dChan
Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:20 a.m. No.16589032   🗄️.is 🔗kun

3 Jul, 2022 16:42

Theater legend Peter Brook dies

The stage director won acclaim for his controversial productions, including puttingShakespeare on stilts(kek, this sounds like an anon to me)

 

British theater director Peter Brook died in Paris on Saturday, aged 97. Brook’s groundbreaking reinterpretation of Shakespeare’s classics, and his willingness to stage performances in the most unusual settings, earned him adoration, acclaim and awards.

 

Brook’s death was reported by multiple media sources, with the director’s son, Simon, confirming his passing on Sunday. Born in Britain to Lithuanian Jewish parents, Brook had resided in Paris since the mid 1970s, and is survived by his two children, Simon and Irina. His wife, actress Natasha Parry, died in 2015.

 

After directing Christopher Marlowe’s ‘Doctor Faustus’ in 1943 and Jean Cocteau’s ‘The Infernal Machine’ two years later, Brook took the helm at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-Upon-Avon in 1947, where he directed some of the greatest actors of the 1950s, including John Gielgud, Paul Scofield and Laurence Olivier.

 

Determined to wrest control of Shakespeare’s work back from “a small number of very conventional people” who staged his plays “in the most boring way imaginable,” Brook is renowned for his 1970 production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’ in which he put the cast on stilts and trapezes on a set of white frames and steel wire, in a bid to create an airy, dreamlike atmosphere.

 

Working with the Royal Opera House in the late 1940s, Brook confounded critics with his staging of the Richard Strauss opera ‘Salome,’ featuring a set designed by Salvador Dali. He continued to court controversy in Paris during the 1960s, staging a production of Jean Genet’s ‘The Balcony’ that featured amateurs found in the city’s bars playing the occupants of a brothel.

 

From the elaborate set of ‘Salome,’ Brook stripped everything away for his 1962 production of ‘King Lear,’ which featured a bare stage and plain lighting. In 1985 he put on a nine-hour interpretation of ‘The Mahabaharata,’ an epic Indian poem, in a bare quarry in France.

 

“I can take any empty space and call it a bare stage. A man walks across this empty space, whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for an act of theater to be engaged,” he wrote in 1968.

 

After moving to Paris, Brook set up the International Centre for Theatre Research, which gave performances in a minimally-refurbished music hall in the city, and throughout the Middle East and Africa.

 

As news of his death spread, Brook’s fellow directors and producers paid their tributes. "Peter Brook was the singular theater practitioner of the last century, both fearless and peerless in his enquiry into the breadth and depth of the form,” said National Theater Chief Executive Rufus Norris. “It is with great sorrow that we mourn his passing, and celebrate his extraordinary life in art."

 

https://www.rt.com/pop-culture/558307-peter-brook-director-dies/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:24 a.m. No.16589051   🗄️.is 🔗kun

3 Jul, 2022 15:23

Curfew imposed after deadly unrest in Uzbekistan

 

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has vowed to bring rioters to justice

 

A curfew has been imposed in a region of Uzbekistan as the country’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev responded to unrest, acknowledging that people have been killed in clashes with police this week.

 

“Government buildings were attacked. Unfortunately, there were casualties among civilians and law enforcement officials,” Mirziyoyev told local MPs in the city of Nukus on Sunday, the site of Friday’s riots.

 

The president did not specify how many people had lost their lives. The authorities had previously said a “criminal group” instigated street protests and attempted to seize power in Uzbekistan’s northwestern region of Karakalpakstan.

 

A one-month state of emergency came into effect in the region on Sunday, with a curfew fixed from 9pm to 7am. Other measures include a ban on protests and “restrictions on the freedom of movement,” according to a document published on the president’s website.

 

The demonstrations ostensibly began after the government unveiled a plan to revoke Karakalpakstan’s autonomy as part of a package of constitutional amendments. Mirziyoyev, however, argued that the backlash was fueled by “misunderstood interpretations” of the proposed reform.

 

Mirziyoyev has promised that the status of Karakalpakstan will remain unchanged, and that the final draft of the amendments will be put to a referendum.

 

At the same time, the president warned of “harsh measures” against “those who try to disturb the peace, calm and public safety.”

