US President Joe Biden nominated Indian-American Arun Venkataraman for the director-general of the US and foreign commercial service and the assistant secretary for global markets in the department of commerce. According to a White House readout, Venkataraman has over 20 years of experience advising companies, international organisations and the US government on international trade issues. He is currently the counsellor to the secretary of commerce, advising the department on trade and other international economic matters. Arun was also a senior director at Visa, a leading global government engagement strategy on a range of international policy issues including digital economy, trade, tax and sanctions.
LA mayor likely to be Biden’s pick for India envoy
President Joe Biden is expected to nominate Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, a trusted political ally, as America’s next ambassador to India, according to media reports. Garcetti, 50, who served as the co-chair of Biden’s presidential campaign, was initially considered for the Cabinet. Garcetti is the 42nd Mayor of Los Angeles, the second-largest city in the United States, after New York City. The important position of US envoy to India has been lying vacant since January 20. In the absence of a full-time ambassador, Daniel Smith, the director of the Foreign Service Institute, who recently served as acting Secretary of State and Acting Deputy Secretary of State, has been sent to New Delhi to serve as Charge d’Affaires, ad interim.
Sourobh Ghosh among Wyss award winners
The Harvard Business School Doctoral Programs announced three recipients of the 2020-2021 Wyss Award for Excellence in Doctoral Research and one winner of the Martin Award for Excellence in Business Economics, which included Indian American Sourobh Ghosh. The prizes are presented each year based on excellence in innovative dissertation research. Ghosh studies how firms use digital experimentation to drive product innovation and strategy. In one study, he shows that as the cost of experimentation has declined, firms are running more experiments but on lower value opportunities. Ghosh’s research illustrates that it is important to measure and manage the experimentation process to ensure that it is delivering results that are consistent with the long-run strategic objectives of the firm.
Two-year-old becomes American Mensa member
Kashe Quest, a two-year-old toddler from Los Angeles has become youngest member of American Mensa after scoring a 146 on the IQ test. According to the two-year-old’s mother, Sukhjit Athwal, Kashe’s impressive memory was the first indicator that something was differen. “We started to notice her memory was really great. She just picked up things really fast and she was really interested in learning.” And by the time Kashe was 17 or 18 months old, her mother said she had “recognised all the alphabet, numbers, colours, and shapes.” Now, at just two years old, the genius toddler is able to identify all 50 states by shape and location on a map, knows 50 signs in sign language, can count to 100 and can identify elements on the periodic table by their symbols.
Afghan bomb kills 4, wounds 11
A roadside bomb struck a minivan full of university lecturers and students in Afghanistan’s Kapisa province, killing at least 4 and wounding 11 others, Afghan officials said. Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the minivan was targeted while travelling to bring the group to Alberoni University. Provincial police spokesman Shayeq Shoresh said the bomb was set off by remote control. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Oli calls for all-party govt, fresh elections
Embattled Nepal PM K P Sharma Oli urged all political parties to form an all-party government and hold fresh elections, as he tried to justify the dissolution of the House of Representatives twice by President Bidya Devi Bhandari, saying a “functionless” parliament turned out to be the main source of instability in the country. “Going for an election can never be a regressive act,” Oli said in a televised address to the nation. He blamed the opposition parties and dissident faction of the ruling CPN-UML for the dissolution of parliament. “I made my last ditch effort to form an alternative government after being assured of support from the Janata Samajbadi Party. However, opposition parties forced the president to dismiss their claim for a new government,” he said.
Pak scribe attacked in his apartment
A journalist who is critical of Pakistan’s military and intelligence agencies was severely beaten by three unidentified men in an attack at his apartment in Islamabad, the journalist and his colleagues said. Asad Ali Toor, who works for the Aaj News Pakistani TV channel, told police in a statement the attackers claimed they were intelligence agents. He said they tied his hands and feet with cloth and one of them hit him with a pistol. Toor said the assailants forced him to chant slogans in favour of the army. Last month, Toor claimed he received threats over his journalistic work. There was no immediate response from the military. However, Pakistan’s minister for human rights condemned the attack.
Virus fails to deter climbers on Mount Everest
A year after Mt Everest was closed to climbers as the pandemic swept across the globe, hundreds are making the final push to the summit with only a few more days left in the season, saying they are undeterred by a Covid outbreak in base camp. Three expedition teams to Everest cancelled their climb this month following reports of people getting sick. But the remaining 41teams decided to continue with hundreds of climbers and their guides scaling the 8,849-metre top in the season that ends in May, before bad weather sets in. “Covid has not made any huge effect like what is being believed,” said Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks, an expedition operator. “No one has fallen seriously sick because of Covid or died.” With 122 clients from 10 teams, the company led the biggest group but there were no serious illnesses among them, he said.
