View all partners This article was first published as World Affairs Briefing from The Conversation UK. Click here to receive this newsletter every Thursday Waiting for news this week of whether a ceasefire deal between Hamas and the Israeli government must have been agonising for the people of Gaza and for the families of hostages taken in the attack of October 7 All week the talk was that a deal was in the very final stages of negotiation the BBC was reporting that negotiators from Israel and Hamas were “in the same building for the first time” as the final details were ironed out where negotiations have been based these past 15 months Then a flash from Associated Press: talks had hit a last-minute snag and Israel was blaming Hamas despite Hamas insisting they had accepted the deal These mixed messages had become so frequent it’s hard to think this wasn’t a negotiating tactic of some kind an Israeli official had barely had time to confirm that the two sides had agreed an “outline deal” for a ceasefire and return of hostages when Netanyahu’s office issued a denial saying a deal hadn’t been done and Hamas was to blame It was an indication of how precarious things still were Scores of civilians were killed in airstrikes overnight on Tuesday Sign up to receive our weekly World Affairs Briefing newsletter from The Conversation UK Every Thursday we’ll bring you expert analysis of the big stories in international relations Donald Trump took to his social media platform announcing “WE HAVE A DEAL.” At almost the same time Qatari officials as well as Hamas and Israel confirmed that a deal had indeed been signed The ceasefire would begin on Sunday and a timetable for the release of hostages had been agreed a glimmer of hope for the people of Gaza and the relatives of the Israeli hostages some of whom have been waiting for 15 months to hear news of their loved ones Images began to appear on the international news wires of celebrations in Israel and Gaza where ordinary people on both sides of this tragic conflict wept with relief Amid all the confusion, Scott Lucas, a Middle East expert at University College Dublin, who has been covering this conflict for decades, was in constant touch with The Conversation’s international affairs team. We had prepared a number of questions to give a sense of the background to the deal – which he says is virtually identical to one that nearly got over the line last September last September the deal reached the stage where Israel’s chief negotiator had said a deal was just about to be done only for Netanyahu to change Israel’s list of demands at the last minute Something in the mixed messaging on Wednesday suggested there was now a similar situation at play it was what would be said in Israel that would count as Israel’s domestic politics took centre stage The detail wouldn’t be done until Netanyahu had the agreement of his cabinet which was due to meet on the morning of January 16 Netanyahu’s powerful ultra-nationalist allies Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich remain determined to scupper the deal The cabinet meeting has been postponed and airstrikes continue in Gaza killing dozens of people who had been hoping their ordeal might be over As for Sunday’s ceasefire? The US says it is confident it will go though. But Marika Sosnowski, a security expert at the University of Melbourne specialising in the Middle East, cautions that this agreement will neither end the war nor bring a lasting peace: “Ceasefires are not a panacea for the war hunger and death Israelis and Palestinians have borne before and since October 7 Sosnowski calls the deal a “strangle contract” – the sort of arrangement where one side is far more powerful than the other And the three-stage agreement even mandates for further negotiations towards the end of stage one in order to agree on what happens in stage two The war between Hamas and Israel is not over “This ceasefire simply marks the start of a new phase.” But let’s assume that the agreement gets over the line in Israel and a ceasefire begins on Sunday giving the estimated 1.9 million Palestinian civilians who have been displaced over the past 15 months the chance to pick themselves up and make their way home to try to rebuild their lives They will do so in the middle of a humanitarian crisis Sarah Schiffling, deputy director of the Humanitarian Logistics and Supply Chain Management Research Institute at Hanken School of Economics in Finland, walks us through the challenges ahead have virtually no food or medical supplies Most warehouses have been destroyed and many of the roads on which aid agencies will depend to get the food and supplies to those in need will have to be repaired making the delivery of aid doubly difficult in a region where everybody is desperate Israel is about to impose a ban on its authorities working with the largest UN organisation in Gaza the United Nation Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) on the grounds it has been colluding with Hamas This will make it nigh on impossible for the agency to negotiate safe movement around the Strip But agencies like Unrwa cannot hope to make a difference unless there is lasting peace and people of Gaza are given the chance to recover from the trauma and the help (and the unimaginably large amounts of money) to try to rebuild their lives