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#Terror: Twitter suspended over 1 million accounts for terrorism promotion since 2015


Times of India
Thu, 05 Apr 2018 16:47 UTC
twitter big screenshot
© AP Photo/Richard Drew, File
Twitter said on Thursday it has suspended over one million accounts for "promotion of terrorism" since 2015, claiming its efforts have begun to make the platform "an undesirable place" to call for violence.

In its latest transparency report, Twitter said it suspended 274,460 accounts between July and December 2017 "for violations related to the promotion of terrorism."

The figure is down 8.4 per cent from the previous reporting period and is the second consecutive decline, a Twitter statement said.

"We continue to see the positive, significant impact of years of hard work making our site an undesirable place for those seeking to promote terrorism, resulting in this type of activity increasingly shifting away from Twitter," said the statement from the messaging platform's public policy team.

Twitter has faced pressure from governments around the world to crack down on jihadists and others calling for violent attacks, while at the same time maintaining an open platform for free speech.
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Evil Rays

YouTube shooter's brother warned police in advance of his sister's rampage

Meredith Digital Staff
FOX5
Wed, 04 Apr 2018 16:38 UTC
Nasim Aghdam
© Twitter/San Bruno Police DeptThe woman who shot three people at YouTube headquarters in Northern California has been identified as Nasim Aghdam, two law enforcement sources told CNN.
The brother of Nasim Najafi Aghdam worried she might do something dangerous.

The concerns started over the weekend when Aghdam stopped answering her phone, her brother told CNN affiliate KGTV. Then the San Diego resident's car was found more than 700 miles northwest, in Mountain View, California.

"I Googled 'Mountain View,' and it was close to YouTube headquarters. And she had a problem with YouTube," said Aghdam's brother, who did not want to be identified.

So he called the police to say "she went all the way from San Diego, so she might do something."
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Cupcake Choco

UK's new 'nanny state' sugar tax is 'counterproductive,' critics say


RT
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 16:05 UTC
Sugar
© Ruth Bushi / EyeEm/ Getty
A sugar tax on drinks has come into force aiming to tackling Britain's obesity crisis, but critics have branded it "clearly useless," while others have said it's not up to the government to interfere in what people eat or drink.

As part of an anti-obesity drive, from April 6 UK shoppers will have to pay 18p (24 US cents) or 24p more a liter, depending on how much added sugar a drink contains. It prompted some global soft drink companies, such as the manufacturer of the Scottish-revered Irn Bru, to change their recipes to dodge the tax.

While the new measure has been hailed by some as an efficient way of tackling growing obesity, others are outraged. Daniel Pryor of the Adam Smith Institute think tank blasted the "paternalistic" sugar tax, saying: "Our poorly-designed, paternalistic sugary drinks tax will hurt poor people.
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Stormtrooper

UK government to introduce 'military ethos' in schools to help poor children

Zoe Drewett
Metro
Mon, 02 Apr 2018 16:34 UTC
Gavin Williamson and troops
© ReutersBritish Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson visits UK troops of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence battle group.
The government is considering the introduction of a 'military ethos' in schools across the UK to help children from deprived backgrounds.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has commissioned MP Robert Goodwill to review the benefits of an education inspired by the 'values and disciplines' of the Armed Forces.

Mr Goodwill will report back to the Ministry of Defence in September on what the impact has been on pupils from schools that already adopt military-style practices.

The Tory MP has already said Armed Forces schools in deprived areas would boost the 'life chances, confidence and self-discipline' of youngsters.

'Some schools may want to be a military academy and make that central to their school,' he said.

Comment: Getting the next generation of cannon fodder while they're young.

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Eye 2

Psychopath: Pakistani asylum seeker in Germany murders 2yo daughter by slashing throat to punish wife for reporting domestic violence

Allan Hall
Daily Mail
Thu, 05 Apr 2018 16:16 UTC
pakistani murder daughter
© CENKilled: Sohail A. is accused of slitting his daughter Ayesha's throat so violently that she was ''practically beheaded', in an attempt to punish his wife for reporting him to police for domestic violence
A 34-year-old Pakistani asylum seeker allegedly murdered his two-year-old daughter by slashing her throat, a German court heard today.

Sohail A. was described in Hamburg Court as a violent tyrant who terrorised his 32-year-old wife and their two children before allegedly murdering daughter Ayesha in October last year.

Sohail attacked his daughter in the family's flat in Hamburg after his wife Lubna had left to report a domestic violence attack to the police.

