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FBI Director Wray says he intends to resign before Trump takes office in JanuaryBy JILL COLVIN and STEPHEN GROVES WASHINGTON (AP) — After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks to confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump’s choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the “Fox & Friends Weekend” host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other nominees for meetings in coming weeks as he tries to leverage the two years he has spent in the Senate to help push through Trump’s picks. Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., center, and Vice President-elect JD Vance, left, walk out of a meeting with Republican Senate Judiciary Committee members, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, departs the chamber at the Capitol in Washington, March 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, center speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, right, speaks with Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, before testifying at a hearing, March 9, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a classified briefing on China, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a vote on Capitol Hill, Sept. 12, 2023 in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance R-Ohio speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) The role of introducing nominees around Capitol Hill is an unusual one for a vice president-elect. Usually the job goes to a former senator who has close relationships on the Hill, or a more junior aide. But this time the role fits Vance, said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s first director of legislative affairs as well as chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, who spent more than a decade in Congress and led the former president’s transition ahead of his first term. ”JD probably has a lot of current allies in the Senate and so it makes sense to have him utilized in that capacity,” Short said. Unlike the first Trump transition, which played out before cameras at Trump Tower in New York and at the president-elect’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this one has largely happened behind closed doors in Palm Beach, Florida. There, a small group of officials and aides meet daily at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort to run through possible contenders and interview job candidates. The group includes Elon Musk, the billionaire who has spent so much time at the club that Trump has joked he can’t get rid of him. Vance has been a constant presence, even as he’s kept a lower profile. The Ohio senator has spent much of the last two weeks in Palm Beach, according to people familiar with his plans, playing an active role in the transition, on which he serves as honorary chair. Vance has been staying at a cottage on the property of the gilded club, where rooms are adorned with cherubs, oriental rugs and intricate golden inlays. It’s a world away from the famously hardscrabble upbringing that Vance documented in the memoir that made him famous, “Hillbilly Elegy.” His young children have also joined him at Mar-a-Lago, at times. Vance was photographed in shorts and a polo shirt playing with his kids on the seawall of the property with a large palm frond, a U.S. Secret Service robotic security dog in the distance. On the rare days when he is not in Palm Beach, Vance has been joining the sessions remotely via Zoom. Though he has taken a break from TV interviews after months of constant appearances, Vance has been active in the meetings, which began immediately after the election and include interviews and as well as presentations on candidates’ pluses and minuses. Among those interviewed: Contenders to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray , as Vance wrote in a since-deleted social media post. Defending himself from criticism that he’d missed a Senate vote in which one of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees was confirmed, Vance wrote that he was meeting at the time “with President Trump to interview multiple positions for our government, including for FBI Director.” “I tend to think it’s more important to get an FBI director who will dismantle the deep state than it is for Republicans to lose a vote 49-46 rather than 49-45,” Vance added on X. “But that’s just me.” While Vance did not come in to the transition with a list of people he wanted to see in specific roles, he and his friend, Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who is also a member of the transition team, were eager to see former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. find roles in the administration. Trump ended up selecting Gabbard as the next director of national intelligence , a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s spy agencies and acts as the president’s top intelligence adviser. And he chose Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services , a massive agency that oversees everything from drug and food safety to Medicare and Medicaid. Vance was also a big booster of Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who will serve as Trump’s “border czar.” In another sign of Vance’s influence, James Braid, a top aide to the senator, is expected to serve as Trump’s legislative affairs director. Allies say it’s too early to discuss what portfolio Vance might take on in the White House. While he gravitates to issues like trade, immigration and tech policy, Vance sees his role as doing whatever Trump needs. Vance was spotted days after the election giving his son’s Boy Scout troop a tour of the Capitol and was there the day of leadership elections. He returned in earnest this week, first with Gaetz — arguably Trump’s most divisive pick — and then Hegseth, who has was been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017, according to an investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing. Vance hosted Hegseth in his Senate office as GOP senators, including those who sit on the Senate Armed Services Committee, filtered in to meet with the nominee for defense secretary. While a president’s nominees usually visit individual senators’ offices, meeting them on their own turf, the freshman senator — who is accompanied everywhere by a large Secret Service detail that makes moving around more unwieldy — instead brought Gaetz to a room in the Capitol on Wednesday and Hegseth to his office on Thursday. Senators came to them. Vance made it to votes Wednesday and Thursday, but missed others on Thursday afternoon. Vance is expected to continue to leverage his relationships in the Senate after Trump takes office. But many Republicans there have longer relationships with Trump himself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, said that Trump was often the first person to call him back when he was trying to reach high-level White House officials during Trump’s first term. “He has the most active Rolodex of just about anybody I’ve ever known,” Cramer said, adding that Vance would make a good addition. “They’ll divide names up by who has the most persuasion here,” Cramer said, but added, “Whoever his liaison is will not work as hard at it as he will.” Cramer was complimentary of the Ohio senator, saying he was “pleasant” and ” interesting” to be around. ′′He doesn’t have the long relationships,” he said. “But we all like people that have done what we’ve done. I mean, that’s sort of a natural kinship, just probably not as personally tied.” Under the Constitution, Vance will also have a role presiding over the Senate and breaking tie votes. But he’s not likely to be needed for that as often as was Kamala Harris, who broke a record number of ties for Democrats as vice president, since Republicans will have a bigger cushion in the chamber next year. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

