AFP USA

New York City Democrats chose 33-year-old Muslim socialist Zohran Mamdani as their mayoral candidate in Tuesday’s elections, stunning his opponent, former New York governor Andrew Cuomo.In what appears to be the left-leaning city’s rebuke of the Democratic Party’s veteran moderates — and New York’s rarely claimed native son, Republican US President Donald Trump — Mamdani led with 43 percent of the vote with 95 percent of ballots counted, city officials reported.”Tonight we made history,” Mamdani said in his victory speech surrounded by supporters after surging from behind.”We have won because New Yorkers have stood up for a city they can afford,” he added. “A city where they can do more than just struggle.”The 67-year-old Cuomo, a political veteran who was vying to come back from a sexual harassment scandal, told supporters at an election night party: “Tonight was not our night.”He said: “I called him, I congratulated him… he won.” The party’s primary contest featured almost a dozen candidates seeking to become mayor of the biggest US city, where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans three to one.Voters cast ballots during a smothering heatwave before polls closed at 9:00 pm (0100 GMT Wednesday), but results may take time to finalize. The contest is ranked-choice, with voters asked to select five candidates in order of preference, and neither Cuomo nor Mamdani claimed the required majority Tuesday. If no candidate wins 50 percent of the vote, election officials begin eliminating lowest-ranking candidates and recounting, a process that can take days. With the Democrats reeling nationally from Trump’s presidential election win last year, the high-profile city race has done little to calm party nerves. But Mamdani’s upbeat campaign, built with youthful social media savvy and campaign promises to improve the city’s affordability, appears to have resonated with voters.- Prime Trump target? -Cuomo stepped down as New York governor four years ago after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment. He was also accused of mismanaging the state’s response to the Covid pandemic.Staunchly pro-Israel Cuomo led in polls for most of the race, with massive name recognition as the son of another New York governor, as well as support from powerful centrist figures including former president Bill Clinton.Mamdani is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America — the kind of niche, leftist affiliation that might work in the Big Apple but many analysts warn against.The fact that Mamdani speaks out for Palestinians and has accused Israel of “genocide” also makes him a prime target for Trump. His supporters include two favorite Trump foils — fiery leftist Senator Bernie Sanders and progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who both congratulated Mamdani.”Billionaires and lobbyists poured millions against you and our public finance system. And you won,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X. Sanders posted: “You took on the political, economic and media Establishment — and you beat them.”Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate, said Mamdani “is too extreme for a city already on edge.” He added on X: “This is not the time for radical politics. It is time for real leadership… Let’s win this on November 4th!”Voters told AFP they saw the ballot as an opportunity to guide party politics.”I see it as a referendum of the Democratic Party, whether we lean more towards the centrist candidate, who’s maybe from a different generation of politicians and people in society, or a younger, left-leaning, more ambitious, idealistic party,” voter Nicholas Zantal, 31, said.- Big ideas, low experience -Currently a New York state assemblyman representing the borough of Queens, Mamdani stands out for his energetic campaigning style and eye-catching policy proposals that include freezing rent for many New Yorkers, providing free bus service, and universal childcare.And in a wildly expensive city, where a three-bedroom apartment can easily cost $6,000 a month, his message struck a chord with some.Voter Eamon Harkin, 48, said prices were his “number one issue.””What’s at stake is primarily the affordability of New York,” he said.But Sheryl Stein, who works in tourism marketing, was skeptical.”I like youth,” she said. But Mamdani having “no experience and no proven track record to run the largest city in this country and one of the largest in the world is pretty scary.”The confirmed winner of the Democratic Party nomination will face several contenders in November, including current Mayor Eric Adams, who is a Democrat but has vowed to run again as an independent.”What NYC deserves is a mayor who’s proud to run on his record — not one who ran from his record or one who has no record,” he said.

