Bird Conservation Nepal records 13,749 birds in Valley

<br /><br />The first urban bird monitoring 2016 has recorded a total of 13,749 individual birds from rural to urban gradients of Kathmandu Valley.<br /><br /><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CfIlMNx2g7E/WGidUF6s6GI/AAAAAAAABVY/MnjVA45wWZMtzVJ-r5fN6YdkHdB0q7uJQCLcB/s1600/nmbca.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CfIlMNx2g7E/WGidUF6s6GI/AAAAAAAABVY/MnjVA45wWZMtzVJ-r5fN6YdkHdB0q7uJQCLcB/s640/nmbca.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br />Bird conservationists and researchers participated in the monitoring that was conducted by the Bird Conservation Nepal on January and June/July 2016.<br /><br />This number accounts for a total of 102 bird species. Of them, 85 species of birds with 6,496 individual birds were recorded in winter and 63 species of birds with 7,253 individual birds were recorded in summer.<br /><br />Researchers have said that the diversity of species had significantly decreased from rural to urban gradients.<br /><br />“We found very low species diversity in urban areas that might be due to a lack of habitat and reduced food availability,” Krishna Prasad Bhusal, one of the participants of the monitoring and Conservation Officer of BCN told The Himalayan Times.<br /><br />According to the monitoring report, the common pigeon was the most common bird species based on the number of individual birds recorded.<br /><br />A total of 4,545 common pigeons were recorded, 2,339 in winter and 2,206 in summer. Similarly, the house sparrow was identified as the second most common bird in urban and adjacent areas with 2,327 individual birds of this species.<br /><br />Likewise, 2,147 house crows were recorded, 827 common mynas, 765 cattle egrets, 426 Eurasian tree sparrows, 360 barn swallows, 308 jungle mynas, 243 red-vented bulbuls, and 159 black kites were recorded.<br /><br />According to the BCN study, urbanisation has affected the distribution of birds in Kathmandu Valley. However, long term monitoring and analysis of different environment variables are still necessary to analyse the effect of urbanization in birds in the Valley.<br /><br />Researchers recorded a higher number of resident bird species at 82 species, followed by winter migrant species at 16, and summer migrant species at 4.<br /><br />Urban habitats can be monitored using birds as an ecological indicator. Different habitat enrichment, like presence of exotic plants, high human density, road, industry, and buildings make urban habitats more complex. There is a strong need of conservation activities to protect the existing biodiversity in urban areas.<br /><br />Kathmandu is the most urbanised city in Nepal with a population of around four million people. More than 500 species of birds were recorded at Kathmandu Valley in 2008, while around 160 species are recorded only from the urban and its adjacent areas of Kathmandu Valley.<br /><br />“The increasing human density is narrowing the habitat of urban birds in the Valley. Modern housing practices, environmental pollution, high tension lines, lack of fruiting trees, and other factors are contributing to the decrease in bird population in the capital,” the monitoring report reads.<br /><br />The urban bird monitoring program divided Kathmandu into three gradients: urban, sub-urban, and rural based on core residential area to monitor the birds.<br />source: The Himalayan Times.

Bird Conservation Nepal records 13,749 birds in Valley

The first urban bird monitoring 2016 has recorded a total of 13,749 individual birds from rural to urban gradients of Kathmandu Valley. Bird...

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Healthful food perceptions influenced by price

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div> <b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With 2017 just around the corner, many of us will soon be trawling grocery stores in the search for healthful foods to kick-start the New Year's resolution of losing weight. But according to new research, you should avoid looking at the prices - it might skew your perception of what foods are good for you.</span></b><br /><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i9R3BC8Avow/WGibkqKxWfI/AAAAAAAABVQ/r2Y2vnCZxhEK-6Kmf0BnrrP5TToQEva2QCLcB/s1600/a-woman-shopping-in-a-grocery-store.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i9R3BC8Avow/WGibkqKxWfI/AAAAAAAABVQ/r2Y2vnCZxhEK-6Kmf0BnrrP5TToQEva2QCLcB/s400/a-woman-shopping-in-a-grocery-store.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Study co-author Rebecca Reczek, from the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University, and colleagues found that people often perceive healthful foods to be more expensive, despite there being no evidence to support this view.<br /><br />The team found that consumers make food choices based on this belief, and the price of foods may also influence how important we perceive certain health conditions to be.<br /><br />Reczek and colleagues came to their findings - published in the Journal of Consumer Research - by conducting five experiments on different groups of participants.<br /><br />The aim of the study was to get a better understanding of "lay theories" in relation to the cost of healthful foods. In simple terms, lay theories are ideologies that people use to make sense of their social environment.<br /><br />One common lay theory is that healthful foods are more expensive than less healthful foods. The researchers point to one example of this popular theory - the nickname given to the health foods store Whole Foods, which is "Whole Paycheck."<br /><br />While there are certain types of health foods that are more expensive - such as organic and gluten-free products - Reczek notes that it does not always cost more to eat healthily.<br /><br /><b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Costly food products perceived as more healthful in experiments</span></b><br />For their study, the researchers tested people's perceptions of the price of healthful foods in a series of experiments.<br /><br />In one experiment, the team provided participants with information on a "new" food product called granola bites. Some subjects were told the product was a health grade A- (a healthful food), while the remaining participants were told the product was a health grade C (less healthful).<br /><br />When each participant was asked how much they thought the granola bites cost, subjects who were told they were a health grade A- thought the bites were more expensive than subjects who were told they were a health grade C.<br /><br />This finding offers support to the popular belief that healthful foods are costlier. This relationship was further confirmed in another experiment, in which participants rated a breakfast cracker as more healthful when told that it was more expensive than a cheaper, identical cracker.<br /><br />For the next experiment, the team set out to investigate whether this lay theory influences people's behavior when it comes to choosing foods.<br /><br /><br />Participants were asked to imagine that a work colleague had asked them to order his or her lunch. Half of the subjects were told that their co-worker had requested a healthful lunch, while the remaining subjects had no instruction.<br /><br />Next, participants were offered two choices of food product on a computer screen: a chicken balsamic wrap and a roasted chicken wrap. Ingredients were listed for both products.<br /><br />The price was also shown for each product. However, the chicken balsamic wrap was listed as more expensive for some subjects, but for others, the roasted chicken wrap was costlier.<br /><br />The researchers found that participants who were instructed to choose a healthful product were significantly more likely to opt for the more expensive wrap, regardless of which wrap it was. This suggests that our food choices may be influenced by the lay belief that healthful products cost more.<br /><br />"People don't just believe that healthy means more expensive - they're making choices based on that belief," notes Reczek.<div> <br /><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Testing how price cues influence health perceptions</b></span><br />In the final two experiments, the team sought to gain a better understanding of how food prices influence peoples' perceptions of what is good for us.<br /><br />Firstly, the researchers asked participants to imagine that they were in a grocery store to purchase trail mix and told to choose from four differently priced products.<br /><br />One of the mixes was called the "Perfect Vision Mix." For some subjects, this mix was promoted as being "rich in vitamin A for eye health," while for others, the product was hailed as "rich in DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) for eye health."<br /><br />The team notes that both vitamin A and DHA are believed to be beneficial for eye health, but DHA is less familiar.<br /><br />For some participants, the Perfect Vision Mix was shown at an average price, while for others, it was more costly than the other three mixes.<br /><br />When asked about their perceptions of the "key" ingredient in the Perfect Vision Mix, participants thought that vitamin A was equally important for a healthful diet, regardless of how much the mix cost.<br /><b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />However, when DHA was promoted as the key ingredient, subjects were more likely to think that it was an important part of a healthful diet when it was shown as more expensive, compared with when it was an average price.</span></b><br />"People are familiar with vitamin A, so they feel they can judge its value without any price cues," explains Reczek. "But people don't know much about DHA, so they go back to the lay theory that expensive must be healthier."<br /><br />The team was further surprised during the experiment in which the subjects were told that DHA helped to prevent macular degeneration. When the DHA-containing mix was more expensive, participants were more likely to rate macular degeneration as a popular health issue, compared with when the product was an average price.</div> <div> <br /><b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Findings are 'concerning'</span></b><br /><br />In the last experiment, participants were presented with a new product called the "Healthiest Protein Bar on the Planet."</div>

Healthful food perceptions influenced by price

With 2017 just around the corner, many of us will soon be trawling grocery stores in the search for healthful foods to kick-start the New ...

