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Category: housing

  • MIL-OSI USA: Army Birthday 250 Troop Card

    Source: United States Army

    Guidance:

    • Public Affairs posture is active. The world is watching; and you will represent America’s Army in all that you say and do. Your command presence will be the display of pride, discipline and fitness.
    • Be aware of national and world press and social media influencers in and around your locations to/from and throughout DC. Welcome media and designate a representative. Stay positive; and if you don’t want to be interviewed – politely decline.
    • Unit leaders at all levels should keep HQDA 250 Birthday Public Affairs Guidance on-hand.
    • Focus comments on your participation in the festival and parade; and what you do in the Army.
    • Share your once-in-a-lifetime experience on your social media platforms. THINK, TYPE, POST.
    • For interviews, avoid commenting and speculating about any current world events, political situation(s), or ongoing missions. A good response could be the following: ‘that question is better answered by others in my chain of command; I don’t speak on politics, or I don’t want to speculate.’ Then, talk about your message and what you do know.
    • Refer questions outside of your role to your chain of command. For command representatives and PAOs, HQDA-level media questions should be referred to this number, 703-220-9044.

    Messages/Talking Points:

    • We are focused on ensuring that the U.S. military remains the world’s most combat-credible fighting force capable of maintaining peace through strength.
    • One year older than the nation it defends, the United States Army has dedicated itself to fighting and winning the nation’s wars for 250 years.
    • As we celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States Army, we reflect on the rich history and legacy of service, sacrifice, and dedication. From the Revolutionary War to present-day missions, our Soldiers have consistently demonstrated their resolve to defend freedom at home and abroad.
    • I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN SOLDIER BECAUSE:
    • I JOINED THE ARMY TO:
    • I AM PROUD TO REPRESENT AMERICA TODAY ESPECIALLY BECAUSE:

    Army Birthday Information: https://www.army.mil/1775/

    Refer questions outside of your role to your chain of command.

    For command representatives and PAOs, HQDA-level media questions should be referred to this number: 703-220-9044.

    Click here for a downloadable version of the Troop Card [PDF – 101.5 KB]

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: AG Labrador Announces Settlement with Kootenai County Contractor

    Source: US State of Idaho

    Home Newsroom AG Labrador Announces Settlement with Kootenai County Contractor

    BOISE — Attorney General Raúl Labrador announced a settlement with Coeur d’Alene contractor Connell (Neal) R. Foster and his company, Prime Builders, for deceptive construction-related business practices that resulted in substantial consumer losses.
    Foster has agreed to cease all advertising, negotiating, or entering into construction-related contracts with Idaho consumers unless he does so as an employee acting under the direction of a supervisor or third-party who is directly responsible for his actions. The settlement also prohibits Foster from engaging in construction business under the name of his spouse, Monica R. Foster.
    “This case is a reminder that Idaho contractors must be held to high standards of honesty and accountability,” said Attorney General Labrador. “Our office will continue to take decisive action against those who take advantage of Idaho families through fraud or deception.”
    The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division received seven complaints against Foster, with consumers alleging losses totaling more than $325,000. Under the business registration of his spouse, Foster operated Prime Builders from Mullan, Idaho, and conducted construction work in both Idaho and Washington. Consumers reported that Prime Builders accepted payments for home additions, decks, sheds, and other structures—many of which were never delivered, only partially completed, or refunded.
    The court approved the settlement on March 6, 2025. Foster is required to begin making restitution payments to affected consumers within 30 days. He has agreed to a court-approved payment plan that will remain in effect until the restitution is paid in full.
    Attorney General Labrador urges consumers seeking a contractor’s services, please utilize these tips to avoid fraudulent business practices: 

    Read the Contractor’s business profile on the Better Business Bureau’s Website, paying particular attention to any unresolved complaints, its rating, and the business’s responses provided to the Better Business Bureau. 
    Check with the Attorney General’s Office or the Department of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) at Welcome to Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses for any information regarding the Contractor and its business practices within the State of Idaho. 
    Review Idaho Code § 48-525 to understand what information a contractor is required to disclose. 
    Verify the contractor has liability and worker’s compensation insurance to avoid liability for work-related injuries and the contractor’s recklessness or negligence.
    If possible, obtain a surety bond, title insurance, and a lien waiver to cover potential losses, loss of title, and to prevent lienholders placing liens on the project for nonpayment. 

    Consumers who incurred losses because of Foster’s construction practices may file consumer complaints with the Consumer Protection Division. A complaint form is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Attorney General’s 2025 RUSI Annual Security Lecture

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Speech

    Attorney General’s 2025 RUSI Annual Security Lecture

    On 29 May 2025, the Attorney General Lord Hermer KC delivered the RUSI Annual Security Lecture, reinforcing the government’s commitment to international law.

    INTRODUCTION   

    INTRODUCTION   

    In December of last year, in his Mansion House speech, the Prime Minister recalled the internationalist mindset of the Atlee government of 1945 – that it was only by maintaining our strength abroad that we would be able to succeed at home.  The Prime Minister described Atlee’s approach as hard-headed and patriotic – and made plain that the same values would govern our approach to foreign policy.

    Building on that theme the following month, in his Locarno Speech, the Foreign Secretary labelled this distinctive approach to foreign and security policy – as Progressive Realism, which he said required:

    “Taking the world as it is, not as we wish it to be. Advancing progressive ends by realist means.”

    And I would like to take this opportunity today to set out the legal underpinning for Progressive Realism, which I will argue combines both a pragmatic approach to the UK’s national interests with a principled commitment to a rules-based international order.      

    I am going to start by setting out some of the complexities and challenges of the world that we face, then to address – in order to dismiss – the critique of those I will describe as legal romantic idealists on the one hand, and proponents of what I will call pseudo-realism on the other, before arguing that  British leadership to strengthen and reform the international rules-based system is both the right thing to do and the only truly realistic choice.

    Before I turn to this, let me first thank Lord Parker for his introduction.  Andrew spent his career keeping Britain safe from all manner of threats during a challenging period, before moving on to the Royal Household. So his experience on these security issues has few parallels, and his ability to keep secrets will have been tested in very different ways. 

    Let me also thank our hosts. It is a real privilege to receive this invitation to deliver the prestigious RUSI Annual Security Lecture. RUSI has held a place of real importance in our public debate for over 200 years.  Sitting in government, it is an obvious place to look for expertise, for advice but also for challenge.                                            

    No one in this government is under any illusion of the scale of the threats to global security we presently face. The most devastating war in Europe  since 1945, the  war in Gaza getting ever more bloody and bleak by the day, trade through the Red Sea effectively halted by Houthi attacks, the killing fields of Sudan – we also face profound  threats within our own borders from an increasingly assertive axis of hostile states, engaging in espionage, targeting of critical infrastructure and threatening of UK based dissidents; as well as criminal gangs exploiting the most vulnerable by fuelling irregular migration. 

    As this audience will know better than most, the list of threats goes on. And although some of these threats we have witnessed before, their complexity and unpredictability are unparalleled because they are fuelled synergistically by factors such as how the transformation, of information and disinformation is shared across the globe through social media and increasingly AI – and because we face these threats at this moment in which many are seeking to undermine the multilateral frameworks that have kept us safe since 1945.        

    The challenges we face are truly enormous and as the Foreign Secretary observed in his Locarno speech the world order had irreversibly changed. The Foreign Secretary said:

    “… we have to accept that there is no going back.  We must stop the 1990s clouding our vision. The post-Cold War peace is well and truly over. This is a changed strategic environment. … Europe’s future security is on a knife edge.”

    Allow me to explain how our policy of Progressive Realism meets this moment. And the role the law, and the international rules-based order plays in our approach. Because our approach is a rejection of the siren song, that can sadly, now be heard in the Palace of Westminster, and in some spectrums of the media, that Britain abandons the constraints of international law in favour of raw power.          

    This is not a new song.

    The claim that international law is fine as far as it goes, but can be put aside when conditions change, is a claim that was made in the early 1930s by ‘realist’ jurists in Germany most notably Carl Schmitt, whose central thesis was in essence the claim that state power is all that counts, not law. Because of the experience of what followed in 1933, far-sighted individuals rebuilt and transformed the institutions of international law, as well as internal constitutional law.

    Now part of our pragmatic approach to foreign affairs is to learn from experience – to analyse without preconception or dogma what has been shown to protect British interests in the world and what has not.  Schmitt’s so-called realism has for eighty years been refuted by the fact that these institutions, post 45 institutions, have provided the basis until now for Western and other states, wildly varied in nature, to interact with each other under conditions of peace and stability, all the while pursuing their own strategic interests. Raw, wild power, on its own, in so many different calculi, has rarely been picked as a modus operandi because it was not, is not, a realistic way to advance national interests.               

    Now drawing on historical experience, it is important to stress the role of Britain in the rebuilding of the post war consensus, in the development of international law and multinational institutions – all a rejection of the discredited Schmitt-ian conception of power. Our role then, in Yalta, in San Francisco, in Bretton Woods and beyond helps explain why so many look to us for a leadership role now. There is a temptation among its critics to see international law as something inflicted upon us by others, as something undemocratic and somehow “foreign”. Such assertions frankly smear great the British historic success in providing the international leadership that has established and shaped so much of the rules-based international order. That order was built in the twentieth century on the ideas forged by great British international lawyers, notably Sir Hersch Lauterpacht, the Cambridge Professor of International Law and Britain’s judge on the International Court of Justice. We should not forget that it was a Conservative politician, David Maxwell Fyffe, who was one of the principal drafters of the European Convention on Human Rights.

    Let me return to today, where like many public debates in our age of social media, this important, nuanced and complicated discussion about the import of international law is becoming increasingly polarised between what I have described as romantic idealists and pseudo-realists. 

    Romantic idealists say that international law, conceived as the reign of moral principle, provides a complete answer to any question. To these idealistic champions, British foreign policy is simple. Follow moral principle wherever it takes us. We should always lambast our closest allies regardless of whether or not it is constructive to the politics that we pursue. We should always call out our partners, with different types of governments, regardless of whether the criticism works or whether quiet diplomacy might more effectively produce results. We should always talk to hostile regimes nicely because that will result in them being nicer to us. Such an approach is dangerously naïve – it takes the world as it wants it to be, not as it is. Positioning ourselves as the pious priest, confining ourselves to the comfort of self-righteous declaration, would confine us to irrelevance in global affairs because it focuses myopically on ‘means’ not ‘ends’ – in a manner that ultimately benefits no one. 

    At the other end of the spectrum, pseudo-realists demand that in these volatile times we must abandon our longstanding commitment to international law and to moral principle. 

    They say that we are witnessing the unravelling of the post-war international legal order and that the interests of each nation-state must again be superior to any international norms. They are essentially arguing a return to Bismarckian notions of realpolitik.  Bismarck said, in 1862:

    The great questions of the day will not be decided by speeches and the resolutions of majorities, but by ‘Blut und Eisen’ (blood and iron).

    These pseudo-realists advocate for the UK flexing its muscles to make sure it has a seat at the table in the rooms of the powerful where new rules and norms will be forged in the furnace of raw power, rules which may well apply not to all, but only to states in alliances in permanent conflict with other alliances which have chosen to be bound by different rules. There will no longer be a rules-based international order, but rather the war of one against all that Thomas Hobbes famously portrayed as the international state of nature. 

     [Redacted political content]

    What I hope to do is to start to depolarise this debate by setting out the legal underpinning for the principled pragmatism that guides this Government’s foreign and security policy of Progressive Realism. My argument is that we should reject both the pseudo “realpolitik” and the romantic idealists’ view of international law. Their temptingly simple narratives not only misunderstand our history, not only misunderstand international law, it is also reckless and dangerous, and will make us less prosperous, less safe and less secure in a troubled world.

    Let me give you four reasons why: 

    First, we need to be clear that a selective, or ‘pick and mix’ approach to international law by the United Kingdom will lead to its disintegration.   The cherry picking advocated by the pseudo-realists is fundamentally at odds with the nature of international law as law. The international rules- order soon breaks down when States claim that they can breach international law because it is in their national interests. That is the present argument advanced by Russia.             

    The argument [Redacted political content] that the UK can breach its international obligations when it is in the national interest to do so, is a radical departure from the UK’s constitutional tradition, which has long been that ministers are under a duty to comply with international law.   

    This isn’t Conservatism, this is radicalism, which stands completely at odds with that proud constitutional history in this country. I agree with the views consistently expressed by my, mostly Conservative, predecessors in this role.  Dominic Grieve, for example, told the House of Lords Constitution Committee in 2022:

      “The duty to observe international law is enshrined in our unwritten constitution because it is Her Majesty’s intention that her servants should observe the binding agreements that her previous servants have entered into—unless, of course, you want to resile from an international treaty.”    

    And in this country, I believe that the vast majority of people believe that if you make a promise you should keep it – if you enter a contract you should comply with it. Our decency and reliability are our hallmarks as a nation. To similar effect, we also understand that if you sign a contract then you cannot unilaterally choose to comply with some terms but not others – the deal falls through, and no one would trust you enough to secure advantageous terms in the future.

    Second, in this dangerous world it is instructive to ask yourself this if the international law framework fails, if our multilateral institutions fall, then Cui Bono?  Who benefits?  The answer is obvious – it is our enemies who succeed. It is obvious that Russia and other malign state-actors see the undermining of the legal based framework as a core objective. Putin does not simply apply a Schmitt-ian approach to the rule of law within the boundaries of Russia and its proxies, he recognises the huge strategic advantage that would flow in undermining the post 1945 international law framework. It’s why he invokes exceptionalism to justify his crime of aggression, it is why he devotes so many of his resources to undermining democracies and to seeking to fuel divisions within them. 

    This is why the approach of both romantic idealists and pseudo-realists are not simply wholly naïve but dangerous. There is nothing ‘realistic’ at all about the latter’s views and that is why I label them ‘pseudo-realists’. Their analysis is the precise opposite of realistic – it is deeply unworldly, fit for a university debating chamber perhaps but not the world in which our enemies recognise the strategic benefits of the disintegration of the international rules-based framework and where the stakes for western democracies could not be higher. Let me be crystal clear – I do not for one moment question the good faith let alone patriotism of the pseudo-realists but their arguments if ever adopted would provide succour to Putin.

    Third, international law is a key vehicle by which states can both pursue their strategic interests and at the same time give effect to the norms and values that they hold dear. States can amplify and project their hard power, for example, by entering into legally binding treaties creating powerful military alliances with other states, such as NATO, or beneficial intelligence sharing alliances such as the Five Eyes. At the same time, states can also use international law to protect certain values they hold dear; security of our borders, human rights, equality and the rule of law. There is no inherent contradiction between international law and determined pursuit of national strategic objectives. The school of pseudo- realpolitik critique is wilfully blind to the extent to which international law is itself already a framework for principled, pragmatic, pursuit of national interests.       

    Let me put to bed the notion that international law is somehow an affront to state sovereignty. To the contrary, international law is founded on the idea of state sovereignty. And without international law, there would be no state sovereignty, only the emptiness of that word in a world where hunks could be ripped off borders and every dispute be settled by the force of the strong.                    

    When a state chooses to enter into an international treaty, and it is a choice, that does not involve any surrender of national sovereignty to malevolent international actors or make the state a vassal of international organisations – it is a conscious decision that a state makes in their own interest.        

    International treaties always recognise that States might disagree about their interpretation. This is why we have dispute mechanisms. This is why states can leave the treaties they have signed and agreed on. But the integrity and force of the system requires that once a party, to an agreement, they abide by its rules — they don’t pick and mix.        

    Fourth argument is this, our international obligations are not onerous but manifestly in this country’s national interests. This is at the heart of progressive realism. In addition to safeguarding our national interests, as the tectonic plates of the international order shift dramatically, we as a government are seizing the opportunity to provide global leadership, combining hard-headed British pragmatism with our equally strong and hard-earned global reputation for a commitment to international law. We know from experience that we can best achieve our own goals only within a framework of international law that makes the same possible for others.

    We have real life experience as a nation in experimenting with pseudo-realism.

    [Redacted political content]

    By contrast with the inconsistent, flamboyant and on occasion inflammatory rhetoric, this Government is clear that the national interest is served by the restoration of our reputation not simply as a nation that respects its international law obligation but as a leader in the rules-based international order. Our return as a good faith actor has been greeted with warmth across the globe – I have seen it myself in meetings in Kyiv, in discussions with European partners and the halls of the United Nations. What we can feel is a palpable relief that we are stepping up.  

    Last week, at the press conference marking the historic agreement between the UK and the EU, the Prime Minister said this:

    “Britain is back on the world stage … facing out to the world once again in the great tradition of this nation.  Building the relationships we choose, with the partners we choose, and closing deals in the national interest.”

    The agreement with the EU includes a significant new trade deal with our closest trading partner – it will make a real difference to our economy and the standards of living of our citizens. It is only the recent such trade deal.

    There is also the US Economic Prosperity Deal, with the world’s biggest economy and most powerful democracy, and our closest ally. 

    There is the Free Trade Agreement with India, the world’s largest democracy and our Commonwealth partner which will inject billions of pounds into the economy.

    The first ever Economic 2+2 with Japan, a new economic partnership with the world’s fourth largest economy a strong ally of this country in the Pacific.

    In is not ‘despite’ of our commitment to international law that trade deals are being signed within months where the previous government failed over years – rather it is ‘because’ we are now once again a trusted partner. Our word is once again our bond – not a phrase that could be uttered in good faith by the pseudo-realists. These successes, secured in international agreements, will be felt in the most concrete of ways of the people of this country – in tens of thousands of new jobs, in the raising of living standards and more money in people’s pockets. This economic benefit is a direct consequence of our return as a trusted partner in the rules-based order. 

