Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah launches a tree plantation drive, organised by the Union Coal Ministry, at his residence. https://t.co/gE9JQ6Plwm

Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched the ‘Tree Plantation Drive-2020’, organised by the Ministry of Coal, here on Thursday. Speaking on the occasion, the Home Minister said that under the drive trees will be planted on 6,000 acres of land in 38 districts across ten states.  “Today, trees will be planted on 600-acre land at 150 places.  5 lakh plants will be distributed,” he said. “In the blind race of development, we forget the mantra of Indian culture that nature is our mother and it cannot be exploited.  This is the reason why the temperature of the earth is increasing and badly affected climate.  The world is afraid of climate change.  There is the only way which our saints and ‘puranas’ had told us that trees are friends of human and only trees can save us.  Indian culture has accepted the importance of trees and encouraged it,” he said. The Home Minister also lauded several initiatives by the Coal Ministry. “No one cared about labourers of mines of coal and minerals.  After the constitution of District Mineral Fund, the government has spent Rs 49,000 crore for the development of the region where mines were set up,” he said. The Home Minister also paid tributes to Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Chandra Shekhar Azad on their ‘jayanti’. “Lokmanya Tilak and Chandrashekhar Azad both sacrificed their lives for the country.  No one can forget the contribution of Tilak in India’s independence movement.  His slogan ‘freedom is my birthright’ still inspires India’s youth.  Azad never thought of bowing down to Britishers and inspired people with movement,” he said.


Pres. Trump, Joe Biden in war of words over union support after Biden receives key endorsement from International Association of Fire Fighters: https://t.co/mTujc9oCTz https://t.co/kl9yLop6vb

  Joe Biden began his first rally as a 2020 presidential candidate arguing that President Donald Trump had abandoned voters in white, working-class America – and that reconnecting with those voters is Democrats’ path to victory.

  The former vice president told the crowd he decided to hold his first campaign rally in western Pennsylvania because, for the Democratic Party, it is among the “places where lately we’ve had a little bit of a struggle. ”

  “If I’m going to be able to beat Donald Trump in 2020, it’s going to happen here,” he told the crowd.

  The 76-year-old Biden launched his campaign last week with a much more direct focus on Trump than other Democratic presidential contenders.  On Monday, he said – in a twist on former President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign theme – that Americans must “choose hope over fear, unity over division and, maybe most importantly, truth over lies. ”

  “Donald Trump is the only president who has decided not to represent the whole country.  The President has his base,” Biden said.

  Trump rode a wave of white voters in swing states – particularly Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin – fleeing Biden’s party.  Biden’s campaign is based on the premise that he’s the candidate best able to connect with voters in those areas – and his rhetoric on Monday was a direct appeal to them.

  “I make no apologies: I am a union man,” he told the largely white crowd at a Teamsters union hall.

  A Biden ally was even more blunt about his appeal.  Minutes before the former vice president took the stage, International Association of Firefighters president Harold Schaitberger – whose union endorsed Biden earlier Monday – told the crowd that Democrats “can’t have a nominee that’s too far left. ”

  He warned of candidates with “high-minded ideals, maybe honorable ideals, but little chance of winning.  And there’s no question that the candidate who can win – the candidate who will be our next president – is Joe Biden. ”

  And he took a shot at the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, saying that Democrats need a 2020 candidate who “connects with those workers who don’t believe the last Democratic nominee listened to them or cared about them. ”

  Biden didn’t get into the specifics of policy in his first rally as a presidential candidate, but he did lay out the beginnings of a platform for his campaign.  Among the policies Biden touted: a “public option” that would allow anyone to buy into Medicare; a $15-an-hour minimum wage; eliminating capital gains tax loopholes; and increasing funding for medical research and post-secondary job training.

  Biden also repeatedly said he would undo Trump’s tax cuts, complaining that the benefits had accumulated with wealthy Americans and corporations.

  “Did you feel it?  Did you get anything from it? ” he asked the crowd while bashing Trump’s tax cuts, eliciting a round of “no” responses.  “Of course not!  Look, guys, this is not good. ”

  Biden argued that the nation’s premise of the middle class was being undercut by a “one-way street” greedy companies with executives who pump money into salary increases and stock buy-backs rather than worker pay.

  “We have to rethink how we define what constitutes a successful economy.  It’s not enough for the stock market to rise.  That’s not a bad thing, but it’s just not enough.  Workers feel powerless, too often humiliated,” Biden said.  “We’re tearing America apart instead of lifting it up. ”

  Earlier on Monday, Trump – provoked by Biden’s comments about white supremacist violence at Charlottesville, Virginia, and Biden receiving the endorsement of the International Association of Fire Fighters union – directed his ire at Biden.

  “The Media (Fake News) is pushing Sleepy Joe hard.  Funny, I’m only here because of Biden & Obama.  They didn’t do the job and now you have Trump, who is getting it done - big time! ” Trump tweeted Monday morning.

  He also complained about Biden receiving the firefighters’ union’s endorsement.

  “I’ll never get the support of Dues Crazy union leadership, those people who rip-off their membership with ridiculously high dues, medical and other expenses while being paid a fortune.  But the members love Trump.  They look at our record economy, tax & reg cuts, military etc.  WIN! ” Trump tweeted.

  Twenty-three minutes later, after another tweet about “Sleepy Joe Biden” rallying in Pittsburgh, Trump added: “The Dues Sucking firefighters leadership will always support Democrats, even though the membership wants me.  Some things never change! ”

  Before his rally Monday afternoon, Biden responded on Twitter.

  “I’m sick of this President badmouthing unions,” he said.  “Labor built the middle class in this country.  Minimum wage, overtime pay, the 40-hour week: they exist for all of us because unions fought for those rights.  We need a President who honors them and their work. ”

  The fight goes to the heart of Biden’s case for the Democratic nomination: He aims to build on former president Barack Obama’s coalition by appealing to white working-class voters in states where Democrats saw their support slip away during Obama’s tenure in office.  Though the dynamics of the electoral map can always shift, Democrats could win back the presidency by holding onto the states Hillary Clinton won and rebuilding their “blue wall” in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

  Biden’s first week on the campaign trail will also include a two-day swing through Iowa, with events planned for Tuesday in the eastern part of the state and Wednesday in central Iowa.
© 2021 Cable News Network.  A Warner Media Company.  All Rights Reserved.   CNN Sans ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network.


Another associate of Sushil Kumar arrested in wrestler murder case

https://t.co/twrHq297pQ https://t.co/5r6to3vocL

The Delhi Police have arrested another associate of two-time Olympic medalist Sushil Kumar in connection with the murder of a 23-year-old wrestler at Chhatrasal Stadium earlier this month, news agency ANI reported on Friday.  Vijender alias Binder, who is also a wrestler, was arrested in connection with Sagar Rana's death, taking the number of people arrested to nine, including wrestler Sushil Kumar, till now. The Delhi Police another associate of Kumar, Rohit Karor, earlier in the day arrested in connection with the alleged murder at Chhatrasal Stadium.  "Karor was present at the Chhatrasal Stadium when the incident took place," the police said, according to news agency ANI.  Earlier, the police issued a non-bailable warrant against Kakor and Binder. Rana died and two of his friends were injured after they were allegedly assaulted by Kumar and others inside the stadium.  The incident took place late on May 4 over a dispute related to a property located in Delhi's Model Town. Kumar, a prime suspect in the case, and his associate Ajay Bakkarwala were arrested by a team of Special Cell of the Delhi Police on May 23 from the Mundka area of the national capital, following which a Delhi court granted six days of police custody to Kumar.  The Delhi Police's crime branch is investigating the case. (With inputs from ANI)


War of words ensued between Bollywood actresses Kangana Ranaut and Urmila Matondkar after the latter referred to Manikarnika star as a ârudaaliâ, a word used to describe lower caste women in Rajasthan, who are hired as professional mourners upon the death of upper-caste males

Following this, Kangana called the now Congress leader Urmila a âsoft porn starâ in an interview with Navika Kumar on Times Now.  Amidst all of this, many Twitter users, including some prominent journalists shared an Amul cartoon on Urmila to accuse the dairy giant of working for the BJP IT cell.  In the cartoon, Urmila can be seen in a red dress with a plunging neckline.  The cartoon is captioned as âNot MASOOM anymore? â and âÃmul Rangeela Makhanâ in a direct reference to Urmilaâs blockbuster Hindi film Rangeela.  She also featured as a child artiste in critically-acclaimed Masoom.  Columnist Swati Chaturvedi, who writes for NDTV and Gulf News, posted the cartoon, calling it disgusting.  She further alleged that Amul works for BJP IT cell.  Another journalist Mrinal Pande quoted Chaturvediâs tweet to shame brand Amul.  à¤¥à¥à¤¡à¤¼à¥ à¤¸à¥ à¤à¥ à¤¶à¤°à¥à¤® à¤¬à¤à¥ à¤¹à¥, à¤¤à¥ à¤¡à¥à¤¬ à¤®à¤°à¥ à¤à¤®à¥à¤² !  à¤à¤ªà¤¨à¥ à¤à¤¨à¥à¤®à¤¦à¤¾à¤¤à¤¾ à¤à¤° à¤à¤¾à¤°à¤¤ à¤à¥ à¤®à¤¹à¤¿à¤²à¤¾à¤à¤ à¤à¥ à¤®à¤¦à¤¦ à¤¸à¥ à¤¸à¤¹à¤à¤¾à¤°à¥ à¤¦à¥à¤à¥à¤§à¤à¥à¤°à¤¾à¤à¤¤à¤¿ à¤à¥ à¤à¤¨à¤â¦ https://t. co/97JHrGyazR— Mrinal Pande (@MrinalPande1) 1600411419000TRUTHThe cartoon is from 1995 when Rangeela had released, leaving viewers stunned to see Urmilaâs transformation from a cute child artist to an exceptional performer.  The cartoon has nothing to do with the current controversy between Kangana and Urmila.  VERIFICATION AND METHODOLOGYUsing reverse-image search, we found a blog dated April 05, 2017.  The blog featured the same cartoon and insinuated that the cartoon was published by Amul after Rangeela released in 1995.  Taking a cue from this, we looked up the archive page of cartoons on the official website of Amul.  Under the â Amul Hitsâ from the year 1995, we found the same cartoon titled âRangeela Geelaâ.  After being pointed out by several users, Chaturvedi deleted her tweet, but not before several others had picked it up and tweeted about it.