Efforts to vaccinate children against deadly diseases are faltering across the world due to economic inequality, Covid-era disruptions and misinformation, putting millions of lives at risk, research warned Wednesday.These trends all increase the threat of future outbreaks of preventable diseases, the researchers said, while sweeping foreign aid cuts threaten previous progress in vaccinating the world’s children.A new study published in The Lancet journal looked at childhood vaccination rates across 204 countries and territories.It was not all bad news. An immunisation programme by the World Health Organization was estimated to have saved an estimated 154 million lives over the last 50 years.And vaccination coverage against diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, measles, polio and tuberculosis doubled between 1980 and 2023, the international team of researchers found.However the gains slowed in the 2010s, when measles vaccinations decreased in around half of the countries, with the largest drop in Latin America. Meanwhile in more than half of all high-income countries there were declines in coverage for at least one vaccine dose.Then the Covid-19 pandemic struck. Routine vaccination services were hugely disrupted during lockdowns and other measures, resulting in nearly 13 million extra children who never received any vaccine dose between 2020 to 2023, the study said.This disparity endured, particularly in poorer countries. In 2023, more than half of the world’s 15.7 million completely unvaccinated children lived in just eight countries, the majority in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the study.In the European Union, 10 times more measles cases were recorded last year compared to 2023.In the United States, a measles outbreak surged past 1,000 cases across 30 states last month, which is already more than were recorded in all of 2024.Cases of polio, long eradicated in many areas thanks to vaccination, have been rising in Pakistan and Afghanistan, while Papua New Guinea is currently enduring a polio outbreak.- ‘Tragedy’ -“Routine childhood vaccinations are among the most powerful and cost-effective public health interventions available,” said senior study author Jonathan Mosser of the US-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).”But persistent global inequalities, challenges from the Covid pandemic, and the growth of vaccine misinformation and hesitancy have all contributed to faltering immunisation progress,” he said in a statement. In addition, there are “rising numbers of displaced people and growing disparities due to armed conflict, political volatility, economic uncertainty, climate crises,” added lead study author Emily Haeuser, also from the IHME.The researchers warned the setbacks could threaten the WHO’s goal of having 90 percent of the world’s children and adolescents receive essential vaccines by 2030.The WHO also aims to halve the number of children who have received no vaccine doses by 2030 compared to 2019 levels.Just 18 countries have achieved this so far, according to the study, which was funded by the Gates Foundation and the Gavi vaccine alliance.The global health community has also been reeling since President Donald Trump’s administration drastically slashed US international aid earlier this year.”For the first time in decades, the number of kids dying around the world will likely go up this year instead of down because of massive cuts to foreign aid,” Bill Gates said in a separate statement on Tuesday.”That is a tragedy,” the Microsoft co-founder said, committing $1.6 billion to Gavi, which is holding a fund-raising summit in Brussels on Wednesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a “historic victory” against Iran despite a US intelligence report concluding that American strikes set back Tehran’s nuclear program by just a few months.Iran and Israel agreed a ceasefire on Tuesday ending 12 days of tit-for-tat strikes, after US President Donald Trump joined the conflict with bunker-busting bombs at the weekend that he said destroyed key Iranian nuclear sites.A classified preliminary US intelligence report, however, concluded that American strikes on Iran set back its nuclear program by just a few months.Trump rebuffed that claim on Tuesday, posting on his Truth Social account that “THE NUCLEAR SITES IN IRAN ARE COMPLETELY DESTROYED!”White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt had previously confirmed the authenticity of the assessment but said it was “flat-out wrong”.Netanyahu, in an address to the nation after the ceasefire, announced that “we have thwarted Iran’s nuclear project”.”And if anyone in Iran tries to rebuild it, we will act with the same determination, with the same intensity, to foil any attempt,” he said.Israel had said its bombing campaign, which began on June 13, was aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, an ambition Tehran has consistently denied.Israel’s military said that its strikes had set back Iran’s nuclear programme “by years”.After Trump angrily berated both sides for early violations of the truce on Tuesday, Tehran announced it would respect the terms of the deal if Israel did the same, while Israel said it had refrained from further strikes.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was willing to return to negotiations over its nuclear programme, but that his country would continue to “assert its legitimate rights” to the peaceful use of atomic energy.