Russia President Vladimir Putin to attend virtual G20 Summit to be hosted by PM Modi today
The virtual G20 Leaders’ Summit will be chaired by PM Modi. Leaders of all G20 members, including the Chair of the African Union, as well as nine guest countries and heads of 11 international organisations, have been invited.
As the hype around ‘solid-state’ EV batteries grows, UBS reveals the global stocks to cash in
Solid-state EV batteries unveiled so far offer about double the capacity of the longest-range Tesla vehicles.
Goldman Sachs expects China stocks to make first annual gain in 4 years in 2024
Chinese stocks may have their first yearly gain in four years in 2024, helped by more accommodative policy that should cushion the drag from the property deleveraging.
Federal court strikes down Maryland gun licensing law
A federal appeals court on Tuesday struck down Maryland’s handgun licensing law, finding that its requirements, which include submitting fingerprints for a background check and taking a four-hour firearms safety course, are unconstitutionally restrictive. In a 2-1 ruling, judges on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond said they considered the case in light of a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that “effected a sea change in Second Amendment law.” The underlying lawsuit was filed in 2016 as a challenge to a Maryland law requiring people to obtain a special license before purchasing a handgun. The law, which was passed in 2013 in the aftermath of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, laid out a series of necessary steps for would-be gun purchasers: completing four hours of safety training that includes firing one live round, submitting fingerprints and passing a background check, being 21 and residing in Maryland. MAINE’S ‘YELLOW FLAG’ LAW INVOKED OVER A DOZEN TIMES SINCE LEWISTON SHOOTING SPREE Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, said he was disappointed in the circuit court’s ruling and will “continue to fight for this law.” He said his administration is reviewing the ruling and considering its options. “Common-sense gun laws are critical to protecting all Marylanders from the gun violence that has terrorized our communities.” Moore said in a statement Tuesday. “I am determined to do more than just give thoughts and prayers and attend funerals — and that’s why this law is vital to our administration’s commitment to keeping guns out of the wrong hands and saving lives.” The 4th Circuit opinion by Judge Julius Richardson directly references the Supreme Court decision last year that found Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense. That ruling, which also came after a series of mass shootings, ushered in a major expansion of gun rights. It also required gun laws to fall in line with the country’s “historical tradition of firearm regulation.” In this case, Richardson and Judge G. Steven Agee found no evidence of such alignment. “If you live in Maryland and you want a handgun, you must follow a long and winding path to get one,” Richardson wrote in the opinion. “The challenged law restricts the ability of law-abiding adult citizens to possess handguns, and the state has not presented a historical analogue that justifies its restriction.” The court also pointed to the timeline for obtaining a handgun qualification license, which could take up to 30 days. Even though Maryland’s law doesn’t prohibit people from “owning handguns at some time in the future, it still prohibits them from owning handguns now,” Richardson wrote. “And the law’s waiting period could well be the critical time in which the applicant expects to face danger.” But in her dissenting opinion, Judge Barbara Milano Keenan said her colleagues misapplied the Supreme Court precedent. She condemned their “hyperaggressive view of the Second Amendment.” Instead of reversing the district court ruling that was issued before the 2022 Supreme Court decision, Keenan argued, the case should instead have been remanded to the lower court for reconsideration because “there is no legitimate reason to short-circuit the judicial process.” Agee and Richardson were appointed by Republican presidents, while Keenan was appointed by a Democrat. SUPREME COURT APPEARS LIKELY TO HAND BIDEN DOJ A WIN ON CHALLENGE TO GUN LAW The Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling — its first major gun decision in more than a decade — was similarly split, with the court’s conservatives in the majority and liberals in dissent. Mark Pennak, president of the advocacy group Maryland Shall Issue, which brought the lawsuit challenging the state licensing requirement, said he’s pleased with Tuesday’s ruling. He said it removes an unnecessary tangle of red tape. “It’s a big win for common sense and the rule of law,” he said. Pennak said the 2013 law made obtaining a handgun an overly expensive and arduous process. Before that law passed, he said, people had to complete a more limited training and pass a background check, among other requirements.
