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Des artisans béninois formés à la préservation du patrimoine culturel avant la restitution des artefacts

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Les 26 artefacts du trésor royal que la France s’est engagée à restituer au Bénin en 2021 devraient faire leur retour à Abomey, l’ancien siège du royaume de Danxomè, dans environ cinq ans. Pour que les trésors soient exposés dans les meilleures conditions possibles, l’Agence nationale béninoise pour la valorisation du patrimoine touristique forme actuellement 100 artisans aux techniques de restauration des palais royaux de la région, où sera installé le musée des objets culturels. Les reportages de FRANCE 24.

En amont de la restitution de divers chefs-d’œuvre des musées français, les artisans du centre de formation professionnelle d’Abomey sont plongés dans la construction de cette salle de réception royale, appelée “adjalala” en langue fon. Les travaux, qui ont débuté au début de cette année, sont menés par les Compagnons du Devoir français, experts des métiers ancestraux. Dans ce centre de formation professionnelle, les artisans béninois découvrent de nouvelles méthodes.

“Avant la formation, nous avons construit nos fondations sans croquis”, a déclaré l’artisan John Adido. « Mais ici, on respecte des dimensions précises. Tout est nivelé et proportionnel. Je le trouve très beau.”

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« Notre but n’est pas d’apprendre à construire. Ils savent tout ça. Nous sommes là pour apporter de la rigueur en leur apprenant les bases des mathématiques, de la géométrie, du croquis, du travail à la hache, pour faire en sorte que demain, ils aient les compétences nécessaires à des restaurations durables », ajoute Dimitri Andriot, chef de chantier de la French Compagnons du Devoir.

Dans quelques mois, les artisans restaureront l’emplacement des palais royaux. L’Agence nationale béninoise pour la valorisation du patrimoine touristique, sous la direction d’Expertise France, souhaite mettre en valeur ce joyau du patrimoine culturel béninois.

“Notre bien le plus précieux est notre culture”, a déclaré le prince Ganse Agonglo, président des ministres de la Cour royale. « Ces travaux permettront de préserver notre patrimoine historique, mais aussi de booster notre économie. Cela fait la fierté du royaume.

Le projet de restauration et de construction du musée est évalué à près de 45 millions d’euros, dont environ 80 % sont financés par l’Agence française de développement sous forme de prêts et de subventions, et le Bénin pour le reste.

Cliquez sur le lecteur vidéo ci-dessus pour regarder le reportage de FRANCE 24.

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Nanoco eyes new chapter after Samsung settlement and attempted boardroom coup

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Nanoco CEO Brian Tenner targets major growth after surviving shareholder showdown

Nanoco CEO Brian Tenner targets major growth after surviving shareholder showdown

Nanoco CEO Brian Tenner targets major growth after surviving shareholder showdown 

‘We’re in the strongest position we’ve been in – not just financially, but commercially – in the 20 years since we formed,’ says the chief executive of British tech pioneer Nanoco.

Since joining the London-listed firm in August 2018, initially as chief operating officer, Brian Tenner has endured Nanoco’s potentially fatal experience of the pandemic, a lengthy legal spat with Samsung and an attempted boardroom coup.

But the pandemic is over, Nanoco has received $150million from a settlement with Samsung, the coup has been crushed and the group is now securing major commercial contracts for the first time.

‘It’ll just be nice to spend more time looking forward and focused on positive developments,’ Tenner tells This is Money.

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Runcorn-headquartered Nanoco makes cadmium-free quantum dot (QD) technology. QDs are tiny particles, roughly 10 to 50 atoms in diameter – about 1/1000th the width of a human hair – that are capable of absorbing or emitting light of a specific predetermined wavelength.

Nanotechnology is complex but it is an essential component of the modern world, used in the manufacture of high-tech consumer appliances like TVs and smart phones, as well as in medicine and industry. It is forecast that the QD and QD display market will be worth $13.1billion by 2030.

Complex tech: Stored in bottles, the size of QDs determines the colour they emit

Complex tech: Stored in bottles, the size of QDs determines the colour they emit

Complex tech: Stored in bottles, the size of QDs determines the colour they emit

The Samsung spat and attempted board coup

Manchester University spin-out Nanoco alleged that Samsung had stolen its unique patented techniques to create the tiny specialist semiconductors.

Nanoco claims Samsung, with whom it had previously collaborated, then used these QDs in its new range of high-tech QLED TVs. Samsung denies these claims.

But the Samsung settlement with Nanoco, which fell well short of analyst estimates, opened the floodgates for a spat with shareholders led by Tariq Hamoodi. 

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Hamoodi called for the ousting of Tenner, chief financial officer Liam Gray and, eventually, the whole board, on the basis they had ‘misrepresented’ the nature and scale of the payout.

Shareholders eventually backed the board, allowing Nanoco to return up to £33million to investors from the Samsung settlement via a £30million tender offer and £3million buyback programme. The rest the firm is keeping with plans to invest.

But Hamoodi, who specialises in special situations and litigation-related market opportunities, is still Nanoco’s fourth biggest shareholder with a stake of just over 4 per cent.

Tenner says: ‘Ultimately, what [Mr Hamoodi] decides to do is what he decides to do – he’s currently got legal action ongoing with one of our other shareholders [Lombard Odier] that doesn’t involve us.

