environment and is considered a hedge versus political and. economic uncertainty.
Contributing to political unpredictability in the Middle East, Syrian. rebels took Damascus, forcing President Bashar al-Assad to. run away to Russia, ending 13 years of civil war and over 50 years. of Assad family rule.
Spot silver included 1.2% to $31.34 per ounce, platinum. increased 1.6% to $944.90 and palladium was up 2.4% at. $ 979.32.
(source: Reuters)