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Tejashwi Yadav targets Nitish Kumar, calls him ‘Dashrath’, ‘Chacha’ in Bihar Assembly

Tejashwi Yadav, publicly voiced his dissatisfaction with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s decision to leave the ‘Mahagathbandhan’ and rejoin the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)

Bihar floor test: Nitish Kumar wins trust vote with 129 votes

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday won the floor test with 129 votes as the Opposition parties walked out before the voting.

Vivek Ramaswamy unveils endorsement criteria for candidates: Their ‘moral duty’ must be to US citizens

FIRST ON FOX – Former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is unveiling his endorsement criteria for other political hopefuls he dubs “The American Truth Pledge.” Speaking with Fox News Digital, Ramaswamy said he has received “a flood of inbound requests for endorsements” after he suspended his 2024 campaign last month and threw his support behind former President Trump. But in order for them to earn his endorsement, they must share “some basic ideals” that were major themes of his presidential bid in putting “America First.”  “I don’t want to be making these decisions in a one-off manner,” Ramaswamy said in an interview. “I want to be making them in a systematic manner to say that if somebody gets endorsement, for me, it means that we are jointly endorsing some basic ideals that we stand behind.” RAMASWAMY SAYS DEMS MAY SWAP BIDEN WITH MICHELLE OBAMA FOLLOWING DAMNIMG SPECIAL COUNSEL REPORT The “American Truth Pledge” has four broad categories. The first reads “The people we elect to run government should actually run the government,” the second being “The first and only moral duty of US leaders is to US citizens,” the third being “Public service is about serving the public, not oneself,” and the final one reading “The absence of national pride is an existential threat to our nation’s future — we must fill that void.”  RAMASWAMY: ‘SINISTER FORCES AT PLAY’ IF HALEY DOESN’T DROP OUT OF PRESIDENTIAL RACE: ‘THAT GETS UGLY’ Within the categories are bullet points of things Ramaswamy campaigned on like reducing the size of the federal government by 75% and backing a requirement for high school seniors to pass a civics test in order for them to vote.  “If people are on board with the planks of a lot of the vision of what I shared across my campaign for president, that’s going to be the basis for the endorsements that I make,” Ramaswamy said.  He continued, “And so when I do endorse people in races across this country, large and small, that way people across this country can know what that means. It’s not just that I have a pal or a friend who I think is a good guy or gal. It means that we stand for a shared set of ideals, by the way, which happened to be the ideals that this country was founded on in 1776.” RAMASWAMY PROPOSES DEBATE WITH HARRIS ON AI AS SPECULATION SWIRLS OVER TRUMP’S RUNNING MATE The biotech entrepreneur defied expectations when he first joined the race in February 2023 with virtually zero name recognition, outlasting big name Republicans like South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Vice President Mike Pence.  Ramaswamy suspended his campaign following a disappointing performance at the Iowa caucus and quickly endorsed the GOP frontrunner.  During a campaign rally last month, Trump teased a potential role for Ramaswamy on his team. “He’s going to be working with us and he’ll be working with us for a long time,” Trump told his supporters. 

