A migrant from Eritrea is helped after jumping into the water from a crowded wooden boat during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants from Eritrea hold their children after been rescued from a crowded wooden boat as they were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Ahma, 24, and Habsa, 26, left, sit in a rigid inflatable boat after been rescued from a crowded wooden boat as they were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants from Eritrea hold their children after been rescued from a crowded wooden boat as they were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Belongings left behind by migrants are seen in the hold of a wooden boat where more than seven hundred migrants were fleeing Libya during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Belongings left behind by migrants are seen in the floor of a wooden boat where more than seven hundred migrants were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Belongings left behind by migrants are seen in the floor of a wooden boat where more than seven hundred migrants were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) A LIbyan coast guard stands on a wooden boat where more than seven hundred migrants were sailing in to flee Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Italian officers rescue a woman from a crowded wooden boat carrying more than seven hundred migrants, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO and Italian military officers. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) A man holds himself on the side of a boat after jumping into the sea from a crowded wooden boat during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants sailing in a crowded wooden boat carrying more than seven hundred migrants, are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) An Italian Navy ship sails past a burning dinghy after evacuating the migrants sailing on it in the Mediterranean sea toward the Italian coasts, about 17 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016. More than seven hundred migrants were rescued Sunday morning from seven boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards operating at the zone. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrant women from Nigeria, one of them holding a baby, are rescued by emergency teams from a dinghy as they were sailing at the Mediterranean sea toward the Italian coasts, about 17 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016. More than seven hundred migrants were rescued Sunday morning from seven boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards operating at the zone. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants fleeing Libya on board of a dinghy wait to be rescued by emergency teams, as they were sailing at the Mediterranean sea toward the Italian coasts, about 17 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016. More than seven hundred migrants were rescued Sunday morning from seven boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jumps into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation on the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) A migrant from Eritrea grabs a RIB after jumping into the water from a crowded wooden boat during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) A man carries his five days old son after been rescued from a crowded wooden vessel as they were fleeing Libya, during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya, Monday, Aug. 29, 2016. Thousands of migrants and refugees were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO before transferring them to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating at the zone.(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
OFF THE COAST OF LIBYA (AP) — Italian naval ships and vessels from non-government groups rescued thousands of migrants off the Libyan coast on Monday, the latest surge in desperate attempts to flee to Europe driven by war, poverty, and human traffickers.
The dramatic operation took place just 21 kilometers (13 miles) north of the town of Sabratha in Libya. Groups such as Proactiva Open Arms and Doctors Without Borders helped take on some 3,000 people who had been travelling in some 20 small wooden boats.
Migrants from Eritrea and Somalia cheered as the rescue boats arrived, with some jumping into the water and swimming toward them while others carefully carried babies onto the rescue ships. Tens of thousands of Africans take the dangerous Mediterranean Sea route as a gateway to a better life in Europe, alongside those fleeing wars from Syria to Afghanistan.
Libya’s chaos and lack of border controls have made it into a transit route. Since the 2011 ouster and killing of longtime Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, the country has sunk into lawlessness, facing a myriad of militias vying for influence and an emerging Islamic State affiliate.
In June, the European Union expanded its anti-smuggling operation in the central Mediterranean to include training Libyan coastal and naval forces, which are intercepting boats and returning migrants to Libya, where some are being held in abusive conditions.
Rights groups and experts estimate that there are about 3,500 migrants held in roughly 20 official detention facilities across Libya. Others are held in informal detention centers controlled by criminal gangs or armed groups.
___
This story has been corrected to show that Spanish warships did not take part in the operation.

European ships rescue thousands of migrants off Libyan coast


Aug 28, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; San Diego Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen (13) carries the ball as Minnesota Vikings cornerback Terence Newman (not pictured) and linebacker Anthony Barr (55) defend during the second quarter in a preseason game at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
MINNEAPOLIS—The Vikings have their own thoughts about U.S. Bank Stadium. So does their first opponent in the new digs, the San Diego Chargers.
Several Chargers were asked after Sunday's 23-10 exhibition loss to the Vikings what they thought of the spanking new stadium, particularly its turf field.
Two of the Chargers were injured during the game, and one of them, running back Branden Oliver, suffered a torn Achilles' tendon. Oliver waved off the Pioneer Press in the locker room, where his lower leg was in a protective boot, but others piped up about the stadium and the field.
-- Running back Melvin Gordon: "It's amazing. It's a wonderful stadium. The field was good. Didn't have too many problems with it. It was slippery. It will take a (few) games for the turf to lay down. Being on it for the first time, we ran into a couple of problems. I think after five or six games it will be perfect. It's just new. It has to be broken in a little bit. When I caught the ball, I kind of got stuck (in the turf) a little bit. It's high. It's got to get matted down."
-- Wide receiver Keenan Allen: "I thought the stadium was nice. The field was new, so it will take breaking in. It was mushy. It will firm up."
-- Nose tackle Brandon Mebane: "I thought it was a nice stadium—reminded me of Indy's a little bit. Nice locker room. Everything was good. Everything was solid."
-- Running back Danny Woodhead: "It's a very cool stadium. They obviously did a lot to it. It looks great. There are different things that remind you of other stadiums. Maybe the windows remind you of Indy. I didn't notice anything (about the turf). I didn't have any problems with it."
-- Running back Dreamius Smith: "The stadium is all right. That field, in my opinion, wasn't the best field I've played on. It was soft, slippery, all of the above. You've got to get used to it, I guess."
-- Punter Drew Kaser: "The stadium is awesome. It really is one of the best facilities in the NFL. I felt the field needs to get broken in a little more. There was a great atmosphere out there, great fans. Minnesota deserves something like that. I was joking around with our long snapper on the sidelines. I said I really wanted the first punt in the stadium and I got it. I felt that was pretty cool. The field was a little slick. It doesn't affect me as much as other people. I take two steps and punt the ball."
-- Outside linebacker Melvin Ingram: "Great stadium. Real nice stadium. The turf was slick. It's brand new. It's supposed to be. The more they play on it, better it will get."
-- Free safety Dwight Lowery: "It's a nice stadium, for sure. It reminds me a little bit of New York's, from a visitor's perspective. How it lays out and looks. A little bit Indianapolis, too. Those are the two I've been to that it reminds me of. The field needs to be broken in. The first thing I noticed when we got here (Saturday to practice on it) was that the field was a little bit unpredictable. There hasn't been much action on it. It's an NFL game, and guys are getting action on it. It'll firm up. The more you play on it, the better it will get."

Chargers like stadium better than new turf


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ELIZABETH SKRAPITS / THE CITIZENS’ VOICE The headstone for the baby boy found in the former West Side Landfill on Aug. 6, 1980. He is buried in the former St. Anthony of Padua church’s cemetery in Courtdale.
WILKES-BARRE — Investigators on Friday got the go-ahead to exhume three more bodies of people who died under suspicious circumstances, bringing to four the number of corpses to be disinterred next month.
Court orders Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Vough signed Friday morning clear county prosecutors and state police to exhume the remains of “I-81 Jane Doe,” “Bear Creek John Doe” and “Baby Boy Doe” — all cold cases more than three decades old.
The purpose of the exhumations is to gather DNA and other identifying information from the bodies in an attempt to identify them and determine their cause of deaths.
According to the petitions, the body of “I-81 Jane Doe” was discovered in a wooded area to the west of the southbound lanes of Interstate 81 in Rice Township on Sept. 28, 1970. An autopsy determined the woman’s body had been at the site for two or three days, but the cause and manner of death were undetermined.
But the location of the body, which was naked, led investigators to call the death “highly suspicious.” State police nevertheless closed the case after less than eight months, and the woman’s description was never entered into the National Crime Information Center database, according to the petitions filed by District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis and Assistant District Attorney Dan Zola.
“At the time of her death, investigators failed to fulfill their duties and responsibilities to fully and accurately establish her identity, as well as the cause and manner of her death,” they wrote. “It is in the public interest to identify her and determine how she died.”
In contrast to the woman’s death, the case of “Bear Creek John Doe” was clearly a homicide, according to prosecutors.
His partially decomposed body was found May 28, 1979, in a wooded area off state Route 2041 in Bear Creek Township. An autopsy determined the man had been shot in the chest between 10 days and two weeks earlier, according to the petitions.
The death of “Baby Boy Doe” was also ruled a homicide. The infant, who was found about three days after being born, was found in the West Side Landfill in Larksville on Aug. 6, 1980.
Employee John Hettes had been spreading garbage at the landfill when he spotted a box with what looked like a baby doll in it. He got out of his bulldozer to take a closer look and realized it wasn’t a doll.
An autopsy determined the child was born healthy and lived for a few hours after birth, according to the petition. Investigators determined the boy “died from lack of care and was subsequently discarded amongst the trash that was ultimately dumped in the West Side Landfill,” prosecutors wrote.
Prosecutors note that the cases cannot be solved until the bodies are first identified, a process that will require modern methods not available at the time they were discovered, such as DNA testing and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System database.
State police Cpl. Thomas McAndrew, of the Criminal Investigation Assessment Unit in Hazleton, and Trooper Stephen Polishan, of the Criminal Investigation Assessment Unit in Wyoming, are working with county prosecutors on the now-re-opened cases.
The exhumations, which will be done under the direction of University of South Florida forensic anthropologist Dr. Erin Kimmerle, are being funded by federal grants that fund DNA testing to identify missing people.
After exhumation, the bodies will be taken to Lehigh County Forensic Center for examination. If needed, they will be shipped to Florida for a full examination, including an autopsy, skeletal examination, isotope testing, facial reconstruction, X-rays, MRI scans and collection of DNA.
The exhumations are set to take place Sept. 26. Per the judge’s order, the baby will be re-buried at St. Anthony’s Cemetery in Courtdale, while the others will be reinterred at Maple Hill Cemetery in Hanover Township.
The orders signed Friday are similar to another investigators received earlier this month to exhume the body of “I-80 Jane Doe.”
That body, which was wrapped in a blanket and covered in sulfuric acid, was found along the west travel lanes of I-80 in Black Creek Township on Aug. 9, 1973. The death was “extremely suspicious,” but the investigation was closed after only three months, according to prosecutors.
The cause and manner of death in that case also remained undetermined.
Her body is set to be exhumed from the Maple Hill Cemetery the same day as the others.


