World
IRAN: US Charges 3 In Plot To Kill Iranian-American Author In NYC
WASHINGTON — The U.S. According to officials, the Justice Department has charged three men in an alleged plot to kill an Iranian American author and activist who has spoken out against human rights violations in Iran.
Rafat Amirov, 43, of Iran, Polad Omarov, 38, of the Czech Republic and Slovenia, and Khalid Mehdiyev, 24, of Yonkers, New York, were charged in an unsealed indictment in federal court in New York with money laundering and murder-for-hire. The three men were detained, and one was awaiting extradition to the United States.
Masih Alinejad, a New York-based Iranian opposition activist, journalist, and writer, confirmed that she was the intended target.
“I’m not scared,” Alinejad said after U.S. authorities announced the charges. “I want to tell you that the Iranian regime believes that by attempting to kill me, they will silence other women or me. But they only serve to strengthen me, to make me more powerful in my fight for democracy and to give a voice to the brave women who are fighting the Islamic Republic with guns and bullets in the streets.”
She claimed FBI agents read her the messages the plotters exchanged, including a final one that said, “It’s going to be done today.”
Iran Media Did Not Acknowledge The Plot
Iran’s U.N. mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the charges. Late Friday, Iranian state media did not immediately acknowledge the alleged plot.
While the alleged plotlines in Iran, the indictment does not directly blame the country’s theocracy for the alleged murder-for-hire.
Nonetheless, the case “follows a disturbing pattern of Iranian government-sponsored efforts to kill, torture, and intimidate activists into silence for speaking out for the rights and freedoms of Iranians around the world,” according to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
Mehdiyev was caught last year while driving around Masih’s Brooklyn neighborhood with a loaded “AK-47-style” rifle and a lot of bullets. At the time, Alinejad told The Associated Press that authorities had told her that the man was looking for her and that a home security video had captured him skulking outside her front door.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said when he announced the charges, “The Iranian government has previously gone after dissidents around the world, including the victim, who are against the regime’s violations of human rights.”
Victim Had Kidnapping Plots Against Her
He claimed that “individuals in Iran” tasked the defendants with carrying out the assassination plot.
“The victim made public the Iranian government’s human rights violations, discrimination against women, suppression of democratic participation and expression, and use of arbitrary imprisonment, torture, and execution,” Garland said. “This activity posed such a threat to the Iranian government in 2019 that the chief judge of Iran’s Revolutionary courts warned that anyone who sent videos criticizing the regime to the victim would be sentenced to prison,” according to the report.
He claimed that in 2021, an Iranian intelligence official and three others were charged with plotting to kidnap the victim.
All three defendants are Azerbaijanis, a country with a border and cultural ties to Iran.
Amirov appeared in court for the first time in New York, and his attorney, Michael Martin, entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf. During the brief court appearance, the defense did not immediately request bail. Amirov used a Russian interpreter because he speaks it, although it is not his first language.
Evolving Threat And Brazen Behavior
Mehdiyev’s attorney declined to comment on Friday. Omarov was arrested earlier this month in the Czech Republic. It was unclear whether he had an attorney speaking on his behalf.
“This case also highlights Iran’s evolving threat and increasingly brazen behavior,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. She also mentioned charges filed against members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate a former U.S. national security adviser and charges filed against Iranian hackers accused of targeting utility companies.
FBI Director Christopher Wray says that Iranian intelligence and security services have been using more “transnational repression tactics” in recent years to go after political opponents and critics. He said that tactics in Iran include surveillance, cyber operations, intimidation of family and friends, and kidnapping and assassination plots.
“The Iranian government’s efforts to silence its critics are not limited to Iranian borders,” Wray said.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are higher than usual, with the Biden administration’s efforts to resurrect a 2015 deal limiting Iran’s nuclear program failing and the U.S. condemning Iran’s targeting of protesters in Iran. Iran is also said to have given Russia drones that Russia has used to attack civilian targets in Ukraine.
Calls For Congress To Do Something
Alinejad said that she hoped the ruthlessness of Iranians plotting to kill a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil would persuade President Joe Biden to act on calls from some in Congress and elsewhere to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.
“They are challenging U.S. authorities to see what the consequences will be if no punishment is imposed, and there is no reason for them to stop killing innocent Americans or innocent Iranians,” she said.
Alinejad was a journalist in Iran for many years. Since he left the country after the disputed presidential election and crackdown in 2009, Iran’s theocracy has been after him.
She is a prominent figure on Farsi-language satellite channels abroad that criticize Iran, and she has worked as a contractor for the Voice of America’s Farsi-language network, which the United States funds, since 2015. She became a citizen of the United States in October 2019.
