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US Vax Stats Bad, UK COVID Cases Soar, Grenada Surge, Delta in Bahamas, World Stats

US Worst Vaccination Stats of G-7 Nations

Until May 19, 2021, America was second out of G7 nations in the percentage of people who had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, behind Britain but ahead of Canada, France, Italy, Germany and Japan.

On Thursday, according to the University of Oxford’s Our World in Data project with Japan’s most recent reported figures, the United States sits last, with 61.94 percent of Americans receiving the first dose compared to 62.16 percent of the Japanese population. Canada is top of the pile now with 74.25 percent.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the data is the shape of the graphs, with Japan’s slow rollout showing late takeup but a very steep curve (so now more people are being vaccinated very quickly) whereas the U.K.’s line is the flattest of any G7 country, suggesting most people who are willing to get a vaccine have done so.

America’s line is relatively flat, with many unwilling to get the vaccine but is tracking in a similar pattern to Germany and Canada, suggesting that the anti-vax movement in the U.S. is no more prevalent here than in some other major economies.

What happens now? The vaccine mandate in the U.S. is a strong indication of where Biden wants to go, with the president calling this a “pandemic of the unvaccinated.” Expect both vaccination numbers, and resistance to it, to increase quickly in coming weeks.

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UK Has 2nd Highest Worldwide Infection Rate–Lancet Editor

The editor-in-chief of medical journal The Lancet has warned that the UK has among the highest number of coronavirus cases in the world, saying: “The pandemic hasn’t gone away yet.”

While Richard Horton said it is positive that two-thirds of UK population is vaccinated, it has the highest number of infections globally after the US.

He told Sky News:

We’re the second highest number of infections of any country in the world after the United States, we’re seeing hospitalisations rise by about 5% every week, there are 1,000 new deaths every single week, we’ve got 1,000 people on ventilators across the country. In other words, the pandemic hasn’t gone away yet. So we’re in a very finely balanced situation.

Leading epidemiologist Prof Neil Ferguson has said the UK must boost its immunity by vaccinating more teenagers to stop the risk of “a large autumn and winter wave”.

The Imperial College professor told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that there will be some effect of ditching Covid passports in England but that he hopes another national lockdown will not be needed.

While he said nothing can be ruled out, he hopes that another lockdown will not be needed. “With this level of immunity that we have in the population, if we do need to further drive down transmission then it may not require full lockdown.”

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Grenada: 182 new COVID cases recorded; 50% police force unvaccinated

Concern has been mounting among security officials in Grenada following reports that approximately 20-per cent of the officers attached to the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) are now infected with COVID-19.

As a result, some officers have been working in shifts of up to 16 hours per day.

According to the Health authorities, the island started recording an upsurge in mid-August.

The latest figures have revealed that local actives cases moved from 5 on August 17 to 1791 on September 10.

Health authorities have since declared that the island is affected by community spread with the Delta variant which was detected in early August as the main strain.

“There are a number of policemen I think is over 160 odd policemen who are infected and many of them have to self-quarantine, and it is affecting them and their families and it’s affecting the productive level of the force,” said Dr Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister and Minister for National Security.

“It’s a tough act for everybody, with the lockdown this weekend, almost every police having to be working 15 to 16 hours, otherwise, we won’t be able to achieve a significant impact with the lockdown we are implementing,” Dr Mitchell said in a live interview late Friday.

“They are trying their best, they are giving the Government the support they can, the leadership is trying but at the same time there are serious limitations,” said the Prime Minister who explained that the purpose of the weekend lockdown is to reduce the movement of people “because when people move the virus moves.”

In a recent interview, Edvin Martin, Commissioner of Police disclosed that less than 50% of the Force were vaccinated but educational sessions facilitated by members of the medical fraternity were in progress with a view to getting officers to become vaccinated.

Data from the Ministry of Health has shown an increase in vaccination since the cases began to increase but it’s not clear if some of the newly vaccinated with the first dose are Police Officers.

The legislation establishing the Police Force allows for 1025 sworn positions for the maintenance of law and order, the preservation of the peace, the protection of life and property, the prevention and detection of crime, the enforcement of all laws and regulations with which it is charged, and the apprehension of offenders.