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China's Xi says won't let anyone make 'fuss' about its territory

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M61wv85R3s0/WGiaF-1EIRI/AAAAAAAABVM/nf-7W5qazqImDxzLzce7_HXP3CCspWb-ACLcB/s1600/2017-01-01T014417Z_2_LYNXMPED000BX_RTROPTP_2_CHINA-MILITARY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M61wv85R3s0/WGiaF-1EIRI/AAAAAAAABVM/nf-7W5qazqImDxzLzce7_HXP3CCspWb-ACLcB/s400/2017-01-01T014417Z_2_LYNXMPED000BX_RTROPTP_2_CHINA-MILITARY.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <h1 class="Lh(36px) Fz(25px)--sm Fz(32px) Mb(17px)--sm Mb(20px) Mb(30px)--lg Ff($ff-primary) Lts($lspacing-md) Fw($fweight) Fsm($fsmoothing) Fsmw($fsmoothing) Fsmm($fsmoothing) Wow(bw)" data-reactid="3" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 32px; line-height: 36px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; word-wrap: break-word;"> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="23" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> BEIJING (Reuters) - China will never allow anyone to "make a great fuss" about its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights, President Xi Jinping said in his New Year's address, while China's top official in charge of Taiwan ties warned of risk ahead in 2017.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="24" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> China's increasingly assertive moves to push its territorial claims in the disputed South China Sea, including building artificial islands, has unnerved its neighbors.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="25" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> "We adhere to peaceful development, and resolutely safeguard our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," Xi said, in comments c</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="25" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> arried by state media late on Saturday.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="26" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> "Chinese people will never allow anyone to get away with making a great fuss about it," he said, without elaborating.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="27" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> China claims most of the South China Sea. Neighbors Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="28" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> While Xi made no direct mention of self-ruled Taiwan, aside from extending New Year's greetings to them, the head of China's policy-making Taiwan Affairs Office in his New Year's message said that 2017 would see uncertainty.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="29" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> "Looking ahead to 2017, the situation in the Taiwan Strait is complex and serious, and the development of relations are facing many uncertain factors and risk," Zhang Zhijun said, according to the official Xinhua news agency.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="30" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> China hopes that people on both sides can show resolve and courage, to ensure the "correct direction" of the peaceful development of ties and work to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, he added.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="31" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Saturday that Taiwan will be "calm" when dealing with China, but uncertainties in 2017 will test the island and its national security team, even as she recommitted to maintaining peace.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="32" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> China is deeply suspicious of Tsai, who it thinks wants to push for the formal independence of Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing regards as a renegade province.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="33" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> U.S. President-elect Donald Trump angered China last month when he spoke to Tsai in a break with decades of precedent and cast doubt on his incoming administration's commitment to Beijing's "one China" policy.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="34" data-type="text" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> China's military has become alarmed by what it sees as Trump's support of Taiwan and is considering strong measures to prevent the island from moving toward independence, sources with ties to senior military officers said</div> </h1>

China's Xi says won't let anyone make 'fuss' about its territory

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will never allow anyone to "make a great fuss" about its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights...

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ISIS 'planning mass attack in Britain' and 'has "no moral barrier" to using chemical weapons'

<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Security minister Ben Wallace said the chemical threat was the potential realisation of "everybody's worst fear"<br /><br /><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qmMvGMrrOCM/WGiDRxkON5I/AAAAAAAABU8/4pAYXPntLKEFlveqd_-RROL-CShQRxyrwCLcB/s1600/p.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qmMvGMrrOCM/WGiDRxkON5I/AAAAAAAABU8/4pAYXPntLKEFlveqd_-RROL-CShQRxyrwCLcB/s400/p.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br />ISIS is planning a mass casualty attack against Britain, with "no moral barrier" to using chemical weapons, a minister has warned.<br />Security minister Ben Wallace said the chemical threat was the potential realization of "everybody's worst fear."<br /><br />Wallace said there were reports of IS using chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq, where it controls large areas, and that Moroccan authorities apprehended a cell in February which was harbouring substances that could be used to either make a bomb or a "deadly toxin".<br /><br />Mr Wallace said: "Experts have warned that their ambition is a mass casualty attack and they have no moral barrier to using whatever means possible."<br /><br />It came after he told the Sunday Times: "The ambition of IS or Daesh is definitely mass casualty attacks.<br /><br />"They want to harm as many people as possible and terrorise as many people as possible.<br /><br /><br />"They have no moral objection to using chemical weapons against populations and if they could, they would in this country.<br /><br />"The casualty figures which could be involved would be everybody's worst fear.<br /><br />"We have certainly seen reports of them using it in Syria and Iraq (and) we have certainly seen aspiration for it in Europe."<br /><br />Mr Wallace also warned about the threat from "the enemy within" as terror groups, Russia and cyber attackers were trying to plant "traitors" in the Government, the military and leading businesses.<br /><br />"There are traitors. We have to be on our guard for the enemy within," he said.<br /><br />"The insider threat, as we would call it, is real and it can be exploited and there are people trying to do that as we speak."<br /><br />Security services throughout the Western world remained on high alert for a New Year terror attack after ISIS distributed new propaganda about how to carry out mass killings.<br /><br />The US Army said on Friday the chances of an attack on American soil were low but "undeniable".<br /><br />Heavily armed police guard Christmas nativity with soldiers drafted in for New Year as Britain fears Berlin-style attack<br /><br />A bulletin said: "There are no indications of specific threats to the US Homeland.<br /><br />"However the threat from homegrown violent extremists (HVEs) in the United States is undeniable."<br /><br />A separate bulletin revealed that two recent issues of Rumiyah, an ISIS propaganda publication, did "provide information on conducting knife attacks and using vehicles to cause mass casualties in populated areas."<br /><br />Such tactics were used in recent attacks on civilians in Nice, France, Berlin and in Columbus, Ohio.</span>

ISIS 'planning mass attack in Britain' and 'has "no moral barrier" to using chemical weapons'

Security minister Ben Wallace said the chemical threat was the potential realisation of "everybody's worst fear" ISIS is plann...

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Can we blame delicious food for our holiday weight gain?

<b><span style="color: purple; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Access to delicious food encourages us to overeat and therefore gain weight, regardless of the food's caloric content - at least, that's the theory. However, new research shows that this might not be the case.</span></b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dtZPGasAj-g/WGfD7NLVh5I/AAAAAAAABUk/t9kcHnZSGFMVZVByycz4QUoXfRqHR-6IwCLcB/s1600/delicious-buffet-foods.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dtZPGasAj-g/WGfD7NLVh5I/AAAAAAAABUk/t9kcHnZSGFMVZVByycz4QUoXfRqHR-6IwCLcB/s400/delicious-buffet-foods.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div> <br />Most of us have heard the saying that "if it tastes good, it must be bad for you." Although commonly held, this old adage may not contain much truth after all.<br /><br />A team of researchers led by Dr. Michael Tordoff, a physiological psychologist at Monell Chemical Senses Center in Pennsylvania, set out to test this belief in more detail. "Most people think that good-tasting food causes obesity," he explains.<br /><br />Tordoff was unconvinced, and he therefore designed a range of experiments to see whether the theory held any water. His findings were recently published in the journal Physiology & Behavior.<div> <br /><b><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Investigating flavor and weight gain</span></b><br />It has been established that if you feed a mouse cookies, chips, and cream, they will become obese. But is it the flavor of the foods that cause overeating? Or, could it be the nutrient density that promotes the gorging? After all, animals have evolved to seek out fatty and sugary foods as a matter of survival.<br /><br />Previous studies that have drawn conclusions about good taste (in this context, meaning flavor and texture) and its effect on weight gain have been flawed. For instance, many did not take into account the impact of variety on feeding behavior; having a spread of different foods to choose from can cause one to over-indulge. A buffet is a prime example of this.<br /><br />According to the authors of the recent research, only three studies to date have looked specifically at the influence of flavor on weight gain. None of these studies were conclusive, however. The reasons for this include sample size and, once again, the effects of variety.<br /><br />The first phase of Tordoff's study involved establishing whether mice would prefer food with added oily or sweet ingredients that were non-nutritive. The mice were served two pots of chow - one standard, and one with either a sucralose sweetener or mineral oil (both of which are calorie free).<br /><br />As expected, the mice preferred the mineral oil chow and sucralose chow. They virtually ignored the plainer fare. In fact, the mice thought so little of the standard chow that, according to the study authors, they "often defecated in the cup containing the plain diet."</div> </div>

Can we blame delicious food for our holiday weight gain?