‘Primarily, what [the distribution plan] allows us to do is enter a post-litigation world where the focus is on the retained settlement funds and what we’re doing over the next two to three years.

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‘What we want to do now is focus on investment to give us more capabilities, to accelerate some of our developments, to improve our margins and basically make us a more robust part of the supply chain.

‘In my time with the company, we have dealt with three or the four of the biggest companies in the world as customers.

‘They’d actually joke with us that when we enter their building their finance guys need to go and have a lie down because they’re so worried about our balance sheet.

‘The retained [Samsung settlement] funds end any debate about our robustness as a supplier or even from a shareholder point of view.’

Nanotechnology is complex but it is an essential component of the modern world, used in the manufacture of high-tech consumer appliances like TVs and smart phones

Nanotechnology is complex but it is an essential component of the modern world, used in the manufacture of high-tech consumer appliances like TVs and smart phones

Nanotechnology is complex but it is an essential component of the modern world, used in the manufacture of high-tech consumer appliances like TVs and smart phones

Appeasing shareholders

And, while the size of the settlement disappointed some investors, others were concerned Nanoco was not keeping enough of the payout for itself, according to Tenner.

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‘Some shareholders actually didn’t want us to return anything,’ he adds.

‘Given we’d already made the commitment, we felt we couldn’t go as far as that.

‘There’s a cautionary tale with small caps at the minute in the UK – it’s very challenging to raise money, and if one of our programmes was delayed or something happened and we had to go back to the market for more money, having just returned a bunch of money, I don’t think would be a good message.

‘So we decided to err on the side of caution and that’s why we went for the £33million.’

Tenner, in addition to three other board colleagues, has opted not to participate in the tender off at all, instead seeing ‘more value in the medium to long term, rather than cashing in’.

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Nanoco has an unusually high volume of retail shareholders, with Hargreaves Lansdown and Interactive Investors users accounting for its first and third biggest investors, respectively.

Many of them bought shares speculatively as the prospect of a Samsung payout became imminent, but Tenner says longer-term institutional investors now feel more comfortable with the firm’s offering.

Nanoco has an unusually high volume of retail shareholders, while Tariq Hamoodi remains its fourth largest investor

Nanoco has an unusually high volume of retail shareholders, while Tariq Hamoodi remains its fourth largest investor

Nanoco has an unusually high volume of retail shareholders, while Tariq Hamoodi remains its fourth largest investor 

Cash neutral by next year?

Nanoco more than doubled reported revenue year-on-year to £4million in the six months to the end of January, driven by recurring intellectual property licence revenue, as it swung to a reported operating profit of £2.4million from a loss of £2.1million the prior year.

Tenner told shareholders that ‘having spent five years fighting for financial survival’ Nanoco was now able to ‘cautious but important strategic investments’ in new capabilities and its ‘resilience as a supply chain partner’. 

Initiating its coverage of the firm earlier in March, brokerage Cavendish said it believes Nanoco ‘is capable of delivering £30million to £40million of revenue in the medium-term and an EBITDA margin of 35 to 45 per cent’.

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It gave the group a target price of 60.2p – almost 190 per cent ahead of its closing price of 20.9p on Wednesday. 

This forecast largely reflects recently revealed development partnerships with STMicro – a leading supplier of sensors to the smart phone market – and an ‘important Asian chemical customer’.

Nanoco also last hit the critical milestone of its first ever commercial production order with the shipment of two first-generation materials for use in infra-red sensing applications in electronic devices.

Tenner says this could be transformational.

‘We shipped enough material that we estimate there’s enough for three, four or five million devices in the next 12 months or so.

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‘We believe that once a device is launched in the market with this technology – whoever launches – it will be bragging about it and trumpeting it.’

The company has targeted 2025 as the year it finally turns cash neutral – a goal Tenner accepts sounds unambitious.

He says: ‘But if you look around the landscape of quantum dot companies, everyone went bust or got bought out.

‘We’re not last man standing but getting to cash breakeven sometime in 2025, for a QD company, would probably be a world first.’

Nanoco says its integrated R&D and manufacturing site is one of very few facilities in the world capable of producing cadmium-free QDs at volume and to specification.

Nanoco says its integrated R&D and manufacturing site is one of very few facilities in the world capable of producing cadmium-free QDs at volume and to specification.

Nanoco says its integrated R&D and manufacturing site is one of very few facilities in the world capable of producing cadmium-free QDs at volume and to specification.

The mobile phone holy grail

But the holy grail for Nanoco will be getting its technology in a mobile phone, which would potentially see it ramp-up production from a few million units to hundreds of millions of units.

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‘We’d be extremely profitable,’ says Tenner.

‘By 2026 or so we’ll see this technology go into a mobile phone.’

It is here, according to the boss, Nanoco stands apart from competition. Its UK-based integrated R&D and manufacturing site is one of very few facilities in the world capable of producing cadmium-free QDs at volume and to specification.

Tenner says: ‘We’ve already got the factory for sending material that can make 500million-plus sensors.

‘We don’t know any QD company on the sensor side that’s got both development IP and production capability.

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‘On the display side, we know a couple who’ve got reasonable production facilities – one is actually bigger than us, but they don’t have the protection of IP and they don’t do much research and development either.

