Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:
PARIS, France, January 27, 2025/APO Group/ —
Jérôme Bertheau, Executive Vice President – Global Projects at BW Energy, will speak at the Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2025 Forum, set to take place May 13-14 in Paris. Bertheau’s participation underscores the company’s commitment to advancing Africa’s energy sector through innovative developments and strategic investments.
BW Energy is making significant strides in Africa’s energy landscape, particularly in Gabon, where the company is enhancing production at the Dussafu field through advanced recovery techniques. Last October, the company signed PSCs for the Niosi Marin and Guduma Marin offshore exploration blocks in partnership with Panoro Energy and VAALCO Energy. These agreements include drilling one well in the Niosi Marin block during the exploration phase, alongside plans for a 3D seismic acquisition campaign. BW Energy aims to complete the first phase of Hibiscus and Ruche development and bring production to a nameplate capacity of 40,000 barrels per day.
IAE 2025 (www.Invest-Africa-Energy.com)is an exclusive forum designed to facilitate investment between African energy markets and global investors. Taking place May 13-14, 2025 in Paris, the event offers delegates two days of intensive engagement with industry experts, project developers, investors and policymakers. For more information, please visitwww.Invest-Africa-Energy.com.To sponsor or participate as a delegate, please contactsales@energycapitalpower.com.
In addition to its activities in Gabon, BW Energy is making progress in Namibia with plans to drill a well on the Kharas prospect offshore, northwest of the Kudu Formation. The company has secured long-lead items and is in discussions with other operators for rig capacity, with drilling expected to begin in the second half of 2025. Furthermore, BW Energy has completed the processing of a PSDM 3D dataset over the offshore Kudu gas field and is advancing its development planning for the proposed Kudu gas-to-power project. The company is also progressing its Maromba oilfield development in Brazil, with a final investment decision expected in early 2025.
Bertheau’s participation at IAE 2025 highlights BW Energy’s commitment to innovation and its focus on maximizing the value of its African assets while promoting local content and sustainable development. The company’s involvement underscores its position as a leading energy player, leveraging cutting-edge technologies and strategic partnerships to drive growth across its portfolio.
he Secretary-General notes with concern the announcement of a pause in US foreign assistance.
The Secretary-General calls for additional exemptions to be considered to ensure the continued delivery of critical development and humanitarian activities for the most vulnerable communities around the world, whose lives and livelihoods depend on this support.
The Secretary-General looks forward to engaging with the new United States administration on the provision of much needed development support to people grappling with the most difficult challenges confronting the developing world. The United States is one of the largest aid providers and it is vital that we work constructively to jointly shape a strategic path forward.
Source: United States Senator for Nevada Cortez Masto
Resolution comes after Trump pardons 1,500 Jan 6 insurrectionists—including those convicted of violently assaulted police officers
The senators will seek unanimous consent to pass the resolution this week
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), and 44 of their colleagues introduced a new resolution condemning the pardons of individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers. The resolution follows the move by President Trump, on the first day of his second term, to grant full, complete, and unconditional pardons to over 1,500 people charged with committing crimes in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to commute the sentences of 14 others, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, far-right militias. Among those pardoned by Trump were 169 people who pled guilty to assaulting police officers on January 6th. During the siege of the Capitol that day, over 80 U.S. Capitol Police Officers were assaulted, as well as over 60 officers from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.
The senators’ resolution, Condemning the pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers, simply states: “Resolved, That the Senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police officers.” This week, Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) will seek unanimous consent on the Senate floor to pass the resolution.
“President Trump is pardoning violent criminals who assaulted police officers and attempted to overturn a fair and free election,” said Senator Cortez Masto.“This is an insult to law enforcement across the country and an endorsement of political violence. The very least my Republican colleagues can do to back law enforcement is to support this resolution.”
“It’s unconscionable that one of President Trump’s first actions in office was to pardon criminals who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021,” said Senator Rosen. “A number of these convicted felons attacked police officers and injured them. It should not be a partisan issue to fully condemn these actions and President Trump’s pardons.”
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, approximately 1,572 defendants have been federally charged with crimes associated with the attack of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th. This includes approximately 598 charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing those officers during a civil disorder, including approximately 171 defendants charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer. As proven in Court, the weapons used and carried on Capitol grounds during the January 6th attack include firearms; OC spray; tasers; edged weapons, including a sword, axes, hatchets, and knives; and makeshift weapons, such as destroyed office furniture, fencing, bike racks, stolen riot shields, baseball bats, hockey sticks, flagpoles, PVC piping, and reinforced knuckle gloves.
The full text of the resolution can be found here.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The Secretary-General notes with concern the announcement of a pause in United States foreign assistance.
The Secretary-General calls for additional exemptions to be considered to ensure the continued delivery of critical development and humanitarian activities for the most vulnerable communities around the world, whose lives and livelihoods depend on this support.
The Secretary-General looks forward to engaging with the new United States administration on the provision of much-needed development support to people grappling with the most difficult challenges confronting the developing world. The United States is one of the largest aid providers and it is vital that we work constructively to jointly shape a strategic path forward.
ollowing a two-week mobilization to Southern California to assist with the wildfire response, 17 of Oregon’s 21 strike teams will soon be heading home. The teams began the demobilization process Thursday morning. Two of the strike teams will start their drive back to Oregon on Thursday, while the remaining 15 will begin their journey to their home agencies on Friday.
These strike teams were assigned to the Palisades and Eaton fires near Los Angeles and have spent the last two weeks working the fire lines and supporting the communities impacted by these disasters. In total, the Oregon State Fire Marshal mobilized 21 strike teams, 370 firefighters, and 105 fire engines and water tenders, marking the largest out-of-state deployment in the agency’s history.
“I am immensely proud of the work firefighters from the Oregon fire service and the Oregon Department of Forestry have done over the last two weeks in California,” Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. “Their dedication and professionalism have made a meaningful difference for the communities affected by these devastating fires. The willingness of our firefighters to step up and provide critical aid, often in challenging and dangerous conditions, is a testament to the strength and resilience of Oregon’s fire service.”
The Oregon State Fire Marshal has four remaining strike teams in California, two assigned to the Eaton Fire and two assigned to support initial attack efforts if any new fires start. There is no timeline yet for when the remaining strike teams will return to Oregon.
The strike teams sent to California by the State Fire Marshal were requested through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. This compact provides help during governor-declared emergencies or disasters by allowing states to send personnel, equipment, and supplies to support response and recovery efforts in other states. The strike teams’ expenses will be reimbursed directly by California.
Two Ukrainian nationals who were extradited from the Kingdom of Thailand to the United States in September 2024 were sentenced today on charges related to labor-staffing companies they operated in Florida. Oleg Oliynyk and Oleksandr Yurchyk were each sentenced to 15 years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to court documents, Oliynyk, Yurchyk and others owned and operated a series of labor-staffing companies in South Florida — including Paradise Choice LLC, Paradise Choice Cleaning LLC, Tropical City Services LLC and Tropical City Group LLC — from at least April 2008 and August 2021. Through these staffing companies, Oliynyk, Yurchyk and co-defendants Oleksandr Morgunov, Mykhaylo Chugay and Volodymyr Ogorodnychuk facilitated the employment of non-resident aliens in the hospitality industry who were not authorized to work in the United States and helped evade the assessment and collection of more than $25 million of federal income and employment taxes.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Court Judge Jose E. Martinez ordered Oliynyk and Yurchyk to each serve three years of supervised release, pay $10,863,233.05 in restitution to the United States and to forfeit $11 million.
Oliynyk and Yurchyk are the latest defendants sentenced as part of Operation RoomKey, a joint criminal investigation initiative led by the Tax Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).
Co-defendant Chugay, was convicted at trial in June 2022, and was sentenced in August 2022 to more than 24 years in prison. Co-defendants Morgunov and Ogorodnychuk each pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 96 months in prison and 48 months in prison, respectively.
In March 2022, Mikus Berzins, former City of Key West Police Officer Igor Kasyanenko, Roman Riabov and Andrejs Kozlovs each pleaded guilty to their crimes in the operation of the labor staffing company, Phoenix ADB Services Inc. (Phoenix ADB), which, according to court records, facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization.
In May 2022, the court sentenced Igor Kasyanenko and Riabov to 22 months and 18 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the tax and immigration conspiracy. The court also sentenced Berzins and Kozlovs to 28 months and 12 months in prison, respectively, for knowingly hiring ten or more aliens who were not authorized to work in the United States. Later, in September 2023, Nataliya Vasylivna Kasyanenko, a former housekeeping manager at a large Key West hotel, was sentenced for participating in the tax and immigration conspiracy related to the operation of Phoenix ADB.
Batyr Myatiev, the owner and operator of two labor staffing companies, AmeriHos LLC and Golden Sands Management LLC, pleaded guilty in March 2023 and was sentenced in June 2023 to 32 months in prison. According to court records, Myatiev’s labor staffing companies caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $3.5 million and facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization.
In July 2023, Eka Samadashvili and Davit Pavliashvili were sentenced for their respective roles in the operation of several labor staffing companies, including PSEB Services JD Inc., Paradise Hospitality Solutions LLC, Paradise Hospitality Group LLC, Paradise Hospitality Inc. and HBSM Corp. According to court records, these labor staffing companies caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $8.4 million and facilitated the employment of non-resident aliens in hotels, bars and restaurants in Key West and elsewhere who were not authorized to work in the United States.
