Iran Building Drone and Missile-Carrying, Electronic Warfare Capable Warship, Commander Reveals

– September 25, 2020

The Islamic Republic staged large-scale drills in the eastern waters of the Strait of Hormuz, the Makran coast, the Gulf of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean this month amid tensions with Washington. This week, drones from the Revolutionary Guard Corps captured detailed video footage of a US carrier strike group as it entered the Persian Gulf.

Iran is building a new class of helicopter-carrying warship capable of operating in the world’s oceans, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy Commander Rear-Admiral Alireza Tangsiri has revealed.

The domestically built 65-metre-long ships are expected to be unveiled in the near future, Tangsiri said, speaking on television on Thursday evening, without providing any more details.

Separately, Rear-Admiral Hossein Khanzadi, commander of Iran’s Navy, said his force would unveil a new dock ship on Navy Day in November, with the 231-metre-long vessel expected to carry up to seven helicopters, as well as drones, missiles and electronic warfare equipment.

The Moudge-class Dena frigate, the Saba minesweeper and a new class of missile boat are also expected to be unveiled on Navy Day, Khanzadi said adding that the Dena is undergoing its sea final trials, and is more advanced than previously delivered ships of the class.

Tangsiri noted that, as well as the new class of corvettes, the IRGC plans to take delivery of new missile-launching boats capable of accelerating to blazing-fast speeds up to 94 knots.

https://sputniknews.com

Bank of England eyes sub-zero rates in face of virus, Brexit

The Canadian Press – September 17, 2020

LONDON — The Bank of England indicated Thursday that it could cut interest rates below zero for the first time in its 326-year history as it tries to shore up a U.K. economic recovery that is facing the dual headwinds of the coronavirus and Brexit.

After unanimously deciding to maintain the bank’s main interest rate at the record low of 0.1%, the nine-member rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee said it had discussed its “policy toolkit, and the effectiveness of negative policy rates in particular.”

In minutes accompanying the decision, the rate-setters said a recent wave of virus infections has “the potential to weigh further on economic activity, albeit probably on a lesser scale than seen earlier in the year.”

Though the committee noted that recent economic data have been a “little stronger than expected” at its last meeting in early August, it said it is unclear what that says about the future “given the risks.”

One clear concern relates to whether Britain, like others in Europe, will reimpose broad restrictions on businesses and public life after the recent flare-up in virus infections across the region. Already social gatherings are being restricted and certain areas of the U.K. are seeing localized lockdowns.

The British economy suffered one of the deepest recessions in the world this year when many sectors were effectively mothballed to help contain the pandemic. Though it recouped some ground in the summer as lockdown restrictions were eased, the economy was still around 12% smaller at the end of July than it was in February, when the pandemic started in Europe.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com

WSU researchers: Asian giant hornet has potential to spread down West Coast

KIRO 7 – September 23, 2020

PULLMAN, Wash. — Researchers at Washington State University say they have predicted how and where the Asian giant hornet – also dubbed the “murder hornet” — could spread and find ideal places to live in the US and across the world.

The team found that if the hornet gets a foothold in Washington state, it could spread down much of the West Coast.

The hornet could also find habitat throughout the eastern seaboard and parts of Africa, Australia, Europe and South America if humans accidentally transport it.

Researchers say the predictions emphasize how important it is to stop the large hornets in Washington before they spread.

Scientists from the state Department of Agriculture and WSU entomologists examined hundreds of records from the hornet’s native range in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, then used a set of ecological models and climate information to predict where it could likely live across six continents.

“We’re making an educated guess on how fast and far these insects can move, their rate of success in establishing a nest, and offering different scenarios, from least bad to worst. No one has done this before for this species,” said WSU entomologist Javier Illan.

Experts say the Asian giant hornet is a significant threat to Western honey bees. In late summer and fall, hornet colonies attack beehives, destroying entire colonies.

The hornets are most likely to thrive in places with warm summers, mild winters and a lot of rain. High heat will kill them, so their best habitats are in areas with a high temperature of 102 degrees.

Giant hornets could live along much of the US west and east coasts, adjacent parts of Canada, much of Europe, northwestern and southeastern South America, central Africa, eastern Australia and most parts of New Zealand, WSU said in a news release.

https://www.kiro7.com

After Corona now Brucella outbreak in China: Thousands infected by bacteria after leak in biopharmaceutical plant

Strange Sounds – September 20, 2020

Another outbreak in China has sparked a wave of concern among authorities after thousands of people in the northern part of the country tested positive for a bacterial infection.

The infection spread among people working in a state-owned biopharmaceutical plant in Lanzhou city, which produces animal vaccines after a leak occurred last year.