the US president-elect was quick to trumpet his involvement on getting the deal over the line He followed his initial post with several more proclaiming shortly the deal was announced that: “This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November.” When Trump’s claim was put to him at a press conference later the same evening Biden seemed amused: “Is that a joke?” he asked before explaining that any deal would need the full engagement of the US government which is why he had instructed his team to work closely with Trump’s “because that’s what American presidents do” something that US presidents haven’t often done in the past is to threaten their closest allies the way Trump has the leaders of America’s fellow Nato members You’ll recall that during last year’s election campaign Trump said he would encourage the Russians to do “whatever they hell they want” to any Nato members not paying their bills The incoming president returned to that theme last week telling a press conference that he expected Nato members to increase their defence spending to 5% of their GDP Nato set a 2% figure with a target date of 2024 to reach it Trump’s demands have galvanised Nato’s politics writes Birmingham University’s Mark Webber this has gone down well with countries such as Poland and the Baltic states which sit nervously in Russia’s back yard and have already begun to significantly increase their defence spending Germany even has legal constraints about the amount of money it can spend on defence despite Keir Starmer’s pledge for a Nato-first defence posture which includes a “cast-iron commitment” to increase defence spending the current plan is to get to 2.5% of GDP by 2030/31 And it doesn’t look as if there’s a great deal of budgetary headroom to go much further much quicker the US president-elect has been able to draw a line under the legal proceedings that have dogged him since January 6 2021 The two-year investigation into the assault by Trump supporters on the US Capitol has been closed down and Jack Smith the justice department official who so doggedly pursued the investigation into the incoming president’s part in that sorry episode All that is left for the public record now is the part of the written report pertaining to that investigation, which Smith said in the report would have been enough to secure his conviction had he not won the election. Emma Long, an expert in US politics and history at the University of East Anglia, has the story She reflects that while most Americans have always held the rule of law close to their hearts the fact is that 77 million people voted for Trump despite knowing about January 6 is a “a call to the better angels of American nature a reminder to citizens of the higher principles to which the nation has historically pledged” She concludes: “If Americans ultimately choose the Maga way instead the nation – and the rest of the world – will feel the consequences.” World Affairs Briefing from The Conversation UK is available as a weekly email newsletter. Click here to get our updates directly in your inbox. Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. The Arakan Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army, calling themselves the Three Brotherhood Alliance, said in a joint statement that they have begun “Operation 1027” in Myanmar’s Shan state. The offensive could become a new major front in the strife-torn Southeast Asian nation. Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the spokesperson for the military government, acknowledged in a phone interview with pro-military media outlet NP News that towns in northern Shan state had been attacked, and members of the security forces were killed in the town of Chinshwehaw, but did not give a number. Chinshwehaw is a small town that borders China, about 320 kilometers (200 miles) northeast of Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city. The groups in the rebel alliance, like other minority groups living in border regions, have struggled for decades for greater autonomy from Myanmar’s central government. Several groups, including those in the Three Brotherhood Alliance, have collaborated with pro-democracy militias formed after the military takeover. These militias, collectively known as the People’s Defense Force, now battle the army over much of the country. The alliance’s statement said its members are also “dedicated to eradicating the oppressive military dictatorship, a shared aspiration of the entire Myanmar population.” The politics of ethnic groups in the north is complicated because the area borders China, which maintains good relations with Myanmar’s ruling generals. The groups in the alliance also have good relations with China and have vowed to protect foreign investments in their territories where Chinese-backed projects are located. Another link is that the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA, is the fighting arm of Myanmar’s Kokang minority, who are ethnic Chinese. Details of Friday’s fighting are difficult to confirm, since the area is difficult to access. Battles were reported in the townships of Kyaukme, Kutkai, Lashio, Laukkaing, Muse and Namhkan in northern Shan state, beginning with simultaneous attacks at dawn. Media in Shan state reported the alliance forces had attacked military targets, checkpoints, toll gates and