Calls for an independent investigation into what led to 10 deaths at the Astroworld music festival went unheeded Monday, as Houston-area officials instead chose to direct a county administrator to conduct a review with other governmental entities.
County Judge Lina Hidalgo — the top elected official in Harris County, which includes Houston — had proposed a third-party probe of the planning and execution of the festival founded and headlined by rap superstar Travis Scott.
The Harris County administrator instead will work with other city and county entities to review security, fire and other safety plans at the county-owned NRG Park, where the festival was held.
“I hope that it comes back with actionable lessons,” Hidalgo said. “I hope it doesn’t result in something vague or forgotten.”
Other members of Harris County’s governing body, known as a commissioner’s court, were concerned Hidalgo’s investigation could lead to legal liabilities for the county.
Houston police are conducting a separate criminal investigation into what happened at the festival. No one has been charged.
The police department, along with the city fire department, played key roles in crowd control and other safety measures at the show. Experts in crowd safety say an investigation by neutral outsiders into the tragedy could help avoid potential conflicts of interest and promote transparency.
Police have said they are reviewing surveillance video provided by concert promoter Live Nation, as well as dozens of clips of the show shared on social media. Investigators also planned to speak with Live Nation representatives, Scott and concertgoers.
Over 300 people were treated on site for injuries at the show, and at least 25 were hospitalized.
Many unanswered questions center on the actions of event organizers.
A 56-page event operations plan for the Astroworld music festival included protocols for dangerous scenarios including an active shooter, bomb or terrorist threats, and severe weather. But it did not include information on what to do in the event of a crowd surge.
The 10 people who died included a 9-year-old boy. The oldest was 27. Reports on individual causes of death are pending.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has used a virtual summit with US counterpart Joe Biden to warn that encouraging Taiwanese independence would be “playing with fire”.
The talks are the most substantial since Mr Biden took office in January.
Both sides emphasized the two men’s personal relationship and the summit was an attempt to ease tensions.
But they could not escape one of the most sensitive topics: the self-ruled island of Taiwan.
China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province to be reunified with the mainland one day.
The US recognizes and has formal ties with China. But it has also pledged to help Taiwan defend itself in the event of an attack.
China’s state-run Global Times said Mr Xi blamed recent tensions on “repeated attempts by the Taiwan authorities to look for US support for their independence agenda as well as the intention of some Americans to use Taiwan to contain China”.
“Such moves are extremely dangerous, just like playing with fire. Whoever plays with fire will get burnt,” it said.
The White House said Mr Biden “strongly opposes unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”.
Despite the strong words on Taiwan, the meeting began with both leaders greeting each other warmly, with Mr. Xi saying he was happy to see his “old friend” Mr. Biden.
Mr Biden said the two had “always communicated with one another very honestly and candidly,” adding “we never walk away wondering what the other man is thinking”. Mr. Xi said the two countries needed to improve “communication” and face challenges “together”. “Humanity lives in a global village, and we face multiple challenges together. China and the US need to increase communication and co-operation.” said Mr Xi.
The world’s two most powerful nations do not see eye-to-eye on a number of issues, and Mr Biden raised US concerns about human rights abuses in Hong Kong and against Uyghurs in the north-west region of Xinjiang. China accuses the US of meddling in its domestic affairs.
On trade, Mr. Biden highlighted the “need to protect American workers and industries from the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China’s] unfair trade and economic practices”.
Mr. Xi also appeared to have made a strong comment on the issue, with Reuters reporting that he had told Mr. Biden that the US needed to stop “abusing the concept of national security to oppress Chinese companies”.
Climate change was also discussed. Last week the two sprung a surprise by issuing a joint declaration to address climate change, at talks in Glasgow, Scotland.
This was the third time the two leaders have spoken since Mr Biden’s inauguration in January. The talks lasted three-and-a-half hours, longer than expected.
France has told Britain to stop “giving lessons” on migrants in an increasingly acrimonious row between London and Paris over the numbers crossing the Channel.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin made the comments ahead of talks with his British counterpart Priti Patel.
“Britain is in no position to be giving lessons to us,” Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin revealed.
Britain “should stop using us as a punch-ball in their domestic politics,” he added.
The longstanding dispute has intensified in the last days after record numbers of migrants crossed the Channel to reach England from the French coast, with London accusing Paris of not doing enough to stop them.
