U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty to a drugs charge in a Russian court on Thursday but denied she had intentionally broken the law.
Griner was speaking at the second hearing of her trial on the narcotics charge that could see her sentenced to up to 10 years in prison, days after she urged U.S. President Joe Biden to secure her release.
“I’d like to plead guilty, your honour. But there was no intent. I didn’t want to break the law,” Griner said, speaking quietly in English which was then translated into Russian for the court.
“I’d like to give my testimony later. I need time to prepare,” she added.
The next court hearing was scheduled for July 14.
Griner’s lawyer Alexander Boykov told reporters they were hoping for the most lenient sentencing possible.
The two-time Olympic gold medallist was detained in February at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport with vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in Russia and has been kept in custody since.
In a handwritten note, she appealed to Biden directly earlier this week to step up U.S. efforts to bring her home.
“I realize you are dealing with so much, but please don’t forget about me and the other American detainees…” Griner wrote. “Please do all you can to bring us home.”
Biden spoke to Griner’s wife on Wednesday, telling her he was working to have her released “as soon as possible”, the White House said.
U.S. officials and many athletes have called for the release of Griner – or “BG” as she is known to basketball fans – whom they say has been wrongfully detained.
Her case has also prompted concerns that Moscow could use it as leverage to negotiate the release of a high-profile Russian citizen in U.S. custody.
Russian authorities say there is no basis to consider Griner’s detention illegal and that the case against her is not political despite Moscow’s fraught relations with United States over the Russian military intervention in Ukraine.
Moscow’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Thursday that it was difficult to exchange prisoners with the United States and suggested Washington stop talking about the fate of Griner.
Griner, a centre for the Phoenix Mercury in the Women’s National Basketball Association, had played for UMMC Ekaterinburg in the Russian Women’s Basketball Premier League to boost her income during the WNBA off-season, like several other U.S. players.
The Russian foreign ministry has said Griner could appeal her sentence or apply for clemency once a verdict has been delivered.
A guilty plea by Griner will not impact negotiations to bring her home from Russia, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Thursday.
The 19th China-ASEAN Expo, slated to be held from Sept. 16 to 19 in Nanning, capital of south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, will establish an exhibition area for participants of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Companies and agencies from RCEP member states such as the Republic of Korea and Japan have confirmed their participation in the expo, according to Shi Zuyao, deputy secretary-general of the expo secretariat.
ASEAN members such as Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Brunei have begun arranging their booths.
The total exhibition area for domestic participants is 82,000 square meters, which will be divided into separate exhibition areas, including electronic information, new land-sea passages, cross-border e-commerce and new retail, environmental protection cooperation and new energy vehicles.
Palestinian markets witness sales stagnation ahead of Eid al-Adha which starts on July 9 in Palestine, as a result of the rocketing prices of goods.
For the second year in a row, Ibrahim Sabaaneh, a Ramallah-based man, was unable to buy a sheep for the feast.
“In the past, I used to buy the sheep for 200 U.S. dollars, but now it requires about 350 dollars, which is a heavy burden for me,” the 47-year-old father of four complained.
The celebration of Eid al-Adha is not limited to sacrifice. There are other essential things, such as new clothes, sweets, and decorations that must be provided for the festival.
“At the current deteriorating condition, I can only provide some food and sweets to prepare my family to celebrate the festival,” he explained.
Mohammed Hijawi, a Ramallah-based owner of a livestock farm, owns about 600 sheep and 150 calves.
However, he complained about the deterioration in the purchasing power of clients this year, noting that he was able to sell only 20 percent of the livestock stockpile on his farm.
In fact, the prices of sacrifices rose significantly in the West Bank, due to the high costs of fodder resulting from the Russia-Ukraine crisis, in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The West Bank markets seemed empty of customers, while merchants were busy checking their goods crowded in the shops, while street vendors were trying to attract passers-by to buy from them.
Sumaia Juma’a, a Bethlehem-based woman, was only able to buy the basic needs for her family and small quantities of sweets and cakes.