‘We’re in a good place and a strong position to move forward.’

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Athens residents choking in clouds of Sahara dust amid unseasonably warm weather

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Athenians are choking in clouds of thick dust blown in from the Sahara along with unseasonably warm weather, weather forecasters and doctors warned on Thursday.

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The haze covering the Greek capital comes from southerly winds that blow dust from North Africa across the eastern Mediterranean from March to April, the head of the Greek meteorological service Theodoros Kolydas said on X, formerly Twitter.

“A typical sandstorm with a range of 200 kilometres (about 120 miles) carries 20 to 30 million tonnes of dust and sometimes as much as 100 million,” he wrote.

The city regularly experiences such sandstorms but the current one is accompanied by unusually high spring temperatures, heightening the choking effect.

Wednesday saw the highest March temperature in central Athens since 2009 — 25.3 degrees Celsius (77.5 Fahrenheit).

Further south on the island of Crete, the temperature reached 32 Celsius.

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The Greek Pulmonologists’ Union advised asthma sufferers and other vulnerable people to avoid “unnecessary movements and outdoor sports during the times of highest dust concentration”.

It warned that the dust can be mixed with pollen, bacteria and fungi, “a highly toxic mixture that is dangerous for the human body, particularly the respiratory system”.

Scientists say climate change caused by human burning of fossil fuels is raising the risk of extreme weather events, including heatwaves and droughts.

The weather service said the dust clouds were expected to dissipate from Friday.

(AFP)

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The real-life Jetsons! Futuristic European flying ‘AirCar’ that can transform from a road vehicle into a plane in under three minutes is sold to China – and flying taxis could take to British skies by 2028

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From Harry Potter to The Jetsons, flying cars have been staple features of science fiction blockbusters for years. 

But they’re slowly but surely becoming a reality, with several firms vying to be the first to launch a commercially available vehicle. 

One of those firms is KleinVision, the Slovakia-based developer of AirCar – the ‘world’s first certified flying car’ which can transform from a road vehicle into a plane in under three minutes. 

While the car is already certified to fly in Slovakia, the technology behind it has now been sold to a Chinese company, which KleinVision claims will ‘accelerate progress towards mass-market flying car manufacturing.’

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The news comes shortly after the UK government announced that flying taxis will be whizzing around British skies by 2028. 

Flying cars are slowly but surely becoming a reality, with several firms vying to be the first to launch a commercially available vehicle. One of those firms is KleinVision, the Slovakia-based developer of AirCar

Flying cars are slowly but surely becoming a reality, with several firms vying to be the first to launch a commercially available vehicle. One of those firms is KleinVision, the Slovakia-based developer of AirCar

Flying cars are slowly but surely becoming a reality, with several firms vying to be the first to launch a commercially available vehicle. One of those firms is KleinVision, the Slovakia-based developer of AirCar

Flying AirCar specs

Engine: Prototype 1 has a 160 horsepower fixed-propeller engine but Prototype 2 will be equipped with a 300 horsepower engine.

Top speed: 300km/h (186mph)

Range: 1,000km (621 miles)

Price: Not yet revealed

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AirCar is a dual-mode craft, which can reach heights of more than 8,000ft and speeds of over 100mph.

It was certified to fly in Slovakia back in 2022 after completing more than 200 take-offs and landings during 70 hours of rigorous flight testing to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards.  

Now, the technology has been sold to Hebei Jianxin Flying Car Technology Company for an undisclosed amount.   

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This licensing agreement grants the Chinese company exclusive rights to manufacture and distribute flying cars using KleinVision’s technology within a ‘specific’ – yet undisclosed – geographical region. 

‘This partnership represents a significant step in our mission to expand global access to revolutionary mobility solutions and drive progress in the industry,’ said Anton Zajac, co-founder at KleinVision.

Hebei Jianxin Flying Car Technology Company is based in Cangzhou, and has already built its own airport and flight school. 

AirCar is a dual-mode craft, and can reach heights of more than 8,000ft and speeds over 100mph

AirCar is a dual-mode craft, and can reach heights of more than 8,000ft and speeds over 100mph

AirCar is a dual-mode craft, and can reach heights of more than 8,000ft and speeds over 100mph 

It was certified to fly in Slovakia back in 2022 after completing more than 200 take-offs and landings during 70 hours of rigorous flight testing to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards

It was certified to fly in Slovakia back in 2022 after completing more than 200 take-offs and landings during 70 hours of rigorous flight testing to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards

It was certified to fly in Slovakia back in 2022 after completing more than 200 take-offs and landings during 70 hours of rigorous flight testing to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards 

And the ability to use KleinVision’s technology could help the company to get ahead of its rivals. 

According to Morgan Stanley, the global market for flying cars is expected to hit $1 trillion in 2040, before jumping to a whopping $9 trillion in 2050. 

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China is on track to hold 23 per cent of the market by 2050 – second only to the US’s 27 per cent share. 

Speaking to Nikkei, Guo Liang, CEO of Chinese flying car developer Aerofucia, claimed that China’s flying car revolution will ‘surpass the electrification of cars’. 

‘The full-fledged commercialization of flying cars in China will begin in either 2025 or 2026,’ Guo said. 

While the pricing for flying cars remains unclear, Guo claims that they will quickly become more affordable than helicopters. 

