Labor has triumphed over the Conservatives in a momentous parliamentary election in Great Britain, marking a significant shift in government control. With 412 seats secured, Labour has clinched an impressive 63 per cent majority in the lower house of Parliament, while the Conservatives have dwindled to just 121 seats, their lowest count in two centuries. The Liberal Democrats have soared with 71 seats, and the Scottish National Party faces losses in all but a few seats. This victory for Labour ends the Conservatives’ 14-year reign, attributed to growing voter dissatisfaction over various national challenges. The outcome reflects a noteworthy decline in support for the two major political parties, signaling a changing landscape in British politics. The election saw a diverse array of candidates vying for seats, with over 4,500 individuals running across nearly 100 parties. Despite the diminished overall share of votes for the main parties, Prime Minister Keir Starmer stands poised to lead with a substantial majority. The shift in power marks a significant turning point in Britain’s political landscape, ushering in a new era of governance and policy direction.
Border Patrol Agent Attacked by Venezuelan National in El Paso, Texas
A Border Patrol agent at an El Paso, Texas, processing center was allegedly attacked by a female Venezuelan national in late June, according to the Border Report.
The woman, Maria Alexandra Louze Flores, was apprehended on June 30 after border officials determined that she was ineligible to be in the United States, the news outlet reported. Louze Flores was stopped at an Interstate 10 checkpoint in Sierra Blanca, Texas.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s interior checkpoints are placed along major highways near the border. Agents at these stations look for illegal narcotics and individuals who are attempting to travel farther into the interior of the country after evading border agents.
The El Paso checkpoint’s law enforcement agents detained Louze Flores and placed her in a Border Patrol van. She was then transported to a nearby processing center.
According to court records, Louze Flores was moved to the center’s intake area, where a Border Patrol agent questioned her, Border Report stated. Her belongings were placed aside for storage.
A criminal complaint reviewed by the news outlet stated that Louze Flores attempted to walk away from the interview and retrieve her items but was stopped by the Border Patrol agent. When the law enforcement officer grabbed Louze Flores’ arm, she responded by trying to pull away, swinging at an agent’s face, the complaint stated.
A struggle ensued that reportedly resulted in Louze Flores striking an officer’s face several times, according to a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas and reviewed by Border Report.
Louze Flores was eventually restrained after two additional officers came to break up the scuffle, the complaint read.
The suspect was ultimately charged with assault on a federal officer. She is scheduled to appear in court on July 8.
One of the Border Patrol agents reportedly sustained visible injuries on his face, neck, ear, and hands, according to the complaint.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) recently provided an update on his effort to fill gaps left in the border wall after the Biden administration ordered a stop to its construction.
Texas National Guard soldiers construct barriers that will be placed along the border in El Paso, Abbott wrote on X this week. Texas continues to use all possible strategies to deter & repel illegal entry into our state.
Border Patrol officials in the El Paso Sector have reported more than 200,000 encounters in the first eight months of fiscal year 2024. Approximately 133,000 of those encounters were single adults, nearly 60,000 were individuals in a family unit, and more than 11,000 were unaccompanied children.
Manhattan Substance Abuse Counselor Charged with Fatal Fourth of July Park Crash, US
The driver of a pickup truck that fatally plowed into a group of revelers celebrating the Fourth of July at a New York City park has been identified as Daniel C. Hyden, a substance abuse counselor and author. Hyden faces charges including assault, aggravated vehicular homicide, driving while intoxicated, and driving with a suspended license. The tragic incident at Corlears Hook Park resulted in the deaths of three people and injuries to several others, including an 11-year-old boy. Hyden, who authored a book on addiction recovery, had a history of working in residential treatment programs. The investigation is ongoing as authorities work to determine the circumstances surrounding the devastating crash.
Polisario Activist Faces Deportation from Spain Amid Asylum Request Uncertainty
A Polisario-affiliated activist has been detained at Bilbao Airport in Spain for the past 13 days as he awaits a decision on his request for political asylum.
The 23-year-old man, whose identity has not been disclosed, arrived on a flight from Marrakech on June 23 and requested asylum upon arrival, claiming he faces persecution in Morocco due to his separatist activities.