How did it come to this? Login or signup to continue reading It was half an hour before the first Newcastle students had planned to walk out of school in 2018 in protest. They were following the example set by revered, and in some circles reviled, climate action protester Greta Thunberg. The adults were killing the planet they lived on. They knew they were doing it; decades of scientific consensus had told them so. They just didn't care. The kids were not OK. And in the absence of an adult to speak for them, they were taking up the fight for themselves. Alexa Stuart, then 15, knew the action was coming. Her mum had asked if she wanted to join them. She said she did not. "I had something on at school that day," she recalls, phrasing the memory half as a question. "But I overheard some of my friends saying that they were going, and I got this really strong urge that I had to be there. I knew I cared about the environment, and I felt that if this was something that I cared about, I had to show up. "I panicked and called my sister, who is older than me and was going, and said, 'You have to come pick me up'." They rode into town together on her sister's bike. They were late. But the moment was profound. "I felt so powerful and inspired and angry and hopeful, marching down the street with hundreds of other kids, chanting at the top of our lungs," she said. "It was a day when I got a taste of what agency can look like for young people who can't vote or have much say on this issue, which will have the biggest impact on us." Stuart would go on to lead the Newcastle school strike movement with a band of friends and classmates. Over the next few years, countless students would follow them. Protests would be staged every few months, drawing masses of children and teens angry at the apathy of the grown-ups, and there were those who hated them for it. They had asked for a world that could sustain life beyond their own , and there were those who threatened to rape them for it. Stuart stopped reading the comments, returned to school, and graduated. A pandemic soon followed. The children's strike movement wound down in the face of that other existential threat, and the former Lambton high student took a gap year to figure some things out. She made art, participated in a few smaller protests, and considered a move to Melbourne to study at the Victorian College of the Arts. There is a version of this story where she accepted that offer to study, moved out of the Hunter, took a different path, and let her activism dissolve into a quiet liberal adulthood where she hangs art in her home and might have become a teacher. Stuart often volunteers to teach primary school ethics and has an affinity with children. But these are things relegated to the hypothetical. What has been seen cannot then be unseen. In August 2022, a sleeping climate action group called Rising Tide was revived by a former teacher turned full-time climate campaigner with a clear goal rooted in the Hunter. The group had been active in a localised way from around 2005 to 2012, but its resurrection would turn outwards to bigger quarry. The Port of Newcastle exported more coal than anywhere else in the world, and that statistic would make it Rising Tide's white whale. It was a clear and tangible target in the tangled web of a problem with no clear and tangible solutions. If the planet was choking on fossil fuel combustion, Rising Tide demanded it stay in the ground. If they were told that the action they wanted to see was economically unfeasible, they would demand the funds be taxed from the industry pouring coal out of the harbour for profit. The group has often claimed to be the fastest-growing climate action cause in the country, though it has no formalised membership other than a database of those who have registered their participation in its protests. Its leaders say it has a spectrum of involvement, from those who are engaged in its efforts effectively full-time to those who show up to support its actions. It holds weekly meetings in Newcastle that are regularly attended by over 30 people, though that number has ballooned to more than 60 in the lead-up to this week's "protestival". Off-shoot hubs have sprung up around the country. In the past year, the group has stopped coal trains in the Hunter, blockaded the harbour in a flotilla of kayaks for 30 hours, and drawn the ire of the NSW Government as they tried to host a similar event this week. Earlier this month, the NSW Supreme Court ruled for the state's police, declaring the planned harbour blockade an unauthorised assembly, effectively denying the protesters the legal exemptions from move-on orders and the access to the Newcastle shipping channel that they had last year. While not illegal, the protest would be forbidden from undertaking any unlawful activity. The state's transport department was similarly employed in the clamp-down , declaring an exclusion zone across the harbour last weekend, cutting protesters off from the water. The group would launch an 11th-hour challenge to overturn the lockout. They would learn they were successful with less than an hour to spare . The boats launched on Thursday as the encampment in Newcastle's Foreshore Park grew in an action that was expected to draw thousands. Transport for NSW has said t he exclusion zone was declared over concerns for safety . Meanwhile, Port of Newcastle boss Craig Carmody has called the protest, and newly-elected lord mayor Ross Kerridge's support of it, a "direct and intentional disregard" for the decision made by the court and police. Councillor Kerridge's deputy, Callum Pull, has similarly denounced the movement as "nothing but disruptive". Nationals Senator Ross Cadell, who criticised the City's support, said the activists were "maintaining a rage" that should not exist. Both sides of government had committed to addressing climate change by 2050, he said. "Just because they don't like the pace or the way it is going on, they get to whinge and shut down a city that's been built on this? That's wrong." The Port of Newcastle has long held the title of the world's largest single coal export hub, but by 2021, its lead was narrowing. In 2022, wet weather, rail maintenance and labour shortages caused a significant dip in output. By 2023, North Queensland