Police found a crossbow, machete, knives, and Nazi symbols in early-morning raids on Tuesday after banning a far-right extremist group called "Sturmbrigade 44"&nbsp;which the government says wants a Nazi state.

Swastikas were among the Nazi symbols uncovered in searches of the homes of 11 members of the group in the states of Hesse, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and North Rhine-Westphalia in the early hours of Tuesday, the interior ministry said in a statement.

Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Tuesday&nbsp;that the group, also known as "Wolfsbrigade 44", "sows hatred" and "advocates the re-establishment of a Nazi state".&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-neo-nazi-threat-germany-remembers-dark-past-with-israel-322274">Amid Neo-Nazi threat, Germany remembers dark past with Israel</a>

"Anyone who fights against the fundamental values of our liberal society will feel the determined reaction of the constitutional state," the minister said in a statement.

Early on Tuesday, almost 200 police officers began searches of premises linked to 11 alleged members of the group in a number of regional states.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/germany-29-police-officers-suspended-for-sharing-hitlers-images-328898">Germany: 29 police officers suspended for sharing Hitler's images</a>

Police found weapons, including knives and crossbows, as well as propaganda items such as swastikas and Nazi flags, the interior ministry said.

Members "openly declared their support for Adolf Hitler", the ministry said, adding that the group was "particularly characterised by militaristic appearance" and "pronounced racism" as part of an "inhuman ideology".

In July last year, prosecutors raided apartments in several German states of members accused of being part of the group, which was founded in 2016.&nbsp;

Six were suspected of having formed an armed group within the organisation, authorities said at the time.&nbsp;

The news comes amid continued heightened tension surrounding far-right extremism in Germany.&nbsp;

Last month, federal prosecutors charged 12 alleged far-right conspirators suspected of planning "terrorist attacks" on politicians, asylum-seekers and Muslims.

In February, a far-right extremist killed 10 people and wounded five others in the central German city of Hanau.

And last year, two people were killed after a neo-Nazi tried to enter a synagogue in Halle on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.&nbsp;

The interior ministry has said far-right and anti-Semitic hate crime spiked in the country in 2019.

Seehofer already banned three other right-wing extremist groups earlier this year, "Combat 18", "Nordadler" and the "Reichsbuerger-Vereinigung".

Police found a crossbow, machete, knives, and Nazi symbols in early-morning raids on Tuesday after banning a far-right extremist group called "Sturmbrigade 44" which the government says wants a Nazi state.

Police found a crossbow, machete, knives, and Nazi symbols in early-morning raids on Tuesday after banning a far-right extremist group called "Sturmbrigade 44" which the government says wants a Nazi state. Swastikas were among the Nazi symbols uncovered in searches of the homes of 11 members of the group in the states of Hesse, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and North Rhine-Westphalia in the early hours of Tuesday, the interior ministry said in a statement. Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Tuesday that the group, also known as "Wolfsbrigade 44", "sows hatred" and "advocates the re-establishment of a Nazi state". Also read: Amid Neo-Nazi threat, Germany remembers dark past with Israel "Anyone who fights against the fundamental values of our liberal society will feel the determined reaction of the constitutional state," the minister said in a statement. Early on Tuesday, almost 200 police officers began searches of premises linked to 11 alleged members of the group in a number of regional states. Also read: Germany: 29 police officers suspended for sharing Hitler's images Police found weapons, including knives and crossbows, as well as propaganda items such as swastikas and Nazi flags, the interior ministry said. Members "openly declared their support for Adolf Hitler", the ministry said, adding that the group was "particularly characterised by militaristic appearance" and "pronounced racism" as part of an "inhuman ideology". In July last year, prosecutors raided apartments in several German states of members accused of being part of the group, which was founded in 2016. Six were suspected of having formed an armed group within the organisation, authorities said at the time. The news comes amid continued heightened tension surrounding far-right extremism in Germany. Last month, federal prosecutors charged 12 alleged far-right conspirators suspected of planning "terrorist attacks" on politicians, asylum-seekers and Muslims. In February, a far-right extremist killed 10 people and wounded five others in the central German city of Hanau. And last year, two people were killed after a neo-Nazi tried to enter a synagogue in Halle on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. The interior ministry has said far-right and anti-Semitic hate crime spiked in the country in 2019. Seehofer already banned three other right-wing extremist groups earlier this year, "Combat 18", "Nordadler" and the "Reichsbuerger-Vereinigung".

'Wolf Brigade 44': Germany bans neo-Nazi group; police raids homes of 11 members

Uttarakhand's forest department has built a&nbsp;one-of-its-kind bridge across the two-lane Kaladhungi-Nainital highway called 'Eco Bridge'&nbsp;&nbsp;to help reptiles cross roads.

The&nbsp;Eco Bridge is a&nbsp;90-foot-long structure of bamboo, jute, and grass was built&nbsp;over a period of 10 days. The cost of the bridge is Rs 2 lakh. 
&nbsp;

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In picture:&nbsp;Eco Bridge&nbsp;

The highway is the main route to Nainital and is used by a large number of vehicles, especially in the tourist season. 
 
The adjoining jungle is home to lizards, snakes, including pythons, rodent squirrels, and monkeys, and the reptiles frequently get crushed under the passing vehicles. 
 
The 5-foot-wide, 40-foot-high bridge can take the weight of three adult humans, and forest officials said they hope it would be used by even leopards. 
 
Ramnagar Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Chandra Shekhar Joshi said that the bridge, which will be monitored by four camera traps, will be studied as a model by the Forest Department. 
 
Joshi said that the bridge has been made at a point where the road arcs in a wide `U`, and vehicles going downhill often travel at high speed. It is expected that by reducing the need for sudden braking in front of a crossing animal, the road will be safer for human beings too. 
 
"This is a dense forest, and elephants, leopards, deer, and blue bulls move in this area. Drivers can see them from some distance and slow down or stop, but they rarely do so for snakes, lizards, monitors, or squirrels," said a forest official. 
 
He said that in order to attract reptiles and other small animals to the bridge, creepers will be grown it and it will be layered with grass and leaves. 
 
The DFO said that boards were being put up to create awareness of the need to protect reptiles. Forest staff would patrol the area to ensure tourists do not try to use the bridge for selfies, he added.

Uttarakhand's forest department has built a one-of-its-kind bridge across the two-lane Kaladhungi-Nainital highway called 'Eco Bridge' to help reptiles cross roads.

Uttarakhand's forest department has built a one-of-its-kind bridge across the two-lane Kaladhungi-Nainital highway called 'Eco Bridge' to help reptiles cross roads. The Eco Bridge is a 90-foot-long structure of bamboo, jute, and grass was built over a period of 10 days. The cost of the bridge is Rs 2 lakh. In picture: Eco Bridge The highway is the main route to Nainital and is used by a large number of vehicles, especially in the tourist season. The adjoining jungle is home to lizards, snakes, including pythons, rodent squirrels, and monkeys, and the reptiles frequently get crushed under the passing vehicles. The 5-foot-wide, 40-foot-high bridge can take the weight of three adult humans, and forest officials said they hope it would be used by even leopards. Ramnagar Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Chandra Shekhar Joshi said that the bridge, which will be monitored by four camera traps, will be studied as a model by the Forest Department. Joshi said that the bridge has been made at a point where the road arcs in a wide `U`, and vehicles going downhill often travel at high speed. It is expected that by reducing the need for sudden braking in front of a crossing animal, the road will be safer for human beings too. "This is a dense forest, and elephants, leopards, deer, and blue bulls move in this area. Drivers can see them from some distance and slow down or stop, but they rarely do so for snakes, lizards, monitors, or squirrels," said a forest official. He said that in order to attract reptiles and other small animals to the bridge, creepers will be grown it and it will be layered with grass and leaves. The DFO said that boards were being put up to create awareness of the need to protect reptiles. Forest staff would patrol the area to ensure tourists do not try to use the bridge for selfies, he added.

Eco Bridge: Uttarakhand builds bridge to help reptiles cross road

Online media users&nbsp;in China and South Korea are entangled in another column, this time over the provenance of kimchi, the aged cabbage dish that the vast majority perceive as a basic piece of the Korean eating regimen.&nbsp;

Not, however, in China, where state media have started an online reaction after one of the nation's matured dishes got affirmation from the International Organization for Standardization [ISO].&nbsp;

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According to the Global Times, the certification from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for Pao Cai&nbsp;was&nbsp;"an international standard for the Kimchi industry led by China."

