Indonesia bus crash leaves 25 dead in West Java

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At least 25 people were killed on the Indonesian island of Java when a bus carrying local tourists ran off a road and overturned.
The bus had been taking about 40 passengers to visit thermal springs when the accident happened in the Subang region of West Java province.
It appears the bus collided with a motorcycle as they went downhill, police quoted by local media say.
At least 16 people, including the driver, were injured.
Most passengers were from South Tangerang in Banten province, reports said. The bus had reportedly been on its way to hot springs near Mount Tangkuban Parahu on Saturday.
Subang police chief Budhy Hendratno said the victims had not yet been identified, the Wartakota news website reported. He said the exact cause of the accident was under investigation.
Serious road accidents are common in Indonesia.
Last July 10 people were killed when a bus travelling from Bali to a town in East Java hit the back of a lorry.

Kim Cattrall criticises ‘cruel’ Sarah Jessica Parker after brother’s death

Sarah Jessica Parker (L) and Kim Cattrall (R)Image copyrightPA
Image captionThere has been longstanding tension between Parker (L) and Cattrall
Kim Cattrall has criticised fellow Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker after she sent condolences following the death of Cattrall’s brother.
Cattrall wrote on Instagram: “Your continuous reaching out is a painful reminder of how cruel you really were then and now.”
On Friday Parker told Extra TV that she had sent her “love and condolences”.
Cattrall’s brother Chris, 55, was found dead last Sunday after going missing from his home in Alberta, Canada.
The actress announced his death on Twitter the same day and asked for privacy.
In September Cattrall ruled out appearing in Sex and the City 3, saying her relationship with her co-stars was “toxic”.
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In her Instagram post, Cattrall wrote: “My Mom asked me today ‘When will that @sarahjessicaparker, that hypocrite, leave you alone?’
“Let me make this VERY clear. (If I haven’t already) You are not my family. You are not my friend.
“So I’m writing to tell you one last time to stop exploiting our tragedy in order to restore your ‘nice girl’ persona.”
She also included a link to a New York Post article that said there had been tension between her and Parker during the filming of Sex and the City.
The article said Parker and the two other stars formed a clique and were not on speaking terms with Cattrall by the time the series ended in 2004.
Last September Parker announced there would be no third Sex and the City film.
“I’m disappointed. We had this beautiful, funny, heartbreaking, joyful, very relatable script and story,” she told Extra.
Cattrall later denied media reports that said her demands had made it impossible to make the film and tweeted that she simply did not want to take part.
Parker has not publicly responded to Cattrall’s latest posts.

Macerata: Anti-racism protest after migrant shooting in Italy

anti-racism rally in MacerataImage copyrightREUTERS
Image captionThe anti-racist protest followed a far-right demonstration on Thursday
Several thousand anti-racism protesters have rallied in the central Italian town of Macerata, one week after a far-right activist shot and wounded six people he thought were migrants.
The drive-by attack followed the arrest of a Nigerian suspected of murdering and dismembering a local woman.
The town’s mayor said comments on social media had fed a climate of hatred before the shootings.
Italy votes in national elections on 4 March, with immigration a key issue.
More than 500,000 people have reached Italy since 2014, most fleeing war and poverty in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. Many are being housed in centres across the country.
Mayor Romano Carancini had asked for the demonstration to be cancelled to maintain calm in the town but the regional authority gave the go-ahead, AFP news agency reports.
Schools remained closed, a church service was cancelled and shops closed at midday over fears clashes could break out.
On Thursday evening there were clashes when a group of several dozen activists from the far-right group Forza Nuova demonstrated against immigration and confronted police with fascist salutes.
The suspect, named locally as Luca Traini, after his detentionImage copyrightEPA
Image captionShooting suspect Luca Traini reportedly made a fascist salute when he was captured
The gun attack saw shots fired in two locations that figured in an investigation into the murder of Pamela Mastropietro, 18, whose body was found dismembered and hidden in two suitcases a few days earlier.
At a court hearing on Tuesday, Luca Traini confessed to firing the shots, saying he had been listening to a report about her death on his car radio.
He reportedly made a fascist salute when he was captured. Police found a gun in his car.
He had taken part in regional elections for the anti-immigration Northern League last year.
Right-wing politicians have been using Pamela Mastropietro’s killing to promote their anti-migrant message as part of their campaign for next month’s election.
mapA note on terminology:The OP’S NEWS  uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.

