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Slovakia approves cull of 350 bears after man mauled to death in latest fatal attack

Slovakia's government has approved a plan to cull 350 bears following a deadly attack on a human

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Outrage in New Zealand after 11-year-old girl sent to psychiatric ward and drugged in identity mix-up

Report finds police mistook girl for missing woman in blunder that has appalled political leadersAn 11-year-old girl was restrained, injected with anti-psychotic drugs and placed on a mental health ward after New Zealand police mistook her for a missing woman, a report found on Wednesday.Health officials and police have scrambled to explain the mix-up, which has appalled political leaders and stoked outrage across the country. Continue reading...

Neil Young says he may be barred from returning to US over Donald Trump criticism

The US-Canadian dual citizen speculates he may be ‘barred or put in jail to sleep on a cement floor’ after his European tour, after years of speaking against TrumpNeil Young has shared his concerns of being barred from the US after his European tour later this year, thanks to his outspoken critiques of Donald Trump.On Tuesday, on his website Neil Young Archives, the 79-year-old musician – who has dual Canadian-American citizenship – wrote of his fears after the recent spate of people being detained and deported upon entering the US. These incidents have been credited to vague or unspecified visa issues, but have frequently affected individuals who have criticised the Trump administration either publicly or in messages on their phone read by immigration officers. Continue reading...

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Hegseth indicates US backing for Taiwan – but it is transactional Trump who has the final word

Defence secretary’s trip to Asia shows the Trump administration is engaged with the region, but analysts warn Taipei to tread carefully On Tuesday China’s military launched joint drills around Taiwan, sending ships, planes and some bizarre propaganda videos across the strait to both warn and punish Taiwan’s government over what Beijing calls “separatist activity”.The purported provocation was recent assertiveness by Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, who in March designated China a “foreign hostile force” and announced 17 measures to counter its espionage and influence operations. Continue reading...

'Unprecedented': Report sounds warning over role of Truth Social in Trump world

President Donald Trump's Truth Social platform was slammed as an "unsuccessful and money-losing Twitter competitor" in a Mother Jones article Tuesday.Yet to him, it remains a valuable tool keeping his cash flow moving and his administration in line, the report claimed.According to senior reporter Anna Merlan, "The company that owns TruthSocial, Trump Media & Technology Group, has also been a way for the president to draw his political allies closer, through payments, board seats, and generous stock rewards."The Trumps see the company as a sort of piggy bank, with Merlan writing, "TMTG paid Donald Trump Jr. $813,000, a quarter of TMTG’s 2024 annual revenue, 'just for showing up at board meetings,'" and "CEO Devin Nunes, a former California Republican congressman, has made at least $6.3 million running the company since 2022 — 'a stunning figure for a firm that is struggling to earn any money.'" ALSO READ: 'The Hard Reset': Here's how the U.S. is exporting terrorism around the worldMerlan writes that the publicly-traded TMTG "is unlikely to ever become a real success outside of the Trump universe," but it provides a valuable service to those seeking a window into Trump's transactional presidency and how he and his administration dabble in "unprecedented mingling of his corporate and political fiefdoms."For example, Merlan writes that "three people who have held shares or served on the board of TMTG have been appointed to high-profile positions in the Trump administration: Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI director Kash Patel, and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon." Trump has appointed "at least four others with TMTG ties to federal roles," Merlan writes, but none has filed paperwork to divest from the company as they promised to.Tony Carrk, the executive director of the government watchdog Accountable U.S., told Mother Jones, “The unprecedented situation of president Trump rewarding investors and executives in his media company with administration jobs sends a clear message to the wealthy, corporate lobbyists and foreign interests that the road to influence in the United States runs through Trump Media."He continues, “No one should be surprised that president Trump’s first weeks in office have been about removing barriers to corruption and dismantling oversight, not about lowering costs for working families. Trump cares more about lining his own pockets and his wealthy friends’ than putting money back into yours.”Read the Mother Jones article here.