Ivory Coast people ‘deserve’ dramatic 2023 AFCON title win against Nigeria

The Elephants of Ivory Coast came from behind to complete a dramatic recovery and redemption on home soil at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations as they claimed a third continental title by beating Nigeria 2-1 in Abidjan on Sunday. The Super Eagles had taken a first-half lead, against the run of play, through their captain William Troost-Ekong, but goals from Franck Kessie and Sebastian Haller condemned Nigeria to their fifth defeat in eight appearances in AFCON finals. For striker Haller, and for even the most ardent Nigeria fan, it was a fitting finale to a journey back to full health having been diagnosed with testicular cancer in July 2022. Ivory Coast were on the brink of elimination in the group stage, for which Haller was injured, and lost their coach Jean-Louis Gasset as a result. Their victory on Sunday, secured against a Nigerian side that were heavy favourites, also marked the first win by any hosts since Egypt claimed the crown in 2006. Let the Elephants’ party begin The triumph, all the sweeter for so many side stories, left the people of the West African nation, gripped by a five-year civil war until 2007, dancing long into the night. Heavy traffic jams with cars blaring horns and the sound of vuvuzelas, a horn instrument blown by football fans, took over a 3km radius of the Ebimpe area of Abidjan. “We are the champions of Africa. Long live the Elephants,” jubilant Ivorian fan Siaka Kouassi told Al Jazeera. “No team was better and we deserve to win against Nigeria. We are ready to party all night long,” a sweaty Maimouna Yaya added. Sebastian Haller, the man who converted a whole nation’s dream into the net. 🐘⚽️🇨🇮#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023Final pic.twitter.com/uD7FadwqUG — CAF (@CAF_Online) February 12, 2024 On the pitch, Nigeria had taken the lead through Troost-Ekong’s powerful first-half header before Kessie equalised with his aerial effort from a corner just past the hour-mark for the hosts. Haller, who returned to playing in January 2023 after four rounds of chemotherapy and surgery in November 2022, steered Simon Adingra’s cross into the net to break Nigerian hearts with less than 10 minutes to play. “It’s the power of the group and the mindset that put us through,” said Ivorian man of the match Adingra. “We had some challenging moments but we rescued ourselves, although it wasn’t easy. The mental fortitude saw us restore our chances and do what we achieved today. “Our people deserve this victory because they stood with us even when many thought we were dead.” Pressing problems for Nigeria The Super Eagles made surprise changes to the starting 11 with Samuel Chukwueze preferred over Moses Simon in attack, while the fit-again Zaidu Sanusi was picked ahead of Bright Osayi-Samuel on the flank. It meant Nigeria, unbeaten with four clean sheets in six matches previously in the tournament, adopted the same defensive approach they used until their semifinal against South Africa. As a result, they failed to press their dominant opponents on the night. “The Ivorians fought till the end. We should’ve pressed higher, but we didn’t,” Nigeria defender Kenneth Omeruo told Al Jazeera. “We conceded a goal and that’s where things went wrong. Congratulations to the Ivorians.” Disappointed, yet we make do with the Silver Medal#soarsupereagles #letsdoitagain pic.twitter.com/NNWKc5yfde — 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) February 12, 2024 The tournament’s most valuable player and Nigeria captain Troost-Ekong said he would trade his best player award for the AFCON trophy. “No one gave us a chance before the start of the tournament but we exceeded expectations,” he said. “It’s an unfortunate end to a great campaign and heartbreaking for us as a team. Ivory Coast wanted it more.” Brentford midfielder Frank Onyeka says most of the Nigerian players are shattered and broken. “I feel sad. We fought till the end. It just wasn’t our day, and we were made to pay for it. “We tried to play as the coach asked us to do by playing our game, but this was simply not a solid Super Eagles performance.” Nigeria coach Jose Peseiro, whose future is now in the air, as his two-year contract expired at the end of the tournament, admitted his side were second best. “Our team had a fantastic tournament but today Ivory Coast was better,” the 63-year-old said. “Our team didn’t show our level. That’s the truth. It was not the same job as we did in the previous rounds.” 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 😘🏆#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023Final pic.twitter.com/1dU9V5Zk04 — CAF (@CAF_Online) February 11, 2024 The Elephants stamp past the Super Eagles For Peseiro’s opposite number, Emerse Fae, the future is clouded for a very different reason. The 40-year-old was appointed as interim manager to replace Gasset following two defeats in the group stage. It was not so much a comeback for Fae, as in the sense of his side’s redemption and the recovery of their match-winning hero Haller, but rather the completion of an evolution following the cards life dealt him. The former Ivorian international, who played in the Premier League with Reading, focused on coaching at the age of 28 when he was forced to retire from playing due to Phlebitis, the inflammation of veins close to the skin. Fae said it was too soon to speak about his future and instead insisted he just wanted to celebrate a significant achievement in the history of Ivorian football. “Everyone suffered to achieve this, now we can celebrate being African champions,” he said. “This victory is for our people who stood by us and never stopped supporting us.” For Fae, Haller and the Ivorian team as a whole at the tournament, this AFCON was the story of mighty Elephants who never stopped marching through terrain that seemed ever inclining in front of them. Adblock test (Why?)