In a bulletin issued late on Saturday, the Ministry of Health announced that 182 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 2,345.

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Delta Variant Main Strain in the Bahamas

Health authorities in The Bahamas say the Delta variant is the predominant strain of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country, as it continues to grapple with the impact of the virus that has killed 453 people and infected 19,139 others since March last year.

The Ministry of Health in a statement said that results received from the FIOCRUZ Laboratory in Brazil, confirmed the presence of the highly transmissible Delta variant.

It said that the National Reference Laboratory had submitted 98 SARS-CoV-2 virus-positive samples to the FIOCRUZ Laboratory for genomic sequencing. The samples were collected between May 6 to August 8 this year from individuals on New Providence, Grand Bahama, Abaco, Andros, Eleuthera, Exuma and Bimini. According to the ministry 41 of the cases were the Delta variant, while there were 39 cases of the Alpha variant.

“There are 18 samples still going through the testing process. The new sequencing results confirm that the Delta variant is the predominant variant in The Bahamas, followed by the Alpha and Gamma variants,” the ministry said in the statement, adding “it is noteworthy to mention that the Alpha variant is more transmissible than the original COVID-19 virus, and the Delta variant is known to be more transmissible than the Alpha variant.

“Consequently, all major health facilities in New Providence and Grand Bahama are experiencing increased numbers of cases, hospital admissions and deaths due to COVID-19.”

The Ministry of Health said that the health care system of both the public and private sectors is now severely challenged and over-burdened, and as a result, non-COVID-19 cases requiring health care are at risk of not being able to access life-saving health care.

“Given the predominance of these highly transmissible variants in the country, it is essential to seek medical care early and avoid home remedies that delay accessing medical care. Do not delay seeking medical help if you experience signs and symptoms of COVID-19. Contact your healthcare provider or nearest public health clinic for more information,” the ministry warned.

It urged members of the public  to avoid gatherings of groups of more than five people, remain physically distant, wear a mask at all times, and wash hands regularly.

“Additionally, we strongly encourage all citizens and residents of The Bahamas to be vaccinated. COVID-19 vaccinations are proven to be safe.  They are known to decrease the severity of illness, hospitalizations, and deaths, if infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 and all its variants,” the ministry added.

WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

225,580,776

Deaths:

4,646,136

Recovered:

202,193,092
Highlighted in green
= all cases have recovered from the infection
Highlighted in grey
= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

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Latest News

September 13 (GMT)

Updates

  • 22,541 new cases and 448 new deaths in Iran [source]
  • 1,149 new cases and 16 new deaths in Nepal [source]
  • 1,291 new cases and 14 new deaths in Libya [source]
  • 18,178 new cases and 719 new deaths in Russia [source]
  • 7,213 new cases and 55 new deaths in Japan [source]

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'He just swallowed my whole spear': Diver's great white encounter

A scuba diver has had a terrifying close encounter with what he said was a great white shark off Perth.

The 3.5m predator launched at Chris Johnson, 34, snatching his spear while he was in the water of Hillarys in the city's north.

The Perth father was spearfishing at Three Mile Reef just after 11am when the shark emerged.

READ MORE: Parents of Perth footballer granted rare exemption for hospital visit

Chris Johnson said the shark snatched his whole fishing spear.

Luckily, he said the shark was only interested in his catch.

"I was just trying not to s— myself really," he said.

"He took my fish in two bites and not only did he take my fish he just swallowed my whole spear and the fish, just swallowed it whole.

"I got my gun and pointed it to the side, but he just went chomp and swam off.

Mr Johnson said the shark was a Great White.

"He can keep the fish, mate he could even have the gun if he wanted the gun, it's all good."

Mr Johnson, who had been on his first solo dive, swam back to the beach where his wife and kids were waiting.

The popular dive spot turned deadly in 2016 after 60-year-old grandmother Doreen Collyer was attacked by a suspected great white shark.