Hundreds of doctors had sued Bill Gates for a polio vaccine he created which disabled 47,000 children in India. This is why he was expelled from India.

A viral message on Facebook claims that hundreds of doctors had sued Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates after a polio vaccine he had funded left over 47,000 children in India disabled, leading to his expulsion from the country. Several Facebook users have shared an image of Bill Gates administering polio vaccine to a child with the caption, “Never forget that hundreds of doctors sued Bill Gates for vaccinating over 47,000 children with the polio vaccine and that he instead created a deadly ‘Super Polio’, for this very reason he was expelled from India.  In 2011 doctors in India reported that young children were becoming paralyzed in large numbers after receiving the oral polio vaccine, as a result thousands of children were disabled and disabled for life as a direct result of the Bill Gates vaccine. ”India Today Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found that neither was Gates sued nor was he expelled from India.  The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) continues to work on several projects in the country.  The allegations about the vaccine are not correct either. The archived versions of the posts can be seen here and here.  Multiple users have shared similar posts on Facebook. Was Gates expelled from India? It is true that BMGF has been funding research and child-immunisation programmes in several developing countries, including India.  But the claim that he has been expelled from the country is not true. In fact, on May 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with Gates through video conferencing on “the importance of global coordination on scientific innovation and R&D to combat the (Covid-19) pandemic”.  PM Modi appreciated the work being done by BMGF not only in India, but also in other parts of the world, including coordinating the global response to Covid-19. In 2017, the Indian government had published a press statement saying some news reports had suggested that all collaboration with BMGF had been stopped, but it was “inaccurate and misleading.  BMGF continues to collaborate and support the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare”.  The archived version of the statement can be seen here. Allegations about the polio vaccineThe viral claim about a Gates-backed polio vaccine disabling 47,000 children in India seems to have stemmed from a report published in the “Indian Journal of Medical Ethics” in 2012. According to the report, a huge increase in non-polio acute flaccid paralysis (NPAFP) is “directly proportional to doses of oral polio received”.  BMGF funds polio eradication programmes. But while NPAFP cases () did increase in the mid-2000s, it doesn’t mean polio vaccine was necessarily the cause.  As per a “BBC News” report published in 2013, polio is just one of many causes, with other viruses and bacteria also responsible for a sharp rise of acute flaccid paralysis cases in India. However, it should also be noted that the World Health Organization has said oral polio vaccine (OPV) is an extremely safe and effective tool for immunising children against the disease.  But at the same time, it said “On very rare occasions, OPV can lead to vaccine-associated paralytic polio or vaccine-derived poliovirus. ”Therefore, the viral claim saying Bill Gates was expelled from India because a polio vaccine funded by him disabled 47,000 children is not true. The number of crows determines the intensity of the lie.


#CWC19: England beat New Zealand by 119 runs at Riverside Ground at Chester-le-Street. #NZvsENG https://t.co/CVkffL8mFC

After the jolt they received against England, Indian team bounced back in style to beat Bangladesh by 28 runs and seal their berth in the semi-finals.  Rohit Sharma starred with the bat as he smacked his fourth century in the World Cup and he was given good assistance by KL Rahul.  Bangladesh were spirited in their chase of 315, but Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya kept chipping away at the wickets as they fell eventually ran out of steam. “I mean Bangladesh has played some really good cricket in the tournament.  They deserve a lot of credit for the fight they put up, even till the last wicket I think they were in the game.  We had to work hard for the win but very happy that we saw ‘Q’ (Qualified) in front of the team in the table now.  Another game as an opportunity for us to do the same things we have done so far in the tournament, and I think that will keep us in the frame of mind heading towards the semi-final,” Indian captain Virat Kohli said after the match. ALSO READ: Virat Kohli declares ‘best One Day player’ after India seal semis berthRohit Sharma was adjudged man of the match for his brilliant century and said that the pitch was a great one to bat on and he felt good right from the beginning. “I had a great feeling right at the start.  The pitch was good to bat on.  Initially wanted to take some time and then assess where we go from there.  That’s how it has been for me at this World Cup,” Rohit said at the post-match press-conference. Watch the complete highlights of the match:


Delta Airlines announces $1 billion pledge to become "carbon neutral" and mitigate all emissions starting, as the airline industry faces increased pressure from environmental groups over its massive carbon footprint. https://t.co/NmqXIyInX9

By Chris Isidore, CNN BusinessUpdated 10:18 AM ET, Sun February 16, 2020 New York  (CNN Business)Delta Air Lines plans to become carbon neutral over the next decade.  But that doesn't mean it will stop emitting carbon.  In fact, it can't.


Prime Minister Narendra Modi extend condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in an accident in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Prayers with the injured: PMO https://t.co/NcXY9tMl5j

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Check out the most eye-catching looks from the #Oscars red carpet https://t.co/7OPAyZdTOu https://t.co/p8GiQDdQzR

"Green Book" won best picture while Rami Malek took home best actor. The best moments from the 2019 OscarsThe 2019 Academy Awards were one for the books, with stars like Lady Gaga, Rami Malek and Spike Lee taking home an Oscar. Regina King won the Oscar for actress in a supporting role for "If Beale Street Could Talk" and Mahershala Ali won his second Oscar for best supporting actor in "Green Book. "Iconic director Spike Lee won his first Oscar for original screenplay for his work in "BlacKkKlansman. " Gaga took home her first award for her original song "Shallow," which she also performed alongside "A Star Is Born" co-star Bradley Cooper.  Olivia Colman won best actress for "The Favourite," beating out Glenn Close, who had seemed like a shoo-in heading into the show. Overall, "Bohemian Rhapsody" lead the way with four wins, including Malek for actor in a leading role.  "Black Panther," "Roma" and "Green Book" have all won three awards each.  The biggest award of the night, best picture, went to "Green Book. "Here are your 2019 Oscar winners:Best PictureActor in a Leading RoleActress in a Leading RoleBest DirectorActress in a Supporting RoleActor in a Supporting RoleDocumentary FeatureMakeup and HairstylingCostume DesignProduction DesignCinematographySound EditingSound MixingForeign Language FilmFilm EditingAnimated Feature FilmAnimated Short FilmDocumentary ShortVisual EffectsLive Action Short FilmOriginal ScreenplayAdapted ScreenplayOriginal ScoreOriginal Song24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events


"I'm finally given the freedom to do things I want to do": Young North Korean defectors in South Korea have found success and fulfillment. https://t.co/B4EM14tJhw https://t.co/OV55lj44uv

By Ben Westcott, James Griffiths, Meg Wagner and Veronica Rocha, CNNBy Ben Westcott, CNNPresident Donald Trump has sent a message to Kim Jong Un in an early morning tweet, saying North Korea could be like Vietnam -- if it denuclearizes. "Vietnam is thriving like few places on earth.  North Korea would be the same, and very quickly, if it would denuclearize.  The potential is AWESOME, a great opportunity, like almost no other in history, for my friend Kim Jong Un," Trump tweeted Wednesday morning. The US leader also criticized Democrat politicians who have pushed for him to announce a peace agreement with North Korea.  "Why didn't they do 'it' during eight years of the Obama administration? " he tweetedBy Ben Westcott, CNNAhead of Wednesday's second meeting between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, 19 US Democratic members of Congress have called for an official end to the Korean War. The group introduced a resolution to the US Congress calling on the Trump administration to provide a "clear roadmap to achieve a final peace settlement," according to a statement issued by congressman Ro Khanna Wednesday. The statement said former US President and Nobel Peace Laureate Jimmy Carter was also backing the resolution. Both North and South Korea have been pushing for a peace agreement since their summit in April 2018. By Ben Westcott, CNNPresident Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are expected to meet for the first time in Vietnam for dinner on Wednesday night, local time. But the US leader will first sit down with his hosts earlier in the day for lunch, Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and President Nguyen Phu Trong. Trump will hold a bilateral meeting with President Nguyen before lunch, and then meet with the prime minister afterwards. From CNN's Joshua BerlingerJust over 50 years ago, US B-52 bombers were pummeling Hanoi at the height of the Vietnam War. Now the Vietnamese capital is playing host to a US President as he meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the hope of ending a separate war. The city's reinvention since the end of the war is part of the reason it was selected for the important summit with Kim.  Washington is sending a message to North Korea -- a former US enemy can become a strong friend and a vibrant economy if it's willing to cooperate. From CNN's Ivan Watson, Dat Vu and Joshua BerlingerVietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said his country wanted to make sure US and North Korean leaders had a productive summit. Nguyen said he hopes North Korea will see Vietnam as an example of the benefits of peace, reconciliation and market liberalization. Watch the moment:From CNN's Josh Berlinger in HanoiThe night before his historic summit with President Trump last June, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un took a surprise stroll in downtown Singapore to see the sights of the wealthy capitalist city. The inference seemed clear.  If cash-strapped Pyongyang chooses to engage the world -- and ditch its nuclear weapons -- this could be its future. Trump and Kim will this month have an even more symbolic backdrop for their next meeting: Vietnam, a country which transformed itself from bitter US enemy to peaceful partner in less than 50 years. Experts believe the Trump administration plans to sell North Korea on a model such as communist Vietnam, highlighting its relationship with Washington as well as its economic boom since adopting market reforms.  And all the North Koreans have to do, Washington is expected to say, is give up their nukes. Yet analysts are wary such a sales pitch will produce any tangible outcome.  North Korea knows how capitalism and market economies work: it's just chosen not to embrace them. From CNN's Stephen CollinsonWhen President Trump meets with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, his former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, is expected to dish dirt in a congressional hearing Wednesday on Trump's turbulent personal and business affairs. If Cohen's testimony reveals any new or damning information, it will likely complicate and detract from Trump's efforts to orchestrate an international peace pageant in Hanoi, and could also inflict serious political damage on the President even as he is out of the country. Meanwhile, the US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a resolution to overturn Trump's emergency declaration to build a wall on the US southern border.  The move will impose new pressure on Senate Republicans and could eventually draw a presidential veto. And hovering over everything will be the expectation that once the President is back home, special counsel Robert Mueller will soon file a report that could have grave implications for the Trump presidency. Amid the political chaos, there is extreme pressure on Trump to produce something tangible from the summit after Kim agreed at the first to "work toward complete denuclearization" of the Korean peninsula but has so far failed to follow through. From CNN's Bex Wright in HanoiKim Jong Un will stay Vietnam through Saturday following the second US-North Korea summit in Hanoi, according to state media agency KCNA. Kim will visit Vietnam on March 1 and 2 after his meeting with President Trump, according to KCNA. Trump is expected to depart on Thursday following the summit. From CNN's Yoonjung Seo in Hanoi Kim Jong Un debriefed with North Korean officials in Hanoi ahead of the second summit with President Trump, KCNA reported Tuesday. According to KCNA, Kim received a detailed report on the contact between the US and North Korean working delegations after arriving at Melia hotel in Hanoi. Please enable JavaScript for a better experience.