The AI Series: AI and the Global South

Nobel peace prize laureate Maria Ressa and Urvashi Aneja explore how current AI developments impact the Global South. While many of today’s headline-grabbing artificial intelligence (AI) tools are designed in Silicon Valley, much of the labour that fuels the boom is based in the Global South, raising questions over who stands to gain from the technology and at what cost. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa and the director of the Digital Futures Lab, Urvashi Aneja, explore the impact AI is already having on communities in the Global South – from labour conditions to democracy and the environment – and why countries need to move beyond “catching up with the North” when deciding what role AI can and should play in their societies. Adblock test (Why?)

For Ukraine’s defence industry ambitions, the sky’s the limit

As Ukraine approaches the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion, it plans to produce more if its own ammunition and key weapons systems. The goal of greater self-sufficiency comes as Ukraine’s Western allies meet increasing political resistance to military aid and Russia ramps up weapons production. Last month, Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, said the country plans to increase its domestic weapons production sixfold this year. Ukraine’s defence industry has already begun to expand. Strategic industries minister Oleksandr Kamyshin said Ukraine last year doubled its ammunition production for NATO-calibre artillery systems. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it had produced three times more equipment and weapons than in the first year of the war. That included armored vehicles and anti-tank missile systems. But it’s in unmanned systems that Ukraine aims to be a global pioneer. Almost 200 companies produced drones in Ukraine last year, up from seven in 2022, and their production increased 100-fold, said Shmyal. That meant Ukraine was already producing 90 percent of the drones it uses, Zelenskyy said during a meeting with the joint chiefs this month. The armed forces approved eight new models for procurement last month alone. INTERACTIVE-WHO CONTROLS WHAT IN UKRAINE-1707305135 (Al Jazeera) On Tuesday, Zelenskyy explained why. He founded  the Unmanned Systems Forces, suggesting “special units” would be embedded in the army, air force and navy, and promised “constant scaling of production” to keep them supplied. “Our task this year is not only to bolster our sky shield and Ukraine’s long-range capabilities to the fullest extent possible, but also to inflict maximum systemic losses on Russia,” Zelenskyy said. As part of that goal, Ukraine plans to produce a million light drones and 11,000 medium- and long-range drones, the latter with a range of more than 1,000km (620 miles), said Kamyshin. Ukraine had “established production” and a  “financing plan” to achieve this, Rustem Umyerov, defence minister, told a meeting of the G7 representatives in Kyiv last December. Days before he was dismissed, Valerii Zaluzhny, commander in chief,  wrote that unmanned systems were “almost the only tool” to break the current stalemate, making up for Russia’s superiority in heavy equipment and personnel. Experts tell Al Jazeera Ukraine’s ambitions are realistic. “Kyiv certainly has the capacity to mass produce FPV [first person viewer] UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] given that many of these are based on commercial or hobbyist products,” Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military aerospace at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), a think tank, told Al Jazeera. “Manufacturing larger multi-role UAVs is