The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly may not be finished making moves. According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers plan to "scour the trade market ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline" in search of "potential upgrades" after acquiring forward Dorian Finney-Smith in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. Los Angeles traded point guard D'Angelo Russell, second-year forward Maxwell Lewis and three future second-round picks to Brooklyn in exchange for Finney-Smith and guard Shake Milton. This article will be updated soon to provide more information and analysis. For more from Bleacher Report on this topic and from around the sports world, check out our B/R app , homepage and social feeds—including Twitter , Instagram , Facebook and TikTok .Aam Aadmi Party MLA Naresh Balyan has been arrested in connection with a 2023 extortion case, PTI reported citing Delhi Police. He was called to the Delhi Police's Crime Branch office in RK Puram for questioning and was later arrested, officials said. The arrest came after an investigation into the case revealed an audio clip of a conversation between the Uttam Nagar MLA and gangster Kapil Sangwan, also known as Nandu. The conversation with Nandu, who is currently based abroad, allegedly involved discussions about collecting ransom from business, the Delhi Police was cited by ANI. Further interrogation in this regard is in progress, they added. AAP alleges conspiracy AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, meanwhile, reacted to the arrest and said that the Bharatiya Janata Party is agitated by Arvind Kejriwal 's questioning of the "deteriorating law and order situation in Delhi". "Ever since @ArvindKejriwal ji raised questions on the deteriorating law and order situation in Delhi, the Central Government, BJP and Amit Shah have become nervous and are bent on harassing Kejriwal ji and the Aam Aadmi Party MLAs," Singh said in a video post on X. "Balyan has been arrested under this conspiracy and the charges against him are baseless," Singh claimed. Noting that Balyan was a victim of extortion calls, Singh said that "this attitude of the BJP and Delhi Police will not be able to break our morale". BJP reacts Delhi BJP chief Virendraa Sachdeva said it was evident from the audio evidence that Naresh Balyan was running an extortion racket with gangsters and used to name the eminent people of Uttam Nagar and used to collect money by threatening them. "This audio is viral on social media in the public domain and according to our information, the police may have detained them and questioned them. The investigation agency is doing its job," Sachdeva told news agency ANI. Naresh Balyan refutes allegations Earlier in the day, Balyan had refuted the extortion allegations levelled by the BJP, saying that he would lodge police cases against those who "spread lies" about him. BJP leaders Gaurav Bhatia and Virendraa Sachdeva had played the audio clip of Balyan and Nandu during a press conference in the national capital. Bhatia had accused the AAP of being involved in threatening people and extorting money from them. He had asked whether Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi chief minister Atishi will take action against Balyan and ask him to resign. "If they do not ask for his resignation, it will be deemed that the extortion money is going to the party and its leaders," Bhatia had said. However, AAP's Uttam Nagar MLA had rubbished the allegations and said, "I am sending notices to all those who have spread the false clip and getting FIRs registered against them. Remember, I am not a Congressman. Those who spread lies should be ready for legal action." ( with inputs from agencies)
NPP Birmingham Chairman Commends NHIA for Free Dialysis Initiative in Bono Region
CHICAGO, Dec. 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mondelēz International (Nasdaq: MDLZ) has entered a strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to enhance digital innovation across the company. Mondelēz has designated AWS as its strategic cloud provider and has already migrated hundreds of workloads. Leveraging AWS’s industry leading cloud infrastructure and services, Mondelēz will achieve greater security, agility, and reliability for its operations including migrating its ERP landscape to SAP RISE powered by AWS. “A key focus of our growth strategy is our digital transformation,” said Kostas Georgakopoulos, Chief Technology Officer, and Chief Information Security Officer at Mondelēz. “AWS is a strategic partner complementing our own internal Cloud Platform Engineering capabilities to lead digital transformation across the Enterprise.” Key elements of the new partnership include: Enabling growth: Improves agility and cost efficiency, while advancing sustainability through AWS’s focus on renewable energy and energy efficient data centers. Accelerating ERP and digital transformation: Migrates on-premises SAP systems to SAP RISE on AWS to deliver improved performance, reliability, resiliency, security, and AI capabilities for Mondelēz business systems and insights. Enabling cutting-edge technology: Underscores Mondelēz’s commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology to enhance its internal platform engineering capabilities. AWS’s suite of cloud services aligns seamlessly with Mondelēz’s focus on automation, security, resiliency, and agility—key pillars in achieving the company’s strategic goals. “Mondelēz has a clear vision of how the cloud, AI, and systems like SAP RISE can fuel its growth, and it is truly impressive to see the company execute on that vision,” said Rich Geraffo, Vice President, AWS North America. “Our team is proud to have worked closely with their organization to implement the architecture, applications, and services that will serve as a foundation for continued innovation across their company.” About Mondelēz International Mondelēz International, Inc. (Nasdaq: MDLZ) empowers people to snack right in over 150 countries around the world. With 2023 net revenues of approximately $36 billion, MDLZ is leading the future of snacking with iconic global and local brands such as OREO, RITZ, LU, CLIF BAR and TATE'S BAKE SHOP biscuits and baked snacks, as well as CADBURY DAIRY MILK, MILKA and TOBLERONE chocolate. Mondelēz International is a proud member of the Standard and Poor's 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones Sustainability Index. Visit www.mondelezinternational.com or follow the company on X at www.x.com/MDLZ .FIFA confirms 2034 World Cup coming to Saudi ArabiaNone