    Beyond trade, we have led efforts to ensure Europe steps up to meet the security challenges flowing from Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. This means supporting Ukrainian efforts to defend itself, readying Europe to step up for any ceasefire or peace and continue to strengthen efforts to deliver a measure of accountability for those responsible for the atrocities involved in Russia’s actions. 

    More broadly across the European continent, we have concluded a significant new Defence and Security Partnership which substantially strengthens this country’s security. It will upgrade our cooperation on areas ranging from defence industry, mobility of military material and personnel, maritime security and space security. It sets the framework for closer defence industrial collaboration, including potential participation in the EU’s proposed €150bn Security Action for Europe instrument. This on top of the Global Combat Air Programme treaty ratified in December 2024, delivering a next generation combat aircraft for 2035, to keep us ahead of new and evolving threats for decades to come and creating thousands of new jobs, right across this land.

    Our good faith adherence to international law brings together other vital interests. We have strengthened partnerships on border security with our nearest neighbours and built their confidence that we can be trusted to be fair and honest in our dealings and bringing to a decisive end what the Prime Minister has described as “gimmicks” which were proving a barrier to effective collaboration. It is no accident that the previous Government who played so fast and loose with our reputation as a leader in international law, were unable to reach any agreements that effectively addressed unregulated migration – yet within months of office the Home Secretary has reached ground breaking deals with France in respect of patrols of their own waterways to stop boats crossing the channel; Germany has agreed to amend its own domestic laws to stop the transport of boats and parts – agreements which are essential components of attempts to clamp down on the criminal enterprise of boat crossings –which would have been inconceivable, inconceivable, whilst the UK was posturing over support for the ECHR and international law more generally. 

    So, allow me if you will, to channel Reg, the leader of the People’s Front of Judea in Life of Brian and ask rhetorically what has international law ever done for us?  Well, the answer is that it has helped give us peace, security and prosperity. 
    And it will continue to do so – this is just the start – together with other initiatives which the Foreign Secretary and others in the Government are working on right now, they will bring tangible benefits to the people of our country. They are the early fruits of the UK’s clear signal to the international community that it can once again be treated as a trusted international partner. A country which will keep its word when it enters into international agreements. A country that stands up for principle and takes a broad perspective on compliance with the law, recognising of course occasional frustrations in the moment but huge benefits in the longer-term.  

    We are not Progressive Realists because we qualify our realism. We are Progressive Realists because we combine both a commitment to progressive ends with a realistic understanding of how those ends can be achieved in the world as it is. Because a commitment to international law is both the right thing to do and the realistic, rational, cool-headed thing to do. We are Progressive Realists because painstakingly upholding and strengthening the rules that enshrine respect for human dignity, accountability for breaches of international humanitarian law, fair rules permitting free trade, protections of our environment and defence pacts that protect our nation— is not restraining ourselves but pursuing our national interest. And the only truly realistic choice we can make.  And it is truly a patriotic one.              

    We are Progressive Realists because we do not shy away from a belief in the importance of value-based multilateralism as a fundamental force for good in the world – and we recognise the power those ideals both hold and bring us. 

    The late Kofi Annan once said:

    Our enemy now is indifference, the belief that there are many worlds, and that the only one we need to care about is our own.

    We will not be indifferent. The promotion of, and compliance with, these progressive values underpinning international law and the multilateral institutions that have grown up to support them over the past 80 years is a source of immense national pride – it is a great British value to say that we want to make the world a better, safer and more prosperous place. There is no contradiction between approaching the world with a hard head but also a warm heart. This is Progressive Realism. 

    Now, before I conclude, allow me to say something about how international law adapts to the changing challenges we face and the role of nations in shaping it. 

    As progressive realists we recognise that international law cannot stand still and rest on its laurels. It must be critiqued and where necessary reformed and improved. Nothing I have said here is intended to shield international rules or treaties from evidence-based criticism or proposals to reform.  Nor do I argue for one moment that the international law system covers every problem.

    As we look to deal with fresh challenges and changes, we must not stagnate in our approach to international rules and customary norms. We must look to apply and adapt existing obligations to address new situations or technological advances. And we must be ready to reform where necessary.

    We need to recognise that international law is incomplete. It was not intended, as I said to cover every situation or development. Some areas were deliberately left unregulated or only covered at a high degree of general principle. The legal space has not eliminated the political space. They continue to co-exist, and law, including international law, regulate how they interact.

    States agreeing to treaties some time ago did not give an open-ended licence for international rules to be ever more expansively interpreted or for institutions to adopt a position of blindness or indifference to public sentiment in their member states. International rules and institutions should not, without state consent, bend existing rules and obligations to make decisions or trade-offs that are far more effectively and legitimately dealt with through political and diplomatic means. Equally though, states and governments must not use international laws and institutions as a convenient scapegoat to evade taking hard decisions or advocating for reform.

    Again, the tincture for any such ills that the system suffers in this way is I suggest a strong dose of balanced British pragmatism and principle. As we have shown time and again as a nation, one from a position of respect and compliance, we have proven that reform is possible and institutions can be reformed. The UK has provided the international leadership for the renewed focus on subsidiarity in the European Convention on Human Rights – reminding both states and the international institutions that the primary responsibility for upholding human rights rests on national authorities, and that the role of the Court is a supervisory one which only need be invoked when the national system for protecting those rights has failed. That focus on subsidiarity, properly understood as a duty on states to implement, revives the importance of political discussion and debate about human rights which is so vital to preserving their democratic legitimacy. International law cannot and must not replace politics. 

    That’s why Progressive Realism, internationally, is above all the assembling of the necessary coalitions to tackle our current challenges; challenges that appear from AI, climate change and trade, to conflict resolution in places like Ukraine. Because none of these problems can be addressed from the sidelines, where the romantic idealists might relegate us. And all can only be addressed by agreeing and complying with negotiated deals which are then made binding in legal texts – the very power of which the pseudo-realists seek to undermine.        

    Negotiations, driven by politics and diplomacy, and then knitted together in law, are the answer. You cannot have one without the other, at least not in a way that provides sufficient certainty or sustainability.

    Allow me if you will, to end with a personal recollection. In September of last year, I travelled to Ukraine.  As part of my visit, I travelled to the outskirts of Kyiv, first to Babyn Yar to pause at the memorial to the thousands of Jews who were murdered there over two bloody days by the Einsatzegruppe in 1941 and then onwards to the town of Bucha, which in the early days of the current conflict marked the furthest point of Russian advance. Many of you will have been there. Some 40 mins or so from central Kyiv, Bucha is a picturesque town with dachas dotted in the forests. I was taken to the gleaming white St Andrew’s Orthodox Church where I was met by the local priest Father Andiry Halavin. He took me first to a plot of grass behind the church where he and others buried over two hundred residents in a mass grave and then next to it a memorial wall with the names of over 500 civilians, murdered in cold blood by the Russian forces – the names on the wall of entire families murdered, of children, of the elderly. I sat afterwards in the church, quietly with Father Andiry and asked him how as a man of faith he made sense of the intense inhumanity that he had witnessed. In some ways it was an unfair question to ask but his response blew me away – it only makes sense, he said, if you believe in justice, that these crimes have shown the world the inhumanity and illogicality of war, and that those who committed the crimes will be held to account. Father Andiry was not referring to divine justice but to justice under law, including under international law and the return to the stability and sanity that it provides – having witnessed the bloody anarchy of its absence.

    That experience is a small reflection of why this Government’s approach to the grave challenges of our time is not to shrink away from our international responsibilities but through progressive realism to work to uphold the international rules-based order in our vital national interests and to contribute thereby to making this world a safer and more prosperous place now and for future generations. The true realist sees no other choice.  

    Thank you very much.

    Updates to this page

    Published 29 May 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: Invest529 Launches Smart Start Giveaway to Celebrate 529 Day with $25 Contribution

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Richmond, Va., May 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The cost of higher education is on the rise, and Invest529 is helping families across the country take the first step toward saving for their children’s future with its “Smart Start”Giveaway.

    For one day only (May 29), get a $25 contribution when you open a new Invest529 account.

    May 29 is recognized nationally as 529 Day, a chance to remind people of how important it is to plan for a loved one’s higher education costs and to raise awareness of the benefits 529 accounts offer in helping individuals and families save.

    Visit Invest529.com for more information about Invest529 and to read the “Smart Start” Giveaway official terms and conditions. 

    About Invest529℠:
    Invest529 helps make education more accessible and affordable for families and individuals. With more than $107.4 billion in assets under management and 3.1 million accounts as of April 30, 2025, Invest529 is the largest 529 plan in the country. The program includes two flexible, affordable, tax-advantaged options—Invest529 and CollegeAmerica®—as well as the early commitment scholarship program, SOAR Virginia®, all designed to support students of any age in achieving their higher education goals. To learn more about education savings options from Invest529, visit Invest529.com or call 1-888-567-0540 to request program materials. These materials include information about Virginia529 programs, including investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other important details. Please read them carefully before investing. All investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Invest529 recommends that prospective participants consult with a financial, tax, or legal advisor regarding the implications of opening an account. For non-Virginia residents: Before investing, consider whether your or your beneficiary’s home state offers state tax or other benefits—such as financial aid, scholarship opportunities, or creditor protection—that may only be available through that state’s qualified tuition program. ©2025 Invest529. All rights reserved.

    The MIL Network –

    May 30, 2025

  • Terror Pakistan spread in present-day Bangladesh, rapes and murders by its army cannot be forgotten: PM Modi in Bengal

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday warned that India’s enemies would pay a heavy price for any terrorist attack on the country. Speaking at a rally in Alipurduar, he said Pakistan has resorted to terrorism against India since the 1947 partition and recalled the atrocities committed by the Pakistan Army ahead of the creation of Bangladesh, including widespread rapes and murders that remain etched in memory.

    Referring to Operation Sindoor, the military response to the Pahalgam terror attack, PM Modi said precision strikes were carried out on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir (PoJK). “Now that I stand on the sacred land of Sindoor Khela, it is only right to reaffirm our resolve against terrorism — Operation Sindoor,” the PM said. The April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, he added, had deeply shaken the nation and provoked widespread anger, particularly in West Bengal.

    “The terrorists dared to wipe off the sindoor from the foreheads of our sisters, but our brave soldiers showed them the power of that sindoor. Pakistan, which nurtures terrorism, has nothing positive to offer the world. Since its inception, it has been a breeding ground of terror and violence. But India has changed — we no longer tolerate such cowardly acts. Operation Sindoor is our firm answer,” he asserted.

    The Prime Minister stressed that Operation Sindoor is ongoing. “We are people who worship Shakti, Mahishasuramardini. From Bengal, this is a declaration by 140 crore Indians that Operation Sindoor is not over yet,” he said. Modi reiterated that India had conducted surgical strikes thrice inside Pakistan.

    “Terror and genocide are the Pakistan Army’s biggest expertise,” PM Modi said. “When faced with a direct battle against India, their defeat is certain, which is why they rely on terrorists. Pakistan started attacking India after partition in 1947. The terror it unleashed in what is now Bangladesh — the rapes and murders by its army — cannot be forgotten.”

    Bangladesh emerged as an independent country in 1971 following its War of Liberation against Pakistan.

    PM Modi described Pakistan as a “country that nurtures terrorism” and said it “has nothing positive to offer.” Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 in response to the Pahalgam attack, resulted in the death of over 100 terrorists and saw India repel further Pakistani aggression, including targeting airbases.

    In his speech, the PM strongly criticised the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, calling for freedom from the “politics of violence, appeasement, riots, and corruption,” and urged people to turn to the “BJP’s development model.”

    The Prime Minister said West Bengal is beset by multiple crises simultaneously. “First, the crisis of violence and anarchy spreading in society. Second, the insecurity of our mothers and sisters who face heinous crimes. Third, the despair and rampant unemployment among youth. Fourth, the declining trust in the system. And fifth, the selfish politics of the ruling party that steals the rights of the poor.”

    He said widespread corruption has affected the state, citing the teacher recruitment scam which he said destroyed the futures of thousands of teachers and jeopardised the education of lakhs of students. “The absence of teachers has put the future of lakhs of students at risk. The TMC leaders have committed a huge sin and refuse to admit their mistakes, blaming the courts instead,” the PM said.

    PM Modi also pointed to the government’s handling of violence in Murshidabad and Malda, saying that hooliganism was given a free hand in the name of appeasement. “Imagine when ruling party members identify and burn people’s houses and police act as mere spectators. Is this how a government should function? The people of Bengal no longer trust the TMC,” he said, quoting a popular local slogan: “Bengal mein machi cheekh pukaar, nahi chahiye nirmam sarkar.”

    The Prime Minister further highlighted what he called hostility from the TMC government towards tribals, Dalits, backward classes, women, and the poor, saying the government had stalled tribal development and blocked access to schemes like Ayushman Bharat. “Many poor people cannot get permanent housing because TMC leaders demand cuts and commissions,” PM Modi said.

    The Prime Minister added that the TMC’s focus remains on politics rather than governance, pointing out its absence from the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting and the stalling of 16 major infrastructure projects in West Bengal.

    Earlier in the day, PM Modi laid the foundation stone for the City Gas Distribution project in Alipurduar and Cooch Behar districts.

    (ANI)

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Your chance to see the brand new Women’s Rugby World Cup in Sunderland

    Source: City of Sunderland

    People will be able to have their photo taken with the brand new Women’s Rugby World Cup trophy when it visits Sunderland next Friday 6 June.

    The iconic silverware is putting in a special appearance between 12 noon and 4pm in Keel Square on the first day of the three-day Sunderland Food and Drink Festival. 

    World Rugby unveiled the new trophy earlier this month to tie in with the start of the 100-day countdown to the opening match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup kicking off in Sunderland on Friday 22 August which will see England’s Red Roses take on the USA at the Stadium of Light.

    The trophy’s visit marks the culmination of a nationwide tour of all eight host cities and towns as excitement continues to build for the record-breaking tournament.

    The 2025 tournament is already on course to become the biggest Women’s Rugby World Cup in history after selling more than 300,000 tickets – more than twice the total attendance at the last tournament in New Zealand in 2021.

    People visiting Keel Square next Friday will be able to see the new Women’s Rugby World Cup and the bespoke RWC 2025 Defender Trophy Tour Vehicle and have their photo taken with the trophy.

    Councillor Michael Mordey, Leader of Sunderland City Council, said: “It’s fantastic to have the trophy visiting Sunderland as we count down to hosting the opening match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup on 22 August.

    “Having the opening match here is a brilliant opportunity to showcase our city on the international stage. We’re really looking forward to welcoming the Red Roses and the USA teams to Sunderland, along with home-grown rugby fans and those from across the world.”

    Councillor Beth Jones is Sunderland City Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities, Culture and Tourism: “With excitement continuing to build now that we’re less than 100 away from the tournament kicking off in Sunderland, this is a brilliant opportunity to have your photo taken with the trophy that the top women’s rugby teams in the world are going to be competing for this summer,” she said.

    “It’s also a great chance to find out more about the sport and how you can get involved, so I’d encourage everyone to come down, have your photo taken with the trophy and enjoy a fantastic time at the Food and Drink Festival while you’re here.”

    Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 Managing Director, Sarah Massey, said: “Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 promises to be a landmark tournament for the sport and the trophy tour to our host locations provides a brilliant opportunity to ignite excitement across England.

    “We look forward to celebrating with fans and encouraging even more people to be a part of this unforgettable tournament.”

    Sunderland Food & Drink Festival is set to take place across Keel Square, High Street West and Market Square from Friday 6 to Sunday 8 June.

    Featuring food from across the world including street food and artisan produce, visitors will also be able to enjoy the live stage programme in Keel Square from 11am to 7pm every day.

    For more information on the food and drink festival visit https://sunderlandfooddrinkfest.co.uk/live-entertainment/

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Huizenga Leads 100+ Members of Congress in Bipartisan Effort to Save Family Farms, Enact H-2A Wage Freeze

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-02)

    Today, Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) announced he was joined by over 100 of his colleagues on a letter recently sent to House Appropriations leaders requesting an H-2A visa guestworker wage freeze in upcoming appropriations legislation. This simple policy fix would lower input costs for the agricultural community and save family farms across the nation. The level of support for freezing the H-2A wage rate is significant because it is bipartisan and represents the majority of the House Republican Conference (111). Last Congress, Huizenga led the charge to help family farms and achieved a policy win in legislation that passed the House Appropriations Committee.

    The “Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR),” or the required wage that farm employers must pay H-2A workers, more than doubled since 2005, making agricultural labor and its products more unaffordable. With the nation’s average AEWR reaching $18.12/hr in 2025 (more than a 3% increase year over year) on top of other input costs including fuel, housing, and fertilizer also rising, many farms are in danger of going out of business. In Michigan, the AEWR is a steep $18.15/hr, while our Canadian neighbors pay their agricultural workers closer to $12/hr, or just a few dollars in Mexico. A temporary wage freeze is a reasonable way to alleviate this skyrocketing financial burden and give our farmers a chance to compete, stay in business, and put food on the table for millions of Americans and the world.

    A signed copy of the letter is available here.

    “In Michigan and across our nation, family farms are struggling due in part to soaring H2A labor costs,” said Congressman Bill Huizenga. “Washington should be working to help American farmers lower costs, not crushing them with outdated mandates that balloon their expenses and make it more difficult for these multigenerational farms to keep the lights on. I am proud to lead this bipartisan effort, which includes the majority of House Republicans, to provide the most immediate, practical, and agreed-upon way to enact relief and stop farms here in Michigan and around the country from shutting down their operations.”

