mnl168 net login Games to snuggle up with this holiday seasonMUMBAI: France's TotalEnergies on Monday said it won't make any fresh financial contribution as part of its investments in companies of the Adani Group till it gets clarity on accusations against certain officials in the Indian conglomerate and their consequences. "Until such time when the accusations against the Adani Group individuals and their consequences have been clarified, TotalEnergies will not make any new financial contribution as part of its investments in the Adani Group of companies," TotalEnergies said in a statement. The French energy company added that it was through public announcements made by US authorities that it learnt of the indictment of certain individual Adani Group executives in relation to an alleged corruption scheme linked to the business of Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL). "This indictment does not target AGEL itself, nor any AGEL-related companies," it said. Shares of AGEL fell on the news, closing 8.05% lower at Rs 967.65 apiece on the BSE on Monday, underperforming a 1.25% rise in the benchmark Sensex. Adani Total Gas lost 1.43% to Rs 600.75 apiece. On 21 November, the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission charged Gautam Adani , his nephew Sagar Adani , and AGEL managing director and CEO Vneet Jaain over allegedly bribes of over $250 million to Indian government officials, aimed at helping AGEL secure solar energy contracts from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), which in turn collated contracts between SECI and various Indian state electricity distribution companies. Artificial Intelligence(AI) AI and Analytics based Business Strategy By - Tanusree De, Managing Director- Accenture Technology Lead, Trustworthy AI Center of Excellence: ATCI View Program Finance A2Z Of Money By - elearnmarkets, Financial Education by StockEdge View Program Finance AI and Generative AI for Finance By - Hariom Tatsat, Vice President- Quantitative Analytics at Barclays View Program Web Development Advanced Java Mastery: Object-Oriented Programming Techniques By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Office Productivity Mastering Google Sheets: Unleash the Power of Excel and Advance Analysis By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Leadership Building Your Winning Startup Team: Key Strategies for Success By - Dr. Anu Khanchandani, Startup Coach with more than 25 years of experience View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Master in Python Language Quickly Using the ChatGPT Open AI By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Strategy ESG and Business Sustainability Strategy By - Vipul Arora, Partner, ESG & Climate Solutions at Sattva Consulting Author I Speaker I Thought Leader View Program Web Development Advanced C++ Mastery: OOPs and Template Techniques By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) AI for Everyone: Understanding and Applying the Basics on Artificial Intelligence By - Ritesh Vajariya, Generative AI Expert View Program Office Productivity Advanced Excel Course - Financial Calculations & Excel Made Easy By - Anirudh Saraf, Founder- Saraf A & Associates, Chartered Accountant View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Java Programming with ChatGPT: Learn using Generative AI By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Generative AI for Dynamic Java Web Applications with ChatGPT By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Web Development Intermediate C++ Skills: Master Pointers, Structures and File Stream By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Office Productivity Microsoft Word Mastery: From Beginner to Expert By - CA Raj K Agrawal, Chartered Accountant View Program Finance A2Z Of Finance: Finance Beginner Course By - elearnmarkets, Financial Education by StockEdge View Program Leadership Boosting Startup Revenue with 6 AI-Powered Sales Automation Techniques By - Dr. Anu Khanchandani, Startup Coach with more than 25 years of experience View Program Data Science MySQL for Beginners: Learn Data Science and Analytics Skills By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Marketing Modern Marketing Masterclass by Seth Godin By - Seth Godin, Former dot com Business Executive and Best Selling Author View Program Web Development Django & PostgreSQL Mastery: Build Professional Web Applications By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) ChatGPT Mastery from Zero to Hero: The Complete AI Course By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Leadership Business Storytelling Masterclass By - Ameen Haque, Founder of Storywallahs View Program Artificial Intelligence(AI) Tabnine AI Masterclass: Optimize Your Coding Efficiency By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Office Productivity Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide 2024 By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program Web Development Intermediate Java Mastery: Method, Collections, and Beyond By - Metla Sudha Sekhar, IT Specialist and Developer View Program In January 2021, TotalEnergies bought a minority stake in AGEL. Its current shareholding is at 19.75%. As part of its strategy to grow its renewable energy portfolio in India, this September, TotalEnergies Renewables Singapore Pte Ltd and Adani Renewable Energy Sixty Four Ltd formed an equal joint venture wherein Total invested about $444 million. The JV company will house a 1,150-megawatt (MW) of renewable energy portfolio. "TotalEnergies recalls that its investments in Adani's entities were undertaken in full compliance with applicable laws, and with TotalEnergies' internal governance processes pursuant to due diligence and representations made by the sellers," the company said, adding that in particular, TotalEnergies was not made aware of the existence of an investigation into the alleged corruption scheme. Total also owns a 37.4% stake in Adani Total Gas, which operates the company's city gas distribution business that retails compressed natural gas to automobiles and piped natural gas to households for cooking. Last February, following allegations by a US short-seller, Total had put on hold a planned investment in Adani Group's $50 billion green hydrogen project. The company had in June 2022 announced its plan to buy a 25% equity in Adani New Industries Ltd, the Adani Group firm that is investing $50 billion over 10 years in the green hydrogen business. Nominations for ET MSME Awards are now open. The last day to apply is November 30, 2024. Click here to submit your entry for any one or more of the 22 categories and stand a chance to win a prestigious award. (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel )BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of people fled the central Syrian city of Homs, the country’s third largest, as insurgents seized two towns on the outskirts Friday, positioning themselves for an assault on a potentially major prize in their march against President Bashar Assad. The