WORLD NEWS
Putin tells Belarusian president of ‘some positive developments’ in Ukraine talks
The Russian head of state promised to brief Alexander Lukashenko in more detail later
Talks between Ukraine and Russia have seen some “positive developments,” President Vladimir Putin told his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, on Friday. The two heads of state met in the Russian capital for bilateral talks.
Addressing his counterpart, Putin said that he would “definitely inform” him about the “situation around Ukraine, and, first and foremost, of how the negotiations are going now, that are being held almost daily.” The Russian president added that “there are some positive developments, as our negotiators have told me.” Putin promised to brief Lukashenko in more detail later.
Putin has hailed the high level of cooperation between Moscow and Minsk, noting that he and his Belarusian colleague were “holding meetings regularly, exchanging information by phone, adjusting our moves.” Putin also made a point of congratulating Lukashenko on the latest referendum results in Belarus, in which the majority of people voted in favor of constitutional amendments suggested by the president.
The Russian president stated that “this political process which you initiated, the dialogue with the people that you are holding” would contribute to Belarus’ stability, which is, according to Putin, a prerequisite for economic growth.
Activity at closed North Korean nuclear site – Seoul
Pyongyang is thought to have resumed testing after denuclearization talks stalled with the US
The South Korean military announced on Friday that it had detected activity at North Korean nuclear test site Punggye-ri, which has been inactive since 2018, when some tunnels were demolished.
Pyongyang is thought to have resumed its nuclear testing program after denuclearization talks with the United States stalled back in 2019. It had previously imposed a moratorium on nuclear-weapons testing in 2018 amid progress with then-President Donald Trump’s administration.
“Activity to restore part of the tunnels at North Korea’s Punggye-ri nuclear test site that were destroyed on May 24, 2018 has been detected,” the South Korean military said, without specifying the nature of the activity witnessed. Seoul confirmed that it was closely cooperating with its US allies to monitor the activity that has been detected.
In 2018, images showed that North Korea used explosives to demolish the entrances to some of the underground tunnels at the nuclear site but activity to restore those sections was recently spotted by the South Korean military.
‘No effect’: Austria suspends national vaccine mandate
Police in Austria on the prowl for unvaccinated people. (Video screenshot)
Last month, Austria became the first country in the world to make it illegal to be without proof of COVID vaccination, but the European nation has suspended its law after protests and reports the measure had no effect.
The government said Wednesday the law was “not proportionate to the threat” of the omicron variant of the virus that caused COVID-19, which while more contagious presents with mild symptoms.
The Austrian daily Kronen Zeitung reported the announcement was made only days before the government was set to impose fines of up to 3,600 euros, about $4,000, for the unvaccinated.
However, Austria’s constitutional minister, Karoline Edtstadler, and Health Minister Johannes Rauch said the law remains on the books and could be implemented again.
The German news magazine Der Spiegel reported the Austrian law had “practically no effect” on increasing vaccination, with about 1 million people, or 13% of the population, remaining unvaccinated.
In January, WND spoke with Austrian activist Alexander Tschugguel, who has helped lead a nationwide movement against forced vaccination and other COVID measures.
Tschugguel, 28, said Austrians were being used as “lab rats” for the Western world, noting the “terrible idea of a vaccine mandate” was being copied by Germany despite the admission that the vaccines don’t prevent infection and transmission, and the evidence that the vaccinated are equally susceptible to hospitalization and death from COVID-19.
He warned that the the next logical step after the vaccine law is that, among other things, unvaccinated parents could lose their children
Finland mulls joining NATO after Russia’s war in Ukraine
For decades, Finland refused to take sides for or against Russia, a position that kept the peace but also confined its sovereignty.
In light of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, its neutrality policy may soon change as the Nordic country that shares a 1,340km (830-mile) border with Russia contemplates joining the NATO military alliance.
“We have safe solutions also for our future. We must review them carefully. Not with delay, but carefully,” he said.
On Wednesday, Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin said discussions on possible NATO membership should take place at several levels with a view to establishing a national consensus.
India says it accidentally fired missile into Pakistan
India said it accidentally fired a missile into neighbouring Pakistan this week due to a “technical malfunction” during routine maintenance, after Pakistan warned the incident could have “unpleasant consequences”.