Access to delicious food encourages us to overeat and therefore gain weight, regardless of the food's caloric content - at least, that&#...

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Pokhara Street Festival set to welcome New Year 2017

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-myAArslY1H4/WGeuVKSHAFI/AAAAAAAABUU/51kWAxxajTkSpvbkrQg6sqURLLLhuqtOACLcB/s1600/15th-pokhara-street-festival.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-myAArslY1H4/WGeuVKSHAFI/AAAAAAAABUU/51kWAxxajTkSpvbkrQg6sqURLLLhuqtOACLcB/s400/15th-pokhara-street-festival.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> POKHARA - The 'Pokhara Street Festival' is being organized by the Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal (REBAN) – Pokhara from December 28 to January 1 at the bustling Lakeside to bid farewell to year 2016 and welcome New Year 2017.<br /><br />At a press conference held on Monday, Festival's Coordinator, Gopi Bahadur Bhattarai, said the 18th edition of the street festival – being held annually during the same time and for the same period of time – will bear the banner 'Let's eat in the streets, dance and revel'.<br /><br />Bhattarai added that necessary preparations were underway to make the festival grand and civilized, and assured the tourists of being treated to various delicacies along with cultural and entertainment presentations.<br /><br />REBAN – Pokhara Chairman, Chau Bahadur Gurung, said the street festival will span 3.5 km from Lakeside to Sahid Chowk to Patan of Khaharedihi.

Pokhara Street Festival set to welcome New Year 2017

POKHARA - The 'Pokhara Street Festival' is being organized by the Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal (REBAN) – Pokhara from D...

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Novel Type of Immunotherapy Helps Man Fight Brain Cancer

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FDLGI82-mps/WGURzJnECcI/AAAAAAAABT4/79H6OCiBgxwZuun0WvGL7_KVDDVTAs4eQCLcB/s1600/4B0EE609-A032-4092-BB99-BC4E3B1C0CAE_cx0_cy6_cw0_w987_r1_s_r1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FDLGI82-mps/WGURzJnECcI/AAAAAAAABT4/79H6OCiBgxwZuun0WvGL7_KVDDVTAs4eQCLcB/s640/4B0EE609-A032-4092-BB99-BC4E3B1C0CAE_cx0_cy6_cw0_w987_r1_s_r1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Killer T cells surround a cancer cell. (NIH)</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div> <br /></div> <div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> A man with deadly brain cancer that had spread to his spine saw his tumors shrink and, for a time, vanish after a novel treatment to help his immune system attack his disease — another first in this promising field.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> The type of immunotherapy that Richard Grady, 50, received already has helped some people with blood cancers such as leukemia. But the way he was given it is new, and may allow its use not just for brain tumors but also other cancers that can spread, such as breast and lung.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> Grady was the first person to get the treatment dripped through a tube into a space in the brain where spinal fluid is made, sending it down the path the cancer traveled to his spine.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> He had "a remarkable response" that opens the door to wider testing, said Dr. Behnam Badie, neurosurgery chief at City of Hope, a cancer center in Duarte, California, where Grady was treated.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> The case is reported in this week's <em style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px;">New England Journal of Medicine</em>.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> Each year in the United States, about 20,000 people are diagnosed with a type of brain tumor called glioblastoma. Grady, who lives in Seattle, had the usual surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, but cancer came back.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">T cells modified</strong><br /> <br style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px;" /> He enrolled in a clinical trial at the City of Hope and had some of his own blood cells, called T cells, removed and genetically modified in the lab to turn them into specialized soldiers to seek and destroy cancer.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> The treatment, called CAR-T cell therapy, has been used for blood cancers, but its value for solid tumors is unknown. The city of Hope has been conducting tests in which the cells are injected directly into the brain.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> First, Grady had more surgery to remove three of his largest tumors. Then he got six weekly infusions of the cells through a tube into his brain, where the biggest one had been. No cancer recurred there, but the remaining tumors continued to grow, new ones appeared, and cancer spread to his spine.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> Doctors decided on a bold step: placing the second tube in his brain, into a cavity where spinal fluid is made, and putting the cells there.<br /> <br style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px;" /> "The idea was to have the flow of the spinal fluid carry the T cells to different locations,'' along the route cancer had taken, Badie said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> After three treatments, all tumors had shrunk dramatically. After the 10th treatment, "we saw all the tumors disappear," and Grady was able to cut back on other medicines and return to work, Badie said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> <strong style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-bottom: 0px;">More treatment</strong></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> New tumors, though, have now emerged in different spots in his brain and spine, and he is getting radiation treatment. But his response to immunotherapy lasted more than seven months, and "for him to live more than a year and a half" after starting it is amazing for a situation where survival often is measured in weeks, Badie said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> Side effects of the treatment were manageable, including headaches, fatigue and muscle aches, and some may have resulted from other medicines Grady needed, doctors reported.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> It's early research, but it's an advance for the field "that they showed this is safe, at least in this patient," said Dr. Donald O'Rourke, a neurosurgeon heading a similar study at the University of Pennsylvania.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> O'Rourke treated 10 brain tumor patients with CAR-T cells but used a single IV dose. A paper detailing results are in the works, but "it's pretty striking what we've found," he said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 32px; padding: 0px;"> At the City of Hope, nine patients have been treated so far, but only three with infusions into the spinal fluid brain cavity. Two of the nine have not responded to treatment, Badie said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px; padding: 0px;"> His study is supported by the nonprofit Gateway for Cancer Research, the Food and Drug Administration, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. Some authors get royalties from pending patents or money from Mustang Bio Inc., which has licensed some of the technology.</div> </div>

Novel Type of Immunotherapy Helps Man Fight Brain Cancer

Killer T cells surround a cancer cell. (NIH) A man with deadly brain cancer that had spread to his spine saw his tumors shrink and, ...