was catching up, and the total local export for that year barely outstretched that of the previous one. While Newcastle remains the larger export port, Queensland exports greater quantities of coal through a network of harbours, while NSW centralises its output through Newcastle and Wollongong. At each turn, Rising Tide has framed the state's response as evidence their action has been effective - that they are pressing where it hurts. Still, as the years drag on, there is a growing weariness in the cause as the promise of direct action dissolves like ink in the tide. At Nobbys beach last weekend, Mina Bui Jones had come to support the response to the state's exclusion zone. The weekend's protest would be her second with Rising Tide after she returned from living abroad last year, saw a poster for the blockade and felt compelled to get involved. "My whole life, I've been signing petitions, composting, recycling, writing letters, marching on World Environment Day," she said. "I'm 50, and I remember hearing about the greenhouse effect in high school. My kids have now grown up and become adults, and in that time, it has only got worse. "So many of us have been so earnest and so good. We worry about whether we drive our cars. I've ridden a bicycle where I can, I've been a vegetarian. So many of my friends and family - everyone - have been trying to do the right thing. Meanwhile, you have coal companies that really could make a difference. I'm washing out my compost bucket and doing weed control with my Landcare group, I'm only buying second-hand clothes, and I think, 'Come on, guys'. "We're all making an effort at an individual level, but it is a systemic problem. It needs systemic action." The renewed Rising Tide group marked the second anniversary of its first protest action earlier this month . Stuart said they are in a building phase, in which they are working towards a critical mass of supporters to stage sustained pressure to force the action they are demanding. Still, though the exact point at which that critical mass is achieved was unclear (she estimates the group could reach it in 2026), she maintains that her protest is a means to an end, not an end in itself. "We have a really clear strategy," she said. "And I think that is something that some social movements don't have. Looking back, that is one of my reflections on the school strike movement. We found this great tactic, and we went on strike, and then we went on strike again, and our strikes were getting bigger. That was awesome, but we had less of a clear strategy of how to create the change we wanted. "History has shown that things can change really quickly. It may not seem like it now, but movements can explode, and governments can change their position when public sentiment changes. I think that is what COVID showed - that if there is political will, things can change incredibly quickly. When we start treating this like a crisis, we can create massive changes. But, if there is not the visible demonstration of people, if there's not the visible public demonstration of people's concern about the issue, then our politicians have no reason to act in that way." There have been 12 blockades in the Newcastle Harbour since 2006, with the intent to block the shipping channel, but Rising Tide mounted the longest in that time over the weekend of November 25, 2023. The Port of Newcastle had come to a standstill for the weekend, effectively waiting out the demonstration, and started up again almost immediately after it ended. When the deadline expired, a group of protesters remained in the channel, and supporters on the beach began to chant: "Floods, fires, famine, we are terrified. We shall overcome like a rising tide." Police boats approached and arrested more than 100 people. One was Stuart's 97-year-old grandfather, Alan Stuart, a retired Uniting Church minister. He said that while climate disaster would not happen in his lifetime, his concern for future generations compelled him to participate in the struggle. "What happens to me doesn't matter, but what is happening to the climate and the impact on future generations does matter," he said. "They are just going to suffer; it will ruin their lives. I want them to have as good a life as I have had." Both Stuart's grandparents were ministers of the Uniting Church. Her parents did not practice in faith, and Stuart said she is not religious. "You need to have faith in humanity," she said. "Otherwise, you fall into despair. I think that is what keeps me going: looking at the good and believing that we can change. If you don't believe that, I think it is very depressing. "I genuinely don't read the comments. I know that people won't like what we have to say, but I can live with that. That is a reality of social movements; people who we now look back on with immense respect and admiration were hated when they were alive. "When I grow old, I want to know that I have done everything that I could, and if I have children or grandchildren, I want to be able to look them in the eye and say that I tried." When I suggest, over coffee at Bank Corner on a sunny day earlier this month, that it was small comfort to think that being right could make her a martyr, she laughed softly. "I guess so," she said. "I don't know." But then again, she never reads the comments. Simon McCarthy is a journalist with the Newcastle Herald and its sister publications in the Hunter region of New South Wales (NSW). He has contributed stories, photography, video and other multimedia to the pages of the Herald and its Saturday magazine, Weekender, since 2017. In 2020, he co-created the Toohey's News podcast, which he produced for four years with sports writer Barry Toohey until the show's indefinite hiatus. Since early 2023, he has served as the paper's Topics columnist and, more recently, returned to reporting with an interest in deep-dive stories that illustrate the issues shaping daily life in Newcastle and the region.McCarthy has reported for Australian Community Media (ACM) since 2013, first as a general news and sports writer for the Glen Innes Examiner and later as a group journalist and producer for the publisher's New England regional titles. He joined the Newcastle Herald newsroom as a digital producer in 2017 before returning to reporting in early 2023.He had previously worked for the Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth.McCarthy was born in the New England region of NSW, where he grew up, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Southern Cross University in 2012. He covers general news, culture and community issues, with a focus on the Herald Weekender.He is a member of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) and adheres to its codes of ethics for journalists.Contact: simon.mccarthy@newcastleherald.com.au Simon McCarthy is a journalist with the Newcastle Herald and its sister publications in the Hunter region of New South Wales (NSW). He has contributed stories, photography, video and other multimedia to the pages of the Herald and its Saturday magazine, Weekender, since 2017. In 2020, he