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/558300-uzbekistan-riots-curfew-imposed/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:29 a.m. No.16589088   🗄️.is 🔗kun

3 Jul, 2022 14:31

British consumers face shop price inflation

A rise in perishable food prices and lower consumer spending are to blame, according to data cited by The Guardian

 

(My prayers go out to UK anons and citizens)

 

Shop price inflation in the UK hit its highest rate since 2008 in June, propelled by a sharp increase in perishable food prices. This has been brought about by soaring supply-chain costs and a decline in consumer spending, The Guardian reported on Wednesday, citing data from the British Retail Consortium BRC-NielsenIQ shop price index.

 

Shop prices rose by 3.1% year-on-year this month, up from 2.8% in May. Food inflation alone surged to 5.6% in June, from 4.3% the month before, while perishable food prices were up 6.2% against last year’s figures, their highest growth rate since May 2009, pushed up by the “spiraling costs of fertilizer and animal feed.”

 

The BRC data follows the latest figures from the UK’s Office for National Statistics, which showed that overall UK inflation soared to 9.1% in May, a 40-year high amid record fuel prices and the rising cost of food.

 

The situation is likely to force UK consumers change their spending habits, Mike Watkins, the head of retailer and business insight at Ni “As inflation accelerates due to rising energy, travel and now food costs, shoppers are now more likely to cut down on out-of-home consumption, shop at a fixed budget, switch to cheaper private label[s] and seek out retailers where prices are the lowest,” Watkins stated.

 

Still, according to BRC head Helen Dickinson, retailers are doing their best to protect customers against the soaring costs.

 

“Retailers are working to find more ways to protect their customers from the worst effects of inflation… Fierce competition means that retailers will continue to absorb as much of these costs pressures as possible and look for efficiencies in their businesses. Supermarkets are also expanding their value ranges to offer a wider choice for customers trading down and providing discounts to vulnerable groups,” she said, noting, however, that “if costs continue to spiral, government may need to find ways to help retail businesses support their customers.” e “As inflation “As inflation accelerates due to rising energy, travel and now food costs, shoppers are now more likely to cut down on out-of-home consumption, shop at a fixed budget, switch to cheaper private label[s] and seek out retailers where prices are the lowest,” Watkins stated.

 

Still, according to BRC head Helen Dickinson, retailers are doing their best to protect customers against the soaring costs.

 

“Retailers are working to find more ways to protect their customers from the worst effects of inflation… Fierce competition means that retailers will continue to absorb as much of these costs pressures as possible and look for efficiencies in their businesses. Supermarkets are also expanding their value ranges to offer a wider choice for customers trading down and providing discounts to vulnerable groups,” she said, noting, however, that “if costs continue to spiral, government may need to find ways to help retail businesses support their customers.”

 

https://www.rt.com/business/558056-uk-shop-price-inflation/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:31 a.m. No.16589097   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>9484

3 Jul, 2022 17:07

HomeSport News

Russian Grandmaster sets up world title clash with Carlsen

 

Ian Nepomniachtchi triumphed at the Candidates Tournament in Spain

 

Ian Nepomniachtchi, the Russian Grandmaster and current seventh-ranked player in the world, will challenge World Champion Magnus Carlsen in a 12-game match in November after he secured victory at the FIDE Candidates Tournament in Spain on Sunday.

 

Nepomniachtchi, 31, needed a draw in two rounds in Sunday's play after stretching his advantage in recent days over Ding Liren and Hikaru Nakamura, and did so against Richard Rapport to set up a high stakes clash with the world's top player in late 2022.

 

'Nepo', as he is known to some, was authoritative throughout, playing aggressively when he needed to but also showcased his keen eye for identifying threats against him as he was forced to defend positions on several occasions.

 

In the end, the Russian Grandmaster - who was playing under a neutral flag to due sporting sanctions placed on Russian players in the wake of the country's military operation in Ukraine - was consistently head and shoulders in front of his competition, some of whom floundered at inopportune moments throughout the event.

 

The Russian star eventually achieved a score of 8.5/12 with 5 wins, as well as a 2792 live rating - ultimately winning the event with a round to spare.

 

He also won the same event last year before losing 7½-3½ to Carlsen.

 

"He was criminally underrated by pundits and betting odds, but I still thought that Ding or Fabiano were even bigger favourites. But kudos, he's done really well!"@MagnusCarlsen on Nepomniachtchi's #FIDECandidates performance in talk with @NastiaKarlovich for @STLChessClub. pic.twitter.com/o7cBLAjm7K

— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) July 3, 2022

Nepomniachtchi summed up his win with typical extravagance: “As I said two years ago, it’s very important to try not to lose. If you don’t lose, it’s surely going alright.”