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ELIZABETH SKRAPITS / THE CITIZENS’ VOICE The headstone for the baby boy found in the former West Side Landfill on Aug. 6, 1980. He is buried in the former St. Anthony of Padua church’s cemetery in Courtdale.
WILKES-BARRE — Investigators on Friday got the go-ahead to exhume three more bodies of people who died under suspicious circumstances, bringing to four the number of corpses to be disinterred next month.
Court orders Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Vough signed Friday morning clear county prosecutors and state police to exhume the remains of “I-81 Jane Doe,” “Bear Creek John Doe” and “Baby Boy Doe” — all cold cases more than three decades old.
The purpose of the exhumations is to gather DNA and other identifying information from the bodies in an attempt to identify them and determine their cause of deaths.
According to the petitions, the body of “I-81 Jane Doe” was discovered in a wooded area to the west of the southbound lanes of Interstate 81 in Rice Township on Sept. 28, 1970. An autopsy determined the woman’s body had been at the site for two or three days, but the cause and manner of death were undetermined.
But the location of the body, which was naked, led investigators to call the death “highly suspicious.” State police nevertheless closed the case after less than eight months, and the woman’s description was never entered into the National Crime Information Center database, according to the petitions filed by District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis and Assistant District Attorney Dan Zola.
“At the time of her death, investigators failed to fulfill their duties and responsibilities to fully and accurately establish her identity, as well as the cause and manner of her death,” they wrote. “It is in the public interest to identify her and determine how she died.”
In contrast to the woman’s death, the case of “Bear Creek John Doe” was clearly a homicide, according to prosecutors.
His partially decomposed body was found May 28, 1979, in a wooded area off state Route 2041 in Bear Creek Township. An autopsy determined the man had been shot in the chest between 10 days and two weeks earlier, according to the petitions.
The death of “Baby Boy Doe” was also ruled a homicide. The infant, who was found about three days after being born, was found in the West Side Landfill in Larksville on Aug. 6, 1980.
Employee John Hettes had been spreading garbage at the landfill when he spotted a box with what looked like a baby doll in it. He got out of his bulldozer to take a closer look and realized it wasn’t a doll.
An autopsy determined the child was born healthy and lived for a few hours after birth, according to the petition. Investigators determined the boy “died from lack of care and was subsequently discarded amongst the trash that was ultimately dumped in the West Side Landfill,” prosecutors wrote.
Prosecutors note that the cases cannot be solved until the bodies are first identified, a process that will require modern methods not available at the time they were discovered, such as DNA testing and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System database.
State police Cpl. Thomas McAndrew, of the Criminal Investigation Assessment Unit in Hazleton, and Trooper Stephen Polishan, of the Criminal Investigation Assessment Unit in Wyoming, are working with county prosecutors on the now-re-opened cases.
The exhumations, which will be done under the direction of University of South Florida forensic anthropologist Dr. Erin Kimmerle, are being funded by federal grants that fund DNA testing to identify missing people.
After exhumation, the bodies will be taken to Lehigh County Forensic Center for examination. If needed, they will be shipped to Florida for a full examination, including an autopsy, skeletal examination, isotope testing, facial reconstruction, X-rays, MRI scans and collection of DNA.
The exhumations are set to take place Sept. 26. Per the judge’s order, the baby will be re-buried at St. Anthony’s Cemetery in Courtdale, while the others will be reinterred at Maple Hill Cemetery in Hanover Township.
The orders signed Friday are similar to another investigators received earlier this month to exhume the body of “I-80 Jane Doe.”
That body, which was wrapped in a blanket and covered in sulfuric acid, was found along the west travel lanes of I-80 in Black Creek Township on Aug. 9, 1973. The death was “extremely suspicious,” but the investigation was closed after only three months, according to prosecutors.
The cause and manner of death in that case also remained undetermined.
Her body is set to be exhumed from the Maple Hill Cemetery the same day as the others.
570-821-2058, @cvjimhalpin

Investigators to exhume three bodies in cold cases


Press Statements
LONDON, 14 August 2016,: Kashmiris are facing an existential crisis under Indian army occupation, said Kashmiri academic, novelist and activist Nitasha Kaul at a seminar at School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) organised by South Asia Solidarity Group (SASG).
“It is as though there is a hierarchy of lives - for some, many more have to be lost, before people listen.” Ms Kaul said.
She said India's relationship with Kashmir—humiliating attitude towards them, killing, injuring and blinding of innocent people, intimidating of journalists, and clamping down on the media and shutting down internet and mobile communication— was like Britain's relationship with India under colonial rule.
Nitasha Kaul speaking
Ms Kaul, a Kashmiri Pundit herself said that the uprising of Kashmiri people has nothing to do either with religion or with Pakistan. Kashmir happens to be a Muslim majority territory and India is using it as a pretext to demonise a people’s uprising as separatist. In today’s Islamophobic environment it fits well with the broader narrative, she said.
Ms Kaul spoke of India’s oft repeated claim that Kashmir is an “integral part of India” and called it a very “imperial” attitude. “Why do you have to keep on repeating it? And why do you have to kill people to keep it integral?” She said that Kashmir is not like any other Indian state. It has its own history. She stressed that until 1953 when Sheikh Abdullah was arrested by Jawahar Lala Nehru, Kashmir had its own flag and own Prime Minister, not a Chief Minister.
Also speaking at the meeting was editor of Urdu Media Monitor M Ghazali Khan. He said that Babri Mosque, Muslim Personal law, Urdu and Minority Character of Aligarh Muslim University each and every controversy being used and exploited by BJP was created by the Congress. He said that during its tenure Congress engineered anti-Muslim riots, BJP has modified the trend with its “Gujarat Experiment” adding and adopting in it “Love Jihad”, “Ghar wapsi” and “Gau Raksha” as the situation requires.
Mr Khan added, “Soon after the partition a totally false and mischievous premise was created in India that Muslims alone were responsible for that historic blunder and was used and continues to be used as a weapon to victimize them. However, the publication between 1970 and 1983 of secret and official documents (Transfer of Power 1942-47) that hitherto had been in possession of the India Office Library, present a different picture of that period. In the light of these documents Gandhi, Nehru and Patel appear to be as much responsible for the partition as was Mohammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan.”
He quoted Maulana Abul Kalam Azad from his book India Wins Freedom in which Maulana writes, “It must be placed on record that the man in India who first fell for Lord Mountbatten’s idea was Sardar Patel. Till perhaps the very end Pakistan was for Jinnah a bargaining counter, but in fighting for Pakistan, he had overreached himself. His action had so annoyed and irritated Sardar Patel that the Sardar was now a believer in partition…In fact Sardar Patel was fifty per cent in favour of partition even before Lord Mountbatten appeared on the scene. He was convinced that he could not work with the Muslim League. He openly said that he was prepared to have a part of India if only he could get rid of the Muslim League. It would not perhaps be unfair to say” Maulana goes on, “that Vallabhbhai Patel was the founder of Indian partition.”
Mr Khan continued by noting that the Hinduva elements who had been collaborating with colonial masters had started working to divide communities as early as 1920s or may be much before that. He quoted noted Urdu writer Maulana Majid Dariabadi as having written, “In [19]20-21 no one knew what Hindu-Muslim riots were. In the beginning of 1924 this epidemic had broken out with full force... Each petty argument resulted into distrust and doubts. On one hand there was the rise of organisation of shudhdhi programmes on the other hand it was responded to by calling preaching groups. A discussion starting with politics always ended on dharam and Imaan [religion and faith].”
He also quoted known freedom fighter Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar having written to his daughter, 6 November 1930, from London where he had come to attend the Roundtable Conference as, “News that we here have received through American newspapers create a hope that the demand for India will be for a united one – May God also cause it so. Success in whatever the conditions is very difficult yet is necessary...May, after having travelled overseas, the [Hindu] Maha Sabhai mind-set change and Indians realise in true sense the curse of slavery that they are under. May they overcome their desire to dominate and subjugate one another and, instead, strive jointly together to free themselves from the slavery by others? May God inspire the Hindus and the Muslims to do justice with each other and treat each other fairly. May they abhor slavery so much that they neither accept to be slaved by others nor try to enslave others. Amen!”
Mr Khan stressed that the only way forward was a strong alliance between Dalits, Muslims and all other secular forces in India.
Dalit activist and Chairman of CasteWatch UK Satpal Muman who was also due to speak could not personally attend the seminar but sent a written speech that was read out by at the meeting. In his message Mr Munan sent his solidarity with the hugely inspiring and significant Dalit Asmita march adding that the “stinking caste system” had followed Indians to the UK and the current British government acting undemocratically by ignoring legislation passed by parliament safeguarding Dalits from discrimination in the UK.
Academic and activist Kalpana Wilson, chairing the meeting on behalf of South Asia Solidarity Group also expressed her solidarity with the Dalit movement in India. She said this was a hugely significant moment with Dalit demands for land hitting at the base of Hindutva economic policy of unscrupulously handing over land owned by the people to corporates like Ambani and Adani
The seminar also heard a forceful narrative on Dalit lives titled “Black and Blue” written and read out by actor and story writer, Saunvedan Aparanti.
He said, “What comes to your mind when you think of India? If you’ve been seduced by films, books, pictures and anglophile Indians over the last century then you will no doubt paint a happy picture. You might romanticise the poor yet happy people, the colours, the cuisine, the attire, the mystics, the music, the dance, the cacophony, the heat and the sensory overload of this one country. The only colour missing in your picture will be any shade of black because black is a colour that India hides. Black is a colour that India detests whether it be the colour of your skin or the colour of the sewer that you’re lowered in. A bottomless pit is where you will find the true colour of India.”

