Enugu Crashes External Debt By $39.8m As Mbah Leads 17 New Govs In Reduction – StatiSense

QAMISHLI, Syria (AP) — Kurdish-led fighters in Syria, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, said Tuesday they have launched a counter-offensive against the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army to take back areas near Syria’s northern border with Turkey . The Kurdish-led SDF is Washington’s critical ally in Syria, targeting sleeper cells of the extremist Islamic State group scattered across the country's east. Since the fall of the totalitarian rule of Bashar Assad earlier this month, clashes have intensified between the U.S.-backed group and the SNA, which captured the key city of Manbij and the areas surrounding it. The intense weekslong clashes come at a time when Syria, battered by over a decade of war and economic misery, negotiates its political future following half a century under the Assad dynasty’s rule. Ruken Jamal, spokesperson of the Women’s Protection Unit, or YPJ, which is under the SDF, told The Associated Press that its fighters are just over 11 kilometers (7 miles) away from the center of Manbij in their ongoing counter-offensive. She accused Ankara of trying to weaken the group’s influence in negotiations over Syria’s political future through the SNA, “Syria is now in a new phase, and discussions are underway about the future of the country,” Jamal said. “Turkey is trying, through its attacks, to distract us with battles and exclude us from the negotiations in Damascus.” A Britain-based opposition war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, says that since the SNA’s offensive in northern Syria against the Kurds started earlier this month, dozens from both sides have been killed. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke on Tuesday with Turkish Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler, according to Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder. Ryder said they discussed the ongoing situation in Syria, and Austin emphasized that close and continuous coordination is crucial to a successful effort to counter IS in the country. They also discussed the importance of setting the conditions to enable a more secure and stable Syria. Ankara sees the SDF as an affiliate of its sworn enemy, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which it classifies as a terrorist organization. Turkish-backed armed groups alongside Turkish jets for years have attacked positions where the SDF are largely present across northern Syria, in a bid to create a buffer zone free from the group along the large shared border. While the SNA was involved in the lightning insurgency — led by the Islamic group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham — that toppled Assad, it has continued its push against the SDF, seen as Syria’s second key actor for its political future. On Monday, the SDF spokesperson Farhad Shami said its forces pushed back the Turkish-backed rebels from areas near the Tishrin Dam on the Euphrates River, a key source of hydroelectric power. He said the SDF also destroyed a tank belonging to the rebels southeast of Manbij. The British-based war monitor said on Tuesday that the Kurdish-led group, following overnight fighting, has reclaimed four villages in the areas near the strategic dam. Turkish jets also pounded the strategic border town of Kobani in recent days. During Syria’s uprising-turned-conflict, the Kurds carved out an enclave of autonomous rule across northeastern Syria, never fully allying entirely with Assad in Damascus nor the rebels trying to overthrow him. Even with the Assad family out of the picture, it appears that Ankara’s position won’t change, with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s landmark visit to Syria maintaining a strong position on the Kurdish-led group in his meeting with HTS's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa . “It has turned the region into a cauldron of terror with PKK members and far-left groups who have come from Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Europe," Fidan said in a news conference after the meeting. “The international community is turning a blind eye to this lawlessness because of the wardenship it provides (against IS).” With the ongoing fighting, SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi has expressed concern about a strong IS resurgence due to the power vacuum in Syria and the ongoing fighting, which has left the Kurdish-led group unable to carry out its attacks and raids on the extremists’ scattered sleeper cells. Tens of thousands of children, family members, and supporters of IS militants are still held in large detention centers in northeastern Syria, in areas under SDF control. Chehayeb reported from Beirut.