co-created the Toohey's News podcast, which he produced for four years with sports writer Barry Toohey until the show's indefinite hiatus. Since early 2023, he has served as the paper's Topics columnist and, more recently, returned to reporting with an interest in deep-dive stories that illustrate the issues shaping daily life in Newcastle and the region.McCarthy has reported for Australian Community Media (ACM) since 2013, first as a general news and sports writer for the Glen Innes Examiner and later as a group journalist and producer for the publisher's New England regional titles. He joined the Newcastle Herald newsroom as a digital producer in 2017 before returning to reporting in early 2023.He had previously worked for the Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth.McCarthy was born in the New England region of NSW, where he grew up, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Southern Cross University in 2012. He covers general news, culture and community issues, with a focus on the Herald Weekender.He is a member of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) and adheres to its codes of ethics for journalists.Contact: simon.mccarthy@newcastleherald.com.au DAILY Today's top stories curated by our news team. Also includes evening update. WEEKDAYS Grab a quick bite of today's latest news from around the region and the nation. WEEKLY The latest news, results & expert analysis. WEEKDAYS Catch up on the news of the day and unwind with great reading for your evening. WEEKLY Get the editor's insights: what's happening & why it matters. WEEKLY Love footy? We've got all the action covered. WEEKLY Every Saturday and Tuesday, explore destinations deals, tips & travel writing to transport you around the globe. WEEKLY Get the latest property and development news here. WEEKLY Going out or staying in? Find out what's on. WEEKDAYS Sharp. Close to the ground. Digging deep. 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Meghalaya Government Unveils Plan for 5,000 Smart Classrooms and QR Code TextbooksAP News Summary at 1:28 p.m. EST

Article content When “pro-Palestinian” protesters shut down one of Canada’s busiest intersections in Toronto for a prayer service, police said there was nothing they could do because prayer is protected by the Charter of Rights. Recommended Videos In other words, the rights of people trying to go about their daily lives were subordinate to the rights of protesters who took it upon themselves to stage a religious service on public streets. Quebec Premier Francois Legault, at least, is looking for a way to outlaw such practices in his province and says he might invoke the Charter’s notwithstanding clause to do it. “Seeing people praying in the streets, in public parks, is not something we want in Quebec,” Legault said on Friday, as he also promised to introduce legislation to strengthen secularism in the province’s schools. “There are teachers who are bringing Islamist religious concepts into Quebec schools,” Legault said. “I will definitely not tolerate that. We don’t want that in Quebec.” Calls for the government to take action were prompted by a government report and media stories on teachers allowing prayer in classrooms and school hallways, preventing girls from playing sports and disrupting a sex education class. By contrast, in Ontario, to cite just one example, recitation of the Lord’s Prayer in school classrooms has been banned since 1988. The Canadian Muslin Forum condemned Legault’s statements, arguing he views Muslims as second-class citizens and that “these remarks add to a pattern of political rhetoric that unfairly targets Quebecers, especially those of Muslim faith, based solely on their backgrounds.” Our view is that while our governments at all levels constantly lecture us that Canada is a secular society, they then make exceptions for one religion. Add to that the fact that some “pro-Palestinian protesters” have been allowed to call for the death of Jews, in public, for more than a year, without consequences, while police advise law-abiding Jews to vacate the area because it might upset the protesters. We believe that any death threats to Muslims, Jews, Christians or followers of any other faith should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. But it is also time for our political leaders to start pushing back on these blatant double standards and not just in Quebec.

Nix-Sutton combination gets Broncos even with Bengals in third quarter

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar has organised its 12th and 13th Combined Convocation on 28th December 2024. Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education, Govt. of India graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and delivered the Convocation address. Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor, Govt. of India; Dr. Ajit Kumar Mohanty, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary, Dept. of Atomic Energy, Govt. of India and Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Dept. of Science & Technology, Govt. of India were the Guests of Honour. Dr. Rajendra Prasad Singh, Chairman, Board of Governors (BoG), IIT Bhubaneswar presided over the Convocation. Prof. Shreepad Karmalkar, Director, IIT Bhubaneswar presented the Convocation report and awarded the degrees to the students. During this Convocation, the Institute conferred degrees on 1388 students for the academic years 2022-23 and 2023-24. Out of these students, 8% are PhD, 19% M.Tech, 14% M.Sc, 14% Dual degree (B.Tech and M.Tech) and 45% B.Tech. Speaking on the occasion, Hon’ble Minister Shri Pradhan said: “IIT Bhubaneswar should strive to become an institute of Knowledge, Research and Innovation. Being graduates of IIT, they should make efforts towards becoming job creators rather than being job seekers. They should make themselves ready to be contributors to Industrial Revolution 4.0. The educational institutions and faculty members should work towards redefining the attitude and aptitude of the students towards entrepreneurship.” He stressed that the research of the country should move beyond academic publications and achieve global benchmarks in terms of innovation and entrepreneurial acumen. “IIT Bhubaneswar and its students should work towards boosting the start-up and entrepreneurial ecosystem to enhance the growth process of Odisha by 2036 and of the country by 2047,” he added. In his address, Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood said stressed on knowledge creation through research and innovation to become globally competitive. Collaborative partnerships between academia and industry, fostering a multi-disciplinary approach, funding and investment in groundbreaking research and cutting-edge infrastructure and a skilled and diverse workforce are imperative for the development of the research ecosystem. He mentioned about the Anusandhan Research Foundation (ANRF) and its objective. Dr. Ajit Kumar Mohanty said that human knowledge and human competence are irreplaceable even in the age of artificial intelligence and machine learning. The youth of