“On 9 March 2022, in the course of a routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile,” the Indian ministry of defence said in a statement on Friday.
“It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan. While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident.”
The ministry said the government had “taken a serious view and ordered a high-level Court of Enquiry” into the incident.
WHO Told Ukraine To Destroy ‘High-Threat Pathogens’ In Labs To Prevent Disease Spread
The World Health Organization advised Ukraine to destroy ‘high-threat pathogens’ in the country’s public health laboratories in order to prevent “any potential spills” that might infect the population during the Russian invasion, Reuters reports.
“As part of this work, WHO has strongly recommended to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine and other responsible bodies to destroy high-threat pathogens to prevent any potential spills,” said the UN agency.
The report comes after a tense back-and-forth between US and Russian officials over “dangerous” biolabs in the country – with Russia, and then China, accusing the US military of involvement in Ukraine’s biolabs.
On Wednesday, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova repeated a longstanding claim that the United States operates a biowarfare lab in Ukraine, an accusation that has been repeatedly denied by Washington and Kyiv.
Zakharova said that documents unearthed by Russian forces in Ukraine showed “an emergency attempt to erase evidence of military biological programmes” by destroying lab samples. -Reuters
The US has denied the allegations – issuing (among other things) a Thursday statement that “The United States does not have chemical or biological weapons labs in Ukraine,” adding that America “does not develop or possess chemical and biological weapons anywhere.”
U.S. NEWS, POLITIC & GOVERNMENT
Chinese firms tied to Hunter Biden could bail out Putin
President Biden’s son Hunter has done business with two Chinese state oil companies that are in discussions with Beijing to invest in the Russian gas giant Gazprom, which has been sanctioned in response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Sinopec, for which Hunter Biden may still hold an indirect investment, and China National Petroleum Corporation hope to take advantage of deep discounts in Gazprom’s shares, according to a Bloomberg report highlighted by the Washington Free Beacon.
Hunter Biden is the subject of a U.S. Department of Justice investigation over his taxes and foreign business dealings. The president’s son famously was paid some $83,000 a month to sit on the board of a corrupt Ukrainian gas firm while it was under investigation and his vice president father was in charge of U.S. policy for the European nation.
The Free Beacon reported Hunter Biden met in 2011 with an executive from China National Petroleum Corporation to discuss the possible purchase of an oil field in Africa. The meeting took place even after Biden was told that the company had helped rogue nations, including Iran and Sudan, evade U.S. sanctions.
Biden cofounded a private equity firm called BHR Partners that bought a $1.7 billion stake in Sinopec Marketing in 2015.
In December, a lawyer for Biden told the New York Times the president’s son no longer holds a stake in BHR. But this week the Washington Examiner reported Biden’s firm is still listed as a BHR shareholder, according to Chinese business records. And records in Washington, D.C., show Biden is still the firm’s owner.
Gazprom was among more than a dozen Russian companies sanctioned last month by the Biden administration as Putin threatened to invade Ukraine.
The Free Beacon’s Chuck Ross observed that the purchase of Russian businesses and commodities “would provide a lifeline to Moscow at a time when the government is trying to fund its illegal war.”
“Any deal would likely upset the Biden administration, which warned China this week against helping Russia circumvent sanctions,” Ross wrote.
He recalled that Hunter Biden was paid at least $6 million by CEFC China Energy to find investment opportunities in energy companies in the West.
Alabama becomes the 22nd state to allow people to carry concealed guns without permit
People in Alabama will not be required to obtain a permit or undergo a background check to carry a concealed weapon beginning next year.
Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed Thursday legislation into law that removes the requirement for concealed carry permit — making Alabama the 22nd state to adopt that policy.
“Unlike states who are doing everything in their power to make it harder for law abiding citizens, Alabama is reaffirming our commitment to defending our Second Amendment rights,” Ivey said in a statement. “I have always stood up for the rights of law abiding gunowners, and I am proud to do that again today.”
The law, which goes into effect on January 1, essentially allows people to have a gun in their jacket, purse or car without having a permit. The state does not currently require a permit to openly carry a weapon nor background checks for gun purchase.
The legislation was opposed by the Alabama Sheriff’s Association, which had rallied against it earlier this month at the state Capitol, arguing that permit-less conceal carry laws would make it easier for people to obtain guns and not register them.