Motorsport fans were given quite a scare when Shane Van Gisbergen was involved in a dramatic sprint car crash. This incident happened shortly before his anticipated full-time entrance into the NASCAR Cup Series with Trackhouse Racing. The crash shook the spectators at Baypark Speedway in Tauranga, New Zealand, during the second heat race on December 28. Van Gisbergen's car flipped after a collision with another vehicle, the first time he had ever experienced such a crash in his impressive racing career. The crash unfolded as Van Gisbergen, piloting the #97A United Truck Parts Sprintcar, collided with Ayrton Hodgson in the #28M car. It all happened quickly in Turn 1 when Van Gisbergen's car climbed over Hodgson's rear wheel, causing the car to take flight followed by several rolls. Remarkably, Van Gisbergen was unharmed, but the damage to the vehicle was severe enough to prevent him from rejoining the later 20-lap feature race, which proceeded without him and was ultimately won by another racer, James Dahm. Reflecting on the shocking moment, Van Gisbergen shared his thoughts on social media: "Well, that was my first flip ever. Unfortunately got collected by someone and took a bit of a ride. Thanks to the safety crew for doing an amazing job. "The United Truck Parts team are having at rebuilding the car and we should be racing tonight at Baypark again." Despite the crash, Van Gisbergen showed immense positivity, staying on at the speedway to meet with fans, sign autographs, and be present in a sport he so clearly loves. His team worked tirelessly to repair the car, although the extent of the damage meant a return to the track that night was unlikely. Shane Van Gisbergen is far more than just a local favorite from Auckland, New Zealand. With three Supercars titles under his belt and strong victories in the Bathurst 1000, he is a towering presence in the sport. His recent foray into the NASCAR scene made headlines when he clinched the win at the 2023 Grant Park 220 in Chicago, mirroring the achievements of NASCAR legend Johnny Rutherford from 1963. His career in NASCAR is expected to grow as he gears up to drive full-time for Trackhouse Racing in their No. 88 Chevrolet ZL1. The crash also highlights Van Gisbergen's dedication to a diverse range of motorsports, maintaining an active part in local dirt racing events when not competing internationally. The Australian racing community is eager to see how his experience on local tracks translates to a full-scale NASCAR career.Ukraine-NATO Emergency Missile Talks Next Week

THORNTON TOWNSHIP, Ill. (WLS) -- It appears that the stalemate in Thornton Township will continue into 2025. Two trustees, Carmen Carlisle and Christopher Gonzalez, said they will not attend a special board meeting on Monday. The trustees said the meeting was scheduled without their agreement, and they accused Supervisor Tiffany Henyard of playing "political games." Their absence means there will not be enough board members to vote on insurance coverage and past-due bills. Henyard has blamed the trustees for the lack of progress. SEE ALSO | Tiffany Henyard says Thornton Twp. shutdown protocols in place: 'I am your Rosa Parks' | EXCLUSIVESyria's president Bashar al-Assad fled Syria as Islamist-led rebels swept into Damascus Sunday, triggering celebrations across the country and beyond at the end of his oppressive rule. Russian news agencies late Sunday said Assad and his family were in Moscow. Crowds toured Assad's luxurious home after the rebels declared he had fled, a spectacular end to five decades of brutal Baath party government. The government fell 11 days after the rebels began a surprise advance more than 13 years after Assad's crackdown on anti-government protests ignited Syria's civil war, which had become largely dormant until the rebel push. "This victory, my brothers, is historic for the region," Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, leader of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group (HTS) that spearheaded the advance, said in an address at the landmark Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. US President Joe Biden said Assad should be "held accountable" but called the nation's political upheaval a "historic opportunity" for Syrians to rebuild their country. "The fall of the regime is a fundamental act of justice," Biden said from the White House. Residents cheered in the streets as the rebel factions heralded the departure of "tyrant" Assad, saying: "We declare the city of Damascus free." Celebratory gunfire sounded along with shouts of, "Syria is ours and not the Assad family's". AFP correspondents saw dozens of men, women and children wandering through Assad's modern, spacious home whose rooms had been stripped bare. "I can't believe I'm living this moment," tearful Damascus resident Amer Batha told AFP by phone. "We've been waiting a long time for this day," he said. The rebel factions on Telegram proclaimed the end to "50 years of oppression under Baath rule, and 13 years of crimes and tyranny and displacement". It is, they said, "the start of a new era for Syria." The foreign ministry of Assad's key backer, Russia, had announced earlier Sunday that Assad had resigned from the presidency and left Syria. The head of war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, told AFP: "Assad left Syria via Damascus international airport before the army security forces left" the facility. Later Sunday, a Kremlin source told Russian news agencies that he and his family had arrived in Moscow where they had been granted asylum "on humanitarian