Feds collected DNA from 1.5 million migrants in under four years, report finds (2024)

Chad has sworn in Mahamat Deby Itno as the president on Thursday after holding elections earlier this month, completing a disputed transition to democratic rule after he seized power three years ago. Deby Itno took power after his father, who ruled the country for three decades, was killed fighting rebels in 2021. The long-delayed May 6 election came after three years of military rule. His main rival, Succès Masra, who contested the results, resigned from his post as prime minister on Wednesday. Chad is seen by the Western countries as one of the last remaining stable allies in the vast Sahel region following military coups in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in recent years.

Myanmar’s military government appears to be considering reviving a massive China-backed hydroelectric dam project. Work on it was suspended more than a decade ago after protests over its possible impact on the environment. A notice from the Information Ministry published in the latest issue of the government gazette announced a new leadership team for the Myitsone hydropower project, which was put on hold in 2011 by Myanmar’s military-backed former president, Thein Sein. The $3.6 billion project in the northern state of Kachin, along the country’s Irrawaddy River, was supposed to export about 90% of the electricity it generated to China, Myanmar’s northern neighbor.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is leading a weeklong state trade mission to Europe. The economic development trip starts Friday and will take Cooper, other state officials and representatives of the state’s business recruiting nonprofit organization to France, Germany and Switzerland. The trip will include meeting with company and government officials while focusing on creating jobs and attracting investment to the state. Germany is second only to Japan when it comes to foreign direct investment in North Carolina. Cooper led an economic development trip to Japan last fall, and last month Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited North Carolina.

President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree allowing Russia to confiscate U.S. assets to compensate for any Russian assets confiscated in the United States. The decree was published Thursday as top finance officials from the Group of Seven nations began a meeting at which the question of what to do with Russian assets frozen in the West is at the top of the agenda. Ukraine and many of its supporters have called for the confiscation of $260 billion in Russian assets frozen outside the country after Russia’s invasion. But European officials have resisted. However, President Joe Biden in April signed a law allowing the administration to seize the roughly $5 billion in Russian state assets located in the U.S.

Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen welcomes McLaren’s surge in form ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend. He only just held off Lando Norris last Sunday to win the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Verstappen beat the McLaren driver by less than one second. Verstappen says “it’s good for the sport that more teams are fighting for the win” and the competition has recently tightened up. Norris is on a roll with three straight podium finishes, including a victory in Miami on May 5. But Ferrari's Charles Leclerc does not think Verstappen and Red Bull are suddenly vulnerable.

A French prosecutor says a man who posted online about a deadly rampage in California in 2014 has been taken into custody and has told police investigators he had been thinking about an attack of his own. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin posted on the social media platform X that police detained “an individual planning violent action during the passage of the Olympic torch relay in Bordeaux.” But Bordeaux prosecutor Frédérique Porterie said on Thursday that although the detained suspect “admitted to having considered committing an act,” the man seemingly had not decided on his target. She said: “No reference to the Olympic flame was mentioned."

Today in Sports, May 24 - Manchester United wins EPL title; ties record of 18 league titles

This Date in Baseball, May 24 - Trevor Story became the fastest shortstop to the 100-career HR mark

Supreme Court upholds a South Carolina congressional district, finding no discrimination against Black voters.

The Supreme Court has preserved a Republican-held South Carolina congressional district, rejecting a lower-court ruling the district discriminated against Black voters. The justices said Thursday the Republican-controlled state legislature did nothing wrong during redistricting when it strengthened Rep. Nancy Mace’s hold on the coastal district by moving 30,000 Democratic-leaning Black residents of Charleston out of the district. The state argued partisan politics, not race, and a population boom in coastal areas explain the congressional map. A lower court had ordered South Carolina to redraw the district after finding the state used race as a proxy for partisan affiliation.

Q1 2024 Revenue up 32% from Q1 2023; Cash up 65% to $8 MM from December 31, 2023

PLANO, Texas & INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 23, 2024--

PLANO, Texas & INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 23, 2024--

Today in Sports - Week Ahead, May 24 - May 30. 2 Takes

This Date in Baseball-Week Ahead for May 24 - May 30. 2 Takes

The struggle starts early in the Hammanskraal area of South Africa as people queue some mornings to fill buckets with water from a tank provided by an aid agency. This is not a distant, rural community, but a township on the edge of the administrative capital city of Africa’s most advanced economy. Hammanskraal’s problems are a snapshot of the issues affecting millions and driving a mood of discontent in South Africa that might force its biggest political change in 30 years in next week’s national election. Recent polls show support for the ruling African National Congress under 50%, suggesting that it may be in danger of losing its parliamentary majority for the first time when the country votes on Wednesday.

French President Macron says he doesn’t want to force through a voting reform that sparked riots in New Caledonia.

The Stones will roll through the Ozarks this summer. The Rolling Stones announced Thursday that at the end of their Hackney Diamonds tour they will play the brand new Thunder Ridge Nature Arena in Ridgedale, Missouri. The pristine, amphitheater surrounded by nothing but nature is the dream creation of Johnny Morris, the founder and CEO of Bass Pro Shops. Morris built the venue next to the river and lake where he fished with his father and grandfather as a child, before he started his huge outdoor retail business. The arena opens Saturday with a show by country star Morgan Wallen.