'Whose Democracy?' Seminar in London on India’s 70th Independence Day


Kashmir, Babri Mosque, Muslim Personal law, Urdu and Minority Character of Aligarh Muslim University each and every controversy being used and exploited by BJP was created by the Congress


Today is Sunday, Aug. 28, the 241st day of 2016. There are 125 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History:
On Aug. 28, 1963, as more than 200,000 people listened, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
On this date:
In 1609, English sea explorer Henry Hudson and his ship, the Half Moon, reached present-day Delaware Bay.
In 1862, the Second Battle of Bull Run (also known as Second Manassas) began in Prince William County, Virginia, during the Civil War; the result was a Confederate victory.
In 1916, Italy declared war on Germany during World War I.
In 1922, the first-ever radio commercial aired on station WEAF in New York City; the 10-minute advertisement was for the Queensboro Realty Co., which had paid a fee of $100.
In 1941, Japan’s ambassador to the U.S., Kichisaburo Nomura, presented a note to President Franklin D. Roosevelt from the Japanese prime minister, Prince Fumimaro Konoye, expressing a desire for improved relations; Roosevelt responded that he considered the note a step forward.
In 1945, the Allies began occupying Japan at the end of World War II.
In 1955, Emmett Till, a black teen-ager from Chicago, was abducted from his uncle’s home in Money, Mississippi, by two white men after he had supposedly whistled at a white woman; he was found brutally slain three days later.
In 1968, police and anti-war demonstrators clashed in the streets of Chicago as the Democratic National Convention nominated Hubert H. Humphrey for president.
In 1972, Mark Spitz of the United States won the first two of his seven gold medals at the Munich Olympics, finishing first in the 200-meter butterfly and anchoring the 400-meter freestyle relay. The Soviet women gymnasts won the team all-around.
In 1988, 70 people were killed when three Italian stunt planes collided during an air show at the U.S. Air Base in Ramstein (RAHM’-shtyn), West Germany.
In 1990, an F5 tornado struck the Chicago area, killing 29 people.
In 1996, Democrats nominated President Bill Clinton for a second term at their national convention in Chicago. The troubled 15-year marriage of Britain’s Prince Charles and Princess Diana officially ended with the issuing of a divorce decree.
Ten years ago: Prosecutors in Colorado abruptly dropped their case against John Mark Karr in the slaying of JonBenet Ramsey, saying DNA tests had failed to put him at the crime scene despite his insistence that he killed the 6-year-old beauty queen in 1996. President George W. Bush visited the Gulf Coast on the eve of the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Columbus, Georgia, beat Kawaguchi City, Japan, 2-1 to win the Little League World Series championship game.
Five years ago: A suicide bomber blew himself up inside Baghdad’s largest Sunni mosque, killing 29 people during prayers. California returned the Little League World Series title to the United States with a 2-1 victory over Hamamatsu City, Japan. Katy Perry won three MTV Video Music Awards, including video of the year for the inspirational clip “Firework”; during the broadcast, Beyonce announced she was pregnant with her first child (Blue Ivy Carter was born in Jan. 2012).
One year ago: President Barack Obama compared tensions between the U.S. and Israel over the Iranian nuclear deal to a family feud, and said in a webcast with Jewish Americans that he expected quick improvements in ties between the longtime allies once the accord was implemented. A jury in Concord, New Hampshire, acquitted Owen Labrie, a prep school graduate, of rape but convicted him of committing lesser sex offenses against a 15-year-old freshman girl in a case that exposed a tradition in which seniors competed to see how many younger students they could have sex with.
Today’s Birthdays: Actor Sonny Shroyer is 81. Actor Ken Jenkins is 76. Former Defense Secretary William S. Cohen is 76. Actor David Soul is 73. Former pop singer-musician Honey Lantree (The Honeycombs) is 73. Former MLB manager and player Lou Piniella is 73. Actress Barbara Bach is 70. Actress Debra Mooney is 69. Singer Wayne Osmond (The Osmonds) is 65. Actor Daniel Stern is 59. Olympic gold medal figure skater Scott Hamilton is 58. Actor John Allen Nelson is 57. Actress Emma Samms is 56. Actress Jennifer Coolidge is 55. Movie director David Fincher is 54. Actress Amanda Tapping is 51. Country singer Shania (shah-NY’-uh) Twain is 51. Actor Billy Boyd is 48. Actor Jack Black is 47. Actor Jason Priestley is 47. Olympic gold medal swimmer Janet Evans is 45. Actor J. August Richards is 43. Rock singer-musician Max Collins (Eve 6) is 38. Actress Carly Pope is 36. Country singer Jake Owen is 35. Country singer LeAnn Rimes is 34. Actress Kelly Thiebaud (TV: “General Hospital”) is 34. Actor Alfonso Herrera (TV: “The Exorcist”) is 33. Actress Sarah Roemer is 32. Actor Armie Hammer is 30. Rock singer Florence Welch (Florence and the Machine) is 30. Actress Shalita Grant (TV: “NCIS: New Orleans”) is 28. Country-pop singer Cassadee Pope (TV: “The Voice”) is 27. Actress Katie Findlay is 26. Actor/singer Samuel Larsen is 25. Actor Kyle Massey is 25. Actress Quvenzhane (kwuh-VEHN’-zhah-nay) Wallis is 13. Reality TV star Alana Thompson, AKA “Honey Boo Boo,” is 11.
Thought for Today: “One starts to get young at the age of 60 and then it is too late.” — Pablo Picasso, Spanish artist (1881-1973).
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


CENTENARY, Ohio — This time, the Blue Devils couldn’t stage a comeback bid against a former Southeastern Ohio Athletic League foe.
That’s because, on Tuesday night, the host Gallia Academy High School soccer squad fell behind against undefeated Athens in the first half — and was unable to mount a rally effort in the second.
The Bulldogs built a pair of early three-goal leads — and eventually defeated the Blue Devils 6-2 in a non-league tilt at Gallia Academy High School’s Lester Field.
The contest marked the home opener for the Blue Devils, which dropped their season opener at Alexander by a count of 4-3.
Athens improved to 4-0 with the win — as all of the scoring on Tuesday took place in the opening half.
Both Alexander and Athens are associate members of the lameduck SEOAL in boys soccer, as Gallia Academy opted out of the league in favor of the expanded Ohio Valley Conference.
Against Alexander, and in similar fashion, the Blue Devils fell behind 3-0 and 4-1 — before losing 4-3 and despite some missed opportunities to tie the match in the final 20 minutes.
Against Athens, Gallia Academy once again got behind 3-0 and 4-1, but the closest it came this time was a 4-2 deficit — before the Bulldogs scored twice within a minute.
Like the Blue Devils did against the Spartans, they quickly fell behind 3-0.
Athens senior striker Taylor Scott scored twice in the opening nine minutes and 19 seconds — including off an assist by Nick Bohuslawsky only three minutes and 13 seconds in.
At the 27:12 mark, Justin Goetz scored the first of his two goals off an assist by Jefferson Berryman, then recorded his second marker with 22-and-a-half minutes left — off an assist by Jack Sweeney.
In between, and sandwiched around, Goetz’s goals were Gallia Academy’s two goals by senior forward Isaiah Lester.
Lester scored with 25 minutes left and again with 17:51 to play, as Pedro Carraschal and Madi Oiler assisted.
But Scott scored again after an Athens corner kick with three minutes left, followed by an own goal only 58 seconds later.
Scott’s hat trick of tallies was three of Athens’ 23 total shots, compared to only 10 for the Blue Devils.
Lester — who now has all five of Gallia Academy’s goals this season — shot six times, as the hosts only had one corner kick.
After Athens’ opening two goals, the Blue Devil coaching staff switched goalkeepers for a while, replacing starter Andrew Toler with Ben Rutherford.
Toler returned in net in the second half, and was credited with seven saves while Rutherford finished with three.
The Blue Devils do return home, and open OVC action, tonight (Thursday, Sept. 1) against Chesapeake.
Paul Boggs can be reached at 740-446-2342, ext. 2106
Gallia Academy senior co-captain Colton Fallon (10) makes a play for possession during the Blue Devils’ non-league soccer match against Athens on Tuesday night at Lester Field. http://mydailyregister.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_8.30-GA-Fallon.jpg Gallia Academy senior co-captain Colton Fallon (10) makes a play for possession during the Blue Devils’ non-league soccer match against Athens on Tuesday night at Lester Field. Paul Boggs/OVP Sports