North Korea: US says ‘no daylight’ between allies despite warmer ties

US Vice-President Pence (R) was seated near Kim Jong-un's sister Kim Yo-jong (L) at the opening ceremonyImage copyrightAFP/GETTY IMAGES
Image captionNorth Korea’s Kim Yo-jong was seated near Mike Pence at the opening ceremony of the Games

US Vice-President Mike Pence has said his country and South Korea are in complete agreement on the need to maintain pressure on North Korea.
Speaking on his way home from the Winter Olympics in South Korea, Mr Pence said there was “no daylight” between the two allies on the issue.
The Games has seen better ties between the two Koreas despite tensions over the North’s nuclear programme.
But US has distanced itself from the North Korean overtures.
On Saturday North Korean leader Kim Jong-un invited the South’s President, Moon Jae-in, to Pyongyang for talks.
It would be the first summit in more than a decade between Korean leaders. Mr Moon said the Koreas should “make it happen” and encouraged the North to return to negotiations with the US.
But Pyongyang’s nuclear programme will hang over any attempts to bring the countries closer together.

Media captionKim Yo-jong presented President Moon Jae-in with a folder holding a handwritten note from her brother, the leader of North Korea

The US administration has sought to maintain pressure on North Korea through sanctions and tough rhetoric from President Donald Trump.
Speaking to reporters during a flight on Saturday, Mr Pence said: “There is no daylight between the United States, the Republic of Korea and Japan on the need to continue to isolate North Korea economically and diplomatically until they abandon their nuclear and ballistic missile programme.”
The handwritten invitation to President Moon was delivered by Mr Kim’s influential sister, Kim Yo-jong, at a landmark meeting in the presidential palace in Seoul, as the Games opened on Saturday.
Ms Kim and the North’s ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam made up the most senior delegation from the North to visit the South since the Korean War in the 1950s.

How the move could drive a wedge between allies

The invitation puts Mr Moon in a difficult position as he had promised to engage with the North, but his US ally is cautious of Seoul falling for North Korea’s charm offensive.
Despite the public shows of friendliness, experts have warned the underlying tensions have not gone away.
At the opening ceremony for the Games, Mr Pence, Kim Yo-jong and Kim Yong-nam were seated in close proximity to each other.
Mr Pence stayed seated when South and North Korean athletes marched together under a unified flag, and also skipped a dinner with the North Korean delegation.
In a tweet, he reasserted the sceptical view taken his administration regarding recent conciliatory gestures by North Korea.

Kim’s sister takes the stage

The Winter Olympics has thrust Kim Yo-jong into the spotlight.
The highest profile member of the North Korean delegation to the Games, she is the first immediate member of the North’s ruling family to visit the South since the 1950-1953 Korean war.
Ms Kim, who is though to be about 30 years old, was promoted to the powerful politburo last year. She is on a US sanctions list over alleged links to human rights abuses in North Korea.
Later on Saturday Ms Kim, Kim Yong-nam and Moon Jae-in attended the first ice hockey match played by a unification team of athletes from both North and South Korea.
They were beaten by Switzerland 8-0