‘As a new mode of low-altitude transportation, [flying cars] fares will be a third or a fifth of helicopters initially,’ said Guo. 

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‘It might be a little expensive for average people, but the costs will continue to go down.’

While the pricing for flying cars remains unclear, Guo claims that they will quickly become more affordable than helicopters

While the pricing for flying cars remains unclear, Guo claims that they will quickly become more affordable than helicopters

While the pricing for flying cars remains unclear, Guo claims that they will quickly become more affordable than helicopters

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Ex-Brexit Party MP candidate faces backlash for wrongly claiming Japan BANNED mRNA Covid vaccines because they were behind ‘soaring deaths’

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An ex-Brexit Party candidate today faced backlash for wrongly claiming Japan has banned Covid vaccines. 

Jim Ferguson, who narrowly missed out on becoming an MP in the 2019 General Election, said injections made by the likes of Pfizer and Moderna were linked to ‘soaring deaths’. 

His post, linking to an article reporting on the bogus claim, was viewed millions of times. 

Shamed MP Andrew Bridgen, who was kicked out of the Tory party for comparing the vaccine roll-out to the Holocaust, shared a similar post that mentioned Japan’s non-existent ban. 

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Japan has never outlawed mRNA Covid vaccines, although the claims are widely circulating on social media among anti-vaxx groups who believe that the jabs are behind a sudden wave of deaths in the UK and beyond.

Jim Ferguson (pictured), who narrowly missed out on becoming an MP in the 2019 General Election, said injections made by the likes of Pfizer and Moderna were linked to 'soaring deaths'

Jim Ferguson (pictured), who narrowly missed out on becoming an MP in the 2019 General Election, said injections made by the likes of Pfizer and Moderna were linked to 'soaring deaths'

Jim Ferguson (pictured), who narrowly missed out on becoming an MP in the 2019 General Election, said injections made by the likes of Pfizer and Moderna were linked to ‘soaring deaths’

In Mr Ferguson's original post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the former Barnsley East candidate said: 'Japan has just banned Covid mRNA shots for public use and called on other nations to follow suit after an official government study tied the injections to the nation¿s soaring sudden deaths.' Pictured, Mr Ferguson (second right) in May 2019

In Mr Ferguson's original post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the former Barnsley East candidate said: 'Japan has just banned Covid mRNA shots for public use and called on other nations to follow suit after an official government study tied the injections to the nation¿s soaring sudden deaths.' Pictured, Mr Ferguson (second right) in May 2019

In Mr Ferguson’s original post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the former Barnsley East candidate said: ‘Japan has just banned Covid mRNA shots for public use and called on other nations to follow suit after an official government study tied the injections to the nation’s soaring sudden deaths.’ Pictured, Mr Ferguson (second right) in May 2019

Leading doctors, experts and charities have repeatedly insisted the jabs are safe.

They have been credited with saving 20million lives in their first year of deployment alone, as well as ending the series of Covid lockdowns that crippled economies and saw families separated. 

However, like any medical product, jabs have a range of side effects that vary in how common and severe they can be. 

mRNA Covid jabs, like those made by Pfizer and Moderna, have been linked to rare reports of myocarditis — a potentially dangerous inflammation of the heart.

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The vast majority of cases were mild and resolved on their own.

Studies have also shown the risk of myocarditis, which can also be triggered by an infection like Covid, was higher from the virus than the jab.

Reacting to the claims currently sweeping social media, Professor Jonathan Ball, a virologist at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, told MailOnline: ‘Some people struggle with the truth.

‘A recent study from Japan showed that the reports for adverse effects from mRNA vaccines were in line with those reported by other nations.

‘Yes, they can occur, but are rare and far outweighed by beneficial effects, especially in vulnerable people.’

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Dr Doug Brown, chief executive of the British Society for Immunology, said: ‘The safety and effectiveness assessments of all medicines and vaccines are based on robust and comprehensive analysis of the evidence. 

‘These assessments are carried out as standard for all vaccines and medicines licenced in the UK.

‘There is now a huge amount of evidence from multiple studies which shows that Covid vaccines, including the mRNA vaccines, are the safest and most effective way to prevent serious illness and death from Covid, and the benefits of being vaccinated by far outweigh the risks in the vast majority of people.’

In Mr Ferguson’s original post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the former Barnsley East candidate said: ‘Japan has just banned Covid mRNA shots for public use and called on other nations to follow suit after an official government study tied the injections to the nation’s soaring sudden deaths.

‘Like many other countries around the world, Japan has been battling a crisis of skyrocketing sudden and unexpected deaths since 2021. 

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‘The issue has become so dire in Japan that the country is now facing population collapse as more citizens are dying than are being born.

‘New studies in Japan have now linked the soaring deaths to Covid injections.’

mRNA Covid jabs, like those made by Pfizer and Moderna , have been linked to rare reports of myocarditis ¿ a potentially dangerous inflammation of the heart. However, the vast majority of cases were mild and resolved on their own

mRNA Covid jabs, like those made by Pfizer and Moderna , have been linked to rare reports of myocarditis ¿ a potentially dangerous inflammation of the heart. However, the vast majority of cases were mild and resolved on their own

mRNA Covid jabs, like those made by Pfizer and Moderna , have been linked to rare reports of myocarditis — a potentially dangerous inflammation of the heart. However, the vast majority of cases were mild and resolved on their own

The words of his post appear to be copied and pasted from a news story written by Prepare for Change.