According to reports from Spanish media, the activist is a law student from Laayoune who has been involved in pro-Polisario demonstrations.
He had initially planned to travel to Cuba via Madrid but decided to seek asylum in Bilbao after being denied entry into Spain.
The activist is being held in a designated area for individuals denied entry, which consists of three rooms – one for men, one for women, and one for families – and is equipped with beds, a bathroom, and a shower.
The Spanish National Court has rejected the activist’s appeal to suspend his deportation, stating that there is no imminent risk to his life or physical integrity.
The court noted that the activist is not a prominent Polisario representative and has only claimed to have participated in demonstrations.
The activist’s family has ties to Spain dating back to when Western Sahara was a Spanish colony, and they possess Spanish-issued documents, including a family book.
Despite this ruling, the activist remains in the airport’s detention area for individuals denied entry. He has reportedly begun a hunger strike to protest the denial of his asylum request, leading to a deterioration in his health.
In the early hours of Friday morning, he was transferred to a hospital for medical attention. The activist has expressed fear that if deported to Morocco, he will face imprisonment and mistreatment.
The activist has also applied for stateless status, a designation supported by the UNHCR for Sahrawi individuals. This request is being processed separately from his appeal against deportation.
The case bears similarities to that of Husein Amadour, another Polisario-affiliated activist who was deported from Spain to Morocco in 2019 and is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence.
Organizations such as Zehar Errefuxiatuekin have expressed concern over the potential consequences the activist may face if returned to Morocco.
The Polisario Front is considered a separatist group by the Moroccan government, and its activities are viewed as a threat to the country’s territorial integrity.
The Moroccan authorities have acknowledged issues of overcrowding in the country’s prisons, with reports indicating that, as of 2021, each inmate had an average space of only 1.74 square meters.
As of Friday, the activist was expected to be deported to Morocco, but his deportation was delayed when the pilot of the scheduled flight refused to take him on board, citing security concerns. Another attempt to deport the activist is expected to be made on Saturday.
Next-Gen Robotics Innovations Unveiled at World AI Conference, China
The exhibition floor at this year’s World AI Conference (WAIC) is buzzing with innovations. Large language models, brain-computer interfaces, and embodied intelligence are pushing the boundaries of robotics, allowing machines to not just understand our physical world, but interact with it in increasingly sophisticated ways. Join CGTN’s Liu Jiaxin and Wu Bin on a striking tour as they explore next-generation life that blurs the lines between human and machine capabilities.
Man charged with DUI in deadly NYC park crash: Substance abuse counselor faces manslaughter charges, US
A New Jersey man now charged with driving under the influence in the deadly triple park killing on July 4 has worked as a substance abuse counselor and penned a book billed as a guide to living with addiction, law enforcement sources confirmed.
Authorities identified the driver of the gray F-150 that plowed into Corlears Hook Park in the Lower East Side on Thursday evening, killing three people and injuring half a dozen others, as Daniel C. Hyden. The 44-year-old has an address listed in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey.
Police said the driver was speeding on Water Street before blowing through a stop sign and jumping the sidewalk around 9 p.m., when he barreled into the park and struck people celebrating the Fourth of July.
Witnesses pulled him out of the truck and held him until officers arrived, authorities said. He was treated for head and facial lacerations, and later charged with driving under the influence. Chief of Patrol John Chell said he expected additional charges to be brought against Hyden, including vehicular manslaughter.
Additionally, officials have said the man was not wearing a seatbelt and had a suspended license. He also refused drug testing, they said.
Attorney information for the 44-year-old was not immediately known.
According to Hyden’s LinkedIn profile, he currently works as a program director for three residential treatment programs in Manhattan.
In 2020, he published The Sober Addict: A Guide on How to Be Functional With the Dysfunctional Disease of Addiction.
Hyden’s bio identifies himself as a substance abuse counselor, instructor, public speaker and a wellness advocate, with a mission to use his lifelong experience with addiction to teach addicts how to save themselves and achieve long-term recovery.
Law enforcement sources said Hyden had a prior arrest in February where he was picked up for assault after allegedly punching a fellow teacher in the eye.
Authorities say a total of 11 people were hit, including the three who lost their lives. The dead were identified by senior police officials as 59-year-old Lucille Pinkney, her 38-year-old son, Hernan Pinkney, and an as yet unknown woman. A fourth person — a 30-year-old woman — was hospitalized in critical condition.