more demanding, but again Kyiv has the ability to do this, if on a far smaller scale,” Barrie said. “After the fall of the USSR, [Ukraine] was one of few countries that had a functioning aircraft engine industry,” Pieter Wezeman, senior researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), told Al Jazeera. “They can use that knowledge to rebuild a missile or a drone production capacity. It’s not coming from nowhere,” said Wezeman, whose research focuses on arms transfers and military production. Early in the war, Ukraine repurposed commercially available FPV drones to drop grenades into the hatches of parked Russian tanks, instantly killing their crews. They offered an added propaganda bonus: drones could beam back video of the kills, allowing Ukraine to humiliate the Russian armed forces while boosting their own morale. Ukraine believes building these drones more cheaply by itself would offer it more bang for the buck, cycle military expenditure back into its tax base and one day produce export revenue. “Basically, they want to build a million flying munition pieces,” said Wezeman. “They will need some foreign components – a little chip, a camera like the one in a mobile phone… it’s not as extreme as it may sound.” Oleksiy Danilov, who heads Ukraine’s National Defence and Security Council, recently claimed that Ukraine was already among the top three drone manufacturers in the world. Russia’s plans to produce more than 32,000 drones each year by 2030 seem tame in comparison to Ukraine’s. Unable to match Ukraine’s production, Russia agreed to pay Iran $1.75bn for 6,000 Shahed drones, Ukrainian hackers recently revealed. Soviet stuff and other Ukrainian mysteries Suddenly last summer, Ukraine used a concert of unmanned systems to strike the occupied Crimean Peninsula with devastating effect. On August 23, it destroyed a Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile system 120km (74 miles) from the front line. On September 12, a combination of 10 drones and cruise missiles crippled a Russian submarine and a landing ship undergoing maintenance at the Sevastopol dry docks. Two days later, surface drones struck two patrol ships and a missile corvette, while missiles destroyed a second S-400 battery in western Crimea’s Yevpatoria. The reason for the escalation was Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allowed Ukraine to export agricultural goods. These are a lifeline for its economy and war effort, bringing it $23bn last year. An aerial view of the city of Sevastopol after a missile attack struck the headquarters of Moscow’s Black Sea fleet in annexed Crimea. Satellite image released on September 23, 2023 [Planet Lab/PBC/AFP] The most crippling strikes were yet to come. On September 20, Ukraine destroyed half the Black Sea Fleet’s communications headquarters in Verkhnosadove northeast of the fleet base in Sevastopol, and two days later hit the fleet command headquarters in Sevastopol itself, claiming to have killed 34 officers, including fleet commander Admiral Viktor Sokolov. Ukraine built up a sense of mystique around its weapons systems during this time, claiming to have developed a missile capable of travelling 700km (435 miles) and to have put variants of its naval drone into experimental operational use with success. “The missiles used against Crimea may very well go back to missiles Ukraine developed before the war started,” said Wezeman. Ukraine was known to be developing the Hrim-2, a short-range ballistic missile for Saudi Arabia. “They may have continued that project and used prototypes of that or other preproduction missiles,” said Wezeman. Ukraine’s ranged strikes have continued. Last month, Ukraine sent drones