    “I have met with fifth and sixth-generation Michigan farmers who are worried they will be the last in their families to farm unless the Labor Department ends the policies making it harder for them to do business. An AEWR freeze, like the one in my Supporting Farm Operations Act, is a common-sense solution widely supported by the agriculture community. Thank you to Congressman Huizenga for leading this letter with dozens of members supporting our efforts. As our state’s only member of the House Appropriations Committee, I will continue to fight for much-needed relief for farmers,” said Congressman John Moolenaar.

    “Michigan farmers are beginning another season filled with the hope of delivering safe, plentiful, and affordable crops for consumers. Nonetheless, the farm families and agricultural guest workers crucial for cultivating these crops find themselves in uncertainty due to unsustainable adverse effect wage rates. It is essential for farmers and workers to have a dependable and sensible method for calculating this mandated wage. The Michigan Farm Bureau commends Congressman Huizenga and Congresswoman Scholten for spearheading this effort, alongside many of their colleagues, to instigate necessary changes that will offer relief to America’s farm families,” said Matt Smego, Director of Public Policy & Commodity Division, Michigan Farm Bureau.

    “Representative Bill Huizenga refuses to turn his back on Michigan and US vegetable and fruit growers.  The AEWR must be paused to continue domestic vegetable and fruit production.  The H-2A guest worker program functions pretty well, but the mandated AEWR no longer functions as envisioned.  There is not enough of a domestic workforce left for the AEWR to prevent guest workers taking employment opportunities from the domestic workforce,” said Greg Bird, Executive Director of Michigan’s Vegetable Council.

    “The bipartisan effort to freeze H-2A wages for farmworkers is encouraging to the Michigan Apple industry, with lawmakers from both parties showing an understanding of the unsustainable increases in costs to growers, as well as support for producers of food here in our state and across the country,” said Diane Smith of the Michigan Apple Association. “With labor costs accounting for approximately 56 percent of total production expenses for Michigan Apple growers, the Adverse Effect Wage Rate increases over the last 10 years threaten to put growers out of business.  Most apple growers are losing money at this point – more than $1,800 per acre, as production costs continue to rise. We are so grateful for the continued support of the Michigan congress members, Representative Huizenga and Representative Scholten, who co-lead the effort, as well as other Michigan congress members from both sides of the aisle who have supported agriculture.”

    “Michigan asparagus growers are facing a breaking point under the weight of the skyrocketing Adverse Effect Wage Rate,” said Jamie Clover Adams, CEO of the Michigan Asparagus Association. “Labor already accounts for nearly 60% of our growers’ total costs, and wage hikes—disconnected from market realities—are putting multi-generational family farms and rural economies at risk. We deeply appreciate Congressman Huizenga’s leadership in rallying bipartisan support for an H-2A wage freeze and urge Congress to act swiftly to support farms that grow hand-harvested fruits and vegetables.”

    “An H-2A wage freeze provides cost predictability for our farmers, allowing them to budget and manage labor resources while ensuring they can continue to employ the necessary labor force for crop planting and harvest while a more permanent solution is investigated,” said Kelly Turner, Ed.D, CAE. Manager, Potato Growers of Michigan.

    “Input costs, including labor, continue to rise as farm families struggle in this troubling farm economy. Without immediate action, these conditions threaten the livelihoods of farmers and their employees. Thankfully, members of Congress are willing to support critical relief until durable reforms are achieved. We are grateful for the consistent leadership of Rep. Huizenga and this bipartisan group of legislators who are standing against the status quo.” John Walt Boatright, American Farm Bureau Federation Director of Government Affairs

    “AmericanHort commends Reps. Bill Huizenga (R-MI-04), for leading this bipartisan letter with over 100 Members of Congress requesting to freeze the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR),” said Ken Fisher, President and CEO, AmericanHort. “As labor and affiliated costs continue to put pressure on our growers and the horticulture industry, placing a freeze on the AEWR will ease the high cost of labor and aid growers in planning for the future.”

    “International Fresh Produce Association members need Congress to rise to the occasion to prevent crippling cost increases that will put farms out of business and Congressman Bill Huizenga is leading the charge to do just that. By addressing the single biggest complaint from H-2A program users – uncontrollable wage labor costs – Congressman Huizenga’s bipartisan appropriations language will provide the relief we need today, while we work together to seek broader program reforms.” Rebeckah Adcock, Vice President, US Government Relations, International Fresh Produce Association

    “Congress’ failure to modernize the H-2A visa program has led to unsustainable, perpetual annual wage increases that are driving American farmers out of business,” said Kasey Cronquist, president of the North American Blueberry Council. “Congressman Huizenga’s bipartisan effort to pause the Adverse Effect Wage Rate is more critical than ever. On behalf of the many blueberry growers across the country who rely on the H-2A program to harvest their crops, we thank every member of Congress who is standing up for American farmers by supporting this appropriations request,” said Kasey Cronquist, President of The North American Blueberry Council (NABC).

    “We greatly appreciate Rep. Huizenga for leading this bipartisan effort to address the single biggest challenge facing apple growers nationwide. The unsustainable cost of the H-2A program is forcing multi-generational family farms to question whether they can keep going, let alone pass their operations on to the next generation. We urge Congress to enact this freeze and pursue common-sense H-2A reforms so we can continue supplying the world with America’s favorite fruit.” Jim Bair, President & CEO, U.S. Apple Association

    “Out of control AEWR increases have made it nearly impossible for custom harvesters to afford the labor necessary to meet the harvest needs of our farmer customers across the country.  Congress needs to act to provide H-2A wage relief as soon as possible,” said Paul Paplow, President U.S. Custom Harvesters Inc.

    “Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) thanks Congressman Bill Huizenga for working in a bipartisan fashion to raise concerns on the skyrocketing Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) and its impacts on hardworking farm and ranch families,” said TFB President Russell Boening. “While TFB readily recognizes the need for comprehensive long-term H-2A labor reform, a freeze on the AEWR will provide critical short-term relief. If action is not taken, many farmers and ranchers will be forced out of business, putting our national food security at severe risk. We thank all the members of Congress who signed the letter and recognize the direness of the situation. TFB looks forward to our continued work with Congress on agricultural labor reform.”

    Joining Congressman Huizenga on the letter are Representatives: Hillary Scholten (D-MI)[Co-Lead], Rick Crawford (R-AR)[Co-Lead], Patrick Ryan (D-NY)[Co-Lead], Rick Allen (R-GA), Don Bacon (R-NE), Troy Balderson (R-OH), Andy Barr (R-KY), Tom Barrett (R-MI), Michael Baumgartner (R-WA), Cliff Bentz (R-OR), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Sheri Biggs (R-SC), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Mike Bost (R-IL), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Kat Cammack (R-FL), Earl Carter (R-GA), Michael Cloud (R-TX), Andrew Clyde (R-GA), Mike Collins (R-GA), James Comer (R-KY), Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), Byron Donalds (R-FL), Neal Dunn (R-FL), Gabe Evans (R-CO), Mike Ezell (R-MS), Pat Fallon (R-TX), Julie Fedorchak (R-ND), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Brad Finstad (R-MN), Michelle Fischbach (R-MN), Russell Fry (R-SC), Russ Fulcher (R-ID), Craig Goldman (R-TX), Lance Gooden (R-TX), Glenn Grothman (R-WI), Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Mike Haridopolos (R-FL), Pat Harrigan (R-NC), Mark Harris (R-MD), Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), Kevin Hern (R-OK), Clay Higgins (R-LA), J. Hill (R-AR), Erin Houchin (R-IN), Richard Hudson (R-NC), Jeff Hurd (R-CO), Brian Jack (R-KY), Ronny Jackson (R-TX), John James (R-MI), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), John Joyce (R-PA), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Trent Kelly (R-MS), Mike Kennedy (R-UT), Jennifer Kiggans (R-VA), Brad Knott (R-NC), David Kustoff (R-TN), Darin LaHood (R-IL), Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Nicholas Langworthy (R-NY), Robert Latta (R-OH), Michael Lawler (R-NY), Laurel Lee (R-FL), Barry Loudermilk (R-GA), Frank Lucas (R-OK), Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), Morgan Luttrell (R-TX), Nancy Mace (R-SC), John Mannion (D-NY), Michael McCaul (R-TX), Addison McDowell (R-NC), John McGuire (R-VA), Mark Messmer (R-IN), Daniel Meuser (R-PA), Mary Miller (R-IL), Max Miller (R-OH), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Cory Mills (R-FL), Barry Moore (R-AL), Blake Moore (R-UT), Nathaniel Moran (R-TX), Gregory Murphy (R-NC), Troy Nehls (R-TX), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Zachary Nunn (R-IA), Gary Palmer (R-AL), August Pfluger (R-TX), Josh Riley (D-NY), Mike Rogers (R-AL), John Rose (R-TN), David Rouzer (R-NC), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Austin Scott (R-GA), Keith Self (R-TX), Pete Sessions (R-TX), Jefferson Shreve (R-IN), Adrian Smith (R-NE), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), W. Steube (R-FL), Marlin Stutzman (R-IN), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Shri Thanedar (D-MI), Glenn Thompson (R-PA), William Timmons (R-SC), Jefferson Van Drew (R-NJ), Randy Weber (R-TX), Daniel Webster (R-FL), Bruce Westerman (R-AR), Roger Williams (R-TX), Joe Wilson (R-SC), and Rudy Yakym (R-IN).

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Security: Man Sought in Attempted Kidnapping in South Boston Arrested by the NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force

    Source: US Marshals Service

    New York, NY – Deputies and Task Force Officers from the U.S. Marshals NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force (NY/NJ RFTF) today apprehended the man wanted in the May 25 attempted kidnapping of a woman in the Seaport section of Boston.

    Adam McCree is alleged to have attempted to kidnap and assault a woman in South Boston. McCree has multiple warrants out of Boston and New York, and authorities believed that he may have fled to New York.

    The Boston Police Department requested the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service Massachusetts Fugitive Task Force, and a multistate manhunt ensued. The NY/NJ RFTF, along with Task Force Officers of the New York Police Department (NYPD), were alerted that McCree was possibly in the Bronx area. Information was quickly developed that led the team to the Bronxwood area. As the NY/NJ RFTF surrounded the location, McCree fled out of the location and led the team in a foot pursuit.  The NY/NJ RFTF quickly surrounded McCree and took him into custody.

    “I commend the U.S Marshals New York/ New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force and the NYPD for arresting the suspect in a disturbing case of kidnapping and rape,” said Jhovanny Gomez, U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of New York.  “Their dedication to protecting the public and holding violent offenders accountable is something our community can be proud of.”

    The NY/NJ RFTF began operations in April 2002 and was the first regional fugitive task force to become fully operational following the Presidential Threat Protection Act of 2000. The NY/NJ RFTF was the flagship that has allowed seven other regional fugitive task forces to be created across the country. With partnership agreements with over 90 federal, state, or local agencies and 13 fully operational offices, the NY/NJ RFTF has successfully apprehended over 95,000 fugitives since inception.

    MIL Security OSI –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI: Matador Technologies Inc. Enters Binding LOI to Partner with Indian Digital Asset Product Strategy Firm

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, May 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Matador Technologies Inc. (“Matador” or the “Company”) (TSXV: MATA, OTCQB: MATAF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a binding letter of intent (“LOI“) to invest in a publicly traded Indian technology company, tentatively named HODL Systems (“HODL”), that implements a treasury strategy which includes investing into digital assets.

    Under the terms of the LOI, Matador will commit to invest up to USD$3,200,000 (“Investment Amount”) in a share warrant structure that would provide Matador up to 24.95% ownership stake in HODL, assuming full exercise of the warrants. This investment aligns with Matador’s strategy to increase its exposure to the global digital asset ecosystem.

    As part of the transaction, Matador also expects to enter into a licensing agreement with HODL in due course to distribute its proprietary digital gold product and other Ordinals technology in the Indian market. The agreement is intended to support Matador’s expansion into new markets within the digital asset sector. Both the LOI and the licensing agreement remain subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the “Exchange”), and the investment is subject to Exchange acceptance of the Change of Business.

    The first tranche of the aforesaid warrant investment is expected to close on or before July 10, 2025, subject to customary conditions and regulatory approvals.

    Key Highlights & Strategic Rationale

    • Expansion into the Indian Market: India is a large and growing market for technology and digital assets. This investment allows Matador to establish a foothold in this dynamic region.
    • Balance Sheet Strategy: HODL’s business model aligns with Matador’s broader investment thesis around the adoption of digital assets and the integration of decentralized financial assets.
    • Licensing Agreement for Digital Gold & Ordinals Technology: By bringing its proprietary digital gold product and Ordinals technology to India through HODL, Matador aims to broaden access to its blockchain-based products through this partnership.
    • Capturing a Digitally Native Gold Market: India is the largest private gold-owning country in the world, with households holding more than 25,000 tonnes of gold (World Gold Council). At the same time, over 65% of India’s population is under the age of 35, with a growing middle class increasingly adopting mobile-first, digital investment platforms (UNDP India). Matador and HODL plan to offer blockchain-based investment products tailored to younger, tech-savvy investors in India.
    • Potential for Long-Term Value Creation: Through this investment and licensing arrangement, Matador may participate in HODL’s future growth and expansion into digital asset markets.

    Additional Information from the Letter of Intent

    • Date of Agreement: May 29, 2025 (“Effective Date”)
    • Investment Timelines: 25% of the Investment Amount on or before July 10, 2025, and the remaining 75% of the Investment Amount on or before 18 months from the date of allotment of the share warrants.
    • Valuation Report: HODL will obtain a valuation report from an independent registered valuer, acceptable to Matador, to ensure compliance with applicable regulations and provide transparency in the transaction.
    • Conversion Terms of Share Warrants: The Share Warrants are convertible into equity shares of HODL at a 1:1 ratio at any time within 18 months from the date of allotment, at Matador’s discretion.
    • Conditions of Offer:
      • The board of directors of HODL are expected to accept the LOI as of the Effective Date.
      • As a pre-requisite to the proposed transaction, shareholders of HODL must approve the proposed subscription.
      • The share warrants must be issued and allotted to Matador in dematerialized form within 15 days of shareholders’ approval, which time period may be extended for receipt of regulatory approvals as permitted under law.
      • The post-issue shareholding of Matador will not exceed 24.95% on a fully diluted basis unless waived in writing.

    Deven Soni, CEO of Matador Technologies Inc., commented: “This strategic investment in HODL underscores our commitment to expanding our footprint in high-growth markets and advancing the adoption of digital asset-centric financial strategies. By partnering with HODL, we are poised to deliver innovative digital asset solutions to the Indian market, aligning with our mission to drive global financial inclusion through decentralized technologies.”

    Mark Moss, Chief Visionary Officer of Matador Technologies Inc., commented: “At Matador, we believe the next wave of global financial infrastructure will be built on digital assets. By aligning with HODL, we’re not just expanding geographically—we’re expanding the reach of the digital assets’ ecosystem into a key innovation hub.”

    For additional information, please contact:

    Media Contact:
    Sunny Ray
    President
    Email: sunny@matador.network
    Phone: 647-496-6282

    About Matador Technologies Inc.
    Matador Technologies Inc. is a publicly traded Bitcoin ecosystem company that holds Bitcoin as its primary treasury asset and builds products to enhance the Bitcoin network. Through a self-reinforcing model that combines strategic Bitcoin accumulation, Bitcoin-native product development, and participation in digital asset infrastructure, Matador aims to grow long-term shareholder value without dilution.

    The Company’s flagship offering, the Digital Gold Platform, allows users to buy, sell, and trade 1-gram gold units inscribed as Bitcoin Ordinals—bridging traditional value with decentralized technology. With a Bitcoin-first strategy, a debt-free balance sheet, and a clear focus on innovation, Matador is helping shape the future of financial infrastructure on Bitcoin.

    Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

    NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

    This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.

    Forward Looking Statements – Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including risks associated with the implementation of the Company’s treasury management strategy, risks relating to whether the transaction with HODL will be concluded as currently proposed or at all, risks relating to the receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the launch of the Company’s mobile application as currently proposed or at all. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company, including with respect to the potential acquisition of digital assets and/or US dollars, the pricing of such acquisitions and the timing of future operations. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.

    The MIL Network –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Cabinet welcomes the launch of Operation New Broom

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Thursday, May 29, 2025

    Cabinet has welcomed the launch of Operation New Broom, the latest technology-driven initiative by the Department of Home Affairs to combat illegal immigration.

    Home Affairs Minister, Dr Leon Schreiber, launched the initiative last week.

    READ I Home Affairs launches programme to tackle illegal immigrants challenge

    Addressing the media in Cape Town on Thursday, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said this demonstrated government’s commitment to fighting crime and maintaining the rule of law. 

    Ntshavheni explained that the initiative uses technology to arrest, convict and deport illegal immigrants from the country.

    “The operation, has in its first phase, led to the arrest of 25 suspects who occupied land illegally in District 6, Cape Town,” Ntshavheni said.

    Ntshavheni said the initiative uses biometric technology to verify the immigration status of suspects, eliminating the risk of fraudulent documents and making it easier for the courts to conclude cases.

    The first operation which is part of an ongoing nationwide campaign occurred in District 6 in Cape Town on 21 May 2025.

    The Minister believes that the department’s commitment to digital transformation is being felt across all areas of Home Affairs’ mandate, including through the strides made by the Border Management Authority (BMA) at the borders and inland.