Finally, in March 2024, Petr Sutka was sentenced to four years in prison for his role in operating a series of labor staffing companies — including PSEB Specialty Service Inc., Perfect Service Excellent Benefits Services Inc., Starline Hospitality Inc., Norbert Janitorial Service Inc., E.S.F. Services Inc. and Expert Services F.S. Inc. — which, according to court records, caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $3.5 million and facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization. In April 2024, Sutka’s co-defendants, Zdenek Strnad and Vasil Khatiashvili, were each sentenced to more than three years, respectively, for their roles in the tax and immigration conspiracy.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida made the announcement.
HSI and IRS-CI are investigating the case.
Senior Litigation Counsel Sean Beaty and Trial Attorneys Jessica A. Kraft, Matthew C. Hicks and Wilson Rae Stamm of the Tax Division and Senior Litigation Counsel Chris Clark for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.
An indictment was unsealed last week charging a New Jersey return preparer with preparing and filing 55 false income tax returns on behalf of clients and obstructing the IRS.
According to the indictment, from at least 2018 through 2023, Christopher Demba, of Hillsborough, owned and operated Demba & Associates CPA LLC, a return preparation business. Demba allegedly prepared returns for clients that claimed false deductions, credit carryforwards or fraudulently recategorized income to claim expenses that would otherwise be disallowed. The indictment further alleges that Demba obstructed the IRS by providing false working papers to IRS personnel in an attempt to justify some of the claims made on returns he prepared for clients.
If convicted, Demba faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count as well as a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Mark McDonald and Alexis Hughes of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
“The Walkbury Map: Explore partner businesses and enjoy exclusive discounts with a valid UConn or OLLI ID. Designed by Airey Lau.”
Last fall, UConn Waterbury launched Walkbury, an innovative program designed to harmonize the campus community with the vibrant culture, history, and businesses of downtown Waterbury. The initiative encourages students, staff, faculty, and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) members to explore the city’s unique offerings and deepen their connection to the local community.
This program is part of the larger Ideas + Impact initiative, which also launched last fall thanks to a generous donation from UConn Waterbury alumnus Mike Peluso (Business ’99). Ideas + Impact supports student-initiated and campus-initiated social impact projects, empowering students to make meaningful contributions to their communities. Walkbury embodies the spirit of Ideas + Impact by fostering engagement, building connections, and creating opportunities for learning and growth.
“Ideas + Impact is about giving students the tools to make a difference, and Walkbury is a perfect example of that mission in action,” said Peluso. “It’s rewarding to see how UConn Waterbury is inspiring students to engage with their community in meaningful ways.”
A Semester of Engagement and Exploration
“UConn Waterbury students enjoy local flavors at Grand Street Tavern. Photo by Steve Bustamante, UConn Library”
Over the fall semester, Walkbury hosted four (and more to come!) food and cultural tours in partnership with Waterbury Regional Chamber’s Main Street Waterbury that brought the UConn community directly into the heart of downtown Waterbury. The tours, held during lunch hours and morning coffee meetups, offered opportunities to visit local landmarks, enjoy the city’s culinary delights, and hear from community leaders including alumni.
The food tours featured stops at popular eateries, including Seven Villages, Grand Street Tavern, and Nature’s Love Juice Bar, where participants sampled delicious offerings while meeting business owners. These events provided a taste of what downtown has to offer and underscored the importance of supporting local businesses.
Adding depth to the experience, UConn Waterbury emeritus faculty member Ruth Glasser led the historical and cultural components of the tours. Participants learned about Waterbury’s architectural gems, including City Hall and the iconic clock tower inspired by Torre del Mangia in Siena, Italy.
“UConn Waterbury students learn about the city’s history from emeritus professor Ruth Glasser. Photo by Steve Bustamante, UConn Library”“UConn Waterbury students engage in a discussion with Mayor Pernerewski at City Hall. Photo by Steve Bustamante, UConn Library”
During the tours, Mayor Paul Pernerewski welcomed the group at City Hall, sharing insights on the city’s ongoing revitalization and hosting a Q&A session focused on career development and civic engagement.
The tours also drew the attention of prominent Connecticut leaders, including State Senator Joan Hartley and State Representative Geraldo Reyes, who joined participants to emphasize the significance of community involvement and partnership.
“This program is about more than walking tours or discounts,” said Dr. Fumiko Hoeft, dean and chief administrative officer of UConn Waterbury. “It’s about fostering understanding and building harmony between UConn and the community. Walkbury is a natural extension of Ideas + Impact, as both aim to inspire students and encourage them to engage meaningfully with the world around them.”
Community and Collaboration
At its heart, Walkbury is about creating meaningful connections. Through partnerships with local businesses, participants receive exclusive discounts upon presenting a valid UConn or OLLI ID. These collaborations encouraged the UConn community to explore downtown, discover new favorites, and contribute to the local economy.
Lynn Ward, president and CEO of the Waterbury Regional Chamber, applauded the initiative: “Programs like Walkbury not only drive business but also create lasting relationships between the campus and the city. We’re thrilled to see so many UConn members engaging with downtown.”
Spirit Café Opens to All
One of the highlights of the Walkbury initiative was the public opening of Spirit Café, located in the Rectory Building next to the Palace Theater. Previously available only to UConn students and staff, the café now serves as a welcoming space for both the campus and local community to gather over breakfast and lunch.
“The Spirit Café represents what Walkbury is all about,” said Hoeft. “It’s a space where people from all walks of life can connect, share ideas, and enjoy great food in the heart of downtown.”
Celebrating Waterbury’s Charm
From cozy cafes to cultural landmarks, Walkbury celebrates Waterbury as a city of rich history and vibrant culture. By offering students, faculty, staff, and OLLI members the chance to explore and engage with the city, the initiative highlights what makes Waterbury unique and fosters a sense of belonging for all UConn members.
Mayor Pernerewski praised the program, stating, “Walkbury is an excellent example of how a university and a city can work together to build community. It’s about making sure every UConn member feels at home here in Waterbury.”
Looking Ahead
With a successful first semester under its belt, Walkbury is poised to continue its mission of fostering harmony between UConn Waterbury and the downtown community. As part of the broader Ideas + Impact initiative, the program will continue to empower students and the entire UConn Waterbury community to engage with the city and make a lasting difference.
For more information or to share ideas for collaboration, email walkbury@uconn.edu or contact Heather Price at 203-236-9846.
Through Walkbury and Ideas + Impact, UConn Waterbury is creating bridges between campus and community, showing that when we walk together, we grow together.
On Dec. 3, 2024, at approximately 4:42 p.m., Cold Lake RCMP were called to an attempted child abduction at a restaurant located on 50h Street in Cold Lake South.
Through the course of the investigation, it was determined that a female suspect had entered the establishment, approached the child, and picked them up from their chair. The suspect then attempted to leave with the child but was stopped when the family intervened and regained custody of the child.
The suspect then fled the area. Through active patrols, Cold Lake RCMP officers was able to locate and arrest the suspect.
A 30-year-old individual, a resident of Cold Lake, has been charged with the following offence:
Abduction of a person under 14
The individual was brought before a justice of the peace and remanded into custody. She is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 5, 2024, at the Alberta Court of Justice in St. Paul, Alta.
On Jan. 4, 2025, at approximately 8 p.m., Wood Buffalo RCMP responded to a complaint of a physical altercation and possible stabbing at MacDonald Island Park, located at 1 C.A. Knight Way, in downtown Fort McMurray, Alta. The altercation occurred near the fitness gym on the second floor of the facility and was witnessed by a large group of people. A 41-year-old male was found suffering from a stab wound to the shoulder as a result of the altercation. He was transported by ground ambulance to Northern Lights Regional Health Centre in non-life-threatening condition.
A 17-year-old individual, a resident of Fort McMurray was arrested and is facing charges:
Aggravated assault
Possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose
Carrying a concealed weapon
The individual, who cannot be named under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was held for a judicial interim hearing. The individual was released from police custody on a release order with conditions.
The individual is set to appear next in the Alberta Court of Justice – Fort McMurray on Jan. 21, 2025.
While the RCMP investigation into the incident is continuing, the incident is not believed to be a random act of violence. Wood Buffalo RCMP are aware that multiple bystanders took videos of the incident and are looking to obtain those videos. RCMP are asking anyone who has not previously spoken with them to contact Wood Buffalo RCMP at (780) 788‐4040.
RCMP encourage the public to report any criminal or suspicious activity to police. Reports tell us where to look, who to look for, and where to patrol in the future. If you see a crime in progress, dial 911. If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), online at www.P3Tips.com or by using the “P3 Tips” app available through the Apple App or Google Play Store.
Following reports of a disturbance at a cabin area near South Brook, known as West Bottom, on January 24, 2025, 41-year-old Matthew Burton was arrested by Springdale RCMP. He is charged with arson and a number of other criminal offences.
Burton allegedly damaged a neighbouring property using his truck and further used his truck to block access to another neighbour’s driveway, while continually sounding the vehicle’s alarm system. Further to this, Burton allegedly cut down a property’s fence and lit it on fire.
Upon police arrival, Burton ignored officers’ commands and ran into a residence. He was arrested inside the home where officers located and seized a loaded shotgun and additional ammunition that was improperly stored and readily available.
Burton is charged with the following criminal offences:
Mischief under $5000.00 – damage to property – two counts
Mischief – obstructing the lawful enjoyment to property
Arson – damage to property
Unsafe storage of a firearm
Resisting/Obstructing a peace officer
He attended court on January 25 and was held in custody. He appears in court today for a bail hearing.
The Central Bank of Iceland Resolution Authority announced today that a resolution plan for Kvika has been approved and thereby a decision on the minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL) for the bank, in accordance with the Act on Resolution of Credit Institutions and Investment Firms, no. 70/2020.
