CharlieH

Not really a Visa question, better to ask in the local forum for road conditions. MOVED

CLOSED.

Ukraine and Russia have announced the largest exchange of prisoners since the start of the war, involving the return of more than 200 soldiers from each side in a deal mediated by the United Arab Emirates. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said on Wednesday in a message on social media, along with images of some of the freed PoWs: “230 of our people. Today, 213 soldiers and sergeants, 11 officers, and six civilians returned home.” Zelenskiy said some of the returned soldiers had “fought in Mariupol and Azovstal”, referring to the siege of the Azovstal steel plant during the Ukrainian defence of Mariupol, a southern Ukrainian port city now occupied by Russia. Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement that 248 Russian prisoners of war had been returned from Ukraine as a result of “complex” negotiations involving “humanitarian mediation” by the UAE. Abu Dhabi, which retains friendly relations with Moscow, was last year similarly involved in helping mediate a sensitive prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine involving dozens of PoWs on each side. Russia and Ukraine have periodically exchanged groups of prisoners in the course of the war, which is now in its 22nd month, but the swaps have become less frequent and the last took place in early August. At the time, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said 2,576 Ukrainians had been freed in prisoner swaps since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. More than 4,000 Ukrainian service personnel are believed to remain in captivity in Russia as prisoners of war, but the precise numbers of PoWs on the Ukrainian and Russian sides remain unknown as the military of neither country discloses such data. Ukrainian families are often deprived of even elementary information about their location and wellbeing. Prisoners who have returned in exchanges have given extensive accounts of mistreatment, humiliation and torture in Russian captivity. FULL STORY

A US court has released a list of people connected to the financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Some of those named are accused of wrongdoing, while others on the list - which was expected to include some high-profile individuals - are making allegations or are potential witnesses. A judge ordered the release as part of a lawsuit related to Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell. She is serving a 20-year jail term for crimes she committed with Epstein. The BBC is currently reviewing the 943 pages of documents, which were released on Wednesday evening. Some of the 187 people who were previously known as "J Doe" in court papers have been identified. But other names have remained sealed, including those belonging to child victims. When ordering the release of the list, New York Judge Loretta Preska said many of those named in the lawsuit had already been identified by the media or in Maxwell's criminal trial. She added that many others did not raise an objection to the release of the documents. Source

So someone who isnt even on the forum won, a previously banned figment of the imagination, well done,. Never even made a post and wins POTY...

On Wednesday, a tragic incident unfolded in the Iranian city of Kerman, resulting in the loss of at least 103 lives and leaving 141 individuals injured, as reported by state media. The calamity occurred near the burial site of the late military commander Qasem Soleimani and has been labeled a terror attack by officials. The initial explosion occurred approximately 2,300 feet (700 meters) from Soleimani's grave, followed by a second blast 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) away. These blasts struck as pilgrims were visiting the revered site, intensifying the impact of the tragedy, as per IRNA. Qasem Soleimani had met his demise four years ago on the same day, succumbing to a US airstrike ordered by former President Donald Trump at Baghdad International Airport. The repercussions of that event continue to reverberate, now compounded by this distressing attack. As of now, no group has come forward to claim responsibility for the twin blasts, adding an element of uncertainty to the investigation into this grievous incident. Videos circulated on Iranian state media captured the chaotic aftermath of the explosions, portraying large crowds desperately running in the area to escape the unfolding disaster. The scenes reflect the shock and chaos that ensued in the wake of this tragic event in Kerman. Once a formidable figure in Iran, Qasem Soleimani held the position of head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, an elite unit responsible for overseeing Iran's overseas operations. Designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States, the Quds Force, under Soleimani's leadership, was accused by the Pentagon of being accountable for the deaths of numerous American and coalition service members, along with the injury of thousands more. Referred to as Iran's "shadow commander," Soleimani had commanded the Quds Force since 1998 and played a pivotal role in orchestrating Iranian military endeavors in Iraq and Syria. His death in the US airstrike ordered by former President Donald Trump in Baghdad added another layer of complexity to the volatile situation in the region. The recent blast near Soleimani's grave occurred against the backdrop of heightened tensions in the area, with Israel engaged in a three-month conflict against Hamas in Gaza. This conflict, triggered by an October 7 attack by the militant group on Israel, has resulted in a substantial death toll, exceeding 23,000 individuals in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health. Beyond the immediate conflict zone, skirmishes involving Iran-backed militias have unfolded, further contributing to the regional unrest. A notable event preceding the blast was the killing of a senior Hamas leader in a Beirut suburb on Tuesday, reportedly through an explosion attributed to Israel by a US official. While Israel neither confirmed nor denied involvement, both Hamas and Hezbollah, the latter controlling the suburb, attributed the incident to Israel and vowed retaliation. The cumulative effect of these events underscores the precarious and tense state of affairs in the region. Based on a story by CNN