- Leaked intel -US media on Tuesday cited people familiar with the Defense Intelligence Agency findings as saying the American strikes did not fully eliminate Iran’s centrifuges or stockpile of enriched uranium.The strikes sealed off entrances to some facilities without destroying underground buildings, according to the report.White House Press Secretary Leavitt responded on social media: “The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear program.”While Iran and Israel have been locked in a shadow war for decades, their 12-day conflict was by far the most destructive confrontation between them.Israeli strikes hit nuclear and military targets — killing scientists and senior military figures — as well as residential areas, prompting waves of Iranian missile fire on Israel.The war culminated in US strikes on underground Iranian nuclear sites using bunker-busting bombs — which Israel lacks — followed by an Iranian reprisal targeting the largest US military facility in the Middle East.Trump shrugged off that response as “weak”, thanking Tehran for giving advance notice and announcing the contours of the ceasefire just hours later. – ‘Everyone is tired’ -Some Israelis welcomed the prospect of a truce.”Everyone is tired. We just want to have some peace of mind,” said Tel Aviv resident Tammy Shel. “For us, for the Iranian people, for the Palestinians, for everyone in the region.”In Iran, people remained uncertain whether the peace would hold. Amir, 28, fled from Tehran to the Caspian Sea coast and told AFP by phone, “I really don’t know… about the ceasefire but honestly, I don’t think things will return to normal.”Israeli strikes on Iran killed at least 610 civilians and wounded more than 4,700, according to the health ministry.Iran’s attacks on Israel have killed 28 people, according to official figures and rescuers.The international community reacted with cautious optimism to the truce.Saudi Arabia and the European Union welcomed Trump’s announcement, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia hoped “that this will be a sustainable ceasefire”.But French President Emmanuel Macron warned there was an “increased” risk that Iran would attempt to enrich uranium secretly following the strikes on its nuclear sites.After the truce was announced, Israel’s military chief Eyal Zamir said Israel’s focus would now shift back to Gaza.The Israeli opposition, the Palestinian Authority and the main group representing the families of Israeli hostages all called for a Gaza truce to complement the Iran ceasefire. burs-dcp/mjw/ecl

A classified preliminary US intelligence report has concluded that American strikes on Iran set back Tehran’s nuclear program by just a few months — rather than destroying it as claimed by President Donald Trump.US media on Tuesday cited people familiar with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) findings as saying the weekend strikes did not fully eliminate Iran’s centrifuges or stockpile of enriched uranium.The aerial bombardments and missile strikes sealed off entrances to some facilities without destroying underground buildings, according to the report.US media coverage of the DIA assessment appeared to anger Trump, who insisted news outlets like CNN and The New York Times were out to “demean” the military strike by saying it only set back Iran’s nuclear program by a few months.”THE NUCLEAR SITES IN IRAN ARE COMPLETELY DESTROYED!” Trump posted in all caps on his Truth Social platform.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the authenticity of the DIA  assessment but said it was “flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked” in an attempt to undermine Trump and discredit the military operation.”Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration,” Leavitt posted on X.Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steven Witkoff, appeared on Fox News to trumpet the White House version. “The reporting out there that in some ways suggests that we did not achieve the objective is just completely preposterous,” he said Tuesday. Witkoff repeated the assertion that the nuclear facilities at Natanz, Isfahan and Fordo had been “obliterated.””All three of those had most if not all of the centrifuges damaged or destroyed,” he said. “In a way it will be almost impossible for them to resurrect that program for — in my view and in many other experts’ views who have seen the raw data, it will take a period of years.”US B-2 bombers hit two Iranian nuclear sites with massive GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs over the weekend, while a guided missile submarine struck a third with Tomahawk cruise missiles.Trump called the strikes a “spectacular military success” and said they had “obliterated” the nuclear sites, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington’s forces had “devastated the Iranian nuclear program.”General Dan Caine, the top US military officer, has offered a more cautious tone, saying the strikes caused “extremely severe damage” to the Iranian facilities.Iran’s government said Tuesday it had “taken the necessary measures” to ensure the continuation of its nuclear program.”Plans for restarting (the facilities) have been prepared in advance, and our strategy is to ensure that production and services are not disrupted,” the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, said in a statement aired on state television.An adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei meanwhile said his country still had stocks of enriched uranium and that “the game is not over.”Israel launched an unprecedented air campaign targeting Iranian nuclear sites, scientists and top military brass on June 13 in a bid to set back Tehran’s nuclear efforts.Trump had spent weeks pursuing a diplomatic path to replace the nuclear deal with Tehran that he tore up during his first term in 2018, but he ultimately decided to take military action.The US operation was massive, with Caine saying it involved more than 125 US aircraft including stealth bombers, fighters, aerial refueling tankers, a guided missile submarine and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft.