police stations, and that Chinshwehaw — which hosts one of Myanmar’s five official border trade crossings with China — was seized by the MNDAA. It said the military responded with aerial bombardments and shelling and that many hundreds of civilians are fleeing to safer areas. Photos on social media showed bodies apparently of security force personnel killed in the fighting, captured soldiers and damaged toll gates. SHAN News, a local online media outlet, reported four people, including three children, were killed and six others wounded by artillery strikes in Kutkai and Namhkan townships. A Laukkaing township resident confirmed to The Associated Press that Chinshwehaw and border trade checkpoints were seized by MNDAA on Friday morning. He spoke on the condition of anonymity because he feared reprisals from the military and rebel groups. A member of Laukkaing’s police force told the AP that at least 17 policemen including a lieutenant were killed and others were wounded after the MNDAA attacked patrol cars and checkpoints. He spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to release information. Military spokesperson Zaw Min Tun said a hotel in Chinshwehaw was attacked by the MNDAA and hotel staff and civilians seized and taken away. A truck driver from Lashio, a key trading post, said the town’s gates were closed after the rebel groups attacked a toll gate just outside of town. Road traffic was also stopped, said the truck driver, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he fears punishment from the authorities. MNDAA-backed online media posted a statement from the group saying it had captured some strategic locations and blocked roads in order to raid online fraud operations in Laukkaing. The alliance statement had said it is committed “to combatting the widespread online gambling fraud that has plagued Myanmar particularly along the China-Myanmar border.” That refers to casinos and other properties where organized crime carries out online and phone scams employing thousands of people, many tricked into coming from China by fake job offers but who end up working in conditions of near slavery. The crime rings are headed by ethnic Chinese, often in cooperation with local Myanmar warlords. In recent weeks the Chinese government has pushed a crackdown on these operations, and thousands of people involved have been repatriated to China. but the truth is that regular conversations conducted through the app are not end-to-end encrypted which puts your sensitive information at considerable risk End-to-end encryption ensures that only you and the person you're communicating with can read or listen to what is sent end-to-end encryption is not enabled by default meaning the onus is on you to make sure you turn it on so that third parties cannot eavesdrop on your communications enabling it is not difficult once you know how but it can only be turned on for individual contacts – it is not a global setting To start an encrypted chat with someone requires entering into a "Secret conversation." The following steps show you how it's done You will now be in a conversation window that implements end-to-end encryption you can also set your messages to disappear from the conversation thread completely (on both your device and the device of the person you're chatting with) tap the clock banner at the top of the conversation window tap the top-left profile of the person you'll be chatting with then select Disappearing messages and choose an expiration time Get weekly top MacRumors stories in your inbox Apple Intelligence is what Apple is calling its artificial intelligence feature set If you're experiencing issues with iPhone Mirroring follow these steps to get it working again Apple's annual developer conference where it will unveil iOS 19 New M4-generation chips and additional upgrades Apple's next-generation iPhone models with a new "Air" or "Slim" model replacing the current Plus model MacRumors attracts a broad audience of both consumers and professionals interested in the latest technologies and products We also boast an active community focused on purchasing decisions and technical aspects of the iPhone SWe will keep you updated on our activities and scientific studies A health impact assessment has estimated the improvements in mental health that would result from increasing green space throughout the city A health impact assessment led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) a centre supported by the ”la Caixa” Foundation has concluded that implementing green corridors throughout the city of Barcelona would result in a “considerable reduction” in mental disorder cases in adult residents as well as in direct and indirect costs associated to said cases The study was published in the journal Environment International It is estimated that mental health disorders account for more than 30% of the global burden of disease Scientific evidence shows that green spaces benefit overall health—and mental health in particular—via various mechanisms for example by decreasing exposure to air pollution noise and heat; by reducing stress and facilitating restorative processes in the body; and by encouraging physical activity and social interaction the research team set out to assess the mental health impacts of a strategy developed by the city to known as Green Axes (Eixos