The 39-year-old mother of three complained that the high prices prevented her from buying the sheep for Eid as she used to do in the past.
A Palestinian seller waits for customers at a livestock market ahead of the Eid al-Adha, in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on July 2, 2022. (Photo by Khaled OmarXinhua)
“Year by year, the rate of demand for sacrifices is decreasing due to the difficult economic situation as well as high prices,” Mohammed Qazaat, a livestock trader told Xinhua.
About 10 years ago, he recalled that he used to import more than 1,000 calves and more than 1,500 sheep before Eid al-Adha, but now he hardly imports 150 calves and less than 50 sheep for fear of incurring heavy losses.
“Unfortunately, most of the people do not have enough money to go to the markets to buy basic needs, and this is reflected in the livestock market,” he said, adding that “the deteriorating situation affects everyone, whether he is a merchant or a customer.”
A Palestinian woman shops at a market ahead of the Eid al-Adha festival in Gaza City, July 5, 2022. (Photo by Rizek AbdeljawadXinhua)
The Palestinian market needs about 210,000 head of cattle for sacrifice during Eid in the West Bank and Gaza, according to the Palestinian Agriculture Ministry.
Around 50,000 candidates in Shanghai sat for the college entrance exam, or gaokao, on Thursday, one month later than their peers in other parts of China due to a local COVID-19 resurgence this spring.
The annual national exam normally kicks off on June 7, but Shanghai announced the decision to postpone it to July 7-9 in May, as the city was battling local COVID-19 flareups.
All candidates had been tested for COVID-19 twice over the past three days. Those who are currently under quarantine, or are found with a fever before entering the examination centers, among other unusual circumstances, shall take the exam in prearranged isolated rooms, according to the municipal education authorities.
Candidates are required to take the nucleic acid test on Thursday and Friday at the exam site, and they shall undergo another round of testing on Saturday back in their residential community after the exam is over.
Shanghai reported 32 confirmed locally transmitted COVID-19 cases and 22 local asymptomatic carriers on Wednesday, the municipal health commission said Thursday.
China’s service trade value grew 22 percent year on year to 2.365 trillion yuan (about 352.98 billion U.S. dollars) in the first five months of 2022, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed on Thursday.
Of the total, service exports expanded 26.3 percent year on year to 1.15 trillion yuan, and service imports were 1.21 trillion yuan, up 18.2 percent from a year ago.
In May alone, service trade value stood at 456.28 billion yuan, up 22.2 percent year on year.
The growth of service trade exports outpaced import growth by 8.1 percentage points during the January-May period, resulting in a 46-percent drop in the service trade deficit, data showed.
During the first five months, China’s trade of knowledge-intensive services maintained steady growth, rising 10 percent year on year to about 988.67 billion yuan, said the ministry.
Sectors such as telecommunications and information services saw rapid increases in exports, while insurance services were among the fastest growing areas in imports.
The tourism service trade continued to recover, with its trade value expanding 7.7 percent from a year ago to 330.84 billion yuan in the first five months.
In contrast to merchandise trade, services trade refers to the sale and delivery of intangible products such as transportation, tourism, telecommunications, construction, advertising, computing, and accounting.
Boris Johnson said on Thursday he regretted not being able to stay on as Britain’s prime minister as he announced his resignation outside his Downing Street residence.
After days of battling for his job, Johnson was deserted by all but a handful of allies after the latest in a series of scandals broke their willingness to support him.
Bowing to the inevitable as more than 50 ministers quit and lawmakers said he must go, an isolated and powerless Johnson confirmed he would resign on Thursday.
“The process of choosing that new leader should begin now. And today I have appointed a cabinet to serve, as I will until a new leader is in place,” Johnson said.
“Of course, it is painful to not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects,” he said, speaking at a lectern outside Number 10 Downing Street.
“But as we have seen at Westminster the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves, it moves.”