Sasha and Jamie Cordle thought their small farm in rural Georgia would be a ladder out of working-class struggle, and a gift for their children and grandchildren.Instead, it may be poisoning them.Tests show their spring water is laced with toxic “forever chemicals” at levels tens of thousands of times above federal safety guidelines, likely from nearby carpet factories.”It scares us,” said Sasha, a 38-year-old dispatcher whose husband drives long hauls across the country. She’s worried about their five children, two-year-old granddaughter, and a grandson due in October.PFAS — or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — are a group of more than 10,000 human-made chemicals that repel heat, water, oil, and stains.Developed in the 1940s, they’re still used in nonstick pans, firefighting foams and stain-proof carpets, yet are now linked to hormonal disruption, immune suppression and cancers.Their ultra-tough carbon-fluorine bonds take millennia to break down in the environment, linger in bodies for years, and are now found in the blood of nearly every living creature on Earth.– ‘Carpet capital’ –In Dalton, Georgia, which calls itself the “Carpet Capital of the World,” mills run by giants Mohawk Industries and Shaw Industries are widely blamed for making the region one of America’s most PFAS-laden.They’re accused of spewing the chemicals into the air, flushing them into sewers unequipped to remove them, and indirectly contaminating farmland through sludge byproducts later spread as fertilizer.The Cordles have joined other landowners in suing the carpet makers, seeking damages to “remediate” their properties — a process they estimate could cost about $1 million per acre — plus punitive damages.Mohawk, Shaw, and chemical giant 3M declined to comment on the complaint. Chemical maker Chemours, another chemical maker and defendant, says it has no factories in Georgia and denies culpability.In a complex web of lawsuits, Dalton Utilities, which manages the local water system, has also sued the carpet makers, while Mohawk has sued 3M over the same issue.The Biden administration last year enacted the first enforceable national drinking water standards for six PFAS chemicals.But under President Donald Trump, the federal government has since rolled back limits on four of the chemicals and delayed the compliance deadline for the remaining two.- Test cases -Meanwhile, the Cordles have seen alarming signs, in both humans and animals.Sasha, who moved to the property after marrying Jamie in 2020, soon developed two autoimmune conditions, as well as high blood pressure and chronic fatigue.”Sometimes getting out of bed, I feel like I’m 80,” she said.Her grown children also report various ailments — and some goat kids didn’t survive their birth defects.Attorney Ben Finley is leading a wave of damages claims, recruiting new clients at buoyant town halls.So far, his firm has filed suits for 18 lead plaintiffs.”We’re drawing a direct line between contamination, lost property value and cleanup cost,” Finley said.– Entering the food web –While the lawyers work the crowds, water expert Bob Bowcock takes water, soil and dust samples to help build the scientific case behind the legal one.”We’ve got springs emitting into ponds that are discharging to creeks at over 180,000 parts per trillion,” he said. The national guideline for drinking water is just four parts per trillion, and local creeks are often seen frothing with pollution.PFAS in the soil move up the protein chain and into the food web — contaminating eggs, milk, beef, and leafy greens that find themselves on store shelves nationwide.The carpet makers are the area’s main economic lifeline, yet many are now turning against them.Mary Janet Clark, 62, toiled for the carpet makers, had her ovaries removed after cancer, and now has a tumor in her brain.”We helped them build their business and make all that money,” said her son, David Wray, 40. “It’s just cruel.”– Lost dreams –Others share similar grief.Human-resources manager Teresa Ensley, 57, lost her brother, father and husband to cancer in just a few years.Studies have linked PFAS to elevated colon cancer rates, the disease that killed her brother and husband. She and her 81-year-old mother both suffer severe thyroid problems and have had hysterectomies.Even for those not yet sick, the toll is palpable.Greg and Sharon Eads hoped to retire on farmland they bought in 2019, but it has since tested hot for PFAS, unraveling their dream.They own $50,000 worth of cattle now off-limits for milk or meat.It’s become “basically a petting zoo,” said Greg. “I can’t do anything with them, not in good conscience.”During a recent visit, the couple led AFP through bucolic pastures where the herd huddled around a healthy newborn calf — a welcome moment of hope after several others were lost to deformities.