According to the Resolution Authority’s decision, Kvika’s MREL requirements are 22.0% of Total Risk Exposure Amount (MREL-TREA) and 6.0% of Total Exposure Measure (MREL-TEM). The decision is effective from the date of the announcement, and the bank is already considered to meet the MREL requirements.
For further information, please contact Kvika’s Investor Relations at ir@kvika.is or by phone at +354 540 3200.
Kowloon, Hong Kong, Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CTRL Group Limited (the “Company”) (NasdaqCM: MCTR), an integrated marketing and advertising services provider in Hong Kong specializing in mobile games promotion for the local market, today announced that R.F. Lafferty & Co., Inc., which acted as the representative of the underwriters of the Company’s initial public offering (the “IPO”), has exercised the full over-allotment option and purchased an additional 300,000 ordinary shares of the Company at the IPO price of $4.00 per share. As a result, the Company has raised an aggregate of $9.2 million in gross proceeds, before underwriting discounts and other related expenses, through the issuance of a total of 2,300,000 ordinary shares in the IPO.
R.F. Lafferty & Co., Inc. acted as the representative of the underwriters, with Revere Securities LLC acting as co-underwriter (collectively, the “Underwriters”) for the Offering. The Crone Law Group, P.C. served as counsel to the Company. VCL Law LLP served as counsel to the Underwriters.
A Registration Statement on Form F-1, as amended (File No. 333-277979) (the “Registration Statement”), was previously filed with and subsequently declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 31, 2024. The Offering was made only by means of a prospectus, forming a part of the Registration Statement. A final prospectus relating to the Offering was filed with the SEC on January 22, 2025, and is available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, electronic copies of the prospectus relating to the Offering may be obtained from R.F. Lafferty & Co., Inc. at 40 Wall Street, 27th Floor New York, NY 10005, or by telephone at +212.293.9090.
This press release has been prepared for informational purposes only and shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.
About CTRL Group Limited
The Company’s wholly owned subsidiary and operating company, CTRL Group Limited, is an integrated marketing and advertising services provider in Hong Kong specializing in mobile games promotion for the local market. The Company provides services to mobile game developers, principally developers of mobile gaming applications or “apps” that gamers download from the developers’ websites and applicable mobile operating systems, such as Apple Store or Android Google Play Store. The market for specialized mobile game advertising in Hong Kong is occupied by a few market players who compete with one another. The Company’s prominent market share and proven track record are indicative of its audience reach and engagement, as well as its relevance to advertisers in Hong Kong markets. For more information, please visit the Company’s website: https://www.ctrl-media.com/
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements other than statements of historical fact in this announcement are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that the Company believes may affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs, including the expectation that the Offering will be successfully completed. Investors can identify these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “potential,” “continue,” “is/are likely to” or other similar expressions. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances, or changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results and encourages investors to review other factors that may affect its future results in the Company’s registration statement and in its other filings with the SEC.
For more information, please contact:
Investor Relations CTRL Group Limited Phone: +852-3107-4887 Email: project@ctrl-media.com
NEW YORK, Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Mage Data™ has announced the promotion of Krishnan Cheerath to the position of Vice President of Products. In this new capacity, Krishnan will lead the company’s product vision and strategy – balancing immediate market needs with future-proofing against emerging regulatory requirements and technological advancements to ensure that the product strategy aligns with the overall vision.
Since joining Mage Data in 2017, Krishnan has held positions of increasing responsibility and authority first as a Project Manager and then a Product Manager. His contributions to product strategy and delivery led to his promotion to Director of Product Design in 2023, where he helped to lead the development of the world’s first conversational user interface for a test data management platform for enhanced user experience. During his tenure, he has built an extensive portfolio of innovative product designs with an approach that has helped shaped Mage Data’s ahead-of-the-market offerings. Mage Data looks forward to his continuing to play a pivotal role in shaping the Company’s product vision and strategy as a part of Vision 26 – towards building an increasingly AI-driven solution that shifts the paradigm from being a traditional software solution to a Service-As-A-Software™ model that can serve as a powerful ally helping enterprises navigate complex data security challenges.
Krishnan completed a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Trichy in 2017 and subsequently completed the Product Strategy course at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. This program helped refine essential skills in product lifecycle management, opportunity assessment, and agile methodologies. Krishnan’s skillset bridges the gap between market needs and the capabilities of rapidly changing technologies and makes him uniquely suited for Mage Data’s culture of innovation and market leadership.
“Krishnan has been a cornerstone of our company’s growth and development,” said Padma Vemuri, Senior Vice President and Chief Solutions Architect at Mage Data. “His promotion is a testament not only to his long hours and commitment to the customer’s needs, but also to the promising future we envision together as he steps into executive leadership. I’m excited about the innovative directions Krishnan will guide us towards, strengthening our offerings and elevating our brand.”
Paula Capps, Chief Operating Officer, added “This promotion exemplifies Mage Data’s commitment to professional growth and development for our team. Hard work, a commitment to excellence, and visionary thinking is valued at Mage Data. Krishnan is an essential member of the team, and we are pleased that he’s taking on more and more responsibility.”
“My time at Mage Data has been an incredible professional journey,” Krishnan Cheerath said. “I am deeply honoured and excited to assume the role of Vice President and embrace the challenges and responsibilities that come with it. I am committed to fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration within our teams as we strive to achieve our shared goals.”
About Mage Data:
Mage Data is globally recognized as a premier provider of comprehensive enterprise data security solutions, dedicated to serving organizations with sophisticated data protection mechanisms, intricate discovery techniques, and robust compliance capabilities. Our integrated platform is designed to safeguard sensitive information while ensuring uninterrupted business operations. recognized as a Champion in Test Data Management and a leader in data masking by leading analysts, Mage Data’s patented and award-winning platform enables organizations to navigate privacy regulations while ensuring robust security. The company’s client roster includes Swiss banks, Fortune 10 companies, Ivy League universities, and leaders in the financial and healthcare sectors—all of whom rely on Mage Data’s platform for effective data privacy and security solutions. With industry-leading privacy-enhancing technologies designed to secure sensitive information, Mage Data continues to deliver robust data security while ensuring that essential data assets remain accessible for everyday business use. For further details about Mage Data’s solutions, please visit www.magedata.ai or contact us via email at info@magedata.ai.
Media Contact: Deeksha Surya 3 Columbus Circle, 15th Floor New York, NY 10019 Telephone: +1 212 203 4365 Email: info@magedata.ai
La Perouse is a biennial, multilateral exercise demonstrating a shared commitment to enhance regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific.
This exercise is designed to advance maritime security in the region through maritime surveillance, interdiction, and air operations through progressive training and information sharing.
This exercise provided an opportunity for U.S. and allied and partner navies, who have shared values, fulfill maritime integration training objectives by emphasizing collaboration, warfighting, and readiness in a dynamic theater, resulting in enhanced maritime security and continued deterrence.
“USS Savannah’s opportunity to operate with our foreign partners this week was exciting. The French and American navies have shared priorities and an enduring mission in the Indo-Pacific,” said Capt. Matt Scarlett, commodore, Destroyer Squadron 7. “Our ability to conduct consistent bilateral operations, conduct information sharing, and participate in realistic scenarios at sea, increases our interoperability as a joint force and ensures sustained maritime security in the region.”
Named after an 18th-century French naval officer and explorer, La Perouse reflects longstanding values and a shared commitment to maritime security with like-minded nations.
The French Navy Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group is represented by their aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle (R91). Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group is operating in the Indo-Pacific as part of their Clemenceau 25 deployment.
“We welcome the opportunity to operate alongside the French navy, our friend and longtime ally, out here in the Indo-Pacific,” said Vice Adm. Fred Kacher, commander, U.S. 7th Fleet. “Their exercise La Perouse underscores the value our European allies place on this critical maritime region, and we look forward to advancing interoperability at sea between our forces.”
Additional participating units included Royal Australian Navy’s Hobart Class guided missile destroyers HMAS Hobart (DDG 39); Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ottawa (FFH 341); the Indian Navy’s Delhi-class guided-missile destroyers INS Mumbai (D 62); Royal Malaysian Navy’s Lekiu-class guided missile frigate FFG Lekir (FFG 30) and Gagah Samudera-class training ship KD Gagah Samudera (271); Royal Navy of the United Kingdom’s River-class off-shore patrol vessel HMS Spey (P 234); and Republic of Singapore Navy’s Independence-class littoral mission vessel RSS Independence (15)
As the U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed DESRON in Southeast Asia, DESRON 7 serves as the primary tactical and operational commander of littoral combat ships rotationally deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations, functions as Expeditionary Strike Group 7’s Sea Combat Commander and builds partnerships through training and exercises and military-to military engagements.
U.S. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
President Donald Trump has begun to radically change how the U.S. government handles immigration, from challenging long-held legal concepts about who gets citizenship to using the military to transport migrants back to their countries of origin.
Trump’s administration is doing more than reshaping the approach of the federal government toward migrants: It has now ordered state and local officials to comply with all federal immigration laws, including any new executive orders. It has warned that if those officials refuse, it may criminally prosecute them.
The specter of a federal prosecutor putting a city’s mayor or a state’s governor in jail will raise what may be the greatest source of conflict in the U.S. Constitution. That conflict is how much power the federal government can wield over the states, a long-standing and unresolved dispute that will move again to the front and center of American politics and, in all likelihood, into American courtrooms.