Johnson said he was sad to be leaving the best job in the world in the statement watched by his wife Carrie, and added: “Them’s the breaks.”
Support for Johnson had evaporated during one of the most turbulent 24 hours in recent British political history, with finance minister, Nadhim Zahawi, who was only appointed to his post on Tuesday , calling on his boss to resign.
Zahawi and other cabinet ministers had gone to Downing Street on Wednesday evening , along with a senior representative of those lawmakers not in government, to tell Johnson the game was up.
Initially, Johnson refused to go and seemed set to dig in, sacking Michael Gove – a member of his top ministerial team who was one of the first to tell him he needed to resign – in a bid to reassert his authority.
By Thursday morning as a slew of resignations poured in, it became clear his position was untenable.
Londoners react to news the British Prime Minister resigns
Insurance broker Mike Parton said he didn’t see potential replacements in the ruling Conservative party, but would be sad to see him go.
“I think he’s made quite a lot of mistakes, but he’s done a lot of good things as well,” he said.
Banker Georges Allan said Johnson “should have been gone a long time. He’s overstayed his welcome by a long, long margin.”
Fund manager Rosie McMellin said she thought “the writing’s been on the wall” for a while, despite initially being a fan of the prime minister.
“I think it was getting very desperate. I think we’ve got to look at our reputation on a global basis as well,” she said.
Insurance underwriter Aaron Brown gave a much shorter summation of Johnson’s premiership, labelling it “a complete shambles with everything.”
The Conservatives will now have to elect a new leader, a process which could take about two months, and Johnson will stay on as PM until the autumn.
Below is a summary of some of those who could be in the frame to replace him:
LIZ TRUSS
The foreign secretary is the darling of the Conservatives’ grassroots and has regularly topped polls of party members carried out by the website Conservative Home.
Truss has a carefully cultivated public image and was photographed in a tank last year, evoking a famous 1986 image of Britain’s first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, who was also captured in such a pose.
The 46-year-old spent the first two years of Johnson’s premiership as international trade secretary, championing Brexit, and last year was appointed as Britain’s lead negotiator with the European Union.
Truss said on Monday Johnson has her “100% backing” and she urged colleagues to support him.
JEREMY HUNT
The former foreign secretary, 55, finished second to Johnson in the 2019 leadership contest. He would offer a more serious and less controversial style of leadership after the turmoil of Johnson’s premiership.
Over the last two years, Hunt has used his experience as a former health secretary to chair the health select committee and has not been tarnished by having served in the current government.
Earlier this year, he said his ambition to become prime minister “hasn’t completely vanished”. Hunt said he would vote to oust Johnson in a confidence vote last month which Johnson narrowly won.
BEN WALLACE
Defence minister Ben Wallace, 52, has risen in recent months to be the most popular member of the government with Conservative Party members, according to Conservative Home, thanks to his handling of the Ukraine crisis.
A former soldier himself, he served in Northern Ireland, Germany, Cyprus and Central America, and was mentioned in dispatches in 1992.
He began his political career as a member of Scotland’s devolved assembly in May 1999, before being first elected to the Westminster parliament in 2005.
He was security minister from 2016 until taking on his current role three years later, winning plaudits for his department’s role in the evacuation of British nationals and allies from Afghanistan last year, and the sending of weapons to Kyiv during the recent war in Ukraine.
RISHI SUNAK
The finance minister was until last year the favourite to succeed Johnson. Sunak was praised for a rescue package for the economy during the coronavirus pandemic, including a jobs retention programme, which prevented mass unemployment, that could cost as much as 410 billion pounds ($514 billion).
But he has faced criticism for not giving enough cost-of-living support to households, his wealthy wife’s non-domiciled tax status and a fine he received, along with Johnson, for breaking COVID-19 lockdown rules.
His tax-and-spend budget last year put Britain on course for its biggest tax burden since the 1950s, undermining his claims to favour lower taxes.
He quit the government on Tuesday saying “the public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously”.