The queen of 1960s TV cookery Fanny Cradock and her put-upon husband Johnnie were the stars of Sheffield City Hall in September 1962.
The couple brought their Kitchen Magic live cookery show to the venue, courtesy of the East Midlands Gas Board.
The Sheffield Telegraph described how an audience of “over 5,000 women and a sprinkling of men watched as the couple prepared such exotic-sounding dishes as coffee bavaroise and Henry VII shoe buckles”.
No idea what a shoe buckle is, although there’s a type of crumble-topped cake called a buckle, and a bavaroise is a creamy dessert.
The finished dishes were whisked off into the auditorium by 10 hostesses so that lucky members of the audience could taste them.
The couple were assisted on stage by their young cookery pupil, John Harper. The recipes they cooked on stage had been tried out by John, to prove that they were simplicity itself to prepare.
They must have been – they knocked out 16 dishes in two hours with accompanying sauces and garnishes, using what at the time were the latest gas appliances, including two ovens, and two fridges.
They included meringues which never sank and souffles which never failed to rise.
True to type, Fanny cooked wearing a series of beautiful couture gowns and heavy jewellery and Johnnie sported a smart lounge suit complete with tie, pocket handkerchief and buttonhole, plus his trademark monocle.
This was in accordance with their ‘no apron’ policy. They declared: “Cooking is a clean and creative art, not a grubby chore.”
A member of the audience was also asked to bring a bottle of Champagne with them, to add to the upmarket feel of the event.
One of their gimmicks was to prove that you didn’t need a special pan to prepare a classic omelette, so they invited any disbelieving audience member to bring theirs along so that they could prove a point with it.
The Cradocks were hugely popular at the time, appearing on both BBC and ITV and getting ready for a Theatre of Kitchen Magic at the 1963 Ideal Home Exhibition in London.
The Sheffield show was part of a nationwide tour that proved so popular the hall could have been filled twice, said a gas board spokesman.
As the Telegraph observed at the time: “Of all the tastes Fanny and Johnnie deal with, the one they seem to be enjoying most is the taste of success.”

When Sheffield watched TV cookery queen Fanny on stage


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Migrants walk after they disembarked from Italian Navy ship Sirio in the Sicilian harbour of Augusta, Italy, Aug. REUTERS/Antonio Parrinello
A migrant holds a baby as he waits to disembark from Italian Navy ship Sirio in the Sicilian harbour of Augusta, Italy, Aug. 21. REUTERS/Antonio Parrinello
SYRACUSE, Italy—Isaac, a 17 year-old from Ghana, holds back tears and looks down as he tries to describe the six months he spent in a Libyan jail where he says not a night would pass without someone dying.
"There were too many people. When you tried to sleep, you couldn't even stretch your legs," he said, adjusting his red and grey baseball cap.
"Someone would die every night and they wouldn't even take the dead bodies. I saw a lot of dead people put on fire."
Isaac, who did not give his real name to protect his privacy, headed to Libya, leaving his mother and siblings behind in Ghana, after being persuaded by a man from his village to seek a better life elsewhere.
He now lives with 11 other boys in a home for child migrants in the Sicilian town of Syracuse - one of thousands of unaccompanied children who have come to Italy, many with horror stories about their time in Libya, where insecurity has allowed smugglers, militias and Islamic State to operate with impunity.
The U.N. children's agency, UNICEF, has warned that lone child migrants, who are travelling to Europe in greater numbers, are at risk of rape, forced labour, beatings and death during their long, treacherous journeys.
But reaching Italy does not mean an end to exploitation and even in the country's reception centers, children are at risk, UNICEF said.
"They are object of exploitation in different ways," Paolo Rozera, head of UNICEF Italy, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
"One is sexual exploitation, the other is child labour in the fields of the rural areas of Apulia, Calabria, Sicily."
Rozera said agents in charge of hiring labourers to work in the fields of Italy's southern regions did not care if the workers were 15, 17 or 20 years old.
"For them it's very important to find people that are available to work for very few euros," he said.
"For the minors it's an opportunity to earn some money for themselves or to send to their parents."
Warnings
Lidia Grimaldi, from Saligaro, a charity which runs two homes for child migrants in Sicily, said children were keen to earn some extra cash to send home. But unaware of their rights, they were often deceived.
"When you drive in the countryside you can see boys working in the fields," Grimaldi told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
"One of the children told us he went to work (on a farm) and received 20 euros ($23) for an entire day's work while the normal salary is 70 euros ($79) to 80 euros ($90). We told him not to go back there because it's exploitation."
Grimaldi said even though her team tries to protect the 24 boys staying in Saligaro's homes, some children may still return to unscrupulous employers despite the warnings.
In the first five months of 2016, more than 7,000 unaccompanied children made the crossing from North Africa to Italy, according to UNICEF.
Of the 20,000 unaccompanied migrant children in Italy, some 5,000 have disappeared from migrant reception centres raising fears for their plight, Rozera said.
A speedier asylum process would reduce the frustration caused by long delays in processing claims, and the temptation to run away, he said.
"When you're speaking with a 15 year-old, they don't want to wait," Rozera said.
"They arrive in Italy after perhaps a 2 or 3 year journey. Their only hope is their future. The Italian government is really doing a lot (but) we can do it better."
Italy has been on the front line of Europe's migration crisis, now in its third year, after a deal struck by the European Union with Turkey largely halted the flow of Syrians and others from Turkish territory to Greece.
EU border agency Frontex said in July that about 750 people, mostly from sub-Saharan and Western Africa, were arriving in Italy each day compared with about 50 in Greece.
Back in Syracuse, Isaac's face lights up as he talks about his new life in Europe.
"In Italy, when you're sad they talk to you until you laugh," he said.
"I don't feel Ghanaian, Libyan or Italian. I don't know where I'm from any more. But in Italy, I'm happy." he said, adding that he dreams of becoming a professional footballer.

Abused and exploited, child migrants in Italy dream of better life


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JOSH BOWDEN today spoke of his relief at earning a place in Hull FC’s Wembley side.
Ahead of last week’s game against Catalans Dragons, head coach Lee Radford had been weighing up his options for the last bench spot in tomorrow’s Ladbrokes Challenge Cup final against Warrington Wolves.
Josh Bowden breaks free
Bowden, Jordan Thompson and Dean Hadley were all fighting it out but the Beverley-born prop has got the nod as he confirmed at this afternoon’s traditional Wembley.
However, Bowden had been sweating since being left out for the semi-final win against Wigan Warriors four weeks ago - one of only two games he had missed all season for the Super League leaders.
“I was a bit surprised to miss that because I had played all year,” he said, Thompson playing in the epic 16-12 victory at Doncaster instead.
“I had to just take it in my stride and work harder in training.
“I think I needed to play well in these last few weeks, too, because the lads played so well in that semi-final.
“I had to really get my head down and have three solid games.”
The 24-year-old did just that against Castleford, then in the 38-0 win at Widnes Vikings before also featuring as Hull thrashed Catalans 44-0 last Thursday.
“Luckily enough I’ve made the squad for the final so I’m over the moon,” said the Academy product.
“I kind of had a feeling I was playing because Lee Radford text me earlier in the week.
“I told my family and everyone is really excited. It’s a dream come true for a Hull lad playing in the final for the Black and Whites.”
Bowden joined the rest of the squad in getting a first look at the Wembley pitch today, enjoying a brief practice session in the searing heat.
“It was great to train on the pitch,” said the player, who did not make the squad for the 2013 final loss against Wigan.
“It was obviously the first time for me. The surroundings are unreal.
“We got a good feeling for it all by training on the pitch. Hopefully it will stand us in great stead for tomorrow.”