move, reported by pro-government media and an opposition war monitor, was the latest in the stunning advances by opposition fighters over the past week that have so far met little resistance from Assad’s forces. A day earlier, fighters captured the central city of Hama , Syria’s fourth largest, after the army said it withdrew to avoid fighting inside the city and spare the lives of civilians. The insurgents, led by the jihadi Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS, have vowed to march to Homs and the capital, Damascus, Assad’s seat of power. Videos circulating online showed a highway jammed with cars full of people fleeing Homs, a city with a large population belonging to Assad’s Alawite sect, seen as his core supporters. If Assad’s military loses Homs, it could be a crippling blow. The city, parts of which were controlled by insurgents until 2014, stands at an important intersection between Damascus and Syria’s coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus, where Assad enjoys wide support. Homs province is Syria’s largest in size and borders Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan. The city is also home to one of Syria’s two state-run oil refineries. Pressure on the government intensified from multiple directions. Opposition protesters stormed security posts and army positions in the southern province of Sweida, opposition activists said. U.S.-backed Kurdish forces who control eastern and northeastern Syria began to encroach on government-held territory. After years of largely being bottled up in a northwest corner of the country, the insurgents burst out a week ago, captured the northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest , and have kept advancing since. Government troops have repeatedly fallen back. The sudden offensive has flipped the tables on a long-entrenched stalemate in Syria’s nearly 14-year-old civil war. Along with HTS, the fighters include forces of an umbrella group of Turkish-backed Syrian militias called the Syrian National Army. Turkey has denied backing the offensive , though experts say insurgents would not have launched it without the country's consent. HTS’s leader, Abu Mohammad al-Golani, told CNN in an exclusive interview Thursday from Syria that Assad’s government was on the path to falling, propped up only by Russia and Iran. “The seeds of the regime’s defeat have always been within it,” he said. “But the truth remains, this regime is dead.” A key question about Assad’s ability to fight back is how much top ally Russia — whose troops back Assad’s forces — will throw support his way at a time when it is tied up in the war in Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he planned to discuss the developments in Syria with his Turkish and Iranian counterparts at a meeting Friday in the Qatari capital, Doha. In an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, he said international actors were backing the insurgents’ advances and that he would discuss “the way to cut the channels of financing and arming them.” Meanwhile, Russia’s embassy in Syria issued a notice reminding Russian citizens that they may use commercial flights to leave the country “in view of the difficult military-political situation.” The foreign ministers of Iran, Iraq and Syria — three close allies — gathered Friday in Baghdad to consult on the rapidly changing war. Syrian Foreign Minister Bassam Sabbagh said the current developments may pose “a serious threat to the security of the region as a whole.” The insurgent fighters on Friday took over the central towns of Rastan and Talbiseh, putting them 5 kilometers (3 miles) from Homs, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor. “The battle of Homs is the mother of all battles and will decide who will rule Syria,” said Rami Abdurrahman, the Observatory’s chief. Pro-government Sham FM said the insurgents entered Rastan and Talbiseh without facing any resistance. There was no immediate comment from the Syrian military. The Observatory said Syrian troops had left Homs. But the military denied that in comments reported by the state news agency SANA, saying troops were reinforcing their positions in the city and were “ready to repel” any assault. In eastern Syria, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces coalition said it had moved into the government-held half of the city of Deir el-Zour, apparently without resistance. One of the main cities in the east, Deir el-Zour had long been split between the government on the western side of the Euphrates River and the SDF on the eastern side. The SDF also said it took control of further parts of the border with Iraq. That appeared to bring it closer to the government-held Boukamal border crossing. The crossing is a vital for the government because it is the gateway to the corridor to Iran, a supply line for Iran-backed fighters, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah. At the same time, insurgents seized Syria’s sole crossing to Jordan, according to opposition activists. Jordan announced it was closing its side of the crossing. Lebanon also closed all but one of its border crossings with Syria. The opposition assault has struck a blow to Syria’s already decrepit economy. On Friday, the U.S. dollar was selling on Syria’s parallel market for about 18,000 pounds, a 25% drop from a week ago. When Syria’s conflict erupted in March 2011, a dollar was valued at 47 pounds. The drop further undermines the purchasing power of Syrians at a time when the U.N. has warned that 90% of the population is below the poverty line. Syria’s economy has been hammered for years by the war, Western sanctions, corruption and an economic meltdown in neighboring Lebanon, Syria’s main gate to the outside world. Damascus residents told The Associated Press that people are rushing to markets to buy food, fearing further escalation. The worsening economy could be undermining the ability of Syria’s military to fight, as the value of soldiers’ salaries melts away while the insurgents are flush with cash. Syria’s military has not appeared to put up a cohesive counteroffensive against the opposition advances. SANA on Friday quoted an unnamed military official as saying the Syrian and Russian air forces were striking insurgents in Hama province, killing dozens of fighters. Syria’s defense minister said in a televised statement late Thursday that government forces withdrew from Hama as “a temporary tactical measure” and vowed to gain back lost areas. “We are in a good position on the ground,” Gen. Ali Mahmoud Abbas said, saying troops remained “at the gates of Hama.” He spoke before the opposition advanced further south toward Homs. He said the insurgents, whom he described as “takfiri” or Muslim extremists, are backed by foreign countries. He did not name the countries but appeared to be referring to Turkey and the United States. Associated Press writers Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria, and Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, contributed to this report.