A sign prohibiting the entry of ICE or Homeland Security personnel is posted on a door at St. Paul and St. Andrew United Methodist Church in New York City. Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images
In the Jan. 21, 2024, memo, Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, one of Trump’s former private attorneys, directs federal prosecutors to “investigate … for potential prosecution” state and local officials who “resist, obstruct, or otherwise fail to comply” with the new administration’s immigration orders.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove asserted in a recent memo that the Constitution and other legal authorities ‘require state and local actors to comply with the Executive Branch’s immigration enforcement initiatives.’ Jeenah Moon-Pool/Getty Images
By ordering federal prosecutors to potentially arrest, charge and imprison state and local officials, it strikes at a fundamental tension embedded in the nation’s constitutional structure in a way that Trump’s other orders do not. That tension has never been fully resolved, in either the political or legal arenas.
The practicalities of this dual sovereignty – where two governments exercise supreme power – have had to play out in practice, with often very messy results. The crux of the problem is that the Constitution explicitly grants power to both federal and state governments – but the founders did not specify what to do if the two sovereigns disagree or how any ensuing struggle should be resolved.
As Bove correctly noted in his memo, Article 4 of the U.S Constitution contains the supremacy clause, which declares that federal laws “shall be the supreme Law of the Land.”
But Bove failed to mention that the Constitution also contains the 10th Amendment. Its language, that “(a)ll powers not granted to the federal government are reserved to the states or to the people, respectively,” has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to create a sphere of state sovereignty into which the federal government may not easily intrude.
This is not to say that the federal government is barred from making policies in these areas. Indeed, the great puzzle of federalism – and the great challenge for courts – has been to figure out the boundaries between state and federal power and how two sovereigns can coexist.
If it sounds confusing, that’s because it is. The country’s best legal minds have long wrestled with how to balance the powers granted by the supremacy clause and the 10th Amendment.
Push and pull
In a 1997 opinion, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia wrote that the Constitution barred the federal government from ‘impress[ing] into its service…the police officers of the 50 States.’ Alex Wong/Getty Images
Reflecting this tension, the Supreme Court developed a pair of legal doctrines that sit uneasily alongside each other.
The first is the doctrine of “preemption,,” in which federal law can supersede state policy in certain circumstances, such as when a congressional statute expressly withdraws certain powers from the states.
At the same time, the court has limited the reach of the federal government, particularly in its ability to tell states what to do, a doctrine now known as the “anti-commandeering rule.” Were the Trump administration to go after state or local officials, both of these legal principles could come into play.
The anti-commandeering rule was first articulated in 1992 when the Supreme Court ruled in New York v. United States that the federal government could not force a state to take control of radioactive waste generated within its boundaries.
The court relied on the doctrine again five years later, in Printz v. United States, when it rejected the federal government’s attempt to require local law enforcement officials to conduct background checks before citizens could purchase handguns.
In an opinion authored by conservative icon Antonin Scalia and joined by four other Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices, the court held that the Constitution’s framers intended states to have a “residuary and inviolable sovereignty” that barred the federal government from “impress[ing] into its service … the police officers of the 50 States.”
“This separation of the two spheres is one of the Constitution’s structural protections of liberty,” Scalia wrote. Allowing state law enforcement to be conscripted into service for the federal government would disrupt what James Madison called the “double security” the founders wanted against government tyranny and would allow the “accumulation of excessive power” in the federal government.
Justice John Paul Stevens dissented, pointing out that the 10th Amendment preserves for states only those powers that are not already given to the federal government.
What happens at the Supreme Court?
The anti-commandeering and preemption doctrines were on display again during the first Trump administration, when jurisdictions around the country declared themselves “sanctuary cities” that would protect residents from federal immigration officials.
Subsequent litigation tested whether the federal government could punish these locales by withholding federal funds. The administration lost most cases. Several courts ruled that despite its extensive power over immigration, the federal government could not financially punish states for failing to comply with federal law.
One circuit court, in contrast, formulated an “immigration exception” to the anti-commandeering rule and upheld the administration’s financial punishment of uncooperative states.
The Supreme Court has never directly ruled on how the anti-commandeering rule works in the context of immigration. While the Printz decision would seem to bar the Justice Department from acting on its threats, the court could rule that given the federal government’s nearly exclusive power over immigration, such actions do not run afoul of the anti-commandeering doctrine.
Whether such a case ever makes it to the Supreme Court is unknown. Recent events, in which a Chicago school’s staff denied entry to people they thought were immigration agents, seem to be heading toward a federal and state confrontation.
Health supplements have become increasingly popular in recent years, with many people turning to them in hopes of improving overall health and reducing risk of diseases like cancer. The allure of these products is understandable – who doesn’t want a simple pill or powder to ward off serious illness?
Dietary supplements come in a wide variety of forms, including vitamins, minerals, herbs and other substances – and it’s a multi-billion pound industry. Often fuelled by marketing claims and anecdotal evidence from friends, family members and celebrity wellness gurus who swear by certain supplements, many people take them with the belief that they can fill nutritional gaps in their diet or provide additional health benefits.
However, when it comes to cancer prevention and treatment, the scientific evidence supporting the use of supplements is mixed and often inconclusive.
Supermodel Elle McPherson claims she refused chemotherapy and treated her breat cancer “holistically”, including taking many wellness supplements.
The world of supplement research is vast and complex, with studies often producing conflicting results. Some smaller studies have suggested potential benefits of certain supplements in cancer prevention but large scale, randomised clinical trials – considered the gold standard in medical research – have often failed to show significant benefits of supplement use in cancer prevention. In fact, some studies have even shown potential harm from certain supplements.
For example, the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial tested whether these supplements could reduce the risk of prostate cancer. Contrary to expectations, the study found that vitamin E supplementation could increase the risk of prostate cancer, especially in healthy, young men.
Similarly, studies on beta carotene supplements showed an increased risk of lung cancer in smokers. These findings highlight the importance of approaching supplement use with caution – more is not always better when it comes to nutrients.
For example, thanks to wellness influencers and Mel Gibson – who’s now as famous for his controversial outburts as he is for his acting – the synthetic dye methylene blue has attracted attention on social media for it’s use as a cancer-fighting supplement. While methylene blue does have legitimate medical uses – and has shown some promise in certain areas of cancer research – it’s crucial to approach these claims with a healthy degree of scepticism.
In cancer research, methylene blue has shown potential as a “photosensitiser” in treatments using laser light – meaning it makes certain cancer cells more vulnerable to treatment. However, it’s important to stress that these are specific medical applications under controlled conditions, not a general cancer prevention strategy that can be applied broadly through supplement use.
Claims about methylene blue as a cancer-preventing supplement are not supported by robust scientific evidence. In fact, long-term toxicity studies on methylene blue have shown mixed results, with some animal studies suggesting potential risks at high doses.
This underscores the importance of not misinterpreting preliminary research or specific medical applications as justification for casual supplement use.
When considering the role of supplements in cancer prevention, it’s essential to adopt a holistic view of health and wellbeing. This approach considers the whole person – body, mind and spirit – rather than focusing on individual components or symptoms.
One of the most important elements of this approach is nutrition. Rather than relying on supplements, people should aim to meet their nutritional needs through a varied, balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins.
This approach not only provides essential nutrients but also offers the benefits of fibre, phytochemicals and other compounds found in whole foods that may work together to promote health.
Regular physicalactivity is another crucial component of a holistic approach to cancer prevention. Numerous, large, well-conductedstudies have consistently linked regular exercise to lower cancer risk, as well as improved overall health and wellbeing.
Exercise helps maintain a healthy weight, reduces inflammation and may have direct effects on cancer cell growth and proliferation. Practices such as mindfulness, meditation, yoga, or deep breathing exercises can help manage stress and promote overall wellbeing.
Personal choice – based on robust evidence
While the evidence for many supplements in cancer prevention is limited, it’s crucial to respect personal choice in health decisions. However, it’s also important that these decisions are based on accurate information and in consultation with healthcare professionals. Good, medically sound evidence and advice is available.
Medical professionals can help evaluate the potential benefits and risks of supplement use, taking into account factors such as existing health conditions, medications and overall nutritionalstatus.
It’s also important to be wary of products claiming to be “miracle cures” for cancer or other serious diseases. These claims are often unfounded and can lead vulnerable people to delay seeking proper medical treatment. Instead, focus on evidence-based strategies for cancer prevention and overall health.
The most effective approach to reducing cancer risk remains a holistic one, focusing on a balanced diet, regular physical activity, stress management and other lifestyle factors including avoiding tobacco and too much alcohol. While supplements may have a role in specific situations, they should not be seen as a substitute for a healthy lifestyle.
In conclusion, while the idea of taking supplements to reduce cancer risk is appealing, the reality is more complex. Current scientific evidence does not support the use of most supplements for cancer prevention, and in some cases, certain high-dose supplementation may even increase risk.
However, this doesn’t mean all supplements are harmful or useless. For individuals with specific nutritional deficiencies or health conditions, supplements can play an important role when used under the right supervision.
Justin Stebbing does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
North Carolina is still reeling from Hurricane Helene in autumn 2024.Karl Dudman
Another day brings another monster tide for residents of Carteret county, North Carolina, whose coastal towns and villages are being swallowed by the rising Atlantic. Nonetheless, its voters returned Donald Trump to the White House, a man who denies the science of climate change and had withdrawn his country from the Paris agreement on climate change (for a second time) before the sun had even set on his first day back in office.
It is a contradiction that has captured the imaginations of many. In 2017, when Trump first quit the agreement which symbolically pledges countries to limit global heating to well below 2°C, the word “denialism” lit up late-night talk shows and circulated at annual UN summits.
Denialism evokes a pathological rejection of the reality of climate change. It has come to imply a public that can no longer tell fact from fiction, often to their own detriment. Meanwhile, climate-conscious leaders in a handful of Democratic states have repeated their commitment to scientific facts.