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Myanmar farmers reap rewards from 3D printing

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b-Gh49jvFUo/WGUQrfnCG1I/AAAAAAAABTs/cQiPTMEhbVonNpgnJIBD_q8VUf4825AKwCLcB/s1600/socialenterp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b-Gh49jvFUo/WGUQrfnCG1I/AAAAAAAABTs/cQiPTMEhbVonNpgnJIBD_q8VUf4825AKwCLcB/s320/socialenterp.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figure class="image-block" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(198, 198, 198); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: start;"><figcaption class="image-block-caption" style="margin: 0px; padding: 9px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Social enterprise Proximity Designs's 3D printer is making high technology accessible to Myanmar's impoverished farmers</b></span></figcaption></figure></td></tr> </tbody></table> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whizzing across a blue-lit platform with a whirr and a squeak, liquid plastic emanating from its chrome tip, the 3D printer seems a far cry from the muddy, crop-filled fields that fringe Yangon.<br /><br /><br />But in an industrial park south of Myanmar's commercial hub, the advanced technology is now being used to design bespoke parts that are changing the lives of impoverished farmers.<br /><br />Myanmar's manufacturing sector was gutted under five decades of isolationist military rule, forcing farmers to cobble together their own tools or use ill-adapted IMPORTS.<br /><br />Poor equipment has only added to the hardships of growing crops in the disaster-prone country, where farmers account for nearly half of the economy's output despite being among the poorest producers in Asia.<br /><br />But in one corner of Yangon, change is afoot.<br /><br />Over at social enterprise Proximity Designs, cutting-edge 3D printer technology is being used to design specially adapted tools, in consultation with the farmers who use them.<br /><br />"We want to create something that farmers find delight in," product designer Taiei Harimoto told AFP at their workshop, where robotic arms line the walls near benches littered with tools and mechanical parts.<br /><br />The printer, a small, black, hollow cube with a needle inside attached to a computer, has already been put to use helping design parts for a sprinkler system and the internal mechanics for a solar pump</span><div> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--ZwK_pW3fiA/WGURPWTGi_I/AAAAAAAABTw/xLLkivfeW0AOTtCMsR5FtTHg5q5ydFraACLcB/s1600/betelleaffar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--ZwK_pW3fiA/WGURPWTGi_I/AAAAAAAABTw/xLLkivfeW0AOTtCMsR5FtTHg5q5ydFraACLcB/s320/betelleaffar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <div> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><br />Creating prototypes in plastic means the team can perfect designs for complex pieces in the lab, cutting out a lengthy back-and-forth that can cost thousands of dollars.<br /><br />Once the design has been perfected, it is then sent off toFACTORIES in other countries where the final part is mass produced.<br /><br />"Before it might have taken weeks and sometimes months" to make the prototypes for each product, said co-founder Debbie Aung Din.<br /><br />Out in the fields, farmers say they are already seeing their profits grow.<br /><br />On his tiny half-acre plot some 70 miles (100 kilometers) from Yangon, betel leaf farmer Kyaw Win said his life has been changed by the 3D printer-designed sprinkling system he installed over two months ago.<br /><br />"Using products like this can cut in half the amount of time we have to spend working each day," the 60-year-old told AFP as he stroked the plants' wide leaves, which many people in Myanmar chew as a stimulant.<br /><br />Instead of paying laborers to water the plants using buckets—back-breaking work that often meant the leaves became damp and diseased—now he has a targeted system that he can operate himself.<br /><br />"We also reduced our costs by more than half compared to what we had to spend before," he explained.</span></div> </div>

Myanmar farmers reap rewards from 3D printing

Social enterprise Proximity Designs's 3D printer is making high technology accessible to Myanmar's impoverished farmers Whizzing...

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3D Printing Makes Better Tools for Myanmar Farmers

<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" class="b-hbp-video b-uploaded" frameborder="0" height="266" id="BLOGGER-video-c70d9da00038023a-11571" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzrrS-dbkKJOK9fyZykGOIKChfhCxnJjjqn_fnkCQv3TC238bueP1KDVaM7dh-2N_WGGU8bxlWnE5iJpCA7QcOfDRFoUPJFhuNrbviKyZgVx7BVypMyN8_pKaNs8z8Iwy5S7N7B" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></div> <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Merriweather-Light, Georgia, Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;">As Myanmar emerges from years of isolation under a military dictatorship, new technologies are entering the country that aim to improve the lives of its citizens. One nonprofit is using 3D printing to bring better tools to the country's farmers. VOA's Steve Baragona has more.</span>

3D Printing Makes Better Tools for Myanmar Farmers

As Myanmar emerges from years of isolation under a military dictatorship, new technologies are entering the country that aim to improve t...

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Teens Among 7 Killed in Philippines Drug House; Vigilantes Suspected

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mEmefp9DbKg/WGUNDMjHEdI/AAAAAAAABTQ/B6pscwF4YTIb1dNm-es8PgjZkoKxbx9NQCLcB/s1600/6FDE07B7-3F27-45CA-8538-AEE06798CA2C_cx0_cy16_cw0_w987_r1_s_r1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="359" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mEmefp9DbKg/WGUNDMjHEdI/AAAAAAAABTQ/B6pscwF4YTIb1dNm-es8PgjZkoKxbx9NQCLcB/s640/6FDE07B7-3F27-45CA-8538-AEE06798CA2C_cx0_cy16_cw0_w987_r1_s_r1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte salutes with military officers during an anniversary<span style="text-align: start;"> celebration of the Armed Forces at a military camp in Quezon city, Manila, Dec. 21, 2016.</span></span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">MANILA, PHILIPPINES — <br /><br />Three minors were among seven people shot dead by suspected vigilantes in the Philippines at a house storing illegal narcotics, police said Thursday, in the latest killings during a bloody and murky war on drugs.<br /><br />Two unknown gunmen arrived on motorcycles and entered what police called a drugs den north of the capital Manila late Wednesday. They opened fire on those inside, killing five instantly before fleeing, according to a police report, which said two other victims died before reaching the hospital.<br /><br />Four of those killed were teenagers, two of them 15, one 16 and one 18. The killings come as the government of President Rodrigo Duterte prepares legislation to put to Congress to lower the age of criminal liability to nine from 15.<br /><br />More than 6,100 people have been killed in the past six months during Duterte’s controversial war on drugs, about a third in police operations and others classified as deaths under investigation. Police say killings during counter-narcotics operations were in self-defense.<br /><br />The crackdown, the core plank of Duterte’s election campaign, has been condemned internationally and has created tension between the Philippines and key allies and donors, among them the European Union, the United States and United Nations. He has praised China for staying out of it.<br /><br />Duterte has hit back with stunning rebukes and says he is willing to “rot in jail” to rid the Philippines of a drugs problem he initially vowed to solve within three to six months.<br /><br />He says the scourge was bigger than he first thought. In a television interview Thursday, Duterte said the drug war would not end soon.<br /><br />“Until the last pusher is out of the street ... until the last drugs lord is killed, this drug campaign would continue to the last day of my term,” he said.<br /><br />Killings by vigilantes have occurred often, and the authorities have been accused by rights groups of hiring assassins to kill suspects.<br /><br />Duterte vehemently denies police are in cahoots with vigilantes and has said drug gangs are killing rivals and silencing informants and it was happening long before he took office.</span>

Teens Among 7 Killed in Philippines Drug House; Vigilantes Suspected

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte salutes with military officers during an anniversary  celebration of the Armed Forces at a military c...

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Bomb explodes at Philippines boxing match

<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At least 32 people were wounded when two bombs exploded at an amateur boxing competition in a central Philippine town as part of an annual Roman Catholic holiday festival, police, and other officials said on Thursday.Sixteen of the wounded were admitted to various hospitals while 16 others went home after treatment of their injuries from the twin blasts in Hilongos town in Leyte province late on Wednesday, said senior inspector Jenyzen Enciso, the provincial police spokeswoman.<br /><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VzR47aQ6Wk8/WGUMG70HcUI/AAAAAAAABTI/CrCToHpHiLwKUqFVK0Voqr0TrVSdP0DuwCLcB/s1600/Phillipines-boxing-match-large_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqV3svVdN4VzwsRrPaP9W1hQeHOiVaNi4kNpMvY8KrB5k.png"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VzR47aQ6Wk8/WGUMG70HcUI/AAAAAAAABTI/CrCToHpHiLwKUqFVK0Voqr0TrVSdP0DuwCLcB/s400/Phillipines-boxing-match-large_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqV3svVdN4VzwsRrPaP9W1hQeHOiVaNi4kNpMvY8KrB5k.png" /></a><br />Police recovered an 81 mm mortar cartridge and a mobile phone apparently used to detonate the homemade bombs.<br /><br />Nobody has claimed responsibility and investigators were trying to identify the attackers.<br /><br />The victims include at least 10 children aged 7 to 15 years old.<br /><br />Philippine forces have been placed on alert amid on and off offensives in the country's south against Muslim militants, including Abu Sayyaf gunmen and armed sympathizers of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group who have targeted the capital, Manila, and other urban centers in the past.<br /><br />Communist guerrillas also have a presence in Leyte province, about 610 kilometers (380 miles) southeast of Manila, but there was no immediate indication they or Muslim militants were involved.</span>

Bomb explodes at Philippines boxing match

At least 32 people were wounded when two bombs exploded at an amateur boxing competition in a central Philippine town as part of an annual R...

