THE NEWS: Airbus warns could leave Britain if no Brexit deal

Airbus warns could leave Britain if no Brexit deal
source: AFP

 AFP/File / OLI SCARFF Airbus says it could be forced to leave Britain if there is no Brexit deal

European aviation giant Airbus warned Thursday it could be forced to pull out of the UK if Britain leaves the European Union without a deal.

In a Brexit risk assessment, Airbus said Britain withdrawing from the EU without a deal "would lead to severe disruption and interruption of UK production".

"This scenario would force Airbus to reconsider its investments in the UK, and its long-term footprint in the country, severely undermining UK efforts to keep a competitive and innovative aerospace industry, developing high value jobs and competences," it warned.

"Put simply, a no deal scenario directly threatens Airbus' future in the UK," Tom Williams, chief operating officer of Airbus Commercial Aircraft, said in a statement.

In its risk assessment, Airbus said under a "no deal" scenario, delays and disruptions to its production could cost it up to one billion euros ($1.2 billion) a week in lost turnover.

It said a no-deal Brexit "would be catastrophic" for the aviation group.


 AFP/File / OLI SCARFF Airbus employs 14,000 people at more than 25 sites in Britain, where it manufactures the wings of its aircraft


Airbus employs 14,000 people at more than 25 sites in Britain, where it manufactures the wings of its aircraft.

"In any scenario, Brexit has severe negative consequences for the UK aerospace industry and Airbus in particular," Williams said.

"While Airbus understands that the political process must go on, as a responsible business we require immediate details on the pragmatic steps that should be taken to operate competitively," he said.

"Without these, Airbus believes that the impacts on our UK operations could be significant. We have sought to highlight our concerns over the past 12 months, without success."

On the future trade relationship between Britain and the EU, Airbus said the current transition period, which runs until December 2020, "is too short for the EU and UK Governments to agree the outstanding issues, and too short for Airbus to implement the required changes with its extensive supply chain".

"In this scenario, Airbus would carefully monitor any new investments in the UK and refrain from extending the UK suppliers/partners base."

Britain is due to leave the European Union in March 2019 but continue the current trading arrangements during the transition phase to December 2020 to give time for the two sides to agree the terms of a new partnership.

THE NEWS: Messi's Argentina staring at World Cup exit after Croatia humbling

Messi's Argentina staring at World Cup exit after Croatia humbling
source: AFP

 AFP / Johannes EISELE Argentina's Lionel Messi looks set for an early World Cup exit

Lionel Messi's Argentina were on the brink of a humiliating World Cup exit on Thursday after they were humbled 3-0 by Croatia on a dramatic day at the World Cup that saw the European side join France in the knockout rounds.

Argentina knew they had to chase a win in Nizhny Novgorod after their disappointing 1-1 opening draw against Iceland but instead collapsed in the second half to leave their campaign in tatters.

A horrendous mistake by goalkeeper Willy Caballero and two further goals from Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic mean the two-time former champions have to rely on an unlikely sequence of results if they are to progress in Russia.

It was the heaviest defeat for the two-time world champions in the first round group stages of a World Cup tournament since they lost 6-1 to Czechoslovakia in 1958.

The result spelt another night of misery for Barcelona star Messi, who missed a penalty in Argentina's opening match against Iceland.

AFP / Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV Croatia midfielder Luka Modric celebrates after his side's 3-0 victory against Argentina


In stark contrast, his eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo, who last month won his fifth Champions League winner's medal, has already scored four goals in Russia and looks a shoo-in to win his sixth world player of the year award.

Croatia sit at the top of Group D with six points. Iceland have one point, the same as Argentina, and Nigeria have no points, but both teams have a game in hand on the South Americans.

"I had to devise a plan for this match. If I had set things up differently, things might have turned out much better. I don't think it’s realistic to put the burden on Caballero (for his mistake)," said Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli.

"I think because of the reality of the Argentinian squad, it clouds Leo's brilliance. Leo is limited because the team doesn't gel ideally with him as it should. As coaches we need to realise these things and try to deal with them and I'm the one that needs to accept it."

Yet Sampaoli's remarks, implying that Messi's team-mates were to blame, drew a blunt response from normally affable striker Sergio Aguero, hinting at tensions in the Argentine camp.


 AFP / Anne-Christine POUJOULAT France's Kylian Mbappe (R) celebrates his goal against Peru at the World Cup

"Let him say what he wants," Aguero said, when asked to comment on Sampaoli's verdict.

It is the first time that Croatia have progressed past the World Cup group stages since their third-placed debut in 1998.

"From day one I've trusted my team. I didn't believe we would be through after the second game, but I believed we would be through eventually," said Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic.

"Argentina weren’t confused, we were excellent."

But a fierce post-mortem was already under way in Argentina, where the press tore into Messi and his team.

"Catastrophe against Croatia, Argentina disappoints and is on the way out of the World Cup," the Clarin newspaper wrote on its website.

- France qualify -

France, who won the tournament on home in 1998, earlier joined Russia and Uruguay in the last 16 with a 1-0 win against Peru, who cannot now progress from the group stage after two defeats.

Paris Saint-German star Kylian Mbappe tapped into an empty net in the 34th minute in Yekaterinburg and the South Americans were unable to respond.

Mbappe is now the youngest French goalscorer at a World Cup, aged 19 years and 183 days, beating David Trezeguet's record of 20 years and 246 days.

Denmark, also in France's Group C, stayed on course for the knockout rounds after drawing 1-1 with Australia in the early game of the day in Samara.

Christian Eriksen's half-volley was cancelled out by Mile Jedinak's VAR-assisted penalty after Yussuf Poulsen's handball, giving Denmark four points, while Australia are stuck on one point.