The other victims, who include an 11-year-old boy, were treated for minor injuries, senior police officials said.
Home Fire Caused by Used Fireworks on Fourth of July in Maitland, Florida, US
A home on Apache Trail in Maitland caught fire after used fireworks were placed in a garbage bin on the Fourth of July, according to the Maitland Fire Department.
Fire officials stated on social media that residents of the home used fireworks Thursday night and then placed them in a garbage bin. Flames started inside the bin and spread to a wall, quickly enveloping a section of the home’s attic space, officials said.
The Maitland Fire-Rescue Department responded to the scene and extinguished the fire before any further damage occurred.
Another Central Florida home, located on Alaqua Drive in Longwood, also sustained damage in a similar manner, according to authorities.
No injuries were reported in either fire.
Liberal Justices Voice Strong Dissent Over Supreme Court Rulings, US
Liberal justices raise alarm about Supreme Court’s weakening of federal agency power
WASHINGTON — In a series of dissenting opinions, liberal Supreme Court justices expressed deep concern over the court’s recent rulings that have limited the powers of federal agencies. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson took the rare step of reading summaries of their dissenting opinions from the bench to highlight their opposition to decisions that they believe undermine vital federal regulations in areas such as the environment, worker safety, and consumer protection. Their unified stance signifies a strong pushback against what has been characterized as the court’s erosion of the authority of federal agencies in interpreting and enforcing laws. The justices’ dissenting voices ring loud and clear as they strive to address what they perceive as a significant threat to the rule of law and regulatory frameworks essential for protecting the public interest.
Government Considering Removal of Angel Tax on Startups: DPIIT Recommendation, India
New Delhi, Jul 5 (PTI) Ahead of the Union Budget, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has recommended removal of angel tax on startups, but an integrated view will be taken by the finance ministry, a senior government official said.
In September last year, the Income Tax Department has notified new angel tax rules that comprise a mechanism to evaluate the shares issued by unlisted startups to investors. While previously the angel tax — a tax levied on capital received on the sale of shares of a startup above the fair market value — applied only to local investors, the Budget for 2023-24 fiscal (April 2023 to March 2024) widened its ambit to include foreign investments.
Replying to a query on industry demand for removal of angel tax here on Thursday, DPIIT Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said: Based on the consultation with the startup ecosystem that we have here we have recommended that in the past as well and I think we have recommended it this time also but ultimately an integrated view will be taken by the Ministry of Finance.
As per the Budget, the excess premium will be considered as ‘income from sources’ and taxed at the rate of up to over 30 per cent. However, startups registered by the DPIIT are exempt from the new norms.
On June 7, days after the declaration of the results of the general election, American tech billionaire Elon Musk in a post on X said he is looking forward to his companies doing exciting work in India as he congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his historic election victory.
The congratulatory message came two months after the CEO of the electric carmaker Tesla and microblogging platform X in April postponed his proposed visit to India due to very heavy Tesla obligations.
Musk — who was expected to be in India on April 21 and 22 and scheduled to meet Prime Minister Modi — later wrote on X that he is looking forward to coming to India later this year.
In June last year, Musk met with Modi during the latter’s US visit and stated that he planned to visit India in 2024 while expressing confidence that Tesla would enter the Indian market soon. PTI RSN HVA
Bright Skies Over San Francisco: 4th of July Celebrations Filled with Drones, Music, and Fun, US
The skies above the Bay Area were lit with the colors of fireworks on the 4th of July. Thousands gathered at San Francisco’s Ghirardelli Square to witness the spectacular display, including families who traveled from afar for a front-row seat. The city was buzzing all day with performances, food, and crowds of people along The Embarcadero, where families came together to celebrate the holiday. In Sunnyvale, a unique drone show replaced traditional fireworks, offering a safe and environmentally friendly alternative. Mayor Larry Klein introduced the drone show to the city, inspired by similar displays last year. The event was met with enthusiasm from the community, with families and even pets enjoying the futuristic spectacle. With drones taking center stage in the Bay Area, the 4th of July celebration continues to evolve, promising bigger and better shows in the future.