Three Defendants Are Members Of An Eastern European Criminal Organization
Her “White Wednesday” and “My Stealthy Freedom” campaigns have seen women film themselves in public in Iran without head coverings or hijabs, which can result in arrests and fines. She has also made the voices of Iranian protesters louder since the death of Mahsa Amini in September. Amini died after being arrested by the morality police and was later found dead.
According to court documents, the three defendants are members of an Eastern European criminal organization with ties to Iran.
According to the indictment, Amirov, a group leader living in Iran, was “tasked” with targeting her by unnamed people. Garland declined to elaborate on where the orders came from. Amirov turned to Omarov, who lives in Eastern Europe, and together they brought Mehdiyev, who lives in New York, and paid him $30,000 in cash. US authorities say that Mehdiyev got the gun and started watching her house in July.
For more than a week, he took photos and videos and devised ways to entice her outside, according to the indictment. Mehdiyev described himself as being “at the crime scene” at one point.
Alinejad, on the other hand, left her house on July 28 after noticing something suspicious. When Mehdiyev attempted to leave, he was stopped by a New York police officer. The gun, ammunition magazines, cash, and a black ski mask were discovered by police. He was taken into custody on a federal firearms charge.
SOURCE – (AP)
World
Do Microplastics in the Atmosphere Endanger Your Fertility?
(VOR News) – It is quite possible that the presence of small microplastic particles in the air may be a contributing factor to a wide variety of health problems, including malignancies of the lungs and colon.
This is something that needs additional research to be determined. There is one more item to take into consideration, and that is the potential that this is the exact circumstance.
A recent study found that tires and debris that are decomposing shed minute fragments of plastic that go airborne, so creating a form of air pollution that is not particularly widely known. This type of pollution is caused by the degradation of plastic. An example of this type of pollution is that which is discharged into the atmosphere.
The industry refers to microplastic as “air pollution.”
According to the findings of a researcher named Tracey Woodruff, who is a professor of obstetrics, gynaecology, and reproductive sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, “These microplastics are basically particulate matter from air pollution,” and it is common knowledge that this particular type of air pollution is particularly hazardous.
The researchers who supplied background notes stated that the size of microplastics is less than 5 millimetres, which is smaller than a grain of rice.
This information was provided, according to researchers. These details were supplied by the researchers who conducted the study. These particulars were provided by researchers who were responsible for carrying out the study.
The amount of plastic that is created on a yearly basis by enterprises all over the world is roughly 460 million tonnes, as indicated by the data that were provided by academics all over the world. The forecasts indicate that by the year 2050, this quantity is anticipated to have increased to 1.1 billion tonnes.
Driving is a substantial contributor to the amount of plastic that is floating around in the atmosphere, according to the conclusions of the experts who conducted the study about the phenomenon. When tires are worn down to the point where they scrape against the surface of the road, they allow microplastics to be released into the environment.
As a result of the tires wearing down, this occurs. This impact is brought about as a consequence of the inevitable amount of wear and tear that tires are subjected to.
A study that was published on December 18 in the journal Environmental Science & Technology was the result of researchers conducting an examination of data collected from over 3,000 previous investigations.
The paper was published as a consequence of this procedure. The review was constructed with the help of this analysis that was carried out.
Microplastic used this analysis to put together the review.
A number of diseases, such as cancer, lung problems, and infertility, may be influenced by the presence of microplastics in the air, according to the data, which led to the conclusion that this may be the case.
Despite the fact that the vast majority of the studies that were incorporated into the study were carried out on animals, the researchers claimed that it is very certainly plausible that the findings can also be applied to people. The fact that the majority of investigations were conducted on animals does not change the reality that this is the case.
“We urge regulatory agencies and policy leaders to consider the growing evidence of health harms from microplastics, including colon and lung cancer,” stated Nicholas Chartres, the principal investigator and senior research fellow at the University of Sydney.
The organisation reported this comment. The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) issued a press release on behalf of the organisation that contained this statement. The news release was disseminated to the public. We are convinced that state officials will act quickly to make sure that no leaks of this kind occur, which is of the highest importance.
SOURCE: USN
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World
Russian Oil Ships In The Kerch Strait Are Undergoing Rescue Operations.
(VOR News) – Following Sunday’s powerful storm, a Russian oil tanker carrying hundreds of tonnes of oil products ultimately broke apart, causing an oil spill into the Kerch Strait below. Additionally, Russian officials reported that the damage was causing problems for another vessel.
Sunday, Russian authorities announced an emergency rescue operation.
According to the Russian state news agency TASS, which claimed the Emergency Situations Ministry as its source, the Volgoneft-212 tanker, carrying fuel oil and carrying thirteen crew members, ran aground and suffered damage to its bow. A shipment of fuel oil was being transported by the tanker.