Maryland attorney general suspends hate crime task force member claiming babies murdered by Hamas were ‘fake’
Democrat Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown took action against a member of his own hate crime task force on Tuesday after numerous antisemitic social media posts by the member surfaced, including a claim that the babies murdered in the brutal Oct. 7 Hamas attack were “fake.” Zainab Chaudry, an anti-Israel activist who serves as the director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ (CAIR) Maryland office, made the posts in the weeks following Hamas’ attack, which saw more than 1,200 people killed, including children and babies, as well as numerous rapes and destruction of property. “The Office of Attorney General learned last week about personal social media posts of a member of the Maryland Commission on Hate Crimes Response and Prevention, Zainab Chaudry, Executive Director of the Council on AmericanIslamic Relations – Maryland Office,” Brown said in a press release. MARYLAND HATE CRIME TASK FORCE MEMBER CLAIMED BABIES MURDERED BY HAMAS WERE ‘FAKE,’ COMPARED ISRAEL TO NAZIS “Attorney General Brown has determined that Ms. Chaudry’s social media posts risk disrupting the work and mission of the Commission, so he is announcing steps that he took today to ensure that the vital work and mission of the Commission can continue without interruption,” he said, adding that Chaudry’s membership on the commission would be “temporarily suspended.” He went on to say that his office would “develop a draft values statement” concerning personal communications by commission members, and called on those members to “to exercise great care in their communications and conduct.” In a Facebook post dated Oct. 26, Chaudry wrote, “I will never be able to understand how the world summoned up rage for 40 fake Israeli babies while completely turning a blind eye to 3,000 real Palestinian babies.” WATCH: WHITE HOUSE ISSUES BRUTAL RESPONSE TO BIDEN’S ‘INAPPROPRIATE’ NICKNAME GIVEN BY ANTI-ISRAEL CRITICS In an Oct. 17 post, Chaudry wrote, “[T]hat moment when you become what you hated most,” and included two photos of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, one showing it lit up with the Israeli flag in solidarity with Israel following the attack, and another from a ceremony in 1936 when it was decorated with the flag of Nazi Germany during the Olympics that year. In another post from Nov. 6, Chaudry appeared to suggest the mere existence of Israel as a nation was the cause of the ongoing war, writing it was an “inconvenient fact.” She included an image of the words “it all started in 1948,” the year Israel was founded as a nation. Others from the weeks following the attack showed Chaudry sharing a quote celebrating “martyred Palestinians,” and a post citing what appeared to be an Islamic prophesy that said “garrisons who defend the lands of Islam will be in Ashkelon,” an Israeli city north of the Gaza Strip. DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST MEMBERS OF CONGRESS HAVE NOT CONDEMNED VIOLENT ANTI-ISRAEL PROTEST TARGETING OWN PARTY HQ When reached for comment, Chaudry told Fox News Digital that the “Nazi post” was originally shared “by a close Jewish friend,” before going on to accuse the Israeli government of wanting to commit genocide against Palestinians. She also said she condemned the killing of Israeli and Palestinian civilians.
Jordan says it beefs up army presence along borders with Israel
Jordan said on Tuesday the army had beefed up its presence along its borders with Israel and warned that any Israeli attempt to forcibly push Palestinians across the Jordan River would represent a breach of its peace accord with its neighbour.
Top Iowa evangelical backs DeSantis over Trump in US presidential race
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will be endorsed on Tuesday by an influential Iowa evangelical leader, Bob Vander Plaats, a much-needed boost for a presidential campaign still struggling to find momentum ahead of next year’s Republican nominating contests, according to two people familiar with the decision.
US reviewing possible ‘terrorist’ designations for Houthis
The United States is reviewing “potential terrorist designations” for Yemen’s Houthi rebel group in response to its seizure of a cargo ship, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday.
One dead, multiple others believed missing in Alaska landslide
At least one person has been killed and multiple others were believed to be missing in a major landslide along the principal roadway serving an island community in Southeast Alaska, state officials said on Tuesday.
Israeli government debates deal for release of Gaza hostages, truce
Israel’s government met into the early hours of Wednesday to consider a deal for Palestinian Hamas militants to free some hostages in Gaza in exchange for a multi-day truce and the release of a greater number of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.