With temperatures hitting six degrees at night, the prime minister cannot see the pain of lakhs of farmers sitting under open skies... nobody can be more shameless than him.

An image showing a road being blocked by a crowd is being shared to claim that it shows lakhs of farmers protesting against the contentious farm laws.  However, we found that while the image does show a farmers’ protest, it is from March 2018 and shows a protest that took place in Maharashtra.  CLAIM The claim shared along with the image reads: “रात्रि के 6 डिग्री तापमान में खुले आसमान में लाखों की संख्या में बैठे किसान का दर्द जिस प्रधानमंत्री को दिखाई न दे, उस प्रधानमंत्री से बेशर्म कोई नहीं हो सकता।” (Translated: With temperatures hitting six degrees at night, the prime minister cannot see the pain of lakhs of farmers sitting under open skies. . .  nobody can be more shameless than him. ) Several social media users have shared the image on Facebook and Twitter with the same claim.  WHAT WE FOUND OUT A reverse image search on Google led us to a tweet shared by ‘Mumbai Live’ in March 2018 that carried the same viral image.  The tweet mentioned that the image is from another farmers’ protest which took place in Maharashtra’s Thane.  We noticed that the image in circulation also carries a watermark of ‘mumbailive. com. ’ The Indian Express had reported on the then farmers’ protest in Maharashtra and carried an image which was captioned: “Farmers, who began their protest march from Nashik, on 6 March, reached Thane on Saturday evening. ” We compared the viral image with the 2018 image and found several similarities such as red flags being raised and people wearing red caps.  The Indian Express image also showed a signboard in which places such as ‘Nashik’ can be seen.  The Quint, too, had reported on the incident in 2018 when over 35,000 farmers, camping in Mumbai following a week-long march, called off their protest after the Maharashtra government, on 12 March 2018, vowed to meet their demands.  The farmers had marched 180 km from Nashik to Mumbai to demand a complete farm loan waiver, forest land rights and the implementation of recommendations of the MS Swaminathan Commission.  Evidently, an old image from a farmers’ protest in Maharashtra has been used to falsely claim that it is from the ongoing farmers’ protest.


Mumbai: Rhea Chakraborty has been summoned by the NCB tomorrow to join the investigation in #SushantSinghRajput death case. https://t.co/Dwarwj2Jyz

Actress Rhea Chakraborty was on Sunday questioned for about six hours by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in the drugs case linked to the death of her live-in partner and actor Sushant Singh Rajput.  The 28-year-old arrived at the agency’s office in the Ballard Estate area at 12 noon and left shortly after 6 PM.  She was escorted by police personnel.  NCB Deputy Director General (south-west region) Mutha Ashok Jain told reporters outside the agency’s office later that Rhea will be called again on Monday for questioning and recording of her statement like today. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput case: NCB to question Rhea Chakraborty again on Monday He said the agency also conducted fresh raids in this case against a man identified as Anuj Keshvani after his name came to the fore during the interrogation of Kaizan Ebrahim who was arrested by the agency in this case earlier.  “We have seized 590 gms of hashish, 0. 64 gm of LSD sheets, 304 gms of marijuana including imported marijuana joints and capsules, Rs 1,85,200 in cash and 5,000 Indonesian Rupiah after the raids on Keshvani,”‘ Jain said.  “The quantity of LSD that has been recovered is commercial quantity under the NDPS Act,” he said indicating it is an offence to keep such quantity of banned drugs.  LSD or Lysergic acid diethylamide is a hallucinogenic drug.  The DDG refused to share details of the ongoing investigation.  “I cannot tell you specifics. . .  because of your (media) cooperation we are getting a lot of information,” Jain said when asked by reporters about Rhea’s statement made to the agency.  The day started with an NCB team visiting Rhea’s home in Santa Cruz (west) to serve summons to her for joining the probe. Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput case latest developments: Rhea Chakraborty joins NCB probe, Showik arrested The agency has said that once Rhea deposes, it wants to confront her with her younger brother Showik Chakraborty (24), Rajput’s house manager Samuel Miranda (33) and his house staffer Dipesh Sawant to ascertain their roles in this alleged drug racket after it obtained mobile phone chat records and other electronic data that suggested some banned drugs were allegedly procured by these people.  The NCB, over the last two days, has arrested these three men in this case.  Officials said the actor was questioned on these lines on Sunday.  She was earlier questioned by the ED and the CBI too.  Rhea, in interviews given to multiple TV news channels, has said that she has never consumed drugs herself.  She had, however, claimed that the late actor used to consume marijuana.  It is claimed that Miranda told NCB investigators that he used to procure bud or curated marijuana for the late actor’s household.  A total of eight people have been arrested till now by the NCB with six being directly linked to this probe while two were arrested by it when the investigation was launched under criminal sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.  When the probe in the case began, the agency had arrested two men, Abbas Lakhani and Karan Arora, for alleged drug peddling and officials have claimed that through them they reached Zaid Vilatra and Abdel Basit Parihar who are allegedly linked to this drugs case as they were in touch with Miranda.  Miranda, they had said, used to allegedly procure drugs from them on the purported instructions of Showik, agency officials said.  Both Lakhani and Arora have been granted bail.  The NCB had said it recovered 59 grams of cannabis from them.  The NCB, while seeking remand of one of the accused in this case a few days back, had told a local court that it was looking into “the drug citadel in Mumbai, and especially Bollywood” in this probe.  This case has given the NCB an “inkling” into the narcotics network and its penetration in Bollywood or Hindi movie industry, NCB Deputy Director General Mutha Ashok Jain told reporters on Saturday.  Various angles surrounding the death of the 34-year-old actor are being probed by three federal agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).  The NCB initiated a drug angle probe in this case after the ED shared with it a report following the cloning of two mobile phones of Rhea.  Rajput was found dead at his flat in the suburban Bandra area on June 14.


President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are joined on-stage by their families—and some confetti. https://t.co/eJ4LLajSB6 https://t.co/aDgBtLz4EE

By Eric Bradner, CNNUpdated 12:23 AM ET, Mon November 9, 2020  (CNN)Former President George W.  Bush congratulated President-elect Joe Biden in a phone call Sunday and said that, while President Donald Trump has the right to pursue legal challenges and recounts, the 2020 race was "fundamentally fair" and "its outcome is clear. "


AG Barr characterizes hearing over his handling of Mueller's report "mind-bendingly bizarre," saying outstanding concerns were addressed by releasing the full report: "I made clear from the beginning I was putting out as much of the report as I could." https://t.co/t7yVhQY4lM https://t.co/Imj7AReFM5

    Attorney General William Barr said special counsel Robert Mueller was “a bit snitty” in his letter expressing misgivings about the attorney general’s letter to Congress summarizing Mueller’s findings.

    At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, Barr brushed off the criticisms in a new letter from Mueller, in which the special counsel objected to Barr’s initial four-page letter to Congress.  Mueller’s letter showed the former FBI director felt Barr’s letter to Congress didn’t fully capture his 448-page report.

    “You know, the letter’s a bit snitty, and I think it was probably written by one of his staff people,” Barr said.

    A spokesman for the special counsel, Peter Carr, declined to comment to CNN when asked about Barr’s characterization.

    The Washington Post first reported Mueller’s letter to Barr.  CNN later obtained the full letter.

    The Wednesday hearing was the first time Barr made an appearance before Congress since the release of a redacted version of Mueller’s report last month.

    In the hearing, Democrats clashed with the attorney general over his handling of the Mueller findings and his decision not to prosecute for obstruction of justice.  Some of the Democratic senators accused Barr of lying to Congress and the public about Mueller’s concerns, and multiple senators called for Barr’s resignation as attorney general.

    “(Mueller’s) letter was an extraordinary act, a career prosecutor rebuking the attorney general of the United States, memorializing in writing,” said Democratic Sen.  Richard Blumenthal.  “I know of no other instance of that happening. ”

    Barr said in the hearing that he called Mueller after receiving his letter and spoke to Mueller on speakerphone for about 10 to 15 minutes with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in the room, in addition to other staff members.

    Blumenthal asked Barr if anyone had taken notes of the call, and Barr said “there were notes taken of the call. ”

    “May we have those notes? ” Blumenthal asked.

    “No,” Barr said.

    “Why not? ” Blumenthal followed up.

    “Why should you have them? ” Barr said, before Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham ended the hearing.

    As of 4:30 p. m. , “snitty” – which means disagreeably ill-tempered – was the top trending word on Merriam-Webster. com, and look ups had spiked 150,000%, according to the website.

  CNN’s Katelyn Polantz contributed to this report.
© 2021 Cable News Network.  A Warner Media Company.  All Rights Reserved.   CNN Sans ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network.


On first day as Japan's emperor, Naruhito inherits imperial regalia that signals his succession and pledges to follow his father's example by devoting himself to peace. https://t.co/7mANCXdwOK https://t.co/ItqUazwSt9

By Euan McKirdy and Will Ripley, CNNUpdated 0936 GMT (1736 HKT) May 1, 2019 Tokyo (CNN)Japan's new emperor, Naruhito, has formally ascended to the Chrysanthemum Throne, replacing his father, Akihito, who had abdicated a day earlier.