 

Carlsen, meanwhile, praised Nepomniachtchi's performance immediately after the tournament's conclusion.

 

“He's playing very well,” the Norwegian announced. “He's making the most of his chances. There have been many interesting games but he's converted all of his advantages very well and saved bad positions, so he's been by far the best.

 

“No I didn't expect [him to win] but he was criminally underrated by pundits and betting odds but I still that that Ding or Fabiano were even bigger favorites.

 

“But kudos, he's done really well.”

 

https://www.rt.com/sport/558306-chess-nepomniachtchi-candidates-win-carlsen/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:33 a.m. No.16589108   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>9386

3 Jul, 2022 14:08

Turkey detains Russian-flagged vessel carrying grain – media

 

Kiev’s ambassador to Ankara claims the cargo ship was transporting grain from Ukraine

 

Turkey has seized a Russian-flagged cargo ship after Kiev claimed it was involved in “illegal” transport of Ukrainian grain, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing the Ukrainian Ambassador to Turkey, Vasily Bodnar.

 

"We have full co-operation. The ship is currently standing at the entrance to the port, it has been detained by the customs authorities of Turkey," Vasily Bodnar told Ukrainian national television. According to the ambassador, investigators will decide on the vessel’s fate on Monday.

 

The move comes two days after Ukrainian diplomats called on the Turkish authorities to detain the vessel, the Zhibek Zholy, arguing that it was transporting “stolen” Ukrainian agricultural produce.

 

The ship departed from the Azov Sea port of Berdyansk, located not far from the city of Mariupol – which is controlled by Russian forces and Donbass militias – and arrived at the Turkish port of Karasu, Bodnar wrote in a series of Twitter posts on Friday, asking Turkey to “take relevant measures.”

 

The diplomat also said that the mission had “good communication and close cooperation” with the Turkish side on the matter, and he was sure the “agreed decisions” would “prevent attempts to violate the sovereignty of Ukraine.”

 

The ship allegedly loaded around 4,500 tons of grain in Berdyansk, Reuters reported, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official. The news agency also noted that the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office sent a letter to Turkey’s Justice Ministry in late June, claiming the vessel had been involved in the “illegal export of Ukrainian grain.”

 

According to the letter, the vessel had 7,000 tons of cargo on board.

 

Ukraine then asked Turkey to “conduct an inspection of this sea vessel, seize samples of grain for forensic examination” to determine its origin, and expressed its readiness to launch a joint investigation with the Turkish authorities.

 

The Kazakhstan-based KTZ Express company, which owns the Zhibek Zholy, told Reuters that the ship was leased to a Russian firm called Green Line, which is not subject to any sanctions.

 

Russian authorities have not yet commented on the development.

 

Ukraine, a major grain producer, is unable to export its grain by sea due to the ongoing conflict in the country, with an estimated 22-25 million tons of grain currently stuck in the country’s ports. Kiev has previously accused Russia of “stealing” its grain – something Moscow has denied.

 

The Western nations have blamed Russia for blocking the ports. Moscow has repeatedly stated it would guarantee safe passage for the grain shipments if Kiev clears its ports of mines. Ukraine, in turn, has accused the Russian forces of mining the Black Sea ports. Russia suggested exporting the grain through the Russian-controlled ports of Berdyansk and Mariupol.

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/558298-ukrainian-grain-ship-detained/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:35 a.m. No.16589124   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>9504

3 Jul, 2022 09:07

 

Ukraine fires ballistic missiles at Russian city – MoD

At least four people have been killed in Belgorod overnight in what appears to be the worst-ever shelling of Russian territory by Ukraine

 

Ukraine launched three Tochka-U ballistic missiles loaded with cluster munitions at the Russian city of Belgorod, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday. It added that all three had been intercepted mid-air, but that parts of one of the missiles had hit a house.

 

Regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said that three people were killed and four injured overnight. He added that 11 apartment buildings and at least 39 smaller houses were damaged.

 

Gladkov later said that the death toll had grown to four. Three of the victims are Ukrainian nationals and one is a Russian citizen, he added.

 

Russian news outlet Baza later reported that two more bodies were recovered from under the rubble, raising the death toll to five. This has not yet been confirmed by officials.

 

Belgorod is located around 40 kilometers from the Russia-Ukraine border.

 

Defense Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov said that Ukraine had also sent two Tu-143 Reys drones, “loaded with explosives,” towards Kursk, another Russian city close to the border. He said both drones were destroyed by air defenses before reaching the city.