Video - Challenge Cup Final: Josh Bowden makes Wembley cut for Hull FC


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Suicidal Germanwings pilot had struggled in US flight school
WASHINGTON (AP) — The German pilot who deliberately flew his airliner into a mountainside last year had struggled with learning to fly and had failed a key test of his skills during training in the U.S., according FBI interviews with his flight instructors.
Andreas Lubitz was promoted anyway. But his training difficulties were one more "red flag" that should have caused Lufthansa and the airline's Arizona flight school to take a closer look and discover his history of depression, asserted attorneys representing families of crash victims.
Lubitz was a co-pilot for Germanwings, a regional airline owned by Lufthansa, when he locked Flight 9524's captain out of the cockpit and set the plane on a collision course with a mountain in the French Alps last year. All 144 passengers and six crew members, including Lubitz, were killed.
This is an undated image taken from Facebook of Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz in San Francisco. Summaries of FBI interviews with flight instructors show that Lubitz, the pilot who deliberately flew his airliner into a mountainside last year had struggled with learning to fly and had failed a key test of his flying skills during his U.S. training, but was promoted anyway. (AP Photo) NO SALES
One instructor, Juergen Theerkorn, described Lubitz as "not an ace pilot," and said he failed one flight test because of a "situational awareness issue." In aviation, loss of situational awareness usually means a pilot becomes absorbed in something and loses track of what else is happening with the plane.
Another instructor, Scott Nickell, told the FBI that Lubitz lacked "procedural knowledge" and had trouble with splitting his attention between instruments inside the plane and watching what was happening outside. But while Lubitz struggled with training, he would achieve passing scores enabling him to continue the program, Nickell said.
Lubitz failed one of five check rides, which are important tests of a pilot's flying skills, and one of 67 training flights, Matthias Kippenberg, president and CEO of the Airline Training Center Arizona, told the FBI. However, Kippenberg dismissed the failures as unremarkable, saying students are given the opportunity to retake the tests. Only 1 or 2 percent of students fail to be promoted, he said.
The FBI conducted the interviews a week after the March 24, 2015, crash. Summaries were only recently released by prosecutors in Germany, according to attorneys with Kriendler & Kriendler in New York, who are representing the families in a lawsuit against the flight school. The lawyers provided copies to The Associated Press.
Officials for Lufthansa and the flight school didn't immediately reply to requests for comment.
An investigation has revealed that Lubitz was being treated for a relapse of severe depression and suicidal tendencies but had hid the information from Germanwings.
Germany's strict patient privacy laws didn't allow doctors to share medical information with an employer without the patient's permission.
Lubitz had had a previous bout of depression in 2008 and had informed Lufthansa, taking a leave of absence two months after starting ground school training in Germany. He was allowed to resume training ten months later after providing a statement from his doctor that he had recovered.
Lubitz was originally scheduled to begin his training at the flight school in Arizona in September 2009, but was rescheduled for September 2010. He didn't actually start until November. Lufthansa told the school in an email that the delay was due to "a long illness," Sherri Harwood, the school's administrative services manager, told the FBI.
The FBI summaries don't contain a copy of that email, so it's not known whether Lufthansa told the school the nature of Lubitz's illness, said Brian Alexander, one of the attorneys representing the families.
The FBI interviews show that flight school officials "acknowledge knowing (Lubitz) struggled in training, had a long illness and was delayed for over a year," Alexander said. "They also admit he failed a check ride due to a loss of situational awareness, which may very well have been caused by the very same anxiety and severe depression which were symptoms of his mental health disorder."
It remains unclear what specific information the school had about Lubitz' medical condition. But If the school had checked, Alexander said, it might have learned that German authorities had twice turned down applications from Lubitz for a pilot medical certificate because of his history of depression before issuing him a certificate in July 2009. That certificate stated it would become invalid if he had a relapse.
In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration also initially declined to grant Lubitz a student pilot medical certificate because he said on his application that he hadn't been treated for any mental disorders, and he failed to list doctors who had treated him as required. After a medical examiner working for the FAA in Germany caught the discrepancy, Lubitz refiled a corrected application.
The FAA could have refused to issue the certificate because Lubitz lied on the application, but he was allowed to provide a statement from his doctor that he was fit to fly and that medications for depression had been discontinued.
John Goglia, an aviation safety expert and former National Transportation Safety Board member, agreed with attorneys that Lubitz's struggles were a warning that should have caused the school to look closer, although "not a bright red one." It's not unusual for students to fail a single check ride, he said.
The school's washout rate of only 1 or 2 percent seems low, he said.
___


WASHINGTON (AP) — The German pilot who deliberately flew his airliner into a mountainside last year had struggled with learning to fly and had failed a key t...


Suicidal Germanwings pilot had struggled in US flight school


TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly higher Tuesday as hopes continued for a U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hike later this year.
KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was virtually unchanged at 16,739.49 in morning trading, losing earlier gains as the dollar weakened again. A strong dollar is a boon for Japanese exporters. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.8 percent to 2,047.93 in early trading. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.7 percent to 22,989.13, while the Shanghai Composite inched up nearly 0.1 percent to 3,072.23.
WALL STREET: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 107.59 points, or 0.6 percent, to 18,502.99. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index climbed 11.34 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,180.38. The Nasdaq composite edged up 13.41 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,232.33.
FED FACTOR: Major U.S. banks posted solid gains on Wall Street as traders bet that the Fed was likely to nudge interest rates higher in December or even at its next policy meeting in September. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told a conference last week that the case for raising rates was strengthening given improvements in the economy.
THE QUOTE: “The Federal Reserve’s rate-hike decision is largely based on three main indicators: the performance of the labor market, economic activity and inflation. In light of strong jobs reports over the last two months, the likelihood of an impending rate hike has substantially increased,” said Margaret Yang Yan, market analyst at CMC Markets Singapore.
JOBS DATA: Global markets are awaiting the U.S. Labor Department monthly jobs data, being released Friday, for signs on whether a U.S. recovery is on solid footing. Data on Japan released Tuesday showed an improvement in unemployment, but worries about growth momentum remain.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose 13 cents to $47.11. It had fallen 66 cents to $46.98 a barrel Monday. Brent crude, used to price oil internationally, added 6 cents to $49.51 a barrel.
CURRENCIES: The dollar stood unchanged from late Monday at 102.21. The euro was also unchanged at $ 1.1177.
___
AP Business Writer Seth Sutel contributed to this report.
Follow Yuri Kageyama on Twitter at https://twitter.com/yurikageyama
Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/yuri-kageyama

Asian stocks mostly rise on hopes for higher US rates


CENTENARY, Ohio — What a way to start.
The Gallia Academy volleyball team — which won it’s first 18 games of 2015 — earned its first victory of 2016 in straight games over Ohio Valley Conference guest Chesapeake, on Thursday night in Gallia County.
The Blue Angels (1-0, 1-0 OVC) never trailed in the first game, which they won by a 25-6 margin. The first game was capped off by 12 consecutive service points by GAHS senior Ryleigh Caldwell.
Gallia Academy followed up its convincing first game win with another lopsided triumph in the second game. The Blue Angels never trailed in the second, rolling to a 25-9 victory highlighted by eight consecutive service points by senior libero Brooke Pasquale.
Chesapeake took its first lead of the night at 3-2 in the third game, but GAHS immediately took the advantage back at 4-3. The Blue Angels’ lead was short-lived, however, as the Lady Panthers took the advantage at 6-5 and expanded it out to 13-6.
GAHS began to battle back, tied the game at 18 and eventually took the lead at 20-19. The Blue Angels never relinquished that lead, marching on to a 25-21 victory to complete the 3-0 sweep.
“I was real impressed,” third-year GAHS head coach Janice Rosier said of being able to bounce back in the third game. “I have a lot of seniors out there and they led like they should have. Ryleigh Caldwell had a couple of key hits that brought us back in the game and they all played very well to bring ourselves back.”
Carly Shriver led the GAHS service attack with 14 points and two aces. Caldwell finished with 12 points and three aces, Pasquale and Peri Martin each had eight points and two aces, while Jenna Meadows finished with six points. Ashton Webb marked four points, while Grace Martin contributed three service points to the victors’ total.
Webb led GAHS at the net with eight kills and two blocks, followed by Grace Martin with six kills and two blocks. Caldwell, Meadows and Alex Barnes each had four kills, with Barnes marking two blocks and Caldwell adding one. Hannah McCormick added one kill for GAHS, Shriver had a majority of the team’s assists, while Meadows led the defense with 15 digs.
“Tonight, I think what really got us fired up was that our blocking was on,” Rosier said. “We’ve been working really hard on blocking in practice, because we struggled with it during preseason. It showed tonight that it has improved a great deal.”
Chesapeake was led by Karli Davis with seven service points and Natalee Hall with five. Jozy Jones marked two points for the Lady Panthers, while Jaylynn Pine, Rachel Prat and Brooke Webb each posted one service point.
These teams will play again on September 22, in Chesapeake.
After Saturday’s Athens Invitational, the Blue Angels will resume their OVC title defense on Tuesday, when Fairland visits Centenary.
Alex Hawley can be reached at 740-446-2342, ext. 2100.
Gallia Academy senior Ryleigh Caldwell (1) attempts a spike over Chesapeake’s Karli Davis (2) during the Blue Angels’ OVC victory, in Centenary on Thursday. http://mydailyregister.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_8.27-GA-Caldwell.jpg Gallia Academy senior Ryleigh Caldwell (1) attempts a spike over Chesapeake’s Karli Davis (2) during the Blue Angels’ OVC victory, in Centenary on Thursday. Alex Hawley/OVP Sports