    “As with everything else we do, Operation New Broom is guided by our commitment to the rule of law. It is this commitment that both motivates us to do more to combat illegality and to uphold due process and legal compliance in the process,” Schreiber said at the time. – SAnews.gov.za

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    MIL OSI Africa –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Cabinet affirms its support for the 2025 National Budget

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    Thursday, May 29, 2025

    Cabinet has affirmed its support for the 2025 National Budget tabled by the Minister of Finance on Wednesday, 21 May 2025, which details key spending priorities over the next three years within the country’s fiscal envelope.

    Speaking during a post-cabinet briefing on Thursday, Minister in The Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said the National Budget has demonstrated government’s commitment to fiscal discipline. 

    “We have shown that we are steering the economy in a way that looks after the most vulnerable in our society, while investing in economic activity through investment of R1 trillion towards infrastructure over the coming three years.

    “This pro-poor budget, means on every Rand, 61 cents of consolidated, non-interest expenditure funds will be spent on free basic services like electricity, water, education, healthcare, affordable housing, as well as social grants for those in need,” the Minister said in Cape Town.

    Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana, returned to Parliament last week to re-table the 2025 Budget Review. 

    This decision follows the Minister’s recent announcement and subsequent request to the Speaker of the National Assembly to maintain the Value-Added Tax rate at its current level of 15 percent, reversing the previously proposed 0.5 percentage point increase presented in the 12 March budget.

    The National Treasury previously said that the revised budget will adhere to all established technical processes and consultations as set out in the Money Bills and Related Matters Act.

    This includes formal consultations with the Financial and Fiscal Commission, thorough consultations with all political parties within the Government of National Unity as well as Cabinet approval before presentation to Parliament.  – SAnews.gov.za

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    MIL OSI Africa –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ranking Member Hoyer Opening Remarks at FSGG Hearing on the Federal Communications Commission

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steny H Hoyer (MD-05)

    WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05), Ranking Member of the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Appropriations Subcommittee, delivered opening remarks at the FSGG hearing on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Below is a video and transcript of his remarks:

    Click here to watch a full video of his remarks.

    “Thank you very much. Thank you. Mr. Carr, for being with us. We had a good conversation in my office. This probably won’t be as cordial as we were, but I’m very concerned. When Donald Trump spoke before the Congress in March, he said this: ‘I’ve stopped all government censorship and brought back free speech in America – it’s back,’ he said. Now, he also said during the campaign, to his supporters, ‘I am your retribution.’ You may remember that quote. That rang in my ears and gave me great concern.

    “The FCC’s actions the past few months make it clear just how relevant those comments were. What was once an independent, impartial agency – not always – devoted to keeping Americans connected has become, in my view, to some degree ‘the speech police,’ another cudgel in the President’s culture war. Since Trump took office, the FCC has gone after private corporations over their DEI practices. Very frankly, in my view is, that may be a practice that he can impose on the federal government, but it is not a practice that he can impose, nor should he impose on the private sector whatever the views we may hold. The agency, in my opinion, has also targeted NPR, PBS, NBC, ABC, and CBS, and other networks, apparently, who are perceived unfavorably to the President and to his policies.

    “The First Amendment, of course, is not intended to protect the president from the press. It is intended to protect the president – excuse me – the press against the government. Nor was the FCC established to act in the president’s interest, but rather in the public’s interest. Now more than ever, the American people are counting on the FCC to focus on its mission under law. Something we discussed in my office, however, was when he removed FTC commissioners, he did it because, quoting – or trying to quote – that the actions of those commissioners were incompatible with the priorities of the administration. Communications technologies that fall under the FCC’s purview are fundamental to everything in modern life. They shape our commerce, our education, our national security, our health care, and our elections.

    “In an increasingly digital world, the FCC needs to ensure that we don’t leave that behind. That means expanding – [referring to dais microphone] oh this is inconvenient – that means expanding affordable, reliable access to the internet and other crucial technology in both rural and urban areas. I represent urban and rural areas. We made a lot of progress toward closing the digital divide when the Affordable Connectivity Program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – legislation I was proud to put on the Floor as Majority Leader. I heard directly from my constituents, Republicans and Democrats and Republican officials. I live in a county with five Republican county commissioners. They all urged me to continue that [program] because of the very positive impact it had on my district and in that rural county in which I live. Regrettably, my colleagues across the aisle allowed that program to expire last year, raising interest costs for the 23 million households that enrolled. I still haven’t seen any plan on how we fill that void. Worse, I’ve heard rumors that the FCC spectrum policy involves auctioning off or reducing bands, including the Citizens Broadband Radio Service, which could make it even harder for Americans to get connected.

    “The FCC has a responsibility not only to help Americans access these opportunities, but also to protect them from potential perils. Every day, Americans experience robocalls and internet scam attempts that become more and more sophisticated. Their personal data falls prey to hackers and scammers. Americans need strong and savvy cops on the beat committed to cybersecurity and privacy. In my view, that is the role of the FCC.

    “Chairman Carr, I thank you for coming in today, as I’ve said, but I want to be clear that I’m worried that the FCC, and so many other elements of government that ought to be independent, are, in the President’s words – not referring to anything that I’ve referred to – but weaponizing government. The FCC’s attacks on the press and the First Amendment are troubling. So, I look forward to hearing your testimony. I will honor the Chairman’s gavel, but it requires a lot of time to make sure the FCC is doing what the American people expect it to do. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Hoyer Statement on Memorial Day

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steny H Hoyer (MD-05)

    WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) released the following statement today in recognition of Memorial Day:

    “Across the country and around the world, American military cemeteries serve as reminders of the tremendous price paid for the lives and liberties we enjoy today. This Memorial Day, I join in honoring the courageous service members who gave their lives to protect their fellow Americans and preserve the Republic.

    “Their sacrifice was ultimate; we must ensure that it was not in vain. Although we can never repay our fallen heroes in full, we must try by working to uphold the democracy and principles of freedom, justice, and equality for which they fought. We must also tend to those veterans who made it home – especially those who bear the physical and mental scars of war. I was pleased to bring Democrats and Republicans together to that end in the 117th Congress, helping pass the Honoring Our PACT Act to secure enhances VA benefits for millions of Veterans exposed to harmful toxins over the course of their service.

    “Our work is never finished. We must continue to stand up for our democracy, our veterans, and our military families with the same devotion displayed by the heroes we honor today. May God watch over them as they rest, and over us as we care for the country to which they gave everything.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: U.S. Energy-Related Carbon Dioxide Emissions, 2024

    Source: US Energy Information Administration

    This report highlights notable trends in energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the United States in 2024, based on preliminary data.

    U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions declined overall by less than 1%, or 23 million metric tons (MMmt), in 2024. Among end-use sectors, the most notable decreases occurred in the residential and industrial sectors. Lower residential sector emissions were mostly due to decreases in consumption of natural gas and petroleum products primarily associated with space heating—mainly propane and distillate fuel oil. Decreases in industrial-sector emissions were associated with reduced manufacturing.

    Emissions from the commercial, transportation, and electric power sectors remained relatively unchanged but are discussed in greater detail in later sections.

    Table 1. Total U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions by sector, 2020–2024
    million metric tons of carbon dioxide
    Sector 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020
    Residential 303 313 340 325 319
    Commercial 247 249 260 245 233
    Industrial 947 962 960 977 953
    Transportation 1,848 1,851 1,842 1,807 1,630
    Electric power 1,427 1,421 1,539 1,553 1,450
    Total 4,772 4,795 4,940 4,906 4,585
    Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review, March 2025, Tables 11.1–11.6
    Note: Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.

    Figure data

    Electric power emissions remained flat as decreasing CO2 from coal generation offset increasing CO2 from natural gas

    CO2 emissions from the electric power sector remained mostly flat in 2024, increasing by less than 1% (6 MMmt). Although overall electricity generation increased by 3%, or 122 terawatthours (TWh), in 2024, changes in generation sources resulted in sectoral CO2 emissions remaining near 2023 levels. Specifically:

    • CO2 emissions from coal-fired generation decreased by 3% (24 MMmt), but:
      • CO2 emissions from natural gas-fired generation increased by 4% (31 MMmt)
    • Coal-fired electricity generation fell by 3% (22 TWh), but:
      • Natural gas generation increased by 3% (59 TWh)
      • Solar generation increased by 32% (53 TWh)
      • Wind generation increased by 8% (32 TWh)

    Although growth in natural gas-fired generation exceeded reductions in coal-fired generation, CO2 emissions did not increase as much because natural gas emits less CO2 per kilowatthour than coal when combusted.

    Figure data

    Warmer late-winter and early-spring weather led to lower residential sector emissions

    Residential sector CO2 emissions declined 3% (10 MMmt) in 2024, as demand for heating decreased with relatively warm weather during late-winter and early-spring months. U.S. population-weighted heating degree days (HDDs), a measure of how cold a location is, decreased by 3% last year. Consequently, consumption of natural gas, propane, and distillate fuel oil declined, which are all key fuels in residential space heating.

    Warmer weather also led to increased demand for space cooling during warmer months. Cooling degree days (CDDs), a measure of how hot a location is, increased by 10% in 2024. However, unlike space heating, space cooling relies on electricity rather than direct use of fuels. As summer temperatures increased relative to 2023, residential sector electricity use rose. Annual purchases of electricity increased by 3%, and emissions associated with residential electricity consumption increased by 1% (5 MMmt). Overall, total residential sector emissions were lower because the decline in CO2 emissions from lower heating fuel consumption outweighed increases associated with cooling demand.

    Weather-related impacts on energy consumption and CO2 emissions in the commercial sector mirrored the residential sector but to a lesser extent. Commercial sector emissions remained effectively flat in 2024, decreasing by only 2 MMmt, as a result of lower natural gas and petroleum consumption.

    Figure data

    Industrial CO2 emissions decreased in 2024 as industrial production growth slowed

    CO2 emissions from the U.S. industrial sector decreased by 1% (14 MMmt) in 2024. Decreased emissions were mostly related to a 15% (7 MMmt) decrease in petroleum coke consumption and a 6% (5 MMmt) decrease in coal consumption. Declining emissions from these fuels is associated with minor declines in industrial activity, such as manufacturing of primary metals.

    Figure data

    Transportation sector emissions remain unchanged as increased consumption of some petroleum products offset decreases in others

    U.S. transportation sector emissions remained virtually unchanged in 2024. CO2 emissions from motor gasoline and jet fuel increased slightly, following the trend from 2023, but were more than offset by decreases in CO2 emissions from distillate fuel oil.

    CO2 emissions from motor gasoline increased by less than 1% (3 MMmt) in 2024. Despite steady increases in vehicle miles traveled, motor gasoline emissions have generally declined modestly over the last 20 years (Figure 5). These decreases in motor gasoline emissions are mostly due to higher vehicle fuel economy standards and, to a lesser extent, increased deployment of electric vehicles. Jet fuel emissions increased by 3% (7 MMmt) in 2024, mostly associated with increased air travel.

    Higher motor gasoline and jet fuel emissions were more than offset by declining emissions from distillate fuel oil, which fell by 3% (15 MMmt) in 2024. Distillate consumption declined because on-road diesel vehicles consumed less and, to a lesser extent, conventional diesel fuel was substituted for renewable diesel.

    Figure data

    We based our analysis of U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions in this report on data published in our Monthly Energy Review (MER). This initial analysis is based on preliminary 2024 data first published in the March 2025 edition of the MER. These values are subject to change as final data are published from underlying sources, according to source data revision policies and publication schedules. We expect relatively minor differences between the preliminary and revised estimates based on past years (Table 2). Supplemental analysis, figures from past reports, and a discussion of the methodology and terminology used in this report are available in the Appendix.

    Table 2. Preliminary and revised U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions estimates, 2018–2023
    Year Preliminary CO2 estimates
    (million metric tons)    		 Revised CO2 estimates
    (million metric tons)    		 Difference
    (million metric tons)    		 Percentage difference
    2018 5,274 5,269 -5 -0.1%
    2019 5,138 5,149 11 0.2%
    2020 4,571 4,575 4 0.1%
    2021 4,870 4,904 34 0.7%
    2022 4,970 4,941 -29 -0.6%
    2023 4,807 4,791 -16 -0.3%
    Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review, Tables 11.1–11.6, March and September editions, 2019–2024

    Emissions values and analysis presented in this report pertain only to U.S. CO2 emissions associated with fossil-fuel combustion and non-combustion applications of energy products (for example, as industrial feedstocks). We do not include estimates of CO2 emissions outside this scope or other greenhouse gas emissions burned or released in production, extraction, or distribution of energy products. Our approach may result in discrepancies between our emissions estimates and those of other organizations, including other U.S. government agencies.

    In addition to historical estimates, we also offer short-term forecasts and long-term projections of U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions in several other data products. You can find a short-term forecast of U.S. energy-related CO2 emissions and key drivers in our monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook, which includes monthly forecasts by fuel source currently through the end of 2026 and the latest estimates of the effects of recent events on energy markets and energy-related CO2 emissions. We publish long-term U.S. emissions projections in our Annual Energy Outlook, which provides annual projections of energy-related CO2 emissions by fuel source, sector, and end use through 2050. Projections of international energy-related CO2 emissions through 2050 are available in our International Energy Outlook.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Security: Illegal Alien and Prolific Drug Trafficker Convicted Following Thwarted Robbery of Rival Cocaine Supplier

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    ATLANTA – Adan Macedo-Rios, 52, of Mexico, who is an alien unlawfully present in the United States, has been convicted of charges related to trafficking in illegal drugs, money laundering, robbery, and unlawful possession of firearms.

    “Macedo-Rios, an illegal alien, distributed large amounts of dangerous drugs and laundered his ill-gotten gains through the purchase of a Georgia horse ranch. His callous and dangerous behavior—highlighted by his involvement in a plot to rob a rival cocaine supplier—was disrupted by the tireless work of our law enforcement partners,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Through our combined efforts, we foiled the robbery plan and dismantled the drug trafficking and money laundering organization that Macedo-Rios supplied, thereby eliminating a significant threat of violent crime in our community.”

    “DEA strives every day to keep the American public safe from transnational criminal organizations,” said Jae W. Chung, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division. “This investigation demonstrates DEA’s commitment to destroying these drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.”

    “For all the innocent residents who are trying to raise families in safe communities, the FBI wants you to know that we are here for you through arrests like this,” said Paul Brown, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Macedo-Rios repeatedly disregarded the law to enrich himself. The FBI and our partners are firmly committed to ensuring that our communities are protected from the extreme violence and lawlessness displayed by individuals like him.”

    “The conviction of Adan Macedo-Rios, an illegal alien from Mexico and prolific drug trafficker, highlights our unwavering commitment to dismantling drug trafficking organizations that threaten our communities,” said Steven N. Schrank, the Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia and Alabama. “Thanks to the hard work of our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, we’ve turned his ‘stable’ of crime into a one-way ticket to accountability!”

    According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, public record, and other information presented in court: Macedo-Rios, a large-scale drug trafficker, supplied other Atlanta-based drug distributors with at least 123 kilograms of cocaine destined for distribution throughout multiple states. In 2023, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) special agents obtained federal court authorization to intercept communications over cellphones used by Macedo-Rios and others. These intercepts led to the seizure of multiple kilograms of cocaine and other narcotics, and drug proceeds, from drug transporters working for Macedo-Rios and his conspirators. 

    Macedo-Rios remitted drug payments to his narcotics suppliers in Mexico and used proceeds of his criminal activity to fraudulently purchase an eight-acre ranch with a 24-horse stable and farmhouse in Loganville, Georgia. With his conspirators, Macedo-Rios planned the robbery of another drug supplier who was storing 65 kilograms of cocaine in his residence. Macedo-Rios and his conspirators even conducted their own surveillance of the target, including by placing a tracker on the rival’s car, and plotted to use firearms to facilitate the robbery. But their plan was timely thwarted by DEA agents, who intercepted communications about the robbery.

    When agents arrested Macedo-Rios at the horse ranch, they discovered a loaded Colt .38 pistol and a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun in his bedroom, even though he was prohibited from possessing firearms due to his unlawful presence in the United States and status as a convicted felon. Macedo-Rios, a Mexican citizen, has a history of multiple deportations from the United States.

    Adan Macedo-Rios appeared before United States District Judge J. P. Boulee on May 28, 2025, and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, unlawful possession of a firearm by an alien illegally present in the United States, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

    As to his drug trafficking conviction, Macedo-Rios faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, a maximum $10,000,000 fine, and a minimum of five years of supervised release. For the Hobbs Act Robbery conviction, he faces up to 20 years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release. For the firearm conviction, Macedo-Rios faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years, a maximum fine of $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. The money laundering conviction carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to a $500,000 fine, and forfeiture of property involved in the offense. 

    In determining the actual sentence, the Court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.

    Sentencing is scheduled for August 26, 2025, at 1 pm before Judge Boulee.

    This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from Georgia State Patrol and the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office.

    Assistant United States Attorneys John T. DeGenova and Rebeca M. Ojeda are prosecuting the case.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi¬ jurisdictional operations to eliminate the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.

    The specific mission of the David G. Wilhelm Atlanta OCDETF Strike Force (Atlanta Strike Force) is to eliminate transnational organized crime syndicates and major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations in the Atlanta metropolitan area and the Northern District of Georgia. To accomplish this mission, the Atlanta Strike Force will target these organizations’ leaders, focusing on targets designated as Consolidated Priority Organization Targets, Regional Priority Organization Targets, and their associates.  The Atlanta Strike Force is comprised of agents and officers from ATF, DEA, FBI, HSI, USMS, USPIS, and IRS, as well as numerous state and local agencies; and the prosecution is being led by the Office of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.