The United States government's debt has exceeded $34 trillion for the first time, just weeks before Congress faces deadlines to reach an agreement on new federal funding plans. According to data released by the Treasury Department, the "total public debt outstanding" reached $34.001 trillion on December 29. This figure, also referred to as the national debt, represents the cumulative amount of borrowing by the U.S. federal government throughout the nation's history. This milestone comes within three months of the U.S. national debt surpassing $33 trillion, driven by an expanding budget deficit – the disparity between government expenditures and tax revenues. Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a fiscal watchdog, labeled the record-breaking figure as a "truly depressing achievement." She emphasized the perilous impact of the escalating debt on the economy and national security, expressing concern that the U.S. continues to amass debt despite the risks. The national debt has become a significant point of contention between Republicans and Democrats, exacerbating disputes over the federal budget that pose periodic threats of government shutdowns. Republicans argue that the spending programs advocated by the Biden administration are excessively costly, while Democrats contend that tax cuts supported by the GOP have diminished revenue. White House spokesperson Michael Kikukawa attributed the escalating debt to "Republican giveaways" favoring major corporations and the wealthy, resulting in cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid adversely affecting ordinary Americans. Kikukawa conveyed President Joe Biden's plan to reduce the deficit by $2.5 trillion, focusing on ensuring the wealthy and large corporations contribute their fair share and cutting wasteful spending on special interests, including prominent pharmaceutical and oil companies. Regardless of the attribution of blame, the growing debt and political brinksmanship have already impacted America's credit rating. Fitch downgraded its rating on U.S. sovereign debt from AAA to AA+ in August, while Moody's issued a warning in November that it might also downgrade the U.S.' last remaining AAA rating. Based on a CNN article.

Decisions kicking former President Trump off the ballot in two states — Colorado and Maine — are amping up the pressure on the Supreme Court to resolve questions about Trump’s eligibility under the 14th Amendment. The Trump campaign appealed the Maine ruling Tuesday and is expected to do the same in Colorado, the latter of which especially puts the spotlight on the Supreme Court and its 6-3 conservative majority, which includes three justices Trump nominated during his first term in the White House. The looming decisions for the Supreme Court risk thrusting the justices into the political spotlight at a fraught time for the nation’s highest court, which has already been forced to confront other matters implicating Trump and the future of the 2024 race. A battle over Trump’s criminal immunity is expected to soon return to the justices, and they already agreed to weigh in on the scope of an obstruction charge used against Trump and hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants. But the 14th Amendment issue could distinctively stand out. Legal experts long anticipated the patchwork of challenges would reach the Supreme Court, which has never squarely resolved the meaning of the 14th Amendment’s insurrection ban, with many observers believing the justices will ultimately keep Trump’s name on the ballot one way or another. Some state courts tossed lawsuits challenging Trump’s primary ballot listing, kicking the can down the road to the general election. But the Colorado Supreme Court’s extraordinary ruling knocking Trump off the ballot suddenly provided the justices in Washington with a major vehicle to resolve the weighty legal questions soon, rather than closer to Election Day. The amendment prohibits someone from holding “any office … under the United States” if they “engaged in insurrection” after taking an oath to support the Constitution. Citing Trump’s actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, more than two dozen challenges to his ballot eligibility have been filed across the country. FULL STORY

Actually states in the OP he's in the UK.

More off topic wanderings removed. The topic is: You can't get a good pizza Stay on topic or the topic can be closed.

I havent read thruogh all the previous comments but I can well imagine the content, this having been raised so many times. You have never been here, come , enjoy the holiday. Yu have experienced ONE Thai woman in a video chat. Come here and "fill ya boots" ! You will very quickly realise that she is just one blade of grass in a field of grass. As for furthering that relationship, keep it at arms length. The members here will have filled you in on many of the common issues raised. I'll add one, if her kids have kids, it is more than an even chance those kids will be YOURS !! Thats the Thai way (generally). The kids are dropped on the Grandparents while they have a life. So bare that in mind when chldren are involved. You may not want babies in your future. Think hard, back off, come view the rest of the field and experience Thailand.