 

Konashenkov said that Ukraine targeted residential areas, which had “no military sites.”

 

The Russian authorities have repeatedly accused Ukraine of shelling cities and villages close to the border. Moscow previously warned that it would hit Ukrainian “decision-making centers, including Kiev” if attacks on Russian territory did not stop.

 

Kiev accused Russian troops of attacking residential areas and killing civilians throughout Ukraine.Moscow insists its forces are only striking military targets.

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/558279-belgorod-shelling-ballistic-missiles/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:39 a.m. No.16589147   🗄️.is 🔗kun

2 Jul, 2022 10:16

Western elites can’t decide if they should sanction or seduce Africa in their attempts to counter Russia and China

 

In a scramble for influence, the US and its allies are reaching for both the carrot and the stick at the same time

 

In trying to find ways to effectively counter Russia and China’s partnerships in Africa, Washington – and its Western followers – is not content to just go for the honey or the vinegar – so officials are resorting to both at the same time.

 

Typically, the Western modus operandi has been to establish a footprint in the target foreign country through military intervention under a security pretext with the hope of eventually pivoting to an economic one. Recent history suggests that elites haven’t quite been able to make the transition before their plans go pear-shaped. Unable to get their hands on the prize – typically, the country’s natural resources – they eventually either get kicked out (as was the case with France in Mali), or end up cutting their losses (like the US did in Afghanistan).

 

Russia and China have been able to effectively exploit the void created by misguided Western foreign military adventures. In the case of Mali, Russia offered the transitional government military helicopters, radars, and weapons, in addition to “soldiers and trainers” reportedly operating in the African country (according to reports, these are from the Wagner private security company, but officials have distanced themselves from the group). Moscow is now parlaying that foothold into expanded cooperation.

 

“We paid special attention to the practical aspects of organizing deliveries from Russia of wheat, mineral fertilizers and petroleum products that are so much needed by the people of Mali today in conditions of illegitimate Western sanctions,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said during a press conference, in May, with his Malian counterpart, Abdoulaye Diop. France and the US sanctioned the country in the wake of delayed elections following two coups, all under the watch of Paris' Operation Barkhane and the EU’s training mission headquartered in the capital, Bamako.

 

And now Washington is forging ahead with a new tool to threaten African countries that defy its interests. The ‘Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act’ would target African governments, officials, and businesses doing business with Russia, qualified as “manipulation” and “exploitation” of Africans to Russia’s benefit. The plan is in the same spirit as the ‘Countering Russian Influence in Europe and Eurasia Act of 2017’ and the ‘Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act’, targeting Iran, Russia, and North Korea… but which also risks threatening India for purchasing a S-400 Russian missile defense system.

 

The same act was leveraged to halt the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline for the transport of Russian gas into Western Europe under threat of American sanctions – effectively opening up a potential new market for US liquified gas exports.

 

At the same time, the Western G7 bloc has proposed a $600 billion plan to build foreign infrastructure in Africa and Latin America, with Washington pledging $200 billion and the EU another $300 billion, and private businesses expected to get on board to invest. What are they going to do – sanction some of these countries and then demand that they take Western cash? How awkward.

 

The idea is to counter China’s Belt and Road project, albeit a decade late and hundreds of billions of dollars short. The message here is clear. These countries can either deal with Russia, China, and other American adversaries and get buried in sanctions, or else they can accept this wonderful opportunity to let Washington and its Western allies into the country to build nice things.

 

A long-standing US criticism of China is that it exploits its Belt and Road project to ‘debt trap’ countries and impose its influence. But it’s not like Washington’s intent towards underdeveloped countries is purely altruistic….

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/557982-us-push-china-from-africa/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:43 a.m. No.16589169   🗄️.is 🔗kun

2 Jul, 2022 14:39

China may be plotting moon takeover – NASA

(This headline is the best)

Chinese astronauts are busy learning how to destroy other nations’ satellites, agency chief Bill Nelson claimed

 

China might be contemplating a “takeover” of the Moon as part of its military space program, NASA’s administrator Bill Nelson has told newspaper Bild.

 

In an interview published on Saturday, Nelson claimed that the United States is now involved in a new race to space, with China this time. He emphasized that in 2035 Beijing might finish construction of its own Moon station and start experiments a year later.

 

79-year-old Nelson claimed that we must be very concerned about China landing on the Moon and saying that it now belongs to the Peoples’ Republic and everyone else should stay out.