Legislatures nationwide have been considering permit-less carry measures in at least six other states, including Georgia, Wisconsin, South Carolina, Indiana, Ohio and Nebraska.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Police are warning drivers to protect against gas thefts as oil prices soar
Police in the US and Canada are warning drivers to take extra steps to protect their vehicles from possible gas thefts as fuel prices surge at a pace not seen in over a decade.
Sanctions against oil producer Russia over its invasion of Ukraine have pushed up fuel prices already inflated by lowered production due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It means Americans returning to commuting and travel are facing rising costs at the pump on top of two years of financial strain.
Some police departments are urging extra caution as the value of a tank of gas rises.
In Washington state, the Everett Police Department and the Hoquiam Police Department suggest drivers take precautionary steps, such as purchasing a locking gas cap and parking in a visible well-lit area.
Ron DeSantis Rips ‘Woke’ Disney After CEO Bob Chapek Attacks Parental Rights Bill
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) came out swinging hard Thursday against the Walt Disney Company for its CEO’s support of transgender instruction for kindergarteners.
“When you have companies that have made a fortune off being family-friendly and catering to families and young kids, they should understand that parents of young kids do not want this injected into their kid’s kindergarten classroom,” he said.
DeSantis took it further by calling out Disney’s hypocrisy, characterizing it as a greedy company willing to die on the hill of transgenderism while coddling Communist China.
“If that’s the hill they’re going to die on, then how do they possibly explain lining their pockets with their relationship from the Communist Party of China? Because that’s what they do, and they make a fortune, and they don’t say a word about the really brutal practices that you see over there at the hands of the CCP,” he said.
“And so in Florida, our policies got to be based on the best interest of Florida citizens, not on the musing of woke corporations,” he added.
Even though the bill specifically bars schools from teaching about sexuality to kindergarteners and third graders, far-left activists have dubbed it the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
“Classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards,” the bill says.
Disney CEO Bob Chapek came out against the bill on Wednesday and pledged to donate $5 million to LGBTQ groups.
“I understand that many are upset that we did not speak out against the bill,” Chapek said. “We were opposed to the bill from the outset, but we chose not to take a public position on it because we thought we could be more effective working behind the scenes, working with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.”
“I called Gov. DeSantis this morning to express our disappointment and concern that if the legislation becomes law, it could be used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary, and transgender kids and families,” he added.
Chapek even said DeSantis was “open” to hearing different points of view on the matter. However, DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said his position remains unchanged.
“Governor DeSantis has always been open to hearing from Floridians and having conversations about legislation – as long as those discussions are grounded in facts, not false media narratives,” Pushaw said in a statement. “The governor’s position has not changed.”
The White House has condemned the bill as “hateful,” “horrific,” and “a form of bullying.”
“Why are Florida leaders deciding they need to discriminate against kids who are members of the LGBTQI community?” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Wednesday. “What prompts them to do that? Is it meanness? Is it wanting to make kids have more difficult times in school, in their communities?”
More than 40 GOP senators urge Biden to aid ‘transfer of aircraft’ to Ukraine – The Washington Post
More than 40 Republican U.S. senators on Thursday called for President Biden to aid “the transfer of aircraft and air defense systems” to Ukraine after officials quashed Poland’s offer to send fighter jets with American help.
The senators said in a letter that they “strongly disagree” with the Biden administration’s stance on Poland’s proposal, and that the Ukrainian military is in “dire need of more lethal aid” as it fights Russia’s invasion. They urged the president to work with NATO allies on providing those resources — uniting behind a step that U.S. officials worry could pull the Western alliance into war.
American officials have criticized Poland’s proposal to transfer MiG-29 jets through the United States as risking escalation without significantly changing the situation in Ukraine, given that Ukraine’s air force is largely intact. Asked about the senator’s letter Thursday evening, White House spokesperson Sean Savett noted comments from the Pentagon and the U.S. military commander in Europe expressing those views.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Russia to brand Meta an extremist entity and ban Instagram
The US tech giant is reportedly now permitting posts on its platforms that call for the killing of Russian soldiers in Ukraine
The Prosecutor General of Russia has asked a court to formally designate Meta Platforms, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, as an extremist organization, Russian news agencies reported on Friday. The request came after reports that the US-based social media giant had revised its policy and is now allowing posts that call for violence against Russian citizens, amid Moscow’s military offensive in Ukraine.