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It all began with the Chinese state-run tabloid <a href="https://twitter.com/globaltimesnews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@globaltimesnews</a>’ effort to describe the achievement as “an international standard for the Kimchi industry led by China.” South Korean media accused <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/China?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#China</a> of trying to make Kimchi a kind of Chinese Pao Cai.
— William Yang (@WilliamYang120) <a href="https://twitter.com/WilliamYang120/status/1333552067068055558?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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China's efforts to win an international certification for Pao Cai, a pickled vegetable dish from Sichuan, is turning into a social media showdown between Chinese and South Korean netizens over the origin of Kimchi, a staple Korean cuisine made of cabbage.

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South koreans and chinese people r fighting rn bc china won best kimchi and got an international certificate for it 😭😭😭😭
— injae apologist (@seoulnoodles) <a href="https://twitter.com/seoulnoodles/status/1333503147432583168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

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I love Kimchi. 
As well, I make Pao cai myself at home sometimes. 
However, "Pao cai" is a genetic word given to all types of pickling vegetable in China in terms of materials of the veggie and radishes. Regarding the veggie, the categories divided by the regions and climates. <a href="https://t.co/fUe4KaosFA">https://t.co/fUe4KaosFA</a>
— Dr. Ewa J (@Ewa80998656) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ewa80998656/status/1333363329004433411?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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South Korean media was fast to dispute such a claim and accuse the bigger neighbor of trying to make Kimchi a type of China-made Pao Cai.

“Its total nonsense, what a thief stealing our culture!” a South Korean netizen wrote on Naver.com, a widely popular web portal.

“I read a media story that China now says Kimchi is theirs, and that they are making international standard for it, It’s absurd. I’m worried that they might steal Hanbok and other cultural contents, not just Kimchi,” said Kim Seol-ha, a 28-year old in Seoul.

Some South Korean media even described the episode as China’s “bid for world domination,” while some social media comments flagged concerns that Beijing was exercising “economic coercion.”

On China’s Twitter-like Weibo, Chinese netizens were claiming Kimchi as their country’s own traditional dish, as most of the Kimchi consumed in South Korea is made in China.

“Well, if you don’t meet the standard, then you’re not kimchi,” one wrote on Weibo. “Even the pronunciation of kimchi originated from Chinese, what else is there to say,” wrote another.

South Korea’s agriculture ministry on Sunday released a <a href="https://www.mafra.go.kr/mafra/294/subview.do?enc=Zm5jdDF8QEB8JTJGYmJzJTJGbWFmcmElMkY2OSUyRjMyNTQwNSUyRmFydGNsVmlldy5kbyUzRmJic0NsU2VxJTNEJTI2cmdzRW5kZGVTdHIlM0QlMjZiYnNPcGVuV3JkU2VxJTNEJTI2cGFzc3dvcmQlM0QlMjZzcmNoQ29sdW1uJTNEJTI2cGFnZSUzRDElMjZyZ3NCZ25kZVN0ciUzRCUyNnJvdyUzRDEwJTI2aXNWaWV3TWluZSUzRGZhbHNlJTI2c3JjaFdyZCUzRCUyNg%3D%3D">statement </a>saying mainly that the ISO approved standard does not apply to Kimchi.

“It is inappropriate to report (about Pao Cai winning the ISO) without differentiating Kimchi from Pao Cai of China’s Sichuan,” the statement said.

Online media users in China and South Korea are entangled in another column, this time over the provenance of kimchi, the aged cabbage dish that the vast majority perceive as a basic piece of the Korean eating regimen.

Online media users in China and South Korea are entangled in another column, this time over the provenance of kimchi, the aged cabbage dish that the vast majority perceive as a basic piece of the Korean eating regimen. Not, however, in China, where state media have started an online reaction after one of the nation's matured dishes got affirmation from the International Organization for Standardization [ISO]. According to the Global Times, the certification from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for Pao Cai was "an international standard for the Kimchi industry led by China." It all began with the Chinese state-run tabloid @globaltimesnews’ effort to describe the achievement as “an international standard for the Kimchi industry led by China.” South Korean media accused #China of trying to make Kimchi a kind of Chinese Pao Cai. — William Yang (@WilliamYang120) November 30, 2020 × China's efforts to win an international certification for Pao Cai, a pickled vegetable dish from Sichuan, is turning into a social media showdown between Chinese and South Korean netizens over the origin of Kimchi, a staple Korean cuisine made of cabbage. South koreans and chinese people r fighting rn bc china won best kimchi and got an international certificate for it 😭😭😭😭 — injae apologist (@seoulnoodles) November 30, 2020 × I love Kimchi. As well, I make Pao cai myself at home sometimes. However, "Pao cai" is a genetic word given to all types of pickling vegetable in China in terms of materials of the veggie and radishes. Regarding the veggie, the categories divided by the regions and climates. https://t.co/fUe4KaosFA — Dr. Ewa J (@Ewa80998656) November 30, 2020 × South Korean media was fast to dispute such a claim and accuse the bigger neighbor of trying to make Kimchi a type of China-made Pao Cai. “Its total nonsense, what a thief stealing our culture!” a South Korean netizen wrote on Naver.com, a widely popular web portal. “I read a media story that China now says Kimchi is theirs, and that they are making international standard for it, It’s absurd. I’m worried that they might steal Hanbok and other cultural contents, not just Kimchi,” said Kim Seol-ha, a 28-year old in Seoul. Some South Korean media even described the episode as China’s “bid for world domination,” while some social media comments flagged concerns that Beijing was exercising “economic coercion.” On China’s Twitter-like Weibo, Chinese netizens were claiming Kimchi as their country’s own traditional dish, as most of the Kimchi consumed in South Korea is made in China. “Well, if you don’t meet the standard, then you’re not kimchi,” one wrote on Weibo. “Even the pronunciation of kimchi originated from Chinese, what else is there to say,” wrote another. South Korea’s agriculture ministry on Sunday released a statement saying mainly that the ISO approved standard does not apply to Kimchi. “It is inappropriate to report (about Pao Cai winning the ISO) without differentiating Kimchi from Pao Cai of China’s Sichuan,” the statement said.

'Stealing our culture': Kimchi ferments cultural feud between South Korea and China

An organised ''crime gang'' besieged Criciúma, a city in&nbsp;southeast Brazilian city early Tuesday, ransacking bank offices, taking prisoners, and shooting, at any rate, two individuals, as indicated by the chairman and the police.&nbsp;

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Dec 1: People take money scattered on the floor after a mega robbery in the city of Criciuma - Brazil. The gang looks well trained and supported by heavy armory. The modality of crime is called 'Novo Cangaço' <a href="https://t.co/4SCUVM3ztK">pic.twitter.com/4SCUVM3ztK</a>
— Ocupa Rio (@OccupyRio) <a href="https://twitter.com/OccupyRio/status/1333659513136812033?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The amount of money stolen from the heist in Criciúma by the armed robbers has not yet been specified.&nbsp;Criciúma, with a populace of more than 133,000 starting at 2010, is in the territory of Santa Catarina and is viewed as the focal point of Brazil's earthenware and floor tile industry.&nbsp;

A military police leader said a cop was among those shot. Their condition was not promptly clear.&nbsp;

The attack started not long before 12 PM Monday and proceeded into Tuesday morning, enduring about 60 minutes. Clésio Salvaro, the city hall leader of Criciúma, said in a post on Twitter not long before 2 a.m. neighborhood time that the city, which is on the Atlantic coast, was enduring an onslaught, and requested occupants to remain at home.&nbsp;

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Criciúma é alvo de um assalto de grandes proporções. Junto às autoridades militares e forças de segurança, seguimos monitorando e acompanhando o desenrolar dos fatos. Fiquem em casa. MUITO CUIDADO!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Crici%C3%BAma?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Criciúma</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ClesioSalvaro?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ClesioSalvaro</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SantaCatarina?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SantaCatarina</a> <a href="https://t.co/lebQ71aM9d">pic.twitter.com/lebQ71aM9d</a>
— Clésio Salvaro (@ClesioSalvaro) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClesioSalvaro/status/1333633935486701568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"Criciúma is the objective of a significant attack," he composed. "Along with the military specialists and security powers, we proceed to screen and follow current realities. Remain at home."&nbsp;

Salvaro disclosed to Radio Gaúcha that three or four destinations had been plundered by men he called "scoundrels."&nbsp;

"I have no clue about where they are from, yet they are particular," he said. "We have never encountered this throughout the entire existence of the city."&nbsp;

Salvaro added that around six individuals had been abducted, yet they were later liberated. "I conversed with them. They are well. The data we have is that everybody was delivered," Salvaro said in a meeting with GloboNews, the biggest media source in Brazil.&nbsp;

