Headline

Controversy As US State, Louisiana Asks Schools To Display Ten Commandments

Published

1 year ago

June 20, 2024

Louisiana has become the first U.S. state to mandate that every public school classroom, from elementary to university level, must display a poster of the Ten Commandments.

The measure, backed by Republicans and signed into law by Governor Jeff Landry on Wednesday, described the commandments as “the foundational documents of our state and national government.”

The law is expected to face challenges from civil rights groups, The American Civil Liberties Union, who argue that it contravenes the separation between church and state enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, specifically the Establishment Clause.

It reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

Ten Commandments new law

The state law requires that a poster include the sacred text in “large, easily readable font” on a poster that is 11 inches by 14 inches (28cm by 35.5cm) and that the commandments are “the central focus” of the display.

It will also be shown alongside a four-paragraph “context statement” which will describe how the commandments “were a prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries”.

The posters must be on display in all classrooms receiving state funding by 2025 – but no state funding is being offered to pay for the posters themselves.

Similar laws have recently been proposed by other Republican-led states, including Texas, Oklahoma and Utah.

Landry says

On his X account late Wednesday, the governor, #LAGovJeffLandry posted on X, “Today, we fulfilled our promise to bring drastic reform to our education system and bring common sense back to our classrooms.

“A strong education system leads to a strong economy and a strong state.

“Our historic Dream Big Package puts the focus back on our kids, and allows Louisiana to follow in the footsteps of our neighbors in the South.

“I am thankful to the legislature for their commitment to making the education system in Louisiana one that students, parents, and teachers can all be proud of.”

There have been numerous legal battles over the display of the Ten Commandments in public buildings, including schools, courthouses and police stations.

An X user, MicheleMaybe, #michele4_t, posted, “What about a Muslim child in that classroom? Or a Buddhist? Or Atheist?

“This is completely illegal and an affront to our US Constitution. Thankfully you’re getting the snot sued out of you, as you should. We are NOT a Theocracy.”

Another X user, Marjorie, #MTGsbigtoe, wrote, “You should keep your lifestyle choice of being a Christian to yourself. The Bible has no place in the classroom.”

Also, carte blanche kitty with account #mrswhiskeykitty, said, “Vouchers will demolish our public schools. This is just a taxpayer bailout for failing religious schools with minimal oversight.”

In 1980, the US Supreme Court struck down a similar Kentucky law requiring that the document be displayed in elementary and high schools.

In a 5-4 vote, the high court ruled that the requirement that the Ten Commandments be posted “had no secular legislative purpose” and was “plainly religious in nature”.

The court noted that in addition to criminal matters like killing and stealing, the Ten Commandments also made references to worshipping God including observing the Sabbath day.

The PUNCH reports that the Ten Commandments are a set of ethical guidelines and principles foundational to the Jewish, Christian, and maybe even Islamic traditions.

Headline

FULL LIST: US To Review Green Cards From 19 ‘Countries Of Concern’ After Washington Shooting

Published

22 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it will review the immigration status of all permanent residents, or “Green Card” holders, from Afghanistan and 18 other countries following the attack on National Guard troops in Washington, D.C.

U.S. officials identified the suspect in Wednesday’s shooting as a 29-year-old Afghan national who previously worked alongside American forces in Afghanistan.

The individual was granted asylum earlier this year, not permanent residency, according to AfghanEvac, an organisation that assists Afghans resettled in the United States after the Taliban takeover in 2021.

“I have directed a full-scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern,” said Joseph Edlow, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), on X.

The review follows a June executive order from President Trump classifying 19 countries as “of Identified Concern.”

The order banned entry for nearly all nationals from 12 countries, including Afghanistan. The full list of these countries is:

Afghanistan

Myanmar

Chad

Congo-Brazzaville

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Haiti

Iran

Libya

Somalia

Sudan

Yemen

A partial travel ban applies to seven additional countries, though some temporary work visas remain allowed: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

Headline

Romanian Defence Minister Quits After Admitting Error In Academic Record

Published

23 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

Romania’s defence minister resigned on Friday after saying he made a “mistake” on his CV about his university education, as controversy swirled over alleged lies on his resume.