grounds". Around the country, people toppled statues of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar al-Assad's father and the founder of the repressive system of government he inherited. For the past 50 years in Syria, even the slightest suspicion of dissent could land one in prison or get one killed. During their advance, the rebels said they had freed prisoners, including on Sunday at the Sednaya facility, notorious for the darkest abuses of Assad's era. UN war crimes investigators urged those taking charge in the country to ensure the "atrocities" committed under Assad's rule are not repeated. Amnesty International called this a "historic opportunity" for those responsible for the abuses in Syria to face justice. The end of Assad's rule came just hours after HTS said it had captured the strategic city of Homs. Homs was the third major city seized by the rebels, who began their advance on November 27, the same day a ceasefire took place in neighbouring Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement. Hezbollah had supported Assad during the long civil war but has been severely weakened by Israeli strikes. The group's forces "vacated their positions around Damascus", a source close to the group said Sunday. HTS is rooted in the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda but has sought to soften its image in recent years. It remains listed as a terrorist organisation by Western governments. On Sunday afternoon the rebels announced a curfew in the capital until 5:00 am (0200 GMT) Monday. The commander of Syria's US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls much of northeast Syria, hailed the fall of Assad's "authoritarian regime" as "historic". A military council affiliated with the SDF clashed Sunday with Turkish-backed Syrian fighters in Syria's north, leaving 26 fighters from both sides dead, the Observatory said, as the Turkish-backed group launched an offensive on the Manbij area. The Observatory said Israel had struck government security buildings and weapons depots Sunday on the outskirts of Damascus, as well as in the eastern Deir Ezzor province. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the overthrow of Assad was a "historic day in the... Middle East" and the fall of a "central link in Iran's axis of evil". "This is a direct result of the blows we have inflicted on Iran and Hezbollah, Assad's main supporters," he added. The UN envoy for Syria said the country was at "a watershed moment". Turkey, which has historically backed the opposition, called for a "smooth transition". Iran said it expected "friendly" ties with Syria to continue, even as its embassy in Damascus was vandalised. Since the start of the rebel offensive, at least 910 people, mostly combatants but also including 138 civilians, have been killed, the Observatory said. Syria's war has killed more than 500,000 people, and forced half of the population to flee their homes. Millions fled abroad. "I can barely remember Syria," said Reda al-Khedr, who was only five years old when he and his mother escaped Syria's Homs in 2014. "But now we're going to go home to a liberated Syria," he told AFP in Cairo. Liberated, but facing enormous challenges. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Sunday the bloc would help rebuild a Syria that safeguards minorities after Assad's fall. bur-it/jjTrump says US should stay out of fighting in Syria as opposition forces gain

Trump says he can't guarantee tariffs won't raise prices, won't rule out revenge prosecutions

AP News Summary at 6:29 p.m. EST

The pay gap between men and women is a persistent problem, with wider effects on society and the economy, according to a new report from the Western New York Women's Foundation. Sheri Scavone, CEO of the Western New York Women’s Foundation. In New York State, the annual gender pay gap is $11,450 for full-time, year-round workers, the report found. If that gap were eliminated for one year, the report said, women in Erie County could pay for one of the following: eight months of child care for one child; 10 months of rent; 22 months of groceries; or 23 months of student loan payments. "It's incredibly frustrating that we have yet not overcome the implicit biases that come with pay for women," said Sheri Scavone, the foundation's CEO. The new report used a combination of national, state and local data. Nationally, the pay gap widened in 2023, with women earning 83 cents of every dollar paid to men for full-time, year-round work, compared to 84 cents the year before. The report looked at some of the causes : • Occupations – and differences in pay within them – and caregiving responsibilities were key factors influencing the gap. Women make up two-thirds of full-time workers in jobs that pay less than $30,000 a year and fewer than one-third of workers in jobs paying an average of $100,000 or more. "Regardless of occupation, women have lower average earnings than men, and Black and Hispanic/Latina women nearly always have the largest wage gaps of any group of women when compared to white, non-Hispanic men," the report said. Women's earnings often drop after they become mothers. "Mothers are more likely than fathers to be responsible for family caregiving, and frequently reduce work hours or leave the workforce entirely due to caregiving demands," the report said. "Limited pay leave policies and insufficient child care options often force women to choose between family and career. • Even education hasn't been a pay equalizer. The report found that in Erie County, women with some college education or an associate