She returned to the flat accompanied by several police officers to find her daughter murdered with a bloody knife beside her, and no sign of Sohail.
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Vader

Interior minister among 38 Russian officials, tycoons and companies targeted by US Treasury's expanded sanctions list


RT
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 15:22 UTC
U.S. Treasury Department building
© Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images North AmericaThe U.S. Treasury Department building
The US Treasury has issued new Russia-related sanctions, adding to the already existing list of almost 40 high-profile businessmen and politicians, as well as companies.

In total, 24 Russians and 14 entities were put on the list, in a move that represents the latest tough measures from Washington against Moscow. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin accused Russia of "a range of malign activity around the globe," referring to what he called the occupation of Crimea and the instigation of violence in eastern Ukraine, as well as "supplying the Assad regime with material and weaponry."

Russia's other alleged wrongdoings include "attempting to subvert Western democracies, and malicious cyber activities."
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Chart Bar

US monthly trade deficit rises to near decade high as Trump tries to narrow the gap


RT
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 14:32 UTC
decaying manufacturing plant
© Eric Thayer / ReutersFILE PHOTO: The abandoned and decaying manufacturing plant of Packard Motor Car is seen in Detroit, Michigan
The monthly negative balance between American exports and imports surged to multi-year highs in February. The trade gap rose 1.6 percent to $57.6 billion, the US Commerce Department reported on Thursday.

It is America's highest monthly trade deficit since 2008, attributed partly to surging commodities prices. President Donald Trump's administration has been seeking to eliminate the gap, saying that the United States is being taken advantage of by its trading partners. Imports from China dropped 14.7 percent in February.

Comment: China will defend its interests 'at any cost' as Trump threatens $100bn more in tariffs

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Ambulance

Sergei Skripal no longer in critical condition after being allegedly poisoned with most deadly nerve agent of all time


RT
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 16:03 UTC
Salisbury Hospital
© Chris J Ratcliffe / AFPA general view shows the main entrance to Salisbury District Hospital in Salisbury, southern England
Poisoned ex-spy Sergei Skripal is no longer in critical condition and has responded well to treatment after a nerve agent attack last month, the hospital treating him says.

Sergei, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, were poisoned by a nerve agent in the British city of Salisbury. The pair were found slumped on a bench in an attack that sparked sanctions and political unrest across the globe in the weeks that followed.

"He is responding well to treatment, improving rapidly and is no longer in a critical condition," Christine Blanshard, Medical Director at Salisbury District Hospital, said in a statement, according to Reuters.
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Info

Austria to ban Islamic headscarves for pre-pubescent girls


RT
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 16:00 UTC
islamic girls
© Ahmad Al-Rubaye/ AFP
The Austrian government wants to forbid girls in kindergartens and primary schools to wear headscarves. The ban would prevent discrimination and the development of "parallel societies," Chancellor Sebastian Kurz says.

"The veiling of small children is something that definitely has no place in our country," Kurz said in Vienna on Wednesday.

The move will be part of the so-called "Child Protection Act" which - alongside other measures - is aimed at encouraging people to assimilate into Austrian culture. The chancellor stressed that it is meant to give children equal opportunities and curb the emergence of "parallel societies" in the country.

Those words were echoed by Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache, who reiterated that it is important to prevent the development of political Islam and to let children grow up free.

Kurz also argued that there is no religious rule ordering children to wear Islamic head coverings. In many Islamic cultures, doing so is not a requirement for girls until they reach sexual maturity.

Comment: Aside from the dangers of parallel societies and discrimination, there's another problem alluded to by Kurz: forcing young girls who grow up in Islam to wear the veil sexualizes them. It's the Islamic equivalent of forcing young girls to wear make-up, short shorts, and tank tops.

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Evil Rays

'The Russians are coming!' Faulty warning siren leads to invasion freak out in small Norwegian town

Chris Kitching
Mirror
Fri, 06 Apr 2018 15:10 UTC
Vadso Norway
© alamy.comVadso residents can see Russia in the distance on a clear day
A faulty warning siren sparked fears of a late-night Russian invasion in a sleepy Norwegian town just miles from the border.

Frightened locals called the police when the Civil Defence alarm went off in Vadso.

Anxious residents feared a war had broken out when the wailing siren sparked panic just before midnight on Wednesday, the local police force revealed.

Russian troops weren't flooding across the border, but it remained unclear what caused the alarm to go off.
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