#Uttarakhand: Visuals from yesterday when the Indo Tibetan Border Police(ITBP) personnel started digging to find the way to tunnel near Tapovan, Chamoli to rescue the persons trapped inside

(Pictures Source: ITBP) https://t.co/QkGK6m2Gbj

As operations continue in Uttarakhand to rescue people after Sunday’s glacier burst, the state’s Chamoli Police on Monday said that it was using a JCB machine to enter a National Thermal Power Corporation’s (NTPC) tunnel near the Tapovan area to rescue workers trapped inside.  The police further said that 15 people had been rescued and 14 bodies recovered thus far. Also Read | Uttarakhand glacier burst: Day after tragedy, multi-agency rescue operations on“Relief and rescue operations continue for people trapped inside the tunnel.  Efforts underway to enter the tunnel with the help of JCB machine and clear the way.  Total 15 people have been rescued and 14 bodies recovered from various places thus far,” Chamoli Police tweeted on its official Twitter handle. टनल में फंसे लोगों के लिए राहत एवं बचाव कार्य जारी। जेसीबी की मदद से टनल के अंदर पहुंच कर रास्ता खोलने का प्रयास किया जा रहा है।अब तक कुल 15 व्यक्तियों को रेस्क्यू किया गया है एवं 14 शव अलग-अलग स्थानों से बरामद किये गये हैं।#tapovanrescue #Chamoli #Uttarakhand_Disaster pic. twitter. com/szSaxJfEy7Earlier, the rescue operations at the 900-metre-long had to be halted due to rise in water level. Also Read | Uttarakhand glacier burst: Heavy damage to two hydel projects at the epicentreMeanwhile, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), another agency involved in the rescue operations, said that it had deployed 300 of its personnel to clear the tunnel.  “We’ve intensified search operations at the second tunnel.  Our information is that around 30 people are trapped there.  Around 300 ITBP jawans are deployed to clear the tunnel.  Local administration says that around 170 people are missing,” news agency ANI quoted Vivek Pandey, the spokesperson of the force, as saying. “ITBP rescued 12 people from a tunnel yesterday, these 30 are trapped in a different tunnel.  Rescue operations underway in different areas.  More teams will be sent there if required, we’re focusing on rescuing people from the tunnel first,” the spokesperson further said. ITBP rescued 12 people from a tunnel yesterday, these 30 are trapped in a different tunnel.  Rescue operation is underway in different areas.  More teams will be sent there if it is required, we are focussing on rescuing people from the tunnel first: Vivek Pandey, ITBP SpokespersonIn scenes reminiscent of the 2013 flash floods in the hilly northern state, a glacier breach in Chamoli unleashed massive flash floods here, inflicting damage to life and property.  A multi-agency rescue operation has been launched, involving the army, the air force, state police, ITBP and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF).  The Centre is in contact with the state government and monitoring developments closely.


Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah holds a roadshow in Krishnanagar.

#WestBengalElections2021 https://t.co/qK2Ayl3WGg

The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) national president JP Nadda on Saturday accused the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in West Bengal of working with a criminal instinct and said it has institutionalised corruption in the state.  To take a jab at the Mamata Banerjee-led government, Nadda referred to the attack on his convoy in the state’s South 24-Parganas district in December last year at Shirakol in Diamond Harbour, the Lok Sabha constituency of Abhishek Banerjee.  Abhishek is the chief minister’s nephew.  “The point-blank attack on a protectee like me is a testament to the state of law and order to which a regular citizen is subject,” he said. The BJP had said some of BJP’s senior leaders, as well as workers, sustained injuries after being assaulted by the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress at Shirakol on December 10.  Nadda, who visited Diamond Harbour as part of his two-day trip to the state, had said then that West Bengal had plunged into a state of lawlessness, and appealed to BJP workers to ensure the party’s win in the upcoming assembly elections. The BJP chief, while speaking to reporters in Bardhaman about the welfare schemes for farmers in the state, accused the state government of depriving the people of the benefits of central schemes like the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi and Ayushman Bharat.  “Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme is not applicable in Bengal.  Around 26 lakh farmers have registered themselves for the scheme, for which Mamta didi has not given permission.  The Prime Minister wants to give respect to farmers, wants to help them, but Mamta Di has become a hindrance in this,” he said. Earlier in the day, Nadda launched the BJP’s first campaign for farmers in poll-bound West Bengal’s East Burdwan, which is considered the state’s rice bowl.  He defended the three contentious farm laws enacted in September last year, saying they will enable farmers to set the prices of their products and choose the buyers even as the legislation has triggered protracted protests. “Since the BJP came to power at the Centre [in 2014], Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a six-fold increase in the central budget for farmers.  He implemented the minimum support price [at least 50% more than the weighted average cost of production] recommended by the Swaminathan Committee,” Nadda added.


BREAKING: Donald Trump will win Nebraska's first congressional district, while Joe Biden will win Nebraska's second congressional district, @ABC News projects. https://t.co/1zyyynoaKx #ElectionNight https://t.co/D01qIKC1tA

By Meg Wagner, Melissa Macaya, Veronica Rocha, Melissa Mahtani and Amanda Wills, CNNOur live coverage has moved.  Go here for the latest results and news from the election. From CNN's Allison GordonResults from Milwaukee have flipped Wisconsin to Joe Biden, who has a lead in the state right now, CNN's Phil Mattingly says. Earlier, the city of Milwaukee's absentee ballot information was delivered with a police escort, CNN's Ryan Young reported. "When they have those three officers walking with them, you understand the importance of the event," Young told CNN's Chris Cuomo. The election is far from over with millions of votes still outstanding in key states, including in battleground Wisconsin. Joe Biden will win Hawaii, CNN projects. There are four electoral votes at stake in Hawaii.  It takes 270 electoral votes to win the 2020 presidential election. Who won in 2016: Former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton carried the state, and President Trump won the general election. From CNN's Josiah Ryan Republican insiders are crediting a $300 million get-out-out the vote effort organized by the Trump campaign and allies for narrowing the gap in many states, CNN's Ryan Nobles reported early this morning.  "Republicans are talking about. . .  the ground game that the Republican National Committee and the Trump Victory Organization put into place shortly after President Trump was inaugurated," said Nobles. Nobles reported on Friday that the campaign had spent more than $300 million on a data and ground operation and less on television and digital advertising in the final leg of the campaign.  "They firmly believe that that ground game was going to be a big part in narrowing the gap, in many of these key states and they're now saying that we're seeing that play out in realtime as these votes come," added Nobles.  From CNN's MJ LeeJoe Biden's campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon issued a strongly worded statement following President Trump's White House speech, calling it "outrageous, unprecedented, and incorrect. " O’Malley Dillon went on to say that "the counting will not stop. ”From CNN's Maeve Reston and Stephen CollinsonVotes are still being counted in several key states across the US, and no winner has been determined in the presidential election. If you're just reading in, here's what you need to know about the race:From CNN's Leinz ValesBenjamin L.  Ginsberg, a longtime Republican election lawyer who co-chaired the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, said Wednesday that President Trump should “let all the votes be counted,” following his attacks on legitimate vote counting efforts. “If you have objections to either the particular ballots or to the process, then you have remedies after the fact from each state individual contests laws or recount laws if the margins are close enough,” Ginsberg told CNN’s Jake Tapper during CNN’s special election coverage.  Hear Ginsberg explain: From CNN’s Mark MoralesPhiladelphia won’t have an updated number on mail-in ballots until 9 a. m.  on Wednesday, said Lisa Deeley, head of the Philadelphia City Commissioners, which is a bipartisan board of elected officials in charge of elections and voter registration. Election officials are waiting on in-person voting numbers to be reported by some individual precincts and ingested into their system before they can report the number of mail-in ballots, Deeley said.  “That’s just the configuration of our system,” said Deeley, adding that it was a reporting issue, not mechanical. The delay in in-person results from the field are slowing down the reports, particularly in West Philadelphia, Deeley said “We are counting, we have been counting, we are going to continue counting until it's done,” Deeley said.  “We’re just waiting for the rest of the in-person results to come in from voting machines. ”Another update with mail-in votes will come at 9 a. m. , Deeley said. As of 1:10 a. m.  ET, with 1,598 of 1,703 divisions reporting, former Vice President Joe Biden has received 73. 3% of the city’s votes, and President Trump has received 25. 67% of the city’s vote. From CNN's Allison GordonBased on CNN's current projections, Joe Biden has 220 electoral votes while Donald Trump has 213 electoral votes. Here's the latest look at where things stand:Reminder: Each candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win the presidency. Please enable JavaScript for a better experience.


One color is dominating the #Oscars red carpet -- follow the best photos here: https://t.co/fcpihQY7tq https://t.co/VKXcLuGRPJ

There was glitz, glamour and so much more! Gaga, J. Lo, Glenn Close: Here's our round up of the best red carpet looks of the 2019 OscarsThe 2019 Oscars are officially here, and the red carpet is full of celebrities who have waited for this moment to bring their fashion A-game. We've rounded up some of our favorite looks of the night. Lady GagaConstance WuAngela BassettBilly PorterDiane WarrenStephen JamesRegina KingAshley GrahamAmandla StenbergSpike LeeYalitza AparicioCharlize TheronAdam LambertMelissa McCarthyEmilie ClarkeAwkwafinaGlenn CloseJennifer HudsonMichelle YeohHelen MirrenEmma StoneMaya RudolphTina FeyBrie LarsonTessa ThompsonSarah Paulson24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events


Abu Dhabi: Earlier visuals of EAM Sushma Swaraj meeting OIC Secretary General Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen and Chairman Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. https://t.co/SvLirxWMU7

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj is in Abu Dhabi on Friday to attend the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) foreign ministers meeting where she is expected to raise the issue of terror. It is for the first time that India has been invited to an OIC meeting.  Swaraj will address the inaugural plenary session of the meeting on March 1 as a guest of honour, and officials have described the invitation to India as a key foreign policy success in efforts to strengthen relations with Arab and Muslim-majority countries. Follow highlights here:


The Trump campaign's options to dispute the election have largely evaporated, but that hasn't stopped some of the President's supporters from trying to gum up election certifications in battleground states https://t.co/M1aqLFITTr