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World View: California Recall Poll, N. Korea Missile Test, Israel Responds to Gaza Rockets, More

Sept.13, 2021

Alternate text
  • California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has urged voters to defeat a looming recall that could remove him from office.
  • President Joe Biden will promote his administration’s use of the Defense Production Act to aid in wildfire preparedness during a western swing in which he’ll survey damage in Idaho and California.
  • North Korea says it successfully test-fired newly developed long-range cruise missiles.
  • And in the third straight night of fighting in the Middle East, Israeli aircraft struck a series of targets in the Gaza Strip in response to rocket launches out of the Hamas-ruled territory.
  • School starts for about a million New York City public school students 
  • Downtown businesses cope with new reality
  • Britney Spears gets engaged

VANESSA GERA

Warsaw, Poland

The Associated Press

The Rundown

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a blitz of TV ads and a last-minute rally, California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom urged voters Sunday to turn back a looming recall vote that could remove him from office, while leading Republican Larry Elder broadly criticized…Read More

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WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden will promote his administration’s use of the Defense Production Act to aid in wildfire preparedness during a western swing in which he’ll survey wildfire damage in Idaho and California. …Read More

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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea says it successfully test fired what it described as newly developed long-range cruise missiles over the weekend, its first known testing activity in months that underscored how it continues to expand its militar…Read More

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JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli aircraft struck a series of targets in the Gaza Strip early Monday in response to a series of rocket launches out of the Hamas-ruled territory. It was the third consecutive night of fighting between the enemies. …Read More

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NEW YORK (AP) — Classroom doors swing open for about a million New York City public school students on Monday in the nation’s largest experiment of in-person learning during the coronavirus pandemic. …Read More

OTHER TOP STORIES

NEW YORK (AP) — Downtown businesses in the U.S. and abroad once took for granted that nearby offices would provide a steady clientele looking for breakfast, lunch, everyd…Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — First, some blamed the deadly Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol on left-wing antifa antagonists, a theory quickly debunked. Then came comparisons of …Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Britney Spears announced her engagement Sunday to her boyfriend Sam Asghari with an exuberant post displaying a diamond ring engraved with the word “li…Read More

LOD, Israel (AP) — An Israeli defense contractor on Monday unveiled a remote-controlled armed robot it says can patrol battle zones, track infiltrators and open fire. The…Read More

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Trinidad and Tobago the Dominant Regional Force in Gas Production by2025

A total of seven natural gas projects are expected to start operations in Trinidad and Tobago during 2021-2025.

by: GlobalData
Trinidad and Tobago is expected to contribute around 25% or 820mn ft3/day of the Americas natural gas production in 2025 from planned and announced projects (new build projects, excluding the US L48), according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
The company’s report, Americas Oil and Gas Upstream Development Outlook to 2025, reveals that 514mn ft3/d of natural gas production in Trinidad and Tobago in 2025 is expected from planned projects with identified development plans, while 306mn ft3 is expected from early-stage announced projects that are undergoing conceptual studies and are expected to be granted approval for development.A total of seven natural gas projects are expected to start operations in Trinidad and Tobago during 2021-2025. Of these, Colibri and Matapal are some of the key projects that are expected to collectively contribute around 58% of the natural gas production in the country in 2025.

Svetlana Doh, Oil & Gas Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Despite quite a positive outlook for the country’s production in the near term, GlobalData projects that natural gas output in Trinidad and Tobago will start declining after 2024.

Since most of the developed and undeveloped shallow water blocks are already licensed, more aggressive exploration work needs to be conducted regarding deepwater acreage. The country offered some deepwater blocks in the 2020 deepwater competitive bid round, but the round was delayed until 2021. Further delays could be expected due to the sudden death of Trinidad and Tobago’s energy minister in April 2021.”

GlobalData identifies the US as the second highest country in the Americas with 608mn ft3/d of natural gas production in 2025 or around 18% of the total Americas natural gas production in the year (excluding the US L48). Brazil follows with natural gas production of 538mn ft3/d from planned and announced projects in 2025.

Among oil and gas companies, BP, China National Petroleum, and Petroleo Brasileiro SA lead with the highest natural gas production of 421mn ft3, 412mn ft3/d and 387mn ft3/d respectively, in 2025 from planned and announced projects (excluding the US L48).

The statements, opinions and data contained in the content published in Global Gas Perspectives are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s) of Natural Gas World.

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Haiti’s Main Political Parties Reach Temp Govt. Deal

Haiti’s main political forces reached an agreement to establish a transition government until the holding of presidential elections and a constitutional referendum next year.

hich the figure of provisional President disappears. A Council of Ministers under the leadership of Ariel Henry as Prime Minister will now rule the Caribbean island.

