DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Iran unrest divides UN Security Council meeting Iran has told the UN it has "hard evidence" that protests there were being "directed from abroad," while Russia has urged the chamber to "let Iran deal with its own problems." The US said it had put Iran "on notice." The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting at the request of the US on Friday to discuss the antigovernmentprotests that rocked Iranlast week. The meeting began as a closed-door session but the US was able to ensure a second, open phase of talks thereafter, despite resistance from Russia, France, Bolivia and other members. The US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, argued that the Iranian protests — first against andlater for authorities in Tehran— could escalate into a full-blown conflict, drawing parallels with Syria. "Freedom and human dignity cannot be separated from peace and security," Haley said. "The Iranian regime is now on notice: the world will be watching what you do."
ʼWorldʼs most expensiveʼ vodka bottle found following bar theft A high-end bottle of vodka that was stolen from a Copenhagen bar has been found at a construction site. The gold and diamond-encrusted bottle was found intact, save for one thing — all of the vodka was missing. A bottle of vodka, claimed to be the "worldʼs most expensive," was found intact in Copenhagen after it wasstolen from a bar earlier this week, Danish police said. Made from three kilograms (6.6 pounds) of white and yellow gold, three kilograms of silver and crowned with a diamond-encrusted replica of the Russian Imperial Eagle on its cap, it is believed to be worth $1.3 million (€1.07 million). Police in Copenhagen said the rare bottle was found at a construction site and thanked "a member of the public" for reporting the missing bottle, which is now being analyzed. The bottle appeared to have suffered little damage, but it was drained of its Russo-Baltique vodka.
6/2018 • 8, JANUARY 2018
Donald Trump claims to be a ʼstable geniusʼ on Twitter The comments come as a response to the ʼFire and Furyʼ book
US President Donald Trump has praised his own mental state and described himself as a "very stable genius."
Easyjet takes off from Berlin Tegel as it joins crowded German market The low-cost airline has launched its first domestic flights in Germany from its new base at Berlinʼs Tegel Airport. The British carrier has added 19 new routes and joins an already crowded domestic market in Germany. Low-cost carrier Easyjet commenced its new domestic German service shortly after 10.30 CET on Friday morning from Berlinʼs Tegel airport, as it seeks to capitalize on Air Berlinʼs demise. Easyjet will add 19 destinations to its schedules from Tegel, with four of those within Germany — Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich and Düsseldorf — and said it aims to fly 40 times a week between Tegel
and Düsseldorf. The airlineʼs increased focus on the German market comes after theAir Berlin dealand puts Easyjet in direct competition with Lufthansa and its subsidiary Eurowings, which have been criticized in recent months for inflating its fares amid claims of antitrust. During the period of Air Berlinʼs insolvency, the price of some domestic fares have risen by 30 percent. Easyjet currently has 12 planes stationed at Tegel but plans to increase that figure to 25 within the next six months with aircraft purchased from Air Berlin, making it Easyjetʼs second largest base after London Gatwick, where the company has 37 aircraft.
Germany must allow third gender in registry of births, court rules An intersex person has won a court case to allow them to enter a third gender into the registry of births. The case was appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court after failing at lower levels. Germanyʼs Federal Constitutional Court on Wednesday called for a third gender option in the registry of births. Intersex people, who are neither male nor female, should be able to register their sexual identity as such, the Karlsruhe court ruled. The court found that the general right to the protection of personality in Germanyʼs Basic Law meant the register had to be altered to al-
low a third gender. The court ruled seven to one that lawmakers must create new legislation by the end of 2018 to allow for a third sex, providing the examples of "intersex," "diverse" or another "positive designation of sex." Another possibility raised was to scrap gender entries altogether. "Assignment to a gender is of paramount importance for individual identity; it typically plays a key role both in the self-image of a person and in the way in which the person concerned is perceived by others. The gender identity of those persons who are neither male nor female is protected,"the court ruled.
Saudi Arabian princes arrested over palace protest Saudi authorities have reportedly detained a group of 11 Saudi princes who staged a protest over a decree that suspended payment of their utility bills. They were put in a maximum security prison, local media claims. The princes gathered in a historic royal palace in Qasr al-Hokm to demand compensation for a death sentence issued against one of their relatives, Saudi media reported on Saturday. The group of 11 princes also decried the recent royal decree that introduced various austerity measures, including cutting state payment of water and electricity bills for the royals. Saudi Arabiaʼs royal family has many thousands of members, thanks to polygamy practiced in the kingdom. Some observers estimate that around 15,000 princes and princesses live in the oil-rich state. They have seen many of their perks cut as part of an economy drive pushed by the powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Avalanche kills two German skiers in Austria The bodies of two German nationals caught in an avalanche in Austria on Friday have have been recovered. The men, 25 and 26 respectively, were skiing off piste when they were killed by a sliding wall of snow. Rescuers recovered the body of a second skier on Saturday, a day after the avalanche buried him and his ski partner. The two men were from the state of Bavaria, and were skiing near the village of Kals in Austriaʼs western Tyrol region on Friday when they were buried by a tumbling wall of snow.
weather today BUDAPEST
2 / 6 °C Precipitation: 0 mm
6/2018 • 8, January 2018
How #MeToo affects the Golden Globes With sexual harassment cases in the backdrop, the Golden Globes are set to launch Hollywoodʼs annual awards season. A black-dress protest will be held — but "men in black" are accused of slacktivism. Hollywoodʼs biggest pre-Oscars prize-giving ceremony takes place on January 7. It is the first major award ceremony since the start of the #MeToo movement and showcases an industry which, after operating for decades under the motto "sex sells," is having to reinvent itself. Organized by the 90-member Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), a total of 25 prizes are up for grabs on Sunday — 14 in film and 11 in television — at the Golden Globes awards ceremony. But the mood in Los Angeles in the wake of widespread sexual harassment claims is rather heavy. As was the case two years ago with the #Oscarssowhite campaign, social media was a driving force in this new reality check for Hollywood. Even before the launch of Hollywoodʼs annual awards season, the fallout of the scandal has already managed to change the face of the industry in various ways — and appears to be set to do so for the foreseeable future.