degree earned $6,000 less than what men with a high school diploma earn, representing a 14% pay gap. Median annual earnings for women in Erie County with a bachelor's degree were only 74% of the earnings of men with the same level of education. Women with a graduate or professional degree still earned only 78% of men with the same educational attainment. • The pay gap affects women into retirement. A national study by investment firm T. Rowe Price found women's annual 401(k) contributions were 43% lower than men's, and the median 401(k) account balance for women was 65% lower than for men. "They have less money to spend on their family while working or less money to retire on," Scavone said. Last year, New York State implemented a salary transparency law, aimed in part at helping to close the wage gap. Ideally, job applicants now have a clearer view of what they can expect to be paid for jobs employers are advertising. "We have heard from companies that it's helped them kind of change the culture of transparency in general," Scavone said. For instance, some employers have taken stock of where salary discrepancies exist within their organizations, and worked to correct them. The salary transparency law also gives job applicants a better starting point for negotiating pay, Scavone said. Another state law that went into effect several years ago bars employers from asking an applicant's salary history, which also benefits applicants. That's especially true for women who might have been working in lower-paying jobs to accommodate child-care requirements. The Women's Foundation report illustrates the pay gap obstacles yet to be overcome. Leadership is another example: In the Buffalo Niagara region, only 27 of the 100 largest employers are led by women, according to the foundation. Scavone said eliminating the pay gap would have wide-reaching benefits for women and society as a whole. "These companies that take this to heart and really look at their pay scales and promotion strategies have been able to mitigate that gap, because there should be no gap," she said. Matt Glynn The business news you need Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly. Reporter {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.Opus One Gold Corporation Announces Closing of Private Placement

Over the course of 2024, China’s foreign trade development has maintained a good momentum, with overall quality and structure improvement and stable growth. The achievements have not come easily considering the current slowing global economic recovery, intensifying trade protectionism and intertwined geopolitical conflicts. China’s foreign goods trade increased by 4.9 percent year-on-year to reach 39.79 trillion yuan ($5.45 trillion) in the first 11 months of 2024, demonstrating stable growth and ongoing structural improvements, data from the General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed. “With the concerted efforts of both stock and incremental policies in the field, China is expected to end the year with a smooth performance in foreign trade and achieve the goal of stable quality and quantity,” Lü Daliang, spokesperson of the GAC, said at a press conference on December 10. While maintaining a stable growth in foreign trade, China also vowed to share its vast market with the world by boosting the expansion of imports, including policy support, platform construction and transport facilitation. In the first 11 months, China’s imports from all the least developed countries (LDCs) that have established diplomatic relations with China increased by 12.4 percent, nearly 10 percentage points higher than the overall growth rate of China’s imports, according to GAC data. Honey from Rwanda, wild aquatic products from Uganda, peanuts and sesame from Chad, fresh pine nuts from Afghanistan ... In 2024, more and more agricultural products have been exported to China, opening its market to more and more countries through major trade events and e-commerce. The 7th China International Import Expo (CIIE), held in November in Shanghai, featured 37 LDCs, with the event organizers providing more than 120 free exhibition booths specifically for businesses from these countries. “This is the second time that we have participated in the CIIE ... We have 30 companies coming to the expo this year compared with about 20 in 2023,” Kassim Kone, a delegate from the Mali Export Promotion Agency of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Mali, told the Global Times, an indication of how Mali values this event. Bangladesh also showcased a variety of products at the 7th CIIE, ranging from leather to food. Some of these products are already being exported to China, Md Ziaur Rahman, the commercial counselor of the Embassy of Bangladesh in China, told the Global Times. “Since its launch, the CIIE has been providing facilitation for LDCs. For the past seven years, more and more products from LDCs have entered the Chinese market through the CIIE, which contributed to the industrial development and improvement of people’s livelihood in these countries,” Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on November 7 at a regular press conference. Shanghai launched the 2024 Shanghai Silk Road E-commerce Carnival in May 2024, under which Meione (Shanghai) Network Technology Co conducted a special promotion event exclusively for African products, selling raw materials such as cocoa cubes, coffee extracts and tea extracts from African countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, Meione said in a statement shared with the Global Times. China has