Category Archives: headline

headline

Cold War-era submarine once in Harrison Ford film catches fire

The remains of a Cold War-era Russian submarine once seen in a movie starring Harrison Ford caught fire in the US on Tuesday morning.

Workers in the city of Providence were using a blowtorch to cut it up for scrap when the blaze started, fire officials said.

The fire at a waterfront scrap yard sent a plume of black smoke over the city at about 9.30am local time but was quickly extinguished.

No one was hurt.

READ MORE: Cold war nuclear bunker hits the market in the UK

The hull is sheathed in a eight to 10-centimetre layer of rubber and that's what caught fire as workers cut into it with a torch, Providence Deputy Assistant Fire Chief Steve Capracotta said.

After the Cold War, the submarine known as Juliett 484 was sold and used as a restaurant and vodka bar in Helsinki, Finland, and as a set for the 2002 Ford movie 'K-19: The Widowmaker'.

The sub wound up in Providence because the Rhode Island-based USS Saratoga Museum Foundation bought it and opened it to the public as a floating museum in 2002.

It sank during a nor’easter in 2007 and was sold for scrap.

State environmental officials have been informed of the fire, Capracotta said.

headline

PM won't move Christian Porter to different role after rape allegations

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he won't move Attorney-General Christian Porter into a different role following historical rape allegations against the Cabinet minister.

Mr Porter was accused of raping a former debating teammate in 1988 in an anonymous letter sent to the prime minister's offices and several federal MPs.

Mr Morrison stood firm on his stance today that Mr Porter was an "innocent man" under Australian law.

"No, I wouldn't consider moving him to somewhere else," he said.

READ MORE: Julie Bishop critical of response to rape allegations

"He is a fine Attorney-General and a fine Minister for Industrial Relations, he is an innocent man under our law."

The woman at the centre of the allegations took her own life last year after telling police she no longer wanted to proceed with a formal complaint.

NSW Police announced last week it had closed its investigation due to "insufficient admissible evidence".

Mr Porter strenuously denied the allegations in a media conference last week, saying what he was accused of "simply did not happen".

The prime minister said every Australian was entitled to the same rules of law, no matter their position or title.

"To suggest there should be some different treatment applied to him, based on what had been allegations that the police have closed the matter on, I think it would be grossly inappropriate to take actions against him on that basis," Mr Morrison said.

"There is no basis for doing that at all and when it comes to the principles upon which we run our country, that would be highly inappropriate.

"No Australian faces a different law to any other Australian."

Mr Porter, who has taken leave, is not expected to return to parliament next week.

Mr Morrison said Mr Porter has not indicated a date he would return to work.

headline

Race Issue: Queen Saddened by Meghan’s Pain

BBC- The race issues raised by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in their interview with Oprah Winfrey are “concerning” and “taken very seriously”, Buckingham Palace has said.

In a statement, the Palace said “recollections may vary” but the matters will be addressed privately.

Meghan told Oprah Harry had been asked by an unnamed family member “how dark” their son Archie’s skin might be.

The Palace said the Sussexes would “always be much loved family members”.

The response from Buckingham Palace came after crisis meetings involving senior royals.

The Palace had been under growing pressure to respond to the interview in which Meghan – the first mixed-race member of the modern Royal Family – said that questions had been asked about their son’s skin colour.

Prince Harry later clarified to Oprah that the comments were not made by either the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh.

In other developments, Piers Morgan has left ITV’s Good Morning Britain show following a row over comments he made about the Duchess of Sussex.

The statement from the Palace, which came a day and a half after the interview was first broadcast in the US, said: “The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.

“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. Whilst some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.

“Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members.”

It is understood the royals wanted to carefully consider their response and to give the British public an opportunity to watch the interview first when it was broadcast on Monday evening.

The royals are said to consider this a family matter and to believe they should be given the opportunity to discuss the issues privately.

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The post Race Issue: Queen Saddened by Meghan’s Pain appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Women should be acknowledged every day for their contributions

Participants in a Women’s Self-Empowerment Workshop held at the Red Cross Building, Charlestown, in celebration of International Women’s Day.

CHARLESTOWN Nevis — Women should be acknowledged every day for the invaluable contribution they make to society, according to Premier Hon. Mark Brantley, Senior Minister of Gender Affairs in the Nevis Island Administration.

Premier Brantley delivering welcome remarks at a Women’s Self-Empowerment Workshop held on International Women’s Day.

“We are so happy to see so many women from different backgrounds, different disciplines, together on this occasion,” said Hon. Brantley. “Today is International Women’s Day, and certainly we should celebrate women every day.