More than a third of US adults believe Joe Biden was not legitimately elected president in 2020, according to a new poll. According to the Washington Post and the University of Maryland, 62% of American adults say they believe Biden’s win was legitimate – down from 69% in the same poll in December 2021. Thirty-six per cent say they do not accept Biden’s win. This week brings the third anniversary of the deadly January 6 attack on Congress, which Donald Trump incited in his attempt to overturn his conclusive defeat by Biden the year before. Nine deaths have been linked to the attack, including law enforcement suicides. More than a thousand people have been charged and hundreds convicted in relation to the riot, some with seditious conspiracy. Trump was impeached for inciting an insurrection but acquitted when enough Senate Republicans stayed loyal. Colorado and Maine have moved to bar Trump from the ballot under section three of the 14th amendment to the US constitution, a post-civil war measure meant to prevent insurrectionists running for state or national office. Trump is expected to appeal. Maintaining his lie that Biden’s win was the result of electoral fraud, and using four federal and 13 state criminal election subversion charges (alongside 74 other criminal counts and assorted civil threats) to motivate supporters, Trump dominates polling for the Republican nomination this year. Reporting its poll, the Post said that among Republicans, only 31% now say Biden’s win was legitimate – down from 39% in 2021. The poll also showed Republicans becoming more sympathetic to the January 6 rioters and more likely to absolve Trump of responsibility for the attack, the Post said. Analysing the poll, Aaron Blake, a senior political reporter for the Post, said it mostly showed that Trump’s message over the 2020 election and January 6 had resonated with voters already disposed to believe it. Nonetheless, Michael J Hanmer, director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement at the University of Maryland, told the paper: “From a historical perspective, these results would be chilling to many analysts.” FULL STORY

The killing of Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut is the first strike in a campaign of assassinations overseas promised by Israeli officials for several months. The target was carefully chosen – one of the most senior Hamas leaders and the organisation’s main link to Iran and the Lebanon-based militia Hezbollah. Arouri was also influential in the occupied West Bank, where he was born and where violence has soared in recent months. Some Israeli officials also believe that the 57-year-old may have known in advance about the plan to launch bloody attacks into Israel before the assault on 7 October, which killed more than 1,200 Israelis, mainly civilians. Arouri became involved in Islamist activism when a student at Hebron university in the mid-1980s, a time when such ideologies were surging across the Middle East. He joined Hamas soon after its foundation in the immediate aftermath of the first intifada and helped create Hamas’s military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassem brigades. Jailed by Israel in 1992, Arouri spent almost all the next 18 years in prison. In 2010, he helped negotiate the release by Israel of more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in return for a single kidnapped Israeli soldier. Based first in Syria, then in Qatar and finally in Lebanon, Arouri built a reputation as an astute operator with contacts throughout the Middle East but particularly with Iran. He also extended Hamas networks and influence in the West Bank and negotiated with Fatah, the veteran secular party that dominates the Palestinian Authority. Political promotion followed. Already a member of Hamas’s powerful “politburo”, Arouri was elected deputy to Ismail Haniyeh, the organisation’s leader, in 2017. Since then, he has been a high-profile emissary for the group, involved in almost all major political decisions, and a key spokesperson. FULL STORY

Israel has insisted the assassination of a Hamas leader in Beirut was not an attack on Lebanon, as its enemies warned of "punishment" for his death. An Israeli spokesman said Saleh al-Arouri had died in a "surgical strike against the Hamas leadership". Hamas condemned the death, while its ally Hezbollah said it was an assault on Lebanese sovereignty. Lebanon's prime minister, meanwhile, accused Israel of trying "to drag Lebanon into... confrontation". Lebanese media report that Arouri, a deputy political leader of Hamas, was killed in a drone strike in southern Beirut along with six others - two Hamas military commanders and four other members. He was a key figure in the Qassam Brigades, Hamas's armed wing, and a close ally of Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader. He had been in Lebanon acting as a connection between his group and Hezbollah. Israeli spokesman Mark Regev stopped short of confirming Israel had carried out the assassination, a standard position for Israeli officials, but he told MSNBC: "Whoever did it, it must be clear that this was not an attack on the Lebanese state. "It was not an attack even on Hezbollah, the terrorist organisation. "Whoever did this did a surgical strike against the Hamas leadership. Whoever did this has a gripe with Hamas. That is very clear." Arouri, 57, is the most senior Hamas figure to be killed since Israel went to war with the group after its 7 October attack. On that day, waves of Hamas gunmen invaded Israel and attacked communities around the border, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 240 to Gaza as hostages. Israel launched a military offensive in response, with the declared aim of destroying Hamas. Since then, more than 22,000 Palestinians - mostly women and children - have been killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry. Hezbollah has fired scores of rockets into Israel and fought several skirmishes with Israeli forces during the Gaza war. Lebanon's state news agency said Arouri had been killed by an Israeli drone attack on a Hamas office in the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh. FULL STORY