The tensions have added to a litany of post-Brexit strains between Britain and France that also include a dispute over fishing rights that has threatened to spill over into a full-blown trade war.
In an unusually blunt criticism of France’s neighbor, Darmanin implied it was the fault of the British government that so many migrants wanted to cross the Channel.
He accused British activists based in northern France around Calais and Dunkirk of impeding the work of the security forces.
“I will remind my British counterpart that the NGOs that prevent the police and the gendarme from working are largely British NGOs with British citizens who are on French soil,” he said.
And he added: “The smugglers, who organised networks and exploit women and children, are very often based in Britain.”
He also argued that migrants were encouraged to leave for Britain because its labor market relied in part on “irregular workers employed at low cost”.
“If the British changed their legislation very strongly — and they did, but not enough — people would no longer be in Calais or Dunkirk” waiting for a chance to cross the Channel, he said.
“We are the victims of British politics. We must not get this mixed up,” he said.
More than 23,000 people have made the journey across the Channel to the UK by boat so far this year, a marked increase on the 8,400 in 2020.
According to British figures, a total of 1,185 migrants crossed the Channel on Thursday alone — a new record that smashed the previous daily high of 853 — due to cold but calm weather.
On Friday, three people who tried to cross in a canoe were reported missing.
Britain has described the figures as “unacceptable.”
Nigerian businessman, the brother and business deputy to Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has died at age 64. He was born onApril 10th, 1957 at Kano, Nigeria.
He is the chairman and CEO of Dangote Group, an industrial conglomerate and the wealthiest person in Africa, with an estimated net worth of US$12.4 billion as of September 2021.
Their company the Dangote Group has not confirmed the cause of death.
Local reports say he died in the US after a long period of sickness.
In a social media post, the Dangote Group called Sani Dangote’s death a “painful exit” and commended his soul to God.
Aliko Dangote lost his younger brother to death on November 14, 2021.
Sani Dangote died in a US hospital after battling an undisclosed illness for months.
Until his death, he was the Group Vice Present of the Dangote Group and owner of Dansa Agro-allied Limited.
Alhaji Sani Dangote, the younger brother to Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote, is dead. Until his death on Sunday November 14, 2021, the younger Dangote was the Group Vice Present at the Dangote Group and owner of Dansa Agro-allied Limited.
The head of Nato has urged Russia to be transparent about its military plans after an increase in the numbers of troops on its border with Ukraine.
Jens Stoltenberg said a “large and unusual” build-up of Russian forces had been spotted on the border in recent weeks.
He spoke amid speculation Russia could be planning to invade Ukraine.
Moscow has dismissed such fears as “alarmist” and complained of increasing Nato activities in the region.
Speaking after talks with Ukraine’s foreign minister in Brussels, Mr Stoltenberg said the important thing was to stop tensions from spiralling out of control. He warned Russia against taking any “aggressive actions”.
Mr Stoltenberg said: “We see an unusual concentration of troops, and we know that Russia has been willing to use these types of military capabilities before to conduct aggressive actions against Ukraine.”
A large part of the Russian force is in Crimea, the peninsula which Russia annexed from Ukraine in March 2014. Troops are also massing near Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, the name for Luhansk and Donetsk areas under the control of Russian-backed separatists.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week there were nearly 100,000 Russian soldiers near Ukraine’s border.
Mr Stoltenberg said the troop build-up was dangerous because it cut the amount of warning time should Russia decide to “conduct a military aggressive action against Ukraine”.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman said the border situation was “concerning” and that Britain would back Ukraine “in the face of Russian hostility”.
According to US media reports, Washington warned European Union allies last week about intelligence suggesting Moscow was preparing for a possible invasion of Ukraine.
On Sunday, Britain’s most senior military officer said “we have to be on our guard” about the situation.
Gen Sir Nick Carter told BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show that he “distinctly hoped” there would not be a war with Russia, but Nato would have to be ready.
He suggested the border crisis between Belarus and Poland was being used by Russia as a “classic example of a bit of distraction” from its activities near Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told state television in Moscow on Sunday he was concerned about military drills by Nato warships in the Black Sea off Crimea.
The problem is being discussed at three-day meeting between the government, the judiciary and others.
Judge Counselor of the Supreme Court Rafael Sebastião told fellow attendees that legal processes are being fine-tuned to stop criminal exploitation and smuggling.