Australia coach Bert van Marwijk said the "last piece of the puzzle" -- goals -- was missing for his side who had several chances to win the game, leaving their survival in the balance.

"We had chances to win and we deserved to win, so I'm disappointed," the Dutchman said.

Russia have defied pre-tournament predictions that they would struggle by qualifying for the knockout round for the first time since the Soviet era. They will be joined by Uruguay, condemning Mohamed Salah's Egypt and Saudi Arabia to an early exit from Group A.

Morocco will also be leaving Russia after the first round following their defeat by European champions Portugal, who are level with Spain on four points at the top of Group B.

THE NEWS: Melania Trump visits border, Congress flails on family separations

Melania Trump visits border, Congress flails on family separations
source: AFP

AFP / MANDEL NGAN US First Lady Melania Trump dived headlong into the ongoing migrant family separation crisis by traveling to Texas, along the border with Mexico, to visit a children's shelter and border processing center

Melania Trump made a surprise trip to the US-Mexican border on Thursday as her husband's administration seeks to quell a firestorm over migrant family separations, while Republican lawmakers were forced to delay a high-stakes vote on the crisis.

While President Donald Trump's administration struggled to formulate next steps, the Pentagon signaled officials were bracing for a lengthy ordeal. The military said it will prepare to house up to 20,000 unaccompanied migrant children on its bases.

The first lady's unannounced visit came a day after the president -- in a stunning about-face -- moved to end the practice of splitting migrant families, which had prompted outrage at home and abroad.

There was, however, no immediate plan in place to reunite the more than 2,300 children already separated from their families -- igniting a fresh controversy over the conditions in which the children are living.

In McAllen, Texas, Melania Trump visited the Upbring New Hope Children's Shelter, a federally-funded facility that houses about 55 children from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, ages five to 17.

"I'm glad I'm here and I'm looking forward to seeing the children," Melania said at a roundtable discussion with social workers and government officials.

"I would also like to ask you how I can help these children to reunite with their families as quickly as possible."

Images and recordings of wailing youngsters detained in processing centers with chain-link cage-like enclosures has ignited global outrage.

The first lady herself had called for a political compromise to end the separations -- the result of the administration's "zero tolerance" policy launched in early May, under which illegal border crossers were systematically prosecuted and their children separated from them as a result.


AFP / Mandel Ngan US First Lady Melania Trump boards a flight at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland on June 21, 2018 wearing a jacket that reads: "I really don't care. Do U?" on her way to visit shelters for migrant children separated from their parenets

Melania spent an hour-plus at the shelter, talking directly to children who spoke to her either in English or in Spanish, through a translator.

One girl said she had been at the shelter for two months. Another told Trump they were learning how to celebrate the Fourth of July.

"Usually when they get here, they're very distraught," one official said.

Melania Trump was unable to escape controversy on the trip. She boarded and exited her plane wearing a jacket which read "I really don't care. Do U?" -- a cryptic message that sent the internet ablaze.



- Legislative drama -



The political compromise the first lady had sought has not materialized so far.

In Washington, lawmakers failed to advance either of two Republican immigration bills in the House of Representatives.

A hardline proposal was defeated, as expected.


AFP / John SAEKI Trump's key quotes over the past week on the crisis at the US-Mexico border

But a vote on a "compromise" bill between the party's conservative and moderate wings, which ends family separations but also includes Trump priorities like curtailing legal immigration and providing some protections to young immigrants, was pushed back to Friday, and then to next week, in a sign there was no immigration consensus within the party that controls Congress.

The failure dealt an embarrassing blow to Republicans under intense pressure to take legislative steps to address the issue.

The crisis was fueling a brutal partisan scrap, with Trump blaming "extremist" Democrats for refusing to help tighten border security.

"Democrats want open Borders, where anyone can come into our Country, and stay," he tweeted.

The House's top Democrat Nancy Pelosi blasted back, accusing Republicans of making a "compromise with the Devil" instead of with Democrats, and saying they were complicit in Trump's "atrocities."



- Indefinite detention? -



For weeks, Trump had insisted he was bound by law to split children from their parents and that only Congress could resolve the problem -- before he radically shifted gears.


AFP / Mandel Ngan US President Donald Trump signs an executive order ending a policy of separating families caught crossing the US-Mexico border illegally


Trump's executive order would keep families together but in custody indefinitely while parents are prosecuted for entering the country illegally -- a move that could lead to new legal battles for the administration.

The Justice Department moved Thursday to modify the 1997 court ruling known as the Flores Settlement, which places a 20-day limit on how long children, alone or with their parents, can be detained.

Lawmakers from both parties, as well as faith groups, families and children have recoiled at how the administration has handled the crisis.

Several clergy, parents and children wearing fake Mylar blankets like those given to minors detained at the border protested in a Senate office building, while lawmakers denounced Trump's policies on the floors of the House and Senate.

A bipartisan group of American mayors including New York's Bill de Blasio rallied outside a migrant children's shelter near El Paso, Texas to denounce a lack of transparency, and demand family reunification.

"The families are not reunified, we don't know when they'll be, we're gonna fight for that," said de Blasio, who a day earlier declared himself "shocked to learn" that a single center in Harlem had received 239 separated children without the knowledge of city authorities.

Trump insisted there was a need to sustain his "zero tolerance" policy "or our country will be overrun by people, by crime," he said.

After a downturn last year, the flow of migrants from Central America and Mexico has surged since October.


AFP / Cecilia SANCHEZ Migrants towards the United States

From March to May this year, more than 50,000 people a month were apprehended illegally crossing the border.