The opposition forces highlighted that the negotiations allowed the integration of the diaspora in the formation of a new Provisional Electoral Council, the release of political prisoners, and a commitment for the reestablishment of security and the dismantling of gangs.

“The Democratic and Popular Sector (SDP) has taken the political and historic decision to sign the political agreement for the peaceful and consensual governance of this interim period.” SDP spokesman Andre Michel said.

“It was not an easy decision… But we understood that the time has come to build this country on a consensual basis of permanent dialogue,” he added.

Henry welcomed the agreement, noting that the deal gathered almost all the legitimate demands voiced by several sectors to achieve social reforms.

“I am confident that this deal will allow conducting, in harmony and good understanding, the affairs of the State during the interim period which I wish to be as short as possible,” Henry said.

The agreement established the holding of presidential elections by the end of 2022. It also included a national constituent assembly made of 33 members appointed by institutions and civil society organizations.

The assembly will have three months to prepare a new Constitution to be voted in a referendum by Haitians.

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Jamaica: 18 Murders in Two Days

Gunmen have been on a murderous rampage, killing at least 18 people over a 48-hour period on the weekend.

Seven of the murders occurred over an eight-hour period on Saturday, while 11 killings happened on Friday.

A two-year-old infant was shot and injured in one of the incidents.

The staggering two-day death toll comes amid tighter restrictions imposed by the Government to beat back an explosion of coronavirus deaths and infections.

Friday’s bloodletting started in Old Harbour, St Catherine, where citizens reportedly heard explosions and summoned the police, who found 41-year-old Ricardo Maragh lying face down, with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the back of the head.

In another incident, Winston Mannings was standing at the intersection of Fleet and Tower streets, along with an 18-year-old female student and the two-year-old, when men armed with guns alighted from a motor vehicle and opened fire, killing Mannings and injuring the student and the infant.

On Saturday, a man visiting from the United States was shot and killed by unknown assailants along Mountain View Avenue in east Kingston about 4 p.m.

The other killings occurred in Savanna-la-Mar and Whithorn, Westmoreland.

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Tropical Storm Nicholas Churns Toward Texas Coast

By

Sept 12 (Reuters) – Tropical Storm Nicholas churned through the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday headed for an expected landfall along the Texas shoreline by late Monday or early Tuesday, two weeks after Hurricane Ida lashed coastal areas of neighboring Louisiana.

A storm-surge warning was posted on Sunday for a 70-mile (113-km) stretch of the South Texas coast, from Port Aransas to Matagorda Bay, forecasting an immediate, life-threatening flood danger from high surf driven inland ahead of Nicholas.

Inundation as high as 5 feet (1.5 m) was possible in some places at high tide, according to the Miami-based U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Nicholas, the 14th named storm of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season, also was expected to unleash heavy rainfall across Texas, of up to 20 inches (51 cm) in scattered areas, from Sunday through the middle of the week, the NHC said in its latest advisory.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) on Sunday afternoon, Nicholas was on track to scrape the Gulf Coast of Texas, home to many oil refineries and chemical plants, during the day on Monday, before making landfall that night or early the following day, the NHC said.

Forecasters said Nicholas could near hurricane strength by then, if it veered slightly east of its current coarse, allowing it to draw additional energy from warm Gulf waters before moving ashore.

On its current trajectory, the storm’s center appeared likely to pass between the Gulf Coast cities of Corpus Christi and Galveston. But NHC’s three-day rainfall outlook showed the storm posing its greatest flash-flood risk to Houston and surrounding areas.

Heavy rains were expected to spread into the adjacent Gulf state of Louisiana, still recovering from flooding and wind damage wrought by Hurricane Ida two weeks earlier.

On Sunday, Louisiana governor John Bel Edwards declared a renewed state of emergency in advance of Tropical Storm Nicholas.

Texas Governor Gregg Abbott likewise took to Twitter urging communities to prepare for significant rainfall and potential flooding.

This month, the U.S. Gulf Coast energy production industry struggled with an uneven recovery from Ida as a lack of crews, power and fuel meant most oil and gas production in the region was knocked out for days after that storm.