CENTENARY, Ohio — What a way to start.
The Gallia Academy volleyball team — which won it’s first 18 games of 2015 — earned its first victory of 2016 in straight games over Ohio Valley Conference guest Chesapeake, on Thursday night in Gallia County.
The Blue Angels (1-0, 1-0 OVC) never trailed in the first game, which they won by a 25-6 margin. The first game was capped off by 12 consecutive service points by GAHS senior Ryleigh Caldwell.
Gallia Academy followed up its convincing first game win with another lopsided triumph in the second game. The Blue Angels never trailed in the second, rolling to a 25-9 victory highlighted by eight consecutive service points by senior libero Brooke Pasquale.
Chesapeake took its first lead of the night at 3-2 in the third game, but GAHS immediately took the advantage back at 4-3. The Blue Angels’ lead was short-lived, however, as the Lady Panthers took the advantage at 6-5 and expanded it out to 13-6.
GAHS began to battle back, tied the game at 18 and eventually took the lead at 20-19. The Blue Angels never relinquished that lead, marching on to a 25-21 victory to complete the 3-0 sweep.
“I was real impressed,” third-year GAHS head coach Janice Rosier said of being able to bounce back in the third game. “I have a lot of seniors out there and they led like they should have. Ryleigh Caldwell had a couple of key hits that brought us back in the game and they all played very well to bring ourselves back.”
Carly Shriver led the GAHS service attack with 14 points and two aces. Caldwell finished with 12 points and three aces, Pasquale and Peri Martin each had eight points and two aces, while Jenna Meadows finished with six points. Ashton Webb marked four points, while Grace Martin contributed three service points to the victors’ total.
Webb led GAHS at the net with eight kills and two blocks, followed by Grace Martin with six kills and two blocks. Caldwell, Meadows and Alex Barnes each had four kills, with Barnes marking two blocks and Caldwell adding one. Hannah McCormick added one kill for GAHS, Shriver had a majority of the team’s assists, while Meadows led the defense with 15 digs.
“Tonight, I think what really got us fired up was that our blocking was on,” Rosier said. “We’ve been working really hard on blocking in practice, because we struggled with it during preseason. It showed tonight that it has improved a great deal.”
Chesapeake was led by Karli Davis with seven service points and Natalee Hall with five. Jozy Jones marked two points for the Lady Panthers, while Jaylynn Pine, Rachel Prat and Brooke Webb each posted one service point.
These teams will play again on September 22, in Chesapeake.
After Saturday’s Athens Invitational, the Blue Angels will resume their OVC title defense on Tuesday, when Fairland visits Centenary.
Alex Hawley can be reached at 740-446-2342, ext. 2100.
Gallia Academy senior Ryleigh Caldwell (1) attempts a spike over Chesapeake’s Karli Davis (2) during the Blue Angels’ OVC victory, in Centenary on Thursday. http://mydailysentinel.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/web1_8.27-GA-Caldwell.jpg Gallia Academy senior Ryleigh Caldwell (1) attempts a spike over Chesapeake’s Karli Davis (2) during the Blue Angels’ OVC victory, in Centenary on Thursday. Alex Hawley/OVP Sports


Century-old cinema decked out with latest technology
David Unwin/ Stuff Majestic Cinema in Taihape is upgrading its technology to digital which will allow it to show the latest movies.
A historic provincial cinema has had its lifeline to Hollywood reconnected.
While many boutique and smalltown cinemas have struggled to keep the curtain raised, The Majestic Theatre in Taihape is set to roll out the red carpet for the latest Hollywood blockbusters after raising $80,000 to upgrade to a digitised projection system.
The cinema, which is open three days a week, ran out of new movies to screen in 2014, unable to keep pace with the industry's progression from film projectors to digital systems. It was reduced to playing DVDs.
David Unwin/Fairfax NZ The Majestic Theatre in Taihape is to get a $80,000 to upgrade to a digitised projection system. Left, manager Simone Simpson and Gail Larsen, chairwoman of the theatre's management committee.
The money took two years to raise, with the cinema applying for grants and trying several novel fundraising ideas, such as asking farmers to donate the proceeds from lamb and ewe sales.
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The Majestic Theatre manager Simone Simpson said a digital projector had now been bought and was on site, but they were waiting on the sound system to arrive from overseas.
David Unwin/Fairfax NZ Hollywood blockbusters are on their way back to Taihape's Majestic Theatre.
The new system is expected to be up and running by the end of November and screening the summer blockbusters.
"We'll have new speakers, more surround sound and the quality will be better. With the higher resolution the experience is just going to be so much better.
"We can now show all the blockbusters and I imagine it's going to go off very well."
The upgrade is a boost for movie-buffs in the provinces, where cinemas have struggled to remain viable amid changing technology and viewer habits.
The Regent in Pahiatua was saved in 2014 when the Central Energy Trust provided it with an $80,000 grant to upgrade to digital, while its namesake in Dannevirke has been closed since 2012. In the same year Reading shut down its multiplex in Hastings and two cinemas closed in Hamilton.
Simpson said The Majestic still had to secure rights to show films from distribution companies such as Disney and Roadshow Films. Once the theatre had secured those rights they could plan for an opening weekend to debut the new theatre.
"In the past, Taihape people have either had to go to Whanganui or Palmerston North to watch movies and if you're taking a family it soon turns into a daytrip and gets very expensive."
Simpson said the theatre had no plans to increase its prices and would remain $12 for an adult and $10 for a student.
"We want to be affordable and we want people coming through the doors."
It was decked out with new carpet and seats eight years ago, and Simpson said they would like to make further upgrades in the coming years.
"Because we're a heritage building we've got to keep the old look, but there are little elements I think we'll look to modernise in the future."
The cinema, which was almost demolished in 1998 before being rescued by the Taihape Heritage Trust, celebrates its centenary next year.
It is the second cinema to occupy the site after the first one, built in 1912, burnt down in 1916. The current building was opened in 1917 under the name Kings Theatre which was changed to The Majestic in 1929 after a change of ownership.
- Stuff


Unable to keep pace with technology, this rural cinema was stuck playing old movies.


Century-old cinema decked out with latest technology


Mylan will start selling a cheaper version of its EpiPen after absorbing waves of criticism over a list price for the emergency allergy treatment that has grown to $608 for a two-pack, making it unaffordable for many patients.
The drugmaker says it will launch in several weeks a generic EpiPen version that is identical to the branded option but will have a list price of $300 for a two-pack.
It will be available in both 0.15-milligram and 0.30-milligram strengths, like the current version on the market.
EpiPens are used in emergencies to treat severe allergies to insect bites and foods like nuts and eggs that can lead to anaphylactic shock. People usually keep a number of EpiPens handy at home, school or work. The syringes, prefilled with the hormone epinephrine, expire after a year.
Consumers and politicians have accused the company of price-gouging, since the list price for a pair of EpiPens has climbed repeatedly from around $94 in 2007, when Mylan acquired the product.
Mylan CEO Heather Bresch defended the price hikes last week, saying the company only received $274 of the total price for a twin-package while insurers, pharmacies and other parties divvy up the rest.
Last week, Mylan said it was expanding programs that help people pay for EpiPens. It doubled the limit for eligibility for its patient assistance program, so a family of four making up to $97,200 would pay nothing out of pocket. It also said it will offer $300 copay cards, up from the current $100 per-prescription savings.
A company representative said Monday that the $300 cards would be available only for the branded version, but patients could use its assistance program for both the branded and generic versions of the medicine.
How much an individual pays for an EpiPen prescription can depend on insurance coverage.
Pharmacy benefits managers, which negotiate drug prices for insurers and employers, often get discounts off a drug’s list price, and patient out-of-pocket costs can vary by plan. For instance, customers of Express Scripts Holding Co., the nation’s largest prescription benefits manager, pay $73.50 on average, a price the company has kept fairly stable for a couple years.
Mylan said that last year, nearly 80 percent of its patients with commercial insurance paid nothing out of pocket for an EpiPen prescription due to its savings card.
Uninsured patients or those with high-deductible coverage might be stuck paying the full price for the prescription, if they are unaware of Mylan’s savings options. High deductible coverage can require patients to pay thousands of dollars toward medical care or prescriptions before most coverage kicks in.
Mylan specializes in selling generic drugs, which are lower-priced equivalents to branded medications. Launching a generic version of the EpiPen can help the drugmaker protect its market share from competition.
Mylan’s announcement Monday comes a few days after the compounding pharmacy Imprimis Pharmaceuticals said it might be able to sell a version of the allergy treatment in a few months and would likely charge around $100 for two injectors.
There is currently little competition for EpiPen, with the only rival product being Adrenaclick, which carries a list price of $461. But that could change.
At least two companies are trying to get U.S. approval to sell a rival brand or generic version of EpiPen. None is likely to hit the U.S. market until well into next year.
Numerous members of Congress and other politicians have called for congressional hearings on Mylan’s pricing, an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission and action by the Food and Drug Administration to increase competition by speeding up approvals of any rival products.
Shares of Mylan NV slipped 34 cents to $42.69 in morning trading Monday, while broader indexes rose slightly.
___
AP Business Writers Damian Troise and Michelle Chapman contributed to this report from New York. AP Medical Writer Linda A. Johnson contributed from Trenton, New Jersey. Murphy contributed from Indianapolis.

Mylan launching cheaper, generic version of EpiPen


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GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Deputies in South Carolina have increased patrols after getting new reports of people dressed as clowns trying to lure children into the woods.
News outlets report that Greenville County sheriff’s deputies were called to an apartment complex about 8:20 p.m. Monday that is about 20 minutes from a complex where people reporting seeing clowns last week.
Deputies responding to the report last week said they found no evidence of anyone in the woods behind Fleetwood Manor Apartments.
A family who called Monday night from Emerald Commons apartments said a child saw a man wearing a clown mask in woods near the complex.
Deputies said there was a third report of someone dressed as a clown about 10 p.m. at Shemwood Apartments.
A 12-year-old told deputies that two clowns were in the backyard area.