Verds in Catalan) forms part of the Barcelona Superblock project It is currently being implemented primarily in the city centre although it ultimately envisages the transformation of one out of every three streets into a green corridor The researchers obtained data from a previous study that quantified the land area allocated for green space and the degree of greenery throughout the city in 2015 They then calculated the increase in green space that the implementation of the Green Axes plan would produce across the entire city Data on the mental health of the population were obtained from the Barcelona Health Survey (2016-2017) By applying the calculations from previous research on the relationship between residential green space and mental health the researchers were able to estimate how the planned increase in green space under the Green Axes plan would impact on several mental health outcomes across the population the Green Axes plan would result in a 5.67% citywide increase in green space would lead to the prevention of 14% of cases of self-perceived poor mental health 13% of visits to mental health specialists and cases of antidepressant use and 8% of cases of tranquilliser/sedative use each year The researchers further concluded that these mental health benefits for the population would translate into annual savings of €45 million in direct and indirect mental health costs “Barcelona has a problem that urgently needs to be solved” commented ISGlobal researcher Natalie Mueller “Only 11% of the city is currently allocated for green space—and this includes the Collserola park which accounts for 60% of the city’s green space only 6.5% of the land area is allocated for green space in order to comply with the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of at least one 500 m2 green space within 300 m of each home we calculate that this figure would need to be as high as 25% of the land area.” “Just 20% of the population of Barcelona currently lives in a place that meets the WHO recommendation on green space only 40% of city dwellers enjoy the recommended access to green space which shows that we still have a lot of work to do in terms of greening our cities,” explained ISGlobal researcher Evelise Pereira “This study helps illustrate that greening is a relevant strategy to promote health “Although our study evaluated the potential impact of the Green Axes plan, the results do not apply exclusively to Barcelona,” commented Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, Director of the Urban Planning, Environment and Health Initiative at ISGlobal “Any action in any city that leads to an increase in the amount of green space near people’s homes should lead to improvements in the mental health burden across the population in order for these benefits to materialise it is essential that interventions be evenly distributed across the city and accompanied by complementary policies such as high-quality public and active transport systems and policies to prevent speculation and gentrification.” Diana Vidal Yáñez, Evelise Pereira, Marta Cirach, Carolyn Daher, Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, Natalie Mueller. An urban green space intervention with benefits for mental health: a health impact assessment of the Barcelona “Eixos Verds” Plan. Environment International, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2023.107880 Our website www.isglobal.org (the "Website") uses cookies to collect information on how the Website is used A cookie is a file downloaded onto your machine (computer or mobile device) for storing data that may be updated and retrieved by the entity that installed it The information collected via cookies may include the date and time you visited the website the time you spent on our website and the websites you visited before and after visiting our site We use cookies to facilitate your browsing of our Website provide you a better use experience and identify problems with our Website we will use cookies to obtain information on your preferences and tailor our Website to your interests The purpose of this cookies policy is to provide you with clear and precise information on the cookies used on our Website (the "Cookies Policy"). For more information on the cookies used on our Website, please email your questions to the Data Protection Officer: lopd@isglobal.org Our Website uses the cookies described below These cookies are sent to your computer and handled only by us to improve the operation of the Website Information collected is used to improve the quality of our service and your user experience These cookies remain in your browser for longer This allows us to recognise you when you return to the Website and tailor the content offered to your preferences Interacting with the content of our Website can also cause the installation of third-party cookies (e.g. when you click on social network buttons or watch videos hosted on our Website) Third-party cookies are installed by other domains; not ours We cannot access the data stored in the cookies of other websites when you browse those websites Our Website uses Google Analytics audience measurement system These tools allow us to know how users interact with our Website Persistent cookies store data on your terminal that can be accessed and processed during a defined time period by