been facilitating market access for more imports, especially for LDCs. Starting from December 1, 2024, China gave zero-tariff treatment for 100 percent tariff lines to LDCs. China is the first developing country and major global economy to implement this initiative, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said. Regarding China’s zero-tariff treatment policy for LDCs, of which Bangladesh is one, Rahman said that “this policy will significantly promote trade for countries like ours, and we are very grateful for it.” “This demonstrates China’s commitment to forge a global development partnership, under which no country or individual should be left behind,” Zhu Qiucheng, CEO of Ningbo New Oriental Electric Industrial Development, an exporter of home furnishing products, told the Global Times on Friday. China’s foreign trade, while with increasing imports from more countries and keeping a stable growth in 2024, also improved its mix, with exports of high-quality and high-tech products particularly increased. Specifically, mechanical and electrical products accounted for nearly 60 percent of exports in the first 11 months, of which automatic data processing equipment and its parts, integrated circuits and automobiles exports grew by double digits, according to GAC data. Exports of the “new trio,” namely, electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products, have become China’s new business cards in the world. It means that in the “smile curve” of the global manufacturing industry, Chinese foreign trade enterprises are moving toward the upstream of the global value chain. The curve is called a “smile” because the two ends of the curve (R&D and after-sales service) have higher value, while the middle section (manufacturing) is relatively lower in terms of value creation. According to the latest data from China Automobile Dealers Association, China’s cumulative export volume of new-energy vehicles was 1.72 million units in the first 10 months of 2024, an increase of 15 percent year-on-year. “Compared with labor-intensive goods such as textiles and clothing, the ‘new trio’ represents technology-intensive products, which are transformed and upgraded to high-end, intelligent and green – meaning higher added value,” said Zhu. The transformation and upgrading of China’s economic and trade structure have been demonstrated through China-initiated trade events, such as the CIIE, the China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair), and the China International Supply Chain Expo. The Canton Fair, for example, used to mainly showcase consumer goods. But in recent years, the proportion of intermediate and capital goods on display has increased to 12 percent, the Global Times learned from the organizer. In the machinery exhibition area where capital goods are concentrated, the number of booths has increased by more than 50 percent in the past five years. With increasingly advanced technologies, together with China’s world-leading manufacturing level and stable supply chains, Chinese enterprises are making high-tech products more affordable for the world, Liu Jinshi, chief engineer of Ston Robotics Changzhou Co, told the Global Times. While China’s position in the global trade market is gradually shifting to the middle and high-end in terms of industrial chains and value chains, the country’s trade partners are also diversifying. In particular, its trade with developing and emerging markets grew at a fast pace. In the first 11 months, China’s trade with countries participating in the Belt and Road cooperation saw a year-on-year increase of 6 percent, while that with ASEAN members rose by 8.6 percent. In this period, China’s foreign trade with Latin America increased by 7.9 percent and that with Africa up 4.8 percent, according to GAC. The foreign trade of goods this year showed a good performance, both from the perspective of trading partners and the structure of traded goods, Wan Zhe, an economist and professor at the Belt and Road School of Beijing Normal University, told the Global Times. “The export growth of products with high technologies is strong, reflecting the increasing quality of China’s industrial development,” said Wan. China’s economy has demonstrated strong resilience, great potential and vitality. The country is building a new economic development pattern of “dual circulation” with the domestic market as the mainstay and the domestic and overseas markets reinforcing each other and China is capable of resisting the impact of external shocks, Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen, said on November 22 at a press conference. The State Council recently issued a package of policy measures aimed at promoting the stable growth of foreign trade, while the MOFCOM, the GAC and other departments launched specific measures to accelerate the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade, further optimize the business environment at ports, and promote the convenience of customs clearance for enterprises, said Lü. The recent Central Economic Work Conference further stressed efforts to promote high-standard opening up while keeping foreign trade and foreign investment stable as being one of the key tasks for 2025, according to the Xinhua News Agency. “Looking ahead, favorable conditions are stronger than unfavorable factors, such as declining global demand and growing trade barriers and protectionism. There is a basis and support for China to achieve steady growth of imports and exports,” said Zhu. Source: Global Times

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