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Post by Admin on May 2, 2020 1:22:29 GMT
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin says he's infected with the coronavirus, joining nearly 106,500 others in the country who have been similarly diagnosed. Speaking during a videoconference with President Vladimir Putin that was broadcast Thursday on state-run Rossiya 24 television, Mishustin — who took over as prime minister from Dmitry Medvedev in January — told Putin that he had tested positive for the virus. "It has just now became known that the coronavirus test I gave came back positive," Mishustin told Putin. "I have to observe self-isolation and follow orders of doctors," he said. "This is necessary to protect my colleagues." Mishustin, whose role as head of government is considerably less powerful than Putin's, nominated his deputy, Andrey Belousov, to take over as acting prime minister, a recommendation that Putin approved by decree. The 54-year-old Mishustin, who has been a lead figure in handling Russia's response to COVID-19, said he would "maintain active contact" with Putin and other leaders "on all the main issues" during his self-quarantine, according to The Moscow Times. Putin thanked the prime minister and acknowledged that becoming infected could happen to anyone. Interviewed later by the business daily Kommersant, Mishustin said he was experiencing a high fever.
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Post by Admin on Jun 12, 2020 19:21:18 GMT
Russian President Vladimir Putin has made his first public appearance in weeks of coronavirus lockdown to celebrate the country's national day. He used the Russia Day holiday to promote a controversial reform of the constitution which could keep him in office until 2036. Mr Putin, 67, has dominated Russia for the past 20 years whether as president or prime minister. Moscow lifted lockdown curbs this week despite a huge number of infections. But there was confusion as the mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobyanin, urged people to stay at home during Friday's holiday and another on 24 June, which marks victory in World War Two. About 510,000 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Russia, the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Brazil. Russia has recorded 6,705 deaths amid accusations of under-reporting by the authorities. Where has President Putin been? His last public appearance was on 9 May when he attended a Victory Day ceremony - the traditional parade has been postponed until 24 June. Since then he had been working from his country residence outside Moscow. Flanked by allies, he attended an open-air flag-raising ceremony in western Moscow on Friday. In his speech, he urged Russians to turn out and vote for the constitutional reform in a referendum on 1 July, saying he was certain that an "absolute majority" of Russians backed it.
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Post by Admin on Jul 14, 2020 19:10:16 GMT
A blogger in Tunisia has been sentenced to six months in prison after sharing a satirical post about Covid-19 written in the form of a verse from the Koran. Emna Charqui, 28, was arrested in May for sharing a message on Facebook urging people to follow hygiene rules in the style of Islam's holy book. Charqui said in a recent interview that she had no intention of provoking shock, but found the post amusing. She was found guilty in a Tunis court of "inciting hatred between religions". She is not yet in custody as she intends to file an appeal. On 2 May, Charqui shared a post on social media mimicking a Koranic verse. In it, the text called for people to wash their hands and observe social distancing in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The image was reportedly designed and originally shared by an Algerian atheist who lives in France. Charqui's post appeared during the fasting month of Ramadan and while Tunisia was still largely under lockdown. It caused a stir online, with some social media users labelling it offensive and calling for Charqui, an openly avowed atheist, to be punished. Days later she was questioned by police. On 27 May, following news that Charqui was facing trial over the Facebook post, Amnesty International released a statement calling for the Tunisian authorities to halt the prosecution. "The prosecution of Emna is yet another illustration of how, despite Tunisia's democratic progress, the authorities continue to use repressive law to undermine freedom of expression," Amnesty's North Africa director Amna Guellali said. Ms Guellali said the right to freedom of expression extended to what "some might consider shocking or offensive" and called on the Tunisian government to amend the law "so they are compliant with human rights".
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Post by Admin on Jul 17, 2020 20:23:15 GMT
The Russian hacking group accused on Thursday by the U.K., U.S. and Canada of seeking to steal information on potential COVID-19 vaccines is a familiar name to cybersecurity experts.
APT-29, or Advanced Persistent Threat 29, is better known to many as "Cozy Bear." It's one of two hacking groups cybersecurity researchers have long linked to Russia's intelligence services and which has been accused of playing a prominent role in interfering with U.S. elections in 2016.
Cybersecurity researchers have suggested the group is directed by Russia's domestic intelligence service, the FSB, though more recently they have come to believe its belongs to Russia's foreign intelligence service, the SVR.
Also referred to as "The Dukes," APT-29 is known for trying to steal intelligence from think tanks, political groups and activists. "Cozy Bear" gained notoriety in the U.S. after allegedly helping hack into the Democratic National Committee's computers.
In 2016, the group was accused of breaking into the DNC's servers alongside a second hacking group -- APT-28, aka "Fancy Bear" -- that researchers and U.S. intelligence services have linked to the GRU, Russia's military intelligence agency. APT-28 was accused of playing the more significant role, stealing DNC emails and data and then dumping it online to harm the Democratic party. The Department of Justice in 2018 indicted 12 GRU officers over that operation.
"Cozy Bear" by contrast was described by researchers as quieter and more discreet. The two hacking groups duplicating some of each other's efforts suggests they were unaware of each other's operations, the cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike said at the time.
In 2018, Dutch media reported that the Netherlands' intelligence service, the AIVD, had successfully managed to break into the computers used by APT29, locating them in a university building close to the Red Square in Moscow. Hackers from the AIVD's Joint Sigint Cyber Unit reportedly had compromised the group since 2014, allowing them to watch in real time as they carried out attacks, including those involving the 2016 U.S. election.
In 2017, Norwegian police said "Cozy Bear" targeted several government ministries and the country's left-wing Labour party. The same year, the Dutch government ordered votes in Holland's general election to be counted by hand after Dutch intelligence said the Russian hackers had targeted ministries. The Slovakian cybersecurity firm ESET in October 2019 said it uncovered another years-long campaign by APT-29 that targeted at least three European foreign ministries.
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Post by Admin on Oct 16, 2020 19:44:33 GMT
Maria Sharapova’s former coach Michael Joyce has voiced his support for US tennis player Sam Querrey - who fled Russia after testing positive for Covid-19 - saying that “he would do the same” in a similar situation. Joyce is a former tennis player who reached a career-high ranking of 64th on the ATP tour in 1996 before a wrist injury forced his move into coaching. In 2004, he joined Sharapova’s team and worked alongside her father Yuri Sharapov for six years. The 47-year-old coach spoke out in Querrey’s defense, saying that he would also violate strict Covid-19 requirements to avoid forced hospitalization in Russia and being separated from his child for two weeks. “No kidding but I would do the same with a wife and 8 month old baby. No way I’m going to a Soviet hospital and separating from my baby for 14 days,” Joyce wrote on Twitter. Querrey was set to take part in the ATP 500 St. Petersburg Open but withdrew from the tournament after receiving his positive coronavirus test. Instead of sitting out a 14-day quarantine in his hotel, the player hired a private jet to fly out of Russia after he was told by health authorities that he and his family members might be hospitalized depending on the symptoms they presented with. The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) which investigated the incident said the player had committed “a serious breach of protocol” and might face severe sanctions, including a three-year ban.
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