More reports of clowns in woods in South Carolina


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The M6 southbound was blocked in Lancashire this afternoon after a “serious” traffic accident in which a teenage male was hit by a vehicle.
The North West air ambulance was called to the scene between junction 28 at Leyland and junction 27 at Standish
Picture and video supplied by Jack
Police closed all three lanes.
The road was blocked and queuing traffic was reported at 2pm.
Motorists were warned to expect delays on the M6 and on surrounding routes.
Police said this afternoon the motorway would remain closed for “several hours”.
The northbound carriageway was briefly closed but was reopened about 2.30pm.
Lancashire police said: “The M6 has been closed southbound at J28 following an incident.
“We are advising motorists to avoid the area and use alternative routes.”
The “serious” incident happened on the M6 southbound close to Charnock Richard Services.
Police were called at approximately 1.45pm to reports a pedestrian had been involved in a collision with a vehicle. The pedestrian is critically injured.
Chief Insp Damian Kitchen, of Lancashire Police, said: “We recognise the disruption this is causing and are working hard to re-open the road as soon as possible.
“However, at this time of day, delays through rush hour and beyond are inevitable.
“Please plan either alternate routes or delay your journey. Surrounding roads and towns are also likely to become congested.”
The motorway was finally reopened at about 5.30pm.

UPDATED: M6 reopens in Lancashire after pedestrian hit by vehicle


The M6 southbound was blocked in Lancashire this afternoon after a “serious” traffic accident in which a teenage male was hit by a vehicle.


LEXINGTON, Miss. — A man has been arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in connection with the deaths of two nuns who were slain in Mississippi, police said.
Rodney Earl Sanders, 46, of Kosciusko, was charged in the deaths of Sister Margaret Held and Sister Paula Merrill, both 68, Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesman Warren Strain said in a statement released late Friday night.
Their bodies were discovered Thursday after they failed to show up for work at a clinic in Lexington, Mississippi, about 10 miles from where they lived.
“Sanders was developed as a person of interest early on in the investigation,” Lt. Colonel Jimmy Jordan said in the statement.
Sanders was being held in an undisclosed detention center awaiting his initial court appearance.
Related Articles August 26, 2016 Killing of 2 nuns leaves gaping hole in poor community
Meanwhile, in the poverty-stricken Mississippi county where the two nuns were slain, forgiveness for their killer is hard to find, even if forgiveness is what the victims would have wanted.
Sisters Margaret Held and Paula Merrill were nurse practitioners who dedicated their lives to providing health care to people in the poorest county in the state. And as authorities sought the killer, many residents wondered how they will fill the hole the women’s deaths have left.
“Right now, I don’t see no forgiveness on my heart,” said Joe Morgan Jr., a 58-year-old former factory worker who has diabetes and was a patient of Merrill’s at the clinic where the two nuns worked.
He said Merrill would want him to forgive whoever killed the women, but he hopes the perpetrator is arrested, convicted and executed.
“She doesn’t deserve to die like this, doing God’s work,” Morgan said, shaking his head. “There’s something wrong with the world.”
Both women worked Man, 46, faces 2 at the clinic, where they gave flu shots, dispensed insulin and provided other medical care for children and adults who couldn’t afford it.
Their stolen car was found abandoned a mile from their home, and there were signs of a break-in, but police haven’t disclosed a motive.
Authorities have not said how the women were killed, but the Rev. Greg Plata of St. Thomas Catholic Church in Lexington, where the nuns had led Bible study for years, said police told him they were stabbed.
The state posted a reward of $20,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
Plata said both nuns’ religious communities have asked that people pray for the killer or killers. Asked about people’s struggles to forgive, the priest said: “Forgiveness is at the heart of being a Christian. Look at Jesus on the cross: ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.'”
On Friday, a handwritten sign on the front door of Lexington Medical Clinic said it was closed until Monday.
The clinic and the nuns’ home in Durant are in Holmes County, population 18,000. With 44 percent of its residents living in poverty, Holmes is the seventh-poorest county in America, according to the Census Bureau.
The slayings did more than shock people and plunge the county into mourning. They leave a gaping hole in what was already a strapped health care system.
Dr. Elias Abboud, who worked with the sisters for years and helped build the clinic, said it provided about 25 percent of all medical care in the county.
The two nuns cultivated relationships with drug company representatives, who often left extra free samples, according to clinic manager Lisa Dew.
“This is a poor area, and they dignified those who are poor with outreach and respect for them,” Plata said. “They treated each person as a child of God.”
Merrill’s sister Rosemarie, speaking by telephone from her Stoneham, Massachusetts, home, said her sister had been in Mississippi helping the poor since 1981 and had previously worked in Holly Springs, where she used to ride around on a moped and was instrumental in locating the source of a tuberculosis outbreak.
Merrill was raised in the suburbs of Boston and came from a working-class family, her father a laborer and her mother a bookkeeper, her nephew David said. He said his aunt had worked with Held for many years.
“We always considered Margaret just part of the family,” he said. “The word ‘sister’ has many meanings, and they fulfilled all of them.”
Rosemarie Merrill said she doesn’t know what will happen to the clinic now and worries about the effect on health care in Holmes County. She said her sister and Held would often go into the clinic on Sundays after Mass or on their days off.
“It’s just going to be a disaster,” she said.
Genette Pierce, who works at a home health and hospice business a few doors down from the clinic, said: “Their patients — all of them — they’re going to be lost without them right now.”
___
Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana in New Orleans contributed to this report.

Man faces 2 capital murder charges in Mississippi nun deaths


A man has been arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in connection with the deaths of two nuns who were slain in Mississippi, police said.


NEW YORK (AP) — Charles Osgood, who has said “good morning” to his audience every Sunday for 22 years, is about to say “goodbye” as host of “CBS News Sunday Morning” in September.
He announced his scheduled Sept. 25 farewell on Sunday’s edition. That broadcast will be a tribute to Osgood’s legacy on and off “Sunday Morning.”
But after that, he won’t be absent from the program, he assured viewers, explaining he will be on hand for occasional appearances.
“For years now, people — even friends and family — have been asking me why I continue doing this, considering my age,” the 84-year-old Osgood said in brief concluding remarks. “It’s just that it’s been such a joy doing it! It’s been a great run, but after nearly 50 years at CBS … the time has come.”
And then he sang a few wistful bars from a favorite folk song: “So long, it’s been good to know you. I’ve got to be driftin’ along.”
No successor has been named. Among those under consideration are reportedly “Sunday Morning” colleagues Jane Pauley, Anthony Mason and Lee Cowan.
Meanwhile, the program continues to be a ratings leader. With a year-to-date audience of nearly 6 million viewers, it consistently tops rival Sunday morning news programs.
“(Osgood) has one of the most distinctive voices in broadcasting, guiding each broadcast, making sure the words were just right, and being a calming, reassuring presence to our viewers,” said CBS News president David Rhodes.
He is exiting a job only one other person has held since “Sunday Morning” premiered in 1979. Charles Kuralt retired in 1994 after crafting the job in his own folksy, easygoing image and hosting for 15 years.
Osgood seemingly had an impossible act to follow. But with his folksy erudition and his slightly bookish, bow-tied style, he immediately clicked with viewers who continued to embrace the program as an unhurried TV magazine that, as before, seemed defined only by its host’s, and staff’s, curiosity.
Even then, Osgood was already a CBS veteran.
In 1967, he took a job as reporter on the CBS-owned New York news radio station. Then, one fateful weekend, he was summoned to fill in at the anchor desk for the TV network’s Saturday newscast.
In 1971, he joined the CBS network.
Since then, he has proved to be a broadcaster who can write essays and light verse as well as report hard news, a man who has continued to work in both radio and television with equal facility. (He once described himself as “a radio guy who finally stopped being terrified of the camera.”)
He has been an anchor and reporter for many CBS News broadcasts on both TV and radio. He has long delivered “The Osgood File” on radio, and will continue to do so, where, if the mood strikes, he might sing another song.

CBS’ Charles Osgood to end 22 years as ‘Sunday Morning’ host


Simone Biles became the women's individual all-round Olympic champion Teammate Aly Raisman earned silver, making up for her disappointment four years ago in London Fiji won its first ever Olympic medal, winning gold in rugby sevens Michael Phelps won his 22nd gold medal, crushing the opposition in the 200m individual medley. Simone Manuel dead-heated with Penny Oleksiak to share victory in the women's 100m freestyle and become the first African-American woman to win an individual Olympic swimming gold.