the country have the potential to innovate, and they should utilise this power towards the development of the country, he added. Addressing the gathering, Prof. Abhay Karandikar appreciated IIT Bhubaneswar for becoming a hub of cutting-edge research and innovation. He mentioned that the country has taken a giant leap in the field of science and technology to make a mark on a global map. India has become the 3 rd largest in terms of start-up ecosystem in the world which showcases the innovation and entrepreneurial prowess of the country. The youth of the country should take the cue and work towards contributing in making India leader in the field of research and innovation. During this Convocation, the Institute conferred degrees on 1388 students out of which 105 PhD, 269 M. Tech, 197 M.Sc, 192 Dual Degrees (B. Tech & M. Tech), and 625 B. Tech for the academic years 2022-23 and 2023-24. It was a proud moment for the graduating students, their parents, the faculty and staff members and the administration of the institute. For the year 2022-23, the President of India Gold Medal was awarded to Shri Harsh Singh Jadon of Computer Science and Engineering for the best academic performance among all the B.Tech students. For the year 2023-24, the President of India Gold Medal was awarded to Shri Arnav Kumar Behera of Computer Science and Engineering. An Interaction Meeting on “Exploring Pathways and Prospects for the Future of Research in India” with Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India and Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science & Technology, Government of India was successfully organised by DST, ANRF and IIT Bhubaneswar today. The dignitaries addressed the queries of the faculties members, deans and Vice Chancellors from various institutes across Odisha.None

NoneBy MARY CLARE JALONICK and MATT BROWN WASHINGTON (AP) — Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Defense Department, said he had a “wonderful conversation” with Maine Sen. Susan Collins on Wednesday as he pushed to win enough votes for confirmation. He said he will not back down after allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct. Related Articles National Politics | Donald Trump will ring the New York Stock Exchange bell. It’ll be a first for him National Politics | The Trump and Biden teams insist they’re working hand in glove on foreign crises National Politics | ‘You don’t know what’s next.’ International students scramble ahead of Trump inauguration National Politics | Trump is threatening to raise tariffs again. Here’s how China plans to fight back National Politics | Trump won’t be able to save the struggling US beef industry Collins said after the hourlong meeting that she questioned Hegseth about the allegations amid reports of drinking and the revelation that he made a settlement payment after being accused of a sexual assault that he denies. She said she had a “good, substantive” discussion with Hegseth and “covered a wide range of topics,” including sexual assault in the military, Ukraine and NATO. But she said she would wait until a hearing, and notably a background check, to make a decision. “I asked virtually every question under the sun,” Collins told reporters as she left her office after the meeting. “I pressed him both on his position on military issues as well as the allegations against him, so I don’t think there was anything that we did not cover.” The meeting with Collins was closely watched as she is seen as more likely than most of her Republican Senate colleagues to vote against some of Trump’s Cabinet picks. She and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a fellow moderate Republican, did not shy from opposing Trump in his first term when they wanted to do so and sometimes supported President Joe Biden’s nominees for the judicial and executive branches. And Hegseth, an infantry combat veteran and former “Fox & Friends” weekend host, is working to gain as many votes as he can as some senators have expressed concerns about his personal history and lack of management experience. “I’m certainly not going to assume anything about where the senator stands,” Hegseth said as he left Collins’ office. “This is a process that we respect and appreciate. And we hope, in time, overall, when we get through that committee and to the floor that we can earn her support.” Hegseth met with Murkowski on Tuesday. He has also been meeting repeatedly with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, a military veteran who has said she is a survivor of sexual assault and has spent time in the Senate working on improving how attacks are reported and prosecuted within the ranks. On Monday, Ernst said after a meeting with him that he had committed to selecting a senior official to prioritize those goals. Republicans will have a 53-49 majority next year, meaning Trump cannot lose more than three votes on any of his nominees. It is so far unclear whether Hegseth will have enough support, but Trump has stepped up his pressure on senators in the last week. “Pete is a WINNER, and there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!” Trump posted on his social media platform last week.John Fetterman slams liberal magazine for calling assassination of health insurance boss 'inevitable' Follow all the latest news and updates in the manhunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson's killer By BETHAN SEXTON FOR DAILYMAIL.COM Published: 22:00 GMT, 7 December 2024 | Updated: 22:00 GMT, 7 December 2024 e-mail View comments Senator John Fetterman has slammed New York magazine for saying the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompso n was, 'inevitable'. The Pennsylvania Democrat blasted the outlet in an post on X on Saturday in which he decried 's**tty takes' on the murder. Thompson, 50, was gunned down steps away from a Hilton hotel in midtown Manhattan in the early hours of Wednesday. His attacker remains at large despite a massive manhunt. 'No shortage of s**tty takes on the 2024 election or on this assassination,' Fetterman said. 'The public execution of an innocent man and father of two is indefensible, not 'inevitable.' Condoning and cheering this on says more about YOU than the situation of health insurance.' His comments came after New York published an article titled, 'The Shooting That Was Inevitable. Our political system is breaking down. Now it has killed.' A motive has not been released by police, however bullet casings found at the scene were inscribed with the words 'deny', 'defend' and 'depose'. The messages bear similarity to a 2010 book by Jay M Feinman called 'Delay, Deny, Defend', which details 'why insurance companies don't pay claims and what you can do about it.' Senator John Fetterman has slammed New York magazine for saying the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was, 'inevitable' Thompson, 50, was gunned down steps away from a Hilton hotel in midtown Manhattan Thompson's killing has placed the healthcare insurance sector under the microscope amid speculation the gunman had a vendetta against his company. UnitedHealthcare was recently forced to shutdown comments on its social media pages after it was inundated with irate comment from patients who allege their medical claims have been denied. On other corners of the internet, many people have been openly cheering Thompson's death and have styled the killer as a vigilante figure. A UnitedhealthCare post paying tribute to the late executive attracted callous comments and more than three thousand 'laugh' emoji reactions. On Saturday, Mayor Eric Adams said the 'net is closing in' on the culprit as he revealed that police now have a name. The city leader said it will not be released at this stage as investigators are hoping to catch the killer off guard. John Fetterman New York Brian Thompson Share or comment on this article: John Fetterman slams liberal magazine for calling assassination of health insurance boss 'inevitable' e-mail Add comment