X readers also tore apart Mr Ferguson’s post.

One responded to with a link to a Japanese news website which reported how the country approved another type of mRNA Covid vaccine in December. 

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Others suggested the post had misinterpreted a change to Japan’s Covid vaccine roll-out. From April, many Japanese residents are expected to have to pay for jabs.

Its Government, ‘like most around the world, still acknowledge the benefit that the vaccines bring to vulnerable people’, Professor Ball also told MailOnline. 

Blood clots caused by rare adverse reaction to the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine are known to have resulted in 81 fatalities as well as a higher number of injuries.

For context, over 50million doses of the AstraZeneca jab were used in the UK. It is not an mRNA vaccine.   

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Deadly Israeli strikes hit Gaza as fierce fighting takes place in north, south

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Gaza’s health ministry collects data from the enclave’s hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent.

The health ministry does not report how Palestinians were killed, whether from Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages or errant Palestinian rocket fire. It describes all casualties as victims of “Israeli aggression”.

The ministry also does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. 

Throughout four wars and numerous skirmishes between Israel and Hamas, UN agencies have cited the Hamas-run health ministry’s death tolls in regular reports. The International Committee of the Red Cross and Palestinian Red Crescent also use the numbers.

In the aftermath of war, the UN humanitarian office has published final death tolls based on its own research into medical records. The UN’s counts have largely been consistent with the Gaza health ministry’s, with small discrepancies. 

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For more on the Gaza health ministry’s tolls, click here.

(FRANCE 24 with AP) 

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Dani Alves ‘parties until 5am with friends and family at his £4.5m villa’… just days after disgraced former Barcelona player was released on bail as he appeals rape conviction

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Dani Alves reportedly spent one of his first nights of freedom partying until 5am with friends, according to Spanish media. 

The former Barcelona player was released from Brians 2 prison on Monday after 15 months spent behind bars awaiting his trial for raping a woman in December 2022. 

The 40-year-old was found guilty in February of this year and sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison, but Alves is in the process of appealing the verdict, and will be doing so from his own home after agreeing to a number of conditions handed out by the court.

Alves has surrended both his Spanish and Brazilian passports, and will have mandatory once-a-week visits to the court to maintain his freedom, after first paying a €1million (£850,000) bail bond. 

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But after doing so, the disgraced player was keen to make the most of life outside the prison walls, and is thought to have celebrated his father’s recent birthday in some style. 

Dani Alves is believed to have hosted family and friends until 5am days after his release from Barcelona’s Brians 2 prison

The former footballer has returned to his £4.5m villa in the Esplugues de Llobregat district

The former footballer has returned to his £4.5m villa in the Esplugues de Llobregat district

The former footballer has returned to his £4.5m villa in the Esplugues de Llobregat district

Alves is believed to have been celebrating his father Domingos Alves Da Silva's birthday

Alves is believed to have been celebrating his father Domingos Alves Da Silva's birthday

Alves is believed to have been celebrating his father Domingos Alves Da Silva’s birthday

As per Spanish TV program ‘This is Life’, the day after Alves was released he hosted his family and friends at his house in Esplugues de Llobregat after they had attended a dinner party in Barcelona in honour of patriarch Domingos Alves Da Silva without him. 

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After dinner, the party made their way to Alves’ £4.5m villa, with festivities thought to continue until five o’clock in the morning. 

The former defender might have been freed sooner, had he not had difficulties coming up with the money to pay his high bail. 

Alves’ lawyer Ines Guardiola has said the Brazilian has two bank accounts in Spain, one with no balance and the other with €51,000 (£44,000), with a judicial seizure of €50,000 (£43,000). 

Guardiola claimed last year that her client ‘is broke’ and has a ‘negative bank balance of £17,000’, despite reportedly once having a fortune of £47m.

Sport reported that Alves accounts in Brazil have also been blocked due to problems with his ex-wife Dinorah Santana.

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Alves, however, is expected to receive €9.2m (£7.9m) after his tax lawyer Fernando Mota won four cases against Spain’s tax agency.

The 40-year-old was released on bail after at first struggling to amass the ¿1m needed

The 40-year-old was released on bail after at first struggling to amass the ¿1m needed

The 40-year-old was released on bail after at first struggling to amass the €1m needed

His lawyer Ines Guardiola has previously claimed that he is 'broke' and has a 'negative balance'

His lawyer Ines Guardiola has previously claimed that he is 'broke' and has a 'negative balance'

His lawyer Ines Guardiola has previously claimed that he is ‘broke’ and has a ‘negative balance’

The hearing to determine Alves bail had noted the 40-year-old was set to receive ‘a large sum of money’ back from the treasury, but he has not yet received the funds.

Brazilian team-mate Neymar’s dad had been expected to help Alves pay the money to secure his freedom, but he issued a statement denying he would hand over any cash after coming under political pressure in his homeland.

Memphis Depay’s agent was forced to deny ‘fake’ claims on social media that the Atletico Madrid player had been the one to furnish Alves with the cash necessary to win his temporary freedom on Tuesday.  