Authorities have told the public that the damage was brought on by the extreme weather conditions that are currently occurring.
A second tanker, the Volgoneft-239, was damaged during the storm and is currently stranded in the same area with 14 crew members on board, according to the Ministry of Emergency Situations. The tanker was discovered abandoned and alone in the same spot.
Additional tankers also suffered damage. The 132-meter-long cruiser, which was constructed in 1973, hangs the Russian flag around its neck.
The footage posted by state media showed the 136-meter Volgoneft-212 tanker, which was cut in two with its bow underwater, and waves crashing over its deck. At least one person lost his life as a result of this tragedy. This led to the opening of two distinct criminal investigations by the Russian authorities to look into potential violations of certain safety regulations.
Having flown the Russian flag since 1969, the yacht was finished.
Rosmorrechflot, the Russian government agency in charge of water transportation, reported a petroleum product spill.
It is believed that the cargo capacity of each tanker is around 4,200 tonnes of oil products.
The magnitude of the leak and the cause of the substantial damage one of the tankers received were not specified in the official remarks. This is in accordance with the official remarks.
Several news sites cited Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying that President Vladimir Putin directed the formation of a working committee to handle the rescue effort and lessen the effects of the oil disaster.
Peskov recommended that the government appoint the working committee’s members. This comment was made public right after Putin met with the ministries responsible for ecology and disaster management.
The Russian government has said that it will be sending more than fifty individuals and pieces of equipment to the area in response to the current crisis. Mi-8 helicopters and rescue tugboats are examples of these people and tools.
The news that experts are presently investigating the damage at the event site was announced by Svetlana Radionova, who is in charge of Rosprirodnadzor, Russia’s natural resources regulating entity.
Kommersant reports that Volgoneft-212 used 4,300 tonnes of fuel oil.
The footage, which showed a partially submerged ship and murky water on rough seas, was posted to Telegram without the owner’s consent.
The warships were located in the Kerch Strait, which separates Crimea from the Russian mainland, when the distress signals were sent out.
The Kerch Strait is a crucial international marine passage that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Azov, allowing for easier traffic between the two bodies of water. It also acts as a border between Russia and the Crimean Peninsula, which is under Russian occupation. The Kerch Strait is located in the centre of the two nations.
The peninsula has remained a major source of contention between the two national governments ever since Russia annexed it from Ukraine in 2014. Russia was the one who seized the peninsula. Ukraine brought legal action against Russia before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016.
Specifically, the lawsuit claimed that Russia intended to illegally take over a location. The argument was supported by evidence pertaining to Russia’s conduct in the region. In 2021, the Russian Federation closed the strait for several consecutive months
SOURCE: VN
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World
Japan List Cannabis as Narcotic Criminalizes Recreational Use
TOKYO – Japan updated its cannabis and narcotics control legislation on Thursday, criminalizing cannabis (Marijuana) use and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), imposing a maximum seven-year prison sentence.
While the possession, transmission, and cultivation of cannabis and THC were already prohibited in Japan, the new rules will classify them as narcotics and criminalize their use as well, with a prison sentence of up to seven years for violations.
The amended regulations also legalize medical items containing cannabis-derived compounds that are beneficial and safe.
In 2019, 1.8 percent of the Japanese population had used cannabis at least once, making it the country’s second most popular illicit substance behind methamphetamine.
In 2023, a record 6,703 people were probed in cannabis-related criminal cases in Japan, topping methamphetamine cases for the first time, according to the Health, Labour, and Welfare Ministry. Seventy percent of instances involved people under the age of thirty.
A nationwide poll performed the same year by the ministry’s research group estimated that approximately 200,000 people had consumed marijuana within the previous year.
Japan previously did not penalize cannabis usage, apparently taking into account farmers who may have accidentally ingested the drug while producing cannabis plants for use in hemp products.
The amendments will also lift a restriction on cannabis-derived medicines, putting them under a licensing system similar to other drugs used for pain relief and other purposes.
Drugs derived from cannabis plants were only allowed in clinical studies in Japan, but patient groups have been advocating for access to cannabis-derived cannabidiol treatments already licensed in Europe and the United States for illnesses like severe epilepsy.
Cannabis cultivation dates back to the Jōmon period of Japanese prehistory, roughly six to ten thousand years ago (source: Wikipedia).
Cannabis hemp, as one of Japan’s first cultivated plants, provided an essential supply of plant fibre for clothing, cordage, and Shinto ritual goods, among other uses.
For much of Japanese history, hemp was common for fabric and food before cotton emerged as the country’s dominant fibre crop during industrialization during the Meiji period.
Following the end of World War II and the occupation of Japan, the Cannabis Control Law prohibited cannabis possession and manufacturing.
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