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Israeli airstrikes killed a hospital director at his home in northeastern Lebanon and six others, while at least five paramedics were killed by Israeli strikes in the country's south on Friday, Lebanon's Health Ministry said. The United Nations reported heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon. Four Italian peacekeepers were lightly wounded when a rocket, likely fired by Hezbollah, hit their base, the U.N. said. A full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah erupted in September after nearly a year of lower-intensity conflict. More than 3,640 people have been killed in Lebanon and 15,350 wounded, the majority following Israel’s escalation and ground invasion, the Health Ministry said Friday. In Gaza, Israeli strikes hit Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the northernmost part of the territory, wounding nine medical staff and damaging its generator and oxygen systems, the hospital director said Friday. More than 44,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, the Health Ministry said. It does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children. Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250 . Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Here’s the Latest: DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli strikes hit Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the northernmost part of Gaza, wounding nine medical staff and damaging its generator and oxygen systems, its director said Friday. Hossam Abu Safiya said strikes before dawn Friday hit the entrance of the emergency unit as well as in the hospital courtyard. He said six staff were wounded, including two critically. Friday night, he said an armed drone hit the entrance again, wounding three staffers. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Abu Safiya said the strikes caused damage to the functioning of the generator and disrupted oxygen supplies. The hospital is currently treating 85 wounded, 14 children in the pediatric ward and four newborns in the neonatal unit, he said. During the past month, Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit several times, was put under siege and was raided by Israeli troops, who are waging a heavy offensive in the nearby Jabaliya refugee camp and towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya. The Israeli military says it detained Hamas fighters hiding in the hospital, a claim its staff denies. BEIRUT — An Israeli airstrike killed the director of a university hospital and six others at his home in northeastern Lebanon, state media said. The strike targeted Dr. Ali Allam’s house near Dar Al-Amal Hospital, the largest health center in Baalbek-Hermel province, which has provided vital health services amid Israel's campaign of airstrikes, the Health Ministry said. State-run media reported that the strike came without warning. The ministry described his death as a “great loss,” and provincial governor Bachir Khodr said in a post on X that, “Mr. Allam was one of the best citizens of Baalbek.” In two separate episodes on Friday, Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed five paramedics with Hezbollah's medical arm, the Health Ministry said, describing it as “war crime.” The militant group provides extensive social services, including running schools and health clinics. In a report published Friday, the World Health Organization said nearly half of all attacks on health care in Lebanon since Oct. 7, 2023, have resulted in fatalities. “This is a higher percentage than in any active conflict today across the globe,” WHO said. In Lebanon, 226 health workers and patients were killed and 199 were injured between Oct. 7, 2023, and Nov. 18, 2024, the report said. The Health Ministry said Friday that 3,645 people have been killed in nearly 14 months of war between Hezbollah and Israel, while 15,356 were wounded, the majority following Israel’s escalation in late September. The death count includes 692 women and 231 children. UNITED NATIONS – Two rockets hit a headquarters of the U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, injuring four Italian peacekeepers, the United Nations says. U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the rockets were likely launched by Hezbollah militants or by affiliated groups Friday, impacting a bunker and a logistics area in the southwest headquarters at Chamaa. One of the structures that was hit caught fire, and the blaze was swiftly put out by U.N. staff, he said. According to Italy’s Defense Ministry, some glass shattered due to the explosion, hitting the four soldiers. Dujarric said the four injured peacekeepers were receiving treatment at the medical facility of the mission, known as UNIFIL. “Thankfully, none of the injuries are life-threatening,” he said. Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto called the attack on the UNIFIL base “intolerable.” He reiterated that the Italian contingent remains in southern Lebanon “to offer a window of opportunity for peace, and cannot become hostage to militia attacks.” Dujarric said Friday’s attack was the third on Chamaa in a week and came amid heavy shelling and ground skirmishes in the Chamaa and Naqoura areas in recent days. UNIFIL’s main headquarters is in Naqoura. Friday’s attack follows a rocket attack on a UNIFIL base east of the village of Ramyah on Tuesday that injured four peacekeepers from Ghana. Dujarric said UNIFIL strongly urges Hezbollah and its affiliates and Israel to avoid fighting near its positions, which are supposed to be protected. “We remind all parties that any attack against peacekeepers constitutes a serious violation of international law” and the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, he said. BEIRUT — Israeli airstrikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs and the southern port city of Tyre on Friday, after the Israeli army issued several evacuation warnings saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites. The strikes in Beirut came dangerously close to central Beirut and Christian neighborhoods. One strike hit a building housing a gym and medical and beauty clinics, located just meters (yards) from