Headline
Top French Court Upholds Hijab Ban In Women’s Football
Published
11 months agoon
By
EditorFrance’s top administrative court on Thursday upheld a ban on women football players wearing Islamic hijab headscarves, after the issue was seized on by politicians claiming secularism was at risk.
“Sporting federations whose task is to ensure the good functioning of public services… can impose a neutrality requirement on their players in competitions and sporting events, to guarantee the smooth running of matches and any clashes or confrontation,” the Constitutional Council said in a statement.
It found a French Football Federation (FFF) rule against “any sign or clothing clearly showing political, philosophical, religious or union affiliation” during play to be “appropriate and proportionate”.
A group of Muslim women footballers called the “Hijabeuses” had launched the action against the FFF regulation.
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The FFF said simply that it had “taken note” of the ruling, adding that the sporting body “reaffirms the republican and civic values that bring football to life, and its total commitment to fighting all forms of discrimination and promoting female-male equality”.
Marion Ogier, a lawyer for the “Hijabeuses”, said the decision “upsets secularism and freedom of expression” as well as “abusing 30 years of legal precedent” on the question.
“This decision goes against social cohesion in a country founded on diversity and pluralism,” she told AFP.
Judges had found themselves under political pressure ahead of the ruling as mainstream parties look to fend off the far right riding high in the polls.
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Secularism is a sensitive topic in France, presented by its defenders as a way of guaranteeing the state’s religious neutrality and by critics as a dog-whistle against ethnic and religious minorities, especially Muslims.
– ‘Don’t need to know religion’ –
A Monday boost for the “Hijabeuses”, when the state’s legal advisor concluded the rule was unjustified, prompted a wave of political condemnation.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, a law-and-order hardliner, said Tuesday, “I hope profoundly for the republic that (judges) uphold neutrality on sports fields.”
The “Hijabeuses” were hoping to give the republic a “battering”, Darmanin added.
“You shouldn’t wear religious clothing when you play sports… when you play football, you don’t need to know the religion of the person in front of you,” he said.
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Other voices from the conservative Republicans party and far-right National Rally have also chimed in.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen wrote on Twitter: “No to the hijab in sport. And we will pass a law to make sure it is respected.”
Republicans chief Eric Ciotti said his party — which holds just 62 seats in France’s 577-seat parliament — would introduce a bill on the topic if the court allowed the hijab.
Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera has also suggested Macron’s government could legislate, saying “we aren’t ruling anything out” and “we can see that there’s a need for clarification”.
The Constitutional Council itself shot back Wednesday at what it said were “attacks aimed at the administrative branch and especially the legal advisor”.
Questioning the workings of the courts was “an attack on an institution that is essential for democracy,” the body added, saying it could take legal action in cases of “insult, defamation, incitement to hatred or threats”.
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Headline
Google To Offer AI-generated Answers In Search Results
Published
10 hours agoon
May 14, 2024By
EditorGoogle has announced it would introduce AI-generated answers to online queries made by users in the United States, in one of the biggest updates to its search engine in 25 years.
“I’m excited to announce that we will begin launching this fully revamped experience, ‘AI overviews,’ to everyone in the US this week,” Google chief executive Sundar Pichai said at an event in California on Tuesday, May 14.
Google’s search results will feature an AI summary at the top of the page before the more typical unfurling of links.
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The AI answers generated by Google’s Gemini technology will offer succinct summaries of what it found on the internet with links to the online sources that supplied the information.
“You can ask whatever’s on your mind or whatever you need to get done – from researching to planning to brainstorming – and Google will take care of the legwork,” said Google Search team boss Liz Reid.
The change comes as Google feels growing pressure from AI-powered search engines like Perplexity, and from the rumors that OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, is building its own AI search tool.
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Searches through AI chats have also appeared on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, with users able to get information from the web without Google.
The change will soon spread to other countries, Pichai added, making it accessible to more than a billion people.
Headline
College Volleyball Player Killed In US Nightclub Shooting
Published
10 hours agoon
May 14, 2024By
EditorAlbany State University volleyball player Mariam Creighton has been tragically killed in a nightclub shooting in Atlanta.
Atlanta Police Department said on Tuesday, May 14, that the incident happened around 2:28 AM on Sunday, May 14, when officers responded to shots fired at the Elleven45 establishment.
Six people were shot, two of whom were pronounced dead at the scene, Creighton and 20-year-old Nakyris Ridley.
The police department said in a statement;
READ ALSO: Nigerian Burnt To Death In Bangkok Car Crash
“Preliminary investigation indicates the shooting occurred during a physical dispute at the location that escalated to gunfire.”
Creighton was a member of the ASU Golden Rams volleyball team, and was one semester from graduating from the HBCU with a biology degree.
Her family said she was at the club on Sunday celebrating her niece’s birthday. “It’s just senseless,” Creighton’s sister, Tiffany, said. “My sister was just out having a good time, and now our lives are just altered forever.”
A 35-year-old Nigerian man identified as Daniel was burnt to death in a car accident in Bangkok, Thailand.
Bangkok’s Prawet Police Station, confirmed the identity of the Nigerian national in a statement on Tuesday, May 14, 2024,
Daniel, whose Thai wife came to confirm his identity with the police, died on Saturday, May 11, when his car crashed into a road median and caught fire.
This serious road accident occurred at 5:30 a.m. on a three-lane road near Soi Phatthanakan 53/1, Suan Luang Subdistrict and District, Bangkok.
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When officials received the report and arrived at the scene, they found a gray Toyota Vios with Samut Prakan province license plates overturned and engulfed in flames, blocking the middle of the road.
The officers spent about 10 minutes spraying water to extinguish the fire, but the car was completely damaged by the flames.
At that time, rescuers had to use cutting and prying equipment to remove the driver’s body from the wreckage and send it to the Police Hospital for an autopsy. They found a document with a front-facing photo of a foreign man.
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Eyewitnesses stated that they saw the car driving at high speed in the far right lane before losing control and crashing into the road median.
The car spun and hit a palm tree with such force that it flipped over and ended up on its roof in the middle of the road.
At that moment, good Samaritans tried to pry open the door to help the unconscious driver, but before they could pull him out, sparks ignited, and the car quickly caught fire.
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