More than two dozen deaths in Louisiana were blamed on Ida, which came ashore Aug. 29 as a Category 4 hurricane.

At least 50 more people were killed along the U.S. eastern seaboard, most of them in flash flooding triggered by torrential downpours as remnants of the storm moved farther north.

Reporting and writing by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Additional reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Diane Craft and Clarence Fernandez

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Beach party chaos as revellers flee croc-infested waters

Hundreds of revellers who let loose in coronavirus-free Darwin had to flee when the tide engulfed their sandbar party location.

Around 600 partygoers fled on boats and jet skis in chaotic scenes in crocodile-infested waters over the weekend.

Northern Territory Police said they were "disappointed" about the incident, of which footage has emerged showing drunk people piling onto boats which then capsized under their weight.

READ MORE: ADF fined $1 million over soldier's live-fire exercise death

Revellers packed onto a sandbar in Darwin.

NT Water Police were called to help in the chaos at Cullen Bay, which saw boats collide and one man taken to hospital after a fight.

Andrew Hocking from NT Water Police said he was "horrified".

"Overloaded boats, no safety gear, they had boats capsizing people in the water," he said.

"Transporting people back to shore, we had our members towing boats lifting people out of the water to safety."

READ MORE: Qantas plan to move flight from Perth to Darwin 'outrageous'

Police seized 300 litres of alcohol.

When the tide came in there was a rush for boats.

Watch Commander Xavier McMahon said: "The NT Water Police section are continuing to investigate a number of identified marine offences.

"People don't realise how quickly a situation can change with the NT tides, and it was disappointing to see such a large crowd be so irresponsible and put so many people at risk".

Before the chaos, Northern Territory Chief Minister Michael Gunner posted a video of the event on Facebook.

"You can't do this in Bondi, but you can do this in Darwin," he boasted.

"This is the reward for COVID Zero and hard borders – freedom and fun."

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Abimael Guzman, Founder of Peruvian ‘Shining Path’ Rebels, Dies at 86 in Prison

By Marcelo Rochabrun

LIMA, Sept 11 (Reuters) – Abimael Guzman, leader of the Shining Path rebels who nearly toppled the Peruvian state in a bloody Maoist revolution, died on Saturday while in prison and following several weeks of poor health, the government said. He was 86.

Guzman was captured in 1992 in Lima and jailed for the rest of his life after being convicted as a terrorist. He died one day before the anniversary of his capture, when he was paraded in front of the press in a striped white and black uniform that is not normally used in Peru.

Susana Silva, head of Peru’s prison system, told RPP radio on Saturday that Guzman had been ill in recent months and had been released from a hospital in early August.

She said his health condition worsened in the past two days, without elaborating further, adding Guzman was set to receive more medical attention on Saturday but died in his cell around 6:40 a.m. local time (1140 GMT). Defense minister Walter Ayala said Guzman had died of a “generalized infection.”

“The terrorist leader Abimael Guzman has died, responsible for the loss of an uncountable number of lives” tweeted President Pedro Castillo. “Our position condemning terrorism is firm and unwavering. Only in democracy will we build a just Peru.”

A former philosophy professor, Guzman was a lifelong communist who traveled to China in the late 1960s and was awed by Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution. He resolved to bring Mao’s brand of communism to Peru through a class war that he launched in 1980 on the day that Peru held its first democratic elections following over a decade of military dictatorship.

Guzman founded the Sendero Luminoso, or Shining Path, transforming it from a ragtag band of peasants and radical students into Latin America’s most stubborn guerrilla force. An estimated 69,000 people, mostly in Peru’s poor interior, were killed between 1980 and 2000 in the internal conflict launched by the Shining Path, mostly in indigenous Andean communities.

Shining Path’s bold and immaculately planned attacks, its networks of informants and spies, and Guzman’s uncanny ability to evade arrest gave him an almost legendary reputation for seeming to be in all places at once.

During years of fighting, he had been rumored to be dead, gravely ill, or living a comfortable life in Europe.

In 1980, after years of preparation, Guzman, a former university professor, led a band of supporters into the Andes Mountains outside the town of Ayacucho.

Armed with shotguns, dynamite and machetes, they began attacking security forces, elected officials and peasants who resisted their indoctrination with a fervor and ruthlessness never seen in a Latin American rebel group.