Nearly all of the arriving families have officially requested asylum, citing the high levels of violence in their home countries.

jca-mn-mlm/it

Greece crisis declared 'over' as eurozone agrees debt relief

Greece crisis declared 'over' as eurozone agrees debt relief
source: AFP

AFP / ANGELOS TZORTZINIS Finance ministers from the 19 countries that use the single currency were under pressure to offer Athens a goodbye deal that left it strong in the eyes of the financial markets

Eurozone ministers declared the end of the Greek debt crisis early Friday agreeing debt relief and a big cash payout for Greece, part of a broad bailout exit deal that will close eight years of financial rescues for cash-strapped Athens.

Greece is slated to leave its financial rescue on August 20 and finance ministers from the 19 countries that use the single currency were under pressure to offer Athens a goodbye deal that left it strong in the eyes of the financial markets.

"The Greek crisis ends here tonight," said EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici, after marathon talks in Luxembourg.

"We finally got to the end of this path which was so long and difficult it is a historic moment," the former French finance minister said.

The agreement is an important turning point for the eurozone nearly a decade after Greece stunned the world with out-of-control spending and sparked three bailouts and a near collapse of the euro single currency.

The deal was expected to be an easy one, but last-minute resistance by Germany -- Greece's long bailout nemesis and biggest creditor -- dragged the talks on for six hours.

With writing-off loans off the table, eurozone ministers agreed to extend maturities by 10 years on major parts of its total debt obligations, a mountain that has reached 180 percent of GDP -- almost double the country's annual economic output.

The eurozone creditors also agreed to disburse 15 billion euros ($17.5 billion) to ease the country’s exit from its programme. This would leave Greece with a hefty 24 billion euro safety cushion, officials said.

"I am happy," Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said after the talks.

But "to make this worthwhile we have to make sure that the Greek people see concrete results... they need to feel the change in their own pockets," he added.

- 'Concerns' -

Greece's latest 86-billion-euro programme was agreed in 2015 after six contentious months of negotiation, bringing the level of assistance received by Athens to 273.7 billion euros since 2010.


AFP / Thomas SAINT-CRICQ Greek economy over 10 years


The rescue loans came in return for hundreds of stringent reforms that landed like a rock on the Greek economy, which shrank by nearly 25 percent in just a few years and sent unemployment surging.

But after the pain, including wage and pension cuts and tax hikes, Greece's economy has stabilised and is expected to post moderate growth this year.

Greece however will remain under the watch of its creditors after the bailout and under stricter terms than for Portugal, Ireland and Cyprus following their respective bailouts.

Under German demands, Greece's debt relief in the short-term will be conditional on the continued implementation of agreed reforms, which if successful could inject about one billion euros to the government's underfunded budget every year.

"We will ensure that the pressure to implement further reforms remains strong... in the medium and long term," said Austrian Finance Minister Hartwig Loger.

Opposite the hardliners were France and the European Central Bank, which argued that reduced debt was crucial in order for Greece to gain the trust of the markets.

The International Monetary Fund, led by the tough-talking Christine Lagarde, welcomed the debt relief, but cited reservations about Greece's obligations over the long term.

"In the medium term analysis there is no doubt in our minds that Greece will be able to reaccess the markets," Lagarde said after the talks.

"As far as the longer term is concerned we have concerns," she added.

The reform-pushing IMF played an active role in the two first Greek bailouts, but took only an observer role in the third in the belief that Greece's debt pile was unsustainable in the long term.

China dog meat fest opens as S. Korea goes the other way

China dog meat fest opens as S. Korea goes the other way
source: AFP

AFP / PAK YIU Eating dog meat to mark the summer solstice is a tradition in China's Guangxi province

As South Korea moves closer to banning dog meat, diners tuck into bowls of stewed canine in southern China, where activists are rethinking their tactics to counter a notorious festival that butchers thousands of dogs.

The annual Yulin dog meat celebration opened without a hitch on Thursday, a day after a South Korean court announced it had ruled that the slaughtering of dogs for meat was illegal.

Activists say the ruling could pave the way for the outlawing of dog meat consumption in South Korea, but there is less progress in China where advocates fear their tactics have been counterproductive.

Eating dog to mark the summer solstice is a tradition in China's Guangxi region, where the festival has been held since 2009 to mark the occasion in the town of Yulin.

Despite rumours last year that Yulin authorities would ban dog meat sales altogether, many restaurants advertised the controversial offering this week with the veiled moniker of "fragrant meat".

Carcasses were on display for purchase in the city's open-air markets -- though there were fewer of them than in previous years, locals said.

The Dongkou wet market downtown bustled with shoppers meandering past piles of dogs laid out atop butcher stalls for them to inspect. Others hung from hooks, their faces locked in a rigid grimace.

Market workers pulled in cartfuls of dead dogs while sweaty men blow-torched the fresher carcasses to remove any remaining fur. On the street, a man transported two live mutts in a cage on the back of his scooter.

As police patrolled outside the market premises, one woman bought a full dog for 662 yuan ($102), saying she would eat it with her family to celebrate the summer solstice.

"It's very tasty," another local surnamed Chen told AFP, insisting "they're all strays -- strays and pets are different".

Chen did not consider it cruel to consume the meat during what the Chinese zodiac system deems the Year of the Dog, quipping: "don't you eat chicken in the year of the rooster, and pork in the year of the pig?"

But vendors were more discreet than usual.

They cooked in narrow alleys or inside their restaurants instead of preparing dog dishes in front of patrons, ushering diners inside and not serving outdoors.

- Mao dog ban -

Thousands of dogs are butchered during the event, the animal protection organisation Humane Society International estimates -- a fraction of the more than 10 million consumed each year in China.


AFP / PAK YIU Thousands of dogs are butchered during the festival in Yulin, a faction of the more than 10 million consumed each year in China


Animal rights activists have typically attended the festival to purchase ill-fated dogs and save them from slaughter, said Qiao Wei, an activist from the Si Chuna Qiming Animal Protection Centre.