NADHIM ZAHAWI
The current education secretary impressed as vaccines minister when Britain had one of the fastest rollouts of COVID-19 jabs in the world.
Zahawi’s personal story as a former refugee from Iraq who came to Britain as a child sets him apart from other Conservative contenders.
He went on to co-found polling company YouGov before entering parliament in 2010. He said last week at some stage it would be a “privilege” to be prime minister.
PENNY MORDAUNT
The former defence secretary was sacked by Johnson when he became prime minister after she backed his rival Hunt during the last leadership contest.
Mordaunt was a passionate supporter of leaving the European Union and made national headlines by taking part in now-defunct reality TV diving show.
Currently a junior trade minister, Mordaunt called the lockdown-breaking parties in government “shameful”. She said voters wanted to see “professionalism and competence” from the government.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos met with visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Manila, the Philippines on Wednesday, and both sides agreed to upgrade bilateral cooperation and deal with the South China Sea issue through dialogue and communication.
The Philippine president said China is the Philippines’ largest trading partner and most important development partner, and both sides have initiated fruitful cooperation in all fields.
After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, China was the first to supply vaccines and protective materials to the Philippines, said Marcos, adding that China has actively supported the “Build Build Build” program and greatly helped the Philippines in improving its basic infrastructure.
The Philippines hopes to continue pushing forward bilateral cooperation with China in politics, economy and trade, education, culture and other areas, so as to enrich the connotation of their comprehensive strategic cooperation, Marcos said.
He said the Philippines pursues an independent foreign policy of peace, and always adheres to the one-China policy. The South China Sea issue is not the mainstream of the Philippines-China relationship and should not become an obstacle to bilateral cooperation.
The Philippines is willing to carry out candid communication with the Chinese side to find a friendly solution to the issue, which is the right way for the two countries to get along, Marcos said.
Wang said the China-Philippines relations are at a new starting point and China is ready to work with the Philippine side to keep the general direction of friendship and cooperation between the two countries.
Both sides remain committed to becoming good neighbors that help each other, good relatives that share mutual understanding and close bonds, and good partners that pursue cooperation and win-win results, so as to push for the upgrading of their cooperation and usher in a “golden age” in bilateral relations, Wang said.
While expressing China’s firm support for the new Philippine government, Wang said China is willing to engage with the Philippines to conduct cooperation in the four key areas of agriculture, infrastructure, energy, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, help the Philippines accelerate its development and revitalization, and bring about greater benefits to the Philippine people.
Wang stressed that cooperation between China and the Philippines far outweighs their maritime differences, and any difference between the two countries cannot define their relations, nor will it hinder their cooperation.
China and the Philippines should enhance dialogue and communication and properly handle sensitive issues so as to let maritime cooperation be the main tone of their discussion and handling of maritime affairs, he said.
Wang said the two countries should make the building of good neighbours, good friends and good partners as a new consensus between the two peoples.
On Wednesday, Wang also met with Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio, with both sides expressing the willingness to deepen bilateral practical cooperation in the major fields of agriculture, infrastructure, energy as well as people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
During their meeting, Duterte-Carpio said the Philippine side is looking forward to working with China to further the synergy with the Belt and Road Initiative.
She also said in her capacity as the education minister that the Philippine side hopes to intensify educational cooperation with China at all levels.
Wang said China stands ready to deepen cooperation with the Philippines in the education field, including on vocational education and language training programs, to support more Philippine youths to study in China, and to assist in improving teaching facilities to elevate modern education in the Philippines.
During the meeting, Wang also expressed China’s appreciation for the contribution of former President Rodrigo Duterte to secure a complete turnaround and enhancement in China-Philippine relations during his six-year tenure.
Nuns from Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity were driven to Nicaragua’s border with Costa Rica on Wednesday after lawmakers linked to President Daniel Ortega expelled the group and shut down their local branches in the country.
According to local reports, the nuns were escorted by police and immigration officials to the border.
Over ten nuns arrived at the land border checkpoint of Penas Blancas transported by van to get across to neighbouring Costa Rica on foot.