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China completes high-speed rail links from southwest Yunnan

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tmjIMkzSYzs/WGUKvi-ItgI/AAAAAAAABTA/Ti4OANf94nASc02lo05BmLJoC3EQmYlswCLcB/s1600/China-high-speed-rail.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tmjIMkzSYzs/WGUKvi-ItgI/AAAAAAAABTA/Ti4OANf94nASc02lo05BmLJoC3EQmYlswCLcB/s400/China-high-speed-rail.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #4c1130;">A high-speed railway train linking Shanghai and Kunming, of Yunnan province, is seen at a station during a partial operation, in Anshun, Guizhou province, China, on December 28, 2016. Photo: Reuters</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> China has completed two new high-speed rail links connecting Kunming, the capital of southwestern Yunnan province, with Shanghai and Shanghai on the eastern coast, according to a transport ministry notice.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> China is in the middle of an ambitious railway building program and aims to criss-cross the country with four north-south and four east-west bullet train connections and expand its total network to 150,000 km (93,200 miles) by the end of the decade.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Its high-speed rail network will reach a length of 30,000 km (18,640 miles) by 2020, the state planning agency said in its “five-year plan” for the sector published earlier this year.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> The new railway connecting Kunming with Shanghai was formally opened on Wednesday and is China’s longest east-west high-speed link. It stretches 2,252 kilometers (1,400 miles) and will take 11 hours and 15 minutes, less than half the previous traveling time, the notice said.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> According to the official China Daily, 29 of China’s 31 provinces and regions are now served by high-speed rail, with only the regions of Tibet and Ningxia in the northwest yet to be connected.</div> <br />

China completes high-speed rail links from southwest Yunnan

A high-speed railway train linking Shanghai and Kunming, of Yunnan province, is seen at a station during a partial operation, in Anshun, G...

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Building from waste

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_XAClAofhOI/WGUKCn0-yHI/AAAAAAAABS0/4txV2HuYpHkoqbYBw9tcMwAor3zn_K8-ACLcB/s1600/pup-school-29122016082805-1000x0.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_XAClAofhOI/WGUKCn0-yHI/AAAAAAAABS0/4txV2HuYpHkoqbYBw9tcMwAor3zn_K8-ACLcB/s320/pup-school-29122016082805-1000x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="subtitle" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 11.5px; text-align: start;"> <ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.2em; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.4em; list-style: none outside none; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 0px;"> <li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 9px; text-align: center;">Nine teenage girls create architecture out of discarded materials</li> <li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 9px; text-align: center;"><br /></li> </ul> </div> <div class="post" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #aaaaaa; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 11px; margin-top: 10px; text-align: start;"> </div> <br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 11.5px; text-align: start;" /><div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Dec 29, 2016- Pop-up School of Architecture, a week-long exhibition that displays discarded natural and manmade materials for architecture, is being held from December 29, at Patan Museum courtyard. </span></div> </td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />First of its kind, the exhibition displays the work of nine teenage girls who have created unique pieces of architecture based on experimentation and imaginative improvisation. The exhibition also aims to promote appreciation of the inherent goodness of the environment. </span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“We aim to foster environmental awareness through the creative lens of architecture with nine cognitively creative girls, ages 12-18,” said the organizers. Talking of its inspiration, the organizers shared, “There are three sources of inspiration for the programme: Finland’s innovative Arkki School of Architecture for Children and Youth, the ‘pop-up’ phenomena currently popular in North American and European retail sales, and the scavenger architecture-as-art of Kathmandu International Art Festival 2012 by artists Janice Rahn and Michael Campbell from the University of Lethbridge.”</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A final exhibition will be held on January 3, 2016, partnered with Kathmandu Triennale as an Encounter, from 10 am-3 pm.</span></div> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Source: Kathmandu post</span>

Building from waste

Nine teenage girls create architecture out of discarded materials Dec 29, 2016- Pop-up School of Architecture, a week-long exhibi...

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Replacing defunct IC notes: India to make ‘special arrangement’ for Nepal

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qgxBCaCirGc/WGUIgBgOQEI/AAAAAAAABSk/azpzG7UnewsXwDLijN0Y6GSCB3DTXMqFwCLcB/s1600/11112016081108indian-currency-1000x0-29122016084040-1000x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qgxBCaCirGc/WGUIgBgOQEI/AAAAAAAABSk/azpzG7UnewsXwDLijN0Y6GSCB3DTXMqFwCLcB/s320/11112016081108indian-currency-1000x0-29122016084040-1000x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dec 29, 2016- With the deadline set by the Indian government to exchange old notes in the denominations of 500 and 1,000 expiring on Friday, India is preparing to make a “special arrangement” for Nepal to replace the demonetised bills, Indian officials have said.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">New Delhi is learnt to be preparing to dispatch a team to Kathmandu to hold consultation with Nepal Rastra Bank officials to finalize the modality of exchanging the notes. Earlier, a team led by the NRB deputy governor with representatives from the Ministry of Finance was scheduled to visit India. Indian authorities, however, had said there was no need for Nepali officials to visit India as they were busy managing the situation arising from the decision to pull the notes back from circulation.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">India had formed an inter-ministerial committee earlier to suggest ways for resolving the problems faced by the diplomatic community and holders of the currency in Nepal and Bhutan. Replacement of the old notes is likely in the first week of January.“There will be some provisions for exchanging the old notes in Nepal for a limited period,” an Indian official said requesting anonymity. The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu is in regular contact with Finance Ministry officials for addressing the problem.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a meeting with Nepali Ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyaya, Indian State Minister for External Affairs VK Singh had pledged measures to replace the notes. “We have received assurances that there will be some provisions and we are awaiting a decision,” Upadhyaya said.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Indian side has expressed fears that there is a high chance of old IC notes entering Nepal from India due to the open border, stressing the need for a strict exchange mechanism. Upadhyaya said Nepali citizens were exchanging the old notes in their possession at lower rates feeling uncertain about getting the legal tender for their old cash.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Officials say there will be a short WINDOW for exchanging the notes. There could be difficulties for people residing in rural areas to get the new notes. Nepal has requested India to allow a Nepali to exchange the notes worth up to Rs25,000.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meanwhile, Nepali workers in Delhi are also facing a lot of problems in exchanging the old notes. Workers who do not have Indian identity cards or a bank account here are facing troubles in replacing the banned bills.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As per the Indian government’s decision, Indian banks will not accept the old notes after December 30. </span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The remaining notes could be deposited to designated branches of the Reserve Bank of India until March 31 with sufficient explanation for the delay.</span></div> Source: Himalayan times

Replacing defunct IC notes: India to make ‘special arrangement’ for Nepal

Dec 29, 2016- With the deadline set by the Indian government to exchange old notes in the denominations of 500 and 1,000 expiring on Frid...