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Of all the products that would be affected by President-elect Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on Mexico , avocados stand out: 90% of avocados consumed in the U.S. are imported. And almost all of those imports come from Mexico. Trump has said he plans to impose a blanket tariff of 25% on imports from Mexico and Canada, along with an additional 10% tax on goods from China. It's unclear whether the tariffs will be implemented or if they will serve merely as a negotiating tactic. If enacted, they could have multiple effects on the avocado industry. "Broad tariffs, like what's being proposed, is not something that we've seen" before, says David Ortega, a food economist and professor at Michigan State University. "We had the trade war with China back in 2018 that affected steel and aluminum, but when it comes to food, these types of policy proposals are not something that are very common or that we've seen recently." With one of the biggest guacamole-eating events of the year — the Super Bowl — approaching in February, here's what to know about avocados, tariffs, and why so many avocados are grown in Mexico. First, a 25% tariff on imports from Mexico would lead to higher avocado prices at the grocery store. But estimating just how much higher is hard to say. It's possible that producers and importers will absorb some of the costs to keep prices down and stay more competitive. Ortega says there could be "pretty significant increases in the price of avocados. Maybe not the full 25%, but pretty close, given that there's very little substitute ability with regards to where we would source avocados." But he cautions that because the tariffs apply only to the product's value at the border, and not to other costs like transportation and distribution within the U.S., prices may not go up by the full 25%. Regardless of these potential price increases, however, people in the U.S. love their avocados and they're willing to pay more. Avocado consumption tripled in the U.S. between 2000 and 2021 . "Given that avocado is a staple of our consumption here, I would say that the elasticity is not very high, meaning that even with a big increase in price, consumption is not going to change that much," says Luis Ribera, a professor and extension economist in the agricultural economics department at Texas A&M University. Mexico is the biggest producer of avocados in the world and exported $3.3 billion worth of avocados in 2023. A study funded by the industry estimated that avocado production supports 78,000 permanent jobs and 310,000 seasonal jobs in Mexico. "It's a very important business in Mexico, very lucrative," Ribera says. Mexico emerged as the largest foreign supplier of fruits and vegetables to the U.S. for a few reasons, he says. One: Its proximity to the U.S. market. With a perishable product, closer is better. Peru is the second-largest source of foreign avocados in the U.S., but its greater distance means avocados need to be shipped farther. The other reasons for Mexico are favorable weather that allows for year-round production of avocados and access to cheap labor, according to Ribera. Avocados are grown in the U.S. too, mostly in California and to a lesser extent Florida and Hawaii, but U.S. growers can't meet Americans' big appetite. Avocado production in the U.S. has declined, even as Americans grew fonder of the green fruit, according to the USDA. California avocado growers have faced droughts and wildfires in recent years, making it difficult to offer the year-round availability that American consumers crave, Ortega says. In addition, land is expensive and water is limited. If the goal of implementing tariffs is to force avocado production to move somewhere besides Mexico, that isn't easy. It takes about eight years for avocado trees to produce fruit, according to the USDA. "This is not a product that you can just simply plant more of this season and you get more of in a few months," Ortega says. Other countries where the U.S. sources avocados — Peru, the Dominican Republic and Chile — "just simply don't have the production capacity to replace Mexico's supply," he says. Tariffs could also alter the market dynamic when it comes to organic vs. conventional foods. If prices rise across the board, consumers who typically buy organic avocados might switch to conventional ones to save money. Organic produce makes up about 15% of total fruit and vegetable sales in the U.S., according to the Organic Trade Association, which represents hundreds of organic businesses and thousands of farmers. "My hypothesis is that the price of conventional products would increase more than the premium organic product," Ortega says. He reasons that because people who are used to buying organic avocados would move to buy conventional ones, "that in turn increases the demand and would make prices rise more for that category." Matthew Dillon, co-CEO of the Organic Trade Association, says those in the organic food industry are looking at diversifying their supply chains away from Mexico, but there's a three-year transition period required for farmers to switch from producing conventional to organic produce. "Supply chains are not incredibly elastic in organic. It takes more time to pivot and change when there's a supply chain disruption. And tariffs are in some ways a form of supply chain disruption for a company, because it creates unpredictable pricing," he says. Together with grocery prices that have gone up more than 26% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump's plans for tariffs on Mexico, along with mass deportations , could create "a perfect storm of high inflationary pressure on the organic sector," Dillon says. Furthermore, retaliatory tariffs from Mexico could have their own impacts . Aside from the threat of tariffs, the avocado industry has other challenges to deal with: climate change presents several problems , and avocados require a large amount of water to grow. Meanwhile, environmentalists say some avocado growers are cutting down forests to plant avocados. Producers also face extortion from criminal gangs in Mexico . And now with Trump's tariff threats, producers are left to wonder about their next steps. "Producers, they react to market fundamentals," Ribera says. For example, people can foresee how bad weather in Mexico would affect avocado prices. Producers and retailers will adjust to higher and lower demand. "The issue with a tariff is it's not a market fundamental — it's a policy. It's a political move," he says. "It could happen or it could not happen, or it could be increased or it could be decreased, you know. So it's hard for the whole supply chain to adjust." Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit npr.org .In the northern French city of Reims, the construction of a new house has brought an ancient home to the surface. Archaeologists discovered a domus, or luxury urban house , dating to the second century during housing construction along the Rue de la Magdeleine, according to a Dec. 4 news release from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research. Once inhabited by the Gallic tribe of the Remi , Reims was conquered by the Romans and grew into an urban center. The city was developed in the classic Roman urban planning style, archaeologists said, in which residential blocks form a grid of perpendicular streets around a city center, designed as a political and religious forum. In many cases, the outside districts are far less studied than the central areas, researchers said. The newly discovered dwelling, with a two-pillar facade facing the street, is two-thirds of a mile away from where the city center once stood. But this wasn’t just any common Roman’s home. This home was occupied by the elite. The inside of the house was buried under a destroyed layer that was likely caused by a fire, archaeologists said. In the mains, pieces of a megalography fresco were found. Megalography means the figures painted on the surface are represented in their real size, researchers said. Two fresco pieces have the painted names Achilles and Deidamia, referencing the mythological scene of Achilles on Skyros, a coveted pre-Trojan War episode, archaeologists said. This is the fourth depiction of this scene found in Roman settings, including ones in Aquileia, Pompeii and Rome, according to the release. What are we learning about the past? Here are three of our most recent eye-catching archaeology stories. → Anglers spot something poking out of seafloor — leading to rare ancient find in Italy → Hiker finds strange item at melting glacier in Switzerland — and it stumps officials → 'Phantom' coins — believed to be destroyed after WWII — found in warehouse in Japan Other items found in the home, however, pointed to the social standing and financial prowess of the home’s owners, researchers said. Three intricate bronze statues were unearthed from the remains. One depicts the god Mars, a second depicts an unidentified goddess and a third statue depicts a bull, according to archaeologists. Researchers described the statues as luxurious and made with a deft touch, supporting the idea that they belonged in an elite member of society’s home. The bronze Mars’ eyes are enhanced by silver, archaeologists said, and Mars is holding a shield with a depiction of the She-Wolf, Romulus and Remus. Mars’ cuirass, or breastplate, was decorated with the head of Medusa, and the statue’s circular base has silver and copper floral decorations, researchers said. The bull sits on a rectangular base and also has a bronze body and silver eyes. The variation of the silver eyes gives the bull an expressive gaze, officials said. The woman clearly represents a goddess, archaeologists said, but her specific identification hasn’t been made. She has a helmet with a relief representing a sphinx, a face and a crown, which may represent a city, researchers said, and spots on her back look like they might have once held wings. She holds the club of Hercules wrapped by a snake and the skin of the Nemean Lion. Officials say the odd aggregation of different representations has a mysterious meaning. The statues’ quality reaffirms their value, though researchers said the location of the home, so far from the city center, does raise questions as to the wealthy homeowner’s status in the community and the function of their home. Reims is in northeastern France, about a 90-mile drive northeast from Paris. Google Translate was used to translate the news release from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research.NoneShock for fruit vendor who sold $9 million banana for 25 cents

The condemnation came as the House of Lords debated regulations paving the way for a scheme which would require animal lovers on the British mainland to have documentation in order to visit Northern Ireland. Critics view the move as further evidence of Northern Ireland still having to follow EU rules post-Brexit and being treated differently from the rest of the UK – a major source of contention to the unionist community. The paperwork, which will be free to apply for, includes a declaration that the owner will not travel onwards to Ireland or another EU country with their pet or assistance dog. Animals will have to be microchipped and have their own individual pet travel document, which will be valid for its lifetime. Northern Ireland residents returning after a stay in Great Britain with their pet or assistance dog will not need a travel document. The scheme is being introduced under the Windsor Framework, a revised deal for Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trading arrangements aimed at tackling issues caused by the protocol. Raising her concerns in Parliament, Baroness Hoey, a Northern Irish Brexit supporter and former Labour MP, said: “These regulations are in effect about a new aspect of the Irish Sea border that has not had expression until this point because of the grace periods.” She added: “The experience of visiting Northern Ireland with your pet dog or cat, or even a ferret, will be made to feel like a visit to a foreign country. Lady Hoey went on: “This could spell the end of holiday trips for pet owners from GB to NI and then on to the Republic, when they want to explore both Northern Ireland and the Republic. “If they have a pet passport, they will have renounced their right to go to the Republic. That makes the border more of an obstruction than having border control posts on it, because at least in that eventuality, you could still cross over it.” Rejecting claims it was a result of the UK leaving the EU, she said: “The reality is that this is happening precisely because Northern Ireland has not got Brexit. “As we say repeatedly, it is still subject to EU rules and the EU could change the rules overnight.” Former DUP deputy leader Lord Dodds of Duncairn said: “Every one of the statutory instruments that come forward under the Windsor Framework must be properly debated, because these laws are being brought forward to implement what a foreign jurisdiction has decided should be the law of the United Kingdom. “In the 21st century, we should not accept colonial rule. We abolished it elsewhere. We believe it should not be tolerated for one second. People should have the democratic right to decide their laws for themselves, in their interests.” He added: “The ridiculous part about this debate is that we are having to debate European laws regulating the movement of pet animals owned by British citizens between one part of the United Kingdom and another. That is an outrage.” Lord Dodds went on: “As I said, there will be hundreds, thousands more of these regulations, in all areas, affecting the daily lives of people in Northern Ireland. They all add up to a grievous assault on Northern Ireland’s constitutional position.” But former leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick said: “I support the Windsor Framework because it is a necessary legal device to deal with the complexities that were presented to us in Ireland, north and south, on the issue of Brexit. “We need a pragmatic solution rather than choosing to have political contests and duels simply for the sake of them.” Introducing the regulations, environment minister Baroness Hayman of Ulloch said: “This scheme will simplify the requirements associated with moving pet dogs, cats and ferrets from Great Britain to Northern Ireland significantly. “It replaces single-use animal health certificates with a free-of-charge lifelong