He said that the city's convention was not to take shots back at the aggressors, to ensure the populace. He additionally said the police wanted to follow the desperados to recover the cash. He didn't state what amount had been taken.&nbsp;

Around 6 on Tuesday morning, four individuals accepted to be associated with the heist had been captured, and the police had recuperated a portion of the cash the assailants had taken, neighborhood reports said.&nbsp;

Occupants via web-based media revealed hearing boisterous gunfire, as per Globo. Video film online indicated individuals snatching what gave off an impression of being money off the roads. On Twitter, others detailed that the aggressors had bazookas and bombs and were burning down structures, in what they depicted as a scene looking like a thriller.&nbsp;

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The gang of 'Novo Cangaço', leaving the city of Criciuma, Brazil after the mega robbery that occurred on the night of Dec 1st, 2020. Brazil would become a new Wild West?<a href="https://t.co/kaxqOqpnSM">pic.twitter.com/kaxqOqpnSM</a>
— Ocupa Rio (@OccupyRio) <a href="https://twitter.com/OccupyRio/status/1333663217063776256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The Military Police of Santa Catarina — a state office with various brigades — were brought in and were looking for fortifications to face the gathering, as indicated by neighborhood reports.&nbsp;

Cristian Dimitri Andrade, a Military Police authority in Criciúma, told journalists that the aggressors were "a few men with rifles, long weapons," and depicted them as "a coordinated wrongdoing group, which works in bank burglary." He said two individuals, including a cop, had been shot.&nbsp;

"We are getting data from inhabitants who send us photographs and recordings," he told Engeplus, a neighborhood media source.&nbsp;

The police couldn't quickly be gone after the remark.&nbsp;

Gil Diniz, state deputy of Sao Paulo said ''What is happening in Criciúma right now is what has been happening in the interior of São Paulo and we call it “Novo Cangaço”. Heavily armed bandits assault and bring terror to residents. Let no policeman be hurt, the PM send all the bad guys to hell!

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O que está acontecendo em Criciúma nesse exato momento, é o que vem acontecendo pelo interior de SP e chamamos de “Novo Cangaço”. Bandidos fortemente armados assaltam e levam terror aos moradores. 
 
Que nenhum policial seja ferido, que a PM mande para o inferno todos os bandidos!
— Gil Diniz (@carteiroreaca) <a href="https://twitter.com/carteiroreaca/status/1333632447909650432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Bank burglaries in Brazil, which has among the most noticeably awful wrongdoing and manslaughter rates on the planet, are not really remarkable. As of late, groups have endeavored to burrow their approach to millions through passages, have exploded explosives to burglarize bank offices, and have exploded money machines in endeavors to extricate cash.&nbsp;

In 2005, hoodlums leased a house one square from a bank, set up a phony cultivating business, and went through a quarter of a year burrowing a 262-foot burrow under a bank in the shoreline city of Fortaleza. They snatched over $50.8 million, the specialists said.&nbsp;

In 2017, the Brazilian police found a passage complete with electric lighting and ventilation, impeding the arranged theft of a São Paulo part of the public authority claimed Banco do Brasil. Sixteen suspects were captured.

An organised ''crime gang'' besieged Criciúma, a city in southeast Brazilian city early Tuesday, ransacking bank offices, taking prisoners, and shooting, at any rate, two individuals, as indicated by the chairman and the police.

An organised ''crime gang'' besieged Criciúma, a city in southeast Brazilian city early Tuesday, ransacking bank offices, taking prisoners, and shooting, at any rate, two individuals, as indicated by the chairman and the police. Dec 1: People take money scattered on the floor after a mega robbery in the city of Criciuma - Brazil. The gang looks well trained and supported by heavy armory. The modality of crime is called 'Novo Cangaço' pic.twitter.com/4SCUVM3ztK — Ocupa Rio (@OccupyRio) December 1, 2020 × The amount of money stolen from the heist in Criciúma by the armed robbers has not yet been specified. Criciúma, with a populace of more than 133,000 starting at 2010, is in the territory of Santa Catarina and is viewed as the focal point of Brazil's earthenware and floor tile industry. A military police leader said a cop was among those shot. Their condition was not promptly clear. The attack started not long before 12 PM Monday and proceeded into Tuesday morning, enduring about 60 minutes. Clésio Salvaro, the city hall leader of Criciúma, said in a post on Twitter not long before 2 a.m. neighborhood time that the city, which is on the Atlantic coast, was enduring an onslaught, and requested occupants to remain at home. Criciúma é alvo de um assalto de grandes proporções. Junto às autoridades militares e forças de segurança, seguimos monitorando e acompanhando o desenrolar dos fatos. Fiquem em casa. MUITO CUIDADO!#Criciúma #ClesioSalvaro #SantaCatarina pic.twitter.com/lebQ71aM9d — Clésio Salvaro (@ClesioSalvaro) December 1, 2020 × "Criciúma is the objective of a significant attack," he composed. "Along with the military specialists and security powers, we proceed to screen and follow current realities. Remain at home." Salvaro disclosed to Radio Gaúcha that three or four destinations had been plundered by men he called "scoundrels." "I have no clue about where they are from, yet they are particular," he said. "We have never encountered this throughout the entire existence of the city." Salvaro added that around six individuals had been abducted, yet they were later liberated. "I conversed with them. They are well. The data we have is that everybody was delivered," Salvaro said in a meeting with GloboNews, the biggest media source in Brazil. He said that the city's convention was not to take shots back at the aggressors, to ensure the populace. He additionally said the police wanted to follow the desperados to recover the cash. He didn't state what amount had been taken. Around 6 on Tuesday morning, four individuals accepted to be associated with the heist had been captured, and the police had recuperated a portion of the cash the assailants had taken, neighborhood reports said. Occupants via web-based media revealed hearing boisterous gunfire, as per Globo. Video film online indicated individuals snatching what gave off an impression of being money off the roads. On Twitter, others detailed that the aggressors had bazookas and bombs and were burning down structures, in what they depicted as a scene looking like a thriller. The gang of 'Novo Cangaço', leaving the city of Criciuma, Brazil after the mega robbery that occurred on the night of Dec 1st, 2020. Brazil would become a new Wild West?pic.twitter.com/kaxqOqpnSM — Ocupa Rio (@OccupyRio) December 1, 2020 × The Military Police of Santa Catarina — a state office with various brigades — were brought in and were looking for fortifications to face the gathering, as indicated by neighborhood reports. Cristian Dimitri Andrade, a Military Police authority in Criciúma, told journalists that the aggressors were "a few men with rifles, long weapons," and depicted them as "a coordinated wrongdoing group, which works in bank burglary." He said two individuals, including a cop, had been shot. "We are getting data from inhabitants who send us photographs and recordings," he told Engeplus, a neighborhood media source. The police couldn't quickly be gone after the remark. Gil Diniz, state deputy of Sao Paulo said ''What is happening in Criciúma right now is what has been happening in the interior of São Paulo and we call it “Novo Cangaço”. Heavily armed bandits assault and bring terror to residents. Let no policeman be hurt, the PM send all the bad guys to hell! O que está acontecendo em Criciúma nesse exato momento, é o que vem acontecendo pelo interior de SP e chamamos de “Novo Cangaço”. Bandidos fortemente armados assaltam e levam terror aos moradores. Que nenhum policial seja ferido, que a PM mande para o inferno todos os bandidos! — Gil Diniz (@carteiroreaca) December 1, 2020 × Bank burglaries in Brazil, which has among the most noticeably awful wrongdoing and manslaughter rates on the planet, are not really remarkable. As of late, groups have endeavored to burrow their approach to millions through passages, have exploded explosives to burglarize bank offices, and have exploded money machines in endeavors to extricate cash. In 2005, hoodlums leased a house one square from a bank, set up a phony cultivating business, and went through a quarter of a year burrowing a 262-foot burrow under a bank in the shoreline city of Fortaleza. They snatched over $50.8 million, the specialists said. In 2017, the Brazilian police found a passage complete with electric lighting and ventilation, impeding the arranged theft of a São Paulo part of the public authority claimed Banco do Brasil. Sixteen suspects were captured.

Bank robbery like Money Heist executed by thieves in Brazil

After hinting at conceding defeat to <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a> in the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/us-election">US election</a> 2020, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a> is also losing his Twitter followers to the president-elect.

