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Rome prosecutors have opened an investigation against Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and two government ministers for repatriating a Libyan warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court in the Hague, the Italian premier announced on Tuesday.

Meloni revealed the investigation over allegedly aiding and abetting Ossama Anjiem, also known as Ossama al-Masri, in a video posted on social media. She said her justice and interior ministers and an under-secretary are also targeted in the investigation.

Meloni’s government has been under fire from the opposition, human rights groups and the ICC itself for releasing al-Masri on a technicality after he was arrested in the northern city of Turin on a warrant from the international court.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

When Google announced it was complying with US President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, many Mexicans responded with a laugh and a long, exhausted sigh.

At her daily press briefing on Tuesday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum largely shrugged off Google’s move, noting that Trump’s order only applies to the US continental shelf, suggesting that her country would not abide by it.

“The Gulf of Mexico is still the Gulf of Mexico,” she said.

Many of her fellow Mexicans have been similarly dismissive.

On social media, users shared images poking fun at what some called Trump’s “obsession” with their country and the unorthodox nature of his decision. Some soccer fans suggested sarcastically that Trump was paying tribute to the popular Mexican football team, Club América.

But not everyone is laughing. In an editorial for the Mexican newspaper El Universal, legal expert Mario Melgar-Adalid advised the country to push back.

“Mexico must firmly oppose this interference, otherwise the next step could be that instead of the United Mexican States (Mexico’s formal name), as established in our Constitution, they will begin to call us Old Mexico,” he wrote.

In the Mexican coastal state of Veracruz, which borders the gulf, Governor Rocío Nahle rejected Trump’s move. “Today and always … for 500 years it has been and will continue to be our rich and great ‘Gulf of Mexico,’” the governor wrote on social media last week.

Juan Cobos, a former resident of Veracruz who now lives in Mexico City, called it “absurd,” saying hundreds of years of history could not be erased by a pen stroke.

“You can’t change something overnight, what we’ve grown up with – history, geography, all that. You can’t be so authoritarian that you can change it from one day to the next.”

Google said on Monday its move was in line with its “practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.” The company noted that the change would be applied only in the United States. Users in Mexico will continue to see the “Gulf of Mexico” on Google Maps. The rest of the world will see both names.

Trump, in his executive order last week, said he directed that the body of water be renamed the Gulf of America “in recognition of this flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our nation’s economy and its people.” The order calls for all federal government maps and documents to reflect the change.

He also ordered that the nation’s highest mountain, Denali, change its name back to Mount McKinley, in honor of President William McKinley. Google said it would also update the name of its maps when the Geographic Names Information System, a government database of names and location data, is updated.

Sheinbaum responded with ridicule at the time. At a press conference, she presented a 1607 map that labeled parts of North America as “Mexican America,” and dryly proposed that the gulf should be renamed as such.

She said: “It sounds nice, no?”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Ahead of Germany’s February election, Musk has been controversially inserting himself into the German election campaign in favor of the far-right party, the Alternative for Germany (AfD).

He added: “What is new is that he is intervening in favor of right-wing politicians all over Europe. And this is really disgusting, and it is not good for the democratic development in all (of) the European Union.”

In early January, Musk held a conversation with the leader of the AfD, Alice Weidel, on X. He has also regularly tweeted his support for the party, calling Scholz “an incompetent fool” on his social media platform.

On Saturday, Musk appeared virtually at an AfD campaign rally in the city of Halle. But it is what Musk said about the German need to move on from its historic guilt over the Holocaust that has particularly irked the Chancellor.

In the week that the world, and Germany, commemorated the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, Musk told the crowd there is “frankly, too much of a focus on past guilt, and we need to move beyond that.”

Germany as a nation carries heavily the atrocities that were carried out at the hands of the Nazis in the concentration camps during the Second World War and holds commemorative events to remember the crimes.

At the event in Halle, Musk also spoke to a feverish crowd in grandiose terms about immigration, pride at being German and the upcoming election.

“It’s good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything,” Musk told the 4,000 strong crowd, before adding, “I do not say it lightly when I think the future of civilization could hang on this election.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

A crowd crush has injured several people at the world’s largest religious festival in India, organizers reported Wednesday.