“I want you to know that we as a government are appreciative of the tremendous contribution that women make,” he said.

Highlighting the IWD 2021 theme ‘Women in leadership’, Mr. Brantley said often times people only see leadership in the context of politics.

“That is not so. Women lead in the homes, women lead in the churches, women lead in politics yes, but women lead in every facet of our society,” said Brantley. “I think that when we seek to restrict it only to politics, we do not appreciate the full extent of leadership by women in our community.

“Many homes on Nevis which are single parent homes, are being led by women,” explained Brantley. “They too need to be recognized, that their contribution as leaders is also critical. Leadership comes in different ways and all forms of leadership are important if we are to build the type of society that we need.”

Premier Brantley lauded women in the Federation for occupying leadership positions across every facet of society, including the civil service, government, institutions and organizations.

“If you look across for example, our society, look across our civil service, women in various positions of leadership,” explained Brantley. “We have permanent secretaries, women in Cabinet, women in Parliament, and have women here who are doctors and lawyers. We have women now in what are called non-traditional areas such as construction.

“Women are making their mark, as they should, and are contributing significantly to our society.

He told the more than two dozen participants at the workshop that they are all leaders in their own right. He encouraged the women to continue to be empowered and strong, and to continue to make their valuable contributions.

The workshop was organized by Ms. Latoya Jones, Special Advisor in the Office of the Premier and facilitated by Dr. Linda Carty, Sociologist.

The post Women should be acknowledged every day for their contributions appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Queen breaks her silence on Harry and Meghan interview

Queen Elizabeth has broken her silence on her grandson Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's explosive tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey.

In a very short statement released by Buckingham Palace on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, the 94-year-old monarch says issues raised by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would be dealt with privately.

"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan," the statement says.

"The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning.

"While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.

"Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members."

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Pressure had been mounting on the Palace to respond to Prince Harry and Meghan's allegations of ill treatment by the royal household in the interview which aired in the US on Sunday.

It was understood the Queen had been in crisis talks with senior members of the family for two days and it had been her call to delay making any statement sooner.

Palace staff are believed to have suggested putting out a statement on Monday night (Tuesday AEDT), when the interview aired to an audience of 11 million in the UK. The Times of London says it was the Queen who wanted more time to consider what they would say.

'She can't not say anything'

While the Palace often tries to stay above controversy by remaining silent and riding out the storm, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's charges are so damaging to the royal family that it had no choice but to publicly respond, royal biographer Angela Levin said.

The author of Harry, a Biography of a Prince said there had been little doubt that ultimately the 94-year-old monarch would make her decision based on what was best for the 1000-year-old institution she has led since 1952.

"The Queen has a motto: Never complain, never explain,'' Levin told The Associated Press.

"And she's stuck with this for four decades. But I think in this climate and 2021, everything goes everywhere. There's so much social media that in this instance, she really can't not say anything."

READ MORE: Piers Morgan storms off at criticisms from co-host over Meghan attack

The Palace wanted to avoid inciting any further tension or a statement that may further undermine the monarchy.

"I think that one of the major worries is you don't want to throw oil on the flames to make it even worse," Levin said.

The other issue raised is that the UK's opposition party, Labour, has called for an investigation into allegations raised by the Duchess of Sussex, particularly the allegation of racism.

Piers Morgan storms off TV set during Meghan, Harry discussion

It was just last week where they put out that controversial rare statement saying they were very concerned about allegations Meghan had been bullying staff and they were launching an HR investigation into that.

They may now feel pressure to launch a similar HR probe into the new allegations as well.

Wall-to-wall coverage continues in the UK, adding to the enormous pressure on the royals to respond.

Overnight, Meghan's estranged father Thomas Markle gave his own bombshell interview with scathing criticisms of his daughter and son-in-law, and commentary including that he did not believe the royal family was racist and dismissed an allegation of racism as "bullsh–".

Meghan told Winfrey that when she was pregnant with her son Archie, there were "concerns and conversations" within the palace about how "dark" her child's skin would be when he was born.

"I have great respect for the royals and I don't think the royal family are racist at all," Mr Markle told Good Morning Britain from Rosarito in Mexico.

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"The thing about what colour will her baby be or how dark will her baby be, I'm guessing and hoping it's just a dumb question from somebody. It could just be that simple, somebody's asked a stupid question rather than it being a total racist."

Controversial breakfast television host Piers Morgan, meanwhile, stormed off his own show after a spat with another presenter over his treatment of the Duchess.

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– Reported with Associated Press