Media captionWhat we’ve seen of Kim Yo-jong from North Korean media

Donald Trump: Lives are being ‘destroyed’ by allegations

US President Donald Trump attends a roundtable discussion at the White House in Washington, DC, 10 February 2018Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image captionMr Trump tweeted that “false” abuse allegations were “shattering” careers
President Donald Trump says lives are being “destroyed by mere allegation” after two White House aides quit amid accusations of domestic abuse.
“There is no recovery for someone falsely accused,” Mr Trump tweeted.
This week saw the departure of White House speechwriter David Sorensen and staff secretary Rob Porter.
The White House has been criticised for its handling of the allegations and Mr Trump’s comments quickly drew scorn.
His remarks also come amid a worldwide debate over sexual harassment and the abuse of power.
In his tweet, Mr Trump did not mention either men, but warned allegations could result in a person’s “life and career gone”.
Among those to react with anger was Democratic Senator Patty Murray, who responded by saying that women’s lives were affected every day by sexual violence and harassment.
“I’m going to keep standing with them, and trusting them, even if the president won’t,” she said.
Democratic Congresswoman Jackie Speier tweeted that Mr Trump’s comments were “offensive”.
Some commentators objected to his reference to due process, for example pointing his promotion of a conspiracy theory about former President Barack Obama’s nationality.
Mr Sorensen has been accused by his former wife of being violent and emotionally abusive, while Mr Porter faces allegations of domestic abuse involving two ex-wives.
Both men deny the allegations.

Media captionTrump on Porter: ‘We absolutely wish him well’
Mr Trump, who paid tribute to Mr Porter on Friday during a press conference in which he told people to “remember that he said that he’s innocent”, has himself been accused of sexual misconduct, something he has strongly denied.

Media captionWhy these women are sticking with Trump
Sexual misconduct claims have hit a growing list of influential men around the world after a flurry of allegations were made against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.
The #MeToo hashtag also went viral last year as more and more women shared their harassment experiences online.

Israeli air strikes against Syria ‘biggest since 1982’

Media captionWhat happened?
Israel says it has inflicted huge damage on Syrian air defences after one of its fighter jets was brought down during a raid over Syria.
The response was the “most significant attack” of its kind against Syria since the 1982 Lebanon war, said senior Israeli air force general Tomer Bar.
The F-16 jet went down during a mission that followed an Iranian drone launch into Israeli territory, Israel says.
The two pilots parachuted to safety before the crash in northern Israel.
Israel says it responded with a second wave of strikes on both Syrian and Iranian military targets operating inside Syria.
Israeli air strikes in Syria are not unusual, BBC Middle East correspondent Tom Bateman says, but the loss of an Israeli fighter jet marks a serious escalation.
Anti-aircraft effects over the Syrian-Israeli border in the Golan Heights. Photo: 10 February 20218Image copyrightEPA
Image captionAnti-aircraft fire smoke over the Syrian-Israeli border in the Golan Heights
Later on Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a meeting with his military chiefs. He said Israel wanted peace but would defend itself “against any attack against us or any attempt by Iran to establish itself against us in Syria”.
In other developments:
  • A Turkish helicopter was shot down as the country continued its offensive against Kurdish fighters in northern Syria. Two soldiers on board were killed, the Turkish military says
  • UN Human Rights Commissioner Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said the past week was one of the bloodiest in Syria since the conflict began in 2011 – with at least 277 civilian deaths reported

How did events unfold on Saturday morning?

Israel’s military says one of its combat helicopters downed an Iranian drone infiltrating Israel. It tweeted footage of the incident.
Israeli aircraft then attacked Syrian and “Iranian targets in Syria”, the military says.
Syria’s state media say air defences opened fire in response to an Israeli attack on a military base, hitting more than one plane.
The damaged F-16 came down in an empty field near the town of Harduf in northern Israel.
An Israeli F-16 takes off. File photoImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image captionThe fighter jet was carrying out strikes on Iranian targets in Syria, the Israelis say (file picture)
It is unclear how exactly the plane was brought down. Gen Bar said it faced massive anti-aircraft fire, forcing the two pilots to eject.
He said the crew did not report being hit before abandoning the aircraft.
They were taken to hospital, one of them “severely injured”, the Israeli military said.

What did Israel do next?

Israel launched a second wave of strikes in Syria. Eight of the Syrian targets belonged to the fourth Syrian division near Damascus, IDF spokesman Jonathan Conricus said.
All the Israeli aircraft from this sortie returned safely.
“We are not looking to escalate the situation,” he added.
Syria and its ally Iran deny that the drone entered Israel. Russia expressed “serious concern” over the Israeli air strikes and called for all sides to show restraint.