    For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6280.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

    MIL Security OSI –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Global: Climate change: no reprieve from heat this decade as globally agreed 1.5°C limit looms

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Jack Marley, Environment + Energy Editor, UK edition

    Temperature limits the world agreed to avoid are looming into view.

    The global temperature has been 1.5°C hotter than the pre-industrial average for almost two years now. The reason, overwhelmingly, is that greenhouse gas emissions are at record highs from the burning of fossil fuels and forests.

    In a new analysis, the World Meteorological Organization has predicted that global average warming will remain above 1.5°C for the rest of this decade. By some measure, this would place the world nearly halfway to the lower limit of the Paris agreement, which urged countries to avoid warming of 1.5°C as a 20-year average.

    Exceeding a globally agreed temperature limit is scary. Perhaps scarier is the speed at which we appear to be breaking our promises.

    This roundup of The Conversation’s climate coverage comes from our award-winning weekly climate action newsletter. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed.

    Half a year of record heat

    After 2024 was confirmed as the hottest in 175 years of temperature-keeping, some climate scientists expected 2025 to be cooler. El Niño, the warm phase in a natural cycle of Earth’s climate, was subsiding and the cooler La Niña was set to kick in.

    This climate fluctuation, centred on the Pacific Ocean, slowly sloshes water and heat between ocean basins every few years and disrupts weather patterns worldwide.

    “Typically, La Niña will lower the global temperature by a couple of tenths of a degree Celsius,” explains Richard P Allan, a professor of climate science at the University of Reading. “However, this time around, it’s apparently not enough to stop the world warming – even temporarily.”



    Read more:
    Record January heat suggests La Niña may be losing its ability to keep global warming in check

    January 2025 was the hottest on record – a whole 1.7°C hotter than an average January before the mass burning of coal, oil and gas. Allan argues that “human-driven ocean warming is increasingly overwhelming these natural climate patterns”.

    The ocean has absorbed most of the excess heat generated by our emissions, but this blue buffer between us and a hotter atmosphere shows signs of fraying. A research station that has been taking the temperature of the western English Channel for more than 120 years now reports “almost continuous marine heatwave” conditions according to oceanographer Tim Smyth of the Plymouth Marine Laboratory.



    Read more:
    What a 120-year-old research station is telling us about the warming of the sea around the UK

    A record-hot Atlantic Ocean is bad news for people living in the Caribbean and the south-east of North America. In its latest forecast for the 2025 hurricane season, which begins on June 1, the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted an “above average” number of cyclonic storms.

    Much of this elevated risk is due to warmer seawater at the ocean surface fuelling stronger storms. But there’s only so much that meteorologists can do to stay ahead of the warming climate, as the rapid rate of global heating stretches long-range forecasting to its breaking point.



    Read more:
    The climate is changing so fast that we haven’t seen how bad extreme weather could get

    “The rapidly changing climate means we have not necessarily experienced the extremes that modern-day atmospheric and oceanic warmth can produce,” say atmospheric scientist Simon H Lee (University of St Andrews), climate scientist Hayley J Fowler and meteorologist Paul Davies (both of Newcastle University).

    “In a stable climate, scientists would have multiple decades for the atmosphere to get into its various configurations and drive extreme events, such as heatwaves, floods or droughts,” they say. Scientists typically use weather observations gathered over 30-year periods to characterise the climate.

    “But in our rapidly changing climate, we effectively have only a few years – not enough to experience everything the climate has to offer.”

    How hot will it get?

    Compared with its average temperature in the latter half of the 19th century, which is what scientists typically refer to as the climate’s pre-industrial baseline, Earth is on track to be 2.7°C hotter by 2100, according to an annual report by leading experts of Earth system science, published in October 2024.

    This conclusion is based on governments meeting their emissions goals (a big if) and it may already be out of date, given the unexpectedly hot first half of 2025.

    Fossil fuel emissions have yet to reach a plateau.
    Sunshine Seeds/Shutterstock

    On its own, this charitable estimate projects nearly double the level of warming attained so far. It’s unclear if civilisation could survive climate conditions like these, which are radically more hostile than anything our ancestors have experienced.

    What’s behind the accelerating rate of global warming? Here are two of the report authors, ecologists Thomas Newsome of the University of Sydney and William Ripple of Oregon State University.

    “Each year, we track 35 of the Earth’s vital signs, from sea ice extent to forests. [In 2024], 25 are now at record levels, all trending in the wrong directions,” they say.



    Read more:
    Unprecedented peril: disaster lies ahead as we track towards 2.7°C of warming this century

    While renewable energy sources like wind and solar have grown rapidly, fossil fuel use remains 14 times greater. What’s more, aerosols that are effective at reflecting the Sun’s energy back into space and cooling the Earth (soot is one example) are thought to be falling in the atmosphere.

    “Other environmental issues are now feeding into climate change,” Newsome and Ripple continue. Deforestation is shrinking the amount of carbon stored on land while rising temperatures and extreme weather are drying out and burning other carbon-rich habitats, like marshes and peatlands.

    Sea ice is melting too, ensuring the ocean absorbs yet more of the heat being trapped by an increasingly thick blanket of greenhouse gas.

    Bleak. But how much the planet warms this century is a moving target: everything we do today, and in coming years, will lower it. On this front, Sven Teske has, if not good news, then less bad news to share.



    Read more:
    Earth is heading for 2.7°C warming this century. We may avoid the worst climate scenarios – but the outlook is still dire

    “Humanity has shifted track enough to avert the worst climate future,” he says.

    “Renewables, energy efficiency and other measures have shifted the dial. The worst case scenario of expanded coal use, soaring emissions and a much hotter world is vanishingly unlikely.”

    – ref. Climate change: no reprieve from heat this decade as globally agreed 1.5°C limit looms – https://theconversation.com/climate-change-no-reprieve-from-heat-this-decade-as-globally-agreed-1-5-c-limit-looms-257263

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Global: Five things new parents should know about their baby’s sleep

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Helen L. Ball, Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Durham Inancy & Sleep Centre (DISC), Durham University

    Nilanka Sampath/Shutterstock

    Why won’t my baby sleep at night? It’s one of the most common – and exhausting – questions new parents ask. You’ve fed them, changed them, rocked them, cuddled them but still, they wake again. And again. And again.

    Baby humans are born utterly helpless – unable to walk, grip, or regulate their own systems. From the very beginning, they are biologically wired to stay close to a caregiver, relying on your body for warmth, safety, food and reassurance. Their sleep, feeding and waking patterns aren’t disordered – they’re designed for survival.

    My latest book tells you everything you need to know about your baby’s sleep during their first year, but here’s a brief explainer on what’s really going on with baby sleep, why “sleeping through the night” is often a myth, and how working with your baby’s natural biology – not against it – can help you both get more rest and feel less stressed.

    Let’s take a look at what science (and evolution) tells us about newborn sleep.

    1. Comfort and calm

    Unlike other baby mammals who are born able to see, hear, and call, baby humans have no muscle tone and no control over their limbs. They cannot cling to or follow you, and are completely reliant on their parents to keep them safe, warm, and fed. In fact, most babies crave being in physical contact with your body for comfort, warmth and safety. Letting them snuggle into you is a good way to calm them, and on your chest is where many newborns most want to sleep from the immediate postnatal period.

    Spending time with your baby snuggled on your chest is common in the first few weeks or months of new parenthood, and there are some important things to be aware of. Make sure you are sitting upright or leaning back in a reclined position, so your baby’s head is higher than their bottom. Do not lie flat on your back with your baby horizontal. This position can make babies work harder to breathe. Make sure their head is turned to one side and their chin is tilted upwards. This is important to keep their windpipe open – it can kink if their chin is down on their chest and the air cannot get through to their lungs.

    Be sure to hold them in place on your body – don’t assume they won’t slip off – gravity affects babies too. Lastly, but most importantly, stay awake. Do not let yourself fall asleep in this position. Young babies are very fragile and when they are lying on you, you must monitor their safety. If you think you might fall asleep, move them to somewhere safe – a clear flat safe surface, on their back, or the arms of someone who can stay awake.

    2. Safe bed-sharing

    If your baby is breastfed they will feed frequently day and night, often every two hours or so. This can be difficult to cope with if you have to get in and out of bed for every feed. Many breastfeeding mothers find that safe way to share your bed for some or all of the night helps reduce the disruption of night feeds as you can feed lying down and both you and your baby can return to sleep quickly.

    If you decide to bed-share learn how to make your bed as safe as possible for your baby. The Lullaby Trust, Unicef Baby Friendly Initiative and La Leche League all have good information on bed-sharing safety. If you are not able to do this safely (for instance if your baby was born prematurely, or you are a smoker) then a bedside bassinet is a good option.

    3. Circadian rhythm

    Newborn babies have no day-night rhythm. In the uterus they are under the influence of their mother’s circadian cycle.



    Read more:
    Babies don’t need sleep coaches – but sometimes their parents do

    After birth, their own day-night rhythm takes several months to appear, and to begin with they sleep equally across day and night. Because it responds to external triggers such as daylight, noise and activity, you can support the development of your baby’s circadian rhythm by starting daytime activities around them at a regular time (opening curtains, making noise etc) every morning. Taking babies outside in the daylight in the first half of the day also helps their body-clock to become attuned to daylight and nighttime.

    4. Sleeping for longer

    Over time all babies begin to spend a bit more time sleeping at night. This is called “consolidation of sleep into night-time”, and babies will begin sleeping for longer periods between feeds as they get older. But babies often still wake in the night well into the second half of their first year – sometimes this is because they are still night-feeding, but in other cases they just need to know you are nearby. A third of babies who were studied in a New Zealand research study had never slept through the night by the time they were 12 months old.

    5. Sleep consolidation

    As babies consolidate more of their sleep into the nighttime they will begin to sleep less during the day. You can support this process by avoiding daytime naps in silent darkened rooms, keeping sleeping babies in the daylight and in midst of household noise and activity for daytime naps, or napping on the go. This prevents babies from taking prolonged naps and keeps their sleep pressure rising until the nighttime, which also helps with sleep consolidation.



    Read more:
    What’s really going on when a child is ‘overtired’ – and how to help them go to sleep

    When you understand and work with your baby’s sleep biology it is unnecessary to try to train your baby how to sleep at night. Just be aware that throughout the first year and beyond, baby humans remain helpless baby mammals who need you for physical contact, comfort and safety. Their need to be close to you is vital for their survival.

    Helen L. Ball has received funding from NIHR, ESRC, Lullaby Trust, Scottish Government, Northern Accelerator, Durham County Council, Northumberland County Council, and Durham University. She is currently affiliated with Lullaby Trust and Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative in voluntary roles.

    – ref. Five things new parents should know about their baby’s sleep – https://theconversation.com/five-things-new-parents-should-know-about-their-babys-sleep-256282

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Crop Report for the Period May 20 to May 26, 2025

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Released on May 29, 2025

    Producers made significant progress again this week, with seeding now 88 per cent complete in Saskatchewan. This is ahead of the five-year average of 82 per cent and the 10-year average of 85 per cent. Topsoil moisture is showing some slight decline due to warm windy conditions.

    The southwest is the furthest advanced in seeding progress at 95 per cent complete. This is followed closely by the west-central region at 94 per cent, the northwest region at 93 per cent and the northeast region at 92 per cent. The east-central and southeast regions are the furthest behind at 81 per cent and 80 per cent respectively. 

    Provincially, seeding progress is the furthest ahead for field peas and lentils at 98 per cent and 95 per cent complete, respectively. Chickpeas are reported at 91 per cent, while soybeans are only at 48 per cent. For cereal crops, triticale is the furthest ahead at 94 per cent. Durum and spring wheat are both 93 per cent. Barley is at 89 per cent followed by oats at 79 per cent and canary seed is at 75 per cent. For oilseeds, mustard is 92 per cent followed by canola at 83 per cent and flax at 73 per cent. Perennial forages are at 55 per cent complete.

    Rainfall was variable across the province with some producers in the southeast regions experiencing increased amounts. The highest reported rainfall was in the Weyburn area at 66 millimetres (mm). The Griffin and Indian Head areas received 20 mm, and the Browning area received 18 mm.

    Overall, topsoil moisture is showing some slight reductions over the past week due to dry and windy conditions. Cropland topsoil moisture is four per cent surplus, 65 per cent adequate and 27 per cent short. Hayland topsoil moisture is two per cent surplus, 59 per cent adequate and 31 per cent short. Pasture topsoil moisture is very similar with one per cent surplus, 56 per cent adequate, 33 per cent short and two per cent very short.

    Most producers are reporting normal crop development across the province. Fall cereals are currently rated at 89 per cent normal crop development for this time of year with seven per cent ahead and four per cent behind normal. Spring cereals are estimated to be 73 per cent normal with 13 per cent ahead and 14 per cent behind. Pulse crops are rated at 76 per cent normal crop development with 10 per cent ahead and 14 per cent behind. Oilseeds are at 73 per cent normal with seven per cent ahead and 20 per cent behind normal development. Perennial forage is 79 per cent normal crop development with six per cent ahead and 15 per cent behind. Annual forage is indicated at 77 per cent normal crop development while 10 per cent is ahead and 13 per cent is behind.

    Crop damage was minor with a few producers reporting some damage due to heat, wind and dry conditions. Flooding and frost were also noted as causing minor damage in some areas of the province. Flea beetle, wireworm and cutworm activity has been noted, with some producers taking control measures. Some regions have observed grasshoppers hatching but current reports of crop damage are few.

    Most producers anticipate that seeding will wrap up within the next week if weather permits. Producers are also busy moving cattle to pasture, spraying and land rolling.

    As producers continue with seeding and field work operations, they are encouraged to take safety precautions in all the work that they do. The Farm Stress Line can help by providing support for producers toll free at 1-800-667-4442.

    A complete, printable version of the Crop Report is available online – Download Crop Report.

    Follow the 2025 Crop Report on Twitter at @SKAgriculture.

    For more information, contact:

    Kim Stonehouse
    Agriculture
    Tisdale
    Phone: 306-878-8807
    Email: kim.stonehouse@gov.sk.ca

    -30-

    For more information, contact:

    MIL OSI Canada News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Investing in New York’s Canal System

    Source: US State of New York

    overnor Kathy Hochul today announced New York State is continuing to invest in the New York State Canal system through a $50 million allocation in the FY 2026 Enacted Budget as the Erie Canal’s Bicentennial navigation season begins. The capital funding secured through the state, the second in two years, builds upon the annual investment into the waterway’s core operation and maintenance by the New York Power Authority and New York State Canal Corporation, and supports the vision put forth by the Canal Recreationway Commission in the recently published Canal Recreationway 2050 Plan.

    “Governor DeWitt Clinton may have been the one to take credit for bringing the Erie Canal to life, but I’d like to take credit for keeping it thriving 200 years later by providing unprecedented funding to ensure the Canal system remains safe, operable, and a driver of tourism and economic activity,” Governor Hochul said. “By supporting the Canal system’s essential infrastructure, some of which dates back to the 19th century, we’re ensuring this network of waterways and trails will continue to positively support those who come to recreate and do business here, and the more than 200 upstate New York communities that thrive within the Canal corridor.”

    The $50 million appropriation in the FY 2026 Enacted Budget includes funding to support the rehabilitation of 19th century reservoir dams, a high-hazard earthen embankment dam that retains water above an adjacent community, and aging steel gates and other water control structures along the Canal system that are designed to protect downstream life and property. This investment in the canal’s principal infrastructure ensures the waterway is resilient, supports the diverse needs of the communities it passes through, and continues to be a driver of economic development as it begins its third century of operation.

    New York Power Authority Board of Trustees Chairman John Koelmel said, “We have been making historic investments in the Canal system to ensure its infrastructure is resilient; its programming is innovative and engaging; and that all of our efforts allow this waterway to remain in continuous operation for the next two centuries. We are working toward having a Canal System that is a vibrant, sustainable resource for New Yorkers and beyond.”

    New York Power Authority President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll said, “We are committed to transforming the Erie Canal into a model of sustainable infrastructure that honors its rich history and secures its place in a thriving, resilient, and inclusive future for its next two centuries of use.”

    2025 marks the 201st consecutive season of navigation along the Canal system and the bicentennial of the opening of the original Erie Canal on October 26, 1825. Supported by the Erie Canal Bicentennial Commission, the canal corridor from Albany to Buffalo will be bustling with events this year ranging from concerts to festivals to theater performances and more. As communities and organizations come together to commemorate this milestone, information on all of these happenings can be found on an interactive calendar hosted by the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor. The link to the calendar can be found here.

    Erie Canal Bicentennial Commission Co-Chair and First Gentleman William J. Hochul Jr. said, “I have spent countless hours traversing the New York State Canal system and have enjoyed every minute. It has been a high honor to work on commemorative activities celebrating the remarkable history of the Canals, while also preparing the way for the future. As we kick off the 2025 navigation season, I can’t wait to see all our efforts, which have been many months in the making, come to life across the many cities and towns that share access to the Canals.”

    New York State Canal Corporation Director and Erie Canal Bicentennial Commission Co-Chair Brian U. Stratton said, “We have been hard at work since 2017, the beginning of this bicentennial period, to ensure we honor this occasion appropriately. Our efforts have ranged from event support to creating a robust blueprint for the next 25 years of Canal operations to putting herculean effort into ensuring our infrastructure is in good, safe working order. The end goal is a thriving Erie Canal that is open for through-navigation, for all of the communities it passes through, and for all of the people who come to recreate here.”