‘This is fake news. It is false news, it is not true at all,’ Sebastien Ledure told Informativos Telecinco.

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Ledure also asked to ‘correct at an official level’ the claim, after it spread on social media on Monday.

Alves was convicted of raping a 23-year-old woman in the toilet of an upscale Barcelona nightclub, Sutton, over a year-and-a-half ago. 

The jail sentence he received, considered lenient by some critics, was far less than the nine years public prosecutors demanded and the 12 years Alves’ female accuser wanted if he was convicted. 

Previous attempts from the footballer to be allowed bail had been rejected by the courts largely because he was viewed as a potential fight risk, and the player’s home nation, Brazil, does not extradite citizens sentenced abroad.   

Alves was found guilty of rape and sentenced to a four-and-a-half year stay in Spanish prison

Alves was found guilty of rape and sentenced to a four-and-a-half year stay in Spanish prison

Alves was found guilty of rape and sentenced to a four-and-a-half year stay in Spanish prison

His ex-wife Santana is among those to have spoken out against Alves being granted release from prison on bail.

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‘There are times when you will have to share the table with Judas, without that taking away your peace. Well, me today,’ she wrote on Instagram.

Santana, the mother of his two children, had initially said she was standing by him and insisted he would never commit the crime he was arrested for.

The sports agent later claimed she felt she had been ‘used’ and told Spanish television: ‘For me, he doesn’t exist. For me, he has died.’

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Ukraine downs more than 25 drones in latest overnight Russian strikes

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Ukraine downed 26 drones overnight as Russia launched its latest salvo of aerial attacks, a senior Ukrainian military official said on Thursday.

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“On the night of March 28, 2024, the enemy launched a missile air strike against Ukraine using three Kh-22 cruise missiles and an Kh-31P anti-radar missile (from the Black Sea), an S-300 anti-aircraft guided missile (Donetsk) and 28 attack UAVs of the ‘Shahed-136/131’ type”, Mykola Oleshchuk, the head of Ukraine’s air force, wrote on Telegram.

“Twenty-six attack UAVs of the ‘Shahed-136/131’ type were destroyed within Odesa, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions”, he said, without providing details on the missile strikes.

Russia regularly launches air attacks on Ukraine overnight and has escalated the strikes over the past few weeks, targeting key infrastructure, including power stations, in retaliation for fatal bombardments of Russia’s border regions.

FRANCE 24’s Gulliver Cragg reports from Kyiv



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On Wednesday Russian strikes killed three people in eastern and southern Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged Ukraine’s allies to speed up deliveries of warplanes and air defence systems to bolster Kyiv’s air defences.

 (AFP)

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UK weather: Storm Nelson batters the country with map showing where 70mph winds, heavy rain, hail and thunder will hit as temperatures dip to 0C – and SNOW blankets parts of Wales and southern England

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According to folklore, March ‘comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb’.

But the proverb has been turned on its head as Storm Nelson is set to batter the South today, bringing 70mph winds, heavy rain, hail and thunder.

Some snow even fell in parts of Devon and Wales overnight – after accumulations also built up at the other end of the UK in the Scottish Highlands earlier this week.

Officials in Devon said teams had worked ‘all night to keep the roads passable but drive with extreme care, avoid high roads and stick to main roads where possible.’ 

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The UK overnight low was -4.9C (23.2F) at the Cairngorm summit in the Highlands, while temperatures in cities including Newcastle and Inverness fell to 0C (32F). 

A wind warning has been issued for between 7am and 6pm, covering coastal areas between Land’s End and Brighton, where the worst of the conditions are expected.

Snow this morning at Pontrhydfendigaid in Ceredigion, Mid Wales, near Aberystwyth

Snow this morning at Pontrhydfendigaid in Ceredigion, Mid Wales, near Aberystwyth

Snow this morning at Pontrhydfendigaid in Ceredigion, Mid Wales, near Aberystwyth

Snow falls over properties in South Wales near the Brecon Beacons this morning

Snow falls over properties in South Wales near the Brecon Beacons this morning

Snow falls over properties in South Wales near the Brecon Beacons this morning

Snow covers a car parked in the village of Pontrhydfendigaid in Mid Wales this morning

Snow covers a car parked in the village of Pontrhydfendigaid in Mid Wales this morning

Snow covers a car parked in the village of Pontrhydfendigaid in Mid Wales this morning

The Traffic Wales North & Mid social media account tweeted this picture of snow this morning

The Traffic Wales North & Mid social media account tweeted this picture of snow this morning

The Traffic Wales North & Mid social media account tweeted this picture of snow this morning

TODAY: Wet and windy conditions are expected to hit many parts of Britain throughout today

TODAY: Wet and windy conditions are expected to hit many parts of Britain throughout today

TODAY: Wet and windy conditions are expected to hit many parts of Britain throughout today 

The weather system has been named Storm Nelson by Spanish meteorologists in what could be seen as an ironic gesture about Britain’s victorious vice admiral as it heads for our shores. 

It is the UK’s first named storm since January but the 11th of the current season, which began in September.

Today’s weather warning, issued by the UK Met Office, predicts road, rail, air and ferry disruption, as well as cuts to electricity and mobile phone networks.

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Forecasters added: ‘There is a small chance that injuries and danger to life could occur from large waves and beach material being thrown onto sea fronts, coastal roads and properties.’