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Kidney racket busted in Kathmandu, 3 held

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i4JQ1Vfbf1c/WGUG4Sdj9oI/AAAAAAAABSc/JD_grnUqGbsKe6s04chlNfXjmArL-Z_SACLcB/s1600/160606014528-india-kidney-harvesting-udas-lklv-exlarge-169.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i4JQ1Vfbf1c/WGUG4Sdj9oI/AAAAAAAABSc/JD_grnUqGbsKe6s04chlNfXjmArL-Z_SACLcB/s400/160606014528-india-kidney-harvesting-udas-lklv-exlarge-169.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dec 29, 2016- Metropolitan Police Crime Division on Thursday arrested three individuals involved in organ-trafficking from Kathmandu Valley.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Acting on a tip-off, the police team arrested Binu Bahadur Timalsina aka Bikash, Prakash Basnet, and Bhim Prasad Neupane. The trio was made public amidst a press conference in Kathmandu today.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A police investigation has revealed that the culprits used to lure gullible Nepali people to travel to India with the promise of employment opportunities and stripped their organ without their knowing by making them unconscious.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two other members of the organ trafficking ring —Amrit Gurung and Narayan Nepali—have been absconding, police said, adding that the search for them is underway.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The police investigation has found that Timalsina and Basnet used to hunt innocent people from across the country while Neupane and Gurung used to transport them to Kathmandu by offering employment opportunities.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The unwary victims were asked for blood test saying that it was mandatory to go through health check-up before providing them employment.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The investigation has found that so far the culprits have lured five people from Gorkha, Kaski, among other districts, and took them to India where their kidney was extracted without consent.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">According to Human Trafficking and Transportation (Control) Act, 2064 (2007), a person found guilty of extracting human organs will be punished with 10 years imprisonment and Rs200,000.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; margin-bottom: 10px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It further states, if a victim is transported to a foreign nation with the intention to exploit them, the culprits will be imprisoned for 2-5 years.</span></div> <br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 11.5px;" />

Kidney racket busted in Kathmandu, 3 held

Dec 29, 2016- Metropolitan Police Crime Division on Thursday arrested three individuals involved in organ-trafficking from Kathmandu Vall...

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French woman pardoned after being jailed for murdering abusive husband

<div class="sky-component-story-article__intro" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: skytext, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 540px; padding: 0px;">  woman jailed for murdering the husband who abused her for 47 years has been given a rare pardon by the French president.</div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nJ8vj4GobJo/WGR5LBp88yI/AAAAAAAABSE/zxDftrjOO3E6FP0a-WHEwUVVckjTHO7nACLcB/s1600/a18d726155bfd1b79f818cacc4ef42f9c2354f8a33be2ba97828b917c1a1e7e0_3860439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nJ8vj4GobJo/WGR5LBp88yI/AAAAAAAABSE/zxDftrjOO3E6FP0a-WHEwUVVckjTHO7nACLcB/s400/a18d726155bfd1b79f818cacc4ef42f9c2354f8a33be2ba97828b917c1a1e7e0_3860439.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="sky-component-story-article__body" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: skytext, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px auto 1.2em; max-width: 540px; padding: 0px;"> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> Jacqueline Sauvage was allowed to walk free from prison after Francois Hollande used a special power to release her, saying her "place was no longer in prison but with her family".</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> Ms Sauvage was given a 10-year sentence for killing her alcoholic and abusive husband in 2012, shooting him three times in the back with his own hunting rifle the day after their son hanged himself.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> Her trial heard how Norbert Marot had raped and beaten her and her three daughters for years and was also violent towards their son.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> Ms Sauvage became a cause celebre when her daughters launched a petition for her release, which attracted nearly 400,000 signatures.</div> <div class="sky-component-markup" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; margin: 0px auto 1.2em; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px;"> <twitterwidget class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" data-tweet-id="814126998754881536" id="twitter-widget-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; margin: 10px 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; min-width: 220px; padding: 0px; position: static; transform: rotate(0deg); visibility: visible; width: 500px;"><div class="SandboxRoot env-bp-350" data-twitter-event-id="0" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; 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background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: contain; display: inline-block; height: 1.25em; vertical-align: text-bottom; width: 1.25em;" title=""> </div> </span> Follow</a></span></div> <div class="TweetAuthor " data-scribe="component:author" style="line-height: 0; margin-top: 2px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden !important; text-overflow: ellipsis !important; word-wrap: normal !important;"> <a aria-label="François Hollande (screen name: fhollande)" class="TweetAuthor-link Identity u-linkBlend" data-scribe="element:user_link" href="https://twitter.com/fhollande" style="background-color: transparent; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.2; outline: 0px; text-decoration: inherit;"><span class="TweetAuthor-avatar Identity-avatar" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 4px; display: inline-block; height: 36px; left: 0px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 36px;"><img alt="" class="Avatar" data-scribe="element:avatar" data-src-1x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/719913019250114561/jOXzfG7h_normal.jpg" data-src-2x="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/719913019250114561/jOXzfG7h_bigger.jpg" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/719913019250114561/jOXzfG7h_normal.jpg" style="border: 0px; 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background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: contain; display: inline-block; height: 1.25em; vertical-align: text-bottom; width: 1.11111em;" title="Verified Account"> </div> <span class="u-hiddenVisually" style="border: 0px !important; clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px) !important; height: 1px !important; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important;">✔</span></span><span class="TweetAuthor-screenName Identity-screenName" data-scribe="element:screen_name" dir="ltr" style="color: #697882; font-size: 14px;" title="@fhollande">@fhollande</span></a></div> </div> <div class="Tweet-body e-entry-content" data-scribe="component:tweet" style="margin-top: 14px;"> <div class="Tweet-text e-entry-title" dir="ltr" lang="fr" style="border: none; cursor: text; direction: ltr; list-style: none; padding: 0px;"> J'ai décidé d'accorder à Jacqueline Sauvage une remise gracieuse du reliquat de sa peine. Cette grâce met fin immédiatement à sa détention.</div> <div class="Tweet-metadata dateline" style="color: #697882; font-size: 14px; margin-top: 3.2px;"> <a class="u-linkBlend u-url customisable-highlight long-permalink" data-datetime="2016-12-28T15:12:56+0000" data-scribe="element:full_timestamp" href="https://twitter.com/fhollande/status/814126998754881536" style="background-color: transparent; font-weight: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: inherit;">8:57 PM - 28 Dec 2016</a></div> <ul aria-label="Tweet actions" class="Tweet-actions" data-scribe="component:actions" role="menu" style="border: none; list-style: none; margin: 8.4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px;"> <li class="Tweet-action" style="display: inline-block;"><a class="TweetAction TweetAction--reply web-intent" data-scribe="element:reply" href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?in_reply_to=814126998754881536" style="background-color: transparent; color: #697882; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div aria-label="Reply" class="Icon Icon--reply TweetAction-icon" role="img" style="background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%2062%2072%22%3E%3Cpath%20class%3D%22icon%22%20fill%3D%22%23697882%22%20d%3D%22M41%2031h-9V19c0-1.14-.647-2.183-1.668-2.688-1.022-.507-2.243-.39-3.15.302l-21%2016C5.438%2033.18%205%2034.064%205%2035s.437%201.82%201.182%202.387l21%2016c.533.405%201.174.613%201.82.613.453%200%20.908-.103%201.33-.312C31.354%2053.183%2032%2052.14%2032%2051V39h9c5.514%200%2010%204.486%2010%2010%200%202.21%201.79%204%204%204s4-1.79%204-4c0-9.925-8.075-18-18-18z%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E"); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: contain; display: inline-block; height: 1.25em; transform: scaleX(1); vertical-align: text-bottom; width: 1.07639em;" title="Reply"> </div> </a></li>   <li class="Tweet-action" style="display: inline-block; margin-left: 14px;"><a class="TweetAction TweetAction--retweet web-intent" data-scribe="element:retweet" href="https://twitter.com/intent/retweet?tweet_id=814126998754881536" style="background-color: transparent; color: #697882; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div aria-label="Retweet" class="Icon Icon--retweet TweetAction-icon" role="img" style="background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%2074%2072%22%3E%3Cpath%20class%3D%22icon%22%20fill%3D%22%23697882%22%20d%3D%22M70.676%2036.644C70.166%2035.636%2069.13%2035%2068%2035h-7V19c0-2.21-1.79-4-4-4H34c-2.21%200-4%201.79-4%204s1.79%204%204%204h18c.552%200%20.998.446%201%20.998V35h-7c-1.13%200-2.165.636-2.676%201.644-.51%201.01-.412%202.22.257%203.13l11%2015C55.148%2055.545%2056.046%2056%2057%2056s1.855-.455%202.42-1.226l11-15c.668-.912.767-2.122.256-3.13zM40%2048H22c-.54%200-.97-.427-.992-.96L21%2036h7c1.13%200%202.166-.636%202.677-1.644.51-1.01.412-2.22-.257-3.13l-11-15C18.854%2015.455%2017.956%2015%2017%2015s-1.854.455-2.42%201.226l-11%2015c-.667.912-.767%202.122-.255%203.13C3.835%2035.365%204.87%2036%206%2036h7l.012%2016.003c.002%202.208%201.792%203.997%204%203.997h22.99c2.208%200%204-1.79%204-4s-1.792-4-4-4z%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E"); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: contain; display: inline-block; height: 1.25em; transform: scaleX(1); vertical-align: text-bottom; width: 1.28472em;" title="Retweet"> </div>  <span aria-hidden="true" class="TweetAction-stat" data-scribe="element:retweet_count" style="display: inline-block; font-size: 14px; vertical-align: text-bottom;">25,224</span><span class="u-hiddenVisually" style="border: 0px !important; clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px) !important; height: 1px !important; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important;">25,224 Retweets</span></a></li>   <li class="Tweet-action" style="display: inline-block; margin-left: 14px;"><a class="TweetAction TweetAction--heart web-intent" data-scribe="element:heart" href="https://twitter.com/intent/like?tweet_id=814126998754881536" style="background-color: transparent; color: #697882; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div aria-label="Like" class="Icon Icon--heart TweetAction-icon" role="img" style="background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20viewBox%3D%220%200%2054%2072%22%3E%3Cpath%20class%3D%22icon%22%20fill%3D%22%23697882%22%20d%3D%22M38.723%2012c-7.187%200-11.16%207.306-11.723%208.13-.563-.824-4.496-8.13-11.723-8.13C8.79%2012%203.533%2018.163%203.533%2024.647%203.533%2039.964%2021.89%2055.907%2027%2056c5.11-.093%2023.467-16.036%2023.467-31.353C50.467%2018.163%2045.21%2012%2038.723%2012z%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E"); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: contain; display: inline-block; height: 1.25em; vertical-align: text-bottom; width: 0.9375em;" title="Like"> </div>  <span aria-hidden="true" class="TweetAction-stat" data-scribe="element:heart_count" style="display: inline-block; font-size: 14px; vertical-align: text-bottom;">28,395</span><span class="u-hiddenVisually" style="border: 0px !important; clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px) !important; height: 1px !important; overflow: hidden !important; padding: 0px !important; position: absolute !important; width: 1px !important;">28,395 likes</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </blockquote> </div> </div> <div class="resize-sensor" style="bottom: 0px; left: 0px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; right: 0px; top: 0px; visibility: hidden; z-index: -1;"> <div class="resize-sensor-expand" style="bottom: 0px; left: 0px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; right: 0px; top: 0px; visibility: hidden; z-index: -1;"> <div style="height: 216px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: 0s; width: 510px;"> </div> </div> <div class="resize-sensor-shrink" style="bottom: 0px; left: 0px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; right: 0px; top: 0px; visibility: hidden; z-index: -1;"> <div style="height: 412.344px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: 0s; width: 1000px;"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </twitterwidget></div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> In January Mr Hollande gave a partial pardon, reducing her sentence, but on Wednesday he granted Ms Sauvage a full pardon.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> One of her lawyers, Nathalie Tomasini, said she was "overcome by joy and emotion".</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> The French president was granted the power to decree pardons in 1958. </div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> Ms Sauvage is one of only two people to have been granted a pardon by Mr Hollande.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 1.2em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0px;"> He allowed Philippe El Shennawy, France's longest-serving prisoner, to be freed on parole after 38 years in prison.</div> </div>