According to Factbase, a site committed to following Trump's public utterances, the president has lost 133,902 devotees since 17 November while the duly elected president has increased 1,156,610.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/joe-biden-wins-arizona-wisconsin-donald-trump-alleges-corruption-346581">Joe Biden wins Arizona, Wisconsin; Donald Trump alleges corruption</a>

In a Sunday tweet, CNN host and media columnist Brian Stelter said that while Twitter supporters were "without a doubt not the main measurement on the planet", it was "still significant: unexpectedly since 2015, Trump is reliably losing adherents".&nbsp;

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Surely not the most important metric in the world, but still worth noting: For the first time since 2015, Trump is consistently losing followers on here. <a href="https://twitter.com/FactbaseFeed?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FactbaseFeed</a> has measured small declines for 11 days in a row. <a href="https://t.co/BZzXJ2D0SJ">pic.twitter.com/BZzXJ2D0SJ</a>
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) <a href="https://twitter.com/brianstelter/status/1333135900419698690?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 29, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Factbase, he called attention to, had "estimated little decreases for 11 days straight".&nbsp;

Trump has 88.8 million devotees, to whom he keeps on tweeting ridiculous cases of constituent extortion and hard and fast paranoid notions encompassing his misfortune to Biden.&nbsp;

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His latest message at the hour of composing went with a video of a group at a convention and stated: "No chance WE LOST THIS ELECTION!"&nbsp;

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NO WAY WE LOST THIS ELECTION! <a href="https://t.co/orOXBaR8uE">https://t.co/orOXBaR8uE</a>
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1333245684011642881?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Trump has griped about his treatment by Twitter, claiming it is one-sided against traditionalists. Numerous onlookers expect that once he leaves office, the site will quit assuming the best about him with respect to his bogus and fiery messages.&nbsp;

Biden has 20.2 million adherents.&nbsp;

On Monday morning, his latest message read: "It's an ideal opportunity to take care of the brutal way of talking, bring down the temperature, and hear each out other once more. To gain ground, we should quit regarding our rivals as our adversaries. We are not foes. We are Americans."

After hinting at conceding defeat to Joe Biden in the US election 2020, Donald Trump is also losing his Twitter followers to the president-elect. According to Factbase, a site committed to following Trump's public utterances, the president has lost 133,902 devotees since 17 November while the duly elected president has increased 1,156,610.

After hinting at conceding defeat to Joe Biden in the US election 2020, Donald Trump is also losing his Twitter followers to the president-elect. According to Factbase, a site committed to following Trump's public utterances, the president has lost 133,902 devotees since 17 November while the duly elected president has increased 1,156,610. Also read: Joe Biden wins Arizona, Wisconsin; Donald Trump alleges corruption In a Sunday tweet, CNN host and media columnist Brian Stelter said that while Twitter supporters were "without a doubt not the main measurement on the planet", it was "still significant: unexpectedly since 2015, Trump is reliably losing adherents". Surely not the most important metric in the world, but still worth noting: For the first time since 2015, Trump is consistently losing followers on here. @FactbaseFeed has measured small declines for 11 days in a row. pic.twitter.com/BZzXJ2D0SJ — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 29, 2020 × Factbase, he called attention to, had "estimated little decreases for 11 days straight". Trump has 88.8 million devotees, to whom he keeps on tweeting ridiculous cases of constituent extortion and hard and fast paranoid notions encompassing his misfortune to Biden. His latest message at the hour of composing went with a video of a group at a convention and stated: "No chance WE LOST THIS ELECTION!" NO WAY WE LOST THIS ELECTION! https://t.co/orOXBaR8uE — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2020 × Trump has griped about his treatment by Twitter, claiming it is one-sided against traditionalists. Numerous onlookers expect that once he leaves office, the site will quit assuming the best about him with respect to his bogus and fiery messages. Biden has 20.2 million adherents. On Monday morning, his latest message read: "It's an ideal opportunity to take care of the brutal way of talking, bring down the temperature, and hear each out other once more. To gain ground, we should quit regarding our rivals as our adversaries. We are not foes. We are Americans."

Donald Trump losing Twitter followers to Joe Biden

Kashi ghats in India illuminated with 15 lakh diyas on Dev Deepawali

World Health Organization's chief&nbsp;Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that it&nbsp;''will do everything'' to discover the origin of coronavirus.

Voicing&nbsp;deep concern Monday over a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases and deaths in Brazil in recent weeks, he said its condition&nbsp;"is very, very worrisome."

"I think Brazil has to be very, very serious," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters, after fresh cases in the country jumped from around 10,000 per day in early November to more than 50,000, and as the daily death rate shot up nearly ninefold in a week.&nbsp;

Earlier,&nbsp;WHO's top emergency expert said it would be "highly speculative" for the WHO to say the&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;did not emerge in China, where it was first identified in a food market in December last year.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinese-scientists-now-claim-coronavirus-originated-in-india-in-summer-2019-346039">Chinese scientists now claim coronavirus originated in India in summer 2019</a>

The WHO has for months been working to send a team of international experts, including epidemiologists and animal health specialists, to China to help probe the animal&nbsp;origin&nbsp;of the novel&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;pandemic and how the virus first crossed over to humans.

The UN health agency sent an advance team to Beijing in July to lay the groundwork for the international probe, but it has remained unclear when the larger team of scientists would be able to travel to China to begin epidemiological studies to try to identify the first human cases and their source of infection.

Scientists believed the killer virus jumped from animals to humans at a market selling exotic animals for meat in the city of Wuhan, where the virus was first detected late last year.

China is pushing a narrative via state media that the virus existed abroad before it was discovered in the central city of Wuhan, citing the presence of&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;on imported frozen food packaging and scientific papers claiming it had been circulating in Europe last year.

At the briefing in Geneva, WHO also called for countries to remain vigilant even if they see a fall in&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;cases.

It is widely assumed that the virus originally came from bats, but the intermediate animal host that transmitted it between bats and humans remains unknown.

Late last month, the WHO said the team of 10 international experts it has set up had held their first meeting with their Chinese counterparts, albeit virtually.

World Health Organization's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that it ''will do everything'' to discover the origin of coronavirus. Voicing deep concern Monday over a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases and deaths in Brazil in recent weeks, he said its condition "is very, very worrisome.

World Health Organization's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that it ''will do everything'' to discover the origin of coronavirus. Voicing deep concern Monday over a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases and deaths in Brazil in recent weeks, he said its condition "is very, very worrisome." "I think Brazil has to be very, very serious," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters, after fresh cases in the country jumped from around 10,000 per day in early November to more than 50,000, and as the daily death rate shot up nearly ninefold in a week. Earlier, WHO's top emergency expert said it would be "highly speculative" for the WHO to say the coronavirus did not emerge in China, where it was first identified in a food market in December last year. Also read: Chinese scientists now claim coronavirus originated in India in summer 2019 The WHO has for months been working to send a team of international experts, including epidemiologists and animal health specialists, to China to help probe the animal origin of the novel coronavirus pandemic and how the virus first crossed over to humans. The UN health agency sent an advance team to Beijing in July to lay the groundwork for the international probe, but it has remained unclear when the larger team of scientists would be able to travel to China to begin epidemiological studies to try to identify the first human cases and their source of infection. Scientists believed the killer virus jumped from animals to humans at a market selling exotic animals for meat in the city of Wuhan, where the virus was first detected late last year. China is pushing a narrative via state media that the virus existed abroad before it was discovered in the central city of Wuhan, citing the presence of coronavirus on imported frozen food packaging and scientific papers claiming it had been circulating in Europe last year. At the briefing in Geneva, WHO also called for countries to remain vigilant even if they see a fall in coronavirus cases. It is widely assumed that the virus originally came from bats, but the intermediate animal host that transmitted it between bats and humans remains unknown. Late last month, the WHO said the team of 10 international experts it has set up had held their first meeting with their Chinese counterparts, albeit virtually.

'Will do everything' to discover origin of COVID-19, says WHO

US&nbsp;President-elect Joe Biden&nbsp;on Monday selected former Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, as his choice for Treasury secretary.

Biden's transition team said in a statement "Janet Yellen is nominated to serve as Secretary of the Treasury. If confirmed, she will be the first woman to lead the Treasury Department in its 231-year history."

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In Yellen, Biden will have a battle-tested policymaker who can draw on her nearly two decades at the Fed to help rebuild an economy in dire need of government cash and confidence. Biden has called for trillions of dollars in new stimulus to aid the small and mid-size businesses that are the nation’s jobs engine.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/joe-biden-to-nominate-indian-american-neera-tanden-as-budget-chief-report-346315" hreflang="en">Joe Biden to nominate Indian-American Neera Tanden as budget chief: Report&nbsp;</a>

Yellen’s expected to champion what she’s called “extraordinary fiscal support” to support the pandemic-ridden economy,&nbsp;deficit spending that she says is affordable given extraordinarily low-interest rates.