But now they feel that working to establish a general ban on the dog meat trade would be much more effective.

"We have no hope that we can bring change just by going to Yulin," he said. Simply buying dogs "doesn't help".

International animal rights groups concur, saying that focusing so intensively on dog meat consumption in just one city at an annual event risks becoming counterproductive.

"It would be far better to have a holistic campaign that works collaboratively across the country, engaging the government and public to acknowledge animals as our friends, not food," said Jill Robinson, founder of the Hong Kong-based Animals Asia Foundation.

Chinese leader Mao Zedong had banned dog ownership for being bourgeois, but the ranks of China's rising middle-class are now full of proud and loving dog owners.

This year, the foundation set up an online portal where Chinese citizens can report restaurants that operate illegally.

Tipsters have already flagged some 1,300 restaurants in 153 cities, with over 200 of them shut down, forced to stop selling the meat, or issued warnings, said Robinson.

Before the festival, animal protection groups from around the world submitted a letter with 235,000 signatures to Beijing, calling for the event's abolishment.

- Changing ways -

The tide appears to be turning against dog meat consumption elsewhere in Asia, and Chinese animal lovers like Zhang Huahua, a 62-year-old retired lecturer-turned-activist, sense change is in the air.


AFP / PAK YIU Some activists are now trying to save dogs by changing the system, instead of merely trying to stop sales at some locations

Zhang came to Yulin all the way from her home in the southern province of Guangdong to submit a letter with recommendations to the local government.

Her hope is to save dog lives by changing the system itself.

In South Korea, where one million dogs are believed to be eaten annually, a court ruled that meat consumption was not legitimate grounds for killing canines, after an animal rights group accused a dog farm operator of slaughtering dogs "without proper reasons" and violating building and hygiene regulations.

Last April, Taiwan banned the consumption, purchase and possession of both dog and cat meat, with offenders facing a fine of up to Tw$250,000 ($8,170).

But many in Yulin viewed the news with a shrug.

"They can do what they want," said a resident surnamed Huang, who nonetheless wasn't fond of the taste of dog himself.

THE NEWS: Britain's Prince William on historic trip to Israel and West Bank

Britain's Prince William on historic trip to Israel and West Bank
source: AFP

POOL/AFP / OLI SCARFF Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and second in line to the throne, will be the first member of the royal family to pay an official visit to both Israel and the Palestinian territories

Prince William will next week become the first member of Britain's royal family ever to pay an official visit to both Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Britain governed the region under a League of Nations mandate for almost three decades until Israel's independence 70 years ago, and is still blamed by both sides for sowing the seeds of a conflict that continues to wrack the region.

Second in line to the British throne, the 36-year-old will arrive Monday without his wife Kate, who in April gave birth to their third child, Prince Louis.

William's visit comes at a particularly sensitive time after US President Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as capital of Israel and moved Washington's embassy there, sparking Arab outrage and deadly clashes on Israel's border with Gaza.

Dror Zeigerman, a former Israeli ambassador to London, said the Jewish state has long sought a royal visit.

"We asked many times for a visit of Prince Charles or the Queen and we were refused," he told AFP.

"I assume that it's not the queen or the prince, it's the Foreign Office... I don't know why they changed their mind, maybe it's time."

Official visits by British royals take place at the request of the government, but statements from the prince's household have given little explanation for the timing of next week's trip.

Kensington Palace has underlined the "non-political nature of His Royal Highness's role -- in common with all royal visits overseas".


AFP / AHMAD GHARABLI Palestinian Muslim worshippers pray on June 11, 2018 outside the Dome of the Rock in the Al-Aqsa mosques compound in Jerusalem's Old City


But west of the Jordan River, everything is political.

The official schedule's reference to east Jerusalem as "in the Occupied Palestinian Territories" has sparked particular anger among some right-wing Israeli politicians.

"United Jerusalem has been the capital of Israel for more than 3,000 years," Jerusalem Affairs Minister Zeev Elkin, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party, wrote on Twitter.

"No distortion in the briefing document for this or that tour will change reality," said the minister, who is running for mayor of Jerusalem.

Israel defines the entire city as its "eternal and indivisible" capital, while the Palestinians see east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Israel seized the West Bank and Arab east Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 Six Day war.

It later annexed east Jerusalem in a move never recognised by the international community and condemned as "a violation of international law" in a 1980 UN Security Council resolution.

But the Jerusalem Post newspaper shared Elkin's view.

"Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish people since the time of King David," it wrote. "It deserves more than a royal snub by the Duke of Cambridge."

The Post did however describe the visit as "a welcome, and long overdue, gesture after 70 years of Israeli independence."

- Packed schedule -

Other members of William's family have made unofficial visits to Israel and east Jerusalem in the past.


POOL/AFP / TOBY MELVILLE British Prime Minister Theresa May poses with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at 10 Downing Street in London on June 6, 2018

His father, Prince Charles, attended the 1995 funeral of assassinated Israeli premier Yitzhak Rabin and that of former president Shimon Peres in 2016.

In 1994 the Duke of Edinburgh, William's grandfather, attended a ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in honour of his own mother, Princess Alice of Greece, who sheltered Jews from the Nazis during World War II.

Charles and his father have both visited the tomb of the princess on the Mount of Olives in east Jerusalem.

William will do the same.

He arrives on Sunday in Amman, where he will stay at King Abdullah's private residence, although he is not expected to meet the monarch.

Kensington Palace says the visit aims at "building relations" with the heir to the Hashemite throne, 23-year-old Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah.

Hussein, like his father and Prince William, is a graduate of Britain's Sandhurst military academy. He has a British-born mother.