Amatrice, Italy (AP) — Italian authorities are vowing to investigate whether negligence or fraud in adhering to building codes played a role in the high death toll in last week’s earthquake in Italy.
They also called for efforts to ensure organized crime doesn’t infiltrate lucrative construction contracts to eventually rebuild much of the picturesque towns leveled in the disaster.
Meanwhile, rescue workers pressed on with the task of recovering bodies from the rubble, with hopes of finding any more survivors virtually vanished more than four full days after the powerful quake.
Over the past two days, they found six more bodies in the rubble of Hotel Roma in Amatrice, the medieval hill town in mountainous central Italy that bore the brunt of destruction and loss of life in the powerful quake. They recovered three and by late Sunday were still working to retrieve others that were hard to reach.
It wasn’t clear if those six were included in the overall 290 death toll given by authorities. The Civil Protection agency, which combines the figures it receives from different provinces affected by the quake, said the number is lower than the previous toll of 291 dead due to a correction in the numbers from the province of Rieti, where most of the victims died.
The quake that struck before dawn Wednesday also injured nearly 400 people as it flattened three medieval towns near the rugged Apennines. Prosecutor Giuseppe Saieva, based in the nearby provincial capital of Rieti, said the high human death toll “cannot only be considered the work of fate.”
“The fault lines tragically did their work and this is called destiny, but if the buildings had been built like in Japan they would not have collapsed,” Saieva said in comments carried by Italian media.
Investigations are focusing on a number of structures, including an elementary school in Amatrice that crumbled despite being renovated in 2012 to resist earthquakes at a cost of 700,000 euros ($785,000). With schoolchildren’s summer vacations in their final weeks, the school wasn’t yet in use. Many were shocked that it didn’t withstand the 6.2 magnitude quake.
After an entire first-grade class and a teacher were killed in a 2002 quake in the southern town of San Giuliano di Puglia, Italian officials had pledged citizens that the safety of schools, hospitals and other critical public buildings would be guaranteed.
Questions also surround a bell tower in Accumoli that collapsed, killing a family of four sleeping in a neighboring house, including a baby of 8 months and a 7-year-old boy. That bell tower also had been recently restored with special funds allocated after Italy’s last major earthquake, which struck nearby L’Aquila in 2009.
Italy’s national anti-Mafia prosecutor, Franco Roberti, vowed to work to prevent organized crime from infiltrating public works projects which will be eventually begun to rebuild the earthquake zone.
“This risk of infiltration is always high,” he said in comments Sunday in La Repubblica newspaper. “Post-earthquake reconstruction is historically a tempting morsel for criminal groups and colluding business interests.”
Deadly quakes that have led to criminal investigations into alleged misuse of funds or corruption involving awarding of construction contracts include the 1980 temblor in the Naples area and a 2009 quake in L’Aquila, central Italy.
Roberti noted he wasn’t involved in the local prosecutors’ probes into last week’s quake. But he added that if buildings are well-constructed according to regulations for earthquake-prone zones, “parts of buildings can be damaged and cracked but they don’t pulverize and implode.”
Italy’s national museums, meanwhile, embarked on a fundraising campaign, donating their Sunday proceeds to relief and reconstruction efforts in the quake-stricken areas.
Besides homes and low-rise apartment buildings, Wednesday’s quake badly damaged scores of churches, town halls, bell towers and other centuries-old cultural treasures. The idea is to use art for art — harnessing the nation’s rich artistic heritage to help repair and restore other objects of beauty in the hard-hit towns.
“It’s a way to rediscover our cultural heritage, to give our small but significant contribution so that endangered artwork that was gravely damaged may have a new chance, be restored and recovered,” Cristiana Collu, the director of Rome’s National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art Museum, said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Also Sunday, Pope Francis told faithful in St. Peter’s Square he hopes to soon visit people in the quake-ravaged regions to bring them “the comfort of faith.”
Amatrice bore the brunt of earthquake’s destruction, with at least 229 fatalities and its medieval heart nearly obliterated. Eleven others died in nearby Accumoli and 50 more in Arquata del Tronto, 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Amatrice.
On Saturday, a state funeral took place for 35 of the victims in the town of Ascoli Piceno, which escaped the heavy damage of other towns in the region. That funeral involved most of the dead from Arquata del Tronto. Some of the dead from Amatrice were still in the town’s makeshift morgue. Identified bodies were being kept in refrigerated trucks in an airport hangar in Rieti, 65 kilometers (40 miles) away. On Tuesday, a memorial service — without the bodies — will be held for the dead of Amatrice on the town’s outskirts.
The last survivor was extracted from rubble on Wednesday evening, and hopes have virtually vanished of finding any living in the ruins.
The number still missing is uncertain, due to the many visitors seeking a last taste of summer in the cool hill towns when the quake struck.
The quake left a few thousand people without homes, with nearly 2,700 hosted in a total of 58 tent “towns” set up on the outskirts of the ravaged areas, or improvised shelters, like a gym with a basketball court in Amatrice.
They continue to be rattled by aftershocks. There have been more than 2,000 since the initial quake, one having a magnitude higher than 5 and 12 between 4- and 5-magnitude. A tremor Saturday afternoon caused further damage to the school in Amatrice.
Countless more who fled damaged homes — or even the ones without any heavy damage — went to stay with relatives in Rome and other Italian cities.

Italy probes whether negligence played role in quake toll


EXPAND 20th Century Fox
Nepotism is occasionally a positive, and not just for the direct beneficiary. Ridley Scott gave us Alien, with heroine Ripley and a memorable cast of ne’er-do-wells and villains with defined personalities. And now Scott’s son, Luke, who’s been shadowing his dad on his last few big-budget films, has delivered unto us a sci-fi thriller that would make any father proud. Morgan isn’t perfect. I called the ending 20 minutes in, but even if his film's plot is predictable, the younger Scott is returning the ensemble thriller to its roots with something far more important than an airtight story: compelling, well-drawn characters and the talented actors to play them!
Looking at this cast list gives me life. Toby Jones, an elastic, perennial entertainer who was a knockout in this year’s indie fantasia masterpiece Tale of Tales, is Dr. Ziegler, the gentle, misguided scientist/father figure to a genetically modified child, Morgan. Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) is Dr. Cheng, the cautious and concerned “mother” to said creature. Rose Leslie, who was eerie and terrifying in 2014’s psychologically haunting Honeymoon, is Dr. Amy Menser, a highly emotional behaviorist who' grown far too attached to Morgan. The GMO killer teen is played by Anya Taylor-Joy, the breakout lead in horror hit The Witch. All Morgan wants is to be human and free, but she can’t shake her inclination to maim her scientist friends.
Film Details Critics' Pick Morgan Rating: NR Genre: Horror More Info Trailer
Also, Jennifer Jason Fucking Leigh is in this movie as Dr. Kathy Grieff, who loses an eye pretty quickly to Morgan’s stabbing prowess. And then there’s Vinette Robinson (Sherlock) and Chris Sullivan (The Knick) as Drs. Finch, the odd-couple pairing of the straitlaced wife and big-friendly-bear husband. Top this all off with Kate Mara (who’s clearly taken some action-star tips from her sister Rooney’s turn in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) playing Lee Weathers, the corporate “risk-assessment” contractor/assassin, and I doubt any movie this year will even come near the greatness of this ensemble. Thanks should be given to casting director Carmen Cuba, who also graced her people-finding faculties upon Netflix’s nostalgia megahit Stranger Things (plus The Martian and Magic Mike, among others).
This signals a welcome move away, for a studio film, from putting onscreen the simply beautiful. Scott instead showcases those talented actors with interesting faces who can make any flat line ring. (FYI, we’re talking about a lot of women and multiple nonwhite actors here, too.) Leigh’s only got a few spare minutes in the film, but she’s gruff and difficult and takes a punch with charisma. And even though the script doesn’t give him much to work with, Jones reveals the character of his troubled scientist through nervous mannerisms and protective glances at his humanoid creation through the bulletproof glass of her cold, Ikea-like prison. The scientists all needle in their own ways at Lee, stressing that Morgan is “special,” that she’s more human than she’ll ever understand, but they all know the hard truth: Lee’s there to kill her.
EXPAND He's still not drinking any fuckin' Merlot. 20th Century Fox
Yes, this is a well-worn premise. Off the top of my head, the Species franchise and Hanna (2011) also feature a GMO girl assassin no one can control. And though somewhat unsung at its release, Hanna probably tackles the thriller elements better than Scott does with Morgan — that film doesn’t bother with relaying backstory by having a character watch home movies that clearly don’t look like home movies. But Scott’s challenge here is to create tension in a single location, a country house in mossy-green remote Northern Ireland. He does so by smartly saving his big set pieces for the last half of the movie.
A comparison could be made to Alex Garland’s Ex Machina, whose O.O.C. girl robot spends most of the movie simply threatening menace with an occasional dead-eyed stare into a security camera. Scott makes this film's premise float on its drama (you can do that with good actors), only spicing the narrative with hints of Morgan’s true deadliness. Paul Goddamn Giamatti, as a psychologist who has come to assess her viability as a controlled “product,” gets subjected to a particularly gruesome bout of violence, all as Scott ramps up this tension to its breaking point (with a dash of humor!).
Something has to be said for the costume designer of this film, Stefano De Nardis, who dresses each character to a T, pun intended. Lee sports both formal and casual ninja-wear that still looks like something a real-world non-ninja might wear. Placing the murderous teen girl in a baggy, gray-scale sweatsuit is a stroke of genius, especially for close-up shots, where her icy makeup job contrasts with the fuzzy, textured wool of her hoodie.
Morgan, in many ways, is a copy of a copy. But what Scott is copying is his father’s early films, highly worthy originals. Will the film be considered an instant classic, like the elder Scott's? Probably not. But it will be enjoyed, because the biggest lesson Scott seems to have picked up from his dad is the old Hollywood way of doing things, where the team a director assembles is just as important as a director's own individual vision. I, for one, am greatly looking forward to this ambitious young filmmaker’s next sci-fi feature (rumored to be a zombie version of the Donner Party story!).


Morgan has something far more important than an airtight story: compelling, well-drawn characters and the talented actors to play them.


Apple on Monday sent out invitations to a “special event” on September 7 in San Francisco, where it is expected to unveil a new iPhone model.
In the company’s usual enigmatic style, it provided little more that the date, time and place to the invitation-only gathering set for the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium near San Francisco City Hall.
Apple has maintained a rhythm of introducing updated iPhone models on an annual basis, timing introductions to coincide with the year-end holiday shopping season.
Rumors include talk of an ‘iPhone 7’ that will boast improvements to software, cameras and processing speed along with doing away with jacks for plugging in wired headphones.
California-based Apple could also use the event to showcase updates to other products, such as its smartwatch and laptop computers.

Apple to unveil new iPhone model on September 7


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