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U.S. set to announce response to Russian election hacking: sources

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-77OdX1c3CwY/WGR3_RB0kvI/AAAAAAAABR4/3IsZBrIdMGo9m7-LQkMe2SkYOPinzmrGQCLcB/s1600/2016-12-28T220643Z_1_LYNXMPECBR0SQ_RTROPTP_2_G8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-77OdX1c3CwY/WGR3_RB0kvI/AAAAAAAABR4/3IsZBrIdMGo9m7-LQkMe2SkYOPinzmrGQCLcB/s400/2016-12-28T220643Z_1_LYNXMPECBR0SQ_RTROPTP_2_G8.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><h1 class="slideshow-headline Fz(14px) Lh(1.4) Mb(4px)" style="letter-spacing: 0.28px; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 4px; text-align: start;"> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Obama meets with Vladimir Putin during the G8 Summit at Lough Erne in Enniskillen</span></span></h1> </td></tr> </tbody></table> <h1 class="slideshow-headline Fz(14px) Lh(1.4) Mb(4px)" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 0.28px; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 4px;"> <br /></h1> <div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="24" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration plans to announce on Thursday a series of retaliatory measures against Russia for hacking into U.S. political institutions and individuals and leaking information in an effort to help President-elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates, two U.S. officials said on Wednesday.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="25" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Both officials declined to specify what actions President Barack Obama has approved, but said targeted economic sanctions, indictments, leaking information to embarrass Russian officials or oligarchs, and restrictions on Russian diplomats in the United States are among steps that have been discussed.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="26" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> One decision that has been made, they said, speaking on the condition of anonymity, is to avoid any moves that exceed the Russian election hacking and risk an escalating cyber conflict that could spiral out of control. One example of an excessive step might be interfering with Russian internet messaging.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="27" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Central Intelligence Agency and Office of Director of National Intelligence agree that Russia was behind hacks into Democratic Party organizations and operatives ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election. There is also agreement, according to U.S. officials, that Russia sought to intervene in the election to help Trump, a Republican, defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="28" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Russia has repeatedly denied hacking accusations. Trump has dismissed the assessments of the U.S. intelligence community.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="29" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Obama, in an interview earlier this month with NPR, said, "We need to take action and we will" against Russia for interfering in the U.S. election.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="30" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Trump seemed to suggest the United States should not impose sanctions on Russia.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="31" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> "I think we ought to get on with our lives," Trump told reporters in Florida on Wednesday when asked about remarks by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who said Russia and President Vladimir Putin should expect tough sanctions for the cyber attacks.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="32" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, promised retaliation on Wednesday against Washington in the event of new economic sanctions.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="33" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Jim Lewis, a cyber security expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said further sanctions may be an effective U.S. tool in part because they would be difficult for Trump to roll back and because Russia "hates" dealing with them.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="34" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> "For the rest of the world, it’s like having 'scumball' stamped on your forehead," Lewis said.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="35" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> How to respond to the growing problem of cyber attacks carried out or sponsored by foreign powers has bedeviled Obama, whose eight years in office witnessed a torrent of major hacks against the U.S. government and private organizations that were attributed to China, North Korea, Iran and Russia.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="36" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> In past cases, administration officials have decided to publicly blame North Korea and indict members of China’s military for hacking because they decided the net benefit of public shaming – and increased awareness brought to cyber security – outweighed potential risks.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="37" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> But determining an appropriate response to Russia's actions has proven more complicated in part because Russia's cyber capabilities are more advanced and due to fears about disrupting other geopolitical issues, such as the civil war in Syria.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="38" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Obama may choose to invoke an April 2015 executive order that empowered him to levy sanctions in response to cyber attacks perpetrated by foreign groups targeting infrastructure, such as transportation, or done for economic purposes.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="39" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> One option, said a U.S. government official who has participated in discussions on possible retaliation, would be leaking material on Russian officials or actions that the United States already has obtained in a way that would “parallel what the Russians did, but be impossible to prove.”</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="40" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> The official compared that option to Russian military and civilian intelligence agencies providing hacked material to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks and trying – unsuccessfully, the official said – to cover their tracks.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="41" data-type="text" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Another option would be further economic sanctions against Russia. Washington has already sanctioned Russia over the past two years to punish Moscow for its role in annexing Crimea. But former U.S. officials say the existing measures leave Washington plenty of room to slap new, tougher sanction on Russia in response to cyber intrusions.  </div> <div data-reactid="42" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"> </div> <div class="Ov(h) Trs($transition-readmore) Mah(999999px)" data-reactid="43" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; max-height: 999999px; overflow: hidden; zoom: 1;"> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="44" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> The Ukraine sanctions were “narrowly tailored” to hurt specific sectors of Russian industry, such as the energy sector, without causing the nation's economy to tank, said Juan Zarate, a former assistant secretary of the Treasury for terrorist financing and financial crimes.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="45" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> The United States took a more measured approach, in part, to reserve tougher measures in case the situation worsened, said Zarate, chairman of the Financial Integrity Network, a private consulting firm that advises on financial threats.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="46" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> The United States is still unlikely to impose blanket embargoes against Russia because of the danger it could harm the economies of Western Europe, said Peter Harrell, a former senior State Department official who worked on sanctions policy.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="47" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Instead, the United States may target specific Russian intelligence officials or military divisions believed to be involved in the cyber intrusions. “The Russian defense sector would be fair game,” Harrell said.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="48" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> Looming over any action the Obama administration takes against Russia is whether Trump will seek to reverse course once he takes office on Jan. 20.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="49" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> In addition to casting doubt on the conclusions of the U.S. intelligence community about the hacks, Trump has repeatedly praised Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts.</div> <div class="canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm canvas-atom" data-reactid="50" data-type="text" style="letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin-bottom: 1em;"> (Reporting by Dustin Volz and Joel Schectman in Washington; Additional reporting by Richard Cowan in Palm Beach, Florida; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh, Leslie Adler and Lisa Shumaker)</div> </div> </div>