What is the Iranian presence in Syria?

Iran is Israel’s arch-enemy, and Iranian troops have been fighting rebel groups since 2011.
Tehran has sent military advisers, volunteer militias and, reportedly, hundreds of fighters from its Quds Force, the overseas arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
It is also believed to have supplied thousands of tonnes of weaponry and munitions to help President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, which is fighting on Syria’s side.
Tehran has faced accusations that it is seeking to establish not just an arc of influence but a logistical land supply line from Iran through to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
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A powerful new element

Analysis BY OP’S NEWS 
For years Israel has been striking at weapons stores and other facilities in Syria with a single goal – to disrupt and, as far as possible, to prevent advanced Iranian missiles being delivered to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Syria has often been the conduit for these shipments, but the changing balance of power there, with the survival of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad bolstered by Iranian help, has introduced a powerful new element – a direct Iranian role in the crisis.
A more confident Iran is alleged by Israel to be setting up bases in Syria (whether for its own or its proxy Shia Muslim militia forces is unclear).
But it is also alleged to be developing missile factories, both there and in Lebanon, to make the supply lines to Hezbollah less vulnerable.
Israel’s campaign to disrupt missile supplies is becoming ever more complex.
And Iran risks becoming a direct actor in this conflict, ever closer to Israel’s own borders.
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Borth Wildlife Animal Kingdom reopens after lynx deaths

Lynx at Borth Zoo
A zoo which closed to visitors after the deaths of two of its lynx four months ago has reopened.
Borth Wild Animal Kingdom in Ceredigion shut in October after a Eurasian lynx escaped and was “humanely destroyed” by the council.
A second lynx died days later when she became caught in a catch-pole as staff tried to move her into a different enclosure ahead of an inspection.
A court case is due to be held in April over keeping certain dangerous animals.
Borth zoo sign
The zoo is contesting one of the 120 conditions imposed by Ceredigion council following the deaths and the case surrounds “category one” animals such as cats, crocodiles, large snakes and monkeys.
Dean and Tracey Tweedy bought the 10-acre (4 hectare) zoo for £625,000 in 2016.
On its Facebook page, the owners said they were able to reopen sooner than anticipated “largely thanks to a Herculean effort by our staff”.
Borth zoo
Image captionBorth Zoo thanked staff for a ‘Herculean effort’
But they wrote that there was still a lot of work to do “so please don’t expect a miracle transformation”.
They said their work had focused on the enclosures “to give the animals homes that are safe, secure and fit for purpose”.
An earlier plan to reopen on 1 December was quashed after the zoo failed to secure a firearms licence from Dyfed-Powys Police.
Borth zoo

John McDonnell: Labour public ownership plan will cost nothing

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnellImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Labour’s proposal to bring services such as water, energy and rail into public ownership would be “cost free”, John McDonnell has said.
The shadow chancellor says he wants to put public services “irreversibly in the hands of workers” so they can “never again be taken away”.
In a speech in London, Mr McDonnell said privatisation had failed.
However, the Conservatives said his plan would cost taxpayers billions of pounds and lead to worse services.
Earlier, Mr McDonnell told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme taking services into public ownership would not ultimately increase the burden on taxpayers because government bonds could be swapped for shares in a revenue-producing company.
“It would be cost free. You borrow to buy an asset and when that asset is producing profits like the water industry does, that will cover your borrowing cost,” he said.
A report earlier this week by the Social Market Foundation, commissioned by a group of water companies, estimated that the up-front costs of renationalisation would be £90bn.

