"Russia to move detained activists" by Steven Lee Myers | New York Times, November 02, 2013
MOSCOW — Russia, unexpectedly and without explanation, plans to transfer 30 crew members of a Greenpeace International ship from a detention center in the far northern city of Murmansk to a jail in St. Petersburg, the organization said Friday.
The reason for transferring the detainees, who have been held since their ship was seized Sept. 19 after an open seas protest against oil drilling in the Arctic, was not immediately clear, and a spokesman for Russia’s prison system declined to comment. In a statement, Greenpeace said it also did not know the reason for the transfers.
The move came after the authorities in Murmansk completed charging the 30 people who were aboard the ship, the Arctic Sunrise, with hooliganism, a crime punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Greenpeace noted earlier Friday that, technically, all remain charged with the initial and graver crime of piracy.
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Related: Globe Grab Bag: Greenpeace Pirates
Also see: Russia grants bail to 9 foreign activists
"Russia frees Greenpeace activists" by Irina Titova | Associated Press, November 23, 2013
ST. PETERSBURG — All but one of the 30 people arrested following a Greenpeace protest against oil drilling in the Arctic were free on bail Friday after spending more than two months in Russian jails. The only one to be denied bail, an Australian activist, also was expected to be released after his appeal was heard.
Greenpeace lawyers said they would now focus on helping the foreign citizens leave Russia. President Vladimir Putin suggested this would be possible, jokingly telling Turkey’s visiting leader that the environmental activists would soon be heading his way.
‘‘We have no desire to exacerbate the situation or hold someone specially,’’ Putin said during a joint news conference with Recep Tayyip Erdogan. ‘‘Soon they will all be going to Turkey and will do good work on your projects.’’
But in response to a question of whether Erdogan would be allowed to take a freed Turkish female activist back with him, a smiling Putin said that would be impossible: ‘‘He came with his wife, so who else can he take along? What kind of question are you asking?’’
I don't think Turkey has to worry; they have jailed the coup-plotters and loosened the ban on scarves.
The US captain of the ship, Greenpeace activist Peter Willcox, was among 18 freed Friday. The others were released late Wednesday and Thursday.
All 30 still face hooliganism charges, which carry a sentence of up to seven years. They were detained after some of the activists aboard the Arctic Sunrise attempted to scale an offshore drilling platform owned by the state-owned natural gas giant Gazprom.
Also Friday, a UN-mandated tribunal in Germany ordered Russia to release the Greenpeace ship and its crew on a $5 million bond.
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Honestly, I'm more interested in what the two leaders talked about, not the fate of some Greenpeace agent provocateurs.
"Ukraine opposition pushes EU deal" by Maria Danilova | Associated Press, November 23, 2013
KIEV — Ukraine’s jailed former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko said Friday she was ready to urge the European Union to drop the demand for her release if that could help persuade the government to sign a landmark association agreement with the bloc, her lawyer said. There was no immediate reaction from the EU.
Tymoshenko, whose jailing the West calls politically motivated, also urged Ukrainians to take to the streets to protest the government’s decision to shelve the deal and turn to Russia instead....
That's a good move anyway. Who wants to join an economy-crippling E.U. so your national treasury can be looted by international bankers?
Also see: Globe Grab Bag: Dressed Like a Queen
An EU spokeswoman said Yanukovych is still welcome to attend the summit next week.
‘‘Our firm belief is that the future of Ukraine still lies in a strong relationship with the EU,’’ said Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s top diplomat.
The EU had made Tymoshenko’s release a condition for concluding a free trade and political association agreement with Ukraine.
On Thursday, Ukraine’s Cabinet suspended preparations for signing the agreement. That was a big victory for Russia, which has worked aggressively to derail the deal and keep Ukraine in its orbit.
Everywhere you turn in this world the EUSraeli Empire is losing.
Prime Minister Mykola Azarov sought to defend the decision in Parliament Friday, but was booed by opposition lawmakers.
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Time for lunch:
"At least 50 killed in supermarket roof collapse; toll likely to rise" by Gary Peach | Associated Press, November 23, 2013
RIGA, Latvia — As Latvian rescue workers searched Friday for bodies in the rubble of a supermarket collapse that killed dozens, speculation about the cause turned to possible construction flaws in the award-winning complex where builders were putting a garden and playground on the grass- and gravel-covered roof.
The death toll from the Thursday evening rush-hour roof collapse at the Maxima supermarket in Latvia’s capital had risen to at least 50, including three firefighters, police said. Spokesman Toms Sadovskis said the death toll is expected to go even higher.
Police opened a criminal investigation into the cause of the tragedy at the building — once vaunted as a place where high-rise residents could step out of their homes, stroll along a shady garden, and pick up a couple of items for dinner....
Deputy Mayor Andris Ameriks blamed budget cuts for a lack of construction controls.
‘‘In recent years due to the economic crisis many institutions, including construction oversight . . . were closed in Latvia in order to save money,’’ Ameriks told a TV reporter....
The store was filled with shoppers when an enormous section of the roof caved in. Two hours later, while rescuers searched for survivors, a second and larger section of roof caved in, trapping and killing firefighters.
The thought is horrifying.
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Also see: Globe Grab Bag: Latvian Hacker
NEXT DAY UPDATE:
"Search for more victims called off
RIGA — A massive third section of the roof at a Latvian supermarket where at least 54 people were killed fell Saturday as emergency workers searched nearby rubble for more victims. Though no one was injured, officials suspended the effort as they considered the dangers of continuing the search. Latvia’s president described the disaster at the Maxima supermarket in Riga as ‘‘murder’’ and called for a speedy investigation."