Images shared by Father Sunil Kumar Andugula, who accompanied them, show the nuns inside Costa Rica’s migration office.
The Missionaries of Charity, which works with impoverished communities, had been operating in Nicaragua for over 34 years.
In April, Nicaragua’s parliament, controlled by Ortega allies, shut down non-governmental organizations, many of which had openly criticised the government. Lawmakers argued the NGOs had violated Nicaraguan laws.
The move was the latest in a spate of closures under the government of President Daniel Ortega that the opposition has said is an attack on civil society.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday he was not going to resign and that the last thing the country needed was a general election.
Johnson made the comments while facing questions from parliament’s senior Liaison Committee.
Lawmakers from his own Conservative Party asked Johnson to confirm he would not seek to call an election rather than resign if he lost a vote of confidence.
Asked by an opposition Labour Party lawmaker about a report that a delegation of his own cabinet ministers was preparing to tell him to resign, Johnson declined to comment.
Despite being all but fatally wounded and government resignations rising to more than 30, Johnson said he had a mandate from the 2019 election to press on.
A new confidence vote in Johnson will not be brought by his lawmakers until at least next week after the Conservative Party committee governing the rules agreed to elect a new executive before considering allowing one.
However, Johnson may still be forced to resign before next week if more members of his cabinet quit.
Johnson said he was having a “terrific” week despite a slew of resignations by key allies and growing calls for his resignation from his own Conservative Party lawmakers.
He made the comment when asked how his week was going by opposition Labour Party lawmaker Darren Jones during a parliamentary Liaison Committee session.
Asked whether housing minister Michael Gove had asked him to resign, Johnson said he was not “going to give a running commentary on politic events.”
The Daily Mail earlier reported that Gove, one of the most senior ministers in the British government, had told Johnson he must quit.
And on Wednesday Johnson sacked Gove, the BBC reported.
At least 32 British lawmakers, including finance minister Rishi Sunak, have left Johnson’s government in less than 24 hours, saying the British leader no longer has their confidence and plunging his government into crisis.
The departures started on Tuesday evening with Health Secretary Sajid Javid quitting.
Sunak’s resignation letter followed just nine minutes later.
The resignations follow a scandal over whether Johnson’s office told the truth about sexual harassment allegations against a lawmaker.
Johnson survived a no-confidence vote from his fellow Conservative members of parliament last month after a series of other scandals but is now facing the biggest political crisis of his premiership.
The news comes as Johnson continues to defy pressure from senior ministers and a mounting rebellion within his party to quit on Wednesday, vowing to stay on as prime minister and fight off any attempts to oust him.
One encouraged him to make a dignified exit by setting his own timetable rather than face a confidence vote.
The oil and gas industry is “under siege” due to years of under-investment, the Opec Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said on Tuesday, adding the resulting supply shortage could be eased if extra supplies from Iran and Venezuela were allowed to flow.
Years of sanctions have limited supplies from Iran and Venezuela, said Barkindo.
In addition, the West has imposed sanctions on Russia, a member of Opec+ that groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, tightening oil markets further.
The strain on the industry has been increased by some countries’ efforts to divest from hydrocarbons, he said.
While they are seeking to limit global warming, he said oil demand was growing even as investment in capacity falls and prices surge.
Nigeria’s oil minister Timipre Sylva said Africa’s top oil producer would not abandon fossil fuels.
”We have however adopted our vast gas resources across the country as a transition fuel,” Sylva said.
Barkindo forecast primary demand for oil globally would increase up to 2045, while refining capacity in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries fell by 3.3% in 2021.
A Palestinian seller waits for customers at a livestock market ahead of the Eid al-Adha, in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on July 2, 2022. (Photo by Khaled OmarXinhua)
A Palestinian woman shops at a market ahead of the Eid al-Adha festival in Gaza City, July 5, 2022. (Photo by Rizek AbdeljawadXinhua)
SootinClaimon.Com 