travel document and removes the need for costly pet health treatments. “Pet owners who travel frequently with their pets, or those who rely on the services of an assistance dog to travel independently, will benefit substantially from this change in approach.” However, she acknowledged the concerns raised by peers and promised to continue engagement with them.The 17-year-old son of musicians Sinéad O’Connor and Dónal Lunny was found dead in an area of secluded wasteland behind Corke Abbey housing estate close to Bray on January 7th, 2022, less than 24 hours after he absconded from Tallaght University Hospital (TUH). When he escaped from the hospital, Shane – who was deemed a “high-risk” patient by psychiatrists at the hospital following a serious suicide attempt – was not receiving prescribed one-to-one, around-the-clock supervision due to understaffing. A jury of six men and two women made a series of recommendations at the conclusion of the inquest at Dublin District Coroner’s Court on Tuesday, including that protocols be established at all HSE hospitals for the enhanced care and supervision of recognised vulnerable patients, particularly children. On the second day of the inquest, the court heard evidence from care workers and psychiatrists about the deterioration of Shane’s mental health in the months before his death, variously manifesting in erratic behaviour, drug-induced psychosis, self-harm and suicidal ideation, among other presentations. Aoife Scanlon, manager at the Tusla-funded private residential care facility New Beginnings in Newbridge, Co Kildare, said although Shane initially engaged well at the facility when he came to live there in March 2019, his behaviour began to pose challenges in 2021. New Beginnings ultimately communicated to Tusla – the agency responsible for Shane’s care – that they were unable to continue accommodating Shane beyond December 2021, as his needs were “too complex”, that they were worried for his wellbeing, and that they could not guarantee his safety. After Shane went missing from New Beginnings for some days, he spent the first weeks of December 2021 at Linn Dara, a HSE Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) inpatient facility, one of six admissions to the facility between 2020 and 2021. As New Beginnings were not in a position to accommodate him, Linn Dara was requested to allow Shane to stay at the inpatient unit until his 18th birthday in March, the court heard. However, it was deemed that this was not appropriate, as Shane was not suffering from an acute mental health disorder as defined by legislation, and he wished to be discharged. Shane was discharged from Linn Dara on December 21st, 2021. The court heard that various parties involved in Shane’s care – including Tusla, Cahms and New Beginnings – held meetings to plan how Shane would be accommodated and cared for in the months before his 18th birthday, and afterwards. It was agreed that Shane would stay with family members during the Christmas period, the court heard. On December 29th, Shane’s mother brought him to TUH following a “serious” suicide attempt. The court heard that Shane’s mental health difficulties were linked to his addiction to cannabis. Ms Scanlon said staff at New Beginnings had no power to stop Shane from smoking. Several professional witnesses testified to Shane’s unwillingness to stop using cannabis. Separately, Seán O’Connor, Shane’s grandfather, said from the body of the court it was important to say that “[Shane’s late mother] Sinéad and Shane were very, very close”, and “they loved each other madly”. Joyce Connolly, a principal social worker with Tusla, noted Shane’s relationship with Ms O’Connor was “complex and turbulent”, and that “in some ways”, she believed that they “depended on each other a lot throughout their lives”. Dr Tara Rudd, a psychiatrist who cared for Shane during several of his admissions to Linn Dara, said that Shane vocalised anxiety around turning 18, and what the repercussions would be for him as he transitioned out of childcare services. She said Shane also described having a “great love” for his family, and that “spending time with his family and getting his own place was all he wanted”. Shane’s three half-siblings, Jake Reynolds, Róisín Waters and Yeshua Bonadio, were present in court on Tuesday, along with Shane’s uncle Joseph, father, grandfather and other extended family. Coroner Dr Cróna Gallagher extended sympathies to Shane’s family, stating that her court was “all too aware” of the “devastating impact” that the death of a child can have on a family. Fiachra Gallagher is an Irish Times journalistTHE POWER OF ALLO'S ALL-FIBER NETWORK COMING TO BOULDER, COLORADO

Tafara Gapare throws down 19 points and a highlight dunk, and Maryland beats Bucknell 91-67NYC's mayor warms to Trump and doesn't rule out becoming a RepublicanEmboldened by the view from the top of the NFC North, the Detroit Lions are out to eliminate nightmare holiday gatherings when the Chicago Bears come to town Thursday for a lunchtime division duel. The Lions (10-1) are streaking one direction, the Bears (4-7) the other in the first matchup of the season between teams on opposite ends of the division. Riding a nine-game winning streak, their longest since a 10-game streak during their first season in Detroit in 1934, the Lions are burdened by losses in their traditional Thanksgiving Day game the past seven seasons. Three of the defeats are courtesy of Chicago. The Bears and Lions get together for the 20th time on Thanksgiving -- the Bears have 11 wins -- this week in the first of two meetings between the teams in a 25-day span. Detroit goes to Soldier Field on Dec. 22. "I think there's two things," Campbell said of the Thanksgiving losing streak. "Number one -- Get a W. And it's a division win that's why this huge. Number two is because the players are going to get a couple of days off. So, they have family, friends in, it'd be nice to feel good about it when you're with everybody because it's just not real fun. It's not real fun to be around." Detroit (10-1) owns the best record in the NFC but the Lions aren't even assured of a division title. Minnesota sits one game behind them and Green Bay is two games back. The Bears (4-7) sit in last place and would likely need to run the table to have any chance of making the playoffs. The Lions have been dominant in all phases and haven't allowed a touchdown in the past 10 consecutive quarters. Detroit's offense ranks first in points per game (32.7) and second in total yardage (394.3) The Lions defense has not given up a touchdown in the last 10 quarters. Rookie placekicker Jake Bates has made all 16 of his field goal attempts, including four from 50-plus yards over the past three games. Chicago shows up in a foul mood. The Bears are saddled with a five-game losing streak and Chicago's defense has been destroyed for nearly 2,000 total yards in the last four games. The Bears failed to reach the 20-point mark four times in five outings since they last won a game. In their latest defeat, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams and the offense perked up but they lost to Minnesota in overtime, 30-27. "We have to play complementary football for us to be able to win these games," coach