As an anthropologist, I felt uncomfortable with the way the fabled Trump voter was spoken about while rarely being allowed to speak for themselves. I have participated in climate politics as a researcher, activist and diplomat, and I felt there was little reflection among the treaty’s advocates about their own role in the US departure.
I started a PhD to understand the non-participants of climate politics. It took me to coastal North Carolina where, like so many other American communities, the effects of climate change sit alongside a seeming indifference to the crisis.
I wanted to understand how people here related to climate science, and what this thing called denialism actually looked like. I spent a year talking to residents with “Trump Won” flags on their lawns, but I also met scientists, government officials, activists and Democrats.
Here is one thing I found, and one thing I didn’t.
Culture trumps ‘facts’
The science of climate change is incredibly robust, but science alone cannot tell us what makes a solution fair, or who should get a say in its design. The Paris agreement, for example, has a strong moral component that was hard won by developing nations, small island states and international activists.
It depicts a world in which the blame for climate change and the responsibility for addressing it lie predominantly with rich countries such as the US, and it prescribes financial flows to victim countries to help them adapt. For many precarious Americans who feel neither rich nor villainous, this is a difficult narrative to swallow.
I saw a similar pattern in my own research. Racial justice, indigenous knowledge, urban inequality and youth are themes that typically frame public engagement with climate action by the federal government and grassroots movements. These aren’t necessarily topics that will always resonate in rural, conservative communities such as Carteret county.
Fishing has been a major local employer in North Carolina for several generations. Karl Dudman
This helps explain why advocates for climate action tend to speak to the already engaged, by referencing other progressive causes. But advocates are not necessarily more influenced by facts than sceptics. It’s simply easier to sign up to a cause you can see yourself in.
‘Denialism’ is a weak concept
What I didn’t find in North Carolina was what I came looking for: climate denialism. Climate change rarely came up naturally in the conversations I had in Carteret county, but when it did, the responses were inconsistent, ranging from concern to curiosity and from ambivalence and apathy to fatalism and scepticism. What mention there was hardly fit the stereotype of bitter, conspiracy-fuelled rejection of reality.
In this tight-knit fishing community, people had become wary of outside interventions. Some were ill-disposed to environmental movements after feeling lectured by regulatory scientists or environmental campaigners on how to manage a coastline they knew well.
Others were fatalist about resisting sea-level rise – generations spent on the Atlantic’s ferocious frontline taught them that you don’t fight storms, you ride them out. Many people saw things were changing but were too strapped for time and money to do much, or else found it intolerable to wake up each day contemplating the death of their community.
North Carolina’s fishers face several threats to their livelihood. Karl Dudman
Denialism had no explanatory power here. On the contrary, by failing to distinguish between disagreement and lack of agreement, it misrepresented complex social dynamics as a matter of simply believing facts or rejecting them.
So why does any of this matter? Because, when we identify one group as the sole cause of a problem we give ourselves permission to stop asking what we could be doing differently. After all, climate action’s advocates – from UN officers to individual voters – play a role in shaping what legitimate climate action looks like, and who will want to be part of it.
To react to the US withdrawal from Paris by repeating that “science is real”, in the vein of world leaders and American lawn signs, is to miss the point. Public dissent is often less a question of if we should fix climate change than of whose vision of a good world we are working towards.
This is not to shift blame for Trump’s withdrawal. Nor should it excuse people in politics, business and the media who have repeatedly obscured the climate debate in bad faith.
Carteret’s older residents have seen the decline of local industries and ecosystems. Karl Dudman
But reducing public dissent to a matter of misinformation and gullibility shows a lack of humility and dismisses concerns that may not crystallise into opposition if treated respectfully. Asking more questions of ourselves is something we can all do to make climate politics less toxic.
As Trump signed his first executive orders, I pressed send on my thesis’s final corrections. How the international community reacts this time remains to be seen, but the last four years have taught me that it may influence whether or not there is a next time.
Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?
Karl Dudman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Angadh Nanjangud, Lecturer in Aerospace/Spacecraft Engineering, Queen Mary University of London
Of all the things that Donald Trump’s return as US president could mean, one is that Elon Musk’s plan to use Starship rockets for long-distance flights on Earth could move forward. Dubbed Starship Earth to Earth, this would see passengers transported by rocket between cities. They would briefly leave the planet’s atmosphere during the journey before flying back down to reach their destination.
Musk claims it will be possible to travel to anywhere on Earth within an hour. His rocket company, SpaceX, has given examples such as New York to Paris in 30 minutes and London to Hong Kong in 34 minutes. In response to a post about it on his X platform, Musk responded: “This is now possible.”
Unlike previous governments, this Trump administration appears focused on reducing regulatory barriers hindering technological progress in all areas. This could make it easier for Musk to rapidly push towards realising this futuristic travel option. But what hurdles must be overcome first?
On whether Musk is right about the technical feasibility, the answer is “sort of”. The necessary technology was arguably first proven when Nasa achieved a Mars landing in 2012.
This was the first to land retropropulsively, meaning touching down softly on a planetary surface with rocket engines (technically called retrorockets). In contrast, previous Mars landings had used parachutes for the entry phase and airbags for the landing phase.
The 2012 landing opened the door to rockets and boosters becoming reusable, thereby greatly reducing the cost of launch. It was repeated in SpaceX’s historic Falcon 9 rocket landings in 2016, using some of the same Nasa engineers who had worked on the Mars landers. This technological shift has been vital for rockets becoming an economically viable alternative to aircraft.
Starship’s Earth to Earth journeys would involve visiting low Earth orbit (LEO), some 110 miles to 1,240 miles above the Earth’s surface. To do this, the rocket would use two stages. The first, known as the super heavy booster, would lift it through the dense lower atmosphere, approximately 5 to 9 miles above the Earth.
This would break away some 40 miles above the Earth, then begin a controlled descent back to the planet’s surface. SpaceX has matured this technology by leaps and bounds in the past decade, including better heat shields, adjustable lattice fins, improved aerodynamics and state-of-the-art landing algorithms.
The second stage – known just as Starship – would contain the passengers and take over the flight to reach LEO after the first stage has detached. There is still work to be done before this is passenger ready, as demonstrated when a second stage blew up during a Starship testflight on January 16.
There will be no more Starship launches until the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has completed its formal investigation into the cause. On the upside, the incident occurred within predefined hazard areas to ensure public safety.
Of course, this is the very purpose of a testflight: to learn what could go wrong and iteratively solve it, meaning repeatedly making improvements after each failure. No one can compete with SpaceX’s cost-effective iteration process, for example in its crewed trips to the International Space Station (ISS).
The malfunction of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in August was a recent reminder here: it left two Nasa astronauts stranded on the ISS, awaiting a return trip on SpaceX’s Dragon capsule in the coming weeks.
Other considerations
Other long-term challenges pertain to how passengers access the vehicle. Videos of astronauts boarding the Space Shuttle indicate that entering one’s seat in a vertically parked rocket takes a few people to help buckle you in. Making that workable over the length of a rocket will require clever engineering.
Building spaceports in different countries also won’t be trivial; we’ve seen considerable pushback against efforts to build a UK spaceport, for instance. The same goes for worldwide regulatory approvals. It’s already standard for rocket companies to need a launch licence per flight, while America’s FAA also requires them to obtain re-entry licences before launch.
Of course, regulatory hurdles can be overcome for transformational tech (once it’s proven to be safe and reliable). No doubt lawyers will have many things to say about these issues, though I doubt any will be insurmountable. And SpaceX must know a thing or two about dealing with regulations, having launched the world’s largest constellation of satellites into orbit.
Finally, rockets expel significant quantities of microscopic particles (particulates) into the upper reaches of the atmosphere. This would have seriously detrimental effects if they were flying in anything like the numbers of long-distance airliners.
Starship’s Raptor engines use methalox, a combination of liquid methane and liquid oxygen. Unlike the kerosene that has traditionally powered rockets, liquid methane prevents the build-up of sooty residue in the engine and is also safer to work with than liquid hydrogen. While Starship still burns vastly more fuel per trip than conventional aircraft, its potential to slash intercontinental travel times could drive critical research into carbon-neutral methane production. This would be integral to making a viable long-haul alternative.
At present, UK rocket companies Skyrora and Orbex are among those developing alternatives to traditional fuels. Skyrora is developing Ecosene, an aerospace grade kerosene made from unrecyclable plastic waste. Orbex’s Prime rocket will make use of a BioLPG derived from plant and vegetable waste.
Both tackle different sustainability problems, but are unlikely to meet the performance demanded by larger Starship-class vehicles. Another promising alternative is nuclear-powered engines, but using them close to Earth will likely be fiercely resisted by environmental campaigners.
In sum, we are in uncharted territory with landing second stages of rockets, but the general trend from 2012 to today indicates that such technical challenges are solvable. Doing so with crews will be even more challenging, but it does align with SpaceX’s mission to make humans multiplanetary. The same technology will be used to land humans safely on Mars, so developing it is probably inevitable.
Uncrewed Starship launches to Mars are supposed to happen in 2026. Crewed Mars missions will follow, without the same landing-related regulations as would be required on Earth. I suspect crewed Earth-to-Earth transport will only be approved after humans have landed on Mars safely.
If there’s one team that can’t be bet against turning visions into reality, it’s the SpaceX engineers who have been revolutionising launch vehicles for over ten years.
Angadh Nanjangud does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
We are now well beyond the 24 hours that Donald Trump had promised it would take him to secure an end to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. But Trump’s first week since his inauguration on January 20, 2025, has nonetheless been a busy one regarding Ukraine.
In his inauguration address, Trump only made a passing and indirect reference to Ukraine, criticising his predecessor Joe Biden of running “a government that has given unlimited funding to the defence of foreign borders but refuses to defend American borders”.