    This July, the two-time GRAMMY award-winning Albany Symphony, in partnership with the New York Power Authority and the New York State Canal Corporation, will perform a free five-part concert series along the Canal system. This musical experience, entitled “Water Music NY,” will be offered in Medina, Seneca Falls, Utica, Fort Plain, and Schuylerville with each concert composed specifically for the host canalside communities. The music series will explore themes of nature, the environment and contemporary communities on the Erie Canal; the food and stories of people from around the world who now call Utica, a premier Erie Canal community, home; music that honors the multi-layered stories of women on the Waterways; Indigenous heritage; and the experience of enslaved people who fought for freedom on the Underground Railroad. This year’s concerts build upon the “Water Music NY: More Voices” program offered last year that focused on exploring underrepresented voices, including those of women, immigrants, people of color and Indigenous peoples.

    Albany Symphony Music Director David Alan Miller said, “As the Erie Canal nears its third century of operation, we are so excited to embark on a grand new adventure with our wonderful partners at the New York State Canal Corporation. In anticipation of the Erie Canal’s momentous bicentennial season, we have engaged five brilliant composers who have immersed themselves in five gorgeous canalside communities and have created visionary new works for our orchestra and community collaborators exploring the vibrant history and culture of our great state. We cannot wait to celebrate with thousands of residents and visitors at free daylong festivals that include delicious food, fun outdoor activities, historical explorations, and family-friendly arts, culminating in fabulous orchestra concerts featuring these dazzling new works. It is our hope that our music will spark dialogue, expand perspectives, and inspire everyone to experience and cherish the beautiful canal system that flows through our state and is so much a part of New York State’s past, present and future.”

    In September, the 2025 World Canals Conference will occur in Buffalo as part of the bicentennial commemoration. This yearly event, held in locations around the world, brings together an international audience of hundreds of canal and inland waterway enthusiasts, professionals and scholars to learn about a variety of topics related to canals. The New York Power Authority, New York State Canal Corporation, and the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, in partnership with the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation and Visit Buffalo Niagara, are the joint sponsors this year and are coordinating all aspects of the conference.

    As the World Canals Conference concludes, the Seneca Chief, a replica of the original Erie Canal boat New York State Governor DeWitt Clinton sailed from Buffalo to New York Harbor in 1825, will begin its journey to recreate that inaugural voyage. The Seneca Chief is scheduled to arrive in New York Harbor on October 26, the official anniversary of the completion of the Erie Canal. Created and built by the Buffalo Maritime Center, the project has been heralded as one of the largest community-based boatbuilding endeavors in the world. The Seneca Chief will make stops in communities across the Erie Canal and Hudson River, with commemorative events at each stop.

    To ensure a more complete narrative on the Erie Canal’s history and its enduring legacy is told this bicentennial year, the New York Power Authority, New York State Canal Corporation, and WMHT Public Media partnered to create a multi-platform, multi-media initiative, called “Reflections on the Erie Canal,” which launched this spring with the airing of a 10-part weekly documentary series. The series will conclude with an hourlong original documentary, to premier this September at the World Canals Conference in Buffalo. In addition to the documentary series, new content was created for classrooms across New York.

    Last, in honor of the Erie Canal’s bicentennial, the New York State Canal Corporation commissioned artist Dr. Tyler Nordgren to create a poster that captures 200 years of this remarkable waterway, and its future. The image can be found here. Information on how to obtain copies of the full-sized poster will be made available to the public in the coming weeks.

    In addition to the abovementioned efforts, several New York State agencies and businesses are offering Erie Canal Bicentennial themed products, including:

    • New York State Department of Motor Vehicles – Erie Canal Bicentennial License Plate
    • New York State Office of General Services – An Erie Canal themed photo exhibit at the Empire State Plaza in Albany
    • New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets – Erie Canal themed displays at the 2025 Great New York State Fair
    • New York State Division of the Lottery – Plans are in the works for something special, to be announced this summer
    • Saratoga Springs based Stewart’s Shops – “Minted in 1825” ice cream available at participating locations throughout the Capital Region, Mohawk Valley and Syracuse area
    • Buffalo based Big Ditch Brewing Company – An Erie Canal themed beer will be available soon at select locations in Western NY where Big Ditch is sold

    New York State Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley said, “Throughout its history, the Erie Canal generated and grew canal-based cities, and opened our state and nation to endless economic possibilities. As we mark the 201st consecutive navigation season of the Erie Canal and prepare for bicentennial celebrations coming this fall, I’m excited to see how our Canal communities will continue to use their unique heritage and history as a catalyst for future growth and redevelopment.”

    Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, “Two hundred years after its opening, the Erie Canal is still a driver of tourism and economic activity. As we commemorate the Bicentennial this summer, there are many opportunities for visitors to learn about the canal, whether experiencing the exciting ‘Waterway of Change’ exhibit at Canalside in Buffalo, following the Seneca Chief’s journey across New York State or listening to community concerts set to historically inspired scores. Thanks to Governor Hochul and to investments in the Erie Canal’s infrastructure, this iconic waterway will be celebrated for the next 200 years.”

    Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Commissioner Pro Tem Randy Simons said, “As we celebrate the bicentennial of the Erie Canal, we honor a legacy that transformed New York State and the nation. Exploring the Canal offers a unique journey through America’s early history and innovation as the Canal continues to connect people through its scenic trails, vibrant waterways, and historic towns. The 200th anniversary serves as a reminder of the enduring value of preserving our heritage while embracing the recreational, cultural, and historic destination the Canal provides for future generations to come.”

    New York State Historian Devin Lander said, “The building of the Erie Canal was a complex and momentous undertaking. It involved thousands of laborers and dozens of engineers and resulted in a public works project beyond anything the nation had seen at the time. It opened New York State to the west and opened the west to America. When it was all said and done, it can be said that the Empire State was born on the back of a canal boat.”

    Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Executive Director Bob Radliff said, “The Erie Canal transformed New York State and had a profound impact on the nation. We hope this auspicious anniversary year invites everyone to explore New York’s extraordinary canal heritage and enjoy all that the waterway has to offer today.”

    State Senator Jeremy Cooney said, “200 years on the Erie Canal! This bicentennial celebration is an opportunity to reflect on the history of the canal, the role it played in the building of our community, and the impact it still has every day on tourism and navigation. I want to thank Governor Hochul for her continued commitment towards promoting the canal’s history and recreation throughout canal communities.”

    Assemblymember Bill Magnarelli said, “The Erie Canal is an iconic historical feature of the Central New York region. The Governor’s investment in the Erie Canal will help it continue to be a factor in our state’s tourism, economic development and future history.”

    The New York State Canal system will operate daily this navigation season through Monday, November 3, 2025.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warren, MA Delegation Sound Alarm on Trump Admin Attacks on International Students at Harvard and Nationwide

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts – Elizabeth Warren
    May 29, 2025
    Letter follows recent DHS attempts to terminate Harvard’s ability to enroll international students on F-1 and J-1 visas
    Massachusetts hosts over 80,000 international students, who contribute almost $4 billion to state economy and support over 35,000 jobs in the state
    “The Administration’s apparent hostility to international students contributes to an overall climate of fear on campuses. This trend creates a chilling effect that discourages the best and brightest students from around the world from coming to study in the United States…” 
    Text of Letter (PDF)
    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) led Massachusetts’ Congressional delegation in pressing Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons on the Trump Administration’s attacks on international students, particularly last week’s attempt to terminate Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students on F-1 and J-1 visas. 
    The letter was signed by U.S. Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.), along with Representatives Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), and Bill Keating (D-Mass.).
    “As members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation, we are gravely concerned about the Trump Administration’s attacks on international students,” wrote the lawmakers. “This trend has been particularly damaging for Massachusetts, which is home to one of largest concentrations of higher education institutions and hosts over 80,000 international students, who contribute almost $4 billion to the state’s economy and support over 35,000 jobs in the state.”
    Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) revoked Harvard’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), the system that allows the university to admit international students — not only blocking Harvard’s ability to enroll new international students, but also interfering with current international students’ ability to legally remain. In effect, this action would allow DHS to arrest, detain, and deport international students who remain at Harvard. Shortly thereafter, a federal judge temporarily enjoined DHS from enforcing the revocation.
    “This attack on Harvard and its international students appears to be an attempt to punish the university for not agreeing to the Trump Administration’s April 2025 demands,” wrote the lawmakers.
    This is the latest in the Trump Administration’s long pattern of attacks on international students nationwide. Starting in March, the Administration effectively terminated the legal status of over 4,700 international students across at least 48 states and 160 colleges. Often without notice to students or their universities, ICE terminated students’ records in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) — records that are “functionally equivalent to having lawful student status” — which exposed students to the “risk of arrest, detention, or removal.” The State Department also revoked many visas, adding to widespread confusion about students’ legal status.
    “While DHS and the State Department claimed to target those with a criminal history or history of engaging in campus protests,  some of the impacted students had neither, and in many cases, there was ‘no obvious cause for the revocations,’” wrote the lawmakers.
    International students in Massachusetts and nationwide continue to face serious threats, even beyond Harvard’s campus, including: ICE expanding its authority for terminating SEVIS records; not restoring — or re-terminating — students’ legal status; and leaving problematic gaps in records of students’ legal status. Some students who left the country after their visas or records were suspended face significant hurdles to returning. This week, the State Department reportedly ordered its overseas embassies and consulates to stop scheduling any international student visa interviews, causing serious delays.
    “The Administration’s apparent hostility to international students contributes to an overall climate of fear on campuses. This trend creates a chilling effect that discourages the best and brightest students from around the world from coming to study in the United States — which harms not only current and prospective international students, but also American universities, U.S. citizen students on campuses, and, in the long term, the nation’s prosperity and economic growth,” concluded the lawmakers.

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Warren Presses Trump Trade Officials’ Prioritizing Big Tech-Friendly Trade Deals at Expense of Everyday Americans

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts – Elizabeth Warren
    May 29, 2025
    “The White House’s negotiations so far appear to be focused on securing advantages for Trump and his tech billionaire friends, rather than for American families.”
    “I am gravely concerned renegotiated trade deals will be used to advance Big Tech’s anti-consumer agenda while doing nothing to promote U.S. manufacturing or help American workers.”
    Text of Letter (PDF)
    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) wrote to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer, raising concerns that the Trump Administration is using bilateral trade negotiations to advance the interests of Big Tech monopolists at the expense of everyday Americans.
    “Big Tech firms have long sought to use trade deals to undermine pro-consumer, pro-competition policies,” wrote Senator Warren. “And now, given their massive donations to President Trump’s inauguration committee, the prime seats given to their CEOs at his inaugural address, and their success in lobbying for exemptions from the Administration’s chaotic tariff policy, I am gravely concerned renegotiated trade deals will be used to advance Big Tech’s anti-consumer agenda while doing nothing to promote U.S. manufacturing or help American workers.
    Last month, the Trump Administration announced indiscriminate “reciprocal” tariffs on most countries, causing consumer confidence to plummet and the U.S. economy to shrink for the first time in three years. To deflect from this economic chaos, President Trump temporarily reduced the tariff rates and claimed that the unprecedented tariffs were a bargaining chip to bring other nations to the negotiating table — where the United States could renegotiate deals to eliminate “tariff rates and non-tariff barriers.” As a result, the Administration is engaged in new trade negotiations with dozens of countries around the world.
    Big Tech appears to be continuing its years-long campaign to use trade negotiations to advance its own interests — now with a boost from the Trump Administration. During his announcement of the reciprocal tariff regime, President Trump held up the 2025 National Trade Estimates report as his “special book” on non-tariff trade barriers. The 2025 report included as targets — potentially at Big Tech’s behest — several tech-related pro-consumer and pro-competition policies. Last month, USTR tweeted a list of “10 unfair digital trade practices” to target for elimination, including the European Union’s Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act and other policies that Big Tech had urged USTR to target. The State Department is also pressing the European Union to roll back tech regulations.
    “The White House’s negotiations so far appear to be focused on securing advantages for Trump and his tech billionaire friends, rather than for American families,” wrote Senator Warren. 
    Big Tech has long tried to shape international trade agreements to include provisions that could threaten American laws and regulations that protect workers, consumers, and small businesses. Sen. Warren previously pressed the issue with the Biden administration.
    “Big Tech companies have already successfully used their influence to secure special exemptions from tariffs and hide the true cost of President Trump’s chaotic trade policies,” wrote Senator Warren. “Now, these same companies are poised to exploit trade negotiations to thwart much-needed regulations at home and abroad. While small businesses and households continue to bear the brunt of the Administration’s punishing trade policy, the wealthiest Americans and largest corporations stand to benefit.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • India in touch with Iranian authorities to locate missing nationals: MEA on three Indians missing in Iran

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    India is in regular contact with Iranian authorities to trace three Indian nationals who have gone missing in Iran, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday, adding that it is receiving “good cooperation” from the Iranian side.

    MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, addressing a media briefing in New Delhi, said the government is also in constant communication with the families of the missing individuals and is providing them with all possible assistance.

    “The three Indian nationals who had landed there some time ago are missing, and we are in touch with the Iranian authorities to locate them for their safety, security, and eventual return home,” Jaiswal said. “We are in daily contact with the authorities there. We are also in touch with the families. Understandably, they are anxious, and we are doing our best to assist them.”

    Asked whether the MEA was aware of similar incidents reported in recent months, including ransom calls allegedly originating from Pakistan, Jaiswal clarified that the current case involves individuals who traveled to Iran earlier this month.

    “February was a different issue,” he said. “What we are discussing now pertains to three Indian nationals who recently traveled to Iran in May.”

    The Indian Embassy in Iran had earlier confirmed that it was aware of the case and had taken up the matter strongly with local authorities. In a statement posted on X, the embassy said, “Family members of three Indian citizens have informed the Embassy of India that their relatives are missing after having travelled to Iran. The Embassy has strongly taken up this matter with the Iranian authorities and requested that the missing Indians be urgently traced and their safety ensured.”

    The embassy also said it is keeping the families regularly updated on the status of its efforts.

    (ANI)

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sherrill Attends Ribbon Cutting for Green Affordable Housing Development, After Securing Millions In Federal Funding for the Project

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11)

    LIVINGSTON, NJ — Yesterday, Representative Mikie Sherrill attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for The Forum at Madison, a first-of-its-kind energy-efficient affordable housing project in New Jersey—which received over $2 million in Community Project Funding in FY2023.

    These 44 rental apartments are not only affordable, they are also a landmark for clean energy in the Garden State. This is the first multi-family affordable housing development in New Jersey to meet Passive House and Net Zero Energy standards. That means lower utility bills for families, reduced carbon emissions, and a healthier, more resilient community.

    “Projects like this don’t happen in a vacuum. They happen because of strong local leadership, deep collaboration, and a shared commitment to ensure families in our community have a place to call home,” said Rep. Sherrill. “’I’m proud that we were able to bring back New Jerseyans’ hard-earned tax dollars to secure funding for this Community Project. Housing that is affordable plays a crucial role in easing the financial burden on middle-class families, making it possible for them to keep more of what they’ve earned and invest in their futures.”

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI USA: Isabelle’s Kitchen Inc. Recalls Refrigerated Deli Salads Containing Fresh Cucumbers Because of Possible Health Risk

    Source: US Department of Health and Human Services – 3

    Summary

    Company Announcement Date:
    May 28, 2025
    FDA Publish Date:
    May 29, 2025
    Product Type:
    Food & BeveragesFoodborne Illness
    Reason for Announcement:

    Recall Reason Description
    Potential to be contaminated with Salmonella

    Company Name:
    Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc.
    Brand Name:

    Brand Name(s)
    Kings, Isabelle’s Kitchen Inc., Maple Avenue Foods

    Product Description:

    Product Description
    Salads containing fresh cucumbers.