Dakar Rally: Toyotaʼs AlAttiyah takes first stage Qatarʼs Nasser Al-Attiyah has won the first stage of the Dakar Rally in the Peruvian town of Pisco. Nine-time rally world champion Sebastian Loeb of France endured a torrid opening day, finishing in 29th place. The opening round of the Dakar Rally saw defending champions Peugeot left stunned, as two-time winner Nasser Al-Attiyah of Toyota swept across the short 31-kilometer (19-mile) stretch of desert between Lima and Pisco in just 21 minutes and 51 seconds.
Intel CEO sold shares before disclosure of chip security flaw As Intel is rushing out patches to fix its chip security flaws, it has become known that CEO Brian Krzanich had sold off a large chunk of his stake in Intel before the problem was disclosed to the general public. According to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing, Intel chief executive (CEO) Brian Krzanich sold about $39 million (€32.3 million) in stocks and options in late November — several months after Google informed the chipmaker ofa serious security problem affecting its products, but before the vulnerability became known this week. News media reported that Krzanich apparently netted about $25 million on the transaction of 644,135 shares. A spokeswoman for the Intel CEO said
that Krzanichʼs decision to sell the shares was unrelated to the chip security problem disclosed on Wednesday. The SEC filing also showed that the sale was part of an Intel plan created on October 30, just a month before its CEO disposed of his shares. It allows company executives to sell stocks they own at a pre-determined time so that they are not accused of insider trading. The sale has allowed Krzanich to whittle his holdings down to about 250,000 shares, which is the minimum he is required to own under Intelʼs rules.
Mark Zuckerberg makes ʼfixingʼ Facebook a personal goal for 2018 Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg has set his New Year resolution as fixing the company he co-founded. Last year was not the best for the social network company, with technical, political and moral issues raised. Zuckerberg wrote on Thursday that he wants to focus on protecting Facebook users from abuse, defend against interference by nation-states and "making sure that time spent on Facebook is time well spent." "The world feels anxious and divided, and Facebook has a lot of work to do," Zuckerbergwrote in the post. He wrote that his "personal challenge for 2018 is to
focus on fixing these important issues," adding that the pledge "may not seem like a personal challenge on its face." He did not elaborate on how he would improve the social network, which has recently come under fire for allowing the rampant spread of false information. "We wonʼt prevent all mistakes or abuse, but we currently make too many errors enforcing our policies and preventing misuse of our tools," Zuckerberg wrote. Zuckerberg, 33, said Facebook was standing at a crossroads that required his attention, citing the spread of hate speech on social media and criticism that the platform can be an addictive and a waste of time.
Worldʼs coolest coffee event is back! Location: Ottakringer Brauerei, Ottakringer Platz 1, 1160 / Wien / Austria, Date: 12-14, January, 2018 The festival will feature the best coffee specialities, gourmet food, tastings and demonstrations from world class baristas, interactive coffee workshops, the SCAE Austria Barista Championship, craftmanship, coffee based cocktails, live music, DJs and much more! http://www.viennacoffeefestival.cc/
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US December job creation disappoints The US has added fewer jobs lately than expected by labor market experts, fresh government figures have shown. The overall unemployment rate held steady at a 17-year low in the worldʼs largest economy. The US economyʼs job creation ability decreased in December 2017 despite solid hiring in the manufacturing and construction sectors, government data showed Friday. While theunemployment rate remained unchanged at a 17year low of 4.1 percent, employers across the nation added just 148,000 jobs in the final month of last year. The figure was far below expectations of 200,000 new positions and even below the sluggish 155,000 jobs reported in December 2016. Economists had been more optimistic especially after payroll services firm ADP said Thursday that private hiring experienced a boost in the final four weeks of December 2017. But the slowing reported by the government couldpoint to an economy nearly at full employment that is finding it hard to get workersto fill open positions. Thatʼs a sentiment that had been reflected in reports from companies lately.
Ousted Venezuelan opposition leader escapes house arrest, flees to Spain Ousted Caracas mayor Antonio Ledezma has likened his escape to a film. He plans to take the fight against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro abroad. The ousted opposition mayor of Caracas arrived in Spain on Saturday after orchestrating a daring escape from house arrest in Venezuela. Antonio Ledezma landed in Madrid from Bogota, Colombia, where he arrived a day earlier after slipping across the border. He was greeted by his wife and two daughters who live in Spain. Ledezma said he planned to organize resistance from abroad to President Nicolas Maduro, under whose rule millions of Venezuelans have suffered from shortages of food and other basic supplies. "I am going to travel the world to spread the hope of all Venezuelans to escape this regime, this dictatorship," Ledezma said. The 62-year-old opposition figure was removed as mayor of Caracas and arrested in 2015 on allegations he sought to topple Maduro.