‘Fair distribution’

But Mr McDonnell said utilities could be managed more efficiently under public ownership, because they would no longer have to fund dividends for shareholders.
“They’ve given out £18bn of dividends to their shareholders – sometimes they’ve actually given out more in dividends than they’ve made in profits,” he told the OP’S NEWS.
In his speech to Labour’s Alternative Models of Ownership conference, Mr McDonnell said the best way to protect public services for the long term was for them to be owned by the public.
He said: “The next Labour government will put democratically owned and managed public services irreversibly in the hands of workers and of those who rely on their work.”
Public services could be made more responsive and effective by bringing together the people who use them, workers and expert managers, the shadow chancellor said.
He said: “We aren’t going to take back control of these industries in order to put them into the hands of a remote bureaucracy, but to put them into the hands of all of you – so that they can never again be taken away.
“Public ownership is not just a political decision, it’s an economic necessity.
“We’ll move away from the failed privatisation model of the past, developing new democratic forms of ownership, joining other countries, regions and cities across the world in taking control of our essential services.”

Analysis: How the nationalisation plan could work

By OP’S NEWS 
It’s not unusual for private companies in trouble to do a “debt for equity swap”. To save the business, those investors who own shares (equity) lose everything, and those investors who own the company’s less risky bonds (debt) get those shares.
Swapping government debt for private company shares is unusual though. In theory, the Treasury could issue new government bonds – known as gilts – and hand them over to the private owners of water or electricity companies. That would then make taxpayers shareholders in the utility in question.
But all the existing contracts would continue in force. So salaries and bonuses would have to be honoured, as would contracts with all other private sector suppliers. The new owners (taxpayers) would also need to retain experienced staff to do often very specialised work. If those skilled staff thought they’d earn more in the private sector, that may be an issue.
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‘Wind back clock’

Treasury Chief Secretary Liz Truss said: “Labour would put politicians in charge of running everything from the phone lines to electricity supply, meaning people have nowhere to turn when things go wrong. That didn’t work last time and won’t work this time.”
And UK business group the CBI said Labour’s calls for nationalisation would “wind the clock back on our economy”.
Its managing director for people and infrastructure Neil Carberry said: “If Labour turns its back on good collaboration between the government and the private sector, public services, infrastructure and taxpayers will ultimately pay the price.”
In the speech, Mr McDonnell also announced the creation of a working group to look at how co-operatives can grow, expand and access funding, including the possibility of giving employees a greater right to own shares in the company they work for.

Oxfam Haiti prostitute claims: Charity did not give watchdog ‘full details’

Oxfam logoImage copyrightPA
Oxfam did not give the Charity Commission full details about the use of prostitutes by some aid workers in Haiti in 2011, the watchdog says.
The charity did tell the regulator it was investigating inappropriate sexual behaviour, bullying, harassment and staff intimidation.
The Charity Commission took no further action but says it would have acted differently had it known all the facts.
Oxfam, which sacked four workers and let three resign, denies any cover up.
The Department for International Development, which gave Oxfam nearly £32m last year, is now reviewing whether to continue funding the charity.
The three workers who resigned, including Oxfam’s country director for Haiti, did so before the charity had finished investigating what happened.
The director was Roland Van Hauwermeiren, who according to the Times, used prostitutes at a villa rented for him by Oxfam.
The staff were in Haiti as part of the relief effort following the devastating magnitude 7.0 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people there in 2010.
The paper also reports that the charity failed to alert other aid agencies about the staff members’ behaviour, with Mr Van Hauwermeiren going on to work elsewhere in the sector.
Oxfam says it would not have provided a positive reference for any of those who were dismissed or resigned.
The Charity Commission said the alleged behaviour had “absolutely no place in society” and charities needed to be held to the highest of standards.
“Our approach to this matter would have been different had the full details that have been reported been disclosed to us at the time,” it said.
It has written to Oxfam “as a matter of urgency” seeking more information, including a timeline of events, information about when the charity was made aware of specific allegations and the detail of the investigation’s findings and conclusions.
“This information will be considered as part of an ongoing case regarding the charity’s approach to safeguarding,” it added.
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The foreign aid debate