AFP / MICHEL GANGNE Prince William's father Prince Charles (C) and then-British prime minister John Major (L) attend the funeral of late Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin at the Jerusalem Mount Herzl military cemetery on November 6, 1995


William's packed schedule includes meetings with young Jordanians, British servicemen and Syrian refugees.

On Monday he will fly to Israel and stay at Jerusalem's King David hotel, which was Britain's administrative headquarters during its rule of Palestine prior to Israeli statehood in 1948.

In 1946 militant Jews waging violent resistance against British rule bombed the building, killing and wounding scores of people, many of them British civil servants or military personnel.

On Tuesday, June 26, William will visit Yad Vashem and lay a wreath.

He will then have talks with Netanyahu and meet President Reuven Rivlin.

The following day he will call on Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah and meet Palestinian refugees and young people.

On the final day of his visit, Thursday June 28, he will visit Jerusalem's Mount of Olives.

THE NEWS: Anger grows as Spain court bails sexual abuse gang

Anger grows as Spain court bails sexual abuse gang
source: AFP

AFP / ANDER GILLENEA Protesters in Pamplona on Thursday

Protests were planned across Spain on Friday, after a court ordered the release on bail of five men sentenced to nine years in prison for sexually abusing a young woman at Pamplona's bull-running festival.

The men, who called themselves "The Pack" in a WhatsApp messaging group, had been accused of raping a woman, then 18, on July 7, 2016, at the start of the week-long San Fermin festival, which draws tens of thousands of visitors.

All five, aged between 27 and 29, were convicted of sexual abuse in April but were acquitted of the more serious crime of sexual assault, which includes rape, as the court did not consider that the victim had been subjected to intimidation or violence, sparking nationwide protests to demand the law be changed.

They appealed their jail terms and a Pamplona court on Thursday ordered the five be released on bail of 6,000 euros ($7,000) pending the outcome of the appeal, according to Spanish media reports.

Women's rights groups immediately took to social media to call for protests on Thursday night with the slogan: "If the pack hits the streets, we will as well."

And Friday's headlines also reflected the national mood, with Catalan daily La Vanguardia leading on "The Pack's court intensifies the anger by freeing them" while the Conservative ABC had: "Anger and disbelief over the release of The Pack".

Feminist groups also called for protests on Friday evening in Madrid, Valencia and Seville -- where the five men live -- as well as in Saragossa, Grenada and elsewhere.

- 'Scoundrel rapists' -

Following Thursday's decision, protesters hit the streets in Pamplona with similar rallies in Barcelona and three major Basque cities: Bilbao, Vitoria and San Sebastian.

"It is shameful, these scoundrel rapists get away so easily. It seems they want to release them so they are ready to start again on July 7," said Carmen Roman, a 66-year-old protester in Barcelona referring to the upcoming running of the bulls festival.

In their decision published Friday, the Navarre court said the five had been allowed out on bail because the social pressure on them makes it "practically unthinkable" they would risk re-offending.

The men, who have already spent two years behind bars, will remain under judicial monitoring. They have had their passports withdrawn and are banned from leaving the country.

They are also banned from travelling to Madrid where the victim lives.

Of the three judges, one had wanted to keep the five men locked up.

One of the men is a policeman with the Guardia Civil -- who is currently suspended -- and another was once in the army. Several are "ultras" -- hardcore fans of FC Sevilla.

The fact that the men videoed the attack on their smartphones and bragged about it within their WhatsApp group added to the outrage over the case.

- Online petition for change -

The mayor of Pamplona, Joseba Asiron, said Friday his office would appeal against the decision to release them, saying there was "a growing distance... between society itself and certain decisions taken by the courts".

An online petition calling for the five to be kept behind bars had garnered more than 500,000 names by midday Friday.

New socialist Justice Minister Dolores Delgado has not commented on the court decision, speaking only of a need to "change mentalities".

The first step announced by the government of Pedro Sanchez, who took office earlier this month at the head of a mostly-female cabinet including 11 women, was to train magistrates to raise awareness about violence against women.

THE NEWS: EU slaps tariffs on US as trade war erupts

EU slaps tariffs on US as trade war erupts
source: AFP

 GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File / JOE RAEDLE The EU has put tariffs on emblematic American products like jeans

The European Union slapped revenge tariffs on iconic US products including bourbon, jeans and motorcycles on Friday in its opening salvo in a trade war with President Donald Trump.

Within hours, Trump responded with a threat to impose a 20 percent tariff on cars imported from the European Union.

The EU tariffs, which took effect at midnight (2200 GMT Thursday) according to the EU's official journal, will further fuel jitters on world stock markets that are already alarmed by trade tensions between the United States and China.

Customs agents across Europe's colossal market of 500 million people will now impose the duty, hiking prices on US-made products in supermarkets and across factory floors.

"These measures are the logical consequence of the US decision," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told AFP.

"They reflect a Europe that is resolute and principled," he said.

Brussels imposed the raft of duties on US products worth 2.8 billion euros ($3.3 billion) in a tit-for-tat response to Trump's decision to slap stiff tariffs on European steel and aluminium exports.

Global markets on Friday took the development in their stride, with stocks in Europe firm after weeks of instability on trade worries.

EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said this week that the 28-nation bloc was "left with no other choice" but to impose tariffs of its own after the "unilateral and unjustified decision of the US."

Together with US tariffs against Mexico and Canada, the trade battles have raised the spectre of a global trade war, spooking financial markets that fear major consequences to the global economy.

"We have a trade war -- and it's an escalating trade war," SEB chief economist Robert Bergqvist told AFP in an interview.

John Ferguson, director of global forecasting at the Economist Intelligence Unit agreed, as he sounded a warning about the US trade disputes rumbling on the EU and Chinese fronts.