Earlier, some Western media reported that Meta had decided to allow “posts on Ukraine war calling for violence against invading Russians or [for Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s death”.
The Russian embassy in Washington called on the US government to “rein in” Meta’s apparent embrace of “extremism.” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the news reports were “hard to believe.”
“This information actually requires very careful verification and study,” the official told journalists on Friday. “We will hope it to be not true, as otherwise a most vigorous action will be required to stop the activities of this company.”
US hackers hijacked computers in China to attack Russia – media
China’s Xinhua News Agency claims cyberattacks also targeted Ukraine and Belarus
Hackers operating predominantly from American soil have been taking control of computers in China, using them to carry out cyberattacks against targets in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, China’s Xinhua News Agency reported on Friday.
The news outlet claims that China’s internet authority began detecting such malicious activity in late February. According to the report, the country’s internet has been under “constant” attack from abroad ever since.
The news agency, citing officials, revealed that the majority of cyberattacks had been traced back to the US, with 10 such addresses in New York State alone. Chinese computers have reportedly also been targeted from Germany, the Netherlands, and several other countries.
According to figures cited in the Chinese media, some 87% of all cyberattacks carried out via computers in China had Russia as their prime target.
The article reassured readers that China’s internet authority has been responding to cyber breaches “to the maximum extent and in a timely manner.”
Scientists named a recently discovered 330 million-year-old multi-tentacled fossil of an octopus ancestor after President Joe Biden, calling it Syllipsimopodi Bideni.
After paleontologists unearthed the fossil in Montana’s Bear Gulch Limestone formation in 1988, they donated it to Canada’s Royal Ontario Museum. Decades later, American Museum of Natural History paleontologist Christopher Whalen discovered the fossil sitting in a drawer undisturbed on Tuesday. Whalen discovered that the fossil’s preserved arms were covered in tiny suckers upon inspection.
“It’s very rare to find soft tissue fossils, except in a few places. This is a very exciting finding. It pushes back the ancestry much farther than previously known,” said Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History zoologist Mike Vecchione.
The fossil is the oldest known vampyropod, a likely ancestor of modern-day octopuses and vampire squids. The fossil is 4.7 inches and has ten limbs, two more than modern octopuses. Before its discovery, the oldest vampyropod was previously thought to be around 240 million-years-old.
Syllipsimopodi Bideni’s discovery means octopuses were around before the era of dinosaurs, according to the Guardian.
The scientists reportedly named the newfound species after Biden because they “were encouraged by his plans to address climate change and to fund scientific research.”
HEALTH
FDA Says No to Magnesium Claim: U.S. HHS and USDA say Americans get far too little of it
Which side of our government should we believe?
Why is the FDA talking out of both sides of its mouth?
Why are thousands of supplements being targeted for elimination by the FDA?
What can Congress do about this?
First, about the health claim that wasn’t a health claim. The FDA stated that it was accepting a proposed health claim that magnesium can lower high blood pressure– but only if the claim is always accompanied by a disclaimer that the “evidence is inconsistent and inconclusive.”
This Orwellian language is simply bonkers. The science about magnesium’s role in overall heart health and in maintaining proper blood pressure is settled.[1] [2] [3] [4] The only way anyone can argue that it is “inconsistent and inconclusive” is to toss out the underlying science and most of the specific studies, which is exactly what the FDA did.[5]
Why This Really Matters
HHS and USDA surveys tell us that 52% of Americans, a majority, are deficient in magnesium. But FDA has no interest whatsoever in encouraging us to consume more of it, no matter how many lives could be saved or how many billions in healthcare costs shaved, including Medicare and Medicaid costs.
Nor is the Agency interested in telling us to consume the right kinds of magnesium. Note that most of the magnesium supplements sold in drug stores are magnesium oxide, which we cannot absorb, which makes it only useful as a laxative.
Vegetarian, Pescatarian Or Low-Meat Diets May Reduce Cancer Risk – New Research
A growing number of people are choosing to eat less meat. There are many reasons people may choose to make this shift, but health is often cited as a popular motive.