The Democrat's picks include Wally Adeyemo as deputy treasury secretary, Neera Tanden as director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Cecilia Rouse to lead the Council of Economic Advisers, the transition team said.

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Biden, a Democrat, also plans to pick Wally Adeyemo, a senior international economic adviser during the Obama administration, to serve as Janet Yellen's top deputy at the Treasury Department, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Economists Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey will be nominated to serve as members of the Council of Economic Advisers, the report added.

Before taking the reins at the Center for American Progress, a center-left think tank, Tanden was a healthcare adviser in former President Barack Obama's administration. She was also an adviser for Democrat Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.

Rouse, a labour economist at Princeton University, whose research has focused on the economics of education, previously served as a member of Obama's Council of Economic Advisers.

Adeyemo was a senior White House national security adviser for international economics during the Obama administration, as well as a top aide to former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew. He is currently president of the Obama Foundation

Bernstein, one of Biden's closest aides, served as his chief economic adviser as Biden, then the vice president, and Obama fought to pull the United States out of the Great Recession.

He was tasked with calculating and explaining how many jobs the Obama administration's hard-fought recovery act saved in 2009, and was widely expected to have a similarly prominent role in a Biden administration,

Boushey is known for research focusing on how inequality can hinder economic growth. The chief executive and co-founder of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, a progressive economic think tank, Boushey has been working with the Biden team as an unofficial economic adviser.

Just like Obama did in 2009, Biden will inherit a struggling economy facing serious near-term challenges.

Nearly 14 million Americans, many of who used to be employed in the restaurant and hospitality industries, are receiving unemployment benefits that expire on December&nbsp;26, and the coronavirus'&nbsp;continued surge means there is no telling when they might be able to go back to work.

Biden's economic agenda is likely to focus on getting the country past the coronavirus crisis, both as a health and economic issue. A lot will depend on the passage of a pandemic relief package and the distribution of a vaccine that is expected in early 2021.

US President-elect Joe Biden on Monday selected former Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, as his choice for Treasury secretary. Biden's transition team said in a statement "Janet Yellen is nominated to serve as Secretary of the Treasury.

US President-elect Joe Biden on Monday selected former Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, as his choice for Treasury secretary. Biden's transition team said in a statement "Janet Yellen is nominated to serve as Secretary of the Treasury. If confirmed, she will be the first woman to lead the Treasury Department in its 231-year history." In Yellen, Biden will have a battle-tested policymaker who can draw on her nearly two decades at the Fed to help rebuild an economy in dire need of government cash and confidence. Biden has called for trillions of dollars in new stimulus to aid the small and mid-size businesses that are the nation’s jobs engine. Also read: Joe Biden to nominate Indian-American Neera Tanden as budget chief: Report Yellen’s expected to champion what she’s called “extraordinary fiscal support” to support the pandemic-ridden economy, deficit spending that she says is affordable given extraordinarily low-interest rates. The Democrat's picks include Wally Adeyemo as deputy treasury secretary, Neera Tanden as director of the Office of Management and Budget, and Cecilia Rouse to lead the Council of Economic Advisers, the transition team said. Biden, a Democrat, also plans to pick Wally Adeyemo, a senior international economic adviser during the Obama administration, to serve as Janet Yellen's top deputy at the Treasury Department, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Economists Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey will be nominated to serve as members of the Council of Economic Advisers, the report added. Before taking the reins at the Center for American Progress, a center-left think tank, Tanden was a healthcare adviser in former President Barack Obama's administration. She was also an adviser for Democrat Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign. Rouse, a labour economist at Princeton University, whose research has focused on the economics of education, previously served as a member of Obama's Council of Economic Advisers. Adeyemo was a senior White House national security adviser for international economics during the Obama administration, as well as a top aide to former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew. He is currently president of the Obama Foundation Bernstein, one of Biden's closest aides, served as his chief economic adviser as Biden, then the vice president, and Obama fought to pull the United States out of the Great Recession. He was tasked with calculating and explaining how many jobs the Obama administration's hard-fought recovery act saved in 2009, and was widely expected to have a similarly prominent role in a Biden administration, Boushey is known for research focusing on how inequality can hinder economic growth. The chief executive and co-founder of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, a progressive economic think tank, Boushey has been working with the Biden team as an unofficial economic adviser. Just like Obama did in 2009, Biden will inherit a struggling economy facing serious near-term challenges. Nearly 14 million Americans, many of who used to be employed in the restaurant and hospitality industries, are receiving unemployment benefits that expire on December 26, and the coronavirus' continued surge means there is no telling when they might be able to go back to work. Biden's economic agenda is likely to focus on getting the country past the coronavirus crisis, both as a health and economic issue. A lot will depend on the passage of a pandemic relief package and the distribution of a vaccine that is expected in early 2021.

Joe Biden selects Janet Yellen as his choice for Treasury secretary

Some 75 major tech players are backing a French initiative committing them to make a "fair tax contribution" in countries where they operate.

French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled the "Tech For Good" initiative at the Elysee Palace on Monday in a move designed to draw up the ground rules for ensuring the internet is a borderless "free, open and safe space".

Tech big-hitters such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, Snapchat, and Huawei have also signed the initiative.&nbsp;Assorted tech 'unicorns', start-ups and NGOs have also joined.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/britain-bans-installation-of-new-huawei-5g-equipment-from-september-2021-346456" hreflang="en">Britain bans installation of new Huawei 5G equipment from September 2021</a>

Two big names yet to sign on are Amazon and Apple, but French presidential sources said both have expressed a "desire" to join.

The initiative comes with France having last week pledged to enforce a new digital levy for online technology giants, breaking a truce with Washington over a long-running tax fight that could prompt a round of punitive US tariffs on French goods.

France suspended collection of the tax, which will hit companies like Facebook and Amazon, early this year while negotiations were underway at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on an overhaul of international tax rules.

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The finance ministry has long said it would collect the tax in December as planned if the talks proved unfruitful by then, which is what happened when the nearly 140 countries involved agreed last month to keep negotiating until mid-2021.

"Companies subject to the tax have received their notice to pay the 2020 installment," a ministry official said.

France last year applied a 3 per cent&nbsp;levy on revenue from digital services earned in France by companies with revenues of more than 25 million euros there and 750 million euros worldwide.

Facebook's stance "is to ensure compliance with all tax laws in the jurisdictions where we operate", it said, adding it had received its tax bill from the French authorities.

Amazon has received a reminder from the French authorities to pay the tax and will comply, according to a person familiar with the matter at the online retailer.

Paris has said it will withdraw the tax as soon as an OECD deal is reached to update the rules on cross-border taxation for the age of online commerce, where big internet companies can book profits in low-tax countries regardless of where their customers are.

The talks stalled as the Trump administration became reluctant to sign on to a multilateral agreement, officials have said.

"We will levy this digital taxation mid-December as we always explained to the US&nbsp;administration," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told a Bloomberg event on Monday.

"Our goal remains to have an OECD agreement by the first months of 2021," he said.

Dan Neidle, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance, was skeptical US&nbsp;President-elect Joe Biden would agree to such a deal.

"I'm not sure why Biden would agree to something which enables US&nbsp;corporations to pay more tax in Europe and has not many benefits to the US," said Neidle.

Some 75 major tech players are backing a French initiative committing them to make a "fair tax contribution" in countries where they operate. French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled the "Tech For Good" initiative at the Elysee Palace on Monday in a move designed to draw up the ground rules for ensuring the internet is a borderless "free, open and safe space".

Some 75 major tech players are backing a French initiative committing them to make a "fair tax contribution" in countries where they operate. French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled the "Tech For Good" initiative at the Elysee Palace on Monday in a move designed to draw up the ground rules for ensuring the internet is a borderless "free, open and safe space". Tech big-hitters such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, Snapchat, and Huawei have also signed the initiative. Assorted tech 'unicorns', start-ups and NGOs have also joined. Also read: Britain bans installation of new Huawei 5G equipment from September 2021 Two big names yet to sign on are Amazon and Apple, but French presidential sources said both have expressed a "desire" to join. The initiative comes with France having last week pledged to enforce a new digital levy for online technology giants, breaking a truce with Washington over a long-running tax fight that could prompt a round of punitive US tariffs on French goods. France suspended collection of the tax, which will hit companies like Facebook and Amazon, early this year while negotiations were underway at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on an overhaul of international tax rules. The finance ministry has long said it would collect the tax in December as planned if the talks proved unfruitful by then, which is what happened when the nearly 140 countries involved agreed last month to keep negotiating until mid-2021. "Companies subject to the tax have received their notice to pay the 2020 installment," a ministry official said. France last year applied a 3 per cent levy on revenue from digital services earned in France by companies with revenues of more than 25 million euros there and 750 million euros worldwide. Facebook's stance "is to ensure compliance with all tax laws in the jurisdictions where we operate", it said, adding it had received its tax bill from the French authorities. Amazon has received a reminder from the French authorities to pay the tax and will comply, according to a person familiar with the matter at the online retailer. Paris has said it will withdraw the tax as soon as an OECD deal is reached to update the rules on cross-border taxation for the age of online commerce, where big internet companies can book profits in low-tax countries regardless of where their customers are. The talks stalled as the Trump administration became reluctant to sign on to a multilateral agreement, officials have said. "We will levy this digital taxation mid-December as we always explained to the US administration," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told a Bloomberg event on Monday. "Our goal remains to have an OECD agreement by the first months of 2021," he said. Dan Neidle, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance, was skeptical US President-elect Joe Biden would agree to such a deal. "I'm not sure why Biden would agree to something which enables US corporations to pay more tax in Europe and has not many benefits to the US," said Neidle.