the owner of the cookie This time period could be anything from a few minutes to several years Below is a list of cookies according to the purpose for which the data obtained is processed: these cookies tell us the total number of visitors to our Website and which parts of our site are the most popular we obtain information that helps us improve browsing and provide a better service to our users and clients Visit the following link to Google's website to read about the type of cookies used by Google Analytics and their expiry time you provide consent for our use of the cookies described for the time periods specified under the conditions of this Cookies Policy Cookies are not required for using our Website You can block and disable cookies by configuring your browser to block the installation of all or some cookies Most browsers can be set to warn you of the presence of cookies or block them automatically the use of some of its services may be limited and your user experience may be diminished If at any time you want to withdraw the consent you gave under this Cookies Policy delete the cookies stored on your machine (computer or mobile device) via the settings and configuration of your web browser For more information on deleting, disabling or blocking cookies, visit this page Unless you have adjusted your browser's configuration our system creates cookies when you visit our Website All web browsers allow changing this configuration Click on the links below for how to adjust the cookie configuration of the following browsers: We may update the Cookies Policy of our Website from time to time We recommend that you review this policy each time you visit our Website so that you are adequately informed on how and for what we use cookies The Cookies Policy was last updated on March 11 For any query, comment or suggestion regarding our Cookies Policy, please email the Data Protection Officer: lopd@isglobal.org 2020 · Photo: Christopher Burns / Unsplash] In accordance with the current data protection regulations When you are requested to provide personal data for the provision of services you will be informed of what data you must provide If you do not provide this required data, we will not be able to provide you with the services. The personal data you provide or that ISGlobal obtains as a result of your browsing, queries or requests via our webpage at www.isglobal.org (the “website”) will be included in a file owned by ISGlobal for managing storing and tracking your requests for information and/or contracting of goods or services offered via the website The information obtained from you by ISGlobal from the website when you sign up for a promotional event or send a form is processed with the utmost confidentiality for helping you to take part in the event in question or The information obtained is not used for any other purpose The personal data provided will not be disclosed or transferred to third parties without your consent When the completion of a form is requested the user will be informed of the identity and data of the data controller and the Data Protection Officer the purposes and legal basis of the treatment the data retention periods and the user's ability to exercise their rights of access limitation and / or opposition to treatment the right complaint to the control authority and the existence of automated decisions The personal data collected will only be processed and / or transferred for the express purpose Information is only sent via the form(s) of the website after you have expressed your acceptance by selecting an "ACCEPT/SEND" (or similar) button via which ISGlobal has proof that you gave your consent for it to process your personal data you guarantee that the data you provide is true ISGlobal may decline to provide the information or services requested to any user providing false data without prejudice to any other legal action open to it This does not prevent any technical storage or access for the sole purpose of carrying out or facilitating the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network or as strictly necessary to provide an information society service expressly requested by you You may exercise your rights of access, rectification, erasure, objection, portability and restriction of the processing by sending a request to the Data Protection Officer via email (lopd@isglobal.org) or the ISGlobal postal address: c/ Rosselló a photocopy of your ID document or passport and an indication of the right you want to exercise If you are unhappy with the processing done by ISGlobal or believe that your rights have been violated, you may file a claim with the Spanish Data Protection Agency at any time (www.aepd.es – C/ Jorge Juan ISGlobal has implemented the necessary technical and organizational security measures in order to guarantee the security of your personal data and prevent its alteration the nature of the stored data and the risks to which they are exposed whether they come from human action or the physical or natural environment all in accordance with the provisions of current regulations In accordance with Law 34/2002, of 11 July, on the Services of the Information Society and Electronic Commerce, if you do not wish to receive electronic commercial notices from ISGlobal in the future, you may inform us of this preference by sending an