Women Without Plastic - Swap single use menstrual pads for reusable alternative
Leveraging girls’ and women’s education is a powerful part of the solution to climate change
BOOM! That's the sound of our new campaign Women without Plastic as key to reduce Climate Change.
Even though girls are significantly impacted by climate change, they are also powerful agents of change, capable of strengthening a country’s response to climate change.
Ladies Without Plastic - Key to reduce our Carbon Footprints
This movement helps to end period poverty in Angola by empowering women and girls in making reusable pads. Disposable pads contains plastic, artificial fragrance and chemical gel. When disposed it takes hundreds and thousands of years to break down in the landfills!
Moreover, the manufacturing of disposable menstrual hygiene products (an almost $6 billion industry) generates a total carbon footprint of about 15 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. That’s the equivalent of burning about 35 million barrels of oil. On average a woman has her period from 3 to 7 days menstruating approximately 468 periods over 38years between ages 13 – 51 years. This implies 2,280 days with her period and uses an average of 11,000 sanitary pads in her life time.
Climate change affects women
We advocate for behavioural change to reduce earth vulnerability to climate change and global warming from disposable sanitary pads. Work on women liberation against harmful restrictions surrounding menstruation.
We mobilise women to switch back to the use of reusable sanitary pads and napkins than disposable sanitary pads that have local ecosystem vulnerable to climate change and global warming.
With an estimated 200 million adolescent girls living on the frontlines of the climate crises, the link between girls´ education and climate change deserves urgent attention. In our cloud platform we explore the powerful role that education can play in tackling climate change.
133 years ago, the disposable menstrual pads grew from a Benjamin Franklin invention created to help stop wounded soldiers from bleeding. However, these cultural norms did not stop technological innovation: the first disposable pads hit the market in 1896. Today, menstrual products are a multi-billion dollar worldwide industry, with prime-time ads and countless products on the market.
COP26: why education for girls is crucial in the fight against climate change
Last week the Glasgow climate change conference also dedicated to recognising gender equality, and the empowerment of women and girls in climate policy and action.
Education for girls can be a pathway for fighting the climate crisis in three key ways:
education in both the sciences and social sciences is necessary to address climate change. Girls’ participation in these fields will drive innovation in green technologies as well as a social approach to resilience built on equality
formal education can build on women and girls’ existing community-based knowledge regarding disaster risk reduction and help them respond to climate emergencies
education creates pathways to more independent decision-making for women and girls around work, family planning and community engagement. It also creates opportunities for leadership and participation in formal decision-making.
Business Breakfast with World Bank's Vice President, Hafez Ghanem
The joint visit to Angola, from 8 to 11 November 2021, aimed to discuss the work of the World Bank Group and the new partnership for Angola, focused on the agenda of reforms and economic diversification strategies. Climate change and adaptation, empowering women and girls are other items on the agenda.
Hafez Ghanem was concerned about the poor efficiency of the health and education sectors in Angola, as well as the despair of young Angolans who have been in the unemployment situation for many years and the increased domestic violence against women during the pandemic.
The Digital Entrepreneur Sofonie Dala, had the privilege of presenting to the World Bank delegation the Africa Educates Her Campaign and also spoke about the barriers that prevent Angolan girls from accessing education, caused by poverty, teenage pregnancy, child marriage, cultural norms and practices, poor infrastructure, violence and fragility, Covid-19, etc.
Sofonie Dala when presenting her new campaign Women Without Plastic - Swap single use menstrual pads for reusable alternative, stressed that education for girls can be a pathway for fighting the climate crisis. This initiative will help to end period poverty in Angola by empowering women and girls in making reusable pads.
Another reason for the visit of the World Bank delegation to Angola, was to evaluate and deepen the partnerships of the Bretton Woods institution with the Government of Angola, which obtained support of 700 million dollars (more than 400 billion kwanzas) this year.
The IFC (International Finance Corporation) is the arm of the World Bank dedicated to supporting the private sector in emerging markets. It works in over 100 countries, using capital, experience and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. For the year 2021, an amount of 31.5 billion dollars is forecast to support private companies and financial institutions in developing countries.
Angola vs Argentina | International Friendly Football Match 2025 | eFootball PES 21 Simulation 🔴AO VIVO! 🇦🇴🇦🇷 ARGENTINA VS ANGOLA 202...