Legal challenges appear to be about something Trumpier than hanging on to the WHTrump challenges the vote and takes legal actionThe TAKE with Rick KleinThe Trump campaign legal challenges -- or what's left of them -- are no longer realistically about changing the outcome of the presidential election. Instead, they appear to be about something even Trumpier than hanging on to the presidency.  If the goal is to delay, sow confusion, raise doubts and thus keep questions lingering over the election in perpetuity -- to maintain the fight for its own sake -- the strategy begins to make sense. So it is that President Donald Trump's loyalists soldier through the end of the state-ordered recount in Georgia that will still leave President-elect Joe Biden comfortably ahead; a Trump-backed recount in just two Wisconsin counties, with no real hope of changing the statewide outcome; and continued challenges at various levels in Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania and Michigan, without evidence that Trump got more lawful votes in any of those states. A cascading series of deadlines will almost certainly lead to Biden becoming president Jan.  20, whether Trump admits it or not. In the meantime, threats aimed at election officials have become nearly commonplace -- and bipartisan, as the secretaries of state in Arizona and Georgia attest.  Polls are showing widespread Republican mistrust for the fairness of the election, while most Republican senators still hesitate before labeling Biden the president-elect. In the view of a growing number of Democrats, Trump and his campaign are feeding misinformation that both delays the Biden transition and positions the president to lead the GOP going forward -- regardless of the facts of this election. "This is malicious speech, designed to damage and disenfranchise," Pennsylvania Lt.  Gov.  John Fetterman said Wednesday on ABC News' "Powerhouse Politics" podcast. The impact would be real even in times of relative health and prosperity.  These are not those times. Election latest: Joe Biden leads the popular vote total with 79,377,327 votes and is projected to have 306 electoral votes.  President Donald Trump follows with 73,522,395 popular votes and is projected to have 232 electoral votes. The RUNDOWN with MaryAlice ParksBiden did something Wednesday that Trump has not done publicly in months.  He met with frontline health care workers during this pandemic. It wasn't flashy, controversial or even good TV over Zoom, but it was evidence of how Biden will likely govern. When the president of the Minnesota Nurses Association apologized for getting emotional as she talked about her work caring for dying patients, Biden said, "No, you got me emotional. "His signature ability to empathize came through.  He asked questions about their personal protective equipment supplies and listened when one woman expressed anxieties about whether front-line workers could afford time off if they get sick. The scene was a sharp contrast in tone, style and priorities compared to Trump.  Back in May the president notoriously argued with a nurse who told him about mask shortages in her hospital.  In August, he took heat for meeting with frontline workers at the White House, but without anyone wearing masks. Though the president-elect said again Wednesday that the delay in a formal transition could impair the roll out of a new vaccine, Biden's team continues to demonstrate their intense focus on the pandemic and desire to hit the ground running in January. The TIP with Alisa Wiersema and Alex HosenballNearly two weeks after Pennsylvania cinched the presidency for Biden, the Trump campaign continues to be laser-focused on the Keystone State as the cornerstone for invalidating the results of the presidential election. Following Rudy Giuliani's tumultuous court debut earlier this week at the U. S.  District Court in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, the judge presiding over the case gave Giuliani's team more time to file a motion for a preliminary injunction on Wednesday.  The move pushes the next steps in the case back a day, from Thursday to Friday.  The canceled Thursday hearing would have involved both sides presenting evidence to the judge, including a further examination into the Trump campaign's alleged claims of voting misconduct in counties that tend to favor Democrats. Meanwhile, the Trump campaign made several last-ditch filings Wednesday evening that are centered on allegations of representatives being unable to “meaningfully observe” the vote count.  Among them is a call for federal Judge Matthew Brann to issue a ruling that renders the election results "defective" while providing for the Pennsylvania General Assembly to choose the state's electors.  Such a move would be against the state's constitution.  In order to prove that point, the Trump campaign also intends to seek to obtain "access to the outside and inside envelopes for the approximately 1. 5 million mail-in ballots at issue" so they can “examine these envelopes to determine the percentage of mail ballots which were illegally counted. ”As for what comes next?  Longtime Democratic Party attorney Mark A.  Aronchick, who is representing Allegheny, Chester, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties in the case, told ABC News in an email, "Time to just wait for the Judge to rule. "THE PLAYLISTABC News' "Start Here" podcast.  Thursday morning's special edition of "Start Here" features ABC News Chief National Correspondent Matt Gutman, who takes us inside an Oklahoma hospital as America nears 250,000 COVID-19 deaths.  We hear from nursing home worker Katy Tenner, who explains the dangers the elderly continue to face.  And ABC News Chief Medical correspondent Dr.  Jennifer Ashton brings us a vaccine update and tells us about the first FDA-authorized at-home COVID-19 test.  http://apple. co/2HPocULABC News' "Powerhouse Politics" podcast.  Pennsylvania Lt.  Gov.  John Fetterman told ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl and Political Director Rick Klein that he believes President Donald Trump is aware of his favorable positioning to run for another term in 2024 and will maintain an active presence in the public sphere after leaving office.  "I guarantee he will be that president that doesn't fade away," Fetterman said on the podcast.  "He is going to use his 90 million followers and he is going to continue to lob chaos into the process after Joe Biden takes over because why not, at this point?  And I'm not taking any of this seriously as an American -- not as a Democrat -- as an American. " https://bit. ly/36QbQFdWHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAYDownload the ABC News app and select "The Note" as an item of interest to receive the day's sharpest political analysis. The Note is a daily ABC News feature that highlights the key political moments of the day ahead.  Please check back tomorrow for the latest. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events


Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on UNSC listing #MasoodAzhar as a Global Terrorist: In India's fight against terrorism, this is an important achievement. For the last one decade, India was making diplomatic efforts towards this goal. It'll help bring Masood Azhar&JeM to justice https://t.co/GwvQBKcUcl

United Nations on Wednesday designated Jaish-e-Mohammed founder Masood Azhar as a global terrorist for being associated with Al-Qaida.  The UNSC’s Sanctions Committee 1267 decision came after China, which had blocked the proposal four times, lifted its hold decision following the global pressure, mainly from France, UK and the US.  Here is the complete summary of reasons put out by the United Nations Security Council on blacklisting Masood Azhar. Mohammad Masood Azhar AlviIn accordance with paragraph 13 of resolution 1822 (2008) and subsequent related resolutions, the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee makes accessible a narrative summary of reasons for the listing for individuals, groups, undertakings and entities included in the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List. Date on which the narrative summary became available on the Committee’s website: 1 May 2019Reason for listing: Mohammad Masood Azhar Alvi was listed on 1 May 2019 pursuant to paragraphs 2 and 4 of resolution 2368 (2017) as being associated with Al-Qaida for “participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf of, or in support of”, “supplying, selling or transferring arms and related material to”, “recruiting for”, “otherwise supporting acts or activities of”, and “other acts or activities indicating association with”:Jaish-i-Mohammed (QDe. 019). Additional information: Mohammad Masood Azhar Alvi founded Jaish-i-Mohammed (QDe. 019) (JEM) upon his release from prison in India in 1999.  Azhar was released from prison in exchange for 155 hostages held on an Indian Airlines flight that had been hijacked to Kandahar, Afghanistan.  Azhar has also financially supported JEM since its founding.  The UN Security Council listed JEM on October 17, 2001, as being associated with Al-Qaida, Usama bin Laden, and the Taliban for “participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing or perpetrating of acts or activities by, in conjunction with, under the name of, on behalf or in support of”, “supplying, selling or transferring arms and related materiel to” or “otherwise supporting acts or activities of” Al-Qaida (QDe. 004), Usama bin Laden and the Taliban. Azhar is also a former leader of the terrorist group Harakat ul-Mujahidin / HUM (QDe. 008), aka Harakat ul-Ansar; most of these groups’ members subsequently joined JEM under Azhar’s leadership.  In 2008, JEM recruitment posters contained a call from Azhar for volunteers to join the fight in Afghanistan against Western forces. Related listed individuals and entities: Jaish-i-Mohammed (QDe. 019), listed on 17 Oct.  2001Harakat ul-Mujahidin / HUM (QDe. 008), listed on 6 Oct.  2001


Delhi: Farmers protesting at Tikri border burn the copies of three farm laws on occasion of Lohri https://t.co/uWFy0xoZJJ

Agitated farmers burnt copies of the new farm laws on the occasion of Lohri across Uttarakhand’s US Nagar district on Wednesday.  The farmers reiterated that they will not end their stir till the laws are withdrawn. Tejendra Singh Virk, president, Terai Kisan Sanghthan said, “Farmers are dying in protest against the farm laws at Delhi’s border but the Modi government has turned a deaf ear towards their plight.  People who have been included in the committee formed by the Supreme Court are those who already support the new farm laws. ”Farmers burnt copies of the farm laws in Rudrapur, Bazpur, Kashipur, Jaspur, Gadarpur, Kichha, Sitarganj and Khatima areas on the occasion of the festival of Lohri. In Rudrapur, farmers took out a rally shouting slogans against farm laws from the grain market to Ambedkar Chowk and burnt copies of the laws. In Kashipur, they gathered at the Tehsil Complex and burnt copies shouting slogans.  Bazpur farmers gathered at Bhagat Singh Chowk and burnt copies there.  They said when the farmers want the laws repealed, why is the Modi government unnecessarily imposing the laws on them.  The government should understand the sentiments of the farmer, they added. Farmers in Sitarganj took out a tractor rally and burnt the copies of the farm laws.  Several farmers said that they will continue the agitation from Sitarganj to Delhi till the Modi government gives up. Virk said Lohri is a festival of fun and frolic but this year farmers are disappointed due to the new farm laws.  A massive protest will be staged in Delhi on January 26 and farmers of this area will leave three days earlier so that they can reach Ghazipur border in time, he said. Ravindra Singh Rana, a farmer from Kashipur said, “We want the new farm laws withdrawn, not a committee as the Supreme Court has formed on Tuesday.  Farmers are against such committees and will continue to protest since after all it is a matter of their existence. ”


On ‘4 August 2020’, a massive explosion took place in the port of Beirut, the capital city of Lebanon.  A collage of two photos is being shared on social media claiming it as before and after images of the destruction caused by the explosion in Beirut city.  Let’s verify the claim made in the post. Claim: Image of Beirut city after the destruction caused by the recent explosion. Fact: Image that was shared as the condition of Beirut city after the Explosion was found on Google Earth since 2011.  Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE. On reverse image search, it is found that both photos in the post are related to the Beirut city of Lebanon.  But, the photo that was shared as the condition of Beirut city after the explosion was found in a thread posted in a forum in 2013.  When we searched for the same image on Google Earth Pro installed on a desktop, we found the exact same image of the Beirut city on it in 2011. When searched for the satellite pictures of Beirut city after the explosion , we found the satellite pictures of Beirut city before and after the blast in an article published by the ‘Space. com’ news website.  In the website, it is mentioned that a SkySat spacecraft, operated by SanFrancisco based company ‘Planet’, captured this detailed images of both before and after the blast in the port of Beirut.  These satellite pictures can be found in a tweet made by the official twitter account of ‘Planet’ company.  ‘The Guardian’ and ‘BBC’ news websites have also published articles comparing the before and after pictures of the blast in Beirut city.  They can be seen here and here. Before and after SkySat imagery shows the impact of yesterday’s explosion in Beirut.  Imagery captured on May 31, 2020 and today, August 5, 2020.  pic. twitter. com/8zCLDOZn4wTo sum it up, satellite image of Beirut city before the explosion is falsely shared as that captured after the explosion. Did you watch our new video?