email to the Data Protection Officer (lopd@isglobal.org) it may store or retrieve information on your browser your preferences or your device and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to The information does not usually directly identify you but it can give you a more personalized web experience you can choose not to allow some types of cookies Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies but some parts of the site will not then work These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site and will not be able to monitor its performance Some of these cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools Some other of these cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites They do not store directly personal information but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device you will experience less targeted advertising Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Last year’s frosts were a “wake-up call” for Burgundy producers the head of the BIVB has told the drinks business prompting the organisation itself to triple investment into R&D to mitigate the damaging effects of climate change In an exclusive interview with the drinks business following a presentation at the London Wine Fair last week co-president of the BIVB said the spring frosts last year had alarmed the board of the BIVB and growers in the region to such an extent that they realised they make immediate changes to ensure the future of wines produced in the region The organisation has taken the unprecedented decision to reorient its priorities by trebling the amount of money it spends on R&D over the next three years – from Euro 1m now to Euro 3m in 2025 specifically to improve rootstocks conduct research into historic varieties and optimise the way growers work in the vineyards we need to adapt more to the different vintages that we have and we need also to have more collective involvement and commitment of all the growers,” he said He explained that although the average production yields over the last 20 years has evened out into a fairly steady average – around 1.4m hL a year on average – there has been an increasing variation in the peaks and troughs of yields from year to year there has been more of a variation from one year to another,” he noted “The main change is the impact of the impact of climate change.” although the surface area under vine in the region has increased by around 1% a year over the last ten year the land was not producing the level of grapes that it could do “We should be producing 2m hL not 1.4m hL,” he said “We’ve seen a lot of challenges for a few years but it was really last year when we saw the frost in Spring  that everyone realised we needed to do something – we cannot continue when the potential [yield]  is reducing like that we need to react and be more active in terms of research and development,” he said which requires new solutions and fresh techniques.” The BIVB’s data shows that on average bud break is happening seven days earlier than it was thirty years ago while the harvest is around two weeks earlier than it was in 1987 Meanwhile the average rise of temp is 1 degree “which sounds very little but it is a lot,” he explained He pointed out that although some benefits had been felt – for example earlier harvests can be better for the quality of the red wines while drier and warmer summers means fewer problems from disease However the region is seeing more incidences of new disease coming from the south while earlier bud burst creates substantial danger from spring frosts The new focus on R&D was therefore not just about increasing the spend but in “identifying the right projects and moving in the right direction” “Growers need to work with the right plants as well as optimising the way people work in the vineyards,” he said “The main one for me is the rootstock,” he told db “It’s the interface between the variety and the terroir.” He points to a particular clone that was widely planted in the 1980s and 90s (161-49C) and proved not to be resistant to the drier and warmer weather the BIVB want to identify new rootstocks that may be more adaptable and encourage winegrowers to grow a more diverse selection in the vineyards They are also keen to develop disease resistant varieties through cross breeding with wild American vines that are resistant to mildew the BIVB are encouraging greater networking among vinegrowers to encourage groups to share their experiences and success in different ways of training the vines experimentation with delayed pruning or retaining heat in the soil to protect the vines from frost they share with their network – we believe in this new way of management of local initiative that spread if they are seen to be working,” he said “It took time to realise that was going on but sometimes you need some alarming factors and that happened with the last frost.” We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings we will not be able to save your preferences This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed Tesco joins boycott as food group closes doors at West Bromwich plant in order to retrain workers after Guardian/ITV investigation The country’s largest supplier of supermarket chicken has suspended production at one of its main processing plants after undercover filming revealed