'Justice for George Floyd': US cities rocked by protests over custody death of black man in Minneapolis


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Violent protests over the police custody death of an African-American man in Minneapolis spread to dozens of cities across the United States over the weekend despite the arrest of an officer involved in the incident.

Shots were fired at police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as they tried clear demonstrators who gathered in defiance of an 8pm curfew imposed after consecutive nights of violent demonstrations.

The incident occurred in the Fifth Precinct of the city, but protesters gathered in several parts of the city, including the Lake Street neighbourhood, where a police station was burned the night before. There were scattered small fires on Friday and more shops were broken into.

The Pentagon took the rare step of ordering the army to put military police units on stand-by to deploy to Minneapolis, sources told Associated Press. The move followed President Donald Trump's threat to send troops to the city if arson and looting continued.

Crowds gathered around the White House on Friday to protest the death of George Floyd and the president's response.

On Thursday, as violence broke out in Minneapolis, Mr Trump tweeted: “When the looting starts, the shooting starts.” He later said his comments had been misconstrued. “Frankly it means when there’s looting, people get shot and they die,” he said

Protesters threw bottles and other objects at officers wearing antii-riot gear behind barricades around the White House. Pepper spray was used to disperse the crowd, and police and protesters wrestled over the barricades.

US President Donald Trump accused the White House protesters of being "professionally managed" and only on the streets "to cause trouble". He did not provide evidence to support the comments, which he made in the early hours of Saturday on Twitter.

The renewed protests on Friday came after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in connection with the death of Floyd, 46, who was arrested on Monday on suspicion of using a counterfeit banknote. Video footage of the arrest showed Mr Chauvin pinning Floyd's neck down with his knee for several minutes, despite the man's pleas that he could not breathe.

In Phoenix, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and other cities, thousands of protesters carried signs that said: “He said I can’t breathe. Justice for George.” They chanted “No justice, no peace” and “Say his name. George Floyd.”

A peaceful demonstration in New York City spiralled into chaos as night fell, as protesters clashed with officers, destroyed police vehicles and set fires.

In Brooklyn, activists who had marched from Manhattan chanted insults at officers lined up outside the Barclays Centre sports arena and pelted them with water bottles. Video posted to social media showed officers using batons and shoving protesters down as they took people into custody and cleared streets.

Demonstrators rocked a police van, set it on fire, scrawled graffiti across its burnt hulk and set it on fire a second time as officers retreated from the area. Blocks away, protesters used a club to batter another police vehicle.

Police loaded handcuffed protesters on to city buses lined up on Atlantic Avenue, shutting down a major thoroughfare. The police department said several officers were injured.

“We have a long night ahead of us in Brooklyn,” Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted. “Our sole focus is de-escalating this situation and getting people home safe. There will be a full review of what happened tonight. We don’t ever want to see another night like this.”

The governor of Georgia declared a state of emergency on Saturday and mobilised 500 National Guardsmen "to protect people and property in Atlanta" after protests in the state capital turned violent on Friday.

Demonstrators smashed police cars and vandalised the CNN headquarters, spray-painting on the news channel's logo outside and breaking windows. Some protesters set fire to a police car, shot at officers with air pistols and threw bricks, bottles and knives. At least three officers were hurt and there were arrests, a police spokesman said.

More than 1,000 protesters marched to the state capitol building from the Centennial Olympic Park, blocking traffic and an interstate motorway.

The violence came despite pleas for non-violence from the city's mayor and from Bernice King, the youngest daughter of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

"The only way we get what we really want is through non-violence," Ms King said. "Let's do this the non-violent way to deal with the evil of our time."

One person was killed in Detroit, Michigan, just before midnight after someone in an SUV fired shots into a crowd of protesters near the city’s Greektown entertainment district, police said.

In Portland, Oregon, protesters broke into police headquarters on Friday night and lit a fire inside.

In Virginia's capital, a police car was set on fire outside Richmond police headquarters, and a city transit spokeswoman said a bus set ablaze was “a total loss”, news outlets reported.

Protests elsewhere were more peaceful. In Colorado, a second day of protests passed peacefully as hundreds marched through central Denver to demand justice for Floyd.

Denver police had used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds on Thursday night, after parked cars were vandalised. Several people were arrested.

Our parents and grandparents are tired of seeing their kids die all of the time, so we have to take it upon ourselves to make a better future

In Houston, Texas, hundreds gathered at City Hall for a protest organised by the group Black Lives Matter. The crowd spilled on to Interstate 45's entrance ramp near the central part of the city and raised slogans, "I can't breathe," and "No justice, no peace."

Hundreds of marchers temporarily shut down a five-lane section of motorway in San Jose, the main city in California's Silicon Valley.

"We are out here because we, as a generation, realise things have to change," said Paul Selman, a black protester in Minneapolis. "We need peace."

"Our parents and grandparents are tired of seeing their kids die all of the time, so we have to take it upon ourselves to make a better future," he told Reuters.

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The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

'Shakuntala Devi'

Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra

Director: Anu Menon

Rating: Three out of five stars

What went into the film

25 visual effects (VFX) studios

2,150 VFX shots in a film with 2,500 shots

1,000 VFX artists

3,000 technicians

10 Concept artists, 25 3D designers

New sound technology, named 4D SRL

 

CREW
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Milestones on the road to union

1970

October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

1971

March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.

September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

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The%20specs
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South Africa v India schedule

Tests: 1st Test Jan 5-9, Cape Town; 2nd Test Jan 13-17, Centurion; 3rd Test Jan 24-28, Johannesburg

ODIs: 1st ODI Feb 1, Durban; 2nd ODI Feb 4, Centurion; 3rd ODI Feb 7, Cape Town; 4th ODI Feb 10, Johannesburg; 5th ODI Feb 13, Port Elizabeth; 6th ODI Feb 16, Centurion

T20Is: 1st T20I Feb 18, Johannesburg; 2nd T20I Feb 21, Centurion; 3rd T20I Feb 24, Cape Town

Despacito's dominance in numbers

Released: 2017

Peak chart position: No.1 in more than 47 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Lebanon

Views: 5.3 billion on YouTube

Sales: With 10 million downloads in the US, Despacito became the first Latin single to receive Diamond sales certification

Streams: 1.3 billion combined audio and video by the end of 2017, making it the biggest digital hit of the year.

Awards: 17, including Record of the Year at last year’s prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, as well as five Billboard Music Awards

Monster

Directed by: Anthony Mandler

Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., John David Washington 

3/5

 

Business Insights
  • Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
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  • US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Top 10 most polluted cities
  1. Bhiwadi, India
  2. Ghaziabad, India
  3. Hotan, China
  4. Delhi, India
  5. Jaunpur, India
  6. Faisalabad, Pakistan
  7. Noida, India
  8. Bahawalpur, Pakistan
  9. Peshawar, Pakistan
  10. Bagpat, India
MATCH INFO

Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai

RACE CARD

6.30pm: Madjani Stakes Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,400m
7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 2,200m
8.50pm: Dubai Creek Mile Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 1,600m
9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (D) 1,900m
10pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,400m

JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH

Directed by: Shaka King

Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons

Four stars

Babumoshai Bandookbaaz

Director: Kushan Nandy

Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami

Three stars

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The specs

Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo

Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed

Power: 271 and 409 horsepower

Torque: 385 and 650Nm

Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000