Here’s what you need to know about the new Brucellosis outbreak:
According to Chinese authorities, the biopharmaceutical plant had used expired disinfectants for producing Brucella vaccines for animals between July and August last year. This indicated that the bacteria was not eradicated in the factory exhaust.

Subsequently, the contaminated gas from the factory formed aerosols containing the bacteria, which was then carried by wind to a nearby Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute. This resulted in infecting close to 200 people there as well in December last year.

There are 3,245 people who have contracted Brucellosis, according to health officials in Lanzhou.

Another 1,401 people also tested as an early positive for the disease, news agency AFP reported.

The total positive cases also included 20 students and faculty members of Lanzhou University, some of whom had been to the institute.

https://strangesounds.org

Idaho Police Arrest 3 at Outdoor Church Worship Event in Defiance of Mask Mandate

Ezra Dulis – September 20, 2020

Police in Moscow, Idaho, arrested three people Wednesday for violating social distancing rules as their church sang hymns and Bible psalms outdoors — an event held, in part, to protest the city mayor’s mask mandate, which runs to January 2021.

Officers arrested Gabriel Rench, Rachel Bohnet, and Sean Bohnet, according to Moscow Report, a local independent news outlet. A video uploaded to social media shows Bohnet, a local music teacher, and his wife telling officers they refused to comply with an inaudible order. Moscow Report says the apparent infraction is that they refused to show identification.

Update: The Moscow Police Department’s daily activity log lists the reasons for the arrests as “public health emergency order” violations.

Footage of the couple’s arrest shows the church body singing the hymn “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow” as officers place them in handcuffs.

Rench is a co-host of Cross Politic, a Christian political talk show, and a candidate for county commissioner. “You guys should not be doing this,” he told officers as they walked him to a squad car. “And doing this kind of crap for the mayor, this is embarrassing. You guys are stronger than this.”

Released that same day, Rench appeared on his talk show to discuss the arrest, playing extended footage of his conversation with officers. One of his companions is heard telling the officers “We backed you guys” at recent Black Lives Matter protests advocating to defund the police. “They didn’t send you [to enforce social distancing] with BLM to go do that when they said defund you guys. We backed you guys.”

“I got booked in jail; I was in jail for about two hours,” he said. “And as they were de-booking me, or whatever they call it, I’m walking out and I go by their office, which is right next to where I’m getting booked out. And there’s three deputies in the officer, and two of them aren’t wearing masks and sitting right next to each other. And I said, ‘hey, should they get arrested?’”

https://www.breitbart.com

Abortions Set for Another Record High in England and Wales

– September 18, 2020

Almost 110,000 abortions were carried out on residents of England and Wales between January and June this year, the Government has revealed.

Figures released by the Department for Health and Social Care indicated there had been an increase of more than 4,000 on the same period last year.

In the whole of last year, 207,384 abortions were carried out on residents, but pro-life campaigners say 2020 looks “set to eclipse 2019’s total”.

The number of abortions rose sharply in April, 4,500 more than the previous year, after the Government introduced ‘DIY’ home abortions at the end of March.

Under the rules, women can take both pills required for an abortion at home up to ten weeks, following a conversation with a doctor.

There has been a subsequent uptake in medical abortions, rising from 72 per cent of all abortions between January and June 2019 to 82 per cent over the same period this year.

Right to Life UK’s Catherine Robinson called the findings a “national tragedy”.

She said: “Every one of these abortions represents a failure of our society to protect the lives of babies in the womb and a failure to offer full support to women with unplanned pregnancies.

“This year we’ve come together as a nation and made great sacrifices to protect the vulnerable from Covid-19.

“Sadly, at the very same time as protecting one group of vulnerable people, we as society have also ended thousands of young vulnerable lives through abortion.”

https://christiannews.net

US Senators Introduce Bill to Prohibit Males Who Identify as Female From Competing in Girls’ School Sports

– September 24, 2020

WASHINGTON — Five U.S. senators have introduced a bill that would prohibit biological males who identify as female from competing in girls’ school sports.

Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, Mike Lee of Utah, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, James Lankford of Oklahoma and Tom Cotton of Arkansas presented the “Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act” on Tuesday, which amends Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to specifically note that the definition of “sex” is based on the individual’s “reproductive biology and genetics at the the time of birth.”

“It shall be a violation … for a recipient of federal funds who operates, sponsors, or facilitates athletic programs or activities to permit a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls,” the bill reads.

Read it in full here.

According to Loeffler, the measure would penalize schools that violate the law and could also threaten their funding altogether.

She points to a case out of Connecticut in which the Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) implemented a policy allowing students to compete in accordance with their stated “gender identity.”