poor hygiene standards and food safety records being altered. The temporary closure by 2 Sisters Food Group (2SFG), which will now put employees at the plant through a retraining programme, came as Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket chain, joined the boycott of the poultry group’s West Midlands plant in the wake of a joint undercover investigation by the Guardian and ITV News. A spokesman for 2SFG, which supplies a third of all poultry products eaten in the UK, said: “We are shocked and distressed by the allegations and the footage which we saw for the first time on Thursday 28 September. Since the allegations were put to us by the Guardian/ITV, we have been working around the clock to get to the truth of the matter. Read more“The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has been in daily attendance since the allegations were raised and confirmed that it has not identified any breaches. However, our internal investigation has shown some isolated instances of non-compliance with our own quality management systems. “We have therefore decided to temporarily suspend operations at the site to allow us the time to retrain all colleagues including management in all food safety and quality management systems.” Read moreA Tesco spokesperson added: “Following last week’s allegations of poor practices at 2 Sisters we conducted additional quality assurance tests We’d like to reassure customers our initial investigation supported the Food Standards Agency’s findings that there was no current evidence of breach of food safety procedures there have been isolated incidents where food quality procedures have not been followed and therefore in agreement with 2 Sisters we have decided to suspend all orders from Site D so that staff can receive further training We will not be taking any more chicken from the site until this has been addressed and all processes are carried out to the highest standard.” Tesco’s move emerged after the retailer initially resisted halting supplies from 2 Sisters Food Group’s West Bromwich site despite four rivals suspending deliveries from the plant Tesco placed inspectors inside the West Midlands facility in order to oversee the chicken processor’s production team But the grocer reversed that stance on Sunday evening On Friday Marks & Spencer, Aldi and Lidl all announced they had suspended deliveries from the 2 Sisters plant, while Sainsbury’s followed suit a day later. M&S said the footage showed “unacceptable” standards and also pulled chicken sourced from the plant from its shelves. The moves came after the Guardian and ITV released undercover footage on Thursday showing an instance of 2 Sisters workers altering the source and slaughter date of poultry being processed in the firm’s Site D plant. Experts said altering “kill dates” could artificially stretch the commercial life of the meat and dupe consumers into buying chicken past its use-by date. It is illegal to place incorrect use-by dates on food, which are set for safety reasons and differ from “best before” dates. Read moreOther sections of the footage showed chicken being picked off the floor and thrown back on to the production line and older poultry being mixed with fresher birds All five grocers supplied with chicken from the plant quickly announced their own investigations which had conducted nine audits at the site - five of which were unannounced - in the months of July and August The regulator has urged “anyone with information for this investigation” to make contact The chairman of parliament’s environment, food and rural affairs committee, Neil Parish, said on Friday he was preparing to call 2 Sisters founder, Ranjit Singh Boparan to Westminster to answer questions about the scandal 2 Sisters Food Group is the UK’s second largest food company by turnover and claims to process around 6 million chickens every week It is owned by Ranjit Singh Boparan and his wife and the chicken operations – which include 12 sites in the UK – are part of a sprawling £3bn food empire that separately includes the turkey producer Bernard Matthews plus food brands such as Fox’s Biscuits and Goodfella’s pizza The company added that its staff “will remain on full pay and will attend the site” while the company overhauls its procedures and that operations will only recommence once the firm is satisfied its staff have been properly retrained “We continue to work closely with the FSA and our customers throughout this period We remain committed to ensuring that we operate to the highest standards of hygiene and food safety and we act with honesty and integrity at all times,” the company said While the left constantly harangue Republicans into blindly agreeing to accepts election results Democrats are looking to keep the litigation door open for themselves Infamous Democrat election meddler Marc Elias will not commit to accepting the results of the election if former President Donald Trump wins Elias, whose election litigation services have been retained by Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign declined to answer multiple requests from The Federalist about accepting the results of this year’s election persistently demands that Trump promise not to challenge election results no matter what even if there’s evidence of wrongdoing or fraud Elias will not commit to the same standard