Matt Eberflus said. "The games we have won, we have done that. The games we have been close we've missed the mark a little bit. Over the course of the year, it's been one side or the other, this side or that side. In this league you have to be good on all sides to win. That's what we are searching for." Williams threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. The wide receiver trio of DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Romeo Odunze combined for 21 receptions and two touchdowns while tight end Cole Kmet caught seven passes. "What I've been impressed with is just how he has grown," Campbell said. "He has grown every game but these last two I really feel like he's taken off and what they're doing with him has been really good for him and he just looks very composed. He doesn't get frazzled, plays pretty fast, and he's an accurate passer, big arm, and he's got some guys that can get open for him." Detroit's banged-up secondary could be susceptible against the Bears' veteran receivers in their bid to pull off an upset on Thursday. The Lions put two defensive backs on injured reserve in the past week and top cornerback Carlton Davis isn't expected to play due to knee and thumb injuries. Detroit offensive tackle Taylor Decker (knee) and top returner Kalif Raymond (foot) are also expected to miss the game, though Campbell expressed optimism that running back David Montgomery (shoulder), formerly of the Bears, would play. Bears safety Elijah Hicks was listed as a DNP for Tuesday's walkthrough. --Field Level MediaSean 'Diddy' Combs denied bail by third judge as he awaits sex trafficking trial

Australia's regional property markets continue to outperform their metro counterparts, but price growth is cooling. or signup to continue reading Regional dwelling values rose 1.1 per cent in the three months to October, compared with 0.8 per cent in the cities, . The respective growth rates have softened from 2.3 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively in the quarter to April. Mining regions in WA and Queensland led the charge, with property values in Mackay, Geraldton and Townsville up 8.8 per cent, 8.2 per cent and 6.6 per cent, respectively. Over the year to October, dwelling prices in each of the three markets surged by more than a quarter, driven by affordability and lifestyle appeal, CoreLogic economist Kaytlin Ezzy said. "But even with the impressive growth, for those with the capacity to service a mortgage, they still remain attainable with medians less than $600,000," Ms Ezzy said. In NSW and Victoria, there were signs of cooling in markets that had run hot during COVID-era tree and sea changes. Seven out of eight Victorian non-capital significant urban areas posted value drops, along with 10 of 21 equivalent regions in NSW. The holiday town of Batemans Bay on NSW's southern coast fell the most with a 2.7 per cent slump over the quarter, followed by Warrnambool on Victoria's southwest coast, where values sunk 2.6 per cent. "There's certainly been a slowdown in demand for these areas and more stock on the market and that's in addition to higher interest rates, cost of living pressures, and limited borrowing capacity" Ms Ezzy said. Over the year, 10 property markets in the southeastern states posted declines, led by a 6.3 per cent fall in the town of Ballarat in central-western Victoria. Regional rental prices grinded 0.5 per cent higher over the three months, but held steady on average across capital cities. As for mortgage affordability, Westpac economists recently joined NAB in pushing expectations of a Reserve Bank interest rate cut from February to May 2025. ANZ and CBA economists still expect the RBA to ease the cash rate for the first time in more than four years in February 2025. REGIONAL PROPERTY VALUES AT A GLANCE: - Highest quarterly growth: Mackay (Qld) - 8.3 per cent - Lowest quarterly growth: Batemans Bay (NSW) - minus 2.7 per cent - Highest annual growth: Geraldton (WA) - 28.7 per cent - Lowest annual growth: Ballarat (Vic) - 6.3 per cent - Shortest days on market: Bunbury (WA) - 13 days - Longest days on market: Batemans Bay (NSW) - 72 days REGIONAL RENTALS AT A GLANCE: - Highest quarterly rental growth: Albany (WA) - up 3.0 per cent - Lowest quarterly rental growth: Batemans Bay (NSW) - minus 2.4 per cent - Highest yearly rental growth: Geraldton (WA) - 14.6 per cent - Lowest yearly rental growth: Burnie - Somerset (Tas) - 1.8 per cent - Most affordable: Burnie - Somerset (Tas) - $408 - Least affordable: Gold Coast - Tweed Heads (Qld and NSW) - $833 Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data. Read our . Advertisement

Just weeks after voters cast ballots in a presidential election many described as the most critical of their lifetime, another highly anticipated contest looms. Two candidates — both political newcomers — have jumped in, announcing they intend to enter the 2025 race to be the next mayor of Santa Fe. Tarin Nix, a political consultant and deputy commissioner of public affairs for the State Land Office, has launched an initiative called "Fix Our City Different," which she describes as a precursor to a mayoral campaign. Meanwhile, Oscar Rodriguez, a former Taos town manager and Santa Fe finance director, announced his candidacy this week in an op-ed published in The New Mexican . But elected officials, some of whom have been named as potential mayoral candidates or have expressed interest in the race, remain reluctant to publicly declare whether they have decided to run. Some said in September they were focused on the general election and weren't yet prepared to make a decision about next year's municipal election. One of them was Mayor Alan Webber, who is in his second term. Asked recently if he plans to seek a third term in office, Webber said it was still too early to comment. "We're still recovering from the general election," he said. Official filing deadlines for the 2025 local election won't come until summer. If Webber chooses to run, however, other contenders likely will need a significant amount of time to raise campaign funds and build name recognition. In 2021, Webber raised almost $500,000 — a record for the office. Rodriguez said in an interview he chose to declare his candidacy for mayor now because he believes he will need a long runway to get his name out there. "I just don't have the level of ID that others might have, particularly those who are on the [City] Council already," he said. City Councilor Carol Romero-Wirth — whose District 2 seat also is up for election in November 2025 — declined to comment in September on whether she plans to seek the higher office; like Webber, she cited a focus on the general election. She did not respond to multiple requests for comment this week on whether she plans to run for reelection or make a bid for mayor. Fellow District 2 Councilor Michael Garcia, whose political future has been the subject of significant speculation, said in September he was "seriously considering running" for mayor. More recently, however, he said it was too early for him to discuss any plans. Garcia, reelected to a second term in November 2023, wouldn't have to give up his council seat to run for mayor. In a statement last week, Garcia said it was an "honor" to be