 

Claiming that China’s space program is a “military” space program, Nelson explained that the competition for the south pole of the moon is especially intense: potential water deposits there could be used in the future for rocket-fuel production.

 

When asked by Bild what military purposes could China be pursuing in space, Nelson claimed that Chinese astronauts are busy learning how to destroy other countries’ satellites.

 

Despite Beijing’s assurances that its ambitious space program has purely peaceful purposes, Nelson has long been a tough critic of China’s policy in space.

 

In April he accused Chinese officials of refusing to work with the US on its operations and of concealing important data. Earlier, however, he acknowledged that NASA abides by a 2011 law that prohibits the agency from engaging in direct collaboration with the Chinese government or any China-affiliated organizations without explicit approval from Congress and federal law enforcement authorities. Chinese officials have pointed to that ban, called the Wolf Amendment, as “unfortunate” and an impediment to direct cooperation with NASA.

 

Recent sanctions imposed by the West on Moscow over its military offensive in Ukraine prompted Russia to seek even deeper cooperation with China in space. In the end of February, just two days after the launch of Moscow’s ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine, the head of the Russian space agency Dmitry Rogozin announced that Roscosmos would cease work on joint space projects with Europe and the United States and would start negotiations with China on coordination and mutual technical support of all deep-space missions.

 

Meanwhile, in January this year, NASA’s Office ofInspector General warned that the size of the agency’s astronaut corps might be too small to meet its future needs. The corps, which listed 44 astronauts, was named “one of the smallest cadres of astronauts in the past 20 years,” and that’s while NASA is preparing for its Artemis moon exploration missions.

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/558264-space-china-us-nasa/

Anonymous ID: bb9724 July 3, 2022, 10:46 a.m. No.16589200   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>9258

2 Jul, 2022 16:08

 

Decline in Western training of Ukrainian troops – media

Lack of relevant experience leave Kiev’s forces unable to use advanced Western weapons systems, Foreign Policy has learned

 

Ukraine’s forces have received less training over the recent weeks, which impacts their capacity to operate some advanced weapons systems, magazine Foreign Policy (FP) reported on Friday, citing sources.

 

Since the launch of Russia's military offensive in the neighboring country in late February, Ukraine has been constantly asking its Western partners to provide them with more heavy weapons and to do so as quickly as possible. However, as a senior US defense official told FP, “the drumbeat of faster, faster, faster” does not always work well because “the Ukrainians needed to have the training to be able to effectively use these systems.”

 

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian officials cited by the FP, complained on the one hand about the “too slow” pace of Western aid but, on the other hand, admitted that “beyond training for the HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems) and Western artillery, military training for their troops has dipped in recent weeks, leaving them unable to operate more advanced systems.”

 

“For [Ukrainians], it is always going to be too little and too late, for natural reasons. However, sending things without training and logistics is a sure way they’ll have no longevity,” Oscar Jonsson, a researcher at the Swedish Defense University, commented on the matter, as quoted by FP.

 

According to the magazine, Western officials are now “unclear” about what system they can provide next to Kiev.

 

“It could take months to train the Ukrainians to fly F-15 and F-16 jets, even though Ukrainian military officials insist that many of their pilots are currently sidelined without enough planes to fly, giving them the ability to leave the country for training,” the report says.

 

Foreign Policy’s article was published on the same day the Pentagon announced an additional $820-million package of military aid for Ukraine, including two surface-to-air missile defense systems.

 

The new deliveries will include ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), two National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), up to 150,000 rounds of 155mm artillery ammunition, and four additional counter-artillery radars. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his gratitude to the US and personally to President Joe Biden for the package, and especially for NASAMS systems, capable, in his opinion, to “significantly strengthen” Ukrainian air defense.

 

At the end of June, Britain said that it would provide Kiev with “sophisticated air defense systems,” drones, electronic warfare equipment and “thousands of pieces of vital kit” worth £1 billion ($1.2 billion). The announcement came less than two weeks after the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson offered Ukraine a major training program for its troops, “with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days.”

 

Russia has repeatedly urged the West not to provide Kiev with weapons, saying it will only prolong the conflict and lead to long-term problems. It has warned that Russian forces will consider any foreign weapons on Ukrainian territory as a legitimate target. Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that “pumping up” Ukraine with Western weapons willonly lead Russia “to perform more missions on the ground.”

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/558269-less-training-ukraine-weapons/