Ionut Mosteanu – who has admitted to writing on his CV that he graduated from a university he never attended – said he did not want the row “to distract” the NATO member at a time when it and Europe are “under attack from Russia”.

Romania has repeatedly seen drone fragments fall on its soil since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, and reported a number of drone incursions.

On Tuesday, a drone crashed in eastern Romania, which borders Ukraine.

Romania has also accused Moscow of “hybrid attacks”, including meddling in presidential elections last year that were subsequently annulled.

“Today, I resigned from my position as minister of national defence,” Mosteanu said in a Facebook post, adding he wanted the country to be focused on its “difficult mission”.

“Romania and Europe are under attack from Russia. Our national security must be defended at all costs,” he added.

Mosteanu had come under pressure after a media investigation published on Thursday revealed that he wrote in a CV that he graduated from a university which he did not actually attend.

That same day he apologised for what he called “a mistake”.

“In a CV I quickly put together in 2016 using a template I found online, there is a mistake that I admit embarrasses me. I didn’t pay much attention to these details at the time,” he said on Facebook.

Mosteanu was appointed defence minister in June of this year, when a new pro-European government was formed after months of political turmoil.

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said in a press release that he would propose economy and tourism minister Radu Miruta take over the defence portfolio in the interim.

AFP

Headline

Russia Insists Ukraine Must Cede Land Or Face Continued Military Push

Published

2 days ago

November 27, 2025

Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that he would end his Ukraine offensive if Kyiv withdrew from territory Moscow claims at its own — otherwise his army would take it by force.

The Russian army has been slowly but steadily grinding through eastern Ukraine in costly battles against outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian forces.

Washington has meanwhile renewed its push to end the nearly four-year war, putting forward a surprise plan that it hopes to finalise through upcoming talks with Moscow and Kyiv.

“If Ukrainian forces leave the territories they hold, then we will stop combat operations,” Putin said during a visit to Kyrgyzstan. “If they don’t, then we will achieve it by military means.”

Russia controls around one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory. The issue of occupied land, which Kyiv has said it will never cede, is among the biggest stumbling blocks in the peace process.

Another important issue in the talks are Western security guarantees for Ukraine, which Kyiv says are needed to prevent Moscow from invading again in the future.

Washington’s original plan — drafted without input from Ukraine’s European allies — would have seen Kyiv withdraw from its eastern Donetsk region and the United States de facto recognise the Donetsk, Crimea and Lugansk regions as Russian.

The US pared back the original plan over the weekend following criticism from Kyiv and Europe, but has not yet released the new version.

Putin, who has seen the new plan, said it could be a negotiation starter.

“Overall, we agree that it could form the basis for future agreements,” he said of the latest draft, which the US is thought to have shortened to about 20 points.

US negotiator Steve Witkoff was expected in Moscow next week to discuss the revised document, Putin said.

US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is meanwhile due to visit Kyiv later this week, Ukraine’s top presidential aide Andriy Yermak said.

– ‘Little can be done’ –

In his remarks Thursday, Putin repeated the claim that Russia had encircled the Ukrainian army in Pokrovsk and Myrnograd in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region — the most fiercely embattled area and a key target for Moscow’s forces.

“Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov are completely surrounded,” he said, using the Russian names for the cities.

Moscow was also advancing in Vovchansk and Siversk, as well as approaching the important logistic hub of Guliaipole, he added.

The Russian offensive “is practically impossible to hold back, so there is little that can be done about it”, Putin said.

Ukraine has denied Pokrovsk and Myrnograd are encircled, insisting its forces continue to hold the enemy along the front line.

Putin also questioned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s legitimacy and said signing any agreement with him would be legally “almost impossible” at the moment, a suggestion that has drawn groans from Kyiv and its allies.

According to data analysed by AFP from the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russian forces have conquered an average of 467 square kilometres (180 square miles) each month in 2025 — a step up from 2024.

Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the worst armed conflict in Europe since World War II.

The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people and forced millions to flee their homes.