A large body of research has shown that plant-based diets can have many health benefits – including lowering the risk of chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Two large studies – EPIC-Oxford and the Adventist Health Study-2 – have also suggested vegetarian or pescatarian diets (where the only meat a person eats is fish or seafood) may be linked to a slightly lower overall cancer risk.
Limited research has shown whether these diets could lower risk of developing specific types of cancer. This is what our recent study aimed to uncover. We found that eating less meat lower a person’s risk of developing cancer – even the most common types of cancer.
We conducted a large-scale analysis of diet and cancer risk using data from the UK Biobank study (a database of detailed genetic and health information from nearly 500,000 British people). When participants were recruited between 2006 and 2010, they completed questionnaires about their diet – including how often they ate foods such as meat and fish. We then tracked participants for 11 years using their medical records to understand how their health had changed during this time.
Participants were then categorised into four groups depending on their diet. Around 53% were regular meat-eaters (meaning they ate meat more than five times a week). A further 44% of participants were low meat-eaters (eating meat five or less times a week). Just over 2% were pescatarians, while just under 2% of participants were classified as vegetarians. We included vegans with the vegetarian group as there weren’t enough to study them separately.
Our analyses were also adjusted to ensure other factors that might increase risk of cancer – such as age, sex, smoking, alcohol consumption and sociodemographic status – were taken into account.
Compared with regular meat-eaters, we found the risk of developing any type of cancer was 2% lower for low meat-eaters, 10% lower in pescatarians and 14% lower in vegetarians.
COVID RELATED NEWS
Do you want your child to have a yearly COVID shot? That’s where we at ANH think we’re heading.
The federal government is currently considering whether to authorize COVID vaccines for children under five years of age, apparently amidst rising pressure from parents who want the vaccine for their young children; the shots have already been approved for Americans aged five and up. It appears that the obsession with vaccinating kids against COVID is really about getting COVID shots added to the CDC’s Childhood Immunization Schedule: a yearly COVID shot to help pad the coffers of Big Pharma.
Getting the COVID shots recommended for children is the first step to making them part of the CDC’s recommended childhood schedule—that is, a yearly shot for COVID, potentially long after COVID is no longer a pandemic. If COVID vaccines are added to the childhood immunization schedule, it means billions in sales for vaccine manufacturers and complete liability protection for when children are harmed by the vaccines. Note that liability protection for COVID vaccines will go away when the Health Department determines there is no longer a public health emergency; vaccines on the CDC’s schedule are permanently protected from liability.
Adding COVID vaccines to the CDC’s schedule would require a rulemaking with an opportunity for the public to comment. This process has not started yet, but this is what we see happening if the government recommends the vaccines for children under five. Big Pharma wants guaranteed profits (through adding COVID shots to the CDC’s schedule for kids) and the permanent liability protection that provides. And they will need it. According to the government’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), there have been 37,684 adverse events from COVID vaccine for kids aged 6-17; we also know that VAERS may miss as many as 99 percent of vaccine reactions. According to the CDC, 40 percent of kids aged 5-11 experienced a “systemic” reaction to COVID vaccines which include, fatigue, headaches, and injection site pain.
Excess deaths soaring in every country where covid “vaccine” uptake is high: data
Former Pfizer Vice President Dr. Michael Yeadon is once again speaking out about the spike in excess deaths he is seeing in nearly every country where Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) “vaccine” uptake is high.
During a recent interview, Yeadon addressed Scotland, which is one of the countries where deaths are soaring amid heavy vaccine compliance. He also talked about Germany, Israel, Spain, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and of course the United States, which are seeing similar trends.
“They’ve all seen a significant uptick in all-cause mortality,” Yeadon told the interviewer. “Why is that? What did they do differently in 2021 than they did in the years before?”
Not only is all-cause mortality up in 2021 compared to 2020, Yeadon further pointed out, but it smashed the five-year average. What changed? Hundreds of millions of people rolled up their sleeves for spike protein injections – that is what happened.
Public Health Scotland’s (PHS) October 14 Covid-19 Daily Dashboard shows that despite 87 percent of the adult population now considered to be “vaccinated,” weekly deaths are a shocking 30 percent above normal.
“This marks the 20th consecutive week with excess deaths above the five-year average and the highest since the week ending January 10, 2021,” the report explains.
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