"Believe women" is a central tenet of #MeToo, the media movement that has become the de facto path to justice for anyone who claims to have been victimised by a public figure. Given, however that presumption of innocence is one of the most fundamental principles of a democratic society, "believe women" is, or at least ought to be, a controversial demand (and as the slogan's imperative suggests, it is indeed a demand). For despite, in some ways, being an understandable response to what many perceive to be decades of abusive and sexual misbehaviour in the entertainment and media industries, "believe women" is a request that explicitly undermines the presumption of innocence.

Despite this inconvenient fact, the movement has become a cause celebre among those very factions of society who claim to care most deeply about democracy. How to square that? Particularly when it appears "believe women" may not actually apply to all women judging from the media cycle this week following a rare interview with Woody Allen's wife Soon-Yi Previn published in New York Magazine last Sunday.

Previn, the 47-year-old adopted daughter of Mia Farrow and composer Andre Previn, has maintained a decades-long silence since the exposure of her affair with Allen in the early 1990s when he was still dating Farrow. Debate has long raged about the appropriateness of their relationship in light of the fact the director was, at least in theory, something of a father figure in Previn's unusual family set-up, which included thirteen siblings, as well as the fact she was only 21 and Allen 56 when news of their affair first broke (that Farrow was herself 21 when she married a 50-year-old Frank Sinatra is apparently irrelevant in this saga). Relations between the parties were strained yet further when, shortly after discovering the relationship, Farrow accused Allen of molesting her younger daughter Dylan.

The Ruble-traded MOEX stock index is enjoying a bumper week as it reaches all-time highs on an almost-daily basis.The growth is linked to the strengthening Russian currency despite a threat of new US sanctions and high oil prices.

The MOEX index surged to 2,423 points on Thursday as the ruble rose to 66.3 against the dollar and 77.7 against the euro. The dollar-denominated RTS index is also on the rise, growing to 1,351 points.

"The Russian stock market has every chance of further growth due to the stability of oil prices and the strengthening ruble. Most investors pay attention to oil prices and the stability of this sector," Gaidar Gasanov, expert at the International Financial Center, said.

The MOEX index includes shares from the 50 largest Russian companies, including Sberbank, Gazprom, Rosneft, UC Rusal, Novatek, and other companies. The growth of the index was preceded by a noticeable rise in the price of shares of Russian energy companies and leading bank Sberbank.

The Australian man who filmed himself running over a number of emus has been arrested and charged with animal cruelty. Animal welfare groups have described the viral video as "horrific."

According to police, the incident took place in Cowangie, a town approximately 500km (300 miles) northwest of Melbourne.The brutal footage sparked outrage across social media both in Australia and around the world in recent days.

"F**king emus... This is f**kin' great - I've got that one too, and that one," the man says, cheering and laughing as he strikes the fleeing birds.

Budget constraints are preventing the UK's Ministry of Defense (MoD) from scrapping potentially dangerous nuclear subs, a new government report showed, noting that some nuclear-servicing facilities were "not fit for purpose".

The condition of some of the UK's 13 nuclear sites and constant delays in maintenance created "a ticking time bomb," House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said in their latest report.

The document, published Friday, earmarked two facilities in particular which are in need of urgent upgrades - the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) and Devonport Dockyard, where the Royal Navy's nuclear submarines are refitted. It said further investment delays are no longer acceptable.

Although they had deferred dismantling on affordability grounds in the past, this was no longer acceptable on safety and reputation grounds," the report said, noting that it is likely that the first sub will not be dismantled until the mid-2020s. The UK currently possesses 20 submarines awaiting disposal, nine of which contain fuel (the type of fuel is not specified).

Richard Jefferson Sr., the father of NBA champion Richard Jefferson, was killed on Wednesday in a drive-by shooting in California.

The 65-year-old was outside a liquor store in a residential area when an unknown person opened fire from an approaching car, TMZ reported.

Jefferson Sr. was pronounced dead at a local hospital where he was taken following the fatal incident.

Hurricane Florence floodwaters have breached the dam at a retired Duke Energy coal power plant near Wilmington, North Carolina, likely causing a spill of coal ash into Cape Fear River.

Floodwaters topped the earthen dike at the northern side of Sutton Lake on Friday. Water from the south end of the lake is flowing back into the river, Duke Energy spokeswoman Paige Sheehan told AP.

Water has also crested over the steel retaining wall of a coal ash dump on the lake shore, Sheehan said. Duke "can't rule out" that ash might have spilled into the river.

In a ruling filed Tuesday, a federal judge in Wisconsin ordered that the state and its insurers must cover transition procedures for transgender state employees.

U.S. District Court Judge William Conley found that there was no legal basis for a specific exclusion in the Uniform Benefits adopted by the state's Group Insurance Board that rules out coverage for "procedures, services and supplies related to surgery and sex hormones associated with gender reassignment."

The exclusion, which has existed in some form since 1994, was found to violate Title VII, the Affordable Care Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14^th Amendment.

The board voted unanimously to remove the exclusion in July, 2016. However, in December of that year, it voted to reinstate the exclusion, which went back into effect Feb. 1, 2017.

Conley stated in his opinion that "the exclusion on its face treats transgender individuals differently on the basis of sex."

An ultra-Orthodox radio station in Israel has been ordered to pay out $280,000 in damages, for refusing to put women on the air, in the first class-action lawsuit on civil rights in the Jewish State.

An Israeli court ruled on Thursday that Kol Barama radio station must dole out one million shekels (US$280,000) in damages as part of a lawsuit that was filed by Orthodox feminists on behalf of ultra-Orthodox women who were prevented from hearing female voices on the station.

The suit, which was filed in 2012 in the Jerusalem District Court, is the first class-action lawsuit to challenge civil rights in Israel. Although the court ruled in 2014 that Kol Barama had operated in a discriminatory manner, the station appealed the decision in the Supreme Court. Its appeal was rejected a year later, and several hearings have since been held to determine the amount of damages to be paid.

Five people, including an eight-year-old girl, have been wounded in a shooting in Syracuse, New York, authorities said, noting that all are in stable condition.

Several calls were made to 911 dispatcher at around 9:00pm local time, notifying the emergency services of shots fired in the 1300 block of Midland Avenue, not far from Kirk Park.

When emergency services arrived at the scene they discovered five people with gunshot wounds, including an eight-year-old girl, Syracuse Police Chief Frank Fowle told reporters, calling the incident a "very tragic event."

All of the victims were immediately rushed to a hospital in stable condition. The names of the wounded have not yet been released but police say their age ranges from between 8 and 35 years old.

Russian opposition stars were once hailed by the Western media and beloved by Europe - but not so much now that they live there! The countries they fled to are now investigating them for criminal activities.

Oleg Vorotnikov - founder of the controversial Voina (War) art band, and wanted in Russia for assaulting police officers in 2011 at an unsanctioned rally - has now been charged with illegal weapons possession and trafficking in Austria, the group itself reported. There has so far been no independent confirmation that the artist is facing arrest.

Vorotnikov, also nicknamed 'Vor' (the Russian word for 'thief'), rose to prominence along with his wife, fellow 'actionist' Natalia Sokol.

The couple engaged in a series of bizarre stunts, including drawing a giant penis outside the security service building in St. Petersburg, and gatecrashing a biology museum to perform group sex in public.

Pussy Riot, which gained notoriety in 2012 after bursting into Moscow's main cathedral during mass and performing a profanity-laden punk song, are a splinter group from Vorotnikov's movement.