Fair tax contribution: 75 major tech players sign the French initiative

Nike and Coca-Cola are among the major companies and business groups lobbying Congress to weaken a bill that would ban imported goods made with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, according to congressional staff members and other people familiar with the matter, as well as lobbying records that show vast spending on the legislation.

The bill, which would prohibit broad categories of certain goods made by persecuted Muslim minorities in an effort to crackdown on human rights abuses, has gained bipartisan support, passing the House in September by a margin of 406-3. Congressional aides say it has the backing to pass the Senate and could be signed into law by either the Trump administration or the incoming Biden administration.

But the legislation, called the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, has become the target of multinational companies including Apple, whose supply chains touch the far western Xinjiang region, as well as of business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Lobbyists have fought to water down some of its provisions, arguing that while they strongly condemn forced labor and current atrocities in Xinjiang, the act’s ambitious requirements could wreak havoc on supply chains that are deeply embedded in China.

Xinjiang produces vast amounts of raw materials like cotton, coal, sugar, tomatoes and polysilicon, and supplies workers for China’s apparel and footwear factories. Human rights groups and news reports have linked many multinational companies to suppliers there, including tying Coca-Cola to sugar sourced from Xinjiang, and documenting Uighur workers in a factory in Qingdao that makes Nike shoes.

In a report issued in March, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, a bipartisan group of lawmakers, listed Nike and Coca-Cola as companies suspected of ties to forced labor in Xinjiang, alongside Adidas, Calvin Klein, Campbell Soup Co., Costco, H&amp;amp;M, Patagonia, Tommy Hilfiger and others.

In a statement, Coca-Cola said that it “strictly prohibits any type of forced labor in our supply chain” and uses third-party auditors to closely monitor its suppliers. It also said that the COFCO Tunhe facility in Xinjiang, which supplies sugar to a local bottling facility and had been linked to allegations of forced labor by The Wall Street Journal and Chinese-language news media, “successfully completed an audit in 2019.”

Greg Rossiter, the director of global communications at Nike, said the company “did not lobby against” the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act but instead had “constructive discussions” with congressional staff aides aimed at eliminating forced labor and protecting human rights.

Asked about the allegations of forced labor, Nike referred to a statement in March in which it said that it did not source products from Xinjiang and that it had confirmed that its suppliers were not using textiles or yarn from the region.

Nike said that the Qingdao factory had stopped hiring new workers from Xinjiang in 2019, and that an independent audit confirmed there were no longer employees from there at the facility. (According to a report published in March by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute that cited state media, the factory employed around 800 Uighur workers at the end of 2019 and produced more than 7 million pairs of shoes for Nike each year.)

China’s vast campaign of suppressing and forcibly assimilating Uighurs and other minorities in Xinjiang has attracted the scorn of politicians and consumers around the world.

But for many companies, fully investigating and eliminating any potential ties to forced labor there has been difficult, given the opacity of Chinese supply chains and the limited access of auditors to a region where the Chinese government tightly restricts people’s movements.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would require companies sending goods to the United States to scrutinize those supply chains, or perhaps abandon Chinese suppliers altogether. It would impose high standards, barring imports of goods made “in whole or in part” in Xinjiang unless companies prove to customs officials that their products were not made with forced labor.

The bill also targets so-called poverty alleviation and pairing programs that ship Muslims from impoverished areas to work in factories elsewhere, which human rights groups say are often coercive. Companies would be required to disclose information on their ties to Xinjiang to the Securities Exchange Commission.

Richard A. Mojica, a lawyer at Miller &amp;amp; Chevalier, said that for many companies, convincing the authorities that they have no involvement with forced labor could take months. Firms were already responding by trying to find sources for products outside Xinjiang, he said.

“Rebutting a presumption of forced labor is going to be a very challenging endeavor,” he said.

Companies and groups lobbying on the bill have been pushing for various revisions, including easing disclosure requirements, people familiar with the conversations said.

Apple, which has extensive business ties to China, has also lobbied to limit some provisions of the bill, said two congressional staff members and another person familiar with the matter.

Disclosure forms show that Apple paid Fierce Government Relations, a firm led by former staff aides to Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and President George W. Bush, $90,000 to lobby on issues including Xinjiang-related legislation in the third quarter. Apple’s lobbying was previously reported by The Washington Post.

Apple also paid outside firms this year to lobby on another bill, the Uyghur Forced Labor Disclosure Act of 2020.

Apple disputed the claim that it had tried to weaken the legislation, saying it supported efforts to strengthen U.S. regulations and believes that the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act should become law.

According to a document viewed by The New York Times, Apple’s suggested edits to the bill included extending some deadlines for compliance, releasing certain information about supply chains to congressional committees rather than to the public, and requiring Chinese entities to be “designated by the United States government” as helping to surveil or detain Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang.

In its March report, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute identified Apple and Nike among 82 companies that potentially benefited, directly or indirectly, from abusive labor transfer programs tied to Xinjiang.

That report said that O-Film Technology, a contractor for Apple, Microsoft, Google and other companies, received at least 700 Uighur workers in a program that was expected to “gradually alter their ideology.” It tied other Apple suppliers, including Foxconn Technology, to similar employment programs.

Apple said in a statement that it had the strongest supplier code of conduct in its industry and that it regularly assessed suppliers, including with surprise audits.

“Looking for the presence of forced labor is part of every supplier assessment we conduct and any violations of our policies carry immediate consequences, including business termination,” the statement said. “Earlier this year, we conducted a detailed investigation with our suppliers in China and found no evidence of forced labor on Apple production lines and we are continuing to monitor this closely.”

Lobbying disclosures show that companies have spent heavily to sway Congress on Xinjiang-related legislation, although they reveal nothing about their specific requests.

In the first three quarters of 2020, Nike spent $920,000 on in-house lobbying of Congress and other federal agencies. Disclosures do not break down expenditures by topic but show Nike lobbied on matters including physical education grants, taxes and climate change, as well as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

Nike also paid outside firms like Cornerstone Government Affairs, Ogilvy, Capitol Counsel, GrayRobinson, American Continental Group, DiNino Associates and Empire Consulting Group more than $400,000 this year to lobby on issues including the act.

Rossiter said that Nike had these firms on retainer long before the Xinjiang legislation was introduced, and that the company actively worked with lobbying firms to engage Congress on a variety of subjects it cares about.

Coca-Cola has also invested heavily, spending $4.68 million in the first three quarters of 2020 on in-house lobbying and hiring Empire Consulting Group and Sidley Austin to lobby on issues including the act.

Coca-Cola said in a statement that it complies with all laws associated with its political activities and has “adopted best-in-class disclosures practices.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce declined to comment on lobbying, instead providing a letter it sent to Congress in November with seven other industry groups. The letter said the groups had long been working to combat forced labor, and urged the government to take a comprehensive approach that would mobilize the administration, Congress and foreign governments to address the problem, in addition to industry.

Nike and Coca-Cola are among the major companies and business groups lobbying Congress to weaken a bill that would ban imported goods made with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, according to congressional staff members and other people familiar with the matter, as well as lobbying records that show vast spending on the legislation.