DNA Explainer: What is Iddat in Islam? How does UCC change this

The Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act of 1937 in India regulates Muslim personal laws, allowing Islamic laws to be applied in personal legal relationships.

Battleground Wisconsin: Swing state locked in clash over Somali refugee resettlement

Wisconsin – a major battleground in the 2024 presidential election – is currently a battleground over a refugee resettlement controversy.  Wisconsin officials have sought to meet with officials from the Department of Homeland Security about the first group of Somali refugees to settle in the Eau Claire County area of the state. The issue has even garnered interest from members of Congress.  State legislators are set this week to advance a bill requiring greater transparency on resettlement decisions. Federal law already requires federal officials to “consult regularly (not less often than quarterly) with state and local governments” before settling the refugees to an area. The state legislation would specifically require consulting with “elected officials” accountable to the public – rather than just appointed officials – as well as a requirement for public comment.  State Rep. Karen Hurd, a Republican, introduced the bill, and noted the area is already stressed after the closure of two hospitals and strained school districts. ELON MUSK CALLS OUT $2.3 BILLION ALLOCATED TO NGO PERSONNEL FACILITATING ‘ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION’ IN BORDER BILL “Wisconsin citizens are the most generous, giving, kind, and practical people. This is not about that. This is because we didn’t even know,” Hurd told Fox News Digital. “We are practical. We need to evaluate whether we can do this or not. We don’t care about the color of someone’s skin. This is about infrastructure.” Hurd said she expects the Republican-controlled legislature will pass the bill but is uncertain about what Democratic Gov. Tony Evers will do when it lands on his desk.  The DHS is working with World Relief, a Christian nonprofit associated with the National Association of Evangelicals, to bring 75 Somalian refugees to the Eau Claire area in the Chippewa Valley by Sept. 30. Some residents, lawmakers and advocacy groups are concerned the federal family reunification policy could lead to a much larger influx of refugees. Wisconsin’s neighboring Minnesota Somali refugee settlements ballooned into millions within two decades, noted Restoration of America, which first reported the Wisconsin issue. Minneapolis, located about 100 miles from Eau Claire, has the nation’s largest Somali population. The FBI reported in 2019 that dozens of military-aged men in the city joined terrorist organizations. FOX NEWS POLL: BIDEN AND TRUMP TIE IN WISCONSIN HEAD-TO-HEAD MATCHUP “The refugee resettlement plan won’t end with 75 Somalis, but potentially thousands, as each refugee will later be permitted to import close and extended family members – think cousins and grandparents – to Wisconsin under federal family reunification policy,” Hayden Ludwig, director of policy research for Restoration of America, told Fox News Digital. “In just a few years, locals could find their communities, schools, and emergency services swamped with refugees from failed countries, likely including Syria – though even World Relief officials won’t tell us from which,” Ludwig said.  Hurd said Eau Claire City Manager Stephanie Hirsch, an appointed official, made the deal with World Relief for the resettlement without consulting the elected Eau Claire County Board. Eau Claire County and the City of Eau Claire have separate governments. Hurd said the county, school districts and emergency services will shoulder the costs. Hirsch told Wisconsin Public Radio she notified members of the Eau Claire City Council, and that “it wasn’t the kind of thing that required a formal process at all.” World Relief Wisconsin did not immediately respond to an inquiry for this story. But it posted a “frequently asked questions” about the planned refugee resettlement on its website that says the 75 refugees includes 15-20 family units. The FAQ says DHS thoroughly vets all refugees, and further contends they are a long-term net economic benefit for communities.  IMMIGRATION HAWKS WARN CONGRESS THAT SENATE DEAL WITH HANDCUFF FUTURE ADMINISTRATIONS ON SECURING BORDER Under the question, “What countries will the refugees resettled to the Chippewa Valley be from?” the organization answers: “We do not know with certainty which countries the refugees resettled to the Chippewa Valley will be from, but the top two countries of origin for refugees resettled to Wisconsin last year were Burma and the Democratic Republic of Congo. More than 80% of refugees resettled to Wisconsin in Fiscal Year 2023 came from one of these two countries, and we anticipate receiving individuals and families from these two countries in the coming year.” Two GOP members of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation, Reps. Tom Tiffany and Derrick Van Orden, also weighed in.  In an October letter to Eau Claire City Council President Emily Berge, Tiffany complained the community was “kept in the dark” about the matter.  Tiffany’s letter said Eau Claire and the Chippewa Valley taxpayers should have the chance to submit public comment about a “large number of refugees – potentially from Somalia, Syria and other unstable countries.”  “Even more frustrating, representatives of this NGO reportedly met with the city manager well in advance of this announcement – but the city manager did not share this information with local officials or the public,” Tiffany wrote. He later added, “Given the dangerous conditions in these countries, and the Biden administration’s alarming track record when it comes to vetting newcomers, it is inconceivable that the local community would be kept in the dark in this way. I hope you will investigate these troubling allegations and take appropriate action.”  Replying to Tiffany’s letter, Berge wrote “immigrants are a part of the Eau Claire story,” and accused Tiffany of not understanding the federal refugee law.  “World Relief has held a number of public meetings,” Berge’s letter says. “The Refugee Act requires U.S. agencies to consult and coordinate with state and local authorities and to financially support resettlement. This has happened and is ongoing in a transparent manner,” Berge said refugee resettlement is a federal, not local, responsibility.  “It is the responsibility of the U.S. government to safely and properly locate, integrate, and support immigrants in communities such as Eau Claire,” Berge wrote.  “As a member of Congress, Congressman Tiffany is a part of the U.S. government. We expect and rely on him to do that work. Communicating to the public

Judicial group targets ‘antisemite’ Biden nominee with alleged ties to terrorist sympathizers