A vaccine panel appointed by US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will revisit long-settled science and spotlight rare risks linked to childhood immunizations in a meeting beginning Wednesday, raising fears that fringe theories could seep into national policy.The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), an independent body that reviews scientific evidence to recommend which groups should receive vaccines and when, rarely makes headlines.But these are no ordinary times. Kennedy, who spent two decades spreading vaccine misinformation before becoming President Donald Trump’s top health official, has brought that skepticism into the federal government.Earlier this month he abruptly dismissed all 17 ACIP members before their terms had expired, accusing them of financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry — despite a vetting process meant to minimize conflicts of interest.He then appointed eight new members, including scientist Robert Malone, widely known for spreading false claims during the Covid-19 pandemic and promoting the deworming drug ivermectin.The posted agenda includes standard topics like influenza and Covid-19 vaccines — but the addition, on the second day of discussions, of measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccines for young children, along with thimerosal-containing flu shots, has alarmed experts.Ahead of the meeting, US senator and physician Bill Cassidy — a Republican whose reluctant support was key to Kennedy’s confirmation — called for a delay, citing the panelists’ inexperience and bias.- Debunked autism connection -Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative long used in medicines, with no evidence of harm at low doses.”Study after study showed that the ethylmercury in those vaccines never contributed in any important way to the burden of mercury that one is exposed to, living on this planet,” vaccine expert Paul Offit of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia told AFP.Still, vaccine makers agreed to remove it from pediatric vaccines in 1999 in response to public concern. It remains in some flu shots.The presenter arguing against thimerosal is Lyn Redwood, a nurse and former leader of Children’s Health Defense — an anti-vaccine nonprofit once chaired by RFK Jr.According to her biography page, Redwood blames her son’s autism on vaccines — a link that has never been proven.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is overseeing the meeting, will argue thimerosal is safe and has no effect on neurodevelopment, based on a thorough review of the evidence.  – Rampant measles outbreak -For childhood vaccines, US parents can choose a combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) shot or two separate injections — one for MMR, the other for varicella.The combination spares an extra jab but carries a slightly higher risk of febrile seizures, a rare and typically harmless side effect.Separating the shots is already recommended for infants’ first dose at age 12-47 months, leaving experts puzzled as to why the issue is being revisited. Notably, there’s no planned discussion on the benefits of measles vaccines, which have prevented millions of hospitalizations.”The discussion of MMRV vaccines, critical tools in preventing measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella, must be rooted in science, not ideology,” said Syra Madad, an infectious disease epidemiologist at NYC Health + Hospitals.The United States, which declared measles eliminated in 2000, is currently experiencing its worst measles outbreak of the disease in decades, with more than 1,200 cases and three confirmed deaths.”ACIP is going to become an outlet for anti-vaccine propaganda and increasingly irrelevant to the practice of medicine,” warned Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins University.Still, the panel’s recommendations could have broad consequences, shaping school vaccine mandates and insurance coverage.

Both parties have rested in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, and now lawyers will address jurors directly with marathon closing arguments.Music mogul Combs, 55, faces federal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation with intent of prostitution. He denies all charges and faces life in prison if convicted.As the final stages of the at-times tumultuous proceedings approach, here are takeaways from the Manhattan trial.- Key testimony from victims -Throughout the prosecution’s nearly seven-week case, three women took the stand to describe harrowing details of graphic sexual assault, including rape.The first was Casandra Ventura, the singer who dated Combs for 11 years. She made her dramatic turn as a star witness last month while eight months pregnant with her third child.She recounted degrading, drug-fueled, frequently filmed sex parties with escorts she said Combs coerced her into, and also told jurors he raped her near the end of their relationship.Jurors have repeatedly watched disturbing surveillance footage of Combs brutally beating and dragging Ventura, a video already seared into the public consciousness after CNN published it last year.A former assistant of Combs testified under the name Mia, and described trying to protect Ventura from Combs’s fits of rage. Mia told jurors she personally endured abuse, including rape, from Combs.A third woman, Jane, also testified of orchestrated sex parties with paid escorts. She said she felt “obligated” to acquiesce to Combs’s desires, for “fear of losing the roof over my head” that he was bankrolling.- Bad Boy Entertainment or criminal enterprise? -Prosecutors say Combs headed a criminal organization that enforced his power with myriad crimes including forced labor, kidnapping, bribery, witness tampering and arson.The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known by its acronym RICO, encompasses 35 specific offenses, including the aforementioned crimes. Prosecutors must prove a criminal pattern involving at least two of them.Government attorneys, who must also show the existence of an enterprise, say Combs’s sprawling music, fashion and business empire doubled as a criminal ring that included some high-ranking associates and other employees.Through testimony and evidence, prosecutors have suggested that Combs’s chief of staff and his head of security were both key to the alleged enterprise — but neither were called to the stand, nor have they been charged publicly.Many witnesses, including former assistants, were given immunity orders so they could speak truthfully without fear of incriminating themselves.