    Company Announcement
    Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc., Harleysville, PA, is recalling 946 cases of refrigerated deli salads containing fresh cucumbers recalled by Bedner Grower’s, Inc. because they have potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis, and arthritis.
    The recalled refrigerated deli salads were sold to foodservice distributors in the following states: New Hampshire, Florida, Maryland, South Carolina, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia and local supermarkets. Any repacked items sold at the supermarket level may not carry the same sell by date as identified on the original package, but would not exceed the original manufacture sell by date.
    The product is packed in a white plastic container inside a white or brown corrugated box under the brand names “Isabelle’s Kitchen,” “Maple Avenue Foods,” or “Kings.” Recalled product is identified by the Item Number located on the top right of the white product label, and by the Julian code date located on the right side of the “Use-By” sticker.
    Example of a Use By sticker: (See Image Below)
    The following table identifies the item name, manufacture date and use by date:

    Item #4605 Kings

    Kings Greek Pasta Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: June 1, 2025

    Item #5002B

    IKI Greek Pasta Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: June 1, 2025

    Item #5002B

    IKI Greek Pasta Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 135

    Use by: June 2, 2025

    Item #5007B

    MAF Mediterranean Pasta Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: May 30, 2025

    Item #5007B

    MAF Mediterranean Pasta Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: May 31, 2025

    Item #8015B

    MAF Crunchy Wheatberry Salad

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: June 1, 2025

    Item #8031

    MAF Quinoa Tabouli

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: May 30, 2025

    Item #8031

    MAF Quinoa Tabouli

    Mfg date Julian code 135

    Use by: May 31, 2025

    Item #8103KT

    Powerhouse Wheatberry Salad Kit

    Mfg date Julian code 134

    Use by: May 27, 2025

    Item #8103KT

    Powerhouse Wheatberry Salad Kit

    Mfg date Julian code 135

    Use by: May 28, 2025

    Item #8103KT

    Powerhouse Wheatberry Salad Kit

    Mfg date Julian code 136

    Use by: May 29, 2025

    Only products listed above with the indicated Julian codes dates are being recalled. No other items manufactured by Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc. are impacted by this recall.
    No known illnesses have been associated with the recalled products to date. All raw cucumbers are washed & treated as a processing step.
    Our firm was notified by our produce supplier that seven (7) cases of raw whole cucumbers received by Isabelle’s Kitchen are being recalled by Bedner Growers, Inc. (https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/bedner-growers-inc-recalls-cucumbers-because-possible-health-risk) and have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. These recalled cucumbers were processed and used in production on May 14 and May 15, 2025.
    All distributors and customers have been notified of the recall. They have been instructed to cease sale/distribution of the recalled products, to remove recalled products from store shelves and/or warehouse locations, to destroy recalled products, and to notify consumers that were sold/may have been sold these recalled products.
    Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume the products and to immediately discard any uneaten recalled product or return to the store for a refund. Consumers who have purchased the recalled products may obtain additional information by contacting Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc. at 800-355-7252 (8AM to 5PM EST). Consumers with health concerns should consult directly with their health care providers.
    Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc. is conducting this recall in coordination with the FDA.
    Link to FDA Outbreak Advisory

    Company Contact Information

    Consumers:
    Isabelle’s Kitchen, Inc.
    800-355-7252

    Product Photos

    Content current as of:
    05/29/2025

    Regulated Product(s)

    Topic(s)

    Follow FDA

    MIL OSI USA News –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Economics: App Store in the U.S. facilitated $406B in developer billings and sales in 2024

    Source: Apple

    Headline: App Store in the U.S. facilitated $406B in developer billings and sales in 2024

    May 29, 2025

    UPDATE

    App Store in the U.S. facilitated over $400 billion in developer billings and sales in 2024

    For more than 90 percent of billings and sales facilitated by the App Store, developers did not pay any commission to Apple

    Earnings of U.S. developers more than doubled in the last five years

    Apple today announced the App Store ecosystem in the U.S. facilitated $406 billion in developer billings and sales in 2024, according to a study conducted by Professor Andrey Fradkin from Boston University Questrom School of Business and economist Dr. Jessica Burley from Analysis Group. Importantly, for more than 90 percent of the billings and sales facilitated by the App Store, developers did not pay any commission to Apple.

    Over the last five years, the size of the App Store ecosystem has nearly tripled from $142 billion in 2019 to $406 billion last year, and earnings for U.S.-based developers also more than doubled. Small developers in particular have done exceptionally well as their earnings increased by 76 percent between 2021 and 2024.

    “For more than 15 years, the App Store has created incredible opportunity for app developers, entrepreneurs, and businesses of all sizes,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “That includes the many U.S. developers who are innovating, building their businesses, and finding exceptional success on the App Store. We’ll continue to invest in powerful tools, technology, and resources to help developers in the U.S. and around the world take their apps to new heights and create transformative experiences for users.”

    Strong Growth Across App Categories

    Since its launch in 2008, the App Store has been a great business opportunity for developers. The new study estimates that in 2024 the App Store ecosystem facilitated $277 billion in total billings and sales from physical goods and services, $75 billion from in-app advertising, and $53 billion from digital goods and services. Key drivers included growth in food and grocery delivery, entertainment, and enterprise apps. And the App Store continues to be a global launchpad for innovation, with AI-powered apps increasingly shaping users’ daily lives.

    Since 2019, spending on physical goods and services has more than tripled, while in-app spending on digital goods and services and in-app advertising more than doubled. In the physical goods and services category, general retail spending and grocery delivery increased more than fourfold. By 2024, spending on travel and food delivery and pickup both surpassed ride hailing, with users increasingly turning to apps to book travel, and restaurants increasingly offering delivery options through apps. U.S. developers also saw their earnings grow across top categories like productivity, education, and business, with the games category seeing the highest earnings in 2024.

    Global Reach for U.S. Developers

    U.S. developers have also found tremendous success globally, with the ability to list their apps on storefronts in 175 countries and regions. The support of the App Store’s seamless payment and commerce system has made it easy for these developers to monetize their apps in the U.S. and around the world. Many apps from U.S. developers have also appeared on the most-downloaded app charts in storefronts outside of the U.S. and ranked among the Top 5 most-downloaded apps in 170 out of 175 App Store storefronts.

    The App Store remains a safe and trusted marketplace for users, thanks to Apple’s rigorous App Review process and robust privacy and security protections. In a recent report, Apple found that the App Store prevented more than $9 billion in fraudulent transactions over the last five years, and it also rejected 1.9 million app submissions in 2024 for failing to meet Apple’s standards for security, reliability, and user experience.

    Developers in the U.S. Have an Increasing Number of Incredible Resources Available from Apple

    Apple continues to invest in App Store features that make it easier for developers to distribute their apps and games and get discovered across the storefront. This includes continued investments to App Store Connect, which provides developers with tools and technologies to track app performance and engagement through App Analytics, enhancements to StoreKit, custom product pages, and new features like App Store Accessibility Nutrition Labels, available to developers later this year.

    Designed to accelerate innovation and help propel app businesses forward, initiatives like the App Store Small Business Program support the next generation of groundbreaking apps by small developers like Slopes. Originally launched as a passion project by a solo developer, Slopes has now achieved international success and is trusted by over 5 million skiers and snowboarders. This app is designed for winter sports enthusiasts, enabling them to track and record their personal stats, locate friends on the mountain, and explore interactive resort maps. The team behind Slopes has integrated with many Apple technologies, including HealthKit, Live Activities, and ARKit, as well as expanding to Apple Watch.

    Apple also offers developers a variety of online and in-person programs to support them in elevating their apps, including Meet with Apple. The Apple Developer Center in Cupertino also serves as home to year-round activities, and offers a supportive environment for developers to improve their apps through more than 250,000 APIs including as part of frameworks such as HealthKit, Metal, Core ML, MapKit, and SwiftUI. Resources like Pathways and Apple Developer Forums are available to better connect developers within the community and help them easily access tools, documentation, and videos to create their best products on Apple’s platforms.

    Apple launched its first U.S.-based Apple Developer Academy in Detroit in 2021 in collaboration with Michigan State University to help students build foundational skills in coding, AI, design, and marketing. Since its launch, the academy has trained over 1,200 students. Separately, more than 900 students have also participated in the Apple Foundation Program, an intensive four-week course that teaches students the fundamentals of app development at the academy and Henry Ford College.

    Apple supports more than 2.9 million jobs across the U.S. through direct employment, work with U.S.-based suppliers and manufacturers, and developer jobs in the thriving iOS app economy.

    Press Contacts

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    media.help@apple.com

    MIL OSI Economics –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Global: Choosing to be an orphan: for some Kenyan families it’s a strategy for survival

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Andreana Prichard, Associate Professor of Honors and African History, University of Oklahoma

    In the world of international child development and orphan care, it’s not uncommon for children with families to declare themselves orphans. In fact, this practice can be traced back to precolonial times in Kenya.

    Andreana Prichard has done research on the practice in Kenya. We asked her to share her insights into it.

    Why do some people in Kenya assume the identity of ‘orphan’?

    We often think of “orphans” as children who have lost both parents and who lack kin networks. One might ask why someone would “opt in” to orphan status when they do not fall within the classical definition of the term.

    In my paper I look at the issue of orphanhood over the last 160 years. Case studies from Kenya I examine illustrate that the practice I define as “opting in” to orphanhood has precolonial roots. I define “opting in” as choosing to take on the label of being an orphan. This can be done by parents, relatives or even, in some instances, the child. This is because the label “orphan” has come to confer unique opportunities.

    The practice became increasingly popular in the mid-1990s, when parents in eastern and southern Africa who had contracted HIV began to die in large numbers. Activists feared many children would be left without caregivers.

    In response, the number of orphanages proliferated as humanitarian actors, churches and states inundated east Africa with orphan-focused NGOs.

    In 2020, officials in Kenya estimated that there were at least 910 residential institutions for children in the country (of which 581 were registered), housing between 26,198 and 85,733 Kenyan children.

    The predicted “orphan crisis” never materialised, partly because families and communities stepped in to care for newly parentless children. But the idea of an “orphan crisis” remained, and so did the funding and infrastructure.

    This phenomenon occurred across the continent, not just in Kenya. However, its effects were felt particularly acutely in eastern and southern Africa where HIV/Aids prevalence rates were higher and where there was more western tourism.

    Today, many African families see orphan-focused NGOs as a path to access education and improve their lives. My research shows that children themselves sometimes affiliate with an institution that provides shelter, food and schooling. Children facing abuse from caregivers may also prefer the relative anonymity and safety of an institution.

    In some cases, receiving orphan services actually raises the status of the “orphan” child above that of other children. They have access to more material resources than they might have had in their villages or at home. They might have more leisure time and less work. They may have access to better bedding, shoes and clothing. They are also likely able to attend school more consistently and have a real opportunity to attend university.

    Does ‘opting in’ have a long history?

    Yes, it does.

    In the precolonial period, most parentless or vulnerable children were cared for through lasting community support systems. Orphanhood, as it exists today as a child lacking support, protection, or care from kin, was largely avoided.

    However, the late 19th to mid-20th centuries brought new actors to the east African region. The practice of “opting in” became a strategic, temporary option used by families to access services from western humanitarians.

    The earliest example of this shift I found in my research is from the 1890s. Fearing their children would be caught in the Indian Ocean slave trade, African parents sometimes chose to send their children to British missions until the region was safe. They knew the missionaries opposed the slave trade and knew they offered food and medical care.

    African parents thought they were making temporary arrangements to keep their children safe. Missionaries, however, understood parents to have abandoned their children. When parents returned to repay the debt – with agricultural produce or trade goods – and to reclaim their children, missionaries refused them.

    In another example from Kenya in the 1950s, the British colonial government opened “reform schools” for young men. The Wamumu Approved School was renowned for the relative quality of education it provided. But the state admitted only the “most vulnerable” for a free education. Feeling they had no way to access Wamumu, students claimed to be orphans.

    What have been the negative effects of Kenya’s orphan system?

    There are several problems with creating a situation in which people present themselves as vulnerable just to gain safety or improve their social and economic standing.

    First, research has shown that building orphanages in poor communities incentivises parents to abandon their children if they’re not also given the help to remain together.

    Second, research shows that children are often put at risk in these institutions. Institutionalisation exposes children to risks such as sexual abuse, gender-based violence and neglect.

    Third, orphanages have become so lucrative that African orphanage owners will go to great lengths to fit African children into the categories westerners wish to fund. The phenomenon of “paper orphans” is a prime example. “Paper orphans” are children who are recruited from their homes by proprietors (or middlemen/brokers) of orphanages and residential-care facilities. Fraudulent documentation is created for them – often including false death certificates of parents and new identity registration documents – rendering them orphans on paper, and vulnerable in practice.

    What should be done?

    Governments in Europe, Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean are trying to phase out orphanages, as are some African countries.

    Based on my research I believe that working with families to support vulnerable children in their homes of origin or with extended families is a better option. This can be done through assistance programmes for vulnerable families as well as child welfare programmes. These allow families to remain intact when experiencing hardship.

    Kenya is taking steps to do this by replacing orphanages and other forms of residential children’s homes with family-based, foster and community-based care and other forms of assistance. Family strengthening approaches include positive parenting instruction, life skills training, and income-generating activities, as well as supportive supervision.

    In addition to this, missionary and voluntourism trips to orphanages and residential care facilities should be banned or limited.

    Andreana Prichard received funding from the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Grant.

    – ref. Choosing to be an orphan: for some Kenyan families it’s a strategy for survival – https://theconversation.com/choosing-to-be-an-orphan-for-some-kenyan-families-its-a-strategy-for-survival-247371

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Global: Mbare Art Space: a colonial beer hall in Zimbabwe has become a vibrant arts centre

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tinashe Mushakavanhu, Research Associate, University of Oxford

    In southern Africa townships were built as segregated urban zones for black people. They were created under colonial and white minority rule policies that controlled movement, confined opportunity, and kept people apart.

    I grew up in a different historic black township in Zimbabwe, but Mbare was the first of its kind. It holds a unique place in the nation’s imagination.

    Mbare was originally named Harare. But in 1982 that name was reassigned to the capital city that houses it. In its storied past, it was once the heartbeat of black urban life. At its centre is Rufaro Stadium, where Bob Marley and the Wailers famously performed at Zimbabwe’s independence celebrations.

    The township was a hub of cultural energy, sports, and political activism, and the community beer hall served as a vital gathering point. Today, many of these beer halls stand derelict.

    These once-thriving communal spaces reflect a broader neglect of civic infrastructure in post-independence Zimbabwe. Yet out of these ruins, new life is taking shape.

    One of the most influential figures in Zimbabwe’s artist-run spaces movement, Moffat Takadiwa, has transformed one of these former beer halls into the Mbare Art Space. The dynamic arts hub reclaims the building’s original spirit of gathering, creativity and public engagement.

    Operating under a long lease from the Harare City Council, this nonprofit initiative is part of a wider urban renewal and adaptive reuse project aimed at reimagining the city’s cultural infrastructure.

    My ongoing work in archival research includes mapping and visiting historical and cultural spaces like this. Here Takadiwa saw the potential for not just studios and an exhibition venue, but also for dialogue and community regeneration.

    Transforming spaces

    Beer halls were established by British colonial authorities in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) as part of a strategy of social control over the African urban population. They were designed to regulate leisure, restrict political organising and generate revenue through the sale of alcohol. By centralising drinking in state-run facilities, colonial administrators aimed to monitor and contain African social life while profiting from it.

    Situated in a repurposed colonial-era beer garden, Mbare Art Space turns a former site of segregation into a vibrant centre of artistic and communal revival. It redefines a legacy of constraint and control as one of creative freedom and empowerment. The place is now an artists’ haven with studios, office space, an exhibition hall and a digital hub.

    Takadiwa’s vision is informed by global precedents, notably inspired by US artist Theaster Gates, whose work includes the transformation of a derelict bank on Chicago’s South Side. It became the Stony Island Arts Bank – a hybrid space for art, archives and community engagement.

    Takadiwa opened Mbare Art Space in 2019 with a vision to support emerging artists through mentorship and access to resources. True to his artistic philosophy – resurrecting abandoned, often overlooked materials suffering the effects of urban decay – he revitalised a neglected site. Most of the artists working from this space follow his lead, upcycling and recycling found materials into compelling visual forms that speak to both history and possibility.

    When I arrive, Takadiwa is on his way out, but offers me a quick tour of his studio, where works in progress for his upcoming participation in the São Paulo Biennale are taking shape.

    Known for his lush, densely layered sculptures and tapestry-like works made from found objects – computer keyboards, bottle tops, toothbrushes, and toothpaste tubes – Takadiwa has garnered international acclaim. His works are collected by US rapper Jay-Z and major institutions like the Centre National d’Art Plastique in Paris, the European Parliament’s art collection in Brussels, and the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Harare.

    Collaboration

    What Takadiwa is building is not just an arts centre – it’s a new model space rooted in history and responsive to the present. The site itself becomes an ongoing installation, activated by the artists, curators and community members who inhabit it.

    Tafadzwa Chimbumu, the operations manager, takes over the tour, guiding me through the rest of the precinct. The site retains the bones of its beer hall architecture, but it bursts with new life. Colourful murals adorn the walls. Tents draped over smaller buildings animate the exposed brickwork.

    Plans are underway to establish a library here, a resource where researchers and artists can engage with Zimbabwe’s under-documented art history. Much of this history is scattered across archives and unpublished dissertations, rather than in widely available books. The aim is to bring these materials together and make them more accessible to the public.

    Mbare Art Space is also becoming an exciting hub for collaboration and education. Community workshops, for example, are led by resident artists. Local schools take part in art education initiatives. Through community outreach and educational programming, the centre is extending its impact beyond its immediate geography.

    As it looks to the future, Mbare Art Space is focused on expanding its artist-in-residence programme, inviting both local and international artists to immerse themselves in the context of Mbare and Zimbabwe.

    Ultimately, what the space offers is something intangible – a feeling, a memory, a vision of what is possible when history and imagination meet in a shared place.

    Tinashe Mushakavanhu 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.

    – ref. Mbare Art Space: a colonial beer hall in Zimbabwe has become a vibrant arts centre – https://theconversation.com/mbare-art-space-a-colonial-beer-hall-in-zimbabwe-has-become-a-vibrant-arts-centre-256528

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Global: A 16th-century Chinese writer spoke of workplace burnout, leaving a blueprint for radical acts of rest

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Jason Wang, Postdoctoral Fellow, Modern Literature and Culture Research Centre, Toronto Metropolitan University

    Gathering at the Orchid Pavilion by Qian Gu, 1560 (Chinese, 1508–ca. 1578), Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Handscroll, ink C. C. Wang Family, Gift of Douglas Dillon, 1980/ MET open collection, CC BY

    We are in the middle of a global workplace burnout epidemic — aptly named the “burnout society” by Korean-German philosopher Byung-Chul Han.

    Four centuries ago, late Ming Dynasty scholar-official Yuan Hongdao (1568–1610) shifted from state administrative work to xiaopin — brief, personal essays celebrating everyday pleasures like gardening, leisurely excursions and long vigils beside a rare blossom.

    The cover of ‘Burnout Society’ by Byung-Chul Han.
    (Stanford U Press)

    Today, his Ming Dynasty-era practice resonates with uncanny urgency within our burnout epidemic.

    Amid the Wanli Emperor’s neglect and escalating bureaucratic infighting in Beijing, Yuan turned away from what today we call a “toxic workplace.”