The Judicial Crisis Network (JCN), a conservative judicial advocacy organization based in the nation’s capital, is rolling out a digital ad campaign against one of President Biden’s controversial nominees who has alleged ties to 9/11 hijacker sympathizers. The advertising campaign from JCN – slated to run in Pennsylvania, Montana and Washington, D.C. – consists of an initial buy of $50,000 and specifically targets Adeel Abdullah Mangi, who was recently nominated by Biden to be a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. The ads appearing in Pennsylvania and Montana urge Sens. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Bob Casey, D-Pa., to vote “no” on Mangi’s nomination to a lifetime appointment on the federal court and accuse the judicial nominee of being an “antisemite” who is far too “extreme.” “President Biden wants to remake the courts with the most extreme judges he can find,” the narrator states in the ad. “But antisemite Adeel Mangi might be the worst of all.” HOUSE MEMBERS PRESS BIDEN TO WITHDRAW COURT NOMINEE WITH TIES TO 9/11 HIJACKER SYMPATHIZERS: ‘GRAVE CONCERNS’ The ad goes on to highlight Mangi’s tenure as a member of the board of advisers for the Center for Security, Race, and Rights at Rutgers Law School from 2019 to 2023. JCN said the “extremist organization” Mangi was affiliated with “teaches students to hate Israel, to hate America, and to support global terrorism.” “Mangi’s organization blamed America for the Sept. 11 terror attacks and has hosted speakers with terrorist connections, including a convicted terrorist,” the narrator continued. “Mangi’s organization even blamed Israel for the Hamas terror attack on Oct. 7. When Mangi was given opportunities to condemn these hateful views, he refused to do so.” JCN president Carrie Severino blasted Mangi’s ties to the “radical, antisemitic group” in a statement to Fox News Digital. “It is bad enough that President Biden has appointed activist judges who can’t identify major constitutional provisions and are hostile to law enforcement. But now Biden wants to give a life-tenure judicial position to a lawyer with ties to a radical, antisemitic group that blames the United States for 9/11 and teaches students to hate Israel and America,” she said. “In a time when antisemitism is on the rise, how can alleged moderates like Sens. Jon Tester and Bob Casey rubber stamp this kind of nominee for life tenure? There is no place on the Third Circuit for this disdain of our nation’s principles and the rule of law,” Severino added. “Senate Democrats should be ashamed of their support for Adeel Mangi and President Biden should promptly withdraw his nomination.” Since being nominated, Mangi has garnered significant criticism from GOP lawmakers for his personal and financial affiliation with the university research center that has been accused of giving a platform to “terrorist sympathizers.” Last week, Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans announced they are investigating the funding of the center and insisted its “platforming of radical ideologues” was “troublesome.” “The work of the Center, its promotion of terrorist sympathizers, and its platforming of radical ideologues is troubling to us as members of the Senate Judiciary Committee,” Republicans on the committee said in a joint statement. ACLU CALLS ON BIDEN ADMINISTRATION TO ‘REJECT’ HOLOCAUST ALLIANCE’S DEFINITION OF ANTISEMITISM The center, according to members of the committee, co-sponsored an event titled “Whose Narrative? 20 Years since September 11, 2001” on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Additionally, members of the committee noted that the center hosted an event titled “Psychoanalysis Under Occupation: Practicing Resistance in Palestine” three days after the Oct. 7 massacre of Israelis by Hamas militants. Center faculty affiliate Dr. Lara Sheehi opened the talk by saying, “Zionist settler colonialism is a structure that is the provocation,” according to the committee. The center also held a December 2023 event titled “The West, Israel and Settler Colonization of Palestine” with Professor Joseph Massad, who lauded the Oct. 7 massacre in “jubilant” terms in an article that was published one day after Hamas invaded Israel. Massad wrote at the time, “No less awesome were the scenes witnessed by millions of jubilant Arabs who spent the day watching the news, of Palestinian fighters from Gaza breaking through Israel’s prison fence or gliding over it by air.… No less striking was the capture of some of Israel’s colonial soldiers and officers in their underwear while sleeping.” Mangi’s nomination and affiliation with the center has also raised concerns from 10 House Republicans who represent districts over which the Third Circuit Court of Appeals presides. Chief Deputy Whip Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa., and nine of his colleagues from Pennsylvania and New Jersey raised “grave concerns” over Mangi’s nomination in a letter to Biden last month. The center has a “deep history of amplifying antisemitic speech, terrorist propaganda, and anti-American rhetoric,” the lawmakers said in the letter. “During his tenure as a board member, the Center supported efforts to delegitimize the State of Israel by pushing for the boycott, divestment, and sanction (BDS) movement and calling for resistance in Palestine,” they wrote. “In 2021, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey stated that one of the Center’s events sought to ‘delegitimize Israel and to push their antisemitic agenda into a mainstream discourse.’ The Jewish News Center, among other organizations, labeled a 2021 center event as ‘pro-Hamas’ and a ‘terrorist-whitewashing webinar.’” Like their Senate colleagues, the GOP House lawmakers also said the center has a record of sympathizing with radical terrorist organizations and pointed to the 9/11 anniversary event it hosted The Republicans informed the president that Sami Al-Arian, a convicted felon who provided support to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), was a featured speaker. At the event, Al-Arian blamed the 9/11 attack on the U.S. and its support for Israel. FETTERMAN SLAMS HARVARD FOR HOSTING PALESTINIAN PROFESSOR WHO BLAMED ISRAEL FOR OCT. 7 HAMAS ATTACKS “As your Administration is aware, PIJ is a foreign terrorist organization and was involved in the atrocities committed against Israel on October 7, 2023,” they wrote. The lawmakers went on