Rescue efforts continue in Japan after at least 57 people were killed in a powerful earthquake that hit the country on New Year's Day. Homes collapsed, buildings caught fire and roads were extensively damaged, hindering the work of rescue services. The epicentre of the 7.6 quake was the Noto peninsula, in central Japan. The Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, said emergency services were locked in a "race against time" to rescue survivors. On Tuesday, Mr Kishida also said some 3,000 rescuers were trying to reach parts of the Noto peninsula. Helicopter surveys showed many fires and widespread damage to buildings and infrastructure. The city of Wajima, on the northern tip of Noto, has been cut off from land routes. The Japanese military has been handing out supplies including food, water and blankets for those who have had to vacate their homes. The country's government has said that 57,360 people had to be evacuated. Tens of thousands of meals are being delivered across the affected region. Aftershocks continued throughout Monday and Tuesday. Japan's chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi warned people to "be alert" for more earthquakes "of an intensity of up to 7" in the coming week. Ishikawa, 155km (96.3 miles) south of the Noto peninsula, experienced a 4.9 quake on Tuesday afternoon. The major tsunami warnings put out by the Japanese government on Monday were later downgraded. By Tuesday, all tsunami advisories were lifted along the Sea of Japan, meaning there was no longer a risk of such an event. Residents of the affected area of Japan have been sharing their experiences of the quake, which lasted several minutes. An 82-year-old resident of Nanao, Toshio Iwahama, told the BBC that his wooden home had partially collapsed. He said that despite living through multiple earthquakes, he had never experienced tremors of this magnitude. FULL STORY

Donald Trump has appealed the decision by Maine's top election official to remove him from the ballot in the 2024 presidential election. Mr Trump, the current Republican frontrunner, asked that a state court overturn the move by Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows. Ms Bellows has previously defended her decision by saying she has a "sacred obligation" to uphold the law. The former US president has also been removed from the ballot in Colorado. Mr Trump was removed from the Maine and Colorado ballots by challenges that cited the US constitution's insurrection clause and his alleged incitement of the 2021 US Capitol riot. The 14th Amendment of the US Constitution bans anyone whom has "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" from holding federal office. In Monday's court filing regarding the Maine decision, Mr Trump's attorneys write that Ms Bellows - a Democrat - was a "biased decision maker" without the legal authority to remove him from the ballot. What is the 14th Amendment? Voter panel: What it means that Trump got kicked off the ballot Additionally, the filing accuses Ms Bellows of making "multiple errors of law" and acting "in an arbitrary and capricious manner". "President Trump will be illegally excluded from the ballot as a result of the Secretary's actions," the filing says. Ms Bellows, a former state senator and executive director of Maine's American Civil Liberties Union, was elected to serve as Maine's Secretary of State in December 2020. A group of current and former state lawmakers challenged Mr Trump's place on the ballot, which Maine law required Ms Bellows to rule on. Several lawsuits in other states - such as Michigan and Minnesota - that are similar to the Maine objection have been rejected in court. FULL STORY

This topic is in World News, Please continue there. CLOSED

Reported off topic removed.

Clean up on aisle 4 completed.

Summary Five people aboard a Japanese coastguard plane have died after their aircraft collided with a passenger plane at Tokyo's Haneda Airport The coastguard plane was due to deliver aid to areas hit by Monday's deadly earthquake All 379 people on board the burning Japan Airlines plane were evacuated, the airline said Dramatic footage showed passengers fleeing the Airbus A350 on inflatable slides and running across the tarmac Fire ripped through the Japan Airlines flight 516 which had taken off from Hokkaido in northern Japan nearly two hours earlier

Reported video and subsequent exchange all removed.