Back on screen After a string of re-releases showed promise at the box office, a Salman Khan favourite is set to make its way to the big screen again. Rajshri Productions announced that it has re-released the popular romance drama, , starring Khan and Bhagyashree, to mark the film’s 35th anniversary. The movie, which was originally released on December 29, 1989, was the directorial debut of Sooraj Barjatya, and was Khan’s first film as a leading man. It also marked Bhagyashree’s acting debut. Maine Pyar Kiya explored themes of class, friendship, and love, and, to date, enjoys massive fan following owing to its memorable music and dialogues. Matters of the heart may have infrequently spoken about his wife Natasha Dalal, but that has never stopped him from discussing matters relating to the heart. The actor, who featured in the recently released film Baby John, says heartbreak is difficult for men to deal with, because “being a boy, you can’t cry”. Appearing on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel, Dhawan weighed in on the subject and said, “When a man’s heart breaks, society doesn’t think much about what happens to him. He goes through a very bad time. You can’t even show it to them. You get shattered from within. You can’t show that pain. You have to keep a face and move forward, because people expect you to be strong; you can’t cry, being a boy”. Pointing fingers Director , who is known for films like Kaante, Shootout at Wadala, and Kaabil, has expressed his discontent over how the film industry is now at the mercy of two OTT platforms. “I’ve been in the movie business since I was a teenager. I’ve been a director for 30 years. Never had I imagined that the entire system would collapse the way it has, and be at the mercy of two OTT platforms,” he wrote on social media in a post that invited reactions from his followers. “It’s not OTT. It’s COVID that reshaped many industries, and the cinema industry is one of them. OTT encashed the opportunity that the cinema industry couldn’t provide. It’s a failure of producers and directors who couldn’t bring viewers back to cinemas,” wrote one user. Others also criticised the mediocre quality of films being churned out of late.
THE mother of tragic Sara Sharif said yesterday: “It is not human to do this to your own child” after the ten-year-old’s dad was found guilty of her murder. Olga Domin, 38, lost a court battle to keep Sara from the clutches of evil Urfan Sharif, stepmum Beinash Batool and uncle Faisal Malik . She believes the trio, who will be sentenced on Tuesday, should suffer as much as Sara — and die in jail. Her body was found by police in her bunk bed on August 10, 2023. A post mortem uncovered 25 fractures and 71 external injuries, including six human bite marks, and burns from a domestic iron. Last night a friend of Olga said of Sharif: “How could social services ever give Sara to that man? “He’s the worst of the worst. He treated her like a dog. Taxi driver Sharif, 43, throttled Sara and beat her with a cricket bat and metal pole, sometimes tying her hands and legs together with parcel tape. She was made to wear makeshift hoods during attacks and Sharif urged another child to hit her like a punchbag as if it was a game. Batool, 30, often called Sharif back from work saying Sara was being naughty and knowing he would beat her up . Meanwhile, Malik, 29, who lived with them in a flat then a cramped three-bedroom house in Woking, Surrey, failed to raise the alarm whenever Sara was attacked. Sharif hit Sara twice on the abdomen when she lay dying because he thought she was pretending to be ill. The brute refused to call for medical help and it is suspected the three jet-washed Sara’s body before fleeing to Pakistan, leaving her in the bottom bunk. She had started wearing a hijab to school to conceal injuries to her face and head. An Old Bailey jury yesterday found Sharif and Batool guilty of murder following an eight- week trial. Malik was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child. Polish national Olga said: “I still can’t believe what is going on, this situation. “It’s not human to do this stuff to your own child. I hope he will be dying in jail “I can’t believe he was hitting her belly when she was dying. I still can’t manage that. They should all get the same for what they were doing. Monster is too nice word for him anyway. “I hope he will be dying in jail.” Paying tribute to “angelic” Sara, who dreamed of being on The X Factor, Olga said: “She was always laughing, smiling. "She loved all the kids. She was always helping, and making videos. She was an amazing child. She was saying ‘I’ll be a model’. “I just don’t get why she is where she is.” Sara was living with Olga from 2015, when they fled to a domestic refuge to escape Sharif’s violence. He was having supervised contact at a Sure Start centre in Reading before a family court hearing in 2019 which ruled Sara should live with Urfan. It is understood Olga did not contest the ruling at the time. Friends say Sharif took accusations made against him and threw them back at Olga — and used the same tactic in his trial by blaming Batool for Sara’s murder, before admitting he too beat her up. Olga was allowed contact with Sara, supervised by Batool, but she said the couple blocked this a few years before Sara’s death. The youngster has been laid to rest in Poland in a grave bearing her mum’s surname and adorned with flowers. Olga visits daily. Newly released pictures show Sara playing with other children in a garden, and sitting in front of a teepee which Olga made for her. Olga also said in a statement released through Surrey Police: “My dear Sara, I ask God to please take care of my little girl, she was