Chinese official who praised CCP, denied Uyghur genocide visits with three more top universities

A controversial Chinese official continued his United States college campus tour earlier this month visiting two more universities despite his previous comments praising the CCP and denying an alleged Uyghur genocide in China. “An in-depth conversation on China’s economy and China-US relations with future business leaders from the Baruch College,” Huang Ping, consul general of the People’s Republic of China in New York, recently posted on X during a visit to Baruch College. “You guys are awesome and the questions are pointed. Looking forward to many more! May you continue to shine brightly in your academic and career pursuits!” That same day, Ping posted photos from a visit with officials at Northeastern University. CHINESE OFFICIAL WHO PRAISED CCP MAKES ANOTHER APPEARANCE AT TOP IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL: ‘HISTORIC CONNECTIONS’ “It was such a wonderful meeting with the senior leadership of the Northeastern University,” Ping posted. “I was impressed by NEU’s international strategy and its thoughtful arrangement for the Chinese students. NEU is more than welcome to participate in Youth Envoys Scholarship to visit China!” Days earlier, Ping was at Boston University meeting with the school’s “leadership team.” “Looking forward to further strengthening BU’s cooperation with China, and welcome more BUers to visit China for study and exchange,” Ping wrote on X. PROMINENT NYC VENUES REPEATEDLY HOST CHINESE OFFICIAL WHO PRAISED CCP, DENIED UYGHUR GENOCIDE Ping has showed up at several universities and meetings with officials in the media and politics over the past year despite previously praising the CCP and denying allegations of genocide against China’s Uyghur Muslim population. “There are lots of lies here, fabricated by some people with their own political agenda,” Huang said in an August 2021 interview, denying the existence of genocide and internment camps targeting Uyghurs. “As I said, there’s no genocide, not a single evidence to prove that there’s a genocide or something there. It’s just a slandering.” CHINESE OFFICIAL WHO PRAISED CCP, DENIED UYGHUR GENOCIDE MEETS WITH TOP EXEC AT LEFT-WING MEDIA CONGLOMERATE Ping described the centers where Uyghurs are being held as educational. “I see these centers as a campus, rather than camps,” Ping said. “We get these people there to be educated. And this has been quite effective in terms of countering terrorism and in de-radicalization. Up to now, there has not been a single terrorist attack in exactly four years.” In addition to praising the CCP, Ping has repeatedly promoted CCP talking points on his X, formerly known as Twitter, account and amplifies the agenda of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Fox News Digital reached out to Boston University and Baruch College for more information on why these meetings took place but did not receive a response. “Northeastern is a global research university with students and faculty from around the world,” a Northeastern University spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “We regularly meet with ambassadors and consulates of many nations as part of advancing our mission.”