in order to leave the door open to file suits if Harris loses “Elias only pretends to care about democracy president and CEO of Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections “Whether it is characterizing voting by non-citizens as a victory for voting rights working to nullify a referendum to preserve in-person voting requirements in New York or encouraging House Democrats to nullify a certified Republican victory in an Iowa congressional race he will resort to any tactic that might invalidate or dilute Republican votes.” have done more to politicize our elections to the great detriment of our democracy,” Lyons said of Elias Elias has been meddling in elections, and sometimes successfully overturning them, for most of his career, despite paying lip service on television to calling Republicans who challenge things like noncitizens voting or the lack of election integrity safeguards “election deniers.” In an MSNBC interview he even called for the disbarment of Republican lawyers who challenge elections like he does and their allies should be able to file lawsuits that can tip election results their way “We have to ask ourselves whether or not the legal institutions here shifted the Overton Window in such a way that there are disbarments at the very outer lens but we have sort of normalized a contentious behavior towards democracy,” he said referencing the California bar’s disbarment of election lawyer John Eastman “I don’t think any lawyer should have a bar license for the privilege of destroying our country’s democratic traditions.” Elias said there needs to be an “outer limit to attacking free and fair elections” that sets the standard to whether lawyers are allowed to file election litigation but in the same breath argues that his election litigation is defending “democracy” while Republicans’ election challenges should lead to personal The longtime election lawyer may be displeased about Republican election litigation but it is not over concerns about democracy it is because Republicans could finally have a legal team up for the challenge “While much of Elias’s reputation is thanks to the fact that he is an amazing self-promoter who amplifies his victories and hides his many defeats Elias has operated on a level well beyond that of his Republican counterparts particularly when it comes to dirty tricks that have undermined confidence in America’s elections,” The Federalist editor-in-chief Mollie Hemingway wrote in her book Rigged One of the examples of Elias’s contributions is hiring on behalf of the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign the outfit Fusion GPS to invent the “Steele dossier,” which provided the fodder for the Russia hoax and gave the Obama administration an excuse to launch a Federal Bureau of Investigations inquiry into Democrats’ political opponents Elias’s tactics go beyond falsified opposition research Perhaps his largest claim to fame was overturning Minnesota’s U.S canceling enough votes to turn a 727-vote Republican victory into a 312-vote victory for former Sen which cemented a Democrat supermajority in the upper chamber during Obama’s first term just as Democrats were whining about Republican election challenges from the Trump campaign and others (including in lawsuits Elias himself litigated) Elias was behind a push to unseat a duly elected representative from Iowa While Miller-Meeks’s victory was decided by just six votes it was certified by the Iowa Board of Canvass to mount a bizarre attempt to have the U.S House of Representatives vote to unseat her anyway using the procedures in the Federal Contested Elections Act and the House Administration Committee In 2022, Elias signaled to Democrats that they needed to start getting comfortable with election challenges of this kind even calling for ostensibly Democrat-approved standards for what a “free and fair election” means and an “accountability structure” for those who would challenge it Yet another House seat during the 2020 election saw an Elias attempt to steal it. What eventually became Rep. Claudia Tenney’s, R-N.Y., seat was the subject of an Elias-backed claim that faulty voting machines were behind incumbent Democrat Rep Elias is now expanding Democrat scare tactics to demonize conservatives even claiming in his MSNBC interview that Republicans claim they have have a “constitutional right to harass and intimidate election officials.” “They’re doing that because they want to lay the predicate to allow grassroots activists in whether it’s people with guns or wearing body armor like we saw in Arizona in 2022 or it’s people filing mass challenges or what we’ve seen in Georgia they want to enable and promote the idea of election vigilantism,” he added While it is not totally clear to which case Elias was referring it may be a four-year-old case that seeks to stop Republicans from partaking in most kinds of normal legitimate election administration to which Democrats have always had access As The Federalist reported Democrats are attempting to block Republicans from engaging in recounts and other standard post-election activities by having a left-wing judicial ally reinstate a 1981 decision from another Democrat judge that stripped Republicans from participating equally in election litigation for more than three decades A wholly independent division of FDRLST Media