"Mr Trump has now opened up two fronts of this conflict and both have the potential to escalate out of control," Ferguson said.

- 'Symbolic impact' -

The list of goods subject to EU duties does not specifically name brands but European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker spelled out in March that the bloc would target "Harley-Davidson, bourbon and Levi's jeans".

Cigarettes, cranberries, cranberry juice, orange juice, sweetcorn and peanut butter are among the other products targeted.

Juncker said on Thursday that the US decision to impose tariffs "goes against all logic and history".

"Our response must be clear but measured. We will do what we have to do to rebalance and safeguard," he said.

European consumers would be able to find "alternatives", European Commission Vice President for trade Jyrki Katainen said.

"If we chose products like Harley Davidson, peanut butter and bourbon, it's because there are alternatives on the market. We don't want to do anything that would harm consumers," he said on Thursday.

"What's more, these products will have a strong symbolic political impact."

International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Christine Lagarde warned on Thursday that trade war, as well as Brexit, were the key risks to the eurozone economy.

While she didn't see a serious "direct impact of tariff increases... it's a trend that is worrying, the breach of confidence that undermines confidence," she said on the sidelines of eurozone minister talks in Luxembourg.

- Relations reach new lows -

Transatlantic ties are at their lowest level for many years due to rows over a host of issues including the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal.

Relations plumbed new depths at the recent G7 summit when Trump abruptly rejected the joint statement and bitterly insulted his Canadian host, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.


GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File / SCOTT OLSON Harley Davidson motorbikes are among the US products facing EU tariffs


Trump claimed America had been obliged to levy the metals tariffs as it has been exploited as the world's "piggy bank".

And on Friday, Trump threatened to slap tariffs of 20 percent on EU car imports, sending shares in Fiat Chrysler, Daimler and BMW sharply lower.

"Based on the Tariffs and Trade Barriers long placed on the U.S. (...) by the European Union, if these Tariffs and Barriers are not soon broken down and removed, we will be placing a 20% Tariff on all of their cars coming into the U.S. Build them here!" he said.

Trump's outbursts were the latest in which he has clashed with America's closest allies, even as he has had warm words for autocrats like North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, with whom he had a historic meeting earlier this month, and Russia's Vladimir Putin.

But US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs Wess Mitchell said on Thursday that Trump's approach towards his allies was about "strategic renovation".

"Strengthening the West means making hard decisions today when we initially disagree, rather than continuing to accept the appearance of transatlantic unity," he told the Carnegie Europe think-tank in Brussels.

burs-jh/har

THE LATEST 100+ Profitable & Hot Selling Products To Import Into Nigeria

Sharing is caring!

100+ Profitable & Hot Selling Products To Import Into Nigeria | Image Source: Pixabay

The import/export business in Nigeria still remains one of the most lucrative industries. As stated in a previous article titled: 100+ Hot-Selling Products You Can Export From Nigeria And Get Paid In Dollars, I segmented and listed 100+ hot selling products any new or existing entrepreneur in the industry can export from Nigeria and get aid in hard currency.
In this article, I’ll be looking at the reverse, and showing 100+ hot selling products entrepreneurs in Nigeria can import and make substantial profits from.
While the importation business in Nigeria is widely touted as high risk and capital intensive, knowing what to import and chasing the right market will determine how successful or not, you’ll be in the industry.
That said, here are 100+ high selling products you can import into Nigeria and make substantial profits from:

− Blog Design − Do you wish to have a blog that can begins to fetch you money? Then, Contact applynigerianjobs.blogspot.com at a reduced price

Hot-Selling Non-Oil and Gas Products To Import Into Nigeria

Fashion Items

• Clothes
• Shoes
• Bags
• Wrist watches
• Fabrics
• Hair extensions
• Cosmetics
• Jewelry
• Belts
• Ties
• Hats
• Textiles

Machinery & Parts

• Recycling machines
• Farm implements
• Fumigating machines
• Vacuum cleaners
• Generators
• Generator parts
• Construction equipment
• Car batteries
• Car stereo
• Vehicle and motorcycle tyres
• Vehicle and Motorcycle spare parts
• Car Trackers
• Sealing machine

Beauty Products

• Skin care creams
• Lipsticks
• Eye lashes
• Eye shadows
• Foundation
• Skin cleanser
• Shampoo
• Nail extensions
• Nail polish
• Powders
• Perfumes
• Bath Soap
• Bath oil
• Hand sanitizer
• Hair Sprays

Electronic Devices & Accessories

• Mobile phones
• Computers
• Decoders
• Memory cards
• Power banks
• Screen guards
• Ear phones
• Video games

• Cameras
• Phone screens
• Scanners
• Printers
• Projectors
• Dish washers
• CCTV Cameras
• Electric bulbs
• Medical & Laboratory Equipment
• Inverters
• Solar Panels
• Electric lamps
• Insulated wire/cable
• Refrigerators & Freezers
• Purifiers
• Speakers and microphones
• Washing machines

Food Items

• Edible oil
• Maize
• Tomatoes
• Wheat
• Rice
• Cereals
• Sugar
• Strawberries
• Apples

Household Items

• Bedding
• Cookers
• Candles
• Safety Matches
• Bathroom Accessories
• Some types of Furniture
• Children’s toys

Other Products

• Plastics
• Pharmaceuticals
• Articles of iron or steel
• Vehicles
• Motorcycles
• Tricycles
• Musical instruments
• Floor Tiles
• Building materials
• Sports items

Hot-Selling Oil and Gas Products To Import Into Nigeria

• AGO (Automotive Gas Oil)
• DPK (Dual Purpose Kerosene)
• PMS (Premium Motor Spirit)
• Petrochemicals
• Cooking gas
• Coal tar oils
• Coal, solid fuels made from coal
• Lignite
• Coke, semi-coke

 To Sum It Up
Just as the export business in Nigeria holds huge potentials for any entrepreneur that chooses to venture into it, the import business also holds amazing benefits for local entrepreneurs, due to the high level of the demand and supply for most types of imported products.
By choosing to import items with a large market demand, you can quickly build a large supply chain, sign long-term supply contracts, grow a profitable business, and in the process, contribute to the reduction of the unemployment rate in the country.