taken too soon. “Sara had beautiful brown eyes and an angelic voice. Sara’s smile could brighten up the darkest room. “Everyone who knew Sara will know her unique character, her beautiful smile and loud laugh. “She will always be in our hearts , her laughter will bring warmth to our lives. We miss Sara very much. Love you Princess.” Sharif also dished out horrific abuse to Olga, who said he did it all with “really evil eyes”. Sara had beautiful brown eyes and an angelic voice. Sara’s smile could brighten up the darkest room She said: “He choked me with a belt, he tried to set me on fire, he beat me with his fists. He was putting the oil on my body. His friend stopped him. He already had the lighter in his hand.” Olga said Sharif would sleep with money all the time and she had to plead for cash for food for the children. She added: “He told me that he dressed me and no one would help me if I left him because I don’t know the language and I have never worked here. “He said he didn’t like my friend. I wasn’t allowed to meet her. I went to pick up something from the shop and he wouldn’t let me out. I was working nights cleaning the pubs. "They kicked him out of McDonald’s (where he was a shift manager) because he was stealing money. He didn’t have a job. He took all the money from me. “He took £4,000 from (benefits back payment). I took £100 to buy clothes for my kids and he hit me because I took the money. “He would be cunning and would take my phone and he locked me out around three times. “When he did this he had evil eyes, really evil eyes. I was alone in a foreign country, without a language, without a family, until I finally realised that this was not the life I had and left.” Olga was taken to a domestic violence refuge in 2015 and their divorce was completed in 2017. Sick Sharif spent six days lying to Old Bailey jurors, claiming Batool was an “evil psycho” and the “true villain of the piece”. On his seventh day in the witness box, Sharif dramatically confessed to beating Sara with a cricket bat and pole and ultimately killing her. But the self-confessed coward could never bring himself to admit he had murdered Sara. At one point he told the court he beat her repeatedly and intended to cause her “really serious harm” — but he then went back on his testimony insisting he had never meant to hurt her ever. Police found a note by her body, written by Sharif, which said: “I legally punished her and she died.” He choked me with a belt, he tried to set me on fire, he beat me with his fists Once he landed in Pakistan, he called 999 to say: “I’ve killed my daughter. I legally punished her and she died.” Batool and Malik both refused to give evidence. Det Chief Insp Craig Emmerson, of Surrey Police, said the trio only sought to preserve their own interests and showed no remorse. Mr Emerson added: “Sara was a bright and lively little girl who loved singing and dancing. “Sara’s spirit and bravery and resilience in the face of the suffering that she endured has shone through from the vast inquiries that have been undertaken in this case. “Sara’s young life was brought to an end as a result of the brutal abuse and unspeakable violence inflicted on her by Sharif and Batool, which Malik did nothing to prevent.”South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has survived an impeachment motion in the opposition-led parliament that was prompted by his short-lived attempt to impose martial law this week, after members of his party boycotted the vote. Only 195 votes were cast, below the threshold of 200 needed for the vote to count. "The entire nation is watching the decision being made here at the National Assembly today. World is watching," National Assembly speaker Woo Won-shik said with a sigh on Saturday. "It's very unfortunate that there wasn't even a vote." Source: AAP / Jeon Heon-Kyun The main opposition Democratic Party had promised to revive the impeachment motion next week if it failed on Saturday, and after the vote failed said it would not give up. But Yoon's People Power Party (PPP) said it would find a "more orderly, responsible" way to resolve the crisis than impeachment of the president. Yoon shocked the nation late on Tuesday when he gave the military sweeping emergency powers in order to root out what he called "anti-state forces" and overcome obstructionist political opponents. He later rescinded the order. He apologised to the nation in a speech on Saturday morning but resisted calls to resign ahead of the vote. Yoon said he would not seek to avoid legal and political responsibility for his decision to declare martial law for the first time in South Korea in 44 years. He said the decision was born of desperation. Saturday's televised speech was the embattled leader's first public appearance since he rescinded the martial law order six hours after declaring it, when parliament defied military and police cordons to vote unanimously against his decree. "I leave it up to my party to take steps to stabilise the political situation in the future, including the issue of my term in office," Yoon said in the address to the nation, promising there would be no second attempt to impose martial law. Standing in front of the South Korean flag, Yoon bowed after he finished his brief remarks, staring solemnly into the camera for a moment. Han Dong-hoon, leader of Yoon's ruling party, said after the address that the president was no longer in a position to carry out his public duties and his resignation was now unavoidable. On Friday Han said Yoon was a danger to the country and needed to be removed from power, increasing the pressure on Yoon to quit even though PPP members later reaffirmed a formal opposition to his impeachment. If Yoon leaves office before his single five-year term ends in May 2027, the constitution requires a presidential election to be held within 60 days of his departure. Martial law has been declared more than a dozen times since South Korea was established as a republic in 1948, the last time in 1980.NMI Holdings, Inc. Elevates Mohammad Yousaf to Chief of Operations and Technology
Stock market today: Wall Street gets back to climbing, sending Nasdaq to a record