U.S. set to announce response to Russian election hacking: sources

Obama meets with Vladimir Putin during the G8 Summit at Lough Erne in Enniskillen WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration ...

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Woman dies in 20-car pile-up on A40 as cold weather alert issued

<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A WOMAN HAS DIED FOLLOWING A PILE-UP INVOLVING AROUND 20 VEHICLES ON A MAJOR ROAD COVERED WITH FOG.</b></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oiGYLXJt2u8/WGPJpY6XcyI/AAAAAAAABRg/06M-M7sdQI4_jUXrbe8WU5M1OB3jCyg-wCLcB/s1600/m40crash-NEWS-large_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqe8exRwkrG0gUQzS_A7vs-CQQkzs1qTdPg9I4L9nUfCo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oiGYLXJt2u8/WGPJpY6XcyI/AAAAAAAABRg/06M-M7sdQI4_jUXrbe8WU5M1OB3jCyg-wCLcB/s400/m40crash-NEWS-large_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqe8exRwkrG0gUQzS_A7vs-CQQkzs1qTdPg9I4L9nUfCo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <span style="text-transform: uppercase;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span> The A40 has been closed in both directions following the multi-vehicle crash, which stretched for more than half a mile on the A40 near Witney in Oxfordshire, the ambulance service said.<br /><br />The Met Office issued a weather alert as temperatures were expected to plummet for the rest of the week, with the risk of fog and ice.<br /><br />The woman driver was declared dead at the scene, while another person was taken to the major trauma unit at the nearby John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.<br /><br />A further 10 to 15 casualties were treated at the scene following several collisions at around 8.25am, South Central Ambulance Service spokesman David Gallagher said.<br /><br />Images showed the mangled wreckage of several of the cars involved, with debris strewn across the road. Reports suggested the A40 was bathed in thick fog this morning.<br /><br />Six vehicles were said to be badly damaged, while a further 10 to 15 were also involved, with the most serious injuries happening in the middle of the pile-up.<br /><br />It was really dangerous, says pregnant mother<br /><br />Pregnant mother-of-two Ami Gaston, from Carterton, was in the car with her partner when she saw the first vehicle crash. She said the accident happened about half a mile from the Witney exit, blocking the right lane.<br /><br />"A man on his own had skidded and crashed into middle barrier. My partner was driving - we had to swerve out of the right lane to avoid hitting him. His door was open and air bags were released," Miss Gaston said.<br /><br />"IPHONED an ambulance but couldn't stop. My partner wouldn't stop because I am 20 weeks pregnant and didn't want to put us in danger."<br /><br />She added that the heavy fog meant the situation was "really dangerous", as it was difficult to see any other car until you were "on top of it".<br /><br />It was carnage, eyewitness says <br /><br />Another eyewitness arrived at the scene later and described the "carnage" as multiple cars swerved and crashed on the busy road.<br /><br />The woman, who asked not to be named, said she "luckily" saw hazard warning LIGHTS ahead as she approached on the slip road from Carterton, and moved on to a grass verge before witnessing the pile-up.<br /><br />"I saw cars going zooming past me and trying to swerve out the way of the stationary cars but crashing into them," she said.<br /><br />"I saw one car try swerve in between a Mini and another car, ending up crashing into the Mini and (flying) up in the air.<br /><br />"I saw two cars swerve as they braked so hard and go flying into the barrier in the middle of the road ... it was carnage," she added.<br /><br />The incident is likely to cause major disruption for many people travelling across the country following the Christmas break, as the road connects London to Wales.<br />

Woman dies in 20-car pile-up on A40 as cold weather alert issued

A WOMAN HAS DIED FOLLOWING A PILE-UP INVOLVING AROUND 20 VEHICLES ON A MAJOR ROAD COVERED WITH FOG. The A40 has been closed in both direc...

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Afghanistan: 43 percent rise in estimated opium harvest

<h2 class="standfirst" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 32px; font-style: italic; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="color: purple;">Figures from government and UNODC show 10 percent increase in poppy cultivation and 91 percent decrease in eradication.</span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #888888; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mnD81UJ4rBE/WGMrzZGVFfI/AAAAAAAABQw/fZBQ4GSMR20JYId2HmDeo54Cn7Ctn-4agCLcB/s1600/3a0d0e94bad54d42a79354a172b1c84e_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mnD81UJ4rBE/WGMrzZGVFfI/AAAAAAAABQw/fZBQ4GSMR20JYId2HmDeo54Cn7Ctn-4agCLcB/s400/3a0d0e94bad54d42a79354a172b1c84e_18.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> </h2> <div> <br /></div> <div> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Estimated opium production in Afghanistan has risen by 43 percent to 4,800 metric tonnes in 2016 compared with 2015 levels, according to the latest Afghanistan Opium Survey figures released by the Afghan Ministry of Counter Narcotics and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).</span></div> <div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The survey, released on Sunday, showed that the total area under cultivation in Afghanistan at an estimated 201,000 hectares in 2016, a 10 percent increase from the 183,000 hectares in 2015.</span></div> <div class="teads-inread" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; color: #333333; height: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; outline: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; transition: height 0.5s; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div class="teads-player" id="teads0" style="background: transparent; border: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The report also showed a 91 percent decrease in eradication this year.</span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No eradication has taken place in provinces with high levels of opium poppy cultivation due to the extremely poor security situation in those areas, as well as logistical and financial challenges, the report said.</span></span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Overall, potential opium production in Afghanistan has increased 43 percent, with 4,800 tonnes this year compared to 3,300 tonnes in 2015.</span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yury Fedotov, <span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">UNODC executive director, </span>said in a statement on Sunday that the new report shows a worrying reversal in efforts to combat the persistent problem of illicit drugs and their impact on development, health and security.</span></span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fedotov urged the international community to lend their support to achieving the sustainable development goals in Afghanistan - including vital work on a peaceful and inclusive society, health, poverty, peace, and gender, among many others.</span></span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Poppy farmers are often taxed by the Taliban, who use the cash to help fund their fight against government forces.</span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Afghanistan grows about 80 percent of the world's opium, which is used to produce highly addictive heroin.</span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: transparent; border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></div> <div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 0.8em !important; margin-top: 0.8em; max-width: 100%; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The poppies, which provide huge profits in one of the world's poorest countries, play a large part in the corruption that plagues Afghan life at every level.</span></div> </div>

Afghanistan: 43 percent rise in estimated opium harvest

Figures from government and UNODC show 10 percent increase in poppy cultivation and 91 percent decrease in eradication. Estimated opi...

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