discussed as a potential candidate. "I will always fight to ensure that residents have a local government that represents them and their interests," he said. "I am still in the process of taking the necessary time with my family to make this important decision." Nix and Rodriguez have both framed their decision to enter the mayor's race around a desire to improve what they described as inadequate or failing city services. Nix released a video earlier this month detailing her Fix Our City Different initiative and describing what she sees as problems with city services as stemming from "a lack of will." "A majority of our issues could have been solved with real leadership and common sense," she said. Rodriguez wrote in his op-ed his campaign that getting basic city services right "only improves the quality of life of our community, it also builds the muscle to tackle bigger, more complex issues." He said in an interview he hopes people will be ready for a race focused on issues. He cited a quote from famed Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi. After taking over the team, Lombardi said he would turn it around not by making drastic changes or replacing the players but by becoming "brilliant at the basics." Rodriguez said the city needs more focus on maintenance and a system for addressing potholes and other problems as they arise. "A big part of delivering quality services is to prevent problems coming up in the first place," he said. He also expressed concern about high-level job vacancies at the city, which currently lacks a permanent city manager and community development director. Rodriguez served as the city's finance director for nearly two years, leaving in 2016 for a new job at the New Mexico Finance Authority, where he has remained since then. He believes he would be able to hit the ground running. "I'm confident I would be able to step into this role and make a significant immediate impact on morale, on transparency in the organization, on the quality of the services, etc.," he said. Nix had similar sentiments about improving city services. "If we can't do the basic functions of City Hall — which are infrastructure, roads, transportation, public safety, public health — then how do we get to really big ideas that move our community forward?" she said in an interview. She pointed to a recent, brief lapse of the city's contract with the Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society as evidence the city would be "hard-pressed" to say it is delivering basic services. She said the response to Fix Our City Different has been positive. "I think people are ready for a change." A website for the initiative will publish weekly videos about different issues affecting Santa Fe and allow people to self-report problems with things like sewer lines, roads, noise and light pollution. "The whole premise is that this is not political," Nix said. "This is really about how you deliver good government, and if you do it correctly, there shouldn't be this political undertone that exists right now in our city." Four city councilors' seats are also up for election in November. So far, only District 3 Councilor Lee Garcia has said he plans to run again. Signe Lindell in District 1, Romero-Wirth in District 2 and Amanda Chavez in District 4 did not respond to requests for comment. Some people who ran unsuccessfully for council seats in 2023 signaled they may be open to running again. Joel Nava, who lost a District 4 challenge against Councilor Jamie Cassutt, said he is exploring the possibility of another run but probably won't make a decision until spring. "I'm still disappointed with this administration, and I do feel that change is still needed, now more than ever," he said. Katherine Rivera, one of four candidates in last year's District 1 race, said she is exploring the possibility of running again and will make a decision in the new year. "I am definitely a potential candidate," Rivera said. Brian Gutierrez, a District 1 contender in both 2021 and 2023, said his decision will hinge on who else declares a candidacy. "If there’s a good candidate out there, then I will stay out. If nothing looks appealing, then I’ll probably throw my hat in the ring," he said Monday. He added, "I’m hoping somebody good jumps in, because I’m busy." Geno Zamora, the district's best-funded candidate in 2023, who lost to Alma Castro, said it's "too early to know anything." Phil Lucero, who ran unsuccessfully against Michael Garcia in District 2 last year, declined to comment.

Texas AG sues NCAA to block transgender athletes in women’s sportsWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Attorneys for Fox Corp. asked a Delaware judge Friday to dismiss a shareholder lawsuit seeking to hold current and former company officials personally liable for the financial fallout stemming from Fox News reports regarding alleged vote rigging in the 2020 election. Five New York City public employee pension funds, along with Oregon’s public employee retirement fund, allege that former chairman Rupert Murdoch and other Fox Corp. leaders deliberately turned a blind eye to liability risks posed by reporting false claims of vote rigging by election technology companies Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic USA. Smartmatic is suing Fox News for defamation in New York, alleging damages of $2.7 billion. It recently settled a lawsuit in the District of Columbia against One America News Network, another conservative outlet, over reports of vote fraud. Dominion also filed several defamation lawsuits against those who spread conspiracy theories blaming its election equipment for Donald Trump’s loss in 2020. Last year, Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion in Delaware for $787 million. The shareholder plaintiffs also allege that Fox corporate leaders ignored “red flags” about liability arising from a 2017 report suggesting that Seth Rich, a Democratic National Committee staffer, may have been killed because he had leaked Democratic party emails to Wikileaks during the 2016 presidential campaign. Rich, 27, was shot in 2016 in Washington, D.C., in what authorities have said was an attempted robbery. Fox News retracted the Seth Rich story a week after its initial broadcast, but Rich’s parents sued the network for falsely portraying their son as a criminal and traitor. Fox News settled the lawsuit in 2020 for “millions of dollars,” shortly before program hosts Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity were to be deposed, according to the shareholder lawsuit. Joel Friedlander, an attorney for the institutional shareholders, argued that Fox officials waited until the company’s reporting about Rich became a national scandal before addressing the issue. Similarly, according to the shareholders, corporate officials, including Rupert Murdoch and his son, CEO Lachlan Murdoch, allowed Fox News to continue broadcasting false narratives about the 2020 election, despite internal communications suggesting that they knew there was no evidence to support the conspiracy theories. “The Murdochs could have minimized future monetary exposure, but they chose not to,” Friedlander said. Instead, he argued, they engaged in “bad-faith decision making” with other defendants in a