Trump’s first more substantive statement on Ukraine was a post on his TruthSocial network, threatening Russia taxes, tariffs and sanctions if his Russian counterpart doesn’t agree to make a deal soon. He reiterated this point on January 23 in comments at the World Economic Forum in Davos, adding that he “really would like to be able to meet with President Putin”.
Donald Trump/Truth Social
Trump’s nominee for treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, had already backed Trump’s approach during his Senate confirmation hearing on January 16. Like Trump, Bessent specifically emphasised increasing sanctions on Russian oil companies “to levels that would bring the Russian Federation to the table”.
The following day, Putin responded by saying that he and Trump should indeed meet to discuss Ukraine and oil prices. But this was far from a firm commitment to enter into negotiations, and particularly not with Ukraine.
Putin alluded to an October 2022 decree by Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, banning any negotiations with the Kremlin after Russia formally annexed four regions of Ukraine. Zelensky has since clarified that the decree applies to everyone but him, thus signalling that he would not stand in the way of opening direct talks with Russia.
Yet, Putin is likely to continue playing for time. The most likely first step in a Trump-brokered deal will be a ceasefire freezing the line of contact at the time of agreement. With his forces still advancing on the ground in Ukraine, every day of fighting brings Putin additional territorial gains.
Nor are there any signs of waning support from Russian allies. Few and far between as they may be, China, Iran and North Korea have been critical in sustaining the Kremlin’s war effort. Moscow now has added a treaty on a comprehensive strategic partnership with Iran to the one it had sealed with North Korea in June 2024.
Meanwhile, the Russia-China no-limits partnership of 2022, further deepened in 2023, shows no signs of weakening. And with Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko winning a seventh consecutive term on January 26, Putin is unlikely to be too worried about additional US sanctions.
Zelensky, like Putin, may play for time. Trump’s threat of sanctions against Russia is likely an indication of some level of frustration on the part of the US president that Putin seems less amenable to cutting a deal. Russia may continue to make territorial gains in eastern Ukraine, but it has not achieved any strategic breakthrough.
War of attrition
A significant increase in US military assistance to Ukraine since September 2024, as well as commitments from European allies, including the UK, have likely put Kyiv into a position that it can sustain its current defensive efforts through 2025.
Ukraine may not be in a position to launch a major offensive but could continue to keep costs for Russia high. On the battlefield, these costs are estimated at 102 casualties per square kilometre of Ukrainian territory captured. Beyond the frontlines, Ukraine has also continued its drone campaign against targets inside Russia, especially the country’s oil infrastructure.
This is not to say that Trump is going to fail in his efforts to end the fighting in Ukraine. But there is a big difference between a ceasefire and a sustainable peace agreement. And while a ceasefire, at some point, may be in both Russia’s and Ukraine’s interest, sustainable peace is much more difficult to achieve.
Putin’s vision of total victory is as much an obstacle here as western reluctance to provide credible security guarantees for Ukraine.
The two options most regularly raised: Nato membership for Ukraine or a western-led peacekeeping force that could act as a credible deterrent, both appear unrealistic at this point. It is certainly inconceivable that Europe could muster the 200,000 troops that Zelensky envisaged as a deployment in Ukraine to guarantee any deal with Putin. But a smaller force, led by the UK and France, might be possible.
Kyiv and Moscow continue to be locked in a war of attrition and neither Putin nor Zelensky have blinked so far. It is not clear yet whether, and in which direction, Trump will tilt the balance and how this will affect either side’s willingness to submit to his deal-making efforts.
So far, Trump’s moves are not a gamechanger. But this is the first serious attempt in nearly three years of war to forge a path towards an end of the fighting. It remains to be seen whether Trump, and everyone else, has the imagination and stamina to ensure that this path will ultimately lead to a just and secure peace for Ukraine.
Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the NATO Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Matthew Powell, Teaching Fellow in Strategic and Air Power Studies, University of Portsmouth
Numerous incidents of suspected Russian-linked sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea has seen tensions rise among nearby countries, and an increased Nato presence.
In the latest incident, on January 26, the Swedish coast guard boarded a ship in the Baltic Sea on suspicion of anchor dragging and suspected sabotage of vital undersea cables providing power and communication across the region. Latvia also sent a warship to the incident to investigate damage to fibre-optic cables. The Bulgarian vessel is now under investigation. The owner of the ship has denied any involvement with sabotage.
The nations along the Baltic Sea coast have become increasingly worried about suspected sabotage of their undersea infrastructure in recent months by vessels deliberately dragging their using anchors along the seabed and have started to station military vessels at sea every day.
In response to rising concerns about infrastructure security, Nato increased its regional naval presence by launching the Baltic Sentry missionon January 14, which includes maritime patrol vessels.
What’s the context?
In recent months there have been several reports of damage being caused to undersea cables by vessels as they pass through the Baltic Sea. Attacks on undersea cables are comparable to traditional espionage and information operations . This is activity conducted at the level below that of warfare, designed to send certain signals to adversarial nations. The purpose could be to send a message that the capability exists to essentially cut off and isolate nations from the outside world.
These cables are extremely valuable. They are used to transport gas, electricity and internet traffic between nations. And recent incidents have led to a reduction in the capacity of electricity that can be transported, although this has not yet caused widespread power outages. Another concern is that damage to internet cables can hold up the passage of information generated by the financial markets. This is particularly vulnerable due to its time-sensitive nature.
Protecting the cables is a challenging task. There is little that can physically be done to prevent other vessels crossing seas and oceans due to the concept of freedom of navigation of the high seas. And Russia has a right of passage for its ships, for example, from St Petersburg to the North Sea.
Investigations into apparent threats can be conducted without actually seizing the vessel or impeding its progress in any way. This can done through the use of GPS tracking data and combining that with other evidence such as eye witness testimony.
While these cables can get damaged through natural means, the targeting of them could be a way for a nation to operate against its adversaries in a more covert manner and below the threshold of armed conflict.
The Finnish navy seized a ship suspected of involvement in sabotage.
Much of the disruption to the traffic on these undersea cables is probably the result of accidental activity. But there have been concerns about greater activity by Russian military vessels in their attempts to map the Baltic sea floor. The most likely reason for the increased Russian sea mapping activity is to gain a greater understanding of the location of these cables. But it could be sending a message that this critical infrastructure is difficult to defend and vulnerable to attack and sabotage.
Many merchant vessels are registered in overseas territories, and ownership can be hard to track. This gives a degree of plausible deniability over who may have ordered or overseen the operations that might have damaged cables.
It makes it more challenging for action to be taken, but has given rise to accusations that these ships are acting as Russia’s “shadow fleet”.
But this increased naval presence in the Baltic could act as a deterrent and provide greater security to the cables. Sweden has now boarded a vessel. But another obstacle here is that the nation where the vessel is registered is under absolutely no obligation to cooperate with any investigation.
Other factors are also involved. The Baltic states and Finland have memories of the political control imposed upon them by the Soviet government prior to, and, in some cases, after the second world war, and this will be adding to the tension.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has increased regional fears about what could happen next. Moscow may be hoping to deter the Baltic nations from continuing to provide the support they are giving to Ukraine by increasing pressure on them along the coast.
But aggressive activity in the Baltic Sea may well have the opposite effect by ramping up concern about Russia’s power. It might also mean Baltic and Nordic countries are more willing to increase their defence spending and make preparations for possible military action.
Matthew Powell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: Traditional Unionist Voice – Northern Ireland
Statement by TUV vice chairman Councillor Allister Kyle:
“I’m absolutely devastated to hear the news of the tragic passing of Jason McKay. I knew Jason well. A dedicated member of Dunseverick LOL 528, I was pleased to see him elected and installed as their Deputy Master. Jason and I were about the same age and went through some of our degrees together in the Orange.
“Jason got married last year and he lived just a few doors up from our family farm in Craigahulliar. A quiet, unassuming fella, Jason was a hard worker who was very family focused.
“Jason was well known in the farming community and when he wasn’t helping his father’s building firm enjoyed working to a local agricultural contractor. He will be sorely missed by many not least his parents, wife Serena, their young family and wider family circle.
“My thoughts and prayers are with Jason’s family, colleagues and friends.”