Two biological boys, who go by the names Andraya Yearwood and Terry Miller, were consequently permitted to join the girls track team at their school and compete as females — moving on to the New England regionals.

One of the female competitors, Selina Soule, who attends Bloomfield High School, wasn’t able to qualify for the 55-meter race at the regionals because Yearwood and Miller took two of the top spots. She came in eighth.

She and her mother, along with fellow runners Chelsea Mitchell and Alanna Smith and their parents, lodged a complaint last year with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, which agreed to investigate.

https://christiannews.net

Decrying normalization, Palestinians warn of Third Intifada

KHALED ABU TOAMEH – September 15, 2020

Palestinian protests against the normalization agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain could lead to an intifada, Palestinian activists warned on Tuesday.

The warning came as Palestinians held protests against the “treacherous” agreements in some parts of the West Bank. The protests, organized by several Palestinian factions that are part of a new group called the Unified Leadership of the Popular Resistance, were held under the banner: “Normalization is a crime.”

“We are on the brink of a third intifada,” a Fatah activist told The Jerusalem Post. “The Palestinian people feels betrayed by the Arabs and will show the world that the Palestinian issue remains the central issue of all Arabs and Muslims.”

Other activists belonging to various Palestinian factions expressed hope that the Palestinian “day of rage” on the day of the signing ceremony of the normalization agreements at the White House would spark an intifada against Israel.

As part of the “day of rage,” Palestinians took to the streets in Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarm, Hebron and other cities to voice their rejection of the peace accords between Israel and the two Gulf states.

The protesters held placards that read: “No to normalization with the occupation,” “We won’t allow the blood of our martyrs to be turned into a merchandise for trade,” and “Palestine will remain Arab.”

https://www.jpost.com

Pandemic has accelerated adoption of digital currency: ECB President

Turner Wright – September 11, 2020

The pandemic has seen consumers adopt digital payments in increasing numbers and the trend was accelerating, said the President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde.

She also indicated a panel of euro-zone central bank officials is set to reveal a verdict on a European central bank digital currency (CBDC) imminently.

Speaking at an online conference hosted by Deutsche Bundesbank on Sept. 10, Lagarde, stated that EU residents had embraced digitalization, with e-commerce sales increasing roughly 20% between February and June, even as total retail sales declined 1.2%. She said the volume of online payments had experienced “double-digit growth rates” since the start of the outbreak.

“The pandemic has served as a catalyst, accelerating the transition towards a digital new normal,” Lagarde stated. “A vast majority of consumers expect to continue to use digital services as often as they do now or even more often.”

Other institutions have reached the same conclusion as data comes in regarding the economic fallout of COVID. An August report from Singapore’s DBS Bank stated that “the ongoing pandemic has added fuel to the move toward a society with less cash dependence.”

Lagarde supports the ECB developing a CBDC to address the move towards digitalization, in addition to faster and cheaper cross-border payments. Last September, when she was the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the ECB president said she would focus on ensuring EU institutions adapt to the changing financial environment by being open to crypto.

https://cointelegraph.com

Sally leaves trail of destruction across Gulf Coast

Gianrigo Marletta, with Leila Macor – September 17, 2020

Shellshocked residents were cleaning up on Thursday after Hurricane Sally left a trail of destruction in US coastal towns stretching from Alabama to the top of the Florida panhandle.

Sally, which made landfall Wednesday as a Category 2 hurricane, turned streets into rivers, toppled trees and downed power lines.

“Our house had windows blow out,” Matt Wilson of Orange Beach, Alabama, one of the worst hit towns, told WPMI TV. “The whole house was shaking like a boat on the water.

“It was scary, man, it really was.”

Lieutenant Trent Johnson of the Orange Beach Police Department told AFP there had been one death in the city.

More than 400,000 homes and businesses in Alabama and Florida were still without power on Thursday, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us.

Some of the worst reported flooding occurred in the city of Pensacola, Florida, which has a population of around 52,000.

Downtown streets resembled lakes at the height of the storm with cars submerged to the tops of their wheels and ferocious winds whipping up whitecaps.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was to visit Pensacola on Thursday to survey the damage, which included a missing section of a major new bridge across Pensacola Bay.

A 7:00 pm to 6:00 am curfew was imposed in Pensacola and surrounding counties.

Wilson, the Orange Beach resident, said his house had suffered severe damage and his family fled their home at the height of the storm.

“Everything on the ground floor is gone,” he told WPMI. “We ended up leaving the house during the eye of the storm… and waded through about five foot of water to our neighbor’s house arm in arm.”

https://www.spacedaily.com