a Lebanese army base. “What is there in the building to target? This attack they carried out on us in this building is a criminal and vile act,” resident Hassan Najdi told The Associated Press. “Because if their intention is targeting Hezbollah, this building has nothing to do with Hezbollah.” Najdi said he purchased an apartment in the building last year but had not yet moved in. He allowed a displaced family to move in and urgently asked them to evacuate after receiving the Israeli warning. The blasts sent plumes of smoke into the air and shattered glass in the vicinity. No casualties have been reported, but the strikes caused damage to nearby infrastructure and a key road connecting central Beirut to its southern suburbs. “We remain steadfast,” said Ali Daher, an employee at a mall facing the targeted building. “Everything that is lost can be replaced, and whatever is destroyed can be rebuilt in (no time).” In Tyre city, the Israeli military conducted multiple airstrikes after a series of warnings, claiming the targets belonged to Hezbollah’s Aziz unit, accusing it of firing projectiles into Israel. The Israeli military carried out other airstrikes across Lebanon, many without warnings, as heavy fighting between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in villages along the Lebanon-Israel border intensified. ROME — Italy said Friday it plans to discuss the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court over the Israel-Hamas war when it hosts Group of Seven foreign ministers next week. Premier Giorgia Meloni insisted that one point remained clear for Italy: “There can be no equivalence between the responsibilities of the state of Israel and the terrorist organization of Hamas.” Italy is a founding member of the court and hosted the 1998 Rome conference that gave birth to it. But Meloni’s right-wing government has been a strong supporter of Israel after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, while also providing humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza. In a statement Friday, Meloni said Italy would study the reasonings behind the decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and Hamas’ military chief. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Italy respects the ICC and supports it. “But at the same time we are also convinced that the court must have a judicial role, and should not take up a political role.” Tajani will host G7 foreign ministers Monday and Tuesday outside Rome for the final meeting of the Italian G7 presidency. “As far as decisions are concerned, we will take them together with our allies,” Tajani said. During the G7 meetings, “we will talk about this with my allies there, and we will see what to do next.” Another member of the governing coalition, the outspoken Transport Minister Matteo Salvini was more defiant in supporting Israel. “If Netanyahu comes to Italy he will be welcomed,” Salvini was quoted by Italian media as saying. This item has been updated to correct that Salvini spoke of a potential Netanyahu visit to Italy, not Israel. ROME — Four Italian soldiers were slightly injured after two exploding rockets hit the United Nations' peacekeeping mission base on Friday in Chamaa in southern Lebanon, Italy's defense ministry said. Initial information suggested that two rockets hit a bunker and a room of the mission base, damaging the surrounding infrastructure, the ministry said. Shattered glass hit the four soldiers. The incident was the latest in which UN peacekeeping posts have been hit since Israel began its ground invasion of Lebanon on Oct. 1, leaving a number of peacekeepers wounded. Defence Minister Guido Crosetto called Friday's attack “intolerable.” He said he will try to speak to the new Israeli Defense Minister to ask him “to avoid using the UNIFIL bases as a shield.” Crosetto said the conditions of the four Italian soldiers “did not cause concern.” He reiterated that the Italian contingent remains in southern Lebanon “to offer a window of opportunity for peace and cannot become hostage to militia attacks.” Italy’s Premier Giorgia Meloni on Friday said she learned about the new attack with “deep indignation and concern.” Meloni reiterated that “such attacks are unacceptable,” renewing her appeal for the parties on the ground “to guarantee, at all times, the safety of UNIFIL soldiers and to collaborate to quickly identify those responsible.” GENEVA — The World Health Organization says nearly half of the attacks on health care in Lebanon have been deadly since the Middle East conflict erupted in October last year, the highest such rate anywhere in the world. The U.N. health agency says 65 out of 137, or 47%, of recorded “attacks on health care” in Lebanon over that time period have proven fatal to at least one person, and often many more. WHO’s running global tally counts attacks, whether deliberate or not, that affect places like hospitals, clinics, medical transport, and warehouses for medical supplies, as well as medics, doctors, nurses and the patients they treat. Nearly half of attacks on health care in Lebanon since last October and the majority of deaths occurred since an intensified Israeli military campaign began against Hezbollah militants in the country two months ago. The health agency said 226 health workers and patients have been killed and 199 injured in Lebanon between Oct. 7, 2023 and this Monday. JERUSALEM — Israel’s new defense minister said Friday that he would stop issuing warrants to arrest West Bank settlers or hold them without charge or trial — a largely symbolic move that rights groups said risks emboldening settler violence in the Israeli-occupied territory. Israel Katz called the arrest warrants “severe” and said issuing them was “inappropriate” as Palestinian militant attacks on settlers in the territory grow more frequent. He said settlers could be “brought to justice” in other ways. The move protects Israeli settlers from being held in “administrative detention,” a shadowy form of incarceration where people are held without charge or trial. Settlers are rarely arrested in the West Bank, where settler violence against Palestinians has spiraled since the outbreak of the war Oct. 7. Katz’s decision was celebrated by far-right coalition allies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. National Security Minister and settler firebrand Itamar Ben-Gvir applauded Katz and called the move a “correction of many years of mistreatment” and “justice for those who love the land.” Since Oct. 7, 2023, violence toward Palestinians by Israeli settlers has soared to new heights, displacing at least 19 entire Palestinian communities, according to Israeli rights group Peace Now. In that time, attacks by Palestinian militants on settlers and within Israel have also grown more common. An increasing number of Palestinians have been placed in administrative detention. Israel holds 3,443 administrative detainees in prison, according to data from the Israeli Prison Service, reported by rights group Hamoked. That figure stood around 1,200 just before the start of the war. The vast majority of them are Palestinian, with only a handful at any given time Israeli Jews, said Jessica Montell, the director of Hamoked. “All of these detentions without charge or trial are illegitimate, but to declare that this measure will only be used against Palestinians...is to explicitly entrench another form of ethnic discrimination,” said Montell. BERLIN — A German official has suggested that his country would be reluctant to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. The ICC’s warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant put Germany, a staunch ally of Israel, in an awkward position. The government said in a statement Friday that it is one of the ICC’s biggest supporters, but “at the same time, it is a consequence of German history that unique relations and a great responsibility connect us with Israel.” The government said it takes note of the arrest warrants and that “we will examine conscientiously the domestic steps.” It said that any further steps would only be an issue if a visit by Netanyahu or Gallant were “foreseeable.” Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit was pressed repeatedly at a regular news conference on whether it would be conceivable to arrest an Israeli prime minister. He replied: "It’s hard for me to imagine that we would carry out arrests in Germany on this basis.” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Friday refused to comment on the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others, saying that the court's rulings are “insignificant” for Russia, which doesn’t recognizes the court’s jurisdiction. The ICC last year issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and a number of other top Russian officials, accusing them of war crimes in Ukraine. The Kremlin has brushed off the warrants, saying that in Moscow’s eyes they’re “null and void.” Asked if the ICC warrants for Netanyahu and others can help resolve the tensions in the Middle East, Peskov said: “Well, in general, the actions of the ICC are unlikely to help anything. That’s the first thing. And secondly, we don’t see any point in commenting on this in any way, because for us these rulings are insignificant.” DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Large crowds of displaced people crammed themselves in front of a bakery in the Gaza Strip for the second day in a row, desperate to get their share of bread after bakeries closed for five days due to a flour shortage and the lack of aid. “I am a 61-year-old man. This is the third day that I have come to Zadna Bakery and I still cannot get bread ... I have children to feed,” said Majdi Yaghi, a displaced man from Gaza City. The price of a small bag of pita bread increased to $16 by Friday, a stark increase from about 80 cents last month. A bag of pasta now costs $4 and a small bag of sugar costs nearly $14. That has left many Palestinian families surviving on one meal a day and reliant on charitable kitchens to survive. In Khan Younis, women and children lined up at the al-Dalu charitable kitchen for bulgur, the only food available at the makeshift charity. One of the workers there, Anas al-Dalu, told the AP that they cook ten pots every day of either rice, beans, or bulgur. But that hardly fills the need for the thousands of people displaced in the area. “The charity here is in a difficult situation. It is a drop in the ocean, and there is no aid or charities. There is nothing," said Nour Kanani, a displaced man from Khan Younis. “It is a crisis in every sense of the word. There is no flour, no charities, and no food.” BEIRUT — Israeli troops fought fierce battles with Hezbollah fighters on Friday in different areas in south Lebanon, including a coastal town that is home to the headquarters of U.N. peacekeepers. A spokesperson for the U.N. peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL told The Associated Press that they are monitoring “heavy clashes” in the coastal town of Naqoura and the village of Chamaa to the northeast. UNIFIL’s headquarters are located in Naqoura in Lebanon’s southern edge close to the border with Israel. “We are aware of heavy shelling in the vicinity of our bases,” UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said. Asked if the peacekeepers and staff at the headquarters are safe, Tenenti said: “Yes for the moment.” Several UNIFIL posts have been hit since Israel began its ground invasion of Lebanon on Oct. 1, leaving a number of peacekeepers wounded.O’Shea stands by decision to keep playing Collaros after QB was hurt in Grey Cup

Kyodo News penalizes top editors after false report on Yasukuni visit

EU rules requiring all new smartphones, tablets and cameras to use the same charger came into force on Saturday, in a change Brussels said will cut costs and waste. Manufacturers are now obliged to fit devices sold in the 27-nation bloc with a USB-C, the port chosen by the European Union as the common standard for charging electronic tools. "Starting today, all new mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, speakers, keyboards and many other electronics sold in the EU will have to be equipped with a USB Type-C charging port," the EU Parliament wrote on social media X. The EU has said the single charger rule will simplify the life of Europeans and slash costs for consumers. By allowing consumers to purchase a new device without a new charger, it will also reduce the mountain of obsolete chargers, the bloc has argued. The law was first approved in 2022 following a tussle with US tech giant Apple. It allowed companies until December 28 this year to adapt. Makers of laptops will have extra time, from early 2026, to also follow suit. Most devices already use these cables, but Apple was more than a little reluctant. The firm said in 2021 that such regulation "stifles innovation", but by September last year it had begun shipping phones with the new port. Makers of electronic consumer items in Europe had agreed on a single charging norm from dozens on the market a decade ago under a voluntary agreement with the European Commission. But Apple, the world's biggest seller of smartphones, refused to abide by it and ditch its Lightning ports. Other manufacturers kept their alternative cables going, meaning there were about half a dozen types knocking around, creating a jumble of cables for consumers. USB-C ports can charge at up to 100 Watts, transfer data up to 40 gigabits per second, and can serve to hook up to external displays. At the time of its approval, the commission said the law was expected to save at least 200 million euros ($208 million) per year and cut more than a thousand tonnes of EU electronic waste every year. "It's time for THE charger," the European Commission wrote on X on Saturday. "It means better-charging technology, reduced e-waste, and less fuss to find the chargers you need." ub/givCopy link Copied Copy link Copied Key Posts PM’s character in question in latest poll US conducted airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria Syria’s Assad flees to Russia as rebels seize Damascus AAP Copy link Copied Copy link Copied Most Viewed In Politics