Telangana: Union Home Minister & BJP President Amit Shah launches BJP's Membership Drive in Ranga Reddy. https://t.co/nLmkhposCp

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched a nationwide membership drive of the Bharatiya Janata Party in his constituency Varanasi on the birthday of . the party’s ideologue Shyama Prasad MookerjeeThe membership drive is also available on the Namo app and on a helpline.  Ahead of the membership drive, Modi unveiled a statue of former Prime Minister late Lal Bahadur Shashtri at the Lal Bahadur Shashtri International Airport.  He also launched a plantation drive by planting a Peepal sapling in Harahua after performing puja. Follow LIVE updates here. Under the plantation drive, UP government led by Yogi Aditayanath has set a target to plant 22 crore saplings across the state and Varanasi district administration has decided to plant more than 27 lakh saplings in the district. Modi launched the BJP’s nationwide membership drive from the Deendayal Upadhyay Trade Facilitation Centre and Museum. Thereafter, PM Modi will visit virtual experiential museum at Man Mandir Mahal adjacent to Dashashwamedh Ghat here.  The virtual museum based on first floor of Maan Mandir Mahal famous for its observatory. The virtual museum gives glimpses of rich heritage of Kashi.  Superintending Archeologist Dr Neeraj Sinha confirmed the development.  “Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a visit to visit to the virtual museum.  We have completed all preparations regarding the visit and welcome PM Modi. ”Modi inaugurated the museum in February this year.  The state of the art Virtual Experiential Museum (VEM) gives a 3D view of the world famous Kashi ghats, lanes and heritage to its visitors. PM Modi last visited Varanasi on May 27 on a thanksgiving visit after the BJP’s victory in the Lok Sabha elections.


Madhya Pradesh government modifies Corona Curfew guidelines to be effective from June 1 https://t.co/wqLoxZcwKb

India recorded 1,73,790 new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, the lowest daily increase in the last 45 days.  Saturday also marked the sixteenth consecutive day of daily recoveries outnumbering daily increase in cases, after 2,51,78,011 individuals made a full recovery in the last 24 hours.  The health ministry said weekly positivity rate is showing signs of continued decline, and is currently at 9. 84%.  Daily positivity rate has also come down and was pegged at 8. 36% on Saturday, remaining below 10% for the fifth consecutive day. India voiced its support for the probe launched by US President Joe Biden into the origins of Covid-19.  Biden asked US intelligence to submit a report on whether Coronavirus originated in a lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.  Biden's move has angered the Chinese government and the latter has accused US of playing politics over the pandemic.  A team led by WHO experts at the beginning of the year was hindered by lack of access to raw data and did not reach any concrete conclusions on the origins of the virus. Follow all the updates here:Madhya Pradesh reports 1,640 new Covid-19 cases, 68 fatalitiesMadhya Pradesh 1,640 fresh COVID-19 cases, 4,995 recoveries, and 68 deaths in the last 24 hours Active cases: 30,899Total recoveries: 7,38,491Death toll: 7,959 pic. twitter. com/jbIMTNOUxHJharkhand logs 823 new coronavirus cases in last 24 hoursJharkhand reports 823 fresh COVID cases, 1,647 recoveries, and 13 deaths in the last 24 hours Active cases: 10,946Total recoveries: 3,20,336Death toll: 4,958 pic. twitter. com/LIDwyQldUcKerala extends Covid-19 lockdown till June 9Kerala Government on Sunday extended the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions till June 9 in all its districts. India's cumulative vaccination coverage crosses 21 crore markIndia achieved a significant landmark in its ongoing Covid-19 vaccination drive as the cumulative number of coronavirus vaccines administered cross 21 crores on Saturday, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). Assam reports 5,613 new Covid-19 positive casesAssam reports 5,613 new Covid-19 positive cases, 3,905 recoveries, and 77 deaths in the last 24 hours. Total positive cases: 4,03,623Active cases: 54,948Haryana reports 1,868 new Covid-19 casesHaryana reports 1,868 new Covid-19 cases, 3752 recoveries, and 97 deaths in the last 24 hours. Total cases: 7,53,937Total recoveries: 7,22,711Death toll: 8132Telangana reports 2,982 new Covid-19 cases, 21 deathsAs many as 2,982 new Covid-19 cases were registered in the last 24 hours, taking the active caseload to 36,917 in Telangana, informed the state health department on Saturday. Africa's Covid-19 cases surpass 4. 81 millionThe number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Africa reached 4,812,313 as of Saturday afternoon, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said. DDMA extends curfew on movement of individuals in Delhi till 5am on June 7DDMA extended the curfew on the movement of individuals except for essential activities in Delhi till 5 am on June 7 (Monday) or further orders whichever is earlier, reports news agency ANI. Veteran Odia journalist Basant Dash dies of Covid-19Veteran Odia journalist Basant Dash died at a private Covid hospital here, his family said on Saturday. Govt reconstitutes empowered groups on Covid-19; oxygen, vaccination included tooThe Centre on Saturday reconstituted the six empowered groups set up for Covid-19 management to make 10 panels, expanding their ambit to look into issues like availability of oxygen, vaccination, emergency response and economic welfare measures. Gujarat reports 2,230 new Covid-19 cases, 29 deaths in last 24 hoursGujarat reports 2, 230 new COVID cases, 7,109 discharges, and 29 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department Active cases: 38,703Total discharges: 7,57,124Death toll: 9,790With 2,230 new Covid-19 cases and 29 deaths in the last 24 hours, Gujarat's death toll climbed to 9,790, reports ANI.  Uttarakhand reports 1,687 new Covid-19 cases, 58 deathsUttarakhand reports 1,687 new COVID-19 positive cases, 58 deaths, and 4,446 recoveries in the last 24 hours. Active cases: 31,110Total positive cases: 3,27,112 pic. twitter. com/iYUON8DNylUttarakhand reported 1,687 new Covid-19 cases and 58 deaths in the last 24 hours, reports ANI.  Karnataka reports 20,628 new Covid-19 cases, 492 deathsToday's Media Bulletin 29/05/2021Please click on the link below to view bulletin. https://t. co/B4UYxNcOte @CMofKarnataka @BSYBJP @mla_sudhakar @drashwathcn @RAshokaBJP @BSBommai @CPBlr @PIBBengaluru @KarnatakaVarthe @PIBBengaluru @BBMPCOMM @BlrCityPolice @blrcitytraffic pic. twitter. com/FM23eKpuYdKarnataka reported 20,628 new Covid-19 cases and 492 new fatalities.  Active caseload fell to 350,066 cases, a state government bulletin showed.  Rajasthan reports 2,314 new Covid-19 cases, 70 deaths COVID19 | 2,314 new positive cases, 70 deaths, and 8,108 recoveries have been reported in Rajasthan todayActive cases: 56,628Total positive cases: 9,36,162 pic. twitter. com/weY4aSYb46Rajasthan reported 2,314 new Covid-19 cases and 70 deaths as tally reached 936,162 cases and deaths toll climbed to 8,251, reports ANI.  Kerala logs 23,513 new Covid-19 cases, 198 deaths in last 24 hours23,513 new #COVID19 cases, 28,100 recoveries, and 198 deaths reported in the last 24 hours in Kerala.  Active cases stand at 2,33,034, death toll at 8,456.  A total of 1,41,759 samples tested in the last 24 hours: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan pic. twitter. com/5iYXA9ZkLEKerala reported 28,100 new Covid-19 cases and 198 deaths in the last 24 hours, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said, reports ANI.  Karnataka CM asks officials to ensure availability of beds, medicines in rural areasReviewed the Covid19 situation in Mysuru, Hassan, Belagavi, Kalaburgi and Vijayapura districts along with MPs and MLAs.  Ground level issues and containment measures were discussed and officials were briefed to ensure availability of beds and medicine in rural areas.  pic. twitter. com/DNl1xLajN4Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa reviewed the Covid-19 situation in five districts and asked officials to ensure the availability of hospital beds and medicines in rural areas.  Over 18,000 oxygen concentrators received as foreign aid given to states: Centre#IndiaFightsCorona Global aid to strengthen India’s efforts against #COVID19 continues to be swiftly cleared and sent to States/UTs in a timely mannerDedicated cell for comprehensive monitoring of entire process has been set up by @MoHFW_INDIA Read: https://t. co/sr6EX2rDxS pic. twitter. com/Nk4GQ4CGujThe Union government said that 18,040 oxygen concentrators and around 770,000 vials of Remdesivir have been given to states.  Delhi's Covid-19 tally rises by 956Delhi records 956 fresh Covid-19 cases, lowest in over two months.  The positivity rate has slipped to 1. 19 per cent, the health department said in its daily bulletin. Goa extends Covid-19 curfew till June 7Goa extends Covid-19 curfew till June 7, chief minister Pramod Sawant informed on Twitter.  It will remain in effect till 7am of June 7. Former Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's condition is stableFormer chief minister of Bengal, Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, who had tested positive for Covid-19 is stable now, reported PTI.  The 77-year old however continues to suffer from shortness of breath and is in a state of drowsiness.  Delhi needs 1. 84 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses, Centre to send 5. 5 lakh doses: Manish SisodiaDelhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia told news agency PTI that the national capital needs 1. 84 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses to inoculate 92 lakh people in the ages group of18-44 year olds.  Sisodia added that Centre will allot Delhi 5. 5 lakh Covid -19 vaccine doses to vaccinate 18-44 year olds but not before June 10. MK Stalin announces assistance of ₹5 lakh to children who lost both parent to Covid-19Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin on Saturday announced an assistance of ₹5 lakh to children who lost both the parents to Covid-19, reported ANI. Odisha records 7,188 new Covid-19 cases, 35 deathsOdisha logged in 7,188 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, taking the total to 7,47,143.  35 fatalities were also reported, the death toll now stands at 2,686, reported PTI. Delhi recorded 900 Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours: Arvind KejriwalDelhi recorded 900 cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, marking the first time of the national capital recording less than a 1,000 daily cases during the second wave of the pandemic, said chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. Chinese city of Guangzhou shuts down neighbourhood due to Covid-19 spreadThe Southern Chinese city of Guangzhou shut down an entire neighbourhood after officials feared Covid-19 is spreading fast and strong.  Guangzhou has recorded 20 new cases of Covid-19 over the past week but this alarmed city officials who believed the virus was under control in the city of 15 million inhabitants, reported the Associated Press. Over 1. 82 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccine still available with states/UTs: Health minThe Union Health Ministry announced on Saturday that more than 1. 82 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses (1,82,21,403) are still available with States/Union Territories for inoculation.  22. 77 crore vaccine doses of Covid-19 vaccine (22,77,62,450) has been provided to States/Union Territories, of which, the total consumption, including vaccine wastage stands at 20,80,09,397 doses, as of 8 am today. Covid-positive Azam Khan's condition is critical, says Medanta Medanta Hospital Lucknow said on Saturday that the condition of jailed Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan is critical, reported ANI.  Khan tested positive while being incarcerated.  India records 1. 73 lakh new cases of Covid-19, active case load declines to 22,28,724India recorded 1. 73 lakh new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, causing a further decline in the number of active cases, which now stands at 22,28,724, after a decline of 1,14,428 cases in the last 24 hours, said the Union health ministry. Ladakh reports 124 new Covid-19 cases, 2 deathsLadakh reported 124 new cases of Covid-19 cases on Friday, the total number of cases in the union territory now stands at 18,310.  2 deaths were also recorded, taking the death toll to 187, according to the daily health bulletin. Mizoram records 283 new Covid-19 cases, 35 fatalities#COVID19 | Mizoram reported 283 new positive cases, taking total cases to 11,659.  Active cases at 2,981 pic. twitter. com/Opq09iRIQqBlinken-Jaishankar discuss Covid-19 vaccines in WashingtonExternal affairs minister S Jaishankar and US secretary of state Antony Blinken discussed Covid-19 vaccines during the former's visit to Washington, reported PTI.  “There was also of course the Covid-19 context because of the vaccine partnership between India and the US, and also Quad-based discussions on vaccines.  That was also one of the important subjects.  In fact, in many ways, I would say the most important subject of my discussion,” Jaishankar later told reporters. Mainland China reports 16 new Covid-19 casesMainland China reported 16 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday, reporting 7 more cases than the day before, according to news agency ANI.  Total number of cases now stands at 91,061, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,636. Get our daily newsletter Get free access to newsletters, alerts and recommendations