Financial Times’ Predictions for 2024: A Glimpse into the Future The Financial Times (FT), renowned for its rigorous analysis and forecasts, has unveiled its predictions for the world in 2024. Reflecting on their previous forecasts for 2023, the FT has managed to hit several bullseyes, with only three misses. Notably, they did not anticipate the surge of the S&P 500 by over 20%, the absence of blackouts across Europe, and the fact that Africa, save for Ethiopia, avoided a string of defaults. Shaping the Future: FT’s Predictions for 2024 Breaking new ground, the FT’s predictions for 2024 encompass a broad spectrum of global issues, ranging from potential military conflicts and climate change to economic trends and political outcomes. The American political landscape, highly volatile and unpredictable, is a significant point of discussion. The FT predicts that Donald Trump will not reclaim the presidential seat. However, his campaign promises to be a hotbed of contention. In terms of climate change, the FT forecasts that 2024 will surpass 2023 as the hottest year on record, fueled by the relentless march of climate change and the influence of the El Niño phenomenon. FULL ARTICLE Published: December 30, 2023 at 1:21 am EST | Updated: Jan 1, 2024 at 3:39 am EST

S&P 500 Forecast & Predictions One of the most popular stock exchange indexes is the S&P 500. This is a stock market index that measures the stock performance of 500 large companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. It is one of the most commonly followed equity indices, and many consider it to be one of the best representations of the U.S. stock market. Because of this, the S&P 500 is often followed to determine the health of the stock markets in the USA, but globally as well seeing as many of the companies in the 500 have a strong influence over the global markets. The reason why this index is such a powerful one is that the companies involved have a huge sway on the market, but it is usually in an upward trend, which is positive for investors. https://primexbt.com/for-traders/s-p-500-price-prediction-forecast/

As we enter 2024 what lies ahead on the global stage may seem more uncertain than it has in years. To help you make sense of it, here are some key themes to watch. 1. Israel-Hamas war threatens to spill over The new year begins with Israel pushing its offensive further into the Gaza Strip in response to Hamas’ October 7 attacks.International pressure is mounting on Israel to limit the duration and intensity of its war amid global outcry over Gazans being trapped in mortal danger, without critical supplies or access to healthcare, as disease spreads through crowded humanitarian camps. Despite this, Israel has doubled down on its efforts and vowed its war on Hamas will rage for many months. The risk of a wider Middle East conflict is escalating. There are increasing cross-border exchanges between the Iran-backed, Islamist paramilitary group Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on the Lebanon-Israel border. 2. Stalemate as Russia-Ukraine conflict enters third year In February, Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine will enter its third year. Neither Russia nor Ukraine shows any signs of achieving victory or a willingness to compromise on their incompatible objectives. Ukraine is fighting for its survival, territorial integrity and sovereignty, while Russia is intent on what it calls the “denazification” and demilitarization of Ukraine, and the prevention of its aspiration to join NATO and other Western bodies. The Russian framing of its unprovoked invasion as “denazification” has been dismissed by historians and political observers. Putin starts the year more confidently than he did the year before. 3. Elections, certain and uncertain Elections are always significant, never more so than when so many key players are on the ballots at a moment of global instability. In 2024 2 billion people will go to the polls in a bumper year for voting. The United States’ elections on November 5 could potentially see Trump return to the White House. Trump has a commanding lead over his Republican rivals for their party’s nomination, but the Colorado Supreme Court judgment that he cannot run in the state due to the 2021 insurrection case, followed by a similar decision in Maine, may foreshadow the obstacles he will face. 4. Territorial disputes As the wars in Eastern Europe and the Middle East show, we are at in inflection point in geopolitics. The tilt toward authoritarianism and long-predicted fracturing of Western hegemony has finally come home to roost. There has been a definitive shift away from American unipolarity, with China and Russia taking advantage of this retreat. The geopolitical axes of power are loosely realigning, with the US and EU on one side and an anti-US axis of China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea on the other. This is leading to bolder, less predictable actions and a more dangerous and uncertain global environment. We will continue to witness this shift, which could be exacerbated by the posturing of non-aligned countries and the rise of competitive blocs such as BRICS. Territorial disputes and revanchism are on the rise. Azerbaijan’s lightning seizure of the long-disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region is just one instance. 5. AI comes of age 2024 looks set to see a tension between exponential artificial intelligence (AI) growth and attempts to regulate it, from governing institutions notoriously lacking in tech savvy. Generative AI – which generates new data, like text, images or designs, by learning from existing data – dates back to the 1950s (we have to give Alan Turing his props here.) But it is only now that we are truly witnessing the paradigm shift as AI technology is widely available and impacting all aspects of our lives. What does that mean in practice? Huge progress in image generation, design, speech synthesis, translation and automation. The rise of AI assistants and personalizing your tech interactions. Instead of text models like ChatGPT, image-generating models like DALL-E 2, and speech models being separate, they will be combined for a more holistic interface. FULL STORY