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Biden To Honour Messi, Denzel Washington, 17 Others With Top US Award

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United States President Joe Biden will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 honourees on Saturday, bestowing the highest civilian honour in the United States to entertainers, sports stars, politicians, and diplomats.

Among those to receive the honour from the outgoing US president are singer and activist Bono, basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson, longtime fashion editor Anna Wintour, football superstar Lionel Messi, actors Denzel Washington and Michael J. Fox, and fashion designer Ralph Lauren.

The honourees “are great leaders because they are good people who have made extraordinary contributions to their country and the world,” the White House said in a statement.

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Others recognised this year include chef José Andrés, founder of the World Central Kitchen NGO, and primate researcher Jane Goodall, a leading environmentalist.

READ ALSO: Biden Announces $160bn Initiative To Aid Developing Nations

Some recipients chosen by the 82-year-old Democrat hold a more political profile, such as billionaire financier and left-wing philanthropist George Soros and Hillary Clinton, the former First Lady, senator, and US Secretary of State who unsuccessfully ran against Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.

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Soros was honoured for his global efforts supporting democracy, human rights, education, and social justice, according to a White House statement.

Clinton, meanwhile, was commended for her decades of public service, including being the first woman nominated by a major party for the US presidency.

Biden also posthumously awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom to Robert Francis Kennedy, better known as “Bobby” Kennedy or “RFK.”

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READ ALSO: Messi Hits 500 League Goals As Inter Miami Cruise Past Orlando

RFK, who served as US Attorney General during his brother John F. Kennedy’s presidency, was assassinated in 1968 while campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination.

His legacy continues to inspire those committed to justice, equality, and public service,” Biden said in a statement.

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Biden’s selections for the Medal of Freedom reflect his desire to leave a lasting mark before leaving office.

On Thursday, Biden also awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to Liz Cheney, a former Republican congresswoman from Wyoming who served on the House panel investigating the 6th January 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol.

The move drew criticism from Donald Trump, who on Friday described Cheney as “totally corrupt” and accused Biden of rewarding her solely for opposing him.

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Peru Anti-government Protesters Clash With Police

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Hundreds of anti-government protesters clashed with police in the Peruvian capital Lima on Saturday, throwing stones and sticks as officers fired tear gas on the demonstrators, AFP journalists reported.

The protest, organized by a youth collective called “Generation Z”, is part of growing social unrest in Peru against organized crime, corruption in public office, and a recent pension reform.

“Today, there is less democracy than before. It’s getting worse… because of fear, because of extortion,” said 54-year-old protester Gladys, who declined to give her last name.

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Around 500 people gathered in the city center, under heavy police presence.

READ ALSO:FULL TEXT: US Govt Releases Text Messages Between Charlie Kirk’s Suspect, Roommate

Congress has no credibility, it doesn’t even have the approval of the people… It is wreaking havoc in this country,” said protester Celene Amasifuen.

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The clashes broke out as demonstrators tried to approach executive and congressional buildings in Lima.

The radio station Exitosa said that its reporter and a cameraman were hit by pellets, commonly fired by law enforcement.

READ ALSO:‘Over 7,000 Nigerians Sought Asylum In Sweden In 24 Years’

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Police said at least three officers were wounded.

Approval ratings for President Dina Boluarte, whose term ends next year, have plummeted amid rising extortion and organized crime cases.

Several opinion polls show the government and conservative-majority Congress are seen by many as corrupt institutions.

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This week, the legislature passed a law requiring young adults to join a private pension fund, despite many facing a precarious working environment.

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Fresh World Trouble Looms As Netanyahu Tells Western Leaders ‘There Will Be No Palestinian State’

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said there would be no Palestinian state, in a message addressed to the leaders of Britain, Australia and Canada after they recognised Palestinian statehood.

“I have a clear message for those leaders who recognise a Palestinian state after the horrific massacre on October 7: you are granting a huge reward to terror,” he said.

And I have another message for you: it will not happen. No Palestinian state will be established west of the Jordan River.”

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READ ALSO:Israel Begins Ground Offensive In Gaza Despite International Criticism

Britain, Australia and Canada on Sunday became the first tripartite Western nations to recognise a Palestinian state.

Britain and Canada became the first G7 countries to take the step, with France and other nations expected to follow at the annual UN General Assembly, which opens Monday in New York.

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Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a message on X.

READ ALSO:Palestinians Flee As Israel Intensifies Assault On Gaza City

Canada recognises the State of Palestine and offers our partnership in building the promise of a peaceful future for both the State of Palestine and the State of Israel,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on X.

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This comes after decades of requests for sovereignty from the Palestinian side.

Portugal was also to recognise Palestinian statehood later Sunday, as Israel came under huge international pressure over the war in Gaza triggered almost two years ago by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack.

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Badenoch Slams UK’s Palestine Recognition Decision As ‘Absolutely Disastrous’

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Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch condemned the Prime Minister Keir Starmer-led United Kingdom’s decision to formally recognise the State of Palestine.

PUNCH Online reports that Britain, alongside Australia and Canada, on Sunday recognised a Palestinian state in a seismic shift in decades of Western foreign policy.

Britain and Canada became the first G7 countries to take the step, with France and other nations expected to follow at the annual UN General Assembly, which opens Monday in New York.

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However, the decision triggered swift Israeli anger and condemnation from the opposition.

READ ALSO:Our Country A Home, Not Hotel, Badenoch Decries UK Immigration Crisis

Reacting in a statement on her X on Sunday, Badenoch described the move as “absolutely disastrous.”

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She argued the move rewards terrorism with no conditions, and the decision would be widely regretted.

She said, “Absolutely disastrous. We will all rue the day this decision was made. Rewarding terrorism with no conditions whatsoever put in place for Hamas.

“It leaves hostages languishing in Gaza and does nothing to stop the suffering of innocent people caught in this war.”

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The Winchester opposition leader accused Labour of pandering to its “hard left” rather than fixing Britain’s pressing domestic problems.

READ ALSO:Badenoch Slams UK PM For Cutting Defence Funding Amid Global Threats

It is because Labour cannot fix the big problems in our society that they focus on discredited student union campaigns to appease the hard left.”

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Listing examples of Labour’s failings, she said, “They cannot fix the NHS, so they push assisted suicide. – They cannot create jobs for young people, so they give them votes at 16.

“They cannot sort out immigration, but they will recognise Palestine instead. And so on. This is the same man who paid £35bn of reparations to Mauritius along with the surrender of the Chagos islands.”

Badenoch also criticised what she described as the prime minister’s lack of judgment.

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READ ALSO:British Citizenship: Shocker As Badenoch Proposes 15 Years For Immigrants

“Everything we are seeing is a consequence of a Prime Minister who has no plan for the country and no judgment.

“He will spend the next four years delivering the hobbyhorses of the Labour left to stay in power and leave a HUGE mess for us to clean up.”

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Earlier, Starmer announced the recognition of Palestine in a post on X, saying the move was intended to provide a two-state solution.

He said, “Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine.”

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