profit-driven effort to retain viewers and remain in Trump’s good graces. “Decisions were made at the highest level to promote pro-Trump conspiracy theories without editorial control,” Friedlander said. Defense attorneys argue that the case should be dismissed because the plaintiffs filed their lawsuit without first demanding that the Fox Corp. board take action, as required under Delaware law. They say the plaintiffs also failed to demonstrate that a pre-suit demand on the Fox board would have been futile because at least half of the directors face a substantial likelihood of liability or are not independent of someone who does. Beyond the “demand futility” issue, defense attorneys also argue that allegations that Fox officials breached their fiduciary duties fail to meet the pleading standards under Delaware and therefore should be dismissed. Defense attorney William Savitt argued, for example, that neither the Rich settlement, which he described as “immaterial,” nor the allegedly defamatory statements about Dominion and Smartmatic constitute red flags putting directors on notice about the risk of defamation liability. Nor do they demonstrate that directors acted in bad faith or that Fox “utterly failed” to implement and monitor a system to report and mitigate legal risks, including defamation liability risk, according to the defendants. Savitt noted that the Rich article was promptly retracted, and that the settlement included no admission of liability. The Dominion and Smartmatic statements, meanwhile, gave rise themselves to the currently liability issues and therefore can not serve as red flags about future liability risks, according to the defendants. “A ‘red flag’ must be what the term commonly implies — warning of a risk of a liability-causing event that allows the directors to take action to avert the event, not notice that a liability-causing event has already occurred,” defense attorneys wrote in their motion to dismiss. Defense attorneys also say there are no factual allegations to support claims that Fox officials condoned illegal conduct in pursuit of corporate profits, or that they deliberately ignored their oversight responsibilities. They note that a “bad outcome” is not sufficient to demonstrate “bad faith.” Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster is expected to rule within 90 days. Randall Chase, The Associated Press

CARSON, Calif. — The LA Galaxy and the New York Red Bulls have been Major League Soccer mainstays since the league's inaugural season in 1996, signing glamorous players and regularly competing for championships through years of success and setbacks in a league that's perpetually improving and expanding. Yet just a year ago, both of these clubs appeared to be a very long way from the stage they'll share Saturday in the MLS Cup Final. The Galaxy were one of MLS' worst teams after a season of internal turmoil and public fan dissent, while the Red Bulls were merely a steady mediocrity seeking yet another coach to chart a new direction. A year later, these MLS founders are meeting in the league's first Cup final between teams from North America's two biggest markets. "Two original clubs being able to put themselves in this situation, I think it's great," Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. "To see two clubs that have been at it as long as this league has been around be here, I think it's a special moment. Couldn't be two more different and contrasting styles as well, which could make for an interesting game, and I would imagine a high-intensity game." Everything changed in 2024 after a dismal decade for the Galaxy, who are favored to cap their transformation by winning their team's record sixth MLS championship with a roster that's dramatically different from its past few groups — albeit with one massive injury absence in the final. The transformation of the Red Bulls happened only in the postseason, when a team that hadn't won a playoff game since 2017 suddenly turned into world-beaters under rookie coach Sandro Schwarz. New York struggled through the final three months of league play with only two wins before posting road playoff victories over defending champ Columbus, archrival New York City FC and conference finalist Orlando to storm into the Cup final. "We know about the history (of our club), and we know tomorrow will define what that could mean," Schwarz said Friday. "To feel the pressure for tomorrow, it's necessary, because it's a final, and without pressure it's not possible to bring the best quality on the field." The Red Bulls have never won an MLS Cup, only reaching the championship match once before. What's more, they've somehow never won a Cup in any tournament, although they've collected three Supporters' Shields for MLS' best regular-season record. The Galaxy's trophy case is large and loaded, and those five MLS Cups are on the top shelf. But not much of that team success happened in the past decade for the club that famously brought David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robbie Keane, Steven Gerrard and many other international stars to Hollywood. In fact, this season has ended a grim era for the Galaxy, who haven't lost all year at their frequently renamed home stadium — which was the site of protests and boycotts just a year ago. The club's fans were tired of LA's steady underachievement and ineptitude in the front office run by team president Chris Klein, who was fired in May 2023. One year ago Thursday, the Galaxy hired Will Kuntz, a longtime Los Angeles FC executive who engineered his new club's roster transformation, most dramatically by landing new designated players Gabriel Pec and Joseph Paintsil — two international talents that LAFC also had in its sights. "I give Will and the group up there a ton of credit," Vanney said. "It's one thing to have players you like, and it's a whole other thing to get them here and get them to connect with your group." Pec and Paintsil combined for 32 goals and 27 assists while boosting the incumbent talents of striker Dejan Joveljic and Riqui Puig, the gifted Barcelona product who runs the offense from the midfield. The Galaxy clicked in the postseason, scoring a jaw-dropping 16 goals in four matches. Puig has been the Galaxy's most important player all season, but he won't be in the MLS Cup Final after tearing a knee ligament late in last week's conference final victory over Seattle. The loss of Puig — who somehow kept playing on his injured knee, and even delivered the game-winning pass to Joveljic — makes the Galaxy even more difficult to anticipate. "He played a lot in the regular season, so it was not so easy to analyze all these games now without him," Schwarz said. "But the main focus is to analyze what we need to do, because it's not clear now how they're playing without him." The Galaxy could give some of Puig's responsibilities to Marco Reus, the longtime Dortmund standout who joined LA in August. Reus is nursing a hamstring injury, but Vanney expects him to play. Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Tennis couple announce engagement with stunning ring after five years of datingABQQ Reports FY 2024 Audited Financial Results, Introduces FY 2025 Outlook, Announces to Repurchase $5 Million of Shares by Year-End 2025