Nike and Coca-Cola are among the major companies and business groups lobbying Congress to weaken a bill that would ban imported goods made with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, according to congressional staff members and other people familiar with the matter, as well as lobbying records that show vast spending on the legislation. The bill, which would prohibit broad categories of certain goods made by persecuted Muslim minorities in an effort to crackdown on human rights abuses, has gained bipartisan support, passing the House in September by a margin of 406-3. Congressional aides say it has the backing to pass the Senate and could be signed into law by either the Trump administration or the incoming Biden administration. But the legislation, called the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, has become the target of multinational companies including Apple, whose supply chains touch the far western Xinjiang region, as well as of business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Lobbyists have fought to water down some of its provisions, arguing that while they strongly condemn forced labor and current atrocities in Xinjiang, the act’s ambitious requirements could wreak havoc on supply chains that are deeply embedded in China. Xinjiang produces vast amounts of raw materials like cotton, coal, sugar, tomatoes and polysilicon, and supplies workers for China’s apparel and footwear factories. Human rights groups and news reports have linked many multinational companies to suppliers there, including tying Coca-Cola to sugar sourced from Xinjiang, and documenting Uighur workers in a factory in Qingdao that makes Nike shoes. In a report issued in March, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, a bipartisan group of lawmakers, listed Nike and Coca-Cola as companies suspected of ties to forced labor in Xinjiang, alongside Adidas, Calvin Klein, Campbell Soup Co., Costco, H&amp;M, Patagonia, Tommy Hilfiger and others. In a statement, Coca-Cola said that it “strictly prohibits any type of forced labor in our supply chain” and uses third-party auditors to closely monitor its suppliers. It also said that the COFCO Tunhe facility in Xinjiang, which supplies sugar to a local bottling facility and had been linked to allegations of forced labor by The Wall Street Journal and Chinese-language news media, “successfully completed an audit in 2019.” Greg Rossiter, the director of global communications at Nike, said the company “did not lobby against” the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act but instead had “constructive discussions” with congressional staff aides aimed at eliminating forced labor and protecting human rights. Asked about the allegations of forced labor, Nike referred to a statement in March in which it said that it did not source products from Xinjiang and that it had confirmed that its suppliers were not using textiles or yarn from the region. Nike said that the Qingdao factory had stopped hiring new workers from Xinjiang in 2019, and that an independent audit confirmed there were no longer employees from there at the facility. (According to a report published in March by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute that cited state media, the factory employed around 800 Uighur workers at the end of 2019 and produced more than 7 million pairs of shoes for Nike each year.) China’s vast campaign of suppressing and forcibly assimilating Uighurs and other minorities in Xinjiang has attracted the scorn of politicians and consumers around the world. But for many companies, fully investigating and eliminating any potential ties to forced labor there has been difficult, given the opacity of Chinese supply chains and the limited access of auditors to a region where the Chinese government tightly restricts people’s movements. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would require companies sending goods to the United States to scrutinize those supply chains, or perhaps abandon Chinese suppliers altogether. It would impose high standards, barring imports of goods made “in whole or in part” in Xinjiang unless companies prove to customs officials that their products were not made with forced labor. The bill also targets so-called poverty alleviation and pairing programs that ship Muslims from impoverished areas to work in factories elsewhere, which human rights groups say are often coercive. Companies would be required to disclose information on their ties to Xinjiang to the Securities Exchange Commission. Richard A. Mojica, a lawyer at Miller &amp; Chevalier, said that for many companies, convincing the authorities that they have no involvement with forced labor could take months. Firms were already responding by trying to find sources for products outside Xinjiang, he said. “Rebutting a presumption of forced labor is going to be a very challenging endeavor,” he said. Companies and groups lobbying on the bill have been pushing for various revisions, including easing disclosure requirements, people familiar with the conversations said. Apple, which has extensive business ties to China, has also lobbied to limit some provisions of the bill, said two congressional staff members and another person familiar with the matter. Disclosure forms show that Apple paid Fierce Government Relations, a firm led by former staff aides to Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and President George W. Bush, $90,000 to lobby on issues including Xinjiang-related legislation in the third quarter. Apple’s lobbying was previously reported by The Washington Post. Apple also paid outside firms this year to lobby on another bill, the Uyghur Forced Labor Disclosure Act of 2020. Apple disputed the claim that it had tried to weaken the legislation, saying it supported efforts to strengthen U.S. regulations and believes that the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act should become law. According to a document viewed by The New York Times, Apple’s suggested edits to the bill included extending some deadlines for compliance, releasing certain information about supply chains to congressional committees rather than to the public, and requiring Chinese entities to be “designated by the United States government” as helping to surveil or detain Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang. In its March report, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute identified Apple and Nike among 82 companies that potentially benefited, directly or indirectly, from abusive labor transfer programs tied to Xinjiang. That report said that O-Film Technology, a contractor for Apple, Microsoft, Google and other companies, received at least 700 Uighur workers in a program that was expected to “gradually alter their ideology.” It tied other Apple suppliers, including Foxconn Technology, to similar employment programs. Apple said in a statement that it had the strongest supplier code of conduct in its industry and that it regularly assessed suppliers, including with surprise audits. “Looking for the presence of forced labor is part of every supplier assessment we conduct and any violations of our policies carry immediate consequences, including business termination,” the statement said. “Earlier this year, we conducted a detailed investigation with our suppliers in China and found no evidence of forced labor on Apple production lines and we are continuing to monitor this closely.” Lobbying disclosures show that companies have spent heavily to sway Congress on Xinjiang-related legislation, although they reveal nothing about their specific requests. In the first three quarters of 2020, Nike spent $920,000 on in-house lobbying of Congress and other federal agencies. Disclosures do not break down expenditures by topic but show Nike lobbied on matters including physical education grants, taxes and climate change, as well as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. Nike also paid outside firms like Cornerstone Government Affairs, Ogilvy, Capitol Counsel, GrayRobinson, American Continental Group, DiNino Associates and Empire Consulting Group more than $400,000 this year to lobby on issues including the act. Rossiter said that Nike had these firms on retainer long before the Xinjiang legislation was introduced, and that the company actively worked with lobbying firms to engage Congress on a variety of subjects it cares about. Coca-Cola has also invested heavily, spending $4.68 million in the first three quarters of 2020 on in-house lobbying and hiring Empire Consulting Group and Sidley Austin to lobby on issues including the act. Coca-Cola said in a statement that it complies with all laws associated with its political activities and has “adopted best-in-class disclosures practices.” The U.S. Chamber of Commerce declined to comment on lobbying, instead providing a letter it sent to Congress in November with seven other industry groups. The letter said the groups had long been working to combat forced labor, and urged the government to take a comprehensive approach that would mobilize the administration, Congress and foreign governments to address the problem, in addition to industry.

Nike and Coca-Cola lobby against Xinjiang forced labor bill

China's Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe said on Monday that his country firmly supports Nepal in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

<img alt="F" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="61c3173c-4aa1-4b65-a5fb-85e3c209fb19" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/chinese-defence-minister.jpg" />

In picture:&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe along with his delegation in Kathmandu

Fenghe, who&nbsp;arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday to meet Nepal’s top leadership and bolster military cooperation and take the existing friendly bilateral relations to a new height,&nbsp;lauded the country's&nbsp;leadership for resolutely pursuing the 'one-China' policy.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/nepal-occupies-special-place-in-our-hearts-says-fs-harsh-v-shringla-345802" hreflang="en">Nepal occupies special place in our hearts, says FS Harsh V Shringla</a>

Wei, who is also a State Councillor, met Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and exchanged views on matters of mutual interest and held talks with Army chief Gen. Purna Chandra Thapa on ways to resume military cooperation and training impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic during his one-day visit to Nepal on Sunday.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/oli-government-under-pressure-to-speak-up-against-chinas-encroachment-in-nepal-334786">Oli government under pressure to speak up against China's encroachment in Nepal</a>

Under the 'one-China' policy, Beijing emphasises other countries to recognise Taiwan and Tibet as part of China, it said.

As China firmed up its ties with Nepal, which shares borders with Tibet, with heavy investments besides loans and financial assistance, Beijing wants Kathmandu to stop the free-flow of Tibetans to travel to Dharamshala in India to meet Tibet's highest spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, the statement said. Nepal also has a large chunk of the Tibetan population.

The 85-year-old Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 following a crackdown on an uprising by the local population in Tibet. India granted him political asylum and the Tibetan government-in-exile is based on Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh since then.

China views the 14th Dalai Lama as a "separatist" working to split Tibet from China.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry statement, giving details about Wei's visit to Nepal, said that he told the Nepalese leaders that China will continue to keep close communications with the Nepalese side and provide support and assistance for the military development of Nepal and make more contributions to the benefits of both peoples and regional peace and stability.

He held bilateral talks with Nepal Army chief Gen. Thapa at the army headquarters here during his "working visit" to Nepal, the highest-level visit from China after President Xi Jinping's two-day state visit that took place in October last year.