    Instead, he found refuge in Jiangnan’s landscapes and literary circles. There he exchanged hierarchical pressures, administrative tedium and cut-throat careerism for moments of unhurried attention.

    Yuan’s xiaopin, alongside those of his contemporaries, transformed fleeting sensory moments into radical acts of resilience, suggesting that beauty, not institutions, could outlast empires.

    The Ming Dynasty: A literary rebellion

    The late Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) was an era of contradictions.

    While Europe hurtled toward colonialism and scientific rationalism, China’s Jiangnan region — the fertile Yangtze Delta in today’s Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces — flourished via merchant wealth, global silver trade and a thriving print culture.

    Bookshops lined city streets like modern cafés. They peddled plays, poetry and xiaopin volumes like Meiyou Pavilion of Arts and Leisure (1630) and Sixteen Xiaopin Masters of the Imperial Ming (1633).

    The imperial examination system, a civil service written exam — once a path to prestige — had become a bottleneck. Thousands of scholars languished in bureaucratic limbo, channelling their frustrations and exhaustion into xiaopin’s intimate vignettes.

    Chinese imperial examination candidates gathering around the wall where the results are posted (painting by Qiu Ying, c. 1540)
    (National Palace Museum)

    In his preface to Meiyou Pavilion, editor Zheng Yuanxun (1603–1644) praised the genre’s “flavour beyond flavour, rhythm beyond rhythm” — a poetic nod to its rich sensory detail and subtle musicality — rejecting moralizing orthodox prose by embracing immersive aesthetics.

    Against neo-Confucianism’s rigid hierarchies, xiaopin elevated the private, the ephemeral and the esthetically oblique: a well-brewed pot of tea, the texture of moss on a garden rock and incense wafting through a study.

    Wei Shang, professor of Chinese culture at Columbia University, has noted such playful text flourished among late Ming literati disillusioned with the era’s constraints. The texts reframed idleness and sensory pleasure as subtle dissent within a status-obsessed society.

    When doing less becomes radical

    Long before French poet Charles Baudelaire’s flâneur used dandyism and idle promenades to resist the alienating pace of western modernity, Ming literati like Chen Jiru (1558–1639) and Gao Lian (1573–1620) framed idleness as defiance.

    Drawing on Daoist wu wei (non-action), Gao praised the “crystal clear retreat” that scrubbed the heart of “worldly grime” and cultivated “a tranquil heart and joyful spirit.” For him, human worth lay not in bureaucratic promotions but in savouring tea, listening to crickets or resting against a well-fluffed pillow.

    A hanging scroll, ink on paper of a plum blossom branch by Chen Jiu (1558–1639).
    (Yale University Art Gallery/S. Sidney Kahn, 1959/Christie’s, lot 677, 1983/Bones of Jade, Soul of Ice, 1985), CC BY

    Hung-tai Wang, a cultural historian at Academia Sinica in Taipei, identifies xiaopin as a “leisurely and elegant” esthetic rooted in nature’s rhythms.

    Chen Jiru, a Ming Dynasty-era painter and essayist, embodied this framework by disallowing transactional logic. In one essay, Chen lauds those who possess “poetry without words, serenity without sutras, joy without wine.” In other words, he admired those whose lives resonated through prioritizing lived gestures over abstract ideals.

    The art of living in a disconnected age

    In the late Ming’s burgeoning urban and commercial milieu, xiaopin turned everyday objects into remedies for social isolation.

    In the Jiangnan gardens, late Ming essayists saw landscapes infused with emotion. At the time, essayist Wu Congxian called it “lodging meaning among mountains and rivers:” moonlight turned into icy jade, oar splashes to cosmic echoes.

    Chen Jiru had study rituals — fingering a bronze cauldron, tapping an inkstone — curated what he termed “incense for solitude, tea for clarity, stone for refinement.”

    This cultivation of object-as-presence anticipates American academic Bill Brown’s “thing theory,” where everyday items invite embodied contemplation and challenge the subject-object binary that enables commodification.

    The Ming Dynasty-era scholar-connoisseur, Wen Zhenheng (1585–1645), turned domestic minutiae into philosophical resistance.

    His xiaopin framed everyday choices — snowmelt for tea, rooms facing narrow water, a skiff “like a study adrift” — as rejections of abstraction. Through details like cherries on porcelain or tangerines pickled before ripening, he asserted that value lies in presence, not utility.

    Wen suggests that exhaustion stems not from labour but from disconnection.

    The Garden of the Inept Administrator (Zhuozheng Yuan) by Wen Zhengming, 1551. Wen painted 31 views of the site, each accompanied by a poem and a descriptive note.
    (Gift of Douglas Dillon, 1979/MET open source collection), CC BY

    The burnout rebellions: ‘Tang ping,’ ‘quiet quitting’

    Just as xiaopin turned domestic rituals into resistance, today’s movements recast the mundane as a mode of defiance.

    In April 2021, China’s tang ping (“lying flat”) movement surfaced with a post by former factory worker Luo Huazhong: “Lying flat is justice.” The message was simple and subversive: work had become intolerable, and opting out was not laziness but resistance.

    In a backlash against China’s “996” work model extolled by tech moguls like Jack Ma, tang ping rejects the sacrifice of dignity and mental health for productivity and casts idleness as a quiet revolt against exploitative norms.

    In the West, the COVID-19 pandemic sparked similar reckonings. The “Great Resignation” saw millions leave unfulfilling jobs. And “quiet quitting” rejected unpaid overtime and emotional labour. These movements emerged as a soft refusal of hustle culture.

    As anthropologist David Graeber argues in Bullshit Jobs (2018), the “moral and spiritual damage” inflicted by meaningless work reflects a profound political failure.

    Just like the late Ming literati who poured their lives into a state that repaid them with hollow titles and bureaucratic decay, today’s workers withdraw from institutions that exploit their labour yet treat them as disposable.

    Unlike French philosopher Michel de Montaigne’s introspective self-examination in his Renaissance-era Essays, xiaopin refuses utility. In doing so, it inverts the contemporary self-help trend critiqued by Byung-Chul Han, which co-opts personal “healing” as a form of productivity through neoliberal logic.

    Xiaopin proposes resistance as an existential shift beyond (self-)optimization. Its most radical gesture is not to demand change, but to live as if the system’s demands are irrelevant.

    The revolution of pause

    Xiaopin asks: What is progress without presence? Its fragments — on lotus ponds, summer naps, a cat’s shadow — prove that resistance need not be loud.

    Like Japanese writer Haruki Murakami’s vision of contemporary literature as “space of individual recovery,” the genre shelters us from “hierarchy and efficiency.”

    Here, time is not spent but reclaimed.

    To pause in an age of weaponized ambition is in fact revolt. Tracing a petal’s vein, sipping tea until bitterness fades, lying flat as the machinery of productivity grinds on — these are not acts of shirking reality, but defiant gestures against the systems that feed on our exhaustion. They are affirmations of agency: microcosms where we rehearse what it means to belong to ourselves, and thus, to the world.

    Xiaopin’s revolution awakens in a flicker of attention: a reminder that presence, too, is a language — one that hums beneath the buzz of progress, waiting to be heard.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. A 16th-century Chinese writer spoke of workplace burnout, leaving a blueprint for radical acts of rest – https://theconversation.com/a-16th-century-chinese-writer-spoke-of-workplace-burnout-leaving-a-blueprint-for-radical-acts-of-rest-256651

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Mbare Art Space: a colonial beer hall in Zimbabwe has become a vibrant arts centre

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tinashe Mushakavanhu, Research Associate, University of Oxford

    In southern Africa townships were built as segregated urban zones for black people. They were created under colonial and white minority rule policies that controlled movement, confined opportunity, and kept people apart.

    I grew up in a different historic black township in Zimbabwe, but Mbare was the first of its kind. It holds a unique place in the nation’s imagination.

    Mbare was originally named Harare. But in 1982 that name was reassigned to the capital city that houses it. In its storied past, it was once the heartbeat of black urban life. At its centre is Rufaro Stadium, where Bob Marley and the Wailers famously performed at Zimbabwe’s independence celebrations.

    The old beer hall that today houses artists. Tatenda Kanengoni

    The township was a hub of cultural energy, sports, and political activism, and the community beer hall served as a vital gathering point. Today, many of these beer halls stand derelict.

    These once-thriving communal spaces reflect a broader neglect of civic infrastructure in post-independence Zimbabwe. Yet out of these ruins, new life is taking shape.

    One of the most influential figures in Zimbabwe’s artist-run spaces movement, Moffat Takadiwa, has transformed one of these former beer halls into the Mbare Art Space. The dynamic arts hub reclaims the building’s original spirit of gathering, creativity and public engagement.

    Artists have transformed the beer hall. Tatenda Kanengoni

    Operating under a long lease from the Harare City Council, this nonprofit initiative is part of a wider urban renewal and adaptive reuse project aimed at reimagining the city’s cultural infrastructure.

    My ongoing work in archival research includes mapping and visiting historical and cultural spaces like this. Here Takadiwa saw the potential for not just studios and an exhibition venue, but also for dialogue and community regeneration.

    Transforming spaces

    Beer halls were established by British colonial authorities in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) as part of a strategy of social control over the African urban population. They were designed to regulate leisure, restrict political organising and generate revenue through the sale of alcohol. By centralising drinking in state-run facilities, colonial administrators aimed to monitor and contain African social life while profiting from it.

    Situated in a repurposed colonial-era beer garden, Mbare Art Space turns a former site of segregation into a vibrant centre of artistic and communal revival. It redefines a legacy of constraint and control as one of creative freedom and empowerment. The place is now an artists’ haven with studios, office space, an exhibition hall and a digital hub.

    Moffat Takadiwa, the artist behind the project. Tatenda Kanengoni

    Takadiwa’s vision is informed by global precedents, notably inspired by US artist Theaster Gates, whose work includes the transformation of a derelict bank on Chicago’s South Side. It became the Stony Island Arts Bank – a hybrid space for art, archives and community engagement.

    Takadiwa opened Mbare Art Space in 2019 with a vision to support emerging artists through mentorship and access to resources. True to his artistic philosophy – resurrecting abandoned, often overlooked materials suffering the effects of urban decay – he revitalised a neglected site. Most of the artists working from this space follow his lead, upcycling and recycling found materials into compelling visual forms that speak to both history and possibility.

    Kimberly Tatenda Gakanje at work in the space. Tatenda Kanengoni

    When I arrive, Takadiwa is on his way out, but offers me a quick tour of his studio, where works in progress for his upcoming participation in the São Paulo Biennale are taking shape.

    Known for his lush, densely layered sculptures and tapestry-like works made from found objects – computer keyboards, bottle tops, toothbrushes, and toothpaste tubes – Takadiwa has garnered international acclaim. His works are collected by US rapper Jay-Z and major institutions like the Centre National d’Art Plastique in Paris, the European Parliament’s art collection in Brussels, and the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Harare.

    Collaboration

    What Takadiwa is building is not just an arts centre – it’s a new model space rooted in history and responsive to the present. The site itself becomes an ongoing installation, activated by the artists, curators and community members who inhabit it.

    Tafadzwa B Chataika works with recycled materials. Tatenda Kanengoni

    Tafadzwa Chimbumu, the operations manager, takes over the tour, guiding me through the rest of the precinct. The site retains the bones of its beer hall architecture, but it bursts with new life. Colourful murals adorn the walls. Tents draped over smaller buildings animate the exposed brickwork.

    Plans are underway to establish a library here, a resource where researchers and artists can engage with Zimbabwe’s under-documented art history. Much of this history is scattered across archives and unpublished dissertations, rather than in widely available books. The aim is to bring these materials together and make them more accessible to the public.

    Mbare Art Space is also becoming an exciting hub for collaboration and education. Community workshops, for example, are led by resident artists. Local schools take part in art education initiatives. Through community outreach and educational programming, the centre is extending its impact beyond its immediate geography.

    Nkosiyabo Frank Nyoni making art at the space. Tatenda Kanengoni

    As it looks to the future, Mbare Art Space is focused on expanding its artist-in-residence programme, inviting both local and international artists to immerse themselves in the context of Mbare and Zimbabwe.

    Ultimately, what the space offers is something intangible – a feeling, a memory, a vision of what is possible when history and imagination meet in a shared place.

    – Mbare Art Space: a colonial beer hall in Zimbabwe has become a vibrant arts centre
    – https://theconversation.com/mbare-art-space-a-colonial-beer-hall-in-zimbabwe-has-become-a-vibrant-arts-centre-256528

    MIL OSI Africa –

    May 30, 2025

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Choosing to be an orphan: for some Kenyan families it’s a strategy for survival

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Andreana Prichard, Associate Professor of Honors and African History, University of Oklahoma

    In the world of international child development and orphan care, it’s not uncommon for children with families to declare themselves orphans. In fact, this practice can be traced back to precolonial times in Kenya.

    Andreana Prichard has done research on the practice in Kenya. We asked her to share her insights into it.

    Why do some people in Kenya assume the identity of ‘orphan’?

    We often think of “orphans” as children who have lost both parents and who lack kin networks. One might ask why someone would “opt in” to orphan status when they do not fall within the classical definition of the term.

    In my paper I look at the issue of orphanhood over the last 160 years. Case studies from Kenya I examine illustrate that the practice I define as “opting in” to orphanhood has precolonial roots. I define “opting in” as choosing to take on the label of being an orphan. This can be done by parents, relatives or even, in some instances, the child. This is because the label “orphan” has come to confer unique opportunities.

    The practice became increasingly popular in the mid-1990s, when parents in eastern and southern Africa who had contracted HIV began to die in large numbers. Activists feared many children would be left without caregivers.

    In response, the number of orphanages proliferated as humanitarian actors, churches and states inundated east Africa with orphan-focused NGOs.

    In 2020, officials in Kenya estimated that there were at least 910 residential institutions for children in the country (of which 581 were registered), housing between 26,198 and 85,733 Kenyan children.

    The predicted “orphan crisis” never materialised, partly because families and communities stepped in to care for newly parentless children. But the idea of an “orphan crisis” remained, and so did the funding and infrastructure.

    This phenomenon occurred across the continent, not just in Kenya. However, its effects were felt particularly acutely in eastern and southern Africa where HIV/Aids prevalence rates were higher and where there was more western tourism.

    Today, many African families see orphan-focused NGOs as a path to access education and improve their lives. My research shows that children themselves sometimes affiliate with an institution that provides shelter, food and schooling. Children facing abuse from caregivers may also prefer the relative anonymity and safety of an institution.

    In some cases, receiving orphan services actually raises the status of the “orphan” child above that of other children. They have access to more material resources than they might have had in their villages or at home. They might have more leisure time and less work. They may have access to better bedding, shoes and clothing. They are also likely able to attend school more consistently and have a real opportunity to attend university.

    Does ‘opting in’ have a long history?

    Yes, it does.

    In the precolonial period, most parentless or vulnerable children were cared for through lasting community support systems. Orphanhood, as it exists today as a child lacking support, protection, or care from kin, was largely avoided.

    However, the late 19th to mid-20th centuries brought new actors to the east African region. The practice of “opting in” became a strategic, temporary option used by families to access services from western humanitarians.

    The earliest example of this shift I found in my research is from the 1890s. Fearing their children would be caught in the Indian Ocean slave trade, African parents sometimes chose to send their children to British missions until the region was safe. They knew the missionaries opposed the slave trade and knew they offered food and medical care.

    African parents thought they were making temporary arrangements to keep their children safe. Missionaries, however, understood parents to have abandoned their children. When parents returned to repay the debt – with agricultural produce or trade goods – and to reclaim their children, missionaries refused them.

    In another example from Kenya in the 1950s, the British colonial government opened “reform schools” for young men. The Wamumu Approved School was renowned for the relative quality of education it provided. But the state admitted only the “most vulnerable” for a free education. Feeling they had no way to access Wamumu, students claimed to be orphans.

    What have been the negative effects of Kenya’s orphan system?

    There are several problems with creating a situation in which people present themselves as vulnerable just to gain safety or improve their social and economic standing.

    First, research has shown that building orphanages in poor communities incentivises parents to abandon their children if they’re not also given the help to remain together.

    Second, research shows that children are often put at risk in these institutions. Institutionalisation exposes children to risks such as sexual abuse, gender-based violence and neglect.

    Third, orphanages have become so lucrative that African orphanage owners will go to great lengths to fit African children into the categories westerners wish to fund. The phenomenon of “paper orphans” is a prime example. “Paper orphans” are children who are recruited from their homes by proprietors (or middlemen/brokers) of orphanages and residential-care facilities. Fraudulent documentation is created for them – often including false death certificates of parents and new identity registration documents – rendering them orphans on paper, and vulnerable in practice.

    What should be done?

    Governments in Europe, Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean are trying to phase out orphanages, as are some African countries.

    Based on my research I believe that working with families to support vulnerable children in their homes of origin or with extended families is a better option. This can be done through assistance programmes for vulnerable families as well as child welfare programmes. These allow families to remain intact when experiencing hardship.

    Kenya is taking steps to do this by replacing orphanages and other forms of residential children’s homes with family-based, foster and community-based care and other forms of assistance. Family strengthening approaches include positive parenting instruction, life skills training, and income-generating activities, as well as supportive supervision.

    In addition to this, missionary and voluntourism trips to orphanages and residential care facilities should be banned or limited.

    – Choosing to be an orphan: for some Kenyan families it’s a strategy for survival
    – https://theconversation.com/choosing-to-be-an-orphan-for-some-kenyan-families-its-a-strategy-for-survival-247371

    MIL OSI Africa –

    May 30, 2025
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