The crush at the Maha Kumbh Mela in the city of Prayagraj occurred after a barrier broke, according to Akanksha Rana, special executive officer for the festival.

“Several people are injured and receiving treatment,” she said, adding that some of the injured had been taken to the Intensive Care Unit.

Asked whether any people had died or how many had been impacted, she said officials were still assessing the extent of the damage.

Millions of Hindu devotees are bathing in sacred waters at the gathering in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

Over six weeks, a staggering 400 million people are expected to attend the Maha Kumbh Mela, or the festival of the Sacred Pitcher, on the riverbanks of Prayagraj.

Speaking to local media, devotees said the incident took place around 1:30 a.m. local time and described chaotic scenes with people running in different directions and others falling over.

One woman, who appeared to be in shock, spoke to journalists on camera outside the festival venue saying one of her relatives was taken to the hospital.

“People were being pushed around and got stuck. There was over a hundred people,” the devotee told reporters.

Video shared on social media showed ambulances rushing past crowds of people to the site of the crush and security personnel helping devotees as scattered blankets and belongings lay strewn on the ground.

Crowd crushes at religious gatherings in India are not uncommon, and deadly incidents have occurred in the past, often highlighting a lack of adequate crowd control and safety measures. In 2013, dozens of people were killed and injured in a crowd crush at a railway station in Allahabad as pilgrims gathered for that year’s Kumbh Mela.

Ahead of the festival in Prayagraj, officials said extra safety measures had been put in place to protect visitors, including a security ring with checkpoints around the city staffed by more than 1,000 police officers.

The central government said over 2,700 security cameras powered by artificial intelligence would also be positioned around the city, monitored by hundreds of experts at key locations.

Aerial drones were touted to provide surveillance from above and, for the first time, underwater drones capable of diving up to 100 meters were being activated to provide round-the-clock cover, the government added.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

An Airbus plane belonging to South Korean carrier Air Busan caught fire on Tuesday at Gimhae International Airport in the country’s south while preparing for departure to Hong Kong, fire authorities said.

All 169 passengers and seven crew members were evacuated, with three having minor injuries, fire authorities in Busan said.

The fire service was alerted to the fire which began inside the plane just before 10:30 p.m., it said. South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said it began in the plane’s tail.

Footage aired by local broadcaster YTN shows evacuation slides deployed on both sides of the single-aisle plane, with emergency workers tackling smoke and flames from the jet.

Later footage from Yonhap news showed burned out holes along the length of the fuselage roof.

It is a month since the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil when a Jeju Air plane coming from Bangkok crashed on Muan Airport’s runway as it made an emergency belly landing, killing all but two of the 181 people and crew members on board.

Budget airline Air Busan is part of South Korea’s Asiana Airlines, which in December was acquired by Korean Air.

Planemaker Airbus said it was aware of reports about the incident and was liaising with Air Busan.

Air Busan and Asiana did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Korean Air directed inquiries to Air Busan.

The plane is a 17-year-old Airbus A321ceo model with tail number HL7763, according to Aviation Safety Network, a respected database run by the Flight Safety Foundation.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has inspected a facility that produces nuclear material and called for bolstering the country’s nuclear capability, state media reported Wednesday, as it ramps up pressure on the United States following the inauguration of President Donald Trump.

Kim’s visit suggests a continued emphasis on an expansion of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, though Trump has said he’s willing to talk to Kim again to revive diplomacy. Many analysts view North Korean weapons moves as part of a strategy to win diplomatic talks with Washington that could result in aid and political concessions.

The official Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim visited the nuclear-material production base and the Nuclear Weapons Institute.

It didn’t say where those facilities are located, but North Korean photos of Kim’s visit indicated that he likely visited a uranium-enrichment facility that he went to last September. That visit was North Korea’s first disclosure of a uranium-enrichment facility since it showed one to visiting American scholars in 2010.

During the latest visit, Kim praised scientists and others for “producing weapons-grade nuclear materials and in strengthening the nuclear shield of the country.”

On Sunday, North Korea said it tested a cruise missile system, its third known weapons display this year, and vowed “the toughest” response to what it called the escalation of US-South Korean military drills.