What are your thoughts on these 100+ profitable and hot-selling products you can import into Nigeria? Let me know by leaving a comment below.

− Blog Design − Do you wish to have a blog that can begins to fetch you money? Then, Contact applynigerianjobs.blogspot.com at a reduced price

How To Make At Least $1,000 Monthly Online Without Google Ads

Sharing is caring!

22 affiliate marketing sites that will help you make money online almost everyday

Passive income is one amazing way to make money online without your full attention required. It largely involves providing value to people through various channels like writing a highly compelling blog post, sharing a link on social media, selling information products, and much more.
Irrespective of the amazing opportunities the internet provides, a lot of people who not only want to work from home, but are also looking for ways to earn money online remain clueless on how to go about it.
So then, what’s the most lucrative way to CERTAINLY make money online whether you own a blog or not?
One highly efficient route is AFFILIATE MARKETING!

− Rewrite Your Resume −

Professional Resume For Just 5k

Our Professional Letter Writing Service Ensures You’ll Will Never Go Unnoticed! Get The Resume That Can Fetch You Quick Job!

Affiliate marketing is a performance based network where a person who shares an affiliate link gets rewarded with some cash for each person that either makes a purchase, signs up, or carries out some action the affiliate program requires through your link.
While affiliate marketing isn’t entirely new to a lot of people, they usually get stuck on deciding which affiliate network to try out in a bid to earn a substantial income which could span over $1,000 a month, and so give up when they can’t figure it out.

Google Adsense on the other hand is one way to make money online, but it largely involves you having a very high traffic before any reasonable returns can be made. But if you have a highly engaging social media account or a moderately low traffic to your blog, you can take advantage of affiliate marketing and make 10 times more money than a person with weigh more traffic than you, could have generated using just Google Adsense on their website.

Building up the affiliate network that will make this happen usually takes time, and so, I’ve curated a top list of affiliate marketing programs that can get you earning a substantial monthly income sooner than you think. Also, I’ve added some other ways to make money online through online freelance work you could take advantage of.


Here’s how to get started:

1). Payoneer:

Earning money from affiliate programs is one thing, but how do you literally get the cash sent to you? Most affiliate programs pay via Paypal and Cheque, but these have obvious draw backs. Receiving money via Paypal is currently not possible in many countries around the world, Including Nigeria. With regards to cheques, local banks charge exorbitant amounts of money just to process a foreign cheque.
This then brings up the issue of how to effectively get your affiliate earnings paid straight to you. One way to achieve this is via Payoneer because, they accept payments from hundreds of affiliate programs worldwide. The advantage of this is that when you sign up, they’ll immediately setup an American bank account on your behalf and send you a Payoneer debit card within two months, which you can then use to withdraw money from any ATM around the world.
While you can get your affiliate income sent straight to your Payoneer debit card account, you can also refer people to use the Payoneer service through their online refer a friend program and the both of you would get a $25 commission each, upon signup.
Click here to get a Payoneer debit card

2). Adfly:

Adfly provides one of the easiest ways to make money on the internet. It works with you shortening a url by using their url shortening service instead of other url shortening services. Let’s say you want to share the url google.com on social media, what you’d do is to sign in to your adf.ly account, paste the url in the large text box, and shorten it to http://adf.ly/1esxdS. Every time someone clicks the link, Adfly pays you.
So if you ever want to share a link to any news, website, or whatever on any social network, rather than wasting the opportunity by sharing the original link, copy the link and shrink it on Adfly to earn money every single time someone clicks it. You can even increase your sharing ratio on Facebook groups, WhatsApp groups, LinkedIn, BBM, and several other social media platforms.
Click here to join Adfly

3). Cashpiggy:

Cashpiggy, a subsidiary of Adfly, is another great way to make money online. They offer a number of surveys for people to carry out, ads for people to view, and games for people to play. For every activity completed, you’d earn a certain amount of money. Also, when you refer a friend to use the service, you’d always earn a percentage of whatever that friend earns for life!
Click here to join CashPiggy

4). Freelancer:

For those searching for a side job to earn more money online, Freelancer is where you should be. If you have good skills in writing, design, programming, translation, data entry, and several others, take a trip to Freelancer.com now and get started.
By signing up and completing your profile, you can start working on your first project as soon as one is made available to you. You can also refer a friend and earn a commission.
Click here to join Freelancer

5). SEOClerk:

SEOClerk is a great place for people with expertise on Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) to get more side gigs that can make them more money online. You can also refer a friend and earn a 10% commission off every of their purchase for life!
Click here to join SEOClerk

6). PeoplePerHour:

PeoplePerHour is another freelance job site like SEOClerk and Freelancer. Here, you can find job gigs and earn more income monthly, especially when you’re an active member of not just PeoplePerHour, but also of SEOClerk, Freelancer, and several others. You can also refer a friend and earn a $45 commission whenever they start a project on the platform, and your friend would also get a 5% discount voucher too.
If you can successfully refer 1,000 people to start a project on PeoplePerHour, you’d make $45,000 dollars.
Click here to join PeoplePerHour

7). Ipages:

Ipages is a web hosting company offering lucrative affiliate marketing opportunities to people that get accepted into their affiliate marketing program. For each sign up you refer to them, they could pay you up to $108 dollars.
So if you can get 100 people to sign up on Ipages in a month, you’d make $10,800. If you get 1,000 people, you’d make $108,000.
Click here to learn more about Ipages

8). ConvertKit:

The life blood of every blog is valuable traffic. But then, retaining that traffic is crucial to the blog’s survival. That’s why growing and maintaining an email list is a top priority for every blogger that plans to be successful.
Convertkit provides one of the most intelligent email marketing platforms on the internet, and they also have valuable affiliate programs. By referring people to Convertkit, you’ll get 30% off whatever they pay the website for life!
For example; if they’re spending $100 a month, you’d get $30 from each person every month. So if 10 people equals $300, 100 people equals $3,000, and 1,000 people equals $30,000 every single month for life!
Click here to join ConvertKit

9). GetResponse:

Just like Convertkit, GetResponse is another highly effective email marketing platform. They run an affiliate program and pay the partners 33% of whatever the people they refer pay on the platform.
For example, if your referrals are spending $100 a month, you’d get $33 from each person every month. So, 10 people equals $330, 100 people equals $3,300, and 1,000 people equals $33,000 every single month!
Click here to join GetResponse

− Blog Design − Do you wish to have a blog that can beging to fetch you money? Then, Contact applynigerianjobs.blogspot.com at a reduced price

 

10). Adnow:

If you’ve ever tried applying to AdMob for advert placements in your app to no avail, Adnow is a great alternative. Apart from just serving ads through your native application, they also provide you the opportunity to refer a friend and earn from them.
Click here to join Adnow

11). RevenueHits:

Just like Adnow, RevenueHits is yet another ad publisher, and would also allow you monetize your website through their Ad model. They also offer an affiliate program where you can refer a friend and earn from them.
So, if your friend places RevenueHits ads on their site and earns $1,500 or less in a month, you’d get paid 5% of the amount earned every month for one year. If the amount earned is over $1,500, you’d get paid 10% of the value every month for one year.
Click here to join RevenueHits

12). ShareCash:

ShareCash helps you monetize your free content (e.g eBooks, videos, audiobooks, etc) by prompting your readers to unlock it before the download can start. Every time a reader downloads one of your free contents, ShareCash pays you about $0.3 to $1. So If you get 1,000 unique downloads in a day at $1, you could make $1,000 everyday.
ShareCash also offers an affiliate marketing program where you can earn 5% of what your referral makes for life! And for every 10 active referrals you get, you’ll earn an extra 1%, up to a maximum of 12%.
So if 10 your referrals are each making about $1,000 a month, you’d make $50 each from them, amounting to $500. The more referrals you get, the more money you make.
Click here to join ShareCash

13). Fiverr:

For people looking for online work to earn them extra money, Fiverr is another great freelance site to sign up on. They also offer a great affiliate program to keep you earning substantial revenues anywhere from $15 to $50 per successful acquisition.
Click here to join fiverr

14). ExoClick:

Just like Google Adsense, you can monetize your website and blog with ExoClick. You can also join their referral program and earn 5% off every friend or colleague you refer for life!
Click here to join ExoClick

15). Adbooth:

Adbooth helps you monetize both your web and mobile sites. They also have a referral program that helps you earn 5% of whatever your friend or colleague earns.
Click here to join Adbooth

− Rewrite Your Resume − Professional Resume For Just 5k Our Professional Letter Writing Service Ensures You’ll Will Never Go Unnoticed! Get The Resume That Can Fetch You Quick Job!

 

16). Themeforest:

This is an online marketplace for the purchase and sale of web themes, plugins, and many other related services. Themeforest is one of the largest web template sellers in the world.
As a web designer, you can sell your themes here and earn a substantial sum per sale. Also, you can take advantage of their affiliate program to get 30% off the sale of any theme your referral link brings in.
Click here to join Themeforest

17). CPALead:

CPALead gives you the opportunity to promote any of their ad product categories via social media, blogs, and many other channels.
You could simply copy a link and paste it on popular social networks. Whenever visitors that go in through your link completes a survey or installs a mobile app to access the Niche content, you’ll earn money.
Click here to join CPALead

18). DepositPhotos:

Depositphotos is a stock photo website where photographers can sell their professional photos. If you’re a talented photographer, you can take advantage of this and earn a substantial income monthly through the sale of your stock photos.
Also, affiliate marketers can take advantage of the affiliate program offered by DepositPhotos and earn a 30% commission on any sale they bring in.
Click here to join DepositPhotos

19). DreamsTime:

Similar to DepositPhotos, photographers can sell their stock images on DreamsTime. Asides this, bloggers and individuals can also take advantage of their referral program and earn 10% of the value of every sale made through their referral link for the first 3 years.
Click here to join DreamsTime

20). Template Monster:

TemplateMonster operates similarly to themeforest as a martketplace for the purchase and sale of web templates and related products. You can also engage in their affiliate program by taking advantage of their offer and earning as high as 30% of the value of any theme sold through your affiliate link.
For example, if a theme that’s purchased through your link costs $50, 1,000 sales through that link would amount to $15,000 in revenue for you.
Click here to join Template Monster

21). Propeller Ads:

PropellerAds is yet again another Google Adsense alternative. You can apply and monetize your website through their ad services, and also earn 5% from publisher’s revenue who register on their website via your referral link.
Click here to join PropellerAds

22). Selz:

Selz is a platform where you can create and integrate an e-commerce store on any existing blog or as an entirely standalone entity. You can also earn a monthly recurring 100% commission from every sale you successfully refer through their affiliate program.
Click here to join Selz

− Blog Design − Do you wish to have a blog that can beging to fetch you money? Then, Contact applynigerianjobs.blogspot.com at a reduced price