Russ Young tweeted a photograph of snow falling on a residential road in Devon overnight

Russ Young tweeted a photograph of snow falling on a residential road in Devon overnight

Russ Young tweeted a photograph of snow falling on a residential road in Devon overnight

One social media user tweeted this photograph of snow in Plymouth, Devon, overnight

One social media user tweeted this photograph of snow in Plymouth, Devon, overnight

One social media user tweeted this photograph of snow in Plymouth, Devon, overnight

Another social media user posted a photograph of snow falling overnight in Devon

Another social media user posted a photograph of snow falling overnight in Devon

Another social media user posted a photograph of snow falling overnight in Devon

Snow falls in Devon overnight today as the UK experiences severe weather conditions

Snow falls in Devon overnight today as the UK experiences severe weather conditions

Snow falls in Devon overnight today as the UK experiences severe weather conditions

Describing the weather, the Met Office said: ‘A deep area of low pressure will bring a spell of very windy weather to parts of southwest and then southern England on Thursday.

‘Gusts of 50 mph are expected quite widely, while some exposed coastal spots may experience gusts of 60 to 70 mph, with large waves also likely.

‘The strong winds will be accompanied by heavy, squally showers with the possibility of hail and thunder in some locations.

‘Hail won’t fall everywhere but where it does it can quickly make road surfaces slippery, while surface water and spray are likely to worsen travel conditions rather more widely.’

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TODAY: The Met Office has issued weather warnings for snow, wind and rain in the UK today

TODAY: The Met Office has issued weather warnings for snow, wind and rain in the UK today

TODAY: The Met Office has issued weather warnings for snow, wind and rain in the UK today

STORM NELSON: A map by Spanish weather service Aemet showing the low pressure system

STORM NELSON: A map by Spanish weather service Aemet showing the low pressure system

STORM NELSON: A map by Spanish weather service Aemet showing the low pressure system

Further north, a separate band of cloud and showery rain will bring damp conditions before clearing this afternoon – followed by more rain later as Nelson moves north-eastwards.

The Met Office added that showers are due to continue into Good Friday, when it is due to be bright and breezy.

Forecasters said showers are due to become ‘more scattered on Saturday and Easter Sunday’ when it should ‘feel warmer in the sunny spells and lighter winds’.

Temperatures in southern England on Easter Sunday could reach highs of 15C (59F) – warmer than the Spanish capital Madrid, which is due to be cool and showery with temperatures of just 10C (50F) on Easter Sunday. 

GOOD FRIDAY FORECAST: Showers and breezy conditions for Britain this Friday with 14C highs

GOOD FRIDAY FORECAST: Showers and breezy conditions for Britain this Friday with 14C highs

GOOD FRIDAY FORECAST: Showers and breezy conditions for Britain this Friday with 14C highs

GOOD FRIDAY: The Met Office has warned of 'unsettled' weather for much of Europe this week

GOOD FRIDAY: The Met Office has warned of 'unsettled' weather for much of Europe this week

GOOD FRIDAY: The Met Office has warned of ‘unsettled’ weather for much of Europe this week

EASTER SATURDAY: Spain and Portugal are likely to see thunderstorms and strong winds

EASTER SATURDAY: Spain and Portugal are likely to see thunderstorms and strong winds

EASTER SATURDAY: Spain and Portugal are likely to see thunderstorms and strong winds

FRANCE: Waves crash into a lighthouse amid Storm Nelson in Les Sables d'Olonne today

FRANCE: Waves crash into a lighthouse amid Storm Nelson in Les Sables d'Olonne today

FRANCE: Waves crash into a lighthouse amid Storm Nelson in Les Sables d’Olonne today

SPAIN: Waves hit the dock and sailing school at the port in Palma de Mallorca yesterday

SPAIN: Waves hit the dock and sailing school at the port in Palma de Mallorca yesterday

SPAIN: Waves hit the dock and sailing school at the port in Palma de Mallorca yesterday

Maximum figures of 14C (57F) are expected as far north as Manchester.

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For those travelling over the bank holiday weekend, the RAC have advised drivers to ‘be on their guard’ regarding the changing road conditions.

RAC Breakdown spokesman Rod Dennis said: ‘Drivers getting away will definitely need to be on their guard and ready to cope with rapidly changing road conditions.

‘Slowing down in the heaviest of downpours on Good Friday and Easter Saturday is a must as stopping distances will be far greater.’

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International

Blinken and Macron to discuss Ukraine support and Gaza war in Paris talks

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will discuss support for Ukraine during talks in Paris next week with French President Emmanuel Macron, the State Department announced Wednesday.

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France is among the major military suppliers to Ukraine, which is facing an onslaught of Russian attacks.

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President Joe Biden’s request for billions of dollars in new US military aid to Kyiv is held up in the House of Representatives, led by the rival Republican Party.

“Secretary Blinken will meet with French President Macron to discuss support for Ukraine, efforts to prevent escalation of the conflict in Gaza and a number of other important issues,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

France has advocated for a permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, whereas the United States, Israel’s main ally, recently let pass a UN Security Council resolution that calls for a ceasefire during the month of Ramadan.

It will be the first visit in nearly two years to France by Blinken, a fluent French speaker who grew up partly in Paris. Macron paid a state visit to Washington in December 2022.

