Controversial California oil pipeline can continue to operate, judge rules

• Experts interviewed by Vedomosti on August 20th report that Europe's economic gap with the United States is widening due to lower labor productivity and structural challenges. • The decline is attributed to a combination of demographic issues, exchange-rate effects, and a heavy dependence on foreign trade.

• India and Bangladesh are facing a critical diplomatic test regarding the management of the Teesta River and the strategic "Chicken's Neck" corridor. • The situation is being exacerbated by climate change, which has increased hydrological uncertainty, alongside rising agricultural demands and intensifying strategic competition.

José Mejía Hernandez, 45, who was hospitalized for his injuries, was then transferred to an ICE office and fitted with an ankle monitorA man in Virginia was hospitalized with a brain injury and severe bruising all over his face after he was arrested by US immigration agents, according to his lawyers, who shared photos and medical records with the Guardian.José Mejía Hernandez, 45, was walking to a bus stop in Arlington on the morning of 11 August when two agents got out of an unmarked vehicle and started chasing him, according to one of his lawyers, Margaret Hellerstein. The man recalled being hit by some kind of stun gun, but did not remember what happened after that, only waking up hours later in the hospital, Hellerstein said. Continue reading...

Courier network carried millions of dollars in cash to Lebanon on commercial flights, treasury department saysThe US treasury department announced sanctions on Thursday against 10 people it says formed a courier network that smuggled hundreds of millions of dollars to Hezbollah by carrying cash onboard commercial flights between Iran, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon.The office of foreign assets control (OFAC) said the network allowed Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group,to obtain foreign currency and dodge sanctions outside the formal banking system. The treasury department linked the operation to a scheme once associated with Behnam Shahriyari, a now-deceased finance official for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force. Continue reading...

Albanese said now-infamous interview, dubbed ‘melon-gate’, taught him he needs ‘to do better every day’. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese has said he should not have appeared on a podcast where he engaged in a joke about the Japanese prime minister’s gift to him of melons.During an appearance on the comedy podcast Bush Deep last month, the prime minister explained that Japan’s leader, Sanae Takaichi, offered him royal Japanese melons and appeared to make hand gestures in front of his chest, saying “she brought two, as you do”. Host Nikki Osborne joked: “She came in looking like Pamela Anderson.” Continue reading...

Ex-White House ethics tsar calls it ‘shocking’ that executive assistant to US president didn’t have clearance for a yearUS politics live – latest updatesThe White House faced fresh questions on Thursday over whether Donald Trump’s closest aide, Natalie Harp, had access to US government secrets without security clearance.Harp, who is executive assistant to the US president, worked at the White House for a year without the routine clearance, the MS Now network reported on Thursday. She refused to file the relevant forms for unknown reasons, according to two unnamed sources cited by MS Now. Continue reading...

Jessica ​Bowie, 35, of Albany, allegedly planned to deploy explosive before fleeing ⁠to IS-controlled territory in SyriaUS authorities arrested and charged a New York woman with ⁠planning to carry out an Islamic State-inspired attack on the state’s capitol building in Albany, the justice ⁠department said on ⁠Thursday.Jessica ​Bowie, 35, of Albany, was charged with planning to deploy an explosive device at the state ⁠capitol with the intention of killing public officials and destroying “as much of the building as possible” before fleeing ⁠to IS-controlled territory in Syria, according to John A Eisenberg, assistant attorney general ​for national security. Continue reading...

The attorney for Clancy, who strangled her three children, says she suffered from postpartum psychosisHundreds of Lindsay Clancy supporters, many wearing pink clothing emblazoned with phrases such as “Believe”, “She Needed Help” and “Peace For Lindsay”, gathered on Thursday outside the courthouse where she is on trial in the killings of her three children.Several of the 300 women, and a few men, said Clancy’s story resonated with them and that they wanted to raise awareness about how the mental health system treats women. Clancy’s lawyer does not dispute that she killed the children, but says she should not be held criminally responsible because she was mentally ill. Continue reading...

DHS says Manuel Ernesto Hernandez-Umana is in US illegally after lying to border patrol when he entered in 2007The captain of a boat that capsized in the New York harbor, resulting in the death of a woman and her infant daughter, has been taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), with the federal agency saying it intends to deport him.The deadly incident unfolded near the Statue of Liberty on 8 August. Authorities said a 911 call was received at approximately 10.25pm that prompted a major emergency response including multiple boat teams, a scuba team and a helicopter unit. Continue reading...

Federal agents also ‘seized electronic devices’ from former Democratic representative at San Francisco airportAuthorities are said to have searched the Washington DC home of disgraced former California Democratic representative Eric Swalwell on Sunday amid an ongoing law enforcement investigation into sexual assault allegations.CNN reported that federal agents on Saturday “seized electronic devices” from Swalwell at the San Francisco airport, citing unnamed sources familiar with the investigation. Multiple other outlets have confirmed the federal search; the Daily Mail was the first to report this law enforcement activity. Continue reading...

Researcher Nathan Cofnas previously claimed Black people would hold few high-profile positions in a meritocracyNathan Cofnas, the academic who made plagiarism allegations against Prof Jason Arday before his death, has been suspended by a university.Arday, 41, resigned from his role at the University of Cambridge this month after Cofnas accused him of plagiarism. The allegations, which were not proven in any formal investigation, triggered questions about Arday’s achievements. Continue reading...