Headline: Public Invited to Review Flood Maps in Montgomery County, MD
Public Invited to Review Flood Maps in Montgomery County, MD
PHILADELPHIA– FEMA is proposing updates to the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for Montgomery County, Maryland. Community partners are invited to participate in a 90-day appeal and comment period. The 90-day appeal period began on Jan. 17, 2025.The updated maps were produced in coordination with local, state and FEMA officials. Significant community review of the maps has already taken place, but before the maps become final, community partners can identify any corrections or questions about the information provided and submit appeals or comments. Residents, business owners and other community partners are encouraged to review the updated maps to learn about local flood risks and potential future flood insurance requirements. They may submit an appeal if they perceive that modeling or data used to create the map is technically or scientifically incorrect.An appeal must include technical information, such as hydraulic or hydrologic data, to support the claim. Appeals cannot be based on the effects of proposed projects or projects started after the study is in progress.If property owners see incorrect information that does not change the flood hazard information—such as a missing or misspelled road name in the Special Flood Hazard Area or an incorrect corporate boundary—they can submit a written comment.The next step in the mapping process is the resolution of all comments and appeals. Once they are resolved, FEMA will notify communities of the effective date of the final maps.Submit appeals and comments by contacting your local floodplain administration staff:For the City of Gaithersburg: Nancy Schumm at nancy.schumm@gaithersburgmd.gov, 240-805-1327.For the City of Rockville: Meredith Neely by email at mneely@rockvillemd.gov, 240-314-8874.For Montgomery County and any other municipalities: Bill Musico by email at william.musico@montgomerycountymd.gov, 240-777-6340.Changes resulting from the new preliminary maps for Montgomery County can also be viewed online at the FEMA Region 3 Flood Map Changes Viewer. More information can also be found on Montgomery County’s website, including interactive flood data and frequently asked questions.For more information about the flood maps:Use a live chat service about flood maps at FEMA Mapping and Insurance eXchange (FMIX). Click on the “Live Chat” icon.Contact a FEMA Map Specialist by telephone; toll free, at 1-877-FEMA-MAP (1-877-336-2627) or by email at FEMA-FMIX@fema.dhs.gov. Most homeowner’s insurance policies do not cover flooding. There are cost-saving options available for those newly mapped into a high-risk flood zone. Learn more about your flood insurance options by talking with your insurance agent and visiting https://www.floodsmart.gov.Montgomery County Flood Mapping MilestonesSept. 12, 2023 — Community Coordination and Outreach Meeting to review Preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Map and discuss updates to local floodplain management ordinance and flood insurance.Feb. 2024 — Multiple Public Open House Meetings jointly hosted by Montgomery County and the Cities of Gaithersburg and Rockville.Jan. 17, 2025 — Appeal Period starts.Fall 2025* — Finalization of preliminary data following appeal resolutions and communities to commence ordinance adoption process. Spring 2026* — New Flood Insurance Rate Map becomes effective and flood insurance requirements take effect. *Timeline subject to change pending completion of the appeal review process.If you have any questions, please contact FEMA Region 3 Office of External Affairs at femar3newsdesk@fema.dhs.gov. ###FEMA’s mission is helping people before, during, and after disasters. FEMA Region 3’s jurisdiction includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.Follow us on “X” at twitter.com/femaregion3 and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/femaregion3 erika.osullivan Mon, 01/27/2025 – 18:30
An indictment was unsealed last week charging a New Jersey return preparer with preparing and filing 55 false income tax returns on behalf of clients and obstructing the IRS.
According to the indictment, from at least 2018 through 2023, Christopher Demba, of Hillsborough, owned and operated Demba & Associates CPA LLC, a return preparation business. Demba allegedly prepared returns for clients that claimed false deductions, credit carryforwards or fraudulently recategorized income to claim expenses that would otherwise be disallowed. The indictment further alleges that Demba obstructed the IRS by providing false working papers to IRS personnel in an attempt to justify some of the claims made on returns he prepared for clients.
If convicted, Demba faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count as well as a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Mark McDonald and Alexis Hughes of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
HOUSTON, Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — U.S. Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: USEG, “U.S. Energy” or the “Company”) announced today the closing of its previously announced underwritten public offering of 4,871,400 shares of its common stock, which includes 635,400 shares sold pursuant to the exercise in full by the underwriters of their over-allotment option, par value $0.01 per share, at a public offering price of $2.65 per share, for total net proceeds, after underwriting commissions, of approximately $12.1 million.
U.S. Energy plans to use the net proceeds of the offering to fund growth capital for its industrial gas development project, including new industrial gas wells and processing plant and equipment, and to support upcoming operations. The proceeds received by the Company from the exercise of the over-allotment option may be utilized to purchase shares of common stock from Sage Road Capital, LLC, a related party, or its affiliates at a price equal to the net offering price received by the Company.
Roth Capital Partners acted as sole book-running manager for the offering. Johnson Rice & Company and D. Boral Capital acted as co-managers for the offering. The Loev Law Firm, PC represented the Company and K&L Gates LLP represented the underwriters in the offering.
The offering is being made pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3, including a base prospectus, which was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and became effective on September 15, 2022. The prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus relating to the offering are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained by sending a request to: Roth Capital Partners, LLC, 888 San Clemente Drive, Suite 400, Newport Beach, CA 92660, (800) 678-9147, email at rothecm@roth.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the shares of common stock or any other securities, nor shall there be any sale of such shares of common stock or any other securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.
ABOUT U.S. ENERGY CORP.
We are a growth company focused on consolidating high-quality assets in the United States with the potential to optimize production and generate free cash flow through low-risk development while maintaining an attractive shareholder returns program. We are committed to being a leader in reducing our carbon footprint in the areas in which we operate. More information about U.S. Energy Corp. can be found at www.usnrg.com.
Certain of the matters discussed in this communication which are not statements of historical fact constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Words such as “strategy,” “expects,” “continues,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “would,” “will,” “estimates,” “intends,” “projects,” “goals,” “targets” and other words of similar meaning are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying these statements. Important factors that may cause actual results and outcomes to differ materially from those contained in such forward-looking statements include, without limitation: (1) the expected use of proceeds, including, but not limited to the repurchase of certain shares of common stock; (2) the ability of the Company to grow and manage growth profitably and retain its key employees; (3) risks associated with the integration of recently acquired assets; (4) the Company’s ability to comply with the terms of its senior credit facilities; (5) the ability of the Company to retain and hire key personnel; (6) the business, economic and political conditions in the markets in which the Company operates; (7) the volatility of oil and natural gas prices; (8) the Company’s success in discovering, estimating, developing and replacing oil, natural gas and helium reserves; (9) risks of the Company’s operations not being profitable or generating sufficient cash flow to meet its obligations; (10) risks relating to the future price of oil, natural gas, NGLs and helium; (11) risks related to the status and availability of oil, natural gas and helium gathering, transportation, and storage facilities; (12) risks related to changes in the legal and regulatory environment governing the oil, gas and helium industry, and new or amended environmental legislation and regulatory initiatives; (13) risks relating to crude oil production quotas or other actions that might be imposed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producing countries; (14) technological advancements; (15) changing economic, regulatory and political environments in the markets in which the Company operates; (16) general domestic and international economic, market and political conditions, including the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the global response to such conflict; (17) actions of competitors or regulators; (18) the potential disruption or interruption of the Company’s operations due to war, accidents, political events, severe weather, cyber threats, terrorist acts, or other natural or human causes beyond the Company’s control; (19) pandemics, governmental responses thereto, economic downturns and possible recessions caused thereby; (20) inflationary risks and recent changes in inflation and interest rates, and the risks of recessions and economic downturns caused thereby or by efforts to reduce inflation; (21) risks related to military conflicts in oil producing countries; (22) changes in economic conditions; limitations in the availability of, and costs of, supplies, materials, contractors and services that may delay the drilling or completion of wells or make such wells more expensive; (23) the amount and timing of future development costs; (24) the availability and demand for alternative energy sources; (25) regulatory changes, including those related to carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions; (26) uncertainties inherent in estimating quantities of oil, natural gas and helium reserves and projecting future rates of production and timing of development activities; (27) risks relating to the lack of capital available on acceptable terms to finance the Company’s continued growth, potential future sales of debt or equity and dilution caused thereby; (28) the review and evaluation of potential strategic transactions and their impact on stockholder value and the process by which the Company engages in evaluation of strategic transactions; and (29) other risk factors included from time to time in documents U.S. Energy files with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to, its Form 10-Ks, Form 10-Qs and Form 8-Ks. Other important factors that may cause actual results and outcomes to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements included in this communication are described in the Company’s publicly filed reports, including, but not limited to, the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, and future annual reports and quarterly reports. These reports and filings are available at www.sec.gov. Unknown or unpredictable factors also could have material adverse effects on the Company’s future results.
SOMERSET, N.J., Jan. 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —CareCloud, Inc. (the “Company”) (Nasdaq: CCLD, CCLDO, CCLDP), a leading provider of healthcare technology and generative AI solutions for medical practices and health systems nationwide, today held its special meeting (“Special Meeting”) of CareCloud’s common stock shareholders. At the Special Meeting, a record-breaking 10.8 million shareholders, representing 85% of the votes cast, approved an amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation to increase the Company’s authorized shares of common stock from 35 million to 85 million shares.
“We thank our shareholders for their overwhelming support of our proposal,” said Stephen Snyder, Co-Chief Executive Officer of CareCloud.
The detailed voting results are reflected in the Form 8-K to be filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Certain information contained in this press release is a summary of relevant portions of the Definitive Proxy Statement and other materials filed with the SEC. The entirety of the filings is available on the SEC’s website and on https://ir.carecloud.com/common-stock-special-proxy.
AboutCareCloud
CareCloud brings disciplined innovation to the business of healthcare. Our suite of AI and technology-enabled solutions helps clients increase financial and operational performance, streamline clinical workflows and improve the patient experience. More than 40,000 providers count on CareCloud to help them improve patient care, while reducing administrative burdens and operating costs. Learn more about our products and services, including revenue cycle management (RCM), practice management (PM), electronic health records (EHR), business intelligence, patient experience management (PXM) and digital health at www.carecloud.com.
To listen to video presentations by CareCloud’s management team, read recent press releases and view our latest investor presentation, please visit ir.carecloud.com.
This press release contains various forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to anticipated future events, future results of operations or future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “shall,” “should,” “could,” “intends,” “expects,” “plans,” “goals,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “predicts,” “possible,” “potential,” “target,” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.
Our operations involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside our control, and any one of which, or a combination of which, could materially affect our results of operations and whether the forward-looking statements ultimately prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, without limitation, statements reflecting management’s expectations for future financial performance and operating expenditures, expected growth, profitability and business outlook, the impact of pandemics on our financial performance and business activities, and the expected results from the integration of our acquisitions.
These forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our (or our industry’s) actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of the risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements, including without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to the Company’s ability to manage growth, migrate newly acquired customers and retain new and existing customers, maintain cost-effective global operations, increase operational efficiency and reduce operating costs, predict and properly adjust to changes in reimbursement and other industry regulations and trends, retain the services of key personnel, develop new technologies, upgrade and adapt legacy and acquired technologies to work with evolving industry standards, compete with other companies’ products and services competitive with ours, and other important risks and uncertainties referenced and discussed under the heading titled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, even if subsequently made available by the Company on its website or otherwise. The Company does not assume any obligations to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.
SOURCE CareCloud
CompanyContact: Norman Roth Interim Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Controller CareCloud, Inc. nroth@carecloud.com
Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. joined NewsNation: The Hill to discuss President Trump’s first week in office, promises made and promises kept, and Cabinet confirmation hearings, including RFK. Jr who will be testifying this week in front of both the Finance Committee and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Senator Marshall sits on both committees, and has been an advocate for RFK Jr. and Making America Health Again.
You may click HERE or on the image above to watch Senator Marshall’s full interview.
Highlights from Senator Marshall’s interview include:
On Trump’s Removal of Inspectors General:
“First of all, remind everybody President Reagan did basically the same thing. Look, these inspector generals have lost their way, and this is part of President Trump’s promises made, promises kept. He said he was going to drain the swamp over the past several years, record amounts of improper payments from the federal government – $250 billion of improper payments. The inspector generals have turned from a watchdog into somebody who’s protecting the agency. So he’s cleaning house, he’s starting over, and I think it’s a great move.”
“There are some really good people there, right? But I think when you sit there trying to sort out the good guys from the bad guys, sometimes you have to let them all go, and then, like President Reagan, maybe you rehire some of them as well, but we’ll get the reports eventually. But we need people working for the American people, not for the agency.”
On RFK Jr. Path Forward for Confirmation:
“Farmers and ranchers, just like Bobby Kennedy and myself, want America to be healthy again, and they’re all in. I think that Bobby would share with you is that the farmers and ranchers are indeed the heroes. I think that Bobby recognizes that 90% of rural America supported President Trump. Every time I see President Trump, the first thing he asks me is, Roger, how are your farmers and ranchers doing.”
“We’re already doing so many of the things that Bobby is talking about. Precision agriculture is not a dream anymore, that we are growing more with less. We’re growing more food with less fertilizers, with less pesticides. Soil health we’re embracing, that nobody more than sorghum is in the sorghum industry… We’re doing regenerative soil practices already.”
“Last point I’ll make is this- President Trump ran on two things, I think. He ran on making America more prosperous, and then on security. And one of the things he said is grocery prices, so we can’t do anything that’s inflationary. So we got to thread this needle. We need more innovation, but we don’t need inflation. And you know, my job is to help bridge that gap, and I’m just all in with Bobby to help Make America Healthy Again. 60% of Americans with a chronic disease right now, and I think a lot of that’s impacted by what they eat and the toxins exposed to.”
“I think Bobby, like myself, believes in the sanctity of the relationship between the patient and the doctor, and I want to make sure that we provide the mom, whether it’s my daughter or my daughter in law… We want to make sure that they have the right information, and I don’t think the CDC has done a good job on providing us that information… mostly there’s not enough transparency around it. A little common sense is going to go a long way. And I think Bobby Kennedy will thread the needle… I think the priority will be nutrition and the toxins that we are exposed to.”
“I think what you’re going to hear Bobby say is the President’s policies are my policies. Bobby and I don’t agree on everything, but we agree that we want to Make America Healthy Again. We share the same goals. He’s a game changer. I think that, and more importantly, is this, there is an army, a groundswell of people out there that are supporting him.”
On Kansas Troops Deployed to Southern Border:
“So I’m very grateful for those people that volunteered to wear the uniform, realizing that the southern border is a national security issue, if anybody understands and appreciates their families. I served my dad, served my brother, served my son is serving. I appreciate them, and some 300 soldiers are going to be going to that border.”
“But what I’m upset about is this summer, 3,000 soldiers from Fort Riley are going to Europe next year, another 5,000 soldiers from Fort Riley going to Europe. Why do we need 100,000 soldiers from the United States in Europe?”
Source: United States Senator for Idaho Mike Crapo
Washington, D.C.–U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) delivered remarks on the Senate Floor urging his Senate colleagues to support Scott Bessent to be Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
As delivered:
“Thank you, Mr. President.
“In about an hour or so, we are going to vote on cloture on the nomination for Scott Bessett to be the Treasury Secretary of the United States, and I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this motion.
“A Treasury Secretary heads the agency charged with supporting economic growth, representing U.S. interests before foreign nations and global financial markets and organizations, managing the federal treasury and overseeing financial institutions, to name just a few of those important responsibilities.
“Past successful Treasury Secretaries have understood business and financial markets, as well as foreign policy, national security, budgets and regulation.
“Mr. Bessent’s impressive background positions him for similar success. He has worked for the last three decades as one of the sharpest minds in the global financial industry. He has decades of academic, professional and leadership experience relevant to these positions.
“When it comes to Mr. Bessent qualifications, there is no room for debate. His background and training are tailor made for the for this role, and he has the demeanor and character to be an effective secretary. His powerful presentation at his hearing about his desire to serve in government in order to make a meaningful difference was impressive to all.
“It includes restoring prosperity and opportunity that our nation experienced during President Trump’s first term in office. As Mr. Bessent stated, accomplishing key tasks like extending vital tax cuts for all Americans is literally a pass/fail exercise, and I look forward to working closely with him to ensure that we succeed.
“I strongly agree with a sentiment my colleague Senator Graham shared at the nomination hearing that if qualifications – and I might add, character – are one’s test, voting to confirm Mr. Bessent is one of the easiest we could ever take.
“In prior congresses, I’ve joined with many of my Republican colleagues in voting for well-qualified Treasury Secretary candidates put forward by a Democrat president, even though I didn’t agree with all of the positions they advocated. Mr. Bessent’s candidacy ought to enjoy similar support, and I encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join with me in advancing his nomination.
“He is the right person for this job, and I commend President Trump, in making such an excellent selection.”
Source: United States Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico)
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), along with Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) reintroduced the Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act to compensate Americans exposed to radiation by government nuclear programs.
Despite the Senate passing this bill, the House of Representatives failed to pass the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) reauthorization before its expiration deadline in the 118th Congress.
“In New Mexico and across the country, thousands sacrificed to contribute to our national security. Today, individuals affected by nuclear weapons testing, downwind radiation exposure, and uranium mining are still waiting to receive the justice they are owed,” said Senator Luján. “It is unacceptable that so many who have gotten sick from radiation exposure have been denied compensation by Congress. Despite having passed RECA legislation twice through the Senate with broad bipartisan support, and securing the support of the previous administration, I was disheartened that Speaker Johnson refused a vote on RECA to help victims. This Congress, I am proud to partner with Senator Hawley again to extend and expand RECA. RECA is a bipartisan priority and I am hopeful that we will once again get it through the Senate and hope the Speaker commits to getting victims the compensation they are owed.”
“The time to reauthorize RECA is now. The Senate has done this twice before and must do it again. For far too long, Missourians and others across America have suffered without compensation from their government. It is vital that we unite to pass this legislation now, and that the President sign it into law,” said Senator Hawley.
Since being elected to Congress, Senator Luján has played a leading role in advancing legislation to strengthen the RECA program. He has introduced RECA legislation in every Congress since being elected in 2008.
In 2023, Senator Luján led a bipartisan coalition of Senators to pass RECA as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – the most significant Congressional action in decades to strengthen the program. Republican leadership ultimately blocked its inclusion in the final NDAA bill despite bipartisan support.
In March 2024, the Senate passed Senator Luján’s legislation to extend and expand the RECA program with strong bipartisan support. This included support from Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.
After RECA legislation passed the Senate with strong bipartisan support, Senator Lujánled a bipartisan, bicameral letter urging House Speaker Mike Johnson to immediately act to pass RECA.
After months of inaction by Speaker Johnson, Senator Luján held a bipartisan, bicameral press conference in September 2024 with RECA advocates, urging Speaker Johnson to allow a vote on the Senate-passed RECA legislation.
The Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGORR) met this afternoon to hear about further progress to reconnect power and reopen rail lines and schools following Storm Éowyn.
It heard:
5,900 properties are without power, with the vast majority expected to be reconnected in the course of today or tomorrow
Network Rail has restored enough infrastructure to allow around 75% of services to resume, and is working at pace to open up the remaining lines
At least two schools are confirmed to be closed tomorrow
Justice and Home Affairs Secretary Angela Constance said:
“Three days after the worst of Storm Éowyn, we can see how the sheer scale of the damage continues to impact Scotland’s return to normal. I want to thank everyone who is playing their part, day and night, to get services back up and running.
“Utilities companies are working as fast as possible, in often challenging in weather conditions, and have reconnected over 280,000 properties. Around 5,900 properties are still without power and companies are in touch with those households to estimate restoration times and offer welfare or other support.
“While trunk roads and ferries are largely operating as normal, the railway continues to recover and Network Rail has experienced over 500 incidents. ScotRail were scheduled to operate 50% of services today but this has increased to around 73% over the course of today. We can however expect continued disruption on some lines to last until later this week, so I would ask passengers to be patient and check ScotRail and Network Rail information before they travel.
“A very small number of schools will be closed tomorrow and relevant councils will be in touch with parents and pupils where appropriate.”
Background
SGoRR was chaired by Justice and Home Affairs Secretary Angela Constance and attended by Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth, Rural Affairs and Islands Secretary Mairi Gougeon and Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity Jim Fairlie. They were joined by representatives from the Met Office, Police Scotland, Transport Scotland, SEPA, transport and utilities companies and resilience partners.
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