After Paris, Blinken will head to Brussels for talks of NATO foreign ministers ahead of the alliance’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington in July.

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Blinken will also hold a three-way meeting in Brussels with EU leaders and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has been seeking to branch out from his country’s historic alliance with Russia.

Blinken and the European Union will address “support for Armenia’s economic resilience as it works to diversify its trade partnerships and to address humanitarian needs,” Miller said.

Armenia was angered last year by Russia’s failure to prevent Azerbaijan from retaking the Nagorno-Karabakh region from ethnic Armenian rebels.

(AFP)

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How dogs can be used to detect PTSD: Scientists train pups to sniff out an oncoming flashback by smelling your breath

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Their sensitive noses can detect an impending seizure, sniff out signs of Covid and even expose cancer.

Now, scientists have successfully trained two dogs to smell trauma from a person’s breath.

The researchers trained 25 dogs to sniff out the chemical signs of stress in someone’s breath. 

However, only two were skilled and motivated enough to complete the study – Ivy, a Red Golden Retriever, and Callie, a German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois mix.

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In the future the scientists think these talented pooches might be able to identify when someone is about to have a frightening flashback.

The researchers trained 25 dogs to sniff out the chemical signs of stress in someone's breath. However, only two were skilled and motivated enough to complete the study. Pictured: Ivy, a Red Golden Retriever

The researchers trained 25 dogs to sniff out the chemical signs of stress in someone's breath. However, only two were skilled and motivated enough to complete the study. Pictured: Ivy, a Red Golden Retriever

The researchers trained 25 dogs to sniff out the chemical signs of stress in someone’s breath. However, only two were skilled and motivated enough to complete the study. Pictured: Ivy, a Red Golden Retriever 

In the future the scientists think these talented pooches might be able to identify when someone is about to have a frightening flashback. Pictured: Callie, a German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois mix

In the future the scientists think these talented pooches might be able to identify when someone is about to have a frightening flashback. Pictured: Callie, a German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois mix

In the future the scientists think these talented pooches might be able to identify when someone is about to have a frightening flashback. Pictured: Callie, a German Shepherd and Belgian Malinois mix

PTSD arises from exposure to a traumatic event and can lead to debilitating symptoms that include re-experiencing the event in the form of a flashback.

Currently, service dogs are used to help patients with PTSD by alerting and interrupting when their companions are struggling with their symptoms.

By training dogs to recognise the signs of an episode from the breath alone, the scientists hope that service dogs can intervene earlier and keep their companions safe.

Researchers from Dalhousie University, in Canada, recruited 26 people who had been through some kind of trauma as scent donors for their study.

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Half of the participants had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a mental health condition that is triggered by a terrifying event. 

To donate scents, the participants attended sessions where they were reminded of their trauma experiences while wearing different facemasks.

One facemask provided a calm breath sample, while the other provided a ‘target’ breath sample which was worn while they recalled their ordeal.

The dogs learned to detect volatile organic compounds in human breath that indicated a PTSD episode was imminent. This could help them intervene earlier in work as service dogs (stock image)

The dogs learned to detect volatile organic compounds in human breath that indicated a PTSD episode was imminent. This could help them intervene earlier in work as service dogs (stock image)

The dogs learned to detect volatile organic compounds in human breath that indicated a PTSD episode was imminent. This could help them intervene earlier in work as service dogs (stock image)

In the meantime, the scientists recruited 25 pet dogs to train in scent detection.

Both were trained to recognise the ‘target’ odour and were presented with a series of samples to see if they could accurately detect the stress scents.

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All humans have a ‘scent profile made up of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are determined by our genetics, age, and other variables.

Previous studies have suggested that dogs may be able to smell VOCs associated with human stress.

Scientists from Queen’s University Belfast trained dogs to detect stress in sweat and breath with an accuracy of 93.75 per cent.

However, this is the first study to show that dogs can also sniff out the chemical signatures associated with PTSD.  

First author Laura Kiroja says: ‘Both Ivy and Callie found this work inherently motivating, their limitless appetite for delicious treats was also an asset. 

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‘In fact, it was much harder to convince them to take a break than to commence work.’

During testing with donated facemasks, both dogs could discriminate between stressed and non-stressed samples with 90 per cent accuracy.  

And, in tests with pure VOC samples, Ivy achieved 74 per cent accuracy and Callie achieved 81 per cent accuracy.

Ms Kiiroja said: ‘PTSD service dogs are already trained to assist people during episodes of distress.

‘However, dogs are currently trained to respond to behavioural and physical cues. Our study showed that at least some dogs can also detect these episodes via breath.’

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Further analysis revealed that Ivy was more likely to identify participants who were feeling particularly anxious, while Callie was more likely to identify when people were feeling shame.

‘Although both dogs performed at very high accuracy, they seemed to have a slightly different idea of what they considered a ‘stressed” breath sample,’ Ms Kiiroja said.

‘We speculated that Ivy was attuned to sympathetic-adreno-medullar axis hormones, like adrenaline, and Callie was oriented to the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis hormones, like cortisol.’

The researchers said their findings, published in the journal Frontiers in Allergy, could one day lead to trained dogs potentially interrupting PTSD episodes at an earlier stage, making their interventions more effective.

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