Wei's visit, however, received low-key coverage in the Chinese state media.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/foreign-secretarys-nepal-visit-air-bubble-between-india-nepal-soon-345768/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

His visit comes days after India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla wrapped up his maiden two-day visit to Nepal. 
In the first week of November, Indian Army chief Gen. M M Naravane paid a three-day visit to Nepal aimed at resetting bilateral ties that came under severe strain following a bitter border row between the two countries.

Wei's visit also comes amidst an ongoing political rift in the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) that resurfaced following a meeting between Prime Minister Oli and his rival Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.

China's political profile in Nepal has been on the rise in the recent years with billions of dollars of investments under Beijing's multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), including the building of the Trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network.

Besides the investments, China's ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi has made open efforts to garner support for Oli, who faced a massive rebellion in his party from the faction led by 'Prachanda', also a former prime minister.&nbsp;

China's Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe said on Monday that his country firmly supports Nepal in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

China's Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe said on Monday that his country firmly supports Nepal in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. In picture: Chinese Defence Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe along with his delegation in Kathmandu Fenghe, who arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday to meet Nepal’s top leadership and bolster military cooperation and take the existing friendly bilateral relations to a new height, lauded the country's leadership for resolutely pursuing the 'one-China' policy. Also read: Nepal occupies special place in our hearts, says FS Harsh V Shringla Wei, who is also a State Councillor, met Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and exchanged views on matters of mutual interest and held talks with Army chief Gen. Purna Chandra Thapa on ways to resume military cooperation and training impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic during his one-day visit to Nepal on Sunday. Also read: Oli government under pressure to speak up against China's encroachment in Nepal Under the 'one-China' policy, Beijing emphasises other countries to recognise Taiwan and Tibet as part of China, it said. As China firmed up its ties with Nepal, which shares borders with Tibet, with heavy investments besides loans and financial assistance, Beijing wants Kathmandu to stop the free-flow of Tibetans to travel to Dharamshala in India to meet Tibet's highest spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, the statement said. Nepal also has a large chunk of the Tibetan population. The 85-year-old Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 following a crackdown on an uprising by the local population in Tibet. India granted him political asylum and the Tibetan government-in-exile is based on Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh since then. China views the 14th Dalai Lama as a "separatist" working to split Tibet from China. The Chinese Foreign Ministry statement, giving details about Wei's visit to Nepal, said that he told the Nepalese leaders that China will continue to keep close communications with the Nepalese side and provide support and assistance for the military development of Nepal and make more contributions to the benefits of both peoples and regional peace and stability. He held bilateral talks with Nepal Army chief Gen. Thapa at the army headquarters here during his "working visit" to Nepal, the highest-level visit from China after President Xi Jinping's two-day state visit that took place in October last year. Wei's visit, however, received low-key coverage in the Chinese state media. His visit comes days after India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla wrapped up his maiden two-day visit to Nepal. In the first week of November, Indian Army chief Gen. M M Naravane paid a three-day visit to Nepal aimed at resetting bilateral ties that came under severe strain following a bitter border row between the two countries. Wei's visit also comes amidst an ongoing political rift in the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) that resurfaced following a meeting between Prime Minister Oli and his rival Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'. China's political profile in Nepal has been on the rise in the recent years with billions of dollars of investments under Beijing's multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), including the building of the Trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network. Besides the investments, China's ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi has made open efforts to garner support for Oli, who faced a massive rebellion in his party from the faction led by 'Prachanda', also a former prime minister.

China says it firmly supports Nepal to safeguard its sovereignty, territorial integrity

Iran's local media&nbsp;said on Monday that the country's chief nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who was assassinated last week, was actually killed by a machine gun operated by a remote control that was made in Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime enemy,&nbsp;according to&nbsp;the semi-official Fars News.

Meanwhile, the Arabic language Al Alam TV reported that the weapons used in Fakhrizadeh's killing were "controlled by satellite".

"The weapon collected from the site of the terrorist act (where Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was assassinated) bears the logo and specifications of the Israeli military industry," an unnamed source told Press TV.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/news-alert-iranian-media-israel-made-weapon-used-in-scientists-killing-346414/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Speaking before the Press TV report, Israeli intelligence minister Eli Cohen told radio station 103 FM on Monday that he did not know who was responsible.

Fakhrizadeh was for long suspected to be at the helm a secret nuclear weapons programme for Iran by the West and Israel.&nbsp;

On Friday, he was gunned down in his car after a group of assailants ambushed him. Top leaders in Iran have repeatedly blamed Israel for the killing. Iran&nbsp;has blamed Israel for a series of murders of Israeli scientists since 2010.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/turkey-condemns-iranian-scientist-killing-as-act-of-terrorism-346240" hreflang="en">Turkey condemns Iranian scientist killing as act of terrorism</a>

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged 'punishing' those who were behind Mohsen Fakhrizadeh's killing. Fakhrizadeh was a top nuclear scientist in Iran and was assassinated on Friday. Khamenei added that Fkhrizadeh's work must be taken forward.

Khamenei called for "following up on this crime and certainly punishing the perpetrators and those responsible, and ... continuing the scientific and technical efforts of this martyr in all of the fields he was working in". His statement was published on his official website.

Khamenei called Mohsen Fakhrizadeh a "prestigious nuclear and defence scientist" and said he was "martyred by the hands of criminal and cruel mercenaries".

"This unparalleled scientist gave his dear and valuable life to God because of his great and lasting scientific efforts, and the high prize of martyrdom is his divine reward," he added.

Turkey on Sunday condemned the killing of top Iranian nuclear scientist as an act of "terrorism".&nbsp;

"We regret the death of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh following an armed attack. We condemn this heinous murder and offer our condolences to the Iranian government and the dead man's relatives," Ankara's foreign ministry said in a statement.

The statement further said that Turkey was against all forms of terrorism irrespective of who the perpetrators were.

"Turkey is against all initiatives aimed at disrupting peace in the region and against all forms of terrorism, no matter who their perpetrator or target are."

Ankara also urged "all parties to act with common sense and restraint".

Fakhrizadeh, 59, was killed on Friday in a car bomb and gun attack against his own vehicle, the Iranian defence ministry said.

Iran's local media said on Monday that the country's chief nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who was assassinated last week, was actually killed by a machine gun operated by a remote control that was made in Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime enemy, according to the semi-official Fars News.

Iran's local media said on Monday that the country's chief nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who was assassinated last week, was actually killed by a machine gun operated by a remote control that was made in Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime enemy, according to the semi-official Fars News. Meanwhile, the Arabic language Al Alam TV reported that the weapons used in Fakhrizadeh's killing were "controlled by satellite". "The weapon collected from the site of the terrorist act (where Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was assassinated) bears the logo and specifications of the Israeli military industry," an unnamed source told Press TV. Speaking before the Press TV report, Israeli intelligence minister Eli Cohen told radio station 103 FM on Monday that he did not know who was responsible. Fakhrizadeh was for long suspected to be at the helm a secret nuclear weapons programme for Iran by the West and Israel. On Friday, he was gunned down in his car after a group of assailants ambushed him. Top leaders in Iran have repeatedly blamed Israel for the killing. Iran has blamed Israel for a series of murders of Israeli scientists since 2010. Also read: Turkey condemns Iranian scientist killing as act of terrorism Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged 'punishing' those who were behind Mohsen Fakhrizadeh's killing. Fakhrizadeh was a top nuclear scientist in Iran and was assassinated on Friday. Khamenei added that Fkhrizadeh's work must be taken forward. Khamenei called for "following up on this crime and certainly punishing the perpetrators and those responsible, and ... continuing the scientific and technical efforts of this martyr in all of the fields he was working in". His statement was published on his official website. Khamenei called Mohsen Fakhrizadeh a "prestigious nuclear and defence scientist" and said he was "martyred by the hands of criminal and cruel mercenaries". "This unparalleled scientist gave his dear and valuable life to God because of his great and lasting scientific efforts, and the high prize of martyrdom is his divine reward," he added. Turkey on Sunday condemned the killing of top Iranian nuclear scientist as an act of "terrorism". "We regret the death of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh following an armed attack. We condemn this heinous murder and offer our condolences to the Iranian government and the dead man's relatives," Ankara's foreign ministry said in a statement. The statement further said that Turkey was against all forms of terrorism irrespective of who the perpetrators were. "Turkey is against all initiatives aimed at disrupting peace in the region and against all forms of terrorism, no matter who their perpetrator or target are." Ankara also urged "all parties to act with common sense and restraint". Fakhrizadeh, 59, was killed on Friday in a car bomb and gun attack against his own vehicle, the Iranian defence ministry said.

Iran: Local media says chief nuclear scientist shot with remote-controlled machine gun made in Israel

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