- The digital footprint -Records of private messages have played a major role in the prosecution’s case, a reflection of the paper trail that accompanies society’s dependence on digital communication.The government’s evidence included thousands of pages of phone and text records, and hours of testimony involved meticulous readings of some of the most explicit and wrenching exchanges.Combs’s relationship with Ventura lasted from around 2007-2018, and records included many texts as well as e-mails. The testimony of Jane, a girlfriend of Combs from 2021-2024, was grounded in voluminous text conversations as well as audio voice messages and diaristic entries into her Notes app.Many of those records appear to indicate distress on the part of the alleged victims. But a lot of the messages also show affection and desire — texts the defense underscored again and again.Jurors have seen video evidence of the sex parties prosecutors say were criminal, while the defense has exhibited exchanges they said imply consent.Also in evidence are reams of financial records — including CashApp payments to escorts — as well as flight and hotel records.- Coercion versus consent -Core to the prosecution’s case is a question of coercion versus consent: were the alleged victims in the case coerced, forced or fraudently made to engage in drug-addled sex marathons under threat of harm — or were they knowing and willing participants?In its opening statements, the defense said Combs’s accusers are “capable, strong adult women.””Being a willing participant in your own sex life is not sex trafficking,” said lawyer Teny Geragos.Ventura and Jane both said they experienced emotional manipulation and threats that were reputational, financial and physical.And a forensic psychologist explained to jurors how the tactics of abusers can keep victims from leaving relationships.- Celebrities, influencers and the online gossip machine -Jurors are instructed every day not to consume media about the case — a mighty task, as news of the trial has permeated media ecosystems and social platforms.Dozens of news organizations are covering the trial, along with enthusiastic content creators cashing in on the internet’s desire for hot takes and celebrity gossip.Combs is incarcerated and does not enter or exit the courthouse publicly. But some of the high-profile attendees and witnesses do, including members of the music mogul’s family and figures like Kid Cudi, the rapper who testified that Combs’s entourage torched his car.And the brief cameo of Ye, who stopped by to lend his “support” to Combs, was a particular field day for the chronically online.

At his grocery store in an Iranian neighborhood of Los Angeles, Mohammad Ghafari is worried sick about his brothers and sisters since the United States bombed the Islamic republic’s nuclear sites.But as he stands among his dates, dried plums and pistachios, he also cherishes the hope of change in his native country. Iran “is not capable of providing food to the Persian people,” said Ghafari, who left to study abroad before the 1979 revolution and never returned. “If the people (there) were happy about a change of regime, I would be too.””Everyone would be happy,” agreed Fereshteh, one of his customers and a fellow resident of so-called “Tehrangeles” — a mash-up of Tehran and Los Angeles.For Fereshteh, who gave only her first name to protect her identity, “Donald Trump is a hero.” The American president ordered strikes against three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, providing unprecedented support to Israel in its offensive against Iran.He even raised the possibility of “regime change,” before backing away and saying it would sow chaos.Any talk of ousting Iran’s clerical leadership resonates strongly in the Los Angeles area, where nearly 200,000 Iranian-Americans live, making the Californian metropolis the diaspora’s global hub. Many of its members live in the west end of the city, near the UCLA campus. Filled with Middle Eastern grocery stores, carpet merchants and bookstores selling books in Farsi, the neighborhood is also known as “Little Persia.” The immigrants who have made it their home include minorities often seen as discriminated against in Iran, such as Jews, Christians and Assyrians.- ‘Rise up’ -“It’s time for the Iranian people to rise up, because right now, the regime is very weak,” said Fereshteh, herself Jewish, who fled Iran in the 1980s during the war between her country and Iraq. Trump was elected on a promise to focus on America and stay out of foreign wars.But among the grocery store’s customers, some would like him to push his intervention in Iran to the limit. “We should send troops there,” says Mehrnoosh, a 45-year-old woman who arrived in the United States in 2010. “The people there have their hands tied,” she said, adding that “the regime killed so many Iranians three years ago during the protests following the death of Mahsa Amini,” a student arrested for allegedly flouting dress rules for women. But on the patio of the “Taste of Tehran” restaurant, one man hopes the United States will pull back to avoid its fate in Iraq and Afghanistan.”Change by force never pays off….Change must come from within, by the people, for the people, and we’re not there yet,” said the 68-year-old engineer, who wished to remain anonymous.The conflict has so far claimed more than 600 lives in Iran and 28 in Israel, according to authorities in both countries. A fragile ceasefire in the war between Iran and Israel war appeared to be holding on Tuesday — a relief for the engineer, who had recently spoken to his aunt on the phone. For several days, she fled Tehran for the northwest of the country to escape Israeli bombardments.”Is it worth it? Absolutely not,” he said, recalling he lost his grandparents to bombs during the Iran-Iraq War. “My hope is for all this to end soon.”