Australia to shut embassy in Kabul
Australia is shutting its embassy in the Afghan capital, citing security concerns ahead of the final withdrawal of US and Nato troops. Australia announced the temporary closure. A number of other embassies in Kabul, including the US, have sent home non-essential personnel, warned their nationals against travelling to Afghanistan and urged those already there to consider leaving. The last of the 2,500 to 3,500 US troops and 7,000 Nato allied troops will be gone by September 11. The Afghan foreign ministry said it was committed to providing embassies with security, but there is concern about its ability.
Military frees Mali’s PM, president
Mali’s interim president and premier have been released, a military official said, three days after they were detained and then stripped of their powers in what appeared to be the country’s second coup in nine months. Their release met a key demand of the international community, but fell far short of other calls for an immediate return to civilian government. Family members confirmed that President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane had been freed. The two men have returned to their homes in the capital Bamako. The transitional leaders were tasked with steering the return to civilian rule after a coup last August toppled Mali’s president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita over alleged corruption and jihadist insurgency.
Man killed after attacking three cops in France
A man with severe schizophrenia who had been on a watch list for Islamic radicalism stabbed a police officer at her station in western France and shot two other officers before police killed him, authorities said. The slain suspect was a Frenchman in his 40s who had been on a watch list for Islamic radicalism because of his “rigorous” religious practices, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said. The assailant had recently been released from prison and was under monitoring by psychiatric services, he said. The three officers were wounded but none is in life-threatening condition, the minister said. The motive for the violence in the Nantes suburb of La Chapelle-sur-Erdre was unclear, but Darmanin told reporters at the scene that the man “clearly wanted to attack police”.
Bodies of 215 kids found at Canada indigenous school
The remains of 215 children, some as young as 3 years old, have been found buried on the site of what was once Canada’s largest Indigenous residential school - one of the institutions that held kids taken from families across the nation. Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tkemlups te Secwepemc First Nation said in a news release that the remains were confirmed with the help of ground-penetrating radar. More bodies may be found because there are more areas to search on the school grounds, Casimir said. In an earlier release, she called the discovery an “unthinkable loss that was spoken about but never documented at the Kamloops Indian Residential School”. It was once the site of Canada’s largest residential school.
Canada MP exposes on cam for 2nd time
For the second time in just over a month, a member of Canada’s parliament has apologised for exposing himself during a virtual legislative session. Will Amos, who is a member of PM Trudeau’s Liberal Party, tweeted that during the session the night before, he had “urinated without realising that I was on camera”. In April, Amos apologised for stripping down on camera after a run, an act that also appeared on an internal parliamentary Zoom call. Last week, Amos said he was stepping down as parliamentary secretary to the minister of innovation, as well as from committee posts “so I can seek assistance.” He gave no further details.
Biden shuts door on open airspace treaty with Russia
US President Joe Biden’s administration announced it will not return to the Open Skies Treaty, which Donald Trump withdrew from, signalling a toughening stance against Russia. The treaty was meant to foster trust by allowing the two powers and their allies to monitor one another’s airspace, but Trump left the pact in November citing Russian violations. Biden, who has said he is open to working with Russia on some international security issues, ruled out a return to the treaty in the run-up to his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June16 in Geneva. “The US regrets that the Treaty on Open Skies has been undermined by Russia’s violations,” the state department said. Moscow said in January it would leave the treaty, saying there was no progress in making it work in light of Trump’s withdrawal.
3 gunmen fire at crowd in Florida, kill 2, injure 25
Two people died and an estimated 20 to 25 people were injured in a shooting outside a banquet hall in Florida, police said. The gunfire erupted at the El Mula Banquet Hall in Miami-Dade County, police told news outlets. The hall had been rented out for a concert. Three people got out of an SUV and opened fire into a crowd outside with assault rifles and handguns, police director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez III said. Authorities believe the shooting was targeted. “These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately. We’ll seek justice.” Two people died at the scene, cops said. As many as 25 people went to hospitals. No arrests were immediately announced.
32 parliamentarians died of Covid-19 in DRC
Some 32 parliamentarians in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have died of Covid-19 since the virus was first reported in the country in March 2020, the speaker of the National Assembly confirmed. This was announced by the first vice president of the National Assembly, Jean-Marc Kabund. The announcement comes as the authorities fear the third wave of coronavirus cases. The infection rate has been increasing in recent days. At least 107 new cases were identified, including 102 in Kinshasa. As of May 28, official figures show 31,385 confirmed cases and 782 deaths. The capital Kinshasa has been the epicenter of the epidemic and has recorded more than 21,700 cases since the first case was reported in the country.
Louvre gets first female head in 228 years
France has appointed Laurence des Cars, known for promoting social issues through art, as the new head of the Louvre - the first time a woman will be in charge of the world’s biggest museum after it first opened 228 years ago. Des Cars currently runs the Musee d’Orsay, the Paris landmark museum dedicated to 19th-century art, where she is already the first-ever woman boss. Her legacy there includes boosting young visitor numbers and giving art and visitors more physical space. During her four years at the Orsay, the 54-year old art historian has taken a stance on some controversial topics, including by coming out in favour of restituting works looted by Nazis.