Today in Sports - Week Ahead, May 24 - May 30. Take 2

This Date in Baseball-Week Ahead for May 24 - May 30. Take 2

A woman in Denmark did not have her human rights violated when she was not given vegan food by a hospital when hospitalized two years ago. The Vegetarian Society of Denmark had sued on behalf of the woman, saying that her vegan belief was protected by the European Court of Human Rights and that she had been subjected to discrimination by not being offered sufficient vegan food during hospitalization in March and in the fall of 2020. A Danish court ruled Thursday that the woman “had not been prevented from eating vegan food during her hospitalization in accordance with her convictions.”

In Bell Gardens, Raquel Martinez said she has relied for nearly three years on a program that pays an assistant to help her make it safely to her frequent appointments at the MLK Medical Campus.

Thursday

ATLANTA — The blue wave that hit Gwinnett and Cobb counties four years ago, sweeping Democrats into power at all levels of local government for the first time in decades, will be tested in the November general election after most incumbents in both counties easily won their primary races on …

Many Americans are unprepared for what can be an emotional, costly and guilt-inducing process of finding long-term care for a loved one. Advance planning can help. But an AP-NORC poll in 2021 found most Americans don’t discuss the possibility of long-term care, let alone prepare for it. Finding the right long-term care option may come down to which facility has an opening and can accommodate a particular person’s needs. Nationally, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services maintains a five-star quality rating system that takes health inspections, staffing and quality measures into account.

Thousands of older Americans are in adult day services that provide safe, stimulating places for those who have physical or cognitive disabilities and also give respite to their caregiver. Adult day services are prevalent across the country, particularly California, New England and southern states. But middle America and rural areas struggle to either staff or fill the centers with clients. Adult day programs cost under $100 a day nationally. Medicaid covers about half the revenue collected for these services across the U.S., but about 15% of users still have to pay out-of-pocket.

ATLANTA — The young members of the Atlanta Drum Academy found themselves performing on an unusual stage Monday morning for some of the state’s top Democrats and a high-profile international visitor.

The list of foreign dignitaries who attended Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s funeral on Wednesday underscored how Tehran’s efforts to blunt U.S. sanctions and mend ties with its neighbors have paid off.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said his country does not have a “China-phobia” policy and wants to engage both Beijing and Washington, expressing hopes for both powers to resolve their differences. Anwar, who is attending an annual conference in Tokyo, said China is an important neighbor as it grows economically and militarily. He urged the U.S. to abandon protectionism and respect competitiveness. Anwar later met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and both sides agreed to further enhance their cooperation in security, green energy and other areas. The Malaysian leader also said it is “unfortunate” Washington is not doing enough to stop Gaza crisis.

Gusts of wind brought down the stage at a campaign event for Mexican presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez’s Movimiento Ciudadano party, killing nine people.

Critics say British Labour Party leader Keir Starmer is dutiful, managerial and a bit dull. The 61-year-old Labour leader is the current favorite to win the country’s July 4 election. Starmer has dragged his social democratic party from the left towards the political middle ground. His message to voters is that a Labour government will bring much-needed change. He says “a vote for Labour is a vote for stability – economic and political.” Starmer rose from working-class roots to become a lawyer and leader of the country's Crown Prosecution Service. He was elected to Parliament in 2015 and has led Labour since 2020. If he wins the election he will become the first Labour prime minister since 2010.

Russian forces hit Kharkiv and the nearby town of Lyubotyn with a barrage of at least 15 simultaneous missile strikes on Thursday, stepping up pressure against Ukraine’s second-largest city.

When Amazon Studios debuted “Red, White & Royal Blue” last summer, they did so without fanfare or spectacle, thanks to the timing of its release amid historic Hollywood strikes. But the lack of publicity surrounding the rom-com’s premiere didn’t deter it from becoming a hit with audiences. The studio recently announced amid its determined Emmy campaign that a sequel was in the works with stars Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez set to reprise their roles. The movie is directed by Matthew López and based on the bestselling novel by Casey McQuiston.

Israel said it would revive stalled cease-fire talks with Hamas after social media video showing female Israeli soldiers being abducted by the militants on Oct. 7 sparked a public outcry.

President Joe Biden’s administration is pushing the tech industry and financial institutions to shut down a growing market of abusive sexual images made with artificial intelligence technology. New generative AI tools have made it easy to transform someone’s likeness into a sexually explicit AI deepfake and share those realistic images across chatrooms or social media. The victims — be they celebrities or children — have little recourse to stop it. The White House is putting out a call Thursday looking for voluntary cooperation from companies in the absence of federal legislation.

Thursday

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

At a time when historic homes are being bulldozed in Coral Gables and Miami Beach, one Miami-Dade County village has rallied to preserve and celebrate its architectural heritage.

Rafael Nadal will begin probably his last French Open against No. 4-ranked Alexander Zverev. It's a rematch of their semfinal meeting in 2022. An unseeded Nadal had been coy about whether he would compete at Roland Garros after two seasons of off-and-on action because of injuries, including a surgically repaired hip that forced him to miss his favorite tournament a year ago. He's won the French Open 14 times. The tournament begins on Sunday.

Biden administration pushes tech industry to disrupt growing market of abusive sexual images made with AI.