Fanning out from the Southern city of Ayacucho, the Shining Path attracted thousands more militants from poor peasant communities and universities.

Shining Path founder Abimael Guzman attends a trial during sentence of a 1992 Shining Path car bomb case in Miraflores, at a high security naval prison in Callao, Peru September 11, 2018. REUTERS/Mariana Bazo
Shining Path founder Abimael Guzman attends a trial during sentence of a 1992 Shining Path car bomb case in Miraflores, at a high security naval prison in Callao, Peru September 11, 2018. REUTERS/Mariana Bazo

People in the capital city of Lima got their first taste of the Shining Path in 1981 when guerrillas hung dozens of dead dogs from lampposts – “the dogs of capitalism,” said signs pinned to the animals.

By the late 1980s, the group had become such a threat to the state that two-thirds of Peruvians lived in areas under emergency rule – essentially, martial law.

His followers called Guzman the Fourth Sword of Marxism, after Marx, Lenin and Mao, and idolized him in revolutionary chants, songs, posters and literature.

His few written works, though little esteemed by Marxist academics, became like mantras for Shining Path followers who repeated his sayings as if they were biblical truths.

Shining Path propaganda posters showed the bespectacled Guzman towering over peasant masses and guerrilla armies, pointing with one hand and holding Mao’s revolutionary “Little Red Book” in the other.

But the first image most Peruvians saw of Guzman was anything but revolutionary. Apparently drunk, he danced to the main tune of the film Zorba the Greek and posed for snapshots with supporters in a Shining Path video captured by police in 1990 and shown on television.

The video made it clear he was alive and still in charge, but it punctured his reputation for austerity and demoralized Shining Path militants.

Nevertheless, their attacks intensified, leading then-President Alberto Fujimori to seize near-dictatorial powers, in what he said was an attempt to crush the revolt.

After Guzman was captured by police at a spacious safe house in a middle-class neighborhood of Lima in 1992, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The Shining Path largely collapsed as a military threat, although remnants remain to this day. Authorities say that rebels claiming to belong to a dissident faction of the Shining Path killed 16 people in a remote jungle area just this year.

In 2018, Guzman was given a second life sentence for a 1992 Lima car bomb attack that killed 25 people.

Guzman’s first wife, Augusta La Torre, died in mysterious circumstances in the late 1980s. In 2010, he married his longtime girlfriend, Elena Iparraguirre, who, like Guzman, is serving a life sentence. Both women were Shining Path leaders.

Reporting by Marcelo Rochabrun; Edited by Rosalba O’Brien and Diane Craft

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Haiti PM Asked by Prosecution to Testify in President’s Assassination Hearing

BBC- Haiti’s head prosecutor has invited Prime Minister Ariel Henry to explain his connection to the main suspect in the killing of President Jovenel Moise.

President Moise was assassinated when gunmen stormed his home on 7 July.

Prosecutor Bedford Claude said that Mr Henry had multiple phone calls with suspect Joseph Felix Badio just hours after the assassination.

Mr Claude said Mr Henry was being “invited” to attend, as he did not have the authority to officially summon him.

Prosecutors said records obtained from phone operator Digicel confirmed that Mr Badio and Mr Henry spoke twice on 7 July just hours after President Moise’s killing.

Geolocation data also showed that Mr Badio, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, was speaking from the scene of the crime.

In a letter to the prime minister, Mr Claude emphasised that his invitation was optional, but said that it was justified given what he called a “case of extreme gravity for the nation”.

The hearing at the Court of First Instance of Port-au-Prince is due to take place at 1000 on Tuesday.

Investigators have reportedly alleged that Mr Badio, a former official with the Ministry of Justice, may have been involved in co-ordinating the killing. He has not publicly commented on these claims.

Mr Henry has previously told local media that he knew Mr Badio and defended him, adding that he didn’t believe Badio was involved because he did not have the means.

A spokesperson for Mr Henry’s office told the Associated Press that he would not comment on the invitation.

The invitation to Mr Henry comes as authorities double down on their efforts to arrest additional suspects in the assassination.

Police say there are now 44 people held in custody in connection with the plot, including 18 retired members of the Colombian military.

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