Farmers have been protesting against the centre’s new agricultural laws since the past few months.  As per a report by The Indian Express, ‘Bharat Bandh’ strike observed by the farmers on December 8 was supported by 15 opposition parties, trade unions and two railway unions. In the backdrop of this, Twitter user @zachjcarter posted four images of mass protests and wrote, “250 *million* people on strike in India.  The revolution will not be televised. ” This tweet has been retweeted over 2,000 times since December 3.  (archived link)
In order to find the context behind the images, Alt News performed multiple reverse image search on Bing and TinEye. Image 1
This image was published by a website called Portside on January 13, credited to photographer Ajit Solanki from Associated Press (AP).  The caption of the image states, “Members of various trade unions shout slogans during a general strike called by various trade unions in Ahmadabad, India, Wednesday, Jan.  8, 2020.  Trade unions have called for a country-wide strike Wednesday to protest against what they call the “anti-workers and anti-people” policies of the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. ”
As per NDTV, Business Standard and Hindustan Times, this strike was expected to see a turn out of 250 million people. Image 2
This image was published by News Central 24×7 in 2018.  The image has been credited to Sitaram Yechury, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Yechury had posted this image on March 11, 2018, claiming it was shot during Mumbai’s Kisaan March in 2018. Make in India in Davos.  Makers of India in Mumbai.  #KisanLongMarch #NiravModi pic. twitter. com/MUzGmjqU51— Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) March 11, 2018

The image was also published by Feminism In India (FII) in their 2018 article on Kisaan March.  As per FII, protestors, primarily from the tribal communities, walked 180 km to reach Mumbai. Image 3 & 4This slideshow requires JavaScript. Both these images are available on Getty Images (3,4) along with the same caption — “Activists of Communist Party of India Marxist (CPIM), along with members of different workers unions, shout slogans as they block train tracks during a nationwide general strike called by trade unions aligned with opposition parties to protest against the Indian government’s economic policies, near the railway station in Amritsar on January 8, 2020. ” The images are credited to the photographer Narinder Nanu. This slideshow requires JavaScript. The viral message also suggests that farmers’ protest saw the participation of 250 million people, which is roughly 17% of India’s population.  Alt News cannot authenticate the figure however national and international media outlets, including BBC (archived link) and Business Standard (archived link), reported that over 250 million workers protested against various policies of the central government.  Subsequently, several people on the internet made this claim. None of the images tweeted by Twitter user @zachjcarter is related to the ongoing farmers’ protest.  Three of the images are from the nationwide protest led by central trade unions on January 8 and one of them was from Kisaan March in 2018. Donate NowArchit is a graduate in English Literature from The MS University of Baroda.  He also holds a post-graduation diploma in journalism from the Asian College of Journalism.  Since then he has worked at Essel Group's English news channel at WION as a trainee journalist, at S3IDF as a fundraising & communications officer and at The Hindu as a reporter.  At Alt News, he works as a fact-checking journalist. A picture of Tej Pratap Yadav has been making the rounds on social media recently…. A video of police tying a rope around an elderly person’s wrists has been circulating…A photo of a man being flogged with his hands tied has been gathering a…Assam-based media outlets DY365, Asom Live 24, and NorthEast Now reported that 26 Rohingya Muslims…A set of two images, an alleged tweet and a video has been shared on…


.@RahulGandhi posted graphs purportedly demonstrating that some of the other worst-hit countries in the west had timed their #lockdown and its easing, much better than India.

https://t.co/YluZbgSd0f

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi again questioned centre’s handling of the coronavirus crisis on Friday while alleging that the imposition of lockdown to contain the rise of Covid-19 infections and the subsequent phase-wise unlocking to revive economic activity has been ill-timed.  He posted graphs purportedly demonstrating that some of the other worst-hit countries in the west had timed their lockdown and its easing, much better than India. There was a single line comment from Rahul accompanying the graphs, which said, “This is what a failed lockdown looks like. ”Rahul’s tweet on Friday cited examples from Spain, Germany, Italy and UK to allege that India had mistimed lockdown and the easing of restrictions two months later.  According to worldometers. com data, Spain currently has over 288,000 cases of coronavirus patients, UK has more than 283,000 cases, Italy has in excess of 234,000 cases and Germany has over 185,000 positive cases, compared to India’s 226,770 cases as per the data released by the health ministry on Friday.  However, unlike India, the number of new cases in these countries appears to have slowed down considerably. According to the current data available on worldometres. com at Friday midnight India time, Spain, Italy and Germany had reported less than 1000 cases in 24 hours, while the UK had reported over 1,600 fresh cases.  Health ministry’s Friday briefing put India’s new cases number at 9,851. This is not the first time that Rahul has questioned the efficacy of the lockdown, he had asked the central government to explain the roadmap ahead in a tweet on May 26 while claiming that it had failed its purpose. “The prime minister claimed two months ago while announcing the lockdown that India will defeat Corona in 21 days.  More than 60 days have passed and the number of patients is increasing with each passing day.  Lockdown has not been able to defeat this virus.  I have a straight question from the government- What is the plan ahead,” he had tweeted. Union minister Prakash Javadekar had responded to Rahul’s claim the same day and said that he had given a wrong statement.  “He gave a wrong statement, I want to tell him, when the lockdown was imposed the doubling rate of infection was three days; now the infection takes 13 days to double.  This is India’s success and everyone’s success,” Javadekar said on May 26. The health ministry, too, had said recently that India’s place among the countries with most number of cases was not a fair criterion to judge the success of New Delhi’s containment efforts.  He had cited India’s low mortality rate and infection rate in comparison with 14 worst affected countries with a combined population similar to India. BJP President JP Nadda, too, hit out at Rahul on May 30 and claimed that the Congress leader had a limited understanding of “these issues” and his statements were aimed at politicizing issues instead of addressing the crisis.


A video accompanying a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the visuals of huge waves crashing onto the shore are related to Cyclone Tauktae in Somnath, Gujarat.  Let us fact-check the claim made in the post. Claim: Visuals of Cyclone Tauktae from Somnath, Gujarat. Fact: The video, according to many stock photos and earlier videos posted online, are from Spain.  The visuals in the video are present online even before Cyclone Tauktae had hit Gujarat.  Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE. When a reverse image search of the screenshots of the video along with keywords is performed, we found some stock images on the website of iStock, resembling the ones in the post, with the title that the images were from San Sebastian Donostia, Spain.  The images can be seen here, here, and here. Taking this clue, we searched for any videos like the one in the post by using San Sebastian Waves as the keyword in google, we found a similar video uploaded in a website on 14 November 2019 with the title Giant waves in San Sebastian as Storm Bernardo hits Spain’s Basque Country. There is even a YouTube video uploaded by the channel Luis Kapero on 24 January 2018.  The video is titled Giant Waves Festival In San Sebastian- Big Waves in San Sebastian.  The video is quite similar to the one being shared as from Gujarat and has the same background.  The description of the video says that huge waves were breaking against the Paseo Nuevo in San Sebastian. Taking a cue from the YouTube video where it was mentioned about Paseo Nuevo, we looked at google street view of the place.  As it turns out, one of the screenshots of the video have a similar background to the one in the Google street view.  The hill in the background and the rocks placed on the footpath seem to match. When we went further back in google street view, the railings separating the water from land and the streetlight seem to be similar to one of the screenshots of the video posted.  Only the street view is in a different direction to the one in the video. Cyclone Tauktae made landfall in Gujarat between Diu and Una around 9 pm on 17 May 2021 and caused damage to infrastructure and huge number of trees were uprooted according to the news article.  Some of the visuals posted by news outlets about the havoc created by Cyclone Tauktae in Gujarat can be seen here, here, and here.  Hence, the video posted is not from Gujarat but seems to be from Spain. To sum it up, video from Spain is passed off as Tauktae Cyclone in Gujarat.