By OP’S NEWS 
People walk in the street January 14, 2010 in Port-au-Prince.Image copyrightAFP
Public confidence in the way Britain’s foreign aid money is spent has been undermined by a number of scandals.
DfID will now be under pressure to ensure there is zero tolerance of sexual misconduct within agencies that receive government aid funds.
It is unclear to what extent DfID may have been made aware of the Oxfam incident back in 2011.
Similar cases involving UN peacekeeping soldiers were brought to the attention of the then International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell.
The UK currently spends £13bn on aid each year and there have long been calls from some Conservative MPs for cuts to this budget.
But Theresa May says she is “proud” of the UK’s record on foreign aid and remains committed to the UK’s requirement to spend 0.7% of the country’s gross national income on overseas assistance.
Labour, the Liberal Democrats, SNP, Greens and Plaid Cymru also agree that figure should remain.
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Earlier, Oxfam’s chief executive Mark Goldring told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Oxfam was ashamed of what it had got wrong but had taken action.
He said the charity did “anything but” cover the incident up, adding: “We were very open with the public that we were ashamed of the behaviour of our staff. We still are.”
However, he admitted a report released by the charity at the time did not give details of the allegations.
The chief executive said: “With hindsight, I would much prefer that we had talked about sexual misconduct.
“But I don’t think it was in anyone’s best interest to be describing the details of the behaviour in a way that was actually going to draw extreme attention to it when what we wanted to do was get on and deliver an aid programme.”
He added: “I am absolutely committed… to wipe out that kind of behaviour from Oxfam and rebuild that relationship of trust [with the public].”

‘Lack of judgement’

A DfID spokesman said the way “appalling abuse of vulnerable people” had been dealt with raised serious questions for Oxfam.
He said the department acknowledged that hundreds of Oxfam staff had done nothing wrong, “but the handling by the senior team about this investigation and their openness with us and the charity commission showed a lack of judgement”.
International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt had requested a meeting with Oxfam’s senior team “at the earliest opportunity”, the spokesman said.

Media captionAndrew Mitchell ‘can’t be sure’ he knew about the Oxfam case
Andrew Mitchell, who was international development secretary in 2011, told BBC’s Newsnight it was a “shudderingly awful tale” that was “terrible on every single level”.
But he said he could not recall being told about the incident.
Dame Barbara Stocking, who was the head of Oxfam in 2011, told the BBC that the charity had a long record of having a very good code of conduct.
When it happened, she said, new whistle-blowing procedures, safeguarding practises and training were put in place.
She said Oxfam often worked in very difficult locations “where the rule of law isn’t going on”.

House of Cards actor Reg E Cathey dies at 59

Reg E Cathey with Emmy award for guest actor in a drama for House of Cards, at Microsoft Theater on September 12, 2015 in Los Angeles, CaliforniaImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image captionReg E Cathey won an Emmy for outstanding guest actor in 2015 for his role in House of Cards
Tributes have been paid to the actor Reg E Cathey, best known for his roles in House of Cards and The Wire, who has died at the age of 59.
Cathey died at his home in New York after battling cancer, reports said.
The actor won an Emmy for his role as rib-shack owner Freddy Hayes in the Netflix political thriller House of Cards.
Actor Samuel L Jackson described Cathey as a “brilliant actor, humourist and friend”.
Beau Willimon, who created the US version of House of Cards, said Cathey was “one of a kind, brimming with life force, generosity, humour, gravitas and a fountain of talent.
“Loved by everyone lucky enough to know him and work with him. He will be greatly missed. Rest In Peace, Reg,” he added.
The character Freddy Hayes ran a back-street BBQ joint beloved by machiavellian politician and future US President Frank Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey.
In a statement, Netflix said it was “heartbroken” by the actor’s death.
“Reg was the kindest man, the most giving actor, a true gentlemen. Our sympathy goes to his family,” it said.
Fans of The Wire knew Cathey as the political operative Norman Wilson.
David Simon, the show’s creator who first reported Cathey’s death, described him as “a fine, masterful actor” and “one of the most delightful human beings”.
Cathey’s acting career began in 1984 in a TV film called A Doctor’s Story and he went on to appear in numerous television shows.
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