North Korea views US military training with South Korea as invasion rehearsals, though Washington and Seoul have repeatedly said their drills are defensive in nature. In recent years, the United States and South Korea have expanded their military exercises in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear program.

The start of Trump’s second term raises prospects for the revival of diplomacy between the United States and North Korea, as Trump met Kim three times during his first term. The Trump-Kim diplomacy in 2018-19 fell apart due to wrangling over US-led economic sanctions on North Korea.

During a Fox News interview broadcast Thursday, Trump called Kim “a smart guy” and “not a religious zealot.” Asked whether he will reach out to Kim again, Trump replied, “I will, yeah.”

Many experts say Kim likely thinks he has greater bargaining power than in his earlier round of diplomacy with Trump because of his country’s enlarged nuclear arsenal and deepening military ties with Russia.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Amazon has tapped Whole Foods CEO Jason Buechel to oversee its sprawling grocery business, the company announced Monday.

Doug Herrington, the company’s worldwide retail chief, wrote in a memo to employees posted to Amazon’s site that Buechel will “take on an expanded responsibility leading Worldwide Grocery Stores” while continuing to lead Whole Foods. Amazon acquired the upscale grocer for $13.7 billion in 2017.

“In his time as CEO, Jason has unlocked our ability to make high-quality natural and organic groceries more affordable and accessible to customers, helping WFM achieve record sales growth and expand to over 535 locations,” Herrington said.

Jason Buechel.Ha Lam / Business Wire via AP

Buechel became CEO of Whole Foods in 2022 after co-founder John Mackey retired from the company. In his expanded role leading Amazon’s grocery business, Buechel will succeed Tony Hoggett, who left Amazon last October to join Wondery, a food delivery startup led by serial entrepreneur Marc Lore.

Buechel will oversee not only Whole Foods, but also Amazon’s larger grocery business, which includes its line of Fresh supermarkets, Go cashierless stores and online grocery service.

Amazon has long been determined to cement itself as a grocery destination for shoppers. Since acquiring Whole Foods, it has launched its own chain of Fresh supermarkets, and it’s taken steps to unify its online and brick-and-mortar grocery operations while appealing to a broader swath of consumers.

Herrington said he’s “incredibly energized” by the momentum of Amazon’s grocery business.

“Since creating a single WW Grocery Stores organization in 2022, we have made notable progress in our vision to make grocery shopping simpler, faster, and more affordable for customers,” Herrington wrote in the memo. “We’ve taken steps to integrate our huge grocery selection across our broader logistics network, and create a more seamless experience for customers, especially Prime members. This work will continue under Jason’s leadership.”

The company has further tweaked its grocery division in recent years by shuttering some Fresh and Go stores as part of Jassy’s broader cost-cutting efforts. Last April, Amazon said it would begin removing its pricey and elaborate cashierless checkout system from Fresh stores in the U.S. Instead, it has focused on selling the technology, called Just Walk Out, to third-party retailers.

Amazon has also brought its Fresh and Whole Foods grocery businesses closer together since the 2017 acquisition. The company last October began piloting a new concept at one of its Whole Foods locations outside Philadelphia, where it attached an automated warehouse onto the store that lets Amazon shoppers purchase goods from brands not typically stocked at the organic grocer.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

In this video, Mary Ellen reviews the new uptrend in the S&P 500, and highlights what’s driving it higher. She then shares new pockets of strength that are poised to take off, and what to be on the lookout for ahead of next week’s M7 earnings reports.

This video originally premiered January 24, 2025. You can watch it on our dedicated page for Mary Ellen’s videos.

New videos from Mary Ellen premiere weekly on Fridays. You can view all previously recorded episodes at this link.

If you’re looking for stocks to invest in, be sure to check out the MEM Edge Report! This report gives you detailed information on the top sectors, industries and stocks so you can make informed investment decisions.

In this video, Dave reviews the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) from a technical analysis perspective. He focuses on the recent failure at price gap resistance, the breakdown below price and moving average support, and the frequent appearance of bearish engulfing patterns which have often indicated major highs over the last 12 months.

This video originally premiered on January 27, 2025. Watch on StockCharts’ dedicated David Keller page!

Previously recorded videos from Dave are available at this link.