#WATCH: "When people in such large numbers are getting infected in Delhi and other parts of the country, it should've been admitted that there is community spread... but only ICMR or Central govt can comment on this," says Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain https://t.co/XSqIDYww9c

A large number of coronavirus cases in the country point to “community spread”, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Saturday, adding that only the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) or Centre can comment on this. “When people in such large numbers are getting infected in Delhi and other parts of the country, it should have been admitted that there is community spread,” said Delhi Health Minister. “I believe that there is a spread inside the community.  This is absolutely a technical term, scientists will be able to tell better,” he added. A total of 2,147 Covid-19 cases were recorded in the national capital on Friday while 61,037 tests were conducted for the virus.  “The positive rate was 6. 76 per cent yesterday.  For the past few days, we have seen the positivity rate below 7 per cent.  The cumulative positivity rate, for the first time, has come down below 10 per cent.  On Friday, 30 people had died.  The overall death rate is 2. 05 per cent.  Moreover, 500 ICU beds have been added in Delhi, “ he said. He added that the doubling rate in Delhi has reached 40 days. According to the Union Health Ministry, there are 32,250 active Covid-19 cases in the national capital.


Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, former chair of the DNC: Did Mr. Trump have "advance knowledge of the Russia Wikileaks release of the DNC's emails?"

Michael Cohen: "He had advance notice that there was going to be a dump of emails." https://t.co/QKl9KarTYs https://t.co/sgvg9IjUXh

  Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen is prepared to testify that Trump was aware of longtime adviser Roger Stone’s efforts to reach out to WikiLeaks in advance of its release of damaging information about Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, according to a copy of his public testimony submitted to Congress and obtained by CNN.

  In a stunning 20-page statement provided Tuesday night to lawmakers, Cohen details a wide range of allegations against Trump – from making racist comments about African-Americans to participating during his presidency in an illegal hush-money scheme to keep his alleged extramarital affairs quiet – as well as suggesting Trump faked a medical condition to get out of serving in the Vietnam War.

  And Cohen will provide new details saying Trump was engaged in an aggressive pursuit of a major project in Russia in 2016, alleging the President’s attorneys edited Cohen’s 2017 testimony when he lied to Congress, downplaying the efforts to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.

  He says Trump never directly ordered him to lie to Congress but he believed he was carrying out an order given his interactions with Trump, who was making public statements about not having any business dealings with Russia.

  In short, Cohen calls Trump a “racist,” a “conman” and a “cheat. ”

  In the testimony, Cohen will allege that, in 2016, he witnessed Trump taking a phone call from Stone, who was on speakerphone.

  “Mr.  Stone told Mr.  Trump that he had just gotten off the phone with Julian Assange and that Mr.  Assange told Mr.  Stone that, within a couple of days, there would be a massive dump of emails that would damage Hillary Clinton’s campaign,” Cohen will say, according to his prepared testimony.

  Trump responded, according to Cohen: “Wouldn’t that be great. ”

  Cohen’s allegations, if true, would amount to the first time anyone with direct knowledge has said that the President had advance knowledge of the WikiLeaks dump of Clinton emails.  Cohen also said the President’s personal lawyers “reviewed and edited” his 2017 statements when Cohen lied to Congress about the Trump Organization’s pursuit of a massive project in Moscow.

  The special counsel indictment of Roger Stone made no mention of direct contact between Stone and Assange.

READ: Michael Cohen’s opening statement to Congress

  Stone – who has been indicted on charges of making false statements, witness tampering and obstructing justice – has denied discussing the matter with Trump or having any such interactions with WikiLeaks.  He is fighting his charges in court.

  Cohen’s opening statement also suggests that Trump may have been aware in advance of a 2016 meeting set up by Donald Trump Jr.  and Russians at Trump Tower – something that Trump and his eldest son have long denied.  Cohen will tell Congress that he witnessed Trump Jr. , in June 2016, tell his father: “The meeting is all set. ”

  Cohen acknowledges not knowing for sure that Trump’s son’s comments were in reference to the meeting with Russians.

  “I also knew that nothing went on in Trump world, especially the campaign, without Mr.  Trump’s knowledge and approval,” Cohen will say.  “So I concluded that Don Jr.  was referring to that June 2016 Trump Tower meeting about dirt on Hillary. ”

  CNN reported in July 2018 that Cohen was willing to testify to the special counsel that Trump knew in advance about the planned meeting at Trump Tower.

  The White House has attacked Cohen’s credibility, calling him someone who cannot be trusted given he has already pleaded guilty to lying.

  When asked for comment on Cohen’s prepared testimony, the White House referred to press secretary Sarah Sanders’ Tuesday statement on Cohen’s testimony.

  “Disgraced felon Michael Cohen is going to prison for lying to Congress and making other false statements,” Sanders said in that statement.  “Sadly, he will go before Congress this week and we can expect more of the same.   It’s laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word, and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies. ”

  According to a copy of the opening statement he prepares to deliver to the House Oversight Committee Wednesday, Cohen says Trump lied repeatedly about a number of matters – and made a host of racist statements.

House panel to Dems: Russia off limits in Cohen's public hearing

  He also provides new details suggesting Trump was heavily involved in the pursuit of the Trump Tower Moscow project in 2016.

  “To be clear, Mr.  Trump knew of and directed the Trump Tower negotiations throughout the campaign and lied about it,” Cohen will tell the committee.  “He lied about it because he never expected to win the election.  He also lied about it because he stood to make hundreds of millions of dollars on the Moscow real estate project. ”

  Cohen says that Trump did not “directly” tell him to lie to Congress.  “That’s not how he operates,” Cohen says.

  But he says that Trump would tell him and the public he has “no business” with Russia, even as he was negotiating the Moscow project.

  “In his way, he was telling me to lie,” Cohen says.

ANALYSIS: What Michael Cohen needs to answer for

  Cohen also says he’s providing the panel with several documents to back up his allegations, including a check Trump wrote from his bank account to reimburse him for hush money payments to silence Stormy Daniels’ story in 2016 about her alleged affair with Trump.  Trump denies having an affair with Daniels.

  But in the testimony, Cohen recounts how he was visiting Trump in February 2017 in the White House when the President assured him his reimbursement checks were coming in the mail.  He said Trump made 11 payments of $35,000 each to reimburse him in the hush-money scheme, saying he’s providing the House panel with a copy of an August 2017 check signed by the President from his personal bank account.

  “The President of the United States thus wrote a personal check for the payment of hush money as part of a criminal scheme to violate campaign finance laws,” Cohen will say.

  Cohen also says he’s providing the committee with copies of letters he wrote threatening Trump’s high school, college and the College Board not to release his grades or test scores.

  Moreover, Cohen says he has documentation showing Trump arranging a bidder at an auction to purchase a portrait of himself, which he later reimbursed the bidder for from his charitable organization.

  And he provides information about Trump’s decision to avoid serving in the Vietnam War.  Cohen was directed to avoid answering reporters’ questions about the matter, he will say.  Trump, who has long claimed his deferment was due to a bone spur, had no medical records to provide because there was no surgery, Cohen said.

  “You think I’m stupid, I wasn’t going to Vietnam,” Cohen recalls Trump as saying.

  In jarring testimony, Cohen also says Trump repeatedly made racist comments about African-Americans.  While driving through a poor neighborhood in Chicago, Trump allegedly told Cohen that “only black people could live that way. ”

  Cohen added that Trump said that African-Americans “would never vote for him because they were too stupid. ”

This story is breaking and will be updated.
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A video from Russia of an annual artillery show has been shared with a false claim that it shows Iranians are having fun watching shots being fired between Azerbaijan and Armenia.  The video was shared by a Twitter handle Renuka Jain and quickly garnered more than 300 retweets and over 500 likes.  Iranians stood on the top of the mountain and watched the war between Azerbaijan and Armenia launching rockets at each other as if watching some cracker show.  Both countries have borders with Iran.  pic. twitter. com/LJJkMGpolV View an archive link here The same tweet was also shared on Facebook View an archive of the post here We further found that the caption shared on Twitter is an exact translation of a fake claim in Spanish language.  The video was first viral on Facebook with a claim in Spanish.     FACT CHECK We analysed the video and found a person wearing a sweatshirt with the words 'Russia' written on it and using that as a cue we ran a search reverse image search on the Russian search engine, Yandex.  On Yandex, we found several results dating back to 2019 and using further searches we found a tweet from December 6, 2019 by Russian media channel - NTV.  The tweet from the verified handle of NTV (HTB in Cyrillic alphabet) carried the same video with the caption which translates to, "If you didn't know what Russian fireworks look like, then take a look.  The footage was filmed at the range of multiple launch rocket systems.  Judging by the calmness of the audience, they see this at least every day. " Если вы не знали, как выглядит русский салют, то смотрите.  Кадры сняты на полигоне ракетных систем залпового огня.  Судя по спокойствию зрителей, они такое видят как минимум каждый день pic. twitter. com/yVL04Xtwpt We then used a combination of keywords in Russian and ran a search on Google and YouTube with the search frame restricted to 2019 and found two news articles on Russian media outlets - Russia Beyond and Pravda published on November 17, 2019 with the headlines translating to, "Children and their parents attended the platoon strike from VBR Grad and Uragan".  Russia Beyond uploaded the same video on their Facebook page on November 17, 2019.   Screeshot of the article uploaded by Russia Beyond can be seen below.  Russia Beyond reported that the video is from the occasion of  Day of the Missile Army and Artillery (RViA) where crews of a large number of artillery and missile systems showed their combat capabilities to the citizens.   The report added that audiences could see the effect of the Point-U tactical missile system, the Msta-B, Gvozdika and Acacia self-propelled howitzers.  The article also described the video and said, "it showed multi-barrel rocket launchers Grad and Hurricane, whose salvo reddened the sky above the military range. " The news websites said that said  multi-barrel rocket launchers City and Hurricane were used at the event organised at the Lushki military range and visited by people from the Leningrad, Pskov and Novogorsk regions.  The former Soviet states Armenia and Azerbaijan (with Turkish support) are at loggerheads over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, in the latest escalation over what is an unresolved military and regional conflict.  Hostilities on both sides started on September 27, which has killed more than 400 and is attracting increasing international attention.   BOOM has previously debunked a video carried by TV9 Bharatvarsh who aired footage from a video game - ARMA 3 - as visuals from the ongoing military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.  Also Read:TV9 Bharatvarsh Runs ARMA-3 Clip As Armenia-Azerbaijan War Footage