Author: admin@primenews

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has expanded its ongoing strike by shutting down Ford’s biggest plant. The UAW said 8,700 workers walked out of the truck plant in Kentucky, in response to Ford refusing to move further in contract bargaining. It is a sharp escalation of its strike against Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, which began last month. The UAW is pressuring the carmakers to grant higher pay and make other improvements in new labour agreements. It is the first in the union’s 88-year history to target the Detroit Three automakers, which collectively employ more than 140,000 UAW members, at the…

In an Auckland art gallery this week, visitors gazed at the largest collection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art ever showcased in New Zealand. In the exhibition’s final room, themed Resistance and Colonisation, observers stood back to assess a series of statements pasted on the wall by artist Vernon Ah Kee. His 2002 work, If I Was White, relays his experience as an Aboriginal Australian man in his own country: “If I was White I could wear a suit and tie and not look suspicious. If I was White I could shop in luxury stores and not look suspicious.”…

Over three decades of his movie career, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s boyish charm, twinkling eyes and dimpled smile have become synonymous with charming romantic heroes he’s best known for playing. This year, he’s returned to the screen transformed – a rugged, action star. In a scene from his latest film Jawan, a bald-headed, menacing Khan is seen surrounded by terrified passengers as he holds a metro train hostage. He soon bursts into song and dance, much to the confusion of his captives. The film’s trailer had warned audiences: “When I become a villain, no hero stands a chance.” Khan,…

Researchers have developed gene-edited chickens that are partially resistant to bird flu. Although the birds are not completely immune, the scientists say their work shows it might be possible to block the virus in three years. The latest results suggest that making further changes to the birds’ DNA could produce fully immune chickens. Critics say gene editing tackles the symptoms of high-density farming rather than the root cause of animal diseases. Professor Helen Sang, of the the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute, said the team had made significant progress. “We have got to the point where the results are very…

Securing direct flights from Israel to the UK has become increasingly difficult with more airlines cancelling flights after the Hamas attacks. Virgin is now operating one flight to and from Tel Aviv a day instead of two and BA is flying one round trip. EasyJet, Ryanair, Wizz Air, Air France, Lufthansa and Emirates have suspended flights from Israel into the UK. One travel agent said he been “inundated” with calls from people trying to get flights back to the UK. Jeremy Segel, director of West End Travel, which specialises in trips to Israel, said many flights were booked up with…

Matty Healy has defended kissing his bandmate onstage in Malaysia in a 10-minute speech delivered at a 1975 concert in Dallas, Texas. Healy told fans he had been told not to talk about the incident, then read a pre-prepared speech from his phone. He addressed criticism of his conduct at the Malaysian festival, during which he attacked the country’s anti-LGBT laws then kissed his bandmate. The Malaysian government cancelled the rest of the event after the incident. The organisers of Good Vibes Festival later demanded compensation from The 1975, and some LGBT Malaysians criticised Healy, saying his actions displayed a “white saviour complex”. Defending the…

A Kenyan publisher has withdrawn a school book that included a drawing depicting Prophet Muhammad following an outcry by Muslim leaders and parents. They complained that it was blasphemous to draw the prophet and to ask pupils to colour in the illustration. Mentor Publishing Company said it regretted the “grave” mistake in the book on Islamic studies for pupils in the second year of primary school. About 11% of Kenyans are Muslims, the second largest religious group. Depictions of the Prophet Muhammad can cause serious offence to Muslims, with most of Islamic religious leaders saying that tradition explicitly forbids images…

There is no evidence that the diploma Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu submitted to the country’s electoral commission was forged, the BBC’s Global Disinformation Team has found. Allegations that President Tinubu’s certificates were faked went viral on social media following the release by Chicago State University (CSU) of his academic records last week. We have looked at some of the most widely circulated claims. The release of the president’s academic documents is the culmination of a judicial case filed in August by one of his main rivals in February’s presidential election, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Mr…

German sandal maker Birkenstock has spent decades convincing shoppers that what might appear, at first glance, unattractive is actually desirable. The extent of that power will now be put to the test on Wall Street, as its shares are set to start trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The initial public offering priced the shares at $46 per share, valuing the company at roughly $8.6bn (£7.08bn). That is double what it was worth less than three years ago. But is there more room to grow? The company, which traces its roots to an 18th Century cobbler, found its first…

A picture of a mysterious and other-worldly horseshoe crab has earned Laurent Ballesta the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPY) 2023. The golden marine arthropod is seen hugging the bottom muds in waters off Pangatalan Island, in the Philippines. It is tracked by three small fish, hoping the crab’s movements will expose an opportunistic meal in the sediment. Ballesta becomes only the second photographer in WPY’s 59-year history to win the competition twice. In 2021, he was awarded the grand prize for capturing a trio of groupers in the act of spawning. The photographer and marine biologist was…