A man sentenced to death for murder in the state of Florida was executed late Tuesday, one of two executions in the United States this week.Thomas Gudinas, 51, was scheduled to die by lethal injection at 6:00 pm (2200 GMT) at the Florida State Prison in Raiford.Thirteen minutes later, the Florida Department of Corrections confirmed in a statement that the execution had been carried out.Gudinas was sentenced to death in 1995 for the murder of Michelle McGrath, who was last seen leaving a bar in the city of Orlando in the early hours.McGrath’s battered body was found the next day and Gudinas was arrested shortly afterwards.Florida has carried out more executions — seven — than any other US state so far this year.Meanwhile, a Mississippi man on Death Row for 49 years is to be executed by lethal injection at 6:00 pm Central Time (2300 GMT) Wednesday, at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman.Richard Jordan, 79, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1976 for the murder of Edwina Marter, the wife of a bank executive in the town of Gulfport.Jordan, a shipyard worker, kidnapped Marter from her home and demanded a $25,000 ransom.He was apprehended when he went to pick up the money.Jordan confessed to murdering Marter and led the authorities to her body, which had been hidden in a forest. She had been shot.The execution in Mississippi will be the first in the southern state since December 2022.There have been 24 executions in the United States this year: 19 by lethal injection, two by firing squad and three by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a facemask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.The use of nitrogen gas as an execution method has been denounced by United Nations experts as cruel and inhumane.The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment, and on his first day in office called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”

A US federal judge has sided with Anthropic regarding training its artificial intelligence models on copyrighted books without authors’ permission, a decision with the potential to set a major legal precedent in AI deployment.District Court Judge William Alsup ruled on Monday that the company’s training of its Claude AI models with books bought or pirated was allowed under the “fair use” doctrine in the US Copyright Act.”Use of the books at issue to train Claude and its precursors was exceedingly transformative and was a fair use,” Alsup wrote in his decision.”The technology at issue was among the most transformative many of us will see in our lifetimes,” Alsup added in his 32-page decision, comparing AI training to how humans learn by reading books.Tremendous amounts of data are needed to train large language models powering generative AI. Musicians, book authors, visual artists and news publications have sued various AI companies that used their data without permission or payment.AI companies generally defend their practices by claiming fair use, arguing that training AI on large datasets fundamentally transforms the original content and is necessary for innovation.”We are pleased that the court recognized that using ‘works to train LLMs was transformative,'” an Anthropic spokesperson said in response to an AFP query.The judge’s decision is “consistent with copyright’s purpose in enabling creativity and fostering scientific progress,” the spokesperson added.- Blanket protection rejected -The ruling stems from a class-action lawsuit filed by authors Andrea Bartz, Charles Graeber, and Kirk Wallace Johnson, who accused Anthropic of illegally copying their books to train Claude, the company’s AI chatbot that rivals ChatGPT.However, Alsup rejected Anthropic’s bid for blanket protection, ruling that the company’s practice of downloading millions of pirated books to build a permanent digital library was not justified by fair use protections.Along with downloading books from websites offering pirated works, Anthropic bought copyrighted books, scanned the pages and stored them in digital formats, according to court documents.Anthropic’s aim was to amass a library of “all the books in the world” for training AI models on content as deemed fit, the judge said in his ruling.While training AI models on the pirated content posed no legal violation, downloading pirated copies to build a general-purpose library constituted copyright infringement, the judge ruled, regardless of eventual training use.The case will now proceed to trial on damages related to the pirated library copies, with potential penalties including financial damages.Anthropic said it disagreed with going to trial on this part of the decision and was evaluating its legal options.”Judge Alsup’s decision is a mixed bag,” said Keith Kupferschmid, chief executive of US nonprofit Copyright Alliance.”In some instances AI companies should be happy with the decision and in other instances copyright owners should be happy.”Valued at $61.5 billion and heavily backed by Amazon, Anthropic was founded in 2021 by former OpenAI executives. The company, known for its Claude chatbot and AI models, positions itself as focused on AI safety and responsible development.